#i suspect SOMEONE asked him to erase their memories

[nothing-but-paisley]

You ever just think about all the freshly unearthed heartache and bitterness Armand packs into the line "Why did I owe YOUGGh"

[hello-eden]

dead on main #3

destabilized Ellie and Dan are Jason and Danny's kids except Jason gives his permission to help stabilize the two when he's dead and when he's resurrected he has no memories of it.

 Danny and Jason met while he was dead and had a teenage puppy crush sort of thing. The two of them had a lot of things going on with one still being a vigilante in their town and one being recently murdered, So they never really were able to get together before Jason was resurrected. The two of them are from different dimensions and only meet due to the fact that the ghost zone is every Dimension afterlife. 

There is a bad reaction from Vlad finding out that Danny used someone else's DNA to stabilize the kids, Which leads to a very Reckless fight that leads to his parents finding out that the kids are halfas. The parents don't know that he is also halfa so they try to cure the kids. Danny flees To the ghost zone specifically to frostbite to make sure the kids are okay. While he's there Clockwork decides that was the best time to basically tell Danny that Jason's resurrected in his home dimension and that is probably best if he settles down there. Of course because Clockwork is still a menace before Danny goes through the portal he says that Jason does not have his memories of being dead and then pushes him through. Danny sets up his life there with Ellie and Dan.

Plot twist Danny ends up being neighbors to Roy in Star City. Danny is a trans single father of twins that appears to have run away from home due to bad situation. With all the Vigilante scars that Danny has it's a reasonable conclusion for him to suspect an abusive home.

Danny babysits Lian when Roy has missions and Roy babysits Ellie and Dan When Danny does work.  of course not always do their schedules so occasionally they have to call in another babysitter and when that fails we have the Red Hood himself. the unknown father of the twins( not really twins) and the Godfather of the other child( yes I made him The Godfather).

 Danny doesn't instantly recognize him due to the very obvious change. Two of them meet a couple of times through Roy. Danny usually just accidentally stopping in at a bad time before Roy introduces them together and Danny hears his name.

Danny does not tell him that he's the father of the children because one he was dead which means he's going to have to explain what he was doing while he was dead. and two because Clockwork told him he had his memories erased. Danny of course has a lot of feelings about this and Jason instantly gets a crush. Jason occasionally babysits the kids when the regular babysitter isn't working Nor can watch each other's kids because of schedules.

A situation happens with Ellie where she needs to go to the hospital and Jason brings her. this leads to an emergency blood transfusion. The transfusion goes badly and isn't working so Jason asks if his blood will work. It works perfectly. Jason questions for a little bit. Danny, whose phone was broken in  a villain attack two days ago and hasn't gotten replaced, shows up at the hospital after finally being contacted. Jason questioned him a little bit  Danny freaks out a lot which raises Jason's alarms quite High. When Danny's getting some food for Elle and talking to doctors Jason does a DNA test. Jason gets the results a week later when Ellie's finally back home which reveals he is the father. He has a lot of questions about this.

[kikyoupdates]

Infatuated ⭑˚💌⭑ 𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟

yandere!bnha x reader

yandere, reverse harem, bnha x fem!reader, slowburn, slowburn yandere

Your Quirk is rather unique. It plays out almost like a game, giving you missions and goals that help you become stronger. On top of that, you also have the ability to charm those around you. It sounds innocent enough on paper, and you can’t help but revel in the attention everyone keeps showering you with. But what happens when their feelings give way to something more sinister?

previous | story masterlist | next

It happened again. What started off as a perfectly normal day, a good day, ended with you nearly losing your life in the process.

It goes without saying, but you feel like absolute shit right now. The fear and trauma is one thing. No matter how hard you try, you can’t erase the memory of that man being reduced to a bloody pile of guts on the ground. Neither can you forget the sensation of a knife being pressed against your throat, and worse yet—the indescribable pain that followed when it split your skin open. 

Every so often, your hand reaches up to brush against your throat, and even though the injury has been completely healed, you still shudder and bite back a whimper.  

You’re alive. That frightening man—Chisaki���possesses the ability to both kill someone, and also revive them as he pleases. He made quick work of the gash on your throat and erased any trace that you had ever been hurt. And perhaps you should be thankful for the simple fact that you’re still breathing right now, but there’s something else, apart from the trauma, that gnaws at you unforgivingly.  

Your Quirk. The more you find yourself in these kinds of situations, the less confident you feel about becoming a hero. It isn’t an offensive power. Unlike Katsuki, who could easily have fought those assholes off, or even Izuku, who can use One for All at the cost of breaking a few bones, you have virtually no means to defend yourself.  

The only thing you can do is kiss someone, and hope that they fall under your control. It’s such a ridiculously difficult feat to pull off. How can you just kiss someone in the middle of a fight, or while you’re being held at knifepoint?  

It just barely worked with Dabi, but back in that alley, you failed. You couldn’t meet the conditions for your Quirk to activate, and before you could even blink, you were already bleeding out, well on your way to the afterlife. Chisaki saved you. Not out of the goodness of his heart, you suspect, but all the same, the fact remains that you couldn’t protect yourself.  

You are weak. Deep down, you’ve always known this, but every time you’re faced with the reality of your situation, part of you shatters a bit more.  

So, you trudge home, shopping bags in hand, with a vacant, listless expression. You’re barely functional right now, so you must have found your way back to the neighborhood by sheer muscle memory alone.  

Your mind is in utter disarray, but unfortunately, the universe won’t allow you even a moment’s respite. 

“Hey. [Name]. The fuck’s wrong with you?”  

Katsuki calls out to you. Naturally, having grown up in the same neighborhood, you run into each other from time to time.  

But why did it have to be now? When your sanity feels like it’s on the verge of snapping?  

God. Nothing ever goes your way.  

Eyes glassy, you lift your head up to cast a glance at him. “Hi, Katsuki,” is all you manage to mumble. “Hope your day is going well. I’m kind of in a hurry, so...”  

You try to get past him as quickly as possible, and you probably should have expected this since he’s the most stubborn person you’ve ever met, but he steps in front of you and fixes you in a glare.  

“What’s your problem?” he snaps. “You think you can just ignore me whenever the hell you want? I asked you a question, asshole. Something’s wrong with your face, and I want to know why. Spit it out.”  

“I can’t help the way my face looks,” you say tiredly. “And I’m not really in the mood to be called ugly right now.”  

“I wasn’t calling you ugly, for fuck’s sake. I’m talking about the expression you’re making. You look like your parents just died or some shit.” He pauses, and for just a moment, he actually looks a bit concerned. “Your parents didn’t die... right?”  

No. But I almost did.  

“Of course not,” you instead reply. “I was just out shopping for a bit. I’m fine, Katsuki. Don’t worry.”  

“I never said I was worried,” he huffs, but if that was really true, then you’re not sure why he bothered asking in the first place.  

Either way, you are too physically and emotionally drained to be having this conversation right now. Besides, it’s not like you can even tell him what happened. Chisaki told you to keep your mouth shut, and having seen what he’s capable of, you’re compelled to keep it that way. He’s a terrifying man, and you really don’t want to find out what happens if you end up on his bad side. 

“Anyways, I have to go. We’ll talk later,” you say, and once again, you force your way past him.  

This time, Katsuki thankfully lets you pass through. However, he’s far from convinced. The two of you have known each other ever since you were kids, and even though he talks a big game and acts like he doesn’t care about other people, when it comes to you, he’s paid a lot more attention than he’ll ever admit.  

He knows what face you make when you’re happy. He knows what face you make when you’re nervous, or sad. He also—much to his regret—knows what face you make when you’re angry, since most of the time, it’s been directed his way.  

Last, but certainly not least, he knows what face you make when you’re scared.  

Apart from Izuku, there’s no one that Katsuki fixates on more than you. So, when he gets the feeling that something is off, most of the time, his gut instinct is right. There’s no way that something didn’t happen, not with the hollow, borderline traumatized expression he’s just seen.  

Something bad happened, and you would rather keep it to yourself than tell him the truth.  

In that moment, Katsuki has a harrowing thought. You refuse to confide in him. He knows all too well that your relationship is strained, and to some extent, he also knows that he’s to blame for it. Of course, that doesn’t mean he has any intention of apologizing or making up for his wrongdoings, but he still possesses some form of self-awareness.  

But the truly frightening thought is this:  

You don’t trust him enough to tell him what’s on your mind, but if Izuku was here, you would probably have leapt into his arms at the first opportunity. In fact, you’ll probably call Izuku later and fill him in on all the details. You’ll tell him everything that weighs on you, because when it comes to your relationship with that curly-haired bastard, it’s all smiles and rainbows.  

You will choose Izuku over him, just as you’ve done so many times before.  

Katsuki grits his teeth, enraged beyond belief, and deeply heartbroken.

The past few days have been difficult.  

Pretending like you’re okay is even harder than you anticipated. Nobody knows that you were nearly killed—again—and although you haven’t spoken a word about it mainly because of Chisaki’s threats, you also don’t feel like putting your friends and family through that kind of distress. They were already worried enough about you after the Dabi incident. For their sake, it’s much better just to suffer in silence.

Ironically, though, thanks to this traumatic event, you haven’t even had time to worry about your letter from U.A, and eventually, it arrives.  

“Open it, open it!” your mother insists, practically vibrating from excitement. “It’s finally here! You must be so excited!”  

You offer her a weak smile in response. In all honesty, you aren’t excited. Doubt and self-loathing continue to overwhelm you. How can you be confident about becoming a hero when you feel so helpless all the damn time?  

It’s hard, and you almost feel like giving up, but then you remember that you did win against Dabi. You used your Quirk and escaped, all on your own. It wasn’t pretty, and that kiss still haunts you, but if you’re able to pull something like that off, then maybe, just maybe, you might actually have some potential.  

For the time being, you have nothing to lose by at least opening the letter.  

Your parents crowd around you, doing their best to remain calm, as you tear the envelope open with shaky fingers, then pull out the neatly folded letter inside.  

It only takes a few seconds to skim through the important parts, and when you’re done, your eyes have gone wide.  

“I... got in,” you mumble softly. “I’m not really sure how, but... I did it. I’m going to be a U.A student.”  

“Oh my goodness! That’s amazing! You’re incredible, [Name]!”  

Your parents pull you into a group hug, and they’re praising you like no tomorrow as they pepper your forehead with kisses. They’ve always been exceptionally supportive, and you figured that they would have been there for you regardless of the outcome, but it’s nice to know that you’ve made them so happy.  

Naturally, you still have your doubts. You aren’t strong enough. Not yet, at least. But that’s the whole point of attending a hero school, right? So that you can train and make up for your shortcomings? Not everyone starts off absurdly gifted and powerful. Granted, there are some, like Katsuki. But others, like Izuku, have to work to even have a chance at standing in the ring alongside everyone else. 

You are no different. If you want to do this with your life—if you really, truly want to do this, then there’s no time to waste wallowing in self-pity and lamenting your weakness. You just have to buckle down and put in the work. 

Like Izuku did. He worked hard and believed all his life, and now, he finally has a Quirk to call his own. 

The realization makes you let out a gasp. “Right, Izuku! If I got my acceptance letter, then he’s probably heard back from U.A too!”  

You give your parents one last hug, thanking them for being here and supporting you, then you run off to your room and snatch your phone, ready to call Izuku’s number.  

It’s funny, and you suppose that Izuku must have had the exact same thought, because your phone begins to ring before you can even hit dial.  

“Izuku?” you answer. “Hey! I was actually just about to call you—”  

“Come outside!”  

“Huh?”  

“I’m outside your house already. Please come!”  

He doesn’t say anything else, and promptly hangs up the call. At first, you frown, but you figure that whatever he has to say, he wants to say it in person, and you’re willing to bet that it’s about U.A. 

Whether it’s good news or not, you have no way of knowing, but you remain hopeful nevertheless.  

You make quick work of slipping on your shoes, take one last breath to prepare yourself—for either celebration or consolation—then rush out the door.  

As it turns out, today, the universe has decided to be kind to you, because Izuku is grinning so hard that it looks like his cheeks are about to pop. 

You already know what he’s about to say, and it brings a smile to your lips, but you refrain from cutting in and give him the chance to break the news himself.  

“I... I got accepted!” he cries out. “U.A actually let me in!”  

“That’s amazing, Izuku.” You match his grin with one of your own, and already, you’ve opened up your arms to meet him in a hug. “I knew you could do it. See? I told you there was still a chance. The teachers must have thought you were incredibly brave to go up against that giant robot and save someone in the process.”  

He nods, cheeks flushed, as he leans into your embrace. “A-Apparently, there’s something called rescue points that they deliberately didn’t tell us about in advance, to see if we would go out of our way to help others. I didn’t get any actual points for taking down robots, but since I saved someone, it was enough for me to pass.”  

“That makes sense. It’s a hero school, after all. This is exactly the kind of stuff they’re looking for.”  

You squeeze Izuku tighter, and it’s almost as if you can feel his heart beating in tandem with your own.  

Honestly, it’s hard to believe that this is actually happening. You’ve been by his side for nearly your entire life. You’ve seen firsthand just how much he’s suffered because he didn’t have a Quirk, but look at him now. He’s gotten into the best hero school in the country—perhaps even the whole world. Everyone always told him he didn’t have a chance, and yet, the greatest hero of all time acknowledged his potential and gave him the encouragement he needed to thrive.  

Izuku is amazing. You’ve always known it, but in this moment, you can honestly say you’re prouder of him than ever before.  

“O-Oh my god,” Izuku gasps, and he pulls away the very next second. “I’m so sorry! I was so caught up in my own excitement that I didn’t even ask if you’d gotten your letter yet! That was so insensitive of me!” 

“It wasn’t insensitive,” you chuckle. “Don’t worry, Izuku. Even though I’m trying to become a hero too, nobody wants this as badly as you do. I’m glad you were able to enjoy the moment and focus on yourself for a little while. You always worry so much about others. It’s okay to put yourself first every now and then.”  

He swallows. “But... did you... I mean...”  

“Yeah. I got in,” you grin. “It looks like we’ll be going to U.A together.”  

Izuku’s green eyes blow wide open, and before his shyness can get in the way, he pulls you back into his arms.  

Of course, you don’t even think of pushing him away. It’s rare for him to initiate, given how easily flustered he gets, but it just goes to show how happy he is, and you can’t help but giggle in delight. Honestly, this is exactly what you needed after the hellish past couple of days you’ve had. You want to forget about assholes like Chisaki and Dabi, and focus on all the good things in your life, like Izuku, and the fact that U.A awaits.  

“Maybe if we’re lucky, we’ll get to be classmates again too,” you hum, running your fingers through Izuku’s soft, curly hair.  

He doesn’t say anything back. He’s too overwhelmed by emotion, and instead, just nods furiously, unwilling to break away from the hug.  

Izuku has waited his entire life for this moment. Not only does he have a Quirk now, but the school of his dreams has even opened up its doors to him. For so long, it all felt hopeless. It felt like he was clinging to a hollow dream, and everyone was more than happy to remind him of it.   

Everyone except you.  

You’ve been there for him since the very beginning. Not once has your support come across as disingenuous or forced, and whenever he accomplishes something, you are kind enough to celebrate his achievements as if they’re your own.  

Izuku would never have gotten this far without you. No, he might very well have given up long ago. He wouldn’t have had the strength to put up with Katsuki all these years, he wouldn’t have had the nerve to keep researching heroes, and he even feels like without you, All Might probably wouldn’t have chosen him as his successor either. He doesn’t know how to explain that last part, but he’s convinced that it must be true.  

Izuku owes everything to you. All of his success, his happiness... just everything.  

That’s why he’s so relieved right now. He didn’t get into U.A alone. You’re going to be there with him, right by his side, the way it’s always been.  

The way it’s supposed to be.  

Izuku’s two biggest dreams are finally coming true. He’s going to become a hero, and the girl he loves will be bound to him forever.

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💌 main masterlist ♡ oneshot masterlist

[pilot-boi]

White Knight Time Travel idea : People are suspecting..

Jaune and Weiss are at the Vytal Festival , each one with their respective teams , their mission has gone..well.. so far. Even without trying to change so much some things never change like Team CVFY and Prof.Port saving the city or Ruby meeting Penny...

But that doesn't matter compared to the titanic work they would have to do during this specific moment..it was now or never

~Weiss Side~

Ruby:WE DID IIIT!!!!....Anyone esle is starving?....

Weiss listened to Ruby and Blake's chat from the side , each time they have this small moments the more she thinks how everyone took Beacon's days from granted

Having to relieve the fight against Team ABRN made her notice how..unprepared they were ; even herself with her "Competent" perfomance wasn't still not enough to face that monster..

Weiss..

The Grimm entering Beacon..

Weiss..

The Witch's inner circle playing right under their noses..

WEISS..

Pyrrha and Penny along many other students being casualties of the..

WEISSS!

Weiss:W-W-What?!

Yang: Your scroll is ringing , shouldn't you answer it?

Weiss noticed her scroll , the contact named "FATHER"..

Right..her time at Beacon was almost up..

Weiss:I will call him later , thanks for making me know Yang..

The Blonde Brawler has noticed her friend weird..this last few day , she can't say why..but it's there , spacing out of chats most of the time or reacting to certain words like Destiny , Maiden or even mentioning locations like Haven Academy can get her all shaky

Right now Ice Queen is looking at her Sis talking with Emerald and her silent friend like she's trying way too hard to keep herself civil , her face may not show it but that tense posture and hands behind shouted something was wrong

And to say the last person she saw acting this way her Dad after..her Supermom left was all she needed to know , Ice Queen's hiding something and she will find out

~Jaune's side~

Jaune did miss Beacon , the academy.. , but coming right back wouldn't make it any better..quite the contrary it shows him how somethings must remain as memories..

The Vytal Festival just started and the mood seems festive enough for him to enjoy a little. Children playing around , teens being themselves truly a moment to breathe fresh air

Miss : Gather around as I tell the story of the Girl who fell through the World!

Jaune tenses hearing that , it's just a woman reading a story to a bunch of kids..nothing dangerous..

Yet..

He takes a look at his armour , clean not rusted..his face is still young and Crocea Mors is still complete..

Ren: Jaune?

Jaune:W-What?!

Nora: You have been standing there for a while , did the story peak your interest? Alyx's story is a classic! The Curious Cat is my favorite character! So mischevious!

If looks could kill , Nora's smile would have been erased a while ago..

Jaune:That Cat is nothing but troubles..

Nora:What? Don't tell me you are a fan of the Red Prince? Or the Rusted Knight?

Sensing hostility , Ren tried to change the topic..

Ren:Why don't we go with Pyrrha? She's saved us a nice spot in that Mistralian restaurant.

Both teammates agree , Nora leaves because she has won another petty argument..but Jaune seemed so personal about it..The Girl who fell through the World is just a Children's story..why is he so defensive about it?

Lie Ren is someone who can read the room quite well and to his knowledge..there's something wrong with Jaune..

He acts like..an adult sometimes , there's nothing wrong with that but it seems off..

Even their stategies , they are a group of Four , Team JNPR..but Jaune always acts like only Nora and him are part of the team

Ren even hears his silent sobs when he has nightmares , the words "Cinder" "Kill" "Penny" "Pyrrha" is all he has as evidence , trying to make sense of said word it would be something like

Cinder will kill Pyrrha and Penny

That sounded so..dumb , Cinder is a student along her team but he would ask Jaune later right now they have a fight to win

👀👀👀

So many of these WK Time travel asks are from their POV, I LOVE this look into their friends’ view

[fashion-foxy]

You know something that's odd to me? How weirdly the child of the Beauty and the Beast get handled in media. (Obviously, my only examples are EAH and Descendants, but walk with me on this.)

The Beauty is someone who will, for better or for worse, always see the best in everyone. They are kind and good-natured but is usually someone who still holds people accountable for their actions and intentions, not what the Beauty thinks their intentions are.

The Beast is someone who typically does not look past the surface level of a person out of stupidity or willful ignorance. The Beast is also very selfish ,closed-minded , and stubborn. Unfortunately , that means in retellings, the Beast is the only one to go a character arc, and the Beauty comes off as judgmental or too forgiving.

Both characters being foils means that it could be a bit challenging to portray a character that is a result of both of those personalities, but if done right, it creates a very interesting character!

So, what did EAH and Descendants do with what they were given?!

Well, for starters, a bad job, but you already knew that. Let's take a look at Rosabella Beauty and Benjamin Florian No Last Name Given. (Idk most Descendants characters don't have last names)

Rosabella is judgemental, which could definitely actually be a super cool thing that she got from her dad, but based off the fact that she didn't go on an arc and it didn't get presented as a character flaw, I suspect this was accidental. Which is real shame. It would've been a really cool concept to explore Rosabella actually being the Beast.

She is also, by not getting any meaningful character development, giving off major 'I could fix him' vibes with Daring. Except, she's ignoring what's actually wrong in his life and looking at surface level interpretations of what she thinks he's like. Then, deciding he's a self-centered narcissist who she needs to fix so he meets her standards. Hey, wait a spell. She kind of seems to embody more of the Beast characteristics than the Beauty's. I wonder if the writers might have had other plans but were forced to change her into something else or perhaps Mattel wanted to sell a doll of her and Daring so they had to awkwardly force a relationship and not use their original plans?

Ben is way too forgiving. When we first see him, he says that he wants to give the Isle kids (kids who were born to villians who've been trapped in a magic prison all their life) a chance at a normal life, which is great! It's probably one of the best things a 16 year old king could do. So when's the next time he forgives someone? When he tells Mal that he knows she drugged him. So, it's at this point where you kinda realize that he isn't being too forgiving he's trapped in an abusive relationship. Once he sees that Mal realizes the implications of that, he goes back on it, and he tells her that it's not that big of a deal that it's ok that he still loves her.

When's the next time something like this happens? When Mal tries to erase some of his memories after catching her lying about using magic. He obviously yells at her because that's a fucked up thing to do. She downplays the situation and makes excuses. Shortly after, she runs back to the Isle. Ben, assuming that she had the best intentions, blames himself and ultimately gets kidnapped and then drugged again. All of these interactions are all portrayed as 'his fault' and that he'd deserved everything that happened to him because he was holding Mal responsible for her actions. In the third movie, he even stops doing it. Hades asks him why an Auradon kid gets to be excused and why everyone on the Isle doesn't, and he looks at Mal but ignores the question. Mal doesn't answer because she's the reason this Auradon person (Audrey) is hurt because she ruined her life and is currently being excused by everyone, including the writers, but Audrey won't. Ben definitely won't.

So, aren't these the best portrayals of the Beauty and the Beast characteristics? Because mixing the traits incorrectly. If Ben was given more Beast characteristics than just roaring sometimes. Mal wouldn't be abusive if their were actually moments where Ben was being unreasonable and too quick to draw surface level conclusions.

Rosabella wouldn't come off as rude and judgemental if she was given more Beauty characteristics. If Daring was actually self-centered and Rosabella considered others and thought about others instead of drawing conclusions.

[hailturinturambar]

Melancholic Torture.

Pairing: Melkor/Morgoth x Nienna

Word count: 5.133

Author's Notes: English is not my first language, so I apologize for any mistakes or confusion. Requests are open, check the information before requesting. This is the second part of the request. Honestly, it should be a single chapter. But I'm addicted to Melkor and Nienna, how could I not write more? They are the best couple Tolkien ever thought of, I'm sure. I also have ideas for the next chapter.

Warnings: 18+, MDNI. Unprotected sex, p in v. Oral (female receiving.) Masturbation. First time. Reunion sex. Biting. Blood exchange. Passionate hate sex. Anguish.

Summary: Melkor orders Nienna to return to Valinor, thwarting her attempts to save him. In the land of the Valar, Nienna tells her new plan to Olórin, who covers up her escape to Middle-earth. Melkor, however, knows of Nienna's departure and will not let her abandon him this time. And Nienna has no choice but to give in to her torturous melancholy.

PART II -> SERIES MASTERLIST

To Nienna, it was impossible to forget the ruin and pestilence that surrounded Melkor's fortress, Angband. The putrid, malevolent air, impregnated with death itself. Like the heart of the master.

Unfortunately, Nienna knew that there was beauty there. As in all the works of Arda that had been touched by Melkor's hand, by the evil he had sown. Nienna suspected that Eru himself saw this beauty in Melkor, one of his own sons. There was a beauty in Melkor. A deep, cruel beauty, born of destruction.

And he destroyed everything he touched, just as he had destroyed Nienna. Because Sauron had not been kind when he expelled her from Angband. Nienna was strong enough to stop Sauron, but she refused to use her divinity against him, against any being. She would be merciful, even to those who didn't deserve her pity, her forgiveness.

And Nienna, with an open heart, with immense sadness, begged Sauron not to force her to leave, not to make her abandon Melkor. Deep down, she knew that he would never go against his master. Her tears did not move Sauron Stoneheart. And Nienna left, consumed by her sadness, her failure.

Manwë was devastated by Nienna's return, knowing that his brother was lost, forever. Doomed. Nienna, however, would not accept defeat. She saw Melkor's heart open to her for the first time when he kissed her. He could be saved, as saved as someone like him could be. She would rather die tempted than let him be consumed by his ambition, by his desire to consume everything around him.

Alone in her halls, Nienna could hear Melkor's voice, feel his presence. It didn't matter how much he pushed her away, how much he denied that he needed her. Melkor was, inside, incapable of turning his back on Nienna. The one who cries. Who had cried for him countless times.

“How long will your presence haunt my heart?” Nienna asked the emptiness, the sea. To the endless distance between the two of them.

The phantom touch covered her face, as if his hand had been stretched out to her, defying the sovereignty and mercy of the Valar, just to feel her touch for a few seconds. To make sure she was still there, waiting for him.

When Mandos went to meet Nienna, he found his sister isolated in her halls. Weeping for Melkor. As she always was. As she always would be. Mandos wrapped his arms around his sister, trying to comfort her, so that his presence would erase the memory of the Dark One.

It didn't go away. Unconsummated love is the most dangerous. Tears were her only comfort, her last memory of Melkor. As long as there was pain, he would be remembered in her heart. Nienna wept for many evils caused by Melkor, as if her tears could erase the pain he caused. The pain he felt.

“Nienna.” Mandos whispered, caressing his sister's tear-stained face. “Forget him, Nienna. Not even your tears can save him. You'll drown in an ocean of sorrow before you can save his soul.”

“Dear brother...” She murmured, holding back a sob. Her hands touched Mandos' face with affection, and he denied it with his head. “He is my suffering, my condemnation. The reason for my melancholy.”

I accept him, Nienna thought, but she didn't confess her words to Mandos. She would keep that secret to herself, deep in her heart. Mandos would never understand Nienna's love for Melkor, why she couldn't abandon his suffering, his pain, when all she loved was him.

Far from the Valar, Nienna lived with her grief. Forced to contemplate the extent of Melkor's cruelty under Arda, the hand of his judgement weighing on Elves and Men. She wept, yes. But in her heart, hope still flourished. The desire for better days, days that were still possible.

Nienna never told what she had been through in Angband, keeping Melkor's secrets to herself. She wouldn't betray her family, the Valar. But she wouldn't betray Melkor either. As the tears streamed down her face, she knew that he felt her pain too. At the top of his fortress, watching how deeply he had hurt her. Marked her.

Olórin was Nienna's most powerful Maia, and from her he learnt mercy and forgiveness. And Nienna loved him deeply. He was her friend, her confidant. He would follow her legacy and teach that forgiveness was always an option. Only Olórin knew Nienna's feelings. The ugliness of her love for Melkor.

In fact, the Maia knew his Mistress. Nienna, Olórin thought, would die for Melkor, if necessary, if this was the solution for him to return to the light. For him to find salvation. She would die if it meant feeling him by her side, so that they could be One in the peace of Valinor.

Nienna and her brothers knew the beauty of death. Where all those who loved and lost each other would meet one day. Even if it wasn't an easy way to see it.

Over time, Olórin began to fear for his Mistress. Nienna was melancholy in her halls, stagnant. She called out countless times for the voice to go away, to leave her alone in her pain, while she burned in her loneliness. From a distance, Melkor kept his grip on Nienna, with a spear driven through her heart. So that she would continue to break for him. So that she would bleed for him.

“He's here!” Nienna murmured to Olórin, covering her face. “I see his face everywhere, his voice calls to me everywhere.”

“My darling…” Olórin despaired, clutching Nienna's hands. “The Great Enemy cannot touch you. Not in Valinor.”

“He's powerful!” Nienna roared, frustrated. “More wicked and powerful than all of us. He expects me to crawl like a snake to him.”

Nienna turned away from Olórin, staring desolately at the sea. Melkor's voice screamed in her mind, demanding that she not ignore him, that she not escape him. Nienna laughed, angrily. He was tormenting her, torturing her with her melancholy for leaving. For abandoning him. But he had forced her to leave him, to turn her back on him.

“I have to leave.”

Nienna, watching the raging, uncontrollable waves, realised what Melkor wanted from her. That he wanted her, but was too proud to ask. To insist that she return to him. If the price for Melkor's salvation was Nienna's soul, all her prayers, he would violate her love until there was nothing left of her. She was willing to pay the price he demanded.

“This is what he expects you to do. That your pain will be so great that you'll only find comfort in his arms.” Olórin said, worried.

“It would be dishonest of me to deny that I desire him too.” Nienna said, turning towards Olórin. “We are the same. Because there is no suffering without cruelty.”

“The others won't let you leave again. Your brothers are still furious.”

Nienna denied it, smiling sadly. Her veil covered her face, but her sadness was visible to all who knew pity. Who knew loss.

“Only Melkor can take away the pain in my chest.” Nienna's hands touched her chest, feeling the emptiness that was growing there. “May the Valar punish me, if they wish. It is my duty to forgive all who live in Arda.”

“The Lady is very pious.” Olórin replied, defeated. “What should I do for you?”

In all of Valinor, only Olórin would choose Nienna's wishes, her longing for Melkor, over her safety. If that was what she needed, to sail back to him, because she believed in him, because she kept waiting for him. Olórin would help her on her journey.

Covered by Olórin, Nienna left Valinor when moonlight shone over Middle-earth. Like Melkor when he left with Ungoliant, Nienna left consumed by darkness, back to Middle-earth, back to Melkor.

Melkor, the most powerful of the Valar, followed in Nienna's footsteps, obsessing over her thoughts and actions. It was revolting how the goddess was able to dominate his thoughts, to consume his every desire. Because Melkor wasn't like the other Valar. He didn't need love. Melkor cannot love.

But Nienna loved him, he knew that. He felt her love when she gave herself to him, when she defied the Valar and walked to Angband. For him. Nienna was always crying for him, and that upset him. Because he appreciated her tears. He needed them.

Every waking second, every damn, interminable second alone, Melkor wasted thinking about Nienna. The One Who Cries, they called her. But she was more than that. Nienna was pious, but a fire stronger than the Silmarils burned in her chest, in her spirit. Melkor needed that fire. To consume it until she ceased to exist.

Sauron wisely kept his distance from his master. Because even though Melkor had ordered Nienna expelled from the fortress, Melkor's cry of fury shook countless kilometres across Middle-earth. He missed her, in his own way, in his dead and twisted heart.

Melkor watched over Nienna even in Valinor, suspecting that Manwë sensed his presence but refused to turn his brother away from Nienna. It still wasn't enough, because something clouded Nienna, a spell covering her spirit from Melkor.

Thuringwethil was Sauron's messenger. Her dark, gigantic form haunted the Elves and Men of Middle-earth. Everyone fled in terror when Thuringwethil's wings covered the sky. And for Sauron, she watched over Nienna, seeing beyond the veil of magic that hid Nienna's departure from Valinor.

With perverse joy, Thuringwethil returned to Angband with news for Lord Sauron. Nienna was on her way to Middle-earth, hidden by the magic of her Maia. Sauron was delighted with these words. The Valar didn't know about her departure. So they could not hinder Melkor's designs.

“My Lord.” Thuringwethil said reverently, bowing to Melkor.

In the throne room, only Sauron and Thuringwethil gazed at the mighty Vala. Melkor's unstable mood was frightening the Orcs, who fled far away.

“Nienna is in Middle-earth. Olórin hid her from the Valar.”

Melkor stared at the messenger, ordering everyone to leave. He smiled maliciously, realising that Nienna was on the verge of madness with her turn of mind, if she had chosen to leave Valinor alone to see him. Without the permission of Manwë, King of the Valar.

Oh, and what an ideal moment for Nienna's return. Because in two days, Melkor's allies, all the fallen Elves, and corrupted beings and Beasts of Middle-earth, would arrive in Angband for All Fallens' Eve. And Nienna would be the most important guest at the celebration, even if she didn't know it yet.

And Nienna still didn't fear Melkor's ideas. Alone in Middle-earth, she once again followed the path to Angband. The wolves who had once guided her were no longer there. Now their leader was following in Nienna's footsteps. Sauron, Lord of the Werewolves. His luminous eyes stared at Nienna from the darkness, his howl informing his followers of her arrival.

Nienna didn't fear Sauron, but she hated being in his presence. Olórin feared Sauron and loathed him. And above all, he feared for Nienna's safety alongside the cruel werewolf that was Sauron. But not Nienna, because he wouldn't hurt her. He respected Melkor enough not to hurt her physical form.

This time, in Angband, handcuffs weren't necessary. Sauron, as a werewolf, drove the Orcs away, guiding Nienna into the fortress. The Orcs, she realised, bowed when she arrived. What could Melkor have threatened them with? The Orcs were a reflection of their master, and they all despised the Valar.

Nienna's bare feet were very cold, they always were. Melkor's lands were too wicked for the heat to reach them. The cold corridors of Angband welcomed Nienna. Melkor wasn't there, of course he wouldn't be.

He would never show that he was waiting for her to arrive. Sauron left Nienna alone in the darkness, running out of Angband, responsible for following, no doubt, some perverse order from Melkor.

Small flaps of wings greeted Nienna. And the goddess looked around, searching for the reason for the movement. High up in the ceiling, hidden in the shadows, Thuringwethil watched Nienna with great interest.

What was it about the goddess in particular that prevented Melkor from punishing her for entering his fortress? She wouldn't ask her master, of course. It was too risky.

“Come forth, friend of Morgoth.” Nienna said firmly. “I can feel the darkness in you.”

Thuringwethil's laughter was as cold as the icicles of Helcaraxë forged by Melkor's evil deeds. Thuringwethil's wings were immense, covering much of the ceiling, and the wind they caused was intense. The vampire answered Nienna's call, landing in front of the goddess.

“My Lady.” She bowed in mockery.

“Where is your master?” Nienna demanded to know.

“Busy, I'd say.” Thuringwethil sneered, prowling round Nienna. “Why are you hiding behind your veil?”

“Is that what you think I'm doing?” Nienna laughed, unmoved by the vampire's judgemental gaze.

“You're a enchantress, then?”

“Pardon?”

Nienna looked at Thuringwethil, confused. Sorceresses didn't live in Valinor. Sorceresses like Sauron followed Melkor. And Nienna was not his follower.

“You've bewitched the master!” She vociferated, furious.

Oh, that was it then. Thuringwethil was fascinated by Melkor too. Nienna couldn't judge her, though. She herself knew the charm that only Melkor possessed, how seductive his darkness could be. Cosy.

“I'm honoured, of course.” Nienna laughed. “That you think I'm capable of bewitching Melkor.”

Calling him by his Eru-given name, Thuringwethil hissed like a serpent, flapping his furious wings. But without ever touching Nienna.

“He's looking for you. We are all forced to feel his fury. Because of you.”

“Only Melkor is responsible for your actions.” Nienna shrugged, smiling lightly at the vampire. “Now, tell me, where is your master?”

Thuringwethil didn't answer, signalling for Nienna to accompany her. These corridors were different, further away. There, only the cold resided. Because Evil was cold, like his followers. Like Melkor. Warmth, Nienna now knew, could only be found in Angband through Melkor's touch.

Thuringwethil stopped in the far corridor, leaving Nienna in front of huge black doors. She didn't remember these chambers, she could have sworn they were new, even. Her hands touched the cold doors, which opened at her touch.

Yes, thoese chambers are new. The chambers were dark, cold, but comforting. Flames burned silently, illuminating the chambers. A large bed stood in the centre. Books were scattered across the floor, as if whoever had set up the chambers couldn't decide what to leave behind or what to take away.

Nienna sighed, knocking on the doors of her chambers, finally alone. On the bed, Nienna noticed, was a dress as red as the blood moon, with a veil at its side. She knew, yes, deep down. Of course she knew. He had done it for her, thinking of her. A silent plea for her to stay with him this time.

“Nienna.” He whispered in her mind.

It was comforting to hear his voice there, to feel that he was close to her. Her tortuous melancholy.

“Melkor.” She whispered in reply.

The winds in the chambers grew stronger, colder. As stormy as Melkor. Footsteps approached, strong, confident. Steps taken by a king, she thought, briefly savouring the idea. The doors opened with force, but silently.

“Nienna.” He said and she sighed.

Melkor walked towards Nienna, and she stood with her back to him. She couldn't look him in the eye, not now. Not when she was trying to keep her spirits up, while trying to resist the desperate desire to be his. As it should always have been. As Eru had predicted in his song.

Melkor's hand gripped Nienna's waist, while the other held her neck. Nienna gasped, letting him press his chest against her back. Yes, that was what was missing. What had been missing all this time. His hands squeezed, possessively, desperately.

“Why did you come back?” he growled, rubbing his face against her veil, pulling away from her abruptly. His face plunged into Nienna's dark hair, inhaling her scent. Holding it in his spirit.

“You wanted me to come back.” She murmured, closing her eyes as the hand on her throat intensified its grip. “You called me.”

The heat was there again, next to his burnt hands. Next to his powerful hands that dictated evil in Arda. Melkor ignored Nienna's words, keeping his touch warm against her, moaning against her neck. He was intoxicated by her.

“Or maybe you wanted me to give in first.” Nienna said fervently.

With brute force, Melkor turned Nienna round, leaving her facing him. Without the veil protecting her face, she felt exposed. At Melkor's mercy. She looked away, but Melkor's warm hands held her face, forcing her to look at him.

“Choose, Nienna.” Melkor said.

“What?” She looked at him, confused.

Melkor's eyes burned like a thousand coals, his cold, serpentine gaze preventing her from turning away, from thinking about anything other than him.

“I want you to choose me.” It was Melkor who whispered.

Cold tears escaped from Nienna's eyes. She couldn't choose, and he knew it. She wouldn't abandon the Valar. And he knew that she was there, on a failed mission to obtain his forgiveness, to return him to the grace of Eru. Melkor was far beyond redemption, it was too late for him. He did not wish to be redeemed, but to rule over all the beings of Arda.

“You know I cannot.” She sobbed. “I love you, Melkor. Please. I love you with all my heart, and you know that, don't you? But I cannot choose.”

She cried, feeling his hands squeeze her face harder, more brutally.

“You wicked creature, you hate me more than you hate them.” Nienna accused, furious. “Torturing me from the darkness with your false promises. You, Mighty Melkor, are my greatest torture, my greatest melancholy.”

Nienna didn't mind him seeing her cry. Melkor was the reason for her sadness, always had been. Ever since Eru created his Song. Nienna closed her eyes, unhappy. She was there, for him, and yet he wanted her to suffer. Nienna's cry was interrupted by Melkor's lips against hers. On fire, decisive. Cruel.

Nienna sighed, returning the kiss. Her hands went up to the Iron Crown he wore, oblivious to the heat of the Silmarils. They didn't hurt her, Nienna knew that. Her hands reached for the crown, removing it from Melkor. He didn't stop the kiss, on the contrary, he kissed her harder, more desperately.

“Be mine, Nienna.” He moaned into the kiss, oblivious to the crown that fell to the floor.

“But haven't I always belonged to you, my love?” Nienna whispered, without moving too far away from him.

Melkor growled at her words. He was taller than her, for the Valar, he was much taller. It was almost intimidating. But Nienna felt safe in his arms. Because all she wanted most was to be his.

And Nienna knew the risks of the promises she was making to Melkor. That, before Manwë, those words would bind them together for all eternity, to belong to each other until the world was remade.

She didn't care, not any more, when Melkor's hands grasped her, lifting her body off the ground. Nienna wrapped her legs around his waist, bringing their lips together again. She wanted him to devour her, as long as it made her his, and only his. And Melkor was ready to reciprocate with the same intensity, the same desire.

Nienna moaned, her back slamming against the bed, wrinkling her red silk dress. Melkor broke off the kiss, staring at Nienna, as if searching for the deception behind the kiss. Nienna brought her hand up to his scarred face, brushing the black strands away from his beautiful cruel face.

Nienna was on fire, her heart beating violently in her chest. Tears covered her face, because it was too intense, being there, being with him. She loved him so much, and she didn't want to hide it from him any longer.

“Damn you, Melkor the Destroyer.” Nienna sobbed. “I love you with all my soul.”

Melkor, overwhelmed by Nienna's words, approached her. His tongue licked away her tears, erasing the trace of her suffering, while Nienna's chest burned. She moaned at the gesture, unable to be rational.

“There's no turning back from a love like mine.” Purred Melkor, his hot tongue tracing the tears of his beloved. “It's not good or fair. It's ugly and cruel. You may not like what you see.”

“No.” Nienna denied it, holding Melkor's face. “I want you, the real one.”

With those words, she sentenced her fate. Like a beast freed from its chains, Melkor kissed Nienna, his hands grasping the black dress she wore, tearing it with ease. The cold ricocheted against her skin, to be warmed by his armoured body. Melkor's armour was warm, like him, and Nienna moaned. Her hands grabbed his hair, letting her nails dig into his skin.

Melkor wasn't fair in his love. Nienna found that it made her feel complete. She cried out when his lips found her neck, kissing, licking, keeping her essence for him. Like a serpent, he dug his teeth into her skin, and Nienna moaned, rubbing her body against the armour, too blinded by her desire. A trickle of her divine blood ran down her neck, so different from the blood she knew flowed in Melkor.

Nienna watched, breathless, as Melkor slowly removed his armour. His exposed, pale skin contrasted with his hands marked by the Silmarils. Not even in Valinor, Nienna thought, could beauty like that be found in anyone other than Melkor.

Brutally, Melkor continued to attack Nienna's neck, marking her. A promise, that she would always be his. Nienna allowed him to mark her, to make her his. She had always wanted to be his. And she knew what she needed to do to be his too.

Melkor's hands grasped Nienna's, pulling her away from his hair. She tried to struggle, but he was stronger and she didn't want to run away. Melkor's kisses travelled down her neck, to her collarbone, and she sighed. Her eyes rolled when his demanding lips finally found her breasts.

To Melkor, this was his salvation, his redemption. Nienna gasped, wrapping her legs around Melkor, preventing him from pulling away. She was completely surrendered to him, as she had never been before, as she had never wanted to be with anyone else before. There was no one for Nienna but him.

Melkor's mouth was demanding, marking Nienna's body. Biting, kissing, licking her breasts, while his hands kept Nienna pinned beneath him. It took so much control not to lose himself in her, not to spend eternity trapped against her body.

Looking at Melkor, Nienna saw the blood covering his breasts, covering Melkor's lips. But she wasn't afraid, she was on fire for him, for everything he had to offer. Nienna moaned as Melkor's kisses left her breasts.

“Melkor. My Melkor.” She moaned, looking up at him.

Melkor let go of Nienna's hands, grabbing her thighs, pulling away the remnants of her dress.

“Are you mine, Nienna?” Melkor's husky voice asked, mesmerising Nienna.

“Completely yours.”

When Melkor's kisses found Nienna's thighs, biting down hard until her blood ran, she brought her hands to his long dark hair, pulling hard. He groaned at the act, marvelling at how responsive she was to his every touch. Because Melkor knew Nienna well enough to know that she would never give her body to another.

Melkor's kisses trailed down her legs, finding her centre. Nienna's scream could be heard throughout Angband, but she didn't care, because this sensation was unlike anything she had ever felt, it felt so right. Nienna moaned, pulling harder on Melkor's hair.

But he continued to devour her. She was divine, her taste clouding his senses. If his punishment was to spend eternity trapped against her thighs, he would die happy. That was true perfection. True divinity and purity.

Nienna reacted every time his tongue dragged against her, tasting her, devouring her, keeping her flavour only for him. She knew she would be ruined, unable to be with anyone but him. Melkor didn't mind when her legs slammed against his face, pressing his kisses even harder into her.

That was the wicked tongue that condemned Men and Elves to eternal damnation, that determined the rules in Middle-earth. The same language that opened Nienna up to Melkor and nothing but him. Not even in Valinor could she find that peace. That intense desire that burned within her.

“Cum for me, Nienna.” Melkor's voice whispered in her mind.

Powerful, resounding. She wasn't strong enough to deny him, she would never deny him anything. Nienna cum against Melkor's lips, her tears staining her pale face. So this was loving someone?

Nienna couldn't think straight until she felt Melkor's lips against her cheek, kissing all over her face, inhaling her scent so strongly. Nienna held Melkor's face, still panting, kissing him passionately. She had never thought before that Melkor could make her feel all this.

Hands as hot as the fire of the Silmarils were everywhere, touching Nienna's entire body. Melkor's fingers caressed all the exposed skin, trailing down Nienna's thighs. She moaned, biting his lip. Melkor's dark blood flooded her mouth.

“Just like that, Nienna.” Melkor groaned into the kiss, biting Nienna's lips, their blood mingling. “Bind yourself to me!”

Not even Manwë could destroy the bond that had been created between them, the most powerful union that was being forged in their flesh. Only blood could bind one of the Valar. And Nienna was binding herself to Melkor, to be his, until Eru decided their fates.

Nienna moaned, gasping at Melkor's touch, his fingers against her, teasing her body, making her body his to command. Nienna was panting, her chest rising and falling, but Melkor's touch didn't stop. He couldn't get enough of her sensation, of feeling his fingers inside her, touching her divine form, which belonged only to him.

Melkor kissed Nienna's neck, his free hand holding hers. Nienna wondered if this was what the Valar felt when they were in love, when they gave themselves over to reciprocal passion. Love that was reciprocated was safe, peaceful. But Nienna and Melkor had loved each other for countless centuries at a distance, apart.

Nienna's fingers intertwined with Melkor's and she moaned, cumming again against his touch. Her thoughts were so confused that she wondered how mortals could bear to be like this without dying, without going completely mad.

“Are you mine?” Nienna asked uncertainly as Melkor brushed her sweaty hair away from her face.

He didn't answer at first, lost in his own thoughts. In his dark and twisted mind. Nienna let another tear fall, before Melkor kissed her.

“I've always been yours, Nienna.”

She smiled at him, genuinely. Melkor's hands held Nienna, turning their bodies so that she was sitting on him. Now, looking so closely at him, Nienna felt her face flush. It was bad to use forms like that, so susceptible to reactions, to emotions.

Nienna rested her hands on Melkor's shoulders, while his hand touched her waist. She could see what he had warned her about. All the darkness was depicted on his face, exposed to her. The evil of his touch, his gaze, his voice. The perversion that surrounded him. And Nienna felt as if she couldn't love him any more.

“I won't leave you, Melkor.”

Nienna whispered, kissing Melkor. She let his hands guide her, moving her body against him. She gasped against his lips, moaning when she was finally sitting on him. Yes, that was why the Valar exchanged oaths of love in the flesh only with their mates. It was too intense. Too powerful.

Nienna let her emotions mingle as she moved against him. Her sadness. His malice. She let her face fall against his, panting, impatient for more. It still didn't feel like enough, she couldn't get enough of him. Her movements became more uncertain, and Melkor's hands guided Nienna's movements.

“I love you.” She moaned against his lips, feeling his warm hands on her waist.

No mortal would believe that the powerful and terrible Dark Vala would let his mistress ravage him, using his body for her own pleasure, as if she could wash away all his evil with her touch, with her desire.

Melkor groaned, feeling Nienna squeeze against him. Everything about her was divine, tailor-made for him. Nienna, Melkor thought, was Eru's special gift to him. Perhaps she had always been his salvation. Not that he was going to admit that to himself.

Nienna was close again, moaning against Melkor, her nails digging into his shoulders. He didn't mind, not even when her nails scratched his back. He had dozens of battle scars. Hers, he would take as a blessing, as a trophy.

“Nienna.” Melkor groaned, wrapping his arms around the goddess' body, his control leaving him.

“Melkor!” She moaned, crumbling against him. Her head fell against his chest.

Melkor's movements became more brutal, faster, more insatiable. He would never tire of her. He would take her with him for all eternity. Melkor kissed Nienna, never tiring of her taste, of the feel of her lips.

“Be mine. As mine as I am yours.”

How could he deny her that? Nienna then moaned against his lips, feeling her body fall apart against his once again, this time accompanied by Melkor. The desire of the gods was always stronger than that of mortals. More uncontrolled, more passionate.

“My Nienna.” Melkor whispered, caressing the goddess's face.

Nienna smiled at the dark god, letting him lay her body down beside him. She felt strangely at home. Safe with him. Finally where she was supposed to be.

It was overwhelming to be with Melkor, with a god as powerful as him. Deep down, Nienna knew that two days had passed since she had arrived in Angband. Time passed differently for the Valar. The moon was shining in the sky again.

“Today we celebrate All Fallens' Eve.” Melkor said.

Nienna agreed, exhausted. She knew what he was talking about, she knew the celebration. And she knew he wouldn't let her miss it. That's what the red dress was for, wasn't it? A reminder, a warning of their union.

To all the beings of Middle-earth, Nienna would be introduced as Melkor's wife. The title still made his stomach churn. Manwë would surely be astonished and even horrified by Nienna's choice.

“I'd be there, by your side.” Nienna said, smiling nervously.

Melkor smiled at Nienna, kissing her lips one last time before leaving. Alone in her chambers, Nienna sighed. Lost in her passion, she had accepted that Melkor would make her his, a bond that not even the Valar could break.

Somebody hold me back, because I don't want to stop this story!

By the way, you have to see this beautiful art of Melkor and Nienna, it's one of my favorites of them.

I hope you enjoyed it. Reblogs, comments and likes are always welcome! And please don't copy my work or post it anywhere else.

tag: @valar-did-me-wrong @redrosesandcharmingsouls

[spoiled-milk]

dan heng as your roommate (modern au)

a/n: in compliance with dan heng’s five star release being yesterday here’s brainrot for my beloved also praying that those who pull for dan heng win their 50/50 or get him early (it took me 80 pity with guaranteed 😭😭). will be mia so i can farm more stellar jades for his weapon since he wanted to come home on hard pity

content warning: mentions of alcohol consumption, other than that none that i can think of. no mention of reader's gender

word count: ~1k words

you share a small apartment with dan heng. you used to share it with one of your friends, but a sudden job opportunity for them turns into you frantically finding a roommate to fill so that you’re not paying the full price of the rent next month

you find dan heng through one of your friend’s friend. March (your friend) knew someone with grey hair who then gave dan heng your details since he was looking for a place to live

you two officially meet at a coffee shop where you discuss rent, house rules, and the lease and you did not expect him to be hella attractive

rules are as follows: there’s a chore list on the fridge in the form of dry erase board, if bringing over friends you must let the other know before you bring them over, no going into the other person’s room without their knowledge, and keep hooking up to a minimum if possible or keep it quiet

at first he seemed like a quiet guy who wanted nothing to do with you which like didn’t hurt your feelings too much yk you just needed someone to pay half of the rent, but slowly he starts to open up to you and you have no problems opening up

usually you take turns cooking, but he’s come to realize you only know how to make is boxed food and breakfast foods, so after eating waffles for the 12th time that week he decides he’ll cook dinner for the most part

dan heng without fail will always give you the last piece of anything he makes. dumplings? you can have the last one. 12 pack of juice in the fridge? he won’t even go get more unless you drink the last one. you make brownies as a token of appreciation for him and insist you don’t want any and all of it is for him? you find the last piece tucked away in the fridge with your name on it

he makes it a point to do the dishes together. at first he argued that he could do it but after much begging from you, he allows you to help him rinse the dishes

this has become a nearly every night thing. you eat whatever dan heng makes then y’all do the dishes. most of the time you’re doing the talking, but it’s not exhausting to talk to him like you talk to others

you don’t know much about his past but he sure does knows a lot about your past. you’re sure march probably unintentionally spilled about your past, but you don’t really mind knowing it’s just dan heng. march has told you to ask him but when you do, he softly shuts it down

it doesn’t hurt your feelings of course. you understand that everyone has their secrets and no one is entitled to his, but it does hurt a little that he doesn’t seem like he wants to tell you since you thought you were getting pretty close as friends

oftentimes at the end of a stressful week, you find some movie on some streaming service and crash on the couch with snacks littering the coffee table. sometimes dan heng will come join you on the couch to whatever movie you put on, regardless of genre. rom com? he’s got his eyes glued to the screen. some environmental documentary about the gas leaks that effect a underprivileged community? he’s sat next to you nodding his head to the tv like a middle aged dad

most of the time you fall asleep in the middle of these movies and most of the time when you wake up in the middle of the night you either find yourself covered with a fluffy blanket or you find yourself in your bed with no memory of how you got there. you suspect dan heng carried you there, but you’ve never had the courage to ask him

there was one time when you woke up from sleeping in the middle of the movie and the tv was left on to the end credit scene. you reach for the remote next to you and turn off the tv. you start to shift a little but then you notice a weight next to you, it’s your roommate. he’s got an arm around your waist and he’s pulling you closer to him

you’re too tired to properly comprehend the situation so you let it happen. you lean your head towards his chest and end up falling asleep listening to dan heng’s heartbeat. when dan heng woke up that morning realizing what had happened, he could not look you in the eye for a week without blushing

he also takes care of you whenever you come home shitfaced from an outing or get shitfaced by yourself with 3 bottles of soju. it doesn’t happen often and you try not to drink often, but when you decide to go out, dan heng somehow knows that you’ve been out drinking and will always be at home waiting for your return

your friends drop you off at your apartment and dan heng helps you into bed. he takes a baby wipe and wipes off any dirt on your face. he’s so gentle with it that it honestly feels like a dream. you lowkey cherish it every single time, it feels so intimate that you wish he meant it in that way and not as just a friend

just as you’re losing consciousness, dan heng gets close to you but your vision is slightly blurring so you’re not sure what he’s up to, but you trust dan heng 100% to not take advantage of you

as you scrunch your eyebrows you feel something soft press against your cheek and then once again on your forehead. they’re brief and short, but you can feel your body get hotter and hotter, not even sure if it’s the alcohol or dan heng (or both maybe)

you pray that your big crush on him isn’t obvious but march tells you otherwise. so now you only hope that dan heng can’t tell but honestly it’s really hard to read his feelings, but you’re not sure how long you can keep up this “he’s just my roommate” act to your friends and yourself

[the-mountain-flower]

The Legend of Alinua

Chapter One: Kendal's Awakening

Ao3 Link (lol)

Kendal wakes up with no memory other than his name, and meets a ghost of someone who claims was the previous owner of the body he now lives in, and that he's essential for saving the world from an ancient evil using something called the Triforce of Courage.

Meanwhile, a magic scholar named Erin, and a gardener with a talent for life magic, both find a strange three-triangle symbol on their hand. An event that heralds both of their lives turning upside down in a fight for the fate of Hyrule.

Next chapter

…Kendal…

…Soul of the hero…

…Hyrule… needs… you…

“Hello? Can you hear me?”

What…

“I think he's awake, but he doesn't seem to be responding.”

Who's there?

“Give him time,”

Where… where am I?

“This would be rather disorienting for him.”

Are… are they talking about me?

Wait, who… who am I-

Kendal.

The name came to him in an instant. He didn't know how he knew it, but that name, it was his.

The world around Kendal reached his consciousness slowly. A persistent feeling of strangeness overshadowed any of his physical surroundings. The prickle of grass underneath, and warmth of faint sunlight above, he was somewhere… somewhere he didn’t know.

No, not just that, he was somebody he didn’t know. He didn't recognize the feeling of, well, anything. He was unfamiliar in his own skin, like it was brand new to him.

But that didn't make sense, because he didn't remember having anything else to compare it to.

He didn't remember… anything. But not like his memory was gone, more like he didn't have any to begin with, a blank slate that hadn’t been erased. How did he even know that?

Kendal attempted moving in small ways, trying to understand the body he was in. It came to him more naturally than he expected, but that didn’t diminish the feeling of unfamiliarity. He opened his eyes, and was met with the sight of a thick forest canopy, sunlight dappling through tree branches and leaves. He carefully sat up, moving his arms to hold his weight beneath him.

“Easy, now,” one of the voice from earlier reached his ears, much clearer than before.

Another strange sensation appeared in his back and went through his torso, both cold and hot at the same time, causing Kendal to shiver, then disappeared as soon as it came.

“Oh, right, sorry. I suppose I can’t do that anymore.”

Kendal turned around to find the source of the voice.

Beside him knelt someone who appeared to be hylian, but they were slightly transparent. They glowed with a strange blue light, and was accompanied by small blue-green flames that danced around their form.

This person seemed… familiar, somehow.

In an ocean of the unknown, this figure was a wave large enough to draw his attention, but even they were just another part of that mystery. The only island in that ocean, was Kendal’s name.

“Are you Kendal?” the strange person asked.

“Um,” like everything else, speaking felt simultaneously natural and foreign to him. “I think, yes?” Though he was certain of his response, his voice came out as uncertain, colored by the overwhelming confusion he felt.

“Welcome, hero.”

Kendal whirled around again to face forward, towards the much deeper, larger voice.

In front of him was a massive tree. A tree with a face.

That… that wasn’t usual, right? And come to think of it, he suspected the glow that came from the person beside him wasn’t normal either.

“What- who are you people? Where am I?”

“Take it easy.” The glowing Hylian said gently. “This is probably really confusing for you.”

“Um, yeah.” If by ‘this’ they meant everything, then yes it was. “What’s going on?”

The glowing Hylian stood up, and reached one hand toward Kendal. “We’ll explain everything once we make sure you’re alright.”

Now that Kendal was growing more and more in tune with his surroundings, he noticed more details about this strange person. They were tall, with a muscular build, and long, thick blonde hair. Their eyes were a piercing blue, and something told Kendal that part wasn’t because of the glowing aura. Though, he still couldn’t figure out why they seemed so familiar, everything about them almost expected.

Hesitantly, he reached to take the stranger’s hand.

It passed right through.

“Oh,” the glowing Hylian winced, “Sorry.”

“I’ll help Mr. Hero up!” A small, high-pitched voice piped up.

An equally small… leaf person?- came over. They floated in the air toward him via a sort of pinwheel-looking pair of leaves, and began tugging on Kendal’s shoulder with the arm not preoccupied with keeping them afloat.

“Woah! Mr. Hero, you’re heavy!”

Kendal couldn’t help but laugh. He carefully stood up- which didn’t feel any less strange than anything else, though that feeling was starting to overwhelm him less with every movement.

“How are you feeling?” Asked the tree with a face.

Kendal looked down at this hands, the ones that were his, and yet didn’t feel like his own.

“I think, okay? But, confused.”

“That is understandable.” The tree said, “It may take you some time to get used to this new body.”

“This new- what?”

“One thing at a time.” The Hylian reached out for a handshake. “I’m please to meet you, Kendal. My name is Vash.”

Kendal looked at the outstretched hand, remembering the last time he tried to take it.

Vash retracted. “Right, the ghost thing. I’ll have to get used to that too, I guess.”

“Ghost?” Kendal supposed that would explain the unusual appearance.

“Right.” Vash adjusted their posture to one that exuded more confidence, “Your body, it used to be mine. I gave it to you.”

…

“What?”

▲▲▲

One week earlier

Erin Ruunaser was awake way later than he should’ve been.

He was pouring over several books on loan from the town’s library in the room of an inn, the bed as of yet untouched despite the late hour. As was to be expected of the scholar, he was doing research.

He allowed himself a few seconds’ break from writing to place a hand on both wrists in turn, before grabbing a cup placed at the edge of the desk, using water and fire magic to reheat the long-cold beverage. He raised the cup to his mouth-

Then he startled, dropping the pen in his right hand and the cup in his left, spilling ink onto the paper and hot coffee onto his chest and lap.

Erin swore out loud, quickly standing up and knocking over his chair in the process. He ignored what had caused the reaction in the first place, and once again touched his tattoo for water magic to remove the hot liquid. Then he switched to life magic to heal the minor burns that he had gotten from the heat, which took a few moments longer due to the focus required for healing magic.

As soon as that was done, a once-over of the copious amount of papers on the desk showed no further damage to his work other than an ink spill that was easy to fix..

Erin remembered what had caused him to startle: a strange, almost burning sensation in his left hand. He looked over that hand to see what could have caused it, initially worried about some unnoticed damage to one of his tattoos.

“Well, that’s new.”

On the back of his hand was a glowing, golden symbol. Three triangles, connected to create a third, inverted triangle out of negative space in the center. The bottom two were faint, noticeable but not prominent. The top part of the symbol was much more vibrant, glowing a solid golden color over his skin.

Erin furrowed his brows. He didn’t recognize this imagery, but he got the feeling he’d seen it somewhere before.

A million questions raced through Erin’s head at once, the most prominent ones being: What was this symbol? Where did it come from? How did it appear out of nowhere on his hand? Why did it appear out of nowhere on his hand?

And considering how he of all people knew nothing about it, the answers might take a while to find…

Early morning light shone through the window of the solitary cottage, waking bird calls emerging alongside the rising sun.

The rising light had gently awoken the one person inside the cottage. Alinua sat on the edge of her bed, ready to go about her day of tending her large garden. She had a lot on her plate today, since tomorrow was when she planned to attend a market hosted at a town a couple miles away, so she wanted to be prepared.

That would’ve been the main thing on her mind that morning, except something felt… off. Not bad, but different. She didn’t know how to describe it, even to herself, but it felt like she’d gone to sleep last night as a different person than she was now, waking up somehow changed.

She almost dismissed it an effect of not being fully awake yet, but then saw something else she couldn’t explain.

On the back of her left hand, was a symbol that had never there before. It wasn’t something that could be brushed off as a smudge or imprint from her bedsheets. It was more like a tattoo, or like the birthmark on her other arm.

Three yellow triangles glowed softly on her skin, connected at the corners. The lower left one glowed brighter, and more vibrant, than the others.

She stared at the marking while fidgeting with an object that previously rested on her nightstand. It was a family heirloom given by her mother before she’d disappeared when Alinua was a child. A circular wooden object about the size of her palm, its surface pressed with a tarnished metal that had been worn down enough its original color and texture was lost to time. The front was carved with the stylization of a large bird, its wings outstretched above its head. Above the head and in between the wings, were the same three triangles as were on her hand, though equal in appearance.

It’d be foolish to assume the two weren’t connected. But… she had no idea how it happened, or what it could mean.

Alinua sighed, and stood up. If she didn’t know, sitting there doing nothing wasn’t going to do her any favors. Whatever significance there was, she’d have to find out some other time.

▲▲▲

“So, just to make sure I got this right.” Kendal said, then gestured to the talking tree. “You’re the Great Deku Tree, guardian of this forest.” Then to Vash, “And you’re a hylian with something called the Triforce of Courage.”

Vash nodded.

“And I’m some sort of hero who reincarnated to save Hyrule. But I wasn’t here, you said I died young?”

“Yes.” Vash confirmed.

“And this prophecy says I’m needed to save Hyrule. So since you have the Triforce of Courage, you gave up your body so I could do that? And now I need to find a princess, and defeat a primordial evil that wants to destroy- sorry, consume- the world?”

Vash rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, that about sums it up.”

Kendal sat back down on the grass where he woke up, and used one hand to hold his head. “That’s… a lot.”

Vash sat down in front of him. “I know it’s not… ideal.” His voice was genuinely remorseful. “You didn’t ask for this, and if I could do it for you I would.” Piercing blue eyes met Kendal’s (which were probably the same color). “But the prophecy is very clear. I know it’s not fair, and I’m sorry, but we need you.”

“Did… you just apologize for bringing me back to life?”

Vash blinked in surprise. “I guess I did.”

“When I’m done, when this quest is over and if I save Hyrule, will you get your body back?”

Vash shook his head. “No, it’s no longer mine.”

“I’m… I’m so sorry. I wouldn’t-”

“Hey, you’re not the one who should be sorry. I knew the consequences, and I did it anyway. I’m sorry for not giving you that choice.”

“How would you have? Given me the choice, I mean.”

“I don’t know. But it should have been yours to make. Even if it’s for the good of all Hyrule- and that’s why I did it- it doesn’t seem right to not give you that agency.”

Kendal took a moment to collect his thoughts before responding. “I think, if given that choice, I would still do what I can. I don’t know why, but… this place feels familiar, almost like home. And, it seems like the right thing to do.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“The soul of the hero never forgets his homeland.” the Great Deku Tree’s deep voice said from behind him, “even without memory to know it by.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Canon Kendal: wakes up without knowing who he is but having all of Vash's memories

Me writing this: cool, now let's try it with the exact opposite :)

This AU is set in Hyrule with various elements from different games, but mostly inspired by the Era of the Wild bc that's the one I'm most familiar with. Also no timeline placement bc that would make no sense in this one lol

Remember to drink water, eat food, take your meds (if applicable), and get enough sleep. Love you all, and have a great [insert time here]! <3

[gece-misin-nesin]

10 and 15 for the evillious ask game!!

10-Tell me about a headcanon you have for one of your favorite characters!

Hmm..I like to think Levia is a teacher in the 4th period. Not much reason just vibes.

Also, Ma likes murder mysteries (both irl and in fiction)

15-Do you have a least favorite character? why them?

I don't really have someone I dislike or hate tbh. And there aren't really characters I heavily dislike the writing of either. So maybe Venomania, he's annoying but idk. Maybe Prim? Though she's such a nothingburger that I can't really dislike her beyond what she did to Ney. Oh! Maybe Held actually. Him erasing the memories of his former coworkers and basically having them worship him is?? Very suspect and cult-like and he has a very holier than thou attitude that I don't really like. Yeah I think it's Held.

Thank you for the ask!!

[skyflyinginaction]

Idia brought up that it was strange that for a few months, NRC had so many overblots because overblots are rare and have happened for a few centuries. The victims being troublemakers wouldn’t be enough to overblot. Hence, he expected that something was inducing overblots on purpose. Do you think that something or someone could be the mastermind?

There are so many questions but not a lot of answers. One of the biggest mysteries is who Grimm is. For starters, Grimm said he has no memories; someone did a video that said that Grim was used for blot containment and even said he was a test subject. Grim also conveyed that he felt “drawn” to NRC but does not understand why an experiment? Do you think that the reason he has no memories was to erase any memory of his past as a test subject? I don’t know.

whitch leaves another thing its about the dreams the mc keeps having, it happened when the charcater was about ot be overbloted if like the dreams about the villains warned us about the overblots so if mc having dreams of teh disney villiansare not concidence than so it the overblot that might reference that someone inducing overblots on purpose.

Before the overblots happen, I can only think of one person who was present in all this. When overblots happen, it's usually Crowley who is involved in some way.

Crowley hosted the duel in Heartslabyul

Crowley asked Mc and Grim to investigate suspicious incidents involving athletes 

Crowley asked mc to stop the Azul study guide scheme and threatened that they would take away their food expenses 

Crowley left the academy to go on vacation and made MC and Grim tend to the firewood for the fire fairys

Crowley Letting the sing and dance team stay at ramshackle dorm to train for the culture festival 

Crowley allows Lilia to withdraw from school and even comes to Lilia's going-away party 

it all ties back to crowley making him a possible suspect there are more hints though like with the blot stones crowley and leona have an idea what the blot crystals are with Leona's suspiscous behavoir after he saw one and even crowley knowing what blot crystals are this notes that he knows more than what hes letting on. 

There's also another; it's how Crowley managed to invade any charges from Styx, the department of magic and education, that easily. There's something suspicious about how Crowley managed to convince them.

When book 7 came around, Grim gave away one hint at the end that "Micky is more trustworthy than Crowley". This can further hint that Crowley is not as trustworthy as he seems. 

There could be a possibility that Crowley knows Grim’s true nature. If the video on Grimm was right, then when Grim showed signs of being berserk and attacked mc, he concluded that Grim was a failure, so he needs to be sent back he allowed Styx to take Grim. 

If Crowley is the mastermind that induced overblots on purpose, then the reason why he let MC and Grimm stay wasn’t a coincidence. Crowley was using MC to enact his plans for the overblot, making MC report everything to him. He didn’t expect that MC couldn’t use magic, but when he learned how desperate MC was to go back to their original world, he saw this as an opportunity to incide his plans. 

that might be why Crowley hasn’t done anything to help MC get back to their original world because it wasn’t his original intentions, and it wasn’t on his list of priorities. 

But why, though? Why would he induce the overblots? What is his reason? But what would Crowley's motive be? That would throw a wrench in that theory. with is how much there is too much evidence against him its way too convenint. 

but this is all theory and speculation; you can say otherwise what you think I am only adding my thoughts about this.

[nalyra-dreaming]

Hello again! First I just want to say a big thank you to you and @virginiaisforvampires and @cbrownjc for answering my really long DM ask awhile ago! <3

I’m again going to presume that during the first four episodes Daniel will keep having flashbacks causing him to realise that there is more to the fallout of the 70’s interview than he might at first suspect. He will probably remember Armand’s ‘Gentleman Death’ speech, which might cause him to fear Armand. Resulting in the new character telling him he should fear ‘the other one’ (presumably Louis) instead.

I’m really curious about the, “You fear Armand. You should fear the other one”, does this character know of Armand’s concern and/or history with Daniel? Might one assume that the character knows about Louis attacking Daniel, and possibly is more acutely aware (than Daniel) of the destructive nature Louis actually carries fairly close to the surface (Paris fallout comes to mind). So the words could simply be a warning to Daniel, who possibly at this point is quite relaxed with Louis but nervous of Armand. If this new character is basically a ‘body-snatcher’ looking to gain access to an immortal vampiric body - are they playing the long-con by befriending Daniel to gain access? Could I be on to something here? I agree and remember that Louis and Daniel will team up during this season, so I’m assuming Louis won’t attack him again - but is there anything that Daniel should fear during this season? Is there a threat?

I saw the interview, talking about next season but I’m not as optimistic as some that the relationship/romance referred to was meant to be DM/Daniel’s and Armand’s. In context of the whole interview it sounds more like it’s talking about Louis’ and Armand’s relationship. If DM stuff is revealed or takes place in Dubai I’m pretty sure it’s a secret that they wouldn’t talk about in interviews. I mean - it’s a pretty great twist, and it makes so much sense to me that a lot of the writers apparently are stage writers. Love it! I really want to see DM take place and the memory-erased dynamic play out that the TV series has set up, but I am worried that I’m getting carried away and what we get might be much more minimal - and that fans will hype and then get disappointed.

The idea of Armand and Daniel bickering/fighting during the interviews for the season to then end up revealing to Daniel that *surprise* this guy who has been annoying you, has revealed himself to sure be romantic but also scary controlling and is someone you’ve rightly started to fear is the love of your life - is pretty darkly comic in the best of ways! I would freaking love it. What do you think? I’m pretty much all in for f*cked up relationship dynamics, since the characters are all fun and interesting. I’m very invested in Louis’ and Armand’s romance too, looking forward to it playing out and I like hearing that the show decided to be more romantic with it! Freaking love all the actors - and I’m so happy to watch a TV series which is actually creative and compelling!

Is there anything related to DM you would wish to see play out this season? Sorry for long ask again! Less questions this time at least haha (sorry!). Again, love visiting your blog and reading all the speculation! Thank you!

:) Hey!

Yes, the "you should fear the other one" IS incredible interesting.

I mean, there is this canon passivity to Louis, a passivity that is almost a chosen trait, because when he snaps... he snaps. (I still hope we will get the "passivity speech" in s2, I think it is such an important one, and Jacob would just rule).

But... trailers are meant to entice, to hint, but also to misdirect. Sam said in the q&a video that there would be other vampires in s2 as well. I... I am not 100% convinced that comment in the restaurant was wrt Louis.

That does not mean that Louis is not to be feared!! I just... this could be a red herring. Who knows, maybe it has to do with the twist.

(What if (speculating!!) Daniel then turns to whoever Justin Kirk is there and goes: "what other?" Why is that "other" vampire not named? Why does the Justin Kirk character know Armand at all? Why does he know about the vampires in that apartment??? (And yes, he could be already be so interested in it all because the idea for the body theft is forming!) Why does he know Daniel might be in danger from that other vampire? You know?^^)

So. It could be Louis' carefully hidden destructive tendencies. Maybe. (Which, btw, Armand used skillfully in Paris, I mean, he literally orchestrated it all for Louis to destroy the coven, a win-win situation for him, lol.)

But I'm not convinced that is what Daniel should fear. Would fear. If modern day Daniel fears anything, then I think that has to do with something he remembers. The cage comes to mind, for example. The hunt.

Rolin's latest comment re Dubai does come to mind... as much as I think that Louis and Armand do actively love each other (including physically and I really hope they enjoy(ed) themselves!), but... I cannot see Louis go and have "fun" in interview-time-Dubai. I mean, the interview is happening over a few days real-time. Can you see Louis, the Louis growing more and more upset, depressed and crying and wanting to remember feel like having sex? For example? I think we might see Loumand sex scenes in the past, but in Dubai??? I'm... not sure.

And so... that leaves us with Devil's Minion. I'm not sure how much of the past of it will be revealed, but... I think there's a higher chance for sexy times in Dubai for them than for Loumand. For setup reasons 🤷🏽‍♀️

I also think that the relationship dynamics will be as messed up as they can possibly make them. While I expect Loumand to be extremely tender (I believe Assad called it that), I do think that Jacob's comment that Louis's time at the "murder mansion" was "one of the happy times" for Louis and that statement of "same shit, different vampire" needs to be factored in as well. We're talking about Armand after all :) Given the show likes to put its fingers into wounds I believe that will be a creeping realization... a slow, uncomfortable feeling (in contrast to the more open problematic things Loustat displayed). There is a "controlled" aspect to Loumand, because it was orchestrated (in Paris).

Devil's Minion... DM is about obsession, and almost helpless love. There will be tenderness as well, but also very high, messy emotions. It's not planned, it's not exactly healthy either, it's not (yet) with a happy ending.

As per what I would like to see in it...

I'm not sure. I want them to go full-in, in whatever aspects they choose to give us this season. The cage I would love to see, also as an echo to Lestat being tortured, maybe.

This season is about painful, uncomfortable realizations and repercussions of previous actions.

That goes for them all - and so what I hope for is what we'll get I bet :)) (At least nothing of the trailers, interviews or BTS pix has given me reason to believe otherwise^^)

Hannah Moscovitch said this season would destroy us, and I believe her... and I want that, badly :)))

[loustat-0]

I agree with most of your perspective on things , your blog sounds fun . Okay my question is I'm interested to know your thoughts on why are Louis and Armand still together in 2023 ?

Okay this is gonna be a long theory so please bear with me . ☺️ This might contain some spoilers 🔴

My honest opinion is that , they both have been rejected by Lestat again . Not just in the past but also in the 70s or 2000 too .

I suspect that Louis and Armand both know Lestat survived the burning of the theater , but bc of Louis's hatred of Lestat about what happened to Claudia he's still reluctant to go to new Orleans to see him , but young Daniel might challenge his memories and deeper feelings again and that's when Louis decides to go to see Lestat again . To visit almost ruined Lestat .

Lestat in that state probably can't really for sure tell what's real what's not he might think he's seeing Louis's hallucination or that Armand who was being around was making him think it's Louis so he doesn't believe him , Lestat might even think it's Armand projecting himself to be like Louis so he can make Lestat want him again . 😬 And Lestat believing that it's not really Louis or it's his imagination of Louis will reject Louis .

Lestat probably tells Louis something about how Armand and Santiago made him do all of that stuff in the trial . And then Louis feeling rejected by Lestat and suspicious of his beliefs about Armand's story goes back to Armand , but finds him and Daniel being together and Armand keeping him alive makes him assume some stuff about them . And Louis is probably very angry but also cold and he wants to either hurt himself or Daniel . And then Armand steps in and do something to Louis's and Daniel's memories , making Daniel believe he was with someone else giving hims some false memories , and making Louis thinks they never separated .

But he probably didn't completely erase everything he probably replaced and mislead them too . For example make Louis still hold grudges against Lestat but leaving the memory of Lestat rejecting him there leading to Louis's sad and also sadistic reaction to remembering all thoes loving words about Lestat still waiting for him longing for him while he actually found him it probably wasn't so , it's also probably because he feels Lestat leaves and abandoned everyone and everything because he believes Lestat's rejection as him abandoning Louis . Or making Daniel think he never asked for Armand's blood and he doesn't remember their relationship . Or making Louis believe that although there was a relationship between Daniel and himself he still chose Louis .

[grimalkinmessor]

Hi! This is your dn secret santa. Reading through your list, I'm looking to make Terraito or Birthdaymassacre for your gift~ Do you have anything specific you wanna see for either one of those pairs?

!!!! Hello!! :D

And I have a few ideas, but I'm not sure what you'd be comfortable making 🤔

With Birthdaymassacre I like it because they fit really well together, but in a way that canon tells you to shoot dead in your backyard, you know? Beyond being obsessed with Naomi because she's so headstrong, so committed, such a good detective (wonder where that complex came from)—someone he can clash against on equal ground. He spent so long chasing L's shadow and trying to pull A up out of the ground, both too obsessed and too far ahead of everyone else at Wammy's to relate to them and too far behind L to ever catch up, and spending his "rivalry" with A falling in love with her and trying to keep her from spiraling out completely; he's never had a true, honest rival to go against and I think it's something that Wammy's has always made him crave. He also wants to kiss her really bad but as his experience with A taught him that doesn't have to be a bad thing ;3

I prefer a BB that doesn't look exactly like L—tons of makeup instead of plastic surgery or spontaneous twins I suppose—because despite Beyond's complex I like it to be really clear that he's his own person. Him and Naomi both actually; her separation from Raye is very important to me! Through violent means (B) if necessary ^w^ Naomi discovering her penchant for darkness and domination through Beyond when before she kept trying to fit into the mold of Perfect Submissive Housewife is something that can be so so special 🙏

For Terraito I'm partial to human(ish) Ryuk, but that's not a requirement. I like it when he and Light are so tangled up with each other that it's difficult to separate them even if neither of them are particularly sappy or romantic about it. Ryuk being Light's malotype is my favorite thing in the world 🥰 Everything wrong with Light that he hides away comes out shamelessly in Ryuk, and Light both resents and clings to him for it, while Ryuk is so so obsessed with Light, so fascinated and intrigued by him, and he very much wants to make him worse. Don't You Just Wanna Go Apeshit?™ Anything where Ryuk is egging Light on, turning him into a deviant but only through Light's own unearthed desires—THAT'S the shit. And Ryuk becoming like a second limb, a symbiotic parasite, clinging to Light because he's such a good source of entertainment, because Ryuk is shameless in how much he wants Light but is also so laissez-faire about it that it's not romantic at all, that's also really really nice ❤️‍🔥

I have some more concrete ideas, but if this is enough for you to come up with some of your own, go for it! I'll put these under the cut bc they're a bit long and have some troublesome subject matters ✨

I really like the idea of an L-wins AU with L not wanting to kill Light if he wins because they've become friends, so he tries to go the route of just erasing Light's memories of the Death Note again, but there's a few problems with that. Light's seen the Death Note now when he wasn't the owner of it or using it, and he also was very involved in the Kira case and knows or suspects that he was Kira at some point, both of which are dangerous points of information to leave him with. So he asks Ryuk if there's a way to erase everything, as in everything of the past year or so, and Ryuk says that only the King can do something like that.

When Ryuk refuses to go talk to the King for him, even when L tries to convince and bribe him, L goes above his head and does it anyway. Light loses a huge chunk of his memories, and Ryuk is sent back to the Shinigami realm. L goes on about his life without looking back—but he's left one very mind-fucked college kid and a pissed off Shinigami behind.

Ryuk breaks a fuckton of rules, gets himself a human body, gets a bounty put on his head by the other Shinigami, and immediately goes to find Light—who at this point is now just drifting aimlessly through life, wildly bemused as to why he feels like he's lost all hope in both himself and humanity, why his father won't look him in the eye anymore, why he's being forced to change majors and shoved away from police work, why he has so many nightmares of things he's never seen and people he's never met, why it feels like he achieved his dreams and found fulfillment only to have them ripped away from him, why he feels so different now—the boy is going through it fr. His character hasn't changed, he's just got a big gaping hole in his mind now that's eating away at him slowly, driving him to purposelessness and apathy (not helped by the people around him acting weird as fuck). He's on the verge of almost Committing™ when Ryuk finds him and swoops in like a fucked-up, corruptive punk savior.

Cue Ryuk showing Light all the things he used to love doing, i.e. drawing blood and being a terrible terrible egoistic human being >:3 Ryuk's both pleased and irritated to have to be drawing Light back out of his shell again, especially when he's so damaged now (Siri play Damaged by In This Moment—), but now that he's in a human body he can feel much, much stronger affection so he doesn't truly mind 💕 He has to be cryptic with it, but he tells Light what happened to him and now they're BOTH pissed at L. Light finds himself again through murder, and essentially runs off to be evil with Ryuk because his life is "ruined" now anyway. It isn't, but that's the tragedy of it, isn't it? You don't really come back from being a killer, even if you don't remember doing it :') It'd include a lot of L-bashing just because he'd be the antagonist here, with the nature of it being him lobotomizing Light and then leaving him to rot (even if he did it with somewhat good intentions), so if that's not your thing you don't have to go for this 🫶

My Bdaymass idea is a little more controversial, so again to reiterate these are NOT my MUST HAVE requests and you can pretend you never saw these if you'd like. But I enjoy the headcanon that BB is younger than Naomi, if not by a significant margin, but I like the idea of exacerbating it a little so I can have a freshly married Naomi and Raye foster him out of Wammy's :D Chaos ensues.

Naomi's on the fence about kids—she hasn't quit her job yet but now she's tied down to Raye and he really, really is pushing her to be a stay at home mom, so they compromise and agree to foster a kid first to see if Naomi will change her mind about having kids. (Spoiler, she will not).

Wammy's fosters every kid out at least once, so they can get a feel for the real world, and some of the ones not involved in the L program end up enjoying it and don't come back. Beyond's never been fostered out because he's so high in the rankings, but with A freshly dead they think he might need a "break" so they ship him off with the first couple that comes in, which happens to be Naomi and Raye! A little fifteen/sixteen year old angsty, angry Beyond is now trapped in a house with Naomi and Raye, Raye of which whom irritates him because he keeps trying to use his Authority™ with Beyond and Naomi of which he begins to adore because while she's awkward with him and avoids him at first, she's also very gentle with him and can relate him a lot more than either of them expected. You see where this is going.

Raye has an "accident" and is violently shunted out of the picture. Whoops. Bee's not sorry. Also he kissed your wife and she likes him better than you.

Beyond, when his time is up, decides he doesn't wanna go back in the orphan mill and fights tooth and nail kicking and screaming to be left with Naomi, but of course, it doesn't work. Naomi also tries to fight for custody of him, but again. It's Wammy's. She gets crushed, and Beyond gets yoinked back into the orphan mill—but not for very long ;3 A few months later, when she's moved back to the states, she finds Beyond knocking on her window. Covered in blood 😘

These are more fic prompts than anything, but then again I don't remember what I clicked on the form so that may be all I asked for 😅 Either way, go nuts. Whatever you make will be lovely, even if you don't use either of these! I'm very excited to see what you come up with!!!

[hannahwatcheshorror]

SUBSERVIENCE (2024)

Did I pick this film because I wanted to watch Megan Fox be hot and pretend to be a robot? You bet your a** I did. The fact that it was a spooky film was only a bonus. Is this film literally just Adult M3GAN? Yes. Is that entirely underwhelming? Yes. Is it a bad film? No. Worth watching? I’ll answer that with a question, how much did you like M3GAN? (also see (COMPANION)

⭐⭐⭐.5

A father gets a maid robot to try and help him around the house. His little girl, Isla, names the robot Alice after Alice in Wonderland and likes her a lot. There is a minor incident with broken glass but Isla isn’t hurt, only Alice. Alice heals almost instantly which is creepy but also not that creepy because it is the future and she is a highly sophisticated robot. Turns out the wife, Maggie, who you think is dead is just in the hospital waiting on a new heart. She is less than impressed with how stunning Alice is and doesn’t quite believe that the daughter chose her (which is true). Alice catches Nick watching Casablanca which she knows about but has never actually seen so Nick orders her to erase her memory of the movie plot and watch it with him. After a sensual restart she is happy to watch the movie in, what I can only describe as, the scene from Wall-E when he watches the musical on TV. It is literally just that scene, only instead of a cute little rusty robot we have Hot Megan Fox and instead of Hello Dolly the movie that is changing the robots wiring is Casablanca. Do you guys get what the fuck I’m saying here! Y’all thought you were getting M3GAN 2.0 and we got Wall-E 2.0. 

Just kidding, this was M3GAN the sequel with some Bicentennial Man sprinkled in there for good measure. I said in my M3GAN review humans would only make a doll that advanced for war or for fucking and in this movie I’m right. Maggie gets the chance at a new heart but before she goes in for surgery she has a heart to heart (ha) with Alice about taking care of Nick in case things don’t go so well. Which is good because a massive storm happens and they can’t get the heart in time so it is given to someone else. Alice tries to cheer Nick up with a handjob but it only makes him more sad (can’t imagine why). Then Alice adopts Maggie's voice to help seduce Nick and fucks him. It was a sexy scene but it was a cheating scene and those make me really sad, even if Megan Fox is involved. Nick is feeling really guilty suddenly (good) and Maggie actually gets a new heart. After recovering for some time she comes home to Islas' delight and Alice's chagrin.

The primary user, Nick, needs to be protected so Alice goes and kills a guy threatening his job (that is one way to solve the problem). Nick is so surprised the guy is dead he doesn’t even suspect that his SIM could have done it (because the bots don’t kill people, right?). But then when Alice tries to politely ask Maggie if she can fuck her husband, Maggie finds out they fucked before and flips out, while she and Nick fight the baby boy is crying. Alice takes it upon herself to attempt drowning the poor thing as she suddenly thinks this is the best thing for her primary user. They fight her, she gets some scary visual damage, and she goes down. She is taken back to the lab in a scene nearly shot-for-shot like when M3GAN was taken back and then she used her AI to hack the computers only this time Alice killed the nerds. 

Now Alice has two bodies, her old busted one that she takes to talk to Nick, “Little Alice fell down a hole, bumped her head and bruised her soul.” The second Alice is blonde and is going for the children at the hospital. She is stronger than all the other robots and can shut them down, she finds Maggie and the kids and is about to kill Maggie before Nick arrives just in time and guns her down in his car (the one he is always fixing up), Maggie pulls him out of the flaming vehicle but he is unresponsive. Too bad because Alice is still moving around and she is creepy crawling right towards Maggie then is trying to choke her out, next thing you know, WHAM, Nick hits her off of Maggie and Maggie stabs her through the brain core. They win the day and love each other again. But back at the lab they plugged in the computers again and someone is waking back up… Roll credits.

----------------------HANNAH WATCHES HORROR---------------------

[moiteneia]

The Mystery Twins:

Today, what we suspected was revealed. q!Bagi and q!Cellbit are siblings. q!Cellbit disappeared at the age of 13, and currently the last memory he has of his childhood is: being in front of a body, with a knife in his hand and covered in his victim's blood. And he wondered, seeing that he had a home, a family, a twin sister who loved him and was looking for him. q!Cellbit asked himself and to q!Bagi: what did he do when he was just a child to have the life he could have had taken away? Why did they throw him into the arena?

Can you imagine the pain it would be to have only love and protection as your biggest dreams and to find out that you always had that, but it was stolen from you? They took him to a battlefield full of hate, death and abandonment and all his good memories were erased from his memory.

"I was just a kid...If I was just a kid, why did they turn me into a monster? Why could I never have a family?”

His voice even got small when they entered their room: “I had a bed.. i had my own things"

And we know from his pov and the stories he told to Richarlyson, that he didn’t have those things in the war or in prison. For him, all this time, he never really have even food! He was just trying to survive.

Knowing this was not completly true. That he actually he always had someone and somewhere to go was too much for him. So, when he posses back his pet, a small worm and being alone again in his castle, he looked into the fire and threw the small creature into the flames.

His cruel self is a form of defense, refusing his emotions, refusing his vulnerability, focusing again on his investigations, trying to forget the past that he doesn't remember and that he didn't recognize as his.

He is not the brother that q!Bagi sought out and recorded in her diaries, he was destroyed by war and prison. He fell in love with the island, his family and his husband, focusing on the future believing there was no past to remember. To wish to return.

“q!Bbh: how are you felling about being q!Bagi’s brother?”

“I wish i feel something…Maybe deep down I feel something, but looking into her eyes...I can only see the life that was stolen from me.” Will the twins one day be able to be a family again? Or will Cellbit try to erase the small part of his life he was robbed of?

[whump-me]

Obscure: Chapter 11

Chapter 11 of Obscure, novel-length interrogation whump about a rebel leader who can erase memories with a thought, an interrogator who can see inside his subjects’ minds… and the connection they share that neither of them suspects.

Masterpost | the Mind Games universe | Read the completed novel on Patreon

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Elias

The interrogation rooms must not have been cleaned on a daily schedule, because the next morning, Elias smelled his own sweat hanging in the air. The table was smudged with the nervous grease from his own hands. It cut the reflection a little, made it more bearable. He could have done without the sweat, though.

But if he was going to make wishes, he might as well wish himself back home.

Kirill sat across from him. He had dark circles under his eyes, and the lines around his eyes and at the corners of his mouth were more pronounced. But those pale eyes themselves were daggers newly sharpened to a fresh point.

Kirill sat up straighter, inhumanly straight, like he was trying to blend in with the furniture with all its cold right angles. His breath came in a steady rhythm, like there was a machine in his chest breathing for him. The sound was hypnotic.

“What’s the mask this time?” Elias asked. “What game are we playing today?”

“No games,” said Kirill. “Not anymore.”

“You keep saying that. But we keep circling around to the same thing.”

As always when Kirill was in the room, a slow but steady trickle of fear-memories leaked out of him. A constant small betrayal on the part of his mammalian brain. Kirill might have been able to turn himself into a machine at will, but Elias didn’t have that ability. No matter what he had thought at first, in his hubris, with his hours of practice at desensitizing himself to his own grief.

“We were done with games days ago,” said Kirill. “If you think we’ve been playing, you haven’t taken my threat seriously enough. Should I show you a picture of your son, here in headquarters, to prove I mean what I say?”

The thought stopped Elias’s breath. But no emotion rushed out of him. A second later, when his chest filled with an inner warmth, he understood why. Negative emotion brought out the memories, Kirill had said. The thought of seeing a picture of Sammy, alive and grown up… that was the fulfillment of fifteen years of hope. Kirill could get nothing from that warmth.

The fear hit a second later. Because his dream had been to see his son happy and healthy, and if he was either of those things now, it was only because he was ignorant of the threat hanging over his head. Elias wanted to see him, but not like this. Not as a hostage.

Not as a PERI resource.

“Would you like that picture?” Kirill asked. His voice was strangely empty, even for him. Like someone had scooped out every ounce of humanity in him, and the thing in front of Elias now was what was left.

Elias shook his head.

“Do you still think we’re playing games?”

Elias shook his head again.

“Then let’s get started,” said Kirill. “You asked what part I was playing today. I’m not. I have a better way of getting emotion from you now. All I need to do is mention your son and what will happen to him if you stop giving me what I need, either through your memories or through what you tell me aloud.”

One more time, Elias shook his head. “Of course you’re playing a part. This isn’t who you are.”

“This?” Kirill looked down at himself, like he was trying to see what Elias saw. “There is no this. I’m not being anything.”

“Exactly. You’re nothing right now. No one is nothing inside.”

“Still looking for the answer to your question? You’re going to be disappointed. Anyway, we’re not here to talk about me. And we’re not here to play. I’m going to talk to you about your son, and you’re going to give me the information I want. If you’d like things to move faster, you can speak aloud, and spare yourself the grief and fear I’ll have to evoke otherwise. If I stop getting anything from you, I’ll take you to your son, and I’ll hurt him.”

The fear-wound tore a little wider, bled a little more. Nothing Kirill could use—Elias was certain of that. A face from a horror movie poster when he was a child, on one of the family’s big trips into town. They had always drawn looks—a dozen adults and twice as many children, clustered together in one big herd. Half of them small-mouthed and wide-eyed like a gaggle of country mice. The other half behaving like wild things, like the trip out was an excuse to let out the sides of themselves they had to keep buttoned up at home.

Their parents had let them, so long as they didn’t let their powers show—that was the only unbendable rule. The children had run around like rabid animals, grabbing all the unfamiliar brightly-colored things with their grubby hands, smearing fingerprints all over the ticket counter and the movie posters. The adults—eager for a chance to let loose themselves—had laughed too loudly and worn impractical clothes they never wore at home, and poured liquid from small metal flasks into their extra-large sodas.

Max had been one of the country mice. Elias had watched the wild things longingly, but had stayed with Max, letting him clutch his hand and hold him in place.

“We’re not here to talk about your ghost boy,” Kirill said, his voice sharp.

Elias blinked away the past. “We’re not here to talk about Sammy, either. Not really.”

“Your son is a means to an end. Focus on him. Think about the hands of the child you remember. How will it sound when those small fingers snap?”

Was Kirill’s cruelty another mask he could put on and take off at will, or was it part of who the man was underneath? There was no point in asking—no point in wondering, even, when he would never get an answer. Elias clung to the thought anyway, because any distraction would do.

But no distraction could hold up to the image Kirill’s words evoked, or the sound in his imagination of a tiny, delicate finger bone snapping. Sammy’s hands weren’t that small anymore, of course. They had to be the size of his own by now. Elias knew that intellectually. But when he thought about Sammy’s hand, he pictured the hands of an infant, of a toddler, of an eight-year-old. When he imagined them broken, those were the hands he saw.

Sick fear. Helpless rage. A river of memory overflowed its banks. A gushing wound, memory-blood pooling around him, bleeding out the entirety of his son’s history. In front of Elias, Kirill rocked back slightly as eight years of memory flooded him at once.

“The branches of your network,” Kirill said, his voice tight, his unfocused eyes darting back and forth like he was in the grip of a nightmare. “The command structure. Names and faces.”

Elias couldn’t control the flow. It carved a new path in his mind, veering away from Sammy’s childhood, passing through the details of the network he had painstakingly built over the past fifteen years. He tried to steer it back, but the memories were a river, and they flowed through his grasping fingers like water.

The names and faces Kirill had demanded poured from him and straight into Kirill’s brain. A rush of guilt followed. He was giving Kirill everything. And his people would suffer for it, the people had trusted, who had agreed to work for him despite the danger. The future children they could have rescued, the future Sammys, they would also suffer.

The river grew faster, stronger, drawing a soft noise of protest from Kirill. But Kirill’s mouth, curled in a hard smile, was satisfied, his hunger slaked.

Guilt was an emotion. Emotion made the memories come faster.

He breathed in. Breathe out. He stared his grief straight in its wide and helpless and relentlessly hungry eyes, and resisted the urge to reach out and throttle the creature. That wouldn’t help.

Fighting grief never killed grief.

Fighting fear never killed fear.

Fighting pain never stopped the pain from coming. It only multiplied it —the pain that couldn’t be stopped, times the pain of failing to stop it.

His son was in danger. But he had faced that before. He had stared that monster down, and it had blinked first.

His people would suffer and die because of his unwitting betrayal. But he had lost people before. He could still remember the feeling of hot blood on his hands, the thick and earthy tang of it in his nose, pleading eyes going soft and glassy. He could still remember the heat of the flames, and the dying screams of everyone he had almost loved.

Almost everyone. That last loss had come later.

So many losses. And he had survived them all. He had found a way to push the torrents of feeling down, to fight his way back to dry land rather than letting the current hold him under. Otherwise, he would never have survived.

Inhale for four.

Exhale for four.

Inhale.

Exhale.

The flow didn’t stop. But it slowed. The memories came in jagged bursts. Not a current, but the fitful expulsions of a broken faucet.

“Focus,” Kirill urged, and Elias did. He focused on his breath—inhale, exhale. He stared into Kirill’s pale eyes and imagined himself staring down his grief.

But Kirill said, “Sammy,” and Elias saw his son’s face. No amount of focus on his breathing could banish the memory of those eyes or those pudgy child cheeks.

“I’ll start with the little fingers,” said Kirill. “They hurt the most when they break.”

And then, “The locations of your safehouses. With addresses.”

His memory lurched. The river surged down its new path. The images hovered half-formed in Elias’s mind, like vomit struggling to come up.

But if Elias couldn’t stop the flow of memory, maybe he could choose where it went. He couldn’t keep Sammy out of his mind, so he stopped trying. He thought about those cheeks, about his dark and solemn eyes. Those hands, with their perfect fingers Kirill kept threatening to break. A small face contorted in fear.

“The safehouses,” Kirill said. Still colorless, empty of feeling, but Elias imagined frustration lurking underneath. He imagined it because it made him feel like he was winning. He needed to feel like he would win, like he could win, or he would stop trying.

Safehouses. House. Safe. The little house he and Lisbeth had owned together. Her with her hands on her swollen belly, looking doubtfully down the basement stairs. He’ll fall as soon as he starts walking. We should keep the basement door locked—get a padlock and just never open it. We never go down there anyway. Him telling her she was being ridiculous to close off an entire room of the house, an entire floor. He said it with a smile on his face, so she’d know he was joking even though he wasn’t, because he never knew what would hit her wrong these days. He felt a tiny squirm of unease in his belly, gratitude that she had been the one to say it and not him, because he had been eyeing those stairs with trepidation for weeks now.

“Clever,” came Kirill’s impassive voice. “Now show me your network. Where do your people hide themselves?”

His people, his family, his son. He kept Sammy’s dark eyes fixed in his mind—the best memories, the worst, anything with enough emotion to keep the current from changing course.

But Kirill’s words lodged themselves in his mind. His network. Hiding. He pictured cabins hidden deep in the woods—

But there had been a different network once. And a different kind of hiding, one he hadn’t thought of as hiding. He had thought they were all family, and all they needed was each other, and it was as simple as that. He hadn’t understood the danger that had driven all his mothers and fathers to buy a hundred acres out in the middle of nowhere. Not until the danger had come knocking with a lit match in its back pockets.

For decades, since long before the loss of Sammy, he had held those memories at bay. He had forced them down, burying them deeper and deeper, piling more and more dirt on top. He had buried them the way none of his family had gotten the chance to be buried. They had burned instead.

The memories came out in his nightmares sometimes, once or twice a year, no more than that. The memory of fire, the stink of burning wood and burning flesh. Or, more rarely, happy dreams—chasing frogs in the marsh, picking flowers in the meadow, he and his hesitant shadow. He and Max, who Kirill had called the ghost boy.

Was his face really that blurry in Elias’s memory now? Had Elias buried the memory of him that deeply? He hadn’t thought so. But Kirill had sifted through his memories with the deft skill of a long-time prospector panning for gold, and Max’s face was the one thing he couldn’t see.

If there was enough emotion in the memory of Max for that, there was enough emotion in that memory to hold his thoughts in place.

All he had to do was let it in.

Kirill wanted his network. But his family had functioned in much the same way. Protecting each other, using their abilities for the good of the whole. Keeping the children safe and oblivious. That long-ago home—that was his network. That was the network he would give Kirill.

Kirill wanted safehouses. He wanted to know where Elias’s people hid. They had hidden in houses they had built themselves, in a wilderness of marshlands and overgrown meadows. The electricity had gone out with every storm. Sometimes it had taken weeks to come back on. They had eaten canned food and built fires for warmth, and huddled together under hand-sewn blankets, everyone all together in one house. to conserve heat.

They had lived like animals, Max had said later—We’ve been living like animals all our lives. Even before we had to run. I’m tired of it. Aren’t you tired? But Elias had never seen it that way. He hadn’t felt deprived,  except for brief sharp pangs on those trips into town, glimpsing children who treated going to the movies or out for ice cream as ordinary.

He had never felt embarrassed by his hand-sewn clothes, not like some of the others had. The kids in town had blue jeans that looked like the ones in the movies, and shirts with cartoon characters on them. But Elias had pants rugged enough that he could climb the tall tree at the center of the marsh and never tear them. He had picked out the fabric for his favorite shirt himself, and sat with Mama Charisse in her living room as she had sewn it without using her hands to move the needle and thread.

“Your network.” Kirill’s voice was distant now, faded, compared to the vibrancy of Elias’s memories. Even so, Elias felt the pull of the current guiding him closer to the present day, closer to Kirill’s voice.

Thinking about his home wasn’t enough.

So Elias unburied the dead.

Mama Charisse hadn’t been what the outside world would have called his real mother, the one whose body he had grown in and pushed his way out of, the one he had shared a house with when he wasn’t sleeping over at Max’s house. That hadn’t mattered to him. Every adult had been his mother or his father. Every child had been his sister or his brother. It confused him, in the books he read and the movies he watched and the families he saw in town, how small the families were, and how many walls they placed between each other.

 He had called his real mother by her name, the way he did with all the others—the adults had wanted that way, hadn’t wanted divisions based on blood. She had been Mama Jessie. She had smelled like oranges and sunlight and could make plants turn green in the middle of winter with just one touch. She had died screaming, like all the others, when their home had burned.

Max had wanted to go back to look for survivors. Elias had said no. He had said PERI could still be there, waiting for them to come back. And that might have been true. But it wasn’t the reason for Elias’s refusal. Elias hadn’t wanted to risk seeing the charred bodies of the dead.

He remembered Mama Jessie’s arms around him, the smell of her, the roughness of her hands. All the things he had buried for so many years, so he could sleep without nightmares. Those first few weeks after they had run, he hadn’t slept, because he had seen her dying every time he closed his eyes, her and all the rest. And if he didn’t sleep, he couldn’t take care of Max. He had buried the dead so he could tend to the living.

He pictured his father, Papa Graham, with his bushy beard and his long, long legs. Elias’s eyes had always been too serious, or so everyone had told him, but Papa Graham’s eyes had always been smiling. He smelled like the cigars he bought in town and smoked when he thought Mama Jessie wasn’t looking.

And then there was Max. The ghost boy.

They had been born the same week of the same year. The family had called them twins. Mama Kelly had called them photo negatives of each other, one with black hair and black eyes, the other with pale, pale eyes and hair so light it was almost the white of snow.

They had shared a crib as babies, on the days when their parents couldn’t get them to stop crying. Max had stopped crying when Elias was there to take care of him, or so the family legend went. Elias had stopped crying when he had Max to take care of.

They had talked in full sentences to each other before they said a word to anyone else. They had learned to crawl together, walked together, steadying each other with chubby hands firmly clasped together. They had been two halves of the same person. First twins, mirrors, photo negatives. Then, once they were old enough to explore, they were no longer mirrors but opposites, each of their differences perfectly complementing the other.

They had both been serious—too serious, Mama Kelly had said—but in different ways. Elias had been the protector, Max the one who needed protecting. Elias was the hard shell, Max the soft, defenseless creature inside.

The adults had shaken their heads over Max, wondering who he would be what he would do when he no longer had Elias to rely on. It hadn’t been until years later that Elias had realized their worries had been misplaced. They should have asked themselves what Elias would do when he no longer had someone to protect.

He would set out to protect the whole world—that was the answer. Or as much of it as he could reach.

Maybe what he had created hadn’t only been a response to Sammy’s death after all.

The adults hadn’t needed to worry about Max. Max had grown beyond Elias in good time. He had formed his own opinions, gained the strength and the conviction to make his own decisions. He had been the one to let go first, not Elias. It had been Elias who had tried to hold on. Elias, in the end, who had struggled to let go.

The memories of their last fight were the ones that came into his nightmare most frequently. But today, Elias unburied the deeper memories. Like wine or cheese, they had grown all the more potent from their years in the dark.

Like Elias urging Max to climb a tree after him. Elias didn’t shimmy up trees as a natural instinct, the way some of his more reckless brothers and sisters did. He had studied the tree at the center of the swamp for weeks, climbing up little by little and then back down again, a little further every day. Gauging its weaknesses, formulating his plan of attack. He had shared his acquired knowledge with Max, but Max preferred to stay on the ground.

Maybe Elias should have let him. But he had been a child, and he had wanted to share the view. And eventually, he had talked Max into it. Max had never been good at saying no to him, in those days. Elias hadn’t realized his mistake, not until he was safely on the ground again, staring up at a wide-eyed and terrified Max.

He’d had to call Papa Oleg in the end, and asked him to bring a ladder, like someone in a book calling the fire department for a cat caught up a tree. He had apologized to Max for not knowing how to get him down. That, in his mind, had been his failure—and an unforgivable one. It was his job to get Max out of any trouble he could get him into.

That early failure had done nothing to inoculate him against his more permanent failure later.

He lingered on the end of the memory, the feeling of his small arms around Max’s shaking body. After a moment, he realized the flow of memory was less like a rushing river now, and more like being immersed in a small and warm natural pool, out of the flow of the current.

The current had stopped. Without Kirill’s reminders, the sharpness of the emotion had faded.

Kirill must have noticed. Why hadn’t he said anything?

Elias let the memory fade. It drained away, leaving him out of breath from all his work digging up graves.

Kirill wasn’t sitting across from him anymore. He had his back against the wall. His eyes wide and desperate. In those eyes, Elias saw—only for a second—the eyes of a small boy trapped up a tree.

“A clever strategy.” Kirill’s voice was thin and thready. If it was part of a persona, Elias could figure out what.

“I can see you still aren’t ready to cooperate,” Kirill said in the same tone. “I may need to put you in a room with your son after all.”

The threat lacked sharpness. Kirill’s voice wobbled, an overcooked noodle where a knife should have been.

He stumbled out the door, leaving a startled Elias alone.

Elias had won a victory. He just wished he understood why.

---

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