#jocelyn still trying to hide it

[the-mortal-incorrects]

Jocelyn: Come on, aren’t you a little old to have an imaginary friend? Clary: I guess… Jocelyn: So maybe make some real friends, ones who don’t have scaly skin and forked tongues. Clary, stopping dead in her tracks: I never told you what it looked like.

[liebgirl]

objectively annoying as hell when someone says they’re a fan of shadowhunters and then they refer to clary as “clary fray” that’s literally not her last name. you used jace’s correct last name. ish. but you won’t use clary’s. ok… what’s your problem fr

[the-stories-untold]

Fire in your veins, ashes in your throat

Summary: an insight on Jay's first breakdown with his father

word count: 1047 words

Warnings: violence, blood, abuse

A/N: I had a really clear idea of how and when Jay would cross the line between protecting and getting revenge. Jay is heavily inspired on Matt Murdock (the daredevil series version), but I don't remeber exactly what moment inspired me to write this. He's sort of his family's Daredevil.

Jay Kane had always been a fighter. He knew that since the day he was born. It wasn't just about his mentality, no, it was about the weight of his last name on his hands, hands that had punched, and punched, and punched some more, fists that were stained with blood, blood that never left, no matter how much he washed it off.

It haunted him, how much he had hurt people. He still remembered the nights where his mother hid him in his closet, locking the door from the outside, nights where her cries and begs resonated in the empty apartment, nights where his fear had engraved the sounds in his memory. 

When he started hitting people, he remembered, and he knew, deep down, that he wasn't so different from Javier Kane, it absolutely terrified him.

Jay Kane didn’t have a lot of fears. He was terrified of being like his father, but it wasn’t his greatest fear. He was also terrified of seeing his sisters injured, he always feared the day he wouldn’t be there to protect them. 

Maybe that was his greatest fear, seeing his younger sister injured by the hands of his father. He didn’t have a favorite, but Aitana was strong, she was a fighter too, not Vivienne, he feared more the day Vivienne would get hurt.

Vivienne was a sweet kid, the sweetest. She was the better sister out of the three, the perfect one, the favorite one, the softer one, the weaker one. Everyone said she was such an easy kid for someone with autism, whatever that meant, but it just made her all the more fragile. 

Vivi was only eight when she was faced with the reality of how harmful her father was, she was eight when Jay’s worst fear became a reality.

Eight wasn't much older than the moment Jocelyn had first seen his father hit his mother, or the time Aiatana had faced the screaming matches between her older sibling and the man of the house. But everyone agreed, eight was too young for Vivienne. 

Any year before she was far from harm would be too young for the child to see the harsh truth.

Well, saying everyone agreed was a lie, their father didn't agree, no, he thought that no age was too young to be taught, no matter the child. If he had to hurt a daughter of his, he didn't care what age they were, they would learn, and they would learn the hard way. 

The second his youngest daughter had shown signs of disrespect, or what he saw as disrespect, he decided to teach her. 

Jay and Aitana reacted as soon as they heard his booming voice, one moved to step in between while the other moved to hide the smaller one. But when they met in the hallway panic washed over them like a cold shower. 

It wasn't Jay who was getting screamed at, or Aitana, it was none of them who were about to take their father's anger, it was Vivienne.

On that second Jay saw red. 

When he saw Javier holding his sister’s arm he didn’t think, ripping her away from his grip and pushing him back towards the table. The vases came crashing down, broken glass scattering on the floor, surprised carving itself on his father’s face.

He didn’t quite know if the noise had truly been that loud or if it just resonated in his ears. But he didn’t care, grabbing his father’s collar and screaming at him.

“You don’t get to lay a hand on her, do you hear me? Not anymore.” He snarled.

He didn’t register his father’s answer, but it was enough for him to punch the older man. And just like that, they were engaging in a fist fight. 

Jay punched as hard as he could, struggling against his father, trying to overpower him. More things crashed and more furniture was hit but he didn’t care. He felt like an animal fighting for his life.

He didn't notice Aitana ushering their sister in the closet, or hear his mother shouting at him to stop. He just felt the flesh hitting his fists. 

He hit harder than he ever did, harder than he beat up the guy that tried to hit on his little underage sister, or harder than that racist at school, releasing all his rage into his punches. Until the point where his father’s hands released his wrist, going limp.

And even then, he didn’t move until his sister pulled him up. He felt numb, barely focusing on the beat up face in front of him. Barely focusing on anything at all. He was breathless, rage heaving on his brain like a fog, blurring his vision, lighting up every nerve ending on his body with fire. 

His blood felt like molten lava, his hands burning like coals. He could barely see the small girl standing in front of him, asking him what went through his head, or his mother checking on his unconscious father. 

He had done that, he had done worse than his father. He was shaking, shaking with adrenaline and with the realisation that he and his father were... the same. 

It left a bittersweet taste in his mouth, one he wanted to spit out and throw up. He may have taught his father a lesson, but he had also beaten him up the way he used to hurt him, leaving him limp and hurting. No, he had done worse. His father had never knocked him out. 

He looked down, walking away and into the bathroom. He stared at the crimson staining the water, at the dark and torn spots on his knuckles, the calluses, the pain. They were proof of what he had done. He would never come back from this one, he would never be able to take it back. 

He had gone too far, he had crossed the line he promised to never cross. He was sure his sisters would see him as a monster now, and his mother… They had all been terrified of him.

That day, Jay made a decision. He would never again give in to the fire in him. He would never hurt his family again. Or at least not in front of him.

I hope you liked it ;D, likes, comments, reblogs and feedback are greatly appreciated, please do not repost without asking for permission.

[alexanderlightweight]

hello, hello. Hope you're having a good Wednesday. Your last week sounded stressful, hopefully this week is a little more kind.

Ive always liked the idea of magnus changing his home's layout once he and Alex are committed by adding a waiting room/anteroom. That way it helps keep magnus' private life a little more separate from his duties as highwarlock. With this, alec doesn't have to worry about coming home/leaving their room and interrupting a sensitive meeting and downworlders don't have to worry about a shadowhunter just *being there* at a potentially vulnerable moment. So, if it interests you, I'd really like to see this explored, perhaps in a pre-canon relationship context? Maybe where jace/izzy/Clary show up for clary's memories and have to take a figurative number?

This is long and rambling but hopefully something in this prompt will help inspire something 💛💛💛

I love Magnus separating his area so this is right up my alley! This is in the Quarrel vs that needs a name (Alec finds a hellhound and he and Magnus share custody)

I hope you enjoy!

—

Magnus changed the layout of the loft the night he met Alexander and it was actually because of Quarrel.

And perhaps because of Alexander, a little.

The entire top of his lair is changed to accommodate for his new hellhound and the shared custody with Magnus’ shadowhunter.

Now, Magnus keeps the first three levels of the apartment complex as a greenhouse. The next level is where Magnus will his clients, with a waiting hall and a foyer.

It’s filled with the scent of potions and herbs and old books and Magnus layers it with wards and arrays of secrecy.

The proof of a hellhound loose in New York is all the evidence Magnus needs to set up protections.

So he creates a maze of wards that keep his clients from ever accessing anything but the level he allows them on and only when he allows it.

His own personal lair is kept tightly controlled and the war level wards are not only turned up to keep things out, but to keep things in.

Nephilim are now unable to track him and while Jocelyn may complain to Dorothea, Magnus only is willing to have contact with a single shadowhunter from now on.

Dorothea can find another warlock to take the child’s memories. Magnus has greater priorities than such a simple thing.

—

It’s months later; when they have gone from sharing custody of Quarrel to Quarrel and Magnus sharing custody of Alexander, that Magnus adds even more changes.

There is now a staircase that Alexander can use to access every level but the level for clients. It gives him and Quarrel access to the greenhouses and the roof and Magnus enjoys coming home to find the two wrestling in the moss of the gardens or the stone of the roof.

It hides Alexander’s angelic signature from other warlocks, his scent from werewolves, the call of his blood from vampires and the presence of his life from seelie.

Magnus wards Alexander with the same fervor he wards his oldest and most valuable magical texts. His shadowhunter comes in from the roof or the balcony, kisses Magnus with a dark joy and then waits until Magnus is done with his own work.

Alexander is harder to tame, more difficult to gentle than Quarrel. More skittish and far more tormented than a hellhound still growing and Magnus is thorough as he builds a sanctuary for both of his darlings.

This is to protect the world from them and then from the world after all.

—

Magnus pauses from where he’s petting Alexander’s hair. The Institute has been a mess of tensions and Alexander is a furious and soul-bruised mess. It means that Magnus himself is also furious, when angelic signatures not connected to his boy approach. They linger with a warlock and Magnus tsks as he realizes Dorothea is involved.

Magnus lets them wait for hours. Even when angry and frantic fire messages bounce off his wards, when Dorothea is convinced to try magic to signal him or when the shadowhunters try to use unlocking runes.

Magnus watches it all with his eyes closed, his mind focused on the images being relayed as Menace curls atop Alexander’s back and Quarrel in front of him. The hellhound leans back, so that Alexander’s arm dangles against her fur. Quarrel gives the floor a baleful look, as if she can feel the presence of unwelcome intruders.

“I’ll let you eat them if they wake him up.” Magnus promises her and he finally uses magic to gently move Alexander as Magnus gets out from under him. Magnus takes a moment to pet over his hair and press a kiss to his cheek and then he snaps his fingers.

His outfit changes as he is no longer simply Magnus Bane, he is the High Warlock of Brooklyn.

And he has clients to attend.

Uninvited ones at that.

[x-ceirios-x]

City of Lost Souls, Chapter 21: Raising Hell

please see the masterlist for notes about this series/collection of works

"Can you see her?" Jocelyn demanded. "Is she there?"

Simon tried to focus on the milling darkness ahead of him, his vampire senses sharpening at the distinct scent of blood. Different kinds of blood, mixing together—Shadowhunter blood, demon blood, and the bitterness of Sebastian's blood. "I see her," he said. "Jace has hold of her. He's pulling her behind that line of Shadowhunters there."

"If they're loyal to Jonathan like the Circle was to Valentine, they'll make a wall of bodies to protect him, and Clary and Jace along with him." Jocelyn was all cold maternal fury, her green eyes burning. "We're going to have to break through it to get to them."

“We need to get to Sebastian,” said Rowan. “Simon, we’ll make you a path. You get to Sebastian and run him through with that sword. Once he dies—”

"The others will probably scatter," said Magnus. "Or, depending on how tied they are to Sebastian, they might die and collapse along with him. We can hope, at least." He craned his head back. "Speaking of hope, did you see that shot Alec got off with his bow? That's my boyfriend." He beamed and wiggled his fingers; blue sparks shot from them. He shone all over. Only Magnus, Simon thought resignedly, would have access to sequined battle armor. 

Rowan pulled their chakram off of their belt and turned toward Simon, white-knuckled fists on both of them. They were anxious, as much as they were trying to hide it. “Are you ready?”

Simon's shoulders tightened. They were still some distance from the line of the opposing army— he didn't know how else to think of them—who were holding their line in their red robes and gear, their hands bristling with weapons. Some of them were exclaiming out loud in confusion. He couldn't hold back a grin.

“Hell, Simon,” Rowan said exasperatedly. “What are you smiling about?”

"Their seraph blades don't work anymore," said Simon. "They’re trying to figure out why. Sebastian just shouted at them to use other weapons." A cry came up from the line as another arrow swooped down from the tomb and buried itself in the back of a burly red-robed Shadowhunter, who collapsed forward. The line jerked and opened slightly, like a fracture in a wall. Simon, seeing his chance, dashed forward, and the others rushed with him.

It was like diving into a black ocean at night, an ocean, filled with sharks and viciously toothed sea creatures colliding against one another. It was not the first battle Simon had ever been in, but during the Mortal War he had been newly Marked with the Mark of Cain. It hadn't quite begun working yet, though many demons had reeled back upon seeing it. He had never thought he would miss it, but he missed it now, as he tried to shove forward through the tightly packed Shadowhunters, who hacked at him with blades. Rowan was on one side of him, Magnus on the other, protecting him—protecting Glorious. Rowan’s silver knives flew through the air and shone in the moonlight, and Magnus's hands spat fire, red and green and blue. Lashes of colored fire struck the dark Nephilim, burning them where they stood. Other Shadowhunters screamed as Luke's wolves slunk among them, nipping and biting, leaping for their throats.

A dagger shot out with astonishing speed and sliced at Simon's side. He cried out but kept going, knowing the wound would knit itself together in seconds. He pushed forward—and froze. A familiar face was before him. Luke's sister, Amatis. As her eyes settled on him, he saw the recognition in them. What was she doing here? Had she come to fight alongside them? But—

She lunged at him, a darkly gleaming dagger in her hand. She was fast—but not so fast that his vampire reflexes couldn't have saved him, if he hadn't been too astonished to move. Amatis was Luke's sister; he knew her; and that moment of disbelief might have been the end of him if Magnus hadn't jumped in front of him, shoving him backward. Blue fire shot from Magnus's hand, but Amatis was faster than the warlock, too. She spun away from the blaze and under Magnus's arm, and Simon caught the flash of moonlight off the blade of her knife. Magnus's eyes widened in shock as her midnight-colored blade drove downward, slicing through his armor. She jerked it back, the blade now slick with reflective blood; Rowan screamed as Magnus collapsed to his knees. Simon tried to turn toward him, but the surge and pressure of the fighting crowd was carrying him away. He cried out Magnus's name as Amatis bent over the fallen warlock and raised the dagger a second time, aiming for his heart.

Amatis drove a knife toward Magnus’s heart—just as a loud boom sounded over the fighting. Something small, a bullet, Simon realized, flew through the air. He did live in Brooklyn, but he thought Shadowhunters didn't use guns. The bullet slammed into Amatis’s shoulder with such force that she spun halfway around and fell face-forward to the rocky ground. She was screaming, a noise quickly drowned out by the clash of weapons around them. Rowan knelt by Magnus’s side; Simon, glancing up, saw Andy on the stone tomb, standing frozen with a smoking gun in her hand, blond curls blowing in the wind. She looked like a character from a movie—blood staining her face and gear, staring her mother down without an ounce of sympathy.  Rowan had their hands against the warlock’s chest, but Magnus—Magnus, who was always so kinetic, so bursting with energy—was utterly still under their touch. They looked up and saw Simon staring at them; their hands were red with blood, but they shook their head at him violently. 

“Go!” they shouted. “Find Sebastian!”

With a wrench, Simon turned himself around and plunged back into the battle. 

[drawthethingdoppelganger]

DTtttt~ what are some of your favorite headcanons? I guess they could be for any show but I’m really looking for Bob burger hcs (shocking I know)

Do I know you?

Jimmy Jr has suggested to Tina multiple times about a Footloose EFF

Bob and Linda get very competitive at boardgames, so much that they started a parcheesi tournament

Mr Branca hides a bunch of personal stuff in the school's ceiling. No one really cares but he still gets nervous about his collection of Bleach Boys (*limited edition*) CD records, hence a rumor about "dead body in the ceiling" spread around the school

The eighth grader gang has a group chat but it's mostly just Tammy and Jocelyn chatting with each other (Tammy talks shit a lot and Jocelyn's the only one who replies)

Louise tries to sell Gene's jar of milk teeth on eBay labeling it as "dinosaur fossils"

Jimmy Jr's running posture is also his swimming posture (he swims fine but looks like he's drowning)

Louise made a voodoo doll of Logan for a revenge scheme. He was actually impressed by the attention to details

Jimmy Jr and Zeke learn bartender tricks from Trev and try to impress Andy and Ollie with it (they try to spice it up with unnecessary parkour)

[f1rewalk3r]

hello. i have begun writing again

you can sub to my substack or just look at the posts here since im gonna mirror them. https://firewalker9.substack.com?utm_source=navbar&utm_medium=web

An Introduction

It is the eve of February 2025, and my year is about to start. That’s not to say I haven’t done anything in January- rather, it has been one of the busiest months of my life- No, it is the start of my year because it is the same time last year that I began to kill my old life.

 I feel no shame in saying there is a fogginess to my memory beyond my own deliberate occlusion of these events. Nevertheless, it remains prudent for me to try and process these things by writing about them- just not right now. No, instead I wish to work to outline the context for this piece and others, past and future.

Hello. I am Rejoyce, formerly Jocelyn. Most of the time, at least, I think. I have been stricken by writer’s block for almost 9 months. It seems only fitting, 3.5 years into my 5 year attempt at a 4 year creative writing degree, that after everything- from the failed graduate survey courses to the vaguely biblical poetry readings to the short stories to the half dozen barely started novel attempts- I have returned to the very subject that gave me writers block, but also that in which I first started writing in all those years ago: non-fiction.

There is, of course, another element, that being the ever-present sword of Damocles hanging over the head of the 2020s transsexual: the current political climate. It would be foolish for me to look around at our current world and say anything other than, “What would Hunter S. Thompson do?” The answer being, of course, a lot of drugs. But he would also write. And thus.

The point of this exercise, (that is, not only to write, but to allow others to read it, especially while it is still in adolescence, still metastasizing), is to further myself in the growth of a new life. “Write more,” is a goal that fits neatly with the rest of my goals for 2025, which I can list as the following:

Finally confront the dark version of myself inside the mirror

Escape the time loop

Discover a cryptid

Let the wound in my heart bleed freely

Develop an extra lobe in my brain

Escape the time loop

Conduct expedition #5 into the House

Make out with as many people as possible (save scandalous fag sex for select few)

Escape the time loop

Get kinkier

These goals seem far more achievable to me then the insurmountable tasks set by the deranged homunculi that live among us like “Eat healthier” and “Go to the gym.” I am above fooling myself with such delusion.

There comes a time when it no longer serves the individual to hide themselves from the world- I believe that time is now. This is true not just of my writing, but of all transsexual art of the 2020s. In the face of the uncaring leviathan, what more can one do then simply say, “I am here. I existed. This is who I was, this is what I thought,” in the hopes that, someday, in a kinder world, they may be remembered.

[im-out-of-it]

part six of season one recap AND YES ITS THE LAST ONE 🥹

can we talk about Simon a bit more? (bold opinions coming up) I touched on him in the last post but I think besides Alec, he is done dirty by clary. I don’t think she ever thought about simons feelings about being a vampire. even excused her actions by saying “I was going through this change and would it be so bad if we were these new people together?” GIRL YOU ARE MISSING THE WHOLE FUCKING POINT

how about how Simon would feel about being a vampire?

even has the audacity to look disgusted when Simon drinks blood like the fuck do you think he’s going to survive on? I wish I could support their relationship but I don’t. not their friendship or when they date. Clary just uses Simon over and over again. it doesn’t surprise me how he barely calls her out on it but it’s almost as if he expects it???????

I don’t call out the show for a lot but I do wish they would have at least attempted to make clary more likable but maybe she was never made to be likable. she takes advantage of anyone she can and even uses the gift of extra rune ability to portal herself around and the angels taking that gift away and her finding out jace is her “brother” was rightful karma

and if jace was an option, guess where clary would be??????? not telling Simon he is the closest person she has for sure!!!!! she didn’t mind running along with Jace and ignoring Simon when he was going through his vampire change. I feel like Simon is to clary- this symbol who she needs in her life when she needs something but she actually doesn’t care what happens to him- as long as he’s not dead. because if he’s not dead then he can be of use to her

some Izzy and Simon content below:

I love me some Raphael 🥹 he’s also in my top five/ten fav characters on the show. he’s also much better in the show than the books. we don’t need another child vampire around. I even like his ending and his whole relationship that grows with Simon. I love their banter. I absolutely adore his father son relationship with Magnus in the next season!!!!!!!! I’m glad they featured more on Raphael and created storylines for him. yes I love the yin fein storyline

also I think it’s cool that shadowhunters can channel into other people and that they have technology. I feel it would help but it was soooooooo cute of CC to try to mock that in her books as well as Izzy. (sarcasm is included)

didn’t get a chance to but I also like meliorn and how they featured him in the show. I love downworlders calling shadowhunters out on their own problematic behavior and wish we had more of that on the show.

Jocelyn is a terrible parent and the main reason why clary is how she is. it doesn’t matter if you don’t want your daughter to be a shadowhunter, girl you’re on the run and hiding a cup (and cough cough other stuff) like what is with the message of not having young girls and women not defending themselves????? Jocelyn is insufferable as well but so is clary and they’re both entitled

Luke isn’t a bad character but I still stand by him being a terrible leader while I’ll go more in when I start season two

also Jocelyn and Luke don’t make any sense and they don’t have any chemistry

killing off jace would’ve been the best thing to do and I would have loved to see Alec and Izzy living their best life without him. just seeing Alec realize “wow he was a dick and I don’t feel this toxic energy in my life”

I also stand by clary leaving jace and bettering herself. I don’t think jace is capable of change and clary is as bad as him but I think if she were around better people and got her ass in therapy, she could be better. I just think jace is done. he doesn’t care about the people who are there for him and more interested in the crusade he has with the “little girl”. honestly clary isn’t that much redeemable either. but they are an improvement from the books at least. NOW THAT IS VASTLY INSUFFERABLE. it’s literal torture reading TMI YALL lmao

and the Malec wedding will always be iconic

AND I JUST WANT TO REMIND EVERYONE THAT THIS IS MAGNUS OK????? THIS IS HOW HE ACTS

I know it’s not considered a parallel but the show fucking ate when they decided to make Malec center stage like THANK YOU SO FUCKING MUCH

Magnus saying would you really risk your life for a shadowhunter while doing just that and Alec asking you want me to give up my life for you lowkey basically doing that is the funniest dearest irony/parallel they had

Alec made that choice for himself (which is an argument next post) but he’s also choosing Magnus. while Magnus hates the shadowhunters- he does risk himself very much. it’s one of my favorite parallels of a sort because you kinda forget about it since it’s so early on but they both ask these questions in a “I would never do that” kind of manner and end up surprising each other AND OMG I LOVE THEM

also a few extra to close out my recap: MAGNUS IS SUCH A MOOD (so is Alec and that is why they are both my favs)

fuck you fuck you very muuuuuuuuch ✨🎶

Harry did such a great job in season one being Magnus. I know I posted so much about Magnus and Alec but I love them so much. Matt and Harry both turned book Malec around and actually gave it POTENTIAL REPRESENTATION PURPOSE. show Malec was one of the first non stereotypical trope type lgbtq+ couple I saw that didn’t follow those tropes but who are fun exciting and passionate. PLUS HOLY MOTHERFUCKING BLOODY SHIT YALL THE CHEMISTRY (my dumbass for real thought they fell in love off stage cause the chemistry was on actual fire 🔥) and I will constantly in any event always have such awe and appreciation for them. they’re both so wonderfully supportive of lgbtq+ rights AND WE LOVE THEM OFF AND ON SCREEN

and that concludes the season one recap. I’m sure there was some I wished to include but if y’all wanted 10 posts of season one, y’all should have said that so because no one contributed lmao (I love any of y’all who get excited to read my stuff and I hope y’all know I’m jesting) THIS IS WHERE WE LEAVE OFF ON OUR RECAP but I also tried to do gifs of very important scenes so don’t come at me. also if you’re looking for a particular scene, I most likely did a post about it

in case anyone missed malecs song-

season one isn’t my favorite but Magnus is underrated so i lowkey love it and that is his best style there. Alecs development is so well done and the arrival of Izzy, Simon, and Raphael is a delight. I hope y’all enjoyed his cat eyes this season because that’s the last you’ll see them (part 1 of recap) like the first season sucks because of jace and clary and the cgi but MALEC. as I said before, watch for Malec and it’s a fucking treat

but thank you for joining we love doing our season one recap discussion bitchpost and I’ll be doing season 2, episode 1 shortly. I’d like to do this week since I have lots of free time 🥹

[procrastinatingsoicanreadfanfics]

the fashion of Hand turns Loom - Women

for my fanfic Hand turns Loom (contains some spoilers!)

@levithestripper i think you started reading this once so maybe you're interested?), @ilikeitbetterangsty (i'd love for you to read this fic, but also, this was so fun to make and maybe something for your ocs as well?)

Alethia Stahl

At the beginning of the story, Alethia has to start from scratch again. She's quite dependent on House Strong, and often wears Strong colors (especially blue) for that reason.

Also, she alters some of her clothes to look more like those from home, especially dagged sleeves are something that stay for a while. There's almost no embellishment, which is also for practicality. Her hair is very simple, and sometimes gets compared to men's styles.

As Alethia moves up the ranks of King's Landing and establishes herself, growing close with Helaena and Aemond, her clothes become more adjusted to court fashion. The dresses become cleaner, more well-tailored, and more embellished. Here and there, Alethia begins to throw in a piece of jewellery (apart from her earrings). In the yard, she keeps to the clothes she'd wear training in her old home. Her hairstyles start to become more sophisticated, and often are quite similar to those of Helaena.

The richness of her clothes and hair peak when Alethia marries Harwin. At this point, she's rich, influential and established, but dangers are starting to surround her and her family. Embellishments and gold galore, Strong colors all the way, Alethia becomes a sort of symbol of strength. Subconsciously, she takes a page out of Cersei's book and begins to incorporate armor-like elements into her dresses.

At this point, her hairstyles become stricter again, such as the ones she wore back home, and she wears her hair in braidcrowns.

Helaena Targaryen

At the beginning, Helaena is still very close to canon - the kind of forgotten, kind of ignored middle child. She's still dressed a lot by Alicent who (partly on purpose) dresses her in colors that don't compliment her a lot. The silhouettes are ill-fitted and don't follow many trends of the court.

In her early teens, when Helaena is forced to marry Aegon, she tries to rebel by wearing Targaryen colors. It's an attempt to show that she is a dragon, has a voice, belongs to the family. While she tries to mimic Rhaenyra to gain her freedom, she ends up wearing some of her mother's dresses from when Alicent was trying to fit into the family, which is an irony in itself. During this time, Helaena experiments a lot with silhouettes and hairstyles and grows partial to headdresses and dagged sleeves. Still, she always tries to cover herself and kind of hide in her clothes.

As Helaena kind of begins to find her freedom and herself, she starts to realise that she'll never be some hardened warrior, but she loves and accepts that part of herself. She embraces her softness, her kindness, and this is reflected in her clothing. The lines become softer, her waist drops, her sleeves become more dagged. A lot of it is for comfort, but a part of her still uses her clothes to hide. The colors do become much more suited to her though.

During this time, Helaena wears a lot of blue. It is her secret way of showing Aemond that there's people there for him. Also, she returns to her braid-crown, and starts incorporating more embellishments, some of which are an ode to Dreamfyre (with whom she loves to match).

***

(i haven't written as much on these characters, so there's less pictures, but that doesn't make them any less important!!)

Jena Selmy

When Jena comes to court with Jocelyn Dondarrion, she's only her friends lady-in-waiting and quite low in standing. She mostly wears simple styles, combining fashion from the Stormlands and the Crownlands.

Later, as she becomes lady-in-waiting to Helaena, Jena starts to wear more purple to honor her "best friend" (she's so gay lmao). Generally, her style remains very, very loose, with lots of flowy fabrics. Her sleeves are mostly in the split-sleeve style that is so popular at court.

The money she starts to silently earn in Braavos isn't that obvious in her clothes at first, however, Jena begins to invest in more expensive materials such as Myrish lace and fine silks. She also starts to wear her housecolors some more. Even though she constantly looks like a bride thanks to the white, gold, and beiges in her sigil, the court is well aware she refuses to marry, and it makes her happy to be a better represenation of her house than her father or brother.

Cassandra Strong

Now why is she always dripped the fuck out?? Even as a child, Cassandra loves riches, loves fashion and loves luxury. When Harwin refuses to spend even more money on his daughter, she turns to betting and gambling, and does this quite successfully. Still, in her childhood, Cassandra follows the trends of the court very closely.

Later, when Cassandra gains influence and standing, she begins to incorporate even more detail in her clothes. She loves complicated stitching and stones that are incorporated in her dress. Also, she begins to become a sort of trendsetter, and moves away from the fashion of the court. Nonetheless, 80% of the time, she'll wear blue. It's her color, and she knows she looks good.

As she matures, Cassandra realises that many men don't take her seriously due to her gender and some of the extravagance leaves her clothes. The lines become very strict and harsh, and she tends to cover up more, opting for long sleeves and never wearing wide or low necklines anymore. Cassandra also develops a signature hairstyle (see the pic in the middle) where the silhouette of her hair is always confined to the space around her head.

Morrigan Strong

Morrigan and Cassandra are meant to be polar opposites, and this is reflected in their clothes. Morrigan keeps to Riverland fashion, which Cassandra DESPISES. She dresses for practicality, and wears a lot of masculine styles, especially since she trains so much.

As a child, Morrigan has exactly one dress that's fancy that she likes to wear. She does not like the constricts a skirt brings with itself and prefers to wear things that could be from her father's wardrobe.

When she matures, Morrigan becomes more aware of the politics that are reflected in clothes, and wears dresses at court, and pants outside of it. Still, her clothes are always simple, and maybe even a little below what someone of her station would wear. As said, she dresses for practicality. Has the most comfortable boots in Westeros.

Dilah of Volantis

Growing up enslaved and very poor left a lasting effect on Dilah. She does not feel safe in court, preferring large cities or the wild. Dilah mostly wears "men's clothes", and styles from the Free Cities, especially Braavos. Overall, her clothes are very travel-friendly, and could be worn in many different regions of Planetos.

She refuses to wear anything that could be touched by Volantis.

During Winter, even in the South, Dilah is always cold. She does not cope well with lower temperatures, and that is reflected in her ridiculously warm clothing.

and that concludes my thoughts! i wanted to add baela and medea but there was no space for their pictures anymore. oh well...

[crosby-interesting]

Jocelyn Wedow has been out of Auston's life for like 4 years now and is still a hot topic. I don't think they were ever in a real relationship tbh. His girlfriend Megan is way more interesting. There is a ton of gossip about her on numerous sites. Kathy is fairly innocent in comparison. She doesn't come across as using Sid for clout or an extravagant lifestyle. He appears to treat her like a placeholder which must suck. Only they really know the truth about their relationship but it seems strange from the outside looking in.

I've said many times that it's okay to protect your relationship and not try to put your entire personal life on display. I'm not a fan of reality TV! But Kath hides from people, like she's afraid the police or her former clients will recognize her from her photos on the internet, lol

[skylar102]

NLBF - Chapter Nine

Magnus is going to kill him. If Asher thinks his first death was painful, he has another thing coming. The man was supposed to just go to Ragnor’s house and find any evidence as to where they might have taken Ragnor, not follow them back to their hideout.

Not that Magnus isn’t appreciative of his efforts. Jocelyn was of no help and Magnus was getting antsy in that tiny bedroom. He would have preferred at least getting a text of what the man was doing before he did it so that Asher wouldn’t be alone on a ship that is filled with a homicidal maniac, Circle members, and potentially brainwashed Downworlders.

After the phone call, Izzy, Jace, and Clary all but demanded that they come with, much to Maryse’s disapproval. She wanted to wait for the Gard, but Jace was able to convince her that time is of the essence and the longer they wait the more likely the chance that they lose Valentine. Though, with the Gard already on their way for Jocelyn, Mayrse would only be able to hold them off for a bit before they made their way to the ship.

Magnus quickly shot a text to Asher that his siblings were tagging along and he hoped the man got it. This is not the way to have a family reunion, especially when Asher wants nothing to do with his past life. He made that very clear when they spoke at the farmhouse. From Asher’s perspective, it makes sense, but after everything he’s witnessed, he knows that he’s wrong about his siblings. Izzy and Jace miss him so much that the pain is still here four years later.

Their love for him is so strong they’re willing to go against their parents to do what is right. Asher would be proud of them.

The shipyard is dead at this time of night. All the workers have gone home save for a few stragglers and security. None of them are any the wiser to the three Shadowhunters and warlock walking through the area. 

“There’s the ship,” Jace says, pointing to a cargo ship at the far end of the dock.

Asher gave Magnus a few details to go off of when looking for the ship that he had relayed to the others. The ship definitely looks like it has seen better days. The bow looks like it's about to fall off and there’s a suspicious burnt hole on the side of the ship. Probably from a warlock trying to escape. 

“The ship must have docked recently,” Isabelle says. “This area is a known patrol spot for Kappa demons and there is no way we would have missed that.”

“Maybe the hole in the ship forced them to return,” Clary suggests, also pointing out the damage. “It could be recent.”

“If it’s recent then I don’t doubt my dear Cabbage was the one to do it. He was never one to go quietly.” 

He hopes that doesn’t mean that Ragnor is dead. Valentine is crazy enough to kill powerful assets if they make him angry enough. He tried to kill his own parabatai, for Lilith’s sake. It doesn’t get more narcissistic than that. 

“Well then let’s get moving. Mom only gave us a few hours to stop Valentine and save the Downworlders before the Gard shows up. Everyone remember the plan?” Isabelle asks.

“Shadowhunters go after Valentine, Downworlder goes to save Downworlders,” Jace states in the most caveman-like way. “Though are you sure you want to go alone, Magnus?”

Magnus blinks twice at Jace. Not once in the few weeks they’ve worked together has he asked if Magnus needs help. It was either Jace doing whatever he wanted to do or Magnus telling him to back off or he’ll get hexed. Seems that Clary has been good to him, cracking that hardened shell around his heart since Alec died.

Speaking of Asher, Magnus hopes he’s safe. Magnus texted the man their plans so that he could avoid the awkward family reunion. Last thing he needs is for Jace and Isabelle to go off-script and potentially make this rescue mission a failure. It’s not Magnus’ place to do that anyway. Asher told him he didn’t want his family to know he was alive and he will respect that.

“Hide!” Jace whispers, pulling Magnus by the arm behind some crates. 

Magnus makes a small magic window to show them two people who look like guards doing rounds around the dock in front of the ship. Easy enough to take out and not get noticed. There are more crates off to their right that they could use as a distraction.

He nudges Jace and gestures over to the spot. The Shadowhunter seems to pick up on what he’s not saying and nudges his sister. The two share a look before shuffling their way over.

“I wish I could do that,” Clary sighs. “They’re just so in sync with each other. One time they made me train in a warehouse with the rule to not speak and I failed seven times.”

“It’s okay, Biscuit. I’m sure you’ll get there eventually,” Magnus sympathizes. “You have to realize that Jace and Isabelle have been training since they were kids on how to be a proper Shadowhunter. You’ve had about what? A month?”

“I know but just the way they talk about their childhood. About Alec and how he always made sure they knew that failure was okay as long as you learned and improved from it.” Clary had a wistful look in her eyes. Magnus knows what it’s like being an only child and not growing up with siblings. He’s happy that no one else had to go through what he did, but there are moments when he wishes he had a brother or sister to be there with him.

“Do they talk about Alec a lot?” Magnus asks. He watches Jace boost Isabelle up to a higher ground leading to a catwalk.

“Jace won’t stop talking about him,” Clary chuckles. She straightens up and puts on a serious face. “Alec was the best archer of our time, no one could do what he did with a bow, not even our ancestors. If you want to be a good Shadowhunter, you have to be how Alec was. Did you know Alec was the person who designed our training? He has a book written about the proper ways to handle and take down violent criminals.”

She sounds so much like Blondie, that Magnus can practically hear Jace’s voice. With the few times he caught Jace talking about Alec, Clary is about as accurate as she can get. 

“I wish I met him,” Clary says. “He sounds like he was a pretty great guy. I know Jace would do anything to go back and change how he treated Alec.”

Magnus looks over to Jace who is playing bait while Isabelle gets the drop on the men. I guess layers are just a Lightwood trait. He can see why Asher and Jace were parabatai even if Asher felt like he wasn’t appreciated in the relationship. 

“I’m glad Jace is talking about him with you. He almost killed me when I asked.” He subconsciously rubs a hand against his throat. “Granted,I was asking about him only a year after the tragedy happened and the wound was clearly still fresh.”

Their small conversation was interrupted by the sound of a shout and two bodies falling to the ground. Magnus winces as he watches Isabelle and Jace drag the hopefully unconscious men to a dark corner of the dock. He doesn’t think they would kill them, but he also knows that the Lightwood siblings have had enough of Valentine and his men. 

Clary and Magnus come out from hiding and meet the two at the walkway to the boat.

“Ready or not, here we go,” Magnus says.

Asher leans in the shadows, bow tight in his hand,  as another Circle member walks by, not noticing him. He knows he’s been out of the game for years now, but it’s hilarious how even dangerous minions such as these haven’t noticed him. When Asher saw the men leave Ragnor’s house after their stakeout, he trailed behind. They finally realized that Magnus was not stupid enough to come back to the place Magnus and Ragnor were attacked. 

He sent a silent apology to Magnus after he told the man that he wasn’t going to get himself into danger because here he is. On a rusty ship, hiding from men who are more powerful than him. Then again, his parents were always hard on him about training. He made the most of it and practiced everything he could. Even sneaking through the Institute without the help of runes. Who knew that silly challenge would come in handy?

He slinks his way down the hallway. So far, no sign of the missing Downworlders or Ragnor. If he has to guess, they are probably in the hull away from easy exits. If Valentine didn’t want his prisoners to escape easily, he would surround them with walls of water. Make it harder to leave if a person tries to destroy the wall and water comes rushing in.

“How much longer are we going to be stuck in this decrepit ship?” A Circle member grumbles. 

Asher darts behind some old hanging fishnet as two men walk by, engaged in conversation.

“Until Valentine gives us the green light to attack,” the other man answers.

“It’s been years, Emil,” he whines. “At this point I am going to get scurvy. Valentine has been biding his time on this for no reason. We could easily take over the New York Institute and the City of Bones in a matter of seconds.”

“Bite your tongue, Jeremy,” Emil warns. “If Valentine or his guards hear that kind of talk he’ll feed you to that vampire we have downstairs.”

Confirmation of the Downworlders’ whereabouts. Asher will have to start looking for a way down once these two pass.

“Come on Emil, we have that warlock now!” Jeremy exclaims. “We have everything we need to break those wards and take what we want. Valentine needs to get over his wife and just take what he rightfully deserves!”

Emil smacks Jeremy on the back of the head. “Silence! You may be a Circle member now but you are still naive to Valentine’s plan! It’s not about power but showing those dumb shadowhunters who the true leader of the Nephilim is. Valentine could easily take down the Institute. Hodge practically told Valentine that Isabelle Lightwood is an easy target. The woman doesn’t know how to run that place and with a blade to the throat she’s done for.” 

The man lets out a sinister chuckle that turns Asher’s blood to ice.

“Though I would mind a taste of that body before-”

Rage blinds him and the next thing he knows he’s standing over two bloody and bruised men. One with their throat slashed and the other with an arrow through the eye. Asher’s heart practically leaps out of his chest as he catches his breath. He looks at his hand and sees a seraph blade faintly glow in his grip. He drops the sword like it burned him. He hasn’t touched one in years and the hum is still there. The siren’s call of his angelic blood sings to him to return. 

Asher has tried to shake off the feeling.

He hurries to hide the bodies in the musty fishnet. He curses himself for letting his emotion for his sister take over. He hopes that no one will notice the two men missing before Magnus and the others show up. Once the bodies are not visible from the path, he pulls out his phone to see if Magnus sent him an update. The screen of his phone glitches and shuts off. He lets out a sigh as he fails to turn the phone back on. 

So much for that backup.

Asher continues his way through the ship and finds his first set of stairs down. The magic that surrounds the ship vibrates against his skin the lower he goes. Valentine must have a powerful ward locking the Downworlders in. It’s not like he has an Institute with an angelic core in his arsenal. 

The lower levels are not as lit as above. Asher wishes he had brought a flashlight with him. A tiny part of his brain is saying he could use a witchlight off one of the bodies upstairs. He navigates his way through the narrow passages, every now and then bumping into the metal framework.

He pauses, tilting his head to get a better ear to the floor above. Shouts and feet stomp above him. He hopes that means that Magnus has arrived and not that they found those men's bodies. He makes haste to find the missing Downworlders. 

The hairs on his arm start to rise as he gets to the last door he hasn’t checked. The light is dim but he makes out faint runes on the door, some he’s never seen. He wonders if Valentine was able to create new runes but upon closer inspection, he realizes that it's warlock runes. He doesn’t recognize the signature but it looks like it was forcefully drawn. Whatever Valentine is doing to these Downworlders, it is not of free will. 

He tries to touch the door and an invisible shield sends him backward. His head slams against the metal floor and pain laces up his spine. He lies on the floor staring at the ceiling wondering where he went wrong in the last four years that he finds himself on a ship run by shadowhunters that were meant to be disbanded over twenty years ago. 

He lets out a groan as he gets up from the floor. Okay, so the door is sealed with magic. Surely he can figure out a way around it. He is a shadowhunter in his prime years by Nephilim standards. He looks around the surrounding area to see if there is anything he can use. 

He lets out a snort as he spots a harpoon leaning against the wall. He wonders if they actually did fish on this boat or if they stole the boat and never got rid of the junk lying around it. The device is old, rusting around the steel tip, but it will have to do. 

The noise from above is getting louder which means his window to save his friend is getting smaller and smaller. He grips the harpoon in both hands and prepares to strike it at the runed door. If he can scratch just one sigil the whole spell will break. He hopes his back will survive another hit. 

Just as he prepares to strike, feet shuffle behind him. With quick movements, he ducks and swipes a leg backward causing whoever it is to stumble. Asher doesn’t hesitate as he comes up and grabs the person’s arm and flings them over his shoulder. The man lets out a wheeze as air leaves his lungs and Asher looms over the man, knee to the neck.

“If I wasn’t in so much pain I would find that move incredibly attractive,” Magnus chokes below him. 

“Magnus?” Asher squeaks out and immediately gets off the warlock. Guilt washes over him as he helps the man to sit up, his arm coming around Magnus’ back to support him while he gets air back into his lungs. “I’m so sorry.”

“No no, that’s on me. I shouldn’t have snuck up on a Shadowhunter.”

“Not a Shadowhunter.” The words fall from his mouth faster than his brain catches up. He had to say that a lot in the first months after he went to Ireland. 

Ragnor would complain about having to do labor while Asher was fine to do it all himself. Ragnor would grumble that it's because of his Shadowhunter strength and Asher would have to constantly remind him that he wasn’t one anymore. 

“Right, sorry,” Magnus says and Asher feels even more guilty for making Magnus feel he did something wrong. “So, something wrong with the door?”

“Yeah.” Asher stands up and pulls Magnus up with ease.

“Well, you may not be a Shadowhunter anymore but that angelic blood in you is still as strong as ever,” Magnus comments. “You lifted me like I was a bag of feathers.”

“I work on a farm, lifting heavy things comes with the territory,” Asher scoffs.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Magnus pats his shoulder and makes his way to the door.

Asher glares at the back of Magnus’ head as he heads over to look over the runes. He doesn’t let the jab dig at him too much as he watches Magnus destroy the sigil with ease. The metal door creaks and groans loudly as Magnus opens it. 

Magnus looks back at Asher with a cheshire grin and gestures for him to enter. Asher mumbles a thanks as he passes the warlock. 

“Are the others going after Valentine?” Asher asks.

“They should be. Blondie made quite the commotion when he was spotted on board. Hopefully, that means the men on this boat will be distracted for a while,” Magnus answers. He summons a small ball of light to illuminate the stairs in front of them.

“That’s good.”

“Indeed, now let us find our friend and the others.”

Asher doesn’t know why dread fills his stomach the lower they go. That humming from before is gone since Magnus removed the wards on the door. He takes his bow into his hand and the other rests above the quiver on his hip. He knows that these Downworlders are probably terrified and scared but that doesn’t mean they won’t see him as a threat. 

He glances over at Magnus and sees the same feeling in the warlock’s eyes. There’s a faint shimmer of hope but, at the same time, Magnus is aware of what Valentine is capable of. Asher has the sudden urge to hold the man’s hand and reassure him that it will be okay. That he’ll help in any way that he can to save these Downworlders.

“Wait,” Magnus says, putting a hand on Asher’s chest. Asher ignores the way the hand roams for a fraction of a second. 

Magnus pushes the orb of light forward and waves his hand. The ball grows in size and illuminates the room, and Asher feels sick.

There have to be about half a dozen cages in the room. The shadows from the cages highlight a person in each cage. They look sickly, black oozes dripping from their body like a bucket of tar was tossed over them. They have no reaction to the light; they just sit facing forward like awaiting a command.

“Dammit,” Magnus says, waving his hand to send a fire message to someone. “This is bad. Isabelle warned me that this might be the case.”

“What’s wrong with them?” Asher slowly approaches the cage of a Downworlder that looks to be a werewolf. Their eyes flash every so often and a deep low rumble resonates from their form. Asher waves a hand at the werewolf, but there’s no reaction.

“Some sort of twisted experiment that Valentine cooked up. He may hate us but he also finds us useful for things.” Magnus gets to unlocking the cages but not entering in case one decides to attack. 

Asher leaves Magnus to that and checks on the other downworlders in the room. Each is the same until he gets to the last one. 

“Ragnor,” Asher breathes out. 

His friend is on the floor, looking to be passed out. Just outside his cage is a destroyed ceiling, probably the same damage he saw from outside. Asher can’t help but smile knowing that Ragnor fought to the very end of his capture. From this angle, he can’t see if Ragnor has the same ooze as the others.

He gets to work on the cage, breaking the lock with an arrow. It falls to the ground loudly and Asher winces. He looks around and no one seems to notice but Magnus, who only raises an eyebrow at him before getting back to work.

Asher flings open the door and rushes to his friend.

“Ragnor,” he says, kneeling next to him. 

He rolls the man on his back and lets out a sigh of relief that he doesn’t seem to have been infected. The warlock’s chest rises and falls as he lies unconscious.

“Come on Ragnor, wake up.” Asher cradles the man’s face in his hands, gently moving his head in hopes of gently waking him up. Last thing he wants is to injure his back more by waking Ragnor up abruptly and being attacked by a man who is only defending himself from what he thinks is a threat. 

The sound of a portal opening behind him has him turning. A woman dressed in hospital scrubs comes through. Seems that whatever was on the door also got rid of the wards on the ship. 

“Take them to a safe house and start working on curing them,” Magnus tells the woman.

“What about Valentine?”

“The Shadowhunters will take care of him soon, but we need to get them out of here before the Gard finds them. Who knows what they’ll do if they find out about them.”

“Okay, help me get them through,” the woman says as she enters a cage to usher them out. Thankfully, it seems the Downworlders are okay with moving. That distant look in their eyes doesn’t go away as they go through the portal. 

“Thank you, Cat,” Magnus says.

“Just come to me when you’re done here,” Cat says before looking over at Asher. Asher sits up straighter as she gives him a once over. “And tell me about him as well.”

“Cat!” Magnus chastizes, but can’t reply as the portal closes.

Asher doesn’t know what to make of that and puts his attention back on waking up Ragnor. But when he turns to look at his friend, his eyes are open. Asher lets out a relieved laugh.

“About time you woke up,” Asher jokes. He hears Magnus approaching the cage as he helps Ragnor up into a sitting position.

“Yes, it really is,” Ragnor says, his voice sounding different. 

Before Asher can ask what he means by that. Magic finds its way around his neck. The smell of a damp forest fills his senses as Ragnor’s magic tries to kill him.

“Ragnor!” Magnus shouts but stops his approach as Asher gets slammed into the metal bars. His injured back cries out in pain as it makes contact with the hard wall.

“Do you think I'm a fool?” Ragnor growls. “First you take the form of Magnus and now you have one of your goons to look like Asher?”

“I-”

“Ragnor, you old fool, that is Asher!” Magnus explains, trying to approach, but he’s stopped when Ragnor seals the door shut. Asher hears Magnus curse, trying to open the door.

“Shut up!” Ragnor says. “Asher knows better than to come here, not when Valentine knows about him. Is this your plan? Pretend to be my friend to get me to believe they would be dumb enough to rescue me?”

“Yes,” Asher says. The fight to stay conscious is beginning to become a losing battle. “I am that stupid because I care about you.”

“Then tell me something only he would know,” Ragnor demands. “Something only he and I would know.”

Asher racks his brain trying to come up with something as he tries to stay awake. This is not the first time a warlock has tried to suffocate him but he has to remain calm, the more he struggles the tighter it will go. It’s hard to find purchase on vertical bars while your friend is trying to kill what he thinks is an imposter.

“Ragnor, please stop, you are going to kill him!” Magnus begs. Asher doesn’t think he’s ever seen Magnus look as scared as he does right now which means he probably isn’t looking good. 

Then it hits him, the only thing that he and Ragnor would know about.

“You cheated at that card game,” Asher gasps. “You didn’t even want the farmhouse but you were annoyed that the vampire wouldn’t stop talking so you used magic to win.”

Immediately the magic around his neck disappears and he falls to the ground gasping for air. Ragnor catches him before his face gets acquainted with the metal floor again. Magnus rushes into the cage, magic at the ready, and begins to heal his neck which has already started to bruise.

“Bloody hell, I could have killed you!” Ragnor scolds, helping him sit up. “What the hell are you doing here!”

“Saving you!” Asher wheezes out. “You literally threw your best friend into my living room making me assume you were dead only to find out that you were kidnapped by a maniac. Of course, I was going to help!”

“Asher, stop talking,” Magnus scolds as he continues to heal his neck. 

“Thought I taught you better than this,” Ragnor rants. 

“Says the man who didn’t go through the portal with his friend and instead decided to get kidnapped,” Asher bites back. 

“I had to make sure that Valentine didn’t get the Book of White,” Ragnor defends. “It was the only way to make sure it was safe.”

“Even I know that’s a weak excuse,” Magnus mumbles, looking at Asher with concern. The healing magic makes its way down Asher’s back. The ache from his mishap slowly ebbs away. He sends Magnus a silent thank you and Magnus smiles back.

“Magnus, do shut up,” Ragnor snarks. “Can you stand, Asher?”

“Yeah, I’m okay. Could have done without you attacking me but can’t win them all.” The joke seems to fall flat as Ragnor looks seconds away from crying, something he rarely does. He lets the two warlocks pull him up, he stumbles for a moment before regaining his balance. He feels Ragnor snake an arm around his back and he gladly takes the support.

“Is everyone okay?” Asher asks Magnus as they make their way to the exit.

“My friend Cat is one of the best healing warlocks in the city, even the world if I had a say. An old acquaintance of mine made a cure so she and Cat are going to make sure everyone is no longer dripping in that nasty stuff, whatever it is.” 

The way Magnus looks at the remaining gunk on the floor gets a small laugh out of him. Asher watches how Magnus’ face lights up at the response and flashes his smile. He feels his body flush at the sight of it again. If he thought he had it bad after Magnus crashed into his living room, he’s a goner now. Granted he’s been this way since he almost shot the man when he first came to the farmhouse. 

He was terrified when Magnus passed out. So many thoughts had been racing in his head. The way Magnus had called out for Ragnor to the poison that he saw infecting Magnus’ body, it didn’t leave much time to process anything. He never told Magnus that he was in a delirious state as he was applying the cure to him. After carrying Magnus to the guest room and rushing to find the antidote in the medicine closet, he came back to an awakened Magnus whom he thought was somewhat okay— and then Magnus started talking.

The compliments that poured out of that man’s mouth were something Asher had never experienced before. He didn’t even realize hands could be attractive until Magnus wouldn’t stop talking about his hands. It’s really hard to dress a wound when the injured party keeps trying to take his hand to kiss it. 

Asher had stared at his hands for a long time after Magnus finally fell asleep before thoughts of Ragnor took over. He then spent the last two hours before Magnus woke up spiraling into ‘what ifs’ to the point where he went to grab one of Ragnor’s ascots and tried to track him, desperate to try anything that would work. He ended up just fiddling with the cloth until Magnus almost launched himself out of the bed.

From then on, Asher looked at Magnus differently. Not that man seemed to notice even with Asher making them dinner and discussing their plan to return to New York. Besides, it’s too dangerous for them to even know each other. Not with Magnus’ relationship with his siblings, it would be a recipe for disaster.  

“You would try to make light of a serious situation,” Ragnor grumbles.

“Can you blame me? You’re lucky I got here before they did anything to you,” Magnus teases. “It would have gotten all over your vintage clothes.”

“Do you see that burnt hole in the wall?” Ragnor says, pointing back at the cage he was in. “They tried to inject me with those gross chemicals and failed to realize I was no young warlock.”

“So you almost sank the ship?” Asher laughs, though it sounds more on the manic side. “You could have killed everyone!”

“I fixed it!” Ragnor exclaims. “Honestly, you two think I can’t handle myself? Surely you’ve seen-”

“Magnus!” An unfamiliar voice shouts from the top of the stairs. Asher freezes, as does she, when they make eye contact. Orange hair past her shoulders, twin blades in her hands. Her eyes widen at the sight of him as they flicker with recognition, but that’s not possible as he’s never met her before. 

“By the Angel, you’re-.” She doesn’t finish her sentence as the smell of firewood consumes the air around him and blue magic strikes the young woman. She doesn’t have time to counter, the magic freezing her as she raises her arms to block the spell.

“Magnus! What did you do?” Ragnor asks.

“She knows who Alec is!” Magnus defends. A chill goes down Asher’s spine at that statement. “Jace hasn’t stopped talking to her about him and I am pretty sure he’s shown her pictures of you. So you two need to leave now!”

“Magnus, will she-” Asher shakily starts but his heart is beating out of his chest. He can’t take his eyes off of her.

That woman saw him, if she gets back to Jace she’s going to tell him that his dead parabatai is actually alive. He wouldn’t put it past Jace to start a manhunt around the globe to find him. He would do anything to get to Asher, even if it meant hurting those that Asher cared about.

A hand laces his and he looks over to see Magnus staring at him with worry. 

“I’ll make sure that she thinks she saw something wrong, she doesn’t even know she’s frozen right now,” Magnus reassures, squeezing his hand. “You two should get out of here, I don’t doubt that Jace would be far behind if Clary went off on her own.”

“But what about-.”

“You heard the man, Asher.” Ragnor starts pulling him away, the arm around his waist is firm. “Let the High Warlock do what he does best: charming Shadowhunters.”

Asher can’t tell if that’s a dig at him or not. Judging by the smirk on his face, that’s exactly what he meant. A portal opens behind them and Ragnor ushers him through, but not before he turns around.

“Magnus!” The warlock turns at the call of his name. “Stop by the farm once you’re done with everything. I’d love to have you over for dinner.”

[percontaion-points]

Jocelyn's Choice chapter 15

Click to see the rest of the snark & image descriptions

Click here for the rest of the series!

Chapter 15

I needed new bras; my new boobs didn't fit in my old ones. I couldn't order them on the Internet. I had no idea what size I'd wear, and I needed to try them on. 

Love your enthusiasm for supporting brick and mortar stores, but you going in without knowing your size is only going to end in frustration and feeling like you’re wasting time trying on bras THAT STILL DON’T FUCKING FIT YOU. 

Use a fucking tape measure. You don’t have one? Invest in one. Trust me on this, okay? 

"I know," I said. "But I didn't want him to come home because he felt like he had to."

 "So you shut him out?" He was angry, and I understood why.

I love how every single person gets angry at Jocelyn for deciding to do it like this, and never once questions why it is that this 18 year old is prioritising the 23 year old grad student who knocked her up. 

I WILL NOT LET THIS GO UNTIL EVERY SINGLE PERSON UNDERSTANDS HOW CREEPY AND PREDATORY THAT THEIR RELATIONSHIP IS. 

"He's coming home tomorrow." 

"What? I thought he was coming home closer to Thanksgiving?"

There’s 50 pages left. Of course he’s fucking coming home. 

"I'm not complaining." She smiled. "I'm glad he came to his senses, and I told him that last weekend when I went to visit him."

 "You went to Connecticut?" I asked, trying not to sound disappointed, but I was heartbroken. 

"Yes, and I spent the whole weekend with him. He's as charming as ever." 

I’ve read too many romance novels to fucking believe a word that comes from this lying skank’s mouth. 

"I’m here for you now," he whispered. "I would have been here the whole time."

 "I know." I smiled. "I missed you."

 "I'll call you tonight," he said. "You better not avoid me. I'll just show up on your doorstep."

He’s so angry that he thought that she’d ghosted him, yet he never really tried to track her down? He didn’t show up at her work to check in? Never popped by her house to see how she was doing?

I get that he’s busy with college and everything, but come on. It’s hypocritical of him to say all of this shit yet he never actually tried that hard to reach her. 

“Oh, she’s not answering my calls? GUESS OUR RELATIONSHIP IS OVER NOW!!” 

As reality set in, I realized I messed up. Exactly what I knew would happen, did happen. Someone else found out—the worst someone who could have found out—and very soon, she'd be blabbing her mouth to Alex. Why didn't I just tell him?

Chapter 15 summary: It’s now November, and Jocelyn is 6 months along. She’s forced to go to the mall to get new bras, but as she’s leaving, she runs into Evan. He’s obviously upset that she’d hide this from everybody, but I’ve said what I said about that. Evan tells her that Alex is coming back tomorrow, because he’s “finished early”, aka the author is bored with her own work. He tells Jocelyn that he’ll give her a day to tell Alex before he’s forced to. 

Then Brenna and Julia show up, and they basically call Jocelyn a cheating skank, refusing to believe that Alex could have possibly knocked her up. (Although Evan and Jocelyn don’t exactly correct them…) Julia then gloats about how she spent the weekend alone with Alex, but Evan is like “You went with Brenna and Ryan. STFU.” 

Out in her car, Jocelyn leaves a voicemail message on Alex’s phone. But she realises that she fucked up, and knows that Julia is going to get to him first. Which… yeah babe. Everybody’s been fucking telling you that you’re doing this in a really fucking stupid way. But whatever. What’s done is done. 

[nellie-elizabeth]

Bob's Burgers: Butt Sweat and Fears (14x13)

This has nothing to do with anything at all, but I should tell you that right now there are only a couple of shows I'm actively reviewing, and another one of them is Grey's Anatomy. Their most recent episode was called "Blood, Sweat and Tears" so when I saw the title of this episode I did do a double take.

Anyway. Let's dive in! This is the finale of the season, looks like, given the shorter episode order due to the strikes last year.

Cons:

I don't have any big giant complaints, more just... I could have used a bit more with the subplot back at the restaurant? The secret restaurant idea was very funny, I could have used a whole episode about that concept. More and more people learning about it, Bob getting overwhelmed, maybe a gag about someone coming into the upstairs part of the restaurant and failing to get served because everyone's in the basement... could have been a fun opportunity for even more shenanigans. I liked what we got, but it felt a little half-baked.

Tammy and Jocelyn felt oddly utilized in this episode. Instead of being antagonistic to Tina, they seemed to be not only her friend, but also actively pursuing that friendship, wanting to find her on the dancefloor and everything. It felt like a shift of how that relationship is normally portrayed, and I could have used a little more clarity on that.

Pros:

I do love Teddy's role in the subplot, though. There's something so endlessly charming about his relationship with the family. They notice when he doesn't come in for lunch, and when he finds out the whole family was playing a game with the boxes, he immediately wants to take his own turn. He automatically has a place within their silly family games.

I also loved Dalton and the rest of the gang being obsessed with the exclusive basement restaurant just because it's a novelty. It's such a specific type of hipster crowd and that representation here is very funny.

Tina is the true star of the show this week, though, and I really loved her journey this episode! She's going to a dance party at Chelsea's house, where the strong potential for "upper butt" touching is on the table. The idea is that there will be three slow songs, and if she snags a dance with Jimmy Jr., she might get to move her hands down just a little, and cop a very slight feel. She continually talks about this in front of her whole family, to Bob's horror and discomfort.

At the dance, Tina has trouble getting Jimmy Jr.'s attention because he and Zeke are partying it up. (My theory that Zeke has a thing for Jimmy Jr. is still holding strong.) Just as the first slow song hits, Tina realizes that her skirt is wet with sweat! She sneaks off into the laundry room and decides to dry it in the dryer, but then the dryer door gets stuck! So the rest of the episode is about her being stuck in the laundry room while the dance continues, trying to figure out a way to get back out there in time to get her upper butt dance opportunity with her crush.

But then we get the introduction into the scene of another school friend, Sam, who is hiding out in the laundry room because he's too awkward to be out there dancing with the other kids. I really liked watching the two of them hang out as Tina's situation continues to escalate - she ends up falling into the cat's litter box, ruining her shirt as well, and she uses dirty socks to tie the towel in place, desperate to get back out there for her slow dance. But eventually Sam helps her fix the dryer, Tina is ready to get back out there. But... at the final moment, when she could go and get her dance with Jimmy, she decides to reach out to her shy friend instead. She and Sam share a slow dance, boosting Sam's confidence.

It was a lovely moment for Tina! You don't often see her as the one with more social confidence. She still had a ton of awkward shenanigans to deal with, with the sweat and all that, be she stayed steadfast in her goal to pursue what she wanted with Jimmy. And she ended up being the one to encourage Sam to let go and have a good time! I really loved this detail about the final slow song of the night. Earlier, Tammy tells Tina the secret of the upper butt touching - the last song starts slow, but then gets faster. Most people will transition to "fast dancing", but if you stay touching, that's when hands will start to wander! So you have this adolescent horny promise of getting to touch one another in a socially permissible way, it's Tina's goal all the way through. Then we get to the end, and when the fast part of the song comes on, you just see this group of kids all dancing around, jumping with their hands in the air. Nobody is actually going for the butt touching, they just become a group of young teens having a fun time with their friends.

I'll leave it there for now. This show always puts a smile on my face. I'm sad we got less of it this year, dang studio executives. I'll be here to hang out with the Belchers whenever we come back for more!

8/10

[masterwcrk]

rpcdev's Fantasy Lounge Launch prompt - Secret Heir

🍄 :: Does your muse’s family have a well hidden (or not so well hidden) secret? Is your muse in on the secret or is it something they have yet to uncover? How has knowing, or NOT knowing, impacted your muse? (500 words)

given her entire canon is founded on a family secret or two, I should probably actually dig into what that actually means for her, how it threads through her canon, & also how it shows up in her verses so here goes.

the big secret was actually four parts;

the first act was Clary finding out about the existence of the Shadow World as a whole, something Jocelyn had spent years hiding from her by going to the warlock Magnus Bane to have an enchantment laid on her daughter that would erase all signs of the supernatural as soon as she laid eyes on them. this enchantment had to be periodically renewed, & it was only because of Magnus being out of town during a crucial moment that it lapsed enough for her to fully shed the enchantment.

the second act was finding out the father she thought was dead was actually very much alive, very much hunting her & her mother, & also the cult leader of her world's extremist faction - as well as finding out she has an older brother.

elated to both of the above, Clary also found out that said father had experimented on both her brother &, unknowingly, her, before they were born using Lilith's blood on Jonathan & the blood of the angel Ithuriel on her.

finally, this is exactly related to the last major revelation - that even among her people, she possess a unique ability because of Ithuriel's blood in that she can create new runes.

while Clary has largely adjusted to each of these revelations, each & every single one of them shook her sense of self to her very core & she's had to rebuild everything she thinks she understands about herself - sometimes multiple times over in quick succession. interestingly, out of everything, the revelations she's had the hardest time accepting fully within her canon verses is the last one -- that even among the very people she's finally found that sense of belonging that's always somewhat evaded her, she's still different & somehow other.

sometimes, it's this piece out of all of it that gets under her skin the most & largely causes her to withdraw at times or feel emotionally distanced from anyone who singles her out for her abilities & not what those abilities have actually accomplished.

this also means that she tends to punish herself via these same abilities, i.e. not using the runes she's created on herself when needed for healing or relief, or stubbornly work through things the hard way instead of taking the "expected shortcut" if she feels like someone is trying to tie her sole value to her usefulness. this is especially true in her Centurion variant, & all verses associated with it.

her fandom verses still see threads of some of the above - the revelation her father is alive & hunting her & her mother is a heart note in most if not all of her AUs, but often the revelation of her abilities don't have quite the bite they do outside of canon given that unusual abilities are more normalized in a lot of her fandom verses.

[wexarethewalkingxdead]

👻 - recall one or more times your muse has been the most scared or fearful (daryl)

Questions For My Muse(s) - @careol

👻 - recall one or more times your muse has been the most scared or fearful

Daryl isn't one to get scared of any kind of supernatural boogeyman. Simply because he lived with a real-life one. The one time that he remembers being terrified was when he was about eleven years old. His Daddy had left his motorcycle unattended, and him remembering when Merle had taken it for a spin while their Daddy slept off a three-day bender. He climbed on the back and managed to start the engine, but he wasn't expecting the kick from the clutch when he slipped it into gear and the bike jerked forward and slammed into the side of his Daddy's truck that was jacked up while he waited on Merle to bring back the two front tires from the repair shop. It knocked it from the jack and fucked up the rims and bent the motorcycle frame.

He didn't even try and put the truck back on the jack or the bike back where he got it. He just ran. And then he hid in his favorite hiding place in the woods. He could hear his Daddy yelling for him, and he was pissed. He stayed in the woods for three days, knowing that each day he stayed away would make his beating that much worse.

The scars are still visible on his back and are the most prominent aside from the x that he received when Judith and the other kids from Alexandria had been taken by Jocelyn.

[kitkatt0430]

On Episode 19 of 90's Flash we get their take on the Mirror Master as Barry's villain of the week. But wait, there's more. Tina must contend with... her mother.

We've got some hacking going on at the start of the episode - Mirror Master and his accomplice I guess. They both back stab each other and Sam (so it's Sam Scudder they went with, it seems) loses out.

Tina - It's the end of the world as I know it, and I don't feel fine. Barry - It's your mother, Tina.

Jocelyn is... interesting.

Sam's blond accomplice sees Barry at the station and... kisses him. After she recognizes him. Seems there is gonna be a lot going on in this episode.

Blondie is Stasia Masters, Barry's ex from high school. Or he did her homework? Something went on between them, anyway. And I think she stole Barry's wallet. Yup. Got his social security card in there and everything.

... who keeps their social security card in their wallet? Like... I keep that in a fire safe unless i actually need it for something. Barry's just asking for identity theft here.

So Jocelyn is miss Posh. But while she's nothing like Carla Tannhouser from 2014 Flash personality wise, Jocelyn's relationship with Tina reminds me of Caitlin's with Carla. Complete with Tina clearly having a better relationship with her father, who may or may not be deceased. It's not clear, but Jocelyn says something about him and Tina gets defensive of him.

Stasia in thief verse thief who is better armed than her. Her chase naturally runs past Barry and two cop buddies.

Seems Stasia stole some holographic tech, she tosses an emitter and a cowboy showed up. Barry tries to get 'him' out of the way only to realize it isn't real when he passes through. It's funny watching him trying to avoid the cowboy's lasso.

Stasia - I gotta find someone to help me. *kisses Barry's wallet*

She's weird. Like. Really weird.

Julio trying to be wingman for Barry is amusing. Meanwhile Barry has got to be wondering why everyone always seems to want to talk to him about the Flash?

Stasia - I'm trying to get away from an abusive boyfriend. If only I'd dated you in high school, maybe I wouldn't have such terrible taste in men now. I should go to a hotel now, as I pointedly hint how cold and lonely they are. Barry - *stammering, reduced back to high schooler with a crush*

So it seems the Mirror Master is a master of holographic technology - smoke and mirrors plus technology. But it's possible he does have something more than that.

Tina is annoyed her mom is blowing her off, so she leaves STAR Labs... right as someone sneaks back in to her lab for... something? Oh, she forgot her keys. and Sam fakes a fire. and a mime by accident... and firefighters. Somehow Tina doesn't realize they're all fake.

Sam escapes while she's distracted.

Stasia - So, really, what's up with the Flash? Did someone build him? Barry - What, like some mad scientist? Some Professor Zoom?

I am so proud of the writers for that Professor Zoom reference. I wonder if they'd have had Eobard show up if there'd been a season 2.

Anyway, Barry is really tired of Stasia being interested in talking about the Flash. Tina calls to interrupt his date over the fake fire. Naturally leaving Stasia alone at his place where she hides the battery she stole from the west coast STAR Labs at the start of the episode.

Sounds like Tina's dad is probably still alive. Tina thinks her mom resents her for staying with her dad when they divorced - Tina was thirteen, however. If her mom had wanted to have custody of Tina, then she could have fought to get it. Honestly, I get the impression that Jocelyn just wasn't really interested in being a mom. Her treatment of Tina now - telling Tina to call her Jocelyn instead of mom - seems to indicate that anyway.

Scudder scares a man out a window to his death using those holograms of his. Dun dun duuuun

It is too bad Sam doesn't have his actual mirror gun from the comics, but the holographic tech he and Stasia are using is pretty interesting.

Sam and Stasia reunited. So touching as he tries to kill her. Truly, it's love.

Stasia - I can get you the Flash. I-I totally sold the battery. To Professor Zoom. The guy who created the Flash.

*snicker* Professor Zoom is one of Eobard's aliases in the comics, alongside the Reverse Flash. And since in the 2014 show he did create the Flash, I'm finding this pretty funny.

Anyway, Sam buys what she's saying. The toxic lovers kiss and make up, but Sam only gives Stasia 24 hours to bring him the formula for creating the Flash.

Meanwhile, Barry spent a sleepless night looking for the missing Stasia. Julio looks her up to see if maybe she's got a criminal history that might indicate who her abusive ex is - and when Mr. Alias Mirror Master comes up, Barry realizes that Stasia must be connected to the the holographic tech and the guy Barry fought the evening before.

Tina and Barry go to spend time with Jocelyn at an art gallery.

Barry - So I know that you're supposed to say juxtaposition and duality in the same sentence when talking about art. *cuts to art snob with Jocelyn who uses juxtaposition and duality in the same sentence while talking about art*

lol

Tina tells Jocelyn off and it feels like it was a long time coming. Jocelyn wimps out and going after Tina and Barry points out to her that it would help if Jocelyn would just make time for her for a change to let Tina know she cares. Jocelyn does not take his advice.

Stasia's tries to get Barry in on her con on Sam which is hilarious - the spiked hair, the sunglasses indoors, the comically oversized coat... she's all, you have to pretend to be Professor Zoom, creator of the Flash, to get my evil ex off my back. Barry's fake accent as Professor Zoom is soooo bad.

this is hilarious :D

Barry - I invented all the cool and useful things like video games and the microwave.

This man is not made for undercover work. E1 Barry's persona as Sam the Hacker in season 2 of the 2014 show was better than this.

Barry swings by the gallery again to try and get Jocelyn to talk to Tina again, but Sam follows and takes him and Jocelyn hostage. With a laser set up to kill them. He also flips through Barry's wallet. With his social security card in it. Because he's a stolen identity waiting to happen.

All roads lead to the train station. Stasia tries to sell the battery, Tina attempts a sort of citizens arrest with her gun, Sam takes the battery and leaves a bunch of holograms, Barry shows up as the Flash to play whack-a-mole with the fake Scudder's until Tina points a bright light at the holograms, dissipating them so Barry can catch the real one.

Stasia almost gets away, but Barry gets her arrested. The stolen items - crystal and battery - are recovered.

Tina and Jocelyn finally talk and... okay, so Tina's dad is dead. It is confirmed. And Jocelyn finally agrees to make time to spend with Tina.

It's a fun episode overall. I do wish they'd had Scudder with the mirror gun though. The holographic circles being used everywhere - and left behind everywhere - couldn't exactly be cheap so having a thief constantly wasting all that money? Using a mirror gun to execute his thefts probably would have made more sense, tbh.

Stasia and Rosa Dillon from the 2014 show do have some interesting parallels going on - Sam's girlfriend who becomes his ex by turning on him down the line...