#they only survive because of the unbreakable twin bond

[taylor-titmouse]

saw someone do a "what if my ocs were in the dungeon meshi shapeshifter situation" thing which was fun and then i thought about it for the bandits in my next book (vanesse, samwell, markie and georgie)

and then i had to think about markie and georgie. who are identical twins.

who would each have a perception of the other. and then vanesse and samwell would each have a perception of them both.

which means there would be. eight of them. and they would all look exactly the fucking same. and i got scared.

[the-au-thor]

A la velocidad de la Luz | pt.1 | Steve Harrington x Reader

A/N: Heyyy, I’ve got a lot to do, but I’m kinda tired. English isn’t my first language, so I usually have to translate my fanfics. Just wanted to drop this post so you guys know the tragic thing that happened to me 😩. I’m working on translating Babysitting Munson ASAP to update it soon. Sorry for the delay! 💔

Summary: Steve and you seem like you’re friends? And he seems super observant. You need him, and he knows it. Let’s see how you fall for him and what Steve Harrington’s love language is.

Trigger Warning: click here

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Female Reader

Steve recognized the signs as soon as he saw you that movie night on Friday.

After the traumatic events you all had endured, it was only natural that you formed an almost unbreakable bond. A connection that linked the fancy house in the upscale neighborhood with the humble trailer from the wrong side of the tracks. A bond that defied logic, bringing together different ages, circumstances, and tastes into a group that religiously gathered every Friday to binge on popcorn and watch horror films. Afterward, everyone would stay over because, for some reason, no one wanted to go home or be apart. You all needed each other to keep going, though it wasn’t something anyone would openly admit. It was an unspoken agreement, one everyone was perfectly fine with.

This constant practice of coexisting made Steve more observant. He had discovered he genuinely enjoyed taking care of others and that his complaints about it were just part of a ritual. Dustin would insist he absolutely needed to go somewhere, and only Steve could take him. After grumbling, insisting he wasn’t a babysitter, and complaining about wasting his time, Steve would grab his keys and drive him wherever he needed to go. He could predict stomachaches after the kids devoured too much candy and was always ready with antacids and chicken soup. He broke up bar fights at The Hideout to make sure Corroded Coffin’s gigs didn’t get ruined, and Hopper didn’t get unnecessary calls. He had been there for Robin, Nancy, Argyle, Jonathan, and each of the kids. Maybe that’s why Hopper had suggested police academy. And maybe that’s why Steve felt like all of you were the reason he wasn’t that lost kid with a terrible social life anymore, unsure of what to do with his future.

You glanced at him with a small smile during the bathroom break Nancy had enforced after Dustin got a UTI from holding it during Freddy’s killings scenes.

“What?” you asked, tossing a handful of popcorn into your mouth as you turned to face him.

Steve didn’t know you well before Hawkins’ catastrophic events pulled you all together. You were Robin’s friend in high school and worked with Nancy on the school paper. You admitted you didn’t share Nancy’s reporter spirit—you just liked writing and thought being on the paper would look good on a college application. He vaguely remembered seeing you at some parties because Vicky’s twin brother, Justin Carmichael, had tried to date you. Steve recalled Justin whining for a week about how he’d taken you to the best party of the year, and you hadn’t even let him get to first base. Deep down, Steve was glad. Justin Carmichael was an idiot, as dumb as Steve had once been.

After graduation, you met again during the last Hawkins disaster, which almost none of you survived. You were attending Indiana University during the week, but you came home on weekends because, unlike Steve’s parents, yours genuinely loved having you around and cared about your interests. That explained your nurturing, always-ready-to-listen demeanor. Steve thought it wasn’t surprising he hadn’t noticed you before. The old Steve wouldn’t have looked twice at someone like you because he’d been a selfish idiot back then. He’d proved it with Nancy and had to suffer a lot before proving to himself he was more than what his parents or old friends expected of him.

“You okay?” Steve asked, hearing Lucas and Max whispering as they kissed on a couch in the back.

Robin was in the kitchen, microwaving more popcorn while Nancy caught her up on her long-distance relationship with Jonathan. Steve always knew they’d make it work; they were just that kind of couple. Dustin had gone to the bathroom, while Will laughed at Mike and El’s petty argument, which Eddie occasionally fueled with sarcastic commentary.

You held Steve’s gaze for a moment before nodding. “Of course. Finally on break. I missed not having to pack every weekend,” you said with a small smile. “And I’ll get a break from Professor Lewis’s lectures.”

Steve winced. “Still giving you a hard time?”

You nodded. “To the last second of class. I don’t know how I’ll get through next year if he keeps this up. I have no idea what I did to him.”

Steve frowned. “Some people are just bitter, you know? Maybe he’s jealous of how talented you are.”

You wrinkled your nose, letting out a dry laugh. “He’s a Times writer. Jealous? Please.”

Steve shrugged. “Maybe he sees something in you he’ll never have. Adults project their crap onto younger people all the time.”

You studied him in silence, popping another piece of popcorn into your mouth before asking, “How’s your dad taking you being the first in the academy by the way?”

Steve let out a short laugh. “Oh, he’s thrilled. Especially since Hopper was basically his nemesis in high school when they were both on the basketball team.” He took two big sips of Coke.

You smirked. “Speaking of adults who project…”

Steve chuckled, watching you dig through your bag for your medication. He remembered the first time you’d shown everyone your pills. It was after closing the gate for good, when the government stashed you in a fancy hotel while cleaning up Hawkins—and Eddie’s reputation. You were safe for the first time in ages, but none of you could sleep. You’d been holed up in that hotel suite for 24 hours, ordering the most expensive food on the menu and playing video games nonstop. But when Eddie spent three hours curled up on his bed without actually resting, you’d had enough.

Steve had watched as you stood up, turned off the TV, and took Argyle’s pasta tray. No one even had the energy to protest. You stood in your hotel robe, exhaustion in your eyes, and declared, “All right. I’m about to do something I shouldn’t, and you have to promise not to tell your parents. Yes, Erica, I mean you specifically,” you said, leveling a stern gaze at her. Then, you started handing out small capsules to everyone except Erica, who got melatonin gummies.

“What’s this?” Dustin asked, sniffing the pill.

“These are my sleeping pills,” you explained calmly. “They’re mild, but you guys haven’t slept in days. So here’s the deal: we’re going to pretend I’m not breaking the law here. Everyone will take one—trust me, the dose is low—and don’t freak out if you taste something bitter. And you all have to promise to see a doctor after this, because what we’ve been through isn’t normal, and you need help.”

Eddie didn’t hesitate. He swallowed his pill, got into bed, and wished everyone goodnight. One by one, the kids followed, and Steve helped you and Robin dim the lights as everyone found a spot to sleep.

In the quiet, Steve had whispered, “Didn’t know you took sleeping pills.”

You’d hesitated, then admitted, “I started having panic attacks when I was 15. They diagnosed me with PTSD because I...well, went through some shit as a kid. There were too many sleepless nights—it wrecked everything. The pills help.” Your voice was steady, but Steve could hear the pain beneath your words. “With therapy and support, it gets better. These pills are nothing compared to what I used to take. It’s like I got a piece of myself back.”

“Thanks for sharing that. You’re strong, you know?” Steve said, his voice soft with sleep.

Your hand had reached across Robin to give his arm a reassuring squeeze. “Goodnight, Steve.”

Now, watching you down two capsules, Steve frowned. “Two? That’s new.”

You nodded, taking a sip of water. “I’ve been having issues with my dosage. I’ll see the doctor over break and get it sorted.”

Steve’s brows furrowed with concern. “Want me to come with you?”

You shook your head with a quick smile. “And have you waiting an hour while my psychiatrist goes through my baggage? No thanks. But I appreciate it.”

Steve leaned back into the couch, his eyes not leaving you. “Offer stands, though.”

You smiled, genuinely touched. “Thanks.”

Eddie chose that moment to plop down between you and Steve, flashing a mischievous grin at his friend as he wedged into the space. Steve rolled his eyes, resigned, and focused on the movie. But even during the tensest scenes, he couldn’t help but glance at you, his worry lingering. Despite the pills, you didn’t yawn once.

The next morning, you were the first one up, already showered and dressed in your athletic shorts and oversized The Clash T-shirt, making breakfast for the sleepyheads still sprawled out on the couch and carpet, snoring away. Nancy was the next to join you, followed by Robin and Argyle.

Steve eventually got up too, greeting the early risers with a groggy smile before heading to his room for a quick shower. He came back downstairs to help out, finding Nancy making waffles while you focused on the eggs. Taking the initiative, he filled the coffee maker with his dad’s favorite blend—a coffee the man rarely drank himself since he was hardly ever home.

"Shouldn't we wake them up?" Nancy asked as she flipped another waffle onto the stack. "I mean, they were the ones so excited about going to the lake."

“Sis, it’s vacation time; you can’t go all dictator on them. They’ll wake up when they do,” Argyle murmured in his usual laid-back tone.

Nancy huffed but didn’t argue with his logic. Instead, she piled the waffles on a platter and leaned against Steve’s kitchen island, looking at you.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

You had stayed silent, focused on the eggs, your gaze lost in the pan. You nodded, flipping the eggs once before turning off the stove. Turning to Nancy with a smile, you replied, “I’m fine. Have you had it rough at school?”

Nancy rolled her eyes. “I swear, if I have to do group projects again, I’m going to lose it,” she grumbled, prompting a chuckle from Eddie, who was lounging amidst the cushions, watching everyone.

“Come on, Wheeler,” Eddie laughed. “You’ve worked with us, and that’s turned out fine. What could be worse?”

Robin walked past him, tossing her black cardigan—full of intentional holes Eddie had made to make it look “metal”—onto his face. As Eddie pulled it off, Robin raised an eyebrow at him.

“Don’t you have any shame, Munson?”

Steve let out a mocking laugh as he poured coffee into a couple of mugs.

“Yeah, dude. What’s up with stripping in the middle of the night?”

Eddie struggled to get dressed and clumsily got up from the couch.

“Well, next time, you share a couch on a hot summer night with Henderson, okay?” he grumbled, glancing over at Dustin, who was still sleeping soundly with his mouth open. Eddie threw a blanket at him, yelling, “Wake up!”

Dustin jolted awake, looking alarmed, but calmed down when he saw that everyone was fine and the worst thing that had happened was the drool stain on one of the cushions of Steve’s parents’ sofa. Steve slowly approached the couch, picking up the stained cushion, glaring at Dustin with a mix of annoyance and disbelief.

“Dude, this sofa is worth thousands of dollars. My mom is going to lose it when she sees this,” he protested, tossing the cushion at Dustin, who wasn’t fazed by the scolding and instead smirked, even looking proud of himself as he sprawled back on the couch.

Steve’s house was chaotic for the next few minutes. Forks scraped against the plates, definitely leaving marks Steve’s mom would notice. Eddie, in particular, was too aggressive cutting his bacon. Nancy ensured everything was washed in an orderly manner, arguing it was better to clean up now than be too exhausted to deal with it later. You, Robin, and Steve followed her lead without question because no one wanted to argue with Nancy Wheeler. Meanwhile, Argyle, Eddie, and Jonathan dried and put everything away. The kids prepared for an afternoon at the lake.

When you all arrived, everyone spread out on lounge chairs and oversized towels, and most of the group dove straight into the water. Steve watched as you approached with a bottle of sunscreen, making everyone apply it to their backs, arms, faces, and shoulders—even amid Mike’s small protests about it being unnecessary.

You all swam for a while, ate popsicles, and held little swimming races. Steve faked a cramp so Dustin could win one of the races. Steve didn’t know you had noticed, but you did, smiling quietly at his small act of kindness.

Steve wasn’t the type to open up emotionally in front of a group—that was more Eddie’s style. He wouldn’t stand in the middle of a bonfire to confess how much he cared about everyone, but moments like this made him incredibly happy. He had always been alone but hadn’t realized it was a problem until he met all of you. Now, under the warm, glowing sun near the horizon, he could quietly admire the happiness of being surrounded by friends.

The kids were still splashing around with Robin, Eddie, and Argyle. Jonathan and Nancy swam further out, exchanging kisses and chatting softly. You gave Will a hug, kissed his cheek, and playfully squished the other one, making him laugh before he gently pushed you away. Then, you splashed water at his face and messed up his hair, swimming back toward the shore with strong strokes. When your feet reached the rocky bottom, you waded out, grabbed the towel next to Steve, and flopped onto it to dry off in the sun.

Steve watched you push your wet hair to one side through his sunglasses, noticing the tiny water droplets glistening on your skin before disappearing or evaporating. Silently, you put on your sunglasses, pulled out one of the books you always carried, and began to read. He observed your fingers flipping through the pages and the way your tongue peeked out between your lips as you concentrated on finding your place in the story. Smiling to himself, he adjusted his position on the towel and let out a contented sigh, soaking up the warmth of the sun.

“Can you imagine a man with an extraordinary sense of smell who starts killing people to extract the essence of the young women he murders?” you suddenly broke the silence, your eyes still on the book.

Steve frowned, amused. “No, but I mean… it’s not like we haven’t seen worse things than humans killing each other,” he replied with sarcasm, making you chuckle softly.

“Fair enough,” you said, wetting your finger to turn the page.

Steve cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably before turning toward you.

“Hey, I think you need to be careful with Will.”

That made you glance at him over the top of your sunglasses. Even though he couldn’t see your eyes directly, he could feel the weight of your gaze.

“Why? Is he going around sniffing people and plotting murders?”

Steve frowned. “What? No! What are you talking about?”

You set your book down on your stomach and gave him your full attention.

“Oh, no, it’s just that we were talking about the book, and then you mentioned Will… Having to explain a joke makes it tedious, doesn’t it?” you laughed, letting out a sigh of frustration as if suddenly feeling clumsy and awkward. “What’s going on with Will?”

Steve scratched the back of his neck, trying to piece his words together logically. Internally, he regretted starting the conversation without thinking it through.

“I don’t know. I think he might… maybe… have feelings for you. It’s not your fault; you’re just kind to him,” he paused, struggling to clarify his point. “I just think he might be misinterpreting things a little…”

You slid your sunglasses down the bridge of your nose to meet his eyes directly.

“Are you saying Will Byers has a little crush on me?” you asked slowly, wanting to avoid any misunderstanding.

Steve shifted uncomfortably, shrugging his shoulders and rubbing the tip of his nose. His eyes darted away from yours.

“Maybe,” was all he managed to say.

You adjusted your sunglasses back into place and smiled calmly before picking up your book again.

“Will doesn’t have a crush on me, Steve. At least not on me. Trust me, I know,” you reassured him softly, giving him one last glance. “Really.”

Steve didn’t know it, but you understood his concern all too well. There was a reason why you and Will were so close, why your relationship had deepened over time. It had as much to do with Will’s feelings as it didn’t. It wasn’t something you could explain—it wasn’t your story to tell.

You’d noticed something different about Will months ago, even before the Byers family moved to California. But you weren’t exactly friends back then. You’d tutored him a few times, but that didn’t give you the right to pry into his life. When the Byers returned to Hawkins, Will had become even quieter, more withdrawn, and solitary, even when surrounded by the group. You couldn’t help but get involved, especially the day Joyce called to ask if you could spare an hour on weekends to help Will with his English essays. He’d been losing focus more and more. Joyce’s sensitive side wanted to intervene, but her rational side told her to give him time to readjust.

That phone call left you worried for the rest of the week. By Saturday, when you saw it for yourself, you understood. The distraction in Will’s eyes wasn’t about being somewhere else, far from the room where you were trying to help him write an essay his teacher assigned to boost his grade. No, it was deeper. He was trapped inside himself, locked in a cell whose door was wide open, yet he was both comfortable and terrified to leave.

You remembered noticing an old school project from California tucked away under a pile of canvases. The drawings were incredible—realistic and impressionistic depictions of massive dragons and knights in shining armor wielding swords. The project itself was about Alan Turing, and the dedication in his work caught your attention. Dusting it off, you showed it to him, pointing out its potential.

“This is the Will I want to see in school,” you’d said.

When you looked up, you saw his eyes glisten with unshed tears, and that’s when you knew something was deeply wrong. The essay was forgotten as you sat beside him and took his hands. You promised to keep anything he shared in confidence and let him speak.

You’d never heard Will talk so much. His words surprised you—how he’d hidden his pain so well, how deeply rooted his loneliness had become. He was just a kid, experiencing his first heartbreak. The worst part? You couldn’t promise it would be his last. Life wasn’t going to be easy for him, and his future looked rocky at best. From that day on, you made sure to be there for him whenever he needed you. You even started planning a trip to the MET to fuel his enthusiasm for art.

Being the youngest sibling in your family, with three older brothers, you’d never really known what it was like to look after someone else until you met the kids. It made you happy to ensure everyone was okay. Now, you wanted to make sure Will had a good summer, that his heart healed, and that one day he’d meet a kind boy who could help pick up the pieces and mend whatever hate he might encounter.

It was pretty late by the time everyone decided to head home. The kids were dropped off at the Wheeler’s for a sleepover. Eddie invited the rest of you—Jonathan, Nancy, Argyle, Robin, and yourself—to one of his Corroded Coffin rehearsals at The Hideout. You were about to agree when Steve placed a hand on your shoulder, smiling.

“We’ve got plans,” he said casually.

You blinked at him in confusion, but when his hand pressed softly at your side, you went along with it. You all said goodbye outside the bar, and then you climbed into Steve’s car, curiosity buzzing inside you. Once both seatbelts were fastened, you turned to him.

“So... what exactly are these plans?”

“I was thinking we could do something. Just you and me.”

A date? you wondered, maybe naively. Steve Harrington and you, alone without the rest of the group? You couldn’t recall a single time you’d hung out with him one-on-one. Well, except that one time when you brought cookies to the academy.

He’d passed all his physical training exams, and you knew his parents wouldn’t bother to congratulate him. You’d organized a celebration with the gang, but you also wanted to do something special. You made his favorite cookies—crispy ones with cinnamon, caramel, and peanuts—and met him during his lunch break. He must’ve just finished a workout because the ends of his hair were still damp, and he was wearing shorts and a tank top. His skin glistened with drops of water his cheeks still flushed. A towel hung loosely around his neck, and he used one end to dab at his temple.

You’d been waiting for him in the reception area, a bright smile plastered across your face. Later that night, when intrusive thoughts came uninvited, you’d wondered if you’d looked like a lunatic standing there, grinning like that.

“What’s this?” Steve had asked, half-smiling as he eyed the box in your hands.

“Congrats on passing your physical exam,” you’d replied, holding the box out to him.

His expression shifted—gratitude mixed with something softer, sadder. Then, unexpectedly, he hugged you. You’d hugged before, usually after some life-threatening adventure, but this was different. His chin rested on your shoulder as his hands rubbed gently between your shoulder blades. You heard him sigh and thank you in a voice barely above a whisper.

When he pulled back, you were still on tiptoes, his hands resting on your shoulders. His eyes lingered on yours for a moment, and it felt like there was something unsaid between you. But it passed so quickly that you didn’t dwell on it. You never visited him at the academy again, despite having more than one excuse to. You weren’t sure why, but you felt the need to protect yourself, so you avoided being alone with Steve, steering clear of situations where the two of you might end up without the others around.

When you arrived at his house, a strange feeling washed over you. Steve must’ve noticed your furrowed brow or how you hesitated to leave the car, staring cautiously at the house. He walked around to your side, opened your door, and smiled at you in a way that inspired trust.

“There’s something I want to show you inside,” he said, holding out his hand.

You half-smiled, unsure how to feel—curious, maybe a little apprehensive. Taking his hand, you stepped out of the car and followed him to the door. His fingers stayed securely wrapped around yours, his thumb drawing calming circles on your palm every so often.

The house was just as you’d left it, except for a pillow slightly out of place on the expensive sofa. Steve led you upstairs, past strategically placed family photos his mom had hung. One, in particular, caught your attention—a studio portrait with a standard blue background and cartoonish clouds. In the middle was a baby in a sailor outfit, smiling wide.

You couldn’t help but grin. “Is that you?”

Steve chuckled. “Yeah, it’s me. What, you don’t like it?”

“I love it. Did you ever wish you had siblings?”

Steve glanced at you curiously but nodded. “Yeah, I did. My parents didn’t want more kids, though. By the time they changed their minds, it was too late. My dad says it’s because of my mom, but we all know better.”

You winced, recalling the one time you’d met Mr. Harrington. He’d introduced himself as Mr. Harrington, like he’d adopted the title as his first name. He seemed the type to blame his wife for his own failings.

“I always wanted younger siblings,” you murmured, running your finger lightly along the banister. “I guess now I’ve got some.”

“Yeah, and they’re a pain,” Steve grumbled, stopping outside a closed door and turning to look at you.

You smiled nervously. He was looking at you like that. What were you supposed to do? Shrugging, you muttered, “They’re not that bad.”

Steve’s gaze held yours, his brown eyes warm and unguarded in a way you didn’t see often. Then he slipped into the room and shut the door behind him, leaving you to fidget in the hallway. A moment later, he reappeared, his expression unreadable.

“I’ve got something for you on the other side of this door,” he announced before pushing it open.

The guest room came into view, its blackout curtains drawn over the massive windows overlooking the Harringtons’ backyard. The faint sound of ocean waves played from hidden speakers, and the air was scented with lavender from candles scattered around. The bed was immaculately made, piled with soft pillows and clean sheets.

You glanced at Steve, confused. “Uh, you could at least offer me coffee first, Steve. Just saying.”

He laughed, the sound light and genuine. “If I wanted that, I’d spring for something fancier than coffee. Give me some credit.”

Still grinning, he stepped inside and handed you a neatly folded set of pajamas.

“Seriously, though—this is an intervention.”

You stood frozen in the doorway, eyeing the clothes in your hands. The soft fabric slid beneath your fingers as you frowned. “An intervention for what?”

Steve’s smile widened. “Glad you asked.”

He gestured to the pajamas. “I’m gonna run you a bath. My mom’s got all these fancy bath salts that are supposed to transport you to another dimension or something. You’re gonna relax, put on those pajamas, and sleep. You’ve been burning yourself out. It’s bad for the soul. It’s bad for my soul, too, having to watch it.”

You blinked, unsure whether to laugh or cry. “You’re being sweet.”

“I’m always sweet,” he quipped, leaning against the doorframe. “You’re just finally paying attention.”

"Steve; What...?" You shook your head quickly, trying to make the confusion vanish as if by magic. "I don’t understand."

Steve placed his hands on your shoulders and looked directly into your eyes.

"You haven’t slept in months; you’re not fooling me. You said it’s been hard to sleep, but I know it’s more than that. You’ve been really stressed out, and when that happens, insomnia, panic attacks, negative thoughts, and the need to isolate yourself start creeping in. I’ve seen it. So let’s try to avoid that, and for that, I’ve made a sleep bomb. I just need your cooperation. Can we do that?"

You looked at him, trying to read his expression. It surprised you that Steve had noticed the signs of distress in you. You hadn’t wanted to alert anyone, not even your parents, who had already gone through it with you more than once. You didn’t want to make them suffer. You didn’t want to tell them that when you were in college, the only thing you thought about when you weren’t studying or trying to avoid getting on Professor Lewis’s bad side was going back to Hawkins; being with them, your friends, your family. You didn’t want to tell them that you had returned to that dark place, where you would lie awake for those long nights, desperate and crying, wondering what it would feel like to sleep forever, to wake up when everything hurt less. From time to time, your mind would take you there. You knew it was just a phase that would pass with time, but the uncertainty of when or how long it would last was another nail in the torture of your burden. That Steve hadn’t needed any words of help from you to notice meant both a surprise and a terror to you. Surprising because you didn’t think he’d even notice; he was busy with the enormous house his parents hardly lived in, taking care of the younger kids, going through the academy trials while trying to navigate his way through the hordes of renewed fangirls who had returned to their admiration and flirtation exercises. Did he even have room for you in his schedule? You knew he was a friend, but honestly, you had hung out more with Nancy, Robin, and Eddie—shopping, going to the movies, and attending concerts—than you ever had wandering aimlessly around downtown with Steve. Of all the people in your group, Steve was honestly the last person you thought would notice your silent cries for help. And yet here he was, in front of you. At some point, he’d gone out of his way to set up an entire room, light candles, and have a bed that looked too inviting, along with soft satin pajamas, neatly folded for you.

It felt like your lungs had swallowed all the air in the room, and the oxygen only reached you in the form of a soft, weak "thank you" that slipped from your lips in a breathless tone. Steve seemed to appreciate that small effort of gratitude, and something in his eyes softened for a moment. He gently squeezed your shoulders, then stepped away to turn on the faucet, filling the tub with wonderfully hot water. When you tested it moments later, your body relaxed entirely, and your muscles seemed to thank the heat. You tilted your head back as your toes curled in delight. You were sure the salts had done little more than make your skin feel soft, but the pleasant scent had helped you unwind. When you decided it was enough, only because the water had begun to cool and your fingers were starting to wrinkle, you got out of the tub, dried off, and slipped into the soft, comfortable satin pajamas—a beautiful mahogany color that smelled like detergent and fabric softener.

It was paradise. That’s what you thought when you came downstairs to find the table set with iced tea, a salad, and two plates piled high with spaghetti bolognese.

Steve didn’t know how to cook anything else; he could barely make waffles, and his eggs were always dry. But if there was one thing Steve Harrington couldn’t mess up, it was a homemade plate of pasta. You honestly couldn’t understand why he’d never shown off that skill to his dates; you were sure by now Steve Harrington had been off the market for a long time. Part of you—one part you tried not to visit often—wished that little piece of Steve, the one you and the boys knew, would stay in the shadows. Then you’d feel selfish for wanting that. You knew Steve felt lonely, and he deserved to find someone. As you twirled pasta onto your fork, you knew that much because the pasta was delicious, and he had taken the time to make it himself.

You would’ve liked to keep eating, but you knew it was greedy. Steve got up and led you to the room, handing you a long list of reasons why he wouldn’t let you clean, tidy, or do the dishes—starting with the fact that this was all part of an intervention he had orchestrated.

"What’s wrong?" Steve asked when you settled into bed, pulling the cover over yourself.

"Every night I try this, Steve," you said. "I try to relax, close my eyes, and sleep, and I really want to do it now, but I can’t..."

Steve rubbed his nose thoughtfully and nodded as he sat down next to you, ready to listen.

"Look at you," he murmured. "You’re worried because you think you won’t be able to sleep, and that’s exactly why you won’t."

You shook your head. "It’s not that, seriously, Steve. It’s just that I know myself. I know, and it’s maddening. You don’t know how many nights I’ve spent staring at the ceiling, feeling like my body just needs to move. It’s physically impossible for me to lie in a bed, no matter how comfortable it is."

"It’s okay," Steve nodded, thoughtful. "I have an idea. Do you remember when we were watching over Max, making sure Vecna wouldn’t take her at the Wheeler house?" You nodded. "Yeah, Dustin wouldn’t stop talking, and God knows I couldn’t shut him up, so I just gave in and listened to his annoying voice all night. And suddenly—boom! I wake up, and it’s morning."

You raised your eyebrows in surprise. "You fell asleep during your shift watching over Max?"

"Hey, Henderson was still awake, plus nothing happened, right?"

You opened your mouth in disbelief. "Something could’ve happened, Steve."

"But it didn’t!" he laughed, trying to defend himself. "But that’s not the point. The point is, I fell asleep." You rolled your eyes, crossing your arms while still sitting in bed. Steve had to admit you looked adorable trying to lecture him about his irresponsibility. "I slept like a damn baby with Dustin’s voice."

You raised an eyebrow, finally understanding.

"So, are you telling me that this whole time, all I’ve needed is Dustin’s voice to sleep soundly?"

"No," he replied, pointing a finger at you with a victorious smile. "My voice, baby. My voice will make you sleep like a baby tonight." He then stood up and motioned for you to settle back into bed. You looked at him, hiding a laugh.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Look, right now you think it’s funny, but when you wake up in the morning feeling rested, I’ll have the decency not to tell you it was all because of me."

You smiled, adjusting your hair.

"Oh, Steve, thanks so much, that’s so thoughtful of you," you laughed, but the laugh quickly died when you saw Steve start to settle in next to you in bed. He lay on his side, propping his head up with his hand to look at you.

"What are you doing?"

"I’m just gonna settle in next to you and talk to you. The only rule is, you can’t talk; you’ll close your eyes and listen to my voice."

Bossy.

You nodded silently and closed your eyes. You heard Steve sigh, but you didn’t look at him again. After all, he’d gone to all this trouble, so you would cooperate. You’d do your part.

And then Steve started talking. He talked for at least an hour about his life, his parents, and what he wanted to do in the future, once he graduated and became a cop, taking care of the town again with Hopper as his boss. Damn, it would be hard to follow the old man’s orders, but he’d accept the challenge. He didn’t stop, even when your breathing became rhythmic, signaling you were finally falling asleep. Steve didn’t stop watching you, stretching out his arm to turn down the volume on the ambient noise. He kept watching you as the sound of crickets filtered in from the backyard, blending with the croaking of frogs in a whispered melody.

He couldn’t stop looking at you.

Steve watched your eyelashes brush your cheeks. The air moved in and out through your slightly parted lips as you breathed. He looked at your nose, tracing imaginary lines over your face, following them with his gaze as if he were redrawing you. It wasn’t fair that you couldn’t rest; that it was so hard for you. Steve had seen you sleep soundly in the most difficult places and under the most critical circumstances. You were perfect under pressure. Something told him you’d rather face Vecna as an enemy than any internal demon haunting your mind. He’d seen more fear on your face at the thought of another sleepless night than when one of the Demodogs that attacked Hopper’s old cabin had pinned you down and drooled over your face as if deciding how you’d taste.

Steve struck him right in the middle of the neck with his bat, not stopping until Dustin told him the guy was more than dead, impaled on the wooden floor. He didn’t know it then, but he would’ve killed any monster for you. Even the one that lived tormenting you in your mind.

"Thanks," he finally spoke, reaching out with his other hand to stroke your hair. "You’ve always looked out for us, and that’s an understatement," he admitted. "I think you try so hard because you haven’t been able to take care of yourself the way you should," he whispered, brushing a strand of hair that had fallen across your face. "Don’t worry; I’ll take care of you."

You had made everyone fulfill their promise in the hotel room. They’d each been given separate rooms, but trauma unifies, and no one could stand to be apart; everyone gathered in Eddie’s room and spent hours together. Afterward, when things calmed down and they were interviewed by men in black suits with serious expressions, they were sent to a high-security clinic where Owen was waiting to perform physical exams. None of the scars had fully healed; Eddie had to get skin grafts on his abdomen, and Max had to undergo rehabilitation to walk normally again.

"It’s not enough," you told Owen when he gave everyone the all-clear with prescriptions for the best free medicine. The man raised his gaze from his clipboard to look at you through his glasses. "We need therapy."

"Kid..." Hopper’s tired voice came from behind you, but you stopped him firmly.

"No," you turned to face him and then looked at Owen for a few seconds. "He smelled like a distillery even before the first Demogorgon attack," you reminded everyone. "How do you think he’ll be once all the adrenaline from this is gone? Hopper needs therapy. We all do. Max almost lost her eyesight; Eddie came back from the dead. You can’t say everything’s fine and send us back to a town where everyone will keep judging us, no matter what." Owen opened his mouth, but you weren’t ready to stop speaking. "You weren’t there. You don’t know what we went through. We literally prevented a dimensional-level catastrophe that wasn’t our responsibility, Owen. We’re owed."

Truth be told, none of you, except you, thought therapy was a good idea. A monster had used your worst nightmares and traumas to get rid of you. You didn’t want to have to open your heart to another stranger once a week, only for them to take advantage of it. But you had been firm in making everyone stick to the commitment, and against all odds, they agreed and completed their therapy sessions as they should. Even Mike, who had resisted extreme measures to the heart-to-heart talk his therapist suggested, finally gave in. You had earned the trust of those kids, Steve saw it. And he had to admit that was part of the reason he sometimes felt jealous. It was pathetic to admit it—an adult jealous of kids—but damn, it would feel nice if one day one of those hugs you gave to Will Byers was meant for him.

"You’re going to a lot of trouble for her," Dustin told Steve the next morning while chewing loudly on a raspberry.

"Hey human vacuum, stop eating someone else’s breakfast. This isn’t for us."

"You see? This is what I mean! I could be planning a new D&D campaign that would surprise Eddie, and he’d be kissing my ass for the next decade, but here I am helping you impress a girl."

"It’s not to impress her; she finally slept more than eight hours and needs to eat," Steve began to answer while pouring some of Robin’s pancake mix onto the hot pan. "And let me remind you, I’m the one driving thousands of miles so you and your ‘Phoebe Cates-level’ sexy girlfriend—who, by the way, I seriously doubt—can see each other. So, I’d appreciate it if you stopped eating her food and helped me with this like I asked."

Dustin furrowed his brow but kept adding raspberries to the batter anyway.

"You know? I always thought you and Robin had something," Steve rolled his eyes and sighed. "Then, for a moment, I thought you and Nancy would get back together from the way you stupidly stared at her. But now this makes more sense."

Steve took a little bit of the batter that splashed on his finger and tasted it.

"Yeah? Why’s that?"

Dustin, focused on his work, shrugged.

"When you and Robin are together, you joke like you, and I do, and I refuse to think you're into me."

Steve made a disgusted face.

"Gross, man, stop."

"That, and when you looked at Nancy, you suffered, Steve. You were the saddest, most miserable..."

"Don’t be so kind, you’ll make me cry."

"...pathetic, and depressing human being." Dustin ignored his friend and handed him the bowl full of pancake batter. "But with her, you’re happy; you smile. You don’t have to pretend to be cool all the time, and you really talk to her. Plus, you take care of her, which is good because you’ve been breathing down my neck and acting like my mom for too long. I didn’t want to tell you, but you were suffocating me, and you finding a girlfriend would be great for my individuality, Steve."

Steve flipped the pancake to brown the other side while making a face.

"I get it, Henderson, you need space, and I’ll give it to you as soon as you help me with the coffee and leave."

Dustin scratched his nose and coughed. "Idiot."

Dustin was right; you brought out the best in him. Steve could talk to you without feeling like he had to impress you all the time. You made him feel butterflies in his stomach, but you didn’t make him act like an idiot. It was too hard for him to figure out if what he felt for you was a strong friendship or something more. He missed you during the weeks you were studying at the university, and when you came back to Hawkins, you were never close enough to him.

"I think it would be a big step date her instead of going on dates with a bunch of girls that end when you drop them off at their houses the next morning," Robin had told him one day when he decided to tell her his plan of helping you, while they were reorganizing the shelves at Family Video.

It had survived the earthquake, and Keith didn’t want to deal with the business anymore. Steve and Robin decided to take over; it wasn’t bad to have a business and extra money in their pockets. Max, Will, and Dustin took turns after school and officially entered the workforce, earning some cash they could spend on whatever those little gremlins spent their money on now.

"Robin, it’s already pretty weird to have an ex in your friend circle; two would be excessive, and it’s a risk I’m not willing to take."

His best friend let out a teasing laugh.

"Goofball, you just admitted you like her."

Obviously, Steve liked you, he thought while plating the pancakes after getting rid of Dustin and sending him off to Eddie’s house to plan their new campaign or something. Steve liked a lot of things and people, otherwise, he wouldn’t surround himself with them. The issue was figuring out what kind of feeling he had for you. It didn’t help that everyone else seemed to have it figured out except him. Plus, even if he did figure it out, what about you? What did you feel for him?

Steve was your damn hero, you thought as you stretched between the soft sheets of the most comfortable bed you’d ever tried and opened your eyes after a huge, unashamed yawn. You stared at the ceiling of the room, trying to contain your bliss. You looked at the clock on the nightstand beside the bed and quietly laughed when you saw that it read exactly noon. You’d slept more than twelve hours; that was more than you usually rested in a week at the university. You raised your fist in victory and got out of bed to brush your teeth and freshen up a bit before racing down the stairs two at a time to find Steve on the first floor. You found him squeezing orange juice in the kitchen when he looked at you, somewhat startled. You walked toward him with a smile, then gave him a big hug, burying your face in his chest and feeling him slowly return the embrace.

"Thanks, Steve. I really rested."

You pulled away from him and looked around. On a tray, there was corn syrup, raspberry pancakes, and freshly scrambled eggs.

"You made all this?"

Steve scratched his neck, somewhat embarrassed.

"Dustin came by to help me," he admitted, then looked at your rested face and couldn’t help but smile.

"That’s sweet of him."

If you had heard his string of complaints, you wouldn’t have found it so sweet. But he wouldn’t tell you that.

"Hungry?"

"Starving!"

Steve saw the spark in your eyes; even your smile was different when you rested. As you ate the breakfast with pleasure and asked about his graduation from the police academy, Steve watched you carefully, making sure you didn’t notice. Partly because he didn’t want you to think it was strange, but also because the small shot of adrenaline he got from doing so was addictive. He didn’t know what was happening. He’d known you for years, and you’d never been on his radar. He knew that if he tried hard enough, he could count the number of times you’d talked in high school on one hand. You had never been attractive to him in a way that would make him want to be friends, let alone anything more. It’s true that if he tried to remember, he would say you always had that pleasant smile and those big eyes that seemed to read whoever they saw. You were also pleasant; you never paid attention to Tommy and Carol and didn’t seem to care about fitting into the social hierarchy of school. You didn’t seem to mind being friends with him even after the Hawkins attack. Although it’s true you were always kind, he couldn’t say you became friends until a year or two ago. Steve had lived a life without you, but now, he found it hard to imagine the rest of his life without you in it.

Your heart seemed to hurt. It was strange because you were happy, very happy; you had a bath with aromatic salts, a nice dinner, and most importantly, a good rest and a delicious breakfast. But your heart hurt. Today was a good day, and you didn’t want to be ungrateful, but you wouldn’t always have this; and you weren’t talking about the shower, the food, or the oh-so-comfortable bed the size of a Cadillac. No, it was this—Steve. You couldn’t help but feel that your happiness had an expiration date, and it was very soon. Steve was being so nice to you that it hurt.

It hurt your stomach, your chest, and your mind.

You tried not to let it show, though, and in the afternoon, when Steve dropped you off in front of your house after spending the day lounging in his living room, eating leftovers from the night before, and watching comfort movies like The Breakfast Club and The Princess Bride (which Eddie had gotten through a not-quite-legal but also not-illegal way, since it had only been in theaters for a few months), you tried not to look at him too much or count the freckles on his neck because it was real torture. He had looked at you with those eyes and smiled while saying goodbye. You saw him watch you until you entered your house and waved goodbye one last time. He drove off, and you stood by the window because it was almost physically impossible for you to tear yourself away.

“So?” Your mother’s voice came from behind you, and that was the only thing that made you move. You turned to face her, still holding the bag with the soft pajamas that Steve had insisted you didn’t return.

“Steve told me his plan, did you manage to sleep?”

You nodded, and your mom came over to hug you while letting out little squeals of joy. You hid your face in her neck and began to cry. It took a few seconds before your mom noticed. Damn Steve Harrington and his consideration to tell your mom about his plan. Damn, damn him.

“What’s wrong?” your mom asked, concerned, cradling your face.

“I need help, mom,” you sniffled, and the sentence was barely understandable.

You saw your mom raise her eyebrows and nod.

“Of course, but what’s wrong? What are you feeling?”

You tried to breathe and put your hand over your chest.

“F-fear.”

Your mom’s expression softened, making her look younger when she seemed to understand what you meant.

“Oh, no, sweetheart. No.” She kissed your forehead and wiped your tears away with a small, comforting smile. “You’re in love.”

Yes, at least Steve had recognized the symptoms.

[emblematicemblazer]

Fire Emblem Engage Xenologue

The Emblem Bracelets of Lythos

Tiki; The Emblem of the Ancestor

One of the main aims of the Xenologue is to retrieve the Emblem Bracelets and for Nel to put the Emblem to sleep if they have been awakened. We learn about Nel's ability in Xenologue Chapter 1: Dragons from Afar  Tiki has a long history associated with a deep slumber, that is why it is appropriate for her to be one of the Emblem Bracelets in Lythos and the first to be out to sleep to protect her from misuse. In Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon and The Blade of Light, the first time she is put to sleep is in the Ice Dragon Temple by Naga because of the instability of her godlike powers. Her slumber is extended by Gotoh, one of the dragons tasked with watching over her, after the binding shield is stolen and broken by Adrah. 

Tiki's association with sleep is one reason she is located in the Bracelet Vault in Lythos, another is her ancestry. She is a Divine Dragon, born from the goddess Naga. She is the only Divine Dragon left in Lythos after Xenologue Alear is killed. She is symbolic of the type of dragon who should be resident there. 

All the Emblem Bracelets are summoned and forced to fight against their will. Tiki was captured and brainwashed by Gharef and forced to fight against her will in Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon and The Blade of Light. This is another reason why she is in Lythos.

Chrom and Robin; Emblem of Bonds

In Fire Emblem Awakening; when Chrom finds Robin laying upon the ground he offers him his hand and his trust. When Alear is first summoned to the Xenologue, they are greeted by a familiar stranger, Xenologue Alear, despite not knowing who they are, offers their trust and aid. This mirror of open hearted and trusting people is one reason that Chrom starts in the Emblem Bracelet vault. 

Another reason Chrom starts in Lythos is because of the strong and unbreakable bond he has formed with Robin. Alear is tasked with forging bonds and perhaps even falling in love with her allies by Xenologue Alear. Alear ends up caring for their allies and binding with them, even if the road is a bumpy at times. 

Robin's secret identity in Fire Emblem Awakening is as The child of Validar and a vessel of the Fell Dragon Grima. Alear also interacts with someone with a secret identity; Nil who is really Rafal. In both stories the one with the secret identity tries to kill their allies. 

Edelgard, Dimitri and Claude; Emblem of Rivals

The Xenologue features two important rivalries: the rivalry between Alear and Nel and in Nel and Rafal’s upbringing. Nel and Nil/Rafal were born and socialised into a family built upon rivalry. All of Sombron's children were born as twins. Only the strongest could survive a brutal upbringing where sibling fought sibling to win the honour of being Sombron's true heir. Nel was an exception and chose to care and protect her weaker twin. Rafal also desires to be stronger than Nel. Alear and Nel start the game with very little trust and mild hostility. Both are accustomed to command and butt heads over her differing approaches. Edelgard, Dimitri and Claude have different ideas over the future of Fodlan in Fire Emblem Three Houses and their differences result in war. 

[waterfallswords]

Name: Lilja Visser

Age & Birthday: 24 years old, October 1st 1999

Gender/Pronouns: cis woman she/her

Birthplace: White River, Colorado

Time in Hollow Cove: tbd

Species: Werewolf - Visser Pack

Role: Runner / Soldier

Positive personality traits: Driven, Optimistic, Passionate, Sincere

Negative personality traits: Forceful, Impatient, Inflexible, Defensive

ABOUT

Lilja has nothing but pride for her name. A profound respect for her lineage, the leaders and warriors that all came before her and who's memories she honors with every step she takes. Born just minutes after her twin brother, Lilja and Aric's arrival into the world marked the tragic departure of their mother. Their father Roan was left to raise them, Lilja aware of the potential of one day stepping into the role of Alpha or Beta. She accepted this responsibility dutifully and she, with her brother and father, forged an unbreakable bond rooted in respect, strength, and the unwavering pride of their pack and name.

From her earliest days, Lilja's spirit brimmed with adventure and sometimes even mischief. But this was not the only thing that Lilja heard as a comparison to her mother. A cherished link to her mother's legacy sits behind tresses of dark hair, sometimes pointing through. Lilja was born with her ears caught in the subtle transformation between wolf and human. A constant reminder of her lost mother and the memories she hopes can live on through her.

Bound by Visser tradition, Lilja embraced her role as a fighter and embarked on rigorous training as soon as she reached thirteen. The crucible of training sculpted her character further and it became apparent that she also embodies the determination and forcefulness of her father. Unyielding and passionate, Lilja distinguished herself as the impulsive counterpart to her brother's strategic mind.

Years later, when her father's union with a new wolf, Tofa, reshaped their family dynamic, Lilja made it perfectly clear she would never respect the new woman as an authority figure in her life. Resolute in her stance, Lilja barely made an attempt to form a connection with Tofa and often times was cruel with the way she navigated conversations purely to memories of her mother. A constant reminder that Tofa would forever be in her shadow.

Lilja's life soon became entwined with Skoll Jansen, a warrior who ignited both conflict and attraction within her. The Jansen wolves were notorious for how they fought, but their reputation was never positive beyond the battlefield. Skoll and Lilja's obvious differences became their own fight, setting the stage for a tumultuous journey. Just days before the war reached them, Lilja declared how she never wished to see him again.

As the chaos of war engulfed their homes, Lilja fought but was eventually separated from her family. With nobody but Tofa by her side, the two of them needed to flee in order to survive. They later agreed to travel back on themselves with hopes of meeting other survivors but when they reached their homes, there was nothing but destruction and the aftermath of death. Proving that the two of them needed to stay together while they traveled war-torn land and searched for their family.

Lilja doesn't remember there being much conversation before or after that night, but she remembers the blood and the screams of Tofa's agony. How both of them knew that a soul had been lost before it even had the chance to breathe. A crucial and desperate thread of respect was woven from Lilja towards Tofa, then. And slowly, it grew. Over the passing years it has threaded deeper and deeper between the two of them, Tofa saving Lilja from her own impulsiveness and many close-brushes with death. There was even a semblance of an apology muttered from Lilja one night while Tofa was sleeping. Heartfelt but quiet words that showed remorse for how she treated her before. Because now, Lilja knows she would never have survived the change of their world without her.

[percy-ils]

Percy you have any headcanons for childhood friends c!Rivals because I'm always thinking about them -Beloved

Finally answering. Alright. I have lots so.

I know so many people have headcanons of them meeting in an arena and being the best child fighters there and fight for money and yeah that's cool and all but I have so many other headcanons that intervene with this one so I'm not gonna talk about that.

First, let me say that I have a long long list of headcanons of cNiki and cTechno being twins but it's for another post just know that.

Techno and Niki survive on their own, fleeing from one place to another and camping on forests and sometimes villages if people are kind enough. Then, one day while taking a walk at night just close to their camp place, Techno stumbles across someone else. Another kid, seemingly the same age as them, with a small torn backpack and a blanket by his side on top of a tree, looks like he made home on one of the branches.

They're pretty young and curious, and despite knowing not to trust people - it's hard to survive on your own out in the world when you're not even ten - Dream jumps down the tree, and in front of Techno.

They're wary at first, but slowly let their guards down, and start talking. They're both surviving on their own, no one to turn to, no adults and no parents and no home, and Techno takes him back to their camp, where Niki is. They decide to stick together, the more they are the better chance of protecting themselves.

So it's the three of them, out in the wild, stealing weapons and food and clothes from villages and hunting themselves, moving from place to place for years. They grow up together, the trust and their bond unbreakable at that point, having survived so many things and the only constant being each other.

During all their travels, they meet new people - Dream meets George and Sapnap who he quickly becomes close to, Alyssa and Callahan, Sam and Bad who are all lovely people. Techno meets Wilbur who is slightly older, then Philza who is an Angel of Death and Techno feels a strange closeness to, and this little annoying kid called Tommy. The small family they made grows, slowly but surely, but despite it all, Dream and Techno are just different in themselves, they shared too much and know everything there is to know about the other.

this ask has been sitting just this way in my drafts for MONTHS and it’s kinda killing me with guilt. i will add on later probably.

[writingintheshadowsforever]

Imagine Wanda stopping Pietro from attacking Bucky when he flirts with you

Everyone on the team knew you were off-limits being Wanda and Pietro's younger sibling. You weren't related to them by blood, but was the only other test subject to survive Hydra experiments. And when the Avengers attacked the base they found you huddling in your cage terrified. Neither had the heart to leave you behind so they took you with them, and from there on out. The bond between the three of you was unbreakable.

When the twins joined decided to join the team. You were right behind them even though the whole being a superhero thing scared you more than anything. You spent most of the Battle of Sokovia hiding until you finally gained the courage to use your powers to save a family from incoming debris. After that Steve put you on evacuation duty to keep you out of the fight. Wanda and and Pietro made it clear if you wanted to leave and pursue a different path instead. Like a semi-normal life then it was okay with them, and they would understand.

But you refused telling them that wherever they went you would go as well. Now here the three of you were six months later your training with Natasha was going well. She was assigned to be your combat teacher because not only did you need combat lessons, but also a huge confidence boost. Steve figured that Nat would be perfect for the job, and he was right.

Today she was on out on solo mission leaving a list of moves for you to practice, and a training course to run. You thought you were alone in the gym, but the twins were watching you train from a distance. In a dark corner of the room where no one would see them unless they were really looking.

"She's come so far Piet hasn't she?" Wanda said a proud loud on her face.

Pietro flinched as he witnessed you take the dummy's head with a telekinetic slash. "Yeah she has remind me not to prank her anymore."

Wanda let out a chuckle shaking her head. Usually when Pietro messed with you she would be your bodyguard and get him to stop. But the last few times you handled the situation yourself. Memories of walking into the kitchen and finding him covered in head to toe in a honey-like substance whining. Because he couldn't escape the cocoon no matter how hard he tried flooded through her mind.

"Hey who's that?" Pietro asked bringing her attention back to you. Wanda leaned forward to get a closer look at the person who just walked in the gym.

Bucky was on his way to his room to wash up after a long sparring session with Steve and Sam. When a whistling noise made him pause by one of the gyms. He wandered over to just take a quick peek in the window to see what was going on. It was you throwing out a series of telekinetic attacks taking out surrounding dummies. Your movements were light and quick it was almost as if you were dancing. Bucky fell into a trance watching you.

Steve and Sam finally managed to catch up to him after almost two years of searching. It took a lot but eventually they were able to convince him to return to the compound, and give the whole Avenger thing a chance. At first he was skeptical thinking the government would eventually swoop in to take him to jail. It was impossible for him to relax his first night staying. Bucky waited till it was late and everyone would either be sound asleep, or winding down with a movie. Then he snuck out of his room and went outside on the roof to just keep watch. Just in case a team of agents ascended on the compound.

Little did he know the roof was also your hiding spot. You were on the other side laying on a blanket counting the stars. When the sound of the door opening filled your ears making you sit up to see who your company was. Sometimes Wanda, Pietro or even Nat would come up here to check on you, and make sure you weren't skipping out on needed rest. You reassured them that wasn't the case, being outside under the night sky with fresh air helped calm your nerves. And sometimes it was easier to fall asleep here than in a nice cozy bed. Most of them Pietro would wait till you dozed off, and then would lift your body into his arms to take you inside.

Although it was neither one of them tonight instead it was the dark-haired stranger who came with Steve and Sam. You remember him joining the team for breakfast and not saying a single word the whole time. There was something about him that made you want to get close to him, but the twins didn't really trust him, so you kept your distance as well. But now here you were being drawn to him again as both of you seek comfort from the night sky.

"Hi" you spoke up taking a tentative steps towards him so that he wouldn't be startled by your presence. It didn't work though Bucky swung around pulling a gun out his jacket to point straight at your head.

A few months ago you would've screamed and took off running to one of the twins. But your training kicked in with a wave of your hand an invisible force knocked the gun from his grasp to the ground.

You held up your hands in surrender "hey relax I'm a friend or an ally at least you can trust me. I'm not going to hurt you, or snitch."

Bucky held a look of intensity on his face as he tried to figure out if you were telling the truth or not. When you took a seat on the edge of the roof letting your feet dangle in the air. He decided that maybe you really did mean no harm, and your demeanor did make him feel a bit more safer.

"I know what it's like to not be able to sleep any a place filled with people that are supposed to be make you feel secure. When I first got here I would crash with the twins all the time, but then Vision caught Wanda's eye, and she wanted her own room. Pietro is good at making me feel safe to but he's a restless soul himself. He likes to go off on late night runs leaving me to wake up alone and panic." You paused to look up at Bucky and patted the spot next to you.

He didn't know why you were sharing your story with him, but he was interested in the rest maybe it would help him find some solace tonight. Bucky walked over to sit down crossing his legs together.

You gave him a small smile and continued on with your story. "Eventually I find myself just wandering around the compound every night expecting to find an old enemy around every corner. I mean this place is nice and all but at night it's quiet and empty reminds me of the old bases. I use to kept in so I started to come up here to escape it all, and it helped because Hydra never let me go outside even at night. I found it easier to relax and fall asleep out here than in here. So if its hard for you to relax or get any peace you're always welcomed to join me on my blanket." You jerked your head in the direction of the other side of the roof.

Bucky gave you the tiniest of nods, and the two of just sat there for a little while longer. Enjoying each other's company with your presence making him feel more and more safe by the minute. Although he wouldn't admit it aloud a silver streak shot across the ground below so fast he almost missed it. Before he could freak out you laid a hand on his arm.

"Easy there buddy its just Pietro getting back from his night run. Listen I should go he's going to be looking for me, so I bid you a good night if you want help yourself to my blanket. I'll leave it since I'm pretty sure you won't be coming back in till the morning."

You left him on the roof alone that night convinced you'd tried and failed at helping him. But your story gave him hope that he could fit in here and make this work. Your blanket kept him warm and gave him the security he needed to stay.

The two of you hadn't talked to each other since that night. Heck you didn't even know his name because he was too nervous to approach you. When Sam saw your blanket in his room he made a joke that if one of the twins knew. He had been on the roof alone with you that night they would kill him. Bucky just ignored Sam's comments until he saw Wanda in action, and how protective she was over you. With the twins as your bodyguards mixed in with his introvert ways kept him away from you.

But now he was comfortable and a little bit of his old self was starting to show. You were alone in the gym not a twin or Nat anywhere to be seen. If he was going to make a move on you now would be a good time. Bucky pushed open the door and walked in. At the sound of the door opening you paused your movements to see who was interrupting. Your eyes lit up with joy and a blush even crept up on your cheeks. When you saw just exactly who it was.

"Hi I don't think I properly introduced myself last time I'm Bucky." He said stopping just a inches in front of you.

In the dark corner of the room Pietro frowned watching Bucky grin and hold out his hand for you to take. He let out a huff and moved to speed down there, and put a stop to whatever was going on. Wanda threw her arm blocking him before he could though.

"Pietro wait" she demanded

"Hey what gives? That guy is dangerous and never talks to anyone but Cap and the bird guy." He complained turning his glare back on Bucky.

Wanda didn't answer him right away her eyes focused on you smiling and laughing. In a way she never witnessed before she knew it wouldn't be fair to interfere. "Just let them be Pietro."

"But he's-" Pietro started again throwing his arms up.

Wanda cut him off "Look at her she's fine if that changes we're right here. Okay for now let them have this moment."

Pietro shut his mouth watching the two of you interact more closely. A few minutes went by before he spoke again "I guess he's okay."

When night fell you met Bucky on the roof where he was laying down on your blanket. The one you had been looking for since your first night on the roof with him. "You had it this whole time" you laughed sitting down beside him.

"It made me feel safe" he replied with a shrug lifting his arm up, so you could move in to cuddle up to him. His arm came back down to wrap around your waist.

"I was hoping it would" you murmured resting your head on his chest. The two of you fell asleep in each other's arms, and under the security of the night sky.

Tag List: @wandanatvoid @yelenabelovasgf @romanoffomixam @xxromanoffxx @xxxtwilightaxelxxx @mellowladyangel @shayzulia @musicinourlips @natashasilverfox @be-missed @catswag22 @jokertgkk @lizlil

[spideyyboii]

The Third Maximoff

warnings: mention of death and abandoment 

||main masterlist||wanda maximoff masterlist||

Being the third Maximoff had always been extremely difficult, considering your two older siblings were twins and had an unbreakable bond. You were always pushed to the side by them. 

The first time you remembered being pushed away by them was the day your parents died. After the explosion Pietro was quick to grab Wanda and hide the two of them under the bed, whilst leaving you stuck under all the rubble that the explosion caused. In the two days that the three of you were trapped you never heard the twins mention you or ask if you were safe. 

Once the authorities got the three of you out your siblings didn’t seem to care that you had also survived. “We’re going to have to take all of you to the hospital to get you checked for any injuries especially your sister as she was trapped directly under the rubble.” The paramedic informed the three of you. “Make sure Wanda get’s checked over properly.” Pietro said as he was loaded into an ambulance once again forgetting about you. 

As the three of you recovered from the explosion, the twins again forgetting about you. Wanda and Pietro healed faster than you and weren’t interested in your recovery. “Hi sweetheart, have they come to see you today? Your nearly ready to go home.” Your nurse asked with a sympathetic smile, knowing you were struggling with the loss of your parents and what also seemed like the loss of your siblings. 

As you grew up this treatment continued and soon the twins wanted to join a group called hydra, you couldn’t understand why your siblings would want to join this organisation that were clearly doing wrong. However, you were too scared to leave your siblings and found yourself joining the group with your siblings.

 Hydra began to experiment on all of you and the group were extremely interested in Wanda, the group kept the three of you separated and would threaten to hurt both of your siblings if you ever misbehaved. This threat made all of you behave but you knew Pietro and Wanda were only behaving to keep one another safe. In the years you were stuck with hydra your siblings never tried to speak to you and would ignore your questions. 

When the twins escaped hydra they happened to forget about you once again and you were forced to endure years of abuse and tortue on your own. 

This tortue only ended when you were saved by a group of people who called themselves the Avengers, “Hey sweetheart, don’t panic, we're here to get you out and get you help.” A kind woman told you as she helped you stand and took you to a plane where you got medical attention. 

The Avengers were quick to take you in and train you so you could be a part of their team. For the first time in your life you felt accepted and included. Natasha became like a sister to you and taught you how to do hair and make up. She made sure you knew that she’d always be there for you. 

It’s safe to say you were shocked when your siblings came back into your life and began to try and hurt your team. It hurt more when you came to the realisation that your siblings didn’t recognise you which confirmed your biggest fear that they had never loved you. 

“Wanda, Pietro if the two of you don’t leave us alone then I swear to god I’ll kill the both of you!” You shouted fuming that they’d just hurt Natasha. “You're alive?” Pietro questioned looking shocked “Yes I’m alive because of the people you're currently attacking. My family.” “We’re your family, not these disgusting people that are creating weapons that are killing people. Weapons that are the reason for our parents death!” Wanda shouted at you, her hands glowing red confirming her anger. “No. Tony doesn’t create those weapons anymore and he isn’t at fault for our parents death. The Sokovian government is at fault as they allowed those weapons into the country. Your crazy friend Ultron is no better as he plans on destroying humanity.” You explained 

Soon your siblings were fighting alongside yourself and the Avengers in an attempt to take down Ultron and keep the world safe. “Pietro get everyone onto the ships and keep an eye on Clint.” You told your brother and continued to fight off Ultron's army. 

The fight was harder than any of you expected and it seemed like it went on forever, which caused exhaustion to hit you. Whilst you took a second to breathe you noticed Pietro was in the line of fire and were quick to act. “You didn’t see that one coming.” You told your brother as you began to bleed out from the multiple bullet wounds. “Why would you do that for me?” Pietro asked close to tears “You can’t leave Wanda she’s been through enough heartbreak and pain. I wouldn’t be enough for her. She needs you.” You explained to your brother as you took your last breath, a smile on your face as you noticed the tears in his eyes which showed he had some love for you. 

At your funeral the Avengers were heartbroken as one of their team members and someone they viewed as family had died for an individual that continuously hurt you and acted as though they didn’t care.“The both of you don’t deserve to be here. You broke her heart time and time again, I’m just happy that we were able to show her what love looked like. I pray that the both of you feel guilty forever as you missed out on knowing the most amazing individual.” Nat spat at your siblings with nothing but hatred.   

[janushawkins]

American Wand Cores: The Big Four (Canon)

While in Britain the “big three” are nearly the only wand cores seen, the american “big four” are more accurately the most powerful and often held in highest regard, but they are not even remotely the only cores used.

Horned Serpent Horn

An exceptionally powerful core, horned serpent wands are quite rare, and unheard of outside the american continents. Horned Serpents themselves are quite diverse, but may usually be grouped into either saltwater or freshwater serpents.

Horned serpent wands of any variety are very powerful in all areas of magic, they have a knack for magics to do with water and perform especially well in transfiguration and divination. 

Horned serpent wands are capable of warning their owners of danger by emitting a low musical tone. They are also unique in the behavior between twin cores, if two wands of horned serpent horns from the same serpent work together for a singular goal (often in combat) their power is increased exponentially.

Rather like the Ilvermorny house named after the creature, horned serpent wands prefer owners who are intelligent and quick-witted. However, their preferred owners are not bookish scholars who stay shut in a library all day, but rather creative and innovative individuals who enjoy exercising their mind and putting things they learn into practice. Absorbing information like a sponge, these wixes brilliant in subjects they find interesting and above average in those they don’t. They are constantly thinking. Wixes chosen by these wands are absolutely brilliant and fiercely independent.

The type of horned serpent has some bearing over what they look for in an owner as well. Horned Serpent horn wands from a salt-water horned serpent are playful in nature, and look for owners who share that lighthearted playfulness, these are extremely imaginative, spirited and outspoken wixes.

Fresh-water horns, on the other hand, seek owners who are pragmatic, secretive and a bit slow to trust. These wixes are often very cunning and patient.

Horned serpent wands are sensitive to Parseltongue and vibrate when it is being spoken. It is possible they favor owners capable of speaking in parseltongue.

“I like to keep a special eye on students who are chosen by these wands. I keep track, in a notepad in my desk drawer--right next to my paints and emergency bertie botts--of what individuals have wands from the same horned serpent, and watch patiently for the day when they discover the peculiar connection of their twin wands. Interestingly, if they do not already know each other, it seems they always naturally gravitate towards one another, becoming incredibly close and often becoming the best of friends or incredibly close partners.” - January Hawkins, Resident Wandmaker, Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Thunderbird Tail Feather

One of the most powerful cores available, Thunderbird feather’s are somewhat rare, and make for mighty wands with power and range rivaling that of the british Phoenix feather wands.

Thunderbird feather core wands are incredibly powerful in most if not all areas of magic, and are especially good for transfiguration magics and any magic to do with weather, air and travel. Owners may have an exceptional talent for flying.

As powerful as these wands can be, Thunderbird feather wands are uniquely difficult to master, perhaps retaining the original creatures independent nature. However, once mastered they bond with their owner for life, and their allegiance is almost certain to never change.

Like  Thunderbirds themselves, these wands can sense danger and may preemptively cast curses to protect themselves and their owner, acting independently.

It is very rare to be chosen by a thunderbird wand, even most of those that match up to the cores preferences aren’t chosen, these wands wait for someone truly extraordinary, with the potential for greatness. Thunderbird feather wands seek owners with an adventurous spirit, as extraordinarily free and independent as the creature they came from. These wixes are natural travelers and loath having to stay put, always aching to explore the next horizon. Daring, adventurous and curious, they refuse to hold still or conform to any stifling rulesets. With the soul of a wanderer and the skills to seek the unknown, these individuals were born to run.

“When I say they’re picky, I mean it. I’ve gone 3 years in a row without a single thunderbird feather wand choosing a student, I’ve still got over half my original stalk! But when a student is chosen by one of these wands, I know they are destined for truly great things, those kids will see the world over and make a huge impact on it. I also know their restlessness is going to give the teachers hell.” - January Hawkins, Resident Wandmaker, Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Wampus Cat Hair

Though a very powerful core, wampus hair wands are rather uncommon due to the incredible difficulty and danger of procuring the hairs. 

Wampus wands are quite powerful. They are renowned for their flexibility, becoming very strong in any forms of magic their owner favors. This core is also very good with magics to do with the mind, especially legilimency, and it can produce mind altering effects both dazzling and horrifying. 

Enchantments and charms created by wands with this core are known to be very long-lasting.

Wixese chosen by this core are often bold and always enigmatic. Possessing a somewhat nebulous view of good and evil, these individuals reject simple dichotomies of light and dark. However, this does not mean that they are evil or without conscience. Rather, they prefer a more complex morality that bases right and wrong on cause and effect rather than convention and idealism. Because of this they are more willing than others to use dark magic. They are also often fiercely protective of those they have accepted on their own, using any means necessary to defend what they hold dear.

Dripping charisma, these wixes have an intense presence, able to grip the attention of any room they enter. They have an air of unpredictability, as they fluctuate between decisions and emotions based on feedback from their environment. Constantly adapting to the current situation.

Wixes chosen by Wampus hair wands also tend to be incredibly resilient, able to survive more than most.  There is a trend of some level of magic-resistance in these wixes, It is unknown whether this is a pre-existing trait or one gained by bonding with a wand with this core.

“Just how a student chosen by a wampus hair wand will turn out is, ironically, black or white. While it is true that their complex and adaptable morality does not necessarily lead them down a dark path, I have seen many wixes chosen by a wampus hair wand become truly evil individuals. There are, however, a great many who have become heroes and healers, genuinely good people. One thing is absolutely certain, Owners of wands with a wampus hair core will always, ALWAYS go on to do great things, whether good or bad they will always be extraordinarily powerful, very likely passing into legend.” - January Hawkins, Resident Wandmaker, Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Snallygaster Heartstring

A somewhat fickle wand core whose tendency towards change can make it difficult to master, Snallygaster Heartstrings are nonetheless the most powerful of the four major wand cores in North America, and have been highly prized in the american wizarding community. 

However, Snallygasters are not as plentiful a species as dragons, and the fact that taking this wand core requires killing one is causing a decline in their numbers, and as consequence a decline in snallygaster wands. There have been petitions to have this core banned in order to protect the species and many young wixes have taken a disliking to it.

Similar to Europe's dragon heartstring wands, wands with this core create some of the most dazzling and powerful spells. They can be considered a jack of all trades, as they perform admirably in every area of magic. It also excels at combat magics, and offensive spells often pack quite a punch. This wand does seem to be easier to turn to the dark arts.

For some reason, the visuals of spells cast with wands with this core are heightened. Light’s are brighter, colors are more intense and flashes are more erratic. These wands are also often incredibly sturdy for the wood they use, and almost impossible to break, no matter their flexibility.

Owners of wands with this core should have a firm hand to temper the wands fickle nature. This wand’s preferred owners are driven, ambitious and often focused on uncovering hidden truths. With unbreakable resolve and a deep curiosity, these wixes are natural born investigators, almost unstoppable in their pursuit of truth. 

This core suffers no fools, and refuses to work for individuals it sees as dim, lazy or lacking in sufficient drive. Wixes it chooses are often wise and animated, but if something doesn’t effectively capture their attention they will grow bored quickly and become restless, wishing to be anywhere else but where they are. 

These wixes are superb spellcasters who take very little time to master new magics, but this gift is more often attributed to being a natural with magic than an excellent study. It can seem that they were born with a wand in their hands.

“Even I’m growing uncomfortable with this core, I’ve been considering refusing shipments of it, or even snallygaster wands donated by other wandmakers… maybe the feather? It wouldn’t be as power-... but… we wouldn’t need to kill any… Um… So this is the last one we’re talking about today? I can just go now? Great, I’m gonna go find some… uh… I’m gonna try something-- bye!” - January Hawkins (he just started rambling about feathers and disaperated, wtf is with this guy?)

[howtohero]

#276 The Self-Help Guide for Child Sidekicks

It has come to our attention that despited our best efforts and repeated attempts to prevent such things, many superheroes are still employing child sidekicks. (Read: child soldiers in their war on crime.) This is, obviously, still a horrible idea as most supervillain attacks are home to poison fumes, fear toxins, zombie carnivores and lots of loose knives, all things that children are famously not supposed to be around. And yet, we’ve seen time and time again that superheroes will actively recruit children, usually orphans, to help them fight crime. (I guess you can still call it a “one-man crusade on crime” if the person you’re waging it with is not a man but a child.) So, we’ve decided that it’s time for a new approach. Today we’re going to reach out directly to the children... Children still read advice blogs right? (Definitely.)

So, hello children, how are you today? Gleefully beating up henchmen in dark alleys? Kicking terrorists in the shins? Fab fab fab. Now, how would you like to stop doing all of that because, as it would turn out, all that stuff is extremely dangerous and you are a child and that is not the kind of stuff you should be doing at all. And look, I get it, you’ve got incredible powers, or a knack for kick flips, or an insatiable thirst for justice, and that’s great. Your heart is definitely in the right place. Nobody understands the desire to use your incredible powers for good at such a young age better than me. (Except, probably, for people who actually have superpowers at a young age.) But you’re simply not ready to go out into the field and busting skulls quite yet. Instead you should take this time to hone your abilities so that when it comes time for you to enter the crime fighting world you can start out as an experienced and professional hero who doesn’t accidentally blow up a school or get gross webbing everywhere.

As a young superhuman it is important that you don’t allow yourself to be swayed by the rhetoric of established superheroes. They’re going to tell you that you can be a valuable asset in the field, and that many supervillains are actually terrified of ten-year-olds in tights but don’t listen to them! They are most likely lying. (There is, admittedly, a thirty percent chance that they’re actually just stupid, lotta stupid superheroes out there. More than you’d think.) Trust me, all they’re thinking about is securing their legacy. They just want you to train you to be just like them so that you can take over their superhero identity when they retire or die or get shunted into another dimension. And I’m gonna let you in a little secret, they’re never going to retire and pass their mantle on to you. It’s a false promise! You’re just going to be another in a long line of proteges, apprentices, and sidekicks that get led on until you somehow grow older than the hero you’re working for. Don’t believe me? At the time of this writing there have been 388 different Hatboys. Anyone have a guess as to how many Hatmans (Hatmen?) there have been during that time? It’s 1. Hatman has always been Hatman. Still don’t believe me? Let’s take a look at what’s happened to some of those Hatboys.

Hatboy #1: Went to college. (Nerd.) Hatboy #2: Was turned into a crowbar by a wizard. (Was then lost in a big pile of crowbars that Hatman used to keep lying around.) Hatboy #23: Asked when Hatman planned on dying so he could become Hatman. Was arrested for “threatening the life of a beloved superhero.” Hatboy #46: Stung by a wasp and decided he was not cut out for the superhero life. Hatboy #73: The only female Hatboy to date. She left Hatman’s tutelage pretty quickly and struck out on her own. She goes by the name Helm Lady now and she’s actually doing quite well for herself. Hatboy #74: Eaten by a shark. Hatboy #79: Beaten to death with Hatboy #2. (Hatboy #2 was subsequently lost again. Nobody involved realized that he was the crowbar used to kill Hatboy #79.) Hatboy #86: The “forgotten Hatboy”, only showed up on one mission with Hatman and was never seen again. When asked by How To Hero about this Hatboy Hatman told us “there was never an 86th Hatboy”. Hatboy #100: The hundredth Hatboy! Can you believe some people actually thought this guy would be the one to take over Hatman’s legacy. Ha! Joke’s on them. He turned out to be a cyborg sent from the future to kill Hatman. Technically the closest any Hatboy has gotten to taking on Hatman’s mantle.  Hatboy #115: Sprained his ankle and was told by a doctor that he couldn’t fight crime for a few months. Hatman promptly returned him to the orphanage from whence he came (can you even do that?????) and had his memory erased. (What??????) Hatboy #166: Stung by bees, had an allergic reaction, taken to hospital, hospital ended up being a front for evil bees, every doctor was actually several evil bees in a lab coat, Hatboy stung several more times, has several more allergic reactions, quits. Hatboy #167: Hatboy #166′s twin. He got annoyed that Hatman kept calling him his brother’s name. Quit. Hatboy #173: Accidentally launched out of a cannon. Never seen again. Hatboy #180: Lost in enchanted woods. Hatboy #182: Actually a tiny supervillain. Hatboy #193: Trapped in Opera House of Doom. Hatboy #195 and Hatboy #196: The first and only time Hatman decided to employ two Hatboys at the same time. They killed each other after a dispute about which of them Hatman loved more. (A stupid argument, Hatman didn’t much care for either of them.) Hatboy #203: Turned into a crocodile. Is doing just fine now. Hatboy #209: Cloned and then fired for violating Hatman’s strict but fair “no clones” policy. Hatboy #213: 213... 2 13... 13 twice... that’s unlucky two times. Like hell was Hatman going to keep a guy like that around. Shortest time as Hatboy at three seconds. Hatboys #214-233: After 213 failed Hatboys the local orphanage banned Hatboy from adopting anymore orphans so the next 20 Hatboys were imaginary. Unfortunately, not even nonexistence was enough to protect these brave Hatboys from suffering horrifying and grisly fates. Hatboy #234: The first new real Hatboy in three years. In an effort to show the rest of the superhero and orphanage community that he could keep a Hatboy safe, this Hatboy was never allowed outside until he turned thirty. By this time he was too large for the Hatboy costume, so he was fired. Hatboy #235: Hatboy’s back bay-beeee and cooler than ever! This Hatboy had spiked green hair, cool sunglasses, a skate board, and pet monkey. Easily the coolest Hatboy ever. Shame about the thing with the immovable mass of dark thoughts though. Hatboy #266: Eaten by that same shark from before. Apparently it acquired a taste for Hatboys. It now goes by the name Sidekick Snapper and it is still at large, so if that doesn’t turn you off from being a sidekick I don’t know what to tell you. Hatboy #272: Accidentally run over by the Hatmobile. Hatboy #279: Part witch, melted when it rained. Hatboy #280: Part ice pop, melted in the sun. Hatboy #283: As part of an attempt at synergy between this blog and the superhero community, this Hatboy was actually our very own Curly! {It was not fun let me tell you. On day three he had me scrubbing out the(All right nobody wants to hear it let’s move on to the next one!) Hey!} Hatboy #294: Tried to push Hatman in front of a train to avenge his predecessors. It didn’t work obviously. If Hatman had a dime for every time he got pushed in front of a train he’d be three times as rich as he already is. He’s trained for this. He knows how to survive being pushed in front of a train. (We can’t give away all of his tricks, but it essentially boils down to “not letting the train hit you.”) Hatboy #300: The three hundredth Hatboy! A party was thrown in the Hat Cave and all of the still living Hatboys were in attendance. (All 32 of them!) At the party they cornered the new Hatboy and held an intervention during which they convinced Hatboy 300 to get the heck out of there and never return. Hatboy #315: Fell in love with an elf princess from a magical realm in New York’s sewer system. Hatboy #330: Ended up on the wrong side of a superhero civil war.  Hatboy #349: Stared directly at an eclipse, was temporarily blinded, and was then kidnapped by a giant bird. Hatboy #355: Tripped and fell onto a landmine. Hatboy #368: Brainwashed into becoming a terrifying assassin. Hatboy #379: Struck out on his own and became the superhero Dark Brood to reflect his new mature and humorless disposition. Hatboy #380: “Misplaced.” Hatboy #388: The current Hatboy, he’s doing quite well actually... for now.

If the horrible fates of these Hatboys aren’t enough to dissuade you from a career as a sidekick, what’s the matter with you!? The life of a sidekick is not as glamorous as it’s made out to be. You’re essentially an unpaid intern with a high mortality rate. You’re going to be getting coffee, picking up dry cleaning, preparing meals, waxing and buffing and repainting hat-shaped vehicles, fighting the gross and weird henchmen that your boss doesn’t want to deal with. It sucks! And for what? So you can get eaten by a shark or lost at the nightmare mall? It’s just not worth it.

Instead what you should do is band together with other superpowered children and pressure one of the older heroes into mentoring you as a group. It’s like forming a sidekick’s union. You’ll look out for each other in a way the adults won’t. You’ll make sure nobody is put into situations that are too dangerous for them to handle. You’ll grow as a group and forge unbreakable bonds, and when you all grow up, you’re going to be a generation of superheroes the likes of which the world has never seen!

Right now you’re in a great position. You have powers, and you know you want to do good with them. So take some time now, find others like you, receive proper training and when the time comes, you and your team will take the world by storm. Don’t rush into things. Don’t fall under the spell of a charismatic older hero that doesn’t care about anything but himself. Don’t rob yourself of the change to be truly great! (We regret to inform you that Hatboy #388 was just hurled at a lava giant in a failed attempt to slow it down.) 

[vugheadisendgame]

What Is A Twin Flame?

We all are walking around this planet with relationships that nurture us, challenge us, and cheerlead us on our path for growth and evolution. Each one of us come here with a soul group, a bunch of souls who have agreed to help us as we help them learn our planned earthly lessons, make our mistakes, release our karmic debt and journey through this life. Soul mates can be our sister, brother, mother in-law, spouse, co-worker, best friend, ex-boss or someone as unassuming as a homeless person on the street. We have so many soul mates or soul friends that come and go in our lives and even when one might come in & break our heart into tiny bitty pieces they are still serving us and helping us on our path towards growth and evolution. Then there is a Twin Flame. This relationship is something far different, far deeper, extremely powerful, and something only a few of us might experience in our lifetime. Because we as a species are evolving (waking up) at a faster pace and in record numbers, we are collectively changing the purpose of relationships. Instead of getting together and staying together for the purpose of procreation, safety & survival, we are moving towards more spiritually based relationships that can foster rapid soul growth. More and more twins are finding each other. And NOT because they are looking. Twin Flames or sometimes referred to as Twin Souls, are thought to be two parts of a soul that split and would incarnate into Earth or other realms to learn, grow, and experience duality. They would rarely incarnate at the same time as one would typically stay behind to help the other. The diverse experiences they gather when they are away from each other help to create their separate identities as souls. When these reunite, they form an ultimate relationship- and the most fulfilling one. All other relationships before serve as practice for this ultimate one. All twin soul relationship are between a male and female energy of the same soul. This does not mean it has to be between a male and female. The Twin relationship does not have a gender, race, or age barrier- it can be either heterosexual or homosexual. The purpose of this Divine relationship is to help you face yourself.

The definition of a Twin Flame in LightWorker speak; is a soul connection between two people that come together to unite in the full embodiment of the divine masculine and divine feminine. On the bright side of meeting a Twin Flame; there is an instant intense bond that is off the f*cking charts the moment you connect through the eyes, and this person will play a significant role in your life. The dark side of Twin Flames; they will abruptly leave your life without warning after saying, “I love you.” or they will ghost; poof-be-gone, run, and keep you on-the-vine-of their our timeline. When meeting a Twin counterpart there is an inner knowing that feels fated upon meeting them. This is the spiritual bond connecting energetically through quantum entanglement and once formed; the connection is unbreakable. (you’ll wish it was at times) You’ll not meet your Twin by chance either; this fated pre-destined soul contract was put in place to serve a higher purpose for spiritual advancement, creativity, learning, and personal growth. Dating a soul-mate is easier than trying to date a Twin Flame, because meeting your Twin…is never without pain, and the cycle can continue for years if you allow it. Not everyone is destined to meet their Twin Flame in this lifetime, though every person on the planet has a Twin counterpart in the present time, or passed-on to the other side. Upon meeting your Twin, it feels like nothing you’ve experienced before in any other relationship. (this is how you get hooked-in) There is a familiarity upon meeting your Twin that can seem rather odd. Before, during, and after meeting your Twin counterpart, synchronicities start manifesting into your physical reality, and this is where the fun begins. The signs as I call them, will connect back to the Twin in some odd way. Perhaps things like number sequences, seeing the number 1111 on everything from clocks to receipts. Songs on the radio that connect to your twin counterpart, or seeing their name in places that are out of the ordinary like menus and billboards. I’ve experienced a power grid go down upon defending my Twin. Twin’s share commonalities that are highly unusual in so called “normal or organic” relationships. (example: birthdays that match house numbers, friends, and parents birthdays) But one thing is certain, all of these synchronic events will be out of the ordinary. Twin Flames are not to be confused with fated love or soul-mate type relationships. Soul-mates have more to do more with choice, love, and lust. Twin Flames have-to-do with fate, and the spiritual awakening simultaneously, and not orchestrated by choice or freewill. It’s designed as a learning/teaching relationship. The hard part about meeting a Twin is that one or both people are usually involved in other relationships, and one of the Twin’s are typically not emotionally available in some form or another. (married, girlfriend/boyfriend) Some Twin’s can get into relationships right away, however; most do not, because it’s not designed to be that way unfortunately, and this is where many people get super depressed to the fated part of the journey. This does not mean you can’t have a relationship with your Twin; it’s just harder to get one going due to the template design.

The Chaser Twin ( the one who understands the relationship template) waits for the return of the runner, having the patience of a saint while working on self as each day goes by. This is not pinning away, it’s different. Only a Twin Flame can understand this process. The chaser is hoping that the runner wakes up to his/her spiritual call to enlightenment, while dealing with their own healing of past relationship wounds during this period. Twin’s may share only a brief moment in time, but one Twin keeps the faith that one day that their counterpart will reach out again. Months and months go by…and then… they call. It can feel like your being used as narcissistic ego supply when they come back into your life, and in some cases that’s what it is. This experience is called the Twin Flame runner/chaser dynamic. The runner and chaser dynamic is common in a Twin Flame relationship. The runner and chaser dynamic can change roles during the relationship. It happens when one partner may or may not be spiritually aware of what is happening in their own lives, and becomes very confused after meeting their counterpart, which can lead to the the runner escaping the confusion, by leaving abruptly. If you were to ask the runner “why they run?” They wouldn’t know, they’ll just feel that something is “off.” The running Twin does not understand what’s happening to them on a spiritual level, and feel like they’re losing control over their own emotions. They don’t know what to do, so their natural reaction is to run away, and chasing after them, only makes them run even more. Completing your own inner healing is crucial for this type of journey with a Twin counterpart to even have a chance to work out, and it requires patience, and doing all of the necessary work on self that must be completed. Not doing any inner work on self creates a continuous cycle of running/chasing with the Twin counterpart.

There is a certain fated element to this type of connection. The template of a Twin Flame seems very fated in many ways. It’s one of the most complicated; or most beautiful connections that we can experience in a lifetime; depending on how you want to view that. Some will question the validity of this type of connection, or think that it’s BS, however, the concept is present in many cultures and has been for thousands of years. Perhaps the story of Adam and Eve is the original Twin Flame connection. Other examples of Twin’s are; John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Linda and Paul McCartney, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, Ron and Nancy Reagan and fictional characters Harold and Maude that depict Twin Flames with major age differences. In Chinese culture the name for Twin Flames is the red string of fate, it’s an invisible red cord, tied to those destined to be together. Time can stretch or tangle the red cord, but the thread can never be severed. We all have a other half. The term “finding our other half” comes from that concept. The term Twin Flame is derived from Greek mythology. It was said that humans were originally created with four arms and four legs, but Zeus, fearing their power, split them in half, sentencing them to spend the rest of their lives searching for their other half. Whether we believe in the concept of finding our other half or not, the theory of being split in half is a belief that reinforces the Twin Fame concept. The Twin Flame experience will be nothing like anything you will have been through before. You’ll learn the meaning of unconditional love for another human being and more compassionate love for yourself. How you choose to navigate the lessons you learn, messages you receive on your Twin Fame journey, is entirely up to you. How each person will process “signs” is also up to each person who experiences them. Each Twin has a different trajectory they’ll be on, and no two Twin couples will likely walk the same path in life; how could they due to the dynamic of meeting a Twin in the first place. However, one thing is certain, once awakened by such a connection, your life will never be the same.

Some have questioned the validity of the Twin Flame concept, calling it evil, the work of the Devil etc…I get it; unless you’ve experienced an abnormal amount of synchronicity surrounding another person, it’s hard to digest the concept of a fated meeting of your carbon copy with synchronic signs unless you’ve experienced this for yourself. Not everyone in life will need to go through this type of relationship design. I do believe in the Twin Flame model, because I‘ve experienced it and speak about my experiences. Like so many who’ve experienced this relationship model; it came with a spiritual awakening, finding one’s life purpose, and a heart full of pain because of the running Twin who was not emotionally available for you or anyone. This is the hardest part of the Twin Flame journey; it ain’t easy. A Twin Flame is one of the most challenging relationships to navigate. There is an inner knowing that comes with meeting that they are your Twin, but be-not-fooled; not all Twin’s wind-up together in “romantic” situations just because of the fated-ness that persist with synchronic signs after meeting them. Fate does-not-a-relationship-make. A relationship must have 2 people in agreement to said-relationship to make it so, the law of freewill has much to do with that. There is no Universal law that states; “a fated meeting is forever.” Life is not a Helzberg Diamond commercial. But one thing is for sure; anyone who experiences a Twin Flame relationship will be changed forever and ultimately rewarded by spiritual evolution. Working on self first and detachment from the ego mind of the fated-ness part of meeting a Twin Flame is what moves you forward on your spiritual path. Detachment means: TO HAVE ZERO EXPECTATIONS OF BEING IN A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR TWIN. I can’t emphasis this enough. You and your twin will no doubt be working on issues through each other to evolve as people. The meeting of the Twin is always for a much higher purpose. Divine timing will determine if you will be in a “union” or relationship. The law of freewill; choice in choosing a partner, prevails over fate and destiny.

Twin Flame Signs

You will experience a strange “feeling” and “knowing” of something happening behind the scenes before your first encounter with them.You will get this feeling that something is brewing but you have no idea what it is, or why you feel this way.

The moment you encounter them, you will feel a strange and unusual spark within your being. “There they are!” is a simple yet accurate way to describe this feeling. It is an instant recognition on a soul level, your logical mind will not recognize them, but YOU will.

Synchronicities will become very apparent. The number sequence 11:11will be the inital sequence that you encounter. Once you acknowledge it, more will come.  They will be in your face, all of the time. This will range from repeating numbers (222, 333, 444, etc.) to your thoughts synching perfectly with your reality; you will be thinking of a word or phrase, and you will then hear this exact word or phrase in the physical. You will see personalized messages on billboards and on the TV, telling you exactly what you need in order to keep moving forward. The biggest mistake you could make is to ignore what these numbers and signs are telling you. They are signs and directions laid out for you by your Higher Self. They are your path to Union.

Your outlook on life will change. You will prefer complete solitude for awhile in order to collect your thoughts. You will question everything you have ever known and you will rid your life of what no longer serves you. Some of this will even happen on a subconscious level; For example, you won’t be able to afford cable TV any longer, as this is your Higher Self directing you AWAY from the false beliefs that no longer resonate. Things can seem as if they are falling apart, but they are being cleared for a higher purpose, you are making room for the new to enter.

You will give up habits that no longer serve you. Drinking, smoking, even unsatisfying jobs. You will suddenly drop these things as they no longer serve a purpose for your Union.

You will be absolutely swarmed with thoughts of your Twin Flame. By swarmed I quite literally mean 24-7. There are days were you will just want to lay in bed and think about your Twin, and tune into your heart connection. You can not and will not escape this, the more you attempt to push these thoughts and feelings away, the more they will overwhelm you. This is set in place for a reason. You are not MEANT to push these away, you are meant to embrace them, as your Twin will be a part of your life for the duration of your time here on Earth, and thereafter.

Your lives will synch up. Everything about you will synch and match, yet you will ALSO be complimentary opposites. This is put in place as a recognition mechanism. Your lives before you met will match, so much that you may discover that you received the same items for Christmas years ago. You will have worked the same types of jobs, and your family history will match. You will show up in person together and be dressed alike. If one Twin gets a nosebleed, the other will follow suit shortly thereafter.

As for the complimentary opposite aspect; what one Twin lacks, the other will make up for. If one of you is bald, the other will have a beautiful head of hair. If one of you excels at math, the other will be a magnificent writer. If one is older, the other maybe decades younger. Your aspects will be a perfect puzzle, all will be matched, synched, and what one is “lacking” the other will fill in. It is human perfection.

The Love you feel for this person goes beyond anything you ever thought was possible. You will absolutely LOVE this person with such a fiery passion that nothing and no one would ever be able to change this feeling. It is a complete imprint on the others soul, you have permanently merged yourselves. And the only reason for loving them is simply for who they are. No matter what your “type” is, your Twin will become the most amazingly beautiful and fantastic human being that you have ever encountered. You will have a longing and lust for them that does not fade. You want to merge with them on ALL levels of their being.

If you are married at the time of meeting your Twin, your marriage will slowly become more and more unappealing. You will feel as if you are cheating on your Twin whilst being with your spouse. You will only have eyes for your Twin, and being intimate with your partner will become increasingly more difficult. Your soul wants nothing to do with this lower vibrational act of love, regardless of how much you care for your spouse as a person. They will never, ever hold a candle to your Twin Flame. Your mind will try and convince you of the human made laws of marriage, but your soul and heart will put up the rigorous fight to this core value which no longer serves you.

You will dream of this person, and many times this will be a lucid dream. You will be able to manipulate the dream into whatever you wish, and these dreams are the prerequisite of what is required of you in order to come into Union. Just like a dream, your waking reality requires and allows you to manipulate your circumstances into whatever you wish. (I will get into this in another article). The more harmonious your dreams are that involve your Twin, the closer you are to Union.

Your physical appearances will merge. This is a huge sign, and especially apparent if you are a Twin couple with an age gap. At the time of the younger Twins birth, the older Twin will begin to evolve and change physically. The older Twin will begin to shed their “old looks” in order to match his or her Twin. They will be able to look back at pictures of themselves and be unrecognizable. At the time of meeting, you and your Twin will be “identical”, regardless of age or race. You will be able to take a split screen picture of each face and put them side by side, and they will match perfectly.

You will find synchronicity in; your names (one of your names will be found with in the other’s), your birthday’s, the day you met, and even in your phone numbers. This requires a little bit of detective work, but if you are curious, you will be aligned to see it. Everything is pre-planned for you to be able to recognize this person as your Twin, this is all set up by your Higher Selves pre-birth.

Your Twin will test your faith, patience, and emotional stability. They do this completely unknowingly, and you agreed to this before you incarnated here. Everything that you need to work on, your Twin will put on display. This will be extremely exaggerated through them, and it is there once again to catch your attention. Whatever you need to work on within yourself will be magnified exponentially so you can get the picture and fix it. Your Twin is your greatest mirror, everything that you accuse them of being, you are accusing yourself of. You yourself are the only one who is with-holding your Union. Your Twin is ready for you as soon as you Align yourself.

You, or they, will have a strong urge to run for the hills. Notice here I said strong urge. If you do become physically separated, it is never for long, and it is always guided. This connection can be very overwhelming, especially in the beginning, and one or both of you will want to retreat back to “your old life”. However, you are here for a higher purpose and the Universe and your Higher Selves were prepared for this. This statement may upset some who feel they have met their Twins and have lost them, however this is important, and I want to make this very clear. Should you and your Twin separate, this is not permanent. If you have met your Twin Flame in this lifetime, the two of you WILL be together, permanently. There is no “maybe in the next lifetime, we met too soon.” If you have encountered your TRUE Twin Flame, you will reunite as a couple in the physical here and now. Should you have lost your Twin for an extended amount of time, this person was a soul catalyst, and NOT your Twin Flame. You and your Twin will never stay apart long, it is impossible and it goes against the whole reason you incarnated here together and met in the physical. Do you truly believe all of these signs and preparations for the two of you were all for nothing? You will both fulfill your purpose here TOGETHER, United in love.

How To Recognize A Twin Flame

There are many signs and characteristics that the twin relationship has that can help you decide if you’ve met your twin. Chances are though, if you’re awake, aware, and have been doing your inner work, you already know. Twin relationships aren’t necessarily harmonious; in fact twin flames when uniting can go through a lot of cleansing, purging and energy releasing within the chakra system. The biggest sign is the amount of energy that is created when they come together. Do not be confused by emotional or physical attraction, this energy that is created is something completely different. When and if you experience this amount of energy you will know. It is thought that only graduate souls are finding their Twins souls/Flames on Earth as their purpose is to do healing and spiritual work on the planet at this time.

The place of meeting. It was as if they fell out of the sky and into your lap. Neither one of you were looking for each other, it was Divine timing and circumstance that brought you together. Sometimes it is quite symbolic.

They are your mirror. They will mirror back to you everything in your life that you need to address. Everything that has not been healed. They are there to show you YOU. Sometimes your entire life can change upon meeting them.

The amount of energy created when you are together is magnetic. People around you will notice and feel the power between you. When you are together you can be an unstoppable force!

You psychic and intuitive senses will be heightened upon meeting.

There is usually something significant about their birthdate. They do not have to be born on the same day, month, or year, but there is just something peculiar about their date.

The deep respect and love for each other means you will never want to hurt each other, and if there is a fight or disagreement between the two of you, it can feel devastating.

You feel an almost immediate bond or connection with them usually right after meeting them. Like you’ve known them before or their energy feels very familiar.

You will both complement each other. Your skillsets or abilities will work perfectly together because you’ve developed what the other one lacks or needs in your separation. And together you can work Magic!

You can feel each other even when you are apart. You have a hard time getting them out of your mind. It could feel like an obsession but it is not. It is that you are so closely connected that you literally FEEL each other. Sometimes the time apart feels unbearable.

You feel as if you are Home, that time stands still when you are with them; in other words, you have the ability to collapse time. And sometimes they might feel like a dream or unreal to you. But although you remain separate beings with your own individual life path you feel a sense of completeness with them.

Even something as small as a hug can carry an intense surge of energy.

They have similar beliefs and a life path to yours.

You will want to give to them without ever wanting in return. Giving is the nature of this relationship.

One of the most important signs that you have met your twin is that you have a feeling that this is something very different than any other relationship you have encountered before. The feelings you have for them sometimes cannot even be put into words. Total unconditional and complete love and acceptance. There is a special sacredness about your relationship that transcends anything you have ever experienced before. In essence, you already know, you will feel it with your whole being. No other relationship will be as life changing.

You are aware that the purpose of your relationship is to bring something extraordinary to the world for the betterment of the planet.

And lastly, one of my personal favorites is noticing the numbers 11:11. This number can appear anywhere. You may see it on clocks, receipts, computers etc. and in my own personal journey seeing 11:11 has always been a confirmation that I was on the right path, or a “Yes” to a thought I was having right before I noticed the time. It appears a lot when we are going through a growth stage. There are other meanings for 11:11. But that’s another whole topic on its own.

These are some of the biggest signs of a twin relationship. Sometimes, however, one twin may not be ready for the other one, either because of their unwillingness or fear of dealing with their own issues and emotional baggage and maybe a “Flame Runner”. They may want to run away from the amount of energy or intensity of the relationship. Or if when they look into your eyes the reflection back of themselves is too much to deal with. If that is the case, have patience and trust in knowing that you will be together again when both are ready for the cleansing and clearing necessary. This intense repelling and magnetic attraction is a common theme among twins and the reunion will take place when both are ready to be fully healed. If you have been lucky enough to find this once in many lifetimes relationship, cherish it and know that it is here to bring you to your utmost spiritual growth. The twin flame relationship changes your life. It challenges each soul to grow and expand into their highest potential to fulfill their mission and purpose on the planet and in each other’s lives. If you are still searching, stop the search outward and go inward and focus on you. You won’t find them by searching, they will find you, through Love. That’s all. Through time and space, they will find you through Love.

8 Major Twin Flame Stages

Twin flames are said to be beings that aid our souls in finding completion. Ancient Greek philosopher Plato first created the idea of souls “split in two” that eternally yearn to find their “other halves.” These days we still carry around this idea of “find our other half,” but unfortunately we believe that it is absolutely imperative for us to find another person to be complete. Please keep in mind that while twin flames do help us to experience unconditional love and grow immensely as people, not all of us find our twin flames, and not all of us need twin flames to feel complete. Please read “7 Common Myths Embellishing Twin Flame Relationships” to read more about this. Also, it helps to remember that the degree to which you can experience harmony in your twin flame relationship is dependent on your level of soulful maturity. For example, two old souls will have a much easier time at “holding it all together” than two young souls. You can read more about soul ages. So keeping this in mind, what are the eight major twin flame stages that you’ll likely experience in your relationship?

Stage One – Yearning for “The One”: In this preliminary stage, you have spent your entire life pining for “The One” that doesn’t yet exist in your life. You have this strange sensation that someone who is perfectly molded to you is “out there” but you don’t quite know where or when they will appear in your life. Although you ache for your twin flame, you have a feeling they will appear to you at some point. This stage is also sometimes spent “preparing” for the arrival of the twin flame on an unconscious level. In my instance, I had to learn how to love myself before I met mine. For others, this stage of preparation involves the development of self-awareness, discovery, and understanding.

Stage Two – Glimpsing “The One”: At some point, you will have a brief glimpse of your twin flame. Whether this is through a dream signal, or through a real-life meeting, suddenly the Beloved can be sensed. The result is profound. Wonder, joy, anxiety, and intoxication quickly ensue. For those cautious among us, a lingering sense of intense curiosity and desire to get to know the person better is the result. You don’t know what it is exactly, but this person is extremely special. Like me, you may even sense that this person will play an immensely important role in your life – even before you know them properly.

Stage Three – Falling in Love: When you fall for this person, you will fall very, very hard. You will fall harder than you have ever fallen for anyone – and the impact will knock the breath right out of you. In fact, as you get to know your twin flame better, you will fall more and more deeply in love with them. As a result, you’ll find it hard to stand with two feet on the ground. You might feel disorientated, lovesick and “unlike yourself.” You may even try to resist the attraction, but eventually, you’ll accept the reality that you’re deeply and madly in love.

Stage Four – The Fairy-Tale Relationship: As both of you eventually make your feelings known and enter into a relationship, life will feel like a fairy-tale. Your relationship with them will be perfect in every possible way. It will seem as though your twin flame fulfills every single need you have and everything you ever possibly wanted. This taste of “paradise” is what the matured twin flame relationship looks like after the next few stages of turmoil.

Stage Five – Outer Turmoil and Inner Purging: In this stage, there is trouble in paradise. As the ecstasy from the initial meeting period wears off, egos start to flare up. Suddenly differences in opinion, taste, and personality arise, and old core wounds emerge out of the gloom. While our twin flames share and mirror our deepest needs, desires, and dreams, they also tend to mirror our shadow selves. For example, if you are an emotionally repressed person, your twin flame will likely be emotionally explosive. If you tend to be arrogant, your twin flame will most likely be uncertain and quiet. In this way our twin flames challenge us, riling up our insecurities. This can be infuriating, devastating and very painful. While all the arguing and fighting in this stage may seem disastrous, the truth is that it is necessary for our growth. Without being provoked, without seeing ourselves for who we “really” are, we live in illusion and fail to grow soulfully. But this is certainly hard to realize while you’re going through such turbulence in your relationship!

Stage Six – The Runner and Chaser: As tensions mount it is common for one partner (or sometimes both) to emotionally or physically withdraw and “run” away, and another to pursue in a game of cat and mouse. Sometimes this involves emotional shutdown and silent treatments. Other times this involves physical separation and in extreme cases, the permanent termination of the relationship. In this stage, twin flames experience a trial by fire. While some relationships last and are strengthened, others crumble to pieces. As I mentioned at the start, this is all dependent on each partner’s soulful maturity. Sometimes one partner leaves for many years and then returns, only to repeat the cycle once again. The chaser, on the other hand, tends to be the more mentally and emotionally mature partner of the two, trying to sort everything out and make amends.

Stage Seven – Surrender and Dissolution: Once the shadow of your relationship has been revealed, you may experience a period of surrender. After so much anguish, distress and provocation, you both begin to open up about your wounds and insecurities. In this stage, it is common to experience a lot of ego dissolution and soulful expansion. As the ego relaxes, powerful lessons are learned about the nature of oneself and the nature of the “other.” As you begin learning how to work through your differences, the maturity of your relationship deepens and thus strengthens.It is common to go through stages six and seven many times throughout your relationship.

Stage Eight – Oneness: As the problems in your relationship become increasingly easy to deal with, you will enter a period of soul reunion. In stage eight it is common for you to both find a shared meaning, passion or cause that brings you a mutual sense of fulfillment. As the ego continues to relax, virtues such as forgiveness, understanding, empathy, and patience are learned. The more you both work through each issue that comes your way vigilantly, the more you experience the sensation of “Oneness,” or ego death.

Common Twin Flame Difficulties

Now for the famous Twin Flame Obstacles. Quite a few of you will see these as “blocks” to your Union, but they are not, they are in place for a reason. As soon as you see them as “blocks”, or “obstacles”, that is exactly what they become. These characteristics are here for you to transcend them, because Love doesn’t see anything other than itself. The soul does not care about the human standards of “right and wrong”, as there is no right or wrong. There is only Love. You are meant to bridge the gap between percieved, man-made separations and belief systems that serve nothing but egoic standards. You can choose to either notice them as obstacles, or you may transcend them, which will catapult you into Union. When twin souls first meet even in their final incarnation, some of them will have differences in physical, emotional and intellectual content of the two personalities. Firstly, one soul has to adjust his difficulties within himself. Then he has to match whatever he has to the other. That means he has to clear all his own foibles, needs, cravings and ill will before he meets his twin as a fully satisfied individual. He should be ready to serve the other by putting the requirements of the other twin before his own. And vice versa. The struggle between themselves and together will definitely go to enhance the twinship. This is so because they have different psychological background and different personalities with emotional divergence. There will be normal conflicts when the two have such a close relationship, but the conflicts will be rapidly resolved. This is because their goal is the same. The emotional conflict is almost unbearable because they are twins. So in order not to see the other suffer, they tend to solve the problem as soon as possible.As they have been travelling by themselves, they have earned good and bad karma of their own. Once they meet and work together, they must now try and clear both karmic debts jointly. Similarly, good karma earned by both independently will be enjoyed by both. In fact, as karma is created at the soul level, both have been influenced by the other’s karma imperceptibly. There will definitely be stress in some couples, and in these they may even break up temporarily. Some couples will have to suffer together because of joined karma. There are so many possibilities in so many combinations and permutations. In some, the different backgrounds and karma would have brought together two very different individuals. This fact does not bother them at all. In this instance, “opposites do attract”. All the differences go to complement their lives. So differences in physical, emotional and psychological make up do not tear them apart irrevocably, because their souls are joined together like Siamese twins. The compatibility here is at the spiritual level. That alone counts. The obstacles within the individual should mostly be solved by the time of the meeting. However, there may be few external obstacles that present themselves. One or both twins could have already been married when they meet. The eternal triangle is usually dealt by the almost enlightened individuals with accommodation to the existing families. If one were to hear that someone has walked out on the family to be with his or her twin soul, one can rest assured that it is not a twin soul union in their final incarnation. The already committed twin is too responsible and would continue to honour the pre-existing marriage. The twins will know that there must be a very good reason for this inconvenience. It could be a test or because of unresolved karmic obligations. The twins would then remain as loving friends or colleagues without marriage disruptions. This is due to fact that they are no more powered by passionate physical sex, as their love is above that. They may meet at night in spirit for the purpose of uplifting a common cause. They may meet in either the astral or mental world. They know that their separation is temporary and nothing in the world can stop their final union. Of course very occasionally their meeting could precipitate a marriage breakup, but this is with a marriage that is already collapsing. The breakup may induce some benefit to the aggrieved members, who can start anew with their own new partners. With this in mind, the twins who are uniting in this last incarnation, would have cultivated fidelity, joy, love and trust, and their union would be as solid as a rock. However, there may still be a few cases, where one soul has not reached the same level as the other. One partner may outgrow the other, and the demands of the less developed may be irksome to most other partners. However to the developed twin this mild set back must be met with tolerance and patience, otherwise the growth may be stunted. At this juncture it is a shame to let the stunting be a deterrent for further growth. For instance, if one soul were to suffer from some neurotic illness, this fact may be detrimental for both. So the care-giving partner has to sacrifice his smooth progression to confront the neurotic partner with the truth of the difficulty. This may rock the marriage, but it has to be done.You do not spare the rod because you are afraid to hurt the naughty child. The soft stance will hurt the child more at a later date. This self-sacrifice must be persistent and long standing otherwise it will not work, for most neurotic diseases are brought over from past lives. One example of a twin flame is the relationship between Jughead Jones and Veronica Lodge also known as Jeronica, although these two people haven't realized yet they are twin flames and are destined for each other.

[theorynexus]

59:  The Continuing Adventures of Dave and Roxy, as well as the concerns assailing them.

Yay, the Charleston!   (Boo the fact that if Jake’s targeted by a sniper, Dave can’t so easily react by slowing down time and tackling him out of the way, or whatever!)

***sagenods, despite never having had anything like his own experience, myself***

It’s good to see that in quantifiable terms, there. Also good to see Dave’s awkward insecurity on the matter never faded away during those recognition stages. It makes it at least 1000% funnier. Ask Colonel Sassacre.

HA!   Also:  I love to see that paranoia in action, ramping up the comedy value even more and legitimizing my previous statement that this was funny, which some people would consider incredibly rude, probably! It is also interesting to think of the fact that the 30-70% enumeration suggests he goes back and forth as far as which of the two sexes he is apparently considering legitimate “targets” of his interest (troll biology/sexuality didn’t cease to be probably quite different from human reproductive systems, or anything, and Calliope/cherubs in general may very well be hermaphroditic either in a simultaneous or sequential manner, so I obviously have to recognize them here).  Obviously, there’s also the possibility he’s just not thinking of such other sexes due to is human upbringing on earth, were intersex members of society are relatively rare, and thus the idea that there are only two sexes tends to widely be embraced by (most, but increasingly not all) members of the Western society/civilization he dwelt in. I don’t blame him for his upbringing: everyone brings their own baggage into their later life.

Yeah... the Stralondes bring some interesting genetic factors to the table. I am not sure how much that actually directly influences things. Part of the issue is probably Bro’s impact on his life, which exposed Dave to a great deal of sexual material and almost undeniably stunted his growth in weird ways.   (Note: I do not suggest that his apparent self-labeled bisexuality is a result of his growth being stunted, regardless of the fact that one’s early life does indeed have an impact on one’s later identity; rather, I am merely suggesting that Bro’s influences, while dramatically increasing his capacity for survival in SBURB, and thus technically being instrumental to everything that followed, gave him psychological issues which everyone must admit made him struggle quite a bit over the years.   It may be likely that he would have developed the same sexual dispositions regardless of the scars Bro inflicted on him [both emotional and physical], but we can never truly know, for Time is weird: issues are entangled.)

Dirk, you named yourself after a Platonic work!   How can you not understand how great and important relationships which reach to the point of bonds between souls and transcend the physicality of sexual relations can be?!?!?!

GAH, I just... sometimes, you really can’t expect reasonable thoughts from this guy, can you?

On the other hand, let’s just all take a moment to celebrate the irony of “... even my harshest critics would never accuse me of such cruelty” from Dirk Strider. Best. Fricking. bundle of words that ever emerged from his mouth, probably.

I would argue that even without the opposition, displays of gender are by no means culturally vestigial in the same way that fashion generally is not. It’s a direct reflection of the soul, projected outward.  (Like a person’s hat, or shirt. [Dirk having a hat on his shirt was not just a reflection of the fact that he was “kid bro,” or whatever, but was actually an early suggestion of his Heart aspect.]) Obviously, this is limited by the resources, imagination, and environment/occupation of the individual involved, and there are in fact numerous things which are more important for a person in reality, but that doesn’t mean that it’s something to be dismissed like that altogether.

***cough projected future dramatic irony, cough***   Also ironic insofar as I am not 100% sure he actually cares about Roxy’s identity/gender issues so much as he might find them annoying and boring to be dragged through. Somewhat ironic+hilarious for a fellow Heart player to find this kind of thing unbearable, if so.   Maybe it’s just the Prince in him.

It is good of you to be concerned for her well-being, I suppose. Considering it is your own identity that is at issue, here, I would suggest you hold a little more weight, but regardless, this is good.  As for the matter of your transformation and dissatisfaction with your hair as it is now:  I suppose Dave’s step by step relation of his own journey as made quite an impression on you.   Hopefully, you do not feel jealous, but rather, patiently continue to contemplate your own path and, as Alt!Calliope suggests you might think, head toward a more potent and firm+real understanding of your own identity+self.  It is okay to be uncertain and questioning, for now.  I’m sure the shakiness of first steps will give way to confidence naturally in due time. These things are not easy, obviously, but reaching out to someone who’s had similar struggles is a good choice: it will likely make things easier, especially since he’s someone you can dependably put your trust in, despite his flippant, awkward attitude in general. (Also: on a more abstract note, it is interesting to see Roxy ascribing meaninglessness to her hair choice, and expressing lack of understanding on her identity issues. Very tight writing, on Hussie’s part, making the kids reflect their aspects and struggle so keenly with things relating to them.)

Given the fact that Cherubs naturally have very violent sex and spend eons before their first (and only?) sexual encounter, that’s not really much of an insult, if “virgin” should ever be considered one to begin with.  Pompous is definitely more accurate and applicable, though. Also:  Hooray, actually saying things, and getting the size of his text back again! (I am not actually really cheering for Dirk so much as I am finding it interesting for the sake of the ongoing conflict acting as an undercurrent to the storytelling, right now. It’s truly fascinating to see two narrators fighting amongst themselves like this! )

Everything about this (especially Alt!Calliope’s confidence and her “’human tanties’” line) is incredibly amusing. I love it.

Lil Cal might beg to differ. But that is a complicated tangent which does not deal with this version of Dirk directly.     (Preemptive Edit:  Also funny because of the fact that Doc Scratch is literally a walking, talking puppet with a Dirk inside.)

Yes, justifying toying with your friends because you know them and have investment in their lives therefore is indeed very logical, reasonable, and highly rational of you to do. Thank you for this brilliant insight into the human condition.

Oh, so this is now a reference to the Charles Whitman shootings at the University of Texas?   That is a very interesting and curious choice to portray Dirk’s derangement with, especially considering the earlier statement about Dirk knowing solitude in a similar manner to Alt!Calliope’s own knowledge of it.    (Almost appropriate, considering she basically destroyed the fabric of Paradox Space to kill her brother in cold blood [the way revenge and Eternity are best served], but I guess this is a digression~)

I wonder if he really intends this, or if it is in fact a ruse in order to time things perfectly such that he can in fact shoot Alt!Calliope in Jade’s body without her initially expecting it. Particularly since, if I am thinking of the correct gun, it actually shoots portals that allow for ridiculously long range shots that would normally be impossible.

Wow, that is cold, Alt!Calliope, throwing Rose under the bus like that.   Also:  I suddenly have “ Do the impossible, see the invisible. Row! Row! Fight the power! Touch the untouchable, break the unbreakable. Row! Row! Fight the power!” playing in my head, as if this were a flash animation. That thought process really puts things in perspective, if this is supposed to be  (at least to him) a tale of Dirk fighting against causality and the will of Paradox Space to make things become irrelevant and to fade out of perception.

Guaranteed to blow [somebody’s] mind.

She warned you about---

History repeating itself.

Such anime. Such wonders.  Man, this is really fricking interesting, seeing Dirk and Calliope actually going at it on a twinned physical and metaphysical battlefield!   It’s like we’re finally being shown a cherub predomination contest in action!    (I wonder if Alt!Calliope will eventually fall into caliginous attraction for him. This would be quite amusing.)

Wow, that was probably a bad move taken at an inopportune time. The question is: Is she forced to make that by laws of narrative relevance, or is it a purposeful decision on her part to spitefully turn away from him, despite the likely imminent consequences. On the other hand: This could be a very powerful and shrewd tactic on her part to recruit Dave to serve her purposes. Given his presence at the event, he could either intercept Dirk (I almost called him Bro-- gah!) or save Jake, if led properly. If she is particularly spiteful, she could use him as a sacrificial piece and have him take the bullet instead of Jake, which could be very, very painful to Dirk.

Huh. Despite Terezi’s comment about onions not making people cry, Trolls are inherently averse to them in the same way that dogs are to chocolate, huh? Also, people are Ogres, and Homestuck is Shrek. This is definitely the unadulterated truth. Additionally:   Pffft.  It seems that the idea that the Green Sun Black Hole’s presence making Roxy’s own void less effective for everyone might be true!   Or, alternatively, Dave just knows enough to make the guess. Or both, possibly.

Pffft. She’s oblivious to her own inscrutability!   Perfect. XD That said: YES!   HECK YES!  HECK FRICKING YES, ROXY SHADES!!!   :’D (Oh, and shades are a symbol of the Void [not just because they keep out light, but because they block the eyes, which are symbolic of Light and Heart, but more importantly for this, Light], the same way that alcohol and oceans are. Somewhat surprising that she didn’t have a pair of them already, at this point, if we’re being totally honest.)

Yeah, if it was not obvious that the method of Alt!Calliope informing Dave of this threat would be subtle like that rather than a direct statement/command, then I don’t know what is obvious to you guys.

This, psychologically+sociologically, makes a great deal of sense, considering humans seem to have a natural propensity for feeling distasteful towards some sort of “other,” regardless of what it is. Thus, there’s a double-edged sword involved, quite logically, and somewhat saddeningly, to the otherwise open and accepting mentality that humans seem to have socially adopted in their new environment.       At the same time, the way that this is delivered is horribly hilarious (tragi-comically so), and I’m barely sorry that I find that to be the case.

Yes. Yes, it was cute, indeed. Sad to see it go, somewhat.  But his question is incredibly silly and very awkward, just as is natural for Dave. Thus, I find it acceptable and in-character, not insulting or narrow-minded, as some might.

***laughs alongside them, for indeed, this has all become quite funny, despite the fact that it is a “distaction [sic.]” from the seriousness at hand***

FRICKING...  DANGIT, ALT!CALLIOPE, IF THIS TURNS OUT THE WAY YOUR WORDING IMPLIES IT WILL, I SWEAR...!!!

Okay, so you seem to have just used it as a convenient threat, and worded things such that he had time that he didn’t necessarily clearly have in order to basically take two actions instead of one.   (His jump to save Karkat could have cost Jake his life, or Dave his.)

As I was going to say, but was prevented from doing due to a belief that it would be better to include these lines too:   His statement about her being right about many things clearly, while initially making it seem that he was indeed going to take the shot, heroic death chance or no, almost certainly ensures that this is actually a subterfuge on his part (similar to but a reversal of Caliborn replacing the hats on the king and queen: in this case, he is switching his OPPONENT’s chess pieces’ appearances, making her think he’s targeting one, but is actually going for the other, more crucial target [as should be obvious, given the thematic similarities between Dirk and Caliborn, and the tendency of events in Paradox Space to rhyme with one another]).

Check.

Indeed, indeed. Alt!Calliope senses a similar pattern, quite sensibly, which is fitting with her role as Muse, and her understanding of it. Unfortunately, while she picked up correctly one one such similarity/resonance, it seems she’s missed some others.   I do appreciate this comment on immortality, though. I had not actually thought about that, and this makes his potential actions somewhat more benign. (Not that it would render his later actions as such.)

I really fricking appreciate the “no guts no glory” comment coming right before this extremely gutsy reveal on his part. By saying as such, he could easily be ruining his plan, but he just goes ahead and says it anyway. XD BEAUTIFUL writing, right there.

It was less intelligent of him to narrate his own action so long-windedly, but completely in-character.  It gave her the time required to interject like that. That said: I bet he’s going to fire via voice command or something like that.

And THAT, my friends, is why you don’t underestimate your opponents, and you should not announce your belief in the futility of their actions to their faces like a stereotypical villain would!   Also:  WILLPOWER!!!

...   Yet this does not end the page, and despite the fact that it would be a magnificent point to end the post, I will not do so.  I will first say that I was almost certain Dirk was actually in fact successfully hiding something from her when he was messing with his equipment/tech there [and great foresight on his part, to think this far ahead, by the way], and secondly, shall end the post with the actual page’s ending:

I appreciate his continued devotion to realism in sound effects and whatnot.

To be fair, he could be using that term technically and literally, here, but I also very much do believe that he was not, which is unfortunate. v.v Thus, Alt!Calliope’s question is quite valid.   Though my guess is that Dirk’s response will be something along the lines of, “She chose death and you over life with me.”  This might make her a “bitch” in the same way that men in prison who are raped are reported to be one, rather than the typical insulting-particularly-to-women version of the phrase. Regardless, this is uncalled for. ~~~ It is nice to see the fact that Alt!Calliope’s text is getting smaller, now, by the way.

I don’t appreciate this mockery/show boating. It’s quite abrasive and distasteful. I do see it as being rather in-line with what I’d imagine his character would do, given the frustrating situation he was previously put in, though. Also:  This very much resembles what happened when he was first suppressed. There is much hilarity to be found in that, all things considered. Alt!Calliope was definitely a bit more benign in some ways and objective (most of the time), but that doesn’t mean that there weren’t some major similarities between narrators. Additionally:   I do quite love this example of narrative vs. physical action.  I only remember Caliborn/LE and Hussie ever engaging in that sort of contest before.  Well... you could say that there were a few examples of it with the Exiles and Kids/Trolls (like what Bec did to PM’s station, or Sollux’s defense against CD), but they don’t really feel like they were quiiitee substantive enough to count. Regardless!: Very refreshing and interesting, this style of conflict is! Thanks, AH! ... Buuuut there is just a liiitttle tiny bit left over on the page to comment on, so I’ll get to that.  (Oh, also, I totally imagine Jade falling asleep in the classic manner she used to before entering the session, just slumping over with her hands splayed out under her~)

Okaaayyy... if you say so. The fact that tranquilizers can be lethal in doses that are too high does not jive well with your uncertainty, though.   Oh, and also:  WHAAAAT?!  You’re going to leave?!  This is a completely unexpected---   Okay, I can’t and won’t keep up that charade when admittedly the couple of pages I read of Homestuck^2 before freaking out and stopping showed a weird-shaped ship that looked vaguely like a flying fish.    I had tried to forget about that, but the memory suddenly rushed back to me as I read that bit of narration.

Ehh?   Is this suggesting that the Candy epilogue is chiefly narrated by Alt!Calliope?   I mean... it would sortof work out logically, given her very pro-Free Will stance, and the association of Calliope with preferring Candy as food... .

Hmm. This further supports that notion. Iiiif that is the case, Dirk stands as the proxy for LE/Caliborn even moreso than otherwise was clearly the case.  In retrospect, this makes it pretty gosh darned funny that his head got chopped off along with Jack English and Jack Noir (who, holding English’s “lordly sceptre,” and holding reign over the Felt, was OBVIOUSLY an English stand-in, as well  [I still giggle at his sudden use of it like a horse {hitcher} in the middle of the fight]).       Very, veeeeerrry interesting. ~~~ I wonder if Dirk was testing the idea of interjecting himself back into the narrative when he said, “Jake’s ass is mine,” twice, earlier. Oh, and credit to Forgotten Homestuck Facts for the pic compilation, earlier. 

[chenanigans-draws]

Finally got around to doodling my Hollow Knight characters. The Inseparable Twins Leffi and Rinnu.

Both are said to have come from the same egg, thus creating an unbreakable bond. Not having that desired emptiness made them a failure upon birth, so they were discarded. Despite that, the two still managed to survive and make their way out of the Abyss.

Leffi:

They’re adventurous and a bit impulsive.

Out of the twins, they’re the worst at wielding a nail, but they try anyways because they wanna protect their twin.

They took longer to learn how to speak and read. They prefer that Rinnu speaks for them, since they can express both of their feelings clearly.

Rinnu:

They’re observant and level-headed.

They’re better at wielding a nail than Leffi, but with rather assess a situation than go fists-flying. They usually get their sibling outta there before they go ham.

They learned to speak and read faster than Leffi. They usually speak on behalf of the two.

Some more facts about them:

Even if one gets killed, they can easily find each other’s Shade due to their unbreakable bond.

Both of them look up to their siblings Ghost, Hornet, and Hollow. Rinnu wants to speak eloquently like Hornet, while Leffi wants to be great at the nail like Ghost.

They get very upset when they’re separated and will only calm down if they’re together.

They used to live in one of the small houses still left in Forgotten Crossroads. When the Radiance was destroyed, they moved up to Dirtmouth.

[ayearofpike]

Black Knight (Witch World, Vol. 2)

Simon Pulse, 2014 441 pages, 9 chapters + prologue and epilogue ISBN 978-1-4424-6734-7 LOC: PZ7.P626 Bl 2014 OCLC: 1065025018 Released December 2, 2104 (per B&N)

A month after her connection, Jessie Ralle starts dreaming about a young thief who mysteriously disappears in a flash of light. On the ninth night of the same lucid dream, she herself sees the flash, and wakes up next to the thief and four others in transport to a deserted jungle island. There are no ideas, no instructions, no obvious goals. There’s just a clue, a plaque mounted near their drop-off point that indicates that six groups just like theirs are here, but only one will make it out alive.

In other words: Remember that world-building we had in the first book, where it was implied that Jessie and her baby daughter were going to be integral components to the new and evolving leadership among the witch council? Remember the difficulty and heartbreak of Jimmy only being alive in one half of her life? Remember the potential new bonds of realizing her father was active in her upbringing, and could be again in both worlds? Well, fuck all that — let’s have a Hunger Games. 

OK, technically this is more like Battle Royale, and Pike actually makes a reference to it as the young adults acclimate to their surroundings. But it is undeniable the influence that Suzanne Collins had on YA fiction, and certainly YA sci-fi/fantasy/analogues. In the wake of Katniss Everdeen, the market felt like it made a hard shift from doomed supernatural romances to dystopian future societies. It would be irresponsible of Pike to not try to cash in on that.

But this book ... is lacking in this regard. Collins’ success was not just that she made us care about Katniss, but that we cared about the bigger problem endemic to her (and all the other contestants’) situation. And Pike doesn’t give us enough to care about here. We don’t know what the stakes are, beyond survival. We don’t know who these people are, where they come from, or what they have to live for. We don’t even know where they are or why. I’m assuming there was another book or two planned for this series that would eventually get us to the meanings and revelations of this battle and why they were chosen to fight it and what ultimately was to come out of it. But this shit was so unsatisfying and we care so little about anyone or anything here that I can’t imagine we’ll ever see resolution.

(Like, does Pike even care? He claimed when the first one came out that it was going to be his “finest work,” and that the series could go “over ten books.” But it’s been almost five years and we haven’t seen another one of these. He didn’t mention his newer works at ALL in that recent Electric Lit interview. So who knows?)

The biggest problem is that the characters and setting we already know makes such a drastic shift to accommodate this story. And, like, I get it. The model of the industry, especially when this book came out, almost requires that you have established characters and an ongoing storyline before you ever publish anything. But it doesn’t feel connected to what’s come before. At all. It’s a new place we’ve never seen, everyone in the action except Jessie is a new character (and remember there are thirty-five of them), and there is almost zero resolution or explanation for what’s happening. There’s no reason this couldn’t have been literally anybody. Like, this could just as easily have been a Sita book, and maybe it would have actually made more sense, except that there’s no other vampires left. It probably shouldn’t have been a book about Jessie, who has a uniquely important position in witch world in light of the high-profile deaths she’s overseen and her responsibility to the Special. None of what happens in this story fits with anything that’s led up to it, and we are left a) wondering why the hell we’re reading this and b) ultimately unsatisfied.

I don’t even necessarily feel like there’s much to summarize, but I’m gonna do it anyway, because I’m dedicated.

We start with a chapter about the thief — Marc — whose MO is to hide in the trunk of a fancy car he’s valet-parked, wait for the owner to take him home, and then make off with the jewelry she (usually it’s a she) was wearing after she falls asleep. This heist is going to be his last job, because he doesn’t want to risk someone putting together a pattern that these high-profile thefts all came in the wake of the victims having been at his theater. So he steals the lady’s necklace and then her car to safely get out of Dodge, but when he stops to take a leak the light appears.

This is the dream Jessie has for over a week. The rest of the story is told from her immediate perspective, in first-person present tense just like a good little dystopian. She’s wondering about the dream, but she’s more concerned about who she just saw in the mall: the Highlander and President Coroner, just sitting there eating ice cream like they didn’t both get fatal holes in their chests last month. And yes, this is in witch world, where they died. She tails them and discovers they’re staying with (of course) the Alchemist, who tells Jessie there’s a reason for this and she needs to be prepared for ... something big, he isn’t clear on it. The Council has more info, maybe: the bad witches need to replace their leadership, and Jessie is first in line because she facilitated the killing. But what about the fact that she just saw President Coroner? The Council has an answer to that as well: one of the witch genes allows its bearer to control time, and so probably the Alchemist has that and has brought her and the Highlander forward from the past for some reason.

So Jessie goes home and has the dream again, only this time when the light appears she feels as though she’s yanked from her bed. She wakes up in the real world (and yes, I have expressed my hate for these names, but I’m sticking with them for consistency’s sake) in some kind of a shipping container with five other dudes, all of them wearing identical green outfits and matching unbreakable bracelets. And yes, one of them is Marc. The others are a precocious genius who’s going to MIT at 16, a quiet and scared Korean girl, an Israeli military fighter, and a Sudanese farmer who exudes strength and just seems to accept the situation. All of them were snatched at about the same time, globally and not locally — morning for the Americans, evening for Africa and Israel, middle of the night in Korea. But as far as Jessie can tell, she’s the only witch. So what is this about? 

They don’t get very far before the next chapter, where Jessie wakes up in witch world and realizes she’s in some deep shit. She spends all day trying to find Marc, but like ... if he’s not connected, how is this going to help? She ends up not doing anything about it, and awakens again in the real world on some kind of volcanic jungle island. They find the aforementioned plaque and immediately realize that they’re going to need to work together and find a place to defend. They also need food, and so Jessie has to start showing her hand when she catches a bunch of fish just by grabbing them out of the water. They find a cave to hide out in, but they also see some fast-moving people in gray outfits, presumably another set of contestants.

The Israeli wants to hunt them down — kill before we get killed, she says — and so everyone except the brain and the Korean go tracking. What they find is a grotesque death scene: five bodies in various states of dismemberment. It’s not the gray people there, though: it’s a giant Swede who has a deal for Jessie. He wants her to kill her humans as a show of faith, and he’ll do the same, and then they can team up against the other witches. Because of course he’s gotten all the information already, having made better use of his interim day in witch world than stalking some boy. Jessie refuses, and they fight, only the Swede has a healing factor that works almost immediately. Luckily some of Jessie’s time-controlling gene kicks in and she manages to run away, but her teammates aren’t so lucky. Another witch shows up and throws motherfucking LAVA at them, killing the Israeli and spearing the Sudanese to a tree.

So her next day in witch world needs to be more productive than the last one. Jessie calls up the Council, who is all pissed off that she didn’t come to them already. To survive, they say, she’s gonna have to go back to the Alchemist, because obviously this is what he wanted to prepare her for. So she shows up and talks to the Highlander, who starts working with her on fighting. Specifically, he forcibly activates her telekinesis power by throwing her off a cliff. So after this she’s gonna want to unwind with her family and enjoy their time together, right? Nope — she goes straight to Marc’s house and tells him the world’s least believable story, ending in the prospect that she might want to try to kill him so his witch powers activate in the other world. But haven’t we already said that killing someone in witch world means they’re totally dead? Technicalities. So she gets home and, oh shit, Jimmy’s mad that she went on a date with some random dude without talking to him at all about her troubles! What a silly boy!

When they wake up in the real world again, the Sudanese warrior is totally healed. Apparently the Korean girl has a super-powered healing factor even though she’s not a witch, tied somehow to the death of her twin sister, who presumably channels the power through her. They’ve also been offered a truce by a couple of other witches, not the ones who tried to kill them last night. So they partner up, but the Korean girl’s healing factor is instantly undone when she tries to fix one of the other dude’s teammates but they die randomly on the walk. (Probably actually secretly strangled by the lava-thrower, who Jessie learned yesterday can also make herself invisible.) They talk about the bracelets, which have some kind of weird stone inside, and one of the other witches says he’s found the source: a giant wall that blocks off half of the island they’re on, which you can only see if you climb to the top of the volcano.

As they’re walking, the gray team attacks ... sort of. These people are short and pale, almost albinos, but they move faster than any human can and Jessie knows they have some kind of group mind that allows them to work together. They surround the group and lure them into a battle with the giant Swede, and while they’re fighting him the invisible lava thrower murders all the humans except five: Marc (who does take a poisoned knife to the back), brain boy, Korean healer, and two dudes on a new witch’s team. Jessie manages to lop off her hand and collect her bracelet before she totally vanishes and gets away. Oh, and the other witch has captured the leader of the albinos, and is holding her hostage to attempt to lure in the rest of them. She doesn’t talk, but her telepathy is unsettling at best.

Jimmy shakes her awake in witch world and tells her to do whatever she has to in order to survive. If that means blowing another dude, whatever. So Jessie calls up the Council, which gives her a little more info on the two witches she’s teamed up with. Watch out for the second one, they say (not the one who’s tied up an albino), because he might have choked his last boyfriend to death and successfully covered it up. She goes back to the Alchemist’s house, where President Coroner pins her down about why their present selves can’t help Jessie train. So she has to limit just what she says about their deaths, and in turn they limit telling her that they traveled to Jessie’s funeral in the near future. 

Fuck this training, then, right? Jessie figures the only thing to do is help Marc live, and to do that she’ll have to activate his witch genes. But to convince him to die she’s probably gonna have to give up the booty ... only she can’t do it, she’s too busy thinking of Jimmy for a change in this novel. He wants to go through with it anyway (the death, I mean) but she has second thoughts and isn’t ready to put him through it. So they fall asleep next to each other and wake up in a cave on the side of the volcano, where the other two witches are fighting. It seems the first dude had his teammates on watch, but they mysteriously choked to death in the night while the second dude was backing them up. Huh. But they have to keep moving, climbing to the place where the second dude said he saw the wall, for ... like, reasons. 

They find another cave near the top of the volcano, and inside there are drawings showing a woman who looks suspiciously like the Council president touching a bracelet to a giant wall. They have to learn more, but the second witch isn’t eager to reapproach the wall. Brain Boy wants to go, so they agree that Chokey Witch can watch Healing Girl and Slowly Dying Marc while the rest of them investigate. Brain Boy touches the wall and freezes, and even though Jessie knocks him away immediately he senses that a lot more time passed, and he’s seen things that happened in witch world but not the real world. So Jessie wants to try, and when she touches it she’s suddenly playing red queen with the dead gambler from the first book, who reminds her that there’s more to the game than just the next card in her own hand. What? I don’t know.

She comes to on the ground with a lot of screaming going on. The Swede is back, so she and the first witch have to fight him. But he forgets Jessie’s plan and attacks weird, getting stabbed in the gut by one of the flying spears Jessie is controlling with her new telekinesis. Oh, and here’s Invisible Lava Thrower too, about to kill Brain Boy! He acknowledges that there’s nothing he can do and succumbs so Jessie has enough time to grab the Swede’s head and crank it around 360 degrees. Lava Girl vanishes, and Jessie picks up our other witch and carries him back to the cave, which is suddenly being guarded by all six albino dwarves. The other witch says that in this proximity, killing the leader will cause all of them to die because of the group mind, so Jessie sneaks up and lops off  her head, and then goes inside the cave by herself.

Sure enough, there’s Lava Girl, holding Chokey at machete-point. Marc is mostly submerged in a freezing stream, and Healing Girl is just, like, there. Chokey fights free, but of course Lava Girl hits him with ... you know, because they’re INSIDE A FUCKING VOLCANO. Only Jessie has realized something: these bracelets with the rock inside that matches the wall control their physical connection to the island. Lava Girl looks sick, pale, and weak since she’s lost hers, and when Jessie casually chucks it into the lava she drops dead.

And now Healing Girl comes to. She wants to try to help revive Marc before it’s too late, and wants to study the poisoned knife. Only she then tries to stab Jessie with it. Turns out that when she was alone with the first witch, the one hiding outside with a spear through his guts, he used his strongest power: mental suggestion. He turned Healing Girl into a slave, designed to kill those who weren’t expecting it. Jessie uses all her mental powers to break the hold, upon which Healing Girl ... jumps right into the motherfucking lava herself. 

I don’t know, I guess because we’re getting close to the end.

So Jessie disguises herself as Healing Girl and goes to confront the last witch standing besides herself. Who, surprise, does NOT have a spear through his guts. Apparently he can disguise himself too, in addition to the hypnosis. So he tells her to kill herself with the knife, but she stabs him in the lungs just before dropping her disguise, and then ... slits her wrists.

So Marc can live.

Because only one can survive, and of course it should be some dude we just met rather than the main character of the LAST TWO BOOKS. THE ENTIRE SERIES THUS FAR.

But as Jessie’s soul is floating away, she sees something. She sees herself, only older. Even though I thought once you were connected you stopped aging. And she tells herself that it’s not over, and they can go wherever they want to go ... or whenever, rather.

The epilogue takes place at Jessie’s memorial service (not actually a funeral, because there is no body, Jessie’s just been missing for a month but because Marc is now connected they think they know what happened) where Jimmy approaches Marc and they talk about what they know. In particular, Jimmy asks Marc to watch after his real-world son, who oh yeah there was an unfollowed thread where they got a DNA report that said he wasn’t actually Jimmy’s kid but it was also prepared by Jessie’s still-mostly-absentee father who has an agenda in ascending the ranks of the Council so its authenticity is questionable. But then they talk about Jessie and ... neither one thinks she’s actually dead.

And that.

Is the end of Black Knight.

I can sort of pick out the seeds that Pike is sowing in this story. I can start to sense the coming trails and paths the characters might walk in the supposedly potential ten-book series about witches. But like. You just essentially killed your MAIN CHARACTER. Your NARRATOR. And we don’t actually care about this jewel thief guy, who by all appearances is a BAD PERSON. But you went ahead and put him in the forefront. 

Is it any wonder this series fizzled out? Part of why I (and maybe a lot of us) got tired of dystopian fiction is that so many authors felt the need to keep raining shit on their protagonists. And yeah, this is another Hunger Games thing, but there’s a reason there — the dictatorial leadership fighting to keep rebellion down. To be perfectly honest, even though I see that reason, I didn’t like it there either. At some point, I wanted Collins to HELP Katniss rather than repeatedly jamming a boot in her face. We want to trust our authors to care about the protagonist the way we’re supposed to care. So when writers keep making their characters climb uphill, for no reason other than to try to get readers to buy the next one and see how they get over the obstacles, it becomes stale. If they obviously don’t care, why should we?

[aion-rsa]

Marvel’s WandaVision: Vision’s Avengers and MCU History Recap

https://ift.tt/39G2kG6

WandaVision has been considered one of the more unique concepts for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The new Disney+ show takes two members of the Avengers and puts them in a new setting with a sitcom motif that is intended to be a comforting status quo but is anything but. As the layers begin to peel back on reality, this story of a wise android and his magic-wielding wife is more of a bonkers horror mystery than anything else.

To have this as the first step in the long-awaited Phase 4 of the MCU is a ballsy move. A move forced because of the worldwide COVID situation, but a ballsy move regardless. How do you even explain the concept of the show to someone who is taken in by the commercials or sees the icon on the Disney+ menu? Avengers: Infinity War also had a lot of baggage going in, but even that was easily explained as, “all the heroes team up to stop the big villain from gathering all the special power-ups before it’s too late.”

To help you prepare for WandaVision, I’m going to focus on the MCU history of Vision, as played by Paul Bettany.

THE JARVIS LEGACY

To understand Vision, you have to go back nearly a century to the life of Edwin Jarvis. A member of the British Armed Forces, Jarvis eventually left the battlefield to work as a butler for millionaire inventor Howard Stark. A loyal friend, Jarvis worked for the Stark family for roughly 50 years. Howard and Maria died in the early ’90s, leaving Jarvis to act as a father figure to the orphaned Tony Stark.

While the details of Edwin Jarvis’ death are unknown, Tony would ensure that his name, wisdom, and work ethic would live on. Tony invented an artificial intelligence called Just A Rather Very Intelligent System, otherwise known as JARVIS. With a voice and personality similar to Edwin Jarvis, JARVIS acted as a disembodied security system and information hub for Tony Stark.

This proved especially helpful when Tony Stark created the second incarnation of the Iron Man armor and installed JARVIS as his co-pilot, offering advice and information when necessary. JARVIS aided Iron Man in Iron Man’s trilogy of solo films, as well as the first Avengers movie.

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

The first Avengers movie involved the team fighting off an alien invasion led by the mad god Loki. Despite winning, Tony Stark retained a lingering fear that there would be bigger and more destructive aliens on the way eventually. Earth would never be truly safe. As he was in the process of leaving his Iron Man duties behind, Stark felt that Earth needed its own worldwide security system. As he put it, a suit of armor around the planet.

The Avengers defeated the terrorist cell HYDRA and, in doing so, obtained the Mind Stone. Previously, in Loki’s hands, the Mind Stone was a tool to conquer the minds of enemies and turn them into allies. In HYDRA’s hands, it was a tool to awaken latent abilities in those who survived intense exposure to it, such as twin siblings Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. Tony Stark and Bruce Banner decided to play God by creating a brand-new and incredibly advanced AI out of the Mind Stone that would have the capacity to protect the entire human race and fight off any potential invaders.

While Stark and Banner were gone, the Ultron AI awakened. JARVIS attempted to coax it, but Ultron’s tabula rasa form being bombarded with so much information was too overwhelming. The Ultron AI immediately went mad and tore apart JARVIS’ programming. Ultron created a series of bodies, attacked the Avengers, and declared war on the world.

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Since Ultron was able to extend his consciousness to various robotic bodies, he intended to create the ultimate android body to make himself truly unbeatable. This host body, which included the special metal vibranium, synthetic tissue, and the Mind Stone, was stolen away from the Avengers.

What Ultron didn’t realize was that pieces of JARVIS’ programming still existed and were able to keep Ultron from spreading his AI to the internet or government nuclear programs. Stark chose to upload what was left of JARVIS into the android body and Thor gave it life with a blast of lightning.

A red, flying humanoid sprung to life, calling himself Vision. Other than flight, he could fire lasers out of his forehead and alter his mass so that he could phase through matter or turn himself so dense that he was borderline unbreakable.

While he had JARVIS’ voice and demeanor, he was not quite JARVIS…albeit not quite Ultron either. Explaining that he was on “the side of life,” he offered his assistance to the Avengers and proved himself noble and pure-hearted by picking up Thor’s hammer Mjolnir, a feat only possible to those considered worthy.

Then again, Captain America and Iron Man would later argue that Vision wasn’t so much “worthy” as his machine biology allowed him to bypass that magic (ie. an elevator could theoretically “lift” Mjolnir despite its lack of sentience). Thor refused to agree with their logic.

Thor also realized the true meaning behind the Mind Stone on Vision’s forehead and how it was part of the six Infinity Stones, which were otherwise scattered across the galaxy. Due to his powers and proven worthiness, Thor felt the Mind Stone was in safe hands.

Vision helped the Avengers defeat Ultron in the final battle in Sokovia. Ultron’s main body, as well as countless drones, were completely destroyed. Vision tracked down the final, mangled Ultron drone. This drone, the last home to Ultron’s consciousness, debated with Vision about the fate of mankind. Annoyed by Vision’s optimism, Ultron charged and was quickly vaporized. The Age of Ultron was over before it could truly begin.

In the aftermath, a new Avengers team was put together. Vision joined Captain America, Black Widow, Falcon, War Machine, and – most importantly – the Scarlet Witch, Wanda Maximoff.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR

An Avengers mission, that Vision is for some reason not part of, went horribly wrong when Scarlet Witch tried to move a suicide bomber away from the area with her telekinesis. The explosion went off before she could clear it from the area, causing many deaths. This controversy helped create the Sokovia Accords, which decreed that the government had oversight in the Avengers’ duties, else they would be considered criminals.

The various heroes had differing thoughts on the matter. Vision felt that the increase of superheroes and supervillains meant that the chaos would also increase and that government oversight was the right way to go. He also agreed that it was in Wanda’s best interests to remain at Avengers Headquarters and refrain from appearing in public until everything blew over. The two bonded during this time, but Wanda was not entirely comfortable with the pressure to stay in the complex, guilty feelings or not.

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The split over the Sokovia Accords led to everyone taking a side with either Captain America or Iron Man. Hawkeye entered Avengers Headquarters to get Wanda to join Cap’s side. Vision easily defeated Hawkeye in combat, but Wanda was able to overpower him with ease. She had enough of living in fear and wanted out.

The two met again on the battlefield as the two warring sides fought it out at an airport. Vision was indeed a heavy hitter for Iron Man’s side, but he wasn’t without fault. His feelings for Wanda muddied his robotic sense of accuracy. As he tried to blast a laser at Falcon, he missed and instead hit his ally War Machine, accidentally causing him to crash and lose the use of his legs.

Regardless, Iron Man’s side won. Wanda and some of the others on Captain America’s team were put in a special prison. Soon enough, they were sprung free by Captain America himself, now a fugitive.

AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

Even though Wanda was part of Captain America’s covert team (existing in spite of the government’s wishes), she still found time to be with Vision. The two became romantically involved and Vision even figured out how to morph his appearance into something more human-looking. As they vacationed in Scotland, they quickly discovered that Vision was in the crosshairs of a major plot to annihilate half the universe.

The sinister alien villain Thanos had wanted to bring together all six Infinity Stones so he could wish away half of all life and therefore – in his twisted logic – prevent overpopulation. Having just discovered a lead on the Soul Stone, he then knew the whereabouts of all six and prepared and all-out blitz to capture them all over the course of a couple days.

That meant that Thanos wanted Vision’s Mind Stone.

A few of Thanos’ most powerful soldiers ambushed Vision and Scarlet Witch and came very close to removing the gem from Vision’s head. Luckily, Captain America, Black Widow, and Falcon arrived to ward them off.

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At first glance, the answer was simple: if Thanos needed all six Infinity Stones to succeed, then they could just destroy the Mind Stone. Scarlet Witch’s powers were linked to it, so she presumably had the ability to break it. Considering that would kill the love of her life, she refused. Instead, they would go to the advanced African country of Wakanda, where the super-smart princess Shuri would be able to remove the Mind Stone from Vision’s head without killing him. Then Wanda could trash the gem and Thanos would be thwarted.

Thanos’ forces raided Wakanda, as expected. Eventually, Scarlet Witch and Vision had to take part in the battle rather than wait for Vision to get the gem removed. Although badly wounded in the process, Vision was able to kill Thanos’ henchman Corvus Glaive thanks to Captain America’s help.

Vision begged Wanda to destroy the Mind Stone, even if it would cost his own life. Reluctantly, Wanda did so while Thanos (armed with the other five Infinity Stones) arrived and easily dispatched the other heroes. Wanda succeeded in blowing up the Mind Stone. Vision was dead and Wanda broke down.

Thanos showed compassion for her sacrifice, but it meant nothing in the end. Thanos had the Time Stone, which allowed him to rewind the clock and bring the Mind Stone back. Thanos brutally tore it from Vision’s head and left the lifeless husk behind.

At first, Thanos succeeded in his mission and erased half of all life from existence. This included Wanda Maximoff. Five years later, the Avengers were able to bring everyone back and Wanda even meted out some form of vengeance against Thanos for a moment.

While all those snapped away returned, Vision was not so lucky. Not only was he still dead, but the Infinity Stones had been destroyed and there was virtually no way to rebuild him.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

So then…what’s he doing in WandaVision?

The post Marvel’s WandaVision: Vision’s Avengers and MCU History Recap appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/35HGalO

[phantombones]

              (  ooc: jinx. she/her. 22. music & tv heaux. )

I HAD TO DO ... THINGS TO SURVIVE. SOME OF THEM WERE VIOLENT... SOME, DEGRADING...ALL OF THEM GAVE ME A NEW PERSPECTIVE. 

ARTEMIS CARROW really is the spitting image of KARLA SOUZA, right? For someone only TWENTY-SIX ( SCORPIO ) years old, ARTEMIS has been forced to endure so much. Yeah, that PUREBLOOD has been scraping by at the sanctuary for SEVEN MONTHS now, working as an UNSPEAKABLE in the DIVISION OF RESEARCH. SHE/THEY identifies as AGENDER and is known to be DISTANT and CRYPTIC but also CURIOUS and MACHIAVELLIAN. Best of luck surviving through this. 

CHARACTER PARALLELS: Sherlock Holmes ( Book & Elementary TV Series ), Natasha Romanoff ( Marvel Comics ), Rosa Diaz ( Brooklyn 99 ),  Alice Quinn & Julia Wicker ( The Magicians )

PINTREST: [ x ] 

 [ ABUSE MENTION ] Artemis has always felt that she’s been the perfect example of her family as well as what they stand for. Even though her and her twin brother were not biological children, it wasn’t until Apollo started to defect from the family that it was revealed. While this should’ve fueled her to want to prove even more she was part of the family -- it only served as another reason to stay with the Death Eaters to protect her brother, her only blood, her sun. Something she had in common with her cousin Jac was her protective nature of her family members, and it was then she was able to further emotionally bond with both Jaq and Val, realizing they knew all about the horrors she’d also been subjected to. She didn’t possess the social grace her brother inherited but she was the one who followed more than questioned. She was the one who had a different and more desperate hunger to survive than her brother did. Apollo was good at surviving, yes, but he was just too GOOD -- Artemis was able to choke out her innocence and suffocate it for survival. MORALLY G R E Y. { The image of deception }. Someone who hates neutrality and takes the side of the oppressor because it was her only choice, her duty. Part of a side that had her twin brother, the person she will protect with her life — and has before. She took all the hurt Apollo was supposed to get as children. And she did so willingly. She saw how he was as an asset and her family saw it as weakness -- something she realized from a young age. But Artemis is by no means a hero. And she is by no means a good person & will never feel like or think herself as one, no matter how much repairing she does. [ ABUSE MENTION OVER ]

As a child, she was always fascinated on things far away from her, things she couldn’t touch because what she grew up in, the reality was just so REAL & scary, that she found a way to escape it. This manifested mostly in her DEEP DEEP DEEP DEEP LOVE of the stars, the cosmos, the galaxy, so she’d look up muggle philosophers for more info. The only reason she knows so much is because her brother not only pushed her to learn more but would help her obtain knowledge ( & hide it away ) as well. Book upon book stashed in secret locations around their manner.  

Apollo and Artemis couldn’t have been any more different. Truly reminiscent of their Greek counterparts, they were like the sun & the moon. Waxing and waning, always in sync, always there for each other and both shining in their own ways. Artemis loved Apollo more than she loved anyone else in the entire UNIVERSE. When she realized that how he was was not how her parents wanted him to be -- she knew she needed to step up. During her years at Hogwarts, she began to harden. Still harbouring a deep love for the solar system, she kept it more to herself. A girl who would once walk barefoot around the Astronomy Tower in awe of it now only looked to the stars as a guilty pleasure, as a distant memory. It was then she was truly the epitome of what her parents always wanted her to be and the only reason she was, was to protect Apollo. 

She felt that if she could compensate for the both of them, her and her brother, that they wouldn’t target Apollo. For a while, it worked, until Apollo became so vocal her become a renowned blood traitor ( A CARROW?? A BLOODTRAITOR?? ) with a target painted on his back that she desperately tried to cover. Artemis felt she had no choice to become a monster, to become so machiavellian, not only as a defense mechanism but using the NEED to protect him as the only fuel and reason she did what she did. It was all for him, she was convinced, it was the only reason she could live among the darkest part of the sky was because no matter what, Apollo, her brightest star, was still shining.

Her parents used this against her her entire childhood. Amycus knew the bonds of twins well. They knew her devotion to her brother was unwavering -- they hated it. They resented it because their perfect daughter was more dedicated to him than the cause so they tested her over and over again. What they had hoped to do failed completely -- but Artemis was excellent at wearing a mask that seemed to fit & be glued to her skin. The twins properly grew apart when whisperings and gathering of both sides started and Artemis immediately flung herself into the Death Eater ranks, Apollo to the Order. But when the zombie outbreak, that had been the Death Eaters fault, her father & aunt’s fault, it woke Artemis up. Not only did the zombies start to ravage muggles, but everything they knew, the Ministry, and working as an Unspeakable was where she saw the inevitable destruction that Inferi would bring ... Artemis went to find Apollo immediately. When the two reunited, they worked together to survive and did a good job being off the radar for a week or so, before Artemis watched as Apollo got bitten. 

She couldn’t accept his fate. They’d finally been reunited, they were going to face the end of the world together, they were going to leave the world as they’d come into it -- together. Fate had other plans. Artemis and Apollo talked, cried, laughed, lived and got to know each other again for 23 hours and forty five minutes until Apollo passed out from the fever that would then take his life. Artemis was distraught, but she’d known this was coming, even though she was not prepared for what she had to do next. [ DEATH TW ] He was unresponsive, but he looked the same, and he was coming to attack her with a fury & force she’d never seen before -- he was an Inferi. Artemis wanted to let him take her, wanted to die as she didn’t want to imagine a world without him, where everything she’d done meant NOTHING as she’d failed to do the one thing she’d always wanted to do -- protect her twin. In the end, a killing curse through his chest after several slicing curses, yelled through tears is what put him down. Artemis didn’t know how she’d ever be able to forgive herself, and sat in that room with his dead body for a day before forming a plan. Before realizing what she needed to do. [ END OF DEATH TW ]

Artemis finally saw what her brother was trying to tell her about the Order, she finally saw what he saw their parents for -- monsters. Not survivors like her and her cousins. Not products of their environment. One she was well on her way to becoming ( though, she knew she was one the minute she had started, really ) & Artemis knew she couldn’t live with herself if she didn’t do something about it. Her brother wouldn’t die in vain, and that’s when she turned to Hogwarts for help after taking the Dark Mark. She had nothing to lose, really, and everything to gain. When she got there, she promised to give them EVERYTHING, easily betraying the Death Eaters, knowing she was doing the right thing for both her survival and her conscience but more importantly for the survival of man and wixen kind. Luckily, with all the right information and the UNBREAKABLE VOW to serve & never betray while still giving them information they needed to at least try to level the playing field, she was reluctantly accepted into Hogwarts facing biweekly Veritaserum questioning sessions for months until she was vaguely trusted to make sure her loyalty is in the same place it was when she was grieving her brother ( Artemis always grieves Apollo ).

Naturally, her love for knowledge ( as she was a Ravenclaw in school ) propelled her into becoming an UNSPEAKABLE and it’s probably one of the aspects of her life she enjoys most. Artemis likes to sometimes talk in riddles because she likes to see who can keep up with her and almost everything she does in that sense -- confusing & frustrating -- is a defense mechanism. Her observant nature means she notices everything, although she doesn’t always understand it ( especially Muggle culture ) she’s always interested. Though she often seems to be neutral in demeanor, she never is in mindset, be sure to know that Artemis is watching you, observing you, collecting data to use against you as well as just because she simply doesn’t understand people as much as her brother did. Definitely the more sociable and pleasant of the two, Apollo had a gift with people and was always just kinder, more open than she could ever be. His gift was his heart that hers, though it’s her most prized possession that she felt was a curse at times, was her mind.

FUN FACTS: 

has a cute ass giggle!!! idk if you’ll ever get it out of her but she does!!

one of those characters u play who’s smarter than u and ur just like lol how i fucking play this character

pluto is probs her fave planet!

speaks spanish 

has never done a drug in her life and only drinks socially, even then she’s not the biggest drinker as she’s not a fan of anything that dulls her mind -- no matter how much pain it may carry

she loves wizarding chess but her fave person to play against is her betrothed/probs husband at this point Wes who I haven’t decided where he is but he’s not a Good Guy, a darksided ex-Gryffindor but is Artemis’ mindmate ( like soulmate but mind wise )

truly draws the line at zombies w/ these death eaters like yall that’s too much!!!

loves talking about the stars and a part of her is happy to be back at hogwarts, but she knows she’s hurt people and finally feels and feels GUILTY 

truly wants to be better, for her brother but also for herself now, because humanity is at the end of the line and she thinks maybe help saving it will help ease the guilt 

would kill her ‘dad’ Amycus if she could but they’re all about keeping him alive in the dungeon but she’s like ehhh nope

like her name sake she’s the protector of young girls/women and really hated to ever have to hurt any, would avoid it, has a very warped sense of morals/honor but is trying to Learn

artemis loves her cousins, jacqueline and valeria, and having them as family she still loves reminds her she’s capable of it even with apollo gone. she does care for them even if she acts sometimes distant, she’s just not the best at expressing that love

is agender, never felt a connection to either gender and tbh artemis? doesn’t really fuss with her gender? one of the best things about her mind is that she’s so open to so MUCH, it just makes sense but she also believes gender, sexuality, and the worry of them is arbitrary. 

THERE’S MORE BUT ill stop for now!! if you’d like to plot just LIKE THIS and i’ll come to you!!!

[scurvgirl]

Asha’thylgar

The woman of blue fire.

Sylmae, Nimronyn, and Daern’thal belong to @justanartsysideblog

@feynites for Athimel, Falon’din, Dirthamen, and Mythal

note: the spirit of fear mentioned is not in any way related to Uthvir or Dirthamen. 

Seeker of Rebellion AU

There is a lone rider coming up the path towards the pup-up camp. The lieutenant narrows his eyes then holds out his hand towards his servant for a scope. He focuses on the rider to see not one but two elves, one of whom wears unmistakable garb but it horribly burned…

“Summon the healers, now,” he snaps to the servant before turning away, heading through the camp, readying them to receive their Lord.

He calls for the way to be cleared from the entrance to the lord’s tent.

“Call for Mythal…and Dirthamen,” he says, striding through the camp, waking everyone even if they have only just now been allowed to rest. This is not a time anyone wishes to be caught resting.

“Yes, sir. But what does Dirthamen have to do with this?”

“Bonds such as theirs are not dissolved just because they have taken bodies. Now instead of questioning my decisions, how about you do what you are told?” Efficacy bows low before taking off. Good, efficiency is important. So is obedience, particularly when you work for Falon’din and look the way she does. Certainty makes sure she’s protected, out of sight or shifted, but she knows quite well what predicament she is in. Fear can breed loyalty is stoked properly, and if presented correctly.

“Bring the wards down, let our lord in,” Certainty calls to those tending the gate wards. He stops by the cooks, ordering them to begin creating soups and stews for recuperation, maybe even regeneration. The attendants manage the lord’s tent and by the time Certainty makes his way back to the tent, the hart is barreling through the camp.

It is chaos as people help Athimel, the rider, and Falon’din off the run-to-death animal. Falon’din is swept into the tent and away from prying eyes. He is a sobbing, wailing wreck that has Certainty tossing up silencing wards all around the tent before taking Athimel aside. His wounds can be seen to later, after Falon’din’s health has been ascertained.

Certainty takes him into his own tent, activating his own silencing wards.

“Sit,” he commands, pulling up healing potions laced with truth serums from his personal stash. He must be sure of the truth of the matter, and he will be unable to do this with Falon’din, and he suspects any others of the raiding party.

“Drink this, it tastes foul but it will help,” he tells the now shaking man. Athimel downs it then gags at the taste but his tongue is loose as the serum works its way through his system.

“It was a standard raid, we had received word that there was a strong keeper guarding a clan that would serve the empire well if brought into the fold. We engaged with the Keeper, but it had brought fighters with it.”

“That is standard, they do not simply let their keepers die,” Certainty comments, writing quickly.

“We had divided the party, there was the initial engagement group and then our lord was in the flanking group. I had been assigned to the first. The flanking group was set to come in when fire erupted.”

Certainty’s brows furrow and he pauses, “The dragon breathed fire, surely you have encountered this before.” But Athimel shakes his head slowly, horror written clearly on the dark planes of his face.

“The Keeper breathed fire, we were prepared for that. But the Keeper must have had a daughter. It was blue fire, Certainty, it burned hotter than anything I have ever seen. Our lord was about to slay this…this asha’thylgar but she burned him, opened up her mouth and…. It was horrible, Certainty.”

Blue fire? Certainty has heard of some being able to conjure up such flames but they’re often unstable and result in either killing the person or them vowing to never use the fire again. To be able to fully control the fire is, as far he is aware, unheard of. But…that doesn’t mean it isn’t unstable naturally. He simply needs a way to exploit that instability, because he knows that the lord will not let this go. He will hunt this asha’thylgar and her clan until they are all dead. Which is unfortunate in a way, he’d love to have an asset than can actually control blue fire.

He turns to Efficacy, “Do not disturb our lord or the healers, but make sure to find out how long it will be until he is healed enough to be in a right mind. Then using that time, summon the lord’s father.”

Athimel scowls, “And why summon him? This is our –

“Because the only way to fight fire is with fire, and the lord’s father is a skilled fighter and with him come other skilled warriors and tacticians. I want to catch this bitch, don’t you?” He glances up from the formal request for Elgar’nan’s presence, scowling at the still wounded Athimel.

The man is an idiot, a total sycophant, incapable of having any thought that deviates from their lord’s. Certainty is at least aware to keep his less agreeable ideas silent, but he knows that his value comes from his work and from positioning Falon’din into victories over the stubborn elves who insist on remaining apart from the burgeoning empire. They fail to understand logic, and that is why the empire will win, at the end of the day.

Certainty rises from his seat and instructs Athimel to use his tent to rest while he goes to see how his lord is fairing. He cautiously enters the tent with aid of one of the guards, immediately lowering himself to the ground to appear smaller than his lord, even now.

“Donotlookatme!” Falon’din screams. Certainty immediately averts his eyes but he has already seen enough. His lord is stripped and burned, the entirety of his face and head is burned to a potentially irreparable point.

“Please, my lord, your emotions will only worsen the scarring,” a healer gently pleads.

“Then act faster!” Falon’din hisses. The healers attempt what they can, the tent hums in energy as they try to restore the lord to his beauty. All energy has been leached from him, he is not even able to maintain a shifted height.

This…will not do.

“I vow to use everything I am and that I have to bring this bitch to heel, my lord. She knows not the privilege it is to be in your presence. I have summoned your brother, he should be able to aid in your recovery. You will rise from this, my lord – a great phoenix rising from the ashes.”

Falon’din roars in pain and fury, his emotions a whip in the small space. A healer flinches, weak. Certainty retreats from the tent then rights his clothing. He must prepare for Dirthamen’s arrival. There are those who do not like Falon’din’s brother and they must be dealt with. Whatever Certainty thinks of Dirthamen is irrelevant, he is Falon’din’s twin soul, birthed from the same source, forever entwined.

He tugs on his own connection to his brother, feeling a twinge in response. It is a curious thing, this bond, but it is one that is undeniable and unbreakable. And it comes with certain benefits.

Twenty years ago, there was an attack on one of Falon’din’s camps. While the attackers had been thwarted, largely thanks to Certainty, many of Falon’din’s attendants had been caught in the fighting. One of whom was Clarity. He was gutted and dying, the bond disintegrating within Certainty. But Certainty had rallied, calling upon his blood and bond, forcing life and healing into Clarity. It gave him enough of a push to survive with the healers.

He thinks he can recreate it with Dirthamen here. It is…painful, but Certainty is sure that Falon’din’s twin soul will do everything he can to save him.

When Certainty returns to his tent, Athimel has passed out on his cot. Efficacy hovers over him, wrapping his wounds in elfroot salve soaked bandages. All of the healers have been pulled to tend to Falon’din, leaving Athimel and others unfortunately neglected. But the health of their lord comes first. Thankfully for Athimel, Efficacy is a jack-of-all-trades assistant.

“How is he?”

“He was growing delirious so I cast a sleeping spell. He’ll be fine, it was mostly fear and exhaustion causing his delirium, and perhaps blood loss. If he survives, I am sure he will receive accolades for saving our lord’s life.”

Certainty frowns, “I doubt he will. He did what he was supposed to do, you don’t get rewarded for that.” And you shouldn’t, Certainty thinks. But Athimel should be given a period of leave to relax and properly recover from the ordeal. Falon’din will be bound to his tower with healers and guards for some time, and that time will be plenty to plan a course of action.

“Where were they?” He asks, returning to his desk to the maps of what Falon’din had planned earlier. Raiding parties had their place, though the lord has been quite…taken with them as of late. The majority of his forces are required west with his father’s forces, repelling several clans that have banned together to oppose expansion of the empire.

“East, by the mountains, in the valley.”

Certainty shakes his head, resisting the urge to swear.

“That means the clan that did this fled into the mountains.” Sending soldiers into mountains they do not know on a mission to take out a clan that somehow eviscerated a raiding party is not a good idea. Dammit, they’ve already turned this into a waiting game. And neither Falon’din nor Eglar’nan are known for their patience.

Certainty spends the rest of the night plotting potential routes into the mountains and valleys, mostly on covert exploration trips to gain understanding of the area so an assault will be possible.

Morning brings with it Dirthamen and a few of his people. There is no anxiety to him, no pressing need to see his brother even though Certainty knows he must be feeling some pain on his end.

“Thank you for coming, Lord Dirthamen. It is urgent, the Lord Falon’din could use your aid.”

“I am not trained in healing,” he says simply.

“But you are connected to him.” Certainty then explains to him what happened with him and his own twin soul, how he was able to save him even without being trained in healing. It is difficult to determine how the lord feels about the situation with his mask, but after a moment he strides towards Falon’din’s tent. He disappears for several minutes before leaving the tent and approaching Certainty.

“What is involved?”

**

The aravel rattles, waking Ashokara up from her rest. She winces at the pains still lingering in her body, even days after the battle. While she is healed, she spent so much energy that her exhaustion has manifested physically. While her muscles aren’t technically pulled or in spasm, her magic is making her feel like it.

Despite the soreness, Ash pulls herself up, dressing as quickly as her body will allow before opening one of the shutters in the aravel. She sticks her head out to see Halanidor hammering away on his anvil.

“What’s with the racket?” She calls. His head snaps up and he raises his hammer at her.

“You! Running off like that, damn irresponsible like that, you could have died.” He swings the hammer down again.

“Kids these days, not listening to their mothers, their Keeper. They take you in and what do you do?”

“I save them from getting killed, that’s what,” she spits back.

“Girl goes off trying to be noble not even wearing proper armor – you could have died!” He shouts, dropping the hammer. He curses then steps away from his anvil and the hot steel. Oh, he’s not really mad at her, just….

“But I didn’t, I’m here.” She ducks inside the aravel quickly, only to pop back out to round closer to him. He’s a short, strong man, trusted with almost all of their weapon-making. And he is scowling, brow furrowed in unhappiness.

“Kids going around disobeying the Keeper, never heard of that in my day. That puny spear, so easily broken.” He picks the hammer up and continues to mold the steel on the anvil…a decidedly long and pointed piece of metal.

“Are you making me a new spear? So soon?” She asks dismayed.

“No, I’m practicing for your spear. We need to be better, I need to be better. You are not dying, you hear me?” He waves the hammer at her again and she smiles. “Now, stoke that fire would you?”

Ash does as she is requested, gently flexing that magic muscle in her. The fire flares blue for a moment before mellowing to orange and red. It’s like walking after running for miles and miles, but it also carries a modicum of relief.

“I have no plans on dying any time soon, Halanidor, don’t worry,” she tells him but he frowns at her.

“The children may not have heard your little speech to Daern’thal, but I did, little miss.” Yes, that…it’s difficult to explain and she does not even attempt to. The point is that she didn’t die and neither did her adoptive mothers or anyone else. She saved them, and kicked Falon’din’s stupid ass so bad he’ll wear the scars for the rest of his life.

She walks away from Halanidor’s anvil and heads towards the center of camp. The children remain close to the center rather than running around. Everything has changed, and this freedom that they had thought they had….

They need to adapt faster than what the empire can anticipate.

Memae will not like it, she wants to keep to these ways as do most of the clan. It will take some convincing to build rather than travel, particularly since there are benefits to traveling. But she knows that you can only run for so long before you run out of territory to run to.

But she can let the idea go for the day, they are all still recovering from the battle, and the empire certainly is as well. Falon’din has automatic allies in his family, and resources beyond anything the clan could find on their own. They are alone, and lone lions do not survive.

All around her she sees change. There is a wariness suspended in the air save for when they look at her. She does not need the clouds of emotions to tell that there is hope, awe, and fear. The direction of that fear is a bit more difficult to place, but Halanidor’s outburst gives her an idea. It is difficult to reassure them, though, particularly when whispers of how she defied her Keeper circulate.

They all look to Nimronyn who is resting as Arselah works more healing magic into her wings.

“Memae,” Ash greets, raising her hand to rest gently against her nostril. A low rumble and a slow blink respond. She is tired as well, moving the clan so much while still recovering herself…. She did what she had to, getting the clan as far away from the battle as possible, keeping their movements as erratic as possible to make it difficult for anyone to follow. It has exhausted her.

They are currently positioned a hundred leagues away from where the battle had taken place, thrusted here by a determined keeper manipulating the dreaming to hurtle them fast and long. Nestled into the side of a great mountain, they hide, recovering and waiting for what they should do next.

Mamae is also exhausted, taking more and more watches, always ready. But she shows it less than her wife. It is a hot, lazy day, and danger feels so far away that the clan seems to finally allow themselves to relax. Mamae walks into the camp, bereft of her heavier armaments, her hair up to keep her neck cool, and promptly plops down next to Nimronyn and Ash.

“Spirits say that all is quiet from where the raiding party came from,” she exhales, her eyes closing seemingly involuntarily.

“Good. We can take some time then, we cannot fight in this state. Rest, Mamae, the empire is licking their wounds and is trying to get ahold of what to do as much as we are.” Ash says gently. Mamae makes a sound of agreement

The day continues on in a restful manner. Only the hunters who feel up to it hunt, bringing back various birds that are roasted by a fire Ashokara tends. Nimronyn and Sylmae sleep in a heap, both snoring softly as they recoup.

Daern’thal takes a seat next to her by the fire for the first time since the night before the battle. His hands are quiet and his eyes still don’t quite meet hers. She is silent while she eats, for once unsure of how to proceed with him.

They haven’t spoken since she flew out to join the battle and as upset Halanidor had been about it, she suspects that Daern’thal is having a similar reaction. She didn’t do anything wrong, she saved her adoptive mothers – shit, she saved his parents. While she doesn’t blame him for his reaction, she certainly doesn’t feel bad for what she did. Necessary things are often scary and risky and are met with a certain amount of resistance.

So they remain quiet, neither willing to give an inch.

At the end of dinner, she takes care of her plate and returns to her aravel. Mamae has not slept here for the last few days, making the space seem inordinately large for just Ash. She curls up in on the pull-out ledge that is her bed, wondering how exactly saving everyone turned into everyone either yelling at her or just shunning her.

Sorrow and confusion well up in her. She is reminded of how this isn’t her time, and these are ultimately not her people. Even though she has spent more time with them than she did the people from her original time…she is out of place. She is not an elf, she is not a dragon, or a spirit. She is a vashoth qunari, and alone.

Her sleep is restless and tumultuous. She shucks off Nimronyn’s magic and recedes into her memories. She is seven years old again, crying into her mother’s tunic.

Ashokara wakes with the sun and sets to helping set the camp up for the day. She is worn and tired and feeling the weight of years more acutely than normal. After she eats breakfast, Mamae taps her on the shoulder and jerks her head towards the woods where Memae is waiting.

“Your mother and I want to talk to you,” Mamae says. There is a harshness to her voice that unsettles Ash, but maybe it’s just about the general ill feeling that lingers over the clan from the battle. She follows Mamae into a clearing. Memae’s forms shimmers and changes quickly into her elven form. There are dark circles under her eyes, and she is paler than normal. Even in this form, she wears the strain of travel and the exhaustion of the last four days.

Ash feels strangely cornered. Memae pulls Ash into a hug.

“You were very brave to do that,” she begins, “and we love you so much. We love that you are full of passion and a need to protect, but what were you thinking?” Nimronyn pulls away and Ash blinks in confusion.

“You disobeyed your Keeper in a reckless dive that could have not only killed you, but it left the rest of the clan vulnerable,” Nimronyn’s voice is sharp and scolding. It cuts into Ash and for a flash second, she feels as if they’re ungrateful, but she can feel the lingering fear in both of them. There is anger and dismay, but the fear is what gets her.

Still, she steps away from Nimronyn, her face drawn.

“I did what I had to do,” she says. But Sylmae shakes her head.

“You did what you thought you had to. You looked, but did not see.”

“Were you not bleeding profusely from a spear? Was there not a flanking party ready to charge in?” This feels more than a little absurd. She helped them. It was a raiding party engaged with the clan down in the valley, the mountain was safe, they had no reason to be up there…

“I was taken by surprise, yes, but we had the situation under control. That doesn’t change the fact that you disobeyed direct orders to get the clan to safety,” Nimronyn says, her posture more rigid and her emotions suddenly being completely restricted.

“It was reckless and short sighted,” Sylmae continues. So, this is what this is.

“The clan was safe; the raiding party was restricted to the valley -”

“You could not know that. You saw something that scared you and you acted. You didn’t think it through. You need to stop letting your emotions guide your actions.” Sylmae takes a step towards Ash and Ash steps back. Sylmae tends to loom, and Ash hates it. It’s not the act of being taller than her, but just the effect of being forced to feel small. She is younger, she is shorter, but if they are going to scold her for not taking in all viewpoints, they need to at least consider hers.

“Kassaran, Melarue, Aili, Uthvir, the Iron Bull, Cassandra Pentaghast, Dalish -”

“What are you doing?” Sylmae demands.

“Listing the people I saw die while protecting me or the group I was with. I wasn’t done, by the way. I was done watching people I care about die, I am still done with it. I can’t do that anymore.” She bites her lip, stopping herself from crying. She’s cried enough. Sylmae exhales, her face stern.

“You need to see reality -”

“You’re right, it was a mistake thinking you would be able to stand back like that. But that doesn’t change the fact that you disobeyed your Keeper and endangered your clan,” Nimronyn says.

“Do you understand how lucky you got? Those men could have easily killed you -”

“I wouldn’t say easily -”

“Easily killed you. They weren’t expecting you, that is the only reason why that worked. You need to get ahold of your emotions, step back from them, and fight freely of them.”

Ash shakes her head in small motions, resisting. She understands Nimronyn being upset at disobeying her, but they’re acting like Ash is the bad guy here. Their emotions are shut away from her, their expressions are tough, and she can’t help but feel defensive at this whole thing.

“I don’t know what to tell you,” she says.

“You don’t need to tell us anything, we understand where you’re coming from. You need to understand where we’re coming from. You don’t disobey your Keeper, you don’t leave your clan vulnerable,” Sylmae continues. Nimronyn sighs, running a hand through her hair.

“When we saw you come down, we were terrified for you and for the clan. Suddenly our plan of defense was gone and we were scrambling. I wasn’t thinking about fighting them, I was terrified that they were going to kill you and get to the clan.”

Ash turns her face away, her mouth dry, and her chest hurting.

“I didn’t…want any of that to happen. Yes, I acted without thinking, is that what you want to hear? That I got so scared that it was happening again that I couldn’t stand the thought of living through it again? So I flew down, very fine with the idea of me dying. I know I’m not invincible, but I want to do what I can.” She shifts her weight from foot to foot. The tension lingers in the air and Sylmae steps forward, gently cupping Ash’s face.

“We want you safe, we want to hear that you won’t take these risks, that you are able to reason even through the memories.” Ash doesn’t resist when Sylmae pulls her in, holding her against her chest.

“I will train you to be better, we’ll…figure it out.”

After a moment, Ash leans into Sylmae. They will figure it out, and she will get stronger – she must.

**

The lord Dirthamen reels back in pain as the bond between him and Falon’din ignites. It draws on his own life force, pouring into Falon’din, urging his body to heal. There is a very fine line to this, Dirthamen must give enough energy to help heal Falon’din, but cause too much anguish to Dirthamen, and Falon’din will be injured from that as well. And damage from this can be unfortunately persistent.

Certainty observes closely, and snaps the magic to cease the transfer right before it hits that point. When he catches the lord Dirthamen, there are…tentacles and feathers and oddly enough even scales all pressing down against him. But Certainty’s ears are tuned to Falon’din, and his breathing is more even, and the pain surrounding him is greatly reduced.

A cot is provided for Dirthamen and Certainty guides him down to it. There are tears in his clothing where he has manifested his extra appendages. It’s odd, but he’s seen worse. While he is not bothered by Dirthamen’s mutable shape, several of the healers appear to be put off by it.  

“What are you doing? Your lord’s twin soul is in pain, fetch him healing!” Certainty barks, sending them scrambling. For what it’s worth, Certainty casts his own meager healing spells over Dirthamen, mostly for pain. He moves then a hand over Falon’din to aid with his own pain.

It is slow, tiring work, he doesn’t understand how healers can stand it.

The night is long, and Falon’din does not allow Certainty to leave even to relieve himself. He does not trust these healers now, and he is leery of anyone getting close to Dirthamen. When the night finally ends and the sun begins to light the sky, there is a trumpet and a flurry of activity.

Mythal has arrived it seems.

She is equal parts furious and concerned, bringing her own contingent of healers to fuss around her sons. Athimel is brought forward to recount what happened again and with the number of healers now at least doubled, he is given some healing.

Mythal situates herself between her sons, her eyes alight with a vengeful fire as she listens to Athimel’s story.

“I got him here as fast as the hart would take us,” Athimel says. A heavy silence permeates the air. Mythal’s head is heavy with her horns and her red rimmed eyes, but Certainty has not seen her shed any actual tears. She turns to him, her face hard and exacting.

“The area may have lingering memories, spirits - investigate.”

“Of course, my lady. I have scouts scouring the area right now to ensure that it is safe for investigators to proceed.”

She gives him a single nod before turning to Falon’din. Certainty takes this as his cue to quietly depart from the tent. After relieving himself, he heads back to his own tent.

“Efficacy!” He shouts.

She appears in short order, ready to do his bidding. Good, he likes obedience almost as much as efficiency.

“Any word from the scouts?”

“One, sir. ‘Clear on the mountainside,’ which would indicate that the rest of the area is clear. Athimel said that the Keeper and her people came down from the mountain, suggesting their clan was in it. If the mountain is clear, it is probable that the clan has since left.”

Certainty stares down at the map on the table and nods. He’d like more confirmation that the area is secure, but the longer they wait to investigate, the more likely memories may be warped or spirits may leave. He pens a note requesting a small contingent of warriors to travel with him and investigators then sends Efficacy off. He prepares his things and changes into his riding gear, donning a heavier piece of plate just in case.

Efficacy returns and he has her prepare herself as well. She pulls back her dark frizzy hair into a bun and he helps her with the plate he had commissioned for her. They are not of a romantic sort, but he does like having her around, taking his notes, carrying out his bidding – she augments him. And without a setting, an augmenting stone is practically useless.

“It will be better if you shift into a bird and ride atop my shoulder while he head out,” he tells her.

“Yes, sir,” she says then complies, turning into a non-descript finch. She chirps then flies to his shoulder, holding onto a small protrusion with her tiny talons.

They are on the road towards the battlefield within the hour.

The ride is long, but it’s good to be out of the camp. He hasn’t been on the field since last year’s battle with a rather large clan. An injury to his leg has kept him relegated to tactics, and Falon’din has since preferred smaller raiding parties.

The field always has the advantage of feeling crisp and exhilarating, though this investigation less so. Being on the wrong end of the battle is never something you want to experience, and in Falon’din’s experience, it rarely happens. And it’s never happened like this.

It takes them the rest of the day plus a good portion of the next to reach the battlefield. It is a long valley, probably once full of greenery and small happy critters. Maybe there were even a few nice spirits calling it home. But now…there are large swaths of blackened and burnt earth. There are two distinct areas of battle, one that has the burn pattern presenting in a conical spread – classic dragon fire. But the other is circular, and tighter. The earth there is charred so completely that there are no corpses – only bones and charred pieces of armor.

Blue fire. Supposedly nearly uncontrollable, and yet the pattern is so neat that there is nothing but control suggested. It is…concerning. What’s more is that one of those savages clearly wiped the area of memories and either shattered spirits or got them to leave because there is nothing in the Dreaming. Neither dreams nor spirits flit around, ready to recount the tale of the Falon’din and the Asha’thylgar.

“Sir? There’s a spirit over here.” Or perhaps Certainty thought too soon.

Certainty makes his way over to the border of the wood where a soldier is holding up a dark, broken looking spirit. It is sputtering and reeling, clearly trying to get away. Ah, a spirit of fear then. Most likely corrupted from the events here.

“Let me go!” The spirit sobs, vibrating in terror. Certainty sighs, it’s a small thing, probably corrupted from some light happy emotion, like Sympathy. He pulls his sleeve up, revealing his spiked gauntlet, glowing with enchantment. He reaches out and grasps the spirit, pulling it forward trapped in his grasp.

It screams in pain.

“You are going to tell me everything that happened.”

The spirit whimpers and Certainty tightens his grip.