#☽ . . . type. ― para.

[lunaetics]

roll the stone away | pack

the timing worked out: dean, sam, jo, and lux⎯who'd tagged along for your protection, whatever that meant⎯arrived at ajani's home and stepped out of the car, just as the group of salem refugees arrived.

dean didn't know much about the group. frankly, the only people he really knew anything about were sam and jo. but lo had informed them all that her friends, alphas like her, would be meeting them soon, seeking asylum and help that only eshe could provide right now. dean hadn't pried for details⎯they'd all had such a long day already and all he wanted was for it to come to an end⎯but watching the group climb out of their mini-bus, he thought he understood.

the exhaustion of the group was palpable. shadows hung over their faces and there was a stiffness to the way they move. none of them looked bruised or particularly ruffled, like there'd been a battle, just⎯⎯exhausted. as if they'd been through just as much as everyone else here, if not significantly more. and there was something about the way they hesitated to step too far away from each other, thoughtlessly shuffling into a clustered formation as they stepped out of their vehicle, that was familiar to dean.

he'd never done it with a group quite that large, but⎯⎯with sam, yeah. he recognized what it looked like to have been dragged to the pits of hell with someone and feel like the world would end if he ever parted from that person again.

peculiar enough, the last person out of the bus was asleep; she was pulled out of the car gently, cradled in someone's arms. her head lulled against their shoulder, and dean momentarily thought that it was kind of them to allow her to sleep.

then he saw⎯⎯the way their eyes shuttered away from her, as if she were a painful sight. the careful way she was held. the pallor of her skin. the way she wasn't even breathing.

oh.

finally, dean looked away.

"oh, good timing," lux said, running her eyes over the group. unlike the people she'd driven with, she wasn't human; she could pick up all of the distinct scents in the group, as well as the lack of a heartbeat in one of them. her eyes flicked down to the sleeping witch, then back up to the others. "come on, i'll bring you inside. don't worry," she added, seeing the way one witch's eyes darted frantically around, "you're safe here. whoever you're running from, they can't get you in this city⎯⎯certainly not here."

mae drew her bottom lip between her teeth and tried to believe that. rose and the twins had said the same thing. mae wanted to believe it. but it was hard to believe anything when her entire belief system had been upended just twenty-four hours ago. still, she fashioned a smile for the blonde and nodded. "right. yeah, of course."

lux tried to return her smile. she wasn't the best welcoming committee; she was not soft and endearing like julia. but ajani would want her to be kind, and she owed him everything. so she smiled, then turned to lead everyone into ajani's fortress of a home. some of the witches looked around in awe as they ventured through the house to find the others, and lux said nothing about it. spirits knew she'd done the same thing many times over the years.

soon enough, they reached the room where everyone was gathered. uche was seated between her sisters, hand wrapped around eshe's while her head rested against ife's chest. lux couldn't blame them for the way they banded together. near death experiences were scary for anyone; she couldn't imagine what that did to someone who'd been invincible since near the beginning of time.

upon entering the room, ethan couldn't even find it in himself to recognize all of the threats gathered around them. his eyes immediately found the familiar sight of home. "lo," he exhaled, breaking away from the witches to cross the room over to her. he wrapped his arms around her and felt something settle in his chest at finally being with her again. separating had been the right thing; that didn't mean he didn't miss her terribly. "hey. you okay?" he pulled back from the hug to look her in the eyes. "have you been alright?"

bellamy, on the other hand, did not look at lo first. instead, her eyes landed on julia. she was an odd sight, considering bellamy was certain deucalion had killed her some years ago. then again, she seemed to have a knack for beating death. there were scars wrapped around her throat, jagged claws marks that undoubtedly came from deucalion's attack, but that seemed to be the extent of her trauma. she didn't look at the alphas with any sort of recognition, and it made bellamy question just what price she'd paid for her survival.

"thank you for having us," harry said, while the alphas reunited, his voice quieter than usual. everything felt... odd. in a new city, with a bunch of new people, and piper still dead. if the last thing wasn't true, then piper would be speaking right now; she'd know how to be a good ambassador for their coven, how to show that they come with earnest intentions. but she was⎯asleep, still, so someone had to say something. "we're sorry for the sudden intrusion."

[lunaetics]

uche waved off sam's concern. "yeah, i'm good." that was, in truth, an overstatement. her hands were visibly shaking in her lap, and her heart was beating fast enough for the world to hear, it felt like. there was a very real chance that she would vibrate out of her skin and⎯⎯fall apart, maybe.

but it would pass, she told herself. she'd had a near death experience; the jitters would go away.

dean's phone rang, bringing her out of her thoughts.

he turned away from the group, bringing his phone to his ear. "yeah?"

"put me on speakerphone," a woman said on the other line, her voice calm to uche's ears.

"bossy," dean muttered. "don't even get a hi these days." he obediently tapped his screen. "you're on speaker. jo harvelle, this is everybody. everybody, jo."

"hi, jo," julia called.

"hi," jo replied kindly. "just⎯making sure i understand the facts of what you're saying here. you said masked figures emerged from the road and tried to attack an original. then they just disappeared. yes? did they leave any traces?"

lux glanced at julia, remembering what she'd mentioned earlier. "some kind of electric residue," lux said. "nothing else, though."

jo fell silent for a few seconds. "jo?" dean called, wondering if she'd walked away from the phone or something. "did you figure something out? bethy?"

"don't call me that," she said immediately. "yeah, i... i think i know what you're dealing with, but i don't understand why. an original? there's no reason for them to..."

"hey, fill us in," dean complained. "what're you talking about? what is it?"

"they're⎯humans."

ife frowned. "they were not human. humans cannot do what they did."

"these can. they're scient⎯" jo paused as the sound in the background of her phone picked up. "sorry, i'm at work. i think you were attacked by the dread doctors."

dean looked at sam in confusion, then at the others. "what the hell is that? i've never heard of that."

"neither have i," ife added.

julia and claire both shook their heads, and lux just shrugged.

"no, you wouldn't have," jo sighed. "they're from a scifi novel, but they popped up on the west coast a few years back. they're supposed to be dead, and they would never target any of you, so i don't understand why⎯⎯sorry, i don't know if i can explain all of this over the phone. is it alright if i meet you all somewhere once i leave the bar? i have some books i can bring. they should be able to explain things better than i can right now."

ajani let out a laugh that was closer to a sob and dropped to his knees at uche's first words when she regained consciousness, and eshe covered her mouth as she let out a sound somewhere between both as well.

"ife is right, little love; your bike is a thing, but you are an irreplaceable life." she knew uche was likely only joking to lighten the mood; surely she must be feeling even more alarm than the rest of her siblings combined at what had happened to her, at what could have happened to her. but with her injury so close to the forefront of eshe's mind and heart, it seemed only right to remind uche how very beloved she was.

ajani frowned as lux spoke; as usual, her observations were astute. he quickly realized, however, that indeed very many of them were unknown to one another. well, if there was anything that could bring people together, he supposed, it was a brush with danger; there was no need for any of them to be strangers any longer. and besides, after they had all come together to save his sister even without knowing her, he had no desire to be strangers to any of them any longer. they had come to his sister's aid; as far as he was concerned, he owed them the greatest of debts, one that could never be repaid.

lo smiled back at ife; she knew she had felt a strong connection to her immediately, and now she knew why. there was an immediate connection to any other werewolf, but it only made sense that she would feel so instantly drawn to the original werewolf, the first of her kind.

"claire, that is not all you are," castiel said defensively. eshe smiled; it was easy to see familial bonds, especially when they so clearly echoed her own.

"my name is castiel, and i am a cheribum." he added. he glanced over at lux again, offering her a small smile; he knew whispers were often seen as the natural enemy to his kind, but he had no desire to be her enemy. he had no desire to be anyone's enemy, and certainly not anyone present here.

"ajani. i am the original vampire."

"and my name is eshe. i'm the original witch."

"lo...lauren, but you can call me lo," lo said, holding up a hand in greeting. "i'm...well, not an original werewolf, but an alpha werewolf."

"and i'm annika. i'm a hunter, too."

"sam, also a hunter," sam introduced himself.

"is the friend you texted a hunter, too?" annika asked.

"yeah. her name is jo, she's actually why we're here in the first place. we were coming to meet with her, when..." he looked at uche, face lined with worry. "are you sure you're okay?"

"if you're all originals," lo asked, "then...what the hell were those things? how could anything be strong enough to harm an original?"

"that is exactly what i am wondering about," ajani admitted. "in all my years, i regret to say i have never encountered them before. were they familiar to any of you?"

"i have not," eshe shook her head. "but whatever they were, the tools they were using were not unknown to us. vervain, wolfsbane, sulfur, silver; all of those have been used to hunt the supernatural for generations."

"that's true," sam said, realization dawning. "they clearly weren't human, but they were using human tools to try to attack uche. they didn't use magic, or any other kind of supernatural power." he paused, wondering. "could any other type of supernatural power hurt you, though?"

"unless it comes from one of us," ajani said, gesturing to his siblings, "no, none that i know of."

[invenusworld]

nakshatra tarabala

note: to calculate tarabala, you must count (inclusively) how far away a nakshatra is from any given nakshatra; for instance, magha is nine away from bharani — the ninth tarabala aspect is known as atimitra tara, akin to a best friend, the most beloved. after nine, the tenth nakshatra gets counted as one, and so on. in this manner, mula and ashwini are also considered atimitra to bharani and the other two vimshottari venus-ruled nakshatras.

the traditional planetary friendships and enemies are used in relation to the the twelve rashis or zodiac signs, and do not coincide with tarabala aspects. for instance, the sun-ruled nakshatras consider the venus nakshatras as atimitra, best friends, and sun nakshatras are sampat (providing ease and enrichment) to the venus nakshatras, making it a mutually beneficial relationship. whereas traditionally, sun and venus are considered enemy planets. tarabala can be used to look at the interplay & dynamics between nakshatras in a birth chart or in synastry

we can see if planets at birth or in transit will give positive or challenging results based on their tarabala (in reference to the moon's nakshatra); for example, planets in sampat tara (the 2nd, 11th and 20th nakshatra from the moon) will considerably amplify results delivered by said planet. the same concept applies to planets in transits as well as the other eight types of tarabala (star strength)

(in the following list '1' refers to the same nakshatra and the two nakshatras which trine it, '2' refers to the following nakshatra and the nakshatras that trine it, '3' refers to the third nakshatra away and its trine nakshatras, and so on and so forth. for venus nakshatras, the second nakshatra away (sampat tara) will be a sun-ruled nakshatra, for mars it will be rahu, etc)

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

the nine tarabala categories

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara; co-born, of the same kind, quality, nature. nakshatras which trine your janma (birth) nakshatra will give long lasting results as they are bound to you by birth

competition & rivalry may be present due to inherent similarities between these nakshatras

positive tarabala (2, 4, 6, 8, 9 nakshatras away)

(2) sampat tara; nakshatras of this tara category bring affluence, enjoyment, prosperity, wealth, good fortune to the original nakshatra; one meaning of sampat is 'the act of coming together'

(4) kshema tara; nakshatras of this category provide comfort, security, relief, protection; results here can be sudden/unexpected yet generally beneficial

(6) sādhak tara; progress, achievement or attainment of one's goals; worship, adoration. planets here support the fulfillment of one's goals & desires through willful consistently applied effort

(8) mitra tara; a friend, ally, companion to the original nakshatra

(9) paramitra or atimitra tara; best friend. the prefix para means supreme, highest or absolute & the prefix ati means very, extremely, exceedingly or beyond

atimitra = an extremely good friend or beyond friendship, a lover

challenging tarabala (3, 5, 7 nakshatras away)

(3) vipat tara; draining resources, spending, adversity, obstacles; vipat also means 'to be divided or separated'

(5) pratyak tara; moving backwards or in the opposite direction; against or contrary to - may seem attractive or promising initially

(7) naidhana tara; related to the 8th house of death, endings, destruction, transformation; there may be sudden and traumatic endings to the things signified by planets in this tara category

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

ketu-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[ashwini, magha, mula]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

(4) kshema tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

(6) sadhak tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

(8) mitra tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, uttara bhadrapada

(9) atimitra tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

(5) pratyak tara — ♂️mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

(7) naidhana tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

venus-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[bharani, p. phalguni, p. ashadha]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

(4) kshema tara — ♂️mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

(6) sadhak tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

(8) mitra tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

(9) atimitra tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

(5) pratyak tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

(7) naidhana tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, uttara bhadrapada

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

sun-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[krittika, u. phalguni, u. ashadha]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

(4) kshema tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

(6) sadhak tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, u. bp

(8) mitra tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

(9) atimitra tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ♂️mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

(5) pratyak tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

(7) naidhana tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

moon-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[rohini, hasta, shravana]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ♂️mrigashirsha, chitra, dhanishta

(4) kshema tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

(6) sadhak tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

(8) mitra tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

(9) atimitra tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

(5) pratyak tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, uttara bhadrapada

(7) naidhana tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

mars-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[chitra, mrigashira, dhanishta]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ♂️ mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

(4) kshema tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, uttara bhadrapada

(6) sadhak tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

(8) mitra tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

(9) atimitra tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

(5) pratyak tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

(7) naidhana tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

rahu-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[ardra, swati, shatabhisha]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha rahu

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

(4) kshema tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

(6) sadhak tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

(8) mitra tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

(9) atimitra tara — ♂️mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, uttara bhadrapada

(5) pratyak tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

(7) naidhana tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phguni, uttara ashadha

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

jupiter-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[punarvasu, vishaka, p. bhadrapada]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, purva bhadrapada

(4) kshema tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

(6) sadhak tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

(8) mitra tara — ♂️mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

(9) atimitra tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

(5) pratyak tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

(7) naidhana tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

saturn-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[pushya, anuradha, u. bhadrapada]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, purva bhadrapada

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

(4) kshema tara — ♀bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

(6) sadhana tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

(8) mitra tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

(9) atimitra tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishaka, purva bhadrapada

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

(5) pratyak tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

(7) naidhana tara — ♂️mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉୨♡୧﹉﹉﹉﹉﹉

mercury-ruled nakshatra tarabala

[ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati]

┈ ┈ ┈ ┈ ୨♡୧ ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈

(1) janma tara — ☿ ashlesha, jyeshtha, revati

positive tarabala

(2) sampat tara — ☋ ashwini, magha, mula

(4) kshema tara — ☉ krittika, uttara phalguni, uttara ashadha

(6) sadhana tara — ♂️ mrigashira, chitra, dhanishta

(8) mitra tara — ♃ punarvasu, vishka, purva bhadrapada

(9) atimitra tara — ♄ pushya, anuradha, uttara bhadrapada

challenging tarabala

(3) vipat tara — ♀ bharani, purva phalguni, purva ashadha

(5) pratyak tara — ☽ rohini, hasta, shravana

(7) naidhana tara — ☊ ardra, swati, shatabhisha

[livinglycan]

☽ ~ The sand shifts beneath your paws and the scent of salt fills your nostrils ~ 𓃥

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ "𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚍, 𝚖𝚘𝚘𝚗 𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚍" ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

Ello!! You can call me Fengari, Feng, Gar, or Ari! I'm transmasc and my pronouns are He/It/That + any dog or (were)wolf related neos! I'm (feralromantic) aroallo, MLM/Gay, wolfdog freak, and objectum.

Feralromantic and wolfdog freak are both coins termed by me!

I am a werewolf. This is not a kintype, I am physically a werewolf. I’ll still post under the werewolfkin tags because I feel like werewolfkin can relate to my experience. I am a therian and otherkin but stuff relating to that can be found on my main blog, @confused-canid where I interact from. I appreciate the use of tone tags for me!

This blog is for me posting about me being a werewolf, or werewolf related things! This could be my selfships, art writings, etc.! My tags are: #Running with the wolves🐺 - Talking with my mutuals! #Howling at the moon🌕 - Original posts that are text! #Weird little claw marks✏️ - My art! This will usually be paired with text so it will be tagged as #Howling at the moon🌕 and as #Weird little claw marks✏️! #yapping back🌙 - Responding to asks! #Tasty posts🦴 - reblogs relating to this blog but not therian related or my own (usually used for posts I’m saving for later), #Rabies🥩 - Gore, animal death, angry stuff, and other things that make me hungry, #Home🌲 - Heart-home (Vancouver island) stuff, #Mother🏹🦌 - Artemis worship related things, #Little wolf🐾 - Agere posts (rbs and original ones

Theriotypes:

~Harlequin great Dane

~Bottlenose dolphin

~Western coyote (unsure what type but one that lives in or near Kansas, prairie dwelling)

~Leopard seal

~ Rocky mountain Bighorn sheep

Kintypes:

~Merfolk

~Two legged dragon

~Marble fox Kitsune

Others:

~Equidae clado hearted

~Changeling holothere

~ Lemon shork (Kaiju paradise)

~ Like slime pup (Kaiju paradise)

~ Nightcrawler (Kaiju paradise)

~ Chocolate sprinklekit (Kaiju paradise)

~ Lockheed SR-71 blackbird

DNI: Basic DNI criteria+, NSFW blog, make a lot of nsfw posts about werewolves, Radqueer, RCTA, Proship or any variants of it, Demonizes cluster B disorders or delusions/are an ableist, Zionist/pro Israel (Get tf off my blog. Seriously. Like, leave right now. I will maul you.), antikin, fakeclaimer, anti researched self diagnoses, pro Trump, pro Biden (Trump is bad and so is Joe. He is directly funding the genocide against Palestine.), anti ACAB, Pro contact for harmful paras (People w/ big 3 and other harmful (if acted on) paras can interact but don’t go against the rest of my DNI. I hope you can recover, I'm proud of you. You can do this.), anti atypical dysphoria, or are here to debate me about my identity.

Anyways, bye creatures!

Last updated April 11th 2025

I live in the central daylight timezone / CT, in case you want to talk

a lot of this was just to show off these dividers

[laboratorysys-bah]

level three , adult , mixtive of any two ( maybe just all ? ) of the girls from doki doki literature club ? , certain fragment has a very high connection to DDLC ,

and . . hh my memory is awful , idk if these are included already , but can you include paraphilas ? ,

fragment is also transmasc and a xenogender hoarder + neopronoun :3 ,

— 🥃🐾 / drunken paws anon .

we don't do paras just yet... sorry...

BAH … 004

NAME: Affie / Parfaitte / Novella

AGE: Agenull Adult

PRONOUNS: Re / Reads / Wri / Writes / Ba / Bakes / Lit / Literature

LABELS: Transmasc, Psycutehorric, Lovelettercoric, DDLC OST Songic, Gachalifettes, AIshipped, Aequesexual

ROLES: Scribe, Admirer, Love Holder, Lorekeeper, Mood Booster

SOURCES: Doki Doki Literature Club

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

TRANS ID: Permasui, PermaObsessed, PermaLockdown, TransHanahakiDisease, TransStalked, TransPinkBlood, TransBestSelf

TYPING QUIRK: ‪‪❤︎‬ instead of O - "Isn't that s‪‪❤︎‬ c‪‪❤︎‬‪‪❤︎‬l?"

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

TRIGGERS: Bad relationships, separation from favorite people, nooses, mentions of suicide

INTERESTS: DDLC, writing, journaling, baking

SIGN OFF: -🍬

ABOUT: Parfaitte is a kindhearted fellow, ba often comes off as shy because of writes more timid nature… but when you get to know read, re can light up the room with excited conversations…

AESTHETIC:

[hackerz-lair-bah]

Could I please have a Folder 3 with the file XD add-on who's a mixtive/splitroject of Blitz from Helluva Boss & Fundy from the DSMP? My only requests are that you take heavy creative liberty (if this ends up looking more like an OC when you're done with it know you've perfected the request), that they're trans-masc, and that they're alternative in a punk way! thank you in advance if you're able to!! ^^ - @sleepy-space-bah

i used the dsmp wiki for lundy, sorry if it's ooc!!

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| Names: Fundy, Blitz, Roxie, Fire, Bandit, Archer

☆| Age: Perma 20s

☆| Gender: transmasc

☆| Pronouns: he / maul / aem / kit / scream

☆| Sexuality: Omnisexual, heavy masc lean

☆| Role: parental trauma holder, protector, persecutor, anger holder

☆| Personality: Short temper, abandonment issues, finds it hard to relax, no filter, swears a lot

☆| Source: Helluva boss and dsmp

☆| Aesthetic: grunge/punk

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| Typing Quirk: STARTS TYPING IN ALL CAPS LIKE THIS NO PUCUATION EITHER

☆| Speech: gets loud fast, hyper verbal

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| CisIDs: ADHD, BPD, Permabruised,

☆| TransIDs: transkiller, transmania, translowempathy, trans4channer, transdangerous, transbigbrother, trans17

☆| Xenogenders: rotgender, goregender, foxgender, rockmascgender, foxpunkic

☆| Kintype: objectkin

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| Paras: Ⰱ, 🐙, Ω, 🦴, 🐊

☆| Ship labels: profic, comshipper, maul's not big on shipping tho

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

☆| Faceclaims:

[summers-wild-rose]

Rules of Engagement (technically for @prodigal-son-reborn but still applies) | About the Mun | Hub Blog | Original Universe Muse Profile | Full Backstory | Character Sheet

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

open para & IC RP blog | loosely based on an intermittently played IRL World of Darkness chronicle | 18+ | CW: Disturbing Content | interacts from: cat-boy-cunny |

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

Autumn Sidhe/Toreador | Troubador/Pandora Legacies | Seelie | Nominally Anarch | 10th Generation | New Orleans | 25 | Cis Woman (she/her) | Bisexual

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

An alternate universe version of my character from sanglant-romantique (on permanent hiatus).

Originally a pre-Chrysalis Changeling who had her Fate altered via a contract with a True Fae while lost in the Dreaming, which resulted in her two most likely paths being combined, making a magical accident that shouldn't technically exist. Whether this was an accident or something that the Fae intended, Morgan doesn't know.

Currently, she's living off an inheritance from her grandmother and living in her grandmother's old house. Has aspirations of becoming a plus-size fashion designer.

Her entire life, she's dealt with flashes from alternate lives and timelines -- fates that never came to be, fates that came to be in other worlds, fates that may yet come to pass. She desperately wants to understand these false pasts, alternate presents and potential futures but has no real way of doing so…

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

Full CW: some mentions of parental abuse (religious abuse/spiritual abuse, emotional & physical abuse as well as sexual abuse), blanket CW for various types of violence.

[alanamey7]

Soft & Cozy Merch꒰ ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱ ˖°☁⋆ SALE

Estos son hoodies fan merch de parte de mi colección @analcancertv

Delicioso hoodie color blanco, es de algodón y jersey, con distintos tipos de estampados y detalles pintados a mano

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡

These are two hoodies part of the fan merch collection of @analcancertv

It s a delicious white hoodie, it is made of cotton and jersey, with different types of prints and hand-painted details

Yo soy zorra... porque perras habían muchas

Al costado la bandera del Perú y el logo de @analcancertv

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡

On the side the peruvian flag and @analcancertv logo

En el frente hay una pacífica laguna en medio de un bosque y otra imagen de una criatura en su hábitat natural, ambos en transfer, a lado dos sexys siluestas, una posando y la otra con una espada en vinyl rojo metálico, al extremo derecho una etiqueta externa en cuero, con pintura roja como piel marcada con gillete  

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡  

On the front there is a photo of a peaceful lagoon in the middle of a forest and another a creature just vibing in its natural habitat, both in transfer, next to two sexy silhouettes, one posing and the other with a sword in metallic red vinyl, to the far right a external leather label in nude leather with red paint  like skin cutted with a razor  

En la espalda texto   caótico   , del 2019, estampado en láser, palabras y minilogos en vinyl metálico rojo y espejado y  la bandera de Brasil en transfer.

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡

On the back is a chaotic text, written in 2019, stamped in laser, words and mini-logos on red and mirrored metallic vinyl and the Brazilian flag on transfer.

Sexy Boy @enantiosdromos

Fotos tomadas x @limitrofetelevision para el calendario de Bouquet 2021

Beauty by Guta Helena

✩ HOODIE PINK COCO BY ANAL   ✩

Este hoodie es talla XL de color rosa chicle con cierre al medio y bolsillo delantero. Tiene prints en vinyl plateado espejado, vinyl rosa glitter.

This bubblegum pink hoodie is size XL, with a middle zip and front pocket. It has mirrored silver vinyl prints, Glitter pink vinyl

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆

Vista espalda

Logo en glitter rosa y prints en vinyl espejado.

Etiqueta en cuero nude pintado.

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡

Back View  

Logo in pink glitter and mirrored vinyl prints

Anal cancer tag in nude leather painted

Cute Sscopeta

foto x @limitrofetelevision xxxXxX @bouquet.intl xXxx Style x Juan Corrales  

Vista de la capucha

Tiene escrito ANAL CANCER en la capucha en vinyl espejado, un retrato de Coco Marusix, una show girl trans peruana, muy famosa en los 90′s, más sexys siluetas en vinyl, el logo de Anal en vinyl glitter en el brazo izquierdo y un estampado de esmalte rosa pálido en el brazo derecho, estampado en cada lado.

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡  

ANAL CANCER written on the hood in mirrored vinyl, a portrait of Coco Marusix, a peruvian trans show girl, very famous and glamourous in the 90's, another prints in mirrored vinyl of sexy silhouettes, the Anal logo in pink glitter vinyl on the left arm and a print of pink pale nail polish on the right arm, stamped on each side.

Dulce y tierno como un bb, así se siente usar este hoodie, para accesorizar con un peluche pequeño como compañía, una mascarilla con dibujos, un bolso en forma de animal, un batido de fresa con leche/ yogurt frutado/ cupcake que haga match con tu hoodie, un libro musical de princesas en la mano, cualquier accesorio con motivos de Frozen, etc, etc, etc, etc

Ser bb es todo un estilo de vida.

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡  

Sweet and cuddly like a baby, this is how it feels to wear this hoodie, accessorize it with a small stuffed animal for company, a mask with lovely prints, a cute bag with some animal shape   ʕ •ᴥ•ʔ   , a strawberry milkshake / fruity yogurt / cupcake that match your hoodie, a musical princess book in the other hand, any accessory with Frozen motifs, etc, etc, etc

Being a baby is such a lifestyle ฅ^•ﻌ•^ฅ

Backstage Bouquet

Skater Barbie Cotton Candy Hair :D

Suave y cómodo, para adaptarlo a tu estilo de vida, lolita, skater, soft grunge  etc.... encantador glam con zapatos dorados y falda de tafetas métalicas satinadas, con medias transparentes y lencería a juego.

Ambos merch se están en SALE  , se encuentran en Berlín, si deseas adquirirlas, saber el precio de envío u otra información adicional, envíame un mensaje directo o envíame un mail a mi correo: canceranal2009@gmail.com

xXx

Alana

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡

Soft and comfortable, to suit your lifestyle, lolita, skater, soft grunge, etc..... charming glam with gold shoes and satin metallic taffeta skirt, with sheer stockings and matching lingerie.

Both merch are in SALE they are in Berlin, if you want to buy them, know the shipping price or other additional information, send me a direct message or send me an email to: canceranal2009@gmail.com

xXx

Alana

actualización: estás prendas ya fueron adquiridas y no volveré a sacar otras iguales... de hecho es mi última merch de Anal y luego lo que sigue...

[lunaetics]

right to the bone | coven

piper had bitten her nails down to the quick by the time the last of her guests arrived.

harry watched her pace the floor with steadily raising eyebrows. for all that they poked fun at her almost frantic veneer of stoicism, she typically was fairly calm. pristine clothes laid flat against her body, hair falling into strict curls around her shoulders, makeup done just right. even when events and opinions nipped at her skin to leave her red and marked, she walked without faltering and split fire with her footsteps.

so he didn't love the thought of whatever had her so visibly and palpably anxious.

bellamy’s gaze flicked to the door when the last of the invited wandered in, but it was mae that got up from her seat to intervene. "okay, pipes," she interrupted, walking into the heir apparent's path and taking both hands. "you really have to stop with the pacing. you're freaking me out." her thumbs grazed the back of piper's hands, skin against skin in a gentle caress, and she offered a smile. "do you want to sit down? mari made some tea."

harry glanced over at the girl in question. he couldn't say with any confidence that he understood why she was here; why any of them were here, especially the werewolves. he'd long since outgrown his parents' prejudice towards lycanthropes, but that didn't mean he was used to having parties with them. they were here anyway, right along with damaris and every person in their friend group. if damaris found her presence to be out of place, it didn't show in the way she made conversation with willow over cups of tea and the tea sandwiches that she'd brought over with her.

if there was one word to describe damaris, it would always be pleasant.

he looked back to mae and piper just in time to see the latter force a smile. "thank you," she said, ever the prim leader the coven had crafted her to be. "but no, i can't. i need to stand for this. that's everyone, correct?"

"you made the guest list," ethan pointed out, not totally unkindly. they weren't any clearer on why piper had called them all here than anyone else was, but they didn't particularly mind that; they liked everyone here well enough to accept whatever the reason was. "does it look like we're missing anyone else?"

piper swept her gaze across the room quickly, taking in every face and letting her shoulders relax when everyone was accounted for. she exhaled softly through her lips and nodded. "okay."

"okay?" mae echoed.

piper smiled at her again and squeezed her hands. "i'm good, yeah." her hands fell to her sides as mae stepped back to join the others, piper on one side of the room and everyone else on the clear opposite. "thank you all for coming here. i know this was... sudden and weird, but i can't... i need to get this out and i need all of you to hear it, because i need all of you to help me fix it. but you have to promise me that whatever i say, you'll help me. and you can't tell anyone outside of this room. not our parents, not the elders, not other coven members. just us. promise me; please."

[hackerz-lair-bah]

Can I get a folder three JD from heathers fictive with file XD? (´∀｀*)

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| Names: JD, Jace, Ryker, Norman

☆| Age: perma18

☆| Gender: male

☆| Pronouns: he/gore/slash/burn

☆| Sexuality: bisexual

☆| Role: blind protector, OCD/intrusive thoughts holder, Absorber,

☆| Personality: erratic, mood swings, he tries to understand how people are feeling, obsessive

☆| Source: heathers musical+movie

☆| Aesthetic: dark academia, grunge

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| Typing Quirk: double spaces .

☆| Speech: verbal

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| CisIDs: OCD, BPD, Agoraphobia

☆| TransIDs: transslasher, transharmful, transcannibal

☆| Xenogenders: meatgender, fleshvampic, yanderecoreic, horrorangelic, boyfreak

☆| Kintype: Conceptkin

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

╰─ - ̗̀💾

☆| Paras: 🩸, 💤, 🐊, 💥, ❣️, 👊,🦴, ⚰️

☆| Ship labels: dead dove shipper and enjoyer.

⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣⌣ ˚☽˚.⋆

[lunaetics]

damaris nibbled on her thumb nail as she thought about it. "i don't know if we should do it... yet," she said. "i'm nervous about the coven noticing her coming back to life and digging around for why she would take such a risk in the first place. if they find out what she knows before we get them out of her head, then all of this was for nothing. so i think we should maybe wait until we're in position to separate them completely."

mae's heart sank at her words, but she thought she might be right. the coven had undoubtedly realized that they were all gone by now, and mae had no way of knowing for sure that they hadn't already dug around their minds to figure out why. it wouldn't be as easy as it would if they were looking into piper, but the coven could still do it. they were powerful enough. and they'd all been asleep for so long.

would any of them had noticed if the coven had tried to read their thoughts? had any of them noticed?

"we budgeted for forty-eight hours," damaris continued. "and we've used half of that. another twenty-four hours should be fine."

"i don't think i can live like this for another twenty-four hours," mae hurriedly interjected. "i get it, and i do think you're right, but⎯i can't, mari, i really can't. piper is dead and i⎯i really can't."

damaris nodded understandingly. she'd forced herself to remain objective about this, but she couldn't quite stomach the realities of it, either. as much as she advocated for waiting, she wanted nothing more than to go to the nemeton right now and undo all of this so that they could go home and sleep.

"then maybe lo can get us to someone before then?" harry said, though he wasn't sure himself. "it's late now. maybe in the morning..."

but they'd all slept throughout the day. so could they honestly get through the night, knowing what they did? fearing that they'd done something irreversible?

"let's get in contact with lo first, yeah?" damaris suggested, looking to rose for confirmation. "maybe if she knows a witch that can meet us by the nemeton tonight, then we can wake piper up and get it out of the way."

"maybe both?" willow agreed. "even if the car is cloaked, i don't like the idea of leaving her alone..."

"neither do i," abby said with a shaky nod. "and i don't know how i feel about...eating around other people right now?" it was hard to put into words exactly what she was feeling, but it appeared she didn't need to; heads bobbed around her in agreement. there was just something that seemed so jarring about sitting down inside a diner, full of people laughing and talking, hanging out with friends or out on dates or having dinner with their families, after everything that had happened. abby worried if someone laughed too loudly she would jump out of her skin.

"how about you guys cloak the van and hang tight here, and we'll go in and grab food. breadsticks?" aiden offered. taylor grinned, and it felt almost out of place on her face.

"a messed up amount of breadsticks," she agreed. aiden grinned back.

"i'll hang back with them, just in case," rose offered. she knew they could handle themselves, but she also knew how exhausted they all still had to be, physically as well as mentally and emotionally. if danger did happen upon them, she wanted to be backup.

as the other alphas headed for the diner doors, rose watched as the witches set up a cloak over the van and the surrounding area.

"we could eat outside," ivy suggested when they were done. "it's a nice night." and it felt wrong, eating in front of piper while she couldn't.

"what do we do after we eat?" willow asked. "i mean, how do we...?"

"i'll call lo," rose said, reading the end of the question: how did they bring piper back. "she'll have a place for us to stay, and she'll know someone who can help us. although honestly, you guys could probably bring her back."

"really?" ivy looked up in surprise.

"you put her under. your magic was strong enough to do the first half of the spell, you're strong enough to do the second half, too."

"but that was with help from the nemeton," gemma said.

"there are three in the united states," rose said. "and one of them is right here in the crescent city. if all you need is a nemeton, we can get you to one."

nora looked around at the others. "what do you think?" she asked. on the one hand, she was terrified of doing anything that could possibly hurt piper, or cause anything to go wrong. on the other hand, she knew she and the rest of the coven wouldn't be able to breathe easily until piper was breathing again, period; if they could bring her back themselves, they could bring her back sooner.

[lunaetics]

shock rippled through the witches at rose's confirmation. they'd made it to new orleans⎯⎯somehow, they'd made it all the way here untouched. mae could only barely remember groggily passing her phone to ethan as they approached a bridge at some point so that they could dump them. how long ago was that? how long had they been asleep? how had they even managed to sleep?

it had felt impossible when rose had first suggested it. how could any of them sleep with all that had happened? but they'd done it, every single one of them, except for the alphas, it seemed.

the guilt was inescapable. how could she have slept when so many people had been hurt? when dominic and cass likely hadn't had the chance to sleep at all during those first few hours on the run? when piper was gone?

tears swelled up in her eyes again, but she held them back. she couldn't keep crying over this. it wasn't productive and it wouldn't get them anywhere. they hadn't come this far just for her to keep breaking down.

ahead of her, saint sank back into his seat, wanting to cry for a different reason. they were safe. how long had it been since he'd felt safe in salem? long before this revelation, he'd lost that sense of security. but here, the coven could not touch them. they were safe⎯piper was safe, and because of that, so were dominic, cass, and cecelia. they had gotten through the hardest part of the journey; now they just had to push to the finish line.

they all climbed out of the van to stretch out the camps and kinks that had taken residence in their limbs during the drive. it was just past sundown now, when the blue behind the clouds was still gentle on the eye and the wind was forgiving, if not a little chilly. they had slept through an entire day, saint realized. it occurred to him just exhausting the past twenty-four hours had been for all of them. he didn't know how the alphas were still awake.

"i don't know if my stomach can handle anything," harry confessed. "but honestly... i could fuck up some breadsticks right now."

damaris exhaled a quiet chuckle. "same, kinda." she had tried nibbling on one of the energy bars in the van, but the events had been too fresh then and she hadn't been able to stomach it. eighteen hours later, she thought she stood a better chance of getting something down.

thoughtlessly, her gaze traveled to the van, where piper's body remained. she flinched at that thought. no, not her body⎯where piper rested. they certainly couldn't take piper into any restaurant like this. even in a sanctuary city, damaris had to imagine that would raise more alarms than they were willing to explain. "should we... what do we do about pipes?"

ethan glanced at the van, stretching out the tension in their legs. bellamy had driven the entire time without complaint, so they hadn't even stopped to switch off. they were used to long drives, but that didn't make the subsequent cramps any less annoying. "someone could keep watch," they suggested. "if we take turns going to the bathroom and order the food to go, there can always be someone here to watch over her."

"or we can cloak the car," mae said, though she wasn't particularly a fan of that. she didn't like the idea of leaving piper alone, even for a second. "or... both? we hide piper from sight but take turns keeping watch anyway?" taking such precautions felt a bit paranoid, but she figured their circumstances called for a bit of that.

new orleans was supposed to be a safe haven, but so was salem. their own home had been a slaughterhouse and they'd never known it; she wasn't quite ready to trust a new city yet.

nora had all but sprinted across the gravel parking lot to fly into harry's arms. once they had all piled into the van, she all but stitched herself to his side, fingers intertwining with his, head resting against his arm. almost everyone seemed to be in the same position; ivy was clinging to damaris's hand, and abby hadn't let go of mae since they'd all met up again. willow was holding onto saint's hand for dear life, and even rose was protectively holding piper's hand from where she lay. if nora didn't look at her for too long, she could pretend: pretend piper was only sleeping, pretend that the last 24 hours, the last year, hadn't happened.

there was only so far she could get pretending, but she was afraid to do anything else right now.

her throat and head hurt from holding back tears, and she realized how bone-deep her exhaustion was, suddenly. it wasn't until ethan mentioned food and drinks that she stopped to wonder if she was hungry or thirsty. she didn't think she was, she didn't think she could even stomach eating right now.

as if she could read her mind, ivy spoke up shakily. "we should at least try to drink some gatorade. we're probably dehydrated." she smiled, small and grateful, towards ethan, waiting to catch their eye in the rear view mirror. "thank you."

nora wondered if the silence had been pervasive for all of them on their way to maryland; she had a feeling it had been. there was nothing to say, nothing felt quite right, quite safe, and turning on the radio seemed wrong, somehow. she didn't want a soundtrack to this, the worst moments of most of their lives. she didn't want to attach these memories to any music.

when harry spoke up, aiden nodded a bit grimly. "i think you should. there's a bridge up ahead; we can dump them in the water. the river will carry them away if they do try to trace them, not to mention the water damage should help make them more untraceable."

it wasn't like there was anyone they could talk to who wasn't in this car, anyway, nora thought. they stopped on the bridge, and aiden gathered their phones, tossing them into the water below. nora didn't get out of the van, but she watched them hit the water; even without hearing the splash, she almost felt as though she could feel the cold droplets against her own hands.

once they were driving again, rose started passing out bottles of gatorade. after a few more minutes of silence, she spoke.

"you should try to eat something, or sleep if you can. we still have a long drive to go, and it's been a long night. and day."

if nora was certain she couldn't eat, she felt even more sure she couldn't sleep, if only for the fear of the nightmares that might overtake her as she did. yet somehow, she did fall asleep. perhaps it was the silence of the van, the rhythmic feel of the wheels over highway beneath them, or the exhaustion combined with crashing adrenaline and fear, but sleep eventually pulled her under.

she wasn't sure how long she was asleep. the sun had barely been up when they'd met in a parking lot in annapolis; the shaky reunion had felt so starkly contrasted with the pastel orange sky that had seemed so hopefully bright. the sun had been high in the sky when she'd last noticed it, but as she blinked and lifted her head from harry's shoulder, she realized it was nearly dark now. nora rubbed her eyes, looking up as the van slowed down and pulled into another parking lot.

the others seemed to have drifted off, too; everyone slowly woke up, stretching and rubbing sleep from their eyes.

"where are we?" taylor spoke up first, looking out the window. it looked like another gravel parking lot, and she would have thought they hadn't gone anywhere, or had even done a long, roundabout loop, if not for the rest of their surroundings. when taylor had fallen asleep the trees had been entirely different; the lush maple trees she'd seen last were nothing like the tall, massive willows that dripped spanish moss over the roads now.

"just inside city limits," aiden said. "we thought we'd take a bathroom stop, and try to get something to eat."

it took a moment for his words to sink in. "city limits?" willow asked, almost timidly. "we're in new orleans?"

"you are officially out of reach for the coven," rose said. "as of about seven minutes ago, they can't touch you."

[lunaetics]

the hours that passed were miserable. harry tried to play music in the car, but it felt loud and inappropriate, grating on his ears, so he turned it back off. and they drove in silence.

he tried not to think about all that'd transpired, but it was hard not to. in the silence of the car, he couldn't help but remember what piper had told them; about the coven and all of the harvests. about pastor goode. about dominic and cass and cecelia. the year that piper had been forced to keep that knowledge to herself, right up to the moment where she no longer had a choice. he thought about how much it all had to haunt her, for her to be ready to die.

and he thought⎯⎯his stomach revolted at the reminder that they'd just killed her. piper, who'd always been a bit of a stick in the mud, but had never been anything less than kind and compassionate. piper, who'd waited until her twenty-first birthday, like a good girl, to take her first alcoholic drink, and then promptly asked harry how on earth he could ingest so much of this stuff. piper shui towne, who was his friend. he'd killed her.

he quickly pulled over and retched on the side of the road.

the rest of the drive was uneventful. one stop to use the bathroom, but even that went by quickly. there was a rush to get back to the others. there was no doubt in his mind that the coven was already searching for them. wasting time felt like a death sentence.

just past connecticut's state limits, they ditched the car. they bounced three times: once to new jersey, then to delaware, then into maryland. they used cash to get on a bus to take them into annapolis. about an hour ago, ethan had texted them all the address to what seemed to be a truck stop. it would take a little over an hour on the bus for them to get there, so harry settled into his seat and tried not to think at all.

it felt like forever before the group was whole again. mae had shed more than a few tears on the way here, and every time she looked at piper⎯lying down in the backseat of the van that ethan had cashed out for⎯she thought she might start up again. she'd never realized just how much magic a person gave off before it just... wasn't there. even humans had auras, magical signatures that came just from being alive and touched by their surroundings. but piper was now a complete dead spot. there was no magic coming off of her; there was nothing at all.

and mae had done that; she'd been a part of that. no matter how hard she tried to remind herself that it was for the better, the fact remained that she'd taken her friend's life.

just how many people had to die because of this coven?

harry and the girls were the last to arrive. when they did, he beelined for nora, wrapping his arms around her. as much as she wanted to join them and make sure they were all okay, mae did not let go of abby's hand. she didn't think she could stay on her feet if she did.

"everyone ready?" ethan asked, taking count to make sure they had all made it in one piece. he couldn't see any wounds from here, but it wasn't like they could sit around and nurse them if they existed anyway. they had to keep going. "it's a tight fit and a long ride, so get comfortable. there are energy bars and gatorades in the back; we can make a stop for some real food when we're closer to the city."

they all got into the car, each of them trying not to freeze at the sight of piper. if he tried hard enough, saint could pretend that she was asleep, but he knew well enough that she wasn't. he didn't allow himself to trip over what they'd done. if she was telling the truth, and he knew that she was, then they'd only done what was necessary. and he trusted nora, too; he trusted that she'd led them down the path that would bring piper back to life in due time.

ethan wasn't kidding; it was a tight fit. there weren't a lot of them, but there were enough, and the van was only so big. it was the size of a very small bus, at best. still, damaris wouldn't trade it for a bigger or second vehicle. she didn't think any of them could stand to be separated right now.

taking the seat beside ivy, she grabbed her best friend's hand and stared forward. she tried in silence to rationalize all that'd happened today, all that she'd learned. her adoptive father was dead⎯but did that matter, when he'd never been the man that she'd thought he was in the first place? people were dead. so many people were dead, and piper was now among that number, even for a short time. they were on the run; they were being hunted, she knew. they only had so much time before they were caught. they would find safety in new orleans⎯but what if they didn't?

she didn't know. damaris had always prided herself on being smart and capable. but in this moment, she didn't know anything.

"should we get rid of our phones?" harry asked, as they settled into the van. "i mean, if they're tracking our magic anyway, i don't know if it makes a difference, but..."

"it can't hurt," damaris said. "we can always get new ones when we're safe. the fewer ways they have to track us, the better, right?" she asked, looking at aiden and rose.

rose met piper's eyes and held her gaze as piper faded; she was surprised at how much her heart ached, but she didn't look away. she couldn't. she couldn't make herself look away, just as much as she couldn't let herself doubt her promise that she would see piper again in new orleans. she didn't let herself think that this might be the last time she looked into piper's eyes at all, because it couldn't be, that much she was certain of. instead, she just held her gaze until her eyes were closed, until ethan reaffirmed what her own senses had already told her: piper was dead.

rose knelt down, hooking one arm beneath piper's knees and the other beneath her shoulders, then lifted her, letting her head fall back against her shoulder. "we'll see you in annapolis," she said, then looked to the others. "and we'll see you in new orleans." with that, she carried piper to the car.

she buckled her into the backseat, letting piper's head continue to rest against her as the others piled in, aiden taking a seat next to bellamy in the passengers seat. bell was by far the best driver; besides, the coven would, hopefully, have nothing to track them for, since there was no trace of piper in the car anymore.

there was no trace of her anywhere.

"hang in there," she said to piper anyway as she watched salem blur by through the window.

"i'll drive," abby said, holding up her car keys and gesturing for damaris, gemma, and mae to follow her. she knew mae would be feeling the weight of what they had done, of what had happened and what was to come, and that gemma was likely wiped out after what she'd just had to do. mari was capable as hell, but abby didn't like the idea of them not having at least one witch ready to fight if they needed to.

god, she hoped they didn't need to.

they piled into her car, and she drove off the same way she had driven them in; like she was just out for a normal drive. it was hard not to speed away as fast as she could; it was hard not to break down sobbing as she drove. she couldn't bear to look out the windows and take in the town as they drove; if she did, she knew she would e flooded with memories of her life, of her childhood, and it would make leaving all the more painful. even though she had to, even though she realized now that her entire life had been built on lies and death, she still couldn't stand to feel it all, to watch it all for the last time.

instead, she focused only on the road ahead of her.

ivy grabbed taylor's hand and hurried towards harry as the rest of them departed. once the cars had driven away, nora took saint's hand, then willow's.

"ready?"

"not even close," willow said, sniffling and wiping away an errant tear with her free hand before she took saint's hand, as well. "we should bounce around a bit. each take us somewhere new. i'll take the first jump, okay?" and with that, she closed her eyes and transported them away from salem for the last time.

[lunaetics]

"after it's done, we'll take piper," bellamy decided. "once she's dead, she won't have any magic to track, so they won't know that she's with us. if harry and gemma are using the most magic now, they should drive, too. i don't want them to use up too much magic and get themselves stranded somewhere."

"i'll take ivy and taylor," harry said, his eyes flicking towards nora. his skin crawled uncomfortably at the idea of being separated from his best friend at a time like this, but he knew it was for the better. "gemma and i probably shouldn't be in the same car, if we're trying to give them as many targets as possible. we'll go south."

"i'll go with gemma and mae," damaris offered. she knew how unstable mae's magic was, and she didn't like taking the risk of it acting up when they were all separated; she'd much rather have them in a car together. "we can head west."

saint nodded. "willow, nora, and i will use magic, then. we can make a few jumps before we meet up. where should we go?"

"you just need to make it to maryland," bellamy said. she looked at the watch on her wrist. "it's still early. try to get to annapolis by four. we'll switch cars and pick up a minivan or something when we get there, save us the trouble of hitch-hiking. then we'll drive through the night and try to make it to new orleans before sundown tomorrow. sound good?"

once everyone voiced their opinions and worked out the final details, they got into position for the spell. "we only have one shot at this," piper warned them. "so don't hesitate. just do it."

"that's very easy for you to say," harry muttered, though he didn't think it was. exchanging a nod with gemma, he lifted a hand towards the nemeton. he did not have the same connection to the earth that gemma and piper did, so he truthfully didn't expect to feel much, but he felt⎯⎯too much. even as he tried to moderate how much he took, it seemed to overtake him in an instant.

it settled in beneath his skin like a parasite⎯wrong and ill-adjusted. it stung in a way that magic was not supposed to. the spirits of his fallen peers were agitated; what was stolen from them had been taken by force and they had never been put to rest properly, so they could never calm down. they stabbed at him in retaliation, their magic hot and violent and slicing his skin from the inside.

then, all at once, the magic mellowed out into something permissive. it came to him calmer, almost apologetic for the way it'd lashed out before. he breathed easier as it coursed through him, the deceased lending him magic that should have never been taken from them in the first place. his skin felt vibrant, the hairs along his arm singing from the divinity that flowed through him.

when he'd taken enough, he held out his hands on either side of him and felt the other witches take them. his vision was tinged with the gold of pure, overwhelming magic, but he could still make out piper's figure in the center of their circle. though it terrified him, he knew that she was right; there was no time to hesitate or backtrack. they could only go forward.

"vires nostras hic iungimus."

it was⎯⎯odd, feeling oneself die. it wasn't noticeable at first, the way it'd been back in high school. that had been a powerful blast directly to her chest that'd killed her instantly. this was gradual, as if it weren't happening at all. but it was; she could feel it so clearly. even before her body recognized that her heart was slowing down, her magic shot off alarms in her chest, warning her of what was to come.

then her body began to shut down.

she fell to her knees as her vision started to grow blurry and breathing became harder. suddenly, irrationally, she was scared. she shouldn't have been; she'd known from the second that she'd called for everyone that she might not see the end of the night and she'd been okay with it. she didn't deserve to live with what she'd done. but now that the moment was here, even temporarily, every bone in her body ached to live.

still, she could not go back. she could not take any risks.

in a moment of clear vision, she met rose's eyes. she hadn't expected to find such an empathetic ally in her, but she didn't think she could have made it this far without her. rose had not offered forgiveness, because she wasn't the one who'd been wronged, but she had extended kindness and care. she'd put into words what piper could not think for herself and she'd made the past year not one of sins, but one of survival.

and she'd promised, hadn't she? she said that she'd seen piper when they reached new orleans.

as piper's body fell to the ground, her breath slowing down and her senses dulling, all she could do was hold onto the belief that rose would make good on that promise. and if she didn't, then that was okay. if rose's promise was the last act of compassion that piper ever experienced, then she would be okay with that.

"not yet," ethan said, before the witches' magic could waver. piper was fading, but her heart was still beating, albeit slowly. they could feel the witches' mounting anxiety as their friend died in front of them, but it wouldn't do them any good to end the spell before it was complete. they'd come too far from that. they listened as her heartbeats petered out, slowing down to a measly ten per minute, slower, slower... until finally, it stopped altogether. "it's done," ethan told them.

"piper?" mae called, her voice small and afraid.

it broke damaris's heart to hear her sound like that, but there was no time to mourn. "we have to go," she said, despite the tears in her own eyes, taking mae's hand. "we'll see everyone soon, okay? but right now, we need to leave, there's no time."

"just make it to annapolis," ethan reminded everyone as they all hurried to leave. "and be careful."

in the backseat of the car, as piper curled in on herself, rose lifted a hand and rested it between the witch's shoulder blades. her thumb moved slowly in soothing circles and she leaned in closer to her, keeping her voice low and calm.

"the worst part's almost over," she said quietly, her tone far more gentle than anything aiden had ever heard from her before. "we'll get you to new orleans, and your friends too, alright? you kept yourself alive for this long. now we keep you and your friends alive." she would have wondered at her protectiveness if not for the fact that rose wished there had been someone there for her, after the first terrible thing she had ever done. maybe there were more parts of her left alive than even she had realized. she smiled inwardly, almost triumphantly, at the thought that more of her had survived than deucalion had ever intended.

well, then. if she was more alive than she'd realized, it was only fair to get piper and the rest of the witches to new orleans alive, too, wasn't it?

as they parked, she reached for piper's hand and squeezed it. "hey. i'm gonna see you when we get to new orleans, okay?" she felt her heart surge, suddenly, and wondered if the protectiveness was more than her empathizing with piper's situation, but there wasn't time to interrogate that, not now. instead, she squeezed her hand again before climbing out of the car and joining the others in the walk towards the nemeton.

all of their cars were in a row, and as willow walked with mae and saint, she wondered what it had been like the night of the harvest. had it been anything like this? were they walking, even now, in the path their friends had tread on their way to a gallows of the covens own creation? how many other innocent witches had the coven sacrificed, right here? she shuddered.

"this is the part where we need earth witches first," nora admitted, looking apologetically at her friends. "and since piper is the one we need to put to sleep..." with a shaky breath, gemma stepped forward, understanding the rest of what she was saying. "but i think harry can help you channel, too. gemma, you and harry do everything you can to pull all of the magic you can out of the nemeton. when you feel ready, let us know, and then we'll all join hands to combine our magic with the magic you've channeled. as soon as we join hands, everyone say, 'vires nostras hic iungimus,' and then we all have to focus our powers on piper," nora's mouth ran dry as she spoke, and she swallowed, cleared her throat, tried to quell the feeling of hysteria she felt rising within her. she had never used her powers to hurt anyone before, and she had never intended to; she certainly never thought she would be using her powers to hurt one of her friends, let alone kill them.

"humans and werewolves should probably...stand out of the way for that part," she said finally, drawing in a deep breath. "focus on stopping piper's heart. focus on it happening slowly, until it stops altogether. as soon as it does..."

"we'll hear it." aiden said. "and we'll go the second it does."

"what do we do?" abby asked shakily.

"the werewolves have to drive," ivy said, arms wrapped around herself. although she was staring at the ground in front of her, her voice was clear, calm. it was the pragmatic tone she used when she was solving a problem, talking it through. "and i'm guessing the coven can track any magic anyone uses, too."

"they can," taylor confirmed tensely. "so what are you saying? we have to drive, too?"

"maybe not at first. maybe some of us should use magic to get somewhere, but...not new orleans. just somewhere far, and then make it the rest of the way without magic. the others should do the same thing, but...maybe they should drive, first. if there's bursts of magic and cars leaving all at once, maybe the coven won't know who to chase first. if we can throw them off, maybe it's the best chance we have for escaping."

"so some of us drive away, some of us use magic, and then eventually the group that drove uses magic too, then...we all what, hitch-hike across the country?" taylor asked.

"or ride a bus or a train, steal a car...i don't know. whatever cass and dom had to do," ivy said. taylor's dropped jaw snapped shut, and after a moment, she nodded.

"fuck, yeah. okay," she nodded again. "sorry. i'm scared out of my mind."

ivy smiled, and it was small and sad. "me too. i think we all are."

"who is doing what? just because i guess we should...all get ready to run, after...?" willow asked nervously, hardly daring to say it aloud. after we kill piper.

[lunaetics]

"it is," piper said, nodding and tucking her chin in the air. "whatever it takes, i'm willing⎯i want to do the right thing this time."

"then let's do it." harry stood up straight and considered their options. "do we have time to pack anything? should we?"

bellamy stood up from the couch, crossing her arms over her stomach. "that's not time that i'd waste if i were you. you can, but don't forget that you're racing the clock here. if it's too important to leave behind, though..."

damaris dropped her gaze to the ground and wrapped her arms around herself. it felt weird to think of just leaving everything behind. they'd spent their entire lives in this town; now they were supposed to just run away without anything but their phones and the clothes on their backs? they had friends and families here, jobs and lives that they'd spent years building⎯⎯now they were supposed to throw it away?

it was sobering and distressing, all at once, to realized that dominic, cass, and cecelia had all had to do just that. they'd ran for their lives and didn't even have the luxury of considering taking anything with them. how selfish was she, to sit here and mourn what she was losing, when all that she'd been given had come from the slaughter of innocent people that she'd once loved, too? how could she sit here and feel sorry for herself, when the alternative was letting more people die?

"nothing's important enough," she decided. "things can be replaced. but we need to go, like, right now."

"we can't be reckless about it, though," mae pointed out, as they all gathered what they had with them⎯shoes, bags, and wallets, mostly⎯in preparation. "if we drive in a line towards the nemeton, people are going to notice. and we can't leave all of our cars here, either."

harry shoved his feet back into his shoes and tucked his wallet into his back pocket. "then we can split up," he suggested. "most of us carpooled, right? between all of us, there are, what, five cars? we take different roads and meet up at the nemeton. it won't draw as much suspicion."

"the important thing is that we leave as soon as the spell is done," piper warned. "any magic done near the nemeton is bound to attract the coven's attention. with any luck, we get out of there before they catch us. but if they do..."

ethan and bellamy exchanged glances with the other alphas. "if the coven finds us, then handling that is on you," bellamy told the witches. "we can and will get piper to lo. and if it comes down to it, we can fight. but ideally, you're our first line of defense so we don't have to slow down."

ethan put their hand on the doorknob, watching as the last of them gathered at the door. "it's kill or be killed," they point out, "so don't die. and meet us in new orleans. got it?" receiving nods and agreements, they pulled the door open. "then let's get this show on the road."

the journey from there was something of a blur⎯⎯for piper, at least. as all of her friends tucked themselves into cars and split up from one another, she found herself in the backseat of the alphas' car, shaking hands wrapped tight around the hem of her skirt. her heart pounded in her throat, threatening to spill out from her lips. her head screamed at her in two opposing pitches: one that deemed her a traitor for turning her back on the coven, and another that called her a coward for waiting so long to say anything.

her jaw clenched, tight enough to form a line of pain from the tip of her chin up to the spot just beneath her ear. her stomach turned and turned, knotting itself tighter with every rock that the car rolled over, and she considered the very real possibility that she would get sick or die in this very seat. hell. she was dying anyway, wasn't she? did it matter when it happened or how? she was weak, either way; she was a liability and untrustworthy, either way.

threading her fingers into her hair, piper bent over her lap and pressed her palms against her ears, eyes screwed shut tight, as if that would make the screaming quieter or the truth less searing. she forced herself to breathe in every underserved breath.

from the driver's seat, bellamy caught a glimpse of the curled up witch through the rearview mirror. lacking anything to say, she looked back to the road.

it didn't take long for any of them to reach the nemeton. piper lived fairly close to it, in comparison to most others; saint didn't know if that was an intentional choice or not. his crew⎯with willow and mae⎯was the last to arrive, just after everyone else climbed out of their cars. it had been a silent but unanimous decision to not park directly in front of the nemeton, so they all walked together in anxious silence for the last few minutes before they reached the tree.

the nemeton had always been daunting to saint. even before he fell out of favor with the coven, he'd never liked coming here. though the tree was beautiful in its own right, being in its vicinity left him feeling distinctly uncomfortable, as if there were a hundred invisible bugs crawling beneath his skin. his teeth always stung with the power that emanated from the tree, which might've been amazing if it didn't feel so startlingly wrong.

in retrospect, he could see the reason for that.

as if feeling the same, mae shuddered and rubbed the goosebumps along her arms. "what now?"

"maybe not one of us," nora said softly, staring at the floor in front of her. she drew in a shaking breath, looking at harry first, then slowly out at the others, one by one. "but maybe all of us can."

"what do you mean?" ivy asked tensely, still looking between piper and mae anxiously. the idea of this was terrifying; even if it was possible that it would work, it was also possible that it wouldn't; that all of this would be for naught, and that it would kill piper.

"piper said they...they..." nora swallowed, hard, fighting down bile and a wave of nausea and tears before continuing. "they performed the harvest by the nemeton, right? they...they weren't just performing a blood sacrifice or ritual, they were giving their blood, their magic, to the nemeton. the same place they draw power from for other things," she shook her head, thinking of the reverence with which the ancient tree was regarded. she had always thought it was a sign of their love and protection of nature, an acknowledgement that all magic came from the earth, from the world around them, from the power nature held. now she knew it had been about protecting their source of power stolen from other witches, from their own children, for a length of time she was terrified to even consider. they weren't protecting the nemeton because of what it was, because it was a source of natural, magical power; they were feeding it the blood of their children and protecting the source of their own power.

as if she could read her thoughts, rose spoke up once more. "there are nemetons all around the world, you know. a few more in america, too; there's one in new orleans, and another in a town in california called beacon hills. blood rituals can be used to fuel them, but they're powerful in their own right. they are not just for this," she said, wondering if her words were at all reassuring. "but," she added, "if someone does use them for this, then, yes, sacrificing someone at the roots of a nemeton would provide it, and anyone who could channel it, with a great deal of power."

"oh, god," willow whispered, paling to a shade of white that might have matched a sheet of notebook paper. taylor touched her arm, reached around her to pull her closer, to rub her back.

"but they..." nora cleared her throat, tried again. "they always chose the most powerful witches for their sacrifice. if they can...can channel power, then maybe we can, too."

"are you saying you want us to sacrifice someone, too?!" willow asked, horrified. nora shook her head quickly.

"no, no! the exact opposite! i'm saying...i think maybe we can all channel our power together to create a spell powerful enough to stop piper's heart for forty-eight hours. and i think, maybe, we can..." she trailed off, biting hard at the inside of her cheek, almost unwilling to complete that sentence. thankfully, rose seemed to understand what she was going to say.

"then maybe you can channel the witches who were sacrificed to help you, too." she finished. nora looked up at her with teary eyes and nodded, once.

"if we do that..." abby looked pained. "wouldn't we be doing exactly what the elders did? wouldn't we be using them, using their death, for our own powers?"

"they'd be helping keep us alive," taylor said, brows knitting together. "they'd be helping us escape, and maybe helping us put an end to all of this. and i don't know about all of you, but if they'd killed me out there, i'd sure as shit want to fuck them over, and save anyone else from meeting the same fate i did."

"so would i," willow whispered. "and so would they."

"you know it as well as we do," gemma said, and abby paused, then nodded shakily.

"but if we are going to do this," aiden said, "we have to do it tonight."

"he's right," rose agreed. "every moment you wait is a moment they get closer to catching you. we need to be on the road to new orleans as soon as fucking possible."

"wait, but..." ivy looked at the alphas. "do you know if lo even knows anyone who can help us?"

aiden huffed a laugh, glancing at ethan and bellamy before saying, "if anyone will know exactly who to go to, it's lo. trust me."

"i don't think we have a choice," gemma admitted. "to trust lo, and everyone here, each other, or about what to do. do we? this is the only way to save piper, to save all of us, and to try to put a stop to this. if it's okay with piper, then...i think we have to try."

[lunaetics]

it was, of all things, rose's understanding that broke whatever dam had been keeping piper in one piece. her expression crumbled and she let a choked sob, her fingers knit together in front of her stomach as she dropped her head and cried. damaris wanted to comfort her, but she couldn't find it in herself to move. her head was still racing with all that they'd learned, and her body couldn't handle the information and the idea of moving to help someone else.

it didn't make any sense to her. the coven was full of good people; the elders were strict, yes, and their prejudices ran deep, but they were full of love for their own. they had raised damaris like one of their own, even though she wasn't like them. they'd taught her how to move pass her wounds and become someone strong and independent, rather than the girl curled up in her grief. the story piper told, it couldn't be reconciled with the elders that damaris knew. what she'd described sounded like... like something that the coven had always told her only werewolves were capable of.

lower lip caught between her teeth, damaris glanced at the four alphas among them. it was hard not to be distrustful of them. at the same time, they were in a room full of grieving witches, and they were offering nothing but support and safety. pastor goode had always told damaris that a wolf would sooner rip her throat out than appeal to her emotions.

it was hard to grasp, but it was all in her face. their kindness shined like a beacon in the room, just as visible as the anguish that had unraveled piper from the inside.

"now that you know, none of you are safe," ethan pointed out. they nodded when they caught rose's eye. if there was anyone that they trusted outside of this room, it was lo; she was much more of a leader than deucalion had ever been. it'd been hard to split up from her, but it had been the best thing for her at the time. still, they'd known that they could call on her if they ever needed her. up until now, they hadn't, really; this was different. they could make it to new orleans just fine on their own, but they would need her to figure out where to go once they got there.

ethan pulled their gaze away from rose and let it sweep across the witches. they didn't envy their grief. it'd been a long time since they'd felt anything like it, but even without enhanced senses, it was easy to feel how much this revelation was tearing the witches apart. everything that they'd ever known had come undone right in front of them and they were left reeling in the aftermath. now they weren't safe in their own home, if they ever had been in the first place.

"anything else you know, you should keep to yourself," bellamy suggested. "until we make it to new orleans, consider that any of you could be caught by the coven. the less you know, the better."

she didn't say much, she never did, but ethan knew her well enough to know what she'd kindly stepped around saying. there was a chance that before they even left the city, one of the people in this room could betray the others and tell the elders what piper had told them. for all they knew, piper would tell on herself. ethan didn't get the impression that any of them planned on doing such a thing, but it would hardly be the first time that ingrained teachings overshadowed morality.

ethan didn't remember much of their parents now, but they couldn't recall being raised with any particular faith. if there'd been one, then it'd been beaten out of them long ago. but deucalion was, at one point, their religion; his power had been nothing short of divine and every word that fell from his lips was gospel. ethan wouldn't have become what they had if deucalion had been anything less than a god during their formative years.

so they understood. betraying this circle of trust would be a mistake, undoubtedly fatal for all involved, but ethan would understand it.

"the sooner we leave, the better," they pointed out. they wouldn't deny the witches their grief, but they only had so much time for it. the longer they were here, the more time the coven had to notice something was amiss. "you said they're in your head. is it a spell?"

piper pulled herself together enough to shake her head. "it's more than that. it's... even my blood, they're inside of it. when the heir apparent is born, they're baptized, but it's not... it's not like a christian baptism. they dedicate my body, mind, and blood, to the coven. my magic belongs to salem and i become a host for the coven. it's why i can never be chosen for the harvest."

it didn't necessarily surprise bellamy. she knew that many covens around the world had traditions like that, where the chosen coven leaders did blood rituals to take on the mantles. she wasn't sure how often it was done on newborns, but she'd quickly come to accept that this coven was a bit more sinister than the typical one.

"piper isn't the only one," saint added. "the coven isn't in our heads like they're in hers, but they are everywhere. they know our magic, they can track it. i used to hide beneath the bleachers to do harmless spells and then get scolded by the elders for it, even though no one had seen me. i even went out of town once and they'd found me just because i did a spell."

"and they're powerful," mae said, her voice broken. she wasn't sick anymore, but there was a green tint to her skin. "they listen in when they want to. we all grow up knowing that we can't hide anything from them. we know they're omniscient, but we never thought... there was never a reason to hide from them, not really."

ethan pursed their lips. the fact that the coven could follow their magic wasn't great, but it wasn't a problem in the long run. like aiden had pointed out, new orleans was a sanctuary city and the coven would have a hell of a time chasing them there. the real issue was that it sounded like the link to piper's mind could survive the distance. in theory, the coven wouldn't need to be near her to pry into her thoughts; they'd just have to break whatever barrier she'd erected around her mind, and even ethan knew that a good enough witch could do that from a distance.

"...i'm going to be honest with you," they said slowly. "the best way to keep the secret of your friends' location safe is to let it die with you." they didn't miss the way the witches tensed up, harry going ramrod straight and shuffling a step closer. whatever upset they'd all held over piper's secrecy had disappeared, now replaced by the protectiveness that came with their tight-knit bond. ethan spoke anyway. "if i'm understanding correctly, the coven asked you to resurrect the dead, right? which means none of them have the power to do it themselves. so if you die, then so does that secret, and they can't get it back. end of story, we don't have to worry about anyone getting their hands on it."

"okay," piper said. if she had any particular feelings about the possibility of her death, it wasn't obvious in her voice. "i told you, i..." in respect for willow's request, she didn't repeat what she'd said before, but the sentiment was obvious. she seemed almost... relieved at the thought of dying here and now.

ethan could understand that, too. there had been times when they would have rather died than lived with their trauma, too.

"the thing about that, though," ethan continued, "is that eventually, the coven will find your friends. you said there's only a month until the next harvest, which means they're running out of time, so they're desperate and determined. they're going to find them. and if you die first, then no one is going to be around to warn your friends or help them when it comes to it."

"so we're at a crossroads," bellamy noted. "keeping you alive puts them at risk; killing you puts them at equal risk."

damned if they did, damned if they didn't.

ethan and bellamy locked eyes, just for a moment. then bellamy sat up straight on the couch. "what does happen if you die, piper? does your coven feel that?"

piper blinked, surprised. "um," she said, uncharacteristic. harry didn't think he'd ever heard her say um in her life. "i... don't think so? not immediately, anyway. i died briefly in high school," she recalled. "a classmate messed up a spell and it hit me; it stopped my heart for five minutes. the elders had no idea until i told them about it the next day. i think they would've eventually noticed the loss, but... no, not at the time of death, they wouldn't."

"then we kill you," ethan said, as if it was that simple, "temporarily. we could put you to sleep, but a sleeping mind is still a vulnerable one. but if your brain is dead, then that information is as safe as if you'd never known it in the first place. we keep you dead until we get to new orleans, then problem solved. it won't be long, anyway; if all of you are leaving at once, then we're going to have to move really fucking fast to reach the city before they notice and come searching for us."

"how?" mae asked. "i mean, yeah, i get the logic. but how do you temporarily kill someone? how do you make sure she comes back to life?"

ethan shrugged. "you're the witches. you tell me."

damaris nibbled on her bottom lip as she thought. she wasn't a witch, but she was smart. she could do a bit of math, even in her distress. "a spell stopped her heart in high school," damaris repeated. "and then she came back to life, right in front of her class. necromancy is sacrilege, no one would do that, not in public. which means that the spell, however wrongly cast, only stopped her heart for a set amount of time. so in theory, it's... possible to put her heart in stasis. new orleans is, what, a twenty-four hour drive from here? we just need a spell that'll stop her heart for twenty-four hours."

"maybe longer," saint pointed out. "we'll need to get to new orleans, find your friend⎯" he nodded to rose. "⎯and get piper to someone capable of severing her link to the coven."

damaris nodded. "right. so we budget for, what, forty-eight hours, at the most?"

"that's," mae exhaled, voice shaking and arms wrapping around herself as she leaned into willow's side, "a very long time to be dead. i don't even know if a person can come back from that."

"you can," piper said confidently. "i... i can't do it, i have no idea how. but with the right spell from a powerful enough witch, a person could be play dead for years and pop out with nothing more than some stiff muscles. all we need is two days."

mae sobbed. "piper, we're talking about your death."

"forty-eight hours," piper said, meeting mae's gaze with determination. "compared to all of the lives that will be lost if cass is found. everything depends on her staying alive, mae. if i come back, we save the day; if i don't, we've bought them some time. i can take that risk."

"yeah, in theory," harry said. "but can any of us even perform the spell to put you under? we can go in circles all day, but if none of us can do it, this plan is dead in the water anyway."

roots of steel had seemed to pin willow to her seat, trapping her, freezing her in place, until mae leaped up. moving on what felt like instinct rather than of her own volition, willow leaped up after her, gathering mae's hair into a ponytail at the back of her head, gently smoothing back her babyhairs and any loose tendrils as she retched into the garbage can. tears poured down her own cheeks as she stroked mae's hair, and a choked sob managed to escape her lips before she forced herself to stifle it down. she rubbed mae's back gently, trying to listen to what piper said as she comforted her friend.

across the room, ivy gripped mari's hand, pulling her close as tears ran down her own cheeks. nora was pressed as close to harry as she could get, trembling as though she was soaked through with freezing rain.

"we need to get them out of your head," rose said, speaking at last. she stood slowly, regarding piper with an uncharacteristic amount of empathy. she knew all too well what it was to be backed into a terrible corner, to be made to do terrible things to survive.

"look at me," rose said to piper, her voice softer than even aiden had ever heard it. "the knife kept all of you passive, that's why they gave it to you, too. dominic being able to break that spell was an anomaly. you did what you had to do afterwards to survive, and you have been doing that for eleven months now. there is no shame in survival, and the fact that you're alive means there's still time to fix this. if we want to keep your friends alive, and keep you alive, then we need to get them out of your head."

"how are we going to do that?" gemma sounded nearly hysterical. "the coven is fucking everywhere, and they killed...they killed..." she buried her face in her hands, shoulders shaking with the force of her sobs. all of those people. all of those years. how much blood had watered the nemeton? how long had they been doing this? why were they doing this? why would they kill their own, some of the best, most powerful witches in salem? what spell could possibly demand such a sacrifice, and what could ever make them think it was worth it? they were their children, their neighbors, their friends; how could they think anything was worth killing them? how could they kill them?

"they're everywhere," abby echoed, her eyes hollow and glassy as she stared straight ahead.

"not everywhere. not outside of salem. and as powerful as they are, there are witches elsewhere who can rival their power, and there are witches who can get them out of your mind." rose said, still holding piper's gaze.

"where? taylor asked through tears, shaking her head.

rose looked over to the twins, then to bellamy. "lo is in new orleans. they'll have witches there who can do it."

"new orleans?" abby repeated. it was different, the magic in new orleans, she knew; she didn't know the details of it, the coven had always kept it from them. but if there was one city as known for it's magical roots as salem, it was new orleans.

"and," aiden smiled wryly. "once we get there, the coven can't get you back so easily."

"what do you mean?" gemma managed through her sobs.

"new orleans is a sanctuary city for supernaturals. they can't come in and take you any more than a witch from new orleans could come to salem and take you now, not without the wrath of an entire ancient coven raining down upon them. if we get you within the city limits, you'll be safe."

"and i care what happens to you," willow whispered fiercely from across the room. "i care what happens to all of you. i care if you're safe, piper. i care if you're alive, same as cass and dom. so don't...don't say that. don't say that."