#he was fast but her lightning powers to make her SUPER fast so she looked badass

[shslpunkartist99]

Been struggling a bit

Not with anything serious, but like

I had a dream a few days ago, where part of it was about this chick who used hypnosis to get her way/have people like her. She also did it to make her friend (boyfriend? Brother? I don't remember) get away with stuff, but she warned them that she can't always cover for them

Anyway I wanna draw her bad but I don't have the time/energy

[cressidagrey]

Looked to the Sky - Chapter 5

Summary: 

Eira Archeron was neither a Valkyrie, nor a Seer, nor the High Lady of the Night Court. She was, however, Azriel‘s mate with her own mysterious, untrained powers.

Also known as: Azriel tries to court his mate the human way.

Warnings: 

THIS IS THE LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE SEQUEL! SO READ THAT FIRST IF YOU WANNA READ THIS ONE OTHERWISE THIS MAKES NO SENSE!

Elain Bashing, Amren bashing, KITTENS!, Accidental Forest Burning?, Non graphic murder, Azriel is an idiot, Azriel's Mom is not having his idiocy and spends 3/4 of this chapter berating him (while being kinda a little bit unfair) and without @k-godling this would have never happened.

(super pretty dividers by @tsunami-of-tears)

Master.

Later! Azriel cut his shadows off sharply. He was somewhat busy right now.

It was harsh enough that the shadows actually shut up for once, which was startling in itself. But for the moment he didn’t think about it. Too busy with killing the leader of that Illyrian warband that had been destroying townships and temples left and right.  

It was a clean kill, fast and accurate, and Azriel didn’t blink as he watched the male’s body drop at his feet.

The adrenaline was coursing through his veins, as he slowly took in a deep shaky breath, his hands clenching around the knife handle.

Then he turned to the cleanup. The other warband members were still in the camp where they had made a temporary base. Quick, clean and efficient. That’s how they were taught to operate. It’s why Azriel was so damn good at these types of missions. 

At least two hours later, it was suddenly Rhys that was yanking at their mental connection, mental claws striking against his shields. 

Azriel swore as he felt Rhys’s talons strike against his mental shields. What’s wrong? he demanded immediately. Something must have been wrong, otherwise Rhys would have been more careful with his abilities. 

Amren cornered Eira, and Rhys spat out in answer. 

WHAT?! he demanded in answer. His shadows immediately started writhing agitatedly behind him, as panic and alarm shot through his veins.

Amren had done that? Even after Rhys had warned her off? 

Azriel should have fucking seen it coming. When Amren didn’t agree with her methods…she had her own. 

How bad? Azriel asked tonelessly. How had Eira reacted? What had Amren said?

The mental silence stretched for a moment before he felt Rhys’s presence return, the High Lord’s voice now filled with fury. As we have no idea where Eira is right now...bad. She must have winnowed in her panic to get away from Amren.

Fuck. 

Azriel was up on his feet in an instant, even as he felt his shadows swirl agitatedly around him. That…he needed to find her. He needed….

He could just imagine what Amren must have told Eira…Amren who had never learned how to soften her word and who he didn’t trust as far as he could throw her. A sinking feeling was already beginning to form in Azriel’s stomach.

Eira could have winnowed anywhere in Prythian. She could be in enemy territory right this second. He didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if Autumn Court got their hands on her, if…

She must be utterly terrified. And the thought of Eira…scared….

Panic and worry flared through his veins, as his shadows writhed even more furiously behind him. He needed to find her, find her and make sure she was safe, safe and sound and away from anything that might make her feel scared. He would not let anything hurt her. Not now, not now when he had just gotten her. 

She's in Illyria, his shadows snapped. Which we would have told you if you didn't tell us to shut up, Master!

Godsdamnit.

Azriel cursed, running a hand through his dark hair. Of course, she was in Illyria. Of all the places…Illyria. 

Azriel? Rhys questioned.

The shadows know where she is, he responded sharply. I get her.

Good. There was now a sharpness to Rhys’s voice, even through the mental link. Azriel could almost hear the order that remained unsaid. Get her and bring her home. 

And Azriel? Whatever you need to do to make sure she’s safe, Rhys said sharply. 

She will be. There was a silent promise in his voice. Azriel would ensure it. He would not let anything or anyone hurt her.

Do not let Amren anywhere near me, Azriel said evenly, his voice promising cold death. If they did, he was going to rip her apart from limb to limb. 

Agreed. We will take care of it. Rhys’s voice was as cold as Azriel’s, and the Illyrian could practically feel the anger radiating through the mental connection.

And then he let the shadows take him, let him take him wherever his mate was…

They threw him right through the wards that protected Rosehall. 

Somehow that was the most shocking thing of it all. 

The wind in lower Illyria was cold, the trees silent and still in the darkness. She hit a few trees with lightning, his shadows supplied quietly. Scorched them. No fire though.

That was not what he had wanted to hear. No fire, that was a small comfort. But the lightning? The fact that she had used her magic? It did not bode well. 

We led her to your mother. She took care of her, his shadows assured him quietly. 

That was a small comfort, but a comfort nevertheless. His mother was good at soothing, and that seemed to be exactly what his mate had needed. Especially after the panic that she must have been in. The fact that it had been triggered by Amren was an entirely different issue. Azriel would deal with that later.

Eira first. Eira was his first priority. 

The entire Hamlet seemed to be sleeping, the only sounds coming from the surrounding forest. Azriel crept in as quietly as he could, trying not to rouse the villagers. He made his way to his mother’s home, his shadows still writhing restlessly around him as they searched for Eira.

He didn’t bother to knock. Azriel just went up to the door and quietly pushed it open.

"Azriel." He froze. His mother was sitting in the living room, knitting. She fixed him with a look out of hazel eyes, and for just a moment he felt about 5 years old again. She looked towards the couch with a pointed look and he followed it.

There she was. Eira. Curled up on the couch underneath a thick woollen blanket, asleep. 

He could nearly taste the relief. 

"Don't wake her," his mother said, her voice quiet and fierce. "We'll talk in the kitchen."

Azriel nodded silently, his eyes still on the female lying on the couch.

She looked tired, exhausted. The paleness of her skin was nearly translucent in the dim lighting, making her look like porcelain. She had curled up on the couch, a woollen blanket thrown over her, hiding most of her body. And she looked so damn small. So breakable. 

It took all of his willpower not to rush to his mate, to pull her into his arms and comfort her.

Azriel had to forcibly pull his gaze away from her. Instead, he turned his eyes to his mother and the pointed, steely look she sent his way. He nodded stiffly, before making his way silently into the kitchen. 

Azriel was met with a sharp frown from her, as he walked into the kitchen.

His shadows were still writhing agitatedly behind him, while Esmeray’s dark eyes studied him in silence.

If only he could figure out what that look meant. Her eyes scanned his form, as if silently checking if he were hurt, before she let out a small sigh and gestured for him to sit.

"Is there a particular reason why you didn't tell me that you found your mate?" his mother asked him, crossing her arms.

Azriel’s eyes instantly flicked back to the open door to the living room, making sure Eira was still asleep, before he returned his eyes to his mother, meeting her intense gaze with his own.

He had to hold back a flinch. She was angry. 

“Because it just happened,” Azriel finally said, his voice as calm and flat as he could manage.

"It happened two weeks ago, according to your mate," his mother said drily. "Your mate, who I didn't know was your actual mate, and who some of my first words to were how sad it was that her twin sister wasn't mated to you!" she hissed.

Azriel winced at her words, silently cursing himself.

He really should have written his mother another letter. Or even gone to visit her. But he had been so busy with trying to wrap his own head around it that he had just…not thought about it. 

And he had also been quite sure that his mother would have thoughts about him being mated to the twin sister of the female he had waxed poetically to her about. 

How was he supposed to respond? Should he apologize for not telling her? For the fact that she had to find out from Eira? But judging by the sharp glare from his mother, any argument he made would be useless. Instead, he slumped into his chair.

“I am sorry,” he said quietly. “I…I didn’t know how to tell you.”

Esmeray’s eyes narrowed, studying her son with a look that told him she was not happy with that answer.

“I would have thought that something as important as you having found your mate would be one of the first things to come out of your mouth,” she said coldly. “Instead, I find out two weeks later, and not from you.”

He grimaced. 

"I find out from your mate after she stumbles into my living room, looking like she just came from Hel and back! After she accidentally winnowed! And killed some trees with lightning of all things! And then, THEN she cries all over my kitchen table because she has been in love with my SON  she even became fae, while she was still human but he preferred her twin sister over her. Her twin sister who is apparently a Seer has been manipulating her visions from becoming true. And then the mating bond snapped for you and instead of begging your mate on your knees for forgiveness, all she brings out is that you want to TRY!" Every word his mother said was like a sharp blow to the stomach. Azriel just stared at her, his eyes wide, as he took in the information.

His mind was spinning, as he silently took in her words and the implications of them. Eira…Eira had been in love with him before she was even Fae?

“She was…she said that she was in love with me?” he brought out in a whisper. 

"That's what you concentrate on?" his mother snapped.

Azriel snapped his mouth shut, flinching at the note of cold anger in her voice.

“No…no it’s not,” he said quickly, his hands clenching around the fabric of his pants. “It’s just-“

He didn’t know what to say. His mind was still spinning, trying to take in the fact Eira had been in love with him before the Cauldron…before…

"It's just?" his mother asked him, her voice icy.

Azriel floundered his thoughts and emotions in a spin.

“I…I just…” he swallowed nervously, his mind grasping desperately for the right words to say. “I didn’t know she…”

How was he supposed to say that he had somehow preferred Elain over Eira? That he hadn’t even seen the fact that his mate was in love with him before she became Fae?

His shadows writhed agitatedly behind him, their agitation only increasing at his distress. Esmeray, who was sitting across from him, was also watching him like a hawk. The intense look in her eyes made it clear how very close he was treading to her wrath.

“You didn’t notice?” she repeated, her eyebrows raising as she spoke. “That your own mate loved you? Are you blind?” she spat out. Azriel flinched, his hands clenching into tight fists.

“I didn’t…I never saw…”

He had really been that blind, hadn’t he? All this time he had never noticed. Not once. He had been so focused on Elain, blind to the fact Eira had been right there all along.

"That girl...that girl adores you," his mother hissed quietly. "Your shadows dote on her and she lets them touch her without even flinching once, Azriel. You can consider yourself lucky that she is even willing to give you the time of the day anymore. She had every right to ignore you for preferring her twin sister of her!"

Azriel winced again, as a silent pang of guilt shot through his heart.

He knew she was right, damn it. He knew he had absolutely no right to ask her to even give him the time of day, not after he so easily had chosen Elain over her.

“I don’t deserve her,” he whispered, his voice quiet.

"No, you don't. Not with how you have been behaving," his mother shot back. "Do you even like her or are you only courting her because she's your mate?"

Azriel flinched hard at her words.

It was like a blow to the stomach, and a dagger to the heart. Gods. Did his own mother think he was so….so callous, so heartless that he was only with Eira because she was his mate?

"I do," he said quickly, the words practically tumbling out. "I do like her."

He was terrified by the fact that his own mother even thought he would be so cruel as to be with someone he didn't care about, just because of the bond.

"Gods, I do like her, mother," Azriel repeated again, his voice firmer this time. "I…..I know I have not been treating her the way I should, and I...I know I don't deserve her. But I like her, mother. I like her and I want to be with her."

Esmeray studied her son, her eyes cold, before she let out a loud sigh and sat back in her seat.

“Good,” she said quietly, her eyes still fixated on him. “Then, what are you going to do about it? Because she deserves better, Azriel. She deserves everything, which is far more than you have given her so far.”

His mother's eyes roamed over his face, studying him like a hawk. Azriel could practically feel the weight of her gaze on his skin.

Finally, after a moment of quiet tension, Esmeray's lips flattened into a thin line, making it clear she was still displeased.  "Have you told the poor girl that you actually want to be with her? That you don't just want to be with her because of the fact that she is your mate or because of whatever vision that sister of her was trying to keep from becoming true?!”

Azriel’s heart sank, the weight of her words pressing down on him.

No, he thought, his heart twisting at the thought. Gods, he had…..he had done nothing, absolutely nothing to convince her of the fact that he actually liked her.

He looked up at his mother, his eyes weary. "No," he said quietly, "I haven’t. When the mating bond snapped...she got hurt a day later...an attempt on the life of Rhys' son...she...she threw herself into a dagger so that Nyx wouldn't be hurt," Azriel recounted, the words sticking in his throat. "Rhys tried to take the pain from her...he accidentally got thrown into her memories. And we all..realised that we had been treating Eira abhorrently," Azriel said quietly. "And then we realised what Elain had been doing, what Elain had been keeping from us."

But the knowledge that Elain had attempted to sabotage her own sister's fate, that she had been manipulating Eira's visions...Azriel went silent, his throat tightening.

"...She...It was a vision she had...of Eira and me and...and of our children," he choked out.

His children with Eira. A future that could have been, if things had been different.

His light-haired, winged little girl, ran about and dug in the dirt. 

How he wanted that. How he wanted to see them, see Eira and their little ones, surrounded by their family and friends… 

Esmeray's eyes were wide, watching her son as realization dawned in her eyes. Azriel could feel her studying him as if trying to gauge his reaction.

He just stared down at the table, his eyes fixed on the smooth surface, the images of Eira and their children of his own flashing before his eyes.

Children. There would be children.

He would have a family with Eira.

And that Elain had tried to take that from them…it made him so utterly furious. 

"When Eira was awake...I went to her and I apologised. I told her that Elain may was the pretty one but she was the kind one and that I knew that she would protect our children fiercely," Azriel said quietly. His hands clenched around the edge of the table, as he forced himself to continue. "And...and then I asked if she would let me court her. The human way, to show her that I meant it."

"You told your mate, hours of off being stabbed, that her twin sister was the pretty one?" his mother hissed.

Azriel winced again, his head hanging down.

He was going to be the biggest fool in Prythian, he was sure.

Gods, even saying it now, it sounded like the stupidest thing he could have said. Of course, it had been the wrong thing to say. Why in the world had he told his mate, who had just risked her life, that her sister was the pretty one?

His mother’s voice was cold. “Why in the name of the Mother did you think that was the right thing to say to your mate? That her twin sister, the one who has been manipulating her own vision, tried to keep your children from you, is the prettyone?"

Azriel flinched at the icy words.

He knew his words had been the wrong ones. He knew that he had said the worst thing he could have said at that moment. But in that moment, all he could think of was that he had always been so blinded by Elain. Blinded by her beauty. Blinded by a pretty face and a veneer and had never seen what lay behind it…

And then there was Eira. Just as beautiful but in a different way. Elain was immediately…blinding. Eira…she snuck up on him. Eira was beautiful but quiet. A quiet sort of realisation, like the moon rising at night, until everything was bathed in her light. 

And still…Still, he had said those words out loud. To his mate. 

"I am shocked that she even agreed to let you court her after that," his mother said with a snort. "She ought to have hit you atop the head and told you to come back to her when you were willing to actually compliment her. Besides, that's the bestyou could come up with, son?! Her twin is pretty but your mate is kind and would protect your children fiercely? Of all the characteristics, all the abilities she has, that's what you land on?!" 

Azriel winced again, clenching his jaw so hard it hurt, as his mother's words rang out in the small room. She was right. Of all the things he could’ve chosen to say, all the things that he could have pointed out, he had gone with that?

Azriel slumped down in his chair. Gods, what had he been thinking?

Esmeray watched her son for another moment, her eyes roaming over his defeated form before she let out a quiet huff. “You really are a fool, aren’t you, my son?" she said, her voice softer than before. "A total and utter fool."

Azriel closed his eyes, hanging his head down.

“Yes,” he said quietly. “I am a total fool who does not deserve my mate and probably won’t until I have grovelled enough and apologized a hundred times.”

His mother let out a low hum, her eyes still fixed on him. “You certainly do not," she said darkly. “But if the girl is willing to give you a chance, even after you have acted like an imbecile of a male…you best make sure you try your hardest. And start grovelling now.”

"I am sorry, " he apologised.

His mother snorted. "You don't owe me an apology. Unless you count it for not writing to me and telling me what exactly is going on in your life," His mother said drily. "I am not angry, just disappointed."

Azriel’s stomach churned at my mother’s words.

That was even worse. Azriel flinched, looking up and meeting her icy gaze.

“I’m sorry,” he repeated again, quieter this time. “I am sorry that I have disappointed you, mother. I am sorry that I have not written.”

His mother’s eyes softened slightly at his words. “You’re my son. And I love you and am proud of you and what you have become. But I won’t have you acting like a total fool, not when that poor girl has had such a terrible life,” she said, her voice gentler than before. “You will not hurt her. You will prove to her that you want her for her, and not only because she is your mate. Is that clear?”

Azriel nodded, his throat tight.

“It’s clear,” he said quietly.

The shame and guilt twisted in his stomach, but he forced it down. He had been an idiot. A fool and an idiot, in denying not only what his heart truly desired, but also in the way he had acted towards Eira.

He wanted- Gods, he wanted her. And he wanted to prove it. Wanted to be a better male and a better mate. Wanted to earn her trust, her affection, her love.

His mother watched him for a moment, seeming to search his face, before she nodded, satisfied.

“Good. You better not keep me in the dark about your life, my son. And you better treat that girl properly from now on,” she said, her voice still stern before the soft, gentle look returned to her eyes. “And I want to see her. You bring her to dinner with you the next time you come, and I will judge for myself that you are treating her properly.”

The corners of Azriel’s mouth twitched, almost in a smile. “I will,” he promised, a little easier now. “I will bring her the next time I come.”

And he would bring her. He would bring her and his mother would see that he was trying to court Eira properly. He would prove to his mother, to his friends and even to Eira herself, that he didn’t want to be with her just because of the bond. That he wanted her. Wanted her for her.

"Now, what exactly does a human courtship even entail?" his mother asked him. “I imagine it’s not like the Illyrian way. 

No, it really wasn’t. The Illyrian way was bloody, and violent and involved more than one display of strength. 

Maybe that would have been easier for him, Azriel thought weakly. He would gladly go hunt a hundred rabbits and have the fur fashioned into a cloak…Somehow that was easier than the Human way. 

“Well…it’s traditionally the male who does the majority of the courting,” he said after a moment of pause. “He…ah…he spends time with the female, takes her out on dates to different places to get to know her, brings her gifts… that sort of thing.”

His mother’s eyes were fixed on him, studying him like a hawk. "How many times have you done that?" she asked, her voice dry. "Spent time with her, taken her out to the human way of dates, brought her gifts?"

"For the very first gift, I gave her a harp," Azriel said softly. "We had lunch together once or twice. Then I brought her flowers when we went to the symphony."

“A harp and some lunch and flowers,” his mother repeated quietly. “That’s it? That’s all you’ve done so far, to woo your mate?”

Azriel felt his face flush again, under her disapproving gaze.

“…yes,” he admitted, his head dropping down slightly.

"It's a start, I suppose," his mother said drily. “A very poor one,” she muttered under her breath.

Azriel’s cheeks flushed once again in shame, at yet another jab from his mother.

"How did you come up with a harp of all things in the first place?" his mother asked him.

"Nesta told me she used to play. Then her family fell on hard times and they had to sell it," Azriel explained.

"And you bought her a replacement harp," his mother said, a slight note of incredulity in her voice. "You didn't think that might, I don't know, bring bad memories to the surface? Remind her of the poverty she had to endure?"

He opened his mouth to respond and then froze. No. No, he hadn't even thought about that. Not once.

"She liked it," he said, slightly defensive. She had liked it...right? She had kissed his cheek, she had thanked him, she had told him that that was the most thoughtful gift anybody had ever given her.

His mother let out a small, disapproving huff.

“Of course she liked it,” she muttered. “Any gift from you she would have liked!”

At his mother’s words, Azriel’s heart sank.

Of course, Eira had liked the harp. He had given it to her, after all. He was her mate. And she was kind, to the point that she probably would have thought whatever he gave her was the greatest gift in the world.

He was being a fool again. He had given her a gift that had brought up terrible memories of her past, without ever thinking of the consequences.

“And how did you even have a lunch with her?” his mother asked, shaking him out of his thoughts. “Did you...did you go into the city to dine with her at some restaurant?”

His cheeks flamed again, his head dropping lower at his mother’s questions.

“No,” he muttered. “We had lunch at the River House with everybody else.”

He could feel his mother’s disapproval without her even saying anything. He didn't even need to look at her face to know the disappointment that would be on it at his answer.

“You ate lunch with her in front of the entire Inner Circle,” his mother stated, her words blunt. “And you thought that counted as a date?”

Her question made Azriel wince, because when she said it out loud like that...it sounded so obvious. "We did go to the symphony with Cassian and Nesta," he defended himself.

His mother let out a sceptical huff.

“Because there is nothing more romantic than sitting around in silence for 3 hours!” his mother snapped. “Have you ever had a proper conversation with her, Azriel?! What are her hobbies?" his mother asked with a sigh. "Can you even tell me that?"

"She's a seamstress, like you," he answered quietly. "She takes commissions from the alterations tailor in Velaris to make some money, and she makes dresses for her sisters. She also likes to bake and cook and she gardens for vegetables.”

"Are that her actual hobbies, or just the chores she prefers to do?" his mother asked him drily. Azriel winced at his mother's words, because...gods, were those Eira's actual hobbies, or just the chores she preferred to do?

His mind reeled at the thought. He knew she took commissions, and he knew she cooked and gardened, but was that what she preferred to do? Or was it simply just chores? Chores that he had never thought to ask to learn if those were what she truly enjoyed?

Was it just what she had done at the cottage? And then continued in the Night Court for lack of other options? 

That—gods, that possibility chilled Azriel to the bone and made him feel so ashamed. Had he never even bothered to ask her what she liked to do, aside from what she had done to help her family?

His mother let out another small huff, reading his expression. "You never asked her, did you? You never even bothered to ask if those were her hobbies, or if those were just things she had done out of necessity?”

"She embroiders the things she makes. That's not out of necessity, right?" he asked weakly.

His mother studied his face for a moment, her expression stern as though she was seeing right through him before she finally sighed.

“No, I suppose not,” she conceded after a little while. “And do you know what her favourite colour is?”

Azriel froze at his mother’s unexpected question.

Her...her favourite colour?  He was stunned into silence, the realization that he didn’t even know as simple a thing as Eira’s favourite colour suddenly hitting him like a punch to the gut. 

“You don’t know her favourite colour, do you?” his mother said, her voice flat. It was more of a statement than a question.

Azriel winced, his silence an answer.

Gods, what kind of mate was he? He hadn’t even bothered to ask any simple questions, like what her hobbies were, or what her favourite colour was. Even something as basic as what her favourite food was, or her favourite time of day, or her favourite place in all of Velaris…he had never bothered to ask her any of those simple, basic questions. He had only assumed. 

"You don’t know your own mate’s favourite colour. You don't know what her actual hobbies are. You just know what she did to help her family when she was human. And you took her to the symphony without asking her if she even liked that sort of thing, without even asking her when you are supposed to talk to her and spend time with her and get to know her,” his mother said, her words biting. “Are you even trying to court her?"

The words struck Azriel like a dagger to the heart.

He had truly botched the entire thing, hadn’t he? He had botched every single part of courting her. He hadn’t asked her any questions at all. Not her favourite colour, or her favourite food, or her favourite time of day, or her favourite damn colour. He had taken her to the symphony, to a place she might not even have even liked, had assumed that she would just be fine and would still like it, and he hadn’t even thought of asking if there was anywhere better to take her.

“That was the most pathetic attempt at trying to woo your mate,” his mother said in a low grumble. “That wasn’t attempting to court her. That was you assuming what she might like, rather than asking her what she would actually be interested in doing. And you never even bothered to ask her if she actually enjoyed the times you spent together!”

Azriel closed his eyes as the words stung.

That...that was all true, wasn’t it? He had never thought to ask her a thing. He had just assumed, assumed, assumed, without ever making the attempt to check with her to see if she enjoyed herself or not.

He was an idiot. A stupid, careless, thoughtless idiot.

"You'll do better," his mother demanded.

Azriel nodded, his head hanging down.

He would. He had to. Or he wouldn’t be worthy of being her mate.

He was going to ask her everything about herself. Everything he didn’t even know. He would ask her what her hobbies were, and what her favourite colour was, and what her favourite food was…

He would ask, and he would get to know Eira. 

Azriel. Feyre's mental touch and he let her in without a second thought. How is my sister?

Azriel's eyes closed as he felt Feyre’s presence in his mind, and he almost winced at her words.

She...is well enough. She is resting right now.

The silence that followed the mental communication stretched for only a moment, but to Azriel, it felt like an eternity of waiting, as Feyre pondered his words.

Amren...Amren said...some things to her... Feyre’s words came again, her voice laced with anxious worry even in his mind.

Azriel’s jaw clenched.

Damn it. Of course, Amren had said something to Eira. And of course whatever Amren had said...whatever things she had said…had hurt Eira.

Where did you find her?

My mother's house. The shadows brought here there

She’s at your mother’s house...? Feyre’s question came after a moment, her tone even more surprised and bewildered than it had been before.

We are coming, Rhys said softly into his mind.

His mother stared at him for a moment. "Rhys and Feyre are on their way," Azriel said quietly.

Azriel intercepted them at the door, keeping his voice quiet. Feyre was looking extremely anxious and Rhys’ face was taut with worry.

“Thank the Mother you’ve found her,” Feyre said first, rushing over to him, her eyes already darting around, looking for any sight of Eira.

They found her, still unmoving on the couch. Deep asleep.

Azriel could see both Rhys’s and Feyre’s shoulders visibly relax when they saw that Eira was asleep. But Azriel could tell from his high lord and lady’s eyes that they were both still worried.

“Is she…?” Feyre asked quietly, looking up at him with a worried frown. “Is she alright?”

Azriel stared down at Eira’s sleeping form, his chest aching at the sight.

"She's magically exhausted," his mother said calmly. "Rhysand."

The sound of his mother’s voice drew Rhys’s attention, and the High Lord raised his eyes to glance at her, a small smile on his face

"Esmeray," he responded, leaning down to hug her.

Azriel watched silently as his mother and the High Lord embraced each other, while Feyre continued to look between the two of them and Eira.

"You came quickly," his mother said to Rhys, pulling away from his embrace to look him in the eye.

"Of course," Rhys said quietly. "You wouldn’t be telling us our sister is here and expect us to take our time getting here, would you?"

“You know very well that I wouldn’t,” his mother said, her tone dry. “Now come. And don’t you two look at her like that. She is not harmed, nor wounded. She’s simply exhausted.”

"She was just hurt weeks ago," Feyre said quietly. "Badly hurt. She's still supposed to take it easy."

Azriel felt his muscles tense at Feyre’s words. The reminder…Azriel’s hands curled into fists as he remembered seeing Eira bleeding, bleeding profusely from the wound in her side. At seeing her grey skin…her laboured breathing…

You look...murderous, Rhys said into his mind

Murderous was too weak of a word, considering that Azriel wanted to personally hunt down and kill the fae that had dared to harm his mate again. He wanted to be murderous.

Ma had words with me. I fucked up, he admitted.

Rhys was studying him, his eyes sharp like he was reading every emotion in his head. But Azriel could see the slight sympathy in his gaze.

I’ll bet, Rhys said with a sigh. Your mother is brutal at times when she needs to be.

Brutal was an accurate word to use. Azriel had certainly felt the full brunt of his mother’s wrath. Still, he deserved it. He deserved every word she had said. And he would do better.

"Eira?" Feyre said suddenly, kneeling at her sister's side and Azriel's head snapped up to find her move slightly, a whimper coming from her lips.

Azriel held his breath as he watched Eira. Even exhausted as she was, she still looked so fragile, so soft. He wanted to go to her. He wanted to hold her, to reassure her that she was safe, to brush her long curls away from her face. But he kept still.

Feyre let out a soft gasp, reaching out to hold her sister’s shoulder, her touch gentle, as Eira’s head turned to the side, her eyes opening slightly.

"Eira," Feyre repeated quietly, gently squeezing her sister’s shoulder. "Can you sit up?"

Azriel watched as Eira slowly opened her eyes the rest of the way, her brows furrowing as she struggled to focus her eyes in the dim light.

"Fey..." she began weakly, her voice cracking as she struggled to sit up."I am sorry, Feyre," she whispered, wetting her bloodless lips.

Azriel’s heart ached as Eira struggled to sit up, and his hands fisted at his sides as he watched Feyre put a hand on Eira’s back to give her some support.

"No, you are not apologizing for anything," Feyre said firmly, shaking her head as Eira continued to struggle to move. "You have nothing to apologize for."

"I didn't help you. I should have helped you. You were the youngest," Eira disagreed, her voice so weak. "I am sorry."

Azriel’s heart broke at Eira’s weak words, and his chest ached as though he wasn’t able to breathe.

Feyre’s hand continued to support her sister as Eira struggled to speak, until finally, Feyre spoke up before her sister could say anything else.

“You did nothing wrong, Eira,” Feyre insisted, her voice firm. “You did help. Yes, I hunted, but you cooked the meat. You did the laundry. You planted potatoes and carrots and sold whatever you canned and had left over. You made sure we had clothing to wear. You helped, Eira," she promised her.

But Eira’s eyes were still wide and miserable, filled with guilt and shame.

“It wasn’t enough,” Eira whispered. “I wasn’t enough.”

“You were enough,” Feyre promised her. “You did enough. You did the best you could. You did nothing wrong.”

"I don't want to be a weapon."

Azriel’s throat closed at Eira’s words, and Feyre’s eyes squeezed shut, her entire body going stiff even as she held back a sob.

“You are not a weapon,” Feyre said fiercely as she held her sister close. “You are not a weapon, do you hear me?”

"You will never need to be," Rhys said softly, placing a hand on Eira's hair. "It's alright. We won't make you be a weapon or a soldier or anything you don't want to be."

"All you ever have to be is our sister," Feyre continued in a slightly choked voice, stroking her sister's hair. "That is all you have to be. You do not have to fight or defend or be a warrior or anything like that. You don't. I promise you that you don't."

“Let's get you home," she said softly. "Let's go home, Eira."

Feyre began to pull Eira up from the couch, and Azriel moved instantly to offer support, going to Eira’s other side to help Feyre pull her older sister to her feet.

Her grey eyes blinked, seemingly suddenly realising that he was there. "Azriel," she whispered.

Azriel’s heart raced as Eira finally turned to look properly at him, and his heart twisted at the sight. She was pale. So pale. And she looked so fragile and exhausted, her eyes hollow. But it was her voice that nearly broke his heart — the way she had said his name. So softly. So quietly.

A demanding meow broke that moment, a white kitten clinging to Eira's legs.

Azriel’s jaw slackened briefly in surprise, as did Feyre, as they both looked down to see the little white kitten clinging to Eira’s legs.

From behind him, Azriel could hear Rhys’s stifled laughter.

His mother laughed out loud, clearly amused as she leant down to scoop up the wayward kitten. "It seems like she got quite attached to you," his mother said quietly. "You should let Azriel bring you back soon to play with her."

Eira’s grey eyes widened as his mother told her that — though whether it was from surprise or exhaustion, Azriel couldn’t tell.

“I…I would like that,” she said softly, her voice rough, and her words lit up something in Azriel’s chest. Something…warm.

Azriel’s mother gave Eira a long look, her head tilting.

“You are welcome. It is my honour and pleasure to get to know the young woman that my son has taken as a mate,” she said softly. 

He was saved from having to respond by a shudder working through Eira's body.

Azriel’s eyes darted back down to Eira as he felt the shudder that went through her and he frowned in worry, his arm around her shoulders instinctively pulling her closer to him.

She was cold, he could feel it even through her clothes, her entire body like ice as she shivered in his arms.

"We should get going," Rhys said apologetically. "Thank you, Esmeray."

"You should come visit more often," Esmeray said drily. "And remind my son of actually keeping up with his correspondence for once."

[tibby-art]

I’m adoring the Hitman AU. Scar and Cub share a braincell and Grian just looks like she wants to go home and sleep.

I’m curious as to what powers ConVex has. Or what their motives are with Grian. (ConVex trying to corrupt her.)

I've been picturing Cub and Scar's vex powers as being able to transform into a vex form (pale blueish skin, white hair/eyes, wings, fangs, claws, the whole nine yards). The forms allow them to move at lightning speed and fly, making them perfect as silent killers in their roles as hitmen. They're super sneaky and fast.

I think the vex work with pacts as well - if you make a pact with a vex, they're unable to go against said pact. That's how they ended up working for the government as hitmen. I imagine that in their past they were very powerful and corrupt criminals at Concorp (standard protocol for convex in an au i'd say). One day the government catches up to them, and they're given a choice: Go to top-security prison for one bajillion years because you're a dangerous vex criminal OR make a pact with the government and work under them, using your powers for good. So, Cub and Scar are technically here by choice, but their choices were limited. They're bound by a fae contract that they must perform their given duties as hitmen - they bend the rules and find loopholes whenever possible, though. Vex are tricky like that. They'll get ordered to take out a dangerous crime boss, but because you didn't technically specify that you wanted that done today, they took the day off to go golfing. They'll get to it tomorrow :J (The government learns the hard way that when you order Cub and Scar to kill someone you must specify to them not to eat the person because that has happened and that will happen again and everything is terrible)

Grian is in a similar situation, but he was given less of a choice. While Cub and Scar made their own pacts with the vex to gain their powers, Grian's watcher powers are something she did not ask for at all. The Watchers are much more mysterious than the Vex, not a lot is known about them and they're considered almost a myth until Grian shows up. This makes her more dangerous and unpredictable, in the government's eyes. Grian isn't allowed to just walk away and go back to being a normal member of society - nobody knows what he's capable of (not even Grian knows) so the government needs to keep a close eye on her. When she's paired up with Cub and Scar for missions, the vex are ordered to keep an eye on Grian, and step in if things get too dangerous. Cub and Scar think this is BS and they almost pity Grian, deep down, since he's essentially in the same spot they're in but worse. When their pact says to keep Grian from getting too dangerous, they interpret it as, "Well, if we help her figure out her powers, she's more in control and that will make everything safer :J"

I don't think Convex is trying to corrupt her - I think the government is the one being manipulative here. Convex sees it. I think they genuinely want to help her grow and discover new abilities and how to use them. They're Convex, though, so they might not be the best role models lol. I think what they're trying to do is help her get more confidence and more control over her powers. Cub is a scientist who is very good at figuring out how Grian's abilities work, what he can and can't do, the limits of said abilities, etc. and Scar has the most creative and insane ideas on how to utilize watcher powers that it sometimes leads to discovering something brand new. I can picture him being like, ":J Hey have you ever tried using your watcher powers to spy on a specific location from like, fifty miles away" and Grian is like "Scar that's ridiculous that's not how it works" and then she tries it and is amazed when that actually does work. Scar's like ":J yeah I made that up I didnt think it would work Can you spy on Disneyland now"

[emerald-dragonflame]

Art Style/AU Challenge PT 2: My Hero Academia's Style

Part 1 and Explanation here

I understand now why people hate lineart... thin lines suuuuuck. I don't think I captured the MHA style all that well, and I'm not entirely sure what exactly it's missing, but I hope it's still somewhat recognizable. Also, the names of the Flying Serpent Crew is subject to change in some AUs if I feel it works better with the story I'm telling (I'll put their real names in parenthesis so it's less confusing)

Backstory:

buckle up, this might be a bit wordy, but I tried to make it as brief as possible

Lady Drake: The Dragon Fire Hero

Quirk: Dragon

She has the ability to fly, breath fire, and have super strength, along with the ability to be resistant to fire

Taiba was born in Nigeria and immigrated to America when she was less than a year old with her parents and 3 other siblings. She's very cut off from her native country, and is the only one of her 3 companions that adores her adopted country. Making it a little difficult for her to really connect Bruce (Brosmýr's name in this AU), and Victerico, since their both also immigrants.

She had always wanted to be a pro hero, especially after her quirk appeared. In this AU, I headcannon that America in MHA, the way that you become a pro hero is either by 1. simply passing a test, like for driving or a GED, or 2. going to collage specifically for it, and Taiba went to college. This is were she meets Bruce Ficsher, her future partner and husband.

They both start their own independent company after college, of which I don't have a name for, yet.

Nightingale: The Feathered Lighting Hero

Quirk: Harpy

He can fly, is crazy fast, can control lightning, and can mimic voices and sounds, but only if he's heard them before

Bruce Ficsher was born and raised in Ireland for most of his childhood, but when his father got a job in the states, they moved there when he was a teenager. Due to this, he's still a little bit bitter at his father for forcing him to leave his friends and family to go to a country he barely cares for.

He's pretty down for the 2nd amendment tho.

When he was born, he... very much looked like a baby bird, bulging tired eyes, chicken wings, and all. He did eventually grow out some down feathers, but it didn't really help the teasing from his classmates. That is, of course, until he got a lot bigger than them. He was always referred to as a bit creepy, and being a bit of a loner didn't help.

Bruce wanted to be a hero mostly because of that. He wanted to show that even if he wasn't the most appealing looking hero, he could still do good. That he wasn't condemned to being a villain. That all he ever wanted to do was help those in need.

He was fine just simply talking the Hero's Test and shadowing under a Pro until he could get his full license, but his parents had other plans. So they sent him to college, where he met Taiba.

During their college days, they butted heads a lot. However, forced proximity made them need to start to work together (their powers worked very well together), and they learned that they were a very good team.

They started dating their first year together, and got married before they even finished college.

Captain Serpent: The Water Snake Hero

Quirk: Water Serpent

He has the ability to breath under water, use hydrokinesis, and glide in the air. He, however, can't fly

Victerico left his native country of Spain and when he was in his mid twenties. He is the eldest of the three, being in his early 40s, and is the one that was the most down on his luck.

You see, Viterico came to America on the hope that he could start a new life for himself. A better job, maybe find a wife, and start a family. However, bad break, after terrible luck, after bad timing led to him being homeless and jobless. And would have rather die than live like that, so he became a villain.

Due to his quirk making him look like a sea monster, Victerico decided to hang out in rivers and swamps, lying in wait for people to scare. When he did, they would either run, and hopefully drop something valuable, or he would threaten them until they gave him something valuable. It was awful, but it worked.

After a couple of years of doing this, he was captured by Taiba and Bruce, however, this would turn out to be his big break. For you see, Viterico was the only witness to a murder that had been perpetrated by an infamous serial killer.

He helped Lady Drake (Taiba) and Nightingale (Bruce) finally catch (and sadly kill) the villain, and in turn, the two of them heard his story. They rescued him from prison, on the condition that he become the third member of their agency. Viterico accepted, and after taking the test, and shadowing under the two of them, he became the latest member of the (name pending) Agency.

Main Story:

This is getting long, so I will try to make this brief; their agency ends up in Japan after the appearance of All for One, coming to try and help by their own volition. I imagine that they would want to try and help the students of UA. And with Bruce being a huge language nerd (seriously, if he wasn't gonna be a hero, he would've been a linguist), they were able to get along just fine in Japan. Coming into the main story of MHA after the Provisional Hero License Arc, trying their best to be both protectors of the UA students, and help with the expanding crime after All Might looses his power.

Single Portraits under cut ↓

[katyawriteswhump]

the power of love, part 13 (steddie, stobin, steve whump fic)

Alternate ending S4: Steve has a habit of surviving near death experiences then getting sick for no reason. And Eddie and those fatal bat bites? After an impossible feat of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation from Steve, he’s mysteriously fixed. So, Eddie’s back to being banished, this time with Steve and Robin in tow. Eddie’s healing, but Steve isn’t… and life gets even more confusing, when Eddie develops feelings for Steve, which aren’t entirely unrequited.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 14

(also on AO3 here and as part of my steve whump fic series)

Steve POV

When Steve’s finished slumping forward and retching, he’s so through with everything.

“You did good with the lightning, kid.” Hopper scrapes Steve’s hair from his face. He’s still got an arm about him, pretty much all that’s stopping Steve collapsing onto the dirt. “Let’s hope we don’t need it again, huh?”

Steve sniffs, takes the kleenex Hopper offers and dabs his lips. As his super-fast breaths finally slow, his brain kicks off: 

I got superpowers! Henderson’s gonna flip! Shame about the glitches, what with the blacking out and puking my guts out. The sound of a rushing river distracts him. He’s been hearing it, on and off, for hours. 

He kneels a little more upright. Hopper gives him some space, passes him some water. “How far exactly have you travelled from Hawkins since the accident at Lover’s Lake?”

The accident? Oh yeah. I died. Twice. 

Steve hasn’t told anyone about his second joyride into the afterlife in the Soviet base. Somehow, being an idiot as a kid is way easier to share. A damp breeze rattles through the trees, slapping him back to the present.

“Steve?” prompts Hopper. 

“I… uh, I played basketball all over the state.” Even after drinking, his voice is a croaky mess. “Swim meets, too. Been a few times to Indianapolis. I was okay.”

Hopper scratches his stubbly jaw, looking almost as bushed as Steve feels. “How okay?”

“To be honest, I was kicked off the starting squad after a couple of the more distant games. Crappy performances, and I got humiliatingly sick on the bus.” It all makes sense now. “I survived.”

“Fine. You’re a tough guy. You’re gonna have to tough your way through this journey. I can’t leave you behind.”

“Eleven survived in the woods for—”

“At that stage, she didn’t have half the US army on her back.” He pats Steve, powerful enough to rock him. “She’d gotten experience with her powers, too.”

Steve can’t fathom if he’s feeling slightly patronised or dead relieved. All he really wants is to lie somewhere quiet and sleep for a year. Instead, he must drag himself to his feet—or, in the event, he lets Hopper do the dragging. He can’t help asking, though: 

“Chief, can you hear running water? Like, loud.”

And getting louder. Niagara loud, in fact.

“No. Why? Can you?”

“Oh… um, maybe not.”

Okay. It’s totally in my head. Why aren’t I panicking harder?

When they reach the Humvee, Robin and Eddie are no longer at each other’s throats. On the contrary, they’re huddled in some deep and meaningful chat. As one, they slam Steve with stricken bunny-rabbit stares, which make him want to laugh so goddamn loud.

During the torturous drive, he sleeps, and his mind drifts back to the Soviet base. He’s caught in that furious red tide, which roars through his aching head. It’s echoed by a caressing whisper: You’ll know when it’s time to go home.

“Yeah, I got it. Shut the fuck up.”

“Rude! Wasn’t saying anything.”

“Huh?” He lifts his cheek from Robin’s shoulder. Her worried, tear-stained eyes overshadow the amusement ruffling her lips. Jesus, I’m breaking my friends! “Dreaming. Sorry.”

He gingerly rolls his shoulders. The side in the sling twinges miserably, and yet… Now he knows he’s gotta ditch the whole bunch of them, the fug of sickness is clearing. He feels better. Much better, in fact.

He keeps the news tight. 

If he plays poorly, they won’t expect him to sneak away, right? Though, the plan pitches him another problem—when he does escape, how can he stop Robin and Eddie coming after him? Eddie, particularly, would be in beyond deep shit if he got taken.

Inevitably, the Humvee gets stuck again. When Hopper asks Steve to take the wheel, Steve grabs up a green army notebook he’d spotted in the footwell, a stubby pencil also. He scribbles fast, between revving the engine.

“Eddie, I love you. Please don’t follow me. Steve x”

I love you. 

Wtf? 

When he’d blundered down that path with Nance, he’d been licking the scars two-and-a-half years’ later. With Robin, of course, things turned out different.

Then Eddie Munson happened. 

To be fair, knowing Eddie as he did now, he doesn’t actually believe Eddie would vomit on the note. Maybe only cackle a while. Either way, Steve would no way in hell obey a love letter, telling him not to follow, from anybody he cared about.

Given recent form, he doesn’t think Eddie would either.

He scrunches the note into his pocket then scribbles furiously at ‘take two’: 

“Eddie, DON’T FOLLOW ME. You make me sick. Steve.”

Jesus, that’s hopeless. You make me sick? He doesn’t mean that, apart from… It’s sorta true. Steve detests it, however, longs to try again. He’s out of time.

He stuffs the second note into Eddie’s pack, as Hopper opens the door. “We’re gonna have to walk from here. Think you can make it?”

“Dunno,” says Steve. For purely tactical reasons. Likewise, he doesn’t volunteer to carry many supplies.

As they trudge their way through the trees, his chances to run aren’t happening. Everybody’s way quieter than usual—edgy, like during that drive in the RV before they faced down Vecna. When he tries subtly falling behind, they all jump to help him. Even worse, they reach the liaison spot way sooner than he expects. Thankfully, for Steve, the car isn’t there.

“Where the hell are they?” Hopper gets out a compass to check they’re in the right spot.

“Because compasses are so accurate near Hawkins,” gripes Steve, his pulse thudding madly. It really is now or never, and why the hell hasn’t he got a better plan?

“We’re far enough out that the gates shouldn’t make a difference, right?” Eddie says.

How do we know? How do we know that Vecna hasn’t swallowed Hawkins whole, while we’re running away pissing ourselves yellow?

Steve bites this back. It’s not like he wants them coming with him. He sits down on the verge, presses his face to his bent knees. Soon as he dares, he gets up again.

“Where you going?” asks Robin, clambering up also.

“I need to pee,” says Steve. Eddie’s on his feet too. Steve can’t look him in the eye, and the words nearly choke him. “I don’t need a babysitter. Shoo!”

He walks back into the forest, upping his pace as soon as the trees obscure him. It’s gonna be a long trek, he’s hardly got any supplies, and he’s got a weird sense that, no, he isn’t gonna get through this time. He follows the sound of the water, because it seems obvious that he should.  

And he feels more torn apart than ever. 

The tug back to Hawkins is overwhelming, but the tug back toward Robin and Eddie? It’s like somebody has wound a thread around his heart, attached it to the pair of them. As he strides farther away, the thread snares tight, like that rope around his wrist did.

He’s annoyed—if not exactly surprised—to hear somebody thrashing through the forest behind him. Robin yells, “Steve! Steeeeeve!” 

He finally locates a small stream, which seems to be the source of the supernaturally loud torrent. He skids down the bank, landing in about three inches of water, and crouches low. 

Go by, Robin. Dammit, turn back.

She tumbles into the stream a yard off, landing on her ass with a loud splash and a louder squeak.

“Uuuuugh!” She takes the hand he offers, and they scramble to their feet together. “Steve, what the hell are you doing?”

“What the hell are you doing?”

She flicks pond scum from her legs and grimaces spectacularly. “Stopping you being an IDIOT! And since when were you not sick? God, I was so worried! Were you faking?”

“You know I wasn’t. I got… fixed.”

“Fixed? Like, HOW?”

He urgently presses a finger to his lips. “Sssssh! Keep your voice down! Look, I don’t know exactly, and I can’t go back. Hopper will make me get in that car.”

“He can’t force you.” Her glare is louder than her voice was.

“Whatever. He and El need to go. You and Eddie need to go.”

“You heard what Hopper said. They’ll torture you for information—they could kill you.”

“Been there, done that, Robin.”

“This isn't funny.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Steve sighs hard, belatedly noticing the stream has breached his sneakers. “All I do know is that I feel more myself already, turning around.” Following the water. “Also, Hop’s right—El can’t defeat Vecna with the military gunning for her. I don’t know exactly what I can do yet, but I have to try, whatever it is. So, please, Robin. Go back. Tell the others you couldn’t find me.”

“Eddie won’t leave without—”

“Which is why I gotta move! Take care, all right?”

He wants to hug her so bad. Instead, he sloshes away.

“Ugh, slow down!”

“Seriously?” He turns about suddenly. She nearly smashes into him and takes the opportunity to get right in his face.

“I am so mad with you! You made me run after you, my butt is drenched, and now you’re making me walk along a horrible ditch, all the way back to Hawkins?”

“It’s the quickest route.” He doesn’t know how he knows, only that he does. He turns around, wades onwards. The damp never bothered me anyway…

“Then why don’t we follow the bank, Steve?”

She has a point. “Oh. Okay.” They clamber up the sides, start following the stream from above. It’s as slippery as the riverbed and overgrown with treacherously tangly weeds.

“Eeeeeew! When this is over,” says Robin, “I am never, ever venturing into the totally-not-great outdoors again.” 

“You don’t have to do any of this, Robin.”

Her latest scowl is more jokey—and fond—than he figures he deserves. “Shut up, Dingus. You know I do.”

Part 14

tags: @estrellami-1 @kal-ology @finntheehumaneater (thank you, thank you, thank you!) If anybody else would like to be tagged on this fic or any of my writing, please let me know :) Reblogs, comments and likes also very much appreciated :) Thank you for reading so far :)

(also part of my steve whump fic series on AO3)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 14

[ninjastormhawkkat]

A Different Kind of Wordgirl AU

Becky is stronger than most humans, she doesn't have super strength. Becky is faster than most humans, she doesn't have super speed. Becky is more agile than most humans, she can't fly. Becky's five senses are better than a human's, it doesn't mean she has superpowers.

All her life, Becky Boxleitner knew she was different from a lot of people on earth. She was a hybrid alien child, born of a human father and alien mother from Lexicon. Yet at the same time, she was also different from the inhabitants of her mother's planet. The only thing Becky inherited from her mother was a majority of her looks plus her extraordinary vocabulary skills. Becky cannot fly, run super fast, nor lift extremely heavy objects like her mother could. The only Lexiconian Becky could surpass was her pet monkey Bob aka Captain Huggy Face. Becky never thought she would be hero material until she was an adult. She never thought she would be ready to be a hero like how her dad wrote about them in his book. Things changed when the local hero Amazo Guy vanished one day, and her dad, the best expert on heroes, became fused to a vicious lab mouse and became known as Dr. Two Brains. So this au is an idea where Becky is an alien hybrid but the only powers she has are her extreme vocabulary. She becomes Wordgirl still in this au but only after her dad becomes Dr. Two Brains and Amazo Guy disappears. There are major differences in this au from other ones.

-Becky's hero outfit is more tech savvy. She calls her tools her "Word Tech." She wears a clear yellow visor which masks her identity as well as detects heat signatures, allow her to look at data on the go, help her see things far away or analyze materials. She has a hidden earpiece in her helmet to allow her to communicate with the police, DA Botsford, City Hall, and Captain Huggy Face. Her yellow cape can act as an invisibility cloak, shield, light deflector to blind enemies. He gloves and boots allow her to walk on walls like spiderman. She can generate electricity within her gloves to stun. Her boots have attached rockets to help her fly. Becky has other gadgets on her belt which are interchangeable depending on her mission. She also has a special pouch attached to he utility belt as well. Gadgets she uses are grappling hooks, flashlight, laser pen, bow staff, tracking devices, bolo nets, etc. Huggy looks like his canon self with only minor changes such as a light blue visor, earpiece, and navy blue gloves and boots that can operate like Becky's, plus a parachute bag attached to his back at all times. Huggy also wears a special wrist watch shaped like a lightning bolt that can shoot small lasers, stun villains, and act as a shield. -Since Becky never had any of her other powers except vocabulary, Steven taught her science and technology. That is how Becky is able to create and use her "Word Tech" so effectively well. -Becky in this au is a rookie compared to her counterparts, she is using her dad's book plus other Lexiconian books to help her fight and be better prepared as a hero so she makes more mistakes than her counterparts. - Bob in this au teaches her how to fight and helps give her self confidence to believe in her self as a hero. During the Miss Power arc when Bob shows her the book "Super Advanced Secret Battle Moves of The Planet Lexicon" and tells her that the reason he didn't show her the book until now because he thought she was doing a great job so far without it, Becky becomes more emotionally touched and cries a bit before getting back on task. Becky can also understand Bob still in this au. -Violet and Scoops very early on are told by Becky about her hero identity. This is because Becky felt she needed someone she could talk to about her hero life and issues besides her dad. (She later found out the part about hero's keeping their identity a secret afterwards in her dad's book. Whoops!) Becky also wanted Scoops and Violet to help her on the side in finding out what happened to Amazo Guy after he disappeared right before her dad's accident. (Coincidence...maybe😈). -Dr. Two Brains knows that Becky is Wordgirl off bat without her telling him. He recognizes his daughter's work in the gadgets Wordgirl uses, plus the amazing vocabulary skills and lack of superpowers is a dead giveaway to Two Brains as well. Unlike other aus I have written, Two Brains in this one is strongly against the idea of his daughter being a hero. While Becky does have thicker skin, she is still prone to cuts, bruises, and other injuries. Mouse man nearly had a heart attack when she got a sprained ankle. They have argued about Becky's continuation of heroics and facing dangers, but Becky is adamant about doing this and points out to her dad that since there are no heroes around, someone has to stand up to fill the role who had hero and villain know how. Because she is still hurt in bothered this early about her dad's accident and transition to villainy, Becky makes a passive aggressive comment that she has to unfortunately take the role because the only adult hero expert in this city is now subjected to a life of cheesy crime due to the control of a parasitic lab mouse. Becky did apologize for her choice of words when she saw her dad's reaction, but Two Brains still feels hidden guilt of making his daughter face this path unprepared alone with only Bob. Dr. Two Brains reluctantly lets her continue, but is still in silent protest about it.

[rose-of-oz]

𝐑𝐄-𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐃𝐔𝐂𝐈𝐍𝐆… 𝐌𝐘 𝐃𝐂 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐈𝐂𝐒 𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑, 𝐃𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐑

❝ Donnie Carver had spent almost all of his childhood in a lab. Having been stolen from the hospital as an infant, Donnie was the primary test subject in the Sentinel Project, an illegal human experiment run by a group of ex-government scientists seeking to create a super-solider that could someday overthrow the very officials who had seen the corruption in their experiments and fired them from their government positions. For as long as he could remember, Donnie had spent his days being poked and prodded and stuck with needles, being put through innumerable tests so the scientists could see if the drugs they were pumping him full of were fulfilling their purpose.

By the time he was seventeen, Donnie was nearly the super-soldier his captors had intended for him to be - strong and fast as ten humans combined, with eyes that could see every little detail in a pitch-black room and ears that could hear someone's frightened heartbeat from the other side of the city. But he wanted nothing less than to be a puppet for the people who'd stolen him away from his parents before he could even walk - he wanted to help people, not harm them. So one night, when a terrible lightning storm knocked out the power to the facility where he was being held, Donnie took his chance, managing to escape Project Sentinel a mere month before the government finally discovered them and shut the project down.

Now, years later, Donnie has managed to make a life for himself in Washington, DC, working as an IT consultant and hiding the truth of his origins from everyone he meets. But after the famous hero Wonder Woman starts appearing on the local news, having moved her noble exploits to Washington, Donnie becomes inspired, drawing on that desire to help people that motivated him to escape his captors and taking to the streets as the vigilante Sentinel - an homage to the scientists who made Donnie what he is, and a silent promise to himself that he will never become what they wanted him to be.

The people of Washington are delighted to have two heroes protecting them - but the US government is still looking for the Project Sentinel test subject they could never find, and Wonder Woman is determined to know who her new companion in local heroics is underneath his dark mask. Donnie doesn't trust the government with his identity one bit... but as he and Wonder Woman get closer with each new villain they take down together, he finds himself thinking that, maybe, he can trust her.

Donnie isn't used to letting people in. Affected by his childhood as he is, it's never seemed like a good idea. But Wonder Woman is intelligent, good-hearted, and impossibly beautiful... and though Donnie has no more idea about her true identity than she does about his, his walls crumble a little bit more every time he coaxes a smile out of her serious face.

And as terrifying as that is, he's pretty sure he's okay with it. ❞

General Taglist: @hiddenqveendom, @foxesandmagic, @artemisocs, @reyofluke-ocs, @endless-oc-creations, @stanshollaand, @ginnystilinski-reblogs, @luucypevensie, @ginger-grimm, @arrthurpendragon, @fakedatings, @impales, @claryxjackson, @dancingsunflowers-ocs, @eddysocs, @lucys-chen, @ocappreciationtag.

[secondgenerationnerd]

I just don’t think they can be as badass as Lian and Mari. They come from two badass super families and Milagro is just one of the few thousand GL and irey can run super fast

Right, so I again am assuming you’re coming from a good place. So I’m going to explain from my perspective why I think they’re badasses.

In terms of Comic Milagro, you’re right, we don’t know much about her. Hell, she’s not even a lantern as far as I’m aware. However. In my cannon, she became a lantern at 10 years old. She was forced into this life, but that gives her a clarity to point out the bullshit Legacy heroes don’t notice.

Like someone calling her friend a slur in front of a group of adults that have done nothing to protect said friend. She’ll take the ‘disciplinary action’ for breaking the asshole’s nose.

She might be one of many GL, but her ring is not the only thing she does as a hero. She learned how to fix essentially all the iconic vehicles driven by various league members and assisted in the redesign of multiple hero uniforms. More than that, and yes this is very important, she is a latina girl. Yes, we have Jessica Cruz, but think of how little kids look up to teenagers. She comes from a normal family. But she’s a hero. She. Is. A. Hero. And she doesn’t look like me, I’m a white girl, I can find heroes that look me, but not everyone has that luxury. Think about the shot in the Blue Beetle Trailer of the little boy seeing Jaime. It. Matters.

I, personally, designed her character to break the stereotype of how “Badass Women” should look. Not sure what I mean? Look at any action movie, superhero show/movie, etc and tell me how the Heroines are dressed. How many are in a tank top/plain shirt, leather jacket, jeans, and some kind of boot (combat or low heeled)? How many have that Pretty Woman moment of “look how nice I clean up which everyone will comment on”? Her femininity, her love of fashion and knitting and telenovelas and all the other feminine things are things I never see “Badass women do.”

Femininity and Badassery are not part of a dichotomy.

Miss Iris Anne West II’s family is full of scientists and reporters. Frankly more badass than either the Bats or the Arrows because they don’t have a huge fortune to fall back on. Her Great Uncle was hit by lightning. Her father gave himself powers at 12 years old (give or take) by recreating the experiment of said Great Uncle. Her family has created and destroyed and changed so many timelines. Their rogues have one of the strictest codes of honor compared to every other Villian. In the old Justice League Cartoon, Wally didn’t even have to fight his bad guy! Just told him to go to jail after having a conversation about the guy being off his meds and why it’s important he take them.

And circling back—Her family being full of reporters and scientists gives her both highly inquisitive mind and the skills to answer her questions. Knowing the difference between The Truth and The Story was drilled into her from birth. The Story is what everyone says happened in order to make the facts fit nice and neat. The Truth is what actually happened, regardless of it being “neat”. Do you know how hard it can be to hold thag belief when the rest of the world demands conformity?

“Irey can run super fast” you’re right. That is the basis of her powers, but not the entirety of them. According to her Prime Earth and New Earth Wiki pages, the full breath of her powers include:

Speed Force Conduit

Accelerated Healing, including Toxic Immunities

Enhanced Senses

Phasing

Speedforce Aura

Superhuman Duribility

Superhuman Stamina

Superhuman Reflexes

Superhuman Agility

Vortex Creations

Dimension Travel

Electrokensis

Molecular Acceleration

Telekekisis, which she often uses to pull her brother towards her.

In Prime Earth, the current run of the character, she is also noted to become the most power speedster in the world.

Again, I assume you ask this in good faith, so I will ask you a good faith question as well—Why did you only ask me about the Omega girls? By your own logic, Damian and Jon are more badass than Colin and Jai, but you only asked me about the girls.

[all-eyes-lead-to-the-truth]

All Eyes Lead to the Truth | D.P.O. (3x03)

Sometimes durin’ the lightning storms, Darin liked to listen to his Walkman while sittin’ under the big oak tree out back. No one ever told him that was dangerous, but after he was struck, everyone sure liked to tell him it was his own fault. 

Darin didn’t understand how he was expected to know stuff like that if no one ever bothered to tell him. It felt like people enjoyed callin’ him stupid so much that they never wanted to teach him nothin’ and spoil their fun.

He might’ve been a slow learner, but that didn’t mean he didn’t pick up on things.

Darin could look at a car and know the name and model. If he spent enough time on a video game, he could usually get a high score. He could tell when electricity kept actin’ up wherever he went that it might’ve had something to do with him.

The first few times it happened, he just thought the wiring in the house was goin’ to shit. But after several ‘power surges’ and ‘freak accidents’ happened in the span of a month, he saw a pattern. Something would set him off, then the electricity would act up.

He spent weeks practicing. Darin was pickin’ on his Ma there for a while, gettin’ her riled up so that she’d say somethin’ mean and make him mad. That never took long, but after a while, Darin realized it was better when he didn’t really get upset. When he did that, he couldn’t control the electricity very well. Instead, if he just let his emotions build up inside, and if he concentrated real hard, he could make stuff happen. He could make flashlights with no batteries turn on, he could start a car from twenty feet away, he could change the TV station like he was a human remote — he could do anything he wanted.

His power was too cool to keep to himself, but Darin knew he needed to practice before showin’ it to Zero. If he performed a bunch of magic tricks or hocus pocus mind games like the Stupendous Yappi, Zero would think he was lame. 

It had to be somethin’ cool.

After a while of tinkerin’ with his powers, Darin stayed after closing time at the video arcade and said he had a surprise. Zero was disappointed when the surprise wasn’t beer or bud, but after seein’ his name spelled out across all the machines, watchin’ a bolt of lightnin’ strike right outside the windows, and hearin’ any song he named come outta the jukebox — he was impressed.

“So… this was from you getting zapped in the field?” Zero asked, in between swigs of his soda.

“Yup,” Darin nodded. 

“That’s sick.”

“I’m like that fast guy from the Justice League,” Darin chuckled.

“Barry Allen became The Flash because he huffed too many fumes, dumbass,” Zero replied, always feelin’ the need to correct him.

“Still was lightning wasn’t it?” he spat back.

“Sure, dude.”

It was times like these he couldn’t tell when someone was just agreein’ with him ‘cause they didn’t wanna hear him talk no more or if they actually thought he was right. It made him feel stupid he couldn’t tell the difference, but he didn’t wanna feel even more stupid by asking and lettin’ someone else know he couldn’t tell.

“Whatever, man. My powers are way cooler than the Flash’s anyway. If I needed to go fast, I’d get a McLaren F1,” he shrugged.

“Well technically, the Flash has more than just super speed. He has super strength, time travel-”

Darin’s frustration built as Zero kept rambling. He hated feelin’ like an idiot. If he had the comic collection Zero did, he would’ve known all that too. His Ma refused to get him any when she realized he was mostly just lookin’ at the pictures. They wouldn’t have pictures in them if they didn’t want ya to look at ‘em.

Darin felt a surge of indignation burn through his body, and at the same time, the power in the arcade shut off. The suddenness of it all caused Zero to stop talking. When he realized what he’d done, he felt embarrassed for lashin’ out like that and quickly turned the machines back on.

“Hey, I’m real sor-” 

Darin faltered when he looked over at Zero. He was starin’ at Darin with a funny look on his face. It was the same face Zero made when their homeroom teacher caught them lookin’ at the March ‘93 Playboy. It was the same look he got whenever his Mama knocked on the door while they were smokin’ reefers. 

His friend was scared of him, and it made Darin feel powerful.

“Bet the Flash can’t do that, can he?” Darin laughed, every hair on his body standing straight.

It took Zero a moment to respond while he waited for his balls to drop, but when they did, he shook his head firmly, “N-no, dude. No way.”

Darin was grateful that his powers made him run hot, ‘cause Zero’s hands were trembling as they checked on the machines throughout the arcade. “S-so, are you going to show anyone else what you can do? I bet you could get a special on Jerry Springer.”

That brought a smile to his face. His Ma would probably keel over if she saw him standin’ next to Jerry. “I think I need to tell Mrs. Kiveat. I keep callin’ her every time I pick up the phone. I think I’m scarin’ her.”

“Have you tried maybe not doing that?”

“No shit!” he snapped, causing Frogger to hurl himself into the road. “It’s like the phone knows when I’m was thinkin’ about her.” Probably because he was always thinking about her. Maybe he couldn’t stop it because his love for her was the one thing he couldn’t really control.

With his new powers, he could have anything, but all Darin wanted was Mrs. Kiveat.

Read the rest of All Eyes on Ao3

@gaycrouton

[awritingcaitlin]

✨Rinnie is a sassy sorceress who doesn't ever want to admit she had feelings ever. But she is also bamf and capable of healing magic, though she'd much rather light stuff on fire.

📙Nathaniel the poor tired grad student who is also a Marine on a mission. He *doesn't* get paid enough for this and just wants that nice peaceful life. It would be such a shame if a war were to happen...

🔪Riela, my knife-wielding barmaid who knows way more about religion than she lets on. She has about 50 million secrets from her past so good luck figuring them all out. But she's also a hopeless romantic who dreams of getting swept off her feet.

🍺Killian, Captain of the Queen's Guard. On a mission to save said dying Queen. Has a YOLO attitude and pulls no punches. He also never seems to sleep for very long.

📘Taryn, Rinnie's bodyguard with benefits. Never actually intended to get feelings. Ended up in way over her head in a few things. Wicked smart and perceptive.

🧪Mica, resident kooky alchemist. Took a cognizance potion that one time and now her brain has filing cabinets inside for all sorts of information. Very good at chemical and alchemical reactions. Escaped from pirates, does *not* want to go home and get married.

🍎 Paul, the soft-spoken Marine who doesn't feel it is appropriate to take on too much responsibility, but will step up should the occasion come up. He grew up on a farm and is an apple cider snob.

🍻 Mama Cass, the wise sage. Older than she looks. Older than seems possible. She knows what kind of drink you want without asking. Unbelievably kind. Seen it all before. Her face holds a smile and doesn't seem to know how to do anything else.

⭐Ilani my beloved oracle. She has visions of the future and knows what will come true. Yet she does not let this hold her back. She is loving and unbelievably patient. She has such a rigid set of morals that has never let her down.

👊 Roderick, the man who punched an admiral and still got a commission. He plays a mean game of Royal Will. Such a strategist. Plays darts when he's thinking.

🧝‍♂️ Kanjo, the character who changed entire arcs with his inclusion. The dirty mage who can brawl with the best then clean up and be a gentleman - sometimes. Perpetually a staff NCO. A realist. Drives fast motorcycles.

🧝‍♀️Kiyo my darling bartender. Who can mix a drink whole only half paying attention. Who can make sushi in her sleep. Who knows that the ocean will take your cares away. Who was creating whirlpools and waterspouts by age twelve. Dirty mage tricks.

🌠Thea. Woman on a mission. Believes she's doing the right thing. Immensely powerful. Older than she looks and she looks immortal. But she has dark secrets no one can know. And she begs forgiveness from the one who does.

🟡Cael. Protector. Warrior. Quiet. He's an incredibly smart tactician. You will never beat him at chess. He's seen it all and more. Will follow those he loves to the death.

🌟Ciara, my darling child. I say, knowing she's in her 30s. Brute force magic. Very powerful. Can weaponize her magic to deadly degrees. No shame. Looks like she can kill you and will actually kill you. Fiercely protective. Loves deeply. Dreams of settling down one day.

🌬️Zeh'ave, the air elemental with amnesia. Does not remember who she was before. Had to learn how to function again and still does not have full control of her powers. Lightning fast with magic, has a strong sense of self preservation.

💙Lily, the kick ass demonic astral. Can shapeshift but prefers her resting form in it's blue, tailed, horned, and hooved glory. Did a huge service to the state when she was younger. Was raised on the streets but knows how to pretend to be proper.

😈Ashora, another kick ass demonic astral. Lives as a mercenary. Styles her hair around her horns. Super strong, super fast. Loves the adventure.

🔫Cami, the prisoner. Currently in a high security prison for her supposed safety because no one knows what to do about the fact that she's possessed by a dragon.

⚕️Aravae, the doctor who has learned to play ruthless political games in order to survive. She knows the ins and outs of political, legal, and medical spheres. Looks like a cinnamon roll, probably won't kill you. Hates direct confrontation. Will end the fight.

👧🏾Janna, sweet Janna. Giggly and boisterous. Just wants to set herself apart from her large family. Always kind, very perceptive.

👦🏽 Adrian, the quiet cook. Young and wide eyed. Dreams of a better future. Bakes really good bread. Saving up money for someone special.

🧒🏼Sean, the even quieter waiter. Works the graveyard shift. His day starts around noon and he goes straight from closing up the tavern to the fish market to buy fish for the next day. Lives at the tavern though, so it makes it easier.

[universalzones]

Surge shot awake, swiftly standing up at break neck pace as her lightning slowly faded. 'Shit, how long have I been out?' The tenrec thought to herself, looking up to see the sunsetting in the distance. The speedster had to have been out for more than a few hours.

Fuck, her body was sore, and her outfit was seriously a mess. 'Eh, who gives a shit. I'm sure someone from the Loseration will fix this up, and I heal fast.' She had training to do.

Surge looked over the crude training ground she'd built at the abandoned Eggman base she found. Left over badniks having been torn to pieces from the tenrec tearing through them, though they had just been warm ups. The speedster's main goal was the stationary super badnik, only having a small dent to the shoulder. Egg Hammer's were built tough, huh? 'Shit, how the fuck did I beat one of this before?'

Oh, right, Kit did some good damage to it too while she was squished, though now Surge was pissed at herself. 'If that goody two shoed Sonic can beat one by himself I can do it too.' The tenrec got into her stance, hands touching the ground as she gets ready to go at it. Then, she stopped, realizing something.

Surge would stand up once more, walking over to the inactive machine. Looking up at it, gears clearing turning in her head. 'This isn't training. All I'm doing is bashing a oversized metal punching bag. Sonic takes these things when they're fighting back and trying to kill him.'

The tenrec then placed a hand on it. 'I can do that. I don't need Kit to beat it, I don't need anyone to win.' The speedster then shot a volt of her lightning through the machine. Then slowly she could hear it, the inner workings powering up with getting a super charge from her lightning. It was still slow, leaving her time to get some distance.

Even then it was too slow for Surge, tapping from her foot could be heard while it continued to boot up. 'The boiled egg can make a robot as fast as Sonic, though can't make a startup system just as fast.' Ugh, another reason to get hid of him too.

Finally the Egg Hammer came on, and after seeming to take a moment to scan its surroundings it focused on her.

'Now we're talking. No way I can get stronger without putting it all on the line.' Surge's body still ached, though it hardly mattered as her excitement took over. 'Let's tear this fucking thing apart.'

Thus the tenrec began her assault, easily dodging the giant hammer that was swung down upon her. Packing a lot of power, though slow as ever. No, it was slower than normal. Was it still booting up, or maybe something in it's programming was bugged. Eh, who cared. All that matter was if she could smash through it.

Then Surge attacked it, feeling just how stupid dense the thing was. Something she didn't have time to process as she had to dodge the giant hand attempting to grab her. The tenrec then attacked it again, straight on in the chest, though still no damage.

'How the fuck does he do it? I've seen Sonic tear though these things in a single shot when he actually tries, and I don't hold back like him. So why can't I? I fought him, tired him out, and nearly won too.' All the while the speedster dodged the super badnik while launching counter attacks.

She still wasn't doing any damage now matter how much she attacked it, not even chipping it away at it in the slightest. Not to mention it still seemed to be moving so slow. No way it wasn't fully warmed up, and she knew the boiled egg makes his bots to adapt.

'I must be getting faster, though what good is that if I don't increase my power? I need more strength to beat, no to CRUSH Sonic.' Surge then threw caution to the weird, rushing straight at the super badnik and starting to just pound away at it, only doing close dodges to keep up on her constant assault.

Though fuck hitting this thing so many times in a row was starting to hurt the tenrec, yet she didn't stop. 'Just keep going, adapt to how tough it is, and smash it to fucking bits!' Again and again she hit the super bot, a constant trail of lightning flowing around the badnik.

However she put so much of her focus and effort to attacking she forgot about dodging, and finally the speedster felt the giant fist of the bot crashing against her body. Easily sending her flying, which was stopped by crashing into the base itself.

Surge really felt that, pain taking over her entire body which had already been aching. 'Fucking damnit, I forgot how hard these things can hit.' She thought to herself, pushing a large piece of the wall off of her.

The tenrec tried to stand, though fell to the ground. Clearly that hit was more than her body could take with how worn out it already was. No time to worry about that. She had to get up seeing as the super badnik wasn't going to give her a break, seeing it slowly stomp over to her.

'Come on, get the fuck up! You can do this, you can win, you can be better than him, better than Starline!' She then froze, the last thought echoing in her mind on repeat. Why? Why was she thing about HIM of all people. The one who did this to her, who ruined her life, who made her, THIS? Even the super badnik now standing right over her didn't snap her out of this funk.

Then it clicked. 'He was weak, he couldn't beat Eggman, and he couldn't beat Sonic. Though neither could I. Am I, as weak as him? No.' The tenrec's lighting went off. 'I'M alive, HE's gone, and I can still FIGHT!' Her lighting growing more furious and powerful. 'That means I'm stronger. That means I can WIN. I will WIN!'

Then the speedster's lightning changed, becoming pink along with the top half of her tips. As the hammer came down she moved to attack. It all happened so fast, too fast for even her to register. Though when she stopped, she realized what she did. Behind her was the super badnik, a hole blasted through from it's entire chest. She won.

Then everything hit Surge. The pain throughout her body and the lack of energy from what she just did. As hard as she tried to fight it and stay awake she passed out.

The next thing the tenrec felt was light, shining right on her and making her slow wake up. 'Damnit it, why the fuck is the sun so bright.' She thought, slowly adjusting to the light. It had to be morning. Damn, she seriously pushed herself way too far yesterday.

"...Fucking worth it," she said aloud to herself. Whatever happened, it was useful. A new power, something her own, something Starline didn't give her, and something she can use to BEAT Sonic. After she figured out what the fuck she did. Then she tried to move, and realized something else. "I can't fucking move cause of the pain." Welp, guess she was going to be here for another few hours while healing.

[midnightstargazer]

Fic Author Self Rec

When you get this, reply with your 5 favourite fics that you've written. Then pass it on to five other writers. Spread some self love.

Tagged by @celestemagnoliathewriter

1. A Little Bird Told Me

A canon divergence AU where Regulus never found out about the locket and, as a result, never betrayed Voldemort. Fast forward to 1995, the Dark Mark starts burning again - but by this point, he's perfectly happy living the "I swear I was Imperiused" life and really would rather not have Voldemort back, thank you very much.

This is probably the most intense experience I've ever had writing a fic. I had never done a fest before, but the prompt this fic was based on immediately grabbed me and refused to let go. It demanded to exist. It demanded that I write it. I stayed up late at night finishing just one more scene, typed lines of dialogue into email drafts from my phone, and had epiphanies about it at the most inconvenient of times. It wasn't meant to end up anywhere near as long as it did, but I'm super proud of the result.

Excerpt:

Okay, he had to admit it: a part of him had missed this. Not the murders or the screams of innocents, but the thrill of danger, the back-and-forth of spells, matching wits and magical power against an opponent worthy of the effort. Maybe, in another life, he could've made a career in competitive dueling. In this life - well, this life was about to be over if he wasn't careful. The dance of spells and shield charms had taken them dangerously close to the veil, and Rookwood's warning echoed in his memory as he glanced at its looming shadow. It hung over him hungrily, as though waiting for him to venture too close - or for one of his spells to knock somebody else too close.

2. They Said the End Is Coming

I adore Tedromeda, but I haven't actually had the chance to write much with them as the main focus yet. This fic imagines them a few years into their marriage, raising their daughter together, working hard to make ends meet, and navigating what role they are willing to play in the war against Voldemort. Plus a few customer service related headaches along the way. The title and the fic's inspiration come from the Taylor Swift song "Sweet Nothing."

Excerpt:

The world as they knew it was on the brink of ending, but when Andromeda arrived home, the house was warm and bright, the scent of something delicious filling the air and a faint musical sound coming from the kitchen. There, just inside, Nymphadora sat at the table with a coloring book while Ted stood by the stove, stirring a pot full of chicken soup and humming Celestina Warbeck’s song “A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love” under his breath. It wasn’t so much that Andromeda intentionally let her guard down; it was more that every wall she put up during the day, every scheme and backup plan, every suspicious thought, vanished into thin air at the sight of him.

3. Midnight Rain

My basic starting point for this fic was "What's the angstiest, most heartbreaking idea I can come up with?" So, in a storyline inspired by the Taylor Swift song "Midnight Rain," Emmeline Vance and Alice not-yet-Longbottom fall in love towards the end of their time at Hogwarts. While they both have big dreams, Emmeline is very goal-focused, while Alice has a much more balanced approach to life. As you might be able to guess, it doesn't work out - and takes a very tragic, canon-compliant turn. This fic was absolutely agonizing to write. In a good way.

Excerpt:

Alice was like nobody else Emmeline had ever met. With golden hair and bright, warm smiles, dressed in robes of Hufflepuff yellow, it was hardly an exaggeration to compare her to the sun. Maybe that was why Emmeline found it so hard to look in her direction, so hard to meet her gaze without blushing and turning away. Alice was made of pure sunshine, but Emmeline was something cold and dark, like raindrops on the surface of the lake at midnight, echoes of thunder and flashes of lightning rattling the depths of the castle long after she ought to be asleep.

4. Wit Beyond Measure

This one is about Helena Ravenclaw, both during her lifetime and her afterlife as a ghost. I really enjoyed getting to dig into my founders era headcanons and imagine the woman who the ghost of Ravenclaw Tower might have been. And the ghost she might have been in the centuries that came in between her death and her interaction with Harry. I'm especially fond of what I ended up doing with Helga Hufflepuff and how Helena's perspective on her and her House changes over time.

Excerpt:

If there was one thing Helena could change about Ravenclaw, it would be the entrance to the common room. Centuries later, children who had left their Quidditch gear inside would groan, demanding to know whose clever idea it had been, and she would smile and shake her head. “My mother’s, of course.” That made it far worse, as far as she was concerned. If it had been some silly Head of House’s idea long after the founders’ time, she would not have had to put up with it herself in the days when a locked door could still keep her out. Sixteen-year-old Helena would not have been banging on the door in the middle of the night, hoping for someone inside to let her in, because she had fifteen minutes to grab her telescope before she was due at the Astronomy Tower for class. “Feed me and I grow. Give me water and I die. What am I?” “I don’t bloody know!” Helena groaned. “Just let me in. My mother’s going to kill me if I’m late.”

5. Toujours Vivant

Regulus survives the cave, then goes to Dumbledore to change sides and ask for protection. His motives are initially rather selfish and his attitude still very prejudiced, but as time goes on, he interacts with people who challenge his views and slowly develops into a better person.

I feel weird including this on a self rec list, because it is by far my most popular fic. It doesn't need any help attracting attention. But it was the idea I just couldn't get out of my head that got me back into fic writing after years of being like, "oh, I'm an adult now, I don't do that anymore." So it has a very special place in my heart for that.

Excerpt:

He fell silent under Dumbledore’s scrutinizing gaze. For a moment, he wondered if he had said the wrong thing. Perhaps the older man thought he was finally showing his true colors in some sort of sneaky plot to infiltrate the Order, gain their leader’s trust, and bring them down from the inside with poorly-brewed potions or something. “You truly wish to become more involved?” asked Dumbledore. “I do.” “May I ask why?” Well, Regulus certainly wasn’t going to tell the truth, was he? Thank goodness the veritaserum incident had happened only once, because “I’d like to avoid outliving my usefulness” was definitely not the right answer. “I’d like to see this war end soon,” he told Dumbledore instead. “And I’ve already thrown my lot in with your side. Is it so surprising that I’d want to do my part to make sure you’re the ones who win?" Dumbledore’s smile returned. “You can say ‘our side,’ you know,” he said gently. “Our side, then,” Regulus repeated, the words feeling awkward and foreign on his tongue.

I've seen this going around a lot on my dash, and I'm not sure who's already done it, so let's make this easy. If you're seeing this and you want to do it - tag, you're it! 😉

[lightninggavemeabs]

S1E1 commentary cuz why tf not

okay who fucking knows if I'll keep up with this but I want to try it.

Season 1 is one of my absolute favorites, I think the storytelling is exceptional and it really set the foundation for the rest of the show. I've rewatched this so many times because I love it to death. I mean, right from the beginning. That intro sticks in people's heads. It's iconic. We see the flash running impossibly fast, and then cut to barry running pathetically slow. It's perfect.

The characterization of Barry Allen is subtle and immediate. We immediately get to see him interact with his coworkers, his superiors, in a way that shows his personality perfectly. He's clumsy, but brilliant enough to be kept around. He's a hard worker when he's not totally distracted. He's also a little bit goofy.

There's also the interaction between Iris and him in the lab where he tells her she looks amazing and for like half a second he has this disappointed look on his face that tells the audience everything they need to know and it's really a testament to Grant Gustins talent that we could get that information about their relationship in like two seconds.

Then of course we get Wellses speech, which I feel needs to commentary. We also get to watch our protagonist, our hero, fail to stop a crime. He gets his ass kicked and it's fun! Because we know what happens next, or most of us do.

It really amazes me how much of the storytelling in this show is dead silent. Barry walking around his lab, alone, listening to the news, looking at his murder mystery board, only for lightning to strike. It's the night that changes his life but it seems so innocuous.

And then we meet Caitlyn/Cisco who I immediately fall in love with because he's playing Lady Gaga for that guy in a coma that's just around?? for months??

And then when Barry's discovering his powers and he just starts running super fast through the city and crashes into some van? Not to mention: there is canonically a random laundry guy who knows who the Flash is. He saw Barry run and he saw his face. Really the most goated character because he doesn't say shit.

Also, there's the

Barry: You seem kinda depressed

Caitlin: because I am

it's something that definitely should make me laugh but I always have a little chuckle at it because it's like Barry, you dumbass.

I really love the music that's playing when Mardon shows Barry his powers.

Joe West ranting about how Henry killed Nora because he's so certain that nobody has any weird magical powers is so painful to watch sometimes, especially when Eddie comes up and confirms Mardon's alive immediately afterward. Yikes.

"You're not a hero, you're just a young man who was struck by lightning" - Wells Season 1

Okay, fuck these police officers who let a child sneak in and see his mother's corpse you're doing a bad job. Also, Joe is like, guess I'm a father of two now (oof)

And then the cut to him talking to the Arrow, because obviously he needs a mentor.

And the "Cool." "Cool." it's so lovely.

also "I am god" "Shut the hell up" IMPECCABLE

convinently knocking eddie out so Joe can learn about Barry's abilities. That was a plot concussion.

"he can do it, I know he can do it" because Cisco has always been Barry's biggest fan. Right from the beginning, he believed in the Flash. Do you think he knew what the flash would someday become?

and everyone smiling in the control room once mardon's dead. beautiful.

joe, with tears in his eyes, apologizing for not believing Barry for all those years, truly breaks my heart. Joe West, dadliest of dads. The conversation between Barry and Henry, too, is completely heartbreaking. Henry saying that Barry needs to stop worrying about him and live. It's beautiful.

"I've made some new friends" YEAH YOU HAVE BARRY.

and of course we end on the obligatory 'harrison wells is not who he seems' scene. this whole season is basically this happening. we also get our first glimpse of THE newspaper. this episode is an incredible start to an incredible season.

I think i'll do one of these on every episode i feel deserves one. I don't know how many that will be., Anyway I'm going to go try baking bread. See yall :)

[starsmuserainbow]

Hah, complicated. That about sums up pretty much anyone's family situations, from what Lightning can tell.

"Hm. The atmosphere, you think? Would kinda make sense, I guess, since that's changing all the time." What with climate and the stuff. Not that Lightning knew much about the details of these things, but maybe some science person could even - wait. Did he just say it runs in his family?

Before she can ask about it, he just turns off the storm as if it was a light switch, and Lightning looked around for a moment. It wasn't just a bubble of, like, no storm directly around them or something, no, he seemed to stop the whole thing just like that. "Woah! That's so cool!", she exclaimed. "So you started the storm then, too? You just have like, general control over weather or something?" She stopped, realizing that maybe asking all the questions about his powers would come across a little weird when she hadn't revealed her own yet. "Now that you showed me your powers, it's only fair I'm honest. I wasn't really asking about villains and heroes to avoid getting into a conflict that might be going. I'm... eh. Not really, I guess, but I'm trying, to be a hero myself." And she would just demonstrate, but pulling him along without a specific destination or announcing it wouldn't be good - she had people throw up after that before, which wasn't exactly a 'ooh a hero' moment like she'd want it - and running off somewhere and coming back would only look like she could, what, disappear for some seconds. "I'm super fast," she instead simply said. Ugh, it sounds so lame to just say that. She needed to come up with some easy way to demonstrate her powers in a 'wow' way.

“ 'Sides my twin, the rest of 'em don't give a literal shite. S'ppose my aunt does on my mum's side, but haven't seen her in months. It's complicated.” His words are a tad bitter, particularly towards his parents--or rather their parents to be specific. He didn't talk about this enough, but perhaps Melvin shouldn't bring it up after just meeting someone; it wasn't like he was trying to be a mood killer.

To him, it was always amusing that people tended to forget about England's weather patterns and were surprised to find it was very much a thing. At least this woman was amused by his comments, which was a bit on the refreshing side of things if he was honest. “Even if ya don't do anythin' more than wear 'em on your head. I mean, they're horribly fashionable in my opinion!” He's half serious, half joking, and honestly it's hard to tell which one it's more of at this point. Could go either way, really.

A shrug is given in response, not really understanding the reason, but didn't really care either way. “Must be the atmosphere or somethin'. I mean, with I am it's a more genetic thing; runs in my family after all. Bloodlines and all that. I mean, I wouldn't want to either, if I'm honest 'bout it. A real mess.” Yet for a moment, he began to wonder if there was a fight going on, and they didn't know about it. It was possible after all. No, they'd have to be crazy to in this weather for certain.

He couldn't help the childish grin that crossed onto his face, even though the wind made his hair a right mess and nearly took the goggles off his head. “Oh, it's buildin' a'right. I enjoy it too much, really,” he takes a look around, making sure that nobody else is nearby. “Well, we can, but I can do this instead.” His words are finished off with a snap of his fingers, and all of a sudden the storm stops as soon as it started.

@starsmuserainbow

[katzkinder]

was talking with friends about what's necessary for an Eve to be successful at their position and what an individual Servamp might need from their particular Eve, and of course this came back to talking about Wrath arc since that's the most polarizing for some reason when it comes to who should have been Freya's Eve, but also Tetsu and Mikuni got involved, which is... Gonna be fun to ramble about LOL

Alright so ripping the bandaid off real fast, Tsurugi... Would make a bad Eve. I love him but it is so so true, he would be a TERRIBLE Eve, because until Mahiru entered his soul and helped him confront his loneliness, he lacked the most important thing for being an Eve: the ability to make his own decisions.

If an Eve is a Servamp's reason, the one who pulls them back from the brink, what do you think will happen if someone becomes an Eve who can't do that task? Someone like Tsurugi, who has only ever blindly obeyed the orders given to him without question? What do you think would happen if he made a Contract with the Servamp of Wrath, who is shown having Eves in positions of power before, who dislikes senseless death and murder, if she were tied to a man who only knows how to look to his superiors for who he's supposed to kill next?

If he had become her Eve, he never would have been able to grow beyond the him who looked at Mahiru and blithely talked about the reality that the outcome of the war would decide whether he was a hero or a mass murderer. He literally could not even think for himself enough to question whether he was right or not.

That is. Really fucking bad lmao.

Especially since even if Tsurugi survived the trial of wrath (he wouldn't, because he's a footsoldier who only knows how to do as told and Freya needs someone who can equal her, not be consumed by her), when it came to rescuing Shuuhei from Shamrock? He would not have pulled his blade like Iduna made Freya do (and even Freya herself is shocked by the decision Iduna made. She's clearly not used to having her Eves, while in battle, show mercy or make decisions that don't end in bloodshed). He would have killed Shamrock, saved Shuuhei, and doomed everyone because he just offed one of Tsubaki's inner circle and sent him on a made quest for revenge, AGAIN, thoroughly ruining both the plot and Servamp's narrative cohesion.

Anyway all of that *gestures above* is also why I think Tetsu ended up NOT being an Eve this whole time. He, like Tsurugi was, is completely dependent on others to tell him what to do. He doesn't think when things don't add up, he simply accepts whatever he's told at face value, and that... It ended badly for him, suffice to say. He was used by Hugh and, like a dog that's been kicked, had no idea what to do when hurt by his master via betrayal.

Which brings me to Mikuni. He is the OPPOSITE of Tetsu. He is someone who commands his Servamp without ever taking Jeje's thoughts into account. And while he's a decent Eve of Envy, WHOO MAMA Y'ALL he would be so so bad as the Eve of Lust.

He and Lily are just too similar and if they didn't live together since Mikuni was a fetus, they would not get along at all lololol. Even now, because they're so similar, there's no like... cross talk? Between them?? There's no one who steps back and says "hey what the hell that's fucked up" when one or the other wants to do something Stupid.

And basically what I'm getting at here is that being an Eve for one Servamp is not necessarily a qualification where you are just Super Suited For Being An Eve.

Because the Servamps and Eves are individuals, so their own differences lead to combinations which are either lightning in a bottle (Kuro and Mahiru) or destined for tragedy (Mikuni and Lily)

We should all be very grateful that Mikuni never inherited Lily like he was supposed to :) Those mean bitches would have caused so much chaos together and I love that for them, but I don't want the world to end ya feel

[depressed-teacup-inc]

It’s “assassinate Nino’s character” hours

Hey so you know how miraculous does this thing where it will release a whole bunch of episodes except one super fast, and usually the one unreleased episode holds important info for the plot or has something upsetting happen in it?

So this is this episode, they ruined Nino again

Ok first of all, before y’all ask, I’m not upset at Nino for saying that he and Alya used to be carapace and Rena Rouge. Literally everyone but Ladybug and Chat Noir were revealing identities AND LITERALLY ALIX INFORMED THE ENTIRE CLASS THAT SHE WAS LEAVING TO BE A SUPERHERO, so it’s fine that he’s talking about it, because frankly, if everyone in fucking Paris can know someone’s hero identity and still have them be a hero, then the identity rule doesn’t fucking matter and they should MOVE THE FUCK ON FROM THIS PLOT

Also the audacity of these two for getting angry at Nino telling Adrien his identity after he was already caught by Hawkmoth, WHEN MARINETTE AKA LADYBUG AKA THE ENFORCER OF EVERYTHING IDENTITY RULE REVEALED HERSELF TO ALYA

But I digress moving on~

I’m upset at Nino (or well. The plot assassinating Nino’s character for conflict) because he legit forced all his friends to try to akumatize someone he already knows is volatile and can hurt his friends, and said this to Adrien (which hey might be true ngl, but still dude, dick fucking move)

I understand that the show needed a conflict for this episode and a way to “uncover” how Monarch grants powers (which btw why the fuck was it magic lightning?! They could’ve literally just shown the akuma with an accent color corresponding to a miraculous and say he’s transferring powers using the butterfly miraculous, aka THE MIRACULOUS OF TRANSMISSION?! Literally that’s what they should’ve done in the first place with season 5 but I digress) but Nino seriously did not need to be such a cunt for this episode to work? Nino did not need to involve Adrien in this knowing he would get in trouble, or he could’ve tried to track all the parents, because parent-teacher conferences are already a big stress, and then when Gabriel catches them, he’d be “mad”.

Which speaking of, before I hear anyone blame Lila for why that plan didn’t fucking work, LILA DOES NOT KNOW GABRIEL IS MONARCH! The plan didn’t work because it was idiotic, and considering how her character is constantly made worse and worse and everyone is made dumber and dumber just make marinette look like a beautiful innocent victim in comparison(they reset the characters again, Adrien and Alya are not suspicious at all), I’m less angry at her and more tired of the writing of the show. She didn’t purposely say it to help monarch, but the show will just claim she did because apparently she’s worse then the terrorist now (and make her a spy for Monarch on the resistance, and again “marinette is always right because she’s the best and people should always listen to her”)

Everything else this episode was more or less alright or annoying, the rings are still idiotic and don’t make sense, Marinette stop making everything about yourself and acting high and mighty, YOU WERE LITERALLY THE FIRST PERSON VOTING FOR THIS PLAN, DON’T GO AND LECTURE NINO LIKE YOU WEREN’T A PART OF THIS! And also not everything is about your love life, Adrien got in trouble because you encouraged an idiotic plan that would hurt him, this has nothing to do with your “love”

Also Gabriel… fuck I’m scared of what the show is gonna do.

This episode finally addresses why Gabriel has been suddenly a housewife, but it still doesn’t make sense???? Like Gabriel says that the reason he wants to have more meals and quality time spent with Adrien is because he feels bad for neglecting him, and wants to make things better again, But when Adrien mentioned not liking the alliance, Gabriel half threatened him? Saying “hey if you want to go to how things used to be if you’re so unhappy with my invention, be my guest” like god I don’t trust you

And like? I still don’t understand Gabriel’s motive? Like I think they tried to address that with Passion saying it has something to do with him getting cataclysmed??? But what would that have to do with anything? Gabe finally acknowledged the inevitability of death and wants to be nice?

And the thing is, that implies that either:

A. This is some sort of big manipulative plan we don’t understand yet, or…

B. Gabriel, after what happened in this show, is getting a redemption arc.

And I swear to god. I already mentioned my fear of the show trying to redeem him and claim he’s innocent and really just did all of this for his family, but considering that fact he’s an actual terrorist that tried to shoot a missile in New York, and that he gets sidetracked from saving Emilie to just hunting all the miraculous and being a generic villain??

Like bro you had the chance to maybe redeem him for his actions in season 2, but now he’s just a bad abusive guy that ignored and abused and manipulated his son for the sake of power, AND IF THE SHOW IS TRYING TI WRITE OFF WHAT HE DID LIKE THEY DID TO JAGGED AND HAVE EVERYONE FORGIVE HIM I WILL START A MOTHERFUCKING RIOT (I STILL DON’T FORGIVE JAGGED)

But yeah that’s the episode, despite everything, I’m glad Adrien has the illusion of a normal family for one second.