#i feel like it could be amanda just cause its like her vision and stuff

[clockworkcheetah]

i still so badly wanna know who the 'You're not supposed to be here.' line in amandas vision was about

[dailydianakko]

Undying Au- God doesnt exist

I think I will cause problems on purpose. Anyway enjoy more of my little fic :3

NO!” I screamed. I was horrorfied! Lotte Go’thic 666 Nightfall tried to comfort me but I told her fuck off and I ran to my room crying myself. Holbrock chased after me shouting but she had to stop when I went into my room cause she would look like a perv that way. Anyway, I started crying tears of blood and then I slit both of my wrists. They got all over my clothes so I took them off and jumped into the bath angrily while I put on a Linkin Park song at full volume. I grabbed a steak and almost stuck it into my heart to commit suicide. I was so fucking depressed! I got out of the bathtub and put on a black low-cut dress with lace all over it sandly. I put on black high heels with pink metal stuff on the ends and six pairs of skull earrings. I couldn’t fucking believe it. Then I looked out the window and screamed… Lunkic was spying on me and she was taking a video tape of me! And Pices was masticating to it! They were sitting on their broomsticks. “EW, YOU FUCKING PERVS, STOP LOOKING AT ME NAKED! ARE YOU PEDOS OR WHAT!” I screamed putting on a black towel with a picture of Marilyn Mason on it. Suddenly Vampire ran in. “Abra Kedavra!” she yelled at Lunkic and Piceese pointing her womb. I took my gun and shot Loonkic and Peeses a gazillion times and they both started screaming and the camera broke. Suddenly Hoobrock ran in. “Akko, it has been revealed that someone has - NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” she shouted looking at Lunick and pieces and then she waved her wand and suddenly… Nelson ran outside on her broom and said everyone we need to talk. “What do you know, Nelson? You’re just a little Hogwarts student!” “I MAY BE A HOGWARTS STUDENT….” Nelson paused angrily. “BUT I AM ALSO A SATANIST!” “This cannot be.” LAnick said in a crisp voice as blood dripped from her hand where Holbrooke’s wand had shot her. “There must be other factors.” “YOU DON’T HAVE ANY!” I yelled in madly. Piceses held up the camera triumelephantly. “The lens may be ruined but the tape is still there!” I felt faint, more than I normally do like how it feels when you do not drink enough blood. “Why are you doing this?” Peices said angrily while she rubbed her dirty fin on her hat. And then I heard the words that I had heard before but not from her. I did not know whether to feel shocked and happy or to bite her and drink her blood because I felt faint. “BECAUSE…BECAUSE….” Nelson said and she paused in the air dramitaclly, waving her wand in the air. Then swooped she in singing to the tune of a gothic version of a song by 50 Cent. “Because you’re goffic?” Lunkic asked in a little afraid voice cause she was afraind it meant she was connected with Satan. “Because I LOVE HER!” Chapter 12. AN: stop f,aing ok hargrid is a pedo 2 a lot of ppl in amerikan skoolz r lik dat I wunted 2 adres da ishu! how du u no snap iant kristian plus hargrid isn’t really in luv wif ebony dat was sedric ok! XXXXXXXXXXXXX666XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX I was about to slit my wrists again with the silver knife that Duana had given me in case anything happened to her. She had told me to use it valiantly against an enemy but I knew that we must both go together. “NO!” I THOUGHT IT WAS NELsOOM but it was Vampire. She started to scream. “OMFG! NOOOOO! MY HEMMROID HURTS!” and then….. her eyes rolled up! You could only see her red whites. I stopped. “How did u know?” “I saw it! And my vein turned back into the hemmerpiod!” “NO!” I ran up closer. “I thought you didn’t have a hemorrhoid anymore!” I shouted. “I do but Diabolo changed it into a pentagram for me and I always cover it up with foundation.” she said back. “Anyway my vein hurt and it turned back into the hemmeroid! Save me! then I had a vision of what was happening to Duana…………….Paul has her in bondage!” Anyway I was in the school nurse’s office now recovering from my slit wrists. Lunkick and Peeses and NELSOM were there too. They were going to St. Mango’s after they recovered cause they were pedofiles and you can’t have those fucking pervs teaching in a school with lots of hot gurlz. Chariot had constipated the cideo camera they took of me naked. I put up my middle finger at them. Anyway Nelson came into my hospital bed holding a bouquet of pink roses. “AKjew I need to tell u somethnig.” she said in a v. serious voice, giving me the roses. “Fuck off.” I told her. “You know I fucking hate the color pink anyway, and I don’t like fucked up preps like you.” I snapped. Nelsom had been mean to me before for being gottik. “No Akkeo.” Neelson says. “Those are not roses.” “What, are they goffs too you poser prep?” I asked cause I was angry that she had brought me pink roses. “I saved your life!” She yelled angrily. “No you didn’t I replied.” “You saved me from getting a Paris Hilton p- video made from your shower scene and being vued by Lunnick and Peeses.” Who MASTABATED (c is dat speld rong) to it he added silently. “Whatever!” I yelled angirly. She pointed her wand at the pink roses. “These aren’t roses.” She suddenly looked at them with an evil look in her eye and muttered Well If you wanted Honesty that’s all you haD TO SAY! . “That’s not a spell that’s an MCR song.” I corrected her wisely. “I know, I was just warming up my vocal cordes.” Then she screamed. “Petulus merengo mi kremicli romacio(4 all u cool goffic mcr fans out, there, that is a tribute! specially for Valkyrie I love you girl!)imo noto okayo!” And then the roses turned into a huge black flame floating in the middle of the air. And it was black. Now I knew she wasn’t a prep. “OK I believe you now wtf is Duana?” Nelson rolled her eyes. I looked into the balls of flame but I could c nothing. “U c, Akkeo,” Howdybrooke said, watching the two of us watching the flame. “2 c wht iz n da flmes(HAHA U REVIEWRS FLAMES GEDDIT) u mst find urslf 1st, k?” “I HAVE FOUND MYSELF OK YOU MEAN OLD WOOMAN!” NalsOM yelled. HOWDYbrookes lookd shockd. I guess she didn’t have a headache or else she would have said something back. Neleleson stormed off back into her bed. “U r a liar, proof Hobrookee!” Anyway when I got better I went upstairs and put on a black leather minidress that was all ripped on the ends with lace on it. There was some corset stuff on the front. Then I put on black fishnets and black high-heeled boots with pictures of Billie Joe Armstrong on them. I put my hair all out around me so I looked like Samara from the Ring (if u don’t know who she iz ur a prep so fuk off!) and I put on blood-red lipstick, black eyeliner and black lip gloss. “You look kawai, girl.” Sucy P’oison said sadly. “Fangs (geddit) you do too.” I said sadly too, but I was still upset. I slit both of my wrists feeling totally depressed and I sucked all the blood. I cried again in my bathroom and put the shades on so Lunnkick and ppeses couldn’t spy on me this time. I went to some classes. Vampire was in the Flying Class. She looked all depressed because Duana had disappeared and she had used to be in love with Duana. She was sucking some blood from Chole. “Hi.” she said in a depressed way. “Hi back.” I said in an wqually said way. We both looked at each other for some time. Amanda had beautiful red gothic eyes so much like Duanas. Then……… we jumped on each other and started screwing each other. “STOP IT NOW YOU HORNY SIMPLETONS!” shouted Professor Croiz who was watching us and so was everyone else. “Vampire you fucker!” I said slapping her. “Stop trying to screw me. You know I loved Duana!” I shouted and then I ran away angrily. Just then she started to scream. “OMFG! NOOOOO! MY HEMMEROID HURTS!” and then….. her eyes rolled up! You could only see her red whites. “NO!” I ran up closer. “I thought you didn’t have a hermmeroid anymore!” I shouted. “I do but Diabolo changed it into a pentagram for me and I always cover it up with foundation.” she said back. “Anyway my hemmeroid hurt and then I had a vision of what was happening to Duana…………….POOL has her bondage!” XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX666XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Vampire and I ran up the stairs looking for HobRoock. We were so scared. "HOBroock HoldbROOKE!” we both yelled. HOlbrooke came there. “What is it that you want now you despicable snobs?” she asked angrily. “PAUL has Diana!” we shouted at the same time. She laughed in an evil voice. “No! Don’t! We need to save Duana!” we begged. “No.” she said meanly. “I don’t give a darn what Paul does to Diana. Not after how much she misbehaved in school especially with YOU Akko.” she said while she frowned looking at me. “Besides I never liked her that much anyway.” then she walked away. Vampire started crying. “My Diana!” she moaned. (AN: don’t u fik gay guyz r lik so hot!) “Its okay!” I tried to tell her but that didn’t stop her. She started to cry tears of blood. Then she had a brainstorm. “I had an idea!” she exclaimed. “What?” I asked her. “You’ll see.” she said. She took out her wand and did a spell. Then…… suddenly we were in Pauls MAnsion! We ran in with our wands out just as we heard a croon voice say. “I kast GUN!” It was……………………………….. PAUL! XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX666XXXXXXXXXX WARNING: SUM OF DIS CHAPTA IS XTREMLY SCRAY. VIOWER EXCRETION ADVISD. We ran to where PAul was. It turned out that Paul wasn’t there. Instead Duanas Cousin MErril was. Diana was there crying tears of blood. Meryll was torturing her. Vampire and I ran in front of Merill. “Rid my sight you despicable preps!” she shouted as we started shooting her with the gun she Then suddenly she looked at me and she fell down with a lovey-dovey look in her eyes. “AkkoyIloveyouwiluhavesexwithme.” she said. (in dis she is sixteen yrs old so shes not a pedofile ok) “Huh?” I asked. ”Akko I love you will you have sex with me?” asked merrioll. I started laughing crudely. “What the fuck? You torture my gf and then you expect me to fuck you? God, you are so fucked up you fucking bastard.” I said angrily. Then I stabbed her in the heart. Blood pored out of it like a fountain. “Nooooooooooooo!” she screamed. She started screaming and running around. Then she fell down and died. I brust into tears sadly. “Morril what art thou doing?” called Pauul. Then…… she started coming! We could hear her high heels clacking to us. So we got on our broomsticks and we flew to Loona Noova. We went to my room. Vampire went away. There I started crying. “What’s wrong honey?” asked Diana taking off her clothes so we could screw. She had a sex-pack (geddit cuz shes so sexah) and a really huge you-know-what and everything. “Its so unfair!” I yielded. “Why can’t I just be ugly or plain like all da other girls and preps here except for Sucy P'oison, because she’s not ugly or anything.” “Why would you wanna be ugly? I don’t like the preps anyway. They are such fucking sluts.” answered Diana. “Yeah but everyone is in love with me! Like Liunkink and Peices took a video of me naked. Nelsom says she’s in love with me. Vampire likes me and now even Meriol is in love with me! I just wanna be with you ok Diana! Why couldn’t Satan have made me less beautiful?” I shouted angrily. (an” don’t wory Akkow isn’t a snob or anyfing but a lot of ppl hav told her shes pretty) “Im good at too many things! WHY CAN’T I JUST BE NORMAL? IT’S A FUCKING CURSE!” I shouted and then I ran away.

[letscuttothefeeling]

season three episode three

Let me start off by congratulating the producers – not you Ish – on this great episode. I finally feel like we’re back to THE SHOW. Not a weird Bachelor spin-off with minimal drama and blatantly horrible editing (see: Juliette’s grad party scene, where Chloe’s nails change color DURING THE PARTY.) Nope, we’re done with that and back to the good stuff, so on that note, let’s cut to the feeling.

Come ON MTV it’s like you weren’t even trying. And yes, I created this, and no, I don’t have a life.

I know I’m going to like an episode when it starts off with the angelic sounds of my lord and savior, Ariana Grande. As break up with ur girlfriend, i’m bored plays, we zoom into Cara’s house. Personally, I’m hoping to see Victoria. Alas – it’s just Cara…and Garrett. God, Garrett STOP. Your ex-girlfriend has already outlined exactly how Cara is using you – since she did the exact same thing - and you’re still asking Cara on dates? This is so cringe. Where’s Victoria?!

Even though Garrett can’t score a date, Brandon can! Maybe instead of asking Cara to go look at babies, you should ask her to rollerblade, G Baby. As Amanda and Brandon glide around the Key, we learn that Brandon is celebrating his 24th birthday on Friday! And it’s “24, Like, Karat Gold Slash, Like, Pirate, Sort Of” themed, of course! He debates whether or not to invite Juliette while giving us viewers amazing helmet safety tips. Meanwhile, after Cara has removed G Baby from her property, she makes her way to Chloe’s to checkuppé on her. This is where we learn that Chloe has officially called the cops and filed a police report. I have a lot of opinions, but more on this later.

Okay, something I haven’t touched on because I wish it wasn’t happening I haven’t had time is that Kelsey and Jared have sparked a little romance. If you don’t remember, while Kelsey was dating her random LA boyfriend, Jared was the 86th person she cheated on him with. I see this going well! I mean, it always works out when you leave someone you cheated on for the person you cheated with. Right? Plus, there’s Twisted Tea and mudding involved, so Kelsey can rest assured she’ll be going on sophisticated and expensive dates instead of the shitty and poor dates that Garrett used to take her on.

FINALLY, the C + V scene I need and deserve. Donning a black one-piece that contrasts perfectly with her frozen fruity pink drink, Victoria is effortlessly exuding two polar opposite, chaotic energies. I’m getting “sassy”, but I’m also getting “I’ll fuck you up if you insult my 90’s Quiksilver skater shoes.” AKA, I’m getting Avril during the Girlfriend era. And I love it. As she floats next to Cara in the pool and shockingly proclaims that she’s not into guys, (what?!) I’m on my knees praying to God himself that she become a main cast member vis-à-vis a relationship with Cara. It’s Victoria’s show, and we’re all just living in it, baby. After Cara’s bizarre comment about how her parents punish her by locking her in their wine cellar (weird flex, but okay) Victoria giggles about how dumb Garrett is and we move on.

We leave C and V for a Madisson and Kelsey reunion, but it’s not a happy one. Madisson delivers the unfortunate news that Chloe may be pressing charges. Oh no! I would be really upset by this, but I can’t focus on the content of Madisson’s words because of how she’s delivering them. Madisson, we fully understand that you’ve been to an acting class in LA because you won’t shuttupé about it, so you can stop over-enunciating everything that comes out of your mouth. Thanks!

After Kelsey tells Juliette about her impending stint in Florida prison, she gets understandably upset. Luckily, Boring Robby is there to teach Juliette how to apologize. Don’t say he never did anything for her! I want to point out that Kelsey truly has been redeeming herself this season. She’s been pretty level headed and a very good friend. If only Boring Robby could do the same… Later in the day, Kelsey confronts Robby about another thing Madisson spilled during their meetup. Apparently, while Juliette was fighting everyone last week, Boring Robby had the audacity to applaud her! How gauche. Boring Robby vehemently denies these claims, saying, “Always take the high road, because the low road is way too crowded,” and, “Silence is the best way to react to a fool, and happiness is the best revenge.” First of all, stop lying about things that were FILMED on national television. You’re now Boring Robby: The Liar. Second of all, why are you the human embodiment of my ninth grade Pinterest quotes board?

Grab your pillows and sleeping bags because we are heading to a SLUMBER PARTY! But before anyone can start braiding each other’s hair, Chloe begins to stir the pot, yet again. She delights in bringing up Brandon and Amanda’s new relationship right in front of Madisson. But to distract from the awkwardness, Amanda changes the subject to her missing phone. After the fight, she lost her phone and no one has been able to find it. She starts to give us a play-by-play analysis of why and how she thinks Boring Robby: The Liar stole it. I’m sorry, am I watching Joe Goldberg on You, or am I watching Amanda on Siesta Key? 

It’s the day of the BG’s bday, and I’m so excited to see everyone’s 24 Karat Gold Slash Like Pirate themed outfits! They don’t disappoint - G Baby and Victoria are even matching!! I’ve never screamed so loudly in my life. Garrett obviously refuses to drink, and we’re off to the party. But first, there’s one guest who needs to arrive.

As Alex descends from his family’s PJ strapped with Louis luggage, a BEER, and fresh digs straight from the Siesta Key mall, I can feel the blood coming back into my body. I can feel individual atoms multiplying. I can feel my soul re-entering my empty, hollow frame. I feel exactly like Bella in the fourth Twilight novel, Breaking Dawn. After her half-human, half-vampire baby has eaten its way out of her uterine lining, Edward is forced to do the unthinkable: steal Bella’s mortal soul by turning her into a vampire so she has a shot to survive. (It’s the second time in the series that vampire Edward is forced to resist sucking all of Bella’s enticing blood to save her – that’s true love.) As she starts to respond to his venom, each and every one of her cells begins to freeze over and restore life to her body. Suddenly, she is awake. Her vision is sharp, her mind is clear, and she’s never looked better. And that’s EXACTLY how I felt as Alex exited his plane.

I expect nothing less than for Alex to arrive at BG’s party with three underage Ukrainian mail-order brides. And he doesn’t disappoint. Unfortunately for the brides, he immediately begins discussing relationships with Cara. It’s fun to see Cara pride herself in not cheating on people for the past year. I kind of feel like that should be a given, but okay. As they’re undressing each other with their eyes talking, Garrett is having an interesting convo of his own. Classic Chloe starts stirring the pot AGAIN by telling Garrett that Cara is using him. Really Chloe? Cara is supposed to be your best friend. What’s more shocking is that VICTORIA starts to betray Cara as well. This causes an immediate fight between Carrett. They leave the party and start screaming at each other in the jungle. I’m so enraptured by the fight that I momentarily forget they’re at a themed party and fixate on Garrett’s outfit. Why am I watching Garrett Miller scream in a jungle dressed as a pirate? Oh, right. Anyways.

Even though Cara and G Baby are scream fighting, the party continues to rage on. And everyone is makingoutté. Kelsey and Jared, Amanda and Brandon... something is in the air! It must be the pirate theme. #LetsGetScurvy. But one person isn’t feeling the love – Madisson. With Dad gone, she has no one to kish. Clearly bothered by watching her friend and ex-boyfriend eat each other’s faces, Madisson decides to give Brandon the sad news that Amanda is using him. Whether or not she is, Madisson has no right to give her opinion on the matter. And BG says exactly that. Good for him! Another person surprisingly not making out with someone is Alex. He’s too busy being an asshole to Kelsey and telling anyone who will listen that Boring Robby is bad news. Probably true, but literally no one can be worse than he is, except maybe Pauly Paul. In other news, WHERE IS PAUL.

Unfortunately, the next scene doesn’t involve Pauly or Victoria – just Chloe and Juliette. Juliette shows up after Chloe gets out of work to hopefully avoid jailtime hash things out. Now strap in because I’m about to explain exactly where I stand with the Chloe/Juliette drama, and if you aren’t completely focused, please take a 10mg Adderall, wait ten minutes, and check back in.

Okay, hopefully, you’ve taken amphetamines and can really dial in. Here goes: I realize that Chloe is a necessary evil - it’s an indisputable fact that there would be no show without her antics. No one is as shameless when it comes to talking shit and completely ruining their friendships for the sake of television. And for that, I deeply respect Chloe. (I realize that sounds sarcastic but I am dead serious. Thank you for taking one for the team, Chloe.) But I simply cannot stand when she gets what’s coming to her then plays the innocent victim. Obviously, violence is not cool, and Juliette should be embarrassed by her behavior. But Chloe knew exactly what the outcome of that conversation would be. She was banking on a wasted Juliette reacting horribly. With Chloe, you simply cannot win. Earlier in this episode, Chloe verbatim says to Madisson and Cara, “If the roles were reversed, I would have shown up at her house, apologizing.”

Now cut to this scene, where Chloe verbatim says to Juliette (after Juliette shows up at her workplace) “I really don’t know why you’re here, so if you can please leave and leave me alone.”

Juliette said it best herself – “Chloe is my best friend when I’m miserable. When I’m actually thriving…this type of stuff happens.” Let’s take a moment to analyze the similarities and differences of how Chloe and the rest of the cast handled Chloe’s altercation with Amanda during season one, in which Amanda broke Chloe’s nose and sent her to surgery. After sending Chloe to the hospital, Amanda justifies her actions by saying that Chloe started it first. So everyone is okay with Amanda decking Chloe. The fact is, Chloe started it first here, too. Chloe swatted at Juliette’s hand first. So why did everyone grab coffee with Amanda, but ostracize Juliette? Amanda even had a sit-down conversation with Chloe after her surgery expecting Chloe to apologize. The inconsistencies and hypocrisy present…I CANNOT.

Chloe acts like everyone’s best friend to stay relevant and betrays them the second it benefits her. While I do agree that Juliette is only apologizing because she’s scared Chloe will press charges, I think people who talk shit, unfortunately, get hit, on occasion. Until next week!

[chronicbatfictioner]

A Real Boy - Chapter 23

Tim's suspicion didn't pan out. Appallingly. Amanda Waller, even when not hidden by the government's reverse 'Big Brother' watch, did exactly as suspected from someone assigned to 'protect a nation's security'. She went to meetings with people of questionable types, both the clandestine and actually not-so-nice kind of questionable; she went to secret meetings, and not-so-secret meetings with government-looking people. And so on and so forth. Watching her activities was literally like looking at a generic spy movie. By the end of the footages, Tim could tell who was actually following her, which of them were friendlies, which of them were not.

"If it's any consolation, I'm sure she, too, knows which of them are friendlies, which are not." Barbara told him, smiling.

"Yeeeah... I just... I-- I saw Conner's energy, Babs, I'm sure." Tim sighed. "There are several possibilities: one is that his soul was trying to return. But Jason said if a familiar is perished, its soul would simply perish into the magi; making the magi more powerful. If the magi is killed, well... that's it. Done and dusted. If a magi died peacefully, there's always a chance that the familiar will get inherited. Conner was an effigy, technically. When he died, he would've gotten absorbed into Clark... and Clark would have known it..." he stopped at the unspoken question in Barbara's face. "Uh... yeah, I asked Jason what happened if a familiar is killed or something. Because I wanna know what happened to my mom's familiar..."

"Janet was a fae-magi. She didn't have a familiar." Barbara stated, looking even more puzzled than before. "Jason said she had one?"

"Yeah, he said she took my dad's rejected familiar." Tim told her. "She never showed you?"

"I was under the impression that, yeah, all magi would like to show off their familiars. And since Jan never did, I thought she didn't have one." Barbara explained. "Now I'm wondering what her familiar was... But anyway. Okay, here's a hole in your theory of the energy being Conner's. If his soul - or what equates as his 'soul' after he was brought to life."

"...And for the record, once a being is sentient, it has a soul." Jason interrupted, walking in next to Zitka - the latter looking like a grey hairless St Bernard next to Jason. "Right, Zitka?" he added once he noticed Tim's sight on the elephant. Zitka trumpeted what sounded like an exclamation point.

"Okay, even effigies?"

"Effigies' soul differ only in color and wavelength. We usually have similar colors to our respective magi, likely in lighter tones. Effigies tend to display the color of its maker - the literal crafter. If the magi is, like, red; and the maker is yellow, the effigy could be orange, instead, or striped or polka-dotted." Jason explained.

"Ooo--kay..." Barbara drawled. "That's... and who can tell the colors of a magickal person?" she wanted to know.

Jason shrugged, "a magi whose powers are of light spectrum? I dunno, that's just how it was explained to me. I never actually asked how."

"You're not helping..." Tim grumbled. "But wait! We all saw the flash of colors, of Bart's, and of Conner's, in the video footage, didn't we?"

"Yes we did..." Barbara grinned. "Oooh, hey, looks like we might just found out how and what magick, real or metaphorical, to use." she added, tapping several commands into her keyboard. "Alright, here's an image of Luthor. I'm using the same filters I used for the CCTV footage of then..."

It was a short footage, extended using the slow-motion filters required to capture what happened to Bart a few days ago. The only difference was that since Lex Luthor did not move in super-high speed like Bart did, the footage took a good long ten seconds to show the soft red light around him.

"Okay," Barbara stopped the footage. "I saw red. You?" Jason and Tim nodded, and Zitka snorted slightly. "Now we do Clark's." she said, putting a different footage, this one of Clark flying over Metropolis in high speed.

"Blue, like Conner's. I toldja it was Conner the other day... If I could see him, that means he's still alive!" Tim nodded in satisfaction. "What?" he demanded when he realized that Barbara was still glaring at him.

"I never knew that, and I've known Clark for a good long while. How did you know Conner's color? Or Bart's?" she asked curiously. "Bart explained that his connection with the Speed Force allowed him to see people's soul - a magi's soul, that is. He couldn't see the souls of people who has no magick. We actually tried that filter on his suggestion. But... you saw the footage and promptly pre-recognized Bart and the other color signature. How?"

Tim blinked. He never realized that he could. He looked at Jason for answers.

"Oh no, you're not gonna blame me for that! I can tell if a person is a magi or not and/or whether they have embraced and/or cultivated their magicks. But I don't know the spectrum of their powers." Jason protested.

Barbara was glaring at him, still, and it made Tim a little uneasy. "What... I don't know how. I just do. And it's just like, for the kids I hang out with..." Tim replied lamely. "I mean, Bart and I-- and Cassie and Conner... we've been friends for a good long while. Rachel just kinda dropped by right thereafter, and when Rachel met us, I already know each of Bart, Cassie, and Conner's colors and stuff.

"Maybe it's something he picked up for hanging out with them for a good long while?" Jason suggested. "Still..." he paused to think.

Barbara picked up where he'd paused. "Still that would mean that you have another aspect of your magick that you probably haven't developed. I'll figure out how you can develop it... or maybe Jason can look through the texts, 'cause I don't think that's the kind of knowledge that's been archived digitally." she said, turning toward her workspace.

Tim didn't even realize he was still blinking owlishly without really looking at Barbara until Jason waved his hand in front of Tim's face. "What??" he demanded.

"I just watched your brain doing the search Babs suggested, reboot itself, and does the search again to no avail. So no, Timmy, I don't have the information yet, either. So let's just do something we know what to do, before delving into the unknown." Jason remarked.

"Which is?" the question was rather moot, because Tim already know the answer.

"I'm gonna go consult the words written on paper. You, well, you can take a nap. Actually, please take a nap. I'm exhausted just by looking at you being tired."

The remark made Tim yawn. He didn't even realize how tired he was until Jason pointed it out.

"Bed, yes?" Jason said.

"How is it you're the one in tune with my feelings?" Tim grumbled, but didn't resist when Jason pulled him and semi-dragged him out of the cave toward the bedrooms.

"It's my job. Or genes. Whatever floats your boat, Timbit. Also your tune with yourself is more out of wack than most people. But that's a rant for another time..."

"You gonna go to the library or stay with me?" Tim's mouth said. Or maybe his brain. At this point, he couldn't be sure anymore. "Whatever 'it' is, Jay, you know we gotta bring Conner home... He's alive. I knew it. I can't see dead people's colors..." he insisted sleepily as Jason shoved him onto the bed.

"I'll stay, the books can come to me." Jason replied, tucking the blankets around Tim and then tucked himself next to Tim.

"I forgot you can magick, too..." Tim mumbled as he relished on the probably-10-thousand-thread-count cotton that is the Wayne family's bedsheets. He was out within seconds, not even knowing if Jason had actually stayed or not. The only thing that signaled Jason's presence was his body's warmth.

Conner walked in to the Wayne Manor. Or flew in. Usually he would fly in, Tim knew. But his brain just wasn't awake enough to make the distinction or even to remember which bedroom he'd been sleeping in. Or if it's day or night.

Or if he was actually awake or asleep, and the sight before him was a mere dream.

Until the bed tilted and Jason poked his cheek, hard, and said, "Okay, we're good. He's conscious, I think."

"I hope so," Conner replied.

"Good dream." Tim retorted. "Now will you please just let me wake up so I don't have to feel sad that Conner isn't really-- What the hell!" --he yelped angrily when someone out of his line of vision slapped him. He blinked a few times, before his eyes finally focused to a mop of blonde-ness next to him. "Stephanie??"

"He's definitely awake, now." Stephanie grinned triumphantly.

"Weee--ll... If I were the one slapping him, he'd be unconscious again."

Tim was sitting up by then, belatedly clutching the blanket around his hips when he realized that someone - probably Jason - had changed his day-clothes to an oversized sleep-shirt and nothing else but his boxers.

"It's not like I've never seen you sleep, before..." Conner remarked, snickering.

"It's... he's-- what--" Tim spluttered coherently, one finger pointing at Conner. He looked at Jason, and then Stephanie. "I'm dreaming, right? I mean, there's Conner, and you-- you're not supposed to be even here... This has got to be some sort of subliminal wish of mine and all..."

Jason rubbed Tim's hair absently, eyes still practically glued to the tablet Tim didn't even see him carrying. "Don't worry about it, Timbit. It's not a dream and you can be in denial all you want."

Conner took a seat at the foot of the bed. "I'm... real, buddy. I'm... there's a long story behind this and I think I'll wait until Mr Alfred brings you coffee so you can be a bit more... coherent."

Stephanie scoffed. "Oh, he's coherent, alright. He doesn't believe that we're here because... apparently Jason said I shouldn't get anywhere within 20 miles radius of magick stuff. By the way--" Stephanie turned to Tim, "Harper is downstairs with Cullen - her brother. You never knew that Cullen is actually a magi, do you?"

"No," Tim admitted. Before he could say anything else, the bedroom door opened and Alfred walked in regally while pushing a trolley.

...And Harper Row walking a few steps behind him, a little less regally as she announced, "Coffee, anyone? Mr Pennyworth here liked my waffle recipe and since we don't have chocolate chips, raisins will have to do for now."

The smell of coffee and butter permeated the air, making Tim a little more certain that he was not, in fact, dreaming.

"But... but... but... --how...?" he asked meekly as a tray of coffee with a pile of waffles was placed on his lap. "...and I gotta pee. Just... give me a second, Alfred, please." he warned. Alfred lifted the tray back up and Tim leaped out of the bed, completely forgetting about the boxers until both Stephanie and Harper whistled wolfishly and Conner chortled.

"Never knew you're the batman-boxer type, Tim!" Harper called out. Tim zoned her out and slammed the bathroom door closed.

[ontheoddoccasioniwritestuff]

Only On This Day (Collins x Reader)

Requested by @londonr26: I have a request for a Collins imagine please! It’s VE Day and Jack tags along with some RAF mates to meet up with one of their girlfriends and her group of friends. He likes one of the girls and thinks he’ll celebrate by sleeping with her but they end up having a connection and liking each other so he ends up potentially wanting something more serious with her. Thanks!

AN: Made a reference to the pilots in Complementary because i’M oRiGiNaL

Masterlist     Gif Credit

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A warm afternoon in May, Collins followed Eastbury through the crowds of Piccadilly to the meeting spot. His uniform was itchy and too insulating for such a day with such a crowd. However Lester insisted that it would help them get laid and honestly, he needed to get laid. Only on this day because he didn’t have a girl of his own to go back to, which was a shame.

His sights were set on finding the café with the reserved table where Bennett’s wife waited with the promise of good cheap food and a few beers. She was there earlier just to meet with some friends alone – just as Bennett had done – hence why he was currently fighting swarms to get there.

Bennett led the way but Eastbury was the one to point out the booth to Collins.  His eyes were immediately drawn to the woman sat beside Amanda (Bennett’s wife). She was the most appealing to him in her turquoise polka dot dress, her hair stylistically pinned up. Animated in whatever she was discussing with them, she didn’t notice Bennett saunter up until Amanda stood and ran to him.  Ducking to avoid the five minute reunion (after a few hours apart) kiss between them, Collins swerved to grab a menu and took an empty seat in front of the vision in the polka dot dress.

Eastbury swiftly introduced himself before Collins could get a word in edgeways but that mean he learnt the three girls’ names before – which included hers.

“I’m Collins,” He waved afterwards, but his eyes switched back to the woman he now knew as Y/N. She had a warm smile which caused him to shy behind the menu ever so slightly.

“Do you recommend anything?”

“I always get the club sandwich so I’m sort of biased,” She shrugged.

So Collins ordered the club sandwich when the waitress returned before turning back to Y/N, “Do you know Amanda through work?”

“No, we went to the same school when we were younger,” Y/N leant her arms on the table, “I’m guessing you know her husband through work.”

“Yeah, known him four years now,” Collins responded and he felt his happiness boost with the small talk he so often despised.

When the food arrived, he mostly picked at it because he was too busy talking to Y/N. Occasionally his attention went back to his friends but kept returning to her. His bad luck caught up with him as he started sweating a lot more. The heat of the café, his jacket and the moment were really getting to him. When the group stood to leave, the temperature was overwhelming him.

“God, I gotta get out of this straightjacket,” He let out a short laugh to diffuse his awkwardness, tugging at his sleeves.

“My flat’s just five streets away; we can drop it off then come back to meet with the others,” Y/N nodded to the right as the group headed towards Trafalgar Square to the left. With a quick explanation to Eastbury, Collins separated from his friends with Y/N at his side, ready to face the crowds for the sake of cool relief.

“God,” Collins grunted as another wave of people was shoved into him. He turned to see if Y/N was ok but she wasn’t even within his eyesight. His head darted around, searching for her with mild franticness. His height unfortunately didn’t lend much advantage. He was then deafened with the cheering at something happened. What, he did not care.

There she was: at the edge of the pavement, halfway up a lamppost with her hand shielding her eyes from the sun. He shoved his way over to her where she dropped down neatly beside him. How she did that in heels he had no clue.

“Take my hand,” She shouted over the noise, holding it out to him. Restraining his glee, Collins accepted her offer and let her lead him through the rest of the masses. Eventually they made it to the end, a few people still dotted about but heading in the opposite direction to join the celebrations.

“Glad that’s over,” Y/N let out a laugh of relief, touching her forehead, “Too hot and crowds are not my thing.”

“Me neither,” Collins agreed as he cast a dizzy glance back to see the size of the celebrations as an outsider, “Why did you come if you don’t like crowds then?”

“It’s the end of the war! I figured why not, you know?” She shrugged. Jack felt the shrug through his arm and looked down at their linked hands. Y/N seemed oblivious to that and kept walking so Collins simply kept up with her and didn’t say a word.

Understanding that he was conserving his energy for walking, Y/N talked for him. Collins enjoyed it; he learnt more about her personal life (such as how she liked going to Russell Square for walks or how she and Amanda often played chess). It made the time pass faster too because in no time at all Y/N directed him into a block of flats untouched by the war.

When Y/N went to open the door to her building, she realised she was still holding his hand.

“Ah,” She eased her fingers from his, “Sorry.”

“It’s ok,” Collins smiled as she focused instead on unlocking the door to her ground floor flat. As he stepped into the flat, he undid his buttons in preparation for cooling down. Y/N didn’t stay by the door; she went into her kitchenette with the mumbled excuse to grab them a drink for him.

Shrugging off his jacket, Collins propped it over the back of a chair. Feeling like he might actually pass out, he tugged off his tie and undid his top buttons. He was rolling up his sleeves when he caught Y/N’s eye as she stood in the doorway to her kitchen, holding a tray with two glasses of water. He crossed over without thinking and started to down one of the glasses. Water dripped down his chin as he gulped it down. Absentmindedly he wiped the drops away with the back of his hand.

That was when he noticed Y/N was avoiding his gaze. That was when he realised what he’d done. He’d followed a cute girl back to her flat, held her hand the whole way over, and started undressing without even thinking of the connotations that were less than conservative.

However, as he placed the now empty glass onto the sideboard and his arms slacked at his sides, he realised he didn’t want to just take her in her bedroom then leave. Besides, it was too hot for that now.

“We should get back to the others,” She prompted. But Collins wasn’t ready for that.  

“Hey, we don’t like crowds, our friends won’t miss us. Why don’t we stay here?” He suggested on the fly.

“And do what?” Y/N clutched her drink, looking tense from her spot beside the window.

“I don’t know really,” Collins threw his line of sight around the room, lingering on significant pieces of furniture and the doors to elsewhere, “I’d just like to spend some time with you.”

Fidgeting, Y/N put her glass down on the table and thumbed at one of the doors, “If that’s what you’re after, then no and you’re making a little uncomfortable. I’d like to go back to our group now please.”

He realised he was staring at her bedroom door. Realising the full effect of his actions, Collins burst out, “Christ, I’m sorry if I gave you the wrong impression. I don’t want to do… anything like that.”

“Oh,” Y/N went red, “Of course.”

“If you’re uncomfortable, we can definitely go back. I’ll come back with the group to pick up my stuff too,” he assured but maintained a distance until he knew she would be ok with him, “Eastbury won’t mind the detour.”

Y/N nodded, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to assume.”

Collins wiped his mouth again, feeling his lips drying again, “And I didn’t mean to unnerve you. I should’ve thought more about what I was doing.”

There was a moment of silence before Y/N spoke again: “You know, I feel less uncomfortable here than I do outside. I’d just like to know what you want to do.”

Collins took another moment to look around the room and this time he landed on the sideboard. Out the end poked a polished wooden chess board. He stuck his hands in his pockets and caught her eye again.

“You mentioned chess,” He bopped his elbow at the board, “And I happen to be a grandmaster.”

A smirk fought its way onto Y/N’s lips as she crossed the room to pull out the game. She went on to prove him wrong in all four games they played. Her prize was bragging rights but Collins didn’t mind. Coming in second place, he earned another meeting between them back at the café – table not booth, alone as opposed to a group and a date instead of a first meeting.

Perma-tag: @tomgcsglasses, @lowdenglynnstyles, @prettyboytgc, @lowdensnose, @kgcurtis30, @carneylowdenwhitehead and @scottishlowden

Jack tag: @londonr26

[dangerousimagines]

Ice Cold (Suicide Squad x Reader)

“Imagine being recruited by Amanda and having your backstory being told”

Requested by Anon: Haiii!You know the scene where Amanda is telling everyones back stories?Can you write an imagine with a back story for the reader that has freezing/frost powers?

A/N: I’m not that great at backstories so I hope you guys like this!

Warnings: Violence, Extreme frost bite, blood, just bad stuff.

“The worst of the worst…”

The older woman leaned back into her seat, the two males that sat at the table with her eyed her with skepticism.

“There’s rumours, Amanda. That…some of them have abilities…”

Her confidence never wavered as she started to cut into the steak in front of her. “The rumours are true.” Her lips tipped into a smirk as she continued. “You know what the problem with a meta human is?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “The human part. We got lucky with Superman, he shared our values. The next Superman might not.”

“You’re playing with fire, Amanda.”

“I’m fighting fire with fire,” she corrected.

“Are you trying to pitch us that task x project of yours again?” The man complained.

“Yes,” she confirmed. “And this time, you’re going to listen…” With a quick motion, she pulled a handful of folders out of a case and threw them down into the table. The man picked up the first folder and opened it. Cold blue eyes stared up at him through the mugshot photo attached to the file.

“(Y/n) (L/n), started out as a thief working for a good cause. The company she worked for tipped her off on this scientist, apparently he’d developed a serum to slow down cancer cells in the body. The problem was he had no intention of sharing the serum, he was planning to keep it to himself so he could develop it into some kind of immortality drug himself.”

(Y/n) walked through the laboratory, not even bothering with secrecy anymore. The lack of guards that patrolled the facility was pretty surprising but she just figured it was because the mans large ego. Her (e/c) orbs caught sight of the glass case in the middle of the lab. She typed in a code and the case opened, revealing a metal briefcase. Picking up the briefcase, she carefully placed it down on the desk beside her. To her irritation, the briefcase only unlocked with a fingerprint scan. With a shrug, she paced around the lab, seeking out the only item that she knew would work to get into the case.

Once she’d found it, she made her way back to case. Propping it up on its side, she carefully twisted the lid off of the bottle she carried. Slowly, she dripped the corrosive acid down onto the fingerprint pad. There was a sizzling sound but it wasn’t long before the lock malfunctioned and the case opened. (Y/n) smirked as she lifted the lid, the vial coming into view. She gently took it out of the holder and held it up to the light. The white liquid inside swished around as she stared up into it. Before she had a chance to celebrate the small victory, the lights went out and the room was illuminated flashing red lights as the alarm rang through the building.

“She had no idea that the entire thing had been a trap,” Amanda lifted her fork to her mouth. “A trap set by the very company she’d been so dedicated to.”

“I’m going to have to take that back.” The male voice called out as guards crowded into the lab.

“Sorry, finders keepers.” She tried to keep her voice as steady as possible, she wouldn’t let them know how scared she really was.

“Bring her to me alive, I always need more willing people to test on…”

“They chased her into the forest that surrounded the facility. A rookie mistake lead her out there and by the time she probably realized it, it was too late to turn back.”

(Y/n) ran through the thick bushes, wincing when the branches torn into her clothes and skin. No matter how far she got, they were always one step behind. She ducked down behind a tree trunk, fear radiating through her. She’d never had a mission go this wrong. Nothing made sense, she’d done everything right. Had they been tipped off by someone?

She clenched her teeth together, fear being replaced with anger at the thought of being betrayed. Footsteps sounded through the forest and she knew that she couldn’t stay there for much longer. Pushing against the trunk of the tree, she started running again. Ignoring the pains in her chest that begged for her to stop, even if it was just for a moment. As she ran, she felt her foot land on something that didn’t feel like a fallen branch. When she looked down to investigate, an explosion erupted behind her, throwing her to the ground.

Her body ached as she tried to push herself up. Her vision was blurry still and her ear rang from the explosion. The real pain was coming from her hand, as she looked down, her eyes went wide. The vial that she’d been carrying had been broken in the explosion, the glass from the vial dug into the exposed skin. With a whimper, she tried to pull the shards out of her hand. The white substance was seeping into the now open wounds. She scrubbed at her hand with her sleeve, hoping she’d soak up the chemical before it could be absorbed into her skin. For a moment, the pain stopped and a wave of relief washed over her.

Suddenly, she screamed out. Pain exploded from her hand as a burning sensation awakened from under her skin. The skin turned black and hard, traveling up her arm. Tears streamed down her face as the pain became too much to bare. Her skin tightened, becoming cold. It felt like her muscles were being torn apart from under her skin. The sensation continued to move until it reached her chest. She tried to scream out but no air remained for her to do so. Her vision blurred as she panted for air. The pain was too much, she tore at her scalp, unable to even process what was happening to her. Hellish agony soon faded and she felt nothing as she fell onto her back. She knew that this was it, this was how she was going to die. At least she didn’t feel the pain anymore.

“The chemical essentially gave her an extreme case of frost bite. The small amount that entered into her blood stream had frozen her from the inside out. When the guards finally found her, they thought she was dead. They shoved her into a body bag and the scientist had her body moved to the morgue. He wanted to study the damages his serum had caused on her body. Unfortunately for him, she wasn’t dead.”

Water dripped from the melting ice that covered the corpses of the guards. The young girl stepped quietly through the laboratory, her bare feet padding along the wet floor. She could hear the approaching footsteps coming from the hallway behind her. She turned her head slowly, staring at the scientist who was watching her with wide eyes. Her eyes had become a cloudy white and were as cold as ice. He reached for the gun he hand holstered to his hip. Before he could, the woman had her hand raised and something shot out from her finger tips, just missing him.

He backed away from her, the terror clear on his face. Her blue lips parted and she let out a frosty sigh. “I need you to answer some questions for me…” before he realized what was happening, she was in front of him and grasping his throat. He could feel the freezing sensation radiating from her fingers as she tightened her grip. “Can you do that?”

“The scientist confirmed her suspicions about the companies betrayal. She slaughtered him and the rest of guards in that building. When she escaped, she went right after the people who sold her out. She didn’t stop there, she targeted companies and organizations that had been involved with them. Eventually she found herself in Gotham and tried going after Gotham’s own Bruce Wayne. I’m sure you know the name.” She watched the men nod before she took a long sip of her wine. “Well, it was the Bat who captured her and delivered her to me.”

“Where is she now?” One of the men dared to ask. Amanda smirked at his question.

“Let’s just say I put her in a hole and threw away the hole.”

[readingfordummies]

Witches of East End - Chapter Four

Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic

Before hiring a certain curly-haired bartender last fall, the North Inn bar was a sleepy little place, the kind of run-down pub that locals liked to gather in to trade gossip and visit one another without having to fight scores of drunk preppies for a table. Memorial Day meant that summer had officially arrived, and even if the town was hidden and unknown, the seasonal wave of tourists to East End brought a good number of visitors who found themselves within the city limits, and several new establishments had begun to provide to this crowd. But not the North Inn. The well drinks were strong and cheap, and other than a decent view of the water, that was pretty much all it had going for it.

How things had changed. It was still a local place but it was no longer quiet or calm. The joint, as they said, was jumpin', and did it ever. There was a loud, throbbing jukebox that played only the good stuff, when rock 'n' roll was performed by real rock stars. Men in tight pants who sang lustily about women, drugs, and wickedness had been put to celluloid parody or reality-TV rehabilitation. The old rock swagger was the exclusive territory of rap music now, the only genre that still celebrated satisfaction in all its forms. The boys with guitars had turned to writing moody little songs, safe little emotional songs that no one could dance to.

Freya liked rap just fine, and was known to blast the latest gangster throw-downs now and then, but at the North Inn she preferred the classics. The Brits: The Sex Pistols. The Clash. The '70s rock-opera - stylists: Queen. Yes. Early Genesis (this was crucial - Peter Gabriel - led Genesis, not the earsore it became under Phil Collins). Metal: Led Zeppelin. Deep Purple. Metallica. Party Rock: AC/DC. Def Leppard. Motley Crüe if she was feeling a tad ironic. Since she'd arrived to work at the North Inn, the place was always blasting with the screech of guitars and the fist-pumping dance-floor anthems that drove the crowd to its feet. But next to the drinks she poured, the music was almost irrelevant.

The redheaded bartender had a way of making the cocktails just right: the gin and tonics tart and fresh, the dark and stormies luscious with bite. It was a party every night, and every evening ended with customers dancing on the bar, losing their shyness and occasionally their clothing. If you came into the North Inn alone and feeling blue, you left with either a new friend or a hangover, sometimes both.

However, a week after her engagement party, the bar, like Freya, was a bit quiet. While the music was still loud and strong, it had an underlying mournful echo. The Rolling Stones sang "Waiting on a Friend": I'm not waiting on a lady, I'm just waiting on a friend . . . , the cocktails were soft and sweet, the gin fizz didn't fizz, the champagne was flat, the beer turned lukewarm after only a few minutes. It was just like the engagement party, but worse. She was glad Ingrid wasn't around to notice; she didn't want her sister any more suspicious than she already was. What happened with Killian that evening had been an impulsive act, but it was over now and everything would be all right. There was no need to panic. So what if all she could dream about was Killian? So what if he had invaded her consciousness, had become the subject of her every waking thought? When she closed her eyes, she could still see his beautiful face, hovering above hers. She would make it go away. She would make him go away. If only it was Killian who was halfway around the world and not her love.

Bran called earlier: he had arrived safely in Denmark and was on his way to his meeting. She knew she had to get used to it; from the beginning he had explained that his life and his work involved a great amount of travel and that he was rarely home, but he was planning to slow down after the wedding. Hearing his voice had cheered her up a little, but her dark mood continued to build as she leaned back on the bar, watching customers arrive. Dan Jerrods and his new girlfriend, Amanda Turner, walked in, and an image flashed in Freya's mind: Dan had Amanda up against a wall, the two of them gasping and grabbing at each other, Amanda's blouse unbuttoned, Dan's jeans at his knees. That was just a few minutes before they'd set off for the bar. It was early in their relationship, and sex was still their way of saying hello. Freya certainly spoke that language.

Right behind the postsex couple was Mayor Todd Hutchinson (fervent masturbation last night in front of a computer), with his friend, flashy developer Blake Aland (a tangle of some sort in his car the other week: it was blurry and the vision wouldn't focus, but Freya sensed some kind of sexual frustration here), then the good reverend and his wife (a flash of leather whips and masks over the holiday weekend). Sometimes Freya felt a bit dizzy from all the information. She should be used to it by now, her talent - she refused to call it a "gift" - but it still came as a surprise.

This was just another display of her nature, the ability to see intense emotion - and it wasn't just sexual passion or romantic love that she was able to see. Freya could also read intense anger and hatred, the opposite of love as it were: murderous rage, overwhelming anxiety. Over the centuries, her talent had been very useful. Although there was very little of it, North Hampton was not immune from crime. When it did happen, it was usually scandalous and spectacular, like the chilling murder of a socialite who had been poisoned at her own dinner party, or sad and unusual, like what had happened to Bill and Maura Thatcher. Their bodies had been found on the beach just last winter, both of them bleeding from the head. Bill died from his injuries but Maura was still in intensive care, comatose at the hospital.

Freya had been helpful in bringing the socialite's murderer to justice. An angry housekeeper who was an occasional customer was behind the heiress's death. Freya saw exactly how she did it, putting a small amount of poison into the champagne, expertly popping back the cork. She had pointed the police in the right direction so that they were able to build their case. The detectives had found a bottle of the toxic substance among the housekeeper's possessions, which led to the conviction, a thrilling conclusion all around.

She served Dan and Amanda their drinks. She smiled at the honeymooning couple - the first two weeks of any relationship was a honeymoon as far as Freya was concerned. Couples waited so long to marry these days, or had been living together for years before, that most honeymoons had very little mooning or honey. The sex, if there was any, was usually of the garden variety, missionary style. Most couples were much more excited about their luxurious hotel rooms than about seeing each other naked. The days of trembling virginal brides slipping in between cold sheets were long past. Which was why Freya looked on new couples with affection. These were her people, worshipers at her temple. She blessed them with her smile and numerous free drinks.

The reverend and his wife ordered a decent bottle of wine, and Blake wanted a beer. She set the orders on the bar and turned to her final customer. "What can I get you, sir?" she asked the mayor.

"Whiskey, straight, thanks Freya."

"Sure thing, Mayor," she said. Todd Hutchinson was young, slick, and ambitious. He had big plans for North Hampton and had swept into office on the campaign donations of people like Blake Aland. The young mayor was popular around town, although Freya knew her sister, Ingrid, was not a fan ever since she'd gotten wind of his proposal to sell the library. Poor Ingrid, there was nothing she would be able to do if the proposal was approved.

Unlike Ingrid, Freya had nothing against Todd, who was polite and tipped well. He was married to a local news anchor rumored to be in line for a national spot on the network. Maybe that was the reason he'd had to resort to online porn. Two huge careers meant couples rarely had time for each other. It was too bad. Freya handed him his whiskey and turned back to the bar.

"What's up tonight? So quiet for a Friday," said her boss, Sal McLaughlin, who'd inherited the North Inn and its bar from his brother, who'd retired. Sal was a cheerful man of seventy, with wiggly eyebrows and a belly laugh. He had hired Freya on the spot and acted as her honorary grandfather. Sal coughed noisily into his handkerchief and wheezed.

"You all right? That sounded pretty gross," she teased as Sal blew his nose again with a big honk.

"Allergies." He shrugged. "Must be the change of weather." He wiped his nose and sighed, his eyes tearing. "Always hits right about June." It had been an unusually sudden change from a rainy spring to a humid summer; the air was thick and heavy, even more so than usual. And the heat was not usually quite this hot so early in the season.

"It's like a funeral in here. Who died?" Sal joked, as he cranked up the AC.

Freya shrugged. She knew it was her energy that was causing the gloom, but she couldn't help it. So it was an off day. She couldn't be expected to keep the party going forever, could she? A hand waved and she walked over to the opposite counter of the U-shaped bar where Becky Bauman was downing dirty martinis like candy. "Another one?" Freya asked.

"Oh, why not." Becky sighed as she stared at her husband, flirting with his date, across the bar. Becky and Ross had recently separated. They had not been married long, but they were the parents of a six-month-old; and Freya saw that a darkness had clouded the love that had once held them together, as exhaustion and sleep deprivation led to nonstop arguments that left both of them even more unhappy and unsatisfied, until Ross had finally had enough and moved out.

Ross was currently deep in conversation with Natasha Mayles, a former model who was one of the town's too-too-toos: too rich, too pretty, too picky. Too good for any man to come near when it came down to it. The Natasha Mayleses of the world certainly thought too much of themselves to settle down with just anyone. It was a wonder what she was doing with Ross Bauman, who was not even divorced yet.

"What happened to us?" Becky asked, as she watched Freya make her cocktail. "I hate him. I really do. I don't know what I'm going to do."

Freya caught a flash of an image: another argument, this one vivid and gut-wrenching, ending in a violence that had not been there before - arms flailing, the baby crying, a push down the stairs. . . . She turned away and paused. Regardless of what her mother or sister believed, truly she did not do very much to the drinks except make them taste better, a by-product of the fact that she made them. Everything Freya made or cooked tasted delicious, a consequence of her magical heritage.

But the ugly scene she had just witnessed - and she did not know who exactly was in danger, Becky, Ross, or their baby; the image did not reveal that much - made her think. Maybe if there hadn't been a bit of love between them Freya would never have considered doing what she was about to do. But there was. She saw the two of them sneaking glances at each other when they thought the other was not looking. Besides, Natasha Mayles was all wrong for Ross. She wandered into the North Inn with her arrogant accent and bored, quasi-European attitude.

Truly, it was a ridiculous rule anyway, why couldn't they use magic? Why not? Just because of a few silly girls who told a few lies? So a couple of lying bitches were allowed to ruin their lives forever? Freya would never forget the way those awful girls had spun their clever story, their crazy histrionics in the courtroom, the growing list of suspects, the carriages that took the condemned down to Gallows Hill. How stubborn and blind she had been! She had assumed no one would believe their accusers, that no one in their right mind would think that she and Ingrid were capable of such evil. To add insult to injury, her own kind, their own Council, took away their powers after everything they had been through - hard punishment indeed. Well. She had had enough. She was tired of feeling afraid. Tired of feeling useless. Tired of trying to pretend she was something she wasn't. Tired of hiding her light in a corner. Under a lampshade, behind a curtain, in a dark room. Tired.

Freya Beauchamp was made of magic. Without magic she was just someone who poured drinks. She had been so good for so long, all of them had, and for what? What was the point of it all, really? It was a waste of their talents; were they really supposed to just live in the shadows and fade away? Act as if they were ordinary for the rest of their immortal lives?

Freya thought of everything they had given up: flying, for one; she still remembered how it felt, moving through the skies, the wind in her hair. She missed the midnight capers in the woods as well, the powerful rituals that were taboo now that pagan was a bad word. The world had moved on, of course, that was to be expected; maybe it would have happened even without the restriction, but now they would never know. Like the rest of her family, she was stuck on this side of the bridge, with no way to return home.

She made up her mind. She touched Ross's beer glass and added just a drop of gingerroot and lemon zest. Then she stirred it with the red straw from Becky's cocktail. The pint of beer turned a bright shade of pink for a split second. Now, this was definitely against the rules, this little mixture she had made, this little love potion. Sure, she had practiced a little magic before, here and there - that boy back in New York, that vampire's familiar she had healed, for instance. But that was in the East Village, where she had been fairly certain what little, insignificant, magic she had performed had been cleverly hidden and absorbed by the city's own kinetic energy.

This was something quite different, different even from the little nudges she gave the police to help solve crimes. This was the first real love potion she had created in . . . well, when the number of years was so big, who was counting? Besides, it was a shame to let such a good couple go to waste, and she shivered at the thought of what might be if she did not: that terrible argument, a child growing up without parents, one dead, the other in jail. Freya increased the power of the drinks she was about to serve. It didn't have to happen. All they needed was a little help to get over the bump. They just needed a little reminder of why they had been together in the first place. She set the martini in front of Becky and the beer in front of Ross. "Cheers!" she told them, holding up her own glass.

"To our health," Becky mumbled. She was probably embarrassed to have revealed so much to Freya earlier.

"Bottoms up," Ross called to Becky from across the bar. He took a huge pull from his glass; and for a moment his face turned gray and it looked as if he were going to be sick, or throw up. Freya felt a wave of nerves - what if she had forgotten to mix it just right? What if she had poisoned him somehow - what if she had forgotten the correct amount to put in the mixture? She rushed to his side, hoping there was still time to serve him an antidote, when the color returned to his cheeks and he took a deep breath. "What's in that?" he asked Freya.

"Why? Is there something wrong with it?" she asked, trying not to feel too frightened.

"There's nothing wrong with it! It's awesome!" he declared, and downed the whole thing in one huge gulp. When he was done, his eyes seemed to light up, and he looked across the bar at his wife with a face full of wonder, falling in love with her all over again. Becky returned the smile tentatively, and in a few minutes the two of them were giggling, then howling with laughter, while Natasha looked confused and unfriendly. Then Ross excused himself from his date, walked over to his wife, and gave her a back-dipping "Times Square - World War Two has ended" victory kiss. Natasha stomped off in a bad mood.

Freya sighed in relief. A few minutes later, she was smiling like a Cheshire cat. Her potion had worked. She still knew exactly how to make them. In an instant, the music on the jukebox suddenly pumped to life: Axl Rose screeching a love song: "Sweet Child o' Mine." She's got a smile that it seems to me, Reminds me of childhood memories . . . The music began to fill up the night, lustful and passionate, making girls grab their boys' hands to lead them to the ad hoc dance floor in front of the jukebox. Dan and Amanda began to dirty-dance, and even the reverend and his wife took a spin. In the corner, the Baumans were making out so heavily - was that Ross's hand up Becky's shirt? - They should really think of leaving; it was getting a tad too heated. Even the mayor sat at the counter with a dreamy look on his face.

Freya drummed her fingers on the counter, swaying to the music. Sal had been right. It had felt like winter in there for a moment. But the frost had melted now. Of course, she still felt terrible about what happened with Killian. But a little magic went a long way.