#cleo actually opening up for once? impossible

[greenvengeance]

@peachiiihearts // 🌸

MUSES & MOTHERS. send 🌸 for my muse to talk about their mother.

There's a snort, and Cleo takes a long drag of her cigarette right before ashing it to the side and leaning back in her chair. " Ain't much ta' talk about. She's been distant as long as ah've been alive. Me, Eddie, Bri, Pablo...no one ever could really talk to 'er. Got worse after Pa died. We never saw her, never really spoke...well, unless it was her COMPLAININ' 'bout somethin' -- ma' hair's too curly, all Pablo does after school is homework an' video games, Eddie speaks too loud, Bri's too quiet an' jumpy. Nothin' could ever make her ass happy. Not even me bustin' ma' ass off and not havin' a chance ta' have a childhood so ev'ryone else could -- nothin' was ever good enough. "

She stares at the smoke of the cigarette, watching the way it floats into the air, gathering into little clouds, waving around. " ...there was this one time she was actually there, though. Right after Carlton died. She's the one who drove me to the funeral -- hadn't gotten ma' license yet. And it was after the service when we were headin' home, his parents stopped us and started apologizin' and all this shit. They didn't know what kinda person he was 'til Mason went up and started talkin' about it, too. And when they left, Ma turned t' me. Told me ah' did good, talkin' about it. Comin' clean. " She shrugs. " Always thought she'd blame me fer it. But guess not. But she wasn't as supportive when Jane passed on -- reckon she thought that all was just some phase or somethin'. "

" Pa's death fucked up the whole family. But ah' reckon it hit Ma the hardest. " Ignoring the fact that her mother hadn't really wanted anything to do with her in the beginning.

[cryptidorchid]

Girl, help, I'm seeing symbolism in an improv series where there is none. Anyway, does anyone want to hear about how both Scott and Pearl tamed a wolf in their first episode of Double Life and how those wolves pretty solidly represent their relationship with each other?

Pearl's wolf, Tilly, is the first one she tamed. Scott's wolf is actually the second pet he tamed and did so after the first one, a bird, died. See a similarity to their partnership in Double Life? Pearl was Scott's second partner. Scott was Pearl's first.

Scott gets his wolf relatively early on and has it with him when searching for Martyn and Pearl. He mentions the possibility of leaving it behind once, after it bites Cleo when he hits her to test if they were soulmates. Later, it bites Cleo again and Scott mentions that it keeps doing this and Cleo calls it a bad dog. At which point, Scott actually leaves it behind and decides to team with Cleo instead of his soulmate. [The dog biting Cleo isn't kept in Scott's perspective but on the way to Jimmy, the dog just disappears without explanation and as soon as they leave Jimmy, Scott's like "do we even need our soulmates?"] Like, the symbolism of Scott choosing Cleo over Pearl is very obvious.

On Pearl's side, Pearl tames her dog as soon as she comes up to the surface and thus has a chance of finding her soulmate. And then she left it behind when she went to the Nether, symbolizing that Pearl is neglecting her relationship with her soulmate by going to the Nether. She gets the dog back when she comes back from the Nether. But then Pearl gets rejected at the end of episode 1 and the dog dies at the start of episode 2. More symbolism about the relationship dying for Pearl once she was rejected in episode 1 or perhaps once she decided that she was mad at him and she didn't want to reconcile in episode 2. Either way, the dog (and the relationship) dies in episode 2.

Scott's dog on the other hand is not dead. After talking to Pearl, he goes to get it back and takes it home. And he doesn't interact with it much. Doesn't even name it. But he does keep it on his porch.

And I think that fits with Scott in general seeming to express more willingness to mend their relationship than Pearl does. Scott says he needs time to be friends with Pearl again, he calls their 1st confrontation in the 2nd episode couples therapy, Scott implies that he'd be willing to be friends with Pearl if she stopped being "unhinged" (powdered snow + forcefully moving in), he suggests working through their issues. Scott gives the impression that, as put off by her as he is now, he does want to make up with Pearl eventually. 

In comparison, despite Pearl forcing herself into his life, Pearl does not seem to be entertaining the idea of making up. Despite complaining about them not wanting to be friends with her, she passionately rejects the idea that she wants to be friends with Scott and Cleo when it’s brought up. She spends most of her time with them antagonizing them. Pearl just isn't really open to the idea of making up. Pearl's original dog is dead and Pearl having a new dog that she's calling the same name isn't changing that.

If I had to ascribe a meaning to the second Tilly, I'd call it an idealized version of her relationship with Scott. Like she doesn't just want her friend back, she wants a world in which the rejection never happened/couldn't happen. Which is why she's so antagonistic and unwilling to mend their relationship, because she wants the impossible and she can't have that so she's never going to be satisfied with their relationship.

And then they make an alliance and Scott brings over his dog to make puppies with Pearl's dog, symbolically showing the mending of their relationship. Except not really because Pearl's original dog is still dead so she tries to leave anyway while they were in that red life base. Pearl says it's for strategic reasons but I also think her decision was affected by an argument she had with Scott beforehand where Pearl says she forgives Scott for abandoning her and Scott rejects her forgiveness because he doesn't feel guilty about what he did. And that feels like what Pearl wishes her relationship with Scott was like is coming into conflict with what it's actually like. 

And they part on bittersweet terms in that moment, not as angry as they would've been earlier. Pearl still has their dogs' puppies with her. And then Pearl uses those puppies to kill Cleo in a fun callback to the reason Scott left that dog behind in the first place! But Scott leaves his dog in the red life base for good. And Tilly dies. 

And I feel like from this lens, the ending feels kind of bittersweet in the sense that the two of them have given up on ever getting back the relationship they used to have but on the other hand, they can also see and appreciate each other for who they are now. Even though he wishes she would put more effort into their relationship, Scott can appreciate the work and effort she's put into their survival so he wants to give her the win. And likewise, Pearl can appreciate the kindness Scott's willing to give her rather than focus on what he won't give her. Which is why she acknowledges that he did that for her and says she forgives him at the end.

[plasteredwalls]

Gem Secret Life AU

So gem is brought in as a temporary replacement to Cleo. It's a rushed job on the watchers part - Gem has ties to others through hermitcraft and is good at pvp and is also a redhead, easy switch.

However the watchers find that she's a lot easier to slip into the life series role than they expected. While they give her and Lizzie a good threatening not to let on who they are, Lizzies fumbles a bit by letting Joel recognise her. Gem on the other hand plays into the chaos easily and willingly, providing some lovely short term angst food through her relentless torture of Etho.

And to their suprise, Gem returns asking if she can join. Watchers are shocked, usually people run from their games but here Gem is exited for next time.

But the watchers are smart. They know that Gem is so excited because unlike the other players, she entered more willingly and hasn't gone through the intense cycle of game abuse yet. For her, it was a breif minigame she knew she would leave alive and that raised the idea of the games in her head in a much more positive light. That's an easy trait to manipulate so the Watchers say yes.

Infact, they offer her loads of tips of how to start and end a game and playing long term. They train her, tell her exactly the way it goes, make her feel extra prepared for it. Make her feel almost like her protégé. And drop hints that they can sway the game in her favour, just like they "rescued" her from Limited Life. Gem feels like a watchers favourite but it's all manipulation.

In the games Gem feels like she's been given loads of opportunities. The opening of the end for example, she feels like she's proving herself to the watchers that she can take the harder tasks. Everyone else is baffled by how upbeat she is. They remember how they felt on their first game and are suprised Gem is taking it so well, outright enjoying it sometimes.

Then the zombie task happens. Once again Gem feels like the watchers have given her an opportunity and she is doing well. She has full confidence that if she doesn't pull through, which she is right now, the watchers will feed her everyone else.

Well, that doesn't happen. She doesn't get everyone. The session ends and it crushes her. The mental image of herself as this Watcher protégé who can do any impossible task is shattered. The confidence drops to desperation.

She then feels awkward and baffled when Scott and Impulse offer their hearts to her so easily. She thinks they're influenced by the Watchers to help her but why? If she failed why do they believe in her? Should she be weary that she's being set up to fail, like she feel like she has been after the apocalypse. She's been so self driven by her mental image she cannot fathom that teammates actually want to help her out of their own volition. All actions feel forced by the Watchers, what is real and what isn't? She doesn't know.

And when she dies to a 2v1 she once again feels set up. Because why else would scar and Pearl, two people who have nothing in common amd no reason to ally team against her? It must be the watchers doing. The watchers lifted her up so they must have also brought her down.

Some are in truth and some aren't. The watchers do influence a lot but don't at the same time. Once again, they've had the opportunity for new despair and they really hammered it into the newcomer as hard as they could. Tortured her individually they couldn't on a larger scale

[thataltyoudontknow]

i asked @oh-snapperss for a prompt, and this is what i wrote for them! [and, no theres no shipping]

tw ig?// bruises, anxiety stuff, claustrophobia

Well, shoot.

Iskall was stuck in a convenient hole in the ground in level four that Tango forgot to cover up, a simple mistake that ended up injuring him, blood went down his arm as Iskall observed the few purple patches on it. All he needed to do was get out of the hole he was in and patch himself up after the game, simple but easier said than done.

For once, he was grateful for the berries he'd gotten a clank for.

And then he remembered the fact that the Warden was loose, that just made things worse for him. Getting out of the hole seemed impossible because if he slipped once, the Warden would hear and attack him. And due to… certain circumstances, Iskall was claustrophobic and the situation he was in was another level of scary. He scrambled for his communicator with tears in his eyes that he refused to drop.

You whisper to Tango: tanfo i need oyu in somtheing

Tango whispers to you: you good iskall?

You whisper to Tango: just go to level fout pelase

Tango whispers to you: omw

Iskall closed his communicator as he heard the Warden come closer, footsteps louder than Bdubs shouting "shut up" when Ren was assigned king. He closed his eyes and started hyperventilating, when he heard the Warden's antennae clicking, he bit his already bruised arm to shut himself up.

The Warden was coming closer to Iskall's scent.

And closer…

And closer–

A loud noise like a metal pipe falling echoed through the hallway which brought the Warden's attention to the noise as it followed the sudden sound.

"Iskall?" Etho whispered loud enough to let Iskall hear him from below. "Are you there?"

"Mhm," Iskall hummed in response, trying not to cry. He looked up to see Etho's eyes peeking from the top, "I'm gonna get you out," he muttered as he observed Iskall's situation, glancing specifically at his arm. He could tell that Etho winced from the look on his eyes. "Don't worry, alright?" Iskall nodded in response, looking down to see his arm.

He did a number on his arm with his teeth alone.

"Just be quick, please," Iskall looked back up and croaked silently, trying not to sob. Etho left him after he said that. He curled up on the bottom and closed his eyes, trying to convince himself to not cry.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

"Breathe in. Breathe out."

Iskall sighed softly as the wind blew through his hair. "No stress, alright?" Cleo spoke as he hugged the other by his side, smiling at the calm expression. "You need to learn to control your anger," Cleo continued, placing their finger at Iskall's heart, gaining a chuckle from him. "Yeah," the other rolled his eyes, "therapy, too."

"Everyone here needs therapy, let's be honest."

"True."

Wind was the only thing that was heard, that and tree rustling. "Remember," Cleo broke the silence, "whenever you feel angry or scared,

"just breathe in and out."

It felt nice replaying that memory with the situation he was in. He opened his eyes to his current surroundings still stuck in a hole. "Psst," Etho stopped his train of thought, he looked up to see the Canadian holding an ender pearl, he dropped it for Iskall to immediately throw it outside the hole. It landed and Iskall was on the actual floor.

A few minutes later, he, Etho and Tango–who was the one who lead the Warden away from Iskall–left the dungeon. Xisuma, Grian, Cleo, and Mumbo were there waiting for him, but the first person to rush to Iskall was Grian. "What happened?" he asked worriedly, his bleeding arm took Grian's attention, "and what did you do to hurt yourself this badly?" Iskall averted making eye contact with him "I'll tell you later," he told Grian, taking the potion that Tango offered, "I just want to go home right now."

[frombeyondtheblackhole]

Hermit DSMP Swap AU: Part 9.3

Boatem had a new member. Joe introduced Foolish to all the Hermits in Boatem but didn’t stay long before heading off to see if he could help X with the server problem. Once Joe found out that Cleo was gone he was determined to find a way to get her back. Grian was glad that X was getting some help, and he couldn’t think of anyone better than Joe when it came to server magic.

Foolish was rather nice too. Unlike the other two Dream SMP members he actually seemed to have a head for building. Grian soon found himself deep in a conversation about design problems and building pallets. Foolish even commiserated with him over interiors.

Pearl and Scar agreed to help Foolish settle in but he seemed pretty capable on his own. He just needed a little help with material collection. Foolish chose to build his house in the space between Grian's house and Scar’s Landboat. He went with a design that used sandstone as the main wall color and used spruce wood for support structures and detailing.

Even though Scar was supposed to be the one helping, Grian couldn’t help it and found himself hanging around as Foolish built. Grian wasn’t supposed to do strenuous building yet but he could still watch. Foolish showed Grian the building plans before he started. It was of an impressive size for a starter house, one that didn’t look out of place next to Grian, Scar or Pearls ridiculously large starters. It was going to be a multi-tiered house that got bigger as it went up taking inspiration from medieval houses. A crooked tower came out of the side of the building on the second floor and broke through the roof.

Grian sat in a lawn chair in front of his house and watched Foolish build, Adjusting the sunglasses over his eyes as he looked up.

Foolish stood on the roof near the base of the half finished tower. A Cobbled deepslate foundation at the bottom gave way to smooth sandstone, spruce logs made up support pillars at intervals with empty spaces for widows between.

“Looking good,” Grian called up.

Foolish looked back, shading his eyes with his hand, and smiled. “It’s coming along… I’m running low on sandstone though. I am going to need more if I am going to finish the tower. He carefully slid down the roof and climbed down the scaffolding. He brushed his hands off at the bottom and walked over to where Grian sat so he could get a better look at the build. “It could use some detailing, maybe some more color.” Foolish muttered

“Copper might look good. Or maybe some leaves and plants.” Grian suggested.

“Window boxes. That’s a good idea.” Foolish announced, brightening up. Grian watched as Foolish collected some grass from the yard, replacing it with dirt so it could grow back. Foolish walked over to the side of the house, and grew to over double his previous size, before proceeding to build window boxes under the second story windows.

Grian started at the sudden change and almost fell out of his chair “Wait, what? How did you-?”

Foolish turned around and looked down at Grian, “Oh right, this.” He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “This is nothing. I usually stay small because it is more convenient, but it’s useful for building sometimes, especially detail work.” He shrunk back down to a ‘normal’ size and looked at his hands flexing them. “Honestly, I haven’t felt this good in over a century… maybe, Like this, I might even be able to-” he looked up at Grian, a new kind of resolve and hopefulness in his eyes. “Grian do you have any gold and some emeralds I can borrow. I need to try something.”

Grian hesitated. This was server magic. That could be dangerous. But he was also curious. He stood up and nodded, “I have a little, how much do you need?”

Foolish came over “Only two emeralds and two blocks of gold.”

“Alright,” Grian nodded “That’s easy enough. What are you planning to do with it?”

“Oh you’ll see,” Foolish said, grinning with barely contained excitement.

Grian had an uneasy feeling about this but Joe had said that this guy had a really solid grasp on server magic, better than anyone Joe had ever seen before, even himself. Grian decided to trust him, maybe he could learn something. Something that could help them fix the crack Grian had made.

Grian went inside his house and opened his ender chest. Taking out the materials requested he handed them to Foolish who had followed him.

Foolish took the materials outside and placed them on the ground. “Alright stay back this should only take a minute,” Foolish said.

Grian watched from the doorway of his house.

Foolish took a deep centering breath and closed his eyes. He held his hand out over the pile of gold and gems. There was a tingle in the air. Green sparks danced along Foolish’s arm and between his fingers. The sky grew overcast with dark clouds and a rumble of thunder sounded.

Foolish shouted a word in enchantment-table that Grian recognized as meaning “Life.” and he was momentarily blinded by a bright green flash of light.

Grian blinked looking around. The sun was out again, the sky clear and standing in front of Foolish was a little girl made of gold with emerald eyes.

Foolish went down on one knee, beaming and holding out a hand to her. “What’s your name?”

She blinked at his hand for a moment then smiled “My name is Genesis,” She said grinning up at Foolish.

“That’s a beautiful name,” Foolish chuckled and picked her up, turning to Grian, “Grian, meet my daughter, Genesis.”

Grian stared in shock, his head spinning. His daughter?

---

Xisuma Immediately felt it. Like someone had just reached in and yanked a piece of the server free. It left him breathless. It was violent, but also precise.

“You ok there?” Joe asked, leaning over the table from where he had been looking through some old books on server magic.

X looked up at Joe from across the table. Fear wavering in his eyes. “You said that our latest visitor had experience with server magic right?”

Joe nodded slowly and frowned, “Yeah, he didn’t seem that concerned about the consequences either. Said he was experienced enough to know how to avoid them.”

“I just felt a surge of server magic. It felt like something reaching in and ripping a piece of its heart out.” X’s brows furrowed and he rested his hand on his chest over his heart.

“It’s heart…?” Joe muttered

X stood abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor “Come on, we need to go to Boatem and figure out what’s going on.”

---

X and Joe arrived in Boatem to find Foolish surrounded by the other Boatem members asking him excited questions while George and Skeppy watched from the roof of Skeppy’s house. X caught the concerned look Grian gave him as they approached.

Foolish turned around and for the first time X noticed the little girl in his arms. He didn’t need to ask to know she wasn’t an npc. She was a Player. A player who was a child? That was impossible. The second thing he noticed was that her energy matched that of the server.

He pulled up his GUI and checked Tab. She was there. She was listed as Genesis. Not only that but she was whitelisted, and unlike the other Dream SMP members, the server didn’t think she was one of the hermits.

Foolish furrowed his brow with concern, “Xisuma, what’s wrong?”

X snapped himself out of it and looked up at Foolish “What did you do?”

Foolish blinked. He looked genuinely confused. “Um, this is my daughter Genesis.”

“He made her out of some gold and emeralds twenty minutes ago.” Grian clarified.

“Um- Foolish,” Joe started carefully. “You know that’s not normal right?”

Foolish frowned holding his daughter closer.

“What we mean to say is that Players shouldn’t be able to make other Players.” X tried to explain.

“Just because you haven’t figured out how to do it doesn’t make it wrong. You wouldn’t understand, you've never been a father…”

“Whatever you did to the server, didn’t feel right. Normal new player spawning occurs when a server has excess energy that it needs to discharge, creating a player. You just took that energy before the server was ready. What you did was reckless at best, I haven’t had a chance to assess the damages but you may have just ruined our chances of us being able to fix this and send you all home. I don’t even know if that little girl can go with you when you go. She probably isn’t even whitelisted on your server.”

Foolish’s shoulders sagged and he looked off to the side. Genesis tugged at the fabric of his headdress and rested her head against his shoulder “Pa pa, Is this my fault? Are they mad because of me?”

“Oh sweetheart,” Foolish sighed and shifted her on his hip so she could see him smile “It isn’t your fault. And I don’t regret anything.”

X softened. What was done was done. It wasn’t fair to the child to hold it against them. Though the idea of a Player being such a young child was still strange to him. “Just don’t do any more server magic alright.” X sighed.

Foolish looked at X, a hint of resentment, or was it regret, behind his eyes, “Alright,” He nodded. X hoped he meant it. Maybe there was a good reason the DSMP locked it’s members in.

[votederpycausemufins]

Welp, it’s finally ready. I’ve started writing for the Scattered au by @hermitcraftheadcanons and their community. I didn’t find them until after it was made, so I couldn’t shove my ideas in there and while I’m in the discord, it’s a little overwhelming for me in there.

so next best option is to just write what I want to write. I’ve already got the first two chapters prepped and ideas for after that, but I’ll take suggestions on who people want to see next. (Especially from @helleborusangel​ for they give me so much in the way of rambles and I want to give back to them.)

The name of the story is Hermitcraft Season Beta 1.17, so look out for the masterpost with that title.

Welcome to Season Error

When he first spawned into the world, Xisuma was a bit confused. He couldn’t see anything. Everything should have been set up correctly. There was nothing at spawn and it should be day. Looking up, the admin can’t even see any stars. He went to tap his helmet and check on the world information when he heard an odd noise. It sounded like a sculk.

In researching the new biomes and creatures, he had grown familiar with the sound, and he was sure the hermits would find them before long, hearing it first thing into the world should have been impossible. Still, Xisuma took another step and heard the noise again, this time catching the bioluminescence of the sculk.

The admin was confused even more, before using the light to look at his surroundings, having to take a few steps to keep the creature lit. All around him was stone, specifically deepslate. That meant he had to be close to y-0, which made no sense.

Again, Xisuma reached for some buttons on his helmet, ready to sort things out, but a growl stopped him in his tracks, keeping him frozen in place. A warden. The admin could barely breathe as he strained to look in the pitch black. His helmet was helping ever so slightly, but it was still extremely dark. He carefully stepped away from the sculk, sneaking so as to not alert it. Netherite was barely enough to face this thing and he had nothing. He needed to get as far away from the monster as possible and try to find a way higher into the cave, hopefully not needing to mine.

Xisuma heard another sound from the warden and froze again. It sounded closer this time. His mind raced slightly in panic, starting to get a message ready to send to the other hermits, when he saw some messages in the chat.

ZombieCleo slain by Iron Golem

MumboJumbo slain by Vindicator

FalseSymmetry drowned

ImpulseSV drowned

StressMonster drowned

Docm77 hit the ground too hard

MumboJumbo slain by Vindicator

ImpulseSV slain by Guardian

ImpulseSV slain by Guardian

FalseSymmetry drowned

StressMonster drowned

MumboJumbo slain by Vindicator

GoodtimeswithScar fell out of the world

ImpulseSV drowned while trying to escape Guardian

Though he was still quiet, Xisuma took a step back in shock at the messages. He wasn’t the only one who came through, and he wasn’t the only one in a bad situation. What had- He stepped back and yelled in surprise as his foot was caught. He had forgotten about sculk jaws.

The admin managed to free his foot, but then he was slammed into a wall. He was hanging on at half a heart, not sure how he survived the blow. He tried some of the buttons on his helmet for emergencies, but it just sparked, broken from the impact. Before he could even take another breath, he was killed, respawning behind the warden since he hadn’t gone far in the first place.

Xisuma tried the buttons again, only to find the helmet still broken even after respawning. That didn’t make sense. It should have been- he ducked at the last moment, dodging the fist of the warden. Not having anything else to do, Xisuma ran. He knew there was no way he could outrun the monster, but at the very least, he could lead it away from his spawn.

Another death, and it seemed to have worked. The warden was far enough away that it didn’t notice him. Taking what little time he had, Xisuma pulled up chat to find more death messages, and at the very least, a few advancements from hermits who hadn’t died. He quickly put in a message and sent it, only to get an error. The message had failed to send. At the very least, that explained why none of the hermits were asking questions in chat.

Xisuma’s next option was to use admin commands that weren’t linked to the damaged part of his helmet, but that wasn’t working either. Theoretically, it should, but since the admin was essentially blind, for all he knew, the damage was much worse. At the very least, it was still functioning enough for him to breathe. It also let him access chat, but right now, that seemed less of a blessing than a curse.

And then the warden found and killed him again.

.

.

“Alright! Welcome to your new first season of Hermitcraft!” Grian said happily, gesturing to the land in front of him. Except, there wasn’t much land there. “Wait, I thought we were spawning in the plains.”

The avian hermit looked around. There were no plains in sight. There weren’t even any grass or trees. He was just on the top of a mountain, all alone. Well, he wasn’t completely alone. “Dad? Why are we on a mountain?”

Grian looked down, Grum and Jrum looking up at him. Originally the plan was to leave the two of them behind to look over the old world, but Grian couldn’t take it, so he and Mumbo gave the robots their own reasonably sized bodies. They took a day to go over everything with the bots, well, two because they needed to comfort Grum when he learned the past few months of his life had been a lie. But after that, they were ready to all move to season eight.

“I don’t know. This doesn’t make sense. Let me just-” He cut himself off, pulling out his communicator and seeing the death messages starting to fill up the chat. His eyes focused on the message of Mumbo being killed by a vindicator. That made no sense, but neither did spawning almost alone on top of a mountain. Grian tried to message something in chat, but it didn’t work.

The avian pulled a hand away and breathed into it to warm it up before switching hands to warm the other. He may have been wearing a sweater, but against cold like this, it wasn’t the best. “Okay, it looks like something went wrong. Your daddy seems to be at a woodland mansion, Cleo’s at a village, Impulse in a sea temple. I think Scar’s in the end or something and Xisuma’s dealing with a warden. Doc’s somewhere high, False and Stress are underwater…” A new message came in. “And TFC is fighting the Ender Dragon.”

“Does that mean we’re stuck up here?” Jrum spoke up, sounding concerned.

“Uh, no, of course not.” Grian smiled to reassure the bots. “You two can stand the cold much longer than I can since you’re robots, but I can just g-glide down. I’ll just g-grab some wood and b-be right back.”

The avian put his comm away and rubbed his arms for a bit of warmth before jumping off the edge. He let his wings open up and ignored the sting from moving them. He was just about to the cloud layer, ready to look for trees, when his wings suddenly stiffened up painfully. Grian yelled in pain, glancing back to see ice crystals that had formed on his wings. In fact, they were still forming. They matted his feathers, keeping them from catching the air as well as making him heavier.

Grian looked back down. He just needed to make it to the ground safely. He could last that long, right? Once he was down, he would get everything sorted and help the bots down. Then they would figure things out. It was going to work. It had to work.

And then he was falling.

Grian respawned back on the top of the mountain. Before the bots could say anything, he jumped again. He was so close before, but now that he had respawned, he could make it this time. Because now his wings were- still frozen over. Instead of gliding, Grian immediately dropped like a rock, once again killing himself from the fall.

“Dad? What happened? Are you okay?” Grum asked. Grian didn’t respond, just pulling the bots into a hug. It was a stupid idea, the metal of their bodies sapping what heat he had, but right now, he was too distraught to care. They were stuck, and there was nothing they could do.

Grian tried to ignore the damage he was taking from the cold. At the very least, he would just respawn there again. He knew where everyone was, or at least a number of people, from their death messages. He would just die a few times and people would know where to look. But the bots. The bots would have to watch that. They would have to watch him die over and over until who knows when help would come. But there wasn’t any other choice. He felt as his life slowly drained, recognizing he was on two hearts, then one and a half, then one, then just half. Grian closed his eyes, ready for his death.

His eyes shot open, glowing purple. His health was suddenly fully restored and fire appeared in his palm, warming him and the bots. But just as soon as it happened, it was gone, Grian slowly freezing once more. He couldn’t die, but he couldn’t actually survive. They were stuck, and it was worse than he thought.

.

.

Impulse entered the new world and tried to take a breath, only for water to fill his lungs. In shock, he looked around and saw the familiar sights of a sea temple. He panicked and tried swimming, lungs burning from the salt water filling them. He swam out of the room he spawned in, hoping and praying to find a way out. Spots started filling the edges of his vision, but Impulse just kicked harder. He just needed to find a way out and-

He drowned, respawning in the same place. Part of Impulse was hoping it was a fluke and upon dying, he would respawn at spawn, able to jokingly tell people he found the first sea temple. But he was back underwater, and this time, there was a guardian in the room with him. It killed him once, then a second time. Before it could try a third time, he swam out of the room, cutting its vision off from him. He had less health this time, but he needed to find a way out. There had to be a way out.

His lungs were burning again and the guardian shot at him. It hit him once, leaving him with barely any health, and then drowning finished the job. He respawned in the same place, though the guardian was absent this time. He tried punching at the wall, hoping just maybe he could break through the block before dying again. But it was tougher underwater, not to mention every minute, the elder guardian would lay its curse on him.

So breaking out didn’t work, so he tried swimming again. Trying every path, hoping to find a way out. But the best he could manage was finding one of the elder guardians. After that, he gave up. There was no escape. With nothing left to do, he finally pulled out his communicator and saw others were in a similar situation. There was just death. Even Xisuma was stuck. And if Xisuma couldn’t keep from dying, there was no hope for him.

.

.

“Okay. Real funny guys.” Scar rolled his eyes, having spawned on an end island. “Did we have to start with this?”

There was no one around, so Scar just huffed and walked to the edge of the island. “Alright, let’s just get this over with.” And he jumped into the inky abyss. For just a fraction of a moment, he thought he heard someone yell, but then he respawned and found himself back on the island. “Ohhh no. This is not good at all.”

Scar looked around. There were no islands close enough for him to jump to, and he had nothing to bridge across with or use to get materials for a bridge. Then, to add insult to injury, he could see an end city, sitting in a place he couldn’t reach.

Scar grumbled. Obviously something went wrong, so he would just need to wait for it to be fixed. At the very least, while his island was small, it wasn’t a miniature one, so there was chorus fruit growing there. He pulled off a branch and watched fruit fall from the plant, glad for something to eat. At the very least, it would grow back as long as he didn’t take the full thing. And maybe if he got lucky, it would somehow grow into a bridge.

That being said, if he was really lucky; eating some chorus fruit would take him to another island. He tried to hope for the fruit to be wizard fruit, since that teleported much better than regular chorus fruit. But no, he was just taken to another part of the island, stuck all by himself.

Sighing, he flopped down on the island and looked up into what substituted as a sky there. After a while, he sat up suddenly, thinking he heard someone, but carefully looking around, all he saw were enderman, well, at least he saw their legs.

Scar sighed again and looked back up at the ‘sky’. At the very least he wouldn’t starve. And maybe if he got lucky, he could eventually get over to another island. And since there was an end city nearby, he wasn’t completely hopeless for gear. Sure, some things might have curses, but at this point, something was better than nothing.

Scar suddenly regretted looking up at the sky as an enderman walked into his line of sight. In a panic, Scar ran to hide somewhere, only to not find anywhere to hide, there being no cover in the island. With no gear, it only took a few hits before he was respawning. This time Scar made sure to look at the ground, lying on his front this time. And this time, as he rested there, he could swear there was some whispering from nearby.

.

.

Mumbo didn’t expect to spawn in a pile of wool when entering season eight. He didn’t think he was late to moving to the new season, but he supposed he could be wrong. It was also dark instead of morning, so perhaps he was just late. He got up, surprised to see the wool was shaped in the imitation of a bed, but not actually making a bed. There weren’t any torches around, but there was a window, which showed it was actually day outside.

Confused even more, Mumbo started to walk out of the room. “Hello? Anyone here?” He called out, and then almost immediately got an answer as an axe chopped into him, killing him almost instantly. Mumbo respawned, back on the makeshift bed. The vindicator that just killed him was outside the room, so it didn’t see him immediately, so he still had some time to think. He was in the middle of a woodland mansion, all alone. That made no sense, they would never choose a new world that would spawn them there. And by the window of the room, it didn’t even look like he was on the first floor.

Mumbo paled. He wasn’t even on the first floor. He needed to get through the illagers alive and somehow find the stairs down to the first floor and hope to void he wasn’t on the third floor. He went to pull out his communicator to send a distress message, but then the vindicator wandered in again and killed him.

With the room he was spawning in no longer being safe, Mumbo immediately started running as he respawned. He ran through the halls, trying to remember his way while also not dying. He dodged a zombie and turned a corner, only to freeze as he met eyes with an evoker. It started to cast a spell and he immediately backed up, only to find the vindicator that had been chasing him kill him once more with its axe.

Respawning, he tried another path, but this one was filled with vindicators. One hit him, and he was surprised to still be alive, but then he was trapped between two more and killed. Maybe since he knew about the evoker this time, he could take that first path, so Mumbo went that way instead.

He ran down, dodging the zombie again as well as the vindicator from before and ignoring the evoker. He kept running, getting hit once, but still alive. And then he got further, only to reach a dead end with two zombies standing there. Between the monsters, Mumbo found himself killed by another vindicator, spawning back on the faux bed.

This time, nothing was in the spawning room, so Mumbo pulled out his communicator, only to see messages from other hermits dying. He sent one asking for help, but only got an error. He had no way to contact anyone, and based on the messages, everyone was in similar situations to him. That meant all he could do was run and hope to get out.

Putting his comm away, Mumbo tried again. He tried the second path, turning the corner, dodging a new evoker. His eyes widened in excitement as his eyes landed on the stairs. He quickly raced down them, glad to see the exit right there at the bottom. He would be fine. He could escape. He could- get shot by a skeleton that happened to have a punch bow. It pushed him back into the mansion and into yet another vindicator.

Grumbling, Mumbo tried yet again, only to find the vindicator at the exit. Fine, now he would have to lead them away and try again. So he did. Only to find them on the stairs and killing him again. Another attempt had him out the front door, but the place was surrounded by water. He wasn’t able to swim away fast enough when a vex came from out of nowhere and killed him, leaving him frustrated. So he tried again. And again. And again. He respawned again, only to find an Evoker in his spawning room, and Mumbo gave up to the death loop.

.

.

Etho appeared in the new world with plans for the season already in his mind. His feet touched down in the plains of the large starting island. From here, he could see the even bigger island that they were planning to use as the main district with the first one getting converted to an initial spawn area.

Looking around, he was a little surprised to only see Joe and Beef with him at spawn. His first thought was that maybe there was a delay, but then his communicator buzzed with a message. Joe and Beef didn’t have theirs out, so it couldn’t have been a message from either of them. Etho pulled his device out as the pair did the same. Another message came in at the same time, and Etho was surprised to see some death messages appearing in chat.

He tried to send something, hoping to figure out what was going on, but there was just an error. He tried again, but again, the message didn’t go through. Etho looked back up, hoping that the killed hermits would reappear at spawn, but there was no luck of that. “Guys, I think we’ve got a problem.”

“Yeah, I think that’s kinda obvious.” Joe replied. “Question is what we’re gonna do about it.”

Etho looked back at his comm. “Well, we seem to be at spawn at zero zero. It looks like everyone else is scattered though. Since we can at least look at coordinates, others probably can too.”

“So if they’re not dying, they’ll probably come this way, right?” Beef asked, Etho nodding.

“Now for the most part, I don’t like it one bit. But if we’re probably the only safe people right now, we can’t go out looking for everyone.” Joe spoke up. “At least, we can’t right now. I mean, Mumbo’s at a woodland mansion, Impulse is dealing with guardians, and it seems like Scar and TFC are in the end.”

“And Wels just got killed by a hoglin, so he’s in the nether.”

“Right, well, without supplies, we can’t do anything. Since people are probably going to get back to spawn, we need to make sure they’ll be safe.”

Etho nodded at Joe’s statements. “So for now, we’re just going to have to pretend everything is normal and set up for anyone who needs help.”

“I guess we’ll start by getting wood.” Beef spoke up, walking to the nearest tree. Etho and Joe followed him, doing the same. They did the normal starting rigamarole of getting wood, replanting saplings, and getting a shelter in place. Joe went out hunting for sheep, hoping they could at least make beds. If people were stuck in horrid spawns, they likely would want to die and get stuck there after travelling so far.

Etho was the first to go mining, bringing back stone, coal, and even iron. He continued to staircase, trying to gather as much as he could. Every time his inventory looked even a little too full, he would go up and drop off supplies just in case. It was good that he did, because at one point he dug into a cave. A zombie attacked him, shearing off a few hearts. Etho was able to kill it, but then realized something and ran back to the surface.

“Guys, I’ve got some more bad news.”

“What is it?”

“I just ran into a zombie.” Etho said, holding his wound before moving his hand away from covering it. “My health isn’t regenerating.”

“Alright, I guess we’re going to have to be even more careful. You want one of us to mine now?”

Etho hesitated before shaking his head. “No. Even if I die, I should just come right back here.” He tore off some of his shirt and wrapped it around the wound. “We’re not dealing with what everyone else is, so we owe it to them to push through this.”

Before Joe or Beef could say anything more, Etho went back to the mine. He was able to make two more deliveries, but then he ran into a dungeon. He lit the room up and started grabbing things from chests, racing back up to tell the others. He had to be a bit fast, as a skeleton spawned in a corner that wasn’t light enough.

Etho reached the top of the stairs, shouting to get the attention of the other hermits. Then they watched as he was hit in the back and killed. And then were horrified as they didn’t see him respawn.

But Etho respawned, just not where he started, now finding himself in a ravine. While he was left there confused, he suddenly heard Ren’s voice saying his name before it turned into a shout and his voice got quieter as he fell into the ravine. It looked like there was even more going on here than they thought before, and Etho wasn’t sure how to feel about it yet.

[bxthharmon]

Pink Champagne (1) - Benny Watts x Reader

Words: 2154

Series Warnings: Drinking, substance and alcohol abuse, addiction, smoking

Pt. Warnings: implied alcohol abuse, smoking

A/N: idk how regular updates will be and idk where tf this is going but here we are lol

“masterlist”

“You’re a woman.”

The twelve year old looks up at the speaker, her mother, apprehensive. She does not consider herself as a woman, not yet anyway. Besides, the older woman was drunk - but then again, when wasn’t she? 

“Not only that, you’re a pretty woman, with a kind heart. You’re just like I was.” the mother props her head up with her hands, elbows on the table as she faces her only daughter. “Men will use you. They will hurt you and bring you down and they will break you because they can. Don’t let them. Don’t let them hurt you, be strong. You have brothers, and they are strong, but not like me and you are strong. They fight with their fists and think with their dicks. Us? We fight with our words and think with our brains. Keep your head up, don’t let them push you around.” the women, staring at each other in a conflicting sense of understanding and resentment, stay silent. The mother, resenting her child for still having the opportunities that she missed, and adoring that her daughter could still be something. The young girl, resenting being told how to live her life, but adoring the fact that her mother cared enough to tell her things like this. 

The mother, always the first one to break, stands, stretching, then reaching for another bottle.

-

Paris was everything that was expected. Y/N shopped and drank and fucked in that oddly cinematic way that everything in Paris happened, wasting two months of her life partying. She did a photoshoot for a new advertising campaign for a fashion house she is the ambassador for, and as always, got bored. After six weeks, she wound up in the same position she had been in so many times before, stocking up on months worth of wine, then finishing it within two weeks. After two months in Paris, she lay on top of the covers of her bed, wondering if she should have taken Beth up on her offer. She hadn’t spoken to any of her American friends since she left, and of the people she had seen in person, she knew that they had no connections to her American friends, so she felt safe. 

Out of alcohol and cigarettes, she considered sending the door boy to get some, or even going herself, and decided to do neither. It was at this point that she realised that she had eaten a sum total of four things in two weeks, all of which were snacks, and was drinking herself to death. She decided that she wanted French toast and that overly fancy Columbian pressed coffee from the cafe down the road. She would get cigarettes on the way.  So she dressed and left, greeting the surprised door boy on her way out. She bought her cigarettes, ate her French toast, drank her coffee, then considered her next move.

London was out of the question - she’d only just remembered that she’d sold her apartment. That left New York, Los Angeles or Beth’s offer of Kentucky. Los Angeles never ended well, and she didn’t want to get dragged into anything by her manager. Kentucky or New York? She would have to call Beth  to decide. 

So she traipsed back to her glamorous apartment and dialed Beth’s number, letting it ring out a few times before giving up. So Beth wasn’t at home, was she just out, or in New York? She knew the only way to find out would be through Harry or Benny. She chose Harry. Things between her and Benny were… well, she didn’t know what they were.

“Y/N?”

“Don’t sound so surprised.”

“I am though - you never call.”

“Phone calls are so much hassle.”

“More hassle than seeing people in person?”

She paused, unable to outwit him, especially given the hangover she could feel creeping up on her. “Is Beth in Kentucky at the moment?”

“Beth? No.” he answered, “Why?”

“Do you know where she is?”

“She doesn’t have any tournaments, so New York, why?”

“I want to see her.”

“Why didn’t you just call Benny?”

“Don’t worry, thanks though.”

“Y/N?”

“Hmm?”

“I’m worried about you.”

“Don’t be. Bye.”

“Bye?”

She slammed the phone into its holder, sighing loudly. 

She’d always known she would have to see Benny eventually, but even after over two months since that night, she wasn’t ready. Besides, what was to say he wanted to see her? She slumped down into the armchair next to her phone, surveying her room and realising that he had been right - so had Beth - her drinking was getting out of hand. She stood with determination, picking up clothes from around the room and stuffing them into her wardrobe, which was already overflowing, and picking up all the bottles she could find to fill a couple of large paper bags. When she was done, the room felt cleaner, and she dragged the two paper bags out of her apartment and pushed them down the rubbish chute. She returned to her apartment, rummaging around to find a bag in the depths of her wardrobe. Once she had, she carefully picked out clothes, knowing that once she was back in America, the press would be all over her. She had clothes at Benny’s anyway, but she hated travelling without a suitcase - it made her feel bare. Before she left, she grabbed a pair of sunglasses and straightened herself out, checking that she was definitely wearing shoes and that her outfit all matched.

She carried her suitcase down with a little struggle, gave a couple of euros to the door boy for no reason in particular, and caught a taxi to the airport. The taxi driver, having recognised her instantly, seemed restless and kept telling her about how his twelve-year old-daughter wanted to be a model just like Y/N. She brushed it off, paying him well and buying the next flight she could at the front desk, rushing through customs to catch it. She tried to ignore the looks and comments she got as people realised who she was.

She didn’t sleep on the flight, instead ordering drink after drink, wondering what her mother would say if she could see her only daughter. Or Beth for that matter. She didn’t have to wonder what Benny would say, he had said it plenty of times before. When she left the airport, a crusade of reporters were awaiting her, and she had almost forgotten how the press could be. She persevered to a yellow cab, and let it take her to Benny’s. Standing outside, the harsh cold of autumn pushed her towards the door. She descended the steps, pausing when she reached the door, hearing four or five voices inside. Jesus, the whole gang was here. She steeled herself, knocking sharply and stepping away. The door opened abruptly, Beth appearing, at first confused, and then elated. She launched herself at Y/N, the two clinging to each other. Beth stepped back, scanning her friend over, and glancing towards the door. “You look more put together.”

“I don’t feel it.” Y/N admitted, hating the analytical look everyone seemed to give her these days.

“Why are you back here?” Beth murmured, her words kinder than they sounded, “I thought you were in Paris.”

“Well, I was. Then I ended up spending two weeks drinking myself half to death without leaving the room, and thought maybe it was time for a change of scene.”

“You can’t keep running from yourself, it’ll get you nowhere.”

“I know that.”

“Beth!” the two girls turned, “Are you alright out there? Who is it?” 

Benny’s voice, so recognisable, turned into the actual person. He was standing, jeans, a black top and layered necklaces, shock registering on his face. Y/N, who hadn’t proper registered that she was seeing him until that moment, looked like she wanted a black hole to appear beneath her. Pink tinged her cheeks, embarrassment unfamiliar to her, and she stood up straighter, faking confidence.

“Y/N?”

“Hi Benny.” She glanced back at Beth, who looked away. 

“Wait, is that Y/N?”

Arthur and Hilton appeared, and then Cleo, grinning with a drink in hand.

“You’ve been in Paris, eh?” she said, “Of course, you always seem to be there when I am not.”

“I wish you had been.” Y/N grinned, hugging Cleo tightly.

Benny, having come to his senses after the initial shock, stepped forwards, “A drink?”

Y/N looked at him pointedly, “You never have alcohol in this place.”

“But these three always bring some.” he nodded to the three stood next to her with drinks in hand.

“You not drinking at home really sucks ass.” Y/N groaned, concocting herself a makeshift cocktail with the ingredients she had to hand. 

“You know, most people don’t usually have those in pint glasses.” Arthur raised an eyebrow, and Y/N shrugged.

“I’m not most people.” she took a lengthy sip, ignoring the worried glances that her friends shared.

“So,” she looked up from her drink with a bright expression, “what’s going on in the chess world?”

“Well, we’re training Beth.” Benny explained.

“What for? She’s better than all of you.” Y/N frowned, and Beth smirked.

“Paris.” Hilton clarified, the prideful chess players ignoring your comment.

“Let’s do a simultaneous!” Benny offered. 

“Cleo, Y/N, are you joining?” 

“You know we can’t play.” Cleo reprimanded, the pair of you sitting down near the game and watching with interest.

“All of our friends are nerds.” Y/N sighed, “Look at them!”

-

By the time Beth had beaten the other three chess players eight times, Benny gave up. He had decided that Beth could ‘do it’, but was also getting distracted by the fact that Cleo and Y/N had found his records and were blasting The Doors as loud as they could and dancing around his living room. When the game was finished, the apartment was filled with the sound of Soul Kitchen, and any ability to concentrate on the game was impossible. Y/N was standing on his coffee table, eyes closed, bottle in hand, hips swaying. Cleo had her arms in the air, swaying with the rhythm, and the two girls seemed so lost in the music that the four surveyors were almost scared to interrupt. Y/N, murmuring the familiar lyrics, took a swig of the bottle and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lighting one and taking a drag, only then noticing that her friends had stopped playing. “Join us!” She laughed, reaching over, grabbing Beth’s arm, pulling her up onto the table, and trying to get her to dance. At first, the woman only swayed, but found herself dancing more excessively. Cleo took the task of dragging the boys in, and soon the party of six were all laughing and dancing. The song began to draw to a close, when Alyssa turned to Benny, “Got any of The Beatles?”

He pointed to the stack of records, preoccupied with trying to stop Cleo from spilling her drink. Y/N found the Abbey Road album and the dancing picked up as the apartment began to fill with cigarette smoke and Y/N retrieved some whiskey. She drank straight from the bottle, and continued to dance, pushing off the gently guiding hands that Benny was attempting to provide. At some point, Cleo, Arthur and Hilton took their leave, and Beth turned the music down, leaving Y/N with her bottle and cigs as she joined Benny in surveying the drunken girl.

“I haven’t seen her like this in a long time.” Benny observed, and Beth sighed.

“She tries to hide it from you, she knows how you feel about it.” Beth explained.

“I didn’t realise it was this bad.”

Beth looked back at her friend, “She’s worse than I was.”

Benny scoffed a little, “I don’t know how to help her.”

“Wait,” Beth raised an eyebrow mockingly, “You, Benny Watts, wanting to help someone? That’s never happened before.”

“I’m helping you, aren’t I?”

“That’s different.”

Benny sighed, “Where are you going to sleep now that she’s here?”

“I can find a hotel?” she offered.

“Not this late. I’ll sleep on the blow up, you two sleep in my bed.”

“Okay.”

Beth walked up to Y/N, gently prying the bottle from her hand, Y/N turned to her, taking her in with wide eyes - she was always childlike when she was drunk. She watched curiously as Benny began to pump up the blow up bed, and Beth turned the music off. She let Beth sit her down on Benny’s bed, pulling her own clothes off and replacing them with one of Benny’s shirts while Beth helped Benny get all the leftover bottles in the bin. By the time Beth was back in the room, Alyssa was passed out on the far side of the bed, curled up into a tight fetal position. Beth lay down next to her friend, the familiar scent of alcohol conflicting her in both comfort and disgust.

[reinerispretty]

rotations. (zuko x f!reader) pt10

hello and welcome back!! thank you so much for reading :) i apologize for not being as active today as i have been most days! i work from home and they had me doin a lot of stuff ! nevertheless, here’s another chapter !! pls share if you can!!

pt 1

pt 9

pt 11

“Look who it is,” the princess hummed, smirking down at her. The rocks were removed from (Y/N)’s mouth. She coughed and spit out the dirt that had accumulated on her tongue. “You’re quite bold to think that I wouldn’t know you were here. I have eyes everywhere.” 

When it came time for her friends to go their separate ways, (Y/N) had a difficult decision to make. She certainly couldn’t go home, and she couldn’t accompany Toph to visit her mom or go with Aang to learn from Guru Pathik. She had to pick which Water Tribe sibling she would stay with. Would she go with Sokka and join him and his father’s forces? Or would she stay with Katara and help advise the Earth King on the war effort? 

She knew that if she went with Sokka, it would be for selfish reasons. While she would undoubtedly provide useful information about the Fire Nation to the men of his tribe, that wouldn’t be the reason why she went with him. During their stay in Ba Sing Se, their relationship had...changed. She couldn’t quite define it, but when Sokka walked into a room, the atmosphere changed. She felt her body relax. She felt safe again. 

But she couldn’t leave Katara by herself. The girl was fully capable of running war meetings by herself, but it just didn’t sit right with (Y/N) to leave her alone. And she always trusted her intuition. 

So she stayed, which turned out to be the right decision in the end. Who they thought were Kyoshi warriors were actually Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee in disguise. She watched their confrontation from behind a pillar in the throne room of the Earth King’s palace. While every fiber of her being wanted to rush and rescue Katara, she knew she had to be smart about this. There was no way she would be able to defeat Azula on her own, and someone had to remain free in order to rescue Katara in case Aang, Sokka, and Toph didn’t make it back in time. 

(Y/N) stepped away from the pillar slowly, turning to make a run for it. Her face immediately smacked into a Dai Li’s chest. Before she could even react, his special rock gloves were clamped around her wrists and mouth. He dragged her to the middle of the throne room and tossed her to the ground in front of Azula. 

“Look who it is,” the princess hummed, smirking down at her. The rocks were removed from (Y/N)’s mouth. She coughed and spit out the dirt that had accumulated on her tongue. “You’re quite bold to think that I wouldn’t know you were here. I have eyes everywhere.” 

(Y/N) remained silent, casting her eyes toward Katara. A plan was slowly forming in her mind and she tried her best to communicate it through her eyes. Katara stared at her with brows furrowed in confusion. All (Y/N) could think to do was shoot her a wink and hope that she’d remember it. 

“I was very upset when I found out that you had betrayed your nation, (Y/N),” Azula said. She walked circles around (Y/N), like a sabertooth moose lion stalking its prey. “If my father were here, he would have ended your life already.” 

“So why don’t you?” (Y/N) asked. “I’m right here. I can’t fight you. Just do it.” 

Azula’s eyes met hers, and for a moment, (Y/N) thought she had seen a glimmer of sadness in them. In an instant, it was gone. She turned to the guards and her two friends. “Imprison the Water Tribe girl. I’d like to speak with (Y/N) privately.” 

She watched silently as the Dai Li dragged Katara away. The two girls stared at each other, and all (Y/N) could say to her friend was, “Don’t worry!” 

The rocks that had bound her wrists came undone and she jumped to her feet, ready for the battle she sensed was coming. Instead, Azula turned away and walked up to the throne, taking her seat. She had to admit, Azula looked like she belonged there. Ever since they were young, she knew that Azula was powerful. But she also knew that she was power-hungry and would do anything for her own gain. 

“I wanted to present a proposition to you.” Azula studied her nails nonchalantly. “You come back with me to the Fire Nation. I convince Father that you were gaining the Avatar’s trust to gain his secrets. I tell him that you have been my point of contact throughout my conquering of Ba Sing Se. You come back home as a hero.” 

She opened her mouth to immediately say no, but she stopped herself. “What’s in it for you?” She asked instead. 

Azula looked down at her. “I have you back. We’re a happy family.” She laughed as if she herself didn’t even believe it. “You provide me with the intelligence I need to take down the Avatar.” 

“And if I don’t?” 

“You spend the rest of your life in prison. It’s not a hard choice, is it?” 

(Y/N) looked down at the ground. She knew this was one of those moments that would change her course in life. She was at a crossroads and could feel herself being torn in each direction. 

“This isn’t one of your tricks, is it, Azula?” 

The young princess’ face softened as she stared at her old friend. So much had changed since the last time they had spent a moment alone together. Azula thought of that moment often. Of how she had hugged (Y/N) tightly before she boarded her ship to the Earth Kingdom and had to hold back her tears until she got back to her room, or else Father would punish her. She spent a lot of time thinking about (Y/N), more than she would like. 

“It’s not,” Azula said quietly.

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

The expressions on Katara and Aang’s faces as she entered the underground palace with Azula made her heart hurt. Even Iroh looked gravely disappointed in her. She wished she had had time to explain herself to them, but she didn’t. Azula was moving in on Aang as the Dai Li started attacking Katara. Zuko stood a few paces away from herself and Azula. His sister had offered him a similar choice, but she wasn’t sure which path he would choose. She could see the turmoil written on his face but couldn’t see past it. 

When Zuko began attacking Aang, (Y/N) knew it was her time to act. She jumped in the air and propelled herself over to Katara, who was swiftly being overcome by Dai Li agents. She shot fire at the agents as they blocked her flames with earthbending. 

“I thought--” Katara shouted at her, but (Y/N) smiled. 

“I had to get to you guys somehow!” A blast of blue fire narrowly missed (Y/N)’s hair. She turned to find Azula standing just a few feet away, her face absolutely furious. 

“You’ll regret betraying me!” The princess shouted. Instead of retaliating on (Y/N), she aimed her flames toward Aang. (Y/N) ran back over to the young boy and held Zuko off as Aang battled Azula. Despite their best efforts, the siblings and the Dai Li were impossible to take on all at once. She felt her flames grow weaker from her movements as she became more exhausted. Zuko, however, was only getting stronger. He shot fire bolt after fire bolt at (Y/N). They came so fast that she barely had time to respond. His fireblast shot her in the shoulder, sending her backwards into the cave walls. 

She groaned as she struggled to get up. Wind had spiraled around them as Aang rose into the air, his eyes and tattoos glowing a brilliant white. She cracked a smile. With the Avatar State, they might actually have a chance. 

Then she heard the sound that struck fear into her heart. The sharp crack of lightning reached her ears and suddenly Aang was no longer in the air. Aang fell to the ground and Katara dropped the Dai Li agents she had been fighting to rush herself to catch him. (Y/N) let out her own scream and ran to attack Azula, but the Dai Li agents sent her flying back into the cave wall with their rock gloves. She was trapped. 

Katara watched as her best friend struggled against her restraints. (Y/N) looked up at her. “Go!” She shouted as tears streamed down her cheeks. “He’ll die if you stay here, you have to go!” 

“I will hold them off!” Iroh said to Katara and Aang as he blasted his niece and nephew with fire. “Go, now!” 

(Y/N) watched Katara escape with Aang and as Iroh was overtaken. They both exchanged a knowing look. They knew exactly what would happen to them. 

---

Tag List! 

@mdgrdians , @soft4kei , @bubblebars , @pleasantfankingdom , @vintageroses1014516 , @celamoon , @fangirlanotherjust , @gliderbudgie , @haylaansmi , @jada-cleo , @boxofteenageideas , @disgruntled-gay , @lie-ana , @jasmine-the-amazing , @svsoftie , @buckysfeet , @anime-simp , @imcravingyou , @rosetheshapeshifter , @alrightberries , @izzieserra , @hstott , @random-stupid-stuffs , @jackbamexpress , @jainaixo , @thefoxskinwalker , @kryptidkova , @bigbuckyenergy , @omgwhattheeven , @ohmigooosh , @snapchatisoverrated , @inlove-maze , @harapirena , @sooske , @sweeetteaa , @selenvx , @ilovespideyyy , @saaaasib , @mochminnie , @agentsofblinks , @happyariesbabey , @slytherky , @uglipotata72829 , @og-disaster-bi , @animeluver23 , @afxndommess , @xapham , @thanosismybitxh , @outerxorbit , @thenerdiverse , @himawarichild , @welovediaaxx , @justahockeylover 

[leia-imogen]

aaron & the family he's found all by himself; vol. 2 // vol. 1

( ft. short jokes, a belated birthday shopping trip, & an ultra-chaotic winter break )

( for @criswisstuff & anyone who enjoyed the first one <3 )

savannah, who is 5'9, is constantly teasing aaron and cleo for being short. katelyn's good at 5'6, and also a bit impossible to tease bcs she's the actual best, so she gets to escape this

cleo ( 5'2 ) is perfectly delighted to have someone shorter than her for once in her life, even by only 2 inches

aaron: guys, just try and see this from my point of view

sav: [ collapses ]

katelyn: [ crouches down ]

cleo: [ sits cross-legged on floor ]

aaron: dude you're literally 2 inches taller than me

cleo: 2 and a quarter

sav is so smug about this but in a good-natured way, in that she and cleo call aaron "kid" or "kiddo" or "pipsqueak" and he doesn't mind bcs they always say it w such a huge smile and he likes to respond to sav with "how's the weather up there, tall-ass?"

and katelyn thinks it's ridiculously adorable how tiny aaron is and obviously she uses him as an armrest all the time

katelyn, petting aaron's hair: guys guys omg he's like an angsty mini blond kitten and i would kill for him <3

sav, popping up between them: mini-yard :))

before i get super distracted, i just wanna mention that aaron met sav and cleo towards the end of november, so they missed the twin's birthday

but sav still insists that she must take him shopping bcs sure his fashion sense is fine but there's always room for improvement, isn't there, aaron??

he relents, so long as she and cleo and katelyn ( who already gave him a birthday present?? why's she doing this??? ) don't spend too much money

sav drags him all around south carolina to the best thrift stores she can find and cleo and katelyn are amazed that she can get such fantastic deals on the supermodel clothes she wears

fr she's literally a fashion design major ( + minoring in business management ) and she shows up to class in skilfully done drugstore makeup and an absolutely killer outfit for like 15 bucks

she grew up poor, and she's still poor now, even if she ( thankfully ) managed to scrape a cheerleading scholarship

sav, flicking through a rack of dresses labelled $4 apiece: RIP to little miss rich bitch reynolds but i'm different ;)

no hate to allison she's awesome but she grew up in the lap of luxury surrounded by designer brands so she knows NOTHING about thrifting and rationing money in general

oh and sav and allison have kind of a frenemies thing going on bcs they're both fighting for the top spot of their fashion design course

they spend the whole day shopping and aaron ends up with a highly upgraded wardrobe that contains a lot of cute pastel stuff and sav's promise to do his makeup

aaron insists on paying for dinner at the really nice pizza place a short drive from campus even tho they all protest

and andrew knows he's found new friends, but has no idea that it's the vixens and he's dating one of them. nicky does tho, but he's sworn to secrecy

nicky thinks his new clothes are adorable and is stunned when aaron tells him the total cost

"oh my GOD that girl sounds like a genius."

"yeah, her name's sav. you guys,, would get along, i think."

okay now for the winter break part!!

i think that you can get permission to stay at dorms if you're an international student or something??

anyways since sav's super upset bcs her father straight-up told her not to come home bcs he has a new girlfriend ( god i hate sav's father )

katelyn would stay with her, but her dad can finally have her home in new york for christmas and she really doesn't want to miss it

cleo, the only one with a properly functional family, is going back to her big family house and loving parents and grandma and aunt and siblings and cousins. love that for her.

so aaron and sav are stuck at psu for 2 weeks and aaron's surprisingly cool with this. and sav's excited bcs for the first time since her mom died, she can spend her christmas with someone she actually wants around instead of her shitty-ass father and his constant stream of bitchy girlfriends

they spend a lot of time together, stealing food from the athlete's dining hall to make their own weird combos, which usually ends with aaron making something Cool and Interesting and sav gagging and spitting out whatever strange concoction she had previously insisted would taste good

i literally can't bring myself to give a shit about the twinyards' deal bcs andrew literally became best friends with renee?? and hooks up with guys at eden’s??? idk what's going on there but it's like andrew is trying to control aaron's life while he can do whatever he wants??? and honestly wtf????

also let me just make it clear that i ADORE andrew so so much he's one of my favourite comfort characters ever but i'm not gonna make excuses for his shitty behaviour. i fully believe he heals and puts away his pride to apologise to aaron, nicky, and kevin for his treatment of them

that's definitely not to say that aaron's internalised homophobia isn't eww, but with so many important people in his life gay, he makes a huge effort to get over it

so andrew just thinks that aaron is spending a lot of time in the library or out with nicky or something

and when aaron tells sav about this deal, she's kinda horrified, but it's pretty clear to her that aaron so desperately wants to fix his relationship with his brother, and she's not in any place to discourage him, is she?

the only thing she can do is hope that he won't come out all the worse for it

and stare at the boy curled up on the other end of the pale pink sofa cleo's parents had gotten, wonder just how much shit he'd been put through, and decide she was going to be his best friend

aaron's face has gone entirely impassive. sav nudges his fluffy-socked foot with her own, then reaches out to smooth the crease between his eyebrows. "careful, you'll wrinkle your pretty little face."

aaron is very caught off guard by this, and very promptly flushes bright red, which contrasts with the pale teal hoodie he stole from katelyn

"okay, enough talk about depressing crap. wanna go make christmas cookies now?"

"yeah."

so they make christmas cookies. well, it was supposed to be christmas cookies, but it turns into double chocolate fudge cookies somewhere along the line. neither of them knows how

them baking together is the definition of chaos. they're still blasting songs, and sav is singing along terribly

"yOu'Re A mEaN oNe, Mr. GrInCh," while poking aaron's cheek as he tries to mix something. he throws a handful of flour at her. "yOu ReAlLy ArE A hEel."

anyways obviously sav retaliates and that ends in a flour fight. it only stops when aaron deadass cracks an egg on sav's head and she smears chocolate into his hair

she also tries to make him sing along to baby, it's cold outside

"i'Ve GoT tO Go `wAAyyy~" she holds a spatula up to his face

"go away."

they video call katelyn, who takes one look at the mess in the cramped dorm kitchen and sighs so loudly and dramatically that her dad pops in and asks if everything's okay

aaron freezes up at the sight of him and sav quickly turns off the camera, bcs they both want to make good impressions on him, and being covered in various cookie ingredients just won't cut it, ya know?

the cookies turn out delicious and sav sends all their group chat various photos of the process, most of which consist of selfies with her making goofy faces while aaron is simultaneously baking and flipping off the camera

plus a several videos of sav enthusiastically dancing and mouthing the lyrics of, as follows, all i want for christmas is you, let it snow, and santa claus is coming to town and aggressively pointing a spatula at aaron

"c'mon aari, just sing! please??? please???? please you can do it i believe in you!!"

finally he just. gives up. "okay, you know what? fine, i'll sing to ONE and then you will STOP bothering me you insolent dumbass."

sav beams. santa baby starts playing. aaron is very clearly going through five stages of grief in 0.5 seconds

"go on," sav says sweetly as she slides in next to a pouting aaron, "i'll sing with you."

sav slings an arm around his shoulder and sways with him, so it's just her doing that and him grumpily mumbling the lyrics

and when the cookies are cooling down, they start cleaning the kitchen up. aaron rubs some spilled egg yolk into sav's hair but it goes pretty okay otherwise, since they're just listening to more christmas songs and chatting about light stuff, like aaron's biochem course, sav's fashion course, and their dumb classmates

aaron mostly listens tho, and learns that sav kind of hates allison reynolds for giving up her inheritance when she would do ANYTHING for even the tiniest fraction of that money

but she still thinks allison's gorgeous bcs c'mon

and that sav's dream is to one day open her own boutique!!

aaron spends most of the actual christmas day with the monsters at eden's bcs nicky and andrew wanted to

he spent a lot of the time texting on their group chat

doessavvyisgay: so u just go to a nightclub every week??

unaliveme: i mean yeah, i literally worked here for a while. we needed money and nicky was already working 2 jobs night and day

actualblessing: babe ur backstory is so tragic

unaliveme: i'm a fox for a reason ig

cleo.magda: Yes but-

doessavvyisgay renamed this conversation "aaron miniyard support group"

unaliveme: oh ffs

unaliveme: sav subject change go

doessavvyisgay: i'm at the clothes store what should i get?

actualblessing: something pretty :)

doessavvyisgay: sorry, i can't buy the cashier

cleo.magda: Wow.

doessavvyisgay: I DID GET HER NUMBER THO

unaliveme: lmaooo what's her name?

doessavvyisgay: uh

unaliveme: savannah istg u don't even know her name??

actualblessing: s a v

actualblessing: damn u really do be turning on the Charm tho

actualblessing: respect i didn't even talk to aaron till i asked him for notes bcs he has rly pretty notes and also a rly pretty face

actualblessing: and even then i was like :0

unaliveme: IT WAS CUTE I PROMISE

doessavvyisgay: u 2 = the only valid heterosexual couple

actualblessing: rt

unaliveme: oh shit i'm getting super drunk

cleo.magda: Aaron, you drink? That's not legal, get out of there right now. Kids these days-

unaliveme: cleo u have literally seen me get drunk af,, the first time we met,,, and anyways this is how my family bonds ✌🏻

doessavvyisgay: that's. so damn weird kiddo but go off ig

actualblessing: no go find better things to bond about other than alcohol and weird sweaty dancing

cleo.magda: Yeah, go watch some Christmas movies!

unaliveme: nicky makes us watch die hard every year

doessavvyisgay: see u in hell, kiddo ;)

cleo.magda: I meant things like The Polar Express and Home Alone.

actualblessing: merry christmas ya filthy animals!!

doessavvyisgay: merry xmas y'all i'm gonna go to that christmas party bcs i'm super bored

unaliveme: merry christmas mothers and fuckers

cleo.magda: Merry Christmas, you guys!

[literate-lamb]

Defying Fate | one

Bucky Barnes/Fem!Reader, Steve Rogers/Fem!Reader

Ever since young, children had always been fed with the fantasy that they were destined for one person, and one person only. The fantasy that the mark they were born with would lead them to prince charming, or a fair maiden, ending with a happily ever after.

You were once that child. Unfortunately, you never had a soulmark.

This is a love story told through the lens of three different individuals.

► warnings(!): soulmate AU (if that’s not your thing), love-triangle but it’s actually a line, unrequited love, light angst, platonic soulmates

a/n: This is something I’ve always wanted to write for so long. It was spontaneous, I have the basics set but no rigid frame until the end. This will be short. Taglist for this is open!

Ever since young, children had always been fed with the fantasy that they were destined for one person, and one person only. The fantasy that the mark they were born with would lead them to prince charming, or a fair maiden, ending with a happily ever after.

These were known as “soulmarks” to the people, and they’ve been in existence since the start of time. Since Adam and Eve came to creation. Since Marc and Cleo flaunted their affair. Since Johnny laid eyes on June.

They were unique to each couple; always an image or scribblings etched on the surface of either arm, waiting to be discovered by the other half.

Through the ages, these soulmarks were responsible for the cause of beneficial unions and, accountable for the start of wars. Legend say it wasn’t Helen’s beauty that caused the loss of Troy.

Children would daydream, imagining the fated day they would meet their “soulmate”. Teens would discuss with friends about their soulmarks, always on the lookout for a matching half. And they were right to do so, as people started meeting their other half as soon as they hit puberty.

You were once that child, but you were never that teenager. For you never had a soulmark.

—

Being bare, or being a “blank” as they called it, wasn’t filled with a lot of happy memories. You remembered crying at the age of six after a group of girls made fun of you for not having a soulmark. You cried your way home, remembering the hold your mother had you in that day as she consoled you.

See, your parents were soulmates. They had the kind of love that you’ve always dreamed of having, and everyone else envied. Theirs was a love so eternal, that Cupid would weep.

You longed for a love like theirs, but no matter how much you wished, you knew it was a wish for the impossible. 

A “blank” wasn’t a common occurrence in your world, but they were never unheard of. It was the cause of torment you endured over the years. The stares, the whispers, the snickers behind lockers. You’ve learned to tune it out, yet it didn’t make it any less hurtful. 

People have no idea why we have soulmarks the way we do. For centuries, scientists and philosophers had tried to theorize the existence of soulmarks. Yet, we never made it any closer to the truth. 

A “blank” could mean, and be anything. It could mean that in a part of the universe, you were always destined for someone, but their time was up before you could ever meet. Or perhaps, they were soulmates with someone else, before time would take that away, giving rise to a newer fresh soulmark. Or perhaps, —and this was painful to admit— you were never destined to be with anyone.

James Buchanan Barnes

James “Bucky” Barnes had a good life, or what he considered a good life. 

Hailing from Brooklyn, he was the epitome of a good son and brother. Protective of his sister since he first laid eyes on her. He had a best friend, (even though with how sickly he was) who always had his back. He had everything he wanted, and yet not everything was his.

You see, Bucky Barnes was the possessor of a soulmark. A mark that looped on his arms, staining inky black against the tan of his skin. A mark that he was proud to have, for it meant he was destined to meet “the one”. A mark that, unfortunately, to the dismay of many, broke hearts.

He was what the girls would call a “charmer” and what the boys would call a “player”. You would have thought that the idea of bearing a soulmark would make a person wait for “the one”. Yet, this never stopped Bucky from what he believed is living his best life.

Women loved him, and he loved women. As simple as that.

He imagined the moment he has met his “destined”, everything else will fall into place and no other person will matter.

—

George and Winnifred Barnes, in Bucky’s eyes, were the picture perfect example of soulmates. Since a young age, he always admired the relationship that his parents had.

They complemented each other. In a lot of ways that Bucky hoped he and his soulmate would have.

His mother was the extrovert, loud and full of fire. In which if you stoked it, you could burn. But never towards his father. His father was the mediator. Calm and collected, he could tame even the most raging of flames. 

He and his younger sister, Rebecca, were always up to mischief growing up. Whenever something was broken or the sound of a crash rang, they always ended up on the end of their mother’s scolding. But his father always managed to calm her down, with his soothing ways.

Whenever his father was down, his mother would know what to do or what words to say. He wouldn’t stew for long, he would bounce right back after. It was the same for his mother, vice versa.

They were made for each other.

But why were they quarrelling in the living room when he got home for the Summer? Why were words like “divorce” and “other woman” thrown into the air? Why was his father shouting, stoking the burning rage of his mother?

Bucky felt his world shatter.

Steven Grant Rogers

Steven Grant Rogers was born a sickly child. 

When he was brought into the world, the doctors assumed he wouldn’t make it. But his parents never stopped believing. With their love and effort, he made it through, and would continue to do so throughout adulthood.

Steve Rogers was a blank. Always has been since birth, but maybe not for the rest of his life. It didn’t bother him. He believed he was in-charge of his own happiness.

Unlike Bucky, Steve didn’t have the best prospects with girls. Being 5’3 and 95 pounds back in high school didn’t help, especially with Bucky Barnes as a best friend. 

He remembered his prom all too well; ditched by his date at the end of the night. He didn’t take it hard, knowing it was just an arrangement. An arrangement for the both of them to not appear lonely on a night that some deemed “the best night of their lives”.

Nevertheless, prom night did become a memorable memory. He and Bucky ended up driving all night, blasting Wham!’s Last Christmas in the middle of April, and watching the sunrise with a view of the Brooklyn bridge. 

Bucky didn’t leave his side all night, and for the years after.

He was eternally grateful.

—

Being a blank never bothered Steven Rogers. His peers used to tease and bully him for it, but he never cared. He believed happiness wasn’t restricted to the possession of soulmarks. 

However, he couldn’t deny the pang he sometimes felt when he witnessed the meeting of soulmates while passing through life. It had become a weekly occurrence; strangers realizing they’re soulmates, and people cheering them on in the background. Just last week, a couple met when they were both rushing to a lecture. To say the hall was noisy was an understatement.

Sometimes he wished people would look past soulmarks. Past his height that only gained a few inches over the years. Past his blank slate that they deemed a defect. 

Thinking of his parents, Steve Rogers had always thought they were soulmates from the start. Their marks fit each other’s, like pieces to a puzzle. Imagine his surprise when that wasn’t the case.

Sarah was born a blank. Like everyone else with the same “fate”, she always thought having a soulmate wasn’t a part of her life's plans. Imagine her surprise when a mark —five small stars scattered on her inner wrist— appeared one day.

A few months passed before she would meet Joseph Rogers during one of his physiotherapy appointments. She was the nurse that wheeled him in.

Steve’s father was born with a soulmark. He lived the first 30 years with one, met his other half, and got married.

It wasn’t until one day, he was involved in an accident. It took the life of his soulmate, leaving Joseph blank. Supposedly. 

What baffled him was the appearance of a soulmark immediately after the accident. A new, fresh mark. Five stars scattered across his bicep. On the arm that was affected by the accident. The same arm he was getting treatment for.

As for his old soulmark, it blurred, then faded, before disappearing completely. No trace or evidence of its existence was left.

For a long time, Joseph saw the mark as a form of mocking. From God or another higher being, he will never know. After ruminating for a long time, at the same time getting to know Sarah from his numerous hospital visits, he finally relented and moved on. And the rest was history.

His parents’ experience showed that humans weren’t getting any closer to understanding the soulmark phenomenon. When we think we’ve got it, something new would pop-up, throwing us off course for another millennia.

And that kept Steve Rogers a hopeful man.

[writing-the-end]

LoL Chapter 12: Family Dynamics

Masterpost

A Wizard Hermits tale (AU belongs to @theguardiansofredland )

Safe on their home island of Eremita, the hermits need to practice, grow their magic stronger. A day in the life of the illegal guild of hermits includes food- practice- more food- practice- contemplating of life.

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

The Order returned to their island, healed by the remaining Asklepions and left with more questions than answers. They know almost nothing more about dark magic, despite fighting it twice now. When they thought husks only appeared around crystals, Danes proved they can move. When they believed they understood why a husk appeared, the monsters just tore apart their theories. 

One thing they did learn from the two experiences is they need more training. More experience, especially against dark magic. The hermits were strong, but the forces of darkness were stronger. But before any of them can take on each other, they first need to take on breakfast.

Which is a challenge in itself. Half of the hermits want to jump right into training, ignoring the guild hall and insistence of TFC. The other half are easily enticed by the scent of food. 

Grian is practically vibrating in his seat, to the point that Iskall has to reach out and press his hand on the blond hair to keep him seated. “Who thought it was a good idea to give him syrup?” 

“It’s not the breakfast, I can’t wait to get back to sparring!” Grian grins, turning to Mumbo. “You ready for another round of quickdraws?” 

Mumbo groans, head falling back and mouth falling open. “Gri, you know I can’t quickdraw my magic circle.” 

“Like, at all, dude.” Iskall hums, picking the skin off an orange. 

“That’s how you’ll get better! Learn by doing!” Grian points out. He knows that Mumbo struggles with his magic- it’s a lot of magic to handle, being a multi-mage. But he’s seen Mumbo’s strength, he sees the potential in his best friend. And only someone as equally powerful as him, like Grian, can take on that power. Once it shows itself. 

Stress walks by, rolling up her sleeves and brushing the rat’s nest from her hair. She sits down next to False, squeaking as the sharp slice of rock against metal cuts into the air. Stress realizes the shining alloy isn’t a plate. “False, haven’t we said before- no weapons on the tables?” 

“It’s no used weapons. This is brand new, just finished forging it last night.” She picks the chakram by the handle in the center, tossing the disk blade across the table to Wels. “Why don’t you give it a try today?” 

Wels laughs, giving the weapon a slice and a spin. “Let’s see Etho dodge this.” 

Etho, hearing his own name, abruptly stands up from his seat and scurries into the nearest shadow, a strip of bacon shoved into his mouth as he pulls up his mask. Doc and BDubs only laugh, divvying up the remains of Etho’s breakfast. 

Under the quiet seats under the massive oak, as old as the island itself, Keralis and Xisuma are studying. Keralis stopped by his family’s bookstore on the mainland, sifting through ancient tomes in hopes of finding something about dark magic. 

“Ugh, why does no one write about dark magic, sheshwammy?” Keralis growls, his thick south Lairyon accent struggling to say Xisuma’s central name. 

“Probably because it’s illegal to practice it, so no one knows anything about it.” Xisuma sets down another book, picking up the egg sandwich he made and taking a frustrated bite. “Though someone obviously does. But we need proof that this is dark magic, written proof.” He knows they can’t stop it themselves- that’s the arcane guard’s job. But after seeing all of Gildara abandoned, and most of the Asklepions killed, the least he can do is this. 

“You really think the pen is mightier than the sword?” False questions, raising an eyebrow. She presses her knife into the sausage patty on her plate, daring Joe to answer.

“I mean, when my pen can make a giant magic sword with fire and lightning, yeah.” Joe grins, pressing his chin to his open palm. A dangerous glint appears behind his glasses, and he uses the other hand to push them up. Sun reflects off the spectacles, making it impossible for False to see anything beyond the smirk and the light- infuriating her. 

“Cleo,” False grabs the pirate by her long coat and dragging her into the conversation. Without the paladin here to back her up, she needed someone else with a way with words. “You get what I’m saying. Tell me your blade there wouldn’t completely destroy Joe in a fight. I mean, all I’d have to do is cut up that journal of yours and your magic is useless!” 

“Well, Joe does have a point. Sure, your forged weapons are the best in the kingdom, and Joe is screwed if he ever has to face you without his magic.” Cleo pauses, watching the two. “But I’m inclined to believe that words should come before violence- which is why anytime Mr. Joe of the Hills here refuses to finish his breakfast, I remind him with my words that I’m going to break his knees before i actually do.” Cleo pulls out her sword, setting the tip on the wood table. 

Joe shoves the last of his pancakes into his mouth, quick to retreat from Cleo. He was asking for trouble with False, but he knows any of the women could easily kick his ass. Even as an S-Class. “Hey False, why don’t we take this debate to the training field, see how mighty the sword is to the pen?” 

“You can’t escape me forever, Joe!” Cleo calls, watching as the two S-Class mages run down the hill and onto the latter half of the island. Their home island, Eremita, was separated into two parts. The southern side of the island lays claim to where the hermits live. An odd mix of towers and forges, ships and caves. It was up to the hermits to chose their own style of household- which created some disunion of the overall complex, but allowed for each member to express themselves. Everyone helped, whether Scar packed stone bricks or False forged iron nails. 

The other half of the island, however, was left mostly untouched. A large field of grass, combed by the salty sea air, dotted with targets and barriers. A dirt circle cuts into the field, where hermits can duel one on one. Beyond the field, a large pond expands like an eye to the face of the island. Caressing the other shore, a dense forest grows on a slow rise of a hill, before stopping at the edge of the cove of a broad, sandy beach. It was a perfect home, a perfect place for an illegal guild to lay claim. 

Training grounds quickly filled with groups and teams, even TFC getting in on strengthening himself. He wasn’t going to let some little rock keep him down for long. “Hey Cub, lets show these guys a thing or two about magic.” 

The two silver haired, bearded men join the others well settled into today’s training. Deep in the forest, a soft explosion can be heard, followed by the giddy laughter as Zedaph leaps from tree to tree. Tango and Impulse struggle to follow him, and the birds diving for their heads don’t help. At the interface between trees and grass, Doc and Jevin have teamed up to amass an army. Objects under the devious control of Doc’s puppeteering magic, violent and unshaken to mimic the husks they fought. Jevin’s slime soldiers add bodies to the battle, flanking Iskall, Ren, and Xisuma. Hiding behind a barrier, Etho is waiting for the sun to reappear and for shadows to return, ducking his head as the chakram whizzes past. Despite his terrifying predicament, he has a coy smile on his face. 

In the field, BDubs is practicing his aim with Scar, shredding apart haybales with their unique magic. Plants grow from one, thorns dug deep into the tightly bound material. The other has been knocked over and crushed by a boulder, Scar cheering his success. And in the center of the dueling ring, Mumbo and Grian stand still as stone. The quietest Grian ever has been. In a flash, as simple as a shift in the wind’s direction, Mumbo rushes to summon his circle. A second later, he’s blown off his feet, Grian grinning with blue embers fading away from his fingers. Mumbo groans, rubbing the dirt stained fabric on his rear. “You couldn’t have given me a few seconds? It’s not like I’d ever win.” 

Grian offers an easy smile, waving Mumbo closer. “Come on, let’s practice the basics again. I know you can do it, friend.” 

The hermits continue into the afternoon, only stopping their training briefly for lunch under the cool relief of the oaken guild hall. Groups disband and reform, training and practicing and learning from each other. Trying to be better, stronger together. So that next time they come face to face with an enemy, or the dark magic, they can win. They will win. 

No guild is quite like the Order of Hermits. Apart from being illegal, they’re a mix of just about every kind of magic. A healing mage like Grian can stand side by side with Cleo’s underworld magic, no set skill required on requested. Varying strengths train side by side, not separated from better or worse. They all have something to learn from each other, even the strongest S-Class can be surprised by the newest mage. And often, Grian is. The magic is just as diverse as the people, the hermits that call Eremita home. 

Training is cut short by a squall, appearing like magic and blowing across the Ashioll sea. Broiling grey clouds engulf the sun, and quickly send the hermits scattering into shelter. Well, most of them. The ZIT trio remained wrestling in the mud, and BDubs couldn’t help but join in. 

Wels returns the chakram to False, a number of other hermits huddled around the blasting heat of False’s outdoor forge, nestled under the stone roof. Stress jumps back as an ember sparks out, nearly catching the trim of her robes. She rubs her exposed arms, the warm material of her fur coat wrapped around her waist. So much for the hot summer day. 

Joe and Cleo have made up, and are plucking books from his library to read as the rain pours down, laughing as they watch Ren skitter away to his home, ears and tail tucked. 

Xisuma sits at a window, looking out across the clouded green sea from his tower. He chose the Ashioll sea for a reason to make this his home. To start a guild here. No one else dared called these waters home. Old magic, magic so wild and arcane that not even the kiplings can control, residing here in these waters. Merchant vessels and battleships avoid the sea, and even the hermits don’t have every island mapped out. Though Grian and Xisuma are working on it. The sea was their safe haven, the island their home. 

Xisuma turns his head, glancing at the white envelope on his desk. The yellow seal bearing a sun remains unbroken. He’s not ready to think about his brother. He knows he could have valuable information, and is likely concerned about him, but he can’t bear to open the letter today. He turns his head back to the storm, watching lightning streak across the sky, smelling the scent of the void left behind by the bolts. He doesn’t need his brother- he has his own family, right here. 

They’ll do this, without Ex.

[roswelldetails]

RNM 2x11 - Linger

Quick note: I am SO sorry at how painfully late this is. I wasn't able to watch on Monday night because the police helicopter decided to sit over my apartment yelling loud threats to peaceful protesters when the episode aired politics. And then I had late meetings for work Wed and Thurs. And weekend things. Excuses, excuses though. I will try to do better next week this week.

EPISODE SUMMARY:

SECRETS AND LIES -- Driven by the prospects of her scientific research, Liz (Jeanine Mason) opens up to Diego (guest star Cleo Anthony) about all the good her findings could do. Meanwhile, Max (Nathan Dean) enlists Kyle's (Michael Trevino) help getting to the bottom of the recent abductions, while Michael (Michael Vlamis) does his own investigating into Alex's disappearance. Elsewhere, after learning more about her mother Louise, Isobel (Lily Cowles) pays a visit to Rosa (Amber Midthunder), in hopes that Rosa could help her begin to heal. Franklin Vallette directed the episode written by Ariana Quiñónez & Deirdre Mangan.

DETAILS:

Liz and Diego flashback from Denver the night he proposed. The science:

"Administering a lethal dose of radiation to observe a particular neoblast… It's a regenerative master cell. The only one with this protein. I mean, this particular cell was able to multiply, diversify, and reanimate my worm."

"Wait, so observing the master gets you the underlying mechanisms of tissue regeneration."

"Then I apply the mechanism to human tissue, and irreversible injury and degradation become distant memory. I know this isn't going to happen in our lifetime, but this could be a step to help."

Diego proposed to Liz in the lab at nearly midnight. She didn't seem to see the proposal coming, but she also didn't hesitate to say yes.

A neoblast is a part of a worm. I was so disappointed. I thought it sounded like some badass science thing.

Um...everything Liz is talking about is REAL. Check this out!

Present time, both Max and Liz waking up by alarm after falling asleep working.  Liz's lab work we know a fair amount about and there's nothing specifically revealing about her wake up, but Max's is more interesting.  Max fell asleep, while writing alien symbols in his journal.  There's two empty vials of antidote in the box we saw last week (though we know he took one at the end of last week's episode.  There's also an empty bottle of acetone.

Max, Liz, and Isobel at the Crashdown. Isobel used her powers to get in and apparently immediately put on antennae and made coffee. 

Max immediately reacted when Liz said she was with Maria. Which, note that it is a little odd that Maria is out of town with Crash Con starting, given her pitch last episode and the relevance to her business. 

Now Liz is saying I love you to Isobel too. Once the floodgates open they really really open with her 

"Non-binary intimate companion" 😆

Butyricol has apparently only been used in one highly classified military trial.  What's interesting about that detail to me is that if it's highly classified, how do we know that? All Diego told us last week was that it was only approved for military use.  In order to know that it was only used in one military trial, you'd have to know the details of the military use which, if it's highly classified, would be nearly impossible to get your hands on - even for a senator's son.  IMO, this is probably a bit of a plot screw up/narrative leap.

Liz references Charlie's bioweaponry expertise. Which we, the audience, know about from 2x04, but we didn't actually see Charlie explain any of that to Max and Liz...all she said in 2x08 was "a lot of people want to know what I know."

We are reminded that Alex is out of town, hence why no one is worried about not hearing back from him.

Michael tells Sanders everything they learned about Louise last week & then finds Alex's napkin from Jesse stuck to his boot, with blood on it, and immediately reacts.

Isobel mentions Rosa's sketchbooks in front of Diego, which was risky.  Diego didn't seem to react either, which is weird.

Diego and Liz in the Crashdown.

"Ah, doing some molecular gastronomy."

"Oh, got to stay on top of trends these days. Everything needs to be Instagrammable."

"Look, I was thinking...I bet butyricol uses inducible diphtheria toxins to stun the memory expression neurons into paralysis. See, of we can counteract that, we can get your friend her memories back."

"Would it boost GABA in DLPFC?"

"See, no, you're thinking working memory, not recovery. Think traumatic memory."

I am not smart enough to explain the science in this scene so:

Michael finds Jesse Manes in Alex's house.  Jesse pulls his gun, but Michael uses his powers to disarm him and throw him to the ground.

"You told Alex Tripp gave you this in 1987. That's before the Crashdown ever used this logo."

Accurate, based off of the flashbacks we saw in 2x09. However, how would Michael know that? Unless he has studied the history of the Crashdown Cafe, he wasn't even born yet in 1987.  Unless they changed the logo much later. It would be way more plausible to me for Alex to know that detail than Michael, as someone who spent his childhood hanging out with Liz.  Michael didn't even live in Roswell until 2001.

"I just found out that Alex never made it to Andrews Air Force Base last week.  He's disabled. He has PTSD. So I'm concerned about him."

Isobel tells Rosa that Arturo is lying low.  Which explains why he's not working during Crash Con.

Isobel explains to Rosa why she came. Love that Rosa knew it had to be about Isobel wanting something.

"I am curious about what's in your journals...I didn't really read anything.  I'm trying this new thing where I don't follow every selfish impulse."

"But you still looked.  What are you looking for?"

"Myself.  So to speak. I'm curious about what might be in there from the whole Noah thing."

"You can look.  And if you see something that you want to know about just ask. I'm probably going to tell you to mind your own beeswax, but, you know, shoot your shot."

Kyle and Max in the Wild Pony:

"I was suspended from work today. Craziest thing. I was accused of stealing hospital resources for personal use. There might even be a criminal investigation."

"Look… you're a good person. You probably deserve for me to leave you the hell alone, which is why I wish I didn't have to ask you, but I'm concerned that Project Shepherd might be tied to these abductions."

"You can't ask Alex?"

"He's out of town… Look, I'm just trying to find out who's hurting people."

"I hate having a conscience."

Diego & Liz in the Crashdown kitchen:

"Oh come on, you know damn well no one uses eggshells on purpose in any kind of cooking. You met my meemaw. Don't insult me. You're making calcium carbonate. Is this about regenerating worms?"

"Kind of. I'm testing out a theory. I know I have to recreate it in a sterile environment later, but with my dad laying low in peak tourist season, I haven't been able to spend as much time in the lab."

"The lab that made you sign an NDA. Which is where again?"

"Nice try."

Diego and Liz Flashback #2, celebrating her research grant and study publication:

"The groundbreaking research led by Elizabeth Ortecho is the future of biomedical engineering."

"This grant changes everything. I mean, there is so much more that we can do now. We are really gonna save lives."

"I'm so proud of you. Oh...my God. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. I'm fine. It's just...when I was a kid, I felt trapped in my life. I was just thinking about what this would have meant to me then. To know that the person I am existed. This isn't what the world teaches girls like me to dream."

"What would you do… if you could do anything?"

"I want a Nobel Prize."

"Strong start. Okay what next?"

"Citizenship for my dad.  I want him to not always have to be so scared. And I want to be less angry. I'm angry so much of the time."

"Anger's not so bad. It reminds us that something's not right. And then we change it. And you are gonna change everything. I'm so glad I get to stand beside you while you do."

Back to present:

"Wait, I don't think that's fully…"

"Why are you helping me? I mean my dad, but me."

"You sound like my girlfriend. Naomi was also surprised that I would rush to Roswell to help someone who bulldozed my life."

"I really wish I would have handled things differently."

"But if you had, I wouldn't have Naomi. I mean, I have a good life, Elizabeth. I'm happy. I do miss you at work though. There's really...there's no replacing you there."

"Yeah I get the feeling."

"So wouldn't it feel really good if you would just tell me what your secret experiment is?"

"Hypothetically, let's say there's this rare blood disorder that affects one in four million people. No research, no treatments...Do you remember my planarian neoblasts with the regenerative proteins? So I…" fades off.

Max & Kyle in the bunker

"Searching for the term butyricol. What makes you think it's got a connection to Project Shepherd?"

"The drug was developed by the military. And the only other clue we have is a fractal burn pattern, which is an alien thing."

"And Project Shepherd is in the middle of your alien-military Venn diagram."

"I know. It's a long shot, but it's all I have right now."

"I'm surprised you haven't asked to see this sooner."

"Yeah, I'm still figuring out how much information I want to know. I mean, you ever wake up from a night of drinking and not want to know what happened the night before in case it's worse than you imagined?"

"Like if I don't remember Taylor Swift drag night at Planet 7, then it didn't happen?"

"...When this is done, why don't you let me give you a lift over to Liz's lab? We can load up the stolen equipment so you can return it. She's not using it."

"Nah, we don't have to do that."

"I mean, your handprint gives you access to their security system, right? So, you know, just get in there and return their stuff. Maybe they'll go easier on you if they have it."

Jesse and Flint (in front of Michael)

"Flint, what did you do with your brother?"

"Drop the gun...you can't pull intel from a dead soldier."

"I'd be careful kid. I taught you everything you know, but I didn't teach you everything I know. You wouldn't have showed up unless you wanted my attention. Well here I am. Where is Alex."

"He's safe and sound. I know how concerned you are about his safety. That why you had him locked in the basement? You kidnapped him first, Pops. What do you want from him anyway?"

"You hand him over to me right now."

"No. This time I outrank you, and I haven't granted clearance."

"You outrank me."

"You went soft. My entire life has been about destroying the aliens. That's all I've done.  Develop weapons, develop strategy. Fighting for our species, 'cause you told me."

"I was wrong."

"You can't do that. I don't need you for this, old man."

My question: how much of that was real and how much of that was staged? It seems like it was staged at the beginning, but then it also sort of seemed to go off the rails. It's really unclear to me just how involved Jesse is with Flint and Helena's plan. I'd like to believe a lot. But who knows? One thing I'm fairly confident about though is that Jesse is NOT who initially took Alex from the junkyard. The figure is all wrong for Jesse at the end of 2x10.

Michael uses his powers to steal Jesse's cane and whacks him over the head with it.

"You had him in your basement? What, you took him last week after you got that piece of alien tech from me? He's a loose end. If we got him back from Flint, you were gonna kill him. You are barely human! When I was a kid, I thought maybe because of my high IQ, my species was superior to your. Then I fell in love with your son. And I didn't feel superior anymore.  I am angry. And smashing things, it's easy. Alex has evolved past that. He's past you! And he's past me. Despite you slapping him around, shoving that Manes Man crap down his throat, he still loves. He even loves you. You don't deserve to call him your son."

Max and Kyle trying to get into the lab.

"I was deceased when they made the guest list."

Gah plot issues.  How did Max manage to sneak up on Liz in the lab at the beginning of 2x08 if he doesn't actually have access? 

"Maybe Liz was still pissed about the pollen in my mom's perfume, had Alex revoke my access?"

Yet another plot issue.  Why would Alex do that, even if Liz asked? He and Kyle were teaming up before he even knew that Liz knew about aliens. It makes zero sense that Alex would do that. It would have to be a spite thing from Liz because of her argument with Kyle in 2x09 and there's no guarantee she even has control over the security access for the lab. 

"If Diego was able to find out about this butyricol through his fancy connections, maybe it wasn't a Project Shepherd or Caulfield trial. Maybe it was legit military."

"Military would have some use for something that would erase state secrets from people's minds. They can't spill to the enemy."

"Or you could erase bad memories from soldiers coming home. Or it could be a weapon."

"Erase an army's memories...they don't know what they're fighting for anymore."

"Project Shepherd hasn't been legit in years, so what does Flint Manes do, officially, for the military?"

"He's a weapons specialist. He could have access to biomedical trials."

"Let's go. Find out what he's up to." 

Liz and Diego

"My team at my research facility, we found a rare protein. A mutated gene. You know what? I've said too much. You probably think I'm delusional anyway."

"No, you're not delusional. Elizabeth Holmes was delusional."

"Yeah, well, at least Elizabeth Holmes had funding."

"You can get funding."

HBO recently did a whole documentary on Elizabeth Holmes. I haven't watched it yet, but she seemed craaaazy in the trailer.

Flashback 3, Liz finding out that she lost her funding.

"The second we move from worms to human cells, they pull our funding and that isn't fair."

"I think you should reconsider the Genoryx grant."

"What difference does it make? Every research facility in this country answers to the same uber-conservative Department of Health and Human Services."

"Well, whoever's funding Genoryx isn't super concerned about FDA guidelines. They're above the red tape.  Look, you can start saving the world now."

"I can't do anything shady or secret. I have too much to lose."

"My God, Elizabeth. You don't always have to be this perfect daughter of a perfect immigrant!"

"Yes I do. Because the imperfect daughter is in a box at Frontier Valley Cemetery."

Back to present:

"Genoryx has more money than they know what to do with."

"Just because your office has ping-pong tables and hyperbaric napping chambers, does not mean that Genoryx isn't unethical."

Note: up until this last line it was implied that Diego and Liz were actually working together in the lab.  This line implies that wasn't the case, that Diego actually works for this Genoryx. Which sounds sketchy.  Related to Deep Sky maybe?

Graham Green's interruption, which is certainly going to be relevant to one of the final episodes:

"Greetings, Graham Crackers! Today, a private citizen pledged a donation to the museum that will change the course of human history. At closing night, 7:00 p.m., main stage, I will unveil the most astonishing alien artifact I've seen in all my years of collecting."

Michael chases down Flint Manes, uses his powers to puncture his tire, disarm him, and toss him to the ground.

Isobel and Rosa discussing Helena:

"This is the post-high school chapter, which is really just a big burn book on my mom. Finding out my dad wasn't my dad was bad. It was Liz's senior year when I dumped my drug dealer boyfriend, and I went to this NA meeting. I think that was the first time that I ever actually wanted to get better. But still, I wore a hoodie, I sat in the back, I made myself really invisible. I was...high at the meeting. You can see it if you want to. Jump in."

What Helena says in Rosa's flashback:

"The drinking started when the man I loved left me. That was almost 20 years ago. And I still see him every day. I see him in the street, in my business, but I can handle that. What I can't handle is when I see him in our daughter's eyes. Sometimes I think if we didn't have a child together, I might not hurt so much all these years later. I might not still love him, but I do today. So I drink, and I take pills. And I try not to look my daughter in the eye."

Back to present: 

"Why did you want to show me that?"

"I cannot relate to marrying a body-stealing alien sociopath. You're kind of on your own for that one. But I know that you're feeling messed up over not knowing your real mom. And I guess I just feel like it's worth saying that I wish I knew mine a little bit less."

Note: Again, how does Rosa know any of Isobel's identity issues? I guess we're supposed to assume that either Liz told her about it all, or that she and Isobel are having long, deep, phone conversations on the side?  Because everything that happened with Isobel trying to learn about Louise happened while Rosa was in rehab. 

The Spanish:

"Javi, la migra. Cuídate. Te llamo mas tarde."

Javi, immigration. Beware. I'll call you later.

The ICE officer from 2x10 comes into the Crashdown, threatens, and insults Liz. Liz first tries to get them to leave by offering them free coffee to go, and then the floodgates open and she starts fighting them.  Diego finally convinces them to leave by telling them that the Acting Director of U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement is a personal friend. At least the jackass learned how to pronounce her name properly since last episode!  I don't really want to transcribe their insults so I'm gonna leave it at that summary, though if you need me to, just send me an ask.

Kyle and Max search Flint's house. Key points:

Inconsistency! Max's hands are bare when he picks the lock to break into the house, but then he puts gloves on (off camera) when he's searching. But if the point was to avoid fingerprints he just left them all over the door!

Kyle finds a thumb drive that catches his attention for some reason. It's labeled Yucca Blooms LTD. Just as a side point, the Yucca flower is the state flower of New Mexico.

Max finds something in the trash that catches his attention, but we don't see what it is until the end of the episode. 

They get interrupted by a car pulling up and hide in the closet (paralleling Liz and Kyle hiding in the closet in 2x04).

Max finds the sniper rifle in the closet, which was shooting at him and Charlie when they rescued Cam in 2x08. (But Max shot the sniper...just a point.)

Kyle says Max smells like rain.

Kyle spots the hunting van pulling away from Flint's house.

I lied, you can see Max pull the box from the trash can.

Rosa calls Helena's house to hear her mom's voice.  Dirk answers & says:

"Helena? Helena is that you baby? Oh if it is please come home. We've been so worried. I love you so much. If this is the bastard that took her, I hope you rot in hell, you son of a bitch."

Note: why would Rosa have Helena's phone number? That is such a silly plot point. They wouldn't let her see Helena in 2x07 so why would they let her have her phone number? Why would she WANT it? This one kind of bugs me.

In the car driving back to Roswell, Rosa speculates that Helena was abducted leaving town.  Either that or she bailed on her family.

Rosa says she's not done with rehab and wants to go back once they know her mom is ok. Isobel actually seems concerned and asks if she wants to stay longer. Rosa wants to stay until she's better.

Isobel on money, answering one of fandom's oldest questions:

"Listen, Noah was a treacherous, serial-killing alien, but he did have a happy knack for day trading. And… I've been trying to figure out what to do with all that money he left behind...I want to be better too. The more that I learn about Louise, the more I want to be like her. She was a good person and she made a difference. Someone told me recently that they saw a lot of her in me. I really want that to be true."

They stop at the junkyard since Michael is not responding to Isobel. Which...doesn't seem all that out of character for him?

Michael and Flint chatting while Michael violently tortures him:

"So this is the perk of being a weapons specialist, huh?"

"If this is your attempt to convince me that you aren't a horde of violent invaders here to colonize a planet that isn't yours, I mean, you're doing a really bang-up job."

"You know, I was a good kid. I wanted to be an agricultural engineer. Maybe have a couple kids, start a dad band. But then I was provoked. And now I'm this. Maybe there's still hope for you. Your brother Gregory's living a peaceful life teaching kids, staying jacked on the res. And Alex…"

"Alex is a traitor. He'll be court-martialed when this is over."

"So he's still alive?"

"You were early."

"What are you talking about?"

"You know, my father demanded a meeting. I had just left Sanders' Auto."

"If you hurt that old man!"

"I wouldn't touch him. Okay? He's a hard-working American. I was just leaving you a note. And I took Alex because I knew it was the best way to get you to cooperate. Alex will be fine as long as you do what I say. If you disobey,  make my day any worse, Alex will die knowing you are the reason. So why don't you untie me and apologize. We'll go from there."

Note that this scene is where we learn the source of the fractal burns.

Diego's last pitch to Liz:

"Listen, Genoryx invests in their people. You are valuable. I'm sure they'll sponsor Arturo's path to citizenship if you just sign on. In the meantime, you can work in a sanctuary city."

Max and Liz's fight:

"Kyle and I connected butyricol to Flint Manes. So I called Alex's other brother Greg, and he said that Flint has this property outside of town. He drives a massive hunting van, Liz. He was the sniper the night we found Cameron."

"Have you called Alex?"

"No, Kyle's on it, but there's something else. I found this in Flint's trash."

"This is the box my dad kept my abuelita's ring in until my mom stole it."

"I got the ring back, but she kept the box."

"Rosa called earlier. She was worried about Mom. I said that she probably just bailed like she always does. Okay, if Flint used Jenna to get to Charlie because Charlie builds bioweapons, what does he want with my mom?"

"Maybe he's trying to get to another bioengineering genius."

"Well, that's not gonna work. I don't care about her… Max, what's going on? You're being cold."

"This is a serious conversation."

"No, don't do that. What's going on?"

"I know Maria left yesterday. I saw her and Mimi off from the Wild Pony. So I know you didn't spend last night helping her process. And you certainly didn't spend last night here. I didn't push it this morning because I trust you, and everyone's entitled to their secrets."

"If this is about Diego you're way off base."

"I wish this was about Diego. Why is Kyle locked out of your lab? Why did you tell me that no one's accepting your applications when you've turned down two research grant offers? I found the papers in my trash."

"Because I don't want to go back to that. Okay? I brought you back to life and now I don't want to go back to worms and mice and rats and hoping maybe my work will help some other scientist revolutionize medicine decades from now."

"What kind of work are you doing, exactly?"

"I'm developing a rapid treatment for a rare blood disease. Kyle's girlfriend is sick and I want to help repay him for what he's done for us."

"So this is just about Kyle's girlfriend and then it's over?"

"If I can cure her, the possibilities are endless. I can adjust it for other illnesses.

"Adjust what exactly? Alien DNA? Liz, my God. Like, let's say you're right and you find some miracle cure-all in alien spinal fluid and then that information falls into the wrong hands?"

"It won't because it's in my hands. Max, I love you, I love your family. I am asking you to trust me with this."

"No you're not asking me anything. You haven't asked me about any of this. You just got caught in a string of lies."

"I guess it sucks, huh? When your partner doesn't include you in major, life-altering decisions?"

"Are you angry at me for bringing your sister back?"

Not gonna lie, I laughed out loud when Rosa walks in at this moment.  When, literally, another alien brings Rosa back." Rosa & Isobel's reveal:

"Well, there is new information."

"We found this on Michael's trailer."

"Flint didn't abduct my mother. This is Helena's handwriting. They're working together."

Just one more little detail about the note... It's the same Roswell postcard that Cam's fake note from Charlie came on in 2x04. Different handwriting though.

Kyle and Steph:

"Is it true? Have you been stealing from the hospital?"

"Steph…"

"Yeah. #nofilter. I can't get my hands to work lately, which makes getting the top off my makeup kind of hard. But we can talk about eye shadow after you answer me. Have you been siphoning hospital resources for God knows what?"

"It's not that simple. Yes, I've gone against hospital policy to treat people who can't get health care."

"Yeah well, this isn't a victimless crime, Kyle. My dad. He's been getting so much heat about supply shortages. His personal genome machine getting stolen out from under his nose. Do you know how much it's costing him to keep me alive right now? How much it would cost if he lost his fancy insurance?"

"I hadn't thought about that. I'm gonna return everything. That's why I'm here right now. To apologize. And to say goodbye. I am definitely going to lose my job, and after I confess to everything they're definitely gonna press criminal charges."

"Yeah well, your mom's the sheriff."

"And if you'd met her you'd know that means I'm really screwed. I wish you'd met her. She'd really love you. Goodbye Steph."

"Show up for your shift tomorrow...Yeah the thing about dying? Your dad's willing to do whatever it takes to make you happy. And I don't want you to lose your job, so."

"I don't know what to say."

"Don't. I'm still mad at you. Close the door on your way out."

Helena and Michael after she injects him:

"It's a special drug developed at Caulfield. It won't harm you at all, but you won't be able to use any telekinesis until it wears off. It'll keep you honest."

"I want to see Alex."

"Oh, you will. After you build me this bomb."

MUSIC:

Note, normally I get my music list straight from the source - the show's music supervisor shares it on Twitter @cmollere. But he didn't share this week because politics. So this week I pulled it from here:

Pasado Es Pasado - LMS

Makeup Counter Girl - Powerslide

Summer's Over - Pillbox

Just a Human, Being Human - Joey Sykes

The Last Man in Tujunga - I See Hawks in L.A.

Matter of Fact - BUVA

Take Me Someplace - Joey Sykes

Fade Out - Vicious Kiss

It's Easier to Run Away - Joey Sykes

[lesbiedykes]

aY’all wanna hear an AU I have for Carmen Sandiego? No? Well I’m gonna rant anyway. 

TLDR; V.I.L.E. is a Coven of Vampires.... more under the cut. Warning: goes not extremely explicit but does get dark, and contains spoilers for season 2. 

AU Where VILE is a coven of vampires. These vampires are the stereotypical vampires. They cannot walk in sunlight, fire and silver are dangerous to them. They need sleep albeit not as much as humans. They can eat human food, but it tastes bad. Ultimately, vampires can only be made, not born (or so they believed...) 

Approximately 400 years ago (1600′s), Gunnar Maelstrom was reborn into his new life as a Vampire. A noble in his human life, he was soon hunted down by vampire hunters when they realised he had stopped ageing. He is forced to flee and live in the shadows, resentment growing. He spends a century wreaking havoc upon humanity, a gory murder spree that soon bores him. He wishes to return to his life of luxury. 

In the early 1700′s, he meets Dexter Wolfe, a talented human thief who manages to rob a group of wealthy individuals blind, making off with their property. Maelstrom is witness to this and follows Wolfe. Wolfe is homeless and stealing to survive, but strives for more. He and Maelstrom strike a deal, and Wolfe is turned into a vampire by Maelstrom. 

Maelstrom and Wolfe, for a few years, work as a team. They travel the world, stealing whatever the need to live lavishly. In the late 1700′s, they meet Countess Cleo. She is from a fairly wealthy family and knows much about high society, culture, and art. While they were attempting to rob her, she discovered their secret and then asked to join them. They agreed, due to her valuable skills. 

They meet Saira Bellum soon after, an absolute genius for her time. Cleo falls in love with her immediately. The group is impressed with her abilities, and decides to welcome her into their fold. Together they sail to the New World in the 1800′s, where they meet Brunt, a widow put on trial for murdering her husband, who would be sentenced to death. Maelstrom takes an interest in her, and decides to turn her. 

The five of them continue to travel for another couple decades, before finally deciding to open V.I.L.E. Academy with their accumulated wealth, and expand their coven. 

Each year, they would accept forty students from across the world. Any promising thief could attend and at the end of the year, 15 students would pass. Because the transformation into Vampire was potentially fatal and only the strongest could survive, usually only 5-8 agents survived each year. Those who died during transformation are disposed of and those who survived wake up to an unquenchable thirst, and participate in their first hunt - their old classmates, set loose on the island. (This would, after all, keep V.I.L.E. a secret, two birds with one stone.) 

Shadowsan/Suhara was raised to be an actual samurai, deflected days before his first battle and stealing one of his brother’s (who was a samurai) swords. He eventually makes it to V.I.L.E. island, where he is amongst the graduating class and the survivors of the transformation. 

Flash forward over 150 years. Dexter Wolfe has grown bored of the island, taking off constantly to explore the world once more. His absences grow more and more frequent. The faculty, his coven, are deeply betrayed believing he might be attempting to run away, and send Shadowsan to kill him. 

Shadowsan tracks Wolfe down to Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he sees that Wolfe is intending to run, and.... has a child? Which surely, should be impossible - but it’s not. 

Recovering from his shock, Shadowsan plans on killing Wolfe, but is stopped when the police arrive on a raid. He watches as Wolfe puts his daughter in a closet, talks sweetly to her to calm her down, and takes off. Chief shoots Wolfe, which would have been fatal if he were not a vampire. 

Shadowsan prepares to do damage control - kill all witnesses, after dealing with the target. He begins the fire in the house, planning to move outside afterwards. What he does not expect is for Wolfe, upon seeing the flames, to run back into the house to save her daughter. (Oh, how his teacher has changed.) 

Shadowsan takes the girl and gets out of the house just as the roof collapses. Knowing there’s no way for Wolfe to have survived that, he opts to return to V.I.L.E. without taking out the police. 

Shadowsan takes credit for Wolfe’s death and for bringing Black Sheep back to the island. They puzzle over her existence and have Bellum run a few tests that prove she really is half vampire. This being completely unprecedented, they decide to raise her and study her, with the plan to make her their secret weapon. 

Through her youth, Black Sheep shows little to no signs of her Vampire lineage. She eats human food and runs around in the daytime (although the sun may hurt her eyes, at times), and grows at the rate of a normal human child. She does seem a bit faster and more agile, but that could just be the fact she was raised by professional thieves. Because of this, the faculty keeps the vampire thing a secret from her, which she generally accepts. 

Things continue as they do in canon, with her getting in contact with Player, requesting to attend the academy, and failing (although she does not get fed to her passing classmates, talk about preferential treatment). She follows them out on their mission and has the same realisation about stealing. She is surprised to see that her classmates have changed, but she cannot describe how or why. 

She is returned to the island and eventually makes a break for it after stealing the hard drive. Things continue as normal. She meets Ivy and Zack and they join her, the has multiple successful capers.... 

And then she gets sick. 

Her vampire awakening as truly struck. Carmen spends a few days writhing in pain, mimicking an actual transformation. When she comes out of it, she is bloodthirsty. She tackles the first person she finds on the street and begins to drink their blood. 

Carmen comes to just as the person looses consciousness, and she’s left with a limp body she rushes to emergency. Carmen rightfully panics, having no idea what has happened to her. Player does his best to research, coming up with only urban legends about vampires. They both agree its ridiculous and instead agree that VILE most likely did something to her to make her like this. She continues her missions, fighting the desire for blood. She is also suddenly more sensitive to sunlight (though not nearly as much as a full vampire) and has lost part of her appetite for human food. 

When Chase is taken prisoner and used for bait, she saves him and is almost killed by Brunt. Shadowsan saves her and reveals that he is the one who found her, and that she is half vampire. He gives her a kinda half-assed explanation about her past and tells her that V.I.L.E. is indeed a Vampire Coven. He leaves her with the hard drive and a bottle of pills. 

The pills are an imitation blood substitute that vampires can add to beverages and drink to survive between feedings. They were invented by Bellum for the operatives to drink to reduce the need for blood. Carmen, not being a full vampire even after her transformation, wouldn’t need to drink them as often, but they help the cravings. 

Meanwhile: 

ACME does not know they are hunting Vampires. They genuinely believe it’s just a large criminal organisation. Chase, however.... is a descendent of a long line of vampire hunters, and believes that Carmen is a vampire before she even began to wake up as one. While the claims feel ridiculous, he is still the only agent that has managed to get close to Carmen Sandiego, so ACME wants him on their side. 

I have more but I’m tired so maybe I’ll add more tomorrow. If you read this far, thanks!!! 

[queenmarissa]

Yuletide Joy | Self Paragraph

This was the first Christmas that Marissa was absolutely concious for, that she was really present for. She had spent so many holidays up until this point in a world of her own; delierious and swimming in her own loneliness and insanity. All of those holidays that had past... She looked back on them now, as she was stood on the balcony watching the sunrise above the horizon, and she wondered how she survived them all. There were some where she never meant to survive... Only two years ago, on this day, at this very hour she was stood on the subway station platform. Waiting. Waiting for the right train, but not to get onto it. To get away; for good. 

Now, she was here. On a ship in Greece, living each day as it came and learning how to love again. She was facing her demons, quite literally stepping toe to toe with them. With her. Her brow furrowed as she thought of the blonde that ruined her. Delilah. How could she hate someone so much, and yet continue to love them all the same? It caused so much pain inside her, this toxic flurry of feelings that she had no control over because she didn’t want to love Delilah anymore. She didn’t want to feel like this. She wished, more than anything, that she could shut off every single thought that tried to penetrate her mind that was remotely connected to Delilah Fucking Daniels,

But, like it or not, at this point in her life they were so deeply and devastatingly linked. Of course, Marissa was her own person, her own woman, and of course she was still adament in the fact that she would never run back to her... It was impossible to deny the fact that, without Delilah, she wouldn’t be this person now though. For good as well as all the bad. If it wasn’t for Delilah, she would still be working herself to an early grave; she would still be relentless, cut-throat, a bitch. The woman that her own Mother stepped away from and never wanted to hear from again. 

Delilah taught her how to take a break. Delilah taught her how to relax, how to love. Then, as everyone who has ever had anything to do with Marissa knows, broke her completely. She took every single strand of Riss and sliced through it with the sharpest knife possible. And now? Now she was actually alive? Now she realised that that hurt was... Was misplaced? Was preventable? Well, now that knife feels lodged between her shoulder blades, carving deep into her back.

Yet she was still here. On Christmas Day morning... Thinking about her. Obsessing. Would she ever be able to not? What would it take? At this point, she had no idea. She had no idea what it would take to snap this connection between the two of them. It wasn’t even anything to do with wanting her back anymore, it wasn’t... It wasn’t like what she wasted so many of her years hallucinating, It was just this... This thing she couldn’t quite explain. This thing that made guilt flood her in her moments of solitude. So, as much as she could, she hadn’t been letting that happen. She’d been keeping busy, focused... But, the holidays were always so hard. 

Her eyes drifted from the horizon down the side of the ship. No-one else seemed to be awake; all blinds shut, all lights out. It felt like she was the only one in the world awake. She sighed quietly and hung her head for a moment, closing her eyes and letting the sea breeze rinse through her hair. She wondered whether today would have been any easier if she still believed that Delilah was dead. She wondered whether she’d feel quite as guilty for thinking about her then... She wondered if things would make more sense. Honestly, she wasn’t sure it would... And that terrified her. Because, if she couldn’t leave the past in the past with her dead, if she can’t with her alive-- was she destined to plauge some section of her thoughts for the rest of her life? Could she deal with that? Could they? 

Her heart sank a little as she felt a few tears push out of the corner of her eyes and roll down her cheeks. She swallowed. Closed her eyes. She breathed in slowly, counting to eight and then holding in the breath before releasing it and counting down from the same number. She opened her eyes again and looked up, just as the sun was fully up over the horizon. It’s orange rays bounced and reflected wavy lines off of their home; the ocean. The sun still rose. Even on the darkest days of her life; the sun still rose because it can’t stay dark forever... Right? That was what her therapist had once said. Use the sun. Remember it’s there. Remember it always comes back, just sometimes the night is a little longer than normal... But the sun always comes back.

She sniffled a little and nodded as she sucked her lips in a took one more deep, shaky breath. Then, she looked back inside the bedroom and saw Nic and Cleo sleeping soundly, bundled up in each other’s arms and she smiled. That weight that had felt strapped around her heart thinking about the blonde lightened as she looked at her blondes. At her partners. Her partners in life. For life. 

A few more tears fell, but these were different ones. It was like this sudden realisation that just hit all at once and almost winded her. She would have probably fallen back into a chair if one had been nearby. She was looking in at her bedroom; their bedroom. She was looking in a her lovers. Looking into a space that she felt safe in, that had all of her stuff in, in the place where she lived... That she had a family in. Where her best friends were... For the first time as she watched them sleep, it really just hit her... I’m not alone anymore... 

“I’m not alone.”.

She wasn’t sure how long she was stood out there watching quietly, but the next time she really paid attention to the world the sun was almost entirely in the sky, A little bundle of joy burst through the door and ran through into the bedroom, jumping up and down before jumping up onto the bed and bouncing Cleo and Nicola awake. That weight that had been around her heart? It had been replaced with... Wings... There was nothing inside her but... Love.... She smiled. She smiled and she swallowed as all three sets of eyes came to the balcony. Riss took a single moment, just to remember this... Just to bask in it.

Then she came in to her family... She smiled and laughed as her daughter jumped impatiently up and down on the bed, as her lovers sleepily chuckled too. She picked Dela up and spun around with her before falling back down onto the bed with the others. There were no thoughts of anyone, or anything other than this... Other than them. Nothing... Just her family. 

Her people.

[nincompoopydoo]

Trouble Man

Pairing: Sam Wilson x reader Words: 1.5k Summary: You and Sam Wilson are neighbors. Never spoke a word a to one another but somewhat developed an unhealthy crush on each other. As a series of unfortunate events that began with the burning of spaghetti, you find yourself entangled in a mess of the appreciation for Marvin Gaye and your fear of cockroaches with the very man himself. Note: Oooo an unrequested Sam Wilson one shot? Yeap, that’s right darlings. Been wanting to write one for awhile now. Not exactly my best but it’s alright. Cute cute and fluffy stuff. Enjoy xo [ REWRITTEN ON 14/08/2021 ] Masterlist

Spaghetti. Should be easy enough.

Ah, words of the once optimist, now turned depressing pessimist. You told yourself that with a rather annoying cheery voice that echoed in your head before everything went swooping down the metaphorical hill and into the trash. You don’t do too well with simple distractions, for what you first thought was to lighten up the mood in your gloomy kitchen by singing along to an ultimate Marvin Gaye playlist.

Much to your embarrassment, you may have forgotten how sound travels far too easily, with the kitchen window opened for the whole neighborhood to hear your lovely singing. Someone might call the police, either out of spite of your contribution to noise pollution or they might think someone was being murdered, muffled by soul music.

The plate of Spaghetti stares at you mockingly from the kitchen counter, strands grazed in an odd shade of brown. Spaghetti is not supposed to be that shade of brown. With a pathetic scowl upon your lips, you gaze at the plate, wishing it smelled as good as it did. The thought of eating resides in your mind, wondering if you should just close your nose and power through the dish itself until you’re sick or throw it in the trash and feed several stray cats of D.C. when it reaches the landfill. By the looks of it, the cats probably don’t even want to eat it anyway.

You worked at a hamburger joint downtown for heaven’s sake; cooking hamburgers might as well be your only decent skill. Nevertheless, with a heavy sigh, you plopped the spaghetti into the trash. The plastic bag unceremoniously crinkles at impact as you fight back a wince.

So much for coming home early to prepare dinner. For yourself. Damn, you’re lonely. And as far as you’re concerned, only lonely people deserve microwaved leftovers from a week ago that have been sitting in the fridge for far too long. Overhead, Cleo's Apartment begins to play.

Goddamn it, Marvin Gaye.

Minutes ago, Sam Wilson had returned home from the VA, and through the jingles of his keys whilst unlocking his front door, the familiar tune of What’s Going On glides its way to his ears, ringing with the melody of your singing. He knows it’s you because as much as you don’t realize it, you sing in the kitchen very often. It’s unpleasant but he doesn’t complain because your taste in music speaks to him on another level, another plane of existence. Ever since you moved in after the previous owner passed, you had his whole heart with a single glance and a shy wave.

Courage was easy, having built that up during his military days. Yet, now that’s over, he finds himself forgetting his technique in approaching beautiful people. Deep down he knows it. Sam needs to try to talk to you. Just talking, not asking you out. That’s too much, for now.

His analytical side itches to take over—he needs a plan because walking up to your doorstep and hoping to spark up some sort of sudden conversation with you isn’t going to turn out well. So, he maps it out in his head, playing each possible scenario like he always does in bed, half-awake, wishing he had the guts to talk to you when he bumped into you at the grocery store or at the hamburger joint you work at. Coincidences usually don’t play out in his favor so, forcing it sounds like it would have a better outcome. He will wait until it’s 9:30, there’s a possibility you will be taking out the trash. Then, he’ll make his move. Hopefully.

Totally not creepy.

—

Sometimes, the universe listens. It especially listens to the thoughts of the lonely and then, some supernatural cosmic decision is made to guide two lonely beings to each other. It’s rare but happens. People call it fate. Now, fate seems to work in tandem with a certain man named Sam, who has fallen for his neighbor, who seems to feel the same way.

There’s hardly any rubbish in the trash bag within his grasp but he makes it a point to walk across the lawn despite the humidity in hopes of seeing you. Then, he hears the creaking of your front door swinging open and slamming shut. Though, all attempts to act casual fails when he ignores his previous resistance to turn and glance your way.

There you were, in an oversized Shania Twain shirt paired with track shorts—it’s very short. I mean, it’s summer after all. No one’s complaining. He’s certainly not complaining. His breath hitches when you meet his gaze, smiling sheepishly. Sam wonders if your cheeks are always this crimson and rosy. You smile, intending to hide your growing blush, heat blooming in your chest as you admire how he looks under the yellow hues of the street light, beautifully carving the structure of his face.

Then, the impossible happened.

“So, you like Marvin Gaye?” he spoke with a little too much enthusiasm. You looked at him with a wide-eyed gaze, completely caught off guard by his sudden question. Your mind is now only filled with the panic of him hearing you sing—it’s your biggest fear. Sam realizes his question may have been a little too obstructive in terms of privacy. Bad idea, really bad idea. “Sorry, just forget I ever said that. I didn’t mean to—"

"No, no. I mean, yeah, I do like Marvin Gaye. I love Marvin Gaye actually,” you cut him off in a somewhat desperate attempt to not scare him off because, in truth, you really want to talk to him. You have been meaning to for a while now. You purse your lips, deciding that elaboration is worth the risk, “Trouble Man is one of my favorites."

It’s risky because it’s an unpopular opinion and the irrational side of you is afraid that because of your weird and maybe obscure taste in music might as well turn him off. Yet, he’s not running now. Instead, Sam blinks, mouth slightly agape. A sentence runs through his mind, a quiet voice, a whisper: I think I might marry you if you don’t stop being so perfect.

Sam beams at you, "You like Trouble Man?” he asks, voice laced with amusement.

You return a smile, “Yeah, I do. It’s probably the best—OH MY GOD—” Your sudden scream cuts through the white noise of the night like a searing knife when you spot a cockroach crawling up the trash can. You dropped the trash bag on the ground and started to stagger backward.

Sam feels bad for laughing.

“Hey! Quit laughing and help me get rid of it,” you shriek, watching the insect crawl around with a mortified look. Sam snorts at your sudden burst of command. "Okay, okay. But I’m not killing it.” Turns out that isn’t enough to calm your nerves and your fear of cockroaches. “Excuse me, sir, you HAVE to slay the beast!” you yelled dramatically. He chuckles with great amusement, swiftly plucking it with his bare hands before it could run, “Now, let’s not murder our new friend here, Bernie.” He watches your face morph into an unamused look, “Bernie? Like the politician?” Sam merely hums, “Yeah. Like the politician.”

Then, he’s walking towards you, purposefully dangling poor Bernie within his grasp. You stagger in your step, yelping at the sight of Sam nearing you. “Alright, alright. I’ll get rid of Bernie,” he says through attempted suppressed laughs, flicking Bernie across the road. You can finally breathe but your eyes remain wide. “And what if he comes back?”

Sam turns to you as you return to stand at your original spot as you cautiously scan the trash bin for any more unwanted pests. He notices a stray strand of your hair, falling against your cheek. He resists the urge to push back behind your ear, reminding himself to stay casual and stay cool. "Well, you know where to find me.” He sends a somewhat smooth wink your way. You go absolutely red.

Silence once again and the two of you have seemed to have caught yourselves in some awkward dance of pining and wanting to be close to each other. Then, Sam clears his throat, deciding to speak first before he misses the opportunity once more. “I was wondering if you wanna, you know, uh, come by for a drink sometime?” It’s a simple question, really. But, Sam doesn’t know why you make him so nervous. Maybe, it’s because you’re looking at him like you can see right through him. His mind starts to wonder, overthinking once more. “I mean, if you don’t drink, it’s okay. We can have something else. I have orange juice, I think. Snacks?—”

“Now?” you stop his rambling, feeling your brain equally shutting down because you’re very confused about the whole situation. Sam pauses, slightly hesitant, “Yeah, sure. If you want to. I mean, you have work tomorrow and it’s late and—”

“Yeah, that’ll be great.” you interrupt him again, the curve of your lips widening by the second. “And maybe, we could listen to some Marvin Gaye.” You don’t exactly know what you meant or hinted but neither does he, too distracted to notice the context of your words because you’re here, smiling at him.

[lanamemories2]

clip clops in on horseback wearing a pointy little dunces hat n sipping frm a rly long crazy straw tht says ‘goblin’ w all of the swirls. Hlo. i’m nai n it’s rly nice to meet u all!!! 23 n she/ha pronouns. i’m one of the three admins here (cleo lazuli on the main) n i’m literally So Excited to get started i cld honestly beat my chest like caesar the ape over it. more abt lana under the cut!!! also like this or hmu if u wna plot n her pinterest is here 👺🌚 

『KRISTINE FROSETH ❙ CIS-FEMALE』 ⟿ looks like LANA JAMESON is here for HER JUNIOR year as a DANCE student. SHE is 21 years old & known to be VIVACIOUS, ALLURING, CHILDISH & IMPULSIVE. They’re living in NOLAND, so if you’re there, watch out for them. ⬳ NAI. 23. GMT. SHE/HER.

AESTHETICS: 

scalding your fingers in shower water until they glow like rudolph’s nose, cherry red gym socks tugged high and nothing else, stepping out into a cold breeze in just spaghetti strapped silk, a red lightening stripe painted over your eye like a new take on the scarlet letter, crowning each finger with a miniature raspberry, hugging a knee close to lick a stripe of fruit juice off the bruised cap, doodling penises in condensation instead of sitting still, a water pistol topped with rum and covered in glittery pin-up stickers, believable smiles that feel more like baring teeth, playing where’s waldo with your lipstick in the crowd of a party and finding red on at least six people’s mouths, a bumper sticker on the back of a convertible cadillac that says ‘SCRAPPY DOO IS A FILTHY SLUT’, prancing around in your underwear to a vinyl record with the curtains open. 

HISTORY:

lana grew up in a big house in albany, NY. i picture it w dark oak floors n lots of light furniture. albums framed on walls. mayb some rolling stone covers too frm way bk when of the bands her dad’s label signed. kind of like… a rock star palace w no evidence of children at all. i think i described it best in one of lana’s self paras once when i said the garden ws “as big as it was unloved”

lana’s mum victoria (vic) ws a music journalist w a pretty fruitful career ahead of her when she met lana’s dad richard (rich). his record label ws jst starting out, founded on the coattails of his rich best friend’s (jensen peters) investment w his other best friend (who he jst calls knoxville). it rocketed to success when they signed poppy injects, a rock band w an electric stage presence, n victoria ws drawn to the glitz n glamour of a man tht ws at the helm of his aspiring industry. their love ws very impulsive, all or nothing right frm the start, n it ws almost like she ws mre in love w his accomplishments n what he represented than him. jst a leetle bit Fractured in its intentions.

anyway so jameson records repped a few big rock bands bk in the eighties, altho poppy injects r who they’re mostly known fr, namely bc of hw brightly they crashed n burned. they were a big chart success bt the lead singer hd quite an intense struggle w heroin (wsnt rly subtle abt it either while he ws in the public eye as u cn probably imagine frm such an on-the-nose band name) n he ws always in n out of the papers. it eventually brought down his career n it ws a big publicity nightmare

lana pretty much… grew up around figures like this throughout childhood. rly troubled characters who wld kind of… b extremely volatile n destructive abt their troubles. the jameson house was kind of an open one as welcoming clients went n a lot of parties took place there. a lot of the time musicians wld b snorting lines in the kitchen when she wnted to grab a bowl of cereal fr breakfast n it was just. a very strange environment fr a child to grow up in

her parents always kind of jst… didn’t like her much. her older brother caleb ws unplanned bt they sort of welcomed the surprise more bt… quickly realised they weren’t cut out fr parenthood n then when lana came as another surprise 3 yrs later they didn’t even try to hide their resentment abt the situation. her mum ws actually booked in to have an abortion bt cldnt go through with it at the last minute. once when lana asked her why shes so cold towards her she jst turned her head frm her dresser, looked at her, told her abt this n said “idk why i didn’t go”. lana didn’t kno wht to say to tht so she jst left her room n closed the door

(dissociation tw) bc of this growing up lana adopted this weird like…. she didn’t rly kno what it ws bt it ws a delusion of sorts where she thought she ws a ghost. she’d jst sort of… drift around the halls w noone acknowledging her n sometimes she ws jst convinced she wsnt actually there or they cldnt see her n she ws jst haunting the house frm a previous family

the one saving grace tho tht sort of?? gt her thru this n made her feel Seen ws caleb. lana quite genuinely hs always thought the sun shines out of her older brothers ass like she jst thinks. hes the best person in the entire world. wld b rly bewildered if anyone questioned tht. he wld always look out for her in the zoo they called a home n cut the crusts off her sandwiches (he’d cook fr them most of the time bc their parents were too busy/didn’t care to) n sometimes wld even sleep at the bottom of her bed curled up like a guard dog. it ws always lana n caleb n his best friend tommy against the world in tht house (tommy lived next door n was always over bc he had very strict parents including a military father tht he found suffocating)

SO when caleb n tommy announced tht they’d signed up to the army lana ws understandably…….. completely blindsided. she ws rly upset tht they were leaving bt she tried not to b mad at them n made them promise theyd b safe n back as soon as possible. she even asked if they cld somehow take her w them n they were jst like :/ it doesn’t work that way luv x

(death tw, ptsd tw, grief tw, trauma tw, hospitalisation tw, drugs tw) anyway caleb ended up getting discharged under grounds of severe ptsd when he witnessed tommy die in an explosion tht took place in a shock raid. caleb returned home sans tommy bt he was never the same after tht. he’s been in and out of hospital twice nw n he’s currently dipped off the radar after starting to use. lana kind of felt like two of her brothers died out there in a way n jst like tht it wasn’t them vs the world any mre, it was jst her. she doesn’t talk abt this tho. when she feels the urge to cry she usually jst smiles

ANYWAY whew tht rly…. took a dark turn there….. chuckles nervously at hw sad lana’s life is bt it’s fine it’s all fINE!!!!!!! ok. so on a mre lighthearted note the jameson family r pretty well off n bc of her relation to such a big music industry figure she’s hung out w a fair few relatively high rep ppl thru her teens. mostly kids of celebrities n stuff like tht. she amassed kind of an instagram following mainly fr her style (v penny lane-esque in some aspects aka lots of fur cuff trimmed jackets bt then also jst…. a wild combination of everything honestly. pastel faux fur coats, seventies style platforms, flame red cowboy boots, pink fishnet tights n glitter used like highlight Everywhere) n bc she’s undeniably Very Pretty

(trauma tw) after caleb got back he was rly withdrawn n depressed. he shut lana out n was kind of harsh to her a lot of the time, always telling her to leave him alone or pushing her away. it didnt help either tht lana had a rly traumatic experience w some of her dad’s colleagues at the label when she ws 16 n he was away n she cldnt even tell him abt it once he was bk bc of his own traumas. she kind of jst shut it all in n kept it to herself

(hypersexuality tw) this obviously?? made her spiral a lot. she was already a girl tht loved sex (she’d only rly done foreplay before tho) but since her trauma it got…. completely out of hand. it got to a point where she couldnt rly go 2 days without it, probably not even 1. her lowest point has probably been scrolling thru craiglist for anonymous encounters n meeting up w strangers on there fr a quick fuck jst for the thrill even tho it’s insanely dangerous n she cld wind up getting herself killed. it’s v clear at this point tht she has a sex addiction whether she’s ever admitted it or not. it kind of… almost mingled w tht same feeling she used to get when she ws younger of being a ghost?? like she jst. only rly feels Real when she’s being touched

(violence tw) a mre recent point of history is her involvement w danny nielsen (an evil npc of mine who is possibly the antichrist??? pending investigation). he attended radcliffe n lived in a house w a group of guys near campus. it wsn’t a registered frat bt he essentially…ran it like one it ws kind of a weird set-up where he ws the King Of The Roost. essentially he found out tht lana n a guy called zeke slept together n he ended up beating him to near death in front of her bc his pride ws rly bruised since they were meant to be dating (if u can call it tht bc danny’s idea of dating is very Warped). ANYWAY he ws found guilty n sent to jail so it ws like Intense n a gd example of the kinds of disastrous relationships she gets herself into. perks of being a wallflower voice: We Accept The Love We Think We Deserve.

PERSONALITY:

always smells vaguely of wild cherries or strawberry starburst or jst the candy aisle in general. if she ws a vinyl record she’d b this one n she’d only play good vibrations by the beach boys, dancing on my own by robyn, play that funky music by wild cherry, femme fatale by the velvet underground n (i can’t get no) satisfaction by the rolling stones 

growing up lana was always a huge social butterfly. knew everyone n everyone knew her. she ws one of those girls tht ws kind of impossible to ignore or forget. very animated, always made u feel like u were the centre of the universe whenever she spoke to u, always made it feel like u were best friends even if ud only spoken to her once. 

deliberately puts on tht kind of Magnetic Alluring Act tht femme fatales wear in movies w most ppl. kind of…. is always playing A Role of the person tht she wants to b seen as. chameleons to situations. feels like she’s performed as the vivacious n fun loving Lana Jameson fr so long tht she doesn’t rly kno who she is beneath tht bt she isn’t too keen to find out

she’s always been rly spontaneous n adventurous. always doing something weird n wild every weekend. she has ten thousand ridiculously absurd n chaotic stories

uncontrollably flirty. boundlessly confident. cld make a joke out a paper bag n her comedy is sometimes surreal / absurd. she tends to laugh when she feels like crying n has a smile brighter than a ray of texas sunshine. 

always dapples her fingers thru the breeze when she’s driving in a car w the window down. she almost always has some sort of sweet on her, whether it’s sour haribo cherries or strawberry lollipops. 

she adores david bowie n prince n madonna n anyone tht’s a vintage style icon w little care fr what ppl think. 

daisies n poppies r her fav flowers bc daisies r wild n overlooked n poppies r the first thing u look at in a green field. she’s had like 8472493874 ‘relationships’ n none of them hav lasted beyond a month / hav been terrible / hav seen her being treated badly / she’s cheated on them. i dnt think she’s actually ever been w anyone she hasn’t cheated on in some form or another

PLOTS:

exes tht lana’s fucked over hideously. she’d probably cheat a lot and it’d be a whole…mess. 

mayb someone tht flipped the switch and cheated on her? 

a cousin plot cld b fun too. a friend tht lana fel out w bc she slept w their significant other.

a fake dating plot cld b fun honestly 

someone tht’s getting lana into drugs?? she’s kind of impressionable/down for anything so tht’s a likely scenario she’d get into tbh

an unrequited crush!! (either way is cool)

someone tht is just hanging out w her/using her bc she has a lot of instagram followers or they want to b signed to her dad’s label

someone in a band!! she’d probably make like penny lane n b their groupie/sleep w them all fgjkshgkh

umm a good influence too mayb? 

oh and a past summer romance/fling tht cld either have meant a lot or not have meant anything at all. bonus points if both of them hav a diff viewpoint on it. 

honestly?? anything is fine i cld ramble for days. mayb even one of the high profile kids she grew up hangin w idk. world’s our oyster fellas!