shadcwcursed

[shadcwcursed]

Marni didn't mean to eavesdrop, but she felt exposed out in the open. Instinctively, she found herself gravitating towards the other woman. Oliver's wife, part of the pack. Abel always spoke highly of the pack, and how they help each other. You're always safe with the pack. "Excuse me," she called out meekly, "I didn't mean to overhear, but um, my boyfriend is best friends with the leaders for the banshees and the hybrids and he's one of the Crescents so he has his own representative too." She was rambling a bit, so she tried to rein it back. "I can ask him to talk to them about raising the issue. The council's supposed to make sure the voices are heard, right? I think employers not taking care of their supernatural or human employees by not arranging these passes and putting the burden of night shifts on the humans should qualify as something to be heard. I can do that for you, if you want?"

𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚗 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚛  »  𝕛𝕠𝕣𝕕𝕪𝕟 𝕣𝕖𝕚𝕟𝕖 — @exitiumstarters

“You can’t just change the entire scheduling structure.” A public phone call argument wasn’t what Jordyn expected for her morning; in fact it was something she tried to avoid. But her job and her safety was on the line. “You’re really not going to put in the little bit of effort to get passes for YOUR employees? It’s not that hard. You can’t just expect the humans to take all the night shifts. We’re understaffed as it is and it’s not like-“ Her words cut off by the tone of the call being disconnected, she let out a frustrated groan before shoving her phone in her pocket. “Ridiculous” she muttered as she flopped down onto the park bench.

[shadcwcursed]

Wandering, Marni wanted to give Abel some space, so he didn't feel like he was always having to take care of her. Despite what Billie said, it felt like the burden of being with her was greater than the one without her. So if she could just give him little breaks, maybe that would help.

Hearing a voice call out to her, she looked up to see Nova. "This really seems like a job for a prince," Marni muttered, voice more monotone than the quip was supposed to imply she felt. "But I left mine with his mother, so I guess we are doing this ourselves. Do you know where they keep the ladders?"

Open for @exitiumstarters I Nova

Nova sighed as she sat in the Balcony in her dress. She was stuck there until the end of the week for reasons that even elluded her. While she understood her responisbilites, even she felt this was a bit much. The heiress presumed her standing until she saw a person from down below, maybe this can be an oppurtunity to escape.

"Yoohoo." Nova said at the person. "Do you mind giving a lady some help?"

[shadcwcursed]

Bel listened as Oliver ranted, as he needed to, only offering the occasional 'mhm' or 'yeah' when he took little sips of air. Reclining in the lawn chair, she was relieved to be in her own clothes again, to be able to hear her best friend ranting and raving about injustice again. "You saved me some breath," she teased softly, "I'm fine. Did it feel good to see people who took half my life standing up there and feeding us bullshit in a golden spoon? Not really. I did my 15 years in prison, I don't really want to go back to being told what I can and can't do, but if they're really working on a cure, your sister will get to be just a wolf again. And Abel trusts Briggs, and I trust Keelin, Jackson, and Hayley. I think the council could be a good thing." It wasn't what they wanted, not any of them, but she wasn't going to give up either. "The OEA was started by a bunch of hunter's councils coming together, right? It might be a little poetic if them allowing species to come together in a council was their own downfall. And we know Klaus is an artistic little shit, so I wouldn't put it past him to like the poetry of that. We shield our kids from this as much as we can, but I promise, Ol, this isn't going to be their lives forever. We're gonna fight. And who makes a better team than us?"

( oliver reine ✦ annabel campbell // @shadcwcursed )

Oliver had been furiously ranting, probably for about an hour now, stomping back and forth in the yard, tossing the odd tool here and there and driving his sneaker into scrap metal and sending that hurtling through the air. "And another fuckin' thing—" but he didn't finish that train of thought, instead he realised what a selfish ass he was being as he clocked the gaze of his best friend and sighed with exasperation before slumping down into one of the lawn chairs beside her. "Fuck. M'sorry. Are you alright?" Plucking a box of smokes from his jacket, he took one himself before tossing them to Bel. "This ain't over. It can't be. Cus this shit, it can't be our lives. Can't be our kids lives."

[shadcwcursed]

( @exitiumstarters. )

Her child was back in the city, and though circumstances were far from ideal around them, it didn't diminish the joy she felt to see and hold her angel child again. Since Klaus had given them the deeds, Zeraphine decided the gifts she had for housewarming weren't sufficient, so off she went to the Royal Street shopping center for more.

Entering the shop full of home goods, the dragon browsed for a little while, letting life feel momentarily normal. "This frame isn't real gold," she mused to no one in particular as she tapped on a large mirror hung amongst the selections on the wall. "Do you think this is too much for a couple who got engaged in a tree?" Probably.

[shadcwcursed]

"It was inevitable," the dragon hummed in agreement with her brother. "Klaus knows what he's doing. For the human hunters, there will be a reckoning, but for now, we let them tug on that invisible leash. They'll never succeed in all their little plans. We just need to protect the more fragile in the meantime."

Open Starter - @exitiumstarters

"Here comes all the bitching," Iggy muses, amusement evident against his features. "Never really cared for politics or rules really. I'd like to see 'em try and stop all of us from livin' our lives how we want to."

[shadcwcursed]

There was much to do, as was customary these days. However, Zera had heard about Lysander's return and seen the tired expressions of the children. They had much to exhaust them, but it was clear Lysander had brought with him no peace. So seek out her old friend, she did.

"May Astolfo the second fare better than Astolfo the first," Zeraphine mused as he turned to face her. She hadn't intended to be stealthy, so she wasn't surprised he'd heard her.

"I have no interest in your land, you are welcome to it," she stated, arms crossed as she stood before him with disapproving gaze. "You have brought shame upon yourself for your behavior toward the children. But--how does that go?--I'm not mad, I'm disappointed."

Open for @exitiumstarters I Lysander.

Lysander was still awaiting the call from Katherine. It was better to stay in the woods until he got some type of answer. That's how Lysander was regardless, until his master called, he would be in the woods. Lysander was cleaning the abandoned cabin to make his home. It wasn't against the rules seeing as it was abandoned. He even waited. So as he took out a break he noticed something beautiful.

"Is that a mighty steed?" Lysander couldn't help but ask aloud as he reached to pet the equine. "Greetings mighty steed I am Lysander. Would you like to accompany me on my journey?" Even though the steed didn't talk it he took the neigh as a yes. "Excellent you shall be crowned Astolfo the second."

The fae paused when he heard a sound. He turned slowly.

"Hark thy stranger. What are ye doing tresspassing on my land."

[shadcwcursed]

It was hardly the rousing round of applause she expected, but the vitriole that followed was anticipated. They must have missed the part where she was offering them cures and synthetic blood so vampires didn't have snack time on others whenever they felt like it. Her lips upturned as the wolf made a beeline for her, animals weren't the only ones who could bear their teeth when threatened.

"I know who you are," Laine returned the greeting, "I did my homework. If balls got things done, I wouldn't be here. As it turns out, pussy's tougher. Your kind has been killing humans for centuries, so less apology and more truce. Like I said, we all want evil eliminated, so what better way to do that than together? Klaus will oversee the council, so you don't have to worry about that. The OEA is welcoming your feedback and your contributions to our initiative to eradicate the malevolent. Sorry, were those words too big? Let's try it more simply: Help us, we help you. Everybody wins. Make problems, we kill you. Nobody wins. Does that clear things up?"

closed starter for @shadcwcursed

It was everything Jackson could do not to turn right there in the middle of the Mikaelson compound. He was grateful that he and Hayley had taken the time to change earlier or the suit might have been the final thing to push him over the edge. So long as there was a ward in place, so long as harm couldn't be done to him, he was damn sure going to speak his piece. He slid through the crowd like a knife through butter, approaching Klaus and the woman who'd spoken - whose name he'd only learned that very night.

"Evenin', Ma'am," Jackson overdid his drawl to a huge degree. "Jackson Kenner - Crescent rep for your new Council. I was just wonderin' exactly how big and how brass your balls must be. I just spent a year in an underground cell while your flunkies did a good job of trying to torture me outta my head, and I come back to you naming me to your council. Is that an apology? Or are we just pretendin' I didn't kill four of your people on my way out? Just curious. If y'all can explain it to a hick like myself, I'd appreciate it."

[shadcwcursed]

I don't wanna live in a man's world anymore | laine's playlist.

[shadcwcursed]

the wolves will be more gentle than any man could be | annabel's aesthetic.

[shadcwcursed]

speak politely to an enraged dragon | zeraphine mondragón's aesthetic.

[shadcwcursed]

If you come after my brother, I will rip you apart | rebekah's aesthetic.

[shadcwcursed]

I bloomed despite the darkness, and I was not alone | Phoebe Garin's aesthetic.

[shadcwcursed]

let me be who I'm meant to be | marni's playlist.

[shadcwcursed]

EIZA GONZALEZ via josecorella's instagram

[shadcwcursed]

"I want to know about that even less," Annabel quipped back, "save those stories for Uncle Ol." His smile brought more of one out of her, the relief she felt at finally being back with him had never really run out. Not being able to see her son every day, it was an extra punishment added to her sentence. They'd stolen her life out of nothing but blind hatred, but she had one now. The rest of her life with her son, and she didn't intend to waste a second of it. "Got a few connections of my own," she teased, "that aren't Party City." Finding Oliver in the crowd before she muttered, "it builds character...and more importantly, it's funny." Busted, Annabel offered a slight smirk before feigning her innocence, "you'd think a place like this wouldn't run low. I bet that's driving the hosts crazy. I'm not sure I'd even know what fancy bourbon looked like." With a wink, she gave him a look that promised she'd share.

She knew the blanket statement was unfair, but she did see them all as culpable to some degree. "I remember," she assured, having taken her issue with his girlfriend's involvement but it had become easier in the last year to see puppet from puppeteer. Yet, the burden his devotion left on his shoulders had still not settled well. "This healing has to be her own," she explained, though it would not be the answer he wanted, "there will always be things you cannot fix for other people. I know you wish you could. You've always been a fixer. Love is wonderful, and it helps, it supports, it's endlessly patient. It doesn't make wounds go away. She didn't make everything go away for you either, though it might feel like it when you're focused on taking care of her. Those are battles you support each other through, but have to fight yourselves." She knew he'd defend his friend and by extension, his friend's uncle, and the loyalty to his self-made pack brought a renewed smile. "I don't know that I trust what Klaus is gonna do, but I do believe Briggs wouldn't screw you over." Bringing her hand to her son's face, she met his gaze, "it's my turn to take care of you now, kiddo. Time for you to get a deep breath. You might be an adult now, but I'm still your mother. Let the weight of the world go. Maybe Klaus, as looney as he is, has an idea. The kids aren't going to be at the forefront of the battle this time."

The thought of the Mikaelsons at a Crescent party was an image. "They'd be knocked on their asses, something I'd actually like to see," she joked. Hey, they judged her as trailer trash, so she could take a little joy in those elitists making fools of themselves in the bayou. "Like old times, I do like how that sounds." Her smile was quick to falter at his self-deprecating comment, a signal she'd not be listening to that nonsense. "Siblings say shit they don't mean," she reminded him, "especially when they fight. It doesn't make any of it true." There was a softer smile as he mentioned her being smart, "I think we gotta thank the prison library and daytime television for that." It was a sad thing to have lost all those years, but it didn't have to be a sad thing. Things only had the power you gave them. Right now, she had her child back within reaching distance, sharing in his problems, reminding him how much he was loved. That was all she needed. From the second she had that positive test in her hand, she knew she'd found her greatest peace in this life. "I love you, sweet boy." Finally fixing his hair if he wasn't going to do it, she shook her head. "It does matter. You're gonna have to apologize and so is she. You did it for them, and I know that because you're doing the same thing for Marni. You've put all the padding down so she never has to hit the ground too hard. I'm sure it made you feel better, gave you a sense of stability you could control--which should have been your dad's job. I think both things can be true, and neither have to be bad. You were dealt a pretty shitty hand by this life between your dad and me, and you did your best with what you knew. You're a kid, even now, at 25, technically an adult, you're still a kid." She didn't always feel like having her for a mother made her kid lucky, but her heart filled to the brim to hear him say it. "I'm the lucky one, I got you. I'm so proud of you, I will always be proud of you. We're gonna have fun tonight, alright? We're partying on the Mikaelson dime, I think that means go nuts."

“Dates?” he teased as his brow quirked, “ain’t so sure i’d call whatever they were dates, ma.” As always Annabel had managed to coax a smile from him, no matter how dire the situation nor emotion, she was one of the few who could heal a wounded heart with a single glance. “You look real nice, by the way” he hummed; guiding the conversation as his smile became wider, "uncle Ol looks -- uncomfortable." As Bel's hand came towards his head, he pretended to dodge before groaning as she ruffled his hair, but he didn’t bother to fix it. “Only the best at Casa de Mikaelson. There's plenty more where that came from. But I heard a rumor they were runnin' low on bourbon” his smile remained as he asked playfully, "you wouldn't happen to know where those bottles got to, would you?"

His chest tightened at the mention of the prison world and his brow creased as he shook his head “– not all of em’ are psychos, remember?” His prompting was gentle and he understood that there was a line. “Marni’s havin’ a real tough time tonight. I don’t know how to help. I just – wanna make this go away, you know? She’s always been so good at doin’ that for me, so why can’t I fix this? Why don’t I know how?” Listening to his mothers advice, he nodded and he knew that she was speaking sense, but he couldn’t help but add “Briggs’ uncle wouldn’t do anythin’ to screw him over and Briggs sure as shit wouldn’t do anythin’ to screw me over. We’re alright, ma. I swear. I ain’t lettin’ anything happen to you. Not again. I’m gonna keep you safe. You and Marni.”

Laughter eased from his lips, his nose wrinkling as he joked "crescent edge might just be enough to kill a Mikaelson” but he was sure to keep his voice low, “or at least knock one out cold. If the edge don’t, the potato vodka will.” There was another glimmer of a smile and Abel nudged his mom’s arm with his elbow, “we’ll have our own crescent party, just for you; like old times.” Bel had missed out on so much of her life, he wouldn't see her missing out on another second. OEA be damned. Releasing a steady breath now, he shrugged the tension from his shoulders “if bein’ human makes me an asshole then yeah guess I am” he murmured, lowering his head before muttering a soft apology. “I'm sorry“ he wasn’t one for self loathing and he wasn’t about to start now. Lifting his gaze he glanced towards his mom with an encouraged smile, “you’re crazy smart, you know that?” and his eyes softened, “I love you, mom. I mean it though, you are crazy smart.” He could sense the shift before her expression had given her away and he felt guilty for having brought it up. She was always so gentle with him, her love truly was everything. And as a child, even though she wasn’t with him, she had loved him so intensely, so well that in so many ways, she was always there. “It don’t matter– she was angry an’ we both said some hurtful shit. I spent a lot of time making excuses for dad. Guess over time I just did more harm than good. I always thought I was doing it for them, but maybe she's right, maybe it was just to make me feel better.” He inhaled a shaky breath, before forcing his composure as his gaze held onto his mothers, the relief clear from his expression, “i’m real lucky. Bein’ your kid, i’m the luckiest there is. I’ve always known that.”

[shadcwcursed]

Everything about the evident rage in the young girl said untriggered wolf. Not that triggering made things any better, but there's an internal struggle, a gene begging you to activate, that comes with being untriggered. "I won't make you dance, and I know what it's like to feel alone. But living your life just trying not to get hurt is a self-fulfilling prophecy because you'll never stop feeling alone that way." Her advice wasn't asked for, so she'd leave it there. But the attitude that followed quickly started to grate on her nerves, "it was the expectations of him. That's where I got the idea. A sibling really doesn't owe you shit, they're your fellow peers under the burden of same parent or parents, good or bad. He stepped up where his dad dropped the ball, and I know he put more pressure on himself than he ever should have. Like I said, you're welcome to your hurt and anger, but what you don't have the right to do is make him feel worse. I'm sorry needs to be a full sentence, adding 'but' negates it." She took a breath, trying for help more than harm. "Some of those people are your friends too," she reminded, "you say it's just you and then you start talking about your sisters and Jesse and Seb. It's not just you. Abel needed to help the woman he loves, and I get you feel left and abandoned by that action. With the coven crumbling the way it did, he had to get her out of here. If there was a way they could have stayed and been assured her safety, I'm sure they would have chosen it." Her brows furrowed, she corrected, "it wasn't months, Oaklee, he was there for three years. Turning every single day because it was a perpetual full moon and the benefits of the unification ceremony didn't apply there. They stripped him of it, and then they left him there. He's going to have to deal with that trauma for the rest of his life, and he won't always make the right choices. He shouldn't have said you didn't suffer, and I'm sure he didn't mean that any more than you meant he's like your deadbeat of a father. No one is at their best tonight. I think that's important to remember. We've all been affected in one way or another by the OEA, and we're walking among them. Compassion is going to go a long way tonight and in the days to come. We need each other now more than ever, so are you ready to risk getting hurt for the chance that maybe unity is the way the OEA never wins? Humans became as powerful as they did because they united in hate, and I have never thought hate should win."

There’s a simple shrug to her words, forced half smile tugging at her lips as her gaze falls on Abel’s mom and she’s certain she’s not concealing her emotions all that well, could feel her mind spiraling and the untriggered wolf within her beckoning her to lose control. “I used to love to dance,” Oaklee admits. “At the Crescent parties when Abey and I were younger, when dad was still around and my mom was- I used to dance but I guess it lost its appeal when everyone I loved dancing with left me. Guess being alone is just my preference now a days, less likely to get attached, less likely to get hurt.” Brows furrowed slightly, gaze tearing away from the she-wolf as she shook her head. “I don’t expect him to be my dad, if I wanted a dad I’d go out searching for the deadbeat one that abandoned us. I really don’t know where you or him are getting this idea that I’ve ever expected him to be anything more than my big brother from. He puts those expectations on himself, he thinks that I need him to protect me from dad and the world. That’s on him, not on me. I never asked for that, he was gonna every day last year. We asked him for two days, two days out of three hundred and sixty five. I think we have every right to be upset. I’m sorry that I compared him to our dad but it sure does feel like I’ve just been left behind. He’s got Marni, you, Briggs, Billie, Lucas, all of those Scooby gang kids and all I’ve got-” her words trail off for a moment as she’s tugging her lower lip between her teeth, chewing at the skin to hide the wobble that threatened, tears stinging at dark irises. “All I’ve got is me. It’s just me and my sisters and Jesse. Sure I’ve got Seb too but he was gone too. They aren’t my big brother though. I spent months worrying about him while he was in the prison world, I could barely eat or sleep not knowing if he was okay, if he was even alive. Then he tries to say that I’ve never suffered, that I couldn’t possibly get it because my life has been so easy, it’s been nothing but rainbows and unicorns. Sorry but no, he can do whatever he wants but he doesn’t get to put his daddy issues on me, I’ve got enough of my own, and he sure as hell doesn’t get to make my struggles any less than his.”

[shadcwcursed]

Making a few circles around the room, Rebekah's mood soured by the second. Where were they? "They have run off with my flowers, Maeve," Rebekah announced as she spotted her darling girl and came to her side, "is nothing sacred in this bloody city? I had lovely flowers brought in because I know Billie likes them, and poof. Someone's run off with them. I would say it's the same people who've absconded with the bourbon, but I suspect the wolves there, and they certainly didn't take flower arrangements." A huff left her lips, she asked, softer now, "are the sweets satisfactory?"

𖤣.𖥧.⚘ ― maeve o'hara / open event starter / @exitiumstarters

after making a few rounds, her plans to be a wallflower for the rest night was going quite well. standing back and soaking in everyone and everything until it was time to silently make her exit. there were two people she had yet to see, her lovely daughters-- she could not wait to see what beautiful ensemble they'd dressed themselves in; she told herself once she spent some time with them and with rebekah she'd call the night be a success. "oh, yes please." the vampire gushed in a soft sing song voice to the waiter, her eyes scanning the tray of assorted confectionery, dipping a finger in one of the frosted items to get a taste.