#that's the kind of future in store ( act iii )

[moonsprayer]

TAG DUMP. please do not interact with this post.

[day-drawn-blog]

Epilogue 1 : Just leave the flames and take a chance

To be with me tonight - Take my hand and hold it tight - Down by the River.

Pairing: Astarion x Reader. This is set in Act I.

Tags: angst/fluff some smut later

Part I : The outer layer. Mostly angst and jealousy.

Part II : Where you try to find meaning or draw boundaries.

Part III : maybe tonight I'll rest in peace.

Part IV : There is more to do and I still want to live.

Part V : our futures bound, our bodies known.

Part VI: These ain't my sins. I broke my chains.

Part VII: You are not mine and am I truly yours.

Part VIII : Your blood like wine, invites me in.

Part IX : I welcome my sentence, to give you my penance

Part X : I can't go yet...don't let me die

Epilogue II : Moonlight burning the Flower

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The next morning, you walked out of your tent to find Astarion pouring over his book of necromancy. Not yet in armor, his casual clothes showed a bit of his chest. You were tempted to unbutton him a bit further, but reminded yourself not to take advantage of him.

You turned, and met Shadowheart.

"Good morning" she said. "I wonder what's in store for us today" she said in her usual tone of voice. You noticed no bitterness. Reassured, you broached ... "Shadowheart, I am sorry, for not telling you... about him... " - "Oh, it's alright. It wasn't your secret to tell. If anyone it should have been him. I can't say I am not disappointed in him."

You were silent. You didn't know what to say.

"But no matter. I am willing to let bygones be bygones. Bury the hatchet, so to speak" said Shadowheart, graciously. Before you could reply - Laezel cut in. "Why would you bury a weapon? I do not understand your kind or your ways, Shadowheart,". She rolled her eyes. "It's a phrase, Laezel". They both started bantering, leaving you to quietly walk away, in relief.

Everyone started on their way.

Astarion seemed really preoccupied and walked along with Gale in the back, talking about something. The party succeeded in defeating a Drow in the underdark that had yielded a bunch of precious magical items for everyone. The Myconid colony was celebrating that night. Everyone at camp was happy. The mushrooms were ... funny.

You were feeling quite happy and light hearted that night.

The warm glow of the fire, alcohol, laughter, music. All of your favorite things mixed together. You got ready for a night of merriment and walked to the crowd, joining Karlach and Laezel. They seemed to be relishing the battle they had that day, going over all the fun details together and exchanging their favorite bits.

Your eyes searched for Astarion.

Then you saw him and wished you hadn't looked for him. On the other side of the fire, he was busy talking to ... Shadowheart! Not just talking, but smiling. Conversing, drinking. You heard him laugh. You couldn't look away, because you couldn't believe what you saw. You thought they had fallen apart.

You thought he pledged himself to you.

Why then. What was the lie? Because there most definitely was one. So he still wanted her? Or he didn't want ... you .... and then you realized. Yes he had said he was yours. He was your ally, your friend. He was loyal to you ... but never once had he said he loved you! He had said his body belonged to you, but never his heart! His loyalty was yours, but not his feelings ...

You stared at him in disbelief of your own stupidity.

You had misunderstood everything he had said, and heard what you wanted to hear, what you hoped to hear. Your heart cried out in pain. You were happy in so long, but it was all made up. By you! You lied to yourself! You wove an intricate web of lies ...for yourself. Astarion met your eyes. You didn't look away. You looked at him, in anger, in hurt. Hoping to convey the betrayal you felt...

He smiled at you, and raised his glass.

Dig the dagger in deeper, why don't you, you thought. You looked away, and considered walking away to a desolate place. And then you stopped yourself. Enough running away. You deserve to be happy too. You decided to stay. You sought out some companions. Karlach and Laezel looked fun. Lets go join them. You walked to them and asked to partake of some alcohol. They gladly obliged.

You were determined to be happy.

Soon enough, you felt good. you felt even better when Laezel kissed you. You couldn't get away in time, but it felt hilarious. You did manage to stop her from any further advances though, to her slight disappointment, but she took it well. You cheeks flushed, you found yourself laughing a lot. At things that were not even that funny. You were happy. You felt grateful. You hoped he saw you.

Then you saw Wyll.

You went up to him, and asked for a dance, in your drunken state, and he obliged. He took your hands and gave you a twirl before leading you around putting your dancing skills to the test. Had you not been drunk you could have held your own, but now, drunk himself Wyll had to hold you by the waist many times to prevent you from falling over. Karlach wanted to join in, and pulled in Gale much to his awkwardness.

May I have a dance as well?

Was that Astarion you heard? Yes. He had walked up to you both. He was, obviously talking to you, trying to break you and Wyll up, maybe. But you were having none of that. "Yes, of course" you said, before pushing him to Wyll. "Here you go" and then walked off. Being drunk had its advantages, you could act outrageous and not have to face the responsibility. You did not look back to see what they did after.

Time to find the next object of interest.

Halsin! Ah, Halsin and his big strong arms. You felt like squeezing them. And you did. Somehow Shadowheart was around. And she said something in admiration of his big strong arms as well. Was she drunk too? Oh well, no matter. You giggled with her, as you both hung over Halsin's arms and found it ridiculously entertaining. Laezel quipped something funny but you couldn't hear her well.

Your eyes met Astarion across the fire.

Dammit. You didn't intent to do that. He was sitting down, keenly watching you. Had he finished dancing with Wyll? You wondered. None of your concern you thought and returned your attention to your drunken shenanigans. You decided to pester Gale after that. So you sat down next to him, and asked him about his former lover. You barely heard what he was saying. But you pretended to pay attention. Every now and your eyes wandered to Astarion, against your will.

He was looking at you, every single time.

Across the flickering flame. As he drunk from his cup every now and then. You looked at his handsome face. Having forgotten your resolve, as you rested your head on Gale's knees. Or was it Karlach's? Was Laezel trying to get her arms around you again, or was that Wyll. Your vision was a bit blurry at this point. You felt you could drift off to sleep. You didn't care who it was that would take you back to their tent that night. The more the merrier you thought and giggled.

It was hot. You should take your shirt off, you thought.

You proceeded to do just that. "Let me help you" - you heard a voice. Yes please, you felt a hand, "Alright - enough of that" you heard another pushing the first hand away. Why? It was hot. You tried taking your shirt off again. Then you felt being picked up. Oh good, someone is carrying you to bed, just as you had hoped. The night had proceeded just as you had hoped and wished.

"I got her" you heard a voice, possibly of the one carrying you.

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[detectivestucks2]

Escape with the Cursed King III

18+ content, Minors do NOT interact

Pairing: Sukuna x F!Reader

Summary: Your attachment to Sukuna grows stronger till Gojo leaks a major decision made by the JJK council. This leads to a decision to flee with the King of Curses himself.

Warnings: NSFW, Teasing, Nipple Play, Male Dom, Light restraint

Word Count: 4k

Chapter 1 I Chapter 2 I Chapter 4 I Chapter 5 I Chapter 6 I Chapter 7 I Chapter 8 I Chapter 9

Night after night, whenever you needed comfort you sought out Yuji’s dorm. Just as often, whenever Sukuna wished to see you, you would find yourself stirring in his arms. Warmth and pride swelled in your chest when this would happen. Of all the people in existence, the Rayomen Sukuna came to your bed and held you in his arms. You still didn’t know what made you so special or what this ‘potential’ is that he speaks of, but you were happy for whatever it is. 

Yuji was not entirely aware of what was going on between the two of you but what he did know was that Sukuna stopped pestering him to be around you so much and you were going out of your way to be friendly with him. Yuji didn’t entirely mind but it felt suspicious that you were offering to help him more than the other students and went out of your way to say hi when you had never done so before. You would sometimes walk with him to Gojo’s office which made Saturo’s face light up but today was a different story.

“Gojo, what’s wrong?”

“Yuji, I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Oh, okay”

You turn to him with a reassuring smile and he sweetly returns it like the bright and kind boy he is while he backs out of the room. Facing Gojo fully, you tilt your head and ask again, “What’s wrong?”

“The council…they know.”

“They know? Know what?”

“What happened on the mission.”

“Of course they do. We put it all on the mission report. It’s not like it’s a big secret or something.”

“It’s not just that they know. It’s that they have a definite opinion about it.”

“Oh.”

You pause as you let your mind catch up. “And what is this opinion?” you ask, afraid to hear the answer.

“They want to execute Yuji sooner rather than later. He is no longer an effective vessel and we will just continue to hide the remaining fingers throughout the country.”

“But Yuji did nothing wrong!”

“The entire reason they allowed me to keep him here was because he could control Sukuna. We thought we could keep feeding him fingers and once he consumed them all then we’d execute him. You do know that he was always destined to be executed, don’t you?”

You were stunned into silence. You had no idea. You knew about the vessel, you knew that Yuji was being closely watched, but you never knew about the grim fate the guy had in store. He was always so cheerful. He didn’t show a hint of fear about what his future held. 

“But this isn’t fair! Sukuna only took control to save my life.”

Your eyes were wide with fear and concern.

“It’s not about what he did, it’s about the fact that Yuji can’t control him.”

You felt mist well up in your lower lashline. 

“He was only trying to save me.” you whisper the words

“I’m sorry but Yuji knew the risks and the council has spoken. It’s happening.”

“Who’s telling him?”

“I am, first thing tomorrow.”

You nod. “And then what? You’ll detain him when you tell him.”

Gojo pauses and the silence tells you everything you need to know. 

“So he won't get to say goodbye to his friends.”

“No” Gojo’s voice is full of regret but he knows why the council can’t allow that. Yuji could run away or Sukuna could run amuck and it was a risk that they simply weren’t willing to take. 

“I understand.”

“Yeah…”

There is heavy silence between the two of you. Both with swirling minds, mourning over the poor pink-haired boy’s fate. You felt it was all your fault. It was so cruel that Yuji must pay the price over an act of kindness. You couldn’t stand the thought. You know why the call was made but it didn’t make the decision any more digestible. 

“You gonna be okay?”

Saturo’s deep voice cuts through the air as you are ripped away from your thoughts.

“I’m not sure. I guess.”

“Same.”

“There are things about this job that no one can prepare you for.”

“...Seriously.”

“I think I need a drink. You?”

“My thoughts exactly”

Gojo stuffs his hands in his pockets, moves around his desk, and glides out of the room. “You coming?”

“Oh, yes. I didn’t realize I wasn’t moving.” You blush a bit, realizing you had zoned out on the man’s silhouette. Not that you were intending to stare, it just kinda happened while you were lost in thought. 

Gojo smirks before turning to head down the hall and the two of you make your way to a popular student bar in the middle of the day. What a great example you are setting. 

That night you stumble home rather drunk from your bender with Gojo. It seems that the news of his pupil being executed was weighing on him more heavily than he was letting on. After the fifth round of shots though, it became obvious that he was self medicating. 

When you reached your door you had to lean your forehead against the cool metal as you used both hands to slot the key into the lock and turn the knob so as to enter your dark living room.

You swing the door open loudly and stumble in. 

“Hey Princess.”

You yelp and drop your purse. A dark outline of a man can be seen sitting on your couch and it takes you a moment to register that it belonged to your favorite tattooed gentleman.

“Sukuna?”

“Hey baby.”

“Since when do you call me baby?” you say with a hiccup.

“Since when do you go out binge drinking? It’s very unbecoming behavior.”

“I wasn’t aware that I needed to be ‘becoming’.” You say with a flourish before plopping down next to him.

Sukuna pinches your cheeks together between his thumb and pointer, “Don’t forget who you’re talking to doll.”

The move, slightly threatening, was also somewhat arousing but mostly sobering.

“Yes, my King.” you whisper through pouty lips as your eyes turn into glassy orbs, trying to see him through the darkness.

“Better.”

“Sukuna?”

“Yes Princess?”

“They’re gonna hurt Yuji.”

“Explain.”

“When you saved me it demonstrated that Yuji can’t control you and now they’re gonna kill him so that they can kill you.”

Your eyes widen and the glassy surface of them begins to leak out tears.

“Sweet girl, don’t worry, I’ll make sure nothing happens to me.”

“You promise?”

“Aww, are you beggin’ for me to stay?”

You scoot your body closer to his and lay your head against his chest. “Yes, I need you. I need to be by your side.”

“Then by my side you will be.” 

“How can you say that?”

“You forget, I am a King. I will not be vanquished so easily.”

You wipe your tears and look up at him once again. “What do you plan to do? Kill or run away?”

“I have stayed here out of convenience. It made it easy to keep tabs of the Jujutsu world. Now that it is no longer beneficial to me, it seems it is time to leave.”

“What do you mean?”

“I am going to return to my home and you will come with me.”

“Come with?”

“Yes, you are joining me.”

“You say that as if it is an order”

“It is.”

“It is?”

“Do you not wish to join your King?”

“No! I do! I wish to join you but, this is my home, my job… and to leave so suddenly…”

“Then you plan to defy me.”

“No, my King!” You feel the panic rising in your chest. Your need for him conflicts with your better sense. 

“You have three hours. When I return you will be ready to leave. If not, there will be consequences.”

His words leave a litter of chills on your arms while you register this is the first time he’s threatened you. You immediately submit as the last of the effects of alcohol are washed away. 

“Yes, my King.”

Sukuna leans into you, tucking his head into the curve of your neck. He deeply inhales before his breath ghosts over your skin, “Good. When I return I expect you to be ready.”

“Okay.” The word came out barely audible over the exhale of the curse into your neck. His heavenly breath warm against your skin, making you melt and bend to his will. 

With one last waft of your scent, Sukuna rips himself away from you and stands to Yuji’s full height. “Three hours Princess.”

“Three hours” you repeat back to him.

Sukuna exits your home and heads to Yuji’s dorm room to collect the boy’s belongings. He quickly packs the few items that he has picked up over the last year and a half. Meanwhile you’re in your apartment deciding what can stay and what can go. It occurs to you that you will be viewed as a traitor and that maybe it’d be best to make it appear as if you had been abducted so as not to get Gojo in trouble for telling you about Yuji. 

You grab a few photos from your wall and toss them in a duffle but leave most of them behind so your home looks fully furnished. You also grab your favorite clothes, taking a few outfits for each season since you don’t know where ‘home’ is and what climate you are headed to. You grab a folder of your important documents and a few keepsakes before spinning around and admiring your home one last time before Sukuna comes back. 

You feel a heavy hand on your shoulder and a deep voice rumble in your ear, “Ready?”

“Ready.”

He grabs you around the shoulder and guides you out of your apartment, leaving the door open. You swallow thickly as you place one foot in front of the other, following Sukuna’s lead. The two of you traveled west, commandeering several cars along the way so that your movements could not be tracked. You headed to a small village just outside of Gifu, located at the base of a mountain and headed into a temple. 

You looked around in awe, gawking at the scrolls that had depictions of a deity of destruction and you came to realize that the deity was none other than Sukuna. But the version of him painted on the scrolls looked different. He was shown in his true form and you came to realize that the artwork both frightened and impressed you. You would like to see him in that form and fall at his feet to worship him the way he wants.

Your mouth must have fallen agape because his hot breath was suddenly in your ear. 

“Like what you see?”

You sharply inhale and close your mouth but the light bite to your lower lip does not go unnoticed by the mighty king. He chuckles at your foolish reaction and brings you to the back of the temple where you walk through a veil to find an enormous estate. 

“This is where you’re from?”

Another chuckle can be heard just behind your shoulder but you weren’t sure what there was to laugh at. The man didn’t seem like one to enjoy gardening and he had been away for hundreds of years. Who could’ve possibly been tending to the grounds all this time?

“Do you like it?”

You look back at him with starstruck eyes. “It’s beautiful. I have to say though, it’s not what I was expecting the home of a curse to look like.”

“There was a time before all this where I was a man. So my tastes are a little more, let's say, refined than most curses.” 

You nod and begin to walk forward towards the large home at the center of the veil. As you walk through the tall cherry wood doors you find a person with pale skin and white hair is waiting just inside the foyer to greet you. 

“Master Sukuna”

“Uraume”

The one called Uraume bows low. “Welcome back.”

“Thank you.” Sukuna turns to you and lifts your chin with his finger so that your eyes meet. “Uraume will take care of all of your needs. They will treat you as if you are equal to me. This is your home now and your room will be next to my own.”

Uraume nods and responds in your place, “Understood Master Sukuna”

Sukuna breaks eye contact with you to look over at Uraume. He nods in response to their acknowledgement before he walks off to inspect his home. You are left alone with who you presume is the manager of the household and you look towards them for direction.

“Let me show you to your chambers.”

Your duffel is taken from you by a man that had been waiting by the door and both you and the man follow Uraume through the house towards a large room located next to a pair of double doors that you assume was where Sukuna slept.

The door slid open and you saw a large mattress sat upon the ground. It was very traditional but since the home was built so long ago you assume that it has not been updated in centuries, given Sukuna’s lengthy absence. 

“We can update it for you if you’d like.” Uraume offers. 

“For now this is fine. I’m kind of excited about sleeping on a mattress this big. It’s much nicer than my apartment.”

You hear a stifled chuckle from the man behind you who holds your bag but the one named Uraume was expressionless. 

“Well, I guess I better unpack.” you turn to face behind you and the man rests your baggage near the dresser. “Thank you…”

“Kazuo”

“Thank you Kazuo”

“You are dismissed Kazuo” Uraume interjects.

The man bows and walks out of the room. 

“Did you already know that Sukuna was on his way?”

“No, the staff here have served the grounds for generations, never knowing when their Lord would return but tending to the farms and household as if he were here.”

“How many generations?”

“Thirty four, miss”

“Thirty four generations!”

“Sukuna has been missing for a millenia Miss.”

“Uraume, if you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?”

Uraume simply smiles and glides out of the room. “I guess that’s a no then” you mutter to yourself. You shrug off the bizarre interaction and decide to unpack your things. Your mind is swarming with thoughts about your students, the classes you missed today, Gojo’s worry when he saw your abandoned apartment, and how Yuji’s friends must feel. You bet there is a search party out hunting the two of you down at this very moment but you know they will not find you. Not this far away and not behind the veil. 

You are safe from the council but more importantly Yuji is safe from the council, though you wonder how often he will be making an appearance now that Sukuna is back home. It must be so strange to share a body. You flop on top of your mattress and fall into a deep sleep as you take a brief nap before waking up and wandering around the estate. 

Your fingers trace along the thin walls of the halls as you walk corridor to corridor. Gawking at the scroll artwork and the polished floors. You wander towards the courtyard to look at the ornate garden plants when you feel fingers grab your waist. Your breath hitches as you come to a halt. 

“Hi Princess.” 

“Hi” you simper as your arms snake around your waist to lay on top of Sukuna’s hands. You can’t help the involuntary smile that stretches your face as you feel him press up against your back. 

“Getting familiar with your new home?”

“Yes. It might take me a few days to see all of it. Are you happy to be back?”

“A little but it makes me miss my true form.”

“Oh?”

“I’m usually much taller so some items are a bit high up for this body.”

You can’t help the girlish giggle that escapes you at the image of the powerful and frightening Sukuna having to stand on his tiptoes to reach for a scroll.

“Do you mock me?”

You slap your hands over your mouth at your careless reaction. He spins you around and cages you between his body and the wall, pulling your hands from your mouth. His fingers circle your wrists as he steps close to you and whispers in your ear, “Is that how you treat your King?”

“I’m sorry my King.” you whisper quietly, fearful of how close he stands to you.

“I fear sorry isn’t going to be good enough.”

Your breathing becomes ragged and with each inhale your chest presses up against his. His leg slots between yours and he raises your arms to pin them above your head. You feel dizzy with fear and confusion. How could you be so careless? Sure he allowed you to be more informal with him than most but he was still a powerful being with a great deal of pride and a short fuse.

“Laugh at me again”

“No my King. I shall not.”

“You defy me again?”

Your lower lip trembles as you realize there were no correct answers in this situation. No matter what you do or say he will be unhappy. What was he going to do with you? You begin to struggle in his grip and you watch as his lips curl and his eyes grow greedy.

“Where you goin pretty girl?”

Tears of panic slide down your cheeks. He lifts his knee so that your feet can barely reach the floor, only your toes can grip the wood and you start to lose all hope of escape as you realize he’s only restraining you with one arm and you still can’t move him a centimeter. 

“You’re so adorable when you’re fighting for your life.” His thin finger traces the tear stain on your cheek before hooking under your jaw and lifting your chin like he did hours ago. You plead for your safety with your eyes, “P-please my King, I didn’t mean it.”

“Oh, I think you did.” he taunts as he releases your chin and slips his hand underneath the hem of your shirt. He moves your bra to the side and pinches the nub of your right breast and your eyes screw shut in pain. 

You can’t help how your hips instinctively tilt and rub Sukuna’s thigh between your legs. He hums in enjoyment and begins to twist lightly. Your ragged breathing is sprinkled with grunts and moans as you try to grow accustomed to the pain, relieving some of the pressure growing between your legs by dragging your hips back and forth along Sukuna’s leg.

“Needy girl. You really think I’d let you speak to me like that without consequences?”

“No, my King” you whisper breathless from the range of feelings flowing through your body. You start to realize he was picking on you by pretending to be angry. How unfair of him.

Sukuna tugs on the perky peak trapped between his pointer and thumb, causing you to sharply inhale and quicken your pace on his thigh.

“That’s it.”

Your face scrunches up in pain. You hate how much you love this. How he hurts you, how he’s embarrassing you in front of the staff who have passed by and witnessed your capture. 

“Don’t worry about them, Princesses. They weren’t the ones being insubordinate.”

“M’sorry!” You squeak 

Sukuna continues to pull and you desperately drag along his thigh in response, leaving behind a wet spot on Yuji’s pant leg. 

“What a naughty slut you are, making a mess all over my leg.”

You gaze up into his four eyes, pleading with him, though you weren’t sure what you were pleading for. You were so close to releasing the knot that formed in your core from his mean game. He could see you were coming undone and it was a look he planned on painting your face with as often as possible. He no longer had to worry about appearances at your job or keeping his cover. He could do whatever he wanted to do to you, whenever he wanted it, now that he had you alone. 

Your heavy breathing fills the hallway and his ears ring in satisfaction. He begins to rub his thigh up against you, working in tandem with how you are grinding along his leg. You groan and tilt your head back, squeezing your eyes shut as you feel the coil in your abdomen begin to snap.

“Open your eyes Princess.”

Reluctantly you open them but you can’t see straight. Your eyes have crossed as you look at the ceiling.

“Look at me.”

You try to avert your gaze to your King but you can’t see straight. You struggle to keep your lids from falling over your eyes. The waves of pleasure take your pupils and cross them even further. You fear they may get stuck that way and Sukuna salivates at your struggle.

“Pathetic slut.”

You want to protest but all that comes out is a jumble of curses and moans which makes Sukuna chuckle. 

Eventually you ride out your high and fall limp in his grasp. “Y’better react like this when I fuck you into the mattress later on Princess.”

“Wha-what?!”

Sukuna releases you and you fall into his chest. You catch yourself with your hands as you feel his firm chest hold you up. 

You can’t help but feel conflicted about the idea of having intimacy with Sukuna. He loved driving you wild but he was in a borrowed body. It was a bit uncomfortable to know Yuji’s consciousness was in the background and it was his body that was being controlled. Sukuna may be shameless and pay no heed to his vessel but you couldn’t ignore the circumstances so easily.

“You will be in my room tonight. I expect you to stay till morning.”

You feel your mouth go dry and you swallow. “You want me to spend the night?”

“We’ve spent plenty of nights together.”

“True, but-”

“But what, Princess?”

“Yuji is normally asleep.”

“You’re worried about him?”

“Well…yeah.”

Sukuna rolls his eyes, somewhat annoyed that you care for someone other than him. “You’re too nice. This world is going to eat you up and spit you out.”

“No it’s not!”

“It’s not? So I didn’t just save your life the other week?”

“That has nothing to do with me being nice.”

“Yes it does. You had no business going out on that mission. You should’ve stayed back and taught your classes, not chase after Gojo and his brats.”

“You call them brats but those brats are only two years younger than me.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that they behave like brats. And if you have anything to say about it, I’ll whip that attitude out of you.” 

As indignant as you felt, you couldn’t help the way your lower lip quivered following his statement. This didn’t go unnoticed by Sukuna who smirks as he pulls you closer. 

It was getting a little easier to tell when Sukuna was toying with you and when he was being serious. It seemed that he preferred to flex his power over you to remind you of who was in charge but he never intended to actually harm you. 

You tuck your chin into his neck and inhale deeply, tightening your embrace. 

“I enjoy this”

“Good, cause this is our life now. I will always be like this with you.”

“What? A big ol cuddly softy?”

He chortles before pulling your head back by your hair to gaze into your eyes, “No, Your master and protector.”

The brief moment of lust in your eyes ignites a fire in him that immediately turns to a rush of warmth as your face melts from one of need to one of happiness. He releases your hair so that you may continue to nestle into his neck. The moment centers you and you feel at peace. This you could get used to.

Chapter 1 I Chapter 2 I Chapter 4 I Chapter 5 I Chapter 6 I Chapter 7 I Chapter 8 I Chapter 9

[miasiegert]

Day 2, and one workshop photo of MY work

Before I say ANYTHING, hello to Wichita folk from Chaz. :) He was shocked (and delighted) at how much people enjoyed the show and we absolutely are brainstorming things for the future. So a huge thank you for the support and kindness. It meant a ton to him (and obviously me and David as well!)

Day 2 was a roller coaster... for ME!

I'm very suspicious because everything is going so well. Too well. Things never go this well. So I decided it was time to start really stoning some costume pieces that I hadn't before while David got supplies.

Then I got a phone call, never a good sign, from David asking me could I get the padlock open for the gate.

Padlock? What Padlock?

There are no concrete answers, only a guess... but it's believed that people who share a lot to store their boats left and padlocked the gate behind them so I was TRAPPED in the costume shop (which is a completely different building/drive away from the theatre) all alone with no food and had been the entire day while David couldn't get me.

Some chaos to get a key and get out, and David decided to go to the night time run through for notes. Chaz told me to take tonight off because I went through ND hell as there was a loud beeping noise nonstop and I had to turn my headphones up louder than normal (I usually watch a show in the background--today was "Power Book III: Raising Kanan" from Starz) so it hurt then the panic of being alone and trapped.

Anyway, what I *Did* realize was that I absolutely can share a wip of Bedazzling more of the Reba!Suit because that is my costume, that has been seen onstage before, there is no actor in it, no full costume, and it's MY original design.

Way back, we had very cheap acrylic rhinestones because we were too poor for better ones. Now, we're mixing in preciosa and swarovski with some crystal and glass ones. We have not removed the acrylics YET because a lot is carefully plotted fill ins and until I have enough time to REALLY thoroughly do it, I don't want to remove any sparkle.

So, for your pleasure (or not, Idk, maybe you don't care) this is the epaulets and belt for the Gumbie Tap Suit that's my design. If you notice a few interesting things with the waistband/tail, that is because it's got four strong snaps for the waist. There's stretch but not as much as some of our other specialty fabric, and different tappers prefer different tightness. We're hoping to add some snaps as this Jenny is between sizes and really wants a snatched waist (she didn't want to take the costume off--never seen anyone so happy before!)

I will be adding gold, yellow, and orange to it. I added purple to Misto in two shades and some AB crystals.

I forgot if I said this or not but I was requested to rhinestone Misto's shoes for his song number. I can't wait to show people pictures. I'm pretty sure there will be video. The last time I saw a very flippity Misto was my first pro production where an INCREDIBLE cheerleader/gymnast/hiphop dancer was cast. It was incredible to watch. This choreo is really fun and Misto's actor's manner actually does come across as shy and aloof at first... then super excited and happy. METHOD ACTING OR JUST HYPED ABOUT COSTUMES??? The world may never know.

I think people will REALLY like Rumple and Mungo a LOT. Cassandra is FANTASTIC.

Also anyone here have Starz? I need to gush over "P-Valley" and cry over "Hightown" s3 with someone! "Raising Kanan" is good but not hitting me in the feels the same way.

[diablo-that-first-spark]

What's in store for Act IV?

Welcome cupcakes! I hope everyone is having a wonderful 2024 so far. If you have gotten this far in reading, I reckon you’d like to know what is going on with the fanfic, right? This is a status update on that very topic. No, That First Spark is not dead, don’t worry! This hiatus is entirely planned, although I wish I could tell you how long it will last. Months more than likely, maybe a year? This is all very new territory for me, forgive me, cupcakes.

TL;DR version: the final act needs massive amounts of pre-planning compared to the previous parts, and I also need to weed out potential storylines I really want in there, but don’t actually have a place in there (but may end up in a spin-off). Unfortunately, I am also not that good at pre-planning stories because I am a Discovery/Gardener type of writer, and boy oh boy, going into details before setting out on the road is not our forte.

So that is why I am asking for your patience, cupcakes! TFS is not dead until I say it is dead. In the meantime I have ideas to fill in the pause: illustrations of previous chapters; concept art; idea blurb posts; general personal tactics and philosophies on writing. Ideas, may I emphasize. These would be uploaded to my DeviantArt gallery and here (and later Blogger when I build that out) – links at the end!

If this is where you stop reading (understandable), then have a lovely rest of your day and keep being awesome!

For those who are interesting in the detailed explanation, here’s the long version:

A good question to ask is: it’s just fanfiction, why don’t I just go for it, screw the planning phase? Who cares if the act is filled to the brim with stuff, we are here to have fun!

Absolutely fair point to make. We are here to have fun, and I hope my fanfic has provided that so far, if you are here reading this! Unfortunately, it is not that simple situation on my end.

For one, I actually want to be a professional writer one day (I actually have the basis of three entirely original series figured out too!) and because of that, fanfiction is not just a place for me to have fun (although I am certainly often having the time of my life here), but it is first and foremost a training ground. I want to get better at writing and so I do my best to employ professional practices in all of my works. One of those practices is the infamous “Kill your Darlings” tactic, which involves getting rid of characters, storylines, scenes, entire worldbuilding elements which you really really love and/or worked hard on… but they just don’t have a place in the story proper.

Thus, Act IV is going to go through a whole bunch of darling-culling, from the looks of it. I want too much right now and it genuinely looks like one of those terrible Hollywood blockbusters: half-a-day long runtime yet still not enough to address everything that happens in the film. They tend to piss me off and I want to avoid making the same mistake if I can help it. Just to illustrate why Act IV needs pre-planning: Act III originally had a whole arch where Tyrael, Quiet and Zayl would have traveled across the war-torn desert around Caldeum, dealing with shitty mages and the necromancers Rathma would send against them, can you believe that? Yeah, that is the kind of wild swings in plans I need to avoid in Act IV as much as possible. I probably can’t avoid them entirely, given the Discovery writing style, but they can certainly be cut back.

Will all those darlings disappear forever? Not necessarily, actually. Some will, absolutely, because they prove to be just terrible ideas on the long run. But there are some ideas, unfortunately quite vague so far, that could actually turn into a spin-off series next to TFS. It depends on a lot of factors, so I’m afraid I can’t say or promise anything concrete, cupcakes. But the dream is alive!

For two, writing TFS takes insane amounts of time and effort, and I want to give myself a chance to finish this story in the near future. Now please don’t get me wrong, cupcakes, I do not regret in the slightest that I have embarked on this journey. I wouldn’t trade the time spent writing about Lyndon, Quiet, Tyrael, Malthael, Abd and everyone else, for anything in this world. I have learnt so damn much about myself and my style, writing in general, the lore of Diablo and historical facts of the real world. I have met truly horrible and truly amazing people through this story and for almost an entire year I could maintain a regular upload schedule, these are all very valuable experiences.

But on the other hand, there is no denying the time TFS consumes. I want to eventually write other, original stories (and hopefully make a good living out of them), I want to tackle other larger projects and Anu knows what else life will throw at me on the long run outside of creative ventures. I may one day learn to juggle multiple projects at once and progress in all of them effectively, that would be great. But for now, that is unfortunately not part of my skillset.

Yeah, I know I just talked about a possible spin-off story because Anu help me, I’m always so hopeful about my creative projects and I love Diablo’s world so much. Time constraints and my own abilities are two of the many factors that would decide the fate of that idea.

And let us not forget your time is valuable as well, cupcakes! You are absolute troopers for making it this far, and I am grateful beyond words to all of you for spending your time with my work, and even more so if you even leave comments along the way! But I know you have other stories to get to, other worlds to explore and people to meet. And yes, sure, reading one chapter every month or few months isn’t that demanding. But I have always believed, even before I thought about becoming a professional, that a writer should know when to end a story. Stretching that out, endlessly adding more and more plot points, characters and stakes which exponentially increase in ridiculousness, is a certified death sentence in my eyes. (Hells, I’m already on thin ice regarding the stakes, considering the main character is basically a creator god…)

Yes, I know this is a personal opinion, some people genuinely love decade-spamming tales, and hey, more power to those people! Sail those seas for as long as you are able!

TFS is not going to be one of those stories, and I hope it will be all the better for it.

So, to summarize my goals during this hiatus:

- Nail down the basic storyline of Act IV with as few future wild swings in the plan as possible. I will be mostly employing the lessons of Save the Cat! Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody, if anyone would like to learn as well. That book is my personal Bible, no questions.

- Kill a city state’s worth of Darlings. See if any of them can be saved into a spin-off story. No promises, only dreams.

- Build up a buffer of chapters before I start uploading. I am most afraid of this challenge if I can be honest with you, cupcakes.

- In the meantime, possible ideas to fill out the hiatus: illustrated scenes from previous chapters; concept art of characters; idea blurb posts; general personal tactics and philosophies on writing. Again, just ideas.

I have no idea how long the hiatus will last. I have a feeling I should take a bit of a break from Diablo as a whole, but I still have a 19-page fancomic to finish about the Angiris Council, good lord. It will be posted to my DeviantArt gallery for sure by the way! :D

And to here as well IF I don’t nuke that bastard and move to Blogger by the time it is finished. (There will be a post here when that happens, it will be up for a year at least, don’t worry about missing it)

Back on track…

I can’t even give you cupcakes an estimate, I have never done anything like this before. I’m flying blind but bloody Hells, bring it on! >:D If you wait out the hiatus, I love you for it. If you give up on the fic, I totally understand it and I thank you for your time up to this point!

So, thank you for reading, thank you for your patience, and hopefully we will see each other soon with the first proper chapter of Act IV! Lilith needs some proper ass-whooping, and I shall deliver, cupcakes! Take care and keep being awesome!

2024.03.07.

[ecto-american]

From the mouth of a criminal justice graduate: Has Danny committed treason?

If you want the short answer: No, Danny has never committed treason.

Longer answer is under the cut

First, let us define treason.

There are two ways to define it: federally and on a state level.

Federally, treason is defined within Article III, Section 3 of the US Constitution. It specifically states that reason is specifically limited to essentially war-related crimes, such as starting a war against the US or helping their enemies, such as giving them aid. Starting a war basically boils down to a group of armed people that are attempting to overthrow the government or resist their laws, and this also applies to conspiracy to those crimes (or you're actively making plans to commit those crimes.

This definition was expanded in 2001 with the Patriot Act. The relevant information here is that it mostly just gave more freedoms to prevent terrorism from happening, such as mentioning more modern technology and methods and increasing punishments for terrorism. The general gist of the definition is the same.

By state, I'm going to go by Illinois, because I personally believe that's the state Amity Park is in. However, as a general rule, most states just follow the same rules as the federal definition, they just have different punishment lengths (like how long you’d spend in prison and the amount in fines you’d pay). This is the case in Illinois, it's basically the same only they added that people who do all these war crimes “knowingly” which is semi-important in this case since Danny does a lot of things unknowingly.

As a general rule, think of treason as: Somebody who wants to overthrow their government to the point of making serious plans or actively doing it, or by helping government enemies by providing them aid and protection.

So what crimes has Danny committed? I'm only really going to go over three major things honestly.

Breaking and Entering, Robbery, Theft, etc:

In Control Freaks, Danny breaks into multiple jewelry stores under the control of Freakshow. However, since this was against Danny's will, this would likely fall under a situation of a crime under duress. This essentially means that you did a crime against your will because you were in danger. This is something that Danny would have to prove in a court of law, which is semi-debatable. Either way, even if Danny is found guilty of this: this is not treason.

Assault with a deadly weapon/Attempted Murder, especially towards a political figure:

I'm going to classify Danny's ghost powers as a deadly weapon, because I think that's a very fair assessment to make. The incident I'm specifically going to talk about is the Mayor, because that's what I see a lot of people bringing up when they talk about how Danny's committed treason. And I can see how people think that. But is it treason? Short answer is no.

Basically, I think where a lot of people get confused on this point is that in England and many previous British-controlled areas, the assassination of a political figure would be treason, but that’s not the case in America. While after JFK's assassination, it did become a federal offense to basically assassinate anybody who was acting as President or Vice President, as well as members of Congress. However, this does not mean that this is treason. It just means that it's a federal level crime as opposed to a state level crime (which is typically what murder falls under), and it does not fall under treason. It’s just a federal level of murder.

“But isn't treason somebody who wants to overthrow the government or planning on it? How does assassinating a political figure not count?” you may be wondering, and that's a very good question. The distinction here falls under the fact that while the motives are often political, it doesn't really directly lead to an attempted overthrowing of the government. It's not the best example, but a much better example of treason would be bombing the White House while multiple members of Congress, or while the President + Vice President are both in there AS WELL AS having intentions and plans to kind of storm the building and take over. The key part of treason is that they want to overthrow the government; not just hurt people.

But also on this note: based on all of this that I’ve said, Vlad has arguably committed treason against the Ghost King if we apply these same definitions. This is because Vlad purposefully took steps to overthrow the GZ government; he’s implied to that he had plans to step in and take over due to his search to get the Ring of Rage and Crown of Fire, seems to have recruited others for his cause (specifically the Fright Knight, Valerie and Danny as these are all people he got involved, even though Danny and Valerie weren’t really fully in the know), and Vlad specifically took steps to make sure Pariah Dark was locked away.

Everything within the Ultimate Enemy:

I kind of put this as a whole broad category, but if there was anything within DP to suggest that Danny committed treason, it would likely be this episode with Dan's timeline. But it's still not treason, and we know this because Dan clearly does not show any signs of being a leader. If he had committed treason, he would likely be in charge of dystopia future, but from what it seems, he just creates chaos and destruction. To commit treason is to essentially overthrow the government, and Dan doesn't really do or say anything to even imply that he's in charge of the human world. He just seems to be responsible for pain and suffering. Which again; even if he killed all the current Illinois state leadership, a key part of treason is wanting to essentially replace the government (very simplistic way of putting it honestly but the best real comparison I can give). Dan doesn't seem to be replacing the government.

[profgandalf]

The World-View of Star Trek Can’t Handle Death

The above image is one of the ubiquitous red shirted Security Crewman who dies on so many of the Original Star Trek shows.  Ironically, the actor pictured here comes back and is featured several times later in the show as Lt. Leslie.

“What do ya mean the Star Trek worldview can’t handle death?” I hear some readers squawk.  “Which show have you watching?  People die in Star Trek all the time!” And that is certainly true.  The dangers of various adventures were often underlined by the death of some crew-person, usually anyone in STOS wearing a red security uniform and this happened so often that it became a cliche.  (See ��red shirt” is listed at TV Tropes.)  But important characters, vital characters, did not die, or were not allowed to die.

The fact that the philosophical underpinning of Star Trek cannot handle death really came home to me as I finished viewing the first season of the recent Star Trek show Picard.  Now to be clear, I have been a fan of Star Trek since the sixties. And I know that they have tried to deal with death.  In fact Star Trek VI is entitled The Undiscovered Country which is a reference to the “to be or not to be” speech by Hamlet in which he mentions “The undiscover’d country, from whose bourn / No traveller returns” (Hamlet Act 3, Scene 1).  In the film they tie it into the future but in Shakespeare the unknown shore is death.  And it is notable that Nicholas Meyer who directed both Star Trek VI and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan wanted to use undiscover’d country as the title for his first Star Trek film since in that one, Kirk is dealing with getting old and possibly dying and Spock famously does die.

Fans were warned about Spock’s death before The Wrath of Khan was released and were furious about the elimination of a favored character.  Most now believe it was handled very well. But of course they need not have been so upset since with the success of the second film Spock’s return in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock was guaranteed.  However, fan displeasure is not what I am talking about.  The fact is that the humanistic world view expressed by most in the Star Trek universe has no answer for death, and so to get around it, they must--for the most important characters--cheat death.   Or as in the case of Picard they go into deep grief and denial.

The fact is that most modern materialists do not want to accept non-continuance, which is a natural conclusion to their world-view. They want the possibility of a soul. Thus the search for Spock’s kart racing in The Search for Spock. But even here the fate of Spock is bound to what people in the physical plane can accomplish. Furthermore, it seems to have no influence to the material world since in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home when McCoy attempts to chat with Spock about what he experienced after death he is told that to understand the experience, he would have to die too.

In Star Trek: Picard, the former admiral is depicted as still grieving for Data, somehow never achieving closure over the crewman’s sacrifice to save his life. Also he is informed that he himself is dying. The first season ends with him turning Data “off” at his request and transferring his own mind into a newer healthy body.  This kind of transfer is not new to SF.  Frederik Pohl in the Heechee series starting with the 1977 novel Gateway had a central character who grows old and then transfers his essence into a machine. The continuation of a mind stored in a computer also comes up in the 1993 work of Poul Anderson · Harvest of Stars. 

The fact is that even in the original Star Trek, Kirk and crew meet super beings who plan to insert their consciousness into machines. In the  "Return to Tomorrow" super beings Sargon, Thalassa and Henoch temporarily posses Kirk, Spock, and  Dr. Miranda Jones to construct android bodies--all to continue in this material plane.    Interesting in the end all of the beings reject the machine existence because of their being incapable of sensuality.   Henoch is eventually killed and Sargon and Thalassa accept their passing into oblivion after one last kiss.  They accept death but no one of the bridge crew dies. (One wonders about the android technology which never comes up again in the original show.)  Thus, we see multiple times that the only answer that most in the SF world can accept is an artificial continuance rather than accepting and embracing of death. 

The inability of Star Trek franchise to deal with death is actually lampooned in Star Trek Lower Decks.  In the second season episode “We'll Always Have Tom Paris” the young crewman Rutherford is confronted by the return of the bridge officer Lieutenant Shaxs who died saving his life in the first season “No Small Parts” Rutherford is warned by others not to ask Shaxs since it is considered impolite.  But he is consumed with curiosity even after he sees another crewman get reprimanded for bringing up the lieutenant’s return to his face.

Shax finally tells Rutherford in the privacy of the elevator lift that the only reason those who return from the dead don't tell is because, as summarized at Memory Alpha.  “they'd rather spare everyone the dark truths about scientific depravity that would haunt them for the rest of their days, and cautions that the knowledge will change Rutherford forever. Rutherford doesn't seem put off by this and asks Shaxs to tell him how he came back.”

“Shaxs [eventually] acquiesces and begins to tell him about what happens after death, which is the first step, but then asks if Rutherford knows about ‘the black mountain.’ He clarifies that it is a spiritual battleground where the soul goes and forced to fight three faceless apparitions of one's father, after which killing two, the survivor forces the soul to eat their own heart. As he gets into even further detail, Rutherford becomes more and more disturbed” (”We’ll Always Have Tom Paris” Memory Alpha).  These absurd details however are not helpful and are in no way meant to be a representation of what really happens after death in The Star Trek universe.  The Black Mountain “mombo jumbo” actually comes up in Rich and Morty as well.  It’s meant to not satisfy.  What does really tell us about death in Star Trek is this dialogue between Rutherford, Boimler and Mariner taken from the same episode:

Boimler:  bridge crew always come back.

Rutherford: Fine, but how?

Boimier: I don't know.

Mariner: We're Lower Decks. We don't get to know everything bridge crew does.

Rutherford: He saved my life. You know what? I'm gonna ask him.

Boimler: They-they don't like when people ask how they came back, man. It's probably just a transporter pattern buffer thing.

Mariner: Yeah, or a restored katra, or a mirror universe switcheroo, or the Borg rebuilt him.

Boimier: Or he could be a future son from an alternate timeline, or maybe he got Genesis Deviced, or time ribboned.

Mariner: Or he was trapped in the Nexus.

Boimier: Nexus, time ribbon, same thing. Point is, this stuff always happens, even on Voy [Voyager].

Read more at: https://tvshowtranscripts.ourboard.org/viewtopic.php?t=45739

In one piece of dialogue the writers cover all the ways from shows, to films to novels that writers for the franchise have avoided the problem of death,  And it all comes down to the point that death remains the one reality in human existence that Star Trek cannot handle. 

[genshin-impact-updates]

"Beneath the Light of Jadeite" Version 1.5 Update Details (I)

Dear Travelers,

Below are the details of the Version 1.5 update "Beneath the Light of Jadeite" and the update compensation.

〓Compensation〓

Maintenance Compensation: Primogems ×300 (60 Primogems per hour the servers are down)

Issue Fix Compensation: Primogems ×300 (please refer to the relevant compensation mail for more details)

〓Eligibility〓

Maintenance Compensation: All Travelers who have reached Adventure Rank 5 or above by 2021/04/28 06:00 (UTC+8)

Please claim before the end of Version 1.5.

Issue Fix Compensation: All Travelers who have reached Adventure Rank 5 or above by 2021/04/28 06:00 (UTC+8)

Please claim the compensation before 2021/05/01 06:00 (UTC+8) .

Our developers will distribute compensation to Travelers via in-game mail within 5 hours after the update maintenance is finished. The mail will expire after 30 days, so don't forget to claim the attached compensation in time.

〓Update Schedule〓

Update maintenance begins 2021/04/28 06:00 (UTC+8) and is estimated to take 5 hours.

〓How to Update Game Client〓

PC: Close the game, open the Genshin Impact Launcher, and click Update.

iOS: Open the App Store and tap Update.

Android: Open the game and follow the directions on-screen.

PS4: Highlight Genshin Impact from the PS4 Home Screen, press the OPTIONS button and select "Check for Update."

Please do not hesitate to contact Customer Service if you encounter any issues installing the new version. We will do our very best to resolve the issue.

〓Update Details〓

I. New System

New System: Serenitea Pot

◇ Adepti use Serenitea Pots as media through which they can channel their adeptal power and create realms and abodes.

As the owner of this realm, you may decorate it however you wish and turn it into a home away from home.

After using and summoning the Serenitea Pot, you can interact with it and enter the abode within.

You can also use and summon the pot while you are within its confines. Interacting with the Serenitea Pot in this state will allow you to leave it.

You can also directly open the map interface and fast travel to any of the Teleport Waypoints to immediately leave the Serenitea Pot.

Teapot Spirit

A spirit that lives inside the teapot. It is said that she was created by the adepti themselves. She looks after many matters within the realm, serving as a butler of sorts.

Trust Rank

As you create more furnishings for the first time, the teapot spirit's Trust in you will increase. Accumulate Trust to increase your Trust Rank.

Increasing Trust Rank will unlock features for the Serenitea Pot or allow you to obtain various rewards.

Adeptal Energy

The amount of Adeptal Energy within the realm will gradually increase along with the number of furnishings placed.

Once a new Adeptal Energy Rank is reached, the realm's output will also increase.

Creating

You can obtain the materials required to create furnishings in many different ways, all around Teyvat.

While visiting your friends' realms, you can also assist them in creating furnishings by reducing their creation time.

You can provide assistance to multiple friends each day, but the same person cannot be assisted twice.

Realm Depot

You can use Realm Currency in the Serenitea Pot to exchange for items of your choice.

During the Teapot Traveling Salesman's visits, you can also enter other realms to exchange with Salesmen within them for desired items.

II. New Characters

5-Star Character "Dance of the Shimmering Wave" Eula (Cryo)

◇ Vision: Cryo

◇ Weapon: Claymore

◇ The Spindrift Knight, a scion of the old aristocracy, and the Captain of the Knights of Favonius Reconnaissance Company. The reason for which a descendant of the ancient nobles might join the Knights remains a great mystery in Mondstadt to this very day.

◆ Tapping Eula's Elemental Skill "Icetide Vortex" deals Cryo DMG and provides Eula with the Grimheart effect. Holding her Elemental Skill consumes all the stacks of Grimheart and deals AoE Cryo DMG to opponents in front of her. When the Grimheart stacks are consumed, surrounding opponents will have their Physical RES and Cryo RES decreased. Each consumed stack of Grimheart will be converted into an Icewhirl Brand that deals Cryo DMG to nearby opponents.

Eula's Elemental Burst "Glacial Illumination" deals AoE Cryo DMG and creates a Lightfall Sword that follows her around. After this, when Eula's own Normal Attack, Elemental Skill, and Elemental Burst deal DMG to opponents, they will charge the Lightfall Sword. Once its duration ends, the Lightfall Sword will descend and explode violently, dealing Physical DMG that scales on the number of energy stacks the Lightfall Sword has accumulated.

*"Dance of the Shimmering Wave" Eula (Cryo) will be available in a future event wish.

4-Star Character "Wise Innocence" Yanfei

◇ Vision: Pyro

◇ Weapon: Catalyst

◇ A well-known legal adviser active in Liyue Harbor. A brilliant young lady in whose veins runs the blood of an illuminated beast.

◆ Yanfei's Normal Attack has a Scarlet Seal effect. While Scarlet Seals are present, Yanfei's Stamina consumption is decreased. A Charged Attack consumes all Scarlet Seals, with the AoE and DMG of the attack increasing according to the amount of Scarlet Seals consumed.

Yanfei's Elemental Skill "Signed Edict" deals AoE Pyro DMG. Hitting opponents with the flames grants Yanfei the maximum number of Scarlet Seals.

Yanfei's Elemental Burst "Done Deal" deals AoE Pyro DMG, granting Yanfei the maximum number of Scarlet Seals and applying the Brilliance effect to her. While Brilliance is in effect, Yanfei's Charged Attack DMG is increased and she is granted a Scarlet Seal at fixed intervals.

*In the event wish "Gentry of Hermitage," "Wise Innocence" Yanfei (Pyro) will receive a huge drop-rate boost!

III. New Equipment

▌ New Weapon

Song of Broken Pines (5-Star Claymore)

◆ A part of the "Millennial Movement" that wanders amidst the winds. Increases the wielder's ATK. When Normal or Charged Attacks hit opponents, the character gains a Sigil of Whispers. This effect can be triggered once every 0.3s. When you possess 4 Sigils of Whispers, all of them will be consumed and all nearby party members will obtain the "Millennial Movement: Banner-Hymn" effect for 12s. This effect increases Normal ATK SPD and ATK. Once this effect is triggered, you will not gain Sigils of Whispers for 20s. Of the many effects of the "Millennial Movement," buffs of the same type will not stack.

▌ New Artifacts

Tenacity of the Millelith (4-Star and 5-Star)

◇ 2-Piece Set: HP is increased.

◇ 4-Piece Set: When an Elemental Skill hits an opponent, the ATK of all nearby party members is increased and their Shield Strength is increased for 3s. This effect can be triggered once every 0.5s. This effect can still be triggered even when the character who is using this artifact set is not on the field.

Pale Flame (4-Star and 5-Star)

2-Piece Set: Physical DMG is increased.

4-Piece Set: When an Elemental Skill hits an opponent, ATK is increased for 7s. This effect stacks up to 2 times and can be triggered once every 0.3s. Once 2 stacks are reached, the 2-set effect is increased by 100%.

◆ Obtain artifacts in the above sets from Ridge Watch, the new Domain of Blessing at Bishui Plain.

IV. New Domains

New Domain: Ridge Watch

Standing proudly over the start of the ridge, these ancient city ruins overlook both north and south, both mountain and river, like a boundary marker. Legend has it that its gates and blessings are only open to those whose hearts are lit with an eternal blaze.

◆ Obtain artifacts in the "Tenacity of the Millelith" and "Pale Flame" sets from Ridge Watch, the new Domain of Blessing at Bishui Plain.

New Trounce Domain: Beneath the Dragon-Queller

What secrets are hidden in this domain...?

The new Trounce Domain, Beneath the Dragon-Queller, has been added to the Nantianmen area.

◆ Unlocked after completing Zhongli's Story Quest "Historia Antiqua Chapter: Act II - No Mere Stone."

After updating to Version 1.5, there will be three opportunities to halve the Original Resin cost when claiming rewards from Trounce Blossoms in Trounce Domains and the "Lupus Boreas, Dominator of Wolves" challenge (after the V1.5 update – 2021-05-03 04:00:00. The number of opportunities resets every Monday at 04:00 (Server time).

Travelers should complete the update to V1.5 first before completing the relevant challenges for the week April 26 – May 2.

V. New Monsters

1. Cryo Hypostasis

◇ Elemental creatures who protect themselves from incoming attack with their durable shell. Find an opportune moment to land a blow to their elemental core. At critical moments, they will enter a shielded regenerative state, firing Frostfruits to attack its foes while restoring its own HP. Use Charged Attacks to redirect the Frostfruits back at the Cryo Hypostasis to knock it out of its regenerative state swiftly.

Located at Entombed City - Outskirts

2. Azhdaha

◇ An enormous dragon as ancient as the mountains themselves.

In an age that has all but faded from memory, he stood shoulder to shoulder with one who ruled over a harbor of stone. But in the end, the two came into conflict, and the dragon was banished to a dark place deep underground. Over the long years of his imprisonment, his power has slowly dissipated. He has also become disfigured from the various kinds of erosion he has been subjected to.

The faint rattling of this dragon lord's shackles and his deep, angry growl echo through the bowels of the mountains like memories of a bygone era.

Located at Nantianmen

3. New Elite Monster: Abyss Lector - Violet Lightning

◇ A creature of the Abyss Order that calls upon thunder and lightning in praise of the darkness.

It possesses some ability to disrupt elemental powers, and some of its attacks will drain characters' Elemental Energy when dealing DMG to them.

In Version 1.5, the Abyss Lector: Violet Lightning will only appear in the Spiral Abyss.

VI. New Event: Energy Amplifier Initiation - Take part and exchange for "Kätzlein Cocktail" Diona (Cryo)!

◇ In an effort to gather and research Irminsul Fruit Fragments, Sumeru researcher Hosseini has entrusted a mysterious ancient relic to you for a time: the Energy Amplifier. Help Hosseini to gather Irminsul Fruit Fragments and unleash their power with the Energy Amplifier.

◆ Event Gameplay Duration: 2021/04/30 10:00:00 – 2021/05/17 03:59

◆ Eligibility: Adventure Rank 20 or above

▌ Places of Interest

During the event period, go to Places of Interest and defeat the opponents there to gather Irminsul Fruit Fragments and obtain Fractured Fruit Data.

▌ Domains

During the event period, successfully challenge Domains to obtain Fractured Fruit Data.

▌ Twisted Realm

During the event period, challenge the Twisted Realm and get as high a score as you can. Reach a combined score of certain amounts to claim Fractured Fruit Data.

※ After the event gameplay period ends, you will be unable to claim the combined score rewards for the Twisted Realm. Please make sure to claim the rewards in time.

◆ Even more events will subsequently become available. Stay tuned, Travelers.

VII. New Quests

1. New Story Quests

Zhongli's Story Quest: Historia Antiqua Chapter - Act II "No Mere Stone"

◇ A curious ancient tree has quietly stood here throughout the ages, bearing witness to all that has come to pass. To rescue the miners and solve this puzzle once and for all, you proceed to the ancient site that holds all the answers...

◆ Zhongli's Story Quest "Historia Antiqua Chapter: Act II - No Mere Stone" will be permanently available after the Version 1.5 update

◆ Quest Unlock Criteria:

• Adventure Rank 40 or above

• Completed the Story Quest "Historia Antiqua Chapter: Act I - Sal Flore"

• Completed the Archon Quest "Chapter I: Act IV - We Will Be Reunited"

◆ Complete the series of quests to earn rewards including Primogems, Weapon Enhancement Materials, and Character EXP Materials!

◆Eula's Story Quest "Aphros Delos Chapter: Act I" will become available at a later date.

2. New Hangout Events

Hangout Event: Diona - Act I "The Cat and the Cocktail"

◇ They say that there's a popular bartender at The Cat's Tail.

◆ Diona's Hangout Event "Act I: The Cat and the Cocktail" will be permanently available after the Version 1.5 update

◆ Unlock Criteria:

• Adventure Rank 26 or above

• Completed the Archon Quest "Prologue: Act III - Song of the Dragon and Freedom"

Hangout Event: Noelle - Act II "Knightly Exam Prep"

◇ Noelle reveals to you that she is very anxious about the Knights of Favonius selection exam. At your suggestion, she decides to emulate the knights she knows in an attempt to overcome her sense of unease.

◆ Noelle's Hangout Event "Act II: Knightly Exam Prep" will be permanently available after the Version 1.5 update

◆ Unlock Criteria:

• Adventure Rank 26 or above

• Completed the Archon Quest "Chapter I: Act III - A New Star Approaches"

• Achieved all endings in Noelle's Hangout Event "Act I: Chivalric Training"

3. New World Quests

◆ Adds World Quests related to the Serenitea Pot: "A Teapot to Call Home: Part I" and "A Teapot to Call Home: Part II"

◆ Quest Unlock Criteria:

• Adventure Rank 35 or above

• Completed the Archon Quest "Chapter I: Act III - A New Star Approaches"

Complete the World Quest "A Teapot to Call Home: Part I" to obtain the gadget "Serenitea Pot."

◆ New World Quests: "A Timeless Classic" and "When the Trail Goes Cold"

*Other new World Quests will be added at a later date, including "Mr. Melancholy" and "Mimi Tomo"

◆ Complete these quests to win Mora, Character EXP Materials, and more!

VIII. Other Additions

● Gameplay

1. New Gadget

○ Serenitea Pot: A teapot obtained from Madame Ping. There seems to be a whole new realm within it...

2. New Recipes

○ Eula's Specialty: Stormcrest Pie

○ Yanfei's Specialty: "My Way"

○ Wanmin Restaurant: Crab Roe Tofu

○ Xinyue Kiosk: Stir-Fried Fish Noodles

○ Liuli Pavilion: Cured Pork Dry Hotpot

3. New Inventory Category: Furnishings

4. New Precious Items:

○ Dream Solvent: An item capable of changing Character Level-Up Materials obtained from memories and trials into whatever form is needed.

Obtain by successfully completing the Trounce Domain or Dominator of Wolves challenges.

○ Transient Resin: An item that can be used to replenish Original Resin. Once used, it will replenish 60 Original Resin. Once obtained, it will automatically dissipate after a period of time.

·The expiration time will be calculated from the Monday after this item is obtained, and it will disappear seven days from then.

·Multiple Transient Resins obtained on different weeks will have their expiration dates counted independently.

○ Vial of Adeptal Speed: A small bottle that seals some adeptal energy within. Will immediately complete a furnishing when used.

○ Sanctifying Unction: Artifact EXP material. Gives 2,500 EXP.

○ Sanctifying Essence: Artifact EXP material. Gives 10,000 EXP.

5. New Achievements: "A Realm Beyond: Series I," "Memories of the Heart," etc.

6. New Namecards

○ Celebration: Fruit of Wisdom - Obtained from the "Energy Amplifier" event.

○ Celebration: Peekaboo! - Obtained from the "Windtrace" event

○ Yanfei: Impartial - Obtained when Yanfei's Friendship Level reaches 10.

○ Eula: Ice-Sealed - Obtained when Eula's Friendship Level reaches 10.

○ Travel Notes: Sub-Space Recreation - Obtained from the Battle Pass system

○ Achievement: Tea Time - Obtained by completing all achievements under "A Realm Beyond: Series I."

7. Spiral Abyss:

○ Floor 11 Ley Line Disorders changed to:

• Your character will be periodically inflicted with Slowing Water, greatly increasing your skills' CD duration until the inflicted Hydro element is removed.

• Physical DMG dealt by all party members increased by 75%.

○ Updates the monster lineup on Floor 11 of the Spiral Abyss.

○ Updates the monster lineup on Floor 12 of the Spiral Abyss.

Starting from the first time that the Lunar Phase refreshes after updating to Version 1.5, the three Lunar Phases will be as follows:

○ Phase 1: Blade-Dance Moon

When a character scores consecutive hits on an opponent with Normal Attacks within 2s, this character's Physical DMG is increased by 5% for 10s. This effect stacks up to 5 times, and only 1 stack is added at a time regardless of how many enemies are hit in one strike. When 5 stacks have been obtained, further hits on opponents will unleash shockwaves that deal AoE DMG. A shockwave can be created in this manner once every 1s.

○ Phase 2: Thorny Moon

A backlash will occur when opponents hit a character protected by a shield, unleashing a shockwave that deals AoE DMG. Can occur once every 6s.

○ Phase 3: Rebellious Moon

When a character scores Normal, Charged, and Plunging Attack hits that deal Physical DMG to opponents, this character's CRIT Rate is increased by 3% for 10s. This effect stacks up to 5 times, and only 1 stack is added at a time regardless of how many enemies are hit in one strike. When 5 stacks have been obtained, CRIT Hits on opponents will unleash shockwaves that deal AoE DMG. A shockwave can be created in this manner once every 1s.

● System

1. The new Mail Pins function has been added. Pinned mail will be placed at the top of your mail list and will not be deleted when pressing Delete Read. However, pinned mail will still expire as normal.

2. On mobile, UI Border Offset setting has been added to Settings > Controls.

● Audio

1. Adds voiced interactions for characters in the open world.

2. Adds a Compatibility Mode option for the audio API on Android devices. Try switching to this mode if you experience any of the following issues:

Distorted sound (electrical noise) from your device, failure to switch between left and right audio channels, screen recordings do not capture audio, screen recordings feature distorted audio, difficulty switching to and from earphones when plugged in/removed, electrical noise through Bluetooth earphones.

3. Adds Japanese voice-over for certain characters.

4. Due to unforeseen circumstances, in English, the voice of Diona in Diona's Hangout Event is temporarily provided by Jackie Lastra.

[dwaynepride]

the unfortunate case of nonchalance

PART IV - ACT OF MAKIN’ NOISE

summary: what goes up must come down.

words: 2,129

warnings: female reader, a gun fight

tags: @fairytale07 @jrenn10 @f4nboi @purplestarsr5 @ladyzombiielove @littlemiss3ma​ @minikate--24-05​ @consultingdoctorwholock​ @dressed-up-just-like-z1ggy​ @ms-allenbrown​ @ikbenplant​ @dylpickles1267​ @diaryofafan17​ @specialagentlokitty​ @pageofultron​ @stanathanxoox​ @kittenlittle24​

author’s note: part 4 of the cowboy!au series. this is a part of meg’s 11k challenge. the prompts are cowboy au and secret relationship trope.

part III | part V

March 2nd, 1889

Woke up to a strangely silent camp. Turns out, Anthony took Tim, Jimmy, and Eleanor out to town for the day.

What the four of them could do in a stifling town like this is beyond me. And I won’t lie, I have my worries about their conduct. Especially with how cross Anthony seems to have been this past week.

But there’s nothing I can do about it now. I have an appointment to keep at the bank, then perhaps another shooting lesson.

If those four are still somehow out of trouble by then, I’ll search for them. Though, I have my doubts.

-

The sun is hotter than normal today. It beats down on him like a pair of heavy fists, even if Jethro has his hat tilted in a way to keep his eyes covered. The town around him resumes their usual bustle - walking right past him without a second glance. Giving no indication that they even knew he was there.

Slowly, Jethro’s head cocks back to the doors of the bank. He keeps expecting you to walk out, smiling brightly, saying his name in that beautiful way that you do.

It doesn’t come, however. And Jethro is forced to stand and wait and think.

Mostly just think about how foolish he feels, right now. His eyes flicker down to his clothing, scowling at himself for trying to dress up a little. A pressed white shirt with pitch black slacks - about as finely-dressed as someone like him could be. It made sense this morning, when he rummaged through his chest. Though now, he thinks he regrets trying so hard.

It’s difficult not to when the memory of the kiss is still so fresh in his mind. Jethro was nearly convinced it was some kind of dream. So real, he almost asked Doctor Mallard if he had the fever.

But when he found his revolver missing from its sheathe, he knew it was no dream.

Even his lips were a fading memory of the kiss. Still seeming to tingle with the impression that your kiss bestowed on him. It’s aggravating, how easy you’re able to twist him up - but also exhilarating.

His thoughts are interrupted when he hears the doors open. Jethro’s head swivels around, and finally, it’s your face that he sees. And judging from the expression you wear, his efforts in looking like a decent man has paid off. He knows the look you wear when you’re flustered. Right now, it’s in abundance.

But the blissful moment of seeing your face is spoiled when you’re followed by an older man. He wears a stiff three-piece suit, a golden watch tucked into the pocket of his coat, and Jethro doesn’t like the way he looks at you.

You turn back to the older man, still smiling wide. “Father, this is Mr. Jethro Gibbs. Jethro Gibbs, this is my father.”

Your father? Great.

The older man approaches, so Jethro tries to straighten himself up. Tries to show that he wasn’t surprised by the sudden meeting, even if he was. Your father had always seemed like this far-off prospect that he didn’t need to worry about. A stuffy, rich businessman whom Jethro might have taken an interest in before all the trouble out west.

Perhaps this is simply a side effect of becoming so close to you.

Jethro deftly sticks out his hand with a single nod. “Sir,” he greets promptly.

He shakes it back; such a strong grip for a banking man. “You’re the man my daughter keeps talking about, huh?” Your father asks. And when Jethro glances over the man’s shoulder, your eyes avert. “Hmmm. Walk with me, Mr. Gibbs.”

Jethro falls into step with him, with you on his other side. He hadn’t noticed until now, but your father had some papers tucked into the crook of his arm. He pulled them out, reading over them for a few moments. Jethro couldn’t hide the perplexed look on his face, and as he glances at you behind the older man, you’re laughing silently.

Good to know you seem to be enjoying this.

“My daughter says you were there at the saloon when some miserable drunkard was bothering her. That you came to her aid.”

Jethro’s eyes instantly comes back down to your father - he still hadn’t looked up from his papers, but he was obviously expecting a response. “Yes, sir.”

He nods solemnly. “Well, then you have my deepest gratitude, sir. My daughter has a habit of,” the older man trails off to look sideways at you, “getting herself into certain situations. My prayers are that her future husband may be able to keep her home, where she belongs.”

Crotchety old bastard, Jethro thinks.

“Yes, sir,” he repeats.

Tucking the papers back into his arm, the older man suddenly stops and turns to Jethro. And when he holds out his hand, Jethro takes it again and shakes. “It was very nice meeting you, Mr. Gibbens. I’m a very busy man, but do help yourself to some items in the general store, on my tab. It’s the least I can do for how you’ve helped my daughter,” he says. And his tone is flat and professional and Jethro can’t even be surprised anymore when he simply nods to you and walks off.

Jethro watches him leave. When he’s out of earshot, Jethro turns to you with a raised eyebrow. “Mr. Gibbens?” He asks.

You burst out with laughter, stepping closer and laying a hand on his arm. A small, simple gesture that nearly makes his shiver. “He’s not so bad, once you get to know him. He’ll remember your name, soon enough.”

“That so?” Jethro questions. He leans in just a little, a half-smirk on his lips, and rejoicing in the fact that your eyes flicker down. “Maybe I don’t intend on speaking to him often enough for him to learn.”

“Well, it would be awful hard to marry me if you never speak to him.”

For the life of him, Jethro can find no snarky response to that. Your words are serious, he can tell. The hand you have settled on his arm tightens, and Jethro moves to cover it with one of his own. And suddenly, right there on the street, Jethro wants to kiss you again. Just as deep and breathtakingly beautiful as the first one was.

And he might have, had the shrill scream of a woman down the street not caught his attention.

Jethro’s head snaps up just in time he see the bright muzzle flash of a gunshot. The sharp, explosive sound snaps through the air, and instinctively, Jethro grips your hand with his. He quickly pulls you out of the street, toward the closest alley and behind the cover of a brick building. It all went so quickly, you scarcely know what’s going on.

And yet, you’re afraid. Jethro can feel you gripping the lapels of his coat.

“It’s alright. Just stay low,” he mumbles out while poking his head out to see.

People are running about in a panic. Some ducking into shops, others just scattering and hoping they aren’t hit by a bullet. But even in all the chaos, Jethro thinks he knows what’s going on.

“Was that a gunshot?” You breathe out.

“Yeah,” he answers. “Looks like it came from the bank.”

“But we were just in there!”

He knows that. Painfully so. Jethro’s about to grab your hand to pull you away. To find someplace safe to bunker down and wait until the law can get this all under control. But before Jethro turns away, he watches a man burst out of the front door of the bank. A mask covers his face, but his stature is shockingly familiar; it makes Jethro go cold. Another man follows him out, shouting words that he can’t make out, but the man’s voice is so painfully recognizable.

It can’t be his young Tim McGee, can it? Tim is not so foolish to rob a big city bank.

There’s a tug on his coat. “Jethro, we need to leave this place!”

He hears your frightened voice. And yet, his feet are rooted to the ground.

Because he sees the fair and blonde-haired Eleanor Bishop stumble out of the bank. Blood stains her nice white dress - the dress she saves for the most special occasions. And Jethro knows instantly that the blood is not hers, because the man leaning against Eleanor can barely walk. His broad stature and mess of dark Italian hair is unmistakable behind the mask - it’s Anthony. He’s been shot.

These were Jethro’s people robbing the bank.

He’s almost numb when he turns to look at you. And it doesn’t help that your eyes are wide in terror, knuckles white in their grip on his coat. But Jethro sighs, takes your hands in his, and gently tries to detach them. “Listen, I need to go. But I want you to run. Run as far as you can away from here, and don’t came back looking for me,” he says, quick and firm.

“Jethro, what-”

“I know those people. I’m with them. But right now, they need me.” Finally, he’s able to pull your hands off his coat, but he keeps holding them tight. Keeps his eyes locked on yours. “I’ll find you in a couple days, when everything dies down. But right now, you need to run away.”

Jethro brings your hands up, kisses them quickly, and then moves away. He knows you’re scared out of your mind - all the shooting lessons in the world hasn’t prepared you for something as real and chaotic as a bank heist. Maybe in a way, that’s his fault.

But as he leaves the alleyway, he sees you running the other direction out the corner of his eye.

Good. At least you’ll be safe.

Finally, Jethro pulls his pistol out of his coat pocket. He’s moving through the ever-thinning crowd of frantic people, trying to make his way over to his struggling gang. Again, he spots Eleanor struggling to drag Anthony to their hitched horses. So he breaks into a sprint - he knows the law will be here any second. And with Anthony hurt, it’ll be like shooting fish in a barrel.

“Eleanor!” He calls out. Her head whips around, and he catches a brief look at the shock on her face. But he ducks around to Anthony’s other side to help support his weight. And from here, Jethro can really see the blood. It’s all over the front of his clothes. Jethro can’t tell where the wound is, but he knows it’s gotta be bad.

Anthony lets out a low groan - no doubt feeling all the jostling around from being half-carried. But his eyes dart over to Jethro under his mask. “Boss? I didn’t think you’d show up to the party,” Anthony murmured, and then winced when Eleanor nearly tripped over his feet.

“Shut up, you dumbass,” Jethro grumbles. He arches his head up to look around - no sign of lawmen yet. “I told you not to hit the bank.”

Anthony’s labored breathing is harsh in his ear. “We needed a big score, boss.”

Jethro’s about to retort, but there’s more gunshots. When he raises his head again, Jethro’s spots nearly a dozen men on horseback coming right for them. Tim fires his rifle at them, and the first man who burst out of the bank turns back to the three of them. “Get Anthony back to camp! We’ll cover you!”

With a sinking pit in his belly, Jethro recognizes Jimmy Palmer’s voice. Anthony even roped him into this shitshow.

He’s scowling as he reaches Anthony’s horse. Him and Eleanor quickly push the Italian up on the back of it. And Anthony seems barely able to keep himself upright as Jethro pulls himself into the saddle. Bullets whizz past his head, but even still, he glances down to Eleanor. “You better be right behind me!” He shouts to her.

She’s firing off at the lawmen, but waves Jethro off quickly. “Go. Get him back to camp!”

He’s reluctant to leave them, but Jethro snaps the reins and rides out of town. Anthony leans against his back, no doubt soaking Jethro’s coat in his blood. But judging how limp he feels against him, Jethro’s figures he’s probably unconscious from blood loss. Or maybe the rough ride of the horse was too much for him. Either way, Doctor Mallard better be at camp.

But as he rides, try as he might to keep his focus on Anthony and his gang, Jethro can’t help but glance back to the retreating buildings of the town.

And he desperately hopes you got to safety.

[edwardboyne]

🌙 — ALL ABOARD ! The HMS PROMETHEAN welcomes ( EDWARD BOYNE ) to the expedition in their capacity of ( THE PURSER ). They are ( 40 years old & cis male ) and might be painted as ( MATTHEW GOODE ). When you strike up an acquaintance, address them as ( he/him ). Their deeds on land prece their arrival — people say they are ( practical, ambitious, adaptable ) but ( reserved, secretive, distrustful ) when the tide turns. Their purpose aboard the Promethean falls in line with ( running away from yet another stealing-spree & embracing another opportunity for redistributing the wealth ).  

III. IN CHARACTER (B)

1. What are three plot points you see for this character in the future? 

with so many rich people on board, who seem to be there for the fun of it, Edward’s already trying to come up with ways to capitalize on it. He observes, he listens, maybe he’s enlisted the help of someone who shares his ideas; even if personally, directly stealing valuables from the high society isn’t exactly his style, it’s surely something. If he were to let his hands slip here and there, nobody would suspect a thing. Things could easily go amiss in a place like this, could they not?

after his last voyage, Edward’s come into some money thanks to cashing in false pay tickets, again; it’s a knows trick he utilizes every now and then, when the communities he supports around London are in desperate need for more money. The thing is that this time, someone was onto him — Edward knows that if the Promethean were to set sail, say, a week later, he’d find himself in a lot of trouble. He’s left the mess he’s made back home and it stayed there, before anyone on board had the chance to find out (or maybe that’s what Ned thinks; maybe there is someone on the ship who caught wind of his “””””illegal””””” practices and they’re just waiting for the right time to make use of that information; either condemn his actions or praise him for them)

never in his life had Edward have to worry about his health; he’s sort of got used to the idea that he’s untouchable to the passing of time, that he’s lucky when it comes to avoiding danger or anything that could potentially harm him. But something happens during the expedition; nothing lethal or anywhere close to it, but it severely hinders his, well—everything. Maybe a head injury, that makes him practically useless for a while, with headaches that are worsened by the cold. Edward would try to defy doctor’s orders and push through it like nothing’s wrong, possibly on the route to make everything even worse (unless there would be someone persistent and brave enough to get through to him; make him obey orders, which, let’s face it, Ned’s never been good at, whatever they might concern. He’s a man who forges his own paths, only respecting other’s rules when it’s absolutely needed. He knows his body best, so it’s not needed, obviously)

dead can’t receive letters but Edward still writes them anyway. The long messages to his deceased lover are the only proof of who Edward Boyne really is. It’s not to say that the person he presents himself as to the world is a completely insincere facade, but he does wear layers and layers of lies — it keeps him safe and keeps people at an arm’s length, something that’s vital to his success. The Captain is the only person who’s managed to strip some of those layers down but that’s only because he had a head start. To others he’s gruff, secretive, probably comes off as somewhat resentful (and he is, towards some, his principles dictate detesting anyone too greedy for their own good), rude, even — he wears that as an armor, again, for safety. But then the night falls when he’s locked away in his cabin and he writes; My dearest; that’s when the man with vivid dreams comes out; he softens around the edges and all he wants to do is to make things better, not for himself but for others. He’s hardly a poetic man, since his readings tend to center around politics, philosophy and economics, but his words are full of emotions, memories and ideas he’s always been adamant to talk about to anyone, anyone but the supposed recipient of the letters. Edward keeps them stored in his cabin, hidden in the pages of the books he took with him. Someone strays into his cabin; maybe they were there to speak to him but got impatient and their hands started to wander. They find a few of the letters and that’s the sort of thing you can’t just put back. Edward catches them red-handed and no matter what they might think of him after, that would be a breach of privacy that could ruin him, regardless of their intentions. An altercation could happen; Ned, usually very restrained and composed on the outside, he has to be, would be absolutely livid about someone going through his personals like this and finding the letters, the most personal of all of his belongings, is a crime he can’t let go. He doesn’t let them leave until they reach some sort of understanding, a deal, or maybe it turns into a blackmail situation, maybe Edward knows something undesirable about them, too, and now it’s a good time to utilize it. He trades in secrets, it’s the second most valuable currency in the world they live in.

Despite how suspicious he is of everyone around him, he strikes a liking to someone from the crew; someone who similarly to him came from nothing (though they don’t know that, of course, Edward doesn’t like sharing stories of his origins with anyone), maybe they’re younger and remind him of someone he knew or the person he used to be when he was their age — more ruthless, not as calculated, act first, think later kind of person, that he had to reverse at some point, so he could be smart about what he does; they don’t ask questions at first but the more time they spend around Edward, the more curious they get; they start with vague things, questions that aren’t very personal, those Edward can entertain with an answer, usually only half-true, but interesting enough. But the other is persistent and one day they do ask him about the things he’s been avoiding; where do you come from? who were your parents? how did you end up in the service? are you married? That’s a problem he has to face every single time someone wants to get close to him — will he let them?

2. Please answer the following question in character, either as a dialogue reply or a short scene:

                 “Why did you decide to venture to the Arctic on this expedition?”

“My dearest,” he writes. He has to pause, unable to figure out what to start with. It hardly matters, but the ritual is so important to him that he cannot let himself do it the wrong way. He distracts himself the second he starts, the fingers of his free hand reaching out to absentmindedly touch the spine of the book in front of him. The pen hovers above the paper for a moment longer before the words finally flow. “I fear I have not been as careful as I thought. You would have thought I’d become a professional at this point, that I would not have to fear about being found out. I do, though. As important as this is to me, helping the unfortunate ones, I can hardly do it when I am imprisoned. I never let greed take over, you know that; even when I do, it’s not greed-driven by my own hunger but by the hunger of all the children that I vowed to feed because I have the means and ways to do it. I let myself slip. I have run away. Hid in plain sight. I had to, if I had stayed, God only knows what would become of my life. I know people have been talking, about how not enough money makes it out of my hands and that it has been a common occurrence. There were whispers about calling me to speak in front of the admiralty and whether that was true or false, I knew that this much attention would only cause more trouble. I was not prepared to sail so soon again but I knew I had no other choice. This is my only chance for everything to return to how it used to be; by the time we come back, I will not be a suspect anymore. I’ll have to sacrifice profiting off this expedition for the sake of appearances but I am sure I will find another way to bring something back. There is so many of your crowd here. You would have hated it. The money they have paid to be here and for what? To look at the ice? Thirty more days and they will get bored, anxious to be home already because the cold is becoming more and more unbearable. The nobles looking for amusement on a discovery service expedition. Tourists in the Arctic. Who would have thought? I am afraid you will not be receiving any flowers from me anytime soon. You will have to forgive me. I will write, though. Always.

Yours, Ned”

— PINTEREST BOARD & PLAYLIST

[vfdarkness]

Ep 10 - The Black Door Part III

Intro

You’re shopping at the grocery store. 

As you walk past an aisle - the lights flicker - then go out.

You’re now standing in an arrangement of tall, long stones with strange, glowing carvings across their surface.

Heavy footsteps vibrate from a shadowy stone enclave. 

(A beat)

You need my help.

[AVFD music fades in]

This is A Voice From Darkness

[AVFD music fades out]

Act I

Hello, and once again welcome to A Voice From Darkness. We’ve got a packed show tonight - multiple national alerts, an interesting question from a listener that I’ll do my best to answer, a longer than normal Today In Odd America segment, and later I’ll be talking to returning caller Amanda - who you might remember is haunted by a black door. I’m afraid I recently stood her up after promising a solution to her problems. I’m sure she, as well as you listeners out there - will want an explanation. Stay tuned for the second half of our show for that conversation. But now - why don’t we jump right into our first segment - national alerts.

National Alerts

On our last episode, Bob from Minnesota sent in a question about a diner in Montana where the staff and at least some of the customers appeared to be repeating conversations - all of which were scripted. Bob revealed that he saw a copy of the script and he was in it and was supposed to say things he never would. It may not surprise you then that our first national alert this evening is for Montana. Just off I-94 between Miles City and Forsyth there’s a diner called Spoon’s Favor. Do not stop at this diner. After our last episode I messaged Bob for further information. He provided me the name and location of the diner, however he told me he went back there himself. He eats there everyday now. He has pleasant conversations with the waitress and regulars. He encouraged me to stop by Spoon’s Favor myself. He is in the script. The script gives him knowledge and comfort he never had before - he told me. However, I am not in the script, but he’s sure they could write me, or anyone else, in. He thinks things will be better off once everyone is in the script - in some way or another. He declined to provide further information as that’s as much as he was scripted to say. I’m still not sure what this script is, if it manifests in other ways outside this Montana diner, but I’ll keep you updated as more information is uncovered. 

Our second national alert is for my home city of Chicago. The Chicago Spire has once again appeared - do not go into it. For those unfamiliar with the building, it’s a skyscraper off Lakeshore Drive that began construction in 2007, but was never finished. Somehow, someway, the finished building - a spiraling structure that extends 150 stories into the sky - started appearing intermittently in 2012. Usually it only manifests for a few hours, never for more than a day. People have gone into the building - firefighters and other first responders, tourists, the generally curious - no one has ever stepped back out of the building though. The Spire typically waits for at least one person to step inside before disappearing. Don’t let it be you.

Quick Questions

On to our next segment, quick questions - I answer questions you’ve emailed or tweeted at us. Normally I’d provide our email address and twitter handle for you to send us more questions, however we’ll be taking a break after this episode so we won’t be taking any more questions at this time. Onto this week’s question: Elise writes us: Dr. Ryder, a large hourglass appeared on my dining room table a few days ago. The sand falls at strange intervals. The grains don’t continuously pour down at a standard rate, but instead a single grain will come down. Then either a few seconds - or possibly a few minutes - later another grain will. I’ve tried lifting the hourglass to turn it over but it’s impossible. What is the hourglass? Why is it here? And what is it counting down to?

Elise, for the past few centuries there’s been written accounts of what you’ve described. The Ominous Hourglasses - as these timepieces - are traditionally called appear before people to warn them of an upcoming disaster. Carved into the base and columns of the hourglass should be imagery of some kind - falling leaves, snowflakes - something to indicate the season the disaster will occur. There should be other carvings as well to help you figure out what sort of disaster the timepiece is counting down to. Previously, a rifle was carved into one of the columns and counted down to a shooting. That said, there’s only a handful of times when the receiver of the hourglass has been able to interpret the carvings and then prevent the disaster. Some believe the carvings have a more cruel meaning - The Fates, in some form, mocking us for trying to know and change the future. That said, if you’d like help attempting to decipher the hourglass carvings - I know a specialist on the topic and I’m sure they’d be happy to help you.

That was our only quick question for this week. Next up, we have an extended edition of Today In Odd America, and then we’ll be back with Amanda on the line.

Today In Odd America

Today In Odd America we find ourselves in Davenport, Iowa. The year 1859. James Kheller walked to his tannery shop on River Street as the sun rose. When he neared his place of business he was hit by an unexpected sight. Across the street from his tannery there’d always been an empty lot. A small piece of undeveloped land. But now there stood a two storey brick building. It hadn’t been there the previous night when he’d closed shop.

James was taken aback by what seemed an impossible sight. But he approached the strange new structure to get a better sense of what it was.

The brick building had a wide display window and across it were painted three characters. E, W, and between them - an ampersand. As James pondered what the E&W stood for, a man in a grey tophat and matching overcoat came out the front door. “Hello, sir,” the man in grey said. “I see you’re admiring my shop. Might you like to come inside and see what we have to offer?”

James remained where he stood.

“Your store didn’t exist last night,” he told the man in grey. The man removed his hat and dusted off the top. As he did James saw the man’s left hand was missing its ring finger.

“The Grand Eastern & Western Coffee Company existed in my dreams last night,” the man in grey said. “And what Gilman Halifax dreams, becomes true.” He stepped closer to James - who in turn instinctively stepped back. He was afraid of this man- Halifax - him and his shop that materialized in the middle of night. Halifax gave a wolfish grin - delighting in James’ fear.

“Now sir, I insist you come inside my shop. I insist you start your day - start everyday - with some of my coffee. You’ll never find another substance so fine in the waking world.”

James was too afraid to refuse the man, and so he followed him in.

Despite its mysterious origins, The Grand Eastern & Western Coffee Company - or  E&W as it was more commonly called, was successful. Their coffee was good yet somehow cheaper than every other supplier in the river city. Three previously-existing Davenport coffee shops went out of business within the year - unable to match E&Ws prices. Meanwhile E&W opened a second location across the river on the Illinois side in Rock Island. Once again, the shop sprung up overnight. However the citizens of Rock Island were so delighted to have their own E&W they didn’t ask too many questions.

Some folks on both the Illinois and Iowa sides of the river complained of sleepless nights. Strange dreams of packing containers with a black sand like substance inside a dark brick warehouse. But no one of prominence had such dreams, and so those who complained went unheard. 

Gilman Halifax, despite owning these stores, was rarely seen in Davenport or Rock Island. He kept on the move - always traveling - scouting new locations to expand his operations. Davenport, Iowa was the perfect place for him to start his empire. He was easily able to journey by steamboat north and south on the Mississippi - from Minnesota to Louisanna. E&Ws soon populated towns all along the river. In 1869, the transcontinental railroad was finished. The Rock Island railway made it possible to travel virtually anywhere in the country - thus fulfilling the company’s name and promise - Folks from New York City to San Francisco began their mornings with Halifax’s coffee.

As E&Ws sprung up, the shops became larger and stocked more items. Sugar and candies, plates, flatware, canned goods. They became convenient locations to do the bulk - if not all - of one’s shopping. Other businesses that sold these same items suffered when E&Ws appeared in their towns. The Chicago Dispatch dubbed E&W - the dream of the average consumer, but the nightmare of the small business man. The newspaper ran several critical headlines of E&W and attempted to dig up the history of Halifax. One editorial from the paper went so far as to call E&Ws “...cancerous tumors spreading across the nation - threatening to rob America of its health, entrepreneurial spirit, and everything that made it grand.” But Halifax bought the paper. Instead of criticism The Dispatch then carried E&W coupons in every Sunday edition and never again spoke a negative word about the owner or his stores. Halifax would go on to purchase dozens of newspapers. When a paper was too big for him to purchase, he’d often sue it for libel or slander. His cases had little merit, but they had the chilling effect he wanted - newspapers stopped printing his name. That’s not to say papers stopped talking of Halifax entirely. No, they became more clever. Editorial cartoons portrayed him as a trickster salesman. The most famous such illustration labeled him “The Traveling Salesman.” The nickname stuck.

Despite the declining press coverage, it became impossible for the nation to ignore the plague of nightmares had by so many. Nearly one in a thirty Americans reported terrible and lucid dreams of working all night in dark brick buildings - filling shipping containers with black sand. But the nightmares were not equally distributed across all Americans. Newly freed slaves and immigrant communities, especially those that spoke little or no English, found themselves disproportionately affected by the warehouse and black sand nightmares.

Herman Peake, a man blinded while a slave on a Georgia plantation claimed he couldn’t see these nightmares, but could smell them. And they smelled like E&W coffee. He was not the only one to tie E&W to the increasing wave of nightmares.

A lawsuit was raised against The Grand Eastern & Western Coffee Company on behalf of the People of the United States. The case made its way to the Supreme Court. The year was 1880 and Justice Stephen Johnson Field refused to have the court hear the case - claiming that the founding fathers intended for the Constitution to rule over America - not the Land of Nod.

Sleep strikes were waged across the country. Strikers organized into large groups and made sure few were ever asleep at any given time - never enough to do any meaningful work in Halifax’s nightmare factories. Alongside the strikes, hundreds of E&Ws were vandalized. The shops nearly destroyed and their wares stolen. In some cases the shop’s coffee was used to help the sleep strikers stay awake. In an homage to the Boston Tea Party, coffee from the flagship store in Davenport was thrown into the Mississippi River.

Where the supreme court refused to act, congress felt the need to step in to stop the strikes, vandalism, and wakeful unproductivity that now plagued the nation. Legislation was hastily proposed and passed in both chambers guaranteeing the rights of all Americans to not be forced to perform dream labor. Rutherford B. Hayes signed the legislation into law.

One would think this newly-passed labor regulation  would spell the end of The Grand Eastern & Western Coffee Company, but no. Gilman Halifax merely changed tactics. The law said he couldn’t force Americans to perform labour in their dreams. But if he could get workers to agree to work under his terms - to strike a deal with him - then all was fair.

Much like when he first built his empire, Halifax traveled the country. He sought out the poorest and most desperate communities. He struck deals with them, and his coffee and wares were once again produced. His stores restocked. 

But Americans by and large rejected Halifax. E&Ws continued to be vandalized - their products stolen or destroyed. Meanwhile, newspapers Halfiax didn’t own once again characterized him in monstrous terms. The New York Times in 1892 referred to him as a “A specter haunting the country. The boogeyman of small towns across America - The Traveling Salesman.” 

The Grand Eastern & Western Coffee Company couldn’t continue with Halifax in charge. Decades before, it’d become publicly traded. Shareholders demanded Halifax leave his own company. He fought the calls for his registration at first, but before the beginning of the twenty century, Halifax conceded defeat.

Without Halifax, E&Ws once again became profitable. They continued many of their unethical business practices that began under their founder - disenfranchising labor, buying out the press to prevent criticism. But In the 1930s, they were sued by the federal government under newly passed antitrust legislation. They were forced to divide their storefronts, manufacturing, and media companies into separate businesses. 

In the 1970s, E&Ws were closing nationwide - Unable to keep up with the changing times and competition. By 2008 there was only one store left - their once flagship location in Davenport. That is - until the flood. The Mississippi River washed over downtown Davenport. This event caused massive damage to many buildings. But in the case of the first and last E&W - the flood waters seemingly swept the building away. Causing it to disappear from the earth - as mysteriously as it had once appeared. 

But what happened to Gilman Halifax, The Original Traveling Salesman? No one knows. At the turn of the 20th century he disappeared from the public. Newspapers at the time speculated about his absence - but no investigative reporter ever found a conclusive answer to where he went. A popular phrase from this era was - “Where is Halifax?” - meaning to invoke a question without a definite answer. 

Halifax’s disappearance is so complete that he makes little or no appearance in our history textbooks. I’ve searched through a dozen high school American history books. Halifax isn’t mentioned - even in passing - in eight of them. In three he’s noted as “a successful 19th century businessman…” without any further qualification. Only one textbook mentions his labor practices and the subsequent strikes and laws passed - though these are hastily summarized in two paragraphs. Beyond high school history books, there’s no academic or journalistic documents that explain where he came from or where he went to at the dawn of the 20th century. We might as well still use the phrase, “Where is Halifax?” today. 

And we shouldn’t be surprised then that a new figure has emerged wearing the mantle of The Traveling Salesman - someone darker and more dangerous than the original. We’ve been left without the weapons necessary to stand against him. Hopefully it’s not too late to learn the lessons we need to once again defeat this dark being. But I believe I’ve gone on long enough on this subject for tonight. Back to our main show.

ACT II

TIOA music fades out.

RYDER

And we're back. On the line we have, Amanda who -

AMANDA

(interrupts)

You said you had a solution to the black door. Something that'd get rid of it. Then you just-

RYDER

(interrupts)

Yes, I'm sorry, but you need to-

AMANDA

I don't need to do anything. You need to tell me why the door still follows me. Why it's here right now instead of a memory. You're supposed to be THE specialist for these things. If you can't help... I can't keep living like this. Not when there's an obvious solution that's been here all along.

A beat.

AMANDA

I've decided. I'll open the door. Tonight. I'm prepared to - if you're not able - or willing - to get rid of it.

RYDER

Amanda, you can't do that - you have no idea what will happen if-

AMANDA

(interrupts)

I know what will happen if I don't. The door will keep appearing. People will be possessed in my presence - attempt to hurt me. Or hurt themselves - while telling me to open the door. Last week. Last week the door appeared as I was walking into my apartment building. Across the street there was a little girl. She had the bad luck of turning at the wrong time.

Locking her eyes on the black door. She stepped into the street - into traffic - to get closer and to tell me to: "Open the door."

RYDER

Is she... is she alright?

AMANDA

Does it matter to you? Really? I have a thousand stories like that.

Amanda breathes heavily - frustrated.

AMANDA

We were supposed to meet - you said you had a solution. And then there's radio silence on your end - until now.

RYDER

Because I realized my solution would only make things worse.

AMANDA

There's no way whatever you found could make what I'm going through worse.

RYDER

Back when I called you - I called you too soon. I should have waited, but-

AMANDA

(interrupts)

It was right after the episode of your show - the one where your old friend called-

RYDER

Alec Byrd. I wouldn't exactly call him a friend. But yes. You're right. I called you immediately after. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I should have waited, thought things through more. That was wrong of me - to get your hopes up. But my hopes were up. As soon as he said he had my grandfather's knife - a knife that cuts through shadow - to sever shadow from flesh - I thought for sure I had something that could help you.

AMANDA

Because the black door is...

RYDER

Your shadow. At least in part. Shadow, mirror, memory, dream, spirit, and flesh. Those are the elements that comprise the dark metaphysics. All things supernatural are reducible to at least one of them. I don't know how - or why - but the black door is made of your shadow.

AMANDA

Did Alec not give you the knife?

RYDER

No, I have it.

AMANDA

Then why didn't you-

RYDER

(interrupts)

I'm explaining. I'll explain. When Alec called, he said he stole my grandfather's knife and cut his own shadow off in one of Ravenswood's courtyards. He then commanded it to find and kill me. Which, thankfully it didn't do.

A beat.

RYDER

But what became of this now autonomous dark being? Since Alec called, I couldn't get that question out of my head. How had his shadow existed independent of him for so long - and not get seen. Not be noticed at the greatest school of supernatural scholarship in the country?

AMANDA

Why do you think his shadow was still at your old school after all those years? Couldn't it have gone anywhere by that point?

RYDER

Ravenswood is fortified by tall stone walls. Walls that if you were to walk next to them, you'd notice two things. Ivy creeps over all the old barriers that separate the mundane world from the university. But in addition to the flora - there are runes carved into the stones. Runes meant to both repel and attract the otherworldly. To invite the unreal onto Ravenswood grounds - and then trap it once it's within. Alec severed his shadow in Ravenswood - and so his shadow would be trapped there. And more than that - My sister had a suspicion. She checked back to the date of his expulsion. Alec did what he did twelve days before the first beheading.

AMANDA

Beheading?

RYDER

There's been a series of them. They've happened at Ravenswood for years. Not only has the killer - long thought to be a supernatural entity - never been caught - but also never seen. I've always hated this nickname, but students, and faculty I'm afraid, call the killer: The Joyful Executioner.

AMANDA

And your sister realized this thing that's been killing students - supposedly at the best supernatural school ever - not only has it not been stopped, but faculty didn't even realize what it was? Some expelled kid's revenge shadow?

RYDER

Well when you reduce it like that - you trivialize several important-

AMANDA

(interrupts)

All I want to know is why if you have this knife that could cut the black door off me - why you won't use it.

RYDER

My grandfather couldn't control his shadow once it was free of him. Alec Byrd's shadow transformed into a monster that has haunted Ravenswood for decades, killing students, all while evading talented supernatural scholars and practitioners. The Black Door - we don't know what it is - not truly - where it leads, what it opens to. What would happen to it if we untether it from you? For all we know it'd become something like The Joyful Executioner for the whole world. We already know it can influence others. Imagine how much worse it'd become once it were unbound.

A beat.

RYDER

Amanda, you have to see the danger I'm laying out - understand why we can't severe the door from you. At least not yet. Give me time. Shadow magic... is elusive. Those who've mastered it tend to, well, remain in the shadows. They don't write scholarly works or bring their knowledge to light. But I believe with time, I could-

[From Amanda's end of the phone - there's the sound of a door opening.

The dark ambience that opens all episodes of our show is heard from Amanda's end.]

RYDER

Amanda you didn't.

AMANDA

I had to. The little girl I mentioned before.

When she stepped into traffic, all she said was, "Open the-" and the word "door" never came out her mouth. A car hit her. Every day that you can't help me - you're asking me to be complicit in some awful event. That girl wasn't the first to die because of the door. But you don't see the dead - this, to you - is an abstract problem to solve. You're an armchair detective. There's blood on your hands, but you don't see it. There's blood on my hands too for waiting so long. And I do see it. I see it all the time. And I can't wait any longer. I can't let my hands get any bloodier.

A beat.

AMANDA

All I see from the other side of the door is darkness. But far far off in the distance - there's a tiny pinprick of light. I wonder what'll happen if I go to it.

RYDER

You have no idea the consequences of what you're doing - you think your hands are bloody now - whatever will happen if you go through-

AMANDA

(interrupts)

Whatever those consequences are - if there even are any - maybe you'll treat them with some urgency now. The Traveling Salesman said you wouldn't be able to help me. I wish I'd believed him sooner. That little girl would still be alive. Goodbye, Dr. Ryder.

RYDER

Amanda, wait, we can still-

[There are footsteps. And the door shuts. The dark ambiance is gone.]

A beat.

RYDER

Julian, I don't know what you've set into motion. But whatever it is - it will fail. I promise you that.

A beat.

RYDER

That's all for tonight. I need to- I need to go make some preparations. You'll hear my voice again though - in another time, another place. This has been A Voice From Darkness - goodnight.

Outro Music.

[southboundhq]

MEET HARLOW,

FULL NAME › Harlow Vulpecula Belle AGE › twenty two GENDER › Cis female (She/Her/Hers) FROM › Upper West Side, New York LODGING › Copper Cactus Motel PRIOR EMPLOYMENT › Ballet Dancer (Soloist) NOW PLAYING › ‘Non, je ne regrette rien’ by Edith Piaf

BIOGRAPHY,

trigger warnings: death, injury, mental illnesses, suicide / contemplation of suicide, substance abuse, implied abuse and emotional manipulation

The rise of the curtains meant the show is starting. When they fall for the last time, it means the show is over.

A life in four acts (and counting), one for each loss.

ACT I. BELLE

She was her mother’s daughter; the same laughter, the kindness, the eyes.

The gentleness of her mother’s touch, the honey of her voice. Her delicate fingers brushing through Harlow’s hair, the warmth radiating through every room in their small home, right in the heart of Paris. The smell of the evening wind. The sight of it all. Harlow, in her best dress, her legs swaying, as her mother took her to watch Swan Lake. The first time she had ever held onto something.

An angel loved and doted on.

Memories of her golden childhood, from a time she wishes had never ended. It was the only thing that Harlow Belle could do: cling to the innocence and the wonder that her mother blessed her with— even as her mother’s health quickly deteriorated. For they were things she could not understand; she had never known loss. A ghost in the night, taking away the color from her mother’s cheeks. Her mother whispering I love you, but it had sounded so much like Farewell. The man standing by the door the next morning, one she did not really know, but was familiar only because it was his face in her mother’s cherished photograph. He wept at her side and her mother ran her hand through his hair, planting a kiss on his head. His hand was warm, his voice gentle, leading Harlow away.

The universe had shown her paradise, and it burned it down infront of her.

You’re not coming with us? Harlow had asked.

Her mother smiled, I will be with you, my love.

But her mother never came, no matter how long Harlow waited. She was alone.

ACT II. LACY

She never really understood why her mother never came. Or why she had to leave. Was her mother dead? Did her mother not love her anymore? There wasn’t an answer that Harlow wanted to hear, so she simply never asked. Entangled in her own little world, where she blurred the lines between her reality and her memories.

On some days, it was as easy as breathing. It meant formally studying ballet. It was the white dress she wore on her father’s wedding day. It was listening to the affection in their voices as they spoke to her. As if she belonged. It was her hand on her stepmother’s belly, waiting for their unborn son to kick from the womb. It was a future where the ache left by her mother was the size of the pendant of Harlow’s dainty necklace.

It was easy, too, when she was twelve, one the eve of her first real performance.

You’re coming to watch, right? The excitement in her voice.

Her stepmother tucked hair behind her ear, Wouldn’t miss it.

It was the heartbreak and the fear, a distant memory replaying in her head. Harlow, watching the empty seats her parents couldn’t fill. The tears that followed, the apologies, the sobbing. The car accident that happened that night, claiming the lives of her stepmother and her unborn child. Her father, paralyzed, spending his days in a wheelchair and looking out into the window.

Sometimes, Harlow thinks he’s asking to be taken, too.

He did not look at her. He did not speak to her. Not that he could.

Harlow found herself alone again. And this time, it was her fault.

ACT III. PRIMA

Her grandmother, as she had learned, was an esteemed and respected Principal Dancer, known for her completely control over her body and the tantalizing performances she brought. She was eloquent, with a dignified walk, the air around her had always seemed so.. perfect. But Amanda Lacy, in Harlow’s experience, was a distorted mirror—her reflection was crooked, and every inch of her cruel.

The first time Amanda Lacy used violence on Harlow was a week after the accident. Harlow had refused to dance so adamantly, and she remembers the thunder and lightning that sounded as Amanda Lacy’s hand collided with her small face. It was my fault, Harlow would repeat her grandmother’s words, It’s because I didn’t want to dance. It’s because it was my fault that dad can’t dance anymore.

It was easy, too, to fall back inlove with ballet. Too easy.

Dancing as the sun rose in the morning, until late at night. Under fluorescent lights. Her body in full view. Drenched in sweat. The tears on her eyes as she pushed her body to its limit, to bend until she almost breaks. Almost. Until every muscle ached.

Until her grandmother was satisfied.

Harlow, who had loved ballet, grew afraid of it. It was a constant game of hide-and seek. A push and pull between her passion and her fear. Escaping. Craving. The chill that ran down her spine, the way her blood ran cold. Amanda Lacy would only ever call her “Prima”, followed by the ache of a wish that she would one day be worthy of being called such a name.

It meant drowning out the praises of strangers, growing blind to the eyes that landed on her, the expectations they had. The anxiety that drowned out the adrenaline brought by the stage lights and the music. The numbness. The collapse and the caving in. Attempting to put an end to it all. The doctors she had to meet with, who only ever gave her pills. though none of them ever really fixed her, a hollow porcelain doll. The slashes on her wrists.

More pills.

More, more, more, until she couldn’t count them anymore.

The empty seat she wished her father would fill, if somehow reality had been kinder to him. To them both.

At the age of twenty-one, Harlow had laced her shoes for a production of Swan Lake. It had been her dream, her turning point, her one last hope to be freed from her mother’s memory, of her grandmother’s presence. There she was, a mess of blood and tears, hunched over the sink, her consciousness fading, the strength leaving her body. Amanda Lacy stands by the door, though Harlow couldn’t gather enough of her thoughts to think about how she had gotten in. There is a look of anger and disgust as she pulls at Harlow’s clothes, her palm coming down on her face in a hard slap.

Compose yourself and dance, Prima. Do not embarrass me. Words, stone-cold.

Stellar form. Control. Grace. Precision. An expressive, electrifying performance. One could not look away.

Harlow Lacy, the prodigy.

IV. HARLOW

The smell of his cigarette followed Harlow even hours after they had parted. The mischief in his smile. His hand, taking Harlow’s own. His fist colliding with a stranger’s jaw, the one who touched her. The way they made a run for it after that. The kisses they stole from each other. The skies when she and the other lost kids snuck into the city pool, the way it painted everything purple. The kisses they gave back.

He called her Prima, too, but it did not carry venom when it left his lips. She should know, he had always tasted sweet for her.

Harlow was fifteen when she met him. The childish trouble they would get themselves into, she and all the other kids who she learned was just like her, the hungry and the desperate.To numb the ache, or to take away the numbing.

Over the next few years, Harlow would have gotten herself through all sorts of troubles. Disappearing for days without so much as a word. She had learned that Amanda Lacy did not really care about her whereabouts, just that she was able to deliver a performance. Harlow made sure to make full use of this knowledge. She would end up coming back, anyway.

It didn’t matter to her at twenty-two, when she put all of her belongings into suitcases and a backpack, and a suitcase filled with all of the money she had made from dancing, and every transaction in the backwaters, everything she could steal from her own family, and all of the money her mother had put in her name (which, Harlow had learned, was a lot).

Her pointe shoes. The necklace her mother gave her. Photographs. Memories. Saying goodbye to her father, though he did not really answer. Even though he may still despise Harlow, she knew he would understand. An apology. And then another. Lying with a straight face, every alibi and every answer perfectly crafted. Pulling all of her strings and sneaking out in the dead of night to find herself on a flight from New York to California, then driving to Las Vegas.

Or anywhere, really.

Anywhere was fine.

She would end up coming back, anyway.

She had been hung-over when she drove into Boot Hill, going straight to a motel to sleep off the exhaustion, stay for a few days, then head back on the road. But there was something endearing about Boot Hill that Harlow couldn’t pinpoint. The way it was everything she never thought she wanted, a remote place where Amanda Lacy would never even imagine her to hide in. Where she was not haunted, seemingly plucked off from the grasps of her grandmother. The poison that dripped from every word that left her mouth. The sharp pain on her body as it collided with the wooden cane. The bruises. The ache.

But right now there is only Harlow, and her three-legged pug, Poppy.

Occasionally, she watches the town’s sign and the open road ahead, thinking she’ll have to go soon. She’ll have to come back sooner or later. She cannot keep running away.

Then there is the heaviness.

I’ll leave tomorrow, she says, but tomorrow never really comes.

❝ i wonder what’s in store if i don’t love it anymore; stuck between the having-it-all and giving-it-up. ❞

CENSUS,

FACECLAIM › Zendaya Coleman AUTHOR › Fey

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The October 2017 bill became successful after the Supreme Court's May perhaps 2018 ruling upending the federal ban on single-game betting outside of Nevada. With on the internet gambling in the US reaching fever pitch, you need to have a website that is going to inform, educate and present the really most recent with regards to online sports betting and casinos. In November 2019, the state's executive council authorized DraftKings as New Hampshire's contracted sports betting provider. In-play betting is a pretty 검증놀이터 new feature presented by some online sports books that enables bettors to spot new bets whilst a sporting occasion is in progress. For a short and rapid answer to this: there are essentially no laws in India (on a federal level) that makes on line betting illegal. A single of the primary motives why folks became so interested to gamble is mainly mainly because it brings an uncertain outcome with an element of danger as opposed to no stress gaming It is in our nature to be been keen on knowing the future outcomes and how points will turn out - whether 검증놀이터 events relate to somebody's life or a refer to a certain game or sports event Having said that, many individuals confuse gambling with betting and we will try to clarify some differences amongst the two terms in this report. By all accounts, the hearings went extremely nicely for the pro-sports betting side, and optimism swelled. Mississippi legalized single-game sports betting as aspect of a daily fantasy sports bill in 2017. We have received a lot of inquiries from our readers about which betting web site 검증놀이터 is the greatest and easiest to deposit funds into. SBR has created its name in monitoring on the net sportsbook activity and the SBR stamp of approval is meant to give the bettor self-confidence when deciding to sign up with a new sports betting internet site. Most betting web pages have their personal brand of slot machines, table games (blackjack, roulette, baccarat), reside dealer poker and poker rooms. We urge you to go and have a appear at the many betting web pages in India now to obtain the 1 that functions very 검증놀이터 best for you. Folks betting on sports in California do so through bookies and offshore betting apps. We suggest that you seek the advice of a tax accountant or tax lawyer for a lot more info about on the web sports betting taxes. The compacts permit all types of Class III gambling, which incorporates sports betting. Sports betting was officially launched in November 2018. On June 22, 2018, Governor Gina Raimondo signed the state price range, which included a provision authorizing sports betting. If you only use betting internet sites that are appropriately licensed and regulated, there's really no have to have for concern. Of course, no edge in sports betting lasts longer than a single game. There was a federal ban on sports betting in the United States from 1992 to 2018 beneath the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). We take pleasure in sharing the advantages of our information and encounter 검증놀이터 with our readers, and take fantastic pride in helping our readers get the most out of their betting and gaming activities. That is in component because it currently awarded future championships to states that will have sports betting. Study a lot more about the legal climate surrounding sports betting in the Philippines, the kinds of bets Filipinos can location on games and how to fund your on line sportsbook account. The Very first State" undoubtedly lived up to its nickname, pipping NJ to the post and rolling out complete, legal sports betting in super swift time. The Louisiana legislature attempted to get some steam behind a sports betting bill in May perhaps 2019, but the efforts failed in the House. With on the web gambling in the US reaching fever pitch, you have to have a site that is going to inform, educate and provide the pretty most recent relating to on-line sports betting and casinos. 8 meeting, the Illinois Gaming Board gave no indiction of when sports betting will launch. But the action is no longer just 검증놀이터 in the coverage, and publishers are getting into the sports betting enterprise themselves, spurred by the Supreme Court overturning a ban on sports betting outside of Nevada in May well 2018 and New Jersey legalizing that business enterprise a month later. Iowa legalized sports betting in May well 2019.