#;;;this is basically like the setup

[pantoneverland]

“IT” HAS FANGS

pairings: none, currently word count: 5k warnings: swearing, angst? ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/40269141

about: the third part of a multi-chaptered fixit for stranger things- with vampires. eddie POV mainly. 

CHAPTER THREE; Sympathy For The Devil

The car trip back is…

Eddie sits in the back of Steve’s car. Sheriff Hopper, a man who he only knows because of the neighbors’ noise complaints when practicing with his band– he was assumed dead, too, wasn’t he– is driving the car. Steve is sitting next to him but he doesn’t dare to look at him. An axe sitting in his lap, a bag full of other weapons on the floor… It's intimidating. To have that directed at him instead of… His eyes drop.

His hands are tied together with the bandana that he dropped down from his face to greet them. It’s a little tight but he’s not thinking about that as much when he watches his nails. They’re sharper than they were before. Fingertips turning black. He sticks them back under his palms and tries not to make a sound as he turns to look out the window. Nobody speaks the whole way.

…awkward, to say the least.

- - -

Before he knows it, they’re somewhere he doesn’t recognize. The car stops and he jumps. He had started to zone out, the buzzing in his head got too loud– it felt like static. When he raises a hand to set against his ear– muffle the sound, his other hand rises and just like that he remembers his hands are tied. He drops them immediately. 

The driver’s side door opens as the sheriff exits the car, walking over to greet the pizza van that pulls up besides them. But Eddie feels eyes on him when he looks over. So, he looks away to the floor. He hears a racing heartbeat. At first, he assumes it’s his own but it moves away from him. Grows quieter. Steve is exiting the car.

Why can I hear Steve’s heartbeat? Whhhhyyy– His thoughts are interrupted when the car door to his side opens on its own. He jolts back away from it, hands held up to his chest. Breathing quick but gulping it down. At least, that snapped him out of the panic attack he was starting. 

Steve stares at him. And, for a split second, the expression on his face is like what he’d give him before. A look of confusion and vague disappointment. The look a friend would give for his antics. Then it’s gone. His eyes are on his new set of claws.

“Shit–” Words out of Steve’s mouth. He shuts the car door and turns away, moving quickly. Eddie stares at his retreating back then looks to his hands. Why would he have that reaction? “We need a better way to hold him, he’s trying to cut himself free with his nails.” He hears in the distance.

‘Cut himself free’? Eddie drops his hands in mock or genuine frustration. He hasn’t tried to get away from them once! The nails… happened on their own. Still don’t know… exactly.. uh.. why, but it wasn’t his idea. Not like they’ll believe him though.

A part of his mind is still reeling over the fact that everyone else is… well, alive. At least it seems like it for the most part. For a while there, he thought he was the only one. Sure, it’s strange how they’re acting. Fangs? Claws? New. Very strange. But he’s still… himself?

He tries to poke the fangs on the inside of his mouth with his tongue to figure out what Steve was talking about there but it’s just like his canines are a little sharper than usual. He wouldn’t have noticed it if someone didn’t point it out 

Is this like… a werewolf transformation happening? I mean, it would make much more sense then why everyone’s freaking out and trying to restrain him. He wouldn’t want to get all Teen Wolf, the violent sequel, on them. Or have that much hair on his body.

But it doesn’t make any sense. He didn’t feel weird in the Upside Down. Didn’t see claws or fangs. Then again, he never looked in a mirror while down there. The claws could be a fear response like, uh, cats! Cats when they’re very agitated. Yeah— Oh, god. He might not be human anymore. It’s like the bats gave him some weird version of rabies that manifests as lycanthropy. Is that what the vines were treating him for?

There’s a knock on the window. The sheriff. He looks angry. Or annoyed. He holds up a pair of metal handcuffs and points down with his other hand. It’s… confusing. Eddie looks down at his bandana tied hands as if he’s supposed to untie them himself before the exchange. But then the sheriff knocks again. Why doesn’t he just open the door? The sheriff points down again, angrier. So, he looks down at the door.

It locked itself. Holy shit, it locked itself.

In a panic, Eddie fumbles to unlock the door and then darts his hands back the moment he does. The door swings open and now he can better see who is around. His eyes dart to them all but they look at him like he’s a stranger. He is a stranger to some of them. It’s overwhelming. He holds his hands up to his head.

“I’m– so sorry, I don’t know how that happened–” “Stop. Give me your hands.”

Without a further word, Eddie holds his hands out. There’s silence as the sheriff unties the bandana. There’s a lot of talking. Whispering. He’s tense. Foot tapping anxiously on the floor of the car. One of the metal handcuffs clasp onto his wrist. Not as tight as he was expecting but the coldness of it makes him jerk.

The sheriff gives him this strange look. Then the man sighs and backs away. Eddie watches with curiosity. Maybe a little bit of hope. “Kid, I’m gonna need you to stand and face the car.” It’s a lighter tone than before but indicates he’s still being locked up. Which isn’t ideal but… his friends are here.

So, Eddie just nods quietly and moves to stand. This gives him an opportunity to try and figure out where they are. But seeing as it's a destroyed cabin surrounded by woods, it could literally be anywhere in Hawkins. At least it’s not the station. He’s not being arrested… yet. He decides not to look at anyone, just in case. Even as he feels the eyes on him. He turns to face the car with his head low and hands crossed behind his back.

There’s a pause, like he wasn’t expecting compliance. Then he feels the click of the other handcuff connecting on his other wrist. He feels a hand on the cent of his back and another on the connecting point of the cuffs. Ah, the police walk. A classic. He steps back following a small tug on the cuffs. This would be his cool ‘rocker got arrested for partying too hard’ moment– if not for the fact that he can now see the faces of his friends again. He freezes up for only a second, then he drops his head and his eyes. He just walks.

It’s an uncomfortable silence. His footsteps, the sound of the chains on his belt and now wrists. Woodland creatures? He hears movement in the forest and it’s bugging him. The ringing is there– I guess it’s not silent, actually. It’s just that nobody is speaking. There are steps leading to a door. A messy looking home but that’s probably because of the damage. He’s walked over to a side door as he looks around.

Hopper lets go of him when they enter the room. It seems like it’s just a bathroom. No windows. One door. He takes a few steps more in and turns to the door. “Stay here. If I see the doorknob turn even an inch, I’m shooting it. Am I clear?” Stress returns full force. He takes a step further into the room and hits his back against the sink on accident.

“Aye, aye, captain.” It’s a nervous joke. Totally not intentional but sometimes he can’t stop his mouth from moving before his mind has time to process anything. It seems to be enough for Hopper, who nods and shuts the door solid.

And now he’s alone.

All at once, it hits him like a sack of bricks. He sinks to the floor and sucks in a breath so he doesn’t start crying. It’s not easy to hold back tears without hands to rub away the feeling. So, he just digs his nails into the palms of his head and knocks his head back against the drawers of the sink. Keeps his head up there. What now? What happens now? 

“Listen to yourself–... There’s no way to know if that thing in there is Eddie or Vecna!” Parts of an argument. He hears them through the door but they still sound far. Vecna? He’s not Vecna. He knows Vecna is dead. How does he know that? If he focuses enough, he can tell how many people are in the room. Hear the number of heartbeats. It’s not something he likes to hear but it’s useful for this purpose.

“...” “This has happened before, remember…– Billy– possessed … still in there.” The ringing is loud. It’s making his head hurt but he needs to listen. He needs to know. And this seems like the only way he’s getting answers right about now. It’s the only way—

“Munson died! This is completely different and you know it.”

A sharp breath. Eddie's eyes shoot open. He didn’t even realize he had shut them. That… that can’t be true, right? He’s living. He’s breathing…– he has no heartbeat. All this time, he’s heard other people’s heartbeats… he’s never heard his own. Back from the dead… he’s no werewolf. Slowly he pulls himself back to his feet enough to turn around and look in the mirror.

Red eyes stare back. The faint glow underneath the surface seems to shine brighter at the acknowledgement they exist. He opens his mouth and stares at his teeth. Watching the way the sharpened canines extend, and immediately retract just when it starts to freak him out. He’s pale. Paler than usual and there’s these cracking lines of black spreading onto his cheeks from beneath his hair. Tilting his head against his shoulder, he gets some of his hair out of the way enough to see it’s coming from his ears which now are more pointed with blackened tips.

If this was a fantasy world, he would think this is sick. But this is reality. And he’s not an elf. When he sets his head back straight, he jerks his head to the side so it covers back up again. This is worse than dying outright. They may have defeated the puppet master. But now he’s the puppet.

- - -

Eddie stopped eavesdropping on their conversation a while ago. Instead, he’s opted to sit in a nice, comfortable, dark corner and stay far away from the door. No wonder they’ve been so cautious about him. He could be feeding everything he sees and hears directly to the Upside Down. Things might have seemed more peaceful down there but now he believes that’s only because they saw him as one of them. One of them… he doesn’t like that thought. He doesn’t like any of this.

The doorknob twists. He shoots up in his sitting position, legs pulling closer to his chest as he stares over them with wild eyes. Like a feral animal. Peering in is someone he’s never met before. A girl with a shaved head. She watches him for a moment, head cocking to the side. Then she points at his hip. 

“Where’d you get that?” He looks down and sees the hand. Weird, fruit hand. The thing he plucked out of the ground and then strapped to his hip like it was nothing. Right… He’s not sure how long he’s been sitting here in silence but his voice is a bit rough when it comes out. 

“There were, uh… ashes. On the ground. Like a human. And I stuck my hand through it…– like it was an illusion. It was solid the next time I tried. I don’t… know why..” He trails off and looks away from it. She is still staring at him but now she moves more into the room, shutting the door behind her. 

“..do.. you want it–” “That’s Vecna’s hand.”

The girl speaks it so matter of fact that he does a double take. His eyes, wide, shoot down to the hand on his hip. It’s flesh vined texture and red hue. He never saw Vecna himself. Sure, he had his suspicions about the hand but verbal confirmation just makes it more uncomfortably real for him. He almost tries to move away from it despite the fact it’s literally attached to his hip.

“Awesome–” He says it sarcastically but the girl looks at him with furrowed brows. In an instant, he feels this unnecessary need to explain himself. “I mean, not awesome. I don’t… like this. Actually. This is almost the worst day of my career. It’s not the worst day but it’s up—”

“Why can’t I enter your mind?” Eddie stops speaking. He was looking at the wall but now his eyes slowly turn onto her. Enter his mind?? Then in that moment he remembers the talk he got the moment he was found hiding in that boatshack. A girl with magical powers. But he doesn’t have an answer for her. He doesn’t understand why she can’t ‘enter his mind’. No idea why she wants to do that. No idea what is going on.

“Uh.. I’m… not sure? Whhhy are you trying to enter my mind? Is this… like a lie detector thing? Like you– ‘enter my mind’ to read my thoughts and see if that gives anything away about what I’m saying?” He is still very freaked out about this whole situation but that idea is just too cool not to rant about.

Magic girl does not respond. So, he just nods and drops his head. “Gotcha.. gotcha. I’m a prisoner here. I don’t ask questions...” He mutters under his breath bitterly as his situation hits him again. It’s mostly directed at himself. Y’know like a reminder. 

Shoes creak as the girl crouches to eye level. He only stares at her over his knees but she only does the same back. Then after a few moments she nods. She stands up straight and he follows her with his eyes until she’s out of the door. It’s like only then he can breathe. Not many questions but it seems he’s already incriminated himself somehow…

So, for a second time… He follows the ringing until it lets him hear what they’re saying outside. It works quicker now that he’s done it a few times by accident. Realized that he focused on the ringing when he started to panic and that’s when he’d hear more. Not a great super power, if you ask me.

“...Vecna’s hand. That is what I am sensing… but his mind is–.. like a cage. I can’t bring him back—” There it is again! They think he’s possessed or something. He’s been himself this entire time! He groans in frustration and kicks against the wall across from him.

This shuts off conversation on the other side immediately. And he notices that with a heart sinking feeling. He scrambles his legs back to his chest and holds his breath. Shit, shit, shit, shit.

“Let me talk to him.” SHIT.

No, no, no, no... It’s Steve’s voice.

It’s not that he doesn’t want to see him. Nothing like that. It’s just that every step of the way so far, he has been the most vocal about not trusting this. And he doesn’t know if he could handle Steve staring at him like he’s the enemy. Waiting for a moment of aggression to lash out at like some point has been proven. He’s seen that enough in his life from people. It would hurt coming from someone he started to trust.

Footsteps. That’s the first thing his ears tune back to. He scrambles back and up to his feet using the wall behind him for support. Listening closely, the steady beat of a heart rate that slowly starts to speed up at the doorknob is twisted.

The door opens…

And it’s Dustin.

Eddie stares with wide eyes, his breath stuttering. Tears, forming in his eyes at the memory of the last conversation they had together. He has a limp. Probably because he did something stupid to get back to him when he did something stupid. But here they both stand. On the other side of it. With the signs of this battle obvious on their forms.

There are protests in the larger room but Dustin shuts the door. Muffles it. Dustin looks at him with tears in his eyes that he holds back. His face is angry. Hurt. But mostly hopeful. People try to turn the knob but Dustin locks it. Holds his back against the door. When he speaks, he speaks loud and confidently despite the shake in his voice from crying.

“Are you Eddie?”  The exact question he was looking for. Someone to ask him if he's him so he could say it. His eyes shoot to the door as people on the other side pound on it. But Dustin snaps his attention back by hitting the door himself. “Are you Eddie?!”

“Yes–!” Eddie shouts out the word desperately. He sucks in a breath as some tears manage to escape his eyes. “Yes, I’m Eddie but… it’s not safe. I don’t want to hurt you or– anyone here! I.. I don’t know what ha..happened to me but it’s not safe. You need to go back out there…” He braces himself for his next words by holding himself up against the corners of the walls behind him. “...and lock me in here.”

They look at each other for a long moment. Tears free-falling. Dustin’s expression is still angry but in a way that shows how deeply sad he is. The way he stands shows that he wants to get closer. To hug him. To check his injuries or somehow prove to himself that he’s alive and not some ghost standing before him. But he holds himself back. Then he nods with his head low, unlocks the door, and darts back out.

Eddie is alone once more. A hole in the ceiling was his one source of light but it’s growing dim as the day goes on. Soon, he’ll be completely in the dark. In the back of his mind, he realizes this is the first time he’s seen the actual passing of time since going to the Upside Down. So, he watches it. He sits back down on the ground as conversation goes from loud to hushed outside.

- - -

Eventually, it just goes completely quiet. Cars starting up, rolling over uneven dirt and rocks. Then, a while later, returning. Nobody disturbs him during that time. It’s the middle of the night. And he knows that most of the people in the house or in the cars outside are asleep. All except for one. Someone has been pacing the room for a couple minutes. The footsteps come to a halt and then start moving to the door.

Oh, great. Company. Eddie thinks begrudgingly as he lifts his head off his knees. His eyes were shut and he was zoning out before. It’s the closest thing he can get to rest. Imagining scenarios for campaigns. He was thinking about a vampire castle under siege. There has to be some… vampire storyline he could do for a session out there somewhere. Though if modern media has anything to say about it, they would be very easily defeated by sunlight or wooden stakes. It’s weird to be the first real world example of them now.

The doorknob turns, breaking him from his thoughts. He sets his head back on his knees and waits. Waits for it to open enough to see who it is. The first thing he sees is a lantern. It takes a second for his eyes to adjust around it but, soon enough, he does see… “Steve.”

He didn’t mean to say it out loud. Even Steve seems a bit startled at the acknowledgment. He shuffles uncomfortably and glances behind him. Like he considers turning around and leaving. The thought makes Eddie’s heart sink. Is it… that bad? But Steve still enters the room quietly and slides to the floor with his back against the door.

Why is he staying? What is going on? Eddie watches him cautiously. Steve doesn’t do anything. He just sets the lantern down by his side. Checks the candle before setting his head back against the door. He stares at the ceiling and Eddie stares at him. He looks… tired.

“I guess you don’t… sleep, huh?”

It’s not the question he expected. It makes sense though. Eddie taps his shoes on the ground a bit and then shrugs. “Sometimes I think I get close to it— like it’s so close but… sooo far.” An honest answer. Steve looks over at him. He smiles and Eddie almost chokes on air.

“Must be nice. I feel like I’d be more productive if I never slept, y’know. More hours in the day. I could learn how to sew. Not saying I want to learn how to sew but, the fact is, I could.” 

Eddie can’t help the laugh that escapes his mouth. He ducks his head against his knees to muffle the sound because he knows people are sleeping outside. After a second of consideration, he taps Steve’s shoe with his.

“Woow, honestly, I can see it now— Steve ‘the Hair’ Harrington, expert sewing star of Hawkins. Those granny knitting circles would have nothing on you, I’m telling ya. You’d run them out of business with your charming presence alone.”

Steve chuckles softly and kicks Eddie’s foot away. He gives him a look like ‘how do you come up with this stuff’ as he shakes his head. 

But then his eyes go a bit distant and he looks to the lantern at his side. Eddie doesn’t know where the switch comes from. He just lets it sit there in the air and shifts his hands behind him to rub at his wrists nervously.

“I…–” Eddie looks up when Steve starts to speak again. Steve’s not looking at him, he’s looking at his hands. “I wanted to… apologize. If I– if what I said, in the Upside Down..—”

What he said in the Upside Down? Steve glances up and, for a second, he wonders if Steve can read his mind. That would be terrifying. That man should not know every weird thought he filters out in their conversations. Maybe that’s why he always gives him weird looks… Eddie, focus! This is serious. Serious time.

“I didn’t– mean to imply… that you aren’t a hero or can’t be one. And, if that’s what… caused you to–... I just want you to know that I never wanted that to happen–” “Hang on–”

Steve stops. His brows are furrowed and he looks to Eddie for the first time since he started this apology. Eddie’s eyes are shut as he processes the words that were just spoken to him. His own brows furrowed and his head cocked to the side. He takes in a breath and sighs.

“Steve… I didn’t.. run in there on some– need to prove something to you. Have… you thought that this whole time?” His words are filled with concern. 

Steve… doesn’t say anything. But the way his eyes search between his makes it obvious.

There’s a fear there. About and around Eddie. Just for a moment. Because he wants to get closer to show that he doesn’t hold anything against Steve but doesn’t want to put him in danger with the way he is now. Vampires. Blood. Bad things happen. But he almost goes ‘screw it’ in his mind when he finally picks himself up to sit on the same side of the wall as Steve. Still keeping his distance but now he can lean to bump shoulders with him if he wants. Progress.

“I… chose to stay behind then. To prove something to myself. Not to anyone else. And… I don’t know– maybe that’s selfish but I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself if I thought I had… abandoned someone when they needed me. We had no way of knowing if you all were… done there. If Vecna was dead. If you were in danger. So, it was a risk… but for a couple more minutes… I hope? It was worth it but I know that I don’t regret anything about it.”

Steve watched him the entire time he spoke. As if trying to find somewhere he was lying. Somewhere that proves his guilt is well-founded. That proves that he’s actually the person responsible. But he doesn’t see that on Eddie’s face. Eddie’s expression is vulnerable, melancholy but also, somehow, happy.

Steve decides something at that moment.

Steve sets his hand on Eddie’s shoulder. Eddie almost gets whiplash looking over because it’s like he forgot they were close enough to do that. His eyes trail the scars on his arm up to his face just so he can avoid turning his red eyes on his for a second longer. Who knows how terrifying that looks in the dark. Glowing red eyes. He must be terrifying.

“–we’re going to fix this.”

The words surprise him. His brows furrow as he looks at Steve, shaking his head like he doesn’t understand. No words find him. At least none to speak out loud. There’s nothing to fix. It’s beyond fixing. His leg bounces anxiously and Steve glances to the action for a second before removing his hand. 

“We’re going to find Vecna and kill him. For good, this time… and, hopefully, that will turn you back to normal.” Steve continues to say.

It doesn’t make sense. It’s just… that can’t be right. If he died down there, wouldn’t killing Vecna also kill him. By the rules of D&D necromancy, if that is even what this can be considered. If that’s what has to be done, then– of course– he is willing to sacrifice himself to save the world. It would be pretty fucking cool as well but…—

“We don’t know if he can… control you yet or if he’s just able to see everything you see– so, you’ll have to stay locked somewhere while we plan and try to find him but, I promise, if there’s a way to fix this all– we will find it.”

“Yeah, yeah, and I appreciate that, buddy, but uhh…”

Steve looks at him. And, honestly, that puts… a lot of pressure on what he’s about to say. So, Eddie looks away for a second making a non-committal sound. A crack in the wood becomes more interesting to look at, but ultimately he needs to say this. He looks back at Steve.

“...Vecna is.. dead. 100%. I can’t… explain why I know this but I just… do. Whatever is… guiding me right now–... it’s not him.”

It’s the feeling he’s had ever since he woke up. There’s been no clock bells, no ominous voices in his head this entire time. He’s never felt some looming danger over his shoulder or sensed anything that… gave any indication that it was Vecna. It’s like every instinct in his core is telling him it’s not him and has been for a long while. But, what is going on, he has no clue. He just knows something has been… leading him. Somewhere. This whole time.

Steve lets out a ‘huh’ quietly. He looks shocked but also a little fascinated. There’s some amount of disbelief in his expression but he shakes his head and rubs tiredness out of his eyes. “Okay, okay, okay…” He speaks under his breath before turning his eyes directly back to Eddie.

“You're sure about this?” “Dead serious.. I’m sorry if this– ruins? Any of your potential plans...”

Then Steve stands up and starts pacing. Again. Eddie just watches him go back and forth from the floor. At some point, he has to pull his legs up and out of the way because Steve nearly trips over them. It’s like he’s not fully paying attention to his surroundings. How late is it? He should get some sleep… 

When Steve stops and pivots to look down at Eddie, it’s startling. He might be sleep deprived but, man, he moves quick.

“Nothing is ruined. We’ll figure this out.” Steve says the words with full seriousness. Punctuating his words with hand movements. There… is no plan, is there? That checks out. He shakes his head and looks up at Steve with a small nod.

“Cool.. okay… that’s fine, Steve–” He says it gently and slowly. The man before him seems… almost stressed out of his mind. They really tackle a lot on a daily basis. Is there seriously no organization that can handle this better than a couple of high schoolers and graduates? Wow, he started this day being the one stressed out of his mind and now here he is comforting the man who held an axe to his throat.

Eddie turns his eyes directly on Steve’s. It’s hard to see his eyes perfectly in this lighting but he knows Steve can see his eyes. How could he not? There’s a ringing in his mind again. It had been quiet the whole conversation but, suddenly, it makes itself known again. It doesn’t stump him. He continues on.

“You should go to sleep.” And he means it. He might not be able to get to sleep himself anymore but it’s still important for people. They can discuss this all more in the morning when well-rested brains have better ideas. It’s a simple request made out of concern for Steve’s well-being.

- - -

So… why do Steve’s eyes flash red…?

- - -

“I should go to sleep..” Steve mutters back absently. Eddie scrambles back– starting to panic– while Steve just moves to the door and leaves without taking the lantern. The door shuts and he hears Steve walk to the couch and… fall asleep. Exactly as he asked him to.

When Eddie looks down at the glass of the lantern, he sees his own reflection staring back at him. Bright red eyes glowing more than before, fangs fully visible as he breathes raggedly. The candle fizzles out and he pushes himself back to the corner away from it.

What… the fuck was THAT?

[Ch 1. Ch 2. / Thank you for reading!]

[coolnonsenseworld]

Keith looks cute but comes to pick Lance up from soccer practice, because after his first semester in the same team, the amount of red cards he received re-directed him to kick boxing.

[lookingforcactus]

Maybe this is a stretch driven by my hope for siuaraine, but I wonder if the final scene between Suian and Moiraine went the way it did because Suian thinks Moiraine might have turned to the dark

"You lied to me about being stilled."

My eyebrows shot up when I heard that line, bc that's a big deal accusation for an Aes Sedai. And parallels nicely with Alanna and co. accusing Lan of being a darkfriend last episode

Which I know some people hated, but the thing is, Lan and Moiraine have kind of been acting super sketchy, if you don't know the things we know

Like, from Siuan's pov: Lan shows up and tells her Moiraine has been stilled, which in MONTHS of letters, Moiraine never mentioned. Siuan is horrified that happened, has got to be terrified that Moiraine is going to kill herself, and is also lost and hurt and baffled that Moiraine would hide this from her

Like, that omission was a HUGE DEAL, relationship wise. Not a good move keeping something that important from your wife, especially when they were plotting together and it would be 100% reasonable and probably also a good move for Moiraine to turn to Siuan for help

And going back to Siuan's pov, she's dealing with ALL THAT, plus the Dragon, which is another thing she and Moiraine (seem to be?) at odds about

There's darkfriends in the Tower

Moiraine has been hiding something from her

Moiraine has been stilled

The town they're in is assaulted and set on fire

Someone has broken the Dragon out of the White Tower's custody

And when Siuan goes to try to, presumably, get him back, what happens?

She turns the corner and finds Moiraine, Lan, and Rand standing there, alone, in front of a waygate that MOIRAINE JUST OPENED

And I'm sure that normally, this wouldn't make Siuan worry about Moiraine's loyalties, but...she just found out the love of her life was stilled and then spent six months completely failing to tell her about it

Who wouldn't be shaken? Who wouldn't already be asking "If she hid something as big as THIS from me, what else could she be hiding?"

And then she shows up and Moiraine has just used the One Power to open a waygate

Earlier in the episode, when she finds out Moiraine has been stilled (well, close enough), what she says is something like "Six months of letters, and not a single word about that." The very common Aes Sedai route of lying by omission

When she shows up at the Waygate, she says "You lied to me about being stilled."

Siuan thinks Moiraine was able to break one of the oaths. Which Moiraine could only do if she'd sworn herself to the Dark.

And as Lan establishes, the idea of tying off a weave and leaving it in place is so not a thing anymore, it's barely even the stuff of legends. Why would Siuan think that's on the list of possibilities? Especially in such an overwhelming and emotionally fraught and literally things are on fire moment?

And all Moiraine says in response (in her defense there are a lot of things going on) is "I can't"

Which, yeah, Siuan knows that is (supposed to be) the case

And THEN, fucking Lanfear shows up, gets pretty easily talked into not killing Moiraine by Rand, and then Moiraine and Lan follow Lanfear and Rand through the waygate without a word

I think it would be 100% reasonable, actually, for Siuan to suspect that Moiraine is a darkfriend after all of that, and given what she knows

So much of Moiraine's life has been out of Siuan's view, for like 20 years now. So much could've happened

And now Moiraine is using the One Power even after she told everyone that she was stilled

Kind of a guilty look actually!!!

(If this is what they're doing though they definitely should've been more clear/explicit/developed with the setup, tho. But otherwise I think it's really interesting as a potential plot point!)

[m1ckeyb3rry]

me rn because all of the tik tok bllk fans hate nagi

[ranticore]

alright NOW u get pern story

[transingthoseformers]

Trans F-NB D-16/Megatron thoughts

Insert bayverse "call megatron the first enby" joke here

[worstloki]

not a fan of people saying Odin and Loki are similar in a moral or decisive sense, particularly when it comes to Thor. that makes it sound like Loki doesn't know Thor or care about him beyond what he symbolises (regarding Asgard/the throne/family/worthiness), when that's a defining part of their relationship

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

Walking In Two Worlds & The Everlasting Road

YA sff set in the near future where an opensource augmented reality is commonly used like social media, and there’s also a completely virtual fantasy game version

follows an Anishinaabe girl who who’s the top player in the VR game, and is constantly fighting to keep her place against the misogynist neo-nazi group in second place

as well as her real life, dealing with being a shy and self-conscious teen growing up on the Rez, and her brother having cancer

and a Uyghur boy who’s moved to her community from China after finding acceptance in an online community (even when he doesn’t agree with their more extreme views) - but when he gets to know Bugz, he has to decide who truly deserves his loyalty

great mix of sff and culture, the future while also very real community traumas of the past (and present)

[e-adlirez]

#Technoblade25

Heeyyyyy am I late to the party? I hope I'm not too late, been working on this thing for the occasion

hebe hebe HEBE amiinm'enbimikta HEBE AMIINM'ENBIMIKTA AMIINM'ENBIMIKTA HEBE HEBE HEBE AMIINM'ENBIMIKTA

Ne yhdeini sy caera, Tommy? Meku AMULVHT VID LIIN!

For the record, the ripple thingies are from Tsevhu, aka the funni koi fish language :D I've been studying the conlang lately

Anyway, the red Tsevhu is a translation of "you want to be a hero, Tommy? Then DIE like one!", while the pale red are the voices chanting "one of us" and the closest the Tsevhu Discord could approximate for "blood for the blood god" in a phrase (the actual thing translates something to like "start giving completely and involuntarily", which in Tsevhu is kinda like chanting for sacrifice, which is fun and very much chat :3)

("blood for the blood god" would've translated to a straight-up sentence that I'd have to frame in koiwrit, which I felt would be too cluttered, as much as clutteredness is very in-character for chat)

Anyway hope I'm not too late haha, happy 25th birthday, Techno.

[milimeters-morales]

i’m giving miles my anxiety when i was 13 and inconsistent with meds again. it’s incurable and she will be suffering because of simply smelling like perfume

[rawliverandgoronspice]

just being normal and having normal thoughts about the Child Timeline and Ganon in TP, and like..... is it physically possible to get more dunked on by the gods than this

The guy didn't get a chance to have his plan unfold because he was cosmically punished for stuff he mostly had yet to do because of ??? divine time travel???, lost the ensuing panic fight against the hylians, then finds himself executed in the conquered lands of his own people turned prison --and it's *only* when he is dying that he is granted the Triforce of Power, so he survives, is exiled/disembodied but with the acute knowledge that he's been chosen by the gods so surely he is meant to win??? or at least that his fight is somewhat legitimate??? So he cannibalizes the anger of those he perceives lesser (but share the exact same resentment for Hyrule than him emotional intelligence and self-reflection being at an all time low as always king), only to lose *again* and then have his Triforce being revoked as he is dying!!! a second time!!!!

...... just let him die the first time what the hell???? this is so incredibly mean to everyone involved????

[shortnotsweet]

mentally sketching a Lucemond sword fight only Luke has a reinforced harpoon n shield and he’s doing his lil stab stab motions while Aemond parries and it’s all like slice slice slice swoosh jab jab jab swoosh

[devotedlystrangewizard]

the school arc to me is so good because it drags ciel out of his position as a powerful figure and literally places him in the shoes of the person he could have been. the circus arc ALSO drags him out of his position as big bad queens watch dog/head of the phantomhive estate but the school arc feels like a mockery of a future that never was. this is what he could have been had his parents not died. and even then its NOT because he will never be that kid.

he never was.

[mini-uzzy]

.

[ticklystuff]

HI FRIENDS IVE WORKED 12 HOURS EVERYDAY THIS WEEK I HOPE I CAN LEAVE BY 5 TODAY big doubt lol PLS HOPE WITH ME :)))

[theanomily]

A concept I haven't seen enough of is Raven + physical comfort.

Like, in fanfics it's damn near always verbal (and yes that does make complete sense with her character; there is not a single universe in which she's all touchy-feely, especially not with anyone besides who she's close to).

However. I raise the point that we have, to my admittedly faulty recollection, never seen this demonstrated in the books. But something we have seen? Hugs.

After Anastasia's "death" while the Glasshouse is burning, we see Max give her a hug. It's stated it's the first one she's ever had, and it's an emotionally vulnerable teenage Raven we're talking about, so if she were at all opposed to it, he definitely would have gotten a black eye. She not only doesn't hurt him or pull herself away, but she allows herself to cry openly in his embrace, which is the exact opposite reaction than she'd give if she were uncomfortable. Basically, all I'm saying here is that she doesn't hate being hugged by someone she trusts, as a bare minimum.

But, lucky me, there's another example.

After she's been freed from the Animus, what's the first thing Max does? Hug her. By this point, there's been almost 14ish years between the incidents, so if Raven were merely tolerating being held/not outright despising it, he would have known. And he would likely have taken another course of action. But he doesn't. He knows, at least in that setup of Raven breaking down in tears, that it's the most effective thing to do.

Tl;dr- Raven likes hugs, and I want to see it. Because that girl needs a hug.