#i want to show him Salem Massachusetts

[grimandghoulish]

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[shadysadie]

Hot take: the Wittebanes were not Puritans

So since Hollow Mind came out there have been a lot of jokes about how the Belos is a crusty old Puritan. And while he is certainly crusty and old, I don’t think he was a Puritan.

I understand why everyone jumps there, when we think of Witch Hunts in Colonial America the very first thing that comes to mind is the Salem Witchcraft Trials. However, the Salem Witchcraft Trials began in 1692, that is 80 years after Masha says the Wittebros showed up in Gravesfield, and 30 years after the events of Elsewhere and Elsewhen.

If Masha’s information is correct, (which it might not be but we’ll get to that) then Caleb and Philip arrived in Gravesfield in 1613, which is closer in time to the settlement of Jamestown (1607) than the Salem Witchcraft Trials. 

The Pilgrims didn’t even land at pride rock until 1620, seven years after the Wittebros arrived in Gravesfield. The Mayflower Pilgrims were really the group responsible for creating the idea of religious charters. They specifically wanted to leave England to create their own religious society. Many other groups followed, (notably the Massachusetts Bay Colony, which later became the home of the aforementioned Salem Witchcraft Trials) but the Mayflower Pilgrims were the first group of religious extremists who came to America looking for their Zion. 

Prior to that, the motivation to settle the “New World” was mainly financial. Ships were chartered through the Virginia Company. Which as we all remember from our favorite wildly inaccurate and problematic 90s Disney movie, the Virginia Company was in it for the money. The New World had resources and Britian wanted them, damnit, Glory, God, and Gold and the Virginia Company.

That meant, if Caleb and Philip really did arrive in Gravesfield in 1613, their family likely made the trip for financial gain, not religion. If that’s the case they were less likely a member of an obscure group of religious extremists, and more likely to be either Protestant like King James and Queen Elizabeth. (They could have also been Roman Catholic, evidence for that comes later).

“But”, you say, “weren’t Puritans the ones persecuting witches at the time?”

Yes and no. 

In the Americas, Witch Hunts will forever be linked to Puritans, but in Witch Hunting long outdates the Puritans. King James himself, was a witch hunting fanatic, he personally oversaw hundreds of witchtrials. He wrote books about finding witches, and it was specifically the King James endorse translation of the Bible that features the infamous “thou shalt not suffer a witch to live” (in many prior translations the word witch is something more along the line of “sinner” or “evil doer”). By many estimates, upwards of 1500 people were executed for witchcraft as a result of his reign. If we are going with Masha’s 1613 timeline, the brothers would have left England smack dab in the middle of his reign, right after the King James Bible was published.

(^this GIF has nothing to do with the Owl House, I just love sassy Gay King James in his bird mask, look at this cocky ass bastard, you know him and Belos would have been genocide buddies)

However, I can’t pretend to be focused on some semblance of historical accuracy and take Masha’s information at face value, even in the context of the show it wouldn’t add up because according to the sign we see in Yesterday’s Lie, Gravesfield was established in 1635. 

(Granted there is a difference between a settlement and a town, it is possible that 1635 was when Gravesfield was officially acknowledged as a town and the boys just lived there pre-establishment). 

However, in the name of historical accuracy, I have to assume Masha got the date wrong, because the English didn’t even settle in Conneticut until the 1630s. The Conneticut Witch Trials began in the 1640s. By this timeline and demographic, the likelihood of Caleb and Philip being Puritans goes up by a lot. 

However, if we look at Philip’s clothes an his goals, there are still signs that don’t point to Puritanism. First look at the clothes Caleb and Philip wear as children:

Philip’s pants are red and Calebs are green. While it is a myth that Puritans could only wear black, the colors that they were allowed to incorporate into their wardrobe were typically still neutrals (dark yellows and beiges). Green would be pushing it, and red would be unbelievably bold.

Additionally, the ruffles on Philip’s shirt in the journal and Jacob’s book, would have been seen as incredibly vain.

 The blue/black coat that Caleb wore in the puppet show, and Philip later wears in Elsewhere and Elsewhen and King’s Tide has gold buttons and gold embroidery. Gold and Silver accessories of any kind would have been considered incredibly sinful and conceited. 

Which would also make it really weird for a Puritan to choose gold to represent himself. Infact his whole emperor authentic is much more reminiscent of the Catholic Pope. His own role as the messenger of the Titan’s will is also very papal in nature.

Finally there is the term he uses, “Witch Hunter General” is an illusion to “Witch Finder General” which was a rank made up and used by Protestant Matthew Hopkins and not really used by any Puritans. Such a title would also probably have seemed pretty vain.

Now you might say, “It’s a fictional story, why does any of this matter?”

The answer is: It does not, but I am high and have ADHD and this was the rabbit hole I fell down.

[ntzsche9]

So, hi! I'm Verne (they/them), practically a queer elder in my 30s, brand new to tumblr (dunno how I ever missed the boat), and I only ever seem to write in the 20 minutes or so between pulling up to work and clocking in, or when I'm putting my toddlers down for a nap but don't want to crawl out of their beds and address the chores I gotta do while they're out of the way. I've written poetry, prose, and roleplayed in the past but got away from it for years and years, and only recently started writing again. I have notebooks and lists of story ideas but the few things I have fleshed out are mostly silly character-based "what if?" scenarios, because those are the most fun to me. Too many of my stories are me simply wanting to write a scene, developing a bit of a world around it, then losing interest entirely. I hope this blog can change that a bit, help me focus on following through or figuring out how to better develop small ideas into something longer.

Interests:

Post-apocalyptic

Near-future dystopias

Scifi/Fantasy (urban) with magical realism

History/AltHistory (especially lesser-known and marginalized stories)

Horror, dark, violent, and mature themes

Queer everything. I can't write heteros to save my life and I'm not all that sorry about it.

Sexy melodrama and smut with too much plot

Fanfiction (I could read/write Fallout stuff all day)

Some Favorite Authors:

Octavia Butler

Nnedi Okorafor

VE Schwab

Starhawk

Madeline Miller

Ta-nehisi Coates

Becky Chambers

Emma Donoghue

Looking for:

Community, inspiration, other writers to follow, and problem-solving tips in storytelling and sticking to stories when things get tough. I really just need some folks to talk to when working through all the things in my head. Open to the occasional tag but I'm not great at responding.

I have plenty more little bits of nonsense in various states of readability, like character backgrounds, alt-ending scenes, slice-of-life banter between characters, etc. These will be posted under the tag #ntzsche misc

Noteworthy WIPs:

Bad Blood - A Fallout Nuka-World fanfic (#ntzsche Nuka-World)

My longest story is a fanfic, but with a cast of characters largely not in the Fallout 4 DLC. I intend to eventually write this in a way that someone who hasn't played the game would be able to easily read.

Lafayette, the son of a 'retired' raider, left his abusive father to find his place in the world and was taken in by an eclectic trauma-bonded found family that inspires him to be a better person and shows him love he is certain he doesn't deserve. When his father comes across them in a raid, Lafayette is given the offer to join him, and he agrees in order to save the settlement and his little brother. Lafayette finds that being with his dad again, and being the son he always wanted him to be, isn't nearly as difficult as he thought it would be. He struggles to maintain the person he wants to be with the person he suspects he is, all while a cast of scheming raiders, wastelanders, and slaves vie for power in the raider city built within the rusted remains of an amusement park.

Salem's Child (#ntzsche Salem)

A background on one of the lesser Nuka-World characters that I got carried away with.

Andrew Rook doesn't look like his parents. He looks like someone they are desperate to forget. Growing up in post-apocalyptic Salem, Massachusetts has it's perks, though. In a fading settlement run by incompetent men who would rather blame the population of feral black cats for their problems than try to solve them, Andrew and his two best friends build a world in their imagination that shields them from the wretchedness of the wasteland and the people they have to rely on to survive.

Hechizo

Another character background that I would love to expand into a few short stories around.

Mateo Zavala was born in the vibrant and tight-knit community of Navarro. His great-great-great-great-great-great grandmother, a pre-war ghoul, is still the ruling matriarch, and it's hard for her not to play favorites when she has over 300 living descendants.

The Crash (#ntzsche Crash)

A what-if real-world rewrite of an event from another story. I just really enjoy writing these two.

Gabe always knew his functional alcoholic roomie would get into a terrible car wreck some day, but he never thought he would be dumb enough to be in the car with him. When the consequences of the wreck threaten to destroy Dave's life, Gabe finds himself doing everything he can to hold those pieces together. The love he harbors for his straight, polyamorous best friend runs deeper than either of them are ready to face, and find that Dave's injury turns their relationship completely on end.

[mychemicalimagines]

Black Flame Candle-Max Dennison-Chapter 1

Summary: Max Dennison is the new kid in Salem, Massachusetts. On Halloween, his life takes a dramatic turn when his parents force him to take his little sister, Dani, trick-or-treating. He, his crush, Casey Blackstone, and his sister are in for a ride when Max lights the Black Flame Candle.

Series Warnings: Slight Language, Fluff, Flirting, Angst, Supernatural, Paranormal, Canon Deaths, Bullying. This series is a little more adult than the Disney movie.

Words: 3,446

Tag List: Reblogged

A/N: Here it is! Our secret Halloween Story!! We worked so hard to get this out to you for the month of October!! Divider belongs to firefly-graphics. Do you guys like the gifs? Let Me know if you want them to be continued. 

Comments are always welcome! They give me motivation to post!

If you would liked to be tagged, Message Me, Comment, Submit an Ask or Tag Yourself in My Bio!!

Third Person POV

‘It’s all just a bunch of Hocus Pocus.’

Salem, Massachusetts has always been known for its witchcraft allegations as well as for how they handled each case, calling them the Salem Witch Trials. Three centuries ago, hundreds of people were accused, but only a mere thirty were found guilty. Nineteen were hanged due to the false accusations placed upon them, while others died in jail or were pressed to death.  

Thackery Binx found his sister being whisked away by three actual witches, The Sanderson sisters, who needed her for a spell to stay young and beautiful. The same night his sister had passed away, and his disappearance, the three witches were hanged for their witchcraft, but vowed they’d be back. 

Now every Halloween, the entire town goes all out for the festivities. Casey Blackstone has lived in Salem all her life and loves the holiday. It’s the one time of year she can eat as much candy as she wants and no one will bat an eye, well except for her dentist father. She also loves wearing costumes, being someone else besides herself for a night.

Since her family, as well as her friend Allison’s, thinks they are too old to be trick or treating, they are forced to give out candy this year while Allison’s family has a party. Her parents wanted to go to the party at Town Hall but they got sick so they’re staying home. Her costume is already at the Watt’s house, waiting to be put on later that night. 

Sighing to herself as she fixes her hair in the mirror, Casey turns to her black cat that is sitting on her bed watching her.

Due to the holiday and the history they are taught every year, she felt there was only one name fitting for a black cat such as the one she found almost eleven years ago.

“What do you think of today’s outfit, Binx?” She throws her hands out, showing off her purple low-cut shirt as well as her slightly ripped jeans.

Binx meows his response before stepping toward her to rub his face against her hip, causing his collar to clink against the bell she forces him to wear. 

“I like it too.” She smiles and pets his head as she kneels down next to her bed. “Alright, I got to go to school. Remember, don’t bring mice into the house. If you’re going to bring female cats home, make sure it’s not in my room. I’ll see you tomorrow. You’re my best friend and I love you.”

She kisses the top of his head before picking up her bookbag and walking out of the room, not noticing him climbing out of her window as soon as she closes her door a smidge. She wasn’t lying. Her cat was her best friend and she makes sure to tell him everyday, despite him probably not knowing what the hell she’s saying. 

She had found him in her backyard one day, eating a mouse with no collar. It was clear that he belonged to no one, that he was on his own. She knew she had to take him in, after asking her parents of course. Ever since, she’s been feeding him, playing with him and letting him sleep on her bed, cuddled up next to her. 

She even lets him roam free, knowing he’ll come right back home. He’s literally her best friend and she wouldn’t trade him for the world, even if he leaves her surprises on the back porch. After slipping on her shoes and red jacket, she walks out the front door, ready to take on the day.

Max Dennison has only been in town for about a week and a half and he already hates it. He misses the sunny days of California. He misses his friends. Hell, he misses his old house. To him, Salem, Massachusetts is a horrible place to live. It’s gloomy, rainy and far too obsessed with this witchy, Halloween stuff.

It was never his favorite holiday to begin with so moving to a town that is all for it irritates him. He can’t wait to move once he turns eighteen next year. The only thing good about this town is this one girl. On Max’s first day of school earlier this week, he caught sight of a beautiful girl. Blonde hair. These crystal blue eyes that remind him of the ocean back home. 

He’s never even spoken a word to her and he’s already hooked. He rubs his eyes as he walks to his final class of the day. History. The third class he has with the girl he has his eyes on. Seeing her will make this boring class worth it. He sits down in his assigned seat and pulls out his notebook, unsure of what they will be learning today. 

As he opens his notebook, he glances up at a soft giggle that enters his ears. There she is. The purple shirt she’s wearing really brings out her eyes, and he’s really trying hard not to look down a smidge. As she walks by him, he quickly looks down at his notebook, not wanting to be caught watching her.

 Since she sits in the row next to him, but one seat behind, he can easily get caught by the teacher, or hell, another student! Maybe today, he’ll finally talk to her…yeah, probably not going to happen. As class starts, their teacher, Miss Olin who is dressed as a witch, begins telling the legend of the Sanderson Sisters. 

The very legend that Casey got her cat's name from. Even though she knows every bit of the legend, she’s listening closely, hoping to hear something different but she never does. Max, however, is doodling in his notebook, not believing one ounce of the story. 

“Poor Thackery Binx. Neither his father, his mother, nor anyone else ever knew what became of him…those 300 years ago.” Miss Olin says, walking up an aisle before stopping in front of the classroom. “And so the Sanderson Sisters were hanged by the Salem townsfolk. Now, there are those who say that on Halloween night…a black cat still guards the old Sanderson house, warning off any who might make the witches…come back to life!”

She then throws a black ribbon attached to her hand at a girl’s face causing the teenage girl to scream in fright. The rest of the students in the room, besides Max, laugh at her scream. Max shakes his head in disbelief as he doodles.

“Give me a break.” He mumbles, moving his pen along the letters he drew.

“Aha, we seem to have a skeptic in our midst.” Miss Olin raises an eyebrow as she steps toward his desk. “Mr. Dennison, would you care to share your California, laid-back, tie-dyed point of view?”

The room erupted into laughter again at her sarcasm. He looks up at her after glancing around the room and smirks, gaining some courage. 

“Okay. Granted that, uh, you guys here in Salem are all into these, uh, black cats and witches and stuff…”

Miss Olin cuts him off with a scoff while the rest of the room let him know that his words were unneeded by their tones of displeasure. 

“Stuff?”

“Fine. But everyone here knows that Halloween was invented by the candy companies. It’s a conspiracy.” He finishes, smirking at his teacher. 

 A voice speaks up, capturing Max’s attention. He turns toward the voice and his cheeks redden a bit at who is talking. It’s her…

“It just so happens that Halloween is based on the ancient feast called All Hallows Eve. It’s the one night of the year where the spirits of the dead can return to earth.” She explains, giving the teenager her own smirk. 

The class breaks out into cheers and claps at her comment, happy to prove the new kid wrong with his non-beliefs and crappy theories. He turns back to his notebook and flips to a new paper, quickly jotting something down, a small smile on his face as he keeps his courage. 

“Well said, Casey.” Miss Olin says, smiling widely at her, clapping herself.

She grins to herself and high fives Allison who is sitting right behind the non-believer. Max stands up from his chair as his classmates talk around him. He takes a few steps toward her desk, capturing her attention. 

“Well, in case Jimi Hendrix shows up tonight, here’s my number.” He says, holding out the piece of paper.

She raises an eyebrow, ignoring her classmates groans, and takes the single sheet before opening it up. ‘Max Dennison 555-9142’ it reads. The bell rings and Casey stands up from her chair, giving the boy a small smirk as she puts the number in her pocket. He smiles at her actions before watching her walk away.

“Max.” A boy that sat behind her captures his attention. “Fat chance.”

The new kid just rolls his eyes and gathers his stuff up, ready to go home. Casey quickly stops at her locker, making sure to grab her jacket while sticking all her books in the metal container. Since Halloween is such a big holiday in Salem, the school doesn’t give out homework if it lands on a weekend such as today. 

As she puts her notebook away, she notices a pen sitting on the top shelf. Smirking to herself, she pulls out Max’s number and rips the paper, jotting something down on one half. Shoving one piece into her jeans pocket and the other, along with the pen, into her jacket pocket, she hangs her bookbag on the hook and closes the door. 

Casey then jogs out to the front doors, meeting up with Allison as she glances around the parking lot. 

“So did he really give you his number?” Allison asks, fixing her bag that rests on her shoulder as they walk down the sidewalk. 

“He did.” She nods, smiling softly to herself as she plays with the paper in her jacket pocket.

“And are you going to call him?” Her friend raises an eyebrow.

“If I do, it won't be till…”

“Casey!” 

The blonde turns around and sees the new kid on his bike, riding toward her. She looks at her best friend and gestures down the road.

“I’ll catch up.”

Allison raises an eyebrow at the brunette haired boy before nodding at her friend. Casey turns back around and watches as Max stops his bike beside her, panting very softly as he straddles his seat. 

“Hi.” She says, smiling slightly at him. 

“Hi. Look, uhh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you in class.” He says, regretting his actions. 

He thought about it on his way to his bike. He shouldn’t have done that. What if she hates him now? What if she never wants to see him again? He practically humiliated her in front of their entire class. 

“You didn’t.” She shrugs, not caring one bit about the awkward exchange that happened. 

If anything, she’s the one that embarrassed him in front of the entire class by proving him wrong. He pauses for a moment, unsure of what to say so he lets go of his handlebars and holds his hand out to her. 

“My name is Max Dennison.” He says, despite having practically told her through his note.

“Yeah, I know.” She says, shaking his hand. “You just moved here, huh?”

“Yeah, last week.” He says, not wanting to think about how soft her hands were compared to his. 

“Must be a big change for you.” She says, letting go of his hand to put her own back into her jacket pocket. 

“Yeah, that’s for sure.” He says, scoffing slightly, gripping his handlebars again.

“You don’t like it here?” She raises an eyebrow.

“Oh, the leaves are great…” He says, gesturing around them. “But - I - I don’t know. Just all this Halloween shit.”

“You don’t believe in it?” She asks, pushing her hip out slightly as she rests most of her body weight on one leg, not caring about his language.

“What? Do you mean, like The Sanderson Sisters?” He shakes his head with a light chuckle escaping his lips. “No way.”

“Not even on Halloween?” She asks, biting her lip softly, trying to hide her amusement.

“Especially not on Halloween.” He says, putting emphasis on the beginning of his sentence with a smile.

Casey licks the inside of her cheek before reaching into her pocket. Holding up two fingers with a piece of paper sitting between them, she gently pulls Max’s left hand off his handlebars. He opens his hand, watching her movements, praying that his cheeks aren’t turning red at her actions. She presses the piece of paper into his hand, smiling as she looks up at him as she closes his hand around it. 

“Trick or treat.”

Letting his hand go, she turns around and starts walking toward where Allison is waiting, talking to another friend of theirs. Max’s eyes watch her before looking down at the folded paper. His heart is pounding in his chest as he moves to open the paper.

“Max!” He hears her call out for him, causing his head to snap up. “Call me Cas.”

Not knowing what to say, he nods at her words, watching her walk away again. This time, she turns around and puts up her red hood, making it look like she was wearing a witch’s pointed hat. He bites his lip and looks back down at the piece of paper. Swallowing the small amount of spit in his mouth, he unfolds the paper. 

The first thing that caught his eye was that the top half was ripped off, meaning…she kept his number! He smiles softly before looking at the words written. ‘Casey Blackstone. 555-????. No tricks, Max. Earn your treat.’ with a smiley face. The smile drops from his face for a moment before it shows up again. 

She didn’t give him her full number, but by the way she wrote this note, she might plan on giving it to him later! Hell, if she did keep his number, is she going to call him later? He looks back up toward the direction his blonde crush was walking to see her in the distance, walking with her friend. He bites the inside of his lip before putting the note into his pocket.

“What was that about?” Allison asks, glancing over her shoulder to see Max pedaling away on his bike.

“Oh, nothing.” Casey grins as she walks. “Just apologizing for embarrassing me in class.”

“Oh!” She nods before squealing softly. “Anyway! My mom said your costume will go great with ours.”

“Do I really have to be a peasant while your whole family, as well as their friends, are wearing  Masquerade outfits?” She groans slightly.

“She said there were only two dresses so she had to get you something else.” Allison says, shrugging.

“I knew I should have gotten the bunny costume when I had the chance.” Casey mumbles, walking down the road.

Max is ready to go back home to California. Today has been one of the worst days of his entire life. First, he embarrasses his crush in class. She said he didn’t, but he knows he did. Then he was stopped at the graveyard by two wanna-be rapper bullies, Jay and Ernie. Sorry, Ice - not Ernie. Lastly, they took his brand new shoes! 

His shoes! What jerks take someone else’s shoes? He had to pedal all the way back home in just his socks. It was so humiliating. He parks his bike next to the house and practically stomps up the stairs to the back door. Slamming the screen door open, he opens the wooden door that leads to the kitchen to see his mom and dad putting away items from their move. 

“Hey, Max!” His mom says, smiling at him. “Hey, how was school?”

“It fucking sucked.” He says, leaving the door open as he makes his way through the room. 

“Hey, hey, hey, watch your language.” His dad says, standing up from the floor.

He ignores him and starts walking up the stairs that lead to the bedrooms. 

“I can’t believe you made me move here!” He calls down before walking to his door. 

He slams his head against the wood, next to his name plate that he put there, causing his hat to bunch up. He sighs and smacks the door with the side of his fist. Taking a second to himself, he opens the door and throws his book bag onto the floor near to his drum set. He rips his hat off his head and throws it against the stairs in his room that leads to the window seat above. 

He shakes off his jacket as he walks and tosses it to the ground behind him. Trying to calm himself down, he sighs deeply as he looks out the window before glancing down at the fish tank he has beside his bed. He picks up their container of food.

“Hey, guys.” He says, leaning down to sprinkle some into the water. 

He puts the flakes down before sitting on his bed, laying back into the pillows. There was one good thing about today, though. She talked to him! He rolls away from his fish tank and grabs one of his extra pillows, cuddling it to his chest. He grins to himself as he thinks about her. Her voice. Her hair. Her smile…

“Oh, Cas.” He mumbles, smiling as he closes his eyes, imaging her right beside him. “You’re so soft. I just wanna hug…”

His closet doors slam open as a child's voice is heard.

“Boo!”

He jumps slightly, looking over his shoulder as he lets his pillow go. 

“Dani!” He snaps at his little sister who was hiding in his room. 

She laughs and squeals in victory as she claps, knowing she scared him. She runs toward him, still laughing and jumps over him to lay down. He sits up, raising an eyebrow at her as all his anger from the day comes back. 

“I scared you, I scared you!” She leans up so she’s close to his face. “Ha-ha! Ha-ha! Ha!”

He shakes his head but before he can speak, she lays back and throws her arms out, a smile still on her face.

“I’m Cas! Cas! Kiss me, I’m Cas!”

Embarrassed that his sister caught him daydreaming about his crush, he stands up and looks at her. 

“Mom and dad told you to stay out of my room!”

“Don’t be such a crab.” She says, standing up on his mattress before jumping up and down. “Guess what. You’re taking me trick-or-treating.”

He sighs and shakes his head. “Not this year, Dani.”

“Mom said you have to.” Dani says, jumping off his bed, landing on her feet beside him. 

“Well, she can take you.” He says, turning to walk away. 

She grabs him by his sleeve and pulls him back.

“She and dad are going to a party at Town Hall.”

“Well, you’re eight! Go by yourself.” He says, pulling his shirt from her hand and walking to his drum set. 

He sits down as he grabs his sticks and immediately begins to play a beat, ignoring his sister as he closes his eyes. She sighs with a determined look on her face and walks over to him. 

“No way! This is my first time! I’ll get lost! Besides, it’s a full moon outside! The weirdos are out!” Noticing he isn’t backing down, Dani walks around the drum set to wrap her arms around her older brother’s shoulders forcing him to stop playing. “Come on, Max. Couldn’t you forget about being a cool teenager just for one night? Please…Come on. We used to have so much fun together trick-or-treating. Remember? It’ll be like old times.”

He shrugs her off and shakes his head. If he was going to willingly take her, that just ruined her chances.

“No. The old days are dead.” He says, beginning to play the same beat again. 

Dani puts her hands on her hips and glares at him. 

“It doesn’t matter what you say. You’re taking me!”

He instantly stops and looks at her, the same glare on his own face. 

“Wanna bet?”

He drops his sticks onto the Floor Tom drum and jumps up from his seat. He runs up the small flight of stairs, skipping a few steps and sits at the top, near the window seat, crossing his arms on his knees. His little sister stomps toward the stairs before putting her hands on her hips again. 

“MOM!!!!” She screams loudly.

[kammy0323]

Innsmouth Rewrite Project Season 1 Introduction

Hello, One and all. I'm back after spending way too long with writer's block. This is... yet another introduction. I'm sorry for doing two back-to-back intros without showing any real content. Worry not, I have something special up my tattered sleeves. I want to make an introduction to the first piece of content I am going to be writing for this page, which is Season 1 of the Innsmouth Writing Project. Without further ado, let's get into the detes. (Yes I sometimes use cyberpunk lingo.)

What Is Innsmouth?

Innsmouth (formerly known as "The Innsmouth Conspiracy") was a Call of Cthulhu campaign I ran between March of 2022 to February of 2024. For those who do not know what Call of Cthulhu is, it is a tabletop role-playing game that takes place in the Cthulhu mythos. Innsmouth was my first time dipping into horror as a writer and a game master. Sadly I was never able to finish it, hence why I started this project. First to relive the glory days and share my favorite story (even though I bastardized H.P. Lovecraft's mythos. Even though that racist bastard deserved it) and second to give Innsmouth the ending it always deserved and to give myself (and the poor characters I tortured for 2 years) closure.

Innsmouth Background

Innsmouth is your average small city on the coast of Massachusetts, save for its mysterious past. The town was founded in 1643 as a simple port town, however throughout its history many mysterious disappearances and rumors of a cult arose, the most strange of the old town's incidents was in 1846, when half of the population went missing, the other half being completely ignorant to the disappearances. In 1928, the entire town was put under siege by federal agents adhering to a government agency nobody had heard of. The town was demolished and most of its remaining locals were killed or scattered to the winds. The official story was that the entire town was in on a massive bootlegging operation...

It took decades to rebuild the town, but in the 50s, Innsmouth was back to normal. Almost. Strange occurrences continue to plague the town which earned it the name "Little Salem", but such incidents are few and far between. That is, until May of 1976. (Yes, this is a historical story.)

Cast:

Detective Johnson Lee Hendricks

Age: 27

Pronouns: He/Him

Orientation: Straight

Occupation: police detective

Backstory: Born and raised in Innsmouth, John is no stranger to Innsmouth's shady past, however, he's always just ignored it, chalking it up to superstition and rumors. Most folks in the town see him as the all-American boy next door. He always did well in school, played sports with all the other boys, and gave back to his community by joining the Innsmouth police department. However, his perfect picket fence life came crashing down when he was drafted to go to war in Vietnam. He served three tours before coming home. The people of the town personally saw him as an upstanding citizen for taking the draft "like a man" but they never knew what he saw in those jungles and all of the horrible things he did, and he never liked to discuss it neither.

Face Claim:

Detective Leo Afton

Age: 23

Pronouns: He/Him

Orientation: pansexual

Occupation: Police Detective

Backstory: Born Leena Afton, Leo was always a strange child sheltered by strange people. Her mother was like every normal mom in his neighborhood, however his dad would be considered a helicopter parent. Leo was always under intense watch from his father, as if his father always expected something to happen. This caused Leo to be isolated from all the other neighborhood kids. When Leo was a young adult he gained the courage to come out to his father as a Trans man. Surprisingly his father accepted him and helped him get top surgery to accommodate his son. The watching never stopped though. Leo fed up with it. Left and moved to Florida and joined the Miami Police Department, however, he still occasionally takes trips to Innsmouth for holidays and to check up on his parents.

Face Claim:

Father Chris Chapel

Age: 45

Pronouns: He/Him

Orientation: Straight

Occupation: Protestant Priest

Backstory: Father Chapel (better known as simply Father Chris) is yet another Innsmouth native. Most of his past is unknown as he tried to stay out of public view for most of his life. However, schoolyard rumors almost universally suggest three things. His family is massive, he has ties to the mafia, and his home has weapons hidden all over it. What is known for sure is that he is a single father trying his best to take care of his son, Michael.

Face Claim:

Frankenstein Edwin Duffy

Age: 37

Pronouns: He/Him

Orientation: Unknown

Occupation: Author

Backstory: Frank is an oddity wrapped in an enigma. He is one of the only characters not to be born in Innsmouth, hailing from Derry, Maine. According to his autobiography, he had a normal childhood until an incident happened in Maine which caused his family to flee the town and spend his adult life in Innsmouth. The only two possessions he brought were a typewriter and a strange book of (what he described as) occult nature. The Innsmouth PD constantly runs wellness checks on him to make sure that he is safe and sound at least physically. Who knows if his mind is even salvageable?

Face Claim:

Well... that's all folks. I look forward to writing and releasing episode one of Innsmouth on... some platform. I'm still figuring out where. When the first episode is finished I'll be sure to send a link or even upload it directly here if possible.

[fantasies-fairytales-n-fics]

Code Blue Ch. 27- Brother

Summary: Luke and Lee reconnect. Josie is floored. A secret starts to unravel. Lee and Jo share pizza and a talk. A lot comes to light, but not everything. Luke and Orlando have a conversation that doesn't end well. Jo and Lee head to the farm. Orlando plots. Luke makes a move.

*Warnings* language, angst, drug references, molestation references

Stories Stories Stories Masterlist

Chapter characters: Lee, Josie, Luke,

Salem, Massachusetts

February 28, 2023

"Holy hell! Luke??" Lee exhilarated as they shared the typical manly back patting hug.

"The one and only! Long time no see my brother from another mother." Luke replied, leaving you reeling at the fact that not only was he a spitting image of Orlando with his dark hair and similar eyes, but he shared the same British accent and smile.

Their embrace ended and Luke did a double take at you as you stood their with your mouth open, gawking at him.

"And who may I ask is this delightful creature?" he asked with an intense smile as he approached you.

Lee chuckled. "Isn't she? This is my beautiful and captivating girlfriend, Josie March. Jo, this is Luke, Orlando's brother."

"Ahhh, Lee, you're killing me here. It is of the greatest pleasure to meet you Josie."

"Likewise." you smiled and shook his extended hand. "Umm I...I didn't know he had another brother?"

"Well, it's understandable that I wasn't mentioned. I haven't been around much and I am sure Lando is a bit pissed off at me for that. Mum was able to reach me and told me what happened, so I had to come and see my little brother, then go find Ethan and kick his ass. How's Lando doing?"

"As well as can be expected. His surgery went well and he is resting. Your Mom was here earlier and...he became upset and had to be sedated, so now he's sleeping like a baby." Lee explained. "Hey umm, I don't know if you know, but...Orlando told me that...your dad is in town, that Ethan brought him here."

"What???" you harshly interrupted, as you had no idea, plus you knew about what his dad had done to him.

"Sorry Jo. I wasn't trying to keep that from you. I really just forgot while we were talking."

Lee looked upon you oddly in response to your reaction, for he didn't know Orlando had told you about his father or what he had done to him. Orlando had asked you not to say anything, so out of respect for him, you didn't, even though he told you Lee knew what happened. Of course, Lee never told you because it wasn't his secret to tell and you understood that. Orlando had only asked for your silence because he and Lee were at odds then and he didn't want to cause issues for you and him over confiding such a deep and dark secret to you. You now felt it was probably alright to tell him you knew because well, you pretty much had to now anyways since it was all coming out into the open as secrets always do.

"No, it's ok Lee. I know we were wrapped up in other things. We can...talk more later on this?"

Your gaze at Lee told him that you knew. "Uh, yeah sure Jo."

He was hurt. You heard it in his tone and saw it in his eyes.

"No man, I didn't know. Ethan and I are going to go round when I find him. He's crossed one too many lines and this...this I cannot even fathom right now."

"Yeah Tracy showed Luke's photo to the nurses and told them he is not permitted to see Orlando, so they are aware that he may try to visit him. Ethan too." Lee explained to Luke.

"Wait...Tracy? Luke? I...assume that is his...your Mom and Dad?" you asked in confusion, in which the Luke in front of you validated your question.

"Yes. Theresa is our mom, but she goes by Tracy and then there's our dad...Luke senior. Knowing what I know about him, I really want to change my name."

Luke's grimace confirmed that he despised his father as much as Orlando did.

"No man, you can't change your name. Then we wouldn't be Luke, Lee and Lando." Lee chuckled to try and distract Luke's humiliation. "And besides, you're nothing like him."

"Your words are too kind old friend. When or if this all blows over, we'll all have to hang out like we used to long ago. I miss those days. Happier times. The REAL three musketeers. Your beauty here can come too."

You felt yourself blush a little. Luke certainly was a lot like Orlando and nothing like Ethan or Sam. It seemed to you they must have inherited the asshole thing from the dad.

"Yeah man, we'll have to do that. Hey, Jo and I were just heading out for pizza. You wanna join since Lando's asleep?"

"Yeah I heard that when I walked up. I would, but I think I'll stay with him now that I know dad's around. Hey man...I'm so sorry about your dad...I would have came to the funeral but I wouldn't have made it in time. I should have at least called you. I honestly have no excuse for that. Just kind of wrapped up in my own shit. I'm truly sorry Lee."

"Hey, no worries. I completely get the part of dealing with a lot of shit and you lose sight of other things in life. Apology not needed but accepted. You're here now, that's what counts. How long are you going to be in town?"

"At this point, it's indefinite, but I feel it will still be awhile with all that's going on. Orlando needs me and I have a lot of time to make up for. And now mum is here. Not sure for how long but I know she's been sick lately. No clue what's going on with her. So, for now, I'm at the Salem Inn...but I think I will stay with Lando...if he lets me that is."

"He'll let you. I'm sure of it. Well, hit me up soon then. Hopefully you'll still be here for my birthday next month. Party at the farm? If I still have it that is."

"What does that mean, if you still have it? What's going on bro?"

"One word. Gordon. I'll explain all that some other time."

"I can only imagine what that little fucker has done now. I can kick his ass too if you want?" Luke laughed.

"Nah...leave him for me." Lee chuckled. "I'll deal with my brother and you deal with yours. Of course, if I see Ethan though, I may deal with him myself."

"Deal. Talk soon. Nice to meet you Josie March. Glad to see Lee so happy with you. You both make a striking pair."

"Thank you. It was really nice to meet you too Luke. Tell Orlando I was here and I'll come see him later either here, or when he's released. He don't have a phone. Ethan destroyed it."

"Will do...and I'll make sure he gets a new phone. Hey, and thanks for what you did for my brother. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn't saved him. You got one brave lady there Lee. Landy's lucky to have you both."

"That she sure is. See ya later man."

As you and Lee headed to the parking lot, he finally brought it up.

"So, I take it you know what happened to Orlando involving his dad." he asked, but more in the form of a statement rather than a question.

"Lee...I..do. I'm sorry, he swore me to secrecy. You guys were fighting and.."

"No, baby. It's alright. I'm not upset. I know why he didn't want you to tell me. He knew I would catch on to his feelings for you considering he would never just tell anyone about that."

"You...seem upset though?"

"Well, I am...not at you. Just the situation. I mean, my best friend is in love with my girlfriend."

"Lee...even if that were true....I love you. Not him. I mean, as a friend, I love him just as I do Britt, Amy or Dave but..."

Your words were halted by Lee gently yanking you against him with his hands folded behind your back and his cobalt eyes peering down at you as he grinned.

"Stop explaining."

His soft hands then slid up your waist and came to a rest upon your cheeks as he brought his lips down to yours. The kiss was delicate and brief, but enough to take your breath away and make you weak in the knees as you stood on your tippy toes to reach him even as he leaned down.

"Mmmm." Lee moaned as he then kissed the tip of your nose. "Come on. Let's go eat. You pick the place. I'll follow you anywhere woman."

Lee parked behind your silver 87 Monte Carlo SS in his pale green 75 Dodge Dart Swinger at a favorite pizza place of yours and he quickly rushed up to your door to open it for you.

You just swooned over the fact that you were blessed with such a gentleman. He was the whole package and much more. The king in a fairytale that you had always dreamed of...and it scared the hell out of you. Things like that were always too good to be true. At least that's what you had always believed after your past relationships. You couldn't help but wait for the bomb to drop just as it always had.

You chose a high rise table to move to so Lee would be more comfortable after he damn near got stuck in a booth due to his size, then you both ordered ice waters with lemon and the mutual favorite large pepperoni and mushroom pizza that seemed like a lifetime you both had waited for to finally share. He then went on to tell you his horror stories of being so tall which had you rolling in laughter.

"No, seriously Jo, I can't make this shit up. Like, you think I would have learned after repeated incidents of getting my head whacked in the ceiling fan in the farm's basement. Especially when one time, the blade broke clean off. I don't know which was worse, that, or my mom's wrath of whacking me in the head. I always knew I was in for it when she shouted my full name. "Lee Grinner Pace!! That is the second fan you've destroyed. How hard is it to duck!! I swear, after all the blows to your noggin, you would think you'd learn!" And then I'd be like this total smart ass kid and say "Well why do we need a fan in the basement?? I can't stand up in the damn thing as it is!", which is where said head whack by mom came in."

"So, let me guess. I bet there is no ceiling fan down there now." you giggled.

"Nope!!" he chortled. "I've actually done a lot of remodeling on the place with it being so old. It was built in like 1812 or something. You know, I have never taken a girl there. Never wanted to until you. Never even took Liz. My parents didn't like her anyways which I'm sure you now know why. God, they would have loved you though."

Lee's face became doleful as he sipped his water. Everything was still so fresh for him with his dad's passing and he was trying so hard for you to be strong with all that was happening.

"I'm sure I would have loved them too. I mean, look what they gave me." you sweetly said and laid your hand upon his.

He smiled and brought his hand up to your cheek, gently sliding your hair behind your ear. "I'm forever grateful for you, standing by me through all my bullshit when you should have ran as far away as you could....but god I'm so glad you didn't. And I hope you won't now."

His blue eyes held woe in them and you could feel it....and you were pretty sure it involved Ethan.

"Lee, why would I leave? I have never been so happy. You...said you wanted to talk to me, so talk to me, please baby. What is wrong?"

He sighed in hesitation, for he didn't want to ruin the good time the two of you were having, but he knew he needed to come clean, at least with some things. It wasn't that he didn't trust you, it was that he was scared to death he would lose you, so he did his best to delay the inevitable by changing the subject.

"What is up with Gerry anyways? Making house calls, for the second time now."

You heard it, the jealousy in his tone, but you understood it. You felt that way about Ethan, more so than you wanted to admit.

"Ummm, just Gerry using his authority to get close to me."

"Lee, there's nothing to worry about with him. I shut him down just as I always do whenever I have to deal with his groveling. I love you and I made that quite known to him. I see no one but you. Please tell me you believe that? I've given all of me to you. You're my entire world Lee."

"And you're mine Jo March..of course I believe you. Come here baby."

Lee stood up and pulled you close, then bent down and placed a simple soft long kiss on your lips, making you tingle all over. You knew what he was doing though. Deflecting from the real issue at hand. As much as you wanted to stay in that lip lock, you wanted to know what was going on with him more. You stroked his cheek and smiled, then went right back to your question.

"Lee...please. Tell me what's going on in that beautiful mind of yours. You're obviously struggling over something you want to tell me. Just tell me. Get it off your chest so we can work through it together."

His eyes lowered in disappointment and then he sat back down.

"Alright then...the morning after the funeral, when I went downstairs to make us breakfast...there were...messages on the machine. They were from Ethan..."

Lee paused and rubbed his hand over his face as he sat back with a hard sigh through his nose.

"There were at least a dozen, one right after the other. My phone had many texts as well. They were a mix of angry ones, desperate and pleading ones, jealous ones...you name it. I had deleted some and then I just unplugged the machine and threw it in the drawer out of frustration. I...I didn't want you to hear them and become upset and ruin our first morning together."

"Yeah...I...I had seen you looking at your phone before we went outside and you didn't look happy, but...I didn't think I should say anything. God, no wonder you had that panic attack Lee, and the way you were chopping that wood. I knew something was wrong. Baby, why didn't you just tell me? I mean, why would I get upset? It wasn't your fault that Ethan is unstable. Unless...did he threaten you? or...me? Is that it?"

"No, he didn't. Just, you know, after all that he had done, I just wanted to ignore him and forget about it. I know now that it was the wrong thing to do...I mean, it's my fault for what he did to Orlando that night. He took his anger over me out on him."

"Oh god no Lee, that is not your fault! That is Ethan's fault and no one else's. But Lee, if he would do that to his own brother and what he did to us in the car, then I should have been told about the messages. He's a threat Lee and now he walks around free to hurt someone again and I'm worried that may be you."

"I can handle Ethan. It's you I'm worried about. Orlando wouldn't admit it, but...I think Ethan threatened you and that's why Orlando backed off of him. I think he coerced him into lying by using you against him. Just another reason I feel Orlando loves you. I called him out on that too, but he wouldn't talk."

"Alright, then I will get the truth out of him myself on why he really did it when I go see him again....Lee...Britt...she told me something at the hospital. Something she remembered after seeing Ethan at the funeral reception and hearing us talking about him at the hospital. She swears she saw Ethan years ago on the Haunted Star, my family's boat...and Jason was there with him....and so were you. They were gambling with a well known mob family. Is...that true? Did...Ethan know my brother? Did...you?"

"Not all of it. I swear Jo. I never knew Jason or even spoke to him...but...yes, I...I do remember seeing him there talking with Ethan...Jo I'm so..."

"And you didn't think I needed to know that??? Lee...for fucks sake...is Ethan involved in the mob too?? Is that what you're keeping from me??"

"I don't know if he knew your brother, I swear it Jo. If he did, he never mentioned him to me and I swear I did not know who Jason was then."

"You do an awful lot of swearing Lee, then things just pop up like this. Ok, I believe you that you did not know my brother, but you knew now who he was and that you had seen him with Ethan before. My brother, he didn't just have regular friends and hang out like us having pizza!" you sarcastically explained with a laugh.

"And you were there with Ethan. Is this what Ethan meant when he told me you weren't telling me everything? What the hell am I missing here Lee???"

Lee sat quietly with his head hung low as he fidgeted with his glass, and of course, you instantly felt bad for jumping on him like that when he was most likely trying to protect you from being hurt over Jason's dealings.

"Jo...." he said with an aggravated sigh. "I...I don't remember a whole lot from that night, after...we left the boat. Ethan and I met up at Gordon's for a party. The same party that we all got high out of our minds on and I...well, you know...with Ethan...I...I'm sorry I did not tell you about seeing Jason in my past...I felt it would just leave you with more questions that I did not have the answers to. I don't know the nature of Ethan's relations with Jason. He didn't speak of it to me. Beings that I didn't know Jason at the time or what he was into, I had no reason to think anything of it. I went there solely to drink with Ethan and have a good time. I'm sorry Jo....I need to use the restroom."

Lee hastily pushed his chair out and walked off, leaving you on the verge of tears.

"Landy...wakey wakey little brother." Luke said as he saw Orlando was coming around from his sedation.

Orlando's vision was a bit out of focus as he opened his groggy eyes.

"L...Lukey?"

Luke smiled and winked at him. "Yep, it's me baby bro. How are you feeling?"

Orlando gasped and quickly sat up. "Where the hell have you been?? Do you know it's been almost a year since I've seen you?!"

"I know man. I'm sorry. I really am. Like you, my mind hasn't been right. I know it's no excuse but..."

"Damn right it's not! Even with all I deal with, I have been calling you all the time. So, now you wait till something like this happens to come around. Surprised you even found out since you just dropped off the face of the fucking earth."

"Mum called me. I knew she was coming so I thought I better get my ass here for damage control. I...I heard about...him...being here. You haven't seen him yet have you? Mum made sure to tell the nurses he wasn't allowed here. Ethan either."

"No...and I better not. I still have a good left hand."

"Yeah, speaking of that. What the fuck Landy. Why are you protecting Ethan???"

"I'm not protecting him! I'm....never mind. it doesn't matter."

"The hell it don't. I saw Lee and his girlfriend earlier and they told me all about what really happened, which I had already suspected."

"J..Josie...was..here??"

"Ummm, yes? and Lee I said too." Luke replied, immediately picking up on Orlando's quick inquiry to solely you. "You know, your best mate?"

"Yes Luke, I know. He was here all night. I just didn't know she came back. Her and Sam...well, that didn't go so well."

"Let me guess. Sammie is defending Ethan. Nothing new there."

"Yep...same old. You should have seen it." Orlando laughed. "Josie got sick of her mouth and tried to attack her. That girl is a firecracker. Always has my back, even when I didn't deserve it."

"Yeah..uh..well, that firecracker is Lee's girlfriend in case you have forgotten."

"Yeah Luke, I know! What's that got to do with anything?"

"Apparently a lot. I know you better than anyone....you...you got a thing for her, don't you?"

"What? Noooo? She's just a good friend...like Lee. I mean, look what she did for me."

"I call bullshit bro. Does Lee know? That you have the hots for his woman?"

"Ok just stop man. I'm just grateful to her, that's all."

"Gratitude. That's what you're calling it. Ok then.....bullshititude Lando."

"Enough man, about her!! She loves him. They always do. You know that."

"Alright...I'll drop it for now. Hey, I went and got you a phone after they left. She wants you to get a hold of her and that she would be back to see you at some point."

"Thought you were dropping it already??"

"I...am?? I was imply relaying a message. Wow man...you got it bad for this girl. Are you....in love with her????"

"What?? No, stop it. Bad enough I have to hear about it from Lee."

"Oh, so then he DOES know...and...holy shit, then it's true??"

"Jesus...so what if it is?? Yeah, I love her...big fucking deal. She'll never love me so...just...stop already!"

"Fine...I didn't come all the way here to talk about your love life, although it seems it's a big part of your troubles. So, what the hell happened with Ethan... and don't you fucking lie to me like you lied about him."

"Well if you already know the truth, then why ask me??"

"Because I wanna see you try and lie to me."

"Man, fuck you. What gives you the right to demand a damn thing from me after you just left me at their mercy!"

"Ok...I guess I deserve that...but man, I never would have left if I had known what I know now. You didn't even tell me about dad until last year, so how was I..."

"How were you to know?? Christ! Don't tell me you didn't know?? You knew how dad treated all of us, and how I got the shit end of it all and you DID know about how Ethan was! and you just fucking bailed and left mum to deal with it. No wonder she's sick all the time. I can barely handle it."

"You're right..." Luke replied as his eyes fell in shame. "I bailed. I failed you and mum. I was young and foolish and..."

"Selfish! That's what you were. You know, when you were there, he barely touched me...and when you left, it was a free for all! And then you just come strolling back in here with your lame ass apologies. Just get out!"

"No man, I'm not leaving! We're not done here. You're not going to blame me for what that piece of trash did. That's on him!"

"Yeah, and now he's here...somewhere! Yes, we ARE done here. Now get...the...fuck...out."

"You know what? Fine. I'll go...for now. I got a bone to pick with Ethan. I'll beat the truth out of him. One way or another, I will get it, even though I already know it."

"Whatever...GO!!" Orlando shouted and threw his water cup at him.

Luke reluctantly left in a fury and shortly after, Orlando ripped the IV out of his arm, got dressed, grabbed the phone and left too.

Lee came back to the table and sat down, keeping his eyes safe from yours, for he had shed a few tears as he had stared at himself in the bathroom mirror....but you noticed. You stood up and wrapped your arms around him, leaving him stunned for a moment, and then he slowly returned the embrace, squeezing you so tight.

"I am so sorry Lee." you whispered into his ear. "I should never have acted like that. I believe you. Can...you forgive me?"

Lee slid his face back against yours and let his eyes fall into yours, then he kissed you deeply as he held our face in his hands.

"My sweet girl, there is nothing to forgive." he assured you as he pressed his forehead to yours. "You had every right to be angry with me, for I should have told you what I knew. I...I'm just so terrified of losing you...and I know that makes me sound so insecure but..."

"No...it doesn't. It makes you sound like a man who loves a woman and how in the hell could I be angry about that??"

You smiled at him with such loving eyes and kissed his forehead.

"Come on. Let's go to your farm and forget the world, at least for a little while. Besides, I really want to see this basement. Bet I can stand up in the damn thing." you chuckled, making him chortle in return.

"Alright, my lady. Follow me."

You both got in your cars and off you went while in the meantime, Orlando was walking to his condo with very dark thoughts consuming his mind. This time, he was going to be prepared for his father...and Ethan too, for he had reached his breaking point.

Luke had his own plans as well. He broke into Ethan's apartment and waited for his amoral brother to return while he cooked himself a steak, medium rare.

The door soon opened and in walked an unsuspecting Ethan to find Luke sitting at his kitchen table, nonchalantly cutting his steak with a switch blade knife.

"Whoa, Lukey. Long time no see bro." Ethan raved with a smile.

Without even raising his eyes, Luke spoke as he chewed.

"Nice and bloody. Just the way I like it. You?"

@redeemer46

[thesoulspulse]

Owen's Timeline (Part 1 ~ Childhood)

Even though I mostly made this for personal reference I thought I'd share this timeline with you too in case you're curious. Hopefully my math isn't off or anything but even if it is I only wanted to give myself a general idea of when certain events took place in Owen's life. Just in case you haven't read "Nevermore" yet and don't want to see any spoilers I'll leave the info down below the line so you can decide whether or not to read it. As for anyone who does want to then please enjoy!

Owen's Birthday – September 5th 1987 in Salem, Massachusetts

(Note: Danny was born February 12th 1989)

Ages 1-6 were more or less normal apart from always being able to see & sense ghosts.

A ghost Owen tried to help got pushy and overshadowed one of his teachers in elementary school somewhere between Age 5-10.

He's had the power to see & sense ghosts his entire life, aka a ghost sense similar to Danny's.

Ghosts in the area are naturally drawn to him if they want help moving on or realize he's a Necromancer who can bolster their ghost powers if he wanted to or knew how, making Owen a valuable asset.

Azrael/Kurst kept most of the dangerous ghosts/people away from Owen during his early childhood.

Owen's Visions Start – 1994 - Age 7

These include visions from his previous lives and visions about the ghost's he's met either recently or the distant past. Especially visions about Azrael/Kurst since they secretly share an incomplete blood pact from his previous life.

Ages 7-10 were difficult until Owen pretended he no longer believed in his ghosts/imaginary friends anymore at age 10 mostly to help make his parents feel less worried about him all the time.

In 1996 Mistveil was converted into a group home instead of a rehabilitation center for troubled teens. The director's late wife passed away at some point the same year due to old age.

His Parent's Death – 1998 - Age 11

They were killed by a female Wraith who split herself, overshadowed them, then made them stab each other with a pair of kitchen knives.

His mother was the one who injured Owen while overshadowed, stabbing him just below the navel.

Ages 11-13 Owen went to a middle school in Salem but was mercilessly ridiculed by the other children for blaming his parents death's openly on ghosts.

From the ages 11-13 Owen spent in a different group home in Salem before someone rigged his transfer to Mistveil

His Transfer to Mistveil – 2001 – Age 13

Owen has lived there for 3 years so from ages 13-16

Ages 13-15 he has been dealing with bullies too but meeting Eris made it bearable.

Owen was almost placed with a few new families but either his emerging powers kept acting up enough to cause problems or a ghost showed up and literally spooked them which ultimately led them to return him to Mistveil from ages 11-15

Owen tried to learn to be open to the idea of starting over with a new family but after so many disappointments he gave up the idea of ever being adopted.

Little does Owen many of those incidents were caused on purpose by either members of the council, Azrael/Kurst, or one of their ghostly servants/allies since they're monitoring everyone at Mistveil for signs of supernatural powers. And since he's already suspected to be a Necromancer they're waiting for his full awakening at age 16 because those powers are among the most rare.

To Be Continued In Part 2!

[zoethehead]

a Rannulf and a Nightwing

if you're wondering, the Rannulf lineage is something i kinda came up with, the Nightwing lineage though is in reference to the roblox role playing game; "Vampire Kingdom" with Daisy being based on one of the oc's in that game that I have seen around.

also; I chose Salem, MA due to it's supernatural connections and history

-

Ray had trudged on for days, trying so hard to stay awake; fever surging through his body from the untreated wounds, and the wolfsbane that he had been tranquilized with. If he didn’t find safety; he would die….

He didn’t want to die…

Eventually, through his blurry sight; he saw what looked like a house. It could have just been his delirium, but his mind was just begging to sleep; it had been up for 5 days and his legs started to feel like yarn. He went up to the house, knocking at the door; when it opened, he heard a voice ask;

“hello?”

His mind gave way and he collapsed; everything went black……

-

-

Daisy opened the door; she wasn’t expecting anyone to be here, she looked up---seeing a tall man with red glowing eyes who was covered in dirt and blood; his wounds seemed to be infected, and before Daisy could ask anything else-- the man collapsed. Daisy let out a shriek at the unexpected horror of a man covered in blood and dirt collapsing onto the hardwood floor of the home. The shriek startled Delilah; who ran out into the living room area;

“Daisy! Are you alright?” she asked, noticing that the worm girl seemed pale and scared; trembling as the worm girl pointed to an unconscious heap; a man covered in blood and looked to just be a mess.

Delilah sighed; “Alright, call the doc to help this guy out, I'll get this stranger inside and cleaned off.”

-

It would be quite a lot of minutes; but the unconscious man was eventually cleaned off of the dried blood and dirt caking his body, The doctor showed up and tended to the wounds; he noticed the pentagram shaped scar on the man’s neck, and after researching the info of that scar; It turns out this guy was a part of the Rannulf bloodline; a bloodline of werewolves who keep guard over the island of briar. The doctor then gave some wolfsbane antidote to the unconscious man; applying the ointment over where he had been hit with darts; and some even over the open and infected wounds that had been cleaned out, drained of pus, and disinfected. The doctor gave Delilah some stuff to help with the man’s injuries over the course of his recovery; before he headed back up to his office/room.

-

-

-

Ray came to, his body felt dizzy and unwilling to move. His brows furrowed and he let out a grunt of pain, shifting onto his side, lapsing back into slumber….

-

-

Ray woke up again, regaining consciousness and energy, his eyes opened to a blurred ceiling light; he squinted, closing his eyes to this light, he opened his eyes again, noticing a shadow with bright red eyes looming over him.

“Theeere we go, good morning, sir.” the shadow said, brushing some bangs away from Ray’s forehead, leaning a hand against it. 

Ray jolted up, shielding himself with his injured--yet bandaged arm.

“Hey! Easy there, you’re not in any danger, sir.”  the woman said, backing away slightly, holding both hands up in a signal of apprehension. 

Ray’s vision cleared up, now seeing that this person looked to be a vampire with long ginger hair and red eyes.

“W-where am I?” Ray rasped, now easing himself onto the sofa and pillow that he was resting against earlier.

“You’re at my house, you showed up here and ended up scaring my roommate, her shrieking is what alerted me to you; as for location-wise, you’re in an area of Salem, Massachusetts. It’s honestly a miracle that you didn’t die; considering the amount of blood that you lost, alongside the wolfsbane that you had in your system, and how badly infected the wounds were.” the woman said.

Ray winced as the pain soon increased slightly. The werewolf wrapped the blanket around himself, trying to subside the pain with warmth. Ray pondered how in his nearly half-dead state he was able to make it miles away from where he was after nearly being killed, trudging on for days like a mysterious ghost; or a cryptid that’s not meant to be viewed by the public eye. The man soon grew exhausted again as he thought of how he could have made it this far; possibly when he was near death; a force pushed his body on to keep going near safety… he chose not to think for now; and laid back down--drifting back into a peaceful slumber.

[wesxevans]

introducing wes

[cisman, he/him] Welcome to Aurora Bay, [WESTLEY "WES" EVANS]! I couldn’t help but notice you look an awful lot like [TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET]. You must be the [TWENTY-FOUR] year old [WAITSTAFF AT NEPTUNE]. Word is you’re [INTELLIGENT] but can also be a bit [CLOSED OFF] and your favorite song is [EMPTY BY CHASE ATLANTIC]. I also heard you’ll be staying in [OCEAN CREST APARTMENTS]. I’m sure you’ll love it!

MUSE INSPO:

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST

PINTEREST

BASIC INFO:

FULL NAME: Westley Alexandre Michel Evans

NICKNAME(S): Wes

AGE: 25

BIRTHDAY: October 24th

HOMETOWN: Salem, Massachusetts

FAMILY:

FATHER: Laurence Evans (American)

MOTHER: Ada Evans (French)

OLDER BROTHER: Jared Evans

YOUNGER SISTER: Amelia Evans

DAUGHTER: Elise Evans

WIFE: Liza Levin

WES:

APPEARANCE:

HEIGHT: 5'11

EYE COLOR: hazel

HAIR: curly and brown

BODY TYPE: lean, slightly muscular. Reference photos: BACK, STOMACH

TATTOOS: SPIDER ON STOMACH, SMALL BUTTERFLY ON WRIST, STRAWBERRY ON LEFT WRIST

PIERCINGS:SMILEY , EAR PIERCINGS

SCARS: one over his left eyebrow, scars on his back

Bio:

Tw: abuse, alcoholism

Westley Alexandre Evans was born to Laurence and Ada Evans on October 24, 1998, in Salem, Massachusetts.  Ada was known around their neighborhood for being so sweet and friendly, while Laurence was known as one of the officers of the SPD. Wes was their quiet but intelligent son, who was the top of his classes and was complimented for his talents as a young pianist. On the outside, the Evans were a perfect little family, and they were, for a while.

There was no way to forget the first night it happened, the yelling and sound of glass breaking, along with the feeling of the sharp pieces of glass cutting into his back as the bottle shattered against him. It was seared into Wes’s mind, and he had a scar to show for it. Laurence had always been an angry man but after a traumatic night on the force, Laurence was never the same. He drank until he became so poisonous and cruel that he was nearly unbearable to be around, and no matter how many people’s suspicions grew that something wasn’t quite right, no one did anything. 

Ada stayed, and Wes could never understand why. Years went by, and there was nothing left in Wes but a cavity, one that only seemed to be filled by anger and loneliness. He got into fights at school because he just couldn’t tame his anger any longer, and he lost his virginity at sixteen, hoping to fill the void with something— hoping to feel anything that wasn’t loneliness or sadness.. And even though it was a fleeting feeling of warmth and fulfillment, he still went after it, sleeping around and hoping one day the pain wouldn’t come back afterwards.

When Wes turned eighteen, he wanted to do something about Laurence, but all his attempts were failed ones. The SPD were friends of Laurence’s and given that Wes didn’t have the cleanest record with them, they discarded his concerns. And while Wes’s Aunt was constantly calling him and telling him that if he ever needed anything, she wouldn’t hesitate to fly him out to Aurora Bay, he couldn’t bring himself to take her up on it. Because Ada stayed, Wes stayed. He wanted to make sure she was okay. 

Years passed by, and one day Ada was gone. She’d finally left Laurence, but not only him, she’d left Wes. With nowhere else to turn to and no one left to protect, Wes called his aunt and took her up on her offer to fly him out to Aurora Bay.

Wes’s Aunt helped get him all settled into town, helping him get an apartment of his own, and a job as a waiter at Neptune since she was such great friends with the owner, James Levin. 

Now Wes is trying to create a new life for himself in Aurora Bay while trying to leave behind his painful past.

wanted connections:

can be found here

@aurorabayaesthetic

[foreveralwaysanauthor]

Riven's Basic Info

Name: Riven Marcus Hewlett

Faceclaims for Riven came very easily, surprisingly. For the 60s, we have the amazing Frankie Avalon (almost any beach movie from the 60s). For the 80s, there’s Jason Bateman (Teen Wolf Too). For the 90s, I picked Brad Pitt (Fight Club). And, finally, we have Dacre Montgomery for the present (Stranger Things).

Nicknames: Riv, Rivet, and “you ass” (Vivien’s favorite way to greet him)

Age: 19

Date of Birth: October 27

Zodiac: Scorpio

Birthstone: Opal and Pink Tourmaline

Nationality: American and Italian

Sexuality: Straight (though even he questions it sometimes lol)

Birthplace: Salem Hospital, Salem, Massachusetts

Current Residence: Whipple Avenue, Laconia, New Hampshire

Occupation: Photographer/videographer for local businesses and the newspaper, junior tattoo artist at a piercing/tattoo shop in Laconia, Dungeon Master for a small D&D group, drummer in a band he made in high school, and he’s, obviously, a competitive skater. He wants to become a director someday, but he’s saving his money for now.

Talents/Skills: He somehow knows people's secrets without having them tell him, he draws things pretty realistically, he’s known for telling the truth all the time, but he’s a fairly convincing liar, and he’s great at filmmaking, which is useful for any short films Vivien and the boys want to make.

Birth order: Only child

Parents: Anthony Hewlett and Emmaline Russo

Signature:

Height: 6’2” or 189cm

Eye Color: Hazel

Hair Color: Auburn brown, but it looks golden brown in certain lighting

Glasses or contact lenses: He needed glasses as a child, but had surgery to correct his eyes once he turned 18.

Distinguishing features: His nose crinkles when he laughs and he has two tattoos - a snake on his collarbone and lightning on his ribcage - but he and Vivien both agreed to get matching space tattoos when she turns 18.

Mannerisms: Tapping his feet along to music whether it’s in his head or not, constantly checking the time when he’s nervous, picking at the skin around his fingernails, and he always stacks up plates and silverware for waitstaff when he eats out so it will be easier for them to take.

Health: Had terrible eyesight as a kid, is allergic to pollen, and has allergy-induced asthma.

Hobbies: Protecting those he cares about, contributing to chaos, taking in injured animals, playing drums (he’s the one who taught Vivien how to play), and exploring abandoned places (once again, if you think that’s how Vivien started, you’d be right).

Greatest flaw (in their opinion): How selfless he can be sometimes. Riven treats others’ lives as more important than his own and will do anything it takes, even sacrificing himself, to keep them safe. A prime example of this is his relationship with Vivien. She is like a little sister to him and has been for most of his life, so he would do anything for her. He’s almost gotten arrested to protect her once when they were in an abandoned school and someone called the cops on them. He puts himself at risk for those he loves and he knows that will be his downfall someday.

Best quality (in their opinion): His best quality and greatest flaw are pretty much the same things - his infinite loyalty to those he considers friends/family.

Biggest fear: Dying. He’s had a few close calls before - one including a skating accident and another coming home from a band session on wet roads - and the thought of dying genuinely terrifies him.

Hogwarts House: Hufflepuff

Favorite ice cream: Chocolate fudge brownie (or, as he calls it, Death By Chocolate)

Favorite color: Sage green

Favorite numbers: 33 and 74

Favorite songs: Teenage Dirtbag by Wheatus, Perfume by Lovejoy, and In The End by Linkin Park

Favorite movies: White Chicks, The Karate Kid, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Free Guy, and Ratatouille

Favorite TV shows: Loki, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Chernobyl, Game of Thrones, and Attack on Titan (he has watched both the English and Japanese versions, and is very proud of the fact that he knew enough Japanese to understand most of what they were saying without subtitles)

Favorite books: You’ll Be the Death of Me by Karen M. McManus, Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk, Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, Six of Crows, and The Count of Monte Cristo

Favorite video games: Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture, The Walking Dead, and Baldur’s Gate 3

A musical they like: Starlight Express

A place they want to visit: Puerto Rico (mostly for the old cars that are very popular there)

[deanhadwin]

[ lucien laviscount, cis-male, he/him ] - was that DEAN HADWIN i saw by the lighthouse today? i heard that the TWENTY-SIX year old who has been in nightrest for SEVEN YEARS and works  as a OWNER/TECHNICIAN AT WIRE has a reputation of being INTELLIGENT, but also MANIPULATIVE. they reside in LOW POINT & people in town usually associate them with THE TENDER VOICE OF MANIPULATION, BUILDING WALLS AROUND HIS SOUL, STAYING LATE IN THE OFFICE, DROWNING YOUR STRUGGLES. let’s hope the killer doesn’t go after them next. 

BASICS

full name: dean amari hadwin nickname(s): dede (by his mother and sister only) hometown: salem, massachusetts currently: nightrest, massachusetts occupation: owner& technician at wire

HISTORY

Dean Hadwin was born into a pretty good family. With a business going down generations, the Hadwins didn’t know much about struggles, enough money to last them several lifetimes. His parents, Dante and Bianca, loved both of their kids, although half the time neither knew how to show it.

As a teenager Dean enjoyed the fun side of life, but never strayed far away from school. He possessed intelligence that helped him go through high school and higher education with flying colors. However many in their circles believed it wasn’t thanks to him, his family had a lot of money surely they were paying to make sure he looks just as good on paper. At first it made him angry, but as time went by he preferred to be underestimated so he let people assume he was just a spoiled kid with nothing in his head and attitude problems. In a way it gave him the upper hand. 

Dean knew if he wanted people to take him seriously he had to make something of his own, and he definitely didn’t want to rely on his family for anything. When he was done studying Dean didn’t stay in Salem long, he opted to Nightrest where a family member was willing to let him stay until he finds a place of his own.  

HEADCANON

his career started by working for a big IT company, but it didn’t end there. in his free time dean did hacking jobs for whoever payed the highest. maybe it wasn’t the right thing to do, but the amount of money he made spoke for itself, if it wasn’t for it, the tech shop downtown wouldn’t exist. he was able to quit his job and work for himself in wire. 

dean holds onto his asshole persona, it was easier and he’s so used to it, he did question maybe he was in fact that.

he isn’t too big on relationships.

[ntzsche9]

Here's to a fresh intro! I'm Verne (they/them), practically a queer elder in my 30s and too many of my stories are me simply wanting to write a scene, developing a bit of a world around it, then losing interest entirely. I’m still trying to figure out how to break that curse, but in the meantime, I’m just going to chase inspiration and post odds and ends here. I used to be an avid role-player, and my small cast of OCs from those days provide the greatest and easiest inspiration - particularly in the setting of the Fallout Universe. I do my best to write for a reader who is unfamiliar with the series, though.

Interests:

Post-apocalyptic

Near-future dystopias

Scifi/Fantasy (urban) and magical realism

History/AltHistory (especially lesser-known and marginalized stories)

Horror, dark, violent, and mature themes

Queer everything. I can't write heteros to save my life and I'm not all that sorry about it.

Sexy melodrama and smut with too much plot

Fanfiction (I could read/write Fallout stuff all day)

________________________________________________

Noteworthy WIPs:

Bad Blood - A Fallout Nuka-World fanfic (tag: #ntzsche Nuka-World)

I hope to eventually write this comprehensively enough to post on AO3 but for now, I work on this story to practice becoming a better writer. Incomplete Prequel: Sanctuary.

Lafayette, the son of a 'retired' raider, left his abusive father to find his place in the world and was taken in by an eclectic trauma-bonded found family that inspires him to be a better person and shows him love he is certain he doesn't deserve. When his father comes across them in a raid, Lafayette joins him in order to save the settlement and his little brother. Lafayette finds that being with his dad again, and playing the son he always wanted him to be, isn't nearly as difficult as he thought it would be. He struggles to maintain the person he wants to be with the person he suspects he is, all while a cast of scheming raiders, wastelanders, and slaves vie for power in a raider city built within the rusted remains of an amusement park.

Salem's Child - (tag: #ntzsche Salem)

A background on one of the lesser Bad Blood characters that I got carried away with.

Andrew Rook doesn't look like his parents. He looks like someone they are desperate to forget. The witchy remains of post-apocalyptic Salem, Massachusetts provide some solace from his rough home life. In a fading settlement run by incompetent adults who would rather blame the population of feral black cats for their problems than try to resolve them, Andrew and his two best friends build a world in their imagination that shields them from the wretchedness of the wasteland and the people they have to rely on to survive.

Navarro (working title) - (tag: #ntzsche Zavala)

Multi-generational short stories. Inspired heavily by Fallout universe, but reads as a stand-alone. Temporarily on hold pending a sensitivity beta reader for a few of the stories.

María Zavala, an aging curandera, happily sacrifices her place in a vault to her pregnant chicano daughter and faces the nuclear apocalypse alone. When radiation blesses her with immortality, she survives long enough for her great-grandchild to come home to her, and the family finds a way to flourish against great odds. Under their immortal matriarch, her descendants become the foundation for a town that is a bastion in an otherwise inhospitable world.

The Crash - (tag: #ntzsche Crash)

A real-world AU. 

Gabe always knew his functional alcoholic roomie would get into a terrible car wreck someday, but he never thought he would be dumb enough to be in the car with him. When the consequences of the wreck threaten to destroy Dave's life, Gabe finds himself doing everything he can to hold those pieces together. The love he harbors for his straight, polyamorous best friend runs deeper than either of them are ready to face, but Dave's injury makes it that much harder to hide.

________________________________________________

Miscellaneous

Master list of writing posts, mostly backstories, one-shots, and excerpts (tag: #ntzsche misc).

Every You and Every Me - Cosmic horror flash-fiction

Misc Fallout Fiction

Typically taking place before the events of Bad Blood, roughly in chronological order:

Smiling Jack - Backstory for Dizz

Vault 112 - Backstory for Dave and Gabe

If Dave Had Died - What-if scenario from prior to Sanctuary

Sanctuary - How Lafayette became a part of his new family, direct prequel to Bad Blood

The Boston Library - One-shot writing prompt containing Lafayette and Luvell, after Sanctuary

OC Intro - most of my recurrent OCs have their own tags.

(some links forthcoming)

[proxyprincesse]

What happened on Halloween? 🎃

hahahahahahaha ouais

So, the troupe disembarks for a Halloween trip. It is going to be a blast. The streets are packed l'épaule à shoulder et shoulder a l'épaule. We all dressed for the holiday. It's not so big of a thing back home, but Odd always brought out all these English language horror movies every October. Awful stuff. Lots of chocolate syrup and shrieking string instruments.

He was in film club, you see. And had a showing every friday night, year round, but Octobers were a lot of fun. And then whenever we had a free weekend, you know, whenever that happened, me and him would watch all these monster of the week shows. Supernatural, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, all those sorts of things.

And with Robin being American now, I wanted to try out an American Halloween.

So, it's Halloween, 2022 Salem, Massachusetts, USA, and I'm dressed like Willow Rosenberg in full witch outfit. William is Angel -- we thought about doing Buffy/Angel, but I just love Willow so much -- and everyone else has their own thing:

Me: Willow

William: Angel

Robin: An evil wizard

Emily: Rainbow Dash

Maggie and Davey went as a witch and familiar

So, we show up, it's still daytime we do some fun tourist stuff. There's museums about the witch trials, a reenactment of an execution using an actual transcript of a trial, some new age shops to hang around.

Everything is fine until the haunted house.

Of course, it's the haunted house. Why would that thing choose any other place to grab us?

We walk in, and it's a run of the mill little thing. I love it, it's like a little live performance through someone's little place. It's like $5 to get in and people put on little tricks and spooky scenarios. It was like another little live performance.

So I'm having a wonderful time until the end. There's a hallway and someone chases you with a fake chainsaw.

It's a straight hallway, I don't know how we got separated.

At first me and William are together. It seems like we all got paired off. Like it knew we would be most affected that way.

William and I ran until we found ourselves in the Scanner Room. And we could hear someone stuck inside.

« Help me! »

It was Ulrich, banging on the inside. Jeremie's voice echoed through the room

« Aelita, William, get him out of there. The factory is on fire! »

We find a piece of rebar to pry the scanner open. It's no use. We struggle and struggle. Finally, we get purchase, pry the door open, and out creeps, along with Ulrich's silent body, an ooze of Marabounta.

There's nothing we can do for Ulrich now. The Marabounta moves slowly here, more slowly than it did on Lyoko. Maybe, it's struggling to keep up? Weighed down by its physical form?

The Marabounta spreads across the ground, the Scanner flashing a strobe while it summons more and more of the little black specks that eat up anything they touch.

We pull the hatch, opening up the access ladder in the elevator shaft and begin climbing. It's hot in here. And we still have to get through the flames to reach the Rhone. But on the first underground floor, standing on the platform, was Robin. Dressed, once again, for his wedding day. But this time, Emily was no where to be found.

« Give us a hand getting onto the landing, I ask. »

« Hmmm, mouais, je pense que je le *puisse*... he says back, actually speaking French on his own for once in his life. »

He grabs a hold of the elevator cable and jumps down like he weighs a million tonnes and drags the elevator upward at tremendous speed, pushing along the Marabounta as they come.

William flings himself to the platform and offers his hand. As I rush to get out of the way of the rocketing wall of death, I lose my flat.

Barefoot through the fire it must be.

The smoke is getting pretty thick now, so I rip a segment from my dress and use it to block hopefully *some* of the smoke from getting in my lungs.

I make a quick prayer that I will quit smoking if I get out of here alive.

I got on my knees and crawled along the ground hoping to reach the underbridge entrance and go right to the river, but William and I got separated, and when I got to the other side, I was back in Robin's childhood livingroom.

There were pictures of la Chenille all around, his aunts too. One of Aunt Roda and a couple of Davey and his dad. There was a Playstation hooked up to the tele. But there was only one person seated on the couch, already out of date when Robin was in school.

« Bienvenue, Princesse. Il y a un tort, when I let you go last time. Never should have left. Non, non, non, non... trop dangereux. You'll be safe here from... who was it again? Rassilon? Yeah, sure. He won't get you here or whatever. »

« Qu'est-ce que tu veux, *Robin.* I spit his name at him. »

That is not Robin. One, he is barely even *trying* to keep up the charade. And two, Robin isn't this good at French.

« We're alone now, it's time to have a chat. »

« I guess, but why do I want to talk to *you*. »

« Oh, please, big sister, is that anyway to talk to your Butterfly? »

« You are not Mon Papillon, I tell him, You are the thing from before. The thing from that place. »

I struggle to even call it a place. With my time in Lyoko, I can feel when time is funky. Time loops are familiar, like a sweet breakfast of hot chocolate and croissants. Normal time is like plain rice. But this? This is an intense and overwhelming absence of flavor. A fundamental emptiness of time.

I realize where I am. I am in the Nowhere. The Void. The place Robin spent a century, and I a mere two days.

« You are not Robin, I say, you are the thing that trapped Robin. »

« See, you are smart, he answers. Don't anybody listen to what Jeremie has been saying across Kadic since you left. You're smart. »

« What do you want, *Robin*?" »

The name is wrong. I know it's wrong. But it has Robin's face and I have nothing else to call it.

« Robin's fears weren't exactly *unfounded*, he hisses. You all *are* in danger and I am the *only* one that can keep you safe. »

« More like we need protecting from you. »

« Now, now, you just need practice. Snippets and pockets here and there. And eventually you will be ready for what needs to wake up.

« Yes, wake up. But, let's get you back with your friends. I don't need you spending another month in a hospital bed. Let's chat again soon. »

« Let's not. »

« Très drôle... »

And with a snap of his fingers, the living room disappears and I'm falling through the dark. Slowly, I start to feel an almost ramp behind me. I skitter across it until, as it slowly curves from slide to hill, I get my feet under me. And a door opens in front of me.

And I'm back in Salem, Massachusetts. Everyone ran out the door at the same time, all looking like we'd just seen a ghost.

Anyway, how was *your* Halloween?

[ambrial-blog]

After the confrontation with the sisters, Blitz is turned into a black cat Like Thackery Binx.  Fizzorolli,  betrayed Blitz. going to a voodoo priest  he learnt the dark arts of voodoo/hoodoo magic. He uses these new abilities to lure Blitzo’s sister into the woods so the Sanderson sister’s could drain her lifeforce. .  Fizzorolli, is the one who gives Winifred Sanderson her book of spells and curses bound in the flesh of a deadman.   It would be he, who would keep the immortal black cat for himself as payment of helping the Sanderson sisters. Blitzo, the bombastic imp like child, turned into a black furball- detested the jester. Often hiding from the charismatic warlock. who had a hand in turning him into the form a little black cat. A curse: to live with his guilt for eternity Three Thousand years pass, like a blink of an eye.  both immortal sinners are pinned against each other-.  Blitz does his best to remain vigilant keeping an eye on Winnie’s book and guarding the black flame candle.

*Suddenly with a new arrival of a new family: The Savitar’s:  a royal prestigious family  of Ares Goetic demons.  moved into the Sleep Hollows of Salem Massachusetts. Prince Stolas of the Ares Goeita  was caught up in a vicious divorce with his cold hearted, bitch of a wife. Stella.  Together they a brought their beloved daughter Octavia into this world, unfortunately their marriage fell apart soon after.   Stolas had went to hellhound adoption agency. Adopting Loona.  Octavia had talked the hellhound into breaking into the Sanderson sister’s cottage house. on one dark, cold and rainy night. ”Are you sure about this Via” Loona asks. stepping through the threshold of the house. “it looks lived in” says Loona.  batting a cobweb from her face. ”It been calling to me again,  I can’t explain it” Octavia answers.  “there is something here wanting to be found-” ”Please Loona, it won’t take long” ”You’ve heard the stories A Warlock is said to be living here, he could be down in the basement right now- working on an experiment. ”You’ve been watching those late night horror movies again.

As Octavia searches for anything  that she could steal and sell on the black market for a small profit.  A pair of amber eyes watches her from the shadows. ”Gross!, Via get away from that thing!” Loona barks  eyeing a small malnourished kitten. with a green ribbon tied around his neck. and a small chain link leash attached to the wall. His eyes were golden amber and their was a small heart-Shaped tattoo.  The right side of his face was matted with blood and it appeared he had his paw stuck in a bear trap. The Warlock’s most valued treasure.  Fizz would often torture him, using him in spells and hexes. the feline wouldn’t die. Once Fizz bashed his head in to collect some blood. Blitz would be fine the next morning. Fizzorolli would leave saucers of milk, three fat rats and if he was feeling generous  he would leave a small line of catnip. But the milk would sour, the putrid stench of rotting corpses of those plague infested rodents would go untouched. But the line of catnip would be smudged.

Via noticed, that the kitten’s head was bandaged over one eye. Blitz feels betrayed by Fizz. his disdain growing each day. the ribbon shone: emerald in the dim lighting. Resembling a choker with a small skull attached to it. Octavia wrinkled his nose at the sour smell of spoiled cream. Via rubs the side of his face noticing the bloodstained bandages. ”There, there little one your safe now” ”Loona! she whispers “come here, come look what I found” ”Kind of weak ain’t he Via” Loona answers. “He look like he’ll kill over anytime are you sure you won’t to take him home, shouldn’t we put him out of his misery?” ”Loona! Octavia scolded. narrowing her eyes hand me that match I’ll show you, I’ll take care of him, just like I take care of you or do you want to go live with my mother?” ”Fine, but he’s your responsibility and if you mom finds him don’t come crying to me” Loona hands her a match and Octavia lights the black flame candle. Illuminating the room.  the book began to blink the sleep from his eyes as Blitzo mewled in disapproval as Octavia worked hastily believing the owner of the house would return in a haste. .  She frees Blitz: from the bear trap  ripping the chain out from the wall. and gently places him in her bag. ”He’s going to bleed everywhere” Loona warns her.  But the owlet ignores her and dashes for the door. as the ground began to rumble. Flashes of Red, green and Indigo temporarily blind the girls. Loona grabs Octavia’s wrist and hauls ass dragging the princess behind her, she didn’t stop until she was sure they weren’t being followed*

[hiddenbysuccubi]

Made it back to WA with the cats. List of things I lost through the summer: Butterfly magnet from Trek Cruise (cheap. And I have other magnets from the cruise), guitar magnet from Memphis (Eh I didn't like Memphis and the magnet was ugly anyway. I think I have a guitar mug around here somewhere from there that's better), water glass (dollar store), towel (Walmart) -----left in Massachusetts Bathmats, plate (Walmart and from mom's travel ware, respectively) ------left in Glacier Art gift from cruise-goer (upset about this one, it was kinda galaxy/purple blue faded scheme close up of a woman smoking a blunt with only her hair nose lips chin and neck showing), art from Boston pride (was pretty awesome, I think B got a card from the stand I'll ask him), art from anime convention (very nice angle of Howl. Ah well :( ------- all my art was on a shelf at my ex's for a few days to stay safe from the cats and bending and I forgot it, naturally. Things I thought I left behind but didn't: Nice satin jump suit-y outfit from Salem that actually fits my weird proportions and B hyped me up about wearing/buying it, necklace from the Mountain Man Rendezvouz that I really wanted (that he sent me money for). Cheap ankle bracelet aka literally the only souvenir I bought from Cape Cod. My favorite patchwork billowy pants that look like a skirt. Things I wish I had lost: My inability to fit in, my fear, my disappointment, my instability Things I lost instead: A little pride, a little dignity, and a lot of youth

[cagenerals]

Importance of Justice by A

        The Crucible takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 during the Salem Witch Trials. The play has many subjects such as hysteria, nature of authority, guilt, and hypocrisy. Despite the many subjects in The Crucible, the single most important subject is justice, or the lack thereof.  Justice is the concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, religion or equality; unfortunately for all of those involved, these concepts were not portrayed in the court of Salem. The courts in The Crucible not only allowed the liars to be set free, but worse, they accused the innocent. A proper display of justice is crucial in every society; without one, it can lead to mass hysteria. While many injustices are demonstrated throughout this play, the actions speak loudest from those willing to fight for what is morally right.

        Although the court system was created as a way to fight for justice, the actions from the court in The Crucible were, unfortunately, contradictory. Those involved in officiating include: Judge John Hathorne, Reverend Samuel Parris, Reverend John Hale, Ezekiel Cheever, and the leader of the court, Deputy Governor Thomas Danforth. An example of the courts abusing their power and not being just is by assuming the accused are guilty until proven innocent. All it takes is an accusation for an individual to be arrested for witchcraft; you do not even need to provide proof. Unfortunately, John Proctor was a victim of this injustice. When John was arrested, it was from an accusation made by Mary Warren. She stated,  “He wake me every night, his eyes were like coals and his fingers claw my neck, and I sign, I sign… Marshal! Take him and Corey with him to the jail!”(Miller 119, 120). After hearing Mary’s plea, Deputy Governor Thomas Danforth arrested Proctor immediately. Even though Mary did not have any proof to provide to the court other than her word, it was enough for Danforth to make his decision. He was so determined to find witches that it blinded him from using proper judgment. As Mary Warren retells the court proceedings she says “Aye, but then Judge Hathorne say, “Recite for us your commandments!” - leaning avidly toward them - and of all the ten she could not say a single one. She never knew no commandments,” (Miller 58). She explains to John and Elizabeth Proctor that since Sarah Good could not recite her commandments, she must be guilty of witchcraft. She can not be innocent if she does not know her commandments and so she is immediately condemned. This is just another of many examples that demonstrate the corrupt ways of the court as she is not questioned further. There is no way to prove your innocence if you are assumed guilty, and without evidence, there is no opportunity to provide an explanation.

        An additional example of injustice shown in The Crucible is the court’s refusal to accept all forms of evidence. When Mary Warren, a key witness, gives a deposition stating she was lying, Danforth does not accept it. He says to Proctor, “No, no, I accept no depositions.” (Miller 88). Even after admitting her claims were false, the court still did not listen to her. Despite innocent lives at stake, the court only hears what they want to hear to get their desired outcome. All it takes is one accusation, true or not, and the future of the accused lies in the hands of the courts and their agenda. There are also many outbursts by the officials of the courts, such as Reverend Samuel Parris. He often yells out and interrupts the court saying manipulating comments like, “Excellency, you surely cannot think to let so vile a lie be spread in open court!” (Miller 82). This goes to show that some of the biggest influencers in court can yell, scream, and speak out of turn to sway the judge’s opinion to make their own personal opinions about the case known. What happened to allowing others to speak their side of the story uninterrupted? The court should not be a public debate.

        However, throughout all of the corruption, there is still hope. Reverend John Hale began to realize the flaws within the court. He questioned Danforth and his reasoning. Hale argued, “But this child claims the girls are not truthful, and if they are not-” referring to Mary Warren and her deposition. He knows it is only right to take all evidence into consideration in order to truly be just. Furthermore, he puts himself out there with Danforth, not only showing how much he cares about justice, but how seriously he will advocate for it, even if it means risking it all. Hale additionally suggested the court should get lawyers involved in order to make for a fair hearing. Hale states, “I cannot say he is an honest man; I know him little. But in all justice, sir, a claim so weighty cannot be argued by a farmer. In God’s name, sir, stop here; send him home and let him come again with a lawyer”(Miller 99). Towards the end of the court proceedings, after none of his suggestions are granted, Hale quits as he is so fed up with the court. Hale proclaims, “​​I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court!” (Miller 120). After doing everything he can throughout the hearing, he knows, morally, that he can no longer stand to be associated with this misconduct.

        The other most prominent character fighting for justice is John Proctor. He sees the court for what they truly are from the beginning. He first vocalizes this by saying, “And why not, if they must hang for denyin’ it? There are them that will swear to anything before they’ll hang; have you never thought of that?” (Miller 69). He sees that if people deny the accusations they will be hanged, and if they lie they are still guilty just for something different according to the Bible; it’s a lose-lose situation. When you are accused, no matter the situation, if it does not align with the opinions of the court, the outcome is decided. Proctor says this to Hale, who at the time is still a member of the court. His concerns ultimately convince Hale to question the court proceedings and ultimately try to fight for justice. Proctor additionally fights in court when his wife is accused of witchcraft. He is the one that went with Mary Warren to give Danforth her deposition. He also gave Danforth the deposition, which ninety-one people signed, showing their good opinion of Rebecca, Elizabeth, and Martha Corey. In court, Proctor says, “These are all landholding farmers, members of the church. If you’ll notice, sir - they’ve known the women many years and never saw no sign they had dealings with the Devil.”(Miller 93). Proctor is trying to prove innocence by using the deposition as his evidence. It is not not just his wife that he is fighting for in this play, and he proves that by saying, “These are my friends. Their wives are also accused -”(Miller 92). Ultimately, he is given a deal to save Elizabeth’s life for one year, but denies it in an effort to help everyone else as well. Proctor wants justice for everyone and he is doing everything in his power to fight for it.

        Despite all the daunting flaws of the court of Salem, there are individuals doing their best to rise above the noise, defying the norms, for justice and change; John Hale and John Proctor being the most prominent. However, the change has to happen from within. With representatives such as Thomas Danforth and Samuel Parris in charge of the courts, injustice is all but inevitable.  Being fair and treating everyone impartially are of the utmost importance for every society. Without courts abiding by these principles, innocent lives will continue to be threatened.

Miller, Arthur, and Abbotson Susan C W. The Crucible.