#giant two headed ghost crow

[im-totally-not-an-alien-2]

Halloween prompts no. 6

A massive two headed ghost crow is causing chaos in Gotham and nothing the batfam try seems to work. They even called in Constantine for help only to find out magic didn't affect the thing either.

However when Nightwing called Robin "baby bird" the crow mimicked him, sounding almost...concerned??? The bird stopped its rampage and the two heads examined Damian, "baby" one head said and was followed by the other head saying "bird"

Then it snapped him up by the cape and flew off with him.

Damian was kinda miffed that the bird kept trying to feed him things. First it was a very terrified cat, then a fish before the vigilante explained he was a vegetarian and what that was.

The bird left and came back with a tree branch in one beak and a whole pumpkin in the other. Damian wasn't sure what he was supposed to do with the branch, did it expect him to eat the leaves? The other head kept trying to get him to eat the pumpkin whole by pressing it against his face.

By the time the batfam found him he was surrounded by increasingly random things the birds had brought him. Nightwing just wanted to know where the bird got a ten foot long French fry.

[demonvibez]

Ghost!!! Ive had a brainstorm!!!

The obey me characters with an MC that has a huge collection of plushies and stuffies :,,(((

Lucifer who preens each fluffy toy like a bird, Mammon who fights, slaps and kicks each plushie out of jealousy when you're not there to mediate him.

Levi who's planning intricate playdates with his stuffies and MC's stuffies. (He replays the memory in his head a lot when he's alone.) Satan who's using MC's plushies to prop up his books, he laughs when the book falls ontop of the poor stuffed animal.

Asmodeus who dotes and teases his favourite of the pile, sitting the soft toy in his lap so it can watch Asmo do a full skincare routine with him! Beel who scoops as many fluffy friends as he can into his arms to squeeze and cuddle!

Belphegor who lazily sinks into the softness of stuffed animals and takes leisure naps snuggled into the warmth.

Gjgjgkkhkggkfknfgggg I cant get it out of my head :,,|||||

Some of them turn the stuffies the other way when nightly cuddles turns into something more passionate and some of them are a bit meaner (COUGHCOUGHCOUGH LUCIFER ND HIS CORRUPTION KINK COUGHCOUGIGOVCIHCOS)

Okay, this is such a cute little imagine I just :') haha took it and ran a bit...or a lot! hope you enjoy - small suggestive/smutty part at the end, minors do not interact!

word count: 1400+ genre: mostly fluff / some smut (MDNI) tags: fluff, sibling rivalry, gender neutral reader, implied poly mc, exhibitionism, unprotected sex, oral sex, sex on camera rating: mature

It all started when Lucifer had noticed your favorite plushies that you had brought from home on your bed while you were out grocery shopping with Mammon and Asmodeus. He had the bright idea to get a plushie for you himself, and give it to you as a gift. Once his other brothers found out what he had done, of course it launched into a competition, with the other Six giving you plushies as well.

Lucifer is quite serious about the plushie he has given to you - he makes sure it is kept in pristine condition every time he swings by your room. Adorned with many accessories (each imbued with protection spells, unbeknownst to you), the plushie definitely reminds you of him in appearance - of course he would get you a plushie to literally represent him. He even enchanted the plushie to carry his scent, so that when you cuddle with it at night, you can't help but to think of him. He would never admit it, but he put a lot of thought and care into his plushie for you. If he sees any of his brothers even so much as breathe on it incorrectly, he'll make a mental note to add a little extra spice the next time he wants to punish them.

Mammon is naturally the most competitive about the whole thing. Every time one of his brothers gifts you a new plushie friend, he goes right out and buys two more - bigger, better, shinier! NO ONE can outdo The Great Mammon when it comes to giving his human some plushies! He's given you so many that you could make a giant crow's nest out of them that would cover most of your bed. Whenever he comes over, he pushes all of the plushies from his brothers under your bed, arguing that "ya got all these plushies here from yer first man, why the heck would ya need anythin' else?!" and you can't help but to pull him into a tight hug and indulge him once again as you begin your movie night.

You and Leviathan actually exchange stuffies with each other, after it takes you 4 days, 67 texts and three phone calls to get Levi to leave his room after hearing about the small collection you already have from his brothers. Envy floods his brain, convincing him "you would never exchange something like that with him," but you manage to finally make him believe you! And ever since, the lil group of you have a plethora of adventures together. Now when the two of you make cosplays together, you make an additional little mini set for your plushies to wear for your next TSL night! And when he is bored, sometimes Levi can't help but to look back at the photo album of your cosplays together on his DDD fondly.

Satan definitely hates the Lucifer plushie. Like, with every fiber of his infernal being. He would love to set the damn thing on fire - and often has dreams in which he does exactly that - but he loves you more and wouldn't want to hurt you like that, so he gets his own to give you instead. You guys love to have murder mystery parties with the plushies, but had to ban the eldest's plushie from the party when you started to notice it was somehow always the victim. Aside from that, the two of you also enjoy just cuddling up together with his plushie and reading by the fire. You both have tea and cookies while sharing poetry with one another, under the embrace of your favorite fluffy blanket, the plushie snug between the two of you.

Asmodeus makes an entire day of going out shopping for plushies and outfits with you. Little did you know, he had called in a few favors with one of his fashion designer friends to have both the plushies and their outfits custom made to his design. When the two of you get back to his room, you sit down in front of his vanity with your new plushies and start making each other over, in preparation for the fashion show you’re about to have. After getting hair and makeup ready, you slip on your outfits, making sure everything looks just right, both with yourselves and your new stuffed friends. Asmo uses one of the extra plushies from his bed to prop up his DDD to record the fashion show - which still remains at the top of his Devilgram highlight reel.

Beelzebub was probably the only one of his brothers that was unfazed by the whole competitive aspect of this. He was walking back home from fangol practice one afternoon, arms full of bags of food for the two of you from Hell's Kitchen. As he's walking, he notices an adorable plushie in a shop window that reminds him of you. Of course he goes in to buy it, and soon enough he is making a beeline straight home and directly to your room with all of the goodies. He honestly has no idea which he loves more - the look on your face as you eat your favorite Devildom food, or the smile you flash and the glimmer in your eyes as he gives you the plushie. He can't help but to pull you into one of his famous Beel hugs.

Belphegor was feeling a bit bratty when he heard that his brothers were in this stupid little plushie competition for you. He ended up disappearing for a couple of days, nowhere to be found and completely ignoring all attempts to reach him via DDD. You eventually find him upon looking for him in the attic a second time. Upon entering you see him asleep in bed with a giant plushie, one as long as he is tall. You sit on the edge of his bed and call out to him a few times with no reply. After calling his name the fourth time, you reach out to touch him, only to have his tail wrap around you and pull you down into his cuddle pile. He presses a kiss into the top of your head, mumbling something about how ‘he got you this gift because you are his,’ before drifting back off to sleep. You smile and press a kiss to the bottom of his jaw, cuddling closer before joining him in slumber.

When it comes to moments of intimacy, most of the brothers are rather respectful, and don’t like the feeling of the little plushie eyes on them during your love making. Two of the brothers in particular are a bit more devious than the others, though . . .

It was one of those rare evenings where Lucifer was spending time with you in your room instead of his. One thing led to another, and now here you were; the Avatar of Pride thrusting into you as you grip the sheets and moan out his name. Right as you both are about to hit your climax together, Lucifer breaks eye contact with you as he releases, his eyes locking with the Satan plushie right as he fills you with his seed. As he is coming down from his high, a sadistic idea plants himself into the back of his mind. He had been looking for a new way to punish his brothers, and the audience of plushies watching the two of you had proven useful in giving him this devious idea. The next time his brothers did something especially egregious that warranted punishment, he will simply string them up from the ceiling and make them watch as he takes you - even just the idea of it fills him with enormous pride.

One night, after your little fashion show date, things were getting hot and heavy in your room. Asmodeus was making out with you in a rather passionate fashion as your hands found the way to the hem of his shirt, tugging it off. As you begin to pull on his belt, he grabs your hands, a devious smirk on his face and a glint in his eyes. “Wait…I have an idea…” He pushes himself off of your bed, pulling one of Mammon’s plushies along with him. He props the plushie up on the dresser across from your bed before pulling out his DDD, making sure the plushie is holding it and the front facing camera is on. He looks back to you as you nod your consent, and he makes his way back to your bed, peeling off your pants and pushing your underwear to the side, leaning down to taste you as you let out the first of many moans. He would never dream of posting the video anywhere - but he definitely does text you little clips from it to tease you when he is craving more of you.

[itsscromp]

Going to the beach with the 141?

Beach day

And just in time for summer too :D Word count:1.5K

With summer now finally here and the weather starting to warm up, Laswell has awarded all of you two months off for your hard work. But what should you all do ?? Y/n may have just the idea for everyone.

"Hey you guys know how we have two months right ??"

"Why ??" Simon was curious.

"Yes, I remember it very clearly y/n" Price said.

"Well, maybe I thought we could rent out a cabin for a month and head down to the beach or something" You said enthusiastically.

"Walk into the sun... On purpose ??" Simon did not like the sun whatsoever, yes he said his skin was impeccable bronze, but that's just around the eyelids.

"That's the point I guess ??"

"Well that's a nice idea Y/n, That would be good for us to get out" He immediately got out his phone and looked through some BnB's

"See Simon, Price agrees"

"I still don't get why you'd want to be outside of your own free will"

"Well one it's healthy and two it gives you fresh air" You snickered.

"Did I hear a beach day in here ??" Johnny heard as he walked in, as someone mentioned beach, golden retriever mode is now activated.

"Yeah, I suggested we rented a cabin for the month near there" You caught him up.

"Oooo !!! Price you should listen to them" He gave an enthusiastic smile. "That's a good idea, Have ya heard ?? Are we going captain ??" He was so damn ready and the thing wasn't even organised.

He then found the perfect BnB for all of you to stay in and it was within the price range. "Then it's settled, We're heading to the beach" He looked at you all smiling.

"What's going on here ??" Gaz walked in, hearing soap's cheering and excitement.

"We're going to the beach !!!"

"Nice, sounds like fun !!" He smiled a little.

But Simon was not budging, he didn't want to go outside and feel the sun, risking more tan on his skin among other things. "I'll stay behind"

"Aw come on, It'll be fun" You tried to convince him.

"I'll watch the base for price, Who's going to take care of-"

"Simon, No, your coming with us" Price affirmed him in a loving dad way.

"Pleaaaaaaaassssssssseeeeeee" You and Johnny tried.

"You can't convince me" He eyed both of you.

"Yes I can"

"No you can't"

"Oh yeah ?? What if I told you there was an open bar on the beach ??" Johnny tried to add.

"Well... Do you think I'm just an alcoholic ??" But you could tell it was working, Time to sweeten the deal.

"Or you can toss soap in the water with the sharks or trap him in a pile of sand so he has to walk back with sand in his ass"

"Well, That does sound pretty enticing" He showed crows feet on one eye, indicating a smirk.

"GHOST !!!" Offended scotsman bestie noises.

"Alright you sold me" He finally agreed.

'Hell yeah !!" You fist bumped the air.

"I thought we were bros...." He was hurt, like a kicked puppy. "I'll get you both back, just you wait !!"

"Sure Johnny sure" You both snickered.

"Alright, I got the place booked, Go get packed then, we leave tomorrow morning. Giant children the lot of you" Price clicked his tongue.

Soon the morning of the trip arrived and you began double-checking the items you had packed. "Ok, shirt's check, pants check"

"I got my stuff" Gaz slung his duffle bag over his shoulder.

Johnny was in tow behind him with a big backpack "Ready !!"

You were a little baffled by how much he had in his backpack "Johnny what did you pack, Your entire room ??"

"No... I only brought my good clothes, comic books, drawing pad, journal, several pencils and a picture of my mom"

"Soooooo Your entire room" You smirked

"Well, Like 70% of my room, I can't fit the furniture" He joked. Simon walked down the hall with his duffle bag, ready to go as well.

"We're all packed captain" Gaz said

"Alright then, shall we head out ??"

"Onwards !!" Johnny bolted for the doors.

Everyone sorted out the car situation to figure out who was going with who, Johnny was a little saddened how he wasn't going with you and Simon. "Awww why can't I go with you guys"

"Cause the last time we did a road trip together, I had to clean out your car sickness the whole day, and the smell was still there for 3 days" You shuddered.

He pouted a little before obliging, the cars now on the road and off to the BnB, You and Simon chatting along the way. Finding a very old house that had tree's growing outside of it, something like out of the last of us.

"Wow, that's so freaking cool"

"Yeah... It's crazy what nature can do" He smiled a little, he liked car rides with you, it was one of the many peaceful times with you.

His phone dinged with a text from Price. "Price is at the next gas station, something about Johnny eating too many cheese curds and is currently throwing up"

"Tried to warn him" You chuckled.

"Poor Johnny, He's stupid though for eating those cheese curds"

"Oh I can Imagine" You shuddered

Soon the two of you arrived at the destination, Y/n finding the keys and heading inside. "Wow, this place is so cool in person"

"It is, check out the TV" Simon walked in and saw how big it was. He pulled out his phone and saw another text from Price. "They're on the road again. Johnny is still feeling a little uneasy, but he isn't throwing up anymore"

"Thank god for that, He's taking a shower as soon as he get's here"

Soon the others arrived and Johnny went for the shower, After which it was a rest afternoon for everyone, tomorrow It was the beach day.

So the next morning once everyone was rested and Johnny recovered, You all filled up on breakfast and got ready, Simon pulling you aside to slap a huge fuck ton of sunscreen on you.

"Hey hey easy" You chuckled as he slapped some on your back.

"Not on my watch" He was not letting melanoma get to his bestie !! Not now not ever.

Soon everyone began to walk to the beach as it was within walking distance, normally the beach was a little busy, but thankfully it wasn't today, so you guys technically had the beach all to yourselves, you set the shade up and the chairs, Johnny and Gaz immediately rushing for the water. Having water guns in the ready.

Price had his book ready to go as he sat down and kept his eyes on you 4 as well. You and Simon began to draw sketches into the sand.

"Ok, what's this ??" You pointed out your sand sketch

"Hmmmm........ A dragon ??" He tilted his head.

"Yeah, there we go !!" You smiled "Ok your turn"

Simon began to draw his sketch in the sand, It was a very complex drawing leaving you baffled.

"Ok.... Is it..... A dog ??"

"No"

After a little bit of guessing, Johnny called you over to take some photos of him to send to his wife, You snickered every time he flexed for the camera, eager to impress her. "Looking good supermodel" You snickered.

"Hey, it's for my one and only, she gets only the best" He smiled proudly.

"Ok I sent you the photos"

"Why don't you two come in the water ??" Gaz offered.

"No thanks, You three have fun" Simon said as he headed back for the shade to dump more sunscreen on him.

So you three began to wrestle in the water, Having the time of your lives, not a care in the world, Just you guys. Simon watched on as he sat in the shade, Price knowing him too well, sat up. "Why don't you join them ??"

"I don't know..." He still didn't want to get tanned. But another thing is he didn't know how to relax, He was so used to routine and planning so all of this was a little off-putting to him.

'I know it's a little hard son, But when do we be able to get to do something like this. Besides, Y/n is on the losing side from what I can see, I'm sure they can use your help" He chuckled softly before going back to his book.

He looked out into the water, Yes it looked like you were in a little trouble, So he sighed a little and got up, slipping his shirt off and heading to the water.

You looked and smiled. "Yeah Simon, Let's go !!"

Johnny and Gaz gulped as he rolled his shoulders and lightly flexed his chest. Soon the match began and how the tables turned, Ultimately by the end you and Simon being declared the winners.

"Well done" He smiled softly, raising his hand for a high five from you, To which you happily returned.

The sun began to set, A very fun-filled day for everyone, But Johnny sadly being the victim with sunburn and sand up his ass, But all in all a very fun day.

A/N: I'm so sorry for the lack of content as of lightly, I hope to try and be a bit more consistent.

Taglist: @callofdudes @cumikering

[mewsingsbynataliek]

NSR Halloween DLC ideas, just in time for Spooky Night!

The soundtrack for the Halloween DLC would feature instruments associated with the holiday being incorporated into the songs, such as pipe organ and theremin.

The Bosses

DJ Subatomic Supernova

DJSS is a scarecrow, wearing a straw hat, flannel shirt, and denim overalls (cut-off, of course!).

For the battlefield, the background of the Planetarium is a deep orange. The planets he uses to attack are replaced with pumpkins, and the asteroids are replaced by a swarm of crows.

Sayu

Sayu is a cute ghost girl. (I felt it would be fitting since she’s a floaty character.) She's slightly translucent and sports a ghostly wisp-like tail rather than her regular mermaid tail. Her colour palette features off-whites and faded pastels, making her look more etherial.

Sayu wears a tattered white Victorian/Lolita-style dress, lacy cuffs around her wrists and a little bow on her head.

For Phase 2, her dress becomes poofier and more elaborate as small ribbons resembling tentacles appear around her waist. Her trident is completely white.

Phase 3 has her go full-on ghost bride. Her dress has a huge multi-tiered skirt, her hair is adorned with a long veil, and her tentacle ribbons have grown to full length. Her deep-sea mode has her face turn glowing green with solid black eyes, making her resemble a spookfish, while her “tentacles” feature flickering lights similar to a bioluminescent jellyfish.

Her final form is basically your stereotypical bedsheet ghost shape with her legs sticking out the bottom.

Sayu’s team are dressed in dark wizard-like robes, and each of them are wearing masks like the ones worn by Lock, Shock, and Barrel from The Nightmare Before Christmas. 

For the battlefield, the “landscape” is dotted with jack-o-lanterns, tombstones, and dead trees. The background is changed to a seafoam green color, with wispy little ghosts flying about.

Yinu and Mother 

Yinu is dressed as a cute little witch. Her hair is in pigtails similar to her Christmas skin, and her witch hat is adorned with fall leaves and little jack-o-lanterns.

Mother, meanwhile, is a spooky Halloween tree with spiders. Her dress is a dark wood colour with translucent, ragged-edged sleeves, and she wears a thorny hairband and spiderweb earrings.

The ends of her “hair” have been dyed the same colour as her dress, and she wears both black lipstick and black nail polish.

When she grows bigger, her branches begin to sprout large thorns, which end up making her cage form look more like a spiderweb. (There are even little fake spiders sitting on top of it!)

For the battlefield, the stage is decorated to evoke a bountiful harvest, with pumpkins, hay bales, bundles of wheat, stalks of corn, apple trees, cornucopias, and garlands of leaves.

Both the gate and the giant piano hammers are adorned with thorny branches and autumn leaves.

1010 

1010 are pirate ghosts. (As a fun gag, Blue could wear two eyepatches instead of his sunglasses!)

Meanwhile, Neon J is their ghostly captain, complete with a captain’s hat, a sword at his belt, a fake parrot on his shoulder, and – once again – a fake beard attached to his screen head.

For the battlefield, the flying limousine is decked out to look like a pirate ship, with a mast, a crow’s nest, and a tattered sail.

(I felt 1010 as pirates would be fitting since they're a navy-themed boyband and Neon J was a captain in the navy.)

Eve 

Eve is dressed as Medusa.

Her dark green dress has a scaly pattern, and she accessories with a lot of gold, including spiralling gold sandals and a golden diadem crown.

Her hair has been dyed, shaped, and styled to look like several little writhing serpents.

Her backpiece is composed of even more snakes in gold and teal which wrap around her upper torso and spread out behind her like a peacock’s tail.

Eve’s pupils even become snake-like starting at Phase 2!

For the battlefield, Eve’s gallery has been transformed into an Ancient Greek temple, but with a postmodern/vapourwave twist. Stylized Greco-Roman columns with snakes wrapped around them line the walls, and an ancient looking gold chandelier hangs from the ceiling. The left side would be eggplant purple while the right side would be cerulean blue.

If the player gets hit by the eye lasers from Eve’s giant statue, they’ll actually turn to stone and be frozen in place for a short time.

For Phase 2, on Mayday’s side, the snakes wrapped around the columns have grown larger and are now looming over Mayday, their faces twisted into angry snarls (representing Eve’s derisiveness and hostility towards May).

Meanwhile, Zuke’s side features floating fragments of ruined columns (representing how lost and incomplete Eve felt after Zuke left her). 

Phase 3 is where it really starts to get trippy. Both rooms feature ruined columns and floating shards, along with giant brightly colored snakes slithering all over the background.

The shards in Zuke’s side reflect images of faces screaming in anguish, while the shards on Mayday’s side have limbs protruding from them- one shard has three legs protruding from them in reference to a trinacia. (Look up what a trinacia is to understand the reference!)

Tatiana

Tatiana is a vampire.

She wears black and red robes with bat wing-edged sleeves and a wide collar. Her earrings are coffin shaped, and she has small, pointed fangs that can be seen when she opens her mouth.

At the beginning of her battle, she starts throwing flaming bats.

For the battlefield, Tatiana's office/battle arena is made to feel like a vampire’s castle tower.

The whole room is lit with a deep red glow, and the tall windows that feature the NSR murals are topped with pointed arches, giving them a Gothic look.

You can even see some glass bottles filled with (ahem) red liquid on Tatiana’s desk.

Meanwhile, the Goolings' stage outside is decorated with jack-o-lanterns and hanging skeletons.

DK West

DK West is dressed as Frankenstein FrankenWest!

His look consists of neck bolts, stitch markings, and a dark ragged recolour of his original outfit.

His bull shadow puppet has matching neck bolts, which even emit shadowy electricity when it appears during the battle.

Bunk Bed Junction

Mayday

Mayday is dressed as an imp, wearing a bright red dress with black sleeves and waistcoat, black wings, red horns, and a red tail.

Her guitar is deep purple and splattered with glowing orange paint. It emits a wolf howl when she powers it up for the Showstopper.

Zuke 

Zuke is a werewolf. Ragged clothes with fake fur poking out, extra fur attached to his forearms (don’t ask how got it on there), pointed ears, a bushy tail, pointed fangs, his nose has been painted. Pretty simple.

His drumsticks are splattered with glowing green paint and tipped with tiny light-up pumpkins.

The Other NPCs

Ellie has little bat wings attached to her back and wears a springy bat antenna headband.

And last but not least, 

Kliff . . . is just wearing a pair of Groucho Marx glasses. Yup. That's it.

Let me know what you all think. I’d love to hear some feedback. Thanks for reading! Happy Halloween!

[ragingbookdragon]

It’s exactly a quarter past nine when his eyes snap open at the sound of soft music coming from Spades’ side of the wall. He tries to ignore the irritation and rolls over, hoping that if he buries his head deep enough into his pillow that it’ll drown it out. It doesn’t matter because he’s already awake and he’s not going back to sleep. His phone buzzes on the table and he picks it up.

Awake yet?

He rolls his eyes at Spades’ question.

I am now.

Wanna come over? I’m doing a spa night. Gaz and Soap are here. Price said maybe next time :(

Ghost is now curious and he rolls out of bed, crossing from his room to hers and tries the door. It’s already unlocked and waiting. Immediately, he’s taken aback by the two men reclined on the queen-sized bed, wrapped in giant fluffy blue robes, towels on their heads. Their eyes are covered with slices of cucumbers, gold crescents under both eyes, and a tea-green face mask painted on. They look awfully comfortable as Spades, who’s wearing the same thing save the cucumbers, is doing their nails.

She looks up with a smile and hooded eyes, beckoning him with a tip of her head. “Go shower. Bathrobe and towel for your hair are in the bathroom.”

“I’m…good,” he replies and goes to sit on the sofa, but her bare leg lands on his middle, foot pressed into his stomach; Ghost’s eyes take in the smooth skin and freshly painted toes—blood red, always Spades’ favorite choice.

“Shower,” is all she says, with a smile that’s a lot more threatening if he decides to disobey her.

He rolls his eyes and takes her foot gently in his grip, digging his thumb into her calf as he bends it back to where she had it. “Fine. But I’m not wearing the hair towel.”

He disappears into the bathroom, spends all of ten minutes in before he returns, smelling of lavender, vanilla, and stargazer lilies, an almost cozy look on his face as he rests on the end of the bed in the comfy robe.

Spades turns on him and crawls into his thighs, pushing his hair back so she can see what she’s working with. “I see you haven’t been using the face cream I sent you a year or so ago. That cream costs a fortune and you’re wasting it.”

“I’m not afraid to get old,” he mutters as she takes a brush and opens the tea green mask, starting to paint it on him. “Why worry about the wrinkles?”

“Because crow’s feet are gross and you have wrinkles,” she replies and sets the gold jellies under his eyes. “You need to take care of your skin.” Her fingers gently place the cucumbers at his eyes before she takes his hand and starts buffing and filing his nails.

“I can’t believe you managed to convince them to join you in this.”

“Well, you see, Soap and Gaz haven’t fought me for ten years. They like me.” She looks at Soap who is now asleep, Gaz not far behind. “My money too, it seems.”

“You can’t win everyone with money,” Ghost says.

“I don’t have to, Simon, most people like me for me.” She switched hands and gently massaged them with an oil. “The only reason you don’t like me is because we’re much too similar. Whereas I’m just the kinder version of you.”

“You’re wrong.”

“Oh please,” Spades says with a grin, starting to move. “It’s okay to be honest, Simon, it’s really not going to hurt my—”

“I like you,” Simon interrupts and puts a hand on her thigh; he doesn’t have to remove the cucumbers to let her know he’s staring right at her. “I just…have trouble accepting how free you are. Like you have nothing to lose and you’re still okay with life.”

Spades reaches up and plucks the cucumber from one eye and tosses it into her mouth. “Simon, I was two when my mother put a gun in my hands and taught me how to shoot dead center. I was eight when I realized I could kill a grown man with any weapon given to me.” She applies a clear lip calm to his lips; it smells like spearmints, Spades always smells like lilies and spearmint. Simon's always liked how she smells in those moments when he gets close enough to knife her that he can breathe in her scent. “I’ve spent my entire life being a killer because it’s what I was made to be. I am far from free. The money, the life, the luxuries I have? There’s always an expense to be paid for it. It’s a piece of my soul every time. Even if the lives I take are some of humanity’s worst, I still remember. I will still remember even when I am dead and gone.”

She stares at him. “You, Simon, are still worthy of something good. And your infantile belief that my life is so much greater than yours, or that I still have nothing to lose is idiotic at best.” Her eyes search his. “What do I have to lose? Everything. All of me.”

Simon falls silent and she gently reaches up, brushing dampened blonde hair aside. “I didn’t want you on this team, Spades.”

“I know.”

“Not because I hate you.”

“Oh?”

Simon shifts uncomfortably, like he’s about to reveal a big secret. “Those times when I’m fighting you…it’s one of the only times I feel like things are okay with life. Like there’s an equal to my own soul.”

Spades smiles at him, and for once it’s not the smile that means she’s hiding something. “Careful Simon, I’ll think you like me a little too much.”

“Would that be so bad?” he asks, he hopes.

“No,” she murmurs and rolls off his lap. “But you should aim higher than me, Simon.”

The reply dies on his tongue as she nudges Soap and Gaz to wake them up and gossip about the new recruits, particularly the newest sniper from Austria.

[fiercefauna]

A lot of people draw Plague Doctors but never the kinds of things they might contend with in the worlds they inhabit, for this reason I feel justified calling this content “PlagueCore.” The Rat King is a positively ancient idea that is also a very modern-style urban legend. Some say it leads the rats as a kind of hive Queen you’d see in social insects, to others it is simply a disgusting horror of rats fused together by the indescribable filth of medieval streets. For this particular rat king I’ve written a tale set in my “Afflicted Lands” cannon. Two more of these glimpses into Afflicted Lands exist in my recents. There is no need to look for an “episode one” the tales are not meant to relate directly with each other but may feature reoccurring characters and fictional world references.

Triggers: some basic violence, and general horror themes in the following ghost story. That said, I present you with -

The Listener

We heard the front door open and two sets of footsteps cross the almost imperceptibly creaking floors. Pricking up all of our ears, we listened to the voices.  

“Talk to your parents later if you’d like a pet, for now let’s not be keeping rats around.” “They said you’d be a friend but you’re too much like a grown-up. I mean, we could have kept it for a little while.” “Be glad I just tossed it over the fence. You don’t want to know what those things get up to.” “Yes I do!” “You’ll wet the bed if I told you.”

“I’ve never been scared!” “Your Daddy says you’re scared all the time.” “No I’m not, I, just like to pretend I’m scared.” “Why would you do that?” 

There was a long pause during which the ancient mechanism of the re-stuffed, re-upholstered recliner in the living room groaned under a small form nonetheless choosing to forcefully leap upon it. “I’m - just lonely sometimes.” 

“Lonely means you were scared!” “No! Lonely is different!” “They’re basically the same thing. Look, if you want to know what happened to Darcy, shut up and let me tell the story.” 

We raised our whiskers as though they too, could detect sound. The irregular bumps of the house and more distant, ambient sounds of the neighborhood were soothing but rarely gave way to more meaningful information. 

“Darcy was moving into that old house by the school. He was cleaning it out, fixing it up, went into the crawl space and met a Rat King.” “What’s that?” “It’s a giant rat with like 20 heads, rolls around at night like a tumble weed looking for it’s last and most important head - yours!” “And why does it do that?” 

“People are smart, much smarter than rats on average. With a person’s brain, the King of the rats is wise enough to rule.” “So what happened to Darcy?” “The ball of rats exploded. One of the rats hit his face so hard it got stuck there - reshaped his skull into a rat head for the rest of his life.” “Did he die?” “No one knows where he went. They say he was looking for survivors during the last quarantine and found this woman being attacked by rats. Too scared of rats after what happened, he just left her there, and ran off into woods, screaming like a maniac. When they found the woman later, her head was gone! Never been recovered!” 

“Do you think he was ashamed? Of letting the rats get the woman, I mean?” “I think he was scared, I would be too, especially since they found that headless woman in this very - part of town.” 

We sighed relieved, that child’s insatiable curiosity would have doomed us had it’s guardian been less merciful with it’s tales of terror by the fire. Poor Darcy, we wanted to find him,  apologize. None were truly human during those damned quarantines. We had been blessed to forget, forget everything about the life before while the crow men were cursed with the memory.  And yet we needed them, needed them to help us rebuild ourselves one tale at a time, as we lingered between the walls, listening. 

[mstarcreates]

Well screw it Destiny has swallowed me whole and I’m in the thick of it so…sorry not sorry lol. I’m currently working on a two part story featuring Uldren Sov, Cayde and Crow.

The story will be a cannon a divergence AU where Cayde and Sundance survive the Prison of Elders and are instead taken as hostages by Uldren. It’s an enemies to lovers trope that centers around the kind of love that transcends death.

I’ve already written most of the first part and it’s some of the best writing I’ve ever done if I’m honest.

Here is the cover art I made for the fic and one of my favorite scenes where Cayde talks about we like to believe we’re in charge of our own fate:

“So that one, the ugly one—“

“They’re Scorn, they’re all kind of ugly, you need to be more specific.” Uldren sighed as he rose from his seat at the head of the council’s table. Today was the last day of the Summit and Cayde had been allowed to sit in on the meeting. If nothing more than to keep Uldren awake.

“The big guy, with the giant glowy spear and obnoxious helmet, what's his name?” Cayde made some vague gestures as he spoke, to indicate the size of the Scorn he was talking about.

“Fikrul.”

“His name’s Fikrul? Gotta tell you, not my first choice…I’ve just been calling him BMB in my head this whole time.”

“BMB?” Uldren inquired, a long dark brow arched.

“Big Mean Baron. What else?” He could swear he saw Uldren’s lips lift up into a smile before it faded just as quickly.

“Ladies and gentleman, he smiles! Annnd did anyone else see that?” He looked around the room just as the door had closed, the last of the Scorn Barons having departed now that matters with the Tangled Shore were settled. “That’s just great.”

“I saw it.” Sundance popped up next to him to chime in.

“Aha! See? Got a witness right here.” He gestured to his Ghost.

“Fine. You win. Will you let it go now?”

“Not a chance. Soon as I get out of here I’m going to tell everyone how I got Uldren Sov, the famously broody Prince of the Awoken, to smile. I’m going to have it inscribed upon my tombstone, epitaphs will be written about this historical event—“

“Now you’re just getting carried away.”

“Songs will be sung to children at night, a statue erected, in my honor, of course…” He went on as they walked down the hallway back towards their shared room.

“A statue?” Uldren inquired.

“It doesn’t have to be nothin’ fancy. Just from about here up.” Cayde moved his hand from his collar bone up to indicate that he meant a bust of his shoulders and head.

“You’ve thought a lot about this.” Uldren’s tone shifted, tinged with a somberness that hadn’t been present in their light hearted conversation a moment ago.

Cayde stopped in his tracks, considering his words before he replied. “A man likes to think he gets to make his own fate. And how he’s remembered for it.”

“So what will it say, this…Statue of yours?”

“The Man They Called Cayde.”

[citadelofswords]

davesprite and roxas. thats my writing prompt

there is a giant blanket fort taking up a good quarter of the room. roxas pauses, staring at it, and then walks around it to check— yep, that is almost entirely a quarter of the room. it’s brushing right up against the cardboard castle where the turtle puppet lives. 

someone has a lot of time on their hands.

it is also covered in orange feathers.

some sort of strange doohickey is connected up at what roxas… thinks might be the entrance to the fort. a sign is propped up on it that reads no entry (unless you are a super cool dubiously real alternate version of a guy)(in which case the entry fee is apple juice)

roxas thinks about this for a second. he’s… not sure how cool he is, but he is the alternate version of a guy. well— he’s a nobody, after all, and he’s pretty sure that the fact that all his memories of twilight town are fake qualifies him as dubiously real. he goes to the kitchen, collects two apple juices from the fridge, and then pokes the doohickey to see what it does.

a head pops out from the front of the fort. it is a boy who is entirely bright orange, with a ruff of similarly orange feathers around his neck. the boy looks at his apple juice, looks at the doohickey, and then looks at roxas.

“why would i lie about it?” roxas asks.

“fair enough,” the boy says. “guess i didn’t consider there’d be another guy like me on this train. stupid of me. welcome to casa strider, davesprite edition, make yourself comfortable, yada yada. davesprite is me, by the way.”

he holds the entrance open. roxas slips inside and settles on a pillow. davesprite follows after a moment and flops his entire body— what of it seems corporeal, anyway; his lower half vanishes into spirit aether after a point— across multiple pillows.

“far be it from me to have a feelings jam,” davesprite says, holding out a hand for the apple juice (roxas dutifully passes one over to him), “though that seems to be the general point of a blanket fort— not that i would know, all my blanket forts were population: one, and that one was me— how long you been on the train for?”

“like a day or two?” roxas says. he’s genuinely not sure. after twilight town, his sense of time is completely shot. he glances down at the number on his hand, starting to trail off his palm onto his wrist. “what about you?”

“long enough.” roxas narrows his eyes, but before he can push davesprite lets out a caw like a strange bird and his feathers all ruffle up and around. 

“sorry,” he says. “that happens. i’m part crow, in case the wings didn’t give it away.”

“were you born like that?” roxas asks, tipping his head to the side. the head and the hands look human enough, but roxas has seen enough pictures of magical creatures to not make assumptions. although— “no, wait. are you dead?”

davesprite laughs. “no,” he says. “i know i look like a ghost or whatever, but no. i’m— actually, i’m not really alive either.” he frowns. “just kind of here.”

roxas understands. he walks and talks and if he stops breathing things get really bad, but he doesn’t actually have a heartbeat— he’s checked. he’s definitely not dead, but he’s not sure that counts as alive either.

davesprite must see something on his face, because he says, “whoops. sorry for the existential crisis, dude.”

“no, it’s fine,” roxas says. davesprite has a number on his hand— something four digits, and normal. “just like, thinking that i understand that. the not being dead but not being alive thing.”

davesprite looks at him then, and then says, “i dunno. you look pretty alive to me. just because you’re like, an alternate version of some other guy— and i really don’t need to know deets on if you’re a clone or a guy from a different timeline or what, that’s your business and not mine— doesn’t mean you’re not alive.” his facial expression doesn’t change, nor does his tone, as he says, “meanwhile i’m just a game construct so i stopped counting as alive or dead like two and a half years ago.”

roxas considers explaining nobodies to him and decides he doesn’t feel like yelling at a guy he’s just met about how he’s wrong, no really, just because he’s saying it doesn’t mean it isn’t true. instead he objects,  “i don’t think that makes you not alive either. or like, i dunno. it still makes you real. maybe you should change the sign on the door, because from where i’m sitting you’re definitely real. even if you are an alternate version of some other guy.”

“oh.” davesprite says, and then they don’t talk for a while, sipping apple juice in quiet solidarity.

(neither of them notice davesprite’s number drop by over 400.)

[star-burst365]

We’re all sleeping on the gem that is Matthias Helvar: an essay

Crooked Kingdom spoilers!!

We’re all in denial about Matthias’s death in ck but also he had some bangers lines and scenes even before chapter 40 such as:

finding out his full name was Matthias Benedik Helvar omg why are we sleeping on this

“how about i bite your lip”

“don’t eat the snow” i dont think they were planning to 💀

YOU ARE EVERY BLOSSOM BLOOMING AT ONCE?? HELLO??

his constant feud with kaz

kaz could breathe and matthias would already be fetching the holy water

any demjin moment ever

“you’re all horrible”

to

“they all seem like practical choices 😀”

the grandpa energy

nothing but respect and admiration for inej “the little bronze girl” ghafa

MY GHOST WONT ASSOCIATE WITH YOUR GHOST

the big brooding yellow tulip

nina handed him a gun during the ambush of soc and he fr would’ve killed her if they weren’t being shot at

“I can drink your poison no longer” was so powerful. he went from extreme prejudices against grisha after being raised and literally brainwashed by hatred to bashing his ex-commander in the head to free Nina omg

friendly reminder his entire family was killed by inferni but he still moves past it

something nobody talks about: he combined his hateful past of serving as a drukelle, something made to hunt grisha to lead two of them (Jesper and Kuwei) out of a corner and get them back to the rest of the crows in ck.

he used military tactics made to kill grisha to save grisha

this was so important for his development i swear

and don’t forget Nina either

“little red bird” please im not okay

MY LOVE AS A PET NAME THATS SO PURE MY GOD

him and nina squeezing in the littlest places just to cuddle together and rest together is so dvfnjkvsfnks

him just wanting to be there for Nina for every step of the way as she recovers from parem

his wet dreams consist of three things:

her “glorious thighs”

a traditional fjerdan life and the domestic lifestyle Fr

literally just vibing in a field of flowers

he saw a nameless husband help a nameless wife with her hair in ketterdam and wished that could be him and nina that’s too sweet help

all he wants is a domestic little life filled with love

but then there’s “he considered brushing it off with his lips, then told himself he should take a walk”

he just told himself to touch grass my god

but also the enemies to lovers lingers, my one of my favorite quotes being:

”you’d flirt with a date palm if it paid you any attention” the shade

also his family? the way he still has memories? so much so he foot massages a pregnant woman?

friendly reminder this man is built like a giant and looks the most threatening out of the group

and he fr lets a girl sing her heart out AND OFFERS TO TAKE HER ON A WALK BY THE LAKE HES SO PRECIOUS

”sing. by all means, sing” famous last words

him complimenting nina on her hair and how she styles it??

the toffee on the boat in soc

constantly regretting his life decisions in soc but willing to die for the crows in ck

the found family trope is killing me

“trickery isn’t my native tongue but I can still learn to speak it” the demjin and crows influence

his lil commander voice to silence the prisoners when they were getting in the truck made inej, someone with the posture of a knifes edge, stand straighter like wtf

HE HAD A WOLF WHY ARE WE SLEEPING ON THIS

HE IS 100% A DOG PERSON

HE AND KAZ WOULDVE PETTED THOSE DOGS FOR HOURS ON THAT ONE CK MISSION

he went from saying meaningful and encouraging things to nina and then when she said she wanted to cry in a corner he switched in 0.2 seconds and said “but…this room is round” oh my god

made out with nina in front of two thirds of the grisha triumvirate

HE PERKS UP WHEN NINA LAUGHS THATS SO ADORABLE

nina and him being twin soldiers sdnnnojnididoskc

him and Jesper’s scenes are honestly amazing, we were robbed

THE DELETED HELNIK SCENE I WANT TO DIE I WISH LEIGH KEPT THAT

he’s literally kaz’s bodyguard when trading for inej

learned a language while in prison I mean that’s pretty impressive

eats honor for breakfast lunch and dinner

”i. Should. Let. You. Die.” He says while trying to desperately save kaz

ran to nina with a bullet in his stomach for one last kiss, for one final goodbye

”save some mercy for my people” that hurts oh my god

the grisha are the favored and children of Djel was so important because that’s him connecting both his past and his much better present together in an actuslly good way

he doesn’t associate his religion with witches and tree handshakes anymore, now he considers those witches blessed by his tree god

in conclusion: I sobbed for weeks over his death and will never recover. thank you for coming to my Ted talk

[broken-everlark]

Welp my dumbass decided to make Wednesday pokemon trainer cards instead of updating my WIPs. Which I'm going to do after I post this🤣

I'm not fully happy about Tyler, eugene, and the xaviers teams. Those may change.

Almost everyone always gets a legendary/mythical.

I know literally no one will read this or care. But I figured I could post it anyway.

I gave her Skorupi because of Nero, so he's her partner.

Gliscor because he's just a beast of a mon and reminds me of a scorpion/bat that fits Wednesday's dark theme. Tyler had given this to her as a present. On their first anniversary, it immediately became a favorite.

Corviknight because Wednesday is referred to as the Raven, and he just seems like the most raven mon (even though he's a crow). Wednesday found this pokemon back when it was a Rookiedee. It had fallen out of its nest. Instead of feeding it to her mother's Pyroar, she kept it.

Hydreigon because he's just a dark dragon, and I feel like he fits Wednesday's style. Wednesday had found him as a deino, the poor blind Dino had injured himself. She decided to take him in and raise him to become a terrifying dragon.

Dusknoir because he's a big scary ghost that eats souls in his chest. Out of all the ghost types, i feel like this one fits Wednesday the most. This mon snuck up on Wednesday and followed her throughout a haunted graveyard, not giving up until she caught him.

It was between Giratina (the underworld/antimatter legend) or Yveltal. Her legend I chose is Yveltal, He's the legendary of Death, basically destroying everything in sight.

(I feel bad for doing this to Tyler)

His partner - Cubone - because they both lost their moms. Cubone wears his mothers dead skull on his head. Tyler's mother had given this to him just before she passed.

(Might replace.) Bewear - literally because Tyler is sweet & adorable on the outside, but on the inside, he's hiding a dangerous monster, just like bewear.

Mimikyu - because the creature inside the suit just wants to be loved, just like Tyler. So he hides behind a suit made up of a beloved pokemon. But everytime it's trainer looks underneath the suit, they die.

Scovillian - because it's a funny play on Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Two faces, two different personalities.

Garchomp - Because this mon is anger filled and very hard to tame also very powerful. Kinda reminds me of the hyde.

His legend is Mewtwo. A legend made by humans and hates humanity. Reminds me of Tyler's tragic past, hating others who don't understand what he's been through.

Her partner is a shiny Spheal - Honestly, I just feel like Enid would love every single pokemon that's adorable.

Shiny) Politoad because he's just a very happy frog, and I feel like it matches. It Enids a very bubbly personality.

Arcanine - i feel like even though it's a big scary dog, she loves it because it's Fluffy and loyal. Just like Enid.

Lycanroc (Day form) just a little nod to her wolf form.

Dragonair - Honestly, it's just a beautiful mid evo that I feel like Enid would love

And her legend is Mew. It's just a cute, sweet cat that has all the DNA of each pokemon. Something I think Enid would take care of and love.

So Ajax's starter is Ivysaur - because the bulbasaur line is famous for smoking grass

Ekans because of Ajax being a Gorgon and his little snakes poke their heads out sometimes.

Slowbro because it seems like a good pokemon to get high with.

Hisuian Typhlosion because he just looks like a depressed cool boy like my baby Ajax.

Noivern - because I just see Ajax being the chill guy at parties and noiverns ears remind me of speakers.

His legend is a shiny Rayquaza just because he's a giant space snek noodle🤣

Eugene's starter is a shiny caterpie, figured he'd just be a bug type trainee.

Beedrill - because of his powers to control bees.

Heracross- same as the caterpie. Just figured he'd have a bug army.

Dewpider because he's just an adorable bean like Eugene.

Appletun because I just feel like he'd love chunky pokemon. Because chunky pokemon are the best.

wobbuffet because its a psychic pokemon and it's insane ability to use counter and I feel like Eugene would need a happy mon to keep him company.

Yes Eugene doesn't get a legend. Just couldn't find one that fit.

Her partner being Primarina - has to do with her being a siren outcast. Her partner looks like a mermaid and sings like sirens and mermaids are known for.

Being the popular girl at school, I'd imagine she'd have tons of beautiful pokemon. A florges. Being a bouquet of flowers fits that perfectly

Again, Hatterene fits the popular girl status perfectly. Another beautiful fairy type to add to Bianca's team

Bianca would also have a shiny Altaria, it being her pride since it's a rare golden color.

Beautifly - a rare evolution of Wurmple, being very beautiful & every time it flaps its wings, sparkly pollen falls with each flap.

I chose Meloetta fighting form for her mythical pokemon. It has unique singing abilities, and being strong but beautiful would fit Bianca perfectly.

Xavier surprisingly got a card. I didn't want to download a picture of him into my phone so he gets no picture.

He gets a shiny muk as his partner. Because he looks like throw up. Just like how I feel about Xaviers character.

He gets an Exeggutor because it's derpy in a stupid way🤣

Grafaiai because he's an artist.

Garbordor - because it's a pokemon made of trash.

Xavier does get a legend. But it's the worst one. He gets regice because it's a trash legend.🤣

[ikoraswife]

ok so here’s some things that I noticed in the first vidoc!

I haven’t been super active online so if someone else already talked about these, I haven’t seen it lol

(pics & observations below the cut)

The witness house

So obviously I noticed this creepy ass Witness-cottage in the video, but i also noticed that in this clip of zavala, he appears to be in front of the visible window of the house.

This is where he says “I used to think I’d give anything to bring you back”, and while I think he’s probably talking to Cayde it could also be Hakim/Safiyah.

The reason I think it could be them is because that little house has somewhat of a resemblance to Zavalas house when he lived with Safiyah. (Of course it could also just be some generic house lol)

Hand Temple & Zavala

So in one of the scenes in the vidoc they show this weird structure with a giant hand on the top, and something that was immediately obvious to me was that it’s COVERED in darkness statues

I counted 5, but there definitely could be more

“But ikoraswife, what’s that circled in green?”

Taking a closer look at it, it looks like it may be Zavala standing in front of the temple, but it could also just be some random structure since it’s small/blurry.

You can sort of make out his red armor, his shiny blue head, and his titan mark, but other than that it’s unclear.

Something else that points to the potential of this being Zavala is this scene that shows right before it pans to the temple:

That’s not just any ghost hovering there, thats Targe, Zavalas ghost

(here’s a pic from the Season of the Chosen for reference)

Now it’s extremely odd that Targe is with Ikora and co when he should be with his guardian. Why is he? Honestly I don’t know, maybe somethings wrong with Zavala.

Geez I’m just realizing how much of this is about Zavala

Crow Golden Gun and Injured Vanguard

In the iconic scene of Crow firing his golden gun inside of a pyramid structure, there’s a couple grams at the beginning where a figure rushes past him.

That’s Ikora and Zavala! One of them is supporting the other, (I think Ikora is supporting Zavala) and they’re quickly moving past him.

We actually saw the other half of this scene earlier in the gameplay trailer, in the scene where Cayde shoots his gun back toward the camera

Honorable mentions

This cute cutscene of the boy and the guardian/ghost is also in the gameplay trailer!

(Vidoc)

(Gameplay Trailer)

Then there's what appears to be the creation of the ghosts! I can't tell if that's that traveler below them or Earth, but I think it's safe to assume that it is the traveler.

After that, there are these two horrifying images of a dead ghost in a Generalist Shell and the broken Ace of Spades.

(ghost)

(Ace)

Important note: the gun appears to be broken in the same places that have glowing cracks in the other cutscenes.

Also! I have no idea what this is <3

Something else

Remember that disgusting arm ribcage thing? Still no clue what it is, but in the new cutscene where Crow goes into the Traveler, it pulses with light and makes what I think is the same noise that the ribcage creature makes in the reveal trailer.

Disclaimer: usually the stuff from the reveal trailers isn't actually in the game/expansion, so this could just be nothing or entirely unrelated.

Anyway this was a super long post, so thank you for dealing with my ramblings if you made it to the end!

[foxingpeculiar]

Elden Ring/SotE:

Okay. So after beating Malenia, I was feeling pretty cock-of-the-walk about things, so decided to just check a few things off and then it's DLC time.

First was Placidusax, since I didn't actually take care of him when I was in Faram Azula. So went and did that. He got me once with all this red lightning bullshit everywhere, but I got him on the second try without too much fuss.

Then went and activated Malenia's rune (and Rykard's, cos I forgot to do that). Actually, I'd kind of forgotten all about the Great Runes/Rune Arc mechanic--I have like 40 of the damn things and haven't used a one. I guess if stuff in the DLC starts giving me trouble, I'll do that. Went and said "hi" to Patches (thanks @castleschrade) and then alright. Rollin' up my sleeves and heading down to Moghwyn Palace.

Which is a very annoying area, really. That fucking spiky roll the red Albinaurics do can fuck off. And don't even get me started on the crows (it helped once I realized you have to roll into most of their attacks and dodge under them, but still). Anyway, said hi to the merchant in the cave, decided to invade and kill Varre, cos fuck that guy, and then went up to challenge the Lord of Blood himself.

And you know, he wasn't bad. Almost got him in one--he was one hit from dying, but then he cornered me and I got fucked. Got him the second time though--I did use the Purification Tear, but I did *not* end up using Mogh's Shackle, even though I had it.

So okay, went to activate his rune in East Altus and then, when I come back, lo and behold, there's someone here. A lady named Leda, who is all, "hey, you down with Miquella?" and I'm like... maybe!? So then touch the hand and boom. I'm in the Land of Shadow now.

So okay, the Gravesite Plain is huge. I think I've found most of the things in the southern section though. Beat up the big dude with the hammer in the Church of Consolation. The Beastclaw dude roaming around the forest nearby got the drop on me and took me out, but then I went back, got the drop on him and turned the tables.

Went up to the Scorched Ruins and fucked around there. Went over to the mausoleum west of that and (successfully) challenged the Blackgaol Knight ghost boss, even without the Mimic Tear, and took him out in one.

I did, foolishly, try taking on the big Furnace Golem dude wandering around the area. That did not go well for me. So then ran around him and met Freyja and a surly fellow at Miquella's cross.

Checked out the Abandoned Ailing Village north of them, beat the Ghostflame Dragon in the lake nearby in two attempts (although that was a nailbiter, I will admit), and then went in Belurat Gaol. And man, I do NOT like the implications of what was going on in there. Did beat the swordsman boss in there though, without too much trouble.

Then went through the big arch and met Ansbach (who seems interestingly and subtly suspicious of Miquella) and the merchant fellow. And took the sidepath up the cliff to Prospect Town and the Church of Benediction up there. (Also: the Forager Brood! A friendly Rot Kindred! Will wonders never cease.)

Then it was Belurat time. The Horned Knights were a little bit dickish and I absolutely do NOT like having giant scorpions in my face, but okay. Found the two keys and got yelled at by the Hornsent Granddam. (Loving how they're referring to "the strumpet," which I assume means Marika.) Beat the Ulcerated Tree Spirit in the moat and only got a little poisoned. The Fire Knight Queelign did give me a little trouble, cos man, that dude hits like a truck and it took me a couple attempts to figure out how to space him right, but I got him. (Also "Queelign" bears a distinct phonemic resemblance to Queelag/Quelana, which I can't help but notice.)

And then we got to the Divine Beast Dancing Lion. I summoned Freyja, brought out the Mimic, and away we went.

First time, I got him about 2/3 of the way down, but 1) he moves very erratically, and 2) so much lightning, and he ended up squishing me. The second time, I got pinned against a wall right after getting in there and died in like 15 seconds, so I don't count that one. The third time, I basically was pelting him with Night Comet and Ranni's Dark Moon from a (mostly) safe distance while letting the spirits handle the up close stuff. It felt a little cheesy, but it worked.

And that's where I stopped. I'm at Scadutree lvl 4, I think? And Revered Ash lvl. 5. And actual level like 160 or so. INT at 70, VIG at 52, END 30, MND about 36 at this point. I feel like it's only gonna get crazier from here, but okay. Bring it on, fuckers.

[fandonnavyce]

White Crow

Inspired by this tumblr post:

White Crow was here again today. Jason spotted him at his usual place squatting on a balcony, in an alcove on the third floor of Gotham University’s Library, conveniently located near a free-to-use whiteboard-on-wheels, low-level bookshelves, and an arched window. Today, White Crow wore a plain oversized black hoodie as a canvas for tiny shinies that were studded in constellation patterns. His ripped black jeans were tucked into a pair of glow-in-the-dark laced up black Doc Martens. His pure white hair seemed to faintly glow under Gotham’s sketchy lighting. 

Peering from above his book, Jason waited for White Crow’s brethren to arrive.

Read More

Jason watched White Crow take lengthy sips from a black and white thermos, his fingers obscuring what he knew to be was a stylised D.P monogram. His hauntingly blue eyes were narrowed in deathly attractive focus upon what looked like a very tricky series of physics law-breaking equations. For the past week the man had been working on them and each day it had only grown in complexity.      

Tap, tap, tap, went the library window. They were three stories high.  

The noise broke White Crow’s concentration. Turning his head to the window he saw, four crows patiently waiting. Smiling, White Crow put down his thermos, placing it onto the bookcase, and opened the window to let his brethren in. Four crows glided in under his outstretched arm. 

“Caw-caw” White Crow happily greeted.

“Caw!”  All four crows excitedly cried in stereo. Taking their customary flying lap over White Crow’s head, each crow settled in their usual places. One crow landed and nestled down into White Crow’s eponymous hair. One crow comfortably settled down on each of White Crow’s shoulders. The final crow stood upon White Crow’s open palm. This crow very deliberately presented the shiny it had in his beak, releasing it into White Crow’s other empty right hand. 

“Caw” went White Crow, presumably in thanks. 

“Caw-caw” replied the crow. 

Holding it up against the Gotham window daylight, White Crow inspected the offering. Apparently pleased with it, he tucked it away into his hoodie. Then White Crow seemed to take everything else he was carrying in his pockets and display it on the bookcase for the crows’ avid appraisal. 

The four birds were clearly not just hear for the goods. Even as they hopped up and down from their perch on White Crow to inspect them. They were clearly here to just hang out and chat with White Crow.

“Ahh thanks Kraz” and,

“No, you’re right Algorab” and,

“Ancients Minkar, you did what?! Gienah, where were you when this was going down?! Oh you were pooping on the Fruitcake’s bed, fair enough.” 

After roughly twenty minutes, business was clearly concluded. Each bird had chosen something and it was apparently time for the four birds to head out.

“Bye Kraz. It’s always a pleasure doing business with you”. The crow hopping off from White Crow’s hair, Kraz presumably, bowed his head in surprising solemnity before crowing and then hurriedly flying out the window, his chosen prize clutched between his claws. 

“Minkar, Gienah, my hair is fine. It was nice seeing you. Keep it up with the good work”. Minkar, and Gienah, the two crows on White Crow’s shoulders quit fussing with White Crow’s hair then they too flew off, each decked with a bauble on a string around their neck.

“And Algorab thanks again. See you again soon. We good for Wednesday yeah?

“Caw!”

Algorab, from where he was standing in White Crow’s hand, did a single loop of flight around White Crows head before flying out the window after his fellow birds. A shiny ribbon was clasped in his beak, trailing behind him. 

Closing the window behind him, White Crow then emptied more things from his hoodies’ pockets onto the bookcase. It was a stunning collection of fascinating rocks, dazzling green and blue baubles and charms, loose change, and other shiny knick knacks. Jason stared in slight awe over how much White Crow just had in his pockets. He was mildly surprised the boy didn’t just jingle everywhere.

“Here, you can have this.”

“Sorry?” Jason was utterly startled. White Crow had somehow managed to all but sneak up on him.

White Crow was giving him something. It was a black leather string but it was threaded with what appeared to be exquisitely shaped iridescent green glass.  

“Here. I thought you might like this one. I noticed you staring.”

“And in response you decided you were just gonna hand out something from your stash for free, unprompted”

“Nice things should be shared,” he quipped cheekily. Jason raised an eyebrow.

“Oh wow ok, say you’re not from Gotham, without saying you’re not from Gotham”.

“What, like my accent didn’t give it away”

“It’s not that bad,” Jason drawled, “where’s it from?”

“Nowhere you heard of, Illinois”

“And now you’re in Gotham, whatever for?”

“To see the sights”, White Crow lazily shrugged.

“In Gotham?” Jason asked sceptically. Gotham’s perpetual smog, toxic harbour, and grotesque architecture weren’t exactly in any tourist's Top 10 Must See.  

“Sure, there are some very beautiful views in Gotham” and then White Crow, very deliberately, gave Jason a once-over.

Jason couldn’t help it. He blushed. White Crow was very pretty. The white haired twink also gave off the best vibes. “Does that line often work for you?”

“The one out of one times I used it does means I have a 100% success rate with it”.

“Hey now, who’s claiming that it worked on me?” Jason snarked back contrarily.

White Crow smirked, “Your blush is doing all the talking”. 

@ectoberhaunt

[zahramorales]

character playlist → zahra mclean

a new place to be from.

funeral bell; phildel — oh hunger, i know you well / my cruel friend is a funeral bell / and it rings in the day / and it rings in the evening / oh, i could pray, but it won’t stop you leaving / shadow in black, you are grim from your reaping / oh, can’t you spare just a day for the weeping?

last man on earth; anna bates — one, two, three, four and five / there go my friends, all dropping lie flies / six, seven, eight, nine and ten / here’s to the last man on earth / take what i can and then die in the dirt / that’d be the end of the last man on earth

human; daughter — i think that i’m still human / i think that i’m still human / underneath the skin there’s a human / buried deep within there’s a human / and despite everything i’m still human / but i think i’m dying here

rivers and roads; the head and the heart — nothin’ is as it has been / and i miss your face like hell / and i guess it’s just as well / but i miss your face like hell / been talkin’ ‘bout the way things change / and my family lives in a different state / if you don’t know what to make of this / then we will not relate

ghost stories; the narcissist cookbook — i guess i’m scared that i’m imaginary / that i invent myself every day, so other people don’t have to / that who i really am is secondary to what i want everyone else to see / and i’m scared that i’m crazy / but, god help me, i’m twice as scared i’m sane / ‘cause then what excuse do i have for treating / people like problems that need to be solved or explained?

i love you, but i need another year; liza anne — i don’t think enough / before i say too much / i’m digging my own grave / with all the shit i say / i keep my head high / kinda like a lie / i say i’m doing fine / even when i’m losing my mind

little pistol; mother mother — i think it might be fear / of the world and the way it makes you feel afraid / under the skin, against the skull / they put a little chip so that they know it all / i think i might be scared / of the world and the way it makes you feel afraid / and how it gets in the way

sleeping giants; the crane wives — the moon is humming lovely melodies / the forest echoes / the trees are crowing hungry / hungry harmonies / my pulse is clear, rushing in my ears / i hear something calling me

mirrorball; taylor swift — i’m still a believer but i don’t know why / i’ve never been a natural / all i do is try, try, try / i’m still on that trapeze / i’m still trying everything / to keep you looking at me

familiarity; punch brothers — we’ve come together over we know not what / a call to prayer, or the last for alcohol / we didn’t care; we knelt and bowed our heads / or did we dance? like we might not get another chance to disconnect / we’ve come together over we know not what to say i love you / i love you, i love you / i mean it, i want to feel it / god help me feel it

patience, please; penny and sparrow — please come home. / please come home. / please come home.

renegade; big red machine (feat. taylor swift) — i tapped on your window on your darkest night / the shape of you was jagged and weak / there was nowhere for me to stay but is stayed anyway / and if i would’ve known how many pieces you had crumbled into / i might have let them lay

smother; daughter — i am wasted, losing time / i’m a foolish, fragile spine / i want all that is not mine

can’t go back; the crane wives — ‘cause you can’t go back, darling / the time has come for moving on / you can’t be always trying to dig up / what you’ve already buried / you’ve got to carry, carry, carry on / carry on / it’s not fair / it’s not fair / it’s not fair (when have you ever known the world to be a fair place?) / it’s not fair (all things end and all things change)

if i’m being honest; dodie — hope has a cost, keeping all fingers crossed and held tight / but i look idiotic, with my limbs all knotted, it don’t feel right / truly you’ve shaken me, and i think you like how i plead / but i have a hunch that that’s all you wanted from me

kingdom come; the civil wars — run, run, run and hide / somewhere no one else can find. / tall trees bend their lean pointing where to go / where you will still be all alone. / don’t you fret, my dear / it’ll all be over soon / i’ll be waiting here for you.

willow tree march; the paper kites — success is a song of the heart, not a song of your bed / and we all still die / yeah we all still die / what will you leave behind? / oh we all still die

little soldiers; the crane wives — now the aftermath will ring with songs you’ve sung / all of our words sent home in boxes / i fought with tooth and nail before the flag had flown / but you were already gone

divine loser; clem turner — i bit my fingernails / until i tasted bone / so my body remains / but my purpose just stopped / my habits wouldn’t heal / i had to have killed god / and my body remains / but the person is gone

i know the end; phoebe bridgers — close my eyes, fantasize / three clicks and i’m home / when i get back i’ll lay around / then i’ll get up and lay back down / romanticize a quiet life / there’s no place like my room / but you had to go / i know, i know, i know

[echantedtoon]

Kiddo Week Day 4 Act 3: Subcon Forest

(This is based off the unused dialogue between Snatcher and Mustache Girl found here https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/itshauntedtoon/694303631040724992?source=share)

Subcon Forest was not a place for just anyone to enter and exit as they please. There was a reason these woods had such a feared reputation and was rumored to be haunted. Because it was. By the King Snatcher of Subcon(as he liked to refer to himself) and his ghastly assortment of minions and dwellers behind him as his undead army, anyone who went in NEVER came out which added to the entire frightfulness of it all!!...Well no one except two little giggling girls who were currently playing with toys and crayons. The dark sky and dead trees twisted with dangerous vines as the sun dared not shine here. If that won't convince you to stay away then maybe the giant chunk of the forest that always so dangerously cold will? Or perhaps the section that's always burning bright with enchanted flames? Or maybe the ghostly king who claimed trespassers' souls as his own or the rumor of a powerful witch? Either way, whatever helps to keep trespassers out he was all for it. But he had no real responsibilities today. Right now he was sitting down enjoying his book of dark tales and legends as he relaxed in his home. The old book in his claws as glowing yellow eyes scanned over the story unfolding from it's yellow pages. Yes. Nothing would surely disturb him this day-....Until it did. He paused when a familiar feeling came over himself, like a nagging feeling when you knew something deep down in your guts. His hair bristled and bunched up as his yellow eyes looked up from the book and turned his head towards the exit of his old run down tree house...and scowled. Great! One thing had to just disturb his day didn't it? With a grumble the book was closed and placed aside somewhere as he got up from his large armchair in order to deal with this nonsense.

Thing's weren't fairing very well on the other person's end as well. Darn it! She had already slipped and landed in some dumb mud trudging through that cursed swamp looking for those cursed hourglass things!! She had been watching that kid with the top hat closely and noticed she came to these woods not too long after leaving Mafia Town, which means more of those magic hourglasses must've been somewhere in here too right? Of course she had heard PLENTY of those legends from people but she didn't believe them. A forest cursed and filled with ghosts. BAH! She wouldn't believe that! Ghosts weren't real! Everyone knew that! She bet it was just that alien spreading rumors so no one would go after the time pieces but she wasn't a fool! S-S-S-So what if this place was creepy with giant spiders a-and dark a-and she was a teeny tiny only the SMALLEST BIT nervous? Things were fine-...Until they weren't. She was still looking around and not paying attention to where she was going so she shouldn't have been surprised when the ground suddenly swallowed her up making her fall backwards and yell out. What swallowed her up was a large flash of white and she felt herself get stuck up feet in the air. The white sheet felt like some kind of rucksack similar to the one she was using to carry her plants. But it was a dingy white from being hidden under a layer of dirt for who knows how long. Seemingly in some kind of trap....WHAT WAS A TRAP DOING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PECKING WOODS!?

"HEY!!," she yelled and pushed against the dirtied remains of the tarp in frustration. "What's going on here? Let me out now or I swear I'll-

She was shut up when she felt the whole world shake. Knocking the poor trapped girl back onto her behind within the trap, what sounded like a humungous tree cracking and falling over with the shaking made her freeze up more as a sudden feeling of dread came over her and it was backed up by the swaying of the trap. Also caused by the shaking. The panicked cawing of crows as they flew to safety amplified whatever she was feeling, gold eyes looking around wildly until they locked onto movement. SOMETHING. BIG. Was just outside the tarp. A shadow silently moved along side the outside of the tarp and her breath hitched. OK! Don't freak Mew! It was probably just a wild animal. Like a deer or a giant bird. Oh she hoped it wasn't a bear!

SNAP!!

The child tumbled out from the bottom of the trap and her yelp was interrupted as she face planted the dirt. Dirt and small twigs sticking to her still damp self. Purple. EVERYWHERE. Suddenly dark purple. Her head raised in horror as reality itself disappeared and purple warped her view everywhere. And the terrifying purple ghost stood before the girl slowly looking up at it meeting it's menacing face-

"AHAHAHAHAHAAAAAA!!," he rang out laughter in a raspy deep voice, "FFFFFOOOOOOOOOLLL!!!"

"...Are you for real? This is so cliche."

"YOU STEPPED IN-..." He paused mouth opening as his metaphorical brain processed what had just been said..and blinked. "I'm sorry. What now?"

Instead of begging for mercy instantly or cowering in fear, this little blonde girl just...crossed her arms and scowled at him?? "I've seen this done a million times on TV. This isn't even close to original!"

"Wow. Ok. Not only do you intrude on my domain, but you also insult it." Who's sassy lost child was this? "Do you even know what I do with small children?" He snarled holding out his claws to startle fear into her. "I eat them for lunch!"

She scoffed. "No you aren't. You're a ghost! Ghost can't eat anything! They don't have a stomach!" Snatcher again stopped. ...Oooookay. Wasn't expecting to get so bluntly called out like that. "...*sigh* Alright. Whatever. Do your thing. I'm just here to snatch some time pieces."

"Ok. EXCUSE ME!?" he gasped offendedly and placed a hand over his chest dramatically. "If anyone is snatching anything it's ME!! My name is literally the Snatcher and you, Young Lady, are not taking anything that belongs to ME!"

"Oh yeah? What are you gonna do about it?," she challenged back, "Let me guess. You're gonna make a deal with me that favors you way more than it favors me?"

"...NO! I have-..Um..Something much cooler planned for you!"

"Spit it out! What is it?"

"....It's uuuhh-" Her brow rose at his face and silence. "RRRR!! Ok. Fine. I was going to make you sign a contract!"

"Amazing. Can I go now?"

"..." He scowled and growled out before pointing a clawed hand at her. "GET OUT OF MY FOREST!!" She wasn't given much time to react either way as when she refused to move an inch that clawed hand snatched her up by her red cape.

"Wha- HEY!!" She began to struggle again as he aimed carefully. "LET ME GO- AAHH!!"

And in one swift movement she went cascading through the air and flew. Going head over heels until she landed somewhere. With a very loud SPLAT sound she landed right back into the muddied puddle she fell into the first time at the very edge of the forest. Leaving her unharmed but all dirty coughing and hacking as she crawled out of the puddle and woods. PECK THIS!! She'll go somewhere else to find those time pieces! Stupid ghost!! Meanwhile Snatcher grumbled irritated his day was ruined by yet another sassy child.

"Children these days."

[wtfcraigslistnyc]

STRAIT FROM THE BEND

The sky

was grey

It was cold

Two men walked

on the shoulder of a

paved two lane rural route

Like two mariners in a raft

afloat in the briny deep

They were father

And son

Brothers as well

No one knew

their names

The town folk

Called them

Pete and Byron

They lived like ghosts

for all to see

Endlessly on

the move

Marching down

Route 16

As a boy

PETE

was an odd child

He took to

trapping and taxidermy

handling the

dead carcasses of

living things and

reanimating them

in stasis

His eyes

often wandered

to the heavens

The life he was

born into

was a

hard one

His father had

been a lumberjack

as his

father and

father’s father

before him

had been

They had

come down the

St. Lauren

As trappers in the 1860's

Hard men

Minds and bodies Driven

to kill

to live

to provide

and to make more

hands to do

the work

Settling on the

cusp of the mythic

North East Kingdom

A stone’s throw

down the road

from a

toughf and

prosperous granite town

Pete cared not

for thoughts of

outside world

He had heard

music as a child

TV confused and

scared him

They lived alone

next to the road

with their mother

She was a seldom

seen woman

Short

Curt

Severe

She was born in

Sherbrooke, Quebec

She met Pete Sr.

whilst on a bible

trip to hunt

In the Kingdom

They raised

their boy in a very

modest shack

Pete Sr.

died suddenly

when a

log jammed at the mill and

ripped his head

clean off

Pete Jr.

was crushed

He took to

dressing in a suit made of

raccoon and woodchuck

His eyes glowed

like a nocturnal animal

The winters in the Kingdom

are oppressive

Madness can set in

staring at the

same four walls

Pete and his mother

were alone

It was freezing

His heart was broken

He was 16

Full of passion and rage

He awoke one morning after

drinking a half gallon of vodka

To realize he had

bed his mother

He did it

again and again

For a time it

seemed ok

Then Byron was born

Pete loved him

The hole

in his tiny

world was

less giant

His mother was

happy as well

But the family

was angry

The uncles and

aunts and

grand folks

KNEW

They were God

fearing people

They spoke with

bitter tongues

of the

savage love

they shared

They kept

to themselves

Worked hard

trapping and

doing random work

until injury

laid Pete

out completely

A kindly woman at the hospital

set them up with welfare

Byron was a gentle person

He never spoke

in coherent sentences

but he smiled a lot

As a little boy

he had

been

very

sick

It took

what privative medicine

that existed in the 1970’s

to keep him alive

They lived alone

Thrown like a stone

into the great expanse

of the trees

Perpetually lulled

In and out consciousness

By speeding car

Of the route bounding

NORTH to the BEND

Byron listened when spoken to

He would make eggs

Everyone said it was

foolish to let him Use fire

but Pete didn't care

He would cheer him on

Mama smoked Pall Malls

The boys would have smoked too

But they lacked the

gumption to willingly

doing anything at all

much less self destruct

The sun and moon chased

each other endlessly

No one cared

They didn't

The silence only

drew them closer

Byron couldn't really speak

He would could wail

Most of the time happy sounds

Left his body

but time to time

he would

grow angry

Frustrated by the

state of things

Left in the

fading shack

to live

like an outcast

Touched by the

hand of God

by his mother

By his father

By his brother

And not another

living soul

After the accident

nothing would

break the monotony of

life in the deafening void

The promise of the sun

cresting upon the

frozen fields and trees

The sounds of crows cawing

The Holsteins grunting

The deer pouncing

across the white expanse

The glint in Pete's

eyes as he awoke

every day and mumbled

that it was time

to put on the

boots and March

To anywhere

Not too far

Not far enough

away that they

couldn't find

their way back

Not around the corner

to only leave them

wondering why they left

One day

the roar of the road

grew too great

Demons infected

Pete’s head

He spoke of Jesus

He spoke of the

time before the light

Before the man

in the suit held

his hand and said

to him

it was ok

To be him

The man

looked aside and

pretended not to hear him

say his name

Byron

was a mess

In tears

The truck had come at a

full clip up the road

No destination

It had grabbed the edge of

Pete's Popsicle orange

vest and spun him

like a top

He flew

head high

sideways

Byron screamed a

guttural sound

It shook the trees and the

birds and sly fox

on the slink in the wood

Pete landed flat

Flaccid

lifeless

No one looked

The eyes of God

were not watching

Surely someone

would stop and

cradle this

bag of bones

to help

Byron's eyes

filled with tears

He looked up at the

sky and then

back down

to the road

Pete groaned

his arm severely broken

But his strong

tree trunk legs

Unscathed

My father

took care of him

in the hospital

He spoke of them as

SIMPLE SAD PEOPLE

People that were like

aboriginal New Englanders

who spoke in an

unintelligible dialect

After a month in the shack

Mama fed

the boys

venison stew and

wonder bread

they returned

to the road

Always back to the road

It cannot be understated

I moved to the Kingdom in 1977

From my earliest memory of

my brother's birth and

being a small boy

They walked the road

Every single day

On a brisk

afternoon in 94

I was kneeling

in the dirt

next to the road

Pulling vegetables from

Still warm

brown earth

They walked

upon us with

giant smiles

As Pete shuffled

with his brother in tow

Leaving the blacktop

They met my

Ginger Mentor

He rose up from freshly

churned earth

Pete shook

His hand

And said

"Eh aw naw mean

we been talking

it ain't gonna be

rainin' tuday

cuz ya'll be

digging in that dirt."

Bryon smiled and waved

"Hi!"

The sound

Left his mouth

like a round blossom

It gave me chills

They smiled

turned

back up

the road

Pete would live 5 more years.

Up and down the road

they marched

Never ending

Eternally moving

Running rampant

To no end

Their boots on the road

Always back to the road

When Pete’s heart stopped

Byron sat alone

in the shack with him for

three days

The cold of the winter

couldn't chill him

He knew it

like a rock

he'd clutched

in his digits

since birth

On the third day

he awoke

Naked

Cold

Afraid

Knowing nothing else

but hunger

he turned on

the stove

Some say

the fire burned

for the better part of

two days

It was February.

Life around them

rose and fell

The roar of the road

never ceasing

It's rubbery cord

gripping the

metal toboggans as they

hurtled ever closer To

The bend

The bend

claimed

many

many

lives

Ice became mud

Mud became earth

Day became night

The road never sleeping.

The shack burned to nothing

No remains were found.

I do not claim that any of this story is based on fact other than the fact that PETE AND BYRON were real people.

My father did work a second job at the hospital. He did care for Pete when he was hit by a truck.

I did hear them speak as well several times while working on a vegetable farm. They were real backwoods inbred people.

I think the subject of incest is a brutal one. I think this story is important because of the taboo that surrounds something so far from the norm of any society. I neither condone nor support it by writing this. These brothers were not monsters. They lived simply and harmed no one (that I know of). But they are an enigmatic piece of folk lore that is worth telling. People would turn in disgust and mock them. But to tell their story (be it fictionally) begs the question of right and wrong.

I believe that even if people commit the most cardinal sin of any ideology (I am unaware of a religion that would condone this) they are not inherently "bad people".

The world that this story takes place in is one rife with serious drug problems, alcoholism, sexual abuse, poverty, illiteracy and isolation. Pete was wrong to make a son with his mother by all accounts. But his son was not wrong. A human being is not wrong. A human life is intrinsically not wrong.

What's wrong is the drunk driver that kills a family. The parent who molests a child. The person who leaves a stranger in need to die.

Pete was no doubt the product himself of a strange and savage world that raised him for better or worse. We cannot shun those at the far edges of society. They are real. They are a part of our story.

PETE AND BYRON WERE REAL

(I have intentionally excluded all the real names of the brothers and family out of respect for all parties.)

*strait : a narrow passage of water between two seas

The story is set on ROUTE 16, 1.5 miles from the physical bend in the road that I grew up on. Just before the small impoverished town of GREENSBORO BEND. The route is like a narrow passage between two isolated and dark, deep places that held many ominous secrets. The men lived on a tiny finger off the route leading to EAST HARDWICK. The torrent of cars and most importantly DRUNK DRIVERS cannot be understated.

Countless times as a child I would wake up at 3 AM to find my DAD in the yard helping some piss dunk try to remove their stranded car from the snow. The first time I ever saw a dead body I was home from school alone and heard a crash. I ran to the yard to find a drunk crashed into the granite block culvert in the yard. He’d passed out after the right hand turn of the BEND and drifted into the ditch, smashing full speed into the stone blocks.

The road is something I’ve walked ever inch of hitchhiking up and down. Once my VW VAN died I had no choice, I couldn’t stay in the woods hiding. I’ve seen many morose and miraculous things on those hikes.

Many times though I would pass the men and wave. They would always wave back. These are real people in this broken place I came from. The horror of what they lived is just one in the millions of story too sad to speak a loud.

The two towns were oceanic places of disparity and poverty. Drugs and violence surrounded them. The trickle of asphalt between them is the strait that this tale exists in.)