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itskattkm · 2 years ago

Text

The air in my lungs

Chapter 1

Cairo Sweet x Fem Reader

Summary: A stroke of fate changes you and leads you into the arms of Cairo Sweet. Will she be your downfall or save you?

Warnings: 18+, Grief, Injuries, Smoking, Trauma, anxiety, sexual content, student x teacher mentioned, harm, blackmailing, bad grammar

A/N: Based and inspired by Millers Girl. Mr. Miller himself isn’t really present but will be mentioned. Hope you guys enjoy. Also I’m not sure if I should make it a fem g!p reader. Let me now if so :)

Master list | Next chapter

It was almost the end of the current school year. Soon would be a long and warm summer in Texas maybe the last summer for Cairo here, before she would leave it for Stanford in California. As always she was one of the students that were pretty early, since this was a private school, she had pretty many ways to get in here and just do her thing. That’s why Cairo was working on a new idea for her book, holding a cigarette in her other hand. Not caring at all that she was smoking in the empty classroom. Well almost empty classroom. She had noticed you were sitting near her and gave you a frown. Why did you even sit so near. Like the class wasn’t already empty enough, couldn’t you sit somewhere else? Cairo was a bit pissed, she didn’t liked it when other students could see her work or maybe even interrupt her while working.

“I’m writing. I’d appreciate if you respected that” Cairo mutters, without even looking your way. She takes another drag of her cigarette afterwards. Her gaze fixed on the screen of her laptop.

You turned around “So what? I’m not allowed to sit near you?” You asked with a cold tone but a dirty smile on your lips making Cairo look up and straight into your eyes, with pretty zeros emotions.

“No.” Cairo replied, trying to go back to her writing without laughing. Unfortunately that didn’t happen, since Cairo was now laughing at your reaction. She put down her pencil, which had the cigarette dangling in her mouth still. Cairo turned and smirked at you. “You do realize you’re just asking to get teased, don’t you?”

You fully turned around now and walked towards her. In the way you walked Cairo could tell you were somehow… pissed? Angry? There was something frightening and exciting in the way you walked over her and suddenly stole her cigarette from her mouth, while taking a deep hint on it. Cairo was totally overwhelmed and watched you with fixated eyes. The cigarette left your lips and in the next moment you destroyed the cigarette by pressing it down on her desk.

The next move really caught her off guard. She felt like a frozen statue. Her brain wasn’t able to see that coming but still… it happened and she couldn’t do anything. You reached for her jaw with your hand and held it tight while pulling in and kissing her hard before releasing the smoke of the cigarette in her mouth.

Slowly your grip loosened and you took a step back while looking at her with the coldest eyes she’s ever seen. “Next time don’t smoke around me. I prefer fresh air” that’s what you said with your quiet but low voice before turning around and leaving the class room, making a departure like the newest villain in town.

Cairo was stunned. “D-Did that just happen?” She muttered, still reeling from the shock and adrenaline. She put her hand on her lips and bit them, trying to resist smiling. She turned to her desk once more, pretending to work, but couldn’t help glancing at the door every so often. She wanted to see if you would comeback, but she didn’t want her to get her hopes up. She took the pack of cigarettes from her purse and took another one. “Hmm.. fresh air?” She mumbled to her self.

The next morning was quite the opposite. Cairo was the first of all students like always. Sitting in class and working on her drafts till the teacher would arrive and do their thing. You weren’t there and Cairo could help but wondered why. Wondered why she never noticed you before. It was like you were some sort of a ghost. She knew her classmates. She knew you but still… she never really saw you. Then Y/N entered the classroom as the last one while everyone was already there. She sat down on her table in the last row and began to unpack her laptop, also waiting for the teacher to arrive now.

When Y/N raiser her gaze to look to the front of the class she saw Cairo sitting in the middle of the first row like always. She was holding a book in her hands that looked a bit older and seemed like she was Reading.

Like if Cairo had felt some sort of bigger power or more of a shiver down her shoulders she turned her head and glanced over to you, only to look away immediately, slightly blushing. She didn’t like the fact that you were making her blush already… but something deep down inside of her couldn’t help it. She still could feel your lips on hers. How surprisingly soft they felt and the way you stole her air while letting the smoke of the cigarette in her mouth. Like you were sucking out her soul or something. She could feel your eyes on her, and she didn’t wanted to think any longer about yesterday. So Cairo focused on the book she had been reading and turned to a chapter, ignoring your glances at her.

You couldn’t help but liked the fact that Cairo was turning around just to check if you were there. I small smile creeped up on your lips and you found yourself blushing. Feeling somehow proud and confident. But still, it was something you didn’t wanted others to see so you tried to get that fucking smile out of your face.

There was that invisible power, the urge to look back at you it was like fighting against the need, no the urge to look back at you and get lost in the moment. So Cairo looked over her shoulder with a blush on her face. She put the book down and cleared her throat. “Whatcha looking at?” She tried to say monotone to not show how excited she was. After that she put on her headphones and resumed reading as if nothing had ever happened. You continued to stare, so she shifted in her seat, getting irritated at the lack of privacy during a quiet time. Why couldn’t you just leave her alone?

You didn’t respond to her question. Instead you stayed quiet and kept watching at the back of her long and dark hair. It was quite interesting for you how her hair looked almost black but on days where the sunshine fell on them you could see they were quite the opposite. A hidden chocolate brown making your mouth somehow watering at the thought of chocolate itself, how stupid you thought.

When finally the teacher attended the class Cairo tried to focus once more on something else than you, but kept glancing at you every so often, only to catch you staring at her. Even if you didn’t say anything, it definitely made Cairo feel uneasy.

“Don’t break your neck while keep turning around to look at me” I texted her and the message popped up on her laptop, you could see from your view.

Cairo’s eyes widened at the message. It was from you. She read it again, making sure it wasn’t a mistake. She turned around towards you and typed, “Well, you keep looking at me, so…”

“Because the teacher is in front of you. If I were you I wouldn’t have choose the seat in the first row and in the middle of the class” the text popped up on Cairos screen.

“And so? I can sit wherever I want.” Cairo rolled her eyes but couldn’t contain her racing heart when she send the message.

“Then stop wondering or thinking that I look at you. I’m trying to pay attention to our teacher” you texted back fast. Cairo wanted to believe her, but wasn’t sure if her words were true. Cairo looked at you again, who was focused on the teacher now “You really don’t look at me? Not even by accident?” She texted back curious.

Another message popped up from you saying “Your in the middle of my sight it’s hard to ignore”. Cairo looked to the side and muttered, “Oh..” She looked at you for a couple of more seconds, only to give up and focus on the class again. The class was a bit boring since the teacher went on for quite a while about a topic that seemed uninteresting to Cairo. She continued looking at you, and finally decided to text her again. “So.. Can I ask you something?”

As soon as Cairo send the message she heard her own heart pounding so hard that it made her feel like dying, dying to know what you would say and how you would react.

“Wow is our A+ student getting bored of class? oh my god it’s a miracle!” You answered and hoped she would get the sarcastic hint. Cairo turned to you, rolling her eyes. She wrote, “Shut up, please. And yeah, I’m bored.” She added an eye roll emoji.

You held back a chuckle and tried to focus on the class again. Cairo turned back to the class, then a few words of the teacher’s caught her attention. It was the first time during the class Cairo was actually listening again. The topic of discussion was writing, and she was listening to the lesson. Writing about the perspective of someone who was fighting with being good or bad. There was a moment of silence after the teacher had finished the lesson, which caused Cairo to look at you with a mischievous smile. It lasted only a second, though. She looked down at her notebook, which had a couple of doodles on the margins.

“So? What was your question?” Popped the curious question by you at Cairos laptop up. She wanted to ask you something before you just ignored it and started discussing about who was starring at who and where.

Cairo wrote, “Do you actually like me or are you just flirting with me to be funny?” She pressed the send button without looking at you.

You held back a grin and answered “you think I like you?”.

Cairo’s jaw dropped slightly. She read the message and looked at you directly, now confused. She turned back around and huffed, “So you don’t?”.

“Depends” you send and hoped to tease her. Cairo looked at you as if expecting her to elaborate on that. When you didn’t, she texted again, “Depends on what?”. You couldn’t help but chuckled quite by yourself feeling how you were getting on the nerves of Cairo.

“It’s so funny when you turn around. Your reactions are really amusing me” you texted her and smiled wide in a cute but cheeky way to annoy her even more while waiting for her to turn around again. Cairo rolled her eyes but couldn’t help looking at you. She could’ve sworn she saw your dirty smirk, but she might’ve seen wrong. Cairo rolled her eyes again and looked back at the notebook she was now doodling in. The bell finally rang out, signaling that the class was over. Cairo put away her notebook and turned in her seat again, finding you already staring at her. “Do you… need something?” She asked slightly annoyed since you didn’t moved and kept staring at her.

“Oh yeah” you said calm and your eyes softened while looking at her expensive green leather backpack

“Do you have a cigarette for me?”.

A smirk appeared on Cairo’s face. She looked away, but her smile never went away. “Do you think I like sharing my cigarettes with every person I’m flirting with? I could be flirting with every person on this campus if that was the case.” She had a smug look on her face as she said that, knowing that your response would be interesting. Her smirk stayed on while she waited for you to react. Dreamy. That was the first word that came into Cairos mind when she saw you smiled and looking at her with tilted head “So your flirting with me?” You asked, your voice giving Cairo and weird feeling down her spine… a good feeling.

“Mhm..” Cairo said, still looking away, but smirking at you. She took a cigarette from her pocket, pretending to put it in her mouth. She glanced over at you. “You might wanna get closer for it..” she said in a teasing tone of voice. “I will… trust me” you whispered with a low voice and got up from your desk, walking closer towards her. Cairo turned, and smirked at your approach. “I wouldn’t trust anyone that easily, love.” She said, a smirk still on her face. She took the cigarette out of her mouth, and put it in Y/N for her to take if you desired.

“That’s good” you said in such a calm way it made Cairo feel goosebumps. The way you took it slowly between your fingers made it look like she was watching some sexual commercial or a thirst trap but then you destroyed it right beside her on the desk while smiling cheeky. “What did that cigarette ever do to you, huh?” Cairo asked in a joking tone. She smirked, but was now slightly startled. She looked over to you with a raised brow.

“Stop smoking my dear. It’s not good for you “ you whispered and left the classroom. Cairo watched you leave, a smirk still on her face. “I think I’m getting somewhere…” she muttered, and followed you.

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luminousbeings-crudematter · 2 years ago

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Angsty winter Ghoap drabble (god help me)

***

“Aye, it’s alright little one, Da’s here,” Johnny coos at the little girl, who just gurgles in her cot, arms outstretched. He reaches down to her and pulls her into his, her weight against his heart comforting, and Johnny can’t help but close his eyes, inhale, breathe.

Christmas is hard on Johnny, and the baby girl who settles easily against him, burrowing into her Da's chest, comforted by his familiar scent, is a reminder of why.

But…December is Johnny’s favourite month of the year. It’s Simon’s too.

Johnny sees him everwhere and in everything; the frozen pond on which they'd skate, the glittering lights of the tree that amuse the little one, makes her laugh her awkward baby laughs, the sound of the crackling fire that Simon would build every year. It's the sweetest torture.

Johnny tries his best to be happy for their little daughter's sake, it's her first birthday without one parent. Johnny builds snowmen with her, and makes her hot chocolate, and shows her the pretty lights on the big tree in the centre of town, but she's entirely like Simon in all the ways that matter. Even at just a year old, she can tell when her Da's not quite feeling it, and she wraps her tiny arms around his neck and falls asleep there.

Bedtime is the worst. Johnny hates bedtime. It's not the lack of heating that makes their bedroom the coldest room in the house. No, Johnny's convinced he's the one exuding the cold. It comes from the hollow place inside him, the walls of his heart that throb and ache with Simon's absence that he feels deep inside the marrow of his bones. During these nights that already feel like they don't end, Johnny finds that the silence deafens him.

Someone had to stay home with the wee one, and they'd both agreed that it would be Johnny.

And Johnny was proud of Simon. Insanely proud.

He'd found that sharing Simon with the 141 came easier to him than he would've expected, but neither of them had anticipated the first extension of Simon's deployment. Then the second. Then the third.

He's selfish.

His daughter misses her father.

He misses his husband.

And he feels the now-familiar hole in his chest throb.

***

His eyes never close, but morning comes anyway. He tries his hardest to force a smile on his face, prepares to play the part that his daughter requires of him.

It's Christmas morning.

He's not entirely surprised when his father greets him at his front door, telling him he has some last minute additions to make to the presents under the tree. Johnny's father spoils his little grand-daughter rotten, and Johnny doesn't mind at all.

He knows he misses Simon too, a man he'd accepted as his son all those years ago.

He busies himself by cleaning up after breakfast, but he is surprised to see his little daughter all dressed up in her out clothes. Complete with little skates in her grandfather's hands. She fusses, uses chubby hands to make clumsy little swipes and attempts to make a grab for it, but her grandfather just bounces her on his arm and boops her nose.

"Take 'er skatin,' son. She'll love it. Jus' like her Da."

Johnny figures there's nothing else left of his heart to break, so he does. He takes her skating.

The wind howls and whistles with a vengeance against their ears, but the wee one is distracted by the sight of the trees on their way - bright and glistening with snow and ice. Johnny's heart aches at the sight, wishing that Simon had been there to see what looks like one of the most beautiful Christmas mornings he's ever seen.

When he gets to the pond, the snow threatens to blind him, and he has to squint against it, briefly covering his eyes, but then Johnny he sees him.

Simon is there, skates strapped across his feet, gliding effortlessly on the frozen pond.

Johnny's hand goes automatically up to his chest in a movement of both shock and to soothe himself. He's imagined Simon before - sees him everywhere in December - but his hallucinations have never been so vivid before.

"Merry Christmas, Johnny," the ghost speaks, and Johnny swallows. Hard.

"Simon?"

"'M here, love."

When Simon's outstretched hand makes contact with Johnny's trembling fingers, it's gentle - sweet and warm and full of everything Johnny's been deprived of for months.

"For how long?" Johnny's whisper is pained, hating how much he needs to know. It's senseless and cruel to ruin the moment with the potential answer, but Johnny's always been the more selfish one.

Simon pulls him into his chest, and Johnny hears the sound he's missed most in the world. They cradle their daughter between them, and Simon places one hand on her back, while the other caresses Johnny's beard.

Simon steps forward to place his lips against Johnny's and whispers the words that he's wanted to say for years, the words that Johnny's wanted to hear for years.

"For always. It's over."

***

@glitterypirateduck: I listened to Winter Song by Sara Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson too many times and then saw the ice skating fanart that valiants made and felt some angst winter thoughts rattling in my mind brain and LOST MY MIND IN THE PROCESS.

Bon apple tit!!!! No one ever look at me again!!!

#ghost x soap #simon riley x john mactavish #simon ghost riley #johnny soap mactavish #lumi writes #CODHOLIDAY2023 #simon riley fluff #soap mactavish fluff #soft dad simon riley #soft dad Johnny mactavish #ghostsoap

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annabelle--cane · 7 months ago

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the coldest girl in cold town

I'm actively shivering currently and didn't realize this was the name of a book for a second and just thought that's what you were calling me

#vampires #answered #anons

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hungrytummyprompts · 7 months ago

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if you're still up for it, Envious

Regan's eyes flickered open and reluctantly she raised her cheek off the ground. The air was ice cold, her breath visible in little puffs before her, and she drew her blankets tighter around herself. It wasn't the coldest day since she had lost her home, but that didn't really make it any better.

They were setting up the Christmas market in the town square. Her grandparents had brought her to this market now and then when she was a little girl, back before she realised quite how messed up her life was and back before she messed it up even more. Slowly, she sat up, dragging her fingers through her hair in a vain attempt to get rid of some of that nasty feeling before blowing into her hands to try and stave off the frostbite threatening to break through her gloves. Regan used to love winter but now? Now it fucking sucked.

Her stomach clenched painfully when the smell from the food stalls drifted over. All the old favourites were there, the German sausages, the festive roast dinner rolls, the waffles and pancakes topped with chocolate and fruit and marshmallows...it all smelled so good. She hadn't eaten anything proper for a few days at this point and god damn, the hunger was killing her.

Sure, she could have moved on, shuffled off to somewhere that at least wasn't serving such wonderful food, but there was something about the nostalgia of the market that gave her at least a little bit of joy in an otherwise dark place. Plus she was cold and tired and didn't want to uncurl from under her blankets, thank you very much.

Her stomach let out a low, longing growl as she watched a couple buy from the roast stall and take a seat nearby, her mouth watering as she stared at the delicious sandwiches. God how she wished that was her eating her fill. With a soft sigh, she wrapped her arms around her aching core, wishing she could do something, anything to soothe that hollow pain within. So hungry...

The man sitting at the table noticed her staring, gave her a filthy look and turned his back. Depressing, but not unexpected. Not unusual. She managed to drag her eyes away and lifted a hand to wipe her mouth - it would surprise her if she wasn't drooling at this point. Some people looked at her and quickly looked away as they passed, others ignored her completely. While her life had never really been what you would call idyllic, she at least missed the days when she had something to eat and didn't have to get by watching others munching away and imagining the taste on her own tongue, dream about filling her cavernous tummy.

Quietly, she waited there, lamenting the past and innocence lost, reminiscing on what few good times she had had, pining for the fulfilment of her most basic needs and hoping someone, somewhere had the heart to lend her some aid in her time of need. She was silent but for the odd sniffle and the ever present rumbling that haunted her relentlessly, until she drifted back into a fitful sleep.

#Fun fact Regan and Reks are both redheads #this one doesn't have a happy end yet but someone will come and help her soon #hunger kink #hunger prompts #hunger growls #stomach growling #hunger #hungry tummy #hungry stomach #stomach growls

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massivedrickhead · 2 years ago

Note

can you do number 12 from the prompt list please?

12. “No offense, but you look like you haven’t slept in days.”

Prompt taken from here

Read on AO3

“No offence,” Chloe said, pushing a mug of coffee towards Beca, “but you look like you haven’t slept in days.”

“Full offence,” Beca said, taking the mug and wrapping her hands around it, shivering and sighing slightly as the heat from the mug began leeching the cold from her hands. “I take full offence to that.” Her voice was rough and nasally, the tip of her nose red. She coughed into her shoulder and took a sip of coffee. “I personally think I’ve never looked better.”

Beca didn’t know if she’d ever felt this tired. She could have easily closed her eyes and fallen asleep at Chloe’s kitchen island right there and then.

“You’re an idiot, do you know that?”

“Damn, you really know how to kick a girl when she’s down,” Bec said, coughing again.

“Why didn’t you tell me the heating in your apartment was broken? You could have stayed here,” Chloe said, sounding genuinely annoyed.

“I’ve got blankets and sweaters,” Beca said with a shrug.

“No, what you’ve got is a cold,” Chloe said.

“The landlord is sending someone to fix it,” Beca said. “I can wait it out.”

“You’re infuriating,” Chloe said.

“And you’ve insulted me three times in about as many minutes,” Beca said. “Is that why you invited me over?”

“No,” Chloe said. “Sorry. It’s just… I don’t know why you wouldn’t ask me for help. You’ve been suffering-”

“-Okay, don’t exaggerate,” Beca said. “I’ve been cold.”

“You’ve been without heat, in the middle of one of the coldest winters we’ve had in years, you’re full of cold and you haven’t been sleeping,” Chloe said. “You’ve had no one to take care of you. You used to let me do that for you, I don’t know why you didn’t ask this time.”

Beca sighed and looked down into her mug of coffee. “You know why,” she said.

Chloe pulled a face. “Is this about Chicago?”

“He made it pretty clear that when he’s in town, he expects to get you all to himself,” Beca said. “He was in town this week, right?”

“When did he say that?”

“Does it matter?” Beca asked.

“Yes, of course it does,” Chloe said.

Beca took another drink of coffee and coughed again. She sniffed and pulled a tissue out of her pocket before wiping her nose. “The last time he was back, and you invited me and Amy over to hang out, he said he would… prefer it,” Beca said, searching for the word he’d used at the time, “if when he was in town I left you guys to it.”

Chloe frowned and Beca thought she saw her jaw clench. “He shouldn’t have said that,” Chloe said. “If you need help, or a place to stay, or even just someone to drop you off some chicken soup, you should know you can always come to me.”

“I didn’t think it was a big deal,” Beca said. “My landlord is gonna get someone to fix it, and I can handle being cold until then. I can handle being sick on my own.” Chloe opened her mouth to argue, but Beca cut her off. “Chloe, it’s done, it doesn’t matter. What was it you wanted to talk to me about?”

“Chicago and I… We…”

Beca braced herself for what could be coming next.

We’re moving in together.

We’re engaged.

We’re having a baby.

“We broke up,” Chloe said. “The long-distance thing, only seeing each other for a week every few months, it wasn’t working out.”

“Oh,” Beca said, surprised. “I’m sorry, Chlo’.”

Chloe shrugged. “I actually kinda feel okay about it,” Chloe said. “Does that make me a bitch?”

“Of course not,” Beca said. “I don’t think anyone could ever describe you as a bitch. Even when you call them an idiot, infuriating, and ugly in one breath.”

“Hey, I never said ugly,” Chloe said, pointing a finger at Beca. “I said tired, you’re projecting.”

Beca laughed which turned into a cough. “I guess I don’t feel my sexiest right now.”

Chloe softened and reached out to brush a strand of hair out of Beca’s face, and Beca closed her eyes at the contact.

“How long until your heating is fixed?” Chloe asked.

Beca opened her eyes. “I, uh, I don’t actually know,” she admitted. “My landlord is out of the country right now. He’s hard to get hold of. He said he’d send someone, but that was, like, almost two weeks ago.”

“Beca!” Chloe reprimanded, hitting her on the arm.

“Ow.”

“Two weeks? Have you been out of hot water too?”

Beca nodded. “I’ve had to take some very cold showers. I tried to shower at the gym but it turns out you have to be a member to do that.”

“It’s no wonder you got sick!” Chloe said, her voice heavy with exasperation. “Can you please come and stay here until it’s sorted? I have the space.”

“I don’t want to be a nuisance.”

“Rebeca Mitchell,” Chloe said. “You know for a fact that I would never see you as a nuisance. Please, Beca. You know this is going to stress me out until you agree.”

Beca looked at her, saw the genuine concern in her eyes, and finally nodded her head. “Okay,” she said. “Thank you.”

“Hallelujah,” Chloe said, her hands raised in the air in triumph. “Okay, first things first, we need to go and pick up some of your stuff, then you can have a nice hot bath, I can make some soup and-”

Chloe was cut off by Beca standing up and wrapping her arms around her. “Thank you,” she said again, her voice much quieter, muffled by Chloe’s chest.

Chloe hugged her back, and they stayed that way for a few minutes. “Come on,” Chloe said, her hand rubbing up and down Beca’s back. “The sooner we get your stuff, the sooner you can rest up.”

They drove to Beca’s apartment and Chloe waited while Beca shoved some clothes into a bag, along with some other essentials like her laptop. Chloe kept dancing from foot to foot, her hands rubbing up and down her own arm.

“Jesus, Bec, it’s freezing in here,” she said. “I can literally see my own breath.”

“I forgot what a baby you are with cold,” Beca said, dodging out the way of another one of Chloe’s attempts to whack her on the arm.

They got back to Chloe’s apartment, and Beca took the longest bath she could ever remember having. As a general rule, she wasn’t one for baths. She preferred showers, and she’d never seen the appeal of stewing in hot water for any longer than a few minutes.

Now, however, she wasn’t sure if she’d ever felt anything better.

There was a knock at the door after about 30 minutes.

“Just checking you haven’t drowned,” Chloe said. “Soup’s ready.”

Beca got out, relieved when the air didn’t bite at her like it did in her own bathroom, and she changed into a pair of comfortable sweatpants and a hoodie.

They ate tomato soup and grilled cheese in front of the TV as Beca’s cough got progressively worse. Chloe went off in search of medicine and found a bottle of NyQuil in her medicine cabinet. She handed it to Beca.

“I’m not going to keep going on about it,” Chloe said, “but if you’d just called me when it first broke, you wouldn’t be in this mess.”

“Yeah, yeah, hindsight is 20/20,” Beca said. She swallowed the medicine and grimaced at the taste. “They can put a man on the moon, but they can’t make that not taste like ass?”

“Here,” Chloe said, laughing and handing Beca her water. “Do you wanna go lie down?”

Beca shook her head. “I’m good here.”

Chloe raised her eyebrows. “I’m not carrying you to bed if you fall asleep on the sofa.”

“I won’t fall asleep,” Beca said. “Come on, it’s like 8:30, if I go to bed now I’ll be awake again by 11.”

“If you say so,” Chloe said. “Shall I put on a movie?”

“Sure,” Beca said, already starting to feel a little better.

Chloe scrolled through Netflix as Beca got comfy on the sofa.

Chloe couldn’t help but smile as she caught Beca’s eyes already beginning to droop. She hit play on the movie and settled back onto the sofa. It didn’t take long for Beca’s head to find its way to her shoulder.

“The opening credits haven’t even finished yet,” Chloe said, trying not to laugh so she didn’t jostle Beca’s head.

“Shut up,” Beca murmured. “I haven’t slept properly in days and you filled me full of soup and NyQuil.” Beca yawned and gave up trying to keep her eyes open. “What did you expect?”

“At least get into a comfier position than that,” Chloe said, nudging her head slightly with her shoulder. “You’ll wake up with a bad neck.” She grabbed one of the sofa cushions and positioned it against the armrest where Beca’s head was. “Lie on that.”

“Now I’m all scrunched up like a dead spider,” Beca mumbled, reluctantly swapping Chloe’s shoulder for the cushion.

“Hold your horses,” Chloe said.

She manoeuvred Beca’s legs so they were draped across her lap, and she pulled a throw from the back of the sofa and used it to cover her up.

“There,” Chloe said, her hands resting on Beca’s legs, her thumbs stroking back and forth. “Better?”

Beca didn’t reply.

#bechloe #pitch perfect fanfiction #fanfic #pitch perfect fanfic #fanfiction #beca mitchell #chloe beale #pitch perfect #beca #chloe #bechloe prompt #bechloe fluff #bechloe fanfic #bechloe fic #fluff #pitch perfect fic #bechloe one shot #one shot #no matter the timeline

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allisgood2112 · 1 month ago

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The Mystery of Liquid Fire

Rental cars were never comfortable Maxwell thought, despite being afforded a top-of-the-line vehicle, just one of the many perks of being an FBI field agent. He had been dispatched to investigate a series of nationwide disappearances of homeless individuals. The case files were sparse, but at first the shelters collective data merely indicated attendance being slightly less than normal, yet the numbers began increasing. No bodies had been reported as unclaimed or otherwise in city morgues. The case file remained active and open on the desk of Maxwell Cosh. His research had been arduous to say the least, but led him to the town of Centralia, Pennsylvania.

Centralia had received national attention in the 1960s when it became known to the public that an underground mine fire raged, and the once thriving anthracite coal town, housing over 1000 people, became a ghost town almost overnight. Attempts to eradicate the fire had been unsuccessful, and the federal government stepped in, buying out the residents and relocating them, as the fire had been estimated to continue burning for at least 200 years to come. Although the town itself had been demolished almost entirely by the government, the popular videogame and film franchise "Silent Hill" was loosely based on the mine fires of Centralia. A handful of residents refused to leave their home town however, and lived on the outskirts of what could easily be mistaken from the air as a glorified parking lot. Highway 61, a major United States thoroughfare had to be diverted, with the original existing portion being closed off and deemed a safety hazard, due to an increasing amount of large fissures cropping up along the road, now known as graffiti highway, Centralia now being somewhat of an abandoned mystery, and attracting thrill seekers and vandals alike.

It was already nightfall by the time Maxwell reached the area. He secured a standard issue firearm, and bundled his overcoat, it being February, as well as one of the coldest years on record. Maxwell made his way from the warmth of his car to the towns main street. An eerie mist, amplified by the combination of the heated ground and the freezing temperatures in the air, made it difficult to see more than a few feet in front of him, not that there was much to worry about in an abandoned town to begin life, but Maxwell knew that there was something going on here. Every scrap of evidence, every clue he had followed pointed to Centralia.

Maxwell held his flashlight firmly, taking great care with each step, as the wind swirled the crisp air around him. Out of the corner of his eye, on a side street, he saw frantically moving lights. Switching off his flashlight, Maxwell crouched down, shrouded temporarily in the mist, and utilizing the ever present warm below the surface to bring complete feeling back to is freezing cold hands. Someone was running toward him, and being chased, Maxwell thought, removing his gun from its holster, and pointing up, flashlight ready in his other hand, when the runner nearly collided with him. She was visibly distraught, appeared frail and her clothes were all but rags. "Please save me!" Maxwell fired the gun upward, in hopes of fighting off the girls pursuers. He watched as the lights, obviously being cast from flashlight's like his own scattered. "We can't stay here. I know someplace we can hide. Come on!" "Wait! What's going on here?" The girl put her hands up in a frantic motion, replying "they won't give up until they have me again. They will be back in greater numbers and well fortified. We have to take shelter!" Maxwell nodded sliding his arm with the flashlight within her grasp, and allowing her to lead the way.

The girl had led Maxwell across what must have been people's yards years ago, until reaching a small alcove in one of the hillsides. It was warm, which Maxwell considered a plus, and he studied the girl, with her pale complexion,

"I need to know who you are, how you wound up here, and what's going on?" Maxwell stated. "My name is Diane Brooke. I was living on the streets of Scranton Pennsylvania, after losing my job, and then my apartment after not being well to pay the rent. I was heading for a shelter, when these men grabbed me, stuck me with a needle, and I woke up underground here. There is a cult, they are sacrificing people like myself to the mine fire! They're insane!" Maxwell felt something prick his side, his vision began to blur and he struggled to maintain his posture. "You okay?" Questioned the girl frantically, as Maxwell lost consciousness.

Maxwell began regaining his bearings, to the sound of chanting. Opening his eyes was a chore, however he managed to do so, and his vision gradually began to clear. He was tied to a chair at one of the lower tiers of what appeared to be an empathy and are carved into the ground itself. Maxwell wasted no time in attempting to free his hands, as everyone remained fixated on the spectacle of what was occurring. In the very center of the cathedral like sanctuary, an open pit glowed bright red a person was suspended naked above the fire, chains stretched to either side of the sacrificial hall. Clear tubes emanated from the individual, and led to empty containers surrounding the center. A woman spoke, strong in tone, with a regal quality. "May the fire rage on, and endow the chosen ones with its glory!" At that, blue white lightning shot upward, striking a helpless man dangling above. His body took on a different form, flesh becoming energy, and flowing through the tubes until they were filled to capacity, and the man was no more. Maxwell called out "what in the hell!" The woman shot a glance towards him, and he realized that it was a girl he had saved, Diane Brooke. She spoke with the human sarcasm of a superior, "You're the most disgraceful disappointment! I was going to spare you, but I think the fire is calling for you." "But, I saved you!" The woman laughed, "so you thought. My followers watched your every move from your arrival until your capture. The damsel in distress works every time!" She stated, chuckling, and motioning to individuals on either side of him to bring him forward. She lifted one of the glowing blue containers, disconnecting it from the tube, and ingested the liquid. Blue lightning shot forth in all directions, striking some onlookers dead on the spot, and some others into a blissful state of ecstasy.

Maxwell successfully freed himself from his bonds, but not unnoticed. The woman now glowingly with blue energy, Diane Brooks, reached out pointing in his direction, without hesitation however, Maxwell fled, up the carved stone stairs from the sounds of pursuers nearby, as the pulsating energy crackles gradually grew distant. He felt almost naked without his gun and had to guess at which direction the car was. Even if he was able to make it out of the town itself, he felt that the people chasing him would stop. "Was it a ploy?" He thought, pondering the chance encounter with Diane, "it had to be. She was obviously in charge, and perhaps even had people watching the roads for new victims!"

Maxwell stumbled, but only paused long enough to judge his direction. It was difficult in the bitter cold of the night above, contrasted with the heavy warm ground temperature, which created the mist, which in some areas was more prominent than others. Maxwell could hear footsteps running nearby, and a surge of blue white energy pulsed through the murk, making him lightheaded. On a main street however, Maxwell retraced his path back to the car as rapidly as he could. Another surge of energy came without warning, knocking him down. Dusting himself off, he got to his feet, the pursuers now even closer. Maxwell slammed into the car, but fought against any pain,, grabbing the door handle, and flinging himself inside, pulling it shut, and turning the key which he had left in the ignition, something he had grown accustomed to in fieldwork in general.

Maxwell drove, shocked by the events he had observed, and been part of. Unsure of how far this strange cult's influence may have reached, he decided to drive as opposed to fly, as the safety of the car and his control over it gave him the certainty that he would reach headquarters, and report what he had experienced to his superiors.

Night became day, the highway empty of traffic, allowing Maxwell to drive faster than he normally would have, yet there were occasional and unpredictable pulses of energy that seemed to briefly alter his strong innings for a few seconds at a time, unnerving him, but Maxwell knew that he was growing increasingly sleep deprived, thus he kept his mind firmly focused. "I'm going to finish what I started. I'm going to file my report, and follow-up on what occurred!"

Maxwell , he had rushed into the office of his superior, director Ethan Drake. The director listened intently to each and every detail, and instructed Maxwell to file his formal written report after he got some sleep. Director Drake had almost sounded dismissive, despite Maxwell maintaining a professional composer while delivering his oral report. Rather than take the chance of forgetting any details, Maxwell had drafted the written account of his unearthly experience, submitted it to clerical, and punched out, returning home to sleep. Nightmares plagued him of Centralia, Diane Brooks, and the strange ritual he had observed. He eventually decided to shower and make coffee, after an hour or two of actual sleep. Upon returning to work, at the FBI headquarters, still in any disoriented state from what he had endured, Maxwell sat at his desk dumbfounded. In checking his inner office mail, his report was there, with a letter attached from director Drake, instructing him to close the case file. Maxwell struggled with the words to close a case that he felt warranted not only further investigation, but a significant degree of scrutiny. "If they are not going to follow up on this, I will myself!" He thought before closing the file on record.

There was a knock at the door, "right on time." Thought director Ethan Drake, as the door opened, and a petite, yet attractive woman walked in a briefcase in one hand. She closed the door, and stood motionless. "The room is clear of any listening or visual observation devices. I check thoroughly daily, one can never be too safe!" The woman visibly relaxed, replying "good, it would be a shame if we were discovered. Our fellow operatives have gone undetected for at least a century without question, so I would rather not be exposed. Which reminds me, how are you going to deal with your agent who became a bit too nosy?" The woman sat in a chair in front of Ethan's desk, placing the briefcase in plain view, as she opened it. She removed two vials of glowing blue liquid, handing one to Ethan, as she drank from her own. "I dismissed what he had said, despite the truth, however sleep deprivation has been known to adversely affect humans." The woman nodded, her eyes glowing with blue white light after ingesting the liquid. Ethan's eyes did the same as he drank. "Your agent will obey orders then?" "Yes, I believe so. If he doesn't, we deal with him, like the others." The woman raised her vial "cheers then, yes?" Ethan motioned in agreement, raising his vile, as they both drank the last of the liquid. "We were lucky that such a rich deposit of material became available here, wouldn't you say Ethan?" "Agreed! Out of the numerous mine fires worldwide, this one is by far the most precious, and life sustaining for our kind! I would return to your sanctuary in Centralia my dear Cassiopeia, sorry, Diane? Correct?" The woman chuckled, as she replied, "yes, but mind yourself, we wouldn't want your true name being known now would we?" The End

#writing #original writing #creative writing #writing community #writers on tumblr #writeblr #short story #original character #paranormal #mystery

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sailorsenshishitposter · 2 years ago

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Joseph Joestar x Reader

Joseph Joestar

If you take away all the flaws then this man is the best jojo. You like dumb himbos who will wear a crop top even in the coldest of weather. You tend to quote "your next line is" until you get punched in the face (by friends or bystanders is up for debate). You may also have a thing for caesar salad. Unfortunately this man is also a raging racist and a Nazi sympathizer so he loses some points.

First Date:

You meet at the Speedwagon foundation (while Caesar is still alive). The Italian man had begun to flirt with you, causing jojo to have a jealous meltdown. If this manchild is not the center of attention then he will make himself known. He takes his clackers and tosses them at the blondes head, causing him to fall unconscious.

He then stands in front of you "Oi, I didn't know that there was an angel so far away from Heaven." You begin to blush only for him to raise a brassier ad and ask you if "those are real." You pimp slap him causing Joseph to lose a tooth. "I guess I really am bad with women. Let me try something else." He then got an idea and pulled out a coca cola bottle from his pocket. "Want to see a magic trick?"

Caesar has just woken up with a throbbing headache. "Momma mia, what's going on...?" Joseph uses his hamon to cause the lid to fly off the bottle. It zooms past your head and then somehow reaches the formally unconious man, hitting him square in the face. K.O. He's not waking up anytime soon. You agree to one date as long as jojo promises to leave you alone afterwards.

You are both sitting at a fancy restaurant. Joseph had ordered squid ink pasta while you had some Risotto. The man had insisted on something called McDonald's until he remembered that he was banned from that establishment after waving around a Tommy gun. He took this chance to get your attention and flung some noodles into another patrons glass.

You weren't impressed. Joseph then decided to break the ice. "The French are very cultured you know. They have this thing called menage e trois." You choked on your food. You could not believe that he was doing this. You told him you were a firm believer in monogany but he began to protest. "C'mon it's not like anyone will find out, I'm going out with multiple other girls right now!"

You threw your drink at him in disgust. "Pig!" You then ran out of the restaurant. "Who needs her? I'll just go find myself a Japanese wom-" Suddenly the room feels very cold. It was none other than the patron who's drink he had ruined earlier. He slowly turned around. "Lisa Lisa?" He had no idea that he mentor would be here. "I think you mean mother." His brain stopped functioning. "Wait, what?"

"I see how I have failed you as a parent and now I must punish you." She then bent Joseph over her knee and began to spank him. Screaming was heard through out the whole town well into the next morning. Eventually the sound found Caesar but instead of waking him up it only gave him the most pleasant dream of his life.

#shitpost #jjba x reader #jojo x reader #jojos bizarre adventure #joseph joestar #joseph joestar x reader #cursed #jojo #jojo kimyou na bouken #battle tendency #jojo part 2 #jjba

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more-than-a-princess · 6 months ago

Note

💞 - Five things my character likes about your character.

❌ - One thing my character hates about your character.

☀️ - One thing my character loves about your character.

♾️ - A random headcanon about our characters' relationship.

✨ - One assumption my character has about your character.

🔍 - My character's first impression of your character.

👗 - An outfit my character would wear.

8DDDD

Send an emoji meme - Accepting!

💞 - Five things my character likes about your character

"She is generous, kind, helpful, curious, and is always smiling whenever I see her! Itsuki-chan is a dear girl and I am glad she is in the middle students' school at Hope's Peak Academy."

❌- One thing my character hates about your character

"I am not sure if it is possible to hate Itsuki-chan! But I do worry about her sometimes, particularly in the coldest winter months. I know she is from a cold climate and is dressed accordingly, but she works awfully long hours out of doors and with so much heavy and potentially dangerous equipment. I do not want her to work so hard she becomes injured."

☀️- One thing my character loves about your character.

"I love her creativity! She is so talented with crafts. She made me a bracelet some time ago all on her own, and I treasure it deeply."

♾️- A random headcanon about our characters' relationship.

It's probably not a secret, but Itsuki is the younger sister Sonia wished she had. Plenty of her friends dissuade her from wanting to have siblings as they have plenty of their own, but Sonia very much thinks having siblings is entirely sunshine and rainbows (despite her own cousins proving otherwise, she still adores them with every fiber of her being). Sonia dotes on her often because she believes her time is limited to do so: eventually Itsuki will go on to high school and Sonia will leave for university.

✨- One assumption my character has about your character.

Besides the winter weather, Sonia assumes that she and Itsuki come from completely different worlds. That's not too surprising, considering Sonia tends to have less in common with most people due to her upbringing. However, she does believe that Itsuki isn't too accustomed to urban/city life: that she grew up in the country and is used to a smaller town where life moves slowly and everyone knows everyone else. Rather like the towns her family's country estates are in. Still, they both are likely pretty naive to things like street smarts.

🔍- My character's first impression of your character.

"She was quite friendly and adorable! I could not place her accent but Itsuki-chan was quick to explain to me that she came from a town far away from Hope's Peak."

👗- An outfit my character would wear.

While Sonia would love to dress Itsuki in something cute and frilly, she's not sure it would suit her friend well. She believes Itsuki prefers comfort and warmth overall, and therefore she'd probably insist on putting Itsuki in some cashmere jumpers and accessories, and ensure she has proper thermal undergarments for when she's out in the cold during long days. Not that Itsuki likely has any shortage of warm clothes, but Sonia is certain she'd like the feel of cashmere against her skin more than anything else.

#more-than-a-princess answered #more-than-a-princess headcanons #yukikorogashi #(Sorry for the time it took to answer this! I needed to take some time away from tumblr)#(I did a mix of Sonia answering and headcanon answers based on the question: I hope it's not confusing)

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hiccanna-tidbits · 2 years ago

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@jackunzel-time

Jackunzel Month Week 3 - Stormy Night

***

What if the storm ends? And I don’t see you As you are now Ever again

The perfect halo Of gold hair and lightning Sets you off against The planet’s last dance

Just for a minute The silver-forked sky Lit you up like a star That I will follow

But now it’s found us Like I have found you I don’t wanna run Just overwhelm me

What if the storm ends? It leaves us nothing Except the memory A distant echo

I won’t pin down I’ve walked unsettled Rattle cage after cage Until my blood boils

I wanna see you As you are now Every single day That I am living

Painted in flames A peeling thunder Be the lightning in me That strikes relentless

What if the storm ends? And I don’t see you As you are now Ever again

The perfect halo Of gold hair and lightning Sets you off against The planet’s last dance

Just for a minute The silver-forked sky Lit you up like a star That I will follow

But now it’s found us Like I have found you I don’t wanna run Just overwhelm me

***

The weather has been so strange lately that it's the talk of the town.

It isn't that heavy winter snows are anything unusual, or even that the illusive "thundersnow" hasn't ever been seen before. But this winter, it seems, has an abundance of lightning-forked skies followed by merciless blizzards. Local weather reporters blame climate change, but an old coot at the edge of town claims he knows better.

"Why is there thunder and lightning before the snow now?" the children ask him, gathered around his porch drinking hot cocoa. "Did it do that when you were a kid?"

He offers them a toothless chuckle. "That's just old Jack Frost up to his tricks. But it looks like he's been missing his wife."

"His wife?" One little boy spits out his cocoa. "He's married?"

Several of the younger kids groan in disgust, unable to conceive of something some lame and adult being applied to a spirit who sounds so fun.

"Well, yeah." The old man grins. "Beautiful light spirit with long golden hair. Jack Frost doesn't see her in the winter as much, since it's so dark and cloudy. But he can get brief glimpses in flashes of lightning."

"And the thunder?" a little girl demands, crossing her arms.

"I reckon old Jack's fighting the clouds and the sky themselves to see her. To let the light in. And he must be battling pretty hard this winter."

The old man takes a puff of his pipe.

"He's always worried, see. That the winter cold will claim her, and she won't be there when the weather warms. Or the winter will change her, and snuff out some of her light. He wants to make sure that behind the storm, she's still the same lady he fell in love with. And she's still there waiting for him when spring comes."

"But doesn't he control the winter? And the storms?" another child pipes up. "Can't he just make the cold weather stop so he can go hang out with his wife?"

"Ah, well, you see, he has only so much power, as a relatively low-ranking member of the Winter Spirit Council. Wait 'til I tell you kids about the Council Head, the Snow Queen--"

"BOOOO!" a particularly loud little girl shouts, giving the old man a thumbs down. "Who cares? Finish telling us about Jack Frost and the light lady!"

"All right, all right!" He lifts gnarled hands up in defeat. "So you see, a spirit of light and a spirit most active during the coldest, darkest part of the year...that was a love story what was never going to go over well with the higher-ups of the spirit world. Something that could surely only lead to chaos and destruction. So the other spirits fought and fought to keep Jack Frost and the Lady of Light apart. Every winter, they hide her away partly in hopes that Jack will forget her. But Jack always remembers, and he always fights for her. Even as winter grows fiercer and fiercer, and every year, it seems more and more the world as we know it will descend into an age of ice and darkness. Even when it seems the Lady of Light is lost forever, and warm days will never be again."

"But he always finds her, right?" the loud little girl asks.

"Always." The old man offers another toothless grin. "He sees her in lightning flashes or moonbeams or rare moments of sunshine, and he follows her like a guiding star so they can be together again when the winter ends. And no matter how bad winter gets, he'll always find her. Now until the end of time. Remember that."

"And how do you know?" a boy at the back demands. "Canya tell the future or somethin'?"

"Well." He chuckles. "Spring always comes, doesn't it?"

***

EYO THERE MIGHT JUST BE SOME JACKUNZEL LEFT IN ME YET SUCKERS

...I guess this is what happens when you want to make something for the Stormy Night prompt based on What If The Storm Ends by Snow Patrol, and then...completely forget you were gonna do that and start gathering Cool Aesthetic Blizzard Pictures™️XD So...you do the only rational thing and COMBINE THEM, of course!!!

"Thundersnow" is a real thing, btw!!! I actually witnessed a thunder snowstorm one time when I was growing up and it's a very weird thing to experience. I also remember I was having a sleepover with my friend that night, and the next morning she woke me up by shoving snow down my shirt and saying she was "attacking me with cursed thundersnow" XD Tbh she saw a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for some very unique tomfoolery and she took it, and I have to respect that. How ironic that her name was Summer ajuasdhksyfgkdusfg

Wrote the ficlet kind of on a whim, but I really like how it turned out!! I kind of love the idea of ordinary, everyday people passing down folklore-type stories about Jack and Rapunzel. Partly because they actually are folklore characters, so it's very appropriate XD But idk, it also just makes them feel...timeless??? Like you can never get too old for or tired of this love story because it's eternal and enduring. Like idk what to tell you, sun-moon/light-dark/hot-cold ships are just baked into the human psyche!!!

Was actually kind of hard to find the exact blizzard pics I wanted for the moodboard, since I was going for kind of a balance between the white, the silver, and the splashes of color. I hope I did okay!!! Kind of wanted emphasis on pink, purple, and gold, since y'know. Rapunzel theme colors XD I think I'm happy with the end product!

As always, moodboard pic credits available upon request!

#jackunzel #jackunzelmonth #jackunzelmonth23 #moodboard #aesthetic #jack x rapunzel #rapunzel x jack #jack frost #rapunzel #jackxrapunzel #rapunzelxjack #rotbtd #rise of the brave tangled dragons #the big four #tangled #rotg #rise of the guardians #crossover

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ellisillustration · 2 years ago

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so i read the coldest girl in cold town forever ago and I wound up doing a character design project based on it

This is an early draft of Gavirel (that I like way better than the full color project lmao)

@hollyblack

#my art #character design #the coldest girl in coldtown

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dragonbe-writing · 10 months ago

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Blurb of a new story I’m writing teehee😵‍💫 John Price finds a girl almost dead in the snow….

John Price knew the suffering of the world. He spent 20 years in it, lost friends to it. He knew war and pain and suffering, how they plagued countries like an incurable disease.

He knew the darkness that secreted from humanity, he knew the hearts (or rather, the lack thereof) of the coldest men alive.

He retired- couldn’t stomach it anymore. Got himself a cottage up north with just enough for himself. Hunted for food- the closest town was an hour away.

The snow crunched beneath his boot, rabbit limb in his bag as he tried to navigate back to his cottage. The sun was sinking, bringing a deadly chill to the air, a warning that he only had a few hours left.

Blue eyes flicked along the ground, trained to watch for something, anything that might be a threat. He carried a tenseness with him that would never leave, a weight on his back that made him forever grit his teeth.

A blizzard was coming. John had enough meat prepared for a few days, enough supplies to last him however long he needed. Soon his tracks would be covered, as would any animals. No more imprints of his boot, of the deer’s hoof, no more tire tracks and-

Tire tracks? Out here?

He scanned the area, freezing where he stood. His ears twitched like a buck that had been spotted, one that heard the snapping of a branch. He felt the forest move— felt the unwelcome presence. Something pushed him on, made him diverge from his path and follow the tracks. Something led him right to her.

Pale and half-frozen, body cut and scarred and bruised, open wounds seeping blood into the snow that held her. It weighed the powder down as it trickled to the earth, nurturing the frozen soil like she was giving it life— Her life.

Dumped, no doubt. He crouched down, pulling his glove off with his teeth and pressing his warm fingers to the cold of her neck, searching. His heart leapt when felt the small beat of her pulse. She’s alive.

He didn’t think as he slipped his glove back on, positioning himself to lift her. He carefully positioned her on his shoulder, hand on her lower back as she hung limp from him like the rabbit in his bag. He continued to his cottage.

#this is from the first chapter #conveniently named ‘Blood Upon the Snow’#yes like the Hozier song #i don’t have a name for the story yet #but i think each chapter will be a different song title #because i’m cringe and i’m free #maybe ‘Camellia’ for a title?#a flower that blooms in winter?#who knows if I’ll even finish this

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thoughtfulfangirling · 2 years ago

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October/Autumn Books

Over the years, I've been trying to collect books good for reading around this time of year. I thought I'd make a masterlist of sorts. There will be categories, and books may be in several of them.

Each of these books I feel have something to offer in terms only that they fit what I feel is readings for the season within their vibes. Any YA books will be explicitly marked as such. Additionally, my actual opinion of the books will be marked with 1 through 5 asterisks (stars), and because I hate rating books, I'm going to preface by saying I'm being very loosey goosey with them XD

Autumn Vibes (weather)

Autumn at the Willow River Guesthouse by C.P. Ward**

Feelgood fall read. It makes efforts to evoke autumn, having a bike trip be a part of her work routine sometime between the months of late August to October. I don't know that I personally thought it succeeded, but it tries, and I'll give it that. It also has themes of shedding an old life. In her late 20s, Lily loses in the span of a couple days her job, her apartment, and her fiance. She leaves the city to go back to her country home to figure out what she wants to do with her life. The book has the bones for a good autumn read, but the execution didn't do it for me. Judge for yourself if this sounds interesting. (I probably should just give it one star because it doesn't even MENTION Halloween, but I did like that it spent so more time with Victoria than the love interest XD)

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

YA. Vampires exist, and the world knows about it. The world is dealing with it as best they can. Barriers between overnight workers and the public, habits to close all windows every night, avoid evening events, and the conversion of large towns into prisons for vampires and those who wish to become them. Within this world, Tana is just trying to have a normal teen's life, but that all changes when a drunken night at a friends and a forgotten open window results in her waking up seemingly the only survivor of a vampire attack. That's enough for a teenager to have to deal with, but as it turns out, not all the vampires are gone. (The audiobook for this one is exceptionally creepy and good.)

Doll Bones by Holly Black *****

Contemporary. YA. Kids try to keep the magic of youth alive by going on an adventure (running away) to a doll they want to believe is haunted to her grave site in early-ish autumn.

Cemetary Boys***

YA. Takes place during autumn, and much of the book is set outside, not infrequently in a cemetary no less. Pretty good for autumn vibes. It's been a while since I've read it, so it may be more just the general weather climate that's evoked than falling leaves and such, but still, definitely feels like fall and is a story about ghosts and witches, and blood rituals. How do you go wrong with that?

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

Sometimes, living is the true thing of nightmares. Such is the case for the hitchhiking ghost Rose Marshall. She's hitched the ghost roads for decades longer than she's been alive and content with her undead existence despite being haunted still by the man who killed her, demon-pact and all. When he curses her, she finds that only by living again can she remove the curse. It was only supposed to last one evening, the only evening the dead can return to flesh: Halloween night. (This is a book 2)

In the Woods by Tana French ****

In his childhood, Adam Ryan was out with his friends when those friends went missing. It became a huge story, especially because when they found him, he was so traumatized, he had no memory of what took place. They never solved his mystery, but he became an investigator himself. He thought that was all behind him, except he is put on a case that has a mysterious link to that cold mystery. Ryan shouldn't be working this case, but no one has linked him to it yet, and he can't help but try and see if this new case will reveal anything about his own.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

Alex Stern is in the fall Semester at a college that deals in magic. Normally, an outsider like her wouldn't have been recruited to help keep order among the magic houses that operate out of the college, but there's something special about Alex: She can see ghosts, a rare gift. At least that's how she's seen. To Alex, it can be more of a curse. One she will have to use though if she is going to find the mentor who mysteriously disappeared earlier that semester under supernatural circumstances.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily Danforth *****

Half historical, half contemporary. Chunks of the book occur during autumn months and lovely descriptions of the weather and orchards, and a repeating motif of apples.

The November Girl by Lydia Kang ****

YA. Hector is a runaway, and he has planned his time hidden away until his 18th birthday perfectly to escape being in his uncle's custody any longer. On the last day a tourist island on Lake Superior is open, just before the November storms are expected to come and batter the island, he boards the fairy there and remains in secret. The island is expected to be abandoned and dangerous. It does prove to be dangerous, but what it doesn't prove to be, is abandoned. There is a strange girl also still left upon the island, and the creeping cold and raging storms only seem to give her power. She doesn't seem fully human.

Tithe by Holly Black ****

YA. Halloween approaches, and Kaye finds that her world may just be more preternatural than she expected as suddenly she is encountering fairies. Her encounter does more than open her eyes to a new world, it seems to be changing her too, and the stakes will reach a peak Halloween night.

Horror Vibes

Alice Isn't Dead by Joseph Fink *****

When her wife goes missing and doesn't reappear, one woman gives up the life she knows to become a trucker. On the road, she expects to find herself... or her wife. What she finds are mystery and horror instead.

Dracula by Bram Stoker *****

Does anyone actually even need a summary? Look, if you like to read books for Halloween and haven't read this one, just do it. You're on Tumblr; make sure you know what all the Dracula Daily posts are going on about. They're excellent.

The Exorcist by William Blatty ****

What is more horrific than watching a beloved child deteriorate into self harm and bad health and getting no answers, having to trust to faith instead of anything you've trusted before. Or how about a believer faced with evil powers one never expected to truly come face to face with?

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid ***

The witch daughter of a cruel wizard is persuaded by her two elder sisters to sneak out of their carefully controlled home to see a ballet. For her, this is out of character to disobey her father, but she finds the show changes everything. She is enraptured by the performance, and more specifically, the lead, who she chances upon meeting while going out to get some air. For once, she has found something worth coming out of her shell for, but should she have left home when there are dark rumors of a man-eating monster stalking the night and the tentative tranquility of their home, and their voracious father, is as risk? Contains explicit sexual content.

Mexican Gothic****

Noemí leaves her bustling city of Mexico City to go to London to visit her cousin who married into an old family. Her cousin seems sick, having sent for Noemí to rescue her. It is believed her cousin is suffering the effects of a mental illness. Once there, Noemi is struck by how isolated the home is, how run down and mildewy it is. It is not at all what she imagined, nor are the people there, or the family dynamics she could never have guessed at. All she wants to do is get out of there as soon as possible, but first she has to her cousin, and then, she finds she simply cannot leave.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

I was so hooked starting this book with zero information about it other than it was a good spooky read, and since it was such an experience, I simply cannot get myself to say much about this. It follows a special child student, her teacher, and the head of the locked down school's security team as they navigate a dystopian world behind walls, and attempts to reach the outside world have proven unsuccessful so far.

The Lamb will Slaughter the Lion by Margaret Killjoy****

Danielle is a hitchhiker headed to a socialist commune in Iowa that has largely been abandoned by government interests. The town takes care of itself, and they have a unique way of protecting their own against charismatic leaders who want to make this community their own. Danielle's friend had been living there before he comitted suicide, and so, she needs to know what has happened. A spirit of judgement and execution stalks the daylight hours, killing those with darkness in their hearts. But who doesn't have some amount of darkness inside of them?

The Mall of Cthulhu by Susan Cooper

Danielle "When Ted stumbles onto a gropu of Cthulhu cultists planning to awaken the Old Ones through mystic incantations culled from the fabled Necronomicon, calling forth eldritch horros into an unsuspecting world, eh and Laura must spring into action, traveling from Boston to the seemingly-peaceful suburbs of Providence and beyond, all the way to the sanity-shattering non-Euclidian alleyways and towers of dread R'lyeh itself, in order to prevent an innocent shopping center from turning into... The Mall of Cthulhu

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones ****

Most people experience the past coming back to haunt them in some way, shape, or form. But three men who grew up on a reservation feel like they are being haunted by more than the memories of the past. They don't talk about the incident much, not since they were banned from that part of the reservation, but they feel like perhaps they should as they find themselves fighting for their lives against the ramifications of that day.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily Danforth *****

Half historical, half contemporary. A haunted swath of land, or a curse? The deaths may seem natural, but are they? And why do all these wasps keep showing up every which way?

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

The apartment complex must be haunted. What else explains the series of horror visitations that happen upon 13 different residents who live in the building? Each storey is unlike the other. Almost a series of short stories, except... they do seem to be connected. Everything seems to point in the direction of the apartment's landowner as each resident receives an unexpected inviation to a dinner at his top floor penthouse in too timely a manner with the unexpected.

Under the Pendulum Sun *

Gothic Horror. What happens if the fairy are real and known of during the Victorian era? Well, we must preach to them of course! But it may just be that within the strange land of fairy a brother and sister find themselves in for their purpose of the gospel, the lords and ladies of fairy are more interested in the sins at the heart of the people than their hope for their souls. Very Victorian Gothic. The prose was gorgeous, and an atmosphere of eerie unease was well painted; however, beyond the stunning prose, I did not find the stories or the characters' choices all that compelling. The plot/character work wasn't for me, but if one is in the mood for eerie, haunting prose, then this would be the perfect read.

A Winter Haunting by Dan Simmons ****

Separated from his wife and broken up with by his lover, a professor returns to his home town in the Midwest in late November where the snow has already accumulated. He finds himself lingering over the death of a childhood friend and haunted by his past. Isolated in a small town with wanna be skinheads probably isn't the best time to suddenly feel like shadows are moving in, and he feels like the target.

Eerie Vibes (Horror Light)

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu *****

Only a novella in length, Carmilla is a fascinating read. Follow a lonely girl outside of her country of origin come to have a visitor, Carmilla, stay at her estate under mysterious circumstances. She quickly finds herself enamored with Carmilla and quickly grows ill with her worry over unhappy events which seem to plague Carmilla overnight. Despite them however, Carmilla seems just as robust as ever despite her habit to sleep away the mornings. This book predates Dracula, and it strikes me that it lent much of its lore to Stoker's later novel.

Cemetary Boys****

YA "In an attempt to prove himself a true brujo and gain his family’s acceptance, Yadriel decides to summon his cousin’s ghost and help him cross to the afterlife. But things get complicated when he accidentally summons the ghost of his high school’s resident bad boy, Julian Diaz – and Julian won't go into death quietly. The two boys must work together if Yadriel is to move forward with his plan. But the more time Yadriel and Julian spend together, the harder it is to let each other go."

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

Doll Bones by Holly Black *****

Contemporary. YA. A child's parent keeps an eerie doll locked up in a cabinet, and the children's playtime has turned her into a queen of sorts. Then suddenly one of the children has a dream; a girl was murdered and her ashes placed in the doll. Her soul is restless and wants to be laid to rest in her grave, and the kids — her subjects — must find it and take her to it.

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould ****

YA. Why is it that the worst of humankind can flourish so proliferous in the most beautiful of places? The small town of Snake Bite is littered with shadows and mystery, and it seems to be targeting the town's teens. First, Ashley's long time boyfriend goes missing, and then newcomer and outcast Logan's new friendly acquaintance is found dead. The town might hate Logan, and Ashley might come from the most prominent family in the town, but the two girls can't help but investigate the odd happenings that disappeared Ashley's boyfriend and implicated one of Logan's dads in that disappearance. The town believes he killed him, Logan is determined to prove him innocent, and Ashley still believes he's alive. She can feel his presence still all around.

The Best of Edgar Allan Poe

I have never read an author that, in so little time of story, manages to dredge up so much feeling of dread. If you want to set a dark and dreary mood, Poe's your man. In today's age, I don't know that his stories come off nearly as spooky as they once did, but they certainly evoke a sort of low mood spooky stories often aim for. It's like the counter of a thriller which often evokes high, frantic energy instead of the low, desolate mood of Poe's work.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley ****

For current readers, I don't know if this quite works as horror, but there is definitely something to the carelessness of men who create without considering their creations.

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

The Lamb will Slaughter the Lion by Margaret Killjoy****

Mexican Gothic****

Our Wives Under the Sea****

Miri's wife returns after having been missing on a submarine dive deep into the depths of the ocean, and she must contend with the fact that her home now feels a host to a stranger. She feels lonelier as ever as Leah slowly seems to turn farther away from the woman Miri knew into something completely Other.

Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire *****

Follow a hitchhiking ghost over the breadth of the continental US. She was run off the Sparrow Hill Road in 1952 on her way to prom and never made it there. Instead she haunts the highways of the US, hitchhiking her way from roadside diner to roadside diner. She finds a calling in spending time with someone before their last moments, fated to die on the road. Sometimes though, she gets to alter that fate. But there is one out there who has an unpleasant fate in mind for her, and he haunts the roads in his immortal demon car, determined to get the prey who escaped him in the early 1950s.

Sorrowland by Rivers Soloman****

Vern escapes the cult she was brought into pregnant with twins. Her escape only extends to the forest surrounding the commune though. A single young woman shouldn't be able to survive with two children alone like this, and yet Vern does with ease. Something is different about her. Her body starts to become foreign in parts, to change, and she realizes something was done to her. Something that haunts her and alters her. It helps her protect her children, but can will she survive it?

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Interested in 'true' ghost stories? Well find here collected stories Seymour and Neligan sought out from real people in Ireland who vouched to the veracity of their accounts. The stories are disjointed and with no real beginning or end, but read much like tales told around the campfire in the dark of night.

The Vampyre; A Tale by John Polidori**

Vern "A short work of prose fiction written in 1819" "often viewed as the progenitor of the romantic vampire genre of fantasy fiction." Our protagonist becomes fascinating by an intriguing gentleman and takes up with him only to begin to suspect a dark explanation of the man's behaviors.

Dark Stories

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson ****

A letter from one vampire to her maker whom she has murdered. The story is their story, the one of living under a man she thought a savior, who turned her into a monster, and showed her an initial love that hid a vindictive, controlling menace amidst the monotonousness of his vampirism. Explicit sexual content.

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

What if vampires were born and not made? And how fun would it be to have a book that's a thriller, complete with a justice system, but all made up of vampires and their symbiotic humans? If that sounds appealing, it might be for you. Just check the trigger warnings if you are one who benefits from that!

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid ***

King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St. Clair **

The princess and heir to a kingdom besieged by a vampire army finds herself preparing for her father's surrender to the Vampire King. An unexpected and unpleasant stipulation of the treaty of surrender is the princess's hand in marriage. For her people, she agrees, but her people expect her to assassinate her new husband despite his immortal durability. Fairytale elements. Intrusive thoughts. Contains smut.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones ****

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin***

Talk about a book that feels like horror for me in particular! You can tell that this is an older book, but for those who knew what it was like for a married woman then, that adds all the more to the horror. This is a slow and quiet horror for the most part but very poignant. I anticipated that after all the buildup, the ending wouldn't be able to live up, but I actually quite liked it. Though don't let that allow you to suspect a peachy resolution XD

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

Mystery

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould ****

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

In the Woods by Tana French ****

Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin ****

Under the rule of King Henry II, within Cambridge, there is amongst the people a deranged serial killer targeting children. The people point the blame at the local Jewish population, but after a raid sequesters them within the castle walls and the killings don't stop, a woman of the station of what we might call today coroner is summoned from out of the country to learn from the dead children what she may to uncover the identity of a serial killer eager to target those who would try to track them down. Historical fiction. Some explicit sexual content.

The Witch Elm*****

Toby experiences a series of devastating events, the first of which is a break in and assault that leaves him with literal brain trauma, hazy memories, and a sense that he is no longer himself and will never be so again. So when a corpse shows up in the old summer home he and his cousins stayed at and it turns out to be an old pal from school, he is left absolutely untethered from all he understands in his world, and every attempt to make it makes sense seems to send him down the wrong path. The later part of the book does take place in the autumn months, but I didn't really get the sense that this took up a whole lot of the story

Classic Halloween Elements

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu *****

Cemetary Boys****

YA, Featuring ghosts and witches and blood rituals. What is more Halloweeny? "In an attempt to prove himself a true brujo and gain his family’s acceptance, Yadriel decides to summon his cousin’s ghost and help him cross to the afterlife. But things get complicated when he accidentally summons the ghost of his high school’s resident bad boy, Julian Diaz – and Julian won't go into death quietly. The two boys must work together if Yadriel is to move forward with his plan. But the more time Yadriel and Julian spend together, the harder it is to let each other go."

Dracula by Bram Stoker *****

The Best of Edgar Allan Poe

The Exorcist by William Blatty ****

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley ****

What can have more than classic Halloween elements than a classic horror tale??

The Gilda Stories***

Vampires always fit this season. Follow a girl willing to kill to obtain freedom as she merges into life as a vampire and seeks out her people and a place to call home. 200 years of finding places for herself allow for a nice exploration of what it means for a vampire to live for a very, very long time.

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

The Mall of Cthulhu by Susan Cooper

Mexican Gothic****

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin***

Talk about a book that feels like horror for me in particular! And though a lot of the book has a veneer of the mundane, don't be deceived. There are witches and blood rituals and demonic entities tipping the scales. Perfect for those who love the spooky elements of Halloween! Also, I anticipated that after all the buildup, the ending wouldn't be able to live up, but I actually quite liked it. Though don't let that allow you to suspect a peachy resolution XD

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson***

One of the classic horror books has to go among classic Halloween! You think you know this story, but if you haven't read it, you likely know less than you think! This is the perfect time of year to check out the original.

Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire *****

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

The Vampyre; A Tale by John Polidori**

Nonfiction

From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death by Caitlin Doughty*****

Is the west too disconnected from death thanks to a 20 billion dollar industry that makes loved ones disappear nearly the moment they leave the world of the living and their bodies corpses? What if we returned to a not so distant practice of taking part in death rituals, to have a purpose, be a link, in a loved one's passing from this world and the next? Doughty explores those rituals and more from cultures across the world and asks us to imagine a more fulfilling grieving process that included the body of those who've passed on.

Haunted Wisconsin by Michael Norman, Beth Scott****

Collected from around Wisconsin, this book contains tales of an "assortment of ghosts, apparitions and other supernatural occurrences."

I'll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara***

"A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer—the elusive searial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade—from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case."

Penguin Book of Hell by Scott Bruce **

Let's talk about hell. That's what this book is all about, from the ghostly afterlife of the Greeks to the hell we force on others. This follows in a pretty straight line from the Greek/Roman concepts thru the Christian concepts, to attitudes about endless punishment held today.

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Vampire Forensics: Uncovering the Origins of an Enduring Legend by Mark Collins Jenkins*****

An "engrossing history draws on the latest science, anthropological and archaeological research to explore the origins of vampire stories, providing gripping historic and folkloric context for the concept of immortal beings who defy death by feeding on the lifeblood of others. From the earliest whispers of eternal evil in ancient Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome, vampire tales flourished through the centuries and around the globe, fueled by superstition, sexual mystery, fear of disease and death, and the nagging anxiety that demons lurk everywhere."

The World of Lore Books by Aaron Mahnke ****

These contain the books Dreadful Places, Wicked Mortals, and Monstrous Creatures. I haven't actually read Wicked Mortals yet, but the other two were perfect for the season and am confident so too Wicked Mortals will be too. Follow Mahnke as he explores the history of these folk tales and spoopy histories! They also work as great audio listens.

It's October, so get ready to see this even more! I still have books I want to add to it that are pending, and more will be added as I read. But I'm always looking for more books to queue up for some spoopy time (and/OR Autumn reading), and when I find there's something I wish there was more of out in the world, I find it helps to put out into it what we'd like to see.

That is to say, please feel free to add to this! I will excitedly look forward to more spoopy recs.

#fall fun #but I always like to hear others' recs for reading this time of year #So it only made sense I try to do the same #tf reads #books #spooky reading #spoopy fun times #la de da #don't mind meeee #silly tf #long post #gifs

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