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jundsthoughts · 5 days ago

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The Flight From Number 4 Privet Drive

Enjoy this 950 word drabble of a scene that I'll eventually finish for The House of Black, my HP fanfic.

Harry barely took a second to look down the stairs before he was taking them two at a time, rushing down as Theo struggled his way up, his wand and a knife brandished at the Dursleys.

“Stay back.” Theo warned, his voice having taken on a low and dangerous quality that he’d never heard nor imaged could come from his friend.

A thrill runs down his pack, hairs all across his arms, back, and neck standing on end as electricity seems to fill the air and adrenaline fills his veins like a rushing fire. He’d only felt truly like this from his near-death experiences in Hogwarts, but he doesn’t have time to figure out why it feels the same. Why Theo’s voice had sparked this reaction in him.

He gets down far enough to gently grab the shoulder of Theo’s wand arm, pulling him up another step as Vernon takes a menacing step closer as Ripper shouts and howls at them from near Marge.

Harry suppresses a full body shudder as Vernon glares up directly at him, as if Theo wasn’t holding deadly weapons toward him. “Boy,” he growls, “get your freak out of my house.” He swallows thickly, doing his best to think of how to get Theo safe.

He didn’t trust Vernon, and especially not Marge, to not hurt him somehow if he did as was asked. That’d only make his own punishment less painful, afterall. His thoughts abruptly shift, though, as Theo nudges him another step up the stairs.

“We have to leave,” his friend says, not looking away from the Dursleys, “now.”

“Why?”

“Because the first escapee of Azkaban is after your life.”

Harry’s head whips around to Petunia as she sucks in a deep shuddering gasp. She’d always been pale, but now she looked sickly, horrified, more than he’d ever seen her. He was entirely sure what Azkaban was, so how would she know? Had his Mum mentioned it at some point? A thousand thoughts run through his head, trying to find some reason for his perfectly normal Aunt Petunia to know more about this than he did.

He couldn’t find any before a loud, explosive, bard crushed through the air. Heavily pounding paws, everyone turning and asking as a massive black hound rushes towards the door. Except, it never reached the doorframe. Instead, a man twisted and melted into and through it in place of the dog. The same black, matted and shaggy, hair was rolling down his head. Wild, gray eyes darted through the entry for only a moment.

They flicked to the huddled form of his Aunts and cousin, a small sneer that quickly disappeared as he looked confused at Vernon who was only now turning to face him. But it turned into a snarl as he saw Theo, which made Harry quickly drag his friend up to the same step. Then the man's eyes settled on him, and a greatly confused flurry of expressions raced across his gaunt and drawn features. Confusion and what Harry guessed was rage was first, then joy as the gaze settled properly on him. After that, it was a flurry he couldn't catch most of, other than confusion and disbelief before it settled into a hard look as it switched between Theo and Vernon.

“Harry, run. Now!” Theo shouted, his voice desperate as he shoves Harry roughly with an elbow while pointing the wand towards the stranger. “Locomotor Mortis!” A red bolt of spell fire shoots from his wand, the man jumping to the side as he makes his way towards the stairs.

“Harry,” the man calls out, his voice rough and scratchy, “Harry don’t-” He’s cut off as he gasps, getting hit by a Diffindo in the arm.

“Harry, run!” Theo shouts again, shoving him up to the landing. “He’s going to kill you!”

Harry’s eyes bulge out, quickly raking up and down the strangers form as he finally takes stock of the ratty clothes on him. Was this what Azkaban made its denizens wear? The man gapes, looking offended as he tries once again, “Harry I’m not- just let- argh.” He falls beneath Vernon, who’d been caught by a Tripping Jinx by Theo.

He just stares at the man, not sure what to think. The only reason… he must be with Voldemort. That’s the only thing that sticks into his head, the only reason he’d been hunted—why people had tried to kill him—so far in his life. With a deep, desperate thought, a crash rings through the house as his wand breaks through the door of his cupboard. Before it even lands in his hand, he’s yelling the Body Bind curse towards the man trapped under Vernon.

“Harry!”

Everything stops.

He whips his head around, bending halfway over the railing and taking a step down the stairs to do so. Theo tries to pull him back, but Harry just bats his hand away as he stares at his Aunt Petunia. She looks up at him, eyes wide as they bounce between the pile at the bottom of the stairs and him. “Run,” is all she says to him, voice filled with so much fear that he doesn’t dare question it. The last thing he sees is her pulling Dudley into the kitchen, yelling for Vernon.

With a steadier grip than he’d thought he could manage, he pulls at Theo’s arm and pounds towards the smallest bedroom. He lets go of Theo’s arm and drops to the ground, reaching under the bed to grab the bundle wrapped in his Dad’s Invisibility Cloak as he heard the locks on his door slam shut in a flurry of clicks as a rush of magic fills the room.

#jundsthoughts #harry potter #theodore nott #jundswritings #fanfic #the hidden inheritance

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copepodaaa · 1 month ago

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2021 / and now (2025). I will attach the very first Mortiarty design here. He used to look like a young student in his 20 years olg who hadn't graduated from university. AND NOW HE'S A REAL MAN and he's grown a long nose :3

I also like that Morty used to have short and shaggy hair, but now it's more wavy and long i love him

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fandomwe1rd0 · 5 months ago

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Rick and Morty: The Anime ranking!

Oh god I dreaded this day. Sooo if you wanna see me angrily ranting about a cartoon, this is the post for you! I will be ranking every episode of the Rick and Morty anime! Just to be clear, I'm not gonna do tiers like how I did for the show, since in comparison to the actual show, all of these would be F tier or AT BEST D tier, so just keep in mind in comparison to the actual show, these are Fs, I will still try to be detailed with the reviews though. Also I had to torture myself to rewatch the anime for this ranking, I hope you guys are happy, I had to force my eyeballs open Clockwork Orange style, y'all just want to see me suffer. I had to drink coffee to get through this because this was so bad and I needed some engry cause this was so soul sucking that it took all of my motivation. AND I DON'T EVEN FUCKING DRINK COFFEE BECAUSE IT'S TOO BITTER! I HOPE YOU GUYS ARE HAPPY! YOU DID THIS! (Just kidding, I love y'all mwah!) Ok now that I'm done bitching and moaning, let's get this going by continuing to bitch and moan about the anime! Now, I am aware that some people like the anime, and if you do, that's perfectly fine! Not everyone HAS to have the same opinion as me, I mean this is just a cartoon anyway, buttttt if you do like it, I would suggest skipping this post since my opinion on it is uhhh very negative especially if you like Elle, I will be very mean to her, this post will be an extermely unhinged rant, so please enjoy while I suffer! Spoilers for the anime ahead! Reviews under the cut! Unlike my previous tier list, I will be starting from the best and working my way down, let's get this started!

1. Fighting Mother. This is the best episode of the series! That being said it's still...not...good...I mean let's start off with the positives, the reason why this episode is the best one is because the animation for the combat is really good! Especially the animation in the fight scene between Space Beth and Tammy it's admittedly really smooth, like I kid you not it's actually...good! I feel like it's what the anime COULD'VE been but just...wasn't, it sucks because it could've been good but it just...isn't. This episode is mercifully short, being only 17 minutes. And baby Morty is adorable. I also do like Shaggy Rick, I feel like his character is legitimately interesting, too bad they didn't do as much as they could've done with it. Space Beth was also admittedly likable. Also Elle isn't here! Yayyyy! FUCK ELLE! Also, the music for the fight scene between Space Beth and Tammy fucking SLAPS! I just wish the fight scene was longer tbh. Ok anyway onto the negatives, the side plot between the Ricks are...fine...I guess, I've got no opinion on it, it's just kinda boring. I don't like the weird moral high ground Rick takes, why is he bothered at all by Shaggy Rick "throwing that family away"? Also...how is Shaggy Rick throwing that family away? Am I dumb or what? Also, NO THE RICK FROM THE ANIME IS NOT C-137! SAY SIKE RN! Also the ending is so random and anti climatic. And this is the first instance of them turning Morty into a pathetic little bitch boy and Rick being an asshole with no charmisa, charm, humor, or anything that made him my favorite character in the first place, all he is is that slightly grumpy old man all of the girl scouts hate being assigned at the nursing home! Woowee I love it when my favorite characters are derailed and turned into twisted shadows of their former self written by a bad fanfic don't you!?

2. Alien Elle. You know the episode is gonna suck when Elle's name is in the title. Fucking ELLE! Stupid fucking self-insert mary sue...ok, ok, being mean...lemme start with the positives! Uh...Shaggy Rick is back...so uhm...that's cool I guess. I also like how we get a canon Morty birthday, also...MORTY'S HEIGHT IS DIFFERENT IN THE ANIME! SEE?! THAT'S PROOF THAT THAT'S NOT MY BOY! (I-I mean I know it's space Morty but please shut up...) Either that or the anime writers didn't watch the show before making the anime....nahhhh of COURSE they watched the show that's why the show is so much like the anime right....? Righhtttttttt? (Watching the anime fucking sucks please kill me) Also, I'm sure this was unintentional, but the scene where Morty is looking for Elle kinda parallels the scene where Rick is looking for Prime, so that's cool! I mean even down the Morty printing a picture Elle out of his head like how Rick did with Prime! Too bad I care so little about Elle. Okay! Onto the negatives! Fucking ELLE! She HAD to ruin the episode, of course she randomly earns someone's trust because her style is just wonderful! Even though they didn't even know a damn thing about each other! This episode is so goddamn BORING! Like it bores me out of my mind, like most of the anime but still. Elle and Morty's relationship is again very rushed and boring. They are the reason why the rule "Show, don't tell" exists! It tells us about how happy and amazing Elle is and how much Morty loves her without showing it to us, and Morty is just reduced to being Elle's proud boyfriend, I mean he isn't even doing good things because he's just a good natured kid, it's all for FUCKING ELLE IT SUCKS IT SUCKS SO BAD! I don't like the rants they go on about multiverse, they try too hard to sound smart. And Space Morty and Rick's dynamic is just...kinda lame honestly, it's just a cliche mentor-student relationship that's been protrayed hundreds of times before, which is huge wasted potential, you could've grappled more with Shaggy Rick's guilt since he feels like he's replacing his original Morty who died, that could've been some serious interesting internal conflict that coul;d've fleshed him out as a character! But nope! All he does is tell Morty not to call him grandpa andddd...that's it! OH WOW I LOVE THIS ANIME SO MUCH DON'T YOU ALL OF THE CHARACTERS ARE TOTALLY HUMAN AND COMPLEX AND NOT AT ALL SEEM LIKE THEY ARE FORM A BAD FANFIC I LOVE THIS ANIME DON'T YOU?! This episode also sucks! But I mean, it didn't infuriate me as much as I thought it would, it mostly just bored me out of my school, this episode probably would've been better if it wasn't for FUCKING ELLE! FUCK ELLE! ALL MY HOMIES HATE ELLE! Although that can be said for any episode of the anime so eh.

3. Family. UGHHH WHY IS THIS EPISODE 21 MINUTES JUST LET ME DIE NOW PLEASE! Uhh on the plus side, YAY WE GET MINIMUM ELLE IN THIS EPISODE! I mean…she's still here but at least she doesn't do much. Jerry and Jerry Prime are…fine…even though I care very little about Jerry's superhero arc. Now onto the negatives! This episode doesn't have a lot of positives, but it doesn't have a lot of negatives either, it's just a boring, unmemorable episode. Rick and Morty do interact, but it's just kinda boring and it sucks how they can make their dynamic boring, Morty is a damsel in distress, Rick is a boring character, Jerry is just a goofy dad who's also a superhero…for some reason…they also make Jerry pathetic but eh…I mean at least they are trying to do something that the original show did…why is a weird green guy here? What purpose does he bring to the story? And some of the dialogue feels unnatural, Mr. Nimbus is here, but he doesn't do much, at least his character wasn't assassinated like my boys. I know it tried for a happy family, but I care so little for this version of the Smith family that I felt nothinggg! Really this episode is just boring, but at least it's not infuriatingly bad.

4. When we Meet in our Dreams. This episode is just another boring one. There's not a whole lotta positives, but I guess Space Beth was ok. And so was Shaggy Rick, still wasted potential though. He could've been SO much more interesting. I mean the story here at least made some amount of sense, like I was actually able to follow along! A rare treat in the anime! There's a lot of action, but none of it is particularly interesting in my personal opinion. Elle is here and she sucks but she doesn't have a lot of screentime, so she doesn't make the episode suck as much as she usually does. But of FUCKING course Space Morty's last words are "I love you Elle" EVEN THOUGH HIS MOM AND GRANDPA ARE RIGHT FUCKING THERE BUT NOPE HE JUST WANTED TO TALK TO ELLE! I really did not care about his death and it's anti climatic, but it could've been worse I guess, I just care very little about Space Morty since he's only been in a handful of episodes. Elle like sacrifices herself to save Morty? I dunno it's very convoluted and stupid. This episode is just kinda boring, but at least it isn't infuriating.

5. The Girl Who Manipulates Time. I…am so confused…why was there an alternate version of Summer if she's never seen or heard from again…w-why is she here? Why was that needed? I mean..I guess the gay drama between alien bureaucrats are…fine…I mean it's one of the only entertaining things about the anime…so uh…there's that. Wait wait no start with the positives…uhhhh I like the theme song, I mean that's a positive about every episode but this was the first time we see it, and I hate that it's actually really good…like I'm sorry but it might actually be better than the show's theme song, but of course fucking ELLE is in every single frame. Fuck Elle fr. But whatever, the theme song's good! It does a good job hyping you up. The backgrounds here are admittedly really pretty. Uhm…I guess every character is…ok? I mean they are all kinda boring but…they aren't…unlikable. I will give this some leeway, since first episodes tend to be a little iffy. Now onto the negatives! The plot is extremely basic, it's been done a million times, being stuck in a simulation, Tron, Die Now, Free Guy��need I go on? This episode introduces a boring side character that only gets brought up in this episode and the finale, and no, you do not need to watch this episode to understand his role in the finale, he literally just exists here to pad out run time and he is so forgettable I can't remember his name, I just watched this episode and I don't remember. Elle unconsensually kisses Morty so that is not big fun, and she like…never gets called out for this? It's just acted like some normal thing people in healthy relationships do? Like no bitch, DON'T KISS SOMEONE WHO CLEARLY DOESN'T REMEMBER YOU! Also Rick so clearly doesn't care about Morty in the anime, I'm sorry, he literally didn't care enough to make sure Morty could come back from the game no matter how deep he got, #notmyrick. This is embarrassing for a Rick fan like me, this isn't my favorite character ok!? I refuse to believe my Rick and the Rick from the anime are the same person. The story is confusing but it's trying to make you think it's smart by using smart people words, but it doesn't work and makes it more confusing. And of course, Rick and Morty don't interact, which is a trend in the anime. What? You thought Rick and Morty would interact in a show called RICK AND MORTY THE ANIME!? No! Of course not! Don't be stupid! A-also how…how can Elle not tell that our Morty isn't space Morty? S-she can tell the future…why…why are you even giving her that power if she isn't going to use it…? Plothole ahoy! Also…who's gonna tell the writers of the anime that being able to manipulate time and being able to tell the future isn't the same thing…? Also of fucking course Elle's ridiculously over powered…also her and Morty's relationship is extremely forced. Anyways, this episode sucks. Shitty start for a shitty series, it's fitting, really.

6. Memories. Another mercifully short episode! Only 18 minutes! Let's get the positives out off the way first! I did feel like Jerry was pretty in character, although I kinda dislike how all they made him was a goofy dad- wait. positives. I need to talk about the positives…uhhhh Summer was fine I guess…I like how they didn't do any weird clone shit with the Beths, although I feel like they could've expanded more on the tension between them, uhm…I liked how it showed the conflict between Beth and Jerry's marriage, even if they ended up doing nothing with it!! Uhhh Shaggy Rick has 1 good scene where he thought about his dead Morty so that's cool ig…they still do nothing with it though. YAY WHAT A GREAT ANIME! THE CHARACTERS ARE SO COMPLEX! Morty isn't made into a pathetic bitch boy! But he is made into just being Elle's proud boyfriend..hm. Ok onto the negatives! Rick and Morty interact but it fucking SUCKS! Rick is just an asshole to Morty and not in a lovable way, I mean he literally threatened to CLONE MORTY IN THEIR FIRST MINUTE OF MEETING WHAT THE FUCK! And Morty of course doesn't say anything because he can't stand up for himself in the anime I guess. They try too hard to make emotional moments, like with Morty and Shaggy Rick, but they only had one episode, so the amount I care about their relationship is very, VERY little. Shaggy Rick is infinite wasted potential, I get they want to have mutiple storylines, but I am just confused. ELLE IS FUCKING HERE AGAIN BEING A FUCKING MARU SUE AND GIVING THE CHARACTERS THE ADVICE THEY NEED OF FUCKING COURSE AND EVERYONE TRUSTS HER WITHOUT A SECOND THOUGHT EVEN FUCKING RICK WHO'S WHOLE THING IS THAT HE HAS TROUBLE TRUSTING OTHER PEOPLE! AND OF COURSE SHE FUCKING SAVES RICK! BECAUSE SHE"S PERFECT AND AMAZING SHE"S SUCH A SHITTY FUCKING CHARACTER! AND EVERYONE IN THE FAMILY FUCKING TRUSTS HER AND LOVES HER INSTANTLY AND WHY IS BETH SO FUCKING DUMB WHY LET A COMPLETE STRANGER LIVE WITH YOU AND SLEEP IN YOUR SON'S ROOM YOU KNOW THEY ARE DATING AND YOU KNOW WHAT TEENAGERS DO YOU FUCKING IDIOT AND HOW CAN ELLE NOT TELL THAT THIS ISN'T SPACE MORTY SHE CAN TELL THE FUTURE HAVE HER USE IT FUCK NO I WON'T TAKE MY ANGER MEDS FUCK OFF

7. Feel, Don't Think. This episode fucking sucks. WHY IS IT 20 MINUTES! Again, no positives so let's just angrily rant about the episode together! Unless you like this episode in that case uh…I'm sorry. Elle is again worshipped, the stakes are very low but they are supposed to be high, I just care very little about these characters, Morty is turned into a pathetic little bitch boy, Rick is just an asshole with no depth, I mean…at least the story made sense? But that really shouldn't be a positive. Rick and Morty do interact, but it wasn't anything great, Rick is just an asshole and regresses back to how he was in season 4 of the show, which fucking sucks. They make a puberty joke with Morty that just wasn't funny, and again I care very little about Elle, I fucking hate that bitch, can we stop focusing on her? Please? No? We still got 2 episodes to go…ughhhh…just kill me now.

8. A Pain in the Back. This episode was a pain in the back to get through (Heh, heh. Funny joke.) A very Elle heavy episode...whatever this is the finale..let's just get this over with so I can watch something good and be done with this anime...ok so one positive..gay representation! Frank, yeah that was the forgettable guy's name, has a thing for Morty...why is this anime so romance heavy? Whatever, even though nothing happens, it's still kinda cool to see, but for some reason Morty keeps going out of his way to spend time with him despite being married to Elle, yeah he marries Elle and despite Morty having 2 adults models, they just use him as a kid for some reason, Morty isn't a pathetic bitch boy, but he's just a boring stupid character. Rick suddenly cares about Morty now...because that was what the show does so we have to do it but we have to do it significantly worse! It feels so forced and unnatural because Rick never cared about Morty until the plot demanded it, I mean he literally hesitated and told Elle not to be stupid when she told him to do something that will save Morty last episode, A Rickle in Time? That episode never existed silly! You're just making stuff up in your head again! (I AM GASLIGHTING YOU!) And the ending tries to be impactful but it solves nothing, I did find it kind of funny that nobody cared when Elle died though since it was meant to be an emotional moment when it happened but it wasn't enough to save this dumpster fire of a finale.

9. Her Innermost Wish. This episode again fucking sucks, Elle dies and I legit feel nothing. Morty is so fucking pathetic, he cries 10 times in this episode. Space Beth for some reason can't fathom why someone like Elle would want to date MORTY because Elle is perfect because ofc she is. I care very little about Elle and Space Morty but they try to make us emotional but it doesn't work. Elle is surprised that Morty isn't Space Morty b-but…she can tell the future..I h-how did she not know MAKE YOUR ANIME MAKE SENSE WHY DID YOU EVEN MAKE IT THAT ELLE CAN TELL THE FUTURE IT LITERALLY DOES NOTHING AT ALL AND JUST ADDS A HUGE GLARING PLOTHOLE AND THIS IS COMING FROM SOMEONE WHO DOESN'T NOTICE PLOTHOLES. Rick and Morty hug, but it feels so empty because they barely even interacted and Rick showed no sign of caring about Morty. And again, STOP FOCUSING ON ELLE I DON'T CARE ABOUT HER BITCH ASS! Oh god they're aren't going to stop…I wanna die

10. Free Will. No...god no please no..no...NOOOO! I was dreading this episode I promise you, it is SO BAD! UGHH WHY IS IT SO LONG 19 MINUTES!? WHYYY! I'll be honest, there really isn't any positives, so I'll just rant about this episode, good? Good. Why is Tammy in the opening? it does nothing and contributes nothing it's just there to pad out the run time. Oh boy I love filler! Elle fucking sucks as usual, if you weren't convinced she's a mary sue now, you will be convinced after this episode, everyone praises Elle and talks about how amazing she is, Beth talks about how much she likes the girl, she's already popular at school, they try to surprise you by revealing that Elle is anti-matter but I literally wasn't surprised at all, there is also no foreshadowing but they treat it like some super cool reveal. And basically she is anti matter and unless Rick gets rid of some device, the world will slowly deterorate because matter and anti matter can't exist in the same place, and this was the PERFECT chance to give Elle SOME personality but nope! Whatever Rick decides to do is fine because she's happy that she got to meet Morty! THIS EPISODE IS SO FUCKING BAD AH! It's centered around fucking ELLE. If you decide to watch the anime, please, PLEASE skip this episode! It is bad I promise! Don't waste 19 minutes of your life that you'll NEVER get back! It's not worth it I PROMISE YOU! And of fucking course Elle saved Space Beth because she's perfect and amazing! FUCKING MARY SUE! Ugh...whatever at least there's...4 MORE EPISODES LEFT GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!

#Anti Rick and Morty: The Anime #rick and morty #rick n morty #rick c137 #morty prime #shaggy Rick #Jerry Smith #Beth Smith #Space Beth #Summer Smith #FUCK ELLE

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bizarremoon · 11 months ago

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Compilation of fun Scooby Doo Animations below 😁👇

youtube

#scooby doo #shaggy #shaggy rogers #shaggy and scooby #velma dinkley #velma scooby doo #velma and daphne #daphne blake #daphne #fred jones #five nights at freddy's #rick and morty #multiversus #funny #love #animation #cartoon network #Youtube

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phantomdoofer · 6 months ago

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Tower Town - Pizza History - Risperto per I Morti

Peppino leaned back on the couch, laughing lightly. He'd intended to just stay at home for Halloween this year, but Julio had invited him to a party. To Peppino's surprise, his Mama had insisted he go.

“You need to get out more, Pino,” she'd said firmly. “Julio has been your friend for years. And you might even find yourself having a good time.”

She'd winked at him so knowingly then that he'd blushed furiously. “Mama…” he said, rubbing the back of his shaggy head, “are-a you sure you don't want me to stay?”

She'd laughed. “Oh, my little Peppino,” she'd said, gently caressing his cheek, “I'll be fine. Sinceramente. If it bothers you so much, I won't try to force you. But, other than your football, you don't ever socialize. You should try it. At least once.”

And so he'd accepted.

Arriving at Julio's house, the young man had greeted him profusely. “Peppino! Thanks for coming, amigo!”

Peppino had noticed Julio had a beer in his hand. Forgot his parents don't care if he's underage. His Mama wouldn't let him have more than a bit of wine. “When you're of age, polpetta, you can make your own decisions,” she'd said firmly. “But there's a history of alcoholism in my blood. Be careful, mio figlio.”

Peppino had stepped in, hearing a small but loud round of voices chortling and laughing in the next room. “Thanks for-a inviting me, Julio.”

“¡Por supuesto! I know parties aren't your thing, but come on! Live a little, amigo!” He’d slapped Peppino on the back, which he barely felt. He's already drunk, Peppino had thought with a mixture of trepidation and amusement.

“¡Entra, entra! ¡Habla, mézclate, amigo mío!” Julio had been unusually boisterous, even for him.

Peppino had looked around - he saw no adults. “Are-a your parents OK with-a this?”

Julio had laughed. “It was their idea! They're on vacación! Told me just to keep it at home, don't drink too much, and don't destroy anything!”

The small group in the living room, mostly their street ball friends and their partners, had seen him then, and had all called him over.

Julio had slapped him on the back again. “You see, amigo? You've got a place here! Sit! Relax! Have fun!”

And so, despite his fears, Peppino had. He'd waved off the alcohol (“I can't, Mama would kill me”), and they'd laughed it off, teasing him just a tiny bit but taking it in stride.

After a while, Peppino found himself enjoying things.

As the movie they'd been watching ended - a classic slasher movie - Julio jumped up, running back with water bottles for everyone. “Drink, drink!”

One Ogre, a boy named Lenny, had groaned but taken it. “Ah, c’mon Julio, I jus’ got a good buzz goin’!”

Peppino had jumped in. “You don't need a buzz, you don't have anything up there to get buzzed!”

Everyone had laughed, at that stage of drunkenness where everything was funny. Peppino, cold sober, laughed along. He hadn't been sure how the line would go over, but it had landed easily. Maybe I should get out more often!

Julio was practically bouncing. “I've got an idea! But I don't want everyone passing out. We gotta be sharp.” He'd grinned maliciously.

Another boy, a human named Heath, looked up. “Spit it out, J, what're you up to?”

Julio's grin got even wider. “We're gonna go down to that big cemetery down the road and find the oldest grave!”

Peppino's eyes went wide. “B-but Julio, isn't that-a dangerous?” It was no secret that occasionally some old soul would come back and pop out of the ground, going for a bit of a walk… and not being particularly friendly to the living.

Julio was practically hopping. “Come on, don't be such a aguafiestas, Pep! It'll be finnne!”

As the others talked it over, they were getting more and more into the idea. Peppino's heart twisted a little. I better go along, if only to keep an eye on this bunch of drunks! He held up both hands in surrender, and smiled. “Ok, ok, hai vinto!”

Julio jumped into the air, whooping. “That's the spirit, Pep! ¡Eres la neta!”

Peppino stood, resigned to babysitting his friends. Everyone was whooping and laughing. Peppino held out his hand to Julio. “Give-a me your keys, Julio, just in case you forget.” He smiled to take some bite out of the demand.

Julio handed them over. “Tienes razón, amigo. I'd probably forget to lock the door, then some ratero would steal everything and mi padre would kill me.” He wobbled a bit and grabbed Peppino's arm. “Eres un buen amigo, Peppino.”

As the group danced around outside, Peppino locked the door behind them, then pocketed the keys. “¡Todo bien! ¡Que empiece esta fiesta!”

As they set off, Peppino reflected on Julio's tendency to lapse into Spanish as he got drunk. Wonder if I'd do the same thing in Italian?

He heard Julio calling, already far ahead. “Hey, culo gordo! We going or what?”

Peppino laughed and waved. “Ah, shut up, Julio! I'll be right there…”

~~~~

The group was stumbling through the darkness, laughing merrily. Peppino was feigning joining in, but he was worried. I'm the only one not blasted out of their mind. What if one of them does something stupid… and I'm not paying enough attention?

Needless to say, he was no longer having fun.

As they approached the cemetery, one girl, a young human girl named Amy, was getting more and more distressed. Peppino looked over, and realized she had tears in her eyes. He slowed, letting her catch up. “What's wrong?”

She had her hand over her mouth - Peppino realized she was trying not to bawl. “Something’s wrong,” she whispered. “Something's very wrong. We shouldn't be doing this. We should be here.”

Peppino felt a chill run up his spine. Though he hadn't known her for long, everyone else said Amy seemed to have strong senses, to the degree it might be some kind of power. They normally took her warnings seriously. “We should tell the others, then…”

She waved a hand at the laughing drunks in front of them, and choked out a quiet sob. “Do you really think they'll listen?”

Peppino sighed. “Probabilmente no.”

She reached out and grabbed his arm so tightly he flinched. “We have to get them in and out of there as fast as we can. Help me, Peppy, please.”

He looked down into her wobbling eyes and couldn't disagree. “Va bene, Amy,” he muttered. “I'll try.”

He looked up and realized they were at the edge of the cemetery. He shivered a little. She's right, this is wrong. “Uh, guys, do you really-a think we should be doing this? It’s a bit dis-a-respectful…”

Julio laughed. “Ah, come on, Pep! It's not like we're gonna be tearing the place up…” He turned, seeing the two of them standing - Peppino grave and concerned, Amy openly trying not to cry. He walked over. “Amy? ¿Qué ocurre?”

The rest of the group, catching the tone in Julio's voice, turned back. Amy finally broke, the tears running down her cheeks. “Something's wrong. I don't know what. Something's wrong.”

The group sobered up a bit.

Peppino looked Julio in the eyes. “Should we go back?”

Julio shook his head, fighting the alcohol's effects, but having little success. “Nah, we're not going back, but…” He turned to the others. “Be respetuoso, de acuerdo, everybody? Respectful.” He turned, threw out his chest, and walked into the cemetery grounds.

The rest followed after, no longer laughing or playful, but still moving forward.

Peppino and Amy stood on the road. Peppino felt fear and despair radiating off the girl like a heat wave.

She shook her head. “I can't. I can't go in there. I can't.” She shook her head, trembling.

Peppino grabbed her shoulders. “”You don't have to. I'll go keep an eye on them, try to get them out velocemente, va bene?”

She nodded quickly. “Try to hurry, Peppy,” she whispered, “something's really really wrong…”

Peppino nodded, turned back, and set his foot on the grounds…

Immediately a shiver went through his very soul. He didn't see or hear anything, but the moment he'd crossed the threshold, he'd felt it.

Anger. Deep, cold anger.

He visibly shivered.

“You feel it, don't you?” Amy said.

Peppino clenched his teeth, trying not to shake. “S-sì,” he chattered. “I'll-a get them out as fast as I can, all right?”

He walked after his friends, the girl standing on the pavement, trying not to sob.

As he walked, he looked around. Gravestones were scattered randomly. It was the oldest cemetery in La Crosta - there hadn't really been a design or purpose in mind. People were too busy trying to survive.

He gingerly stepped around where he knew a body was buried. “Mi scusi,” he muttered. Doesn't hurt to be respectful.

As he walked, he found the others. They were staying true to their word: all of them were picking carefully across the grounds (as carefully as a bunch of drunks could be, anyway), avoiding stepping on graves, putting flowers back on stones, and so forth.

No one was laughing. Not anymore.

Peppino saw Lenny shake his bushy head. “Man, Julio, this ain't fun anymore. Amy's right, somethin’ ain't right here. We oughta leave.”

Julio looked like he was staying not to shake. “We'll just - we'll just find the oldest grave and leave right after, ¿bueno?”

Lenny shook his head again. “There's brave, then there's stubborn, y’know…” he muttered, but kept looking.

Peppino circled a grave off away from the others. Despite being lit from all sides, he couldn't read the inscription. He's not going to leave until we do this. Please let us find it…

He circled back to the front. Unexpectedly, he saw a cat slink from behind the grave. It was a black as the night itself.

Peppino felt his hair stand on end. I've had my eye on this stone the whole time! There's no way I didn't see that cat!

It had appeared from nowhere.

The cat's body language was odd. Its ears were forward, indicating calmness, but its tail was lashing violently, showing it was angry.

It sat down on its haunches, wrapped its tail around its feet, looked up at him, and hissed, loudly and expressively.

Peppino's heart skipped a beat, and the anger he'd felt radiating at him the entire time rose exponentially.

The message was clear as day.

Get out.

Suddenly the cat was gone.

“AMICI, WE NEED-A TO LEAVE, NOW!” Peppino said stridently. His tone carried an edge of absolute terror.

Immediately the rest of the group came to him. “Peppino, what's wrong-” Julio started.

“Ho detto che dobbiamo andare via, adesso!” Peppino gibbered, then realized no one knew what he'd said - in his terror, he'd switched to Italian. “We need-a to leave, now! Now!!”

“But we haven't-”

“NOW!!!” Peppino repeated, he grabbed a girl's arm, and started walking back towards the road.

The rest followed behind. “Peppino, amigo, I've never seen you so, uh, assertive…”

“Some-a-thing’s wrong! Amy was-a right, we shouldn't-a be here!” Peppino said loudly.

“OK, OK, amigo, we're leaving…” Julio strode ahead, where Amy waited, weeping…

“Oof!” Julio grunted as he slammed into an invisible wall.

Amy started openly bawling.

Julio ran his hands up and down the unseen surface. “¿Que mierda? There's nothing here!”

The others ran up and began beating on the wall.

Amy shook her head. “I said we shouldn't be here… I said… I said…”

Peppino put his hands on the wall. “Amy! Calmati! Get away from here! Go back to the house!”

The girl shook her head, then shrieked and pointed. “Behind you!’

Peppino turned slowly, terrified of what he would see…

Behind them, floating in the air, ghostly figures floated. Almost transparent, the only things clear were their eyes.

Their eyes glowed with absolute hatred.

“RUN!” Julio cried out, and the group took off.

Peppino sped off ahead.

As he accelerated, Julio called to him. “Peppino! See if you can find an exit! If these demonios touch us, we're dead!”

Peppino nodded, and shot forward. He skidded as he desperately dodged the grasping hands of the dead. Behind him, he heard a terrified shriek as someone fell.

The shriek cut off suddenly.

Peppino's blood ran cold. These things really are trying to kill us! He cried a little as he ran. What did we do? Why are they doing this?

As he ran, he saw the main entrance. Maybe the attendant will know what to do! He flung open the door to the gatehouse…

The little old man lay face-down on the floor.

“”Oh Mio Dio,” Peppino said quietly. He knelt beside the old man. Please don't be dead, please don't be dead…

Peppino saw the man's chest rising and falling. He breathed out - the man was alive. He gently shook the old man's shoulder. “Signore? Signore, can you hear me?” He felt tears running down his cheeks - he heard more cries in the distance as his friends met their ends. “Please, Signore, you have to help us…”

The old man stirred, then snarled. “You damn kids, I tol’ ya, you can't-” he looked up, into Peppino's terrified face. “Wait, Who- who’re you?”

“Please, Signore, my friends are dying,” Peppino said, trying not to blubber. “We weren't-a doing anything bad, we just-a wanted to find the oldest grave! Please! We-”

The old man waved irritably. “Slow down, kid.” He sat up, then squinted at Peppino's face. “Yer not one o’ the ones I seen before. “Ye didn't come to cause trouble?”

“No, no, Signore,” Peppino said despairingly, “We were-a very careful! We didn't-a mean harm…”

“Calm down, kid!” The old man growled.

“Calmati? CALMATI??” Peppino roared. The old man leaned back in surprise. “My friends are-a dying, and you want me to be calm??”

“Yes,” the old man said. “They're not dead. Not yet.”

“Che cosa?” Peppino said, bewildered.

“Their souls’ve been separated from their bodies, is all,” the old man said calmly. “If we get to ‘em quick enough, we can fix that.” He tried to stand, and Peppino helped him up. “Ach. My back. But those other heathens got ‘em all stirred up good now. We gotta fix whatever they broke.”

“Others?” Peppino repeated dumbly.

“Another group o’ kids, like you,” the old man snarled. “They wanted to come in and ‘perform a ritual.’ Load ‘a tripe. When I told ‘em t’ bugger off, they knocked me out “ He looked outside. “Guarantee that's what's got the dead up in arms.” He stumbled over to a cabinet, and pulled out a small leather shoulder bag. Slipping it over his shoulder, he turned. “We have t’ find the first group. We gotta appease th’ dead, or none of us is gettin’ out alive.”

Peppino crossed himself. “Dio ci aiuti. Is there-a anything I can do to help? I have-a powers, I can run very fast, and I'm-a very strong.”

The old man looked him over appraisingly. “Ya might just be helpful, at that. You can carry me,” he said, stepping outside. He pointed at the gate, where a scattering of beer cans sat. “Damn drunks. Got theyselves Spooked to death. Follow the cans, boy. We'll find ‘em like that.”

Peppino picked the old man up in a bridal carry - he seemed to weigh nothing. “What if I encounter a spirit?” He quavered.

“Run around ‘em,” the old man said matter-of-factly. He sneered. “Hope yer quick as ye say, Italian boy.”

Peppino took a deep breath, and started running.

~~~~

It didn't take them long to find the perpetrators. They had left a veritable breadcrumb trail of empty cans. “An’ I'll have t’ clean all this shit up,” the old man grumbled.

Peppino said nothing; he was too busy dodging violent ghosts. One had brushed his arm, and he'd felt a chill colder than he'd ever encountered flow through his forearm. The arm was still almost numb. “You're awfully-a calm to be surrounded by malicious spirits of-a the dead,” he said.

The old man sneered. “I am, ain't I?”

He didn't say anything else, and Peppino stopped talking. Save your breath for running, Pepe.

Finally, they arrived at a large vault. In front of it was a circle of young adults. College students, from the look of them. They had drawn a crude pentagram on the ground, and the vault door had been broken.

The bodies of the students lay strewn around like debris, surrounded by beer cans.

“Put me down, boy,” the old man said. As Peppino did so, he dug into his bag. “Damn fools.” He pointed at the center of the pentagram, where the remains of a skull lay. “Grave-robbin’. An’ fer what? A joke? A cheap thrill?” He pointed at the body in the center. “That's the ringleader. The one who knocked me out.”

“Shouldn't we-a do something, Signore?” Peppino said. He started to move forward-

The man's arm shot out like a snake, wrapping around Peppino's forearm like a bony vice. “If ye value yer life, boy, don't move.”

Peppino froze. “Eh? W-why?”

The old man lit a large white candle. “Cause we're not alone.”

As the light brightened, it illuminated floating figures - figures that had been invisible until that moment. Each either hovered over a body, or spun around, creating a slow vortex of fear and hatred.

In the air above the broken skull floated a larger spirit, their hair floating and wild.

The look on their face was pure fury.

The old man stepped forward, and the spirit dashed towards him, shrieking.

“Vecchio, attento-!” Peppino started.

The old man quickly held up an object, and the spirit reeled back, moaning and growling.

“Sorry, old folks, but it's gotta be done,” the old man said quietly. He gestured at the circle of bodies. “Now, I understand. These idiots have violated yer rest.” He waved back at Peppino, who was shaking so hard he couldn't even scream. “But this one an’ his friends didn't mean no harm. Y'all had no need t’ harm them.”

The spirits all flew towards him, screaming. Peppino covered his head with his arms. Oh God, this is it-

The old man held the object over his head. “Recedite, mali spiritus! Scis me verum loqui!”

They all stopped.

“Isti filii nondum mortem merentur. Dimitte eos: vel iudicium face,” the old man said forcefully.

The ghosts fell back, glaring but silent.

The old man looked over his shoulder. “Go get your friends, boy. Bring them here. I can help them.”

Peppino nodded, and took off as fast as he could.

~~~~

As Peppino laid Julio's body down, he saw some of the students sitting up, rubbing their heads and groaning. The old man bent over Julio's body, laying something on his chest. “Animam hanc infantis in carnes eorum redde," he muttered.

In the light of the candle, Peppino could see Julio’s soul, floating above, dip and fly into the cold body. Immediately the color returned to his face, and his eyes opened. He looked over. “Pep, what-” He looked around, seeing the various spirits floating around. “MADRE DE DIOS!” He leapt up, his eyes wide. Then he saw the bodies of their friends. “Oh God, they're all-”

Peppino grabbed the boy and hugged him so hard Julio suddenly had more immediate concerns. “Meno male, amico, you're back!”

Julio laughed but was seriously worried Peppino was going to crack his ribs in his enthusiasm. “Pep, Pep, stop! Remember how strong you are!” He managed to squeak out.

Peppino blushed and immediately dropped him. “Scusa, amico, but… I'm just glad you're alive.”

Julio remembered the corpses. “Wait, but everyone else-”

Peppino shushed him. “It's OK, amico. The old man's got it under control.” As they watched, he performed the same ritual, and another of their friends returned to life.

Julio was perplexed. “Pep- what-? How-?”

“Let me explain.”

~~~~

Minutes later, only one body remained lifeless - the man who'd started the whole mess. His friends stood over him. “Isn't there anything you can do? You brought us back!” One young woman sobbed.

The old man pointed around. “The rest of ya were just pawns or bystanders in all this. But this one…” he pointed at the body, “he had evil in his heart.” He gestured at the angry spirits who still surrounded them. “They have a score t’ settle with ‘im.”

“But… but what about his familia? The police? They'll have questions,” Julio said. “We can't just… leave him like this, no matter how nasty what he did was!”

Peppino and the others nodded. “Sì. There'll be too-a many questions.”

The old man sighed. “Ye have a point.” He looked up. “Quis vestrum habet hanc animam pueri?"

The spirits milled about, and the largest one opened their arms. A smaller spirit drifted downward, looking forlorn.

“Ah, there ye are,” the old man said. He beckoned, and the man's spirit drifted forward. “Ye done a great evil tonight, boy. Not only did ye violate the rest of th’ dead, ye dragged all yer friends in, as well, an’ they paid th’ price, too.” He gestured at Peppino and his friends. “Ye even nearly got all these kids killed. Ye deserve a place in Hell.”

The spirit looked distraught, shaking their head, making no sound but obviously pleading.

The old man shook his head. “‘S not up t’ me, boy.” He gestured to the larger spirit. “Ask him.” He looked upward. "Quod pretium facis pro emissione animae pueri?"

The larger spirit drifted, their hatred radiating so hotly that even the most spiritually-blind could feel it. Finally, it spoke.

“Senex es, curator. Pretium est huic puero tuo post tuum transitum, quod reliquum est vitae. Et ipse et amicus eius hanc criptam reficere debent."

Julio leaned over and whispered to Peppino. “The hell'd he say?”

Peppino shrugged - he'd picked up enough Latin at school to get the gist of it. “He wants the guy to-a replace the old man as caretaker. And for all of-a them to rebuild the crypt.”

Amy snorted. “After what they did, that's getting off pretty light,’ she muttered.

The old man looked at the smaller spirit. “Well? Yer one chance, right there, boy. Do you accept? Or will ye proceed t’ Hell, where ye're bound right now?”

The spirit seemed to sigh, and nodded.

The larger spirit drifted down, and touched the man's body; immediately some kind of barrier lifted, and the old man performed the ritual.

The other spirits faded away.

The old man turned. “Well, ye all heard. The ones who helped him… you got a lot of work to do.” He turned to Peppino and his friends. “Sorry for this.” He waved a small amulet in the air. “Quid hac nocte accidit, nemo vestrum loquetur."

Peppino felt something settle into his head. “Hey, what'd you do?” Julio said.

“Sorry, but I had t’ place a geas on ye,” the old man said. “Ye can't tell anyone about what happened here. So I made it where ye literally can't. People would panic if they knew things like this happened.”

“So, this has happened before??” Peppino said.

The old man grinned maliciously. “Yer told t’ respect the rest o’ the dead fer a reason, boy. Now, go home. Forget what ye saw tonight. An’ know… the dead are watchin’...”

~~~~

Peppino quietly closed the door to their apartment behind him. He was ludicrously late, but he was hoping his Mama would forgive him since she'd been the one to encourage him.

“Good evening, figlio,” he heard his Mama's voice drift up from the recliner. “Interesting time of night to come home. It's almost morning, in fact.”

Peppino winced. “Mi scusi, Mama, I just lost-a track of time.”

“Oh, so you were having that much fun?” She said, but at least she sounded amused.

Peppino couldn't tell her anything, of course. Not about what actually happened. “Sì, Mama. It won't happen again.”

“So, what did you get up to?” she said with a wicked grin.

What? That we went to a cemetery, almost all died, and witnessed an old man drive off the dead? That he resurrected everyone, then swore us all to magical secrecy? That I almost died myself?

“Oh, nothing-a much, Mama. We just watched a few movies, stuff-a like that…”

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