#but i can trust that you will want to take a trip down memory lane and look at the fuckery past you has posted

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

dear future me, Please remember to write the metamorphosis fic and title it ~✨the yassification of howdy pillar✨~

[mydadleft471]

A Trip Down Memory Lane

Summary: Messmer decides to surprise you in more ways than one.

Spoilers for both Elden Ring and Shadow of the Erdtree. No warnings tho, just me loving my fiery redhead.

MESSMER LOVERS COME EAT!

I finally got the courage to upload the fic I was working on! Everyone was so nice (and starving for Messmer content) so I folded lmao. Please enjoy and understand that I have never written anything like this, especially with ye olde English. It's a pain.

“I have something I wish to show thee.” Messmer’s low voice cut through the silence reverberating in his chamber.

“What is it?” You look up from patching a hole in one of his cloaks.

“I cannot say. It is a surprise.” His eye twinkled with something akin to mischief. You put down your needle and gently fold his cloak, putting it on your chair to finish later.

“A surprise for me? Are you feeling alright, My Lord?” You smile at him from where he towers above you. 

“Shush. Wilt thou follow?” 

“Always,” you say.

He leads you down countless flights of stairs and through the castle’s corridors. Down a hallway, you follow him as he steps into a lift that takes you to a part of the castle that is unfamiliar to you. You assumed you had explored everything by now, but it seems you were wrong. Messmer had given you permission to freely roam the castle, and you had spent a lot of time exploring the various rooms. You had gotten lost many times within the many twisting and confusing hallways, but the castle staff always led you back to your quarters. 

The path from the lift leads out to a part of the castle almost entirely flooded. This seems like a place that hasn’t been occupied in many years. Some of the buildings you can see appear to be collapsing and debris litters the area. The water churns uneasily below you, as if something lurks in the depths. Taking a few steps away from the ledge, you stare out into the water that swallows surrounding buildings.

“What is it?” Messmer asks. He senses your trepidation in going any further, though you don’t think you have much to worry about with a powerful demigod at your side. Still, this place sets your nerves alight and has you on high alert.

“I’ve never seen this place before. Where are we?”

He speaks as if it’s common knowledge. “The Church District.”

“What happened here?”

He takes a second before he responds in a flat tone. “It does not matter.” Noticing your face falling slightly, he gives you a small smile. “Thy surprise is near. Come.”

You continue to follow him, your footfalls mere echoes of his much heavier ones. You wonder where he is taking you, and why he decided to surprise you. Though you have gotten much closer to him throughout your time in the Realm of Shadow, you can’t wrap your head around the fact that he wants to show you something himself. So many unanswered questions, though Messmer brings about many of those. Still, you cannot complain about how well he treats you now after you’ve earned some of his trust. You are safe within his walls, and you are welcome.

Though you wish he’d let you into his heart and mind more often, you take what you can get.

Finally, he stops in a room with a large, and complete, statue of Queen Marika. Many throughout the Realm of Shadow have been beheaded, sending icy chills through you when you first arrived, but this one is intact. The only signs of damage have been from the apparent age of the statue.

“Dost thou trust me?”

His question catches you off guard. Looking up at him, he looks vulnerable and almost uncomfortable. 

“Of course I do. I wouldn’t have followed if I didn’t.” You smile at him to ease his tension.

He relaxes slightly. “Of course. I will ask thee to trust me again.”

You shoot him a puzzled look. How could you trust him any more than you already have?

“Close thine eyes. I shall lead thee, hand in hand.”

The prospect of him holding your hand makes heat rush to your cheeks, but you comply. Closing your eyes, you hold out your hands, and a few seconds later, he grabs them in his much larger ones. He holds them delicately, as if you might break if he dares to squeeze your hands. His skin is surprisingly smooth and warm. 

“I will ensure thou dost not fall and injure thyself..” 

“I’d appreciate that.”

He chuckles at your comment, a sound so rare and pleasant you want to hear it again and again. He begins walking, gently guiding you down a hill and you soon feel sunlight on your skin. The air feels lighter and there is a pleasant smell of lavender and fresh grass in the air. You wonder where you could possibly be. You haven’t seen much greenery in the Realm of Shadow.

After a few minutes he stops and lets go of your hands. You instantly miss his warmth, but you soon feel the heat of him behind you. You keep your eyes closed out of obedience and trust; you know he would not harm you.

His hands gently find your waist and he moves you a few steps to the left. Satisfied, he lowers a hand over your eyes to ensure you will not open them prematurely.

“This place is sacred. Inviting thee here was not a spontaneous act.” His voice is a mere whisper in your ear. You can’t tell whether to be scared or excited for what he will soon allow you to see.

He moves his hand away from your eyes, but they remain closed. You will not sully his trust. 

You can hear the smile in his voice. He’s pleased by your obedience. 

“Open thine eyes.”

You do, and you are immediately greeted with a grassy field speckled with vibrant flowers. You’ve never seen so many in one place. You think it would take all day to identify them. Trickles of gold sit suspended in the air like shattered stained glass and the sunlight kisses your skin sweetly. Not far up a hill is a small village made up of a few wooden houses. They look old and mostly abandoned. You take in the beauty before you. Not even Leyendell was this spectacular.

“Thou’rt pleased, I take it?” His voice wavers slightly with uncertainty.

“This is a most wonderful surprise, My Lord. Thank you for bringing me here.” You look up at Messmer, whose golden eye seems to shine brighter in the sanctity of this place.

“Forget formalities here.” He sits down in the soft grass and you are soon to join him. He looks relaxed, even happy, here.

“May I ask where we are now?” You idly skim your fingertips over the silky petals of the flowers swaying in the breeze around your skirt.

“Mother’s home. Her village before she became a God.” 

Your mouth hangs open in shock. It takes you a few moments to gather yourself enough to speak. “Queen Marika lived here?”

“Yes,” he answers. “Long ago.”

You wonder if Marika wanted Messmer to guard her old home, or if he does it out of love for her. You’ve seen the state of other Shamans within his infirmary, his medics working day and night to try and reverse the torture they’d went through. You knew Marika was a Shaman herself, but you’d never realized this place was originally her home. Your heart hurts for the God-Queen. Behind all her power was a girl who wanted her people safe.

You sigh, and Messmer shoots you a curious look. “This is the first time I’ve seen Marika as a person. Knowing she lived here, knowing she suffered… I understand now.”

Messmer reaches up and takes his helmet off, gently placing it to his side. “Mother desired revenge for her peoples’ suffering, and I became her instrument to do so here, in the Land of Shadow.”

“Did you want this?” 

He closes his eye. “Mother has endured what a thousand people could not. I will ensure she receives her long-awaited deliverance.” He dodged the question. He does not want this, but he desires to avenge Marika.

“I know you won’t answer me truthfully, and we don’t have to talk about this anymore. But know this: you are not ‘The Impaler’ to me.”

“Thank you.” His response is so quiet you almost can’t hear it, despite being right next to him.

As promised, you change the subject. “Have you brought others here?”

He looks away and you can see a faint blush creeping up his cheeks.

“I have not. The first to lay eyes on this place is thee.” He admits.

“Why?”

“I-“ he begins. “Surely thou must know thy importance to me, yes?” 

The realization hits you. 

This is his way of saying he loves you.

You scoot closer to him and lay your head against his arm. You feel him tense, then slowly begin to relax. One of his snakes gently perches itself on your shoulder. You smile.

“You can touch me, you know.” You reassure him. “You won’t break me.”

Silence hangs in the breeze as you wait for him to respond.

“Dost thou understand my reason for bringing thee here?”

You nod against him. “I think so.”

He moves away from you, earning himself a confused look, then he slowly grabs your hands and pulls you closer until you are comfortably sitting between his legs. You look up at him and see that his face is almost as red as his hair. He is adorable when he blushes.

You could get used to this.

“You will forgive me if I am too presumptuous. I am… not accustomed to touch, yet I want thee closer.” His soft, silky voice makes your heart melt.

“I want you closer too. It’s okay.” You cup his face with both hands, and though it’s a simple gesture, he relaxes into your touch almost immediately. His eye closes and you try to memorize the look of peace etched on his face.

“With thee, I am content.” He whispers to you.

“Then I’ll see to it that we’re never separated.” 

His eye flutters open and he hazily looks down at your lips. His hand engulfs your cheek and you feel the warmth radiating from his palm.

So many have met their demise from the man sitting in front of you now, content and complacent, and that thought sends shivers down your spine.

“No man nor God could tear thee away from me. That is a promise.” 

He leans forward and kisses you. His lips are soft and he pulls you closer to him and his hands are splayed possessively over your face and back. You don’t want to pull away, and you get the feeling he doesn’t want to either.

You are his as he is yours.

[taintedcigs]

GETAWAY CAR — rockstar!e.m. x f!reader

CHAPTER THREE: I’LL SWIM DOWN, WOULD YOU?

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✦ summary: in which eddie takes you for a trip down memory lane. (wc: 6.7k+)

✦ warnings — ANGSTANGSTANGST, fluff!, pining and slowburn, strong language!, mentions of alc*hol and drg use and a toxic/ab*sive relationship, reader is sad but also mad </3, mention of bruises from an ab*sive relationship (in the past)

✦ pairings — rockstar!eddie munson x fem!reader, past billy hargrove x fem!reader

✦ authors note — im so glad you guys are liking this series !! feel free to chat with me in the asks and sorry for the cliffhanger >:( also not proof-read pls ignore mistakes!! and sorry for the twisted sister slander eddie said it not me!

series masterlist | series playlist

It was late, really fucking late. Something you missed noticing while you were taking your supposed one hour sobbing nap. 

Your gaze gravitated toward the window, fingers fluttering to adjust the comfortable, frilly black dress you had casually slipped into moments earlier. But now, it made you feel stupid, like you were trying too hard, your mind was telling you that no matter which pretty dress you chose, he’d never want you. 

He wanted her now.

Your attention diverted toward the glove compartment, fighting the urge to yank it open, wishing those The Cure tapes could fall on your lap now. 

The uncomfortable silence between the two of you was starting to sink in now, accompanied by the Beastie Boys blasting through Eddie’s speakers. And you knew he was doing it on purpose because he knew you couldn’t resist, automatically making you hum along to it while he tapped his fingers rhythmically on the steering wheel, the two of you perfectly in sync with the beat, and it shouldn’t bring such a silly smile to your face, but it does. 

“So, uh…” He started off, eyes still on the road, he couldn’t afford to look at you, you looked breathtakingly pretty; the soft glow of the dashboard light highlighted your features, and with that goddamn black dress on you, Eddie was sure he was fully enamored by you.

“I’m–I’m sorry about the whole Chrissy thing,” He muttered, gaze avoiding yours. “It just kind of happened, but–she changed, she really changed.” 

“She–she told me how sorry she was about the whole Billy thing,” You gulped physically at the name, biting your lips nervously.

It didn’t fucking matter how sorry she was now, Chrissy was supposed to be your friend. You already had a hard time trusting people but you gave Chrissy that chance, you opened your heart to her, and you let her in, but she decided to stomp on it and chewed your trust in the cruelest way possible.

“I would’ve never talked to her if she hadn’t.” He avoided your gaze again.

“Cool… and you gathered that in what? A week?” You muttered angrily. 

Eddie fell silent at that, he didn’t know what to say next, he knew he was in the wrong, and he was desperate to fix it now.

“No, no I– just,” he sighed. “I don’t want to talk about this, Eddie,” you snapped, head turning towards the view of the window, lips pressed into a thin, bloodless line in an attempt to hold the words you wanted to say. 

You’re jealous—so incredibly jealous that it seeps through your skin. You wonder if he can tell, if he can see through you like he always did. 

“We’re not together,” He muttered embarrassedly. Chrissy seemed nice, but Eddie knew that she wasn’t you. Sure, Chrissy was pretty, but her face couldn’t make the gloomiest person in the world grin like yours did. And she was funny, but she could never make him nearly choke on his drink the way you always did. And he knew she could never, ever make him feel in a way you did. 

He was acutely aware of how awful that sounded, but he wasn’t trying to use her in any way; he was just trying to move on, but with you here, it was fucking impossible. You would always be his priority. No matter what happened between the two of you, if you even so much as glanced his way, he'd drop everything and come running. And that’s what scared him, that’s what made him act so unlike him toward you today because it was terrifying how much he truly wanted you.

You glared at him now, a second warning to shut him up, and he was quick to press his lips tight together. 

He huffed. “Look, how about we just… start over?” You finally plucked up the courage to face him again. With the warm breeze of summer nights in Hawkins having its full effect as it rustled through the open car windows, you could see his hopeful eyes.  

“Let’s just put it all behind us, you know… wipe the slate clean.” Your interest peaked with that; both of you had fucked up already, and if there was any way to survive the next five days with him and not be a burden to both Jonathan and Nancy, this was the perfect solution.

“Because I really don’t want us to have this weirdness over this whole wedding weekend- uhh… five day thing.” Shit. Was he actually reading your mind?

“Me neither.” You agreed in a mumble.

“Yeah?” Eddie asked with that pretty grin stuck on his lips. God, it was infectious, and his hopeful question fluttered your heart, you could feel yourself soften. Maybe this could work.

“So, uh- can we be… civil?” His voice was wavering, visibly nervous. 

You could put the whole Chrissy thing behind you for now, couldn’t you? At least until your next inevitable encounter with her. Maybe that was selfish, but you wanted to spend time with him; you wanted him all for yourself, just for a few hours, without any third person meddling their way in, so you nodded furiously. 

“Friends?” He offered, his hand extending to shake yours.

And even though that word fucking hurt, that’s all you could afford with him, too. You didn’t want to reopen the old wounds, at least not yet, and you were more than ready to settle for being friends with him for now. If it meant you could talk to him or be near him, you would do anything.

“Friends.” You agreed, hand harshly shaking his as you squinted your eyes jokingly. 

“They talked some sense into you, didn’t they?” You squinted.

“Nancy?” You asked with a slight smirk.

“Dustin and Jonathan, actually.”

“Dustin told me I was in the wrong with the whole Chrissy thing,” Eddie muttered as he stole a glance at you before he focused on the road again.  You fought hard to shrug off the smug smile on your lips; just the image of both Dustin and Jonathan telling Eddie off filled you with glee. “I swear that little shit is more mature than any of us.” You added.

“Don’t I know it?” He breathed, making you giggle. 

“So, where exactly are we headed to? Because I’m tired of seeing trees everywhere, and I’m starting to think you’re going to kidnap me.” You muttered with a narrowed gaze, attempting to ease the tension.

“You can’t tell?” He huffed, a little smile tugging at his lips at your joke. 

“Nuh-uh.” 

“You’re getting rusty, sweetheart.” You scoffed at that, eyeing the road quickly so you could tell him off. 

Once he passed by Mirkwood, you knew exactly where he was headed. A squeal escaped your lips childishly. “Oh my god!” 

The community pool. 

The two of you had snuck in at least a hundred times before. Even Chief Hopper had gotten tired of dragging both of your drunk asses off the pool. 

He couldn’t help the way his lips fully etched into a grin now, he had missed that genuine smile on your face and that childish squeal. 

“Eddie!” You squealed again when he finally neared, mouth stood agape. 

“Are we going in?” You asked excitedly. It was boggling your mind how quickly he melted your defenses. 

Before letting him nod, you spoke up again. “Ahh, shit! If I had known, I’d put on a bathing suit,” you huffed, causing Eddie to snort lightly. 

Your eyes drifted toward his features now; he looked… so happy, and that goddamn grin on his lips—why did he have to be so pretty? 

“What?” You muttered, feeling almost shy under his gaze now. 

He used to look at you like that a lot, like you meant something to him, like you were the most important thing in his life. And it felt so good to have that back, to see those deep brown eyes glimmer again.

There was another deep pause, as if he were debating whether or not he should let you know how much it truly meant that you were here. How much he had missed you. How much he missed that graceful curve of your lips as it stretched to a sugary smile, missed the way your eyes sparkled childishly when something excited you. 

“Nothing… uh- I just... I’m glad that-uhh you’re back,” he muttered, shaking his head, a strand of curly hair falling on his forehead.

He wanted nothing more than to feel just a graze of your touch, he had wanted to wrap his arms around your frame the whole day; he wanted you to sweep his curls off his forehead as you threw him a giggle, that angelic sound filling the space. 

And oh, how he missed your presence. He missed the way you filled the space around him, filling him with warmth and making him feel alive. But his thoughts remained unspoken; instead, he settled for a simple, “I missed you.” 

He held your gaze, tracing the contours of your face and memorizing every feature; he wanted each and every part of you etched into his brain, just because he didn’t know if you would leave again; he couldn’t handle forgetting your features, not again.

“I missed you, too,” you murmured, voice low when you could barely let the words out. There was a softness in his gaze, a vulnerability he only showed through it, and you returned it.

That impalpable silence was interrupted as he shook his head. “Let’s go, before you start getting in your head about getting in the pool with your clothes,” he teased, parking the car before he rushed off to your side. 

“M’lady,” He bowed dramatically when he opened the door for you, extending his hand, you took it with a giggle. “Such a gentleman!” You exclaimed, hands shaky when his grazed against yours. 

If Nancy and Jonathan could see the two of you now, their heads would probably explode, considering how both of you had been fluctuating between hot and cold the entire day.

“How are we even gonna get in?” You asked with a shrug, trying to keep up with him. 

He looked at you like he took offense to your question. “The old way, duh.” He shrugged carelessly, before he led the way. 

As you approached the silver metal fence, your heart skipped a beat, it had been so long since you had last done this, and when it loomed before you now, you had to physically gulp. “You scared or somethin’?” Eddie whispered in your ear with a sly grin, making you slightly jump. “N-no,” You muttered. 

"Then, do you wanna do the honors, sweetheart?” He asked with a wink, a mischievous glint sparkling in his eyes. With a deep inhale you nodded, placing your hands on the cold, textured metal of the fence. Once you fully braced yourself, Eddie hoisted you with a strong push, you probably would’ve been more anxious if you weren’t distracted by the fact that Eddie’s calloused hands were grazing against your waist. 

You cursed at the loss of touch when you made it to the top, and with a disappointed sigh, you swung your leg over the fence, carefully climbing down to the other side. 

You watched him almost jump over it with no hesitation, and now you were concerned with how much this had turned you on. Shit, shit, shit. Why did he have to be so fucking attractive in everything he did?

“Jesus Christ, you’d think they would’ve made this more secure by now,” you muttered with a giggle in an attempt to shut up your dirty thoughts about him, hands stretching out to dust your dress off before you followed him toward the pool. 

The poolside area was the first thing that caught your attention. Maybe it was the stupid deja-vu but you couldn’t help but be intrigued by everything. The pool lights created a cool ambiance that was kissed by the moonlight cascading on them. Each ripple of the water’s surface carried around the awful scent of sunscreen and chlorine; each sight of this goddamn place took you down memory lane. 

“You want one?” Eddie’s voice caught your attention when he plopped into an empty lounge chair, his hand fishing out a poorly rolled joint—which was probably just squished from being in his pocket all day.  

You nodded, mind still spiraling from the fact that you were here, with him. “Our spot, remember?” He muttered, hand signaling toward his side so you could sit down next to him. 

You hummed in agreement, before you shyly sat down next to him. “Here, let me.” You muttered, pulling the dragon lighter from the pocket of your jacket. 

His eyes almost widened again at the sight of that lighter, a tense silence overtook the space while you helped him light the joint sitting on his lips. “Uhh, t-thanks,” He muttered awkwardly. 

The two of you basked in that uncomfortable silence before Eddie finally turned toward you. “Is it just me or does this feel fuckin’ awkward again?” He took another long drag from the joint, breathing out before he turned to pass it to you, a nervous look crossing his features. 

And it makes you feel comfortable, that nervous breath you were holding in for so long finally slips out. “Thank god, because I thought I was goin’ crazy,” You murmured, happily accepting the joint as you placed it on your lips. 

“I-I just… I know a lot of shit happened between us, and I know we can’t fully pretend it never happened, but, this… this feels so nice.” You admit, gaze avoiding him. 

“It’s like, we used to have so much fun, we could do all this crazy shit and not give a single fuck. Do you even remember how many times Hopper escorted us out of here?” You asked with a slight smirk.

Eddie bit back on his tongue, he wanted to tell you that it was your fault. Wanted to remind you that the two of you could have been having fun all this time if you hadn’t just left him like that. 

But a clean slate is what he promised you, even though it was so fucking hard not to be bitter when he knew how much it hurt, because you had no clue how much you leaving him did a number on him. He had to pick on his own wounds, just so he wouldn’t reopen yours, just so you would talk to him again. 

He shook his head with a slight chuckle. “He really hated us, didn’t he?” 

“Oh, totally,” You muttered, head falling more toward his direction with a giggle. “Do you remember that time he chased us around here?” You almost gasped at the memory. 

“Shit!” He joined in on your laughter; his eyes met yours, and for a moment, time seemed to stand still. “How could I fucking forget?” He coughed out the drag he was holding in. 

"His stupid hat fell in the water," He recalled with a mischievous glint in his eyes, you giggled again leaning in closer, shoulders brushed against his, and both of your chuckles intertwined now. Once you finally caught your breath, you spoke up again "and he tried to get it. And then, oh my god..." You paused for dramatic effect, biting your lip to hold back more laughter.

"He slipped," he continued, with another chuckle, "face first into the pool!" Your laughter erupted louder as the memory replayed in your minds. And it felt so nice to have that genuine bond again. It gave you this sort of hope that whatever the two of you had, maybe it could withstand you leaving him; maybe it could withstand Chrissy, and the time and distance spent apart. 

And you so wanted to believe it, because this had genuinely been the happiest the two of you had ever been in the last five years.

Once both of your laughter died off, you took a deep breath, hand reaching out for the joint as you tapped on his fingers to pass it to you. You sucked on it until it numbed your mind, causing you to break the comfortable silence with your train of thought. “I still can’t believe they are getting married,” You breathed.

“Hmmm?” Eddie responded carelessly.

"I mean, I know they're literally like soulmates," you continued, "and I always knew they'd eventually get married. But isn't it too soon? Aren't we still too young for all of this?"

Eddie turned his gaze toward you, looking at you with his brows pinched together. "Why wait?" He asked, curiosity took over his features as he studied your face.

“If you have met the ‘love of your life’ and all that bullshit, and you knew you’d want to spend the rest of your life with them…” You shifted your position, propping yourself up on one elbow to look at him more closely. “Wouldn’t you want to do that as soon as possible?” 

You considered his words for a moment before you spoke. “But how could anyone be… sure?” A hint of uncertainty was wavering in your tone. 

“What if they wake up one day and decide they're not in love anymore? Or they suddenly want completely different things in life? Or, oh god, what if they betray each other?"

His brows pinched together. “Oh, Pinky…” He shook his head.

“What?” You asked, your voice laced with curiosity.

“You still do that?” Eddie asked disapprovingly.

“Do what?” You retorted, sounding slightly defensive.

“You don’t trust anyone or anything, just so you don't get hurt,” he muttered.

“You nitpick every single part of something good... always trying to sabotage it because you’d rather ruin it than lose it,” Eddie explained with a concerned look on his face, and you hated it. You hated that he knew you so well, that he knew you by heart.  

“I do not do that!” You protested.

“Are you actually gonna tell me you never did that?” He gently prodded, tilting his head slightly as he regarded you with an all-knowing look.

You hesitated, your defenses crumbling just a bit. “Okay, maybe like one time, Munson,” you admitted with a reluctant squint of your eyes.

“You’re so afraid of losing something you love that you refuse to love anything,” He muttered, not realizing his concern had hit a nerve.

“But it doesn’t work like that. Love is not supposed to be that complicated.” He continued with a whisper, your gaze drifting away as you fiddled with your fingers, because he was right. 

“Why do you assume being loved by someone would ever be so hard?” Eddie realized he had truly hit a nerve and immediately regretted it. He could see the pain flash in your eyes—that familiar hurt you carried with you. You shook it off—a defense mechanism you had perfected over the years.

You found it too difficult to believe that someone could ever truly love you. And he knew that; he hated that he couldn’t tell you how much he loved every fucking part of you and how much he loved you for being you. You didn’t need to try for him; you didn’t need to do anything. You could just exist, and he’d still love you. But he couldn’t tell you that, not when you had left him. 

And he knew he couldn’t apologize for his words because you’d just brush it off, you’d just close off on him more and more, and he didn’t want to ruin this in any way. 

Desperate to shift the mood, Eddie changed the subject, opting for a game of questions just so he could distract you. By the time the two of you had started passing around the second joint and had gotten over thousands of questions, you were seated near the pool now, knees grazing each other as your feet dangled into the water.

With a mischievous glint in your eye, you initiated the next question, “Favorite color?” You asked with a soft giggle.

Eddie responded with a playful tilt of his head, "That has to be the lamest question, ever," he quipped.

You gasped animatedly, pretending to be offended by his comment. "Oh, really?"

"Well then, Munson, do you have a better one up your sleeve?" Your eyes squinted in a playful challenge.

Eddie, puffed out his cheeks as he wrestled with his thoughts to come up with a question. After a moment, a mischievous glint sparkled in his eyes. “I’ve got one,” He muttered playfully.  

 “Saddest song you’ve ever heard?” Eddie inquired.

You let out a groan of mock exasperation, your shoulders slumping dramatically. "Oh, come on! How am I supposed to answer that?"

Eddie leaned back casually on his elbows. "Well, I already have mine," he shrugged.

“Really?” You huffed, “I need like an hour,” You muttered, causing Eddie to give you a look.

“Okay, fine, fine!” You sighed audibly, racking your brain.

“Oh, oh!” You shot up quickly, splashing your feet in the water, when you finally thought of something, “can I name two?” Eddie raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Two? Now you've got my attention, princess." He winked teasingly.

You leaned back on your elbows. "Uhhh… Here Comes a Regular or… Wango Tango."

Eddie couldn't help but snort at the unexpected combination. "What?" he chuckled. “I can understand Here Comes a Regular, but Wango Tango? Really?” He gave you that puzzled look again. 

“Okay, okay, before you judge!” You squinted your eyes. “Hear me out, because it has a story.” You said. 

“I don’t know if I should tell you this,” you admitted, noticing Eddie's raised eyebrows and intensified curiosity.

“What? Why?” He questioned. “Because I never told you about this before, and I feel like it’s just gonna drag our mood down,” you murmured, biting your lip nervously, as Eddie’s eagerness peaked further.

“Are you kidding? You absolutely have to tell me now!” Eddie demanded softly.  

“I mean, are you sure? It’s just a stupid story, and I don’t even know if it matters now—” You began to waver, failing to notice the intensity of Eddie's interest.

“Pinky, please.” He interrupted with a tilt of his head, his voice filled with an urgency to know. You nodded hesitantly.

"So, uhh, you remember how he used to uhh- drove me and Max to school every week?" He nodded, his muscles tensing as he understood who you were referring to. “I think it was another tough week for him, and we had already been fighting a lot," you began, tone laced with a hint of exasperation.

"I think that’s why he was on the edge again, like he was ready to explode at any moment," you continued, gaze avoiding him and fixed on the shimmering water of the pool.  "W-we were in the car, and you- you were driving like two cars in front of us.” Your eyes squinted as you recalled the details animatedly, and Eddie listened curiously, his gaze fixed on you with a mixture of emotions.

“I think that like ticked him off or somethin’.” You shrugged, your voice wavering. “He started going on and on about you and he was already mad about us hanging out too much,” you stuttered and Eddie's jaw clenched as he listened, his eyes flashing with anger on your behalf.

“He threw me a look that I knew was nothing but trouble," you huffed with an ironic chuckle, but Eddie's expression remained stern, and you were starting to realize how dumb of a decision telling this story was, but it was too late now. 

“So then he, uhh- he started laughing all weirdly and following you, and I could just feel my blood boil, you know?” You went on, your eyes narrowing at the memory.

"I was telling him to stop, uhh, repeatedly, but he just… he just ignored me and sang that stupid song, tapping along to the rhythm.” Your lips curled with disgust at the thought.

“And oh god, Max just sunk into her seat, and that just made me go absolutely insane, Eddie!” 

“He was getting so close to you, like so close. And I-I knew you had no clue because I knew how loud you liked listening to your music in Aurora,” you muttered with a chuckle, attempting to lighten the mood, but Eddie didn’t focus on your joke; he could feel his insides burning with that familiar rage and the need to protect you.

“I don’t- I don’t even know what came over me, and I-I just drove the car off the road." You breathed. “And I know that’s… that’s horrible because Max was there too but I had no other idea and I was scared,” you admitted, biting your lips to hold all of your emotions inside of you as you took a deep breath.

“And I wanted to keep you safe,” you murmured, and Eddie’s heart almost stopped at that. The guilt of you being hurt because of him weighed in on him now. And he wanted nothing more than to go back in time and beat the shit out of that douchebag, again.  

“And I just remember that look on Max’s face… that pure terror, and while all of that was happening… fucking Wango Tango was playing.” You couldn’t help the exasperated chuckle that left your lips. 

You finally looked up at Eddie again, realizing how much you had unloaded on him. "What?" he asked, dumbfounded.

“H-he did what?” He stuttered in fury; you could see it in the way he scrunched his brows together.  

“Shit… I don’t know what I was thinking; I really shouldn’t have told you this when we were having a good time-” You shook your head, sighing. “I just… right before I left Nancy’s, I-I saw that Camaro and that song has been stuck in my mind and it’s the first thing I could think of." You rambled quickly; you had never opened up this much about Billy before, and you were starting to regret it because you didn’t want him to pity you. 

“God, I must sound so annoying but I swear I’m not saying any of this to make you pity me or anything-”

“No, no, that’s not it.” He interrupted with a shake of his head. “I would never think that, are you kidding?” His hand sat on your knee for reassurance.

“No… no, I just wish... Why didn’t you just tell me?” He spoke to you in a gentle tone, but you could see his jaw clench. 

“I-I don’t know, I was scared, Eddie, and I didn’t want to drag you into my bullshit,” You murmured, gulping when you looked down at his fingertips gently caressing your skin. Your emotions were all over the place, his one touch just calmed you down, all of your worries vanishing in mere seconds. 

“Are you kidding?” He asked softly. “I-If I had known, I would’ve done something a lot sooner, Pinky, I used to think he was just a shitty boyfriend, If I had known how he was-I swear, I swear, I would’ve never let him hurt you.” His voice was desperate as he leaned in closer, gaze never leaving yours. 

“I should’ve fuckin’ known,” he mumbled under his breath, he wanted to punch himself for not seeing it quicker, not seeing him sucking the light out of you, the way you flinched around him, and, oh god, the random bruises. 

He was stupid. So fucking stupid. 

“Don’t say that!” You protested. “I was the one who kept it a secret, it’s not your fault, in any way,” you muttered, your thigh grazing against his.

“Eddie, you quite literally saved me,” you whispered, a graceful smile adorning your lips.

His eyes drifted toward you again, gaze locking with yours.

“Look, I don’t give a shit what happens between us, you can always, always tell me anything, okay? Any fucking thing.” Eddie reassured, with a soft tone.

You nodded, the smile that formed on your face was genuine, you really appreciated each of his words. Whatever happened between the two of you didn’t matter—Chrissy, you leaving him in LA, the fight at Nancy's—none of it fucking mattered. Eddie was still here for you, and you were going to do everything you could to make sure you wouldn’t lose him ever again. 

"Anything?" you asked, seeking confirmation. Eddie didn't hesitate. He nodded in affirmation, his gaze soft and unwavering. "Anything."

“Oh, good! Because I’ve been dying to let you know how much of a dork you look like in your own band’s shirt,” you said with a slight smirk playing on your face.  

Eddie raised his brows gleefully, and a grin overtook his features once again. "Oh, I'm so getting you for that one," he muttered, his fingers quick to graze against your sides. Once you realized what he was up to, you tried to get away, but it was too late. 

He started tickling you relentlessly while you squirmed and wriggled under his touch, trying to catch your breath between giggles. 

"Okay, wait—stop, stop!" You managed to speak, your voice coming out in gasps as you pleaded for a momentary break. Eddie finally relented, his fingers retreating as you caught your breath.

"You still haven't told me yours!" you exclaimed between your chuckles, trying to catch your breath and eager to distract him from tickling you again.

“Ahh shit,” he muttered with a chuckle. “Now I really don’t want to tell you mine, because it’s gonna sound so petty and childish.”

“Nuh-uh!” You protested. “You absolutely have to after all the shit I told you!” You encouraged. 

“Fine,” he muttered. “Leader of the Pack by Twisted Sisters,” he huffed, his face souring.

“What? Why?” You asked with a baffled look.

“Because, I waited for that album for two years, and the moment I listened to that song, I wanted to die.” His hand daggered through his chest dramatically, making you huff.

“A bit dramatic, don't you think?” Your brows pinched together playfully.

“No, I'm serious Pinky. That album was pure garbage, I swear I got teary over it.” You giggled slightly.

“No, but I love that!” you exclaimed, your eyes lighting up immediately.

“Love what? That awful song?” He asked with a scoff.

“No, you dumbass,” you huffed, rolling your eyes dramatically at him.

“I love that a record can make you feel so many different emotions, you know?” you mused. “Anyone can listen to it, and they can have so many different stories, it’s super fascinating to me.”

Your gaze shifted toward the pool’s rippling water. “That’s one of the things I love about working in a record shop—people have so many different stories and feelings regarding music and it’s just..." You muttered. “I don’t know I think it’s great that just one thing can make everyone feel something different, it’s like a secret language that speaks uniquely to everyone, you know?”

Eddie nodded, leaning closer to you now. “That is kinda… inspiring,” Eddie hummed as he pondered for a minute, and that piqued your curiosity. “Hold on a second,” he said, holding up a finger as you watched him reach into his pocket.

A worn notebook was sprawled on his lap, and once you leaned closer, you realized it was the ‘promise’ notebook. Your eyes widened as you tried to catch a glimpse of what he was scribbling inside. "What are you doing?" you asked, a mischievous giggle escaping your lips, but he playfully blocked your view.

"That's going in the notebook!" he exclaimed, a glimmer of excitement in his eyes. 

“Nuh-uh,” you disapproved. “That was so lame.” You shook your head embarrassedly.

"No, it was quite touching, actually," Eddie replied with his head still buried in the notebook.

“So you just write down everything like that?” You asked with your head tilted.

“Pretty much,” he shrugged. “I just scribble down anything that feels important to me.” A smile etched on your lips at that. 

“And then sometimes, if I’m lucky, and I mean very very lucky, these thousand notes can turn into a song,” he hummed excitedly.

“Can I see them?” You asked with a hopeful look.

“No way!” He chuckled.

“What?” You exclaimed. “I should be like the only person who has access to that!” You huffed with your arms crossed across your chest.

“And why would that be, princess?” He pinched his brows together, teasing you.

“Uh, maybe because I gave you that notebook, asshole?” You retorted animatedly, teasing him back. 

He contemplated for a moment before he spoke. “Okay, how about this…” He mocked a thinking face, piquing your curiosity. “You go in the water with me… and I’ll give you a note,” he offered. 

Your gaze drifted toward the cold water. You always hated going to the pool without your bathing suit, and he knew that, but you so wanted those notes. 

“Just one?” You squinted your gaze. 

Eddie sighed dramatically. "Fine, I can give you one paper with notes on both sides," he conceded. You nodded frantically. “Deal!” You exclaimed, holding out your hand for him to shake it. 

“But one more thing,” He spoke up again causing you to groan. “You can only read it once you get home,” he mute. 

“Fine, is that all of your conditions, Munson?” you quipped, arching an eyebrow.  He mocked a thinking face again. “Pretty much, yeah,” he replied with a sly smirk.

“Okay, okay. Then I’ll go in the pool with you.” 

“You promise?” 

“Yeah,” you muttered. 

“Pinky promise?” He asked with a grin, and you rolled your eyes. Elbowing him playfully at his joke “Jerk,” you muttered under your breath. 

“Close your eyes,” he said, his voice low. “What?” You inquired.

“Close your eyes so I can pick a note, and put it in your pocket.” He shrugged, and you obliged with a huff. 

You could hear him whipping through the notes, cursing as he debated which one he wanted you to see. 

“Your eyes still closed?” He asked, his voice still gentle. You nodded with a huff, trying to appear annoyed when your excitement was building with each passing second.

“‘Kay,” he mumbled, and you could feel his hands grazing you as he stuffed the note in the pocket of your jacket. 

“You can open them,” he said as soon as he was finished. 

“All done?” You muttered, cheeks still embarrassingly heating after you just felt a graze of his touch. He nodded with a grin. 

“Now it’s your turn,” he teased, fingers pointing toward the pool. 

Giving him an annoyed glare, you sucked in a shuddering breath. You glanced around at the pool again, the illuminating lights created a cosy atmosphere that truly warmed you, but you knew the chilly water would give you a rude awakening. 

Your trembling fingers slid your coat off your shoulders, tossing it aside as your feet splashed around the water. It was cold, and you looked back at Eddie with a pout. “We’re going to catch a cold,” you whined. 

Eddie huffed in mock annoyance, his impatience evident. "For the love of God, just go in," he exclaimed. You faced the pool again, feet still swishing around in the water. The more time you took, the closer you could feel Eddie’s silhouette behind you, and you knew if you didn’t go in soon, he was going to intervene. 

Your fingers fiddled nervously with the hem of your dress as you contemplated your decision once again. But before you could make up your mind, a sudden and unexpected push from Eddie left you in shock. Without warning, you were propelled dramatically into the pool, the water enveloping you with a cold, exhilarating rush. You emerged almost as soon as you fell in, sputtering and laughing, your dress clinging to your body and your hair plastered to your face.

“You asshole! I knew you would do that,” you exclaimed with a chuckle. 

You dived in once, fixing your hair after you emerged again. Your head tilting to see that sly smirk on his lips. “Jerk,” you muttered again. 

“Oh, you’ll live,” he mocked.

You extended your hand toward him with a pout, and he had a baffled look on his face. “Help me up, please,” you whined, shaking your hand further to convince him, but he could see that mischievous glint in your eyes.

Eddie squinted at you playfully, his head cocked in mock suspicion. “You think I’m fallin’ for that?” Your scoff only elicited a roll of his eyes. “You pushed me in, dumbass! The least you could do is pull me up." You protested, your hand waving in the air, waiting for him to fall into your trap. 

“Nah,” he shrugged nonchalantly, a smirk playing at his lips. You continued to whine, your hand still reaching out to him.

“Eddie, I’m serious, it’s super cold, and this dress is suffocating me!” You argued, the slight desperation in your voice making him feel for you. Eddie hesitated for a moment. That soft, innocent look in your eyes and the sweet pout on your lips were more than enough to convince him. If only he weren't as hopelessly infatuated with you, he might have resisted longer.

With a deep sigh, he extended his hand toward yours, taking it in a firm grip. “Fine, but if you try to pull me down, I swear to god-”

Before he could finish his threat, you swiftly pulled him toward you, yanking him off balance and into the water with a resounding splash.

Giggles erupted from your lips. “Too late!” you declared triumphantly, a wide grin adorning your face.

As you watched him resurface, he gave his head a good shake, water droplets flew around as his chuckles filled the air, and he couldn't help but praise you with a playful smirk. “You're good,” he admitted, the characteristic dimples on his cheeks making an appearance. You returned his compliment with a warm smile. “I know.”

Eddie felt dizzy; a flood of feelings hit him all at once when he looked at you again. He tried to divert his eyes away from you—from your smooth skin, from the sweet curve of your lips, from the way your brows pinched together when you giggled so sweetly. But he couldn’t.

Those innocent, big eyes that had a slight bit of mischievous glint in them—the way you fluttered your eyelashes at him whenever you teased him—it was all too fucking much for him.

Don’t look at her, Eddie. He tried to remind himself, but it was useless.

God, you really were beautiful. 

He shouldn’t be any closer to you, but he couldn’t fucking help it. 

When he swam closer, the laughter in the air had fully died down; there was only tension—so much tension that you could hear your own heart rate picking up. 

The water around you seemed to shimmer the closer he got to you, caging you between him and the edge of the pool. You gulped physically when you felt the concrete hit your back; he had you cornered. 

Each second stretched into hours now, and all the two of you did was gaze into each other's eyes, speaking a language without any words being spoken. 

He couldn’t help it when his gaze drooped down to your glossy lips, they looked so kissable that Eddie was about to lose his mind. You opened your mouth to speak but it was of no use, no words dared to come out of it. 

You watched in awe as his hands grazed against your cheek first, then he tucked that one strand of hair behind your ears. You could feel his breath fanning against your cheeks—that same speechless expression on his face that mirrored yours.  

Eddie was sure you had this unexplainable, tight hold on his heart. He had never, ever felt so completely possessed by someone before. You completely invaded his mind in a way that he struggled to put into words.

His calloused hands hooked behind your back as he inched you a little bit closer.  Your heart was pounding inside your ribcage, and your eyes were following his every movement. The second his forehead came to rest against yours, all you could do was squeeze your eyes shut. 

“Look at me.” He whispered all huskily, and you were sure you had never heard him filled with this much desire.  

You didn’t dare to open your eyes, standing still and even afraid to let out that gasp you’ve been holding on to for far too long. 

Was this all real?

Was he actually going to kiss you?

[thebramblewood]

Caleb finally eats some good food and hears some hard truths. Now shall we join him on a trip down memory lane? 👀

Previous / Next

Grace: Stop snacking! You’ll ruin your appetite.

Caleb: Oh, how I wish that were true.

Grace: I don’t know how you can stand to eat those things raw.

Caleb: By necessity. I’m afraid I still lack any culinary finesse.

Grace: They’re certainly a finicky fruit. Nothing that can’t be fixed with a sprinkling of magic, though.

-

Caleb: Exquisite as usual, Grace.

Grace: I’ll trust your taste. Even cooked, I don’t quite have the constitution for the stuff.

Caleb: And for that you should be grateful.

Now, I want to hear all about what you’ve been up to lately.

Caleb: Well… [heaves weary sigh] How much time do you have?

-

Grace: So let me get this straight. You turned her, you passed her off as dead, you dumped her unconscious body in a graveyard, and you haven’t spoken to her since?

Caleb: [mutters weakly] I wrote her a letter.

Grace: Caleb, no! You’re even more dramatic in writing. You probably scared the poor girl to death. And now she’s out there all alone!

Caleb: [defensively] I’d never done it before, and there was no time to plan. I left her some things…

Grace: You know the literature frontwards and backwards! The sire/newborn relationship is vital to the development-

Caleb: It seemed more important to protect her from Lilith.

Grace: [softly] The best way to protect her would be to leave Lilith in the dust. You managed it once.

Caleb: Which ended so well.

Grace: What happened to Morgyn wasn’t your fault, but you used it to justify going back. You deserve better.

Caleb: The difference between us, Grace, is I’m not sure I deserve anything at all.

Grace: God, you and your eternal self-loathing! You’ve risen above what she tried to turn you into. You have more humanity than almost anyone I know. Why can’t you extend a little compassion to yourself?

Caleb: Because I failed to protect the person I loved when it mattered most! Yet I was able to save this girl I barely know. It doesn’t make sense.

Grace: Some things are just senseless, Caleb. There was nothing anyone could have done. I hate how they went out as much as you do. But the Sages had been staving off death for decades. They were vulnerable despite their power, and the universe was eager to take them. This girl is young, full of potential. Frankly, I’m not sure you have moral ground to stand on with your sister or anyone else if you don’t help her.

-

Grace: You aren’t upset with me, are you?

Caleb: Of course not. You never mince words, and I never take your advice lightly.

Grace: I hope you’ll come by again soon. Emilia and Tomax would love to see you.

Caleb: [noncommittal shrug] They were always more Morgyn’s friends than mine.

Grace: That may have been true at first, but we all grew quite fond of you. I know we didn’t come up with much before, but we could always start looking into cures again if-

Caleb: That’s a conversation for another time. Good night, Grace.

Grace: [crestfallen] Good night.

[avelera]

Vibrating over Daniel’s ending.

I’d love your thoughts on what it means for next season?

(And any other thoughts you have about the finale are so welcome 🙏)

Heya! I actually wrote up my thoughts here.

But, short Daniel-specific version:

I think we'll get Louis-as-Lestat's-agent inviting Daniel to interview Rockstar Lestat for his next book and Daniel salivating at the chance to do so.

(Very different tonally from what I was expecting, btw. No joke, I thought the falling books were going to be Lestat crashing through the ceiling to kidnap Daniel for an interview so he could tell HIS version of the story lol, but I can see why they went for a tearful Loustat reunion instead and how kidnapping Daniel wouldn't have worked with that, funny as it is in my head).

The good news is that I believe we'll get Daniel's snark throughout Lestat's book since that's been the framing device of the show so far (though, there's less of a "mystery" to unravel in Lestat's narrative than in Louis's so... who knows, maybe they will break the format since you don't need an investigative reporter with Lestat to drag secrets out, Lestat literally can't shut up). Honestly, I am SALIVATING to hear Daniel tear Lestat's narrative limb from limb lol.

The bad news is that I think, sadly, that if we dive right into 1-2 seasons of The Vampire Lestat, we won't be getting the space to explore Armand/Daniel and why that happened and if Devil's Minion happened in the past until a theoretical Season 5, if we follow the books and leave the end of TVL to go into Queen of the Damned, where that beat takes place.

IF we do that, sadly, it means we'll have to wait on the full explanation of Daniel/Armand.

HOWEVER, I also wouldn't put it past the show to actually do more interweaving of past and present than that. Have some modern stuff like Daniel/Armand/Devil's Minion in the present day while we're ducking in and out of Lestat's trip down memory lane to 18th century France.

GENUINELY, even as a writer, I don't know how they'll tackle the order of events given that means it'll be a LONG time before we get an explanation for stuff they set up in this season like Daniel's turning and part of me thinks they won't wait THAT long because the eagerness to learn this info is here now, and might not be there in a couple years, people might have forgotten by then.

That said, they also introduced Raglan James, the villain of Vampire Chronicles Book 4, the Body Thief, so that actually signals that they're willing to seed things very early before the pay-off, UNLESS they remix the order of the books significantly and Akasha gets pushed back.

It actually would kinda make sense to push Akasha back she is an EXCELLENT final boss and Body Thief is a bit of a come-down after her so I wouldn't totally blame them for swapping those two books in terms of the order we see their events in. But maybe not! They've been surprisingly faithful in a lot of ways. Regardless, I trust their discretion.

And finally, my hope when we DO finally get Devil's Minion, we're going to have the modern Daniel/Armand juxtaposed with the 1970s one, ending in Armand refusing to turn him in the 1970s, wiping his memory (perhaps knowing that vampirism would drive young Daniel mad, as it canonically did in the books, but old Daniel is made of sterner stuff now) and then we flash forward to the present and old man vampire Daniel and Armand and whatever THEY'VE got going on (hopefully: Daniel domming the shit out of Armand the way he always wanted).

So ok, I lied, I had more thoughts, lol!

[star-going-supernova]

Here's a prompt: the mimic in the basement TRULY THINKS that it's Gregory, and when Cassie declares that it isn't, it starts to have an existential crisis/panic attack about its identity and what it is.

Here we go with tumblr generated prompt number 14! For the sake of this AU, Gregory was completely uninvolved in the Mimic’s imprisonment and doesn’t even know it’s down there. I took this in a softer, more hopeful direction. 

Identity Issues

Cassie climbed through the hole the forklift had made, looking around the dark room. “Gregory?” she called. 

“Cassie!” he said, off to her left, only… his voice… “I’m so glad to see you!” 

She hesitated. His voice sounded… off. Glitchy, almost. 

“I’ve been stuck down here for so long,” he complained, that odd fizzy crackle not going away. “I can’t tell you how bored I’ve been.” 

Peering into the darkness, Cassie found a pair of glowing red eyes staring back at her. She sucked in a startled breath and stumbled back, nearly tripping over the rubble she’d caused. 

“Cassie?” the thing that wasn’t Gregory said. “Are you okay?”

The eyes suddenly rose in the air, and Cassie became very aware that the robot was much taller than her. It came closer, creaking slightly but not heavy-footed the way the animatronics were. 

It emerged into the meager light spilling out of the hole in the wall. Cassie tensed, preparing to run. It had a similar build to the endoskeletons she’d encountered, just bare, plain metal forming the most basic human shape. It’s head and face were more humanized than the endos, and it—maybe it was an odd thing to take notice of, but—it wasn’t symmetrical. Its feet didn’t match, or its legs or hands. 

It looked… homemade. 

Her friend’s voice, with only that little digital tinge to show that it wasn’t the real deal, came out of it. “Something on my face?” it asked, amused. “I bet I look like I’ve been rolling around in the dirt, huh?” 

It even sounded like something Gregory would say; it knew his personality, had been near-perfectly mimicking him all night. The only out-of-character moments had been things she’d attributed to the stress of the situation.

“Yeah,” she said slowly. Should she point out that it wasn’t Gregory? Did it think she was fooled? Would it attack her if it thought the game was up? Cassie clutched her flashlight tightly and shuffled her feet, uncertainty make her heart pound. 

In the end, it wasn’t her choice to make. 

Her walkie-talkie clicked. “Cassie? Cassie, are you there? Can you hear me?”

The robot sort of flinched backward, and even though it had no facial expressions, she thought it seemed shocked. 

Raising the walkie-talkie, Cassie said, “Yeah, yeah, I hear you.” 

A rush of breath left Gregory. “Holy hell, Cassie, just give me a heart attack next time! I’ve been trying to get a hold of you all night! What are you doing in the pizzaplex? It’s not safe there anymore, believe me.” 

She wanted to ask if he was the real Gregory. But apparently there was no way to trust a voice without seeing the body it came from. 

She didn’t get the chance to answer because the robot asked, “Why does that sound like me? Who is that?” 

It occurred to Cassie that maybe, possibly, crazily, the robot wasn’t trying to fool her. That, as unlikely as it sounded, it actually thought it was Gregory. 

“It’s my friend,” she said gently. “My friend Gregory.” 

“But—I’m Gregory.” 

Gregory interrupted, “Not loving the radio silence here, Cassie. Where are you? I’m following your path of destruction—I’m so proud, by the way, baby’s first destruction of property—but like, you’re way farther in than I expected. And I could skip this walk down memory lane if you’d just tell me where you are.” 

“I’m Gregory,” the robot whispered, hunching in on itself. It shuffled its feet, uncertain, and fiddled with its hands. They were shockingly human habits, though she’d never seen Gregory look so fragile and confused. “I’m—I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “But you aren’t.” Its red eyes flickered and dulled, and it lowered its head. Into her walkie-talkie, she said, “I’m in these weird tunnels beneath the raceway.” 

There was a fumbling noise, and then Gregory burst out, “In the buried pizzeria?! Get out of there, Cassie, geez! There’s a freaky wire-y blob monster down there that will try to eat you if you disturb it!” 

Cassie critically examined the pitiful robot in front of her. It didn’t read as a blob monster, whatever that meant. And it didn’t seem inclined to eat her. It was just watching her, somehow radiating sadness. 

“Unrelated, but that night you spent here, did you manage to accidentally convince a robot it was you?” she asked, ignoring his panic. Giving a robot identity issues of that caliber seemed like the sort of thing Gregory was capable of. 

“Uh—no? Why?” 

Lowering her walkie-talkie for the moment, Cassie inched closer to the robot, tensing despite its lack of anger or aggression. “Hey,” she said, and it looked up at her with dim golden eyes that almost looked clouded over. They were much softer than the red, and even kinda pretty in their own way. “You might not be Gregory, but that’s not a bad thing. I mean, I wouldn’t want to be Gregory.” 

It wrapped its arms around its torso—which was really just a thick metal bar and a pair of hydraulic cylinders—in a hug for itself. “But I don’t know how to be anyone else. I only remember being Gregory.” 

Cassie realized too late that she’d squeezed her walkie-talkie, turning on the microphone. And she realized it because Gregory said, “Wait, was that—was that my voice? Did—did you find a robotic clone of me?” 

She shouldn’t have been surprised that he sounded excited about that. 

But thank goodness he was as weird as he was, because rather than get upset or freaked out, Gregory cackled and cried, “I want to meet him!” 

Cassie peeked up at the robot, curious about how it would respond. And enough of Gregory’s… everything must have carried over, however that had happened, because it correctly read the silent question in her eyes. 

“I’d… like to meet him,” it said haltingly. “I—I can feel it now. It’s like… a mask. And now I know where the edges are, but there’s nothing underneath. I am no one.” 

“Well, then maybe Gregory and I could help you decide who you are underneath, without any mask at all. And in the meantime,” she sighed internally, “I bet Gregory would be thrilled to have someone just like him who’s willing to help him prank people.” 

Its eyes brightened, and yeah, it was unfortunately a lot like Gregory. 

“We’ll meet you in the raceway,” Cassie said into her walkie-talkie. And then she bravely held her hand out to the robot. “C’mon, let’s get out of here. It’s gross down here, and you really do look like you’ve been rolling around in the dirt.” 

The robot laughed with Gregory’s voice, and it was remarkably gentle when it took her hand. 

[blurredcolour]

So I’ve been doing some thinking, none of it very chaste and much of it illogical, and not a bit of it remotely profound but hear me out:

If we were to assume that the Trust Universe shared the same multi-verse as Parting Gifts…

…that would mean we’ve got two men in the 100th, Brady and Bucky, who (at least for a time in the case of Egan) kept it in their pants while being very generous to their crushes.

Which brings me to the entirely inane conclusion that such a fact makes these two particular men at Thorpe Abbots really eager for the damn showers to clear out for some alone time. One reminiscing of honeyed stateside indulgences and the other of more recent stargazing.

And I just wanna imagine the hilarity of running into each other just when they plot and plan and scheme for the showers to be all theirs.

Marina!!!! I still am not over how you dropped this in my inbox in the middle of the night 🫠

Mature/explicit answer under the cut - 18+ only

I feel like Brady had the shower routine down first. After all he’d been fighting his urges with his sweetheart for weeks and then was wrenched from her arms and drowning in memories.

And slipping into the tiled space at odd hours worked great in Nebraska, in Utah. All the other boys were happily getting their rocks off in warm-blooded women while he’d relegated himself to his fist from the start. Ah that damn Catholic self-deprivation!!!

While Egan favours a one-handed style, I see Brady preferring to get both hands in on the action? Leaving no part of his nether reaches neglected, particularly those remarkable balls.

When he’s alone, he’s alright at being quiet, he has yet to discover just how loud you can make him. That’s a treat for his victorious return stateside after the war 😉

But after arrival at Thorpe Abbotts, there’s new ground to learn, and then all of a sudden that womanizer Egan with his voracious appetite isn’t just taking what he wants, he’s trying to take over Brady’s sanctuary?!

He’s on his way to a mid-evening shower, a time that’s rarely been a conflict before, only to see all 6’2” of Egan casting surreptitious glances about and not at all subtly sliding into the shower hut before the thunk of the lock sounds.

A major pivot is required and utilizing his knowledge of the Major, Brady settles on morning trips down memory lane. Those days he’s not on missions, when everyone else is at breakfast and Egan’s either in the air, operations room, or still in bed - that’s how he avoids what would surely be an awkward encounter for them both.

Would be rather adorable to see their bright red cheeks and ears though….🤭

[krippe90]

Some life hacks I've gathered in my ripe old age (33 years old)

If you use Spotify: make a new playlist for every month (you can have near identical playlists with none or just a few songs changing, it's fine!) - Very fun to rediscover old songs and take trips down memory lane. I also put every months playlist into one big playlist at the end of the year for that particular year. It also keeps you from having huge playlists with songs you never get to as you switch out the top 10-20 spots on it. Trust me, this is a game changer.

Make a bookmarks folder where you save things you wanna buy but aren't sure if you REALLY want it or if it's really needed or maybe you dont got enough money for it atm - I have a bad habit of impulse buying, so when I see something I wanna get I put it in my WTB ("Want to Buy") folder and leave it there for some time. When I get into some money I look in the folder, and if I feel like I no longer want that thing, it gets removed. If I want it over the other needful things in the WTB folder, it gets bought. - In my folder right now I got some real nice whiskey I wanna try but can't afford, some stupid shirts I don't REALLY need because I got a fuckload of shirts I still enjoy wearing, fancy art supplies that I really don't need atm because I'm still shit at arting (but feel like I should get if I still paint after a year or so), some subscriptions to patreons I wanna sub to but won't because lack of stable income, etc etc. (also got some thing for removing earwax in there not sure why.. maybe my ear felt clogged?)

In fact, make MANY bookmark folders! Don't leave shit in 100s of tabs! I keep at most 3-5 tabs open at any time (except when coding, then it can be as many as 20), and I keep them organized and when I'm done with what I'm doing and wanna come back to a page I save them into their specific folder.

4. Don't be afraid to look in a mirror or wipe your ass when you're doing psychadelics! Fear is the mind killer!

5. FUCK TUMBLR STUPID FUCKING POST MAKING I CANT MAKE THE NUMBERED LIST WITH IMAGES NOR EDIT THE NUMBERS AFTER PASTING THE IMAGE!!

Fuck this im not doing anymore of these

[madqueenalanna]

it's 2024 i should be so completely over church and tex and YET

it's just. the echoes. restoration was essentially a trip down memory lane, a victory lap, one last chance to say goodbye. of course it echoes, back to "recovery one", back to "memory is the key", back to blood gulch. back to when church/tex was alpha/beta, back to when it was leonard/allison

cause like, and i know rvb is not really worthy of this level of textual analysis or derangement, but. allison in retrospect is haunting the narrative in duplicate; the way she, as a once-living woman, drove the director and carolina in their own respective ways, destroying the freelancers, and the way she, as tex, as beta, as failure, as ghost, haunts church (as alpha, as ghost). he spent his entire life chasing a woman who could not be caught, did not want to be found, and whom he did not recognize once he got her again

alpha split first into beta, spontaneously (allison– the loss of her, specifically). allison's legacy, in her husband's eyes, was not as a soldier, as a wife, as a mother, but as a corpse. she was a badass, sure, and she cared about her teammates, but she was Failure personified. and on some level she knows this– she has to know this– by the time she meets church in s1

cause like, he's not real, either. he's whatever is left without her, he remembers they were once close, but his memories of her as an ex are just... false. and she's angry at him! she does not like him or trust him, she's ready to kill his friends for money! bc who is he, to her? the director with the edges sanded sharp, leonard frozen at 24, prickly and asocial and feeling, keenly, unwhole? she knows, back then, what he did. anything she didn't know then, she will learn later from york

it takes church a long time to catch up. he chases, he begs. he tries to bring her back, and it takes all of s9 for him to stop and think: who is tex? what does she want? if someone gave her a choice for the first time ever, who will she be? and the answer is what she was. dead. she wants to stop being a ghost. she wants to disappear and be forgotten. and when church finds beta, he says "we used to be close" and tells her goodbye. when tex found alpha, two episodes previously, she said "we used to be together"– she defines their intimacy, even in its literality– and told him goodbye. they both hate goodbyes. they say it anyway

and THEN! it's the end of rvb, the end of restoration. this version of church is through so many iterations– the director made the alpha who grew into church, who had to be distilled into epsilon, who evolved and learned and died the hero. this version of tex, as she tells meta-tucker, is not the director's memories of her death– her failure– but the memories of the reds and blues, who know her only as herself, a ball-destroying ass-kicking mean-mugging son of a bitch. and with the help of carolina, her daughter, who has finally outgrown the fear of saying goodbye, they win. this version of church is able to understand, willing to be led by her, cared for by her, learn from her. this version of tex is able to do that. they can both rest. their teams can say goodbye

it's just so goddamn much, man. i'm not sure if i've talked myself into liking the church/tex ending of restoration but i'm savoring it like a dog with a bone rn. i once saw a pic of them overlaid with the text "how do you say goodbye to someone who's already gone?" and we got an answer: you don't. you say hello. you say, we have all the time we need. you say, let me tell you all about it

[simplyclary]

I Loved How Good You Looked: A TZP 2023 Fashion Wrap-Up (Part 1)

(Edit by yours truly)

In the world of fashion, every outfit tells a story, and 2023 has certainly been a memorable year for rising Hollywood star Taylor Zakhar Perez.

From his lead role in Amazon Prime's hit movie "Red, White and Royal Blue" to his unforgettable fits throughout the year, Taylor shows no signs of slowing down in both the acting world and the fashion world.

As 2023 comes to a close, it's time to take a glamorous stroll down the Taylor Zakhar Perez fashion memory lane! I'll unravel the variety of trends that graced the catwalks, adorned the red carpets, and became street-style staples.

This TZP fashion wrap-up promises a dazzling lineup of looks that defined the essence of elegance and daring creativity that made 2023 unforgettable, especially for Taylor and his ever growing fanbase.

Join me as I unwrap the fashion moments that left fans breathless, inspired, and utterly in love with the one and only Taylor Zakhar Perez.

So get comfortable, grab a drink and some snacks and let the fashion show begin..

Vanity Fair London- February 2023

Ahhh, look at how dashing he is in that black suit? Already slaying and it's only February!

Anyway, Taylor in this black ensemble is nothing but perfection. Also, the way that his hair was styled up and his clean-shaven look adds a bit of a pristine vibe to the overall look.

Give me Taylor in a black suit any day and you would just catch me swooning over it for the rest of the day.

Cyclops x Moncler Genius Show- February 2023

This is the lighter contrast to that of his look during Vanity Fair London, because instead of donning an all-black outfit, Taylor opted for more lighter colors like white, light blue and a dark(ish) aqua green shade.

For this event, he opted for a t-shirt with the name of the brand on it under a plaid flannel like shirt and dark aqua green pants that also has the brand's name on it.

The one thing that I didn't really like is the shades that he wore. It's too big for me and I would've preferred that he went without the shades. However, if he was going for an outer-space alien vibe with this look, I think he nailed it because those shades definitely looked like the eyes of an alien that's coming to invade or seek peace on Earth.

Versace Cruise 2024 Show- March 2023

This is one of Taylor's look that live rent-free in the minds of fans. I mean, how can it not? He looks so handsome.

This mesh tank top with leather pants is a combination that I never thought would work but it actually could, on Taylor at least. I love how his bits of jewelry added a bit of sparkle to the overall darkness of the outfit, similar to stars in the night sky.

I need Taylor to rock more outfits like this come 2024, because this look definitely had fans wanting more.

Green Carpet Fashion Awards-March 2023

I swear to the angels, this look is giving me real Rhysand vibes, and I'm not mad about that.

Just another all-black Taylor outfit for the year (trust me, I know you know this ain't the last all-black outfit he wore), and dang, he looks absolutely handsome. With the clean-shaven look and his hair that styled up, this is a vision of a Night Court prince right here.

Yep, I'm just here throwing out my fantasies, but it is what it is.

Woolmark Trip to Australia-March 2023

One of his memorable supply chain trips that he took to further understand the fabrics that go into the very clothes that people wear.

For the first photo, it was a good choice that he wore a sweater to Australia because he went there during the fall season in the country (which runs from March to May). It's also a good pop of color and compliments really well with the green of the grass (and the white of the sheep).

As for the second photo (which was taken when he was in one of the shops looking at fabrics), he wore a plain whitish-grey shirt underneath a navy blue blazer. It exudes simplicity with a dash of elegance. I also love how it was during this time that he made a custom-wool suit for himself.

I love a man who cares about the environment. Men like him are a rare breed nowadays.

BMW x Coachella- April 2023

Be honest with yourselves, when you look at this picture, what did you look at first? The scenery? The car? Or Taylor? It would be the third option, obviously.

This was a collaboration of BMW with the summer music festival Coachella and to have Taylor as a model for it is perfect because it's like mixing together adventure (with the car) and music & fun (I mean, that's one of the reasons people go to Coachella, right?), which sums up Taylor's personality in a way (adventurous and fun-loving).

For this, Taylor wore a summer look, with a white tank top underneath a black jacket with black shorts and green rubber shoes. I love how the green adds a touch of color to his overall neutral outfit. It's a simple combination but he makes it look like a masterpiece, if I'm being honest.

Ralph Lauren Event- April 2023

Taylor, why are you wearing gray? What do you have against color (Kidding..)

To be clear, I have nothing against the color gray. It's just not my first pick for a color. It comes off as dull and boring for me, but that's just my humble opinion.

For this event, Taylor wore a grey and white ensemble, with a gray shirt paired with a gray blazer and white pants. The overall look may lack color, but do admit that Taylor looks good in it (he looks good in whatever color he wears, to be completely honest).

International Woolmark Prize (IWP) Event- May 2023

Knowing Taylor, he would not pass up on an opportunity to advocate about fashion sustainability while still being fashionable himself, which I honestly love.

During this event with The Woolmark Company, he wore a navy blue ensemble, which is composed of a white tank top and a striped navy blue button-down that is layered by a navy blue coat. He completed his look with black loafers and a pair of necklaces, which add a little shine to his outfit. Again, a simple combination but on him, it looks like a masterpiece.

Take it from Taylor, folks. This is how you advocate for a good cause while also looking good yourself.

Prada (Spring/Summer 2024 Menswear Show)- June 2023

*This is also an excuse for me to post Taylor's unforgettable shirtless entrance photo*

The iconic Prada SS24 Show!! Taylor's fashion week debut (he said so himself during the "Get Ready With Me" video). He really said "this is my first fashion week so I gotta make it memorable". And it was memorable indeed, maybe more for the fans, but regardless, it was an iconic event.

Taylor's photos from this event was one of the first photos that I ever saw of him the moment I became a fan, and it will be one of those events that will forever live rent-free in my mind. I mean, how could I not? Look at the stunning assembly of looks he pulled off for the show. From stepping out of the car shirtless to wearing a white Prada tank top at the end of the day, he surely made the 2023 summer even hotter.

I also love how he made it a designer summer. Prada is a designer brand and then he combined it with some summer essentials like a white tank top and sunglasses. Personally, I love that theme.

Maybe Taylor will be able to beat this on 2024, if he gets invited to the Prada event again (I have faith that he will be).

Givenchy Event- June 2023

It's one fashion show after another, I take it. After Prada (or before, I'm not sure), it's Givenchy.

I got to be honest, this all-black jumpsuit outfit is not my favorite, but I'll make an exception because it's black which is one of my most favorite colors on Taylor. What I love about this is that he made the jumpsuit ensemble not too plain-looking by adding silver jewelry and sunglasses.

This is more of a practical look but hey, something that's both fashionable and functional is what people really look for nowadays.

Tag Heuer Event- July 2023

Let's be honest, it's not Taylor if there was no picture where he does the peace sign.

In this particular photo, I love how his outfit was the dark contrast to the light colors of his background and even to the very couch he's sitting on. His dark outfit is something I can see a warrior in a fairytale wear and I'm not one to complain about that.

This ensemble is something people can wear in the summertime, consider the varying degrees of heat that the summer season brings in every country during the summer months.

Miu Miu Event- July 2023

I would like to point out that this look is very similar to the one Taylor wore to the Tag Heuer event, only with a different brand, but I'll look past that, I guess.

With this look, it still has the summer vibes. I can see people wearing this type of outfit during the summer time where people often opt for sleeveless clothes.

Maybe pair this outfit with your favorite pair of sunglasses, get on a boat and go sailing off into the ocean with the sea breeze in your face and you'll have an unforgettable summer.

Red, White and Royal Blue Billboard Sighting and NYC Street Style- August 2023

Ahhh August, the month where Taylor was catapulted into even more fame (and also the month that I knew of him).

August was the month of the premiere of "Red, White and Royal Blue" where Taylor played his first lead role as Alex Claremont-Diaz. It also premiered in the middle of the 118-day SAG-AFTRA strike, so sadly, there was no red carpet event for the movie but Taylor had to show off his style one way or another.

In the first two photos, it's just Taylor casually walking in the streets but he still looks so good. In the first photo, he wore a blue-black ensemble (two of my favorite colors on him) and the second photo was a contrast to the somehow dark ensemble of the first photo because it shows him wearing a much lighter outfit, which includes a cream vest and green track pants with sneakers.

The third photo is special because it was when Taylor was in New York (Times Square to be exact) with his parents and they went to see the billboard that had the poster of RWRB on it. His outfit is a wool (or cotton) shirt with a mix of orange, brown, black and white colors paired with dark jeans. It was a more casual outfit as compared to the magnitude of what he saw on Times Square that night.

Aperol Spritz Event- August 2023

I suddenly want to have a drink with Taylor and just chill. I mean, don't we all?

With this event, Taylor wore a white tank top underneath a blue striped button-down with matching pants of the same design. I honestly love how the color of his outfit compliments the color of the drink (In art class, blue and orange are known to be complimentary colors because the darkness of blue makes the lightness of orange pop off).

The darkness of the grassy green background also makes Taylor stand out, especially with the angle of this photo, so this outfit is a yes from me. Plus the slightly tousled hair and the little scruff adds more to the chill vibe of the event.

Vogue World: London- September 2023

This was the event that cemented Taylor's status as a prince in my mind. As an avid fan of fairytale stories, his two looks during this event was how I sometimes imagine princes when I read.

The white top with the attached waistcoat and the flared bottoms gives me the vibes of what people in the olden eras of London would wear. Think Victorian/Edwardian era. The second look of the night was this sparkling sleeveless number which is also unforgettable and provided a good contrast to the pristine white top.

I would also like to note that the grey sleeveless top is cropped so a bit of midriff was shown but I'm not complaining since Taylor is cut and fit anyway. These two outfits were really fit for a handsome prince like Taylor who is off to a stunning night in London.

Burberry (Spring/Summer 2024, London Fashion Week)- September 2023

If there's one thing I'm sure about, it is the fact that Taylor will slay even the most common of clothing. In this event, he wore a trench coat that is almost like a raincoat over a plaid long sleeve. It could be a common outfit for people who experience the rainy weather more often, but Taylor rocks it like a masterpiece meant to be exhibited in a fashion show, which is also a lovely idea.

I don't adore this outfit as much as I do the others, but one of the things that I like about this one is the practicality of it. It's a trench coat that can be used as a raincoat if one does not have an umbrella on hand and the rain suddenly started pouring.

Another thing was the idea that Taylor went to London Fashion Week and it generated like the highest media value. Like, that is a record and I'm not mad that he was one of the reasons that happened.

London and Milan Street Style- September 2023

Taylor is one of those people who could make street style look absolutely stunning. He could wear like a super casual combination of clothes like jeans and sneakers but combine that with his charm and you get a photo of him walking the pedestrian lane as if it's a fashion runway or him standing outside of his hotel yet it's gonna look like he posed for a fashion magazine shoot.

His street style in between the gorgeous ensembles he wore attending fashion weeks in London and Milan had fans gasping. Why? Because he looks so good in them.

These are four of my favorite Taylor street-style looks because it’s style and comfort, casual and preppy at the same time. All his clothes look plain at best but it still has the element of shimmer because of his accessories like his signature necklaces and bracelets, which is always lovely to see.

Ferrari (Spring/Summer 2024)-September 2023

Taylor was in his Doctor Strange era during this fashion week and I was so here for that era. It also made me scream because if you don't know, Doctor Strange is one of my most favorite Marvel characters ever!

Taylor could've played a variant of the character because to me, he kind of pulled the reverse version of Doctor Strange. Instead of wearing an all-blue outfit like the character, Taylor wore a dark red turtleneck top with a set composed of a dark trench coat and pants. He kind of completed his Doctor Strange look with tousled dark locks and a bit of stubble.

Honestly speaking, he also gave me a bit of Sherlock Holmes vibes with the trench coat which I honestly love, because I love the Sherlock Holmes stories.

Other than the fact that I completely rambled and disassociated, this look gives immense fall vibes to me, and it's perfect for that chilly stroll around the city while drinking a cup of cocoa or a cup of pumpkin spice latte.

That's A Wrap....for now...

Well, due to the limited amount of images I can put on here, I'm gonna need to put a part 2 for this fashion wrap up. This only means that Taylor had so many good looks this year that this site couldn't keep up with the insane amount of photos (kidding!).

But anyway, here's a link to Part 2 of the TZP Fashion Wrap-Up, so head over there if you want to see more of Taylor's fashion for the year.

[cloudcountry]

Psst, hey, for the milestone event; I want you to get realllyyyy self indulgent and write a letter from Azul for you. Yep, specifically for you, make it personalised as hell, it's a treat and it's on me.

I'd imagine it to be for your first anniversary together; oh and, you can get meta by mentioning all the shenanigans you and me, everyone got upto, say, i don't know , Dazaiburn.

(Or the cursed Isaac edits, or that time you took Azul out of your faves and added me in, the list goes on; take a trip down the memory lane if you wanna)

Have fun writing and don't forget to unshrimp your spine (ps. drink water too)

dearest auburn,

can i trust that the shenanigans you and your friends have pulled will not happen again? i have had quite enough of coming to the mostro lounge only to find that otome man’s pictures posted up all over the place. and before you start, i have also had quite enough of that dazai character butting into our relationship. i was under the impression that your friends were far more mature than this...

i’ve noted that your new obsession seems to be this man named zero...it’s almost worrying how honest he seems from what you’ve described to me.

even so, i’m glad you’re in love with me. even if floyd makes cruel jabs about how i don’t really seem to be your type, i do try my best to ignore him.

you best make up for giving him that idea in the first place, though.

i do love you dearly. thank you for being in my life. you have made my days endlessly brighter.

azul ashengrotto.

[blackjackkent]

So. Rakha's pretty shaken by her trip down memory lane via noblestalk.

They really need to head down to the beach and across the lake to start hunting down Nere and the path to Moonrise, but I think after the noblestalk they end up just making camp where the bibberbangs used to be because it's clear Rakha isn't going to be up to anything for the rest of the day.

It takes her a long time to go to sleep; she spends several hours pacing the edge of the camp like a frightened animal and staring out into the darkness. She can feel the very slight staticky buzz of the sussur tree not too far off. Her head spins with the half-articulated memories left over from the mushroom trip.

She's relieved when Wyll comes to find her, even though she doesn't want to admit it. She's been avoiding him since Ethel's betrayal, feeling afraid of what that brief foray into trust cost her. But when he steps into her path, intercepting her frantic pacing... she does feel something ease a little in her chest.

"Hey," he says softly.

She doesn't answer. But she does stop pacing, and sits down abruptly near him. It's a tacit invitation; slowly he sits down at her side, not touching her, but watching her profile in the half-light.

"Are you all right?" he asks.

She shakes her head.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Another shake of the head.

"All right." They sit in silence.

She lifts her hands after a moment and conjures a line of dancing lights over her palm. They spin in a lazy circle, casting weird shadows along the walls of the cavern.

"That tree..." she mutters. "I keep wondering if it will disappear again."

He nods. "It did feel odd, didn't it? It was the flowers, I think, so as long as we stay clear of those, it'll be all right." A pause. "Truth be told, I didn't mind it. A few moments with Mizora disconnected... but it's different for you."

"It felt like my heart was torn out," she says flatly.

He offers a slight, almost shy smile. "Well. We can't have that," he murmurs.

She flicks her eyes sideways to him, and then away again. It's dissonant, strange, the way she wants to smile in answer to him while all these terrible memories run through her mind. "I cut someone open," she says abruptly.

He looks startled. "What?"

"In the-- I remembered--" The words won't come out in coherent order. She tries again. "The mushroom... I remembered a..." She has to think for a moment to come up with the word. "Laboratory. I think. Walls full of jars. Of brains. Livers. Hearts. There was a man on a table. Alive. I cut him open. I enjoyed it."

She draws a sharp breath and squeezes her eyes closed as the beast urge in her head growls eagerly at the memory of the blood, of the flesh sliced open under the scalpel.

"Hell's great fires..." Wyll mutters. His eyes narrow tightly in concern. She half expects him to turn away, repelled by the scene she describes. But he looks at her steadily. "Something you remembered from before the Nautiloid?"

"I think so."

He frowns. "You walked a dark path," he says quietly. "That much is obvious."

She scowls at the ground. "You said once that I carry my own light."

"And I still believe it."

"Why?"

"You tell me." He smiles faintly. "What are you thinking about that memory?"

A long, long pause. "I have learned," she says slowly, "from you. From Lae'zel. From Halsin and Karlach. Purpose in killing. The cruelty... is the beast. Not me. It was stronger then, I think."

He nods. "That is what I mean," he says gently. "The light - I see you trying, learning, holding yourself back. Not everyone would be strong enough." He gives a low, rueful chuckle. "Gods know I can tell it isn't easy. But it's the things we do that aren't easy that mean the most."

She swallows, feeling a sudden tightness in her throat. "I wish you did not comfort me," she mutters. "It would be... simpler."

She sees his eyes brighten just a little at the words. "Well, then," he says. "Long live the complicated."

[scorpiongrassfield]

A Trip Down Memory Lane 

Start | Prev

Despite all your best intentions, you keep falling into Theo’s memories as you explore. You try to pull yourself out of them as soon as you can because you really don’t want to pry. That and some of them are pretty unpleasant. 

You end up learning more about Theo, and some of it is even stuff you don’t feel guilty about learning. 

He used to play softball. 

The digital art commissions he did were a bit more risque than his oil paintings. He had a lot of fun drawing them because he knew they made people happy. 

He always wanted a pet as a kid, but his parents wouldn’t let him. Adopting Concrete probably made him really happy. 

And then there’s the stuff you do feel guilty about. 

You know what his childhood nickname was. 

You know first hand how shitty his parents were to him. 

At first, learning that Theo was pretty bad at swimming strikes you as a sort of endearing quirk. Something that’s a little funny. But then you Remember. And you feel sick. 

You try to justify it to yourself by keeping in mind that the reason Theo drowned is because he was unconscious and face down in the water. No amount of swimming would have saved him. 

Pivoting away from that train of thought is an act of self preservation, not cowardice, thank you very much. 

Something that really surprises you is discovering that Theo and Ametrine were on speaking terms at some point. 

Considering her apparent stance on ghosts, you’d think she’d never deign to associate with something like Theo. 

But didn’t one of them mention that they both get power from the same source? 

It was something like that… 

Ametrine is always terse with Theo, but that might just be how she is. You probably won’t find out for sure. You don’t want to find out for sure. 

You’ve just been pulled into yet another memory. 

Pat jumps, the most startled you’ve ever seen them. 

“Jeeze. I thought you’d moved on, kid,” they tut, brow furrowed. “What are you doing back here? Actually wait, no. How’d you get here? Weren’t you location locked?” 

“Ah, well. I did move on. I just… decided to come back,” ‘You’ say, feeling a little sheepish. 

Pat frowns. “Are you still worried about Concrete? I’m taking real good care of him, just like I promised.” 

You shake your head. “No, it’s not that. I trust you. I just… I wanted to help you. Since you helped me out so much…” you trail off, feeling like maybe you shouldn’t have done this. You could have helped without revealing yourself. 

“That’s very kind of you, but you should go ahead and move on. I’m pretty good at keeping myself safe, and I definitely don’t want to be the thing that’s holding you back. Plus, I’ve got a friend that doesn’t take too nice to ghosts hanging around. Really.” 

You shake your head emphatically. “You said that just because you don’t need something doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have it at all. Even if you don’t need help I still want to help.” 

Pat doesn’t say anything for a while, seeming to think things over. 

Next

[auxiliarydetective]

AP-01: Project Apocalypse

ch. 10: Tongue-Tied

AP-01 Masterlist

This fic is part of the Academy Projects series, a full rewrite of The Umbrella Academy with the addition of an original character, Kassandra Hargreeves. Throughout the story, you'll stumble across a few songs. This is supposed to make the fic feel as much like the show as possible, so I recommend you don't skip them.

Warnings: Canon-typical issues, child abuse, detailed descriptions of injury (?)

Grace’s soft hum danced over the air as Kassandra snuck down the stairs, careful not to make a sound. For as neat as her uniform shoes were, it took some skill to make them stay quiet. Finally, she reached the basement kitchen and leaned against the broken wall serving as an entrance, just watching. Grace was standing at one of the counters, carefully measuring ingredients for another one of her creations. But she was still attentive as always, it seemed, as she stopped humming and turned around, her eyes widened in surprise.

“Kassandra?” she gasped. “Shouldn’t you be studying?”

“I finished early,” Kassandra declared. “What are you making?”

“I’m making brownies. I figured you could all use a little snack after all the hard work you’ve been doing.”

Kassandra just stared and blinked for a moment, then came a little closer to the counter, looking at all of the ingredients. So, all of these mixed together were supposed to make soft, chocolaty brownies? Most of these weren’t even brown! Did they really mix that well?

“Can I help?” she finally asked. “I want to learn.”

“Your father wouldn’t be happy,” Grace replied, “about you wasting the time you should be spending on studying for missions on something you don’t have to worry about.”

This caused little Kassandra to pout. “I’m already useless for missions anyway,” she nearly shouted. “And Dad always says debriefing after a mission is just as important as planning beforehand and you give us treats after a job well done, so we should have treats after a mission, and I want to at least make those. Also, they make everyone happy,” she added quietly, “and I want people to be happy.”

“Kassandra…” Grace sighed, and ran a finger along her daughter’s face, lifting her chin. “You aren’t useless. Handicap or not, you’re still a valuable asset to the team. Your brothers and sister will be relying on your valuable insights during missions to keep them out of danger. They trust you more than anyone else.”

“But I can’t make them happy! Dad still locks Klaus in the mausoleum and Ben—”

She was interrupted by her lips snapping shut and her words getting stuck in her throat like pointy rocks, the force of her voice bumping into the blockade and recoiling into her lungs, making her let out a pained squeak.

“Shhh, shhh, don’t speak now,” Grace shushed her, gently placing a finger over Kassandra’s mouth. “It’s alright. Your siblings—”

“What’s going on here?!” Sir Reginald’s voice echoed against the high ceiling. “Number Eight? What are you doing here? You should be studying.”

“I finished early,” Kassandra replied weakly.

“Nonsense. There’s no such thing as finishing early. So you’ve finished the plans of the city hall? Continue with Icarus Theater. Back to your desk you go.”

“Yes, Dad,” Kassandra muttered, and her mother and father watched as she pattered back up the stairs.

Little did they know that, invisible to them, an adult Kassandra was sitting on the kitchen table, taking a trip down memory lane. In a blueish purple haze, Sir Reginald disappeared and the scene changed. Grace was in a new outfit, the ingredients on the counter had changed, the shelves were differently stocked…

Into the kitchen came a slightly older but still little Kassandra with a bandaged forearm, the lights seeming to dim when she walked in.

“Kassandra!” Grace gasped. “You really should be resting. You gave me quite a scare, fainting like that, and then your fever… I’m still not convinced you haven’t caught an infection.”

“The bearded man said the tattoo’s not infected and the doctor said I’m fine,” Kassandra said. Then, her eyes and tone turned pleading. “Please, just let me help. I need to help.”

Grace sighed. “Alright. But wash your hands first. I’ll get you an apron.”

Kassandra nodded, a little shakily, and her older self watched as she pulled a stepping stool over to the sink despite not really needing it. She watched as this little girl held her hands under the water and grew to hate them, fear them, see them as her greatest weakness.

“Mom,” the little girl said when her mother came back, “I’ve finally decided what I want for my birthday. Is it too late?”

“It is a bit last minute,” Grace replied, carefully tying the apron behind her daughter’s back. “But it’s not too late.”

“... I’d like a pair of gloves.”

Kassandra shook her head and let the memories fade, instead turning her attention towards the clock on the wall. It had been ages. Where on earth was Grace? Kassandra herself hadn’t been late; she had been in the kitchen on time for their baking session, but Grace herself still hadn’t shown up. Could she have just forgotten? If so, then… Come to think of it, she had also forgotten that Sir Reginald had died, so… something was clearly wrong. And her odd behaviour these last few days…

Maybe, Kassandra told herself, she just has to recharge, immediately recognizing those words as Diego’s excuse at the funeral.

Still, it was maybe the best option. So, Kassandra took her apron off and hung it on one of the hooks, then snuck herself some food and headed back up the stairs. She made her way up the grand staircase, glancing over at Grace’s gallery. Really, there she was, sitting on her sofa and doing a cross-stitch. That meant it had to have been a kink in the recharge cycle, right?

With that worry out of her mind, Kassandra retreated to her room, finding herself oddly exhausted. She hadn’t been doing that much over these past few days. There was no reason for her to be this exhausted, she told herself. Nonetheless, exhausted she was, and so she dug out her headphones and put on some music, then lied down on her bed. She let herself sink into the sounds drifting out of the speakers, letting them drown out everything else. Unfortunately, that meant she sensed the danger far too late.

When she noticed herself getting sleepy, she turned off her music and ran her fingers through her hair. But as she stretched out her mental antennae to find out if the bathroom was free, she not only found Klaus having the time of his life bathing – with the door open, again – but also an unknown presence. Two, in fact. In Luther’s room. A shiver went down Kassandra’s spine at their intentions, at the guns she realized they held, and a panicked, electric crackle travelled through her veins, mixing with the heavy sludge of guilt. She looked around her room in search of something to fight back with but found nothing. So, what now? Her heart racing in her chest, she slipped into her heels, then tiptoed towards the door, hoping she could at least attempt to warn Klaus. All that practice of sneaking around the house had to amount to something, right?

So, she opened the door as quietly as possible and slid out of her room, balancing her weight on the tip of her toes so her heels wouldn’t hit the ground. But her efforts were made futile by Diego stomping down the hallway in his combat boots, and she didn’t know whether to be angry, terrified, or happy to see him.

“Kass!” he called. “Is Five back yet?”

A jerk went through Kassandra’s body and she choked, looking at him with pleading, milky-white eyes.

“Ah, shit,” Diego growled, pulling out one of his knives, “I know that face. Where?”

Stiffly, Kassandra turned around and pointed to Luther’s room, staring into the faces of  two creepy carnival masks. A blue bear and a pink dog. Only a blink of an eye later, they opened fire, and everything happened too fast.

Diego pulled Kassandra down by the shoulder and started sprinting down the hallway, but she pushed him away, a bullet grazing her arm. They couldn’t get him. They couldn’t get them both. So, Kassandra ran for the stairs, that little servant’s pathway behind the way to the attic, her saving grace. Hidden behind a corner, she watched the bullets go past, Diego’s knives weaving in-between but ending in a metallic clang. There was silence for a moment. Diego must have hidden away and the intruders advanced, Kassandra thought, her blood rushing in her ears. The blue bear went past her to look for Diego, but the pink dog had to be around the corner, cold-blooded murder on their mind.

Just as Kassandra sensed the dog growing near, she bolted down the stairs, hoping the intruder would follow. Bullets spewed past her head as she tried to get a read on her opponent’s mind. But this took all of her attention. She stumbled, missed the edge of the next step, and tripped with a yelp. With a loud thud, her shoulder slammed into the stairs and she tumbled down. Down, down, down, trying not to let her head crash into the steps.

Finally, she landed on solid ground on the floor below, paralyzed by fear and pain. Her head was spinning, her muscles ached, and she hoped and prayed she hadn’t broken a bone. For a few seconds that might have been minutes, she lay there in silence, listening to steps thundering down from the attic and gunshots echoing in the lobby. Tears threatened to spill out of her eyes but she swallowed them down and picked herself up. Her right ankle was throbbing, the ankle strap on her shoe digging into her flesh. Quickly and quietly, she unbuckled the straps of her heels, gritting her teeth to ignore the pain. She had had worse. She had gotten stabbed before and lived, this was nothing. It was all nothing. It didn’t matter. What mattered was that her siblings were a couple rooms over and that they needed her help. So, Kassandra took off her shoes and placed them at the bottom of the stairs, then she pressed on through the servant’s pathway, leaning against the wall for support, keeping her thoughts hidden. Feelings, intentions, voices and sounds rained down upon her but she went on, focused on a single pattern of waves: Vanya. Vanya had stumbled her way into this mess and Kassandra saw it as her duty to get her out of it.

A familiar blur in her vision, she finally reached the exit towards the drawing room and gathered herself one more time. She closed her eyes and listened, letting the various waves and signals flow through her.

“Hey, asshole,” she heard Luther call, and she felt the blue bear turn around.

That was her chance. Kassandra pushed open the door to the drawing room, appearing from behind a bookcase near their father’s painting.

“Vanya!” she hissed, spotting her sister lying on the coffee table.

No answer.

Vanya! She called again, this time through her mind, and Vanya listened.

Lifting her head, she saw Kassandra behind the bookcase, but had her troubles getting up. Head wound. Drowsy. Maybe a concussion. Whoever that blue bear was, he was strong. Pressing her teeth together, Kassandra made a push from out behind the bookcase, across the room.

“Kass,” Vanya gasped, “what happened?”

“Fell down the stairs, nothing major,” Kassandra uttered. “Come on.”

She pulled Vanya up from the table and hooked her arm around her sister’s waist, Vanya mirroring her. Kassandra dragged her back to the servants’ pathway, the crashing and grunting of Luther and the bear cracking each other’s skulls flowing over from the entrance hall.

“Go in, go,” Kassandra whispered, giving her a push.

But Vanya didn’t let her go. “Wh- what about you?” she stammered.

“I need to go help Klaus, he doesn’t know what’s going on.”

“But you came from here, can’t you go back through here?”

“It’s bad enough if they get one of us, they shouldn’t get us both. Luther is keeping that freak busy, so I’ll just sprint on past.”

“You just fell down the stairs, I don’t think you can sprint.”

“Vanya—”

“And I don’t know where I’m going, I’ve never been in here.”

Kassandra let out an exasperated sigh, then begrudgingly slid back into the pathway with Vanya. The bookcase clicked shut and the sounds of battle faded, though there were still gunshots somewhere in the house.

“Come on,” Kassandra murmured, then headed for a nearby narrow staircase.

She snuck down the stairs, the wooden floor both cold and warm beneath her feet, Vanya right behind her. At the bottom, she paused again.

“There, at the end of the hallway, that’s the entrance to the boiler room. Hide in there, you’ll be safe. I’m going back up.”

“What if I went and got Klaus and you rested here?” Vanya cut in.

“Are you saying that you can sense where the enemies are?” Kassandra replied.

To that, Vanya stayed silent, and Kassandra hurried up the stairs, a piercing pain shooting up her leg with every step. Still, she sped up, up the basement stairs, through the labyrinth within the walls, then up to the kids’ rooms. By now, she was dizzy and nauseous, just trying to stay upright. But she swallowed it down and took a deep breath in an attempt to clear her mind. Still, there was nothing but white noise and an uneasy feeling in her bones.

She opened the pathway and closed it behind her, then rushed into Klaus’s room, throwing the door open. Klaus yelped in surprise, standing there in just a towel and his headphones, having been happily dancing.

“Kass!” he squealed. “Couldn’t you knock?!”

“No time, there’s—”

The words got struck in her throat and she coughed, spitting out little droplets of blood.

“Hey now, you know you shouldn’t do that,” Klaus blurted out, patting her arm in an attempt to comfort her. “Let me just get dressed, okay? What’s the plan?”

“We need to—”

Thud.

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[elisysd]

Marry me?

Masterlist

Four years and a half after Paris

Ethan and Julia - 29 years old

They hadn’t gone to Singapore other than for work. So when Julia had asked Ethan if he wanted to spend a few days there, as a sort of trip down memory lane, he had been surprised. Surprised but very happy. It was always a place that bore a lot of history and a lot of meaning for him. He didn’t know how but Julia had managed to book the exact room they were in when the lines had started to blur.

They had spent their few days of break, wandering the streets, trying new foods and visiting places they had never gone to. They had laughed, they had talked, they had taken cute and silly pictures together, promising to find them a nice place on the wall, they had kissed and loved each other, they had reminisced a lot and reflected on their life.

“What would you say to the Julia of five years ago?” Ethan asked as they were sitting on a bench in a park.

“I would tell her to trust the process. And I would give her a nice slap because god, was she stupid!”

“I will not deny or confirm this affirmation.” he laughed, kissing the side of her head.

“But I don’t regret it. At the end of the day, we are better people now. All the hardships and everything, it wasn’t for nothing.”

“I would have liked to not have my heart completely shattered in the process, though. But you’re right. I’m proud of us.”

“I planned a little something for us… it’s not for no reason that I asked if you wanted to come to Singapore.” she confessed.

“It’s okay to feel nostalgic, Joolsie. And I can’t wait to see whatever you brought us here for.”

She smiled and got up, holding out her hand for you to take it and he followed her lead. They ended up in an area that was unknown to Ethan and he strangely looked at her. It was a dead-end street, between two buildings.

“I feel your confusion.” she stated.

“Where are we?”

“This is where the paddock for the Grand Prix is built. And this is where your ice bath was five years ago.” she explained.

“I see, the famous ice-bath. But I see none, here.”

“My point is, you’ve always said that Singapore was the starting point of our story. That it held a lot of meaning for us and I think you’re right, somehow. I’ve started falling in love with you here, and I want to keep falling for you there. You’re my safe space Ethan, you’re grounding me, you’re the only person who knows my deepest and darkest secrets and fears. Truth be told, I don’t want to share them with anyone but you. You complete me, you’re my better half. And if I want to run, I want to run to you. If I want to cry, I hope it will always be in your arms. If I want to laugh, I want to hear you by my side. I want to keep loving you, I want to grow old with you. So Ethan Verstappen, would you be okay with becoming my husband and allowing me to annoy you for the rest of our lives?” she ended up asking, getting a little box out of her pocket.

The ring was everything Ethan loved. Simple, black with a few sparkling diamonds engraved in it. It wouldn’t stand out next to the ones he was already wearing.

“Can you please, say something, I’m starting to freak out.”

“Yes. A million times, yes, Julia. Of course I want to be your husband.” he replied as she was putting the ring around his finger. “I love you. More than anything and I have to tell you that I was actually planning something at the end of the season. I’ve already bought the ring. You were just faster than me in proposing.”

“So, we’re really going to do it… We really are getting married.” she whispered as Ethan pressed his forehead against hers.“You’re stuck with me, Joolsie. But this time, you chose it.'' He kissed her like he had never kissed her before.

Author's note: A little announcement might be coming up later on today.... stay tuned, hehehe.

Don't hesitate to leave a comment or an ask, as well as reblogging and leaving a like. Besides the fact that I absolutely love to read you, it helps a lot for the story to find its audience. I also have a taglist for this story, so if you want to be added so you never miss a chapter, let me know.

Taglist:

@herondalism @aundercover @musingsbyshreya @karmabyfernando @reengard @mycenterfold @smoooothoperator

[homicidal-slvt]

"Memory Lane"

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Same universe as Stitched Hearts, Vodka Soaked Memory, Even When I Doubt You & The Canine.

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Leon S. Kennedy x F!Reader

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Important: Kitty is technically my OC however it is written as if you are her so it's still an x reader, her appearance isn't described, Kitty is bisexual and that is sometimes mentioned when I write her.

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Warnings: Angst, Almost fluff but not really, Blood/Injury Mention

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You had convinced Leon to let you talk with Canine again, this time you were a lot calmer and so far everything was going well.

Aside from the fact he kept dodging your questions still.

"Your goggles are new. You used to only wear the face mask."

He remarked why staring up at you, visibly tension rose after that comment. Letting out a dry laugh you stepped forward. That was it.

"So, you want to take a trip down memory lane?"

That comment actually seemed to crack him a bit, his breathing faltering for a moment and his body tensed.

-

"I'm gonna step out to grab some coffee. Are you absolutely sure you can be alone with him?"

"I'll be fine, Leon. Thank you."

You smiled and gave his arm a reassuring pat which earned a chuckle from the blonde, he shook his head at you slightly.

He was worried but also trusted you and glanced towards Canine, the look in his eyes a silent warning.

He then slipped out the door leaving you to yourself with the man you used to know so well.

-

There wasn't much distance between you and Canine, there was no need for there to be.

"How about we talk about the fact you fucking handed over that virus to those assholes."

Your tone was nothing short of venomous.

"The fact you blatantly betrayed me and everyone else. The fact that I ran in there to save you, horrified when I saw you beaten and bloody... Only discover that whole time..."

You had to stop yourself before you blew up, threatening to rip at the seams.

You were shocked by the expression on the man's face, that smile was gone almost as if it was a mask... His deep green eyes broken and expression littered with regret.

The weight of it all crushing him as well.

"I never meant for any of that to happen... They..."

Walls were closing in. Hard to breathe.

"They what?"

You were confused and anger still burnt your insides, snapping at him slightly making him tense again.

"They were going to kill you... I couldn't just... I couldn't let them... I had to give it to them... After I realized what I had done I... I cost so many lives and I just... I was selfish I couldn't..."

His words were jumbled and breathing ragged, he had fought back the pain of his own choices for so long, not entirely selfish but desperate. Running from the problem leaving you with the idea he had always been using you.

"I hated myself so much that I needed you to hate me too..."

The admission stung both of you deep, before the logical part of your brain kicked in you hugged him tight, basking in his warmth and letting his face bury into your shoulder.

Even while sitting down he was really tall.

The familiarity of two heart broken people just trying their best coming to the surface. His own anger at himself ended up hurting you more than if he had simply told the truth at the start.

So long living with misconceptions.

Living with him pretending to be someone else just because he couldn't stand himself.

Upon the realization of the extent of damage he did to you the truth had spilled... A chance at starting over, maybe?

"Did... I miss something?"

Nothing short of awkward Leon had returned with two coffees, seeing you hugging Canine was definitely not expected.

Leon's stance and tone reflected that slow pause of pure confusion, that little dumbfounded face he made that never failed to amuse you even in situations like this.

"Yeah. A bit."

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{More Canine because yes. I had trouble with this one cause I struggled with making it make sense and not feel forced. It still feels forced but I'm tired of staring at it so it y'all's problem now. lmao}

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{@sofasoap }

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{More Content}