#WHY HAVE WE FORGOTTEN FAITH. WHY HAVE WE FORGOTTEN THE COVEN.

[claudeleine]

If lestat is a fictional character then why cant people talk about how he got to dropping louis from sky or to hurting claudia? I find it weirder that he is fictional yet if you want to talk about his existence and the plot and everything that build him up people get upset about it. Or if you think that being abusive isnt lestat's main defining quality like that's weird every other character allowed the grace of being complex but not lestat because if he is complex it takes away from the abuse louis and claudia suffered? Make it make sense

i mean i wouldn't say that every other character is given the grace of being complex except for lestat. i think it's largely the opposite - both within fandom and in-universe. for example: during the trial, lestat clarifies how claudia's turning really went down but also fully admits to hurting louis, and we saw tons of ppl whose main takeaway is that louis is untrustworthy and lestat is a victim. even within the actual scene, that's exactly how it's going down - the audience and the coven paints lestat as a victim and claudia/louis as the perpetrators.

i think where we start to run into issues, in my opinion, is ppl not wanting to really acknowledge lestat's negative behaviors/traits or trying to explain it away to diminish how bad it really was. it's one thing to be like character a did this bc of x, y, and z - so you can just...understand the character and their own internal logic and environmental factors, etc etc etc. and it's another to try to say that character didn't do that thing, or that it's not actually that bad bc there's a reason why it happened. like that's just..lazy and annoying. the latter is what i was referring to. i'm specifically talking about ppl who are also taking away lestat's complexity by diminishing the negative sides of his character.

and i do agree that some ppl can jump the gun and when ppl are just idk doing character/plot analysis, there can be a lot of assumptions made in bad faith that you're excusing or diminishing the behavior rather than just exploring how the character got from point a to point b. but there are a lot of ppl who are also just explaining it all away and effectively both defanging characters like lestat.

there's also a point to be made regarding ppl using language or rationale that's used to justify abuse irl which shouldn't be forgotten too, but that's maybe a whole extra essay. and there's also the aspect of how racism and specifically anti-blackness play a role. and how poc - especially black fans - have to see white fans fawn over lestat despite his extreme acts of violence against black characters. i don't think you can be all that upset that some ppl are going to be less interested in giving lestat a lot of grace.

but to summarize, generally speaking, i think lestat is really given the most grace to be complex but his own fans (and honestly anne rice herself lol) do his character a disservice by defanging him and writing off a whole part of who he is. and that's what i was getting at.

[alienisticxo]

Before the Fever - Chapter Nine

{Master Chief x Reader series - TV based}

{A╱N} we’re getting into the thick of it now :’) Chapter 10 is already almost done too! i'm constantly writing- now that were getting to the burn part it’s just exuding from my pores and onto the virtual page. can you believe i've been writing all of this on my phone?! 

i hope you guys are enjoying it. ♡

thank you so much for hanging in and reading as always!

{gif by michaelmercer} 

enjoy ♡ 

Chapter Nine - Fighting the Same Battle

She trusted me.  

Now that was something I never thought I’d hear her say.  

I tried to make sense of the sentiment, to calm the way I felt when she said it. In a matter of minutes she’d gone from enemy to friendly. There was a sense of relief in that.  

What a new mix of sensation it offered.  

I could only stare at the girl, completely lost for words. I knew being honest was always the correct path despite what the ONI and Halsey may have practiced, but being as blunt as Cortana had been with her seemed to do the trick to get her to understand.  

Why hadn’t I thought to be that way with her before? Well, it was classified then. It was different now. Cortana was right, we were fighting the same battle. Albeit for different reasons, yet somehow they were still similar. She wanted away from the UNSC and all the pain it seemed to have caused her. I…  

Wasn’t sure what I wanted...  

A little more thought brought it around. They caused me more trouble than I ever realized, and I wanted the truth. I wanted to know what this Keystone had to do with myself, my past. I wanted to know who cleared Halsey to do this to us to begin with and why she thought it would be a good idea to polish us into blank canvases to do the heavy lifting for her. I could never bring my parents back. But, I wanted to know who I was, who I could’ve been..  

If there was anyone other than a Spartan who could understand how that felt, I realized then, that it might’ve been {Y/N}.  

Anger surfaced when I thought about how Halsey was to blame for both of us. Remembering that I trusted her, had faith in her my entire life, felt like no one else could ever fill her shoes, only rubbed it in further.  

————

Both Cortana and John looked at me as though I’d just spoken Sangheili to them though I couldn’t exactly read either of their faces. Maybe it was a little insane to see the semblance we now shared; to suddenly voice that I trusted him despite all of the push-back I’d done.

Where it had perplexed me before, The Master Chief’s intense insistence on my revealing what I’d seen and heard on The Covenant ship to Doctor Halsey became clear. He was simply trying to piece together his own history. His own forgotten memories of a life he once had. And it wasn’t just that, but he was dealing with a plethora of feelings, too. How could I blame him for it? I’d dealt with emotion all my life. I was still unsure of it all.

“Where are we going?” I pressed further, though he nor Cortana responded to my last statement.

After a beat, John’s shoulders loosened, his line of sight drifting to another corner of the craft.

“Rubble.”

“What?” I immediately piped up.

“You’ll stay with someone I can trust once I’m gone.”

“No, you can’t send me back there, please. They’ll find me in no time, they’ll–” I cut myself short.

They’ll find Astra, too, I thought instead. Though there was no real reason to take her in, I was afraid they’d use her as a bargaining chip to get to me. I hadn’t given much thought to where I’d end up once all of this was over, but while it was still going strong, especially while we were wanted, I couldn’t go back there.

“It’s what’s best,” John finalized through what sounded like a quiet sigh.

I was too preoccupied with our next location to be concerned with whether or not he still found me annoying. I shook my head, nearly unable to stop as I stood from my own place on the floor, as though I’d be able to run away again.

“I won’t go back there. You can’t leave me there..”

I had no tears left to give, but I could feel my face burning hot with emotion.

“Perhaps.. Given the circumstances, it might not be too far-fetched to head in another direction,” Cortana suggested.

“I already sent Kai to Rubble with The Artifact,” John seemed to remind her, his tone stern.

Though it felt like news to me, I vaguely remembered hearing him tell Cortana about direction back on Reach. I was so dazed, so much in shock, that I hadn’t put two and two together. The Blessed One who belonged to The Covenant popped into my head once more. I could still feel her cold stare burning into my own retinas. My skin crawled. Did she know where to find us? Was our escape going to end up a trap if the Keystone was in either of our hands again?

“Trajectories are changeable,” Cortana started. “I’m sure once she arrives and notices you’re not there—“

“She’ll think I set her up for failure. I can’t do that to her.”

I tried to think of a way to help resolve the issue and still stay away from Rubble. It felt impossible, now dealing with a set of problems that I hadn’t had any experience in. Wrangling disobedient Spartans had to be a task in and of itself. It didn’t make it right, but it was no wonder Doctor Halsey felt the need to suppress them so harshly.

“Maybe.. we go to Rubble,” I began to compromise. “Just until The Keystone is secure. And then—“

“We change course with {Y/N},” Cortana finished for me. “An idea worth considering, when headquarters is more than likely pinpointing and pursuing various locations in the area already. If they manage to grab her, it’s your head on the chopping block later.”

But John looked unamused; more so than usual.

“And when Kai gets back to Reach? Without me there—“

“She’ll deal with the consequences. She’s a big girl, Chief. She can handle herself. She knows you’re not exactly the favorite at the moment, but she took the directive and ran with it without question. I, for one, believe in Kai. She exhibits similar traits as you do. I don’t think it’ll take her much work to avoid any unfavorable outcomes for her insubordination— Especially if Halsey needs her to keep quiet. Which she absolutely does.”

Cortana eyed John, but immediately spoke again. “I can tell what you’re thinking. Another missing Spartan wouldn’t look good for anyone. Doctor Halsey would be better off disappearing herself.”

The cogs were turning in his head, it was visible, but The Master Chief stayed adamant.

“We almost lost her on the field,” John responded, staring back at me instead. He seemed to peel his eyes away again to head back to the front of the ship. “She locked up, panicked. She nearly got herself killed at a critical moment. I can leave {Y/N} with Soren and Kwan. I’m sure they’ll figure it out from there until the heat dies down. Safely.”

I could only stare as the two countered one another. They both seemed to have their reasonings. But it almost hurt to hear that he was just going to dump me back on Rubble like.. nothing. Never to be seen again. I knew I had been the one coming around, my perspective of the Spartan shifting into something more favorable. It was probably silly of me to assume he’d been warming up to me, too. Clearly, it was.

“It was a learning experience,” Cortana began again. “Just look how Kai has handled since! You’re forgetting, if she’s already executed the objective, she’s steps ahead of the credit you’re currently giving her. Odds are she was already in hot water for not showing up with Riz and Vannak when you were in the process of escaping with {Y/N}, anyway. She’s a Spartan, Chief. She’s got more than what it takes.”

It felt nice to have someone on my side, fighting for what I wanted. Though I highly doubted Cortana was doing it for my sake, probably John’s more than anything, it was welcome all the same.

“Please, Master Chief..” was all I could silently utter, my voice lost in their conversation.

I couldn't explain the real reason that I tried to bury; that I didn’t feel safe without him near anymore, especially after the way he’d protected me so readily when we were being chased. Giving into emotion just a little more, it meant something to me. Where I’d often felt as though no one cared, he showed me otherwise just moments ago. And whether it was the hero complex I thought the soldiers maintained or not, I found myself uncaring of that aspect. His humanity continued to shine through with each little gesture. I couldn’t ignore that.

Even if he wanted to leave me back on Rubble. He did mention my safety..

————

When I looked into her eyes, it was almost unnerving, the pleading she was doing with me. Not because it made me uneasy, but because I didn’t know how to give her what she wanted with the best possible outcome.

After everything that happened, how could I deny her the one thing she asked for? I had no other place to take her, to leave her. Especially not one where I knew she’d be safe. I’d only known where previous missions had sent Silver Team. No planet was truly secure.  

I didn’t know why I cared that she’d be safe. I let Cortana’s words roll back around in my head.

‘Smitten.’  

Was that the instinct I felt? I felt compelled to make sure Kwan Ha was in good hands, but this? This was entirely different all the way around. There was no connection with Kwan, just making sure the right thing was done when they’d ordered Article 72 on an innocent person. My first real leap into the world of right and wrong.

But smitten… Smitten was extremely close to ‘love’ and other heavy emotions that seemed too daunting to take on and way beyond my scope. I silently hoped the feeling was controllable when I forced myself to look away from {Y/N} and head back to the cockpit.  

Still, I stopped in the entryway, turning to face her again. There was an odd pull toward her that was suddenly constantly eating at me. I pushed myself to ignore it.  

And for once in my entire life as an armored Spartan, I felt grotesquely monstrous in my Mjolnir— like the demon they all claimed me to be; intimidating when I didn’t intend it. The girl had been shaken enough. She deserved something softer, less imposing. These things we’d dealt with weren’t easy for anyone to handle. I could see the way she still faintly trembled, and our first encounter in the abandoned house on Rubble came to mind. It was surprising to see what she could withstand.

Maybe she would’ve made a decent marine after all.  

“We’ll go to Rubble,” I began, noticing the way her face immediately fell. “And then Eridanus II.”  

Her chest seemed to deflate with a sigh of relief, her eyes closing briefly. It was going to be hell for us both if they found us, but I just couldn’t disappoint her anymore in that regard. That was the only place remotely empty that I knew. I’d decide what to do with The Keystone once we’d settled.

“Cortana, do you have the coordinates to our last locale on Eridanus? My, last locale,” I corrected.  

“Of course,” she said, not missing a beat. “I’ll pull it up.”

Finding my way back into the seat, I let my body relax as much as I could without fighting it. My eyes were heavy, and while that was a rare occurrence, I was beginning to feel the effects of the day. Staring out into the vastness of space, I spoke as quietly as I possibly could when I noticed Cortana had sized herself back down and stood in the same spot on the panel she’d been before.  

“What is this that I’m feeling, really?” I asked.

A smirk placed itself on her features.  

“I’m serious, Cortana.”  

The A.I. dropped her act, holding her hands behind her back and pondering for only a few seconds.

“As I mentioned previously, it could have something to do with the connection you two share over the Keystone. Or…” She lifted her chin just so. “You’ve found some kind of kinship in her. She understands you, and you’ve lacked said familiar biological source for quite some time, if always. It’s possible that alone has your heart racing when you‘re around her. This seems to happen often in humans who are less experienced in the ways of human interaction. Teenagers are more susceptible, for instance, and it’s like what your species would call ‘puppy love,’ if you will. Given your status with the pellet being removed for the first time since adolescence, it’s not an unnatural response.”

“Stop,” I held my hand up. “L—,”

I shook my head, unable to finish the thought.  

“That’s not what this is. It has to be the Keystone.”  

“If you say so,” she muttered through her teeth, clearly unbelieving of my statement.  

I glanced behind my shoulder, noticing {Y/N} had curled herself back up into a ball as far down the ship as possible against the interior, her frame illuminated only by the starlight that poured in through the windows. The sight of her in that position kicked up a sensation of what I recognized to be empathy. It wasn’t as tolerable as I thought it would be.

The previously mentioned ‘hug’ surfaced back into my thoughts.  

“Devil's advocate,” I began again, still quiet, though I was sure {Y/N} couldn’t hear anything past our voices murmuring. “What if that is what I’m feeling?”

“Well, Chief, I’m afraid I can’t help you much in that department. I’m in your neural interface, but your emotions and decisions are your own. How you decide to act on that is entirely up to you. You’ve already tested my limits, remember?”

She cocked a brow.  

Always helpful, this one.  

“I don’t know how to act on it. I don’t.. Does she…”

“Feel the same way?” she questioned, leaning forward to get a better look at me before glancing in her direction, too.  

I stayed silent. I’d never felt so.. juvenile. Even as kids, this kind of subject matter was the furthest thing from our minds.  

“I can’t speak for her. But, the cues I’ve picked up on might insinuate that she isn’t opposed to your presence.”

“Isn’t opposed to my presence,” I snorted indignantly. “You’ve really got a way with words.”

“Oh, I’m the one ruining your idea of love?”  

A scowl placed itself on my features. The word just sounded like it would taste bitter on my own tongue. It wasn’t an idea I had at all. ‘ Love’ was for the marines who’d grown too close over too long of time away from home, fraternization cases waiting to happen. It meant busted ranks. Distractions on duty. It held no place in a Spartan’s world. The closest thing we had was our loyalty to each other— and even when we lost a brother or sister, it was business as usual.  

Until we opened our eyes, of course.

This girl and I, we had no real reason to be engaged in anything of the sort. It didn’t matter to me that this could be a symptom of being repressed for so long. As far as I understood, something that deep that people seemed to value so highly took time. Effort. Energy. All things that had never taken place between us. If I didn’t have an HUD and Cortana, I might not even know her full name. So why did I feel so drawn to her? How could this have happened the way it did? From one minute to the next… It frustrated me above anything else.  

But Cortana seemed to throw the idea around like it was normal. Just another cog in the machine. I didn’t care how much {Y/N} and I suddenly ‘understood’ each other; how beautiful I found her. How unfamiliarly gentle she was when she’d taken my hand into hers..  

I gritted my teeth, shut my eyes; tried to ignore my own thoughts as they escaped me so easily when it came to letting myself think of her.  

The A.I.’s brow furrowed.  

“Your levels….” she trailed off before inhaling and starting up again, more seriously than before. “Chief, I know you have little experience in this, and I’m currently incapable of experiencing emotion in the same way you do, but the only directive that seems right, is to follow whatever your heart and instinct is telling you to do. It seems.. And, correct me if I’m wrong— that you’ve already been allowing it to lead the way without even realizing it.”  

Cortana looked around, indicating our current situation.  

Giving it more thought, there was no correction needed.  

————

I opened and closed my palm, wiggling my fingers delicately as I thought of the way he looked when I took his hand. He looked confused, shocked, almost. I wasn’t sure how to take that, and the moment stuck with me more than I thought it would. While I was embarrassed at my own instinct at the time, I didn’t regret my action. If it offered him any sort of solace, any inkling of kindness, it was alright with me. He didn’t pull away from me, and the thought that maybe he felt similarly to the way I did crossed my mind.

John more than likely hated me at this point with all of the extra stress I caused him and countless others. But all I wanted to do was show him that not everyone was so untrustworthy as the people he dealt with; not everyone wanted to gain something from him, or use him up the way he’d been his entire life. He made me feel safe. It seemed silly, especially given his status— the galaxy’s own protector, but I wanted to do the same for him in any way that I could.

Something told me no one ever bothered to make him feel protected. I was sure it was something he never felt he needed, or even gave much thought to.

The wall I’d built simply because of my own jadedness with the world I knew, seemed to be near nonexistent now. He wasn’t happy that Cortana outed his new experience with life and all it entailed to me, but it made all the difference. It allowed me to rethink the way I felt, to reevaluate my own guarded nature with him.

It wasn’t his fault. I’d had no real experience with a Spartan, just what I’d heard, what I’d seen. How blind I suddenly felt about the entire ordeal.

And I’d had enough time to think about what was happening in the present, sitting curled up in the back of the craft. After a while, it occurred to me that I’d never actually expressed my gratitude for his help. While he’d taken me in to begin with, he was now risking everything to get me as far away as possible.

That also meant something. No one had ever tried to right any kind of wrong with me— whether he saw it that way or not.

Without a sound, I stood from my place and quietly moseyed over toward the cockpit. Remaining far enough away, I wanted to provide the two privacy in whatever conversation they were having. It was clear I didn’t need to be privy to it, and I respected that the best I could within the limited space.

“Master Chief?” I called out– though still quietly, provided the area. He immediately turned around to face me.

The movement was so quick, it almost startled me. It reminded me of someone who was waiting for something awful to happen at any given moment, hoping they’d be able to prevent it. I imagined that must've been how he lived his life, and that tugged at my heartstrings. Never being able to fully relax, never knowing what a moment of peace felt like. While I didn’t have it quite as bad, I knew how that could feel, too.

He stared at me without a word, his eyes intense, waiting.

“I never did get to say thank you,” I spoke softly, almost nervous, now. “For taking me out of there.. I’m not sure what Doctor Halsey was going to do with me after the tests were over, but I can’t imagine it would’ve been good.”

He leaned back a little, as though that wasn’t what he expected from me. I supposed there were going to be a lot of ‘unexpecteds’ between us in the time to come.

Cortana peeked over at him, a hint of a smile on her face.

“And thank you, too, Cortana,” I continued, a hand finding its way to my opposite arm, rubbing absently at a bruise from Halsey’s collection of data.

“Don’t mention it,” she quipped happily.

But John remained stoic, intense. He nodded once vaguely, his eyes never leaving mine.

“You’re welcome.”

I bowed my head just a bit before turning around to find my place again. I wasn’t expecting some grand speech or show, his response was enough. All I needed was for him to know that I did appreciate his willingness to throw it all on the line for me. But it was what happened next that surprised me most of all.

“Hey,” John breathed.

I stopped, facing him again in slight shock.

A few seconds passed, and with a heavy sigh, he stood from his place, and lifted an arm in my direction.

Confusion was my initial reaction, and he picked up on that quickly, clearly knowing this would be confusing to anyone. His hand then motioned me in for… a hug. His expression still seemed quite disconnected, but I didn’t take it personally. I was sure it had to be hard for him to even offer up the gesture to begin with.

And while I didn’t want to make him uncomfortable, I couldn’t help myself. I needed the comfort. I needed to feel something other than fear and exhaustion. I didn’t want to think that I may have needed some part of him, too. That would’ve been a scarier realization to come to that I wasn’t sure I was ready for, either, especially so soon.

I nearly ran into his arms, uncaring of the bulky, cold metal that encased him. His strong arm latched around my small frame, squeezing gently— so gently in fact, that I wondered if he thought he’d crush me otherwise.

I’d never felt so delicate, and it was even more amusing that the sensation surfaced in the arms of a fully armored Spartan.

But I finally let go.

Melting completely against The Master Chief, I stood, my arms squeezing around his immovable build until they were sore, tears I didn’t know I had left streaming between the rough alloy and my skin. I felt his arm tighten, the other moving to wrap around me in turn as my body shook gently. He must’ve decided my breakdown in his arms was worth the entire embrace.

I couldn’t look up at him, couldn’t try to read what he was thinking or even begin to explain myself. All I could do was feel an insurmountable amount of emotion like a million waves breaking over the shore. And while there was no body heat between us, no extra detail to the touch we shared, it was more than enough.

It was genuine. It was all I needed.

My collapse was no longer just about recent events, but the entirety of my life and how derailed it had become over time. It all tied in together. From being left on Rubble as a child, to being here now, with John. I’d stolen the Keystone, I’d brought this upon myself. But it all seemed intertwined, connected. As though maybe fate had brought me here. To learn about my parents, to help him learn about himself. I was tired, stressed, feeling unstable in more ways than one. He had to be, too. I didn’t care how strong he was or what wars he’d fought and won. There was no way he wasn’t. All of these events had become very, very personal.

There wasn’t another word shared between us, just my sniffling and quiet sobbing that I was unable to control. Typically, I would’ve been slightly mortified to be seen in such a way. But in the mess we were in, there was no room for that. We were fighting the same battle now, just like Cortana said. For the time being, we only had each other. I needed his hug like I needed air— and it hadn’t even occurred to me until it happened.

His hand began to rub my back ever so slightly— he seemed so cautious, so careful for being so large and menacing the green titanium, riddled with dents and pings from our escape. In the midst of it all I tried to put myself in his shoes, to really understand the gravity of just how much he was dealing with, just how much he was possibly losing over me and his mission to search for himself. The bullets he took and the fists he’d faired, the plasma he’d dodged and the reputation he’d garnered.. and not just recently, but for as long as he could remember.

For just a brief moment, while I knew he meant to comfort me, I wondered who the embrace was really for.

-x-x-x-

Tags: @grimistangel​

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Run with Perseverance (2 Timothy 2:1-13)

1 Why seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which does so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 2 Looking to Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

3 For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest you be wearied and faint in your minds.

God Disciplines His Sons

4 You have not yet resisted to blood, striving against sin.

5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to children, My son, despise not you the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when you are rebuked of him:

6 For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and whips every son whom he receives.

7 If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chastens not? 8 But if you be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are you bastards, and not sons. 9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits, and live? 10 For they truly for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. 11 Now no chastening for the present seems to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to them which are exercised thereby.

12 Why lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; 13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.

A Call to Holiness (1 Peter 1:13-21)

14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: 15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; 16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. 17 For you know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

Our Kingdom Cannot Be Shaken (Exodus 20:18-21; Deuteronomy 5:22-33)

18 For you are not come to the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor to blackness, and darkness, and tempest, 19 And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: 20 (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: 21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:) 22 But you are come to mount Sion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaks better things that that of Abel.

25 See that you refuse not him that speaks. For if they escaped not who refused him that spoke on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaks from heaven: 26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he has promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. 27 And this word, Yet once more, signifies the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Why we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: 29 For our God is a consuming fire. — Hebrews 12 | American King James Version (KJVUS) The American King James Version is Produced by Stone Engelbrite. It is a simple word for modern word update from the King James English. Cross References: Genesis 4:10; Genesis 18:25; Genesis 25:33; Genesis 27:30; Exodus 15:17; Exodus 19:12-13; Exodus 19:16; Exodus 19:18; Exodus 20:22; Numbers 16:22; Deuteronomy 8:5; Deuteronomy 9:19; Deuteronomy 29:18; 2 Samuel 7:14; Job 5:17; Psalm 34:14; Psalm 109:24; Psalm 110:1; Psalm 119:75; Proverbs 4:26; Proverbs 24:10; Isaiah 19:22; Isaiah 24:23; Isaiah 34:4; Romans 13:12; 1 Corinthians 11:32; Philippians 2:8; Hebrews 5:7

[spiritsoulandbody]

#DailyDevotion Jesus Is The Mediator Of A New Covenant

#DailyDevotion Jesus Is The Mediator Of A New Covenant Heb. 9 15And He is the Mediator of a new testament (covenant]. By dying He paid the ransom to free people from the sins under the first covenant, and those who are called are to receive the everlasting inheritance promised them. 16Where there is a will, it must be shown that the one who made it died, 17since a will takes effect only when a person is dead. It is not in force as long as the one who made it is still living. 18That is why the first covenant was also dedicated with blood. 19When Moses had told all the people every commandment of the Law, he took the blood of calves and goats and some water, scarlet wool, and hyssop and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. 20“This is the blood of the covenant,” he said, "that God has ordered you to keep.” 21In the same way he sprinkled blood on the tabernacle and on everything used in the worship. 22According to the Law almost everything is cleansed by blood, and if no blood is poured out, no sins are forgiven. I guess one could go into ancient distinctions between wills, testaments and covenants. The author would certainly understand the distinctions of his day. Here though, it seems we are going to mush them all together. Maybe there really isn't a difference. We will follow his lead and do the same. Jesus is the Mediator of a new testament/will/covenant. If there is a new one, the old one is abrogated. My parents have gone through several wills and all preceding ones, no matter how similar, are now null and void. This means then the covenant the LORD made with Israel on the mountain is now null and void. The whole thing including everything in it no matter how the new testament may have some similarities, particularly in the moral law department. If there are discrepancies, the new one takes precedence because the old one is abrogated. This new testament was sealed with the death of Jesus and the spilling of His blood. His death paid the ransom/redemption for those who sinned under the first covenant. We may question to whom the ransom/redemption is paid. It would seem to me it is death itself, since death was the price for transgressing the law. The soul that sins must die. Adam sinned and brought death into the world. We who sin follow him in his death. Jesus did not sin. Jesus offered up His life to death and now all who put their trust in Him receive from Him His life. His life is the everlasting inheritance. This will/testament/covenant was enacted when Jesus shed His blood and died. Wills only take effect once one dies. He reasons the first covenant was enacted with the blood and death of calves and goats with water, scarlet and hyssop being used to sprinkle the scrolls and the people. This sprinkling of the blood purified and dedicated everything it touched. The blood of the sacrifices was poured out and sprinkled on the people to cleanse them and to forgive them their sins. The author will note these sacrifices in themselves did not obtain for them the forgiveness of sins. It only made them ritually pure. However, because of God's promise, those who believed in His promise could be assured of forgiveness. Jesus' blood however does cleanse us from our sins. As we shall see later, it dedicates us and the heavenly sanctuary. His blood is the guarantee of the new testament promised in Jer. 31:31ff. With the shedding of His blood, we know our sins are forgiven and forgotten. He sprinkles us with this blood in our baptism, absolution, the Lord's Supper and the preaching of the Gospel. Heavenly Father, we thank You for instituting the New Covenant in the blood of Your Son, Jesus. Keep us in this faith unto life everlasting. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Read the full article

[itsfayehr]

Exodus 6 1-12

1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of my mighty hand he will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country.”

2 God also said to Moses, “I am the Lord. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself fully known to them. 4 I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, where they resided as foreigners. 5 Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, and I have remembered my covenant.

6 “Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. 7 I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. 8 And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the Lord.’”

9 Moses reported this to the Israelites, but they did not listen to him because of their discouragement and harsh labor.

10 Then the Lord said to Moses, 11 “Go, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the Israelites go out of his country.”

12 But Moses said to the Lord, “If the Israelites will not listen to me, why would Pharaoh listen to me, since I speak with faltering lips?”

we ended the previous chapter with the Hebrews in a dilemma and they were very discouraged. It resulted in Moses and Aaron being accused of not representing them skillfully. Moses then turns to YHWH and pours out his feelings of discouragement.

Here, this chapter begins with YHWH's promise. It almost sounds like He was waiting for the right time to begin so the Hebrews can be free. Not only will the Pharaoh let them go, but he will literally drive them out of the country. In other words, one way or another, freedom will be given to them.

Instead of God explaining why things had to happen, He reminds Moses who He is and what He can do.

He says the following:

I'm YHWH;

I'm the same YHWH of your forefathers;

I did not show them my miracles, but I WILL TO YOU;

I made a promise to give them Canaan;

I heard your cry, and I haven't forgotten my promise.

And then God continues with a covenant. He says that He will be the Israelites' God, and they will be His people. God continues to identify Himself as El Shaddai to assure Moses of God's never changing and ever present nature. He's the same before, now, and tomorrow.

and God says, "I heard your cry." Further, God offers His proof by fulfillment which is a type of incentivizing to encourage the people to believe and act upon the divine word. In other words, God often shows proof of His divinity with results, rather than empty promises. And when we, as His people, look back on what He said He would do, we will see that it is true.

In God's covenant, we see 2 things worthy to note:

His identity - "I am God. the God of your forefathers. I'm the same God that promised you the land of Canaan."

His relational identity - I am YOUR God, and you are MY people.

But often times, it's hard to trust God when pain and suffering comes our way. As Stuart clearly points out,

"Optimism is often dashed by suffering, especially ongoing suffering. Faith is often diminished by hardship because emotions play a powerful part in most human thinking, and thinking can become increasingly pessimistic when any sort of pain continues unabated."

In other words, whether we like it or not, feelings play a part of how we think as humans. And it's hard to encourage people that are suffering, and disappointed. The Hebrews were promised freedom, and yet they receive suffering. And such can be demoralizing, if not humiliating. They were enslaved, forced to suffer, and the future seemed bleak. But God's form of comfort is to remind His people who He is. He doesn't focus on our suffering, but on His promise. And as mentioned above, He is a God of results.

Sometimes, God allows suffering to show us why there is a need to be free. In the later chapters of Exodus, we will see the Israelites grumbling saying that they were better off as slaves because at least they had food and water. Sometimes, God allows suffering in our lives to show us the false gods we have in our life. It can also push us to live a more divine life, a life more filled with purpose rather than superficial pleasures.

I have to admit that as a Christian, and as I'm typing those words, I have some doubt. I am still young and I still have my whole life ahead of me. But I already have some prayers that have not been answered, or have yet to be answered. And it's hard to be in the fabled purgatory of life where the answer is "not yet." for me, a 'no' can sometimes be better than silence. At least with a no, I have a clear and definite answer and I can begin healing and moving on. But what do we do when there is no answer yet? Do we take God's delay as an answer?

The fact of the matter is, the waiting is just as important as the answer. What we do while waiting doesn't affect God's promises. It will come to pass. But for me, I can make the waiting heavy and painful, or I can be rejoicing while waiting. As mentioned above, God is a God of results. But it's hard to be in joyful waiting when bills are piling, we or our children are sick, wars are going on, and many more afflictions that are around us. This human element is not lost to God. We have this as encouragement; God hears our suffering. And God, once he hears, he doesn't forget.

[bond-servant-of-christ-jesus]

Mormonism

Mormonism: a religious cult that was founded by Joseph Smith in the woods of Palmyra, New York in the year 1821. He claimed that God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ appeared to him and told him to establish a completely new church. In other words, he had visions that told him to start a new religion.

Smith claimed that the "Angel Moroni" gave him some golden "Nephi Plates" so that he could translate them into English. This religious text is known as the Book of Mormon. The three other religious texts use by the Mormons are the King James Version, Pearl of Great Price, and the Doctrine and Covenants.

The Mormon Church claims that the entire Christian church and the Bible have been totally corrupted. Thus, its alleged purpose is to restore the church back to the original teachings of Jesus Christ and the apostles.

Is A Total Apostasy Of The Christian Church Possible?:

The Lord Jesus Christ specifically taught that the gates of hell would never prevail against His church (Matthew 16:18). Paul said that God would be eternally glorified in Christ and His saints (Ephesians 3:21). If the Mormon Church is correct, then God must be a liar. May that never be. God has always preserved His faithful remnant. While the Bible does speak of apostasy, it nowhere mentions a total apostasy.

The Words of the Lord are incorruptible. His Word shall endure forever (Isaiah 40:8; Proverbs 30:5-6; 1 Peter 1:23-25). The Scripture cannot be broken (John 10:35). It is simply not possible for the Bible to be lost and forgotten. Those who present strange doctrine are to be deemed heretics (1 Timothy 1:3-4; 2 John 9-11). The faith has been delivered to the saints "once for all" (Jude 3). Thus, there is no need for new revelations. Angelic visions are not an acceptable method of drawing attention to oneself (Colossians 2:18).

The Apostle Paul in Galatians 1:8-9 wrote a categorical condemnation of any different gospels that could arise in the future after his death. He even issued an anathema to angels who could theoretically arrive to preach differently from the doctrine originally delivered by the apostles. So, even granting that Joseph Smith had an encounter with the Angel Moroni, Mormonism is a false religion because it preaches a different message of salvation. According to Paul, another gospel is no gospel at all (Galatians 1:6-7). The gospel never needed to be restored because it was never lost to begin with. Mormon revelation is not of divine but human origin. The simple, true gospel involves placing trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ alone. We are not saved by obeying various laws, ordinances, and attending temple ceremonies.

It is one thing to say that the church has become unrecognizably dirty throughout history, but it is quite another to claim that the church disappeared completely from the face of the earth. The possibility of such a claim is ruled out by Scripture itself.

The Mormon Claim Of Being The Complete Restoration Of Lost Truth Is Unfounded:

An essential question that needs to be addressed is, "When did the Christian church go into the state of total apostasy?" There has always been a unanimous consensus on what constitutes the essential doctrines of the Christian faith in the earliest church creeds. The New Testament is supported by thousands of different manuscripts. It is almost one hundred percent textually pure. The creed summarizing the gospel message that the Apostle Paul recounted in 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 has been dated back to the first century, thereby proving that the gospel has not been lost or altered.

Why would Mormons use the Bible at all, since they maintain that the whole of Christianity was lost in the first century and the canon was assembled (along with the King James Version being produced in the seventeenth century) by an allegedly apostate church? Which parts of the Bible have been corrupted?

If any of Joseph Smith's claims regarding the alleged total apostasy of Christendom were true, then he should have been able to give an extensive list of all of the original teachings of Jesus Christ, where every denomination had went wrong, provide the exact date of when Christianity went extinct, and go back to the original teachings of Jesus and the apostles. He should have been able to refer to established facts, writings, history, etc. However, Joseph Smith never took the time to verify any of his claims.

[wolint]

FRESH MANNA

GOD HAS NOT FORGOTTEN YOU.

Psalm 13:1-6

The grace of God is everything to a believer because it takes that grace to remain upbeat and keep believing that God hasn’t forgotten us in whatever situation we’re facing. This Psalm contains the emotions of an afflicted person that solemnly desires relief from the Lord.

A lot of us have been at that place where we mourn God's absence and the triumph of his enemies in our lives, we pray for relief from afflictions and hope we’ll be remembered before we are consumed and it would seem David knew the feeling very well, going by verse 1.

I have the arrogant confidence of stating that “God doesn’t forget anything or anyone,” but circumstances may cause us to sometimes think otherwise.

You might be going through a storm right now and like David, asking why the Lord seems to have forgotten you, think how Paul would have felt at the shipwreck voyage to Italy in Acts 27 but the Lord assured him as He does us daily in verses 23-25, that we are not forgotten.

Remember that beyond every storm is a silver lining, so to see that lining we must go through the eye of the storm to come out on the other side.

I was there once and was wondering why the Lord was silent but His response to me then, which I didn’t want to hear, was “you are in the storm, I am not, I am all around the storm and waiting for you on the other side but you must keep moving to get to the other side and according to 2 Corinthians 12:9, my grace is sufficient for you to come through.” At that time, I didn’t like or accept that response but looking back, I am grateful that the Lord allows us to go through some things by ourselves but know that we’re never alone.

So, no, you have not been forgotten!

Paul said it shall be even as it had been told him, as the Lord promised. What has the Lord told you regarding your situation, circumstance, trial, child, marriage, spouse, finances, health, and job? Have you forgotten? He hasn’t! and He won’t!

Cry to the Lord, keep calling and in time He’ll answer you according to Psalm 27:7. Keep pressing in prayer, His ears are attentive to your voice says Psalm 130:2. He is listening and taking note of your asking and will do what you’re asking, see Numbers 14:28.

Storms will rise to afflict us for many reasons, but they too shall pass and the pain is eventually forgotten, every night-time experience looks bleak when focused on, instead, focus on what God says and morning will soon come with its joy according to Psalm 30:5.

The Lord will surely deliver us from every trial-He will not forget us according to Psalm 34:19.

When we come to a roadblock in life and can see no way out, tears come, the heart becomes heavy with pain and fear, we will almost want to give up because we think the Lord has forgotten us since He didn’t deliver us as fast as we’d like. God has not forgotten you, cry out to Him.

Don’t throw away your confidence in the Lord, He will reward the pain, patience and faith, says Hebrews 10:35. The Lord has not forgotten you, He remembers you, and He will strengthen you until His covenanted appointed time.

PRAYER: Father thank you for not forgetting me! Grant me the grace to hold on until you make all things beautiful for me. In Jesus’s name. Amen.

Shalom

Women of light international prayer ministries

[rxttenfish]

still absolutely mourning the fact that the devs just forgot about faith and the coven

[womenfrommars]

Has anyone else noticed that so many ex-Christians are super uninformed about Christianity? Most seem to be neo-atheists who attribute American conservatism as a culture to Christianity as a theology. A lot of them have also clearly never read the Bible (or without exegesis). They go to atheistic websites where a bunch of quotes from the Bible are ripped from their original context, or cite a verse from the OT that's no longer commanded to Christians since we entered the covenant of Christ... No wonder why Christian apologists have such an easy time with them. I find that ex-muslims by comparison are far more informed on Islam, often better than many muslims who follow a certain "pop Islam" diluted by pop culture and liberalism. They appear to be shocked when ex-muslims point to all the "forgotten" Hadiths and tend to default to denialism ("This Hadith is unreliable, this is not true Islam, this is a mistranslation, ...") Certainly, many Christians also follow a "pop Christianity" that conveniently leaves out any and all mentions about Hell, sin, and repentence, but even then the shock is often not enough to make them renounce their faith, whereas exposing real Islam is far more effective in making muslims apostates from Islam by comparison. Ironically, Christianity is still growing in numbers globally due to conversions in the non-Western world, whereas Islam is mostly growing due to birth rates, and even then we lack data on how many muslims have left the faith, so we don't even know if it is growing at all. Apostacy from Islam is highly stigmatised even in free countries where apostates still face death threats. Apostacy from Christianity seems to be accepted in at least liberal circles to the point most liberals assume strangers they meet are not religious in the first place

[zafirosreverie]

can you please write this: agatha have a love/hate relationship with y/n, she put her through what she did to wanda (living difficult moments of her past) and during the scene where yn was with her ex gf she gets a bit jealous watching it and makes comments about it

I loved this ask! Thank you so much for it. I hope you like what i did with it, dear! ^ - ^

The universe between your hands (Agatha x Fem!reader)

You growled as Agatha’s voice came behind you. She had you trapped in her basement and used her magic to keep you from using yours. You were totally gonna kill her. 

This has been your relationship with her since the very beginning. You two hated each other, always fighting and trying to be the best witch. That led to nights staying awake together, reading the spellbooks as fast as you could, fights in the forest that usually ended with one of you having to carry the other, just to avoid being scolded by the older witches, and flirting. So much flirting (at what, you had to admit, Agatha was better). It wasn’t anything serious, but the older witches didn’t want to hear the two of you arguing, so you ended covering your arguments with sarcasm and flirting. It was natural for you both at this point.

“Ready to talk, dear?” she asked, walking around you like a lion playing with her prey. You rolled your eyes.

“You haven’t even offered me a cup of tea” you answered. “You’re losing your touch with your guests, Aggie”. 

She chuckled at the name and grabbed your face with her right hand while playing with your hair with the other. Her baby blue eyes locked with your e/c ones. You always found her eyes really beautiful.

“My guests usually don’t try to kill me, darling” she whispered “the best you deserve is coffee”

“two spoons of sugar, please” you growled and Agatha smirked. 

She caressed your cheek before she let your face and hair and started walking behind you. You blushed when she wrapped an arm around your waist and pressed you against herself. 

 “Tell me what you learnt and I’ll let you go” she whispered in your ear “You’ll be free to play in the stars, love” she promised.

The stars. That was the reason you were here right now. You always knew you could be better, always knew there was so much more to learn. Just, not here on earth. You found a way to travel across the universe, and you learnt so much from the magic on other planets.

You were on Antares when you felt the chaos magic and it felt like a good time to visit your old home. The plan was simple: go to earth, learn chaos magic, go back to your studies on Antares. But travel across the universe took so much of your power and you always ended tired and almost knocked out when you did it. By the time you arrived at Westview, you could barely stand on your feet. That was the only reason Agatha was able to capture you. She wanted the power you got from the stars.

“I thought you were not interested in it, Aggie” you said and cursed yourself for feeling butterflies on your stomach when she giggled on your ear and used her free hand to play again with your hair. 

“You know I’m interested in anything you do, Y/N” she said and you blushed.

That was true. She was always asking for you around the coven, wanting to know whatever you were doing, that was how she managed to be a step ahead of you sometimes. 

That’s why she was the one having a trial and not you, a voice in your head said and you felt guilty. You had been the one planning to steal the books, to learn dark magic. It was your idea. You were the one who planned to break the rules. Agatha just did it first because you lost a fight against her and she read your mind. 

“I’m a little busy, hon” she whispered in your ear, interrupting your thoughts “so, let me save both of our time”.

You gasped when she released you, allowing you to stand on your feet. Too bad your knees were too weak because of her proximity. You would have hit the floor if it wasn’t because of Agatha’s arm that was still around you.

“Careful, dear. I haven’t even taken you up stairs” she joked and you rolled your eyes, feeling your cheeks a little warm.

“fuck you” you mumbled as you stepped away from her. You just heard her chuckling. You weren’t sutpid, you knew she put some runes around the room to avoid your magic. Smart ass. 

You felt her approach you from behind again, and suddenly, everything was black. You blinked before you noticed the new scene. You were in the forest. What the hell? Agatha stood beside you and you two watched your memory. It was that time when you sent a poor girl through a bunch of trees. 

She was a younger witch that tried to make fun of Agatha. You remembered being angry at her, because it was your thing. No one else was allowed to talk like that about the brunette, just you. It was common knowledge in the coven. So, you just were defending that privilege, it wasn’t because of Agatha’s eyes being filled with tears.

Then, the real Agatha made a move with her hand and the memory changed. This time it was her who was defending you from hunters. You had made a mistake and the men from the village saw your magic before you could hide it. You ran but you were still young and you couldn’t control your magic like you do now. When they were too close to you, you felt a magic that wasn’t yours and suddenly a wind too strong took the men away from you. You would later learn to identify that magic as Agatha’s. 

“You were pretty stupid back then” you heard Agatha whisper and you frowned before you turned to her. 

“look who’s talking” you rolled your eyes. She only giggled and changed the memory again, to the one when she saved your ass from the older witches by saying you were with her all the time. You were actually outside the forest, which was not allowed to younger witches, but Agatha lied for you. 

“How am I going to beat your ass myself if you’re expelled?” she had said when you asked her why she did it.

The memories kept changing for a while and you felt something strange inside your chest. Some of them were always present in your mind, but some were almost forgotten. What you noticed while watching them, was that you and Agatha acted like an old married couple most of the time. But no, you hated each other and that was the only truth you knew. 

You didn’t say anything when Agatha skipped the memory of her trial. It was a silent pact you both made a long time ago. That night...never happened.

The memories changed to ones from a closer time. Both of you were older, you knew more about the world, your goals changed. You took different paths, but would find each other from time to time. Even then, your dynamic remained the same. It was almost comical, now that you had the chance to watch it from the outside. It seemed like you’ve always had complete faith in Agatha surviving, while she seemed to have (well founded) doubts about your ability to stay alive.

“Just take what you want, Aggie” you suddenly said when you recognised the memory that was playing now. Your reaction seemed to be interesting for her, because she giggled and hugged you from behind. 

“Where’s the fun in that?” she whispered in your ear. She seemed to like doing that, you noticed.

However, you just wanted to stop the memory right there. “I’ll tell you what i learnt, we don’t need to keep watching this” you said, but she ignored you. She now definitely wanted to see this. 

You tensed when another voice came from the memory. 

“Y/N? Love, where are you?” a female said. It was your ex girlfriend. Agatha was still behind you, so you didn’t see her frowning. 

“oh, there you are, silly. Are you ready?” your ex asked and you watched yourself nodding and taking her hand. She kissed you and you stared at her with love. It made you sick because you knew how this memory was going to end. 

“You’ve been busy, Y/N” you heard Agatha saying, but there was something else in her tone. You just couldn’t put your finger on it. 

You watched as your past self and your ex went on your date. Agatha’s arms pressed you more against her when the memory showed your ex doing the same while looking at pictures in the museum. It was the same position, but you couldn’t help but notice it felt better with Agatha.

“She took you to see the same boring paintings you’ve known for centuries? how original” Agatha said and there was that tone again. As if she wanted you to notice how bad of a match your ex was. Well, she didn’t need to do it, you knew now.

The older witch couldn’t help herself, but she felt...something. It was strange. She planned to watch your memories just to steal the knowledge you had from the stars (even when a little voice in her head said that she also wanted to see what was going on in your life. She didn’t see you in a long time, after all), but now that plan was quickly being forgotten.

She frowned when she heard someone else calling you “love”, watching this woman taking your hand, playing with your hair and kissing you lips, was too much for her. With the exception of the kissing part, those were the things she usually did with you. It was normal for her to play with your hair, to grab your hand and even hug you (for lord’s sake, she was holding you in her arms right now!), it was her thing, something she always thought that was special for you both, and watching someone else doing it, felt like an insult to her. As if that woman was stealing what was hers by right. 

That annoyed her. So she did what she always does when something annoys her. She tried to get rid of it. These were your memories, so she couldn’t actually do anything to the woman, but her brilliant sarcasm should be enough. 

“Really? a fancy restaurant? how cliché” she said, trying to get a reaction from you. But you seemed lost in your thoughts. 

You watched the scene and the moment your past self walked on that restaurant, you wanted to stop yourself, you wanted to yell, to tell yourself to walk away from there. But what happened, happened, and there was nothing you could do about it. So you just kept hearing as Agatha kept making sarcastic comments about your ex.

When you watched your ex offering you a drink and your past self smiling lovingly at her, you felt Agatha’s hold tightening around your waist and unconsciously leaned against her. For someone who has spent the past 300 years trying to kill you, Agatha surely knew how to make you feel safe.

Agatha felt you leaning more into her embrace and some of her rage faded away. However, she decided to stop the memory when she saw the woman pulling out a small box from her jacket. No, she didn’t want to see that. 

You blinked as you two went back to Agatha’s basement. What happened? She didn’t even get the memory she was looking for, the one about your new powers. Instead, she pressed her lips in your temple and remained quiet. Almost as if she wanted to stay this way for as long as she could, not that you were complaining.

You stared at her hands around your waist and took want of them in yours. You watched it carefully, noticing every vein, spot, freckle and wrinkle it had. You watched how your own fingers slowly intertwined with hers. It felt good. But you couldn’t remain silent. Not when your mind wanted an answer.

“Why did you stop?” you asked softly. Agatha didn’t answer right away, too lost on the feeling of your fingers.

“I don’t need to watch the proposal. Nor the wedding” she finally whispered in your hair and you frowned. There was that tone again, the same she kept in her comments all the time she watched your memory of your ex. This time, you knew what it was. Jealously.

The thought made you blush. In another time, it would have been enough for you to start a war and laugh at her. But something felt different this time. 

It was strange. There was nothing that was different from your previous encounters. There was nothing different from the way you acted with each other, and still, it didn’t feel the same. This time, it felt more intimate, more dangerous. There was a line you didn’t know you were walking to, and now, it was time to decide whether to cross it or not.

“There was no wedding” you said and slowly turned around in her arms to look at her. She frowned, confused and you couldn’t help but notice how cute it was. You noticed the passage of time on her face. She seemed wiser, but also tired. Stronger but broken. 

But she was as beautiful as always. 

“She did propose” you continued, sighing “but it was a lie. She worked for HYDRA, and wanted my powers” you said, playing with a stray of her hair “so i killed her”

That made Agatha blink, and she stared at you for a moment before a small smile appeared on her face. “Really? The great and always right Y/N, murdered someone?” she joked and you chuckled. You were as naughty as her, and you both knew it, but there was a time when you would have preferred to let yourself be killed than to kill someone. 

“I had to. I think that, if someone who isn’t you, kills me, we’ll both be very disappointed” you said and she giggled. Has her laugh always been this cute?

“Good to know that you still hold me in high esteem, love” she said and it was your turn to laugh. 

You stared at each other’s eyes and you knew that the time was over. The line was right there and you had to cross it or walk away from it. The way she brought her face close to yours and the silent question in her eyes was all it took to happily jump the fucking line as you gently kissed her, wrapping your arms aroun her neck. 

You came to earth thinking you’d be gone quickly. But suddenly, the stars were not as interesting as this universe between your hands.

[catboygretzky]

best stucky fic recs pwease

Okay, disclaimer, these are all like five+ years old (which is the best Stucky era, imo) and definitely not the only ones I enjoy; these are just a few in my bookmarks on ao3.

In no particular order besides the order I bookmarked them and under a read more because there's a shit ton of them (really, it's a lot):

- hold me until we crumble; Not Rated, 23k

“Sam told me you were watching Antiques Roadshow,” Natasha says, shaking out her hair. “I assumed it was a national emergency.”

- despite the threatening sky and shuddering earth (they remained); Explicit, 72k

“They really didn’t want the mask to come off.” Hill thumbed through the scans, and pulled out a film that she then handed over to Sam, face mostly expressionless but for the flat line of her pursed lips.

Sam accepted the film and held it up to the light, angling so both he and Steve could see it, squinting at the outline of the Winter Soldier’s skull, and the blips of unnatural white that showed up, God, in his brain, not to mention about half his teeth, plus the mask, with its thin protrusions—

“Those are pins,” Steve realized. He looked over at Hill. “The mask—it’s nailed to his face.”

Hill’s face was as unmoved as ever. “Like I said. They really didn’t want it coming off.”

- family means no one gets left behind or forgotten; Teen, 11k

“Why did you think I wouldn’t like you for being gay?” Steve asks gently.

“You’re Captain America.” Eli’s got his teeth clenched and is resolutely looking ahead. “You stand for truth and justice and the American way. You stand for American morals. You stand for…” he shrugs awkwardly. “Not people like me.”

Steve blows the air out of his cheeks slowly, trying to figure out how to keep the anger out of his voice so Eli doesn’t think it’s at him.

Or, Steve comes to terms with his new world, and gains some children in the process.

- Mistake on the Part of Nature; Teen, 1.3k

Steve takes in Bucky's betrayed look and Sam's confusion, follows Sam's gaze to the pile of mangled fruit in the trash can. Sudden comprehension fills his face.

"Oh," he says. "Bucky found out about bananas."

In which an American icon is mourned. But probably not the one you're thinking of.

- Swear Jar; Teen, 1.5k

Bucky isn't the only troll in the future.

OR

Steve has a Swear Jar and he makes the Avengers pay up every time they cuss.

- Barnes & Rogers and the Goddamn Truth; Not Rated, 19k

There are three well-known facts at Shield High:

1. The history teacher Mr. Barnes is a stone-cold terror, and it’s not even because he only has one arm. 2. The other history teacher, Mr. Rogers, is a mysterious enigma, and it’s something to do with the body of a Greek God and contradicting stories of his past. (They’re all rumours, anyway.) 3. Mr Barnes and Mr Rogers hate each other.

Bucky wouldn’t have it any other way.

- perfectly right wrong number; Teen, 32k

It all starts because Steve is too dumb to handle his smartphone.

A wrong number AU in which Bucky Barnes doesn't enter Steve's life (meaning: Bucky wasn't born until the eighties, but Steve is still Captain America) until Steve accidentally dials the wrong number. Wherein there is a lot of texting, some advice via Natasha and Darcy, a bit of pining, and a first date in an amusement park. Oh, and on top of being a disabled veteran, Bucky is a professional catwalker. Literally.

- The power of the right shirt (a.k.a. God bless America); Teen, 1.2k

"He just…" Phil trails off, mouth gaping. He is staring at the field outside the house, eyes glazed.

Clint sighs. "Yeah, he just ripped a log in two with his bare hands."

- To fill it up with something; Teen, 21k

A fateful encounter with Dr. Strange leaves the Winter Soldier transformed, and Bucky Barnes reunites with Steve Rogers in a most unexpected way.

“Steve brings the puppy inside, into the apartment that doesn't quite feel like home no matter how much he's been trying. He isn't used to being alone. Before the war, he always had Bucky, and his mother until her death. During the war, Bucky was there, too—and the rest of the Howlers, of course—but Bucky always meant home. (And well, maybe Steve's already got a name for the puppy in mind)."

- build it bigger than the sun; Teen, 10k

“Yeah, because nothing says heteronormative like living in Dupont Circle for two years and wearing skin-tight shirts to hit on hot airmen when you go running in the morning.”

“Look, I know you’re being sarcastic but I really don’t get how no one picked up on that.”

Steve and Bucky try to work out their relationship. The Avengers keep getting in the way.

- Memories Circle (Like Birds of Prey), Teen, 32k

Everything seems to be going right, Steve's fighting with his Commandos, they've saving lives-- until Steve falls from a train, is taken prisoner, and turned into the Winter Soldier. Meanwhile, Bucky takes up Steve's mantle as Captain America, and thanks to Zola's experiments, he gets dropped into a whole new time, only to cross paths with a Steve who doesn't know who he is anymore.

Essentially, the events of CA:TFA, mild mentioning of Avengers, and CA:TWS but with Steve as the Winter Soldier and Bucky as Captain America

- The Gentleness That Comes; Mature, 9k

Steve Rogers never really views the things he had to do to get by before the War with any sort of shame or embarrassment. People ask him for his opinions on modern issues in interviews, but Steve has gotten good at talking around those types of questions. Fury insists that there's no way to answer them without casting a shadow of controversy across the reputation of the Avengers, and that's the last thing Steve wants.

But then a sex tape is released featuring Tony Stark in bed with another man, and Steve can't stay quiet any longer.

- salt for the sea; Mature, 7.5k

Natasha comes home with intel regarding the fate of the Winter Soldier; Steve leaves to go and avenge Bucky Barnes.

“It's a list of everyone who was involved in his death, and a rough timeline of everything that happened beforehand,” she tells him.

“And the notebook?”

“I explained what they did,” Natasha says, “The blank pages are for you to explain what you do to them.”

- Lone Cat and Samurai; Teen, 8.4k

"We lost Kitten America sir!" Junior Agent blurted out. Then turned an unlovely shade of purple. "I mean, Captain America. Who’s a kitten. Because magic. Sir."

- Waiting To Prove You're Not Alone; Explicit, 41k

Months after he woke up on the banks of the Potomac, when a reporter mistakenly assumes Steve would disapprove of homosexuality being as accepted as it is in the modern day, Steve accidentally snaps and unleashes his real opinion on the matter... and with that, a secret he's hidden for over eighty years.

When that secret comes looking for him in New York, Steve can only hope that he can get a second chance at saving his best friend, even if it means keeping his heart in check.

“Yeah, back in my day it wasn't tolerated, and because of that I knew from the minute I figured it out, that I’d never get to tell my best friend that I loved him, and sure enough, he died without knowing that I’d been in love with him for a decade."

- I'm Not Sick (But I'm Not Well); Mature, 30k

Steve Rogers doesn’t meet Bucky Barnes in the 1930’s. Instead, Steve meets him April 17th, 2012.

Well…sort of meets him.

In actuality, Bucky had almost hit him with his truck.

Or: The fic where millennial Bucky Barnes nearly runs over a freshly thawed national treasure, and what Steve Rogers did to adjust to modern NYC during those two weeks before the events of The Avengers.

- pure as the driven slush; Explicit, 11k

He should have worked it out sooner. But then, Steve always was a sneaky little bastard—had to have been, just to survive this long.

For the SteveBucky Fest prompt, "Steve is quite experienced while Bucky's never gone beyond second base with anyone".

- Let's Be Exposed and Unprotected, Explicit, 5k

Bucky’s pretty sure he should be into getting fucked through the floor while walls explode around him like in that Mr and Mrs Smith movie that Clint loves. But he likes it like this. He likes being on his back with Steve looming above him, big and naked, blocking out the rest of the world.

- Man of Steel; Explicit, 6.7k

It’s like Steve looked at his metal arm and thought ‘Challenge Accepted.’

- 5 Times Steve Got Arrested and 1 Time They All Did; Teen, 4.9k

What it says, 5 times Steve Rogers ended up in jail (with and without Bucky) + 1 time all of the Avengers got arrested with him.

- the best of you; Teen, 16k

Bucky is on a mission when he gets the call.

They tell him that Steve has been compromised.

[The story wherein Hydra captures Steve to create a new weapon. Bucky, alongside the rest of the Avengers, come together and work through the fallout.]

- pull apart the dark; Teen, 79k

Steve's unending faith in his best friend was beginning to look less like hope and more like fantasy. When they'd caught the Soldier – in a fire fight that still gave Sam nightmares – the only thing the man seemed to recall was how to hit exactly where it hurt.

Four months later, Barnes still refused to speak English. Refused to heed anything but Steve's voice.

So, all in all, it was not a great time for Hydra to attack New York. All in all, Sam really wished they'd just killed him, instead of turning Captain America into a baby.

- Not Another Supersoldier Fantasy; Explicit, 8.9k

Bucky finds a popular sex toy modeled on Captain America's own anatomy. Well, isn't this just perfect? Because even after all this time, he still hasn’t seen Steve’s supersoldier cock. But apparently in this day and age anyone with $29.95 can get a decent replica. The unfairness of this is of galactic proportions.

- the blood of the covenant; Teen, 7.5k

Steve has a "thing" for hot water.

Or, Sam Wilson adopts Steve Rogers.

- Mighty like Love, Mighty like Sorrow; Teen, 19k

After freeing himself from the Russians' mind control, Bucky is left at loose ends, drifting through the decades. Still, he's in no hurry to take up Nick Fury's offer to once again fight the good fight -- especially not when Fury has the nerve to put some imposter in his best friend's old suit and send him out to fight against Chitauri.

- Read Me Like a Book; Gen, 1.5k

In which Bucky accidentally becomes a book collector, because when the universe gives you a million biographies about your boyfriend, you go bookcase shopping. And then he finds out about The Grenade Incident, and the boys actually talk about it like actual adults. (Somewhere, Sam sheds a proud tear.)

- the broadest stroke of color; Gen, 16k

Sarah Rogers always loved Steve's hands.

"Your hands will do a lifetime's work," she'd say. "Remember to do the work you can for those you love."

Almost a century later, Steve does just that.

[The story wherein Steve draws comics for Bucky to help him recover his memory. Through a series of events, the issues are leaked, and Steve finds himself reviving the Captain America comics. He still isn't sure how that happened.]

- If You're Loved By Someone (You're Never Rejected); Teen, 9.4k

You’re fifteen when you realize why you stare at Bucky’s lips more than normal when he laughs and when he says your name. You lean into his shoulder when you walk next to him and when you’re sick you don’t fight off his soft hands. You tease him, he teases back and being around him is so easy you forget what it was like to live without him. You can’t remember life pre-Bucky and it scares you.

- Unusual Weather; Explicit, 8.7k

Bucky’s been at the Avengers Tower for three weeks before he finally gives in to Steve’s gentle coaxing and Stark’s cheerful waving of fistfuls of circuits, and lets them scan the arm.

It doesn’t go well.

- this city bleeds its aching heart; Explicit, 35k

The one where Steve and Bucky pose as a happily married couple while on a mission for SHIELD, to catch an international arms dealer hiding in a suburban neighbourhood.

- Good Boy; Explicit, 13k

Bucky is still adjusting to life with the Avengers, and Steve is willing to do whatever it takes to make him feel comfortable. Increasingly, though, what seems to make him comfortable is strangely intimate.

Surprise, Steve! You're a gentle dom and Bucky wants to be your pretty pet!

- Brooklyn; Teen, 8.8k

"Captain America, what's your stance on gay marriage?"

Everyone knows that, by now. Everyone but Bucky.

[bellasredchevy]

Not sure if unpopular but it angers me that of all the vampires in breaking dawn, the only "tribal" vampires were from places that are considered backward. Why couldn't they just commit to the tribal aspect and have the original groups of the places represent the vampires? The Egyptian coven firmly believing in old Egyptian faith, the Irish with Celts, the European nomads representing different forgotten cultures maybe and for the love of god Asia exists. Instead we had all of these white vampires wearing 'modern' clothing and one of the two coloured vampire groups were tribal(and not to mention: considered uncivilized and dangerous)

i really really don’t know why you used the word “c****red” here but i agree otherwise

have your “i’m just gonna say it” moment and drop your unpopular opinions about twilight anonymously in my inbox

[heliosthegriffin]

Infernis Dominus

An aged Cardin Winchester walks down the halls into a well decorated throne room.

The years had been good to him, the graying in his hair natural and he supported a mighty mustache and mutton chops, and even in his more advanced years he still looked as formidable as he did in his prime.

Whether it was due to his aura control, a healthy life style, or duty he was driven by, was impossible to be told and did not matter as he was as well mentally as he was physically. He would continue to serve.

He took to one knee in a bow before a marble and golden throne that was draped in blue tapestry with a pair of golden arcs in the center.

At the center of the throne was a enigma of a man, one who was both boyish, but clearly a man, young but showed age with the strands silver hairs in his golden hair and the laugh lines on his face, blues eyes that carried playful energy and harsh weight, a body that was built to destroy that was covered by heavy armor and held a dreadful sword at his side, but he carried himself with an aura of peace and warmth. Divine, but clearly a Man.

This is Jaune Arc, Lord of the Arc Covenant, Paragon of War, and Master of Conquest.

“My friend, why do you bow? It is only the two of us here.”

Cardin rose up on his feet, and waved off his comrade. “Paah, even if it is only us two I pay my respects to my superiors, circumstance must not be forgotten, otherwise discipline dies and chaos reigns.” Jaune raised a brow. “Hmm, I suppose, but I think its the stick up your ass.”

“If it’d keep you from slouching so much, I’d shove a log up yours.”

Jaune feigned pain. “Oh, such immodesty, is that anyway to speak to your king!”

“If I didn’t know you spent you’re free time in your harem chamber, or playing with those miscreants street rats you’ve taken in, I’d almost pretend to believe you.”

Jaune smirked at him. “To be fair, my wives have taken a quite the likening to them, and my brood has practically adopted them.”

Cardin shook his head in good-nature. “Oh, how are we suppose to remove you from your chambers now.”

“I suppose I shall have to move my throne in there.”

Both men then shared a laugh.

Jaune wiped a tear from his eyes. “How goes Carmine?”

“Oh, you know we’re in a stable, happy, monogamous marriage. No drama, no sleeping order, and no random bastards either.”

“Pfff, I bet you two have great sex too.”

A doopey smile ran across Cardin’s face. “Very.” 

Jaune barked out a laugh.

“Anyway, she’s happy, we’ve got a grandchild on the way soon, so she’s practically move into our’s son’s house, and using her semblance to knit everything, and has more or less got our daughter in law on house arrest.”

Jaune rolled his eyes. “That sounds like Carmine.”

“So how goes you harem, every man’s dream or so they say.”

Jaune sunk into his throne. “Exhausting, I should have never gone above six, but like an idiot I married twelve!” A wide smile broke across his face, and he opened his hand revealing a white orb of aura, where a dozen faces could be spied within. “Its damn tiring keeping up with them, trying to keep track of the hierarchy, and if it’s not a damn orgy to keep them all satisfied, it’s who gets to sleep with who. Sometimes though I have to man up and lay down the law, because at the end of the day I run this show, whether I like it or not.”

He forms another orb of aura, and another till he had twelve floating orbs, each showing a face of one of his wives as he watched them through his aura.

“I soul-bounded each one to each other and myself, I wanted them to know how honest I was about how they had a place in my heart.” With a wave of his hands the orbs shaped together to form a heart with each woman forming a piece of it. He rested a hand under his chin as he look at them. “I have to stop myself from having doubts sometimes, as they can feel it and I don’t want to worry them.”

He pulled the heart towards himself and held it between his hands. He looked at the many loves of his life. “I wouldn’t trade anyone of them,” He crushed the heart between his hands, the last look Cardin got his friends wives was a look of contentment and peace as a wave of aura washed over them.

Jaune then look at Cardin.

“So what do you have for me today? Any news about the battle front?”

Cardin then sighed. “About that, we won.”

Jaune raise a brow. “Excuse me?”

“We have done it, all land on Remnant, all known land in system as been taken by you, Sir. That was actually the reason I come to visit you today.”

“I thought you wished to converse with a long-time friend.”

“That too, anyway we’ve repelled the Grimm, and surrounded the Pools of Darkness with kill nests, any Primordial Grimm have either gone into hiding and we can kill at our leisure, or have been exterminated, the last of the planets in our system have sworn under your leadership, and finally we repelled any attempts by the Brothers and they’re minions to renter the system, not that they’ve tried very hard since you chased them off.”

Jaune smirked and thumbed his sword. “Shame, I was hoping to kill a god.”

“So, I’ve come to ask what next?”

Jaune put his hands on his sword and thought for a moment, looking out at his stain glass windows.

Cardin watch his friend with slight worry.

Ever since they met at the academy over fifty years ago, Jaune’s desire to make the world a better place and to be a hero had guided him. It’s what won Cardin and so many others over, what made him put together a militia when they found evidence of the councils corruption, what put him as the King of Vale, what made him go to war with Atlas and Mistral over the treatment of Faunus, why he put the world under his banner, why he absorbed the relics and dominated their spirits, why he killed the undying witch and put to rest the old wizard, and why he took over the solar system and cast out the gods in a duel.

What would they do with all the power in not only the world, but the solar system.

“Well, I suppose we need to make sure we can hold our territory, make sure we keep the world healthy, make sure that the other planets get along properly, and keep our strength up. Never know when the brothers or some-other gods out there will want some new ‘Congregation’. But, otherwise? I cannot say yet, for I have a pestering idea that I have yet to outline.”

“As you will it then, I shall have it done.”

“As you will then. By the way, come by again soon.”

Cardin nodded. “With Pleasure.”

“No, no, no, I’m going with pleasure!” Then Jaune walked off his throne and into his chambers. “It helps clear my mind.”

Cardin rolled his eyes. “Sure it does.”

-------

Fifteen Years later---

------

Cardin had grown slightly older, but other wise looked the same.

He was looking over piles of documents with his friends and colleagues, Lie Ren and Sun Wukong. Both of them having aged quite well, with Sun looking in his mid forties and Ren hardly touching thirty.

The doors were flung open, a wind knocking all their papers over, as Jaune strode in a broad smile on his face, still hardly having aged at all.

“Friends and Allies, I have decied our next step!”

Ren carefully rose from his seat. “What might that be?”

Jaune ripped Crocea Rexus from his sheath. “I’m glad you asked, we’re conquering hell! For too long have gods unworthy of our faith had control of our souls, no longer! We will liberate them and allow them salvation!”

Sun started clapping. “Yeah lets do this!”

Cardin raised a greying eye brow. “How might we do this though?”

“Oh ho hoh! I’ve been practicing for this question, for the last decade I have been experimenting with dimensional and spiritual barriers, and I have found I can cut them, like this!”

Jaune then took a slash at empty air causing it to twist and contort as space itself was destroyed leaving a hellish red light to fill the room, a large red hand then reach through and pulled itself out.

A gigantic demon emerged.

It then fell in half as Jaune resheathed his sword.

“Pesky creatures they are, so you boys in? I already got my militia going with me.”

Ren shook his head. “Jaune you don’t have to form a militia every time you want to overthrow something. You’re literally the king of the solar system, you have an army at your beck and call.”

“I do If I want to keep favor with the people, and honestly it’s more fun that way.”

Ren sighed in annoyance.

Cardin then got up and called his wife. “Yeah, It’s Jaune. Yep it’s a crusade, Hell, this time. I’ll be back alive or you’ll kick my ass, love you too.”

“I take you’re all accepting?”

“You know it!”

“Someone has to keep you in line.”

“What he said.”

Jaune then raise his sword and rushed into Hell, his Militia outside following as he screamed. “Glorious!”

AN: I am so annoyed, this is second time I had to write this because the first time I wrote it, It got deleted because I had accidentally hit the inspect button and it all went down the pipe.

[bmblboop]

Understanding Lilith

Author’s Note: This was written before the Season 1 Finale aired. I will not be changing it in any way even though the theories herein are outdated. Thank you for understanding :p

Lilith cursed Eda for a yet unknown reason. We may get the reason next episode, we may get it next season, but I wanted to elaborate on what we saw in Agony of a Witch and reverse-engineer a theory as to why Lilith cursed her sister and how we got to where we are.

First, I will establish the assumptions of the theory. Considering the flashbacks and photos of the two when they were younger, I believe that Lilith cursed Eda BEFORE she joined the Emperor’s Coven. By that logic, it doesn’t make sense that the curse was cast to give Lilith an excuse to get Eda to join her there. (“Belos can heal you” is the only connection we have tying the curse to the coven thus far). We are also under the assumption that Eda IS a stronger witch than Lilith, something supported by their fight this last episode, that even debilitated by her curse, a Covenless Eda is stronger than Emperor’s Coven Lilith. Eda was also at a disadvantage due to Luz’s hostage situation and having to redirect her spells.

Now, onto the theory of ‘Why’. Perhaps Lilith saw Eda’s chaotic nature and incredibly strong magic and sought to rein her in. Perhaps she knew that Eda was going to be a powerful witch. Maybe she felt jealous, as the older sibling, being outshone by her crazy little sister. In her youth and blinded by jealousy (perhaps a jealousy spurred on by a third party?? That could be a twist) she gave Eda the owl curse.

(Photo of younger Lilith in Eda’s bedroom doorway. She is backlit by white light.)

By giving Eda a curse that only she could lift, that ensured that Eda would stay in line - it was a form of control. The theme of control and falling out of line has been a big theme in TOH - with Eda outside the law, outside of covens, and with Luz outside of conventional human behavior and often having to bend and break the rules to get a desired outcome (such as the events of First Day, illegal mind repair in Understanding Willow, and learning magic through old, wild techniques long forgotten etc). The curse represents Lilith imposing control over her sister, ‘I can give you the path to heal your curse if you join me in conformity’ while also turning her into a monster – literally – to demonstrate the extremes of non-conformity and how damaging it is to yourself (rapid aging and loss of full magic potential), those around you (potential to forget and hurt loved ones) and society (highly capable of property damage – even “the Owl Lady” namesake comes from her beast form, causing further ostracization from the other residents of the Isles.)

However, she could not TELL Eda that she cursed her, because that would shatter her trust forever. We can tell by their interactions and the coy remarks of Kikimora that these sisters still care deeply for one another, and specifically the one who is most concerned about their bond breaking is Lily (Sense and Insensitivity – “I thought you wouldn’t save me”). She knows, deep down, that what she is doing to her sister is wrong, but fixing it would mean outing herself. So instead of telling the truth, she chooses to lie in wait – watch as her sister’s curse makes her weaker and easier to capture. She says as much to Belos, with enough time she will surely be able to catch her. But instead, Belos gives her an ultimatum – capture Eda today or become covenless – a threat that implies persecution and death. If we know anything about covenless witches (Eda), we know that it is illegal and she will be hounded by the law and thrown into prison AT LEAST. The screaming photo seems to imply a worse fate.

Now, the reveal. Eda and Lilith get into a screaming match where Eda proclaims herself to be better than her sister and Lily snaps back: “Then why were you so easy to curse?” The taunt itself falls flat immediately. As soon as she said it, Lily’s hand flies to her mouth in realization. She has laid the spark next to the bridge, and any moment it will burn. Her conflicting selfishness to be better than Eda, her desperate desire to fulfill the Emperor’s wishes, and her too-human, too-sentimental love for her little sister all coming into conflict in a whirlwind of emotion.

(Every gifset on this episode seems to neglect these frames. So, I had to make my own gif. Enjoy)

TL;DR - While Lilith is not in-the-right for everything she’s done, her actions come from a place of misplaced anger and misplaced faith, and she is far from heartless. Her curse was an attempt to control Eda by making her dependent on Lilith and the coven (which again, is not a good thing), and she knew that confessing that the curse was hers would destroy their relationship.A relationship she has shown several times to cherish deeply. The deadline imposed by the Emperor made her act hasty and cruel out of fear of angering him. Lilith is torn between her duty to the coven and her love for her family and that tear will only deepen now that Luz and Eda know the truth.

Coming Soon: Lilith Redemption Theory (lol jk, the show beat me to it)

[ellewritesathing]

Infernal  -  IV

Summary: In your sleepy little town of Greendale, nothing ever slept for long. And ever since October, everything felt like it was waking up. Everything except for you, that is. One teensy trip to Hell (and an infuriatingly cute guy) later and suddenly you felt wide awake.

Word-count: 5.5k+

Masterlist Prev. | Part 4

A/N: okay okay i know you guys hate cliffhangers and i’m sorry!! hopefully this makes up for it tho 👀👀 also i’m working on some other caliban fics to post once this series is over, would you guys still like to be tagged in those??

tumblr’s formatting has been shit these past few days as well, and i think i’ve gotten most of it ironed out but let me know if there’s anything i missed!

“When she comes back to life, she won’t be scarred, will she?” Harvey asked. His voice was still full of concern, but it was softer now. A quiet kind of anxiety.

“She will not,” Caliban said. 

“Oh, that’s a relief,” Sabrina breathed. 

You had to admit, looking at Roz all broken and put back together again was unsettling. Not any more unsettling than finding out your mom was a demon and your dad was a psychic (maybe?), but unsettling nonetheless. 

“What do we do now?” you asked, arms folded over your chest and leg bouncing to distract from how uncomfortable you felt. 

“You say the spell, but first, you make your offering,” Caliban explained. Eyes rolling over from Sabrina to you. He seemed to zero-in on your nerves like a hawk would a field mouse. 

“To whom?” Sabrina asked. 

“Aphrodite or Eros,” Caliban said. 

“What am I offering?” Harvey asked. 

“Your love for Rosalind,” Caliban said. “Give it up, and she’ll be restored to flesh.”

“Give it up? What are you talking about?” Harvey asked.

“Aphrodite is the goddess of love,” Caliban said. “She’ll grant your wish, but demands your heart’s desire: Rosalind.” He looked down at the statue of your friend. “Vow to forsake your truest love, then to complete the spell … kiss her. She’ll restore to flesh once more. But if you betray your vow - if you kiss her again - she’ll return to stone and will remain that way until the end of days.”

“Wait, no! Harvey, there has to be some other kind of offering,” Sabrina said, reaching out to comfort him. 

“It’s a Pygmalion spell,” you said. Your voice was still full of anger, so you made a conscious effort to soften it. Taking a breath, you went on, “The myth is that to bring his statue to life, he gave up sculpting. His true love. So there isn’t really a way around that.”

“Exactly,” Caliban said. You hadn’t met his gaze when he cataloged your unease before, but now you accidentally caught his eye. Your leg stopped bouncing. Your anger flickered for a moment. “Love for life.” 

“I’ll do it,” Harvey said, not leaving any room to talk him out of it. He walked towards Caliban and took the paper from his hand. 

“Say the words to Aphrodite and give her a kiss,” Caliban said. 

Harvey knelt down and said some heartbreaking words that you wished you hadn’t overheard before saying the spell written on the piece of paper. He gave her a kiss but nothing changed. She was still stone.

“Nothing happened!” he said, looking up. 

“Caliban?” Sabrina asked, sounding equal parts accusatory and panicked.

“His offering was rejected,” Caliban said.

“What does that mean?” Harvey asked. “Why?” 

“You must not truly love her,” Caliban said, like it was obvious. Unexpected, tragic, but obvious. 

“That’s bullshit!” Harvey got to his feet, squaring up in front of Caliban. 

“Oh, crap,” you mumbled as you uncrossed your arms and moved around Roz to get to Harvey. You slipped your hands around his arm but it didn’t stop him from simmering in place. “Harvey, calm down.”

“Aphrodite would only accept your heart’s true desire,” Caliban said, either unbothered by Harvey’s anger or uncaring toward it. Still, he pushed. “That must not be Rosalind. Must be something or someone else.”

“Shut the hell up!” Harvey yelled as he slipped out of your hands. In one quick motion, he grabbed the collar of Caliban’s shirt and threw him against the wall. 

“Harvey, enough!” you yelled. You maneuvered your way between them and outstretched your hands, one palm splayed on Caliban’s yellow t-shirt and your other fingers pointing dangerously at Harvey as Sabrina pulled him a few feet back. 

“What does he know? Him and his bullshit spell,” Harvey spat. “How do we know if any of this is real?”

“Why would I lie?” Caliban asked. His heartbeat was slow and steady under your hand, more interested in your intervention than Harvey’s outburst. 

“Harvey,” you warned before he could say anything else. Sabrina’s attention slipped for a second and Harvey’s hand got free. He got ready to aim it at Caliban. Your voice was sharp as knives and twice as deadly as you snapped, “Harvey, drop it.” 

He looked at you for a second before unclenching his fist. The frown on his face deepened as he collected himself. Sure, you picked on him the most out of your friends, but you were always the first one on his side in a fight. You weren’t sure if your shifting alliance was making him frown or the fact that he’d actually listened to you. 

“I should kick your ass,” Harvey mumbled, looking over your head to Caliban again. 

“Try it again and I’ll grind every bone in your body to sand,” Caliban said, tone back to being vaguely threatening and unhelpful as he straightened up under your hand. 

You pushed him back slightly and turned to tell him to knock it off, but Sabrina’s voice stopped you. “Tell us what, Robin?” she asked, clearly having a conversation that you weren’t listening to. 

“Among the pagans, there’s that witch, Circe,” Robin explained. “The one that turned your friends into pigs? She has powerful magicks of transformation. She could turn your friend back into flesh.”

“For someone who’s trying to earn our trust, why would you only tell us this now?” Sabrina asked. 

The lull in arguing made you very aware of how close you still were to Caliban. His heart continued to beat faithfully under your palm as yours rose in your chest. Taking a breath and a step back, you reached for Harvey’s hand in an attempt to put some distance between the two of you. Caliban gave you a curious look as your hand laced into Harvey’s, tilting his head to the side ever so slightly.

“No, it’s too dangerous,” Robin said, snapping you out of your thoughts. “I mean, Circe’s power resides in her hands. All she’d have to do is touch you, and she could turn you into any creature she’s ever seen before. And without magick, you’re no match against her.”

“I don’t have magick, it’s true,” Sabrina said. “But I know where I can borrow some.” 

She told you about the hedge-witches and her plan to borrow their magic in order to attack the Carnival and bring Circe to the Academy. That way, she could fix Dorcas and Roz. How she was going to convince them to help her, you weren’t sure. You were tired of placing faith in people that didn’t deserve it.

“Okay, but I’m still going to look some stuff up,” you said when she was done. She gave you a hurt look as she readied herself to argue. “Brina, it’s not that I don’t think you can do this, but I don’t like putting all our hope in this one plan. That hasn’t really been working out for us lately.” 

“Fair enough,” Sabrina said with a small sigh. “Ambrose is busy but you can look in the Academy’s library as much as you want.”  

“Hell’s library is endless,” Caliban said, still leaning on the wall where you’d left him. He’d been so quiet that you’d almost forgotten he was there. Almost. “It’s knowledge is infinite. If there’s another way to return Rosalind to flesh, it’s in there. Not in some coven book club.” 

“You’re inviting me to Hell?” you asked. Your voice betrayed you by sounding too interested.

“Only if my queen allows it,” Caliban said, gaze moving to Sabrina. His voice didn’t. 

Looking next to you, you found Sabrina pulling a face. She didn’t like Hell at the best of times, and you doubted this qualified. “You’ll protect her from whatever’s down there?” 

“As if my life depends on it,” Caliban promised. 

“Oh, it does,” Sabrina said before turning to look at you. She cupped your hands in hers before giving you a warning. “Be careful and don’t listen to a word he says.” 

“Trust me, that’s not gonna be a problem,” you said with a sigh as you looked over to Caliban. He wore an amused smirk as he held his hand out to you. 

“Shall we?” 

Against your better judgment, you put your hand in his. It was warm, hard in some places and soft in others, and the only thing you focused on as the hellfire burned the edges of vision and the world gave way beneath you. 

--- 

“You know, this would go a lot quicker if you helped instead of just looking at me like that,” you said, not looking up from the millionth book you’d taken out that night. 

But he wasn’t looking. He was studying you under a microscope and you were trying not to squirm. Curious.

When you’d gotten here, the first few minutes had been painful retching - hell was not made for humans. Then they were nervous butterflies and shaky hands - you were not made for the attention Caliban gave you. Then they were frantic sprints from shelf to shelf - hell’s library was not made for someone with a very specific problem.

“I’m admiring,” Caliban corrected, leaning closer in his chair. “For instance, did you know that when you’re focused, your forehead creases right there?” He touched the spot between your eyes, just next to your eyebrow. “Exactly like it’s doing now.” 

You took a breath and slammed the book shut on the table, turning to give him a harsh look. “Did you know that when I’m annoyed, I have a nasty habit of choking nearby demons?” 

“Is that a promise?” he asked, not having moved an inch from where he leaned in to touch your face. The two of you were so close now that it felt like there wasn’t enough air. His eyes dropped to your lips. A second passed and all he did was shake his head and collapse back in his chair. “The Pygmalion spell had the greatest chance of curing your friend, any of the spells we find now are likely to be too obscure to hold any practical weight.” 

“Then why did you bring me here?” you asked, actively trying to put out the fire inside you and not be the first to look away. 

“I have to admit that my motives were purely self-serving,” Caliban said as he stretched out, hands interlacing behind his head and elbows spread wide. “I wanted to spend some time with the person who risks not one, but two trips to Hell for her friends. Is that such a problem?” 

“Considering you want to dethrone my best friend and enslave everyone I’ve ever met, I’m going to go with yes,” you said. You didn’t think that you could take him looking at you like that any longer, so you started piling books together to shelve later. A petty defeat. 

“What if that was something I no longer wanted to do?” Caliban asked, sounding genuinely interested in your answer. 

“You’d forfeit your claim to be king?” you asked, hands frozen in the air over a book of ancient curses.

“Hardly,” Caliban scoffed. You shook your head, telling yourself that you knew better, and kept piling up books. “But I’d be a more benevolent ruler.” 

Disappointment warped into anger again. Your shoulders bunched up as you turned to him, and you tugged them back down as you threw the books in your hand back onto the table. “Yeah, of course, you think that’s better. That it makes all this better! You know, that’s your problem. You and Harvey are the exact same, you know that? You’re both so full of-” 

“Shh.” Caliban raised a finger to his lips, looking around, which only made you angrier. Screw him for thinking he could tell you what to do. You were about to start snapping at him again when he whispered, “There’s something in here with us.” 

Your arms fell back to your sides as you quieted down. You couldn’t see anything as you looked around the room, but the shadows seemed to grow darker. Darker and darker. They swirled into unnatural shapes as something rasped around you, wind blowing the pages back and forth on the table in front of you.

A plague upon all mortals who enter Hell.

It wasn’t so much spoken as it was whispered directly into your head, rattling around angrily as it ransacked your skull. 

Death to the daughter of the winged and taloned demon of the night. 

Caliban grabbed your hand so quickly that you barely had time to process the words he muttered furiously as the shadows crept closer. He pressed his other hand to the open book on the table as he finished and everything melted into a familiar white light. 

You were retching on the edge of a forest by the time your sight came back again. Clutching onto Caliban’s yellow t-shirt to keep your balance, you tried to stand up straight again. 

“What the hell was that?” you asked, still out of breath as you frowned at your surroundings. You didn’t recognize any of the trees or the way the land crested and fell to knit together. “And where are we?” 

“Those were the wraiths of reapers,” Caliban said. He held onto your arms to keep you upright as he assessed the forest in front of you. He looked back down at you, a little more coldly than you were used to. “I told you that day on the shores to be careful in Hell or you’d draw something out.” 

“It’s not like I was trying to!” you snapped, anger giving you the strength to push him away and stand on your own. You shot him a glare and crossed your arms over your chest. 

“Could have fooled me,” he said. Anger tinged his words and you pulled back slightly. Cold was one thing but anger was another. “With such a dark cloud around you, it’s amazing you didn’t call the hounds themselves on us.” 

“Okay, you know what, why don’t you just-” A sharp pain shot through your head and your threat died on your lips. You took a breath and rubbed your face. Humans weren’t made for back-to-back teleporting. But you weren’t human anymore, were you? “Let’s just try to get out of here in one piece, alright? Now, where exactly is here?”

Caliban clenched his jaw and his gaze flicked back to the forest before settling on you again. “When the wraiths appeared, the quickest way to get out of here was to place us in the safe haven of the spellbook. The only problem is that with all the wind … I'm not sure where we ended up.”

“Well, what was the book about?” you asked, shifting your weight from foot to foot as you looked around the forest. You couldn’t tell if the forest felt wrong because something was off or because of how things were between you and Caliban.

“Petrifaction in Greek myths,” Caliban answered. “So chances are we’re either in the myth of Pygmalion-”

“Or Medusa?” you guessed, eyes settling on his. He nodded and you bit the inside of your cheek. “So how do we get out of here?”

“We wait for the story to run its course,” he said. “We don’t have to get involved?” you asked hesitantly. He shook his head and a knot in your upper back untangled. You could get out of this safely as long as you let Medusa turn some long-dead people to stone. It felt too easy. “Then let’s find a place to wait this out.”

You chose a direction and started walking, part of you waiting for Caliban to say something and another relieved that he was letting you walk in silence. It gave you the chance to think about everything Lilith told you earlier.

“The cloud is starting to come back,” Caliban warned after maybe an hour of walking. “Are you going to tell me about what’s bothering you or are we going to wait and see what comes out of these woods?”

“I’ll take my chances with the wolves,” you said, looking at him over your shoulder. He cut the nonchalant smile you threw at him in half.

“No.” Caliban caught your arm before you could swing it back around and then stopped walking. “We’ve got nowhere else to hide if something comes after us.”

Maybe it was his steely resolve or the fact that he actually did seem concerned under that well-worn apathetic safety blanket of an expression, but you felt some part of you cave. You couldn’t tell him about Lilith - you couldn’t tell anyone about Lilith - but maybe you could talk about something else. 

“What did you talk to Sabrina about when you went to Hell?” Caliban leaned back slightly and frowned for a second before recovering. 

“That’s what this is about?” he asked. He must have realised that his voice came out too gently because then he added, “It almost sounds like you’re jealous, love.” 

“I knew this was pointless,” you scoffed, looking him dead in the eye as you pulled your arm back. “And I’m not jealous, by the way, I’m frustrated.” 

“Sexually?” You rolled your eyes and ignored the heat in your cheeks as you started walking again. A pretty trainwreck was still a trainwreck, and you had no desire to buy a ticket to ruin. Well, you had a little desire, but you stomped it down. 

“I asked her to marry me.” 

You stopped dead in your tracks, but you didn’t turn back to look at him. 

“The challenges would end, balance would be restored.” The undergrowth crunched as he closed the distance between you, slowly and deliberately. “We’d wipe out the pagans and your life would go back to the way it was.” 

A final crunch as he stopped next to you - waiting for you to say something, probably - and lifted a hand to move the hair off your neck. Slow, deliberate sparks skated across your neck where his fingers touched. If he saw the necklace, he didn’t say anything. 

“That is still what you want, isn’t it?” You turned to look at him, accidentally making his hand cup your neck in the process, and said in your well-worn apathetic security blanket of a voice, “Let’s find shelter before the sun sets.” 

Something flashed across his face, but all Caliban did was take a step back and let his hand fall to his side. “As you wish.”  

He was infuriating. 

After what felt like another eternity of walking, Caliban stopped, holding a finger to his lips. It sent shivers down your spine, reminding you of when he did the same thing in Hell’s Library. He nodded his head to the man on the other side of the lake. 

Caliban dropped his head to whisper in your ear, “You were right about being in the tale of Medusa, but we were wrong about which part that is.”

“So where are we?” you asked quietly, doing your best to keep focused on the fact that he wanted to marry your best friend and not on the fact that his lips were dangerously close to your face. 

“Just before the end. Where Perseus slays her and returns a god among men,” Caliban said, turning his head to look at you. So close. 

“What?” you whisper-yelled, moving back in the process to look at the guy across the lake. There was no way that guy, with armor too big for him who still hadn’t noticed your presence, was going to slay Medusa. Caliban rolled his eyes at the dramatics of your outburst. “We can’t let him kill her.”

“Why not?” he asked. “The sooner it happens, the sooner I get back to Hell and you get back to your friends.”

“Because she didn’t deserve this. Any of this.” You gestured vaguely at the forest she’d been exiled to. “Poseidon was the one who raped her in Athena’s temple, but Medusa was the one who got cursed while he just got to go back to surfing or whatever the hell it is he does.” You shook your head. “We’re stopping this.”

“Y/N,” Caliban warned. “Messing with time is a dangerous thing.”

The warning was earnest enough, but that didn’t stop you from leaning in and giving him a once over before saying in a low voice, “I thought you had an affinity for dangerous things.” 

He seemed dismayed for a moment. Clearly, whatever he expected you to say wasn’t nearly as manipulative as it had been, and you couldn’t tell if he was impressed or betrayed by the change of heart. 

“If we intervene-” his voice was soft, like he was trying on a new way of talking to you “-we may be stuck in this time forever. Is that a risk you’re willing to take?” 

You didn’t know how to answer, but something in your face must have indicated that you were on board with the risk because Caliban took a breath and continued. 

“You need to do everything I say, and you can’t go off on your own. Understand?” 

“Don’t step off the road, got it.” 

Caliban looked at you with another inexplicable expression - maybe because you wanted to intervene, maybe because you were echoing words from the first conversations you’d ever shared - before heading off in the direction of the soldier. 

“Excuse me, traveler.” His voice boomed in the near-silent forest and you held your breath. “My betrothed and I seem to be lost. Could you spare a moment to guide us out of this infernal wood?” 

Perseus straightened as Caliban spoke, the mental assessment of the situation clear on his face. You shrunk behind Caliban, trying to hide your jeans and sweatshirt and anything else that didn’t belong in this time period behind his jeans and t-shirt and anything else that didn’t belong in this time period. But everything about Caliban fit, no matter where (or when) he was.

“Afraid not, sir,” he said, deciding that the oddness of your appearance wasn’t worth the risk. “I’m on a predestined quest. Best of luck on your travels.” 

Perseus started collecting his things to walk away but Caliban leaned down and put out a hand, careful not to make physical contact with him. While Perseus focused on the outstretched hand, Caliban touched the helmet on the ground with his other hand. “Tell us about your quest, soldier.” 

“The demon Medusa has nested in these woods. I’ve been tasked with hunting her down by the gods,” Perseus said. His face was set in a hard line, his knuckles white around the satchel in his hand. 

“Surely there have been others who’ve tried to slay the Gorgon,” Caliban said, laying on the demonic charm like only a boy with his bone structure could. 

“None like me,” Perseus said with a knowing smile. “Now, I’ll be on my way. Careful through the woods.” 

“Of course,” Caliban said, taking a step back and holding both hands palm-up to show he meant no harm. 

Though you couldn’t see it from behind his back, you knew he was giving Perseus that smile that meant he knew something the receiver didn’t. Neither of you moved as Perseus shouldered his belongings and disappeared into the trees. 

You smacked his arm lightly as Caliban turned to look at you again. “What was that?” you whispered angrily. “That wasn’t stopping him!” 

“You’ll remember Perseus was given three gifts to complete his quest,” Caliban said, in a way that (correctly) implied that you didn’t remember. “That was stealing the most important one.” He closed his eyes and held out his hands. When he opened them again, there was Perseus’ banged up helmet. “Hades’ helm of invisibility.”

“Now what?” you asked, voice quiet. The anger had completely dissipated from your voice; it had to or it would break whatever held the helmet together. 

Caliban smiled at you as he lifted the helmet over your head. He eased it down slowly, making a clear attempt not to tug at your hair. “Now we follow him straight to the Gorgon.”

---

Even though he seemed very sure of himself, you weren’t entirely sure Caliban knew what he was doing. He kept checking over his shoulder to make sure you were still there but he was met with the emptiness of the forest instead. After the first two attempts to see where you were, you reached out and curled your fingers around his to let him know you were right there. 

There. Now we won’t look suspicious.

I’m afraid that ship has sailed, love.

Then he stopped walking and raised a finger to his lips, a gesture you were slowly starting to find more endearing than annoying. “Perseus has reached the mouth of the cave,” he whispered. “Stay here and I’ll put an end to this.” 

“How will you stop him on your own?” you asked, tightening your grip on his hand when he tried to slip out of your grasp. 

“You almost sound concerned,” Caliban said, annoying smile forming on his face again as he tilted his head. You were glad he couldn’t see you blush under the helmet. “Have faith, love, I’ll be back soon.” 

If you didn’t let him leave now, you’d never live it down. Hesitantly, you let go of his hand and watched him start towards the cave, wringing out your hands as you did. How were you supposed to wait here when rule number one was to stay together? 

Technically, you thought to yourself, rule number one was to do as Caliban said, but that was never going to happen and you both knew it. Deciding that not splitting up was more important, you started following after him before you lost your nerve. 

When you eventually made it to the cave, you found Caliban and Perseus in the middle of a fistfight. Caliban dodged a blow from the sword, but it left him open to Perseus’ attack with his shield. 

“Yield, heretic!” Perseus yelled as he knocked Caliban to the floor. 

“Oh, piss off,” Caliban spat, clearly unconcerned about the sword aimed at his chest as he started pushing himself to his feet. 

You, however, were very concerned that Perseus looked ready to run him through, so you rushed forward and slammed his arm with your elbow. You managed to knock the sword out of his grip. He didn’t seem to process it for a second, but then he growled, “That helmet belongs to me, thief.” 

Perseus lunged at you, and you were caught off-guard by the accuracy of his attack. He grabbed you by the throat and had you pinned against the wall. Only a few seconds passed while he strangled the life out of you, but they were a few too many before Caliban skewered Perseus with his own sword. 

He choked out a few asphyxiated words as he dropped his hands to look at his wound, and you used his surprise to headbutt him into next week. 

“Ow!” you whined, shaking your head as Perseus fell to the ground. “I thought the helmet was supposed to protect my head.” 

“Helmets forged during the Titanomachy are hardly foolproof,” Caliban said, stepping over Perseus’ body to check on you. Or at least, where he thought you were.

He was a few inches off, and your heart melted at his attempt to touch the empty air. Lifting your hands to his, you guided him to the side of the helmet. He slipped it off gently and his bloody face broke into a smile when his eyes met yours. 

“Thanks for not letting him kill her,” you said quietly. 

A voice in your head politely reminded you that Sabrina hated him.

“Thanks for not listening to me,” Caliban said. 

You reminded the voice that Sabrina wasn’t here right now.

There was a moment where the two of you held the helm between you in silence, hands on fire at the touch. A moment where your heart raced and you hoped he’d do something more - where you thought he’d kiss you - but it disappeared as soon as the hissing started. 

“Perseus lives,” a woman said as she stepped out from the darkness of the cave. There was something in her voice that you couldn’t place. “Despite your best effort, Prince of Clay.” 

“Those really weren’t my best efforts,” Caliban said, lifting the helmet so quickly that your hands were still frozen in front of you as he set it back on your head. He shut his eyes once he was sure you were invisible.

“How noble. If I can’t see her, then I can’t turn her to stone,” Medusa cooed. You turned to look at her, praying that she was right and you wouldn’t turn into a statue. She was beautiful; soft, olive skin and round brown eyes, delicate hands and a striking face. The snakes in her hair seemed to think she was pretty, too. “But I can see you.” 

“We mean you no harm,” Caliban said. There wasn’t quite fear in his voice, but there was clear apprehension. “Perseus will rot if not treated and his quest will die with him.” 

“No, it won’t,” Medusa said. That’s when you realized what was in her voice: sadness. “There will be Perseuses as long as I petrify the ones I love. You’ve delayed this one but you haven’t stopped my fate, and you’ll be here for as long as it takes.”  

“So what do you want us to do?” Caliban asked. He opened his eyes to look the spot you were supposed to be, to make sure that you knew he was asking you, even if he spoke to Medusa. Your voice caught in your throat. “Do we go free? Leave the woods and start new lives - together?” 

Medusa was close enough to you now that she reached out a perfect hand and ran a finger along his jaw. “To return home, you need to kill me,” she said, choosing not to entertain the idea of you running away together. What a nice idea it had been. “A death with dignity is better than what these heroes have in store.” 

“The whole point of this was to make sure you wouldn’t die,” you argued before you could stop yourself. You didn’t know why; you needed to go home, but you still wanted something more. Medusa deserved something more.

“Everything dies, daughter of night,” Medusa said. She gazed where you should have been, but her eyes found nothing but the cave walls. “And everything gets reborn, if you wait long enough.” 

“Are you sure this is what you want?” Caliban asked, already gripping the sword in his hands. 

“Yes,” she said. She took a step back and closed her eyes so Caliban could look at her safely. 

“Caliban, you can’t-” 

“Don’t fear for me, little one,” Medusa said. Her snakes hissed in your direction as she comforted you. “You’ll see me again.” 

You didn’t know what else to say as Caliban raised Perseus’ sword. With one great swing, he cut off her head. The snakes’ scream shrieked in your skull as the cave faded into white, distorting everything around you again. 

“Y/N?” Caliban asked once you were back in Hell’s library. The reaper wraiths were long gone, books torn apart and strewn throughout the room. He called out for you again, this time louder and more frantic and snapping you out of your stupor. 

“I’m here, Caliban,” you said, taking off the helmet and reaching out to him. “I’m right here.”

He was still bloody and bruised, but relief flooded his face as he looked at you. “I feared I lost you to the pages in the book,” he said. His voice was softer than you’d ever heard it. 

“You almost sound concerned,” you said, tilting your head just like he had earlier. 

Caliban smiled like he knew something you didn’t and looked down at the sword in his hands, both covered in blood from the gashes in his forearms. “Perhaps I should take you back to your friends before the wraiths return,” he said, taking slow, deliberate steps towards you. 

“Perhaps,” you repeated, shifting the helmet to one hand and closing the distance between you. 

Looking up at him, you were asking him to do something. Daring him to make a move. Challenging him to let you know he felt. All these questions, and you asked them without words. 

He was looking down at you, too. Challenging you in his own, infuriating way. 

“Would you really have run away with me back there?” 

Your words hung in the air for a moment before Caliban lifted a bloody hand to the side of your face. 

Sabrina hated him.

“Funny, I was going to ask you the same thing.” 

He was looking at your lips, fingers light as they kissed your cheek. 

“I asked you first.” 

You looked at his lips, fingers less delicate as they rose to his chest. 

“Yes, you did.” 

Sabrina wasn’t here right now.

Part 5

Tag List: @peachesandknives  @caliban-is-my-girl  @t-a-i-l-o-r-m-a-d-e​  @music-movies  @miss--moose​  @marrypuffsstuff​  @harryscarolinaa​  @igorsbby​  @foji2000​  @mschfavngz​  @artaxerxesthegreat​  @thxmagic​  @luquincy  @xealia​  @hotmessindisguise​  @olivia-west-allen

[rpmemesbyarat]

RP Meme Lines from "AHS: Coven" Episode 9: "Head"

You get a little older, we'll add a little hooch in there.

That will really keep us warm.

There's nothing to be nervous about.

Keep your hands steady.

Just like we practiced on the range.

I don't wanna miss.

I was the same way when I was your age. Worse, even.

I couldn't keep my breakfast down. Ruined my shirt.

We've been hunters for generations.

You stay here.

You'll get a clean shot.

Put her down!

No mercy. Never forget what they are.

We need to talk.

You and I ain't got nothing to say to each other.

Take your skinny ass and that filthy thing and get out.

You don't wanna talk to me? Fine.

I won't be long.

This better be good.

That one you can keep.

What makes you think I want it?

Why'd you keep her around?

She amused me.

You thought you could use her as a bargaining chip.

What'd she say? I can't hear.

You shut up.

I came here to talk terms.

You think it's so easy. Stroll in here and expect we gonna fix this truce?

Oh, to hell with the truce.

What I'm looking for is an alliance.

Are you insane?

I told you to shut up.

You can't trust them as far as you can spit.

Now, we need to stop this petty quarreling.

We've got bigger problems than what goes on between us.

How many dead?

This concerns you and your people as much as it does mine.

You're making a mistake.

I can live with that. Not too sure about you, though.

Can't protect your own and expect me to do it for you.

You're kidding yourself if you think that after they're done with us,they're not coming after you.

I'll fret about that when the time come.

Right after I pop the champagne.

Take this filthy thing out back and burn it.

I don't ever wanna see it again.

Sweet release. At long last.

Could people please not move things?

Let me do it. It's my mess.

I need to say something, or I'll simply explode.

I need to know for certain that you don't think I did this to you.

You were like a baby bird pushed too soon from the nest.

Will you be my mother now?

I've always loved you like a daughter.

Wrap your arms around me, dear girl.

I don't need magic to tell me what I already know.

I know you would never hurt me.

I never doubted you for a second.

I thought you were in Europe.

Nothing a few silver bullets couldn't take care of.

A lot of things have happened. Some of them out of my control.

You don't take initiative, [NAME].

You follow orders.

Your only job is to gather intelligence.

You don't get your hands dirty.

You're the man on the inside.

Don't think.

You'll just end up getting somebody killed.

I'm much more capable than you think.

An innocent desk clerk and a maid lost their lives because you were sloppy.

Your recklessness puts everything we've worked for at risk.

The hunt isn't only about the kill.

A good hunter stalks his prey with care and only strikes when the time is right.

We need you back inside that house.

Tell me you don't actually have feelings for her.

You haven't forgotten what she is?

I'm part of a sacred order.

Don't think I don't appreciate the sacrifices you've made.

I know how confusing it can be to pretend to love someone who's your enemy.

What a marvelous invention.

So before we move on to our lobster bouquetière a little melon ball palate cleanser.

Should we be looking into it?

Selling it, perhaps?

Forgiveness is and always will be the high road, the preferred road.

Would that we had such luxury.

Not to worry. It's just a bit of monkshood in your balls. Causes temporary paralysis.

It's supposed to be quite terrifying. Is it?

Are you terrified? You should be.

At any rate, I'm not going to kill you. Well, maybe after dessert.

I put a lot of effort into the key lime pie.

I do love a key lime pie, even more than an île flottante.

I was never worried you'd be hapless enough to try.

[NAME], you're a fatuous fool and a drunk!

You're weak-willed, boring, and your fashion faux pas give me nightmares.

I know you had the best of intentions but you could've asked me first.

There are secrets in the flames, and I came back with more than a few.

Why do they look so familiar? The generous donors wish to remain anonymous.

Hurl your baseless accusations. They have no power now.

You're the one that should be put to the stake.

You were the one found guilty of a capital crime.

I could have you banished.

You wouldn't dare.

I hear they're not seeing anyone right now.

Stop it! Stop it right now.

The real danger is outside these doors, not inside.

I'm tired. I need to lie down.

It's dangerous out there.

We'll see to absolutely everything.

Hug me again.

Why don't you go tell someone?

Ugh, sick people really gross me out.

We've been looking everywhere for you.

Who said you could come in here?

Get out before I call security.

You brought this darkness into my home.

When did he tell you that?

You're a liar. Or a lunatic.

I don't believe it.

You're mocking my grief.

That proves you're a fraud.

How can you know that?

She doesn't deserve your help.

You bring nibbles? I'm starving.

Time for some sensitivity training.

What fresh hell is this?

I wanna die. I'm ready.

So we're gonna have a little film festival.

No, wait a minute.

What's happening to me?

You're feeling the wrath of broken promises.

Oh, wow, that's some stinky shit.

Now, you never use this unless under extreme circumstances.

Hey, can I try the incantation this time?

Damn. That is so cool.

We make a great team.

You're such an awesome leader

I've got so much to learn from you.

I meant to change the locks.

Let go of me.

I said, let go.

You're drunk.

I needed the courage to come back.

Can you see my heart? Can you see it's bleeding? That I'm living in a hell of regret and remorse? That my life has no meaning without you?

Can we have this conversation alone, please?

I've told you how I feel.

Take your stuff and leave.

No, I'm not going anywhere.

I'm filing for divorce.

All I want is to protect you.

Your shit's in a box in the closet. Get it and then get out.

You got a dog?

You hate animals, and all other living things.

We needed some protection around here.

Why do you think I came back?

Females are more loyal and aggressive when it comes to protecting their families.

What's in there?

You have to leave now.

I'm not certain

I know how to thank you.

I'm sure this isn't enough, but in truth, nothing could ever be enough.

You've given me a gift that can never be repaid.

I confess I had dark moments.

The thought of losing my son shook me to the core.

I questioned my faith in the Almighty.

Why does he say that?

God knows all.

I can't accept that.

I wanna be a good father.

We're done. Maybe one day you'll understand.

You knew you'd get away with it.

My turn.

Now it's your turn.

Like to play another hand?

Yeah, you just keep dealing till I win my money back.

What did you do to him?

What we need is a guard dog, one who will attack on command.

You kept your eyes closed your entire life.

What is that heinous caterwauling?

If this doesn't touch your soul, you don't have one.

When will my perdition end?

I gotta go.

Sit your ass down and get yourself to work.

Go back to sleep, baby.

Go back to sleep.