#he's there to protect anyone that needs it (both human and supernatural creatures alike)

[royallyjoon]

nephilim (cinq)

you know where the cred goes 💙

cult au, supernatural creature au

yandere bts x f! reader

warnings: yandere themes, physical assault, graphic descriptions of violence, manipulation, (slight) gaslighting

you were left, abandoned by mortals and immortals alike. darkness knows no bounds, and neither does punishment. there is no refuge in neither blood nor flesh from its wrath. if darkness welcomes you, should you open your arms to it in return? if darkness turns you away, does that mean you’ve won? should you choose to cast aside this lonely path of yours, and your conviction along with it, regardless of whatever other horrors lie in wait, you will be saved. 

——————————————————————

What is one to do when they hear the words they’ve feared the most leave someone else’s mouth?

The moment they graced Jin’s eardrums, he gripped his phone so tightly he could hear the glass screen crack. 

He and Yoongi had been assisting their father in the woods with preparations for the next meeting, the ominous hour approaching in no less than ten days.

He ignored Moonsik and Yoongi for a moment to answer his phone. 

“Hello?”

He could barely make out any of Jimin’s words--the boy’s blubbering masked too much of the information.

“Robotics...bathroom...”

“Jimin, I can’t hear anything over the sound of you crying. What’s going on?”

“(Y/N)...rooftop...Aemilia...”

“What are you trying to say?” Yoongi stopped talking to the older man, shifting his gaze toward his elder brother as he noticed Jin’s voice raise in irritation and concern.

“Blood...”

“Blood?!”

——————————————————————

Jimin had walked out of robotics a little early today, bored to tears.

He had felt much better after getting rid of the idiotic gaggle that dared to threaten you, and threaten him into abandoning you.

He should have known it wouldn’t be enough. He should’ve never left your side, he thought as he kneeled on the rooftop, staring forlornly at the pool of partially dried blood on the concrete.

“She was bleeding, hyung. Aemilia or her people must have taken her, but I have no idea where they went.”

Namjoon had been in the middle of a meeting with the school board, representing the student council.

Hoseok had been in the dance studio, barking orders out at somewhat competent underclassmen.

Jungkook and Taehyung were holed up in the younger’s room, playing games rather than doing any actual work.

In short, none of them were prepared. None of them had been there for you as they had promised.

You trusted them when you needed them most, and they left you high and dry.

Jimin felt like he would never be able to get the disappointment and guilt off of his chest.

——————————————————————

Namjoon bounded into the clearing, his usually polished exterior uncharacteristically tarnished. 

Hoseok appeared not long after him, having raced to the woods the moment he received the news.

They were met by Seokjin and Yoongi, who stood with their arms crossed over their chests, near a miserable Jungkook and a pacing Taehyung. Both boys had been in the house, so they were the first to arrive.

Jimin got there last, his hands and uniform pants stained red from the puddle he had kneeled in on the rooftop.

Six pairs of eyes landed on him and his appearance, confirming the worst.

“Three!” Seokjin cried incredulously. “Three of you were on campus, surrounded by a bunch of humans, and not a single one of you managed to keep an eye on her!”

“She could be anywhere,” Jungkook groaned in fear. 

“By all means, please don’t start caring now. It’s too late.” Yoongi snapped at him. “You and Taehyung drove straight home to do absolutely nothing. You could at least have offered her a ride home and ensured that she was safe. You’re just as responsible as they are.”

Jungkook’s eyes grew glassy, but only because he knew his brother was right. 

“As much as you enjoy playing the blame game, we have more pressing matters to address.” Namjoon interjected in an attempt to calm them down.

“That doesn’t even begin to cover it, Namjoon.” Seokjin’s icy tone sent a chill down their backs. “If we really wanted to play the blame game, we would have recognized how this is all your fault.”

The leader stood in tense silence.

“What did I tell you mere hours before this happened?” He continued, walking toward Namjoon until they were face to face. “I told you to get your shit together and to keep that girl in line. Hell, none of this would have happened if we hadn’t followed your idiotic plan in the first place.”

Seokjin was rarely ever angry enough to hiss in his brother’s face. They had all learned a long time ago that to provoke the oldest was to invoke Death.

“We all agreed his plan was the best choice at the time, hyung.” Yoongi cautiously approached the two and lay a hand on Seokjin’s shoulder, leveling a glare of his own at Namjoon. “We can deal with him later. We need to find her first.”

Jimin took the opportunity to step further into the clearing and brandished his phone, the device still open to his messages. “(Y/N) texted me saying Aemilia invited her up to roof and that she assumed it was for a confrontation of some sort.” 

“Aemilia doesn’t have the ability or strength to do damage like that by herself, though.” Taehyung frowned as he gestured to Jimin’s clothes. “Unless...”

The brothers looked at each other in realization and one by one, rushed out the clearing and out the forest. 

A quick drive to the center of the city and one pitifully short interrogation later, their suspicions were settled.

Hoseok growled as he re-entered the van, slamming the car door shut. “How dare he? When did he gain the courage to mobilize our own forces without our knowledge?”

“Never mind Augustus,” Jimin said, although his eyes blazed with anger. “Where would they take her?”

“That dog wouldn’t have taken her to the normal base, she has far too much malicious intent for (Y/N).” Taehyung growled.

Jungkook lightly tapped his fingers on the car door, looking out the window when the thought hit him.

“You don’t think they’d take her to...?”

His brothers looked at him in confusion, but he pointed out the window at the tree line of the woods. 

Having grown up in those woods, they knew it like the back of their hand. 

They knew the places were young townspeople would go to goof off, the places they had claimed for themselves, and the places that were...strictly off-limits.

It didn’t take much longer for the realization to set in.

Once it had, they took off in the direction of the forest.

——————————————————————

In your dream, you once again stood before Ichabod Chapel.

The Chapel, adorned with green vines, had long since been abandoned. Once, the walls must have been a beautiful ivory, but now they were a dark beige, having rotted with time.

A complete opposite to the image of the decrepit church, the seven Kim brothers stood on the ground in front of the entrance, visions dressed in various black silks.

Contrary to its original purpose, the material looked anything but light and airy--in fact, it looked as though it was weighed down or soaked, doused in some unknown substance.

You looked down to see that you were dressed in a white, ceremonial outfit. It billowed out like a ball gown, the sleeves drawing lacy patterns swirling up to your thumb. 

When you looked up, you were stunned by the brilliant, black wings that extended from the backs of the seven men before you. 

The sight of their wings enraptured you, those gorgeous appendages, feathers glossy under the moonlight.

Each of them had their own, unique set, varying in shapes and sizes, though the largest pair of wings belonged to none other than Kim Namjoon, who stood in the center of his brothers, hands in his pocket as he flashed you a familiar, mischievous grin.

Namjoon was the first to step out of the line, casually extending his hand out to you, and you hesitantly raised a dainty, (s/c) hand in return, placing it in his.

He pulled you into his arms and you felt him wrap them around you.

His brothers came to circle around the two of you, eventually joining the hug as well. 

Then, the whispers began.

Their tone was loving, though their words were anything but.

They were desperate, consuming, obsessive, threatening. 

They wanted you to love them, they needed you to love them, why couldn’t you understand? 

Your head pounded, filled to the brim with cruel promises of tenderness and affection.

The substance from their silks seeped into your clothes, rapidly staining your white outfit red.

You realized just what it was that they were doused in and tried to pull away from their arms but they surrounded you, locking you into their hold. 

The harder you fought to get out, the tighter they held on to you until you felt as though you couldn’t breathe.

Things were better this way. There’s nothing they wouldn’t do to protect you.  There’s nothing they wouldn’t do for your love.

How could you scorn their love for you? How could you treat them like this?

 They didn’t want to hurt anyone you cared about. They didn’t want to eliminate everyone you love in order to bring you to their side, but they would if they had to. 

They paid no mind to the way you were drowning in the smell of it, drowning in blood. Was it yours or someone else’s? Was it your mother’s? Mana’s?

All you knew was that they were done playing games.

——————————————————————

Your eyes flashed open and you winced as you immediately wished they hadn’t.

Your head pounded, each thump forcing your eyes shut with the intensity, still not having recovered from the several hits it received. 

For a moment it felt as though you were still unconscious and drenched in darkness, as when you tried to get a glimpse of your surroundings, you only saw shadows and moving, ambiguous shapes. 

The movement of the ground beneath you, however, quickly dispelled such thoughts. 

It appeared as though you were being carried over someone’s shoulder. Despite the extra weight, the person you currently rested on was light and quick on their feet, moving with a speed that made you feel worse than you already were.

The familiar crunching of leaves and branches on the ground made your heart beat just a bit harder. 

According to their footsteps and what you could see of your surroundings, you surmised they had taken you to the forest.

It had been mid afternoon when Aemilia and the people who worked for her and her family accosted you at the roof. Now, there was barely a hint of the moon in your surroundings.

Did she intend to have her people tie you up to the wooden pyre and set you aflame, like some sick imitation of a witch burning at the stake? Or to make it seem as though the Kims had done it?

Despite how afraid of Mayor Kim the citizens were, there was no way everyone would believe you died in such a gaudy display. 

Only the purple fire that Mayor Kim was capable of conjuring left nothing behind, after all. If they were to going to get rid of you by fire, your remains would be found.

There’s no way you could ensure that, however. 

There’s no guarantee that Aemilia wouldn’t be able to make good on her promise and utterly destroy you.

A light cough broke the silence, bringing you back to the present, and you tried to calm your heartbeat. There’s no way your captors would believe you were asleep if you kept scaring yourself like this.

You felt a tight, scratchy material around your wrists and your hands laying against your back.

You successfully clenched your hands. So they hadn’t drugged you while you were out. 

You were hesitant to shift, as you feared your captors would notice your cognizant state, so you resorted yourself to blinking at the ground and gritting your teeth from the pain and nausea. 

Thankfully, the people you were with appeared to be none the wiser. 

“Are we almost there?” A deep voice, seemingly annoyed, huffed.

“Be patient, Lee.” You felt the vibrations of the person carrying you as they replied. “This isn’t just any other job.” 

“I understand, but don’t you think Miss Augustus is going too far?”

Your captor scoffed. “If you want to question the Augustuses, thereby questioning the Kims and their authority, be my guest. I just hope you and your family will be able to deal with the consequences.”

The second captor, Lee, had nothing else to say after that. 

The quiet of the forest left a buzzing in your ears and the swinging sensation your body was making whilst strewn over the person’s back became too much to bear. 

You figured you’d just make your captor angrier if you barfed down their back and tried to shift to draw their attention, but it was too late. 

The acrid taste of bile and what you had for lunch earlier that day reached your mouth and your lifted your head, spitting out as much of it as you could.

There was a yell of anger and disgust, and your captor shoved you off of them and onto the forest floor. 

You held back a shout as you hit the ground, injuring your side even further, and let out the rest of your meal.

“What the-?! This disgusting bitch!”

Your captor launched another kick at your stomach and you fought back tears as they aggravated the wounds already in place. 

Lee stopped them after a while, complaining that another round of beating would just delay their job even further. 

You wiped your mouth off on your shoulder and grimaced.

To your surprise, you found that you could move your legs.

The first captor lifted you to your feet by your collar, and you recognized him as Mr. Byun, the man the strawberry blonde had referred to earlier. 

“Your legs still work for a reason,” he sneered and pushed you forward.

Your legs did indeed work, but were wobbly after hours of no use. 

You tripped and almost fell to the floor again, the bonds around your wrists preventing you from reaching out to break your fall, when the second captor grabbed you by the back of your shirt and held you up. 

“I’m not really in the mood for any of your foolishness, girl.” Lee glowered down at you. “Use your legs properly, or I’ll break them and drag you by the hair. It would be all too easy.”

You heard a suspicious click and your eyes flickered over to Byun, whose hand rested on his waist. In the other, however, he fiddled with a small lever on what appeared to be a firearm.

“Do you understand?” The second captor shook you and your brain protested, rattling around far too much for its liking. 

The thought of escape, which had been curling up inside you like the beginning of a fire, was quickly extinguished. You squeezed your eyes shut and nodded.

He pushed you away from him and you walked, following him with Byun at your back, trying to think of a way out of this situation.

You couldn’t tamper with the ropes around your wrist, as Byun was watching your every move. There was also the gun, and the fact that both men were trained in the use of it as well as martial arts.

Was there truly no way to escape?

——————————————————————

The three of you walked for what felt like hours, reaching a part of the woods that you had never seen before.

Here, the trees were sparse and had already lost all of their leaves. The dark branches coiled and twisted toward the sky, as if reaching for affection that would never be reciprocated. The stumps were old, the ground hard.

And then, a clearing. But not the one you were used to seeing.

Your heart dropped as you walked between two trees, noticing the view beyond them. 

You could now tell that it was well after midnight, for the sun was nowhere to be seen. Nevertheless, as always, the moon was high in the sky. 

Wylynne gazed down on the clearing with a force, as if the moon goddess wanted you to see bright and clear what awaited you.

The crumbling cliff before you overlooked a tranquil lake. Clouds hung in the distance, obscuring what was undoubtedly the outside world.

The outside of Ichabod.

Such tranquility had no business here, you thought to yourself as the pace of your breathing increased. 

Your captors had brought you to Lorne’s Ledge, also known as the edge of no return.

It was forbidden territory for any Ichabodian citizen.

Even before Mayor Kim came to town, even before the Augustus family had their reign: this was one of the oldest, most sacred spots in Ichabod.

The lady of the cliff, Lorne, saw to it that the forsaken never returned home.

You shuddered. The folklore didn’t scare you in the slightest. It would always be the work of man that you detested. 

Yet, you couldn’t help but feel some foreign, oppressive gaze resting on you now that you were here. As if Lorne herself were staring at you, waiting for you to join her in the watery depths--

That familiar click sounded again and your eyes shot to the side. You tried to slowly turn around, but the press of metal against your back forced you to stop all movement.

Lee smirked. “We have arrived at your final destination, my lady.”

“Miss Augustus was generous enough to leave you with two options. You can walk off and take a nice rest in the lake, or you can die before your body ever hits the water.” The man smiled mirthlessly down at you. “Which would you prefer?”

You blinked rapidly, mind racing. Even if you were capable of swimming, with these injuries, you wouldn’t be able to survive the fall off the ledge, 

They truly meant for you to die.

Lee didn’t seem to be in the mood for your deliberation as his cruel smile slipped into an infuriated frown. “Choose.” He growled. “My friend here would be all too happy to make the choice for you. How does a bullet in your brain and being rolled off the cliff sound?”

Byun dug the weapon into your skin and you winced, shaking your head. 

“I’ll-I’ll go. I’ll walk myself.”

Your voice cracked horribly after not speaking for so many hours, but the message was received. 

The metal was removed from your backside and you sighed in relief.

The man in front of you said nothing, simply stepping out of your path. 

You took a couple more breaths and slowly turned to face him. “C-Can I ask you to do something? As a final request.”

He raised an eyebrow at you in response.

You titled your head in the direction of your back. “Can you untie my hands? After I disappear, there might be a search for me, and someone might try to dig through the lake for my body. A suicide will be completely ruled out if they find the ropes.”

There was no way this would work. Even the Augustuses were too intimidated to bother touching the lake for fear of Lorne’s wrath. 

Besides, the police knew when and where to look, and where to say they looked. They would lie to your friends and family through their teeth.

Lee must not have been on the force for very long, however, because he grunted and pulled your hands to him. 

With a slice, the ropes fell to the ground and you clutched your wrists to your chest, nodding partly in thanks and partly in disbelief.

It...worked.

You rubbed your hands together and gently blew on them, fingers numb from the cold breeze. 

Your captors stood together between the trees, blocking the entrance. They murmured quietly to themselves and you continued to morph your face and body expressions into one of a pitiful teenager about to die, concealing the rather reckless thoughts you were having.

You finally turned around and walked back until you were in front of them, catching the two men off guard. They quieted and stared at you, hands at their weapons. 

You met each of them in the eye and bowed, lower than you ever had before, then stood upright.

They looked at you incredulously, giving you just enough time to give Lee a harsh kick between his legs and pry the knife out of his hand.

You slashed at his neck, adrenaline returning full force, and actually managed to cut the man. 

He shouted in pain and brought a hand up to the wound, trying to stop the blood.

Before you could turn to face Byun, however, the loud crack of a gunshot was heard throughout the forest and you felt a painful sting on your hand. 

You yelped as you dropped the knife.

Then, there was a second gunshot and the pain returned full force, this time on your shoulder.

The elder captor, completely fed up with your actions, slammed the gun against your head and you crumpled to the ground. 

You could feel something wet on your hand and clothes, but there was too much of it to be sweat in the midnight chill. You slowly lifted your hand, only to see it covered in a dark liquid.

Byun restrained Lee from attempting to beat you this time, barely casting a glance at your pitiful form. 

“Calm yourself. She won’t be alive for much longer.” He gruffed. “She said she would walk herself, so walk she will. We’re just here to watch and make sure it happens.”

He stood over your form and pointed the gun at your head. “What a useless attempt. Get up.”

Your shoulder and hand burned like hell, but you complied. 

You got to your feet once more and stumbled forward, every step taking you further and further away from the two. 

The barrel of the gun followed your every move.

The tears you’d been struggling to hold back ran full force now at the thought of your imminent death. But rather than let your captors feast upon the sight of your defeated form, you stopped.

You were covered in blood. Your uniform was sullied by your own vomit and dirt. 

But you straightened your back, ignoring the pain in your shoulder, and held your head up high. 

You had reached the edge of the cliff now, but your vision was too blurry to see anything besides the vast blue beneath you. 

The lake that rested below had no warmth or safety to provide for you, but neither did the forest behind you.

You considered praying to Wylynne to see if, in all her majesty and grace, she would save you.

Yet clearly, just like all the people who had come before you, just like the lady of the lake herself, the moon goddess had forsaken you.

You were tired. Too tired to fight against what some would call fate.

You whispered an apology to your mother and Mana, and perhaps even to the brothers, the reason why, you did not know.

Your eyes captured the overcast image of the outside world one last time, then you turned around and took a backward step off the cliff with a sad smile, eyes falling closed, mentally locked on that solitary picture.

Above you, you thought you heard the pained screams and grunts of your captors, sounding as though they were struggling against something or someone. 

But before you, you saw your mother with her arms outstretched, that patient, loving smile on her face. 

You reached forward, wrapped your arms around her, and readily slipped into darkness.

Above your falling form, a shadow zipped through the dawn, racing to reach you before you hit the water. 

He saw you smile and lift an arm into the air, before the smile slipped off your face and your limbs went limp.

The large, black wings at his back beat furiously and he flew faster than he ever had before until he had your beaten form cradled to his chest. 

The two of you suddenly shot upward into the air as your descent slowed, and as the first rays of daylight peeked out from above the clouds, his form hung in the air, almost frozen in time, black wings outstretched and supporting the two of you as he floated above Lorne’s Ledge. 

Kim Jimin hovered, adorned in the light of the early morning sun, peering callously down at the vermin who lay trembling between him and his brothers. 

Or what was left of them, at least.

Jungkook had managed to get his hands on the elder one, and the arm he had been using to carry the gun had been ripped clean off. 

He was now whimpering in excruciating pain, clutching at the place where his limb had once been.

The younger one, on the other hand, lay resting against a tree. 

Unmoving, his eyes unseeing. 

All it had taken was one touch from Hoseok, and the man’s life force was gone, sucked out of him before he could even protest.

He was now nothing more than a lifeless sack of meat.

Taehyung picked up the body as Yoongi kicked one of the elder’s legs to get his attention.

The others stood threateningly over Byun, glowering down at him in utter loathe, as though he were a louse.

The old man whimpered, looking up and between them, then paling in horror as he saw Taehyung and Jimin.

The younger brother walked toward the elder as Jimin gently touched down on the ground, your form still protectively pressed to him. The two Kims met eyes and nodded at each other.

Taehyung turned around and flashed Mr. Byun a crazed smile before flinging Lee’s body as far as he could over the cliff.

He gaped in horror and his voice rose multiple decibels, pleads for his life escaping before he could properly think them through.

Seokjin squatted down until he was at an eye level with him, strong, black wings threateningly displayed. He grinned. 

“If you think you have even any hope of escaping your friend’s fate,” he said as the smile slipped off his face, “you’re dead wrong.”

He glared at Byun with cold, amber irises. “But before we end your insignificant, paltry life, you’re going to tell us who sent you and why.”

They already had proof of Aemilia’s crime from Aloysius Augustus himself but they wanted to be sure.

He looked at the younger gentlemen with tears in his eyes. He fought through his pain and got on both knees.

“There’s no use in begging,” Namjoon stated, arms crossed over his chest. For the first time, he couldn’t find anything amusing in the matter.

“Please! We were only receiving orders, Miss Augustus--”

Before he could finish his sentence, Yoongi used Lee’s discarded knife and slashed it across Byun’s neck, silencing him in an instant. 

The light left his eyes and the man’s body flopped over.

Taehyung didn’t think twice about kicking him off the cliff, either.

Now that those pests were taken care of, the seven rushed to turn their attention on you. 

The bleeding from your shoulder and hand had not slowed in the slightest, and they could hardly feel your pulse.

“We need to get her to the hospital, and fast.” Hoseok said, swallowing the rising lump in his throat.

“I’m the fastest. I can take her there.” Taehyung volunteered.

The brothers agreed, and you were gently deposited into Taehyung’s arms. 

“When you’re sure she’s safe, meet us back here in the woods,” Yoongi said. “You’ll know where to find us.”

"Yes, hyung.” Taehyung spread his wings and took off into the sky.

He carefully cradled you, shifting your body into one of his arms, and attempted to heal some of your worse injuries along the way.

He pressed one hand to your abdomen and began muttering under his breath, a panicked tear slipping out the corner of his eye as he peered at the extent of the damage.

Once your ribs were mostly healed, he pulled his hand away, leaving behind a canvas of dark blue, yellow, and green bruises. He winced and moved on, pressing his hand to your head.

You made no movements, body as limp as ever in his arms. 

Taehyung touched down on the roof of the hospital and tucked those magnificent, black wings together, the appendages fading away as if they were never there. 

He held his arm out, his palm facing the door. He only meant to unlock it, but utterly destroyed it in his haste. Quite frankly, he couldn’t have cared less. 

He hurriedly walked down the stairwell and burst into the hospital’s eleventh floor lobby, reserved for VIP care and treatment. 

A receptionist was working at the front desk, typing away without a care in the world.

He was interrupted by Taehyung’s shouts. “I found her in the woods outside of our home this morning--she’s badly injured, please help!”

He looked up at the boy’s outburst, eyes widening when he realized just who and what he was looking at.

He immediately called for available nurses to bring a bed and admit you to a room, then paged any available doctors.

“Do you know who she is, Mr. Kim?” A nurse asked as she examined you for damage.

He nodded. “She’s a classmate of mine, her name is (Y/N) (L/N). Her mother also works here--please notify her of her daughter’s arrival.”

The man nodded once more, sending someone else to page Nurse (L/N) from the fifth floor.

As the nurses wheeled you away, Taehyung grabbed the receptionist by the wrist and he whipped around in fear.

“This patient is very important,” Taehyung stressed, squeezing the man’s wrist harshly. “She is being admitted under the protection of Kim Moonsik himself, at the behest of our entire family. If anything happens to her...”

The receptionist gulped and nodded. “Of course, Mr. Kim. You don’t need to explain any further. We’ll do our absolute best to ensure her care and recovery.”

Taehyung glared down at him for a bit longer before he threw the man’s wrist aside and turned away from him. 

He rubbed at his wrist, knowing it would bruise in a couple of hours, or perhaps even minutes.

The man returned to his desk, beginning to fill out the paperwork for your stay. 

When he looked up to ask Taehyung more questions about your injuries, the boy had already disappeared.

——————————————————————

In Taehyung’s absence, the six brothers stretched out their wings and flew to a certain section of the woods behind the Kim family home. 

This part of the woods remained untouched by both the Kim family and the general public. It was only the seven who came out here, and only in times of dire consequence. 

Several trees in the area had fallen over, cracked in half as though hit or pushed in anger with some spectacular force.

Leaves and branches strewn all over the ground were blown away by the boys and the sudden breeze they brought, large wings disrupting the peaceful quiet of the forest.

The early morning sun peeked through the leaves, painting a picturesque view of the woods, a sharp contrast to the heavy, violent atmosphere headed its way.

Jungkook planted his feet on the ground first, tucking away his wings until they were out of sight. He angrily flicked what was left of Byun off his face, disgusted by the thick feel and metallic smell of mortal blood. 

Jimin followed right behind him, then Hoseok, Yoongi, and Seokjin entered, Namjoon being the last to touch down on the forest floor.

Jimin and Jungkook met eyes with one another, their anger not even close to subsiding at the death of your captors. 

Yet, soon enough, curiosity and dread brought them out of their rage when they realized just how quiet it had gotten between the older members.

Jimin shifted his gaze, the frown on his face deepening when he saw the eldest brothers’ attention turn to Namjoon, who was standing deathly still, staring blankly ahead.

Seokjin raised an eyebrow as he glared down at the younger. Namjoon refused to meet his gaze.

The six of them stayed like that for a long time, even when they heard the loud beating of another pair of wings, and Taehyung joined them in the forest.

He turned to Jimin in confusion but the older simply shook his head and grabbed for his and Jungkook’s hands, squeezing them. 

Finally, after what felt like hours of silence, Seokjin spoke. 

“There is no mercy for the prideful,” he stated with finality.

Namjoon flinched away at the words, eyes stuck to the ground.

“You weren’t able to uphold your oath, Namjoon ah,” Hoseok said. His words were concerned, but his tone reeked of condescension.

“And because of that, because of your utter failure, our beloved angel got hurt.” Yoongi hissed. “She almost died.”

Hoseok, Yoongi, and Seokjin took menacing steps toward the leader. 

He heard his older brothers walking up to him, but refused to meet the wrath that was surely boiling in their gaze.

Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook watched on with bated breath, their hands still linked together.

Namjoon was frozen in place. 

As the leader of their group, there was rarely ever a moment where he was seen as weak. 

But the second he had received news of your capture, he lost even the strength to stand on his own two feet.

It was the thought of you, of saving you and bringing you to safety, that had kept him going. 

It was the only thing that had kept all seven of them sane.

Now that they knew you were going to live, he knew he couldn’t avoid his punishment any longer.

Namjoon’s facial expression didn’t change, even in the moment where, with surprising speed, Yoongi lashed out at him, decking him in the face and knocking him to the forest floor.

The student body president winced, gingerly gripping his nose as blood started to leak from it.

His older brothers stood, looking down at him in a mock semicircle.

“Yoongi ah,” Seokjin said, turning to the younger, “what is the punishment for those who commit the deadly sin of pride?”

“Being broken on the wheel, hyung.” Yoongi replied impassively. 

“Fortunately for you, or unfortunately, I should say,” Hoseok grinned down at Namjoon, “we don’t have a wheel.”

Seokjin stepped forward and lifted his foot above Namjoon’s right leg. 

“This is what happens when you place too much pride in yourself and in your actions.” He stated, then brought his foot down on Namjoon’s right leg.

He didn’t let up until there was a sick, audible crack. 

Namjoon reeled back, grunting in pain but refusing to scream. 

Yes, it hurt, but he knew he deserved it. He failed (Y/N). 

This is the least he could do to atone for his actions.

“All things considered, we’re being quite generous with you.” Yoongi stepped up next, kicking his broken leg aside to stomp down on his left one.

This time, Namjoon let out a jarring scream. 

“You still have the audacity to scream? To feel pain?” Yoongi ground his foot into the injury as though he were trying to put out a cigarette. “Imagine how much pain our beloved is in right now. Imagine what she wouldn’t have had to go through, had you done your job properly. Had you listened to us.”

The elder had never been kind or considerate when it came to delivering punishment, a fact that the younger brothers had quickly become accustomed to.

Taehyung, Jimin, and Jungkook looked on blankly, but inside they felt a deep sense of pity. 

Namjoon was their brother and their leader, the constant face of their strength.

It hurt to see him in so much pain, no matter how necessary it was. 

Namjoon sat on the forest floor, both legs twisted at an awkward angle. He grit his teeth together as he tried to control his breathing. 

He noticed no one else was approaching him, but he knew that the punishment wasn’t over yet, not so soon. He slowly, inquisitively lifted his head.

The eldest three looked at Namjoon expectedly. He pleadingly raised his eyebrows, but their stares held no mercy.

He bowed his head in defeat. 

The senior wrapped his right hand around his left forearm and squeezed until he heard something crack. 

There was the quick, soft sound of a sob coming out of his mouth, and then all was quiet. 

Hoseok went last, shuffling through the leaves on the forest floor to squat next to his younger brother, wiping away some of his tears and gently running his fingers through his hair. “We’re doing this for her. Everything we do is for her, you know that as well as we do.”

Namjoon glanced at him warily, tense because he knew what was coming next, but didn’t know when to expect it. 

“That’s why you’re prepared to face the consequences for your actions, yes...?”

With a sickeningly sweet smile, Hoseok wrapped his hands around Namjoon’s right forearm, breaking the bone in a quick moment.

Namjoon clenched his teeth together so hard, he swore he heard something else crack. 

Any movement within the top or lower half of his body left him in excruciating pain, and he stifled a scream each time.

“You did so well, Joonie.” Hoseok continued patting his head. 

They surrounded him, praising him with how well he took his punishment. 

He was only able to withstand a few more minutes of cognizant thought before his eyes rolled back into his head.

Hoseok caught his younger brother, gently laying him back onto the dirt.

The six men stood in the silence, staring at the form of their treasured leader with pity. 

Seokjin turned around and met each of his younger brothers in the eye. He then wordlessly walked away from the clearing and Namjoon’s broken body.

Yoongi and Hoseok followed him, blank expressions on their face.

The youngest brothers were all too quick to pick up on the message. 

Overstep your boundaries, and endure the same fate. 

After taking one more look at Namjoon, the youngest brothers trekked out of the forest, silently following behind the other angels.

——————————————————————

When you finally pried your eyes open, you were greeted by an unfamiliar chill.

You were cold. So cold, the chill settled uncomfortably in your bones.

White blankets were tucked around you, pristine sheets morphing to mimic your form. 

For a moment, you incredulously thought that this must have been your arrival to heaven.

Then, you soon heard a monotonous beeping and you felt the subtle prick of wires along your skin, an IV casually grazing across the back of your hand. 

It hurt to move your right shoulder, and your abdomen ached, the areas bandaged so tight you could just barely feel them. 

There were bandages around your wrists and hand as well, and the pungent scent of ointment told you those were for your rope burns and bullet graze. 

Your head injuries were also wrapped, if you deduced the source of your current headache correctly. 

You were alive. Alive, and well taken care of.

“(Y/N)?”

You winced, your head not taking too kindly to the reintroduction of noise. A swivel to your right, however, and your mother’s worried face appeared.

“...Mom?” You voice cracked horribly, and she smiled and hummed in acknowledgement, lifting a water pitcher next to her and pouring you a glass of water.

You drank as if you were Tantalus himself.

“I was so worried.” your mother stated, her voice breaking right along with yours. The sound alone nearly brought tears to your eyes. 

She lifted her hands and grasped your uninjured one, intertwining your fingers.

 “I got paged yesterday morning and asked to come up to the eleventh floor, just to find out that you had been admitted.” Your mother spoke, answering your questions before you even got the chance to ask. “And at the request of the entire Kim family, no less. Kim Taehyung brought you in himself, claiming you’d been assaulted and found outside their door.”

You tilted your head, peering at your mother in disbelief. 

She met your gaze and flicked her eyes toward the door, then back towards you without turning around. You followed their direction.

Outside the small, rectangular window of the door, there stood a tall figure dressed in dark clothing.

Your mother leaned toward you and whispered. “That woman has been standing guard since the doctors finished their checkup.”

You gulped and nodded in understanding.

“(Y/N).” Her tone shifted slightly, still holding concern but taking a solemn turn. “I never ask you questions about how school is and your life is going. We usually leave each other to our own devices, and that’s clearly been a mistake on my part. But I need you to be completely honest with me here.”

“Have you displeased the Kims in any way?” Her grip on your uninjured hand tightened to the point where all of your knuckles turned white. “If they have you here under some sort of watch until the next meeting...if they’re trying to...” 

Your mother gulped, unable to finish the rest of the sentence. 

Her voice lowered into a harsh whisper. “Tell me. I’ll go alert a trustworthy coworker, and I will have you out of this town before Kim Moonsik can utter another prayer.”

Your eyes widened comically. “Mom, no! Nothing like that happened. They saved me. The Kims saved my life.” You repeated, gripping her hands. “If they hadn’t brought me here, I would have-” 

The weight of your words finally hit you, and before you could realize, tears gathered in the corner of your eyes. “I could have...”

You fought to speak through the trembling of your lower lip. “I’m sorry I never told you about my day, I just thought I’d be able to handle it all by myself. The police commissioner’s daughter, she was trying to get rid of me and she-Mom, she-”

Your mother cupped your cheeks as your tears cascaded down your face. She gently rubbed your lower back as you muffled your cries by burying your head into her neck.

She didn’t let you go for a while, even after you managed to collect yourself. 

She poured you another glass of water and you sipped at the beverage, telling her the trials you’d faced these past couple of weeks.

“I thought it was a regular instance of bullying,” you sniffled, putting the plastic cup down. “that she didn’t want me getting too close to her crush. So I endured because I had no intention of taking anything of hers away. Who am I, in Ichabod, compared to a woman of prestige like that?” You sarcastically asked.

“But apparently, my mere existence bothered her.” You shakily recounted what had ultimately been the most terrifying moments of your life to your mother. 

You obscured some parts of the story, not wanting your mother to worry even more, and claimed that the Augustus’ men had taken you to the clearing to scare you and beat you up, and that you surmised they dropped you off outside of the Kim home afterward. 

By the time she finished hearing the whole story, her grip had embedded itself into the edge of the hospital bed. 

Your mother’s vexation was interrupted by the sound of people speaking outside your door.

“Ma’am, I apologize. By the order of Kim Moonsik, only family members are allowed to visit the patient right now.” The figure outside your door spoke with an uninterested tone.

“With all due respect, officer, please don’t assume my gender.” You heard a familiar voice snipe. “My best friend is lying in there and she’s practically a sister to me. I don’t particularly give a damn about your order. Kim Moonsik can kiss my-”

“Mana!” You yelled, trying to catch both of their attention before your best friend could get themselves arrested. 

You flipped the hospital blankets off of you and your mother helped you to your feet, then to the door. The injuries on your abdomen and head protested with every step.

The guard’s eyes widened a bit as you slid the door open, and so did the eyes of every hospital staff within sight of your room. 

“Ms. (L/N), I implore you, please go back to bed to rest!” A nurse in the hallway rushed over. 

The guard hastily nodded in agreement. “Yes, please do. I sincerely apologize for the commotion.”

You waved them off, reaching a hand out to Mana. “I'll go back to bed, but only if you let Mana in. They’re family.”

Mana stood in the hallway, hurriedly dressed in sweatpants, a disheveled oversized hoodie, and sneakers, but gingerly holding a teddy bear with a card.

The guard looked between you, Mana, and the nurse for quite some time. The nurse’s frantic expression must have convinced her, though, because she finally stepped aside.

Mana extended their arm, gently grabbing your hand in return and waltzing past the security guard with a smug expression. 

The moment the three of you were back in the room, however, they ushered you back to bed as well.

“(N/N)!” Mana said, going to hug you, then rethinking it when they spotted all the bandages. 

They placed the teddy bear in your arms and stood a card that cheerily read “Get Well Soon!” on your nightstand. “How are you feeling? I’m so sorry--I should have been there with you!”

“My head and chest hurt, but I’m alright.” You shook your head with a small smile, clutching the doll to your chest. “Don’t apologize, you had no idea this was going to happen. This was all the result of my stupid decision--I was the one who fell into her trap.”

Your mother excused herself, leaving you and Mana alone for a few minutes.

You filled them in on what had happened to you, withholding no details, and their face lit up in anger. “She ordered them to take you to Lorne’s Ledge?! That psychotic cunt! Just wait until I drag her across the square, we’ll see how high and mighty she is then-”

“Mana, calm down.” You smiled, thankful for your friend’s protectiveness, but weary after everything you’d just gone through. 

“I never want to stoop to her level,” you admitted, wringing the sheets in your hands. 

Your mother gently slid open the door, returning with water and a tray of food for you.

“I think...I’ve had enough of mind games and tricks for a while.” You whispered, then smiled at her as she lay the meal in front of you.

Mana’s gaze turned soft, and they patted your hands and back in support. 

“I don’t even want to think of what would have happened if the Kims hadn’t gotten there in time.” your mother muttered. 

You nodded in agreement. 

You weren’t particularly sure how or why, but the Kims had saved your life. 

Not only had they offered you some of the best care in the city, free of charge, but they even stationed people outside your room.

Somewhere in the back of your mind, something told you that holding them with such a mindset would put you exactly where they wanted you to be. 

Yet something else countered that thought, claiming that it was that same distancing mindset that had pushed you into the arms of danger in the first place. 

Perhaps Mayor Kim felt responsible for it because his men got usurped by a high school girl.

Or, perhaps, it was his sons who felt even more responsible.

Your mother and Mana stayed with you the rest of the night, each taking up their own positions on the furniture. Mana draped themself on the couch while your mother took the armchair.

You allowed yourself to drift off to the sound of them breathing, the chill and fear of the previous morning now a distant, foreign thing.

——————————————————————

Your mother and Mana weren’t constantly at your side, as one had to attend to her duties at work and the other had to go to school. 

There were other individuals who were perfectly happy to waste the day with you, though.

On the first day, you were visited by Jimin.

The sophomore’s usual high-energy self was nowhere to be seen as he stepped into your hospital room holding a small bouquet of (your favorite flowers). 

Jimin rushed at you, barely giving himself enough time to greet him before he fell to his knees in front of your hospital bed. 

You gasped aloud in surprise and urged him to stand, but he would have none of it. 

“I’m so sorry, (Y/N).” His eyes glistened as water streaked down his cherubic face. “If I had read your message earlier, if I hadn’t been so stupid to turn my phone off, you never would have gotten hurt like this.”

You winced as you pulled yourself to the edge of the bed, your hand only hurting slightly less than it had before. “You didn’t know at the time, I wouldn’t blame you for that. When you did know, you rushed to help me. That’s something I will be forever grateful to you for.” 

You exhaled and smiled your rare, genuine smile, a warm countenance on your face that pierced Jimin’s soul. “So please,” you held your hand out to Jimin.

The boy looked up, pitiful expression morphing into a delighted smile. He gently took your hand and stood, then ushered you to rest comfortably back at the top of the bed. 

The two of you spent the rest of the day talking, Jimin distracting you from your current situation with stories about his family and their travels. 

By the time you realized you’d never gotten answers to your questions, the sun was starting to set and you were having trouble keeping your eyes open in the middle of Jimin’s conversation.

If the raven haired boy had noticed it, he didn’t say anything. 

If anything, he continued speaking, his voice low and chiming with laughter as he recounted precious memories.

When he heard the familiar sound of your soft, slow breathing, he stopped. He simply gazed upon your visage, smiling at the way your (s/c) skin lit up in the afternoon sun and held a hand up to block the light from getting in your eyes.

He stayed that way for the next several minutes, then gently caressed your cheek, letting his hands linger for shorter than he would have liked.

Once the night was well underway, Jimin collected his things and left your side with one more forlorn look.

He shot a strict gaze at the guard, who gulped and nodded at the unspoken order.

Finally, he turned and walked down the hallway toward the elevators. 

——————————————————————

On the second day, you were visited by Taehyung. You were still asleep when he first came into the room, but your mother was sitting beside you and her eyes widened when she saw him.

Before the younger boy could even speak, the older woman bowed low in gratitude.

Few people had ever seen your mother in a vulnerable state, you included, as she purposefully made it so. 

Taehyung was a rare exception that day as he gently gripped her shoulders, feeling the slight trembles that coursed through her as he straightened her posture. 

Suppressing an amused smile, Taehyung thought of the differences between you and his supposed mother. 

While the actress trembled out of fear for her own life, your mother shook at the thought of losing you.

As expected from the woman who raised you, their perfect treasure.

“I can never repay you for the hospitality you’ve shown my daughter,” your mother whispered.

“There’s no need for such matters, Ms. (L/N). We’ll always protect and watch out for your daughter. We’re honored to have her in our lives.” Taehyung replied with a sincere tone.

She accepted the flowers he brought, carefully laying the bouquet on your nightstand, right next to the vase where Jimin’s flowers lay. 

When you did wake up, you had your own chance to thank Taehyung for finding you and bringing you to safety, along with sponsoring your stay in the hospital. 

He waved away your thanks, claiming that he was simply glad that you had turned to Jimin for assistance so that they were able to know about it.

“You know we’ll always be there for you, right (Y/N)?”

Always.

“Just say the word and we’ll come running.”

We love you.

His heart ached with the weight of the words he couldn’t say.

But you smiled in appreciation and he melted, as it was the smile they had longed to see for so long. The one that you usually reserved for your mother or Mana, the one that they had only gotten glimpses of in the time that they had known you.

He wouldn’t let you do anything for yourself the entire time, claiming you needed to rest up and heal as soon as possible. You reluctantly agreed, enjoying an unusually lazy day.

He played music for you, and soon enough the two of you were lost in a passionate conversation about your favorite artists. Funnily enough, there were several of them who you shared interest in.

Before Taehyung returned home for the day, he insisted on covering you with the blanket as well, tucking it up to your neck and pressing it in at the sides.

Your eyes were closed out of embarrassment as his form hung over yours. 

He fought the urge to bend down and kiss your forehead, for he still feared that he could frighten you away.

Instead, he reached up and switched off the light directly above your bed. With an ambiguous smile, he left, closing the door behind him.

——————————————————————

On the third day, you were visited by Jungkook.

The atmosphere was a little awkward at first, considering how soft-spoken the freshman tended to be around you.

When you tried shifting the conversation by asking him about his personal interests and passions, however, his eyes lit up.

Jungkook demonstrated several different types of punches for you in the room, even helping you weakly set up your form with your still healing hands. 

You learned much more about boxing forms and gaming techniques that day than you could ever remember, but you did leave with plans to have private self-defense lessons with Jungkook after you’d finished healing.

At some point during his visit, you had drifted off and by the time you woke up again, Jungkook was already gone. 

You panicked slightly, worried that he’d be upset and think that you wanted him to leave. As you turned to your phone, however, you noticed a folded piece of paper resting on top of the back of it.

When you opened the paper, you saw a beautiful pen-and-ink sketch of you, lying in your hospital bed and napping. 

Jungkook had somehow taken your messy, disheveled state and turned it into something that evoked a tender feeling within you.

You grinned down at the paper, amazed by his talent. Was this how he saw you? As this...ephemeral, peaceful being?

You gently stood the paper up so that it rested between the two vases that housed Jimin and Taehyung’s flowers, right next to Mana’s card.

The afternoon soon gave way to evening, then evening to night.

——————————————————————

On the fourth day, Seokjin saved you from the monotony of bland, hospital food by bringing you home cooked meals. 

The mere smell of the dishes had your mouth watering. 

He refused to let you do anything yourself, much like Taehyung had the other day. But unlike Taehyung, Jin went so far as to feed you himself.

It was embarrassing, but no matter how much you protested, he wouldn’t let up.

He sat in the chair your mother usually preoccupied and held the utensils out to you, neatly making sure you finished your meals.

At one point, he pretended the food was an airplane and you playfully slapped his arm, resulting in him dissolving into a surprising windshield-wiper-like laugh. 

Jin spent the rest of the day with you, telling you awful jokes that under normal circumstances, you wouldn’t have found that funny. 

His companionship was greatly appreciated, however, and you found that you grew surprisingly fond of his laugh.

Before Jin left for the evening, he gently lifted your hand and placed it in his lap, then revealed another bag he’d brought on his visit.

To your surprise, he clipped a small (silver/gold/rose gold) bracelet around your wrist. The ornament carried two charms: one of a well-detailed moon, the other a pair of angel wings.

You rushed to have him take the bracelet off, hesitant to accept such a valuable gift. 

Yet the look in his eyes pierced right through you, his previous joy still present and glimmering but hidden beneath the depths of something more sinister.

You leaned against your pillows as Jin gently lifted the back of your hand to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to it, just like he had the first night you met. 

“The moment I saw it, I thought of you.” He smiled, affectionately rubbing his thumb over your wrist. “Keep it. For me?”

It wasn’t a request.

——————————————————————

On the fifth day, you were visited by Hoseok and Yoongi.

You were slightly surprised at the fact that they had come together, as their outer attitudes seemed to be opposites, but you found that they complemented each other very well. 

They were extremely considerate of you, allowing you to do things for yourself but offering their assistance should you need it. 

Hoseok spent the day cheering you up by performing routines for you in the little space the room provided.

As strict as he was infamous for being, Hoseok clearly knew his craft. You were mesmerized by his movements and insisted on clapping for each of his performances, your hand healing quite nicely now.

Yoongi delighted you with tales of his rambunctious actions in high school, and some of the best well-kept faculty secrets.

There were several things you learned about Ms. Divii and Mrs. Hargrove that day that you would have been perfectly happy not knowing for the rest of your life, but you giggled and gossiped all the same.

It appeared as though the elder Kim brothers had a similar thought process, as Hoseok and Yoongi each gifted you (silver/gold/rose gold) jewelry similar to what you had received the day prior.

Hoseok looked as though we was going to cry when you went to turn down his gift.

One sharp look from Yoongi later, you closed your mouth, smiled, and expressed your thanks.

Hoseok fondly clipped the necklace onto you, his heart performing somersaults as you leaned into his embrace. 

He silently gulped, overcome by the sudden desire to press his lips to your neck. 

When he made eye contact with Yoongi over your shoulder, his face reddened slightly as the elder smirked at him.

He reigned in the perceptible want in his eyes and leaned back, flashing you his signature smile. “There you are, angel. Pretty as a picture.”

You lowered your head to hide your flush. “You guys really don’t have to bring me these gifts,” you murmured lightly. 

“With a visage as perfect as yours, we simply can’t help ourselves.” Yoongi stated in reply, lifting your ring finger to slide a band onto it. 

How unfortunate it was that it was the right hand instead of the left.

He was able to hide his disappointment from you, but not from Hoseok. 

Nevertheless, there would surely be an opportunity in the near future.

How else would all of those worthless people know that you belonged to them?

——————————————————————

On the sixth day, Namjoon limped his way into your hospital room, a grimace on his face. 

You greeted him with a warm smile that quickly shifted into a worried expression. “Oh goodness, are you alright?”

Namjoon nodded, taking the seat next to your bed. “I injured my leg, it’s nothing serious. I should be perfectly alright soon.”

Seokjin had been kind enough to heal most of his limbs, the elder worried about your reaction to seeing him in such a state. 

They purposefully made him wait in agonizing pain for nearly a week, however, to rub the punishment in, before clearing him to go visit you. 

It seemed as though the student body president had lost his usual self-assured, constantly amused atmosphere. He was strangely quiet, and his body language was similar to that of a man who’d been beaten into submission. 

That was far from the Kim Namjoon you knew.

For several moments, the two of you sat in awkward silence.

The two of you hadn’t been on the best of terms the last time you spoke. Just thinking back to that moment when he’d felt like he was on top of the world, completely in control, made him cringe. 

Then, you turned and smiled at him. “You know, if you really need to, you could always join me as a patient. It’d definitely make the days less boring.”

Namjoon knew you knew there was a change in his attitude, and rather than lording that over him, you simply welcomed him as you usually did.

“I’m so sorry, (Y/N).” The words blurt out before he could stop them.

You shook your head, slightly amused. “What’s with you and Jimin these days? You don’t need to apologize for saving me. Unless you want to, and, well, that’s a completely separate manner--”

“No!” Namjoon lifted his hands up and waved them around. “I just-"

You smiled, entertained by the frantic side of the normally suave, composed teen. “Think nothing of it, Namjoon. You have nothing you need to apologize to me for.”

Your expression darkened slightly as you continued. “If anything, I should apologize for not trusting you all more.”

Namjoon’s lips quivered, desperately wanting to form a victorious smirk, but he settled for an understanding smile.

In the end, he’d been right.

As usual.

“Who remains close to you, who you decide to trust, that’s completely your decision. You should never have to apologize for it.” Namjoon said.

You smiled in acknowledgement, then furrowed your brows in confusion when Namjoon started to dig around in his bag.

“I heard we were gift giving this week.” He pulled out a beautiful, leather bound journal and fountain pen and carefully placed the items on your lap. 

“This is absolutely gorgeous. How did you know I like writing?” You smiled. 

Of course he knew. He knew everything about you.

“I didn’t,” he replied, shrugging with a small smile. “I like to write in journals as a form of catharsis, and thought you might want to try.”

“Thank you so much.” You lifted an arm up and gestured for a one armed hug, one that Namjoon happily accepted.

Clutching the journal to your chest, you gathered the courage to ask him the question that had been running around in your head the past week.

“Namjoon?”

“Yes?”

“How did you guys find me in time?”

The elder clenched his jaw and shifted his gaze aside as if he couldn’t beat to direct his apparent anger and frustration toward you. 

“We heard from Jimin that Aemilia took you and interrogated the police commissioner about any of our private guard’s movements. He fessed and told us that Aemilia told him that I texted her, claiming that there was another soul in need of punishment.” 

Namjoon grit his teeth, vexation rolling off of him in waves as he practically hissed out his words. “He authorized members of our private force to move under her order in order to subdue you.”

Recounting the ridiculous lie that the redhead told her father, and the father’s idiotic tendency to believe her, made his blood hot.

“After we heard that, we rushed to all the places in the forest that the Augustus men might have taken you. Thankfully, we got to Lorne’s Ledge in time and Jimin was able to save you before you could fall off the edge.”

“Are you sure?” You said. “I could have sworn I stepped off...I thought I was a goner.”

Namjoon shook his head. “We definitely got there in time to save you. You sustained several head injuries, so I’d understand if you didn’t see Jimin or blacked out.”

You bit the inside of your cheek, pondering his response for several moments before nodding at his answer. 

There was no way you would ever be able to forget what happened that night.

You knew for a fact that your feet had left the ledge. 

But he was right, you did take several nasty hits from Byun and Lee.

You wanted to keep asking him questions, but the pained, forced look in his eye made you pause on that front.

Perhaps that projection you saw of your mother had actually been Jimin.

You wrung your hands together. 

“What matters now is that you’re safe and sound.” Namjoon gently placed his hand atop yours and gave it a supporting squeeze. “All you need to focus on is getting better. We definitely won’t let them get away with this.”

You nodded again, smiling slightly at Namjoon in thanks for his concern.

——————————————————————

Halfway across town, Aemilia Augustus paced around in her room, practically biting off her perfectly manicured nails in worry.

It had been seven days. 

Seven days of nothing.

Not a single word had come in from Byun or Lee.

When she arrived at school that first day and heard everyone talking about your absence, she felt pure and utter bliss. 

There was no joy like the joy she felt in that moment.

Such euphoria simply couldn’t be replaced.

The only moments that could possibly top it were her future engagement with Kim Namjoon, or the day she would take over her family business.

Because so many days went by without a single peep at your face, she thought her plan was working. 

She felt on top of the world.

But Byun and Lee were two of the most promising soldiers on the squad. There was no reason as to why they were taking so long to get back to her to confirm your measly little death.

As a result, she was starting to panic.

Of course, she had an emergency plan. 

She had no need for it, as there was no way her plan could go wrong, but she always had to be prepared, after all.

Just as she was about to take deep breaths to calm herself down, she jumped at the sound of pounding footsteps and yelps drifting into her room from downstairs.

She heard the annoying cry of her mother and father, and then the sound of several people talking.

A grim chill fell over her.

Unexpectedly, her plan had gone horribly, horribly wrong.

There wasn’t much time left now, as she could hear the footsteps get closer and closer.

To hell with her parents--their capture was inevitable.

Aemilia Augustus would not be captured like a criminal, not as long as she was alive and well.

Aemilia padded over to her bedroom door, shutting it closed as softly as possible and smacking the lights off.

She dove into her walk-in closet and squeezed herself as tightly as possible into a corner, a rack of evening gowns and day dresses covering her.

Every couple of minutes, a door would slam open and she listened, holding a hand over her mouth as the pounding feet searched every room on her floor.

It didn’t take them long to arrive at her room, and she shook as she heard them throw things around.

A rectangle of light shone into the room as someone opened the closet door and Aemilia stilled as though she were encased in ice.

It was silent for a long, dreadful moment. The officer turned their head this way and that, walking into the room and turning on the light to search.

From where Aemilia was hidden, there was no way they would be able to find her. She thanked Wylynne that she hadn’t taken up on her mother’s offer to hire a maid to clean her closet.

The officer turned away to leave and Aemilia cheered in her heart.

After the guards left the premises, she would collect as many valuables as possible from the house and run off to her family’s private home in another part of town. From there, she would plan what to do next.

Her plan wasn’t perfect, but she would be able to get away with it.

Or at least, she thought she would.

Just as the officer was about to close the door, a strong, invisible force yanked Aemilia out from her hiding spot and she came crashing down noisily from behind the evening gowns, taking a few with her.

The officer immediately turned around, beckoning his partner to get her. 

She hurriedly gripped a platform heel and attempted to plunge it in the man’s eye, but he caught her wrist and painfully twisted her arm behind her back.

The redhead screeched in fury and pain. His partner soon joined him, and they dragged her out into her room, each officer tightly holding on to one of her arms.

“What are you doing? Unhand me this instant!” She shrieked, writhing around in an attempt to escape. “Have you forgotten who you take orders from?!”

“No, but it seems as though you have.” 

She paused at the sound of that familiar voice.

Her beloved casually strode into the room in all of his glory, his head held high, that ever present cocky, amused smile that she loved so much on his face.

“Namjoon.” She whimpered. “Namjoon, they’re hurting me.”

The student body president kneeled down in front of her and gently took her chin in his hands.

Her eyes filled with tears and she stuck out her bottom lip, waiting for Namjoon to tell the men to let her go. They better anticipate the earful they were about to receive. How dare they treat their future queen this way?

Namjoon lovingly stroked her cheek with his thumb, wiping away her tear. She nuzzled her cheek into his hand, looking up at him with a pitiful gaze. He smiled at her.

Surely he would save her.

Aemilia closed her eyes, suppressing a victorious smile as she felt Namjoon pull his hand away from her face.

But rather than the sound of him barking orders, she was met with the sound of a harsh slap.

Her eyes flew open in shock.

Her face stung.

“Nam..joon...?” She whispered, stupefied.

The senior was sneering down at her, pulling a handkerchief out the square pocket of his jacket and wiping his hand on it.

“What disgusting thoughts you have,” the man spat, dropping the handkerchief in another subordinate’s hand. 

“Burn that.” He commanded.

Aemilia simply stared up at him in disbelief. 

Had he...hit her?

“Namjoon, why are you doing this?” Her voice trembled. “You’d never hit me, you’re my...we’re-”

“Nothing.” Namjoon interrupted with a disinterested gaze. “I am not your anything. I’ve never given you any inclination that could lead you to assume that I loved you, or liked you, or cared for you in the slightest.”

Aemilia dropped to her knees in incredulity. 

“That’s not true! You cared for me, I know you did! Ever since that (h/c) haired bitch appeared, you’ve turned away from me!” She screeched, her shrill voice piercing their ears. “I should’ve gotten rid of her sooner!”

As soon as the words left her mouth, all the air in Aemilia’s lungs disappeared. She heaved her chest, trying to breath, but found herself unable to.

He squatted down to face her.

“Let’s get one thing absolutely clear.” Namjoon spoke in a frighteningly low tone. “I never cared for you. You were nothing more than a useful little pawn in my game. A pawn who somehow tricked herself into believing she could become a queen.”

Her face turned redder and redder from anger, embarrassment, and the lack of oxygen.

“(Y/N) is more of a queen than you could ever be,” Namjoon stated, smiling at the memory of you sitting up in your hospital bed, grinning at him, the sun forming a halo behind your head. “She’s an angel. Our precious everything.”

He turned his gaze back to the creature before him. “She isn’t someone the likes of you can ever attempt to touch, much less harm or overthrow.”

Namjoon straightened, moving to walk towards the entrance to her room. “That’s my fault, I’m afraid. After all, I wasn’t able to properly regulate my inferiors.”

Black dots swam at the edge of Aemilia’s vision. She kept her eyes locked on Namjoon, still praying that this was all a prank or a joke, and that he would comfort her by sweeping her up into his arms.

“You truly have no idea what’s going to happen to you, do you?” He chuckled with a mirthless smile. “Don’t worry. We’ll fix that soon enough.”

Finally, her body gave in and shut down from the lack of oxygen. The redhead flopped over on her side, Namjoon’s cruel glare burned into the backs of her eyes.

——————————————————————

On the morning of the seventh day, you took advantage of your solitude by pondering the events of this week and the rather complicated emotions that came with them. 

Despite their reputation and despite your fears, you had grown closer to the Kims over the past month. 

They never threatened or harmed you or the people you cared about. They had welcomed you into their lives with open arms. 

You had kept them at an arms length in an effort to protect yourself and your loved ones. But what had distancing yourself from them gained you?

Still, there was no way your method could be wrong. It was your livelihood, your path to survival in Ichabod. 

There were rules here, rules that couldn’t be broken. 

Yet the majority of those rules had been broken the moment you invited Jimin to sit with you at lunch.

Was it even possible that an alternative path to salvation freedom existed?

Had the Kims truly provided another way? 

Your mother went around the room collecting and packing up your things for you as Mana helped you change in the bathroom, making sure to be careful of your still-healing shoulder.

When they left to fetch your discharge papers, you sat at the edge of the hospital bed and deliberated what could potentially be one of the most important decisions of your life.——————————————————————

i am so, so, so sorry for taking longer than usual to post! college and midterm season caught up with me--i’ll try not to let assignments interfere with my writing schedule in the future ;-;-; thank you so much for sticking with me through the wait! the long awaited day has finally come! revenge has never been so sweet hehe. also, the way that i have no idea how to write fight scenes--pfft. i hope you all enjoy the chapter <33

~taglist~

@melaninkpops @loserwithapen @hellaspookystudent @ecillartto @omgsuperstarg @ace-angel-judas @jjamsbangtan @lovinggalaxies @lovesick-heart0 @ksxmpoison @girlmeetsliv3 @thedarkwinterrose @purpuravm @oneweirdbean @hopelessfountainjoonie @mazmaz30 @enigmaticlove-03 @uppiespuppy @queenceline22 @kokofikats @taeyohonic @creatorspalace @supertweetycherry @anachikartadze @itsfeliciatime 

[undermounts]

Bound―Chapter 3: Common Ground

Summary: While traveling to Rome, Diana learns about Gaius’s life alone in Europe and is forced to confront the weight of her decisions.

AO3 | Masterlist

Pairing: Gaius Augustine/Diana Leigh (BB MC)

                           Somewhere in Northern Italy, 2042

The following evening, Diana sat with her arms folded across her chest, nestled in her oversized coat as she slouched in her seat, feet propped up on the seat across from her as the sparsely populated train car gently swayed from side to side. Gaius sat opposite her, looking perfectly normal as he gazed out at the Italian countryside that passed through the window in a dark blur. Their weapons sat in a nondescript black sports bag, one typically used for baseball bats, beneath his seat.

It was still bizarre, seeing Gaius in the modern world. Diana realized that most of her memories of Gaius were not her own but those that she had gathered as the Bloodkeeper and all of those visions had taken place long before her time. Whatever personal memories she had of Gaius usually involved fighting for her life, so there was never time to note just how out of place he was.

“Stop that,” he huffed, not turning away from the window.

“Stop what?”

“Staring.” Gaius rolled his eyes, directing his attention to her at last, gaze cool. “Weren’t you the one who said it was rude?”

Diana frowned, shifting in her seat. “Sorry. It’s just… weird. Seeing you here.”

“Perhaps you should have considered that before proposing I come along with you,” Gaius scowled, turning back to the window, slouching down in his seat and folding his arms. If Diana didn’t know better, she would have assumed he was pouting.

“No, that’s not what I meant,” she amended, brow furrowing as she tried to find the words to explain it properly. “I meant that it’s weird to see you―”

“In pants?” Gaius supplied, eyebrow lifting.

“...Essentially, yeah.” Diana shrugged, pursing her lips and glancing around. Although no one seemed to be paying them even the slightest bit of attention, she lowered her voice, so that only he could hear. “Gaius, so many of my memories of you are the ones I saw in fragments. Decades before I was even born.”

“Is this your way of calling me old, Diana?” His tone was flat, but Diana noticed the way his lip quirked ever so slightly. He was teasing her.

“You said it, not me,” she said innocently, before shaking her head, serious once more. “But you know what I mean.”

He hummed. “I suppose I do. But if I’ve learned anything over the course of my arduous existence, it is how to adapt to the changing times. Just like Kamilah and your Adrian. Just as you will continue to do.”

Just like Kamilah and your Adrian.

Diana winced but didn’t bother to correct him.

She directed her gaze to the window, but instead of a moonlit countryside, she only saw shadows and her own reflection.

“What’s it like?” Diana asked, setting her feet on the floor and sliding into the seat next to her so that she sat directly in front of Gaius, nestled against the wall of the train. “Rome?”

“Never been?” Gaius faced her fully now, their knees just barely touching.

“No,” Diana sighed wistfully. “I thought one of the pros of being a vampire was having an eternity to do whatever you want, but I’ve never had the time. It seems that I only get to travel when I’m on some sort of mission or running for my life.”

There it was again, that nearly imperceptible quirk of his lips. Good to know he could appreciate the irony as well.

“I have… fond memories of Rome,” Gaius admitted. “I spent quite a bit of time there in the early years after I was Turned. I watched it become an empire, watched it fall. I went back a while ago; a lot has changed, but you would be surprised how much is still the same. There is a lot of supernatural activity there―vampires, werewolves, and the like.”

“Wouldn’t it be smarter to go away from hotspots like that?”

“That logic is the exact reason why we are going. If someone is searching for you, say the Daughters of Rheya, they should expect you to steer clear of populated areas. As long as you conceal yourself,” Gaius said with a very pointed look, “it should be a perfect place to lie low until you figure out where we’re going next. And there should be plenty of activity for me to keep tabs on.”

“What, like, vampire attacks on humans? Werewolf and vampire territory wars?”

Gaius scoffed, rolling his eyes. “No. Well, occasionally, that first part. But all sorts of creatures, minor but still troublesome, occupy the city. I try to visit every few years to make sure they don’t get out of hand.”

Diana nodded to herself, tucking this information aside. Rome was heavily populated with vampires, werewolves, and other supernatural beings. Gaius made rounds across Europe, single-handedly watching over an entire continent. She supposed that after nearly twenty-five years of seeing the impossible, none of this should have surprised her. And yet, she couldn’t help but feel as if there was so much she didn’t know, so much of the world she had neglected to see while she was content in New York. Diana frowned; there was one more thing…

“Were you alone this whole time?” Diana asked. She couldn’t imagine wandering around for twenty years, much less on her own.

Gaius simply said, “Yes.”

Her frown deepened. “Didn’t you ever get lonely?”

He fixed her with an odd look as if he either didn’t understand how the question was relevant or why she cared to ask. “There was not a second that went by that I didn’t feel alone, Diana. But what can I do? There was no one I could ask to accompany me, no one I would have asked to do so.”

“Why?” Diana shook her head. “There weren’t any other vampires that wanted to join you?

Gaius pursed his lips as if something about what she suggested was distasteful. “People want stability, humans and vampires alike. They want safety. Most would not consider traveling around Europe in search of murderous beasts to provide either of those things.”

“Then couldn’t you have done something else? Something where you didn’t have to be alone all of the time?” Diana asked. When she had sentenced him to live, she had not given him specific instructions on how to do so. She hadn’t even allowed him to live on the condition that he atone but merely given him the chance to do so.

Gaius’s gaze suddenly went flat, his face a stoic mask. When he spoke, his voice was carefully neutral, devoid of emotion. “With or without Rheya, I am a killer. Do not be mistaken. At least now, I can try to kill the right monsters this time, if it will provide protection to those who need it along the way. I would not subject anyone else to that sort of life with me. So if loneliness is part of the price I must pay in order to atone, then so be it.”

A chill ran down her spine at that. While his expression, seemingly impartial and aloof, reminded her so much of the Gaius of the past, his words were a far cry from who he used to be. It was this difference, more than anything, that unnerved her the most. Perhaps removing Rheya’s influence on him had broken Gaius more than she had thought.

Despite everything, she couldn’t help but feel some compassion for the man across from her.  It occurred to her briefly that this could have been part of some scheme, that he was playing up his guilt to deceive her. But for what? The threats to both humans and vampires had gone, and if it came down to a fight, Diana knew how to win. Nevertheless, she could feel his remorse as clear if it were her own. Without even touching his mind, she could sense that he was telling the truth.

“You’re more than just a killer, Gaius,” she said softly, studying his countenance. “Fighting might be what you are good at, but it’s not the only thing you have to do. I think… I think you owe it to yourself to find out what else is out there for you.”

Gaius stared at her, brows drawn together and lips pulled down into a frown. He shook his head and Diana realized that this was the most honest they had ever been for each other. Willingly, at least.

“I don’t understand you,” Gaius confessed after a long moment had passed. “You gave me a second chance on the basis that I would have the chance to atone. That rather than face death, I would face the truth of what I have done. And now that I have, you seem uncomfortable with the notion of it.” He leaned forward, gaze intense and searching, although Diana noticed that she found nothing menacing about this gesture as might have before. “Tell me, Diana. You know who I am and what I have done. You set me off to do some good in the world. Do you not think me deserving of punishment along the way?”

Diana opened her mouth to respond, but paused, realizing she didn’t know what to say to that. There had been times, even within the last twenty years when she had seen some of the lasting effects of Gaius’s misguided ambition, and in her anger, had momentarily wished she had made him suffer just a little bit more.

“I don’t know,” she breathed, surprised that her answer was more complicated than it should have been. Diana sighed and set her forehead against the window, watching the lights of a nearby station grow steadily closer. “Truthfully, sometimes I think I should have punished you somehow. But there’s another part of me that thinks you have already suffered enough.”

When she glanced over at him once more, Gaius was no longer looking at her, but at some distant point inside the train, although she could tell that he wasn’t really seeing. His eyes were distant, lost to some memory she was not privy to.

Diana closed her eyes, suddenly exhausted, mentally and physically. Why did every conversation with Gaius have to be so… taxing? Beyond that, it had been a while since she last fed. Even if she didn’t need blood as often as the average vampire, it still helped keep up her strength, and she didn’t think it would be exactly appropriate to pull out one of her blood packs in public.

“When was the last time you fed?” Gaius murmured and Diana opened her eyes with a start, slightly unnerved that she had just been wondering the same thing.

“I had a blood pack on Adrian’s plane about a day ago,” she shrugged.

“So you do still need it. Blood,” Gaius observed, giving her a look of appraisal. “Rheya fed regularly with me and Xeno, but in your memory, she made it sound as if she only needed it to gain power.”

“I can go without it, but it doesn’t exactly feel great.”

“Hmm.” Gaius hummed, eyes roaming to the sparkling lights visible through the window. “I recognize this town. When the train stops, we’ll have about an hour to find something. Does that work for you?”

Diana licked her lips, running her tongue along the sharp points of her incisors. “Perfect.”

***

The moment they were a safe distance away from the train station, Diana unshouldered her pack and unzipped it, searching for a blood pack when she felt a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

“Not that,” Gaius said, wrinkling his nose in distaste. “I know where we can find something better.”

They were stopped in a rural farming town, surrounded by pastures and rolling hills. Diana followed Gaius down a nondescript country road, their path lit only by the moon overhead. She scrunched up her nose; mixed in with the scent of fresh grass and dew was the unpleasant tang of fertilizer.

“Where are we going?” Diana asked, glancing around. All of the houses were behind them; only farms lay ahead.

Gaius shifted the sports bag that held their swords from his shoulder to hang across his back and shrugged. “You’ll see.”

Before long, Gaius suddenly turned off the road and heaved himself over an old wooden fence, landing in the field on the other side. Hesitantly, Diana followed, taking Gaius’s offered hand as she climbed over the post, although she was quick to drop it once she landed, mud squelching under her boots.

“Gaius, what―”

“Patience,” he murmured, leading her away from the road and up a hill, seeming to have no trouble with the muddy ground that was sucking Diana’s feet down. Diana was relieved when the ground became more solidified near the top of the hill, although her spirits quickly dropped when she heard it. The reason they were here.

“Oh no, you are not serious.”

“It’s better than those sacks of blood,” Gaius quipped, and although she couldn’t see him clearly in the dark, she had a feeling he was rolling his eyes at her. Diana sighed as he continued on to the other side of the hill where familiar shapes roamed.

Cows.

Diana swore but followed anyway. Fresh blood, no matter where it came from, had to be better than the packs.

“You do this often?” she huffed as they stopped beside one of the hulking animals. It seemed to pay them no mind, nonchalantly grazing, its tail swishing in the breeze.

“It’s not often that I find random humans that are willing to let me feed on them, especially when I’m in the middle of nowhere,” Gaius shrugged, reaching out and trailing his hand along the cow’s wide neck.

Despite her misgivings, Diana felt her fangs dig into her bottom lip, ears immediately picking up the animal’s powerful heartbeat, the blood rushing through its veins. Stepping forward and resting her hand against the cow’s flank, she looked to Gaius. “Will it… mind?”

Gaius scoffed. “If you’re asking me if the cow consents, you don’t need to worry. We’re barely more than pests to it. She’ll just be tired afterward, that’s all.”

Diana swallowed, petting the cow’s hide as if she could apologize for what they were about to do. “If you say so,” she mumbled, and then sank her fangs into its neck. On the other side, Gaius did the same, the cow merely grunting in surprise. Diana was pleased to find that its blood tasted pretty much the same as a human’s aside for the slightly bitter taste of dirt from its hide. She drank deeply, feeling strength return to her bones, the familiar tingle of her power once again awakening beneath her skin.

A minute or so later, she pulled back with a gasp, hunger thoroughly sated. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she stepped back unsteadily, nearly overwhelmed with how refreshed she felt as she pricked her finger and sealed the puncture wounds she had left.

“Better?” Gaius was standing beside her, watching her curiously. She hadn’t noticed when he had finished feeding or when he had come so close.

“Yeah,” she breathed, running a self-conscious hand through her hair before settling her hands on her hips. “That was…”

“Filling?” he supplied.

“Humbling.”

Gaius smirked, exhaling a small huff through his nose. Diana supposed it was the closest she could possibly come to ever seeing him laugh.

Before she could truly come to appreciate this odd moment of camaraderie, simple as it was, Gaius’s face fell, lips tightening into a grim line. He swung the long black sports bag over his shoulder and withdrew his gladius, its sharp edge glinting in the moonlight.

“Gaius, what―” Diana started as she turned around, following his gaze. Her mouth dropped open, heart seizing in her chest. “What the hell is that?”

Barely discernible against the dark sky was a large black figure, vaguely shaped into the form of a dog. Tendrils of night wicked off its edges, as if it were made from shadow and darkness itself. Diana would have thought what she was seeing was merely a trick of the light, her mind simply seeing danger where there was none, if it hadn’t been for its eyes . White, glowing orbs burned at the center of the darkness like twin flames of heavenly fire. And they were staring right at her.

Diana took a cautious step back, snatching the bag from Gaius and retrieving her own sword. “Gaius?”

“It’s a Black Shuck,” he said quietly, deathly still and eyes trained on the dog as it remained approximately twenty feet away, unmoving. He held his sword out in front of them with one hand, the other stretched out before her, the gesture almost protective.

“Okay,” Diana nodded, glancing once more at the figure. “But what is it?”

“It’s a sort of spectral hound,” Gaius supplied as he studied the dog, expression focused. Calculating. “Shucks are said to be malicious omens of death, although there are many accounts of them being companionable creatures, especially to maidens and lost travelers. Some are more helpful than threatening. But they’re native to East Anglia… This one is either lost, or it’s here for a reason.”

“So what kind of Shuck is this?” she breathed. “The good or the bad?”

“That remains to be seen.”

“Wonderful,” Diana said, her voice flat as she gave in to her instincts, readjusting her grip on her sword. She willed her heartbeat to slow, settling into that killing calm. She’d fought plenty of monsters before and come out on top. She would do it again if she had to. She was one of the most powerful beings to ever walk the earth. She would not die in some random pasture because of some dog.

Gaius’s concentration broke and he glanced over at Diana, as if sensing the change in her demeanor. If Diana had been paying attention, she would have seen the range of expressions that flurried across his countenance. Surprise, confusion, recognition, fear, and concern. It passed like a shadow, leaving only traces behind as Gaius focused once again on the creature before them.

He took a step back, the arm he extended before Diana encouraging her to do the same. “Slowly, now, Diana. If we can leave without a fight, no one has to get hurt―”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the Black Shuck’s gaze shifted from Diana to Gaius, and it snarled, crouching down as if ready to attack. Diana cast her senses out but could find no trace of the Black Shuck’s presence. There was no power, no energy, no mind or life force for her to control.

“Gaius,” she murmured, voice eerily calm. “I don’t think we’re getting out of here without a fight.”

Diana let out a long breath and held her sword out before her, sensing all of the life forms around her, the cows grazing nearby, the creatures that burrowed into the ground beneath her, and Gaius, a pillar of strength and stability beside her. She heard the crunch of hard-packed earth underfoot and felt the air shift, the tension snap, as the Black Shuck snarled and lunged.

Diana shifted her stance, digging her feet into the ground as she brought her sword up in preparation for a devastating blow when she was suddenly thrust to the side. She stumbled, arm falling to the side, sword missing its target as the Shuck rushed by her in a dark blur and launched itself at Gaius.

Diana barely turned in time to see Gaius toss his blade to the side and throw his arms up, burrowing his hands into the shadowy, shifting fur of the hound. As the Shuck barreled into him, Gaius spun with it, hurling both himself and the beast away from Diana in a tangle of shadow, fangs, and claws.

“Gaius!” Diana shouted, snatching his gladius from where it had fallen in the tall grass. What the hell was he doing? She ran down the hill where Gaius and the Black Shuck had tumbled away.

“Diana, don’t!” Gaius’s voice came from amidst the shadows and she felt a wave of his presence wash over her, a manifestation of his insistence. “It’s trying to protect you.”

Diana didn’t have time to process what that meant, how it was possible that Gaius had exerted some sort of psychic will over her as she raced towards the fight, two vicious shadows in the night. As soon as she was within a few feet of Gaius and Black Shuck, she paused, locating Gaius in the fray. He was bloodied and flagging. That creature never should have gotten a single blow on him, unless Gaius let it.

Diana faltered. Gaius was letting the fight go on. She watched for a moment, noting how he was pulling his punches, doing just enough to project himself and fend off the hound, but careful not to actually inflict serious harm. But why?

The Shuck lashed out, gnashing its teeth mere inches from Gaius’s neck and Diana snapped out of her thoughts. She grit her teeth and closed her eyes. If Gaius wasn’t going to end this, she would. Diana reached out with her power and found Gaius’s presence. She could sense his pounding heartbeat, the blood rushing in his veins. She used this, anchoring her power to his body, and yanked.

Gaius came tumbling away, crashing to the ground at her feet with a grunt. His eyes widened as he pushed himself to his elbows, reaching out towards Diana. “No!”

She ignored him, calmly striding towards the Black Shuck, which now faced her, silver eyes flaring. It did not waver, staring her down as she approached. Diana gripped the swords in her hands, both hers and Gaius’s as she towered over the shadow beast, blood singing with the anticipation of another threat neutralized. The Black Shuck snarled once, then backed away, whimpering.

Something inside of Diana delighted in the sound and snarled, Good.

She raised both of the swords above the creature, prepared to put the dark dog down.

“Diana!”

She glanced over her shoulder, prepared to tell Gaius to just be quiet―

And then she wasn’t in her body. She was on the ground, watching herself from behind, a hand that wasn’t hers outstretched before her. Diana saw herself through Gaius’s eyes, saw her rigid posture, locked in an executioner’s stance, two swords of different makes and eras gleaming silver in the moonlight. She saw her own face, blank and perfectly impassive, dark eyes staring back at her. There was no rage, no fear. Only detached indifference.

Diana came back to her body with a gasp, legs weak beneath her. She once again saw Gaius over her shoulder, his expression alarmed, as if he had sensed her mind merge with his too. Diana tore her gaze from his, once again facing the cowering shadow hound before her. All around her, she felt fear. From the Black Shuck, from Gaius, from herself.

She lowered the swords in her hands, breathing hard. The Black Shuck’s ghostly gaze met hers and she finally sensed its presence, sensed its will. This was not a malicious creature. She felt its intentions, its desire to help and protect.

It had come to protect her.

Before Diana could do anything, the Black Shuck disappeared, dissipating into shadows and wisps of darkness.

“Why?” she asked, her voice faraway in her own ears. “Why did it want to protect me from you?”

“It seems that even mythical dogs know what I have done. It must have thought I was a threat to you. Shucks tend to have a soft spot for wandering women,” Gaius huffed, but Diana had stopped paying attention.

Diana collapsed to her knees, blades falling to the ground, forgotten. She had been prepared to kill the Black Shuck in cold blood. Even before she had sensed its truth, it had backed down, unwilling to fight her. And Gaius had urged her not to get involved.

She had lost herself, given into warped instincts and the power in her veins. She had become… detached.

Diana frowned, eyes falling to the ground. Was this how it began? How power set her apart from everyone else? Not all at once, through pain and anger like it had for Rheya or Gaius, but slowly, as she gradually lost touch with the things that kept her grounded. As she gave pieces of herself away, bit by bit to the immense power at her disposal. Was this why she had started having those dreams about the artifacts? Why she had wanted to go alone to Europe? Why… why she and Adrian had grown apart?

You’re different, Gaius had said. He had known right away.

She heard grass crunch underfoot behind her and turned around, hands shaking in her lap.

“Come on, Bloodkeeper,” Gaius said softly as he stood over her, expression surprisingly tender as he extended his hand. “You’re okay. Let’s get back on that train.”

Diana closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to center herself. She would not lose herself. She had made the right decision before, had resisted the temptation to give in to power. She would do it again. Diana looked up at the night sky, the stars twinkling overhead, and nodded. She took his hand, gathering the fallen swords with the other. “Let’s go.”

Gently, Gaius took the blades from her grasp and set them back in the bag, slinging it across his back. They walked together, side by side, back to the train station, and Diana tried hard not to think about how for the first time in years, she was afraid.

                          Note: Check out the Black Shuck here.

Tagging: @bigmemesplz, @somin-yin, @bachelorettebound14, @mkamra2355

[cursedbcrn-a]

—    BASICS.

▸     IS    YOUR    MUSE    TALL    /    SHORT    /    AVERAGE ? :  She’s a tiny baby, about 5′2″ but she also looks tinier bc literally everyone towers over her ▸   ARE    THEY    OKAY    WITH    THEIR    HEIGHT ? : she could stand to be a few inches taller but apparently she didn’t get those genes. ▸  WHAT’S    THEIR    HAIR    LIKE ? :  An auburn, reddish-brown shade, and her hair is naturally wavy and a bit frizzy, but she’s learned to tame it over the years. ▸ DO    THEY    SPEND    A    LOT    OF    TIME    ON    THEIR    HAIR     /    GROOMING ? : She does whatever she needs to do to make sure it’s not a frizzy mess tbh, and she tries to look presentable otherwise, but she doesn’t spend a Ton of time on it. ▸  DOES   YOUR   MUSE   CARE   ABOUT   THEIR   APPEARANCE   /   WHAT    OTHERS    THINK ? : She 100% cares about her appearance. To her, physical appearance / grooming is a sort of armor. It’s the first thing that people see about her, and because of her family name, that first impression is crucial. She understands that much of her family’s power comes from the fear that the name instills, and appearance plays a role in that.

—    PREFERENCES.

INDOORS    OR    OUTDOORS ? ▸ Indoors. RAIN    OR    SUNSHINE ? ▸  Sunshine. FOREST    OR    BEACH ? ▸ Forest but she wants a compromise for the bayou. PRECIOUS    METALS     OR    GEMS ? ▸ Metals. FLOWERS   OR   PERFUMES ? ▸  Flowers. PERSONALITY    OR    APPEARANCE ? ▸ Personality. BEING    ALONE    OR    BEING    IN    A    CROWD ? ▸ Definitely alone. ORDER   OR    ANARCHY ? ▸ Both have their time and place. PAINFUL    TRUTHS    OR     WHITE    LIES ? ▸ White lies, especially when it comes to her own feelings. SCIENCE   OR    MAGIC ? ▸ Magic. PEACE    OR    CONFLICT ? ▸ Peace but always be prepared for potential conflict NIGHT    OR    DAY ? ▸ Night. DUSK    OR    DAWN ? ▸ Dusk. WARMTH    OR    COLD ? ▸ Warmth. MANY   ACQUAINTANCES    OR    A    FEW   CLOSE   FRIENDS ? ▸  A few close friends. READING    OR    PLAYING    A    GAME ? ▸ Reading.

—    QUESTIONNAIRE.

▸      WHAT    ARE    SOME    OF    YOUR    MUSE’S    BAD    HABITS ? : Hope has a very difficult time letting people get close because she has lost so many people in her life. As a result, she keeps herself aloof and distant from her peers, and when overwhelmed or anxious, will retreat to these antisocial habits. Hope also considers herself to be a fluke, freak of nature, or otherwise not supposed to exist. As such, she holds very little self-worth and is always willing to be the one to lay everything on the line to save her people. ▸   HAS    YOUR    MUSE    LOST    ANYONE    CLOSE    TO    THEM ?      HOW    HAS    IT    AFFECTED THEM ? : Ha. Haha. Hahahahahahaha whew that’s funny. Hope lost her mother, father, and uncle all in the span of a couple weeks. Before that, she spent much of her childhood separated from either her father or her mother or both. As a result of these events, Hope’s mind associates love with loss and disappointment, and both intentionally and unintentionally holds herself back from connecting with others. This, coupled with her low self-worth, becomes twisted into a belief that everyone would be better off without her. Her parents and uncle would still be alive, people wouldn’t get hurt trying to protect her, and everyone would just generally be safer. ▸   WHAT    ARE    SOME    FOND    MEMORIES    YOUR    MUSE    HAS ? : Some of her fondest memories occur when she is 7 years old. This was the first time that she really got to meet her family in a significant way. Other than her mother, Hope spent a lot of her childhood without much of her family, most notably her father. In her head, she has this great image of a man who would do anything for her, as told to her in bedtime stories by Hayley. She knows that the name ‘Mikaelson’ means something, but she has a hard time connecting it to the man she’s seen in pictures. However, the reality puts her imagination to shame, and Hope will never forget the short months she was able to really meet her father. He paints with her, indulges her in her mischievous magic tricks, and wants to show her the city that will one day be hers. While the issues with the Hollow ultimately dampen things, Hope holds onto the memories she has with her family at that age, because it was the last time she really felt happy and complete. ▸   IS    IT    EASY    FOR    YOUR    MUSE    TO    KILL ? :  No, not particularly. While Hope has killed before, both humans and supernatural creatures alike, she doesn’t find the task easy or enjoyable. She understands it’s a necessary evil, especially given the world that she lives in, but it’s not a decision she makes lightly. However, the one exception is that Hope does not hesitate when someone she cares about is threatened, and will respond proportionately.  ▸   WHAT’S    IT    LIKE    WHEN    YOUR    MUSE    BREAKS    DOWN ? :   The magic in Hope’s blood means that she can be quite dangerous when she doesn’t have a handle over her emotions. As the firstborn Mikaelson witch in her generation, Hope’s magical potential is enormous and she has barely scratched the surface of it. For this reason, Hope does everything in her power in order to avoid this. She ( begrudgingly ) attends therapy, chooses to wolf out when she feels restless, and trains / does physical activity to tire herself out. However, when she does break down, it’s very much like a dam breaking. The magical consequences are more severe than they otherwise would have been, and usually will cause significant shaking or energy fluctuations. Usually that is enough to snap her out of it enough to clamp down on her emotions, but a grounding touch can also help her keep calm. ▸   IS    YOUR    MUSE    CAPABLE    OF  TRUSTING  SOMEONE WITH  THEIR LIFE ? : Despite the constant danger Hope seems to find herself in, she doesn’t necessarily have trouble trusting someone with her life. Part of that is the low self-worth, part of that is her inherent power and the knowledge that she is Quite Immortal, and part of it is that when it comes to the people she’s adopted into her circle, she trusts them implicitly. Because it is so difficult to get to know her in the first place, the ones that are able to slip past her defenses manage to stay pretty entrenched. Really, it’s more that she thinks they shouldn’t trust her with their lives. ▸  WHAT’S  YOUR  MUSE  LIKE  WHEN  THEY’RE  IN LOVE ? : Once she’s past all of the emotional barriers she’s erected around her heart, Hope in love is one of the rare times that she feels like she can act her age. It’s fleeting, especially given her not great track record, but Hope wants her epic love so much sometimes that it can be blinding. She becomes reckless, especially when it comes to that person being in danger. However, her perception of love is skewed, in part by the dysfunctional relationships of her family. Between love triangles, arranged marriages, and one night stands, Hope understands what love is and its power, but she doesn’t quite know what it should look like. However, considering that she’s only 17, she has plenty of time to distinguish between loving someone and being in love with someone.

Repost, don’t reblog please! TAGGED BY: @ephemeraltheory​ TAGGING:@twinvolatility​, @potionprince​, @leroiloup​, @fcmilysacrificed​, @herose​, @ofvalor​ ( mg ), anyone else who wants to!

[fuyumiworld]

The EℓyXiOn : Chapter 0 : The Prophecy

The prophecy :

When the skies and the grounds were one

through legends, through their twelve forces,

nurtured the tree of life.

An eye of red force created the evil, which

coveted the heart of tree of life and the heart

slowly grew dry.

With tend and engrace for heart of tree of life,

the legends hereby divide the tree in half and

hide each side.

Hence, time is over-turned and space turns a skew.

The twelve forces divide into two and create two

suns that look alike into two worlds that seem

alike.

The legends travel apart.

The legends shall now see the same sky but shall

stand on different grounds, shall stand on the

same ground, but shall see different skies.

The day the grounds be kept a single file before

one sky in two worlds that seem alike, the

legends will greet each other.

The day the red force is purified,

and the twelve forces reunite into one perfect

root,

a new world shall open up .

Chapter 1 : Part 1

at the begin there was nothing and everything, I was no one and everyone. But then I became two, me and her, two halves of the same whole. We were the same in every way, but then we became different, in theory we were becoming the perfect complement of the other. I was becoming good and full of light, while my other half was becoming evil and full of darkness. I became The Tree, The Light. She became The Storm, The Darkness. As the space around us filled with galaxies, stars and planets we began to search for a home and we both knew where we belonged, The earth second moon, it was prosperous and full of life but most importantly whoever ruled The EℓyXiOn -we called it- ruled the universe. Until one of us truly ruled the universe there would be both joy and sadness, good times and bad times. I want to make the universe a happy place to live, where nothing ever goes drastically wrong. I give power to the planet,protect it by the unrealistic power of my heart. that is why I fight The Storm to keep the peace. I created my twelve protectors to help me prevent the universe from falling into my sisters hands, Each protector has a power unique to them, they live in perfect harmony with each other. my sister created warriors of her own to fight my protectors,they are called the Eye of the red force.Every one of her warriors is skilled in all forms of combat and has powers intended to help fight or confuse their enemy.

But neverless light can't exist without darkness.

I never thought that vice-versa was possible.

Earth may have once had two moons, but one was destroyed

In a slow-motion collision that left our current lunar orb

lumpier on one side than the other, scientists say .

Source : National Geographic

Chapter 1 : Part 2

Twelve young Guardians live in an abandoned and calm area next to a lake amidst impressive scenery. The Tree of Life presents itself in the middle of the lake, soaring powerfully. It’s been 100 years since the group lives in the lake house, facing their destiny as guardians of the mysterious force.

Of course they had scrutinized their destiny, tried to find answers to their questions so they know why they had been chosen

The tree needed help when the evil force would try to attack anew and the group would try their best to protect the Tree.

There was no light without darkness. They had to exist side by side, balancing the world out.

The group never saw the evil of the red force in its true form, just knowing it through madness, sickness, catastrophes and darkness. The only thing they knew is that the evil needed a trigger to attack the light.

The trigger was a certain Prophecy.

When the light would became vulnerable and weak, when the

darkness came over the earth like a big shadow.

When the sun would lose against the moon.

When the day turned to night.

It happened two times since the group was determined. They fought against it, saved the nature and all living creatures nearby before thered force could spread out their darkness further. It had come from below, sneakily like a predator who was approaching its prey. The group knew that something was living under the earth, under the Tree of Life, but they didn’t dare to attack it. Their task was to defend, not to attack.The tree had told them to be careful and that now was not the right time to face the evil.

So they waited.

It had been over 10 years already and they got used to their new life and surroundings. They grew up together and time passed.

Kids became young adults.

some Friends became lovers

A group became a family.

A group of supernaturals

These powers were beyond humans abilities. Something supernatural. Something great.

Junmyeon was their leader, armed with the power of water.

Fuyumi was the oldest member and female capable of freezing everything.

Althea took care of everyone’s injuries, blessed with the power of healing.

Baekhyun could light up the darkest places, not only with his ability but also with his kind heart.

Bronte was able to control thunder and electricity, being energetic like a lightning.

Chanyeol was the tallest of them, being on fire – literally.

Kris ,The tallest after chanyeol,The only one with a pet,a Dragon-yes you heard me right- and he had the power of flight

Kyungsoo might look angry, but was very rooted to the soil, able to bend the earth.

Kai was the grown up kid with a contagious laugh, teleporting from place to place.

Noa ,Laasya older sister,Is graced with Telekinesis.The ability to bend and move object to her will but also ppl hearts with her cuteness.

Tao ,The quietest one,the most "Normal" one of the guardians and the least to use his power which is Time control

Laasya was their youngest, a bit too spoiled and sassy in the others’ opinions but loved, endued with the power of wind.

It was not easy at the beginning. They had to get used to each other, understanding the others’ thoughts, fears and worries. There were fights, quarrels and tears, but their bond got stronger and stronger with every passing obstacle. The fight against the evil force made them realize that they had to hold together as a group. Their powers were strong, but alone you were helpless against such a strong opponent.

They had responsibilities due to that powers and the Tree of Life armed them with it to defend the good. They had to learn to use it, to control it, to live with it. It wasn’t an easy commission, but they managed to train them as good as they could.

Five rules should remind them what they were and what task they had to fulfill:

1. Never use your power against humans or any EℓyXiOn citizen

2. Never show your powers to anyone except the group.

3. Don’t lie to the group, be honest.

4. Never fight alone. If your partner is disabled, join another team.

5. Be always reachable.

Those proved to be incredibly hard in the present time

A partner.

Everyone had one. A counterpart. since they are twelve, there are six duos.

Junmyeon and Fuyumi

water and ice.

Chanyeol and Kris

Fire and flight

Baekhyun and Althea

light and healing.

Kai and Noa

teleportation and Telekinesis

Kyungsoo and Bronte

Earth and Thunder

Laasya and Tao

Wind and Time control

P.S: Duos dosent mean soulmates

P.S 2: When one of the duos die.His counterpart heir his powers.

Chapter 1 : part 3

With that, the group called Themselves EXO, lived their daily lives, having hobbies, work and duties. Little did they know that the red force was going to strike again real soon, coming out of its hiding with new energy, presenting with darkness that would hide the sun:

The solar eclipse

Big sacrifices should be made.

The war between the red force and EXO was vicious.Blood was spilled and none of both parts wanted to give up. The red force and Elyxion cyitizens wanted to take over the tree and it's heart. To finally control the universe.

The tree was dissapointed of the ignorant,Selfish and greedy citizens it protected.

So it decided to put and end to everything.

The EℓyXiOn crashed into the moon,The earth moon.

Two moons colliding into one

The world is dark and barren, no signs of life as far as the eye can see. Twelve men woke up in a sunless sky, confused and lost. One of them takes the lead and walks towards a tree that is withering. Following him, they form a circle around the tree, and the leader touches his hand on the trunk.

"Legends, you have finally awaken." A solemn voice speaks to them, as they glance around and look at each other. Their world is destroyed, Now where could they run? Was there any place on the planet where they were safe? There had to be...there just had to be.

Earth...of course

"Divide me into half and hide me, so that the Red Force will never succeed." they did as they were told, two men stepping forward as leaders and each holding a half of the tree. Before they could speak to each other, a blinding light makes them civer their eyes. When the light fades, the leaders find themselves wih five others, separated into two worlds.

The legends shall now see the same sky but shall stand on different grounds, shall stand on the same ground, but shall see different skies

They’re twelve—they’ve always been twelve. To not be twelve is unfathomable. Their lives before each other are difficult to remember, difficult to think how they could’ve gotten by without each other. To be without each other—it’s unnatural. And the gaping hole in their group right now—it’s driving them insane.

They had never imagined it could go wrong like this. Never in their wildest dreams did they picture the scene that spread out in front of them—the carnage, the heart ache, the sheer disaster of a trip.

It was a red moon,The sign from Althea to indicate their meeting. They meet once a year. 24 hours to share with each other their news.to crack jokes.to have this sweet lie.to feel that life is back to normal before they seperate again . across the earth and it's parallel version.

But that year,They never expected to loose everything all at once.The red force took them by suprise,attacking them so suddenly they couldn't even comprehend what was happening.

In seconds Tao,Althea and Kris were gone.died in front of the other Guardians eyes.In the middle of it all The half of the tree of life was stolen.The red force dirty hand were on half of the tree of life.God knows what she was going to do with it.

Things couldn't get any worst

Or maybe It could

ATTENTION! This is an important public

service announcement. South Korea has

joined the coalition of nations dedicated to

eliminating the threat of persons with

unnatural abilities. Anyone who has

information is urged to call this number:

9-325-6439. May the world remain forever

safe.

The red force turned the tables on that again.Humans always feared the unknown, and The red force used that weakness for its advantage . And now humans turned against the same people that protected them.

Ripped from their homes and wiped of who they once were EXO are left to fight for their survival but in an ungrateful world, it is no mean feat

"Will we ever be happy, hyung?"

"Given the circumstance, I don't think we ever will."

End of chapter 1

[dunkshotdreaming]

Masterlist || World at a Glance

➵ Na Jaemin

↳ A young wolf from the Redfur clan, very playful but very dependent. Is known for his kind heart and flirty ways. Would offer the clothes off his back to help someone in need without hesitation. Best friends with fellow wolf Jeno, as they grew up together, and very protective of their youngest member, Jisung. Acts almost like a parental figure to his subunit of younger members along with Renjun, who try their hardest to keep the troublesome bunch out of harm's way (or any accidental exposure).

➵ Lee Jeno

↳ A young wolf from the Silveridge clan, shy at first but is an absolute ball of energy. Very athletic yet very lazy; a bundle of dualities that lie beneath a beautiful smile. Best friends with fellow wolf Jaemin, both of whom never cared about territorial rivalries. Also very close to Doyoung and Jaehyun, who like to keep a close eye on this sweet and naive little werewolf. Despite his canine nature, he has a fascination for feline creatures, going so far as to adopt a few of his own to study them. The other wolves are shocked at how well the kittens take to Jeno, rather than running at his scent.

➵ Huang Renjun

↳ A curious vampire with a fascination for their otherworldly members: the aliens Winwin and Yangyang. Likes to put up a snarky front at times, but is the sweetest little biter you'll ever meet. Very close to the younger members of their group, especially the werewolves.  Is a great help to Yuta when he gets unintentionally turned after being bitten, and takes him under his wing until he's sure the fledgling can handle his own. Doesn't have to wear a pendant like Yuta's as he's a full-blood vampire, born and raised. Renjun's artistic side helps him explain himself in ways words can't... even when a good portion of his artwork looks an awful lot like a bloody Rorschach test.

➵ Qian Kun

↳ The new alpha of the Goldensnout clan. Always seems to have trouble handling the young pups of the pack, and often has to put his foot down to intimidate them. Fatefully ends up with fellow pack member Yukhei as bandmates in Wayv. Loves nothing more than to enjoy some good music while he dotes on the others; especially good at cooking, and uses his heightened sense of smell to his advantage.

➵ Wong Yukhei

↳ Luckily for his alpha, fellow wolf Yukhei is great at dealing with the young pups of the pack... whenever he doesn't end up playing into their antics, that is. A lively young wolf who has a nose for causing trouble, usually unintentionally, as he's naturally clumsy. Has a warm heart and soft spot for his bandmates, usually treating them as part of his own little pack. Diligently obeys Kun, and trusts him entirely. Loves to tease the resident vampire, whenever possible.

➵ Jung Jaehyun

↳ A member of the Silveridge clan. Very athletic, prides himself on being one of the strongest members of the pack. Comes off as very confident but is actually very shy; is always terrified someone will find out about his secret. Dotes on the younger and older members alike, and is a great shoulder for them to lean on in tough times. Very close to fellow wolves Taeyong and Jeno, the latter of whom gets babied quite often, despite his displeasure.

➵ Lee Taeyong

↳ Alpha of the Redfur clan, as well as the leader of the musical group all the boys belong to, known as NCT. Has a lot on his plate and often relies on Jaehyun to talk things over with. Has the exterior of a wolf with bared fangs, but the interior of a little pup ready to play. Also close to pack member Jaemin, and taught him a lot of what he knows. Taeyong's life may be incredibly busy, but his great leadership skills always shine through both of his demanding roles.

➵ Dong Sicheng

↳ Most commonly known as Winwin by his newfound earthling friends. Sicheng and Yangyang crash landed on Earth roughly six years ago, not reuniting until they both ended up being recruited for a musical group known as Wayv. Whereas Yangyang is a burst of energy, Sicheng is more calm and philosophical (and still holds himself responsible for getting stuck on Earth); very homesick for his birth planet, Scorlirsus. Gets doted on a lot by his other members; often mistaken for an elf due to his singular pointed ear.

➵ Liu Yangyang

↳ Whereas Sicheng is more often than not the rational one of the two, Yangyang is a chaotic bundle of adventure and joy. His laugh can be heard from miles away, if you listen hard enough. Misses his family and home planet, but is happy to have finally reunited with Sicheng at long last. Loves to race, and used secretly borrow the space pods to do so. Never obtained a nickname as his name was already fairly easy for the others to remember. Misses Scorlirsus, but is also really enjoying his adventures on Earth.

➵ Kim Dongyoung

↳ Most commonly referred to simply as Doyoung, this fallen angel is often the butt of his bandmates' jokes. Tries to set a great example for the younger members, and practically had a hand in raising many of them throughout their time together. Jeno is the only one who really listens though, and earns himself the title of Best Son, at least in Doyoung's eyes. An amazing singer, and isn't afraid to use the powers of his enchanting voice to entice people to do things for him. After all, why work harder when you can work harder?

➵ Ten

↳ This tricky little siren is both alluring and infuriating. Loves to challenge Doyoung at every turn, the sheer power his voice carries overturning any enchantments his bandmate tries to place on others. Lives to tease, and often gets on Kun's nerves, though they secretly enjoy each other's company greatly. Very fluid in his movements, as he's used to swimming in water; this translates to mesmerizing dance moves on land, which eventually earns him a spot in Wayv. Latches onto Hendery when he first joins the surface world as a resident, who helps him learn how to fit in, allowing him to blend almost seamlessly. Must soak in water for an absolute minimum of half an hour a day, or risk losing his breath and drying out. Legend has it he choked on a fruit once and now refuses to go anywhere near them.

➵ Moon Taeil

↳ An actual angel, quite literally. Whereas Doyoung had his fall from grace, Taeil has miraculously managed to stay in the good graces of the divine. Has a healing like quality to his voice, and anyone who listens to it becomes wrapped with its calmness, almost like a blanket. The eldest of his bandmates, but gets along pretty well with both younger and older members due to his playful nature. Exceptionally skilled when it comes to music, and can play a wide range of instruments; loves to play his harp on nights off, which always helps the others sleep.

➵ Park Jisung

↳ The youngest of all his bandmates to date, and one of the most energetic. This sneaky little shapeshifter is incredibly talented. His shifty powers translate into the ability to rap and sing, as well as dance, making him a triple threat within the group. Is ironically allergic to animals, though he can turn into them without much trouble. Loves to turn into any one of the other members and cause widespread confusion, a true mischievous spirit you can't help but love. Babied endlessly by the others, and pretends he has to deal with Jaemin's over-affectionate nature as if he hates it.

➵ Mark Lee

↳ The one, lone human of NCT. Used to have Yuta to relate to, until the poor man was bitten and turned one night. Was initially terrified at being surrounded by so many supernatural beings, but grew accustomed; loves being able to use their talents to his advantage. Constantly the butt of their superpowered jokes, but always mesmerized by what the others are capable of. Feels left out sometimes, but Johnny is always quick to reassure him of his extraordinary human talents.

➵ Johnny Seo

↳ A powerful sorcered who moved across the world in search of a precious gem with powers unheard of.. ends up joining a band to allow him to stay in the country, and instead finds a precious bond within NCT. Can often be seen building or brewing, and casts minor spells at his convenience. Casts protective spells on his clumsier and unluckier bandmates, disguising his affection for his newfound little brother Mark behind an army of jokes (that everyone can see through anyway).

➵ Lee Donghyuck

↳ Goes by the name of Haechan, but loves to refer to himself in the third person as Fullsun. As his father is Apollo, Haechan is a demigod with the blinding power of the sun (as do many of his scattered half-siblings). Very affectionate, the embodiment of warmth and light, paired with the heat of his temper and constant teasing. Nearly made an enemy out of Doyoung once with his pranks, and adores teasing poor human Mark for his priceless reactions.

➵ Nakamoto Yuta

↳ Was a human until just the other day, was turned into a vampire and is now learning to deal with his life flipped upside down. Never wanted to become part of the supernatural realm that nearly all of his bandmates are from, and yet finds himself joining anyway. Was accidentally bitten while away on tour and must now live with the consequences. Has to have his pendant on at all times when in the sun, or else he'll slowly burn and turn to ash. A rather moody bandmate as of late, but given his circumstances, no one can really blame him. Bandmate Renjun, a full-blood vampire since birth, helps teach Yuta everything from how to feed and self control to the ways of the sun and his new strengths. Was forced to take a brief break from his unit known as NCT 127 as a result, but manages to successfully rejoin once he's adapted to his new life. Yuta is often found teasing their last remaining human, Mark.

➵ Zhong Chenle

↳ Though formerly teased for his dolphin-like laugh, it's no surprise that Chenle actually grew up by the ocean. Unlike Ten, Chenle did not live in the water, but has great control over it. He can control the rain, the seas, and even people's own bodies if he so desired. Best friends with Jisung, and they love to get into all sorts of trouble together. Is also very close with Kun (though he and Yangyang are both banes in the elder's existence at times), as well as Jaehyun.

➵ Xiao Dejun

↳ Also known as Xiaojun, for short. Laughs every time Winwin gets mistaken for an elf, when in fact, he's the member of elvish nature. Conceals his ears well, but allows his magic to seep through his beautiful voice. Cautious around animals, but absolutely adores plants and nature in general. Dislikes when Chenle plays with the weather, claiming it could cause an imbalance. Gets along well with all of his Wayv bandmates, but especially with Hendery, as they grew up together.

➵ Wong Kunhang

↳ Ironically enough, Kunhang is the complete opposite of his childhood friend, Xiaojun. Hendery, as he now goes by, is the son of a demon and a human. Typically good-natured and easygoing, his temper and vengeance know no bounds if someone he cares about gets hurt. Will stop at nothing to make things "fair" as he sees fit. Powers include but are not limited to: manipulation of fire, control of air currents, and destruction of physical properties. Has a real soft spot for Yangyang, and are often seen goofing off together. This half-demon is very close to a certain mischievous siren, and taught him almost everything he knows about fitting in with the human world.

OC’s

➵ Sayuri & Kaoru

↳ Two siblings, both members of the Blackwolf clan; childhood friends of the Alpha (reader) and trusted board members of the pack. Form almost a little council when the three unite. Sayuri's mate is a Silveridge, which had caused tension in the past; though that, now the clans are allied, is no longer a problem. Sayuri’s mate just so happens to be the related to the clan’s leader, as his elder sister is the alpha.

[theghostsofmusemarket]

Christopher Argent || Teen Wolf

Name: Christopher Alexander Argent

Alias: Chris

Face Claim: JR Bourne

Age: 45

Species: Human

Special Abilities/Powers: Chris is skilled in many forms of wepaonry, which helps his career as a licensed weapons dealer. 

History: Chris was born and raised in Beacon Hills. Unlike his daughter, who grew up oblivious to the entirety of the supernatural world, Chris was trained in it from the day he was born. He grew up learning how to kill every kind of creature his family knew of. However, he was also raised to follow and believe in the family code; “We Hunt Those Who Hunt Us”. Growing up in Beacon Hills also meant that he grew up with the Hale family. Being quite precise, Peter Hale was the young hunter’s best friend. He was well aware that the Hale family was largely wolves, but they were all innocent, so there was no need to harm or kill any of them. He enjoyed Peter’s company, a large reason for this was because even though they were very alike, they were also completely different. When his training began officially, he wasn’t fond of having to work around the training to spend time with his friend. He managed to stay close to the wolf, though. Moving on through middle school proved that they were two sides of a coin. Peter was quickly decided to be a star basketball player. As the other teen’s best friend, Chris made sure he could attend as many of the games as he could. Where the wolf was more athletic, Chris proved to be more of a scholar. Almost perfect grades despite the training he was being put through by his father. Even through these well-established differences in their styles, nothing deterred the two boys from being friends. It would be high school that became a bit harder for Chris to face.Freshman year was easy, a tad frustrating for the first few weeks like every transition. The hunter and the wolf stayed as close as ever, studying, practicing and even training from time to time. Sophomore year would be what put the young hunter on edge. He became aware that his feelings for his friend were a great deal deeper than just a friend. Along with this revelation came the horror that he could never say anything to anyone; especially not to Peter or his father. Gerard could barely handle the fact that Chris was friends with a werewolf. To find out Chris actually loved said wolf? It was dangerous on a different level. He knew saying anything about having romantic feeling for Peter would either get the wolf hurt or killed. Losing his closest friend was one thing that Chris could not conceive of handling. As much as it hurt to not be able to confess how much he loved the wolf, he knew it was for the best. Keeping his best friend, his beloved wolf, alive was one of the most important things to him. He continued to stay as just the best friend, secretly enjoying any contact spending time with Peter brought him. Sophomore year was almost over when Victoria suddenly began showing an interest. He didn’t care much for her, she wasn’t his type in the least, and her every attempt to grab his attention only made him realize how much he loved Peter. He was really looking forward to senior year’s end, when he planned to break away from his family and leave hunting behind. He wasn’t willing to hunt if it cost him being with the one person he actually cared about. The summer before junior year was spent mostly in the woods with Peter; talking about everything from colleges to the various degrees they wanted. It was the most peace Chris had felt in a while. Even though it was two years away, graduation was a light at the end of the tunnel the more he talked with Peter about schools out of state. He could tell Peter how he felt, maybe even be with him, and there would be no reason to hide it.Chris’ dream of getting out and having a semi-peaceful life began to dwindle when Gerard began to push him to spend time with Victoria. Chris tried to protest, but his father insisted it was a “perfect match” because Victoria was from a family of hunters as well. Forced to appease his father, he began spending time with the other hunter. However, he made sure that he could spend time with Peter, too. He became more than a little annoyed when Victoria began changing plans to interfere with plans he’d already made with Peter. He tried to remain hopeful of his plan to not hunt when he received terrible news. Or rather, overheard terrible news. Someone didn’t like how close he seemed to be with Peter, and arrangements were being made for a marriage after graduation. This news actually broke something in the hunter, and he fell into a slight depression. He was trapped, and there was no way out of it. He couldn’t tell his father he couldn’t marry Victoria. The man would demand to know why. And that would require Chris explaining that he was in love with a man. And not just any man, but a werewolf. Chris knew that would get the wolf killed, and it was ridiculous. His dream of escape was quickly diminishing, a kind of despair taking a piece of him away. With this realization, a kind of resignation drove him to spend as much time as possible with his best friend. He wanted as many memories as possible with Peter, his countdown to freedom becoming a countdown to hell. He wasn’t sure how to explain it, other than his father had arranged a marriage. He wasn’t going to say he was happy, because he knew Peter would call him out on the lie. Neither of them cared for Victoria and her too eager killing ways. When he was forced to propose, he knew he had to tell his wolf. And doing so was the hardest thing he had ever done. He wasn’t surprised when Peter seemed upset, and for a long time, the two males had simply sat quietly. He hated feeling like he had failed, but both of them knew just how terrible Gerard could be.

Even though Gerard told him not to, Chris invited Peter. He wasn’t surprised when Peter showed at the very edge of the party, and even though Chris never walked to him, they met eyes several times. The hunter was grateful for it and continued as best he could, putting on a fake smile and moving about as the reception demanded. As he’d been directed to leave, Chris was almost certain someone had grabbed his hand briefly, but when he had looked, no one was there. He began to move around, unable to handle the thought of watching Peter marry. He felt sick being with the female hunter, because a part of him knew she had no code. Finding that Kate had adopted a small toddler and without Gerard’s okay was a bit disconcerting. But Chris hoped that becoming a parent would ease her into following the code like she had been raised. He enjoyed spending time with little Claudia, and even mentioned a few times how odd it felt that Kate had become a parent first. When Victoria told him she was pregnant, Chris found that for the first time in a long while, he was actually happy. His only demand was that his child - no matter the gender - not be raised as a hunter. It took nearly the entire pregnancy for Gerard and Victoria to agree, which gave Chris a sense of relief. Unlike himself, he could protect his child from the darkness the world possessed for just a little longer. After Allison was born and the two Argent kids began to show interest in archery, Chris and Kate agreed to let the girls learn together. Chris was proud that Allison took so well to the bow and arrow, although he noted how unhappy Kate was that his niece wasn’t perfect. His theory about Kate becoming better because she was a parent began to falter; he was suspicious that Kate was training Claudia without actually saying she was. He worried that the girl might end up like his sister. He never got to know, because just weeks later, the accident happened that supposedly killed the girl.

Chris didn’t speak about his feelings, keeping everything carefully locked away, but seeing his best friend, the man he loved, insane from grief and being comatose, broke Chris in ways he could never explain. The events that followed pulled Allison into the world and he could do little to stop her. He just didn’t realize that he would lose her before she could even graduate high school. In the wake of Allison’s death, Chris vanished to France, not wanting to associate with any bad memories.

[thesundowncrew]

The Sundown Crew’s rp plotting cheat-sheet

Want new-and-exciting plots for your character? Long to reach out to more of your followers, but don’t know where to start? Fear not! Fill out this form and give your RP partners both present and future all the of juicy jumping off points they need to help you get your characters acquainted.

Be sure to tag the players whose characters YOU want more cues to interact with, and repost, don’t reblog! Feel free to add or remove sections as you see fit. Template here.

Mun name: Dee OOC Contact: Tumblr IM

Who the heck is/are my muse(s) anyway:

In the main crew, we have Sammy, a nerdy ghoul boi who is the embodiment of Samhain (of the Celtic calendar) and Guardian of the Veil; Nightshade, his soul-sister and cat-turned-human witchy familiar; and last but not least Axel, the sadistic, cannibal crow mythos who’s only interested in revenge and fucking people (up).

They’re all super old and supernatural and 2/3 are always happy to meet new people!

Points of interest:

Samhain & Nightshade: guarding the Veil, keeping the balance, protecting innocent humans and mythos alike, adventuring and exploring new places, meeting people and learning new things. Sammy enjoys reading, treasure-hunting and getting lost in his research. Nightshade enjoys cooking, eating, listening to music, and keeping up with the latest memes.

Axel: looking for the biggest, baddest, toughest rivals he can fight to the death with, enjoys challenges, exploring new places, witnessing genocides and mass-murders, causing genocides and mass-murders, fucking people (up) psychologically and physically.

What they’ve been up to recently:

Samhain & Nightshade: their work and responsibilities as Guardians of the Veil. Though the Veil is at its thinnest during Hallow’s Eve (31st Oct), they work 24/7 by hunting malicious spirits and whatever dangerous creatures threatening both humans and mythos that are already existing in the world. When not on the job, they’re either out sight-seeing and visiting friends or chilling at home. They also run a small business from home by making potions, charms and selling spells or rare ingredients. Merchants and traveling caravans often stop by their place so they always have a lot of stock to trade.

Axel: whatever the fuck he wants. Mostly spends his time hunting down prey in the human world, or spreading his wings and exploring new and faraway lands/dimensions. He’s still on his quest to journey to Hell and get his revenge on the demoness who killed his whole family. Always easier said than done, but he’s patient and he plays the long game better than anyone.

Where to find them:

The crew live on an abandoned, magickal island called Sundown. Geographically, it’s somewhere up in Northern Ireland but can’t be marked on any human map. It was magickal long before any of them settled there and because of its supernatural properties, it can hide itself from the naked eye. At the same time the island and its forests are connected to every labyrinth, maze and neck of the woods across worlds and dimensions.

Samhain is always saying that the island has a mind of its own and likes to spirit people away, regardless if their living or dead. People either end up in Sundown when they least expect it, or because it’s where they’re supposed to go.

While you can easily find Samhain and Nightshade at home, Axel can’t stay cooped up in once place too long and travels all over the place. When he’s not hunting, he escapes to the quiet of the wild or the bustling big cities.

Current plans:

The narrative starts with Samhain and Nightshade already experts in their fields and doing their jobs as Guardians of the Veil, and continues with them helping Axel achieve his goal of ultimate payback. The timeline for this blog is infinite after that because I haven’t quite figured out the endgame for anything just yet. Which is why any plot that involves Axel killing Ketele, getting his heart back, and even Nightshade’s life after Samhain’s death, is considered an AU.

In terms of plans for this blog, I’m still working on things so that they can fall into place and serve as proper material for a comic. Once I’ve gotten all my ideas sorted out, those AUs might probably not stay AUs and end up being one huge main timeline.

Desired interactions:

I’d love more threads that explore the darker side of Samhain, whether it’s in the Mainverse or in any of the AUs where he’s not his usual, warm, friendly self or where he’s morally grey. Which is why I love writing him in his criminal verses! Some of my faves are: - Pirate AU: He’s the first-mate and quartermaster who has the gift of ‘Sight’ but he’s as pirate as they come. - Green Eyed Devil: Human-Ghoul hybrid bandit whose crew would do almost anything for money. - Mobprince AU: Classy and more reserved, the quiet but bloodthirsty type. I’ve always been a fan of mobs/gangs/syndicates. - Dark!Samhain: Angsty, overpowered hermit. I rarely get opportunities to write him in this verse which is a shame because I’d like to develop it more.

Nightshade’s all fun and games but once in a while, it’d be refreshing for Nightshade to do a serious thread. Like maybe deal with heavier, more sensitive topics. I’ve emphasized how she’s seen the same amount of horror Samhain has seen but comes out more mentally resilient in comparison, so I’d really like to explore that more about her. I also feel like she hasn’t been able to really connect with anyone as a real friend?? Idk how to explain it but like, I feel like she just floats between different muses and she’s so friendly with everyone, it’s hard to pinpoint whether there is a real connection between them or if it’s just Nightshade being...Nightshade? It’s none of my partners’ faults BTW! I’m reminding me to fix that about myself and how I write her.

Speaking of darker topics, I don’t mind pushing the boundaries when it comes to Axel as long as it doesn’t make anyone uncomfortable. I used to write some disturbing shit with him back in the day (like he broke into a drug lord’s flat and killed everyone in it so he could use it as his personal nest, killed and ate two police officers who were investigating the break-in, mutilated, tortured and ate a rapist alive after catching him in the act etc.). But the partners I used to write with are long gone and I feel like Axel needs to get back into the game again.

Offered interactions:

All of the above as well as anything else from my list of AUs! As mentioned on the page, that list is not the TOTAL list of AUs I’ve got. Some are just really small and still in development, and not enough to justify getting a spot on that list. Honestly, I’m open to plotting and coming up with more AUs so if you’ve got an idea, just hmu! I’ve also got a tag for ‘au ideas’ so you can browse there too if you like and tell me if anything strikes your fancy~

Current open post/s:

I don’t make open posts or starters. I prefer writing starters once my partner and I have something in mind and we’ve plotted enough to go about it.

Anything else?:

Though the blog is advertised as a WEEKEND blog (cus I work 9-5 on weekdays), I am usually lurking online thanks to mobile and will answer IMs when free. I don’t like replying to threads on mobile so I’ll usually reply on the weekends. Unless I’m busy that weekend, then sometimes I change up the rules and reply on a Friday or whenever I’m able.

When I reply to threads, I like to release a bunch at a time and then I’ll tag my partners so that they can see how many threads I’ve replied to out of the total count, like so! The total count often changes because we could have dropped threads in between, or partners go on hiatus and they get moved from ‘ongoing’ to ‘cold’ threads. Because of this, I have a threads page which I try my best to update.

Tagged by Stolen from: @bengalisms

[wazafam]

In the DC Extended Universe, the gods have a lot to do with the powerful artifacts bequeathed to heroes and villains alike. Wonder Woman 1984 showcases such an object: a stone forged by an Old God that gets into the wrong hands. There are other such treasures and weapons scattered throughout the universe. From its inception, the DCEU has showcased a number of them throughout the movies.

Wonder Woman is in possession of a great many gifts from the gods, but she is not alone. The films have introduced a few magical objects that were actually made by gods in an effort to imbue their champions with strength and fortitude. Each item is born by someone worthy enough to use its powers for good. This is the purpose behind the creation of each piece of equipment. When such items get into the hands of a greedy or power-hungry individual, however, they can have devastating consequences.

Related: What The DCEU Can Do After Wonder Woman 1984's Divisive Release

The artifacts created by the gods are boons to the heroes of the Justice League and those who aid the cause of righteousness. The films explore the power these objects deliver to their owners and those who would take advantage of the gifts of the Old Gods. Here is a breakdown of the tools created by the hands and materials of the gods. (Note: It should be noted here that, as with many items and characters in comic books, the origins of these objects have been retconned numerous times.)

Forged from the girdle of the Earth goddess Gaea, the Lasso of Truth is a creation of Hephaestus, the god of fire, smithing, and metallurgy. It is a weapon made to be indestructible and immutable, withstanding any battle. It can alter in length depending on the wielder's purpose. It has many powers, including the power to cast hypnosis, dispel illusions, restore repressed memories, and shield those in its circle from supernatural attacks. Its main capability, due to being imbued by the fires of Hestia, is to compel anyone held in its grasp to utter only the truth. This power is volatile, as it forces one to face the truth of their violent deeds.

In the wrong hands, the Lasso is great and terrible. Under the control of the villain Genocide, the weapon was used to attack the souls of her victims, bringing even powerful opponents to their knees. The tool has frightening potential, and it is necessary that one pure of heart be in control of its force. The tool, also dubbed the Golden Perfect, the lasso is Wonder Woman's primary weapon, and with her strength and speed, it can be used as both a defensive and offensive weapon, which fits her pacifist yet powerful fighting style.

Worn by all the Amazons of Themyscira, the Bracelets of Submission are indestructible silver cuffs that symbolize years of bondage under the rule of the tyrannical Hercules. The bracelets protect against blasts, small missiles, and gunfire, serving as the main method of defense for every Amazon woman starting at age fifteen. When the Amazons reach that age, they pledge themselves in service to the goddess Aphrodite and are gifted the cuffs.

Related: Wonder Woman Becomes The DCEU's Superman AND Batman In 1984

Hephaestus modified the cuffs given to Diana, reinforcing them with Eighth Metal, a metal favored by the gods. The original cuffs were made from the metal of Athena's Olympian Aegis shield, not only protecting against bullets, but serving as a way to harness an Amazon's power, building up a massive strength boost when they are released.

The God Killer, a creation of Hephaestus, was first offered to Deathstroke in order to assassinate an enemy of the Olympians, a mad Titan named Lapetus. The sharp and durable blade has also been seen in the wrong hands, both in the clutches of Grail, daughter of the New God Darkseid, in an attempt to usurp the throne from Hippolyta, and in the possession of Cheetah, Wonder Woman's foe. It is a powerful weapon, one that Diana is not sure she wants to wield. She retrieves the weapon from a tower in Themyscira, believing it to be the only thing powerful enough to destroy Ares, the God of War. Diana utilizes the sword on the battlefield as well as to dispatch General Ludendorff when she believes him to be Ares.

Ultimately, the real Ares reveals to Diana that the sword itself is not the God Killer, but that Diana is. Ares destroys the sword before Diana defeats him. The sword's remains have not been mentioned again in the DCEU. In Justice League, Diana has a new sword: the Sword of Athena. The weapon was created and wielded by the Olympian goddess of wisdom, crafts, and strategy, and it is gained by Diana sometime after World War I. Like its predecessor, the sword is extremely sharp and durable, even managing to slice off Doomsday's right arm. Diana is worthy of wielding the artifact, which has inscribed on the blade in Greek, "Life is killing life all the time, and so the goddess kills herself in sacrifice of her own animal."

Also called the Talaria, the Sandals of Hermes are magical footwear that grants the wearer flight and enhanced speed. Though Wonder Woman has been in possession of these sandals on many occasions, she also gifts them to her allies in order to allow them access to those gifts. Wonder Woman has used the sandals to cross over the mystical field that separates Paradise Island from Man's World when she is needed or called upon. The Air of Chaos that acts as a barrier between the two realms is dangerous, but the sandals allow her to pass through it safely.

Related: Why Doesn't Wonder Woman Fly In BvS Or Justice League?

In different times through Wonder Woman's history, the sandals have been loaned out. During her time as Wonder Woman, Artemis wore the sandals. Diana's mother Hippolyta utilized them in her battle against Imperiex Probes. Teen Titan Cassandra Sandsmark used them for a short time after meeting Diana. An Amazon named Pythia stole them from Diana in an effort to find Harvard professor Julia Kapatelis. The sandals represent one of the many reasons that Wonder Woman is a worthy hero: she shares her power instead of hoarding it.

There are many stories of who created the Dreamstone, or Materioptikon. It is said to have been crafted by Dream of the Endless, also known as the Dream Ruby. Into the Dreamstone, Dream poured his essence, making it the most powerful of the twelve stones he created. In another version showcased in Wonder Woman 1984, the stone is created by an Old God named the Duke of Deception in order to incite chaos and misrule in the world. Touching the stone and speaking one's true wish would grant the deepest desires of humanity, but at a cost. Like the proverbial monkey's paw, the stone is not to be used lightly.

In the year 1984, the stone resurfaces at the Smithsonian Institute where Diana is working. It is being analyzed by geologist Barbara Minerva, but it is stolen by con artist Maxwell Lord, who has searched for the legendary stone for decades. He wishes to become the stone himself, gaining its wish-granting power as it drains him of health and energy. The Dreamstone wreaks havoc on the world, causing erratic, violent behavior in ordinary people, increasing murders and even plane crashes. As mayhem increases, Wonder Woman fears the power of wishing, and knows all the wishes must be undone. She forces Max to face the truth of his shortcomings, making him realize what truly matters to him and what his greed has done to the world.

It is not only tools and weapons created by the gods in an effort to aid their heroes, but entire places as well. Zeus created the isolated island in the Mediterranean Sea in order to protect his beloved creation the Amazons after their race was threatened by gods like Ares. The city-state is reminiscent of ancient Greece in architecture and climate, and it is protected by magical barriers that conceal it from the outside world.

Related: Wonder Woman 1984: Every Plot Hole Created By Steve Trevor's Return

For centuries after Zeus's creation of Paradise Island, the civilization of the Amazons flourished under the peaceful reign of Hippolyta, the mother of Diana. She knew that Ares would one day return, and so the warriors trained in the art of combat, surpassing the skills of men. The island remained undisturbed until 1918 when a pilot named Steve Trevor crash-landed off the coast and was rescued by Wonder Woman. Unfortunately, the German Navy was able to track Steve to Themyscira, bringing conflict and death to the immortal Amazons once more.

It's not only Wonder Woman who is gifted the power of the gods. Aquaman's DCEU movie finds the source of his power in the Trident of Atlan, the king who founded Atlantis. The trident was forged from the steel of Poseidon in the Kingdom of the Deserters, giving King Atlan mastery over the Seven Seas. The trident was used by Atlan for many purposes, including imprisoning the Karathen, a giant sea creature so powerful that even the king feared her. Atlan became too over-reaching with his use of the trident, and, during an experiment gone awry, the force of the trident released a great wave of energy that sunk Atlantis to the bottom of the ocean. Atlan felt palpable shame after the fall of Atlantis, exiling himself to the same abyss, the Hidden Sea, wherein he put the Karathen, admonishing her to protect the trident from all but the rightful heir to his throne.

When his mother's trident is destroyed, Arthur Curry makes a voyage to the Hidden Sea in order to retrieve the god's weapon and retake his rightful place as King of Atlantis. He proves himself worthy to the Karathen and the uses the trident to unite all creatures in the ocean. With the power of the Sacred Trident in his possession, Aquaman is able to defeat the armies of his enemies and become the hero of the waters both in the comics and in the DC Extended Universe.

More: Wonder Woman 1984 Theory: Asteria Is Also A Daughter Of The Gods

Wonder Woman: Everything Created By The Gods In The DCEU from https://ift.tt/3c2ozJp

[bojastrology-blog]

Underrated animes I think the signs would love

I love every one of these animes tbh

Aries: Kekkai Sensen - 12 Episodes (2nd season of same length coming out Oct 2017)

Supersonic monkeys, vampires, talking fishmen, and all sorts of different supernatural monsters living alongside humans—this has been part of daily life in Hellsalem's Lot, formerly known as New York City, for some time now. When a gateway between Earth and the Beyond opened three years ago, New Yorkers and creatures from the other dimension alike were trapped in an impenetrable bubble and were forced to live together. Libra is a secret organization composed of eccentrics and superhumans, tasked with keeping order in the city and making sure that chaos doesn't spread to the rest of the world. Pursuing photography as a hobby, Leonardo Watch is living a normal life with his parents and sister. But when he obtains the "All-seeing Eyes of the Gods" at the expense of his sister's eyesight, he goes to Hellsalem's Lot in order to help her by finding answers about the mysterious powers he received. He soon runs into Libra, and when Leo unexpectedly joins their ranks, he gets more than what he bargained for. Kekkai Sensen follows Leo's misadventures in the strangest place on Earth with his equally strange comrades—as the ordinary boy unwittingly sees his life take a turn for the extraordinary.

Taurus: Mushishi - 46 Episodes (2 seasons)

"Mushi": the most basic forms of life in the world. They exist without any goals or purposes aside from simply "being." They are beyond the shackles of the words "good" and "evil." Mushi can exist in countless forms and are capable of mimicking things from the natural world such as plants, diseases, and even phenomena like rainbows. This is, however, just a vague definition of these entities that inhabit the vibrant world of Mushishi, as to even call them a form of life would be an oversimplification. Detailed information on Mushi is scarce because the majority of humans are unaware of their existence. So what are Mushi and why do they exist? This is the question that a "Mushishi," Ginko, ponders constantly. Mushishi are those who research Mushi in hopes of understanding their place in the world's hierarchy of life. Ginko chases rumors of occurrences that could be tied to Mushi, all for the sake of finding an answer. It could, after all, lead to the meaning of life itself.

Gemini: Psychic Detective Yakumo - 11 Episodes

Haruka Ozawa's sophomore year is getting seriously scary. One of her friends is possessed, another has committed suicide and Haruka could be the next one to flunk the still-breathing test. Her only way out of this potentially lethal dead end? Yakumo Saito, an enigmatic student born with a mysterious red eye that allows him to see and communicate with the dead. But the deceased don't always desist and some killers are more than ready to kill again to keep dead men from telling any more tales. That doesn't stop Haruka's knack for digging up buried secrets, and there's even more evidence of bodies being exhumed by both Yakumo's police contact and an investigative journalist with a newly made corpse in her closet! Can this pair of anything but normal paranormal detectives solve the ultimate dead case files or will they end up in cold storage themselves? 

Cancer: Is this a Zombie? - 22 Total Episodes (2 Seasons)

Not every zombie is the monstrous, brain-eating type. One night while walking home from the convenience store, regular high school boy Ayumu Aikawa is killed by a serial killer, and is just as suddenly brought back to life by a necromancer named Eucliwood Hellscythe. One small caveat: he's now a zombie. Things get even weirder for him when he accidentally steals a magical girl's uniform, and thus her powers! Haruna, the ex-magical girl, orders him to fight evil creatures known as Megalo in her place until they can figure out a way to get her powers back to her.

Leo: Parasyte - 24 Episodes

All of a sudden, they arrived: parasitic aliens that descended upon Earth and quickly infiltrated humanity by burrowing into the brains of vulnerable targets. These insatiable beings acquire full control of their host and are able to morph into a variety of forms in order to feed on unsuspecting prey. Sixteen-year-old high school student Shinichi Izumi falls victim to one of these parasites, but it fails to take over his brain, ending up in his right hand instead. Unable to relocate, the parasite, now named Migi, has no choice but to rely on Shinichi in order to stay alive. Thus, the pair is forced into an uneasy coexistence and must defend themselves from hostile parasites that hope to eradicate this new threat to their species.

Virgo: Terror in Resonance - 11 Episodes

Painted in red, the word "VON" is all that is left behind after a terrorist attack on a nuclear facility in Japan. The government is shattered by their inability to act, and the police are left frantically searching for ways to crack down the perpetrators. The public are clueless—until, six months later, a strange video makes its way onto the internet. In it, two teenage boys who identify themselves only as "Sphinx" directly challenge the police, threatening to cause destruction and mayhem across Tokyo. Unable to stop the mass panic quickly spreading through the city and desperate for any leads in their investigation, the police struggle to act effectively against these terrorists, with Detective Kenjirou Shibazaki caught in the middle of it all. Zankyou no Terror tells the story of Nine and Twelve, the two boys behind the masked figures of Sphinx. They should not exist, yet they stand strong in a world of deception and secrets while they make the city fall around them, all in the hopes of burying their own tragic truth.

Libra: No Game No Life - 12 Episodes

No Game No Life is a surreal comedy that follows Sora and Shiro, shut-in NEET siblings and the online gamer duo behind the legendary username "Kuuhaku." They view the real world as just another lousy game; however, a strange e-mail challenging them to a chess match changes everything—the brother and sister are plunged into an otherworldly realm where they meet Tet, the God of Games. The mysterious god welcomes Sora and Shiro to Disboard, a world where all forms of conflict—from petty squabbles to the fate of whole countries—are settled not through war, but by way of high-stake games. This system works thanks to a fundamental rule wherein each party must wager something they deem to be of equal value to the other party's wager. In this strange land where the very idea of humanity is reduced to child’s play, the indifferent genius gamer duo of Sora and Shiro have finally found a real reason to keep playing games: to unite the sixteen races of Disboard, defeat Tet, and become the gods of this new, gaming-is-everything world.

Scorpio: Rurouni Kenshin - 95 Episodes 

In the final years of the Bakumatsu era lived a legendary assassin known as Hitokiri Battousai. Feared as a merciless killer, he was unmatched throughout the country, but mysteriously disappeared at the peak of the Japanese Revolution. It has been ten peaceful years since then, but the very mention of Battousai still strikes terror into the hearts of war veterans. Unbeknownst to them, Battousai has abandoned his bloodstained lifestyle in an effort to repent for his sins, now living as Kenshin Himura, a wandering swordsman with a cheerful attitude and a strong will. Vowing never to kill again, Kenshin dedicates himself to protecting the weak. One day, he stumbles across Kaoru Kamiya at her kendo dojo, which is being threatened by an impostor claiming to be Battousai. After receiving help from Kenshin, Kaoru allows him to stay at the dojo, and so the former assassin temporarily ceases his travels. Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan tells the story of Kenshin as he strives to save those in need of saving. However, as enemies from both past and present begin to emerge, will the reformed killer be able to uphold his new ideals?

+ 3 of the most badass live action movie adaptations

Sagittarius: Nurarihyon no Mago - 48 Total Episodes (2 Seasons)

Rikuo Nura doesn't want anything to do with evil youkai, and just wants a normal life. Too bad he's a quarter youkai, and Nurarihyon, his grandfather, is insistent that he takes over as head of the Nura Clan. He's able to keep his supernatural secret life hidden from his classmates, as he can only transform into a youkai at night, for six hours at a time. Unfortunately for him, various youkai factions are out to target both his youkai and human friends, and like it or not, he needs to embrace his youkai side. Life is not easy when you're Nurarihyon's grandson

Capricorn: Hamatora - 24 Total Episodes (2 Seasons)

The ability to create miracles is not just a supernatural phenomenon; it is a gift which manifests in a limited number of human beings. "Minimum," or small miracles, are special powers that only selected people called "Minimum Holders" possess. The detective agency Yokohama Troubleshooting, or Hamatora for short, is composed of the "Minimum Holder PI Duo," Nice and Murasaki. Their office is a lone table at Cafe Nowhere, where the pair and their coworkers await new clients. Suddenly, the jobs that they begin to receive seem to have strange connections to the serial killer whom their friend Art, a police officer, is searching for. The murder victims share a single similarity: they are all Minimum Holders. Nice and Murasaki, as holders themselves, are drawn to the case—but what exactly is the link between Nice and the one who orchestrates it all?

Aquarius: Trigun - 26 Episodes

Vash the Stampede is the man with a $$60,000,000,000 bounty on his head. The reason: he's a merciless villain who lays waste to all those that oppose him and flattens entire cities for fun, garnering him the title "The Humanoid Typhoon." He leaves a trail of death and destruction wherever he goes, and anyone can count themselves dead if they so much as make eye contact—or so the rumors say. In actuality, Vash is a huge softie who claims to have never taken a life and avoids violence at all costs. With his crazy doughnut obsession and buffoonish attitude in tow, Vash traverses the wasteland of the planet Gunsmoke, all the while followed by two insurance agents, Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson, who attempt to minimize his impact on the public. But soon, their misadventures evolve into life-or-death situations as a group of legendary assassins are summoned to bring about suffering to the trio. Vash's agonizing past will be unraveled and his morality and principles pushed to the breaking point.

Pisces: Gangsta. - 12 Episodes

Nicholas Brown and Worick Arcangelo, known in the city of Ergastalum as the "Handymen," are mercenaries for hire who take on jobs no one else can handle. Contracted by powerful mob syndicates and police alike, the Handymen have to be ready and willing for anything. After completing the order of killing a local pimp, the Handymen add Alex Benedetto—a prostitute also designated for elimination—to their ranks to protect her from forces that want her gone from the decrepit hellhole of a city she has come to call home. However, this criminal’s paradise is undergoing a profound period of change that threatens to corrode the delicate balance of power. Ergastalum was once a safe haven for "Twilights," super-human beings born as the result of a special drug but are now being hunted down by a fierce underground organization. This new threat is rising up to challenge everything the city stands for, and the Handymen will not be able to avoid this coming war.

[jcksnn]

regarding the gap between s3-s6:

jackson left beacon hills a softer version of himself. something warm had bloomed in him once he’d shifted into being an actual werewolf. something full. something bright. something tangible. he felt whole within himself, for the first time in his entire life. that doesn’t make him less of a cocky dick. but something ran deeper, a desire not just for power & recognition. but a new foundation with which he knew he would be unstoppable with from then on out. he was jackson whittemore. & jackson whittemore doesn’t quit.

and he’d need it. tension was prevalent for jackson due to his kanima lingerings once he moved to london. most packs didn’t want to associate with him, unfamiliar with the rotting scent of death that intermingles with his werewolf aroma. at first, he was often cornered, questioned, beat up, & nearly killed on numerous occasions. he’s already died twice, guys, he doesn’t need to again. hunters we also on his (literal) tail, for a long time, what with an outbreak of inexplicable slashings. it turned out to be a newborn vampire that had escaped her coven. but he never got apologies for his near deaths, though. not really.

there was a small stint where he was a beta in a small pack, right when the interrogations from surrounding packs and hunters alike started. jasper’s pack came to his defense, surprisingly enough. something he had never been used to & initially did NOT readily accept. the alpha was named jasper, the betas were oscar, louise, mancuso, & the two omegas were trinity & santiago. jasper & oscar are from london, louise from essex, mancuso from portugal, trinity from france, & santiago from spain. while he was accepted for being foreign, friction & clashing ideals constantly drove him apart from this pack. they were all about fully investing themselves in the werewolf world, no ties to anyone or anything other than each other. for someone like jackson, it was hard for him to trust & connect, even as they granted him acceptance & protection. not to mention he’s not really one to allow someone to be in control over him just like that. it has to be earned. they were always on the move, as well, constantly traveling around the world. & while this appealed to jackson, he couldn’t abandon his human life that easily. if there was something he hadn’t expected to do, it was cling to his humanity. but after being something so horrendously inhuman, he supposes that’s only reasonable. when they are in london, which is often, they make the effort to see him. he holds no ill will towards any of them, even if he may act detached & nonchalant.

a friend jackson made while working at an armani outlet is named alessandro ricci. he’s a retired emissary from italy & he recognized jackson’s scent immediately. this is someone jackson vaguely relied on his junior & senior year for werewolf-ing tips & even now at times as well.

surprisingly enough, the guidance teacher at his new high school also seemed to be a place for him to really get the understanding of himself that he needed. her name is sunny mitchell. he’d never ever admit to anyone that he’d sought counsel, though, so don’t expect to know this ic.

it was the beginning of his senior year that he met ethan. that relationship can be read in detail further here. by the end of the tv series, they both were active in finding orphaned/lost supernatural creatures to join against the war to stop monroe’s army. this is the kind of pack he wants to be apart of. one that doesn’t limit the bounds of what it means to be a pack.

as for college, the first two years, jackson went to birkbeck university of london for international business relations. it was a consecutive two year program. this caused stress within his relationship. & while they’re still in love, ethan & jackson are taking time apart to sort themselves out to better face this new phenomenon of people reanimating.

he’s been in mystic falls for about a year now, just working & trying not to get killed by all the people he’d put down as a kanima.

[recentanimenews]

FEATURE: Head Space - "The Eccentric Family" A Bond of Blood

Attack on Titan isn’t the only anime this season returning for a second season after a four year hiatus. The Eccentric Family is back and ready to charm, entertain, and wow us with its beautifully animated portrayal of Kyoto courtesy of its director Masayuki Yoshihara. It’s been awhile since the original, so now seems the best time to cover some old ground by going over one of the central themes of the past season which will hopefully see even more screentime in the present.

The Eccentric Family is an oddball anime, portraying the interactions between humans, tanuki, and tengu in one of Japan’s largest cities. It requires buying into the internal logic of the supernatural creatures and their politics to appreciate the inhuman perspectives of the titular Shimogamo Family of tanuki. Despite all the supernatural chicanery, The Eccentric Family sits on a sturdy foundation of communicating the necessity of close personal bonds. Although still reeling from the death of the family patriarch Shoichiro and embattled with their personal struggles, the Shimogamo family are uniquely blessed by their shared blood. Although their eccentricities vary widely from one another, each recognizes that their siblings strangeness is an aspect they inherited from their beloved father.

The Ebisugawa clan acts as a counterexample, headed by a Soun who cut ties with his older brother Soichiro. Soun’s obsession with revenge against his older brother and willingness to act against his own extended family not only positioned him as the primary antagonist of the previous season, but a creature so perverted by hatred that he had become something anathema to the tanuki. Until his betrayal of Soichiro was revealed, the possibility any tanuki would commit such an act had been literally unthinkable. Raised by a father who lusts after revenge, Kaisei has become a recluse ashamed of her own family and the twins Ginkaku and Kinkaku have grown into cruel schemers with terrible fashion sense. 

Where the Ebisugawa’s hoard their immense wealth, the Shimogamo share their meager resources freely, going out of their way to look after anyone they consider a member of their extended family. In addition to supporting each other, the members of the Shimogamo family have taken it upon themselves to provide company to some of Kyoto’s lonely denizens. Tousen sends her sons to visit Professor Akadama who, having lost the ability to fly and abandoned by his kidnapped protege Benten, lives an isolated existence apart from even his fellow tengu. A friend of their late father, Akadama begrudgingly cares for his transplant family where he otherwise might have no one at all.

Nothing can replace these fundamental connections. Where the Ebisugawa’s have immense wealth, Suzuki Satomi has grown into power sufficient to be referred to after the Shinto goddess of fortune, Benten. Her reputation is one of unrivaled invincibility, provided gifts from tengu and tanuki alike as appeasement. She resides at the top of the social hierarchy among all three races. For all this, she may be the most tragic character in the series.

Existing above everyone else also means being separated from them. Kidnapped as a high schooler, she was removed from her family and deprived of forming connections during what is considered to be the most socially formative period of Japanese life. As much as she is respected for her power, Benten is also feared among the tanuki and tengu. Left alone at the top, she has grown capricious, seeking out entertainment by playing individuals against one another. Her life has become a constant search for brief moments of happiness, leading to her reputation for early exits when, as her amusement fades, she departs in frustration. Everything else comes to her so easily that this mysterious, unattainable thing hangs over her.

The first season revolved not only around the Shimogamo family, but also around the interactions between Yasaburo and Benten. His ability to approach her without fear or want represents the single most intimate relationship she has. They may both find each other fascinating because each possesses an excess of what the other lacks. Despite this, Yasaburo is the one who is content with life. Benten laments her own fickle nature, thinking it a shame that one day she may end up eating Yasaburo and, in doing so, kill her golden goose of kindness. Despite her warnings, she has never turned Yasaburo away when he requests a favor and offered her aid unasked when his family is endangered.

It was the Shimogamo clan’s friendships with both Akadama and Benten, as well as their own willingness to put themselves at risk for their family (where others might be more inclined to protect their own butts) that ultimately saw them through the end of the first season. Although each of their personal struggles were far from resolved, the season ended on an optimistic note that their mutual support would see them through any adversity and even implied Akadama and Benten may yet find peace in their familial warmth.

Despite Benten’s departure, the cast of The Eccentric Family continues to grow with the introduction of Akadama’s son(?) Nidaime and yet another brother of the Ebisugawa clan in Kureichiro. It's my hope that these newly revealed members of the Shimogamo's extended family will drive the season toward new insights and resolutions in the conflicts that have fractured their homes. The first season did a wonderful job of signaling the importance of the Shimogamo's close ties and building upon their deep bond. Perhaps Yasaburo's talent for getting himself involved in the affairs of others may coax them into that same warmth. Blood may be thicker than water, but you need both to live.

---

Peter Fobian is an Associate Features Editor for Crunchyroll and author of Monthly Mangaka Spotlight. You can follow him on Twitter @PeterFobian.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[writingfromkitchenator]

Sister

A Sam Fanfic

What had he been thinking?

Sam knew that his choices weren't always perfect, and he'd regretted a fair few, but this one?

This one was going to come back and bite him in the ass, he just knew it.

He sat on the end of the bed, thinking furiously over what he was going to do.  The movement coming from the bathroom told him that Valerie was still cleaning up, and he was almost surprised when he heard her humming as if everything was okay.

Was it okay?

Sam frowned at this and gnawed his lip.  She clearly wasn't half as worried as he was, but then, she'd always come across as care free over most things, even when facing her mother and brother.

He swallowed.  That was what had him worried.

There was a knock on the door but Sam didn't have time to answer it as it opened and Dean stepped inside, throwing his bag on the table.

"Well, I'm glad one of us got lucky."  Dean growled.  "But I still don't appreciate being just left suddenly in the dark about it."

"Ah, yeah, it happened a little suddenly."  Sam said through a weak grin, making Dean look at him suspiciously.

"She's not still here is she?"  Dean asked slowly before his gaze moved to the bathroom where he could see the light on.  "Wow."

Sam stood.  "Look, if it makes you uncomfortable, you can just wait in the car.  I'm sure she won't be long and then she can be on her way."

Dean rolled his eyes.  "What?  Did you hook up with some ugly chick or something?  Come on Sammy, how many times have we seen each other's hook ups?"  He made himself busy by starting to go through the bag, checking their gear, and Sam's shoulders sunk as he realised he didn't know what to do about this.

"Come on Dean, just a little privacy?"  Sam asked desperately.

"In case you've forgotten Sammy, we've got a job to do, so just shut up and help me check this crap, okay?"  Dean said without looking up.

Sam stared at his brother before letting out a defeated sigh and moving over to the table to help.

"Big days for you boys then?"

Sam flinched as Valerie spoke as Dean froze, slowly turning to stare at her.

She gave a very cocky grin.  "What?  Never seen a woman before Dean?"

Dean looked confused for a moment before he snapped around to Sam.  "Her?  Really?"

Sam's face was burning red.  "It's not like I planned for it to happen Dean-"

"And I'm sure she didn't either!"  Dean's voice was raising, making her raise an eyebrow.

"Honestly Dean, you can't give me that bad a wrap."  Valerie said, rolling her eyes as his glare turned back to her.  "So my family history is a little against me-"

"You're family is more messed up than ours."  Dean growled and took a threatening step forward, gun in hand.  "So what exactly do you think you're playing at Y/N?"

She was unfazed, although it was clear that Sam wanted to get in the way.  "I'm not planning anything.  I just happen to like your brother's company."

Dean went to raise the gun but now Sam stepped in, stepping between the two.

"Seriously Dean, Valerie has no other intentions."  Sam said.  "It was just...just..."

"Relieving stress."  She finished for him, earning an apologetic look from him and a furious but disgusted look from Dean.

But he quickly turned back to Sam.  "She's a witch Sam, and what makes you think that either Crowley or Rowena are just going to sit back and let this happen?"

"Last I checked neither my brother nor mother, had any control over what I do."  Valerie said, starting to get annoyed.  "Now, I've helped you boys out before-"

"Always with a catch."  Dean bit.

She rolled your eyes and gave a sigh.  "No, not always with a catch.  A catch to maybe Crowley, it's always fun to rile him up, but not always to you two.  I got too much of soft spot for Sam to do that."  She winks, making Sam blush and shuffle a little nervously.

"Of which Crowley always came back and bit us in the ass!"  Dean shouts, his gun raising again.  "And how dare you use my brother like this-"

"I'm not using anyone."  She snapped.  "So lighten up little Dean, I'm not going to bite unless you ask me to."

"Valerie..."  Sam said softly as Dean tensed.  "I think it may be best to leave it."

Her shoulders sunk a little but she nods.  "If that's what you want Sam.  As I said last night, this was no strings attached."  She shoots a glare back at Dean.  "And don't even think that my mother is involved in this.  You've seen enough of us together to know that I detest the woman."

"Doesn't mean I haven't also seen you working with her."  Dean growled.

"Well, even witches have to put up with each other sometimes, it's how we learn."  With that, she picked up her coat and with a lingering look on Sam, left the room.

Sam sighed and moved to the fridge.  It was technically too early for a drink but after that he needed one, Dean's angry gaze following him as he tossed the gun back on the table.

"What the hell Sammy?"  He finally asked.

Sam took a long drink before replying.  "We met at the bar Dean.  It seemed like a good idea at the time."

"A good idea?"  Dean asked slowly.  "What part of Crowley's sister and Rowena's daughter threw up any positive flags for you?"

"She's not like them Dean."  Sam said, getting a little angry now.  "And you know that.  She's an incredibly powerful witch, something we have used to our advantage before and could definitely use now, but she's not like any of the others we've met.  So I slept with her, it's not what I consider one of my worst decisions."

Dean clearly wants to say more, but instead he grumbles something under his breath before snatching the beer out of Sam's hand.

"Hey!"

"Oh you so owe me for over looking this."  Dean said, taking an equaling as long a drink that Sam had before, finishing the bottle.  "It was just a one time thing right?"

Sam wanted to say no, but he just stared at Dean, unable to say anything.

"Right.  Whatever."  Dean throws everything back into the bag.  "Come on, we've got a werewolf to hunt."

Valerie watched from across the road as Sam and Dean left the motel, a cloak of illusion around her shoulders so they couldn't see her.  She took a particularly long look at Sam, who looked just as dejected as she felt.

"Bloody Winchester's."  She grumbled under her breath, making a passer-by jump and look around half terrified, unable to see her.

Sighing, she started walking down the street, keeping the illusion up.  It was demons that had her hiding in that bar last night, and she had no intention of letting them find her now.  When she had found Sam there drinking away his sorrows, she had seen it as the perfect opportunity to both be protected and get to know the younger Winchester better, something she had been trying to do since she'd first met them.

It really hadn't been in her plan to end up in bed, but she wasn't about to deny that it had been welcomed.

So lost in her own thoughts, she didn't stop until she suddenly found the illusion suddenly being snapped from her shoulders.

Valerie whirled around and then sneered.  "Well, well, well, if it isn't big brother."

"Little sister."  Crowley said with equal veneer in his voice.  "I thought you would have learnt your little tricks don't work on me."

"Well, I suppose I should be honoured that the King of Hell has come out to look for me personally then."  She does a ridiculous bow, smirking up at him his expression cracked to one of annoyance.  "Certainly works on your little demon friends."

"That's because they're all idiots."  Crowley said.  "Can't even find mother when I ask."

"No, mother won't be found unless she wants to be."  She straightens out her clothes, trying to look indifferent.  "We both know that from experience."

"Makes you so much alike."

"Ugh, dropping straight below the belt are we Fergus, now that's no fun."

Crowley's jaw twitched as the sound of his human name and she just smiled sweetly.  "Come on brother, what do you want?"

He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose for a moment before looking at you.  "I thought, Iseult, that maybe, seeing as we have a mutual dislike for our mother dearest, you could help me find her."

She brushed off the comment about her own name.  "Feeling sentimental are we?"

"Hardly."  He said darkly.  "More, murderous.  See, mother tried to have me killed, and you know how that goes."

"You mean besides Sam's little attempt?"  Valerie asked, amused.  "Poor boy, even I could've told him that would've have worked."

Crowley pauses at this.  "You've been in touch with the Winchester's?"

"What supernatural creature hasn't?"  She gave a small laugh.  "Little Sammy thought it was a good idea to use a hex bag on the King of Hell.  Poor thing, shame he used one of mothers, I could've given him something much more potent."

This returned the look of irritation to Crowley's face.  "If you must know, she set an angel on me.  He was like a bloody rabid dog."

"Oh, so she has learnt some new tricks.  Good for her."  Valerie laughs this time.  "So, a little revenge on mother, that's the game?"

Crowley nods.  "You did know her longer than I did."

"Assuming, tsk tsk Crowley, I thought you were better than that."  She pulled a few things out of her pocket, starting to work them together.

"Oh, she had great delight in telling me all about it.  I believe I even noted jealously when the Grand Coven kidnapped you."

"Bunch of pious bitches that lot."  She finished up the hex bag, looking up only to find Crowley right in front of her, gasping and taking a step back.

Crowley stopped her, his hand clamping down on her wrist that held the bag.  "Now, now, I do hope that little bag is to find her and not to try and make a get away?"

Valeria tried to break his grasp.  "Of course it is you idiot, now let me go so I can use it."

But Crowley plucked it from her fingers and shook it a little, listening to it's contents.  "Hmm, seems mother was right in assuming that they taught you a few tricks, but even you should know that a banishing charm won't work on me."

"It wasn't meant for you."  She sneered.  "It was for the damned demon's sitting around watching us."

"I had to have back up."  He said lazily.  "Of which you let yours drive away, didn't you little sister?  Those two boys were always so thick, didn't think to possibly ask why you were in a bar in the first place."

"Let me go Fergus."  Valerie snarled.

"Unfortunately not dear Iseult, see you are going to help me find mother, and then, I do believe, I have a little score to settle with Moose, and you are going to be the perfect bait."  There was a click and an iron handcuff snapped around her wrist, rendering her powerless.

"You could just ask nicely."  She snapped as he stepped back amused.

"I'm a demon dear sister, I don't do nice."

[echovalley-rp]

TANE KAITANGATA / 176 YEARS OLD / HUNTER/TRADER/HEALER  / FERNCOMBE

FULL NAME:

Tane Mahuta Kaitangata

BIRTHDAY:

29 May 1840

SPECIES:

Faerie - Te-Tini-O-Hakuturi

AREA OF RESIDENCE:

Ferncombe, in an impossibly old cabin just a few steps into the forest. It is within a line of sight to Tallulah Saxton’s cabin, but there is enough distance between the two to offer privacy.

OCCUPATION:

Tane is self-employed, and makes a living selling or trading food and other goods that he hunts, gathers, or grows at his home on the edge of the forest. He’s also something of a healer and apothecary, using a combination of his own magic and tinctures made from wild plants to treat sickness and injury. He trusts only himself to do this work as many others who set foot in the forest tend to disrespect the rules of his people.

BIOGRAPHY:

It was 1840 when a few (misguided) Maori tribes signed the Treaty of Waitangi, making New Zealand a part of the British Empire and opening the door to colonists who had previously been poking around the island, upsetting the faeries and other native races. Chief among the opposition to this new agreement were Tane’s own parents, a pair of fierce and ancient Te-Tini-O-Hakuturi that were known for their rather savage tactics of chasing off colonists and other humans from their sacred forest. Years earlier, they had enthusiastically participated in an incident against European sailors of the ship Boyd, in which 60 or 70 colonists were killed and eaten. And since then, they had been known to all as the Kaitangatas, the man-eaters, a name which they also bestowed upon their only son, born not long after the signing of the Treaty in 1840.

Tane was raised as a fearsome warrior, bound to protect their sacred forest and kill on sight any foolish colonist that dared set foot inside. And for a while, he knew no better. He and his parents guarded their territory for years alongside many other Te-Tini. And while they weren’t in the regular practice of eating people, their notorious surname reminded colonists and other supernaturals alike that they were not to be trifled with. But the colonists continued to come, and in larger and larger numbers. His parents continued to violently oppose the efforts of the colonists, fighting against them in the New Zealand Wars from about 1845 until their deaths in 1864. Tane was still relatively young when it happened, and he was on the battlefield with them when they were killed by musket fire from a line of European troops. Being pretty gravely injured himself, he chose to retreat to the forest among a group of other Te-Tini, who then tended to each other’s wounds. He still bears scars from this battle.

It was in this group that he found a sort of second family, a resolute community of fighters determined to drive the Europeans out by any means necessary. But from them he also learned of kindness, gentleness, and mercy. He developed his healing abilities, defended those too weak to fight, supported orphans and others who could not easily fight or gather food for themselves, and he found that he was much happier. Even with the encroaching threat of the colonists, he found peace in communion with his fellow Te-Tini, and even some other supernatural creatures that they worked with. He became extremely warm in this period, and the blood soaked into his name, Kaitangata, began to steep away into the surrounding waters. Eventually, the colonists won. And countless numbers of his kin, both Te-Tini and otherwise, had fallen under their oppressive fists. But rather than continue to fight a losing battle, Tane decided to defend what was most important to him- the forest. For years, he lived in the house of his family just at the edge of it. He watched the colonists, and chased away anyone who came too near. The particularly troublesome ones he disposed of, when he had to. But Tane was no longer a man who went out seeking blood. His time communing with other faeries, especially his own people, had attuned him to the abundant nurturing and healing energies of his forest. And he wanted to do right by his land- to be a caretake rather than just a soldier. To sow good seeds, encourage the growth of strong trees, and pull out the suffocating weeds when they threatened to choke out that natural beauty and abundance of his forest.

After a time, Tane found himself more or less alone after many of his treasured second family of Te-Tini were killed or scared away in other skirmishes. But all the while he remained in his house in the forest, a vigilant guard to her safekeeping. As the years passed, he grew more understanding, more adaptive to the new world as it grew. Humans continued to come (for they couldn’t be called colonists anymore, that time had long passed), and while he could never truly accept or trust them he did reach a kind of understanding with them. Many he would guide through the woods if they were ever lost, making sure that they followed the sacred rules of his people, and of the forest herself. He trapped game for them, and told them which plants to eat, and made them medicines; and in this way, he grew to be tolerant of them. He still prefers the company of any other supernatural creature to that of a human, reasoning that even the darkest and foulest among them at least have natural claim to the land. But he is Tane the Man-Eater no more.

In early 1960, Tane came across a Mataku girl gravely injured in his woods. He had felt her, bleeding into the moss and the fingerling streams of the forest, and had felt a stirring need to find her, which he did just in time to prevent her death. With his healing magic, he stopped her bleeding and closed her grievous wounds; and he carried her back to his own home to look after her. She slept for what seemed like ages, and he studied her. Already, he could feel the Greyness of her seeping into her skin like cold water, chilling her. He wasn’t certain she would ever be warm again, and for this reason he pitied her. He could see her slow march towards Blackness playing out before him already, and he knew the fate of those who ventured too far. But he was surprised to find when she awoke that there was a brightness to her still. She reminded him of dappled sunlight streaming through the trees of his forest, playing on the water of shallow creeks, dancing in his eyes. She loved the forest almost as much as he did, and as she took her time recovering, he began to fall in love with her. She never spoke of the attack that left her near death in his forest, and in fact whenever the subject was approached she became cold and sad again, all light and mirth gone from her, like a flower wilting. He quickly learned to avoid the subject. He taught her everything he knew, as these things were taught to him by his own tribe- how to hunt and forage, how to mix medicines, how to hide and defend herself when she needed to. She wanted to learn everything. And that was how he came to understand her inevitable approach to Blackness. There was nothing she didn’t want to learn, even when it came to the magics of forbidden elements. And although it frightened him to watch, his love for her stayed his hand and his tongue on the subject.

They were together for years, but she didn’t respond to his feelings for her until their very last together. It was early 1969 when they finally made love for the first time, and he promised to guard her forever, as fiercely as he defended his forest. Whatever had come after her before, he said, stood no chance against him, or his love for her. He had mistaken the dark sadness in her eyes then for something else, had assumed it was her memories hurting her, and not his words. But for whatever reason, she was gone only months later, without a word. It ruined him at first. He went looking for her in the woods, and even returned to the place he had found her, where all manner of flowers had sprung up from the hollow her body had made on the forest floor all those years ago… But he did not find her, and eventually a day came to pass when he realized if he kept looking for her, he would never stop looking. And he had no way of knowing if she even wanted to be found by him, or if he would even like what he found of her. So, he returned to his cabin and mended his broken heart the only way he could, by living as if nothing had changed.

But the forest and his people would always need defending. More recently, there was a young Te-Tini-O-Hakuturi couple he had known since they were themselves babes, who had a child and moved into a house close to his own at the edge of the forest. They were a joy to watch and to be close to, and he often communed with them as he did his people many years ago in the midst of war. They were special to him as any close family member would be… and then all of a sudden their lives were snuffed out in one awful night; their child left parentless. Tane had gone to the Elder Council himself and asked if he could have her, raise her close to her parents’ home and in the ways of the oldest Te-Tini. But, for whatever reason, he was denied. One Elder in particular told him that Suppression was the way they had always done things, and that it was how they would continue to be done. And this Elder himself came to collect the child, Suppressed her, and sent her off to a family in Australia in need of a daughter. Tane was devastated by this development, but he agreed to keep watch over her family’s house in the hope that she would one day return to it, and to her legacy, which he was determined to teach her. As it turned out, he didn’t have to wait too long, at least not by his standards…

When Tallulah Saxton first returned to Echo Valley, Tane at first thought he was imagining things. But his heart and his Te-Tini blood told him otherwise. She had found her way back somehow, despite knowing nothing of this place or her real family. He was so overjoyed, he had to stop himself from going to her immediately and telling her everything. But as old as he was he knew that these things could not be forced. So, since then, he has been biding his time, waiting for her to come to him, or for a more appropriate time to approach her. He can’t wait to share everything he knows with her, and make her a Te-Tini of his ilk; strong, fearsome, and protective of their forest, and yet also merciful to the weak and injured, and nurturing of all growing things.

PERSONALITY:

There is a part of Tane still deeply rooted in the old ways of his tribe. The Te-Tini have always been known as proud and fearsome defenders of their sacred forest, and it is no different with him. He carries with him every day the legacy of blood his parents fought so hard for. And while he is no longer a vicious man himself, he certainly can be made that way again. He has grown sympathetic to travelers and other foolish humans who mistakenly wander into the woods, but those who disrespect or desecrate his home will see little mercy. These days, he tends to give people the benefit of the doubt- he will help anyone he comes across that is in need of it, but the moment their behavior turns sour he has no trouble punishing them in whatever way he sees fit. He has burned and blinded those who refused to respect the ancient ways, and some he has even killed. But this he saves for the most offensive among them, and he uses their bodies to feed the forest they insulted. He can be easy to anger, but as he has fashioned himself into a kind of mentor for others, he tries to be patient and understanding, especially to other supernaturals he shares this island with as a rightful inhabitant. He has the least patience for humans, and he isn’t afraid to show it.

In general, he speaks little or not at all to humans, and in a gruff voice when he absolutely must. He’s known in town among the humans he trades with as a sort of an old curmudgeon (they don’t know just how old he is of course), perhaps a bit crazy, and a wild man- he doesn’t rely on any modern technologies, and for the most part he doesn’t need or want them. He’s content to live undisturbed in his little cabin on the edge of the forest. To other faeries, especially Te-Tini, he is warm and welcoming. His gruff voice booms with mirth, and he often cooks for guests, which he greatly enjoys. He could likely cook in a restaurant if he had a mind to, but he prefers the more intimate company of his own family, in his own home. His food is quite good, and he would never disrespect the plants and animals sacrificed to make it by tainting the meal with any unworthy ingredients, or poisons. This makes his food some of the safest to accept from a stranger, likely on the entire island. Even unwelcome guests or humans recovered from the forest may wake up to the delectable, savory smells of his food on their doorstep, or at the side of their bed if they’re recovering in his house. He understands that people need food, and he does his best to provide it so that others won’t disrespect his forest by going about getting it in the wrong way.

Unlike many other faeries, Tane doesn’t mind the presence or company of other supernaturals. Having once loved a Mataku girl, he bears no ill will towards them, although he does of course avoid dealing with the Black ones if he can. He prefers the company of Merfolk and Selkies to Sirens or Kelpies, but will aid or commune with any of them, as he considers them as much a part of this land as his own people. He gets along with any kind of faerie, but prefers the company of his own people the Te-Tini, above all else. He quite enjoys interacting with the Patupaiarehe, the Air folk, but sometimes doesn’t get along well with the Pakepakeha and the Ponaturi. Still, he makes an effort to commune with any and all that need his help, even people he doesn’t like personally. He’s the type of man who will grumble and complain about how stupid you were to break your arm, all the while mending it for you with no expectation of gratitude or recompense.

And due to his age, he tends not to take what the Elder Council has to say too seriously. He knows the rules, and he follows them, for the most part- he doesn’t expose his magic or his true nature to humans, he protects his forest, he deals with other supernaturals politely and helps them when they require it. For all else, he expects to be left alone and not have his business meddled in. He may still harbor some resentment towards them for Suppressing that Te-Tini girl all those years ago… but she’s back now, and he’s going to make the most of her return to empower not only her, but their people at large. He wants to see the land return to the Fair Folk who were always meant to rule it. Right now, he can live peacefully with the humans, but the glory of those old days his parents fought for still glows deep inside him, and he wants more than anything to do right by them, and by his tribe, the Te-Tini-O-Hakuturi.

FACE CLAIM: MANU BENNETT ✗ MUN: Regina Mae, EST,26, She/Her

[hermanwatts]

Fantasy New Releases: 21 December 2019

Vengeful warriors, demon-slaying androids, refugee gamers, and a legendary frog hero fill this week’s collection of fantasy new releases.

Deadline (Afterlife Online #4) – Domino Finn

Black knights. Dastardly pirates. Bloodthirsty rebels.

And those are the good guys.

War is coming to the Midlands. Like a kettle ready to bubble over, cities teeter at the brink of boiling, all while a spymaster fans the flames.

Witness the rise of the Violet Order.

It was always coming to this. Freedom isn’t given, it’s wrenched from the choking grips of those who would stifle, contain, and control. Legends are rife with noble heroes standing over vanquished enemies, but reality is more grisly. Peace is hard-won with blood and sacrifice, and sometimes the good guys pay the ultimate price.

Thus Talon, Izzy, Kyle, and the Black Hats are tasked with raising an army, storming a fortress, and fighting a war on multiple fronts, all on an impossible deadline. In three days, Haven’s beta test ends, and in three days, so too might their entire world.

Foundling Wizard (Apprentice to Master Series #1) – James Eggebeen

Magic is just one more thing to be stolen…

For over a hundred years, the Temple of Ran has been sacrificing young wizards in order to steal their power. When Lorit discovers that he holds the rare ability to use magic, he becomes their next target.

At first, he runs, working to master his abilities on the move so that one day he might be able to resist them. But that was before the Temple targets his beloved sister, Onult. In order to save her life, he infuses her with his own power.

Now, they’re both targets.

Together, they’ll battle to make the world safe for magicians everywhere… if they can survive the temple’s power-hungry priests. If they can’t, their enemy will absorb their magic and become unstoppable.

Karma’s Touch (Chronicles of Ethan #3) – John L. Monk

A showdown with destiny. Paradise or deletion. The hero of the hour.

In an act of desperation, Ethan takes a quest to free himself and his wife from Mythian forever. Melody only has one life, and nowhere is safe for her, not even the cities.

To help keep Melody safe, Ethan travels alone, at least until an old ally joins him—one who could prove to be the key to his success… or the destruction of all he holds dear.

The seeds of Karma were planted long ago, and they are about to yield fruit. One choice is poison, one is salvation. It’s time to decide.

Karnov: Phantom-Clad Rider of the Cosmic Ice – Matthew Knight, Howie K. Bentley and Byron A. Roberts

Returning from battle, the warrior Karnov discovers his family murdered and his homeland ravaged by vampyres. Learning that the undead Lord Ghormanteia is responsible for unleashing nosferatu hordes upon the land, he seeks aid from the sultry witch of a nearby woodland. By blood and sorcery, he is granted the supernatural ability to traverse worlds and absorb undead souls to gain strength. Declaring Ghormanteia shall fall by his ice-encased blade, Karnov sets out on a quest of vengeance to cleanse the land of its evil scourge.

Ghormanteia’s minions are not the only threat Karnov must face on his journey. A scheming blood-countess, a serpent monster with time-displacing venom, a mutant-breeding necromancer, daemonic forces, an uprising cult, and myriad creatures all stand in his way. Aided by witchcraft and sorcerous allies, will Karnov’s powers and burning lust for retribution be enough to avenge his loved ones, or will undead wraiths corrupt the earth forever? Through mist-shrouded graveyards, haunted castles, cosmic gateways and strange worlds, Karnov: Phantom-Clad Rider of the Cosmic Ice will take you to the heart of the vampyre’s lair and beyond!

Konosuba, Vol. 10: Gamble Scramble! – Natsume Akatsuki

Luck be a lady tonight!

Seeking financial support in the fight against the Demon King’s army, Princess Iris visits the neighboring nation of Elroad to meet the prince: her husband-to-be. But Kazuma won’t hand over his little sister to just anyone!

Scratch that. He won’t hand her over, period!

Posing as her escort, he tags along in an attempt to derail yet another wedding (and rake in the dough). But no sooner than they arrive in Elroad are they informed that the engagement is off, and there won’t be any financial support at all!

And so it falls to Kazuma to use his wit and insanely good Luck to milk the Casino Kingdom for all it’s worth!

Leap of Faith (Anura Rising #1) – J. S. Grulke

Every Frog Has His Day.

Deep in the bayou of Louisiana, Henry’s life has been shattered. He never expected a second chance, a way to redeem himself. He’s been given an opportunity to return to his family, if he can fight off the evil threatening to take over Anura.

All Henry has to do is understand his new abilities, build a kingdom, and form an army to stand against the impending doom in this new fantasy world.

Just one problem.

He has to do it as a frog.

Sea of Sand (Dragon Heart #4) – Kirill Klevanski

He was born anew in a world where martial arts were indistinguishable from magic. He only received a neuronet and meaningless desires from his past life.

What lies ahead?

He dreamed of adventure and freedom, but those dreams were taken away from him. The same way his mother, father, and sister had been taken away.They took the Kingdom, they took his own destiny.

But he is willing to wage a war, against the whole world if need be, to bring everything back. Even if the army opposes him, his sword won’t waver. Even if the Emperor sends the legions, his step won’t falter. Even if demons and gods, heroes and enemies alike are to unite against him, he won’t bend to their will.

His own will is iron itself, unstoppable.

His name is Hadjar and he heeds the call of the dragon heart within him.

Valkyrie Doll and the Ashen Brotherhood (Deus Vult Wastelanders #3) – Adam Lane Smith

The Valkyrie revives in a coffin.

As she climbs from her tomb, she finds the end of the world has come and gone. Demons roam the blasted wasteland of what was once America. Humanity hangs by a thread and she, one of the last surviving Valkyries, is tasked with driving the rampaging legions back into Hell.

As she battles waves of demons, raiders, and mutants, the Valkyrie faces far darker questions: Does a created being have a soul? What does it mean to protect mankind as humans prey upon each other? When she confronts the cult of Moloch hidden beneath the ruins of an ancient abortion clinic, her burning need for justice may just prove more powerful than her orders to protect mankind.

The last survivors of humanity need her. Will she be our protector, or our destroyer?

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