#well -44 was the coldest

[eggie-toast]

wind chill potential next tues is uhhhh -40

[wandafiction]

Mockingbird - Just Us Chapter 43

Warnings: Description of Blood, Death, Accident, Gore

Word Count: 3929

Series List | Chapter 42 | Chapter 44

================================

November 8th 2019

I was woken by the high pitch wails of Evie, let me tell you she is the sweetest most innocent thing to ever exist but my God does she have a pair of lungs on her. I look to my right, the big red digits of the clock flashing 2.34am in my face, well at least she stayed quiet for an extra few minutes tonight. I feel Sarah stir next to me, a small disapproving grunt leaving her lips.

"It's okay baby, I've got her." Sarah lazily gives me a thumbs up and a small thank you as I climb out of the bed. "Love you."

"Love you too." Her voice riddled with sleep and muffled by the pillow, I give her a quick peck on the forehead before making my way to her side of the bed, where the bedside crib is. 

"Hello my little angel." I pick up her small body, holding her securely in one arm as my other searches for her toy elephant that Tony was adamant would be her favourite toy once she grew up. I mean she loves it now, but that's probably because the nose has a rattle in it and the ears make a funny crunching noise when you scrunch them in your hands. I hold it up in the air where she can see it and her eyes go wide, her crying turns to sniffles. I bring it down to boop her on the nose with it and she gives me a gummy smile as she coos up to it. She smacks her lips together, which is a tell tale sign she is hungry. 

"Mama's boobs are a little sensitive right now baby, but let's go and make you a bottle." I wrap her tiny body back up in a blanket so she doesn't get cold, the small elephant toy under my armpit so I don't have to struggle with the doors on the way around the house. I put a little hat on her and make sure her hands are also wrapped up in the blanket, it gets cold this time of year in Sokovia. Well I mean it's pretty much cold all year around, but November and December are definitely the worst times for it. 

I open the bedroom door, giving one last look to my sleeping wife before leaving her in peace as I coo down at Evie to try and keep her calm as we move through the cold hallways. I brought my phone with me, so tap a few buttons and hear the heating click on. The lights in the kitchen flicker on when I enter and my body shivers at the temperature in the room. Why is the kitchen always the coldest place in the house? I pull Evie more towards me to try and allow my body heat to radiate through the blanket a little while the heating does it's job. I fill up the kettle, turning it on so the water can boil while I grab some of the good ole breast milk out of the fridge. I pumped it today so it should still be nice and fresh, hopefully satisfying Evie's huge appetite. 

I pour the milk into one of her bottles and put it in the small bottle heater, because we all know that babies like their milk warm. It's weird to think about but it's not actually half bad, before you lot go crazy with your smirking faces imma stop you. No. We have to taste test the milk to make sure it's not too hot or too cold, get your heads out of the gutter your dirty minded people.

Anyway...where was I? Oh right, heating the baby milk. 

As the milk is heating up the kettle comes to a boil, with Evie still in my hand I grab a mug from the cupboard putting it down on the counter. I put in a tea bag and fill up the mug with hot water, the aroma of the green tea fills my nose and it makes me sigh in bliss. I would have a normal cup of tea, but it's now 2.46am if the clock in the kitchen is right, and the green tea normally helps me get back to sleep easier. I see Evie's bottom lip quiver, and know that she is getting more and more hungry. Come on stupid heater, heat it quicker my baby is about to wake up the whole street.

As if the heater heard me, it pings to let me know it's done. I carefully take the hot bottle out of its place, making sure it's not too hot for me to hold with my bare hand. Because my other arm is wrapped around Evie's body I bring the bottle up to my mouth letting a few drops of milk escape and land on my tongue. It doesn't taste the best, but it's not horrible and it's the perfect temperature for my little baby. I bounce her in my arms as I walk from the kitchen to the living room wanting to sit on the couch to feed her. Once I have settled on the edge of the couch, I bring the bottle up to Evie's mouth and her lips attach around the nipple of the bottle like we haven't fed her for days, when in reality it was a few hours ago. After a couple seconds I remove the bottle from her lips, so I can pace her and make sure she is just gulping down air. 

She smacks her lips together again, so I replace the nipple of the bottle back between her lips and she gently gulps down some more milk. After a few more gulps her eyes start to close, so I remove it and her lips stay parted. I get up from my seat, taking the bottle with me, heading into what will be her room in a few months, grab one of her baby towels and wipe at her face where she was dribbling. Her eyes flutter open for a second so I test out if she wants any more by placing the nipple back near her lips, but she simply turns her head closing her eyes again. I put the bottle on the nightstand, I will sort it out later, throw the towel over my shoulder and bring Evie's body up so I can burp her. Once I hear a not so graceful burp leave her lips, I check her face for any sick which thank god there isn't and start to make my way back to the kitchen, grabbing my tea before heading up to our room. 

As I slowly lower her into the crib she starts to fuss and wiggle around. I unwrap her arms from the blanket so she can move more freely, the heating is finally doing its job as the room starts to warm up. I place the mug on the bedside table, before looking down at my beautiful baby girl. Her curious eyes look up at me in the dark, as she continues to fuss. I let out a small sigh bending down, placing my hand in the crib and she grabs onto my index finger. I swing her arm about a little, her grip remains strong on my finger, her eyes still open searching the darkness. I start to rock the small crib trying to lull her to sleep, but when she continues to fuss I move to the last resort. I sing her what my mom used to sing to me.

"Hush, little baby, don't say a word

Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird

And if that mockingbird won't sing

Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring

And if that diamond ring turns brass

Mama's gonna buy you a looking glass

And if that looking glass gets broke

Mama's gonna buy you a billy goat

And if that billy goat won't pull

Mama's gonna buy you a cart and bull

And if that cart and bull turn over

Mama's gonna buy you a dog named Rover

And if that dog named Rover won't bark

Mama's gonna buy you a horse and cart

And if that horse and cart fall down

You'll still be the sweetest little baby in town

So hush little baby, don't you cry

Momma loves you and so do I!"

She finally let's sleep consume her, her grip on my finger relaxes so I slip it out of her hand and stand up making sure to still the crib so it isn't rocking her in her sleep because it usually wakes her up. I trudge back to my side of the bed, pulling the covers back so I can slip under. Sarah's body gravitated towards mine as she pushes her back against my front and I wrap my arm around her waist to bring her closer leaving a small kiss on the back of her neck. I hear her let out a content sigh so I know she is awake still.

"Honey, go back to sleep. It's nearly 3.30 and you need your rest." She turns her whole body so she is now facing me, stuffing her face against my neck. 

"Sing to me." I smile against her hairline, pecking her forehead a few times feeling her relax against me.

Hush, little baby, don't say a word

Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird

And if that mockingbird won't sing

Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring

I hear light snores leave my wife's lips and it makes me smile. I pull our bodies impossibly closer, taking in her vanilla scent before I continue singing, until I once again finish the song and let sleep take over me.

I wake to a cold bed, my arms no longer wrapped around my wife's body but instead the pillow that smells just like her. I lift my head up when I hear a small cry, searching for Evie's body in her crib but she is not there. The cry must have come from somewhere else inside the house. I turn to look at the bedside clock, the red digits flashing 7.58am at me. Why do I always have to wake up before the hour? I could use the extra 2 minutes to, well, sleep. I groan, wiping my hands over my face trying to rid it of sleep, sitting myself up and swinging my legs out from the covers digging my toes into the carpet. I stretch my hands above my head as I stand up, a loud yawn escaping me. I trudge downstairs where I can hear the soft cooing of my wife's voice as she talks to our daughter.

"Momma loves you so much. Are you excited for your first Christmas, because I am and mama has brought us to her Sokovia. Yes she did, she brought us here to see all the wonders as a family. Do you know I love you mama? I do, with every fibre of my being and I love you to the moon and back. I can't wait to grow as a family, maybe add another brother or sister." 

"Already thinking of more?" I enter the room pressing my front to her back as I wrap my arms around her waist, my chin resting atop her head as I look down to our daughter. I kiss the top of her head and she leans against me more.

"Mmm, I made coffee and breakfast." I kiss her head once more and unwrap myself from her so I can grab the waffles and coffee.

"How did you manage this with her in your hand?" 

"I have my ways" She just smirks at me and it makes me laugh.

"Thank you for letting me sleep in baby." I sat my bowl and mug at the table , taking a seat as she sits in the one next to me.

"No problem, you were up with her for a while so I thought it best to let you rest. What's the plan for today?" I look at her and our baby girl  as she bounces Evie in her arms to keep her quiet.

"Well the Christmas markets open today, so I thought we could go and have a look around, maybe get some decorations ready for the 1st of December then we can prepay for a tree from the local farmer who grows them. Then we can go out to that little café we have been to, then we can visit Carl and spend the day with him and the witches." 

"I love that, I will go get me and Evie ready for the day. I bring some extra blankets and the hand warmers just in case. Also why do they call themselves witches?"

"Because they own the coven café. Just makes sense."

"Sure. Anyway, eat up and we will go when you're ready." Sarah stands from her chair, placing a chaste kiss on my lips before disappearing upstairs.

I turn back to my waffles and smile at the whipped cream and cherry smiley face. My wife is such a child sometimes but I eat it and for some reason it tastes better than normal. Must have been the artwork that added to it. I finish off my coffee and waffles moving back to the kitchen to wash up. I hear my wife's footsteps coming down the stairs and smile at her as she is wrapped up like a burrito in her coat, hat, scarf and gloves. Evie is wrapped up warm too, and her extra blanket hangs over Sarah's shoulder. I give them both a kiss as I pass them on the stairs to go get myself ready.

When I come back downstairs I look out the window to see the two loves of my life waiting out in the car, the engine running and I can only assume the heating is being blasted. I grab my wallet, making sure I have my phone and lock up the house as I leave. When I get in the car, it felt like I was getting in a sauna, my face being blasted by hot air as Sarah holds her hands out in front of the vent. I laugh at the sight but put my seat belt on and pull out of the driveway. 

"Did you buy the car just so there was something on the drive?" Sarah looks at me amused.

"What if I did? I have the house here and might as well have a vehicle so I don't have to rent one each time." I shrug as I look both ways before pulling out onto the main road that leads straight to the center of the city. 

"Your own money or the joint account?" I furrow my brows slightly at the question but shake it off, Sarah has always been funny when it comes to me spending money on me. She prefers it to come out of my earnings from working then what we make through the company as CEOs.

"My account. The joint account we agreed was for a new house for the three of us and our future." She gives me a look. "It was one time and I didn't realise I had used the wrong card, it was an honest mistake." I defend lightly.

"Well when $182'000 leaves the joint account I thought it was fraud." 

"Was it or was it not worth the $182'000? And I put the money straight back."

"Well it was definitely worth it. I mean you did propose with the $182'000. Got a nice ring out of it too." She jokes as she shows off her engagement ring and wedding band.

"Exactly so, stop complaining."

"Mhmm, I love you."

"I love you too." 

I come to a set of traffic lights going right through them, as ours are green. Before I can even comprehend what is happening, the car is struck on the passenger side sending us flying to the left as the car flips too many times to count through the air. The car hits the road and skids along hard ground, but not before the bottom of the car is hit again sending us rolling once more. We come to a sudden stop and everything goes black. 

I come to when I hear people shouting and lots of blue flashing lights. I open my eyes, all I can see is red so I bring a shaky and sore hand to wipe my eyes. When I bring my hand away, opening my eyes slowly, I see my hand covered in blood yet I am not sure if it is mine or not. I look out to what used to be the windscreen but is now a mess of smashed glass and warped metal. The world is upside down, so that means I am upside down. I look to where my wife should be and see a mess of red and metal, her body no longer recognisable as her own. Her body lays still, her blood seeping out of a large gash on her neck...it's not stopping. I can see her chest rising up and down slowly, but it's not strong. She is so weak. She licks her lips slightly, her eyes fluttering as she tries to open them, but gives up when she can't. I hear a small breath escape her mouth.

"I….love….you….3000." I scream out in agony as her body gives up to her major injuries, I know the moment her heart stops beating and pushing blood around her body, because her neck is no longer bleeding the blood is just pooling around her now. 

I hear a cry from behind me and turn my head as much as I can to see my baby girl screaming her lungs out, but she has a nasty gash on her head. I bite my lip to stop me from screaming out again, the voices of all those around me not being heard as my ears start to ring. 

"Hey, hey hey. Evie baby everything is going to be fine. Everything is going to be just fine." I know she can't understand me and I know everything is not fine but the moment she hears my voice she goes quiet, a small whimper leaving her mouth. 

Her big glossy eyes look up at me, I haven't seen her move at all but the gash on her head won't stop bleeding. I know she won't be rescued in time, she probably has internal hemorrhaging and a brain contusion. She isn't going to make it, but she doesn't need to know that. I just need to keep her calm while the rescuers do their work. So I do the only thing I can do at that moment.

"Hush, little baby, don't say a word

Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird

And if that mockingbird won't sing

Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring

And if that diamond ring turns brass

Mama's gonna buy you a looking glass

And if that looking glass gets broke

Mama's gonna buy you a billy goat

And if that billy goat won't pull

Mama's gonna buy you a cart and bull

And if that cart and bull turn over

Mama's gonna buy you a dog named Rover

And if that dog named Rover won't bark

Mama's gonna buy you a horse and cart

And if that horse and cart fall down

You'll still be the sweetest little baby in town

So hush little baby, don't you cry

Momma loves you and so do I!"

By the time I'm finished Evie has gone quiet, her eyes no longer holding their color. I scream as I turn to the front of the car, slamming my hands against what's left of the steering wheel. That's when I finally look over my body to assess my injuries and my eyes grow wide at the site of the piece of rebar sticking out just below my right ribcage. That's when I realise I can't feel my legs, and the angle at which the rebar has entered let's me know it has torn through my spine. I cough up blood, well shit. I feel someone tap my face so I turn to look up through the broken windscreen, and I'm met by the sight of a firefighter.

"Hey, we are doing our best to get you out of here. You just have to stay with me." He gives a few commands to his colleague but stays with me as they start taking the car apart.

"What's the point? They're dead. Why couldn't it be that easy for me?" I see him visibly gulp at the sight.

"I'm sorry for your loss, but you have to stay with me. You have to fight. For them.' His words make me angry, but I don't say anything, I just nod. I feel my eyes closed and don't fight the darkness as it consumes me. "We're losing her!" 

Present day 

I look around the hospital room, momentarily forgetting where I am because I got so lost in the story. I feel a body press against mine and freeze for a moment until the smell of strawberries wafts through my nose and it instantly calms me down and brings me back. I see that there is not a dry eye in the room and Christina hands around tissues. No one says anything. There is nothing to be said, but Christina is the first to break the silence. 

"So I heard some news Y/n. A little bird called Tony told me. Why didn't you tell me this at our last session?" Tony and his big mouth.

"Because there's some things that I need to process by myself." 

"But it caused a panic attack, and we made a deal to talk about them everytime."

"So what are we going to talk about it now?" I scoff but bow my head in apology.

"We are because then we can use it to help prove to yourself that you are not to blame." Wanda and Natasha sit up more ready to listen. "So tell me Y/n what's the news?"

"He is going down."

"Who's he?"

"The man that hit us with his truck." 

"What's he going down for?"

"Reckless driving, driving with intent to hurt, plotting murder. Murder in the 1st degree."

"And that's good."

"Yup"

"What about the other man?"

"What's with all the questions?"

"Because I am trying to prove to you that it's not your fault."

"But it is! If I hadn't saved that kid then we wouldn't be here would we? No!" I slam my hand against the railing of the bed and I see Natasha and Wanda jump at my aggression and I just want to wither away and disappear at that point. "Sorry."

"So you blame saving Carl for the death of your wife and child?" 

"Yes because if I didn't save him, there would be no reason to come after me!"

"And who was it Y/n. Who plotted your murder. What other person is going down now that they have the evidence?" 

"I…." I take a breath. "I don't blame the kid."

"I didn't say you did. I asked the name of the person who plotted your murder."

"I…"

"Y/n we can't move on from this point unless you say it out loud. These two people here want to help you, but they don't know everything. So tell them. Tell them the name of the man who plotted your murder."

"Ultron."

================================

[whateveryouweremissing]

2024 in Books

1) 1/3 - James Baldwin: A Biography     

2) 1/4- Going to Meet the Man 

3) 1/7- Fields of Fire 

4) 1/8- A Goat's Song 

5) 1/8- A Gate at the Stairs 

6) 1/10- Norm MacDonald: Based on a True Story   

7) 1/14- Cash 

8) 1/16- Aftermath: Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich 1945-1955 

9) 1/19- Pond 

10) 1/25- Midnight in Chernobyl  

11) 1/26- And The Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks

12) 1/29- The Unwomanly Face of War 

13) 1/31- I'm Your Man: The Life of Leonard Cohen 

14) 2/1- A Frozen Woman 

15) 2/3- Fighting With Demons  

16) 2/4- Dirtbag, Massachusetts  

17) 2/9- The Face of War 

18) 2/10- Exile's Return  

19) 2/12- Simone Weil: An Anthology   

20) 2/16- Exile and The Kingdom 

21) 2/16- Autobiography of Red 

22) 2/17- Averno     

23) 2/25- Journal of a Solitude 

24) 2/26- Fatherland 

25) 3/3- Some Desperate Glory 

26) 3/4- The Pilgrim Hawk  

27) 3/5- On Freedom 

28) 3/12- Agua Viva  

29) 3/21- Plainwater: Essays and Poetry 

30) 3/22- The End of Me  

31) 3/28- The Hour of the Star 

32) 4/1- The Coldest Winter 

33) 4/2- A Girl's Story 

34) 4/4- The Letters of Rainer Maria Rilke 1892-1910 

35) 4/8- Speedboat 

36) 4/8- Men in the Off Hours 

37) 4/11- Monkey Grip 

38) 4/14- Bluets 

39) 4/14- Cat’s Cradle 

40) 4/15- Down the Highway: The Life of Bob Dylan  

41) 4/21- Yellow Notebook 

42) 4/22- Black Ops: The Life of a CIA Shadow Warrior 

43) 4/23- Giovanni's Room 

44) 5/2 - I Must Say   

45) 5/5- Another Country 

46) 5/6- Eros the Bittersweet 

47) 5/7- The Flame 

48) 5/7- The Red Parts  

49) 5/11- Decreation 

50) 5/14- Winter Hours 

51) 5/14- The Happiest Man Alive 

52) 5/15- Close Quarters 

53) 5/16- Faces in the Crowd   

54) 5/23- Say Nothing 

55) 5/28- Pond 

56) 6/2- Double Cross 

57) 6/4- Journal of Katherine Mansfield  

58) 6/6- Where Are Your Boys Tonight? 

59) 6/10- Preoccupations: Selected Prose, 1968-1978    

60) 6/16- Love in the Void   

61) 6/18- Bright Dead Things

62) 6/20- Washington: A Life 

63) 6/22- The Beauty of the Husband 

64) 6/23- Flyboys 

65) 7/2- Dangling in the Tournefortia

66) 7/3- The British Are Coming: The War for America 

67) 7/6- Sleepless Nights 

68) 7/11- Lessons from Stoicism 

69) 7/14- Transit  

70) 7/17- Flags of Our Fathers 

71) 7/17- Ernest Hemingway: A Biograophy  

72) 7/18- Seduction and Betrayal 

73) 7/19- Howl  

74) 7/21- The First Wave 

75) 7/21- Let Me Tell You What I Mean  

76) 7/26- Where Men Win Glory 

77) 7/30- Red Doc> 

78) 8/4- Glass, Irony and God 

79) 8/4 - Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know 

80) 8/5- The Book of Disquiet 

81) 8/6- Crush 

82) 8/8- Against All Odds  

83) 8/12- Fierce Ambition 

84) 8/13- The First Four Books of Poems 

85) 8/13- One Day I'll Remember This  

86) 8/16- Valiant Women 

87) 8/18- The Greatest Generation Speaks

88) 8/18- Something Bright, Then Holes 

89) 8/18- A Disaffection 

90) 8/19- Travels With Myself and Another   

91) 8/25- Sellout  

92) 8/27- Wandering 

93) 8/28- Well-Kept Ruins 

94) 9/1- The Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway 

95) 9/2- Lust and Other Stories 

96) 9/5- Death Of A Naturalist 

97)9/6- The Monuments Men  

98) 9/12- Pitch Dark 

99) 9/12- An Army At Dawn 

100) 9/16- The Things Our Fathers Saw 

101) 9/17- War Is A Racket 

102) 9/17- Memorable Days 

103) 9/29- The Day of Battle 

104) 10/4- Meet Me in the Bathroom 

105) 10/4- Lost Children Archive 

106) 10/5- Vita Nova 

107) 10/5- An Unquiet Mind 

108) 10/8- Burning The Days  

109) 10/11- Robert Lowell: Setting the River on Fire

110) 10/15- Nothing Ever Just Disappears  

111) 10/20- Meditations 

112) 10/15- Nobody Knows My Name 

113) 10/27- Illness as Metaphor 

114) 10/28- When Books Went to War

115) 10/31- Attempting Normal  

116) 11/5- Stigmata 

117) 11/9- Washington's Immortals 

118) 11/10- Wherever You Go, There You Are 

119) 11/18- Humanly Possible 

120) 11/20- Felicity 

121) 11/22- Savage Continent 

122) 11/23- Tell Me How It Ends  

123) 12/3- John Adams 

124) 12/7- The Freaks Came Out to Write 

125) 12/8- Wild Houses 

126) 12/9- A Ghost in the Throat 

127) 12/12- Hitler’s Furies 

128) 12/20- Dream Work 

129) 12/20- Poems 1962-2020 

130) 12/22- Reborn: Journals and Notebooks 

131) 12/24- Churchill: Walking With Destiny. : Walking with Destiny 

132) 12/28- The Lost Weekend

133) 12/28- The Deserters   

134) 12/30- Code Name: Lise 

135) 12/31- Lifeform 

[hetaliahyperfix]

I had also considered bringing up the earthquakes but had decided to stick to the facts about tornados. Now that we are on it though, we might as well discuss the extreme weather and natural disasters in America.

On the topic of Earthquakes, the second most powerful Earthquake ever recorded was the 1964 Alaska earthquake, which had a magnitude of about 9.2-9.3. Apparently, the Earthquake was so powerful, it caused tsunamis as far as Hawaii and Japan.

Since you brought up volcanos, America actually has a lot of them, which many even in the country seem unaware of. Indeed, America has the third most active volcanoes in the world and is honestly nearly tied with Japan for second place. Looking at this graph, America has had 42 volcanoes active since 1950, Japan has had 44, and Indonesia has had 59. Comparatively, Iceland only has about 10 that have been active since 1950. The US's volcanoes tend to be found along the West Coast, Alaska, and Hawaii.

If we go by Holocene volcanoes which are any volcanoes that have erupted in the last 12,000 years, then America is first with 165. I wouldn't really consider this when discussing Hetalia America or any of the other nations though, because none of them are old enough for the Holocene measurement to be relevant.

Moving on from volcanoes, the highest temperature ever recorded was in Death Valley, California at 56.7 °C (134.0 °F). America also has the fifth coldest temperature ever recorded Prospect Creek, Alaska at −62.2 °C (−80 °F). This temp is only beat by Antarctica, Greenland, Russia, and Canada. In case you mistakenly believe that Alaska is the only truly cold place in the US, the seventh coldest temperature ever recorded was on US mainland in Rogers Pass, Montana at −56.7 °C (−70 °F).

America is also prone to hurricanes, blizzards, flooding, fire tornadoes, dust storms, and severe thunderstorms.

The one nice thing I will say about America's weather/natural disasters is that, when you take into account how extreme conditions are in the USA, there actually isn't that big of a death toll when it comes to natural disasters.

America's deadliest volcanic eruption, for example, was Mount St. Helens which killed about 57 people. In comparison, the deadliest volcanic eruption ever was in Indonesia with a death toll of upwards to 121,000.

The 1964 Alaskan Earthquake, despite being the second most powerful ever recorded in history, "only" killed about a 131 people. In comparison, the deadliest earthquake was the 1976 Tangshan earthquake, which killed at least 300,000 people with some estimates going up to 700,000.

So, as far as how that affects Alfred F. Jones, I think all the (more severe) natural disasters would have physical effects on him, but that he wouldn't be effected by a severe death toll like other nations (for example: China, India, Indonesia, ect).

Honestly, this post has makes me want to create some headcanons about how natural disasters/weather physically affect nations now. I'm going to have to start working on it.

The US has over 1,000 tornadoes per year.

The whole of Europe has an average of around 250.

Canada had an estimated 260 annually (roughly estimated because most happen way out in the wilderness).

Anyone speculate Alfred gets serious dizzy spells on occasion?

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Smithsonian:

As of early spring, wildfires have been surging through the taiga forest in Siberia. The region hardest hit was the Republic of Sakha in northeastern Russia. Also known as Yakutia, the area had 250 fires burning across 2,210 miles of land on July 5. By mid-July, residents of Yakutsk, the capitol of Sakha, were breathing in smoke from over 300 separate wildfires, as reported by the Siberian Times.

Currently, almost 10 million acres are currently burning, with one fire alone scorching an area as wide as 2.5 million acres, reports Ann M. Simmons for the Wall Street Journal. The fires are burning so intensely that vast swaths of smoke blocked sunlight. For the first time in recorded history, smoke from the fires in Siberia have drifted thousands of miles away to reach the North Pole, reports Oliver Carroll for the Independent.

The Siberian wildfires are more substantial than this season's blazes in Greece, Turkey, the United States, and Canada combined. Local residents from Yakutia have been under a state of emergency for weeks as smoke continued to smother cities, even those that are thousands of miles away, reports the Moscow Times.

In recent years, summer temperatures in Russia have seen record highs in the triple digits—despite being one of the coldest places on Earth. Many experts suspect it's a result of human-driven climate change. The increasing hot weather melted permafrost and, as a result, fueled the numerous fires, report Daria Litvinova and Vladimir Isachenkov for the Associated Press. Per the Moscow Times, a warming climate combined with a 150-year drought and high winds created the best conditions to turn the taiga forest into fire fuel.

Temperatures over the year range between -44 to 77 degrees Fahrenheit in Yakutsk. This past summer, after arid and extremely hot weather patterns, the Sakha-Yakutia region reached 102 degrees Fahrenheit, setting records for several consecutive days, per the Associated Press.

The inferno's intensity has closed airports, roads and prompted evacuations. The smoke's cover is so vast that NASA estimated it measured 2,000 miles from east to west and 2,500 miles from north to south. The smokes' haze was also spotted 1,200 miles away in Mongolia's capitol as well as 1,864 miles to the North Pole, reports NPR's Sharon Pruitt-Young. Satellite images taken by NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite show the smokes' reach in color detail.

[songbirdstyles]

whole lotta love.

summary: you patch spencer up after a particularly difficult case.

warnings: pure smut, fluff if you squint

pairing: spencer reid x reader

word count: 4.5k

song inspo.: whole lotta love - led zeppelin

For all intents and purposes, you’ve gotten very used to the less-than-glamorous aspects of Spencer’s job.

Sure, you don’t love when the familiar ding of his phone stops whatever he’s doing in its tracks, whether you two are curled up in bed at 2 AM or pressed against the wall together, your fingers furiously fiddling with the buttons of his dress shirt to get it off as fast as possible. One notification from his phone and he’s wincing, giving you an apologetic kiss and a promise to call you as soon as we land. 

But - well, you hadn’t really had much of a choice besides getting used to that one. And it hasn’t been as bad as you’d initially expected because Spencer never fails to call you every night (calling only, no matter how many times you try to convince him to get a better phone so you two can FaceTime) and it does feel pretty worth it when he comes home and tells you about the case, about a victim the team had saved or an unsub they’d apprehended.

That being said, you still haven’t gotten used to the nights where he comes home looking like this.

“Jesus Christ, Spencer,” you murmur, bringing your palms up instinctively to press to his face. Your thumbs stroke along his cheek where a slash highlights the bone and the black and blue shadow surrounding his left eye. You’re nearly positive there are more wounds you can’t see - you’ll check - but you hate seeing him come home so beat up. “What the hell happened?”

“The EMTs checked me out,” Spencer explains, larger hands wrapping around your wrist and tugging your hands off of his face. He doesn’t like to be doted on and you know that, but it isn’t as though you can just ignore how he looks. “I’m fine. They’re just superficial cuts.”

You furrow your eyebrows, feeling his hands slide down your wrist until your fingers can intertwine with his, palm flush against his just the way you like it. “You look like you lost a wrestling match.”

Your boyfriend laughs at that, taking a step away from you and leading you from the foyer of your shared apartment towards the sitting room. “We saved two little girls, though,” he tells you, and that brings a smile to your face as you tug him towards the sitting room couch. “You know, it was really lucky - 99% of abducted children die in the first 24 hours -”

“ - 75% in the first three hours and 44% in the first,” you finish, pushing Spencer onto the couch just as a grin begins to spread across his face. “I’ve heard you mention it so many times, I may as well remember it.”

“It is useful to know.”

“For you, maybe.” You lean down to press one gentle kiss to his lips before padding off towards the bathroom, pulling open one of the carefully organized first aid drawers to search for what you need. “Just stay there, Spence.”

He merely hums in response and you can imagine him - exhausted to the bone - sinking into the cushions of the couch, surely ready to sleep, but you know you won’t be able to rest until you patch him up. Seeing him beaten up is more common than you’d prefer but it doesn’t mean you have to like it, necessarily - even though you have to say you’ve gotten quite good at cleaning cuts.

Just as you pick up a small rag, turning on the sink to soak the cloth with cold water, Spencer calls from the sitting room, “Make sure you remember the Vaseline. Hydrates the wound and provides an occlusive layer which keeps the wound covered.”

You snort, digging through the drawer until you find the small tub of petroleum jelly that you always resort to when cleaning him up before turning off the sink, ringing out the washcloth so it doesn’t drip on the floor. “I know,” you call back, using your elbow to flick off the lightswitch before crossing the apartment to the kitchen, pretending like you don’t see Spencer’s gaze following you from the couch. “Come on, honey. This isn’t my first rodeo, you know?”

“Alright, alright,” he laughs as you pull open the freezer, pressing the back of your hand to each unopened bag of frozen vegetables to find the coldest one - as it turns out, it’s the peas, buried deep in the freezer, and you pull the bag out before shutting the door once more. 

Vaseline and cloth in one hand and the cold bag of peas in the other, you flash Spencer a small smile as you turn to walk back to the sitting room. One short glance to the clock mounted on the wall tells you that it’s nearly 11 but you’re not nearly as tired as you’d expect, and, as you wiggle your eyes at your boyfriend as you stand between his open legs, you don’t reckon Spencer is, either.

It’s an easy maneuver to climb on top of him, legs straddling his thighs until you’re settled in his lap and your bodies fit together like they were made for each other. You can practically hear his heart thumping through his dress shirt and you’d love nothing more than to lean down and unbutton his shirt, press lingering kisses to every bit of exposed skin, but there are more pressing matters - your own needs can wait until later.

You can feel Spencer’s hands, softly touching the backs of your thighs, fingertips drumming against the smooth skin. Even when you’re so close you can feel his hesitation with being intimate like this, how he’s careful not to press too hard as if he’ll break you and you shift backwards on his lap, deepening his grasp on your thighs and he smiles softly.

(Both of you pretend not to notice the slight bulge in his pants, pressing against you as you raise the cool bag of peas to his black eye.)

“Do you want me to hold it?” Spencer questions, letting his right eye flutter closed as you dab at the slice on his cheek with your cloth, the cool water dripping down the sharp lines of his cheekbones towards his jawline. “The peas, I mean.”

“No,” you’re quick to respond, and you’re sure he’s having no difficulty profiling exactly why you’d rather him keep his hands right where they are. “I’ve got it.”

His voice is hardly above a breath as he murmurs alright, tilting his head towards you as you rub gently at the cut before leaning forward, chest pressed close to his as you lazily toss the rag onto the table sitting behind the couch. Now you can feel his heart beating - or maybe it’s yours? - and when you shift back to your previous position, you can’t possibly help yourself from leaning down, slotting your lips against his and feeling his tongue instinctively slip into your mouth.

Hands slide up your thighs, pausing for a brief moment to grope at your ass before continuing their trek upwards. Your free hand not holding the makeshift ice pack to his eye tangles in his hair, fingertips digging in his scalp as his arms wrap securely around your waist, hips bucking up into yours and that’s when you pull away. Smooth your fingers through his hair, watch the way he swallows thickly, lips moist with the mixture of your saliva.

“Sorry,” you murmur, dragging your hand from his head down to his cheek, cupping his face in your palm as he leans into your touch. He looks almost betrayed, bottom lip perking out in a pout and you sigh. “I have to patch you up, Spence.”

“I’ll be fine,” Spencer insists, sliding his hands up your waist as you work at opening the cap of the Vaseline. Your fingers are still wet from clutching the cloth and trying to do it one handed proves to be useless, and your boyfriend reluctantly pulls his hands from your waist to open the jelly for you with an ease that sends heat creeping up your cheeks before returning his palms back to their spot. “Do you know how many times I’ve gotten cut on the job?”

“I don’t think I want to know.” You dip your finger into the Vaseline and bring it up to his cheekbones, dabbing it gently on the cut. When you’ve finished you rub the jelly off of your finger and onto your sleep shorts, cringing at the slimy feeling before reaching for the bandaid sitting between your bodies. “I’m almost done.”

You fumble with the band aid, pulling both plastic pieces off the ends before pressing yourself closer to Spencer, holding the bag of peas to his eye with your forearm as you grip the adhesive with both hands. Steady fingers press the sticky band aid to his newly cleaned cut, making sure it’s perfectly centered over the injury before smoothing your fingers over it, giving it one light slap to make sure it stuck.

“Voila,” you exhale, sitting backwards to examine your work. “All done.”

“Thank God,” Spencer sighs, and you have just one spare moment of lingering eye contact before he’s pushing his head up, lips pressing to yours so intensely that you’re nearly overwhelmed by it. Immediately you part your lips for him, feeling his tongue slip into your mouth as you arch your back, chest pressed against his as you lean into his touch. The bag you’d been clutching to his eye drops from your grasp, falling between your bodies as you press both palms to the side of his face, grinning against his mouth as he jumps. “Your hands are so cold.”

“Sorry,” you mutter, feeling his fingertips creep up your back, pushing your shirt up until his palms are pressed to your bare skin, a chill rolling up your spine, and a soft whine emits from your throat into his mouth just as his fingers begin toying with the clasp of your bra. “Don’t tease, Spence - take it off, please.”

He exhales into your mouth and you furrow your eyebrows, pulling away from him and dropping your forehead against his. “You’re so impatient.” And then his hands slide back down your back, away from the clasp you’re desperate for him to undo. “It makes sense - you’re always extra needy when I come home from missions. Getting off through the phone isn’t as good as the real thing, is it? Not for you.”

A soft sigh escapes your lips as Spencer leans forward, lips attaching to the underside of your jaw and you can feel him suckling softly on the soft skin, surely looking to leave one of the lasting marks that he loves to examine days after he makes them. Perhaps it’s because of the long distance nature of his job that he enjoys marking you up, making sure anyone with wandering eyes knows that you’re accounted for even when he’s not with you, or maybe he just likes claiming you as his own - either way, you wouldn’t dare to object. “Don’t profile me,” you plead, head tilting backwards as Spencer’s lips pull off of your jawline with a soft pop, thumb stroking over the skin he’d been assaulting as if to assess whether the hickey he’d left is adequate. “Come on, Spence.”

You reach down for the bottom of your tank top, pulling the offending fabric up and over your head without another moment of hesitation. The shirt is discarded, tossed to a corner of the sitting room and you don’t bother confirming where it goes - you just loop your arms around your boyfriend’s neck, leaning in to kiss him again but he stops you, tugging on your bra strap with not nearly enough strength to prevent your movement but you accept the gesture, leaning backwards until your eyes connect with his.

“Can’t you just indulge me?” you question, arching your back into Spencer’s touch as his hands move from around your back to your chest, palms cupping your tits through your bra. “Please?”

There’s another pause, Spencer’s fingertips dipping into the cups of your bra, palms warm against your chest. “Well, since you asked nicely.”

You smile, leaning in to attach your lips to his, teeth gently sinking into his bottom lip just as he pulls down the straps of your bra, letting them fall down your arms so he can pull the cups down over your breasts. Fingertips pinch your nipples and you whine into his mouth, pushing your chest further into his hands as he slips his tongue into your mouth.

For a minute you go on just like that - hands on your tits, groping the skin and thumbing your nipples until you pull your lips from his, gasping in a breath as you rock your hips against the bulge in his pants. “Fuck,” he breathes as your fingers go to the buttons of his shirt, pulling them open one by one to expose more and more of his chest to you, and your head dips down to press a kiss to his collarbone just as you’d fantasized doing before.

When you’ve undone every button you pull both halves of his shirt apart, tugging the sleeves down his arms and he removes his hands from your body so you can pull it off - it’s thrown in another direction much like your tank top and you’re more than grateful to have Spencer’s entire torso exposed to you. Hands smooth up and down his chest, feeling his skin burst up in goosebumps beneath your touch and you watch his mouth part open with pleasure before leaning forward again, slotting your lips against his once more.

“Take my bra off,” you beg, and his eyebrows arch upwards like the request was simply blasphemous. “Please, Spence - please - want you to touch me -”

“I am touching you.” And to prove his point his hands smooth up and down your waist, fingertips drumming your skin. 

Your eyes drift shut as Spencer’s hips roll up into yours, prominent bulge brushing against your clit even through your sleep shorts and you focus your hands on his shoulders, using your grasp as leverage to rock your hips further into his. “Just take it off - don’t tease me, please!”

You’re not sure whether it’s his own desires to strip you down or if he’s not interested in teasing you any longer but no matter - Spencer’s fingers slide up your back, briefly fiddling with the clasp of your bra before undoing it and the cups fall away from your chest, straps sliding down your arms and you pull it off, tossing it over the top of the couch. The coldness of the apartment bites at your skin and a shiver rolls through your spine, the sensation only heightened as Spencer ducks his head down, tongue flicking against your nipple before his lips close around it, cheeks hollowing as he sucks the hollow bud and you throw your head back with a loud cry.

“Take your shorts off,” Spencer mumbles, voice muffled against your tits and you oblige, shaky hands dropping to tug the tie on your shorts free. It’s a struggle to pull them off your legs while straddling him, his arms wrapping around your back to hold your chest to his mouth as you maneuver the fabric until you can drop it over the side of the couch, leaving you only in your panties and he’s quick to take advantage of your new near-nudeness. Hands slide down your back, fingers hooking in the hem of your thong and palms groping your ass and whatever shyness he’d had before about groping your thighs is gone - when things get going he’s fucking unstoppable and that’s what you love. 

You drag your hands down his chest, fingertips dragging feather-light on his stomach before you reach his lap, undoing the button on his pants and pulling the zipper down. His hips buck upwards when your fingertips brush the bulge in his boxers and you bite back your smile, resting your forehead against his once more as you pull the hem of his underwear down over his cock, hand wrapping around his erection without another second of hesitation and Spencer’s head drops back onto the cushion, a low groan emitting from his throat.

His fingers follow the hem of your thong around your hips until he’s tracing the fabric covering your pussy, cloth soaked with your arousal and even just the slightest touch has you whining out, grasp tightening around his cock. “I need to be inside you,” Spencer murmurs, and the words are so filth-laden that you moan out again, feeling his fingers pull your panties to the side until his digits dip through your folds, circling your clit and smirking at the way you tremor above him. “You want that too, don’t you? I can tell - you’re shaking and you keep making those little noises.”

Don’t profile me is what you would say if you were in any other state of mind but the only thing you can think to respond with is a soft moan, dropping your head back as Spencer leans in, lips closing in around your throat again. Your hand pumps his cock, thighs quivering in their efforts to hold yourself above him, and his hand that isn’t holding your panties to the side mercifully slides to your ass, holding you up as you align him with your entrance. Slowly you sink down onto him - for a guy so skinny he’s bigger than you’d expect and you always need to start slow to adjust - and within seconds you’ve bottomed out, feeling his cock buried deeper inside of you than you could ever imagine, and the two of you collectively lean in to press your lips together, moans landing inside each other’s mouths.

“Oh, God,” you breathe, shifting closer to him so your chests brush together and Spencer’s arm tightens around your back, holding you as tight to him as possible. He knows enough to give you a moment’s adjustment period, body quivering as he struggles to stay still but he’d never dream of moving until you’re perfectly comfortable. “Okay - move, Spence - I’m ready - need you to fuck me -”

He nods immediately, fingernails scratching into the sides of your waist as you pull yourself up, lifting until only the tip of his cock remains buried in your pussy before sinking back down, head pulling away from his to drop back in ecstasy at the sensation. Immediately you feel Spencer’s head bury itself in the junction between your neck and shoulder, breath hot and lips puckered against your skin as he presses a permanent kiss to the side of your throat, arms around your body helping you move up and down on him. 

It takes a moment for you two to work yourselves into a groove, feeling Spencer’s teeth dig into your throat as you sink back down onto him over and over again - but once you do it feels fucking miraculous, rolling your hips back and forth so your clit brushes against his pelvic bone. Your palms press to the sides of his face, feeling the light dusting of facial hair beneath your touch and you nearly want to pull his head up, smash your lips together until you’re breathless but the way he’s suckling dark marks around your throat feels so good and you’re not sure you’re willing to give it up - you compromise by looping your arms around his neck, fingernails scratching into the base of his neck.

“God, Spencer,” you moan, your speed picking up as you lift yourself off of him and slam back down, feeling his breathing pick up into your neck as his nails dig so deep into your waist that it nearly hurts but in the best fucking way possible. He loves when you praise him - you know that - and you never have an issue indulging him. “Feels so good - filling me so good -”

And there’s that telltale groan into your neck followed by Spencer pulling his lips from your throat and when your eyes meet his they’re clouded with lust, pupils drowning out the normal chocolate tone of his orbs that you love to see but hell if you don’t adore seeing him like this. His mouth drops open with a silent groan as you grind your hips into his, tugging at the curls at the nape of his neck just the way you know he likes.

Your thighs burn vehemently as you struggle to keep yourself upright, the urge to merely collapse into your boyfriend’s strong arms nearly overwhelming but your desire to prolong the pleasure coursing through your body far outweighs it. Spencer can feel your struggle - it’s the profiler in him, you’d assume - and his arms slowly unwrap from around your body, palms landing on the underside of your ass and using the leverage to work you up and down. It doesn’t do much to alleviate the slight burn in your muscle but you appreciate it and so you lean in, pull Spencer’s face close to yours and close your lips to his once more.

“Gonna fill you up,” Spencer grunts and the words send your stomach turning just as his cock brushes that sweet spot deep inside of you that has your back arching, dropping your head into his shoulder with a desperate sob. “You want that?”

You nod desperately, eyes burning with tears derived from the pure ecstasy afflicting your body as you unwind one of your arms from his neck, pressing two of your fingers to your clit and rubbing small circles into the sensitive bud. Spencer typically always wears a condom - better safe than sorry is his motto - but it never stops him from hissing into your ear every time about how much he wants to fill you up and you fucking yearn for it, too. You need it. “Do it, Spence - please, I want you t - to fill me up.”

His hips thrust up into yours, meeting you halfway as a breathy groan escapes his throat. “I can’t -”

“I went on birth control, Spence, you can.”

He pauses - you lift your head up to look at him, hips briefly slowing down in their relentless rocking against his. “You know, on average the pill is only 91% effective.”

You grin, leaning in to press a kiss to Spencer’s lips as his hips begin to roll up into yours again, his fingertips digging into the globes of your ass. “Let’s take our chances.”

It seems to be a good enough answer to him and so he nods, sweaty curls dropping onto his forehead and you bring your free hand up, pushing his hair back as your other hand focuses on circling your clit, sending lightning bolts of pleasure through your body. You’re so close you can practically taste your impending release on the tip of your tongue and you know Spencer’s almost there, too - can feel his cock, twitching deep inside of you, surely mere seconds away from imploding - and you clench around him just as you pinch your clit between your fingers and -

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder and you never appreciate just how true the sentiment is until reunion sex with Spencer. After nearly a week of not seeing or touching each other your orgasm is fucking miraculous, stars dotting your vision as you throw your head back and your entire body feels like it’s floating, pleasure rolling through your body like a tsunami intent on destruction in the greatest way possible. You ground your hips into his, forcing him inside you to the hilt as your cunt flutters around his cock and you barely hear his loud moan, the noise growing higher as his hips buck into yours and then you can feel him cumming, the sensation hot in your core as he spurts inside of you.

“Oh, fuck,” Spencer groans, smoothing his hands up your back as your hips roll against his, riding out both of your orgasms as you drop your head into his shoulder, feeling his lips land against your temple. “That’s - God, that’s so good.”

Yes, it is. It feels so fucking good, feeling him cumming deep inside of you and it’s all you can do to sit there and take it in, body going nearly limp against his until his arms are the only thing holding you up, his hands massaging your back as you let your eyes shut, focusing solely on steadying your breathing as the aftershocks of your release course through your veins.

There’s a second of silence - only a second, where the only noise from either of you is the sound of your panting, both of you desperate to catch your breath in the wake of it all - and then Spencer leans backwards, your chests pressed together as you press your lips to his cheek, feeling rather than seeing his lips turn upwards into a smile.

“Maybe I should get beat up by an unsub more often,” your boyfriend mumbles, smoothing his fingers through your hair, and you lift your head up to rest your chin to his shoulder, narrowing your eyes.

“You’d better not.” You shift on his lap, the burn in your muscles settling into a dull ache but you don’t have the energy to readjust - it’s a pain you don’t quite dislike, anyway. “I hate seeing you all cut up. I can’t believe anyone would want to ruin this pretty face.”

You raise your hand up, playfully smacking his cheek twice and he smiles. Then his hands grip onto your waist, lifting you up just a bit until his softened cock slips out of you and with just a bit of maneuvering he lies you down on the couch, shifting until he’s spooning you, chest pressed to your back and your heads resting on the cushion. One glance down tells you that this position can’t possibly be comfortable for him, his leg bent awkwardly and the other thrown over the edge of the couch but when he wraps his arms around your body you can’t bring it in yourself to mind too much.

The cool air of his apartment bites at your skin but it’s relieving, feeling the cold wash away the sweat built up on your skin from being so close to him - it’s a contrast you’re grateful for and it’s the reason you don’t tug the afghan hanging over the back of the couch over your bodies.

Well, you suppose that for every shortcoming of dating someone with a job like his there’s a bonus. And this - feeling his arms tight around your body, head pressed back into his chest with his heartbeat in your ears and his soft breathing onto your head - you’d certainly consider it a bonus.

[banashee]

I wasn't tagged but @sinister--potato said who feels like it should join in so here I am. 😁

Rules: you can usually tell a lot about a person by the type of music they listen to. put your favourite playlist on shuffle and list the first ten songs then tag ten people!

And once again I'm having too much fun to stop at 10.

Also I'm tagging whoever wants to do this, as well as you Folks (no pressure tho)

@stufenlosregelbar @asamandra @hopelessly-me @lilolilyr @spectralarchers @cruciatusforeplay

1) The Longest Johns - "Ashes"

2) Wardruna - "Helvegen"

4) Lebanon Hanover - "Hard Drugs (Qual Remix)

5) The Last Dance - "Frozen"

6) The Devil and the Universe - "Black Harvest"

7) The Weekend - "Blinding Lights"

8) Boy Harsher - "Pain"

9) Clan of Xymox - "It's all a lie"

10) Bauhaus - "Telegram Sam"

11) The Mechanisms - "Laid in Blood"

12) Lacuna Coil - "End of Time"

13) New Today - "Savior dot com"

14) Frayle - "If you Stay"

15) Lebanon Hanover - "Gallowdance"

16) The Beauty of Gemina - "Trapped"

17) The Mechanisms - "Sigyn"

18) Project Pitchfork - "Drums of Death"

19) The Real McKenzies - "Old Becomes New"

20) The Mechanisms - "Sunrise"

21) Lebanon Hanover - "Dark Hill"

22) Clan of Xymox - "Stranger"

23) Sunrise and the Banshees - "The Killing Jar"

24) The Cure - "Hey You"

25) Faith and the Muse - "Plaguedance"

26) The Sisters of Mercy - "Body and Soul"

27) Lebanon Hanover - "Petals"

28) Lebanon Hanover - "Du Scrollst"

29) Rammstein - "Sonne"

30) Fields of the Nephilim - "Last Exit for the Lost"

31) The Beauty of Gemina - "Kingdom of Cancer"

32) Brandi Carlile - "What can I say"

33) The Wailin' Jennys - "Keep me in your heart"

34) This Cold Night - "Self-deception"

35) Project Pitchfork - "Contract"

36) Bootblacks - "Gone"

37) Murder by Death - "The Big Sleep"

38) Wind Rose - "To Erebor"

39) Siouxsie and the Banshees - "Cities in Dust"

40) Amon Amarth - "Live for the Kill"

41) The Invincible Spirit - "Push!"

42) Clan of Xymox - "Weak in my knees"

43) The Mechanisms - "Pellinore and the beast"

44) Ashbury Heights - "Hollow"

45) Lady Gaga - "Dance in the Dark"

46) Paralysed Age - "Days that are gone"

47) Paradise Lost - "Symbol of Life"

48) The Longest Johns - "Wellerman"

49) Creux Lies - "Virginity"

50) Whispering Sons - "Waste"

51) New Today - "Girl High"

52) Editors - "No Sound but the wind"

53) She Past Away - "Sanri (Clan of Xymox Mix)

54) Xmal Deutschland - "Incubus Succubus II"

55) Project Pitchfork - "Timekiller"

56) Lebanon Hanover - "Hollow Sky"

57) The Last Dance - "Winter"

58) Selofan - "Black Box"

59) Specimen - "Wake the dead"

60) Then Comes Silence - "Animals"

61) The Sisters of Mercy - "Burn"

62) The Beauty of Gemina - "This Time"

63) Depeche Mode - "No More"

64) The Beauty of Gemina - "Haddon Hall"

65) The Devil and the Universe - "Belief Manipulation"

66) Melodicka Bros - "Enjoy the Silence (way too loud)

67) This Cold Night - "Time Bomb"

68) Switchblade Symphony - "Bad Trash"

69) (nice) The Mechanisms - "Rose Red"

70) Faith and the Muse - "Patience Worth (Piano Version)

71) Diva Destruction - "The Broken Ones"

72) Diva Destruction - "Dance Remix of Trees"

73) Lebanon Hanover - "Hall of ice"

74) Generation X - "Dancing with myself"

75) Creux Lies - "Tsavo"

76) Wind Rose - "We were warriors"

77) The Sisters of Mercy - "Dominion/Mother Russia"

78) Faithful Dawn - "She Falls down"

79) The Longest Johns - "Geberal Taylor"

80) The Real McKenzies - "The Ballad of Greyfriars Bobby"

81) Drab Majesty - "Forget Tomorrow"

82) Deine Lakaien - "The Executioner"

83) Clan of Xymox - "Louise"

84) The Last Dance - "Desperately Still"

85) The Cure - "Plainsong"

86) Clan of Xymox - "She is falling in love"

87) Soft Kill - "On the inside"

88) Amon Amarth - "The Hero"

89) Drab Majesty - "Kissing the Ground"

90) Cold Cave - "Life Magazine"

91) The Sisters of Mercy - "Marian"

92) Assemble 23 - "Outsider"

93) Nightwish - "Dead Boys Poem"

94) Dynazty - "The Man and the Elements"

95) The Real McKenzies - "Too Many Fingers"

96) Lebanon Hanover - "Gravity Sucks"

97) Specimen - "Lovers"

98) Jeremy Renner - "Stereo Love"

99) Queen - "Bohemian Rhapsody"

100) Social Station - "All I ask"

101) die ärzte - "Geisterhaus"

102) Social Station - "Endlessly"

103) Kirlian Camera - "Celephias"

104) ES23 - "Only Melodies Remain"

105) Wardruna - "Kvitravn"

106) Volbeat - "The Devils Bleeding Crown"

107) Faith and the Muse - "Rise and Forget"

108) Sopor Aeternus - "Beautiful"

109) Faith and the Muse - "The Woman of the Snow"

110) Wardruna - "Thurs"

111) Sopor Aeternus - "Goodbye"

112) The Sisters of Mercy - "Train"

113) This Cold Night - "Dog"

114) Paradise Lost - "Primal"

115) Danheim - "Hringras"

116) Amon Amarth - "On a sea of blood"

117) Vandal Moon - "Computer Love"

118) Paradox Obscur - "Broken Lies"

119) Paralysed Age - "Your coldest smile"

120) Whispers in the Shadow - "The Rites of Passage"

121) Delphine Coma - "Is this forever"

122) Brandi Carlile - "I'll still be there"

123) She pleasures herself - "The Weeping"

124) The Devil and the Universe - "Elousa"

125) Ashbury Heights - "Cry Havoc"

126) The Beauty of Gemina - "June 2nd"

127) Hapax - "A Tank for Alex"

128) Clan of Xymox - "Heroes (Cover)"

129) Faith and the Muse - "A Winter Wassail"

130) Lacuna Coil - "Kill the Light"

131) The Beauty of Gemina - "Suicide Landscape"

132) Bootblacks - "New Lines"

133) Deine Lakaien - "Because Because"

134) Clan of Xymox - "All I ever know"

135) The Beauty of Gemina - "Wonders"

136) Lebanon Hanover - "No one holds hands"

137) The Mechanisms - "Underworld Blues"

138) Faith and the Muse - "Scars Flown Proud"

139) die ärzte - "Der Graf"

140) Faith and the Muse - "Denn die Toten reiten schnell"

141) Whispering Sons - "Fragments"

142) Inkubus Sukkubus - "Memento Mori"

143) Wardruna - "IngwaR"

144) Boy Harsher - "Come Closer"

145) Danheim - "imar"

146) Drab Majesty - "Hath no Form"

147) Echoberyl - "Into the beyond"

148) Inkubus Sukkubus - "Beltaine"

149) Volbeat - "Mr. & Mrs. Ness"

150) Clan of Xymox - "Home sweet home"

151) This Cold Night - "Circuits"

152) Alien Sex Fiend - "Now I'm feeling zombified"

153) Spear of Destiny - "Liberator"

154) The Last Dance - "World Down"

155) Diva Destruction - "Subterfuge"

156) Esoterik - "Set Fire to me"

157) Tribulation - "Cauda Pavonis"

158) Esoterik - "Cup of Life"

159) Leo - "Monstermash (Metal Version)

160) Epica - "Our Destiny"

161) Nightwish - "Wishmaster Live"

162) Lebanon Hanover - "Your Fork Moves"

163) Brotherhood - "Rain"

164) Twin Tribes - "Upir"

165) Kamelot - "Under Grey Skies"

166) Paralysed Age - "Nocturne"

167) She Past Away - "Ritüel"

168) Twin Tribes - "Avalon (Bootblacks Mix)"

169) Bella Morte - "Dead of Night"

170) Drab Majesty - "Entrance and Exits"

171) Pink Turns Blue - "Your Master is calling"

172) Soviet Soviet - "Ecstasy"

173) Suspiria - "Graveyard of the undead"

174) The Cure - Just like heaven

175) Kamelot - "Abandoned (live)"

176) Amon Amarth - "Blood Eagle"

177) The Sisters of Mercy - "1969"

178) Pink Turns Blue - "Walking on both sides"

179) Shad Shadows - "The Grace"

180) Plastique Noir - "Rose of Flesh and Blood"

181) Epica - "Unchain Utopia"

182) Pink Turns Blue - Missing You

183) The Last Dance - "Regret"

184) Rosetta Stone - "Come Hell or high water"

185) Beast in Black - "No Easy Way Out"

186) Bauhaus - "Hollow Hills"

187) Breaking Benjamin - "Breath"

188) Vandal Moon - "We are electric"

189) Lyca - "Drifting"

190) Lebanon Hanover - "Bring your own wine"

191) Saigon Blue Rain - "Pearly Haze"

192) The Other - "Skeletons in the Closet"

193) Eluveitie - "Belenos"

194) Box and the Twins - "Lovesong for a Ghost"

195) Wind Rose - "Diggy Diggy Hole"

196) The Cure - "A Forest"

197) The Other - "Back to the Cemetery"

198) Storm Weather Shanty Choir - "A Hundred Years"

199) Box and the Twins - "Gravity"

200) Ash Code - "Empty Room"

[vtscasefiles]

Case File 762-4

Trigger warnings: Isolation, suicidal thoughts, violence, blood, depression, animal bites, animal injury, cops, racism, homophobia, conversion therapy mention

A note before reading: I am unsure if I have tagged all potential triggers properly. 

Case Begun: 2/07/20**

Case Concluded: 2/12/20**

Case Locale: [REDACTED], Washington

Marked as Closed, Payment Declined

This is one of the rare occasions where I am perfectly happy not to receive payment for a job. The value of a life always beats cash, period. 

It started a bit...underwhelming, to be honest. There’s a secret message board for Eliminators. It’s not easily accessed, and there’s a rigorous vetting process to even be allowed to view the posts. I was well into my sixth year working before I received an email invite. Since then, it’s become a welcome resource.

The first post on my feed was addressed to me, personally. This wasn’t new, I’ve built up something of a name for myself. I get regular work, but I still can’t afford to get out of this shithole apartment. I mean the door doesn’t even fucking lock. And the fucking “landlord” is so strung out on cocaine that -- 

[Editor’s note: Personal information revealing where VT lives followed. I have removed it for her safety.]

Anyway, the post was simple enough: a werewolf gone berserk. It’s not an uncommon thing, a new werewolf can take to the wolf too much. The wolf takes over and, feeding off of the human’s anger or indignation, attacks. First, it’s everyone who hurt them. Second, they attack their family. After that...it’s a bloody free-for-all.

Let me preface by saying I hate these hunts. It’s no different than putting down a rabid dog, honestly...the human is too far gone and the wolf operates entirely off of the residual rage. Even so, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I don’t like killing anything living, even if it’s lost it’s mind. 

I read the post three times before I sighed and closed my laptop. “This is why I like dealing with the dead.” I said, frowning. I’d be needing silver. Which meant spending money. The reward was good, though...so it’d cover any expenses. I packed up my gear (a wolf’s bane lotion, a femur from a dead wolf and a silver knife) and headed for my first stop: Ramona’s.

Ramona Torrez has been my best friend since...ever. She was born in the states to Mexican parents who’d settled here in the nineties. They’ve both returned to Mexico since, but they come to visit fairly often. Mama Torrez was more a mother to me than my own was, and she’s one terrifying lady. A powerful witch in her own right, she’d made her then boyfriend her familiar through a series of spells and incantations that bordered on the black. His physiology changed, as a result. Despite being in his mid sixties, the man’s barely aged. He’s stronger, faster and has more stamina than any human I’ve ever met...not to mention he’s an absolute sweetheart.

Ramona is possibly the most gifted witch I’ve ever met. If there’s a spell she can’t do, I’ll eat my boots. Her shop is a little hidden place. Right on the corner of [REDACTED], she’s very open about what she does. A small sign dangles over the door reading “Bruja” . I pulled open the door, hearing the cheerful jingle of the bell (despite there not being one in sight. Or a motion tracker.) “Welcome!” she called from the back. “I’ll be with you in a moment!” I said nothing, opting only to pick up my friend’s familiar and give her a stroke.

It always makes me laugh, honestly. A witch with a black cat as a familiar. How cliché can you get? Issy’s a sweet thing, though. Purrs like an engine if you so much as scratch her ears. “VT!” Ramona appeared with a wide grin on her freckled face. “Why didn’t you say it was you, dummy?”

I’ll preface that, despite my father being Hispanic, I never had the opportunity to learn Spanish. He was always busy on one hunt or another. Ramona’s tried to teach me, so that I could get in touch with my roots...but languages never came natural to me. Hell, I barely speak English.

Ramona rattled off her usual rapid Spanish, taking Issy from my arms. “You know I can’t understand a word.” I said as she turned to lead me into the back room. Her shoulders shook and she looked over her shoulder with a coy grin.

“Oh, I know. Payaso.” 

If Ramona hadn’t been my best friend, I’d likely be trying to get under her dress. She’s a curvy thing, with a heart shaped face and big brown eyes that’d melt even the coldest of hearts. She dimples when she smiles (something I’m immediately weak to) and does this adorable thing with her nose when she’s irritated. Her hair tends toward bushiness, framing her face like moss on a tree. (To my knowledge she doesn’t dye it, it’s just...green.)

“So, darling.” she chirped, stopping next to her cauldron to let Issy dash off through the fabric drapery that led into her kitchen. “What is the illustrious VT hunting today?”

“Berserk werewolf. Probably recently turned...and probably not by a pack. I’m thinking boyfriend or girlfriend. Which means -- “ She cut me off with an uttered curse.

“Which means that you’ll have to get in touch with the local werewolf pack.” she finished with a grimace. “Where’s the contract taking you?”

“Washington state. Little town called [REDACTED].” I answered, not expecting any miracles. I was granted one, none the less.

“Ah. That’s a Native American pack. I met their um...I’m not sure what the proper vernacular is, so I’ll just call her a witch, if that’s okay?” she said, worrying with her lower lip. Ramona’s always been very big on calling people their proper titles, and felt terrible guilt when she messed it up.

“She the Alpha? Or an elder?” I asked, seizing upon the thread before Ramona fell into self-deprecation.

“Well...yes and no.” she said, pouring something into the burbling cauldron and turning it a sickly puce. “She’s something of a Seer. She led them to an old, abandoned ghost town. They asked for witches from all over the continent for assistance in warding and rebuilding. Naturally -- “ “Naturally, Bleeding Heart Torrez helped.” I cut her off, again. She frowned and nodded. “Hey, Ramona, I ain’t saying you did the wrong thing. I’d have done the same. Are they friendly to outsiders?”

“Kind of.” she said, her frown relenting for a thoughtful expression. “You’ll likely be met by an envoy before you make it to the town line. I can call ahead, if you’d like. Let them know that I trust you so they won’t be on full alert.” she smiled, slightly. “Just don’t...shoot anyone that you don’t have to. Okay?”

“I’m not in the business of killing people just trying to live their lives, Ramona.” I said, pulling a frown of my own. “I might be trigger happy, but I’ve never shot anyone who didn’t come after me, first.”

“I know, I know...they can just be a little wary with outsiders. You can hardly blame them.” she said, carefully. I agreed with her, but I didn’t like the implication that I just ran in like some idiot waving my gun around and shooting at everything that moved.

I only do that sometimes.

I stayed long enough to catch up and have some lunch. Ramona’s cooking was always amazing. Her carnitas is to die for, full stop. With my belly full and my paranoia subsiding, I made for Ellie’s. It was time to see if the corpse had any silver.

Elinor Lyktor is a lich. She “died” at some point during the eighteen hundreds. Stomach cancer. She was already a necromancer by then, so when she felt her end approaching...she made a bargain with Death. The way she speaks about the “Lady of the Void” is how some people speak about their chosen deity. But how many of them have actually spoken with their god? Or had her over for tea? 

Elinor’s shop was in the dead center of town. The signboard above her shop proudly proclaimed “Ellie’s Emporium”. Her front was an antique shop (all her possessions from when she was alive litter the front of the store). When I entered, her bespectacled gaze caught mine. Even indoors, if she was minding the shop, she wore sunglasses.

“Valerica.” she greeted, pushing from her stool and smiling, marginally. “Lock the door.” I obeyed. What else do you do in the face of a being that could force your skeleton to come clawing out of your body?

“Elinor.” I responded with a nod. “I’m looking for silver ordinance. .44 if you got it.”

“I do. Got a werewolf problem?” she pulled off her sunglasses. Her eyes were pitch black. The only light in them came from the faintly glowing, multicolored runes that slid across them like leaves on a still pond.

“Not a problem.” I responded, coolly. “Ramona’s got me an in. I just don’t have the identity, yet.” I paused, thinking that maybe I should be a little warmer to my primary ordinance merchant. “How’s the lady?”

“Which lady to you speak of?” she asked, grinning cattily. “The woman I will make my wife, or the Great Lady of Dusk?”

Fuck, she loved her puffery.

“Do you just make up these titles or did Death give you a list?” I asked, grinning. It got a laugh, so I’d say that Operation Butter Up the Lich was a success. 

“No, I only use them to annoy her. She’s teaching me a lot, VT. I’d love for you to come over and meet her someday. Isali is a rather sweet woman, if you can get past the fact she’s Death.” she said, earnestly. “Did you know she has a son? And he has children, too? I wasn’t even aware she could reproduce.”

That was enough to get my attention. “Death...has a kid. Okay, I’ll bite: what’s his name?”

“I don’t know. She only refers to him as “my darling boy”. The only thing I’ve figured out is there has to have been a point in history in which no one died. The only way I think she could have had a child is if she took on mortal guise and -- are you even listening?”

I was. Oh, I was. I admit that I was wrapped up in the thought of how DEATH had a SON. He must be one terrifying, austere motherfucker, that’s for damn sure. “Sorry, I was just thinking about what kind of man her son has to be. Gotta be some kind of...demigod or something. Having a mother like Death.”

Elinor shrugged “She described him as being an absolute goof. Dotes on his kids, overtly friendly. I’d like to meet him, someday. It looks like I’ll go wanting, though. He lives in a world beyond ours. An extra dimensional being.”

Now it made sense. I wanted to follow that rabbit hole down to the end. I still want to. But business beckoned and I had no choice but to end this intriguing line of thought. “As interesting as this all is, I still need bullets for something more mundane. Can you cut me a deal?”

“Depends on the volume, Valerica. If you want an armory’s worth, I can’t help you...but if you’re just looking for a few boxes, well...” she smiled. “How does fifteen bucks a box suit you?”

“It doesn’t.” I responded immediately. “I’ll give you five.”

I left her store after securing my ammunition. She drove a hard bargain, but I managed to talk her down to ten dollars a box. I had five boxes, each containing twelve bullets. If I couldn’t finish the job with that, then I was in the wrong line of work. 

Now, it’s a little known fact that a werewolf and a rugaru are two separate entities. They both conjure the vision of this half-wolf, half-man meat tank that tears through the opposition like so much wet paper. That particular creature is a rugaru. Not all werewolves are rugaru, but all rugaru are werewolves. The rugaru transformation is only possible under two circumstances: complete acceptance of the wolf that dwells within, or the complete degeneration of the werewolf’s human mind due to unchecked homicidal urges. It isn’t a fine line or any of that bullshit that other people have perpetuated. It’s a simple matter of willpower. If I was dealing with a rugaru, it’d mean real trouble. I could only hope this werewolf was still on four legs.

As Ramona had promised me, I was barely five miles down the dirt road that led into our little werewolf commune before I was stopped. He was a tall, impressive specimen. Fine bone structure, inky black hair brushed neatly into two, thick braids that were decorated with beads and feathers...what really threw me was his smile. It was welcoming. Not a normal sight for me. I killed the engine and stepped out into the morning air, then man walked forward and extended a hand “You must be VT. It’s a pleasure, truly.”

I took his hand and shook it. I felt the tell tale calluses on his palm in the shape of paw pads and smiled, this was the right place. “Glad to be of help. I hear there’s a berserk wolf on the loose.” his smile faded.

“Yes.” he replied, simply. “My son’s boyfriend.”

Swish. Called it.

“That’s unfortunate.” I said, bowing my head in respect. “Is there no hope of helping him cope?”

“I’m unsure.” he responded, looking thoughtfully at the thick forest that shadowed the road. “We’ve tried, but...he’s so angry.” he paused, his gaze returning to me. “I apologize, VT. I haven’t even given you my name: folks around here call me Thunder. You’re welcome to do the same.”

I nodded and smiled “Anything you say, Thunder. If you have another name that you’d prefer to go by, I’ll do my best not to butcher it.” he’d laughed, a booming sound like his namesake.

“Thunder suits me just fine.” he said, kindly. “We can continue our discussion back at the compound. Would you mind if I rode with you? I can tell you about our lifestyle while we ride.”

I gathered that Thunder was the Alpha of this particular pack, given how he spoke about his friends and family. The pack had started on a reservation, but wanted a place of their own. The reservation was abandoned in favor of the Seer’s word there was a place of their own. They all turned in the dead of night and disappeared. No one knew where they’d gotten to, save for the SC. They were completely self sufficient. Hunting and fishing for food, growing their crops in soil blessed by their spirits and making their own clothing. Back to basics, he’d said. I could see the appeal.

“You got a free house I can post up in or...” he’d laughed at me.

“We don’t have internet, power or running water. You might get sick of it pretty fast, hm?” he’d nudged me and broke into that same booming laughter that caused my eardrums to ache.

He’d stopped me just outside of town, where two, tall totems stood on either side of the road. “Stop here. Your car will die if you cross.” he said, stepping out of the car. “I’ll introduce you to my son, VT.”

I killed the engine and stepped out, reaching behind the seat to sling my backpack over my shoulder. One of the two totems stood out. Each of them was carved with delicate care and beautiful in their own right, but the one on the left was the most interesting to me. It was Ramona’s work, I knew the feel of that anywhere. “Torrez did this, didn’t she?” I asked, brushing my fingers against the carvings. “Not the design, but the ward.”

“You’re close to Miss Torrez?” Thunder asked, pausing to look at the totem. “Yes. Spent a week solid working on it. She even refused payment, only asked for one of my wife’s blankets in return.”

“Do you...deal with cash?” I asked, feeling the slightest bit insensitive.

“Rarely.” he responded, eyes still on the totem. “Some of us have work in a town nearby, certainly...there are a few things that trading can’t get us. Gasoline. Generators.”

That threw me and I frowned “Thought you said you didn’t have power.”

“We don’t.” he responded, simply. “The generators are for the Elders who didn’t leave the reservation.”

Well, good to know I’d been here all of twenty seconds and already taken a big bite of foot pie. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think -- “ “You don’t live like us. Why would you?” he responded with a somewhat bitter smile. “No reason for me to take offense or for you to feel guilt, VT. Though your apology is...appreciated.” the last word felt forced, but I said no more.

The town was pretty enough, each house painted in accordance to the occupant’s taste. Designs swirled and jerked in eye catching beauty across the wood or brick. Thunder led me to a single-story ranch type home and beckoned me inside. He called for his son in his native tongue and a beanpole of a boy appeared. I say boy, but he was at least eighteen or nineteen. “Introduce yourself.” Thunder said, sternly. “You’re the cause of this mess.”

“Thunder.” I broke in, sensing the tension between father and son. “You know better than anyone that the change is unpredictable...it isn’t his fault.”

Thunder’s stare turned on me, and that friendly gaze was gone. If I’d been made of gentler stuff, I might’ve even backed away. “I’m not upset he changed his lover, VT. I’m upset because his lover is giving us a bad name, and he doesn’t seem to care.”

“Excuse me for caring about my boyfriend, Father.” the boy spat. Even in children, or teenagers...there’s always respect for the Alpha Wolf. To hear the vitriol in the young man’s voice told me one thing: there was going to be a power struggle here one day. “VT, I heard about you from Ramona Torrez.” he said, with much less anger in his voice. “Please...Dorian never meant to hurt anyone. He didn’t even know what I was doing and...please, don’t kill him!” tears were welling in this young man’s eyes. I couldn’t help but be sympathetic...but I still had a job to do.

“Dorian’s his name?” I asked, humming beneath my breath. “I might be able to call him out using that information. But I’ll need your name too, kid.”

Thunder’s son puffed up “I am no child! I am a man grown!” he said, indignantly. 

“A grown man doesn’t make decisions for his loved ones.” I shot back. “He makes decisions with his loved ones.”

He deflated marginally. “My name is...Crow Flies. He called me Crow...” he said, no longer able to meet my eyeline. “Please, VT...I...”

“I get it, kid.” I said, softly. “I won’t kill him if I don’t have to. I promise.”

Thunder took me from his home and introduced me to the rest of the pack. They were a kindly people, if a little wary of an outsider like myself. Thunder’s presence helped with their misgivings, but only slightly. “You did well with Crow Flies.” he said, softly. “Miss Torrez had described you as a hot head, but even so...you were very patient. And there was wisdom in your speech.”

Despite myself, I flushed. “Well, ah...I’ve had good teachers.” I said, trying not to grin. “Say, Thunder. After all this unpleasantness is done, could I come back? Just to visit. I like it here.”

That seemed to surprise the Alpha, he looked at me and then smiled “I think that I would like that. I think the pack would, too. Once they see that you are here to help, of course.”

I had dinner with the pack, as they all dined together in the center of town (or the old town hall, when the weather was foul). It was a raucous affair, full of song and laughter...Crow sat off by himself. Alone. I thought it best to leave him be. The boy was going through all kinds of heartbreak. The last thing he needed was another lecture.

It was late by the time dinner wrapped up, and I’d gathered a bit more information about Dorian. He’d been cast out by his family due to his sexuality, and taken in by the pack. They’d kept their lycanthropy secret from him...that is until Crow Flies turned him. Thunder had even had a family portrait taken of the three of them. Dorian had to have been at least Crow Flies’ age, if not a bit older. He was dark skinned, his hair styled into a small afro. What struck me the most was his smile...there was such...kindness. Love. It twisted my stomach into tight knots.

I made a promise to myself then and there: there were enough gay, Black men dead. I was not going to contribute to that number.

Even if it killed me.

No one “hunts” a werewolf. You see these self-styled vampire/werewolf hunters enough these days...and they’re all absolute pricks. Worse than that, they’re murderers. I’ve had to kill a couple of them, to save an innocent life...but when you murder someone just for their differences, you’re the monster. The point is, no matter how many berserk werewolves you’ve encountered it all boils down the the same fact: they’re the hunter, you’re the prey.

I applied a thick layer of the wolfsbane lotion to my skin. It wasn’t going to stop a werewolf as much as it would overwhelm their sense of smell and taste. Silver weaponry only works because of a simple fact.

Have you ever heard of a tulpa? It’s...a sort of group hallucination made real. The basic principle is if you believe enough in something, it manifests as reality. The more people who believe, the more stable a tulpa is. Silver is a sort of pseudo-tulpa. A mass belief of silver being a weapon against lycanthropy has made it reality. That’s the power of belief.

Problem being is I didn’t know whether the mass belief here was that silver kills...or simply incapacitates or weakens. I had to be careful. I had to leave Peace behind. If I wanted to save Dorian, I couldn’t rely on firepower to do it.

[Editor’s Note: A rarity for VT. Coherent thought.]

Dorian’s hunting ground had been, as of late, his own home town. His first victims were his parents...hardly a surprise. Poor guy had to have felt betrayed, and was angry for it. Researching the case, they hadn’t been eaten. They’d only had their throats ripped out. That was a good thing and a bad thing. If Dorian wasn’t eating his victims yet, that meant there was humanity left in him...but he’d tasted blood, and he’d want more. I didn’t have time to dally, I had to act.

I drove straight to his former home.

The house had been cordoned off by police tape. As anyone sane does, I ignored the warnings put forth by the police and ventured inside. The carpets were stained with blood...it meant there was a struggle. A vicious one from the looks of things. Dorian might not have even been in wolf form when it started.

I ventured deeper into the house, searching for any kind of clue. There was Christian iconography all over the house, which explained why he was thrown out. It was getting harder and harder to feel anything but repulsion for the dead, sanctimonious pricks. Throwing their own son out just because he’s gay...I related entirely too much.

I found Dorian’s bedroom without much struggle. Posters of his favorite sports teams hung on the walls, along with musicians and actors. I felt a creak in the floorboard beneath my foot, so I crouched and tried to pull on it. It came up effortlessly.

Hidden within was a notebook, a small bag of cosmetics and a pressed flower. Probably from Crow, I thought. I didn’t read a lot of the journal, but from what I did read it was a chronicle of his self discovery. I admired him for the bravery he showed in facing who he truly was, but the thoughts were private. I closed the journal and replaced it, along with the other items. Those were his and not mine to take. If...things went badly, I’d come back and give them to Crow.

I approached the bed, and got a deep whiff of wet dog for my trouble. He’d been here. Recently. I pulled the sheets back and found what I’d expected: fur. He’d even been sleeping in his own bed. This was good. This was very, very good. If he still sought out human comfort, he was still in there.

A sudden creak and the sound of footsteps sent my heart into my throat. I had no weapon, no way of defending myself against a hungry werewolf. The air was probably thick with the scent of wolfsbane by now...I did the only thing I thought I could.

I stood and waited.

It wasn’t Dorian. It wasn’t even a werewolf. I felt my stomach drop into my shoes as a uniformed police officer appeared, flashlight in hand. “Who the fuck are you? This is a police investigation zone, bitch.”

My hackles raised, but I raised my hands, showing I was unarmed. “I’m a Private Investigator. My license is in my jacket pocket. I’m going to reach for it now.” I tried to keep my voice calm, but clearly this pig thought I was being belligerent. 

“Keep your fucking hands where I can see them!” he snarled and approached, stepping forward to shove his hand into my jacket. Thankfully, he went straight for the pocket instead of feeling me up, like I’d been dreading. He looked at the fake license with his mean, piggy little eyes. “They hand these out to anyone, huh?” he said, pure malicious glee in his voice.

I said nothing, keeping my hands raised and waiting for an actual question. “So, you think you can do this job better than us?”

“No, sir.” I responded, shaking my head. “I’m only looking for their son. He has a right to know, even if he hasn’t been living here. I was hoping to find a clue and didn’t want to trouble the police department for something that’d only take a few minutes.”

He laughed, cruelly “Well, that’s earned you an arrest, Valerica Torianna.” he said, gleefully. “For interfering with a police investigation. You have the right to remain -- “

The next thing I heard from the officer was a scream. I hadn’t even heard the wolf enter. The wolf, lean and black as pitch, leapt atop the cop and dug his fangs in. Blood sprayed my face as the pig’s throat was torn from his neck. The wolf didn’t chew. Didn’t swallow. Just spat the flesh and sinew clean out. Then it turned it’s eyes on me.

“Dorian?” I asked, softly. It’s hackles raised. “Dorian, I’m a friend of Crow Flies. You know who Crow Flies is, don’t you?” it backed away, and I took a step towards it. “Dorian, I don’t want to hurt you. I’m not here to hurt you. I only want to help...Crow asked me to help you. Please.”

It snarled...and it lunged.

For anyone wondering if I’ve turned lycan: no. It’s not as...simple as just a bite. I don’t quite understand it, but it has to be an actual, conscious thought. Dorian would have had wanted to make me a werewolf. It didn’t seem he was quite accustom to the change to be able to make conscious decisions. He was only defending himself from a perceived threat.

That didn’t stop his fangs from tearing my forearm open, though.

“Fuck!”, I yelled as it’s teeth dug in deep and ripped my flesh. I had my fair number of scars, but this one would be a doozy. That’s alright. Girls dig scars...well, my type does. Not trying to generalize or anything. Anyways, I was bleeding. A lot.

“Dorian, let go!” I yelled, feeling my bones practically screaming in his jaws. “You’re gonna break my fuckin’ arm!” I balled my fist and started to hammer on his nose with all my might. Nothing. “Dorian, brother, I’m real fuckin’ sorry about this!” I grabbed onto his throat with three fingers and squeezed. He started to choke.

I released him the second his jaws released me. “Sorry.” I croaked, holding my arm against my chest as the wolf wheezed. “Will you -- “ he was gone. I’d blinked and looked at my arm for a half second and he’d up and bolted...leaving me with a dead cop, and his blood all over my face. It wouldn’t matter that he had lupine saliva in his wound, it’d mattered that his corpse would be discovered next to me. So, I bolted.

I returned to the pack’s commune and staggered past the totems. Blood loss was already making my head spin, and I needed medical assistance. Problem was I still had cop blood all over me...so a hospital was out.

I passed out before I could even get to Thunder’s door.

When I woke up it was still night...or night, again. Ramona’s heart-shaped face, her hair sticking up all over the place was looking down at me. “Ah. An angel.” I wheezed. “So, I’m dead.”

Ramona flushed and slapped my chest “Idiota!” she squeaked. I laughed weakly. “You scared me! Thunder called and said Crow Flies found you half-dead! Your veins were torn to shit, VT! You could have died!”

“So just another day at the office then?” I sat up and my head immediately began to swim. “Shit.”

“Lie down, VT. I did what I could, but you still lost a lot of blood. I’ve dealt with your clothes, and Issy brought back your fake PI license. Sloppy, Valerica. Very sloppy. You would’ve been caught if not for us.” she said, standing from my bedside and straightening her dress. “You owe me.”

“Add it to the tab.” I said, pushing to my feet, doing my best to ignore just how sick I felt. “Dorian’s still out there. I can’t let him succumb, I can’t. The world has enough murdered Black men...let alone gay Black men.” my conviction was strong, but my body...

I was wrecked. I could barely stand, let alone run or fight.

“The pack is dealing with him, now. He’s...becoming unstable. I’m sorry, VT, but there’s nothing left for you to do.” Ramona said, hanging her head. “He’ll be killed before sunup.”

Like. Hell. I knew where he was nesting, now. I knew what I had to do. I had to go back. I had to beat them to Dorian’s old home. “Ramona. Think you can drive really, really fast?”

“VT...”

“I’m not taking an L on this one, Ramona. I won’t. I know how Dorian feels, I’ve lived his life. I won’t let it end like this.” Ramona looked at me, tears in her eyes. “What? What is it?”

She smiled and wiped her eyes on her forearm “Who’s the bleeding heart, now?”

Ramona broke just about every traffic law in existence getting me back to Dorian’s home. I’d been unconscious for two days. During that time the pack had met and decided that the only way they could stop Dorian was to kill him. He’d gotten more violent, more reckless. His kills were happening in broad daylight, now. Three cops, a high school teacher and a pastor. None were eaten, but all were killed, viciously.

“He’s attacking those that wronged him.” Ramona said, softly. “He has the power to fight back...he’s losing himself in it. I’m afraid the pack might be right...if he keeps going like this...”

“He won’t.” I snapped shut the cylinder on my weapon. “Crow will never be able to look his father in the eye, let alone forgive him, if the pack kills Dorian. If there’s going to blood spilt...I’d rather be the one hated.” I said, softly. “But I’m going to try, one last time, to get through to him.”

I didn’t go beneath the cordon tape, this time. I went through it. Thunder didn’t know where Dorian lived, thankfully, only the town he lived in. Ramona had agreed to go and ask them to give me my last chance. I had to make it count.

“Dorian!” I bellowed, the instant I rammed through the tape “Dorian! My name is Valerica Torianna! I’m like you! My mother cast me out on my own when I came out to her!” I shouted as I sprinted towards his bedroom. “I know you’re angry! You deserve to be! You deserve your revenge, but you’re going to be killed if you don’t -- “

There he was. Eight feet tall, jaws dripping with blood. He’d lost the plot. He’d lost his humanity. He was a berserk rugaru, now.

“Shit.” I cursed as lupine eyes met mine “Dorian? Dorian, please...I can’t fight you. I won’t fight you. Please.” 

I was thrown, bodily, through the drywall. Luckily, I didn’t hit a stud or wiring...but I could feel shards of something embedded in my back. Peace was still in her holster, so I pulled her free as I struggled to my knees. The rugaru kool-aid’d through the wall after me, eyes full of bloodlust and rage. I aimed my weapon and pulled the hammer back.

A second rugaru exploded through a window and slammed Dorian bodily to the floor. The pair rolled, biting and snarling and clawing across the floor. More than once I had to scurry out of the way of the battle to avoid catching a flying claw or misplaced bite.

Who the fuck was the second rugaru!? Was he a friendly? Was *he* enraged? Fuck me sideways, I had no idea what was going on anymore! All I knew is I was suffering from blood loss and losing energy by the second.

CRRRRRRRACK.

I turned, just in time to see the second rugaru, deep brown fur covered in blood and wounds, ripping Dorian’s jaws apart and ripping his heart from his chest. “NO!” I screamed, feeling tears streaking my face. “Goddammit, no! Fuck!”

When a werewolf dies in lupine form, it’s body shrinks. The wolf leaves its body, free to roam the great hereafter, while the human husk remains. All that was left of Dorian was a pale skinned...wait. Dorian was(?) Black...this mutilated corpse was white.

What the fuck.

The second rugaru threw it’s head back and howled in victory...and turned on me. “Who the fuck are you?” I said, voice trembling. “And who the fuck did you just kill?”

The rugaru was shrinking, but collapsed before the change was through. I tore my jacket off and draped it over him. When you lose mass that rapidly, you lose body heat, too. If a werewolf doesn’t have something to warm them after a rugaru transformation, they could easily suffer from hypothermia. I rubbed the dark skin that was rapidly loosing fur. “Dorian? Dorian, is that you?”

“Yeah.” came the soft rasp. “Yeah...my name’s Dorian. Who the fuck are you?”

“My name’s VT. I was hired to -- “

“Kill me?” he cut me off and glowered at me with hate filled eyes. “Just like my parents wanted?”

“No! Fuck, no! I was thrown out by my mother after coming out. Like hell I’d kill someone suffering from my same pain.” I said, quickly. “I was hired to try to help you. By Crow Flies’ dad.”

Dorian stared at me, untrusting...but soon looked back to the corpse. There was such hatred in his eyes...it made the glare he aimed at me look positively tame in comparison. “That thing was a pastor. A pastor at one of those...those...” he wretched.

“Conversion therapy...” I hissed beneath my breath. Suddenly, I was hoping the corpse would get up, again. Just so I could have the pleasure of killing him, myself. “You gave him what he deserved.”

I successfully returned Dorian to the pack. He wasn’t ostracized, but welcomed. He had gone berserk, just as the job posting had claimed. He’d killed his parents and their pastor, but no one else. After he’d had his vengeance, he regained himself. He hid, feeling such guilt in his heart that he never wanted to see anyone again. 

Poor kid.

His reunion with Crow was a sweet one, they’d wept and kissed and held each other so tightly I was sure I could hear joints cracking. I couldn’t help but feel accomplished for what I’d done. The rugaru he’d killed, one Peter Edwards, had been a werewolf for years. Hiding in plain sight...and killing those that couldn’t be “saved”. He couldn’t nail down Dorian, so he tried to frame him. He’d be martyred...if not for one, little thing.

“Oh, I burned his corpse with the rest of the house.” Ramona said, forcing a cup of coffee into my hands. “What went on there was no one’s business, anyway. No one’s but the pack’s. And yours, I guess.” she’d said, cheerfully. “Thanks.” I sipped the coffee. Possibly the best tasting coffee I’d ever had. “Dorian saved my life. I don’t think I can accept payment for this one.” I said, smiling. “I’m happy it turned out the way it did...still...it’s impressive that a new werewolf found the rugaru so easy to control.”

Dorian broke away from Crow and approached me. “Miss VT?” he said, timidly. “I just...I wanted to say thank you. Crow said that...that you wouldn’t kill me. That you were against it from the outset.” he stuck out his hand “I...thank you.”

I took his hand, feeling those same calluses I’d felt on Thunder’s. “I should be thanking you, Dorian. You saved my ass.” I grinned and squeezed his hand. “You have a family now, brother. You’ll never have to feel alone again.” he smiled that same smile, so full of kindness and love, that was in the portrait. “Take care of yourself, Dorian.”

Thunder caught me as I was climbing into my car. “You forgot your payment, VT.” he said, grinning from ear to ear. “Ramona said you wouldn’t accept, but...” “But nothing. All I did was run around in circles. Dorian’s the hero here, Thunder.” I said, pushing my sunglasses onto my face. “But hey...if you really wanna give me something...this job ruined my jacket.”

I received a gorgeous, handmade jacket in the mail a few weeks after. My initials emblazoned on the back in golden thread. I wouldn’t be wearing this thing on jobs, but...maybe I can get it framed.

Yeah. That’d be pretty killer.

Case closed.

[way-down-meme-town]

Hadestown Act I Sentence Meme

Under the cut you will find 212 lyrics from the first act of the musical Hadestown to use for your enjoyment!

Road To Hell 1. “Once upon a time there was a railroad line.”

2. “Don’t ask where, brother, don’t ask when.”

3. “It was the road to Hell. It was hard times.”

4. “It was a world of gods and men.”

5. “It’s an old song. It’s an old tale from way back when.”

6. “It’s an old song and we’re gonna sing it again.”

7. “We got some gods in the house tonight!”

8. “See, on the road to Hell there was a railroad line.”

9. “They was always singin’ in the back of your mind.”

10. “Everybody, meet the Fates.”

11. “If you ride that train to the end of the line where the sun don’t shine and it’s always shady, it’s there you’ll find the king of the mine.”

12. “Someone’s got to tell the tale whether or not it turns out well.”

13. “Not everyone gets to be a god.”

14. “Don’t forget that times are hard.”

15. “This boy was a muse’s son.”

16. “You might say the boy was touched, ‘cause he was touched by the gods themselves.”

17. “There was one more soul on this road.”

18. “Girl, come on in from the cold.”

19. “Thus begins the tale of Orpheus and Eurdyice.”

20. “It’s a tale of love from long ago.”

  Any Way The Wind Blows 21. “She was no stranger to the world, no stranger to the wind.”

22. “The weather ain’t the way it was before. Ain’t no spring or fall anymore.”

23. “There ain’t a thing that you can do when the weather takes a turn on you, ‘cept for hurry up and hit the road.”

24. “People turn on you just like the wind.”

25. “Everybody is a fair weather friend. In the end, you’re better off alone.”

26. “When you’re hungry and there ain’t enough to go around, ain’t no length to which a girl won’t go.”

27. “Sometimes you think you would do anything to fill your belly full of food.”

28. “You know how those muses are, sometimes they abandon you.”

29. “This poor boy, he wore his heart out on his sleeve.”

30. “You might say he was naive to the ways of the world.”

31. “I liked to hear him sing and his way of seeing things, so I took him underneath my wing.”

  Come Home With Me 32. “You wanna talk to her?”

33. “Don’t come on too strong.”

34. “Come home with me.”

35. “Is he always like this?”

36. “Your name is like a melody.”

37. “A singer? Is that what you are?”

38. “Oh, a liar and a player too? I’ve met too many men like you.”

39. “He’s not like any man you’ve met.”

40. “I’m working on a song, a song. It isn’t finished yet, but when it’s done and when I sing it, spring will come again.”

41. “Spring will come.”

42. “I haven’t seen a spring or fall since…I can’t recall.”

43. “That’s what I’m working on, a song to fix what’s wrong. Take what’s broken, make it whole.”

44. “Oh, he’s crazy. Why would I become his wife?”

45. “He’ll make you feel alive.”

  Wedding Song 46. “Lover, tell me if you can, who’s gonna buy the wedding bands?”

47. “Times being what they are, hard and getting harder all the time.”

48. “Lover, when I sing my song, all the rivers’ll sing along.”

49. “The rivers gonna give us the wedding bands.”

50. “Lover, tell me if you can, who’s gonna lay the wedding table?”

51. “Times being what they are, dark and getting darker all the time.”

52. “Lover, when I sing my song all the trees gonna sing along.”

53. “The trees gonna lay the wedding table.”

54. “So when you sing your song, the one you’re working on, spring will come again?”

55. “You wanna take me home? Sing the song.”

56. “Lover, tell me when we’re wed, who’s gonna make the wedding bed?”

57. “Lover, when I sing my song, all the birds gonna sing along.”

  Epic I 58. “Where’d you get that melody?”

59. “It came to me as if I’d known it all along.”

60. “It’s an old song, a song of love from long ago. Long time since I heard it though.”

61. “You’ve heard that melody before?”

62. “Remember the tale I told you once about the gods?”

63. “Remember how it used to be? Their love made the world go round.”

64. “Hades was king of the underworld, but he fell in love with a beautiful lady who walked up above in her mothers green field.”

65. “He took her home to become his queen where the sun never shone on anyone.”

66. “The Gods sang his song of love and the world sang it with them.”

67. “That was long ago, before we were on this road.”

  Livin It Up On Top 68. “On the road to hell there was a lot of waiting.”

69. “These days she never stays for long, but good things come to those who wait.”

70. “Well it’s like he said, I’m an outdoor girl.”

71. “She forgot a little thing called spring.”

72. “Are you wondering where I’ve been?”

73. “Been to hell and back again.”

74. “Like my mama always said: when you’re down, you’re down and when you’re up, you’re up.”

75. “If you ain’t six feet underground, you’re living it up on top.”

76. “Let’s not talk about hard times. Pour the wine, it’s summertime!”

77. “Who makes the summer sun shine bright?”

78. “Who makes the fruit of the vine get ripe?”

79. “Who makes the flowers bloom again, in spite of a man?”

80. “Let me tell you something that my mama said to me: you take what you can get and you make the most of it.”

81. “It was summertime on the road to hell.”

82. “You might say it was in spite of herself.”

83. “For a moment there, the world came back to life.”

84. “Let the poet bless this round.”

85. “To the patroness of all of this, Persephone, who has finally returned to us with wine enough to share.”

86. “If no one takes too much, there will always be enough.”

87. “She will always fill our cups and we will always raise them up to the world we dream about, and the one we live in now.”

88. “Livin’ it up and we ain’t gonna stop.”

  All I’ve Ever Known (Intro) 89. “He had a gift to give. He could make you see how the world could be in spite of the way that it is.”

90. “She’d seen how the world was. When she fell, she fell in spite of herself.”

  All I’ve Ever Known 91. “I was alone so long I didn’t even know that I was lonely.”

92. “Out in the cold so long I didn’t even know that I was cold.”

93. “All I’ve ever known is how to hold my own.”

94. “All I’ve ever known is how to hold my own, but now I wanna hold you too.”

95. “You take me in your arms and suddenly there’s sunlight all around me.”

96. “I don’t wanna go back to the lonely life.”

97. “I don’t know how or why or who I am that I should get to hold you.”

98. “When I saw you all alone against the sky, it’s like I’d known you all along.”

99. “I know you before we met and I don’t even know you yet, all I know is you’re someone I have always known.”

100. “Now I wanna hold you close. I don’t wanna ever have to let you go.”

101. “Say that you’ll hold me forever. Say that the wind won’t change on us.”

102. “Say that we’ll stay with each other and it will always be like this.”

103. “The wind will never change on us as long as we stay with each other.”

  Way Down Hadestown 104. “That was not six months!”

105. “Better go and get your suitcase packed. Guess it’s time to go.”

106. “She’s gonna ride that train til the end of the line.”

107. “Did you ever wonder what it’s like on the underside?”

108. “You either get to hell or to Hadestown, ain’t no difference anymore.”

109. “Everybody tryin’ to get a ticket to go, but those who go they don’t come back.”

110. “Down there it’s a bunch of stiffs. Brother, I’ll be board to death.”

111. “Takes a lot of medicine to make it through the winter time.”

112. “All them shiny little heads and tails, where do you think they come from?”

113. “Everybody shines by the sweat of his brow.”

114. “The wage is nothing and the work is hard.”

115. “It’s a graveyard in Hadestown.”

116. “Mr. Hades is a mean old boss!”

117. “An eye for an eye! A lie for a lie!”

118. “You better forget about your wishing well.”

119. “I missed ya.”

120. “Mr. Hades is a mighty king.”

121. “Must be making some might big deals. Seems like he owns everything.”

122. “Kind of makes you wonder how it feels.”

  A Gathering Storm 123. “He came too soon. He came for her too soon. It’s not supposed to be like this.”

124. “Well, til someone brings the world back into tune this is how it is.”

125. “Touched by the gods is what he is.”

126. “Finish it quick. The wind is changing. There’s a storm coming on.”

  Epic II 127. “Hades is king of oil and coal and the riches that flow where the rivers are found.”

128. “His loneliness moves in him crude and black.”

129. “He thinks of his wife in the arms of the sun.”

130. “Jealousy fuels him and finds him and fills him.”

  Chant 131. “Low. Keep your head low.”

132. “You gotta keep your heard low if you wanna keep your head.”

133. “In the coldest time of year, why is it so hot down here?”

134. “Lover, you were gone so long. Lover, I was lonesome.”

135. “When you feel that fire, think of it as my desire.”

136. “I am keeping one eye on the sky and tryin’ to trust that the song he’s working on is gonna shelter us from the wind.”

137. “In the darkest time of year, why is it so bright down here?”

138. “When you see that glare, think of it as my despair.”

139. “His black gold flows in the world down below and her dark clouds roll in the one above.”

140. “That’s why times are so hard. It’s because of the gods.”

141. “The gods have forgotten the song of their love.”

142. “I’m trying to believe that the song he’s working on is gonna harbor me from the wind.”

143. “Did you think I’d be impressed with this neon necropolis?”

144. “Everything I do, I do it for the love of you.”

145. “If you don’t even want my love, I’ll give it so someone who does. Someone grateful for her fate, someone who appreciates the comforts of a gilded cage.”

146. “Think of them as my embrace of you.”

  Hey Little Songbird 147. “Hey little songbird, give me a song.”

148. “I’m a busy man and I can’t stay long. I got clients to call. I got orders to fill.”

149. “I got walls to build. I got riots to quell.”

150. “They’re giving me hell back in Hades.”

151. “Hey, little songbird, cat got your tongue?”

152. “Always a pity for one so pretty and young when poverty comes to clip your wings and knock the wind right out of your lungs.”

153. “Nobody sings on empty.”

154. “Strange is the call of this strange man.”

155. “You’d shine like a diamond dark in the mine.”

156. “The choice is yours if you’re willing to choose, seeing as you’ve got nothing to lose.”

157. “Wasn’t it gonna be the two of us? Weren’t we birds of a feather?”

158. “Let me guess. He’s some kind of poet and he’s penniless.”

159. “Give him your hand, he’ll give you his hand-to-mouth.”

160. “He’ll write you a poem when the power is out.”

161. “See how the vipers and vultures surround you. They’ll take you down, they’ll pick you clean.”

162. “People get mean when the chips are down.”

  When The Chips Are Down 163. “Life ain’t easy. Life ain’t fair. A girls gotta fight for he rightful share.”

164. “What you gonna do when the chips are down?”

165. “Help yourself, to hell with the rest. Even the one who loves you best.”

166. “Take it if you can, give if you must. Ain’t nobody but yourself to trust.”

167. “Aim for the heart, shoot to kill. If you don’t do it then the other one will.”

168. “The first shall be first and the last shall be last.”

169. “Cast your eyes to heaven, you get a knife in the back.”

170. “Nobody’s innocent now that the chips are down.”

  Gone, I’m Gone 171. “My heart is yours, always was and will be. It’s my gut I can’t ignore.”

172. “My heart it aches to stay, but the flesh will have its way.”

173. “The way is dark and long. I’m already gone.”

174. “Go ahead and lay the blame. Talk of virtue, talk of sin.”

175. “Wouldn’t you have done the same in her shoes, in her skin?”

176. “You can have your principles when you’ve got a belly full, but hunger has a way with you.”

177. “There’s no telling what you’re gonna do when the chips are down.”

  Wait For Me (Intro) 178. “Hey, the big artiste! Ain’t you working on your masterpiece?”

179. “What do you care? You’ll find another muse somewhere.”

180. “Wherever she is is where I’ll go.”

181. “What if I said she’s down below?”

182. “She called your name before she went, but I guess you weren’t listening.”

183. “Just how far would you go for her?”

184. “Course there is another way, but nah, I ain’t supposed to say.”

185. “It ain’t for the sensitive of soul. So do you really wanna go?”

186. “With all your heart? Well, that’s a start.”

  Wait For Me 187. “You have to take the long way down, through the underground under cover of night.”

188. “Ain’t no compass, ain’t no map. Just a telephone wire and a railroad track.”

189. “Wait for me, I’m comin’.”

190. “If all you got is your own two legs, just be glad you got ‘em.”

191. “Who are you to think that you can walk a road that no one ever walked before?”

192. “You’re on the lam, you’re on the run. Don’t give your name, you don’t have one.”

193. “Don’t look no one in the eye.”

194. “That town’ll try to suck you dry.”

195. “They’ll pluck the heart right out your chest.”

196. “I hear the walls repeating the falling of my feet and it sounds like drumming.”

197. “I hear the rocks and stone echoing my song.”

  Why We Build The Wall 198. “Why do we build the wall my children, my children?”

199. “We build the wall to keep us free.”

200. “That’s why we build the wall, we build the wall to keep us free.”

201. “How does the wall keep us free my children, my children?”

202. “How does the wall keep us free?”

203. “How does the wall keep us free? The wall keeps out the enemy.”

204. “Who do we call the enemy my children, my children?”

205. “Who do we call the enemy?”

206. “Who do we call the enemy? The enemy is poverty and the wall keeps out the enemy.”

207. “We have and they have not my children, my children. They want what we have got.”

208. “What do we have that they should want my children, my children?”

209. “What do we have that they should want? We have a wall to work upon.”

210. “Our work is never done my children, my children.”

  Why We Build The Wall (Outro) 211. “There are papers to be signed. Step into my office.”

212. “A lot can happen behind closed doors. That’s for sure, that’s a fact.”

[thatbloodymuggle]

The One With the Satanic Cat

Beauty and the Best 2/?

masterlist

-

September 1st, 1975

"Edith Marie! What are you still doing in bed? You were supposed to be up thirty minutes ago!"

Bang!

"Owww!"

Today was the day. Today was the day that hundreds of anxious tweens and teenagers alike would be gathering their brand new spell books, partially finished summer work, and screeching pets to run through the column between platforms 9 and 10 at King's Cross Station. Today was the day they'd reunite with their friends they hadn't seen in months or, for some, make new ones. Today was the day every witch and wizard in the United Kingdom would be returning to Hogwarts and, no matter how much some may deny it, they were all more than ready. Well, all except for one young witch.

Edie groaned against the cold hardwood floor she had the misfortune of landing on top of. A string of disgruntled words emitted from her mouth as she pulled the covers that had fallen with her tighter, not wanting to leave the warmth of cotton and silk. It wasn't until her eyes began to fall shut again that her mother's shrill words registered in her mind.

The tired blonde girl's eyes flew open in an instant, a look of panic settling in them as she threw off her duvet. Edie ignored the cold sensation prickling at her skin as she frantically grabbed for the watch she had left on her desk. 10:16.

10:16.

The disoriented girl sprinted out of her room towards the bathroom she, unfortunately, shared with her older brother. Edie yanked at the doorknob as she still needed to finish packing, get dressed, and be out of the house in 29 minutes. The panic inside her flared upon the realization that the door was locked.

"Evan, get out! I need to shower," she shrieked whilst banging on the wooden door.

"Wait your turn! I'm doing my hair," a muffled voice shouted back. She could hear the smugness in his voice.

This only angered her more, "I swear to Merlin Evan, if you don't come out right now I'll-"

Edie was denied the satisfaction of finishing her threat as the lanky boy pushed the door open with his signature smirk, though this one more smug than usual. "Honestly, Edie, you need to learn to control your anger. It can prove to be quite destructive if you're not careful," he tsked.

The sister rolled her eyes, not bothering to stick around and question the nonsense he had just spewed out. She shoved past him into the spacious bathroom, making sure to bump into his shoulder in the process. The young girl immediately regretted it, however, as the feeling of nausea seized her.

"Holy balls, Evan! It smells like hippogriff shit in here! You couldn't have at least covered up the smell?" the already angered girl screamed in a shrill voice, covering her nose at the vile aroma.

All she got was a cackle in response, "Like I said, Edith, patience is a virtue!"

The blonde, who was already done with her brother's childish antics, lit several candles in the cupboard of the sink at lightning speed in a desperate attempt to cover up the smell as she had no time to ask her parents to get rid of it with magic.

Edie stripped down and hopped in the shower as she realized her only hope was to just shower as quickly as possible. Agitated, the rushed girl lathered her hair with both shampoo and conditioner in a frantic manner and was soon wrapped in her towel in record time. The blonde sprinted back to her room, not bothering to so much as brush her hair as it would only slow her down.

Edie burst into her walk-in closet, grabbing the first decent outfit she could spot consisting of the sweater Lily had gotten her for Christmas last year and a pair of black leggings she was yet to get away with wearing. Her mother had always despised Muggle clothing, so Edie was rarely allowed to buy anything of recent trends. She just hoped that because she was running late, her mother wouldn't protest. She forced both legs through the tight pants as she hopped back to her bedside table to check the time once again. Edie bounced up and down to get the blasted pants on faster whilst peering at her watch again.

10:32. 13 minutes.

The thumping in her chest increased as she made one final hop to fully pull up the leggings over her bum only to slip on the duvet that was yet to be picked up from the floor. Edie landed with a loud thump, a distressed groan escaping her in the process. She'd only been awake for 17 minutes and she had already fallen twice-- not the best way to start the day, to say the least.

Once she had hauled herself off the cold floor for the second time that morning, Edie raced over to her half-packed trunk, flinging it open and dragging it into her closet. She yanked every single item of clothing in sight off its hanger, tossing it in the spacious trunk. It didn't take her long to finish as there was little to no coordination in her actions, although the unfortunate girl found herself facing yet another setback once finished packing her clothes. Since she hadn't folded anything, the trunk was overflowing with an assortment of fabrics.

Feeling like shoving a pillow in her face and cursing all things good, the frustrated girl stomped against the ground in a childish manner, a scream tugging at her vocal chords. Knowing she had absolutely no time to sit and fold clothes, Edie pushed the clothes towards the center of the trunk as she threw down the lid which only came about three quarters of the way down. She then proceeded to climb on top of the wooden case and jump up and down on it, making sure to dig her heels every time she made contact with the lid.

"Edie we're leaving in- What the hell are you doing?"

Startled by the booming voice of her brother, the blonde tripped over her own feet. She regained her footing after hopping off of the trunk and a few stumbles forwards, avoiding face planting against her floor for the third time within a thirty minute time period.

"I'm trying to pack," she hissed with the coldest glare she could muster, her brother in turn raising his hands in surrender.

"Well I was going to offer to help, but I'm not feeling so generous anymore, now that I think about it," he sneered with a complacent expression.

If looks could kill, Evan would be 174 feet under. Before she could lunge at the teenage boy, he glided out of the doorway and down the grand staircase. Edie knew if she didn't get the blasted trunk closed within the next minute, she'd miss the Hogwarts Express. She huffed, getting back on the case but this time sitting on the edge, digging her behind into the lid with all the strength she could muster, somehow managing to get the hatch locked. The blonde didn't have time to celebrate her achievement as she hauled the trunk out the door and down the massive staircase, grabbing her leather watch in the process.

10:44. Right on time.

Edie appeared in the kitchen, out of breath. It seemed the rush of adrenaline that had worked in her favor before had now left her as physical exhaustion took its place. The girl's dull eyes met the unimpressed ones of her parents and gleeful ones of her brother. "Can you be on time, just this once?" her father sighed, rubbing his hand over his face.

"I am on time," Edie frowned, holding up her watch. "See? 10:45. Right on the dot," she defended herself, although she couldn't help but feel like she had forgotten something. She racked her brain for what she could have missed, though nothing seemed to present itself.

"Well maybe you'd have time to make yourself look somewhat presentable next time if your room wasn't such a pigsty," her mother frowned in disapproval, eyeing her outfit choice. "Well we better get going-"

"Shit, Piggy! I forgot Piggy!" Edie's eyes widened to the size of saucers. For once in her life, she was thankful for her mother's unnecessary judgmental insults as she would've forgotten her cat if she hadn't.

Her mother's eyes widened along with her daughter's, though for completely different reasons, "Edith Marie Rosier, watch your mouth! Use that kind of language again and I'll send you away to  Beauxbatons. At least there you'll learn some manners," the woman shrieked, her pale face becoming redder by the second.

Her threat went unnoticed by her daughter, however, as she sprinted back up the stairs towards in attic in search of her cat. How could she have possibly forgotten Piggy? The poor animal would have been furious if she had left her at home with her parents. The animal absolutely despised pretty much every human with the exception of Edie herself, especially her mother.

If Edie hadn't been out of breath before, she surely was now. She swung open the creaking door of the attic, her shoulders slumping in relief as she caught sight of Piggy perched upon an old box nearby.

"Come on, Piggy. It's time to go back to school," the girl cooed at the animal. The feline mewled in protest, though let her owner pick her up regardless. Edie descended the stairs with her pet clutched in her arms, finally ready to leave. She swung herself through the entrance of the marble kitchen, only to be met with an empty room. Well, almost empty.

"Mistress Edith, Pokey has been told to apparate you to King's Cross Station himself because you took too long," a squeaky voice made itself known. Edie's eyes dart to the feeble family house elf standing hunched over before her. Disappointment filled the blonde upon the realization that her family had left without her. Of course if it had been Evan who was late, they still would've made Edie go alone so they could wait on him anyways. She shouldn't have been surprised, really. But this still didn't stop the disappointment she wouldn't be able to say goodbye from filling her.

Rather than sulking on what couldn't be changed Edie shot him a warm smile, "Of course, Pokey. Shall we go now then?"

The house elf beamed at the girl's kindness. He had never been treated very well by any member of the Rosier family through the years he'd served them. Of course, they were in no way obligated to treat him a certain way, however Edie never saw it this way. The poor elf had done more for her family than she could ever possibly thank him for, and she deemed kindness as at least some sort of gratitude for his services. Pokey grabbed onto her extended hand as she used the other to steady her cat and cart.

A strange but familiar feeling took over the girl and in a few seconds, she found herself standing in a rather filthy corner of King's Cross Station. Edie glanced down at the watch that had been fastened to her wrist to check the time. 10:51.

"Thank you very much, Pokey. I'm afraid I do have to run now or else I'll miss the train," she gave the elf a soft smile.

"Thank you, Mistress Edith. I wish you have the most wonderful time at Hogwarts," he bowed his head slightly.

"Do take care of yourself, Pokey. And if my mother gives you any grief, let me know and I'll be back in an instant," the blonde bid him farewell one final time before he snapped his fingers and vanished in midair. Edie stood stationary for a few seconds, almost forgetting why she was there in the first place when it hit her-- she had 9 minutes before the Hogwarts Express would leave.

The Rosier girl jumped at the realization before taking off in a sprint, pushing her cart ahead of her. Piggy meowed in dissatisfaction at the fast pace, but Edie ignored the old cat as she was on the opposite end of the train station of her platform. Adrenaline worked in her favor for the second time that day as her pace never faltered. With platforms 9 and 10 finally in sight, the girl glanced down at her wrist to check the time. 10:57.

Not slowing her run, the blonde ran straight through the column upon nearing it, relief flooding through her once seeing she still had a minute or two left to leave her cart and board the train. She almost felt like collapsing to the ground in exhaustion as she set her cart next to the others, but hauled herself on the train instead. With a glance at her watch, a satisfied smile tugged at her lips. 10:59.

Edie looked left and right down either hallway of compartments, deciding she'd visit the boys' cabin first as it was significantly closer to the part of the train she'd boarded. The Gryffindor panted as she hauled both her cat and herself to their usual spot, her heavy breathing not ceasing by the time she slid the door of the cabin open. Four pairs of eyes shot to her own frenzied ones, a grin matching them in an instant.

"You look like you just got in a fight with a dragon," the boy with long hair spoke first, the amused timbre of his voice apparent.

The girl's smile only widened in an almost prideful manner. With an overdramatized sigh, she threw herself on top of her childhood friend, her head burying itself in his stomach as her arms flailed to the sides, hitting  James Potter in the process. "Well at least tell me I won."

The whole compartment chuckled at the pair's interaction. Sirius pushed his friend off of him, forcing her to take a seat on the bench across from him next to the tallest of the four. Edie beamed at the shaggy haired boy next to her who returned it happily. She then faced the rest of the boys who all held matching looks of anticipation.

"I woke up late again," she began but was cut off by the glasses clad boy diagonal from her.

"Typical."

This resulted in a harsh kick in the shin from the girl followed by a low groan which went ignored as she continued, "So I had 29 minutes to get ready, which I did by the way, but right as we were leaving I realized I forgot Piggy so I guess my family took that as a chance to leave me behind," the girl spit out, inhaling afterwards as she had a habit of not breathing in between sentences.

"It's not like it would've been missed if you left it," Sirius grumbled across from her with a deep-set glare directed towards the feline Edie had pulled onto her lap. He had never understood what the girl saw in the cat. It was quite the ugly thing, to be honest. It's tangled, stringy hair always made it look as if it needed a bath. The pig-like face it was named for and rather creepy, yellow eyes didn't help. Not to mention it had the absolute worst attitude he'd seen in an animal.

Piggy hissed back at the boy. She had never really liked many people, though she had always despised Sirius."That was rude and unnecessary," the girl bit back with a frown whilst cradling the grumpy cat in her arms. "You know she's not that bad if you give her a chance."

James snorted from the corner, "I mean if you call scratching everyone who comes within a three foot radius of her 'not that bad'. I'm with Sirius on this one."

"You're with Sirius on every one," the girl quipped whilst stroking the cat. "Besides, she likes Remus. Don't you, Piggy?" Edie cooed at her pet, nudging her towards the boy next to her who stiffened, but cautiously placed his hand on the feline anyways. Piggy shot the boy a warning look to which he flinched back, but she eventually nuzzled into his touch. Remus sent the girl an uneasy smile, but continued to stroke the cat who had begun purring.

"That doesn't count, everybody likes Moony," Peter, who had been sitting silently beside the lanky boy until now, spoke to which James and Sirius murmured in agreement. The tall boy rolled his eyes, though didn't bother arguing. It seemed this realization had ended their argument over the old cat.

"He's not wrong," the Rosier girl started, "I don't think I've ever seen you not get along with someone," she giggled. Remus's attempts to maintain an impassive face failed as the corners of his lips twitched upwards upon hearing her airy laugh.

As Edie's eyes met his own, she couldn't help but notice how much he'd changed over the summer. It had only been a couple of months, but he seemed so different-- all the boys did. His modulated voice had become slightly huskier and his already deep-set jawline stuck out more. Edie was quite tall for a girl her age standing at 5'7", but he seemed to tower over her now. What felt like minutes of studying her friend's face was actually a mere few seconds as she was brought back to the conversation on hand.

"I should probably head to the Prefects' Carriage now so I won't be late," Remus declared after a quick glance at his leather watch. He stood from the bench, moving his hands across his pants to dust them and straighten his sweater.

"Aw, ickle prefect Remmykins," Sirius cooed, stretching out his arms to pinch his cheeks.

His partner in crime quickly caught on and followed, "How incredibly proud we are. They just grow up too fast, don't they Sirius?" James Potter cried, covering his face with the black-haired boys robes, muffling the fake sobs coming from his mouth. Peter cackled in the corner as Edie muffled her own laughter. The tall boy glared at both boys, slapping Sirius's hands away from his face.

The boy cradled his hands to his chest at the sharp pain, "Why Moony, I'm appalled by your actions. Today is a very emotional day for your mother and me."

"Are you sure James is the mother? I would've pictured you as more of the 'motherly' type," Edie chirped with a smug grin, Peter's laughter heightening at her words.

The grey-eyed boy narrowed his eyes at her, "Don't you dare use that tone with me, young lady."

The blonde leaned over to the shortest of the four boys who was now next to her as Remus had gotten up, "He's definitely the mother." Edie made sure her words could be heard by the whole compartment despite her mock whispering.

"I'm with Edie on this one, James wears the pants in the relationship," the frown that had taken over the prefect's face now replaced with a knowing smile. The stubby boy in the corner was in tears at this point. Edie was sure he'd just burst if he kept laughing.

James, who was sitting straight by this point, puffed out his chest before pulling Sirius into his arms, caressing his head, "Shh, Moony, you know how sensitive Sirius can be-- even if it is true." The raven-haired boy pouted in his friend's embrace whilst attempting to wiggle himself out of it.

"Pricks."

Laughter chorused throughout the cabin, four of the five beaming. Once it had begun to die down, Remus spoke again, "I've got to actually go now. I'm probably already late."

The lanky boy swiveled towards the door, only to be stopped again, "Wait, Remus, can you please tell Lily that Edie said hi and is very sorry for not stopping by her compartment since hers was too far away and she will make it up for her at the feast," the blonde babbled, hoping he had at least caught most of her rushed words.

"Hi, compartment too far away, make it up at feast. Got it," the shaggy haired boy grinned at the girl as he slid the door open, actually making it out of the compartment this time. The remaining three marauders watched and waited for the door to close, all turning to look at Edie as soon as the click indicating it was shut sounded.

The Gryffindor girl cocked an eyebrow at the three smirking boys staring at her, "Can I help you?"

"It's time for Operation Moodie," the glasses clad boy started with a mischievous smile.

"What the hell's a Moodie?"

The three ignored her interjection, Sirius continuing where James had left off, "You see, over the summer we-"

"We being us three," Peter added, both boys pausing to look at him as he flashed an oblivious smile.

"Peter, James, and I came up with a master plan to get you and Moony together."

The blonde's eyebrows knit together in confusion. Since when had they ever wanted for her and Remus to date? This was certainly news to her. Edie appeared flustered as she stumbled out, "Wait, what?"

"You know, Remus 'I fold my socks' Lupin, the tall and lanky mother fucker who just-"

"I know who you mean," Edie glared at James, wanting nothing but to wipe the smug grin off his face. "Why? Since when did Remus and Edie become a thing."

"Since we decided you two would make the perfect pair," the blue eyed boy next to Sirius retorted.

"And perfect babies."

The blonde's cheeks flared up at Sirius's suggestion, going to kick his shin. Anticipating her movement, he moved his legs out of the way which earned him a cold glare. After years of being around her, he knew all of her moves.

"Point is, Moony needs to get laid and you could certainly use a boyfri-"

"And what exactly makes you think that I need a boyfriend. In fact, what on Earth made you assume I even like boys," Edie narrowed her dull eyes at her oldest friend. The three were beginning to get on her nerves.

"Please, Edith. With the amount of John Travolta posters in your room there's absolutely no way you're not interested in the male species, but that's besides the point. Point is, we have a foolproof plan that, if you follow, will end with you and Moony happily married with three beautiful children," the Potter boy exclaimed. The other two boys nodded in agreement, identical satisfied smiles taking over their faces. Edie, on the other hand, was downright confused. The boys had never so much as mentioned her and Remus being together. She confessed that she had thought of what it would be like if she one day started liking one of the boys, but was never able to get far. Edie viewed them as her brothers. It would just be far too strange to see them as anything more. Sure they were all attractive, well except for Peter, but the mere concept freaked her out too much.

"You do realize that I don't like him, right?"

"And that is a work in progress," James quipped with a smirk.

The blonde let out an unattractive snort, standing up from her seat. "Keep telling yourself that," she looked at James before turning to face all three of them, "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to visit my other friends who I should be with in the first place."

"What if we do mind?"

"Well that would just be tragic, wouldn't it?" Edie shot Sirius a sarcastic look, her lips taking the shape of a sneer. She swiveled on her heels without looking back as she slid the door open and let it slam behind her. Piggy trailed her owner, matching Edie's sass as she flicked her tail at the hooligans. The Rosier girl could hear the three boys chortling behind her as she left, but only rolled her eyes as she started in the direction of the compartment her other group of friends always sat in. Still baffled by the topic of conversation, she shook her head. They'd keep this up for two weeks tops before getting bored and giving up, she reassured herself. And, with those words, the thought had left her mind entirely.

Edie found her body sliding open the door of her compartment before her brain could catch up to her. She didn't have time to process what was happening or even acknowledge anyone in the small space before having her breath knocked out of her by a shorter body.

"Edie!" A voice squealed right by her ear. The platinum blonde cowered back at the shrill noise, but hugged her friend back nonetheless.

"Merlin, Marlene. Are you trying to make me go deaf? We've only been back for a few minutes and you're already plotting my death," the taller girl giggled, wriggling herself out of the shorter's grip. Marlene hadn't change too much over the summer. Her dirty blonde hair was a little lighter having spent her vacation on a tropical island with her family and her skin a shade or two darker, but she didn't look too different.

Edie glanced behind the girl to catch sight of Mary. Another smile broke onto her face as she greeted her other friend, "Hi, Mary!" The dark haired girl waved back, the chronically worried look on her face replaced with one of bliss.

"How was your summer, Edie?" the timid girl asked with genuine curiosity as Edie sat down across from her friends, Piggy leaping onto her lap.

The blonde shrugged, "It was okay, I suppose. Nothing special." She wasn't about to sit there and spill every detail of her adventures which consisted of a few hundred lost arguments against her mother. It's not like this would be new information to them, anyways. Instead, she held her smile and reciprocated the question, "How was yours?"

Mary smiled softly as she began to recount her trip to Paris with her parents, delving into a story about a boy she had met. Edie felt bad for zoning out as her eyes subconsciously drifted to look out the window, but the giddy girl didn't seem to mind as Marlene had her full attention. The blonde just couldn't focus on the conversation at hand-- something was bugging her, but she couldn't figure out what or why. She felt herself slipping away from reality as she immersed herself in her own thoughts. Edie wasn't sure how long she'd been daydreaming by the time that she was snapped back to the present moment.

"Bloody hell, Edie! Control your beast," a yelp pulled her line of vision from the window to look at Marlene who was glaring daggers at the cat.

She merely shrugged in response, pulling it from the ground and back onto her lap. "She can't help it. Piggy only bites when provoked," Edie defended the animal who now sat peacefully on top of her, soft purrs vibrating against her.

"That thing is a threat to everyone around it. It's satanic-- possessed or something, I swear," Marlene sneered with her eyes narrowed at the pet who flicked her tail at her in response.

The blonde giggled at her friend's overdramatized reaction, "Come on, Marls. At least make an effort to get along with Piggy this year. She's not that bad if you just give her a chance."

Mary, who had remained quiet throughout the pairs' interaction finally spoke up, "You were glaring at her like you were plotting her death." Edie and Mary giggled as Marlene crossed her arms.

"Whatever."

Having put her summer work off until the very last minute, Edie stayed up until 4:00 finishing the last of it. The exhaustion didn't take long to catch up to her as she let her head rest against the window and dozed off within a matter of minutes, leaving Marlene and Mary to entertain themselves. The tired girl slept straight through the bumps and rocks of the train for the remaining several hours of the ride, not once stirring. Piggy had curled up against her at one point, and the pair probably would've stayed there had Marlene not woken her upon their arrival.

"Edie, wake up."

"Come on, we've got to get off."

Mary and Marlene shook the sleeping girl, but to no avail. She was out like a light. The pair shared a knowing look as Marlene stuck her head out of the open door. She looked down the hallway to her right at the students scrambling to get off the train. With a deep breath, she braced herself to summon her last hope, "Sirius Orion Black, your assistance is needed!"

A few students nearby glared at the screaming girl, the First Years flinching at her sudden outburst. Mary giggled from inside the compartment as the message was passed on throughout the hallway until it had met the long haired boy.

Sirius turned at the tapping on his shoulder, his eyes darting down to meet those of a third year's, "Marlene says she needs your help," the shorter boy stumbled over his words, his face heating up. The Black boy's eyebrows knit together, sending James and Peter a questioning glance which was returned with two dumbfounded shrugs. The trio pushed against the flow of the crowd towards the cabin the girls always occupied. It was a rather short walk from the Marauder's compartment to theirs. Soon enough Sirius caught sight of a franticly waving, freckled girl. A goofy grin broke across his face as he jogged the last twenty five or so feet to meet her, his two friends hot on his tail.

"Sirius Black, at your service," he bowed at his waist with a cheeky grin similar to the one Marlene held. James had halted right behind his friend, Peter appearing a few seconds after with a red face and quick breaths of exhaustion. "How may I help you?"

Rather than giving the boy a verbal response, the ocean eyed girl gestured inside of the cabin. Sirius peered inside with James right behind his shoulder and Peter jumping in an attempt to see over his significantly taller friends' shoulders. A hearty laugh emitted from the long haired boy at the sight of his childhood friend sprawled out across the bench, soft snores filling the small space. The tall boy behind Sirius snickered whilst the shortest of the three remained oblivious to what was happening. "She's looks so peaceful when she's asleep," the grey eyed boy cooed, cocking his head to the side. "It's a shame we have to disturb that," he began to tut despite not feeling any guilt in the slightest.

He shooed the cat away who had been resting at her side resulting in a menacing hiss. Piggy hopped off as if knowing what was about to take place. The boy rubbed his hands together, rolling his shoulders back to add dramatic effect. He cleared his throat, slowly positioning himself over the sleeping girl. Sirius hovered above her for a few seconds until he plopped himself down rather ungracefully atop her stomach. Edie's eyes flew open with a groan at the weight crushing her, but Sirius was unrelenting.

"Wakey wakey, Dear Edith! It's time to get up! We're going back to Hoggy Warty Hogwarts!" the boy cheered at the top of his lungs whilst bouncing up and down on her. The poor girl shrieked, using her frail arms to push him off but to no avail-- he was too heavy and she was not in a position to do anything about it. Laughter filled the almost emptied hallway as the few students passing by the compartment peered in with curious eyes. They weren't even at Hogwarts yet and the group of Gryffindors was already creating an unnecessary ruckus.

The smothered blonde finally gathered the strength to shove the bouncing boy off of her. She was met by four laughing faces as she pulled herself up from the bench, ignoring the ache in her back. "You know you could've just pushed me or something and I would've woken up," Edie grumbled with a glare directed towards the two girls.

Marlene held her hands up in surrender, "We tried. Besides, this way is much more fun," she continued to giggle at the irritated expression on her friend's face.

"Hate to break the love fest going on here, but if we don't get off now the train might just go back to London with us," James interjected, bringing the group of six back to the task on hand. The group of Fifth Years nodded in agreement as they all left the narrow corridor of the train and made their way towards the carriages.

"When do you suppose we'll see Lily and Remus?" Edie wondered aloud as the gang of Gryffindors all boarded one of the thestral drawn carriages. She regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth upon seeing Sirius's smug expression next to her.

The girl rolled her eyes at the words that left his mouth next, "Thinking about Remus, are we? Don't you worry your pretty little head. He'll be around in no time." James and Peter snickered alongside him, Marlene and Mary too engaged in their own words to hear the conversation taking place.

"You do realize I asked about Lily too, right? And besides, just because you have a newfound obsession with my love life doesn't mean every time I mention Remus it's because I'm in love with him," her eyes narrowed at the three boys before sharply turning towards the girls, making sure her hair whipped him in the face behind her.  

The young girl ignored the trio, mainly Sirius, for the remainder of the ride though wasn't able to hold a grudge for long as they were laughing like usual by the time the feast had begun. As Edie sat through the Sorting and watched her friends socialize throughout the meal, she could already tell that her fifth year would be one full of excitement and new adventures-- one none like before, one that would go down in the books.

This year would be one to remember.

[hope-isgood]

Hey guys. I’m having a pretty rough time... Can you help me take my mind off of things and send me some ask or questions? Hers’s a list of what you might ask if you don’t have any ideas. I’ll appreciate any kind of ask 📨❤

1. What weird food combinations do you really enjoy?

2. What social stigma does society need to get over?

3. What food have you never eaten but would really like to try?

4. What’s something you really resent paying for?

5. What would a world populated by clones of you be like?

6. Do you think that aliens exist?

7. What are you currently worried about?

8. Where are some unusual places you’ve been?

9. Where do you get your news?

10. What are some red flags to watch out for in daily life?

11. What movie can you watch over and over without ever getting tired of?

12. When you are old, what do you think children will ask you to tell stories about?

13. If you could switch two movie characters, what switch would lead to the most inappropriate movies?

14. What inanimate object would be the most annoying if it played loud upbeat music while being used?

15. When did something start out badly for you but in the end, it was great?

16. How would your country change if everyone, regardless of age, could vote?

17. What animal would be cutest if scaled down to the size of a cat?

18. If your job gave you a surprise three day paid break to rest and recuperate, what would you do with those three days?

19. What’s wrong but sounds right?

20. What’s the most epic way you’ve seen someone quit or be fired?

21. If you couldn’t be convicted of any one type of crime, what criminal charge would you like to be immune to?

22. What’s something that will always be in fashion, no matter how much time passes?

23. What actors or actresses play the same character in almost every movie or show they do?

24. In the past people were buried with the items they would need in the afterlife, what would you want buried with you so you could use it in the afterlife?

25. What’s the best / worst practical joke that you’ve played on someone or that was played on you?

26. Who do you go out of your way to be nice to?

27. Where do you get most of the decorations for your home?

28. What food is delicious but a pain to eat?

29. Who was your craziest / most interesting teacher

30. What “old person” things do you do?

31. What was the last photo you took?

32. What is the most amazing slow motion video you’ve seen?

33. Which celebrity do you think is the most down to earth?

34. What would be the worst thing to hear as you are going under anesthesia before heart surgery?

35. What’s the spiciest thing you’ve ever eaten?

36. What’s the most expensive thing you’ve broken?

37. What obstacles would be included in the World’s most amazing obstacle course?

38. What makes you roll your eyes every time you hear it?

39. What do you think you are much better at than you actually are?

40. Should kidneys be able to be bought and sold?

41. What’s the most creative use of emojis you’ve ever seen?

42. When was the last time you got to tell someone “I told you so.”?

43. What riddles do you know?

44. What’s your cure for hiccups?

45. What invention doesn’t get a lot of love, but has greatly improved the world?

46. What’s the most interesting building you’ve ever seen or been in?

47. What mythical creature do you wish actually existed?

48. What are your most important rules when going on a date?

49. How do you judge a person?

50. If someone narrated your life, who would you want to be the narrator?

51. What was the most unsettling film you’ve seen?

52. What unethical experiment would have the biggest positive impact on society as a whole?

53. When was the last time you were snooping, and found something you wish you hadn’t?

54. Which celebrity or band has the worst fan base?

55. What are you interested in that most people aren’t?

56. If you were given a PhD degree, but had no more knowledge of the subject of the degree besides what you have now, what degree would you want to be given to you?

57. What smartphone feature would you actually be excited for a company to implement?

58. What’s something people don’t worry about but really should?

59. What movie quotes do you use on a regular basis?

60. Do you think that children born today will have better or worse lives than their parents?

61. What’s the funniest joke you know by heart?

62. When was the last time you felt you had a new lease on life?

63. What’s the funniest actual name you’ve heard of someone having?

64. Which charity or charitable cause is most deserving of money?

65. What TV show character would it be the most fun to change places with for a week?

66. What was cool when you were young but isn’t cool now?

67. If you were moving to another country, but could only pack one carry-on sized bag, what would you pack?

68. What’s the most ironic thing you’ve seen happen?

69. If magic was real, what spell would you try to learn first?

70. If you were a ghost and could possess people, what would you make them do?

71. What goal do you think humanity is not focused enough on achieving?

72. What problem are you currently grappling with?

73. What character in a movie could have been great, but the actor they cast didn’t fit the role?

74. What game have you spent the most hours playing?

75. What’s the most comfortable bed or chair you’ve ever been in?

76. What’s the craziest conversation you’ve overheard?

77. What’s the hardest you’ve ever worked?

78. What movie, picture, or video always makes you laugh no matter how often you watch it?

79. What artist or band do you always recommend when someone asks for a music recommendation?

80. If you could have an all-expenses paid trip to see any famous world monument, which monument would you choose?

81. If animals could talk, which animal would be the most annoying?

82. What’s the most addicted to a game you’ve ever been?

83. What’s the coldest you’ve ever been?

84. Which protagonist from a book or movie would make the worst roommate?

85. Do you eat food that’s past its expiration date if it still smells and looks fine?

86. What’s the most ridiculous thing you have bought?

87. What’s the funniest comedy skit you’ve seen?

88. What’s the most depressing meal you’ve eaten?

89. What tips or tricks have you picked up from your job / jobs?

90. What outdoor activity haven’t you tried, but would like to?

91. What songs hit you with a wave of nostalgia every time you hear them?

92. What’s the worst backhanded compliment you could give someone?

93. What’s the most interesting documentary you’ve ever watched?

94. What was the last song you sung along to?

95. What’s the funniest thing you’ve done or had happen while your mind was wandering?

96. What app can you not believe someone hasn’t made yet?

97. When was the last time you face palmed?

98. If you were given five million dollars to open a small museum, what kind of museum would you create?

99. Which of your vices or bad habits would be the hardest to give up?

100. What really needs to be modernized?

101. When was the last time you slept more than nine hours?

102. How comfortable are you speaking in front of large groups of people?

103. What’s your worst example of procrastination?

104. Who has zero filter between their brain and mouth?

105. What was your most recent lie?

106. When was the last time you immediately regretted something you said?

107. What would be the best thing you could reasonably expect to find in a cave?

108. What did you think was going to be amazing but turned out to be horrible?

109. What bit of trivia do you know that is very interesting but also very useless?

110. What’s the silliest thing you’ve seen someone get upset about?

111. What animal or plant do you think should be renamed?

112. What was the best thing that happened to you today?

113. As a child, what did you think would be awesome about being an adult, but isn’t as awesome as you thought it would be?

114. When’s censorship warranted?

115. What’s the most boring super hero you can come up with?

116. What would be some of the downsides of certain superpowers?

117. What word is a lot of fun to say?

118. What current trend do you hope will go on for a long time?

119. What actors or actresses can’t play a different character because they played their most famous character too well?

120. Where’s your go to restaurant for amazing food?

121. What’s something that all your friends agree on?

122. What’s your best story from a wedding?

123. What languages do you wish you could speak?

124. What’s the most pleasant sounding accent?

125. What’s something that everyone, absolutely everyone, in the entire world can agree on?

126. What country is the strangest?

127. What’s the funniest word in the English language?

128. What’s some insider knowledge that only people in your line of work have?

129. Who do you wish you could get back into contact with?

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130. How do you make yourself sleep when you can’t seem to get to sleep?

131. If people receive a purple heart for bravery, what would other color hearts represent?

132. What are some of the best vacations you’ve had?

133. If there was a book of commandments for the modern world, what would some of the rules be?

134. What’s the craziest video you’ve ever seen?

135. What’s your “Back in my day, we…”?

136. If you could know the truth behind every conspiracy, but you would instantly die if you hinted that you knew the truth, would you want to know?

137. What animal would be the most terrifying if it could speak?

138. What’s the worst hairstyle you’ve ever had?

139. What habit do you have now that you wish you started much earlier?

140. If you were given one thousand acres of land that you didn’t need to pay taxes on but couldn’t sell, what would you do with it?

141. What about the opposite sex confuses you the most?

142. When was the last time you yelled at someone?

143. What’s the opposite of a koala?

144. What kinds of things do you like to cook or are good at cooking?

145. What life skills are rarely taught but extremely useful?

146. What movie universe would be the worst to live out your life in?

147. If you could hack into any one computer, which computer would you choose?

148. Who do you feel like you know even though you’ve never met them?

149. What’s the most ridiculous animal on the planet?

150. What’s the worst thing you’ve eaten out of politeness?

[uneven-odds]

weird asks that say a lot

@promisedmistake asked me to answer these, thx love <3  1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans? - coffee mugs. 2. chocolate bars or lollipops? - chocolate bars. 3. bubblegum or cotton candy? - bubblegum. 4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you? -a fast learner, is easy to distract, friendly, ambitious and a good student. 5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups? - soda cans .6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear? - formal. 7. earbuds or headphones? - earbuds. 8. movies or tv shows? - tv shows. 9. favorite smell in the summer? - rain. 10. game you were best at in p.e.? - völkerball.  11. what you have for breakfast on an average day? -cereal or yogurt, a cup (or two) of coffee and sometimes orange juice.  12. name of your favorite playlist? - I have a few playlists but they are all untitled. 13. lanyard or key ring? - key ring. 14. favorite non-chocolate candy? - cookies (idk don´t really have one) 15. favorite book you read as a school assignment? - the great gatsby by F.S.Fitzgerald 16. most comfortable position to sit in? - cross-legged. 17. most frequently worn pair of shoes? - converse. 18. ideal weather? - cold and rainy. 19. sleeping position? - on my stomach with one hand underneath me and one beside my head. 20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)? - note book. 21. obsession from childhood? - Us5. 22. role model? - my grandpa. 23. strange habits? - i don’t know if it´s strange but I need to do things in a particular order. I need structure without it I feel kinda lost and anxious. 24. favorite crystal? - amethyst. 25. first song you remember hearing? - losing my religion by R.E.M. 26. favorite activity to do in warm weather? - sunbathing and reading. 27. favorite activity to do in cold weather? - staying in bed and reading a good book or binge watching a tv show. 28. five songs to describe you? - untold by RY X, coldest water by Walking on Cars, uneven odds by sleeping at last, bury a friend by Billie Eilish, Recovery by James Arthur 29. best way to bond with you? - humor. 30. places that you find sacred? - churches. 31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names? - black jeans, black shirt and my red/black plaid shirt. 32. top five favorite vines? - fresh avacado, Adam, whats worse than..., dropped my croissant, ms. keisha. 33. most used phrase in your phone? - same. 34. advertisements you have stuck in your head? - none. 35. average time you fall asleep? - around 11 pm. 36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing? -ugh idk. 37. suitcase or duffel bag? - suitcase. 38. lemonade or tea? - tea. 39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie? - lemon cake. 40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school? -can´t think of one. 41. last person you texted? - my best friend. 42. jacket pockets or pants pockets? - jacket pockets. 43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket? - hoodie. 44. favorite scent for soap? - honey. 45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero? - fantasy. 46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in? - a top and sleep pants. 47. favorite type of cheese? - cheddar. 48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be? - a lemon. 49. what saying or quote do you live by? - everyone is fighting their own battle, think before you judge. 50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have? - insiders. 51. current stresses? - university and life in general. 52. favorite font? - I kinda like times new roman...so. 53. what is the current state of your hands? - dry af.  54. what did you learn from your first job? - that i hate it. 55. favorite fairy tale? -snow white. 56. favorite tradition? - every week, when my best friend and I are finished with grocery shopping we make something to eat and watch a movie or a couple of episodes from a tv show. I love it. 57. the three biggest struggles you’ve overcome? -I took help, I was honest to myself and my family, I cut strings with people that were toxic for me. 58. four talents you’re proud of having? - I´m a good listener, I learn fast, Writing and painting (a little)  59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be? - “fucking hell.” 60. if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be? - i don’t know I don´t really like anime. 61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.? - “This is my design.” 62. seven characters you relate to? - Will Graham, Spencer Reid, Sansa Stark, Sherlock, Lucas from Skam France, Newt (Tmr) and Gina Linetti 63. five songs that would play in your club? - Rain over me, Sweet nothing, Unforgettable, Songs für Liam and Pound the alarm 64. favorite website from your childhood? - well there was this one called outside. I didn´t know what a website was in my childhood. 65. any permanent scars? - yes, on my arms and my knee. 66. favorite flower(s)? - roses. 67. good luck charms? - don’t have any. 68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried? - onions. 69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned? - that bees don´t have lungs..idk. 70. left or right handed? - right handed. 71. least favorite pattern? - dots. 72. worst subject? - p.e. 73. favorite weird flavor combo? - fries and ice cream. 74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen? - 8 or 9 it depends. 75. when did you lose your first tooth? - I was 5. 76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)? - mashed potatoes. 77. best plant to grow on a windowsill? - cactus. 78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store? -coffee from a gas station. 79. which looks better, your school id photo or your driver’s license photo? - school (or university) id photo. 80. earth tones or jewel tones? - earth tones. 81. fireflies or lightning bugs? - fireflies. 82. pc or console? - console. 83. writing or drawing? - writing. 84. podcasts or talk radio? - podcasts. 84. barbie or polly pocket? - barbie. 85. fairy tales or mythology? - mythology. 86. cookies or cupcakes? - cookies. 87. your greatest fear? - death. 88. your greatest wish? - to be happy. 89. who would you put before everyone else? - myself. 90. luckiest mistake? -account on fanfiction.de 91. boxes or bags? - bags. 92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights? - fairy lights. 93. nicknames? - I have quite a few.. 94. favorite season? - autumn. 95. favorite app on your phone? - tumblr. 96. desktop background? - starry sky. 97. how many phone numbers do you have memorized? -just mine. 98. favorite historical era? - renaissance.

[colemanemma739]

What Sets Kaluga Caviar Apart From Other Varieties?

Choosing Caviar opens up a world of choices. Sturgeons come in 27 distinct species, and there are a wide variety of rare Caviars available right now. But, of all the searched Caviars, Kaluga Caviar has a reputation for just being extremely rare, expensive, and tasty. Kaluga Caviar, often known as "River Beluga," is a sustainable alternative to the nearly extinct Beluga or European caviar population. Intake of Kaluga Caviar may even surpass the wonderful gourmet experience of illicit Beluga Caviar for some.

The large size of Kaluga huso hybrid caviar distinguishes it from other fish species in the family. Kaluga sturgeons may grow to be over 18 feet long and weigh at least 2,205 pounds. While in the river basin, they eat salmon and other fish. And, such as the Beluga sturgeon, spend a portion of their lives in saltwater. The Kaluga Sturgeon is not only a large fish, but it can also lay a large number of eggs. Caviar production by an adult Kaluga female may reach 44 pounds. This makes Kaluga Caviar ideal for those who prefer the feel of hard, well-formed beads.

Therefore, only the size and texture of Kaluga Caviar alone make it a unique experience.

You don't have to be a caviar specialist to see that Kaluga is large, bold, and, most importantly, rich. Although it doesn't have the same color as other forms of caviar-like Ossetra or Beluga, Kaluga caviar does have certain distinctive colors that you won't find anywhere else. Its primary color is a glossy gray, with specks of dark brown and olive green. Additionally, the flavor will be quite earthy and buttery with a very slight sense of salt.

Unfortunately, due to the high demand for Kaluga roe and the Amur River's protracted overfishing, the species is fighting to live and is now classified as severely endangered. Furthermore, Kaluga is one of the world's most established and known caviar-producing sturgeons, and despite decades of protection regulations, many poachers continue to pursue the fish.

Kaluga Caviar preparation includes a minor salting method that results in a delightful lingering flavor. Fresh Kaluga should be refrigerated for 1 to 3 months. However, once opened, leftovers should be stored in the coldest section of the refrigerator. Remember that the delicate nature of exquisite variations such as the Kaluga Caviar choice makes it exceedingly perishable once opened.

Furthermore, caviar experts recommend purchasing the best Kaluga Caviar in quantities that you will devour immediately after purchase. The highest-quality Kaluga caviar is produced when the conditions for its growth, harvesting, and processing are perfect. The best Kaluga Caviar may be obtained online, at high-quality online sellers like caviar star, or on the menus of fine restaurants. Buy the finest Kaluga Caviar available for the best benefits and flavor experience.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Grist:

On Thursday, 2020 officially took its place in the upper echelon of warmest years in human history: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration ranked last year as the hottest year to date, ahead of 2016 by just a hair. Two other global temperature tracking organizations, the U.K.’s Met Office and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said 2020 was the second-hottest year on record, closely tailing 2016. Meanwhile, the European Union’s climate change agency declared a tie between the two years.

To say that this news was unsurprising would be a massive understatement. For 44 years in a row now, the globe has been hotter than the 20th century average. The world’s hottest seven years on record have all taken place since 2014, the 10 warmest years have occurred in the past decade and a half.

Each year, these monumental milestones seize the spotlight for a moment or two and then quickly fade away.

Tired of this cycle, Andrew Dessler, a professor in the geosciences department at Texas A&M University, has created a template auto-response for the requests he receives from journalists to comment on these records each year. “Thank you for emailing me asking for comment about 20__ being one of the hottest years on record,” it reads. “Here is a comment you can use for your story: ‘Every year for the rest of your life will be one of the hottest in the record. This means that 20__ will end up being among the coolest years of this century. Enjoy it while it lasts.’”

[nasa]

Small Business Saturday: Space Edition!

Today is Small Business Saturday, an annual campaign that American Express started back in 2010 on the Saturday after Thanksgiving to support “local places that make our communities strong.”

The U.S. Senate has even taken note by passing a bipartisan resolution recognizing November 25, 2017 as Small Business Saturday: “an opportunity for all Americans to rally behind these local, independently-owned businesses and support the entrepreneurs who keep our families employed.”

Here at NASA, we look to promote and integrate small businesses across the country into the work we do to pioneer the future of space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research.

Our Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program seeks to fund the research, development and demonstration of innovative technologies that help address space exploration challenges and have significant potential for commercialization. In fiscal year 2017, our program awarded 567 contracts to 277 small businesses and 44 research institutions for a total of $173.5M that will enable our future missions into deep space and advancements in aviation and science, while also benefiting the U.S. economy. This year, the SBIR/STTR program’s Economic Impact Report indicated a $2.74 return for every dollar spent on awards—money well spent!

Our small business partners’ ideas have helped our work become more efficient and have advanced scientific knowledge on the International Space Station. Over 800 small businesses are contributing to the development of our Space Launch System rocket that will carry humans to deep space. SBIR/STTR program awardees are also helping the Curiosity Rover get around Mars and are even preparing the Mars 2020 Rover to search for signs of potential life on the Red Planet.

Small businesses are also contributing to scientific advances here on Earth like helping our satellites get a clearer picture of soil moisture in order to support water management, agriculture, and fire, flood and drought hazard monitoring.

In an effort to improve our understanding of the Arctic and Antarctica, a small business developed a cost-saving unmanned aircraft system that could withstand some of the coldest temperatures on the planet.

Does your small business have a big idea? Your next opportunity to join the SBIR/STTR program starts on January 11, 2018 when our latest solicitation opens. 

We’ll be seeking new ideas from small businesses and research institutions for research, development and demonstration of innovative technologies. Go to www.nasa.sbir.gov to learn more.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

[kixaxstyx]

Evens! ^_^

ok!!

2) What fandoms do you write for and do you have a particular favourite if you write for more than one?

I write for a lot of fandoms! Most notably in recent times are Durarara!! and Shadowhunters/The Mortal Instruments, but when I was younger I wrote a lot (and I mean a lot) of Yu-Gi-Oh/Yu-Gi-Oh GX stories. Recently I’ve been really getting into writing for The Case Study of Vanitas and I have some stories in the work for it… I don’t really have a particular favorite, I love them all equally!

4) What is your favourite genre to write for?

I like writing a lot of generic/slice of life stuff to be honest, but I also like tragedies and action/adventure stuff too. 

6) If you had to delete one of your stories and never speak of it again, which would it be and why?

*Sweats nervously and makes awkward eye contact with all the fanfiction I wrote in middle school* Why? Because I have grown so much in the 12 years since I started writing that I don’t want anyone to see it. AT ALL

8) Where do you take your inspiration from?

From everywhere, to be honest! I got first place in a writing contest with a story that took inspiration from the song “Sixteen Tons” by Ernie Tennessee Ford. A story I used on my grad school application took inspiration from Dungeons and Dragons. It really depends on the piece and its context!

10) (skipping bc no title requested!)

12) Who is your favourite character to write for? Why?

My favorite character to write for tends to be my favorite character in that series - and my favorite in the series is typically someone who I can relate to, or that I like. So, if you notice, my favorite character to write for in Shadowhunters tends to be Alec Lightwood - because I like him, and I feel I can relate to some of his struggles, and that translates to better writing and characterization!

14) (skipping bc no title requested!)

16) (skipping bc no title requested!)

18) Do you have any abandoned WIP’s? What made you abandon them?

I do have a lot of abandoned WIPs. I typically abandon them if I lose interest, or I feel like I’m struggling/wrote myself into a hole I can’t get myself out of. And of course, sometimes, I stop simply because I’m not motivated because I don’t think people are interested, or I’m getting harassed for some reason by readers.

20) Are there any stories that you wished you’d ended differently?

Definitely, lol. Every time I re-read Don’t Make Promises (You Can’t Keep) I kick myself for making it Shizaya, when the first half/three-quarters of the story totally reads as Shinzaya. 

22) Do you have a story that you look back on and cringe when you reread it?

A lot of my earlier works, to be honest. Especially the ones that have OCs bc they read as really bad Mary-Sues (but to be honest, those were characters I, myself, needed when I was writing them which is why they were created)

24) How do you feel about writing smutty scenes?

Not very confident, tbh. I feel awkward doing so, and it’s something that’s not really in my skills repertoire (and that I’m okay with not refining)

26) (skipping bc no title requested!)

28) What is something you wished you’d known before you started posting fanfiction?

That you can go at your own pace, and you don’t need to kill yourself to crank updates out! And that it’s okay to “come late” to a fandom and still write for it. It’s not about the popularity of your stories, it’s about your enjoyment writing them!

30) In contrast to 29 is there a story which gets lots of love which you kinda eye roll at?

Not off the top of my head, but I know that I have come across stories that seem to be popular in fandom for some reason but I can’t get behind.

32) Are any of your characters based on real people?

I wrote something about 3 years ago, for my Intro to Creative Writing course in College (an easy A for me lol). It was called “My Roommate” (I’m still working on the title to this day lol) but the characters in it were all based off of me and my 3 college roommates at the time. It was a flashback piece, really interesting to do, though a bit dark. Once I get the name solid and do a bit more editing, maybe I’ll post it here lol.

34) What’s the harshest criticism you’ve gotten?

I don’t remember, to be honest, but it was something that actually led me to deleting the story from the site it was posted on. :(

36) Can you give us a spoiler for one of your WIP’s?

The night was cold, one of the coldest on record.Being on the cusp of mid-December, the cold made sense, but the time of yeardidn’t make it any better, didn’t make it any easier to weather. Their handsfelt frozen solid, and the dark gloves they wore didn’t do anything to keep thechill out. As the coach rolled to a stop in front of the mansion, they onlyhesitated a moment before exiting. They ascended the steps with a deliberateslowness, knocking to announce themselves just as slowly.

38) If you could collab with any other writer on here, who would it be? (Perhaps this question will inspire some collabs!) If you’re shy, don’t tag the blog, just name it.

Oh, there’s a lot of people, I couldn’t just name one lol! 

40) Do people know you write fanfiction?

My boyfriend and friends from college know I write fanfiction, but my parents think I just write stories and post them on a blog - they don’t know it’s “fanfiction” per se. 

42) (skipping bc no title requested!)

44) What is the last line you wrote?

“Sister!” Their brother said in greeting, entering thesitting room with his wife just steps behind the child. “We weren’t expecting avisit from you, not for a while yet.”

(From a WIP I’m working on, lol!)

46) (skipping bc no title requested!)

48) What’s your favourite trope to write?

I love, love, love writing first meetings. It is something I am always a sucker for. Especially “love at first sight” first meetings.

50) If you could write only angst, fluff or smut for the rest of your writing life, which would it be and why?

*Fast and Furious chanting* Angst angst angst angst angst

I like to suffer and make people miserable as well.