#if he was he could be a seer maybe? he did see the future once

[wheucto]

dragonized silver spoon!

[childotkw]

Hear me out: Harry time travels to Tom's era and takes a teaching job at Hogwarts just to keep a eye on him but the only open position?

Divination.

Luckily Hermonie made him time travel with history books and all of his "visions" are true. Unluckily Tom isn't on his roster. So how does Harry get close to him?

"I had a prophecy"

"Did you really? What was it?"

"The prophecy dictates that I have to keep Hogwarts open over summer as a camp or the world ends"

"... seems fake but your seer powers have never been wrong before so okay."

"RIDDLE WANT TO GO TO SUMMER CAMP? ILL TEACH YOU HOW TO ROW A BOAT, TIE A KNOT, AND LOVE YOUR FELLOW HUMANS"

Harry would cause so much chaos as the divination teacher omg. He'd initially be like "i have become what i hate" but then he'd go "hey you know what this is actually hilarious".

Reading his history books in private and then coming in like "damn really sucks that X is gonna happen" and everyone is confused because aren't prophesies supposed to be said in a riddle or while the seer seems off-their-face high? And Harry just responds with "you know generalisations like that are actually really harmful". Two weeks later the Thing that he 'predicted' happens and people just have to accept that their divination teacher is either secretly orchestrating these events or can actually see the future.

Sucks that he can't hone in on individuals though. Harry having to try and find a nice way to tell Random Ravenclaw Student #3 that "sorry I can't see your future" without revealing its because they never did anything cool enough to get into his many history books.

But once he builds up enough cred with the other professors he would then start bullshitting so hard to get what he wants. He's doing the divination equivalent of writing a get out of jail free card because all he has to say is some wishy-washy prophecy stuff or claim its to avoid a disastrous future (and really - is he even lying? Getting Tom some morals and empathy would make the future less of a shitshow), and most people believe him.

Summer camp? Dippet signs off on it purely to get Harry out of his office lest he start 'predicting' the ways he could die again (he still avoids every third step in the castle after that one ominous warning).

Apprenticing Riddle because 'he has a real talent for prophecies'? Horace agrees enthusiastically because Harry 'predicts' the winning teams of the international quidditch rounds and he's made a nice sum of money already.

Tom is bemused but willing to go along with it because there must be real power to Professor Potter's predictions and maybe if Tom can learn it he can see into his own future.

[raaorqtpbpdy]

Why Are Seers Always Cursed? (3)

Wesley Weston is a son of Apollo with the rare gift of prophecy.

Written for @crossoverdanuary Week 2024, Day three: Percy Jackson | Lake

This takes place shortly before Annabeth, Luke, and Thalia arrive at Camp Half-Blood, and while Wes is still in middle school, meaning it's set before the primary canon events of both series. You can also read it on AO3!

Chapter 3: Downhill Fast

First | Previous

[Warning for mild violence]

Over the next two weeks, Wes started to really get the hang of Camp Half-Blood. A few more campers had arrived, including another Apollo Camper close to Wes' age named Lee Fletcher. The two of them got on really well right out of the gate. Wes did not manage to get out of explaining to Archer that he had the gift of prophecy, but for some reason, Archer told him that it would be wiser to keep it secret from anyone outside of Apollo Cabin.

Wes wasn't sure why, but he was starting to get the sense that his ability was more dangerous than it seemed. Archer warned that people might try to take advantage of him, or pick on him because they saw him as having an unfair advantage himself. So Wes' powers of foresight became cabin seven's little secret.

Unsurprisingly, Wes demonstrated a knack for archery. He'd never done it before, but it was like the bow simply belonged in his hands. His cabin-mates were very encouraging and helped him with his form so the bowstring didn't snap against his forearm. They were also fun to play basketball with. Wes established a personal record of scoring 90 feet from the hoop. Nowhere near the cabin's record, but still basically a full-court shot.

He wasn't as good as the others in the infirmary, but he wasn't so useless that they sent him out. They mostly had him cut bandages and get things for them, which was fine by Wes. 

When it came to singing camp songs, Wes was exposed for his awful singing voice, but he was picking up the ukulele remarkably fast, so maybe he had inherited a little bit of Apollo's musical talents. Not as much as Lee, though; he was a regular musical prodigy as far as Wes was concerned. At only thirteen, he could play several instruments and his singing voice was downright mellifluous.

The one thing Wes really struggled with in the Apollo Cabin was seeing his cabin mates as his siblings. Technically they were, but Wes already had siblings. These people were basically strangers in comparison. And it didn't really help that he'd made a conscious decision not to think of Apollo as anything like a father to him back when he was ten years old. 

The Apollo campers were warm, and accepting, and he liked them a lot... but they weren't family. Not yet, at least.

Aside from that, the only thing that really bothered him about this place was the pine tree that wasn't there, the one he kept seeing on the crest of the hill.

He brought it up to Chiron once, in private, and Chiron told him that sometimes they couldn't know what a prophecy meant until it came to pass. Wes only begrudgingly accepted that answer. He didn't like it.

What was the point of seeing the future if it didn't make sense until it became the past?

That pine tree became increasingly frustrating. Even more so than the monster attacks. They weren't daily or anything, but there had been two so far, counting the drakon, and both had been taken care of with only mild injuries and no deaths. That pine tree though....

Once, when Wes saw it, there was something gold hanging in its branches, and a dragon wrapped around its trunk fast asleep. Then he blinked, and the golden thing and the dragon were both gone. Then he blinked and the tree was gone too.

At the end of the second week, there was a terrible summer storm. For some reason, while the storm raged, Wes' eyes were drawn to the top of the hill. Each time a strike of lightning lit up the darkness, the pine tree appeared, just for that instant, before vanishing again. That felt important, but Wes didn't know why.

He told Archer about it, but Archer just told him the same thing Chiron did.

He didn't like it any better the second time.

Then, one night, Wes had a dream. He dreamed about the pine tree. About lightning striking, about a hoard of monsters straight from Hades.

The forbidden child approaches, the dream told him. The forbidden child approaches.

When he awoke, he thought about telling Chiron again, but then he remembered what he'd said before.

"You can't always know what a prophecy means until it comes to pass."

Wes sure as Hades didn't know what a 'forbidden child' was, and Chiron had already said he had no idea what the pine tree meant. Maybe this was one of those things where he should just wait and see how it panned out, rather than bothering anybody with his stupid dreams again.

Although... the last time he'd had a dream like that, it had told him Apollo would visit his mom.

But Apollo hadn't been in this dream. Just that stupid pine tree and a bunch of monsters. And it wasn't even worth it to warn everybody of monsters coming because he had no idea when this was going to happen.

Maybe he should ask anyway.

"Hey, Chiron," he asked the centaur during archery practice, "Do you know what a forbidden child is?"

Suddenly, Wes felt as if he'd been struck by something heavy falling on him. He stumbled and let go of his bowstring and the arrow missed the target by a mile. As it left his bow, he could swore the whistling sound it made as it shot toward a tree trunk sounded like an apology.

"Sorry, kid," it said. "I hate to do this to ya. I can't defy my father, you understand." Then it pierced the tree trunk with a thunk.

"My, are you alright, Wes?" Chiron asked.

"I'm... fine, but my question."

"I'm afraid not," he said. "I suppose if a child were to be sired by one of the three most powerful gods they might be considered a forbidden child, since the three of them swore on the River Styx not to sire children. But no such child exists."

"What if one did?" Wes asked. "And what if they were coming here and a whole bunch of monsters were chasing them?"

"That would be preposterous," Chiron assured him. "None of those gods would go back on their word, not when it's so important for them to honor it."

"But I saw it happen!" Wes insisted. "I saw three demigods and satyr climbing that hill," he pointed to the camp's border. "I saw them being chased by a horde of monsters from the underworld. I heard the trees whisper that a forbidden child approaches. I saw it in my dream last night."

"Dear boy," Chiron said. "You may have the gift of prophecy, but not every dream is prophetic. There is no forbidden child, and no horde of monsters. I can assure you. I hope you'll be able to calm down now."

"What?"

This didn't make any sense. Chiron's advice was sometimes frustrating, but he'd never been dismissive like this. He knew what Wes could do, what he could see. He knew that prophecies should be taken seriously. So what the heck was this?

"Why don't you focus on your archery for now?"

"But...." Wes was too confused to formulate a proper argument. He shook his head, his face scrunched up in a mix of emotions. "Okay...."

Wes lifted the bow again and lined up his shot. This time, his arrow flew true, and landed right in the bull's eye. But again, the sound of the arrow taking flight was a whispered apology.

"I cannot defy my father's wishes," it said. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

That night, Wes had the same dream again. The forbidden child approaches. The forbidden child approaches.

A few days later, on an otherwise ordinary evening, while the campers were enjoying dinner, it happened. An uproarious cacophony of monstrous shrieks and bellows shook the valley. The blue sky darkened as smoke rose up from the far side of the hill.

Wes sprinted to get his bow and arrows and followed the rest of his cabin mates to the ridge while the other campers headed for the hilltop. 

They couldn't get ready fast enough.

They weren't even halfway to their positions when four figures crested the hill, three demigods and a satyr.

"Go!" one of the figures, a girl, shouted. "I'll hold them off!"

She stopped at the top of the hill, wielding a spear and a shield, and the other three kept running. She fought valiantly, slashing and stabbing at bat-winged creatures and hell hounds until they overwhelmed her, and she fell.

It was only then that the other campers finally got close enough to help her.

They were too late. Wes knew it innately. That girl was the forbidden child, and she was going to die.

Without warning, a bolt of lightning shot out of the clear blue sky, and struck the girl. Then she started to change. 

As the battle raged around her, she grew bark and sprouted branches until a tall, proud pine tree stood where she'd once been lying, half-dead on the ground. 

Wes had seen that tree before. This time, though, it was actually real. It didn't disappear when he tried to blink it away.

A pulse of light emitted from the tree, expelling all the monsters from within the bounds of the camp. Then the light faded, leaving an invisible barrier protecting all the demigods within its bounds.

Later, the three who survived explained what happened. The satyr, Grover Underwood told them all that Thalia was a child of Zeus, a forbidden child. He explained that ever since he'd found her, creatures of Hades had been chasing them. Hades himself had sent them, angry at his brother for breaking their pact.

Wes kept his anger contained until Chiron dismissed everyone. He waited until everyone else was gone. He stayed silent.

"Is something wrong, Wes?" Chiron asked, noticing that he wasn't going to leave.

"I told you this was going to happen," he said, barely keeping a lid on his rage. "I warned you about the forbidden child, about the monsters from Hades, all of it. You didn't listen to me. You told me it was just a dream. 

"If you'd just listened, we could have done something. We could have put a group of guards up on the hill. We could have been prepared for this! Thalia Grace didn't have to die!"

"I'm sorry," Chiron said. "I don't know what came over me. I knew of your abilities, and yet... when you told me about the forbidden child, it was as if... ah... I see...."

"What?" Wes did not accept this apology. He glared viciously at the centaur.

"Did you hear anything else? That day you told me about your dream, or afterwards?" 

His glare eased as he thought about it.

"Actually, right before I told you, when I stumbled and my arrow misfired, it sounded like an apology" Wes recalled. "And then again the next time I fired at the target. 'I'm sorry. I cannot defy my father,' is what it said."

"The arrow spoke to you?" Chiron repeated derisively, but he quickly shook his head with pained expression. "My apologies.

"It is the fate of all oracles that such great power must come at a price," he said. "Either one must make a willing sacrifice to balance out that power, such as the Oracle of Delphi does, living as a maiden her whole life in a cave. Or, the gift will lead the bearer to be cursed, such as Tiresias who was inflicted with blindness, or... Cassandra.

"I believe Zeus did not want the secret of his child to get out," he continued, "so he had his son Apollo inflict you with Cassandra's curse to prevent you from sharing what you knew, or rather, to prevent anyone from believing you, even if you did."

"What exactly is this curse?" asked Wes.

"That you may see the future, but that you cannot share it with anyone, for they will never believe you," Chiron answered. "It's a terrible curse. It means only you alone will ever be able to benefit from your abilities, but you cannot help others with them."

"Is there a way to break it?" Wes asked.

"I'm afraid not," the centaur answered mournfully. "A seer's curse cannot be broken. Even those who know of the curse will have difficulty overcoming it's effects. Even I... well, you've seen already. I have a strong enough will to fight my initial reaction if I'm ready for it, but my initial reaction will always be disbelief. I'm sorry, Wes."

Chiron's appraisal turned out to be right on the money. As much fun as Wes had at camp that summer, and as much as he learned and grew, his precognition became completely useless. Even his cabin-mates, who already knew about his powers, didn't believe his visions until they came true.

Sometimes people would even ignore things Wes didn't realize were prophecies. The entire Aphrodite Cabin got poison ivy, all because their counselor didn't listen when Wes said to take the other path.

The same thing happened when he went back home at then end of the summer. His mother, who always humored his hunches before, now fully dismissed them. His father would laugh like Wes was telling him a joke.

And the next summer, when he returned to Camp Half-Blood, it was the same story. 

Now that they had a magic barrier, there weren't any monster attacks to keep their skills sharp, they'd introduced regular games of Capture the Flag in the woods. It was the perfect opportunity for Wes to use his foresight to help his team win, but when none of them would listen to him, he had to go ahead on his own.

He won the game for his team, but it wasn't as satisfying as he'd thought it would be.

It was a relief when he finally went home for the summer. He wasn't looking forward to starting high school, but outside of camp, there were a lot fewer situations where not being able to tell people about his visions was a serious problem. Or so he thought.

Strange things happened in Amity Park that year. There were monsters around town that everyone could see, ghosts, rather. Not from Greek myths, but from a portal to another realm in the Fentons' basement.

Wes tried to make it not his problem, he really did.

Until the night he woke up in a cold sweat with prophetic knowledge echoing in his brain.

Danny Fenton is Danny Phantom.

But no one would ever believe him.

[thewertsearch]

Asks Comp 4/8

The thing is, Davesprite's situation is more complicated than an unfulfilled time loop. His timeline isn't an irrelevant offshoot - in fact, it's integral to the existence of the Alpha Timeline, and presumably always was. Davesprite forms part of a weird, fully intact time loop which spans multiple timelines.

And since this is a future Dave, you have to assume he knows about Bro. The two clearly had a complicated relationship, but he's surely shaken by his death - if nothing else, it's a sign of how serious things have become.

That'll be a fun thing to check out when I've finished the comic! It reminds me of those Hunger Games simulators that were doing the rounds a couple of years ago.

That's true. Dave knows how strong the Underlings have become - and yet, he's still confident that Jade can stand up to them. Presumably she finds some sort of workaround for their First Guardian powers?

Sunslammer is so good! A standout song, even in a comic with as many bangers as this one.

Honestly, part of why I'm dragging my feet on the album reviews is because I want to hear these songs for the first time in context. If I'd heard Descend before watching Descend, I feel like it would have robbed the song of some of its dramatic weight.

I assumed it was just because witches are associated with frogs.

That would have explained why they're part of her Land, but I'm pretty sure that Kanaya's glitched planet was also a frog Land, and she's not a Witch, so...?

*The rest of Sal's response has been redacted, lest we fall once more into the Frog Theory Black Hole.*

I'm pretty sure that's a statue of Echidna, the mother of monsters and Jade's Denizen. Dave's probably close to LOFAF's Palace!

The Seer sees all - and sometimes, she understands the implications before we do.

It'd certainly be interesting. I just reread that conversation, and the biggest takeaway would have been that the kids were going to befriend the trolls, and get involved in their personal drama. This would certainly be consistent with the tone established by an Act 1 Hivebent!

Yup. Vriska was only able to 'create' Perfect Jack because Becquerel didn't object.

Really, he could have prototyped anything he liked, no matter what Vriska did. Even if she tried to shut the Entry down by incapacitating Jade, he could simply have activated the piñata himself.

I mean, that's basically what happened!

If any Aspect is geared around survival, then it's Feferi's. There's no breath left in her body, but our girl is still in the game!

Getting back to the trolls will be interesting, especially since - I assume - we'll be zipping back to when Feferi was still alive. The Veil is a much less friendly place, now - but does Feferi know this? What, exactly, is about to happen to the trolls?

I suppose. I guess there's no reason for every Carapacian to be created with knowledge of the Rings.

Actually, Sburb might not want them to know - Jack's probably not the only one who wouldn't respect the Ring's rules. There could be potential ringwielders out there who are far more dangerous.

Thank you! I feel like I've been doing a lot more character analysis in Act 5 versus previous Acts, where most of my speculation was about the lore. It's a fun change of pace.

Damn, I didn't think we'd actually be explaining these!

It's moments like these which really enhance the comic for me - justifications for things that I genuinely thought were just nitpicks on my part. It's really gratifying, honestly.

@thelegendofgreg asked: Here's some commentary from the jade enter flash, theres uh. alot to read but its all neat stuff "I talked about this way back, maybe even in an earlier book? Well, here I go again, so hold on to your ass. There are four entry items: Apple of knowledge, Bottle of wine, Crow's egg, Dog piñata. A, B, C, D. All of them are related to new life or new beginnings. You bite the apple, you fall from grace, enter a new world, begin this wild journey. You smash a bottle to christen a ship. An egg hatches, creating new life. You break a piöata to celebrate a birthday. Each involves breaking or puncturing something. Each involves a form of sustenance, or something to consume (piñatas have candy inside). Two are vessels for the substance (bottle, Piñata), two are the food items themselves (apple, egg), and one arguably counts as both (egg). Two of them drop from the same basic tree template (apple, piñata). They ramp up in complexity. John's is a simple test: bite the forbidden fruit. Not much to it. A single unit of departure, almost conceptually elemental, like an apple, as Rose goes on about later. The challenges get trickier. Rose has to break a bottle. Easy enough idea, but things go wrong, and she has to take a blind leap to get it done. A sacrificial gesture, and one of faith in a friend (Jaspers). Dave's is even more obscure. A simple test of patience, but one that's not clear. He isn't told what to do and just has to wait. Non-action is the key, and in a way it's another gesture of faith under dire circumstances. Finally, Jade's challenge incorporates a lot of these elements. It's another "blind faith" situation. She has to take a shot in the dark. There's a sacrificial gesture, but instead of risking herself (like Rose), Jade must symbolically sacrifice her friend via effigy and cannot complete the sacrifice without help from that friend. (Bec must redirect the bullet. There's no way this works if he doesn't.) It is also a signifier that the pet she knew as a friend her whole life is about to, in a way, become her enemy. Like a good dog gone bad, who now must be put down."

So they are all intended to be foodstuffs! And, apparently, alphabetical - although I think 'Crow's egg' is a bit of a stretch.

There are also themes of sacrifice and faith that I didn't really think about before. Choosing to enter Sburb at all, knowing the stakes, is absolutely a leap of faith - and it's a game which sacrifices your whole planet. Skaia's been telling us the score this whole time.

Homestuck absolutely deals with dark themes - but they start out buried under the surface, and even now, are still in the process of revealing themselves. This makes sense for Homestuck, a coming-of-age-story whose protagonists are slowly coming to terms with some dark truths about their lives.

Awful Hospital, however, immediately says: here's our protagonist. Her baby is dying. She just woke in a strange room. She doesn't know how she got here. Her baby has been stolen. There are monsters inside her brain. By the way, here's a quip, because this is actually a funny comic. It just felt... dissonant, and not in a fun way. I don't really know what it's going for, tonally.

Don't take this as a negative review, though! I only read a couple dozen pages, so I'm really not qualified to rate the comic - I just wasn't feeling it at the time, so I shelved it. I enjoy a lot of Bogleech's writing, and Awful Hospital's lore sounds pretty interesting, so I'll probably give it another shot at some point.

Not for the most part! I'm super into time travel stories, though, so I'm well-Primed to understand their intricacies.

So there might be intermittent stages between the four we've seen in the kids' session? That'd be interesting - I'd love to see the intermediary stage between John's 2D chessboard and Rose's 3D cube.

There are, at this point, too many awesome songs for me to pick favorites. Umbral Ultimatum and Sunslammer are excellent, but what songs aren't, at this point?

I can't imagine what we're in for when we reach the Act 5.2 finale...

Ooh, interesting. Considering how many accidental references Hussie seems to make, it's honestly up in the air whether that was intentional.

That said....

Jack is looking awfully divine these days.

I suppose Tavros has probably logged the most rocket-hours, yeah.

I'm sure all Breath Players probably learn to fly, unless there are some oddball classes which don't let you interact with your Aspect.

Anonymous asked: forwarding this message to you from someone who doesn't have a tumblr account. ~DJ "Important fact. Dave and Aradia both use musical instruments for time travel, but different ones. Aradia’s is a music box, it has a single prerecorded music, the only way to “play” it is to turn it so it plays the music that was always in it. Dave’s is turntables. They contain a preexisting music, but what you do with them is to jump, cut and shuffle this music, creating something new, having full control of it. - RM"

I like it! As Time Players, they both follow the set path of the Alpha Timeline - but Dave gets a little funky with it, multiplying himself with a complex series of time loops.

Aradia, ever the fatalist, instead turns to doomed clones for reinforcements. I don't think we've ever seen her make a stable loop.

[imtrashraccoon]

I know it’s a little late for spooky month stuff but I don’t care so maybe the dragon au of the dark fortress…..like when they first got cursed from the sorcerer? I don’t know…it’s like super early right now.

Never too late, friend! :3

Bit of a warning, but this one is a bit dark. There are no happy endings here although I wouldn't say it's too graphic.

Part 1 & Part 2

It was a miserable night when they came.

For the first time in months, Lord Donovan had pulled his henchmen and armies back into his own territory to rest and recover their mana reserves. No one actually knew that though, as very few people ever escaped the carnage he was known for. The worst storm in decades had descended on the once flourishing Kingdom of Shiftingtails, now the heart of corruption and where the Dark Fortress had emerged from the very earth.

So imagine with me, the surprise that the dark lord must've felt when he received word that a mysterious stranger had appeared at the gate. He allowed them to enter, if to find out what kind of fool would come to him in this weather. Maybe they could provide some form of meager entertainment?

The person brought before him wasn't anything like he'd been expecting. They were dressed in non-descript clothing, walked with a limp, and had to rely on a staff in order to keep their balance. Their ethnicity wasn't easily discerned and their eyes were white with blindness, yet they showed no difficulty navigating through the fortress. Lord Donovan couldn't even determine if they possessed any significant well of mana or not. Still, he allowed the stranger into his court to hear what they had to say.

His henchmen were present of course. Why should they miss out on the fun? While the dark lord was perfectly capable of defending himself, it was good to have a little extra muscle for appearances sake. And if the stranger did try anything, he wouldn't need to get his hands dirty when his men would all too gladly jump at the chance to draw blood.

The stranger's voice was rough with age and Lord Donovan found himself wondering if they'd gone senile long ago. Still, they weren't afraid to condemn the evil he'd done, the hundreds he'd personally killed, and the countless others he'd scarred for life in more ways than one. He'd heard it all before of course, but what the stranger said next, chilled him to the bone.

"If only Sir Finn could have seen what you've become..."

With a snarl, Lord Donovan nearly leaped to his feet but managed to restrain himself from tearing the stranger apart. His mind was clouded with rage. How dare they carelessly mention that name?!

"WHO ARE YOU?!" the dark lord bellowed, not bothering with his usual faux politeness anymore.

"I am the past and your ilk has no future," the stranger answered.

Lord Donovan became aware of two things in that moment. His henchmen were growing restless; especially Dirk, who had started fiddling with his dagger, but Reven and Maul were also poised to attack if he gave the word. Unfortunately, they would stand no chance if he did because he now knew who the mysterious stranger was.

As soon as the realization occurred to him, the stranger's form seemed to shift beyond his eyes. Their clothing changed to enchanted robes adorned in ancient arcane patterns and their very visage morphed into one he'd never expected to see again. Their eyes remained clouded and their simple staff transformed into an ornately carved stave. Apparently, the Great Seer had survived all these years later and they had chosen to confront him now of all times.

"You are the one with no future. Return to the earth like the kingdom you once served," Lord Donovan growled through gritted teeth.

The Seer let out a heavy sigh and leaned against their stave as they surveyed the dark lord once more. "You have no authority, not anymore. Nature condemns your crimes and demands punishment." They stretched out their hand, pointing right at him before continuing. "May you no longer hide amongst the innocent for they will see you and your thugs as the beasts you are..."

Thinking quickly, Lord Donovan channeled what mana he had into a counterspell, but Reven seemed to have a similar realization and he summoned a skull blaster in an effort to disrupt the Great Seer's curse. He meant well, but the dark lord knew if that blaster fired, none of them would survive thanks to the powerful reflect enchants on the Seer's robes.

He immediately lashed out at his henchmen with his tendrils, not to harm but to get them away from the epicenter. If he was lucky, they would be spared and he would take the brunt of the curse in their stead. Unfortunately, his mind was faster than his his body and before he could follow through, the curse was cast.

The pain was instantaneous and only through sheer force of will, Donovan remained standing, although his henchmen could not. It brought him back to that horrible day all those years ago when the corruption first took hold of his body, only it was worse than even that. He felt his very bones creaking, as if something was trying to tear him apart from the inside and break free. He couldn't stay upright and within seconds, collapsed to the tiled floor.

At some point he became aware of a persistent tapping, like an angry woodpecker drilling through his skull. When he opened his one good eye socket, he realized it was merely the footsteps of the Great Seer as they crossed the floor towards him. Their brows were pinched together in a look that he had swore never to see again: pity. They watched him for a moment before kneeling down in front of him.

"I wish there had been another way," they murmured. "But just as dead branches must be removed from a tree, so must evil be purged before life can return."

Donovan spat at the Seer's feet.

"You have a chance to break the curse. In three years, if you do not receive a token of true love, all of you will remain as beasts."

The Great Seer left the way they had come but this time there was no one to accompany them through the dark halls. The storm raged on throughout the night and into the next day, but in the Dark Fortress, a different turmoil was brewing. One of rage and confusion. One that would cause even greater devastation to the surrounding kingdoms and claim the lives of all who tried to resist it.

[amelee23]

Special | Lee Know Fluff

Pairing: Lee Know x Gender neutral reader

Genre: Romance, poetic prose, first person

Word count: 1k

Warnings: this is disgustingly romantic, reader is worshiping their love for lino basically, talks about mythology and gods

A/n: Please let me know if you liked this, since I do know this is a kind of writing that isn't really done around here (?) but I am a hopeless romantic so here goes nothing lmao

Synopsis: One day, you began to wonder: what makes your love story with Minho so special? As you struggle to find an answer, you only find more love.

Millions of people fall in love every single day, but what makes my story special?

My story, by all normal means, is not in any way special. I'm sure history has heard of stories like mine countless of times.

What could I say to make it sound special? That it was love at first sight?

Well, it was. But that's also cliche. I don't believe it to be as rare as it sounds.

That he thawed my cold heart and made it beat again? Even though he did - my ex made me feel oh so special, and when he walked out of my life, every wall he had knocked down were built right back up.

But then I met another boy, and he spoke to me with a sparkle in his eye, with hidden kindness and sensitivity beyond every word. And I fell in love hopelessly, on the spot.

What else could I say -? That he has a heart of gold? He does, this boy of mine has helped countless animals find shelter, fed starving children across the world and offered every little ounce of him towards the happiness of those around him. But does that make our story special enough?

He's not a king of ancient kingdoms, although secretly, when he sits down at his desk I imagine he could be. A heavy crown on his head, the garments of nobility, an aura around him that demands respect. Plus, he's never taken a selfish decision in his life, he's always looked after me and stirred me in the right direction.

He's not a knight in shining armor, although when we're together I feel so powerful - that we could indeed be slaying dragons! Both of us, clad in armor, standing back to back with wide swords ready to charge into battle, the background forgotten in a mist of smoke and ashes. There is no foe that could stand in our way.

Perhaps you could say, this story is special because he is special. But he would kill me if he heard me say that, that he's special and I'm not.

Because if you ask him, I've got it all backwards. He's just Minho, and I'm the star.

The star of his world.

He swears I must be famous, because although I don't see it (or refuse to admit it) everyone around me adores me. Or so he says. He always says I'm loved, oh so loved, and not just by him. He's merely my biggest fan, and sometimes-! Sometimes he acts like my manager. Marketing me to others, telling stories of how great I am. How cute.

But let's get back to talking about him. Since he's my favorite topic to talk about.

So he's not a king, nor a knight. Perhaps he's a seer, since he does seem to posses the ability to foresee the future! He always talks about such distant destinies, the names of our children, the color of our shared bedroom, the furniture of our kitchen, all these memories we're yet to have... Hmm, maybe he can predict the future. I doubt it's all wishful thinking!

Or maybe he's a magician? A healer, a witch, a mage - he must be able to perform some sort of healing magic, because once, when I had a headache, he kissed my forehead and the pain went away. That couldn't have been a coincidence-!

What else could I compare him to, to make this seem more magical? An Egyptian deity...? No, let's not do that, it sounds somewhat blasphemous to compare a mere mortal to an ancient God... although he should definitely try dressing as one for Halloween! Gold would look great on his honey-like skin, surrounded by his tightly protected kittens... From what I have read he'd fit Anubis the most, for he's such a good listener, so supportive, it's like he has the ability to bring people back to life, breathe motivation back into them when they feel they're at the end of their road - just like Anubis used to help in the process of reincarnation. It doesn't even have to be Egyptian, I could say he reminds me of Prometheus, the man who stole fire from the gods, to give it to humanity in an absolute tragic and noble sacrifice... (I did compare him to gods even though I said I wouldn't, right?)

Maybe he's a forest fairy? No, this one I am a certain about. He blends into nature, it's the place where he most belongs. What else could he be, other than a magical sprite of nature? Animals adore him, I'm sure he can communicate with them in languages only they can understand. And whenever we go camping, and he lies down on the grass, on our old and stained picnic blanket, it seems as though the grass grows; flowers sprout around his body and the sun seeps into his skin, making him glow. And then he smiles and beckons me over, to share with him of his fruit, and I'm sure it's actually ambrosia.

Yes, this should be the one. Being a human, being my lover, it's all just a cover for something so deeply mysterious, ancient and magical, living inside of him, running through his veins... I hope he doesn't lose his magic by settling for someone as simple as me, who could only admire, but barely comprehend the history of his existence...

If he were to read this, he would think I'm very funny. And probably check my temperature for a fever. But one thing's for sure - we could be anything if we tried to be, a supernatural story, a Greek tragedy, a new York besteller... But we don't need to. Because what we have is enough.

There's a million people who fall in love every single day. But there's a million reasons why my lover is made out of pure magic - and while this might not be the most special love story of all time, it is the most special story of my life.

A/n: Just a thousand words my game weak this time around I am sTRugGLINg

If you like my work, consider donating so I can continue writing!

©amelee23 do not copy or repost

[sugar-coated-prat-dragon]

Title: The ‘City of Camelot’ is only a tiny section of a much larger picture

Episode: "Excalibur" questions #3

Questions by @tansyuduri

Tagging: @miyriu

Books used for reference: Dangerous Quests, Sword and Sorcery, Merlin Heroes Guide, Merlin Complete Guide, The Death of Arthur, Merlin Villians Guide and Merlin Annual 2013

Question: Didn’t people think it was weird for Tristan De Bois to publicly blame Uther for his sisters death?

After all, fatalities in childbirth were high back in the Middle Ages and medicine wasn’t nearly as good as it is in modern times?

My answer: You’re forgetting that magic was tolerated at that point and Nimueh was publicly at court as their guest before her banishment.

Obviously, no one (except Gaius) knew of the deal that was struck between Uther and Nimueh. The deal that involved a life-for-a-life as part of the bargain.

However, the members of the court likely knew that a High Priestess had been invited to court during Ygraine’s pregnancy, then the queen died in childbirth (probably something that was rare with powerful healing magic) and then their king banished the sorceress from court on pain of death.

Therefore, Tristan blaming the king for his sisters death could have been taken a number of ways; including insurmountable grief or even for bringing the unknown sorceress into court to begin with.

Especially, since magic was tolerated back then and yet most people were still wary of it.

On that note, Agravaine despised not only Uther for his sisters death, but also his nephew and tried to kill him for his sister dying in childbirth.

So maybe that level of insanity and revenge, just runs in the family.

😬

Book description:

It was due to his magical knowledge that Gaius was chosen to negotiate with the sorceress Nimueh to arrange an heir for Uther.

This pact not only brought the king and the physician together, the shared secret bound them to each other forever.

Question: Ygraine was said to have been pretty friendly with magic users.

It's possible magic (or being a seer) ran in her family?

My answer: Morgause implied that she knew Ygraine well and that she was an honorable woman, so it’s possible her family possessed at least some form of magic.

We know Agravaine didn't possess magic, but it’s possible Tristan did… at least a small amount of magic. 🪄

The reason I believe this could be a possibility is because The Knights of Medhir are also Wraiths and they have no power. Yet, their magical rating is three stars (⭐️⭐️ ⭐️). Likely because of the powerful magic used to resurrect a Wraith and make it borderline invincible.

Meanwhile, The Black Knight is a Wraith and his magical rating is five stars (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️).

Given the two star difference between both sets of Wraiths. It’s possible that Tristan De Bois might have started with a two star 💫 magical rating.

[If Tristan didn’t have magic, then it’s possible the two star difference between him and the Knights of Medhir, was simply due to him being summoned by Nimueh and the other seven wraiths being summoned by the less-powerful Morgause.] 🫡

Book description:

The Knights of Medhir have no power or free will of their own, but once awoken by a sorcerer they are capable of fighting on relentlessly - deadly, invulnerable and immortal.

Black Knight magical power: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Knights of Medhir magical power: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

- Nimueh was without question one of the greatest and most powerful sorceresses ever to have lived.

Question: Tristan De Bois swore as he lay dying that he would return to seek vengeance on Uther and he came back as a wraith.

Obviously, he's a seer?

My answer: Its possible, but it sounds more like Tristan was vengeful over his sisters death and simply used his dying breath to spew empty threats at her husband?

If he was a seer, he would have to be an extremely powerful one in order to see over 20 years in the future.

Therefore, it seems less like a prophecy and more like Nimueh took advantage of the distraught brothers grief and simmering anger to fill her own purposes, twenty years after his death.

Question: In the legends, Sir Pellinor was Percival's father, who hunted the Questing Beast and was ultimately killed by Gwaine.

Now he’s going to fight the Black Knight?

My answer: In the ‘Merlin Annual 2013 book’, Percival is confirmed to NOT be of noble birth.

This was something the majority of the fandom assumed, given how he ended up knighted, but up until now had not been confirmed outright.

When Sir Pellinor was killed in battle by the Black Knight, it was said that, “Camelot was robbed of two of its bravest defenders.”

(The other brave defender being fellow knight… Sir Owain).

Book description:

Percival Is a gentie giant who has a great love for Camelot. He Is as much admired for his kindness as he is for his strength, and he has a rich sense of humour.

Sir Percival is a friend of Lancelot, which is how he first came to Camelot. Although he is not of noble birth, Arthur knighted him in recognition of his bravery.

- During combat, Pellinor knocked the Black Knight's sword from his hand. He followed this up with what should have been a mortal blow.

But, as in the earlier fight, the Black Knight did not fall. He went on to kill Pellinor.

The magic of the wraith robbed Camelot of two of its bravest defenders.

Question: "Came to the gates of Camelot and challenged him" is interesting, because it means Tristan was not in Camelot?

Also, how would Tristan know about Uther's involvement in Ygraine's death?

My answer: I don’t necessary think that sentence implies Tristan didn’t live in Camelot.

Camelot is not just the Citidal (aka castle) and the City itself (which is the area we see most often in the show with the marketplace, houses of the townspeople, Rising Sun tavern, ect…)

Camelot kingdom also consists of large expanses of landscape. Including lands owned by various nobles, farms, various towns/villages, mountain ranges, lakes, entire forests, castles, a beach and the Labyrinth of Gedref.

As the eldest son, Tristan probably lived at his family’s estate (as I assume Agravaine also did up until the fifth season) and that estate would more than likely be somewhere out in the country as was common for the majority of noble families.

So Tristan wasn’t necessarily coming to Camelot from a different kingdom. More likely he was coming from his noble family estate to the City of Camelot.

I don’t think Tristan knew of Uther’s involvement in Ygraine’s death and his sister couldn’t tell him, because even she didn’t know the full details of the deal her husband made.

Ygraine: Your father betrayed me. He went to the sorceress Nimueh and asked for her help in conceiving a child... You were born of magic.

I'm sorry, Arthur. Your father has deceived you as he deceived me. To create a life, a life must be taken. Your father knew that.

Morgause used her magic to bring Arthur's mother, Ygraine, back from the dead.

(Source: Page 77 of Merlin’s Villains Guide)

Book description:

The city of Camelot was no place for Druids, not when King Uther had banned the use of magic, on penalty of death - but it had the best markets in the kingdom, the only places where certain important supplies could be found.

- This was not the object of the Labyrinth of Gedref. It was a doorway - a huge and complex doorway - to a distant shore.

The beach where Merlin now sat was accessible in no other way than through the maze - and there was no exit.

Episode: The Sins of the Father

Ygraine: Your father betrayed me. He went to the sorceress Nimueh and asked for her help in conceiving a child... You were born of magic.

I'm sorry, Arthur. Your father has deceived you as he deceived me. To create a life, a life must be taken. Your father knew that.

[acourtofthought]

I don’t think Elain will step out her comfort zone until someone pushes her to- - which is how I think her book will start (rather than her going deeper into the abyss like nesta did; interestingly, both r avoidance tactics)

Do you have any theories for how that push might be made for her? Or if she would push herself? Like what would be incentive enough for her im wondering

Another sort of related question-

Do you think that Elain should motivate herself to show her capabilities to those around her instead of them continuing to have their own idea of her. Or could her past with Feyre be a rzn for why others aren’t sure what she’s capable of?

Sry this is a lot! Hope this didn’t come off negative in any way!

I actually think we've already seen Elain step out of her comfort zone in SF, first with volunteering to search for the Trove, then telling Nesta that she cannot prevent her from doing more and again when she went to the Hewn City. Feyre offered to let her stay home because they know the cruelty of the Hewn City troubles her "but she hadn't hesitated to come." "Elain had squared her shoulders and declared that she was part of this court - and would do whatever was needed."

To me, in regards to Elain's character, SF was an exercise in "well look what we have here". We have Nesta surprised that Elain didn't break down in tears at the mention of Graysen. We have Nesta surprised at Elain challenging her. We have Feyre surprised at the teeth Elain showed. We have Elain pushing for them to take her seriously which neither Az or Nesta seemed to do (and which they were reprimanded for by Elain herself and Amren). We have Rhys acknowledge that maybe they've all been stifling her but that she's probably capable of more than they give her credit for. I think the natural next step to all that would be either for them to finally seek out Elain for her help which I imagine she would eagerly agree too (considering she was already there in Nesta's book) or Elain once again tries to volunteer as she did in SF and this time she receives the green light versus the push back she got before. I think there's many ways SJM could go about this. Maybe Elain will offer to marry Lucien to form an alliance between the different courts and those in the human lands since he's now friends with Vassa and Jurian. The NC struggles with it's public persona and a "bride from the NC" playing nice with someone who represents the people and fae pretty much everywhere else would help their image. Maybe Rhys or Elain will suggest that she go to Spring to verify Lucien's information. The author had the characters discuss how she might be willing to get her hands dirty so maybe it'll be under the guise of spending time with Lucien (which would then turn into love after an initial spat once he realized why she was first truly sent there). Maybe they've become concerned about what Beron is up to and they'll ask her to head to Day to learn more about her Seer powers so she can look into the future.

As for this question: Do you think that Elain should motivate herself to show her capabilities to those around her instead of them continuing to have their own idea of her. Or could her past with Feyre be a rzn for why others aren’t sure what she’s capable of? I think that's what we saw in SF, or the start of it, though I do think blame for any misconceptions of her prior to that can be blamed on Elain as well as her sisters. It's not that Elain couldn't have fought a little harder to be understood but at the same time, it's not her job to make a fuss to get people to see her. She seemed to constantly be in the middle of everyone else's arguments, Nesta with their father, Nesta and Feyre, Nesta and the IC when they first came to their house and at it was probably easier to just make herself as small and quiet as possible so as not to add to the discord when there was already so much of it. Some people truly do not like fighting so it may have been easier to avoid confrontation rather than demand they change their perception of her. Also, it's really difficult to change someone's perception if they aren't receptive to seeing it. There were little moments of Elain showing her intelligence, her bravery, and if the others still were stuck on placing her in a box, what is throwing a fit going to really do? It's not going to make those people stop and say, "wow you're right!" It's going to make them say, "look at her acting irrationally" or just ignore it all together. For example, Elain literally said "I am not a child to be fought over" and "you cannot tell me what I can and cannot do", Az went on to talk about how Elain shouldn't be exposed to the Darkness of the Trove. Nesta went on to think about how she still can't let Elain look for it. Amren then even told Az, "don't underestimate her" yet he never gave her credit in HOFAS for helping to kill the King. Elain does speak up but when it falls on deaf ears, it's not really worth her time to keep trying.

[zazzander]

i saw a joke post of "if hera did the demigod swap on another pair of demigods camp halfblood would send octavian back" and i went "that would not fucking happen" but lacked the knowledge and proper depth to elaborate. your octavian character analysis was incredibly in depth, analyzing every single moment and dissecting his character in a way that shows a clearer grasp of the character and who he is more than the supposed pieces given but never expanded. the fic has shed a new light on a character and explained exactly why i liked him so much in son of neptune.

so therefore i propose a question for you: if hera actually did swap octavian into camp halfblood without any of his memories with another greek demigod into camp jupiter (nico, rachel, etc), what do you think would happen?

apologies for any inconvenience! your take was exactly the thing i was looking for, and im so thankful that ive found others who share the same love of octavian. have a good day/night!

Thank you for the ask! This answer is potentially very simple or very complicated.

To begin with, the issues with Octavian being part of the switch:

Firstly, Hera would never. While she's isn’t openly against Octavian, I get the impression she didn't want him to interfere at all. Possibly because he'd tell her all the ways her interpretation of the prophecy are wrong (lol).

Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, Octavian is a legacy and Camp Half-Blood is only for half-bloods (it's in the name!). Octavian would likely struggle to enter the camp to begin with.

So the short answer would be... they'd just be very confused by Octavian and likely treat him as a clear-sighted mortal. They wouldn't kick him out so much as just like... not let him in?

But that's a boring answer.

The More Complicated Answer

In this scenario, the switch would probably be led by Apollo and, yeah, Rachel would be the other side of the switch. With Rachel missing, the Greeks are more likely to see Octavian as her replacement, but it still might be awkward.

Also, Octavian’s “team” would have to be different, primarily because Octavian isn’t a great fighter – Octavian effectively replaces Piper in terms of abilities. So they’d need some muscle for any quests.

When the Greeks realise that Octavian can see the future, they will likely make the connection between him and the missing Rachel. The gift of prophecy is rare. So at the point they realise Octavian can see the future, I don't think they'd drive him out without just cause. After all, prophecies are how quests begin – without their Oracle, Octavian is their only alternative. They are definitely not going to let him go easily!

Like Jason, with his memories gone Octavian wouldn't have the prejudices nor the knowledge of history and legend that Canon!Octavian does. He wouldn’t view the Greeks as his enemies.

At the same time, I don't see Octavian taking the loss of his memories in his stride in the same way Jason does. Octavian is the opposite of chill. So I think a great deal of panicking and yelling ought to be expected.

However, we also know that Octavian has a dream: becoming a hero. This isn’t something seers usually get to be, they just help the heroes on their journey. So I think Octavian could quickly become very motivated to achieve whatever quest Apollo gives him. And a determined Octavian is a forced to be reckoned with!

One thing I can see happening is that the Greeks not being all that keen for their maybe-Oracle-who-is-definitely-a-mortal wanting to go on a dangerous quest. And even without his memories, Octavian would take exception to that. Unlike Jason, Octavian doesn’t care about breaking the rules. I don’t see him waiting around very long once he’s foreseen what he needs to do.

Basically, Octavian would sway his new buddies to come on a technically-sanctioned-quest-because-I’m-the-seer-and-I-say-it-is quest. While the Romans would hate this, I think the Greeks would be more inclined to let it slide.

In summary, while it would take a bit for Octavian to settle in, I think Octavian would be a lot quicker to fully enculturate to Camp Half-Blood. A lot of his personality fits better with the Greek side than the Roman – there’s a less of a demand from the Greeks that everyone be a warrior, for example.

I once joked about how, if Octavian had been switched, he’d never want to go back to the Romans – and that’s kind of true. The Greeks respect prophecies and those who provide them. Whereas the Romans never respect Octavian. They assume that they’re going to be perfectly fine with or without him. I don’t see them looking for him at all. They’d just mark him as a deserter and washing their hands of him.

Octavian really just wants people to like him, honestly. And while he’s definitely prickly on the outside, so are a lot of Greeks (see: Clarisse and Michael Yew). I think they’d respect him, even like him, a lot more than the Romans do.

That all being said, Octavian has a strong sense of loyalty to Rome. His loyalty doesn’t falter even when those he’s loyal to stop caring about him. Even if the Romans hate him, he will try to save them. So it’s not like he’d ignore the peace mission. But also don’t see him getting his memories back changing his opinion of Greek demigods.

If Octavian would be able to actually sway the Romans on his return is the real question. Furthermore, the reunion would then lead to the tricky scenario with Rachel returning to the Greeks, and Octavian being left in the lurch. The Romans probably don’t want him back – but now he’s not useful to the Greeks.

I could see his character arc being about him becoming more than an augur, where he develops his other skills and becomes a strong fighter. And eventually getting his wish of being a hero.

TLDR:

That joke post was half-right, but not for the reasons they were probably thinking. Still, if the hurdle of Octavian being a legacy and not a half-blood were overcome, then I don't see Octavian ever leaving the Greeks' side.

Once again, thanks for the ask and thank you for reading my blogs & stuff!

[jinx-on-mars-19xx]

War and Pieces of Each Other

⚔️ All Previous Parts Here ⚔️

Dom x Colson (Yungblud x Machine Gun Kelly)

Warnings: future ABO, Vikings, fae, Viking Col, fae Dom, Col being cocky and dumb, Dom being emotional, talks of death, talks of war, talks of childhood trauma (parent death, child abuse, domestic violence between parents) PTSD, references to Dom almost being attacked by Bjørn, cursing, misuse of insults, talk of mpreg, snippy boys, slow burn ☠️ rating: mature ☠️ ideas helped by @iamnotanearthlingmotherfucker 🖤

Dom had seemed off for days and Kol'son was starting to think it wasn't only his impending bleed. They'd had an incredible night that he was still reeling from, he hadn't expected to ever tell someone his darkness but he'd also believed no one would be worthy of his mother's necklace. Before Dom that is. They'd talked and the boy had made him feel pleasure like he'd never thought possible and they'd spent the day in bed happy and madly in love but ever since… something was wrong and the Viking didn't know how to fix it. Dom was quiet when they were out around their people, he'd been spending more time in their room or hiding in the forest, but what worried him most was when he heard him crying at night. He'd hold him closer and pet his belly like he knew Dom liked but when he tried to ask what was wrong the kid waved him off.

"Maybe if you stare hard enough you'll impregnate him. That will fix it." Kol jumped at the sound of his brother's voice. The bastard loved to sneak up on him. That was even how he'd found him, an accidental game of hide and seek and the madman had just… followed him home from the forest.

He huffed, pressing himself further behind a tree and pulling Mod with him. He hadn't meant to stalk his prey- his lover, but now he was spying and it had been too long to say hello and it not be strange. "That won't fix the current problem. I don't think." He thought twice for a moment but he was pretty sure the fae wasn't upset about not making love yet. This felt different. He was more adorably grumpy about that, this seemed sad.

"And spying on him will. I see." The wild one teased, pushing his long hair back so he could furrow his brows and look serious. Kol growled low in his chest and smacked his friend with the back of his hand. This was a serious matter, gods damn it.

"He's been… sad." He sighed, cocking his hip against the bark of the tree and turning his attention more to his kin than his thrall but he kept glancing at the boy.

"It could be that his pack isn't welcome yet. Or than the women here are… harsh. Or perhaps he's a bit scarred by the brute of your family. Or even… yes! It could be that you're still too much of one to actually fuck his p-" Kol shut him up by clamping a palm over his loud mouth. Normally he'd hit someone for that but his seer couldn't help it. Not really. Still though, no other man was allowed to talk about his lover's pussy.

"You're not as cute as you think you are."

"M'dorb!" The halfling slurred something against his skin before he licked it and the man cursed, pulling away fast and shaking his hand.

"Fuck you."

"Oh so now you're offering it to everyone but me?"

Kol was a Viking, he was a brute who had more strength than he should for his size. He'd killed more than he could count and once wrestled a bear for fun- or that was the story at least- but he'd never jumped so high as he did in that moment his boy's voice sounded right behind him. His feet actually left the ground and he made a noise he'd never admit to making but he was genuinely so scared to turn to his thrall he thought of just… walking away.

"I wouldn't if I were you. He knows where the ropes are." Modig laughed as he turned and left the man to his fate. He was so worried of what the fae would say he thought about calling out for him.

"Dom? You're out here?" He knew it was the stupidest thing he ever tried to get away with and the look on his lover's face when he finally glanced reminded him so much of his mother his heart clenched. They didn't look alike exactly but there was a shared womanly disdain between them. It was as comforting as it was horrifying. "Are you going to spank me?"

Dom scoffed so loud they heard birds leave the trees but he just stomped off. "You'd like tha' too much." He sighed, holding himself tight as he left to the seashore.

Kol debated whether to follow or go home and work. He had a meeting with Bjørn before too late, something about the nearby clan. They'd had a tentative peace for a while but there were always whispers and supposedly his uncle had news he had to hear. He had a legitimate reason to let his boy go alone, perhaps he'd have time to visit with his friends, but just the thought of leaving him on his own had a growl vibrating in Kol'son's chest. "Fuck." He grumbled, pushing a hand through his hair as he turned to run after the boy. "Wait for me!"

"Fuck off!" His future baby mother shouted back and Kol could see him speeding up, but he kept close enough he wouldn't lose sight of him. His gaze dropped to that perfect ass and his eyes narrowed in a glare. Obviously Dom wasn't torturing him on purpose, he was the problem here, but he still cracked his neck and adjusted his dick and tried to deal with his overwhelming need.

"Wait, what are we doing?" He called out after a moment, finally deciding just to try and move on instead of apologizing for what he did. He had every fucking right, it was his land and his thrall. Just because Dom made him feel soft inside didn't mean he was. Perhaps it was time to remind them both who was in charge.

"You fucking off. I'm getting me pack and bringing em 'ome. If ya don't piss me off we might 'ave a good day later." Or maybe Dom was in charge. Who was he kidding?

"I'm not leaving yet. I want to meet him. Tom, right?"

Dom swallowed hard, trying not to cry as he turned around on his heel and stood still. Kol was walking so fast they smacked into each other and he tried not to whimper from being slapped in the face with his daidí's sweat drenched bare chest. The Viking stepped back and the fae sighed, trying to paint a smile on his face. "It's alright, you don't 'ave to meet 'im wiv me. I'll bring 'im along and you can greet each over at 'ome." He made his voice as light as possible but Kol still caught it waivering.

"Nonsense. I should greet him at the shore with you. Do you have a boat that needs brought in? Did you swim here? I… hmm, I never thought about how you got here." The chieftain laughed until he realized his lover was a bit green around the edges.

"We um… no. Nuffin to bring up. Fanks." Dom was terrified and he swallowed hard, trying to push down the lump in his throat. What if Tom didn't have time to slip his skin? His friend wasn't expecting him. He couldn't imagine Kol'son finding out that way. He knew he would tell him someday but… not yet. "Fing is… he um- he- You see Tom- uhh…" He tried starting a dozen different sentences and he got so nervous his hands twisted together in front of him. His master was enjoying every moment, his arms were crossed and there was a smile on his face. Arsehole. Beautiful arsehole. "He gonna 'ate you and um- ya may not understand each over."

The leader chuckled and it turned into a full body laugh that had him shaking his head before he wrapped an arm around his grumpy boy, leading him down their trail. "I'm sure it'll be mutual. I don't like anyone around you but if it'll make you happy we'll bring them home. It's alright boy. Just relax."

Dom grumbled to himself and dug his heels in just a little, he was getting desperate to stall and starting to wonder if he shouldn't just drop to his knees for the man and practice his skills of distraction but then he saw a blur of something out of the corner of his eye and he took a breath. He knew that blur, over the last few weeks he'd been making friends with Modig and Ben, and thankfully one of them must have felt his worry. They would get Tom in human form before they reached the shore. He still wasn't happy with his daidí though. "You acting like a straight up fuck again master. Who pissed in ya baff?" He knew probably no one but it was a silly saying he'd heard from his lover and it always made the man happy when he tried to talk like a brute.

"Mmm. You." Kol'son huffed but it was a lie and definitely too soon after he upset his prince to tease him. "Shit- no. Not you." He rushed to fix it when he felt the kid stiffen and not in a fun way. He was just frightened to bring his chieftain troubles to the boy. "When you said you were a prince-"

"To Inga." Dom interjected with a huff.

"To Inga- did you know much about running a kingdom?" Hopefully he could learn about his love and maybe get some help at the same time but either way he just enjoyed talking to him. It always made him feel better.

Dom's plush bottom lip rolled between his fangs and he sighed. It was hard making himself talk about those days but… Kol was his forever, he just knew it. They had to learn to talk. "A little but I weren't exactly made for tha'. I guess if I survived the mating I would 'ave ruled but like… by me god's side. I was so scared all the time 'ough tha' I paid close attention to me parents so I wouldn't upset 'em…" His voice dropped. It made his heart ache to talk about. "Me mum and dad fought all the time and um… 'urt each over. Me, sometimes if I got in the way so-" He sniffled and Kol pulled him closer and kissed his hair. "Yeah I guess I learned wha' parts of ruling upset 'em. Why?" He tried to be blunt- and quick with it but he knew some of his emotions bled into it.

The human was silent for a moment. He was overwhelmed with rage and hurt. More than anything else he wanted Dom safe and healthy. Someday he'd have to find out where his kingdom was so he could plan a raid. "That's fucked. I- I love you." He finally settled on. Apologizing would be dim, he didn't hurt the kid but he couldn't understand how anyone could be so evil to someone so perfect. Did he really say 'if he survived'? Oh gods.

"I love you too ya big pup. Now tell me wha's got ya being a cock?"

Kol'son snorted, his thrall was trying to learn how to tease with the men but he didn't have it down perfectly yet. "That doesn't really…"

"Fine, why you being a right cunt?"

Kol chuckled and tilted his head with an expression that said 'that works' and he sighed deep. "I worry war is coming. There's a clan not far from here that… they were allies once but-" He took a deep breath and growled at himself. How were they not at the shore yet? He swore it wasn't so far a few days before but they were running then. Dom was keeping them purposely slow. His lover's arm wrapped around his waist until he was holding him right back and he didn't think he could be more thankful. The boy didn't speak or make a big deal of it, he just held him back and made it seem like something he needed, that it wasn't for Kol's benefit but gods it was.

"When I was thirteen they went on a raid with my father and his men. I was left in charge at home and… they swore it wasn't their fault but only Bjørn and a few of our men returned, my father um-"

Dom gave him a moment but when he couldn't seem to get it out he asked softly what he already knew- "He didn't make it 'ome? Gods love, I'm so sorry. Wha' did Bastard say 'appened?" He wouldn't sugar-coat his hatred of Kol's terrible uncle, the man had tried to molest him his first week here and the way Aud spoke he was lucky. He knew the miserable excuse for a man wouldn't be accepted if not for how little of his family his daidí had left. He wouldn't trust Bjørn as far as he could toss him and he definitely couldn't. The man was a beast in all the ways but hopefully he'd be honest about his own brother's death.

"He said he didn't see my father fall but that the other chieftain was fighting by his side so it couldn't have been him. I don't know. They've always hated us. I think to be honest it was a fight over my mother that started it all. Dad won." He couldn't help but grin.

"If he was as charming as you-" Dom stopped when Kol scoffed and he looked up at him, his brows furrowed.

"Maybe when he was young. I don't know. He was broken after they died. I was almost happy when he joined them." The words were out of his mouth before he realized what he was saying and the weight of the truth stopped him in his tracks.

"Shhh, it's alright Kols. I'm sure he was too. Ain't nuffin wrong wiv being 'appy for 'im. I am too. I'm sure Valhalla is lovely. They're jus' waiting for you now but I won't let ya go for lifetimes yet." Dom soothed, squeezing tight around his lover's waist. He pressed a kiss against his chest and breathed him deep. He couldn't imagine what the first Kol- Kolvidur if he'd heard right- went through. He could never be without his man now.

The Viking smiled at the precious way his boy thought the afterlife was like, he obviously didn't understand Valhalla, but Kol wasn't sure he fully believed in it anyway so he'd rather think of it as beautiful like that. He didn't plan to leave for there any time soon either.

"So you're worried about a war? Why don't ya jus' kill 'em all?" The boy interrupted his thoughts and his eyes went wide. Maybe Dom was turning into more of a Viking than he thought.

"They triple us in numbers and strength. Especially after the raid where my father died. Our clan has been trying to rebuild ever since but… most of who would be our warriors are who you help me train." That made Dom's blood run cold and his stomach turn. Those boys were just that- little children. He knew his man had taken the crown at a young age but no. He couldn't imagine seeing those perfect baby faces soaked in blood. "Perhaps it's not about war though. It could be a new agreement. They change it every few years just to fuck with me. Bjørn said he has news. I'm probably supposed to be there now but they can wait. Let's go get your boys."

Dom was scared for the villagers he was quickly starting to call family but he trusted his mate to do what was needed. He couldn't help wondering if he would ever be accepted as the leader's wife or if he'd forever be a fucking thrall. He sighed softly, he knew when Kol made up his mind there was no changing it so he just nodded and tugged him along the path a little faster. Hopefully their interlude had given the forest fae long enough to reach Tom because they were getting close. "Weren't joking. He won't like you. He don't trust anyone to care for me. Especially not a 'uman."

When the kid teased him Kol'son almost tripped, he knew logically Tom would be other because Dom was but he hadn't heard his love say it so bluntly before. "I'm glad someone's been looking out for your sexy ass. I've got you now though so he can back the fuck up and get in line or I'll teach him to." Dom wouldn't admit to the slick that rushed between his thighs at his master's growled partially joking words but he worried the man could smell it. He was creepily attuned to his scent for a human.

"If he thinks he can take me I'll welcome his challenge. I'd love to teach a brute how it's done." Dom heard a new voice speak his own language and he rolled his eyes. Of bloody course Tom heard that. Of course. The selkie was coming up the shore to meet them and he plastered a smile to cover his less than polite words.

The thrall watched in something akin to horror as his daidí reached to greet him and he leaned close and asked- "Does he ever wear clothes?" He didn't know that Tom could understand him but the selkie kept his face calm as he stared the human down. Dom could feel a mess fast approaching but at least he could keep them separate by claiming they couldn't understand each other. The boy worried when he didn't see his kin's fur over his shoulder but then a voice whispered through his mind and he knew Modig possessed it and was taking it home. Oh. That showed a lot of trust. Maybe Tom could learn to be comfortable here, he seemed to have already made a friend. He just hoped everything would go smoothly but he would never bet on it. It wasn't his kind of luck.

Author's Note/Tags: @manicpixiedreamb0y @hollywoodxwhore @jaxbreaker @cole-way-iero28 @iamnotanearthlingmotherfucker 🖤

Have a little plot, hopefully yesterday's smut holds you over cause it may be a bit before more. I'm not sure yet. I hope you enjoyed a little more back story! 🖤☠️

[starlitangels]

Lots of Spoilers Under the Cut. Happy Monday

HOLY F^&*ING SH!+

Okay, one, I wasn’t expecting Blake to actually be in love with his friend. I thought that was a ruse. But maybe “wanting their powers on CK’s side” that Sunshine overheard was just a lie to the CK people to know why he was doing what he was doing with his friend

That said I still don’t want to believe they’re a Freelancer I mean come on let us be something cool. We’ve got two Freelancer listeners already and they’re my two favorites but come on

And two, BLAKE IS A F^&*ING SEER?! I was sitting there while he’s talking about knowing how his friend dies in every future like, “Wait... he’s not... is he?!” And let me tell you THAT IS NOT WHAT I WAS EXPECTING HOLY SH!+ I’M LOSING MY MIND

I don’t think his friend even knows that... (feel like if they did the seeds of that foreshadowing would have been sown a while back in their conversations with Blake?)

*deep inhale* Dammit Erik. You made me hate Blake less because I actually see where he’s coming from. And, yes, he’s still absolutely crazy and his plan is not going to work at all, but I see where he’s coming from and why he’s willing to do it

Frick. I didn’t expect to actually enjoy his character or find him intriguing but now I f^&*in’ do

Him and Vega, man. These are characters that I really wanna hate because of how they treated characters I love and adore but dammit Erik ya gotta pull twists like this on me these that make me actually start to get interested??? That’s. Not. Fair.

There went my hypothesis that Blake’s listener and Morgan’s listener were the same person because I thought Blake’s listener was gonna be the Seer but okay this works too

(But there’s also no way they’re Obscura if he can see their death)

“Seers can learn any kind of magic at a specialist level” but Morgan never said they had just pick one. No wonder Blake can maintain a dreamscape and a ward in the waking world at the same time if he’s specialist-level strong in both at once

There’s still some fuzz on the timeline but maybe Blake is the one who ended up punting Avior—and consequently Starlight—into the Meridian? I still don’t think he was “conflicted” about his membership with CloseKnit so Avior might be talking about another Dreamwalker?

Shade trivia: also pretty dope. Crafted by the Sovereigns. Probably not what anyone was expecting. I sure as hell wasn’t

Also also also...

B r a c h i u m. Whoa. Like. Holy sh!+ man. Dude was like six seconds away from going absolutely nuclear on Blake’s ass. And considering he’s the most ancient daemon we know of, that would have ended Very Poorly

But I love it when d(a)emons in this universe have their voices go all reverb-y and supernatural because of the power they actually hold finally showing through. It’s badass

I’m not even gonna try to speculate what force is twisting the timestreams but I doubt it’s the Sovereigns because A) Brachium’s right they don’t care and B) Time doesn’t really seem to exist in Aria in the same way so why would they be able to manipulate Terra’s timestreams?

That said, it honestly, for whatever reason could be Morgan and/or his Listener. Blake can’t See them, but they can See his friend. I don’t know why they would do that, but it seems the only way for there to be a timestream battle with Blake at such a disadvantage for a Seer

That or *Sound of Silence tune* Hello self-fulfilling prophecy my old friend...

IE the force working against Blake to end up with his friend dead in his arms is... himself. You meet your future on the path you take to avoid it and all that

Another thing I want to note: I’ve been wondering for a while if it was just Aria as a plane or everything that comes from it too that are Obscured from the timestream and now I’m fairly certain all d(a)emons are Obscured because Blake didn’t seem to know that Scorpius faked modifying Elliott’s memory. Or he didn’t care—which doesn’t seem likely considering Elliott remembering will really throw a wrench in Blake’s timeline.

Back to Brachium. Did I mention that was badass? 

Like, really, do not piss off the most ancient and powerful daemon we’ve seen. I’m pretty sure it was Gavin that mentioned after the Inversion that the oldest d(a)emons are the strongest and that puts Brachium a cut above everyone we know until we find out Vega and Cam’s relative ages but Cam feels young(ish) and even if Vega is thousands of years old, he’s probably not as old as Brachium

Anyway. I’m losing my mind over here.

There are sssooo many lore things to dissect here oh my word

I’ll probably be back for round two of screaming after I listen again and have time to pick apart things more thoroughly

Edit: I gotta go relisten to Blake’s entire playlist (if not the whole Balance playlist) with my new lenses of knowledge on and look for foreshadowing and lore and all that

[cosmic-codex]

Chapter 10:

Fate and Fortune

It had been days since the monkey king had set off. When he started the voyage he didn't expect this much boredom. His days were filled food, blue skies, blue ocean and steering the raft. Being alone on a raft was taking its toll.

He almost regretted his journey. Almost. Despite all the obstacles, he vowed he'd face them all, no matter how deadly or boring. Desperate he started looking towards the sky for any sign of being close. Besides if you could tell the directions with the sun, maybe clouds tell how far land was, right?

Finding nothing but pineapple, monkey, turtle, heart and peach shaped clouds,  monkey king went for a peach only to find a bird perched on one of them, pecking it continuously to procure it's food.

Not happy with his guest he exclaimed, "Hey, stop, stop it. That's my food! Get your own!" and started swatting it away, only to notice more coming for their supper "Now there's more of you?! What, are you going invite the whole family now?!"

"Where are you even coming from?!"

The monkey king paused. "Where are you coming from?" he murmured.

As far as he knew, birds didn't come to a raft in the middle of an ocean, even when migrating. Which implied that they came from solid land.

Following a bird, who seemed to have had it's full, the monkey king steered the raft  in hopes seeing more than just the big blue sea and he did. As soon as the raft touched land he quickly tied it nearby and cheered. He never thought he'd be this happy to feel something as mundane as sand, yet here he was.

"Thank you very very much! I'd hug you but I can't. I gotta go but you can keep the food as my gratitude. I'll be taking a bag though. Bye!" the monkey king ran off as the birds continued pecking ignoring him.

The monkey king soon arrived at the human village. Realising he'd need clothes to fit in, he quickly acquired them, stolen from an unfortunate soul, and began wandering around, in hopes of finding someone who could teach immortality or at least a few clues.

Not finding much he moved on to the next village and the next. The more villages he crossed the more he learnt about humans and their societies. He learnt how to walk, talk and even how to read like them, among other things.

He also learnt of what most humans desired, which in most cases was always fame and money. Unlike his monkeys, who relaxed and enjoyed their lives behind the water curtain cave, humans were often focused on building bigger houses and gaining more money, something they used to barter goods.

A man worked all day, not even enjoying the breeze, and came home completely wiped out, not even gazing at the night sky, all for gaining more and more items which wouldn't even matter in the end. Just imagining his monkeys living like that, having all life drained out of them like that, sent shivers down his spine.

As he made to yet another village eating some leftover peach pie, given to him by a nice old lady he helped earlier, he saw a bunch of people gathered near a poster advertising the arrival of some seer in town, known for its very accurate depictions of the past, present and future.

Monkey king though predicted it to be a scam, having encountered many along his travels and once almost even being made into one. Though with his curiosity piqued, he went to the location mentioned in the poster only to find a long line waiting for their own futures to be revealed.

Waiting for a long time the monkey king finally entered the tent, expecting it to be fake though still holding out a tiny bit of hope for it to be real and give some help in his quest of immortality.

And so he entered he found the dark tent full of candles and smoke, coming from the many lit incenses around the tent, making him cough. At the back of the tent he saw table filled a glass orb, some cards and other things he didn't recognise.

There were two chairs near the table, one he presumed for him and another at the opposite side of the table, where a cloaked figure sat. Fake or not, he was intrigued.

As he sat in his seat the seer spoke "Come child, enter my domain as we unfurl your past, meet your present and look into the future." though they paused when they looked at the monkey properly, "My, it is quite rare for monkeys to come for divination. Now I'm curious, what's a creature like you doing here, dressed like a human?"

"You're a seer right? Why don't see yourself?" the monkey king sneered. Maybe he was being a bit too rude, but when people tended to point out his species, things didn't end up being very delightful.

"You think I'm a fake, don't you?"

"Of course you're a fake! You're lying to people just to gain more money."

"When did you think I was a fake? While waiting half a day in line or when entered my tent?" the seer teased.

"I knew it right away when I read the advertisement."

"And yet you came." the seer smirked knowingly.

"It was just to prove that you were a liar. A fake seer with no powers."

"Oh naive monkey, I may be a liar but that doesn't mean I'm not a seer. I can predict other's fate, just as I will predict yours."

"Yeah, yeah, and I'm a god. Let's say if you were a real seer, why would you con people instead of giving real divinations?"

"Just because I'm a seer, doesn't mean I can't earn money. Looking into the future for hundreds of people a day can be really tiring for a real seer. Now do you want me to predict your fate or not? I'll even yours for free~"

"But I already pai-"

"Hush now. Let me focus." the seer said as the candles began to flicker and the tent seemed to have even more smoke, making it harder to see.

"What you are looking for,

Will let you live forever more,

Your light shall shine brighter than most,

However many won't agree with what you chose,

I see a light helping others find their own,

But I also see it destroying someone's home,

Your fate will be decided by how you use your flame,

But your doom will be decided by who you choose to blame."

"..."

"Well, vision's over. Time for you to go monkey. I have other customers to tend to." the seer chirped.

"Wait! What was that supposed to mean?" the monkey king asked

"You will know what it means when your time comes. Now move along. Time is money I'm not wasting." the seer replied now pushing the monkey out.

"Fine! And just so you know I still don't believe you." the monkey huffed as he left the tent, not waiting to hear the seer's reply.

"Oh, we'll see Sun Wukong." the seer chuckled.

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

Masterpost

Previous chapter

Next chapter

[lucem-stellarum]

So. New Hush video dropped. And there is SO MUCH to talk about. Under the cut because in-depth spoilers and length.

First thing, I'm loving the dichotomy between "one day you'll think that saving me will be the worst thing you've ever done" and "I don't want to see you hurt". Like, initially (and I'm certainly not the only one) I got serial killer vibes. Kind of like Imp!Kody, and especially after that bugs bunny GIF. Now I'm getting more 'uncanny valley' vibes; very much not human, but not intentionally malicious. He scares me still, but not in the same way that Vega and Ivan did.

With that uncanny valley he has going on, I'm almost getting Android!Listener vibes for the future storyline. That plotline is still so isolated from the rest of the cast it's got to tie in and pay off at some point. Even though the "Hush is a shade" theory is probably not correct I still think he's connected to Death somehow. I'm not sure what he is, exactly, but I think he's something we haven't seen before.

He does say he was "designed with a purpose". He's almost certainly designed by the Sovereigns. They seem to like building things; demons, vampires, empowering humans, shades. Making another construct is easy to attribute to them. I don't think he is a Sovereign himself; it's unnecessary to add something more powerful than 'basically gods'. It's a bit of a meta textual read and justification, but that doesn't make it wrong. I think he's built as some kind of weapon, leftover from the first war between demons, humans, and the Sovereigns. He EATS arcana, the magic that demons are made of. If the war was so bloody and costly it horrified a Sadism demon, it had to have been close on both sides, neither with a clear advantage. Desperate people do desperate things; the subjugating Sovereigns made Hush as a weapon specifically to fight against and control the rebellious demons. Hence why demons consider him an "abomination"- it's hard to look kindly upon your predator.

on the other hand, he may also be something related to another of my theories about Reticuli being a construct here

Right now my main drawback of this is how... almost naive in a way Hush seems? It's not quite the right word, but that's the best word I have. Starlight would be so disappointed in me. Anyway, if he's been around since the Sovereigns were in power how has not a single person done him a kindness ever? How has he never once gotten curious about... anything? I suppose he could have been trapped on Aria/imprisoned all this time, but then why wouldn't the Chorus have just dissected him while he was in their grasp. Unless Hush was hidden from them somehow? I can't handwave away all the holes with "Aria lore we don't know yet, probably". That doesn't mean he's not a construct of the Sovereigns, of course, he could be a newer one (like how shades were created by what's under the river after they were imprisoned). Maybe he was created to try and bring down the Meridian? Eat away at the magic of E'laetum and Min'ara and break the walls that hold the Sovereigns prisoner?

As far as who his brother is- I don't think we've met the brother yet. Hush has explicitly said he's not a human or a demon. Why would his brother be either of those races? He was created, not born, so not a human. Probably not referring to a vampire either, since they're a subspecies of human. All huskies are dogs, but not all dogs are huskies, you know? And demons coalesce in the Elision Well, so they're all equally related to one another. Why would Hush say he only has one brother then? It's the same reason as why he's probably not a Sovereign; they're all probably equally as related to another so why only singular brother? Who does that leave, as named characters in our cast? Basically just the android listener, which... no.

Unless... someone in our cast of named characters is misleading us about what they are? Seers can mask their aura as something completely different, so it's possible for some specific people to pull something like that off. That still throws out most of the human/demon cast, anyone that we have gotten close enough to physically touch and notice he has no warmth or heartbeat. Which leaves a small number of people it could be, assuming we have met them before.

Hold a gun to my head and make me choose, I'd have to say Brachium. He lost his memories to the river; just because he started getting some back doesn't mean he has all of them, or that they were even truly his to start with. Brachium also mentioned in passing how long it's been since he even saw any others of his kind; what happened to them? If Hush is related to a deathwalker (maybe he was a deathwalker, once, twisted by the Sovereigns into what he is now) and has been trapped by the river, near death, it would explain his naiveté (again, not quite the right word, but close enough). His unfamiliarity with interacting with other people in a way that isn't horrifically violent. If Hush's purpose is somehow related to bringing down the Meridian it would also make sense that his brother wants him dead, considering Brachium's task watching the river and what it imprisons and that tie in to the project Meridian plotline I referenced earlier. Brachium can be scary threatening when he wants to be. It's a bit of a stretch, so I do still think that his brother is as of yet unintroduced, but if I had to pick someone it would be Brachium.

All in all, great work Mr. Redacted sir. I love it, I can't wait for more lore drops like this! I'd love to see these theories proven wrong, and I think I would actually die if I was proven right!

[bewitchingbooktours]

The Century Portal by Barbara Hartzler

The Century Portal

The Sacred Stones Portal Series 

Book One

Barbara Hartzler

Genre: Urban Fantasy Portal

Date of Publication: May 14, 2024

ISBN: 979-8325107788

ASIN: ‎ B0D1WBMTLR

Number of pages: 208

Word Count: 58,600

Cover Artist:  FantasyBookDesigns.com

Tagline: Downton Abbey meets Shadowhunters as Bella portals to the 1920s to rescue the Seer from a time-traveling villain bent on changing the course of history.

Book Description:

I thought my days of magical battles were behind me—until a portal opened in my dorm room.

I’m Bella, and I’ve done my fair share of saving the world. But when two strangers from 1924 show up begging for my help, it’s clear that my quiet college life is about to be anything but ordinary. Their mission? To stop a dangerous villain from unraveling the future by tampering with the Seer’s family line.

Suddenly, I’m thrust into the magical world of time portals, glitzy debutante balls, and the underground speakeasies of the Roaring Twenties. And that’s not even the worst of it. There’s a new enemy in play—one who can manipulate time itself and has their sights set on Lucinda, the future Seer.

In 1924, Lucinda thought her biggest problem was planning her future. She couldn’t be more wrong.

Eighteen is supposed to be an exciting time for Lucinda—freedom, ambition, maybe even a little romance. But as strange powers start manifesting and a mysterious suitor takes an interest in her, life gets complicated. Add to that a time-traveling villain who’s decided she’s the key to his plans, and her once-bright future starts to look pretty dangerous.

Now, Lucinda and I are fighting across centuries to stop history from being rewritten. But with enemies closing in from every side, the battle for the Seer has only just begun...

Century Portal is the spellbinding first book in a new YA historical time-travel fantasy by bestselling author Barbara Hartzler. Downton Abbey meets Back to the Future with a good dose of Shadowhunters-like magic in this thrilling blend of coming of age romance, mystery, and urban fantasy adventure.

Amazon

Excerpt 2, Ch. 14:

Both Rocco and Ricky Montrose turned toward our hiding place.

My pulse pounded in my ears as I held my breath, leaning into Patrick for support.

Through the crack of the door, I could hear Rocco’s gruff hiss. “Did you hear that?”

“I don’t know. Maybe,” came Ricky’s mumbled reply.

Leaning in, Patrick rolled his eyes at me. “Some spy you’d make. Time for plan B.”

Then, in one deft move, he slid in front of me, pressing his hands to the wall on either side of my head, trapping me between his arms.

My breath hitched in my lungs as I stared into his mesmerizing dark eyes.

Brushing his nose against mine, he whispered, “Time for the makeout cover.”

Then he kissed me, a soft peck at first as we both kept our eyes on the door.

But no one came through.

“We need to tell the Sinclairs about Ricky’s plan,” I murmured against my boyfriend’s soft lips, reveling in his warmth and closeness.

“Or maybe we should find a way to stop him from attending the ball tonight.” Patrick’s mouth brushed against mine with each word.

“Good idea.” I leaned my head against the wall. “I bet Lucinda will see right through his lies if he stands her up for the ball,” I whispered.

“If only we can make sure he stays gone permanently.” He arched back, eyes roaming my face.

I let out a little whimper. He was too far away.

“We’ll think of something.” I grabbed him by the shirt and smashed my lips into his until

I forgot where, or when, we were.

Patrick broke away first, easing the swinging door open a crack. “Looks like they’re leaving. Should we follow them?”

“Probably,” I huffed, pulling back as I smoothed my hands down my silky dress. “But first, how do I look?”

“What?” He arched back, narrowing his eyes at me. “Why does that matter?”

“Because I’m pretty sure in 1924, if I came out of a secret door looking like I just made out with my boyfriend, people would take notice.” I swiped the edges of my lips, looking for any errant lipstick.

“And that would ruin our goal of being invisible. Got it.” He gave me the once over, his mouth tilting up on one side. “Do you have a compact or extra lipstick or something?”

Then his cute little half-smile morphed into a full-on sheepish grin.

“I think I brought the lipstick and a mirror.” I reached into the small bag hanging from my wrist and reapplied my lipstick. “There. All better. Now you just need to wipe your mouth.”

“Fine.” He pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his lips. “Now can we go?”

“Yes. Let’s hurry,” I whispered, opening the door.

“I’ll go first. Just in case.” Patrick slipped by me and out the door.

I waited in the serving hallway for a few minutes, then ducked out into the parlor.

Thankfully, almost everyone had vacated the room. Anyone left was heading toward the grand ballroom as a bell rang throughout the house.

I followed the stragglers, slipping in behind Patrick as he skirted the edge of the crowd.

A middle-aged man and woman stood at the back of the room, the woman with a bell in her hand.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” the man announced in a loud voice. “Thank you for attending this year’s pre-ball luncheon, organized by my beautiful Charlotte.”

I recognized that name. That must be Mr. and Mrs. Beatrix.

Edward Beatrix went on about the history and tradition of the luncheon, while I scanned the crowd for the Montrose boys.

They were edging toward the back of the room when I spotted them.

“There,” I hissed into Patrick’s ear, pointing low so no one else in the crowd would see.

Just then, they slipped out into the hallway.

Wasting no time, Patrick grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the crowd. For my part, I raised the back of my hand to my forehead, feigning a fainting spell.

Not my finest moment. But hey, you gotta work with what you’re given.

As soon as we reached the long hallway with a dozen doors, we caught sight of two dark heads. Rushing forward, we tried to catch up with them.

But they disappeared again. Just vanished into thin air.

We hustled as fast as we could in our 1920s getup down the long corridor. When we reached the end of the hallway, there was still no sign of them.

“What the heck?” Patrick’s head swung around. “Do they have stones that make them disappear now?”

I glanced around, scratching my chin. “No, I don’t think that’s it. We would’ve seen some kind of light or heard rushing wind if they used a portal.”

He snapped his fingers. “Look at you, being all smart and logical.”

I grinned at him for a second, but it faded fast. “There’s got to be something else we’re missing.”

The Three Societies were known for their hidden tunnels and secret rooms, and the Guardians were no exception.

He scrunched his bushy eyebrows together. “You mean like a secret door or something?”

“Yes.” I nodded at him. “Exactly like that. Who’s the smart one now?”

His sideways half-smile reemerged. “Okay, let’s start tapping the wall and see if we find something.”

I pointed to the right side, towards the back. “They disappeared somewhere around here.” I made a big circle with my arm.

We both started knocking on the walls—softly so we wouldn’t draw attention.

I scanned the dark wood paneling as I knocked, and then my gaze snagged on a strange piece of molding on the chair rail. Every ten feet or so, the waist-high mahogany molding was broken up by an intricately carved square decorative piece. Most were rosettes, but this decorative square was a familiar symbol.

Right there in the molding of the Beatrix’s hallway was a Guardian symbol—a circle with wings above and fire below.

“Here,” I whisper-screamed, pressing the symbol.

About the Author:

Barbara Hartzler is an Urban Fantasy Academy author writing about Seers, Chosen Ones, sacred stones, and secret societies ... oh my! 

Her stories are full of snarky heroines, supernatural shenanigans, dreamy guys, and normal teens taking on larger-than-life quests to save the world.

As a former barista and graphic designer, she loves all things sparkly and purple and is always jonesing for a good cup of joe. 

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[charmed-redemption]

" Everything happens for a reason and when it is supposed to. Your life alone may have allowed you to know yourself well enough to be ready for love."

As a seer, Rici saw more than he said using his powers to see past present and future events for others as he could not really see them for himself. Drawing on strength that he did not know he had he spoke of what he learned from the lives of others and his own. With great power came great responsibility and that was something that Henry seemed to ooze even adopting the title of Mother Hen.

' You know what fun is yet maybe you need to learn what fun is for you once again."

TO: Time of Our Life

[reallyromealone]

Fortune teller

Part 1 - part 2 - Part 3

"what do you mean you want me?"

"we want you--well your abilities specifically for Bonten" Takeomi said bluntly and (name) felt nothing but regret for going shopping today and for once...he wishes he could see his future.

"I don't get an option do I?"

"nope"

Having a member of Bonten at his side at all times was a little awkward-- that's a bull faced lie it was incredibly awkward.

He watched as Bonten grunts packed his stuff up to bring back to headquarters "you quit your job yeah?" Ran said casually as he glanced around the almost empty apartment, a lazy smile on his face as he kept a close eye on the seer.

"mhm" (name) said bored already, eyes unfocused as he sat on the couch and just wanting to end the day already " good good, well it seems like my men finished packing! Let's go my little magic 8 ball!" Ran teased as he led the other out and back to headquarters "still don't get why you wanted to watch them pack your place, you barely have anything!"

The room he was placed in was simple, a bed and a few dressers and a bathroom that connected.

This was his little birds cage.

A canary in a lions den.

He supposed it could be worse.

Carefully he took off his gloves, hands warm from wearing them all day and he just...sighed.

One could suppose he was jaded after seeing so much.

So much he couldn't stop.

Maybe this was his punishment for not helping more?

Maybe.

Sitting Infront of a table, there was a shaken man before him as the men of Bonten surrounded the two.

They knew this man's fate.

(name) did not.

It was a test and he knew it.

Gently he took the man's hand, grimacing as he felt the clamminess before gasping, eyes white as he spoke in a voice not of his own.

"hot ice in the morning dawn, your mind speaks but your throat is full of sorrows and body for all to torment"

"hm, seems like our little prophet is correct!" Sanzu giggles as he smacked the poor man's back, horrified at what he just witnessed and heard.

"you do die by us forcing liquid nitrogen down your throat and letting everyone here--save for our little prophet use you to get out all the anger for your betrayal! Good job bud!" Ran said with mock pride while gently squeezing (name)s shoulder and the man was shaking at this point, looking ready to throw up and (name) wasn't far off.

Fortunes were never easy, especially not ones for death.

The room was slightly blurry as he swayed slightly, energy drained both emotionally and physically as his hands twitched.

"hmm? You alright (name)?" Ran asked as the prophet slowly nodded, hoping they mistake his swaying for overdoing it and not the horror of just telling a man his own death.

"must have tired him out, poor sparrow" Kaku said while helping the young man up, no one missing how he shoved his hands in his sleeves to avoid contact.

"I will take him back, he looks ready to pass out" Kaku said while gently leading (name) off and away from the interrogation room "you did good kid, you earned a break for tonight" Kaku said softly as (name) felt a headache come on, stress induced.

It never got easier.

"sleep for now kid, you earned it" Kaku said as he helped the other into bed, not even sure why he was being so helpful of the other.

He just looked so helpless.

Like a lamb.

"how is he?"

"passed out, well we know the limits of what he can handle now" Kaku joked slightly, walking to the bar to pour himself a drink as the men lounged about.

"his eye thing is unsettling" Koko spoke up while scrolling through his phone and the others couldn't help but agree, it was like he looked into your soul while seeing nothing at all at the same time.

It was creepy.

"outside of that though, not bad on the eyes" Ran added on "though we should really find him better clothes"

"he dresses for comfort over aesthetics, nothing wrong with that" Mochi said taking a bite of his sandwich, forgetting to eat lunch and be was starving honestly.

"I wonder what the lamb has to offer"

It was the dead of night when (name) woke, not bothering to leave his room as he knew it was locked; those men would be fools to not lock it.

One way windows showed the city below, Kaku off handedly mentioning they were bullet proof as to hint that he couldn't jump out.

(name) stared down and looked at the people below, unsure what time it was as there were no clocks in the bedroom for some reason.

"you don't look like you're from Japan" a voice rang and (name) slowly turned to see Koko leaning against the now open door, takeout in his hand "we don't want you starving" he said simply as he walked over and set the food on the dresser and walked out, pausing when he heard (name)s soft voice ring out "thank you..." It was the first time he heard it since the meeting, it sounded nice.

"you're welcome"

(name) slowly walked towards the food, curious as he opened it as if it were going to attack him but it wasn't anything dangerous...just simple take out.

Though he couldn't recognize the expensive logo or whatever was In-front of him, he slowly ate while sitting In-front of the window and began people watching to pass the time.

He supposed this was his life now.

Morning came and (name) was brought out, hands gloved as he was guided by Ran to the main room where a man with a tattoo gun sat as the others sat around watching.

"it's time for your tattoo sparrow, Mikey thinks you would look nice with it" Ran said sweetly and (name) began hyperventilating, everything becoming to much "ah, so he finally started to snap" Mikey said emotionless as he watched Ran quickly bit a pressure point on the prophets neck, the other slowly relaxing in his grip "shhh, it will be over soon" Ran said soothingly as he began petting the others head, letting the others body fall limp against his before removing the others shirt.

"on the chest, over his heart"