narrativestutter

[narrativestutter]

i wanna make it unequivocally clear that there are no time limits when it comes to rping with me. idc if you're scrolling through your drafts and you find a thread of ours from two years ago+ and you wanna continue it... but you're afraid i'll be upset with you bc it's been so long...

babes, i am holding your face so gently when i say this: do the thing. i promise, the only thing i'mma be when i see that notif is excited

[narrativestutter]

@tattlesandtales › 𝙿𝚁𝙴𝚅𝙸𝙾𝚄𝚂𝙻𝚈.

Having known Klaudia wouldn't be home until early morning, the decision to come to hers instead of his own house hadn't been a light one. He'd driven around in the late hours wondering if he should suck it up and go home, face the music of his dad being home for the first time in a year, and wondering what it meant that in all the discomfort his day had offered him all he wanted was some semblance of her. Upon finally biting the bullet and ignoring what it might say if he was waiting in her room for her, he'd climbed up through Jules' window so that at least someone knew where he was. Klaudia knew he was late with his phone plan this month, so all his visits had been a surprise so far, and his brothers could wonder for a night.

Jules hadn't liked the look of him — split lipped, smoke stained, and tired eyed as he was — but she'd helped him sneak across the hall to Klaudia's room after a simple, almost childish 'please'. She didn't want to text when she knew her sister was driving as she never wanted to tempt fate, but she promised to warn her when she came up the stairs.

Kas, for his part in the plan, hadn't meant to fall asleep. The moment he'd sunk into her bed and took enough deep breaths in of her, however, he was out like a concussion risk.

Dreamless and heavy as the dark of sleep was, being a light sleeper had it's perks. He had already started to stir at the sound of shoes cluttering along the floor, though it hadn't been enough of a warning for the immediate body slam. That at least woke him up, as did the choked scream from Klaudia and the thud of her head as she tried to get away.

With the flurry of feet kicking out at him the instinct guiding his body wasted no time in trapping her beneath his weight. Stop the onslaught and then talk. That was the order of things whether it was a brother with a bone to pick before he was awake or the girlfriend he'd just scared the absolute shit out of by being asleep. Kasper felt vile as he pressed down on her, locking her legs between his and keeping her hands from joining the party — he knew she was terrified and the fact it was him would not make that fear any smaller once he stopped being a silhouette. So almost as quickly as he was on her, he was off again. Rolling himself over her and off the side of her bed, he landed on her floor the heaviest he ever had, though he didn't think it would alert anyone in the house. On his way down a stray foot got him in the ribs and he managed to bring the cry out down a few decibels to a grunt, but he didn't stop moving away from her until his back hit a wall.

“ Nice shot, engel, ” he complimented her through gritted teeth on the breath of a strained laugh. God, he just couldn't get out of the shit today. Even Rune, whose preference for confrontation was verbal, had taken a swing at him that morning after Kas apparently stroked a nerve. Fuck knows what was going on with that kid. Kasper shook his head clear. Thinking was better than feeling the aches, but there were more important matters to attend to. “ Sorry you had to make it. Um. Did you not see Jules before...coming in...? ”

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“ Oriana. ”

His tone is far more pleased as it shaped itself around her name than hers had been for his, but he didn't hold that against her. If she was to believed then he had ignored her and of course that would leave a bitter taste on her tongue. Never mind the fact that he didn't believe her. Rhion looked to his conversational partner who seemed transfixed by the state of her and prepared to excuse himself, when the shape of them was completely eclipsed by her — bloodied, beautiful, and beckoning.

Rhion followed without argument, smiling and nodding polite farewells to those they passed on the way out. His only comment was reserved for when they were through the doors and out of earshot, where he could chance leaning forward just enough to tell her something true. He hoped she could hear the grin on his face as he spoke, and it remained firmly in place when she finally faced him a stuttered heartbeat later.

“ We both know there was no sending spell. ” Rather, she knew she didn't send one and he knew she was too practiced to have messed it up and it not gotten to him if she had. His eyes trailed down to where her fingers circled his wrist, then up again to hold her gaze. “ But never mind that now I am...all yours. ”

The last two words were low and heavy in his chest, pointing towards another thing they both knew ( if only on some uneven, unspoken level ) but any accusation in them was softened by their devotion. Even with an unfinished conversation tethering him to the room behind them, making contact with her sharp, dark eyes cut him free and held him in time and place with her.

“ What do you need? ”

rhion, @narrativestutter ❪ . . . ❫ always accepting.

they're not really anything. certainly not anything significant enough for her to write him when hunting takes her away from home. it shouldn't bother her then, that when she walks into the room he isn't already searching for her.

no explanation exists for the green-eyed monster that rears up in her chest. she doesn't blame him for being preoccupied. his conversation partner certainly looks riveted by what he's saying. and far, far more attractive. it shouldn't bother her when they lay a hand on his arm, or when he laughs in response. is it flattery or something more? a promise to escape somewhere more private? what does it matter?

before oriana can really process what she's doing, she's crossing the room towards him. never mind the ghastly splash of red over the white of her blouse and neck. never mind how her appearance draws scandalized gasps from some of her parents' more sensitive guests. it at least makes parting the crowds easier. whoever doesn't move out of her way simply gets shoved aside.

“ rhion. ” she huffs with exasperation as soon as she gets to him, face flushed red. she tells herself it's from exertion and not the ugly feeling in her chest. “ i waited for you at the stables. the portal closed before i could go through. did you not receive my sending spell? ” no of course he didn't. she never sent one his way. but if it got him away from this upstart then maybe she should have ...

she gives the person a once-over before turning back to rhion, moving to fully block this person out of the conversation. “ never mind. you're needed now. ” oriana's fingers wrap around his wrist, tugging him in the direction of the door. it doesn't register that this is a party and that he's supposed to play nice.

you're not very good at subtlety.

she can hear the smile in his voice and she dares not turn her head. not until the burning in her cheeks has subsided. it's a beat too late when she looks over her shoulder, fingers still locked around his wrist. “ i don't know what you're talking about. ”

[narrativestutter]

It was the most graceful Stevie had been in a while — the little spinning top move to propel them away from the worker's line of sight neither unbalanced them nor had them knocking into another display. Was it subtle? No. But it was satisfying. Their fingertips tapped along the shelf as they listened to Cecily dob their handiwork in, and a small smile graced their lips as they heard the seasoned response of a woman who had been in retail longer than God had been alive.

Stevie looked across the aisle as the older woman diligently searched the shelf for any stray bits, and tried not to think too hard about whether this would be them in another thirty years — ginger hair fading into a wheat blonde thanks to aging under the cold light of florescent shopping centers. Would they still be at Kmart or would they have upgraded to Myer or David Jones by then? The woman briefly locked eyes with Stevie as she passed by, the automatic 'there's a customer' smile that graces Stevie's face all too often on her mouth and not at all in her eyes, and they offered something sheepish back, awkwardly lowering their hands from the shelf and holding their own wrist behind their back. It was a good thing she was in too much of a hurry to catch the admission of guilt, she looked tired of everyone's shit and not in a way that makes you chill about accidents. Stevie could make their peace with working in retail forever as long as they could keep from ending up like that.

It felt very sudden that Cecily was there, unhooking their hand and tugging them forward once more, but they just supposed the warning signs were there and they hadn't been paying attention. Stevie lazily bobbed their head in a surrendering kind of agreement to her words, though their shoulders corrected and their head snapped towards her in sharp attention when she revealed she knew all along about the Christmas Caper of '08. Truly surprising reveal, given Stevie had completely forgotten about it until right now. “ Okay, look — ” they tried to start a defense but were immediately disarmed by Cecily's grin and gentle hand squeeze, so of course they let it drop.

“ The car is fine, she's just like me in that sometimes she doesn't wanna move after being stationary a long time and is probably overdue a check up. ” Stevie kept their tone light because there wasn't a danger of serious mechanical failure, but the looming threat of having to use the Smartrider anyway was definitely casting a shadow on the conversation. They shrugged, keeping hold of Cecily's hand but walking themselves backwards in front of her briefly so they could playfully point at her. “ Which you can't hold against her when you've decided you're okay hanging out with me, so... ”

Continuing from here. @narrativestutter

When Stevie started attempting to herd Cecily, now backwards, out of the store again, Cecily narrowed her eyes up at them and planted her feet. Stevie may be taller and broader than herself, but she would argue that she was stronger, and she held her ground to make Stevie stop pushing her forward. Cecily put her hands on her hips, not at all caring that in that moment she was sure she looked exactly like her mother.

"Stevie," she said firmly, lifting one hand to hold it up in warning so Stevie would take a step back out of her space. "This is ridiculous, you aren't going to have to pay for it — do not interrupt me," she rushed on when Stevie's mouth opened to argue. "This is Myer for fuck's sake. It's not some tiny boutique crystal kitschy shop full of 'you break it you buy it' signs. You just have to tell them it's broken so they can take it off the floor so no one hurts themself on it."

Stevie did not look remotely convinced and Cecily sighed, shaking her head a little as she attempted, again, to skirt around Stevie to try and find a store attendant — a joke, really, considering finding staff in Myer was harder than trying to find parking on a Sunday.

Cecily did have to pull out an old netball move to get around Stevie, but three steps back towards the destroyed display, Stevie's words came back to her and she stopped and spun on her heels to look back at them. "What do you mean 'mostly' working car?" she demanded, because Stevie had been driving them around during their hang-outs since reconnecting. "I swear to fuc—hey! Excuse me?" Cecily caught sight of a black t-shirt and an orange lanyard out of the corner of her and plastered on a charming smile as she walked over to the small, older woman straightening up a diferent display.

"Hey, sorry. My friend and I were looking at the jewellery boxes over there and the wood one is broken. I just thought you should know before someone, I don't know, hurts themselves on it."

The woman looked over towards the display where the $360 small wooden box was clearly broken at the hinges, then looked back to Cecily with a suspicious look in her eye before she plastered on her own smile — more retail appropriate than charming. "Thank you for letting me know, I'll look after it," she said, and when Cecily stepped aside, she wandered over to the display to take the box off the glass top.

Cecily left her to it and went in search of Stevie, taking Stevie's hand from behind them and tugged gently. "Sorted. No problems at all. This wasn't the same as when we were eight years old and you knocked my mum's Christmas ornaments off our tree and pushed the broken pieces under the tree skirt for Ethan and I to get the blame for later." Cecily grinned and squeezed Stevie's hand gently before letting go. "Yes, I saw you. Now, can you tell me what's wrong with your car before I decided if I need to borrow your Smartrider to get home?"

Cecily didn't mention that she would rather die than catch public transport, and wasn't sure she even knew how she'd get back to Stevie's place and her own car from the shopping centre. Nor did she feel the need to mention that she'd rather risk being in a mechanically unsound car for an extra twenty-five minutes with Stevie.

[narrativestutter]

The Christmas market ice rink was something of a guilty pleasure of Sidney's. Something about the world was softer under the string lights and blanketed by the smell of seasonal spices. The hustle and bustle was nerve wracking, sure, but save the odd teen Grinch in the crowds the feeling most people shared as they bumped shoulders was joy. After indulging in her family's Christmas tradition of going to see the annual performance of The Nutcracker, she had set aside the next night for herself to wander the light displays and let herself have fun on the ice without the scrutiny of an indoor rink. It was a guilty pleasure because never invited anyone, and when anyone found out she always promised next time but never saw it through.

Sidney warmed herself up with the rest of the group in her time slot, following the flow, and catching the odd kid by the arm before they ate the ice. It was a community affair, staying upright in this rink. One group of friends in particular seemed determined to fall down, knocking or dragging each other down one after the other, but no one seemed to get hurt. With a smile on her face she decided it was actually for her safety to move closer to the center of the rink where only the more comfortable skaters and the odd accidental breakaway dared to lurk.

Once she was centered, Sidney did the unthinkable and let herself go. Her body followed along to a medley of laughter, carols, and music that had been stuck in her head all day. Although she stayed present enough in her body to make sure she didn't hurt herself or anyone else, she didn't let herself stay still long enough to catch on any one particular move. She would spin, then she would skate away from it. She would jump, then she would back away from it. She let herself do what she felt like doing without analyzing too hard how well she did it or why she wanted to do it in that order. Before long her smile was reflecting those that had been around her all evening, and even if she was now completely alone in the middle of the rink, the pinch of cold against her face kept her company.

With a heavy, foggy breath, Sidney let herself spin to a still, never opting to break as she was taught to where she could get away with it. It was now that she noted a few pairs of eyes on her and she shuffled herself back into the crowd away from the attention. She wasn't trying to show off, she was just trying to have fun. And this was another way in which it was a guilty pleasure.

Adjusting her beanie and unruly hair, Sidney nearly bumped into the person in front of her when she heard her name called out against the night and didn't slow down safely to check where it had come from. Calling an apology after them that they clearly didn't care about, she zeroed in on the figure at the fence.

“ Roach! ” The name was startled out of her mouth, like it had been caught somewhere it shouldn't be. Which was probably true. In the time between a surprisingly easy conversation at the bar and now, Sidney had let her mind mull over the woman — currently rugged up past a point of recognition before her — more times than she would like to admit. Enough to keep the memory of her infectious smile and broad shoulders alive, but also enough to convince herself she had royally embarrassed herself and the handsome woman with the stand out nickname wouldn't be approaching her at a bar again any time soon.

Well, she was half right. They weren't at a bar.

The barrage of compliments had her blinking a little stupidly, looking behind herself as if to first check it wasn't someone else Roach was talking to, and then to follow the lines of her skating path to try and see what exactly it was Roach thought she saw. She'd had fun, but it had by no means been impressive. In fact her instructor would have had so much to say about her form that she actually winced away from where she had done the sit spin, remembering the way she had wobbled. Still, maybe she shouldn't be too harsh a judge of what someone who doesn't know any better finds impressive when she herself was impressed that Roach remembered anything she'd said from their conversation two weeks ago at all. God, she was thankful for the cold. It kept the pink rising in her cheeks from being too suspect, even if the way she ducked her head and tried to shake the smile off her face definitely was.

Sidney's hands smoothed at her skirt for something to do as she slowly skated towards the lighthouse smile beaming at her from the edge of the rink, pausing when Roach bumped her friend and the friend got up to leave — just in case Roach was going to follow, she didn't want to be too close if that happened. When her eyes remained firmly on Sidney, her heartbeat chattered like teeth in a snowstorm, telling her to start up again before she got cold feet.

“ Thank you! For your kind words, I mean. ” Sidney wrinkled her nose — that was probably redundant. Her eyes dropped from Roach's to avoid seeing herself speak like someone who had never had a conversation before, and landed on the heavy looking puffer jacket. “ Cold? Because moving will do you more good than watching, so you should - you should come to this side of the fence. I can help you redeem yourself from the stairs. If you like. ”

It was bold bringing up the way she'd watched Roach tumble down the icy stairs at the bar, and there was a lot of room for interpretation between playful teasing and outright mean, but her mouth had taken it's own advice and decided moving was it's best chance at survival. After hearing herself Sidney decided she disagreed, though, and bit down on her bottom lip; eyes flickering back to Roach's to see where the comment landed.

She probably should have just said 'hi'.

I don't know what this other than a gift for @narrativestutter - so, hey J! Treat it as a starter, or a just enjoy the gay ass drabble! I love you!

*** Despite her long-standing obsession with ice hockey, Roach had never tried to skate after growing up in California. Moving to Canada for college was supposed to have given Roach the opportunity to learn, but it turns out she can't even walk on ice, let alone try and do it with blades under her feet. This realisation had just given Roach an even stronger admiration for those who could skate, let alone those who excelled at it.

While a small group of Roach's friends stepped onto the public outdoor rink a couple miles away from their compass, she ordered herself a spiced mulled cider and found a place a little away from the parents a step away from the fence line to watch. Roach's gaggle of friends had all grown up in colder climates and looked fairly natural out on the ice despite the fact none of them had been skating in years.

Even though the rink was fairly full with bodies skating around of all abilities, Roach was able to keep her friends in her line of sight, and when one fell down and created a chain reaction of the five girls, Roach couldn't help the cackle that bubbled up out of her. If she trusted herself to hold her cider in one thickly gloved hand without dropping it, she would have returned the middle finger salute a couple of her friends threw her way, but as it stood all she could do was give them a shit eating grin from behind the rim of her steaming drink.

"Snake!" One of the girls hissed with a bright and taunting laugh as the group skated past her.

"Wrong critter!" Roach called back, getting a chorus of cheers and laughter as the girls continued their loop.

Once the group had mostly found their feet and place in the clockwise flow of the rink, and Roach had finished her drink, she went and threw her cup in the trash can, but by the time she returned her place had been taken by a mom and her two young children, so Roach bit the bullet and walked to the opposite side of the rink where the lights from the small market didn't quite reach past the fence.

Nobody was over that side of the rink, but it only took Roach a moment to realise why — it was a couple of degrees colder without the bustling bodies of the Christmas night market patrons, the lights, or the stalls making warm treats to ward off the winter chills and blues. Roach may have been living in Canada for over a year, but going home to LA for the summer break had really set her back with her acclimation process and she hunched her shoulders up against the cold and buried her hands in the pockets of her feather down jacket. When she bunched up like she that in her puffer jacket, Roach felt a little like an armadillo, and as she tucked her chin into the collar she couldn't help the little smile that spread across her face. Roach the Armadillo. It sounded almost like a character from a children's picture book.

Whilst Roach's mind followed the idea of what a story about an Armadillo named Roach would consist of, she let her eyes wander in search of her friends who—despite their insistence that they knew what they were doing—were back on the ground in a tangle of limbs and glints of silver skates. Roach huffed in amusement, a cloud of condensation forming in the air in front of her. In response, and as her friends toppled down again, Roach hunched lower into her jacket to breathe against her collar which forced her to watch the ice skaters from under her eyelashes and she silently hoped it didn't look as creepy as it felt.

It didn't take long for the weak link in Roach's group to break free and return her rented skates before clomping over to where Roach stood, complaining all the while about the cold and her wet ass, and attempting to defend herself by saying ice skating had changed since she'd done it as a kid. Roach didn't want to expose her face to the cold just to call bullshit, so she didn't respond other than to roll her eyes at her friend and lean her waist against the rink's fence to try and get a little more light.

As Roach's friend took her lead and hunched into her own jacket and step closer, Roach saw one of the more experienced skaters break away from the lazy river of varying skills and head into the mostly empty middle of the rink with a grace and confidence Roach could only ever imagine. The young woman had blonde hair that looked as if it had been straightened but the damp environment had caused it to begin to curl and frizz, and it was being held at bay by a soft looking beanie. She wasn't as rugged up as Roach was, her outfit a little more form-fitting and her gloves didn't look nearly as thick as Roach's were, and for her sake, Roach hoped her tights were at least the fluffy-lined ones she'd seen the TikTok girlies showing off when she watched over her friend's shoulders, otherwise she had to be freezing. Right?

The market had speakers scattered around, including some over the ice rink, and they were playing an uninterrupted stream of Christmas music, but the girl in the middle of the rink seemed to be moving to a diferent rhythm that only she could hear. Roach watched, mesmerised, as she executed an elegant spin, and audibly gasped when her skates left the ice before landing on one leg and skating backwards with the other outsretched behind her. As she skated a little closer to the far side of the rink where Roach was camped, clearly attempting to manouvre away from a little kid who'd escaped his guardian and was trying to cut across the ice in a Bambi-esque fashion, Roach could see the pink of her cheeks and the tip of her nose where the cold had nipped and held on. Then she was pushing away, skating backwards again, into the middle of the rink and Roach smiled against her collar at her skills.

"How does she do that without side-view mirrors?" Roach murmured to herself, and when her friend queried her, Roach just waved it away in favour of continuing to watch.

Roach was enamoured by the graceful movements, each trick and turn melting seamlessly into the next, the woman clearly absorbed in what she was doing and trusting herself and her body entirely to carry her through the movements. As she dropped into a crouched spin on one foot with her other outstretched in front of her, Roach could see the bright grin spread across the woman's face, and as she followed the spin up to standing again, fresh snow began falling from the sky. Whilst patrons began exiting, the artist skated easily through the crowd until she was one of the few left, and she began to take full advantage of the space she'd found herself in. Twirling, skating in wider criss-crossing arcs, leaping and jumping as if she had no doubt that the knives on her feet would catch her whilst snow continued to drift down around her.

With the colourful Christmas lights blinking around the rink bathing her in a carnival of soft colourful lighting, and perfect little snowflakes catching in the hair that was growing increasingly more determined not to be controlled, Roach was convinced she'd never seen someone more beautiful. Alone, the sheer unadulterated joy on her face as she struck a pose would have been enough beauty to send Roach's soft gay heart tumbling, without the added display of talent and aesthetics of the night market at her back.

It hadn't been that long ago that Roach had let her thoughts meander down an amusing picture book idea about a caricature of her bulky frame and clumsy movements as an armadillo going on adventures. A funny tale to make others laugh, and maybe teach children to be kind or something. A secondary character, probably. Two dimensional. Illustrations closed between the covers of a book that was bought as a gift and wouldn't be read often enough so that when it comes time to deep clean or move house, it gets donated to the charity box without a second thought.

Meanwhile, the girl on the ice belonged in a novel so well-written and loved it felt almost as if it was imbued with magic. One of the stories you would keep on your shelf no matter how many times you moved house. She would be the kind of character you carried in a piece of your heart for the rest of your life. The character you would return to when you needed to be reminded that there is beauty, and depth, and purpose, no matter how hard life got.

The woman started skating the outside again in lazy and loose movements as she clearly began to cool down and breathe, and she took her beanie off to push her hair off her forehead and back into place as she passed where Roach stood. The movement seemed nervous almost, like she'd realised she'd been watched by other patrons the whole time, and it was a gesture that, when paired with the blonde hair and pink cheeks, Roach recognised.

"Oh! Sidney!" Roach said, finally standing up a little straighter and letting her face meet the cold air despite the snow falling.

Roach had not meant to actually say her name aloud, let alone as loud as she had, but she remembered the girl from the sports bar behind the campus. They'd had a conversation while Roach waited for her friends' drinks to be made, initiated by Roach because — just like now — Roach had found her beautiful in a way she'd never truly be able to explain. Later that same night, Sidney had watched Roach slip on ice and slide halfway down a short brick stair case leading out of the bar, and Roach had silently told the god of the gays they were an asshole. Despite Sidney's adorable giggles at the time, Roach had promptly decided not to attempt another conversation in the face of her embarrassment.

Yet, Roach clearly hadn't forgotten her name, or her face, and she smiled now at the blonde who'd been startled enough by hearing her name called from the shadowy side of the rink.

"I remember you saying you liked to ice skate, but I didn't realise you meant like that. That was incredible. You're incredible! Beautiful even. Very talented. Wow." Roach told her, unabashed and enthusiastic as she shoved the embarrassment from their first/second encounter from a couple weeks prior out of her mind in favour of gushing at the pretty girl.

All she could really do was smile after that ridiculous display of gay, and try not to climb over the fence to go over and talk to her without her friend bearing witness.

"'Wow,'" the girl at Roach's side teased, and when Roach elbowed her good-naturedly, her friend pushed off the fence muttering something about rescuing the mulled cider vendor from their friends.

Roach didn't even watch her go or offer a goodbye, just kept her attention on Sidney like it was the easiest thing in the world. Mostly because, in that moment, it was.

[narrativestutter]

been sick and watching people on youtube lose their minds over su.nrise on th.e reap.ing, and it's got me thinking about my kids in universe.

start with my darling parrish kids. all capitol kids, ofc, their parents would be comfortable in the political landscape alongside snow. lolly is absolutely a gamemaster, a compromise between her desire to create and build and her duty to her family and the capitol, but probably winds up an underling to plutarch come the events of catch.ing f.ire the more she does and sees and wants to tear at the scaffolding to start it all again.

mack travelled to the districts as part of a camera crew only to stay put because she was never very good at being part of the capitol, she questioned too much and hated the constant circus and surely she can do something good and be something real here — probably falls in love while she's at it.

lincoln is in his own world on his mad scientist shit and that's all fun and fuckery until his dad gets smth he made put in a game the way you put a kids drawing on a fridge and he has to watch a bunch of kids his age or younger die horrific deaths because of it :)

honey absolutely got reaped at the ripe old age of 12 and by god her soft ass does not make it. or if she does it is a pure whim of allyship that she's there to the final 4 at which point it is dire self preservation and dumb luck and/or a suicide. the idea of honey as a mentor breaks my gd heart as much as it breaks hers over and over.

then kind of moving along from them, i'm not afraid to admit that so many of my characters would be Just Some Guy in this universe, whether they're from the capitol or one of the districts. but a few more do stand out.

evangeline would be such an effie type. escort and stylist. colourful, well intentioned, but deeply unaware of the systems at play.

mona as a rebel harbourer, acting as a safe house, but otherwise a very nondescript woman doing her best.

bonnie as a radio entertainer that, gun to her head, becomes a voice of propaganda during the events of mo.ckingjay.

alice as a peacekeeper (tragic but true, fckn mercenary ass).

[narrativestutter]

i've obviously missed a ton of trends in my like 5ish year absence from the tumblr rpc, some of which my only response to is a heavy sigh, but i'm loving 'inserting an ask prompt where it would fit contextually in the written response' and i will be absorbing that like kirby effective immediately

[narrativestutter]

&. 𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐮 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬.

(  dialogue  prompts  taken  from  nosferatu  (2024),  directed  by  robert  eggers.  feel  free  to  edit  and  change  as  you  seem  fit.  ) 

❛ come to me. ❜

❛ a guardian angel. a spirit of comfort. spirit of any celestial sphere. anything. hear my call. ❜

❛ you wakened me from an eternity of darkness. ❜

❛ you are not for the living. you are not for human kind. ❜

❛ and shall you be one with me ever-eternally? ❜

❛ come here. there’s nothing to be afraid of. ❜

❛ i wish i could stay, my love. ❜

❛ why have you killed these beautiful flowers? ❜

❛ i must tell you my dream. ❜

❛ i’d never been so happy as that moment… as i held hands with death. ❜

❛ i wish you to have all you deserve. ❜

❛ you mustn’t leave. i love you too much. ❜

❛ i will stay with you until you are fast asleep. ❜

❛ uh, forgive me. i only wish to stay one night. ❜

❛ by god’s name, never speak of that castle. ❜

❛ i banish you, i banish you with garlic. ❜

❛ beware of his shadow. ❜

❛ the shadow covers you in a nightmare. ❜

❛ you are late. the midnight hour has passed. ❜

❛ i wish you to do as i request. ❜

❛ i will be addressed as the honor of my blood demands it.❜

❛ speak not of it again! ❜

❛ take heed what you do. ❜

❛ i might ease your wound. ❜

❛ come by the fire. ❜

❛ your face shows you unwell. ❜

❛ do you ever feel at times as if you were not… as if you were not a person? ❜

❛ look at the sky. look at the sea. does it never call to you, urge you? ❜

❛ you are fortunate in your love. ❜

❛ now are we neighbors. ❜

❛ it is late. you must wish to retire. ❜

❛ i have been enduring the most irregular dreams. i fear i am taken ill. ❜

❛ it is a black omen to journey in poor health. you will remain and well rest yourself. ❜

❛ dream of me. only me. ❜

❛ oh, he’s coming to me. ❜

❛ i cannot resist you, my love. ❜

❛ i am no one. i am his servant. ❜

❛ look, this is a pretty one. his lordship likes the pretty ones… ❜

❛ you are lost in his shadow. ❜

❛ soon i will no longer be a shadow to you. ❜

❛ soon our flesh shall embrace and we shall be as one. ❜

❛ i have not failed your lordship! ❜

❛ embrace me, my boy. i am so rejoiced to see you. ❜

❛ my dear creature, yes, i am he, and i am hither come to help you. ❜

❛ my dreams grow darker. ❜

❛ does evil come from within us or from beyond? ❜

❛ i shall persist to join you every night… first in sleep, then in your arms. ❜

❛ everything will be mixed with abomination, and you’ll be knee-deep in blood. ❜

❛ you are promised to me! ❜

❛ i will end this plague. this devil. ❜

❛ he hasn’t found you. ❜

❛ i feared i’d never see you again. ❜

❛ you shall crave of me nothing. ❜

❛ the bells of dawn shall toll in despair of my coming. and i shall taste of you. ❜

❛ pray, forgive me for all the troubles i have caused you. ❜

❛ i am only glad you have become yourself again. ❜

❛ may i… stay with you tonight? ❜

❛ this creature is a force more powerful than evil. it is death itself. ❜

❛ i have seen things in this world that would’ve made isaac newton crawl back into his mother’s womb. ❜

❛ i have wrestled with the devil as jacob wrestled the angel in peniel. ❜

❛ if we are to tame darkness, we must first face that it exists. ❜

❛ i have felt you crawling like a serpent in my body. ❜

❛ love is inferior to you. ❜

❛ i told you, you are not of humankind. ❜

❛ i am an appetite. nothing more. ❜

❛ i lay within the darkest pit. till you did wake me, enchantress, and stirred me from my grave. ❜

❛ you are my affliction. ❜

❛ i care nothing of your afflictions. ❜

❛ yet even now we are fated. ❜

❛ your passion is bound to me. ❜

❛ you cannot love. ❜

❛ yet i cannot be sated without you. ❜

❛ remember how once we were? ❜

❛ i abhor you. ❜

❛ i will leave you three nights. tonight was the first. ❜

❛ tonight you denied yourself, and thereby, you suffer me to vanish up the lives of those you love. ❜

❛ you revel in my torture. ❜

❛ upon the third night, you will submit, or he you call your husband shall perish by my hand. ❜

❛ till you bid me come shall you watch the world become as naught. ❜

❛ tell me, what is this insufferable darkness? ❜

❛ nothing you can say will shake me, for there is a devil in this world, and i have met him. ❜

❛ i’ve brought this evil upon us. ❜

❛ i sought company. i sought… tenderness, and i called out. ❜

❛ at first, it was sweet. i had never known such bliss. yet it turned to torture. ❜

❛ it was you that gave me the courage to be free of my shame. ❜

❛ he took me as his lover then, and now he has come back. ❜

❛ all my sleeping thoughts are of him every night. ❜

❛ don’t touch me! i am not to be touched. ❜

❛ i’ll be good. i promise. ❜

❛ you could never please me as he could. ❜

❛ yes! take me! ❜

❛ kiss me. kiss my heart. ❜

❛ let him see. let him see our love. ❜

❛ without you, i will become a demon. ❜

❛ you’re safe with me. ❜

❛ keep away from me. i am unclean. ❜

❛ he will murder you if i do not go to him. ❜

❛ kill him i will. he shall never harm you again. ❜

❛ i can weep no longer, for i have no more tears to shed. ❜

❛ the grim reaper wields his heavy scythe with every change of wind. ❜

❛ the monster left you to the wolves, yet you prevailed. ❜

❛ his pull to me is so powerful, so terrible, yet my spirit cannot be evil as his. ❜

❛ we must know evil to be able to destroy it. ❜

❛ you are our salvation. ❜

❛ i bid you, come to me. ❜

❛ your oath re-pledged. so too shall be our flesh. you are mine. ❜

[narrativestutter]

❛  did you hear that?  ❜ / eli @ lincoln

@parkerlots › 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙿𝚃.

Lincoln's head tilted to the right so slowly he can't imagine it was comforting to witness against the midnight backdrop, but he wanted to give his good ear a fighting chance at clarifying because he definitely did hear...that. If he had to guess — now left with only a thundering quiet made up of their startled hearts to go off of — his money was on feet. Typically, feet were attached to a someone or a something, and therein lied the problem with that bet.

They were no longer alone.

They were supposed to be alone.

The next forty seconds Lincoln dedicated to weighing their options. One: get the fuck out — plain and simple, tried and true. But Lincoln wasn't done. Eli would be welcome to leave him, but his brain tossed it off the table as soon as it was put down. Two: go looking and establish if it was a person, or perhaps a rodent of an unusual size, before making any further decisions. Rational and irrational in equal measure, so he was inclined towards it in any other situation, but it didn't suit his priorities in this one. He was on a mission and this was a deviation from the course that he didn't have time to indulge. Which left him with three: continue to fuck around, and find out.

Still crouched in front of the lock of a particularly stubborn door, Lincoln finally cast his gaze up towards Eli who had been so gracious as to hold the torch for him. When his gaze was met back with wide, worried eyes, he offered up what he hoped was an appeasing smile.

“ It's just a sound, ” Lincoln assured him just in time for his smile to twist into something impish, maintaining eye contact as he took his cochlear off.

[narrativestutter]

❛  what’s wrong with you?  ❜ - ben @ honey, ofc ( tendermuse )

@tendermuse › 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙿𝚃.

Was that really necessary?

Honey couldn't tell if that was a question she actually heard someone quietly asking their friend as they skirted around her, or if it was just the vague voice that now followed her whenever she existed in public, but her head snapped around and her eyes were accusing anyway. Of course it was necessary. Honey was overwhelmed and overcrowded and the ballooning panic in her chest needed to be gone. So...she stomped her foot down hard enough to crack the pavement and pushed out a guttural scream. Guess what? It deflated. All that was left of the balloon was an unfortunate taste in her mouth that reminded her it had been there at all, and a grounding ache in her foot that would keep her company going forward. Screaming also had the added perk of getting people the fuck away from her fast enough that she could enjoy the breath she needed to take after the sound ran out. What the fuck did they mean was it necessary — she immediately felt better, wasn't that enough?

At least she could rely on Ben to not mint his words and ask the question he was actually thinking. She liked that. No acceptability concerns, just a plain old what the fuck.

Honey adjusted her shoulders and raised her eyebrows, obviously feeling more comfortable in her body than she had been five seconds, or even an hour ago when this nonsense started and he decided taking her for a walk was better than her tearing up his couch in boredom.

“ You really wanna start comparin' our fucked up bingo cards right now? 'Cause I'm happy to lose this one. ”

[narrativestutter]

"You can't just leave" for Stevie (from Cecily....?)

@tattlesandtales › 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙿𝚃.

Stevie was incredibly aware of their surroundings as they attempted to herd Cecily away from the scene of the crime with the pressure of their whole body. And sure, crime was a bit dramatic, but they did just break the display model of something that according to the ticket was extortionate so they kept the shuffle at a steady pace nonetheless. Cecily hissed disapproval at them and like many cats before her this did nothing to stop Stevie moving her.

“ I've got two working legs, I've got a mostly working car, hell — I've got an active Smartrider. I can leave. I can leave so good. You know what I actually, genuinely, cannot do? ”

Freckled arms stopped attempting to block a sudden maneuver on Cecily's part and instead got closer to her, hands grasping gently on her shoulders to guide her through a spin so they were face to face, though the space between them remained as minimal as it had when Cecily's back was up against them. When they were sure they had her full attention, Stevie answered their own question with big eyes.

“ Pay for that. ”

The truth of those words was almost lost on the laugh that bubbled out of Stevie as they spoke, but the way that they started forwards again heavily suggested they found nothing about the number on that ticket funny.

[narrativestutter]

🐝  *  ―  𝑭𝑶𝑼𝑹 𝑾𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝑺𝑬𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑬 𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑹𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑺.

❛  are you kidding me?  ❜ ❛  at least you tried.  ❜ ❛  can i kiss you?  ❜ ❛  come and make me.  ❜ ❛  did you hear that?  ❜ ❛  don’t give up now.  ❜ ❛  don’t lie to me.  ❜ ❛  don’t listen to them.  ❜ ❛  for once, shut up!  ❜ ❛  have you told them?  ❜ ❛  i can’t help you.  ❜ ❛  i care about you.  ❜ ❛  i don’t believe you.  ❜ ❛  i didn’t mean that.  ❜ ❛  i had no idea.  ❜ ❛  i’m here for you.  ❜ ❛  i’m not giving up.  ❜ ❛  i need your help.  ❜ ❛  i’ll try my best.  ❜ ❛  i’ll never forget you.  ❜ ❛  i’m proud of you.  ❜ ❛  it’s my turn now.  ❜ ❛  i’ve made a mistake.  ❜ ❛  sometimes, life really sucks.  ❜ ❛  stay with me, please.  ❜ ❛  story of my life.  ❜ ❛  tell me the truth!  ❜ ❛  thanks but no thanks.  ❜ ❛  thank you … for everything.  ❜ ❛  to hell with it.  ❜ ❛  wait, are you serious?  ❜ ❛  wanna talk about it?  ❜ ❛  we’ll get through this.  ❜ ❛  what’s wrong with you?  ❜ ❛  what did i do?  ❜ ❛  what do you think?  ❜ ❛  when will it stop?  ❜ ❛  where did you go?  ❜ ❛  will you marry me?  ❜ ❛  you can’t just leave.  ❜ ❛  you could’ve been hurt!  ❜ ❛  you don’t trust me.  ❜ ❛  you don’t wanna know.  ❜ ❛  you lied to me.  ❜ ❛  you’re jealous, aren’t you?  ❜

[narrativestutter]

#𝙽𝙰𝚁𝚁𝙰𝚃𝙸𝚅𝙴𝚂𝚃𝚄𝚃𝚃𝙴𝚁. an independent / selective fandomless multimuse featuring original characters in a predominantly urban fantasy setting. 𝚂𝚃𝚄𝙳𝙸𝙴𝚂 𝙸𝙽: broken homes and cycles, what makes a monster, connection & isolation, what it takes to survive, intense feeling, becoming & unbecoming, and love in the little things. — 𝚆𝚁𝙸𝚃𝚃𝙴𝙽 𝙱𝚈 𝙹.

𝙻𝙸𝙽𝙺𝚂 › 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚍.  ✶ 𝚕𝚘𝚛𝚎𝚜. ✶ 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚜. ✶ 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚋𝚕𝚘𝚐.