#us plotting and sipping tea together: what if we just ruined one anothers lives doesnt that sound so wonderful????

[recitedemise]

His heart trembles. He blinks. He'd write novels for this look had he the lifetime to do so: that is, the way she'd soften at his very sight. Humbled--and oh so fantastically, thank you very much--Gale's very foundations start shuddering sweet. Made phantasmically springtime, he's but her cold-chasing months, and of those titles and names that he's come to go by, this, he argues is his very best. Charmed, he enters the quiet of her tent. It smells musky and deep, something earthy and drizzled with ozone and rain, and distantly, proudly, he smells rounded persimmon; there, in his hair, he smells them, too.

Of course. Serana's little by ways of guests, Gale acquiesces, but riotously, her tent's steeped rich with his constant shadow. Gale's smelled here, too, wafting in the stitching of her too-thin sheets. If ever he should try, he might even hear their phantoms, all their late night blatherings hushed in every corner, threatening to spill like a cup too full. Admittedly, the state of her dwelling is that state of his mind. Turning their talks in those hours past sunset... Sleep, as of late, is nigh impossible.

If she's but a sentinel, then he is, too.

"I have it on good authority that you look wonderful in any color," he answers, smile clever and brows bunched, "but yes, white would do as much justice as any other." And he means it. The wizard studies the clothes she's on, gauging her usual fare of that ink-drip dark. Against it, her specter-like pallor is made more striking. It fashions her dreamy, a creature spun fine from star-shard spools, and at once, he's happy with what necklace he'd chosen; there in his pocket, it rests with heft. His gaze fixes at her neck, veins absent of heartbeat. Then, wholly and terribly, an aching fills his marrow--and stopping, Gale heard her. And Gale looks ahead. Gods. To clear her clothes... What a quaint offer, isn't it? However, dying with haste and painfully rotting, he quashes all hope and masterfully grins. Ha. "Far more than complimentary," Gale, tone practiced, teases. "I'm an endless well of your unsung praise."

Mr. Dekarios. Their knees bump, and amusement, rich and half-tinged with something strained, something hurting, huffs out his throat. It isn't a name he's shared or heard in twice as long, admittedly; however from off her lips, it flutters like music, and for it, the shadows in his face delicately fade.

She's reached through this tundras. Perhaps you're volkihar.

"I'll choose to take that as the compliment I'm certain it was meant to be. In my experience, I assure you, a haggardly scholar is often a triumphant one." Here, he reveals the necklace he'd longly worked on. Weightily, a twinge of nerves, that constant need to thoroughly impress, hangs in his conscience as the opal shimmers. There, the hand holding it half-way quakes, and if Serana squints just a touch, she'll see the black in his nails. Oh. His blood's fouling. What has he done? "Here we are. First thing's first: unfortunately, it won't do much for your usual ailments in the sun," Gale broaches, closely studying her reaction, "but it'll more than do away with your persistent cold. It's one of my finer enchantments as humble as it is. Though it's as they say, simplicity in spares is often best. But let's rid of monologues for now." Please. "Allow me the honor." After a spell, Gale moves forward, resting that jewel against her collar. At once, as though leaping from the green of a summer field, a feeling, a sensation, crests both their bodies. It's warm and balming, a flavor of a nap in a bee-sung noon. Gale lets it lay there, his hand hanging close and beneath her chin, his skin lightly cracked and ghastly... So near, so there, it's plain to see. (Gale. What. Did. You. Do.) "I struggle to think of a better backdrop in which to demonstrate with. Now, with honesty: how distant does the cold feel tonight?" / @cldhrbour

once again , you sit alone in your tent. this time , though , there isn't the inherent cloud of loneliness and despair kissing your cheeks and resting on your shoulders. no it's something different. something akin to contentment. though she does not need to sleep , the vampire has her eyes closed , just short of meditating on a rather busy day. night had fallen and they were nestled within the mountains. familiar territory to her. a few ranges away , up north in snowy capped peaks sat an isolated castle with kin unaware that their princess had awoken. ready to come home. here she sat , listening carefully to every whisper of the trees , every rock that fell. a SENTINEL for the camp so that the mortals she now surrounded herself with could sleep soundly.

how her heart leaps at the familiar soft sounds of dirt and grass crunching under foot.

crimson eyes lift to regard him only after he knocks ( despite having heard footsteps approaching seconds prior ) lit by a warm smile as she wordlessly motions to some pillows beside her. you can always come in , gale dekarios. your presence is always welcome to the girl who had waited centuries to be asked such a simple question. longed for days when someone would finally be the one who breached her space to request her company. " are you saying i'd look good in white ?? " the pale woman shifts to afford him space as he settles , fashioned in a dark blouse that was gathered at her throat , adorned with laces and silks , folded legs in black pants. all to say that , to his point , the only color adorned on serana at the moment was the red threading in her under bust. " my wardrobe at home has some more color to it , i promise. even more so when i was human , if i recall correctly. " a pause. a smile. " maybe i should have you help me clear out whatever the moths haven't engorged themselves on when i return , if you're willing to be that COMPLIMENTARY. "

now that he was close , their knees touching , she can finally see him even in the dark of the tent. darker skin under his eyes , sallow and weary. his presence smaller , a wilted flower out of water that it needs for nourishment. not unlike her after days of starving. a walking corpse. a shade of who he was before. " i've lived my life in centuries of cold and snow , mr. dekarios. "  

she recalls a passage in a vampire hunters book. i told him about the most powerful tribe , the volkihar , paranoid and cruel , whose very breath could freeze their victims' blood in the veins. i explained to him how they lived beneath the ice of remote and haunted lakes , never venturing into the world of men except to feed. they can reach through the ice without breaking it.

" though i'll admit , the kind warmth of the sun has been WELCOMING. why do you ask ?? " much like his presence. and to that end , why would she need the sun if he fulfills such a thing ?? yet she looks at him and can't shake how tragic her wizard looks , sitting in front of her. " i'd hate to distract from your original reasons for gracing me with your company. especially so late at night. but i feel compelled to check in , love. the death shepards were formidable , but i've seen you fight much harder enemies without. . . and forgive my words. . . looking so haggard. " she hazards a hand to reach so that a curled finger could tuck beneath his chin , eyes searching his. a quiet promise. A PLEA TO LET HER IN.

[akawhiskeyy-blog]

in which i react to the chatzy because replies are hard: 

Edward and Isabella try to solve their Jessica Jones dilemma

yah the dilemma being that she sEES THROUGH YO SHIT U 2 

it goes on like this for a while.

“Honestly, Jessica Jones has been irritating me for weeks.”

you’ve talked to her twice. and texted once. AND U INITIATED 2/3 OUT OF THESE

There was nothing Edward hated more than getting struck in the face. 

sucks to sucks snek. ALSO U R SO MELODRAMATIC SHE DIDNT EVEN HIT YOU  HARD OMG SHE COULD LITERALLY CAVE IN YOUR SKULL IF SHE WANTED TO U GOT OFF LUCKY OKAY

“But soon you won’t have to. I can promise you that much.”

do u wanna die edward nygma. do u. 

Jessica Jones had crossed a line. 

gurl. jessica jones crosses lines like its her goddamn job

She had listened to her drunken ramblings, and offered her help, and politely asked her to stay out of their lives.

pulling out receipts:  “Oh, I’m so glad I could help you. Do me a favor and please stop texting Edward“ -- such polite sarcasm. write the next miss manners ok. also, u sat down next to her and ur offer of help only came after you insulted her a lot.  

This wasn’t his fault, after all.

kilgrave made him do it

she didn’t want the other woman dead.

“Well, that’s your choice. Drink yourself to death.” r u sure isabella u seem confused

If he proposed murder, she had another idea up her sleeve, but she wanted him to lead.

just casually accepting that her boyfriend might propose murder. BUT JESS IS THE CRAZY ONE OKAY. also, isabella, thought u werent a sidekick

I need more information on her before I can start plotting something. She can’t get away with hitting me, or toying with our relationship though

from cheesy bond villain to five year old to ‘casually insisting we’re in a relationship even tho we never talked about it’  -- the faces of edward snekma

No one was allowed to hit him like that. No one was allowed to publicly embarrass him.

everyone needs 2 hit you okay. how bout u calm down. it was an empty park in the middle of the night, public only by technicality

Where Edward’s rage was fiery, and his every word burned with anger, Isabella’s fury was glacial and restrained. 

i have nothing funny to say here, this is just a beautiful image

“She has shared a lot with me over these past few weeks. I know about her past.”

R U FUCKING KIDDING ME ISABELLA JUST HO W DARE IM S CREAMING I CANNOT HANDLE THIS WAHT THE ACTUAL FUCK

bonus:

cold and triumphant.

bitch u aint won nothing yet. unless u triumphant that u a bitch

despite his anger for Jessica, he felt a warm fondness for the woman in front of him. She was a force. Intelligent – enough to keep up with him but not quite at his level. He respected and adored that. She was gorgeous as well.

when u wanna plot revenge but YOUR GF IS JUST SO DAMN HOT 

“Isabella, do tell me what she’s shared.”

did u intentionally phrase this as a COMMAND and not a QUESTION because I’M SHOOK 

She wanted to knock Jessica Jones off her moral pedestal, and show the other woman that she had chosen this. She had chosen Edward.

MORAL PEDESTAL HAVE YOU EVER MET JESSICA JONES SHE IS THE HUMAN EQUIVALENT OF A GARBAGE CAN, SHE TAKES BRIBES, BREAKS INTO PEOPLE’S HOUSES, AND HATES BUBBLES. WHAT KIND OF MORAL PEDESTAL IS THAT. HER MORAL PEDESTAL IS A WHISKEY BOTTLE 

also uh huh sure u did bby u keep telling urself that this is allll ur choice

Killing the guy who had hurt her had clearly damaged her

jessica was damaged long before that shit, u have no idea

“Well, she’s a murderer” 

okay u have some idea ALSO WTF HOW DARE. YOU’RE JUST GONNA TAKE THIS AND DROP IT IN LIKE YOU’RE MENTIONING THE WEATHER?? WELL, IT’S SNOWING. WELL, DON’T FORGET TO PICK UP THE MILK. WELL, SHE’’S A MURDERER. AND ALL WHILE SITTING ACROSS FROM YOUR ACTUAL MURDERER. WHO YOU LIVE WITH. 

and then u take a sip of tea, i fucking did u just

i can see why ed likes u UR BOTH SO EXTRA. SNEKTRA. 

back up:

Isabella met Edward’s gaze and couldn’t remember what it had been like to hate him in that all-consuming, festering, corrosive way. Now, all of her rage was directed at the woman who had dared to insult her by suggesting that she’d been controlled, who had the audacity to hit him.

had the goddamn balls to hit him more like. also, look at how isabella is aware that she’s transferred her anger from ed to jessica, but doesn’t see this aS AN ISSUE. bc when you have to twist your moral viewpoint enough to see your abuser/murderer as the love of your life, everyone else who doesnt accept that viewpoint becomes the enemy

“I think that’s why she turned to alcohol. His death really weighs on her conscience. She was lying on the sidewalk, drunk, when I last saw her.” She wrinkled her nose in disgust. “I think she’s homeless, too, which may come in handy.”

listen we dont talk about jessica jones’ alcoholism okay we DONT. especially when our name is hissabella. & fuck u, she was tired ok. ALSO SHE HAS A HOTEL ROOM OKAY SHE ISNT TOTALLY HOMELESS

A murderer she said. Well, there was tons of things he could do to her now. Tons of games and traps he could set up with that theme in mind. She thought she was all high and mighty but she killed just as Edward had. She wasn’t so different from him at all.

u strangled your girlfriend, chopped her up, murdered the guy who caught you burying the body, and before all that you murdered your girlfriends previous boyfriend bc u thought u were a white knight. 

jessica killed her literal stalker/abuser because he was more dangerous alive than dead and still feels haunted by it every day. she spent weeks avoiding that exact option. totally the same

Edward was making a life for himself, he was moving on and redeeming himself to society and then she came with her high morals and smacked him right in the face with it. Now it was coming out that she was a hypocrite. 

u were thinking about killing a woman who bruised you two minutes ago. also, you killed a woman and framed the joker, like yeah, totes reformed. rather be a hypocrite than DELUSIONAL. high morals omg, she just asked u not to be a dickhole to the woman u murdered

“Oh, dear.” He purred.

jfc edward i cant with u

“Oh, did he ever want to torture her for believing she was better than he was... She couldn’t better herself and be a productive member of society. *

how do u start a paragraph wanting to torture someone and end it believing that you are a better asset to society omfg 

“Isabella… I can’t believe people just tell you all of this. God you’re… incredible. I bet that you can get information from anyone you please! With ease.” What an asset she would be to the Riddler.

and to this diiiiick  (im so sorry, but its sami & sophies fault for getting shippy in the middle of THIS. MURDER-PLANNING & CHILL JFC. 

Watching Edward think was a genuine privilege, and Isabella smiled as he took in her information.

r u goddamn serious right now, o h  m y  g o d

that Isabella was stupid and easily manipulated, and controlled

jessica has said exactly none of these things. 

There was a new cadence when Edward spoke, a chilling note that she had never heard before, and it sent a pleasant shiver down Isabella’s spine.

ew. ick. BAD TOUCH. 

 He was right, of course. Jessica Jones was a hypocrite, projecting her hatred of the man who had hurt onto Edward. They were nothing alike.

right. nothing. not at all. except that you’re both victims of horrific traumas who got the chance to face down their abusers and who feel haunted by memories and cant get in cars, sure.

“Hypocrisy, thy name is Jessica Jones,” Isabella replied, smiling.

y r u like this

“Oh my, thank you, Edward,” she said, unable to keep the happiness out of her tone.

THIS IS A MURDER PLOT NOT A 1950S SITCOM

I can get more information from Jessica, but I would have to lie about you. I’m sorry.

i just. i cant. how did u go from pointing a gun at this man to apologizing for potentially lying about him in the future in order to help him get revenge on another woman who did basically nothing to you???

Reaching after she did and taking her hand. He saw her reaching hers out as an invitation for Ed to hold hers.

holding hands, talking about revenge, the perfect couple

It would be beneficial for us if she is to believe we are not in cahoots at all. Give it a little time to cool off and then go to her – crying, preferably. It would be easier to work against her if she trusts you.

firstly, ed becomes a cartoon western villain at the beginning of this sentence. also COMMAND, COMMAND, COMMAND. but sure isabella, ur in total control here, as you let ed tell you every little thing to do

You said this man was terrible to her? Probably an abuser? Dig up information on what he was like by speaking to her. I’ll try and find files on him or any information at all, really. I want to get his voice down pact. A perfect imitation. 

NO NO NO NON NO NO NO NO ONO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO 

DO NOT DO THAT DO NOT HOW I JUST I HAVE ACTUAL PHYSICAL PAIN READING THIS BIT

He smiled, almost cruelly at what he had in mind. They could bring this man back to life in her memory and torment her easily with him. Rub who she had killed right in her face so she knew that she was not the moral woman she wanted to believe she was. So she was reminded by what she had done.

ALMOST CRUELLY. ALMOST. BECAUSE THIS ISN’T THE HELL JESSICA ALREADY GODDAMN LIVES THROUGH EVERY GODDAMN DAY. L O L. ALMOST. 

They were together on this. Holding Edward’s hand like the affirmation that Jessica hadn’t broken them, the way she’d planned to.

but he’s taking the lead, bc hes cute when hes being a patriarchal bastard. also, ‘planned’ gives jessica jones way too much credit. her plans suck way worse than this. 

judged Edward to some insane moral standard that didn’t even allow him to defend himself. 

YOU MEAN THE MORAL STANDARD OF DONT KILL YOUR EX GIRLFRIEND AND MAKE HER FEEL LIKE YOU RUINED HER LIFE ONCE UPON A TIME??

As she thought of all the chances she’d given that woman, every offer to help her, Isabella felt the righteous anger freezing her veins again. 

again. u met twice. talked 3 times. 

It would be a fascinating character study. A chance to observe Jessica’s reactions to emotional stimuli in a controlled environment. 

what the ever loving fuck isabella when the hell did you fall this far YOU’RE NOT TALKING ABOUT OBSERVING AN EXPERIMENT YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT DESTROYING A WOMAN’S LIFE FOR THE LOLZ 

And Isabella was a very adept liar, and she didn’t often get to put that skill into practice. 

UR ALSO A VERY ADEPT SNEK hissabella. krisssssten

say that I’ve cut you off.” She held his hand a little tighter when she spoke, to reassure him that she wouldn’t dream of doing that.

gag. look how desperate she is -- trying to convince him or herself hmmm?

“We can make her think he’s come back from the dead! I’m proof that’s possible, after all.”

have i mentioned that i fucking h8 u omg

“How are you so perfect?”

at this point, the chatzy devolves into a shippy shippy shipfest. they stop plotting like 80s villains and start acting like a 50s couple. they decide to move in, but isabellas sleeping in the guest room, wink-wink. and then there’s these two bits:

Was he not reformed?

… He would do this one thing. Torture Jessica, then he’d go back to the normal, bland life he had been fighting for, for five years.

you sound thrilled about that idea edward. 

How had she ever thought she could live without Edward?  She had been pieces of two people, disconnected and fragmented, but orbiting her life around him was pulling her together again. 

when isabella first got to starcity, she was alllll about making a life for HER. a life outside of what ed & oswald & the court did to her. and now, she’s filled the holes in herself with bits of him and let him take over her whole life

they were both trying so hard to make new lives, but the second this old flame came back, they threw themselves on the fire