#like yes king you go get desperate in times of crisis!!!

[stealingdeansgender]

would LOVE to know what Sam thought the first time he read Frankenstein (bc we all know he did). has Sam Winchester ever watched Penny Dreadful. yes i am watching “Time is On My Side” and i just have a couple of questions for Samuel Winchester—

[floralcavern]

My ATLA ocs!

This takes place a couple of lives before Yangchen.

......

In this time period, tensions between the Earth Kingdom and the Air Nomads are high. The Earth Kingdom has begun to discriminate against the Air Nomads, who now no longer feel safe traveling through.

One day, however, an Air Nomad caravan had to pass through the Earth Kingdom town of Bafinj. The people of the town had been staring at them hatefully and eventually, a riot broke out, where a group of people in the town began to chase them out violently. In the chaos, a baby of the Air Nomads was left behind.

A kind couple of this town finds her and take her in to keep her safe, raising her as her own daughter, naming her Mokin.

Mokin spends her whole life thinking she is a member of the Earth Kingdom. But she always did find it weird how she wasn't allowed to cut her bangs too short, keeping them in her face. The reason for this was because her parents didn't want anyone to realize that she is an Air Nomad. Growing up, Mokin hears many awful things about the Air Nomads, but her parents would quickly try to shut down any hateful thoughts she might have.

Meanwhile, the Air Nomads are freaking out, because they CANNOT find the Avatar..

One day, after school, Mokin's teacher shows up with her, saying that she had an awful seizure. Her parents decide to homeschool her after that. Feeling isolated and with no friends, one day when she was 16, she decided to go play a game with some neighborhood kids.

"Can you even earthbend?" they asked. Mokin panicked, and desperately wanted to be included, so she lied, saying yes. She studied everyone's movements, and, when the ball starts flying toward her, she instinctively throws her arms up, Earthbending!

She continues to play the game, getting better and better as she goes on. Some adult neighbors see and go to Mokin's parents with a good natured smile. "I thought yer daughter couldn't bend! But she's incredible!"

Her parents, horrified beyond comprehension, pull her inside. Eventually, they tell her the truth of who she is. An Air Nomad... and with this new information on her earthbending, possibly the Avatar. Mokin feels like her whole world has been turned upside down. No longer feeling safe in a town that would hate her, the family leaves, travelling to the nearest Air Nomad temple.

There, Mokin's parents explain the situation. The Elders assign her an Air Nomad teacher. A boy who had recently gotten his tattoos by the name of Lembe. Lembe is a bit like Tenzin, but much more good natured and a good sport. But he is huge on their culture. But since Mokin grew up in a very Earth Kingdom culture heavy town, she cannot comprehend being something so different.

"Why can't you just be like us Air Nomads!?" "Because I never knew I was one!"

Eventually, her and Lembe begin to have an understanding. But she has a huge identity crisis on whether she is of the Air Nomads or the Earth Kingdom..

But after meeting two kids named Voi, a waterbender, and Lua, a firebender, her perspective changes. She meets them while travelling to look for waterbending and firebending teachers. Voi and Lua are orphans in the Fire Nation, but both were born in and spent the first few years of their lives in the North Pole. And they lay it out to her simply. "We're both."

I think she would begin to have that same mindset, and with it, bring peace between the Air Nomads and Earth Kingdom.

But, The Earth King (who has a pet badgermole in his throne room) is not very pleased. Sure, Mokin grew as an Earth Kingdom citizen, but she still has that 'passive blood.' Out of anger, she does what Lembe had advised her not to not to do. She had a burst of rage.

I don't know what would happen beyond all of this, buuuuut.. ya.

Also, her and Lembe I think would have a very cute love story. Like, after she gets her airbending tattoos, this is the first time he sees her face, not obscured by her hair, so he just mutters, "Beautiful..." And she just says, "Oh, I look good with the tattoos?" And he just panics, completely forgetting about her tattoos, and just goes, ""O-Oh, ya! The tattoos! They, uh, look great!"

And Lembe and Voi develop a very big brother-little brother relationship. (He is very annoyed by Voi, but would do anything for him, and Voi looks up to Lembe). Lua and Mokin get along very well, like a big sister-little sister. They're both super tough and independent because of the way they grew up.

[dumber-alek]

20&21 for music asks? 🩵🩵

Oh Hiii thanks for asking 🥰🥰🥰

20: A song that has many meanings to you

Since whenever I come across anything that could have vague or dual meaning my brain starts to smoke and I can't proceed. And this question makes me think of 'songs you have different interpretations for' and 'a song that you associate with many things'....

So I'm just gonna do both.

For songs that I have a couple of interpretations... There's Penny by Jack Stauber. It's a very short one:

Penny told me that we're all gonna go someday

And it made me mad

Yes, it made me very unhappy

So I told her dad

And he took me into the city

He said son when, you grow up, would you shut up?

Son when, you grow up, just shut up

It's brilliant and I love it : it kinda references the MCR Welcome to the Black Parade, right? Now I'm not going to say anything that's too observant but in MCR's song the narrator's father gives him an inspirational bit of wisdom and here the narrator's friends dad just thinks he's being an annoying brat (and a snitch!).

And it could be just that a short song with a funny twist, but as someone who got my first existential crisis at age 5 i REALLY relate to this song. And I feel like this builds on this feeling of desperation you feel when you're small and you find out everything and everyone is gonna die someday.

So you raise this issue to someone who you think has all the answers. And when you're small, that someone is an adult. And adults have this way of getting really angry when kids ask them questions they can't answer - the friend's dad here is most likely just as horrified by the inevitability of death as the narrator is. So he tells the kid, shut up. I have no idea if this meaning is in any way intented (not that it matters), but that's just how I see this song.

As for songs that has many associations to me... I'd say Once Around The Block but the Kings of Convenience version. I discovered it when I was 14-ish through an Ace Attorney Phoenix/Edgeworth slideshow (and I haven't even played the game then!) and KoC is still one of my most favourite bands of all time. It makes me think of that video, of middle school, of taking walks in the rain when my city was going through big floods, and of a starting not-yet-relationship. It also makes me feel of an imaginary life someone else who isn't me has in my head! Many things.

21: favourite song with someone's name in the title

Oh in repeating myself but Francesca by Hozier! First of all i love that its a Divine Comedy reference, and it's such a beautiful powerful song 😭

[crisispider]

/stumbles in here/ SHIP MEME??? YES PLS GIMME SOME PETER B X LYLA SHIP MEME THOUGHTS PLS

My thoughts on ANY SHIP - Accepting - @xenjoyedthat

Who’s the cuddler? I would say definitely Peter but he is slowly just Stockholm syndroming her into loving to cuddle too. Who makes the bed? I can't really imagine either one of them do? I mean like obviously Peter never does it because I mean look at him, and like I might be wrong about this but I just feel like because she is a workaholic, and doesn't really sleep much anyways why make it? Who wakes up first? I feel like it's almost always Lyla, she just RADIATES someone who never sleeps enough, and Peter is just old enough that sometimes if the right conditions are met a nap could actually turn into a full on sleep. (We are talking like the lighting dimmed just right, the exact right star trek movie on loop at the right volume, the right amount of room temp, BONUS if he has a lyla to snuggle. ) Who has the weird taste in music? See the thing is I don't think either one of them would ever think each other's taste in music is weird? They are very chill vibing babies, and they love to dance? It's like their whole thing. So honestly, I think they are always just so excited to show one another any new music they might have found. Who is more protective? Oooooooooohhh Seeeeee that's HARD. I feel that honestly it might be a close race either way? And honestly? I feel like it might honestly depend on what the situation is and what's going on in their lives. Like if It's been a really rough week for Peter and just he can't take anymore SHITTY, It's Lyla who is just SHUTTING IT DOWN, and making sure people leave him alone so he can get a break. Then just in the same step.. say if it's just like close to the anniversary of the loss of gabriella or any other really bad time for Lyla he would be the one to make sure that literally NO ONE is bugging her more that necessary. Who sings in the shower? I feel like it's definitely a joint concert sort of situation. The two of them are just always dancing and singing and having a good time, it only makes sense that they would take it into the shower too??? Who cries during movies? It's Peeeeeter, he is a big old softie and I feel like it would be one of Lyla's favorite things you know? Because just 'aww look at him so emotional about a kids movie that he is watching with his daughter' like how is that not the most ridiculous thing she has ever seen? Like i'm talking full on sobbing at the Lion King like he doesn't know what happens. Who spends the most while out shopping? Lylllllaaaa, she is the fashion icon of the two of them, and honestly his favorite thing is to just let her dress him. It takes away the stress of having to try and look decent and it makes her happy, what isn't to love? Who kisses more roughly? Peter, he is just always such a DESPERATE sort of boy sometimes it's just really hard to not want to put his entire soul into every kiss because he is ALL TOO AWARE the the closer they get to solving the multiverse crisis.. the sooner they might have to say goodbye for good since they aren't from the same universe. (Peter forever a little afraid that Miguel is going to shut down the society once the crisis is over? More likely than you think.) Who is more dominant? Lyla. It's just... Lyla ALL THE WAY. My rating of the ship from 1-10. 1000/10

[cactus-flavor]

Game of Thrones. I do not trust people who said how the show ended didn't make sense when it was all the product of the character's choices and themes.

Rant ahead cause I have thoughts.

Daenerys is an abused woman - hurt by her own throne-obsessed brother - who fought and suceeded to no longer be a victim by gaining power of her own. She relied on the narrative her brother told her: being of targaryen lineage makes you special and better than others. Being a dragon means to rule. She expanded on that yes, but it was the fundament of her world view.

The problem was that she was so used to fighting to get what she wanted that she never learned how to keep what she had. Because she never had anything of her own until he became Khaleesi, Viserys made sure of that.

Every time she gained power she lost more. Persuing the throne and crossing the sea she lost Khal Drogo. That was the starting point of her theme. What lesson did she learn? In order to maintain power, she has to expand it.

Daenerys isn't a ruler, she's a conqueror.

Her strength is to fight and claim what she desires. She has good strategic instincts and knows how to act in a crisis. She does not know how to do everyday rule. We see this the most after she struggles in maintaining her authority and the freedom of the slaves in the slave cities.

But in the last season, she takes Westeros. She has King's Landing. She has the Iron Throne. What is there left to claim? How can a conqueror persist without more, without the next goal?

She's at the peak of her power, trying to rule would only end in ruin or the type of desperate tyranny Viserys showed her. Being killed off and her dragon melting the iron throne so that no one after her will ever claim - will ever surpass her - is her success story. Not a happy ending but the only possible without ruining her rise to power arc.

Jon Snow is a runner. He is loyal and idealistic to a fault, yes, but those two qualities trip each other up. He's a deeply conflicted character right from the start, trying find a place where he belongs. And yet, he's doomed to fail. And when he fails, he leaves, to try again elsewhere like Sicciphus and his rock.

He doesn't fit in at Winterfell so he takes on the black and leaves for the wall. He has trouble fitting there too but manages for a tad. But as soon as he took his oath, he tries to rekindle old loyalities when Ned is in prison. He runs - he is brought back yes, but it clues us in further how torn of a character he is.

Then they leave on the expedition to the north. He is forced to ally with the wildlings and Ygritte (?i realized i never spelt her name until now) but old loyalities make him burn that bridge again. You get the pattern.

Later as the nightwatch commander he literally dies, killed by his own men. A violent symbolic deperature followed by a physical one away from the Wall and the Nightwatch.

Then he allies with Daenerys. Are we really surprised that his ideals and his loyalities are at war again. Of course, he kills her. How else could he satisfy his own morals and sever that bond? Is it a dick move? Yes, but that's not the point. It makes sense for both their characters.

Side note: Daenerys being killed by her lover and relative for "the better" in front of regal symbols (the thronw) adds stunning parallels. She killed Khal Drogo as an act of mercy. Now her lover kills her for the safety of kingdoms, a mercy to the people if you will. And she dies in front of the iron throne due to her ambition just like she watched Viserys be killed via a golden crown as he threathened her to gain an army to claim that very throne. Doesn't get more poetic than that.

Ok back to Snow. So after a lifetime of conflict and running. Where else has he to go? He burned all the bridges. It makes sense for him to be exiled to some unnamed place in the north with none of the other introduced characters. He can no longer bond with anyone as he escalated the way he severs his relationships to the max (aka killing his queen, blood relative and lover - thats triple kill in terms of relationships). His ending is that he has nowhere left to run and it fits the way he behaved.

Now i'm not including Bran in this post cause I'd need y'all to read my 50 page bachelor thesis on capital and power dynamics first as base to understand why it's so fitting for him to end up as a ruler.

Actually no, lemme try to summarize. So at the beginning until the exact middle of the show the driving force of power in got is money. The Lannisters are in charge, gold is a common theme and no matter how many riddles Varys gives us on power, the show answers us that it's money. (If you'd like a more through analysis hit me up, i have so many notes but for now just trust me)

That changes in the exact middle of the show when Tywin Lannister is shot on the toilet. The head of house Lannister, the one to build their fortune and power, dead, in the most unsophisticated way possible. It holds so much symbolic power that I want to kiss the showrunner on the mouth, but I digress.

So what replaces money as the main power source? Here comes Bourdieu's capital theory into play but the short version: it's culture, otherwise known as prestige. Or in Varys words, the power lies there where the people believe it to be (i only watched the german dub so pardon my french). So the people think you are the ruler then you are. For the most time of the second half of the show, it's Daenerys with her dragons and Targaryen heritage.

So how does this catapult Bran to king position? Easy. Cultural capital is also knowledge. Now Bran got the knowledge and the prestige of his Stark lineage. Not to mention that that Crow dude once served the Targaryens so you got the whole nine yards in him. Am i happy with their choice? No but thematically it fits. Plus who else could they have crowned? Dany is dead, Snow is gone, Sansa's whole arc was coming home so she better stay in Winterfell and Tyrion may have a knowledge but he's a Lannister (aka money power related). So Bran is literally the best option.

Now to the last point of complaint and my favorite, Jamie Lannister.

I am baffled how people do not see the poetic tragedy that is his life and end. At the start I hated him, he cared for nothing and no one. He desired Cersei but even that only highlighted his corrupted nature. He disregarded tradition and change the same, he was arrogant and slippery like an eel, both with his words and his actions.

Then the bath scene with Brienne happened and it brilliantly added - like no piece of media ever done before, at least not to my eyes - a revelation that turned everything we seen before from him around.

Jamie's main character trait is loyality.

He cared so deeply, held a knight's principles in high regard. He wanted approval from his father, from his king, from the world and the people he loved and vowed to serve and protect.

And they let him down. Every single one of them. His father ordered him to betray his king. To break his loyality and go against his very essence and didn't even acknowledge what sacrifice he asked him to make.

His king killed and torturted the people - expecting Jamie to do nothing, to watch his principles and beliefs as a knight be crushed and violated by the one person Jamie swore to serve the rest of his life.

Then Jamie acted on the right thing to do, he chose to be a knight, chose his family and killed his king. What a joke those virtues must have seen when for the following years Kingslayer was all they saw in him to the point that it replaced his name. Could you blame someone for tossing all the virtues out the window when that happens? I can't. Plus it makes for a wonderful complex character that isn't a good person but still good at his core in his own way.

Who is the only person who doesn't disdain him as Kingslayer? Cersei. So of xourse, he grew reliant on her. How long can you go without anyone confirming your sense of self (Jamie) before you loose it? He needs Cersei to exist, all her loyalty is to her because she is the only one left to accept Jamie.

Even more meaningful is the one moment Jamie goes against her. He leaves to the North to fight in Winterfell. Despite his dependence on Cersei - the one person who kept him Jamie, he chooses to be a knight once more. It's the only thing that can seperate them. When duty calls - the real duty, to be a protector of the realm, not the pompeoua illusions he lived among in King's Landing - Jamie answers.

And once that threat is averted? His duty as a knight is fulfilled, so the only thing keeping him from Cersei - the only thing that demanded his loyalty more - is satisfied. I think Jamie got his peace by being a proper knight again, serving the realm and not a crown he cant trust. His journey is over. But it can't erase years of trauma and dependancy so of course he returns to Cersei. What other choice did he have?

I'm not happy with their death scene although I get the whole Cersei-falling-ruin-(literally)-to her-own-ambition. It was foeshadowed/coming for a few season at that point. But Jamie being there and sharing her fate is the only option without either of them acting massively out of character.

So yes, the last season was rushed and it wasn't a happy ending but got was never one to promise a happy ending and despite that, it was a good one. It gave closure without butchering the characters. I will die on that hill

that post that’s like, fandom’s obsession with viewing characters as only relatable or shippable or defendable has ruined media literacy in being able to view characters through the lens of themes or narrative theory. character analysis one of my favourite forms of analysis but not at the detriment of being able to understand when a character represents something larger thematically in a story than what they would be if they were just a guy from your high school

[sweetestcersei]

A Journal of Ice and Fire #2: Battles and Betrayals

Is there anything more exciting in fantasy than a great battle? Yes, a great battle in fantasy packed with body horror, magic as weapons of mass destruction, sickening twists, and the icy bite of harsh allegories cutting like a sword slash across the face. The last third of A Clash of Kings (and arguably, the entire damn thing) is defined by the first on-screen siege of the War of the Five Kings – the Battle of Blackwater Bay. It's Tyrion's fleeting shining moment, where all his plotting, preparing and verbal dueling with Cersei and the small council comes to a head as Stannis lands on the shores of King's Landing. It's his Icarus moment, as he flies too close to a very green sun, and it's an exercise in hubris that begins GRRM's much-cited "villain origin story" for Tyrion. The revenge of all those he wronged comes crashing down on him, and other betrayals and falseness are spun anew as things finally, desperately start to escalate going into book 3.

In all honesty...I didn't much care for Clash the first time I read it. Sure, my favorites got to have powerful moments that spelled their demise (Catelyn) or rise (Daenerys) from the literal ashes, but I never connected with this novel much. My issue is that it feels as if the momentum from the big great end to Thrones is lost in a sort of operatic stage reset. These books are slow burns, by and large, but this one especially feels like such a slog. However, I did find myself enjoying storylines I rushed to finish to get to the main course back in 2011. Jon Snow held my attention far more than I recall back in the day, and I actually found myself...liking him? He's a bit of a snarky brat still by book 2, which is maybe why I was so bored by him as a teenager (too familiar lol).

I also made the unfortunate discovery getting through this book that I might just like Ser Davos. I always rolled my eyes at the whole Stannis plot, mostly because it had so few chapters in the first three books, but I am learning to like a cast of characters I would have previously dismissed as being "man pain porn". Davos' chapters in Dance are notorious in the fandom for being GRRM's writing at its best. I cannot deny how great those scenes are. But. I never realized I might relate to an exhausted, idealistic man realizing far too late his crisis of faith was a sign to save his liege from himself. And now, as an exhausted, idealistic man I can see how easily relatable Davos' story is.

On the topic of idealistic fools, Sansa became one of my other favorites on this re-read. Her belief that – maybe, just maybe – some people are truly good even if they can't show it, did feel weirdly resonant with me. I think there's a teenage part of me that still fears being outwardly good at the risk of being genuine or cringe. Her jaded optimism is clearly a bit of a self-insert by George (after all, he is the anti-war boomer that wrote "in the songs, all knights are gallant and all maids are beautiful"), and it landed especially well with me on this read through. Even when facing a drunk Cersei Lannister during the battle, she maintains that hope that even those who turned on her might still impart wisdom or protect her. Don't even get me started on her relationship with the Hound.

It wouldn't be a sweetestcersei post without mentioning the Lady of Casterly Rock herself. Reading her scenes from Tyrion and Sansa's POV with the knowledge of her great fall from grace was such a treat. She's much more Real Housewife than strong HBO female lead in this book, especially from Tyrion's perspective. She's often the object of comic relief, and it feels so good to watch her fail, even if you love her. You get this close to trusting her when you see her through Tyrion's eyes, until she presents Alayaya to him thinking she's won. The tense rivalry the siblings share anchors the King's Landing storyline and is one of if not the best part of the book. It reminds me of my own family and the messy, complicated dynamics I have with my own sisters. Just another George-ism that continues to feel extremely personal and made specifically for me.

Another great observation from this re-read is how perfectly George plants some very, very important seeds in his garden throughout this whole book. There's of course Daenerys' acid trip that we see foretell quite a few things in book 3, 4 and 5, but the setup for the Northern betrayal, Ramsay's bait-and-switch on Theon...the list goes on. The man works more in breadcrumbs than classic foreshadowing, and he does it wonderfully. I never even realized that Arya's final chapter in Clash was our first mention of Robb breaking his vows. Elmar Frey tells her his house has been dishonored and his "princess" will no longer be marrying him. We get little to no detail as to what the dishonor could be, beyond some unsettling gestures toward Roose Bolton's true allegiances when Arya is serving him later in the same chapter. It's a perfect example of why the series is so rewarding, even after poring over it for years.

Lastly, the chapter that truly kicked the air out of me was Catelyn and Jaime in the dungeon. I hadn't realized how intense that scene was back in the day, and found myself crying reading the whole sequence. Catelyn, believing all her children dead except for Robb and captive Sansa, barely even able to verbalize her family's most recent horror in fear of making it real is this series at its best. The desperate tone the entire chapter takes makes it feel like something that actually happened. This chapter also contains my favorite quote from the whole book:Jaime's "they make you swear and swear..." speech to Catelyn. It's how I feel in my work and personal life more often than I want to admit.

I'm happy to say I enjoyed this book far more than my first read back in 2011. I'd safely put it at #4 in my overall ranking, above Thrones. We'll see where Storm lands in my ranking once I finish it, but for now, I've got a date with Ser Davos and Salladhor Saan.

[childrensbread]

Heros of Faith: Saul

Saul's Conversion

💜 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.

“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” He replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone.

Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”

“Yes, Lord,” he answered.

The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”

“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”

But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”

Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem

Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. ~Acts 9:3-19 ✝️

Devotional

It's been said that the eyes in your head give you sight, but the eyes in your heart give you vision. Many people have blurry vision in these present times, as a result of past disappointment, unmet expectations, and frustrated wants and longings. We desperately want to see clearly, but it's as if the lens through which we perceive the world has become blurry and distorted.

In today's passage we see Saul with a physical condition of blindness, but also a spiritual crisis of vision that had meant he was the chief prosecutor for persecuting Christians. His vision was blurry, and he couldn't see Christ. He was a committed Jew, who believed he had crystal clear vision and complete clarity in his belief that Christians, who followed Jesus, must be punished.

However, as Saul made his way to persecute more Christians, God encountered him on the road to Damascus. A light flashed around him, and he fell to the ground. Afterward, when he opened his eyes, he could see nothing (verse 8). His vision had disappeared.

For seventy-two hours Saul could see nothing. Completely blind. Covered in darkness. God orchestrated a divine appointment with a man named Ananias, who placed his hands on Saul, and Saul was immediately filled with the Holy Spirit. Something like scales fell from his eyes and he could see again. Saul's vision had been restored and his spiritual eyes had been opened.

Some of us, like Saul, need to be reinspired, reenvisioned and reawakened. Many of us have been blindsided by life's circumstances and the situations we find ourselves in. We, too, like Saul, need to have the scales removed from our eyes.

Invite God to reveal where you are spiritually blind, and where he wants to touch you afresh with his power, so that in the midst of challenging circumstances, the scales can fall from your eyes.

2023 can be your year of fresh vision. What kept you in the dark can be transformed by Christ's magnificent light. What has left you blindsided can be exchanged for insight and wisdom.

Ask the Spirit of Jesus to help the scales fall from your eyes, so you can not only see Jesus clearly, but the eyes of your heart are enlightened and you encounter God afresh.

Look to God, and He will clear your lens, and lead you to a life that serves Him, and helps others. 🙂

Source: Glorify App

Image: Born Again

My Glorify Referral Link: https://share.glorify-app.com/MRSPINO777 ✝️

[coolstorysister]

Sentence starters

Well, I tried to start a revolution, but didn't print enough pamphlets so hardly anyone turned up.

Piss off, ghost!

I thought the world of you. I thought we were going to fight side-by-side forever, but at the end of the day you're you and I'm me and... oh, maybe there's still good in you but... let's be honest, our paths diverged a long time ago.

I have to get off this planet!

We know each other! They’re a friend from work!

“You cannot stop it. Why fight it?” “Because that’s what heroes do!”

I can't believe you're alive! I saw you die. I mourned you. I cried for you.

“I'm not as strong as you.” “No…you’re stronger.”

“It's not possible.” “Darling, you have no idea what's possible.”

You're becoming predictable. I trust you, you betray me, round and round in circles we go.

Life is about... It's about growth, it's about change, but you seem to just want to stay the same.

I choose to run towards my problems, and not away from them. Because's that what heroes do.

It hurts, doesn't it? Being lied to. Being told you're one thing and then learning it's all a fiction.

“You have made a grave mistake, (name).” “I make grave mistakes all the time. Everything seems to work out...”

You're officially pardoned... from life!

I thought it'd be nicer. I mean, not that it's not nice. It's just, it's on fire.

I guess I'll have to go it alone. Like I've always done.

I thought we were having a conversation?

This is the part where you run.

But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers.

Just bury me in the ocean with my ancestors who jumped from ships, 'cause they knew death was better than bondage.

You're a good man with a good heart. And it's hard for a good man to be king.

“Just don't freeze when you see her.” “What are taking about? I never freeze.”

I never yielded! And as you can see, I am not dead!

What happens now determines what happens to the rest of the world.

Guns... So primitive!

Great! Another broken white boy for us to fix.

People die every day. That's just part of life around here.

I will not abandon someone to die, when I have the means to save their life.

You were wrong - all of you were wrong - to turn your backs on the rest of the world!

The world took everything away from me! Everything I ever loved! But I'ma make sure we're even.

Just because something works doesn't mean that it cannot be improved.

Every breath you take is mercy from me.

“Did you do it?” “Yes…” “What did it cost?” “…everything.”

I know what it's like to lose. To feel so desperately that you're right, yet to fail nonetheless. It's frightening, turns the legs to jelly. I ask you to what end? Dread it. Run from it. Destiny arrives all the same. And now it's here. Or should I say, I am.

“It’ll kill you.” “Only if I die.”

I assure you, (name), the sun will shine on us again.

All my life I dreamed of a day, a moment, when you got what you deserved. And I was always so disappointed. But now, you kill and torture and you call it mercy. The universe has judged you. You asked it for a prize and it told you no. You failed. And do you wanna know why? Because you love nothing. No one.

You should have gone for the head.

You... will never be... a god.

Let me just say, if aliens wind up implanting eggs in my chest or something and I eat one of you, I'm sorry.

Dude, you're embarrassing me in front of the wizards.

I like your plan. Except, it sucks. So let me do the plan and that way it might be really good.

Don't forget, I'm half human. So that 50% of me that's stupid that's 100% you.

“Seriously? You don't have any money?” “Attachment to the material is detachment from the spiritual.” “I'll tell the guys at the deli. Maybe they'll make you a metaphysical ham and rye.”

I'm sorry, earth is closed today. You better pack it up and get outta here.

What more could I lose?

It's alright. You could never hurt me. I just feel you.

That means get lost, Squidward!

I'm not looking for forgiveness, and I'm way past asking permission.

Death follows them like a shadow.

Perfectly balanced, as all things should be.

The hardest choices require the strongest will.

I told you to go right!

There was no other way.

All this, just for a drop of blood.

Up, (name), up! This is no place to die.

Everything I hate about myself comes from you.

We don't want to kill you, but we will.

“I understand, my child. Better than anyone.” “You could never.”

I'm beginning to think... we should have stayed in bed.

Oh, god…

No. This isn’t love.

[gwenllian-in-the-abbey]

I initially had linked your excellent post about "choose your own heir" in my first draft but I ended up deleting that paragraph (alas, tumblr still decided to tag you!) because I honestly cannot actually figure out what HotD thinks succession is based on. The rules seem to change according to the needs of the plot, a big problem in a show about a succession crisis! Like, the idea that because succession laws are sometimes murky and contradictory that means that succession can always just be a free for all is obviously false, but this show seems to pick and choose at a whim and uses succession as a sort of moral yardstick without much regard for the implications.

Thing is, in S1, there seemed to be some awareness that offering Driftmark to Baela would effectively disinherit Laenor's entire "line" through Rhaenyra (claiming Luke as the only bastard That's why Rhaenyra was so desperate to get Rhaenys on her side through the betrothals, but in S2 this seems to be forgotten. We don't actually know what would happen if Baela had accepted, if this would have meant a de-facto disinheriting of Jace or a tacit approval of female line inheritance or an endorsement of "choose your own heir" rules. The show avoids these questions by dodging the issue. Baela says no, end of story!

And yes, if taking the offered inheritance does not result in Jace being effectively declared a bastard, then Baela should take it! But ironically this is also the reason why Corlys should never have made this offer. If he hands Driftmark over to the future queen, to be inherited by a future Targaryen heir with Jace (much like Eleanor of Aquitaine always intended Aquitaine for Richard) then Driftmark has effectively become part of the royal demesne. It's in fact a great move for the Targaryens, a terrible move for Corlys if he's interested in preserving Velaryon autonomy over Driftmark.

And this is a wider problem with female inheritance in general, one which the show really bypasses, along with a lot of the other intricacies of succession. Marrying heiresses was a common way of granting lands and titles to favored vassals, bastards, and second, third, fourth sons. A lady heiress only retains autonomy over her lands as long as she remains unmarried, and she can be commanded to a marriage by order of the king. We see this happen with Rhea Royce and Daemon, and it's only because that marriage is childless that Daemon does not weasel his way into that lordship, and Viserys knows better than to press the Arryns or the Royces to honor that claim given that they suspect Daemon murdered Rhea. With Daemon still alive and having two unmarried young sons, even Rhaena is a risky bet if Corlys doesn't want Driftmark going completely Targaryen. Legal dynastic takeover was a legitimate problem faced all the time when you had female heirs, an effective usurpation. It's arguably one of the reasons Jaehaerys was wary of making Rhaenys his heir once she married Corlys. It's the reason Robb wants to legitimize Jon, so the Lannisters don't end up with Winterfell now that Sansa is married to Tyrion.

Sometimes my inclination is to give the show a pass for avoiding these issues because it's kind of complex but then I remember that Game of Thrones handled them just fine and it's really not that difficult to understand. Like, the audience does not need medieval succession and inheritance dumbed down in a show about a succession crisis does it? Isn't that what we're all here for?

What do you think about Baela refusing to inherit Driftmark? And about the fact that Rhaena is seemingly forgotten in the equation?

To start with, it's helpful to look at how the book handles Driftmark's succession. We know that in Fire and Blood neither Baela nor Rhaena end up inheriting Driftmark, instead, Corlys legitimizes Alyn and Addam, and eventually Alyn inherits. The show, of course, has to get to this point too, but the difference between the show and the book is that in the book, the possibility or Baela or Rhaena inheriting is never mentioned. The betrothals between Rhaenyra's sons and Daemon's daughters are made when the children are still babies, not as a some bid to get Rhaenys to support Luke as heir to Driftmark, but likely by Laena as a way to help her brother out of a difficult situation.

Now here's where it gets tricky. In the book, by the time Rhaenys dies, Corlys has had enough. Jace talks him down from his range, makes him Hand, and when Addam and Alyn's mother, Marilda comes forward claiming the boys to be Laenor's sons, and Addam's claiming of Seasmoke seems to prove it, he asks Rhaenyra to legitimize them, which she does. Now, since the boys are officially Laenor's sons, the same as Joffrey, and they are both older than Joff, this puts them ahead of Joffrey in Driftmark's line of succession. This way Corlys can change the succession without repudiating Joffrey, which is important, because if Joffrey is passed over, that's as good as declaring his bastardy. So this way Corlys gets an heir of his own blood, and Rhaenyra still saves face.

Now HotD has Rhaenys raise the possibility of Baela becoming Rhaenyra's heir back in S1, but what the show seems to have forgotten is that this was a move which would have disinherited Lucerys, effectively proclaiming him a bastard the same way the crown ruling in favor of Vaemond would have. That's why Rhaenyra was so desperate to get Rhaenys to accept the betrothals between her boys and Daemon's girls (which, in the show did not happen when the children were babies because the show kept Daemon and Laena in Pentos for ten years), which of course she does (forget for a moment that it's not really her choice who the girls marry). However, ever since that episode aired, fans have brought up the idea that Rhaenyra is usurping Baela's right to Driftmark by keeping her boys in the Velaryon line of succession, and further, that Baela should not be content with being Jace's queen, she should want Driftmark instead, as it is rightfully hers.

And on the first part-- well, yes. Putting bastards into the line of succession is a big no, unless they've been legitimized, which requires they be acknowledged as bastards in the first place. However, this isn't news to anyone. Everyone in the extended Velaryon-Daemyra family is, for the time being anyway, in on the ruse. They all treat the fact that Rhaenyra's boys are bastards as a non-issue, and so the kids are not going to be the ones to say something. Baela cannot declare her intent to inherit Driftmark without betraying people who are important to her. Some fans clearly think she should want this, that she should find it insulting to be betrothed to Jace, but that's not Baela's character. Now, granted her loyalty makes more sense in the book, where she had known Jace since they were babies, but the show is going for loyal Baela who cares for Jace, and she's not going to press the issue on her own.

So the show having Corlys offer Baela Driftmark, and then having her turn it down, seems to be a way to shut down these arguments and clear the way for Addam/Alyn by making it crystal clear that Baela doesn't want Driftmark, while keeping Corlys' own hands clean-- hey, he's not the one choosing Rhaenyra's cause and his ambition to have a Velaryon on the throne over his granddaughter, it's Baela making the choice. At the same time, this conveniently avoids the implications for Rhaenyra's succession because Corlys' offer never goes any further. Corlys cannot truly back either of the girls as heir to Driftmark without declaring Laenor's "line" through Rhaenyra illegitimate, and if he does that, he is declaring Jace illegitimate as well. He might as well declare for Aegon II at that point because he'd be effectively dooming Rhaenyra's cause. And this is, of course, why Baela and Rhaena were never considered heirs to Driftmark in the first place in the book.

As for Rhaena, we already heard Corlys tell Rhaenys he didn't consider Rhaena a suitable heir, and Rhaenys also gave her tacit approval to Alyn and Alyn as heirs. It does seem like the show is presenting them directly as Corlys' sons, rather than Laenor's, which, if they were younger than Laenor would still put them behind his "line" in the order of Driftmark's succession, but I think the show will likely avoid this issue by making at least Alyn older (which is probably why his actor is clearly a grown man, and not a teenager like in the book). All in all, Baela's line is there because the show complicated Driftmark's succession by bringing the girls into it in the first place, something that didn't happen in the book for good reasons, and they had to address the elephant in the room in order to move Addam and Alyn's plots forward. Baela and Rhaena were never going to inherit Driftmark, so the show invents a scenario which puts that question to rest for the audience without uncovering any hypocrisies within team black.

[charmixpower]

Thinking about Stella's princess ball and wondering if that's a Solaria only thing or a custom adopted by all the royals in the magical dimension to keep certain things cohesive as to when people enter "high society" officially

And if it's the second one, Aisha's and Bloom's ball???

I have a few ideas

Aisha 1

For Aisha's I imagine that there was one set up for Aisha in season 3, so she would be officially eligible for marriage, and she just didn't go

Aisha has made it super clear though out the show that the whole pretty part, small talk, courtly behavior shit gets on her nerves. So when her parents inevitably set up the most "sit still and look pretty" "don't talk to anyone we don't say you can talk to" and "put on this seven layer dress" party possible she just....doesn't show up

Everyone sees it on Tv and Aisha just ignores it lol

Since she never technically enters high society, she can't be entered into political marriage, which is essentially her flipping off her parents by refusing to play by any of their rules

Anyways I think it would be fun if Crown Princess Tressa of Oceania was like "we should do our Princess Ball together!! Since you didn't have one :)" and this is after she was awarded the role of Supreme Guardian of Andros by Oceania, so her debut into high society is like "This is Aisha!! She spent weeks upon weeks on Andros helping deal with the Valtor crisis!! She fought tirelessly!! She's Andros hero!! Her official Noble Title is now *insert knight title that's equal in rank to the king bc she's like official protector of everything Andros now*!"

Aisha would be SO amused by this, bc she'd have a title higher than crown princess, so like??? Who's gonna tell her to sit quietly in a corset now??? She's equal rank with her dad, she wins essentially

Aisha 2

Aisha still doesn't go to her first princess ball because it's everything she hates in parties, but after the Valtor situation and Aisha putting her foot down about her not getting married, her parents back down

Anyways when Stella gets her do-over princess ball (that she desperately deserves) Stella is like "what if we do a DOUBLE!!! PRINCESS BALL!!!!!"

I feel like Stella would be super over having the day to herself, and just want someone who genuinely cares for her to be there with her after what Radius did

And Aisha is like??? Yes??? That would make these parties so much more tolerable??? I love you???

Anyways they have their Princess Ball in a third location (not on Andros or Solaria. Maybe Noctilucae) so there no political strife about why do the Princesses go there and not here, and they have a grand ol time together and they get to introduce eachother and it's really cute and they both take something that was ruined for them and makes it into something fun for them

Bloom

Bloom gets her princess ball in s5 bc Domino thinks this would be the best way to reintroduce Domino into high society. Bloom is a very safe choice for the face of Domino because she's unimaginably popular with political people for the whole stopping Valtor thing

Bloom?? Is so??? Unhappy and unprepared??? She's never been in this kind of situation and she hates attention like this with a burning passion and everything fucking sucks

I feel like Stella, Aisha, Sky, and Diaspro would all have different reactions to Bloom's discomfort that ties into their own feelings as royals

Diaspro would tell her to suck it up. Domino needs this to get back on it's feet, and she can't just turn her back on her people

Fresh off his parents commiting crimes against human rights against him "for the sake of Eraklyon", Sky goes in the exact opposite direction than Diaspro, with telling her she doesn't have to if she doesn't want to

Stella would try to encourage her to take her place as a princess, and just enjoy the party

And Aisha "I'll die for Andros" would tell Bloom to try to negotiate about her party with her parents to make herself as comfortable as possible and help Domino at the same time

Bonus Diaspro

Dia already had a princess ball in Eraklyon, which currently has a royal family in jail and who's empire is completely crumbling much to Diaspro's delight, but unsurprisingly she wants a new one. On her planet, as their princess, with her people. This probably happens in s4???? Everyone's invited. Idk how that would fit in but it would make a cool first introduction for Roxy to the Magical Dimension

Omg I just realized bc Roxy is technically the future queen of the Earth fairies she'd also get one....fnnsjdkd

That would be a cute plot point for the spin off show she deserves but never got

[justpevensies]

The Truth Will Out

Prompt: “I wasn’t being reckless! I love her!” ~

Blurb: When Edmund saves you in battle, an argument follows because he “unnecessarily” risked his life. The truth will out as they say...

Warnings: mentions of battle and physical injury, some arguing and a tiny bit of angst but overall it has a happy ending. Quite long too! 

A/N: I had this idea back in February but I never got the chance to complete it until now... and I managed to write this very quickly because I got too excited. Also I apologise for the length but there was so much to include - I hope you all enjoy it! x

It all happened far too quickly, far too suddenly. 

All that you remembered was turning and seeing an enemy sword swinging for you - in the middle of battle you were certain this was the end. That was when it went in slow motion as your name was yelled. Out of nowhere, Edmund came dashing in and collided into you, pushing you out of the way. You hit the ground and turned and saw the sword go piercing deep into him. “EDMUND” you screamed - your voice echoing - as if it were only you, him and the other swordsman in the entire field. 

Edmund had saved you... but at the cost of himself. As the pain surged through his body, you saw him turn to face you and in an instant you could tell he didn’t regret his action. Edmund had always promised since you got together that he would look after you but you didn’t expect it to be at this extent. His eyes fell closed and he dropped to the ground.

You reached to grab your sword and resumed fighting the enemy soldier, taking him down swiftly out of anger and distress over what you had witnessed. 

Before you knew it, you were helping to drag the wounded king out of the battle field with some fellow Narnians in an attempt to get him back to the castle and save his soul.

Upon arrival back at Cair Paravel, Queen Lucy and some other medical experts managed to whisk him away. In order to leave them space to work, you remained standing in the main entrance hallway of the grand palace. Compared to the clashing of battle, everything suddenly felt eerily quiet. Compared to the grandeur of your current surroundings, you looked at your stained hands and current state and you felt so inferior and alone. 

Behind you, approaching footsteps rapidly came closer. You turned to be greeted by King Peter and Queen Susan - still in full battle gear - frantically panting. 

“Where is Edmund?” Susan asked. You tried to respond but the only thing that came out where whimpers and tears. 

“He- They-” you stammered out.

Peter grabbed you, shouting: “Where is he?!”

You pointed down the hall and could only screech out: “Down there!”

As soon as Peter let you go, you fell to the ground in a puddle. Susan came down beside you and enveloped you in her arms. Both of you shed tears, both of you shared comfort. You both assumed Peter had ran away after his brother but instead he remained where he was. “What was he playing at?” Peter sighed out, almost sounding restless. 

You knew exactly what Edmund was doing and you felt it right to be honest. If Edmund’s condition was critical, it was only fair for Peter to know his brother’s intentions. In a whisper, you told him truthfully: “He was trying to save me”.

The eldest two Pevensie siblings turned to look at you, at the same time you regained strength and managed to stand up. “What?” Peter asked before you repeated your statement: “He was trying to save me. He saw one of the enemy soldiers about to harm me and he took it.”

As far as you could remember, you had never seen Peter angry. 

You could certainly reflect on times where he had been annoyed, frustrated or upset after battles or moments of crisis but the look that came upon his face was different. His eyes burned, anger and desperation seethed from within. “He was saving you?” Peter asked, seeking confirmation. After you nodded, the High King scoffed. “He- He almost died... saving you?!”

“Peter-” Susan started, immediately sensing her brother’s mood but he interrupted. 

“Is he crazy?!” Peter snapped. “You’re telling me my brother could potentially die because he chose to save you?!”

As far as you could remember, you had never been angry at Peter. Slowly, but surely, that emotion was starting to build up within you. 

“Yes Peter, he did”. You confirmed your statement and it was if it flipped a switch in both of you. Peter suddenly began shouting and bawling in a way no one had ever encountered before. “(Y/N) you do realise that a King’s life is on the line here? How could he be so reckless? Sacrificing himself and for what?!”

There was a line crossed and you shouted back to Peter: “HEY!”

Peter froze because this was an emotion he had never seen previously from you. “Your brother knew what he was doing, and there is no point in arguing over it now. He must have known what he was doing because I certainly do now”. 

The two of you were stood toe-to-toe, eye-to-eye, with Susan lingering nearby - ready to break up any further conflict. You didn’t know what Peter would say but what he did say - in the heat of the moment - was not what you expected... and it was all that was needed to break you. He responded, with a scoff and a stubborn expression plastered across his face, “Well, if he dies, that’s on you!”

This realisation came down on you like a tonne of bricks. In your mind, the tables turned and you were convinced that if Edmund died then it would be your fault. As your lip began to quiver you took a step back from Peter, almost as if you were retreating. Peter took a final look at you before turning and walking off. 

You didn’t realise how far back you were walking until Susan reached out and stopped you with an arm across your back. “(Y/N)-” she began to assure you. However, you couldn’t take it and you turned and ran off, tears of despair and guilt beginning to free fall. Susan began shouting after you but they faded to nothing, as the words and thoughts in your mind began to consume you.

~

When Edmund finally gained consciousness, the first thing he could make out through his blurred vision was the outline of three heads.

Towering over him, they soon became clearer and he recognised his three siblings - looks of worry and panic were across all of their faces. These were quickly replaced with relief as they all smiled at their awakening brother. Ed gave them a weak smile before they all grabbed him into a tight group hug.

“Oh Ed!” Peter whispered, a tear in his eye. “You gave us all a nasty scare, that was close!”

When Edmund finally could sit back, he looked at them all with a growing smile before he suddenly realised an absence. You were not there.

His smile weakening - he was happy to see his siblings, of course, but it was odd for you not to be there - he inquired about your whereabouts. 

“Where is (Y/N)?” he asked in a low voice, it being rather husky after being asleep for a while. The other 3 Pevensies began to look at each other, none of them wanting to say anything about what had occured. Peter, especially, had a guilty look plastered across his face and when Edmund caught sight of it, he knew something wasn’t right. “Where is (Y/N)?!” He asked again, this time raising his voice. There was a sudden shift in the room before Susan looked at Peter, both of them aware that he would have to own up.

Peter shifted his gaze, hands fidgeting and Edmund started at him with a furrowed brow - he knew truly that his brother was hiding something. “I-” Peter began to stammer, “I-”, “I-”. Edmund interrupted “You what?”. 

Peter knew his brother wouldn’t take anything except the truth so he spat out: “I don’t know where she is”. Edmund’s look of frustration suddenly became one of confusion. Upon looking at his sisters, he realised that they didn’t know either. “What do you mean you don’t know where she is?” Edmund queried, his inner panic beginning to increase. 

For the first time, Peter looked Edmund in the eyes and what he saw was true agony in his brother. Peter didn’t want to say it but he had to: “I shouted at her. I told her that if you hadn’t taken that blade then you wouldn’t be wounded-” Edmund interrupted him again and his emotion had changed to anger. “So you told her that all of this was her fault?” Full of guilt and shame, Peter began to well up and he nodded cowardly. Nothing more needed to be said before Edmund scoffed and was out of bed, despite his wounds, and running to the door.

Peter and Lucy frantically began to shout after him but Susan grabbed their respective arms and held them back. She knew they needed to let him go. Edmund’s footsteps quickly began to fade away as he ran in search of you. He needed you. 

~

You had buried your face in your bedroom pillow for goodness knows how long. Tears just naturally flowed and the fabric helped muffle your screams and loud breathing as you continued to grieve. The entire moment that Edmund pushed you aside replayed in your mind and every voice within your head told you the same things: “It’s your fault”. 

The pounding in your heart and the echoing in your head was suddenly replaced with a pounding on your door and an echoing voice calling out your name. “(Y/N)!” You immediately sat up because you knew that voice was Edmund’s - he was shouting for you in the same tone that he had done earlier that day. He wanted to help you, he wanted to save you.

His voice continued to call your name as he banged on the bedroom door. Wiping away whatever marks of emotion were on your face, you went to the door and the sight that greeted you almost broke you. The Edmund that stood before you had a face drowned in sorrow - you could see his emotional and physical pain and part of you could almost feel it. As soon as he saw your equally distraught face, he immediately fell into you and embraced you as tight as he could.

Kicking the door shut with his foot, you let the water burst through and sobbed uncontrollably into his chest. For the entire ordeal, Edmund just continued to soothe you and comfort you, whispering words of love into your ear. “My love, you’re alright - we’re safe. We’re all safe”. At that, you paused to look up to him, and were met eyes overflowing with love, yet stained with sadness. “Oh Ed, I’m so sorry” you whispered with a broken voice. He cupped your face in his hands, his thumbs softly pushing away any tears that fell. “I’m so sorry for what’s happened. I didn’t mean for this to happen to you. I-”. Edmund shut you up by pulling you in for the deepest kiss he had ever given you. By the time you both broke away, you were both breathless. 

With one hand on your face, he grabbed your hand and held it against his heart. There was a change in Edmund’s stature and tone, his voice was now affirmative and he stood tall, almost as if he was ready to address a battlefield full of troops. His eyes now burned with passion and love, and this was unlike anything you had ever seen from him. “My love, I’ll tell you something right now”. He remembered what Peter had said and he wanted to tell you the truth. “You don’t need to say sorry to me - I’m sorry for what you’ve endured today. I did what I did because I wanted to save you - I love you, I couldn’t let anything happen to you. I always said I’d love and look after you. That was my intention, and if something happened to me then that’s on me. I love you and nothing will change that, in life or death. You’re irreplacable to me”. 

Those last few words were enough to make you want to cry with joy... but you didn’t. Instead, you just looked at Edmund as his words began to mend your heart and heal your wounds. The look between you both radiated nothing but devotion and, at that, you returned his kiss. 

~

After your reunion and amendments, you both returned and strolled into Edmund’s bedchamber - hands clasped together - and were greeted by the 3 remaining Pevensies. All of them immediately stood up as you both walked in, faint smiles beginning to grow on your faces. 

Peter stepped forward, “Well I see you found each other”. You & Ed looked at each other and you nodded at the High King. Your voice full of courage (with a hand squeeze of encouragement from Ed) you calmly responded: “Yes, we did”. 

Peter went to apologise but before he could say anything, Edmund got there first. “You don’t need to say anything Pete. None of you need say anything about what happened today. I can tell you one thing, I wasn’t being reckless. I love her”. The King and Queens all looked stunned - never having heard Edmund say anything like this before - and when they knew he was serious, they all slowly began to smile.

You looked up to Edmund and he, too, began to smile. You knew he was serious and that this was the truth. Between the two of you, there was nothing but love. 

[ppersonna]

waking up in vegas - jjk | m

get up and shake the glitter off your clothes, now.  that's what you get for waking up in Vegas - waking up in vegas, katy perry

↳ summary- you know what they say. what happens in vegas, stays in vegas.  but, what happens when you accidentally marry your brother’s best friend?

↳ rating- explicit/18+/nsfw

↳ pairing- jeon jungkook x reader

↳ word count- 3.1k

↳ genre- fluff, smut, pwp with feels

↳ warnings- penetrative sex, fingering, unprotected sex (be smart friends), cream pies, light dirty talk, jungkook being cute af, slight nipple play

↳ a/n- well. i can’t tell you why i decided to write this, but i did.  and it’s cute? i hope you enjoy this! thanks to @taetaewonderland​ @kookiesjoonies​ for reading it over and for @ladyartemesia​ and @xjoonchildx​ for being the best hype team a lady could ask for.  i love uuuU!!!! feel free to hmu if you’d like!

 It’s a splitting headache that wakes you up from your near comatose sleep.

Your eyes blink open and you groan when a sliver of light bores into your vision.  The curtains are closed but there’s just enough of a crack that the sunlight seeps in directly onto your face.

You roll over in the expansive hotel bed and hold a pillow to your face as you groan out loud.

What happened last night?

All you remember is being with the guys, celebrating your brother Namjoon’s upcoming nuptials by bar-hopping your way down the main strip of Las Vegas.

It all gets pretty blurry from there.

You know you’re in a hotel room and you hope it’s yours.  You can’t remember if you made it back to your own room or if you found someone to share the night with.  There had been that cute guy at the first bar who bought you a drink.  Maybe you’d gone home with him.

You chance a look at the bed and see a human-sized lump next to you, a tiny bit of black hair sticking out.

The black hair was nondescript, and you had no idea who it could be.  There surely were a thousand men in the greater Las Vegas area alone with black hair.  It could be anyone.

Looking around the room, you notice the decor is like that of your own hotel.  But the layout of the room is different.  You bite your lip as you notice you’re completely naked as well.  You’re in a stranger’s room and nude.  Well, at least you’re in the right hotel.

You’re desperate to know who the mystery person under the blankets is, but a war rages within you—should you grab whatever clothes you can find and book it before they wake up?  What if your beer goggles were a little too foggy last night?  How would you feel if you woke up next to someone 20 years older than you?  Or god forbid, younger than you?

A groan comes from the blankets beside you and you panic.  You quickly lay back down in bed and pretend to sleep, back turned to the stranger beside you.

“Fuuuuuck,” the voice grumbles as they emerge from the white cotton bunker they huddled under.

Your pulse froze in your veins.

That voice.  It was so familiar.  It couldn’t be.

You peek an eye out and see the back of a head, unruly black hair sticking out in different directions.  The man smacks his lips as he adjusts his eyes to the low light of the bedroom, before he turns and looks in your direction.

You nearly gasp in horror.

Jeon Jungkook stares at you with a dopey grin on his face. He’s shirtless, and you hate how your eyes can’t stop staring at the way his muscles ripple down his back.  Even in times of crisis you’re still achingly attracted to him.

Jeon Jungkook is your brother Namjoon’s best friend, soon-to-be best man at his wedding, and your decades long secret crush.

The fact that you’re waking up naked in his bed is equal parts distressing as it is titillating.  

“Oh!” He looks startled. “What are you doing here?”

You’ve pulled the sheets up to your chin, covering any inch of exposed skin.

“Uh, I don’t know,” you whisper as you swallow hard.  “I was hoping you would know.”

Jungkook sits and squints his eyes, as if he’s trying to directly visualize into the past.

“Did we end up drinking in here last night after we went out?” He asks as he rubs at his messy hair.

He drops his left hand to the bed, then freezes, eyes locked on his fingers.

“Oh, my god.”

You sit up, worried he’s recalled something that you don’t.

He spins his head to look at yours and notices your bare shoulders.  His eyes widen and he grabs your arm, reaching for your left hand anxiously.

Before you can open your mouth to question his movements, your eyes follow where his eyesight lands.

A gorgeous, sparkling wedding ring sits on your delicate finger, sparkling in the single strip of sunlight beaming through the windows.  

Your throat goes dry.  Jungkook lifts his own hand and presents a silver band on his ring finger and you nearly faint.

You’re married.

To Jeon Jungkook.

You got drunkenly married to your childhood crush and your brother’s best friend.

“Namjoon is going to kill me,” he groans.  He dramatically falls back onto the pillows and covers his face in shame.

You bite your lip carefully and study the ring on your hand.  It’s stunning.  It’s the size and shape you’ve always dreamed of having.  You can’t help but note the irony of it all.   Your dream ring and your dream husband.

Jungkook turns his head to look at you, stares at the soft skin of your bare back.

“Oh, my god, we fucked.”  He covers his face with his hands again, muffling his words.  You’re grateful that he can’t see your face—can’t see the way your cheeks are flaring bright red.

“I had sex with the girl I’ve been in love with for years and I don’t even remember if I did well or not,” he cries.

Your own head whips to where the boy lies prone on the bed, groaning his sorrows into his palms.

Did Jungkook just admit out loud that he’s been in love with you?  Were you hearing that right?  You nearly pinch yourself to check and make sure you’re not dreaming.  There’s no way.  Was there?

“What did you just say?” You question.

He peeks at you through his fingers covering his face, a bashful look on his face.

“Was I good? Did I make you cum? God, please don’t tell me I finished too quickly.”

You shake your head and scoot closer, desperate for confirmation of what he just said.

“Not that, you idiot. I don’t remember either.  What did you say before that?”

Jungkook’s cheeks turn pink and you hold back any cooing that’s desperate to claw out of your throat at the sight.

“I uhh,” he stumbles. “I sort of may be a little… into you.  Like, a lot.”

He hides his face again with his hands, but his grin gives him away.  He’s bashful, and you want to push him off the bed as much as you want to kiss him.

“You fucking asshole!” You laugh as you shove at his arm. “I’ve had a crush on you since I was 6!  Ever since Namjoon crushed my Barbie dream house and you helped me fix it.”

He pulls his hands off his face and slaps them down on the bed, eyes wide with surprise.

“Really?!” He asks.

“Yes, you idiot,” you sigh.  “Why else would I drunkenly agree to marry you?”

Jungkook sits up and smiles, like a puppy.  His arms wrap around you and he pulls you in for a hug. It’s tight, and innocent and you can tell he’s still beaming from ear to ear.  It makes you smile as you wrap your arms around his middle and return the enthusiasm.

He pulls back and holds you away from his body with his hands on your shoulders.  His eyes are lit and he looks like a kid on Christmas.

“We’re married!” He exclaims.

You can’t help but laugh.  “Yes, we are.  A little non-traditional but, it worked out in our favor.”

Jungkook slides his hand down to hold your left, bringing it to his lips and kissing the diamond-studded finger gently.

He lets your hands drop, and he smiles at you, silence shrouding the two of you on the king-sized bed.  He seems to be taken, deep in pleasant thoughts.  

“Wait!” He jerks back to reality. “We fucked.  But you don’t remember it, and I don’t remember it.”

You bite your lip, suddenly shy.   “Yes?”

“So we can’t even truthfully say we’ve consummated the marriage.”  He looks at you as if he expects you to follow his train of thought.

“Kook, I’m hungover.  Can you just… spill it?”

He sighs dramatically, but the grin remains.

“Lets fuck? It is our honeymoon, after all.” He winks as he crawls towards you.  

The sheet has fallen off his lower body now and your eyes widen at the sight.  He’s hard and impressively thick. ��He’s shameless too, knows you’re staring and doesn’t move to hide it.  In fact, he appears to make it more on display as he hovers over you.

“I’ve dreamt of this moment,” he sighs as he approaches you, comes face to face above you.

Jungkook is no longer the silly, playful puppy dog you know and love.  His eyes are dark and blown wide, breath heavy and confident.  He oozes a raw sensuality that has you squeezing your thighs tight.  

“I’ve always wondered what you’d look like underneath me with those big, beautiful eyes of yours,” he breathes as he leans down to pepper your collar with kisses.  

“Will you let me make you feel good? Give you a honeymoon you’ll never forget?” He asks, fingers playing with the sheet but never straying further.  He’s waiting for you, waiting for your consent or denial.

“Please,” you gasp as his fingers tickle the skin of your decolletage.  “I want you.”

Your acceptance is all he needs to hear before he’s pulling down the stark white sheet from your chest and exposing your breasts.  He licks his lips as he stares at you, and your body warms under his gaze.

“Fuck, you really looked like this under your clothes?  All this time?”  He asks, his voice turning needy and whiny.  “No wonder Namjoon kept you under lock and key.”

You huff lightly.  “Can we not talk about my brother during sex?”

Jungkook chuckles and nods, before bringing a finger up to pinch and tug at a nipple.  It makes you both moan, and the bud hardens beneath his touch.

“Fuck,” he repeats.  He seems to be stuck on a constant loop of surprise.  He seems just as dazed as you—unsure if this is real but unwilling to wake up if it’s not.

His cock hardens even more—you can feel it through the cotton sheet on your thighs and you’re desperate to touch him.  As he lowers his mouth to suck your nipple into his mouth, you push the remaining bits of sheets and mused blankets off your body and reach for his cock with a groan.

Jungkook inhales sharply around your nipple as he feels your warm hand grip him.  It makes his cock twitch in your grasp and he sucks harder to compensate.  

Your back arches with the force of his suction, and your hand strokes his length languidly.  He nearly whines onto your breast, before he pops off and lifts his head—eyes closed and mouth dropped open in bliss.

“S-shit, your hand feels so fucking good,” he whispers through gritted teeth.

“Imagine how my pussy will feel,” you counter.

Jungkook drops his head onto your breast at your words.

“You’re gonna kill me with that dirty mouth.”

“That’s the plan.”   Your hands tug at his black locks until his lips meet yours, meshing them in a deep and passionate kiss.

His hand slides down between your legs, slithers to your heat where he presses two fingers inside you and groans at the wetness there.  It makes you gasp and whimper into his mouth as he fucks your relentlessly with his fingers.

“Dirty little girl,” he whispers as he bites your lip and tugs.  “Can’t believe you’re mine.  This pussy is all mine, now.”

You nod quickly and desperately as your legs fall open even more.  The wetness of your channel is squelching around his fingers and Jungkook’s groans muddle with your own in the expansive room.  His fingers scissor you open and you’re keening at the stretch.

“Gotta get this tight cunt ready for my cock,” he breathes as he sucks a spot on your neck.  You’re sure it’s gonna leave a dark mark, and you thrill at the idea.  You want the world to see you’re his—you’re finally his.

“P-Please,” you beg as you feel your body coming closer to the breaking point.

Jungkook growls as he pulls his hand from inside you and shakes his head.

“I want you to cum on my cock.”  He lines himself up and rubs the head of his cock up and down the slit.

“You okay without a condom?” He asks, waiting with the bulbous head still catching the slick of your pussy, not quite pushed in fully.  “I’m clean.”

You’re whimpering—the feeling of his thickness so close to being inside of you has your mind nearly empty.    You nod your consent.  

“I’m good too.  On the pill.”

It’s all the boy needs to finally push his length into you.  His head throws back in bliss as he feels your tight walls accept him.  You wrap your legs around his waist to encourage him deeper, pulling him in to the hilt.  

“A-ah,” he gasps. “You feel so fucking good.” His hands grip your hips as he stills himself for a moment—allows himself a minute to catch his breath and beg his body not to cum too quickly.

“So big,” you whine. “Fuck, Jungkook, baby…”

There’s nothing else to say, no ability to speak as he pulls his length out slowly and slams it back in, knocking all the air in your lungs with it.  

“You’re finally all mine,” he grits as he thrusts in and out of you again, as deep as he can.  “My fuckin’ dream girl, all mine.”

He finally opens his eyes and watches as your cunt takes each thrust, watches your tits bounce in time with his pistoning hips.  He can’t help but travel up to your face, where your mouth opens in silent rapture and you focus your eyes on him—like he’s the only man in the universe.  Jungkook has never felt more powerful, more loved.  The girl he’s only ever pined over is finally here, finally beneath him, wearing his ring.   While he doesn’t remember how it started, he’s sure as hell he will remember how it continues.

You squeak out moans with each harsh thrust, reveling in the way the tip of his cock kisses your cervix and drags against your walls.  Feeling him bare—rubbing and hitting each spot that has you gasping for air and seeing new colors, is sending you closer and closer to a screaming finish.

Your hands hold his powerful arms, grip the muscles of his biceps you’ve spent years drooling over.  You can’t comprehend that he’s yours now, all yours to touch and feel and fuck.  And love.  You finally can shower the man with all the love you’ve cultivated for him, and you plan to start now.

“L-love you, Jungkook, fuck! I love you,”  You gasp.

His rhythm stutters as he registers your words, and he feels his stomach tighten—your admission bringing him even closer to his climax.  His hands grip your hips tighter, knowing he’s sure to leave bruises there.

“G-god, baby,” he grunts as he thrusts into you harder, faster.  The sounds of your cunt are music to his ears, the slick juices squelching around his cock.  “I’ve always loved you.”

He removes a hand from your hip and rubs your clit with the pad of his thumb, eyes now firmly locked with yours.  Your legs fly up to rest on his shoulders and the new position has him hitting you even deeper.  

“Cum with me, baby,” he begs as his thumb circles your clit harder, applies more direct pressure.  “Wanna see my pretty wife cum on my cock.”

Your spine tingles as it builds and you’re gaping for breath as your orgasm slams into you like a freight train.  Your entire body is alight with licking flames and electric shock.  Your cunt pulsates wildly around his cock, gripping so tight that Jungkook lasts only a few more thrusts before he’s cumming hard inside you.

Jungkook gasps your name as his cock spills his load inside you, emptying himself completely.  Your walls are coaxing him, stroking and encouraging him to spill so deep, as if it can’t get enough of him.  

You take nearly a full few minutes before your vision returns to normal and your breathing settles down from the heavy breathing.  Your legs are still on Jungkook’s shoulders and his cock still rests deep inside you, softening gently.

“Holy shit,” you whisper with a long exhale.

Jungkook nods and lets out a chuckle.  He eases his cock out of you, sighing with pride at the way his thick cum slides out of you with it.  He can’t believe that this is him, and that is you.  That his cum is what’s decorating the inside of your walls, that he gets to be the one to do it—always.

Jungkook lies beside you and wraps an arm around your waist, pulling you to kiss him sweetly.

“I know we sort of skipped the whole dating part and went right to marriage,” he says sheepishly. “But, I was hoping you’d let me take you to dinner sometime?”

You can’t help but cup his cute cheeks and kiss him again—your heart feels as if it might burst.  

He pulls you close, wraps his hands around you to pull you on top of him.  His cock is jerking with the need to go again, to be buried inside you once more.

You smile as you straddle him, lining his cock up with your soaked heat before sitting fully and allowing him to enter until he’s completely enveloped.  You gasp out his name at the feeling—oversensitive but still not yet satisfied.  You sit and marvel at how he feels inside you—you think you could let Jungkook be there forever, as if it’s where he’s meant to be.

A harsh knock pounds on the door, before the clicking noise of the lock moves and allows entrance to the intruder.  Jungkook is quick to throw the sheets of your combined bodies, you still straddled and laying on top of him.

“Kook! Have you seen my fucking sister? Where the hell--,” your brother is cut off mid-sentence as he takes in the scene in front of him.

“Uh,” Jungkook blushes. “Hey, new brother-in-law.”

Namjoon quickly averts his eyes and backs away quickly. 

“Jesus! Christ!” He complains as he moves out of the field of vision.

“You two get dressed now!” He demands from the hallway. “You have some explaining to do!”

You can’t help but giggle as Jungkook’s features turn stark white with fear.  You press a kiss to his lips for reassurance.

“It’s okay, babe,” you whisper as you pat his cheeks.

“And what the fuck do you mean by brother-in-law!?” Namjoon shrieks.  “Jeon Jungkook, I’ll fucking kill you!”

© ppersonna - 2020 - do not repost on any site, or translate without express permission from author.

[leo-selfship]

Meet the Bridal Party: Who’s Who!

With the wedding in three days, I figured it was about time to start talking about the Bridal Party, and who they are!

The Groom:

Ba’al is my Space Mr. Darcy. Incredibly charming and intelligent and confident - and also an asshole (affectionate). He’s a member of a species called the Goa’uld, which require a host body to live (think venom). During the crisis in which we met, I became his host for a period of several months, and since we formed an incredibly close bond.

He is my Brain Worm Parasite Man and I love him.

The Bride:

Leona Hawthorne is my Stargate: SG1 S/I, and is a universe hopper! (From here in out referred to by I/me). I'm looking for my home universe, but I've spent a lot of time on SG:1's Earth because of how close it is to home - it’s basically the same, just with some added interplanetary threats. Also the fact that my Rift Device got broken in my crash to Earth.

Ba’al has vowed to try and repair it, though and plans to come with me if/when I eventually move on. (Has superpowers and an elongated lifespan).

The Best Man/Walks me down the Aisle:

Colonel Jack O'Neill is like family to me. Not only was I his roommate for a time once I got cleared by the SGC, but we've also been through hell and back and I wouldn't want anyone else to give me away, in lieu of my family.

Not happy I'm marrying a literal parasite and also former enemy. But after Ba'al has come through in desperate situations more than once, and (helped) saved the day from the Replicators, he grudgingly accepts that maybe he's not all that bad.

Will get into Verbal and Physical battles with both of us.

The Groomsmen:

Doctor Daniel Jackson, my fav archeologist and boyfriend. Yes I am marrying Ba'al. Yes Daniel is my boyfriend. He understands that Ba'al and i literally have each other's memories and basically got our brains scrambled into each other's. Kind of hard to compete with that, even when I love them both so, so much. He ships us tho, and is bringing his girlfriend to the wedding as his plus one, and it will be very cute.

(He was dead when Ba'al proposed 💀. He came back though.)

Teal'c, alien icon, rose up against the false god ruling his people and killed him to death.

Nearly did the same to Ba'al when he went to Sg-1 for help to save me from a rival Goa’uld.

Stoic, intimidating, and the King of unexpected deadpan humor.

Colonel Cameron Mitchell is another man who saw me and was like "my sister now." He is so full of kindness and sass. Nearly died in a dogfight With aliens over Antarctica, but he's too stubborn to die.

He thinks Ba'al is hilarious actually but won't let anybody know that.

The Maid of Honor:

Colonel Samantha Carter, best astrophysicist this side of the Milky Way. Intentionally caused a star to go supernova. I have drunkenly made out with her. More than once. #galpals

Strange tension with Ba'al That has me feeling A Sort of Way sometimes.

Not afraid to deck someone for being condescending and sexist.

The Bridesmaids:

Doctor Janet Frasier! My buddy my friend my pal. Such a big heart, and so, so fierce. The reason why everyone on this list is still alive! Also the reason I go to the medbay so often (haha jk it's bc of chronic illness)

Suppose to be dead but I said Fuck That and fixed it.

(it was Ba'al that saved her but I helped)

Vala Mal'doran, compulsive liar and life of the party. Of you've earned her trust you'll have a great time. If you haven't she'll con you out of everything you own and you'll thank her for it. Decided she wants to be a better person, but don't take everything she tells you at face value, will you?

I think she thinks I'm serious about being a witch?

Honorable mention from the guest list:

General Hammond, Jacob Carter and his symbiote Selmak, Martouf and his symbiote Lanteash, Skarra, Oma, Braytac, Ryac, Cassandra, Jonas Quinn, and Anat (oc)!

Unfortunately, Supreme Commander Thor will be unable to join us due to the fact that he's a little grey alien and would break international secrecy laws were he to show himself to the members of the public that will be present.

But he has sent a nice fruit basket, and a in depth run through of the Asgard's limited knowledge of interdimensional travel.

[fapangel]

Russo-Ukraine War - The International Angle

(Google Docs Version)

Whilst the current events have struck the morons mercifully mute, the usual midwits are still happily rolling perfectly spherical armies around on frictionless battlefields; and chief among their sins is ignorance of the incredible rapidity with which serious international resistance has coalesced against Russia. France, one of the most prolific arms and military equipment exporters on Earth – as well as a nuclear power – have not only promised Ukraine money and military aid, but publicly said that the war is going to last a while. That’s not a prediction – that’s a promise, from the leader of a nation that can absolutely pour enough supplies and military materiel into Ukraine to make good on it. And he is far, far from alone. In the most unusual reversal, Germany has approved the transfer ofhundreds of German-made anti-tank rockets from the Netherlands to Ukraine. This, from a country hell-bent on sucking at the energy teat of Russia, contributed only helmets to Ukraine, and even blocked the transfer of Latvian howitzers to Ukraine on the basis that the obsolete Soviet-era weapons had once belonged to East Germany. Sanctions, having failed to deter this crisis, have been discarded in favor of actual embargoes – the EU has completely banned its member states (and companies therein) from doing any aviation business whatsoever with Russia, retroactive to old contracts, which means that every Airbus aircraft in the country will soon be effectively grounded. If the US follows suit (and it probably will) it takes every Boeing jet with it, too. Russia’s state airline, Aeroflot, will be effectively grounded – which won’t matter in the UK, which has already banned Russian aircraft, commercial or private, from its airspace.

These drastic shifts only took 48 hours to develop. The meteoric rise of resistance contrasts sharply to the swift plunge of Russian readiness, with multiple videos on social media showing Russian units stranded for lack of fuel; showing Russia’s supply lines are already over-strained.It is no wonder that Putin is clearly nervous. He should be. Because as dramatic as the reversal of the world’s previously simpering treatment of Russia is, it’s not surprising, and, in fact, there’s every reason to believe it will continue to strengthen. To understand why, you must realize that Putin is terrifying the world. He’s just pulled out a grenade in the midst of a knitting circle meeting.

“The End Of History”

Naturally, this all revolves around nukes.

Way back when, when the plains were dark with buffalo, wars happened fairly often. Not the wars the zoomer generation know; brush wars, counter-insurgencies, long wastes of money in faraway places. Capital W War, like the one we’re seeing now; where hundreds of thousands of men clashed in desperate battles and the fate of entire nations hung in the balance. Every generation could expect at least one; because there was always some king(dom) who was on top of the economic pile at the time and figured they should grab while the getting was good. The only thing keeping them somewhat in check was that the world was what the eggheads call “multipolar;” i.e. once you got stuck in with one opponent, your Traditional Enemies (viz. anyone you’d shared a border with for centuries) were guaranteed to jump in and take some kidney shots while you were too busy to fend them off. (France cannonballing into the American Revolutionary War and the multi-nation intervention against the Ottoman Empire during the Greek Revolution are two classic examples of this.)

Then WWII ended.

Yes, ended. WWII wasn’t the biggest upheaval; it was in many ways a re-run of WWI only one generation later, with the previous no-holds-barred, every-country-for-himself mass melee evolving as larger and larger alliances formed, which is how, eventually, voting one Archduke off the island spiraled into a superalliance vs. superalliance showdown in ten seconds flat. (Zoomers won’t get this joke.) The world-changing shift is the one that ended WWII, when the land of the Rising Sun encountered a falling one at 8:16AM on August 6th, 1945. This changed the bi-polar nation-state (of nature) dynamic from a high-noon showdown to a Mexican standoff now known as the Cold War. You know the rest; both sides shit-tested and proxy-warred against each other for decades, but, ultimately, it turned out that neither side was totally insane and they both wanted to live. Before nukes, starting a war ran a risk of it ending with enemy forces marching into one’s palace and hanging one from the lobby chandelier, but within a generation nukes had made it a nigh-certainty – along with the guaranteed effective destruction of one’s country, and thus one’s immortal legacy as a leader. The Cold War established, through many decades and various crises, that the severity of the threat was actually sufficient to counteract the loss of wiggle room for human error that’d buttressed all prior nations since the dawn of recorded history. That last part is important – it’s not often mentioned by the erudite academics from their ivory Think Tanks, nor in The Literature, but one of the strongest legacies of the Cold War is that Mutual Assured Destruction actually does deter nuclear use, and that nobody is keen to let the genie out of the bottle. Be it a lone king or a vast national government, everyone weighs risk vs. reward, and since nobody’s fought a nuclear war before, but plenty have abstained from one, the sure bet appeals more than the unknown gamble. Thus the Sword of Damocles became a hand grenade, and the thrones of the world, likewise, unassailable.

And then the Cold War ended, and lo, did the midwits rejoice. For now, they had a stable, peaceful world; girdled by the gentleman’s dueling agreements that limited things to pistols in order to keep the artillery away – but now the other fellow had tripped and fallen, his cannon was rusty and he was asking for a loan! The best of both worlds had arrived; the peace of the standoff without the shadow of the Grenade hovering overhead. The epic tides and flows of History had ended, and now the future was safe, beige and covered with sponsored advertising.

And so heady was that wine that many of those midwits remained drunk on it right up until Russian tanks rolled over the Ukrainian border a few days ago.

You see, it was pretty clear to anyone intelligent at least fifteen years ago that China was not keen on joining the gentleman’s club, and wasn’t content with puffing cigars and the occasional gentlemanly three-paces-turn-and-fire stuff. The same for Russia; greatly weakened, some limbs shorn, but still lugging its legacy Grenade. In other words, the world was multi-polar again – perhaps not the multi-nation cagematch it’d been pre-1900s but multi-polar nonetheless.

And now, the Grenade of Damocles had completely removed any penalty for great gambles – you mightlose your stake, but neveryour shirt. Which, in turn, meant that the sanctified International Norms had lost the altar that supported them. They lived on as religion, shared fiction who’s power relied on mutual belief, much like the US Dollar.

The loud noise we all heard a few days ago was Putin hurling that rulebook through the plate-glass window before smashing a chair over Ukraine’s head, whaling away as the other Gentleman stared in mute shock. In one move Putin swept away The Rules and all but laughed as he flashed his Grenade; confident in it’s paralyzing power.

And now the leaders of the world are, at long last, getting off their numb asses and scrambling with great haste to adapt; to prevent this terrifying new two-tierworld where those with Grenades can do anything they please to those without, and will naturally race to do so before said hapless ones manage to scrounge up their own. War, capital-W War, is back on the menu, and just as oxygen cannot selectively exist here or there in a volume, but only be present or absent, so to can War only kindle somewhere if everywhere is flammable.

The leaders of the world are scared.

And they damn well should be.

Nook Nook

Yesterday, someone in the Kremlin was instructed to take a Topol-M ICBM out on its transporter-erector-launcher truck and take it for a walk around Moscow a few times – and when not enough drivers uploaded giddy smartphone cam video to Tik-Tok fast enough, some Russian sockpuppet accounts started signal-boosting it, occasionally with poorly photoshopped “invasion triangles” on it as if it was driving around in Ukraine just for funsies. As gauche as this gun-flashing was, it was also redundant, given the explicit nuclear threat Putin issued to all would-be interventionists at the beginning of his invasion and the major nuclear exercises he timed to coincide with the invasion. Most stunning, however, was the threats issued to Sweden and Finland should they dare join NATO; making it explicit that what Putin is doing to Ukraine right now could befall anyone, anyone who makes a move to prevent the possibility. And indeed, the powerhouses of NATO are already explicitly worried that the taking will not stop, and as a Twitter search for “Taiwan” makes clear, it is lost on nobody what the global consequences of the New Rules could be.

But just as bad is the obsolescence of the old playbooks. The “rules” of the Cold War’s Mexican Standoff were explicit from the get-go; kill me, I take you down with me. How to work with and around that, how far you could push, where exactly the red line lay; it took decades to find out. It’s the difference between knowing the rules to chess, and knowing how to actually play it without getting your ass kicked. The smug assurance of the International Normists is that of the chess grandmaster who has read all the books and knows all the Queen’s Gambits; an accomplished player of a known game.

Now Putin has upset the gameboard and smashed it over Ukraine’s head, making it explicit that the actual rules changed long ago, and everyone was just persisting with the old game because it was so much more convenient than rolling dice under the long shadow of the Grenade of Damocles. Putin is the first leader to cast that consensus away since it was formed, and now everyone else has to ask how many more gentleman’s agreements he will cast aside. Because under Mexican Standoff rules, anyone without a gun is a fair target. Tactical nuclear employment on Ukraine, for instance – what are you going to do about it, NATO? Nuke me? Are you willing to risk your very existence to defend Ukraine?

This question strikes at the heart of the NATO alliance; which exists only insofar as it huddles under the Nuclear Umbrella. The bi-polar world of yesteryear formed in the shadow of two colossi squaring off as everyone else scrambled to pick one side or another, for if they didn’t they’d be in the crossfire when the shooting started. Now, however, the standoff isn’t guaranteed; and America is squaring up with the new kid on the block, China. But everyone still has grenades to throw, so will America really risk that exchange to protect nations whom aren’t in the line of fire with China, nations who aren’t intrinsically interested and salient to America’s struggle for survival? It’s far less clear cut than before. Everything is. And the dangers inherent to those unknown unknowns are so great, so compelling, that it’s chiefly responsible for many midwits – and some genuinely smart people – mistaking them as the ironclad Rules, rather than the playbook. To dive so deep, so fast into that dark pool, as Putin has, is patently insane by the ~norms~ of the West, and it forces them to ask; how far is he willing to alter this deal?

How far will he go?

Everyone Signals with their nukes, of course, but ever since History Ended that was just the Teller-Ulam Gambit, from page 47 of Play International Chess For Fun and Profit!, as traditional and wholesome as dad cleaning his guns on the kitchen table waiting for his daughter’s prom date to walk through the door. Last week, driving that Topol-M around Moscow was about as exciting as putting a leash on it and taking it for a walk. But now, it’s waving a gun in everyone’s face while screaming “don’t think I won’t do it,” and for the first time in decades, the rest of the world has a little reason to wonder if he isn’t serious.

This naturally, is unacceptable.

World Police – Plural

There used to be a solution – call the bouncer. The 8,000 pound gorilla called America would trundle on over, seize the miscreant, and beat the absolute hell out of him. So prodigious was his strength that he could make knees buckle just by leaning on them. But everyone truly believed in the Rules, and so deep down didn’t think he was absolutely necessary, not after History ended, since in a static world no new miscreants would spawn. The gorilla was gauche. He fitted himself for a suit, slimmed down, talked in gentle tones, imposed sanctions.

Putin, however, pines for the days when Glorious Rodina was bouncer of her own club, and this slim effete fellow clearly – as is now explicit – did not impress. So now the gentleman in the club must do something themselves. History has started again, as well, a whole new problem unto itself, but conveniently, two birds can be downed with one stone – the best way to stop any other miscreants who might fancy a go is to lay hands on Putin, beat the ever-loving tar out of him, and hurl him out of the club. Let him stagger down the street, bloodied and penniless, without a trade agreement or SWIFT connection or even a gas pipeline to his name, and let everyone see that the sheriff is back in town, and if he’s weaker now he’s still got plenty of like-minded fellows to deputize if the offense is egregious enough. If you want in the clubhouse, you behave, and if you fuck around, you’ll get tarred, feathered and dumped in the back alley with North Korea to starve.

It’s the obvious solution – and given how shaky Putin looks, they have every incentive to do it quickly before he gets any closer to pulling that trigger, deliberately or by accident.

Desperation

Exacerbating all the above considerations is Putin’s apparent weakness. It’s not simply the Russian army failing to terrorize the Ukrainians into an early surrender – as the midwits say, we’re barely 48 hours (now 52) into this conflict, and Russia’s greater endurance will take at least a little time to tell. But it already seems to be flagging, here and there. Russian riot police; who were expected to serve as enforcers and hostage-collectors, were thrown into the frontal assaults on Kiev last night. Reports and evidence from all quarters continue to accrue as to the extent of Russian efforts to fool and/or coerce Russian conscripts to the frontline, and Putin has openly appealed to one of his most loyal allies, Kazakhstan, for troops to assist – and been rebuffed. For an army that has yet to commit ½ of its massed forces, this is a striking display of barrel-scraping, especially this early in the conflict. It’s becoming clear why Putin was so willing to take that plunge and why the nuclear threats continue to come; if the West piles on with enough military aid, even without direct intervention, Ukraine could very well bleed Putin dry.

There’s also the massiveprotests against the war across Russia – Russian propaganda acknowledges the futility of trying to truly and completely brainwash an entire populace when they have an internet connection in favor of generating so much noise that the people simply resign themselves to bitter cynicism and carry on, resenting their peasant status but not entertaining any idea of opposing it for lack of a universally-accepted Truth to rally to. This has worked in Russia since the Soviet Union collapsed – and now it is not. Kings concern themselves chiefly with the opinions of their Lords, not their peasants – but even peasants rebel when things get bad enough, and with the world set to embargo Russia more than Iran has been, things are absolutely headed towards “enough.” Putin desperately needs a fast victory, and the insane – if not nigh-suicidal – fervor of some Russian pushes probably owe to this.

A nervous man waving nukes around is even more alarming than a calm one, and that’s only going to incentivize world leaders to move faster; to force Putin to back off while he still has some chance of a face-saving exit. If he gets stuck in too far to withdraw... that’s a risk nobody need brave.

History Resumes

I know this is long, and perhaps overly metaphorical for the tastes of many, but it’s necessary to get into the headspace of the world leaders now calling the shots. Even if they were slightly scrambled instead of sunny-side-up, you now hopefully grasp the upheaval as personally as they do – you feel the way their very world has tilted, just as yours would if you woke up one morning to find your house had neatly inverted during the night without even the courtesy of asking your say-so. This is what History is – Mongols, Sea Peoples, Huns at the Gates. It is, in a word, change. History moves; and so it runs over those who stand still.

And now that Putin has made that loudly, painfully, explicitly clear even for the perpetual fools in the back of the room, you can damn well expect world leaders to get off their asses and move.

[ayuuria]

Yashahime Translation: Animage Magazine March 2021 Issue

Please do not repost this translation without my consent! This includes screenshots of any type and amount. If you wish to share this translation, simply link to this post.

For more information regarding the use of my translations, click here.

The Two Beast Kings

At his daughters’ crisis, Sesshōmaru makes his satisfied appearance! It appears he has some kind of connection with Kirinmaru but their intentions are still unclear. In what way will the two beast kings be involved in the fate of the Yashahimes?

While chasing Tōtetsu who is the last of the Four Perils, Towa, Setsuna, and Moroha finally confront Kirinmaru. The three of them are overwhelmed by Kirinmaru’s immense power. Saving the girls from a desperate situation was none other Sesshōmaru. The impact of the clash between the two great demons shook the earth and was put to an end in a moment. While Towa and others are left pondering what the relationship between Sesshōmaru and Kirinmaru is, they somehow managed to survive the fierce battle.

The spirit of the Tree of Ages considers Kirinmaru’s existence as one that should be killed. However, looking at his actions, they do not seem to be simply “evil”. Kirinmaru intended to defeat Towa, Setsuna, and Moroha as they were “the half-demons who would take his head”. However, he could’ve buried the three with one strike of his overwhelming strength. It appeared as though he was not taking the battle seriously in episode 18.

On the other end, although Sesshōmaru saved the girls from a crisis, it looked as though he was not truly hostile towards Kirinmaru. The meaning behind Kirinmaru’s words to Sesshōmaru “I will still have you work for me” puts a weight on one’s mind.

The relationship of the two beast kings who bare many mysteries. It might be a little longer before the full picture behind their motives becomes visible.

Character Bios

Sesshōmaru A proud, ruthless greater demon whose father is the Dog General. Towa and Setsuna’s father. (A man of) very few words, he does not show his thoughts for the most part.

Kirinmaru A beast king on par with the Dog General. He was in a long slumber but was awakened by his elder sister, Zero. Apparently, he’s trying to destroy this world to a degenerate state.

Jaken A small demon who serves under Sesshōmaru. Cowardly but helpful, he placed upon himself the role of child rearing and caretaker to Towa and Setsuna who had been taken from their mother not a moment after being born.

Rin Towa and Setsuna’s mother. She accompanied Sesshōmaru for a long time as a child and has faith in him. For some reason, she is currently sleeping within the Tree of Ages.

Higurashi Towa In order to save Setsuna who had her memories and dreams stolen, she searches for the Dream Butterfly. Her explosive power when Setsuna was driven to a corner was enough to leave a scratch on Kirinmaru.

Setsuna Even in the feudal era she sometimes plays the violin she borrowed from Mama Moe. The details on how she came to wield her favorite naginata, Kanemitsu no Tomoe, will become clear?

Moroha Although she is Inuyasha and Kagome’s daughter, in order to escape Kirinmaru, she was placed in the care of the wolf demon tribe in her early childhood. She carries the sword Kurikaramaru, which she received from her master, Yawaragi.

The Mystery Behind Sesshōmaru’s Actions

14 years ago, Sesshōmaru took a newborn Towa and Setsuna from Rin and sheltered them in the forest of the Tree of Ages in order to keep them away from Zero and Kirinmaru. However, 4 years after that when Zero burned the forest, Sesshōmaru tolerated her actions. The intentions behind what he is thinking is unreadable.

The Dream Butterfly and Rin

The Dream Butterfly steals Setsuna’s dreams and takes them to Rin who is sleeping within the Tree of Ages. It seems Kirinmaru has something to do with the actions of that Dream Butterfly. What is Kirinmaru’s “profound plan” regarding the Dream Butterfly that Konton of the Four Perils spoke of? And what is the reason behind Rin’s slumber?

Moroha’s Master

Yawaragi, the wolf demon who trained Moroha who was separated from her parents and raised by the wolf demon tribe. The of two them broke their ties 3 year ago but reunited due to Konton’s trap and fight each other as teacher and student. During that battle, Yawaragi explains to Moroha how to fight without becoming Beniyasha. Putting her life on the line, she bestows upon Moroha the grand technique “Crimson Backlash Wave”.

The One Who Will Defeat the Beast King

The prophecy the Shikon Jewel once told Kirinmaru was “(The one who will destroy Kirinmaru) will be one who is neither human nor demon and can impossibly traverse time”. He seems to think it refers to Towa, Setsuna, and Moroha but the difference in strength between the three of them and Kirinmaru is obvious. Presently, it would probably be difficult for the girls to defeat Kirinmaru.

Inheriting the World of “Inuyasha”, Director Satō Teruo

Following the “Inuyasha” Rule for Shot Divisions and Presentation

— Director Satō, please tell us first the details of how you became involved in this current work.

Satō: “Inuyasha” was the first work I took part in as a freelance producer and it also taught me the fundamentals of production. Afterwards, I was the assistant director for “Inuyasha The Final Act” and because of that, they reached out to me this time asking, “We’re going to make a work that inherits the world of “Inuyasha”. Would you be interested?”.

— As a work that inherits the world of “Inuyasha”, what points do you place importance on?

Satō: Among the viewers of this work, there will of course be those who watched “Inuyasha” but reversely, I think there will be those who come to know of “Inuyasha” through “Hanyō no Yashahime”. I intentionally created the work so that when these people reach the point of wondering “What kind of work is “Inuyasha”?”, they’ll get the same taste (as “Hanyō no Yashahime”).

There’s also a task for “Hanyō no Yashahime” to “Inform the generation that doesn’t know “Inuyasha” that there’s a wonderful work by Takahashi Rumiko-sensei called “Inuyasha”.” Just like “Great Detective Conan” that’s also on Yomiuri TV, families can enjoy (the work) together as parents become nostalgic and the children have a fresh feeling. From there, it would be great if the children are told “There’s a work called “Inuyasha”.”

For that reason, I felt that I wanted to depict the characters that were carried over from “Inuyasha” in a way that didn’t feel off as much as possible. The serialization for the original work “Inuyasha” ran for 12 years and the anime continued for 4½ years, so I think everyone has a complete image of each of the characters within themselves. I’m conscious of trying to stick to that set image people have of “This person was this kind of character.” as much as possible.

— Director Satō, you were directly in charge of the storyboard for episodes 1, 2, 4, and 6. What sort of things are you mindful of as you create the images?

Satō: In “Inuyasha”, there was something like an ““Inuyasha” rule” for shot divisions and presentation. I wanted “Hanyō no Yashahime” to inherit those rules. Episode 1 for the most part depicted “Inuyasha” since then so we couldn’t exactly break away from that rule. However, starting from episode 2, if we suddenly used a different shot division method that feels as though it’s from a different work, the viewers probably wouldn’t be able to follow along. Thus, in order to show that rule from the start, I did as much of the storyboard as I could myself.

— What kind of rule is it exactly?

Satō: For example, how Inuyasha releases the “Wind Scar”. Also, I was frequently asked “Tessaiga is always written with dokkun (translator’s note: pulsing sound effect) but what is the “dokkun disposition”?” or “What is “mokomoko”?”. The pulsing Tessaiga does when it transforms is what we call the “dokkun disposition”. The “mokomoko” refers to the fluff that Sesshōmaru trails behind him. There are people who call the fluffy scarf worn during events like the coming-of-age ceremony “Sesshōmaru’s Mokomoko” and we call it “Mokomoko” at the production site too (laughs). Conversely, there are many people who give Setsuna’s mokomoko the same volume as Sesshomaru’s like in the “Inuyasha” era, and I remember at the beginning (animation character designer) Hishinuma Yoshihito-san was always correcting them like, “Please make hers more subdued than her father’s”.

— How do you do the shot divisions?

Satō: We use a sort of old-fashioned method of shot division that’s different from the current trend. Currently, there’s a lot of finely chopped, speedy shot divisions and while cutting battle scenes short is easier, we purposely make it one continuous shot so that the battle is endless. My thought process is that I want there to be traces of “Inuyasha” in that part of the screen.

Even the Effects Have Traces of the Parent Generation

— You spoke of Setsuna’s mokomoko but does she herself know of her father’s mokomoko?

Satō: I don’t think she knows. The clothes were probably given to her by her caretaker, Jaken, like “Let’s have you wear this” (laughs). Towa and Setsuna were named by Rin in episode 15 but they were babies, so they didn’t know. Probably while Jaken was in charge of educating them, he told them “You’re Towa and you’re Setsuna.”

— We heard that Moroha’s clothes is the same as Inuyasha’s “Robe of the Fire Rat”.

Satō: Yes. Just like the “Armor of the Iron Rat” that appeared in episode 16, it is made of fabric from the fire rat. Inuyasha himself is inside the black pearl and Moroha was left in the care of the wolf demon tribe, so Inuyasha couldn’t give the clothes to Moroha. However, I think the wolf demon tribe probably got their hands on something similar somewhere.

— What is the reason for Towa’s clothes being a school uniform?

Satō: It’s probably Towa’s own uniform for living in the feudal era (translators note: basically, it’s her way of dressing for the times). Her reason for dressing as a boy is because “It’s easier to fight in” after all, and it’s something I discussed with Takahashi Rumiko-sensei and (Series Composition) Sumisawa Katsuyuki-san many times. As to why we made her core like that. First, starting from her being a child that avoids the standard femininity, we came up with all sorts of thoughts like “Why not just give her an appearance with a Kyary Pamyu Pamyu like originality”. From within (those ideas), it was Takahashi Rumiko-sensei who came up with “It’s easier to fight in”. She said, “Rather than having a complex reason, wouldn’t a simple reason like this be easier to for the people watching to understand?”. That’s how Towa’s appearance and character were solidified.

— Towa’s weapon is also a little different. What she thought was the national treasure, Kikujyūmonji, was actually a fake, and she creates a blade with her demonic power at the part where it broke.

Satō: That part is probably also Sumisawa-san’s sense. Turning the broken sword into a demon sword. Even though she once obtained the real thing through Riku, the result was that she continued to wield the fake one. I think that part makes things more entertaining.

In a sense, “Inuyasha” was also a story about a sword’s growth. Inuyasha’s Tessaiga absorbs the demonic energy of demons it cuts and turns many techniques into its own. On the other hand, Sesshōmaru created the weapon, Bakusaiga, from within himself. Whether Setsuna inherited that or not is something to look forward to going ahead.

— How did you create the techniques for the three?

Satō: There are various techniques such as Setsuna’s “Scrouge of Swallows” and “Cyclone Burst” and Moroha’s “Crimson Dragon Wave”. The creation was basically Sumisawa-san coming up with the (kanji) characters and us coming up with how to portray them. We had the photographers match the shade and disposition of the effects to the parent generation and lineage. Towa and Setsuna have the same blue and green as Sesshōmaru and Moroha has the same yellow effect as Inuyasha’s “Wind Scar”.

We Want Towa and Everyone to be Happy

— Of the episodes that have aired thus far, which one in particular left an impression on you?

Satō: Episode 15 where Riku talked about the past. It was an episode that was related to the crux of the story and I think it was a crossroad of the past. The fact that it only appears as flashbacks to the three princesses who are the lead characters is characteristic. It was to the point that I was surprised on the day of the recording like “Oh, they’re not here!”. For this episode, we had Yamaguchi Kappei-san, the role of Inuyasha, do the commentary for the PR spotlight and it had an “Inuyasha” feel to it. Rin has grown-up a little bit but for her acting, we ordered that we “Want you to be conscious of childhood Rin” when addressing “Lord Sesshōmaru”.

— Episode 15 was also the episode that revealed Rin was the mother of Towa and Setsuna. What were you conscious of when depicting Sesshōmaru and Rin?

Satō: Regarding that, it was something I wondered about the most as an Inuyasha fan when my work in “Hanyō no Yashahime” was decided. Since Rumiko-sensei did not depict this, there were probably fans that had complicated feelings with how the relationship between the two is presented… In that sense, I’d say it’s best to make it so that the two can properly live together in happiness. How do I put it, it’d be hard to look at if things stay as they are.

— Director Satō, you yourself want everyone to be happy.

Satō: Correct. The moment “Inuyasha The Final Act” ended, I thought everyone would be happy, but it ended up like this… Based on the actions of the other characters, I would like to shape Sesshōmaru and Rin-chan’s afterwards in a way that everyone can agree to. Regarding Moroha, there’s the matter of when she will meet Inuyasha and Kagome. It would make me happy if you could pay attention to that part going forward.

— This month we published an illustration of Sesshōmaru and Kirinmaru (P. 42~). Director Satō, do you have any situations you would like to see in future copyright illustrations?

Satō: As a fan, I would like to see the parents and children sitting together. “Inuyasha, Kagome, and Moroha would be there and beside them would be Sesshōmaru, Rin, Towa, and Setsuna” like they had a family gathering at New Years. I think that kind of situation would be fun. However, in actuality I think that might be difficult as the dog brothers don’t get along (laughs).

— In episode 18, Sesshōmaru finally appeared before his daughters and that created major movement in the story. Please tell our excited readers some highlights going forward.

Satō: Episode 19 is a story where the demon slayers play an active, albeit not serious, role. You could say it’s a breather episode and it feels as though the tempo is completely different from episode 18. However, please enjoy it while relaxing (laughs). Following with episode 20, Shiori-san, the half-demon who appeared in “Inuyasha”, will make an appearance. It is an episode where she and Setsuna will interact. Sumisawa-san thought that in order to depict half-demons, this was something that couldn’t be left out and Inuyasha walked down this path as well. Then, the final chapter begins in episode 21. Things will move all at once. Zero, who started appearing in episode 14, will especially be a key person going into the final episode. Please pay attention to her relationship between Kirinmaru and Sesshōmaru.

Having Takechiyo Around Is A Big Help!

“Takechiyo is fun to move. As a therapeutic mascot character, just him being there is a big help and he has room for growth going forward. From the start, Takechiyo was born from “having a character that could be messed with in some way or another like Shippō” but he feels completely different. Also, with Fairouz Ai-san’s tenacious acting, he has grown into a very good character. Apparently, he’s a favorite of Sumisawa-san (laughs).” (Satō)

Sesshomaru’s on A Different Level! The Role of Sesshōmaru, Narita Ken

Episode 18 was his first appearance outside of flashbacks. The impression I got was that it’s as though Sesshōmaru thinks Kirinmaru is “Not an opponent worthy of my time”. That’s why I didn’t even insert a breath and imagined that “he could easily win this” during the scene where they crossed blades. I also checked with sound director Nagura Yasushi-san like “Would you like me to insert a breath?” but he said, “No need”. On the other hand, Kirinmaru was taking breaths so I really think Sesshōmaru is on a different level. Even my impression of Hosoya Yoshimasa-kun was… the level is not the same. Just kidding (laughs). Hosoya is quite adorable so it was fun doing (the scene) with him. What will become of the relationship between Sesshōmaru and Kirinmaru is something to look forward to going ahead.

Today’s Diary

This month we visited Sunrise’s studio #1. The selection begins in the conference room lined with plastic models of Sunrise’s works. Hishinuma-san, what do you think seeing all these works we have collected? **

“We created “Hanyō no Yashahime” with the intention of simply gearing it towards the children of today, but there’s a wide age range of contributors. From elementary schoolers to those in their 50s, I can really feel that the work is loved by everyone. It seems there are many people whose deep-rooted support for us stems back to the “Inuyasha” era.”

Which character is the easiest for you to draw?

“The one who’s easy to approach is Moroha. There’s a part of her that resembles her father (Inuyasha) so at first, I was conscious of copying (him). However, over time, I gained the ability to bring out her uniqueness.”

Who is the most popular on-site? (translator’s note: aka the studio)

“I’d have to say there’s a lot of staff who say, “I want to draw Moroha!”. When the plans were stood up, Towa and Setsuna were the two protagonists but Takahashi Rumiko-sensei’s design of Moroha was so appealing that the 3 of them became the main characters you see now. That’s why I want the on-site staff to love on Towa and Setsuna more! Especially for me, I want to continue to sympathize with Towa and watch over her growth with the emotions of a foster parent. Of course, the parent that gave birth to them is Rumiko-sensei.”

The main story is finally approaching its climax. Please show us your enthusiasm.

“My main job right now is designing and copyright illustrations but the staff are working hard towards the climax that will be at the end of March. The story development is going to be hardcore, but I would be really happy if you continued to support us. Look forward to it!”

 ** Back story: This month’s Animage held an art contest for Yashahime with the judge being animation character designer, Hishinuma Yoshihito. Also, this page has a “One point lesson” on how to draw the 3 girls. However, that one is heavily image reliant so I will not be translating it (I do not post scans as much as possible).

[geekgirles]

Your Heart

Chapter 9 -- Answers

Word Count: 17199

READ ON AO3

When Danny first visitedーor, more accurately, when he first crashed intoーthe Far Frozen, he shared the same first impression as Tucker; it was ball-freezing cold. 

Frostbite and his people’s homeland was a frozen paradise where blinding white snow went as far as reached the eye. What at first glance appeared to be a rather rudimentary village made out of small houses carved into mounds of ice and frost was infinitely more complex than that. The Realm of the Far Frozen was one of the most technologically advanced territories in all the Infinite Realms; even Technus coveted access to their facilities. A stark contrast to its inhabitants' simple clothing, for instance.

The ice huts were in truth the entrance to a far more elaborate citadel built underground and connected by countless tunnels and caverns, for it provided better shelter. Some shacks did indeed lead to the citizens’ homes, not unlike a rabbit’s den, but the vast majority of them worked as the gates to the tunnels leading to the metropolis beneath the snow. 

In fact, the only cavern that truly was a mere cave, despite its importance among Frostbite’s people, was the cave where Danny’s battle against Pariah Dark was recorded. In reality, everything about Far Frozen was proof that one should never judge a book by its cover. The ice-wielding ghosts had the fearsome looks of canine yetis; their claws alone the size of Danny’s head, their snouts filled to the brim with razor-sharp fangs; even now, standing at 5’9 feet tall, Frostbite’s colossal height and build dwarfed the halfa’s own developed physique, and the number of ghosts who shared the yeti-like species’ proficiency at cryokinesis could be counted with one handーaside from Danny himself, the only other ghost that came to mind was Klemper, and even he relied mostly on brute strength and freezing breath. 

And yet, despite everything that should’ve turned Frostbite and his people into some of his most formidable foes, they in turn were some of the biggest supporters of his rule. If you looked for the definition of ‘gentle giant’ in the dictionary, you’d see a picture of them. Frostbite’s people were noble, kind, and loyal. So long their way of living wasn’t threatened, should a crisis arise, they were always the first ones volunteering themselves to help Danny in any way they could. 

Not to mention Frostbite himself had more than once filled the role of the young Ghost King’s mentor. A role he had no choice but to exploit now. 

Landing gracefully on top of the snow, Danny waited patiently until the leader of the Far Frozeners came flying by on his hoverboard in the midst of his patrolling his land. Soon enough, taking notice of a shadow being cast on him, he looked up to see the ghost’s familiar face grinning down at him, by his side one of his subjects looked on with interest. 

“Great One!” he exclaimed before hopping off the vehicle and coming to stand beside his king, followed by a respectful bow. “To what do we owe the honour of this visit?”

Danny smiled appreciatively at him. “Hello, Frostbite. I know this is probably too sudden, but I could really use your help right now.”

“Nonsense.” The bigger ghost assured him with the raise of a dismissive paw. “My people will be forever indebted to you for freeing the Ghost Zone once and for all from the tyrannical influence of Pariah Dark.” He placed his large paw on his ruler’s shoulder, staring him down with a warmth that shouldn’t belong with a race of tundra dwellers. “Now, do tell, what can we possibly help with?”

Feeling uncomfortable, the halfa looked down on his feet and scratched the back of his head. He really didn’t want to go to Frostbite for help, knowing how cautious he was around the mere mention of them. Unfortunately, he didn’t know who else to go to. “I need your help with…the witches.”

He mumbled that part so low for a moment he worried his old friend might not have heard him, but the sudden look of urgency in his red eyes said otherwise. “Come, we must make haste.” With a nod of his head, Frostbite signalled to the hoverboard’s pilot to lower the vehicle, getting aboard right after Danny. “We will continue where we left off tomorrow at dawn, for now let us head back home.” He instructed the pilot as he ushered Danny to take a seat. 

“As you wish, sir.” The other Far Frozen replied as he changed course. 

“Thank you.” Danny said truthfully. “I’m sorry for bringing them up, but I think you might be the only one able to help me.”

Frostbite shook his head. “Fear not, Great One. My people and I understand you are doing everything in your power to protect us from their harmful ways. Even if we do not wish to come in contact of any kind with them, we will not hesitate to aid you in your quest.”

Even if on the outside Danny was smiling, his words made his insides churn. He felt like he was lying to his mentor. After his last encounter with Lady Arcana a part of him, probably the same part of him who originally told him this was a good idea, resented the way ghosts referred to witches. 

Jazz would probably say that was the result of personal growth. Since the Witch Queen went out of her way to make sure he was safe despite their mutual animosity, his mind had been opened to new horizons, meaning he now understood he’d been unfair to them based on prejudice and naysay, rather than first hand experience. 

At least, that’s what Psychologist Jazz would say. Overprotective, Older Sister Jazz would say something more along the lines of, “Snap out of it, little brother! You’re not fourteen and hormonal anymore; don’t let a pretty face fool you!”

Even so, here he was. Asking Frostbite for help even though it felt like he was just desperately looking for something, anything, that would debunk the reasons behind his people’s grudge against witches, if only to assure himself that his current, improved, opinion of their leader wasn’t unfounded. 

Come on, man, that’s not the only reason you’re doing this and you know it. He tried to reason. How much do you know about witches other than what you’ve been told? Nothing, that’s how much he knew about them. Exactly. You’re the one taking risks by working with Lady Arcana. What if your previous hunch was wrong and they really can’t help? Wouldn’t that mean you’ve been wasting your time? Okay, that’d be bad. Really bad. He only asked for their help because he was sure they were the only ones who could do anything about the portals, but if not even them had the solution to the portals opening, what was he going to do?! Right? And how are you going to figure that out if you don’t know what they’re truly capable of? Really, this is for the best. 

Danny didn’t want to sound conceited, but his inner monologue brought up incredibly good points to the conversation. He was doing this for the sake of Earth and the Ghost Zone alike. His personal opinion on the Queen of the Witches of Amity Park was irrelevant. 

A sudden jerk that almost sent him flying brought him out of his reverie. Looking around he noticed they’d finally arrived back at the village, and Frostbite was smirking down at him in amusement. “I have yet to see you use the powers that come with your position to their full potential,” he started between chuckles, “but I believe not even the Great One is exempt from having to use the seatbelt when travelling.”

Registering the way the leader of the Far Frozen moved his ice-encased arm to his lap, Danny realised he was the only person aboard who didn’t have his seatbelt on. When Frostbite unbuttoned his seatbelt with a pointed look, the green-eyed ghost could only flush in embarrassment. “Uh…oops?”

A low chuckle rumbled through the yeti-like ghost’s chest. “Come, Great One.” Resting his large paw on Danny’s back, Frostbite ushered him out of the hoverboard and began guiding him through his home’s numerous underground passages. They walked in silence, the sound of ice and snow being stepped on was the only thing that could be heard. Even though several detours were carved into the walls, his mentor kept directing him to go straight until he instructed they took a turn. 

Danny was sure his jaw was inches away from touching the ground as his eyes surveyed the colossal ice gates in front of him. Judging by their icy blue hue, they were thick enough to withstand practically anything. He doubted even one of his most charged up ecto-rays would be enough to crash into them. Many intricate designs ran alongside them, and they definitely had to protect something of great value to explain the two guards at each side. 

As if reading his mind, Frostbite supplied an answer for his unspoken queries, “The library, oh, Great One.” With a snap of his fingers, the two guards bowed down before they simultaneously turned the doorknobs and opened the doors for them, granting them access. 

“Wait, the library?” Danny frowned in confusion, which only doubled at Frostbite’s hearty laugh.

“Yes, Great One.” He smiled down at him as he led him inside. “If what you’re looking for is answers, I cannot think of a better place to find them than a library.”

Looking now at his mentor’s furry back, for he was surveying the different shelves most likely in search of a book that might have the information he was looking for, the young monarch blurted out, “How do you know I’m here for answers?”

Frostbite grabbed a book from the shelf he was currently facing, only to think better of it and return it in exchange for another one. “Usually, when you come all the way over here it is because you have questions you need answers to.”

Danny winced at the pang of guilt that pierced through his core. Was he always so self-interested he only ever came when he needed something?

“Worry not, Great One.” The yeti-like spirit said, not looking up from the book in his large paws. “My people will always be at your service. It is an honour to be able to help you, for we know you will always aid us in return.” He closed the book with a low thud, flashing him a friendly smile. 

Danny could only gape at the ghost before him, his mouth opening and closing in a fashion akin to a fish’s. Seriously, did the Far Frozeners have telepathy too?!

“No, we do not possess the ability to read minds.” Looking down at the certainly flabbergasted expression on the half-ghost’s face, Frostbite roared with laughter, the sound echoing throughout the walls. “I jest, Great One. I just know you too well. Also, your expressions speak volumes.” He commented offhandedly before returning his focus to another section of the library. 

And to think he’d managed to fool his parents all these years…Sliding a hand through his mess of shock-white locks, the Ghost King came to stand beside his old friend, scanning over the different titles as well. After a  while, he realised something. “Um, Frostbite?” He called out to his mentor. 

“Yes, Great One?”

“Are we perhaps looking for information to answer my questions about the witches?”

Never tearing his eyes away from the sacred manuscripts in full display in his people’s library, Frostbite nodded. “Precisely, your Majesty.”

“Just one question, though?”

“What is it?”

“How are we going to find a book that’ll help me, if I still haven’t told you what I need help with?” Danny pointed out, tilting his head to his side as he awaited an answer. 

The larger ghost’s red eyes widened in realisation. Indeed, that would prove difficult. “My apologies, Great One. In my haste to be of help I got ahead of myself.” Turning to his king, he bowed his head solemnly, unknowingly making Danny uncomfortable. Back in the day the halfa would’ve tried deterring him in his use of honorifics when talking to him, but it was a lost cause and getting him to stop bowing would be as well. In the end he simply chose to go with the flow. Raising his body, Frostbite used his ice-encased arm to gesture to a corner of the room, where a few chairs were arranged around a table. “Please, allow me to rectify my mistake by listening to your queries and answering them to the best of my ability.”

As soon as he got comfortable in his chair, which wasn’t difficult as the hair serving as upholstery was very fluffy and warm, Danny tried to voice his thoughts. “Well...um...you see…” Key word being ‘tried,’ in the end he blurted out, “How does their magic work?”

As Frostbite met his question with stunned silence, his head tilted to the side and a bushy eyebrow raised in confusion, the green-eyed half-ghost couldn’t blame him. How was it he always ended up asking the exact same thing to every person relatively knowledgeable about witches he talked to?

Before his old friend could ask for some much needed clarification, Danny hurried to deliver it himself. “I’m sorry, that was too random.” He pushed his bangs out of his face, trying to organise his thoughts. Better be straightforward with this one. “Why is it that their magic can touch us while we’re intangible?”

The question had been eating him alive for the last few days. Now matter how long he wracked his brain for answers, he came up empty-handed. Admittedly, most of the times he was hit by an opponent’s attack it was usually because, in the heat of the moment, he all but forgot he could turn intangible at will and effortlessly pass through whatever projectile was thrown his way. It was an embarrassing mistake that haunted himーhow ironic, huh?ーsince he first started gaining control over his powers. 

And yet, when he did remember to turn intangible at the sight of upcoming ecto-rays or laser beams, he could come out unscathed of anythingーother ghost’s using their powers against him, the Guys in White and their tax-money equipment, even his parents’ own inventions. 

Well, almost everything…

Valerie’s own arsenal of ecto-weapons was the only thing that could touch (or, more accurately, hurt) him when he was intangible. He could only guess what Vlad and subsequently Technus had used to create her suit and weaponry. Until now. Now he’d accidentally found out witches could nonchalantly wrap their magical, tendril-like thingy around his ankleーlast time in a successful attempt to help him, which was very much appreciatedーand it actually came as a surprise to them they were even able to do it! 

If only he could figure out why that was…

“Great One,” Frostbite sighed from his own chair, snapping him out of his reverie, “I fear I might not be of help to you. I know nothing of what you speak.” 

At that, the halfa jumped to his feet, almost pleadingly. “What do you mean, Frostbite? How come you don’t know, you know practically everything!”

A mirthless chuckle escaped the Far Frozener’s throat. “You flatter me, my King. But I really am as lost as you are on the matter. I could tell you many other things, but not that.”

“Then, what can you tell me?”

Rising to his feet, the yeti-like creature beckoned his hero and leader to follow him to another part of the library. Once they were in front of a particular shelf, Frostbite slid his finger over the different volumes until he found the one he was looking for. With a triumphant sound, he picked it up and started leafing through it as he handed the book to Danny. 

When the halfa took the heavy book in his hands he almost dropped it when he saw the intricate drawing between its pages. Pictured inside the book were very realistic, if slightly worn out by time, drawings of the Amulets of Aragon and portrayals of people Danny could only assume were Dorothea and her brother while they were alive. 

Frostbite’s booming voice forced him to look up to his direction. “Whatever knowledge on the sorceress’ nature beyond their affinity to magic and ability to free us from the chains that bind us to our world without the use of portals is long gone.” He delicately traced an invisible circle around the image of the amulet with one of his sharp claws as he explained, “After our people's separation, only remnants of their activity were left. 

“It is thanks to their prolonged presence in our lives, and the intertwining of energies resulting from our past interactions, that those with magic-based abilities can still survive today. Without the witches’ previous impact on our society, Princess Dorothea and her brother would have long lost the power to wield their amulets. And, as you know, it is thanks to them that magical items even exist in our world.”

“Yeah, don’t remind me…” He muttered under his breath, resentment coming back at full force. 

“On the contrary, my King. I am enlightening you.” Frostbite corrected, earning himself a confused look from Danny that encouraged him to go on. Instead of answering with words, however, Frostbite merely turned his head with a faraway look in his eyes, prompting the halfa to do the same. The moment his eyes laid on a particular object on the other side of the room, Danny could feel himself go jawslacked. 

With wide eyes, he turned his head so fast he almost gave himself whiplash. “The Infi-map is here because of the witches?” He asked with a strangled voice. 

Frostbite simply nodded. “It was a gift from them, to be precise. Legend has it, eons ago the Infinite Realms were desperately looking for ways to anticipate when the next ghost portal would open when an ancient witch queen from the Old World offered the enchanted Infi-map as the solution.

“She was especially close to my people, thus how we came to guard it. It is also why the Far Frozen is so wary of them now; how a race of beings we once shared such a close bond with could doom our very existence like they did was too much for even our benevolent nature to forgive.” He lowered his head in mourning. Maybe they only had stories of how things used to be, but it was clear the women’s betrayal was a deeply pierced wound that would forever be opening and closing at the very core of the Far Frozeners’ hearts. 

Seeing his friend’s dejected expression, Danny regretted even bringing them up almost instantly. “So there’s no way of possibly knowing how they can touch us while intangible?”

“As I said, only remnants of their presence remain.” Right after he said that, however, his downhearted expression turned thoughtful, his paw stroking his snout in thought. “Although, perchance, there is one ghost that might be able to shed some light on the matter...”

...........

Clockwork. 

He had to go and say Clockwork. 

Of fucking course. Why not? Couldn’t he have said Pandora? Despite her fierce and fearsome demeanour, underneath all that anger and aggression laid a very helpful gal! And besides, she was a spirit that had been roaming the Ghost Zone since the times of Ancient Greece! What could be more ancient than Ancient Greece? 

Okay, fine...maybe the very ghost who’d borne witness to the rise and fall of the Greek civilisation alongside countless others before and after. But his point still stands. 

At least this time he wouldn’t be visiting the all-knowing Ghost of Time by himself; Frostbite had offered to go with him seeing as it was per his suggestion he’d be visiting in the first place. Proof of it was the yeti-like ghost flying right beside him towards the Ghost of Time’s tower. And Clockwork always treated Frostbite with respect. 

Danny would admit he was being a bit harsh. In all fairness going to Clockwork was the most logical thing to doーif there was someone who’d have all the answers he needed, it was the very ghost who knew absolutely everything. The problem would be getting the answers out of him. 

Deep down, the halfa knew he should’ve gone to him from the beginning, it was just dealing with him could really take its toll on Danny, no matter how much he respected and appreciated his guidance. Was Clockwork a good mentor to Danny? Absolutely, he was sure he’d never made it as far as he had without his and Frostbite’s help. In the end, was the greater good Clockwork’s priority? Was it ever! The shape-shifting ghost would never hesitate to go against orders from the Observants (all too gleefully, might he add) if he believed it’d led them to the better timeline. Did his cryptic nature and that frustratingly annoying, knowing smirk he always wore when he needed his help with something sometimes encourage Danny to jump off a cliff in his human form? 

Maybe. 

He just hoped Frostbite’s presence would help matters, if only a bit. 

And speaking of Frostbite…“We approach the Master of Time’s lair, Great one.” Soon enough, the immense clock tower standing proud in the middle of the Infinite Realms could be sighted not far away from them. 

Danny sighed dejectedly. “Let’s get this over with…” he grumbled as he changed course in the direction the ghostly lair resided. 

Once they arrived at Clockwork’s tower, Danny reached a hand out to push the door open and let themselves in. It wasn’t like they were going to catch its owner off-guard, after all. As they ventured inside, their eyes scanning for the ever-changing form of the master of time, the constant tick-tock coming from the numerous clocks scattered around the place reached their ears. Like the ticking crocodile Captain Hook dreaded so much, the tower was a constant reminder of the passage of time. Even if the Ghost of Time had long ago explained to him the essence of his power was never as linear as most beings made it out to be, all Danny could think of whenever that incessant sound registered in his mind was one thing:

Time was running out and the end was nigh.

Shaking those thoughts away, for now wasn’t the moment to get lost in them, Danny cupped a hand around his mouth. “Clockwork?” He called. “Anybody home?”

In the blink of an eye, the child-like form of the ghost in question materialised in front of them with an amused grin on his childish face. When he opened his mouth to speak, instead of an appropriately high-pitched voice came a deep, baritone one, “I’ve been expecting you.” The fact it came from a kid’s mouth made it all the more jarring, but Danny was used to it by now. 

Whereas Frostbite respectfully bowed down in greeting, Danny just stared blankly at the ghost before him, his arms folding over his chest. “‘I’ve been expecting you?’ Really? What are you, a fortune teller?”

Changing to his adult form, a more fitting low chuckle escaped his throat. “We both know I’m one of the very few creatures in existence within his right to call himself that.” Then he added, almost like an afterthought. “Also, I felt like it.”

“Figures,” he muttered. Despite himself, the halfa couldn’t stop the lopsided smile from forming on his face. 

Clockwork then turned to the leader of the Far Frozen. “It’s good to see you again, Frostbite. What business brings you here?”

Standing up from his bowed position, Frostbite returned the greeting. “Greetings, Lord Clockwork. It is good to see you as well. Do forgive my impertinence, but I believe you must already know why I am here.”

The master of time nodded, now taking the form of an old man, the grip on his scepter just a little bit tighter for support. “Indeed, you’re here to support our young king. How noble of you.”

“I am merely doing what it is expected of me.” 

“That you do.” Clockwork agreed, nodding wisely. As the larger ghost had accurately pointed out, when one addressed the Ghost of Time, everything they did became expected. “That you do, my friend.”

“Um, could we please speed things up?” Danny suggested, growing frustrated with the pointless introductions. “As Frostbite said, you already know why we’re here, so why don’t you tell us if you can help us or not?”

“I said I know why Frostbite’s here, seeing as that is a staple in almost every timeline. That doesn’t mean I necessarily know the actual reason why you’re here since it’s more subject to change.” The Ghost of Time countered, but that devilishly knowing smirk of his was back on his face, all but screaming he did know exactly why they were here. “So, what are you here for, boy?”

Resisting the very strong urge to yank at his hair in despair, Danny managed to at least reply calmly. Sarcastically, but calmly. “As if you don’t know the answer already.”

Clockwork’s smirk widened. “Then humour me.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose and sighing through it, the Ghost King thought the best way to formulate his question. Just because the master of time was, well, the master of time that didn’t mean he shouldn’t try to at least make sense. “I need answers.” He finally admitted. “There’s a lot going on with Lady Arcana that I can’t understand. I originally asked for Frostbite’s help but, unfortunately, he didn’t have what I’m looking for. And honestly?” He sent the shapeshifting ghost a meaningful glance, hoping it’d be enough to express how serious he was. “I don’t think she has the answers, either.”

Clockwork arched an eyebrow, silently urging him to continue. 

“She can touch me when I go intangible!” Danny threw his arms up. Really, knowing how she could do that was all he needed. If he found out more about her people, wonderful! But as long as he got to know why one of his core powers seemingly meant nothing to her, he was golden. “Well, not her, her magic can.” He amended. “Just the other day, I was intangible and she wrapped one of her wispy tendrils around my ankle, yanking me down. How is that possible?”

For a moment, the Ghost of Time remained silent. With his head resting on his staff, his body kept changing its physical appearance as his deep, red eyes stayed fixated upon the young king. And Danny couldn’t honestly be sure if Clockwork was really thinking his next words carefully or just toying with him. He was an adult again by the time he finally spoke. “Danny, have you ever considered why ghosts can go intangible at all?” 

The unexpected question took him aback. “I...I always assumed it was a natural ghost ability.” He admitted as he scratched the back of his head in thought. 

Changing to his elderly form, the hooded ghost nodded. “And it is, but not without reason.” Next he floated over one of the many portals he used to oversee the passage of time. With a snap of his fingers, the portal began broadcasting many different instances where Danny or some other ghost had turned intangible. “You see, when we ghosts become intangible, what we do is tap into the Ghost Zone while we’re away from it. That is to say our bodies travel through dimensions.” With a movement of his staff, the image changed to show the times he, Tucker, and, surprisingly, Lady Arcana had phased through the walls. “That’s also why humans can phase through things in our world; even if their bodies are here, their essence never left Earth…”

As his mind connected the dots, the halfa’s eyes widened to the size of saucers. “...making them lose their physical mass when in touch with things from our world!” He finished, amazed, and from beside the portal Clockwork nodded sagely. “But what about witches?”

The portal abruptly stopped its broadcast. It was almost as if Clockwork didn’t want to show him anything related to Lady Arcana’s people. With that in mind, Danny feared for a second the master of time would choose that moment to close himself off and say nothing more, but luckily, he proved him wrong. “In terms of physical form, witches are still human, but their magic is something completely different.

“As the only human beings capable of tapping into their own essence, their animas are multidimensional, which is why the Witch Queen’s magic affected youーits’ capable of surpassing the laws of physics because it’s not bound to any particular dimension…”

“...just its holder!” Danny gasped out as understanding dawned on him, things were finally starting to make sense. “So you’re saying witches are akin to electricity generators? They depend on no one but themselves to do magic?”

“Pretty much.”

“Wow.” He breathed out, a hand outstretched and blindly looking for support until it met the wall. Noticing his king’s dazed estate, Frostbite hurried to his side to steady him as Danny slowly sat down on the floor. “This...this is a lot.”

“And it’s only the beginning.” The Ghost of Time let out cryptically. Danny would have to remember to think about the meaning of that later on, for now he’d already absorbed too much information in too little time. When his brain finally processed enough information for him to properly function, the green-eyed ghost stood to his feet on his own, thanking Frostbite for his help. “Thank you, Clockwork. You were a huge help today. I know how hard it is for you to reveal anything due to the nature of your job.”

“Don’t get used to it, boy.” The hooded ghost warned, the knowing smirk back on his face. “I’m only doing what I consider best for this timeline. Don’t think spelling things out for you will be the answer to all your problems from now on.” 

Despite his words, the smile on Danny’s face didn’t fall. It’d have been foolish to expect anything else from Clockwork, after all. “Well, thanks anyways. See you, Clockwork.” He waved him goodbye as he took off in the opposite direction, this time heading for the Fenton Ghost Portal; today was far from over. 

Having been left alone with the Ghost of Time, Frostbite approached him. “Lord Clockwork, are we certain we are on the right path for salvation?”

“Trust me, old friend,” a child Clockwork said as he ventured further inside his lair, a different portal opening before his deceivingly innocent, round face, the events being displayed in it pleasing him greatly, “everything is as it should be.”

...........

The FentonWorks sign loomed over her like a bad omen. Looking up to the enormous metallic construction welded to the more average-looking, brick building where Danny and his family lived, Sam couldn’t help but subconsciously grip the straps of her spider backpack tighter. Her stomach churning in nervousness, she lifted one hand up to knock on the door…

And, unable to bring herself to do so, let it hang in mid-air for a good ten minutes. 

Dear God, if anyone saw her lurking around the Fentons’ door they’d think she was some weird stalker who was crazier than they claimed the family to be, or a potential client who needed help hunting a ghost. So basically they’d think she was crazier than they claimed the family to be either way. 

One would think the only family of ghost hunters in town would be held in much higher regard after seven years of consistent ghost attacks, but rumour has it their equipment tended to malfunction or make things more difficult for everyone. Sam remembered one particularly funny, but understandably embarrassing, story Danny had told her about his parents’ accidentally humiliating his English teacher on more than one occasion. And since Mr. Lancer couldn’t punish two adults, he took his frustrations out on their innocent son who had repeatedly stated he wanted nothing to do with the family business.

Add to that the presence of an all-around more powerful and more competent town hero with actual ghost powers, and it was safe to say their credibility had taken a few major blows over the years. 

At first she’d worried about their financial situation. Who wouldn’t? They were professional ghost hunters but nobody took them seriously and any possible job they might have had was immediately handled by a far more efficient superhero who, to top it all, worked for free. With that in mind you’d expect them to have been evicted years ago! But Danny had been quick to reassure her and explain things to her. Yes, his parents’ passion was ectology and ghost-hunting, but they were primarily inventors and, even if their ecto-weapons could sometimes use some work, their more mundane inventions were typically sold like pancakes. So they were fine. 

She sighed at the memory. Oh, Danny…

Hard as she tried, she still hadn’t managed to shake the flutter in her chest off whenever she thought of him or something happened between them. No. Scratch that. She didn’t get that feeling when ‘something’ happened between them, because nothing ever happened between them! All those weird, little instances where her heart would malfunction after twenty-one years in peak condition were perfectly normal occurrences that shouldn’t send her heart running. 

They would simultaneously reach for the same thing, causing their hands to brush against each other. Their eyes would meet and she’d spend seconds that could have perfectly stretched into hours over-analysing every little thing she thought was going on behind them because she suddenly wanted to know everything about Danny. When that happened it’d usually be followed by the both of them hurriedly looking away and Sam feeling bashful for some reason, heat rising to her cheeks. 

And none of those reactions made sense because that was not the way one would react to their friend!

Those were all completely normal occurrences between friends. It was normal to want the same thing at the same time. It was only natural to look your friend in the eyes. And it made sense that you’d want to look away if you think you’ve been staring a little too long because anyone would feel uncomfortable by that. 

What didn’t make sense was the gnawing feeling at the back of her head telling her those little, insignificant moments meant so much more than that!

And now that she was beginning to think she’d misjudged Phantom? Now that she looked at him in a different light and noticed some of his...let’s say...more appealing features, both in terms of physique and personality? Now that her heart was beginning to malfunction at the thought of him too?

Now Sam was seriously contemplating putting an end to her misery and burning herself at the stake. 

Either that or go see a doctor in case she had some sort of untreatable heart disease. 

Regardless of the very strange position she now found herself in, Sam’s resolve in finding more about ghosts was genuine. Her and Phantom’s reactions to her magic being able to reach him even when intangible was proof enough that far too much knowledge on their people’s old friendship had been regrettably forgotten. 

The black hole incident demonstrated there probably was more to their partnership and combined abilities than what had been passed down to the younger generations. If Sam could find solid evidence on an unexplained synchrony between magic and ghostly attributes, then maybe her current alliance with the Ghost King wouldn’t be futile after all.

Maybe it even held the key to solving the portal crisis they faced off against…

The witch was abruptly broken out of her trail of thought when the door she’d been standing in front of for fifteen minutes suddenly opened, Danny’s head curiously poking around and eyes darting from one side to the other, clearly looking for something…

...or someone. 

As soon as their eyes met, the two of them let out startled sounds and subconsciously took a step back in surprise. Unfortunately for Sam, seeing as she was standing on the steps leading up to the door, her foot slipped when it found nowhere to stand on. Losing her balance, she was sure she was going to fall when Danny immediately rushed in to help her, his strong arms swiftly coming to grab her by her waist, their faces mere inches apart. 

Against her better judgement, the hazel-eyed girl couldn’t do anything to prevent losing herself in Danny’s baby blue depths. Certainly, nobody would blame her, not when their breaths mingled from the close proximity, or when his eyes reflected a worry she’d rarely seen beforeーhe was worried for her, she realised with a little too much gleeー, or when they were so, so close all she had to do was inch her head forward just a little to close the distance and feel those hypnotising lips of his onー.

“Uh...what’s going on here?”

Slowly, very slowly, even comically so, the two turned their heads to the direction of the voice. Only to find Jazz propped against the doorframe behind her brother and flashing them a very interested look, a smile dancing along her lips. 

The effect was instantaneous. The two scrambled to get away from each other, almost as if they’d suddenly realised the other was made out of hot lava and they were burning their hands, muttering excuses and such other nonsense Jazz chose to ignore completely. 

Oh, denial. Simultaneously one of the most entertaining and frustrating stages of admitting you like someone. 

Clearing his throat, Danny was the first one to find his voice, even though his cheeks still burned. “S-Sam! It’s great to see you! I was starting to believe you couldn’t make it in the end.”

“Oh! No, no.” She shook her head slightly with a hand raised up. “I’m sorry I made you wait, I, uh, I just had a little trouble finding the place. That’s all.” Fine, so saying she had trouble finding the one house in town with a humongous Ops Centre on its roof was a terrible lie, but no way in Hell was she going to say she found the place just fine but she took a few extra minutes with her hand raised about to knock on the door but finding herself unable to. 

That was just pathetic.

The slightly irritating grin never leaving her face, Jazz ushered their guest in. “Would you like to come in?”

“Yes, thank you.” She let herself be guided through the doorstep to the kitchen, which, judging by the outline of some furniture she could vaguely make out, Sam guessed led to the living room. The space was a large and bright-coloured room that combined a somewhat retro 50’s style with far newer appliances and...was that a toxic-waste container?

“That’s our version of tupperware with leftovers.” Danny came to stand beside her and now Sam was wondering if she’d just said that aloud or if he could read minds. When he looked down at her, though, his expression was dead serious. “If you value your life, don’t open it.”

“Duly noted.” 

She was about to ask where she could sit down when the younger sibling moved a chair for her, gesturing at it with a flourish and flashing her a charming smile. “M’lady, this way, please.”

Rolling her eyes fondly, Sam took his hand and allowed him to help her sit, setting her spider backpack on top of the kitchen table. Once he was comfortably sitting on his own chair by her side, she swatted his arm in mock warning. “Just so you know, I’m only letting you treat me like ‘a lady,’” she air-quoted, “because, as your guest, is the right thing to do.” 

“I’m much obliged, Miss Manson.” Danny countered with a fake posh accent. 

Before the girl could so much as flick him on the nose, Jazz came inside carrying a plate full of cookies. “Care for one, Sam?”

Eying the plate carefully, she had to decline the offer. “Thank you, but I’m good.” In truth she couldn’t be sure the cookies were vegan, but saying she wasn’t hungry was much more polite than imposing her dietary choices on them. 

Sensing her discomfort, Danny smacked his forehead as realisation washed over him. “Duh, that’s right!” Startled by his outburst the two girls turned to look at him, exchanging confused glances. “You’re ultra-recyclo-vegetarian! I’m sorry, Sam. I forgot. I don’t think we have anything for you.”

Bringing one hand to her mouth, Jazz gasped. “Darn! That’s right. I’m so sorry, Sam; it totally slipped my mind.”

Her mind still reeling from Danny, once again, remembering something about her, she didn’t have the heart to say anything. “It’s okay, really. As I said, I’m good.”

“Are you sure?” Danny insisted. “Because I’m sure we have something around here you might be able to eat…” He trailed off, clearly thinking about what they had that Sam could possibly consume without breaking her moral code. Biting down his lip, he tried, “How about water?”

The Goth girl couldn’t help but snort. “ A tempting offer. I might take you up on it.”

“I’ll get you a glass.” As he got up to do just that, his older sister finally took notice of the purple spider resting on the table. 

“Wow.” She breathed out, clearly impressed. “You have quite a collection of badges on your bag!”

“Oh, this?” Sam pointed at the assortment of metallic, glinting badges adorning her faithful spider’s fur. “They’re mostly from charities and previous protests I’ve been in.” She explained. “You could say when something matters a lot to me, I make sure to give it a place of honour.”

“Cool, just make sure my father doesn’t see or he’ll shove a handful of Fenton badges your way.”

“‘Fenton badges’?”

“They’re regular badges with the word ‘Fenton’ on them.” Danny explained quickly, setting down a glass of water before Sam just as he regained his seat. 

After her brother helped himself to some cookies, Jazz left the plate on the counter before picking a seat for herself. She propped her elbows on the kitchen table, her fingers intertwined and her eyes staring at the Goth seriously from behind her hands. The image reminded Sam of the principals from high school based sitcoms whenever the protagonists got in trouble.

The mental image only made her feel like she’d got in trouble. 

“Uh...is everything okay?” She asked carefully.

“Everything’s fine, Sam.” Danny assured her with a smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. That only worried the girl further. “We’re just morally obligated to warn you about a few things first.”

“Such as…?” Sam eyed the Fenton siblings suspiciously, her skin prickling at their uncharacteristically odd behaviour. 

“Such as our parents' eccentricities.” Jazz finished, her voice completely serious. “Don’t get us wrong, Sam; our parents are talented inventors and passionate ghost hunters...” She trailed off, having trouble explaining things to an outsider. They never really had to explain their family’s antics to anybody else, they all knew; the difference lay in how they processed the information. So far, the entire town bar Tucker thought of them as kooks.

“But they’re so passionate they tend to overlook things.” Danny added. 

“Especially if they don’t fit their agenda...” Jazz muttered darkly, probably thinking nobody heard. But she was mistaken.

Sam was legitimately taken aback by the unexpected venom laced in Jazz’s statement. Even though this was only the second time she got to meet the eldest Fenton sibling, their last encounter seemed to indicate Jazz was the type of person who always measured her words. Straight-laced, careful, mature...Maybe even calculating under the right circumstances. She seemed to place great importance on not letting her emotions show, for some reason. But, seemingly, their parents’ job was a sore spot for her. 

As her mind went back to their conversation at Verde Que Te Quiero Verde, Sam found herself thinking she couldn’t blame Jazz for her low opinion on their parents’ chosen career. Who wouldn’t grow resentful of a career path that, judging by Danny’s stories, not only had it brought shame and embarrassment onto their children their whole lives, but also led them to being neglected in favour of something most people didn’t even know existed until recently?

As much as she’d personally wished her mother would leave her alone growing up, Sam knew what emotional neglect felt like all too well. 

“I see.” She said finally, taking extra care in not letting her thoughts shine through. She needed to appear nonchalant, willing to listen. “So, what should I know?”

Danny and Jazz exchanged a look, silently discussing how to approach the topic. Understandably, Danny had been taken by surprise when Sam asked if she could come over and talk about ghosts. After all, who in their right mind wanted to talk about ghosts? Most citizens would just watch him fight them, sneer at him once the battle was over, and exclaim ‘good riddance!’ before turning on their heels to go back to their monotonous lives. 

The only exceptions to the norm were Team Phantom  (and even they’d only started showing interest begrudgingly, since they had no other choice), Danny Phantom’s fan club, and Valerie in her early days as a ghost hunterーnow that she thought she knew everything about mischievous spirits she could possibly need, she’d become more of an ‘attack first, questions never’ kinda gal. 

Luckily for Danny, the moment she noticed his blank expression, she was quick to explain it was her Gothic nature talking. Her passion for the paranormal and occult just couldn’t miss the opportunity of getting to know more from the town’s resident experts. 

Now, if only said experts weren’t almost as single-minded as a certain Red Huntress…

He wasn’t sure why, but a part of Danny just couldn’t bear the thought of Sam disliking ghostsーdisliking your ghost half, you meanーthe same way Valerie or his parents did. She was one of the most accepting people he’d met in a long time, he wouldn’t know what to do if Danny Phantom jeopardised that like it jeopardised his relationship with Valerie. 

That was why it was so important she understood! If he and Jazz could get through to her before their parents started feeding her their very anti-ghost ideas, then maybe he wouldn’t lose another person to Amity Park’s almost unanimous anti-ghost sentiment. He wouldn’t have to pretend to be somebody he was not in front of somebody else he cared about. 

With a nod of his head, Danny allowed Jazz to take the floor. “First and foremost, you should know our parents are far better in practice than in theory.”

Sam blinked, not following. “I don’t think I understand…”

“It’s just,” Jazz started, biting her lip, her hands fidgeting as she tried to find the right words to say, “they know the basics, you see? They know everything on how to take down a ghost and apply that knowledge to their inventions...with varying results,” she muttered that last part to herself. “But we don’t think they really understand what makes a ghost tick, you know what I mean?”

The Goth could only stare blankly at her, her brow furrowed in confusion. “But you just said they know how to take down ghosts...Doesn’t that mean they know what makes them tick?”

“What Jazz means is they don’t understand their motivations.” Danny corrected. “To our parents, all ghosts care about is causing mayhem and destruction, but not all ghosts can possibly be like that, can they?”

Although it was phrased like a question, there was something about the way he said it that made Sam see it as anything but. The certainty in his voice, the almost manic glint in his eyes askingーno, beggingーher to understand. It wasn’t mere, hopeful speculation. As much as Danny liked seeing the good in people, he wasn’t just giving ghosts the benefit of the doubt; it was like he knew they were far more than just ectoplasmic remnants of human conscience. 

Still, despite everything, her mouth started talking before her brain had time to catch up. “But do they even have any motivation at all?” She didn’t know why, but she felt like wincing when Danny’s hopeful expression turned dejected. Like a kicked puppy. “I mean, all ghosts do whenever they come to Amity Park is cause some sort of trouble or even go as far as plotting world domination.” 

Why did she say that? Wasn’t she trying to give the spectres the benefit of the doubt as well? She explicitly came here for answers that’d justify her sudden belief, her sudden need to believe, ghosts weren’t as evil as she’d been told. She was looking for that same reason that led her ancestors to trusting and forming a solid alliance with them all those centuries ago. 

Why was her mind trying to sabotage that?

Sensing his brother’s discomfort, Jazz was quick to step in. For reasons he wasn’t ready to admit, it was important Sam was on their side. “Take Danny Phantom, for instance,” she said, seemingly unaware of the way Sam’s breath hitched at the mention of his name. “Nobody knows what he’s up to, but for all intents and purposes, he seems to only care about protecting Amity Park.”

“That 's...true.” The Goth admitted, trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach as she thought of the town’s controversial hero. “Except for a few incidents, he only ever appears if the town’s in danger.”

Sam didn’t say much, she was just stating the obvious. But hearing her admit he was trying to save Amity Park rather than destroy or rule it brought a grin to Danny’s face. “Our parents don’t get that. For them, it’s more like, ‘you’ve seen one ghost, you’ve seen them all’”, as he explained their parents’ mindset, Danny’s voice took on a deeper tone, causing Sam to guess he was making an imitation of his dad’s voice. “They don’t think Phantom, or any ghost for that matter, can be anything other than trouble.”

A dark, heavy cloud seemed to settle over the raven haired boy’s shoulders. His ocean blue eyes lost their shine, the corners of his lips turned upside down, and he suddenly looked much older than he really was. He seemed so...tired. As if he were carrying a huge weight over his shoulders and were exhausted from it. 

“They…” he began to say before he had to swallow the bitter lump in his throat. It was so difficult to get the words out, knowing what they entailed, without getting emotional. But Sam couldn’t possibly know just how much it all affected him. She just couldn’t. “They dehumanise them.”

Sam could only stand looking at Danny for a few more seconds before she had to avert her gaze, focusing on the kitchen counter instead as she bit down her lip guiltily. He looked so...un-Danny. She began picking at her nails as she realised his parents weren’t all that different from her; not even a week prior she’d also been convinced ghosts were nothing more than ectoplasmic scum. Cold, unfeeling, wicked. Even now, even as she came to understand she should give them a chance, she found herself having trouble trying to move on from that mindset her people had spent a good chunk of her life getting into her head. 

Hating ghosts was second nature at this point. 

“I…” Sam started weakly, clearing her throat to give herself a few more seconds to compose herself. This was going to be hard. “I think I understand. It’s like all those movies, isn’t it?” She said, her voice tinged with a lightness she didn’t quite feel. “Like...like those stories with over-complicated plots that can, ultimately, be summarised by ‘don’t judge a book by its cover,’ right?”

Actually getting the words out was proving itself to be a Herculean task. She didn’t even know what she was saying. Referencing one of the oldest tropes to ever exist? Really? No matter how hard she was trying for the sake of her alliance with Phantomーand not because, for whatever reason, she now wanted to believe he couldn’t possibly be as bad as she initially thought. No wayー, literally all ghosts that’d ever visited Amity Park except for the Ghost King had questionable morals, at best, or were downright diabolical, at worst. 

Just trying to get the words out made her stomach tighten! 

But then she looked over to Danny from underneath her eyelashes, feeling too shy and unsure for her comfort, and her breath hitched. 

Danny was positively glowing. For reasons Sam couldn’t understand, having someone try to see things eye to eye with him meant the world to Danny. The way his expression softened when he looked at her was almost too much to bearーher cheeks felt like they were on fire, but Sam still had half the mind to understand suddenly splashing her face with her, mostly untouched, glass of water would make some eyebrows raise in bewilderment. 

Her heart pounding in her ears and her mind screaming at her not to do anything weird or out-of-place (in a disturbingly similar voice to her mother), the hazel-eyed girl reached a hand across the table and rested it on top of Danny’s, who jolted in his seat upon making contact. “I can’t promise anything, but I’ll try to keep an open mind.” She said softly, smiling at him. 

His mind reeling from the feeling of Sam’s warm hand over his cold palm, Danny let out an almost inaudible gasp, his eyebrows shooting up to the ceiling. But as he registered her promise, he couldn’t help himself from giving her hand a gentle squeeze, his face morphing itself into an adoring expression as his heart did somersaults in his chest cavity. 

Where have you been all my life?

Startled by his own thought process, Danny roughly snatched his hand away from Sam’s, under her slightly hurt gazeーwhich she immediately tried to cover upーand Jazz’s questioning eyes. Before he could try and dwell on his thoughts, however, a booming voice came from down the lab and progressively made its way upstairs.

“Sorry we’re late!” Jack’s jovial voice came from the staircase. “We were finishing up some last minute adjustments.”

“Our latest invention promises to be our greatest one yet!” A feminine voice said excitedly. Sam could only guess that was Mrs. Fenton.

“There’s still much to be done, of course. But as soon as we work out a few twerks and we’re done designing the general outline, everything else will go smoothly.” Coming in before her husband, Maddie moved easily around her kitchen, going over to the fridge to grab some fudge for Jack before reaching up for some plates from the cupboard. She kept waltzing around the kitchen table and her children, so engrossed in her retelling she failed to notice the ebony haired girl sitting down beside them. “You kids haven’t touched the container unit with the ecto-weenies, haveー?” She trailed off abruptly, something far more interesting than her home’s ecto-induced food catching her eye the moment she turned around to finally face her kids. 

There, sitting around her kitchen table, right next to her son, was both the most unique and beautiful girl she’d ever seen him with. Any other mother would be taken aback to see her son with a girl with a side of her head shaved off and dyed purple and green (albeit only the little ponytail sticking out), wearing enough dark clothes to be confused with a mortician or someone in mourning, and heavy, dark make-up coating her face. 

But not Maddie Fenton. 

Oh no. 

Aside from being a ghost hunterーa career path that was, regrettably, not held in high regard by her entourageー, meaning she wasn’t one to judge others’ live choices, Maddie was just shocked to see her son with a girl. Period. 

The last time she’d ever even heard him gush about how pretty a girl was was in his Freshman year of high school. First over that Paulina Sanchez who, going by what Jazz told her, was Casper High’s beauty queenーit was only natural her teenage son would have a phase where he was after the head cheerleader; just like Jazz had a phase where she was into that motorcycle-riding bad boy with greasy hair. 

Whatever happened to that boy?

And a few months after that he seemed smitten with Valerie Gray, the daughter of Damon Gray; a former security expert at Axion Labs that’d helped them during the whole ordeal with the Ghost King. A pleasant man, but even he didn’t seem to hold them in high esteem. 

They went out several times all throughout the extent of two weeks, but just as she was about ready to squeal and tackle his little man for getting his first girlfriend and growing up, one day he dejectedly told them Valerie thought it best to remain friends. 

Ever since then, romance all but became a taboo topic around Danny. 

Aside from a few times he’d tell them he had a date (which never seemed to lead anywhere), not a peep could be heard out of him when it came to girls. Ever since he was well into his Freshman year, at the tender age of fourteen bordering fifteen, girl-talk became nonexistent. 

And, Maddie had to admit, there was a time she came to believe her son never brought girls up because he just wasn’t interested in them. Seeing as the only other person he ever spent time with was Tucker, Maddie once thought Danny was gay but too afraid to come out, fearing they might disown him or something. 

Only for that little theory to burn up in flames when she tried letting him know she knew and fully supported himーto which Danny almost choked to death on his breakfast, before fervently denying any sort of romantic relationship with his best friend. 

He swore up and down the reason he never brought up the topic of romance was because there wasn’t anyone he was interested in. Something he religiously followed, never even talking about a girl (or boy, Maddie still kept that possibility open) who he’d simply come to think was pretty in passing.

Until now. 

Now there was a lovely young lady in her kitchen. Sitting right beside her baby, who looked as embarrassed as if he were a teenager again and was being bombarded with a thousand photos of him and his date for Homecoming. Now, Maddie wasn’t quite knowledgeable on street fashion and subcultures as she’d been back in college, but just by looking at this girl (who was staring, wide-eyed, right back at her) she could tell she used her clothes to express herself and her individuality.

She knew who she was or, at least, who she wanted to be. Good. 

Straightening her back slightly, Maddie tried to put the girl at ease using her most motherly tone. “Oh, hello there!” She walked over to her and reached out her hand for her to shake. She noted with pleasure she had a firm yet gentle grip. Oh, dear God, please let this girl be the one for Danny! “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Maddie, Danny and Jazz’s mother.”

“Oh! Uh…” With a start, she smiled back at the kind woman in front of her, albeit feeling a little awkward. “I’m Sam. I’m friends with Dannyーnice to meet you.”

“Believe me, Sam,” Maddie’s grin widened, “the pleasure’s all mine.”

Feeling self-conscious all of a sudden, probably from the countless hours of etiquette classes her mother had drilled into her head, Sam jumped to her feet to greet the woman before her properly. 

The Goth was in awe at the sight before her. Mrs Fenton had to be a woman in her late-forties to early-fifties, given she’d given birth to two kids who were now in their early twenties, and yet she didn’t look a year over thirty. She had to be one of the most beautiful women she’d ever met, with her auburn bob cut that had only the tiniest hints of a grey hair or two; her smooth, wrinkle-free face that’d make Pamela sick with envyーshe’d spent a fortune on skincare products and even then she didn’t look nearly as young as Danny’s mother; and she had to have the best figure she’d ever seen, even after given birth twice! As unorthodox a piece of clothing as it was, her blue hazmat suit hugged her body perfectly, accentuating all her curves. Mrs Fenton was probably only second to Delilah in terms of voluptuousness, but seriously, that woman was basically a goddess walking on Earth. And her deep, purple eyes hid a mixture of motherly warmth and care as well as an intelligence and sharpness rivaled only by Grandma Ida. 

It was funny, Sam noted. Had Mrs Fenton been born a witch, and she probably would be ruling the coven now, not her. 

“And I’m Jack Fenton, nice to meet you kiddo!” Danny’s father exclaimed, trapping Sam’s hand in a deadly grip. He was shaking her hand so enthusiastically Sam was genuinely surprised he wasn’t shaking her up and down like a rag doll. 

“Nice to meet you too, Mr Fenton.” She said, taking a good look at the man who’d raised Danny. 

Mr Fenton was...how could she put this gently? The opposite of his wife. He wasn’t ugly by any means! But while Maddie looked like she could be on the cover of a fashion magazine, he was a rather plain-looking fellow. Jack was a man of great girth, although not necessarily overweight; he certainly had enough energy to get an electric plant running with nothing but his personality. Clad in a large, orange hazmat suit that somehow both matched and clashed horribly with his wife’s more classy blue, his age was far more apparent. Perhaps he didn’t look like he had a foot on the other door, but the years hadn’t been as kind to him as they’d been to Mrs Fenton. He still had a full head of hair, but his sideburns and his nape were already stark white, while the hair on his head kept some colourーa dark grey. The little bit of skin Sam could see (mostly his face, really), with his strong, squared jaw, was mostly unblemished, except for crow’s feet around his round eyes. He definitely didn’t look too old, just...older than his wife.

Even then, Sam could still make out enough details that showed this was Danny’s dad. 

At first glance it seemed both Fenton kids took mostly after their mother (a never-ending source of comfort for them, she was sure), but there was enough of Jack’s genes in their appearance to tell the kinship. 

Judging from his mop of grey hair, Sam figured he used to have black hair, not unlike his son’s messy locks. If she looked closely, the girl could make out Mr Fenton’s eyes; a dark shade of greyish blue, similar to Danny’s icy stare and Jazz’s inquisitive, aqua eyes. And last but not least, there was the issue with their height. Mr Fenton was huge! Probably the tallest member of the family, and that was saying something. Even Danny, standing at an impressive 5’9, was towered over by his dad. Jazz took after her mum in that regard, thank Goodness.

So, summing up.

A lovely, genius daughter working on her PhD; a charming, witty, hot-as-Hell (who said that?!) son about to work with NASA; a mother who was both gorgeous and another genius, and a huge father who might not be George Clooney but seemed to be a very decent human being (and, considering he was an expert ectologist and inventor, another genius to boot). 

What was this, the over-achieving family? A family specifically designed to excel in everything her own family already didn’t hold a candle to anyone to?! And did she really have to be so short in comparison!?

As much as the stereotypically girly part of herself she worked so hard to push down squealed over a healthy height difference between a possible boyfriend and her, the number of inches Danny had on her was just ridiculous. And now it turns out his entire family is better than hers one way or another. Unless she performed magic in their very kitchen, Sam had no idea how she could possibly impress her in-laws. Ever. 

And, she realised with a start, her mind was veering into insane territory again… She rationalised she was just thinking it’d be very difficult for her to impress the Fentons if she were to date Danny. Which she wasn’t going to do. Ever. They were just friends and her life was too complicated to even be thinking about romance right now. Besides, she’d never be able to live with herself knowing she’d have to keep her partner (be it Danny or someone else entirely) in the dark about a huge aspect of her life. 

Danny deserved way better than the kind of life her dad was stuck with. 

Almost as if sensing her inner monologue, Jack almost gave her a heart attack when he spoke next. “Sorry to keep you waiting, Sam. We thought it’d be Tucker who Danno would bring over.” He placed a hand on his wife’s shoulder and brought her closer to him. “So imagine our surprise when we see you here! We might’ve been a little too overzealous about it.”

“A little?” Sam heard Jazz whisper to her brother, her voice dripping with sarcasm. 

“That’s right,” Maddie agreed, her smile so wide her cheeks hurt and a sense of impending doom gripped her son’s heart. “It’s just been so long since Danny last brought a girlfriend home, and so beautiful too!”

His cheeks practically on fire, Danny was quick to shout, panicking, “She’s not my girlfriend!”, at the same time as Sam, equally embarrassed, exclaimed, “I’m not his girlfriend!”

The Fenton matriarch’s good mood deflated a little at that. “You’re not?”

“No, Mum. She’s not.” Danny confirmed as he scrubbed his face with one hand. Why was it that every time he brought home someone other than Tucker they immediately assumed he must’ve found the womanーor man, Tucker never let him live that one downーhe was going to marry? It wasn’t like he was such a recluse, was it? ...on second thought, better not answer that. “I already told you a friend was interested in meeting you, you told me you were okay with it and, well,” he said with some sarcasm in his voice as he extended his arms to his sides, making a flourish, “here she is.”

“Well, yeah. But when you said ‘friend’ we thought you meant Tucker, son.” His dad admitted, scratching the back of his head. 

“I have more friends aside from Tuck, you know?”

If his parents immediately assuming Sam was his girlfriend and openly addressing her as such right in front of her hadn’t been mortifying enough, the deafening silence that settled in the kitchen then certainly was. 

Was he really that much of a loser his parents didn’t seriously believe him capable of making friends with people outside of Tucker? Granted, most of his friendsーDora, Wulf, Frostbite, Cujo…ーwere the very same creatures from another dimension they’d sworn to hunt down, strap to a lab table, and dissect ‘molecule by molecule’, so they couldn’t possibly know about them. But come on!

Grimacing at the uncomfortable, and a little humiliating, atmosphere, Jazz cleared her throat to catch their parents’ attention. “I think what Danny means is that, if he’d really wanted to invite Tucker over, he wouldn’t have even asked your permission for it.” The moment her mum and dad crossed their arms over their chests and sent her a disapproving look due to the way she’d just disregarded their authority she was quick to backpedal. “A-after all, he practically spends more time here than in his own house! And he’s ever really been into ghosts to begin with, so…”

Jazz had a point. Maddie sighed through her nose, a little disappointed. “I guess you’re right.” Her expression turned cheery again almost instantaneously, clapping her hands before her face as she redirected her focus on the hazel-eyed girl still standing awkwardly near her kitchen table. “So! Sam, Danny’s told us you wanted to meet us, why’s that?”

“It’s not to place another restraining order on us, is it?” Her husband asked dubiously, his eyes narrowing on the young lady in suspicion. 

Jazz facepalmed herself while Danny was too busy all but slamming his head against the table. 

“Whaー? No, of course not.” Sam assured him, shaking her head and hands in front of her as it to emphasise her point. “I, uh, I asked Danny if I could come meet you because I’m really interested in the paranormal and such. I’m a Goth; you see,” she gestured vaguely at her form, “it sort of comes with the aesthetic. So when he told me you guys were ghost hunters I couldn’t help myself; I just had to meet you.”

Before the Goth knew it, the enormous man she’d been talking to grabbed her around the shoulders with just one arm and, with impressive strength, lifted her up off the floor, a broad smile playing along his lips. “Don’t tell me you want to get in the business?” He asked with the same excitement of a kid on Christmas.

“N-not r-really…” she gasped out, the force behind Mr. Fenton’s grasp knocking the air out of her lungs. “I-I’m just...really c-curious...t-that’s all…”

Panicking at the sight of Sam’s face turning blue, Danny jumped to his feet, followed closely by Jazz. “Dad, put her down!” In the blink of an eye he was by his dad’s side, gently coaching the raven haired girl out of his bone-crushing grip. The moment her feet touched the floor, Sam began taking greedy gulps of air, her hand in Danny’s firm but gentle ones and Jazz patting her back comfortingly. 

“Careful, honey.” Mrs Fenton scolded her husband lightheartedly, “You know you tend to get carried away.”

“Right. Sorry about that, Sam.”

Too breathless to dignify that with a verbal answer, Sam limited herself to giving him a thumbs-up. 

“How about we cut to the chase and you guys show Sam what you’re working on, huh?” Jazz suggested, one hand still rubbing her guest’s back soothingly. If after today Sam insisted on being friends with her brother, he would have a lifetime of making it up to her. 

“Great idea, Jazzypants!” Jack exclaimed excitedly. He and his wife then proceeded to usher their kids and guest out of the kitchen and down to the lab. 

Sam miraculously caught herself before she could snort. ‘Danno’? ‘Jazzypants’? She would’ve laughed at the ridiculous nicknames hadn’t she remembered her mother’s horrendous habit of calling her ‘Sammy-kins.’

Did everything that woman do have to bring nothing but pain and misery to her daughter?

Walking down the stairs to what the witch could only assume was the lab Jazz mentioned earlier, Maddie turned her head around slightly so she could look at Sam as she asked over her shoulder. “I don’t think we’ve asked you about your family, dear; not even about your full name.”

“It’s Manson, Sam Manson. My parents…”she trailed off, making a grimace. “Let’s just say in twenty-one years of existence I’ve never been able to understand what they do for a living.” That wasn’t technically a lie. Even if Sam was perfectly aware of her mother’s double life as a witch (mostly because she was destined to follow in her footsteps), the financial side of things always eluded her. For all she knew her dad could be a smuggler. 

“Wait, ‘Manson’?” It was Jack’s turn to turn his head to face her, an bushy eyebrow raised in surprise. “You mean like that stinking rich family living in the uptown part of town?”

Now it was Maddie’s face that lit up in realisation. “Oh, that’s right! Danny and Jazz did mention something like that when they came back from their night out.”

Sam shot Danny and Jazz a dirty look, to which they responded by smiling awkwardly in return and whistling a happy tune while averting all sorts of eye contact, respectively; “You know, before I knew you my family’s wealth was one of my best-kept secrets. Now it’s got to a point where I’ll be walking down the street and some random kid will point out at me and say, ‘Look, mummy! Look! It’s that rich girl!’”

“Come on, Sam,” a devilish smirk made its way to Danny’s face. “You’re making things up.”

“Maybe, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it actually happened.”

Stepping down the last step to the basement, Jack extended his arms high in the air as he announced, “Here we are! The Fenton Lab!”

The moment she descended to the basement and was able to see the family lab for the first time, Sam’s jaw all but touched the floor. Strolling down inside the spacious laboratory, she couldn’t help but spin around, trying to find every single nook and secret laying right before her, marvelling at the sight. 

The Fenton Lab was a greyish room with metal-covered walls and a tiled floor that occupied the entirety of the basement. Various machines whose workings Sam could only guess littered around the room, alongside several lab tables filled to the brim with test tubes, trays, notes, and neon-green liquids pulled up to the walls, as well as different beeping monitors. 

But what had to be, by far, the most impressive device in the entire lab was the large, octogonal gates standing in the far corner of the room. They were currently closed, their yellow and black striped doors in full display, and the big, red lightbulb Sam suspected would blink when used was turned off resting on top of it. 

Taking a step closer, one hand pointing at the machine, she breathed out in awe, “Whoa...What’s that?”

“You have a good eye!” Maddie complimented as she came to stand right beside her guest. One hand directed at their most prized invention and the other on her hip, it was obvious she was about to give a lecture worthy of any college professor. “This is the Fenton Ghost Portal. Our greatest invention yet.”

The Goth’s eyebrows shot up to the ceiling. “The Fenton Ghost Portal…?” She echoed, astonished. 

The hazmat clad lady hummed in response. “That’s right. This baby is our pride and joy; a little pipe dream we’ve had since college. Isn’t that right, Jack?”

“You got it, baby!” Mr Fenton agreed, crossing his arms with a proud smile on his face. “Except there’s nothing impossible about this beauty. Dreams do come true!”

“Although,” Maddie added, a grim look on her face, “we almost indefinitely put the project on hold after...an unfortunate accident back in our Sophomore year in Wisconsin University.”

Taking advantage of the distance between them, Sam, and their parents, Danny leaned in closer to Jazz to whisper in her ear, “Unfortunate in more ways than one.” If only his parents knew that day they created a monster...Although the time he travelled through time to their college days proved nothing could’ve prevented Vlad from turning into the frootloop he was today. The monster inside him had nothing to do with his ghost half.

Unaware of the exchange taking place between the siblings, the Goth girl asked, “An accident? What happened?”

“The prototype malfunctioned and ended up blasting good ol’ Vladdie in the face.” Jack explained, a distant look in his eyes. 

“Maybe if he hadn’t stuck his face right in front of the working portal, none of that would’ve happened…” Danny muttered darkly for Jazz’s ears only. 

“Or at least worn safety goggles.” His sister whispered back.

Their father went on, not having heard a word that was said between his children. “The exposure to the ecto-chemicals gave him a nasty case of ecto-acne that had him hospitalised for years. It took him over twenty years to forgive me.” He said sadly, only to immediately brighten up the next second. As someone who came from a family that usually only emoted silent judgement, fake cheer, or total apathy, Sam was having a bit of a hard time trying to catch up to all of Mr Fenton’s many emotions. “But we finally patched things up seven years ago and now we’re all buddies again!”

Danny smiled in satisfaction at the way his mum’s posture stiffened up, her arms crossed defensively in front of her, and her forehead creased in aggravation. “‘Buddies’ might be a bit of a stretch…” she mumbled angrily, before taking on a more neutral tone, “I don’t know Jack. I still think the years have turned Vlad into a bit of a freak.”

“Oh, don’t be like that, baby!” Her husband whined. “You’d be a little eccentric too if you spent all of your time alone inside a big, lonely mansion like he does!”

“I can attest to that…” Sam muttered to herself as she hugged herself, her eyes on the floor, years of lonely memories coming back in full force. Then she realised, “Wait, did you just say your friend lives in a big mansion all by himself?”

“I wouldn’t say all by himself,” Danny chimed in. “He has a cat keeping him company.”

Ignoring him, she pressed on, “And you said his name was Vlad?”

“That we did! Our good ol’ friend Vlad Masters!” Jack confirmed with a huge grin on his face. His was the only smiling face amongst his family. Something told Sam Mr. Masters hadn’t exactly won the crowd over…

The raven haired girl turned her head to face the Fenton siblings so fast she almost gave herself whiplash as she sent them a pointed look. “You guys are friends with Vlad freaking Masters and you think me having a little money is a big deal?!”

“Actually, you’re filthy, stinking rich yourself.” Jack corrected matter-of-factly and, for a moment, Sam wished she could just forgo her grandmother’s insistence on treating those older than you with respect and glower at the Fenton patriarch.

The only answer she got to her incredulous outburst were a pair of twin nervous laughs and shrugs.

The hazel-eyed girl took a deep breath as she pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration before turning back to their dad. “Um...and what exactly does it do?” She asked dubiously, redirecting everyone’s attention back to the portal with a jerk of her thumb. She just hoped it wasn’t what she thought it was. 

“It’s a portal to the Ghost Zone, where ghosts live and all that.” Danny’s voice confirmed her suspicions. 

With his hands sticking inside his pockets he, too, approached the enormous machine, coming to stand right beside Sam in the process. Turning her head to him, her brow furrowed in worry when she noticed the way his forehead creased as he beheld the portal. 

His face was bare of any telltale signs that would usually expose his true feelings on the matter; no creased forehead, no furrowed brow, no narrowed eyes, his lips were sealed in a thin, neutral line, and his hands in his pockets stopped him from clenching his fists. At first glance Danny was the perfect picture of calmness and indifference but something told Sam a very different storyーcall it sixth sense, call it her witchy instincts, or just plain care for her friend. There was something...dark hidden behind his eyelids. As well as something else. Something oh-so sad it made her heart squeeze in sympathy. Danny’s otherwise baby blue pools had turned the same colour of a troubled sea in a stormy night. Deep, and cold, and suffocating.

Lost in memories of times and misadventures caused by the eerie green hidden behind the portal’s doors, Danny started at the feeling of something warm sliding through his hands. Looking down, he saw Sam grabbing his hand in hers and giving it a reassuring squeeze. He didn’t realise he’d been smiling until his father spoke up again. 

“Well, Sam. What would you like to know?”

“Um...as much as you can tell me about ghosts?”

“Well,” Maddie took the floor, pulling her hoodie up and her goggles down. “That’s quite a lot, and I don’t think you’d feel comfortable staying at a house whose owners’ you’ve just met. So why don’t we start with the basics for now and you come back here anytime you want to continue this conversation?”

“I’d like that.” 

“Great. Now, come Sam. There’s so much to say and so little time.” With a motion of her hand, the ectologist gestured to the girl to follow her. Rolling his eyes and fearing what was to come, Danny pulled a chair out for his guest around a conference table standing in the middle of the room before taking a seat around it himself, Jazz following suit. Instead of sitting down like the youths present did, Maddie stood in front of them beside a blackboard Jack had dragged from the other side of the lab. 

Picking a chalk up, she began to scribble down on the board. “You see, Sam, the first thing you must know about ghosts is that they’re spiritual beings from another dimension, unlike pop-culture and legends where they’re described as the lost souls of the deceased.”

“That is not to say some of those spooks weren’t alive once.” Jack conceded. Unlike his wife, he’d ultimately sat down and was now tweaking with some strange-looking gun. “The thing is, whatever humanity or sense of morals they might have had once is long gone. Now they’re nothing more than ectoplasmic remains of human conscience.”

“Exactly.” Maddie agreed. “They think they’re intelligent, rational creatures capable of free will, but really those are just delusions caused by memories they no longer possess.”

Danny had to hold back a growl at that, otherwise Sam or, even worse, his parents might pick it up and ask him about it. With a furrowed brow he slumped down on the table and propped his head over his crossed arms. They really knew nothing, didn’t they? As excellent inventors as his parents might be, the way they approached ectology was closer to a pseudoscience than the discipline they claimed to have dedicated most of their lives to. As he and Jazz told Sam before, they were experts at everything one needed to know about a ghost’s innerworkings and how to exploit that to their benefitーand by extension his benefit, since he’d been borrowing their inventions for yearsー, but they were absolutely hopeless when it came to their motivations, their ambitions; what made them tick!

Listening to them going on and on about the same old, misguided story was just painful at this point.

Or course they had free will! It was precisely because of that he was constantly fighting ghosts, because they chose to fight him! Nobody said it was a smart choice but, hey, it was theirs. Just like many other ghosts chose to stay in the Ghost Zone and live their afterlives rather than cause trouble. The Far Frozeners, Clockwork, Wulf, Dora once she was free from her brother's abuse...Those were all examples of very powerful ghosts that chose to live peacefully!

But did their parents care? Noooooo! At this point he was sure they just wanted a lab rat. 

“The one thing that truly motivates a ghost to do the things it does,”ーit; could they be any more dehumanising?ー, “is its obsession.”

Okay. So offensive pronouns aside, that was accurate.

“Their obsession?” Sam echoed. She didn’t remember ever hearing about such a thing. 

“Indeed.” Maddie nodded, still scribbling furiously down on the board. “A ghost’s obsession is what ties them down to our world.” She explained as she made a diagram of a human head with the word ‘memories’ written on it and an arrow pointing at the silhouette of a ghost with the word ‘obsession’ scribbled down. “Remember when we said ghosts think they have free will due to memories they no longer possess?” Sam nodded. “Their obsession is those memories. It usually manifests in the form of something they used to hold dearー.”

“Or something that eventually consumed them.” Jack added, not once looking up from the strange device in his hands. 

“That’s right, hon. Something dear or that eventually consumed them that was so important to them it became all they cared about when they passed on. Fulfilling that obsession is what motivates them in the afterlife.”

“So, for example,” Sam started, a finger tapping her chin in contemplation, “if a person was so overworked when they were alive they ended up hating said job with a passion or even lost their minds over it, then anything related to it is their obsession?”

“Very well, Sam.” Maddie nodded appreciatively. 

As Mrs Fenton droned on, her voice became background noise. Sam was a mess. She didn’t know what to make of things so far. On the one hand, not only were the Fentons answering her questions and expanding on the knowledge she’d been brought up with, it confirmed everything she already knew! Ghosts were dangerous and unpredictable; they couldn’t be trusted because they’d turn on you on a whim. It’d happened before and that directly resulted in her people living in the shadows, terrified of being discovered, for centuries. 

Ghosts were immoral monsters.

And yet...she found she couldn’t fully believe anything they were saying. She didn’t want to believe what they were saying. If ghosts were truly that bad, then why did Phantom try to put her to safety? Why was he always fighting other ghosts for the sake of the town? Could it be that Amity Park was his obsession and he was just trying to defend his turf rather than the innocent? But that didn’t explain why he’d go out of his way to try and save her! Her, the Witch Queen, of all people!

Everything she once believed in and the questions that’d been plaguing her mind collided against each other. She didn’t know what to think anymore. But she did know one thing:

She’d promised Danny she’d try to keep an open mind. 

“Then what about Phantom?” She heard herself asking. When the Fentons’ questioning glances rested on her, she had to fight the urge to shrink under their gaze. Come on, Sam. You’re the Queen of the Witches of Amity Park and you’re doing this for your people, and nothing gets in between you and the sake of your people. She cleared her throat. “I mean, what’s his obsession?”

“Fudge if I know.” Mr Fenton mumbled, rolling his eyes. 

“Jack!” Mrs Fenton gasped. “Don’t cuss in front of the children!”

“I said ‘fudge’!” He defended himself. 

“And we’re not children anymore!” Danny and Jazz protested in unison. 

Rubbing her temple, Maddie let out a loud sigh. “What my husband means, Sam, is that Phantom is a bit of an anomaly.”

“An anomaly?” She raised her eyebrow in confusion. “An anomaly how?”

Once again, the Fenton matriarch turned around to write on her board, only this time she began a list. “For starters, the only sightings there’s ever been of him only date back to seven years ago, and even then he was already surprisingly powerful. Then, there’s the fact he’s constantly changing.”

“What do you mean?”

“For one, just when you think you got all his spectral abilities down, he surprises you with some new trick.” Jack explained, ignoring the way what he said next had his son scowling and his daughter giggling behind her palm. “He’s almost like a pageant dog. And then there’s his appearance; when he first appeared he looked like some prepubescent kidー.”

Must every ghost hunter assume I hadn’t already gone through puberty when I got my powers? Danny thought bitterly to himself. 

“ーand now he looks like he could be your age.” He finished. 

“His actions around here are both mysterious and suspicious, too.” Maddie added. 

“We’ve been trying to catch him since he first appeared, but the spook’s been managing to give us the slip every time.” Jack admitted.

His wife patted his shoulder reassuringly. “Aw, don’t you worry, honey. Sooner or later he’ll be all ours. It’s just a matter of time.”

“But by the time we finally catch him he might already be protected by the law or something!” He sulked. “Have you seen the sign when you enter the town? ‘Welcome to Amity Park; home of Danny Phantom!’” He scoffed, narrowing his eyes in disgust. “Might as well just call it, ‘The hauntedest place on Earth’, it’d be more accurate…”

“Uh, I think that’s already taken by some place called ‘Crystal Cove’, Dad.” Jazz pointed out. 

“Even if I do agree his increasing popularity is a cause for concern in terms of the town’s general sanity, there’s still many people who see him for what he is; a menace to society.” Mrs Fenton reasoned.

Just a week before, Sam would’ve agreed wholeheartedly with everything the Fentons said, but now she found herself squirming at the sound of their vile words. Had a few meetings with Phantom really warped her perspective on things that much? Looking down at her fidgeting hands resting on her lap, she had to deliberately stop herself from tucking a loose strand of hair behind her earーbecause she intended to push hair from the shaved side of her head away. When was she going to get used to that spell?

Unbeknownst to her, Danny was watching her every move. He wasn’t sure why, but the prospect of Sam siding with his parents and their misguided theories terrified him more than half the ghost fights he’d had in the last year. She was just so great...Even if they’d only hung out a few times, he already couldn’t believe there’d been a time where it’d just been him and Tuckerーand occasionally Jazz. 

She fit so well in their group it was like she was always meant to be one of them. Luckily she seemed to have taken their advice to heart and was indeed trying to keep an open mind; she even asked about his ghost-half. The halfa guessed it was probably an attempt to convince his parents (or maybe even herself) that not all ghosts could possibly be bad. And for that, pointless as it might be when it came to the Fentons, he was grateful. He just hoped she wouldn’t decide she was better off without him in her life.

It’d taken him twenty-one years to find her, he couldn’t lose her now.

Again, where did that come from?! 

He had to go back to trying to have a somewhat balanced sleep schedule. Sleep deprivation was doing a number on him. 

Just as he observed Sam, Jazz was keeping her eye on him. He looked so glum and tired...It was one thing having to hide who you are from your parents, but having to listen to them talk about how much they hate that thing you were hiding from them time and time again? It was enough to drive someone over the edge. 

Just by following his line of sight it became obvious this time he was far more worried about what Sam may think of this, may think of him. And if there was one thing her baby brother didn’t need, it was more things to worry about. 

Thinking quickly, the redhead scanned around the room, looking for something to divert everyone’s attention away from the topic at hand. As her eyes surveyed the dreaded Fenton Toaster (was that thing ever going to perish once and for all?), she took notice of an arrangement of pieces, wires, and circuit boards laying scattered on the floor. 

How could she have possibly missed that?

Her voice breaking everyone out of their own daze, she jerked a finger in the direction the pile of metal was, “Um, what is that?”

Following her pointing finger, her parents' expression brightened up. “That, Jazzyrincess, is our latest project; the Fenton Fermoir!”

“Dad knows French?” Danny asked, absolutely flabbergasted at the revelation. 

“I’ve known for weeks now and I’m still as surprised as you.” Jazz leaned back to whisper to him. Then she remembered something. “Wait, I thought you guys were going to make a special keychain for Danny; that is not a keychain.”

Squinting her eyes at the assortment of scrap metal on the floor, propelled by her arms, Sam leaned forward to the boy in front of her to join in on the conversation. “At least not one that fits inside a pocket.”

“Oh, don’t be silly, girls.” Maddie waved them off as she made her way to the yet-to-be-built Fenton Fermoir. “We finished Danny’s keychain weeks ago!”

“Which reminds me…” Jack rummaged inside his suit’s pockets until he fished out a simple set of keys with a badge with the company’s logo on it and handed it to his son. 

Bringing it to his face, Danny tried to appear enthusiastic. “Gee, thanks.” He stuffed his new keys inside his own jean pocket. “So. What does the Fenton Fermoir do?”

“Remember the portable ghost portal devices we created a few years ago?” Jack asked his kids, who nodded in response, then he noticed Sam’s blank stare. “Oh, that’s right. You weren’t there, Sam. The thing is, those gadgets could open up medium-sized ghost portals anywhere, so we thought we should perhaps try to create an opposite invention.”

“Wait, are you saying this thing’s supposed to be able to close ghost portals anywhere?” Danny asked. This was great news! If his parents finished the Fenton Fermoir and it worked, then he’d only need to power it up with his ecto-energy and the portal crisis would be over! He wouldn’t need to meet or rely on Lady Arcana anymore!

Somehow, the thought of not seeing the violet-eyed witch made his insides twist and his heart feel hollow. 

Man, sleep deprivation was getting worse each time!

“If we can get it to work.” Maddie lamented, kicking a cylindrical-looking piece around. “Whenever we try something happens and shuts it off! It’s almost as if our regular energy source isn’t the right one...or at least not enough.”

Well, there went his solution.

“So for now we’re stuck redesigning and rebuilding this baby until we find the right one.” Jack said optimistically. 

“It’s getting late, though, so why don’t we go upstairs and have dinner, hm?” Maddie suggested. “Sam, would you like to stay?”

The Goth was hesitant to reply. “Uh, I’d love to. But what are we having? It’s just...I, uh, I don’t eat meat.”

“Don’t worry. I always buy plenty of vegetables Danny and his dad barely even look at. You can have that.”

“Hey!” Both men cried out, offended. 

Giggling, the three women went back upstairs, followed closely by the still outraged men. 

During dinner, the weirdest thing happened. 

Nothing bad, really. But it was something Sam wasn’t used to at all. Most of the time, she only ever felt comfortable with her family when Grandma Ida was present, since she always acted like the understanding voice of reason she was beloved for back in the clan. And ever since she passed away, the atmosphere in her house was so tense you could cut it with a knife. The otherwise deathly quiet family dinners were only ever interrupted by her parents discussing how the business was doing, Mother’s next big, exclusive eventーsometimes they were true, sometimes they weren’tー, or to bring up her inadequacy as their daughter and, hence, heiress to then Manson name. 

The tension only melted away, even if just a little, when it was just her dad and her. 

But the Fentons…

Everything was so different. Animated chatter never left the table. Food was being passed around; conversations took place and questions about everyone’s day were asked; every once in a while someone would make a joke that would either elicit laughter or pained groans from everyone present...even herself. 

Their families really were very different. 

Despite everything, Sam loved her parents and knew, deep down, they loved her back. Her mother in particular just had a very selfish way of showing it. But the Fentons...They weren’t perfect. The way Danny and Jazz learned to rely on each other as well as their parents’ single-minded focus on their career were proof enough of that. But everyone sitting around that kitchen table, eating steak with a serving of mashed potatoes and peas, clearly loved each other very much.

When it came to family, life was a lottery. 

Sometimes you got heartless monsters, and other times you got loving people who were only humans and occasionally made mistakes. 

Maddie stopped mid-sentence, her fork with a piece of steak hanging in mid-air, because she noticed her husband doing something he shouldn’t. “Jack, are you still tweaking with that, even now?”

Stiffening up, for he’d been caught, he tried to play it cool. “Uh, no?” His wife’s arched eyebrow spoke volumes, making him give in. “Yes. But you can’t honestly expect me to stop now, babycakes! Not when I’m about to have a breakthrough!”

“I know I'm going to regret this” Jazz muttered, rolling her eyes, “but what’re you working on, Dad?”

The orange clad man replied by holding out his creation for all to see. It was a funny-looking, double-cannoned gun that had what seemed to be a compartment filled with goo in its back. “Behold, the new and improved Fenton Foamer!” He announced loudly before adding, almost as an afterthought. “Now in pocket size.”

Not understanding a word that was being said, Sam let the family talk, her focus directed at her stir-fried vegetables. 

“Is there something wrong with the old Fenton Foamer?” Danny asked. 

“No, but it never hurts to revisit your old work and try to improve it, son.” He replied, patting the device with one gloved hand. “Not only is this beauty more appropriate for travelling, but I’ve also been tinkering with a new formula for the foam. Trust me, nothing could possiblyー.”

All of a sudden, when the patting became too much for the prototype to handle, a ‘splurt’ sound could be heard at the same time as a bright, green goop flew across the table. Everyone’s jaws dropped in mortification. 

“ーgo wrong.” Jack finished lamely, earning himself the disapproving looks of everyone present but Sam. 

But that might as well be because her eyes weren’t visible. The goop had landed on her, covering her petite form from head to toe in the mysterious substance Danny prayed to anyone who might be listening wasn’t toxic. 

Panicking, he was by her side in the blink of an eye. He was trying to wipe the foam away with a napkin as he apologised profusely. “Oh, my God! I am so, so sorry, Sam. I promise, I’ll clean you up. Or, even better, I’ll pay for the dry-cleaning. Sorry. I’m sorry. I promise, my dad’s inventions aren’t usually harmful to humans; a little electric shock at most. I’m so sorry, Sam. Please, forgive me.”

Under the Fentons’ concerned gaze, Sam lowered her face slightly, enough so they could make even less of her expression. Then she began to shake, Danny was sure from rage, and make indistinguishable sounds. Just as everyone braced themselves for the worst, the Goth threw her head back and laughed so loudly she caught them all off guard for a second. She kept on cackling almost maniacally to the point she had to hug herself, holding her sides that were, most definitely, going to split open if she kept this up. 

A little unnerved by her behaviour, Danny could only ask, “Uh, Sam? Are you alright?”

“W-why...why w-wouldn’t...I-I be?” She replied with a question of her own as her laughter calmed down to giggles. 

“Um, not to be Captain Obvious here, but you just got covered from head to toe in goop…” Jazz pointed out uncertainly. 

“Oh, I know. Trust me, it’s fine.” The Goth said as she used her hands to wipe said goop from her eyes and face. She furrowed her brow in confusion when she finally noticed the family’s worried looks. “Uh...are you guys okay?”

“Oh! Yes, yes we are. It’s just...” Maddie began, unsure on how to address the subject herself, “ not many people react so positively to one of our inventions going awry.”

“Normally you’d have issued a restraining order against us already.” Jack explained so matter-of-factly it made the Goth girl wonder just how much time this family spent at court. 

“Yeah.” Danny agreed, still trying to help Sam clean up with his napkin. “Not even Tucker would’ve taken it so well.”

“I see. Well, what can I say?” She shrugged, smiling sheepishly. “I guess I just can’t get mad when I find this so awesome.”

“You find this awesome?” Jazz parroted, incredulous. 

“Um, yeah. I told you; I love everything paranormal and, you gotta admit, this is the sorta thing that would go viral on YouTube.” 

“I...can’t argue with that logic.” Danny conceded. He still couldn’t believe it; Sam just got bathed in slime and her first reaction was laughing it off? Could this girl get any more incredible?

When she finally got to cleaning her hair free of foam, Sam had to do a double take as she slid her fingers through her hair. “Have you guys ever thought about selling this as a hair conditioner? Because, I kid you not, my hair’s never been this silky! I have a friend who would kill for something like this.”

“You have other friends besides Tucker and me?” The question left his mouth before he could even register it. Sam’s murderous glare made it obvious she didn’t appreciate the jab. 

Then, as if on cue, everyone broke down laughing. They all spend the rest of dinner chatting amicably and sharing storiesーJack and Maddie even began to ponder on the benefits of selling the new Fenton Foam as a conditioner, like Sam suggested! By the time they were done eating, the whole family gathered around their doorstep to bid their guest goodbye. Danny, Maddie, and Jazz hugged her (Sam still wasn’t used to physical contact due to her Goth indifference but this was nice), while Jack patted her in the back with such force it almost sent her falling down the stairs. 

The moment the door to FentonWorks was closed, his parents were already asking Danny when was the next time Sam would come visit, prompting him to groan in exasperation and Jazz to giggle at her brother’s embarrassment.