#and she’s also a real spiritual entity

[sweateroverlord]

having a discussion with my brother about avatar (2009) by James Cameron and like…I did not realize I was so passionate about this movie until now

[laismoura-art]

Ok so...

Twice now i’ve seen people approach @elsa-fogen about a take that is “Alastor is in hell because of Voodoo” (the latest one basically saying he is in hell solemnly because of Voodoo”) and I can’t help but feel there’s reeks of religious intolerance from his take (even if it’s not intentional) cause let’s not forget, Voodoo is a religion (main one in places such as Haiti and Gana), and it’s often stigmatised and viewed through the wrong light. So you all can understand how a take like this could rub someone the wrong way and be deemed as religious intolerance.

But as I know this fandom is PAINFULLY stubborn and probably will want to keep exploring this take even if it makes some people uncomfortable (take the people who refuse to acknowledge Alastor as aro and the people who refuse to stop calling Alastor a wendigo for instance) I would like to offer an alternative take: 

See, I’m not from Voodoo and it’s not that big of a religion here in Brazil, however, we do have two other religions here that are similar/derivatives from Voodoo (Candomblé and Umbanda) and face similar prejudices, so I’m making this based mostly on these two but know that it also applies to Voodoo. 

In Umbanda, we have a higher god, the Orixás (entities that provide guidance and protection) and we have spirits, these spirits divide in different groups and offer advices and guidance to all types of people, there are spirits that look after women, children, grieving parents and even the lost (such as drug addicts).

But as we have good spirits, we also have bad ones. they are popularly known as “espiritos de porco” (pig spirits) who are usually mischievous and even ill intended spirits that might loom over you if they feel a bad energy coming from you or if you are spiritually unprotected and they will start to cause you misfortune and even make you feel weak and sick.

Some ill-intended people use these bad spirits against people they want to harm, the bad spirits may guide them in performing a ritual or maybe the spirit will loom on this targeted person. 

It’s (partly) due to people like this that these religions have such bad reputation, but these people basically perform their religion in a corrupted way! Umbanda is a religion that connects you with nature and guides you spiritually, it’s deeply connected with healing practises (mentally, physically and spiritually), but as I said, like EVERY other religion, it can be corrupted and used to harm.

I think the best use of “corrupt vs proper use of religion” I’ve seen comes from Disney's The Princess and the Frog. People usually remember Dr Facilier better, who used Voodoo against his enemies and to harvest power (much like a certain deer man we all know and love) but we also had Mama Odie (which is a real figure in voodoo, mind you. Also present in Umbanda, a Mama Odie is sort of a priestess of the religion) notice how she is a much more accurate representation of the religion, she lives in contact with nature, she performs her rituals and prayers in the wide while dancing with a very positive energy around, and she wears white (which is the most recommended colour to wear during rituals, as it’s a neutral colour and pleases all Orixás). 

So as you can see, there’s good voodoo practicants and bad ones, and in the end it’s all about how you use your religion, if you use it as you were taught, with pure intentions, seeking guidance and protection of good spirits and Orixás, or in a corrupt way, surrounding yourself with bad spirits and helping them spread their bad energy. 

So what I am hoping with all this is is that people put a stop to “Alastor is evil because he uses Voodoo” and adopt the “Alastor is evil because he does malpractice of Voodoo” which is a much more accurate to reality and respectful take. 

I’d even like to offer a headcanon of my own: 

That Alastor's mom was from Voodoo (maybe even was a Mama Odie herself) and taught Alastor all she knew and he corrupted her teachings and started using them for evil (perhaps even to aid him in his killing) and THAT, that corruption, was what sent him to hell, and true redemption for him would not to give up his powers/forsake his religion but actually to go back to his roots and use his powers for good (perhaps in a way that he ends up healing/saving someone (hopefully Charlie or Rosie)👀

[utilitycaster]

Wizard Breakdown Tracker: Echoes of the Solstice

You know it, you love it, it may return on an as-needed basis for Campaign 3 now that Allura has entered the narrative and we know the fate of Caleb, but no promises: it's the Wizard Breakdown Tracker! As a reminder, I now include PCs because I make the rules; wizard NPCs are included on the very scientific basis of "do I have something I think is kind of funny or meaningful to say" so as always, if I left someone off, it was on purpose specifically to annoy you.

Astrid Becke: well her boss is missing, Caleb has expressed concerns in private to Beau about all of the Assembly, apparently the king is bedridden and has been for some time, and I suspect news of unsealed things being unsealed gets to her quickly; even if she isn't aware of the events in Blumenthal yet, she's about to be. Also, it's the apogee solstice. 8/10; ever the opportunist, it is a good time for her to try to become head of the Assembly, but also shit's gone real sideways.

Eadwulf Grieve: lost his title of hottest mage (men's division) to one Fjord Stone during the last Nicodranas County Fair and has been sulking ever since but more importantly the temple of the Raven Queen is doing Not Great Bob as of like an hour ago so a rare Eadwulf stress moment. 7/10.

Planerider Ryn: just lost her arm...but is unaware of it, so that's probably helping. technically cannot be calculated because she is a rock but spiritually like an 8/10 and that's only because she is remarkably unflappable; she just witnessed the Malleus Key and that should drive anyone up to a 10.

Allura Vysoren: has absolutely sensed a disturbance in the force weave and I'm sure Kima's feeling some bad vibes from Bahamut right now, but rather like Ryn she actually has some degree of sangfroid, a concept unheard of in the entire continent of Wildemount. 6/10.

Yussa Errenis: have you ever dealt with like, an ER Nurse, and unless something is actually exploding or someone is actually bleeding out they're like "yeah it be like that sometimes"? After you've been sucked into the Cognouza Hivemind while trying to do your silly little arcane investigations nothing short of the Calamity will ruffle you. He's an elf; he knows this solstice is wonky but also he knows this is Someone Else's Problem. Also Jester's left him alone for a whole 24 hours? Incredible. 2/10 and that's really just because he's still a little cranky about the disappearance of his blast scepter. As always: never change, king.

Prism Grimpoppy: by my calculations she's discovering that she's actually fucking incredible in combat right now. 0/10, she's doing GREAT.

Pumat Sol and sure, fuck it, Oremid Hass: I suspect the Zadash Wizard Contingent is dealing with some wild unsealed shit from the time of the Julous Dominion and they can't get in touch with anyone in the capital, but it's probably manageable. 4/10. On edge but not too bad.

Ludinus Da'leth: oh did your little plan to unleash the god-eater go a touch sideways? were you unprepared for the possibility of fucking all of magic? did you think it was going to be easy? did level 9 "Fuck Up Airship" and level 8 "Shield Against Werewolf" fail to save your bitch ass? As we've seen, he'll scramble and recover, unfortunately, but it's a well-deserved 9/10 right now. I love to see a plan fall apart.

Trent Ikithon: OH this motherfucker has LOST IT in prison. Like...he was able to put together a pretty elaborate situation, to be clear, but also he's gone bugfuck nuts and does not really improve. I think he's already broken down from the start having clearly been planning this exact scenario from the moment of his imprisonment honestly given that he appears to be going off of the frissons he picked up from Caleb and Essek shortly before he was captured, but regardless: he definitely ends it at a 10/10. Stuck in an egg for eternity, if he's even still a separate entity from Omentis. A well-deserved fate if ever there was one. Get fucked lol.

Veth Brenatto: hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha 10/10 you know she watched Luc leap through the teleportation circle as it closed and has been shrieking loud enough to be heard at the Chateau.

Luc Brenatto: the arrogance and naivete of youth insulate him initially, but Aggy's demise probably spikes it to a solid 6 minimum and it's definitely 9 during the battle. It goes back down pretty quickly though; see Caleb's entry.

Caleb Widogast: he keeps it together pretty well, honestly! Still I have to imagine he's kind of at a 7 or so this entire time with occasional spikes to 9 (NEIN) throughout, and I wouldn't fault him for finishing up the Blumenthal Brunch and then quietly locking himself in a soundproof tower room to scream, cry, and throw up for a while. Indeed, I would encourage it; Caleb should go have a good cry and hug a magic cat for a couple hours until he feels better, and then come back down to find that everyone except the clerics but DEFINITELY including Luc has implemented Spontaneous Apogee Solstice Oktoberfest to celebrate the demise of Trent, the engagement of Fjord and Jester, and the general experience of being alive, and is varying degrees of extremely wasted. This will of course bring him back up to like 7 as he realizes he has to return a hungover teenager to Veth and then goes down to a 4 or so when he realizes the clerics can fix that and Veth will probably be so glad that Luc is alive she'll ignore the rest of it.

Essek Thelyss: Our international drow of mystery looms large in the narrative, but does not make an appearance, which makes this premise extremely funny. I assume he's feeling kind of rough given that the Dynasty wizards are well-attuned to leylines and I would imagine he picks up that Sending isn't working and was broadly aware Caleb was going into danger, so he's certainly stressed, but Trent doesn't actually seem to know Where in Exandria is Essek Thelyss and is merely threatening blackmail. Honestly while we're at it, we don't know where Essek is because I wouldn't put it past Mr. Geometer Owner to have been at a solstice nexus and to have possibly experienced his own Solstice Shunting. In fact I assume Essek is blissfully unaware of these specific goings on re: Trent and is just experiencing The Anxiety for all of the previous reasons. (1d6+3)/10.

Known Gem Wizard Hotsauce Lutefisk: Hmmm. Things becoming unsealed, you say? The uninvited guest list (The Real Gelidon, Isharnai) for The TusktoothStone-Lavorre wedding may have gained an extra entry.

[gurugirl]

The Séance Experience

ghost!harry | ghost!reader | horror | dark

Summary: A pair of spiritual mediums decide to host an underground seance on Halloween morning at the old abandoned Styles’ house, well know for being haunted. Things go awry. Not everyone escapes.

A/n: I'll have warnings listed below but just know this isn't for everyone! Read at your own discretion! This is dark and horror based. If you'd like some background on the story read the original one shot - On Halloween Morning but this can be read as a standalone.

Word Count: 9224

Warning: 18+ only, smut, dubcon, death, violence, murder, ghosts, evil spirits, use of Ouija board, horror, dark content

Cooper had been planning this for nearly a year. It had meant a lot to her. It wasn’t just a gimmick to make a quick buck and trick gullible souls like one would think. No, she was a real spiritual medium. Sensitive to energy from the presence of the dead among the living, as well as entities of the evil kind. And every time she passed the old Styles house she felt it call to her. It truly was a cursed graveyard, now home to dead souls and dark spirits alike.

Almost everyone had heard of what happened in that house on Halloween morning in 1968. An entire family was slaughtered. At first, the police didn’t know who did it but eventually determined it was the 20-year-old son, Harry Styles, who had killed himself after killing his entire family in their beds.

But it didn’t end there. Over the years people would sneak into the house and many would never be heard from again. And there was never any evidence of anyone being in the house. A missing person without a body is hard to investigate. Police had gone in numerous times to check out calls when neighbors heard screams or family members were concerned when a loved one never returned. Nothing was ever found except usually a few loose boards and pried-open windows or doors but they always chalked that up to squatters coming and going or the occasional thrill seeker.

All those missing people who’d gone in and never come back out led Cooper to believe the house was inhabited by a dark force. Not just ghosts of the dead. It could be common for a home to turn into a cemetery of sorts when people had died on the premises. But it wasn’t common for a home to harbor the darkness of evil and to lure and then collect the souls of the living.

But she still needed to go in there and make contact somehow. There was an intense pull. Something drew her in, called to her, and it only got stronger as time went on. She became obsessed with the house. Read every news article she could find, all the missing people connected to Styles house, police reports, and supposed first-hand accounts of those who had escaped (she knew to take most of those stories with a grain of salt).

She found out as much as she could about the original family members, especially Harry Styles, who she was sure was the cause of all the chaos that had surrounded the house for over half a century. Even in death, he was something to be reckoned with. There was some talk, accounts of old friends of the Styles boy before his violent passing, that he was evil. That he had a violent temper, and that he was into the worship of a malevolent spirit called Angra.

Then, after learning all she could, she put out a small ad in the paper, just to get some interest from other psychics and seers like herself. Anyone who would take seriously the idea that the Styles house was haunted and in need of someone to go in and communicate to the dead or to whatever kind of spirit it was that held domain over the premises. Perhaps they could do some good.

A few calls and texts came in. Most of them were just curious and nosy. Finally, one was like her. A spiritual empath and guide. He was interested in joining her in reaching out to the home and the spirits within. But he also had contacts with others who would consider themselves psychic or clairvoyant. He was in the business of healing and reading for a living. Cooper was hesitant at first but the least she could do was meet up with the man and get a feel for him in person.

When Bran arrived (she imagined Bran was short for Brandon but never bothered to ask) and sat down across from her at the diner off Spring Street in Chinatown, she looked up from her phone and smiled at the man, “Hi. Thank you for coming,” she reached her hand out to shake his and immediately she felt it. He was deeply intuitive and came with a wealth of psychic energy. But she still needed to be sure of his intentions because she was picking up something a little off with him.

They discussed the things they’d seen and felt over the years and shared stories amongst themselves that most would scoff at. Bran told her about his small business. He knew a lot of people who would be interested in doing a séance at the old Styles house.

“I need them to all be sensitive to what could happen. To be aware. I don’t want just anyone coming. I don’t want this to be a free-for-all and have disrespectful people who just want to have a thrill for fun. It needs to be people vetted and serious.”

Bran nodded with a somber expression on his face, “Of course. I can get the word out to the right people and to my group of contacts. I can already think of a handful who would be interested in joining and would take this very seriously.”

She nodded, “That’s great. Because the more of us the better. This house is seriously dangerous. That’s another thing I want everyone to know. That people who visit the house don’t always come out.”   

He took a bite of his tuna fish sandwich, “Well I don’t want to scare anyone off but I’ll tell them if you think it's necessary.”

Bran was a tall ghostly pale man. His eyes were sunken and dark, his nose long and pointy and his skin was smooth and free of any inkling that he could grow facial hair. In all honesty, he looked underfed. He was only a few years older than Cooper herself yet despite his smooth skin, he appeared to be 20 years her senior. He wore a brown corduroy, long-sleeved button-down shirt with loose-fitting, navy-blue athletic pants that dragged the ground. And Birkenstocks. He was balding at the front and his hair was already going white.

She reached out to some others, in hopes that she’d find someone she could truly trust. There was just something about Bran that didn’t sit right with her. She knew to listen to her intuition. She knew not to ignore the little warnings going off in her head, but there weren’t that many people like her. And even if he was a bit sketchy, he was truly like her and she knew it deep down.

So, the séance would move forward with Bran and whoever he could find along the way. She would keep her eye on him and make sure he stayed in line, but he was her best option, unfortunately.

She did not have a good feeling about what was to come.

30 minutes before Halloween

Harry and Y/n were preparing for their yearly Halloween ritual when they were disturbed by boards being ripped from the back door of their house, “They’re early.” Harry said.

“Well, early is good, right?”

“We can just have some fun. Fuck with ‘em a bit,” Harry grinned and thread his fingers into hers.

“But we can keep them, though?”

“Of course my love.”

Often when humans came into their home, Harry and Y/n’s favorite game was to lure the unsuspecting souls toward them with the delicious sound of sex. Make them think they’d caught someone fucking when in reality, they’d just fallen into their trap.            

Peeping Toms would peek into the bedroom door and see two lovely beings going at it, bed rocking, skin slapping, moaning… the whole nine.

Sometimes Y/n would seduce whoever it was, or maybe Harry would do the seducing, depending on the preference of their new victim. And people were dumb. They had no idea that they were being groped and kissed and fucked by a ghost. Worse than a ghost. Something dark and sinister. Something that was about to claim their soul and their life.

“Fuck, Harry…” Y/n was on top this time. Rolling her hips over him, one hand pressed into his chest, her other yanking at his long hair to keep his head down. He kept trying to flip her over but Y/n wanted the top this time.

“There we go… Good boy… just stay down. Let me ride you,” she moaned and worked her wet pussy back and forth.

“What’s that sound?”

“Fuck. I don’t know.”

Rick and Jacob began to unload their suitcases to start setting up for the séance. Just a few things were really needed. Signage was taped to the side of the house so the rest of the group knew where to enter. A table was set up outside the door (after the boards were pried off and the doorknob smashed in with a hammer). Candles would light the pathway to the basement, which is where their friend Bran told them they’d be holding the séance.

“There it is again. Hold on…” Jacob held a hand up as he stood from his position over his suitcase.

“Shit. This isn’t good. I’m getting a vibe man…” Rick whispered.

Both men stood silently and listened to what sounded like…

“Someone’s having sex?”

“Holy shit… I don’t think it’s human because I’m picking something up, but shit…”

“It’s a trap.”

The rhythmic clank of the bed and Y/n’s moans of pleasure grew louder. And both men knew it was a trap. Knew it was dangerous to go further but it was like they were in a trance. Without another word, the pair began to follow the sound up the hallway until they could hear the mattress bouncing.

And as expected, the door was pushed open just enough so both men could take a peek inside and feast their eyes on what was happening before them.

“You’re gonna regret this,” Harry smacked her bottom but it only made Y/n laugh as she ground over him harder.

“I never regret fucking your brains out, Harry,” her tits swayed as if made of real, warm human flesh.

Harry lifted his thigh and put his feet flat onto the mattress in another attempt to roll them over so he could get on top but before he got any momentum the two onlookers watched as the female slapped the face of the man under her.

She took her hand out of his hair and wrapped her palm around the front of his neck, pushing him down further, “Fucking said stay still.”

Harry loved it. Loved having someone to play with. He’d really gotten the answer to his prayer to Angra with her when she was led to him the year prior. From the beginning she was perfect. A little more spicy than he imagined but he liked her this way. She was always mad at him, which led to lots of fighting but then of course lots of sex as well. He never adored anyone when he was among the living. But Y/n? He adored. She was his gift. His eternal mate. They were bonded and even when she was smacking him around he couldn’t get enough.

Y/n squeezed tighter around his neck and Harry grinned at her, his eyes going wide at the sensation. He would have spoken back but he was busy feeling the euphoria he only got from his mate.

Rick nudged Jacob and jerked his head in a motion for them to leave but Jacob put his finger up and continued looking in.

“Like what you see?” Y/n sang out as she raised her hips just enough so the men could have a nice view of her pussy riding up and down Harry’s big, evil cock. She turned back to look at the door and made eye contact with both of them as she kept rocking over Harry and held him down with her hand on his throat.

“Fuck! Shit!” Both Jacob and Rick stood to run but before they could even make it to the kitchen Y/n was standing before them naked, holding her hands out, “Where are you going? I can’t believe you just left in the middle of the show we were putting on for you two. You didn’t like it?”

“I think these two have a special gift. That’s why they didn’t just come in and join us,” Harry spoke behind the pair causing them to startle and turn to see Harry right behind them. Also naked.

“You know? You’re right. That explains it doesn’t it?” She stepped in toward Jacob who looked like he was about to piss his pants. She drew her long finger over his collarbone and walked around his frame slowly. Inspecting. “You’re special aren’t you?”

She looked up at Jacob as she stood back in front of him.

He shook his head and looked at Rick, who was in the same state as Jacob.

Y/n’s finger pressed into Jacob’s chin and she pushed his head back so he was facing her, “Keep your eyes on me. Don’t you like this? Look…” she gestured with her free hand along her body. “You don’t want any?”

Jacob quickly shook his head again and Harry leaned in to speak to the man who’d just rejected his mate, “I’d say yes if I were you. Because this will be the last time you ever get to touch her in this way again. And you’re going to want to touch her once you belong to the house, belong to us. So yes is the answer. Not no.”

Harry stood up and placed his hands at Rick’s shoulders and squeezed, giving him a bit of a neck massage, “And you. You can have me. I can just feel the gay energy rising off your prick right now,” Harry whispered into Rick’s ear. He was trembling. Absolutely terrified. Both men were.

“See? This is all just about a proper introduction and welcome to our home. Come…” Y/n grabbed Jacob's hand and led him toward the bedroom where she and Harry had just been.

“I really like a man who lets me do all the work. Just lie there and enjoy. Okay?” She pointed at the bed but Jacob didn’t move. All of his senses were firing off. Run, hide, fight, give in… This was unlike anything he’d ever experienced and he’d considered himself someone very sensitive to spirits. But these two. They were different. He could feel the power coming from the male and the female ghost. He knew he was no match. In fact, he was sure none of the others, who would be joining him and Rick in the next twenty minutes or so, were also no match.

“What are you?” He finally found his voice.

“I’m Y/n. This house is our domain. We feed it and we take care of it. We’ll all get to know one another a little better once everything is said and done. Then you’ll understand more.”

She didn’t want to waste any more time as she saw Harry behind her with his prey. Harry was already sucking at the man’s neck, making his move.

“Come sit with me… what’s your name?”

She took his hand and led him to the bed, “Uh… Jacob.”

“Jacob,” she spoke his name like she was already having sex with him, “A nice Christian name. I hope you know God can’t save you here. You’re mine. So you might as well enjoy this.”

Harry kept his eyes on Y/n and Jacob as he cupped Rick’s crotch, “Oh? Does being scared turn you on?”

It did in fact. Rick’s connection to the dead was more than just a spiritual guiding. It was physical. He got turned on anytime he used his gifts to contact the unliving.

Y/n had slid her hand up Jacob’s thigh and made sure he kept his eyes on hers, “Just keep looking at me. You’re doing so good for me.”

Jacob’s chest began to rise and fall heavily as the hot naked woman got nearer and nearer to his crotch. He tried not to let the way she looked human and so supple get to him. It was a façade. Yet her breasts were soft and round, her nipples hard, and her tummy looked like he could nuzzle into it. Her thighs and legs were long and silky. She was breathtaking. She looked more like an angel than the evil thing she really was which had him confused.

“It’s okay to be confused, Jacob. Just let me take care of you. Let me show you why you came here tonight. The real purpose of your life. It’s all led up to this very moment. You and me, Jacob.”

His gaze dropped to her plush lips and that was her cue, “Do you want to try a kiss? See how real and warm and wet it is?”

She licked her lips as his eyes plunged to her mouth and then her pretty tits. But before he could nod she already had her mouth covering his. And that’s all it took for Jacob to surrender. She tasted real. She felt real. He put her hands up to her breasts and gently squeezed as she laughed into his mouth, “That’s right. Feel me. Enjoy me.”

Harry moaned as he pressed Rick’s lips down over his cock. Rick was much easier to convince. All it took was Harry’s dirty words in his ear and his lips on his neck and he was a goner. Rick had been turned on before he’d even stepped foot into the house.

He had one hand at the footboard keeping himself steady as he used his free hand to guide Rick over his cock. But he kept his eyes on Y/n as she kissed the other man and he groped her luscious tits. Harry tended to get jealous a bit. Sometimes more than others but he never enjoyed being a cuck. Because Y/n was his. But he could admit, it was awfully fun playing with their captives.

She backed away from the kiss and grinned, “See? So nice,” she thumbed at his bottom lip and then pulled at it, “I know it feels real. And it is real in a way. I’ll feel just like a human and for me, I’ll get pleasure if you’re good. I know you’re thinking a ghost won’t feel this since we’re technically, dead,” she laughed, “But I always feel it. Harry and I fuck every day and it’s just as good as when I was alive.”

Jacob didn’t move an inch, “Don’t you want to make a woman feel good, Jacob?” Harry grunted, “She’s offering you something special and you’re just sitting there like a dope.”

 Y/n shushed Harry, “He’s just nervous my love. Either way, we’ll get him naked,” she turned to look at Jacob, “I want you to take all your clothes for me. Can you do that for me, Jacob?”

The man nodded and with shaky hands began to take his clothes off.

Y/n smirked at Harry who had his mouth dropped open. Rick was pretty good with his mouth, he had to be honest, “Don’t forget the balls there Ricky poo,” Harry pulled Rick by the back of his hair to drag him off his dick before pushing his head lower to which the man quickly began to kiss and lick.

Jacob pulled his shoes off and then his pants down his legs before looking at Y/n.

“Take your underwear off. Can’t very well fuck you if you keep yourself tucked away,” she pointed at his black briefs.

Jacob looked toward Rick and Harry and then to Y/n, “I’d… uh… like some privacy maybe. Feels weird having them in here with us.”

Harry pushed Rick’s forehead, causing him to fall back onto the floor with a thud, “You want privacy with my girl? I should rip your throat out for even thinking you’d be allowed that kind of indulgence.” Harry rounded the bed and walked up behind Y/n, putting his lips on her neck with his eyes on the intruder. “No. You get no privacy in this house. Everything that happens here happens under my watch,” he spoke as he dotted kisses along her skin and up to her jaw.

Y/n laughed and turned in Harry’s arms, “He doesn’t know any better, Harry. Just… go back to your toy and I’ll go back to mine. Ignore the ignorant comment he made,” she stroked her nails down his chest. But she knew the look in Harry’s eyes. He wasn’t going to let this go that easily. He was in a mood, which shouldn’t be a surprise. Because soon, it would be Halloween morning and they’d be quite busy.

Harry walked away from Y/n, back to where Rick was still on his knees on the floor. He dragged Rick up to stand, “Remove your clothes as well. Let’s see what we’re working with.”

With both men naked and looking as if they were about to be devoured by a bear, Y/n hummed and circled around Jacob, “Lie on the bed for me. You’re free to jack off if you want. I’d actually prefer it if you did,” she gestured toward to the bed and the man hesitantly climbed up and laid himself flat as he was told. “See, I need you to stay hard for me, and sometimes when a man gets really scared he can tend to go limp. So I just need you to let go of all your thoughts and stroke your cock and just be in the moment with me. Can you do that, Jacob?”

He swallowed loudly and blinked his eyes as he kept them on Y/n who knelt next to him on the bed, waiting for him to answer, “I… I don’t know…”

She ran her cool hand up his sinewy thigh and brushed her fingers over his cock, “I know you can do it. You’re halfway there. Just submit to me, Jacob. Do as I say and this will be a lot less painful for you. In fact, you might even enjoy it if you let all those rational thoughts in your head disappear into nothingness. I need you as dumb for me as possible. Let me do all the thinking.” She squeezed his cock before straddling his thighs and grabbed his hand, pulling it down to his prick, “Here you are. Here’s your penis. Keep it in your hand and jerk yourself slowly. I know it’s a hard task but I believe in you, Jacob,” she spoke darkly. The insult was missed by no one in the room.

Harry had Rick bent over the footboard, his ass bare and open for him as he kept his eyes on his mate while she sat over Jacob’s face and placed her hands on his chest. She kept her own eyes on Harry’s as she began to rub her pussy over the stranger.

“Not bad…” she laughed, “But I want more tongue.”

Harry groaned as he pushed himself into Rick. The man cried out in pain at the sudden intrusion. And Harry had gone in dry so it was quite unpleasant. But Harry didn’t care about Rick’s pleasure. He was too busy watching Y/n. He didn’t like it when she enjoyed herself too much with anyone but him.

“No. No, no, no, Jacob. No good. You’re really not good at this are you?” She lifted herself and peered down at the man. “I feel bad for all the girls you attempted this with. Let’s try something else.” She climbed off of him and stood next to the bed pointing at Harry, “Can you be done with him already? I need your assistance over here.”

Harry grinned as he rammed himself into Rick one more time, causing a howl to fall from the man’s chest and he gripped the footboard with white knuckles.

“Ricky poo, it was a pleasure. Truly. It’s time for you to meet the rest of the house, now,” he spoke darkly to the man as he brought his slender fingers up to Rick’s neck and began to squeeze. Rick’s face grew red as he began to shake and struggle to get free from Harry’s grasp. But Harry had him pinned and he was far stronger than Rick.

Jacob lifted his head to watch in horror as the evil spirit began to choke his friend but Y/n sat on his chest and blocked his view, “Best not to look, Jacob. Focus on me and keep stroking your cock. I see you’ve been slacking off a little.”

Rick’s face turned from bright red to purple as the air was blocked from his lungs. Harry tightened his grip even more until the man was slumped and his neck was crushed.

Harry grunted as he dropped the man to the floor and then looked to Y/n, “Done.”

She gestured with her finger, a come hither motion as she opened her legs up, still sitting on Jacob’s chest, her back to his face, “Let’s show poor Jacob how it’s done,” she spoke teasingly.

Y/n climbed off Jacob’s chest and turned to look at the sad man, “Sit up, back against the wood. I want you to watch this. And even though you’ll never be able to use these newly learned techniques I think it’ll be enlightening for you nonetheless.”

Harry grasped Y/n’s hips as he dropped to his knees and pulled her to the edge of the bed so her ass was hanging off, “Got a good view, Jacob?” He eyed the man teasingly before dipping into lick over her cunt and moaning at the taste.

Y/n stuck her fingers into Harry’s hair and looked at Jacob, “See where his tongue is going? That feels so good. That’s the hood of my clit. That’s a spot a lot of terrible lovers don’t ever think about. I bet you’re one of them aren’t you, Jacob? No idea where the clit was before now?”

Jacob shook his head, “I know what the clitoris is! Please this is… I won’t tell anyone. Please let me go…” he sat up further and pressed his hands into the mattress as if he were about to push himself off the bed.

“Stop!” Y/n’s loud growl along with her grip on his cock had him immediately stopping. He hadn’t expected her to reach out for it like that, “Sit the fuck back and watch my pussy get licked by a pro. Unless you want me to tear your dick off? I will if you’d like. Just try that again and find out what happens.”

Jacob put his hands up and leaned his back into the board behind his head and looked to the floor at Rick lying lifeless. He was trembling and his heart was pounding in terror.

“And why do you keep defying my rules? Stroke. Your. Fucking. Cock. I need you hard for what I’m about to do. So chop chop!” She laughed and then looked back down to Harry sliding his tongue against her. His eyes were on her. She loved when he’d get on his knees for her. He did it often.

“Fuck… I don’t want to come yet,” she moaned as she pushed at his head, “You’re too good at that she smiled. “I want to come on Jacob’s cock. Really give him a special going away before the house takes him.”

Harry sat back onto his haunches and scowled at Jacob who was slowly pulling at his cock.

“What is it, darling?” Y/n placed a finger under Harry’s chin to turn his attention back to her. She knew what it was. Knew how jealous Harry would get when she’d play with other people. Cooing at him she leaned down to kiss him and reached a hand out for Jacob’s leg, “Aww… don’t be jealous. You know your cock is my favorite. Your lips and your hands… Baby, this is just for fun. You are forever.”

Harry clenched his jaw and shook his head at her condescending words, “Can I be inside of you too?”

Y/n laughed as she straddled Jacob once again, “Sure. You wanna share a hole with him or have your own?”

Harry got behind her with Jacob lying flat as he put himself between the man’s legs and reached his arms around to pinch Y/n’s nipples, “I’ll fuck your ass while you fuck his skinny prick with your cunt. Give you something to feel in one of your holes at least,” he laughed sinisterly.

Y/n laughed with him as she looked down at Jacob, “Is that okay, Jacob? Mind if I have two cocks inside of me? I will need a little something more because you really are a bit underwhelming,” she flicked at his shaft. Her words were filthy and rude.

“I umm… Please, I…” Jacob wined as Y/n took his hands and held him down by his wrists.

“Oh? Begging already? Well, that’s certainly a good sign,” she laughed dryly before lifting her hips to allow Harry inside of her first.

He gripped her hips harshly and began to slowly push in, her anus stretching out before him and she moaned. Jacob was lying still under the pair as they began to move together, his hands pinned down.

“Fuck me… Harry your cock is the best. Oh shit!” She turned to look over her shoulder and nearly forgot all about the man under her. The man she was supposed to be playing with.

Harry began to fuck into Y/n as his thrusts had her rocking back and forth. She moaned and clenched and hissed at the feel of Harry poking into her.

“Oh fuck!” She panted as she leaned in down to give Harry more access, her face only inches above Jacobs. She looked down at the man and grinned, “You never got this kind of response from anyone, did you? Can’t use your tongue or your prick properly. Poor man. We’re doing you a favor here. And all the women you might have tried to get into bed in the future as well. No more disappointing sex from you I’m afraid.”

Harry was pleased that she hadn’t put Jacob inside of her. He pounded himself into her harshly and made it so that she wouldn’t be able to angle herself enough to get the human’s prick anywhere near her pussy.

“Goddamn! I might not even want your prick anymore, Jacob. Ahhh!” She let out a guttural moan, “It’s too little for me anyhow. No fun in that…” Her words came out in punched breaths as Harry rocked into her.

Harry laughed as he heard her give him insult after insult. The bed was squeaking and the candles along the edge of the room flickered.

Y/n looked at the shadows on the wall and gasped when she saw the spirits arrive.

“It’s midnight. Let’s get this over with…” she said as she released one of Jacob’s hands and pressed her palm down over his throat.

Harry leaned in and placed his fingers over her clit and thrusted in harder and faster.

“Oh fuck! Yess… Make me come, Harry. I want all the spirits to see this.”

Suddenly Jacob gasped and his muscles tightened in his release. He hadn’t even meant to but the restriction of his airflow and some strange involuntary physical arousal had taken over. He poured out over his tummy as Y/n reared back into Harry’s cock with a gasp.

“Oh, he’s coming, my love!” Y/n laughed before groaning at Harry’s stiff cock slipping out of her.

Harry pulled her off of Jacob and angled her hips up as he sat back onto his haunches, “This is my fucking girl! Her body is mine!” His chillingly sinister voice sobered Jacob right up as Y/n’s hand loosened its grip with the new angle she was in.

Harry began to fuck into her pussy rapidly. His groans grew louder as he railed her deep.

Y/n coughed out a moan, “The best cock I’ve ever had, Harry. Right there. You’re gonna make me fucking come. Don’t stop!”

Harry pushed his thumb into her ass as he plunged into her pussy repeatedly. Jacob was caught in fright, unable to move to speak as his own throbbing cock splashed his come all over his tummy so he was a wet sticky mess as he watched the pretty ghosts fucking between his legs.

“Shit!” Y/n reared back into Harry and gripped her hands over Jacob’s thigh, her nails digging into his skin.

The scene of Jacob lying untouched with come on his tummy and Y/n and Harry orgasming together was watched by the ghosts of the house as midnight meant it was Halloween morning.

When the pair had finished and were slowly moving together in their come down Y/n looked at Jacob with a pout, “Sorry, Jacob. You didn’t get the chance to feel my pussy around your tiny cock. My lover here kind of took over and you’re a bit of a bore.” She laughed as the dark shadows grew near to the bed.

Jacob turned his head as he saw the obscure silhouettes moving in and began to croak out in distress but his neck was sore and his voice was caught in his throat.

Harry pulled Y/n with him off the bed as the spirits descended over Jacob until there was no body left and Jacob’s fate was sealed into the house.

Y/n turned to Harry with a smile, “The morning has arrived. I can already hear the rest of them. They’ve come. Let’s go play.”

“Where are Rick and Jacob?” Cooper could see two suitcases opened but nothing was done. Candles were still wrapped in paper, the planchette was still inside, and nothing had been set up. “This house hasn’t been cleansed either. I’m going to need to prep it and set intentions here.”

Bran looked around the space and cupped his hands over his mouth, “Jacob! Rick! You guys here?”

Cooper quickly stood up and grasped Bran’s forearm, “Shhh! This isn’t your home. You cannot come in and act that way. You need to be respectful of those at rest.”

“No one’s at rest in this house. Can’t you feel it? Today is their holiday. They’re preparing for a party. A feast. They knew we were coming.”

Cooper sighed and turned to look behind her as Marin, one of Bran’s acquaintances, bent down to start pulling items out of one of the suitcases, “Well, either way, we need to get set. Russ is coming in with the table and I’ll bring the chairs down to the basement. We’ll have people coming soon.”

When Cooper saw the table leaning up against the outside of the house with the chairs next to it she knew right away something bad had happened. Rick and Jacob were meant to come and set up everything. Cleanse the house, set intentions, light candles, and have the table and chairs set and ready to go. It shouldn’t have taken long. Yet nothing had been done.

The last two invitees arrived as Cooper went from room to room with a candle and spoke a protective prayer, asking the spirits for their permission and to safeguard them from the evil that lurked.

She could feel the house as if it were alive. Every room had a story, a haunted retelling of the horrors that had happened over the years.

“I invoke light and pure intention. I am a clear and kind channel. Light is my guide. I will not harm and my request is for knowledge and safe passage.”

Cooper repeated her words as she descended the stairs to the main floor, already feeling the way the spirits in the home were at odds within. Some were receptive, some were not. She knew this could lead to trouble if everyone inside wasn’t on the same page. If they weren’t sensitive and receptive.

She lit candles to guide everyone into the basement of the home. The rest of the people who had been invited to join would be arriving shortly for the séance.  

Bran, Marin, and Russ had set up the table and chairs, put the black cloth onto the table with candles in the corner, and Cooper’s old Ouija board and planchette atop.

She took a deep breath to center herself and felt the chill of the spirits all around.

“Bran?” She held her candle close to her heart as she stepped down into the basement and looked at the tall man.

Without responding to her verbally he turned to look at her. The shadows that cast over his face made it hard to see his expression.

“Jacob and Rick are still here. I can feel them. Maybe we can draw them out. I can’t tell if they’re alive or not.”

Bran nodded, “I can also feel them. I don’t know what happened but this house is full of darkness and despair. Are you open?”

Cooper nodded, “Yes. I feel the guiding of the good spirits here. I’m protected. You?”

Bran looked at a dark corner of the basement and back to Cooper, “I don’t know. I keep lighting that candle and it keeps getting blown out. Something here is trying to warn us.”

Marin suddenly ran into a chair and gasped, “What the fuck!”

“Are you okay?” Cooper rushed toward the young woman who shook her head in disbelief.

“Something just pulled me into that chair and whispered but I couldn’t understand. I… I’m okay. I think.”

Cooper looked down at the chair and back to Marin, “Have you spoken your intentions to the house? Are you protected?”

The young woman looked at Bran and then back to Cooper, “Protected from what?”

Cooper set her candle at the edge of the table and gazed toward Bran, “You told everyone about this house, correct? About its past? What to expect?”

Bran cleared his throat as three young men suddenly descended into the basement, laughing and speaking loudly.

Cooper pointed as she kept her eyes on Bran, “Who are they?”

Bran took Cooper’s arm and pulled her away from Marin, “Observers. I found a group who were interested in coming to watch.”        

Cooper yanked her arm from Bran and walked toward the three men, “Excuse me, you three will need to leave. It’s not safe for you here. I’m sorry that you were misled–“

“Who are you?” One of the men laughed as he took in Cooper’s appearance wearing a shawl and hood as if she were some old witch.

Bran interrupted, “They’ve paid to be here. They’re not going anywhere, Cooper.”

“Paid? Why would you charge anyone? What are you trying to do here? This isn’t some game!”

“Calm down. Nothing will happen to them. I’ll see to it.”

Cooper scoffed and rubbed her hands over her face, “How many outsiders have you invited?”

“Just four.”

“Four outsiders? Bran, they can’t be here. Two of our own are already gone. Maybe dead.” Cooper began to raise her voice. She knew it was a bad idea to get Bran involved. She felt it from the beginning that he was up to no good. There were only meant to be eight people in total for the séance.

The fourth outsider made her way down as well as Russ and two of the others Cooper already knew.

“We can’t do this. Not like this.” Cooper rushed out her words and grabbed for her board at the center of the table but Bran stopped her, putting his hand over hers.

“We will. The show must go on. I can already feel them. They want to be heard.”

Cooper shoved Bran away, “You’re making a big mistake. I’m out. This is reckless.”

She wanted her board and her planchette but she could already tell the evil that resided in the house had already gotten Bran. He was channeling the dark and she needed to leave before it was too late.

As she took the stairs up to the main floor the basement door slammed closed and everyone in the basement had their attention on Cooper.

“No one leaves this home, Cooper. Don’t you understand? The spirits are already among us,” Bran’s voice crawled through the chilled air of the damp, dark basement and one of the outsiders laughed.

“Fuck. This is creepy as shit. Worth every penny.”

“My cellphone doesn’t work at all down here. Not even the camera. Dude! What kind of show is this?”

“It’s not a game! It’s not a show!” Cooper’s voice wavered as she held onto the banister and made her way back down the stairs to join the other 9. She already knew the house was locking them into the basement. She wouldn’t be getting out by turning the knob. It would be useless for her to attempt it.

Harry and Y/n watched from their shadowed corner with pleased smiles. Bran was right. No one would be leaving unscathed, if at all. The ten living souls trapped in the basement were now theirs.

“This is going to be fun,” Y/n whispered as they watched the humans gather around the table and another candle blew out.

“Shall we begin?” Bran spoke loudly. An old fixture above the table flickered on, casting light down over the board, making the edges of the room appear darker.

Evil had arrived. Cooper knew it and she knew some of the others could feel it as well.

“Everyone, welcome. Tonight, we are in the presence of greatness!” Bran’s voice boomed as he stood at the table and lifted his arms upward, the features on his face morphing as if he were a decrepit old man, “You will be witness to the experience of a real séance tonight. You may see or hear things that frighten you but if you stay connected with us and keep your mind open you are bound to enjoy yourself.“

“Stop!” Cooper shouted, “There is something evil here and the four outsiders are acting as skeptics,” she looked toward them and continued, “It’s breaking the bond we might have together and this is dangerous. I need to…” She lifted her candle blowing out the flame, “I bind you evil!” She sat her candle down and tore her shawl, ripping a long section off. With the candle in her hand, she began to wrap it with the torn material, “Evil spirits, trouble us no more. I bind you from doing harm to others or to yourself. Your actions will only be for the highest good.”

She repeated the chant as she wrapped the candle and one of the outsiders laughed quietly.

Bran slowly moved behind Cooper and placed a hand on her shoulder as she continued her binding spell, “Useless. The spirit is already here. You cannot stop it, Cooper.”

She could feel it was useless but she needed to try. Sitting the half-wrapped candle down she looked at everyone in the room, “Everyone! Take your candle and repeat after me,” she tilted her candle toward the one next to hers and relit the flame, “Repeat!”

“Elements of the sun, elements of the day, please come this way,” she looked around the room, and only a few repeated, “Please everyone. I need you to all repeat. This is a protection spell. You may find this funny but in just moments things will be getting very serious and this is the only thing I can do for you now. Please…”

Repeating the first part of the spell she noted that still only a few repeated, but she continued, “Powers of the night and day, I summon thee. I call upon thee to protect me!”

The three men who were last-minute invitees chuckled and whispered amongst themselves. The fourth outsider, a middle-aged woman, seemed to take Cooper’s instructions more seriously.

“Hold your candles up,” Cooper demonstrated and she heard Bran sigh as he walked around the group slowly, “I infuse the power of the flame so that it may burn away all negative energy. We pass through the smoke so that it may protect and shield this home.”

The sound of Bran clapping slowly drew attention back to him, “Are you quite done? It’s time to give the people what they’ve come for.”

Cooper knew her bindings weren’t going to work on everyone, if at all, but she had to try. She didn’t have the proper equipment in reach and now that four of the people in the room were skeptics it damaged the circle of empathy and the channel of openness.

“Come. Everyone, have a seat at the table. Let’s begin.”

All but the three young men seemed hesitant. Pulling up chairs and looking around the table Cooper knew this wasn’t going to go down how it had been planned. Cooper was meant to kick off the séance. She was supposed to be the medium, the vehicle for communication but it was clear that Bran was going to be doing it now.

“The spirits are already here trying to make contact. I want everyone in our circle to place a finger on the planchette,” Bran spoke as he touched the wooden stylus.

Everyone reached across the table, chairs dragging over the cement flooring closer to the table and fingers were placed on the planchette at Bran’s direction.

“Spirits, we are here. We are listening. I feel your energy all around. Give us guidance. Show yourself!”

Cooper closed her eyes and felt the chill of something along her back and breeze along her neck. Slowly, everyone in the circle began to gasp or mumble something under their breath about having felt the wind.

“Shit!” One of the guys laughed in surprise and turned in his chair to look behind himself.

“You,” Bran pointed at the man who had just laughed, “What is your name?”

Cooper could see the shadow behind him. Something, someone, was already there and it had already selected its first victim. It wasn’t a surprise that it would be a skeptic. A person who would not know they were being hunted. Ignorance is not always bliss.

“Fred,” he answered. The light above the table flickered softly and Cooper was surprised none of the outsiders found it odd that an old, abandoned house with no electricity had a light working. Marin’s face told Cooper she was absolutely terrified.

“He’s chosen you first,” Bran spoke darkly.

“What?” Fred laughed again and let go of the planchette.

“Do not let go from the circle!” Cooper shouted but it was too late. Suddenly Fred was pulled away from the table, his chair dragged into the dark shadow of the edge of the room and his cries for help were quieted nearly as soon as he had begun to scream.

The woman who had been sitting near the men started to panic, letting go of the circle and standing, “What is happening?”

“Don’t break from this circle! Keep your hands on this planchette. It’s the only thing we can do to protect you,” Cooper rushed out her warning.

One of the men got up from his chair and turned toward where Fred had been dragged, “Fred?”

“Please sit! Come back to the table!”

A candle that had been placed on the floor was suddenly illuminated and there were sharp inhales of breath and gasps as everyone in the room witnessed Fred’s limp body hanging from the ceiling.

“No! What the fuck?” The man turned to look at everyone at the table and pointed toward his lifeless friend, “What is this?”

The woman who was standing began to grasp her neck and struggle when a dark figure appeared behind her. She was being choked and pulled into the corner where Fred was hanging.

The third man stood and looked at Cooper, “This isn’t funny anymore.”

The overhead light flickered and illuminated everything behind the man and by the time everyone at the table could warn him, it was too late. The light fizzled out and then the room was left only lit by candles. The glimmer of the fire danced finickily on each of the wicks and cast an unstable glow over four outsiders who were hung in a row in the corner of the dark basement.

Gone.

There were only 6 left.

“Now that they’ve been taken out of the equation,” a strangely upbeat-sounding voice spoke. Raspy, dark, unmistakably male, “We can get down to business tonight.”

From the shadows appeared a tall young man with dark curls and nearly clear, jeweled eyes, and a young woman next to his side. Harry was pleased to be taking over this get-together.

Bran stood up and just as he was opening his mouth to speak Harry took the floor once again, ��No need to speak. This won’t take too long. And the Ouija board’s not necessary. Contact is made. I am the spirit that dwells in this house. This is my domain and you all have trespassed.”

Everyone was stuck in silence as they watched the haunted pair near the table. They looked just as alive as everyone else there if you didn’t pay close attention. If you didn’t know better. But if you were someone like Cooper you could surmise that they were sinister beings. Not quite dead but certainly not alive.

“I apologize for trespassing,” Cooper spoke softly, “I tried clearing the energy and making my presence known in the most gentle–“

“You’re cute,” Y/n spoke with an eerie smile, “Nothing that happens in this house is nice or gentle. You’ll see soon.”

“You haven’t met spirits like us before, Cooper,” Harry stated, “But we’re so glad you couldn’t shake the call of the house. We knew you’d bring us some company. You did very well to listen.”

Cooper shook her head trying to wrap her thoughts around what they were telling her.

“We didn’t need the four extras,” Y/n commented, “But the house will make use of them.”

“What are you going to do with us?” Bran spoke finally, still standing in his spot as he looked at Harry.

Instead of responding Harry just smiled toward Bran as a shadow covered his face from above. The room was already dark but soon Bran’s figure was completely shrouded in darkness. His mouth opened wide to shout but no sound could be heard.

“That… that is what we are going to do with most of you.” Harry watched on as Bran’s face contorted and the darkness slowly pulled him from the table in silence. As if he was disintegrating into smoke.

“But why?!” Russ stood up and his metal chair fell back into the cement floor.

“Because it’s part of the deal,” Harry’s voice was dark as he began to pace slowly behind everyone at the table, “Angra requires sacrifice. The house needs life. We take care of the house and feed it with the souls of the living.”

“Angra,” Cooper spoke the name quietly to herself. She knew of Angra. Angra was a high deity of destruction. A demonic force of greed, wrath, sexual deviancy, and envy. And he was there in that home, and it was clear he was orchestrating everything from the handsome ghost, Harry.

“That’s right, Cooper,” Y/n smiled, “This is his playground, and Harry and I get to keep it all running like a well-oiled machine. It’s fun for all of us, really.”

Y/n pulled at Cooper’s hand suddenly, “Stand back,” she whispered as Cooper was moved away from the table.

The moment Cooper was out of the circle she felt a cottony soft cocoon surround her. Her arms were pressed down to her sides, her legs melded together, unable to bend or part, her mouth sealed closed, but her eyes and ears opened as she watched and heard every one of the people at the table struggle and scream when they were being dragged away by dark shadows until they disappeared.

Harry and Y/n only stood and watched with scary grins and hands intertwined. The flickering of the candles intensified and a howling wind blew through the basement and brushed over Cooper’s face before there was nothing but blackness and the smell of damp cement and smoke from blown-out wicks.

“You need to understand what’s going to happen now, Cooper,” Harry’s voice could be heard but he could not be seen. “You are bound to this house and you will not be able to deny your desire to return here every year.”

Finally, one candle was lit, and then a second one. Harry and Y/n each held a candle in their hands as they stood before Cooper.

“It’s going to follow you. It might take a week. Or maybe just a day or so, but you’ll recognize the scent, the draw, the torment,” Harry's disturbing words crawled over Cooper’s body. She was still unable to speak or move. “But you’ll get used to it and soon you’ll enjoy coming to visit us.”

“Oh, and maybe you can bring some really attractive people for us. Yeah? Because… Jacob and Rick? I mean…” Y/n laughed and her flame jumped as if her breaths were real, “We make due, but sometimes it’s nice to really enjoy the body before we give them over to the house.”

It didn’t make sense to Cooper, what the ghosts were telling her. She was frightened and desperate to escape but she was stuck.

“Are you ready to be released, Cooper? Are you ready to finally begin living, to finally be free of the mundane?” Harry grinned and suddenly the basement door at the top of the steps was shoved open and Cooper found herself dropped to the cold floor. There were no lights. No candles, no table or chairs. It was as if nothing had ever happened in the basement.

With shaky hands and limbs, she gathered herself and began to ascend the stairs, gripping the railing as tight as she could and looking behind her in search of the spirits or the bodies or anything that was after her.

But the moment her feet hit the wood floor beyond the basement door she ran toward the exit. The door was open and she rounded the corner and dashed to the front in a panic as she reached for her cell phone to call the police. Inside the house, her cell phone had been dead. But the moment she stepped out it functioned normally again.

The house looked so unassuming in the daylight. So old and in disrepair, but it didn’t appear anything like what it really was. And the daylight was surprising. Y/n was expecting it to only be around 1 in the morning but according to her cell phone, it was already 9:30. She must have passed out in the basement for hours before finally getting out of the house.

As she was questioned by the first cop on the scene she couldn’t shake the feeling of needing to stare at the house. She recalled the warning from Harry. That something would follow her. Something would continue to draw her to it.

She didn’t know why she was chosen but her fate was sealed. She was just glad she was still alive. Harry and Y/n were also glad she was still alive. They would be waiting.

xx

The Halloween Call (can be read as a short follow up to this one shot)

Cop!Harry takes a call to check out the scene of crime at an old abandoned house, well known as the Slaughter House with a grim history.

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[gallusrostromegalus]

For AEIWAM:

Is Zaraki's able to see Zanpaktou spirits because he himself was once a weapon?

Any plans for Sode no Shirayuki? How does she feel about being considered the most beautiful Zanpaktou?

Point 1: Yes, also because he's the (adopted) son of a Minor Kami and a [SPOILER], but mostly because it's funny if he has no spiritual sense except that he can see sword spirits. Zanpaktou spend most of their time Resting in a little pocket dimension inside the Sword- all those showy super-attacks take a lot of energy, and they are fueled by but one person! But if a Zanpaktou wants to talk to their wielder or is bored and wants to watch The Shinigami Show, they can manifest outside the sword in a spirit form only visible to Their Wielder Specifically, and other Zanpaktou that are also currently in spirit form or in shikai/bankai. In general, one Shinigami cannot perceive the zanpaktou spirit form of another Shinigami, Unless Some Weird Shit Be Afoot, so it's a hell of a surprise to the spirits when they find out Zaraki can see them, as they (like everyone else) assumed he was Human. He can't see Zanpaktou when they're resting in the pocket dimension though, because they're in a different dimension. Kenpachi does have a bit of a problem though, in that Sword Spirits look just as real and normal to him as humans and other people, and he's seen such an enormous variety of People that he does not necessarily notice that a Zanpaktou is a Zanpaktou. He thought that was Just Some Guy, and he's the last person who should be commenting on appearances. He's learned from living in the heavily forested Far North where they are common, that Many Minor spirits like Koropokkuru and Kodama are invisible to most people and startle if seen, and that more material beings don't like it when he talks to them without being some kind of introduced first, so he's adopted an informal policy of generally ignoring people until they make the first move. ...Which is how nobody in the Gotei-13 noticed Kenpachi could see Zanpaktou until a solid 57 years after he became captain, when he lightly ruined one of Shunsui's moon-veiwing parties.

Point 2: She doesn't think much about it because she is not "Generally Considered" to be the most beautiful zanpaktou, even if she was voted to be so. In AEIWAM, Sode no Shirayuki is an Ice Apparition that takes the form of an Artic Hare and All the Chappy Gikon have a crush on her, and when all the Chappys took a vote, they agreed unanimously on the most beautiful, and espouse her virtues to anyone that will listen. She's usually busy beating the shit out of someone if there's a Chappy in her vicinity, and so she doesn't listen to them and is entirely unaware of their affections.

Point 3: Lots of the Zanpaktou Spirits look different than how they're depicted in the Zanpaktou Arc, because many of those designs were frankly Uninspired, especially compared to the ones that appear in the Manga. ...This post got kinda long though, Zanpaktou spirit appearances under the cut:

Zabimaru appears much as they do in the Manga, and writing their dialogue because they are two entities of different genders sharing a body, or at least, a butthole. Zabi The Monkey is still female and and Maru The Snake is still male, and they don't use pronouns so much as weild them like nunchucks. Kenpachi got on very well with them back when Renji was in the 11th and still do- many spirits are alarmed to be percieved, but Zabimaru was delighted and took a great deal of pleasure at making running rather cheeky commentary during meetings to (lovingly) agitate Renji and see if they could crack Zaraki's Pokerface.

Senbonzakura is one of the few Zanpaktou that semi-regularly manifests in a way humans and other mortals can see, a privlege granted to him by his exceptional age (he's almost as old as Ryujin Jakka and Shinken Hakkyoken) and the patronage of the Kuchiki clan. A great many people have seen him, but few notice that they have because Senbonzakura is a Tree. He appears as an enormous, ancient and beautiful cherry tree with a crooked root that is the perfect for leaning against and meditating, and is far and away the most stable member of the Kuchiki family, if only by virtue of his extensive root system. Kenpachi didn't actually notice Senbonzakura was a sword spirit the first time he saw him- the central courtyard of the Kuchiki manor is a perfectly normal place for a grand old tree like that. He realized what was going on and hour later when he came back down the same hall and realized the tree was now mirror image to it's previous position and had a good laugh at the Spirit's joke and they became friends, much to the detriment of Ginrei Kuchiki's blood pressure. It's bad enough having Yachiru regularly hop the fence to eat snacks and steal fish out of the pond, but Zaraki semi-regularly turning up to have the craic with the family sword is just too much. Senbonzakura is equally find of Kenpachi, because he took the teenage Byakuya under his wing and imparted on the boy the wisdom of a broader appreciation of Senbonzakura- "Sure, the blossoms are pretty and all but that's one week in a whole year of tree. If my opinion is worth anything, He's at his best in late summer when he's full of fruit." "-Count on a Bird to have properly nuanced opinions on trees." agrees Senbonzakura.

Rangiku's Haineko looks like a snow leopard with a coat of fine flaky ashes instead of fur, whose spots glow from the inside like a still-smoldering log. Of all the spirits, Hainkeo is the only one that really Unsettles Kenpachi- She doesn't actually make noise when she moves, is disturbingly well-camoufalged even in the city, and never flinches from making eye contact. Kenpachi isn't sure if Haineko is genuinely unsettling, or if she bothers him because he he was raised by Eagles and lost many friends and even some family to the ravages of cats.

Sogyo no Kotowari are still twins, but Ukitake has seen them change over time- they look like little boys now, but during Ukitake's early days, when the Soul Society was a much rougher place, the twins looked decidedly more Shadow Over Innsmouth. Even today, when they're really upset, they still have a tendency to go a little fish-eyed. They were another one Kenpachi did not realize was a Zanpaktou spirit and one night The Twins had come out to play in the garden during one of Shunsui's "Moon-Veiwing" parties, and Ukitake happened to mention he is the oldest of eight children. "Seven brothers and sisters!" Kenpachi laughed. "How can you, of all people, not have a spare sibling to babysit for you?" "Babysit? For me?" Jushiro blinked at him, confused. "My siblings used to call on me when my nieces and nephews were still young, but I'm a bachelor." "Don't tell me you're babysitting The Twins?" Kenpachi demanded, pointing at them "Here? Now? Surely you've got a less-busy sibling who didn't have a boozing session on his calendar that could watch them?" Jushiro followed out to where Kenpachi was pointing. "You... You can see them? The two little boys over there?" "I only got the one manky eye, Jushiro, the other works fine. Cute little shits." "You- They're- They're my Zanpaktou! You can see Zanpaktou spirits??" "Ohhhh, yeah I can see how getting a sitter for sword spirits would be tricky." Kenpachi nodded. "-THAT'S NOT THE RELEVANT POINT ZARAKI!"

The design I did like from the Zanpaktou filler arc was Minazuki- a shroud over an invisible body and a watery, disembodied voice? Choice combination of elegance and menace, befitting a Stingray. ...but definitely could be weirder. Imagine her cape as what looks like thick, mottled green fabric which an almost wet-looking sheen if she passes through direct sunlight- until you touch it and realize the cape is the smooth, slippery and exquisitely camouflaged flesh of a Potamotrygon brachyura Stingray, and you need to be REALLY careful about the little tail of fabric trailing behind her, because those spines aren't decorative. She shifts, standing up to become more humanoid and her single orange eye appears under her hood, floating in the middle of the space where her head should be. Or if she doesn't feel particularly humanoid, she bows and the eye passes through the fleshy cloak to the top of her head, now shaped more like a stingray but... gooey and uncertain around the edges, like she's bleeding into an invisible river around you. regardless of position, the eye always follows you, unblinking. Kenpachi is of the Opinion that Minazuki is the most beautiful of all the Zanpaktou, and insists he's not biased- Sure, he's madly in love with Retsu and therefore Minazuki because they are more one being than two, but he also damn near died of a freshwater stingray's spine once. "That just makes you more biased." Sighs Yumichika. "You're horny for anything that almost kills you."

Katen Kyokotsu appears much the same as she does in the Manga, and as part of her subterfuge to hide Shinken Hakkyoken, she doesn't distinguish between either of 'her' bodies when speaking. They're both her and if you try to distinguish between them you're clearly some kind of Idiot. Most humans are Idiots though. At the Moon viewing party where Kenpachi revealed he could see The Twins, there is BEDLAM. "You can see Zanpaktou spirits?" Unohana blinks. "-Just. In general and not when you're particularly close to someone?" she asks and when a puzzled Aizen frowns at her, she clips him under the ear before he can speak. "Yeah? It's not that big a deal, lots of people can see minor spirits-" "No! being able to see minor spirits at all is really rare, even among humans in the afterlife and Shinigami, and I've literally never heard of someone who can see Zanpaktou!" Ukitake yelps. "...Huh. 'Snot that great- they mostly just look like other people. Better dressed, usually, but it's really nothing." "How. uh. Long have you been able to see them?" Shunsui asks, suddenly nervous. "Since forever?" Zaraki shrugs, pouring himself another cup of tea. Shunsui stares at him, trying to puzzle something out. "You... didn't think it was Odd when Katen Kyokotsu appears next to me? She loves those meetings." "What, the Oiran with the purple hair and-? Ah." He realized as she manifested at the sound of her name, regarding him imperiously. "My Lady." Kenpachi nodded his head at her. Good Manners around the Oiran had been instilled into him by Madame Tsubaki with some force. There was a moment of silence while those assembled waited for an answer. "...Yeah I'm not gonna lie. I thought she was your Dominatrix or something." Kenpachi sighed. Katen Kyokotsu roared with laughter and Shunsui crumpled into a ball on the floor.

Apparently there's a charter limit I'm approaching, more later.

[writingjourney]

Ibi I always want your papa HCs. I live for them.

Tell me about IKNBS Copia... What was he like as a Cardinal? 👀

Sending love, I hope your anxiety pisses off and you have a wonderful evening. 💕

Sorry this took me so long to get to!!! And thank you for asking about him ♡

If you remember, 'strella mentioned that she and Copia had a significant encounter before he became Papa (during his Cardinal days) and they briefly talked about it a few chapters ago. However, you will actually all soon get to see this encounter and learn more about it, so I cannot spoil anything about that!

I feel like I have to briefly dip into my idea of some of the clergy mechanics so this reply is... long. We know Copia was Papa Nihil's assistent prior to becoming the face of the Ghost project and he was the Secretary of the Treasury. I like to think that Copia returned to the Clergy headquarters as he was appointed Cardinal and worked his way into this position (second most employee of the month awards!!). More under the cut...

Before this time Copia climbed the ranks like most everyone else who strives for a higher position within the clergy where lots of travelling through different chapters/branches is involved to become familiar with the clergy's operations. I personally HC the Papal headquarters to be in Sweden (very loosely though, my personal idea about the abbey is inspired by German architecture of medieval monasteries and so my descriptions are all vaguely Central European). However, while the Papal and administrative headquarters are there (a region well famous for the popularity of metal) I imagine that the educational headquarters are in Italy where the presence of the clergy is also very strong (as a counterweight to the Catholic Church).

The European branches are the oldest ones and are deeply rooted in their respective regions (in my head of course, this is all personal HCs and not rooted in real life sources, I deviate a bit for the sake of creating the Clergy as an actual entity). I like to think that in Europe worshippers of Lucifer established a presence as a counterweight to the dogmatic Catholic Church early on and that these individual organisations and groups later all fell under the roof of our clergy.

Copia therefore grew up in Italy and received most of his education there, especially in Rome where he studied. He also specifically spent a lot of time in Florence as a young bishop as I mentioned in the Postcard chapters. While he climbed ranks he also spent significant time in other European countries as well as the US (where the clergy has also established a pretty big presence somewhat recently, talking about the past century as they brought the Ghost project there while young Nihil was the face of it, plus we can assume Copia was conceived there, in my head Sister goes back to Europe after Nihil fucks up though). The Ministry's branch there is still very involved as it's located conveniently for work in the music industry.

Now, Copia was always very studious, hard-working and resilient, so he climbed the ranks somewhat fast. After Copia became a Cardinal he returned to the HQs as I already mentioned and spent many years working hard in the treasury department. I like to think that he took his clerical duties very seriously as well as the work with the congregation itself, so he was/is quite popular as a spiritual guide/advisor. Despite all this I imagine he was pretty lonely. Even though Sister had always been a somewhat permanent figure in his life he was uprooted many times throughout the years. While he reunited with his brothers that he had spent some time with over the years whenever stationed at the same branch (their relation is never confirmed by Nihil but... you know, they figured it out) and grew closer with them it was still hard for him to fully settle which is one of the reasons he worked so hard.

During the time ‘strella shows up, Terzo was just appointed Papa (if you remember she was hired to paint his portrait). By then Copia had been there for a while, was an established figure there, and while new faces were not a rarity, she immediately stood out to him simply because the nature of their encounter was very memorable. However, she very obviously avoided him after officially joining as a Sister of Sin and even after he became the head of the Ghost project. He was very busy though, so while he worked on music and continued his clerical work, their paths only crossed rarely. Those who have read the story actually know the rest already or will come to know soon. But yes, this is how I imagine his path :)

[thatpodcastkid]

Magnus Archives Relisten, MAG 13 Alone

If a ghost tells you to turn left in a forest, and no one's around to hear it, do you still get hit by a car? My apologies to Ms.Herne for the tasteless and offensive humor. MAG 13 analysis, spoilers ahead!

Facts: Statement of Naomi Herne regarding the funeral of her fiancé Evan Lukas. Statement given January 13, 2016.

Statement Notes: RIP Evan Lukas. RIP king. You would have loved Bo Burnham's Inside.

It's so exciting to have our first live statement. The beginning of the episode stands out because it establishes that the digital recorders not only fail frequently, but at specific times. It is likely that by this point Jon understands the tape recorders must be used for the "real" statements.

Naomi's behavior at the beginning of the episode is also a bit strange. For one, she states that a paranormal investigator laughed at her for suggesting the Magnus Institute. I've always found it odd that investigators like Melanie mock the institute or find it illegitimate because they are an academic institution. They do extensive research, have significant funding, and even though they don't actively interfere in paranormal occurrences, they appear to be conducting and publishing legitimate studies. Why are they disregarded so often?

Naomi also appears actively antagonistic towards Jon. She needs his help, yet still ices him out. This is exemplative of her unconcious commitment to remain alone. Even when she asks him to stay while she gives the statement, she doesn't form any connection with him.

The religious aspects of this episode are so profound. Herne had found solace in religion her whole life. The only person she aside from Lukas and her mother that she could form a connection with was her priest. Yet, in her moment of desperation and fear, when she seeks shelter in the church, the door is locked. Her priest had advised Naomi to bond with others, and while she does get close with Evan, she doesn't actually make more friends and instead depends on religion to give her a sense of connection. But religion alone couldn't help her when everything fell apart.

The idea of being locked out from your religion is also particularly powerful. Being metaphorically and literally locked out of her religion amplified Naomi's loneliness and drove her further into misery.

Lukas' death, while not necessarily supernatural, has this particularly stinging bit of symbolism. A man from a strongly connected yet chronically isolated dies of a genetic broken heart.

The "turn left" line is frightening because I can't pinpoint where it came from. There seems to be a few possibilities:

A) It actually was the dead Evan Lukas. His ghost was using the car crash to jar her out of the Lonely and save her. This insinuates that he wasn't killed by an illness, but by his family or at least some aspect of the Lonely which absorbed him.

B) Evan Lukas had been killed/absorbed by the Lonely, but he wasn't the one warning Naomi. The Lonely had taken and brainwashed him, compelling him to force Naomi towards the car in an attempt to kill her.

C) Evan Lukas' ghost was stuck in the Lonely, and in an uncontrolled spiritual state, thought killing Naomi could reunite them and free him from loneliness.

C) It wasn't Evan Lukas or his spirit, but a manipulation of his voice by the Lonely/the Lukas family to kill Naomi for invading their space and taking one of them away.

Entity Alignment: Pretty much in the title. Great introduction to the Lonely, really gets to both the heart of the fear and the methods it uses.

Some people have mentioned the elements of the Buried in this episode because of the open coffins, and while I do think it's present, these coffins are more so an extension of the Lonely. In the cemetery, Naomi is not afraid of being buried alive or of dying, but of dying alone. Hence the gravestone she carries out with her reading "Forgotten."

I also noticed Jon's Eye abilities beginning to develop in this episode. While he certainly isn't compelling Naomi to speak, he is certainly leading her. Naomi is mad at him, she doesn't want to speak, but his mention of the stone and attempt to diffuse the situation with a joke urge her to give the statement.

Character Notes: This introduction to the Lukases is very frightening. Very classic "isolated rich family" horror, but taken to another level because the isolation is the fear, not just a storytelling device.

[windvexer]

Hey! Got a question if you don't mind.

So ive been working with one of my deities for over a year, maybe 2, and she has been such a wonderful presence. Shes kind, gentle, and really helps me get through stuff. She gives me wonderful advice and is like a mother to me. The vibes are always peaceful and safe.

Recently i asked her how i can grow stronger in my craft and give my spells a bigger punch. Since i don't feel comfortable with something like an animal sacrifice, she suggested i offer a few drops of my own blood. She explained that creating a bond with her in that way could allow her to help more, and that there is no way she'd ever take something like life force or anything, only the physical blood and nothing else. I felt safe about her request and liked the idea.

Now i haven't done it yet but someone told me today that i shouldn't do that, that its very dangerous and my deity is out to get me.

I know this is most likely fear mongering, but it still scared me. What is your opinion? Do you agree this person doesn't know what their talking about or do you think i should be worried? Thanks

Things which have more power are not inherently evil, and entities which engage in that power are not automatically liars and parasites.

Feeding your blood to any entity (or however it's framed - offering, sacrificing, etc) isn't something to be done lightly, because it does create a stronger bond between you and that thing. I strongly recommend asking your goddess if there are going to be new levels of commitment and engagement that are created if you take this path. Sometimes, feeding of blood can be initiatory in ways we don't expect - and it has nothing to do with "taking life-force."

But the idea that the gods know how to form stronger links with individual humans, and sometimes agree to engage in that practice, doesn't mean they are "out to get us."

Asking a god how to make your spells stronger, and they recommend something widely and popularly known to make spells stronger, is IMO not a red flag or even a leap in logic.

You didn't say whether or not you're a witch, but you did message a witchcraft blog, so:

I believe that if accumulating power is your aim, there's really only so far you can go without starting to make some serious commitments.

Feeding your blood to an entity with the goal of forming a stronger bond and empowering your magic is a commitment, no doubt about it.

But that's what it is. It's a sacrifice. It's sorcery. You used spiritual techniques to work with your god and discover the next step forward. You use learning to understand the significance and impact of blood in magic. You choose to travel down that path and see where it takes you, or you decline and seek other options.

I don't want to decry your friend. Maybe they've had very bad personal experiences with blood magic. I have, that's for sure. I've also had bad experiences with letting the wrong entities in. But my pitfalls weren't so much a blood magic thing as it was a 20-year-old-idiot-realizes-magic-is-real, predictable-results-ensue sort of thing.

So I say think it through, consider your options, and do what feels right. Just be prepared for things to maybe get a little more intense than you thought they would.

But there's no way to get around that part. Stronger magic lends itself to more intense experiences. There's no way to dive into the deep end while staying dry.

[scarlet--wiccan]

Do you think there’s a meaningful distinction between “witches” and other magic users in the marvel universe (beyond, potentially, gender)?

Witch and warlock are obviously treated more or less as gender-swapped synonyms and both have somewhat negative connotations that don’t get associated with people like Dr Strange (afaik), but I feel like there might be more to it, I’m just not sure. Calling Nico or Billy a witch feels more accurate than calling Cleo or Victor a witch, but I can’t figure out if this is grounded in anything besides my own opinion

Yes, actually! We can identify social, cultural, mythical and practical factors distinguishing "witches" from other types of magicians. However, those distinctions are not always clear. As you noted, the word "witch" is often used very broadly to describe any female spellcaster. As a reader, you'll have to rely on context to determine whether the writer is denoting a specific type of magician, or just using gendered language.

Functionally speaking, all forms of magic are basically interchangeable. Most spellcasters have the same powers and abilities, and writers don't always put in the effort to make them feel unique. That doesn't necessarily bother me, so long as they are tailoring the language and imagery to suit each character's background, but that doesn't happen as often as I'd like. Again, you'll just need to use critical thinking to figure out when a lack of distinction is really just a lack of creativity and effort.

With that out of the way, let's break down what we do know about witchcraft, and the history of witches, in the Marvel world!

Social: Witches have historically gathered in covens, settlements and societies, and have even endured literal witch-hunts. In real life, this is not quite the truth, but it Marvel comics, we can say that witches comprise distinct societies which suffer distinct forms of persecution. We also know that many witches belong to a magical lineage, and that these witch families often use a special naming convention to identify themselves with unique colors and symbols, indicating that witches have unique customs and traditions setting them apart.

Cultural: In Marvel comics, all forms of magical or spiritual folk practice are literally real, in the same way that all mythologies and polytheistic religions are literally real-- Asgard is a real place, Thor is a real person, and spells have real power. Witchcraft is typically represented as a form of European folk magic. Other traditions, such as vodou, voodoo, and multiple forms of Indigenous spirituality have also been demonstrated, and are often grouped together, along with witchcraft, under a broad category of "cultural magic." As shown in Midnight Suns, many of these traditions from around the world have a certain shared history, as the Coven at Mount Wundagore included representatives from numerous cultures.

Mythological: "Witchcraft" itself exists as an abstract entity, like Death, Nightmare, or Eternity. She is the source of witchcraft's power, but also a symbolic representation of all witches and the natural balance of magic, and she is sometimes worshipped as a goddess. Witchcraft resides at the heart of the Witches' Road, an Inner Plane uniquely accessible to witches that transcends time and is connected to many of the mythical realms. Witchcraft may also be intrinsically connected to chaos magic-- ancient witches were responsible for binding and harnessing Earth's natural chaos magic; Witchcraft, the entity, is shown consorting with an abstract Chaos entity; and we know that Wundagore and the Darkhold are connected to many cults and covens throughout history.

Practical: Unfortunately, this is the weakest area. For a brief time, Wanda's magical practice borrowed a lot of Wiccan motifs, which was problematic in its own right, but in modern comics, we just don't get to see enough of how witches, specifically, do magic. Most characters who practice some form of traditional magic have a closer connection to natural elements and the spirit world, and they may have particular powers related to their background. Doctor Voodoo is a great example, although the actual depiction of his culture is deeply flawed. Scarlet Witch (2015) introduced certain unique abilities, such as witches' sight; specific mechanics around the cost of magic; and a style of spellcasting that relied on Wanda's knowledge of real-world languages and magical symbols. Billy and Nico also use varying degrees of wordplay, so I like this approach and I would focus on building that into a cohesive magical system if I was a writer.

[eatmangoesnekkid]

We live in a world where women still go to doctors to find out what is going on with their bodies. When I heard a woman who centers the unseen and spiritual and calls herself a “Priestess” say that she needed to go to the doctor to find out what's going with her body, I was in shock. Not to shame or judge her but I forget how the female collective thinks and perceives as it relates to their bodies, because as a female, as a woman, as a woman who is connected to her heart, womb, and pussy, as a woman who lives the Priestess path, as a mythical playful ancient spirit who lives in a highly pigmented melanated avatar, as a root posterior chain dancing expression, there is absolutely no way any doctor would know more about the inside or outside of my body more than me.

Please consider the depth of divine knowing you hold within your body when you no longer believe that you should go to the doctor to find out what is going on with YOUR body. To hold a high level awareness of the body your soul lives inside of is incredibly valuable and imbues you with precise clear sensation, not only for you, but for your loved ones and this world. You sense and feel what is going on with your body and if you decide to go to the doctor, you wonderfully go merely to receive a second opinion or confirmation. This is what being connected to the divine feminine becomes a real lived experience and not just a bunch of memes. Women have been taught to fear our bodies, to distrust them, and to give our power away to practitioners, doctors, lovers, and entities outside of ourselves. We have not be taught to learn our bodies and how to tend to our vessel so that we can optimize our health and vitality and capacity for more that allows us to create a body and life that we actually have a relationship with and adore.

Modern women spend so much time in their heads or just talking all the time and as a result have very little energy to expand their feeling-body capacities which means that they have no real craft. Learn to sit in stillness. Go into the dark and get quiet. Develop a listening practice with the instrumentation of music like harp sounds from the likes of Alice Coltrane, Dorothy Ashby, Valérie Milot, Andreas Vollenweider, Loreena McKennitt, etc. Become more aware of subtle details communicated from your body. Doing so will tell everything you need to know about what is living within you (and what is dead).

Once a day I spend some amount of quality time with myself. Hands on-and sometimes hands inside. Temple-tending I call it. It is not masturbation or sexual, as lovely as those experiences can be. If I do orgasm, it is NOT from force, effort, deliberate, intentional, or a concern. Orgasm is always present in our body and when conditions are harmonious, it will happen on its on. The only reason I understand my body and have radically shifted my quality of health is because I have spent quality time with it. That means that I can push out new work in a fast-paced way because my hands-on touch with myself, my taking time to be with my body, is also part of my work and living in my dharma.

But temple-tending, as I experience it, is an actual listening practice. It is how I listen to and connect with what my body is communicating *TO ME.* I don’t care how tired I feel, it is such a gift to myself for me to take time out to feel this body. It not only activates my vagus nerve, but floods my body with oxytocin. At minimum, I slow stretch, massage my breasts and consciously and deliberately say kind things to my skin. I truly believe that it is one of the reasons I haven’t had a cold, bellyache, cramps, virus, or been sick in any other way in decades.

Be willing to make your own self-touch part of your daily practice. It doesn't matter how long the practice is, but the more you ritualize your own self-touch, the more you build a real relationship with your body. Then your desire/need to touch your body becomes second nature and less odd, goal-oriented, or a kind of chore. You won't have ever have to "make time" or remind yourself to do it. It will be like brushing your teeth. —India Ame’ye

[will-o-the-witch]

I'm new to witchcraft, I'm starting this getting to know exactly which deity to worship, I've been contacted by Lilith in 2 occasions, but I'm not jewish. The first time she presented to me as my "witch mother". After that I meditated and question if she truly is my "witch mother", so I had another dream with her, this 2nd is too long to describe. I've had other dreams related to her, but my question is what to do exactly? I can't ignore her, also, she seemed a complex mix of goddess and demon

I would double check your discernment on identifying her as Lilith. The common depiction of Lilith is heavily bastardized from her actual lore, so it’s likely the vibes you’re getting actually correspond better with other entities who may be open. I have a post about what to do if you believe you’ve been contacted by a closed entity that I can link to when I’m not on mobile.

Also, you do have the option to respectfully decline if you really believe it’s her. Real people over subjective spiritual experience, always. Religion isn’t an excuse to disrespect people, yk?

[simplegenius042]

Music Monday

Tagged by @josephseedismyfather

Tagging @socially-awkward-skeleton @shallow-gravy @inafieldofdaisies @strangefable @strafethesesinners @direwombat @derelictheretic @titiagls @wrathfulrook @carlosoliveiraa @adelaidedrubman @thewanderer-000 @henbased @josephslittledeputy @direwombat @g0dspeeed @nightbloodbix @afarcryfrommymain @voidika @ladyoriza @florbelles @vampireninjabunnies-blog @minilev @snake-in-the-garden @softtidesworld @onehornedbeast @cassietrn @chazz-anova @megraen @deputyash @dephellseed @deputy-morgan-malone @skoll-sun-eater @fourlittleseedlings @la-grosse-patate @cloudofbutterflies92 @starsandskies and @i-am-the-balancing-point + anyone else who wants to join in. Here's my taglist.

Three songs for The UnTitledverse, Wings And Horns' original spin off trilogy and Far Cry The Silver Chronicles below the cut.

First is "My Ordinary Life" for the main antagonist of The UnTitledverse, Zachariah the Orchestrator, the "Hand at Fate's Table" and the second-borne Eldritch that is the center point of majority of the multiverse's issues.

"They tell me that I'm special, I smile and shake my head I'll give them stories to tell friends about the things I said They tell me I'm so humble, I say I'm turning red They let me lie to them and don't feel like they've been misled They give so much to me, I'm losing touch get me? Served on a silver platter, ask for second they just let me

They tell me I'm a god, I'm lost in the fascade Six feet off the ground at all times I think I'm feelin' odd No matter what I make, they never see mistakes Makin' so much bread, I don't care that they're just being fake They tell me they're below me, I act like I'm above The people blend together but I would be lost without their love

Can you heal me? Have I gained too much? When you become untouchable you're unable to touch Is there a real me? Pop the champagne It hurts me just to think and I don't do pain."

Silva may not be aware of it, but she actually has a rivalry with the Voice, or at least her supernatural Third Eye does. Abridged explanation of the Third Eye: some mystical entity commonly tied to the human soul but doesn't necessarily need to be to help its user, usually just retains memories and personality to give some back to the renewed soul upon reincarnating so the variants of the person don't become carbon copies, however instances like Silva and Paul who don't have a soul (due to the circumstances of their "births") they instead only build up their own Third Eye to protect themselves, which gives them back their memories, personality and skills into their next lives deep in their subconscious, so while they don't consciously remember most familiar things they instinctively do and gravitate towards that. The Third Eye also has an OP mode and can enhance the user who is aware and works symbiotically with it in ways humans back in the beginning of the multiverse could do. Paul realized this and gave Silva some subtle lessons (never explicitly saying what it was for) so Silva just thought it was meditation to make her more spiritual with her soul or something and doesn't actually realize until much, much later in her life that she's powerful enough to kill a God if she wanted to. There's a lot more for the Third Eye but I'll explain in a more detailed post.

Anyway, the Voice genuinely hates Silva for constantly foiling its plans in some shape or form, especially by the time of Silva's Hope, as the Voice hasn't exactly made itself look capable of governing one corner of the universe to its extremely cruel and unforgiving superior. And since the Voice is very biased and hypocritical on why "a deputy woman trying to live a normal life is more deserving of torment and needless suffering than the the prophet who killed his daughter for it and the other prophet who gaslit, gatekeeped, manipulated, mansplained, manwhored and manslaughtered his way through life", once Silva becomes aware of the Voice, its on sight. Anyway song below:

"Kill me again, again and again But I come back knowing so much more Learning all your tricks I'll make you sick Because the truth is...* I'll make you quit."

"Try to stay [first], [have to] stay first** You're still good-good, admit to this Don't fight anymore, it's such a snore One more step, and I'll make it war."

"And I still love the way I "hurt" you."

"It's determination, whoa-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-yeah Whoa-oh-oh-oh, whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-yeah.

I love the way, I love the way I love the way you keep on trying I love the way (I love the way), I love the way (I love the way) I love the way you keep on dying."

(* = Obviously I had to emit Sans name due to that probably not being the Voice's name ** = The Voice is against Silva, and since Frisk is from Undertale, I had to adapt the lyrics here a bit)

A song for the unnamed original trilogy I'm working on, which spins off from the events of Wings And Horns, but focusing on two characters who appeared in it, unnamed but can confirm they're both women, with one being trans. This pair are the first humans to have ever explored the Multiverse, and the trilogy will be following their story in life, navigating the aftermath of the abolishing of the soulmate system, discovering + exploring the Multiverse, and seeking out the Wheel of Reincarnation in the Afterlife, while facing internal and external problems, the most prominent being the Mad Kin of Carnage himself, Discord.

"I'm born to run, down rocky cliffs Give me grace, bury my sins Shattered glass and black holes Can't hold me back from where I need to go

Whoa-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh

Yellow hills and valleys deep I watch them move under my feet Stranger things, have come and gone To see the world and take the throne

Don't hold back Oh, I won't hold back

I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run I'm gonna spend my time like tomorrow won't come Do whatever I want, like I'm born to run

I wanna see Paris (Hey), I wanna see Tokyo I wanna be careless (Hey), even if I break my bones I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run.

A winding road, where strangers meet To feel the love of a warm drink My body moves, it's speaking loud Don't have to say what I'm thinking now

Don't hold back Oh, I won't hold back

I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run I'm gonna spend my time like tomorrow won't come Do whatever I want, like I'm born to run

I wanna see Paris (Hey), I wanna see Tokyo I wanna be careless (Hey), even if I break my bones I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run.

All these things, I've seen and done I live my life like I'm born to run All these things, I've seen and done I live my life like I'm born to run All these things, I've seen and done (I was born, born, born, born, born to run) I live my life like I'm born to run (I was born, born, born, born, born to run)

I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run I'm gonna spend my time like tomorrow won't come Do whatever I want, like I'm born to run

I wanna see Paris (Hey), I wanna see Tokyo I wanna be careless (Hey), even if I break my bones I'm gonna live my life like I'm gonna die young Like it's never enough, like I'm born to run.

Oh, oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh!"

[voidscreamintheories]

HtP Theory: Blue Man in a Pound Land 1 of 2

Spoilers for Hunter the Parenting This is part 2 of a series exploring the potential identity of Big D, and what we can do with that information. Part 1 here

The Blue Man. Who is he? Well, obviously HE IS THE BLUE MAN. And also an allegory for capitalism. As I understand it there are organizations in WoD who are big capitalist nightmare companies that are either ran by demons/devils or they try to shove demons into their products to get demons into the heads of their customers (maybe both at the same time!). So it would not be out of the realm of possibility for “Line must go up” Blue Man to be a demon of some variety. The whole interaction about GROWTH and inevitability is obvious capitalism satire, yes, but I think also points towards the Blue Man as being only part of a greater whole. Perhaps similar to a branch of a chain. Though in this case the corporation is some evil cabal of demons from hell. The suggestion to “invest” may have been a classic “join us and experience great power” villain trope. Similarly “We are coming soon” implies that this group of demons is planning to break out of hell soon.

“If he’s a demon doesn’t that mean he is a fallen angel like D? How come D needs to inhabit some frail old guy to be on earth? Didn’t you say that demons might need a bunch of magic users to call them up?” Great questions all, and ones that I think actually help the idea of him being some kind of fiendish being. If he is the same type of demon as what I theorize Big D is, a fallen angel, then he doesn’t have to be a good one like D. Some of the fallen decide to roll with the punches and just lean into being evil bastards, perhaps the Blue Man is one such high torment being. Or perhaps he’s another kind of malevolent entity that my unawakened mind calls “demon” because he fits a lot of criteria that I associate with those creatures, even if he is something else. One example here is the possession of a frail body/soul: On one hand, maybe the old, oxygen deprived body we see IS the host of the Blue Man, an aged and hypoxic man. On the other hand, and what I believe to be the case, maybe the Blue Man doesn’t need to be fully over the threshold and on earth to do whatever it is he wants to do, and that leads into who might be calling him. At the end of the audiolog we see the manager call up the Tremere regent and she informs her that D found the pit, which she calls the “entrance”. So if the Blue Man was called by a group of magic users, I think I know a certain bunch who would fit. However, let’s discuss that at the end of this theory.

I think it’s made clear to us by the end of D’s part in the audiolog that the encounter we witnessed was not happening in the flesh and blood real world. The distorted sound during the encounter, and the evidence D himself notes indicate it was some kind of mental/spiritual encounter. BUT D does get a physical blender, and a very nice one at that, so what does this mean? I think the Blue Man and the 99 pound shop represent a classic Faustian bargain. A deal with the devil where you get precisely what you want, and it might even seem like a good deal on the surface (a very expensive blender for only 99p!), but the REAL price is more than you thought you were bargaining for. In this case that may have been literal, D’s horror at being in a 99 POUND store instead of 99 pence, but I also suspect figuratively. There is no way D just gets that blender and walks away, there will likely be some devil-deal cost somewhere down the line. HOWEVER, D didn’t pay the full cost of the item. Giles spotted him a pence because he was one short. I don’t think this moment was put in as a throwaway. Either this means D has a way to wiggle out of the deal and associated cost on a technicality: He didn’t pay the full price and thus the deal didn’t actually happen. This would fit with some of D’s behaviour around legal dealings, such as not TECHNICALLY being divorced from Occam since D never signed the papers. Back to Giles though, there is also the potential that him chipping in to paying for the blender means he is now roped into whatever punishment is coming D’s way.

Have to split this post up again, too many words, second half here

[leannan-sithe]

I’m wondering where I can learn about like, godspouse courtship processes, marriage rituals, what might be required of each sides in a marriage/relationship, etcetera. Details like that. I get its individual to each Deity or spirit/entity and each relationship, but like, I’m trying to find specific examples.

To be clear, I get that this is a very personal thing, I don’t blame the sources I’ve found for not going in depth. I’m not currently trying to get into a relationship with a Deity or other entity, and I don’t think I’m receiving interest. I just keep getting fixated on this. For some reason I keep ending up down rabbit holes searching, wanting concrete examples, as if I do have a relationship to figure out, even though I don’t. Sorry, if that’s weird. I was just wondering if you had resources that could help.

Yeah! I understand the drive to learn more. If you ever find yourself wanting to engage with the practice with a specific entity, send me a DM and we'll chat.

(You can also DM me to talk in general, I don't mind that, and I don't post callout posts unless it's like the person who dated the ghosts of serial killers and was super racist. Community-level threats get @'d, not randoms with opinions I don't agree with.)

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but there aren't godspouse courting processes or specific rituals, nor are there requirements. I can give specific examples (and I will) but there's not... anything set in stone. Sorry.

I'm going to fictionalize and slightly dramatize some stories of people I know, with changed names and details.

You worshipped Cernunnos for years, getting into the practice because they reminded you of your childhood fascination with the woods and wilderness and learning about how to build shelters and traps and stuff. It started when you were 17 and were a "baby pagan," just learning about how worship and spirituality might look to you. You grew up in a Christian household, so you just don't know what to think or do. You make a habit of talking at Cernunnos over time, then when you get into spirit work, you start to get communication back (in signs, divination, dreams, etc). You joke and laugh and do things with Cernunnos, having fun with your godly buddy. One day, you're chatting with a friend who brings up godspousing, talking about specific things like dating or flirting. You make a joke about how "if that's godspousing, then you've been godspousing for at least a year." Your friend internet-looks at you blankly. Oh, shit. You've been doing godspousing for at least a year. The next divination you do is effectively a smug look from Cernunnos and a request for a "real date". Have you been dense enough to not notice they were FLIRTING flirting with you?

You're a Hellenic polytheist and you have a broad group of deities you work with in various capacities. You're fond of Hera and Aphrodite in particular, but you leave out offerings and whatnot when you want to appreciate the other deities. Or ask for their help in matters. You've been doing this for 10 years, it seems like. Since you were a preteen, and now you're an adult. You've been seeing a lot of things lately, the same sort of symbols. Lets say it's a specific fruit or color. That symbol has been popping up everywhere. What's going on? You mull on it for a few months until someone gifts you one of those fruits out of nowhere. Confused, befuddled, you leave the fruit on your altar for Hera to have. Over the next week you get these feelings that something is wrong, and you ask a friend to do divination for you -- your cards aren't doing shit for answers. The friend says there's a goddess that wants your attention. What? The friend also says that Hera is annoyed at you. You spend the next week pulling cards, looking into mirrors, analyzing your dreams before realizing she didn't like something on the altar. The fruit, maybe? The mystery goddess comes to mind randomly. You look the fruit up and-- of course it's Persephone, why wouldn't it be Persephone. You spend the next two years adding her to your roster of godly friends, until she starts dropping signs in your lap like mad. Daily, even. It takes another 6 months to figure out that she wants to *date* you. What. Why. How. You're wracked with worry about hubris and guilt, before you finally give in and join a godspousing group at your friend's recommendation. It takes you another 3 months to actually ask Persephone on a date. You do dates, shift her to central in your worship schedule, and.... just in case, you double check with Hades via divination that it's cool. (It is. He gives his blessing.) After a year of dating her, you start getting ring imagery everywhere. Repeatedly. She's proposing. You panic for another few months before writing out marriage oaths -- no one in the GSing community ever gives their vows/oaths verbiage in full as examples to others, it's a personal, sometimes sacred thing that we're all a little embarrassed about, you just gotta wing it -- and while you're practicing, Persephone pops in your mind and says "I do". Wait, no, that was. That wasn't the real one. She sends you mental images of putting rings on fingers. You spend a few weeks discussing it with her (and panicking) because you don't quite understand if it was legitimate or not, and it hurts your feelings a little that she just did it while you were practicing, but you come to the decision that you actually do like the idea of being formally married to her. So you decide it's the for real one.

You're in your early twenties, you decide your life is a bit boring so you decide to get into divination, specifically tarot. One of your dumbass woowoo friends you had a crush on was into them, and you kind of liked the art. In learning about tarot, you learn about witchcraft and crystals and stuff. Okay, sure. You'll do that. In a year, you're googling plant correspondences on tumblr whenever you cook a recipe. You always make your coffee with intention. But it still doesn't feel fine? Something was missing. You get into the wiccan side of tumblr witchcraft, and start adding deities into your lineup, making altars and worshipping any one of them that strikes your fancy. It costs a bit of money but it's worth feeling like you're doing something right. Eventually that gets boring for you and you sort of move on to other things. A few years later you get back into the woowoo stuff, and start thinking about the deities again. You feel a little guilty but don't get any closure about those worship relationships. It feels awkward. You swerve back into divination, choosing to pick up runes instead. You learn about how Odin is weird and masculine and can be evil. Whatever, you just want the runes. A few months in, someone questions an offhand remark you make about Odin being bad. You get corrected, learn a bit more about him, and... he sounds cool? You've known about the concept of godspousing for a while now, but you're a little leery about the whole worship thing, especially since it didn't work out last time. You approach Odin but you're CLEAR you don't want a relationship like a godspouse. You work with him for a few months. He shows up in your dreams as a variety of characters, you start to associate him with certain tv shows and watch those to bond. You started out fearing him a bit and worshipping him in a very rigid way, designing your own prayers and protocols, but now he's just the weird dude that watches Warehouse 13 with you and calls dibs on half your nachos when you make them. (You eat them anyways.) Eventually, you have a dream in which he kisses you. Um. Okay. No. You ignore it. You don't say anything to him, you just pretend it never happened. It happens again. This time, you sit down and have a conversation. You weren't interested in dating him. He's interested in dating you. ....... Well, maybe you're interested in dating him now. After all, he's not the terrifying figure you thought he was. You set a date in 6 months upon which you'll give him an answer, and tell him you expect him to behave until then and any misbehavior means you're booting him out of your life. He does behave, but another of your gods has to kick him in the ass for toeing the line. In 6 months, you tell him that you can date, and you set a bunch of rules out. No showing me imagery of the ocean or deep water, you have a phobia. No bothering me at work. Don't send me sexual stuff unless I ask for it. He reluctantly follows through but he does have to be reminded. Eventually, you dating Odin is just. The thing that you're doing. You don't really want to label it. It gives you some amazing sex dreams and weird fantasies that you're embarrassed about, but there's a lot of people who think about Odin that way online, yeah?

I genuinely don't know what information I can give you, but again, feel free to DM. Hope these were entertaining at least.

[venusskissed]

࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜୨୧࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛୨୧࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜୨୧࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛୨୧࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜

Spiritual Things I Adore Wholeheartedly

𝒜ᱹ ֢ 🦢̼ࣳ this is just a list of spiritual things I adore or find interesting and yet to see people talk about. Not to say no one talks about this, I just don’t see it as often! I am sure many of these things are very well known.~ 🫶🏻

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . the people you name a child after will heavily influence how they turn out later in life. for example if you were to name your daughter after princess diana they could most possibly grow up to be a very big hearted person, however it could also mean they will have hardships in their life which influence that.

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . aside from angel numbers it's also important to note what animals you see around yourself most often. (in real life, tv, social media, cinematic pieces ect) most if not all animals have spiritual meanings associated with them. this isn’t that mindblowing, but I do find it interesting.

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . ghosts are literally just chill. like yeah, I am willing to bet there are rude ones out there, but most of them are very chill. I had a ghost come up to me before just so she can show me her earring (that I assume she died with) because it looked almost identical to one I was looking at. so most of them are really just people who are just hanging around.

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . also! demons cannot enter your body unless you allow them to or had become scum on earth. (as in actively take enjoyment in harming those unable to stand up to the injustice) you cannot be possessed, things cannot just enter your body. I see a lot of people be scared of this when spiritually experimenting and it makes me so disheartened to see them anxious about it.

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . I am pretty sure a lot of people know this because of cultural reasons but as long as you aren’t scared of ghosts/demons they cannot harm you. as in cannot attack your body, drain your energy etc. this most likely isn’t true with many other entities but I do think it’s an useful piece of information.

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . people usually freak out if a dead loved one communicates with them through dreams but like.. you can do that while you are awake too! you can go into their dream, dream the same thing as them or even write them dream letters. the possibilities are endless. it’s quite fun, especially if you love freaking people out for laughs.

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . it’s also important to note that you can still be soulmates with someone even if you currently aren’t. think about a person you know is your soulmate.. wether or not you believe in reincarnation you have had lives without each other before, it’s the dedication to the bond you two share that made you two soulmates. I think it’s beautiful!

꒰ ৎ୭ ꒱ . . . most major religions (not saying all) share the same beliefs and values told in different ways, with small tiny twists to them. it would be fascinating to see what’s the things they all share in common aside from respect, kindness and morals.

for now, that’s all. thank you for your precious time, sweet little lamb. 🫶🏻

࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜୨୧࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛୨୧࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜୨୧࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛୨୧࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜࿚⃛࿙⃛͜

[thatpodcastkid]

Magnus Archives Relisten 9, MAG 9, A Father's Love

Julia Montork.

That's it end of post.

Jk jk this is my MAG 9 analysis. Spoilers ahead!

Facts: Statement of Julia Montauk (not Montork) regarding the actions of her father, serial killer Robert Montauk (not Montork). Statement given December 3rd, 2002.

Statement Notes: This episode utilizes two horror tropes that are rather common, but not often seen together. This is a Serial Killer horror story, but also a "Discovering A Family Member" story. Serial Killer stories are self-explanatory, following the vicious actions of a single killer, drawing fear from the nature of their deeds and the fear that anyone could be next. "Discovering A Family Member" is the name I use for horror stories in which someone discovers that someone in their family is a monster, literally or figuratively. Think Mom and Dad or We Need To Talk About Kevin. The combination of these two tropes makes it so the audience witnesses a serial killer story from the inside out. We aren't afraid of who the killer is going to get next because we don't need the other characters. Rather, the fear we feel isn't that of attacked townspeople, but of a child. We are not afraid because we might be attacked, but because the person who's always protected us might be the thing we need protection from.

Something that really stood out to me in this episode is how much Julia expects of her childhood self, repeatedly pointing out things that should have bothered her or made her realize what was happening. Of course, hindsight is twenty-twenty and it's easy to see all the clues after the mystery's been solved, but there was no way for her to know back then. Especially because she was a literal child. This is a very real feeling though. It's common for people to hate or blame their childhood selves for doing things wrong or not knowing enough, even though there's no way for a child be as intelligent or mature as an adult. Julia expresses a very genuine feeling, if not an entirely rational one.

The heartbeat audio at the end of the statement was so incredible. Such a gradual and effective sound. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this is the first time an outside noise was used to create effect in the series.

Entity Alignment: This is the first Peoples' Church of the Divine Host Mention, and a pretty solid Dark episode, but there's some stuff that doesn't make sense to me.

(Unrelated, but one of these things is the Church's name. We have "The Cult of The LIGHTLESS Flame" and the " Peoples' Church of the DIVINE HOST." One of these groups worships darkness and one of them has a person acting as a spiritual host for all their desires and it's not the ones you think.)

The shed glows when Robert Montauk performs his ritual. For a Dark ceremony, this doesn't really make a lot of sense. The only explanation I can really think of is that this glowing area is somehow "stealing" the light from others. But I don't fully understand how the murders and heart collection truly fuels the Dark. There's probably another aspect that occurs during the tortures Julia sees in the photographs, but I guess we'll never really know.

It's never confirmed that Montauk is a member of the Church, but it is confirmed that at least some of his victims are. Additionally, the light goes out in his cell when he is murdered. I theorize that even if Montauk was a member of the Church, he wasn't killing for the Dark, but rather targeting its members to get revenge for his wife and to protect his daughter. The ritual may offer protective forces against the Dark, which is why the shed glows.

The line that really stuck with me in this episode was "The Darkness was inside." The idea that the darkness isn't an absence of light, but a presence of something else. In a weird, poetic way, Julia foreshadows that the lights going out isn't something that just happens, but fear entering a room.

I also love the use of the Dark as a childhood fear throughout the series. Even in episodes where it attacks adults, many of them still cite feeling like a child again. This is because fear of the Dark is a very primal, instinctual thing engrained in our psyches from the moment we are born. It also makes the stories so relatable. When Julia says she "did as I was told" and went straight to bed, only wandering out to get a drink of water, when the fear crept in, that's something every kid has gone through. It keeps with the recurring fear of the mundane in the Magnus Archives. It's not during the big moments that the fear will get you, but the during the little, everyday ones.

Character Notes: I love Julia. I love her. I think about her all the time. That's it end of post.