#the green is some patches between the spikes

[arcsin27]

There’s gotta be some poetry in my gold-colored friendship necklace - a color I’m actually not hugely fond of - rusting into a gorgeous pink and green color from nonstop wear

[jasperthehatchet]

my bag 🌿⛓️🌻⚙️ more details in the image ID and more pics below

I found a small plain black leather backpack at the thrift store for $6 and made it my own :) I used silver sharpie for the swirls and made the buttons all myself with the exception of the metal ones

[Image ID: a small black leather backpack covered in patches, buttons, safety pins, studs and silver and metalic green spirals in the spaces with no patches. There are four patches on the front, an orange patch with a white trans rights symbol sewn on with white thread, and a circular green patch with a simplistic sun and moon drawin on it in black (a mirrormask patch) sewn on with black thread. And on the front pocket on the bottom, theres a dark green band patch with white lettering that says "she past away" sewn on with white thread and a black patch next to it with a red anarchy symbol sewn on the bag with red thread. There are silver spike studs lining the edges of the bag along the zipper and on the front pocket as well as soda tabs sewn onto the front pocket flap with off-white thread. And on both sides of the pocket there are safety pins decorating the empty space next to it. There are four pins on the side of the bag, a light green and white spiral pin, a light green and white "eat the rich" pin, and a metal fairy pin on the top half, and theres a metal frog with an umbrella pin on the front pocket in-between the two patches. Theres also a small orange carabiner on the pocket zipper.

On the left side of the bag, there is a patch on the bottom where a side pocket would normally be. An off-white band patch that says "bauhaus" in black lettering and it's sewn on with black thread, and there are silver spirals around it filling the space. There are some areas I left blank to make the swirls/spirals look like they're hanging down or growing up the bag like vines. There's a horizontal seam above all this that makes the area look like a pocket, and above this seam there's a metal pin with a sun, moon and stars on it.

The right side of the bag, there's no patch where a pocket should be, I instead filled this space with some spirals and more handmade bottle cap buttons. Two buttons, a larger type o negative band button that's black with white thorny vines, and a smaller red band button that says "doom scroll" on it in off-white lettering. Above the seam on this side I drew a bunch of silver spirals that look like they are growing out from behind the seam.

All thread mentioned in this post is embroidery thread, and some groups of spirals drawn on the bag are metallic green. End ID]

Here's the top of the bag as well as the straps that hang down

[Image ID: the bag has a rounded arch shape, and across the top of the leather I drew a cluster of green spirals in between the silver spirals I drew on the sides. There are some blank spots to avoid making the bag look busier than it already is. The loop at the top for hanging the bag is embroidered with a green leafy vine pattern. The same pattern is embroidered on the right strap that hangs down from the bottom of the bag, and on the right one, a gray barbed wire pattern is embroidered. I plan on sewing some more soda tabs onto the top of the bag at some point for the sake of adding more shiny things and also fill up some of that space I mentioned because while I don't want the bag to be too busy, I think the blank space i left on the top is a little too much blank space. End ID]

[nightmarearian]

Turns out, Odysseus thinks hysterically, being on a magic island with a Titan’s child for seven years has… affects.

What the fuck, he thinks. Calypso and Hermes looks just as confused as he feels. (Which rules out that this might be one of Calypso’s schemes. She can’t truly act for the life of her; It’s always in her eyes and she can’t do a long act).

There are scales on his arms. And legs. And neck. And basically everywhere, actually. They come in patches and in different concentrations; The biggest batch is the one already consuming his abdomen, and meeting with the ones growing on his thighs and just generally his legs The other highest concentration is on his elbows, and they spread faster down towards his hands.

They’re a mix of sea-green-blue and gray; Some of the pale-soot colored scales bounce off a warm hazel or sunset-orange in the dappled sunlight that leaks through the trees. The gray - and especially the warm-gray - patches have some dusky gray and sepia feathers peaking out, in between the scales. The most of them are around his neck or from his elbows through his forearms. His hands have grown into aqua tipped webbed claws as well.

What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck, he thinks on a loop. As he huffs a hysterical laugh, he can feel his teeth having sharpened into needle point snake-like fangs and on that point - his tongue has thinned into something rough and forked. A snake’s tongue as well. The panic increases. (There are whispers in the wind now, feeling of his dead crew).

His ears twitch as he looks at his reflection in a nearby stream, peacefully running like everything in Ogygia, and - holy mother of Zeus what the fuuuuck

His… ears (can he even call them that? His hearing still seems the same…) have transformed into… fins? They remind him of the sirens’ ears, actually, though a bit wider and thinner. They’re mainly the same sea-green-blue color that the scales decorating mainly his lower half are, only fading into a cool blue gray as they near his head. …Are those more feathers behind his fin-ears??? (Scratchy ghost hands reach out of the water, like they did the River Styx. Not real, not real, he automatically tells himself, ignores them).

He turns back to the two gods, who are still staring at him; He feels his fin-ears(???) dip down in panic.

Hermes at least seems like he’s thinking - and worried - even if Odyseeus can’t see his eyes. He doesn’t want to look at Calypso much for anything, but the quick glance he gives seems to spell a similar expression, if not with a bit of… anger. Or disgust. (He hopes it’s the latter; He still feels a spike of fear at the anger. Nothing good ever came of her, much less of her anger).

(Odysseus doesn’t notice in his hysteria, but as his breathing picks up, his legs fuse together, into a snake tail. Hermes catches the moment).

Hermes seems to have thought of something, as his shoulders drop just the slightest and he slowly floats towards Odysseus, as if he was an unbroken horse (or monster, Odysseus thinks. He did say he’d become the monster but this- this is-), holding his hands in front of him in a placating gesture.

“Calm,” Hermes breathes in soft voice. Odysseus tries to follow the god’s orders. “Calm,” Hermes whispers again.

He’s done this before, he thinks, as he turns his gaze on the grass floor, unfocusing. Despite whatever in his gods forsaken travels or the war. Shut it all off. (turn off your heart, a ghost Athena murmurs behind him. Not real, he knows. Follows anyway. Why didn’t he listen to her all those years ago.)

Odysseus can’t do it as.. cleanly as usually could with the whole… well. But he tampers it down a bit. Evidently at least Hermes is willing to help. (He ignores his thoughts on how Penelope might react). They’ll… figure something out.

He tries to think about it calmer; He can feel his panicked tangled thoughts flow into a familiar, calmer weaving feeling, like whenever he makes a good plan and all it’s variables. Is it a curse from Poseidon? The fins and sea-green make him think that, if not for the feathers that are definitely not part of the Earthshaker’s realm. The feathers actually make him think of Athena but- but she didn’t answer him earlier- or did she? Hermes seemed uncomfortable and oddly tightlipped about… something; Something happening in Olympus, Odysseus can guess that much. Regardless, the most of… this seems to a snake. Snakes are either of Athena, Hermes, or Ares.

“d...eus,”

Odysseus has never even met Ares, that goes to Diomedes, he absentmindedly thinks - only Hermes and Athena, and the silver & sienna scales and feathers are very in their domain, however, Hermes obviously doesn’t know much about it, so he can really only think it’s Athena - the myth of Medusa flashes in his mind - except again, he points out against himself, the fins. They’re so clearly Poseidon, and he knows the both of them - Athena better - enough that he knows they’d rather impossibly die that work together for something as so small as a curse.

“Ood...seuusss,”

But if Poseidon can hold a grudge and he knows Athena well enough to know that she does to, as much as she denies, but still then, why would it be years after - is it cause he called to her?

“Odysseus!” Hermes half yells. The mortal in questions jumps, standing again. …When did he stop standing in the first place …wait a minute was he higher than usual earlier? Think about that later, Odysseus tells himself, shaking off the familiar feeling of fading into his thoughts.

Odysseus looks up towards Hermes, who looks a bit worried, but not as panicked as he did earlier. Odysseus looks back down at himself. There are still some scales and feathers, but considerably less. His hands have dulled down - they’re still sharper than usual, but they’re not claws, and the webbing between them is similarly less.

He feels around his mouth. His tongue is still… forked, but that’s all - still a human tongue otherwise; his fangs are still sharp, though.

“Yesss?” It’s harder to speak with a forked tongue and fangs. There’s a slight hiss and lisp at the end of the word.

Hermes doesn't respond, glancing at Calypso, then Odysseus, then Calypso again before partially turning to her, lips pressed, adopting a colder expression, like he did when he was addressing Calypso earlier, to tell them Odysseus was finally free. Hermes nods his head towards the general direction of Calypso’s ‘home’. Calypso opens her mouth, indignant, but the pressure in the air increases as Hermes’ wings stretch up and out, spreading the feathers in an act Odysseus can somehow instinctively tell is meant to intimidate. Calypso closes her mouth, still looking upset but cowed, and she runs off.

Hermes turns back to him, the wings furling back into resting near the god's ears, pressure in the air lifting. He stares for another moment, before sighing and giving Odysseus a small smile, infinitely softer than his usual mischievous ones.

He floats towards Odysseus (careful and gentle and so much unlike Calypso-) and tucks some of his curls behind his slightly-webbed ears, careful around the scales; he lightly ruffles his head like he used to when Odysseus was so, so much younger.

"Should be fine, my friend," Hermes whispers. "Rises with your emotions, no?" Hermes watches the wheels turn in Odysseus' head. Yeah, Odysseus thinks, mind blank in a good way that it hasn't been in a long while. Okay. He nods. "Smart, kid," Hermes whispers.

One of Hermes' ear-wings twitch, and his head minutely tilts towards Calypso's 'home' before tilting back to Odysseus. Hermes softly runs his hand behind Odysseus' head and leads him towards the beachside. There's a raft bobbing back and forth with the waves.

They're really letting me go, Odysseus walks towards the raft, water splashing against his legs. He turns back to Hermes who- is gone- wait no; Hermes flits back from somewhere, wings fluttering and a moderately large basket full of food, water, and clothing in his hands that he pushes into Odysseus' hands.

The god gently hurries Odysseus onto the ship, and after setting down the basket helps him push the raft into the open sea. With Hermes' help, Odysseus is far enough out to barely see the shape of Calypso, once she made to the coastline; Odysseus turns his head away from her. From Ogygia.

Hermes stays with him for a while, until Ogygia's silhouette is shrouded in fog, fading into sky. Hermes watches it fade away, as Odysseus keeps his eyes trained to the open sea (Captain-).

The messenger god turns back to Odysseus, and hovers in front of him. He lightly ruffles his hair again, and his hand cups the side of his head as Hermes ducks his head down and presses a kiss to his great-grandson's forehead.

"Call my name, and I shall be there," Hermes murmurs with a fond smile. With that, Hermes dissipates in a quiet flutter and feathers.

-

ok. so. this developed into great-grandfather hermes. uhm. yeah. anyway. so, in procrastinating on this I now have a full tag for monster-ody-au, it's called Ithacan Naga AU.

*ody has been dissociating his entire stay on Calypso’s island, besides maybe the first year, where he hadn’t spent enough time to be affected. His heightened emotions at leaving cause the actual affects to show, btw.

So! There's absolutely a ref post with a verrry long conversation in the replies that talks about it but to formally do it/add onto it: > Ody's scales are mainly/usually sea-blue-green to gray/purple, but changes colors based on lighting! > Ogygia isn't meant to be inhabited by normal people (or smth), so after seven years + Calypso's inherent magic (as a titan's daughter) it changes Odysseus into basically what Ithacans/Ody would be if he was greek monster, which is why he doesn't notice it & why it's overall very natural. -> Ithacans would really just be sea-snake nagas with some feathers. Ody is special cause he's a descendent of Hermes (and maybe Zeus) & Athena blessed, so he gets wings. > He's venomous! > He can "unhinge" his jaw (Snakes have an extra[?] bone called a quadratic bone that connects the top half of their skull & their jaw, which lets them extend it more. The jaw is also in two parts & has a stretchy ligament to let it stretch). > Full length naga, Ody is like... 27-33 ft? > He has three pairs of wings, one of the small of his back, near his waist, and the other two on the side of his snake half. > He gets gills! Three near his human ribs, a few several spaced out throughout his snake half.

Small headcannons that make a cameo in this: > Hermes used to hang out with little Odysseus (and Ctimene) before Athena (and Ares) came along and chose Ody (and Mene) > Ody has schizophrenia (and PTSD, by now).

...my battery is about to die & I can't remember anything else so that's all for now

[nereidof40k]

Finally the next interlude for the Husbandry series. I had to make an interlude, since Sevatar writing the blog post would leave out way too much.

It was a fine spring day. Starting to warm up. Not that cold bothered Sevatar. He was still Astartes. Even in this strange situation he had found himself in. It was confusing, but he found he didn’t want to leave. He supposed this was what happiness was. Working in the fields, among growing things.

Hanging his shirt over the fence, he stretched, looking over at the orchard. He could see a bright golden patch of hair between the trees.

Weeding forgotten for the moment, Sevatar watched the woman tending to the trees. To his Nostraman eyes, she was strange. The opposite of him, all gold, brown and green. Round where he was lean.

But for some strange reason, that made him want to bite into her soft flesh. Leave his mark on that smooth tanned skin.

He would kill a man to make her laugh. It was easy. If she would just let him know who to kill.

He knew that look she sometimes got. Nostramo born, he was well acquainted with the look of someone who had suffered and lost. That look on his sun’s face made him want to rip someone to pieces. But she said nothing.

She turned around, shading her eyes as she looked in his direction. Brilliant eyes widening at the sight of shirtless Night Lord.

He couldn’t help smirking as their eyes met. She didn’t look away, staring at him with the same fervor he did her.

His smirk widened. He knew it. His sun might be hurt, but beneath it, she was made of material stronger than auramite. She would finish licking her wounds, then rise again as the bright, brilliant star he knew she could be.

He was jolted from his reverie by movement further away, in the more dilapidated part of the orchard. It made the hairs on the back of his neck prickle and his skin crawl.

Sevatar knew with an icy certainty this was no mere stray animal. Too sinister.

As he moved, there was an earth shattering honk that would flatten the average human. Seemingly designed to damage their ears, much like his Primarch’s screams.

Sevatar ran. Praying to all the Saints of Nostramo that he would be in time.

To his shock, his sun was staggered, but not down.

A look of fury on her lovely face, she whirled around, wielding the hooked pole she had been using to reach the top branches, like a spear against the thing leaping out at her. It was taller than Sevatar himself, bulky, horribly long limbed, and garishly colored. Face a disgusting mishmash of corpse white and bright rainbow colors. Nose bulbous and red, teeth sharp as needles , set in a blood red grin from ear to ear.

Her pole connected with its face, drawing blood. It shrieked, slavering as its viciously clawed hand swung at her.

With a speed and grace he didn’t know she possessed, she dodged backward.

And then he was on the damned clown’s back. Biting, clawing and twisting. Using every dirty trick he had learned on the vicious streets of Quintus to show this creature what a grave mistake it had made.

Meanwhile his sun was attacking it from the front, wielding the pole like a professional. He was honestly glad he had to focus on bringing the clown down, or his trousers might split down the front at the sight.

The fight was vicious, brutal and bloody. But soon enough the thing sank to the ground, metal spike in its eye and neck broken.

Breathing hard, Sevatar took in the glorious sight before him. His sun standing tall like one of those Valkyries her people told stories of, hair like a bright halo around her head, a triumphant smile on her face, and her eyes glowing like twin flames.

As their eyes met, the glow fading as her eyes returned to normal, her gaze becoming searching as she looked at him. He could see the pendant she was wearing looked like it was covered in ice, but he was more focused on where it was resting.

Jago couldn’t help the single word slipping out of his mouth. “Beautiful.”

At that, she smiled so brightly his hearts skipped a beat.

Then she was wrapped around him, having climbed him like a tree. Her lips on his, her tongue slipping into his mouth, hot and demanding. He was no saint, he found himself reciprocating with a fierceness that wrung a moan from her throat.

Growling like the predator he was, Sevatar held her securely in place, sprinting for the house without breaking the kiss. The way she was bouncing against him as he moved was making it hard enough to think that he wasn’t sure how he got the front door open. He had no memory of even touching it.

Finally, he broke the kiss as he reached the bedroom door. Depositing his sun on the bed, Jago took a moment to glare out of the door before kicking it shut and locking it securely.

[bathic]

1. But something about the date...

Word Count: 2.3k

Hongjoong marked this day down without any explanation. He didn’t need one, or maybe he did, but not something worth blotting his journal in ink over. The alpha could live with just knowing, experiencing.

But something about the date, glaring back at him in his own conjured scribble followed him all the way to the shared cafeteria. Other packs grouped together at tables, some breaking apart to mingle with differing hordes while idly moving through the monotonous slide of the serving line. He could peep Yunho towards the center, beside him with a pout, San. With a cursory sniff tucked downward by the drop of his chin to his chest, he could smell the blueberry pancakes, breakfast sausages and scrambled eggs curtesy of the morning’s set menu. And a whole lot of scent blockers. Like non-scented medicinal lotion, laying a thin layer of something vaguely tangible to one’s nose over the spike of spices and sugar— it was a bit of a nauseating concoction that he still hasn’t gotten used to.

The group home, or pack orphanage required that every resident used the scent preventative, transdermal patches when pre-heats and pre-ruts cycled through the months, when present in any of the public spaces. A safety measure to keep from any involuntary provocation between packs. Especially during scheduled cycles— pre-present-post.

Hongjoong didn’t really have his qualms about not being able to smell anyone, not even his pack members. But the patches that stuck to his scent glands like a tight stretch of skin made his own itch, made his neck feel taut. Pre-rut settled into his lower stomach in the early hours of the morning, making his muscles ache and the scent of black currant to sour slightly beneath his nose. Seonghwa had looked at him empathetically, patch kit in hand before settling between his legs to lay the patches on his scent glands.

The taller male, anointed ‘unofficial’ head omega by the group, offered a small smile whilst patting down the opaque adhesive edges. “The pack across the hall are leaving today.”

Hongjoong’s eyes flickered upward from his zoning point, one of the buttons on Seonghwa’s white uniform shirt, to gaze at the other. “I’m sure Wooyoung is taking the news poorly.”

“Not as bad as you’d expect. He’s happy to see Yeonjun’s pack get chosen, maybe a bit melancholy but nothing that can’t be solved with a bit of cuddling in the nest.”

Taking a step back, and with hands as soft and gentle as a feather, Seonghwa assessed his work with a guiding touch to Hongjoong’s jaw, turning his head to and fro’ before letting go to fuss with the patch kit. Something akin to a hollow stone settled an unusual amount of weight in the alpha’s stomach. While he couldn’t say that the news was unwelcome, that he was bitter about the pack across the hall getting a chance at a proper life, to be protected and loved— a part of him did feel green eyed. They hadn’t been around for long, arriving in a heap of shivering messes drenched by a summer downpour about a month or so after Hongjoong’s own pack settled in. Everyone here, no matter how long the days piled up on the waiting list had an equal opportunity to be chosen. And yet, a small pinch within his chest felt like it was unfair that they were leaving before them, his pack.

Seonghwa didn’t need the ability to smell Hongjoong’s rapidly souring scent to know what he was feeling, being the eldest of their pack and the head omega made his sense of observation just as keen as his smell. “I know what you are thinking. And it isn’t very becoming of you, Hongjoong-ah.”

Hongjoong sighed, pouting slightly from being unearthed like a beetle beneath a rock. “Can you really blame me, Hwa?”

“No, I guess I can’t.” Seonghwa departed towards the shared bathroom, placing the patch kit on a wooden shelf above the toilet. When he returned, choosing to instead lean against the frame of the bathroom with his willowy arms crossed over his chest. “But I know it isn’t right to harbor such feelings for our friends. They deserve this opportunity just as much as we do, just as much as any of the packs here do. How do you think those who have been here years before any of us feel seeing the newer packs that have only recently been roomed be plucked up and taken away? They have years of being overlooked, while we only have a month.”

He knew the omega was right, that their pack and the pack deigned ‘TXT’ by the pack orphanages coordinators practically had the same amount of time spent here. A month wasn’t anything compared to, say— five years.

Hongjoong didn’t really have anything else to say, aside from the obvious ‘you’re right’. Or rather, he didn’t want to admit what else brewed negatively beneath his skin. But Seonghwa was nothing but knowing.

“There’s something else that’s bothering you.” Not a question but an observation.

“Just… thinking about what to get everyone for Christmas. It’s five days away, and I’m struggling a bit with Yeosang and Mingi’s gifts.” He picked a bit at the dry skin around his nail beds, avoiding any eye contact that would give him away so easily. Which was futile because he knew that Seonghwa could tell he wasn’t being truthful.

The omega hummed, kicking off the doorframe and walking towards the center of the pack den. Choosing to ignore rather than pry was an indicator that the eldest was aware of the unspoken hindrance on Hongjoong’s mind but wouldn’t force an answer out of him. The alpha would, eventually, come to him for counsel and they would pick apart every layer of his doubts and worries and inner turmoil until he had nothing left but an empty space in his mind to fill with more important things— like his love for his pack or the fond memories from over the years.

“Will you be joining us for breakfast? The others wanted to have a little sending off for Soobin and his pack before they left.” Seonghwa fixed the other with a soft look, arms still crossed over his chest.

“In a moment, I have something I need to write down in my journal before it slips my mind.” Hongjoong spared the omega a small smile, of which was returned with a nod before the other departed from the room.

Left with only himself, the alpha let the weight of his insecurities bear down on him. He was an alpha, presented as such at eighteen and while he didn’t dislike his societal role, he found himself truly feeling out of place more often than not. Sure, he could command, did so very often when it came to the younger members of his pack acting out. That wasn’t hard. Being authoritative wasn’t hard. But what was, was keeping up the ruse in private. Hongjoong was a different person behind closed doors, when in the shielded sanctuary of his pack den and surrounded by his members, he was soft. And not just caring soft, he wasn’t Seonghwa in the slightest. The alpha was… well, submissive. While still wielding a sharp-edged dagger when disagreements needed settling, it was difficult to break past the fog of wanting to be vulnerable when in the safety of his pack.

That was where he found himself questioning his leadership more often than not. How could an alpha, the one person capable enough to carry the weight of one’s pack, to lead without fault, to protect and provide and—

Hongjoong stood up, abruptly ceasing the internal pounding of his thoughts. His journal was stacked atop everyone else’s, a gift given by the coordinators to help any of the packs that struggle with trauma have a means for their voices to be heard without engaging verbally.

How could he be an alpha when he wanted nothing more than to relinquish the reigns and follow someone else’s lead for once?

The pen in his hand moved a bit across a blank page, and he figured that maybe his answer would appear somewhere within the ink.

+•+

Wooyoung perked up visibly upon seeing a mop of familiar fawn colored hair, the longer strands towards the back of the alpha’s head curving slightly over the front of his shoulders. “I was beginning to think you weren’t going to show up!”

Hongjoong placed a hand on Yunho’s shoulder as he slipped into the seat between the tall beta and his youngest pack member Jongho. “Just had a bit of writing to do.” He spared a knowing glance towards Seonghwa, whom was in the middle of a conversation with Soobin and Yeonjun. The other group seemed to have intermingled themselves amongst their own. With the two ‘heads’ of the pack talking amicably with Seonghwa, Beomgyu showing something to Yeosang excitedly and Taehyun and Kai goading Mingi into an impromptu arm wrestle.

“Did you hear?” San leaned a bit forward over his tray of food, nearly dipping the front of his uniform shirt into the syrup drowning his pancakes. He was giddy, smiling wide enough for his dimples to show.

“Assuming you’re asking about the pack across the hall leaving today— then yes, I have heard.”

The omega visibly deflated, plopping back into his seat in disappointment. San wanted to deliver the good news, but it seemed he was just a bit behind the jump. Wooyoung gave his upper arm a soothing pat.

“It’s a bit bittersweet seeing them go but I would prefer they did than to stay here. Not saying this place is bad or anything but, compared to being in a proper home with the room to grow and to settle comfortably with your pack. I’d pick that over anything.” Jongho remarked, scooping eggs into his mouth as an afterthought.

“I wonder what their alpha is like. I bet they’re some big-wig CEO.” Wooyoung whispered conspiratorially.

The sudden talk of alphas and ideal pack living made Hongjoong’s gut tighten miserably. He couldn’t blame them for discussing the topics as he too wanted those things, but it just made those nagging thoughts of inability and failure churn restlessly in his mind. He could have provided that, could have given them a proper home to grow in, could have made it so that all eight of them settled into a life that they woke up happily enough to be living but instead, he barked more than he could ever bite, and that outcome is what led them being here. Because he couldn’t be that CEO, couldn’t be the alpha.

Yunho nudged him slightly, having noticed that he had seemed to almost curl up into a small ball while San and Wooyoung chattered back and forth about the pampered life their friends were about to bestowed. Jongho would interject from time to time, but the alpha couldn’t pluck the cotton from his ears long enough to catch any of it.

“Are you okay?”

Hongjoong swallowed, offering a bit of a watery smile that looked very much like a grimace. The beta paused mid-chew; cheeks puffed outward into smooth slopes.

“Yeah, just, pre-rut and all.”

Yunho wasn’t convinced and honestly, if someone told Hongjoong the same thing— he wouldn’t be either. Inwardly, he cursed his terrible persuasion skills.

Luckily though, just before Yunho could truly question him, the overhead intercom crackled to life and the voice of the take-in coordinator announced for TXT to gather their belongings and arrive for pick-up in the lobby. Simultaneously, pack members jumped up and gathered each of the five into their arms, patting backs and rubbing cheeks and whispered congratulatory words. All of it felt like watching a celebration from the outside of a house, looking in through a narrow window at the wide smiles and celebratory handshakes. Hongjoong couldn’t find it in himself to be sincere, not in his words for his actions. But he tried, giving his hugs a bit more squeeze to them, his shoulder pats a little more weight and his send-off remarks just the slightest bit sweeter.

Wooyoung was crying into Seonghwa’s chest, despite the fact that he was happily yapping away only moments ago. Him and Yeonjun had grown close, best friends as the omega had put it. His darling, another term he bestowed upon the other omega, of which was reciprocated in kind. And now the realization seemed to be hitting him tenfold, that his beloved friend was now leaving for a better life.

Hongjoong itched to comfort the omega, wanted to wipe his tears away. To sooth Wooyoung, and San who had also begun crying and Mingi and Seonghwa. Yunho had taken to crowding both San and Mingi under his arms, rubbing the back of their necks as they waved pitifully with wobbly lower lips as the other pack bustled on out of the cafeteria. Seonghwa cooed with mushed tears gathering along his waterline into Wooyoung’s mop of black hair with Yeosang draping himself around the sobbing omega’s back. Jongho remained passive, at least at a glance but his hand had inched up from his side and slipped into Hongjoong’s. His grip was firm and trembled slightly. The alpha could only give the soft skin on the back of it a stiff swipe, a poor excuse for proffered comfort.

They settled after a couple minutes, although nobody had the appetite to finish eating.

Hongjoong didn’t have an appetite to begin with.

[aspecriddler]

THEE Guide to Not Being a Punk Poser

Hey, so if you're reading this, you may or may not be looking to get into the punk scene, and you also may or may not be at a total loss on where to start

Well fear not! I am here with this little introduction post on how to Not Be A Poser (title pending)

FIRST UP: The Ideals

When it comes to the ideals of alternative subcultures, this graphic by @theygender (hope the tag is ok, lmk if it isn't) is the best summary I've ever seen

And if you're like me, you're solidly on the line between punk and grunge, but leaning just a bit more punk. This is fine /gen

Punk is about community. Punk is about fighting for a better future. Punk is about doing no harm and taking no shit. Punk is about looking out for the underdog. If you don't embody these values then you're not punk. The ideology of Punk is, in my opinion, the most important part of the subculture

But if you've been doing your research you already knew that. Now let's get into what a lot of people call the fun stuff: the music and the fashion

SECOND: The Music

There are a Lot of different subgenres of punk music, the most famous being punk rock and folk punk. I subscribe more to punk rock because I really enjoy fast music

Bands to look for include: Sex Pistols, Dead Kennedys, Pansy Division, Dog Park Dissidents, Cheap Perfume, Mommy Long Legs, Gang Green, The Germs, Rage Against the Machine, G.L.O.S.S., X-Ray Spex, The Cramps, Circle Jerks, Crass, Limp Wrist, and Pure Hell

Of course there's a lot more but those are some staples plus some of my personal favorites. You can find my personal punk playlist here

Overall the sound is Loud and it is Angry. There are many songs about killing cops and hating capitalism and it fucks. If you like funky basslines, sick ass drums, angry yelling, and shredding guitars this music is for you

PART THREE: The Fashion

Okay, okay, I had to save the quote unquote best for last. Imo the fashion of punk is the most diy out of almost any other subculture

Literally anything you can get your hands on can become fashion. Steal what you can, pick up shit off the side of the road, and if you can't/don't know how to do something get a friend in the scene to either teach you or commission them or something

Brands? The fuck is that, the only brands you need to know are Rit fabric dye, goodwill, etsy (sometimes), your local craft store, and a good spike maker (I don't deal with spikes currently so I have no good resources for them, so other punks feel free to chime in!)

Want cool metal shit? Take apart cans and turn them into spikes. Take a lighter apart and use those metal bits. Steal safety pins from walmart.

Want/need to sew something? Yarn and a tapestry needle if you can't get/don't want to use dental floss. When sewing patches do a straight stitch around followed by a hobo stitch around again and that shit will stay forever. Alternatively pin patches on with safety pins, this works pretty well in a pinch

Fabric paint is your best friend!!! Start with a white base layer and the colors will be much more vibrant. Don't think you have painting skills? Doesn't matter, you're punk and you have the audacity to wear whatever you make with pride

Invest in a leather jacket. I don't mean in terms of money, I got mine at goodwill for ten bucks. But it will change your life. I recommend getting two: one to keep plain and one to diy. Also flannels are good for diy and can also be made into vests for warm weather very easily.

Both of these flannels I decorated myself in a matter of hours. If I can do it, so can you

Also! When you cut the sleeves off of a flannel you can use the extra fabric to make diy pockets :3

PART FOUR: Community and Conclusion

So this is kind of my close out section lol

I'm not sure what kind of discord communities exist for true punk culture, so if anyone has one they wanna promote feel free

Do some research on local punk bands in your area, get your friends together and diy outfits for a concert, or just to wear. The world is your punk oyster, and as long as you or other people aren't getting hurt you can do whatever you want forever

Plz use this post to find other punks so we can start gaining more community (I'm totally not desperate lol)

[brightside-brigade]

Fuck it. Posting it before I log off to watch an RE stream.

So this is the base for my personal Plaga lore stuff. Like, an unmodified strain that would exist in the wild. At first I was worried this was all too far fetched but then I remembered... literally everything else about the RE series as a whole?? You're allowed to ask questions and stuff btw. I'll get to them as soon as I can. :3

Note: these guys standard form is highly based on most interpretations of infected Leon. So uh. Go look at those for a few minutes to get an idea. Good? Good. Lore under cut

So, to begin with, Plagas are hive dwelling organisms that are insectoid in nature, but also have some mammalian tendencies. Because of this, it's still debated what genus they fall under.

Similar to ants or bees, hives have a queen. Though she is not responsible for later generations being born within the hives, she is responsible for the hive progenitors. A queen will appear more insectoid than human, often forgoing the general human shape for something more akin to a large tarantula hawk or similar.

For plagas, dymporphism is a very clear thing. Males are larger and bulkier, and their tails end in stingers. They're the stronger ones, but are slower than females. Females are smaller and more lithe, and while their tails are stingerless, they're whip thin and just as capable of doing damage. While they're not as strong as the Males, they're far faster and more agile, nearly impossible to hit in a combat situation.

Pseudo males, a subset usually used as drones or informants have a mix of these features.

Both Males and females have venomous bites capable of a number of effects t depending on what's needed in the situation. This ranges from sedation, paralysis, or even death or internal liquidation. (Like how spiders eat). The plating along their tails can flip up, become a row of spikes for extra damage. Both also take part in hunting and scouting for the hive, and both have spurs on the backs of their legs.

Apart from the major differences between males and females, plaga appearances vary greatly between eachother. For example, the chitin on their bodies can range from a few patches here and there to full body armor. The chitin is usually red, orange, yellow or black, but other colors are possible. Other variations include eye color and number of eyes, wings, mandibles, wings, extra limbs, and so on.

Overall, like most animals, the plagas want to grow and expand their kind. Thus, they have many methods of spreading. This ranges from hive born eggs, eggs layed on or in other living creatures (like wasps do. This is generally how other hives start after the creature is let go to wander off. After the eggs hatch and the creature expires, a queen will usually be born from that particular batch). They also use the parasite method, also known as hijacker drones. These usually spawn from pseudo Males.

The eggs themselves, when in hive, are looked after by both Males and females alike, and are kept in chambers far from the surface. Eggs are round and translucent, being green or yellow in color and slightly bioluminescent. They adhere to both eachother and the walls/floor of the chambers and tended to until they hatch.

Eggs hatch into grubs, which are, well, grubs. They stay looking this until after their third or fourth molt, in which they'll start changing into the standard humanoid appearance. And thus it all begins again.

[that-one-rat-in-the-cupboard]

Blue=Sally Face/Sal

Pink=Lyra/Lizzy

White=Claire(interviewer)

Orange=Larry

Green=Travis

Red=Jake/Sal's cellmate I made up

Italicized=Past

_______________________

The Interview

[Exclusive Cut]

_______________________

You spoke with a great fondness about your friend, Ashley. I understand that you two were very close. You even considered her one of your best friends, along with Larry Johnson and Todd Morrison, is that true?

…Yes…

Have you seen this?

Claire shows Sal a newspaper. Part of one of the articles is circled in red ink: ‘Prosecutor will call Ashely Cambell to testify against The Sally Face Killer.’ A single tear from Sal falls on the paper. Sal crushes the paper.

Many people are curious, was there anything more between you and Ashley? A romantic relationship, perhaps?

No. Ash was just a close friend. I was interested in someone else…

And who would that be? Could you tell us about them?

Lyra Roxley…We always called her Lizzy.

Last I heard you haven’t mentioned anyone by that name in any police interviews.

She wasn’t around enough for it to matter.

Did she know about the supposed cult? Or about the ‘bologna incident’, as you referred to it?

…Yes. She knew. She knew everything. She left all that to Todd, Larry, Ash, and me, though. We would tell her about it, but she never actually tried investigating it herself.

Can you tell me more about her? When did you two meet? How did you meet? What was she like?

We met in junior year of high school…

“Fuck! I’m gonna be late!”

She was always breaking one rule or another. Whether it was speeding through the school halls on rollerblades or not following the dress code, she seemed to break every rule there was aside from blowing up the school within her first week. I think about the moment we met every day…

“Woah-shit!”

Travis had tripped her while she was rollerblading through the halls. She crashed right into me. I remember watching her flip off Travis before making sure I was alright. I didn’t hear anything she said at first, it was all a blur, and not because she had just crashed into me.

“Hellooo! Dude, you good?”

Her eyes were black, not a really dark brown, straight black. Her hair was unruly, had a mind of its own and moved however it wanted, even if she was sitting still. She had naturally blonde hair, but she dyed the back black and bleached the front. She always had two raccoon tails on either side of her fac-

I’m sorry, raccoon tails?

They weren’t real raccoon tails. She dyed lines of black into large sections of hair next to her face. She always called them raccoon tails and I picked up on the habit.

Ah, I see. Go on.

Right. She wore these big, round, wire-framed glasses that made her eyes look bigger than they should’ve, but in a cute way. She had a couple of piercings; a septum nose ring with spikes on it, a lip ring on each side of her bottom lip with spikes on them, and a double eyebrow piercing. She always had bags under her eyes, but her energy never matched them.

“Woah, dude. What happened here?”

“I couldn’t sleep so I turned my room into one big booby trap and now I can’t move… Wanna spend the next three hours trying to disarm it so I don’t blow up the apartments?”

She always dressed up for anything, even if she was just staying home. Her entire wardrobe was just black and red. Maybe a few denim jackets or vests, but they were mainly covered in patches she made or metal spikes she painted. All her pants were ripped and I don’t think I ever saw her in a shirt that didn’t have at least one hole in it. No matter what she wore, she always had this one light grey beanie on. For some reason, everyone in our little friend group wanted to steal it. No one ever could.

Larry peaked over the armrest of his couch, staring intently into the kitchen to make sure Lyra had her back turned before he executed the perfect plan. He signaled to Sally, who was waiting in his doorway for said signal, and the blue-haired boy immediately left the room, walking right to the kitchen.

“Hey, Lizzy?”

“Yeah, Sally Face?”

“Can you grab me a glass? Larry always puts them too high for me to reach to fuck with me.”

“Hehe, sure.”

As Lyra turned her back to reach into the cabinet and grab the glass, Sal signaled to Larry. Instantly, Larry leaped out from the behind the couch and raced over to Lyra, snatching the beanie off of her head…only for another one to be pinned to her hair underneath. She whipped around and faced Larry, pointing an accusing finger at him with a bright, ecstatic expression on her face.

“HA! I knew it! You can’t beat me Lar-Bar!”

Did you ever find out why she wore it?

…

Sal?

She was strong, too. Not physically. More like mentally. Some of the things she told me from her childhood…I still don’t understand how she survived it all. I can’t count the number of times she was beaten up by Travis and his gang. Yet, somehow, every time she just got back up and went on with her day. Larry always said she was a different person during the fights. I never believed him. Not until I witnessed one of the fights myself…

“Hey, freak! Why don’t you run on back to hell and leave us all alone!”

“Dude, I’m just standing here. Am I not allowed to just stand?”

“You got a problem, freak?”

“Yes, several. Would you like me to list off the mental ones or the physical ones first?”

“Lizzy, just leave it be. He won’t-”

“I got this, Sal. Don’t worry about me.”

“Hey! Are you even listening to me!?”

“Didn’t you just say you wanted me to leave you alone? Geeze, dude. Get your priorities straight.”

“Why, you-!”

Lyra wasn’t expecting the first hit, but that didn’t stop her from staying on her feet. Her hand slowly rose to her nose, feeling just beneath it as the blood began to flow. She pulled her hand away and started at the blood on her fingers. Then her eyes met Travis’ and a sinister smile grew on her chapped lips.

“You wanna dance, pretty boy? Let’s fuckin’ dance.”

So, you’re claiming she enjoyed the fights? That, perhaps, she sought them out on purpose?

She never sought them out on purpose, but if it seemed like one was about to start, she wouldn’t do anything to stop it. She definitely enjoyed them, though. She would smile and laugh like a maniac during them. At first, other people would laugh at her, too, mocking her. But the longer the fights went on, the more people realized that she wasn’t laughing to ease her nerves or act all confident. No, she was laughing because she liked it.

Liked what?

The pain. During the fights, she would lick the blood off her face, didn’t matter if it was her’s or the other person’s. She reveled in the fights. She didn’t even seem to notice there was ever a crowd. I’m pretty sure that from her perspective, it was just her and her opponent.

What did she do if someone else got into a fight?

Depends on who it was. If it was people she didn’t know or didn’t care for, she didn’t bother joining or even crowding around it like the other kids did. If it was one of her friends, like Ash, Todd, Larry, or me, she’d go batshit if she had to.

She was defensive of all of you?

Yes. Very.

Do you know why?

No. She always avoided the question when any of us asked. We tried telling her not to worry about us, that we can hold our own, but she always said-

“No…Not against this…”

-and we never knew what she meant. She was always quiet when she said it. It felt like the air around us dropped to freezing and like we were being suffocated. She always left shortly after those interactions, making up an excuse she knew we wouldn’t believe, but we knew better than to ask. The suffocating feeling and the cold would go away a few seconds after she left.

Can you tell me more about your relationship with her?

I guess. There’s not much to talk about. We became friends in junior year and remained friends for a few years. She had told me she loved me on the night of the…incident.

Lyra couldn’t stop biting her nails, picking away at the black polish. She had been video chatting with a friend from her old town when she told them about her years-long crush on Sal. They had convinced her to confess to him, and so she threw on her skates, kissed her dogs and cats goodbye, and started towards Addison Apartments. However, in her excitement to finally confess, she never thought about how she would confess. That resulted in her stalling for a long time, going so slow on her skates that the sun had fully set and the moon had taken over the sky. Still, before she knew it, she was on the sidewalk leading up to Addison Apartments. Sal was standing in the doorway, eyes wide and horrified as he stared at her, blood on his clothes and the weapon in hand.

Sal…?

You didn’t respond?

How could I? I didn’t have time to explain to her. The police were nearly there. She ran once she realized where the sirens were headed.

If all she said was your name, how do you know she was going to confess?

Um…she dropped a note when she ran. I had just enough time to look down at my feet where it had fallen and read it before I was arrested.

What did it say?

I don’t remember all of it, but I do remember one line. ‘I swear on my life and the River Styx, you are my Sun, and I am Icarus’.

Where is she now? Do you know?

…

Sal?

…

Mr. Fisher, can you answer the question? Where is sh-

She’s dead.

…

…Are we done here? I believe I have a trial to get to.

Yes. We are done here.

——————

So…

What, Jake?

How did it actually go down?

How did what actually go down?

That girl you talked about in the interview. How did she really confess.

How do you know about that?

They aired it after your trial. Todney convinced the guards to let us watch it. So, what really happened that night.

If you saw the interview, then why are you asking?

Because you lied.

…

Don’t try denying it. You said she wasn’t prepared to see you when she left, but she somehow had a love letter with her that she just so happened to drop at your feet even though she was at the very end of the sidewalk?

…

I doubt she’s dead, either. You hesitated before saying that, but not in a ‘I don’t want to face this again’ way. You hesitated in a ‘fuck, I need to think of a lie fast’ way. So tell me. What really happened that night?

…

Come on, Sally. We’re alone in our cell and I’ve got a life sentence. No guards, no cameras, no one to spill this to the news. So tell me. What happened?

…She didn’t confess to me that night. She knew what I was going to do and was trying to stop me in time. She was going to do it herself but she was too late. She tried to stay with me, but I wouldn’t let her stay. I told her to run. To leave me and never look back. That’s when she hugged me and said the Icarus thing.

So you guys already knew you liked each other before then? Were you like, partners in crime or something?

Heh, funny you say that. We used to have this thing we’d say all the time, just us. One of us would say-

“Partners in crime-”

And then the other would say-

“And trouble til the end!”

That’s adorable. It makes me want to throw up. So, if she didn’t confess that night, when did she?

That’s a bit of a long story…

And we got nothing but time.

You won’t believe me.

Who has up to this point?

…It happened during the last week of our senior year of high school. It was her, Larry, and me all in Larry’s room. We were hanging out for a while, but we were all very tense about finals and having to study and what we were going to do after school was over, there was just a lot of stress and nowhere for it to go. Larry had tried stealing her beanie again…

“Come on, dude! We don’t care if your hair is all messed up, just let me see!”

We had all been drinking, especially Larry, so we were all a bit more on edge than we would have been otherwise, and I think that’s why things ended up the way they did…

“Larry, stop! You don’t do this shit to Sal!”

“This is just your hair! Why won’t you let anyone see!?”

“Larry, dude, chill ou-”

“No! Since the moment we met her she’s been hiding it from us! What if it’s something to do with that stupid cult? What if she’s got a mic under there or some shit!?”

“Larry! You can’t just accuse her of-”

“You can’t just defend her because you’re in love with her!”

“Larry!”

“I don’t care! I’m done with this cult shit! I’m done with all of it! I’m getting to the bottom of it and if that means outing Lizzy as a spy, then damnit I will!”

“Larry, wait-!”

“Dude, stop!”

Lyra wasn’t quick enough to dodge, and the next thing everyone knew, her beanie was in Larry’s hand. The lights flickered and the CD that had once been playing music began spewing static. Larry’s feet were glued to the floor as he looked around frantically. The small bit of sun peeking through the curtains was washed out by swirling dark figures. Sal began to panic and backed into a corner as the figures engulfed Lyra. Larry stared on in horror, immediately sobering up as he saw the shadowy figures swirl around her. It was only when one zipped past him toward her that he was knocked out of his shock and started frantically stumbling backward, tripping over an empty canvas and joining Sal in the corner. Just as fast as it had started, it ended. The lights flickered on, the shadows dispersed, and there was Lyra, all the same…almost. Shadows shifted and danced over her head and behind her. The ones over her eyes wrapped around her head and resembled bandages. The ones over her mouth formed an ‘X’. The ones over her ears looked like scribbles you may see in a notebook. The ones on her back looked like four sets of wings, two smaller sets under the biggest ones and the smallest set right above the big ones. There was also a long, whip-like tail that trailed from behind her.

Woah, woah, woah. I thought that demon dude was a guy. And you said there was only one of him!

There is. If you let me finish the story it’ll make sense. Hopefully.

Okay, okay, fine. Keep going with your little fairytale.

Everyone was frozen in place, all out of fear. Lyra knew this was bound to happen, she just hoped it never would.

“L…Lizzy?”

She couldn’t say a word. So instead she jumped up from her spot on the floor and ran. Larry tried going after her, but when he left his room and saw a completely empty living room, and no doors left open that Lyra could have ran through, he started to panic.

“Fuck, man. This isn’t good. What do we do!? She just disappeared!”

“I-I don’t know! Where do you think she would’ve gone?”

“She always said Wendigo Lake calmed her down when she was stressed. Said she liked to swim there when it was nighttime.”

“It’s still light out, but it will be getting dark soon. You go check there and I’ll check the apartments. I doubt she left town.”

“Oh god, what have I done? Why couldn’t I have just left her alone!?”

“Worry about that later, Larry. We need to find her first and make sure she’s okay.”

“Right. Find her first…I hope that’s soon…”

We looked for her for hours, but couldn’t find her. We were so tired by the end of it that we just ended up crashing in Larry’s room together, hoping we’d find her the next day. Larry was out the moment his head hit the bed, but I couldn’t sleep. I was too worried about Lizzy. I needed to know where she went, if she was okay. I ended up going outside for a breath of fresh air. I was out there for maybe five minutes before I heard crying coming from the tree house Larry and I hung out in all the time. So I climbed up into it and…

“Lizzy?”

“Ah! S-Sally! I-I-fuck! You can’t see me like-I-I need to-”

“Don’t leave! …Please, don’t leave.”

“But…aren’t you mad? Don’t you want me to leave? I look like…him after all…”

“I don’t care about that right now. I just want to make sure you’re okay…”

“...”

“Lizzie?”

“I’m okay, Sally. Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course. Um, do you mind if I sit next to you?”

“It was your’s and Larry’s treehouse before I came along. Do whatever you like.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

“...”

“...”

“I’m sorry…For what happened earlier.”

“What?”

“You know, the flickering lights and the CD static?”

“Oh, that…”

“Yeah…that…”

“What was that?”

“...The beanie I wear has a sealing and protection combination rune embroidered on the inside of it. As long as I’m wearing it, it hides the…shadowy parts of me…That’s what happens when it’s taken off unexpectedly…”

“...”

“I know you want to ask me, Sal. It’s okay. You can ask.”

“Are…are you related to the Red Eyed Demon?”

“Yes.”

“...”

“I’m his daughter. I was conceived after he became the demon. The cult had offered him one of their women so he could have an heir. When I was born with no physical signs of being a demon, he abandoned me and killed my mother. He didn’t care what happened to me, so the cultists shoved me into the arms of another cultist, a man named Taylor. He became my adoptive father and left the cult not even a few months later. We were on the run most of my life, but we didn’t have a choice… He died a week before I moved here. He had made the beanie for me when I turned ten and started to develop the shadows. I only had to wear it in public. When we were alone, I could have it off as much as I wanted. He made sure that I wouldn’t be ashamed of the shadows, but he also made sure I understood where I inherited them from, and why I had to hide them…”

“So…Your father is…the Red Eyed Demon.”

“...”

“...”

“...It was amazing knowing you, Sally. I’ll miss you a lot.”

“W-what? What are you talking about, you’re leaving?”

“Huh? No. I just…you don’t want to be around me anymore, right? I’m directly related to the very thing you have been trying to take down since you moved here four years ago! There’s no way you’d want to be around me anymore! …right?”

“Lizzy, I love you. You obviously don’t want your father to take over the earth. If you did you would have killed me and Larry and Ash and Todd and anyone trying to stop him by now. I trust you, Lizzy. You’ve stayed with us and believed us since you met us. Do you know how liberating it was to finally have someone believe us without needing proof? Though, now I get why you didn’t need any proof…”

“You love me?”

“Uh…ah, yeah. I did say that, didn’t I?”

“...”

“I understand if you don’t like me back. I mean, who in their right mind would?”

“...”

“It’s not like I’m like Larry. Muscular, handsome, normal…”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“Say something, damnit.”

“I love you, too.”

“...”

“Can I kiss you?”

“...Yes.”

So, this demon dude you keep talking about, that you want to kill, not only has a daughter, but you fell in love with said daughter?

In my defense, I didn’t know she was his daughter until after I realized I loved her.

Still, dating the daughter of a demon you want to kill is probably the biggest ‘fuck you’ you could give to the universe.

Maybe, but all I cared about at the time was finishing school. The cult had kind of gone to the background of my mind for the time being.

Hm…Question.

Shoot.

Why are you suddenly so willing to talk about this chick when you haven’t mentioned her at all til the interview?

I was just sentenced to death row. I’ve got nothing to lose. No one but the people that were there for it believe me. I doubt anyone will believe this, even if you tell anyone.

You don’t know that.

Do you believe me?

…

Exactly.

————————

[manyothermusingsofmine]

Frostbite || Drabble

Fandom: Epic the Musical. -wobbly handmotion- kinda. its more inspired by the musical rather than anything else

Warnings: slightly described body horror concerning frostbite and heat damage

Wordcount: 3280

AN: Saw this particular animatic for 'Dangerous' and went "oh no he's cute" about what was already my favorite character and uh.. -looks at fic- oops.

Summary: Hermes is given a task from Demeter to deal with a patch of land that won't unfreeze after Spring has returned, but when he gets there it turns out the source isn't what anyone thought it was.

------------------------

"So, why are we doing this again?" flitting around his yawning friend and coworker, Hermes ever so curiously watched Hypnos brew a new elixir, while the deep purple eyes of Hypnos momentarily gave his friend a tired look.

"You go tell Demeter that you refuse to heed her commands," Hypnos yawned his words out, gently swirling the potion and corking it, "go on. I'll wait."

"Look, all I am saying is, if you want to unfreeze some bothersome spot that disobeys the returning of spring, why ask you and me to do something about it? I'd send a fire being; a nature sprite, wouldn't something of that make more sense?"

"Wow, tell me you didn't listen to a word she said, without telling me. You, my friend, are the only one with enough speed and wit to actually made it across the permafrost this anomaly created. Tell me you at least remember the quest given to you?"

"Go over there, make this frost being drink your little concoction so they sleep and no longer guard the icy patch, uhm, something or another, bring spring, got it," Hermes said with a grin, the wings that sprouted from his mop of hair lightly fluttering in amusement that only grew greater as Hypnos gave him a really deadpan, unamused stare in return before pushing the corked bottle in to his hand.

"Just go. Do not underestimate that ice, Hermes."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Hermes joked, immediately zipping off through the air as Hypnos shook his tired head.

"You're exhausting," yawned Hypnos to no one in particular before slowly sitting back in the soft, comfortable chair of his abode.

Easily moving between realms, Hermes was on the lookout for a patch of ice that was out of the norm. Spring had come; everything else was blossoming, blooming or cloaked in soft green colors so the place he was looking for did stick out like a sore thumb when he found it. Circling its outskirts for a minute, he shivered lightly. This frost cold had to be magical in nature; it seemed colder than regular ice, seemed to defy both the coming of spring and the burning sun in the sky.

"You're slacking on the job, bro," Hermes giggled towards the sun, before dodging a suddenly rising ice spike with a squeak, "alright, time to be a little more serious about this before I get cold skewered."

He flew around the icy palace a bit more seriously now, truly looking for a way in and wondering why the ice sprite that harbored within didn't come out to defend itself against him, unless the sudden spikes of ice shooting up at him that he easily dodged counted as defense mechanics. The rays of the sun bounced off many of the ice peaks below, as those seemingly simply refused to melt which made the messenger god frown. This whole situation was incredibly strange even by his standards. A sudden harsh and cold wind from the side blew him off his course, and he narrowly avoided slamming into one of the ice cold walls of the palace.

More ice seemed to form around the place, whatever causing it seemed to surge periodically to make the ice grow, as frequent as the pulse of a beating heart. Hermes still flitted around the place trying to find a way in, his interest suddenly piqued by the one window the sunlight didn't bounce back from. He pouted, looking up to the sky.

"I don't need your help, bro. I would've found that myself!" he squawked when one particular beam of light reflected off a piece of ice directly into his eyes at that commentary

"Apollo!" he hissed, "Don't make me come up there! I don't need your sass, man!"

Rolling his eyes, Hermes lowered himself down for a moment like a racer at the starting line. He watched the ice spikes magically sprout up with a grin. On his own inaudible count, he flew off; dodging the newly and more quickly forming spiked left and right as he ran along the walls of the castle. He grabbed what seemed to be some kind of torch holder, easily flinging himself up and through the open window. Hovering so his feet didn't have to touch the freezing floors, he started to flit through the hallways looking for anything that resembled this ice creature he had to put to sleep.

"Oh, sure," he muttered to himself, "it's easy, Hermes, just find a non-descript ice creature in the middle of an ice castle. Can't imagine why you would struggle with that, my friend."

Zipping through the place, Hermes eventually hovered near the master bedroom upstairs, hands on his hips as he let out a huff. This place seemed just as abandoned on the inside as it was on the outside, and it was so cold he couldn't wait to get back out, lightly shivering as he thought of it. Then, his ears picked something up; strained breathing from further down the hallway.

Well, if this being was already injured then the task just got easier. Following the sound, he came across a smaller bedroom with the door frozen open, easily flying in and looking around. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary aside from the frozen wasteland everywhere, but the strained, deep breaths were definitely coming from somewhere around here.

"Come out, come out, wherever you're hiding," Hermes almost purred, looking around for wherever this ice creature was stowing itself away, "we just need you to let spring in, your time has-"

"Hermes?"

Bright glowing white eyes widened in shock as Hermes heard his name through a very familiar voice. Whipping his head towards the sound as fast as he could, shock turned to an absolute mortified expression.

Between the vanity and the big, elaborate closet that were both frozen solid, he saw her slumped in the corner of the room. Her long golden hair held clumps of ice, and even the tears she had once shed had frozen into the eyelashes that framed her soft green eyes- eyes that flicked to Hermes with the deepest sense of desperation glowing in them. But all that didn't compare to the horror that creeped onto the messenger god as he stared into the hollow cavity of her chest where her heart was supposed to be.

Whatever sat withing glowed an eerie pale blue, and with a soft whimper of pain from its host ice shot out of the gaping hole to add another layer of ice to the immediate surrounding area.

"... Chloé?" Hermes' voice had a terrified tremble to it, his mind hardly accepting the situation in front of him. This was all wrong; Chloé wasn't some kind of vengeful ice spirit mad that spring had come and refused to relinquish its castle. She was a spring nymph, happy and bright when the new sprouts of green emerged on the trees, loved to tend to the growing new leaves. And Hermes liked her; she had a mischievous streak to her and was always down to get up to some silly shenanigans with him.

A slightly sharper cry of her pain snapped him out of his frozen shock, flitting over to her and hovering at her side as he looked over the damage.

"What happened, Chloé?" Hermes' concern was tangible, and he flinched back as she let our another yelp of pain as another beat of her heart send out another wave of ice.

"It hurts, Hermes," she muttered with what strength her weakened frame had left, "it hurts so much. Please..."

He just stared for a moment, thinking of what to do. If he just obeyed the mission as it had been told to him, then what would happen if spring came to finally make the castle heed to the changing season? What would happen to this nymph who clearly wasn't a vengeful ice spirit, would she be judged and punished as if she had been?

Staring at the vial in his hand, Hermes brain was wrecking itself for a solution to the situation he was in.

"Hermes," her voice sounded even weaker as she was obviously mustering the remainder of her strength, "please."

He sighed, uncorking the bottle with his teeth and holding the bottle to her mouth.

"Drink," he commanded in yet a surprisingly soft tone, "just trust me."

"Hypnos!"

When the elixir put her to sleep, he used the staff he wielded to pick the ice away underneath her, carefully lifting her up from the cold floor into his arms. When he was sure she was secure in his embrace, he left through the window quicker than he had come in.

His voice echoed so hard and loud through the home of his colleague that Hypnos nearly dropped out of the comfortable chair he was dozing in, immediately wide awake at the sudden call of his name when Hermes dropped a nearly frozen woman into a bed.

"Do something!" Hermes barked, anxiously flitting around the other deity and pulling him towards the bed when the sleepy god wasn't moving fast enough to his liking.

Hypnos looked the lady dropped into his domain over once, a deep frown knitting into his eyebrows at the sight before him.

"I can't."

"No, you must do something!" Hermes insisted, "heal her, make sure her rest is comfortable, just do-"

"I can't!" Hypnos barked out sharply, letting out a deep sigh when Hermes flinched back at his outburst of anger. He looked back at Chloé, a pained expression on her face as she slept, while his gaze went down to her heart.

".... Her heart is frozen solid, Hermes. I can't fix a curse like this. Even the goddess of healing wouldn't be able to heal a curse like this. Her only chance of making it through this is if someone thaws out her heart."

Hermes hovered near Hypnos, his own heart sinking to his feet as he looked at the sleeping nymph. He looked back at Hypnos, who slowly returned back to his favorite chair and curled up.

"So what do you suggest I do?"

"I don't need to suggest anything, Hermes," Hypnos yawned, "you know exactly who's help you need to ask for if you want her heart thawed back out of this frost curse."

Oh, he definitely knew; but Hermes doubted he had the persuasion needed to pull this off. Still, the other option was to watch Chloé freeze to death in Hypnos' home before they had to haul her off to the halls of Hades.

"... Forgive me for this, Chloé," he whispered to her, before pushing his hand into the gaping maw and grabbing hold of the frozen clump inside that once was her heart. It bit back harshly, sticking to the skin of his hand as he pulled it out of her chest. It didn't even look like a heart anymore, the eerie blue hue almost hissing as it bit further into his skin. He had no time to waste, bolting off to the sun as fast as he could. When he arrives there, the general warmth of the palace eased the biting frost in his hand to just somewhat unpleasant cold.

"Apollo!" Hermes called out, "Apollo, I need you!"

"Me?" a voice ringed out as chirpy as a songbird, "You need me? Oh, that is rich coming from you."

In a quick flash, Apollo appeared before Hermes, running a hand through his own golden curls before calmly playing a tune on his lyre. Golden eyes slowly wandered over to the other god, a light smirk creeping onto Apollo's face as he watched him.

"You must be really desperate if you claim to need me, of all people."

Apollo had expected some kind of quip, some kind of pushback from Hermes- the messenger god was full of wit and quick remarks, so Apollo was genuinely taken aback when the white glowing eyes of his brother just looked up at him in the most genuine plea he had ever seen them in. Hermes merely held his hand out, his fingers not even able to uncurl from the frozen object he held.

"I am," he whispered, "but that doesn't matter. I'm not here on my own behalf. Something befell Chloé, cursed her to ice over her patch of the world, and the only one who-"

He hissed as the frozen heart within surged yet again, the cold vigorously biting into his skin.

".... Apollo, you're the only one I know capable of unthawing this ice curse bestowed upon her. I'm not asking your aid for my sake, I am asking your aid for her."

A slight breeze moved Apollo's hair as he looked at the hand Hermes held out to him; a whisper of something in his ears carried by the wind. He shook his head, moving closer to his brother.

"It's not going to be pleasant"

"Yeah, well," Hermes was clearly struggling to summon his usual airy laughter, trying to not let his face fall back in a grimace of pain, "letting this freeze my hand off is probably worse, so-"

"How do you always manage to get wrapped up in situations like this?" Apollo huffed, grabbing the free hand of his brother and placing it on top of the hand already holding the frozen heart. Holding them in place with his own hands, the heat of the sun started to glow around his tanned skin.

Hermes gritted his teeth as hard as he could, trying to ignore the pain of both the frost and the searing heat from his brother's hands, with Apollo giving just the smallest of amused little huffs.

"You're allowed to scream out your pain, brother."

"I'm," Hermes hissed through his teeth, "not giving you that satisfaction, brother."

"Figures," Apollo said with a shrug, only calling back his warm light and letting go of Hermes' hands when he was satisfied with his work, "there you go, one unthawed heart. I suggest you rush back to its owner; hearts don't like to be outside of their hosts."

"…What? Just like that? No grand feat or trade required?" Hermes asked, genuinely confused- and that confusion only grew at Apollo's mysterious smirk, "what?"

"You already pulled off a feat worthy of this exchange. Go now, you're wasting time."

Hermes did not need to be told twice, immediately taking off with the delicately beating heart carefully cradled in his hands, while Apollo turned back to his sunny domain and plucked the strings of his lyre, humming a little tune.

He returned to Hypnos' abode as fast as the wings on his sandals allowed, only slowing down his pace when Hermes got closer to the bed she was resting upon. He looked at her heart, fragile and calmly beating in his palm before his nimble fingers gently placed it back in the cavity it belonged to. With a whirring sound, the heart healed the wound it came from, the heat of the sun flowing through her veins until all the ice that had clumped to her melted away and steamed off never to be seen again.

Light green eyes slowly blinked open, the first thing she saw being the bright white eyes of Hermes and the gentle smile on his face.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," he giggled.

"Hermes?"

"The one and only! .... Hello, my friend. Hey, hey, woah, easy there," he hushed, gently pushing her back into the soft bed as she tried to clamber up far too fast, his hand resting to her shoulder as she looked at it in rising horror, staring at the damage done both by the cold and the heat needed to warm everything back up.

"Hermes, your hand-"

"Yeah, Apollo's help is not exactly pleasant," Hermes laughed, "I'll have one of the healers assistants look at it later, it'll be fine. You just get some more rest, okay?"

"… Does Hypnos mind?"

"Hypnos?" Hermes inquired curiously, looking over to where the god of sleep was dozing off with a peaceful expression on his face, "Hypnos isn't awake enough to-"

Placing her hand on the cheek facing away from her, Chloé pressed a gentle kiss of gratitude on the cheek she could reach. Hermes turned back to look at her, a golden heat creeping onto his cheeks as the wings on his head fluffed up in his surprise.

"You ruined everything!"

"Thank you, Hermes," she whispered, unable to keep a smile off her face when a squawk left him at the kiss on his cheek and the praise she gave him, "you're my hero."

Apollo lazily looked over his shoulder at the howling northern wind, not impressed by its sudden outburst.

"You know, for once I would love it if people started a conversation with me with just hi or hello Apollo."

"Hi Apollo; you ruined everything!" The wind snarled, swirling until they formed the vague shape of a man, "did you not hear the prophecy I called to you?!"

Apollo hummed, looking up while pretending to be in thought, before recalling "something howling wind something Chloé falls in love with the one who thaws her frozen heart, right?"

"Yes!" The wind roared, "she was supposed to fall in love with you, and burn on her way trying to reach you!"

Blinking as he swapped back to his sun form, he lazily rolled his head back to Boreas.

Kissing the inside of his teeth, Apollo stared at the deity before him.

"Is that so? Well, you should've specified. Ah-ah-ah,” He waggled his finger at the wind god before giving him a smile as bright as the sun he steered- A smile that didn't reach his shimmering golden eyes.

"Let me remind you of your own words, Boreas, since you seem to struggle to remember them,” with that a crown of light appeared above the sun god, making him change to his prophetic form with incredibly light blue glowing eyes before he continued, "The spring nymph Chloé shall fall in love with the one who's hands thaw out her frozen heart."

"So, first of all, that's less a prophecy and more a curse- not really my domain so I don't see why you would think I’d heed something like that. But, furthermore, my hands never touched her heart. You know… The funny thing about frost is that it really likes to stick to things touching it. Hermes' hands held her heart, therefor, it were his hands that thawed out her heart, not mine."

The wind god sputtered in annoyance, fuming when Apollo laughed a similar airy laugh that would come out of his brother.

"Why?! Why would you do such a thing?!"

"Now. Be a dear, and leave my domain."

"Well, first of all, don't pull me into your beef with a random nymph just 'cause she said "no thanks" to your advances. But, more importantly, this is the stuff musicians will chirp about for eons to come, Boreas!

I can imagine it already, the ballads of the woman who's heart was so unreachable, the only one capable of taking it is the God of Thieves? The drama, the romance!" Apollo chirped, dramatically falling back over his lounge chair before giggling to himself. After that, his golden eyes sharply looked to the wind god.

"But-"

"Leave," Apollo growled, "Do not make me repeat myself again, or we'll really have problems."

Boreas huffed, but took off none the less. Apollo just grabbed his lyre, strumming a little tune to himself. Actually, that was a brilliant idea for a song; how the God of Thieves earned the love of a nymph with a frostbitten heart. He started scribbling it on a nearby scroll, humming while he penned it down

[mayhemandtrouble]

Not Giving Up: Good Morning, Chapter 7

More Chapters (including NSFW) and detailed tags on Ao3 The connections were strong now. The pair snuggled while watching holovids, doing quite a few of the stupid, wonderful things that couples do. They were connected at both convenient and inconvenient times. By now, they’d fairly worked out how to handle the unexpected company, each teasing the other in different ways if the one was unable to reply due to circumstance.

It was no surprise to Ben that he woke up to find Rey snuffling softly into the pillow beside him. Her brown hair was a mess around her shoulders, eyes still shut tight. She always looked beautiful in her sleep, his desert flower tangled in the black silky sheets. They’d long since stopped trying to understand if the Force was either putting them into two places at once or bridging their existences, simply accepting it. Instead, he leaned up slightly to press a soft kiss against her temple and nuzzle into her neck.

“It’s morning.”

A fussing groan was all he got in response, her face burying further into the pillow. He knew her routines somewhat by now - Rey normally rose early, a holdover from living on a desert planet wherein most activity was done before and after the spikes of heat in the middle of the day. If she was sleeping in, she’d either stayed up late or was particularly exhausted from some adventure.

“You’ll fuss at yourself if you don’t get up, Flower.” He nudged her again, putting a string of teasing kisses along her bare shoulder. Rey still wore a thin undershirt, sleeveless and made of a soft cotton, to bed but it had long ceased stopping Ben’s explorations of her.

One green eye opened a crack and looked at him. A displeased grunt before shutting again and rolling away, pulling some of the bedcovers with her. Making her lover laugh and admit defeat. If she wanted to sleep in, she could sleep in. He, however, could not.

No matter how she hated his work, there was still a great deal to be done. Not the least of which was attempting to dismantle the Resistance while keeping the targets off Rey and those close to her. Ben would allow no harm to come to her, and the protection he attempted to give her closest friends? Well… he owed her that much. Besides, they protected that which he valued above all else - Her.

Ben flipped the rest of the covers off, exposing his broad chest and the black silk pajamas he favored. It was hard to push himself out of the bed when Rey’s warm body was right beside him. His feet hitting the floor with a thud. When he straightened, Ben turned. Planning to draw the covers up around Rey again. But he stilled...

The sight of blood was hardly new to him. He was well familiar with the scent and smell of it, usually in the midst of combat. This… this, however, was new. Rey’s thighs were painted with a dark red smeared between them and there was a patch of darker, shiny black just beneath her on the black sheets.

“What the… Shit!” The final word slipped past his lips without thinking, in a sharp shout. He didn’t know what to do in this situation. Hell, he was just getting used to the kind, supportive boyfriend thing. His mind racing backwards to the various lectures Mother and Father had given him on how to treat partners. None of them had covered this topic.

“What happened?” Rey finally rose slightly, her emerald eyes blinking as she braced on her forearm, startled by his sudden cursing. Trying to wipe sleep from her eyes and annoyed that he’d woke her up.

“You bled on the sheets.” Frustration in his voice, more at himself than her. He should be doing something now but didn’t know what. Changing the sheets? Offering her… candy? Damn it, what was he supposed to be doing! If he didn’t get the sheets off and the blood out of the mattress, servants would be wondering how there was blood on the bed and they were trying to hide this bizarre Force affair. He could probably just burn the bloody bits with his saber. They were all used to his temper, then he could-

“Well, I didn’t do it on purpose!” It was easy to mistake his anger in her own embarrassment. How had that even happened - her period wasn’t supposed to be for another week, and she was in her own bed, from her point of view, so how could it be on both… Her face was flushed scarlet and the woman scrambled up from the bed. Entirely too aware of the blood between her thighs.

“I’ll change the damn sheets.” He muttered under his breath, pulling open the various drawers in his sleeping quarters. He was barely handling bringing her to Darkness, now he couldn’t find the extra sheets. Were there extra sheets? Who changed his sheets anyway?

“You don’t have to be a jerk about it!” Snapping as she retreated quickly to the bathroom, hitting the door button with what bordered on a slam and Ben could hear the lock engaging. Groaning inwardly and burying his head in one of his large hands. He really was an ass.

“Rey… Flower, come back!” Forgetting about the bed, which suddenly seemed trivial.

“Just change the sheets!” Calling out through the door as she sank against the bathroom room in the Falcon, burying her head into her knees and wrapping her arms around her legs.

His reaction was an unpleasant reminder. There hadn’t been much in the way of friendly  faces to teach her how normal this all was. Just frustration that she’d stained valuable clothes or blankets. Her shoulders were shaking as her tears started.

“Rey! I shouldn’t have shouted, I...” He could hear crying and he hated himself all the more. Not knowing exactly why but he knew whatever it was mattered. It was hard for him to apologize. In the First Order, to take blame often meant taking the punishment which was never good. It was far easier and better to push it off on others. He exhaled, letting his forehead hit the black paneled door of his bathroom.

“Leave me alone!” Her voice was cracking from tears and muffled. She didn’t want to think about those days. It had been… a difficult time. Plagued with new desires that were confusing, and attentions that she didn’t always want to be receiving. All the while, desperately missing her parents - who ought to have explained it all and protected her.

“Rey, you didn’t do anything wrong. I was startled and I overreacted.” It was hard not to knock the door down. The lock was flimsy and it wouldn’t be hard. A few solid Force pushes and it would crumple.

How could she even begin to explain it. Her fingers twisted into her brown hair and her silent cries were increasing. Chewie would be worrying about her soon if she couldn’t get her act together and a locked door would not stop the Wookie. Her shoulders heaving, trying to force the sounds of snide remarks out of her head. Those people didn’t matter anymore.

“Flower, what is going on?” It was more than this morning, he was certain of that but he didn’t know what. Was this normal for people on their periods? Ben had barely interacted with others since leaving Uncle and certainly never dealt with this aspect of things.

“Supreme Leader, you are needed on the bridge at once!” Hux’s voice floated in through a com speaker and Ben groaned, hitting his head against the door once more. The last thing he needed right now was Rey being reminded that he was Kylo Ren of the First Order. Just for this moment, all he wanted was to be Ben Solo and get his sweetheart out of the bathroom so he could figure out why she was crying and how to comfort her.

“You should go! They’ve probably found my ship.” There was anger in her voice as it drifted under the bathroom door. She hated hearing Hux’s voice while she was in the Falcon. It wasn’t right. All around her was the comfort and familiarity of home. This was where she belonged. Where she had friends. Where Ben brushed her hair, his nimble fingers braiding it for her before important meetings. The reminders of what he was outside this room were unwelcome. The First Order would hurt everyone who was ever kind to her.

“Flower, even if they’ve found your ship, I will never let them hurt you. Or the Falcon. You have my word.” His voice was quiet, soothing. Still Ben. Needing her to believe at least that. He had needed her trust to coax her over to darkness, surely it was working if their connections were growing stronger.

“Oh so you’ll just have them destroy everyone else instead!” Snapping back, her head raising so that her words were clear but still choked with tears.

“Supreme Leader Ren, can you hear me!” On the bridge, the redhead was growing impatient. He already loathed having to bow to the brat prince. Kylo should never have been favored by Snoke. It was his father who had worked to found the Order. By all rights, this was his. And he would rule it all. Once he found a way to displace Ren.

Ben hit his head against the wall one more time. It was impossible for him to explain to himself why he didn’t want Rey to hear him speaking to Hux. He wouldn’t be saying anything particularly troubling, simply a reply but… It was no longer a role he was comfortable with her witnessing.

“Rey, I’m going to protect everyone you love to the best of my ability.” A rash promise. One he might regret. But he could think of little else to say in the moment. A little comforted by an ease in Rey’s sniffles. Finally reaching over to hit the com button, unable to make himself darken his voice as he would normally do. “This is not a convenient time.”

“We’ve located a convoy bringing support troops to the Resistance. It’s going to be of interest to you.” There was a smug tone to the man’s voice that could be heard over the com and Rey’s breath caught. Finn was on it. And Ben could feel her distress rising through her emotions spilling through the room. Reaching out with the Force. The traitor was on that convoy. Today, of all days?

“Excellent work. I will be up shortly. Do nothing until I arrive. That is an order. I will handle this personally.” His fingers drummed along the wall in thought, allowing his voice to darken. To take on those shadows, his eyes growing black. Could he knock out part of the convoy and spare the traitor? But even if he spared the man, Rey would be upset and he couldn’t risk that. Not now. Not when he’d hurt her. The shadows departed from his face and he exhaled. The voice that followed was Ben’s. Quiet and pleading.

“Flower… I’m not going to hurt him, I know you know he’s there. I can feel it. Trust me.”

For a long moment, she didn’t speak but even a novice Force user could have felt the distrust and the pain rolling off her. Angry and hurt, not helped at all by the literal cramping of her body.

“Let me fix this, Rey. Open the door, let me kiss you before I go up there.” A last gentle plea, hoping to coax her into unlocking the bathroom door. If she didn’t, he couldn’t bring himself to force the issue and he’d have to find a way to divert attention from the convoy regardless. But it would be so much easier on his spirits if he could see her first.

“... I’m gross.” Rey finally spoke, wiping tears from her eyes and her face with the palms of her hands.

“You will never be dirty in my eyes.” A little chuckle in his voice, offering soft reassurance to her. The sound of her finally getting up was reassurance to him. Soft shuffling about in the bathroom. Water running briefly as she cleaned up a little before using a tendril of the Force to press the button which unlocked the door. Unprepared for how quickly Ben would cross through the door and across the floor. Gently cupping her face in his hands and looking down at her. Letting his forehead touch her own.

“I don’t ever want to make you cry again.” He didn’t have time for a full explanation, though he knew there was more at play than simply the events of the morning. Saving her friends, and helping to earn her trust in the long term, was going to be a difficult chess game with Hux and it would occupy most of his day, he suspected.

“What about Finn?” Her face tilted up in quiet demand. How this played out would impact their relationship. If he hurt her friend… It was difficult enough to handle this my-enemy-is-my-lover dynamic without him directly ordering the death or torture of those immediately close to her. She would not be able to continue this.

“Have a little faith in your Monster.” For a moment, Ben was truly his father’s son with a lopsided cocky grin. His thumb brushing over her cheekbones and leaning down to kiss her softly. “You send a signal to Finn that they should check their radar, watch your coms and we’ll talk about the rest of this later, Flower.”

“I will. I’ll be watching though. Don’t let me down, Ben.” Reaching up to gently run her fingers along his scarred cheek and he turned his head to kiss her palm.

“I won’t. With luck I’ll see you tonight.” Another kiss, this time on her wrist, just at the pulse. Letting the heat of his lips linger for a moment. Wanting to remind her of the bond between them, neither ready to put it to words.  And when he drew back, there was a faint smile through her tears. Still concerned - she didn’t entirely trust him. He could feel it, he knew it, he could hardly blame her… but certain that after success today, and sufficient apology for his personal screw up, that he could earn that trust. He’d come so far.

“I hope so, Ben .” As she reached up to give him a soft kiss on the cheek, he could sense the combination of growing comfort, receding distress and worry from her, she could feel the determination on him. The moments of Ben were growing and that soothed her more than anything else. As for the rest, his reaction and those he’d reminded her of? They could discuss it later, after she’d showered and ideally with his arms around her. Snuggled close under a blanket while music played in the background, Finn safe across the galaxy.

Hearing her say his name soothed him more than he would like to admit. Faint curve of his lips into a smile. And though he hated to leave, he had to. Not only to hide the affair and attend to his business but to keep his word to her. Her signal to Finn would no doubt help a great deal but he couldn’t rely on that alone.

As he left, she could feel the connection fade. Did the Force know when a connection must end? Was there something else powering this, something watching? A distressing thought for the private woman and she set it aside. For a moment, she considered powering up the Falcon and chasing after the convoy. She’d never forgive herself if she was wrong. But Ben promised. And he’d told her to send the signal. Which, granted, she would have done regardless. This would be a test.

They were not connected that night. It was almost a week before the connection brought them back together, a span of time that neither were comfortable with. Both afraid the connections had stopped and having no idea how to reach out to the other safely through any other means.

Ben was pacing his throne room, Kylo gnawing at the edges of his mind. He knew where she was. For once. There was a report in his datapad regarding a slain unit and a spy in the Resistance had managed to obtain the Falcon’s next planned stop. He had removed the two reports from general circulation among the First Order elite, and placed them within his private files but it was certain that others had read the reports before he had accessed them.

In frustration he ignited his saber, letting the furious red blade carve grooves with the cold floor where he’d last seen her in person. She’d fought beside him. She’d trusted him with her life then.

“Ben, what are you doing?”

His gaze lifted slightly before she spoke, eyes finding her just before his throne. Hovering in the air while sitting cross legged. Rey had certainly seen action. There was a cut along her cheek he didn’t like the look of and bandages along her legs. All the same, she seemed at peace - with a series of boxes and odds and ends of a ship floating around her in two circles that intersected.

“Get out.” The Supreme Leader turned his head to snarl at the red cloaked Praetorian  guards who lined his walls. It was remarkable how easy it had been to replace the ones they had killed. There was never a shortage of those willing to grovel, to be close to power. Each masked guard turned towards him for a moment to confirm.

“Now,” snarling the word and pointing the way towards the door with his lit saber. Only turning off the weapon when the last guard was gone and the door was shut behind them. Barely hooking it to his belt before he ran towards her.

“Are you alright?” Brushing aside the floating bits she was practicing with to run his hands down her arms. Looking over her injuries. Not noticing that he was breaking her concentration in his concern.

“I’m fine. Just got caught in a fire,” frustration in her tones as Rey tried to keep herself and the bric-a-brac she’d been practicing with aloft. The debris hitting the ground first before she started falling, only to be caught by Ben. “I was doing something!”

“So was I.” He responded in kind, quickly turning so that he could settle in the throne with her still in his arms. “What’s this about fire? I didn’t see that in my reports.”

“You were having a tantrum. Do we have to sit here?” She muttered crossly, easing her legs over the edge of the throne even as she fussed about it.

“Yes.” Ben’s short reply, the tips of his fingers running just over the bandages along her legs. She’d been burned. More so than she cared to admit to him but she’d recover. Assuming she was taking care of herself. “Have you seen a healing droid?”

“Ben, I’m fine. I got hurt worse on Jakku.” Just over five days of no contact and this was when the Force decided to connect them? It could have picked up when she was thinking of him before the mission, when she’d gotten the news that Finn was all right - that several of the firing controls on the attacking ships had jammed. It could have picked up just after the fight, when she was in pain and desperately wanted his arms.

“You’re mad at me.” He commented dryly, brown eyes flicking up to her green ones. “Did my solution not work? My reports were that your friend and his transport escaped.”

“I’m mad that you aren’t here.” Rey sighed in exasperation, letting her head fall onto his shoulder. He must have felt the sting for the arm around her back tightened a little. Her eyes closed and she breathed out a slower exhale. “Ben… I’m sorry. I’m… just… being pulled in a lot of directions at once. Leia doesn’t want me on the missions anymore, not till I’m better trained.”

“And you want to be there, to protect them.” For once he held back comments about her needing a teacher, needing him as a teacher. This was not the time, he was gaining her trust back. He would need that.

“Mmmhmm.” She murmured in agreement, eyes closing and nestling close into his arms. Savoring the quiet and the feel of his chest rising and falling beneath her. Carefully, Ben rested his other hand on her ankle and let his forehead brush hers. Outside the First Order was bustling about with plans of domination and conquest. Some he knew about, many he didn’t - simply too small scale to warrant his notice. So few things could receive his personal attention and nothing could supplant the mission in his arms.

“Thank you, Ben.”

He was almost startled when her voice broke the quiet. Thumb lazily running along her scarred bicep as he felt her press a soft kiss against his cheek.

“The plan did work. You were right.” A quiet admission that lifted the weight of mountains. While it seemed so easy for her to say, he buried his face into her shoulder to hear it. The arm around her side tightened.

“Thank you, Flower.” When he spoke at last, Rey did not understand the quiver in his voice. Only letting her cheek rest against his head. Her slender fingers slowly stroked through his curly black hair. How it managed to always be so perfectly tousled, she’d never know. But there was a peace flowing through him that she’d not felt since they’d stood side by side. A peace she’d not interrupt for the world.

[anartistinahat]

What if they had human desguises or were humans?

Time for me to point out detail no one will notice or cares about

courtney, she/they

-i gave her a snake tongue since they have one and i thought itd be cool

-I gave her a gap between her canine teeth and all of her front teeths cuz i thought itd be a nice replacement for the two point teeth

-the spike piercings on her ear are a reference to her tiny horns, and the piercing on the nose is a reference to her tail

-the jacket is the same jacket she wears on the comic

-her bracelets are a replacement/reference of her shackles

-the hoop earrings are meaning to something (halo)

-yes. I gave em a non-binary pin(i thought it'd go well with her outfit)

pugsley, he/him

-i really didnt wanna make him too similar to the comic and i accidently went ALL THE WAY TO THE OTHER SIDE

-i gave him vitiligo cuz i thought itd be kinda cool cuz of those darker spots he has

-i gave him green eyes cuz he has green eyes in the comic(or at least in the cover)

-i gave him some bruises cuz i think if he was human he most likely would be just as hyperactive as a dog

-the bite mark is cuz i thought itd be a cool way to translate a dog's bite into everything, thats also why his finger is patched, he bites on it too much

-hes also supposed to be a kid(tho i dont think i made him look like it)

-i kinda wanted to make him look like the guttman family but as i kept getting ideas i accidently made him TOO far from the family and now he's actually adopted

-(funny moment: as i drew him i thought "huh, i think he'd be autistic if he was a human" but i think ADHD fits a bit better)

fingers, he/they

-i thought making him white would be PAINFULLY OBVIOUS so i made him a darker skin

-i didnt add the blush cuz i thought it looked weird

-i decided to make the eyes tatto into a suit pin(but its definitly tattoed somewhere)

-(Not much to say he was actually pretty easy, tho i wanted to make him older but i dont think it looks like it)

(small hc time, i think its cool that all paranormal creatures uses they/them with/without any other pronouns like he/she/it etc)

[cxyotl]

Endermen stuff now 👍

-Endermen are an Enderian race, meaning they come from the End Realm. That said, Endermen can live in all three realms with ease. In the case of Netherian Endermen, they even evolved to better adapt.

-Endermen live under a monarchy, with the ruler being decided by their relationship to the previous rulers. This ruler has a council that provides advice and protection to them and their family. The ruler can be any gender and any age.

-The council cannot be changed with each ruling, but when a member of it passes away, they are replaced under discretion of the rest of the council. The monarch has no say in who is chosen.

-Endermen have strict social cues and codes, usually pertaining to very high senses of justice. For this reason, Endermen are often welcomed into other realm’s kingdoms as advisors, guardians, or jurors.

-Enderpearls are an organ connected to the heart. When a heart rate or adrenaline spikes, the pearl activates to teleport an Enderman to safety. Endermen can control where they go, but rely on the pearl to keep them safe if they freeze up. Less than one percent of all endermen are born without these pearls.

-The Ender Dragon is a symbol of protection for all endermen, since they rely on her to keep them and their cities safe. Council endermen are always present at her nest, whether it is activated as a portal or not.

-Purple eyes and black skin are the most common traits in endermen, but some are born with white skin, patched skin, red eyes, yellow eyes, or green eyes depending on genetics. The genetic code for patched skin is linked to the code for being born without a pearl.

-Endermen diet consists of fruit and endermites, which are actually related to rodents rather than bugs. Chorus fruit is the only plant that grows within the Enderian realm, and it strengthens the enderpearl to the point that even if someone eats it and doesn’t have an enderpearl, they teleport at random.

-Endermen write in Galactic Standard, but their language is more complex with whistles, “vwoops”, and crackling noises. They tend to mimic english due to language sharing, but have their own words. Nonverbal communication is also key, with certain hand signals, ear and tail flicks, and blinks meaning different things. Eye contact is always a sign of disrespect, challenge, and distrust.

-Endermen are highly empathetic, leaning into others cultures with relative ease and even adopting non-Enderians as family as long as their codes are respected as well. Unfortunately, their pearls are of great value and it wasn’t until recently that they’ve trusted others enough to fully open their cities and trust to others again.

-During a war between Piglins and Endermen, many pearls were farmed and the Endermen were driven into the blue forests of the Nether. Relations between the two have improved, but enderpearls left over from the war still exist in Piglin clans to be traded off and many Nether-dwelling Endermen stay within the warped forests.

-Endermen place high value on knowledge, placing libraries upon libraries in their Overworld strongholds for people to read about them, their culture, and their discoveries. Science and engineering are particularly important, with inventions like flying ships and elytra wings being high value and actually quite common.

[chaosdoesnotdefineme]

OMG PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DRAW THEM!!!

To go deeper into the way the deities work;

All of them have special items, where their live force is tied to. They’re immortal as long those items stay intact. as soon as they break, they can die or be killed line any other mortal.

To prevent anything from happening, all the deities get to choose a person that holds their artifact. These people are usually also immortal, as long as they hold on to the item.

I actually forgot to mention that everyone could be blessed by any deity. Some people have multiple blessings. If a parent is blessed before having a child, that child will also receive that blessing and can pass it on to future children.

Now some physical description of the girls (definitely not so that you can draw them):

Elle has dirty blonde, shoulder length hair that’s pin-straight (hair ties slip right out of it straight) and pale green eyes. She is quite pale in general and has a LOT of freckles.

She likes to dress somewhere between fairy-grunge and cryptid-core. She adores wearing long sleeve sweaters/flannels with shorts.

She always wears a chocker with a star pendant that Blanca gave her and a hair-clip in the shape of a flower with a purple stone in the middle (The stone is a soulstone, which is essentially a persons soul captured in a cristal. If the soul in the stone was blessed, the person that carries the soulstone can temporarily gain the powers of it. The clip also turns into a sword).

the main colour in her design is a dirty light green.

Her powers are: talking to and seeing dead people and resurrection (she has to learn this, It’s really hard)

After getting possessed by Mona, Amaias Artifact holder (I really need to give them a name), while resurrecting Blanca (Oh yeah, she does that while defeating Aviya. Blanca then kinda takes his place.), Elle is like a saint for grief. When people are grieving and calling on her, her bodie passes out while her spirit is going to help the grieving person. She also has a big, fluffy, black service dog called Laika for this :)

Anya is Desi and a wolf-shapeshifter. She has long, wavy, black hair and very dark eyes. Over her lip she has a mole.

She dresses punk, her default outfit being her fave leather or jeans jacket with a lot of pins and patches and her black combat boots.

She has a spiked collar and black and white rings on her middle fingers (AroAce queen) that she frequently wears.

Her main colour-scheem consider its of mainly black, silver and purple.

She can shapeshift into a wolf (duh) and also, due to her blessing of Munin, read and alter thoughts/memories (Though it takes a lot of energy and she was never properly trained to do it, so she rarely does it).

May is the tallest of the group (Elle is the shortest). She is a black tgirl and likes to wear her hair either in cornrows or space-buns. Her eyes are hazel and she has the lightest sprinkle of freckles.

She should be wearing glasses, but never does, and this squints at everything.

She likes to wear quite femme clothes often consisting of crop-tops, skirts and lots of gold jewelry.

The main colours in her colour-scheem are yellow and white.

May is a healer, has a vast knowledge of the human body and likes herbology (she can and will poison you if you annoy her).

If there is anything else you wanna know about them, fell free to ask :) (please, I wanna talk about them)

ok, @guess-ill-dye you asked about my OCs, now bear the consequences.

beware this post is rlly long

First of I need to explain a bit of the world-building;

In the beginning there was nothing. Only darkness and the freezing Cold. Out of that nothingness Aviya was born. Aviya was the first light, warmth and life itself. He created the world as we know it. But with life there comes death, and with it Amaia.

Over time, more and more deities weee born. Fauna, the Animals and wildlife and her sister Flora, the plants and flowers, Munin, the moon and the memories of the past, Morgan, the water that flows over our planet and Ojuna, the love that inhabits every being on earth. There’s also a bunch if smaller more insignificant deities like Celia, the deity of the seasons.

All of the major deities have regions to them self, with different cultures and practices dedicated to their deity. In the middle of the map is Aviya‘s region, the capital.

At first it was one singular big culture with Aviya being seen as the most powerful and important of the deities, because he was the first and also „created“ the others. But over time the different cultures started to separate and Aviya had less controll and overall was worshipped less.

He grew jealous and yearned for the times where he was the biggest. He made it his mission to overtake the other deities‘ cultures and make them center around him again.

Because he felt Amaia was the exact opposite of him and destroyed everything he created he started with hers.

Fast forward a couple hundred years into the furure, is where the story actually takes place.

Elleonora grows up on a farm in a small town outside the capital. She lives there quite happily with her mom, dad and brother, until her father leaves seemingly out of nowhere.

Elle is blessed by Amaia, wich causes her a great deal of trouble and bullying in the small town under Aviyas rule. Her father was the only one really understanding and protecting her. With him gone her mother and everyone else have free reign to bully, ridicule and abise her.

She grows up mainly playing on her own in the forests surrounding the town, playing with the wolfs and wild dogs that life there.

Until she meets Blanca, who becomes her best friend and later her lover.

Elles mother does not approve of Blanca and her daughters relationship, and shoots the former after catching them in the barn behind the house.

Elle runs away and meets Anya, a wolf shapeshifter blessed by Fauna.

Anyas family is blessed by Munin, and was killed when Aviya took over the tribe. She fled to the nearest woods, was adopted by a pack of wolfs and blessed by Fauna.

She joined a rebellion against Aviya and is recruiting new members until she meets Elle. She joins in hopes she can avenge Blanca.

Together, Elle and Anya go to the Capital, where they stay at a cemetery run by Alfred, a member of the rebellion who is also blessed by Luci, the deity of the soul.

In the capital they’re joined by May, a girl from a family of great doctors, all blessed by Emmi, the deity of healing, that holds her up to dangerously high standards.

together they go on a journey to be able to fully end and, in order to maintain balance, replace Aviya.

There’s like much more details that i’m just to lazy to write down right now ^~^ You‘re still very welcome to send me asks about more details though!!

[youmakemyhearthowl]

Punk Princess

Ao3| Part 1| Part 2| Part 3| Part 4| Part 5 | Part 6| Part 7| Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10| Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 (Next Part)

Something is off.

He’s not exactly sure what it is, but thing’s feel different with Steve, and it's twisting his heart a bit, because he figured once he apologized things would go back to how they were. The flirting, the banter, all of it. But Steve feels distant in a way he never had, even when this all first started. 

But Steve still hangs out with them during their free period, and still braids Max and El’s hair on Tuesday when he holds the campaign for the kids. So he can’t quite figure out why he and Steve haven’t fallen back into that easy relationship they’ve had the last few months. He tries to breach whatever is holding them back by throwing in his usual flirtations on Thursday at Hellfire.

“Hey Princess, I’ve got your minis and everything set up for you.” He purrs, motioning for Steve to sit in his usual seat next to Eddie's throne, and the look he receives in return makes his heart fall to his ass.

A sharp hurt flashes in Steve’s eyes, giving them a slightly glassy look, before his features relax into an easy, empty indifference, pulling the sleeves of his oversized yellow sweater under his vest over his hands. Eddie notes there's a part in the fabric of the vest where it looks darker then the rest, like a patch had been taken off, and he’s suddenly struck with the realization that it’s the one that was a large gothic scripted E.

Throughout the entire session Eddie keeps trying to fit in flirtations with Steve, only to be met with that same empty look, and Eddie’s at a loss. Had he done something else wrong? He’d apologized so he didn’t understand what was still holding this massive distance between them.

Steve practically runs out of the room after the session is over, the rest of Hellfire following behind after offering a goodbye and sharp looks in Eddie's direction.

Okay seriously what the hell ?

Once he’s finished packing up he turns around and lets out a startled yelp to see Robin standing next to the door with her arms crossed over her chest, the spikes on her blue wash jean jacket flashing in the overhead lights.

“You’ve got some fucking nerve, Munson.” Her voice is hard, a tone he’s never heard from her before and he stumbles back a step at the force of it.

“It’s one thing to act like that half assed apology you spouted counted for anything, and the blatant flirting maybe I could turn a blind eye to, but to use his fucking.. God what's the word.. His honorific to refer to him when you made it pretty fucking clear that you don’t really see him as anything other then who he used to be. That’s fucking disgusting Eddie.”

What?

Eddie stumbles back further, hand reaching out to grasp the top of his throne to keep him standing as he blinks back at the girl in front of him. His entire world feels like it’s tilting on its axis.

“Unbelievable.” She shakes her head before slamming out of the room and leaving Eddie feeling like the rug just got pulled out from under him. He’d meant the apology he’d given Steve. He was sorry for how he had acted, so what exactly was he missing here?

“Hang on, wait a second, Robin.” He calls out after her, leaving his backpack abandoned on the floor in the drama room, slamming his elbow on the door in his haste.

“Robin, Jesus, slow down, hang on. What the fuck are you talking about?” Reaching out he places his hand on her shoulder to get her to stop, nearly falling backwards on his ass when she whips around on him.

“What am I talking about? Eddie are you that fucking dense?” That hard tone is still lacing her words and she was never someone Eddie would have described as scary before, but in this moment he was absolutely terrified of her, the green highlights in her hair giving her a dark aura as she steps up into his space. 

“You are that dense.”  She sounds surprised, which only softens her tone slightly, her eyes dancing over his face like she can see past the skin and bones directly into everything that makes him Eddie.

“Eddie you practically spat his past in his face and told him he was no better then who he used to be, because he wanted his fucking friends at his game. You stomped on every step he’s taken to change and be better and basically told him because he still loved basketball he was a piece of shit. I had to fucking… Eddie I had to console him for an hour after what you did, and he’s still walking around like a ghost of himself. You’re fucking smart, I know you are. So think about it a little and figure out where the hell you thought that bullshit apology about ‘overreacting’ would be anywhere, anywhere good enough to make up for the way you basically tore everything that he is to shreds.” She turns on her heels then, pulling her shoulder from under his grasp as she starts to make her way towards the Exit.

“And don’t you dare call him Princess until you’ve been given explicit permission by him to use it again. You should know better.” and with that she’s gone. Leaving Eddie to question everything he’s done the last week.

Steve not meeting his eyes, the heartbreakingly sad look that haunted him at the beginning of the school year coming back. The way Steve hadn’t been in or anywhere near Eddie's space since he spewed venom at Steve. 

Steve didn’t even think that Eddie saw him as a person anymore, let alone a friend. He hadn’t just been an asshole, he’d been everything he hated in other people. He’d been unnecessarily cruel.

Unnecessarily cruel to probably the best person Eddie’s ever had the pleasure of calling a friend, or whatever it was they were heading in the direction of. He’d broken Steve's heart.

He’d broken Steve's heart.

God how do you even fix that? How do you come back from that? 

Eddie needed to talk to Gareth.

Ao3| Part 1| Part 2| Part 3| Part 4| Part 5 | Part 6| Part 7| Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10| Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 (Next Part)

[mwolf0epsilon]

Revived Shifter Initiative - Case Files

A series of files found on an Imperial Outpost that was taken over and partially destroyed by a Rebel cell. The information seems to have been sent from an as of yet unknown sector.

EDIT: Updated some information pertaining Cody's shift.

---

Test Subject ID: SC-1010 (formerly CC-1010)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Vjun Fox Genetic Sequencing (Donated by Emperor Sheev Palpatine in the form of a rare taxidermy specimen)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Unsatisfactory. Test subject survived injection of serum F10-X and appeared to have grown an extra appendage (tail), but otherwise does not display any other significant changes or shapeshifting abilities.

Notes: This specific unit was requested specifically by the Emperor himself as a form of personal entertainment. However, due to failure to properly convert it into the desired product, the head scientist (Dr Sulu Ra) in charge of the Revived Shifter Initiative has decided to keep the subject contained as a case study. Whatever we may learn from this subject will help provide answers as to why this specific serum did not get rejected by the host body and end with catastrophic organ failure like with previous attempts.

-

Test Subject ID: SC-1954 (Formerly CT-1954)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Zillo Beast Genetic Sequencing (Acquired from the former Republic Science and Technical Center)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Unsatisfactory. Test subject survived the injection of serum Z11-L and suffered visual mutations that, while more significant and useful than those of subject SC-1010's, are still not what this project calls for. There is still nothing to show in terms of shapeshifter abilities.

Notes: Subject has grown highly durable (forest green) armored platting all over its body (reminiscent of the Zillo Beast's scales and crested spikes), as well as acquired a few reptilian features such as glowing green eyes and a forked tongue. A few tests have been performed to test the sturdiness of this natural armor and (thus far) the subject has endured extreme temperatures and even close range blaster fire without more than a few flinches and whimpers (likely a leftover reaction from when it was purely a Fett clone). An explosives test is in order to see if the armor platting will still hold strong even under the force of a powerful blast.

-

Test Subject ID: SC-6209 (formerly CT-6209)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Gutkurr Genetic Sequencing (Extracted from a fresh specimen encountered on a recent expedition to Ryloth)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Failure. Although subject has displayed less visual mutations (aside from eye coloration shifting to red, patches of carapace growing over certain areas of the body, segmentation of the digits and growth of claw like spikes instead of finger and toe nails) and partial shapeshifting abilities, it cannot control these changes and reacts violently to any sort of stimulus added to its cage. Be it tools of enrichment or even research team members. Due to the random nature of its shifting it has thusly been marked as a much less satisfactory result than previous test subjects.

Notes: The head scientist (Dr Sulu Ra) in charge of this project has argued fervently with his assistant (Dr Nala Se) over what caused this test subject's sudden behavioral issues. They are not in agreement as to whether it is the Gutkurr's predisposition for violence the true cause of these problems, or if the subject itself was simply not fit for this project due to unrelated trauma acquired during the war. Whatever the case, this test subject is to be locked up more tightly than the others due to it's unpredictability.

-

Test Subject ID: SC-2209 (formerly CT-2209)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Boar-wolf Genetic Sequencing (the acquisition of this particular specimen's DNA has not been disclosed)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Satisfactory. While not a complete fix from the last attempt (Serum GTK-0), subject has displayed no visual mutations and has acquired partial shifting abilities that are more controllable than its predecessor's. Serum BW0-F shall thusly be used as a secondary base for future serums along with serum F10-X.

Notes: This particular subject has no noticeable behavioral issues like its predecessor, however its appetite has greatly increased and it has gained a more carnivorous dietary requirement. Another noteworthy issue is that its teeth (even while in human form) seem to grow at the same rate as that of an actual Boar-wolf's. It is important to provide it with items with which it can naturally wear down its own teeth.

-

Test Subject ID: SC-4477 (formerly CC-4477)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Tusk Cat Genetic Sequencing (to extract this particular genetic sequencing, the research team was given by the Emperor a live specimen that bore the Amidala family crest on its saddle)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Unsatisfactory. Like with subject SC-1010 this subject displays no shapeshifter abilities, instead having a far too noticeable visual mutation and nothing more (its entire head has morphed into that of a Tusk Cat's). It is likely that serum TKC-4 was created with improper doses of serums BW0-F and F10-X, with the latter likely coming off stronger than the former. This imbalance should be worked upon before moving on to the next test subject.

Notes: This is not much of a perk, but it seems even with its head trans-mutated into that of a wild animal's, the subject is capable of perfectly eloquent speech (it has cursed out the entire research team in various languages, including huttese).

-

Test Subject ID: SC-6922 (formerly CT-6922)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Oggdo Genetic Sequencing (acquiring this specific specimen's DNA was no easy feat and has cost us three members of our expedition team)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Failure. Attempts to correct the issue with serum TKC-4 were made in the creation of serum OGD-0, however it seems the dosage balance issues were inverted rather than balanced, resulting in visually mutations much more drastic than in past test subjects. This subject is thus incapable of both shapeshifting and is permanently trapped in a half-way form. Neither man nor animal.

Notes: Unlike with its predecessor, subject is unable to speak due to its tongue having changed to become longer and prehensile, filling the mouth cavity rather uncomfortably (subject has nearly choked on own tongue several times until it acclimated to this particular change). It seems to also have issues with controlling its tail, as well as getting easily confused by the third eye it has grown. It rarely leaves a corner of its cage (subject has been recorded weeping).

-

Test Subject ID: SC-5052 (formerly CC-5052)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Carrier butterflies Genetic Sequencing (This particular specimen was not approved and the culprit behind tampering with this subject has been terminated)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Failure. Due to tampering by an unauthorized party, subject underwent a much more catastrophic transition than previous subjects. Not only is it permanently stuck in the diminutive form of a carrier butterfly (of highly unusual and incorrect coloration), subject has no shapeshifter abilities and is unable to perform any form of military combat due to the limitations of its form. Unlike with actual carrier butterflies however, subject does display incredible healing abilities that might be of use for the creation of future subjects. Serum CB-Y is thus not a complete waste of resources it seems.

Notes: Like with subject SC-4477, SC-5052 is capable of coherent and eloquent speech. This subject rarely speaks however, often sitting in the middle of its cage listlessly staring at the walls instead. No one is quite sure what has caused it to behave like this.

-

Test Subject ID: SC-2224 (formerly CC-2224)

Genetic Templates: Human DNA (Provided by Subject Jango Fett during the separatist war) + Greater Krayt Dragon Genetic Sequencing (this particular DNA sequence was acquired illegally from the Bounty Hunter known as Boba Fett) + Implantation of Control Crystal (to enable remote control by Lord Vader)

Objective: Convert subject into a SC (Shapeshifter Clone) unit with the ability to change between human form and animal form.

Results: Success. After several hundreds of attempts (and failures), we have finally fully converted an otherwise standard Clone Commander into a Shapeshifter Clone. Enough data was accumulated to eventually create not only a perfect serum formula (in this case serum GKD-4) but also to help our team realize that, to properly control both the subject in human and shifted form, a new measure (in this case the implantation of a kyber crystal tampered with by dark side energy encased within a pearl-like protective casing) needed to be implemented to substitute a functional inhibitor chip (seeing as most seem to have begun decaying over time). Subject SC-2224 has been dispatched for field testing, and the chosen handler for this unit is Lord Vader himself, who is the only one capable of establishing a Force bond with the "control crystal" due to having been the one to provide it in the first place.

Notes: It appears this unit was commissioned to hunt the supposedly still living Jedi Master Obi-wan Kenobi. Lord Vader appears to believe this subject's past working relationship with the fugitive Jedi Master, would make it the ideal weapon to both hunt and bring him down. Dr Sulu Ra does not believe this will be the case, but seems very pleased with the results of the perfected base formula.

[blank-vessel]

L smirked, he wasn’t embarrassed at all, “Oh yeah, I’d expect nothing less from you, you’re the boss.” He teased, “But by all means feel free to test your strap game on me anytime.” He chuckled giving her a look. He was so glad he could finally get high after so long of not being able to get high or drunk or any sort of toxin induced state. “Damn right you should be proud.” He praised her before he eased back to just try and relax. But seeing Cinder made him feel weird, his power shifted and stirred as of threatening to lash out and make him loose control, it would be the first time.

When Izzy waved him over he was quick to just order a drink, he felt the power flash down his arm as he made a seemingly random choice. He kept his spiked boots on the table and just leaned back his crop top riding up some to flash scars from rituals, fights and beatings. His hoodie was tied around his waist after being patched up, so his clothes were revealed, pushing a hand through his hair he hadn’t noticed the roots of his hair had turned white and the closer the god got the more his power reacted and coiled like a snake waiting to strike, his eyes flickered between green and blood red and then he couldn’t help but laugh, “Isn’t he always? But if you’re giving attention I sure wouldn’t mind some hot stuff.” Now why did he call him that?

The ward knew Carson wouldn’t dare get rid of him, not when he was exactly what he wanted and needed to bring his precious god to him. So instead L just lived the way he wanted, he did everything he could to make Carson’s life hell, to make him waste money and the benefits were that he could get what he wanted so his surgeries were done all too easily and he revelled in it. Still he knew he had a bit of a bad rep and he didn’t care, anything was better than being a saint to a cult determined to end humanity as they knew it.

He had snuck out yet again, still baring bandages from his last disciplinary chat in the office. But he didn’t care, not one bit. So he headed out to the bar and just kept the drinks flowing, after so many rituals his body had started to change and he didn’t get affected by alcohol so easily. Well that was until someone had mistaken him for a woman due to his long hair and slapped his ass, which resulted in him smashing a bottle against the man’s head kicking off another fight.

He gave as much as he got, he kicked, punched, bit and used anything he could get his hands on for a weapon. Bottles, glasses, stools and at the end of it he grabbed a persons head and slammed it so hard into the table it broke. Standing there panting blood dripped from his now, he had a busted lip and a black eye, he was cut from a knife someone had pulled and his knuckles were split and bloody, turning his head he spat out blood and part of a tooth before he heard the bar door open, he turned and saw blue, he blinked then squinted and turned to face her, “Damn Bitch what time do you call this? You missed all the fun!” He exclaimed stamping on someone’s balls as he walked over to the woman, “This place is shit, wanna go grab drinks elsewhere?” He asked his best friend with a smirk.

@izzyfromdeadspace