#jason hunter design

[thejasonhunterdesign]

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[decaffeinatedpartymuggoop]

Okay, we all know being a demigod is a shit position. Its scary and gets you killed in really nasty ways. But I feel like being a Big Three Kid has to be the shitiest position in all the shit positions.

Like, imagine being Thalia Grace. Your dad is king of the gods, lord of the skies. Led a war to get rid of a tyrant. And the only thing you get is his scorned wife AND brother, who both try to kill you (with one technically succeeding), a drunk of a mother, and brother who you thought was dead. Oh, wait, he’s not dead! No instead he was used as an offering to appease your dad’s wife and help fight in a war and prevent mass destruction.

Or maybe you can imagine being Percy. Son of the sea god, the stormbringer, the earthshaker. You get to live with a disgusting, abusive man for around 6 years. Who smells like literal shit. All because your scent as a demigod is too strong, BECAUSE of who your father is. You see things that you aren’t supposed to see and do things that people can’t do and go years thinking something is wrong with you. That your the problem. Then you get to the one place where you’re supposed to be save. But! Here is the kicker! You’re not! Your uncles hate you and you’ve been accused of stealing a symbol of power. A series of events that will kick off a war, and guess what. You’re a center point for it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood.

Mhm, but then there’s Hazel. Daughter Pluto, god of the underworld and riches. But that doesn’t really change anything does it? She’s still living in 1930s America, in a red state. One where confederate flags still hang if you go deep enough into the city. She go to a school where the kids are supposed to be just like her! They still don’t like her tho. She’s got no idea who your father is, only that he left her with a parting gift. Only it’s not really a gift. Sure, she can pull rubies and diamonds from the earth, all worth millions. But anyone who’s ever gonna touch it will die. She lives with her mother, a woman gone so mad with greed it kills her. And Hazel, by the way. Laying dead Alaska, inhaling oil. But it doesn’t end there! She can’t have her mother suffering for eternity, can she? The answer is no. Hazel gets to spend the next 70 years in the Fields of Asphodel. It still doesn’t end! Because when she’s brought back to life, she gets to fight in a war against giants, her sad story seemingly never ending.

Nico’s a son of one of the Big Three, one of the most ancient and most powerful. But most people look at him as something bad, something not worth taking a second glance at. Something too look away from, mostly. He’s from the 30s, spent years in a magical time casino with only his sister at his side. She doesn’t stay for long though, she dies soon after they discover their heritage. And he doesn’t remember his mother much, a name without a face. A face without a name. He survived an attempted assassination at 2, though it wouldn’t be the only time his was life was threatened. He clings to his sister, even though she’s dead. He’s the son of the god of the underworld, is he not? There had to be a way, and there is. Only she won’t talk to him, she seems more concerned with communicating with the guy who got her killed instead. She chooses rebirth, and he decides to lay it to rest. She’s not coming back, and he has a war to fight in. (He gets stuck in a jar and forcibly outed a few years later, but that’s a lot to get into for now.)

Jason Grace is a pillar of New Rome, their golden boy, their American boy. He’s a son of Jupiter, a natural born leader. He’s been at camp for as long as he can remember, he wants to be praetor soon. He’s had a rocky start, but maybe he’ll be one of the lucky ones. Retire a veteran and live a long life with Reyna in New Rome. Only that never happened. He has no idea where he is, there’s a girl holding his hand, and she’s cute but it feels wrong. They get attacked and people come in and call him a Greek demigod, familiar, yes, but still wrong. It doesn’t feel right. It doesn’t put things into perspective the way it does for Piper and Leo. He’s goes to a quest to rescue Hera, the name sounds wrong. He nearly dies but at least he remembers who he is. He spends the next 6 months trying to get back home, even though he isn’t too sure on where or what home is. He gets there, eventually, but it doesn’t stop there. He’s dragged on quests and battles and fights in the war but at least he survives it, he’s still there. Apollo needs help, he and Piper give him aid. He gets dumped. He doesn’t get to he a veteran in New Rome. Not with Reyna, not with Piper, not with anybody. He doesn’t get kids or grandkids. No, he gets shot down, another demigod buried.

You could be any one of them, really. Pick your poison, but I guarantee you won’t like any of them. Spending years trying to find a place where you belong, where you feel safe. Only for it to never come.

Percy, who, if you really look at the books, isn’t really all that well liked until he’s at least 2 years into camp. Only to then be sidelined because the courages, brave, fearless daughter of Zeus is back from the dead. Nico, the son of one of the most feared and hated gods. Who has death written all over him, who excludes it so much animals can smell it and humans can sense it, who’s been ostracized and pushed off to the side since he was 10. Hazel, who was treated like disease as soon as she stepped foot on camp soil. Who’s gone her whole life looked as something that’s cursed, that will only bring misfortune, a bad omen.

Shit positions, all of them.

[stephaunanu]

Received the exciting news that our film, Coup De Jarnac, has been chosen as an official selection for the prestigious 15th annual Tallahassee Film Festival!

It was great working with every creative individual from my alma mater, Savannah College of Art and Design, who contributed their talent and passion to bring this project to life!

[alnair-jpg]

Olympics AU Info dump!

First, I am blown away by how much love the series is getting, thank you all so much! I do really enjoy all the comments and reactions in the tags. Know that they all delight me and the only reason I don’t reply to everything is because there are so many! But I read them all 💕

General questions:

Can you draw the designs or concepts? Write fanfic in this AU?

Yes of course! I’d love for you to tag me if you post them so I can see

Do they all know each other?

At first, I would say no- with the exception of Nico and Will (they’re developing a whole backstory in my head that I cannot and will not stop.). But they all meet in the Olympic Village after the opening ceremonies and quickly become friends. They all try their best to attend each other’s events. (Someone please tell me how Percabeth becomes a thing. Please. 🙏 )

Why didn’t Percy win gold?

Percy was an Olympic medalist in swimming before moving to diving. After competing in several swimming events and feeling like they were all just small variations of the same thing, he wanted more of a challenge. He chose diving to stay rooted in to the water, but to add a new dimension to his bodily awareness and control.

What’s Annabeth and Luke’s rivalry?

They most definitely trained together, and it was Luke’s skill that motivated Annabeth to aim for the Olympics. But, she wanted to compete for her home country, Greece, which Luke thought was just a shortcut since there was a clearer path to an Olympic team in a smaller country. Annabeth is constantly trying to prove to him that she would have made it to the top of the sport either way.

Also, apologies to the IRL fencers out there for the inconsistency. I know fencing is a gendered sport, and Annabeth’s gear/style are inconsistent, please forgive the oversight ☺️🫶

Volleyball?

The whole Hunters of Artemis are a volleyball team (that apparently has no country 😅). Thalia ends up the captain. When Reyna moves on from tennis they welcome her with open arms.

Rejected sports

Will as a runner. Canonically, he’s super fast, but just having him as a sprinter didn’t fit with his personality.

Will as a pole vaulter. Specifically the guy that lost because he was ‘blessed a little too much’ and knocked down the bar. I will not explain further.

Will as a gymnast. He was this || close to being a gymnast essentially modeled after Steven Nedoroscik, I had the sketch and everything. (I shared it here!) But when an anyonomous ask clued me into the sick medical team uniforms it all fell into place from there. (Thank you no-longer-anon @helyeahmangocheese !)

Percy in anything equestrian related. I see him not having the patience for all the formality of it all, but he definitely crashes Hazel’s shows and chats up all the competition (the horses.)

Annabeth on a sailing team. Also, related to that, Reyna on a sailing team. It was a fun idea, especially for Reyna and her history with pirates but ultimately it was really hard to capture in a few illustrations.

Nico in several winter sports. For consistency mostly. He could fit for a lot of winter sports - ice skating and snowboarding are my personal favorites.

Leo as a shooter. He would most definitely build his own gear and make tweaks to his weapon. Which would get him immediately disqualified.

Jason in discus. Jason as a basketball player. Golf is just… fitting. 😂

Other Characters I’ve been thinking about

(that may have art in the works… and may not actually be athletes!)

Clarisse

Meg

Grover

Rachel

Lester / Apollo

Mr. D

Chiron

[batbabydamian]

The Boy Wonder #2 by Juni Ba rambling about Gotham's fearsome hunter

added Jason to this issue's collage since it was mainly from his perspective!

ramble for issue #1 here!

starting with the cover again, but now in contrast to the first:

Dick and Barbara are presented as statues in the bg for the first cover where they’re established heroes in a secure time in their lives, and Damian is obviously the highlight! For #2's cover, the autumn leaves motif returns, but this time featuring Jason!! Apparently, Damian isn’t the only one to go through a “season of change” in this series, as Jason takes his own steps forward by the end of this story 🥺 also the literal layers on Jason - his angry Red Hood helmet and the beaten down Robin head...

The issue opens with Joe the robber and his hostage "Merle"! The glasses feels like a giveaway that this is Carrie(??) narrating Damian's story, so the final issue could end with her perspective for where Damian currently is in his journey as Robin and where she plays a part.

Jason as the "hunter" of this fairytale is such a cool concept, especially upon his introduction pages!! He's surrounded by his recent "prey" with a nice contrast of their fancy jackets, pinstripe pants, and dress shoes to Jason's own tattered hoodie, pants, and sneakers.

Just like the past issue (or just Ba's work in general lol), THE BACKGROUNDS ARE SO LOVINGLY DRAWN. Makes Jason's stroll through inner Gotham so enjoyable from the bustling activity of the people, shop signs, and advertising to the quieter area of the cemetery. It's so lived in, especially feels like each citizen in the bg has a story to tell!

some bits of interest to me: is that scaly lil arm reaching for the rat supposed to be Croc LOL; just neat visual of old Joker posters leering over Jason; the name of the cemetery a nod to Kevin Conroy? and from T. Wayne - Thomas Wayne?

Despite showing how much of an intimidating and hardened exterior the Red Hood has, there's plenty of suggestion that he has soft edges! from his act of revenge for a beloved member of the community, his familiarity with the people even greeting him, and down to his chocobar...

might be my overthinking but the layers of that close up shot of the chocobar really got me 😭 it's like such a piece of innocence when seen in his scarred hand, especially when "Wayne Sweets" is visible - is it more emphasis of Jason clinging to a safer time and Bruce Wayne himself?? or is this brand just his favorite lil treat

EITHER WAY, incredibly funny to me Jason seems to hide it once Damian shows up

Seeing Ba's storyboards has me even more curious about his process with O'Halloran - like, it's a small detail but the traffic light in the foreground being red! added emphasis on the red theme this issue, or a warning for these two to Stop heading into a trap? ANYWAY DAMIAN HESITANTLY ASKING ABOUT HIS MOTHER I'M THROWING UP AWWGH

also love critically acclaimed animated film "The Cheetah King" haha! ALTHOUGH, Jason's story does line up with Simba's - a lost prince that feels like he's failed his father. Even believed to be dead for a period of time lol

Rok the demon's design is so slick!! Seems to take after a peacock with how fanciful he is, plus his tail details in his other form! A dapper demon definitely ready for the gala!

A GLIMPSE OF BA'S HEAVIER ACTION ART!! THE POUNCE!! the Robins being entirely made up of motion lines, even the details for Jason's helmet; and i'm always a sucker for those light streaks from the eyes!! THE PUNCH!! the quick panel of Jason's fist before arcing into that POW!!

and i say a glimpse, because in just the two other books i've read from Ba so far, he draws so much more action. lil Monkey Meat promo BUT LOOK!! have i mentioned how much i love his sfx lettering...that "AAAH" getting motion lines when closer to the camera...crazy...

dropping another small element from one of his books, Djeliya! just a really cool visual of casting magic!!

I love this sequence leading up to the Joker vision! The shapely flames that dwindle into the shape of TEARS!! We don't get the extent of how deeply the Joker affected Jason until this moment and the man is terrified.

First thing Damian does after getting shot is insult Jason, DAMIAN IS SO FUNNY. Also absolutely love the wiggly woggly lines of EVERYTHING in this panel.

Considering what Damian said earlier: "We both know you'd rather not have to explain your failure to father if anything happens to me that you could have prevented." As if Jason didn't already feel like a failure before this!! of course he'd turn into jiggling jelly realizing what he's done.

After 27 pages of a narrow-eyed Red Hood, including an early tease of him about to take off the helmet for his snack, this full page of Jason unmasking himself is such a heavy reveal. Adding the aching piece of dialogue?? BRUTAL

Damian responds in kind to the vulnerability with his own confession and something Jason really needed to hear after burdening himself for so long with the idea of being a failure.

After Damian leaves, the camera pulls back to show The Door in the dark of the room. Damian quite literally presents Jason a window of opportunity to face his past, and it goes so hard. Just like the buildup of frowning mask-to-face reveal, Jason's few expressions have mostly looked sad. So the shadowed eyes before the glare of determination makes this quiet moment feel extra epic!! also reminiscent of the Red Hood mask he wears!!

Beyond the door of Jason's "past life" is complete darkness. Jason has been hoping for Batman to pull him out of it (as further suggested by the newspaper clippings), but in the final page, the door is leaking light!! Jason finds his own way forward :')

The first issue introduces the Robins with specific labels, and so far the narrative either delves deeper into those claims or challenges it. Damian is unimpressed by "kind and brave" Dick and even forms some kind of rivalry. By the end, Damian’s learned how those simple traits are essential to becoming the person and hero Dick has become and gains a newfound respect for him.

#2 deviates from #1 by following “brash and rageful” Jason's perspective! Damian is under pressure from the legacies of all the Robins before him, and even if he relates to Jason the most there's still tension. This time around, while Damian does learn what lies behind the mask, he's the one to impart some knowledge to his fellow Robin.

ending ramble with a panel of the small beans

"Look Damian, everything the light touches is our kingdom."

TBH this ramble took forever to start because after reading Djeliya and Monkey Meat, i was so floored by how much MORE Ba has to offer. Everything i raved about from the first issue of The Boy Wonder...Ba's done it all in his previous work and MORE SO?? on top of writing, whimsical paneling and lettering, fun action scenes, deliberate coloring, kickass character designs and worldbuilding... the man does it all?? 😭

Monkey Meat 🐒

Djeliya: A West African Fantasy Epic ✌️

Mobilis: My Life with Captain Nemo

The Unlikely Story of Felix and Macabber

i may save the last two books for after The Boy Wonder ends because imagining the end of the series makes me so sad LOLL orz i may cave just because Mobilis is a pleasantly giant book...praying for DC to give the collected edition of The Boy Wonder this treatment...his pages are brimming with energy they deserve to be blown up with an oversized printing 😭

[gnomeonamelon]

Hello! Part 2 of my designs: Thalia Grace and Nico di Angelo!

In honor of reading (/listening to) The Demigod Files for the first time, I decided to do the other Little 3: Greek Edition) next! For the sake of reference, Thalia is 27 chronologically/ 17 physically and Nico is 19 (I'll explain).

The rules I set myself to for these redesigns were explained in Part 1 where I did The Trio.

Notes Below (and a poll please I need help):

Thalia:

The ears probably need the most explanation here: I like the idea that becoming a hunter changes you more than simply immortality. They are made up of humans (demigod and mortal) and nymphs, so I threw traits in the blender- the humans become more nymph like, and the nymphs become more human like (always including their bond to a specific place/ thing in nature being broken).

The only other thing of significance I did that wasn't just design flavor was change her hair color from black to brown. I just thought the color worked well with her complexion and differentiated her from the others more.

I keep bouncing around with who should get Aegis after she becomes a hunter (I'm almost positive she never uses it again after TTC)

Nico:

When I was working through the seven total children of the Big 3 and their ages, I realized that I wanted to make it conceivable that any of them could've been the child of prophecy (or seen that way) at some point. I was able to do this fairly easily for everyone else but had to get more creative for Nico. Currently, I'm working with the idea that Nico and Percy are the same age, they have the same birthday.

Once Nico is introduced and Bianca joins the hunters/dies, no one knows who's going to fulfill the prophecy. This adds more tension as he is seemingly evil, and no one knows where he is most of the time. This would probably make everyone but especially Annabeth really suspicious. It would go back and forth for a while before eventually turning out to be Percy.

Ok! On to the actual design: I wanted to go with something different for Nico's outfit as he has a couple early in the series. My personal favorite of these alternates is the black trench coat, so I went with that. Combined with the heeled boots, curved, almost cutlass looking kopis, and cross the body sash for the sheath, he looks very piratey to me with his more formal shirt and pants all being 1940s inspired.

He also has a lot of elements that I at least always forget about. He has a chain belt in BotL that I have never seen in fanart before, so I wanted to include it. I also wanted him to wear his (now skeleton themed) armor since the poor boy needs armor if he's going to go to Tartarus.

It's hard to see at a distance, but there is a key embedded in Nico's sword. Given that the Underworld is described with prison/ door motifs (ex: The Doors of Death), I like the idea that underworld gods have different keys.

When fighting Melinoe, Nico finds (steals) a key that allows him to summon ghosts without the ritual (its criminal that the Ghost King didn't come back in this story).

[mugman64]

Annabeth Chase Headcanons

-She is INSANELY proud of Percy, like everyone in Olympus can hear Annabeth and Athena when they are arguing about how Annabeth can “do better” cause Annabeth will just go through every quest and explain how Percy saved her or cause the quest to succeed

-Annabeth WAS NOT afraid of Percy in Tartarus, she was afraid of losing him via the gods learning about his powers and killing him. That’s why she wanted him to stop.

-She has taught her entire cabin how to count cards, it’s a dual operation with the Hermes cabin to bankrupt Vegas

-When she was designing Olympus she spent 2 weeks with the hunters. It was the only way Apollo wouldn’t pester her for more gold in his palace

-She carries stickers to give to the campers when she’s teaching classes. For the entirety of the quest of the seven Leo,Piper, and Jason had gold star stickers on their stuff because of this.

-Annabeth cosplays with Rachel, Thalia, and sometimes Piper. They’ve won like 20 competitions.

-Annabeth has first call on killing the sphinx in any scenario. She’s still pissed about the Labyrinth

[ohumokay]

Random Future!Percabeth hc: they would totally live in a trailer home, and maybe even a trailer park for demigod families

It's community, it's security, it's inclusive, it's comfy, and it's easy to move if (cough cough when) something happens

Percy probably would want to start a trailer park for demigods after seeing New Rome bcuz he knows CHB is too damn crazy for New Rome lol. Annabeth and Leo would design it and make it even easier to move. The seven + the honorary would help spread the message. Mr. D and Chiron would send aged out demigods there and mortal parents with or without the sight would move in.

They'd ask some gods and saytrs to help keep it safe for the most part. Apollo would without much complaint (in honor of Jason, he'll be glad for the safe haven). Hestia would as well. Artemis would ask for rooms for her hunters in exchange (she'd help anyway, but it's a good benefit). Grover would assign saytrs watch duty for monsters.

The park would be open to CJ kids as well, but it'll be primarily meant for CHB since they're the ones who don't ever grow up. Yea, they could always go to New Rome, but let's be honest, CHB kids are walking danger magnets and they're all around more feral. So, instead of trying to change themselves, Percabeth would just make their own safe haven.

[percyjackson-post]

The Seven as Minecraft player types

Annabeth- The builder. You would think the game's limits would at least prove somewhat of a challenge to her, but she’s somehow mastered the ability to make builds that don’t even seem to be made of squares anymore. You just know she’s one of those people making those giant castles where you have to turn up your render distance to even see them fully.

Leo- Redstone builder. He'll spend the first hour in the mines, but the minute he walks out, he's ready to go to work. He and Annabeth are a force to be reckoned with when they start working together. They will have you sitting there trying to figure out how what you just saw was a part of Minecraft and not some entirely different game.

Hazel- The farmer. She hates going anywhere near the mines, but she’s got the most impressively efficient farm systems you’ve ever seen. All of this is for her real end goal of creating the fastest horse possible on every single world.

Frank- The Pvper. He’s a force to be reckoned with and most of the others have given up trying to beat him in any capacity. He spends most of his time working as a bodyguard for Hazel or collecting mob drops for the others needs.

Jason- The Explorer, the minute he joins a world, that boy is GONE. You ask him where he is at any point, and he’s at least 5k blocks from the nearest player. He will eventually show up with the most insane loot, but that is just so he can drop things off before vanishing again.

Piper- The Achievement Hunter. She is locked into this game and surprisingly great at it. You’d think she’s speed running with how quickly she’s flying through the game. She will always be the first to the nether and the end and almost never has a house, just a collection or weird builds designed specifically to help her with whatever she's working on

Percy- The resource collector. He’s much more likely to bounce between different activities than the others. One minute he’s trying to fight Frank, the next he’s helping Piper try and get some very specific achievement, and then he’s desperately trying to find Jason. The minute Annabeth even mentions she wants a certain type of block, he is laser-focused and won’t even think about doing anything else until he’s got an inventory full of said items.

[thejasonhunterdesign]

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[stephaniebrownslover]

MY MAIN CREEPYPASTA AU

Guys guys this is kind of my biggest AU project so far.

I was wondering why I can't write a nice and long fiction like everyone, and I think I found one of the reasons. It may be that I have so many AU's.

So I decided to create a basic base AU. You know some of my side AU's, and while they'll also exist, there are no such AU of mine where I can say "oh yeah, this is like that.".

Every time I write a fic, I design a different past story or something for the character or change the details, so basically in my AU, I can't say Clockwork doesn't like this or something like that.

So I'm doing something like this so that I won't have to go experience this anymore.

Again, there will be stories where I change these details and so on, but I will try to stick to this AU most of the time, no matter how difficult it will be for me at first.

This is what happened when I couldn't decide between 2-3 ideas for a character, but I finally decided to take a hand to fix this mess.

Maybe this AU will be used only in 1-2 stories, and I won't use it any more. I don't know, so it depends on whether I like it or not and my indecision.

I know that Masky and Hoodie are not creepypastas, I will try to use them in a mixed way of creepypasta and Marble Hornets. 

DEATH TO TWINK MASKY!!!!!!

Offenderman doesn't exist in this universe because I hate him for being pedo and rapist. Don't come and try to defend him to me.

Also I'm starting out with the idea of designing a main AU and I'm waiting for your questions or whatever you want to ask!!!

I'm going to make separate posts or something to answer questions, and I'm going to try to create a past story about the characters by trying to use the order I wrote here.

WARNING: I don't think about sticking to canon in most things, because the characters' stories are really bad and cliche and need to be rewritten. So if this AU is not 'realistic', you may not read it, I'm not forcing you to read it.

...

Main characters

-Jeff The Killer

-Clockwork

- Hoodie

-Masky

-Ticci Toby

-Eyeless Jack

-Jane The Killer

-X-Virus

-Nina The Killer

-Kate The Chaser

Total: 10 characters

Main supporting characters

-Homicidal Liu

-Sally

-Ben Drowned

-Puppeteer

-Zero

-Nurse Ann

-Bloody Painter

-Judge Angels

-Mary Vaughn

Total: 9 characters

Supporting characters

-Lulu

-Laughing Jack

-Nightmare Ally

-Kagekao

-Rouge

-Jason The Toymaker

-Laughing Jill

Total: 7 characters

Background characters

-Slenderman

-Emra

-Dr. Smiley

-Cat Hunter

-Zalgo

-Weeping Forest

Total: 6 characters

The sum of all: 32 characters

You can ask questions and things you are curious about my ask box as anon or yourself, I will make a post about it!

[wolfjackle-creates]

Ghost!Robin Part 11

Time for another WIP Wednesday! I'm not sure if I'll have anything for next week. I'm working on a one shot right now as I can and wrapping up stuff for my final week of work which is taking a ton of time. Though I did get on a roll today and wrote a bit more than I'm posting, so maybe I'll have something.

Story Summary: Danny was invited to dinner at Wayne Manor to meet Jazz's boyfriend and his family for the first time. He worked hard to make sure no ghost business would interrupt the evening. But when he arrived, all he could focus on was the ghost of the dead Robin that seemed to haunt Jason. Looks like he was breaking his promise.

First, Previous

Word Count: 1.4k

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“Hn. What is the range on these devices?” asked Bruce.

Danny shrugged. “My stuff? From anywhere. I track through the Infinite Realms, not by Earth. GIW? Jason-Robin, they’ll be able to detect something from probably ten miles out of city limits, but they’d need to be within half a mile to get an accurate location. The Fentons? Mile or so. They get an exact location or nothing.”

Tim asked, “Is it likely the Fenton’s will come to Gotham?”

“Not sure,” admitted Danny. “But they sell commercially, so other ghost hunters might have their equipment. Jazz, pass the Fenton Finder?”

Damian couldn’t keep the incredulity out of his voice when he finally saw the blocky silver device with a circular, green screen on it and bits sticking up out of the front. “Why is there a light bulb attached to it?”

Even Robin looked at the device with a raised eyebrow and sent out a silent this real? his way.

“It flashes when a ghost is nearby,” Danny replied to both of them.

Tim hummed in interest. “Are the visible antennae necessary? Why are there multiple?”

“Most of my parents designs were cobbled together with whatever they could cannibalize from other household electronics and junk yards. Hence the less stream-lined appearance compared to the Guys in White’s stuff.”

He flicked the switch to turn it on and instantly the light bulb was flashing red, the radar screen turned on showing several dots in close vicinity to the center, and a robotic voice said, “You are surrounded by multiple ghosts. You’d have to be an idiot to not notice the ghosts all around you.”

Danny let it read out it’s warning again before flicking it back off. He had to laugh at the looks of complete bafflement on basically everyone’s faces. Even Bruce raised an eyebrow at it.

“Yeah, that’s my parents for you. FentonWorks designs are at least easy to spot. Not the the Guys in White’s stuff is much better. That horrible white on everything…” Danny shuddered. “I hate white.”

Bruce hummed. “Will you be able to provide us with some of these devices so we can study them on our own?”

Danny bit at his lower lip. “Probably. But it’ll have to wait until after I get you the information on how to safely work with ectoplasm. If Tim and Barbara are your big tech people, they’re not liminal at all and will have to be careful when handling it.”

Tim added, “We do have extensive experience working with toxic chemicals. Many of the Gotham rogues use chemical warfare.”

“Right. Yeah, I’ll have Tucker send you the safety sheets on it and we’ll see what devices I’ve got or can make duplicates of to get to you. I’ll be sure you get all three styles of hand-held trackers and their schematics. Maybe I’ll even be able to get you the schematics for a larger tracking system like what my parents have set up in Amity.”

Barbara nodded. “That would be great. What sort of set up do your parents have in your home town?”

“So they’ve set up sensors all over the city that detect ectoplasmic activity. The signal gets sent back to the computer in the ops center they built on top of their house, and they can pin the exact location of any ghost to within a foot or two anywhere within, like, five miles of the city limits. That data is also shared with the computer in their GAV.”

Jason bumped Jazz’s shoulder with his. “I know I’m gonna regret this, but what’s the ‘GAV’?”

Jazz sighed and answered. “It stands for Ghost Assault Vehicle. It’s a modified RV that’s basically a tank. Jack and Maddie simply have to press a button and a dozen ghost weapons will protrude from the vehicle and aim for any nearby ghost. And that’s without Maddie shoving her entire upper body out the window while holding a bazooka.”

“Yep. I regret asking. How badly am I gonna want to murder your parents by the time I’m done learning about them?”

“They are not my parents.” Jazz’s voice was hard.

At the same time, Danny answered, “Depends. How do you feel about genocidal mad scientists?”

Jason just let his head bang on the table. Robin flew over to him and patted him on the back. Jason seemed to subconsciously lean into the touch.

“Now,” said Danny. “I promised I’d show the rest of you these scanners up close.”

“That would be appreciated,” said Bruce. “We also have a few more questions about you and your parents.”

“And I need you to tell me more about these Lazarus pits because those sound like they’re a disaster.”

Alfred cleared his throat. “And I believe that will have to be the end of this meeting tonight. It is getting late and at least some of you will insist on going on patrol tonight still.”

A few people grumbled at Alfred’s words, but no one argued.

Danny made his way to the other side of the table and went over how to use the devices again. He pretended not to notice the way Jazz flinched when he turned on the Fenton Finder and it called out its warning again.

Jason did put an arm around her in response, though, so he figured she’d be all right.

“So that’s that,” he said once he turned off the last device. “I won’t be showing you any weapons until after we get you up to date on ghost biology and culture. If you run into issues in the meantime, you can call Jazz or me and we’ll take care of it.”

Bruce nodded. “We’ll be following up with our own experts as well.”

“Of course,” agreed Danny. “I figured. Now, you had some more questions?”

Tim asked, “You mentioned to me and Alfred that a member of Justice League Dark stopped by Amity. Can you tell us more about that?”

“I mean, there’s not much to tell,” said Danny. “It was John Constantine. And at the time I had no idea how famous he was. Would’ve asked for an autograph if I had, but oh well. This was shortly after I defeated Pariah Dark, the previous Ghost King. He came in, asked if I needed help. I told him I got it covered, he gave me a phone number, and that was that.”

Bruce hummed. “Yes, that sounds like Constantine. We will speak to him.”

“Why?” asked Danny. “It was exactly what I wanted. A check in to confirm I was okay and someone to reach out to on Earth if I got in over my head. It’s just by that time I started getting allies in the Realms. The big concern Earth-side was ghost hunters. And the worst of them were government sanctioned so I wasn’t sure if I should reach out to the Justice League since you guys also work with the US government.”

Jason let out a noise that Danny could only think of as a growl. “He should have spent enough time there to answer questions like that.”

Danny snorted. “Less than a week before he arrived, our entire town was removed from Earth and brought into the Infinite Realms for multiple days. Something would’ve been very wrong with him if he’d stuck around longer than it took to confirm it wasn’t likely to happen again.”

“I’m sorry,” asked Steph, “what is that about your entire town being transported off earth?”

“Don’t you know? My friends and I figured that’s why you sent Constantine to us.”

Barbara shook her head as she clicked around her computer. “There’s nothing in the Justice League files about it.”

“Huh. Well that’s how I became the Ghost King. The previous king was released by an idiot and lured to Amity. Ended up bringing the entire town into the Realms. His goal was to take over the town then the rest of earth. I defeated him in single combat while some other ghosts helped hold back his armies. No one bothered to tell me until later that that meant won his titles as well.”

Dick was frowning at him. “Why did you have to be the one to defeat him?”

Danny just blinked at him in confusion. “Who else was there? My accident is what activated the portal and started letting ghosts through. By making me half ghost, I had the powers necessary to contain the ones who caused problems. My parents were incompetent at best. So I just did what had to be done. Besides, if I hadn’t been an idiot, the portal never would’ve turned on in the first place. So it was my responsibility to fix it.”

----------

Next

And no one at the table liked that answer! The end of the dinner is finally in sight! I know I'm overlooking characters. I'll do some editing to make sure everyone gets a say before I eventually get around to posting this to AO3. (It's a good part of the reason I haven't started cross posting, tbh. That and I like to have stories fully finished before I start posting.)

Hope you all enjoy.

Tag List Part 1:

@addie-lover-of-stories, @justwannabecat, @gin2212, @amercurio, @regonold, @overtherose, @readerzj, @sjrose1216, @echoednonny, @deeterzz, @blu-lilac, @number-one-jew, @rowanaway-fromthisbs, @vythika96, @tired-yet-awaken, @themirrorghost, @emeraldcorpral, @all-mights-asscheeks, @darkhinauniverse, @blep-23, @phandomhyperfixationblog, @larkcoe1, @thegatorsgoose, @job-ross-the-second, @britcision, @lenacraft, @bubblemixer, @androgynouslordofescapism, @purefrickingspite, @leftmiraclechaos, @lizisipancardo, @starlight-sparks, @miraculousandmore, @gildedphoenix, @sometimesthingsfallapart, @letmesayfuxk, @phoenixcatch7, @skulld3mort-1fan, @abaowo, @dhampir-princess, @idkmrpianoman, @sarina-elais, @ballzfrog-blog, @undead-essence, @spookytragedyshark, @flyingpansaurus, @akintoabitch, @marivictal, @8-29pm, @justreadingthefanfics, @happybear135, @kisatamao, @spoopyspoony, @adorablechaos, @sara0055, @screamingtofillthevoid

[rentumblsstuff]

Back to the NPMD x Monster High AU, a couple more things:

I would like to rescind my Werecat Brenda in favor of Nighthawk Harpy Brenda. Yes, I know I made Kyle a werewolf to parallel Brenda being a werecat but I also have a better offer for Kyle too: Yeti, which is why he still holds a grudge against Max for wrecking his dad’s ski-doo.

I have so many thoughts on Vampire Grace. She was born a normie and is a recently turned vampire (maybe even a vampire hunter that failed on an outing and was turned by her prey). She’s having trouble coping with her religion now that she’s a monster and constantly wears turtlenecks like the one she wears in Perky’s Buds to cover up her bite marks. She tried still wearing her cross necklace as a show of rejecting this new form, trying to embrace the pain of having the cross so close because she thought that loving Jesus even when she’s a form of half-demon would make herself better than other Christians, but it hurt way too badly for her to handle so now she just says she wears it underneath her sweater. Jason was born a vampire and wants to help her through her dysphoria but Grace won’t accept anyone treating her like she’s a vampire (even though she is). She does like the part about eating flesh and drinking blood- it’s what Jesus says to do with himself, so in a way, she’s making everyone she eats a little more Christ-like. That’s her thought process, at least. She also still pretends to be human around her parents and normie best friend Gabe. Gabe may or may not know that she’s a vampire though and wants to seduce her so she can turn him too.

In High School is Killing Me, the lyric is now changed to “Fuck you, biteology.”

Max’s Jekyll form is human (Max), but his Hyde form looks like his ghost (The Jagerman).

Stachie is soooo canon because Richie loves swimming but as a werecat Stacy refuses to get in the water and they feel like their romance is especially forbidden because of it. If Richie didn’t love the water so much, he’d wish he was a werecat too because he also wants to be a pretty little kitty meow meow

Ethan, Lex, and Hannah also went there obviously and Ethan was a ghost á la Jonny Spirit and Lex and Hannah are both spider people. You know tf why lol

Ruth is a lot like Frankie Stein in that she flirts with a lot of people but they Do. Not. Flirt. Back. Rather than solid stripes, her sweater looks more like lightning bolts and the mushroom design is a little creepier than just an Amanita.

A lot of the smoke club are also nighthawk harpies (because they like eating the weed) (including Deb) and so a lot of people assume Brenda is also in the smoke club. She isn’t. Monster high typical speciesism mixed with Hatchetfield High typical bullying regardless of social hierarchy.

The Woodwards are flytraps and that’s why Alice doesn’t smoke- plants don’t do that to other plants. This is often a point of contention between Deb and Alice even though they try to pretend it isn’t an issue

Steph’s secretly embarrassed about her decay so she always makes sure her wraps are FRESH, but the rest of her outfit is always her jagged hand-cut crop tops and ripped jeans. Her decay spread to her scalp and forehead and everyone knows better than to say something about the wraps on her forehead or how she always wears a beanie but Pete accidentally tells her he thinks it makes her look even cooler. Swooning ensues because nobody dares address her flaws, much less say she’s cooler for having them.

Steph secretly wishes Pete had a corporeal form because her love language is physical touch and she’s sad she’ll never be able to hold him. (Kind of like how Cleo is sad she’ll never get to look Deuce in the eyes).

Sophia/Spitfire as a background character fire elemental is a MUST.

The janitor is a crazy man who lives in the catacombs under the school and is possessed by what the student body can only assume is a goat demon and Peter Geist feels weirdly like he knows him.

Rosary as Claire Rosary as Claire Rosary as Claire-

Pete has also died recently as one of The Jagerman’s attacks when he was out of control, and he’s new to the school along with Grace. He’s stuck in this dorky outfit he wore so he wouldn’t get bullied and can never change clothes, but at least he’s impossible to punch unless if another spirit tried to attack him. As opposed to Grace in life, he was very interested in the supernatural (one of his special interests) so he knows quite a bit about monster types but is always hungry to learn more about the new world he found himself un-living in

[swordoffrivolousthings]

Rick Riordan has no scale for what it means to give characters positions of power or influence

I have seen a trend recently while thinking about the positions of power in PJO and HOO and who occupy them. A post that I can't find again also has breached this topic on a much smaller scale, so credit to them. (I'll try to find them and tag them.)

What I mean by positions of power and/or influence is this: positions from where a demigod has the ability to control organisations (i.e. the Hunters of Artemis and Camp Jupiter) or influence how and why things are done in a certain way (i.e. Annabeth's redesigning of Olympus and Jason's designing some of the other gods' cabins).

The first example is THALIA and how, upon becoming a hunter for Artemis, she is instantly catapulted to the top of the chain. Artemis bestows upon her the role of Lieutenant of Artemis. She is Artemis's second in command if the goddess herself isn't present.

But what does Thalia know of the inner workings of the Hunt? Next to nothing, because until a few days before, she hated them and what they stood for. She gets over her hate, which is part of her development, but it doesn't make her any less informed. One can't speculate that at some point she and Zoë have talked about the Hunt, because we have no hint of that happening in the books. One can headcanon that they'd had such a conversation, but we are speaking about canon. So she is blind. That would be fine, because she is a newbie, and has time to learn.

But no. Riordan gives her the most important place a hunter can occupy in the hierarchy. Why? The way I see it is Riordan decided that now that Thalia's completed her arc, she needs a physical reward. But going by book logic, I would also assume that Artemis was displaying some major nepotism. Because look, that is her sister, and she is in a meeting with daddy and she'd already crossed a line when interacting with her father. (I mean that she wants to reward the heroes while Zeus, most probably, just sees what they did as their duty and not something to be rewarded.) So Artemis boosts her sister up in the hierarchy so she wouldn't slight Zeus again.

Also, we've been ignoring the fact that there are far more experienced and reliable huntresses in the Hunt. Some of them have been with Artemis for many, many years bordering on millennia.

Next up is ANNABETH, about who I've already vented my frustrations, but let me say it again: Annabeth, while inspired by architecture and wanting to be an architect, is not trained and has no experience with it besides a few books and what I can assume is trying her hand at drawing potential projects. She isn't fit to redesign Olympus and certainly not able to think about all the facets of what it would entail, because she doesn't have the practical knowledge and the studies.

Yet Riordan writes it so that the gods offer her the opportunity to redesign their city state (is Olympus considered a city state??? Because it's what I've been thinking of it as). Why so? Because she has survived the war? (not like he was going to kill her, and I didn't think he would do it at any point in TLO.) And therefore she should get what she wanted besides all the PTSD and other disorders that most survivors get?

Because this is what I see.

We already know that the structure within Camp Jupiter is hinging on the child soldiers they train. The Senate is made out of centurions and ghosts and older citizens of New Rome, and we weren't shown that there had ever been adult Praetors. This is what Riordan intended, because this is what he wrote.

But it begs the question, why have REYNA and JASON specifically done to be awarded the position of Praetor that early in their lives? We are told that they went on at least a quest together, so they must have been pretty close before being made partners, and they seem to have worked well together.

We know that Reyna is a highly capable leader and managed to lead Camp Jupiter on her own for roughly 6 months. Jason was raised as a leader, so it is natural to assume that he knew how things worked. But that doesn't show why they were specifically chosen, especially after such a big conflict.

Just because Jason defeated a Titan single-handedly, it doesn't mean that there weren't any more capable hands for the duty to fall on. Also, has Reyna's POV ever revealed why she was chosen? Because I can't remember.

What I mean to say is that there were other, adult, people for the reasonability to fall back on. Because there had been said to be adults in the Senate. But Riordan, like before, has decided that the duty should fall on hormonal teenagers that have dumb ideas (not referring to Jason and Reyna, but more like stereotyping) instead of the adults. The excuse that demigods older than late teens and early twenties doesn't exist in New Rome. And don't tell me that not one of those people would take the duty, because there is shown to be influence and political power associated with being Praetor.

Alongside this, lets go to PERCY. Riordan decided that the Romans would raise Percy as Praetor because they'd seen him fight and the fact that he kind of saved their asses. Cool, I could understand this reasoning if the Romans had more time to get to know him. Because Percy's great! but he still is a child of Neptune, who they don't trust, and they don't trust him, because he was there for only a few hours a few days ago.

There is no basis on which to raise him straight from probation to praetorian-ship.

But Percy saved them! So Riordan decided, against all common sense, that he should get a position of power somewhere he knows next to nothing about, because of plot reasons and drama. Why couldn't Percy have just been seen as a great help and on that the Romans would build their trust upon him? To start to value his opinion?

But the plot of HOO moves so fast is was no room to take a breath and let things unfold naturally. So Riordan gives political and military powers to characters willy-nilly because it will help the story along.

Again to JASON, the cabin design things is the same as Annabeth's, so there is nothing to really say again. Other then the fact that they parallel each other in this way, and not in the good way when talking about writing.

Riordan has no scale of what it means when he gives his characters power and authority where they hadn't achieved it. He gives them upgrades in authority as a way to pay them for their good behaviour and character development, or simply because he hadn't thought all the way through what their positions would entail, and their ramifications.

I hope that I made a great job at explaining what I wanted. If you didn't understand what I said at some point, please do reach out. I can talk about this for a while.

[puppetmaster13u]

I am slowly rotatin a crossover idea. A Batman and Flight Rising crossover, but perhaps slightly httyd themed-ish. Because I am just weak to feral cryptid batfam, and I am also weak to dragon-rider batfam.

So there are dragon hunters, vikings, general people living on islands, by shore, etc. Less modern, more httyd-fantasy-esque. But there's also things like the mechanical golems and such that can be found in FR. So less technology, more magic and spellwork and runework. Which I mean, already exists in base DC anyway.

Now the batfam specifically, I adore and love the idea of batfam living with dragons almost Valka style with a hint more feral.

Now here is what I think each of their backgrounds and an idea for each dragon would be.

Alfred- He still raises Bruce after his parents death at their request, but also might have gotten carried off by dragons. Thankfully, they were not part of the local Queen's nest meaning he didn't get eaten. He's done his best to raise Bruce- and the children he keeps bringing back the the dragon Nest to not be completely feral.

Bruce- Like Alfred, he was carried away by dragons in the middle of a raid. Technically he was actually in Alfred's arms but y'know. He was about nine at that point and spent a large chunk of his childhood playing and wrestling with dragons. Will I be including dragonese in this? Good question. Despite Alfred's protests the moment he was old enough he started sneaking out of the Nest and both watching and gathering things from any nearby- or far away in some cases- human settlements. Eventually Alfred gives up and goes along with him to properly teach bartering and such- and Bruce ended up in a couple of apprenticeships, including a couple with blacksmiths. Which helps when he starts creating his own designs and ideas.

Dick- Bruce kind of just spirited him away after the death of his parents. They were part of a circus of sorts, that did different shows, including a dance of sorts on dragon-back, which they did. So Dick finds the dragons around the nest comforting, especially when he just arrives. He also, much like Bruce, starts sneaking out, despite Bruce's own attempts to stop him. Which is how the whole dragon-people (thanks to clothing and armor covered in dragon scales, alongside wing-capes and such) myth starts gaining traction.

Barbara- Now I feel like she's more of a Hiccup-figure, albeit well liked by the rest of her village, as her father is either chief or the captain of the guard. Her and Dick befriend each other during one of the 'civilian' outings, aka when Dick & Bruce weren't all cryptid. But it also, Dick does slip slightly and accidentally gives her the idea of dragon-training and taming. Her goal is to train a dragon and convince the rest of her village of it, and sometimes joins Bruce in dragon-trapper raiding thanks to Dick insisting,

Jason- This lil gremlin wasn't exactly trapping dragons, but he stole broken traps and other things and traded the scrap to anyone he could for food and other supplies. He also has a bit of a pickpocketing habit. Dick might have laughed when he got Bruce, which is how he kind of got caught. He was very wary at first, but already half feral and the weird dragon-people have food and oh my stars, Flying! He is still a child after all, and was very excited about that sort of prospect.

Tim- So can't exactly do the whole neighbor thing with him, seeing as the batfam lives in a dragon nest. That doesn't stop him from seeing them- and the dragon flocks- fly by from his window. His parents are merchants, and he's left alone a lot. Which directly plays into how he eventually runs into the batfam. Well, technically he runs into Jason first, though recognizes Dick from the Grayson show. Look, what was Jason supposed to do, there was a small child at the edge of a building that was on fire! And he recognizes Dick, so it's not like he can't take him, right?

Steph- Steph is easy. Tim ran into her while she was freeing dragons from her father's ship and honestly, he did not kidnap her. She, kidnapped herself. Honestly he doesn't know where the heck she even came from, she just climbed on one of the dragons without a care in the world, smoking mask and hood and all. She almost explodes herself more than once and has a lot of insider information about the dragon trappers, and happily tells her new friends. According to her she was practically an orphan anyway, but at least with this she doesn't have to worry about being a "proper girl" according to her village elders.

Cass- Similar to Steph, her father is a dragon trapper, albeit a far more notorious one. Also a bit of a mercenary for higher, who isn't afraid to steal and murder, and used her to his advantage in assassinations. Similar to canon she fled upon her first kill, albeit with any caged dragons who hadn't already been killed for skin and parts. She kind of just wandered for a while, before the dragons led her to the batfam's Nest. And she's gotten far more used to dragon body language than human, so it's a relief to be able to communicate and understand once more.

Duke- Duke was in a bit of an accident, thought he knows it's not that despite what everyone else in the village said. He knows his parents were poisoned, and he knows that the house bursting into flames wasn't from a dragon. Well, technically not from a wild dragon, he saw the chains and armor and everything else even if nobody listened to him. Which is what spurs him and his friends into attempting to find out why and who is attacking the villages little by little. Bruce and them aren't entirely sure what exactly happened, but Duke and his own dragon were the only survivor on that stolen boat, and they can recognize both acid and fire.

Damian- Damian, I am unsure about, because I'm not entirely sure where the League of Shadows would stand in a world like this. But he would still be Bruce's son. And I am thinking that the league would use magics, that's probably a part of the whole Pit. Which actually could fit with a lore thing with FR. But still, not entirely too sure, y'know? But he would end up with Bruce eventually, already with a dragon or would get one upon arrival.

And that's all I have for now lol. Thoughts?

[malrie]

what: vampire (and werewolf) jasipereo au. liper intimacy. unnecessary tropey world-building. you won't think about this again. wc: 1200

-

Piper drags a long nail over Jason’s bared throat, but it’s Leo who presses his mouth into a line and swallows. Jason is half-sprawled on the carpet of Piper’s opulent bedroom, his dirty workwear jeans a more theoretical worry than a real one. He has his head resting at the base of the four-poster, and Piper, laying on her mattress stomach-first, has to reach down to meet him.

The touch is gentle. It’s hard to imagine the two were on the verge of tearing each other apart when Leo had first met them.

Leo tries distracting himself with cleaning the crossbow on his lap. It isn’t his, but as the hunters’ designated armorer, he likes to get personal. The irony is that the owner will go out explicitly to kill or capture the kind of monsters Leo’s in the presence of right now. At that reminder, he loses most of his enthusiasm for polishing the gears. He wipes his hands from the grime and puts the equipment away.

Piper folds further down to whisper something. All Jason does is close his eyes, mouth forming a small smile. Piper gets back fully on the bed and drops her face straight into it, her long dark hair obscuring the entire top half of her body.

“Looks like we actually do have a lot in common,” Jason says, his eyes still shut, as though he was trying to sleep. The afternoon light filters through a sliver of opening left by the blackout curtains. “Same likes.”

It feels baiting. “Like what?”

Jason waits, as though he expects Piper to answer. When she doesn’t, he continues, “We like to bite.”

“Okay,” he says slowly. “So do fish.”

“We like to bite you,” Jason clarifies, making Leo flush all the way down to his collar.

On cue, Piper turns her head from the sheets just to speak. “Leo,” she calls quietly, almost sheepish, “I’m hungry.”

His blood is still rushing, which is maybe a good thing for the situation at hand. Distantly, in the back of his mind, Leo hears the warning of every hunter he ever knew growing up: Never let a vampire bite you. Just once is enough for them to stake a claim. Most operatives would kill themselves before allowing such a travesty to happen to them. What does it say about Leo that this will be the sixth time? That again, he’ll lie prone under her cool hands, allow her lips to kiss his skin, then break into his wanting flesh?

Leo can’t bring himself to care about repercussions anymore. Besides, Jason’s the werewolf. And he’s done worse to Leo than bite.

The bed creaks a little when he sits beside her. Piper rolls to her side, arms splayed out comfortably, peeking out from her fringe up at Leo. She looks as young as him, like she could be any other college-aged kid, even if that can’t be quite accurate.

“Sorry,” she says, almost at default.

Leo can’t actually say that it was okay, because it maybe isn’t. He doesn’t like to lie to her. Instead, he places his palms down on either side of her head and admits, “I like it. Getting bit.”

He can’t see Jason from here, but Leo hears him give out a short laugh. 

“Even if it hurts?” Piper doesn’t seem to believe him.

He bends down, parts the hair over her forehead and presses an upside down kiss to it. She smells like lavender oil. He wonders what he smells like now. Certainly not lavender.

He says, “I think I kind of like that, too.”

Piper gets herself to sit up, then gently urges him to settle against the backboard, a pillow behind him. Leo looks into her eyes, flashing an unearthly yellow, then red, then brown again, and can’t help the goofy smile that comes on.

“I thought you didn’t like making a mess in here,” he teases. His fingers flex in and out, anticipating. 

“We’ll just make the puppy clean it up,” she tells him.

“I’m so abused,” replies Jason. He’s still awake, but he also wouldn’t sleep through something like this. At least Piper stashed his glasses away at some point, just for fun. What kind of werewolf had shitty vision?

Instinctively, before she even starts, Leo feels the base of his neck, expecting mottled skin or scarred tissue from the times they’ve done this in the past. But what he touches is smooth, unmarred. The reason for this is what makes the moral quandary even more difficult: in order to heal beyond human capabilities of his own, Piper McLean feeds him her blood. 

The hunters—the only family he’s known since birth—would never stand for a vampire fledgling in their ranks. Even if he never became one of the night walkers, they might still kill him. He’s marked now. Stained.

Piper, seeing what must be some range of his emotions, cups his face in her hands, leaning close enough that all the world fell away around them like broken glass. For one moment, all that exists is her.

“Tell me to stop and I will,” she says, voice low, purposefully vulnerable.

It’s power she’s offering him, stronger than her own will-breaking compulsion or Jason’s ability to leap impossible bounds. She’s giving him the power to decide what their future would look like, with or without him in their lives.

Luckily, Leo has already made his choice.

He mimics the line Piper had drawn on Jason down her own throat, a trail he follows with his lips once he leans into her. Piper McLean is heiress to the most dangerous, ancient vampire brood in the northern hemisphere. Out in the world, she is daring, cold, and undoubtedly feared. Here, she shivers at his every caress, gasps at the way the heat of his fingertips ignite as they travel beneath her nightshirt. Then he does something else—something new.

Piper jolts, riding a sudden wave of shock. “Leo!” she cries. He didn’t know vampires could flush, too; her complexion darkens with embarrassment as she opens and closes her mouth, unable to form a coherent sentence. She barely meets his eyes.

“What happened?” Jason asks, using a muscled arm to raise a part of himself over the foot of the bed. He doesn’t say it with much worry, only like he’d been meaning to look all this time and was finally glad for a reason.

Leo falls over her silk sheets in stitches. Piper picks up a pillow to try to smother him, still completely flustered. She quickly gives up and slaps one side of her neck—the same side where Leo had left a perfect indentation of his dull human teeth.

“He-he bit me!” 

Despite her reaction, Piper still appears dizzy, and Leo only knows it’s because she’s considering what’s tied all three of them together. The link they have is made of chains and the only way they can lose Leo is if they saw him off. Jason comes to stand, large and looming and lovable, squinting at them on the bed. Almost recovered, Piper examines her already healing mark with fascination, and maybe a sort of growing excitement.

“Same likes,” Leo tells them cheerfully.