#best ashland BOI

[changelingsandothernonsense]

📚, 🔱, 🐉 for Erra!

📚 BOOKS — what level of education has your oc most recently completed/is currently in (GED, undergraduate, grad school, phd, etc)? Erra grew up amongst the Ashlanders of the Urshilaku Tribe and as a result never had a "formal" education within an institution. However, that didn't mean he never received an education. Kids within Urshilaku are taught by the elders and seers of the tribe. Mostly things that are useful for day-to-day living in the Ashlands as well as literacy skills. He's an expert marksman and has been using a bow since he was old enough to figure out how to pull the string taught. He specifically learnt how to shoot from a speeding mount and excelled at it(think mounted cavalry but it's on guar-back). Erra was also taught the sacred texts of the Urshilaku back to back and can recite them from memory if prompted. He was essentially groomed for a high position within the Nerevarine Cult as a shield companion (the Incarnate's Honour Guard). Erra was pretty much only taught using the Ashland variant of Dunmeris (which is essentially a separate language at this point with a few common words to link the two). So he had a very steep learning curve when he first started living in settled areas. Currently, Erra is fluent in Ashland- his native tongue, semi-fluent in Redoran Dunmeris and knows just enough Common Cyrodiilic to get him through a job working as a guide. 🔱 TRIDENT EMBLEM — can your oc swim? do they enjoy swimming? There wasn't a lot of water in the Ashlands growing up and what water there was was either poisoned by volcanic ash, the blight or both. What little clean water the Urshilaku did have came from deep, subterranean aquifers and these would be used sparingly. Erra never learned to swim as a result. 🐉 DRAGON — what is your oc's favorite mythical creature?

...Less mythical and more just mythical to him. Erra is used to the wildlife of Morrowind, most of his experience is with reptiles and the giant arthropods that call the province home. Since Erra first entered a market in Ald'Ruhn he's been fascinated by wool. The fact that you can make a fabric like that out of a creature's hair...or that a creature had hair that you'd actually want to weave fibre from amazes him (rats are about the extent of his knowledge with mammals). Erra thinks sheep are mythical creatures is what I'm saying.

[ladykailitha]

Grief (A Friend Indeed) Part 1

Hello! Sorry it's been nothing but one-shots lately, but as I said in this post here I haven't abandoned anything, my life has just got a little crazy lately.

This was conceived because my sister's former mother-in-law passed away due to massive heart failure a week ago and I chose to write this story as a way with dealing it. I didn't know her well, but I did know her and that's enough I think to feel some grief at her passing. She was a year younger than my dad.

Summary: Eddie and Wayne have to go back to Kentucky when Eddie's grandmother (and Wayne and Al's mother) passes. Steve comes along when Eddie suggests that he would feel better if he came. Along the way they learn about each other's pasts and find out that they are each other's future.

***

Eddie walked into the Family Video and had to stop and gaze fondly at the sight before him. Steve was draped over the counter reading a magazine and steadfastly ignoring the bell above the door that announced his arrival.

He got up to the desk and greeted affectionately, “Hey, Stevie.”

Steve bolted straight up and ran his fingers through his hair. “Oh hi, Eds. I didn’t realize that it was you.”

Eddie smiled for the first time in days.

Steve grinned back. “You know, a boy could start to think you were avoiding him. You know, since I haven’t seen you around in days.”

Eddie winced, shoving his hands into his jean pockets. “Sorry, man. I had family stuff.”

Steve’s teasing grin slid off his face. “Shit. I’m sorry. That was a dick move.”

Eddie waved his hands. “No, no. There was no way for you to know. In fact, that’s why I’m here. To make sure you don’t think that I’m avoiding you. Because I wouldn’t. You see Wayne and I have to go back to Ashland for a funeral.”

Steve’s already contrite expression softened further. “Oh, Eds. That’s awful. Are you okay? Do you need anything?”

Eddie’s eyes welled up and before the first tear could fall, Steve was over that counter and wrapping him up in his arms.

“I’ve got you, Eds,” Steve murmured. “I’m here now.”

Eddie sobbed and sobbed as Steve just gently rubbed his back until he calmed down enough to talk.

“It’s Uncle Wayne’s mom, my grandma,” he explained, clutching Steve’s shirt like a life line. “She was just the sweetest old lady and now she’s gone. I’m going to miss her.”

“Oh, Eds,” Steve murmured. “I’m sorry. That must just be awful for you. If there is anything I can do, just let me know.”

Eddie chuckled into Steve’s work vest. “Too bad you can’t come with. I think I’d feel braver about seeing all Dad’s family again if you were there.”

Steve grabbed his biceps and pushed him back gently. “Done.”

Eddie stuttered and sputtered. “Stevie, no...”

Steve picked up the phone on the counter and dialed a number. “Stevie yes.”

And Eddie watched in awe horror as Steve’s eyes suddenly welled up with tears and he rubbed his nose.

“Keith?” Steve said, his voice rough as if he had been doing the crying. “Yeah, I just got a call from my mom. My grandmother has died and I have to go to Kentucky for the funeral.”

Eddie’s jaw dropped. He didn’t even know that Steve knew where Ashland was.

“Yeah, my mom is from Lexington,” Steve said with a wink at him. “A real southern belle. I’ve seen pictures of her debutante ball and everything.”

Eddie snorted, because of course she was.

“I would need at least a week,” Steve was saying. “With the reading of the will and all.”

Eddie scoffed. If there was a will, he very much doubted there would be anything as formal as a reading of the damn thing.

“Oh thank you so much,” Steve sniffled. “I’ll even call Robin and let her know about her needing to pick up a few shifts.”

And like that Steve had gotten the week off.

“And the award for best crocodile tears to get out of working goes to Steve Harrington!” Eddie said, waving his hands back and forth. “Holy shit, man, how did you do that?”

Steve snorted. “As any good actor will tell you in order to cry on command, you just need to think about something that makes you cry.”

Eddie frowned. “What did you think of?”

Steve just shrugged. “What time are you guys leaving?”

“Tomorrow, early,” he said. “But serious, dude, even after that stellar performance, you don’t really have to come. Take the week off. Enjoy life for a change.”

Steve shook his head. “I would just be at home worried about you. Don’t make me stay. Please. Not when you said you would feel better with me there.”

Eddie’s shoulders slumped as he gave in. “Of course I want you there, but I would be selfish to take you away from your family for so long. Robin, Dustin...the rest of the them all need you too.”

Steve sighed heavily. “You’re part of that family, Eds. And I’m not dumb enough to think that they aren’t going to make a run for it the second they’re able to. As they should. I have to live my own life and not be afraid to go places.”

Eddie threw his arms in the air. “I hate when you make sense.”

Steve grinned. “Now the only remaining question is which vehicle we’re taking, Wayne’s truck, your van, or my car?”

Eddie laughed. “God, Stevie. I am so glad you’re coming with me. I needed that. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

Steve’s grin turned soft and fond. “Let’s hope you never have to find you.”

“Damn straight.”

*

“I can’t believe you’re leaving me,” Robin groused when Steve called her after Eddie left.

“What was I supposed to do when he asked?” Steve questioned, twirling the phone cord around his fingers. He leaned against the counter, keeping an eye on the door.

The last thing he needed was Keith finding out he fucked around after giving him the week off.

Robin scoffed. “Not go?” she questioned. “He obviously wasn’t serious about you coming with.”

"You know I would do the same for you," he said with a sigh. "For any of you. Plus his life has already been turned upside down enough, don't you think?"

Robin sighed. "I'm not really mad," she said. "It's just that this will be the longest we've been apart since the Russians under the mall."

Steve pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just think of it as a trial run for when you go to college."

"Yeah okay," she said resigned. "Just call me before you leave and again when you get there, okay?"

"Aye, aye, captain!" Steve said with a grin.

Robin giggled. "Shut up!" She paused for a moment. "I'll miss your stupid face, dingus."

“I’ll miss yours, too,” Steve said with a sigh. “I’ll call as often as I can okay?”

“You better.”

They talked a little bit longer until a customer came in and he had to hang up.

*

When he got home he started calling all the kids and packing for a week long trip. He wasn’t sure what he should bring in terms of clothes and ended up calling Eddie.

Eddie who laughed when he asked. “Just bring what you would normally wear this time of year.”

Steve chewed on his lip. “So I won’t get mercilessly teased about my preppy clothes?”

“Oh no, you will,” Eddie confirmed. “It’s just you don’t have to change yourself to fit in with a bunch of assholes who would make fun of you. Okay?”

Steve let out a slow breath and his anxiety went with it. He could handle that. Those assholes had never met a bitch like Steve Harrington before.

“Yeah, okay,” he said after a moment. “You and Wayne decide which vehicle we’re taking?”

“Yeah, he suggested we take his truck and your car,” Eddie said. “He knows he’s going to be taking a lot back and thinks your car will make it better than my van.”

“Sounds good,” Steve murmured, a little disappointed. “So who will you be riding with for the trip down?”

He could almost feel the grin from here. “With you, of course, darlin’.”

Steve laughed. “Yeah okay. What time do you need me at your house?”

There was a beat and then two before Eddie said, “I was thinking that you should spend the night so we could leave first thing in the morning.”

Steve’s heart sped up as his breath caught in his chest. “Yeah. Sure. That’s a good idea. I’ll show up at eight tonight, give myself a little bit more time to pack.”

“Sounds good,” Eddie replied. “Wayne suggested it because it’s a six hour drive and we want to leave as early as we can so it’s not too late when we get there.”

Steve felt a jumble of emotions at that statement. It was a relief that it was a practical reason, but at the same time it was a disappointment that it wasn’t Eddie’s idea.

He took a deep breath. “I hear that. I remember the trips to Lexington when I was kid before we started flying. They were a bitch.”

“It really surprises me that you have family in Kentucky. I don’t know why, a lot of people in Indiana do, it’s just...”

“Harringtons are so entrenched in Hawkins it’s weird to think we have connections outside of it?” Steve supplied.

Eddie laughed. “Yeah, that.”

“My parents met in college and I didn’t move to Hawkins until I was eight,” Steve said.

“Wait,” Eddie said. “No way. You aren’t a Hawkins native?”

Steve chuckled. “Nope. I’m more like you and Dustin then the Wheelers and the Byers. And the Sinclairs.”

“Huh,” Eddie said after a moment. “You certainly have hidden depths, my friend.”

“You have no idea,” Steve teased.

“Then I’ll just have to use this trip to dive deeper,” Eddie teased back.

“I have to pack, you dork,” Steve said fondly. “I’ll be over at eight.”

“See you then, Stevie.”

***

Part 2|Part 3|Part 4|Part 5|Part 6|Part 7|Part 8|Part 9|Part 10|Part 11|Part 12

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[aanthirin]

OC: Vivayth, Warrior-Witch

(art by plague-ridden-rat)

(Full references and guide here)

Formerly a Redoran born in Ebonheart, Vivayth is a mystic and a pellar who applies the will of the House of Troubles and follows the most ancient of magical practices as a means to harness chaos and free herself from the shackles of mortality. An incredibly spiritual person at her core, the combining of the divine and the mortal is essential to her day-to-day, and though her methods of learning and expanding upon her repertoire are unorthodox at best and criminally insane at worst, faith drives her to hopefully one day help all of mortalkind into godhood, even if it means one must turn to the Testing Gods of the Dunmer and bargain with all manner of Daedra and spirit.

While she does try to be kind-hearted and endeavor to be good to people as much as possible, the truth behind Vivayth is far darker than some would have you believe. Despite her awkward behavior, absentmindedness and apparent sweet motives, Vivayth is, in truth, a deeply emotional and troubled individual. Wracked by emotional unpredictability, she often finds herself lost in bloodlust and sadism in moments of intensity, only to later drown in regret. Self-inflicted exposure to horrors of all kinds has left her not only numb to carnage and the loss of life, but it has led her to develop a thrill for both seeing it, and causing it. In spite of all this, she's a woman of faith; religion is a tremendously important cornerstone to her entire personality, and not only is her odd, unorthodox, fully heretical faith is paramount to her way of life, but so is her philosophy of struggle that inevitably may lead to ascension beyond one's flesh. The Ancestral Spirits of Morrowind, those being the Daedra, will always be held in high regard in her heart, and they have enough sway over her that she has since rescinded her faith in the Tribunal; a love for the Three she has held for over a hundred years, now dead.

(art by bloodandboneart)

Vivayth was born to the Rathryn family in Ebonheart on the 21st of Midyear, 2E 409. The Rathryn were a prestigious clan of highborn largely made up of Redoran who have earned their high standing in society by working for the powerful Ra'athim nobility and their ebony mining fiefs. While this arrangement has brought tremendous prosperity to the clan over the generations, young Vivayth—who was, at the time, a boy—felt that this lifestyle she was born into was less of a luxury and more of a suffocating, gilded cage.

The stress of living up to her parents' expectations of her and carrying out whatever duties they might have deemed necessary—ranging from attending Great House banquets to rub elbows with the elite of Ebonheart to training in the yard in preparation of one day taking over the entire clan as its patriarch—was impossible to cope with. Throughout her first years, she slowly began sneaking away from the Rathryn Estate to explore the wilderness that spanned the city island Ebonheart was situated in, calling herself a budding explorer and trailblazer. This led to a dangeorus run-in with the wildlife. As a young child, a passing Mabrigash has taken quite a shine to her, and after healing her and sending her back to Ebonheart, the next several years were spent occasionally traveling to the city gates to mingle with other Ashlanders, who travel to Ebonheart to trade with the merchants and peddlers outside the city gates.

One day, many years after transitioning into a woman and learning what she could about Mysticism from the Ashlanders, Vivayth left her home and her gilded cage to carve her own path in life, and become her own woman.

(art by OathFrog)

Ever since her youth, Vivayth has always looked to the horizon. Her absentmindedness and forgetfulness show how truly far her mind lies above the clouds, and beyond unto the stars. When leaving her hometown of Ebonheart, she promised to herself that she'd acquaint herself with as much of Tamriel as she can, singing her way through life with her lute at her back to support her previously vagrant lifestyle. Her wanderlust is at fault for her interests in Mysticism, a magical practice where discovery and contradiction are foundational.

This had a partial, somewhat unfortunatae result: the laws of the Tribunal Temple and the opulence of the Great Houses led Vivayth to stray from the path of righteousness and into the darkness of the Daedra. Recent events have brought her to look to the teachings of Veloth, and to a greater degree of heresy, the Hunting Grounds of Hircine.

(art by Geinkotsu)

Vivayth always has been, and always will be, aggressively patriotic. Sure, her ideals and views now align more closely to that of the Ashlanders and she is not the fondest of the Great Houses, but her homeland is her soul, and the soul of her people. Nothing about this will ever change, except that the fact about Morrowind being free of lycanthropy has become somewhat inaccurate. She does not believe herself to be the last werewolf in Morrowind, but she is one of the last, after the Temple hunted them down to extinction within the tribunate.

Though madness is unbecoming of a former Redoran such as Vivayth, it has sunk its claws into her mind. Her pursuit of divinity is partially a result of her curse of lycanthropy, though one may come to find it's merely one layer of an ultimate desire for absolute freedom. Ultimately, she has chosen to interpret that she was chosen to help carry out the fate of the Dunmer people: apotheosis. Freedom from mortality, and the destruction of limitation.

This delusion has poisoned everything about her: every little choice that she makes, every promise, every step that she takes, and every word carefully chosen will, in her mind, lead her to fulfill Lorkhanic grand design and destroy the idea of mortality altogether. She will stop at nothing to convince and persuade those she holds dear into sharing this sentiment, and she thinks that if any want to stop her, they will be met with an early freedom of their spirit from their corpse.

[aladaylessecondblog]

Red Mountain Waffle House pt. 13

Author's Note: Tw for some blood. Jiub is a troll. For those looking for canon Sotha Sil behavior, boy are YOU gonna be disappointed

This one snuck up on me

---------------------------

One week, then two.

Jiub found his Venmo occasionally pinging with small amounts from Sadara, who sent apology notes in each one. Honestly, he didn't blame her, but he wouldn't say no to to the extra money. He turned her room into another grow spot and it was doing okay, but still not to the level that having her there to contribute to rent had.

She hadn't come back, but there hadn't been much for her to come back for. A dresser, a bed. Those handful of receipts from Suran in the trash can he still hadn't emptied.

The Waffle House was doing a little worse for her absence, at least in his opinion.

The new waitress was an ashlander, and icily polite to those with corprus. Maybe they weren't the best people, but their money spent like anyone else's, and he couldn't figure out why all of a sudden NOW Nibani would want to piss them off by instructing new employees to act like this. It had driven off a few of them, or at least he thought so - it was hard to tell some of the ash ghouls apart from one another.

A few of the ash creatures had asked where Sadara was. The new waitress didn't know; neither did Nibani, whose answer was, "She no longer works here."

Jiub kept silent; he sure as hell wasn't talking. Sadara had sent him a Discord message (she'd outright deleted Morrotwitter) asking him to not tell anyone where she was, and he'd kept to it.

She didn't hadn't added any specifics about what exactly had happened on her little trip to Red Mountain. He'd asked a second time and she replied, 'Nothing we're not used to hearing.'

For a few days after that she sent random pictures of gnarly wounds from fighting cliffracers and other wildlife, and then of the scars once she healed up. There were also a few pics of cliffracers being turned on a spit over a fire, and a little 'wish you were here this thing tasted great' message a couple days in row.

Then there started being images of the inside of some cave along the coast near Tel Fyr.

The Fyrs are paying me 200 gold a week for blood and plasma, apparently I'm RH null blood type. it's special or something. and being immune to corprus makes them want it too, so. Not doing too bad.

Sounds great. What's up with the cave?

Oh, it's near Tel Fyr. Easy access. There's some khajiit and argonians here too, cave's big enough to share, so we do.

How do you share a cave?

We just have bedrolls in different areas. I feel like I got the biggest spot because it used to be a slave pen and they don't want to sleep over here ever again. It's not that bad. We've even got pets.

the fuck kind of pets do you have over there? lost scribs?

couple of fat slaughterfish we feed fish and scraps to. One we call Betty White and the other we call Wilson. They try to bite us but honestly they're big enough it's hard for them to move fast enough for it. So they'll mainly just hiss and make noise until they get food.

"Excuse me, cook? Are you paying any attention to the food at all, or are you destroying my eggs on purpose?"

"Your eggs are fine," Jiub replied, tucking his phone away. The customer in question had come in a few times, and was - well, honestly, such a stick in the mud it was fun to tease him. He was very particular about his food, wanted his waffles turn an even number of times...so Jiub always made sure not to do that.

Sotha Sil himself. Not all that impressive, at least not to Jiub. He said he came there because the sound of the blight winds was relaxing, and when he needed relative silence this was a good place to have it.

And his fried eggs were always just slightly runny.

"Here, I'll redo 'em if you want, I was hungry anyway."

He handed a newly finished plate of waffles to the new waitress, who took them to another ashlander in the corner.

"Do you have no pride at all in your work?"

"I'm cooking eggs and waffles for 10 septims an hour, there is no pride in this work," Jiub replied with a shrug.

"You are an insubordinate imp--no. No, I will waste no more time on your shenanigans. This is not what I am here for. Just cook the food." Sotha Sil huffed, and turned back to the laptop in front of him.

It was a far cry from the nigh-emotionless construct Jiub had heard Sotha Sil described as. Something, it seemed, had set the man on edge...he'd asked a couple people if something had happened to set Sotha Sil off what he was usually like. Most people couldn't see such little things, little signs of being potentially angry, or annoyed, or any number of similar things. But due to long experience, Jiub was a master at seeing it.

He'd reached a point in his life where he was looking to get humbled again. His success with Almalexia had made him feel almost bored - if he could off her so easily (however temporarily it lasted), really, how much farther was there to go? Maybe Sotha Sil would be different. Maybe he'd be tougher, somehow...

How little a thing would it take to push him over and make him screech?

He could already hear Sadara's voice chiding him for it. You little troll, you just want your ass kicked, don't you?

Well. Maybe he did.

The waitress went outside to handle the garbage, and so Jiub was the one to deliver the plated food. He glanced down at the laptop, and saw a familiar sight.

A Pokemon battle.

And more importantly...

"Superiorsil? So it's YOU! I should've guessed," Jiub set the food down and went over to clean the stove.

"What do you mean, you should've guessed?" Sotha Sil's voice had turned accusatory.

Jiub turned back, and gave a deep smirk as he extended his hand. "Jiuberjabber. How ya doin'?"

A pause.

A long, uncomfortable pause.

And then, Sotha Sil - master of the monotone, king of the cutting politeness, suzerain of stony looks - leaped over the counter and wrapped both hands around JIub's neck.

Both mer crashed to the ground and despite the pain and increasing lack of oxygen all Jiub could do was laugh.

"You idiot--pathetic--little WORM!" Sotha Sil was snarling, "You broke my perfect record!"

"It's just a game, man," Jiub struggled, trying to get one hand into his back pocket. Still the laughter persisted, even harder because he saw how much it infuriated the mer above him. Or maybe it was due to the choking. "Don't take it so seriously."

He managed to get his trusty box-cutter out, and took a few stabs in the area of his opponent's ribs. Jiub and Sotha Sil wrestled about in this fashion another few minutes, getting the latter's blood all over the floor.

"What happened to the calm magus, huh?" Jiub, still giddy from the lack of air, went on, finally getting to his feet and backing away, box-cutter at the ready. "Oh, wait, you are what the people need you to be, right? I've read the sermons."

"That wasn't IN the sermons you illiterate cretin," Sotha Sil stood, his pristine white robe now utterly ruined. The stab wounds were healed over quickly, and he looked ready to fight--

--and then suddenly bristled, snatched a to-go box, stuffed the food he'd left uneaten into it.

"Come back soon," Jiub, still in the mood to tease, energized by the fight, blew a capricious kiss at the furious mer before him.

Sotha Sil left, muttering under his breath.

Jiub then looked at the ashlander in the corner.

"You gonna tell the Temple about that?"

"Who the fuck would believe me?"

Grumbling, and thinking he was far too sober for this, Jiub moved off to the bathroom to snort some skooma. Nibani would be in within an hour, and he needed the blood cleaned up by then. The waitress, utterly horrified by what she had just witnessed, didn't look like she was going to be staying long enough to do the job.

[silly-fox-in-sox]

Top of the Class: Thorpedo Anna Rolls in Acorn

Ashland Stakes (G1) winner Leslie's Rose stalked the pace and rallied to grab second.

---

Somehow even more impressive than her dominating G1 Kentucky Oaks win, Thorpedo Anna put on an absolute show winning the G1 Acorn.

Just FYI used different tactics this time, trying to run Anna off of her feet early, but Thorpedo Anna loomed large on the far turn and rolled right on by as she pleased. Leslie's Rose put in her run this time, but her best effort couldn't get close to the winner.

It's almost a shame Thorpedo Anna came around the same year as stablemate Mystik Dan, because it would've been a real treat to see what she might've done in the Belmont Stakes. I really hope we get to see her take on the boys in one of the big summer races this year, she's just so cool.

[emailsfromanactor]

John Gielgud on Romeo and Juliet, from a letter to Richard Sterne dated June 22, 1963, as quoted in Sir John Gielgud: A Life in Letters:

All thanks for your two letters. I am delighted to hear Ashland [Oregon Shakespeare Festival] is so much to your liking, and that you are to try a fall with Romeo. You will find the part a great challenge and often unsatisfactory, for Juliet has all the best positions in the text – the Banishment must not seem an anti-climax after her great cords scene – similarly the Mantua scene is hard to put over after the Potion – and the mourning. You only manage to beat her to it in the Tomb – and you will surely get a crick in the neck, while she queens it up on that damned balcony! Don’t let the director convince you that the love scenes are realistic. The ball scene meeting is a SONNET, the Balcony the epitome of longing and romantic imagination and ‘getting to know you’. The Wedding is the only scene when he really declares his most complete surrender to her (and she to him). The farewell is not a rough and tumble on the bed. It ought to be played on the same balcony as the other one – only they are worn out with the past night and the agony of parting – morning light, bleak despair = EPITHAL[AM]IUM – foreboding on both their parts which they try vainly to hide from each other. The evanescence of youth and passion – the hectic hopelessness of the moment they are both strangely aware of – then in the Mantua scene, he grows up in a single moment ‘Then I defy you, stars!’, he is suddenly a man and not a boy, no longer affected (Rosaline scene), not rash (encounter with Tybalt at the Ball and the Mercutio death). He has no sense of humour – he is a doomed young madman (but must not be too conscious of it himself!). In the tomb he is tired again suddenly – (the effort of control when he heard the news of her death, the long ride from Mantua to Venice, the blind rage as he kills Paris) and, marvellously, he shivers in the cold silence and dimness (just as SHE described it in the Potion scene) and he promises to stay there and look after her in that icy stillness. SIMPLE. (I only found this extraordinary truth in doing the death speech by itself out of context in the Recital.) It is a wonderful part. I know how to play it well now, but I could never convey it on the stage. Olivier was Romeo (though he couldn’t speak it in those days) because he was absolutely the lover of all time in the way he looked at Juliet and leaned against the balcony, and flung himself on Tybalt, but he was VULGAR in the farewell because he insisted on lying on top of Juliet and giving a physical violence in the love scenes which Shakespeare could not have imagined (or risked) with his boy Juliet! The words must do it. But they must give you a beautiful SIMPLE costume, and every help with wig and make-up. The first entrance – from a distance – is very important for the first impression, and grace of manner and deportment must be blended to a feline sensuality and sudden violence at a few important moments. You need to relax with a Latin indolence, but always with an underlying athleticism and a power that is ready to strike – like a flame – in the moments of fury and expressed emotion. So full of feeling at one moment – and an emptiness at others for contrast – the utter spontaneity which Latin people have when they are very attractive – and very young!

You can see why Sterne thought it would be worthwhile to record Hamlet rehearsals. Read all about those with Emails from an Actor!

[falmerbrook]

New TES OC’s???!???!??!

*puts head in hands* Tell me all about them!

EEEEEE I'm glad someone wants to hear about them!!!! Well, they aren't necessarily new, but I haven't talked about most of them here for the most part so they are to most of you :D

Also, little disclaimer, I'm the type to make a whole cast (family, friends, distant cousins, etc.) for like every character I make, so I'll just introduce the major ones.

(also I'll put it under the cut to not clog dashes)

Morrowind

Stellar (Nerevarine)

My Nerevarine. Argonian. 19 years old at the time of the game. Was hatched and grew up in slavery in eastern Vvardenfell before escaping and running away to Cyrodiil when he was about 11 (where he eventually got his name, and tried his best to assimilate and lose his Morrowind-isms). There he settled in a little gang of thieves in the Imperial City, where he eventually went to jail (long term) after he accidently killed a guy. From there he gets sent to Vvardenfell and [PLOT OF MORROWIND]. For obvious reasons he is not happy about that, and only goes along with Caius's schemes so he can get the money to go to Black Marsh. He has the classic teenage boy-ism of acting very hard, aggressive, apathetic, and mean to mask a more genuine curiosity, desire for adventure, and care for others. So while he'd never admit it, he gets very invested in all the mystery around the Nerevarine prophecies. When he eventually does get to Black Marsh, he finds himself equally not welcomed there, and instead accepts his place as the (potential) Nerevarine, returning to Vvardenfell.

I think he's the only character that I've ever gone through a proper deign process with so I'm very proud of his design (even though I'm still struggling to draw it accurately).

Ramshuribani (Stellar's friend/love interest)

22 year old Ashlander of the Urshilaku tribe/Nerevarine Cult. She specializes in textiles, leather working, and making clothing. After Stellar arrives at the tribe and starts hanging around to earn their good graces, she's the first to take an interest in him. She finds his seeming delusions and his earnestness endearing, but eventually becomes the first to take him seriously, becoming his biggest cheerleader and urging him forward in his journey. When Stellar goes around trying to become the Nerevarine and Hortator, she tags along with him and they bond.

Moss/Sleeps-in-Moss (Stellar's friend/love interest)

One of Stellar's childhood friends. 18 year old argonian. As a young teen when he had the chance to flee to Black Marsh, he decided to remain in Vvardenfell and work with the Twin Lamps to help others escape slavery. While at first thrilled to run back into Stellar and learn he was ok, he's put off and frustrated by Stellar essentially being a pawn of the Empire and Ashlanders, and thinks all the Nerevarine bs is just a way to manipulate him.

Skyrim

Elisere Vaelenwyn Faerendal (Last Dragonborn)

21 year old altmer with snow elf ancestry on her mother and grandmother's sides (thus her pale complexion). While most of her family doesn't share her zeal, her and her grandmother are both very passionate about learning and trying to connect with the snow elf history and culture. Her grandmother is a researcher on the topic. She has a very intense personality, but is also sort of a prissy asshole.

So I really like the interpretation of being dragonborn being a sort of allegory for neurodivergence (but more specifically autism/adhd because I have experience with the former) and so I lean into it a lot with her. She struggled a lot growing up and into adulthood with always feeling like she needed to be in complete control/order, black and white thinking, poor socialization skills, and general anger and violence issues. While she tried to pursue an education focusing on destruction magic at a prestigious university, she struggled with control of her magic and felt restricted there. All of this, living in a place with heavy thalmor propaganda, and her passion for the snow elves led to her developing very extreme xenophobic views of humans (particularly nords).

When Elisere's mother and grandmother died in very close proximity to each other, El doesn't really know how to deal with it (losing her family and the two people she felt like she had left of her lost culture) and so she decided to go scorched earth and drops her whole life and head to Skyrim to do... something drastic (she didn't think that far ahead). Once arriving there [SKYRIM INTRO] happens and it slaps a bit of sense into her. Irregardless, she decides to stay in Skyrim. While in Skyrim, over time, she realizes 1) she's dragonborn (worst thing that could happen to her ever), and 2) it might be a better cultural landscape for her. Character development happens (I'm leaving it here for now bc I'm tired and I don't want to seem like I'm rambling, but she's my problematic child whom i love)

Helga Saber-Skin (Eliere's companion? adopted mom? friend??)

Nord woman in her late 60s. Looks at Elisere and goes "I can fix her" [motherly]. A very classic born-and-bred Nord; loud, confident, friendly, and proud. She and her late husband fought in the Great War, moving to Haafingar and raising 4 kids afterwards (I'm still foggy on that timeline though). Generally anti-Imperial and pro-Stormclaok (although willfully ignorant to the Stormcloak's less-noble beliefs), becoming very pro-Stormcloak after her husband was killed by an Imperial soldier and she feels pressured to move out to Eastmarch. As a widowed empty-nester, when she stumbles upon a very injured Elisere, she takes her in and upon hearing El vent, realizes that Elisere probably just needs a surrogate mother figure in her life, and eagerly tries to fill that void and support her while she's in Skyrim and on her journey. This is not something Elisere wants, but if Helga is anything it's stubborn (and it's probably something Elisere needs). They make each other more open minded.

Oblivion

Morvyn (Hero of Kvatch)

Mid to late 20s dunmer (they/she/he btw). Grew up in Ald'ruhn to a single abusive, unstable mother, which led to them running away as a teen and ending up Cyrodiil struggling to get by. They have intense anxiety from their upbringing, and struggle with psychologically-induced selective mutism. They almost never speak, and use sign-language to communicate (when they can. most people don't know it. this just contributes to their asociality and anxiety). They're sensitive, nervous, and a people pleaser, but also very resilient, selfless (to a self destructive degree),a nd empathetic. Their desire to help others is often the only thing to override their other issues. They are a jack-of-all-trades, master of none, and can pick up new skills pretty easily (but struggle to get very good at them). They initially bond with Martin through their shared experiences of being bastards. They're kinda greasy.

I have another major Oblivion character but she's real underdeveloped and needs more time in the oven. Too much brain power goes into morrowind and skyrim, sorry oblivion.

.

Saori

I've already talked about her before (this post) but I will mention her again. My necromancin' ecologist child :D. She kinda exists outside the realm of the games but she meets and becomes acquaintances/friends with Elisere and Stellar.

[devilofthehounds]

God Eater 3 Character Novel | Beginning of a Vow: Chapter 3

[image id: A novel cover. Hugo Pennywort from God Eater 3 is leaning against the bars of a prison cell. He is holding up his hand and looking at one of his armlets as if reminiscing. On the other side of the bars is a faded image of a young Hugo looking off into the distance. The text, when translated into English, reads “God Eater 3 Character Novel | Chapter 1: Hugo Edition | Beginning of a Vow”. /end id]

This is a fan translation. Original text here.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Adaptive God Eater. AGE.

It was explained to us that we would be special God Eaters infiltrating the Ashlands, where normal God Eaters couldn't operate.

They gathered kids from all over who had no relatives, forced them to take the aptitude test, then threw the survivors into the Ashlands to gather information.

That was how Port Pennywort operated.

PW­–01407: Hugo Pennywort.

That was my new name after surviving the aptitude test.

I was put in handcuff-like armlets and thrown into a prison cell. Still in a daze from the aptitude test, my first instinct was to lash out at the guards.

"Hey, what about the others... Are there any others from the satellite base?"

"Oh, those energetic brats. They probably got thrown in a different block. If you're a good boy, maybe I'll let you visit them."

The guard was mocking me, but my heart started to fill with hope.

"Then everyone's here, huh? ...Alright... Alright!"

I wanted them to be safe at the base if possible, but the fact that they were all here reassured me more than anything else.

Everyone in the defense team, and Luca.

I wasn't alone. That awareness inspired me, even in this prison, anxiety swirling around me.

It wasn't at all the way I wanted it to happen, but I knew we could make our dream come true here.

Even with a God Arc that looked like it was cobbled together out of junk, I didn't feel anxious at all.

With this thing, I'd kick the Aragami to the curb. And someday, along with the rest of the defense team, we'd return to everyone who was waiting for us at the satellite base.

Then we could proudly tell everyone we loved that they wouldn't have to worry about anything anymore.

Clutching the already familiar Long Blade-type God Arc in my hand, I decided to make that dream a reality as soon as possible.

I couldn't meet up with the rest of the defense team, since they were put in a different block, but even as the days were filled with grueling training, I continued to work hard without a single word of complaint. Perhaps influenced by my example, more and more of the kids in the prison began to smile, little by little.

The budding sense of camaraderie bolstered my heart even more, and then—

The day came when I was assigned my first mission as an AGE.

The first mission was reconnaissance.

Infiltrate an area where the ash density had recently risen and bring back information regarding the Ashlands.

The ones assigned were me and Luca.

I was sick of being shaken by the dark truck like that day, but I was also excited by the prospect of a real battle, with real opponents.

"Finally, our first mission... Let's do our best, Luca. They're expecting a lot from us. If we get results, maybe the guards will change their tune!"

Luca nodded with a thin smile, but his face betrayed his anxiety.

"It'll be okay. If you're in danger, just stay behind me. I'll protect you from any Aragami!"

I'd be the vanguard. Luca would hang back and play support. I figured that would work best.

"...Thank you. I'll... I'll protect you, too, Hugo."

"Aw, thanks. I'm counting on you, partner!"

In his own way, Luca must have summoned all his courage to say that.

With those words, what uneasiness was left in my heart completely disappeared.

"Alright, pups, it's time. Get ready."

The guard's orders came through the radio loud and clear.

We got out of the parked truck, dragging along the heavy cases containing our God Arcs.

"So, this is the Ashlands..."

Since being welcomed into the satellite base, I had rarely seen the scenery outside the armored wall. It felt like it had been a long time since I'd looked out over the world like this.

A desolate landscape that stretched on endlessly. The black ash floating in the air stung my skin, making me feel sick.

"I am now releasing the restraints on Pennywort AGEs Hound 1 and Hound 2."

The conjoined armlets detached with a violent flash of electricity.

The small amount of regained freedom made that feeling of sickness grow even stronger.

"Come on, let's go, Luca! We'll make it back alive, together!"

We took our God Arcs and ran to the point where the ash concentration had risen, keeping a close eye on our surroundings.

After becoming a God Eater, my physical capabilities had improved remarkably, but the farther we went, the heavier the air weighed on my body.

"Hugo, look over there."

A few minutes after the start of the mission, Luca was the first to catch a glimpse of the enemy. It was still a long way off, but five Ogretails—small Aragami with tails like demon masks—were running around.

"...What should we do? It looks like they're heading in the same direction as us."

"Let's sneak after them. They seem to be traveling in a pack. If there's a nest or something like that, we can find it and report back."

We followed the pack of Ogretails, keeping a safe distance so as not to be noticed.

I had been able to calmly assess the situation and give precise instructions. I thought it was going well.

However, even though they were small, there were five of them. The tension of wondering when they would notice us, combined with the heavy air of the Ashlands, was starting to make me feel a little fatigued.

"Is that...?"

Suddenly, I stopped and stared at something out of the corner of my eye.

"Hugo? What's wrong?"

There was a large, rocky hill that had been eaten away at by the Aragami. Part of it was unnaturally chipped away.

I felt like I recognized that hill.

"...Huh?"

I looked around again.

This was the Ashlands. An unknown, dangerous place where flesh and blood could never hope to operate.

That was what it was supposed to be, but even so, I felt like I had been here before.

"That's right... I had to get over that weird, rocky hill... really quickly."

I remembered. How could I forget?

Having lost my family in the Calamity, I had desperately kept moving forward on my wandering journey in despair.

The endpoint of that journey was just ahead.

Driven by an ominous premonition, I started running.

I scrambled up the hill and ran desperately to find a spot where I could get a bird's-eye view of the area ahead.

And then.

"Why... How...?"

I was speechless at the view below me.

A place surrounded by a huge armored wall with a dirty wolf emblem engraved in it.

A small cradle where people huddled together.

It was a satellite base.

"A satellite base... all the way out here, too. But this deep in the Ashlands..."

I could hardly hear Luca's words as he caught up to me.

The entrance to the armored wall was completely open. The Ogretails we'd been following entered the base like they were coming home.

"Hey, what are you doing? Report back when you reach the designated point."

The guard's cold voice echoed from the radio.

"This... This is... the satellite base where I..."

"Yeah, that's why you were picked for this assignment. We figured you'd have the lay of the land. Don't go zoning out now."

"Then, the area swallowed up by the Ashlands..."

"You ought to be grateful. If we hadn't picked you up when we did, you would've been swallowed up, too."

"Wh... What about everyone at the base?!"

"Does it look like there were any survivors? If there were, it'd be the discovery of the century! Ahahaha!"

The guard's harsh laughter echoed in my head.

The deafening sound caused a dark ripple to spread through my blank, still mind.

"Did you... Did you know from the beginning that this place was going to be swallowed up by the Ashlands...?"

They were supposed to be God Eaters.

They were supposed to wield their God Arcs for the sake of defending humanity.

And yet—And yet—

"Why... Why didn't you save everyone?!"

I screamed the words so loud, it felt like my throat was going to tear open.

But what came back was the same inorganic, disinterested voice.

"Hmph, idiot. There's no way we could afford to feed dozens of adults with no chance of passing the aptitude test."

"Don't... Don't mess with me...! It's a lie... It's a lie, it's a lie! It has to be a lie!"

I fell to my knees on the withered earth. I couldn't stop my tears from overflowing.

Were they all dead? I'd never gotten the chance to repay them.

None of them deserved to die.

They'd been kind, warm, precious—we'd been a real family.

"How am I going to tell the others...?"

There was no way any of the defense team members at the Port knew about this yet.

I was going to have to be the one to deliver the news to them, to bring them this despair.

The very thought made my chest tighten even more.

"Oh, yeah. Now that I think about it, there were some other kids brought from that base. Guess I'm the one that has to break it to you—"

At that moment.

I learned the true nature of this world.

"They're all dead."

".........What?"

"All four of them failed the aptitude test. One of them even transformed into an Aragami. Putting that one down was a real pain."

I had thought I couldn't see them because they were in a different block...

I never saw them because... they weren't here anymore...?

The moment I realized it, the memories of the days we'd spent at the base flashed through my mind.

The five of us would fulfill our dream together and become a real defense team to protect the base.

We would become heroes and make a triumphant return, telling everyone that we were home.

"You understand now? Your lives are cheap. Do your best to be of use to the masters that saved you, you dog."

A dry gust of wind blew through the air.

The wind, coarse and mixed with ash, coldly caressed my cheek.

"Ah... Ah... Aaaaaaaaah!"

The kids in the prison had been much more sober about reality than me.

We were going to die. We were nothing special. We were only being used because we happened to be around. And we would disappear for nothing.

I finally understood that we were nothing more than miserable dogs.

"You... All of you..."

However, in the depths of my despairing heart, there was a feeling that burned fiercely.

Even if my life was worthless, I would be the one to decide how to use it.

That, at the very least, was a form of rebellion. It was my way of proving that I was still alive.

I ripped off my radio and glared down at the Aragami, coming and going from the base as if they owned it. My grip on my God Arc tightened.

"I'll never forgive you!"

Driven by my fury, I tried to jump down from the hill.

But before I could, Luca grabbed my hand.

"Hugo, wait! I'll go, too!"

"Don't follow me! Just get away from here!"

This was my problem. I couldn't drag Luca into it—I couldn't let him die.

I shook his hand away and started running toward the base.

The armored wall was open; everyone must have noticed the Ashlands approaching and tried to escape.

Do we stay locked up in the base and wait for the ash to swallow us?

Or do we find hope outside, one way or another?

Everyone at the base making that choice... They wouldn't have given up. They would've tried to live.

However, the base's single truck was crushed to nothing just outside the armored wall.

There were lots of small explosives lying beside the truck, waiting to be used as a diversion, as if there hadn't even been time to use them.

"Everyone...!"

The image of the base in my memory had been painted over without a trace.

Houses had been reduced to rubble. Dried bloodstains could be seen all over.

This place of memories, where I'd been surrounded by warm people, had now transformed into a nest of small Aragami.

"Damn it... Damn it! You... Aaaaaaah!"

Ogretails. Axe Raiders. Cocoon Maidens. Blast Spiders.

There were more than several dozens of them. It would be suicidal, beyond reckless, for even a skilled fighter to take them on alone.

But so what?

From the very beginning, this was the place to set my life ablaze.

"Grrrrrroooooh!"

The Aragami noticed me and all let out roars in unison.

I dodged some spikes from an Ogretail and swung my God Arc at its face.

It melted through the Aragami like a hot knife through butter.

I could fight. With these hands, I could avenge everyone.

Using an Aragami's corpse as a shield, you could block small long-range attacks. You could also safely restore your depleted Oracle by slashing at the corpse.

Ironically, Pennywort's training program had been excellent in building a fighting style that used whatever was available.

Maybe it was because I was so beat up, but my body moved so nimbly that it was hard to believe this was my first battle.

But then, a flash of red Oracle energy rose into the ash-filled sky. The laser of a Cocoon Maiden.

Two, then three red lights flew in succession from all sides.

"Crap!"

I couldn't deploy my shield in time. I got hit by the lasers and blown away.

Somehow, I managed to regain my stance. But then, the huge maw of an Ogretail was right in front of me.

"...! Waaaah!"

Reflexively, I unleashed the Impulse Edge, the secret weapon of the Long Blade-type God Arc.

The shockwave was so powerful, it depleted all of my Oracle in a single shot, crushing not only the Ogretail in front of me, but also all of the Aragami that had been approaching me.

However, the recoil was so strong that I was sent flying back, rolling on the ground, and slammed into the armored wall.

The impact knocked me unconscious for a moment, but my body moved reflexively.

To try and open a path, I stabbed my God Arc straight through an approaching Blast Spider.

Its body swelled up eerily.

"Uh-oh!"

At the moment of the Blast Spider's death, its activated Oracle Cells set off an explosion.

Propelled by the heat of the blast, my body was flung through the air and slammed to the ground.

A pain I had never felt before assaulted my entire body. My Oracle was more depleted than I could have imagined.

But still.

"It's still... not enough...!"

Mustering what energy I could, I stood on my trembling legs and tried to charge the Aragami. But then—

From the ground, countless new Aragami sprang up.

Zygotes. Even though they could fly, they had been hiding underground.

"Damn it... More of them...?!"

I was more than a little annoyed that something so troublesome had appeared, but that wasn't the end of it.

More Aragami sprang up one after another from the ground of the base.

Had they been hiding this whole time? Or had they only come to life just now?

In a matter of seconds, more Aragami than I had killed were writhing around in my field of vision.

It was like watching ants swarm over crumbs of bread. There were so many Aragami that there was no room to move, and they were all closing the distance towards me at the same time.

"Hah... Haha... You gotta be kidding me..."

Aragami were the embodiment of despair. And that was the reason God Eaters fought.

All around the world, there had been even worse despair than this every day, for decades.

The moment that reality hit me, the fear I had managed to suppress with my fury overflowed in my heart.

With the sound of my God Arc hitting the ground, the strength drained from my knees.

"Everyone..."

I wanted to protect this place.

I wanted to protect the smiling faces of everyone who had been kind to me, together with my friends.

But that dream could no longer come true.

If I died, would I be able to see them again?

"Sorry... Luca..."

Please, please, please survive.

I looked down and uttered his name in a small voice, a final prayer.

The next moment—

There was a loud explosion from a corner of the satellite base.

"Hugo!"

Something leapt out from the rising flames, attracting the attention of all the Aragami in one fell swoop.

Luca, wielding shining twin blades—a Biting Edge-type God Arc—flew through the swarm of Aragami like a meteor and landed in front of me.

"Luca, you... you idiot! I told you to run!"

I shouted angrily at his back.

There was no point in both of us dying here.

"...I already told you."

Luca turned and shot me a determined look.

"I'll protect you, too, Hugo!"

Upon saying those words, Luca transformed his God Arc.

What appeared from the blade in his right hand was a jet-black captive mouth that could have been mistaken for an Aragami.

"Hraaaaah!"

The God Arc flashed and, as if it were having a feast, devoured the Aragami that were rushing in, slicing them to ribbons. When the mouth returned to Luca's hand, golden Oracle energy erupted from his body.

"I won't run away. We promised we wouldn't die... We promised we'd make it back alive, together!"

As he shouted, Luca combined his God Arc's blades into a singular weapon.

"I'll keep that promise, no matter what. So don't you run away, either, Hugo!"

Luca raised his God Arc, now in glaive form, toward a Zygote swarming from the air.

Golden Oracle energy erupted from the God Arc's activated blades, drawing a beautiful arc like the moon and slicing the Aragami in two.

A torrent of Oracle energy spread out from Luca's back like wings, knocking the surrounding Zygotes to the ground.

"Whoa..."

Seeing wings of light that could make even Aragami bow in submission, I was certain.

This was hope.

That light. The will to survive. It was the only power capable of surviving in this world.

And I—we—swore to protect that light.

"...Yeah, that's right."

Grasping my God Arc again, I stood next to Luca, newfound strength rising within me.

"My bad... Let's do this, Luca!"

"Yeah, let's go, Hugo! The armored wall will close soon. Can you make it to the exit?"

As if on cue, the armored wall began to close with an earth-shattering rumble.

"You set the armored wall to move?! How do you even know how to do that?"

Letting out a small chuckle, Luca's next words were the most unexpected thing yet.

"...Lucky guess."

"...Ahaha! You're a riot!"

Regardless, it was a good move.

The reason the inside of the base had become an Aragami nest was simple: the door was wide open.

Following that logic, sealing off the entrance would trap all the Aragami inside.

The only question left was whether we could break through this many Aragami and escape the base before getting sealed in ourselves.

"I used all of the explosives from the truck outside to get in here. We'll have to fight with everything we've got."

"Don't worry, the two of us can do it! Let's go!"

We leapt forward, aiming for the gap in the closing armored wall.

Luca took the lead, tearing through the Aragami blocking our path.

I was right at his heels, making assists and protecting his back.

The formation worked surprisingly well. Every fiber of my being told me this was the perfect formation for us.

The armored wall was closing.

Everyone in the defense team. All the people who had been kind to me.

A precious place where, for the first time in my life, I had found friends and a dream.

This place, where so many happy memories lingered, was somewhere I could never return.

I grit my teeth and shook off the memories flooding my mind as fast as I could.

"Hugo!"

Luca, one step ahead of me outside the base, turned back and reached out his hand.

The gap was just large enough that a kid could barely squeeze through.

Without hesitation, I jumped through the boundary between the past and the future.

When I came to, Luca and I were lying in a heap outside the base.

Thankfully, there were no signs of Aragami around us, and there didn't seem to be any chasing us over the wall.

I didn't have the energy to get back up. As we laid together on the ground, I asked him a single question.

"...How could you be so reckless?"

Luca, still lying on the ground, reached his hand out toward the sky as he spoke.

"...That day. In the truck. I thought I was going to die. I felt so scared and alone. But then... you found me, Hugo."

A single wall separated us from hell. Even without making a single sound, every second spent in the Ashlands threatened to cut our lives short.

Luca seemed to smile in relief, even though he had to be covered in wounds as well.

The way he was talking, you would think he was the one who had been saved.

"Your promise from back then—it's been my hope."

He was just like me.

Thanks. Sorry. Both sounded wrong. So instead—

I gave him a small smile and lifted my arm. Luca responded in kind.

"...Wanna head back?"

"Yeah. Let's go home."

The sound of our armlets colliding echoed throughout the Ashlands.

Translator's Note

[finalshaper]

I love the idea of Nerevarine teldryn that I’m gonna work with it. he was one of the failed incarnates and failed solely on the basis of being a young child at the time. Didn’t stop him from trying to follow Llethri though, when he appeared before the Urshilaku claiming to be the one true Nerevar. Teldryn was much brighter and lighter then, even though he envied Llethri. He wanted to follow him though despite the fact he was a kid with play-armor and play-weapons and yet an odd aptitude for fire magic. He wanted to prove himself and earn his markings as a great warrior to his tribe if not the Nerevarine then surely the young bright eyed yet unexpectedly powerful sidekick. Llethri would protect this kid with his life and didn’t doubt his skill for a moment but he would very quickly become a liability precisely because he was so young and inexperienced even if he would protest and beg to prove himself. Llethri would try to let him down easy but this would be met with stubbornness, to which Llethri in an act of concern would as sternly as possible tell him that he’s too young, that he would end up hurt or worse and he simply isn’t ready or even armed properly. That he doesn’t know what he’s getting into. That he would hate to have the mark of letting a child die on his conscience. That maybe when this is over Llethri will come back and if he’s more experienced and older then he will bring him along on some light ruins exploration, because he was to the belief that field experience was the best teacher but what he was doing was simply far too dangerous.

To which Teldryn would protest that he was tired of being treated as if he was incapable just because he was a child, that because he’s a child it seems like nobody is even giving him the opportunity to surprise them, that he won’t be their little baby forever and he wants them to give him the chance at least once. To which Llethri empathized, dear gods he did, but this child before him was just that. A child that thinks he’s more experienced than he actually is, surely skilled but not enough just yet. He was scarred less whether from battle or through the scarification the Ashlanders practiced, especially when compared to others even slightly older than him. Llethri just wanted him to understand that he doesn’t doubt the boy’s skill but this is way above his current skill level. But this was a child with the spirit of fire within him who refused to back down and Llethri had to pretend that that little shadow wasn’t tailing him in the dark.

Llethri felt that the boy was going to follow him no matter what he did, and he wasn’t going to demand he basically be imprisoned or monitored whenever he visited where the Urshilaku were camped. This does mean we get some very tense moments where Llethri has to step in and make sure that this little guy doesn’t get himself steamrolled while also proving that he was right and he in fact wasn’t yet ready, even if he promised hey, I’m learning, I promise I’m learning and getting better. And Llethri didn’t want to treat him like a liability but he was in a position where he had almost no choice. This child although quite skilled was still not his equal and was more likely to get killed or even catch corprus. It was only when this child was faced with the fact that Llethri was right head-on that he, terrified now, agreed to let Llethri bring him back home and to stay put. For now.

It wouldn’t be long until he was compelled back to wandering.

[sentofight]

Quick synopsis:

When new life gives hope. Everyone in the Den found a glimpse of hope when Ren Amamiya was born. He was not a special kid by any means but during that time, every baby was a blissing so every baby needs to be treasured in this hell on earth. However, Ren was indeed special to the Den residents. His mother and father are the Den's finest after all. Not to mention, Ren makes himself loveable with how he acts around people--friendly and cheerful like his parents.

The God Eater scion took the mantle after his parents--not that Lindow ever stopped being one and Sakuya had her moments when she had to step down in favor of her family.

In terms of personality, Ren takes after his father when it comes to like bothering the people he likes. Unlike Lindow, he can push his luck with people; trying his best to manipulate people (not in a negative context) into doing his bids, pranks or simply to tease.

Personal information:

Full name: Ren Amamiya

Nicknames: Rere (by Kannon and some other girls in the Den) , Little Lindow (as a jab by almost everyone), Renny (Kota, Nana, Romeo most likely)

Code Name: REN

Age: 3 years old (Start of GE2), 16 (Start of GE3)

Origin/Nationality: Far East (Japanese)

Height: 168cm [16 y/o]

Weight: 61kg [16y/o]

Eye color: Red

Hair color: Black

Relatives: Lindow Amamiya (father), Sakuya Tachibana/Amamiya (Mother), Tsubaki Amamiya (aunt), everyone in the den (uncle/aunt/big sister/big brother)

Birthday: undetermined ???

NORN database:

Affiliation: Fenrir Far East Branch / Cradle / Port LIFE

Occupation: Den's human mascot (jk), God Eater

God Arc Type: 3rd Generation [prefers long ranged attacks]

Class: undetermined ???

Unit type: undetermined ???

. . . loading.

Extra information:

Face claim: undetermined ???

Voice claim: undetermined ???

. . . loading . . .

Norn

Ren Amamiya: 1

Ren Amamiya born in 2071 to Lindow Amamiya and Sakuya Tachibana. The pitter patter of the child brought immense joy to everyone in the Den.

Ren Amamiya: 2 (3)

With the advent of the new plight, Ren was 3 years old and was still in the care of his mother. He was a source of happiness to the Den in the darkest time.

Due to Lindow's new work, Ren had not seen him for a while but that never stopped the boy from running to the man as soon as he sees him.

Ren's favorite thing is to stick close to the people who he likes, Tsubaki, Soma, Kota, Setsuna, Kanon, Licca etc.

Ren Amamiya: 3 (16)

Just like his father, he became a God Eater at the age of 16. Despite Lindow and Sakuya's urging him to take it easy and find other avenues, he insisted on following their footsteps. Ren assured them it was not out of sense of obligation or any kind of pressure to follow after their shadows.

When the ashlands appeared, every connection with the other branches were cut off. Ren was mortified of losing a family member--Soma, after all connections to him were lost. Soma was like a big brother to him and he could not imagine losing him. Thankfully, a line was connected to Soma's radio signal and Lindow notified everyone of the young man's safety.

The news traveled fast that Soma Schicksal was one of "Three Sages of the Calamity" who caused the ashfall to occur but the whole Den were against blaming Soma for this, in fact they are all waiting for his return with a solution--so does Ren.

Ren Amamiya: 4 (16)

Part of a new unit, Ren joined his father in securing resources and new places to transport people to safety. Being God Eater of Port LIFE meant everything to Ren; all the people he loved and loved him were in that port and he would rather risk a limb or two to make their lives bearable for another day.

--- more to be add later.

[wil-is-done]

When You’re A Mystery Kid - Chapter 19: Assemble

Summary: The wait is over. The decision has been made. Their next chapter begins here.

Word Count: 8.937

-

IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a repost.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters featured here.

“Barnes, Jones, Rogers, you’re up! Get on the field!”

Coraline rose up from the bench that she was sitting on upon hearing Coach Barton calling her name. She walked up confidently towards the starting line, all the while doing some stretches that were not strictly unnecessary. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted two boys standing up from the benches and entering the field. She could also see how they frowned, and how they deliberately took small steps. It was plainly obvious that the two were not enthusiastic to be competing against her. Coraline had to hold herself back from grinning; after all, it always sucks to go up against the best kid in class.

By the time the two boys joined her on the starting line, she had already warmed herself up. Impressive, she thought, considering how cold Ashland could get in this time of year. The two boys, one lanky, with long, unruly dark hair, and the other a blonde with striking blue eyes, already looked like they were content with going for second place. Coraline pouted and huffed. They could have at least tried to look like they were going to give her a challenge. 

“May the best runner win.” she still stated. The two simply shared a frown. They didn’t see to give her words much thought. 

As she and the two boys settled into a starting position, she could hear people from the benches calling out the names of the two boys beside her as well as shouts of encouragement towards them. Friends of theirs, probably. Or, someone who wanted to see her being taken down a notch. Either way, she didn’t care. Among the calls and encouragements for her opponents, she heard a single voice rooting for her, and that’s the only one that mattered.

“Yeah, Jonesy! Crush ‘em! You can do it!” Wybie cheered from the side. His voice wasn’t really louder than the others, but she still heard him loud and clear. 

Coraline flashed him a confident smile, and quickly focused herself on the task at hand.

“On your marks! Get set!”

Coraline tensed. She didn’t bother with trying to hide that grin anymore. 

“Go!”

The three launched out of the starting line pretty much neck and neck, but it didn’t take long for Coraline to pull ahead. A few seconds into the race, and already she couldn’t see either of her opponents in her peripheral anymore. Even with the rush of the sprint pumping through her, she couldn’t help but feel disappointment at the back of her head. Yet another easy win.

Although, she supposed she does have an unfair advantage. Ever since her encounter with… her, Coraline had attended many self-defense classes and set up a tough training regime for herself, which she followed even to this day. As a result, grades for her gym classes were never an issue anymore. Add to that an entire summer’s worth of adventures, some more harrowing than others, and she’s pretty sure she’s a lot stronger than any fifteen year old has any right to be.

The finish line growing closer did not cause her to slow down. If anything, it urged her to run faster. She sprinted past the finish line just a few moments later, savoring the little bit of satisfaction it provided her. She gradually slowed herself down until she eventually came to a full stop. She panted slightly from the exertion, but still not at all out of breath. Hell, she’s barely even sweating. She turned around, fully smirking, curious to see how badly she left the two boys in the dust.

Her smirk disappeared upon seeing the sight before her.

Her two opponents had come to a complete stop halfway down the track. They stared slack-jawed at something to Coraline’s right, outside of her field of vision. It was at this point that Coraline, now free of the rush flooding her system, noticed that the courtyard had gone completely silent. The calls, the cheers, and even other sounds from other students going about their business in the courtyard, had all come to a stop. Coach Barton, the two boys, the other students; they all appear to be seeing something that left them stunned.

Coraline followed their gaze, and felt her heart drop to her stomach.

A sleek, white jet, complete with futuristic, turquoise markings and details, as well as some sort of a strange, almost cylinder-shaped device attached near its tail end glowing with purple energy, hovered above the school building. A jet that Coraline was very familiar with. 

Coraline felt her legs going weak. She did not expect this to happen so soon. Agent Nein told them it was going to take months, or even the better part of the year, until the Grand Head and his council finished their review of his idea. She was not ready.

She was not ready.

But she had to be.

Coraline heard footsteps approaching her from the side. She took a steadying breath.

A quick glance to the side revealed the source of the footsteps is none other than Wybie, approaching with a tense expression. 

“You know,” Coraline started, glad that her voice did not betray how she really felt, “for a bunch of ‘secret agents’, they really suck at the ‘secret’ part.”

Wybie nervously scratched the back of his neck. “Well… they have been here before, so, I guess, they don’t think they need to hide themselves, maybe?”

“Subtlety had its day, huh?” Coraline mused. She sighed deeply, running a finger through her hair. “I didn’t realize it would happen so soon.”

She looked at Wybie, carefully letting out some of what she really felt. “I don’t think… I’m not sure if I’m ready. Are you?”

“I… uh…” Wybie paused. He glanced up at the jet for a few moments, before turning back to Coraline with a smile that she knew was forced. “Hey, at least we get to skip school for the rest of the day. That’s, uh, pretty good?”

Coraline smirked dryly. “I guess. Not having to deal with the smelly old troll that is Mister Obadiah is always a plus.” She appreciated the effort he did to calm her nerves. Not that it worked, but she appreciated it.

Coraline huffed. No use delaying the inevitable.

“So. Fuck it?”

Wybie shrugged.

“Fuck it.”

Together, they marched ahead, towards the jet that awaited them.

-

“Now, in this triangle, can anyone tell me the measure of angle X when Y is at an angle less than 46 degrees?” Mrs. Parker turned away from the blackboard and addressed the class. “Anyone?” 

Dipper had to make an effort to suppress a sigh. He appreciated the fact that Mrs. Parker always at least tried to get everyone in class involved whenever she teaches, he really do. What he didn’t appreciate, however, is the fact that it would always slow the class down to a crawl, which then would lead to the class ending before the subject was finished, which means he would have to take extra classes, which would take more of his time, and so on, and so on. It would be, overall, detrimental to his daily schedule.

“What about… you, Tony?” 

“Wha- huh?”

The brown-haired boy practically jumped in his chair, obviously caught off guard. Dipper silently rolled his eyes. She couldn’t have picked a better one.

“Come on, what is the measure of angle X when Y is at an angle less than 46 degrees?”

“Uhh… it… is… probably… maybe…”

Dipper started impatiently tapping his pencil against the table. Just let someone else answer it already. That guy is not going to have an answer; he’d been busy with his phone under his desk for the last thirty minutes. Hell, let Dipper answer. He’d already got the answer figured out the moment Mrs. Parker finished writing it out on the blackboard.

“… sixty-nine degrees…?”

A few low snorts and giggles can be heard throughout the room. Dipper quietly sighed. 

“That is… not correct, but keep trying, Tony.” Mrs. Parker said with a genuinely kind smile, before scanning the room again. “Does anyone else have-“

Dipper raised his hand.

“Yes, Mason?”

“Forty-four degrees, ma’am.”

Mrs. Parker beamed brightly. “That is indeed the right answer! Well done, Mason.”

Dipper couldn’t help but let out a small smile of pride as Mrs. Parker turned around to face the blackboard again. The class then continued, much to Dipper’s delight, as he went back to taking notes for later use. As he wrote, the feeling of being watched, of eyes upon him, crept up his spine. It’s a feeling he was all-too familiar with; one that usually came after he called attention to himself. Even without looking up, he could feel the eyes of the other kids in class staring at him, judging, mocking, drilling into him. He tried his best to ignore them, and kept on writing.

And he kept on writing, and writing, and writing, but then he slowed, and slowed, and slowed, until eventually he came to a stop. Ignoring the stares was… difficult. Easier said than done. Despite his best efforts, he could still feel them; every pair of eyes staring at him. He desperately wanted to squirm - it’s all getting a bit much - but he forced himself to stay still. Doing that would just provoke them. Times like these are when he regretted taking separate classes from Mabel. He couldn’t even look to his twin for a little bit of support.

Just… breathe. Deep, calming breaths, and just focus on taking notes. He’s already falling a bit behind from what Mrs. Parker wrote on the blackboard, so the best thing he could do right now is to start writing again, double time, and- 

Wait, what was that?

His eyes darted towards the corner of the room, at a small fishbowl sitting on top of a shelf. He could’ve sworn, out of the corner of his eye, he saw the water ripple. 

Mrs. Parker, the lesson, his notes, all slipped away from his mind at an instant. He turned his full attention towards that small fishbowl, waiting to see if the water would ripple again or if his stress was making him see things. He wasn’t exactly sure if too much stress could make him see- hey, there it is again! The water rippled again! Only, this time… it kept on rippling. It didn’t stop. In fact, it looked like it was getting… stronger?

He suddenly felt his table starting to vibrate. Nearly imperceptible at first, but it began to grow in intensity over time. At the back of his head, he registered that Mrs. Parker had paused her lecture, looking around in confusion. A strange humming sound began filling his ears, and at this point the disturbance has become impossible to ignore, as the other kids began to look around in confusion. 

This humming sound; he’s familiar with it. He’s heard it before. It sounded like-

“Holy crap!”

A cry from one of his classmates turned his attention towards the window. The sight before him caused him to jump out of his seat.

Outside, hovering just a few feet from the window, was a beautiful, white and turquoise jet, its psitanium-powered engine humming away near the tail end of the craft, enabling its ability to fly and hover with perfect precision. 

A jet that could only belong to the Psychonauts.

His classmates scrambled out of their seats, trying to put as much distance as possible between them and the window. Some even already had their phones out, and was already recording. Meanwhile, Dipper, in complete contrast to the others, slowly walked towards it, almost entranced by the sight of the jet. He reached the window, placing his hand on the thin piece of glass separating him from the jet. At the back of his head, he could hear the chatter of his classmates.

“Is that an actual freakin’ jet?!”

“What’s that Mason kid doing?!”

“Wait, wait, isn’t that… that’s the same jet that showed up last month!”

“No way, the one that picked up Dipper and his family?”

“Dude, that actually happened?! You guys weren’t just bullshitting me?!”

Dipper paid their comments no mind. If the jet was here, it could only mean one thing.

It’s time.

A sudden sound pierced through the chatter, breaking Dipper’s wide-eyed stupor. The sound was his phone’s ringtone, coming from his desk. He rushed back to it, fished his phone out of his bag, and saw the caller.

It’s Mabel.

“Mabel?”

“Dipper? You’re seeing this, right?”

Dipper glanced back at the jet. A grin formed on his features. “Oh, yes, definitely.”

Mabel was silent for a considerable amount of time, before she spoke again, her voice smaller this time. “So… that means it’s happening now, right?”

“Sure looks like it.” Dipper replied.

“Wait, can we, though?” Mabel asked, her voice back up to peppy again. “I’m in class. You’re in class too, right?”

“Well…” Dipper shot a glance to Mrs. Parker, who wore a look of absolute bewilderment, “are we really going to let a bunch of teachers stop us?”

Mabel laughed. “Probably not.” She paused for a few moments. “Gotta pack my stuff, then. See you on the jet?”

“See you on the jet.”

Dipper ended the call. It was at this point that he finally noticed that every eye on the room was on him, all shooting him looks of wonder, confusion, and curiosity. He immediately decided he could get used to this type of attention.

“Mason… d-do you… know what’s going on?” Mrs. Parker asked slowly. She no doubt caught the chatter going around between his classmates.

Dipper knew that he shouldn’t gloat, that he shouldn’t flaunt his singular knowledge of what exactly was currently happening to the rest of the class. He didn’t even know if Agent Nein’s idea was approved or not; the jet arriving only meant that a decision has been made. However, surrounded by his baffled teacher and his similarly baffled - and some still recording - classmates, with a smug smile clear as day on his features, he’s quite certain he would be forgiven for milking this just a little.

“Mrs. Parker, my fellow classmates,” Dipper started, packing his things into his bag as he spoke, “I am seriously sorry for interrupting the class. I know how important proper education must mean for all of you, so don’t worry, I’ll be on my way in just a minute.”

With that, Dipper zipped his bag closed, slung it over one shoulder, and commenced a confident stride towards the door. His classmates watched, silent as the grave, as he made his way to the front of the room. As he passed by the still-baffled Mrs. Parker, he paused, turning to address her.

“I’m excusing myself, if that’s alright with you, Mrs. Parker.”

Without waiting for a reply, Dipper continued forward to the door. He grasped the doorknob, swinging it open with deliberate dramatic flair.

“M-Mason, where are you going?!” It seemed that Mrs. Parker had recovered enough to form a question.

Dipper paused in the doorway. He looked over his shoulder to his teacher, to all of his classmates. The smug smile on his features transitioned to one of confidence.

“My new job.”

Those were his final words as he stepped through the doorway, slamming the door behind him. Dipper marched forward, proudly, confidently, towards his future.

He managed about five more steps before he collapsed into a mess of squeals and giggles.

-

Norman was surprised when he spotted someone sitting down across from him out of the corner of his eye at the lunch table, and he was even more surprised upon looking up to see that the person was none other than Alvin. The other people on the table looked similarly surprised; Neil, who was sitting next to Norman, frowned suspiciously at Alvin, while Salma, who was sitting across from Neil and was therefore sitting next to Alvin, gave him a side eye filled with disgust and a dash of confusion. Alvin, for his part, wore an unnaturally wide smile, one that all but says to Norman that he wanted to ask a favor or something.

Norman decided to humor him nonetheless. “Hi, Alvin.”

“And bye, Alvin.” Salma sharply cut in, adding to that by pointedly moving herself and her food tray a few inches away from him.

Alvin, who was about to say something before Salma cut in, took a moment to send her a glare, before turning back to Norman with that unnatural smile. “Hello to you too, Norman! Norman, my best buddy, my pal, my main man. Say, you did something with your hair, Norman? Use a new gel or something? Because, I gotta say, it’s looking on point today.” 

“Alvin, go sit somewhere else.” Neil piped in with a frown, both hands on his hips. He continued on, with a hint of smugness in his voice, “This table is for cool nerds only.”

Alvin’s eyes darted over to Neil, and narrowed. “Zip it, muffin top.”

Norman, who had so far kept a neutral expression, let his eyebrows drop, turning his expression into one of disappointment.

Alvin quickly switched gears back to his ‘happy’ face. “I mean, can’t a guy catch up with his best buddy even for just a little bit? Seriously, it’s been a while since we just hung around and chill out, y’know? What happened, man? We used to be tight, bro.”

Norman sighed. This is getting unbearable. 

“Alvin, for the last time, I’m not asking the ghost of my dead grandma to see if my sister has a porn stash in her room.”

Seeing the reactions around the table was interesting. Neil looks shocked, but the fact that he almost laughed at the absurdity of it didn’t escape Norman’s notice. The disgust on Salma’s face multiplied by at least ten as she shifted further away from Alvin. Meanwhile, Alvin at least had the decency to blush and stammer for a few moments.

“I- That- I don’t- No, this isn’t, uh, about that, not anymore.” He chuckled nervously. “I kinda… already know the answer to that. Kinda.”

Norman didn’t miss the pained expression that Alvin had for a moment, as well as the fact that he moved his left hand under the table. Norman had to admit, the mental image of Courtney absolutely nailing Alvin with a kick to that fragile area made him smile.

“Look, this one’s different, okay? Come on, Norman, please? Do your old pal a favor?” Alvin clasped his hands together, making a face that Norman guessed must have intended to be cute, but it really just looked unnerving. 

Norman rolled his eyes. “Fine. What is it?” he finally said, relenting. For now, he’d listen to Alvin’s request. If it turned out to be something completely out of line, which it most likely would be, he could always decline.

“Awesome!” Alvin grinned, showing off just how much he cared about his dental hygiene, and leaned forward. Norman instinctively leaned back. “So, there’s this chick, right? Her name’s Natasha; red hair, supermodel face, smokin’ hot bod, and an absolutely fine pair of-” 

“Alvin.”

“Right, so, she’s got a diary, see? What I’m asking you is, could you maybe ask your grandma to take a peek in her diary and see what kind of guys she’s into?”

Norman stared, completely silent, not because he didn’t have anything to say, but rather because there were too many things to say. Both Neil and Salma seemed to share his thoughts judging from how they too had been rendered speechless.

“Stuff like that has gotta be in her diary. That’s a thing that girls do, right?” Alvin obliviously continued, still grinning.

Salma was the first to break the silence. “Disgusting.” was all that she said before she rose from her seat, picked up her food tray, and briskly walked away from the table. Norman spotted Neil watching her go with a strangely disappointed pout, while Alvin didn’t seem to even notice that Salma had left at all.

“Dude. Gross.” Neil was the next to speak. The expression on his face matched his words quite well.

Norman considered his words - not his decision because he already decided - and spoke. “Well, this one is different… but it’s still just as bad as the last one.”

Alvin smiled at the beginning of that sentence, but his face fell by the time it ended. “So…?” he still asked, much to Norman’s exasperation.

Norman sighed. “So, you can go ask my grandma yourself.” he replied, turning his attention back to his lunch.

“Oh, okay then. Cool.” Norman heard Alvin say. It took Alvin an embarrassingly long five seconds before he followed it up with an indignant, “Hey, wait a minute!”

Beside him, Neil snickered and nudged him with an elbow. Norman himself struggled not to smile, choosing to hide it by taking a spoonful of baked beans into his mouth. Neil joined him in eating their lunch again, leaving Alvin to blather on some more on his own. A few minutes passed, with Alvin still talking somehow, though Norman had already tuned him out long ago. Instead, he focused on the ambient noises of the cafeteria, on the clinks of silverware and the lively chatter of students. 

However, through all the noise, he caught a strange stirring to his left, just outside his vision. Norman turned towards that direction, spotting a fully-seated table engaged in a conversation with a kid who looked like she just entered the cafeteria after a marathon. The standing kid spoke - Norman’s not close enough to make out what she’s saying - in a frantic manner, and it seemed to be contagious, as the table quickly started talking amongst themselves in that same manner. Before long, the kid seemed to motion for the others to follow her, before darting out of the cafeteria. The kids at the table wasted no time to follow her out. Then, it began to spread to the other tables. Norman presumed the tables around them overheard the conversation and began frantically talking themselves. It didn’t take long for them to leave the cafeteria as well, and it kept spreading, until students were leaving the cafeteria by the dozen.

“Neil.” Norman said simply, his eyes not leaving the crowd milling out.

Neil looked up at Norman, followed Norman’s line of sight, and was similarly befuddled. 

The two shared a look, nodded, and both rose from their seat.

Norman and Neil followed the moving crowd, Norman barely noticing that Alvin decided to tail them for some reason. The crowd moved through the school, every person in it seemingly wanting to push and rush their way through, though the sheer number of people in the crowd meant that it could only move in a slow pace. Norman realized that the crowd was headed towards the school’s front yard. A likely possibility of what could cause this kind of crowd came to mind, but Norman reserved that thought for now. It could be something else.

The two eventually reached the front yard. Neil’s jaw immediately dropped. Norman looked on silently, unsure on how to feel for being right.

In front of them, hovering a few dozen meters above the front yard, was a sleek jet colored white and turquoise, which would be considered a fairly normal-looking jet if not for the almost disk-shaped device fitted at the bottom of the jet near its tail end, humming with power and glowing a bright purple. It’s a jet that both of them were very familiar with.

Its arrival could only mean one thing.

“Whoa, wait, so it’s happening now? So soon?” Neil voiced out, looking back and forth between the jet and Norman.

Norman simply shrugged. “I guess…” 

Neil sighed, eyes downcast, shoulders slumped, but he quickly put on a face of determination. “Well… let’s do it then.”

Norman smiled upon seeing how fast Neil could bounce back from a funk, and he nodded. Together, they began pushing their way through the crowd.

As they got closer to the jet, they realized that the crowd had parted to form a small circle near the jet, and in the middle of that circle, stood a woman that Norman didn’t recognize, but the uniform she wore gave away the fact that was a Psychonaut agent. The agent addressed the crowd; her voice ringing clearly throughout the yard.

“I’m asking you all again; I am looking for a Norman Babcock and a Neil Downe. Has any of you seen them at all today?”

Neil jumped, raising his hand. “That’s us!” 

The crowd around Norman and Neil parted almost instantly. On one hand, it made getting closer to the agent a lot easier, but on the other hand, Norman could do without the stares of almost the entire school focused on him. Neil didn’t seem perturbed at all by the attention, marching forward confidently to meet the agent. Norman followed behind him quietly. 

The agent crossed her arms as they approached. “You two are Norman Babcock and Neil Downe?” she asked, eyebrow raised.

“Yup! This is Norman,” Neil patted Norman’s shoulder, before he motioned to himself, “and I’m Neil.”

The agent stiffly nodded, still staring at them intensely. Suddenly, for a few seconds Norman felt that familiar but still bizarre feeling of a psychic reading his surface thoughts, one that felt like the insides of your skull was getting tickled by dozens of feathers. 

The sensation passed, and the agent smiled in satisfaction. “Looks like you are. It’s a pleasure to meet you two. I’m Agent Danvers, and I’ve been sent here to collect you.”

“Now, if there’s nothing else you need to do here first, I’ve been ordered to return as soon as possible.” Agent Danvers explained, looking expectantly at the duo.

The two shared a questioning look with each other. “Is there anything we need to do first?” Norman asked.

“Lunch, maybe?” Neil gestured at the school building with a hand. “We were kinda in the middle of that.”

“I mean, we could do that on the way.” Norman shrugged. He didn’t care about lunch all that much. He lost his appetite the moment he saw the jet.

“Done.” Agent Danvers suddenly cut in. She reached an arm out and flicked her wrist. 

From the far back of the crowd, Norman began hearing yelps and gasps of surprise, making its way closer and closer towards them. Norman spotted a pair of flying cafeteria trays floating past above the crowd, the trays eventually coming to a stop to hover in front of the two. Norman had to pause, surprised; this was their exact trays from before, not just some random ones from the cafeteria. 

The trays dropped. Norman and Neil quickly caught them.

Norman breathed out sharply. “Guess we’re all set then.” he said slowly.

“Affirmative. Better hang on tight to those trays.”

Before Norman even realized it, his feet had left the ground as the agent and both he and Neil slowly levitated up towards the jet. As if broken from a trance, the silent crowd suddenly exploded into a chaotic chorus of murmurs and shouts.

“See you all later!” Neil called out to the people below, while, to Norman’s amusement, waving his hand. 

“We’re gonna become superheroes!”

-

“It’s already time?”

Raz nodded vigorously. “Mhm, yeah.”

Augustus was silent for so long, Raz briefly worried that the call had disconnected. “Razputin, this is very sudden.” he eventually said.

“Oh, yeah.” Calling this ‘sudden’ was a bit of an understatement. It’s been slightly over a month since that surreal day, but it still felt like it just happened yesterday.

“This is… this is a huge step for you, Razputin. Are you sure you’re ready for it?” Augustus asked, his voice laced with concern.

Raz glanced to the side, at the metal door with the Psychonauts symbol emblazoned on it, the same door that he entered over a month ago. He expected to feel doubt and anxiety upon looking at it, and while he still felt them, he found that they were massively overshadowed by a sense of anticipation and eagerness. 

“I am. I’ve never been more ready for anything in my life.”

“Of course, of course you are.” his father chuckled. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to burst your bubble. I’m just an old man worried for his son.”

Raz smiled. “Dad, you’ve got nothing to worry about. You know I can take care of myself. If and when I can’t, then my team’s got my back.”

“I know, I know. Like I said, just a worried old man.” Augustus sighed, not saying a word for a few moments. “Then, I suppose I wish you luck, son.”

“Thanks, Dad.” Raz’s smile grew wider. He didn’t need his powers to know that his father genuinely meant that. He could barely believe there was a time in his life when he thought his father hated him.

“Oh, wait, what am I thinking,” his father said, accompanied by the sound of a door being opened, “we should all wish you luck together, as a family! Donatella, come here!”

Raz chuckled. “Dad, you don’t have to, it’s-”

“Dion, Frazie, come down here! Come wish your little brother good luck, he’s getting a promotion!”

Raz glanced nervously at the metal door. “No, Dad, seriously, I kinda have to-”

“Ah, here’s Queepie! Queepie, come say good luck to- wait, what are you holding?” There’s suddenly a sound of glass breaking, followed by rapid footsteps going away from the phone. “Queepie, I thought we agreed, knives are not toys until you’re at least eight!”

“Loveyoudadbye!” Raz took the opportunity to quickly end the call. He had to chuckle to himself in amusement; looks like his dad was in for another normal day at the Aquato caravan.

Raz put his phone away, faced the metal door, took a deep breath, and put on a face that was altogether more serious than before. This was it. After a wait that was significantly shorter than he expected, this is the moment that he’d been waiting for. Whatever happens in that room will decide the future for both him and his friends. Whatever happens in that room, things will never be the same again.

The door slid open. Raz marched forward with no hesitation.

The meeting room was laid out exactly like how Raz remembered it. Large screen on the wall displaying a world map, banners bearing the symbols of the divisions within Psychonauts, and a large round table at the center of the room, with eight chairs on one side and, to Raz’s surprise, three chairs on the other side. Adding to his surprise was the fact that seven of the eight chairs were already occupied.

Coraline swiveled around in her chair upon hearing the door sliding open, tensing up, but upon seeing that the person entering the room was just Raz, she relaxed again. 

“Took you long enough.” Lili called out with a smirk.

“Yeah, sorry. Called my dad to let him know and it ran a little late.” Raz replied, shrugging. He moved to the only empty chair left, the one between Coraline and Lili, and sat down. 

The Mystery Kids were currently seated in the same arrangement as they did last month when Agent Nein first told them of his idea, which Coraline found to be a little weird. 

Coraline turned to Raz. Now that he’s here, she could finally drill him for some answers. “So, Aquato, didn’t that Nein guy said it’s gonna take months for this idea of his to go through?”

Raz saw the look on Coraline’s face, and nodded slowly and carefully. “Yeah, that’s what Sasha said.”

“Months.” Coraline narrowed her eyes. “Plural. You know, as in more than one?”

Raz quickly put his hands up defensively. “Hey, if you got any complaints, don’t shoot them at me. I don’t know squat.” He pointed a finger at his girlfriend. “If anything, you should be asking that to Lili.”

“Hey!” Lili voiced out indignantly. Coraline moved her narrowed eyes over to Lili, but just as she thought, Lili was barely affected by it. 

“Well, your dad is the one deciding all of this, Lil.” Raz reasoned. Lili’s expression darkened, and Coraline wouldn’t have been surprised if Raz’s ass was to spontaneously combust.

However, to Coraline’s surprise and mild disappointment, Lili was quickly deep in thought. “I guess, maybe the council didn’t have anything else to do, so Sasha’s idea got moved up?” she sighed. “I don’t know. Stop asking me stuff like that. I told you, we don’t talk about work when we’re together.”

“Or maybe,” Dipper cut in, looking far too chipper in this situation than Coraline was comfortable with, “the Psychonauts need this team a lot more than we thought.”

“Can’t say we can blame ‘em. We are pretty great.” Mabel added. Coraline didn’t know what happened between her and her brother since she last met her in person, but she looked a lot more enthusiastic about this idea than she was a month ago.

“Well, that’s a great thought.” Coraline dryly remarked. “The all-powerful psychic organization apparently needs us real bad.”

The room went quiet after that, the energy between them dwindling. Coraline kind of felt bad for bringing that thought onto the table. She understood; this was supposed to be exciting and all that, but still…

“Anyway,” Raz spoke up, and somehow he brought the energy back to the room, “what’s been happening with you all? Our Skype group’s been pretty quiet lately.”

Nobody responded right away, but Coraline guessed that’s just because everyone knew the answer to that already.

“We do have a lot to think about.” Norman calmly replied. Coraline nodded. That neatly summed up what her life had been like for the previous month.

Raz was silent for a few moments, before slowly, with a low voice, he asked, “How’d it go with your parents?”

There was a very noticeable shift in the room’s atmosphere as that subject was brought up. Coraline herself grimaced as the memories of that particular conversation with her parents came to the surface. That memory was just so great and pleasant to relive. In a way, Coraline was glad that she wasn’t the only one who had an absolute blast talking to their parents about it.

“They agreed.” Coraline said simply. “Eventually.”

Everyone’s answers had a similar flavor.

“Eventually, yeah.”

“They… said yes, I guess.”

“Kind of.”

“Not as bad as I was expecting.” 

“My parents gave me a hard no.”

Coraline, along with everyone else in the room, turned their heads towards Neil, who had said that so nonchalantly. 

Neil returned everyone’s gaze and grinned. “But then they found out about how much I’m going to get paid for it. They switched over to a hard yes.”

Everyone relaxed in their seats. Coraline couldn’t believe she actually fell for that. The stress must really be getting to her. 

“Yeah, the money.” Wybie chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. “It definitely helped sweeten the deal with grandma. That kind of cash would help me and my grandma out a lot.” 

That’s another strange situation brought upon by Agent Nein’s crazy idea. The Psychonauts wanted them to risk their lives to protect people, and they were willing to pay, quite literally, a very heavy price for it. If the idea goes through, then Coraline would be making more money than both of her parents combined. Technically, that would make her the breadwinner of the family, which was a very strange thing to think about. 

The conversation petered out after that, as they all left each other to their own thoughts. Coraline desperately wished someone would start another conversation. She didn’t care if it’s Raz and Lili getting all lovey-dovey and gross, or if it’s Dipper and Wybie nerding out and saying things she couldn’t even begin to comprehend. Hell, she’d even take Neil spontaneously doing a musical number at this point. Anything, anything at all, would be better than the silence. 

The silence meant time to process. The silence meant time to think. Time to think about how they could be minutes away from a decision that will change their lives forever. Time to think about all the dangers they would face and whether or not they would survive through it. Time to think about how scared she was, when she ran from Bill’s demons, when she was cornered with nowhere to go, when she felt claws piercing through her stomach, when she felt her own red blood coating her hand, when she tasted the blood in her mouth, when the world went dark, and there was so much blood, everywhere, and more blood, and more blood, and more-

Coraline sucked in a breath. She clenched her fists, sharp nails digging into her palm.

She is still out there. People and things like her are still out there. 

That is why she is here. That is why she is doing this.

That is why the Mystery Kids are doing this.

The sound of a door sliding open pierced the silence. If anyone asked, Coraline definitely did not jump at the sound.

Recovering from not being startled, Coraline whipped around in her chair, with the rest of her friends quickly doing the same. Stepping through the door was a figure that Coraline knew all too well at this point. With his dark green jacket, a stony expression, and his eyes hidden behind a pair of dark-tinted glasses, the figure could only be Agent Sasha Nein. Coraline noted he was also carrying a small, metal briefcase. Entering the room after him was a woman, wearing clothes so colorful it could put Mabel’s sweaters to shame as well as a kind smile, which Coraline quickly recognized as Agent Milla Vodello. However, a third figure entered the room after Milla, one that Coraline never saw before. The man sported a long, thick beard, a dark green turtleneck sweater with a pin of the Psychonauts symbol, and carried himself with a sense of seniority. Coraline immediately decided she’s not very fond of the man.

Out of the corner of her eye, Coraline spotted Raz and Lili rising to their feet.

“Commander Zanotto?”

“Dad?!”

Huh. So that was apparently the Grand Head of the Psychonauts that she kept hearing about, as well as Lili’s dad. He didn’t quite fit the image that Coraline had in her head, but his looks still fit the position, she supposed.

“I-I mean, Commander Zanotto,” Lili quickly added, visibly flustered, “w-what brings you here?”

“At ease, agents.” Truman said with a motion of his hand. “I just thought I’d deliver the news myself. You can sit back down now.”

Raz and Lili shared a confused glance, before they slowly sat back down on their seats. The three senior agents moved across the room, around the large meeting room table, and sat themselves down on the three chairs available on the opposite side of the table. Truman sat in the middle, while Sasha and Milla sat on his right and his left, respectively.

“So. The Mystery Kids.” Truman began with a smile. “Sasha’s wonder children. Glad to finally meet you all in person.”

Coraline had to bite back a retort. Sasha’s wonder children?

“Commander, with all due respect, these children are by no means mine.” Sasha quickly cut in. “I did not train them, I did not prepare them. I was simply lucky enough to stumble upon their brilliance.”

“Diamonds in the rough, then.” Truman stated. His gaze swept through them all, and for a split second, Coraline felt a tickle on the inside of her skull.

“Yes, and just like diamonds, they have endured so much to be who they are right now.” Milla added with a smile directed at all of them. Coraline supposed it was normal to feel flattered, but she wasn’t going to let them know that without reading her mind.

“I can see that.” Truman replied, nodding thoughtfully. “Of course, I have read your files thoroughly. I know the things that have happened to you all and the things that you all have accomplished.”

Coraline couldn’t help but squirm just a tiny bit. She’s still not comfortable with the fact that the Psychonauts have files about her and her friends. She felt strangely glad that she wasn’t alone, as she spotted Wybie and Norman with looks of discomfort as well.

“Not to mention, my daughter can’t seem to stop talking about her new teammates.”

Coraline raised an eyebrow, leaning forward, suddenly extremely invested in where this conversation was going. She, along with the others, turned their attention to Lili, whose cheeks are starting to gain a vivid shade of red.

“Really?” Coraline had to actively stop her smile from looking too mischievous. “What sort of thing does she talk about, Commander?” 

“Well, she decided to try out scrapbooking, which was very surprising coming for her. Apparently it’s because she saw one of you do it and she thought it looked interesting.”

Coraline heard Neil let out a surprised, high-pitched, “Wait, what?!” Lili had resorted to burying her face in her hands.

“Also, she recently became obsessed with this cartoon show, and she said it was because one of you introduced it to her. If I recall correctly, it was… Mabel?”

Mabel jumped out of her seat, audibly gasping in absolute joy.

Coraline decided she liked Truman after all.

“Commander Zanotto.” Lili looked up, her face so red Coraline had to hold back a laugh. “I’m sure you have a busy schedule, being the Commander, so can we just cut to the chase? Please?” At that point, seeing Lili as just a girl with an amazingly embarrassing dad, Coraline’s perspective of her changed drastically. She also felt a strange sense of empathy towards Lili.

Not that it’s going to stop her from taking this as far as it could go. “Well, especially since you are the Commander, I’m sure you can just reschedule your meetings and stuff.” Coraline said with an innocent smile. “Please, you can talk about Lili for as long as you want. I’m sure none of us would mind.” 

From the corner of her eye, she could see Lili sending her a glare that just screamed murder. She also heard a message play in her head.

I. Will. Murder you.

Coraline kept her innocent smile.

Truman chuckled. “And you must be Coraline Jones.” He smiled, and Coraline could tell it was genuine. “She talks about you the most.”

Coraline blinked, feeling warmth rising to her cheeks. She hoped she’s not visibly blushing. “She does?”

“Yes.” Truman nodded. He looked evidently amused by the whole exchange. “She has a lot to say about you, Miss Jones.”

Coraline chanced a glance at Lili, seeing that now she had averted her gaze to stare at the floor, still blushing. Coraline let herself smile just a bit.

“Or, I suppose now I should refer to you as Agent Jones.”

Coraline froze. Lili froze. The others froze. Sasha cracked a smile. Milla casted her gaze downwards. Truman held his head up higher. Time itself seemed to stop in the room.

She was pretty sure her heart skipped a beat.

“C-come again?” She heard Neil squeak out.

Truman stood up. Sasha and Milla rose with him.

“All rise.”

Coraline was on her feet before she even realized it. In the corner of her eyes, she saw her friends rising as well, some a bit later than others, but eventually all of the Mystery Kids were on their feet. Coraline clenched and unclenched her fists.

This is it.

Truman glanced at Sasha. Sasha returned the glance and nodded. With a motion of his hand, the metal briefcase Coraline noticed floated up into view, before it gently settled on the table in front of him. Another motion of his hand, and the briefcase slid left, coming to a stop in front of Truman. There was a quiet click. The briefcase swung open facing them, revealing to them its contents.

Badges. Two rows of them, with four on each row. Each of them looked to be about the size of a human palm, round, colored mostly dark purple with a touch of black, and the centerpiece of it all, a pair of letters, curved, and highly stylized; an ‘M’ and a ‘K’.

Eight Mystery Kids badges.

“‘Prepare your mind’. That is what people in my position usually say in occasions like this.” Truman began. “I can’t help but think that that phrase might not fit in this case, for many reasons. The Psychonauts have prepared our minds against supernatural threats for decades since we were founded, and we will continue to prepare our minds for the years to come, but clearly we alone are no longer enough. The bitter reality of today is that we cannot protect the public from the ugly truth.”

Truman closed his eyes, and it was suddenly painfully visible that the years had taken a toll on him.

“That the world is vast, dark, and full of horrors.”

Truman’s eyes opened, and it was suddenly alive with determination.

“If we can’t protect the world by ourselves, then we need the help from those who can. Agent Nein, one of my most trusted agents, believes that you are the people we are looking for. After much deliberation, the council has decided to take a leap of faith.” 

The badges floated out of the briefcase and arranged themselves in a line on the table.

“Now, it is time for you to make yours.”

The badges slid across the table, each one coming to a stop in front of each member of the Mystery Kids.

“Once you take that badge, you have entered a path few are brave enough to walk, and even fewer have reached its end. It’s teeming with peril, danger, and terror.”

Coraline stared down at the badge, the polished dark purple metal seemingly not reflecting the light of the meeting room casting down upon it.

“Once you take that badge, you have sworn yourselves to stay in the dark to protect the light.”

A moment passed in absolute stillness. The next moment was a blur, and yet at the same time she saw everything with perfect clarity.

Dipper and Raz were the first ones to take it. They reached for it almost frantically, as if the badges would disappear if they didn’t take hold of it fast enough. Lili was next, delicately taking her badge like it was some sort of priceless artifact. Wybie, Norman, and Neil took theirs almost at the same time. Mabel reached for her badge, slowly at first, even stopping for a moment, but then her expression hardened, and she picked up the badge with renewed gusto. Coraline realized she was the only one without a badge in hand, and only then her hand began moving. It was slow; with her stopping and starting again multiple times, until eventually she shut her eyes tight and, screaming in her head, shot a hand forward.

The cold metal felt almost painful in her hand, as if it burned. She let out a breath she didn’t even realize she was holding this entire time. Her eyes slowly opened. The sight of her fingers curled around that badge looked surreal. Like it came from a dream, or maybe even a nightmare. But that image was very real. From now on, it’s her reality.

Coraline clutched the badge close to her chest, and she turned her gaze forward.

Truman smiled.

“Mystery Kids, it is a great honor and pleasure to officially induct you as an associate of the Psychonauts organization. I look forward to working together with all of you.”

The silence that followed felt awkward almost. Coraline looked around at her friends, and judging from the looks on their faces, just like her, they had no idea how to react.

“Go on.” Truman motioned at them with his hand, still smiling. “You’re young. Celebrate.”

Silence still covered the room for the next few seconds. It wasn’t until Dipper wrapped Mabel in a tight hug, jumping and squealing out loud, that the room exploded into a blur of people, movement, and sounds. 

Coraline heard Mabel’s voice joining her brother’s in an ever rising crescendo. She saw Neil, laughing, hugging Norman, also laughing, from behind. She saw Raz and Dipper high-fiving each other with the biggest, stupidest grin on their faces. She bumped her fist with Raz’s at some point. Someone kissed her cheek, and she wasn’t sure if it was either Wybie or Lili. Maybe it was both. She felt the dread and worry making her chest heavy disappear bit by bit, until she really joined the celebration in earnest. 

At some point, Truman started talking again. She was still too swept up in the celebration to properly listen in, and when she spotted Dipper had actually calmed down and was now listening intently to Truman, she stopped caring entirely. The only thing she caught was that Sasha and Milla will act as their supervisor and liaison to the Psychonauts. After that, she vaguely heard him talk about budgets, schedules, something about facilities, recruitment of additional members, a base of operations, clearance to access-

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, what?” Dipper cut in. “Mind rewinding back to that part before the base?”

Coraline paused in her celebrations, quickly followed by the rest of her friends. Even in her overstimulated state of mind, she was still pretty sure she heard something that nagged at the back of her mind.

“Recruitment of additional members?” Truman repeated, raising an eyebrow.

Coraline’s eyes widened.

Dipper proceeded to perfectly sum up what everyone surely felt. “Yeah, that. That’s- what?!”

“Commander, what do you mean by ‘new members’?” Raz asked, stepping forward.

Truman casted a confused glance towards Sasha. “You didn’t tell them?”

“I thought I did.” Sasha replied, before his attention turned towards the group. “Children, you do recall that I specifically mentioned the eight of you will be this team’s founding members?” 

“Darlings, you surely didn’t think we would give this monumental task on just the eight of you, did you?” Milla chimed in. “That would be far too much of a burden to bear.”

Coraline was stunned, as were the rest of the Mystery Kids. Relief washed over her, despite the shock, knowing that there would be more beyond the Psychonauts that would help them. But, at the same time, as she glanced around at the weird bunch that had become her closest friends, would that even be possible? Who would they even ‘recruit’? Besides the eight people in this room, there was only one other person she could think of that could handle supernatural threats. That’s not a very large recruitment pool.

“In fact,” Sasha continued, picking up a remote, “we already picked out a few that shows tremendous potential.”

Sasha turned around to face the world map displayed behind him and pressed a button. Blue dots started appearing on the map, complete with the names of the locations they represent. Coraline felt a twinge of disappointment when new dots stopped appearing after the fifth one - that number was nothing compared to the hundreds of red dots she saw last month - but nonetheless she was intrigued. 

The Mystery Kids collectively rushed around the large meeting room table to get closer to the display monitor. They took in the names of the locations, where people like them exist, at least according to the Psychonauts.

“Any of them caught your interest?” Sasha asked.

Coraline and Raz shared a knowing look. She was not familiar with the names of most of the places shown on the map, but one in particular stuck out for her. It must have stuck out for everyone in the room.

“That one.” Raz pointed to the dot in question, located in central USA. 

Sasha chuckled lightly. “I had a feeling that would be your first pick.”

“Well, he is kinda world-famous.” Wybie reasoned.

Sasha nodded, humming in affirmation.

“First things first, we have a lot of business to take care of right here.” Truman spoke. “But, once we are finished, just say the word and we’ll have a jet ready to transport you there.”

Coraline rolled her eyes. She imagined the ‘business’ must involve mountains of paperwork, or some variation of it. What an excellent way to move on after the rush she went through. Although, once they were done…

Coraline stared up at the map again.

“Amity Park, here we come.”

-

Because this fic, which already has eight main characters in it, needs even MORE characters, get ready for this crossover to increase by a fuckton.

So, a continuation of the overarching storyline and another big chapter in the bag. Hell, I think this one is a bit longer than chapter sixteen, which is saying a lot. A lot happening in this one, but just to confirm; yes, I am adding Danny to the mix in future chapters, as well as some additional characters as well. As for who those are, you’ll just have to wait and see.

Personally pretty proud of my writing productivity recently. Two straight months of releasing three chapters each month, with one of the chapters being these huge monstrosities. That’s probably going to be my usual schedule moving forward. Fingers crossed I can stick to it this time.

Feel free to share your thoughts about this chapter, and I hope you have a good day!

[lboogie1906]

Anthony Dwain Lee (July 17, 1961 – October 28, 2000) was an actor and playwright. He began his career in the 1980s appearing in numerous stage productions and guest roles on television and in films.

While attending a Halloween party in October 2000, he was fatally shot by a Los Angeles Police Department officer. His death, and the circumstances surrounding it, garnered significant national and international media attention.

He was born in Redding, California, and grew up in a middle-class family in Sacramento where he attended Valley High School.

He began acting at the age of 20 in a community acting class that performed productions at retirement and assisted living homes. His first professional productions were at The Sacramento Theater Company. In 1986, he traveled to Ashland, Oregon, and auditioned at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, a nationally and internationally known Regional Equity theater. He was cast the following season at OSF with a ten-month contract. He starred in Master Harold and the Boys, playing Willie, and had a lead role in Carson McCullers’ play. He met his future wife, Serena Scholl, an actress, at OSF. They moved to Sacramento and then to Seattle. The move was precipitated by Lee being cast by Tim Bond in, The Colored Museum, at The Empty Space Theater.

He continued working in stage productions at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. He appeared in The Cider House Rules as Mr. Rose, as Sweet Back in Spunk, and in a role in A Raisin in the Sun. He acted in The Kentucky Cycle at the Intiman Theatre and appeared in productions of The Colored Museum, Uncle Vanya, The Meeting as Malcolm X, and as the lead character in Othello. He won the 1995 LAWeekly award for “Best Actor” in “Buffalo Soldier” at Theatre/Theater in Hollywood.

His last onscreen appearance was on the Season 7 ER episode “Rescue Me” in which he portrayed a homeless man. The episode, which aired on November 23, 2000, is dedicated to him. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence #blm

[rainytaylor]

Introducing Sage Anne Singer

Playing pretend is my Roman Empire. So, I've been rewatching Supernatural and depositing an original female character into the mix. Now that I'm on Season 13? Probably time to start sharing and putting my work out into the ether.

We know in the canon that Bobby’s wife Karen wanted kids, but Bobby told her he “breaks everything he touches,” and doesn’t want them for that reason. She is possessed by a demon only a few days later and, with his then-limited knowledge, he ends up killing her; Rufus exorcizes the demon after her body is too broken to survive. Then Bobby becomes a hunter in his grief. He and Rufus hunt together until Bobby gets someone important to Rufus killed. Eventually, John Winchester leaves his two sons with Bobby for extended periods of time on occasion. 

Here’s what’s new: 

A few years after Karen dies, Bobby has a one-night stand in Ashland, Oregon, when he’s on a case. And a few years after that, he finds himself in the same town while hunting a demon. His one-night stand is a victim… and leaves behind a young girl who is clearly Bobby’s daughter. What else can he do? He takes her home, realizing that in a funny way, Karen belatedly gets her wish. Enter Sage.

Sage is raised by Bobby, with many, many guest appearances by (Uncle) Rufus. In some ways, her childhood parallels Sam’s and Dean’s; she travels, but stays at the motel, living on boxed cereal and vending machine Sprite. In dive bars all across the country, Rufus Rufus has trained her to be a damn fine pool player from a very young age. Although Bobby is hesitant to let her tote a shotgun into danger while she’s younger, he does teach her Latin and Ancient Greek, and lets her immerse herself in the lore. By the time she’s 13, she’s gone from research aide to bonafide lore librarian. 

We know that Bobby was always upset with John Winchester for not really allowing Sam and Dean to have a childhood, so it’s important to add that Bobby did let Sage “be a kid,” too. One of his memories of young!Sage is that she liked to pick leaves and berries and mash them with stones in an old cast iron pot to “make spells”; it’s what led him to start showing her, later, how to concoct the real thing. They are never out of town on her birthday–September 13 (1980)–and every year he makes her chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes for dinner and they bake a cobbler together for dessert. In this universe, Bobby is a perpetually grumpy fan of the Minnesota Twins, and he raises Sage to love baseball; once a year, they drive out to the Twin Cities to catch a game.

Because Sioux Falls is still their home base, Sage has something of a cohesive education, despite extended absences throughout her academic career. She’s a bit of a know-it-all who dearly loves to be right, and so while some teachers might have bemoaned her wasted potential, others weren’t terribly surprised when the girl who got detention for socking boys in the face for pestering girls in the hallway didn’t pursue college. Her social life is mostly limited to the children of other hunters–for example, she accompanies Bobby to the Roadhouse throughout most of her life and becomes close with Jo–but she goes to a few parties and, since everyone thinks her dad is the town drunk, leans into it and becomes known for furiously dancing to any and all music playing, and shooting cheap whiskey. She and Bobby fixed up a minty green Ford F100 when she turned 16, and she sometimes drives it out to dive bars in small towns to hustle pool (thank you, Uncle Rufus). 

Ah, and then there’s Sam and Dean. As kids, Sam bonds with her best, because they both love to read; she lends him her favorite books, and they read together in the back of pickup trucks in the yard, with flashlights on top of sleeping bags under the stars. Sometimes, because she knows he’s lonely, she sends him postcards when she and Bobby and Rufus are on the road. Dean thinks she’s bossy (he’s not wrong), and they tend to butt heads and argue about such significant topics as whether bunting makes sense (it does), and if sriracha is good on boxed macaroni and cheese (it is). 

Sage is short and curvy, with pale skin and bright green eyes. Her hair is brown and wavy, and she almost always styles it in french braids. As an adult, she tends to wear 90s floral dresses, jumpers, overalls, or shorts over tights–usually with a jean jacket, boots, and a vintage trucker cap of some kind. Bobby gave her an antique locket when she was 10 with minor warding, and she hasn’t taken it off since. After season 7, she starts to collect some tattoos. 

Other stuff: the woman drinks whisky and Hamms beer; her favorite books are The Three Musketeers and Homer’s Odyssey; she loves 1960s soul à la Otis Redding and Sam Cooke.

[changelingsandothernonsense]

The Magician, Strength, The Hanged Man, and The Fool in Reverse for Erra!!

Ah Erra, my fav Exiled Ashland boi! The Magician: How does your character unleash their creativity or resourcefulness? Erra's actually very gifted in the creation of blown glass amulets. Whilst he can't enchant them himself, he's very good at actually placing the components together effectively. Most of his designs have a madstone motif or just the evil eye in general, Teldryn often receives them as gifts. It helps calm his anxieties over Teldryn being in constant danger. He's also a tactical genius but that he won't brag on ;) Strength: On what issue is your character persistent? Erra will not apologise for his perceived wrongdoing within Urshilaku, preferring this loose form of exile instead. There is no universe where he will forsake his own happiness and sanity for the upkeep of what he sees as a pointless tradition. He won't do it and he's willing to lose his extended family and his position as heir to the seat of Ashkhan for it.

The Hanged Man: When has your character needed to step back and look at things from a different perspective? Raiding, he's changed how he sees the practice after actually engaging in it. He naively believed that their raiding was just a taking of goods for glory when he started participating in the war bands in his youth (19-34). Erra was raised as a warrior, he was groomed for both a position as Ashkhan and as a part of the potential Incarnate's Honour Guard. He was raised to seek glory in battle and joint raids on villages on their periphery were always the best way of doing it. As the Blight continued to ravage the lands, things started getting increasingly desperate. Goods were hard to come by so they started taking people to sell for gold. It was the first time Erra ever questioned the practice and is eventually what lead him to abandon nomadic life all together and start selling his services as a mercenary and guide to fat merchants from the west.

The Fool in Reverse: When has your character acted recklessly?

Erra does overthink quite a bit, almost every decision he makes involves a lot of weighing of options, consequences etc. There is an exception though, he tends to be more reckless when it comes to protecting his loved ones, particularly a certain Incarnate and this ultimately leads to his death.

Major Arcana Inspired Character Asks

Feel free to ask more!

[meanwhileinstasiville]

Silver cooper at soroptimist, and since my friend who died was English; let's go over this.

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/TheLastAmericanVirgin (Janneke is in here, and that's not the point but a movie that matters)

A cooper there means

• A food pantry that's empty but for yellow stuff

• A soundtrack indicative of musical theater, in Market of Choice *right time wrong me chorus* in exact synch with my coming through the checkout, complete with *won't stop raining* *soul so in despair, woman stalker from lithia park standing behind me in yellow* *empty pleas for contact, lyrics about crying*

And phil would have had better luck with "The second flavor of this occurs in the Cowboy Bebop episode "The Real Folk Blues (Part 1)", when Vicious kills the leaders of the Red Dragon and takes over the syndicate, executing one of them by slashing him across the eyes and making him "shed tears of scarlet".

Although, his sf MO was in all probability closer to "While the team celebrates Helen Morton's promotion to DCI, Annie meets someone in a restaurant, calls Banks from an alley nearby, and she is stabbed after telling him where she is. Banks and the team begin the painful job of finding out exactly who was responsible for Annie's death."

(London kings road skinheads *love those chef's knives*, and wouldn't you know it, it's where skinheads are from) But I digress.

A soundtrack at *MoC* like that means

•Something in the vicinity of the palm inn, a sweeper with a blower blowing crap into my eyes, as I reached the span of the turn in, see crying above

•A car stalker, notable for not being one, but several short distance to mountain avenue *where a yellow honda* was waiting to turn down mountain, AND a yellow motorcycle but not before *BOTH* 211-gah AND 122668

A palm inn experience like that one forecasts,

•A soundtrack at Safeway, and boy is there, Lionel Richie "you need to forget about me" in musical theater synch as I go through with *one item* "Does the music ever make you crazy?" I ask the *Filipino* cashier who's open

(Safeway had Don't You Forget About Me the last time I was in there, I think)

Safeway like that can only mean,

•A set of people who are supposed to look like me, either in dress or nose (a broken nose of ten or more times; always the stuff you're sensitive about) Ashland library staged and ready to go combatively when I walk in the door

(A ryan as reference girl is wearing stripes but the *shelver spy* ryan got a job here, hasn't tried to crowd me, yet. "You would die" she said when I offered that this was a way (her behavior) that ryan could get killed and that was *a very long time ago*)

And yes, would ryan have gone after Janneke in highschool or whatever, he would've been the idiot at the pawn shop from that movie. Sex makes men dumb, but *only the heterosexual ones* would agree Chris Horton.

And yes, this shit is *every day*, as the food pantry downstairs was empty and "hunger is the best spice" was the top promoted Google result when I searched the Real Folk Blues quote. So ***what*** exactly *is* ms13??? Is it Chicago's CIA or something?

Afterword, a sunflower girl I *randomly* encounter around a park often (read always) contain one of the following,

•"You should steal things and then sell them" entrapment

•"You're saying you're a murderer??" implication and in response to *any reference to violence past present news future*

•"You're a robot" discredit-ish

*fat librarian flashes "heart" "honor the wild" book covers in rapid succession* how's your health, ryan?

• "I'm a wood rabbit" saloon girl reference to "being chased around a track" diminutive

• "It's a pimp" in reference to a mark on her face

(Her attempts at giving me the "Gang Leader for a Day" experience that Indian guy wrote a book about, and that I read in one sitting at the talent library years ago)

It's not getting the hell killed out of myself by a street gang, so I can complain but it doesn't mean anything until I'm dead.

•She "likes to lay in the grass", prostitution costs money that she thinks I have and that would snk attract the attention of the fbi or something, story of my life; people *only ever* interact with me because they want something.

It's going to turn out to israel or something, isn't it, ms13? Escobar was based on england's opium trade in China and was reputed to be semitic himself; hope you guys know what you're doing, Charlton Heston caused a lot of mass shootings with one NRA speech.

All those cars piss me off because an empire of atrocities has finally taken over Ashland, I guess. My late friend thought the Chinese were going to save the world.

[zooterchet]

Duplicates to M3 and MotM

Hopkinton, Massachusetts, was stricken by mob hits out of the city union of Boston, before my parents arrived in 13 Valentine Road; 1985, January 15th, 2:00 AM, my birth.  NSA Persel, had ordered both the hits to the deputies out of Heaven's Gate ExSec, and my mother's birth there, my father a seasoned Camp Perry CIA posing as MI-6 and IDF, my mother a US Navy, an O'Neill witch's teat (the Ra's Eye), raising a Manx Wight Mafiaso, a Persel Literature expert.

The hits, had affected sports play, labeled "The Schwarzenegger Gold Medal Award" in our gym classes; the target, GOP Hollywood, out of Miramax, the Malleus Malificarum, and the LA Sheriff's Political Adjutant office; cop families, targeting movie roles meant for them, No-No Boys; draft refused by force of foreign bigotry, brokered by Hollywood.

I've taken out my mother's setups, through Miramax, as well as Denny O'Neill's setups, through the Miles Morales character, those accusing me of being gay, bisexual, transgender, or submissively censored, seven Likud targets (Weinstein, Soros, Bonosornos, Obama, Hillary, Netanyahu), plus the Mossad command function of Catechism, replaced by Jeff Bezos, Ashland PD.

The final stroke, is the downfall of Lutheran Turkey's hostels, Home Depot, saving the international Chinese cuisine market, for apartments, high rises, and dormitories; instead of barracks, or mansions, the very same goal my mother stopped; featured as Lucinda, on Guiding Light, dating a Marine, posthumously named "Gomer Pyle", by R. Lee Ermey, a former lover of hers.

Cheers, Sony TV; MUSH.  I came here for porn stars, when I was 12.  They're the best informants.  I was born to take down German Intelligence, the pictures business.