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recreancyrpg · 2 years ago

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THE DEBRIEFING.

An emergency meeting is called at midnight, at the cusp of June 25th to debrief about the botched mission. They have a spy — they know this already, but it’s more than evident now. Someone leaked this information to the Death Eaters.

A voice comes from the back. A haughty drawl from none other than the youngest Black sibling. You've overlooked the obvious. Not a surprise, I know, but I didn't expect to think for you all again. If you're this worried about spies, stop being so fussy about personal privacy or whatever it is you’re dithering over and make everyone show their forearms, Regulus scoffs, and the members of the Order give one another confused stares.

Regulus explains about the Dark Marks that Voldemort places on his most trusted followers and any spy will thus surely have one. Eyes go to Severus, questioning. Severus confirms what Regulus is saying, claiming he did not share this prior because Dumbledore has his reasons. He shows his forearm — a pale skull with a serpent tongue rests there. Severus explains how it works for Voldemort to call his followers to him.

Alastor and Hestia send for Theodosia from the infirmary. The same symbol rests against her skin. She’s allowed to return to the infirmary. Much chatter ensues — arguments, frustration, exhaustion — but, soon, each member shows their forearm. No other member has a visible Dark Mark. The Order is left back where they started — with a spy they don’t know, one step behind the Death Eaters.

To end the meeting, each Team Lead gives their reports. The meeting concludes around two in the morning.

FIELD REPORTS.

Team London, led by Wila Travers.

Prior to the explosion, Edgar and Nicky were stationed in the orchard in the back and Wila and Lily were stationed in the front. Xenophilius joined them in the front. There was no sign of trouble. The explosion happened at approximately 12:03 pm. The exact location could not be pinpointed, but it was very near the Pierce home. It completely destroyed the street, along with several homes.

Nicky and Edgar sustained minor injuries: Nicky a concussion after being blow from a tree; Edgar a minor wound on his side that later reopened and became more severe upon Apparating to headquarters. Xeno was blown back from the blast and sustained a concussion and other minor wounds. Wila suffered a broken wrist and cuts and bruises. Lily was critically injured after being blown into a car. She survived, but is still being observed in the infirmary.

Wila sent Edgar, Xeno, and Lily back to headquarters to be seen by the healers, and sent Nicky to find Regulus and Marlene, who had arrived as back up. They were tasked with finding as many muggles as they possibly could to help. The three of them passed on the story that a gas main had exploded and they helped as many muggles as they possibly could.

Wila met up with Ted, who was there working for the Ministry, on the scene of the explosion and Ted informed her that official cover-up story is a burst pipe. The news will be covering the story in the morning. They were able to locate Wilma’s family in the Pierce house and bring them to Muggle police.

Wila reports on how well her team did in the face of all of the chaos that surrounded them. They handled the change in team lead and the emergency planning meeting, along with the fallout of the explosion. The team members that were injured in the explosion all wanted to stay and continue helping the muggles, but Wila sent the most injured back for healing.

Team Liverpool, led by Gideon Prewett.

The Death Eaters approached Liverpool just after noon, as expected. However, there were more of them than anticipated. Severus, Theodosia, Alastor, and Gideon distracted the Death Eaters and drew them away before engaging in battle. Alastor and Theo sustained larger injuries. Gideon and Severus sustained minor injuries. The team was able to make their exit to the safe house, with Severus supporting Theo to the infirmary at headquarters.

Reggie and Lucinda went to the house for the family. They were held with a knife to Reggie’s throat before Lucinda called Remus for back-up. Upon his arrival, they were successful in getting the family, including an infant child, to the safe house using their portkey. The trial run with the amulets worked well.

Team York, led by Peter Pettigrew.

The team began split into two with Peter and Gwen at the top of the hill and James and Amelia near the house when dementors approached just after noon. James called headquarters for back up and Robyn and Andromeda joined them. James found Peter, while Robyn found Amelia. Andromeda and Gwen were tasked with getting out the family. This was successful with minor set backs where Andromeda had to return for one member. She was splinched upon arrival back to headquarters, but was healed and discharged.

Robyn reports that she approves of James’ focus on finding Peter when it was clear he'd be at a disadvantage, but tempers that praise with a note about failing to inform Amelia of what he was doing when he ran off. She also praises Amelia for staying cool and in control under pressure. She notes personal concerns about Dementors slipping away from Azkaban and the potential implications that could have on a broader scale, with recommendations on remedial Patronus lessons for all Order members in case they are an ongoing threat on future missions. In the meantime, she advises all Order members be made aware of the Patronus status of their teammates going forward. Andromeda backs up this notion with colorful swear words.

Amelia has requested to not be paired up with James again after he left her in the lurch, while Andromeda reports that Gwen was very helpful in getting her to the infirmary after splinching. She is worried about Gwen’s safety on the field. Gwen praises Peter for his leadership, James seconds.

It is noted to the Order members that James’ patronus has changed to a dragon.

Team Wiltshire, led by Alice Longbottom.

Upon their arrival, Emma triggered a trap on the property of the farm, which was no doubt put there by Death Eaters after the Order’s plans were leaked. Alice inferred there would be more traps and warned the group, splitting them into teams of two to search for and disarm the rest. Dorcas and Emma took one side of the farm, while Sirius and Fletch took the other. They believe they were able to find all traps and successfully dismantle them. Dorcas, Emma, and Fletch sustained minor injuries from the traps.

Right around noon, the final trap was set off and Fiendfyre encircled the farmhouse, with Dorcas on the inside of the ring nearest the house. Alice and Emma were able to make their way across the fire with minimal damage. A patronus was sent to HQ for back up and Dirk arrived for support. Alice praises Dirk for his quick thinking to contain the fire and the group began to work as one to do so. Frank arrived on the scene, bringing news of the incantation to reverse Fiendfyre. They were successful in clearing the area of fire, although damage was done to the property.

Alice checked in on the family, who were safely inside, and did likely see the spellcasting. She reports to Ted that the Ministry may need to get involved, as the team left quickly once Muggle authorities arrived. Dirk and Dorcas called them firefighters. Dirk reports concern over Fiendfyre’s lifelike ability to adapt, change, and target individuals. He requests more studying to be done on the subject, in case they run into this again.

Burns and smoke inhalation were sustained by every member of the group, with Alice having the worse of the burns (though not severe) and Dirk having the worst of the smoke damage to his lungs. Alice and Dirk were also affected by temporary magical draining from using patronuses too near the fiendfyre, although as yet no Order members are aware of this effect. All members were treated at the infirmary and cleared. Alice expresses (somewhat surprised) pleasure with how well the whole team dealt with the unexpected (and deadly) events with a particular focus on how well members looked out for one another in the face of danger.

HEADQUARTER REPORTS.

Infirmary, report given by Evan Rosier.

Evan gives a shoutout to everyone since no one died. With that said, Lily and Theo will be spending the night in the infirmary for overnight observation. Severus will assist in overnight monitoring.

He requests a bigger space for the infirmary. One room, along with a makeshift morgue, is not enough space if more than two people need to be observed overnight or longer. Death Eaters are upping their game and he has no issue with upping his, but cramped spaces aren’t going to cut it for mass injuries. This request is granted by Gideon and magical construction can begin in the morning.

Evan forces everyone into a lecture to discuss what “minor injury” and “I’m/it’s fine” means. For future missions, he requests avoidance of black/navy blue outfits for the sake of people being able to tell if they’re injured before getting back to HQ. He understands this could change for covert operations.

He praises Emmeline for being in her element and keeping her cool throughout the entirety of the healing support. Remus, Robyn, and Daisy get shoutouts for stepping in to assist. At the team’s request, please assign Robyn someone to practice her mummification skills on after each mission. (They need a source of entertainment to lighten up the somber mood.)

Evan would like better warnings on who he is getting for team members since scrambling to try to figure stuff out is not an ideal. There was some confusion among the additional pre-mission staff as to why they were put there in the first place. It is not a helpful for anyone if Evan doesn’t know what to do with them and people don’t know why they were assigned to him in the first place. He also requests that people not assume he’ll hit it off with someone purely because they’re both purebloods.

Finally, James is temporarily banned from the infirmary. This is non-negotiable.

Strategy and Field Operations, report given by Hestia Jones.

Hestia begins her report by giving specific commendations. Daisy did some excellent work in both headquarters and the infirmary. Pandora was a necessary assistant to headquarters. Dirk did well with the fieldwork. Gwen’s work exceeded expectations. Peter led his team against the absolute unexpected with aplomb. Good work, as usual. Alice continues to kick ass. Gideon held his own in the field against unfair odds. Great work. Edgar brought a level of know-how well above his level. Brilliant job. Emmeline continues to show incredible promise as a healer. Wila showed exemplary leadership skills on the field. James managed himself well on the field.

She is proud of the Order’s teamwork and ability to keep all the families safe. Despite the challenges, they completed their objective. She has plans to discuss concerns with individual members privately, but appreciates the reports given tonight. Some members should be prepared to be called into a meeting with her and Alastor later this week if concerns need to be discussed.

She also reports on possible changes to be discussed later:

Daisy optioned for possible assistant work for team leadership/infirmary.

Frank has made a full recovery and is back on the roster.

Wila to be optioned for more frequent team leadership/possible First Level promotion.

Dirk to be optioned for field work slightly more often.

Gwen given Third Level field work status.

Gideon officially reinstated as Team Lead.

Edgar to be optioned for Second Level field work status, a promotion.

James’ request for leadership is still under advisement and will continued to be monitored based on performance. The infirmary ban is supported.

Concerns (Note: These were not shared with the group, but have been discussed with Alastor and these members may be called in for a meeting or plotted with by players):

Regulus may need to be kept on a shorter leash regarding his leg. Will be monitored. He may be optioned for field work less frequently or given easier mission work due to mobility.

Emma will be further monitored regarding field missions. She may not be ready.

Lily will be monitored based on her injuries. She is expected to make a full recovery.

Theodosia will be monitored based on her injuries. She is expected to make a full recovery.

Severus engaged in an altercation in the infirmary post-field. To be discussed.

James engaged in an altercation in the infirmary post-field. To be discussed.

Strategy and Field Operations, report given by Alastor Moody.

Alastor also begins with specific praise for each team. For Team London, despite the fact that they literally had shit blow-up in their faces and numerous members injured, not only did Wila keep a level head and get her team out safely, she was also able to get the Pierce family out with no harm done to them. For Team Liverpool, Alastor notes that each member held their own well against the Death Eaters that showed up. Reggie and Lucinda both acted professional and calm despite the weapon held on them, and were able to gain the family's trust to remove them safely.

For Team York, a job well done, but a mild suggestion to check that all team members are with the group at mission's end to ensure members do not need to return to a possibly hostile area. Peter led well, however, during the dementor attack and his team aided one another well beyond this concern. For Team Wiltshire, being put up against Fiendfyre is no easy task and each member of Alice's team conducted themselves exceptionally in the face of injuries, traps, and the fire itself. They ensured not only one another's safety, but the family's too. A job well done.

Concerns (Note: These were not shared with the group, but have been discussed with Hestia and these members may be called in for a meeting or plotted with by players):

Regulus' mobility does not mean he cannot go out into the field, just that they should check what his limitations are. Concerned with phrasing of said concern, and suggests that they bring Regulus in to discuss the matter soon rather than make it a blanket statement. (Vetos)

Emma’s monitoring is fine, but again ask. Provide reasons why she may not be ready, rather than assume so. (Approves with suggestions)

Wishes to discuss Edgar's promotion further. Would like to see him do more work with another lead before being given said promotion. He did well in this mission, yes, but should not be just held to one thing and given an expectation for growth and a place to make mistakes where people won't die if he messes up (Neutral with suggestions)

Would like to add that a shift should be put into place so Lily and Theodosia may be monitored and not burden Evan or Emmeline overly much in the aftermath of the mission. Let them rest. Asks for volunteers to take overnight shift for the evening. Ted, Remus, and Gwen volunteer. Severus will also remain in the infirmary. (Neutral)

Agrees that Severus and James should both be pulled aside, most possibly separately, for their discussions. Alastor does not want to break up a school yard fight and have to send them to time out. (Approves with suggestions)

DETAILS.

You may begin threads set June 25th and after. Feel free to react to the debriefing mission in your threads or set paras on same night.

Theo Sewlyn was able to communicate with Voldemort after returning to the infirmary and he was able to make the Dark Marks invisible, which is how our other spies stayed undiscovered. After the debriefing meeting, spies will notice their Dark Marks returning even darker than before — a sign from the Dark Lord that he owns them.

Not present at the meeting: Emmeline (stayed in the infirmary while Evan went as Lead), Lily (unconscious), Theo (overnight observation; she attends briefly at the beginning when requested to confirm Dark Mark information).

As always, all existing threads are allowed to be continued, no matter the date set. If you are dropping threads, please provide a short closing summary.

#marauders roleplay #harry potter rp #harry potter roleplay #harry potter rpg #marauders rp #recreancyplot #recreancyevent

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wil-is-done · 2 years ago

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When You’re A Mystery Kid - Chapter 36B: Assault on the Fearamid - Part 2

Summary: At summer’s end, there was a storm, one that even the demon fears. (Warning for graphic violence)

Word Count: 12.355

IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a repost.

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters featured here.

“Bill’s coming!”

Lili’s scream echoed off of the walls of the massive chamber, louder than the bickering group at the chamber’s center, and immediately silenced them all. She took off in a sprint towards them, Raz only a split second behind. He looked over his shoulder as he ran, at the gaping entrance he left behind. Bill had not appeared through it just yet, but he knew they only had maybe seconds at most before Bill arrives.

The lingering pain at the back of his head began to grow stronger. They might have even less time than he thought. “Everyone, run!” Raz yelled. “We need to get out of here!”

The group spent a moment frozen, their eyes slowly widening, gears turning in their heads as the realization of what’s happening dawned on them.

Coraline was the first of them to break out of their reverie. “You heard him!” she barked, pointing a finger towards a grand doorway leading deeper inside the Fearamid. “We gotta move!”

That managed to break the rest of the group from their stupor. They scrambled, stumbling and tripping over themselves, towards the doorway that Coraline pointed to. It was all a chaotic blur of people and movement. Dipper picked up a discarded paint spray can as he ran. Mabel had her grappling hook in one hand and Pacifica’s hand in another. Norman stayed in place for a second longer than the others, his palms turning into fists, before he followed the others. Coraline made sure everyone was on the move before she herself started running. As Raz ran, he spotted a circle of symbols from the corner of his eye, surrounding an image of Bill.

Raz and Lili finally caught up to Coraline, who stayed at the back of the group.

“What do we do now?” he asked, desperate, through panting breath, to Coraline.

“There’s a ritual that can stop Bill. We need Stan, Ford, Wendy, Soos, Robbie, McGucket, Gideon, Pacifica, Mabel, and Dipper to do it.” The determination and resolve that burned in Coraline’s eyes was almost scary to see. “We have to protect them, at all costs.”

Raz nodded resolutely. His eyes narrowed at the ten people running in front of him. He’d done escort missions before. He knew how this worked. Ten people to protect. Ten people that holds the key to saving the world. Ten people he’s prepared to die for, if needed.

He felt a sharp spike of pain at the back of his head just as he, Lili and Coraline passed through the doorway. The entire structure rumbled, and he could’ve sworn the floor began shifting. That could only mean one thing.

Bill’s here.

“You dirt walkers are trying to do a little ritual here, huh?” Bill’s voice sounds like it came from everywhere. Not like an echo, it was as if he spoke through the floor and walls and ceiling. “Tell you what; call it off and I promise I’ll only make you all suffer for a few millennia!”

Raz heard someone yelping, and even a few quiet whimpers, but they all kept running. He glanced back; the hallway behind them was still empty. It won’t stay that way for long.

“We need to find a place to try the ritual again!” Dipper’s voice came from the front of the group.

“And the time!” Wybie shrieked back. “We won’t be getting neither with Bill right on our asses!”

A terrible plan took form in his mind. Raz’s face darkened. He skidded to a halt. Lili immediately stopped next to him, joined by Coraline, then Wybie, until everyone stopped in their tracks, their attention focused on Raz.

“Raz?” Coraline’s eyes narrowed. He knew she knew what he had planned.

Raz stared each and every one of them in the eye, putting on the bravest face he could muster. “You’re on your own for the place, but I can give you the time.”

They reacted with gasps, refusals, and unadulterated horror.

“Raz, you can’t, we have to-!”

“No, no way, not in a million-!”

“That’s suicide, Bill’s not going-!”

“Don’t even try,” Raz replied succinctly, cutting them off. “Just go.”

They didn’t leave, at first, but the look on Raz’s face made it clear that he made his mind. There was nothing they could say that would dissuade him. One by one, they slowly turned on their heels and ran off ahead. The Mystery Kids was the last ones to leave, and among them, Lili and Coraline were the ones that stayed the longest.

“Kick his pointy ass for me.” Coraline gave him one last smirk, before she spun around and sprinted off to rejoin the others.

Now, the only ones left were himself and Lili.

“Lili…” Raz began.

Lili raised a hand. “Don’t even try.”

Raz couldn’t help but smile. It was stupid of him to even to try to get Lili to leave. Not to mention, rather hypocritical.

His smile didn’t last long, fading as he turned to stare down the long hallway behind him. Beside him, Lili did the same, her expression grim and determined. The rumbling of the walls, the shifting of the floor, the throbbing pain in his head; they’re all getting stronger.

Lili shifted her stance, bringing a finger up to her forehead. “We don’t stand a chance.”

“No.” Orange psychic energy pulsed to life from Raz’s taut fists. “No, we don’t.”

When Bill appeared, the pain skyrocketed. Raz’s knees nearly buckled. His vision blurred and shifted, it took everything in him to keep his focus. Just looking at Bill hurts, in more ways than one.

Bill floated forward, closing in on Raz and Lili. He looked amused. “Goggles and lily pad! Planning on giving up?” He glared, and Raz heard Lili hissing, holding back a scream. “If you do, I’ll be nice and use your skin for my new curtains! Don’t worry; I’ll make sure you’re alive and conscious for the entire process!”

“Human skin… is a terrible match… for the aesthetic of this place.” Raz forced a grin through gritted teeth. It probably wasn’t the best idea to devote what remained of his brain power for snappy comebacks, but then again, none of his decisions today were particularly smart.

“Wait, you’re fighting back?” Bill burst out into laughter. “That’s idiotic, even by the standards of three dimensional beings with overdosed minds like you!”

Raz gave Lili the tiniest of glances. On my signal…

“Sure, we might be idiotic three dimensional beings with overdosed minds,” the pulsing energy in his fists grew stronger, larger, swelling beyond the limits of what he knew was safe, “but we are idiotic three dimensional beings with overdosed minds that’s going to take! You! Down!”

Now!

Raz held both hands out, Lili extending out one. Two massive orbs of orange and pink-ish energy, each one larger than him, shot out from their palms. The knockback was enough to send the two skidding back a few inches. The orbs sailed through the air with a booming roar. Bill’s single eye widened in surprise.

“What the-?!”

Both orbs struck Bill square in his eye, the blast massive and deafening, Bill reeling back by a few feet. The entire structure shook, the corridor suddenly bathed in a kaleidoscope of orange and pink lights, almost blindingly so. Raz and Lili had to shield their eyes from the light and the sheer force of the blast.

“My eye!” Bill screamed out, clutching his eye. “Cheap shot, you psychic inbreds!”

No time to waste. Lili threw her hands in the air, eyes tightly shut, her brows furrowing in exertion. Bits of stone from the floor, walls, and ceiling was ripped out, flying to a central point above Lili’s head. Raz felt the intense heat of Lili’s pyrokinesis, and witnessed as the gathered stone bits began to melt, coalescing into a ball of molten rock, growing larger and larger as more material flew up to join it.

“Cover me,” Lili whispered through gritted teeth.

Raz nodded with a grunt. He sprinted off straight towards Bill, peppering him with small blasts of psychic energy. With Bill still reeling, he was oblivious to the growing ball of molten rock, and each blast Raz shot made sure to keep it that way. Raz easily slid under the distracted Bill, firing off a couple more psi-blasts for good measure, breaking off into a sprint again on the other side. Bill finally recovered with a grumble about his eye hurting. He quickly spun around and fired off a wave of blue flame. A levitation ball bounced Raz above the wave of searing, cerulean flame. Summoning a psychic platform beneath his feet, he used it to launch himself back at Bill. Twirling in midair, a massive, ethereal fist came to form behind Raz. He swung his fist with a battle cry, the ethereal fist flying past him, aimed straight at Bill. The fist struck Bill’s eye, impacting with a resounding, satisfying thud. Bill reeled, and Raz grinned.

Down below, seeing her chance, Lili hurled her molten boulder with a grunt of exertion. Bill remained oblivious. Raz’s grin grew wider.

Suddenly, Bill’s eye flitted left, finally noticing the molten boulder. A new arm suddenly sprouted out of his body, rushing towards Raz, rushing far too fast for Raz to react. Dark fingers clamped down tight around Raz, pinning his arms against his sides. Raz bit back a cry of pain from its crushing grip. He barely had time to even attempt an escape before Bill’s arm abruptly sent him swinging through the air towards, in Raz’s horrified realization, the path of the molten boulder. In that split second before impact, Raz hastily threw up a barrier around himself, and braced.

The impact was overwhelming. The pain was overwhelming. It was crushing, searing, melting, pulverizing, all at the same time. His vision shifted back and forth between complete darkness and a blur of shapes and colors, and it took everything in him to not succumb, to hang on to that colorful haze. His ears were ringing, so loud he thought his eardrums might burst, but distantly he could still hear the sickening crunch of something breaking, the sizzling of clothes burning, Bill’s booming laughter, and even more distant than all that, the sound of Lili’s horrified screams.

Raz felt another impact, this time not nearly as bad the first one. Some distant corner of his mind still had enough clarity for him to realize that he’s now lying face down on the ground. The appeal of succumbing, of letting it all go, has never been as strong, and it continued to grow stronger by the moment.

“Raz!”

Lili’s scream reached him once again, but only barely. It was followed a cry of panic. A cry of fear.

Something stirred within Raz. Something that pushed him to crack his eyes open.

All he saw was a blur, at first, but everything slowly came to focus as the moments ticked by. He saw Lili, standing closer than he thought she would be. She held an arm out, desperately reaching for Raz. Tears were streaming down her face. He had never seen her look so afraid before. Raz drew a strained gasp when he realized why.

Her legs had been turned to wood. Her feet turned to roots, stuck into the floor. The transformation slowly continued to spread upwards, past her hips and up to her stomach. Bill floated behind her. There was a sick sense of amusement in his eye.

“Irony is my eighth favorite form of humor!”

Bill laughed again. Lili sobbed. All Raz could do was watch.

“Raz, please, hold my hand, please,” she begged, the transformation spreading past her chest, “Raz, don’t let me go, I don’t wanna go, please, Raz, please.”

Raz raised his hand and held it out to Lili with all the strength left in him, but it wasn’t enough. Her fingertips were so maddeningly, frustratingly close to his. He couldn’t muster the strength to close the distance. When her begging stopped, her sobs ceased, and she became deathly silent, her wooden fingers were only inches away from his reach.

Raz’s hand dropped lifelessly to the ground. He choked and sobbed, hot tears streaming down his face.

“Oh, boo hoo, kid. It’s only permanent if I want it to.” Bill turned around and began to float away from Raz. “Don’t bother getting up. I can make things worse for you.”

The sight of Bill leaving, so indifferently, so nonchalantly, after what he did; it set something off within Raz. Something in him snapped, and he felt anger like he never felt it before. He had no idea how it was possible, or where he got the strength to do it, but he suddenly found himself barely standing on two feet, his fist faintly pulsing with energy.

“Bill!” Raz’s voice echoed throughout the cavernous hallway. Bill stopped moving away. He didn’t turn to face Raz.

Raz took one step forward, and stumbled. Raz took another step, and tripped. With every step he took, it threatened to send him crashing to his knees, but he didn’t care. He didn’t care that the energy pulsing from his fist fizzled out about five steps ago. All he cared about was Lili, and Bill, and how good the demon would look after Raz had beaten the shit out of him.

In desperation and rage, Raz raised a hand, ready to fire.

Bill spun around. He glared.

Pain flooded Raz’s senses. It felt like a thousand needles were piercing his skull, like two mountains were pressing against his head, like his skull was set aflame with the fires of Hell. His jaw stretched open in a silent scream. He dropped to his knees, and would have fallen flat on the floor if he didn’t catch himself, his arms barely holding himself up. Something wet, something warm, dripped out of his nostrils, then dripped out of his eyes, then dripped out of his ears and mouth. A pool of red began to form underneath him.

He could still hear Bill’s voice, mocking him.

“Look at you! I’m barely doing anything and you’re already leaking human juice from all your face holes!”

Raz had no response. He couldn’t think of any. His mind was a blank, empty of everything except for the pain.

“You’re never getting up from that, goggles.” The floor all around him shifted. “But here’s to make sure.”

Water burst out of the floor. It rose to the air before the flow bent and curled, forming a dome around Raz, tightly closing in upon him. Raz let himself collapse to the floor. His eyelids lowered and closed. He tucked his knees against his chest. He had succumbed. Bill left without uttering another word.

He had no idea how long he laid there, curled into himself, when he felt something wet tickling his back, the tips of his hair, and the soles of his shoes. He didn’t even have to open his eyes to know what’s happening.

The dome was shrinking.

“Turn right over here!”

Coraline’s voice was confident and unwavering; the group following her directions without question, taking a blind right turn in the ever-increasingly mazelike corridors of the Fearamid. Her features were etched into a mask of undaunted bravery, but even then, she still found herself shooting looks over her shoulders more than once. That loud boom earlier that rocked the entire structure; no doubt that that was because of Raz and Lili. She just hoped it turned out to be a good sign.

That right turn eventually led to the group passing under a massive doorway and emerging into an equally massive, barren room. Besides chunks of rubble, there was practically nothing to speak of in it; no furniture, no windows, no way forward.

“Oh no, dead end!” Mabel wailed. Panic was quick to swell among the group. After all, turning back was certainly too risky of an option to take.

Coraline’s eyes scanned the room closely. In spite of, or perhaps because of, her desperation, her eyes caught a glimpse of something in the far corner of the room. “Over there!” she shouted.

Coraline led the group as they flocked towards it. As they got closer, it became clear that what caught Coraline’s eye was a doorway. A normal, human-sized doorway, unlike the gigantic ones she had encountered before, that had almost entirely collapsed in on itself, but it still had just enough space for people to crawl under.

“Come on, everyone. Through here.” Coraline stepped forward and did her best to lift the collapsed parts of the doorway to create just the slightest bit more space for the others to pass through. Mabel and Wendy came up beside her and helped her with the deed. Without further prompting, one by one they crawled under the doorway, starting with Gideon, then Robbie, and so on. The Mystery Kids were the last ones to pass through, and Coraline made sure she was the last one to do it. She took a glance behind her for a moment, her eyes darting left and right for any sign of Bill or his ilk, before she swiftly ducked under the doorway.

The room beyond was rather similar to the room before in some aspects; namely that it had scarcely anything but rubble in it, it had no windows, and no other doorways forward. What was different about the room was how small it was compared to all the chambers and hallways she’d seen in the Fearamid. The height of the ceiling was about the same height as a normal room, and even the rubble here was smaller. This room was basically the Fearamid’s equivalent of a crawlspace. Despite that, it still had more than enough room for the rather large group.

Neil stepped up into the center of the room and looked around. “Hate to say it, but I feel like this room is about as safe as it gets,” he said.

“He’s right.” Coraline wasn’t exactly happy with it, but her feelings weren’t important right now. “We’ll hole up here, try the ritual again. Hopefully this time no one’s gonna mess it up.” She didn’t even bother with subtlety when she sent a glare to both Stan and Ford.

“Sounds like a plan.” Dipper nodded. He walked up to Ford, holding out a spray paint canister. “Great uncle Ford?”

Ford didn’t take the canister immediately, not at first. He was still wilting under Coraline’s glare. When he did accept the canister, he did so without as much as a whisper.

Coraline threw her gaze to the side and silently scoffed. Good.

Ford was quick to busy himself with recreating the required ritual circle from earlier in the center of the room. The other nine spoken of in the prophecy stood around in a circle, anxiously waiting until the mystical circle was finished. The rest of the Mystery Kids mostly paced around the room nervously. Coraline knelt by the entrance of the room, her eyes flitting between Ford working on the circle and the room outside.

Ford barely managed to draw a circle when a voice echoed down the hallway and into the room.

“Organ bags! Come out, come out, wherever you are!”

Coraline’s blood ran cold. It was as if time itself froze inside that room. Everyone stopped in their tracks, even Ford, looking like a deer in the headlights.

“Keep drawing!” Coraline snapped at him. He did so immediately.

“Th-that was… was Bill,” Wybie stuttered. The horror in his eyes was all too palpable. “Raz and Lili…”

Coraline tightened her palms into fists. As if the air in the room wasn’t grim already. Dipper wrapped his arms around himself, shaking his head. Mabel had her hands covering her mouth, trying her best to choke back her sobs. Neil collapsed against the wall, clutching his head in his hands. Norman stood almost deathly still in the corner. Coraline had to shut her eyes as tightly as she could. This was no time for tears. Not for her.

She opened her eyes and stared out into the room and hallway before. She just had a grim realization. “We need more time,” she stated, simply.

She wasn’t surprised when Norman immediately spoke up. “Coraline. No.”

“What other choice do we have?!” Coraline rose up to her full height, drew her mace, and gripped the weapon tight. “I’m stepping out there and buying you guys time. None of you can stop me.”

To her relief, no one actually took her up on that. However, when Wendy broke away from the circle, her brows furrowed and her axe in hand, Coraline raised her guard.

“Don’t even try, Corduroy.”

“I’m not.” Wendy raised her axe up to Coraline, handle-first. “I just thought you needed this more than I do.”

There was a beat, a moment, where Coraline simply stared dumbfounded at the offered axe. When that moment ended, she readily accepted the axe with her left hand and gave Wendy an appreciative smile. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Stan breaking away from the circle too, opening his mouth to speak. Coraline’s smile disappeared.

“Look, kid, before you go through with this stupid idea, you gotta-”

“No, you shut the fuck up!”

Coraline’s words were ringing, cutting cleanly across the air.

“You think you still have a say in this?! Two of my best friends might be dead, all because you two ancient, idiotic troglodytes can’t keep your hate boners in check for five fucking seconds! We could’ve-!”

Coraline held herself back from saying any more. Her eyes were starting to water.

“Just do us all a favor, and don’t fuck it up again,” she finished. Stan retreated back to the circle without another word. Not that he needed to say anything; the chastised look on his face spoke louder than words.

Coraline casted one last glance to everyone in the room, to her best friends, to the people she’s fond of, to the people she once hated, and to the people that now kind of hate. She turned, walking closer to the collapsed doorway. She paused when she realized Wybie was following closely behind her.

Coraline sighed. “Wybie. I know you know what I meant.”

“Then you’re not taking a step outside of this room.” The boldness in his voice and the finality in his tone were unlike anything she’d ever heard from him before.

Coraline spared him a glance over her shoulder. “And you’re gonna stop me?”

“I’m… gonna try.”

That’s rather impressive, she had to admit. Annoying, but impressive. Coraline set aside both of her weapons for a moment. She turned on her heels to face Wybie, finally. His brows were knit into a glare, his hands balled into fists, genuinely looking ready to do his damnedest to stop her. Gently, Coraline approached him, gingerly placing both of her hands on his shoulders. Wybie’s eyes flitted between them with a nervous glint. She grew closer and closer still, until their faces were only inches from each other, and she could feel his warm breath tickling her lips. Wybie’s eyes were wide with surprise. Coraline’s eyes were closed out of guilt.

“Neil, hold him back.”

A look of shock and confusion barely dawned upon Wybie when Coraline shoved him back into Neil, who immediately wrapped his arms around Wybie in a tight bear hug.

“Wha- Neil?! No, let go of me, you-!”

Coraline wasted no time. With one swift motion, she picked up both the axe and her mace and ducked through the collapsed doorway.

“No! Coraline, please, you can’t do this! He’s going to kill you, you crazy-!”

Coraline didn’t hear the rest of what Wybie said. She was already in a full sprint going down the corridor.

Coraline briefly wondered how long it would be until she encountered Bill, and what she would do when that happened. She didn’t wonder for long. After only three right turns and two left turns, she skidded to a halt. For a moment, she tensed, her knees suddenly weak, chills running down her spine. Another moment, she shook off her doubts and pushed down her fears, and held her weapons at the ready. There, floating at the far end of the corridor, was Bill Cipher.

Bill, from what she could tell, looked pleasantly surprised to meet her. “Doll face! Let me guess, defiant to the end?”

Coraline didn’t bother gracing that with an answer. She took off in a sprint, full speed, her mace and axe bared and eager to rip a demon to pieces.

“Oh, there it is! Hilarious!” Bill’s single eye turned into a deep crimson color. “Or it would be, if it’s not getting increasingly annoying!”

Bill snapped his fingers, the sound resoundingly reverberating off of the walls. A deep rumble shook the corridor, giving Coraline pause in her advance. There was a sudden sound of stone grinding against stone, and Coraline watched wide-eyed, as an entire section of the corridor began to rotate clockwise. Another rough grinding noise, a different section of the corridor beginning to rotate, this time counter-clockwise. Three more sections rotating clockwise, four more rotating opposite, on and on until the entire length of the corridor was transformed into an ever-shifting, spinning, chaotic mess of blocks and stone. Coraline simply gritted her teeth and leapt from one section to another. There was nothing he could do to stop her from pressing forward.

That was when Bill clapped his hands.

The clap echoed louder than the snap. Coraline paused again, her eyes darting left and right for signs of something, anything, changing. Her eyes were drawn to a tile high above her that had started moving as if it was shuddering. In the blink of an eye, the tile suddenly shot downwards as a pillar in blinding speed. Coraline barely managed to move her foot only a split second before the stone pillar struck where it once was. More and more pillars shot out of the ever-changing floors, walls, and ceiling, all throughout the corridor, adding in to the cavalcade of chaotic madness before her. Not that she’s deterred, not in the slightest.

Jump. Roll. Sidestep. Vault. Leap. Slide. Both her brain and body, and the connection in-between, pushed to their limits. The smallest misstep, the tiniest miscalculation, and it could all be over in an instant. Against all odds, against the shred of doubt that gnawed at the back of her mind, she’s gaining ground. With every pillar dodged, with every platform traversed, the distance between her and Bill grew smaller. She heard another clap. Coraline doubled her speed.

A pillar shot up underneath her feet. For this, Coraline didn’t dodge. She rode it as it carried her high into the air. Guessing she’s at the correct height, Coraline launched herself off of the pillar, both her weapons gripped tight, straight at Bill.

Bill reeled, caught off guard. Coraline swung her axe. Bill swerved to the side at the very last minute.

Coraline landed with a roll. When she looked back, she saw Bill glaring at the underside of his left arm, where a small, clean cut had exposed bits of the flesh underneath.

Coraline leered up at him. “So you can bleed.”

Bill shifted his glare to her. The exposed flesh reformed itself. He spoke, his voice low and distorted.

“YOU SUDDENLY THINK YOU’RE HOT STUFF, DOLL FACE?!”

Coraline almost laughed. Despite everything, pissing Bill off felt good.

Her leer didn’t last. The ground shook and rumbled again. Her instincts screamed at her to start moving once. She leapt, and an earthen jaw clamped down on the empty air where she once was only a split second later. She barely caught her breath when she felt the ground tremble. She rolled, and a jaw rose out of the ground, missing her by inches. They were like bear traps, made from the floor itself. Coraline quickly learned to keep moving and move quickly.

At some point, it became almost like a dance. A game. One that she’s playing with Bill, where she kept winning every round, pissing off Bill more and more. She grew rather bold. Confident. Overconfident, even.

But overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer.

Coraline leapt again, but she knew she slipped, her jump not covering as much ground as it was supposed to. Something solid clamped down hard on her left leg. Her jump cut short, she fell into a crumpled heap on the floor. Her mace and axe fell out of her grip with a clatter. Even without looking back, she knew what happened. Coraline got careless, and the jaw got lucky, catching her by the foot. She tugged with all her strength, once, twice, to no avail. She remained stuck.

A shadow loomed over her. Her heart plummeted to her stomach.

A single misstep.

“Done? Can we now skip to the part where I win and you get to enjoy an existence of eternal pain?”

Coraline’s answer was to reach for her axe and chuck it as hard as she could at Bill. The weapon found its mark right in his eye, but Bill didn’t even flinch. Coraline’s heart plummeted even lower.

“You kids have a thing for being a pain in my eye, don’t you?” Bill blinked once, crushing the axe with just his eyelid. The remains clattered to a halt before Coraline’s prone form.

“Do you have any idea how powerful I am right now?! I turned this hallway into a chaos carousel with just a snap of my fingers!” Bill gestured towards the gauntlet that Coraline had just passed. “And with another snap,” he snapped his fingers again, the cavalcade of shifting stones immediately grinding to a halt, before it reverted back to a normal corridor, “I can take it all away!”

In her endless list of terrible decisions, Coraline decided to tack on one more, by putting on her biggest shit-eating grin and snickering, “Still managed to nick ya.”

Bill actually landed, the floor beneath him cracking. His eye, blood red. His voice, rumbling and distorted.

“Your worst nightmare is that sorry excuse for a demon! My finger is enough to take her place!” Bill raised a single finger. “Here. Watch.”

Coraline did watch, as the skin on that finger peeled away into a tangled mass of endless obsidian wires. Each strand was razor thin, razor sharp, glinting in the reddish light of the Fearamid. The ends of each strand suddenly solidified, morphing into metallic needles that danced in the air like snakes. Coraline was shocked out of her macabre reverie when Bill lowered his finger to point it at her. The needles shot at her, the black wires trailing eternally behind them. As they slithered closer and closer and closer, Coraline tried once more to free her trapped foot. No avail. She braced herself for the worst.

Something suddenly stepped in front of her.

No. Someone.

She only had a split second of thought, but with that ratty, black coat and matted, dark hair, she recognized who it was instantly.

“Wybie?!”

Wybie had both of his hands held out. The mass of needles and wires quickly consumed them.

“And the wrench throws itself into my plans!” Bill bellowed, annoyed and frustrated.

Any instance of Bill being annoyed would have usually attracted Coraline’s attention, but she had other things in mind right now. “Wybie, what are you doing here?! I told you to stay put!” she shrieked.

With the needles and wires still swarming his hands, Wybie screamed back over his shoulder, “And I told you you’re not doing this by yourself! I’ll always follow you, Coraline, until the ends of the… of the…”

Wybie faltered in his bold declaration, as the swarm surrounding his hands cleared, revealing that the needles and wires had literally sewn the fingers of each hand together into a single, useless limb. Coraline gasped in horror. Wybie stared at his hands, slack-jawed, too terrified to speak.

“C-Coraline…?” His low, timid whisper was barely audible, but it set something off within Coraline.

The wires weren’t finished. They pulled at his hands, pinning his arm against his sides, before it began to swarm all around his torso like rabid wasps. Once it cleared, it had stitched the length of both his arms to the sides of his torso. Even then, they weren’t finished, immediately slithering downwards towards his legs. They circled them, swarmed them, and once they were done, his legs had been fused together into one. Wybie was not prepared, teetering for a moment, before he fell to the floor with a yelp.

The mass of wires and needles still hasn’t stopped moving. It had begun to creep upwards, headed to Wybie’s face.

Wybie locked his gaze with Coraline’s. Wide eyes filled with fear met wide eyes filled with desperation. Coraline couldn’t think of anything she could do other than to plead, to yell out his name, over and over again. Wybie’s lips quivered, like he was about to say something, but he never had the chance. A needle pierced through the upper right corner of his lips, and it quick wound its way along the length of it. Within seconds, his lips had been sewn shut. A pair of needles went a bit higher, to his eyes, and before long, his eyelids had also been sewn closed. He still squirmed, he still screamed, blindly, in his grotesque bondage.

Coraline collapsed, slamming her fist against the floor in anger, in sorrow, at her own failure, quietly sobbing Wybie’s name to herself.

“Sit still, and I might just let you die.” Bill’s voice rang, distant, dispassionate. He turned, floating away from her.

Coraline didn’t even think. She was seeing red as she reached for her discarded mace and tossed it at him with all the strength she had left, screaming bloody murder all the while. The mace sailed through the air, only to come to a dead stop in midair halfway through its arc. Bill spun in place, slowly, facing her with his eye glowing red. Despite her rage, Coraline shriveled under Bill’s imposing gaze.

“You don’t know when it’s time to quit, do you?”

She heard stones cracking, and to her surprise, saw the earthen jaw that pinned her foot crumble into pieces. However, before she could utilize the opportunity, she was enveloped by a blue glow, and she felt herself lifted up to the air. She flailed frantically, trying to escape, to no avail, rising higher and higher until she was at eye level with Bill. Her mace, still floating in midair, was suddenly, effortlessly split into two. Both halves flew at her and, before she could react, each one clamped and locked themselves around her wrists. She cried when her wrists were suddenly pulled behind her, the metal meeting each other with an echoing clang. The makeshift shackles melted and joined together, leaving her hands uselessly locked behind her. The pile of rubble below her that was once the earthen jaw cracked and crumbled even further into grains of sand. A sudden gust of wind cleared the sand away and revealed, among the dark-red tiles of the Fearamid, a small door.

Coraline’s eyes widened in horrified recognition.

The small door slowly swung open with a long, whining creak, revealing a lightless, impenetrable, unending abyss, and faintly, a singsong hum of something pretending to be a human woman.

“Run along home to mommy.”

Bill’s words rang in her ears as the glow surrounding her fades, and gravity took its course. Down she went to the abyss below, to her fated destination. Fear seized her heart in a vice, cold and unrelenting. Any semblance of composure had abandoned her. Her mask of bravery, of determination and valor, long gone, discarded. She screamed. She cried. She begged. All for naught. Plunged into the abyss, to be claimed, consumed.

“Just a little doll, afraid of the dark.”

Her scream was silenced as the small door slammed shut.

Norman could’ve stopped Raz and Lili from staying behind, but he didn’t. Norman could’ve stopped Coraline from leaving the room they hunkered down in to slow Bill down, but he didn’t. Norman could’ve stopped Wybie when he broke free of Neil’s bear hug and went out after Coraline, but he didn’t. All those times when he could’ve stopped his friends, and he chose not to. All because of a strange, vague whisper at the back of his mind told him to.

And now, that whisper urged him to leave this room and confront Bill.

He nearly acted on it almost immediately. He managed to catch himself, instead casting his gaze around the room. Ford’s progress on the ritual circle was halfway complete, and all ten of the people needed for the ritual were all here, safe and sound. Logically, there was no need to step outside of this room.

Norman watched Ford as he moved to finish the lower half of Bill’s depiction, but as he pressed down on the can’s nozzle, instead of a spray of blue paint, all that came out was a hiss and empty air.

“Oh no.” Ford frantically shook the can and tried again, only to get the same result. “This can’s empty.”

There it was. The reason.

The entire structure suddenly rumbled. Tiny chunks of the ceiling broke off and fell to the floor. Norman jumped as an all-too familiar voice filled the air.

“I’m getting really tired of these distractions, Fordsy!” Bill’s voice sounded livid. “You throw one more kid at me, and I’m gonna lose it!”

That was another reason.

“What do we do now, dudes?!” Soos shouted, clutching the top of his head.

“We can still finish the circle!” Ford yelled out. “Quick, everyone search for something sharp, something that I can use to carve out the rest of the circle!”

Everyone was quick to do so, scampering towards the piles of rubble scattered around the room. Neil did so too. Norman didn’t. He had his eyes locked on the partially collapsed doorway, the only entrance and exit to this room.

“Hey, Norman, c’mon!” Norman heard Neil say. He wasn’t expecting Neil to be suddenly standing beside him. “We gotta help look!”

Norman took one last look around the room, at everyone busy scrounging through piles of rubble, then at Neil. “Neil, promise me you won’t let anyone follow me outside,” he said.

It took Neil a second to digest what Norman had said. Once he did, he didn’t take it well. “You want to-?! Norman, why would you want to do that?!”

Norman clamped a firm hand on Neil’s shoulder. “Just trust me on this. Promise?”

Neil hesitated for a moment, but he eventually gave him a steely nod. “I do. I promise.”

Norman replied with one last smile, which Neil was quick to reciprocate. As silently as he could, with everyone but Neil still preoccupied, he slipped underneath the doorway.

Emerging on the other side, he stared down the massive, barren room he’s in, and at the massive doorway where Bill would soon emerge. One step after another he took, drawing closer and closer to the center of the room. Energy flowed from his center to the tips of his fingers, first starting as a trickle, but with every step he loosened his limits more and more, until energy were surging towards his hands. Some managed to escape his control, manifesting as quick lashes of yellow that burned at the edges of his sleeves. He was only a few steps away now. Out here, he won’t hesitate.

“Wait, where’s Norman?”

Norman stopped. Even out here, Dipper’s voice still managed to reach him.

“Neil, where’s Norman?!”

Norman couldn’t afford to take the risk. Without looking back, Norman opened his palm at the doorway he emerged. A bolt of lightning left his palm, quickly followed by the sound of lighting striking and of rocks falling and crumbling. Amidst it all, he heard Dipper’s voice screaming out his name.

Norman drew a deep breath. Now he couldn’t hesitate even if he wanted to.

Three more steps, and he was at the room’s center, standing tall, fists clenched, waiting for Bill’s arrival.

The wait wasn’t long. Bill emerged from the massive doorway, his single eye already colored a vibrant crimson. He scanned the room, until his gaze met Norman’s. Norman might only be seeing what he wanted to see, but when Bill’s eye landed on him, he could’ve sworn he saw Bill flinch.

“Ghost boy,” Bill said, his tone peculiarly flat. “Where’s the rest of your little troupe?”

Norman glared up at him. “Whatever you say to me, it won’t work.”

“Not even if I say I will make the people you loved suffer the most?” Bill asked, as if that question was supposed to be a joke.

Norman’s reply was to hold out both of his hands, palms opened. “I’ve only done this a few times so far.” He changed his stance, spreading his legs to better handle the knockback, and gritted his teeth. “This is the first time I’m not sorry for using it.”

The energy surging and building towards his palms were practically fit to burst. Finally, Norman let go of his control of it, letting it all loose. A singular bolt of lightning shot out of his palms. It split the air in a flash, crackling and hissing like a cacophony of angry snakes. Bill’s eye went wide with clear, genuine fear. Hastily, in panic, he put up his arms to shield himself. The lightning bolt struck Bill’s arm with a deafening roar of thunder, and Bill… yelped.

A quick, weak yelp. Something caused by the spittle of boiling water, or a sudden shock of static in a dry day. Not by a bolt of lightning that Norman knew for a fact was the single most painful thing someone could feel. All Norman could do was stare, frozen, dumbfounded. Even Bill seemed bewildered, staring at the spot where the bolt struck his arm. His gaze moved to meet Norman’s.

“I-Is… Is that the best you can do?” Bill asked, something almost like caution clear in his tone.

Norman was too afraid to answer, because it was a yes.

His answer must have been written clear on his face, because Bill began to laugh. It started as a low, disbelieving chuckle at first, but it quickly devolved into an unrestrained, booming guffaw. Norman stared down at his palms; at what he thought was something that could stop Bill.

“Well, you sure made me feel like an idiot, kid!” Bill mocked as his laughter died down, mimicking wiping tears from his eye. He floated forward. Norman slowly backed away.

“Here I was, worrying that I’ve got a storm coming!” Bill leaned closer, close enough that Norman nearly fell over. “But you’re still just a pathetic, little spark, aren’t you, Norman?”

Despite the demon inching closer, Norman’s eyes were drawn again to his hands. There were sparks still, surging beneath the skin. “That’s… that was supposed to…”

“Supposed to what?! Hurt me? Kill me?!” Bill’s voice rocked the entire structure. His entire body changed color into dark red, his eye turning into deep black with a shining yellow pupil. “I am beyond anything you’ve ever faced, witch! There’s no hurting me, there’s no killing me, there’s no banishing me.”

That time, Norman did fall over. As he stared up with wide eyes, Bill withdrew. His composure returned to something resembling calm.

“Let’s make this easy for everyone,” he said. His hand burst into blue flame, and he pointed it at Norman. “Tell me where Ford is, and I might not kill you.”

For a split second, Norman had the urge to cast a glance at the collapsed doorway hiding the others. He easily resisted. Instead, he rose back to his feet and, though much more timidly this time, extended his hands out towards Bill. The surging energy was still there, electricity rippling across his skin. If he couldn’t defeat Bill, then he could still slow him down.

Bill sighed. He lowered his arm, the blue flame fizzling out, much to Norman’s surprise.

“Not done, huh? Fine!” Norman thought if Bill had a mouth, it would’ve cracked into a wicked grin. “Since you’re so eager, I’ll make this easier for ya! I’ll give you a bigger target!”

In the blink of an eye, and with a terrible roar, Bill transformed. The hands that took all of Norman’s courage to hold up slowly lowered themselves at the sight. A towering beast of crimson red, his body segmented by maws ringed with yellow fangs and slobbering, black tongues. Eight yellow, shining appendages sprouted from his body; six serving as his ‘hands’, two serving as his ‘legs’. His single obsidian eye, repeated three times across all four of his sides. The eye that was facing Norman narrowed down at him.

“GO ON. HIT ME.”

Something primal at the back of his mind told him to turn tail and run. Instead, what he did was hastily raise his hands back up again. Norman willed energy to surge to his fingertips.

A bolt of his lightning left his palms.

A wave of blue flame left one of Bill’s hands, massive and all-consuming.

Everything turned black.

When his senses returned, the first thing to greet him was pain all over his body and the smell of smoke. The second to greet him was a worrying numbness on his palms. The third was how he was sprawled on the Fearamid’s floor, arms splayed wide on each side. The fourth was Bill’s voice, low and distorted.

“One last time. Where. Is. Ford.”

Norman’s intent was to give Bill the middle finger, but the numbness on his hands made it hard to tell whether or not he succeeded. Although, judging from how Bill grumbled, he was hopeful that he did.

“Fine! Be that way!” Bill sounded like he was huffing. “You should know this is the second time I’ve resorted to torture today!”

Norman heard a finger snap. The earth suddenly rose and clamped down around his wrists. Norman gave it what amounted to a courtesy struggle, but it was no use. Even if he wasn’t in the state that he currently was, he had no chance of breaking free of the earthen shackles. Another snap, and the floor he laid on began to rise and straighten, until he was perpendicular to the ground, suspended by the wrists thanks to the shackles. Through the haze and pain, Norman realized, disturbingly, that the piece of the floor he was hanging from had been shaped to bear more than a passing resemblance to a cross.

“There! Just like that fake thing you humans worship!”

Norman would’ve rolled his eyes if he could. So much for subtlety.

Bill circled Norman, all four his eyes searching the barren room. “I know you can hear me, Fordsy! I know you’re seeing this!” he bellowed. “Come on, Sixer! You know I can still make it worse for this kid!”

With his head hanging low, Norman chanced a glance at the collapsed doorway. He quickly looked away when he caught sight of three pairs of eyes peeking through the tiny gaps in the rubble.

No response came. Bill fumed, while Norman smiled in silent gratitude. “Alright, fine!” From a swirl of darkness, a giant nail materialized on one of Bill’s hands. He placed the tip against the palm of Norman’s left hand. The size was immediately made apparent, the ‘small’ tip covering the entire palm. On a different hand, Bill materialized a giant hammer. “I’m giving you to the count of three! Or this,” Bill pressed the tip harder against Norman’s hand. Norman had to bite down to hold back a scream, “becomes far more historically accurate!”

Norman glanced at the collapsed doorway again. There was still no apparent response. Good.

“One!”

Norman drew a deep breath. To say that this would hurt was an understatement.

“Two!”

Bill raised his hammer. Norman resolved to try his best to hold back his scream. Out of the corner of his eye, however, he spotted a light shining through the gaps of the doorway.

“Three!”

Bill swung his hammer down. The rubble blocking the doorway began to shrink. Norman nearly cried out in horror.

“Bill!”

The hammer stopped inches from the nail. Both vanished into thin air as Bill’s eyes lit up with glee. All Norman could do was shake his head in horrified disbelief.

Dipper stood in the doorway, flashlight held out in hand. Beside him were Mabel and Neil, both trying to pull him back into the room.

“It’s us that you want, right?!” Dipper yelled out again. “Let him go!”

There was a flash. A rift. A break in reality. For a moment, Norman saw two Bills. Another moment, and Bill was suddenly floating in front of him again. In one hand, he held Dipper, and in another, was Mabel. They struggled with all the strength they had, but there was no escaping Bill’s grip.

“Finally!” Bill raised Dipper and Mabel closer to his front-facing eye. “You kids really went out of your way to make things annoying for me! The good news is that it’s finally over! Bad news is, well, none! For me!”

Bill held Dipper in front of Norman, practically waving him around like a toy. “Couldn’t resist, can you, pine tree?” he mocked.

Norman’s gaze met Dipper’s. “Why?” he whispered, barely heard.

“I’m not just gonna let him do that to you,” Dipper replied, true and genuine. In any other circumstance, Norman would have felt happiness hearing that. Dipper cried out as Bill pulled him away from Norman.

“Now!” Bill leaned in close until his eye was at arm’s length from Norman. “How should I turn you into a corpse?”

Bill lifted Dipper and Mabel to his left-facing and right-facing eyes. “Any suggestions? Pine tree, shooting star?”

“Fuck you!”

“You jerk!”

“Just kidding! I already know the answer!”

Something fell from the ceiling to dangle in the distance between Norman and Bill’s eye. Norman’s blood went cold when he realized it was a length of blackened rope, tied into a noose.

“Just like back in the day! Isn’t that right, witch?”

Norman tried one last time to put up a fight, to will energy to surge forth once more, but even that was impossible in the state he’s in. A pair of Bill’s hands moved to wrap the noose around Norman’s neck, their motions bizarrely gentle and delicate. The noose was tightened; not yet enough to squeeze, but just enough to always make its presence known. Bill stepped back with a sick sense of pride in his eye. Dipper’s struggle heightened into a frenzy, spouting incoherent screams and Norman’s name. Mabel did the same, even as she broke down and tears started streaming down her cheeks. All Norman could do was watch their anguish as he teetered ever closer to submitting to his own.

“Going up?”

The shackles, the cross that held him crumbled into dust. The rope, the noose around his neck squeezed and pulled. It dragged him higher and higher to the dizzying heights of the ceiling. Panic quickly set in. Norman’s desperate, weakening fingers clawed against the rope that bit into his neck. Air was running out. Limbs were going numb. Darkness crept at the edges of his vision. Faintly, he heard the twins, calling out for him.

Terror, dawning. Despair, succumbing. Acceptance, settling.

Faintly, he heard Bill, threatening the twins with death.

Control, liberated. Anger, released. Hatred, unleashed.

Hatred. Hatred. Hatred.

Everything turned red.

Everything turned black.

“Last chance, Ford! You tell me how to break the barrier, or I turn these two into corpses!”

Bill’s voice was almost deafening as he loomed over the doorway into the room where the others hid, completely dwarfing it in this monstrous form. In Bill’s unrelenting grip, Dipper still struggled to break free. Despite what he had just witnessed happen to Norman, despite the pervading sense of despair within, he still struggled with all the strength he could muster. Across from him, Mabel matched his struggle pound for pound, even with her cheeks still caked with fresh tears.

“Great uncle Ford, don’t listen to him! He’ll just kill us anyway!” Dipper yelled out, his voice starting to become hoarse. He had no idea if it even mattered or not, but when no response came from the doorway, Dipper took that as a small victory.

However, that feeling was short-lived.

“Good point, Dipper!” Bill held the twins out under his gaze. “Maybe I should kill one first! Let’s take a pick, shall we?!”

Dipper turned to look at his sister, their gazes meeting with one another. Terror was clear in their eyes, for each other as well as themselves.

Bill’s pupil transformed into the shape of a shooting star. His eye locked onto Mabel, red light shining upon her like a spotlight.

“Eenie!”

Bill blinked. His pupil took the form of a pine tree. Dipper was bathed in red light.

“Meenie!”

He blinked again. A shooting star-shaped pupil. Red light shining upon Mabel.

“Miney!”

One last blink. Dipper closed his eyes. He braced for it come. At the very least, Mabel got to survive.

“M-!”

Thunder. Righteous and frightening. One that he didn’t just hear; he felt it. Shaking him to his core, leaving him feeling small and perilously mortal. His eyes shot open. A compulsion left his gaze drawn towards the sky.

Dipper looked up, and saw a storm.

A mass of black had engulfed the ceiling. It roiled and swirled, forming a tumultuous whirlpool of shadows. Breaks of light intermittently snaked from one patch of darkness to another. At its center, at the eye, was a blinding, yellow light. It looked unnatural, and it felt almost divine.

Dipper wasn’t the only one drawn to the storm. Mabel did too, staring in a mix of fear and awe. Even Bill had his gaze drawn upwards.

“What the-?”

Bill was cut off by a wraithlike shriek.

A flash of lightning. Dipper cried out when he suddenly felt himself falling. The landing was rough, but the hard ground was far more preferable than Bill’s grasp. Mabel landed the same manner, not too far from him. A few feet from the two was a shining, yellow shape, hunched over and panting. Looming above, Bill’s eye practically popped out of its socket, staring at his two severed limbs, the flesh exposed and burned, leaving a faint trail of black smoke.

Bill roared in pain as the shape rose to its full height.

The shape was none other than Norman. Beautiful, terrible lightning covered every inch of his being. It changed and shifted in every moment, nary a second of stillness. Snakelike flashes of electricity snapped and sparked at the air and the ground around him. His eyes were blank, yet filled with terrible, righteous fury. How he moved was unnatural, every motion and every twitch unnerving. Despite all of that, this was unmistakably Norman, his friend that he’d made at the start of summer.

Dipper had never thought he would ever see Norman and feel such a primal urge to run away from him.

Bill had ceased screaming. His eye glared death down at Norman. His remaining limbs burst into blue flame and he lunged.

“You deranged, little witc-!”

Norman spun around. He held a hand up, palm opened. The world turned white.

As color and sound returned, and as his sight recovered and he lowered his arms from shielding his face, Dipper jumped back in shock. “Holy-!”

The entire section of the Fearamid beyond Norman was gone. The ceiling, the walls, the hallway; all completely obliterated. In its place was a gaping hole at one side of the Fearamid, giving Dipper a clear view of the blood crimson sky of Weirdmageddon. Gale winds rushed in, already beginning to chip away the edges of the Fearamid that survived the attack. What’s more, at first glance, he saw no sign of Bill whatsoever.

Dipper’s stare landed on Norman. Could it be…?

“Hey, kid!”

Dipper couldn’t help but feel disappointed, when he heard Bill’s booming voice. That disappointment quickly turned into astonishment when he actually caught sight of Bill. Or, what’s left of him.

Out of his eight limbs, only two remained. Even then, one was already halfway gone. The entire lower half of his body was missing, and the same could be said of a small chunk of his just above his eye. Disgusting, dark red flesh sloughed and spilled off of him from every part where it was exposed. He was shaking furiously, painfully. He still had a glare fixed upon Norman, and it was one that could kill.

“You missed a spot!”

With a disturbing cry of pain, Bill quickly reformed all of his missing parts in a cacophony of horrible squelching noises. That nearly had Dipper groaning in frustration. The hope that steadily swelled in his heart came crashing back down. Even after that, Bill still shrugged it off like it was nothing. He’d imagine Mabel was thinking the same thing, based on how she slammed a fist to the ground. Norman, on the other hand, looked completely undeterred. At least, as far as Dipper could tell. He’s still having a hard time believing that the wraith of rage and lightning a few feet from him and Norman were one and the same.

Norman unleashed a chilling, wraithlike shriek; a voice that was not at all like the Norman that Dipper knew. With a burst of electricity, he launched himself and flew straight towards Bill, leaving a trail of crackling yellow behind him.

The approaching streak of light was impossible to miss for Bill. Blue flames burst into life on three of his hands. With a roar, he unleashed a wave of fire that sailed through the air at Norman. Norman easily danced in and all around the torrent. Darting around in speeds barely caught by the human eye, until he was clear of the onslaught. With another shriek, he doubled his speed, and was upon Bill in a split second. Bill desperately swerved to the side, but he wasn’t fast enough. Norman crashed into Bill’s right side, obliterating a sizable chunk of his body and two of his limbs in an explosion of flesh. The impact didn’t slow Norman down in the slightest, speeding past and leaving Bill to scream in pain. He flew up higher and higher, only seemed to be satisfied when he was among the clouds, far higher than even where Bill was. Bill’s missing flesh and limb quickly reformed. He turned his gaze upwards and glared. It was clear that neither had no intention of backing down.

The battle in the skies had Dipper so enraptured that he jumped when he felt a pair of arms tightly wrapping around him. He immediately calmed when he realized it was Mabel, hugging him, and he gladly hugged her back. A different pair of arms lifted him up to his feet. This time, they were Neil’s, who still had his eyes glued to the sky as he helped Dipper up. Not that Dipper could blame him. His attention was immediately drawn back to the fight as well.

Norman unleashed another chilling shriek, the electricity covering his skin sparking and crackling wildly, snapping against the empty air around him. The sky around Norman darkened, black clouds congregating into one, as if summoned by his cry. They grew so large that, for a moment, the blood red sky turned pitch black. It was so dark that Dipper lost sight of Norman’s shining form among the clouds. He had a feeling Bill did too.

Another shriek. The clouds burst into blinding, radiant light.

A torrent of lightning shot out of the clouds. They crackled through the air to join into one upon Norman. His form grew brighter than even the radiant clouds around him. He brought his hands together in front of him in a tranquil rage that bordered on unnerving. Energy surged towards his palms, manifesting as a chaotic mass of electricity that hissed and snapped like maddened vipers, fueled on even further by the lighting feeding into him, growing and charging until it became something truly massive. As it reached its apex, Norman fired.

Dipper shoved Mabel and Neil to the side, once he realized they were in the line of fire.

The bolt of lightning was the largest that Dipper had ever seen in his life. It looked less like a lightning bolt and more like a divine serpent that descended from the heavens. It pierced through Bill’s eye socket easily, it pierced through the Fearamid behind him, and it didn’t stop until it struck the ground. Dipper pressed himself and Mabel and Neil against the wall, desperate to put as much distance between him and the streak of light as possible. The world nearly turned blinding white again. The strike ceased; the red sky of Weirdmageddon returning and Norman’s form dimming to its normal glow.

“Again with the eye!” Bill cried out in pain, clutching the empty eye socket where his eye once was.

Dipper gaped at the mark the attack left on the Fearamid. Beside him, Mabel and Neil did the same. By this point, the Fearamid must be just a few careless knocks away from falling apart.

“D-do we… still need the ritual or…?” Neil said, nervously glancing at Dipper. By this point, Dipper had begun to wonder that as well.

He didn’t have long to think, as Bill’s furious roar broke him out of his thoughts. If it wasn’t clear that Bill had been pissed before, then there were no doubts about it after that.

Blue flame came to life from all six of Bill’s hands. He blindly fired it at all directions, flailing his arms around in a disturbing, mad frenzy, creating an ever-expanding ball of blue, fiery death. Norman was quick to dart around the flames, but even with his blinding speed, it wasn’t enough. He managed to dodge the brunt of the encroaching flames, but a stray trail of flame caught him by surprise and licked at his arm. Dipper gasped when he saw Norman veering downwards, the electricity around him sputtering out. However, it seemed he managed to catch himself, slowing down to a hover. He glared at Bill, furious, but visibly injured, one arm hanging limply at his side.

Without hesitation, Dipper turned to Neil. “Yes. Yes, we do.”

Dipper led the other two as they took off in a sprint towards the room where everyone else hid. Or, as it turned out, what was left of the room. The ceiling was gone and half of the room was replaced by a steep plummet to the ground far below. Thankfully, the ritual circle was left untouched. With the ceiling gone, everyone had a clear view of the fight that’s been occurring in the sky. Everyone, except for great uncle Ford, was transfixed, practically frozen in place.

Wendy was the first to break out of her stupor and actually notice that the three had returned. “I-is that… Norman?” she sputtered, weakly pointing at the sky.

All Dipper could muster was a slow nod.

While everyone was watching the fight, great uncle Ford was still hard at work chipping off pieces of the floor with a rock, and thank god for that. He really did take Coraline’s outburst earlier to heart.

“Finished!” Ford announced, stepping back with a relieved grin. That managed to gain the attention of everyone in the room.

The ritual circle was indeed finished. Half painted on the floor half carved out of it. The key to banishing Bill, once and for all.

“Everyone, step into the circle!” Ford shouted at the others. “Razputin and Lili, Coraline and Wybourne, Norman; they have bought us precious time! We must not waste it!”

Dipper was the first one on his symbol. “This is for them all! Let’s go!”

“For Gravity Falls! For the Mystery Kids! For the rest of the world!” Mabel grandly announced, standing tall on her symbol.

One by one, the others followed suit, stepping onto their respective symbols. This time, without needing to be told, everyone held hands with each other. Dipper wrapped his hands around Wendy’s and McGucket’s, and held them tight. Mabel did the same with Pacifica and Gideon. The only ones left that haven’t held hands was Grunkle Stan and great uncle Ford, and Dipper couldn’t but sense a horrible feeling of déjà vu. Silently, they gave each other a look; one that said more than a thousand words, more than what Dipper could infer from what he knew about the two. Still not saying a word, their joined their hands together. Everyone in the circle began to glow.

Dipper felt the familiar sensation something stirring within him, of an energy building up to a crescendo. Dark clouds formed far above, a looming vortex of shadow with the circle at its center. It wasn’t nearly as massive the clouds that formed during Norman’s attack, and it felt different too, somehow. Norman’s felt divine, otherworldly. This felt earthly. Natural.

Bill had been occupied with fighting Norman, but the growing mass of clouds finally caught his attention. His gaze shifted from the circling clouds down to the ritual circle. His eye widened.

“No!” Bill abandoned his fight with Norman, flying towards the circle at full speed. “No, no, no, no, no!”

Bill had murder written all over his glare. Dipper gulped.

A bolt of lightning clamped down on one of Bill’s hands. Seven more lightning bolts came to restrain the rest of Bill’s limbs. The streaks of electricity trailed back to Norman’s fingers, using them to hold Bill in place. Bill tugged and pulled on them with all his might, one time, two times, but Norman didn’t budge an inch. Dipper let out a breath he didn’t even realize he was holding.

The energy inside him finally reached its peak, Dipper could tell. He felt the energy leaving him; saw the glow rise from his body. The glow left everyone’s bodies, forming a circle of shapeless blue lights above their heads. Dipper watched, mesmerized, as the light above him assumed the form of a pine tree; his symbol. The other lights did the same; Mabel’s light forming into a shooting star, great uncle Ford’s into a six-fingered hand, Soos’ into a question mark, and so on. The lights had a gentleness to it, twinkling and shimmering almost merrily. Gazing upon them, Dipper felt a strange sense of tranquility washing over him. Peace. Relief.

The lights began to revolve, slowly at first, but it didn’t take long for it to gain speed. Gusts of wind picked around them, circling them, as if following the lights. The shapes lost their form as the lights revolved faster and faster still. They blurred together into a spinning, luminous, resplendent halo of blue light that grew brighter with every passing second. It began to shrink, the revolutions continuing to gain speed, condensing into a single point in the center of the circle. Bill bellowed a wordless roar. The light gathered into a radiant singularity. Dipper grinned.

He glared towards the sky, towards Bill. “Here’s to never meeting you again, Bill Cipher.”

The light launched with a high-pitched screech. A beam of blue sailed through the air. The lightning holding Bill dissipated, Norman darting out of the way in a blink. Bill had nowhere to run.

The light consumed Bill. It surged on unflinchingly towards the gaping rift in the sky. Bill pushed back against the light in a mad, frantic desperation. Pieces of his physical form began to crumble, the tips of his flesh sent back to the rift whence they came. In the throes of his enchanted banishment, Bill unleashed a roar of pure, violent rage.

“I’ll be back! Mark my words! Even if it takes another trillion years! I will return and burn this pitiful dimension into oblivion!”

More and more of Bill fell apart, dragged back to his dimension by the light. His hands, his legs, his top hat, parts of his body; collapsing into nothing but formless flesh and banished to never return. His eye was the last of him to remain, engraved into a seething glare. Dipper could’ve sworn that eye was glaring specifically at him.

“EMIT FO HTAED EHT LITNU, YTINRETE LLA ROF, REVEROF! EID DNA EVIL I, EID DNA EVIL UOY SA! ENIVID RO TLUCCO YB NEKORBNU! ENIM HTIW ECNETSIXE RUOY DNIB I!”

The last of Bill’s voice echoed throughout the land. The last of Bill’s presence in this world sent back through the interdimensional rift.

For the second time that day, the world turned white.

The sun was shining. Birds were singing merrily. Gravity Falls’ town square was packed with the townsfolk. All of them confused as to how they got there. All of them confused as to how everything returned to the way they were. All of them paid little mind to their confusion for the moment. For now, they all basked in the light.

Neil, standing up straight and tall after pressing himself against a corner for most of the ritual, basked in the light.

Wybie, spending a moment gasping in panic after suddenly freed from the terrible wires and needles that constricted him, basked in the light.

Mabel, still clutching Pacifica’s hand in a tight grip as if her life depended on it, basked in the light.

Lili, taking in a deep breath and staring in wonder at her form that now has returned to normal, basked in the light.

Raz, realizing with a start that the bleeding had ceased and the encroaching dome of water was nowhere to be seen, basked in the light.

Coraline, rubbing her unbound wrists and silently grateful to no longer be in the clutches of darkness and needle-like fingers, basked in the light.

Dipper, scanning the clear sky in search of a particular person he held most dear, basked in the light.

Norman, the one that Dipper was searching for, descended from the light. The electricity that covered his skin had calmed almost to a complete stop, ebbing away as he descended. The crowd parted and formed a circle at the spot where he would land. Dipper was the first to emerge into that circle. The rest of the Mystery Kids were only seconds behind.

Norman gently touched down upon the ground. The last of the electricity clinging on him dissipated into thin air, leaving him as regular, plain Norman. He stood there, staring blankly ahead, for all of five seconds before his knees buckled under him and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. Dipper was immediately there to catch him when he fell. He pulled Norman into a tight hug, a smile on his lips, tears rolling down his cheeks. Mabel joined the hug. Neil joined the hug. Raz, Wybie, Coraline, Lili; they all gladly piled on to the big group hug. Smiling. Crying.

No words were said. No words needed to be said.

They won.

And that was that, folks. The end of the Weirdmageddon Saga.

This was, without exaggeration, a gargantuan endeavor to undertake. While I always knew this would take a lot of work, I was still not prepared for just how much work there would be. I had to spend several consecutive nights staying up late to get this done in time. I had to wrestle with my own expectations and hopes of what this chapter is going to be to get this done at all. Not helping was the fact that I suddenly had a mountain of college work to do. In the end, I can only hope that I have done the story and event justice, I have done the characters justice, and I have done the hype I built up myself justice.

As for the chapter itself, personally, I’m overall pretty happy with how it turned out! I got to write awesome scenes that I have always wanted to write for months now, and got to write awesome scenes that popped into my head in the process of making this chapter. Not to mention, everyone actually got to do something cool in this chapter! I realized Wybie’s part in Part 1 being a highlight for a lot of people was probably because he’s the only one that got to do something cool in it. Although, full disclosure, I will admit that the power levels definitely got way buckwild near the end there, with Norman. Definitely broke someone’s suspension of disbelief. Here’s hoping I didn’t do that to too many people.

Now, while this might be the end of the saga, this is far from the end for this entire story. So, no worries to y’all who are thinking that this is the end. I’ve got stuff I’ve been concocting in the background for months now. New adventures, new enemies, and you guessed it, lots and lots of new additions to add to the team. For my plan right now, I have four more chapters that will act as sort of a bridge between this saga and the next. I’m hoping I can get them all done in December, so we can kick off the new year with a brand new saga! Get mega hyped for that, y’all!

Last but not least, I would like to thank you, the reader. To those who have stuck with ever since I started this fic like three years ago, and to those who have only recently discovered this fic, I cannot thank you enough. Your support and your kind words all this time are like the fuel that feeds my fire. With it, this fire has grown brighter than I ever thought was possible, and I am eternally grateful for it.

Thank you for reading, thank you for your support, and I hope you have a nice day!

#mystery kids #psychonauts #coraline #paranorman #gravity falls #razputin aquato #lili zanotto #coraline jones #wybie lovat #norman babcock #neil downe #dipper pines #mabel pines #ford pines #stanley pines #When You're A Mystery Kid

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worryinglyinnocent · 4 years ago

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Once Upon A Different Time - The Notes for 4B through 7

Here we go! These notes are nowhere near as detailed as the 4A notes and are very rumbelle-centric, but hopefully they’ll give you a good idea of what’s going on nonetheless.

Under a cut because this got super super long.

Season 4B - Queens of Darkness and the Author

General notes:

Maleficent is a major character this season, but only in flashback. Dead is dead, she’s not coming back.

In the past. Aurora’s parents (Stefan and Leah) made a deal with Rumpelstiltskin, the price being their first-born child. Stefan has a trick up his sleeve, as prior to his arranged marriage to Leah he had been in a relationship with Maleficent that resulted in a pregnancy. He plans to take his and Maleficent’s child and give it to Rumpel as his first-born.

Stefan attempts to take Maleficent’s child (Lily), and goes up against Cruella and Ursula. In the scuffle, Lily, Cruella and Ursula all end up in the Land Without Magic, scattered. Lily is taken into care (where she will later meet Emma, call back to season 4A), Cruella and Ursula separately vow to find each other and Lily and return to the Enchanted Forest.

Meanwhile, Maleficent swears revenge on Stefan and Leah and goes to Rumpel for a sleeping curse. He tells her that it’s best administered straight into the blood, and on seeing his spinning wheel in the corner, Maleficent gets an idea.

In the present. Cruella and Ursula have found each other in New York, and have recognised Aurora there (call back to season 3B when Aurora and Mulan were hiding in Neal’s old apartment in New York). They track down the apartment and break in, surprised to find not Aurora (who is back in Storybrooke at this point) but Rumpel (he and Neal are staying in the apartment whilst trying to find a way to reverse Rumpel’s darkening heart). The three of them have a discussion about the idea of the Author controlling everyone’s fates, and they make a plan to try and find the Author.

Neal and Rumpel return to Storybrooke, and Rumpel sneaks Cruella and Ursula into town. (Belle and Neal are aware of this going on and whilst not entirely happy about it, are also intrigued by the idea of the Author.)

Cruella and Ursula also want revenge against Aurora for Lily. Aurora points out that since Stefan and Leah are both now dead, hurting Aurora will not cause them any pain and their vengeance mission is pointless.

Regina infiltrates the QOD Squad, also intrigued by the idea of the Author; but her cover is blown when Cruella and Ursula threaten Roland and she jumps in to save him.

Cruella and Ursula want to rewrite the story so that they stay together and stay with Lily. Regina wants to rewrite the story so that she never killed Marian and she and Robin can be together. Rumpel wants to write out the darkness.

Being back in Storybrooke, Rumpel’s darkening heart takes a turn for the worse and he ends up hospitalised, much like canon 4B but without Zelena (who is definitely 100% dead).

The Author creates a new story which creates a brand new Enchanted Forest (foreshadowing for Season 7). Everyone except Henry is transported there, as Henry was never a character in the first storybook. Henry and the Author fight it out over the quill, with Henry gaining the upper hand and becoming the new Author. He writes himself into the story so that he can go and rescue everyone.

In the new story.

Cruella and Ursula are living happily with Lily.

Emma is a mad witch living in the forest; Neal is the anti-magic witchfinder determined to destroy her.

Regina is a bandit princess a la Snow, Robin is the Sheriff of Nottingham type figure tasked with bringing her down.

Snow as the evil queen and Charming as her henchman.

Belle is the Dark One, Rumpel is the light knight destined to kill her.

Henry convinces them to fight back against their assigned roles, ultimately allowing them to come back to Storybrooke. The New Enchanted Forest is not destroyed, and Henry decides to just let it develop as a new world naturally. After they are all back in Storybrooke, he destroys the quill, vowing that everyone has the right to choose their own fate and the Author is no more.

Back in the present, everyone remembers Rumpel is in the hospital and they rush there to find him flatlining. Belle gives him TLK, which pulls him back from the brink but also untethers the darkness from him. The Dark One heads towards Neal as the next in the bloodline, but Emma jumps in to save him.

Emma vanishes, and Belle sees the name on the dagger change. End season.

Season 5A - Camelot and Dark Swan

Not gonna lie, I have NOTHING for the Camelot arc, other than Merlin arriving and being badass and not dying, and some Dark One history.

Dark Emma is increasingly unstable and goes to Rumpel for help with controlling the darkness. Eventually she does something catastrophic but unintentional that sends Neal to the underworld (he was saving Henry) and triggers the march of the dark ones. Rumpel takes back the darkness from Emma with Belle’s blessing - he’s taking it back to save Emma and make sure no-one else experiences the pain of being the Dark One, not because he wants the power. (This is the moment when Rumpel becomes the Guardian although this is not revealed till season 7.)

Together, Merlin and Rumpel stop the march of the dark ones (combined power of the Dark One and the Light One).

The usual suspects decide to go on a road trip to the Underworld to find Neal.

Season 5B - Underbrooke

Hades is not a villain. Persephone’s a bit of a trickster (she’s a bit bored and wants to liven things up a bit), but Hades is a neutral overseer sworn not to interfere. The drama comes from the characters trying to get to grips with things, there’s no real villain in this half-season.

Although I do want to have an episode entitled ‘Ghosts of Villains Past’ guest-starring Cora, Pan, Zelena and Maleficent (all the villains who died in Storybrooke so far - potentially also Cruella since I don’t know what happens to her and Ursula at the end of 4B...).

Hades gives them a compass to help them navigate the underworld and find Neal. It will point to Rumpel’s son, he says. It immediately points to Belle. “It’s not wrong, it just takes the path of least resistance.” This is how we find out that Belle is pregnant with Gideon.

Neal is found and everyone is returned to Storybrooke safe and well having done a lot of character introspection.

During this season, Neal and Emma and Robin and Regina get their act together and couple up properly, and there are various relationship difficulties to be worked through in...

Season 6 - Gideon and Black Fairy

In the Past. The Blue Fairy, seeking to become the ultimate Good Being, uses a spell to separate her light and dark halves. The dark half, the Black Fairy, is banished to a realm of Darkness, but Blue wants to destroy her completely. Likewise, Black wants to destroy her light half. Both realise that the key to destroying the other is the sacrifice of a child born of both light and dark. This child is Gideon. (This also leads to some hilarity as the Blue Fairy is very concerned to know when Gideon was conceived - if he was conceived during the brief period when Rumpel wasn’t the Dark One back in 5A, then he’ll be of no use to her.)

In the Present. Black Fairy escapes the Dark Realm, bringing Hyde with her. Hyde begins to recreate the serum that split him off from Jekyll.

Regina uses Jekyll’s serum to split off her dark half, the Evil Queen.

Belle is visited by a strange figure in her dreams who warns her about the darkness. Belle thinks that the darkness he refers to is Rumpel’s darkness, but she actually, you know, talks to him about it. Rumpel and Belle dreamwalk to meet the strange figure, who reveals himself to be Gideon and that this is the only way he can speak to them freely.

Blue accelerates Belle’s pregnancy in the hope that Belle will give birth at the convent and she can steal Gid for her own purposes, but it backfires - she ends up giving birth in the pawnshop with only Rumpel and Henry present.

Black steals Gideon and takes him to the Dark realm to prime him as her weapon of mass destruction. Shortly after Gid’s birth and kidnap, he returns as an adult and starts wreaking havoc.

Belle and Rumpel travel to the Dark realm to save baby Gid before he can grow into evil adult Gid. Regina and the Evil Queen go with them. Whilst in the Dark Realm, Regina realises she can’t separate herself from her bad deeds, she can only try to atone for them, and she rejoins with the Evil Queen. In the Dark Realm, Rumpel and Belle are confronted by their own Dark Halves (Dark One and Lacey), but emerge triumphant and save baby Gid.

Blue and Black are forced to merge back together and are defeated. The series ends with a bunch of happy endings - Belle and Rumpel are happy with little Gid, Robin and Regina are together and Regina is pregnant (with the baby who will go on to become Margot in season 7), and Neal and Emma are happy together.

We end with a flashforward to 20 years later with Lucy arriving on Henry’s doorstep.

Season 7 - soft reboot

This season focuses primarily on the next generation alongside adult Henry making up the main cast. Regina and Rumpel are the only recurring characters from the previous seasons, but most of the others will guest at some point.

An eighteen year old Henry decides to travel to the New Enchanted Forest that was created by the Author in season 4B, to see how the new characters are getting on. He meets and falls in love with Rapunzel (still Jacinda, she’s just not Cinderella in this setting), and the Rapunzel-Gothel story takes centre stage. Tiana and Tilly are also here because they’re awesome. Rounding out the rest of the main cast are the now adult Gideon, Roland, and Margot.

Gothel casts the curse to bring everyone to Hyperion Heights from the New Enchanted Forest. Everyone in other realms is unaffected.

Robin, Regina, Rumpel and Belle are all in the NEF at the time of the curse being cast - they were called in by Henry, Gideon and Margot to help with the Gothel problem.

The curse splits up the couples - Regina and Rumpel are in HH, but Robin and Belle are elsewhere in the Land Without Magic, so we don’t see them as regularly. Lucy has to convince everyone to go on a road trip to find them.

(There is NO. TIME. TRAVEL.)

During this season the idea of the Guardian is mooted - Rumpel is already the guardian after the events of 5A, he just doesn’t realise until the powers are at rest and he’s mortal again. Belle and Rumpel have been travelling the realms to find the Guardian. At some point during their travels, they find Tilly.

Tilly is Hook’s daughter in the Land of Untold Stories (call back to season 4A). She is in the care of an unscrupulous guardian after Hook has been presumed drowned. He’s actually gone through a portal to NEF. Tilly is the Little Match Girl. Rumpel and Belle rescue and adopt her and she grows up alongside Gideon.

(Gideon’s traumatic pregnancy and birth mean Belle and Rumpel are unable to have any more biological children.)

At the end, Tilly meets up with Hook and has a Railway Children ‘MY DADDY’ moment after the curse is broken. She still sees Belle and Rumpel as her parents, but she’s glad to have her birth dad back in her life as well.

Gideon is Weaver’s detective partner which leads to much hilarity when Lucy tries to convince them that they’re father and son.

The curse is broken, everyone is reunited, and everyone gets a happy ending.

Gideon and Roland end up in a relationship together, as do Tilly and Margot, and Tiana and Hook look like they’re headed that way too. (Got to pair the spares!)

And... that’s all folks! That’s all I got. Thanks for sticking with me to the end of this rollercoaster!

#Once Upon A Time #Once Upon A Different Time #OUAT fanfiction #rumbelle fic

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starcrossedjedis · 4 years ago

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all ship questions for the otp you're currently vibing with most! xo

Oof thank you <3

Gotta go with Sirius and Moira then (also in LOVE with Nora and George, but they aren’t as planned out as Nora’s parents sooo^^)

PRE-RELATIONSHIP

1. How did they first meet?

They met on their first night at Hogwarts after both being sorted into Gryffindor.

2 What was their first impression of each other?

Sirius probably didn’t even notice her, because he was so excited to have been sorted in the same house as James AND in Gryffindor no less. Moira wasn’t impressed with his boisterous ways at all. By the time he notices Moira he’s probably just wodering what her problem with him is, because she loathes him^^

3. Did any of their friends or family want them to get together?

Seeing that Sirius’s family don’t care if he lives or dies, they probably didn’t care about his relationship status. Moira’s parents kept out of that part of their daughter’s life, as they found that this wasn’t their business so long as she didn’t turn up with a Death Eater or sth. All of their friends minus Peter really want them together though - especially Lily dreams of double dates in Hogmaede, but no such luck xD

4. Who felt romantic feelings first?

Romantic is probably overstating things and for the longest time Moira would probably have hexed anyone who as much as suggested it, but she definitely had a crush on Sirius first. He made the first ever step though then took two steps back.

5. Did either of them try to resist their feelings?

Hah! Ain’t that the whole plot to this story? First Moira would rather drop dead than admit she could be feeling anything but righteous loathing for Sirius. Then her and Sirius kiss, but he learns that Peter likes her and steps back for fear of destroying the Marauders by acting on his feelings and thus hurting a friend. And then when he finally gets his act together when they are both in the Order of the Phoenix, she has just started going out with Gideon Prewett and feels obligated to see where this relationship goes and not drop him at the first sign of affection from a guy who’s broken her heart before.

6. If you had told one of them that the other would be their soulmate, what would they think?

During their Hogwarts days they would have either laughed in your face or hexed you into the next millenium for even suggesting this. Once they’re together, maybe even before that, there is no doubt.

GENERAL

1. Who initiated the relationship, and how did it go?

Well, the first kiss just kinda... happens, I guess? Then Moira kinda... dares Sirius to make a move, but he doesn’t? And then down the road he practically begs her to dump Gideon to be with him, but she shoots him down, just to appear on his doorstep on the very same night, because she did dump Gideon to be with him and... I guess it kinda depends on how you define “initiate” xD

2. Did they have an official first date? If so, what was it like?

They didn’t have a first date. By the time they are both on the same page, they pretty much just jump straight to the “established relationship” part and due to circumstances they mostly divide their time between missions for the Order, time spent with their loved ones and hiding out at home for some much needed alone time.

3. What was their first kiss like?

Unexpected? xD But enough to leave both of them like “oh.” (you know. Oh.)

4. Were they each other’s first anything (kiss, relationship, etc.)?

Sirius was Moira’s first kiss. Due to mutual dumbassery this is the only shared first in a long line of firsts. One could also argue that she is his first and only real relationship.

5. What’s their height difference? Age difference?

Moira’s birthday is March 21st 1960, which makes her just a little bit younger than Sirius. They are in the same year at Hogwarts. Their height difference is a bit more significant than that, with Sirius being around 6′1 (taken from yours truly Ben Barnes’s stats^^) and Moira coming in at 5′6. It’s not drastic, but enough that she has to stand on tippy toes to kiss him and for her to fit perfectly under his arm <3

6. What’s their relationship with each other’s families?

Moira - understandably - doesn’t have a relationship with Sirius’s family. Her parents like Sirius, but that probably takes a nose dive once he gets framed for the betrayal of James and Lily Potter.

7. Who takes the lead in social situations?

Probably Sirius, mostly due to the fact that they largely have the same friends and the Marauders... let’s say they know how to fill a room.

8. Who gets jealous easier?

Definitely Sirius. He pretty much throws a fit when Peter invites Moira to Hogsmaede and she accepts. And when she starts going out with Gideon Prewett after school, he takes it hard. Very hard.

LOVE

1. Who said “I love you” first?

Moira, on the night she comes to his door after breaking things off with Gideon.

2. What are their primary love languages?

Before they’re together, it’s mostly covert glances when the other isn’t looking. And shouting, probably. When they’re together, it’s small things like smiles and casual touches. They also hold hands pretty much wherever they are and James teases Sirius mercilessly about it.

3. How often do they cuddle/engage in PDA?

See the answer above ^^’ They’re not Percy/Penelope level disgusting about it, but no one who sees them is ever gonna doubt those idiots are in love.

4. What are their favorite things to do together?

Pretty boring, but with the war, the missions for the Order and all they mostly enjoy spending quiet time alone together. They love to sit in front of a fireplace together and either read (on occasion to each other) or just talk and... cuddle until the fire goes out.

5. Who’s better at comforting the other?

Moira has a very soft and caring side, which is probably one of the qualities that attract Sirius to her.

6. Who’s more protective?

Sirius. That man is an actual guard dog, so... It’s also the reason people are so quick to believe that he betrayed the Potters, because it made sense to them that there truly was nothing he wouldn’t have done to protect his wife and daughter.

7. Do they prefer verbal or physical affection?

They actually have a terrible track record when it comes to talking things out. They are much, much better where they allow their bodies to do the talking - that doesn’t just mean sex though. They can say so much to each other with just a look or a soft squeeze of a hand.

8. What are some songs that apply to their relationship, in-universe or otherwise?

It’s “Space” by Biffy Clyro. That’s it. That’s their song and I cannot listen to it without thinking about them <3

9. What kind of nicknames do they call each other?

They don’t really do nicknames, but until they got married they were big on the whole “calling each other exclusively by their last names, only using their first names when shit’s getting realTM”. That being said, Sirius had a habit of calling her “Freckles” just to piss her off (she almost broke his nose with a bludger during Quidditch try outs after he hollered “Nice one, Freckles!” from the stands). He might occasionally revisits this nickname to tease her.

DOMESTIC LIFE

1. If they get married, who proposes?

Sirius proposes. I already know how he proposes, but I love it so, so much that I don’t just wanna give it away in a post like this T_T

2. What’s the wedding like? Who attends?

It’s small. Really small. Like “the two and the one who officiates’ small.

3. How many kids do they have, if any? What are they like?

They have a daughter named Evanora, short “Nora”. She is the spitting image of her father, but has her maternal grandfather’s dark eyes (much to her chagrin, because both her parents have light eyes that she thinks are so much prettier). Nora is kind and fun and - considering her upbringing - surprisingly open. She is the world’s worst liar, a little bit clumsy and at times awkward. The dark cloud that was her father’s absence and supposed crimes cast a shadow over most of her childhood, no matter how hard her mother tried to shield her from it. This is probably the reason she is so fascinated by the light hearted Weasley twins.

4. Do they have any pets?

They have a Red Tabby named Posy after Nora’s favourite character from “Ballet Shoes”, who is actually descended from Moira’s cat Dot.

5. Who’s the stricter parent?

Moira, simply because she has been a single mother for most of Nora’s life =‘(

6. Who kills the bugs in the house?

Moira and Nora have a strict “No killing bugs” rule and Sirius would never dare and go against it. Bugs get evicted from the Black household via levitation xD

7. How do they celebrate holidays?

So far there were only two times that they celebrated Christmas together and there’s about thirteen years between the two, so it’s a little early to speak of traditions they made for themselves. But before Sirius comes back, Moira and Nora usually go to church with the muggle side of Moira’s family (who are for the most part blissfully unaware that Moira and Nora basically live in voluntary exile from the wizarding world) on Christmas Eve. They have a big dinner with Moira’s parents and exchange of gifts on Christmas Day. Moira and Nora then usually spend Boxing Day at home, wearing pyjamas all day, eating leftovers, baking tons of Christmas biscuits and eating them in front of the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate. Sirius will probably try to find a way to fit into the traditions his girls made for themselves in his absence, while they try to adjust to his needs (like the need to be with his godson over the holidays) and in time there will probably be new traditions they make together,

8. Who’s more likely to convince the other to come back to sleep in the morning?

Sirius could spend all day cuddled up in bed. And he doesn’t play fair to get his way.

9. Who’s the better cook?

Moira and not only because she has over a decade on Sirius in that regard, she’s always been the better cook. But they love to be in the kitchen together.

#mer writes #reply #sirius black #moira finnigan #gravity #my ocs #it's late and I'm tired #I apologise in advance for the typos that are sure everywhere in this one

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singledarkshade · 4 years ago

Text

Nightmare Scenario

Summary: How do you live in a world you don't belong to? Rip does his best to survive while running the Time Bureau, while Sara does her best to make sure he doesn't disappear into his work. Danger however is on the horizon and Rip's life is about to be torn apart once more. A Season 3 rewrite. Author’s Note: Rip Week Day 2: Perfect Episode – Rip left the show too soon, so give us the ideal episode that we never got. Alternatively, you can fix something to make it better, or give us that perfect scene that we never had. Canon compliance optional. I chose to rewrite the beginning of Season 3, this may be continued but until then, enjoy. ********************************************* Sara stared at the man who appeared through the portal before them. He was wearing the same blue suit as all the people who suddenly surrounded them, his hair was shorter than she’d ever seen it and he was clean shaven, which frankly Sara thought just looked odd on him.

“Well,” he stated as he removed his sunglasses, “You really buggered things up this time.”

“Rip?” was all she could manage to say as she stared at the scene around her.

Ray however demanded, “What’s going on?”

“Crossing our timeline fractured time forming anachronisms,” Rip stated, “I created The Time Bureau to deal with them.”

“Time Bureau,” several voices echoed in confusion.

Sara frowned, “You left the ship fifteen minutes ago.”

Rip shrugged, “To you maybe but building the Bureau has been the focus of the last five years of my life.”

Not sure how to reply, Sara worried because knowing the man before her the fact he had been alone without the team, but especially without Gideon, for that long was not a good thing for him.

“I suppose it’s only fitting, since I created the team,” Rip continued, “That I dissolve it. Your services are no longer required.”

“What?” several voices around her yelled while Sara stared at him.

With that said Rip turned to leave. He paused, turned back and added, “That means you’ll all be looking for jobs. Can I interest you in positions within a time travel organisation?”

Sara rolled her eyes, “How long did you work on that for?”

Rip shrugged, “Longer than I care to admit.”

Six Months Later

Sara walked through the Bureau’s main building towards the offices, it had been a long day and she wanted something to eat but had to do one thing first. Reaching the office, Sara walked in without knocking.

“Gideon,” Rip said, not looking up as Sara entered, “I thought we agreed no one has access to my office without my say so?”

“Miss Lance has an appointment to meet you for dinner,” Gideon replied, with that smugness she got at times which Sara loved, when it wasn’t directed at her.

Rip frowned and looked at Sara, “Since when?”

Sara shrugged, “Since Gideon feels you’re not eating properly or taking time off work. So, put whatever you’re doing down for two hours and come have pizza with me.”

He continued to stare at her.

“I’ll tell you all the gossip,” Sara grinned before adding, “And if you don’t you know Gideon will start doing the passive aggressive thing you hate.”

“Director,” Gideon spoke up, “You have not eaten anything substantial since early this morning.”

Rip rolled his eyes, “I’m not going to get any peace if I don’t join you for dinner, am I?”

“You are smart,” Sara teased.

With a long sigh, Rip rubbed his eyes and stood, motioning Sara to lead the way knowing Gideon would lock down his office while he wasn’t there. Sara watched Rip as they walked through the corridors to the carpark. He looked tired but these days he always did. His decision to create a replacement for the Time Masters, one that was better than his former masters, put a lot of pressure on his shoulders.

Sara did her best, along with Jax and Ray to get him out of his office every so often, just to remind him there was a world outside of it.

Officially he lived in one of the apartments at the top of the Bureau’s main building but, in reality, was living on the Waverider again which was berthed in the lower levels. Gideon did her best to look after him in their new circumstances. Ensuring that Rip was forced out of his office every so often for dinner with one of them and on occasion persuaded him to take the ship out on a mission.

Rip sat on the armchair in Sara’s living room stretching his legs out and closing his eyes. He knew he fought against it but, it was nice to get out of the office for a while.

Gideon worried about him, he knew this. She was concerned that he was isolating himself from the world, but Rip couldn’t get too involved or he could accidentally change time more than he already had.

He didn’t belong in this century.

He didn’t belong anywhere.

Other than on the Waverider or at the Vanishing Point.

“Pizza is on its way,” Sara announced as she appeared and handed him a bottle of beer.

Taking the bottle, Rip nodded.

“You know,” Sara said, dropping onto her couch and curling her legs beneath her, “Friends talk to one another, tell each other how they’re doing, how their day has been and other things.”

Rip took a quick drink before replying, “I’m doing fine, and my day has been busy.”

“Master conversationalist as always,” Sara rolled her eyes.

He shrugged, taking a long drink before asking, “And you?”

She chuckled, “Mission went well, but I’m sure once Agent ‘Dull and Boring’ gets through with the report she’ll give you the lowlights.”

“I really wish this feud you have going with Ava would fizzle out,” Rip sighed, “It is…” he paused before settling on, “Irritating.”

“Sharpe is the one who started it,” Sara said innocently, “I believe she took offence to my style of training agents.”

Rip sighed again, he’d had this discussion with them both far too many times in the past few months, “Well you were trying to train them for the League of Assassins.”

Sara laughed, “Just wanted them to know how hard their job will be.”

Shaking his head Rip finished his beer, “Did anything happen today that I should know about?”

“No, it was pretty standard,” she assured him before changing the subject, “You know Martin has invited us all to Lily’s baby shower on Saturday.”

“Gideon told me,” Rip replied, becoming very interested in the bottle he was still holding, “I don’t know if I’ll be able to go.”

Sara didn’t say anything for a minute before sighing, “It’s a get together with your friends, Rip. Time away from work which will be good for you.”

“Sara…”

“I know,” she interrupted him, “That the whole baby thing is hard for you but, it’s going to happen more and more. Especially since you ensured the Bureau didn’t follow the Time Master’s policy on agents not marrying.”

Sadness filled him, the pain tugging against his heart reminding him of the hole that would always be there.

“You can’t avoid it forever,” Sara continued softly, “And Martin has been asking after you. This is just an excuse he’s found to get you there for a few hours. You have to start living in the world at some point.”

“Sara,” he sighed, “This isn’t my world. I survive here because I must. My home is gone, along with my family.”

“But you have friends,” she reminded him, “We’re here for you. You need to remember that. You’re not alone.”

Rip bade Sara goodnight, accepting the cookies she handed him and opened the portal to the Waverider. Stepping through he felt relief fill him to be back on board.

“Did you have a good night, Captain?” Gideon asked as he made his way to the galley and stored the cookies in the cupboard.

She had taken to calling him Director within the Bureau but here on the Waverider, he was always Captain.

He shrugged dropping into a chair, “It was nice to spend time with Sara, but could you stop scheduling things without talking to me first?”

“Since you continue to ignore everyone’s attempt to socialise with you,” Gideon noted, “Then in order to follow my directive to protect, and keep you healthy, I sometimes need to push.”

Rip couldn’t stop the smile that touched his lips, “Is that what you call it?”

“You require sleep, Captain,” Gideon reminded him, “You have an early meeting tomorrow morning.”

Nodding Rip headed to his room, he knew he would have to take the ship out soon, it wasn’t fair on Gideon to be trapped down here but he needed her to be with him. Gideon was all he had left and losing her was something he could never contemplate.

Readying himself for bed, Rip slid under the covers and closed his eyes. He fell asleep becoming aware of another presence at his side. Gideon wrapped her arm around his waist and rested her head against his shoulder.

“Sara is right,” she said after a few minutes, “You should spend more time with the others, you shouldn’t be alone.”

“I’m not alone,” Rip sighed, his fingers tangling with her hair, “I have you.”

“Rip,” she reminded gently, “I’m not human, I can’t be with you physically outside your dreams.”

He hugged her tighter, “I don’t need that. I just need your support.”

“You always have it, my dear Captain,” she told him, “But you also need people you can interact with in the real world. Going to Lily Stein’s baby shower will be a good thing.”

Rip nodded, “And I’m betting you already ordered a gift from us?”

“It is a lovely gift with all the necessities Lily will require,” Gideon replied, making him smile.

Pressing a kiss to her forehead, Rip sighed and closed his eyes, “I need to sleep properly.”

“I know,” Gideon murmured, “Rest, Captain I am watching over you. Always.”

*********************************************

“Well, this is a sight I did not expect,” Martin laughed as Rip stood in the doorway, “Welcome to my home, Captain Hunter. Sorry, Director Hunter.”

Rolling his eyes, he suggested, “How about just Rip?”

Martin nodded, “Come on in, Rip.”

Walking into the house Martin had moved to in Star City only a few months before so he could consult with the Bureau, Rip smiled to see Sara, Ray and Jax were already there.

“I’m guessing Gideon has something to do with you being here?” Sara asked as she handed him a glass filled with what appeared to be fresh orange juice.

Rip shrugged, “She bought a gift. I had to deliver it.”

Jax and Ray began to chuckle while Sara grinned, “Of course you did.”

Shaking his head Rip sipped his drink as he looked around the cheerfully decorated room, suddenly realising there was no one else there.

“Am I early?” he asked.

“I thought we could all have an hour to catch up before the rest of the guests arrived,” Martin told him.

Rip enjoyed catching up with his former team. He knew what Ray, Jax and Sara were doing within the Bureau but rarely got the chance to talk to them. Even when they dragged him out his office for dinner, they mostly talked about work.

Martin looked happy, being at home with his wife and seeing his daughter engaged with a baby on the way. Jax was working part-time within the Bureau’s engineering department while taking college courses. Ray was looking for a way to separate them from the Firestorm matrix, so they didn’t have to meet up so frequently while also helping in the Bureau’s labs.

He sat and listened to the others talking, joining in the laughter as he caught up on his friend’s lives.

The guests for the baby shower began to arrive and as the others mixed with the guests Rip took the tea Clarissa had made for him, sliding out the back door into the garden.

“You know the party is inside,” Lily’s voice made him turn.

Quickly moving to help her to the nearest seat, Rip shrugged, “I’m not a party person.”

“Me neither,” Lily confessed, “But my mom wanted to do this. She’s so excited about the baby. Personally, I just can’t wait to not get kicked in the kidneys every time I lie down.”

Rip smiled slightly, “As long as you put the baby in the crib. Because trust me, babies tend to know instinctively where to hit you.”

“It was nice that you came today,” Lily said, “My dad misses talking to you. He says you have an interesting way of looking at problems.”

Rip shrugged, “Your father is a brilliant man. And from what I hear you are making waves in the scientific community as well.”

Lily smiled, “I had a great teacher.”

They sat in silence for a few moments before Lily sighed, “I suppose I should go back inside since this is my party. Help me up?”

Rip offered his hand to pull her to her feet before letting her take his arm escorting her back inside.

“And tell Gideon thank you for the present,” Lily told him, “It was beautiful.”

“She’ll be pleased you liked it, but I warn you now, she will want you to visit with the baby.”

Ray and Jax intercepted Rip as he was about to leave escorting him back to the living room after the other guests had left.

“You’re not going back to work,” Ray told him, “Sara has already called Gideon who won’t let you into your office until tomorrow morning.”

With a sigh, knowing he was defeated before he even tried, Rip accepted the bottle of beer Sara handed him and took a seat. He listened to them chatting, speaking every so often so they didn’t try to entice him into a full conversation.

About an hour later, Martin was in the middle of a story about some of his new students when the doorbell rang, Clarissa slipped away to answer it.

“Martin,” Clarissa called, making them all turn to see several cops following her inside along with a familiar man.

“Dad?” Sara jumped to her feet, “What are you doing here?”

Quentin Lance gave her a quick frown before turning, “Rip Hunter?”

Rip stood confused and nodded, surprised when he was seized and handcuffed.

“What the hell are you doing, Dad?” Sara demanded.

Her father shook his head before he looked at Rip again, “You’re under arrest, Mr Hunter.”

“On what charge?” Rip demanded coldly.

“The murder of Miranda Coburn and Jonas Hunter.”

#RipWeek #RipWeek2020 #Day 2 #RipFic #legends of tomorrow #rip hunter #sara lance #gideon #martin stein #lily stein #season 3 rewrite

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spellnbone · 4 years ago

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The first half of February is buried in preparations for the upcoming mission as well as the occasional breakfast at Strongarm Cottage which nourishes Edgar’s soul as much as his body. The second half is turbulent and overshadowed by the mission which albeit being a success, feels like another defeat. The Rosier Engagement Party causes yet another death, yet another betrayal, and even an injury on Edgar’s part. And suddenly he’s forced to consider bringing the war home to his family -- the only aspect of his life he’s managed to keep out of the war so far.

21st of January - 13th of February A Month At Strongarm Cottage → Self-Para. After Caradoc proves to have a heart, Edgar and his friendship blooms again, furthered only by Fabian’s sober presence and the fun the three have together over meal times. They discuss Order matters regularly, causing Fabian to accidentally be more informed and involved than some other Inner Circle member, but also just spend a lot of time enjoying the calm before the storm.

14th The Rosier Engagement Party The Pieces → Edgar, polyjuiced as Elladora, and Caradoc are out to find the Orb in the Rosier Manor. It‘s on their way to the basement that Edgar sees Amelia, on a date with Ainsley, but before he can go up to her and send her home, Caradoc reminds him that they have to focus on the mission. They find the Orb. Upon touching it, Caradoc seems unwillingly attracted by the dark magic for a moment. Orb → Self-Para. As the battle breaks out, caused by Ainsley’s attack on James, leading to his death, Edgar wants to fight with Caradoc and find Amelia, but he‘s sent home. Caradoc promises him that he‘ll bring Amelia to safety but that they cannot lose the Orb again. So Edgar disapparates back to the Potter Estate – splinching while doing so. Emmeline finds him but in his last moments of clarity he demands Lily to take care of the Orb. Peaceful → Amelia comes to visit him in the makeshift hospital at the Potter Estate.

15th Deeper Than All Roses → Letter. For some reason, despite Emmeline’s best efforts, Edgar’s bones refuse to regrow, causing him to lose his little finger forever. It‘s his right hand, which is the one with which he used to hold Amelia‘s hand with since they were very little, and the irony of this, considering what Ainsley has done and his feelings towards that, is not lost. The injury, shock and healing potions take a great toll on him anyway, and the moments between sleeping spells are rare and few. Thus, much like many others, Fabian comes to Edgar‘s hospital bed only to find him asleep. He leaves a charming and humourous letter that causes Edgar‘s first smile since he found the Orb. In his brief moments of being awake, he learns about what caused the battle at the Rosier Engagement party, about the new recruits, as well as about the outcome of the different missions.

16th Two of those visitors are Benjy and Ryland. Healer’s Quarters → Benjy solely because he‘s helping Emmeline out. They talk about what happened as well as more trivial things, and while Edgar is the one to answer Benjy’s unsettled questions, he also finds himself somewhat comforted by the conversation. Quod Salvatum → And Ryland because he wants to ask Edgar about re-warding his apartment, seeing as how the old wards were made by Ainsley, and he assumes Ainsley betrayed them willfully. Edgar doubts it, firmly of the opinion that it was a kill, not murder, but agrees to help him with his wards. Forward → Edgar realises that in times like these, to forget the chaos of war and relax, he’d now usually go drink with Fabian. Seeing as how this is no longer an option, he fears the friendship with Fabian is now irreversibly changed. Nevertheless, he seeks him out at Strongarm Cottage one last time to find out if what they had before was all due to the alcohol, or because they really do fit together. This is also when Edgar learns that Fabian received a job offer as Flying Instructor at Hogwarts, and that Gideon reacted horribly when he learnt of Fabian’s illness.

17th Edgar’s apartment → Finally out of the hospital and back at home, Daisy shows up at his door, in turmoil and in tears. Ainsley‘s betrayal has taken its toll on her, and it‘s then that Edgar admits that he feels guilty for what Ainsley did. He told her to protect Vanessa at all cost – and deep down he knows he would‘ve done exactly the same thing.

18th Lightning Crashes → Ainsley is still gone, but the Daily Prophet wrote about her kindly, saying that what she did was indeed just self-defense. This brings the mood in the Order to a boiling point, and the Inner Circle decides to go look for her; starting in her apartment, at least to be doing something. They work on the wards all day but don‘t find her. At night, Severus finds Edgar in front of the Potter Estate, trying to ward it all by himself despite his injured hand. He tells him about what he learnt in the last Death Eater meeting.

19th The Next Right Thing → Alice is angry about James‘ death and demands they finally find Ainsley. Edgar argues that even if they found her, they wouldn‘t know what to do with her, considering that the Ministry already hhad her but let her go again. He finds it worrying how one death seems to be robbing people off their senses. To him, Alice has always been the one person who refuses to go against the law, and now she wants to find Ainsley herself? And she‘s not the only one who is speaking like this, and Edgar is worried. To him, it feels like the war is spiraling faster and faster these days.

20th Professional Courtesy → Still believing that Ainsley acted out of fear and is now hiding from the Order, Edgar doesn‘t expect to find Ainsley in the office of the Daily Prophet where they both work. When he does, there is a moment of shock where he doesn’t know what to do, which side to take, who to believe, before he finally learns the whole truth. Ainsley really is with the Death Eaters now, saying that she needs to help Voldemort win the war if she wants to protect her sister. But instead of immediately acting, Edgar suggests to have Caradoc wipe her memory, at least just enough to protect the people in the Order, and says that if she refuses -- refuses to leave the Daily Prophet as well so that no one can find her -- the Order is going to find her and do much worse. He realises that he still loves her too much to betray her, even though he knows full well that this means he‘s betraying the Order.

21st Forest → From his hospital bed a week ago, Edgar wrote Remus a letter home to hear if he was okay. He received no answer so he‘s relieved to see him at the McKinnon Farm now, about to check on the werewolves there. Edgar is there for the same reasons, wishing to let them know that the outing of Remus’ secret will not change anything On their way there they talk about how James‘ death changes things but about how they‘re both still determined to keep fighting.

22nd Adivinación → Sirius receives a mysterious message, telling him to go meet specific someone at a specific place, alone, for a specific reason. All becomes clear when the Black brothers come back to the Head Quarters together: Regulus has found a way to defeat Voldemort, and his loyalty might not be with the Order, but it‘s certainly not with Voldemort either, and that‘s enough for now to trust him. Edgar meets him outside, after they initiate him (carefully, as for now, not even Sirius really trusts him fully), and finds out more about the young man in a little chat. By the end of it, Edgar believes Regulus‘ motivations.

23rd How To Destroy a Soul → Regulus brought a little necklace with him, and it‘s Edgar‘s job to bring it to the Order‘s Dark Magic Specialists – which used to be Ainsley and Gideon, and is now only Gideon. Someone, who Edgar is currently not too happy about, considering what he‘s heard from Fabian. The necklace he carries doesn‘t make his emotional state any better. The same afternoon, feeling strangely light after getting rid of the necklace, he goes back to the Head Quarters. He means to bring the Minutes to a safe place – now that the Potter Estate is no longer a secret – and finds Hestia searching for a notebook as well. They talk, and Edgar asks her what she‘d do in his shoes, concerning the House of Bones. Would it be a viable option to have the Order move to?

25th Privilege and Prejudice → Caradoc and Edgar are talking about the House of Bones as well, when Maurice interrupts them, demanding Muggleborns to be more involved in the Order. Edgar loves the idea and they make plans on how to recruit more Muggleborns -- via Maurice’s radio show as well as the Dissendium Task Force.

27th A Word of Warning → Self Para. The Order cannot attend James’ funeral without attracting suspicion, so they hold their own memorial. Something that has been done many times before and yet never gets easier. This time, though, Edgar’s mind is preoccupied by the reason for James’ death, that is, Ainsley. Just like Fabian was made ill by the war, he believes that Ainsley was as well. And more: that perhaps almost everyone in this room is ill, and that everyone could be a potential Ainsley, and they must therefore take particular care of each other if they want the Order (and its members) to survive in the future. -

28th Testing Waters → Edgar talks to Marlene about how she feels about the werewolves finding a proper place to stay, as well as about recruiting Muggleborns from the Dissendium Task Force.

#{ wait for the wisest of counselors }#m:caradoc #m:fabian #m:emmeline #m:lily #m:amelia #m:benjy #m:ryland #m:daisy #m:severus #m:alice #m:ainsley #m:regulus #m:james #m:sirius #m:marlene #m:maurice #m:gideon #february

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necroticblonde-a · 4 years ago

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Most AUs are named after songs. ♚ Black No. 1 (Untagged): Main verse. Cicero is a demoness who has been sent to Earth to procure a new heir or heiress to Lucifer’s bloodline and ensure the child lives to adulthood or in order to replace the late Andras, 23rd born of Lucifer. Having chosen Fausta Warren, it’s Cicero’s job to protect the girl with the unexpected help of two of her older siblings, Dialen and Akephalos. Despite her best efforts of staying focused on her mission, Cicero always finds herself sidetracked. . .

♚ Mind Crawler: Cicero is the object of worship of a small cult. She stays with this cult for a while since she’d never received this kind of attention before and enjoys the company of the cult’s leader, David Lee. Like all the humans she’s found herself “attracted” to, she gets sick of David and his abuse and she begins tearing the cult apart from the inside. Takes place in late-1960s, early-1970s.

♚ Diabolical Streak: One of Cicero “past lives” in which she tries to win the affections of a young witch named Gideon. Unfortunately for Gideon, Cicero having a crush on a human almost never ends well for the human. More than anything, Cicero’s goal is to drive him off the deep end. Takes place in the late-1880s to the early 1900s.

♚ All Hail Me: Rockstar AU. Cicero is the lead singer of a riot grrrl punk band. She’s definitely the “diva” type of lead singer, berating her bandmates and agent when things don’t go her way. As much of a mean bitch she is, she’s still pretty talented. She can be a human or a demon in this verse depending on any plotting. Can take place from 1990s-Modern day.

♚ Little Sister: In short, Cicero is essentially the equivalent of an eight-year-old human child. She has less of an understanding of how the human world works and has no moral compass as well as no filter either. She’s prone to violent outbursts, being brattier, and has less self control than her more mature self.

♚ Black Sunshine: Devil May Cry AU. Cicero is an ancient, jaded demoness who once wished to become ruler of the Underworld. After seeing many fall from power or trying to gain power and failing miserably, Cicero eventually figured she’d save herself the trouble and gave up on that dream. After some soul-searching she found herself on Earth and stumbled upon a young demon hunter named Sandro. Noticing he was hopeless with management, she offers her services as an agent. Armed with a chain whip (Lysistrata), her own demonic power, and a Kimber 1911 (Cleopatra), she occasionally partakes in the demon slaying herself.

♚ Lilies Are Her Home: Kuroshitsuji AU. Carolina is a demoness who lingers around in the slums of London, cohorting with pimps and prostitutes, and picking off any easy prey without discrimination. After years and years of contract, she’s found herself burnt out and has gotten lazy with her “meals”, regularly leaving her unsatisfied. She hides her disgruntled and bitter nature under the guise of a sweet-faced young woman, hoping to find a way out of her slump.

♚ After Dark: Exploitation horror AU. Set in 1976, Carolina Warren set out on a cross-country roadtrip to stay at her brother’s house after a messy breakup. She finds herself in a quiet, odd Midwest town where no residents dare speak to her. Trying to shake her unease, she settles into a small rundown hotel, where she is kidnapped by a Satan worshiping cult. She escapes from the ritual altar by wriggling one arm out of her binds, grasping a dagger, and slashing the high priest’s throat. Now she’s alone, naked, afraid, but armed, she must fight to survive. ♚ Shattered & Hollow: Western AU. Carolina is a volatile young widow living under the roof of her outlaw older brother, Ruben Warren or as he’s known around town “The Pale Rider”. Although Carolina continues to make an honest living as a dressmaker, she’s finding it difficult to find more clients, making it more difficult to make ends meet, therefore seriously considering following in brother’s footsteps.

♚ But I’m A Princess!: Private AU with @rotcon. Carolina’s life has been one grand delusion and coming to terms with that is something that threatens to tear her apart. Of all her siblings, Carolina is the one clinging the hardest to the life she thought she was living. Her resentment towards her psychiatrist based on the delusions she’s built around him only further puts strain on her psyche. She fears she’ll only slip further into her illness rather than overcoming it.

#Cicero Verses

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stellarumlapsus-rp · 5 years ago

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KINGSLEY SHACKLEBOLT, aka THE ALLEGIANT is 27 years old and a PUREBLOOD alumni of house GRYFFINDOR. His allegiance is to the ORDER OF THE PHOENIX, and he is currently TAKEN with the faceclaim include Jesse Williams.

AESTHETICS

always prepared for the worst, diplomacy, mysterious bruises, always picking up, worn in boots, trust is earned, morning crosswords, words over fists, foreign tongues, calm in a crisis, shades of blue, atlas carrying the world, strong hugs, dry humor, rolled up sleeves, justice scales, shoulder to shoulder, a strong quiet presence, warrior stance, loving fiercely, maps of the old world, thinking before speaking

DEFINING MOMENTS

As a child, Kingsley held the world in his hands. As the oldest, he held himself to a higher standard - the example of the house - so to speak. His family had always been tight knit; family dinners on Sundays with the grandparents, family game nights on Saturday, and showing up for every achievement, big or small. Despite being pureblood children, he and his siblings attended muggle primary school in their early years. Involved in futbol and rugby, his family comes to every game, and Kingsley learns that family is unconditional love and support. By seven years old, he knows that family is everything, and that honor and duty come before all else.

Eleven years old and he goes to Hogwarts with his head held high and his aspirations even higher. He fits into his house like a glove, but Kingsley goes out of his way to make friends all across the board. He’s never been one to only surround himself with people like him. Instead, he branches out and makes connections of all kinds. By the next year he joined the Quidditch team - his muggle sports knowledge helping him greatly. Soon after he became a part of the dueling club and debate team. Kingsley had a reputation early on in his Hogwarts career; intelligent, inclusive, and a natural born leader.

At seventeen, Kingsley’s world gets turned upside down. Two weeks into their first semester the news comes that their family home has been attacked. His parents had been vocal in their disagreements and plights with the Death Eaters. They had sent their children to muggle primary school, participated in muggle culture, and taught their children to accept muggle born students with equal measure as they would pureblood ones. In the end, it was their unfailing morals that got them killed. With both of his parents murdered in the attack, Kingsley felt the weight of the world on his shoulders. Becoming the guardian of his three younger siblings was never in his plans, but Kingsley wouldn’t have given them up for anything.

By twenty six he knew that it was time for a career shift. Having worked his way up the ranks of the auror department, he knew he needed to help in a different way. When Alastor stepped down, Kingsley had prepared for the Order to crumble, what he hadn’t prepared for was Lily Evans to step up. She had come to him with an idea that he couldn’t say no to: “You should be the Order candidate that runs for Minister”. The two worked hard together - one leading on the battlefield while the other led in policies. All his diplomatic skills, all his passions, all his transparencies, made him the perfect choice. With the death of the Minister came Kingsley’s campaign. The last thing he wants is for the organization that killed his family to be ruling the wizarding world. Kingsley will do whatever it takes to stop that from happening.

MEMORABLE TRAITS

Authentic

Subtle

Perspicacious

Transparent

Inclusive

Persistent

THE ONES THAT MATTER

ALASTOR: They had planned to lead the Order into victory together; side by side. However, when Kingsley graduated Hogwarts, his priorities had changed. The primary caretaker of three school aged kids, he couldn’t be out recklessly saving the world. He helped plan missions, helped create the ideals and goals of the Order, but stayed out of the light. Alastor had understood - they were best friends after all. However, when Alastor's family was murdered, he knew that was it for him. Just as Alastor had been there for him, Kingsley returned the favor, and in the process, he stepped up further to help stop the Order from failing in his absence.

GIDEON: Mentoring the younger boy had been an easy decision. He had potential, worked hard, and was clearly destined for great things. With talent and drive like Gideon, Kingsley couldn’t help but want to help him reach his full goals in life, and maybe even more. It isn’t that he wants to push or pressure Gideon into the Order - he wouldn’t do that to anyone - however, he knows that Gideon would be a great asset and he knows that the other boy’s beliefs align, he just doesn’t know what’s holding him back.

ARTHUR: Best friends since before they started school, Arthur has always been right by his side. Two pureblood children that were raised to understand and appreciate muggle culture, they fit right together. They had plans on how they were going to change the world for the better and dreams that were always going to be bigger than they were. However, as they got older they worked harder, and continued to build each other up as they worked to achieve their respective goals. There’s no one he trusts more than Arthur Weasley.

SIBLINGS: When it came to his siblings, there was no one Kingsley was more proud of. Each with their own personalities, they were all unbelievably strong in their own right. The twins had been chasing at his heels since they could toddle, and Kingsley hadn’t hesitated to bring his baby brother along whenever he could. A four and six year age difference, Kingsley had always felt responsible for them in some way, but after the death of their parents, he had naturally stepped into the role of a parent. He couldn’t be prouder of how they had held onto each other in a time of grief as opposed to breaking apart.

#marauders rp #marauders rpg #marauders era rpg #marauders era rp #harry potter rp #kingsley shacklebolt

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swanqueeneverafter · 5 years ago

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Epilogue

The Enchanted Forest. A Short Time Later. (Seated around a table in a tavern located in the real Enchanted forest, Xena and Gabrielle talk with Ruby and Mulan.) Ruby: "So, how're you guys finding the united realms?" Xena: "Well, it's very different to what we're used to." Gabrielle: "But a lot better than Jappa. Right, Xena?" Ruby: (Winces:) "Still kind of a sore spot for you two?" Xena: (Unconsciously rubbing a faded bruise on her arm:) "You could say that." Mulan: (Changing the subject, quickly:) "Have you decided where you're going to make your home yet?" Gabrielle: "Not yet. I think Xena and I are going to continue to travel around the realms for awhile. It was the thought of settling down somewhere that caused all the trouble to begin with." Xena: "That's not exactly true. All I said was, maybe we shouldn't spend our lives wandering around Greece and that we go far away, where no one knows us." Gabrielle: "Right, and then we were found by that messenger, which lead us on your little suicide mission. Trouble will find us wherever we go and whatever we do. I just prefer when we look for it together." (Ruby and Mulan exchange anxious looks as Xena and Gabrielle continue talking.) Xena: "You know if there was any other way, I would never have left you." Gabrielle: "Well, thanks to our new friends, we discovered that the world still needed Xena: Warrior Princess." Ruby: (Cutting in:) "A-and Gabrielle, the battling bard." Gabrielle: (Smiles:) "Thank you." Mulan: "So, if you're not settling down anytime soon, where are you likely to head next?" Xena: "As far as I've seen, the Enchanted Forest is most like back home for us." Gabrielle: "Which means we'll need to move on soon or Xena will get bored and try to kill herself again." Xena: (Purses her lips:) "You know, I really don't think you're being fair. It's not like- (Xena catches the glint in her wife's eye and realises Gabrielle is teasing her:) Oh, very funny. (Gabrielle starts laughing along with Mulan and Ruby:) Laugh it up. Go on, I deserve it." Ruby: (Laughing:) "You really kinda do, Xena." (They continue laughing with Xena even managing to crack a smile.) Mulan: (Stands:) "I think we should get going. We need to be at the coronation ceremony by noon." Ruby: "Right. (Stands:) Sorry, we need to go. Our friends are announcing the name of their baby and Snow will kill me if I miss another big moment." Gabrielle: "Oh, well it was great seeing you." Xena: "Yeah, we'll see you around sometime, huh? (Bidding their goodbyes, Ruby and Mulan leave the tavern while Xena and Gabrielle sit in awkward silence for a few moments:) Hey. We're going to be okay, right?" Gabrielle: (Smiles:) "We're going to be fine. Just don't ever try and leave me again." Xena: "Oh, I promise." Gabrielle: "Hm. So, a royal coronation?" Xena: "Yeah, sounds pretty excessive to me." Gabrielle: (Nods:) "Agreed." Xena: "But then it's not like the Amazons didn't find any excuse to have a party." Gabrielle: "Hey, those weren't parties, they were traditions." Xena: "Uh huh." Gabrielle: "Well, as long as they don't name their baby 'Hope' they should be fine." (There is a brief moments silence between them before both women begin laughing. Leaning in to kiss her wife, Xena is welcomed with open arms by Gabrielle.)

Wonderland. Palace Courtyard. (Ruby and Mulan arrive just in time to gather with other family and friends to hear the name of Emma & Regina's child.) Regina: (Her glass raised:) "Everyone, we'd like you all to meet our daughter: Maria." (The group burst into applause and raise their glasses to toast the new arrival while Regina and Emma stare lovingly at one another.) Henry: (Kisses Regina on the cheek:) "Congratulations. (Kisses Emma on the cheek and reaches for the baby:) Now, you two go and mingle with your guests while I spend some time with my baby sister." (Taking Maria into his arms, Henry walks over to sit with Ella and Tiana.) Ella: (Chuckling as the baby begins to cry:) "I'm pretty sure she wants her sister-in-law." Henry: (While Ella holds Maria, smiles:) "She's a smart girl." Tiana: "So, Henry, how does it feel being an older brother?" Henry: "It feels pretty great." Tiana: "And, er... how does it feel not being the Author anymore?" Henry: "Are you kidding? That was the best decision I ever made." Tiana: (Chuckles:) "How about you, Ella? How are your people finding being a part of the united realms?" Ella: "Oh, you know, it's an adjustment. I still don't think they know what to make of Richard as their King, but he's changed a lot. I know Roberta will make a great Queen, that's for sure." Tiana: "I was surprised after everything that you didn't want to take back the throne of Valencia yourself?" Ella: "Well, it wouldn't be fair to my people. Now that I'm in this world, I finally have a chance to find my mother. To let her know there's a cure for the Curse of the Wounded Heart and that we can be a family again." Tiana: "I’m so happy for you. Remember, if you ever need help navigating Wonderland, you know just who to ask." (Smiling, Tiana glances over at Will who stands with Robin and his sister Alice.)

Elsewhere. (Will returns Tiana’s smile.) Will: "So, Dream World Robin Hood is settling in okay?" Robin: "Will, it's okay, I think we can just call him Robin Hood." Alice: "Thank goodness, cause that would be a bit of a mouthful. I'd probably end up calling him 'Drobin' or something." Robin: (Laughs:) "He's doing great. I haven't introduced him to Roland or the merry men yet though." Will: "Yeah, that's gonna be tough to explain." Robin: (Nods:) "It may be a little awkward for awhile, but I think the world is better off having Robin Hood in it. Even if he's not my dad." Will: (Handing them both glasses of champagne:) "I'll drink to that. (They drink:) Just as long as he doesn't beat me up like the last version did." (Laughing, Alice gives her brother a sympathetic hug.) Kingdom Of Valencia. (King Richard stands fixing a cabinet when Roberta enters.) Queen Roberta: "I have a little surprise for you, my love." King Richard: "Really?" Queen Roberta: "Mmhmm. Gareth's stood waiting outside with it." King Richard: "How I love you, my Queen." Queen Roberta: (They kiss:) "And I you, my King." Storybrooke. (Reunited once again, Belle extends her hand to Rumplestiltskin and they begin to dance to a familiar tune as baby Gideon sleeps soundly in his bed.)

(Moving closer, they share a lingering kiss.) Kingdom Of Valencia. (Stepping outside, Richard can hardly believe his eyes when a burst of bright orange flame lights the sky.) Gareth: "For you, my King." Richard: "Oh my god. I have a dragon!" Arendelle. A Few Weeks Later. (Standing under a beautifully designed frozen archway, Hook and Maleficent are about to tie the knot.) Archie: “Are you ready to recite your vows?” Hook: “Mal, when we met, there was just one thing that mattered to me - getting my revenge. And you did something that no one else ever could. You showed me that a heart full of love was the most precious treasure of all, and one that I don't intend to lose. They say that a captain's heart belongs to his ship. And with this ring, it now belongs to you.” Maleficent: “Killian, I spent so much of my life on my own. And then, you walked into my life and everything changed. Despite years of separation, heartache and pain, we have found each other again. Our hearts may not be without darkness but together we have always managed to find the light. A light that I see shining every time I see our daughter’s smiling face. I never thought I would truly find my happy ending, but thanks to you, now I have.” Archie: “Do you, Killian, take this woman to be your wife and to love her for all eternity?” Hook: “I do.” Archie: “And do you, Maleficent, take this man to be your husband and love him for all eternity?” Maleficent: “I do.” Archie: “Then it is with great pleasure that I now pronounce you husband and wife.” (The congregation applauds as Killian and Maleficent kiss.)

Emma: "I did not see this happening, did you?" Regina: "You mean after I trapped Maleficent in her dragon form for thirty years and you killing her with your father's sword? No, I can't say I did. But what's more amazing is that we were all invited to witness it." Emma: "I just think after everything that's happened, all the history between us and our families, everyone decided it was time to just let it-" Zelena: "Don't you dare." Emma: (Chuckles:) "Spoilsport." Regina: "I thought you were bringing someone?" Zelena: "I was... but we agreed to wait awhile before we took our relationship public." Regina: (Watches her sister closely before her eyes widen:) "You're not... You can't be dating-" Emma: "Surely not again?" Zelena: (With a twinkle in her eye:) "Third time's the charm." At The Altar. (Lily kisses both her parents in turn.) Lily: "I'm so happy for you two." Hook: "Thanks, love. I know it meant everything to your mum that you were here to give her away." Lily: (Smiling at Maleficent:) "I was honoured to do it. Now go, the dance floor is waiting for you." Maleficent: "Dance? I don't dance."

Hook: "Of course you do, come on. (Taking her hand, Hook sweeps Maleficent onto the dance floor:) ♪ Tomorrow is uncertain ♪ ♪ Who knows what it will bring ♪ ♪ But one thing is for sure, luv ♪ ♪ With you, I have everything ♪ Hook & Maleficent: ♪ There's no storm we can't outrun ♪ ♪ We will always find the sun ♪ (They look to the Charmings:) ♪ Leave the past and all its scars ♪ ♪ A happy beginning now is ours ♪ (Snow and David join them on the dance floor.) Snow White: ♪ We celebrate together ♪ ♪ A long-time wish come true ♪ David: ♪ What makes it even better ♪ ♪ Today our story starts anew ♪ (Sharing hugs and words of congratulations, the Charmings and Jones feud is now finally over.) Regina: (Stepping out to take Emma’s hand:) ♪ Let villains cast their curses ♪ Emma: ♪ We can overcome them all ♪ Regina & Emma: (Each pulling Zelena on to the floor with them:) ♪ If we all stand strong together ♪ Zelena: ♪ There's no way we can fall ♪ (The rest of the congregation, including the Dwarves, Archie, Marco, Blue, Tink, Elsa, Lily, Granny and Anna and Kristoff all step onto the dance floor to join in the singing. Meanwhile, Ella and Henry watch on happily as they cradle Maria between them.) All: ♪ There's no storm we can't outrun ♪ ♪ We will always find the sun ♪ ♪ Leave the past and all its scars ♪ ♪ A happy beginning now is ours ♪ ♪ If we're facing endless night ♪ ♪ Take my hand and join the fight ♪ ♪ Past the clouds, we'll find the stars ♪ ♪ A happy beginning now is ours ♪

Storybrooke. Main Street. (Emma and Snow walk together along the street, Snow pushing Maria in the stroller.) Snow White: "This is all so surreal. Back when I was running for my life in the Enchanted Forest, I never thought in my wildest dreams this is how my life would turn out." Emma: (Laughing:) "Yeah, it’s pretty crazy. And now I know a little about how you must've felt when the first curse broke. To wake up and find your child is now fully grown is very strange." Snow White: "But he's happy though, Henry?" Emma: "Oh yeah. He and Ella are combing through every inch of Wonderland, trying to find Ella's mother. I've tried to offer my help so many times, but Henry won't hear of it. Doesn't he realise that finding people is my job?" Snow White: (Smiles:) "I'm sure he does. I just think he wants to make sure you spend as much time with your daughter as possible." Emma: (Nods:) "To make sure I don't miss with Maria what I missed with him." Snow White: "It's very sweet." Emma: "Yeah, but now I feel bad about leaving her with you." Snow White: "Oh, don't be silly. David and I have been dying to spend time with our grand daughter. You can't back out on us now." Emma: (Laughs:) "Okay, okay. You can take her. Just, you know, don't be surprised if you find Regina waiting at the door when you drop her back to us tonight." Snow White: (Smiles:) "We'll take good care of her, I promise." Emma: "I know, Mom. And thank you." (Kissing Snow on the cheek, Emma turns to step onto the road when a taxi beeps its horn. Stepping back onto the sidewalk, Emma watches the taxi pass by. Sitting in the back seat with their arms around each other, Xena and Gabrielle clink their champagne glasses as they drive through Storybrooke.) Swan-Mills House. (Entering the house, Emma closes the door behind her and locks it. Throwing her keys into the dish on the side table, she calls out to her wife.) Emma: "Honey, I'm home." Regina: "I'm in here." (Smiling, Emma walks towards the living room.) Living Room. (Upon entering, Emma stands stock still, taking in the scene before her.) Emma: "I see you've started without me." Regina: (Reclined on the chaise lounge, utterly naked:) "Indeed I have." Emma: "Well then, I'd better catch up." (Sitting up, Regina watches with great interest as Emma makes quick work of her clothing.) Regina: "Eager, are we?" Emma: (Laughs while stepping out of her underwear:) "And you were what, just casually sitting here hoping to improve your tan?" Regina: (Glancing behind her:) "The sun is very strong today." Emma: "Yeah, I noticed. (Taking a seat next to her:) So, anything on your mind?" Regina: (Smiling:) "Only that I love you. And I plan on spending today showing you just how much." Emma: (Leaning in for a quick, chaste kiss:) "Mm. Good plan." Regina: (Running her hands through Emma's hair, pulling her closer:) "I thought you'd like it." (Closing the remaining distance between them with a kiss, Regina allows herself to be laid back upon the chair as Emma covers her body with her own. Several sighs of contentment can be heard while the sunlight continues to stream through the windows, covering their bodies like a warm blanket.)

The End.

#sq #swanqueen #swan queen

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a-man-for-hire-and-his-archives · 6 years ago

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Ready for lift-off

Espionage thriller Summer of Rockets is the first screen work from acclaimed writer/director Stephen Poliakoff to draw on his own life, set in 1958 at the height of the Cold War. He and executive producer Helen Flint talk to DQ about merging fact and fiction.

As a writer and director for the screen over the past four decades, Stephen Poliakoff has been behind work that has amassed numerous Bafta, Emmy, Golden Globe and Peabody awards. The playwright, who learned his craft in the theatre, counts series and films such as Perfect Strangers, The Lost Prince, Friends & Crocodiles, Gideon’s Daughter, Joe’s Palace and Capturing Mary, as well as recent dramas Dancing on the Edge and Close to the Enemy, among his extensive credits.

Yet for all his fascination with the past – among many examples, Dancing on the Edge trails a black jazz group in 1930s London and Close to the Enemy is set in the aftermath of the Second World War – his latest series is the first to draw on his own family and life experiences.

Written and directed by Poliakoff, Summer of Rockets is a semi-autobiographical drama set during 1958, a year that marked the height of the Cold War as fear and suspicion clashed with the start of the mobile revolution and the Space Race. It was also the last time debutants were presented to the Queen at Buckingham Palace and the year of the Notting Hill riots in West London.

Stephen Poliakoff, writer and director of Summer of Rockets, pictured during filming

Poliakoff says the fact it is partly based on his own life marks Summer of Rockets out as “significantly different” from anything he’s done for the screen before.

“My first real memories are from this time – I was five in 1958 – so I could feel, even as a small child, the apprehension in the air, the feel of nuclear war,” he says. “The Russians were the enemy and yet I was half-Russian, so that made me feel an extraordinary sense isolation as a child. I was also sent to boarding school, as we see in the story, and was the only Jewish boy there. That was why I was drawn to this time.

“There’s a lot of resonance for us now, as Russia again seems to be our enemy and there is also unfortunately, tragically, anti-Semitism in Europe and it’s coming back to the UK. Well, it never goes away. But above all, it was a sense of the absolute epicentre of the Cold War; the fact nobody could be trusted, especially if they were foreigners.”

Another parallel between that period and today, he notes, is the “humiliation” of the Suez Crisis in 1958, which left Britain “a laughing stock” on the world stage. “Things have happened since I’ve written the piece and we’ve become a laughing stock for very different reasons, with people harking back to a sense of our past glories, which also plays a part in the story,” Poliakoff says. “This is not a story about Brexit or a metaphor for it, but nevertheless there are resonances in the piece.”

Toby Stephens (Black Sails) stars as Samuel Petrukhin, a Russian Jewish émigré modelled on Poliakoff’s father Alexander, an inventor and designer of hearing aids, whose clients include former UK prime minister Winston Churchill. The series also focuses on Samuel’s wife, Miriam (Lucy Cohu), and their children, Hannah (Lily Sacofsky) and Sasha (Toby Woolf). In the show, having developed a new paging system for hospitals, Samuel is is approached by the UK’s domestic intelligence agency MI5 to demonstrate his work.

Set in 1958, the series stars Toby Stephens as Samuel, who is based on Poliakoff’s father

However, it’s not his inventions the agency (led by Mark Bonnar’s mysterious Field) is interested in but his fledging friendship with MP Richard Shaw (Linus Roache) and his wife Kathleen (Keeley Hawes), who also introduce him to Lord Arthur Wellington (Timothy Spall). As Samuel’s life becomes intertwined with his mission, he is left to question how far he is willing to let things unravel for his cause and who he can trust.

It was Poliakoff’s discovery that his father had been suspected of bugging Churchill’s hearing aid, a revelation he first heard when a journalist contacted him about newly released government papers in 2007, that sparked the story behind Summer of Rockets,

“It took me a long time to think about writing it because it meant revisiting my youth and a very traumatic time at boarding school,” he says. “I also tend to write slightly away from my immediate family experience because I find it easier to invent like that. But, after quite a considerable while, because the story kept haunting me, I broached it to the BBC.”

His father’s work, he explains, is truthfully reflected in the story by his hearing aids business, the deaf workers he employs in the factory and his invention of the paging system, which he created for St Thomas’ Hospital in London.

“But I always saw that as a jumping-off point for Keeley’s side of the story,” Poliakoff continues. “My father was besotted with everything English; he was a real anglophile. He was a Russian Jew but he wanted to be an English gentleman, so there’s the story of him being involved in this English upper-class family who have their own darkness and trauma hidden away in a magnificent house. They have charm and grace, they entertain people, but this covers a deep unhappiness.

“My father would have loved to have been entertained in such a house, so that was what led me from that jumping-off point for the fictitious side of the story, but it’s based on the sort of things my father loved and was attracted to by English life and aspired to. The story curve shows Samuel learning that he doesn’t want to be the perfect English gentleman.”

Bodyguard and The Durrells star Keeley Hawes plays Samuel’s wife, Miriam Richard’s wife, Kathleen

Through the first episode, the story is laid bare against the backdrop of rockets being launched and rising anxiety over what might lie ahead, coupled with the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder that stem from the still-raw fallout of the Second World War. Samuel’s technological achievements also shine a light on how industry was set to move forward rapidly over the next decade.

“When you have six hours of television drama, it’s a big canvas. The joy of longform is that you can build a complex world and you can delve deeper into character than you can in a two-hour movie,” Poliakoff says. “It’s great to try to be ambitious when you’re given that length of screen time.”

Helen Flint, MD of Little Island Productions and Poliakoff’s long-time producing partner, admits the writer’s outlines need very little development as they are often fully formed, “very detailed and very ambitious” by the time she becomes involved.

“The thing is to identify where and how you’re actually going to make it happen,” she says. “Both of us have been around far too long. Therefore, between us and the heads of department, we can work out how to put this on the screen, which is our craft.”

With all of Poliakoff’s work filmed on location, the first task on Summer of Rockets was to find the house belonging to Richard and Kathleen Shaw, which is a constant presence during all six episodes. They eventually settled on Benington Lordship, a grand setting close to Stevenage, 35 miles north of London, which is notable for the Norman keep adjoining the 17th century house and expansive gardens.

Catastrophe’s Mark Bonnar plays the head of MI5

“The other important thing was when to film it, because getting lucky with sunshine in this country is not a given – so the schedule is everything,” Flint says.

Finding London streets that could double for the time period also proved problematic, with the slums of Notting Hill in 1958 far removed from the affluent neighbourhood it is today. Another set piece saw a queue of 1950s cars lined up along The Mall, leading to Buckingham Palace, which was filmed early in the morning to avoid the crowds of tourists usually occupying the area.

“It takes a huge amount of work, more work than anybody would imagine, weeks and weeks, and then huge amounts in post-production just to paint out silly lines and stuff like that,” Flint says of filming in London. “After that, it’s all of the countryside, the driving [scenes] and the minutiae. But because we’ve got a cast that is working all the time, we have to try to jigsaw them all in, which is very complicated at certain points. Once you have those actors, the schedule is dictated by that. Then other problems come to the fore because if they’re not available, you can’t do the locations. London exteriors are the hardest, and then piecing it together is a massive jigsaw.”

In some cases, however, the reality on which some of the series is based was too extreme to be dramatised. Poliakoff decided to tone down scenes where Sasha is at boarding school, as his own experiences at school were too “draconian” to be depicted exactly as he remembered.

Summer of Rockets debuts on BBC2 tomorrow

“When I started writing it, I realised it had to be more interesting and more inventive than the actual thing I experienced, which in reality was relentlessly grim,” he says. “A little bit of that was fine, but I didn’t think an audience would stand for that being repeated in each scene. So, oddly enough, the bit that was closest to reality was the most difficult to write.”

The series sees Poliakoff reunited with Stephens, who starred in his 2001 family reunion drama Perfect Strangers, while this was his first time working with Hawes despite having known her since she was just 19. “She starred in my wife Sandy Welch’s adaptation of Our Mutual Friend 20 years ago,” he recalls of the actor, who has recently starred in Line of Duty, The Durrells and Bodyguard. “I’ve known her for some time and we’ve always wanted to work together. She’s phenomenal in her role, which is a really very juicy role, so I’m thrilled. I think she gives one of her greatest performances.”

Following Summer of Rockets’ launch on UK pubcaster BBC2 tomorrow, all six episodes will be made available on the pubcaster’s VoD platform iPlayer. The drama is distributed internationally by BBC Studios. “‘Bingeable’ is not the prettiest word but, actually, I think my work was born to be binged,” Poliakoff notes. “People over the years have always told me they’ve sat down to watch something like Perfect Strangers, which is only four hours long. They tend to watch the first part and then they’re there four hours later.

“So I very much hope the story has that effect. It does have quite a powerful story that gathers and evolves and changes. It’s great for people to watch it in a linear way or in an immersive way. Either way, I hope people will really get into it.” - Michael Pickard (Drama Quarterly)

#toby stephens #this writer got wrong with kelsey's name #it is kathleen not miriam lol #jeez #summer of rockets #interview

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recreancyrpg · 2 years ago

Photo

JUNE 20TH, 1984.

Theodosia Selwyn reports to the Order that there was a leak in the Ministry of Magic and the Death Eaters have the Ministry’s list of magical births. Because of the corruption within the Ministry, no one is all that surprised. However, they also know that the Death Eaters will do anything in order to prevent the pre-Hogwarts Muggleborn children on that list from ever setting foot in the magical word.

Theo is able to tell the Order the names of the four Muggleborns slated for the next school year, along with the location of their households. She reports that the Death Eaters have planned a four-pronged raid against the Muggleborns for Saturday, June 24th. The Order decides they will be waiting for them.

Organized and overseen by Hestia Jones and Alastor Moody, the Order members spend six hours coming up with a strategy of attack. They will be broken up into four teams to scout these locations and, if/when Death Eaters arrive, do whatever they can in order to protect the Muggleborn children. The problem: these are Muggle areas and they must abide by the Statue of Secrecy.

For those not out in the field, their goal will be to make sure things are running smoothly back at headquarters, any injuries are healed, and that everything goes according to plan, which they know is likely to become chaotic as soon as the Death Eaters (who are much less concerned with limiting Muggle discovery and casualties alike) appear.

Teams should meet at least once prior to the mission on June 24th to go over details and be prepared.

FIELD TEAMS.

Team Lead: Frank Longbottom

Lily Evans Edgar Bones

Location: London

Child target: Wilma Pierce

Team Lead: Gideon Prewett

Remus Lupin Theodosia Selwyn

Location: Liverpool

Child target: Spencer Davis

Team Lead: Peter Pettigrew

James Potter Gwendolyn Lockhart

Location: York

Child target: Aidan Grant

Team Lead: Alice Longbottom

Sirius Black Emma Vanity Mundungus Fletcher

Location: Wiltshire

Child target: Sidney Burns

HEADQUARTER TEAMS.

Strategy and Field Leads: Hestia Jones & Alastor Moody

Dirk Cresswell Severus Snape

Healing Lead: Evan Rosier

Emmeline Vance Regulus Black

DETAILS.

Players should have one planning thread within their team set between June 21st-June 23rd. For groups of four, this can be broken up into two 1x1 paras as long as the full group has discussed details together.

This plot drop will trigger an event that will happen at a later date (to be voted on in the discord). This event will take place on June 24th in game time and will be the actual Order mission, so please do not begin new threads past June 23rd.

You may want to have threads set in reaction to this meeting with other characters outside “their team.” Consider if they’re happy about their placement - or with their other team members.

For those at HQ, there is still much to be done - characters should make sure plans are set into place, supplies are plentiful, and decisions are finalized. Team leads are in charge of their groups, but those leads at HQ (Alastor, Hestia, and Evan) are in charge of the team leads.

Reminder to plot things out together prior to threading!

#recreancyplot #recreancyevent

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captaincanarygotmelike · 6 years ago

Text

Voices Carry Alternate Ending

So I promised an alt. ending to Voices Carry literally in July. Whoops. Anyway, if you’re new, you should probably read the original fic (linked here) bc this won’t make a whole lot of sense if you don’t but it’s your life.

Read on AO3

Read on Fanfiction.net

“Avery’s dancing with someone and it isn’t me?” Leonard heard someone exclaim.

He looked over in time to see Avery run over and jump into Felicity’s arms, letting her swing her around in circles.

Leonard felt someone grab his hand.

“You wanna dance, Leonard?” Sara asked, a smirk on her lips.

Leonard tried to smirk back, but found that he couldn’t, his body paralyzed, his eyes seeing nothing but darkness.

You wanna dance, Leonard?

The words reverberated in his mind until they took on a new voice.

Or…the same voice, but different somehow. Maybe younger? Older? He couldn’t tell. Different definitely. More of a joking tone, as if Sara — yes, he was sure it was still Sara — knew he would say no.

No thanks, I’ll watch.

His voice now, although he hadn’t spoken them.

Suit yourself.

Sara again, indifference in her voice, like she was talking to a stranger.

The world around Leonard was still dark, or maybe he just couldn’t open his eyes.

Dollar beers.

Mick’s words, rough and jagged, floated into his mind like a bubble.

One. Two. Three. Four.

Avery, her voice high and sweet.

Gotta love the seventies.

Mick again.

The seventies?

An image flickered into Leonard’s mind of a bar he had never been in, an old jukebox in the corner, a deer head mounted on a tall post, red, knotty wood making up almost every surface, and Sara standing in front of him.

Her hair was longer than he remembered, and she was wearing some sort of costume? Something he’d never seen before: white and leather with a halter neck.

Suit yourself.

Sara handed him her beer, the bottle cold in the palm of his hand.

Recognition flooded his mind as the White Canary walked into the empty space of the bar in St. Roch, Louisiana, 1975.

He and Sara and Mick had all just joined the time traveling mission to save time from Vandal Savage. They were benched from the first mission, so they crashed a bar.

They weren’t benched from other missions though. He remembered breaking into Savage’s house with Mick and…tall…painfully optimistic…Ray. He remembers the rest of the team now, Kendra, Jax, Stein, and Rip, their captain. He remembers breaking Mick and Ray out of a Russian gulag. He remembers nearly freezing in the cargo hold of the Waverider, Mick’s betrayal and return, pointing the cold gun at Sara. He remembers holding down the failsafe at the Oculus Wellspring.

Me and you.

You wanna steal a kiss from me, Leonard.

Leonard.

“Leonard!”

The voice was louder now, solid, and certainly not Sara’s.

Snart!”

It’s lower, a man’s, but not as low as Mick’s, somewhere in the middle.

His eyes opened and he could see again, for the first time since the wedding.

His wedding.

His vision focused and he recognized the med bay on the Waverider, clean and painfully bright.

Ray Palmer stood beside the bed.

“You’re awake!” he exclaimed. His face was as bright as ever, but there was still concern in his eyes.

“Thanks for letting me know,” he grumbled, pushing himself into a more upright position.

There was a beat of silence.

“What happened?” he finally asked.

He hadn’t wanted to say it, to admit to Raymond and himself the position of vulnerability he was in.

“We’re not really sure,” Ray answered, looking intently at the screen displaying his vitals, “You, y’know, died when the Oculus blew up, or at least that’s what we thought. A year and half went by without any sign of you and then all of a sudden Gideon started freaking out and then we found you passed out in an alley behind some bar in Louisiana, 1975.”

Another second of silence.

“What happened?”

This time it was Ray who asked.

“I mean,” he continued, “did you get sucked into the timeline? Because that’s what I think happened.”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“Or maybe destroying the Oculus reset your timeline or, what do you think?” Ray paused when he realized Leonard wasn’t responding, “Hey, are you okay?”

“I need to talk to Rip,” he said, “Alone.”

Confusion etched itself across Ray’s face, but he hid it surprisingly well.

Leonard wasn’t surprised by his concern. The more he came to remember who he was here, on the Waverider, the more he recognized that genuinely seeking out their captain was extremely out of character.

“Rip is,” Ray hesitated, “not here.”

“Not here?”

“Look, I know it’s been a while, but—”

“Who’s Captain, then?”

“Sara.”

Leonard felt a pang in her heart at her name.

“Oh.”

“But I’ve been working pretty closely with Gideon,” Ray said hurriedly, “I can try to help.”

Leonard said nothing, gesturing for him to continue.

“I assume you want to figure out what happened. You are aware of how you…” he paused, “…left us — I guess died isn’t really the best word now.”

“The Oculus.”

“Right. We thought the Oculus explosion killed you. Gideon never found any traces of your survival, so we just assumed you had died. We did have some other theories, so we set up an alert if you ever turned up anywhere. Eighteen months later, here we are.”

“I just, what, showed up?”

“Seems like it,” Ray replied, “in St. Roch, 1975 at the bar you went to with Mick and Sara.”

Leonard let his eyes close at the sound of Sara’s name.

“What?” Ray asked. Leonard opened his eyes and shook his head.

“Where did I come from?” he asked, hearing anger in his voice he hadn’t realized he was feeling.

“We don’t know — not yet anyway. I’m almost afraid to ask, but,” Ray hesitated, “where were you?”

Leonard exhaled heavily.

“I was—” he stopped for a moment, thinking, “I think I was on…not this Earth. Another one. I was me, but things about me were different.”

“Different how?”

“I was still Captain Cold,” he answered, “but I hid who I really was. My sister wasn’t Golden Glider, Mick wasn’t Heatwave — Mick wasn’t around at all really.”

“And you didn’t work on the — a — Waverider, or with anybody on this team?”

“No— well, not entirely.”

“What do you mean?”

“I knew — know — Sara.”

“Oh,” he said, his eyebrows raised, “And you were with her?”

“Yeah, you could say that,” he replied, feeling a smirk creep onto his lips.

“So let me get this straight,” Ray said, starting a slow pace around the med bay, “You have all your memories from your life on this other earth, from childhood to today. And you have all your memories from your life on this Earth?”

“As of ten minutes ago, yes.”

Ray nodded slowly.

“Okay, well, the first thing we did when we got you to the med bay was run a test to see if you are really you — our Earth’s you.”

“And?”

“You are the Earth-One Leonard Snart. The cells in your right hand are younger than the rest of your body, from when you had to regrow it two years ago. According to Gideon, that event is unique to Earth-One Leonard Snart.

“Lucky me.”

“So now we have to ask, how did you end up on another Earth?” Ray continued, “And which Earth was it?”

“You think that’s what happened?”

“Well, my other thought is that you were in a dream world, you know, inside your head, but given how visceral your knowledge of this other life is, I don’t really think that’s the case,” Ray replied. His face clouded over in thought, “Or maybe the aliens.”

“What?”

Rip shook his head.

“Never mind. Probably not. Anyway, we can run a search to figure out what Earth you ended up on, but we’ll need to go to the bridge. Gideon, is Snart okay to make it there alright?”

“Yes, Mr. Palmer, I believe Mr. Snart has recovered enough to not need the services of the medical bay.”

“Perfect.”

Ray took a step back and waited while Leonard got to his feet.

“So,” he said as they walked down the corridor leading to the bridge, “What I think happened is when you destroyed the Oculus, the explosion pulled you into the time stream of another Earth, and you became an anachronism.”

“What’s an anachronism?” Leonard asked drily.

“Man, have you missed a lot,” Ray sighed, “Anachronisms are changes to the timeline that were caused by the ripple effect of other changes. Stein caused an anachronism when he gave his younger self some advice and now he has a daughter, Lily. He has memories of both lives, with and without Lily, same as you with the two Earths.”

“So…” Leonard said, trailing off when he couldn’t find a way to continue.

“I can find the Earth you were on if you want,” Ray suggested.

After a moment of thought, Leonard nodded.

“Okay, so I just need a detail that could be unique to that particular Earth, like how having to regenerate your hand is unique to you,” he explained. By that time, they had reached the bridge, stopping in front of the holo table, “Do you have anything in mind?”

Leonard thought for a while, considering the two worlds he had lived in.

“Avery Lance.”

Ray met his eyes for a moment, but didn’t say anything.

“Gideon,” he called into the air, “Run a multiverse search for Avery Lance in the year 2018.

There was silence for a moment.

“I found records of an Avery Felicity Lance, age four, currently living in Central City on Earth sixty-three.”

Leonard wasn’t listening. A picture had appeared on the holo table — Avery, in a floral print skirt and pink blouse, sandals on her feet, a white bow in her wild curls, and backpack straps over her shoulders. Sara was crouched down at her side and they were both smiling into the camera.

Leonard knew this picture well. It was taken on Avery’s first day of preschool, and sat in a frame on a shelf in the living room.

He thought of Sara and Avery. The new weight of the wedding band on his ring finger had been a constant thought in his mind. He could only hope the mysterious ways of time were protecting them from what was going on, and he was trying to avoid altogether the thought of never returning to them.

“Snart,” Ray said, his voice softer than it had been thus far, “This is Earth-63-Sara’s daughter?” Leonard nodded, “And yours?”

“Not…biologically,” Leonard answered, not taking his eyes off the picture, “but she’s…” he trailed off, trying to find the right words, “I love her like she’s mine.”

“And Sara wasn’t just a business partner.”

“No,” he said, his voice soft, “Our wedding was today.”

He wasn’t sure if he wanted to share that particular part of his life, but at this point it didn’t seem to matter.

“Mazel Tov,” Ray replied somewhat uncomfortably.

“Thanks,” Leonard replied, expressionless.

“Well, Gideon and I are going to figure out how this happened. In the meantime, if you’d like to,” he paused, “reacquaint yourself with the ship and the team, you can.”

Leonard nodded curtly, turned, and headed for the metal doorway.

He’d be lying if he said his memory of the Waverider and its maze of corridors was perfect, but it was starting to come back to him. He made it back to his quarters relatively easily.

The doors opened automatically as he approached, and once inside, he was surrounded by his old belongings, although he wasn’t sure if old was the right word.

There was a frame on a black desk holding a faded photograph of Lisa at her high school graduation. On Earth-63, Leonard had a similar picture from Lisa’s college graduation, but he also knew on this Earth, Earth-1 Lisa hadn’t gone to college, and neither did he.

It was strange, when he first woke up, he had considered what was apparently Earth-63 to be his real Earth, but the longer he was here and the more he remembered, it was beginning to even out. He had lived both, and had memories of both lives. Both of them were real.

Leonard wasn’t sure if that was a reassuring thought. He wondered if he was stuck on this Earth now — although again, stuck didn’t seem like the right word, because there was a part of him that felt relieved to be back. Of course, there was an equally strong part of him that desperately wanted to return to Earth-63. He just wasn’t sure if that was a possibility.

He turned when he heard the sound of knocking on the metal door.

“Hey,” Jax said, taking a step into the room, “How’re you doing?”

“Fine,” he replied.

“I, uh, sort of accidentally overheard you and Ray on the bridge,” he said, “Look, I’m really sorry, man. I really hope we find a way to get you back to Earth-63 and your family, if that’s what you want.”

“So do I,” he replied.

“Have you said hi to the rest of the team yet?”

“No.”

“Well, you should. We missed you around here.”

Jax nodded once, then turned and left the room.

Leonard thought about what Jax had said and found he did want to talk to the team. He found he was beginning to remember the people he worked with for the five months he was on the Waverider before the Oculus. He remembered how much he cared about them. He realized that this was somewhat uncharacteristic for this version of him, but so was self-sacrifice to save all of history, at least it would have been when the mission began. The mission had changed him. He probably wouldn’t have let himself acknowledge that before, but at this point, it seemed sort of futile. He’d changed a lot on Earth-63 as well. It was a good thing. Barry — Earth-63 Barry — had said something only a few hours early which led him to realize that past versions of himself could never have been capable of being loved by Sara Lance. He’d continued to become a better person because of her. perhaps that’s why he drifted to Sara on this Earth as well.

When he’d first woken up, thoughts of returning to Earth-63 and Sara and Avery had nearly consumed him. Those thoughts certainly weren’t gone, but he couldn’t deny there was a part of him that wanted to stay here, on Earth-1. That thought left a somewhat bitter taste in his mouth. He had a wife and a daughter on Earth-63, yet he still felt a desire to stay here. He had unfinished business here, both on this Earth and on the Waverider.

He couldn’t help but think of Lisa. Did the team tell her what happened after the Oculus? Did she think he was dead? Leonard hadn’t bothered to tell her about the Waverider and the mission because he figured they’d return mere minutes after they left.

And what about Mick. He didn’t know why it had taken so long to think of his old friend, his partner, except perhaps that they hadn’t been as close on Earth-63 as they were here.

Either way, Leonard knew the last time they had interacted was when he had knocked Mick out with the cold gun to take his place at the Oculus.

He remember what Jax had said about visiting the team. Leonard sighed and headed for the door.

He remembered where Mick’s room was. He hadn’t gone there particularly often when he was on the ship. For as long and as well as they knew each other, they weren’t particularly close. He actually thought he might have spent more time in Sara’s room than Mick’s.

Predicting the future, he thought, then pushed the idea out of his mind, realizing as he did that he wasn’t sure which Sara he’d been thinking of.

He rounded a corner and nearly collided with someone. He took a step back and saw familiar light brown hair — the same color as Avery’s — messy in a way that seemed like it was on purpose. He was slightly more built than on Earth-63, but he was dressed the same: t-shirt and loose-fitting jeans.

“Hey,” he said, holding out a hand, “Nate Heywood. You must be Captain Cold. Ray talks about you all the time.”

Leonard stood still, not really sure how to react. He had never considered the potential overlaps between the two Earths he knew, overlaps he couldn’t foresee.

Nate Heywood hadn’t been on the team when Leonard was last a part of it, yet here he was. He wondered what else was different.

Had anybody else joined the team? He knew Rip was gone, although he didn’t know why — maybe after the Oculus they defeated Savage and saved Miranda and Jonas. Maybe he was with his family.

Either way, Sara was captain of the Waverider now, a fact he hadn’t gotten to process yet.

What about at home? Is Lisa dating Cisco on this Earth? Is she working on the Flash’s team? What about Malcolm Merlyn? As memories of Earth-1 returned to him, he remembered hearing about earthquakes in a district in Star City, attributed to Malcolm Merlyn. What was he doing now? Still in jail, hopefully.

“Hey,” Nate said, slowing lowering his hand, “You alright?”

“Peachy,” he replied, brushing past him towards Mick’s room.

It was a disaster zone.

Mick had always been the messiest person Leonard had ever known. This wasn’t particularly out of the norm when they were teenagers, but apparently he’d never grown out of it. At least something was consistent between the two Earths.

Mick was sitting on the edge of the bed, tinkering with the heat gun. He looked up.

“Mick,” he said, leaning against the doorframe.

“Heard you were back from the dead,” he replied, glancing up at him before looking back to his gun.

“Seems like it.”

“Haircut told me you were on a different Earth.”

“Seems like it.”

“He said you married Sara on that Earth,” Mick eventually said, “Nice job.”

“Thanks.”

Mick didn’t respond immediately, long enough for Leonard to think he should say more. He felt a strange need to apologize to him, but he wasn’t sure why.

“After you died, I told Sara that I wish I’d ‘a done more to push you together.”

“You knew?”

“ ‘course I know. The only ones on this tin can who didn’t know were you and Blondie. Glad to hear it worked out on one Earth, though.”

Leonard didn’t respond.

“Did you know me on this other Earth?” Mick asked.

“I did,” he replied, “We weren’t as close though, not in the last five or six years — remember Freeport Warehouse.”

“Yeah,” Mick said with one short laugh, “Almost didn’t get outta that one.”

“Well, we didn’t. Got three years each — except yours turned into seven because you kept pissing off the guards. After that we didn’t really work together much anymore.”

“Did you invite me to the wedding?”

“I did.”

“Did I come?”

“Yeah. You did.”

Neither spoke for a moment, Mick focusing on the heat gun, Leonard’s eyes roaming around the room that was becoming more familiar with each passing minute.

“You shouldn’t ‘a done it,” Mick said.

“Done what?”

“Knocked me out. Traded places with me.”

“Doesn’t seem like it really mattered in the end.” Leonard replied.

“Still. Shouldn’t ‘a done it. Not for me. Didn’t deserve it.”

Leonard furrowed his eyebrows. Apparently he wasn’t the only rogue who had changed during their time on the Waverider.

“Stein, Jax, and the boy scout are working on a way to get to your other Earth,” Mick continued, seeming unbothered by not getting a response to his previous statement. “You gonna go?”

Leonard didn’t answer immediately, even thought he knew what he was going to say. Mick’s question had made him realize that he was going to need to make a decision eventually, and the longer he stayed here, the harder that became.

“I really don’t know.”

—

Leonard left Mick’s room only a couple minutes later. Mick was a man of few words, and Leonard could sense when the conversation would go no further.

He headed back towards his room the way he came. He was nearing the corridor leading to the bridge when a familiar figure walked out of it and turned his way.

Leonard was standing face to face with Sara Lance. Sara’s expression was one he’d never seen before — not on this version nor her Earth-63 counterpart — holding both anger and sadness. He felt his lips involuntarily part, his eyes softening.

Leonard saw something change on Sara’s face, and before he knew what was happening, she surged towards him and they were kissing.

Kissing this Earth’s Sara was not like kissing the Sara on Earth-63. That Sara was gentler, not hardened by years on a remote island inhabited by training assassins. This Sara’s strength was apparent in her touch, one hand on his cheek, the other on the back of his neck.

Everything came flooding back to him, the smirks exchanged over the holo table during team meetings, fighting back to back against Savage’s army — not even fighting with Mick was as effortless. Everything about this Sara he’d ever thought and felt came back.

He pulled away. He met her eyes, seeing the sadness had returned.

“Sara—”

She shook her head, opening her mouth to speak and closing it again before she brushed past him.

Leonard watched her go for a moment before he sighed and continued towards his room.

—

He didn’t leave his quarters at all after his interaction with Sara. A couple hours later, Ray poked his head into the room.

“Hey,” he said, “So I’ve been talking to Gideon and we think we figured out a way to get you back to Earth-63— if you wanted.”

Leonard didn’t say anything so he continued.

“And we think we figured out a way to sort of reset the timeline there, so if you wanted to stay here, it’ll be like nothing ever happened. Nobody gets hurt. I could explain how it all works if you wanted—”

“No thanks.”

“Yeah, sorta figured,” he shrugged, “Anyway, I know it’s a tough decision so take your time.”

He backed out of the room and the metal doors slid closed.

A few minutes later, he heard another voice in the doorway.

“Hey.”

Leonard turned his head to see Sara in the spot Ray had just left.

“I’m sorry about—” she hesitated, “I’m sorry about before. I…your expression when…I’m just sorry. Ray told me about Earth-63, how you’re married to…to that version of me, and about your daughter.”

He nodded slowly.

“What’s her name?” Sara asked, moving farther into the room.

“Avery Felicity Lance,” he replied, unable to conceal the small smile that appeared on his face.

“Felicity?”

“Yeah, I guess you’re closer with her on my — that — Earth than here.”

“The timelines are different?”

He nodded.

“How?” she asked, “How did I end up — not what I am today.”

“You didn’t go on the boat.”

Sara went still. Leonard knew she had always wondered who she would be had she not gone on the Queen’s Gambit with Oliver. Maybe this was it. Maybe she would finish college, become a cop, have a daughter.

She wouldn’t meet him though. He knew that much. His past on Earth-63 was bad, but his past here was much, much worse. Putting aside other discrepancies that would stand between them meeting (for one, he was pretty sure he’d never even seen the apartment building he and his sister had lived in on Earth-63, the one where he and Sara had met), there was no possibility Sara would give him the time of day. None.

“What else?” she asked.

“Your parents are still divorced and your mom still lives in Central City, but your dad is married to Felicity’s mother.”

“Really?” Sara interjected, “I don’t think they even know each other here.”

“Tommy’s alive,” he continued. She nodded, “He’s married to your sister.”

He saw her eyes widen slightly, her lips parting.

“What?”

“My sister died,” she told him, “sometime during the first few months of the mission. I found out after you…after the Oculus.”

“I’m sorry.”

Sara nodded, then shook her head, straightening.

“What else?” she asked, “So I didn’t go on the boat. What’d I end up doing?”

“You’re a cop,” he replied.

“Really?”

He nodded, “Actually, a homicide detective. you led the case to catch Captain Cold.”

“Is that how we met?” she asked, laughing.

“No,” he smirked.

“Why do I feel like that’s a long story,” she replied. He nodded, the smirk becoming a smile before he could stop it. “What about my — her — daughter? How old is she?”

“Four,” he replied, “Turns five in March.”

“Can I see her?”

Leonard pulled his phone out of his back pocket and opened a folder of photos he had of Avery. He knew there were a few photos of Sara — Earth-63 Sara — in there as well.

He watched as Sara looked at the pictures.

“She’s cute,” she told him, smiling as she swiped through the blurry selfies Avery had taken in the few seconds before Leonard noticed, “Baby pictures?”

Sara tipped the phone towards him so he could see a photo of Avery when she was a little over a year old, standing on chunky little legs in Dinah Lance’s kitchen. Her light brown curls were shorter, but just as wild.

He nodded.

“Huh,” she said, “I just never saw you as the kind of dad who had baby pictures on his phone.”

He didn’t. Well, not really. He had pictures of Avery now, mostly ones she’d taken herself. The only baby pictures he had of her were sent by Sara — Avery had needed them for a homework assignment.

“Do you know who her…” Sara hesitated, “biological dad is?”

“Yeah,” he replied. He sensed her next question and shook his head, “Doesn’t matter who.”

Sara nodded. A moment later, her face clouded over.

“Oh God, tell me it’s not Oliver.”

“It’s not Oliver,” he chuckled.

Sara stilled. Leonard remembered that the version of him Sara remembered rarely ever laughed or smiled (besides out of sarcasm, anyway).

He watched her sigh.

“You’re not staying,” she said. It wasn’t a question. She already knew the answer.

“No.”

“Because of them.”

“I love them,” he said, “more than I thought I ever could.”

She exhaled.

“I’m sorry,” he said.

“No, I get it,” she shook her head. She waited a beat and then continued, “You should know — and I’m not saying this to convince you to stay, I swear — it really sucks not having you on the Waverider. It does. There’s too many Ray’s on board now. I wish you were here to balance things out.”

He chuckled.

“You still have Mick,” he replied.

“Mick’s not as good at pushing buttons as you were,” she shook her head, smiling slightly, “Team hasn’t been the same without you.”

He didn’t respond. There wasn’t anything he could say.

Sara spoke again.

“I wish I hadn’t left.”

“The Oculus?”

“No — well, yes — but I mean my room. When you came to talk to me.”

“Oh.”

“I always wondered…” she trailed off momentarily, “if I hadn’t left and we had kept talking and…stuff, would you still have taken Mick’s place.”

Leonard didn’t answer immediately. His conversation with Sara then had gone exactly how he thought it would, but if it hadn’t, if it had gone differently, maybe he would have made a different choice.

“I don’t know,” he replied honestly, “But you should know I meant what I said about thinking about you. I think that’s why I did what I did on the bridge, pulling the cold gun on you.”

“You know, I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to justify that kind of thing,” Sara said, her lips turning up in a smirk.

“I’m not,” he replied, “I was a jerk —”

“Guilty,” Sara cut in, still smirking, and Leonard felt a pang in his chest.

“I was a jerk,” he repeated, “but I think I was trying to convince myself that I didn’t care as much as I did.”

“And did it work.”

“No.”

“Captain,” Gideon’s voice rang out across the room, “Ray would like you to know that the tech to send Mr. Snart back to Earth-63 is ready.”

“Okay,” Sara replied. She met Leonard’s eyes, “Ready?”

“Yeah.”

—

“You’re sure this is what you want?” Ray asked when he and Sara were on the bridge. Leonard said nothing but raised an eyebrow at him, “Okay, well, you should know Gideon wants to erase your memories — you know, of this Earth.”

“Why?”

“After we bring you to Earth-63, we can’t come back, and there’s no way for you to get in contact with us. That’s not gonna be a problem if you don’t remember any of us and all of this. Besides, I can’t imagine wanting to have memories of two lives in a world where only one happened.”

“Fine.”

“Alright, so we figured out a way to sort of…beam you into Earth-63 in the exact place you left, and we’ll erase your memory then.”

“Okay.”

“Okay,” Ray repeated. He took on a look that conveyed a taxing internal debate before stepping forward and hugging Leonard.

“That was unnecessary,” he grumbled when Ray relinquished him.

Mick then moved forwards.

“I’m glad you’re not dead,” he told him as Leonard shook his hand.

“Me too. Tell my sister what happened.”

“ ‘Course.”

Jax and Stein both shook Leonard’s hand and then stepped back.

Sara started moving towards him, arms crossed in front of her.

“We’re gonna miss you around here,” she said. She stopped when she was just in front of him and turned to Ray. “He’s not gonna remember anything?”

“Not anything, just nothing from this Earth. Gideon said tha—”

“Perfect,” Sara breathed, grabbing Leonard’s face and capturing his lips with hers.Leonard gave into the kiss that time, snaking his arms around her waist.

“What the hell?” he heard a voice that sounded suspiciously like Nate whisper.

Sara’s hands trailed from his face to around his neck as she deepened the kiss. Leonard remembered the last time he had kissed Sara, when they were at the Oculus. He remembered when she pulled away, their eyes meeting. He remembered trying to memorize every inch of her in the seconds before she left.

Sara pulled away, untwining her arms from around his shoulders. Leonard didn’t move his hands from her waist. He met her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice low. She shook her head.

“Don’t,” she replied just as softly, “It’s okay.”

Finally, he let his arms drop and Sara stepped away from him.

“Ready?” Ray asked again.

“Yeah,” Leonard nodded.

Ray lifted his arm. In his hand was a small white gun with a wide, box-shaped barrel that looked not unlike the one Rip Hunter had used on him when he was first pulling together the team.

Leonard’s eyes flicked to Sara. Her expression was the same as when they were at the Oculus.

She gave him a small, almost imperceptible nod. He heard the click of the trigger, and as he turned back to Ray, a flash of white light completely consumed his vision.

—

“Hey,” Sara said, her hand moving to his arm. He met her eyes, seeing concern written on her face, “You okay? It looked like we lost you for a second.”

Leonard processed again where he was, saw the twinkling lights hung around them, illuminated by the steadily setting sun, heard the last few notes of Al Green’s Let’s Stay Together beginning to fade. He looked back to Sara, saw her in her wedding dress, felt the weight of her hand on his arm, and smiled.

“Just realizing how lucky I am,” he said.

“Oh really?” Sara asked, a smirk on her lips and eyebrows raised, “And why is that?”

“I dunno,” he replied, his arms moving to around her waist, “maybe because you’re beautiful and smart and strong.”

“I’m also your wife,” Sara replied, the smirk turning into a smile as she looped her arms around his neck.

“You’re proving my argument,” he murmured against her lips before Sara kissed him.

—

“Would you like me to land, Captain,” Gideon asked.

Sara didn’t answer immediately, looking out the jumpship window at the couple on the dance floor.

“Uh…no, Gideon,” she replied, “We’re leaving in a second.”

She continued looking at the scene below her. She’d never seen a more beautiful wedding before, with the lights and lanterns hanging from the rustic wooden frame lighting up the shiny black and white dance floor and the tables and chairs filled with people. She didn’t consider herself to be a wedding person — she hadn’t really even thought about the possibility of having one since before the Gambit. Maybe this version of her was.

She saw her father dancing with a blonde woman she had to assume was Felicity’s mother — Leonard really wasn’t kidding about that, she supposed.

Her eyes landed on Laurel then, and she felt tears pricking her eyes. She was dancing with Tommy a couple yards away from Leonard and this Earth’s Sara. She was laughing at something Tommy had said as they swayed back and forth to the music.

“Gideon, is there any way I can hear what’s going on down there — without them noticing, obviously.”

There was a click and then the first chorus of The Way You Look Tonight started playing in the jumpship.

“Daddy!” Sara heard a high voice call. She watched a little girl run across the dance floor and jump into Leonard’s arms.

Even from a distance, Avery Lance looked just like her picture, with wild brown curls and shining eyes.

“Mama,” Avery said, “watch this!”

She squirmed out of Leonard’s arms and took his hand, twirling underneath it.

Sara watched her Earth-63 counterpart smile.

“Wow, Avie,” she said heard her say, “That’s so cool.”

Sara sat down in the pilot’s chair.

He made the right choice, she decided as she watched Leonard with this Earth’s Sara, Avery hanging onto his arm, chattering indistinguishably about something in the little girl manner she’d never been able to understand. He’d never looked that happy before, a genuine smile on his face as he looked to his wife.

“Gideon,” Sara said, “I’m ready to go.”

The jumpship jolted into motion, and as Avery’s little voice was carried into the wind with the music, Sara left Leonard for the last time.

#legends of tomorrow #captain canary #leonard snart #sara lance #cc ff #lot ff #mine #voices carry

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