#which will lead to suicide WAY faster

[eldritch-araneae]

Suddenly remember how stupid the entire job searching is.It’s already hard to find even the most simple job bc those fuckers just want to exploit workers for free (esp in game industry and their “““art tests”““) and how even retails jobs require (event it’s not written, but we all know it’s there) university diploma, and even if you get to interview, they start nitpicking your looks, demanding to change.

Like nope, dyed hair is one of few thing that keep me alive, it will never change it. Cmon you are just grocery store line, how my hair can impact my working ability?? You’re not some elite/government institution to hold any sort of image standart djhjfgnf

Ofc it’s even hard bc you’re disabled, but it’s mental disability so you can’t get any accommodations, or even mention you need any bc you will lose the job instantly.

And then those ppl have the audacity to complain that we don’t want to work %)

[fortheloveofwonderland]

Midnight | Chapter 1 | S.R

Chapter Summary - Spencer is running out of time to evade capture and he reflects on the journey he’s been on. You drop a bombshell that could change everything.

A/N - this chapter is present day, all other chapters will be set a few months prior leading up to this chapter. Chapter title from the Set it Off album “Midnight”. Song lyrics at the end of the chapter.

Pairing - unsub! Spencer Reid / Fem! Reader

Category - dark angst | smut | very eventual happy ending

Warnings - unsub Spencer, murder, vigilante, swearing, talk of suicide by cop, getting caught.

WC - 5k

Chapter One - Killer in the Mirror

“Sometimes there is no darker place than our thoughts, the moonless midnight of the mind.”

It all unravelled a lot faster than he could have ever anticipated. His carefully wound ball of yarn in which he weaved his secret life was untangling before his very eyes, his meticulously curated alter ego coming apart at the seams. 

Never let your guards down, the cardinal rule. Never trust anyone, never let them in. What was the point in creating these walls if he was going to be so quick to take them down and let someone in? 

He was smarter than this. He was so much smarter than this. He should never have found himself in this position, covering his tracks should have been the easy part. 

He had years of experience under his belt studying the crimes of morons who inevitably got themselves caught. When he’d found himself on this path, he swore he’d never fall victim to the idiocy of human behaviour. Most specifically: affairs of the heart. 

Love had a way of wrapping its evil talons around you, sneaking in through cracks you weren’t even aware had formed. He’d been so sure he’d built those walls air tight, thrown away the keys to the gates surrounding his heart. Love infected you, little by little, day by day. And not only his heart had been affected, but his mind too. 

Sex was one thing. Sex was carnal, primitive. Sex was a basic human desire, one that he craved just as much as the next person. Pleasure, not necessarily intimacy, a fulfilling of a base need. Sex allowed him to still keep his guards intact and unscathed. If it had just been about sex he might not have found himself in this position. 

The lust had intertwined itself with love somewhere deep within his soul. He’d no longer been thinking solely of his own survival, he’d gotten distracted. You had distracted him from his goal. And now there was no going back, no way to undo all the miss steps he’d taken. 

He could blame you but he knew it was entirely pointless. He couldn’t hold you accountable for the fact he’d become preoccupied because he was the only one at fault here. Every decision he’d made, he’d made alone. You’d diverted his attention, but he was the catalyst that ultimately led to this situation. 

Every choice he’d made since leaving the BAU had been his own doing. Taking justice into his own hands, ridding the world of one evil at a time, the literal and metaphoric blood was on his hands and his hands alone. You’d simply found yourself at the wrong place at the wrong time and been catapulted into his new, twisted idea of law enforcement. 

What confused him the most was how, in the space of a few months, you’d gotten your clutches into his heart. It had to be something to do with the intense, high pressure nature of the situation that had caused him to believe he was feeling things that weren’t really there. He’d known you countless years before all of this and he was sure his heart had never called to you the way it did now. 

Maybe it was all in his head and not in his heart at all. Maybe being in love with you was an easier explanation for how he’d gotten distracted than admitting he may have just gotten sloppy. He supposed ultimately it didn’t matter much why it had happened, only that it did. And laying the blame elsewhere was an easier pill to swallow. 

It was probably inevitable that his wrong doings would catch up on him eventually, he just hadn’t expected it to happen so soon. He’d been prepared since day one, since the day he decided to embark on this new life; he’d always known how he would choose for it to end should it come to this. 

He was not going back to prison, to the place that had led him here in the first place. No, he wasn’t getting caught. He would sooner die than go back there, and that seemed as though it would be a likely outcome. 

He could run. Again. He’d gotten so good at that. He still had a small window of time before the place was surrounded, he could flee once more into the night. But then what? His time was running out and he knew it, it wouldn’t be long before they found him again, they were the best at what they did after all. 

He could probably evade them a little longer if he wanted to but what if he didn’t want to? The truth was, he was tired, maybe too tired to fight the inevitable anymore. Running could only get him so far. But he wouldn’t give up without one last fight, he would go down in a blaze of glory. 

Who knows, death might even be a reprieve, there was something so bittersweet about the idea of being dragged down into his own demise by people he had once called friends. He could get off a couple of shots, over their heads so as not to injure them, but enough to cause the trigger happy local cops to return fire. It was the only way he could picture it ending, in a shower of bullets. 

He picked up the gun from where it sat on the edge of the sink and tucked it into the back of his waistband. He hadn’t used a firearm in some months, preferring a more brutal and hands on method for his extra curricular activities. 

He swallowed thickly as he gripped the sides of the basin and let his eyes cast upwards to the grimy old mirror over the sink. The smirk adorned on his lips was menacing as he took in the reflection of the man he’d become. Or maybe it was the man he’d always been somewhere deep inside. 

It was possible he’d simply managed to keep this side of himself locked up, but over the years the cage had been rattled and eventually the monster had been set free. And once he’d been released, there was no stopping him. 

He’d been twenty three years old the first time he’d had to kill someone on the job. Philip Dowd, the LDSK who had taken him and Hotch hostage. The only way out was for him to shoot the guy. For months, maybe even years after, the look in Dowd’s eyes as he realised he was about to die haunted his dreams. The nightmares that had ensued and the guilt that flooded every fibre of his being was a feeling he’d never wanted to experience again. 

It wasn’t until he was in his forties that he first killed for pleasure, slashing the throat of a serial murderer who had evaded capture. He’d purposefully tracked him down and taken the hunting knife to the man’s neck. He was sure he’d been grinning when the blood spilled from the other man’s carotid artery. The warm, sticky substance coating his hands had permeated his sleeping hours, only this time it didn’t scare him. It excited him. 

At forty two years old, Spencer Reid finally found his reason for living. And he didn’t miss the irony that his life’s purpose was death. Killing those people who had flown under the radar of cops and FBI, who’s crimes had gone unpunished, filled him with a kind of ecstasy nothing else in his life ever had. It wasn’t as though they didn’t deserve it, he’d never kill an innocent person, he was simply speeding up the slow turning wheels of justice. 

And he’d never felt more alive. 

The eyes staring back at him were darker than he’d ever seen them, black like his soul had become. His pupils bled into his irises, it was like looking into the eyes of the devil himself. He didn’t recognise what he’d become, but surprisingly that didn’t bother him. 

He reached up and ran one hand through his tangled mess of hair which had long grown down his neck and he often needed to push strands back off of his face and out of his eyes. His hand moved down the side of his face, cupping his beared jaw which hadn’t seen a razor in months. He found he liked the rugged look, it made him appear more dangerous, just as he felt. 

He straightened up, adjusted his tie and brushed out the creases in the front of his crisp white button down. If he was going to let them take him down, he would at least leave a good looking, well dressed corpse. 

As he adjusted the firearm in its position at his lower back, he heard the motel door creak loudly as it was opened, followed swiftly by it slamming shut noisily. He kept his eyes trained on the mirror while footsteps padded his way and then the bathroom door flew open against its hinges. 

You caught his eye in the mirror, a slightly wild look on your face as you glared at him. Your eyebrows were so high they practically reached your hairline. He offered you a look that told you to speak, as opposed to just staring at him like he could somehow read your mind.

“What are you doing? Come on, we’ve gotta go!” You sounded exasperated. 

Spencer’s eyes flicked back over his own reflection as his hands languidly moved to straighten his tie again, like he had all the time in the world and not at all as though his crimes were about to catch up on him.

“Why run? I’m tired of running.” He spoke without looking at you. 

“You’re throwing in the towel?” You huffed, stepping closer to him. “They’ll send you back to prison.”

“Not if I have my way.” He smirked into the mirror, feeling you moving even closer to him. 

“No, no way.” You shook your head, suddenly clutching him by the shoulders and turning him to face you. 

He spun around on his heels, pressing his back up against the basin and crossing his arms over his chest. He looked down on you with manic eyes, eyebrows furrowed deeply showcasing his frustrations. 

“Y/N,” he began in that cool, collected tone you’d grown used to. Usually that timbre was enough to stop you in your tracks, but not today.

“No,” You spoke again, shaking your head in defiance. “I will not let you go out that way. Suicide by cop? Nuh uh, not on my watch.” 

Spencer’s eyes turned impossibly blacker and his lip tugged up at the corner in a threatening smirk. He unfolded his arms and you swallowed thickly as his hands came to rest on your shoulders. It was a similar gesture to what you’d previously just done to him only his hands were heavy on you, blunt fingernails pressing into the muscles diligently. You wouldn’t be surprised if he left bruises, it certainly wouldn’t be the first time. 

“When do you think you started to have a say in what I choose to do?” He spoke softly, an odd juxtaposition from the way he surveyed you and held you. 

“Maybe when I ended up being dragged into this mess. This isn’t just about you, Spencer. I don’t want to die like this.” 

“And I’m not stopping you from leaving. I have never once stopped you from leaving, in fact I seem to remember I actively encouraged your doing so. Run away, Y/N, tell them that I kidnapped you or something. Tell them I held you against your will. It doesn't matter to me, I won’t be around to find out.” His hands slid from your shoulders, down your biceps and forearms before falling to his sides, physically and metaphorically letting you go. 

“No,” You shook your head again. “Not after everything we’ve been through to get here. Not after all the trouble I’ve gone through for you. This is not how this ends.” 

Spencer chuckled murderously, stepping even closer to you which caused you to take a few steps back until your back was pressing up against the bathroom door. He towered over you, his height once a thing that made you feel safe but he was now using it against you. 

This time he only raised one hand and it came to nestle against your throat, almost delicately at first. His long, nimble fingers caressed the soft flesh of your neck but it was over in a second and soon he was tightening his hold on you, like a snake coiling itself around its prey. 

His eyes briefly flit down to the necklace hanging from your neck, the one you hadn’t taken off since the day he brought it for you. It was a symbol, an emblem that you belonged to him and you wore it with pride. 

“Princess,” He breathed, pressing his palm against your windpipe. “I never asked for your help. And you don’t get a say in this. So either run away or face off with the cops with me. Either way, it doesn’t matter to me.” 

He gave you a firm squeeze, causing you to choke a little before he was suddenly letting you go and pushing you aside so he could leave the bathroom. You coughed to clear your throat, scrambling after him into the motel bedroom. You watched as he strolled to the window, pushed the curtains aside a few inches and peered between the crack. 

Nothing but a few cars in the desolate parking lot and dark desert sky awaited him. They should be here by now. By all accounts they should have had the place surrounded by now, what was keeping them? He would smile and wave as he took his final encore, shooting his bullets into the dusty air while his old team greeted him and he fell to his knees in the dirt as the bullets ripped through him. 

Goodbye Emily. Goodbye JJ. Goodbye Luke, Matt and Tara. Goodbye Rossi. Goodbye Garcia, I hope they caught this on tape for you. 

“Spencer!” You called his name with an urgency he’d never heard from your lips and it caused him to turn to you with a frustrated frown.

“You should leave now if you’re going to. They will be here any minute.” 

“I can’t.” You shook your head and he noticed the way your eyes glossed over. 

Frown deepening, he took a few steps away from the window, meeting you in the middle of the grimy room. The closer he got, the more he could see the tears filling your beautiful eyes. 

“What’s wrong?” He questioned, hand raising once more only this time it settled on your face. He cupped your cheek with delicate precision, such a stark contrast to the way he’d wrapped his hand around your throat moments before. “Can’t bear to leave me?” 

“It’s not that.” You nuzzled against his hand. “I can’t let you do this, Spencer.”

A single tear fell from your eye, rolling down your cheek but Spencer caught it on his thumb and brushed it away. Your lip trembled and you sniffed noisily to try and stave off anymore. 

“What is it you aren’t saying? If this is just about feelings, Y/N, you’ll find someone else. Trust me.” 

“No, it’s not about…” You swallowed, pouting at him. “This is bigger than just us now.” 

As if a damn had broken, tears started cascading down your face at an alarming rate but Spencer wiped away each one. His eyes narrowed on you, trying to read your thoughts, trying to ascertain the things you weren’t vocalising. 

It wasn’t until you tore your eyes off of him and he followed your gaze downwards that he realised what was happening. At first he thought you were looking at the floor but he quickly discerned your eyes had stopped somewhere higher. Trailing upwards from your feet he distinguished you were looking right at your stomach. 

His hand abruptly fell from your face to his side and his eyes snapped up to look at your face once more. You met his confused and slightly bewildered gaze, all the while tears were still rolling down your cheeks. He stumbled a little on his feet, looking like he had been punched in the gut. You’d never seen him look so lost before.

“Say something,” you choked on a sob, hands coming to cradle your stomach out of instinct. 

Spencer opened his mouth before quickly closing it again, rolling his bottom lip briefly between his teeth before trying to find his words once more. Again, he opened and closed his mouth, the only discernible sound was a small whimper he let leave his parted lips. His hands were noticeably jittering, his thumb tapping against the side of his thigh as if the rhythm was helping calm him. 

You stared at him, waiting for him to speak, begging him with your eyes to say anything, anything other than just staring at you this way. You watched his eyes flit from your face to your stomach and back again several times before they finally settled on your eyes.

“You’re…?” He croaked hoarsely. “We’re…?”

“Yes.” You nodded, using one hand to wipe the tears that were hindering your vision. “Eleven weeks.” 

He opened his mouth to speak again but this time before he could get any words out he heard something off in the distance. Judging by the way your eyes widened, you heard it too. Your tears fell heavier and Spencer turned back to the window, creeping towards it and cracking the curtains barely an inch. The pitch black desert was lit up by the unmistakable blue halos, somewhere far off but certainly heading your way. The wail of the sirens quickly grew louder as they closed in on the motel. 

“Shit.” He spat, hurriedly pulling the curtains again and turning to regard you. “Shit.”

“This can’t be how it ends.” You held your stomach tighter, even more tears now breaking free. 

Spencer made quick work of crossing the room to you and placing his large hands over your smaller, delicate ones. His own eyes gave away to his fear, and if Spencer was scared you knew to be petrified. Spencer Reid was scared of nothing. 

“I won’t let it, I’ll think of something.” He closed his eyes like that might help him form a coherent thought. 

Wake up, snap out of it. Or you may well never wake up again.

His earlier conviction for his death at the hands of law enforcement had flown out the window the second you’d shared your news. He couldn’t exit this mortal coil in such a way, not now he had a child on the way. He was not leaving his child like his own father had abandoned him. There had to be a way. There just had to be.

It was funny how one simple thing could change his mind so drastically. Spencer had been sure he was ready for where this was heading, ready to stop running, to stop fighting the inevitable. He didn’t think anything or anyone could change his mind. But this wasn’t just about him or you anymore. There was so much more on the line. Getting caught suddenly wasn’t an option. 

The sirens grew louder and he could hear the gravel under tires as the vehicles got closer. The blue light of the flashing beacons bathed the room ominously, he could see it even behind his closed lids.

“Spencer!” You cried, jiggling up and down. “Spencer, do something!” 

His eyes shot open and landed on the timepiece hanging on the wall. As he watched the clock roll to midnight, Spencer knew whatever he did next he had to be sure of. If he wasn’t then the three of you might not make it out of this alive. In a perfect world, you would all get away, but as long as Spencer could secure your safety then he would have to be ok with that. As long as you lived to bring their child into the world he could worry about everything else later. 

But he had to do everything in his power for all three of you to make it out of this. 

“Spencer!” You screamed as the sirens reached fever pitch, tires screeching on the asphalt outside as multiple vehicles came to abrupt stops outside the window. 

The blue light completely encompassed the room, glowing harshly against your skin. Car doors started to slam closed and heavy footsteps on the gravelly parking lot got closer. He was sure he could hear weapons being drawn, sharp intakes of breath as the people outside his room took aim. 

“Spencer Reid, we know you’re in there.” A voice sounded over a megaphone, causing you to gasp in recognition. “Spencer, we just want to help you, please?”

Emily Prentiss’ tone was stern yet held the sadness of chasing one of her own. You looked petrified and that was only intensified when Spencer started smiling. He surprised you when he took off past you back towards the bathroom. Frowning, you quickly followed. 

“What are you doing? Spencer!” You chased after him and found him standing in the bathtub on his tiptoes and toying with a vent above the shower head. 

You watched in confusion as he made quick work of the four screws holding the vent in place before yanking it off the wall and tossing it aside. He turned back to you with a smile.

“You think I didn’t scope out an escape route?” He chuckled, holding out his hand for you which you took as you stepped into the tub. “It’s just big enough for a human body to fit through on their front. It’s a straight path, the vent on the outside is already loosened, I made sure of it. As soon as you’re out, you’re going to run. Run as fast as you fucking can and do not look back. I’ll take care of the rest.” 

“Spencer Reid! If you can hear me, you need to come out with your hands up!” Emily’s voice sounded angrier now and he knew he didn’t have much time. 

“What about you? You’ll be right behind me, right?” You grabbed his face in your hands, cloying to him like he was your only lifeline. 

“Don’t worry about me, princess.” He smiled, bowing his head to capture your lips in a chaste kiss as he placed his hand on your belly. “I need you to focus on yourself and this little one.” 

“Spencer, do not get yourself killed.” You sobbed. “We can’t do this without you.” 

“And you won’t.” He tried to insist, although he wasn’t entirely sure of that fact himself. “Everything’s going to be just fine.”

He kissed you again, this time laced with slightly more passion. Then he took a step back in the tub, bent down and placed a kiss on your stomach. 

“Reid, if you don’t come out in the next sixty seconds we will breach the room.” This time it was Luke’s voice that permeated your momentary solitude. 

“Spencer, I’m scared.” You whimpered when he stood back to his full height. 

“I know. But trust me when I say, everything will be ok.” He wiped your tears once more whilst reaching behind himself with his free hand. 

When he grasped your wrist and placed his firearm in your palm, you gasped, shaking your head frantically. 

“Spence?”

“Take it, just in case.” He curled your fingers around it before ushering you towards the vent. 

He wrapped his arms around your waist and lifted you from behind, closer to the vent opening. You turned your head and placed one last kiss on his lips. 

“I lo…” you choked, quickly correcting yourself. “You’re my partner in crime, Spencer Reid.” 

“And you’re mine. But I promise you I will see you sooner than you think.” He hoisted you higher and you tossed the gun up inside the vent before reaching out and grabbing the ledge. 

He knew it wasn’t a promise he could keep, you probably knew it too, but he hoped it helped in any small way. 

You pulled yourself up with Spencer’s help and wriggled onto your stomach in the small opening. When his hands left your body you suddenly felt desperately alone, wanting to immediately drop back down, fall into his arms and never let him go. 

“Go, Y/N, please. You have to go.” He encouraged you. 

“Thirty seconds, Reid! Don’t be stupid. Come out with your hands up!” Luke’s voice engulfed you both and with a small whimper you started to crawl forward down the vent, leaving half of your heart behind. 

Spencer bent down and retrieved his second weapon from its hiding place inside his boot. He only had seconds to pull off a miracle. If this went wrong he would be killed, or worse, arrested. 

Quickly stepping out of the tub and opening the cabinet beneath the sink he pulled out the large canister he’d stashed under there earlier in the day. It had been his back plan of sorts, if for whatever reason he changed his mind and decided to fight this. And now he was glad he’d had the forethought. This could quite literally blow up in his face. But he had to try, for the sake of his unborn baby. 

“Twenty seconds!” Luke yelled again but Spencer wasn’t perturbed. 

Taking a deep breath he uncapped the bottle and rushed back into the bedroom where he poured two thirds of it onto the strategic pile of clothes he’d left on the floor next to the bed. He walked backwards towards the bathroom, drizzling a trail from the clothes to the bathroom door. 

“Ten seconds!” Luke called once again. 

Spencer dropped the now empty container on the floor and stepped back inside the tub. He manoeuvred under the shower head and clambered up onto the lip of the tub, only just able to grip the edge of the vent opening. 

His hand shook a little as he pointed his gun over his shoulder, narrowing his eyes on his target. One false move and it would all be over. He had one shot to get this right or he would never have the chance to meet his child. 

He curled his finger around the trigger at the exact moment he heard the front door come crashing down and a flurry of law enforcement breach the motel. He took aim, he tightened his grip on the gun. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, he caught a glimpse of his reflection and he smiled at himself. 

There was a killer in the mirror. And that killer was him. 

Look out, they're closing in on you now,

Wake up, or you'll wake up six feet down.

Nobody's got your back in this town,

Knock 'em in the teeth now.

Out here, there's no negotiation,

No room to start a conversation.

Before you get a taste, it's taken,

Never let your guard down.

Get back, put your hands up, kinda messed up, but it's tough luck,

And I'm sorry, but I don't feel bad for you.

'Cause I know if you could switch this,

You'd be dishing out the same shit,

Saying sorry, but I don't feel bad.

Now I know there's no one I can trust,

I used to think there was.

Tell me that I'm cutthroat,

I think you got your eyes closed.

Feel the fear and swallow back the tears,

Let weakness disappear.

There's nobody but me here,

The killer in the mirror.

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror.

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror.

Where did all of the good people go?

They hide behind the bars on windows.

In hopes they can forget we're close,

Tryna get some of what they've got.

'Cause I used to believe in justice,

A place where there was better judgement.

But now I'm feeling so disgusted,

By the "have its" and the "have nots".

Get back, put your hands up, kinda messed up, but it's tough luck,

And I'm sorry, but I don't feel bad for you.

'Cause I know if you could switch this,

You'd be dishing out the same shit,

Saying sorry, but I don't feel bad.

Now I know there's no one I can trust,

I used to think there was.

Tell me that I'm cutthroat,

I think you got your eyes closed.

Feel the fear and swallow back the tears,

Let weakness disappear.

There's nobody but me here,

The killer in the mirror.

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror.

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror.

Knock 'em in the teeth now,

Never let your guard down.

Get some of what they've got,

"Have its" and the "have nots".

Knock 'em in the teeth now,

Never let your guard down.

When they step in your house,

Knock, knock, knock, knock 'em all the fuck out.

Now I know there's no one I can trust,

I used to think there was.

Tell me that I'm cutthroat (yeah, tell me that I'm cutthroat),

I think you got your eyes closed (I think you got your eyes closed).

Feel the fear and swallow back the tears,

Let weakness disappear.

There's nobody but me here,

The killer in the mirror.

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror (killer in the mirror).

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror (kill, oh yeah).

Feel the fear and swallow back the tears,

Let weakness disappear.

There's nobody but me here,

The killer in the mirror.

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror.

Killer in the, killer in the, killer in the mirror.

Next chapter

Taglist

@andiebeaword @muffin-cup @takeyourleap-of-faith @dirtytissuebox @smurphyse @ssa-uglywhore27 @thebloomingeagle @dreatine @dr-spencerr-reidd @spenxerslut @radtwinkie @drayshadow @this-is-doctor-and-its-calm @safespacespence @matthew-gray-gubler-lover @people-whatabunchofbastards @justreadingficsdontmindme @dielgonacoffee @hotchandspencearedilfs @spencer-reid-wonderland

[heyclickadee]

So, I’ve been trying to square the idea that The Bad Batch is from Omega’s perspective with the fact that there are a lot of things we, the audience, see happening, but are never addressed, because they’re things with which Omega never interacts. And of course it’s not literally from Omega’s perspective. There are sequences and two entire episodes she isn’t there there to see. Something that could be interesting, though, is if this show is from Omega’s perspective in the sense that things can happen without Omega, but they’re never pulled together or unpacked until it’s time for her to do so.

So, for example: We get a scene in “Faster” between Millegi and Cid in which Millegi calls Cid on her old habits of throwing people under the bus (“Hustlers like us never change.”) Cid is actually offended by this and replies with, “I might surprise you.”

There are two important things about this moment. One, we’re given a little bit of insight into Cid and the fact that she seems to want to have changed—she doesn’t want to be the person who stabs people in the back. Two, this moment is here entirely for the benefit of the audience. None of our main characters are here to witness this, so it’s not something that leads them to accept the idea that she’s changed only to be shocked when she betrays them later on. The thing they hear from Millegi is, “Watch your backs.” None of them was ever given a reason to doubt that—not even Omega, who seems to like Cid well enough and will go to bat for her, but still knows she’s not that trustworthy.

But we, the audience, are given a reason to doubt that Cid will betray them. A small reason, in that scene between her and Millegi, but a reason still. What plays out, however, is what everyone expected; Cid betrays the batch at the worst possible moment, surprising absolutely no one. Millegi’s, “Watch your backs,” plays, even though it’s not something we needed to hint that Cid would sell them out; Cid’s, “I might surprise you,” the hint that’s there just for the audience, never comes full circle.

Except…it’s not just empty, either. We do get a few hints that Cid doesn’t really want to betray the batch, that she may have been trying to get them to stay away, and several fairly big indications that she hates herself for what she’s done while the betrayal is playing out. (She looks less than proud, let’s say, when she takes the money from Hemlock, and blurting out a half-confession, half-justification to Wrecker in the first place.) So it is actually consistent in that, as suggested in her scene with Millegi, she’s unhappy being the person who stabs people in the back; but because we follow up on the other foreshadowing, and because Omega doesn’t see Cid again by the end of the non-epilogue portion of the show (she could have seen Cid in the gap; anything could happen in the gap), we never get a moment where Cid surprises us by explicitly showing that she’s changed. It’s not something that gets dropped or changed as much as it’s something that stays consistent, but doesn’t come full circle.

And there’s a lot in The Bad Batch that’s like this. We do, for example, see moments showing that Hunter, despite being a good man trying his best, is flawed and practically kneecaps himself with indecision and crippling self-doubt. Because of what Omega’s relationship with Hunter is, however, we never quite get around to unpacking that. She sees Hunter the way a lot of younger kids see their parents, so his flaws remain present rather than explored. that and instead unpack his relationship with her. Crosshair, despite his incredible redemption arc, ends the series with a lingering sense of guilt and a feeling that he deserves to die; but because of how Omega sees Crosshair—as someone who has made mistakes but who is, at the end of the day, her beloved little brother—we never quite unpack the source of his guilt or his turn from being implicitly to explicitly suicidal. We see clues and signs that Tech might have survived the fall—including one metatextually from Omega herself—but because all these clues are directed at the audience and go unseen by most of the cast, especially Omega (who doesn’t know she’s in a story where literary devices exist), we don’t ever deal with them. We see the build up with Rex, the senate, and something that looks like it’s leading to a clone rebellion, but we only really deal with the implications in moments that directly impact Omega’s story, like Echo leaving. And so on and so on—we could pick this apart for ages.

Whether or not this is a criticism, though, depends entirely on the framework. For example: If The Bad Batch as is really is the whole story and there’s nothing else, and never was anything else, then, yeah, it’s a disaster. It’s not just tripping on the finish line, it’s losing the race because you kept turning down dead end streets and having to climb over buildings to get back on the racetrack.

If, however, there does end up being more and we’re really at the end of part one of however many parts there are, what we’re looking at was never thought of as an ending, and what we’re getting is going to come with a bit of a POV shift away from Omega (not that she won’t appear at all, but that she won’t be the POV character), then it could all end up being a phenomenal piece of storytelling in the long run. I mean—I’m actually annoyed at how well it could work if they actually pulled something like that off. There’s still criticism to be had, but my criticism would be more focused on terrible audience management driven by an obsession with spoilers, the social media/marketing around the show being what it was, and a failure to really nail the transition with an episode that really seems to have been written more as a season finale (we didn’t get a long finale, I’m convinced we just got episodes 15 and 16 smushed together, and “The Cavalry Has Arrived” was just the title of the episode 16 that got applied to both), but had to also function as a series finale without being allowed to resolve anything but the Hunter-Omega arc. Basically, fumbling the transition between chapters somewhat rather than fumbling everything.

And the second one is what I lean towards, partly because it is weirdly consistent, and partly because despite the many (many) characters, plots, and subplots being left unresolved, none of it really has the hallmarks of something that ran out of either time or budget (at least, I don’t think so, now that I’ve been unable to stop thinking about it for two months). Things that run out of time usually cram all the resolution that they can into as little time as possible, and there were ways to resolve everything in the “terrible but at least still resolved” fashion by adding a couple of lines or even a voice over from Omega in the silent parts of the epilogue (cheapest, fastest solution and it could have done late, after everything else was locked down, any time before the episode was uploaded). Things that run out of budget usually cut anything that’s expensive—like, for example, a ten minute multi-character fight scene with particle effects that doesn’t have a plot reason to even be there unless we’re not actually done with the CX plot yet. Or rain. Or an outdoor set that only appears in one episode for three minutes.

TL; DR: I actually think there’s something interesting going on with the storytelling here if we’re not actually done with the story yet, but also it would be really nice to know for sure if there’s anything more coming because it’s either amazing or terrible and there’s nothing in between.

[hbyrde36]

Life is a Game (and True Love is a Trophy)

Chapter 15 (FINAL)

Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8

Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 11 Ch 12 Ch 13 Ch 14 ao3 link

*Steve*

The steady beeping of a heart monitor was the first sign Steve had that he was still alive. He came around painfully slow, the sharp smell of disinfectant removing any lingering doubt about where he was.

Someone gasped. “He is waking up!”

That sounded like his sister—It sounded like Eleven! 

Steve desperately tried to open his eyes, strained to lift his head but it was as if every part of him was made of lead. 

“I told you he would.” A much deeper voice said, soothing and calm.

Eddie. 

Oh god, Eddie. 

The two people he loved most in the world were right there and he couldn't even manage to open his fucking eyes. He wanted to cry, only managing a strangled whimper.

What had happened? How were they even here? Was it safe? The hospital was too public, someone would see!

The last thing he remembered were slimy tendrils winding around his limbs, vines holding him down—choking. Vecna looming over him. 

Steve’s heart raced, the sound of the monitor broadcasting his panic to the room as its once even rhythm grew faster and more erratic.

The palm in his, which he hadn’t felt until just then, squeezed, and he felt the soft press of lips to the back of his hand.

“It’s alright, sweetheart.” Eddie’s breath ghosted over his skin as he spoke. “Everything is alright—It’s over.”

It was enough.

Enough to let him relax, to allow himself to slip back into a restful state. Lighter now,  sleep rather than true unconsciousness. He had so many questions, and he wasn’t totally without worry but if Eddie said it was alright—he believed him. 

Some time later, minutes or hours, he woke again—the heavy feeling in his body almost gone and he was finally able to blink his eyes open. 

Bright fluorescent lights and white ceiling tiles filled his vision at first, and then a familiar face with big brown eyes and a halo of unruly dark curls came into view as Eddie stepped close, hovering over him. 

His boyfriend grinned, bright and beautiful. Steve smiled back, couldn’t not, the tubes delivering oxygen through his nose tickling his upper lip. He reached up to pull it off his face and tried to sit up. Eddie's hands were on him in a flash, lifting and helping to settle him into a sitting position, at the same time El appeared at his side, sliding a spare pillow behind his back.

“El,” He sobbed her name, reaching for her over the side rails of his bed, pulling her into a half hug as best he could manage.  

She pulled back too soon and began looking him over, concern pinching her small features.“How are you feeling?” 

“Fine,” he rasped, throat dry. Again Eddie was right there, ready with a cup of water, bringing the straw up to his lips. “Thank you,” he said, sounding much clearer after a few greedy gulps of the cool liquid.

Steve looked around, noticing for the first time that the three of them were not alone. Wayne sat a few feet away in the corner of the room, giving them space for their reunion but watching on fondly. 

Suddenly Eddie’s hands were back, warm where they touched his cheek, this time gently placing the tubes back over his face. Steve frowned up at him. 

“You were in that place for a full day, we have no idea what kind of shit you breathed in—when he allowed you to breathe. Humor me, okay?” He was still putting on a happy face but Steve didn’t miss the way Eddie’s voice shook.

He nodded meekly, sliding their hands back together, and grabbed onto El with the other—thankful his IV line was long enough to reach.

“What happened?” He asked.

Eddie bit his lip. “Are you sure you want to hear this now?” He sounded nervous.

“Go on,” Wayne prodded, finally rising from his seat to join the vigil at Steve’s bedside. “Tell him all about how you two idiots decided to go on suicide missions.”

Steve snapped his gaze back to Eddie, eyes bouncing between him and El as his blood turned to ice in his veins. “What does he mean suicide missions?”

Eddie sighed deeply, sharing a heavy look with El, both of them still clinging to Steve’s hands. “I think we’d better start at the beginning.”

Hesitantly, they explained to him how they’d woken in the morning to find him gone from the cabin, and after searching the surrounding woods, slowly began to put the pieces together. Eleven told him how she’d searched and searched and come up with nothing, how Eddie dove head first into recovering his memories, desperately hoping it would lead to anything that might be useful. 

Though it clearly seemed to pain him, Eddie told him every detail of what he’d learned—that Henry might be his father, about his fickle powers—how he’d seen that something was coming but made no move to stop it—that in the end he’d run, leaving Eleven behind to fight the monster all on her own.

Finally, they both admitted to him how they’d snuck out of their beds, each thinking it was their responsibility alone to fix things, not wanting to risk anyone else, only to literally bump into each other in the Upside Down. Somehow, Steve wasn’t surprised. 

Inwardly, he sighed. At least they’d been together.

Outwardly, he fumed. “What were you thinking?!”

“I had to!” Eddie insisted sharply. He tried to pull his hand out of Steve's grip and turn away, but Steve held strong, refusing to let him hide. “I—can’t you see this is my fault? All of it?”

“You were a kid, Eddie.”

Eddie scoffed. “You mean the spawn of evil?”

“Even if he was your father, you are the furthest thing from evil there is. None of this is on you, baby.”

Steve froze, realizing what he’d said, and belatedly, the way they’d been acting with each other in the short time he’d been awake. He’d never gotten the chance to talk to Eleven before he was tricked away into the night. 

“El, I–”

“She knows.” Eddie interrupted, ducking his head shyly.

A wide smile spread across the young girl's face. “Eddie said that some people will not like it, and it might have to be a secret to anyone who is not our friend, but I am so happy for you!”

Steve smiled too. “That means a lot, El—and that’s true. Some people just can’t accept what’s different.”

She shook her head “I do not understand why your love should be any different from anyone else’s.”

Steve’s face grew hot, shoulders tense as his mind zeroed in on her use of the L word. “Oh, uh, well, we haven't said–” He stuttered, chancing a quick glance at Eddie, finding his eyes gone soft, shining, and full of such sincere affection— and Steve knew he must look exactly the same. 

Maybe they hadn't said the words yet, but there was no point in denying that the feeling was there—though they’d known each other such a short time. They’d get to the words eventually.

Wayne wound up finishing the rest of the story. He spoke of himself and the others figuring out what Eddie and El had done—how they rallied and gone into the Upside Down to help. He glossed over most of the details of the fight, which Steve was grateful for, but assured him that Henry was dead and everyone else was alive. The only thing that really mattered. 

Hopper had gotten pretty banged up. He’d make a full recovery, but was being treated in another room on the same floor—and though Wayne didn’t say it, Steve could see that the man’s own movements were stiff, and knew it meant he'd fought tooth and nail for them too. 

He’d also caught sight of the ligature marks around El and Eddie’s necks, and couldn't help wondering what other bumps and bruises Eddie was hiding under his clothes.

“Thank you, Wayne. For everything—but most of all for keeping these two safe.” Steve said when the man was done, inclining his head. “I do have a few questions.”

Wayne nodded. “I reckon it’s more than a few, but go ahead.”

“What about Brenner, and the lab—whatever’s left of the program anyway. Isn't it dangerous for us all to be out in public like this? What do we do now?”

There was a swift knock on the doorframe that seemed to come in direct reply to his question, as well as a familiar face walking hesitantly into the room wielding a clipboard and a thick envelope. 

“I think I might be able to help answer that.” Doctor Owens said, stopping short at the end of Steve’s bed.

Steve stared at him in disbelief. “Doc?” He said nervously, a little unsure if he should be relieved to see the man or bracing for a fight. 

Eddie squeezed his hand. “It’s okay, he’s been helping us. You were right, he’s one of the good ones.”

“Trying to be, anyway,” Owens deflected, tilting his head. “I still have a lot to make up for, and not just to the people in this room.” 

“What about the fire? How did you..?”

“The lab was mostly deserted at the time. Brenner had all hands out in the community looking for the two of you when he realized Eleven was gone. It’ll be blamed on a chemical spill, but we know now that the fire was due in part to Henry’s reopening of the gate in the basement.”

Owens paused, looking at them all in turn.

“First, I want to assure you that you’re all safe. I’ve flipped, as the saying goes, on Brenner, given him up to the government and told them everything they need to make sure he’ll pay for what he’s done. I’m sad to say the program was state sanctioned, but they don’t look kindly on their scientists going rogue, leaving deaths unreported, hiding valuable assets. It’s not what he should be prosecuted for, but at least it’s something—assuming he’s left alive long enough for a trial.”

“That takes care of Brenner, but what about the others, there must be files, film?” Eddie asked.

“All of which was officially lost in the fire. Records will show that the subjects known as Five and Eleven died in the blaze. Speaking of records—”

Owens pulled a folder from his clipboard, holding it out to Eddie. “I have something for you, if you still want to know the truth.” 

Eddie took the file with shaking hands, flipping it open straight away. His eyes were guarded at first, hesitant as they flicked over the pages, but the corners of his mouth slowly lifted as he read on.

“Where are they now?” Eddie asked abruptly.

Owens gave him a sympathetic look, mouth set into a thin line as he shook his head.

Eddie’s shoulders slumped. “They’re dead, aren't they?”

“I’m sorry, truly. They both overdosed a few years ago.”

“What’s going on?” Steve asked.

“Henry—it was a lie. He wasn’t my…” Eddie shook his head, a wry smile crossing his face. “I was given up for adoption as a baby. He wasn’t my father, it was a trick.”

Steve reached for him, running a hand over his side. His heart ached, Eddie had to be feeling so torn. 

“They were troubled teen parents,” Owens explained further, “tricked into giving you to Brenner, who was fascinated by the idea of experimenting on an average newborn, thinking they were doing right by their baby and giving him the chance at a better life.”

Eddie swallowed hard, passing the folder back. “You can do what you want with that, shred it I guess. I’ve got Wayne, and so many others now. I'm—it’s alright.”

The Doc nodded as if he understood, giving Eddie one more long look, smiling sadly. “We need to talk about El. She’s going to need a new identity—a name, family connections.”

Eleven gasped, “Does Steve get a new name too?”

Steve, who’d been busy worrying about Eddie, perked up at that, excited at the prospect of no longer being a Harrington, and maybe being able to call Eleven his sister for real. He looked at Owens expectantly.

“We’re using your disappearance and subsequent return as part of the cover story I'm afraid, and after speaking with Mr. Munson,” He gestured at Wayne with his clipboard. “I thought all of you might like to stay, in Hawkins that is. It would be hard to pass yourself off as someone else with such a recognizable face, Steve. Don’t you think?”

Steve whipped his head back around to look at El and Eddie, and found the other boy gaping at him right back, a matching look of shock on his face. 

“We get to stay?” Eddie’s voice wobbled as he posed the question. It was aimed at Owens but he never took his eyes off Steve.

“I don’t see any reason why not. As far as the public knows, a John Doe—Steve—you were staying at the lab and being treated for amnesia. You got lost running to evacuate the building in the fire, and Eddie here found you injured and wandering in the woods. He and his uncle recognized you, and brought you to the hospital where you were treated for smoke inhalation. It explains why Mr. Carver saw you at Eddie’s trailer the other night, as I understand it he’s been raising a fuss about that, and leaves you free to keep your own identity and re-enter society.”

“Well, if I'm staying… me, can I adopt Eleven? I’m over eighteen. I mean, I couldn't be her parent, but I'm already her brother in all the ways that count. Can’t we make that true?”

“That would, unfortunately, necessitate your parents' involvement, since she’d have to take their name.”

“Oh.”

“I did have another solution in mind.” Owens took a step towards Wayne, offering him a thick brown envelope. “If you’re interested in becoming an Uncle again, that is.”

Wayne undid the clasp, pulling out the first bit of paper he put his hands on. It was a birth certificate. He huffed a joyful laugh, turning it around to show the rest of them. 

The page read: Jane Eleanor Munson.

And bore the same names for mother and father that’d been used for Eddie’s forgery, making them full blooded siblings in the eyes of the law.

“Jane Eleanor—El—Munson, I like it.” Eddie beamed. 

“What d’ya say Ellie, you wanna live with me and Eddie for good?” Wayne asked.

El looked from Wayne to Steve and back again, her bottom lip trembling. “But, what about Steve?”

“Well I can't adopt him, honey, he’s over 18,” Wayne said, then lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper, “and I think Eddie would kill me If I made Steve family before he could do it himself.”

“Wayne,” Eddie groaned. 

El giggled. 

“I’d love for you to both come live with us.” Wayne met Steve’s eyes, and he knew the man meant it. “But what about your folks?”

“They didn’t come back when I was missing, I don't see them wanting to be part of my life now that I'm back.”

“The hospital staff has called and left several messages for them,” Owens cut in. “Last I heard, they hadn’t called back.”

It probably should have been upsetting to hear, but Steve couldn’t bring himself to care. They certainly never had. 

“That’s that then. I think we’re gonna need a bigger trailer, kids.” Wayne said.

“Keep looking through that envelope.” Owens advised, chuckling. “It’s not much, only a three bedroom, but It was the best I could do.” 

Wayne rifled through the rest of the paperwork, and sure enough tucked in with El’s documents was the deed to a house on Cherry street, and if Steve wasn’t mistaken it was right next to Max and Robin’s houses. 

-

As bad as things had been before, not just during his time at the lab, but as far back as he could remember—his all but meaningless existence as the forgotten son of Richard and Lorraine Harrington—in the aftermath of Henry’s defeat and the gain of their new-found freedom things were better than Steve could ever have dreamt.

Life was good.

It wasn’t perfect, of course.

It took time to adjust to their new normal, to stop living in survival mode and just be. 

The new house was a bit of a fixer-upper, with ancient wiring and a water heater that only worked half the time—and it took months for the gossip about Steve’s sudden return, the whispers and rumors about why he was suddenly living with the Munson’s—not to mention their other new addition, to die down. 

But none of that mattered when they were happy. 

For the first time in her life, El got to be a kid. They enrolled her in school, enlisting Nancy, Chrissy, and Robin to tutor her in the subjects she struggled with—which was most of them—but that was okay. She loved it. And though Steve worried, because he knew how cruel kids could be, with Max, Dustin, and the other boys as her guard dogs, he was sure Eleven would be just fine. 

Eddie, for his part, tried to go back to school, but he’d barely been scraping by with a passing grade before Steve had come along, and with all the days of school missed because of his refusal to leave Steve’s side for at least two weeks after his release from the hospital, he’d lost any chance of graduating.

There was no sign of his powers after the battle with Henry. When Steve asked him about it, Eddie told him how in a fit of despair and hopelessness he’d caused a powerful psychic blast that had finally put Henry down long enough for them to set him alight, finishing him for good. They kept waiting for it to return, but even months later Eddie hadn’t had so much as a weird dream. If his visions did come back, they’d deal with it, but he was perfectly fine living his life without random and confusing glimpses into the past, present, and future. 

Going back to Hawkins high hadn’t been a viable option for Steve. He was told he’d have to repeat his junior year, as well as go through a senior year, and was advised that getting a GED was his best foot forward given the circumstances. Uncle Wayne had raised hell down at the school, finding it unbelievable that they wouldn’t give him a break, but Principal Higgins was unrelenting. 

Steve didn’t mind, he and Eddie could do it on their own. They could study and take the test together. It felt right to take that step into the next part of their lives as a team.  

They got jobs. 

When they weren’t busy preparing for the big test, Steve was working at Family Video. Robin managed to get him the job with her after promising her boss Keith that he’d be a magnet for curious babes wanting to see the returned heartthrob in person. And Eddie found a place as an apprentice at an auto body shop, quickly discovering that he had a knack for engines. He loved working with his hands—and Steve secretly loved how he’d come home smeared with grease, filthy and smelling of motor oil.   

They made love for the first time while camping out by Skull Rock. A special place that held so much meaning for them now. Somewhere they often went to be alone, to escape the house when El was home and Max was over and Wayne was bustling around and their need for each other was too much to hide soft and silent behind thin walls. 

They’d logged countless hours thoroughly exploring each other’s bodies with hands and mouths. Months of learning the taste of each other, the feel, what touch worked best to bring each of them to the brink. But the first time Steve pushed his way inside, the first time their bodies were joined as close as two people could be, it was with the stars and Skull Rock as their witness.

Steve took care in opening Eddie up, not wanting his first time to be anything other than exquisite pleasure. He worked his fingers inside the tight heat of Eddie’s body, his movements slow and sweet and gentle—teasing, until Eddie’s legs were shaking and he was begging Steve to just fuck him already—needing the closeness—needing Steve. And Steve gave himself happily—thoroughly. He showed Eddie how much he loved him with every thrust, gazing into his eyes until they both lost themselves to the ecstasy of their release. 

The first time they said the words was under the same stars, the same night’s sky when they were spent and sated, sweat still drying on their skin as they curled around each other inside their shared sleeping bag, on the edge of drifting off. 

“I love you.” Steve breathed the words into the skin of Eddie’s shoulder, punctuating them with a tender kiss. 

Eddie nuzzled his face further into Steve’s neck, grazing teeth over his pulse point before whispering back, “I love you too.”

-

It had been a nerve-wracking six weeks to the day since they’d taken the high school equivalency test. 

Eddie was convinced he had failed, not that he needed the slip of paper to continue training as a mechanic, the guys at the shop had already promised him a full time job when he was done, but it was the principle of the thing. 

Steve was… cautiously optimistic about his chances. After everything, he finally knew what he wanted to do with his life. He wanted to help people, kids like El who’d had no one looking out for her best interests, but in order to become a social worker he needed to go to college, and in order to get into college he needed this GED.

It had become a daily ritual, checking the mail together before dinner, waiting for their fate to arrive in matching envelopes. 

El joined them today, and they let her have the honor of opening the rusty mailbox. She flipped the lid down, and there they were, mixed among the sales flyers and a past due electric bill, two large white mailers bearing their names and the words, do not bend, stamped on the front 

They traded packets, carefully tearing into them for each other at the same time.

Eddie let out a powerful whoop, loud and ecstatic.

“I knew it! Sweetheart, you did it! I knew you could do it. I'm so proud of you.”

Steve broke out in a deep blush, turning Eddie’s own results around to show him as well. “So did you, baby.” 

“No shit!” Eddie gasped. 

Steve reached for him, at the same time Eddie reached back, and if they hadn’t been out on the street would have pulled him into a kiss and not let him go until they were both too out of breath to continue. For now he settled for gripping his boyfriend's arm and smiling down at his sister. Her joy for them evident in the way she jumped up and down clapping her hands at the good news. He couldn’t wait to tell Wayne.

It would never stop amazing Steve how he could have stumbled upon something so wonderful and beautiful in the middle of the worst time in his life. Nothing had been the same since the night he found Eleven wandering in the rain, and even knowing what he’d gone through, the pain he’d endured, he knew he’d do it all again if it meant he’d end up right here with his new family, the love of his life, and his sister, finally safe, by his side. 

Thanks forever to @penny00dreadful for being the best friend, cheerleader, and beta in the whole fucking world💜

Taglist: @newtstabber @goodolefashionedloverboi @adaed5 @buckleybarnes @soaringornithopter @eddie-munsons-lunchbox @bestwifehaver @5ammi90 @sofadofax @ellietheasexylibrarian @manda-panda-monium @hardboiledleggs @epiclazershark @herebedragons404 @estrellami-1 @paintsplatteredandimperfect @the-s-is-silent @brbsoulnomming @goinsteddie @steddie-there @yeahhhh-suga @thestarslittleking

[deancasbigbang]

Title: Don't Call Me Angel

Author: butterflyslinky

Artist: Diminuel

Rating: Explicit

Pairings: Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester, Brief Dean/Benny Lafitte, Mentioned Dean/Lisa Braeden, Past Castiel/Lily Sunder, Past Castiel/Crowley, Mentioned Castiel/Unnamed Others, Mentioned Dean/Ash, Mentioned Dean/Lee Webb

Length: 51170

Warnings: Canon-Typical Violence, Discussion of Murder and Suicide, Minor Character Death, Mentioned Dubious Consent

Tags: HunterCorp AU, Female!Castiel, Mark of Cain, Series Rewrite

Posting Date: October 2, 2023

Summary: On his first solo case for HunterCorps, Dean runs into a freelancer known as Cass Teyal. Dean quickly falls for her, and soon finds himself embroiled in two much bigger cases: preventing the Apocalypse, and figuring out exactly what Cass is hiding.

Excerpt: The cemetery was, as expected, dark, creepy, and full of dead stuff. Dean walked through it, looking at every grave for disturbances. So far, all of them seemed fairly normal, but Dean knew better than to think that meant anything. He headed for the crypt. If this was a ghoul, that would be a good place to look. The door was open when Dean reached it. He groaned and headed inside. “Cass?” “Wondered when you’d show.” She was standing toward the back, apparently looking around, though she didn’t have any sort of light. Dean shown his flashlight at the wall, searching for any irregularities. “You’re going to have to be faster if you want to compete.” “You’ve been drinking,” Dean protested weakly. “You shouldn’t be out here.” “I’m not even slightly intoxicated. I was just waiting for it to get dark.” She looked him up and down again. “See you stopped to change out of the pretty clothes.” “Hunting is messy.” “Hm.” She kept staring at him, her gaze piercing. “You know my name, pretty boy…what’s yours?” “Dean,” Dean said distractedly. “Got scratches here.” He shone his light on the spot. “Yes, I spotted them…nothing behind there. Dean who?” “Dean Winchester…where is it, then?” “Probably stalking out another victim in whatever skin it’s wearing. You’re John’s son.” “Yeah…you know him?” “He keeps trying to recruit me. But I work alone, and not for money. Come on.” Dean blinked, but followed Cass out of the crypt. She walked through the cemetery with a steady, long stride, not even looking back to make sure he was following. “Wait!” Dean jogged and caught up to her, his confusion evident. “You’re sure it’s not in there?” “Very. This is a shapeshifter, not a ghoul. Which means it probably set up somewhere more comfortable.” “How do you know?” “I looked at the victims. No bites, just slices. The cemetery’s just a dumping ground. Very considerate, actually.” “Considerate?!” “Well, it’s putting them where they’d end up eventually. It seems better than dumping them in alleys like most monsters.” “No, Cass, better would be not murdering people!” “Obviously. But if you must be killing people, the least you can do is make clean-up easier.” “Right.” Dean shook his head a bit. “So where are we going?” “Somewhere we can look at a map. I want to triangulate where the victims lived.” “Okay…we can go to my suite, it’s got a big table.” Cass looked amused. “Why, Mr. Winchester, are you inviting me up to your room?” “For the case. If you won’t back off, we’ll have to work together, and I’m going to wring as many billable hours out of it as I can.” “You do that, pretty boy…lead the way.”

DCBB 2023 Posting Schedule

[jaxxsoxxn]

Funny scene imagine it

Boomerang and Bart talking about anything and having fun

Hal huh? Who knew that kangaroo actually is good with kids can you believe that Barry 

Barry looking at boomerang like he’s the only person in this room hal knowing that look too well

Screams out Flash no are goddamn serious. Barry caught off guard. Wait what

hal of all of the men in this world and the women him why him Barry looks at the hand that he pointing at to boomerang wait no no no no no no no that’s no oh don’t lie to me I know that look Barry I don’t like him like that I promise hal you sure cause your face is turning red OK fine so it’s not a big deal a big deal. He’s a criminal well your girlfriend was once a criminal your ex-girlfriend you did not pull that card Barry I did. Hal

Come back to boomerang then Bart what the bloody hell are they screaming about I don’t know should we go stop them boomerang no kid let’s see this play out.

—🐌

Henlo Snail Anon! :D why won't I write the scene out a little ;>

Also, poor Wally, he didn't connect the dots yet :')

~~~

Bart and Digger share few things with each other - their hatred to boredom, their inability to think some things trough and stop moving being one of those, so when Barry sees them meet, he honestly expected them to at least understand each other.

The Suicide Squad (or something something force X) is helping Justice League with some type of mission, which is centered around the Bat, so unsurprisingly not many of them know exactly what is the mission about or what is the danger they are helping with, but it leads to the squad meeting up with a lot of sidekicks.

Of course all the Robins know Harley and Deadshot, Aquaboy or however he's called at the moment also know King Shark.

(said Villain waves at the kid almost shyly and Barry can see Hal roll his eyes in fondness - man was always weak for animals and after sitting trough Guy's drunk rants about sharks and how they're misjudged, he might've grew a soft spot for them which he's not proud of)

Surprisingly for him, Wally barely even knows Boomer. He blinks few times after somebody mentioned that Captain Boomerang was a Flash Rouge and looks closer, which causes few of the more vigilant sideckis to stop in their tracks and look from Kid Flash to the villain.

Digger, being one of the first to notice Wallies confusion, scowls visibly and just averts his eyes. Flash couldn't stop the slight grimace at the scene, feeling bad for the man. That is, until Bart, always his actions faster than his thoughts (though he's learning to do better) gets inside their meeting place and starts running circles around Boomer.

"Cap! Cap! Cap!" a show of affection in his way, chanting his nickname and running circles, while every person that can see above Bart could notice Digger bite back a fond smile.

His Speedforce gauntlet shines lightly while he grabs the kid behind his neck and pulls him up with an amused huff.

"Me, me, me." he repeated after the boy, slowly letting him down.

Somehow, ignoring the shock of few people around them, the two jump into conversation like it's their second nature. Bart still moves around like normally, but Digger does the same, if slightly slower.

When they finally stop for a second, all people can decipher is "Barry talks about ya do much." and then they brush it off, continuing.

Hal, gods bless Hal, doesn't notice it. He's smirking slightly, pointing at their general direction with his hand, while with the other he practically hangs himself on Barry.

"Who could've guessed that the kangaroo is good with kids! Especially since he put bombs in two of 'em..." he wants to carry on, but he can't help but catch the way his friend stares at his Rouge.

Barry has a light smile on his face, soft and so admiring that it's almost loving. His eyes are squinted and shining with delight at every silly joke Boomer and Bart make to each other. Green Lantern's jaw is on the floor so quickly, that he could be mistaken for a speedster himself.

"No, Barry, no." he shakes his friend lightly, to not cause a scene, but his eyes are wide enough for Flash to know he's serious. "Bar, there's no way--"

"What? What's wrong now?" his head moves in his way, he's eyes confused, even if they jump back to Boomer and Impulse whenever a loud cackle or a snort is heard. "What's with you?"

"With me?!" Hal slightly loses the control he had on his tone of voice. "I'm not the one thirsting for a goddamn Villain-!"

Flash stops him with his hand against the other's lips, his eyes darting around the room making sure that no-one heard the man. Somehow in the back of his head he can hear Wally also joining Bart's and Digger's conversation, though he's way more subtle than Impulse.

"Shush! It's not like that, I have no idea-"

A hand grabs his writs and Hal pulls his mouth free.

"Like hell you have no idea! If I'd look at anyone the same way you look at him, you'd probably play wedding bells!"

Barry can feel his face starting to match his suit and he grimaces at the sight of a prideful smirk on GLs face.

"Okay, maybe, but it's not a big deal!" he hissed back at the man, who looks at him like he's the biggest idiot here.

"Not a big deal-?! He's a rouge, your very own one! He tied you to a giant Boomerang once!"

"Okay, first of all, it was the funniest shit ever and it wasn't even that serious, second of all, the name Carol Ferris rings any bells?"

"Oh you did not-!"

"... Does anyone know why Bar and Hal are arguing over there?" Wally asks, staring at the pissy fight his two elders have, somehow in disbelief when Flash grabs the other by the hair and pulls almost lightly.

Bart and Digger don't stop talking about their favourite Just Dance dances for longer than a second, just to shrug at him.

With a heavy sigh, Kid Flash is still trying to put together how does Captain Boomerang know Impulse, since the only person Barry actually talks about is this silly Harkness guy or George, whoever he might be.

[ro-botany]

What was Freddie's reaction to finding out Robin and Grima was the same? Did he feel he was paid enough for everything? How much did he want to say, "I told you so" to Chrom?

(Hi, this is Robot from the future after writing the post. This is a long and unorganized stream of conscious disaster. Please bear with me. I promise I have an actual point to make lol.)

---

In my mind that was a pretty complicated moment for Frederick. In part because the reveal of Robin's nature happens very late in the story, long after Frederick has become friends with Robin and come to trust them as a commander... and in part because depending on which shipping AU I'm in, Robin is likely to be Chrom's partner in marriage, by that point.

Frederick is responsible for the safety of Chrom and Lissa. Whoever those two marry becomes a part of Ylisse's royal family, and thus, Frederick's duty to safeguard the royalty extends to them. If Robin is exalt-consort of the realm, then Frederick is going to protect them. Perhaps not as fervently as he does Chrom and Lissa, given that he hasn't known them since childhood, but it's Frederick, so you know he's putting his full effort into it. The man does nothing by halves.

What happens if the exalt-consort of Ylisse is also the fell dragon? What do you do, what do you even think, when your dear friend's partner, your own close friend, the commander you've trusted your life with for years, the royal you're duty-bound to guard the life and health of... is bringer of the apocalypse?

Oh, he's certainly vindicated in his initial mistrust of Robin, but it's a bitter victory.

And it's made yet more bitter by the fact that Robin was as unaware of it as the rest of them, and as horrified. It wasn't even a betrayal on their part; he can't even direct his anger their way.

I think that at first, and similarly to Chrom, Frederick probably took it at face value that Robin and Grima must be separate entities. From the way Validar talks about it, from the ravine of difference between the Robin he knows and the monstrous fell dragon, it doesn't make sense for them to be the same.

But by the time the Shepherds reach Naga, I think he's clued in to the fact that Grima and Robin are the same person on different paths. He's seen Robin's work firsthand, worked under them for years. He remembers how they defeated the Valmese fleet. He's seeing how they're changing as a person as the battle with their other self draws nearer. He heard Robin exclaim that they are the fell dragon -- not its vessel, but it in its entirety -- and heard the other Robin confirm that. He's the one who calls out the concept of defeating Grima with his own power as suicide, too.

Whenever I think about this I keep coming back to Frederick's pyromanic tendencies, and the fact that he has them so effectively controlled that he can be trusted to set up all the campfires for the Shepherds early in the mornings. Clearly being the reincarnation of the fell dragon god Grima is at a COMPLETELY different scale of severity from his issues... But I think he can relate, to some degree, to having some inherent destructiveness in you, inextricable from you, and how scary it is to face the severe and immediate risk that you may hurt or even kill people you care about, and not necessarily be able to control those terrible actions. He's come to terms with and leashed his demons. But he can also see the world where he failed to.

---

...I guess to answer your first question, about what Fred's reaction would be... Ime Frederick's in a better position than most of the cast to understand the conflict of self Robin is dealing with, and he has a lot of reasons to worry about their fate and to work towards reaching that understanding of them. The initial shock might lead to him trying to soften the reality to preserve his opinion of his friend, but I think he would come around to genuine understanding of their nature faster than many. And that he would ultimately want them to get out of this alive. The reveal of this aspect of their nature doesn't change the fact that they've fought long and hard for what's right.

He would absolutely think "i told you so", but with the amount of trauma the whole plot point deals to the gang, and especially to Chrom, I don't think he would ever seriously consider saying it. Just silently soak in the irony. Stare into the camera like he's on the office.

He absolutely does not get paid enough for this and he knows it. Obviously he cares too much to sit any of this out but gods above, when he signed up to be a knight he didn't think he would be fighting a whole ass deity by the time he was 30.

[hannahwatcheshorror]

DON'T MOVE (2024)

💁‍♀️Strong Female Lead

“See what you made me do?”

We love a title that gives us instructions: Run, Hold Your Breath, Let the Right One In, Talk to Me (Smile, Hush, Swallow)… And I just started watching Yellowstone (which is its own horror story) so I recognized the lead actress in this movie.

⭐⭐⭐.5

(Trigger Warning Suicide Attempt)

Iris goes to the top of a mountain to very heavily consider jumping off but is stopped by a rather odd but kind gentleman who some of us recognize from American Horror Story. After befriending the young man and walking back down the mountain with him she finds his car has parked her in and she can’t really get into hers… All part of his plan as he shocks her into unconsciousness. When she wakes he informs her that the paralytic is already taking its effects, he dosed her while she was sleeping. She has 20 minutes before her body is completely numb and she runs (which only makes the poison in her system work faster), the whole time the mad man follows behind.

She loses him for a moment and thinks she is safe with a kindly old man who was out mowing his lawn but the killer was too clever for all that, found the old man and killed him. He nearly killed her in the process of covering his tracks but the clever girl knew he wanted to save her so that he could have the satisfaction of killing her. In the car ride she finds out the killer is a doting father and husband via a phone call he takes, the whole thing reeks. Reminds me of The Den you have the version you show the world and then the real version of you… Yikes.

Oh, there was a bit with a police officer who almost figured out that Iris needed help but he went the way of all the authority figures in Kristy (aka he made an attempt but ultimately failed). Finally, Iris is taken out in a boat to where she is gonna get killed and she asks her murderer to do something but she gives him a switcheroo and stabs him instead then wrestles him out of the boat and shoots him! It was very impressive of her especially coming off of her paralysis but she powered through because she couldn’t let that fucker kill her! Pretty cool movie, I have some questions about how this guy was doing all his killings but it reminded me of Woman of the Hour just more fictional and fantastical.

[simphellscape]

processing // losing all of it // next | tw: cursing, suicide mention, violence mention

A tense silence fills Armin’s Prius, so much so that he’s actually struggling to breathe. In the time since the worst meeting he’s had in his career, he’s had to stoop to some pretty low places. Having Eren disregard his apology was tough, but this car ride has been excruciating.

No one has heard from Eren in four days. Of course, Armin knew something like this would happen soon after their meeting, but he was hoping it would just be him that was left out in the cold. Unfortunately for him, Jean, Mikasa, and Connie were also a part of that and, naturally, became concerned for their friend. Which leads him to this moment: the band members shifting in their seats and Armin suffocating under their gazes.

Jean breaks the silence: “You promised us an explanation, man.”

“I-I know, just.. give me a second”

Armin inhales deeply. He wishes he had a screen to protect him like last time.

He spends the next several minutes explaining the worst idea he’s ever had. It’s reflex, robotic, and emotionless. It’s how he survives the shame.

He glances in the rear view mirror periodically throughout. The disappointment on Mikasa and Connie’s faces is plain. Unignorable. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see every sigh Jean lets pass his lips, even if the sound doesn’t quite make it to his ears. Yes, this is remarkably worse for him than last time. Yes, he knows he deserves it.

“I can’t believe that you trust us that little, Armin,” Mikasa mutters.

“It’s not that, I—“

“But it is, man,” Connie interjects, “If you did, you’d let us help you.”

“That’s definitely why Eren’s so pissed,” Jean sighs.

“What I don’t get is why he’s so upset with us,” Mikasa mumbles.

Armin can tell that Eren’s vow of silence has bothered her most. Based on the angry red rings around her eyes, she’s worried. Perhaps for his life.

When they arrive, Eren’s apartment is dark. There are Amazon packages on the stoop. It’s clear that no one has been in or out for a while. Shuffling up the walkway, Armin’s heart beats ever faster, afraid of what lies behind the door. He has never faced a consequence so daunting before.

Jean knocks on the door three times in rapid succession. They wait, praying for some sign of life. Nothing happens.

Jean sighs and tries the doorknob. Surprisingly, it’s not locked. They tiptoe across the living room, wordless.

Eren’s bedroom looks as though a bomb went off inside of it. There are bits of paper, torn and crumpled, strewn across nearly every surface. Splintered drumsticks litter the floor, and so do the remains of Eren’s cell phone. It’s clear he demolished it, it’s possible it was with his own two hands. Everyone’s eyes scan the room, finally landing on Eren’s bed. He lays there, face down.

Mikasa’s breath shudders as she nudges Jean forward into the room.

He clears his throat.

“Eren? Hey bro, you alright?”

A pillow flies across the room, landing squarely on Jean’s chest.

“Get out,” Eren asserts, voice muffled by his mattress.

“Really? Armin told us everything, he said he’s sorry, so just—“

“Oh, yeah, Armin’s sorry! Everything is just fine now because Armin’s sorry.”

Eren, now sitting up in his bed, looks terrible. His hands, cut and bruised, toss his comforter to the floor. His hair clings to his sweaty forehead. Bloodshot eyes, wide with fury, scan the posse of people standing at his door. With every heave of his chest, the smell of alcohol wafts closer to their noses.

“Oh, fantastic, you’re here too,” he mutters in Armin’s direction.

“I am sorry, Eren, for the record,” Armin adds, shakily.

Eren rolls his eyes.

“I don’t believe you, and it’s way too late for you to be sorry.”

He regards everyone, his expression unchanging.

“I quit. Find a new drummer, and go home.”

“You don’t mean that,” Mikasa stammers, through freshly brewed tears.

“I do, I really do.”

“So you were just gonna ghost your best friends instead of telling us you didn’t wanna be in the band anymore? That’s mature,” Jean fumes.

“We thought you were dead!” Mikasa cries.

“If you guys were my best friends, then maybe you would have noticed I was miserable enough to kill myself a little sooner.”

“Are you serious? You think we didn’t notice?,” Mikasa takes a breath to steady herself, “We thought that making more music would fix that.”

Eren stares at her, so intensely that she starts to shrink underneath his gaze.

“Nothing would make me happier than never seeing any of you again. Fucking traitors.”

With that, he returns to laying face down on his bed. The band shares a look — dumbfounded and heartbroken. All of them know how impossible it is to change Eren’s mind. In tandem, they leave his apartment, lifeless and defeated.

He’s not so sure about everyone else, but Armin can practically see his future crumbling in real time. It was once so bright and clear, but now it is nothing but darkness. He knew he would lose something today. He knew his pride was long lost. His relationship with this band, their trust in him, and his standing in the industry, hangs in the balance. Losing Eren, however, is losing his life. It’s losing all of it.

“Armin.”

Mikasa interrupts his mental flogging. All he can do is look at her.

“Do you still have (y/n)’s number?” she asks.

“Yeah, why?”

“I think we should give her a call.”

She’s right. If there’s anyone left who would get through to him, it’s (y/n).

He immediately fishes his phone out of his pocket and begins to dial.

“Put it on speaker,” she adds, “I want to talk to her too.”

(a/n): triple update, triple ouchie. sorry :(

[best-underrated-anime]

Best Underrated Anime Group A Round 1: #A2 vs #A7

#A2: Girls do DIY together, but after a new industrial revolution

This series takes place after the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Serufu and her childhood friend Miku/“Purin” both applied to an elite school, where advanced technologies are incorporated into the curriculum. The tech-savvy Purin is accepted into the school, but accident-prone Serufu is rejected and enters a traditional school instead, driving a wedge into their friendship.

On her way to class one day, Serufu encounters Rei, who has a passion for old-fashioned crafts and is the head of the school’s Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Club—which is in danger of closing due to a lack of members. Realizing that this may be her chance to repair her relationship with Purin, Serufu joins the club in hopes of creating projects that could bring them together once more.

#A7: Immortal being learns what it’s like to be human

This show is about an immortal being learning of death, life, and what it means to be human. They’re able to shapeshift into anything they create an emotional bond with, but with a cost: if they wish to transform into a living being, including people, that person has to have died.

Titles, propagandas, trailers, and poll under the cut!

#A2: Do it Yourself!!

Propaganda:

It’s just a really feel-good series with some really good characters. I adore all of the characters and their dynamics with each other, especially the main dynamic between Serufu and Purin as it develops. I’m a really big fan of the show’s angle on stuff such as do-it-yourself crafts following another industrial revolution, just because it does frequently bring up the question of “What’s the point of DIY if in a year or two/maybe even now a robot could recreate the exact same result?” through characters like Purin (who is the major character with the lowest opinion on these kinds of crafts at the start, since she’s in the technologically advanced school and has beliefs more in line with the efficacy of technology rather than the joy of human creation), with the short answer largely being because it’s just fun!

I first watched this show before I saw a lot of AI stuff intruding upon art and rewatching it after sure was fun, because I love its ideas on the worth of doing stuff that machinery could do much faster. It’s not super complex or emotional, but that largely goes in its favor, because it really doesn’t need to be those. It’s just a fun little anime about a bunch of girls having fun together through one shared hobby that some of them had from the start and some of them adopted. I also love the opening, and the ending is a massive comfort song for me. The series can also be very funny at points, and is usually super heartwarming.

Trigger Warnings: None.

#A7: To Your Eternity (Fumetsu no Anata e)

Propaganda:

I don’t think I’ve ever watched an anime that has meant so much. Fushi’s journey from being born as nothing and without emotions, to becoming a genuine, real person who loves and cries is so special to me. The constant war he’s in between being too human and being not human at all is written so well—for him to love so much it hurts, leading him to isolate himself for years on end, for him to want to make friends, to love, but too afraid of them leaving and eventually dying to meet anyone new. For him to get so detached from life and death and the cycle it perpetuates that he loses understanding of why human life is so special—why should he save people, if they will die anyway? Why should he save them, if he can just bring them back to life, if he can just become them? The constant cycle of him learning to love again, and learning to treasure life again, only to lose it once he’s experienced death in a new and agonizing way. It’s about love, and it’s about humanity. Always.

Trigger Warnings: Animal Cruelty/Death, Child Abuse, Graphic Depictions of Cruelty/Violence/Gore, Racism, Rape/Non-Con, Self-Harm, Suicide

All TW’s apply to the protagonists, except child abuse and the racism. The world itself has hints of racism/discrimination throughout the anime, and not directly towards the protagonist. As for the rape, an antagonist attempts to rape the protagonist. There is a ton of self harm (protagonist and side characters) and blood as there is a lot of wars also happening in the anime

If you’re reblogging and adding your own propaganda, please tag me @best-underrated-anime so that I’ll be sure to see it.

[m0rbidmacabre]

One For Eternity - Chapter 2

Summary:

Dracopia returns home to his mansion, greeted by his loyal ghouls. He contemplates using a companionship locket to find love and companionship. However, his fire ghoul friend, Dew, advises against it, expressing concerns about free will. Dracopia understands and appreciates Dew's loyalty. Later, Dracopia performs a ritual with the locket, hoping for a faithful companion. Weeks pass with no results, and Dracopia sinks deeper into depression.

Notes:

Hey loves - Just a pre-warning this does get dark at points. so please do look at the trigger warnings, before reading and make sure you take care of yourself. The whole idea for this fic was to push it more horror focused... its one of my other favourite things and i hope you enjoy the build. Please remember that if you have any comments or things that you think might be interesting to add, you can message me here or at any of my other social media pages which are listed at the end. Id love to know your thoughts.

WARNINGS: Vampires, Vampire Bites, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Human/Vampire Relationship, Human/Monster Romance, Blood and Gore, Blood Drinking, Blood and Violence, Dark Magic, Depression, Implied/Referenced Suicide

READ ON AO3

Chapter 2

Dracopia moved through the woods thick and fast, silently, the rain and thunder beating down around him with every swift movement he took leading him closer to home. Darkness beginning to veil everything in sight, the loneliness of the darkness taking his very essence as he moved. He was tired, the fatigue beginning to take its hold on him, the travel had been long and made even longer by only being able to travel under cover of nightfall. He knew the closer he got to home the safer he would be, these mountains held nothing for miles... Just animals, maybe a few witches, more vampires, and weary travellers.

Arriving, he pushed open the heavy gates. The glow of the candles from the mansion lighting the grand gothic entranceway. The ghouls must be home he thought to himself. Most of the remaining ghouls that had stayed by his side were the ones that he was bonded to as a Papa, most ghouls lived for centuries, and he was happy to at least have some familiar scents around him. Since he became a vampire, having their company and knowledge had been invaluable to his survival and he was forever grateful to them for staying by his side. Still as loyal as the first day they had met when they were summoned from the depths of hell. His most loyal friend being Dew, a fire ghoul. Dew had been aging faster the last couple of years, but he was still full of his serious wit and stomping feet. There had been times gone by after his reign as Papa that Dew had saved his life. After his brothers had passed, it was unsafe to stay in the clergy. Vultures had destroyed it, picking at the bones of what they had left of the emeritus bloodline. Like all religions, his beloved church had moved into a money-making scheme that sucked the life out of its worshipers. Gone were the days when the dark lord was the true meaning of light and in had rolled an age of greed and gluttony. They had long put church behind them, although Dracopia still kept true to his faith. He was still a servant of the dark lord and that would never change, he followed his same old ways of ritual practice.

Opening the door, he saw a ghoul stood next to the glowing fireplace. The ghoul’s tail whipping around the flames in the darkness of its glow.

“Welcome Home, you look tired” Dew looked over at Dracopia and gave him a warm smile.

“Si, Si, thank you for reminding me of that Dew” he said running his hands through his sodden wet hair.

“I trust you found what you went looking for?” Dew asked.

“Si, I did.” he replied.

“You should rest, we can set up the ritual when you feel better, you should eat... You look like shit. There are some supplies in the kitchen, I went hunting for you.”

“Ah Dew, you do look after me.” Dracopia smiled a warm glow at the fire ghoul, his fangs appearing over his lower lip.

Dracopia walked into the kitchen and saw a skinned deer hanging from its rafters, before finding the blood Dew had stored for him. He poured it into a crystal glass and walked back through to the fireplace and sat down. The fire glow lighting the room they both stood in.

“So, tell me about your travels? I trust the witch was accommodating.” 

“Si, she was.”

He pulled the package from his pocket. “She suggested trying a companionship locket.”

Dews eyes widened. “You do know that once you use that thing that the person it calls. They will lose all free will?”

“Si, she did mention it. But what choice do I have Dew? My life is bleak.”

“You have me Dracopia, you have us... The ghouls, we are here for you.”

He swills the blood around in his glass... His eyes staring deep into the fire. “That is true my old friend, but you will not be around forever. The depths of hell will call you home one day, just like it has everyone else, I am doomed to an eternity of darkness.”  He sighed, taking a sip from his glass. He could feel his body rejuvenating, healing itself as he consumed the blood of the animal.

The fire ghoul stood glaring at him, shaking his head as if he were having an ongoing internal fight with himself.

“I do not think I can help you Dracopia, I don’t think I can help do that to another living being. What are we without are free will? Meer puppets unable to control what happens to our souls.”

Dracopia looked up and met Dews gaze, tugging a small smile to his lips “It is fine old friend, you don’t have too... your soul is clean and will be kept so. You have done so very much for me since we first met, I could not ask you to do something you do not want to do.”

Dews eyes lowered, Dracopia could tell he was feeling bad about his confession. He pulled himself to his feet and walked towards Dew, cupping his hand softly in his cheek... making Dew meet his gaze. “I said it’s fine, don’t beat yourself up.”

Dew sighed, retreating out of Dracopias embrace, leaving Dracopia alone to his thoughts. Dew never liked to think of what will happen when he passes on, but what Dracopia was saying was the truth. he would not be around forever, but he would not be involved in such dangerous magic... not even for his loyal friend who was so desperate to feel some kind of love and life again. There was a line he firmly did not want to cross.

Dracopia sat with his glass, savouring the taste of the blood he was drinking. He sat into the night watching the embers glow into ashes in the old fireplace, thinking about what he was about to do. The memories of his former life flickering in and out of his mind. He thought about a time when he had met a sweet sister of sin in the church, and the times in the autumn they spent laying in the leaves making love as the seasons changed. He could almost smell her now, lavender... Her curly blonde hair wrapping its way around his fingers as he ran his hands through it. He thought for a moment just how soft her skin was when he tended to it and how soft her lips where when he kissed them. He thought about her often, even now, but their love was doomed before it even had chance to grow, it had not been the right time for love, even though he had wanted it more than anything… His role in the church took centre stage and he ended up breaking her heart. Pulling away from her to make his role as Papa the most successful yet. Spending months and years away from the abbey would not have been good for them both anyway. No, she deserved a normal life... Not a life of loneliness like him. A life Dracopia could not have given her. What did he have to show for it now? Nothing. She was dead now, a life that had been fully lived, with a loving partner and children, recalling her sweet smile when he saw her walking hand in hand with her small children, her glow, her laugh as they she played with them though the abbey. He kept his distance after he had called it quits with her but seeing her like that always made him think… what if? And how it broke his heart. It was just another opportunity missed for him, all he had was his own darkness.

He pulled himself out of his memories and looked across the room at the package on the table. It was time he got this finished. He could not take anymore. Once Dracopias ritual was over, he could relax... and wait. His love would show themselves in time.

He walked over to his alter space in the living room and lit the candles, saying the dark lord’s prayer as each one sprung to life. Lighting a sprig of sage and placing it into a golden bowl in the centre of his alter, he went and retrieved the package, unwrapping it from its confines; the beautiful wood carvings brought back to life by the light of the glowing candles. He thumbed the wood in circles as he whispered “Dark Lord, I ask you to give me strength, I ask you to guide me, I ask you to take this locket and help it fulfil its purpose… I ask you to grant me a faithful companion” a small tear forming in the corner of his eye. he stood in silence with his eyes closed, taking in the smells of the sage and the candles, rubbing his fingers over the locket. He hoped this would be the turning point for him, that the dark lord would send him someone that would not need free will anyway, because all they wanted to do was be by his side for eternity. He wrapped the leather string of the locket around his wrist, making it into a bracelet and held the locket tightly in his hand.

—————————————

It had been a few weeks since Dracopia had done the ritual, he was starting to think that the witch had sold him an item that just did not work, or maybe he was just being impatient. His days dragged by in his own sombre lull, his depression deepening. He had thought about ending his life a few times since that night, starving himself into madness, denying his body the blood it craves, but his animalistic nature always took over and he would wake finding that he had lost control and wandered into the woods, killing an animal or human just to get what his body needed. He had woken on the floor of the mansion with Dew nursing him multiple times. His obsession had only deepened since he bought the locket, it was a constant reminder hanging from his wrist and that is what he wanted it for in the first place. To remind himself, to will this being in existence. Even if turning back now was an option, his mind would not have let him.

Dracopia had given himself some time out in the woods just to feel at peace around nature, to clear his head and often it worked for him even though all the scents of the forest often became overpowering to him and his need to hunt would grow the longer he was there, but he enjoyed the thrill of chasing down his prey in the darkness. So much time had passed now since he had been human, he wasn’t that anymore. He was an animalistic being, one that would hunt for blood, a need to survive and thrive in the darkness of time.

Finding peace for him is being in the wild... it’s quietness, it’s freedom. He lives for the moments that make him feel. This night was no different... he pushed through the woods at speed, weaving in and out of the trees in the darkness. His demons pushing him forward as at high speed. No sounds could be heard other than the call of wolves in the distance, until he heard it, A high-pitched wailing, the sound sending chills down his spine. He stopped moving instantly, His sensitive ears trying to focus on where the sound came from. Trying to home in on the sound before he makes the choice to move. He can hear the heartbeat and the fear in whatever it was this hellish sound had just come from and that was it, he was off.

The sound grows louder the closer he darts towards it, dread and tension filling his cold heart. He stops just before he reaches the source, hiding in the distance, in cover of darkness, trying to make out what was happening before he saw her. It was her! The one he had saved in Brasov. She looked different; something was wrong...  

Her eyes were blank, those big brown eyes that were once filled with so much life and fear were now saturated with malevolence and evil. Her eyes dart about in the dark, she seemed to be alone. He takes a step closer, a twig snapping at his feet. He looks at the twig and then back to the girl. Her eyes had already found him. She knew he was there; she had known the whole time.

Their gazes met and Dracopia came out of the darkness.

“Are you ok? I heard you, I’ve come to help” he said in a hushed low voice as if he wanted to make sure she wouldn’t be afraid of him, to let her know she wasn’t at risk of harm.

She just looked at him, blankness in her stare and she took a few steps towards him. Dracopia took a step back, letting out a low rumble from his chest. The look in her eyes was something he hadn’t seen before, it didn’t seem human, but she was human right? He saved her from those brutes. She needed him then, but right now she looked like she could take him out with a single swipe, and it scared him.

She took another step closer, eyeing him... her gaze and grin looking like a lioness stalking her prey. Dracopia took off, his speed no match for hers as she rumbles through the woods behind him. He tries to lose her, but she was somehow adept at seeing his moves in the dark and she continued to mimic him.

Another moment longer and she would have had him, if it wasn’t for the sudden arrival of Dew, who pounced on her from the dark, she didn’t see or hear him coming. His ghoul nature gave him the upper hand.  Dew bared his teeth and let out a growl and letting her know his strength. He whipped around her, thick and fast, his tail hitting the dip in back of her legs with force sending her to her knees and with one quick punch to her face, sending her into unconsciousness.

“What the fuck was that Dracopia? Who is she? Where did she come from?”

“I’m not sure, I just heard a scream, and I went to investigate. She sounded like she was in pain, that she needed help. I sensed her fear.”

Dracopia leaving out the fact that he had met her before, that he had saved her.

“We should take her back to the mansion, tie her up and find out who she is. It doesn’t seem safe to leave her out here like this… the look in her eyes when she looked at you Dracopia. She looked like she wanted to kill you”.

Dracopia agreed and the two of them set about securing her and moving her back to the mansion. Her dead weight was nothing for the two of them to move; she was small, and it took little to no effort for a ghoul and a vampire. Luckily their chase had led them closer to the mansion than Dracopia had thought which meant them moving her didn’t take long.

They tied her to a chair near the fireplace. Her hair draped down her face, blood dripping from the busted lip that Dew has given her. She looked like something out of a horror movie. She was scrawny, like she hadn’t eaten in days. Covered in mud and dirt, her dress ripped and ragged. She looked like she had been out in the woods for a while with no protection at all from the elements.

Dracopia watched her with great intrigue as she sat in the chair, unaware of what was going on around her. She was beautiful, even in her current state. He wondered if this was the work of the locket or if she had just happened to find herself here. He wondered what had happened to her after he left her in the bar. She looked like she had been through a rough time, that she needed some care, but he was mostly concerned by her actions in the woods.  She appeared to be out for blood, like she hungered for him.  

“Should we wake her?” Dew asked a low growl coming from his stomach.

“No, no... Let her rest. She looks like she needs it” Dracopia hushed.

[acertainmoshke]

New and Improved Writeblr Intro

I didn't really know what I was doing the first time and my WIP priorities have changed, so here we go again.

Call me Moshke Palmoni (they/them). I spend as much time as I can writing, but that is not as much as it might be because there's also a lot of life going on right now. I also like to read, knit, collect vintage ephemera, and play with my cat. Most of my time currently is taken up with fixing up the 100-year-old house I just bought. It's lovely but it was not cared for in the last couple decades and the previous owners made some interesting decisions. I also visit libraries and museums as much as possible.

Active WIPs

(respond to this post to be added to or taken off any taglists!)

General taglist: @blind-the-winds

To Die Among the Stars

First draft about half done at ~50k words.

In the future, 20 people are sent into space on a second test of an FTL drive, aiming for a habitable planet. The first test was a disaster, so this time they’re more careful—the volunteers are only needed for data on how humans fare at faster than light speeds, so they are selected from prisons and “mental wellness centers” and areas where people would agree to a suicide mission for the promise of feeding their families. No one expects them to live, just to provide enough data to improve the next test. Told from 4 POVs: Pixel, a semiverbal black market modder; Ri, who has so many illicit mods embedded in his body he can no longer experience the world the way most people do; Zippy, a young disabled woman desperate to support her family; and Peppermint, a genetic experiment combining human and cat DNA raised in a lab with only a sentient android for company. Despite all expectations, the group bands together for survival.

Taglist: @hd-literature

A Blade of Ice

In the outlining stage.

Working title. Part of the Legends of Halara series, which follows 1,000 years of fantasy kingdom history. About 300 years into that history, Princen Aryel is born. Aryel is never good at going along with expectations but has a certain duty eso must follow to take care of eson kingdom. Aryel is one of three royal children and not expected to rule, but after eson youngest sibling dies relatively young Aryel has to take on the responsibilities of both leading the army in a generation-long war and leading the kingdom through a time of shortages and despair. Aryel often clashes with the noble advisors in ways eson sibling never did, and the balance between who Aryel is at war and who eso is at court is not an easy one. It certainly doesn't help that in a world of politically arranged marriages, Aryel always seems to be in love with the wrong person.

Worldbuilding Links for Halara: cultural genders are explained here (with pictures of clothing styles here) and non-human gender systems here. This is a basic post about their pantheon of deities and this is a post containing maps of all the local kingdoms.

Cold Iron

In the outlining stage.

Shakatra is 107 years old. They are also 33. They are a rare case of a Fae changeling surviving to adulthood without being killed or dying from iron exposure or the weak constitution common among Fae children chosen to be left. They survived long enough to gain magical strength not only beyond any human but beyond many of the more minor Fae. They used to use this to exert power over Wild Fae, to protect humanity, to exact revenge, or just for fun. Now, however, they are widowed and retired with two kids to take care of. Their brother Kris, also their best (only?) friend is equally happy to be done with that world. Neither of them are prepared for it to find them again. When there is a Fae threat against the entire world, Shakatra may be the only one with the power to stop it and enough love of humanity to bother. But things are not what they seem and questions of betrayal, priorities, and what they are willing to do to protect the life they've built are harder to fight than a direct battle, insidious like the creeping poison of iron.

Links: Character posts here and here.

Backburner WIPs

Time to Kill

Working title. Esther Dahan is part of one of the first teams ever sanctioned to use time travel technology. Against all historical odds, they aren’t cops or soldiers—they’re anthropologists. Her team specializes in Jewish history specifically, and as tough as it is to leave her young daughter behind for long stretches the team is like her family as they get to truly experience what life was once like, always careful not to change anything (the butterfly effect having been disproven, they must still not share too much information or come in contact with major figures). And yet, something is off. In more and more time periods, they find suspicious activity. But they can never quite get enough proof to convince anyone why this matters—why they should believe that these scientists found the first known rogue travelers. It’s not until trying to solve the mystery on their own leads to Esther’s life being torn apart that they’re taken seriously, and even then her team might be the only ones capable of finding out the truth and stopping something even worse.

A Tangled Knot of Gold

Also in the Legends of Halara series, about 200 years into the kingdom's history. Tlapil is the cousin of the heir to the throne, Soter, who is also the only person who treats eso like a person because eso is semi-verbal with unusual body language and interests. Tlapil's main useful skill seems to be mapmaking, but when the kingdom needs unusual solutions Tlapil's ready to help—along with eson only other friend, who happens to be a slime. Having proven esonself, eso holds a respectable position as advisor to eson cousin, but when tragedy threatens to tear apart the entire kingdom it might be up to Tlapil to find a way to hold it together.

Falling Petals

A story of imperfect love and family and undiagnosed disability across generations (they're all autistic before they would have been called that). Ira Katz was born in 1913, the only child of Russian Jewish immigrants. He was clever and charming, but there was always something off-putting about him. He didn't understand why blunt observations and mean jokes went unappreciated. He would give long and detailed lectures on his interests, which included photography, without regard to anyone else's level of interest. He spent his adult life working in the drugstore he inherited from his father and had 4 children with his wife, though he never knew how to connect, loving them from a distance.

Ira's second child, Daniel (born 1939), was also odd and isolated. He was gentle and generous but mocked for being sensitive, for his silly attempts at being serious and adult too soon. So he learned to channel his pain from tears to rage and disappear into comic books to forget about the world. He learned to script friendly conversations so no one could see his confusion or pain. He studied architecture because it was more manly than becoming a librarian, married a teacher, and had twin daughters. He refused to become his father--he never mocked his kids and he spent some time with them--but the pain and overwhelm and frustration would burst out of him in rages that terrified them.

One of Daniel's daughters, Shoshana (born 1961) was also odd. She was bright but seemed young for her age, clinging to toys her sister had long discarded. She had a bad habit of freezing when confused or scared, so she would stare blankly and just not answer people. She cried easily. She read constantly but failed out of college and ended up back with her parents and no chance of marrying or living alone. She convinced herself she was stupid.

And then Shoshana's sister had a daughter, Naomi (born 1987). Naomi was odd in a way Shoshana recognized, and she was determined not to project her own pain onto her niece but to use this chance to break the cycle of pain and give a child a chance to grow up loving herself and her differences.

[hanakihan]

(non full and not complete) ultimate EdSali headcanon and brainrot list (because apparently I have poor self control and have those men in a chokehold just like they have me)

Salieri:

- constantly claims he’s not Salieri, but he IS an actual Salieri; the funny thing is that since his existence is a mixed result of actual person and rumors, Innocent Monster’s reluctance to respond to Salieri’s olive branch is what leads to their collective suffering (eventually they do find a form of an inner piece and due to Salieri’s acceptance of his innocent monster aspect it results in much more stable mixed spirit origin)

- due to unstable nature of his spirit origin and as such much faster mana exhaustion even outside combat it’s not an unusual sight for Chaldea inhabitants to find him passed out in corridors or sleeping in most random places; some were even (un)fortunate enough to see poor man pass out from exhaustion and mana deficiency in middle of conversation or doing anything; da vicni links it to what people call narcolepsy

- under normal circumstances initially a ruler but forced to be an avenger, salieri himself feels close to rulers too, hence why he’s probably the only one to peacefully coexist with them despite classes differences as well as being the most non-avenger behavior wise unless it concerns Mozart or rare cases of innocent monster going out control. as a result of ruler-avenger alignment, salieri’s music and voice can have either pacifying or exciting effect based on desirable result and salieri’s own mood

- despite being an avenger, his class’ passive skills work extremely poorly with him, especially in self healing department. hence why after battles he needs extra more time to sleep and food to eat as well as visiting medical room. his exterior can negate this problem but makes mana issue even worse hence why eventually he’s forced to learn to wear it partly on damaged body parts to speed up healing which gives his appearance even more artificial feeling to the point of it looking like prosthetics.

- manifesting in avenger class made salieri actually a fully albino, which means he shouldn’t spend too much time under sun (and he actually doesn’t want to himself because he handles it badly). considering that with proper ruler summon he would’ve had his black hair and golden eyes at least in one of ascension stages, sometimes at calmest moments his eyes can turn golden, after finding peace within himself his eyes turn into red-golden gradient.

- since he’s able to transform his blood into strings, he’s also able to manipulate said blood in general to certain extent, but such experiments mostly leave him anemic and make things worse, so he rarely goes beyond strings

- finds the fact that he’s manifested with a pair of misericordia absolutely hilarious in dark humor way, wondering if one of them is for mercy kill on Mozart and other is for his own suicide after it

- his neck scar is forever raw and fresh and ugly - it’s a proof of his existence in a way, and if it heals/disappears it means his existence stop as well. it hurts from time to time and actively bleeds after battles so his red neck scarf helps to cover such fact. aside from that his neck scar also behaves like a growing pattern that goes beyond his neck in cases of overexertion - going as far as reaching half of his face and fingers, which leaves him covered in bloody red alive pattern he absolutely hates and thinks it’s extremely disgusting.

- tends to avoid musical instruments or singing at all since it’s what salieri loved and did in life (despite itching to do so because he is salieri and is just in active denial within himself), but that doesn’t mean he isn’t appreciating other music at all - in fact, since master introduced him to headphones and modern music that’s one of his favorite pastimes simply because it fascinates him.

- salieri sleepwalks. since he’s one of few servants who require sleep as necessity like humans do, it’s not rare to see him aimlessly sleepwalk across Chaldea at nights either ending up asleep in random locations or in local music room since that suppressed craving of playing music is realized in his sleepwalking.

- despite his attitude he’s extremely good and patient with children or young servants/people due to his life experience of being a father as well as a music tutor and a leading kapellmeister. he keeps things organized and strict where it’s needed but not to the extremes, if anything he’s so good at it he’s consistently sought after. Children servants especially adore him since he not only participates in their tea parties (he can’t say no to them), likes sweets like them, but also plays music for them and tutors them on music or singing. he still continues to claim he’s bad with children and doesn’t know how to handle them.

- the moment any of his students manage to get summoned in Chaldea he becomes extremely happy, eventually it evolves into them all asking if they all can perform under his conducting as a sign of gratitude in a way, and mostly to fill in salieri’s kapellmeister title.

- he himself doesn’t know what exactly are his minions. it’s not like they’re able to explain themselves but he kinda rolls with it because they’re nice to him. he can’t keep them manifested long enough so they keep to be a complete mystery even to him. after some time with better mana resources he starts to have some suspicions that are confirmed the moment minions gain enough mana supply to have proper manifestation - apparently those are his 8 children who became a part of his spirit origin but only as ‘placeholders’ because not much known about them and they’re mostly a basic fact on his biography that’s known well enough. because nothing that much is known about his children, his minions lack many emotions, feelings and ability to speak as well as names, so for time being he goes with calling them after notes (as well as two most similar ones going by Ut-Do duo to make it 8) and because all they can do is to chirp in their respective notes. eventually it becomes better and they all start to have distinctive behavior and preferences but aren’t able to start to properly talk aside from simple words despite salieri’s teaching attempts. in long run they also become emergency mana supply by simply being near salieri but after that they fall into hibernation for some time. sometimes everyone wonders who’s watching after whom.

- he avoids any event like a plague especially if it involves change of clothes because he doesn’t feel comfortable in any other outfit. hence why he visits madame crane’s dress making room only because of his children minions and even that is at their curious demand (he’s eventually dragged into some gala related event which means crane got a time of her life)

Edmond:

- behaves like an edgelord and laughs maniacally to keep himself sane enough. since he’s relatively fresh from château d’if, his ptsd kicks in more than he would’ve liked to, so being assertive with his attitude makes him feel more in control as opposed to feeling of his own life going out of his control one again. in especially bad cases he prefers to find secluded place and have his breakdown that involves thinking he’s still back in that hell and mostly hallucinating about abbe faria. it isn’t healthy at all but he doesn’t know any better way.

- he’s extremely numb to pain thanks to not only different pain levels experience but also due to some of his nerves being damaged as a result of that. which is why he always ends up with extremely nasty injuries he barely notices until someone points it out to him. the only pain he feels to full extent is phantom pains from his engraved scars.

- lives on coffee and cigarettes to the point that’s his coping mechanism. he sees so much shit on his assignments he sometimes just stares into distance while smoking he actually considers visiting a psychiatrist

- he knows social etiquette of high society and is actually capable of proper interactions but isn’t fond of it because he is a man of common origin after all, but that doesn’t mean he can’t use his knowledge is low key roasting

- despite not yet reaching point of facing consequences of his revenge, he does have knowledge of what will happen and that’s why he avoids children at best of his ability. not only he doesn’t know how to handle them, he also feels guilty about what happened to young Edouard which was partly what snapped him out of his revenge frenzy. also avoids them due to youthful naivety that is still present in them, something that was brutally torn from him.

- sometimes hums sea shanties when doing something. also as a result of potential of being summoned as a rider class is also extremely good with ships and that’s what sometimes makes him end up in argument with ship related rider class servants.

- despite everything he is pretty much the dad of the avenger bunch even if others aren’t listening to him most of the time they do acknowledge his authority as the mostly known origin of said class. he bickers with other avengers but he’s also the one to stand on their side if need arises because he is rather protective of his own kin

- after master offhandedly mentions how his story became a basis for whole ass genre of revenge stories in east, he decided to check couple of them only to realize what a burning dumpster most of them are. reading them becomes his favorite past time just because it’s absolute trash and cringe he can laugh about.

- freckles. he has freckles and those became apparent after his imprisonment for decades and not being under sun as a result of that. his unnatural paleness makes them more prominent which is partly the reason he needed to wear makeup as a count

- he has subtle case of claustrophobia, where closed dark space without anyone in sight awakens visions of his cell and that can trigger further ptsd chain if he doesn’t deal with it on time

- despite his abilities and outfit, he is cold to touch and is freezing from time to time. chateau d’if wasn’t warmest place as well as that dive in a body sack.

- it’s hard to say from his looks, but he really likes to eat. mostly no matter what as long as it’s edible since he does know what (self inflicted) starvation feels like and he doesn’t like it. on top of that he prefers commoner’s dishes as opposed to ones of rich society. only exceptions are tobacco and coffee because if he’s gonna fuck up his ‘health’ he’s gonna do it expensive way

- isn’t a fan of fancy outfits but that was during his revenge time, as of now absolutely rolls with whatever the fuck master has in mind this time because it’s both fun and he knows that he’s got the looks for it

EdSali exclusive (we’re entering ultimate delulu territory which is also filled with jp headcanons bless pixiv)

- they had absolutely nothing in common but apparently master’s remark about keeping an eye on unstable salieri is what kicked their interactions into actions. from then on dantes was observing salieri’s state and only stepping in to make sure man won’t disappear from lack of mana.

- from then on dantes became salieri’s main mana supplier through hand holding for small period of times. it was mostly done in complete silence but eventually they started to have small talks during whole procedure.

- what probably really kicked their relationship to even start in some way than ‘supplier-supplied’ is edmond having beginnings of his ptsd in most unconventional time. upon hearing suspiciously quiet edmond mutter faria’s name, salieri puts two and two and starts to carefully say things in italian just to see how it will play out. it does work even if dantes mistakes him for abbe faria in his delusional state. that’s also where salieri’s innate ruler skills for pacifying shine.

- as a result of better mana supply and control of it salieri’s minions were able to take proper appearances that salieri has to keep manifested most of the time since he doesn’t have a heart to dematerialize them. as a result of that mana consumption once again overweights its renovation. it returned him to starting point but even worse so minions started to seek out dantes because mana they use has his traces.

- dantes is high key terrified being pursued by so many children who can’t even speak and only proceed to chirp and tug at his cape. he does feel a certain familiarity from them but can’t pinpoint it until they lead him to unconscious salieri. that’s where first ‘kiss’ happens and dantes starts to have suspicions about minions’ appearances. eventually it results in dantes spending more time around salieri which also turned into weird high key married domesticity that they don’t notice but bystanders see. dantes also becomes the one to mostly drag salieri’s sleeping or sleepwalking body back to his room since dantes himself doesn’t usually sleep.

- no one really knows how dantes looked in his childhood years, so no one really connects the dots, but first time he saw salieri’s properly manifested minions he choked on his coffee because he’ll recognize that same face everywhere because all of them look suspiciously like him but also not. salieri on other hand doesn’t understand why his minions pester dantes and tries to stop them from doing that. it’s not rare for salieri losing them only for dantes to arrive later with a bunch of squirming chirping children that either have him in a death grip or he has them in a (choke) hold. ironically enough dantes is the one to better understand what minions want to convey.

- salieri with all seriousness without any other meaning thinks that count is really beautiful and aesthetically appealing. because of that a huge misunderstanding is born that salieri is secretly in love with dantes. dantes on other hand likes salieri’s music and overall character since it bounces off nicely with his own personality. everyone around logically misunderstands it as mutual pining and eventually start to make bet polls.

- since their more frequent interactions, their personal rooms started to change in appearance too. dantes now has more sugar and sweets stored, tea and even a violin, as well as more comfortable set of pillows and blanket in case he drags salieri’s unconscious body to his room or salieri himself simply out of nowhere will fall asleep. salieri’s room is not only stocked with bunch of stuff for his minions, but now also hosts coffee and books, as well as some expensive tobacco and alcohol. there’s also something to snack on since salieri did caught on count’s unconscious habit of snacking.

- salieri doesn’t think he’s a proper avenger hence why he’s so lacking compared to others. dantes does think he’s a strong avenger in his own right but also acknowledges that salieri’s position among them was pretty much forced. when salieri has episodes of doubt in himself dantes usually drags him into a sparring match, and in process of distraction and emptying his mind salieri does prove he’s more than capable avenger being able to keep up with dantes but exhausting himself relatively quickly.

- eventually dantes is the one to roll along with minions’ disaster ideas because it’s fun and chaotic and he’s all here for it (but also to keep an eye on them). it’s a result of dantes being their primal supplier and caretaker in times when salieri exhausts himself and needs rest.

- dantes and salieri eventually spend more time together just because they find each other’s company pleasant (and also because little gremlins try to set them up for some reason). they can be seen together in cafeteria, playing chess in one of rooms, once salieri heard count hum one of shanties and accompanied him on piano.

- during one of gala events they somehow end up dancing with each other and by the end of it things became much awkward because both felt how intimate and awkward it was. master from sideline watching whole performance and agreeing that it’s some real unresolved tension but also entire dance was rather sensual and personal, as if them talking through body language than actual words.

- things became even more awkward after both of them unintentionally fell asleep after gremlins exhausted too much mana from both of them. they woke up with tangled limbs and after initial internal screaming stage passed salieri tries his best not to laugh from grumpy sleepy count who clearly struggles waking up at mornings (and his wild bed hair). it’s also first time salieri realizes dantes has freckles since they woke up too close to each other.

- in battles salieri will prioritize stronger servants, which means in question arises he’ll take damage so better servants can have an advantage. couple of times it happened with dantes ended up in dantes’ loud and aggressive yelling. salieri’s counterargument that if stronger servant is out of commission it seriously complicates things. salieri has issues with his own worth which results in such high key suicidal behavior while dantes acts same way but out of fact that he can’t feel that much pain anyway, and salieri’s whole thing was kicked into action after dantes nearly lost an arm for him and didn’t even flinch. they’re both idiots.

- it once started as a joke about how dantes’ own theme would’ve sounded so salieri took it seriously and legitimately composed a piece for him. dantes was so moved he dropped his usual attitude and genuinely thanked him. since he doesn’t forget kindness but also doesn’t have any actual talent (cough) he just gives salieri some really expensive chocolate.

- salieri is the one to ‘kiss’ dantes in middle of a battle because his mana is close to none and master is busy supplying other offensive front, so without really thinking salieri just grabs dantes and kisses him (which is more about clashing teeth and awkward angle) only to jump back into action while ruffled dantes kinda freezes on spot from such sudden act.

- both of them can swordplay but while dantes has an actual knowledge on how to wield a smallsword, salieri’s style is pretty much self taught mess which dantes finds fun to go against because salieri’s unpredictable misericordia swings give a good challenge.

- jalter is few of ones to interact with both and after it just dying of cringe and complaining how these two are too fucking dumb to exist and seriously need a room, she’s clearly not paid enough for this.

- while dantes is cold to touch, salieri is usually feverishly warm. when they touch hands they become pleasantly warm. furthermore, their touch can soothe phantom pains of their scars. salieri laments dantes’ countless scars but admits they add to his looks, dantes on other hand thinks salieri’s scar is beautiful despite its nature and appearance. when salieri’s scar roots further dantes actually calls him beautiful despite salieri saying it’s ugly.

- both of them have extreme episodes of delusions, where salieri tries to stab or cut his own neck and dantes tries to gradually starve himself. while it wont have lasting effects or any serious impact, they both do intervene when it happens, with dantes apprehending salieri and taking misericordia away from him, and salieri forcefully feeding dantes.

- salieri doesn’t understand appeal of smoking and doesn’t like smoke smell. dantes once jokingly puffed it out into salieri’s face only to hear that it’s awful and smoke will damage vocal chords so later on dantes tries not to smoke around salieri.

- both of them are aware of their looks, and while dantes isn’t ashamed of his body and looks and casually can show it and all it’s scars (which is his summer outfit), salieri is actually really conscious about his (non) existent physique. once at beach dantes comments how salieri looks as staved as dantes back in château d’if but with salieri it creates a weird sickly aesthetic and appeal which dantes can appreciate.

- while with their appearances it’s not uncommon to see dantes sometimes carrying salieri around when man himself is out cold or too beaten up, the sight of salieri princess carrying beaten up dantes made several witnesses double take. salieri may appeal frail but he’s more than capable of carrying heavy things which is a must when he has 8 chaotic bodies to somehow carry around.

- when trying to speaks other’s language they find accents hilarious and rather endearing.

- when chance arises (or more like another inconvenience) they manage to visit their birthplaces. dantes calls château d’if his birthplace but salieri asks him to show him marseille.

- they seamlessly started to call each other by their first names. before that they went by ‘count’ and ‘kapellmeister’ in their interactions, but at one point it switched to first names. it doesn’t bother them as they thought it would considering identity issues.

- edmond’s palms are bigger but salieri’s longer and despite that they’re a perfect fit. skin to skin contact still feels awkward for them and such moments are one of few where dantes is clearly awkward in his own actions.

[off-brand-cheese]

Title: Goodbye and Hello

Word count: 1,057

Fandom: Roblox Pressure

Characters: Sebastian Solace, Reader

Content Warning: suicide, murder, swearing, depression, violence, threats, loneliness, slightly graphic, gore

Summary: You, an expendable, had been spending time with Sebastian until he becomes distant and violent, driving you away. That is until you come back to use his gun against him.

———————————————————

An Expendable, sent down to retrieve some stupid crystal in an old, partially flooded facility. Yup, that's you. The details weren't important, but what WAS important was the sort of relationship you created with a certain genetically modified shopkeeper you encountered during your endeavor, even teaming up to off some other Expendables to take back the gear they bought from Sebastian, returning the items and the remaining assets they gathered. 

This had gone on for a few weeks, your bond with the hybrid growing stronger with every day!..  Or so you thought.

One day, when you came back from doing your usual exploring and getting extra items for the shopkeeper, he seemed colder; dismissing you with a snarl. He had been a bit snarky but this wasn't the Sebastian you knew. This one was distant and aggressive. “Seb’, what's wrong, man? This ain't like you. I'm your dude, you told me things and I helped you when you had that panic a-” Before you could even finish your sentence, Sebastian pulled his triple barrel shotgun and aimed it right at your head. He bared his teeth, growling low as he spoke directly to you with no hesitation. “You are a parasite to me. You are more of a liability; the one who is going to get me killed faster. You lead those idiots here just to kill them and bring me back MY items,” He explained through his teeth, shoving the muzzle of the gun against your forehead which caused you to stumble back. You noticed the light of Sebastian's lure flicker with his anger and irritability: something not everyone could easily spot. “I won't let you kill me, I won't let you be the one to GET me killed. I want you to get out of my shop and never come back. I'm getting SICK of seeing your fucking face this often, every damn day. Now leave before I make use of this gun.”

There was no choice but to stand your ground one last time. You straighten your back, standing your full height and spoke back with venom in your voice. “I have been nothing but helpful to you, Mr. Solace, and this is how you repay me? I never asked for anything in return except for a safe place to sleep and some food to eat. You will miss me and how I never harassed you the way the others have,” You threw some documents on the floor in front of Sebastian before leaving through the vent, speaking one last time. “I'll have the final laugh one day, just you wait and see…”

After about two months, every single Expendable that came into Sebastian's shop, he listened closely to their voice when they spoke, hoping that it was you, returning to him to keep him company only to be completely and utterly disappointed, then angered when they blinded him with their flash beacon. 

“... Hey, stranger. Over here…” The aquatic hybrid called out to the new suspected customer into his shop. As the person crawled through the vent into his little shop, he wasn't paying attention to who it was as he was pulling out a few small items with his multiple hands. Sebastian was too focused on his little greeting that he didn't see the person pulling out a taser and pressing it against his massive tail. Before he could even begin to reach for his gun, he quickly looked into the eyes of this intruder only to see the cold, dead stare in your eyes as you sent enough volts through him to make him scream in pain. 

Sebastian's lure flickered like a short circuit, his body fell to the ground, violently twitching and shivering while you casually stepped on his body to retrieve his gun, checking to see if it was loaded, nodding to yourself in satisfaction when you saw three fresh bullets in place. You ignored his pleads directed towards you as you stood back in front of him and spoke in an authoritative tone over his cries, aiming the gun at his head. “I, (Y/N), was sent down to terminate Z-13 for impeding the retrieval of the crystal for, how long again? Oh right! Since about 2013! I'll be respected after this!” You shoved the live taser into Sebastian's stomach and kept it there for about 5 solid seconds, watching him writhe in agony before hitting him in the temple with the butt of his shotgun and aiming back to his head. “Maybe in your next run, you’ll learn to respect the person who trusts you, Sebastian Solace.” 

The hybrid began to cry out for his mother and you, muttering apologies and begging for forgiveness from you as he started reaching for your arm which you pushed away, watching the tears stream down his face and his body tremble. 

“I-I’m ss-s-s-so-rry. S-sorry, sor-ry, sor-” With a loud bang, his body stopped trembling and the light drained from his eyes. His entire form went limp as his brains and part of his eyes painted the walls behind his lifeless body. You put the safety on the shotgun and put it in your backpack and grabbed out a switchblade to cut off what remained of Sebastian's lure as a trophy, taking all you could from his shop and taking the ring from his finger before making your way out of his shop one last time. You looked back to whisper a sorrowful apology to leave. 

Once you got back to the surface with the crystal and everything you gathered, you were praised and deemed as a hero, but the guilt you felt was nearly unbearable.

Living years with the doubt and the guilt sent you into a spiral of depression, knowing that he didn't deserve to be killed, that he was completely innocent, plagued your mind. It kept you awake for countless nights, you went days without eating, you were physically sick and mentally worn, you just couldn't take it anymore. You held the ring he wore as you grabbed the shotgun that you put three fresh slugs in and quickly freed your broken mind, releasing your spirit into the Aether where you saw Sebastian in his original, human form, giving you an annoyed glare and holding his hand out as if he was expecting something. 

“I'd like my ring back.”

[ultimateplaylistmaker]

Tell me about your aus please

Okay I have a lot of aus, most I haven't even talked about on this blog (always feel free to just ask me for a random au I haven't talked about I can absolutely supply) This will get long so UNDER THE CUT

Harbinger Naegi/Harbinger Disciple Nagito/Harbinger Apostate Ryoma

This is my main swapped mastermind au, with Makoto being THH Nagito being GBD and Ryoma being NDRV3, the au starts with first off Izuru starts the tragedy by himself, Junko had plans for it but he did it first, so the timeline is a bit faster so the school has less chance to prepare, which leads to Makoto being sent outside into the tragedy for like 20 minutes to go grab something that got left behind, during this time he sees multiple deaths and locks eyes with Izuru, this spreads a seed of despair into Makoto.

That leads to him getting more and more upset about how they're locked inside with all this food and water and clean air but no one else gets this, so when he gets lucky and overhears Junko's plans, he usurps the killing game, thanos snaps her memory instead of kirigiri's. Desperate to prove himself and his friends of DESERVING of the gifts they were got by proving themselves able to not kill each other and thus good people, this immediately plunges into utter chaos when the first murder happens as Makoto is torn between his bitter despair and anger at injustice and his love and care for his friends. Chihiro must embrace the hope within themselves if they want a chance for this to end in any way that isnt pure tragedy.

Nagito watches this on tv and becomes OBSESSED with Makoto as Makoto has very much become the embodiment of how Nagito views the world, so they end up teaming up when Makoto does not in fact do the Junko suicide play and instead escapes, upon learning about the jabberwock island recovery plan, sabotages it by giving makoto a back door in, seeing the thing as pointless as it doesnt create hope or despair, what hope is there in just having your past mistakes and actions erased? what hope is it to just give a small apology and never have to think about what you did? theres no growth here! only ugly stagnation unworthy of hope and despair! Peko needs to fight for her right to simply exist.

Ryoma was a surprise for me but he made the most sense in this set up, he gets saved from suicide by Makoto and Nagito and borderline adopted, when makoto and nagito usurp tsumugis' killing game (long story and this is already so long) ryoma volunteers to be the next mastermind, unbeknownst to makoto and nagito, he has plans of his own, which should hopefully end all of these killing games for good. Kirumi however, wonders if good intentions can really make up for cruel actions.

SCP Au

SCP au has very little so far, but it's the idea of DICE as a faction of gamers against weed or AWCY from the SCP universe

Log Horizon AU

This is one I am desperate to work on, basically it's the world of the anime Log Horizon (which is the best mmo isekai anime) and how through being a cheater in the game irl has resulted in upon getting isekai'd kokichi having powers that no one else has, and just generally about how I think the cast would change and adapt to this world

My DR Lore

This is my 2 million page extended worldbuilding of the danganronpa universe, which is basically my pet project and where most of my headcanons come from,

Serial Shuichi Au

Oooo this is a fun one, it's designed to be a dark twist on the traditional phantom thief detective au with kokichi and shuichi by having shuichi be a serial killer that targets criminals and kokichi who is just trying to keep DICE safe and is heavily suspect of that blue haired detective that seems certain that he's connected to the murders

Eldritch Makoto Au

This is a crack au about Makoto being an eldritch being who forgor they weren't actually human.

Frozen Egg Au

This is another crack au about Makoto being sent like a hundred years in the future via cryogenic frozen

Slay The Majesty Au

Slay the Princess but its Oumota

Fae Ultimates Au

Fun playing with how Hajime is the only normal person around, by making the ultimates all fae

Robo Dictator Au

I just think Kiibo should get to do the robot apocalypse and be gay about it, as a treat

Schrodinger’s Kichi Au

Is a fucked up au that I adore where Kokichi possesses his own dead body and no one is comfortable about that, except for korekiyo, he thinks its sick as hell

Shuichi Enoshima Au

Funny bait and switch au about Shuichi being the son of Junko she threw into a dumpster but then got rescued and never learned that hes adopted

Remnant Impact

This is a joke about the Remnants on social media, and eventually they made a genshin impact knock off and it got named after that because that was HYSTERICAL

Kokichi Stans Au

This one's a commentary on stan culture, and how BATSHIT it must be in the danganronpa world by having Kokichi have to deal with his most dangerous and erratic fans

Closet Stocks Au

I genuinely don't know what's going on here either, I sure get anons sometimes

Danganronpa/b/o'

Omegaverse go brrrr

You Destroy My World Au

World Destroyer Shuichi that's a twist on the tired pregame stalker shuichi by having kokichi misunderstand the situation and try to understand what's going on as the world destroyer tries to wake him up

Chiaki Isekai Au

We need to put Chiaki in more video games, put her in portal, put her in animal crossing, let her be in game

Obligatory Homestuck Au

You can't fight the homestuck

Hope’s Peak Destruction Au

My ishiouma au where Kokichi and Ishimaru team up to take down hope's peak and kiss about it

Obligatory Pokemon Au

Gotta catch em all

Dice Hax Au

DICE hacks into Kiibo's inner voice and chaos ensues

Full Talent Swap Au

I took every talent in the series outside of a few from the other more niche books and reassigned EVERYONE

Obligatory Warriors Au

Meow

Obligatory Minecraft Au

Don't mine at night

The Pony Au

Can you tell I like putting characters into other universes?

Pararonpasight Au

Okay now you can definitely tell I like putting characters into other universes

Oumelette Au

Sometimes you are trans, and due to funny shared terminology confusion, also a system but youre in a killing game so you don't got time for that right now

[hellcatinnc]

Radiant Tale Fanfare - Liyan Review

Spoilers & Translations Ahead...

First off I do not know japanese I relied on google translate. I know they aren't perfect and you might names misspelled or placed as she instead of he but I feel confident enough that I was able to make out what its saying. I chose to buy this from the Japanese store knowing it wasn't in English but ever since I played Radiant Tale which I will shortly have that review up just got to finish Vilio. The point being I fell in love with Liyan then and I just couldn't wait for however long it was going to take for it to get localized, I needed to know how this man was and if him stealing my heart was going to be worth it. I have done this in the past and certain love interests I will do it again for. Make sure if you want more screen shots and stuff to check out my husbando challenge post since he was in it and you can find that here. Anyways on with the review.

If you get a chance to read his story even if you have to badly translate it you are going to want to if you have ever liked him and thought he should be a love interest. By far he is one of my favorite love interests from his personality to his looks right on down to the story and his love all have me wrapped up leaving my heart beating a little faster for Liyan. This is a man I will have to write some fan fic about just wow. Also you get introduced to his brother to who ends up being the bad guy trying to keep you apart for awhile but trust me he is a relatable character still and I like his brother however I found that if you try to look his brother up good luck finding any information about him. I have some places saying his name is Rist others say Lizz or in translator it says List so I can't say I actually know his name but think it stinks that he is barely even written in online when he is a big part of Liyan's route. Also if you look at the pictures of him in this post you will find he is pretty damn hot too.

So Liyan has to convince his brother why all humans like Tafalia are not bad for them as Fenrir's. You can tell he loves his brother and I love that side of Liyan as well as you find that his love for Tafalia is so real he would even fight his brother to the death if need be to keep her safe. The only reason his brother is bitter about humans is because he fell in love with a human and was in love but then when she found out he was a Fenrir she left him broken hearted says she was scared of him. So the story behind Fenrir's reminds me of Twilight movies where Jacob tells Bella about how imprinting works and then he falls for Bella's daughter in Breaking Dawn. Their story is similar he meets Tafalia at a young age and realizes in that moment he is in love with her so for years to come he watches over her from afar but never stopped loving her. The Fenrir belief is once you fall in love that is it there is no severing that tie except in death. If your person dies then you die and if the leave you broken hearted in most cases leads to death or suicide without that person. This is all of what his brother was trying to save him from, but honestly was too late Liyan had been in love with her way too long.

At one point Tafalia over hears Liyan talkin to a child and thought he had a kid, it was so cute because when she approaches him about it he gets all shy and bashful. Explain he has no kids because he is practically a virgin being pure and innocent. Hard to believe at first since he is so flirty until you realize later he flirts with no one else but her. He says he believes in loving one person forever and does not waver in that thought or process once. Tafalia notices in time when he is around other women that they flirt and try to get him to go with them and he is nice and has his charismatic personality that brings people back over and over again to his bar. However he makes it clear he looks for no casual hookups and at that point I think is when Tafalia realized all his flirtiness and all has only be towards her all this time she thought he was a ladies man.

I think this is where you see her soften up to him and not shut him down all the time. Its sad in away though because he really doesn't know what to do when she starts being nice because he is so used to her pushing him away. He lost his parents when his mom died of illness and his dad died being without his soulmate. His brother left him for his love and left Liyan caring for himself and others like him. He really has never truly been shown love so even Tafalia is just the same she hasn't always been the nicest to him. This breaks my heart when Liyan the most pure of them all (well outside of Paschalia) is pushed aside as just a ladies man to most. He keeps his flirtiness here and there to show her his attention he even goes out of his way to give her a gift that he made for her. At one point she falls asleep in his bar and he just watches her sleep wanting to touch her, wanting to kiss her. Classic Liyan and yet no matter how close he gets he just can't do it. He talks about him being the big bad wolf yet says she is so defenseless he just can't do it then goes on to make her a bed there instead. Of course she ends up leaving that night flustered and can't think but knows she needs to get away from Liyan at that point. I love though in the end it shows he is a gentleman yes he wanted to kiss her but he never gave into that selfishness because he never wanted to hurt her.

His brother brings out the protectiveness in him though when he firsts approaches Tafalia and Liyan is there to get in his path. At that point you realize Liyan doesn't just love her but he would do anything to protect her. I think even she sees this in how he reacts and if there is any doubt I think in her mind at that point he lets her know other wise. Once he takes care of his brother or thinks he has and he leaves them alone. Liyan goes into telling Tafalia he has been in love with her since he first met her. Tells her why and how it came to be but then tells her she doesn't have to say anything and never has to tell him how she feels. This leaves he stunned because when you confess to someone you usually want to know its reciprocated. So she ends up going to Paschalia and Radie I was so happy when I saw Paschalia and how he tried to help her with love advice. Oh man that man has a special place in my heart to because until Liyan he was my number one. Radie is an ass like usual never been a huge fan of him and his story used Liyan anyways and that made me mad. You saw then that Liyan could have been good for Tafalia but Radie wouldn't allow it. In this story he goes on to be the same ass even at one point practically telling her he hopes it doesn't work out with Liyan. Wow what a selfish thing to say, even Liyan wasn't like that in his route back in the first Radiant Tale.

Anyways Tafalia gets kidnapped by Liyan's brother and Vilio and Ion are ready to go in to fight with Liyan however I think Liyan knows if anyone else comes in they will probably kill his brother. That being said yes he will do anything for Tafalia but Liyan and his kind heart you can tell he wanted to handle this without the violence or losing his brother if he could. I love Vilio he made it clear he trusted Liyan however he would roast him if something happened to Tafalia due to it. Was funny but you understood his mind set. You get a full sight scene where Liyan and his brother in beautiful wolf form fight it out. Liyan trying to protect Tafalia and his brother trying to prove to him humans aren't worth it that they will only hurt him. At one point he really tries to harm Tafalia and Liyan sees red the moment she bleeds even a ounce of blood. He turns to his brother and announces him his enemy for hurting her. They fight some more and honestly at one point I'm not sure that Liyan was strong enough to take him on but then I realize he just didn't want to hurt him badly. Once he sees red though he goes all out and almost kills him before stopping. He is bleeding and exhausted but doesn't want anyone to die especially the 2 most important people in his life. His brother ends up leaving them to how they feel telling Liyan he just wanted better for him and you have to respect him. They break on good terms.

Tafalia runs to his side and she confesses that after it all she realized in all this she had fallen in love with him. My poor baby Liyan is so used to being pushed aside and not loved that he came up with the idea there is no way she could love him and that she was just being nice. Of course she has to kiss him for him to understand she isn't playing around with his emotions. He admits the reason he told her he didn't want to know how she felt when he confessed his love was because if he didn't know he could live on beside her loving her from afar and being happy. However if she told him she didn't feel anything for him it would hurt him so bad and possibly kill him of a broken heart. That was so humble and sweet and who wants the person they love to be happy and yet not with them but is content with just being in her life. I know in real life you get people that would but most love interests I have seen usually are more selfish than Liyan.

When he realizes she really does love him he can't help but to keep kissing her telling her he is the happiest he has ever been. He is that puppy wagging his tail as she pets him. He may be a big bad wolf when he needs to be but with her he is her puppy and would do anything she asks of him. That being said don't misunderstand me he is not submissive he just wants her happiness above anything even his own needs. They go back to normal life as her being his girlfriend and it was just so sweet how they decided to be partners but whats next is funnier. So his brother starts coming around and understands Tafalia is no threat even throws small flirts at her in front of Liyan and oh no Liyan jumped in front of her and made it clear to his brother she was all his. His jealousy showed but it was adorable. However he told his brother where to find his soulmate and that she had not ever forgot about him. He rushed off to try to make something with her and of course you never know if he does but I really hope he did because he deserved that too. I mean when you first see his story it is sad how he was hurt. Liyan and his brother neither had the best life however the difference between the two is Liyan believed bad things happen you get yourself up and you try for better where his brother became a realist and was hurt.

In the end I absolutely loved his story so much so that now I'm going to have to play something else because I feel like going on to another love interest in Fanfare is just breaking Liyans heart. I haven't felt this way since Ikki in Amnesia. I will review the love interests as I play them though so stay tuned. If you have yet to play the first game do so however if you become a Liyan fan trust me so well worth translating because I figure its like a year or so or more out before its translated. I was glad I didn't wait and my sweet sexy wolf boy now and forever has a place in my heart. He is a well flushed character they did very well with his story. I want to thank the creators for giving us such a jewel inside of Liyan.