#crypt prank

[anticrypt]

If I was the first person on the moon I would have listened to Michael Collins

[cobaltperun]

Woe out the Storm (12) - Thunder Rolls

Wednesday Addams x female Reader

Summary: It took some time, but eventually you came to realize only Wednesday Addams could look at the raging storm of chaos and destruction and make a home out of it. Only she could listen to the cacophony of the roaring thunder and hear a melody.

Story warnings: Wednesday Addams, violence, slow burn

Story Masterlist / First part / Previous part / Next part

Word count: 6k

-As the storm blows on, out of control, deep in her heart the thunder rolls-

She was making a mistake, she was digging her own hole and instead of stopping and climbing out of it she just kept digging deeper and if she continued she wouldn’t be able to get out. Being buried alive didn’t seem like a bad way to go, but this was not the dirt she wanted to be buried beneath.

Tyler asked her out when she was at Weathervane, according to him she owed him for what happened to him, for nearly getting him killed. And she agreed, she did owe him, but this wasn’t her preferred way of paying him back. This was just going to make things worse, give him the wrong idea that his feelings, whatever and however unreasonable they were, weren’t one-sided. But she couldn’t back away now. Not even when Thing berated her for accepting to meet up with Tyler.

He even mockingly called it a date. Even dared to compare it with her asking Xavier to the dance. As if she wanted to be in either of those situations.

“Watch the diary while I’m gone,” she instructed, no longer having the patience to argue, otherwise Thing might get brave enough to mention you again.

‘There could be a big storm tonight!’ Thing told her in Morse code since she already had her back turned to him, and Wednesday stopped. Rain was one thing, but a lightning storm, there was no way of knowing if you could stay in control after all these nights in the rain. Sure, you stayed in control two nights ago, when you first left, but would you stay in control this time as well?

She bit her lower lip in frustration, almost hard enough to draw blood, she made her decision.

~X~

It was an easy decision, much easier than she thought it would be as she looked at the cloudy skies. She thought pushing you away was a way to keep you safe, but waking up in your bed for the second time made her understand the situation she was in wasn’t as simple as not spending time with you. And staying away from you only reminded her of you more. If Thing wasn’t talking about you, then something else would remind her that you weren’t there. Something as simple as Fester pulling his usual prank and zapping Tyler reminded her of you, even if you never did that to anyone in front of her.

How ridiculous. It should have been the other way around. Seeing your lightning should have reminded her of her uncle, but it was too different for her to form that connection in her mind. And now his electricity reminded her of you, regardless of how different the two powers were.

So, it really wasn’t something she had to choose, it was as natural as lightning during a storm for her to decide what to do regarding her circumstances.

She still owed it to Tyler to at the very least show up and not waste his time by making him wait at the crypt.

“Wednesday!” he looked way too eager, too happy to see her, love struck, not in the way her parents were, but in that teenage way that spoiled like milk.

She glanced at his chest, at the spot where the monster, the Hyde, wounded him, it wasn’t too deep and Wednesday easily patched him up. Tyler got lucky, and as far as Wednesday was concerned, she nearly got him disemboweled. She wondered if she at least prevented the vision from the Rave’N, the one with the Hyde attacking you. If that vision was to be believed you weren’t a match for the Hyde in your human form. That was what the rational part of her brain was telling her, but she couldn’t deny the heavy feeling in her heart.

Because, as much as she refused to admit it, a part of Wednesday wanted to see it, she wanted to see the circumstances that would make you drop your restraints and shift. She wondered what kind of beast you were. Maybe you were a wolf, like Diego, or another canine, maybe you were something less dangerous, a normally peaceful beast, perhaps you were an albatross, who, like in Baudelaire’s poem, flies into the storms. She thought of many options, and while she didn’t know which one was correct, she wanted to see it. She wanted to see for herself the power of a lightning beast.

She remembered the vision she had when she touched Rowan, the brief flash of smoke covered beast standing above her, but it was brief and there was no guarantee that it was you. Why would it be you? Trapping her? Threatening her? Perhaps trying to kill, or at least hurt her? That wasn’t you, unless you truly had no control over that form.

“Wednesday?” Tyler snapped her out of her thoughts.

“I’m not here for the date with you,” she cut to the point before he could continue or get the wrong idea because she came.

He raised his brows up in surprise. “I’m sorry?” he asked, confused by her reaction.

“I don’t have feelings for you, Tyler,” she said it directly, leaving no space for interpretation or misunderstanding. “I’m here to tell you that.”

He looked like someone kicked him, dejected and disappointed. “It’s Y/N, isn’t it? You like her,” he took a guess.

Wednesday, despite wanting to maintain her composure couldn’t help but look away. Did she? She’s been so focused on pushing you away, on rejecting any feeling she had for you that she didn’t stop to think what kind of feeling she was rejecting exactly.

The truth was that she did, actually, like you. She wasn’t sure if that meant that she wanted to be more than friends, or that someone could call the two of you friends in the first place, especially given the past week or so. But she did like you, her feelings for you were strong, overwhelmingly so, from her desire to keep you alive, to how much she missed you now that you were gone.

Tyler was harmless, a normie barista that might accept her rejection better and quicker if she was completely honest, so, Wednesday nodded. Confirming that she did, indeed, like you.

“I should have noticed it sooner, even after she left you alone,” he muttered, the frown on his face, the defensive posture, frustrated look etched on his face, it all made it clear he wasn’t taking this well.

Yet Wednesday couldn’t help but wonder how he knew you left her, or rather your shared room. Not that it mattered at the moment. She’d figure it out after she gets you to come back to your room with her. “We’re done here,” she stated and quickly walked away, not wanting to waste another moment.

Maybe if she paid more attention to her surrounding, maybe if she wasn't so caught up in her emotions, maybe then she would have seen a water tank hidden behind the crypt.

~X~

The weather forecast said there shouldn’t be a tonight and you couldn’t help but thank your luck. Well, you guessed it was the rainy season, but three nights in a row might be too much. Still, you were getting exhausted, by staying in control, by not shifting, by everything really. Part of the issue was also the isolation. Aside from Enid and Thing no one else came to see you, no one else was crazy enough to go see a raiju during rain. And even Enid picked a time when it wasn’t raining. So, there you were, isolated, exhausted, and unsure of how much longer you could stay in control, so yeah, you were thankful you could rest tonight.

The doors behind you opened, no knocking, no sound, nothing, they just opened.

“Enid, I told you I’m not-“ you turned around, expecting to see Enid. Instead you saw Wednesday and the words just refused to come out of your mouth.

She looked around, taking in her surroundings. “I didn’t think there’d be this many things,” she said, still not looking at you.

“Wednesday,” if she wasn’t entirely ready for the conversation you weren’t ready at all. You didn’t expect her to actually come, nor did you expect your heart to start beating this quickly at the mere sight of her.

After what felt like eternity of her slightly opening her mouth and then changing her mind, without once looking at you, and being strangely fascinated by all the other things in your shed, she finally turned to face you. Surprisingly, she blinked a few times, her body stiff and hands balled into fists. “Come back to our room,” she finally said, her voice quieter than what you were used to, her tone lacked that I-don’t-care, confident sound to it.

You told Thing you wanted an apology, yet it felt like this was as close as you’d get. You pulled out the chair next to you and motioned toward it. “Sit with me?” it was a request at best, gentle, accepting of any decision Wednesday could make.

She just nodded and approached the chair you pulled out for her while you turned in your seat so you could face her properly. So, while you sat there, a bit nervous, but with a significantly more relaxed posture and leaning slightly forward, Wednesday sat as still and stiff as she could, her hands resting on her lap, her back straight and looking ahead. She wasn’t looking at you, and somehow you figured that would make the conversation easier for her.

“Why did you go to the Gates’ mansion without me?” you asked softly.

“I didn’t need you,” she replied, that even tone you got so used to was back and it relaxed you even more.

“Tyler did, Enid could have needed me as well,” you tried your best not to confront her, not to point out that she put them in danger while consciously choosing to keep you away from it. Even if being tied up and submerged wasn’t the best for you, it was still safer than going to the mansion. But accusing Wednesday of basically caring about you would only make her even less comfortable, and she’d likely get up and leave.

“I didn’t,” she didn’t even hesitate. Didn’t even consider how it sounded, even if the blinking gave her away.

“Look at me,” you pulled your chair a bit closer to her. “Wednesday, look at me,” she didn’t move, but she did look to the side. “What happened to us? Since the Parents’ weekend, and even since the dance and Eugene being attacked you’ve,” and then it hit you. The vision at the Rave’N. “What did you see when we touched at Rave’N?”

Wednesday’s eyes widened slightly, as if she got caught. “You were attacked,” that made sense, everything made sense now.

You leaned back, sighing as you looked at the wooden roof above you two. “And you’re trying to prevent it,” you got up and offered her your hand. “Let’s go back,” you wished she just said it in the first place, but at least you knew now. Still, seeing as she just looked at your hand you figured you were pushing too far and pulled your hand back, sheepishly rubbing the back of your head and grinning at her. “Sorry, that’s a bit too much,” you turned around, missing how her hand twitched just before you pulled your hand back.

“Let’s go,” she said, getting up and walking out of your shed at a brisk pace. “There might be a storm, tonight, we need to hurry.”

You tilted your head to the side, not really sure where she got that information from. Since when did she even have a way to check the weather forecast?

Thing.

Little handy liar.

~X~

The walk back to your room was silent, but there was nothing uncomfortable about it, in fact, you could say you were enjoying the silent walk with Wednesday. Maybe you missed her a lot more than you were willing to admit. You snuck a glance at her, she looked to be in deep thought, but she seemed more comfortable, in her own way.

She suddenly looked at you, catching you in the act and you felt your face heating up a bit at that, and not due to lightning. “Sorry,” you muttered, looking away and tucked your hands into your pockets.

“For what?” Wednesday’s question didn’t make it any easier. Especially since she refused to look away now.

You just chuckled uncomfortably. “Doesn’t matter. Anyway, uh, I’m sorry for snapping at you, I should have handled it better,” your reaction wasn’t unreasonable, but you should have cooled down a bit before confronting her. And you should have waited until she came back to your room, instead of confronting her somewhere where anyone could see and hear the two of you.

Wednesday nodded. “I’m,” she paused and looked away, though a few seconds later she forced herself to look at you. “Sorry. For what I did,” for knocking you out, leaving you in a bathtub filled with water tied up and unable to get free without hurting Thing.

Yeah, you’d think twice before going into the bathroom if Wednesday called you. “Just don’t do it again,” you gently nudged her shoulder with a teasing smirk as the two of you approached your room. You quickened your pace and opened the doors, stepping aside and jokingly bowing slightly to let her in. “After you, miss Addams,” you couldn’t help but smile when her eye twitched at the gesture. She still went inside, only to stop right away.

“Wednesday?” you came inside, confused as to why she stopped. The moment you looked around you understood. The room was completely thrashed, the papers covered the floor, Wednesday’s manuscript… just scattered all over the floor, her furniture turned over, drawers left open, and the same mess was in your part of the room as well.

Where was Thing?

“The diary…” Wednesday went further inside, still taking the whole mess in. “Thing?” she called out. The sound of something dripping caught your attention and you and Wednesday looked back to see Thing, pinned to the pillar with a knife going right through him.

“Thing!” Wednesday rushed to him and you quickly went to get a towel. “Y/N can you use your lightning?!” the panic in her voice shouldn’t have startled you like it did, but I was the first time you heard that much distress in Wednesday’s voice.

She was breathing heavily as you ran up to her. “I can’t, I don’t have that kind of control!” you pressed the towel onto the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. How were you even supposed to help a hand?!

“Fester is here, he can help!” Wednesday looked at the doors and nearly began running, but you grabbed her by her waist and lifted her up. She had the solution, and that was enough to get you moving. “Y/N!” she yelled your name as you ran toward the balcony.

“This is faster, just keep a firm hold on him!” you jumped over the fence and pulled out one of your knives, you threw it toward the ground. When you were about two thirds of the way down you let go of Wednesday, shifted into lightning to get ahead of her and zapped toward the ground. You barely touched the ground and immediately jumped up, boosting your jump with lightning to catch Wednesday and safely land. “Where are we going?” you demanded, already running across the pentagon.

Wednesday didn’t struggle, despite the panic she felt she still realized you were boosting your speed with lightning, making this the fastest way to get Thing the help he needed. “Eugene,” but she still struggled to give you the information you needed. “Bees,” but you understood.

“Just focus on Thing, I understand,” you assured her, not even realizing how close you were as you held her, almost in a bridal style, how Wednesday was hiding her face in the crook of your neck, how Thing was wrapped in a towel, held close to her chest as she held onto your back. You didn’t realize any of it as you rushed to the bee house where Fester, whoever that was, was. If he could help Thing it didn’t matter.

You ran faster, reaching hives in record time. “We’re here! Go! Go!” you needed to catch your breath for a moment, and Wednesday could handle the few feet between her and the doors, and she did. She jumped out of your arms and burst through the doors.

“Fester! Fester, help! Help! Help! Help! Thing’s not moving! He was stabbed!” she yelled, making the bald man dressed in black get up.

“Get him on the table!” Fester told her as you stepped inside.

You cleared the table and Wednesday set Thing down as the man rubbed his hands together and electricity emerged from the tips of his fingers.

In any other circumstance you would have been surprised, but now you just leaned onto the table, anxiously looking at Thing’s unmoving body. Wednesday crouched down on the opposite side of you, and she held onto the table, likely feeling no different than she felt when she lost her scorpion, if not even worse and more helpless than back then.

Fester tried to use his fingers as defibrillators, but Thing didn’t react. “Oh, come on, Thing,” he tried again and you dared to look at Wednesday.

Looking at her was a mistake, she was on the verge of tears, swallowing the lump in her throat as she tried to stay in control over her emotions.

You looked at Thing, but when the third attempt didn’t work you couldn’t keep watching, and instead tightly shut your eyes to keep your own tears from falling. You balled your fists, sparks digging into the wood.

“He’s gone, Wednesday,” Fester remorsefully said, pulling his hands back. He gave up.

Wednesday’s sorrow turned to anger as she grabbed the towel and pulled it closer to her. “No, he’s not! Thing if you can hear me, if you die, I will kill you,” she threatened, her voice trembling with barely contained emotions. “Go again,” she said as she pushed the towel back. When Fester only looked at her she slammed her hand onto the table. “Now! Again, please!”

Fester tried again, with no success and then he tried again, maintaining the charge for much longer and then, when he stopped, Thing twitched.

Wednesday gasped and both she and Fester looked relieved. You leaned away from the table, stepping back and letting out a sigh of relief as a tear slid down your cheek.

“For a minute, we thought you picked your last lock, buddy,” Fester exclaimed.

“Who did this to you?” Wednesday demanded and Thing’s answer made her furious. “Knife from behind the back. Cowards! I promise that whoever did this to you will suffer, and it will be slow, long, and excruciatingly painful,” she promised and there was no doubt in your mind that she would keep that promise.

Thing raised his little finger and Wednesday reached out, linking their little fingers together, it was a deal. With that, he lay down, alive, but still weak and Wednesday wiped her tears away. “I’ll stitch him back up,” she said as she got up.

“You’re Elijah’s kid, right?” Fester was grinning like he was really excited about that, and only then did you realize that he was Wednesday’s uncle, the man your dad mentioned once. In your defense, it was a stressful situation, and you only heard his name once prior to tonight.

“Yeah, Y/N, nice to meet you,” you offered him your hand and he eagerly accepted it, zapping you in the process.

You just smirked and zapped him back, red and blue sparks buzzing around your hands.

“Hey, Wednesday, I like this kid! She’ll fit just right in the family!” he grinned as Wednesday began stitching Thing up.

Your eyes widened and Wednesday stilled. “What?” both of you asked at the same time.

“No need to hide, Gomez and Morticia already told me everything,” he began patting you on the shoulder, a bit too forcefully, but you were too surprised to care about that. “Wednesday is my favorite, but good luck kid, you’ll need it!”

“Uh, thanks?” you really had no idea how else you could react. You were starting to think people just assumed something was going on between you and Wednesday. Enid, Thing, your mom, Wednesday’s parents from the looks of it, her uncle, hell, probably your dad as well, Tyler was jealous, Xavier as well, probably, why did everyone think Wednesday liked you back. Sure, you had feelings for her, but Wednesday?

Ridiculous.

Right?

Speaking of ridiculous, you just remembered something Fester should probably know. “Police came by my shed earlier, someone found a bike you apparently stole, and they wondered if I knew anything about you,” you said, raising an eyebrow slightly.

“Maybe next time steal something less conspicuous,” Wednesday suggested, confirming to you that her uncle did, in fact, steal it.

“Where’s fun in that?” Yet, Fester didn’t really seem like he’d change his approach any time soon. “Oh, fine. I’ll keep an eye on the patient and skedaddle in the morning,” he gave in and you couldn’t help but smile a bit as the two exchanged their goodbyes.

~X~

Wednesday briefed you in on what was going on, on Faulkner’s diary, the monster being called a Hyde, your guess that there could be more than one killer being confirmed due to Hyde having a master. All of that you could handle, in fact, you were glad her investigation was going well.

You and Wednesday split up, much to your reluctance, when you came back to school, she went to Weems with Thornhill, and you went back to your room to start clearing up the mess the intruder made.

Anger threatened to consume you as you cleaned Thing’s blood. If only you were there, if you came back, none of this would have happened. He wouldn’t have nearly died, the diary wouldn’t have been lost. But, no, you had to be stubborn and it nearly got Thing killed. All you could hope for now was that Wednesday would let you join in on making whoever stabbed Thing suffer. Even if, if Wednesday was correct, the Hyde was Xavier and his master was the psychiatrist Wednesday was ordered to see. So, even if you weren’t sure how you felt about someone you’ve known for several years being responsible for this you decided to trust Wednesday’s instincts.

When Wednesday came back she went to the bathroom to get ready to sleep. She tried to help you, but you sent her away and she was too exhausted to resist. She nearly lost Thing, you weren’t going to let her clean this whole mess.

With that thought in mind you began picking up the papers that were scattered around the floor. This was senseless. The intruder was looking for the diary, a fairly large book from what Wednesday said. There was no need to try to ruin an entire manuscript. You were thankful she numbered the pages, so it wasn’t too difficult to put it back together, and everything else was light work once the manuscript was handled. You were done a few minutes before Wednesday came out, looking emotionally exhausted now that everything had settled down.

“You’re done,” she noticed and gave you a small, thankful, nod when she noticed her manuscript.

“Yeah,” you approached her, stopping near her but not daring to try and comfort her. “Will you be okay?”

Wednesday just nodded and went to her table, she took the knife you returned to her and went back to you. “You claimed it as your own,” she explained as she offered it to you.

Your eyes widened slightly, but you took the knife, your fingers brushing against her hand in the process. “Thanks,” you lingered, but so did she, and when it got too awkward you stepped back. “I’ll… get ready for bed, you don’t have to wait for me,” you weren’t even sure why you had to say that.

Still, you went to the bathroom, with your pajamas in hand. A slightly longer than necessary shower with distilled water, and your usual routine later you came out of the bathroom to the sight you never thought you’d see and somehow, despite the wild beating of your heart and the heat that engulfed your face you briefly wondered if Wednesday did actually like you back.

Thing telling you that Wednesday missed you echoed in your mind as you watched her.

Because while she did go to bed, she went to your bed. And then you realized she was using your blanket. That wasn’t white, black, or gray… The fact that she wasn’t using her own blanket to avoid allergic reaction was enough to snap you out of whatever you were feeling, and you went over to her bed, grabbing the black blanket and taking it with you.

“Wednesday,” you called, waking the girl up. She wasn’t even sleeping in her usual position; she was curled up underneath your blanket.

She opened her eyes and looked at you, clearly not pleased that she was woken up.

“At least use your blanket,” you teased, boldly pulling your blanket off her, and tossing her blanket over her body. It was as if she just now realized she was in your bed and she blushed a bit. You had to admit, Wednesday in your bed, blushing, would probably live rent free in your head for a very long time.

“Not one word,” Wednesday warned you as you sat down at the bottom of the bed.

“You’re in my bed and you expect me to stay silent?” you began laughing at the thought of that. Sure, you were aware that she was more than a little embarrassed, but there was no way you could just ignore this.

“Mention this to anyone and you’ll never get to sleep again,” she threatened as she got up and began walking. The frown on her face as she passed by you was enough for you to reach out and grab her hand.

You figured this wasn’t the first night she slept in your bed, if you had to guess you’d say it was probably the third night, and she just, already, developed a bit of a habit. “It was a long couple of days,” you said, tugging lightly at her hand, just strong enough for her to notice. “Stay, the bed is big enough for both of us,” and it was, you could easily sleep in it and not touch once.

You could see the reluctance on her face, but just as you were about to let go she took a step back, getting closer to you. You could feel the tension in her hand, the way her fingers wrapped around your hand, clutching so tightly you wondered if she was trying to break them or if she really was that nervous.

“Mother told me,” she began and you could see exactly how difficult this was for her. “Once every generation, for over four centuries, an Addams bonds with a raiju,” she stood right in front of you, her eyes finding your own in the dimly lit room.

You waited, just gently rubbing circles into the back of her hand. It would either help her, or annoy her, either way she’d stop being as nervous as she was.

“Raiju usually die for their Addams,” she seemed to be done, you could see she was expecting some kind of reaction from you, it was in her eyes, in her slightly parted lips, in the breath she was holding.

So, you gave it to her, you pulled her closer, close enough for your knees to touch. She wanted to push you away, but you wanted to get closer, you wanted to close as much distance as she would allow. “And you saw the Hyde attacking me, and you got worried,” you sighed, there it was, the final piece of the puzzle. Wednesday got completely overwhelmed, by her visions, by what Morticia told her, by what happened to Eugene, it was too much for her, and now with what happened to Thing. It was too much for her. She was feeling too much and too fast, one thing after another, she couldn’t catch a break and process what she was feeling. As much as you wanted to pull her even closer, to hug her, you recognized that she might not be able to handle it. That this was as far as she could be pushed right now. That it would be nothing short of a miracle if she decided to sleep next to you.

“Yes,” she confirmed, weakening her grip on your fingers to firm, but much less painful.

“Wednesday, I,” you paused, carefully choosing your words. There was a chance this could only make things worse, but you supposed you were never that good with finding more appropriate words. “Don’t give a fuck about that Addams-raiju bond. I was drawn to you, and some generations long bond has nothing to do with it,” you figured that was enough, because if it wasn’t, you feared Wednesday would be overwhelmed by the rest of it.

She looked down, biting her lower lip so hard you were worried she might draw blood. You reached up, lightly touching her cheek, just enough for her to stop biting her lip, just enough to let her lean into your touch if she wanted to. She didn’t, but she didn’t pull away either, and you kept your hand there just for a bit longer before letting it drop down. “You can be my Addams, but I won’t die, so, trust me,” you said softly, grinning when she glared at you. Clearly, she didn’t like being called ‘your Addams’, but, at least this was how you expected her to be.

There was nothing left to say as you let go of her hand, you just got under the blanket, leaving enough space for Wednesday and looked at her one last time before closing your eyes. And she followed, she lay down next to you and you couldn’t help but smile a bit at that. “Good night, Wednesday.”

“Good night,” she replied

~X~

Despite how easy it was to sleep in your bed the past two nights Wednesday couldn’t fall asleep tonight. The heat radiating from you kept her right there, just on the edge of falling asleep, and her blanket gave her that additional comfort she was missing, but she just couldn’t do it. She couldn’t remember if she ever tossed and turned as much as she did tonight, not sure if she wanted to be as far from you as the bed would allow her, or if she wanted to close the distance.

You came back and you… helped her save Thing. Would she have made it in time if you weren’t there? She turned around to face you, you looked peaceful as you slept on your side, as if falling asleep like this didn’t bother you one bit. She looked at your hand, resting on the pillow in front of your face.

Wednesday didn’t fear death, her heart didn’t start beating faster even when you jumped from the balcony, even if falling from that height would have meant certain death. She didn’t fear death, and she trusted you, she believed you had a way to safely land, and you did. No, her heart didn’t beat any faster as she was falling. It did beat faster now that the adrenaline was gone, and she remembered being in your arms. It was logical. You were significantly faster, and Thing wasn’t moving. Now that panic and fear were gone and Thing was going to be fine she felt the phantom sensation of your touch and she didn’t despise it.

Her fingers trembled a bit as she reached forward and just took hold of your wrist, just inched a bit closer to you while pulling your arm toward her at the same time. This was fine. This was just enough. She was okay with this much touch. Her eyes fluttered closed and she fell asleep.

~X~

The Hyde attacked Kinbott mere minutes after Wednesday accused her of being Laurel Gates and as you rushed to the hospital to meet up with Wednesday and Weems you couldn’t help but think about her theory.

It was solid. Xavier was artistic, he had his issues, his darker side, he had his obsession with Wednesday which would explain why he didn’t kill her, and why he saved her from Rowan’s gargoyle. And he drew the Hyde dozens of times, down to the location of the lair and the Gates mansion. Kinbott could use hypno-therapy to unlock him. He could have made it in time to attack Wednesday, Enid and Tyler in the Gates mansion. Wednesday was being watched, so he’d know if Thing was the only one in the room.

Everything pointed at him. But it was too easy.

Either Kinbott wasn’t Laurel, which would mean locking Xavier up wouldn’t help much in the long run, or they were missing something.

By the time you arrived at the hospital Wednesday was already going down the stairs, the determined fury shining in her eyes.

“Wednesday! Did Kinbott make it?” you asked as you ran up to her, but she didn’t stop, she just kept going. Likely back to Nevermore to confront Xavier, or to the police station, or wherever that wasn’t exactly here.

“No,” she replied, hints of her anger clear in her voice.

“What if we’re wrong?” last night, as well as this morning, you agreed with her theory, but now that you knew Kinbott was dead, you were almost certain you and Wednesday were missing something.

“We’re not. Xavier is the Hyde,” she, at least, stopped to look at you.

“It’s too easy. What kind of fool would be this sloppy? Drawing the Hyde doesn’t match other behavior,” you tried to get her to think things through one more time.

“Such as?”

“Clearing out the mansion, burning the lair, surgically removing the body parts, killing the mayor? It’s much more careful than drawing the Hyde and basically leaving the evidence for anyone to see. Wednesday please, Xavier is an easy choice, at least think about it one more time,” you listed, but you knew there was a question you couldn’t answer.

~X~

And Wednesday knew what that question was. “Who else could it be?” because that was the thing, no one else was her suspect, no one else could be behind this, no one else made sense. And yes, it was easy, too easy for her liking, but all signs pointed at Xavier.

“I don’t know,” you sighed, your shoulders slumped in defeat as you realized the same thing Wednesday realized a while ago. There just wasn’t another suspect.

And then it just happened, just as she was about to go to the police and turn Xavier in her hand brushed against the back of your hand and she lost consciousness.

You were panting, kneeling on the ground as blood stained the grass beneath you, the Hyde was standing over someone as you pushed your body up and Wednesday felt the rage within you. It was almost overwhelming, dangerous, if allowed and able to, you’d kill the Hyde. “Tyler!” the rage in your voice as you yelled that name, as the Hyde turned to look at you, it shook Wednesday to her core.

She was wrong, as she opened her eyes and once again found herself in your arms, she looked at you. “It’s Tyler. It’s not Xavier, it’s Tyler,” the normie barista she believed to be harmless was the Hyde. The Hyde was the same person she told she liked you. Tyler knew her weakness, and she was the one who handed it to him.

A/N: Hashtag Wednesday being soft for exactly one person? Meh, still more reasonable than her love interests in season 1.

[jackoshadows]

One of Arya’s canonical relationships often ignored or minimized, because of fandom sexism, is that of her and Rickon Stark. Despite the text mentioning several times that Arya loves to play with babies, this is ignored simply because her character is often critiqued - by both feudal Westeros and fandom - for not performing femininity as per patriarchal ideals.

Arya had loved nothing better than to sit at her father's table and listen to them talk. She had loved listening to the men on the benches too; to freeriders tough as leather, courtly knights and bold young squires, grizzled old men-at-arms. She used to throw snowballs at them and help them steal pies from the kitchen. Their wives gave her scones and she invented names for their babies and played monsters-and-maidens and hide-the-treasure and come-into-my-castle with their children. Fat Tom used to call her "Arya Underfoot," because he said that was where she always was. She'd liked that a lot better than "Arya Horseface." - Arya, AGoT

Arya has a closer relationship with both Bran and Rickon, right from when they are babies - it’s not just a case of her hanging around the boys. When Robb takes Sansa, Arya and Bran down into the crypts to prank them, it’s Arya’s hand that baby Bran clutches when he is scared.

Her brother Robb had taken them down, her and Sansa and baby Bran, who'd been no bigger than Rickon  was now. (---) Sansa kept looking at the stubby little candle, anxious that it might go out. Old Nan had told her there were spiders down here, and rats as big as dogs. Robb smiled when she said that. "There are worse things than spiders and rats," he whispered. "This is where the dead walk." That was when they heard the sound, low and deep and shivery. Baby Bran had clutched at Arya's hand. - Arya, AGoT

Sansa’s only nostalgic memory of Rickon in her POV appears when she thinks Arya is safely back in Winterfell:

Once in a while, Sansa even missed her sister. By now Arya was safe back  in Winterfell, dancing and sewing, playing with Bran and baby Rickon,  even riding through the winter town if she liked. - Sansa, ACoK

And when Arya misses her family back home:

She wanted to tease Bran and play with baby Rickon and have Robb smile at her. - Arya, AGoT

After going on the run, Arya is concerned and worried for Rickon and wonders how tall he would have grown:

A whooping gang of small children went running past, chasing a rolling  hoop. Arya stared at them with resentment, remembering the times she'd  played at hoops with Bran and Jon and their baby brother Rickon. She wondered how big Rickon  had grown, and whether Bran was sad - Arya, AGoT

For a moment Arya forgot to breathe. Dead? Bran and Rickon,  dead? What does he mean? What does he mean about Winterfell, Joffrey  could never take Winterfell, never, Robb would never let him. Then she  remembered that Robb was not at Winterfell. He was away in the west, and Bran was crippled, and Rickon only four. It took all her strength to remain still and silent, the way Syrio Forel had taught her, to stand there like a stick of furniture. She felt tears gathering in her eyes, and willed them away. It's not true, it can't be true, it's   just some Lannister lie. - Arya, ACoK

She watched the parchment twist, blacken, and flare up. If the Lannisters hurt Bran and Rickon,  Robb will kill them every one.  - Arya, ACoK

So canonically it’s Arya who played with baby Rickon, misses him terribly in KL, wonders how tall he has grown and worries over what is happening to him in Winterfell. All this is Arya, not Sansa.

Note: This is not a critique of Sansa and how much she thinks of her family. There is nothing wrong in not wanting to be near babies or not wanting to play with babies. There is nothing wrong in not wanting to hang around little children or not wanting to care for them. Especially as Sansa and Arya are themselves children!! They are only 9 and 11 when the story starts and are now 11 and 13.

This is a critique of a fandom that twists Arya into some ‘NLOG’ caricature, ‘male-coded’, masculine, being violent, impulsive, too damaged, going around biting people, who can only fight or kill, wanting to sail away instead of being home with family, cannot become Lady of Winterfell because she is not the right kind of lady, has internalized misogyny etc. - all because her character disliked a few activities like sewing, singing and dancing. And all the while projecting qualities like motherhood, maternal feelings, womanhood, romance, marriage, children on 11/13 year old Sansa.

Things get even worse with the Jon/Sansa shippers, who turn Jon and Sansa into some masochistic, twisted idea of Ned and Cat (Because of course Jon Snow is a self-loathing, pathetic, shallow, sad sack of shite craving Catelyn’s approval and falling for the daughter who looks like Cat and acts a snob towards him simply because she’s too beautiful to resist at 11 years old 😭) and therefore Rickon is going to see them together and think they are his parents....

Like I said, taking from Arya’s canonical relationships in the books and giving to Sansa because the tradfem section of fandom are unable to read Arya as having a loving and caring relationship with her little siblings.

And then there’s Rickon Stark himself. First of all, Rickon would surely remember Jon Snow and Sansa as his siblings? Why would he think they are Ned and Cat? They are not clones!! 

Secondly, Rickon and Shaggy were mirroring each other’s wildness before they even left Winterfell. It’s Shaggydog who was biting people! Rickon then grew up during his formative years with Osha in Skagos or Cannibal Island. Osha is of the Freefolk and the Skagosi, like the Freefolk, talk in the Old Tongue. They live in caves and perform human sacrifices. This Rickon is going to see Jon and Sansa and go all ‘Mama and papa!’ and think he is their baby?! 😂😂😂

Then there’s all these future speculations and theorizing about how Sansa is going to become Rickon’s regent in TWoW. Again, how? Sansa is 13 in the TWoW sample chapter. Is she suddenly going to magically grow 3 years in the next chapter and turn 16? Additionally, the regent should have a good know how of the North to help the Lord of Winterfell run WF and the North - again, canonically it’s Arya who knows how Winterfell works, who refers to her father’s advice and teachings and who follows her father’s idea of Northern justice.

The only Stark/Snow who currently has the age and experience to become anyone’s regent is Jon Snow. And I don’t even see him being appointed as one, rather it’s more likely he is made KITN.

So after Bran, the Stark closest to Rickon is Arya. And then it’s most possibly Jon Snow. Jon who tells Tyrion to take a message for Rickon in Winterfell and Rickon who stopped to tell Jon hi at the feast and kept asking Bran why Jon was not sitting with them.

The only reason 13 year old Sansa keeps being connected to Rickon as some kind of maternal mother figure is because of fandom sexism and their rigid ideas of gender, femininity and even toxic masculinity.

[nerd-hotnissa]

Spoilers if you haven’t seen the Wednesday series on Netflix

I still ship Wednesday and Tyler. Tyler may be the villain but let’s not forget the complexities that come with it.

Throughout the series we see Wednesday learning about emotions, social interactions, and developing relationships.

Also Wednesday is our beloved goth girl who loves all things macabre and twisted.

She also never stated blatantly about how she feels about Tyler being the murderer, just proving that he was and she needed to stop him.

She put piranhas in the swimming pool.

Wednesday said she would have went further on Tyler’s prank to Xavier so she’s not above causing harm, also let’s not forget she did torture Tyler.

But murder, she made a few comments here and there but nothing was ever stated firmly whether she believes that’s above her and it’s wrong to do.

(If I’m wrong please let me know but if I remember correctly I don’t remember her ever stating murder was her boundary)

What the series did show though was attempted murder had an impact on her. Thing was stabbed and Eugene was attacked and both made an impact on her.

So now we have the Macabre Goth Girl who enjoys harm to others but has developed friendships and feels fear and concern when they are hurt.

She subtle develops feelings for Tyler who is the walking metaphor to her evolving of concern for others but the twisted enjoyment of pain and harm.

Tyler is both.

Because he is a Hyde.

A monster of Jekyll and Hyde

And we all know that story. Two halves of the same person fighting against each other.

Tyler is just like Wednesday.

Tyler doesn’t want to harm anyone but Hyde does. (Obviously we haven’t been shown that yet but for the sake of the posts just stay with me)

Tyler has feelings for Wednesday, Hyde will kill her.

Wednesday loves cause harm, but she is also evolving into making friends and caring for their wellbeing.

Tyler is her opposite and also he can keep up with her.

When they were on their date his banter and responses kept up with her.

Also on their date he did what he knew Wednesday would like.

A picnic in the crypt, to be tortured (the movie), and knew horror movies would bore her since he loved all things dark so he thought outside the box of something she would absolutely be disgusted by.

Tyler always thought of Wednesday not what he wanted of her.

No hate but *cough* Xavier *cough*

He never really got frustrated with her and when he did he kept it cool.

Could this all be a ruse because of him being the villain? Of course but you can’t just be the Hyde monster and no Jekyll.

Tyler had issues, Tyler had trauma. Tyler was used and abused to evoke the monster inside him, literally, but the other “monster” inside was a troubled kid.

Before Laurel he was just Tyler, Jekyll.

He’s complex and foils well with Wednesday.

I’m season 2 I hope to see a redemption arc and Wednesday see the complexity of Tyler and how they mirror each other that of course I hope develops their relationship.

But of course I also understand Wednesday is great all on her own and I am okay with that too.

[quitealotofsodapop]

In honor of Halloween, which character(s) of LMK gets super extra about Halloween? Like the go all out, which decorations, elaborate costumes, and the like? Also, if a character would dress up for Halloween what they dress up as? I feel for some reason that Mei, or Red Son or both, would legitimately prank houses that don't give out candy, or give something dumb like toothbrushes, and go all out like their live or family honor depended on it.

Oh gosh both of the Monkey dads are terrible influences. Wukong hears "free candy" and he's pretending to be a child in a costume. Even worse in the Au since he demands "dad tax" for chaperone the kids, or might just pull a "dad outfit" for his own snacks. Probably the only one who actually likes getting fruit.

Macaque is super into the costume aspect, so he's up all night making custom outfits for the kiddos to wear. Stuff with practical effects that leave all the other kid's costumes in the dust. Bai He asked once for help choosing a witches' outfit, and Mac had to be talked down from giving her an actual enchanted broomstick.

MK is a sweet-fiend all throughout the halloween season. Gets really sad when all the halloween stock gets cleared out for xmas stuff. Was ok to stop trick-or-treating around the time he was old enough to chaperone the Eclipse Twins - still gets given candy sometimes by people who think he's just a tall teenager.

Mei and Red have a battle strategy for each place they hit up. A pre-game map of each available door since its harder to trick or treat in high-density areas. They negoiate homes that give out "bad candy" with good faith (dentists or old people) vs homes that are clearly just not in the spirit. Red misunderstands the level of "trick" at times, so Mei has to reel him back from breaking windows. Their "calling card" trick is a little graffiti of a dragon done in sugar syrup on the "bad houses" doors and/or walls. Their family honor is on the line if they dont' at least send a message.

Pigsy probably would close the shop for the night if not for little kids and their parents dropping by the shop for treats/dinner. He's gotten "too old" for the holiday and candy, but he still his a trick left up his sleeve. Probably helped Mei and red organise their first Big Prank.

Tang is deep into the horror media and telling the kids all the spookiest folklore stories. Probably even does a special reading corner event at the library to get his crypt-keeper vibe going.

Sandy loves the childhood aspect of halloween, but the gory stuff makes him quesy. And loud poppers/fireworks scares his cats. He'd probably stay indoors most of the time, but is happy to give out candy - most likely saltwater taffy.

The spider gang and the gold-silver twins, as you can imagine, are all running about having a terrific night of mischief and partying. Halloween is a BIG event in the demon world despite it's foreign influence. It's a night for cutting loose and letting your more trickster side out.

[streaminn]

Streamer au: Junior year stalker edition

Aight guys, lemme drop some lore shit on yall for the streamer au

We all know that sophomore year (season 1) is all abt Wednesday. Tyler is there etc etc, it's all show except more signs of Wenclair pop in and Enid kills Tyler in self defense by the end. They continue onto the second semester, more signs of the stalker show up and it just seems like little pranks and horrible dark morbid jokes has Wednesday huffing out what could be a laugh.

Enid is seen getting more and more irate, gets easier to piss off during this semester and alot more overprotective. Then the year ends

Wenclair get closer during the summer break, stalker isn't able to send dumb rose stems with thorns anymore and Enid is relieved

Junior year rolls around and it's a new semester. This time, while Wednesday is still a focus there's more Enid screen time. Her mental is a little bit down the drain bc after her first shift, she hasn't been able to shift at all

Like sure she can bare her teeth, actually growl and showcase her nails much longer than before but that's it

No call of the moon every month

Family isnt so supportive of that.

she's been having these dreams lately and this whole stalker thing with Wednesday is stressing her tf out. Like sure it looks like an admirer who's trying their best to go try Wednesday aesthetic in an attempt to woo but she's not jealous!

She's worried!

And.. Maybe a little concerned. She and Wednesday literally confessed into loving each other sometime during the semester. She just wanted to confront them and see what they're planning because while Wednesday can see it as courting, Enid wonders if someone is planning to kill her girlfriend?? (loved one?? They haven't talked it out yet)

So she catches a whiff of a scent and seeks out the stalker herself.

Surprise surprise, it's a guy. Og plan was for them to be the left over gang who did the raven prank. Then I realized that with how odd the Addams family is, death threats might come off as 'romantic' inclined gifts and it made me think of using xavier

Maybe he got approached by these guys and got roped into it. He could've had plausible deniability, if it weren't for the fact that he helped give the boys access to silver. Xavier was a good kid, he meant well

But enid kept hovering over wednesday and it was frustrating. He could have a chance, he just needed her out of the way for a moment

When promised such a thing, it's not his fault he accepted

The boys sought revenge for Tyler, having heard that it was Enid who killed him. They were planning to strike Wednesday originally, thinking that it's her influence that made him think outcasts were ok to hangout with until they heard the news from sheriff galphin during Tyler's funeral.

Killed by a werewolf, they were told. It wasn't hard to pinpoint a werewolf with fresh scars in nevermore. This just proved their point, outcasts are dangerous! Enid most especially.

She could go insane, they whisper. Don't you see? The scars are just the start of it. Can you really trust a murderer?

Anyways, enough of that.

Enid gets captured, shit goes down when she went missing for three or so days. Maybe a week if I want to push it but when Wednesday finally figures out where Enid is, she can't believe she didn't realize where.

Wends barges into the place because ofcourse they would be in the crypt, stuck somewhere deeper inside. In the older cells where they kept outcasts in the olden days.

Enid's low key barely hanging on, but she's breathing and she doesn't know how long it's been.

Until she smells Wednesday and the sound of her being struck.

Wednesday has an odd relationship with jericho's police department but even he knows that there's some truth in Wednesday's words at times

There's no harm in checking out the crypt she mentioned to him right?

He smells the thick scent of blood just as he steps inside and immediately calls for back up.

It's silent in there, barely a whisper and when the rest of his crew show up, they all crawl in with a bad feeling in their stomach.

They stumble across five dead bodies and a stained red Enid Sinclair cradling Wednesday Addams the deeper they went.

What they see is akin to a massacre and it isn't until it needs to be documented did they realize that it was a warning.

There's guts spread onto the wall, an organ hanging onto a cell bar and blood staining the mouth of Enid Sinclair.

It's not hard to put two and two together.

She gets taken into custody. Her wounds get categorized and she's left in a cell with a muzzle and mittens on for protection.

It's in jail that Enid finally gets to process everything.

They weren't just dreams. It was memories. Past instances of old werewolves dying, it was a warning.

And she hears them clearly, the choir and is now aware that something is deathly wrong with her.

Enid misses the first semester because of her time. She's still a suspect, she still has her trial.

Wednesday visits as much as she can, it helps keep the noise down.

It isn't until three months away (missing winter break and the start of the second semester) from nevermore did the case settle and Enid was declared a free man for she acted in self defense. The unnecessary amount of force that the normies insisted on was excused by the large amount of silver coated in Enid's own remains

she's different, alot more quiet but then Wednesday hugs her just as she's released and maybe, she can act like everything is okay

--

Did the Addams family low key bribe the judge? Maybe..

Anyways, some stuff here is gonna be mentioned again for their senior year! Which I will reblog onto this but here are my general thoughts that happened during their sophomore year

They're like what 16-17 here? So rip Enid, she's going through some things but atleast she seems pretty ok present time

[filmnoirsbian]

A series 6 of pages from the graphic novel My Favorite Thing is Monsters by Emil Ferris

Page one: Karen (stylized as a werewolf girl) and Missy are two young girls watching a horror movie. Karen's narration says "Horror Theater played this movie 'Dracula's Daughter' and there was this one part where Countess Dracula kidnaps this woman named Janet..." Missy says "I think that the countess almost..." Karen finishes "...kissed her..."

Karen's narration says "That was the night we cut our fingers and became...blood sisters" and then "As I hung up my detective coat in the cloak room I remembered how I'd waited till Missy was asleep. I'd said, "You are beautiful" and then..."

A sleeping Missy says "...I love you Kare...I love you so much..." as Karen kisses her hand. Countess Dracula looks on and says "Oh Karen, you are far braver than I ever was!" Karen's narration says "I think she meant it because she said it from her asleep self not her awake self..."

Page two: The Next Morning. Missy and Karen are eating cereal. Missy says "Karen, do you think that a girl could become the bride of dracula's daughter?" Karen says "If they love each other then why not?"

Karen's narration says "I think Missy went home and asked her mom the same question because later Missy's mom called and demanded to know what we'd seen on TV..."

Karen's mom on the telephone says "Just some old Creepshow is all..." Missy's mom from the telephone says "That junk! I really should not be surprised as people of your class never protect their kids from bad influences!" She hangs up.

Karen's narration says "As I sat in school (getting my daily doses of paper airplanes) I thought about how that had been the last sleepover we ever had. Over the next few weeks I heard that all of Missy's monster magazines got replaced by hair and beauty mags. Her boardgames, like 'Haunted House' got replaced with, 'The Mystery Date Game'..."

Page 3: Karen's narration says "But we are still blood sisters, so no matter how mean Missy is, I can't be mean back. Her blood is inside of me. Sometimes I think if you were to put one of those x-ray machines up to me, you would see the old Missy, the Missy from when we used to love monsters together and I have to protect that part of her..." Karen gives a thumbs up to this x-ray picture of old Missy.

Page 4: Karen's narration says "...Because inside of Missy that part is in a coffin, in a crypt, staked, and hungry and all alone..." Missy gives a thumbs down to her x-ray self. Missy says "Only 3 things matter! What you wear how you do your hair and...the boy that you date!"

Page 5: Werewolf Karen and Vampire Missy embrace in a stairwell. Karen thinks "I don't care if it turns out that this was all a mean prank...for right now I get to hold her in my arms and stroke her hair." Missy says "The times when I'm with you are the only ones when I'm...myself."

Page 6: Missy's mother calls down the stairwell and says "Missy! What are you doing in the stairwell? Come back to your guests!" Missy tells her "So the neighbors don't see Karen getting on at our floor, she's taking the elevator at the floor below ours." Missy's mother says "Finally you're being sensible about that...girl!"

Still embracing, Karen says "Missy, you sure your mom won't come down here and catch us?" Missy says "She never walks down the stairs in high heels when she's been drinking. She'll be passed out by ten tonight. Horror Feature is playing 'Carnival of Souls' tonight...um...wanna call me and we can watch it over the phone together?"

Karen says "Sure."

[ihaveastorminme]

the fact that she is so frightened and so traumatized by the blood she had to spill just 5 minutes before, and her mind goes to her family, in the crypts and the prank jon played and how they laughed together. T_T

the suffering is beginning and i am not going to enjoy it.

THAT MEMORY MADE ARYA SMILE AND AFTER THAT THE DARKNESS HELD NO MORE TERRORS FOR HER. The stableboy was dead, she’d killed him, and if he jumped out at her she’d kill him again. She was going home. Everything would be better once she was home again, safe behind Winterfell’s grey granite walls. Her footsteps sent soft echoes hurrying ahead of her as Arya plunged deeper into the darkness

CAN YOU SAY THEMES. CAN YOU SAY FORESHADOWING, CAN YOU SAY HIDDEN MESSAGES ABOUT THE ENDING IN THE BEGINNING, SO CLOSE YU CAN ALMOST SEE IT.

[sunshinies]

haii if it wasnt done already, could i request hu tao themed prns nd titles ?? :3

Hu Tao names can be found here !

🔥Hu Tao pronoun suggestions :

Mort/morts/mortself, death/deaths/deathself, morgue/morgues/morgueself, flame/flames/flameself, flutter/flutters/flutterself, ghost/ghosts/ghostself, py/pyr/pyrself, trick/tricks/trickself, mischief/mischiefs/mischiefself

🦋 Hu Tao title suggestions :

Prn who leads the final journey, the conductor of the crypt, prn who brings tranquility to grievers, the dainty director, prn's mischievous grin, prn who plays pranks with glee, the cunning trickster, prn who finds humor in chaos, the merry prankster, prn who who blazes with passion, the firey funeralist, prn who commands the flames, prn's firey funeral, the spectral storyteller, the happiest haunter

[jadegretz]

Lara Croft: The Tomb Calls by Jade Gretz

Rain lashed against the grimy Parisian windowpanes, a symphony of despair mirroring the tempest that raged within Lara Croft. Wreathed in cigarette smoke, she hunched over a dusty Parisian antique store, poring over faded photographs and cryptic notes. Sleep was a luxury she couldn't afford, not while a trail of blood and madness led her to a series of cursed paintings.

The first incident had been a grisly affair. A wealthy art collector, obsessed with a painting depicting a 16th-century witch hunt, had found himself transformed overnight. His mansion echoed with the screams of unseen figures, and when the police arrived, all they found was a man contorted in terror, his flesh scarred with cruel instruments straight out of the painted scene.

Lara, ever the skeptic, initially suspected a gruesome prank. But the second incident, the brutal murder of a renowned art historian near a scene he was studying – a Renaissance plague tableau – left a chilling doubt in her mind.

The trail led her to Madame Delacroix, a reclusive art dealer shrouded in rumors of dubious provenance and a penchant for the occult. Lara, ever the pragmatic adventurer, doubted the occult aspect but found Delacroix's knowledge of the cursed paintings intriguing.

"These are not mere paintings, Miss Croft," Delacroix rasped, her voice a dry whisper that seemed to emanate from the shadows clinging to the cluttered room. "They are windows, portals to a realm where art bleeds into reality."

Her words sent shivers down Lara's spine. The thought of a haunted painting was as ludicrous as it was terrifying. "Explain yourself, Madame," Lara demanded, her voice clipped and unwavering.

Delacroix cackled, a sound like dry leaves rustling in a crypt. "These paintings, they depict moments of immense despair, hatred, and suffering. The emotions, the very essence of the tragedy, are woven into the canvas."

She gestured towards a shrouded object in the corner. "Take 'The Lament of the Pharaoh,' for instance. It portrays the desecration of an ancient tomb, the rage of the awakened pharaoh. Legends claim those who gaze …(see the rest of the story at deviantart.com/jadegretzAI). For more supergirl, chun li, batgirl, tifa, lara croft, wonder woman, rogue and much more, please visit my page at www.deviantart.com/jadegretzai - Thanks for your support :)

[unchartedthelostlegacy]

The air in the sauna made Nadine gasp. It felt wrong. It felt like she wasn't really breathing.

Chloe, unfazed, shut the wooden door with its tiny window and sat down on the slatted wooden seats, and Nadine tried to settle in across from her. She watched Chloe pushing her wet black hair behind one shoulder, hotel towel barely covering her breasts. Was there even enough oxygen in this hot elevator-sized crypt for both of them?

"China? Y'alright?"

Nadine bit her lip and shook her head, closing her eyes.

The panic rising in her stomach was irrational. She knew that. War memories rising unbidden, or maybe she just had a new phobia after the past couple of adventures with this battleaxe or the Drake idiots. Maybe it was of the combination of fire and water and being trapped.

Still, the dark, cramped wooden cube was supposed to be relaxing. Chloe was clearly enjoying it. She almost looked to be dozing off, a safe practice in the devil's hotbox for sure.

Nadine gripped her knees. She was starting to shake. Not from cold, obviously. It felt...more involuntary. Like muscle twitches. Her heart was pounding.

Someone could lock us in here. Cook us like lobsters. I don't have my gun with me. Frazer doesn't even have her stupid phone.

"Wait," Nadine burst out.

Chloe looked up at her, about to ladle water onto the heated rocks.

"You really think it's not hot enough in here?" the ex-mercenary said.

"You're the one that's shaking, mate."

Because this is what my version of hell feels like.

"How long's it been?" Chloe was smirking at her now. "Don't tell me you've never been in one before."

"Ja, I haven't missed much."

"Sauna virgin."

"I'm going to kill you in your sleep," Nadine's face was on fire.

"Even Sam's been in a sauna before."

"Did they have to demolish it afterward to get rid of the smell?"

Nadine could just go, walk out, leave the Aussie idiot to turn into biltong in here if she wanted. Chloe's goading shouldn't have an effect on her when she'd put up with so much in her life. Instead, the shaking was getting worse, and she knew she wasn't hiding it by re-wrapping the towel around her upper half. Nadine wasn't even the type to be self-conscious about nudity, but Chloe was obviously staring.

This was the Finns' fault. This was geometry and fluid dynamics's fault. This was Chloe's stupid rewards points getting them a cut-price deal on this campy spa instead of a reasonable business hotel's fault. Nadine should be upstairs in her pajamas watching the Premier League and pretending not to Facebook stalk Lesedi on her phone. Apparently relaxation was not supposed to be fun.

"All right, ready for the ice dip?" Chloe said into the boiling silence.

"What?"

Nadine was so overjoyed at seeing the door open again, a strip of light cutting the penance benches, that she wasn't prepared when Chloe grabbed an armful of ice from the trough (Nadine had assumed it was for champagne bottles that would be brought later) beside the evil room and threw it over herself.

"Bracing!"

This couldn't be how it was done. This had to be a prank. The line between luxury spa treatment and interrogation-room torture method seemed very thin at the moment to Nadine.

"You won't even feel cold after the first minute, china. Try it."

"I'm going to be honest," Nadine said as the treasure hunter continued rubbing ice on her sweat-beaded body. "I think I'd rather die."

And yet. Nadine did not know what possessed her to reach over and grasp a handful of the ice--it seemed to steam and stick to her wet fingers--and then brush it over her shoulder and chest, where her heart was still quaking.

The shudder that went through her was, yes, bracing. Nadine wouldn't call it nice. Or even tolerable. But it made her take a full, deep breath for the first time in what felt like forever.

Climbing to absurd heights and balancing across precipices. Catching runaway trains. She needed to stop letting Chloe rope her into this death wish crap.

Chloe was rubbing the ice on her face now, in large circles, like it was some sort of influencer anti-aging trick. "You weren't happy in there. You should have said something."

Nadine sputtered, "And--and listen to your--"

"My what?"

"Your bullshit," Nadine gritted her teeth. "All of your bullshit, Frazer, always."

"You listen to it anyway. God, it was hard watching you?" She turned to Nadine. "What sort of place is this for bottling all that up?"

Nadine couldn't say anything to that. Couldn't even hold Chloe's television-static eyes.

Because it used to work. For almost her whole family it had worked. And other skills, softer skills, non-close-quarters-combat skills that she was sure she had down were atrophied now.

"I thought everyone hated being in there," Nadine stammered. "I didn't think--people actually liked that."

Chloe didn't have to burst out laughing.

[camelotremix]

2023 Camelot Remix - Reveals & Masterpost!

♥ Thank you everyone for joining us again for another fantastic year, we hope to see you all again next year!

♥ We’ve had some amazing remixes this year and want to thank all of our remixers and pinch hitters for your hard work - you’ve been FABULOUS.

♥ Thank you to everyone who read, commented, kudosed or showed love in any way for the works created. And if you haven’t left some comments, kudos, or love, here’s your chance!

Your ever-loving mods, Sknits & Fifty ♥

Fic: shana_rose created Too Strong Coffee (A Snowy Fight Remix) for ajsrandom (Arthur/Gwen – Teen and Up – 1403w) Summary: Gwen and Merlin concoct a plan to help Arthur destress. Fic: ajsrandom created Flower Shop (The Fiendishly Delightful Everything Will Be Bouquet Remix) for sinivalkoista (Gen – Gen – 1482w) Summary: Morgana is plotting again, but this time she plans the prank of all pranks against Arthur. It involves an innocent flower shop and a caught-in-the-crossfire Merlin. Fic: queerofthedagger created The Hopeful Conclusion (the 'The Debate' Remix) for scotscookie (Merlin/Arthur – Teen and Up – 1700w) Summary: While Hunith, Morgana, and Leon greet people, Merlin stays close, hovering just on the edge of Arthur’s personal space. Arthur may have taken it the wrong way if Merlin wasn’t the only one aware of The Plan—capital T, capital P.

As if to prove the point, Merlin leans in until their shoulders are pressed together. “Are you absolutely sure about this? There will be no going back.”

---

Almost exactly one year after the nightmare of a debate, the trial against the assailants finally takes place. Outside the court building, a protest in support of magic users is held, with Merlin Emrys and Arthur Pendragon at the head of it.

As it turns out, the day has more than one surprise in store.

Fic: EachPeachPearPlum created sit by me (the everything seems alright remix) for Stelle_loves_reading (Gwaine/Merlin – Teen and Up – 525w) Summary: "Tell me a story," Merlin says, tilting his head back further, far enough to meet Gwaine's gaze for a moment before he closes his eyes. "I like your stories."

Fic: merthurallure created Ruin our Friendship, a More Than a Ride Remix for teachinghimpoetry (Merlin/Arthur – Mature – 946w) Summary: Merlin and Arthur get stranded with only one horse. Feelings get revealed.

Fic: moonflower999 created You Don't Call, You Don't Write (The Echoes of the Other World Remix) for linorien (Gen – Gen – 695w) Summary: It's Samhain. This is the night when the veil between the worlds is at its thinnest. Camelot is wreathed in fog as Merlin, Arthur, and Guinevere head into the crypts.

Fic: linorien created All You Need is Faith and Trust for s0mmerspr0ssen (Arthur/Gwen – Gen – 12676w) Summary: The drought is awful. It's broken the land and the people's spirits both. An old ritual might be the trick to breaking the curse, but will it also break Merlin and Arthur's friendship?

Fic: s0mmerspr0ssen created In Your Shoes (The “Swap Our Places” Remix) for clea2011 (Merlin/Arthur – Teen and Up – 13917w) Summary: Arthur is in dire need of an attitude check, so Merlin helps him: with a body swap spell. Chaos ensues.

Fic: princessoftheworlds created Counting Castles (the Naming Chickens Remix) for malu_3 (Gwen/Merlin/Arthur - Mature - 5,794w) Summary: Inspired by her conversation with Hunith, Gwen whisks her husband and their lover away to a castle on the coast so they can spend some time together free of their royal duties and expectations, but despite the fresh air and seaside spray, they find that starting a family isn't always easy.

Art: mirayla created Yet, here you are, still (The Still I Surface in Morning Light Remix) for queerofthedagger (Merlin/Arthur - Teen - Art) Summary: “I’m not going to make it that easy,” Arthur presses out, his entire body shaking as he cages Merlin against the nearest wall. “You killed for me? Well, so do my knights. I never wanted you to; you were never supposed to take that kind of burden on for me. But who am I to condemn you, after the atrocities I have committed in my father’s name? You know of them, and yet, here you are, still.”

And yet, here Merlin is, still.

-Still I Surface in Morning Light - queerofthedagger

Fic: salamandair created it's our time now (if you want it to be)[the Irresistible remix] for seadeepy (Gwaine/Merlin/Arthur - General Audiences - 853w) Summary: Arthur is up late with a restless mind after the events of the last few hours. Gwaine won’t let Arthur’s mind keep the other awake, not if he can help it.

Fic: chaosgenes created Save Our Souls (a "No thanks to you, God!" remix) for papysanzo89 (Merlin/Arthur - Explicit - 4,779w) Summary: Emrys, the demon of Prophecy and Magical Arts, has long attempted to drag his prey, Arthur Pendragon, into the depths of Hell. Perhaps, this time, the human priest will finally succumb to his seduction.

Fic: laevateinn created Five times Percival was surprised by Gwaine, and one time Gwaine was the one surprised for aeris444 (Gwaine/Percival - Teen - 4,259w) Summary: People knew Gwaine as the fun knight. But like everyone, he was much more complex.

Five occurrences where Gwaine wasn't what people expected him to be... and one where he was not the only surprising person.

Fic: seadeepy created this love, it transcends (the I Know Now remix) for moonflower999 (Merlin/Arthur - Teen - 1,027w) Summary: At the moment of Arthur's death, Merlin discovers his magic is capable of far more than he ever imagined.

Fic: aeris444 created A trip to love for laevateinn (Gwaine/Percival – Teen and Up – 662w) Summary: Gwaine and Percival are planning a trip to go admire the northern lights... But a worldwide pandemic gets in the way of their trip.

Fic: malu_3 created Morgana and the Hall of Fortune (A Fickle Canon Fix Remix) for willowsmarika (Gen – Teen and Up – 10509w) Summary: After being run through by Merlin, Morgana Pendragon is offered an intriguing choice. Fortune has not smiled on her in her past endeavors, but perhaps there is wisdom to be gained, still, and a chance at a happier fate.

Fic: scotscookie created Life is for the Living (A Prayer before Birth Remix) for polomonkey (Merlin/Arthur – Teen and Up – 3225w) Summary: Merlin has always loved watching Arthur.

Fic: Stelle_loves_reading created Out in the Snow, A Tiny Warlock Glows - Remix for nivelle (Gwaine/Merlin – Teen and Up – Art) Summary: Merlin and Gwaine are away from others, and Camelot. They are attacked by bandits and while Gwaine is dealing with seemingly the last one of them, he realizes Merlin is seriously wounded.

Fic: MyKingdomComeUndone created Something So Magic About You (The Taste of Temptation Remix) for insane_falcon (Merlin/Arthur – Explicit – 27053w) Summary: “You’re more interesting than I thought you’d be,” Arthur admits, allowing his lips to curl into a smile that hovers somewhere between supercilious and patronising. “But you should really give up while I’m playing nice. I’ve been trained to kill since birth.”

His breath catches in his throat as the boy lets out an undignified snort. That was not quite the reaction he was aiming for... Before he can come up with something clever and scathing to say, the boy doubles down.

“And how long have you been training to be a prat?” he asks, again raising that damned eyebrow of his. “Or did that just come naturally?”

For an excruciating moment, Arthur is struck speechless. How dare this…this imbecile insult him to his face? A prat? He’ll show him who’s the prat!

Arthur’s eyes narrow as he brings his sword back up, but instead of cowering in fear, the boy merely smirks at him.

Or:

Arthur catches an apple thief and ends up getting more than he bargained for. (and no, I‘m not just talking about sex, although he does very much get that, too)

Fic: sinivalkoista created Bearly Beloved (The Arto-Maglos Remix) for MerlinMorganEmrys (Arthur/Gwen – Gen – 7500w) Summary: Once upon a time, there was a prince who was rather prattish.

Because of his prattishness, he was cursed to become a bear.

...

“Merlin, listen. This afternoon, I heard a girl singing in the forest. I have a plan.”

“Kidnapping her?”

“No.”

“Kidnapping her father?”

“No!”

Art: kairennart created heaven is not fit to house a love like you and I for mirayla (Merlin/Arthur - General Audiences) Summary: After Camlann, Merlin receives the visit of a ghost.

Fic: teachinghimpoetry created Somebody's Watching Me (The WAP Make it Rain Remix) for merthurallure (Merlin/Morgana, Arthur/Morgana, Merlin/Arthur - Explicit - 1,657w) Summary: Morgana really liked being watched by her mystery man. Tonight she was going to give him a show worth watching.

Art: papysanzo89 created up where they stay all day in the sun (The "I am your Husband" Remix) for MyKingdomComeUndone (Merlin/Arthur - General Audiences - Art) Summary: A hand reached for his forearm, and Arthur whirled around, only to discover none other than the strange man from the restaurant standing in front of him, face flushed and panting slightly.

“You just left,” the man complained between breaths. “You can’t do that, it’s really bad form to leave your husband behind like that!”

Art: nivelle created Like a Bird in Flight (Rings Like a Bell Through the Night Remix) for EachPeachPearPlum (Gwaine/Merlin - General Audiences - Art) i: Gwaine asks Merlin for a dance.

Art: lfb72 created Catch of The Day ( Swipe Right for Fish Remix) for salamandair (Merlin/Arthur - Teen and Up - Art) Summary: I spy, with my little eye something beginning with ….? Arthur looks into the water and discovers something far more fascinating than just fish.

Fic: clea2011 created It’s a Kind of Magic (The Singalong Remix) for Shana_Rose (Merlin/Arthur - Teen - 9,613w) Summary: Arthur writes a song. All by himself. With a pen and everything.

Band AU in which Arthur and Merlin engage in mutual pining and ridiculous misunderstandings, Gwaine can’t keep his shirt on, Leon holds it all together (grumpily) and Lance has the patience of a saint.

Business as usual then.

Fic: geeklover created A Contradiction in Terms (The Difference Between Night and Day Remix) for fifty_fifty (Merlin/Arthur - Mature - 1,183w) Summary: Uther hasn't been dead for twenty-four hours, and Arthur already faces his first challenge as king. Now is when he needs his father the most...or does he?

Fic: polomonkey created Candere for Athena (sherlock_is_actually_a_girls_name) (Merlin/Arthur - Teen and Up - 8,206w) Summary: Ever since that fateful night when Arthur had pulled him in for a hug, arms strong and warm around Merlin’s back, bare chest pressed against him, face all but buried in Merlin’s neck… Merlin had been lost.

But Arthur had let go. And he hadn’t touched Merlin since.

Four times Merlin attempted to get a hug from Arthur, and the one time Arthur gave it willingly.

Fic: Athena (sherlock_is_actually_a_girls_name created The Lavatory for chaosgenes (Merlin/Arthur - Explicit - 732w) Summary: Merlin is afraid of heights. Arthur helps.

Fic: sinivalkoista created the kitten caboodle (the corgi conundrum remix) for princessoftheworlds (Gen - General Audiences - 1,272w) Summary: Arthur finds himself a mortal nemesis - in the form of a deranged beast Merlin brings home.

Fic: moonflower999 created Tell Me What You Really Think (The Gratitude Remix) for geeklover (Merlin/Arthur - General Audiences - 1,983w) Summary: Uther assigns Merlin to Arthur as his new manservant. The problem is that no one knows that Arthur is attracted to men, and Merlin is exactly his type. The prince has to find a way to get rid of Merlin as quickly as possible, as Uther will not budge.

Art: nivelle created Self-designated Knight-sitter for kairennart (Personaje) (Gen - General Audiences - Art) Summary: If she sits on him, he can't run off to get into trouble, Aithusa figures and holds onto Lancelot a little bit tighter.

Art: willowsmarika created The Babysitter Swap (The Aithusa Just Wants To Have Fun Remix) for kairennart (Personaje) (Gen - General Audiences - Art) Summary: Aithusa had enough of Lancelot's protectiveness, she wants a fun babysitter for once. Enter Gwaine, who even manages to loose his shirt during the day, because why not?! And it's Gwaine...

Fic: fifty_fifty created Part of That World (The Little Merman remix) for lfb72 (Merlin/Arthur - Explicit - 31,926w) Summary: Merlin is a curious merman who becomes intrigued with the humans who live on the land. After years of watching and longing, he finds out it's possible for a merman to become a human man.

Meanwhile, Arthur is fed up with his life in the city and quits his job at the family business. After a blow-out fight with his father, he moves to his mother's old seaside cottage at sleepy Camelot-on-Sea, where he finds himself, his life's calling, and a rather mysterious merman who saves him in more ways than one.

[delfeur]

Just a bit about Auguste's death, Laurent and the Regent. ao3 here or under the cut

-

The ride back from Marlas was torture.

He vaguely remembers most of those days. Laurent, at first, rode on the litter, with Auguste’s and Father’s body. Auguste, who was always so warm and shone like a beacon when he smiled at Laurent. His brother, who still let Laurent sleep in his bed when a bad storm scared him and who made up stories to make Laurent laugh. Auguste, who would mess with Laurent's hair and call him ‘Baby brother’ and ignored Laurent’s protests of “I’m not a baby, I’m almost a man”.

Dead.

He sat inside the litter by his brother’s side while the new reality of his absence solidified itself around him. Auguste’s cold and unmoving body felt unreal, like one of the pranks that he loved pulling on Laurent just to get a reaction out of him. At first he had begged Auguste to just stop, that it was not funny, for him to just stop being dead. He didn’t, of course. The stench of blood clawed its way inside Laurent, letting him know that his brother was, undoubtedly, gone. Damianos of Akielos had made sure of it.

He was past the denial stage. Now anger sat snuggly in the pit of his stomach, like it wanted to fill the void that Auguste’s death had left inside Laurent. He cursed every Akielon under the sun, their war mongering ways, their barbaric way of life. He cursed his mother for dying and Kempt for being bad allies. He cursed the prince-killer, Damianos, as he held his brother’s cold and stiff hand, and swore revenge.

Laurent held Auguste’s palm in his up to the point where his deadness claimed the body, his brother’s skin turning a ugly shade of purple and starting to bloat, and he sat by Auguste’s side until he couldn’t stand it anymore. Then, he left it to ride alongside his Uncle and tried not to flinch every time he looked at Auguste’s riderless horse.

*

The funeral was beautiful, as the death of royalty demands. His uncle stood next to him during most of the ceremony, his hand on Laurent`s shoulder for support, like a father would to a young son. At times, it felt like it was the only thing keeping him from crumbling down.

One of the Council elders spoke of bravery, honor, and sacrifice. Lords and Ladies lined in front of them, eager to give him their condolences and show him and Uncle how truly they were grieving. Only a few of them sounded sincere. Laurent went through the motions of it as if it was something happening to someone else. By the time Auguste’s and Father’s body were, finally, sealed into the crypt, he felt like crawling out of his skin.

Later, when the rain started to fall and the courtiers started to retire, he was allowed to go to his rooms. He sat on his bed, staring at his own feet, and the emptiness inside him threatened to swallow him whole. He could hear thunder in the distance. An approaching storm that would rage all through the night.

There was a knock at his door. When he provided no response, the door opened slowly.

`How are you, Nephew?' his Uncle asked, entering the room.

Laurent shrugged, 'Alive,' he said, at last.

He felt more than seeing Uncle sitting down next to him on the bed. He placed one of his hands on Laurent`s tight and pressed lightly.

'It was an honorable death,' he said, ' Auguste knew it was a possibility when he rode to Marlas.'

‘What difference does it make?' he said back, 'when they are both dead and Delfeur is lost anyway.’

‘You are too young to understand the games of men, Nephew.’

He thought about protesting, the retort already on his tongue. But when he looked up, his uncle’s face was so much like his father’s, the affection he found there was just too much. Laurent’s lips quivered and when Uncle reached to embrace him in a hug, Laurent couldn’t suppress the tears anymore. They came out paired with ugly sobs and Laurent almost felt like he’d choke on it.

'Oh, Laurent…', Uncle said softly. Like Auguste used to.

Uncle rearranged Laurent so he was sitting on Uncle's lap, instead of next to him. He cradled Laurent's head in his hand and petted him soothingly. His other hand was placed in Laurent's haunches, keeping him from slipping. Laurent hid his face on his Uncle's neck and let all the pain and grief of the last few days, finally, out. Like a little boy, he clutched his Uncle's jacket and sobbed. He cried about the unfairness of it all. About how, in the spawn of barely two months, he’d lost whole family.

“I know, Laurent…” Uncle said, a whisper against his ear, his beard tickling Laurent’s wet cheeks. He knew, of course, his uncle had lost a brother and a nephew, too.

Laurent forced himself to stop, swallowing back the tears and wiping his face with the back of his hands. He shifted himself on uncle’s lap and felt something hard poke him in the tight.

“Sorry,” he sniffed. His uncle was smiling at him.

“It’s ok, Laurent,” Uncle cupped Laurent’s cheek in one of his hands and wiped the tears from his eyes with his thumb. “Let’s focus on making them proud, uh?”

Laurent closed his eyes, sniffed again and nodded.

Uncle smiled at him. Then, unexpectedly, he leaned forward and kissed Laurent. A chaste press of Uncle’s lips against his, over as soon as it started. Still, when Uncle pulled back, the impression of it remained against Laurent’s lips.

“We’ve had a long day,” Uncle said. His hand caressed Laurent’s tight one last time. “ You should try and get some sleep, Nephew,” he removed Laurent from his lap and stood up and walked to the door.

Outside, the storm raged, the wind rattling against his window, the thunder boomed and it felt like the whole world was shaking. Laurent flinched.

He didn’t want to admit he was afraid, not to his uncle. So he said, “Uncle, please. Stay.”

His uncle smiled and closed the door.

[achy-boo]

Delano Bloodstone

Name: Delano Bloodstone

Romaji: Bloodstone Delano

Quote#1: "Why try to be good or evil? Staying neutral is the best decision.."

Quote#2: "Halloween..Now that is the only holiday I wish would last longer.."

V/A: Jack Skellington from Nightmare before Christmas(English) + Sebastian Michaelis from Kuroshitsuji(Black Butler) {Adult}, Ryuu from Akagami no Shirayuki-hime(Japanese; Snow White with the Red Hair) + Shippo from InuYasha(Japanese)

Gender: Male

Sexuality: Questioning right now

Age: 20

Birthday: October 31st at 3 am

Zodiac Sign: Scorpio

Eye color: lilac purple

Hair Color: pale-ish purple

Height: 5'10

Weight: 120 lbs

Race: Human??

Homeland: Scalding Sands

Family: Unknown mother, father and two brothers. Jamil Viper(Cousin)

School Status and Fun Facts

Dorm: He is in RSA

School Year:3rd year

Class: 3-B

Student Number: No.31

Occupation: A babysitter and waiter (Never told anyone)

Club: In NRC, he is a part of the tea club with Sapphire Lake Dorm

Best Subject: Flying and History

Favorite Color: Lilac, red, black and grey

Favorite Food: He likes cheesecake(or anything sweet)

Least Favorite Food: Raw octopus

Likes: Teasing Jamil, quietness, reading, observing people, daydreaming, school, Yuuken(sometimes), being quiet and mysterious, Idia(the Introverts), children and animals

Dislikes: Getting to unwelcome trouble, chaos, drama, Kalim(which he later grew to fond of), Sebek due to his yelling, Che'nya's pranks, Riddle's rules, Crowley, The rivalry between NRC and RSA, being forced to speak, Najma's teasing

Hobbies: Visiting Jamil, dancing, singing, baking, avoiding the trouble from NRC and RSA

Talents: sense lies and trouble from afar, taking to animals, stealthy walking, training with knives and any other weapons

Nicknames: Del(Neige), Halloween Boy(Che'nya), Prince Halloween or just Prince(The girls of Sapphire Lake Dorm)

Other Nicknames: Delly(Jamil), Mysterious boy(Malleus), Le prince d'Halloween(Rook)

Appearance and Personality

Appearance: Normal; He has long lilac hair that reaches his lower back, he has pale-ish purple eyes and light brown skin, he has these markings on his face which he never had any clue how or why they are here. He wears the normal RSA uniform but it's more Halloweenish theme due to his seasonal UM. On Halloween, his eyes are black and orange, his lilac hair turns black with orange-black ends, his hair now reaches near his bum, he wears a suit that is black, orange and grey.

Personality: Delano is quiet yet calm. He has a few words to speak and he is the silent Halloween boy in RSA. Due to the fall out between him and his mother, he had no contact with her and one of his siblings but does not mean he will not be protective of his friends and his family. He is very friendly though he had a hard time speaking. On Halloween however, he is more...abnormal. He speaks in riddles, crypts words or even in a polite tone that makes people more uneasy around him. He is more expressive with his emotions and even talks more but not too talkative. He is still protective and fiercely loyal and willing to help people to safety on Halloween.

𝑻𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒂

- Halloween Dance is his primary UM

-On Halloween: he has a seasonal UM called The Pumpkin King’s Ball or Jack Skellington's Halloween Party

-He was called a demon child by his mother due to his time of birth.

-He was supposed to go to NRC by his mother but his father change it to RSA at the last minute.

-He visits Jamil and Najma when he had the time

-His favorite holiday is of course Halloween

-His entire appearance and personality changes on Halloween

-He might be the only RSA student who had two in three things.

-As a child, he refused to speak to anyone thus result of him getting bullied for it

-His normal voice is soft yet husky but in Halloween though, its deep and seductive

-He has a pet ghost wolf named Hollow

-Normal; He has a hair pin of a smiling skull but on Halloween; His hairpin is a smiling pumpkin in a bow at the lower part of his hair

-He hates Azul and certain NRC students the moment he step his foot on NRC

[blazehedgehog]

How DID FNAF get so popular in 2014? (God, that was 9 years ago.) Was it just a right place, right time thing?

A bit, yeah.

I think it's pretty clear from the popularity of Halloween that kids like to be scared (and to scare each other). There was a whole market that a lot of studios either forgot about or never tapped into.

Because, like, when you think about "horror for kids," you think about, like... Grabbed by the Ghoulies, or Luigi's Mansion, or even that one Haunted Mansion game Disney put out.

Games that are absolutely more silly than scary.

But we were in the era of the "creepypasta," which was undoubtedly dominated by kids between the ages of 13 and 18 writing about how their Sega Genesis was oozing blood or they had summoned Jeff the Killer by calling his number at 3am or whatever.

And this was after years of top Youtube Let's Players cutting their teeth on games like Amnesia and Cry of Fear. Kids were now intimately familiar with actual horror. They were hungry for sterner stuff than the typical idea of what kids could tolerate. Googly-eyed skeletons and technicolor sheet ghosts weren't cutting it anymore.

Five Nights at Freddy's was laser focused at this demographic: characters and a premise even adults find scary (uncanny animatronics turned killers) married with extremely simple gameplay that's all about building up to what is effectively somebody going "Boo!"

I currently live with my brother and his family, and he has twin sons. They're six years old. When it's time for bed, they give hugs to everyone. And when it comes time for my hug, every night for the last year, they try to sneak into my bedroom so they can jump out and shout "Boo!"

And when they do manage to surprise me (either because I play along or because they genuinely come in so quiet and secretly that I do not notice), it is one of the greatest things for them. They'll go bouncing out of my room and one will proclaim to the other "I GOT UNCLE RYAN!"

Even six year olds like the "Boo!" It's universal. The ultimate, most primal form of prank.

And despite trading in dark themes (dead children and a conspiracy to hide their deaths), there's no blood in FNAF. The violence is, at most, implied. And since the lore was deliberately obfuscated, its darker themes are gated by how deep you're willing to dive. Younger kids who might not be keen enough to figure out the easter eggs and hidden story elements are spared, whereas older kids can devour theory crafting videos until their eyes cross.

I don't necessarily think Scott Cawthon did everything deliberately. He's on the record saying FNAF was kind of a last ditch effort for him to be successful at game development, after all his other (Christian/Educational) projects were non-starters. I think certain parts of FNAF were probably more a happy accident. But he did land in the right place, at the right time, with the right game for what an audience of 13-18 year olds was most likely to connect with at the time.

And in the bigger picture, it was like the popularity of characters like The Crypt Keeper, Jason Vorhees and Freddy Kreuger finally came home to roost. Those were characters of the late 80's and early 90's that found surprising popularity with kids of the era. Growing up I was both amused and terrified of the myriad of Freddy Kreuger merchandise, and they straight up made a Tales from the Crypt saturday morning cartoon. From something that aired on HBO at 10pm and routinely had nudity and quite a bit of gore.

Even if their parents never liked it, kids have been getting scared by adult horror for decades.

Now, with FNAF, it was literally Good Christian Fun™ with enough of an edge to it that kids didn't feel like they were being talked down to.

[convexicalcrow]

Hermittober Day 12: Fool

what came before: day 1: frost - day 2: time - day 3: fortune - day 4: bound - day 5: sand - day 6: bread - day 7: fall - day 8: blossom - day 9: betrayal - day 10: sacrifice - day 11: burst

look I had An Idea about the ravager costume prank and this is where it lead me.

-

"Hey! Hey! That's- no! Too many!"

Bdubs ran across the River of Souls as he saw yet another ravager start chasing him. He wasn't really thinking about where he was going, but he ended up running to the berry bush under the bridge in the TNT room, because at least he would be safe there.

He ate a couple of berries and took a moment to think about what he'd just been through. "So. Wait. Hang on. There were-" He closed his eyes as he retraced his steps. "One by the entrance, another two in the circle room, then another came from- that- that's four! Four ravagers! Tango! That's too many!"

A ravager's growl from above alerted him to yet another ravager nearby but he couldn't see it. He snuck down and around, keeping under the bridge until he climbed back up to the upper level where he could now see the ravager coming up the path from the dripstone, charging straight for him.

"No! Five! Five ravagers!" was all Bdubs managed to get out before sprinted away, turning down another corridor, where another ravager peeked out from around the corner. "Six! Tango! Tango! No! That's too many!"

Bdubs didn't really stop and think, though. He ran. He simply ran into the crypt to go hide in a corner, hopefully away from more ravagers.

"Wait. Wait. Hang on. If there's five though. Doesn't this mean that- Where's the ravagers up here?" Bdubs said, suddenly remembering where the ravagers should be.

He snuck down towards the throne room, peering in to see a ravager there too.

"Alright. Alright. Seven. Okay. That- ahaha, yeah, that seems like a lot. But it's not like they're all in one spot, right?"

He wasn't entirely reassured by this but pressed on nonetheless. He just needed to find a key and then he'd run down to the caves and see if there were fewer ravagers there.

"Gonna be a bitch getting back through here though, that's for sure," Bdubs muttered as he searched in the lava room for a key and picked up only a coin and some more berries instead.

As he went to peek around the corner and see about getting to the key room, he saw another ravager (or was it the same one?) charge straight at him. In his panic, Bdubs cornered himself in the lava room. But instead of death, as he tried to make the parkour leap onto the lantern, there was something that felt more like a headbutt or a punch and a voice saying 'boo!'

"Tango! Gah!"

Bdubs stumbled, lost his footing, shoved the ravager away, and ran. Straight into the path of another ravager. rip Bdubs. Well, it was a shit run anyway.

-

"Hey, what's so funny?" Bdubs said as he grabbed his things and brough the game to an end. "You finding my deaths so funny, are you, Tango?"

Tango's giggling turned a little more into a laugh. "Hey, you're the one who ran into a ravager! Oh, it was so funny! You didn't even see the other one who actually hit you!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, I'm glad you're entertained by it anyway," Bdubs said as he grabbed his deck and opened the door to leave.

"Always, Bdubs!" Tango said.

Bdubs scowled. "Well, if there hadn't been like nine thousand ravagers in there, maybe I'd have done better!"

"Oh, were there a few more ravagers in there, hey? Oh, that's interesting, I must have lost count as I was adding more to replace the ones who'd died," Tango said, as seriously as he was able to.

"Hey! Shut up! You try running in there with that many ravagers! I'm sure you'd die just like I did!" Bdubs said.

"Oh, sure! But that's also because I'm just bad at my own game. Are you sure there were extra ravagers in there, though? Because I'm sure there were only five last time I counted. Seriously. There should be only five," Tango said.

"Well, now I don't know anymore! Maybe I counted 'em wrong. Saw two when there was only one. Also, hey. Hey! You were- hey! You shoved me in that lava room, didn't you? Were you trying to trick me?" Bdubs said, realisation dawning on him as he remembered what had happened.

"Oh, you finally worked it out, hey? Well done, Bdubs! I though the 'boo!' might have given it away sooner but it seems not! You were too busy panicking!" Tango said.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Bdubs shoved him with his shoulder, though he was more mad at himself for not figuring it out than mad at Tango for pulling a prank on him.

"Hey, look, I'll refund that one, alright? Failed run, there was a troll in the dungeon. You wanna see how I did it, though? I think you'll enjoy it," Tango said.

"Oh, sure, yeah! Like, you looked like the real thing! I didn't even notice!" Bdubs said.

"Well, then, Bdubs, follow me up to the roof, where no one can see us," Tango said.

-

The ravager costume comprised of a mask, and a cloak, which didn't seem to be enough to Bdubs? But he trusted Tango, and got down on his hands and knees when Tango asked, and that- well. That's when the magic happened.

At least, he thought it must have been magic. How else would his body suddenly- change? Not that he was- well. Did he change? Or did his brain just change into a ravager? He wasn't sure. But his body sure moved like one. He saw Tango in front of him and wanted to both smash him and also obey him, and he wasn't sure which one at that point in time. He growled instead, and Tango laughed.

"Good boy! See? You're no different to all the other ravagers down there. I think you'll be a fine addition to the caves. We're due another down there anyway. And I think I'm going to call you… Blind Man's Bluff, because you absolutely never saw this coming," Tango said.

Bdubs wasn't sure what to do. How to react. He stamped his feet. Wanted to headbutt Tango, but something seemed to be stopping him from doing so. Growled. Went to bite him but Tango grasped his jaws with his hands and firmly closed his mouth.

"None of that, thank you! You do not attack your Dungeon Master!" Tango said.

Bdubs tried to wrestle free but Tango let him go and his words seemed to leave him paralysed. Tango wrapped something around his neck. Something heavy. A collar maybe? He didn't know. Just knew that he was suddenly Very Hungry, and all he cared to eat was whichever Hermit was silly enough to get in his path.

"Good boy, good boy. Now, you behave yourself as I take you down to the caves, alright? And if you die down there, well. That's on you, really. Go and eat all the Hermits for me, that's a good ravager," Tango said, rubbing his snout gently.

Bdubs definitely would. He'd eat so many Hermits they'd never catch him!