#go check out phobia the awakening

[elecballoon]

Very much not an expert on costumes and cosplay creation

But here’s my attempt at recreating the mask of The Figure from Phobia: The Awakening

[themochiverse]

We All Float | JHS

Banner credits go to: @introgfx (TYSM it looks amazing <3)

[ Part of - The Fear Festival collab hosted by the lovely @taetaecherub and pls check out the other authors works and support 'em!]

➳Pairing: yandere!shapeshifter!hoseok X fem!Reader

➳Genre: Yandere, Horror

➳Warnings: Swearing, strong impacts of graphic depictions of violence & gore ( a ton of it ), exploration of fear, mental/emotional manipulation, mentions of suicide, physical abuse (like broken bones, bruises, scars, etc.), choking, mentions of domestic violence, Agora-phobia (fear of helplessness/embarrassment, etc), bullying, Atelo-phobia [insecurities/ fear of imperfection), Claustro-phobia (fear of tight spaces), auto-phobia/mono-phobia (fear of being alone), hypnotism, blood, more blood [like srsly a lot of it], stalking, supernatural creature (s), illusions, mentions of death, NON-CON touching, NON-CON kissing (Nothing sexual happens)

**Note: This fic has extreme themes of violence and gore, including sensitive topics. If you are NOT comfortable with this, please proceed to not read it.

➳Synopsis:  ‘Come one, come all, for today is the night!’ It’s Halloween, and people in town have start to gone missing. You ought to be cautious but what’s better than mucking around at a haunted house carnival with your friends? Only you should be careful around the one gorgeous looking actor who’s ready to have his horrific fun with you tonight.

➳Word Count: 9.26k+

➳Disclaimer: This fanfic is purely from my imagination, I do not intend to harm any Idol or person in any way. Nor sexualising them. Please do not steal any ideas from here, this is all of my work and original work. I DO NOT CONDONE THIS BEHAVIOUR IRL.

We All Float ©Copyright -2022- themochiverse

-All Rights Reserved

No part of the story can be copied, reproduced, redistributed or transformed into any other form. Meaning no photocopying, recording whether written or electrically. No methods are allowed that uses anything from this fic. This follows in the permitted Copyright Law. All images and/or gifs go to their rightful owners.

➳A/N: THIS IS THE MOST I HAVE EVER WRITTEN IN MY LIFE. I hope it's good and I'm super sorry for the delay! Anyway, I hope this gives you a thrill :p

Taglist; @minshookie29 @6tslovr @proflyndo @pinkcherrybombs @xanslii @papijiminfeed @justanotherstarlightmonger @kittykatfey @princess-sunshyn @jinniesjoon94

"Please, someone, somebody help!"

The yell for help disappears every second, and the blood-curdling screams ripple through the forest. The intention to run and seek safety was impossible at this point, especially when she was right at the hands of the masked killer.

Red, abraded cheeks, muddied hands, smothered all over her beautiful ripped, ragged clothes, the wet soil sank into her fingernails, and the painful twist that came from her ankle obviously meant more than a gruesome warning.

She whimpered when the masked person, oh so deadly, inched a foot or two, only to crouch down to her eye level. Their eyes searched hers, fear consuming those innocent orbs that would soon no longer blink.

Her hands moved backwards, pulling her body with all the strength that she had left which had only lasted seconds.

It was a clear, audible scream. A bellowed howl that had a tremendous impact, shaking the nerves of creatures who were hidden, awakened by the high-pitched shrill.

The regular kitchen knife that had now sunk deep through the girl's left hand dripped with fresh blood, coating the reflective silver material. It had gone through the soft ground, her hand pinned painfully when the warm tears sprang out of her begging eyes.

The knife now pulled out, like ripping out a bandage left a silent gasp on the girl's lips. She brought out her bloodied hand to her chest weakly, the red colour continuing to stain the girl's dirtied dress. It was not just bright enough though.

Her sobs were caught in her throat, repetitive broken cries that couldn't escape properly like broken melodies with their broken notes. It was music to him though, a lullaby he could listen to all night and sleep without any disturbance.

He shuffled towards the girl, whose breaths became hot and heavy, the beads of sweat that trickled across her forehead, in other words, a quivering figure.

Or soon be the victim.

He scrutinised the crying girl, her eyes following the knife that was lightly tracing the features of her face.

"I don't know what to do with you," the man paused "should I start here?" The knife smears the blood on her dry lips, slowly getting wet by the substance, as it made its way to the tip of her tongue. A salty, metallic flavour drove through her hard-bitten taste buds, not even close to soothing the sting which had popped everywhere.

"Or here?" This time the knife points to her chest, right at her fast- beating heart. The man puts a little pressure on the spot, digging the tip of the knife into the girl's skin to receive a response from her.

She squeezes her eyes shut out of agony, her hands scraping against the ground, making it even ten times worse.

"P-please." The response is so gentle it makes the man rethink his choices. But. But it seemed so fun, no, it was really fun. This was his excitement, his happiness, his relief, his way of living. No one could stop him, and no one would be able to save this poor little, pathetic girl.

He removes the knife before it drives deeper into the skin. The man groans, standing up as he circles around the helpless girl who could not do anything but cry.

He goes to crouch again, his noxious breath fanning over the girl's ear.

"Do you want to see my face before you die, my little girl?" Her widened eyes meant so much to him that the glee shown on his face would have been horrific to even consider. His hands grab the mask he wore, lifting it off to reveal his true identity.

"Surprise."

The girl's eyes enlarged in a stupor as she scrutinised the man in front of her. Pale cheeks with sharp cheekbones, chocolate hair that fell on their eyebrows, and that scar. That faint scar ran against his eye to his eyebrow. The scar that she created.

"Does this ring a bell?" The man chuckles, his cold hand reaching out to the girl's wounded one. She struggles to move hers away from his but the grip he had on her was immense. And at this state, this girl was soon about to die.

The man hums, his fingers drawing vague circles around the red splotch that was formed on the girl's palm. In a flash, before the girl knew it, a wet thing made her palm sting. She hissed and realised that the wet thing was actually a tongue. Disgusted, she pulls her hand away as it thuds on the ground.

She watched those rosy lips now drowned in crimson red, a deranged smile that made her sick in the stomach when he said the next words.

"I'm sorry, I was just thirsting my hunger."

The man beams with his teeth out and the knife in his hand prongs at the girl.

"Aw, don’t be afraid. Dying is much easier than living."

She knew what was going to happen next, she knew, but she attempted her last opportunity of staying alive.

"P-please, please d-don't do this."

The man draws in a breath, muttering a 'no'. The knife plunges deep into her chest, the dark blood soaking her dress as her hands also held onto the knife. She stared him in the eyes, final words choked from her bloodied throat.

"Why?"

The man observes her breathing as her hands drop onto the ground, those pretty eyes of hers stay open, and that voice he could never get tired hearing of was clamped shut. Gone forever.

He inhales her dead scent and replies thickly, "Because.. you never loved me, my love."

The man stood up before wearing his mask again, viewing his lover one last time in satisfaction. Now her dress was bright enough.

The screen goes completely black, and a loud whine erupts from your friend.

"Y/N! I was up to the best part!" You put the remote away, as you held a bowl of colourfully wrapped lollies. Black and orange for the packaging, obviously.

"Eden, please get your ass up and stop getting distracted for god's sake." You motion your friend to follow you, an irritated moan coming out of her mouth.

"But, I was up to the best part, the best part Y/N!"

"What is this? The new ghost face movie or something?"

"It's called 'Scream, Baby', and yes it is new."

"Imagine actually having a psycho killer boyfriend." You mumble to yourself before talking to Eden again.

"Good thing I stopped you or else you would've spoiled the whole thing to everyone."

"But-"

"We have the last bit of decoration left, come on, once we're done with this we can get ready to go to the carnival."

The cold air hits you both as you go to the front of the house to help each other hang the streamers and fairy lights.

"I thought your mum said she wasn't letting you go?" Eden asks, grabbing less than a handful of lollies as she pops one into her mouth, dropping the rubbish onto the ground.

You fiddle with the lights, untangling the mess that was situated.

"Did you really think I was going to listen to her?" You shake your head disapprovingly (well, actually sarcastically) finally undoing the knot.

"I think she's scared, like other mums'."

"Yeah, I get what you mean, with the drastic news and all." Eden sighs, grabbing one end of the fairy lights while you grab the other.

"Can't believe people are going missing in this small town. This shit-town, Derry." You almost scoff in disbelief as Eden silently agrees with you with a nod of her head.

You both finish off the remaining decoration, satisfied with how it turned out. Bright, flashing lights danced vibrantly, the purple neon light that hung at the door made it look extra cool. And the Jack O' Lanterns. How could anyone forget those?

Those funny, supposedly scary-looking pumpkins glowed by the warmth of candles, all of them menacingly staring at the neighbourhood. The fake cobwebs stretched over the windows and fence. Skulls at the side of the entrance sat there with the grim reaper, its skeleton dangling.

It was not the best, but at least the house looked spooky enough for little kids. You check out the other houses on the street, some almost looking like haunted mansions while others left theirs unbothered with only one Jack O' Lantern and a bucket of candies. The regular sign says, "Please take one."

"Didn't the Jefferson's give away toothbrushes instead of chocolate last year?" Eden points to the last house on the street, which was not decorated at all.

"They're not here, heard they went to Hawaii for vacation a week ago."

"Dang, wanted to pull one last prank at them, and how'd you know?"

You snort, covering the laugh with your hand.

"You've always said that Eden, and word spreads fast here, especially with the internet and all."

You stretch, the moonlight shining on the darkened roads as clouds block the wonderous image in the night sky. Oh boy, today was going to be a fun night.

"Now, who's ready to attend the carnival?"

The cheers of exhilaration and laughter surge far from the entrance of this year’s Halloween extravaganza, and more than hundreds of people had attended to deem the levity chills of fear and excitement. The air had never felt much colder than when you and Eden just arrived at the town's biggest festival.

Even though you wore a black, puffy jacket with the fluff tickling your neck, you could still feel the subtle breeze singing along with you. The black shirt with shoulder cuts made your skin shine gloriously beneath the night sky. Your dark blue jeans glistened from the shiny stones that were neatly attached.   

A great outfit for a great night.

“Where are the others?” You ask as you glance around for your friends.

Eden glances at her watch, the time ticking away slowly.

“They should be here, let’s go in and see if we can find them.”

An arch was made just for this festivity, painted red words dripped displayed, 'The Carnal Fear'.

The carnival was bombarded with people, stalls of all types of games set up, the aroma of fresh food just swinging by, and oh my, the prizes. How could anyone forget the prizes? Bright lights and music filled up empty lanes as more people started to come in.

"Y/N! Eden!" Young voices yell from afar, two people running like if it were the end of the world. A pair of arms wrap around your shoulders, the wispy air already replaced the warmth that was radiated by the touch.

Min-ho and Jina smiled at you and Eden, their cheeks widened every second.

"Oh my god, I can't believe we finally got to meet up!" Jina exclaims, her giggles wandering around your ears.

"Don't tell me you guys started without us." Eden folds her arms across her chest, a fake scoff erupting from the corner of her lips as they quirk up.

Min-ho rolls his eyes jokingly, his fluffy hair being swept away in the chilly weather.

"Of course not, we were just looking for you guys."

You squint your eyes at him as they trail down to his shoulder.

"You sure you didn't play any games without us?" Min-ho follows your gaze, an 'o' expression formed on his lips.

Startled, he tries to send a signal to Jina, confusion taking over.

"Nice bear, there's one that looks exactly like it, right over there." You point to a water gun stall, little kids crowding the line as each of them were frantic for a prize. And one received the duplicate teddy bear Min-ho had darned on his shoulder.

“Alright, we did play, but it was only one!”

The giggle that abrupted from your lips fluttered in the air, a tingling sensation that flew into his ear. A wonderous, unhinged smile paved its way out of control. He stared across at you and your little gang, worthless in fact, but he just knew that the four of you were going to make his night the best. A night he would never forget.

Your steps on the pathway walked in every direction out of excitement as screams and joyous laughter mixed in delight- out of order. Your eyes fall into fascination with the decorative rides, and the food stalls- just the festival itself was amazing.

You viewed common games that are played on Halloween every year, like the classic 'Apple Bobbing'. Red apples were floating in a brown barrel, usually used for beer, and the spectacular green water rose up and down whenever a person was participating.

"How's it green?" You ask your friends out of curiosity.

"Not sure, they probably got lights in there or they actually coloured it." Jina replies to you as her fingers point towards a specific fun ride.

The Merry-Go-Round

"You want to go on a kids ride?" Minho says.

"Why not? Unless you want to be a loser and not reminisce childhood memories!" You stick your tongue at Minho, laughing as you and Jia run to hop onto the ride.

Minho gawks at Eden as they both share an awkward silence.

"Well, they're not wrong." Eden mentions as she goes to join them. Minho's ready to go but a loud whisper and slight yelling prevented him from taking a step further. He finds a couple pulled into a quiet area, both of them arguing.

"I told you not to talk to him!"

"I ain't lying, I didn't even talk to him!"

"Fucking whore, knew I shouldn't have brought you here."

"What did you just say? What the fuck did you just call me you son of a-"

Whack

Silence pours in like a waterfall, and a surprised, light-hearted gasp turns into a tremble. Hot air starts to burn onto the marked skin, too hot for breathing. Angry eyes turn into frightful ones, and they soon turn into a puddle of tears.

"Go act like a pretty bitch and wipe those fucking tears off your face." The man spits at his girlfriend's feet, walking away with a hot head. Her sniffles slowly die down, as she walks out too, her eyes landing on Minho.

He's frozen, gazing at her red cheek and puffed, eyes. He doesn't move, doesn't utter a word but is stuck. His breath hitches, taking a step back before the woman trudges away.

Fucking helpless.

"Minho! Hurry up!" He hears your voice, and it's filled with so much pleasure, it's something he hasn't truly felt in a while. Minho joins as he sits on the galloping horse. A clear, distinct white color reflects light and the red and blue patterns disguise its true beauty. The ride begins and fun-like music tunes in, the galloping horses going up and down as your laughter and cheers are in unison with your friends.

Except for Minho.

He's lost in his personal thoughts, gazing at the ground. The woman that looked at him, he thought about her eyes. How they were deceiving, bewitching and untrustworthy. Sure she had fat tears in them, everybody cries though. That woman could have simply, or even possibly tried talking to him. Had she needed help? Of course, she did, she was just scared, frightened. That was all.

Well, maybe she did not need to talk to him but could have told security or gone to the police. The woman seemed shocked at first, the slap had gotten her startled, yet quiet. It was a physical act that put her in her place. It was a toxic relationship. Perhaps it started as verbal, continuous arguments. Then those arguments altered into the man calling his girlfriend indecent names. Financial problems or blackmailing could be part of the list too, and this list could go on forever.

Minho knows all about this. This kind of stuff. It was hard to tell if he suffered in his life, but he was living way better right now. But back in the past? The most important time of living life? It was his precious childhood/teenage days that were too fragile for anything. Especially graphic.

Everything was going well.

Minho was halfway through high school, an A+ student, healthy, and athletic, his mother got a job, and his dad was working as an architect. The family was rich and financially great and Minho's life was normal. Just like everyone else.

Everything was going well.

It was just one fucking night that changed everything.

From normal to chaotic.

"Minho, try calling him again." His mother's panicked voice rang through the dining room as she paced back and forth.

Minho pressed the numbers, but the call didn't go through.

"Where could he be?" Her mellow voice was shaking in worry and fear for her husband. She knew he had an important, huge meeting and that he was supposed to be back by 9 or at least 10.

But it was fucking 1 in the morning. Minho remembered the time perfectly. The more he thought about the scene he just witnessed, the more he travelled back in time.

Minho was 16, he looked a little skinny, but had a fair look. In fact, he recently found out that one of the girls in his class had a crush on him. But now was not the time to think about that. He observes his mother still pacing back and forth, biting onto one of her nails as she gnawed on it. It wasn't a good habit of hers, and Minho smiled at that.

The door clicked, and heavy steps were taken into the house. Minho's mother jumped as she ran to see her love. She hugged him dearly, relieved that nothing serious had happened to him.

She was gently pushed off by him, her questions following her.

"Where were you?" Yes, where did his father go?

The response comes out as a grunt as he takes off his coat, loosens his tie and gulps a glass of cold water. Minho doesn't know if his mother took notice, but his dad's hair was a little messy, a little too messy for his liking.

"Honey, is everything okay? I was worried sick about you."

Minho's dad ignores her again, it's until she tugs his hand. It was this strong, bitter smell that she whiffed at. Alcohol and a mix of perfume, a perfect combination like chaos.

"Where the hell were you?" His mother says sternly, eyes narrowing within a second as her voice grows loud.

"Whose perfume is this? Who the fuck did you meet?"

"I was at the meeting."

"No you did not, you told me the meeting ended at nine to be exact and that you would be at least an hour late. What were you doing in that one hour that made you come home so late?!"

"I was at the god damn meeting!" Now his father's voice grew as he intimidatingly went up close to his wife.

"You fucking liar! I can smell the perfume, it's a woman's perfume. Just tell me who you were with!"

"You said it yourself you bitch! A woman."

Minho stared across at his parents, the tension growing and growing further like poisonous roots. He blinked and the next thing he saw made him sick in the stomach like his worst nightmare on a happy day.

His father's hands were around his mother's neck, her face swelled red and her eyes were tearing up. The nails that dug into her neck were crushing her fragile throat and she felt the world around her closing in.

Without any control or sense, Minho grabbed a vase and-

"Minho!" He's out of his thoughts, and they withered away like blowing a candle. You stare at your friend in concern as the ride had stopped and he just happened to zone out.

"Everything okay? You wanna do something else of your liking or-"

"No, I'm good." The response comes out as bitter as death, wicked like hell. You could tell something was wrong. A change in his expression, coupled with an uneasy tone, that gave it all away.

Was he not enjoying himself? Or was there something beyond this? Something out of your hands? The four of you stroll around, looking for something else to enjoy as you tell your friends to go ahead and that you would catch up to them soon.

Your hands fiddle around the white laces on your shoe, groaning as you bump into someone.

"I'm so sorry, I did not see you there." You gape at the tall person in front of you, their Halloween outfit as black as the devil's blood, and their little hat on top looked exactly like a jester hat but just black. Its silver balls illuminated in the night, chimes ringing here and there. The man in front of you gave a light- tipped smile, grinning with his teeth out.

"No, it's okay, I'm just glad I bumped into you."

You open your mouth but the words get stuck in your throat once you process his response. Glad I bumped into you? What the hell was that supposed to mean? You catch him still staring at you with those endearing eyes, dark circles underneath them until you notice something off about his right eye.

It was a very faint, red line that stretched across his eye. A scar.

"I don't mean to creep you out, even though that's what everyone in Halloween is doing," he muttered, still giving you the exact light-tipped smile from before, "but I what I mean is for you to come over to the circus that will start soon in about fifteen minutes."

Oh, he must work here.

"A circus? Well, that's new."

"Yeah, it's a new addition you know? Be there by the way and bring your friends along too. You'll seek thrills there."

"Right, uh thanks."

Suddenly someone grabs your arm from behind, staggering you as you see Eden.

"Y/N, what's taking you so long? Jina and Minho are waiting for you."

"Sorry, this man here was talking to me." You turn around only to find him gone. Huh.

"Yeah, let's go."

You gotta be careful you know,

It's like dust falling into snow,

You won't notice it for a while,

It just so happens right before you go.

"Oh my lord, why is the line so long?" Jina frowns with her hands across her chest. She was so pumped to experience actual jump scares from her point of view, but it had been simply crushed by the number of people who also wanted to do the same thing as her. A sign had been nailed to the ground, wet paint displaying, "One Pair at a Time."

"Are you kidding me?" She grows irritated, asking one of the workers why it was only one pair at a time.

"Too many people ma'am, worried a fright can turn 'em into a stampede. Don't want history to repeat itself do we?"

Right, the 1980 'Death Joke'. Like any other Halloween, the haunted house was a classic for everyone. It was until a mysterious actor decided to scare the crap out of everyone that was in there. Realistic screams rang through, and wails of pain ruptured within the walls. The people outside had stopped their personal conversations only to see a pack of people running out of the frightening house. There were so many of them that some had died by being stepped over or just simply their heart jumping out of their sockets. The blood was the true witness of all.

But, the most shocking thing was the way some died. Ripped arms, punctures all over the bodies, so many of them headless. Blood had dripped down the walls, splattered, dried out. Those who came out alive spoke the unspeakable.

It was a giant spider. Bigger than a human with legs as pincers, and terrifying teeth. They were all pointed outwards, with sharp edges with a ton of them in spirals. The only thing that was so unnatural about it was the head. It was a human head with deep, red scars, scathed along its eyes. It was a human that turned into the spider, the actor.

They didn't know what to call it, so they called it, IT. The media had labelled them as crazy and psychotic. It was bullshit that no one would ever believe, a fake tale just to get the suspicions of murder away. Some of the survivors were either convicted or sent to asylums. Months later, all of them died by committing suicide. Stabbed, jumped out of a window or hanged themselves to death.

No one wants history to repeat.

Loud sighs drew from your friends, Eden spoke, "Let's get some food first? My stomach is growling and that's a sign of 'you're gonna die if you don't eat'," she laughed sarcastically as the others followed her. You're tagging along until you hear a whisper.

"Pst."

It was almost a stern whisper, nothing electrifying or hot, it felt like ice. Like dead bodies.

"Pst." It repeats again, and the same feeling is there again. The wisp of cold air, but when you turn around you find no one. Those large pair of eyes that narrowed, glowed dangerously.

Oh, Oh, you were so so stupid.

Such a pathetic being, yet so distinct and beautiful.

If Hoseok had the opportunity to snatch you away right now, he would.

But, he can't do this in front of everyone, after all, for the first time in years he's revealing himself to a group.

And that was specifically yours.

Only then, you noticed the floating balloon that sat in the quiet alley. As red as a cherry, the bright colour flashed in front of you. Alluring, hypnotic thoughts drag you in there. You get a hold of the string, not thinking much about it.

"Boo!" You don't know if it was the same noise but they both happened at the same time. You jump back, the popped balloon now flat on your hands as you stared at the glowing eyes that glare at you.

The person comes to light, and it's the same man from earlier.

"I'll give you a tip," he chuckles deeply, "go to the circus, and the line here will be gone, once it's done come straight here and I'll allow you and your gang to go in."

"W-wait, you work as an actor here?"

"A professional actor, professional enough to scare you." The man winks as he walks out of the alley. And then, he's gone.

You somehow managed to convince your friends to head over to the circus as it turned out that the man was right. Nearly everyone had gone to see the show and most of the rides had no lines. You all jog in whatsoever, a man with a black jester hat-

Him again?

He smiles gleefully at you again, but it now felt a little off to you. It wasn't just the way he smiled but also how you took his words into consideration. Go to the circus, and the line here will be gone, once it's done come straight here and I'll allow you and your gang to go in.

Hang on, if the lines were going to be empty, why couldn't you go now?

"Take a mask, take a seat and enjoy the show!"

You glance around and find the massive tent you guys are in had enough space to fit everyone that came. Solid, brown wooden benches smelt like fresh pinewood and mint. Red and yellow stripes licked the tent in all directions, and the rainbow lights lit up the place.

It's deafening to the crowd, but the audience settles down when dramatic music starts to play. The lights dimmed, and everyone hushed as the show was about to begin.

"Ladies and gentlemen, girls and boys, welcome to this year's Carnal Fear Circus!" Whoops and cheers surge in the air, thunderous clapping now softened.

"Stay in your seats, eat up your food and feel amused and overwhelmed by this show as it's not one to miss!" Magicians play fantastic tricks, the audience going 'ooh' and 'ah.' They bring monkeys in and then the monkeys start doing tricks. You see acrobats and clowns doing their own little thing. Everyone claps and laughs in jubilation. But something is off.

It's like time slows down and you can hear ticking. Everything around you is in slow-mo, including your friends who were munching on cheesy hot dogs and corn on the cob. The hairs on your neck stand, anxiety crawling through.

When you think you're alone, someone watches.

And he's staring right at you. No smile this time, but a dead look like he's about to murder someone. Behind him, an object flies into the air. And it's a red balloon, as red as a cherry. It goes higher and higher till it bursts.

"Let's pick some volunteers! Who will help Mick the mysterious in his performance?" Hands fly into the air, and multiple people yell over each other to be chosen.

The magician, Mick, points over to your area. "You two there! Pretty ladies with hot dogs and corn, why don't you come over?" Eden and Jina glance at each other, giggling as they jog off to the pit. You and Min-ho watch silently, and you observe how his mood had slightly gotten better. He finally had a smile on his face.

"May I have your names please?" The mic is passed to them, and both of them speak.

"What gorgeous names! Now, Jina, I have a task for you to do, in fact, you get to work on this one." The magician uses his wand (yes, the wand with the white tip and its black midway) to display the glistening, black rectangular box in front of him.

"I want you to get inside of this box while your friend Eden will be looking for a key. She'll be given clues to get you out, and you'll see the surprise that comes by."

Jina mutters a sure, entering the rectangular box that almost looked like a coffin, the lid shut closed. Eden covers her face with her hands, her ginger hair helping too. Mick hides the key right under the heavy box, slipping it ever so quietly. Inside the box is completely dark, and Jina's breathing was the only thing she heard. Maybe the box was soundproof? It was so dark, dark like on a Christmas Eve night.

"8..9..10, here I come! Ready or not."

The floorboards creak, faint little footsteps stomping around the house. Jeremy was scavenging for his younger sister, Jina. It was a Christmas Eve night, and the adults were all laughing, having sips of rich, bubbly champagne. His cousins, Tim and Tilly had joined them to play hide and seek.

It was Jeremy's turn to seek his cheeky cousins and of course his sister. He entered his room, crept up tacitly and looked under the bed. He found two pairs of eyes peering right at him. Tim and Tilly crawl out of the bed, giggling at the silly idea to hide in the most obvious place. The only person left was Jina. Now, Tim and Tilly could help but they cannot tell Jeremy at all, even if they find Jina themselves. That was part of the rules.

"Achoo!" The noise comes from across the corridor, the trio running right past Jina. She was tucked in the old, dusty cupboard that her mother used to put ancient things in. Like some of the Christmas decorations that were in here, and the wine cups too.

The cupboard was empty this time, and it was enough room for Jina to hide in. When she had run in and closed the cupboard's door shut, it was as black as night. She wasn't scared, she was a brave girl. Time passed, and Jina heard her cousins talking with her brother loudly downstairs.

"Where could she have gone? We looked at all the hiding spaces."

She chortled, tiny hands pressing against her soft cheeks. It felt like forever all of a sudden. Her palms began to sweat, her body feeling uncomfortably hot. Maybe now was the time to get out, and her butt had been aching from sitting the whole time.

Jina reaches to push the door, but it does not budge. She tries again, and again. The door rocks instead as if it were stuck on drying cement. Her heart races, blood pumping ridiculously, grunting as she uses all of her power to push the door open.

Nothing.

Then everything gets too dark, too dark that for a moment she thought she was blind. Her breathing gets heavy, and her forehead is sweaty too with a blistering temperature. The cupboard starts closing in on her and she starts to feel alarmed.

Her hands touch the back of the furniture and it felt incredibly close to her. She does the same with the other sides, her mind striking her that the walls were going to crush her. The space was too compact, feeling like she couldn't barely move at all. She feels her lungs constrict, blood pumping faster, and the oxygen around her slowly dissipates away.

"Mommy? Daddy?" She cries out, tiny teardrops plummet from her green eyes. She can't move her legs, barely an inch to move and it gets much harder to breathe. Jina starts to bang on the door vigorously, screaming for her mother and father.

"Mommy! Daddy!"

In a couple of seconds murmurs and yells come from outside the cupboard.

"Jina, sweetie, where are you?" A silky voice drifts and Jina realises it's her mother.

She hits the door again, sobbing.

There's grunting at the door, and groans of pain as the door swings open with massive power. Jina is lifted off of her feet swiftly, crying as she speaks with broken sobs.

"I c-couldn't b-breathe mommy, it was too dark."

It was too dark.

Abruptly the memories wash in and Jina starts to find herself in the same situation. Her vision blurs, getting clammy and her breathing becomes rapid. Rapid short breaths as she's wondering what might be taking Eden so long?

"Ooh, you're hot..cold...ok now warmer.. extremely hot." Jina can hear them, her hands sticking onto the black box's lid, trying to push it open. But it's locked. She starts to experience the exact feeling, the dark walls closing in, she might be locked in here forever.

She endures the space surrounding her, feet touching the very edge of the box. She clangs the lid, hoping to get a response.

"You're right there!" Jina makes out the comment, and her heart pumped briskly. It was starting to get suffocating and she couldn't take off the jacket she was wearing. Jina bangs at the lid again, yelling to get out.

"Open this! Open this shit right now!" She begins to pant as her vision starts to lose focus and witnesses stars in front of her. She tries kicking with her legs, but she's so weak, the oxygen getting harder and harder to reach her lungs.

"And she did it, ladies and gentlemen! A round of applause for these two." Roaring claps swell in the tent and the crowd cheers. A wave of chilly air brushes against Jina, and her eyes flutter. She recognises Eden pulling her up as she stumbles against her. She gazes to find you and Minho on the benches, but a twisted feeling punches her stomach.

Right behind you is a red balloon, bright and smooth, floating with a white string. It twirls around and black writing is formed on there.

"Jina."

It pops and Jina cowers out of nowhere, frantic eyes probing whether or not the crowd saw that at all. And it seemed like you didn't too.

You notice Jina's red cheeks, her sweat shining across her forehead. You watch Eden comforting her as they reach the steps to talk to you and Minho.

"Jina, oh my god, what happened?" She sits with a huff, slithering off her jacket.

"Just got a little conscious over tight spaces, again."

"Let's go outside and get some fresh air, we can just chill-"

"Dear ladies and gents, the mask you have brought in, please wear them for the next act!" The speakers' screech from corners, everyone whispering and teasing each other when they wore their masks. Except when you rummage to look for yours, it is not there. And it's the same with Eden, Jina and Minho as well.

The masks everyone put on looked horrendous. There were the classic X eyes and lined smiles, hollow faces with white teeth, fake blood splattered on fake bandages, and the word 'god' and the cross were written on it. They reminded you of purge masks, just like the ones in movies.

Promptly the lights switch off, and everyone is dead quiet. Your friends eye behind you, and you do the same. The masks start to glow, all of them staring at the black pit. No one moves, and no one talks until a red light glows. And you see him. You don't see the magicians or the acrobats, but him.

The man is grinning again, presenting a wide smile that can charm anyone.

"Eden...you don't look too splendid today." He draws out her name, and it echoes in her ear. She widens her brown orbs, parting her lips as she looks at the jester man.

"Don't you remember? Eden, you better not come to homecoming."

It’s the gasp that reminds her.

"Eden, you fat doll! You better not come to homecoming you ugly piece of shit." Spit falls on her brand-new, polished shoes by the bully, Sophie. Her blond hair swishes and she gives Eden a nasty stare, pushing her aside as her gang snickers.

Eden doesn't know what's wrong with her. Is she that awful? Is she that bad looking that everyone in her class makes fun of her? Didn't her diet help her? Probably was, and it made sense. No one liked her anyway, not only her looks but her personality too. She was too shy or extremely weird, not sporty or athletic. Life does take a lot of turns for the worst.

Homecoming was near and the endless threats that were sent Eden’s way made it an obvious decision to not attend the party. Even though she had prepared a beautiful dress, it wasn't worth it.

She sighs at the beauty she created, a dark navy blue ball dress attached with stick-on diamonds, faint silver glitter and the pale ends of sky blue. Fake blue carnations were affixed to the corset and golden linings were hemmed along the way. God, she even had matching jewelry too.

“Why aren't you going?” Her mother had asked her as she cleaned the dishes.

“I don't know, I just don't feel like going.”

"Nonsense, you will prevail homecoming with that dress. And it doesn't matter if you don't go out with a guy, as long as you're having fun then it's okay." Her mother optimistically said, hoping it would convince her daughter to go.

"I seriously don't know mom, and my dress is not that appealing either. I feel like it's going to be tedious." Eden's mother raises her eyebrows at her, and the delicate dishes clang as she takes off her wet gloves.

"You better wear that dress in five minutes, and I don't want to hear it from you." She points a wooden spoon at her, sipping a bit of hot chicken soup she had made. Eden whined, stomping to her room and grabbing her dress. She slips it on easily, fixing the ends of the dress and did a little twirl. She glanced at the mirror, her ginger hair curled at the ends and never minded- her dress actually looks gorgeous.

A knock is heard at the door, and Eden's mother comes in with a smile on her face. She started to help Eden with her hair, added a couple of extensions and did her nails. Eden giggled when the makeup brush tickled her eyes, the blue eyeshadow sprinkling. When they were done, Eden's lips parted, an 'o' shape formed and she was in shock.

"You look like Cinderella." Her mother told her, and Eden replied she wasn't in a fairy tale and that she was all grown up now. The drive to her school didn't take too long, and the blast of music thundered when they parked their car.

"Have fun, and if you need anything call me okay?" Eden's mother gave a swift kiss on her daughter's cheek. She waves and enters the school, and Eden discerns laughter and conversations in the hall. It was bright, a disco ball shimmering its sparkles and people were dancing. As if they were hypnotised, the conversations ceased and everyone stopped to look at her. Whispers and murmurs rang through Eden's ears and for a second she thought they were gonna tease her again.

"Jesus Eden! You look beautiful." A girl complimented her, and then a lot of people started to do the same. Eden never felt this type of appreciation in her life. People invited her to dance, to eat with them and she had proper chats too.

"Dear students of Drightfall High, thank you for voting and we hope you all are having a great time. We have calculated the votes to announce this year's homecoming king and queen!" Hoorays and clapping were occurring and a slap of drum rolls happened.

"This year's homecoming king and queen are-" the announcer pauses, opening the envelope in their hands, "Noah and Eden!" The room yells in congrats and hugs are given. To experience the feeling of the homecoming crown on Eden's head was truly an honour.

Once the party was over and everyone was saying their goodbyes, someone pulls Eden into a quiet corner.

"You bitch!" A slap smacks Eden across her cheek, and she stumbles.

"I told you not to come to homecoming, and you just took my fucking win."

"You disgusting whore, what is this piece of shit anyways? Made it yourself from the dollar store? Bet it couldn't compare to my designer dress." Sarah simpers, her friends following her too.

Rrripp.

"Woops, my hand slipped." A tear in Eden's dress and pull on her carnations- it was too much to handle.

More rips and more delirious moves were made and Eden pushed them off. Her salty tears wiped the makeup off of her face, and she wobbled on the road.

Fuck.

Fuck.

How the fuck did he know?

Within a second Eden runs away, her sobs loud and clear when she exits the tent.

"Eden wait!" You yell after her, and then they snap their heads toward you. Your heart thumps against your rib cage. Every single individual stares at you with their purge masks and Jina and Minho halt too. Your eyes trail to the pit and the jester man that stood there cackled wickedly.

"You better run." He said in a sing-like way, and he vanishes. The red light continues to radiate and there's an ear-splitting grind. The audience stands up, hands forming into fists and weapons come out of nowhere.

Your breath hitches as you and the others take slow steps.

"Run."

You all hop off of the benches, feet pressing against concrete and you look for Eden to leave.

"Eden! Eden where are you?!" You stick with Minho and Jina, their voices colliding.

"What the fuck is happening?!"

"I don't fucking know but there's fucking murderers coming after us!"

"We need to find Eden, right now so we can get out of here." You inform them, and instantly a pack of heavy stomps carry on the ground.

You all turn around in sync and it's the audience cracking their necks, holding axes and knives.

Shit.

You sprint as fast as you can while Minho shouts.

"Where do we go?!"

"We're on the opposite side of the exit, it's gonna take us longer if we take a detour." Jina mentions, your breaths are in sync.

What's one place that will be hard for them to find you?

Your eyes broaden and you have an idea.

"The haunted house- let's go there!"

"Are you insane? It's going to be easier for them-"

"It's the biggest ride to easily hide, and we need to find Eden right now."

They look at you with hesitation set in their eyes, but with no choice, they agree and follow you.

You all huff and pant when you enter the house, and it's perfectly decorated. The dark wood, with carvings and cobwebs, barely any light escaping through. Various stairs and corridors are planted, old dry paintings hang on the walls and a wail erupts upstairs.

Eden.

The three of you run up to find her, hearts racing faster every time you thought about dying at the hands of these people.

"Eden! Where are you? We need to leave right now-"

"Y/N in here!" Jina shouts, and you hurriedly go after her. You identify Eden sobbing quietly, her eyes red and swollen from whatever she beheld.

"Eden, we need to leave right now. You're not gonna believe it but there's a like a whole fricking mob coming after us."

"What?"

"Y-yeah, we have to get out now." Eden teeters on her feet, and finally, the four of you prepare to leave when-

"FUCK!" A yowl erupts from Minho, and behind him stood one of those masked people. A knife was stuck deep in his shoulder, blood coating his denim jacket. He can feel the weapon drive deeper and deeper into his skin, the tendons and muscles- it's all pain. You dash to him but Jina gets a hold of your wrist, pulling you back. Behind Minho, there's...more.

No, no, no.

"Minho!" You scream and he wails in agony. You, Eden and Jina trip out of the room and the door shuts close. You grab onto the door handle, unable to open it.

"Leave him alone! Don't you fucking touch him-"

A head-splitting slice hangs in the air, and you're mute.

No...

"Y/N, let's go. I-it's too late." Jina murmurs, and hot tears sprang from your eyes. Eden peers downstairs and even more arrive.

"We need to get up higher." She tells and you obey.

You're all panting again with contended hearts and clammy clothes, pushing yourself into the first room you find.

It's wide and massive, and dust reeks from the ceiling-

Oh lord. The ceiling.

Like an ancient movie, sharp spikes are pointed, as white as day. In front of you were solid, cobblestone steps and one mistake could result in death.

You catch Eden pulling the doorknob but the door is locked.

"We're all going to die at this point." Jina whispers to herself, never feeling this scared in her life.

You ignore the disastrous emotion, and carefully observe the steps in front of you.

"Y/N, what are you doing?"

You step on the first stone, and nothing happens yet.

"Just follow me, and don't step on any stone that is raised a bit higher. It'll trigger the trap."

They silently stick with you and you're halfway there.

"Woah!" You snap your head, looking at Jina who had accidentally stepped on the wrong stone. It goes deep into the ground, grinding against it and everything goes soundless. The ceiling begins to shake like an earthquake and it was getting extremely difficult for you to keep your balance.

"Just go!" You yell, jumping on every random stone just to get out of this death trap. You get out of the horrendous room, and the lights start to flicker. Eden comes out too, panting when she sees you.

"Where's Jina?"

A scream bellows, and you see the walls closing in on Jina.

"Y/n! E-Eden, fuck help ME please." She chokes out, her body getting squished by the rough walls. The ceiling starts to drop closer and closer to her, and you both can't do anything. There's no button to turn it off, nothing.

You wince when you start to hear cracks, and her screams echo in your ear. The spikes sink into her forehead, and her skull gets demolished. Blood splattered, some of it landing on you. The walls oppose each other, and Jina's body was stuck on the spikes. She hung loosely, and nothing of her was noticeable anymore. Her face was completely gone and bones were out in all the wrong places. It drops with a thud, more blood spilling and the puddle grew.

You stare at the scene like a dead person.

A dead person.

"Y/N..." You feel Eden heave on your shoulder as she dragged you away. You're both at the end of the corridor, and a glimmer of hope arises. Right in front of you was a door with an exit sign and you and Eden rushed in.

Except, it wasn't an exit.

It was a mirror maze.

You apprehend the door slam and the ground shakes slightly. You and Eden glance at each other, nodding heads as you take steps. It's clear, and blue lights reflect. Copies of you and your friend are at every angle and direction, and you bump into one of the mirrors.

"Fuck." You groan as you soothe your head with your hand.

"Eden, do you know where to go next?" You question her but there's no response. You gaze at the mirrors and your heart jumps out of your chest.

"Eden?"

"Y/N!" You hear her calling you and you start taking haphazard control. You collide into more mirrors until you find her.

"Eden, oh my god, are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine, I just got lost, sorry."

"Don't be, come on, I think we're near-" You jolt straight away, your head impacted by the clear wall in front of you.

What the-

You form fists at the door, sweaty palms greasing the clean glass. Eden tries to leave but she also hits her head. Oh god, she's stuck.

And then you hear this disgusting noise behind Eden.

It's the man.

His tongue glides smoothly along the glass, and you start to see his red scar more vividly now. Out of nowhere, he bangs his head on the glass and both you and Eden jump. He does it again and repeats it until there's a crack.

Hell, you were realising what he was doing. You try breaking the glass with your shoulder but pain waves in. The crack starts to get extensive, and you keep trying to somehow fracture the glass from your side.

The banging stops and you look at the man grinning again, with a red balloon behind him.

He opens his mouth wide, and spirals start to form, and so many teeth jagged are coated with blood.

"No! Stop, stop, leave HER ALONE!" You scream, as your fists rap at the wall.

"Don't do this to her! PLEASE, I'm begging you, don't do this to-"

Clink.

Glass shatters everywhere, and fragment of pieces graze Eden's face. A crunch is heard and you see blood explode on the walls and you fall back, not realising the tears had already dropped. The man is gone again.

Your head takes time to process the things you just saw, and all of your friends were dead. They were never going to come back into this world ever again. You manage to exit the room and find a pair of stairs that lead back to the start of the house. You're so tranced in your thoughts that you trip on a step, tumbling down and you hear a twisted crack from your ankle.

The shriek that bursts out of your dry lips tells enough of a gruesome warning. You peek at your leg and you shake your head. Part of the bone is cracked and it pops out, blood enriching the wound. The torment is killing you and you have no other option but to crawl out of the place. You haul yourself out steadily, wincing and hissing every time the bone gnawed at your skin.

You're in the middle of the path, behind you was the exit, but it was sealed with red balloons and a wooden board. Everything is so quiet, and dead. No one was here except for you and the man.

You were so alone.

"Hey Y/N, wanna play truth and dare?" Your friend asks you, wiggling her eyebrows when you say yes.

"Okay... I pick truth."

"Aw man, I had a good dare. Anyway, what's your biggest fear?"

You take time to answer this one, what was your biggest fear?

"Hmm, I think it's being alone."

"Alone? What type of fear is that?"

You try to explain to her, "It's like you're scared of being alone in this world, and you're the only person who exists in a certain place."

"So that's your fear?"

"Yeah, I hate being alone."

You hated being alone, and you were so fearful about it.

Sweet, melodious music dances in the breeze and only one ride smoulders in front of you.

The Merry-Go-Round

The man dressed in all black stands there watching you. Your breath hitches and you see him crack his bones and do weird movements with his body. His legs begin to extend and they become...pincers? The same goes for his arms and the body part that remains normal is his head.

Everything starts to connect... the 1980 Death Joke, and the missing people from previous festivals-

He was the actor.

And he even told you at the beginning.

He's so proud, and he's played such a mind game with you all. And he's finally going to have you, and keep you forever.

"Y/N, my darling, how was the carnival?" The name throws you off, and you whimper when you move back with your broken ankle.

Hoseok catches this and he pouts.

"My poor girl got hurt while trying to survive? Well, isn't that heroic?" He crawls with his pincers, coming towards you, and you try to move backwards. You're slow and weak, unable to move an inch when you move your leg. He, on the other hand, runs at a pace that even you could not muster.

"No!" You scream, hands swatting at him.

He cradles you in his spider-form arms, and brings you extremely close to his face.

"I forgot to introduce myself, forgive me. But the name is Hoseok, or as others like to call me, IT."

You tremble under his touch, as you uncomfortably writhed around. Everything is silent and it feels like it's just the both of you that exist in this world. His world.

"I want you to scream for me."

It all happens in a flash and you screech at the pincer that struck your chest. Blood drips, and crimson floods in. You gurgle and spit out blood when it goes even further. You can feel yourself breathing slowly, the breaths now soft and steady, and your eyes become blurry.

They stare directly into Hoseok's eyes, and he opens his mouth. Three circular balls glow yellow and your eyes fall into his spell. Just right before you get hypnotised, you see the bodies of your friends float in the night sky. Blood dripped from each of them. The amount of fear he consumed from them was fresh, and it was like a full buffet. Hoseok is always in your head and was always inside your friends' heads too. Sure, he enjoyed fear, but the best part of all was death. Just seeing the way they all die.

Hoseok gives you the exact same light-tipped smile from before, and he was right, you did make his night the best.

His lips fall onto yours, capturing the liquid, murmuring to you.

"You're not alone anymore, Y/N."

He chuckles before diving in again.

"Once in a while... we all float."

[yourplayersaidwhat]

Context: We're playing a lovecraftian campaign of sorts, so the DM implemented a homebrew Sanity system to D&D5e where characters that have lost some of it can have unpredictable reactions to nat 1 rolls. He has it customized to our characters and it's surprisingly deep, but sometimes it backfires terribly. In this scene, we were trying to escape a town whose guards were looking for us, but we didn't want to harm them.

DM: There are three guards near the north gate. You manage to hide behind one of the houses.

Ranger: I roll for sneak and try to scout ahead for an alternative route. *Proceeds to roll a natural 1*

DM: *Rolls sanity effects* Flashbacks of terror assault your consciousness. You lose an additional point of sanity, and the sudden memory absorbs you completely. You space out for *rolls* 10 minutes.

Barbarian: I slap her out of it. *Rolls another nat 1* Oh boy

DM: *Rolls sanity effects for the barbarian* Seeing her in anguish awakens something in you. You immediately go into a berserker fit and draw your weapons.

Sorceress (Who always has a Polymorph spell set for Reaction): I polymorph into the biggest winged creature I'm able to and take the ranger out of his reach.

DM: (Checks tables) You can turn into a pterodactyl. However, you're standing next to the barbarian, who is now crazed, so he's going to do an attack of opportunity on you.

Sorceress: Be it what it may.

DM: Barbarian, roll to hit her.

Barbarian: *rolls yet another natural 1* Oh, come on. This can't be happening.

DM: *Rolls for sanity* The sight of a pterodactyl suddenly appearing next to you and flying away, taking your companion, turns your rage into a blind panic. You scream and get away as far as you can, which unfortunately is in the direction of the guards.

Barbarian: Damn. Anything else?

DM: You now have a crippling phobia of pterodactyls.

[disneyreactor]

Our Favorite Show

"...that's why you were my favorite show long before you had one." -- Kermit to Miss Piggy, The Muppets (abc) 2015

A/N: With the fact that MP had a traumatic child, this is a TW for PTSD.

---

Miss Piggy bears many secrets which Kermit knew early on within their relationship, and there’s only a few that Kermit, and him alone, knows. Her childhood is a huge trigger for her, or to be more specific her father’s death that induced her phobia of tractors.

But even when the pair broke up, Kermit keeps his mouth shut. Not a single secret she had ever told him is ever seen on TMZ or any tabloid site. He knows her heart, deep down, despite the television persona she displays.

They saw each other at their worst; funerals, job rejections, name it and they’ve dealt with it together behind closed doors.

The star of Up Late with Miss Piggy shines her bright star with the dark past attempting to creep up behind her. She can feel the constant knock on her mental door; its locks are shaking and on the verge of breaking apart like paper. Shaking her head, she listens to the Electric Mayhem play The Muppet Show theme song instrumental.

She turns over to the booth, she notices Kermit taking a few glances at her as if he’s able to read her mind. But if she’s honest with herself, he probably can.

Still, the show goes on for the next hour until she’s able to walk to her dressing room—her safe place other than her home.

Piggy closes the door behind her—doesn’t bother locking it because there’s not a soul who’d walk in without knocking—and instantly changes into some sweats and a t-shirt with a hoodie over it. She doesn’t remove her makeup, not until she gets ready for bed. Now, she sits down on her comfy couch with a glass of wine in her hand.

She remains there, sitting still, until her cell phone rings which startles her from a trance. Without looking at the contact, she answers, “Vote for Piggy.”

Suddenly, the dial tone dings, and she hangs up. “Well then.”

An hour passes, and she falls asleep on her couch.

The next morning, she wakes up to a blanket over her and notices a green figure in her recliner with a baseball bat next to him.

Kermit.

“You must’ve been exhausted to fall asleep here of all places.” He says with a smile.

Piggy sits up and nods, “Yeah, the show’s been rough this week.”

The frog moves to sit next to her. “I know.”

She can’t help but ask, “Why did you stay?”

He takes a breath as if he knew she’d ask. Considering the status of their relationship, he can’t blame her. “Because I couldn’t leave knowing you’d be here all by yourself. No place is perfectly safe nowadays, y’know.”

Piggy nods because she knows. “True,” she agrees and smiles. “Thanks.”

“Don’t do that. Don’t thank me for something that’s merely the bare minimum.”

They stand up in unison.

“We both better get the coffee before the gang grabs it all.” Kermit suggests, leading them out of the dressing room.

Piggy, despite her hair being a total mess, agrees and follows the frog.

They venture to the coffee and turns out the coffee was freshly made. The pair doesn’t waste any time to snatch themselves a cup to awaken their slumbered bodies and souls.

After the coffee slams into their bloodstreams, they walk outside and check out the parking lot which turns out to be filling up fast as the gang pull in one-by-one.

First, it’s Scooter who appears to always be glad to go into work. Okay, he’s a workaholic but doesn’t change the fact that the younger man adores his job. Then, Gonzo, the daredevil who likes to speed in like a NASCAR driver. We all get the drift, right?

It’s a normal morning full of chaos until it turns for the worse. Sweetums speeds in with a tractor that seems to be malfunctioning and it’s heading towards her.  

Piggy freezes, unable to move, and Kermit doesn’t hesitate to jump between her and the incoming impact, shielding her in place.

                                                         **

A young piglet seems to be no older than eight, on a tractor next to an older pig. He smiles down at his piglet. They’re racking the huge property as it’s impossible to do so by hand.

“Daddy, look at that!” Piggy exclaims and points at the ground as the machine does its work.

“I know, sweetie, isn’t that neat?” Her father replies.

Then, it happens.

It starts to shut off and turn on, speed up, slow down, the signs of something that’s breaking down.

The older pig tightens his hold on her but the force of it all ushers her off and meters in front of the tractor.

She small piglet struggles to stand and braces for impact but is shoved to safety. When she comes to her bearings, she notices her dad on the ground, unmoving. She limps to her dad’s unmoving body and knows he’s not going to wake up.

So, she screams, not only in fear but in guilt, and grief.

                                                       **

Thankfully, Big Mean Carl shows up in the nick of time to shut the tractor down.

When Kermit lets go, he notices her features: her newly pale face, trembling hands, and knees buckling as she loses strength and falls to her knees. He hears a mantra coming from her.

“Not again, please, not again.” She mumbles where only Kermit can hear her distress.

Her throat is closing, she’s sure of it because it sure feels like it, and her whole body is trembling now as she lets out a series of coughs and wheezes. She can barely hear Kermit attempting to lure her back.

“Piggy, look at me,” he says, almost pleading. “I’m here. Wanna count with me?”

She nods and looks at him, only him.

Kermit smiles and nods before counting. “One…”

She struggles but still repeats, “One.”

“Two.”

Her head starts rolling slightly but green, steady hands catch her and gently guides her head against his chest. He hums to her and looks around to realize that they aren’t alone.

“Someone get her a cool washcloth, please.” He demands sternly yet politely while caressing his fingers in her hair.

As Scooter rushes to get the washcloth, Kermit leans his head against the outer wall of the studio.

“It’s okay, I promise, it’s over. It won’t get you, not while I’m around.” The frog whispers in her ear and presses a few kisses to her hair for good measure.

Scooter returns with the cool washcloth and hands it to him. “Here you go, boss.” The thing about Scooter is he doesn’t ask questions in this type of situation. He only makes sure things are safe for the one affected and at his moment, it’s Piggy.

He never saw the diva so contrast to her usual self but now, he wonders if the woman everyone sees around the world is her true identity.

Kermit doesn’t bother when he notices the younger man starring, he has other priorities. “Tell ABC to halt production until further notice.”

Scooter’s shock expression says it all. “What? Sir, what if they—”

“They have a problem; they talk to me and only me. Not a word is to be muttered to her, understand?” Kermit’s ‘I’m the boss and they don’t want to mess with me’ voice.

“Of course, sir. Should I gather them up for an emergency meeting?”

“That’d be a good idea.”

With that, Scooter runs to gather them up in the meeting room.

Kermit doesn’t ask her to move; instead, her lifts her up and carries her to her dressing room by using the back door where no one can see them. He lays her down, covers her up, and walks out but not before locking the door from the inside.

Time for business.

                                                      [HR]

The Muppets, except for Piggy, are waiting for Kermit to arrive. And, they have questions.

“Sweetums, what happened?” Scooter asks, concern growing in his voice.

“Well, I don’t know, it started acting weird.” Sweetums responds.

Bobo Bear tilts his head, “I can check into it later on.”

“Never mind that, did you all see what happened to the pig?” Dr. Teeth asks.

Walter shakes his head, “I don’t think we should talk about that.”

As they decide if asking what happened is a good idea, Kermit walks in with nothing in hand which is never a good sign.

“Okay, gang, we have to talk,” Kermit begins. “We won’t have a show until further notice. That’s my order, not the studio’s. I can’t tell you what exactly happened, but I will say that Piggy is in no shape to do the show. It’s our turn to assure her that she’s safe with us because we’re family.”

“Okay, but did she have a stroke or something?” Rizzo asks.

“No, but I won’t break my promise to her. I can’t do that. Please, just respect her privacy but also be there for her.”

Suddenly, Uncle Deadly stands from his seat and without explanation, heads straight towards her dressing room but not before nodding at the frog.

                                                           ***

A few minutes later, the meeting ends and the gang retreats to their respective areas. Kermit makes his way back to Piggy’s dressing room and notices the door open. He peaks in and sees Deadly sitting across from her, starring at her with worry. 

Kermit walks in and shuts the door behind him. “You already know, don’t you?”

Deadly looks at the frog and looks offended by the question. “Of course, I do. You know that eagle won’t be happy to hear about the show coming to a halt.”

“Well, he can go to hell.” The frog sits next to her feet. “She needs time to heal.”

Deadly was silently for a few minutes. “It could’ve gone much worse than what it did.”

Kermit sits on that thought, replaying the incident in his mind. “I know, and if I wasn’t’ there and Carl didn’t get here in time…” He pauses, not wanting to imagine the possibility of something happening to Piggy on his watch. “She would’ve been killed; she was petrified, Deadly. I would’ve been, too, but at least I’d die knowing that I was doing something right for once.”

The phantom listens to the frog and realizes two things: Kermit’s still in love with his best friend and the frog is willing to die if it means she’d be safe. “You still love her.”

Kermit’s looking out the window. “I don’t think I’ll ever stop loving her. Denise’s great and all, but all I see is Piggy. I mean, sure, Piggy’s a top-notch diva, but I know her in ways no one else does. “

“What are you doing to do about Denise if you’re still in love with my best friend, frog?” Deadly asks. “I won’t let her get hurt by you again.”

The frog sighs, agreeing with him. “Denise and I needs to have a chat.”

When night rolls around, Kermit decides to take Piggy home. The car ride’s silent as the usually outspoken pig is still reeling from the incident.

“You gonna be alright here by yourself?” He asks her.

Piggy nods. “Yeah, I just need some sleep and I’ll be better in the morning. I promise.” She smiles at the frog sadly.

The frog loses his trace of thoughts and parks the car in her driveway. He leans his head against the seat as Piggy gives him a concerned look.

“What’s wrong?” She questions with concern on her face.

He lets out a broken sigh. “You nearly got killed today, you understand that?”

Piggy nods, “So did you. Why did you do that?”

Kermit was never good with expressing his emotion and he isn’t any better today. “You think I could ever forgive myself or live with myself I just let it…” he pauses to take a deep breath. “I can’t lose any of you guys but losing you would destroy me; the breakup damn near killed me. I was hiding in the janitor closet because I couldn't shake the guilt of what I said to you.

“And I know I can never take words back, but I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have just left you out to dry like that, not in the middle of the city.”

Piggy sighs, “I didn’t leave you much of a choice. We’ve hurt each other.”

“So what?”

She sighs and presses a kiss to his cheek. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Kermie.”

He stares as she steps out of his car and doesn’t pull out of the driveway until she’s in the house. Then, he heads home for a needed conversation with Denise.”

                                                           **

As soon as Kermit steps into his home, he can smell the coconut perfume that Denise wears. He walks into the living room to see her waiting for his return.

“Hey.” He greets and sits down.

Denise looks at him. “Hey,” she sighs. “I heard what happened today. Are you alright?”

Kermit nods. “I’m okay, I promise.”

“And Piggy?”

He hesitates, “Physically she’s okay. She had a traumatic childhood. I won’t get into details because I promised her I wouldn’t.”

She takes in the information. “The studio isn’t happy with what you did. I understand why you did it, though. You’re still in love with her, Kermit. Did you really think I didn’t know about the photo of you two in your chest drawer?”

The frog doesn’t deny it. “You’re right.”

She gasps softly. “I already know. There’s a video of you holding her.”

“She needed me, Denise.”

“She needed you to hold her the way you were?” She asks.

“She couldn’t move, hell, she couldn’t even breathe; she passed out, and I made sure she didn’t hurt her head,” Kermit defends himself and Piggy. “You don’t know what she went through.”

“Like you fell asleep in her dressing room last night?”

“I wasn’t about to leave there by herself, and I won’t apologize for that.”

Denise laughs at herself. “I’m an idiot for thinking you were over her.”

He lets out a deep breath. “You’re a wonderful woman, you are.”

Denise stands up and grabs her bag. “Go get your girl back,” she presses a kiss to his forehead. “I know you can’t control who you fall for.” With that, she leaves through the front door.

Kermit looks at the clock on the wall and heads to his room for the night.

                                                        ***

A FEW WEEKS LATER

The morning sun shines on Kermit’s face, waking him up. He sits up and gets ready for the day and relaxes in his recliner for an hour or two then heads down to the living room.

Suddenly, the front door unlocks from the outside and opens, revealing Piggy as she walked in and closed the door behind her.

“Hey, Piggy, how you doing?”

“I’m okay.” She answers and sits next to him.

Kermit looks down at his flippers. “I told Denise the truth.”

It’s Piggy’s turn to question, “What truth?”

He chuckles to himself and says, his voice deepens. “You really gonna make me tell you?”

Piggy clears her throat to compose herself from the deepened voice from him. “Maybe I am.”

Kermit moves to sit on his knees to be in her direct eye contact. “You and I are like polar opposites, but it attracts.”

Piggy looks away. “Kermit, you—”

“You know it’s always been you, don’t you?” He asks. “That’s why you manage to press buttons I didn’t even know I had.”

“How long have you felt like this?”

“I always have.”

TO BE CONTINUED

[after-witch]

Doctor Doctor [Yandere Overhaul x Reader]

Title: Doctor Doctor [Yandere Overhaul x Reader]

Synopsis: Needles and doctors and gowns, oh my. Overhaul only wants the best medical care for you--but the only thing you want is to get far away from his impromptu clinic. 

For request: Anonymous said: If you're still taking requests I would love to see what you imagine yandere chisaki would do with a darling that is terrified of all things medical, ESPECIALLY needles. Fic or HC

notes: yandere, medical stuff (needles, etc)

"Can't you just put me to sleep like you did before?"

You hate how whiny your voice sounds, how childish and light. But then again, everything you say feels small and pointless lately. Living with Kai Chisaki has a way of doing that to you. He has you on a schedule. He makes you wear night gowns and soft, flowing clothes. He makes you eat at the same time every morning, ever afternoon, every evening. He picks out your towels and your soaps and likes to use plaque rinse to make sure you're brushing and flossing adequately.

If only staring into your open mouth to look for spots of bright blue rinse was the extent of his medical inclinations. But it's not, and so here you sit, legs nervously kicking, on a medical exam table in a compact little room near his office. 

He brings you here every Monday for your... check-up. But this is the first time you’ve ever been awaken inside these four sterile walls. Normally, he sedates you--he lets you stick out your arm, trembling and terrified, then he injects you with a needle and when you wake up, you're back in your room, back in your bed, and the only sign that anything happened is the soreness in your arms and bandages on your skin.

But today was different. Today he gripped your arm firmly and led you to the room himself. The mere sight of the soft white walls and the examination table and the empty tray that will soon be filled with tools makes you want to vomit. You stumble a little as he guides you towards the table, grips your upper arm as you numbly let yourself be hoisted onto the cold surface, the icy smoothness broken only by a scratchy disposable liner.

You manage to meet his gaze and his eyes show nothing but condescension. He knows you hate doctors. He has to know this. You shrink away every time he insists on checking your blood pressure in the morning. Even weighing yourself on the scale, so he can make sure you're eating enough, makes your stomach twist in nervous knots.

"No more sleeping through your check-ups. I'm weaning you off the sedatives, (Y/N). It's not good to be so reliant on them."

You know this. And you hate being sedated, you really really do. You hate the way it burns your arm when you feel it rushing through your bloodstream and you hate those agonizingly slow seconds where everything is heavy and lidded and there's a terrible, burning fear that spreads through your body like poison. 

But at least when you let him sedate you before your "check-ups," it's a choice--a choice you're making, a choice that makes you feel sick and terrified, but a choice all the same. You always stick out your arm and try not to look and try not to cry, and then it's burning and darkness and lights out. It not the same as when you used to try to escape or when you sometimes (bad, uncontrollably thing that you are) scream at him or kick or have sobbing tantrums and get jabbed unexpectedly to calm you down.

He clears his throat, and you look up. Lost in your thoughts, you didn't see him standing there, waiting, with medical gown in his arms. You hate this medical gown. It looks thin and scratchy. It's a terrible, clinical blue.

"Can... can I just wear my night gown?" You ask. Your night gown is soft, and familiar, and comforting. And you’re stalling. 

He still has on his black mask, but you can tell he's smiling. A pity-filled, soft smile. The kind that makes you feel 10 inches tall. You hate this smile. 

"Not for your check up." He leaves no room for argument. He stares at you, mildly, and you know that there's no point in protesting. You take the gown in your slightly shaking hands. He turns around, as always, and you get changed. You were right. It is thin. It is scratchy. The coldness of the table seeps through the paper and makes your legs tremble even harder. You set your clothes down on the plastic bin set on the bed, and watch numbly as he sets it to the side.

Your body begins to feel weightless from anxiety. There's a deep-rooted part of you that wants to run, but even if there was somewhere to go (and there isn't) you know your legs would buckle the moment your feet stepped onto the cold floor. Your limbs feel like jelly. You briefly wonder if he did sedate you, and you didn't know it. But there's no burning or rushing, only fear, fear, fear.

So you sit (you’re so good right now) and let him measure your blood pressure even though the cuff hurts and you hate the sound the little bulb makes when it inflates; and you manage to breathe in, breathe out, nice and big, like tells you to, while he scribbles down your blood pressure (a little high) and your heart rate (a little fast).

You watch intently as he turns and heads toward a row of cabinets bolted to the wall. You crane and stretch and try to see what he's doing, what he's getting, what he's going to do to you. The fear enveloping your chest only tightens harder when you see him set down the syringes and tubes and little empty bottles. You're grateful that this all happens before breakfast, because it would be so much more than thin, acidic bile threatening to come up your throat at the moment. You know you're trembling, he knows you're trembling; but he says nothing, and instead heads for the sink.

"Kai." Your voice is soft and hoarse. Your throat feels constricted.

"Hmm?" He's scrubbing his hands with solution vigorously, obsessively. The sink is loud, a rushing in your ears, combined with harsh wet noises of soap-on-skin.

"I'm-scared-of-needles."

His hand twists the sink handle and the room is horribly silent.

"What did you say? The sink was too loud." He speaks firmly, nonchalantly, as he removes his black mask and instead straps on a medical one. It's a clinical blue. It matches your gown.

You can feel yourself starting to lose it. You can feel your trembles turn into violent shaking. Your legs are twitching up and down of their own accord. You tighten your jaw and try to gain control over yourself.

"I'm. scared. of. needles," you force out between clenched teeth. Your teeth chatter so hard you're sure that he can hear them.

You want to run. You need to run. Flight, flight, flight, you think.

He approaches you slowly, with his palms turned up. It reminds you of approaching a frightened animal. A lost dog, waiting to bolt.

"The needles have medicine," he says, patiently, matter-of-factly. "The medicine helps you stay healthy.”

You have to be calm. You have to be calm, or who knows what might happen. Your voice is still light and faint.

"Okay. Okay, I understand that." You lick your lips and they taste like stale, clinical air. "But I don't... I don't want you to use them. Can't I just drink my medicine?" You will drink it, you think, you will be so good and drink it all and then you can get back into your soft clothes and into your soft room and underneath your soft blankets where there are no needles or tubes or snapping rubber gloves.

His eyes crinkle. The damn smile. "You can't drink this type of medicine, sweetness." He turns and picks up one of the syringes. It's already filled with something. The needle on the end is small and thin and pointy and he's going to put it in your skin.

You don't do it consciously, you really don't. But you pull your legs up on the table and scoot furiously to the back, near the scratchy pillow, against the wall as far as you can go. "I don't want it!" Your tone is so high and so afraid. 

"Shhh," he says. He’s approaching you, approaching the wild animal, waiting to bolt.

"No," you say, "no, no, no." You don't plan it. You don't mean to do it. But your body can't flee, so it fights. And as soon as he's close enough, you KICK. The syringe flies out of his hand and onto the floor, clattering harshly on the floor. You watch it spin out and land underneath the sink.

You stare at the wayward syringe for only a moment before looking back at Kai, and oh. Oh. He doesn't look mad, he doesn't look mad. But he looks decisive and firm and you've seen this look before, this you-don't-know-what's-best-for-you look, and it makes you retch. Nothing comes up except a feeling of fear and even that lasts for a second, because in a moment he's pinning down your wrist without a word.

You squirm and cry out and breath harshly, but none of it matters because in a few seconds he has a strap wrapped and locked around your wrist. Your wrist is firmly pinned against the terribly cold table and he wastes no time in strapping down the other wrist.

"No, no!" You say, and you can do nothing now but kick and cry and scream. "Please, please, I'm sorry," you say, weak and fluttering. But it doesn't matter, either, and he holds your legs down and straps them tightly as well.

When you're all pinned down, nice and safe and immobile, he looms over you. "Shhh," he says, and you no longer feel like a wild dog but something more helpless and caught. A pinned frog, open on a table. A pinned butterfly, dead on the wall. He strokes your forehead and the rubber medical gloves (snap-snap) feel clammy against your skin.

"Poor thing," he says. "I should have know that this... phobia of yours might cause a strong reaction. Don't worry." He pulls off the gloves, dirtied with the previous task, and snaps on a new pair. "Now that I'm aware of how serious your phobia is, we can work on fixing it.”

He picks up a fresh syringe and approaches you. You keep your head raised and your neck hurts but you have to see what’s going on, what he’s going to do to you. You wonder if you can choke on air. Your throat feels so tight that it hurts. Your limbs still feel weightless, but they’re pinned--nowhere to go, even if you could float away from all this.

The sight of the syringe, so close to you, so close to your skin to your body to your blood, makes you wish you would just pass out. But you aren’t so lucky. Instead you watch as he swipes your skin with something that smells like metal and you take in a big, gulping sobbing breath as you watch the needle go in and you feel it pinch and pinch and it hurts, it hurts.

He pulls out slowly and you see a spot of blood underneath the gauze he presses on your arm. You look up him, tears already trickling down your cheeks, but you know there’s no argument, no pleading, that will work.

“I’ll redo the dose you kicked away earlier, and then we’ll move on to your blood samples.”

The bed is cold and your gown is thin and scratchy and you can’t move. You can only listen as he methodically picks up the dropped syringe and disposes of it, as he heads back to the tray with the bottles and needles and tools, as he fills up a sterile syringe and approaches you again. His eyes are crinkling with a hidden smile as he approaches you and swipes another area of your arm with the pungent liquid.

“This will be my first time trying out exposure therapy. But I know we’ll get through this together.”

You can’t watch, this time, and your eyes are shrouded in forced darkness as you feel the needle sliding into your skin.

[grayintogreen]

Beau and 1, 5, 10, 14 anddd 22?

Me, a person who writes Beau a lot: Oh huh. Do I add a lot of HC flavor to my Beau Interpretation??? Probably not enough.

LET'S FIX THAT and apologies if I fuck it up a bit re: established shit in canon, because unlike SOME CHARACTERS, I don't even have a full course credit in Beau, much less a Fake PhD. I'm faking it to an extreme degree.

1. their physical weak spots.

I love the idea that Beau like really hates the back of her neck touched so that tattoo was probably a labor of love on like numerous levels. It was probably agonizing for her to endure, but she wanted it to a copy of Molly's and BY GODS SHE WAS GONNA DEAL WITH IT LIKE A CHAMP.

5. guilty pleasures

I feel like she's admitted as much in canon, because she did read Courting of the Crick and seemed to get a kick out of Tusk Love when Jester was reading it, but I think she really does love trashy romance novels, especially the REALLY DUMB Straight People Shit ones, because they're entertaining and sometimes pretty hot. I bet her sexual awakening came when she was stealing her mom's and was like "I want to be the hot rogue going down on this noblewoman with heaving bosoms. Fuck."

Once Caleb realizes she enjoys a good formulaic smut story, they have smutty book club nights to unwind after stressful work in the Capitol, even though he hates formulaic smut stories. Beau likes to pick out the most formulaic ones ever to see if they can guess the entire plot.

(Now that I have said this, I am morally obligated to write a one-shot about it. I realize this.)

10. fears/phobias

YOUR GURL GOT ABANDONMENT ISSUES LIKE WHOA. Honestly, long after the Iron Shepherds (and she never really fully got over it), she was constantly afraid of waking up and everyone (or some of them) would be gone in the night and she wouldn't know what happened. That fear even outlasted her fear that eventually they'd get sick of her and leave. Literally everything she fears is tied up in being abandoned/being alone.

14. ingrained habits/forces of habit

Just try to make her not say "pop pop." THAT'S CANON. THAT'S NOT MARISHA. I REFUSE TO BELIEVE BEAU DOESN'T SAY "POP POP" EVERY TIME SHE HITS SOMEONE.

In all seriousness and way more depressingly, post-canon, she still checks for eyes every day, just in case.

22. people who've influenced them greatly.

Molly, hands down. She respects Dairon and acknowledges their part in handling her better than any other adult figure. And she credits each of the Mighty Nein for some part of her new perspective on life, but Molly was the first person who really skewed her into a new direction and she still wishes he didn't have to die for her to realize he was right about a lot of shit.

[forbidden-inky-stories]

Can't Help Falling In Love

Chapter 1

For: @loverofallarts12

Warnings:

• Blood

• Slightly Smut

• Angst

The darkness is the hallway.

It was endless.

Henry looked at the flashlight The Lost Ones' gave him. He stroked his light Chestnut brown hair. He was walking inside the darkbess for a while now. He really wanted to see a light or a door at least. But there was nothing. All he could see with the flashlight was a few posters on the walls and some ink puddles. Nothing handy. He pointed the flashlight to the wall on his left.

Just a little Alice poster.

"Sent From Above, with Alice Angel..."

Henry read the poster with a quiet voice. He wasn't feeling paranoia or anything.

He was just a little horrified becouse of the Angels' warnings.

Allison and Susie, they both were very prepared when It comes the Ink Demon. They were always giving Henry advices about hiding from him.

Henry stopped walking for a second.

He looked at the darkness without the flashlight. He was a little scared now.

He actually didn't had a phobia about darkness, it was just Angels' warnings that gave him a little horror.

"Beware the Ink Demon. They say, he always attacks in the dark..."

The dark word made Henry get his mind back together. He grabbed the flashlight back and contioned walking for a while.

The hallway was deathly quiet. The only sounds were Henry's footsteps and the Flashlight's weak creaks. But then, another voice suddely showed up.

But that was not screaming or whining like Henry was expecting.

Some footsteps and whistles.

Henry suddenly stopped walking to listen the whistles.

A part of him was saying he needed to run and escape from the footsteps' owner.

But another part if him was saying just wait and listen.

He decided to listen the whistles. He tried to calm himself down with thinking it's just a Lost One.

"Wise man says only fools rush in..."

The owner of the footsteps started singing with a gentle voice. His voice was going straight to Henry's head. His voice was a little sonorous.

And...Weirdly...Calming?

Henry couldn't tell why. But his voice calmed him down fir a little bit. It reminded him almost his voice...

"Joey?!"

Henry shut his mouth with his hands. He was very worried from his voice. He wasn't expecting his voice to sound that loud.

Joey didn't seemed to mind, he just chuckled a little bit and contioned singing the song.

"But I can't help falling in love with you...

Shall I stay?"

"Would it be a sin?"

Henry couldn't help but whistled the songs next part with him. He knew that song. İt was one of his favorite songs back then.

"İf I can't help falling in love with you?"

His voice was coming closer and closer. Henry wanted to look back to see if he's there. But he couldn't. He wanted to look, but his body wasn't moving.

He thought it was becouse of the horror creeping around.

"Like a river flows surely to the sea.

Darling so it goes."

His voice was even closer now. Almost like he was just a few steps away from him.

Henry just waited. Waited for him to come even closer.

"Some things are meant to be...

Take my hand, take my whole life too."

With these words, Henry felt two, deathly cold arms wrapping around his waist.

He gently yelped as he suddenly felt the coldness, but then he relaxed.

He slowly closed his eyes, letting the flashlight fall to the ground. Joey didn't catch the flashlight either. He just contioned singing the song.

"For I can't help falling in love with you..."

He looked at Henry, he was almost asleep.

"God, he must be so tired..."

"For I can't help falling in love with you."

He finished the song and sighed.

"Just like the old times."

And then Henry fall asleep. Joey started to carry him bridal style and walked throught the hallway. The darkness didn't bothered him. He just walked throught the hallway, getting lost in his own thoughts while walking.

Hearing your own voice in your head, this can count as normal.

Untill it starts to get out of the hand.

This was the thing Joey was living.

"Can you even call yourself 'Joey Drew'?

We both know you're not truly me you're just a basic, 'stonger' copy."

"Whines of the 'Awaken man'..."

He whispered quietly and contioned walking without making any other sound.

•••

"I don't understand...Where could he be?!"

The Twisted Angel named Alice yelled with anger. Her long, inky, black hair was covering the half of her face. Her halo was broken, but it was still shining with a golden color. Her long dress was melting by the end. Her horns were broken. She had long black gloves and a bowtie on her dress.

She looked at the human-like wolf named Tom standing a few steps away from her.

He was wearing a yellowish brown shirt and a black overall. He also had a mechanic arm. He was looking at the Angel with a serious face. He was holding a axe and a Bacon Soup can.

Alice and Tom looked at the Safe House's door when they heard someone coming in.

It was another Angel. She had shorter ponytail hair, shorter black and brown dress and a rope. She didn't had a halo, she only had two, small horns.

"Allison!"

Alice let out a shout and walked near to her. Allison smiled a little bit and stepped inside the safe house.

"You got any news?"

"Or any information?"

Tom and Alice asked to her. She shooked her head and looked at the two.

"No...I don't have any news."

"Did you tried to talk to Lost Ones?"

"Yes, I did. They said they didn't see Henry around for a while."

"That's not good."

Tom walked closer to the both woman. He put the Bacon Soup can on the table and crossed his arms.

"Maybe the Demon already got him?"

He started to think about the possibilities. Unfortunately, the first possibility he could think about was the worst one.

"Should I tell them this?"

He looked at the Angels again. Normally, he wouldn't care if the possibiltys made someone sad. But Henry meant something to them.

He was their chance to escape from this nightmare.

But now, he was vanished.

Tom took a few minutes of thinking while the Angels were telling each other their ideas about where he could be.

"They're not little girls. They can understand that."

Tom decided to tell them the possibility, hoping they won't overreach.

"Or what if...He's ready taken by the İnk Demon?"

Tom stared directly at the Angels to see their reacts.

They seemed suprised, but just a little bit.

They looked at each other. It was it was clear that they both didn't know how to answer to that.

Alice stared Allison for a few seconds, then she decided to break the silence.

"This...İs a possibility. But we can't say if he is taken or not. We still don't have enough proves."

Allison seemed to agree with her. She crossed her arms and talked back to them.

"She's right. We still don't have enough proves."

Tom didn't answered them. He just seemed to agree.

"Well, ok then. What's our move now?"

"We should keep looking for him. But not today...Allison already did and I bet she's tired. Let's just rest for now."

"Maybe tomarrow will be better."

•••

"It's been a while."

Joey said as he stepped inside his office. He looked inside the office.

"A little dusty...And İnky...But it's still my office."

He walked to the black sofa near his desk before sitting on his desk. He gently placed Henry on the sofa. He softly moaned and leaned into Joey's arms. Joey chuckled and decided to sit near Henry. He sat on the sofa and drew Henry on his lap. He rested back and started to play with Henry's hair.

"It's been a long time since I touched you like that..."

He kept stroking his Light Chestnut Brown hair. It was quite messy and a little inky, but the color was still very visible.

Unlike Joey, Henry never aged much. İn 30 years, Joey's orange hair already had white spots on his hair.

The difference wasn't just growing older tho. Henry's personalty changed a lot.

When the Studio was still running pretty well, Henry was very kind.

"Maybe too kind?"

He was getting along well with everyone. He liked helping people when he wasn't working on animations.

He helped Joey with writing checks for so many times.

His appearance was differend too. He was much more slim. His clothes were always a little big for him, but it wasn't a big deal.

Now, he had a more masculine body.

"However. Funny part; he's still shorter then me."

And his personalty; Well...It was a little hard to explain. Like, he was colder to people now. His helping attidute was gone. And he was more...Wild?

However, Joey never mind that too much. Actually, he liked Henry's this version more then the young one. He just liked how he seemed like he wouldn't mind if he needs to shed someone's blood.

He didn't knew what changed Henry too much in 30 years, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to know too.

The only thing he know was Henry was here.

Something else didn't bothered him.

He just contioned playing with Henry's hair, listening his gentle voice, moaning softly.

"Well, things like this always happen, to pretty little creatures like you..."

And then he fall asleep too.

[hpsych]

• 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝕟𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝔬𝔣 𝔡𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝕕𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕝𝕤

       this is ambrosia, the nectar of the gods.       to drink this will awaken all of your dormant potentials.       but... should you?

“ 𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚋���𝚎𝚗 𝚍𝚒𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝, 𝚒𝚗 𝚜𝚘 𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜, 𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚍𝚘. 𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚊𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚛𝚐𝚞𝚎 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚒𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎, 𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗’𝚝 𝚜𝚘 𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜𝚗’𝚝 𝚜𝚘 𝚌𝚛𝚞𝚎𝚕, 𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚝𝚘𝚕𝚍 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚘, 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚕𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚠𝚊𝚢. “

tw: murder, personality disorder, phobia, torture, abuse, suicide mention, swearing

      He was a fighter child. His mother knew even then that he had to be, in that environment of thugs, thieves, killers, gamblers – you name it, you’d find it in Reykjavik. She knew, before he had been born, that they would kill him if they had the chance. Harry’s father never actually showed up to help his mother, they weren’t exactly a rich family, there were things Harry never actually understood about his dad, and specially why he decided to have a son that he would never actually be able to see, and now, there was Harry, sitting on the throne with his symbol, as it was offered to him the honor to now replace his father.

     A million thoughts were coming and going into his mind as he was holding that chalice, Harry had a choice, leaving right now and never seeing that chance again, rejecting a god’s wishes, or staying, drinking that pink amber and forever be haunted with feelings of the years and years he wished for a father and got nothing.

     He didn’t hated his dad, he just wasn’t sure if following his steps were the right call for someone like him. There were things about Harry’s personality that he didn’t wanted to bring back up, things that should forever stay burried inside him where nobody else can see them. That’s his biggest fear, to lose control not of the person he was, but the person his mind sometimes wishes him to be.

      — Why am I doing this, dad? — He wispered to himself as his gaze was focused on the liquid, his face being reflected on it by the dancing fire.

     Harry’s hands were shaking, he was nervous, his body felt sick, as a little anxiety was taking over. Something was bothering him, like he was trying to check inside his mind if it was a good idea to give himself that power. Anxiety is always getting to feel like something is out of place in Harry, and when he can’t find what it is, he starts thinking it’s himself. He wasn’t comfortable, but now looking around, the way people seemed to believe on the god’s choices and the way some people were already drinking that thing, somehow his mind started feeling uncomfortable with the fact that Harry was taking so long to just do it. And in a blink of an eye, the chalice turned as it touched his lips, the ambrosia tasted like honey, lemmon juice and pepper, a quite weird mix but the taste didn’t lasted long, and just like that, it was done.

     After the ceremony, it didn’t took long for people to go back to their beds, Hermes’s words didn’t seemed to scare people that much, but still, Harry could see some nervous eyes following him as he passed, the movement around the camp started to go quiet and some thoughts just couldn’t leave his mind. He was by his bed for a moment, only as he waited for the dinning hall to be fully empty, he knew it wouldn’t be an easy night and he didn’t wanted to be around his cabin when the devils in his mind start dancing.

      What are nightmares if not the same as dreams? People keep doing promises that dreams do come true, but most of them forget that nightmares are dreams too. Hopelessness, fear, dread, anger, and death, those were the words Hermes used while explaining what could happen, like their minds would go to their worst place and hope to come back in one piece.

      — A bit dramatic., maybe — The thoughts came out as words as Harry entered the big dinning hall. The fire was still burning, the thrones were still standing there now empty and it was all so quiet that every step he would take it sounded like a torpedo dropping.

     He kept his gaze at the flames as they looked like dancing for him, like the fire itself was aware of his presence and were now reacting to it. As he was making his way to the throne he was earlier it almost looked like the fire was getting shorter, his attention was turned to it until he heard a hissing sound, but by the time he turned, he screamed, as he felt the pain of fangs biting his leg so hard that he dropped to the ground in pain, both hands held the leg as he felt the bite really hurting, his eyes took a few seconds to see the dark grey-ish snake moving into the dark corner right next to his father’s throne.

      — What the... fuck... — His breathing was getting anxious as he felt a pain inside his leg growing and starting to move up to his knee — Ugh... shit, shit shit.

     As he tried to get up, the snake seemed to get angry, and threat to attack him again, Harry couldn’t move, the pain on his leg felt like he had rotten blood in there, and pepper in his eyes as they started to tear up and hurt, his face turning red and the effects starting pretty quickly.

      — Where is he, Harry? — Out of nothing, that voice came up. A child’s voice, something part of a dark and old memory deep inside Harry’s mind, memories of a time he wish he could forget.

      — Get out of my head... —  Harry whispered.

      — Where’s Ryan?

     The voice didn’t sounded like coming from right next to him, in fact it sounded more like the voice of a kid who’s just scared and lost in the end of a dark hallway while you’re following his voice with a candle to try to find him. And that voice, asking for that name, Harry didn’t wanted that back in his mind.

      — I’m no longer that person... I’ve changed... I’m... I’m not like that anymore... you hear me? You fucking bastard!! — Harry looked over to where the snake once was, and there were nothing there, but his leg, was starting to go black, as if the flesh was rotting, a disgusting smell was in the air as the pain would get stronger, Harry pulled his belt out and tried to stop the poison from moving up from his leg, it was the best thing he could do for now.

      — Where’s Ryan, Harry? Tell me, please!!

      —  SHUT UP!! — He yelled. The kid’s voice now sounded like he was ready to cry.

     As his leg were now hurting a little less, Harry tried to crawl himself to his father’s throne, resting his back on the throne while sitting on the floor, gasping and trying to surpass the pain.

      — Ryan!!

      — He was already dead you stupid little shit!! — He let out his thought once again as his forehead were sweating and he closed his eyes for a moment trying to keep his mind focused. — I tried to save him... It wasn’t my fault, it was yours!! — He gasped in pain again.

      — Was it? — The voice now sounded like coming from right in front of him.

     Harry opened his eyes, his gaze looking up, as now he could see clearly, right on the other side of the fireplace, a kid, ginger hair, white shirt with some dirty marks on it, he was looking right into Harry’s eyes.

      — I didn’t killed... Ryan.

      Harry’s voice was shaken as his leg had that pulsating feeling that would cause even more pain, his eyes seemed weird, his body was cold and he was starting to sweat.

     — What is this? — He pointed to his leg, where the bite mark now had a disgusting white liquid coming out of it, it was deadly infected.

      — Do you remember what you did to the boy at the Zoo, Harry?

     The kid’s voice now changed to female, as the fire started to look so bright that Harry couldn’t even look directly at it. — What Zoo? I never went to the Zoo with you or Ryan!! LEAVE ME ALONE!!

     Just like a snap, the pain was gone. Harry’s lungs was begging for air as his body seemed recovering and as he looked at his leg, everything was fine, not even the bite was there anymore, but his head was hurting, really bad. He was at the dinning hall, but now the fire looked more intense, as the thrones would cast shadows behind them and the shadows seemed to dance with each other, Harry could hear something, like people talking, voices in the distance, he wasn’t sure if what he was seeing or hearing was real, so quickly he got up, walking fast to the outside and trying to make his way back to his cabin when he noticed that everywhere around him, he would only listen to the trees being shaken by the wind, not a single other sound, like the entire camp was empty, and he was the only living thing in there.

      — Did you showed him the snakes, Harry?

     A chilling sensation shook his spine as he heard a female voice behind him, but as he turned, nobody was there. Harry wasn’t in panic, but his lungs felt weird, his head was hurting and he was now feeling like something was moving behind him, it felt like a divine warning, like his sixth sense was telling him that something was standing right behind him, and he couldn’t shake that feeling away.

      — We are what we pretend to be, Harry. So we must be careful about what we pretend to be. — The kid’s voice was back, and as Harry looked to his side there he was, standing near the trees, almost like hiding behind one of them. — Can I pretend to be you for tonight?

      — How you pretend to do that? — Harry asked as feeling spooked by those green eyes with some weird cat reflection.

      — Wanna find out? — The kid whispered, putting a hand out to Harry while hiding half his face behind the tree.

      —  Fuck you!

     The man gave a step back, as he turned, ready to leave that area, he looked down, only to see the dark snake, jumping to his face.

     Harry screamed, falling to his back to the ground and pulling his arms to protect his face from the attack, but then, there were silence again. As he opened his eyes, he wasn’t by the treeline anymore, he was in fact a little more into the woods, a not so safe space to be, specially at that time.

      — DID YOU TRIED TO KILL MY BROTHER, HARRY?? — The female voice again, this time sounding angry, and as she was running straight to him but Harry couldn’t see from where.

     It wasn’t clear what was happening to him, all he could say is that something was happening to him, something was wrong inside him, his body felt sick, really sick, his head was hurting, his eyes seemed out of focus and he was getting out of breath even without trying to run, it felt like he was locked inside a cell in the middle of the woods with hungry animals waiting for him to turn. Everything felt like a threat, and Harry was a little panicked. That’s when he got up, a little messy, and started to try to run, he wasn’t sure which direction to go, but anywhere felt better than staying there.

     Everytime Harry would look back, he could swear he could see something moving behind him and on the sides, like there were figures in the shadows just folowing him and moving like monkeys, with their arms moving like crazy almost like trying to scare someone away from their territory, but before Harry could even try to get a better look, something grabbed his feet and he fell, rolling down a small hill and ending up with a few bruises all over his body.

      — Fuck... — He moaned as he felt his right knee hurting a lot, he wasn’t sure if he broke something but he wouldn’t be able to keep running with that pain.

      — YOU. KILLED. RYAN!!! —  A scream, somewhere in the woods.

      — I didn’t... I’m not like that... It wasn’t my fault... — His voice sounded like he was crying, like he was being taken by regret and a wave of feelings. — I’m sorry... I didn’t thought it would end up like that. — His eyes were tearing up as Harry started to cry.

      — Cut the crap, kid. — A different voice, male, older, took Harry totally off guard. It wasn’t actually a male voice, it sounded weird, but at same time familiar. As Harry looked next to him, that snake, that same snake, right there, looking at him. — They know you don’t care.

     If it wasn’t already too weird what was happening, the fact that the snake just spoke would sound very creepy. But Harry was just looking at it, while the snake seemed to grow till it’s head looked as big as his hand.

      — F-Father?

      — Even when you’re about to die, you can’t stop faking your emotions.

     A second ago, Harry looked in panic, crying and filled with regret, now, he seemed more normal, like an actor in the end of the scene, only a little scared.

      — I didn’t do anything to them... I’m trying to get a different life. Why is this happening to me?

      — You killed a kid, Harry, and almost killed another. This isn’t something it will ever leave you. — It wasn’t quite clear how that animal was talking to Harry, it’s lips were sealed but the sound of the disgusting voice were still being heard inside Harry’s mind. — You’re a monster, I should have killed you when you were a baby, or even better, I should have your entire family killed before you could even be born. You’re a disgrace to everything I created.

      — Don’t say that to me... —  He murmured almost like begging him to stop triggering his mind like that.

      — How dare you to sit on that throne and drink from that chalice? You’re not my son, you’re the scum we olympians live to destroy, you’re the kind of bastard kid who deserves nothing but pain and rejection for what you really are. Like your friends did, like your mother did, like I did, the world will forever do.

     At every word he would hear, it felt like Harry’s mind was getting more and more triggered, like those were the words to use to unlock something inside the boy’s mind that he was fighting very very hard to keep locked.

     — You’ll never be anything, Harry, you’ll forever be just a pain to everyone’s memories, you’ll never have anyone standing by your side, and you’ll never be free from your curse, and you know why? Because I know what you really are, and what’s inside of you, is something so evil that if it ever comes out, they will kill you with no second thought!

     It felt like a hand squeezing his heart, his entire body felt cold, as those words would hit him. He wasn’t that kind of person anymore, he was trying hard to be a differetn person, he was trying to change, trying to do better and be a better person, but he was angry, angry to hear those words again, and there were that voice again, inside his mind saying that he should bath those trees with snake’s blood, stab that animal so many times that not even the bones would ever be recognized, but before he could even try, something clicked in his mind.

      — NO. I’M NOT LIKE THAT ANYMORE!! — Harry shook his head, as a conflict of thoughts started to hurt his mind even more, he fell to the ground and kept both hands to his head, taking deep breaths and trying to think on something different, fighting to keep the control over the dangerous side of his personality.

      — There are shadows dancing around you in the dark, Harry. You know why? They’re here for you. Haunting you, they will follow you forever, waiting for the day you’ll lose your mind or kill yourself, and they will feast over your soul and flesh.

     Harry opened his eyes again, he could see them. Almost like hiding in the trees, figures, moving around in every direction, like an evil cult dance. He was tired, stressed, scared. The ghosts from his past were there to torture him, and if he wanted to live to see the next day, maybe it was about time for him to stop running from them.

      — Do you know why mom left? — He asked.

     — She cared about me, but she couldn’t keep me... you got a married woman pregnant of a baby she never wanted, but still, she kept me, she protected me from the things that could have happened to me in Reykjavik, she tried to find a good place for me to stay but nobody could keep me, so she left me at one of the bests orphanages she could find. — He sighed. — I don’t hate her. But when I got older I tried to find her, but I failed, still I have no idea even if she’s alive today. It’s not my fault she left, it’s yours.

     As he took a deep breath, Harry forced his muscles to get his body to stand, it took him some effort, his knee was hurting pretty badly, and he was filled with scratches all over his body, he wasn’t sure of any of that was real, but if he was to die that night, he wouldn’t die as the monster they wanted him to be. When he finally got up, Harry took a deep breath, looking up to the leafs on the trees being blown by the wind, and back down, to where behind the trees he could see figures. Like ghosts from his past.

      — I didn’t killed Ryan because I wanted to hurt him. I was a kid, and I hated to see how my best friend seemed to like him more than me, I couldn’t get Ryan to stay away so I tried to talk to my best friend about him, and he ignored me, he made me feel ignored, like I was something he could easily replace... so I took Ryan from him, I took him to the bridge saying that we would fish, Ryan believed, so I pushed him in the river. But the water was too cold and running too fast, I was gonna get him terrified of me so he would never show up near my best friend again, but... the help couldn’t get there in time. Ryan died that day. I was eight.

     Harry could tell that the ginger kid hiding behind the tree looked like ready to cut his throat, and he wasn’t the only one.

      — Few years later I moved with my foster family... and I met Kate, she was my new best friend but... her little brother was a pain on the ass, he would do things at home and blame Kate only so she would be in trouble with their parents... I used to see him as a stone on my way so I had to remove him. One day me, Kate and her brother went to the Zoo, he wanted to see the snakes, the black snakes... but Kate is terrified of them so I went with him, and I told him to climb a little higher the fence so he could have a better view, and when I was about to push him in there... Kate showed up. She punched me and pulled her brother back. I never saw her, her brother or their family ever again.

     He gasped, a tear dropped from his eye, but he cleaned his face right away, he wasn’t sad, that wasn’t a tear of sadness, Harry didn’t knew how to feel sad about those things, he wasn’t sad about what he did, he was sad about what he lost on the way.

      — I can’t change what I did... — He sighed.

      — I can only try to be different. And I will be different, I am different. I’m doing everything I can to keep my obsessions and my manipulations to the side, I can’t change my brain, but I can change my life.

     For a moment, his eyes looked around, the dark figures looking like a threat to him were now moving slowly, like even the dark side of his nightmares were paying attention.

      — You can’t change. Your family left you, your friends left you, it is your destiny to be alone, to lose your mind and be a nobody. It’s your destiny to die slowly, while you watch your fears and paranoias eat your sanity.

     The voices were getting mixed together, he could no longer say who said what, almost like it was all really happening in his mind, Harry was finally starting to take back the control of something. But confronting his past and his fears wasn’t enough, he was in pain, not just physical pain, but it felt like his mind was indeed starting to lose control of itself thanks to this new life he so badly wanted for himself. Harry was trying to ignore a nature he was born in to be part of a different one.

      — I can change whatever the hell I want. It’s my life and I won’t go back to be the monster you say I am, and people will see that in me. Some people say love is a feeling, dad, but it’s not. It’s a choice. You may feel ‘in love’ when things are great, everyone does. What about when things get bad? Like when you make a huge mistake with someone, or when you’re son is a psychopath and instead of showing support and saying that he can be a good person, you call him a monster... Whether or not you choose to stay and help, that’s what makes love a choice, and I’m tired of letting my hate for you to follow me, so... I right now choose to love you dad. I choose to be something you never showed me.

     He teases the huge snake as it seems to get pissed by it, starting to crawl around Harry with that huge body, but Harry wasn’t scared, not anymore, his body was hurting, but he kept himself strong.

      — And to the rest of you, feel free to do whatever you want, if yoou want to keep haunting me for the mistakes I made, fine, if you want to move on and leave my mind alone, that’s fine too... but I won’t keep your screams in my thoughts, I won’t let my mistakes follow me everywhere I go, so if you want to fight me, well... I can promise you, that I’ll give every single one of you a worst ending than the one I gave Ryan. Don’t create a monster cause you don’t want him turning against you.

     The hissing noise coming from behind was quite enought for Harry to turn his head to his back, right on time to see those huge snake fangs flying towards him, as an instinct, Harry pulled his arm in front of his body, protecting his vital area as he felt a burning sensation to the arm, next thing, he woke up, every single part of his body was hurting, and his arm, was touching the fire on the dinning hall.

     He screamed in pain as he pulled the arm back, a little out of breath and all sweaty as if he just woke up from a terrible nightmare. He wasn’t sure which parts were more real, or if everything was his imagination boosted by the ambrosia, but there he was, laying on the ground right in front of the throne he was sitted, in pain, and trying to recover while the sun was already out.

     At first, he didn’t believed in what Hermes said the previous night, about their minds being exposed to pure terror, illusions and pain so intense that some people could even die, but now, as he woke up alive after something, he got the idea, Harry’s worst nightmare, is in fact lose control of his condition, he was trying for so long to keep his mind on safe places, he couldn’t lose everything now.

[morris-magus-merry-miller]

Chapter 4: Ship to the Stars

We saw to it that our cyclops friend and the once captive guards all made it back to the surface safely, then we all made our way back to Port Town. Our new friend said he was going to look into the theatre scene in Port Town and try to begin anew as a thespian. An excellent idea if I do say so myself—I had already noted he is excellent at projecting his voice after all. I do believe someday he will be quite the name on stage, and people shall come to Port Town from all over to see his performances.

 I should have gotten an autograph.

Regardless, after we arrived in Port Town our group decided to split up for the evening. Candy returned to the inn, Issac and Vigo went to check on Peanut and Gordon at the stables, and John and I went to report our successful venture to Terrance. He thanked us for our service and paid us the agreed upon amount. We asked him if there were any clerics in town who were magically inclined enough to resurrect the dead, to which he denied, no one in town was quite that powerful. John decided that we would simply have to try a different route, and said he’d prepare a spell the next day that would allow him to speak to the dead.

While we were there reporting the successful retrieval of Captain Gladshire’s men from the bowls of the earth, we brought up the note that we’d found on Ringwald’s person. It would seem the captain of the guard was quite familiar with the Wizard of the Stars. In fact, the wizard was his uncle! Oswald Gladshire, the Wizard of the Stars. Terrance offered to introduce us, as he lived a reclusive life of luxury on an island a few hours off the coast, and might not let us in without his nephew’s recommendation. We gladly agreed. Then John and I went our separate ways for the night, I returning to the inn and John returning to his home elsewhere in town.

 Back at the inn Candy was nowhere to be found. Issac had decided to sleep in the stables, as he wasn’t used to being apart from Peanut. Vigo had returned at around the same time as I. I think we were all exhausted from the day’s events however, as we quickly parted ways to rest. I for one fell straight to the world of dreams the moment my head hit the pillow. I hope to not go spelunking again any time soon. My poor little legs aren’t meant for such abuse.

 The next day Candy was behind the bar serving breakfast in Paige’s place. She greeted us in quite the chipper mood for the early hour, and informed us that she’d hired someone to help us with our next venture. We quickly discovered who—Paige herself. Gone were the unassuming barmaid clothes, and in their place a rather intimidating full set of black leather armor, with the symbol of the Reaper of Reputation boldly emblazoned across the front. I’d heard that Port Town was very open minded about which religions were openly permitted, but it still came as a bit of a surprise to see someone openly wearing the symbol of Norgerber. That’s like…in the top 3 least accepted religions in most regions. Right up there with Lamashtu, and Urgathoa in the days before awakened undead were a common sight. Still below Rovagug though. No one really wants to be around someone who worships a being who wants every living thing to be dead.

I digress. Suffice to say, it was a surprise. But Paige is still a woman of fine standing in my book. Candy likes her, and she has been nothing but good to us. I am not one to judge a book by their cover, as they say. This cover just happens to have a neat half mask symbol for a god of murder and secrets on it.

  After introductions were re-established, I shared with the others what John and I had learned from Captain Gladshire. We took some time to prepare for the next step in our journey, and stopped by the local branch of Glarginards to buy supplies. I learned much from our latest venture, and will step forward better prepared than ever. Invisible foes will never catch us by surprise again as I bought a couple of trinkets to help with that failing, and I also took some inspiration from Vigo and got a very nice little necklace whose beads can ignite into fireballs. Also as a treat for myself I got spectacles that let me read all languages. I’m already well versed in a number of languages, such as goblin, gnome, and of course halfling, but it never hurts to be prepared for those rare languages like, for instance, undercommon in that last area.

Once our shopping spree was over, we made our way towards the guard barracks to meet with Terrance. There, the other guards were ushering him out, letting him know he had more than enough PTO to take a break, and that quite frankly he really needed a vacation. After saying his goodbyes, Terrance lead us to the docks. John seemed to have a bit of a panicky moment. He told us that he ought to stay behind, and that the spell to speak with Ringwald would take a week to cast. That was…kind of obviously not the case, even to those of us who aren’t that well versed in divine magic. Clearly the poor man has a phobia of water, or perhaps just the ocean itself. Regardless, it is his daughter’s life on the line, as I pointed out to him. And we needed him with us. Especially if anything went wrong. Candy’s near-death experience had made it quite clear that we needed John’s healing magics rather desperately.

John finally agreed to come along, but wanted to get the séance out of the way first. So we set up a little ways away from the docks and used his magic to speak with the corpse of Cleric Ringwald. She told us that even if she were revived she couldn’t presently undo the curse placed upon Dualwood—but that we were on the right track seeking out the Wizard of the Stars, for he would be the key in finding out how to do so. She also confirmed that she would very much like to be revived once we could find the means to do so. With the number of questions the spell could handle exhausted, the cleric’s spirit left her body once more, and she was returned to the bag of holding for the time being until we could find a more powerful healer to help her.

With that done, we followed Captain Gladshire to meet with his contact at the docks. The contact in question was an undine ship captain named Nairon, who could use her acute control of the waters to captain a decently large vessel with no crew. On the deck of the ship she had a statue of Besmara, the Pirate Queen, goddess of storms and piracy.

Again, no judgement, but it was a surprise that Terrance had a pirate contact given his…honestly rather puppy-ish demeanor.

 With John retreating away from the sides of the ship (poor man), and Terrance and Paige claiming the two private cabins for themselves, we began our voyage out into the open sea. Our destination…the Isle of Marvelous Madness, to meet with the Wizard of the Stars.

 And oh, what Madness did await us there.

[lionfanged]

You just fucked over Proton big time.

‘ i did? after what he did to me? he deserves that punishment. he deserves worse. ‘

deserves to suffer the same pain he did, subjected to the humiliation of being discovered by giovanni, bleeding out on that filthy floor. his remaining memory of the event was spotty---severe blood loss and shock are not helpful conditions for recollection---but vividly can he recall that precise moment proton made the choice between rocket, and his own emotions.atticus did not even wish to begin on the sickening sensation of awakening in the rocket medical wing, thigh wrapped tight in gauze and beeping machines neighboring casting him into the verge of a panic attack.that was private, to never be spoken of.he was lucky he was capable of reining himself in before giovanni reappeared to check on him, taming the phobia that threatened to swallow him whole to not appear all the more foolish.

‘ giovanni, rocket... they’re lucky that i know this is only a rare case of insubordination, and not a plan with giovanni as its mastermind. he made that quite clear. ‘

much would atticus have rather preferred to not be stabbed, but, giovanni’s efforts to appease him did not go unappreciated.he enjoyed business with them---even if it was being debated whether or not he’d be returning there anytime soon.

‘ i only hope proton will walk away with a lesson learned. ‘

[confrontingbabble-on]

Do You Think You Can Instill Morality...By Spreading Lies And Irrational Fears...?

Thousands of child abusing and congregation defrauding indoctrinated clergy, prove...“No you cannot!”

“Scaring kids (childish mentalities!) with (holy!) ghosts and (religious fantasy avenging god) monsters can have psychological effects.

...a patient related to me a problem with her 9-year-old son, who’s so afraid of the dark (the world outside religion!) that he can’t sleep with the lights off (religious addiction, clutching onto fabricated unverifiable religious make believe etc).

Up to now he still wets his bed  (gets physically overwhelmed by irrational religious fear mongering*!). Apparently, the son’s yaya (religious babysitter, ie the church!) used to frighten him with stories of scary creatures like ghosts (evil spirits!) and aswang (devils, demons, Satan!).

It’s sad that even parents sometimes use this scare tactic (on behalf of the church!) to make their kids go to bed early (give more money to the church!), or else, “the moomoo” (holy! ghost) or monster (god!) would come to get them.*

Sometimes, they (pastors!) would even feign seeing the monster in the closet (demons in the secular community, science etc!) and describe it to their children (church sermons!). They would assure their kids (congregants!) that they had killed the monster or driven them away (performed an exorcism, cast out demons, sanctified an area!)—but they might come back if the kids don’t behave or sleep early (be manipulated by them!).

Such mindless tactics can have a double-whammy effect on children (congregants!), whose imaginations can make these stories seem real in their minds. They believe everything adults (manipulating clergy!) tell them, especially their parents or their yaya (religious babysitters!).

The first whammy is, the secretion of melatonin in the children’s pineal gland will be impaired and since melatonin is a multitasking hormone, there can be complications in the child’s (congregant’s mental!) development. It may predispose the child to cancer later in life or even at an early age.

Impaired secretion of melatonin may also be a reason why child actors and actresses are at risk of not attaining full physical (or mental!) development.

The second whammy—a much more serious one—is the long-term psychological consequences on a child whose fear of the dark was exaggerated.

Scars

“Instilling undue fear in children can cause damaging psychological scars in the long-term,” warns Dr. Bess de Guia, a member of the very active Batch ’77 of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) College of Medicine, and a respected psychiatry consultant at The Medical City (TMC).

“Such fear may be the root cause of problems like post-traumatic stress disorder, panic attacks and anxiety disorder,” Bess explains .

“The common psychological effect is chronic phobic reaction, which may extend to adolescence and beyond,” adds Dr. Nina Halili-Jao, another member of UST Batch ’77 and a child psychiatrist at TMC.

According to Bess and Nina, when fear of the dark reaches a degree that is severe enough to be considered pathological, it is called nyctophobia or achluophobia, one of the most common phobias in both children and young adults.

The two psychiatrists explain that such fear, which can conjure images of scary creatures lurking in the dark, can leave a deep, negative imprint in the child’s subconscious or unconscious mind that can have a lasting effect on his or her mental health until adulthood.

Parents who scare their children to discipline them are unwittingly causing them potentially serious harm if not resolved or “processed early enough.”

Fortunately, with my (atheist adults!) parents’ comforting care and assurance that my yaya (pastor!) was just kidding (deceiving!), I overcame my fear.”

Defense mechanism

Fear of the dark is actually an evolutionary instinctive defense mechanism of humans, which protected ancient men from nocturnal predators. So, somehow, it’s hardwired in our brain to be wary of the dark.

“This is actually part of our survival mechanism, similar to the ‘flight or fight’ response,” Bess explains. She says that one generally outgrows this (religious fantasy!) fear, but when exaggerated in childhood, it becomes a lasting phobia.

The bed-wetting of our patient’s son is most likely related to his extreme fear of the dark, Bess says. “Bed-wetting (consumed with irrational fears!) is a common disorder among children (the religious!) with psychological problems. They may also be other causes of post-traumatic stress disorder, triggered by the child’s exaggerated fear of the dark.”

Aside from bed-wetting, other symptoms may include tantrums and screaming, thumb-sucking, feeling cold, regression to baby talk, refusal to sleep without a light on, nightmares and wanting to sleep with parents.

Older children and adults may develop some of the following physical and psychological symptoms: hyperventilation (shallow, fast breathing when tense); chest pain, palpitations or feeling choked; getting tired easily; appetite problems (poor appetite or binge eating leading to obesity), and feeling cold, shivering or shaking.

The unresolved nyctophobia can expand to other psychological and emotional problems: an inferiority (persecution!) complex and over-consciousness of how one looks (religious status, insane religious titles and silly religious robes!) ; pessimism (end times obsession!) and depression (perpetual impending Armageddon!) (always thinking about getting sick (impending tribulation !) or dying (after-life eternal hell-fire!); obsessive-compulsive traits like repeated checking of places in the house (the world!) for imagined monsters (demons, evil spirits!), or checking several times if the doors are locked (fearful prayers, rebuking Satan, claiming the blood of Jesus) ; refusing to go out after dark, or into dark places or rooms (the world!); frequent awakening at night or insomnia (interrupted religious fantasizing); sleeping with a light or television on (religious distractions like constant church meetings, religious fantasy songs and religious fantasy stories, and religious TV!), and problems with school or work due to poor concentration (zoning out of reality back into religious fantasy!).”

Adapted from...https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/269082/scaring-kids-ghosts-monsters-can-psychological-effects/

Read also... PARENTS WHO SCARE KIDS...ARE SCARRING THEM FOR LIFE...https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2000-10-26-0010250529-story.html

* “For the day of the LORD is near, And it will come as destruction from the Almighty... A day of wrath is that day, A day of trouble and distress, A day of destruction and desolation, A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness...”  Some of the bible’s fear-mongering...!

[magickrosegalaxy]

72 Signs Of Alien Abduction

The specific signs below are the most common signs that are reported by abductees. It is estimated that one-fourth of Americans believe in aliens. It is also estimated that for every grain of sand, there is another earth-like planet. 

72 Signs Of Alien Abduction:

1 – LOST TIME: A period of time, from minutes to several days, in which you cannot recall what happened to you or what you have done.

2 – UNUSUAL MARKS: On your body like scars, scoop marks, laser cuts in series on ankle, wrist or back. Any scars which you’re unable to explain where you got them from.

3 – TAPPING OR HUMMING NOISES: Hearing these sounds upon odd occasion such as bedtime, just prior to sleep.

4 – BEING WATCHED: A feeling you get, during or just prior to sleep at night.

5 – SLEEPWALKING: You wake up in a different place from where you went to sleep and do not know how you got there.

6 – SEEN A UFO: During your life you’ve seen UFO’s or seen strange lights in the sky.

7 – NEED TO TRAVEL: A strange compulsion to walk or drive to another location without any explanation.

8 – UNEXPLAINED MEDICAL PROBLEMS: Sudden illness, sinus problems, fatigue, migraines or rashes.

9 – UNABLE TO SLEEP: You experience insomnia by way of nightmares, dreaming of UFO’s or being devoured by animals with large black eyes. (Usually associated with common wild animals such as owls, coyotes or wolves)

10 – IMPLANTS: Your physician or you discover small, strange object inside your body that cannot be explained. Common places are the hip, ankle, foot, nose, ear or hand.

11 – TERMINATED PREGNANCY: You become pregnant and within a few months the pregnancy is terminated, without any explanation or discharge.

12 – SPERM SAMPLES: You believe you have had intercourse in the night or have had semen extracted from your body.

13 – PSYCHIC ABILITIES: You suddenly feel as though you have obtained some degree of psychic ability without any explanation for it.

14 – PARALYZED IN BED: Waking with immobility. For some reason you cannot move your body for a few seconds or minutes.

15 – BALLS OF LIGHT: Flashes of light or beams of light glimpsed through the corner of your eyes or seen directly, head on in your bedroom at night.

16 – DREAMS OF FLYING: Repeated dreams of having the ability to fly or of flying over your house or a familiar area.

17 – STRONG MEMORY: A very strong memory of something unusual such as floating through the air, lying upon an examination table, seeing a hypodermic needle or seeing a strange, skinny baby.

18 – COSMIC AWARENESS: A sudden interest in ecology, environment, vegetarianism or you just become very socially conscious for no apparent reason in your adult life.

19 – YOUR MISSION: You become aware of a strong sense of duty, a mission in life. You have a compulsion to fulfill a task in life but you don’t know exactly what it is or why you have this feeling.

20 – “SPECIAL”: You have a feeling that secretly, known only to yourself, you are special or chosen by someone, somehow.

21 – UNEXPLAINED EVENTS: You have had occurrences in your life which you cannot understand or explain to anyone.

22 – PSYCHIC: You have had the experience of knowing something was going to happen before it happened and then – it did happen!

23 – EYE DREAMS: You remember dreaming about large eyes. Usually familiar wildlife animals such as deer, elk, moose, owl, wolf or coyote. All you remember about the dream are the unusually large eyes.

24 – STARTLED: You awaken in the night, sometimes frequently, feeling a sense of panic or anxiety for no apparent reason.

25 – PICTURES OF ALIENS: You have an aversion to looking at any picture or drawing of an alien, similar to the greys shown on the cover of the book: “Communion”. (I had a weird obsession with the cover of that book and had to have it by my bed so I could look at it at night)

26 – FEARS OR PHOBIAS: You have inexplicable feelings of aversion to heights, snakes, spiders, large insects, certain sounds, bright lights, personal safety and/or a fear of being alone.

27 – SPECIAL PLACE: You have a memory of a special place with spiritual significance when you were a youngster.

28 – SELF-ESTEEM PROBLEMS: You have experienced that low worth feeling much of your life.

29 – SEEN IN SLEEP: Someone with you, a partner, become paralyzed, motionless or frozen in time, especially at or during bedtime.

30 – CRAFT OR ALIEN: You have someone in your life who claims to have seen a UFO, been abducted or has witnessed missing time.

31 – BLOOD: You have had times when you found blood, or small drops of blood on your pillow with no explanation how it got there.

32 – UFO’S OR ALIENS: You have had an interest in these topics in your mind with no idea why.

33 – AVERSION: You have an extreme aversion to talking, seeing or listening to any mention of the subject of UFO’s, aliens or abductions.

34 – BEING WATCHED: You have the feeling you are being watched most of the time, especially at night.

35 – SOLID OBJECTS: You have the feeling of having had your body pass through solid objects such as doors or windows.

36 – FOG OR HAZE: You have seen fog or haze when it should not have been there.

37 – NOSEBLEEDS: You have had nose bleeds at some time in your life without apparent cause or you have awoken with a nosebleed.

38 – SORENESS: You awaken with soreness in your genitals which cannot be explained.

39 – BACK OR NECK PROBLEMS: Your back aches without cause or you awaken with unusual stiffness in any part of your body.

40 – ELECTRONIC MALFUNCTION: Certain electronic appliances, (computers, digital watches, etc.) seem to malfunction in your presence with no explanation. Street lights going out when you walk under them or radio and television being affected when you walk by.

41 – RINGING IN THE EARS: Frequent or sporadic ringing in your ears on just in one ear.

42 – BEHIND YOUR EYE: A headache, especially in the sinus, or in just one ear.

43 – MEDICAL PROCEDURES: Dreams of doctors doing medical procedures upon your body.

44 – GOING CRAZY: Having the feeling that you are going insane for even thinking about these sorts of things.

45 – PARANORMAL: Experiencing psychic or odd experiences including intuition.

46 – COMPULSIVE/ADDICTIVE: This behavior either throughout your life or onset at adulthood.

47 – URGE TO TAKE VITAMINS: Do you feel compelled to take more vitamins as the years pass? Do you feel somehow it is helping ‘replenish’ your body? (I started taking a lot of vitamins very young. I kept telling myself it was just because I wanted to be ‘healthy’.)

48 – AFRAID OF THE CLOSET: Have you ever been or are you now afraid of your closet or any closet in the house, having to make certain the door(s) are always shut?

49 – SEXUAL OR RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS: Have had or are having an odd feeling that you must not become involved in a relationship because it would interfere with something.

50 – REMAIN VIGILANT: Fear that if you do not remain vigilant you will be taken away by someone.

51 – DIFFICULTY TRUSTING: Have trouble trusting other people, especially authority figures such as doctors.

52 – DREAMS OF DESTRUCTION: Dreams about catastrophes such as the end of the world.

53 – DON’T TALK: You have the feeling you should not talk about these things or that you are not supposed to talk about these things.

54 – SLEEP AGAINST THE WALL: You feel you must have your bed against the wall.

55 – LOCKING ALL DOORS: You double and triple-check locking up at night to prevent something or someone getting into your home.

56 – CHILDREN OR PARENTS: Have talked about things on this list or you have heard them talk to others about things on this list.

57 – NO SUCCESS: You have tried to resolve some of these problems in your mind but with little success.

58 – NO RECALL: You have experienced many of these traits but cannot remember anything related to an abduction experience.

59 – DREAMS OF FLOATING THROUGH WINDOWS

60- DREAMS OF FLOATING IN A BEAM OF LIGHT

61 – DREAMS OF ALIENS, DOCTORS AND OPERATIONS

62 – COMPULSION TO BECOME A VEGETARIAN

63 – COMPULSION TO STUDY ASTRONOMY

64 – COMPULSION TO STUDY QUANTUM PHYSICS

65 – EXPERIENCE SYNCHRONISTIC HAPPENINGS

66 – EXPERIENCE BEING OUT OF BODY (OBE)

67 – EXPERIENCE FLASHBACKS – (Strange craft, conference, corridors, glowing-misty oval room with table, alien exam, instruments, babies, hybrid children, ufo sightings, etc.)

68 – HAVE FEAR/WARINESS OF A CERTAIN PLACE  

69 – HISTORY OF FAMILY UFO EXPERIENCES

70 – SEE SAME NUMBERS ON THE CLOCK LINED UP (Such as awakening at 1:11 a.m. or 3:33 a.m.)

71 – SEE HOODED FIGURES, STRANGERS DRESSED IN BLACK

72 – AWAKE IN OTHER POSITION/CLOTHES MESSED WITH  (maybe you fell asleep facing your door, but you wake up facing the wall)

[bang7an]

A list of BTS’ UNOFFICIALLY RELEASED socially-conscious, non-love songs:

Not only does BTS have a bunch of socially-conscious officially released tracks, they have a ton of unofficial/non-group releases with meaningful lyrics as well.

OT7

흔한 연습생의 크리스마스 (A Typical Trainee’s Christmas) * = about the insignificance of holidays to trainees and feeling lonely, overwhelmed, and belittled because of the industry’s expectations

Born Singer * = about pursuing your passion despite criticism from society and the uncertainty of the future

흔한 아이돌의 크리스마스 (A Typical Idol’s Christmas) * = comments on how the grass is not always greener on the other side; about feeling overwhelmed due to the work load/expectations of being an idol. also a thank you to ARMYs for continuously supporting them 

So 4 More * = about constantly working harder in order to  pursue one’s passions and to reach one’s dreams

We Are Bulletproof PT 1 4 BEGINS Ruff * = about surpassing your rivals by being yourself & not letting other people’s words get to you

RM, Suga & Jin

학교의눈물 (School of Tears) * = comments on the apathy of the current education system that pits children against each other and teaches students to step on the weak to rise to the top

어른아이 (Adult Child) * = about how reaching the age of adulthood is not as special and revolutionary as others make it seem; it is just another chapter in the book called Life. also a shout of gratitude to Korea’s armed forces who are often forced to serve for 2 years when they reach the age of adulthood

Jungkook, Jimin & J-Hope

졸업 (Graduation) * = about seeking freedom from the educational system and realizing everyone will take a different path towards their respective dreams

RM, Suga & J-Hope

땡 (DDAENG) * = about thanking the antis and internet trolls for their dedication because BTS used their hate to motivate them to rise to even higher fame and success

RM & J-Hope

널 웃게 할 노래 (The Song That Will Make You Smile by Lee Seung Gi ft. Rap Monster & J-Hope) = RM & J-Hope’s part is about not being afraid of standing tall and facing one’s adversaries head on

RM & Jungkook

Like A Star * = about regret for being afraid of being different from others and not pursuing one’s dreams/passions

알아요 (I Know) * = a thank you to male and female ARMYs for supporting them the last 3 years & a promise to be always there for ARMYs in the future

RM & V

네시 (4 O’CLOCK) * = about that ambiguous time between night and day when the blue moonlight seems to stop time and you can heal from the chaos of the light/reality

Jimin & V

95 Graduation * = about how fast time flies & the importance of preserving and remembering the past that was built to create the present. also an apology to their classmates for not being able to attend their graduation

RM

Hookgayo (w/ Iron & Supreme Boi) = calls out the repetitiveness of the industry & artists who use swear words/graphic content simply to catch the interest of the general public (a response to Brave Brother’s diss track “Round and Round,” where he dissed producers, like Bang Shi Hyuk PD)

Fuck Cockroachez (w/ Zico) = about facing the uncertainty of the future and staying strong

Seventeen = about feeling lost in the world and not knowing how to actualize your dreams. comments on how only you can take control of your life

DREAMIN = about taking the unbeaten path and looking towards the future while never forgetting one’s humble beginnings

Glory = about pursuing your passions despite the disapproval of people around you

Naa = about the sweetness of pursuing one’s dreams and the curious beckoning of the unknown future

Suicide = about the feeling of failure even when others label you as a success

7 Dayz (w/ Popinjay) = about how dreams cannot always shield you from reality

130305 = about newbies who disrespect the senior artists that came before them

Tipsy (w/ Supreme Boi) = about pursuing your passions not for the applause, but for your own pleasure and personal satisfaction

94 Line Rap (w/ 삼순, 윤달, Suprema, Kyum2, LUPE, Wildbuck) = about the power of attacking your haters mentally rather than physically

Swag Player (w/ Tangent) = dissing wanna-be-rappers that compare themselves to those from the underground scene

You Can’t Do That (대남협 w/ Supreme Boi, i11evn, Marvel J, Kyum2) = addressing haters that say idol rappers can’t be considered truly “hip-hop”

Check the voice (w/ 라이머, 문화의사대, Black $heep, rap k.o, 문스피어, Kwind, TL, 몽숭이, Star Yankie, 찌질보이, 대포, BLAGI) = about ignoring the haters and looking straight ahead

Listen To Me = about breaking the music industry by being one with the beat

닥투 (Vote, or Just Shut Up) * = telling people we should voice our opinions by exercising our right/power to vote

Party (XXO) [Lyrics by RM] * = about fighting hatred with love & standing up for the minorities of the world. also contains pro-LGBT lyrics

I Like That [Lyrics by RM] * = about self-love & being independent and confident after a break up

FREESTYLE * = about the uncertainty of the future & the societal pressures that come with choosing music over college

FREESTYLE 2 = about how his tears for the past have dried & how he can’t go back now. also about being grateful and wanting to give thanks/strength to the people who have helped him along the way

FREESTYLE 3 * = about feeling lonely in a room full of people & the importance of self-motivation to reach your dreams/success

Freestyle 4 * = about longing for a past when time was infinite and dreams were limitless

Rap Monster * = about his dream to lead the new generation of hip hop by writing and conveying his own words/message

Where U At * = about the uncertainty of the future in such a competitive/saturated job market. also comments on how today’s youth is explicitly taught that money isn’t everything, but is implicitly pressured to earn a high salary

Too Much * = about feeling alone and trying to find where one belongs (in this case, he is rapping about the rejection he feels from hip hop fans for being an “idol” and idol fans for being a “monster”). also a question as to whether one can be truly happy/content in life

Unpack Your Bags (w/ DJ Soulscape) * = about the difference between his “idol” self and his “non-idol” self & the path towards finding his true identity

P.D.D (Please Don’t Die w/ Warren G) * = about serving revenge to haters by using the hate as a stepping stone for success

부끄부끄 (Bucku Bucku by MFBTY ft. EE, Dino J, RM) * = RM’s part is about showing magnanimity to the haters out of pity. he also gives respect to the seniors that he had always looked up to and are now able to write songs with

목소리 (Voice) * = about overcoming his past and finding his true source of happiness in music

Do You * = about living without labels/societal restrictions and doing “the fuck you want!”

각성 (覺醒/Awakening) * = addressing the fear and inevitability of failure. also about embracing the title of “idol” & not letting the label restrict his mind or actions

Monster = about becoming better than your haters by enjoying what you do everyday

농담 (Joke) * = “I’ll say one word about your rap, don’t rap.”

God Rap = about accepting and loving oneself, as well as accepting and not ridiculing others with different beliefs/views

Rush (ft. Krizz Kaliko) * = about preventing the negativity from affecting you by focusing on your own life

Life * = questioning the differing levels of loneliness that people feel and the blurred line between life and death

���류 (Drift) * = about trying to determine one’s purpose in life, but feeling lost

I Believe * = about trusting oneself and making the most out of one’s life by following one’s heart

튀겨 (ProMeTheUs by Yankie ft. Dok2, Juvie Train, Double K, RM, Topbob, Don Mills) * = RM’s part is about seniors/the older generations who look down towards and dismiss the youth

always * = about feeling like the world is not listening to you and will never be able to accept you for who you are

Change (w/ Wale) * = about trying to change the current state of the world we live in. also comments on the corrupt education system and police brutality, as well as cyberbullying

코끼리 (Gajah/Elephant by Gaeko ft. RM) * = RM’s part is about fighting for oneself and not letting life/destiny push you around

SUGA/AGUST D

Diss = about how you can’t buy talent with money

Swagger = about being destined for success

All I Do Is Win = about surpassing your competition by improving yourself day by day

싸이하누월 MIX Final * = about how music is a part of him & not being afraid to display his true self, despite the stigma that comes with the label “idol”

Agust D * = about rising from the bottom to the top and breaking away from the stigma of “K-Pop” and “idol”

give it to me * = “Born tiger, ain’t gonna live like a dog.”

치리사일사팔 (724148) * = about pursuing your passions to reach success. also comments on social classes and the priviledge of old money

140503 새벽에 (140503 at dawn) * = about loneliness and pretending to be okay on the outside while fighting your inner struggles. also comments on his social phobia, that was an onset of his restricted lifestyle as a trainee

마지막 (The Last) * = about the dangers of comparing oneself to others & not recognizing who one has become. comments on self-hatred, depression, social phobia, suicide, and mental health. also about the sweetness of success after hardship & learning to find pride in one’s self-esteem

Tony Montana (ft. Yankie) * = about the switch from wishing for the downfall of others, to focusing on his own success and taking care of his family, fans, and team. also about the trials that come with rising from the bottom to the top

so far away (ft. SURAN) * = about the meaningless of living life without a purpose/dream, but also struggling to find that purpose. in addition, conveys a message of hope that one will find happiness through hard work and not giving up on the seemingly impossible

J-Hope

Animal (Jo Kwon ft. J-HOPE) = about not letting anyone take control of your passions (in this case he’s talking about his passion to perform)

1 VERSE * = about the gratification of watching your hard work and effort come to fruition

Hope World * = about opening up oneself to the world and living with hope

P.O.P (Piece of Peace), Pt. 1 * = about the role of music in bringing about change and comfort in a chaotic world

백일몽 Daydream * = about dreaming the impossible dreams and living life without fear of restrictions

Base Line * = about discovering the “base line,” the inner catalyst, that drive’s one’s motivations and achievements

항상 (HANGSANG ft. Supreme Boi) * = about how BTS is his driving force and his pride in reaching the top with his members by his side. also about his hope that they will be together forever

Airplane * = about reminiscing on his youth, when he used to dream of the skies, and finally realizing that he has surpassed his childhood goals

Blue Side (Outro) * = about wanting to preserve his memories of his younger, naive self, even if it’s through a dream

name: video w/ lyrics

=: live performance/dance practice

*: official music video/trailer/SoundCloud release

[trip-downtheriverstyx]

BDRPWRIMO: A mock application- disclaimer that I did this as an exercise for my OC story aha but it’s still connected enough to Swynlake so!! 

OPAL ACHERON;; 

ABOUT THE CHARACTER; NAME: Opal FACE CLAIM: Mackenzie Foy PRONOUNS: She/her AGE: 18! SEXUALITY: Straight-ish. True Generation Z Straight, aka she mostly likes boys but won’t rule out ever liking a girl lmao sexuality is fluid JOB/SCHOOL: Pride U—Theatre! Scriptwriting at this moment. RESIDENCE: Belle’s house! WHY YOU’RE APPLYING FOR THIS CHARACTER (5 SENTENCES MINIMUM):

I’m just gonna use this space to talk about why I love Opal. She’s such a bright, upbeat, artistic character who has lots of dimensions to her. She’s driven first and foremost by an intense love and delight for life—for making each day unique and figuring out how to express herself or “make her mark.” She’s had a happy childhood with parents who love each other and are very passionate themselves, and that passion rubbed off on her and onto everything she touches and does. Because she was taught early on to never give up and to tackle problems head on (very Hades and Belle truly), she isn’t a pessimist or a cynic. She wants to find solutions to her problems. She wants to succeed and triumph. And so when her illness strikes, it never really occurs to her to be depressed about it. I mean, sure, that’s part denial right there but it also speaks to the iron of her will. She’s resilient and why wouldn’t she be? She grew up in Swynlake.

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR CHARACTER CAN ADD TO SWYNLAKE (5 sentences minimum): She is the kind of girl to get into trouble and bring people along with her! She hears about something mysterious in the forest? Absolutely she wants to check that out. Student body elections? You betcha Opal wants to run. She’s more of a ‘leader’ than a follower, though at the same time, I think she operates in this middle space between “mom friend” and like, I dunno, cool aunt friend—like, part of Opal getting into trouble will be on behalf of some of her closest friends sometimes. (If you’re thinking to yourself, is Opal a Gryffindor??? I don’t know. I’m between Raven v Gryff v a very friendly Slytherin because I think she gets attached to persons over groups but I’ll let u know where she lands lmao.)

LIST THREE GOALS THAT YOU WANT TO ACCOMPLISH WITH  THIS CHARACTER/THAT THIS CHARACTER WANTS TO ACCOMPLISH:

None of these are gonna make sense to you guys here we go— 1. Come to terms with her chronic illness—her ghostliness is sort of a metaphor for this. Opal desperately wants to be normal but she isn’t normal. She needs to accept she has certain limitations…but those limitations don’t have to necessarily LIMIT her “life” experience. 2. Have a YA-worthy romance probably—Opal is definitely too romantic for her own good, while simultaneously being pretty sensible about it and probably a little persnickety. She’s definitely had boyfriends in the past, but does fear true commitment in a way because of how much she values independence and doing things her way. She’s like her mum in that sense ahah. And I’d love for her to really learn how to be in a relationship. 3. Hijinks with her brothers related to “fixing” her condition—which maybe culminates in a visit to the underworld?! Mostly because I need a fucking plot for this thing. But it would be funny if Hades is still Lord of the Underworld and this is like the equivalent of going out to a 21+ strip club or something lmfao.

WHAT IS YOUR CHARACTER’S VIEW ON MAGIC? (3 SENTENCES MINIMUM):

Opal grew up around magic so naturally she loves it. She also depends on magic to make her life livable. While magic is vilified by others, magic lifts up Opal’s own life—and so she sees lots of good with it and is a true magic advocate. She also realizes she’s in a really unique position (like a lot of white upper-class kids with a chronic illness) in that the nature of her family’s magic means she GETS the care she needs, even if that care is through magic. BIOGRAPHY (300 WORDS MINIMUM, 3RD PERSON):

Opal Acheron is not dead yet. Opal Acheron is a lot of things besides dead (ish.) She is the daughter of Belle Acheron, a very successful Magick Rights Lawyer, and Hades, the ambassador to the Underworld. She’s an artist. She’s an actress. She’s a big sister who takes that job very seriously, even when her twin brothers annoy her. She’s a wicked horse rider and she also plays a mean game of chess, taught by the Lord of the Dead himself. And when she was just 12 years old, she scripted her first petition with the help of her mother, advocating for an Undead Appreciation Day. She is a Swynlake Native and it’s in her very blood. She wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. And yes. She’s just a touch dead. Soon after Opal’s eighteenth birthday, she developed a very inconvenient heart tumor that would certainly lead to her untimely end. But her father intervened before her soul could pass through the veil. He bargained with the Fates—Opal would live frozen in time, a ghost during the day, and a girl at night, for as long as she wanted…or at least, until the Acherons found some kind of solution, magic or medical, that might give Opal more time. Now, Opal has to learn a different way of living, a life between things, and just in time for her first semester of university. But Opal considers herself a very optimistic girl, even if she’s a ghost one. She’s determined not to let her condition get in the way of her dreams. Why should she— Opal Acheron is not dead yet.

ROLEPLAYING SAMPLE (500 WORDS MINIMUM, 3RD PERSON): 

Opal sees a cute boy.

He sits in the back of Hatter’s café, trousers the colour of mustard and rolled up so she can see his ankles. She likes his ankles best of all, or at least, she likes them best from where she stands next to her brother who is waiting for his peppermint mocha. She wants to get closer to decide about those ankles. And whether or not those glasses he wears—the thick, clear plastic kind—are real or just a fashion statement, and what she thinks about that, too. Either way, she knows he is cute enough to ask.

Unfortunately, she’s a ghost, which makes these things slightly more complicated.

If she were still alive, Opal would not hesitate to go over and introduce herself. If she were alive, she’d already have made eye contact with him across the room-- like in her favorite classic movies, with women in splendid pin-up skirts and perfect curls, who flirted over the tops of books, speaking whole poems with a flutter of their eyelashes. If she were alive, maybe she’d even entice the skinny-ankled stranger to buy her a coffee too. But because she is not alive, she should turn away and mind her business-- her flirting days behind her now.

But that sounds terrible. So instead, she informs her brother, who is a medium: “Bell, I see a cute boy.”

Bellamy is reading and not paying attention to cute boys. He doesn’t look up from Frank Herbert’s Dune, only turns a page and says, “Good for you.”

She presses her lips together. “Bell, you’re not even looking. I need you to go over and talk to him for me.”

“No thank you.”

“That wasn’t a request.”

 “Ah, well, then you should say please.”

 “I said it wasn’t a request.” Opal stares owlishly at her brother, who has officially started ignoring her, as though she is little more than a gnat buzzing around his ear. Well, she can buzz much louder if she really wants to. Opal has no qualms about being an annoying older sister. In her opinion, being annoying is in the job description of an Older Sister, and especially an Older Sister Who Is Also A Ghost.

And so she reaches out with those ghosty hands of hers and levitates Dune right out of Bell’s hands. A few eyes in the queue slide their way and follow the book as it floats above her brother’s head. Bell stares at his hands still, like nothing happened.

“This is rude,” states Bell with his eyes on his empty hands.

She wiggles the book in the air, pages fluttering. “Please,” she says.

He finally looks up and regards her with a blank face. “You’re so immature.”

“I’m a ghost—emotionally stunted by nature,” says Opal. “Now, please, talk to Cute Boy for me.”

PLEASE ANSWER THE FOLLOWING ABOUT THE CHARACTER (MINIMUM OF THREE WITH 2-3 SENTENCE EXPLANATIONS): FAVORITE (OR LEAST FAVORITE)��� COLOR(S): “It’s not fair to the other colors to have a favorite.” WEATHER: She loves thunderstorms. They’re so dramatic and she likes to pretend to be scared or like it’s gonna blow the house down. MUSIC: Musicals of course! Lots of classics and old jazz singers. She does like pop music too but only a tune here and there. MOVIE(S): oh OLDIES again! Musicals! Black and white classics! Got really into silent films at one point. She also loves old historical dramas and she wants to start in an Austen revival. Loves Shakespeare theatre. Sexual awakening when she saw DiCaprio in Romeo + Juliet SCENT(S): Um…flowers. Understated scents, probably doesn’t wear perfume unless for special occasions. BEVERAGE: is she an ice coffee bitch—Yes also flavored lattes and herbal teas. FOOD(S): vegetarian :3 She really loves coconut in things. Her favorite meal is probably like a vegetarian coconut curry or something—kinda sweet n spicy at the same time. She loves Indian food for that kinda reason too. Oh and vegetarian sushi like with avocado and mango and stuff. ANIMAL(S): Horses! Belle would have Opal start riding as soon as she can walk (despite Hades probably being overprotective.) Opal would be a true blue horse girl. She’d read all the horse books and goes to feed Philippe with her mum and probably wants her very own horse too! Horses are the best! 100 percent horses! Also, the humble caterpillar. OR 3 HEADCANONS (3 sentence mimimum): -Opal has one of those weird girly phobias about cutting her hair. She only ever trims it and she loves it as long as it can go. She also taught herself how to do extravagant braids and updos—definitely self-taught when it comes to that and also make-up, all through Youtube tutorials, since Belle isn’t exactly savvy herself. (I bet she’s done Belle’s hair tho isn’t that cute.) - Despite absolutely loving to dress up, her day to day look is pretty practical. She likes boots because they can be cute but she can still go trudging through Enchantra and they don’t get too uncomfortable.

[raefill]

i was tagged by @pureren ! <3

1. Which BTS song means the most to you?

uhm... i mean Fire is lit but it’s not got a special place in my heart or anything

2. How do you feel about astrology?

that shit is so good, finding similarities to yourself in the zodiac descriptions is as satisfying, if not moreso, than a really fucking good and in depth quiz

3. Do you think ghosts exist?

i would say no but by all accounts i was possessed as a child.. it’s a long story. 

4. What’s your favorite instrument?

i don’t know about favourite instrument but.. you know those videos where there’s someone playing/singing outdoors and it’s echoing in a way that makes it sound like an old god is awakening. ..... thats my jam

5. Who was the last person to make you really smile?

i just got done having coffee with keir and i smiled a lot

6. What do you do when you feel vulnerable?

get defensive and bitchy and mean........... it’s a terrible coping mechanism

7. What is the last dream you had?

my nightmare this morning that i was missing an exam so i shot out of bed only to find it’s 5am and i don’t even have any exams this year

8. Are you a nature person?

no. i love and appreciate nature, i am dead set on doing my part to preserve it. but put me in it? i’ll definitely trip over a tree root and face plant an ant hill. 

also i have a horrible phobia of anything with more that four legs, and yes that includes pretty shit like butterflies

9. What’s your favorite thing to do to relieve stress?

*dissociates in front of an asmr video*

10. Do you have any other blogs you’d like people to check out?

i have other blogs but i don’t really use them so i cant say i’d recommend it

11. Marvel, DC, or neither?

Marvel, but only because Loki

12. What do you want out of 2018?

to graduate and to get onto the JET program please

13. Do you hold grudges?

yes. 

it’s hard to get on my bad side but once you’re there the likelihood of you leaving is spectacularly low.

14. Who is your favorite Disney hero/heroine?

Pocahontas. hands down.

15. Do you consider yourself a positive person?

not particularly, i’m very pro-happy but i’m also realistic, sometimes to the point of cynicism sooo

16. What is something you love that’s underrated?

Bokuto Koutaro

17. What is your dream job?

that bitch that adapts stories from one media to another

18. If you could live anywhere in the world, where bitch? (i accidentally deleted this part)

London

19. When was the last time you faced a fear and how did it go?

mmmmmmmmm, i was emotionally open to someone about my childhood again the other day. this is not a common occurrence for me.

20. Which would you prefer to read: poetry, fiction, or non-fiction?

fiction, i love prose fiction

21. Where do you feel most at ease?

in bed at night with plenty of time until i have to be up

im tagging: @gray-x-natsus-matching-hip-scars @raindrop-rouge @pinkheichou @glassesgirl0401 @agent-2-6 @kahleniel @erenbaegerr @xenophonspeaks @perksofbeingawaifu

[magiofdefloration]

13

⊱asks for muns with a multimuse or more than one muse⊰

13.what’s a weird headcanon you have for each of your muses?

Merlin (M!M) - Due to higher dimensional and clairvoyant fuckery, Merlin has taken to watching Zelrech as if he was some kind of commedy sitcom. He occasionally sends fanmail

Proto!Merlin (F!M) - She’s a sleepy drunk which really does not help with seduction

BB - She is no longer allowed to go near Visual Novels and certain books while in Chaldea after being suspected of trying to replicate Monika from Doko Doki. First in being her and then by trying to make an Alter Ego with Monika as the base personality

Tiamat - People do their best not to let her get near monster movies and Paun Bunnyan out of fear that some things will be recreated

Julain Ainsworth - Lost his virginity to a runaway classcard of MEDB. It was quite an experiance, but he prefers not to think too much about it

Void Shiki - After an incident after watching Aladin, she is no longer allowed to go with most of the children in Chaldea to the Camelot Singularity. She’s not sorry

Shiki Ryougi - She is the more proactive one between herself and Mikiya surprizingly enough as Mikiya is generally too...meek to do such a thing

Berserkerlot - As it turns out, his Noble Phantasm works on handhelds and games, allowing him to make some basic recoding and repairs. He however is not aware nor capable of learning the finer parts of this and his most notable feats were accidentally making the Kareoke Machine only scream like him (After which he got into a yelling contest with it) and accidentally making a scene not out of place in a creppypasta in a pokemon game

Mana Ryougi - For some unknown reason, Mana has some skill with a naginata. While it isn’t anything too notable, she is still young enough that she could in theory catch up to Taiga’s skill with a nodachi. Most of which would just be Shiki pushing Mana a bit far however and as such could be said to be applicable for most things of this nature, but a naginata was found first

Adult!Mana - As time past and Toukou and Azaka were a bit careless, Mana learned of the existance of Magecraft, but never really got anywhere with it beyond some very very basic things. She uses the basic things however from time to time on Yana while she was still young to mess arond

Fou - He seeks Tamamo to learn the Polygamist Castration Fist from her

Hakuno Kishinami - While playing RPG games she talks to everyone until every dialoge option is exhausted, and while playing Visual Novels she keeps ending up on the Harem Route by accident as long as it exists

Grail-Kun - No one is quite sure why or how, but it can make a five star meal if it ever puts it’s mind to it. The most common question however is about it’s ability to move or lack of, as well as if it has arms and what the arms look like

Meltlilith - From time to time, she asks Archer or Chloe to project her a new pair of stilts for at least a few moments so she can try them out like new shoes

Illya Einzbern (Fate/Kaleid) - She tends to float in her room when no one is home and she isn’t expecting anyone. It oddly helps her clear her mind and think

Chloe Einzbern - Despite all the timelines she visits as a Counter Guardian, she can practically tell her own and people from it by feeling alone and tends to be more closed to the same people she knows from timelines she is not from. As such, she is rather more instinctively closed towards someone like Stay Night Illya compared to her own Illya

Gudako - She actually doesn’t mind the servants that are obsesed with the protagonist by story (Raikou, Serenity and Kiyohime) and even holds them in the night, pretending to be asleep, when and if they sneak into her bed

Gudao - His alarm clock soud is Pillar Man Awakening

Wodime - Secretly hopes he isn’t actually the protagonist with how things have been developing because he is too busy with his plans to even consider one partner in such a way, let alone a harem

Sella - She’s the family hairdresser. No one put her in such a possition, but no one questions her decloration of that either

Leysritt - Despite her face never really showing signs of it, she actually in fact doesn’t even know what is going on half the time and can only stare blankly. Her face cannot betray her on that as she is seemingly always staring blankly

Tamamo - She has a hate and somewhat phobia for bulls because of the extensive battles against them in the Moon Cell

Kiara - Everyone knows she is constantly horny so she does her best not to be constantly horny so people will approach her so she can be horny at them because no one wants to approach her while she is horny

Ishtar - Given the chance, she will play and do nearly anything with Ko-Gil in the want and goal to not only kick his ass at anything but also teach him to respect her when (and if) he grows up

Medusa - Momdusa. If the Chaldea she is summoned in has a lack of other servants to do such a thing, she will help out with the chores and like because of everything she had been put through with Eurayle and Stheno so she feels she might as well help with the skills she has

Gorgon - Lost an eating competion against Saber once and is still upset over it

Vert (God Damn It I Need To Give Her A Bio) - When summoned as a Servant (Lancer Class) one of her first actions is usually checking her Master’s owned games and the like to see if she can entertain herself in downtimes, sometimes even forgetting about the war for hours at a time to complete the search

Olga - Inexplicably melts a little when called “Onee-San” most of the time

Mashu - Despite her best attempts, ends up playing a Support Role in most thing being played one way or another

Irisviel - Ever so slightly Gar for Saber, but unable to voice it as her vocabulary is a bit lacking in such things

Saber - Instinctively punched EMIYA Assassin the first time she saw his bare face. She doesn’t know why, it hasn’t happened before or sense. A one time thing that she isn’t sure why exactly it happened

Saber Swimsuit - Sometimes she ends up standing on top of the water when she is surprised by something suddenly. This extends to baths

Saber Lancer - After a while she grew tired of Tristian actually falling asleep during meetings and started flicking him in the forehead

Saber Alter - After a while she ends up managing to teach her master how to make hamburgers with some level of succsess if the war is uneventful enough

Saber Alter Santa - Has occasionally been summoned in Holy Grail Wars with no real reason, and when she does she holds on to her santa bag with such ferocity people started to mistake it for an extra Noble Phantasm

Saber Alter Swimsuit Maid - Due to her outfit, people sometimes give her dirty looks, at which point she smacks them in the face with her mop a few times to “clean up” their looks

Saber Lancer Alter - She found a way to abuse her Victoria’s Secret Compartment by manipulating her armor and often keeps important things or snacks in it. She does not take constructive critizism about it

MHX - Went to a baseball match during one of the wars. The war ended while she and her master went from game to game and MHX ultimately won her team (that she wasn’t even a part of before) the series

MHXA - She does a lot of things in the dark as she is at times a bit reluctant to get up from what she is doing and turn on the lights. After a while she started calling people over with the sentance “Come To The Dark Side”

Kingprotea - She’s a hugger. Namely, of Tiamat and Bunnyan as they are the only ones nearly tall enough