#it's terrifying being so not in control of her abilities again. it's why she's less polite and more freakish in the beginning of the game

[vaultsixtynine]

ana hour II - mostly about ciphers

adding cipher lore bc i consider it a bit lacking (understandably, the game isn't About ciphers necessarily) -

ciphers come in 2 flavors: 'natural' and 'made' - both of them need training to not be actively a danger to others and themselves, but not already being sensitive to other people's minds/souls means some process/fuckery has to happen to you to peel you open enough to make Being A Cipher possible. this sometimes happens by accident, and sometimes on purpose :^)

natural ciphers aren't necessarily fucking with brains as soon as they're born - it's more like puberty that settles in at a certain point of adolescence. there's a balance of age when it happens - too young, and there may be so little control that a child either gets themselves killed (by themselves or via adults freaking out about it) or, on the flipside, knows Nothing Else and has no reference for life without knowing how to read and manipulate other people's essence. too old, and it's deeply overwhelming past a point where the person is less elastic, mentally - this is why the success rate of manufactured ciphers is extremely low.

cipher survival rate is low in general - natural ciphers are not tolerated well in most contexts, and Odd Children die or are killed all the time, or - if given enough time and no training - are the source of enough bad shit to be hunted down if they don't accidentally kill themselves first. certain cultures are better with them than others - glanfathans are the stand-out, but not the sole exception.

and needless to say, it's exhausting. the constant awareness is more typical of a natural cipher, while manufactured ciphers tend to need to work a little harder to bridge the gap (this is a benefit, in the opinion of natural ciphers everywhere). it's not quite Constant Telepathy, but more sensitive natural ciphers have to be able to withstand the onslaught of Other People Existing without losing themselves or lashing out against other minds.

the 'focus' feature of the class is an extension of a mental resource that is very real and not purely mechanical - the ability of a cipher (especially a natural cipher) to be aware of the fluctuations in the mood, thoughts, and literal soul of everyone around them is a constant drain on that resource. being deprived of focus causes adverse physical effects; stronger ciphers having More Of It means they've found ways to make it quieter and their exercising of it more of a selective choice. the harder it is to get into OR avoid the presence of someone's interiority - either normally or in combat - the more of a cipher's focus gets used.

training helps with all of this, but isolation from society is an immediate relief for many ciphers as non-humanoids (animals etc.) are typically more simple and less distracting. additionally, cipher-to-cipher communication is Easy if they're both open/willing but Much Harder than normal if they're both guarding themselves. it is exceptionally hard for one cipher to get access to another cipher's mind or soul if they're actively walling themselves off, and the stronger cipher will usually have to either overpower the less-strong one or someone's going to need to start doing some focus-sapping until the other one's deprived enough to get through.

ana herself is a natural cipher, and her abilities are strongest when it comes to memory and dreaming. she is very adept at fucking with people while they're awake, though, no worries there. she has reluctance to use her abilities on things that are too 'trivial' and holds a strong contempt for how they were misused in the past - she has hurt a lot of people, more than just physically. she has killed, certainly - but she's also done things to people that are worse than death.

[deadpcnned]

Sealed by the Storm (jj.m)

chapter three

pairing: jj maybank x reader; marriage of convenience

content warning(s): mentions murder (usual obx stuff), implied sexual relationship, language, use of alcohol

author's note: this one is so long, i'm so sorry hahaha. i'd love to hear y'alls honest feedback

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JJ Maybank was the last person anyone would bet on to follow instructions. So of course, he’d taken matters into his own hands when it came to figuring out if Luke had been telling the truth. After his conversation with Y/N last night, he felt himself descending that familiar downward spiral. JJ had two types of possible spirals. Usually, it felt like a blackout— like he  had no control of his actions. That’s the spiral he had when he broke the generator. He’d been reminded of all the nights he’d used that damn first aid kit to patch himself up, back when Luke still owned the house JJ could finally call home, that it had screwed him up so bad he couldn’t think. The second type of spiral, however, was way worse. It was more drawn out, a deep-seated desperation that forced him to ruminate on every word spoken to or by him. 

That’s the spiral he’d had last night in bed, a seemingly endless loop going down. He knew he fucked up, he knew he should’ve left well enough alone. He had finally gotten through to Y/N, even if only briefly, and he’d flushed it all down the drain. The way she had laughed when she accidentally shone her flashlight in his eyes, had been so unrestrained, like a bird’s song unburdened by the weight of months spent in captivity. Y/N always laughed like she was choking. Her breath would catch between the sound of her laughter, but JJ found it so endearing. He hadn’t realized how much he’d been yearning to hear that sound until last night and he wanted to be the reason for it again, even if it was at his expense. All it took for him to lose that chance, was five minutes and Y/N was avoiding him again. 

To say he was hurt by what she had said to him was barely scratching the surface. His worst, most vulnerable insecurities were somehow always thrown back at him by her. ‘You’re making it worse.’ ‘Why do you always–’ Those words had run through his head again and again and again, all night driving him crazy. Her ability to tap into his negative thoughts was exactly why he always got so irritated around her. Because if he let that bitter wall fall, it’d all be too painful. 

That irritation is exactly what had spurred him to pay no mind to Y/N’s advice and discover the answers to his questions alone. The first plan he had thought of consisted of storming to Goat Island and confronting Groff face to face. But, if he was being honest, just the idea of confronting Groff was terrifying. What if Luke had been lying? And worse, what if he hadn’t been? 

Instead of confronting Groff, JJ decided to follow a different trail – one that felt no less daunting but less revelatory: Larissa Genrette’s grave. JJ had spent his whole life roaming the island and knew each inch of the land he was raised on. He’d passed the Genrette graveyard many times before. He used to think it was odd, why so much land was dedicated to one family’s burial site, but as time passed he became more aware of what the Genrette name meant. The name had always loomed over the island, a shadow that faded into whispers. Whispered stories and half-truths from people who barely knew the Genrettes, at least not in recent years. The youth of Outer Banks loved to share the ghost story of Larissa Genrette and her lost child for their sleepovers and bonfires. A story that was so close to home, yet so out of their reality, that it didn’t bother them. 

JJ wasn’t sure why, but he felt compelled to see the grave for himself, properly. It felt like maybe he had missed some detail, some answer, during all those years that he carelessly ran past these trails. JJ was still clinging to the belief that this was all an elaborate plan by Luke, but he couldn’t stop some thoughts from crossing his mind that implied he was falling for it. Like the idea that he might be looking at the last link to his mother. Somehow, the fact that Larissa Genrette was his mother, felt like the heaviest part of all of it. He didn’t expect the gravesite to give him some grand revelation, didn’t think the ground would whisper secrets of hidden bloodlines, but it would be something. JJ always felt his sixth sense was strong when it came to people– their intentions and character. The first time he had entered the Genrette house, he had felt something was off, but not in the same way the Pogues had. They had been unnerved by the eerieness, but JJ had felt something else about Groff and Genrette. It was like he could feel the connection he had to them, like there was a string between them, loosening the closer they got. 

JJ was getting ahead of himself, he knew that. Imagining metaphysical connections and imagining what it would mean if the Genrettes were his relatives. As he neared the graveyard, the wind pushing his blond hair back, he didn’t know what came next. His feet slowed before he could get close enough to the gate that would serve as an obstacle, goosebumps erupting over his skin. 

There was someone following him.

He had felt it closer to the Surf Shop, before he had started walking this way, too afraid to ask John B for the Twinkie in fear of invoking questions. The feeling that he had a shadow had shaken off soon after, but it was back now, in full force, too close for comfort. He needed to take care of that before he could worry about finding answers to any life-changing questions. 

JJ slowed his steps, considering his options. He estimated that there was still half a mile left before he reached the gate, but the brick wall that blocked off the graveyard was already on his left. On the right, there were tall trees that he knew became more dense the further in you went. JJ started angling his body towards the right, making a show of planning his turn away from the straight path he’d taken for the last 10 minutes before he veered his body to the right completely. 

As the trees grew denser, that feeling of someone following him went in and out, like a spotty connection, but he knew whoever it was was still there. He should’ve run. He was usually so good at running in these situations, but something was stopping him. He was not sure what it was— whether it was the result of the heightened emotions he’d been dealing with for the past couple of days— but he didn’t fight it. If it was the mercenaries after Blackbeard’s treasure, so be it. 

When it felt like the mystery person was further away again, he pulled himself around a huge tree so he was hidden behind the trunk. He’d come a far way from the brick wall and his pace had quickened, causing his breathing to get slightly more erratic. He caught his breath while trying his best to not let his focus shift from sensing the other person. After what felt like hours, he heard a crunching sound. The footsteps were quiet which could have been why he couldn’t distinguish it from the sound his boots were making earlier. The footsteps neared on his left and he positioned himself for his ambush. He wished he had his old gun. Or at least a knife. 

A figure appeared in his periphery and before the figure could retreat, JJ was pushing off the tree trunk and shoving the person up against the rough bark of another. His hand clamped over their mouth while his opposite arm pressed into their chest, his muscles were taut as he held their body in place. A smaller body. And a familiar one. 

Y/N’s eyes widened but quickly returned to normal, concealing her surprise. However, the rapid rise and fall of her chest beneath JJ's arm gave away her shock. Her bare skin brushed against JJ’s with every breath, leaving a buzzing sensation with every exhale. Y/N reached up to wrap her fingers around his wrist, prying away his hand from her mouth, but instead of stepping away, JJ leaned in, crowding her body with his. 

“What the hell are you doing here?” JJ's jaw clenched adding to the tensions he felt in every other part of his body. He hadn’t wanted to see her today, but especially not now. JJ’s face was so close to hers that he could feel the warmth of his own breath as he spoke. 

Y/N’s chin tilted up defiantly and her challenging gaze stoked a fire of rage in his as he heard her reply, “Following you.”

“Why?” His voice was a rasp, entwined with the strain of his frustration. The simple word was all he could get past his straining as he looked at her, not backing away for even a second. 

“I told you not to do this alone.” There was no point in pretending he didn’t understand and JJ didn’t feel like he could bother with that anyway. He was so tired of her thinking she knew better than him. She couldn’t bother asking him to pass food at the dinner table, but she was always chock-full of unsolicited advice. This was his fucking family life, why did she get to decide how he handled it? 

“Yeah? And you thought what? ‘JJ’d probably appreciate me tagging along?’” JJ leaned in closer, his nose only an inch away from Y/N’s. He caught the moment her breath hitched, just as it had last night, and he was spurred on by whatever this effect he had meant. “You’re the last person I would ever ask to be with me.” 

The words were meant to cut, an eye for an eye, a harsh word for a harsh word. But if he had any impact on Y/N at all, she didn’t let it show. Within a second, her knee aggressively struck JJ’s thigh, making him pull back.

“Ouch–” Suddenly, JJ’s back was against the tree Y/N had been pressed against. Y/N didn’t have him strapped against the tree with her arms, but the closeness of her body to his was enough to keep him in place. Her left leg was planted between his and her hip was making contact with his upper thigh. JJ blamed the heat he felt at her touch on his anger. Reaching up, her hand cupped his face, her fingers pressing into both sides of his jaw, as she tilted his head down. 

“Trust me JJ, no one wants to be here less than I do.” Y/N’s voice was void of malice, sounding neutral and completely matter-of-fact. “But you can’t do this alone.” 

He knew what she meant. She meant that if he handled this alone, the rest of them would have to pick up the pieces of his eventual fallout. He knew that and still, the part of him he tried so hard to suppress read a different meaning. You don’t have to do this alone. I’ll take care of you. If he’s honest with himself, he didn’t want to carry this alone, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask for help. Pogues didn’t get help. They just had to deal with their shit and that’s a lesson JJ had learned much too early, so why bother. That desperate part of him that wanted someone’s help took over and selfishly accepted whatever she would offer. 

“Whatever. Just stay out of my way.” It was the best JJ could offer, his anger still right at the surface, fighting against his need for help. Y/N stepped back, her hand sweeping over her backside to clean off any dirt. 

“It’s easier to pick up behind someone than in front of them,” She chided. Clenching his fist, JJ turned away, beginning to retrace his steps. He’d wasted fifteen minutes all for it to be Y/N. The two of them walked in silence, not bothering with fake niceties. JJ had too much on his mind.

Y/N tried to focus on the sound of her low-top sneakers pressing against leaves and branches instead of the silence that was enveloping her and JJ. The irony wasn’t lost on her. The boy she had done her best to avoid recently, was now causing herself to second-guess her actions. Y/N never second-guessed herself. She could never afford it. Ever since she joined Terrance, her life relied on her ability to make the right choice with speed and confidence. If she had second-guessed herself for even a second, it could have given some dangerous people a chance to attack. 

It was that quality that made it so difficult for her to think twice before she spoke to JJ the way she did. She never felt like she had enough time to make mistakes and when JJ made a mistake, she felt that same crippling anxiety that whatever happened would be life-changing. Y/N hadn’t adjusted to her life in the Outer Banks. For her, it didn’t matter that there were laws and authority figures who would protect her– or at least were assigned to protect her. Y/N sometimes thought she’d always view the world as her against everything else. Well,  Cleo and her against everything else, but it didn’t seem like Cleo was having the same struggle with adjusting. Y/N knew she could be mean, but she really really didn’t want to lose this life. 

After walking for what felt like forever, a black gate came into view. A black gate that, from what Y/N could tell, led to the Genrette family’s burial plot. She hadn’t asked JJ where they were headed, her head clouded by how close they’d been in the forest and the verbal spat they’d had. This isn’t what she’d expected. 

“JJ–” 

“Just stay here by the gate while I go in.” JJ’s voice was less stiff, his frustration seeming to have decreased, but he still had that dejected air around him. 

“Where – why are we here?” Y/N asked and when JJ didn’t reply she added, “I thought you’d be talking to Groff.”  JJ kept his eyes trained to the side, refusing to look at Y/N. 

JJ chuckled sarcastically. “Bet you’re feeling silly now.” Y/N pursed her lips but refrained from responding. This wasn’t the time to pick a fight with JJ and she should have thought of that before. At least now, she’d try to be her version of supportive.

“Okay,” Y/N said, starting to move towards the gate again. When they reached the gate, Y/N spoke up again. “I’ll wait for you here.” 

Wordlessly, JJ stepped towards the gate, preparing to climb over the barrier. As JJ grabbed onto a rail for support, the gate pushed in with a creek. What… Looking at where She had assumed a lock would be keeping him out, Y/N saw the gate had been opened. Someone else was here. 

“Someone’s here,” JJ echoed her thoughts. 

“Should we come back?” JJ shook his head and she could see the determination in his eyes. He was going to do this. 

“I… I need to do this.” JJ whispered. She understood. She truly did. So she just nodded, reaching up to place her hand against his arm. 

“I know.” She hoped he could hear the sincerity and that he understood she did support him in this. He deserved to know the truth about who he was. “I’m right here” JJ gave her a long look, not making any move to go past the gate. “I won’t leave.”

With that, JJ gave her a nod and finally passed the threshold. Y/N couldn’t stop the nagging voice in her mind that kept repeating this was a bad idea. She needed to push past her issues with JJ and support him in this. Good terms or not, they were both Pogues and Pogues took care of each other. 

Y/N had planned on waiting patiently for JJ. She had told herself she would give him ten whole minutes before trying to find him in the cemetery to check if he was okay. Yet, within five minutes she heard the sound of someone coming towards the gate. The sound wasn’t from JJ’s workboots. The only place she could find to hide was in the trees, but there weren’t many and she wasn’t sure if she’d be caught. Maybe if she stood far enough away from the gate, whoever was about to leave the cemetery wouldn’t look her way. It was a game of luck and Y/N hated those.

Still, she rushed towards the trees and tried her best to stay hidden. Peering over the edge of the tree trunk, she caught the moment the person left the gates. Groff.  She had never liked the feeling she got around Groff. Meeting him had reminded her a lot of her Uncle, which meant it made her skin crawl. Holding her breath, she watched Groff leave the cemetery and turn towards where she was hidden.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Somehow, some stroke of fate led him to walk straight past the trees, his focus on some object in his hands. Y/N let out a sigh of relief and waited for JJ to come back out. He must have talked to Groff.

But no one followed, even as Groff became a speck in the distance. That eerie feeling returned and Y/N ran towards the gate. It seemed Groff wasn’t the forgetful type because he had made sure to lock the gate. Why would he lock JJ in? Y/N needed to get in.

Taking multiple steps away from the gate, Y/N ran towards the iron gate. Gripping onto the metal bars, she used the momentum from her sprint to lift herself. Her shoes hit a narrow horizontal bar and she used it to push off and swing one leg over the top of the gate. She had to be mindful of where she placed her leg, making sure to avoid the pointed tops. Once both her legs were over the top, she used the same bar as a step to climb down and land safely on the other side. Y/N didn’t take a second to catch her breath, rushing to find JJ. He wasn’t around any of the graves, but there was what appeared to be a tomb. A crowbar had been stuck between the handles to keep someone from getting out. To keep JJ from getting out.  

“JJ!” Y/N called, walking closer to the tomb. She pulled the crowbar out. As she went to pull the door open, JJ was already tumbling out. “JJ, what happened?”

The blond boy remained silent, his lips in a thin, colorless line. Y/N’s eyes swept over him, taking note of how his usually tanned skin had turned pale. He looked as though he’d seen a ghost and considering her where she was, she wasn’t sure how far from the truth that was. 

“JJ, hey,” Y/N’s hand came up this arm just like earlier, but this time JJ shot back. The hazy look in his eyes was replaced with a frenzied one, his hand coming up to his hair to tug as he spoke.

“Groff,” Is all JJ said. “Groff.”

“I saw him. Why’d he lock you in there? JJ, something is–”

“Where?” Suddenly, JJ’s voice stilled. His demeanor was still panicked, but his voice came out clear. “Where did he go?” 

JJ didn’t wait for Y/N to stop hesitating, running out the gate. Y/N followed quickly watching him take the path towards their home, the same path Groff had taken. She wanted to stop him and get him to speak to her, but JJ was sprinting and she was struggling to keep up. She’s not sure how long they ran, but it couldn’t have been more than a few minutes. They’d reached the edge of the forest and she knew that after a few more minutes they’d be hitting a road that was usually empty. 

JJ stopped suddenly, bending over to hold his knees. Y/N didn’t take this as a chance to ask questions because it seemed JJ had started to calm down. His breathing was slowing down and some of the color on his face was returning. Whatever happened between him and Groff had very clearly not gone well and she didn’t want to pull that out of him. She needed to meet him where he was. 

“I’m gonna take the long way home,” JJ said, standing up to his full height. Y/N didn’t argue. They could take the long way home. 

“Alright.” Without any more words, Y/N followed JJ as he exited the clearing of the forests towards the road. Just as she had felt everything returning to normal, it all came crashing down again. Everything felt like it happened in milliseconds. 

Groff was on top of someone.

 Then JJ was charging towards them and pushing Groff off the other person.

Groff struggled under JJ while Y/N took in the third body.

The third dead body. Lightner, Terrance’s killer. The third body belonged to the mercenary that had held Cleo hostage and killed Terrance. And, now he was dead. 

Y/N didn’t have time to dwell on what that meant, because JJ was still in a tussle with Groff. She saw JJ’s head flick to the side, his gaze zeroing in on something: A knife. That must’ve been what Groff had used to cause the gaping wound Y/N could see on the mercenary. JJ flung himself off Groff and took hold of the knife, pointing it towards Groff. Not moving his eyes or his aim from Groff, JJ walked backward until he stood in front of Y/N. He had to sidestep step the body. 

“Don’t come closer,” JJ warned, his body effectively blocking Y/N from being able to determine what Groff was doing. Y/N moved to the side just enough to get a view, but not enough to make JJ’s efforts to protect her go in vain. She watched as Groff raised his hands in surrender and an appeasing smile made its way to the older man’s face. 

“JJ,” He chuckled. “Look, I don’t want trouble. He,” Groff pointed to the lifeless body on the ground. “He attacked me. I was defending myself.” JJ stayed silent, his body rigid, on alert.

“You have to believe me, son,” Groff’s words triggered something in JJ because suddenly he was leaning forward and shouting. 

“Shut up!” JJ yelled, before slowing down, his voice returning to its usual cadence. “Just shut up.”

Groff’s hands rose again, pushing them forward in a way of apologizing for overstepping. He waited another moment before trying again, “Nothing bad has to happen. Just… just get rid of the knife. He was a bad man. You know he was,” Groff said, his tone calm, like the kind a father would use to sing his child a lullaby. “He tried to kill you, your friends. He was doing the same to me, JJ. Let’s just throw the knife. Leave him.”

Groff was right, he was a bad man. The only thing stopping Y/N from agreeing to run was that she was sure Groff was a much worse man. 

“JJ, don’t listen to him,” Y/N drew JJ’s attention over his shoulder. “We can’t throw the knife away. It’s evidence.” Y/N saw JJ’s eyes close for just a second, his eyebrows furrowed in tension. 

“It’s okay,” Groff said, his voice sickeningly sweet. “It’s just us three. We can trust each other.” 

“He’s lying, JJ. We need to leave.” Y/N tried again. Groff stayed silent this time and when she looked at him she was shocked by how sincere he seemed. There was something about his eyes, something he could manipulate. He seemed so genuine like he was the good guy, but a good guy wouldn’t have locked JJ in a tomb. 

“Why should I believe you?” JJ was speaking to Groff with the knife still firmly pointed at him. “You just locked me in a fucking cemetery.” Thank God, JJ wasn’t falling for this. 

“That– that was to protect you,” Groff urged, using his hands emphatically. “I knew these guys were on my tail, I didn’t want you caught up in this. I was gonna come back for you, JJ.” 

Y/N stood out from behind JJ to see exactly where his head was at. She couldn’t decipher what he was thinking or whether Groff’s words were having any effect on him at all. 

“Why?”

Groff tilted his head at JJ in confusion, but clarity spread over his features quickly, “I want to protect you,” He said, walking closer to JJ, suddenly unafraid of the knife pointed at him. “Because you’re my son. My boy.” 

“JJ, please, he’s just–” Y/N didn’t have time to finish the persuasion. JJ pulled out the brown and silver lighter she knew he always kept on him and lit the wooden end of Groff’s knife. The fire caught quickly and JJ let the knife fall to the floor. As the wooden part of the knife began to turn to ash, JJ used the toe of his boot to put out the fire. As soon as the fire was out, Groff was approaching JJ with open arms and a smug smile on his face. 

“JJ, son–” JJ’s arm came out to push Groff away from him, a look of rage Y/N had never seen on him before. 

“Leave.” Groff stepped back from JJ with a hurt expression on his face.

“JJ–”

“I said leave. Go before I change my mind,” JJ warned. Then, so Groff wouldn’t call his bluff, he added “I’m not afraid to go to prison.” Groff’s expression thinned, but he nodded. It took him some time but he began to walk away. 

“One more thing,” JJ shouted. “Stay away from me and my friends.” Y/N saw the way Groff’s shoulders fell before he turned away and followed JJ’s orders. Y/N looked around at the empty roads. They needed to get out before someone else came.  

JJ was on the same page, it seemed because he grabbed her hand and began running into the woods. Taking the shortcut JJ had forsaken earlier, he didn’t stop or speak to Y/N until they were safely back on the Maybank property– their property. JJ tugged Y/N’s hand, stepping closer to her. He didn’t say a word, just watched her as they stood right by the chartering shack. Y/N couldn’t get her thoughts straight. Groff had murdered a man. They’d covered it for him. But that man wasn’t exactly innocent and Y/N couldn’t get that thought out of her head.  

“He killed Terrance.” JJ’s eyebrows furrowed before a look of realization passed his face. “Terrance’s killer is dead.”

JJ moved closer, his hand coming up to cup Y/N’s cheek. He’d never done that before and Y/N had a fleeting thought that maybe she’d have liked it if the circumstances were different. 

“It’s over okay?” JJ murmured. His hand was still against her skin, but he didn’t make any move to take it away. “All of it. The treasure, Groff– we’re done. I’m…” Y/N waited, letting JJ gather his thoughts. “I’m sorry.” Y/N’s hand wrapped around JJ’s wrist, clinging to his promise. She just wanted to be done. 

“It’s over,” Y/N repeated, the most she could offer in return for his apology. For once, she wasn’t angry with JJ. Maybe it was because the body was Lightner’s or maybe it was because he seemed to understand the gravity of this situation, but she wasn’t angry. She just wanted to forget this and move on. JJ nodded, before taking his hand away, and Y/N missed the warmth immediately.

“Y/N! Y/N wake up!” Cleo’s voice was barely noticeable as Y/N clung to the last bits of her sleep. Sleep had been fleeting, her grasp slipping every time she got close, last night. Her body had felt heavy like the weight of JJ’s decisions had somehow seeped into her bones. Destroying the evidence had been a horrible decision, to say the least, but it was done now. 

“Cleo, what?” Y/N grumbled, turning the other way to ignore her unwanted alarm. That’s when she heard it: A familiar voice coming from the living room. It was Shoupe’s voice. Y/N shot up in bed. Cleo’s expression was stern, not betraying a hint of worry, but Y/N knew her much too well to fall for that. 

“Do you think he knows about Terrance?” Cleo asked. Y/N was already getting out of bed, running her hands through her hair. Y/N knew that wasn’t the case, but if she said anything, Cleo would know something was wrong. She could read Y/N as well as Y/N could read her. 

Y/N took a quick look at herself in the mirror. Allowing herself enough time for only one deep breath in and out, Y/N left the bedroom. The door of her bedroom, well more like her storage closet, led straight into the living room. Shoupe on the couch, Sarah and John B sat with rigid posture in front of him on pull-out chairs. Her arrival had drawn the attention of the other three and just as she came in, so did JJ from the front door. They had only a second to make eye contact before Shoupe was speaking.

“Ah, Good Morning,” Shoupe gave Y/N an easy-going smile that did nothing to make her feel at ease. Shoupe looked up towards her literal partner in crime and gave him a nod. “JJ.”

“Morning, Shoupe,” Nothing about JJ seemed like he could have any inclination as to why Shoupe was here. Y/N did her best to follow his lead. “Didn’t bring any donuts, but…” JJ made a show of looking down at his almost empty water bottle. “I could give you a sip.” 

Shoupe’s smile turned into a sarcastic one as he shook his head. “I’ll pass. Just wanted to ask y’all a couple of questions.”

JJ’s eyebrow shot up, curiously. “What about?” 

“Nothing of worry. I was just asking these guys where they were yesterday. Say around 4 p.m.?” 

JJ gave him a questioning look, walking further into the room. “Why would that be of interest to you?” Y/N suppressed a groan. Why was he being difficult?

“Look,” Shoupe sighed, standing up from the couch. “I don’t want trouble. Sarah and John B. answered my questions. Why don’t you just cooperate for once.” Oh. Of course, it would have been more of a giveaway if JJ hadn’t been asking questions. 

“That’s all fine, but don’t I get to know why I’m being questioned?” JJ waited as Shoupe looked at him, an unsure look on the cop’s face. Finally, Shoupe began speaking. 

“A body was found on a back road and we’re just trying to make sure all our bases are covered,” Y/N went still. She’d been quiet this whole time, but now she was scared she wouldn’t be able to speak even if she was asked to. The cops knew about the body, but how did Shoupe know one of them was involved? He doesn’t know, Y/N reminded herself, it’s just a theory. 

“And we’re a base because?” JJ continued his act of oblivious defiance. “Don’t know about the rest, but Y/N and I were together around… what time did you say?” JJ’s voice seemed muffled over the blood pumping in Y/N’s ear. 

“Four.”

“Yeah, I was with Y/N. Here, at the shop,” JJ offered. “We were trying to fix the charter shack's generator. Y/N kind of fried the thing.” With that, all eyes were on Y/N. It was her turn to make JJ’s lies believable enough for them to get past this. 

“I didn’t fry it,” Y/N argued, rolling her eyes before focusing on Shoupe. “But, yeah, I was with JJ working on the generator. You can stop by the shack if you want. You’ll get to witness JJ’s handy work firsthand.”

Shoupe nodded his head before it slowly turned into a shake, “No, that’s alright. We think the guy got into something with the Genrettes. I know y’all have been heading to Goat Island a bit more so I thought I’d check in. Thanks for your cooperation,” Shoupe shot JJ a pointed look, before heading out the front door.

“Explain,” Cleo said, her accent coming out thicker like it always did when she was going big sister mode with Y/N. They were only a year apart but she had always treated Y/N like she was her little sister rather than a friend.  

Y/N bit her lip and sighed, “Call Pope and Kie, we need to talk.”

“So you tampered with evidence and left a body in the middle of a road?”

“You know, for someone so smart, you ask an awful lot of dumb questions, Pope,” John B quipped at Pope’s recap. Y/N and JJ had spent the last fifteen minutes catching the Pogues up to speed. On everything: Genrette’s letter, finding Groff at the grave, the confession JJ received, and JJ burning the knife. Turns out, Pope, Kiara, and Cleo had all been questioned before Y/N had woken up, each having an alibi and someone to attest to it. For Kie, it was her mom who had asked her to meet for lunch somewhere. Pope and Cleo had been together at his parent’s place.

“JJ, why did you tell Shoupe we were together?” As soon as Shoupe had left, Y/N had been reviewing every word of the interaction. She was trying to find any part that could have gotten them caught, but Shoupe had been surprisingly willing to listen and the conversation had been much shorter than anticipated. 

“Cause we were?” JJ was sat on the floor, his back against the couch, as he looked up at Y/N.

“Now we’re each other’s alibis and no one can back us up to say we weren’t near the crime scene,” Y/N was trying extremely hard to not lose her patience. Yes, this was JJ’s fault, but she knew it wasn’t black and white. None of the messes they found themselves in ever were. 

JJ was quiet for a while before he looked away. “No one else could have been our alibi.” He probably hadn’t meant for it to hurt, but God did it. He was right. The only people who could have covered for JJ and Y/N were in this room. This was the only family they had.

“What do we do now?” Sarah piped from next to Y/N on the couch. 

“Nothing. The only people who were there were Y/N and me. There are no cameras. We’re fine.” JJ’s nonchalance was met with a slap against the back of his head from Cleo.

“Ouch?”

“You’re forgetting Groff, idiot.”

“Okay,” Kiara cut off any possibility of a fight between JJ and Cleo with a question of her own. “What happens if they do tie this to the two of them? Or, more likely, if Groff tries to pin this on them?” The entire room was silent as they considered this. It almost felt like no one had considered where Groff fell into all this. 

“He wouldn’t—” JJ sounded exasperated by this conversation, but it was obvious to everyone that this was so much deeper for him. “Groff doesn’t get anything from trying to pin this on us.”

“Um, except maybe innocence,” Pope chipped in his usual wise guy way that he couldn’t help sometimes, but Y/N knew he didn’t mean any harm by it. She watched JJ with a steady gaze as he simply shrugged and looked away. This was going to be such a long conversation if someone didn’t take the lead. Y/N looked over to John B with a desperate plea on her face that she hoped he’d understand. Luckily, he did. 

“Alright look,” John B said, getting up from his seat on the couch. He moved to the edge of the room so that he could be seen by everyone. “What we need is a backup plan if this comes back to Y/N and JJ.”

“They could get married.”

Y/N was surprised everyone’s heads didn’t roll off with how quickly they turned to look at Pope. 

“What?” 

“What?”

Y/N and Kiara looked at each other briefly after their simultaneous outbursts before looking back at Pope. He was sat lazily against the other side of the couch, opposite to JJ, mischief in his eyes. 

“What? Spousal privilege and all that,” Pope chuckled. 

“Cleo, wack him in the head,” Y/N fussed. “This is no time for jokes.” Pope lifted his hands in a surrender gesture, but the smirk never left his face.

“Okay, well, any other ideas?” John B waited a minute, letting the silence settle in until it felt as if it could be infinite, before sighing and placing his hands on his hips. “We stay low. JJ, don’t make contact with Groff. At least for now. And we’ll take a backseat on the treasure-hunting stuff.” 

Y/N watched as the Pogues immediately began protesting in various ways. The treasure was their last chance of making it out. JJ was the only person aside from John B and herself that was quiet. He had promised her there would be no more treasure hunting, but she hadn’t taken him seriously. JJ was always the last to back down from any fight, but especially one like this. 

John B lifted his hand to silence the others, “There’s been too much death surrounding us. This thing…it seems bigger than us.” He offered when no one looked convinced, “Just until the Ligthner thing blows over. Then we can try and see if it’s worth finding.” 

“So no wedding?” 

“Shut up, Pope.”

The ban on wedding talk didn’t last long in Poguelandia 2.0, because by six p.m. Y/N had been called into the station for more questioning. JJ had been going stir-crazy waiting for her to come home since she’d left with Pope as her driver two hours ago. Pope had been sporadically updating the group chat, but it did little to quell how his stomach kept lurching. He hoped this wouldn’t catch up to the two of them, even though all points were pointing to it. 

The group had come out to sit on the patio, unable to bear sitting inside while they waited for Pope and Y/N to return. The sun was beginning to set and JJ had to keep absentmindedly swatting bugs away, but he barely registered anything around him. In the past 24 hours, he’d seen things he had never imagined and he never should have. And it just kept getting worse. 

“JJ, can I just ask,” John B spoke up, breaking the silence that had set amongst the five remaining pogues. “What were you thinking?” JJ looked up at John B with a deadpan look. 

“You tell me, 'cause I’m not the only one to turn a blind eye to my father killing someone,” He gave John B a pointed look and then turned the look to the others. “Or try to cover up a murder, for that matter.” 

Everyone stared at him for a long moment, before nodding and mumbling some version of acceptance. JJ shook his head, letting his mind wander back to the day before. Seeing the man who was supposedly his father murder someone wasn’t the worst part. No, the worst part was seeing the corpse of his mother and her resting place in ruin. 

He couldn’t get that image out of his head. His mother. He’d never known her, never known she was anyone to him, and the first time he saw her – at an age where he’d remember forever– it had been in the most haunting way. He’d wanted to throw up every time he remembered the sight, but he couldn’t stop reminding himself of it. JJ reached his fingers in his pocket trying to find the letter from Genrette–  which had ironically become a comforting item. He felt nothing but the cotton lining of his pocket. Sitting up straighter, he checked his other pocket and found the same. There was no way he’d lost it, he’d kept the letter with him since he’d received it. 

Just as JJ was beginning to stand from his seat, noticing he’d drawn Kie’s attention with his movements, he heard the Twinkie pull onto the property. Soon, Pope and Y/N exited the Volkswagen, their expressions somber. JJ stilled, waiting with bated breath as they stepped onto the porch. Y/N wordlessly slid the white banister and let her head fall against her knees. 

“What? What happened?” JJ asked, moving to crouch down next to her. When she didn’t respond, just releasing a muffled groan, JJ turned to look at Pope. “What did Shoupe say?” 

“According to Y/N, he has some sort of evidence,” Pope took a seat in front of their porch bench, letting his head fall against Cleo’s thigh. “That could tie y’all to the scene.”

JJ’s eyebrows furrowed as he processed what Pope was saying. Just as John B got out the words to ask what evidence they were referring to, JJ realized what had happened. 

“Oh shit,” JJ thought aloud. He was still crouched beside Y/N, who was looking up now to see what JJ was cursing at. He just looked at her waiting for her to confirm his worst suspicions. 

“The letter?” Y/N’s confirmation came in the form of a question, checking to see if JJ had already put that together. When his head fell, he knew she’d gotten her answer. “You knew?” Her voice was so accusatory, so full of unreleased venom that it made his head spin. 

“No, yes– wait, ugh no,” JJ stood up to pace the porch and clear his thoughts. “I just realized a minute ago, that I’d lost it.” JJ wasn’t looking at Y/N as he explained himself. “It must have fallen out of my pocket.”

“Can someone fill us in,” Sarah, who was leaning against the opposite banister from Y/N, asked. “What letter?”

JJ filled in the rest of the Pogues about the letter from Genrette and him having the letter on him. He promised that he hadn’t known it had fallen out until just then and this time he looked at Y/N as he did. She just looked exhausted. Cleo, who had slipped inside without JJ noticing, gave her a water bottle and she didn’t speak until she’d chugged the entire thing. 

“Shoupe asked if I knew anything about it. About the letter,” Y/N finally spoke. “I told him no. He wanted me to confirm where I’d been, so I told him here. With JJ. Asshole tried to say I wouldn’t be in trouble if my answer changed,” Y/N added with a scoff. JJ felt himself soften at that. She’d covered for him and it seemed she’d done it without a second thought. 

“Was that it?” JJ said, instead of expressing any gratitude. Y/N shook her head.

“He basically asked how the letter could’ve been on the road if you hadn’t been. So…” Y/N pursed her lips, looking away from everyone. JJ felt his heart start to beat faster. This must have been when she admitted the truth: That this was all his fault. 

“So?” Pope asked, clearly not having heard this part of the debrief.

“I… told him Groff came by here.”

No one said anything and no one moved. 

“You did what?!” John B was the first to express the shared sentiment.

“I told him Groff came by!” Y/N doubled down, her voice more confident. “He wasn’t letting the idea go that I would know this about JJ, something about all of us not being able to keep our social securities a secret from each other. So I told him I knew he thought Groff could be his dad, but didn’t know about the letter. 

“I told him Groff came by when I was manning the register and said JJ had called him over, JJ and him went to have a private conversation, and when he came back all JJ said was that Groff being his dad was fake news. I kind of suggested that maybe Groff took the letter back without outright suggesting it.”

JJ looked at Y/N, always careful Y/N. Y/N wasn’t careful in an innocent way. It was more…calculated. She took risks she knew had a higher probability of ending in her favor and never ones that would deter her from her end goal, whatever that may be. He couldn’t believe she’d lied to the cops in such a risky way.

“Y/N, that’s crazy,” Kie said. “What if they find out you’re lying? They could ask Groff.”

“I didn’t know what to do, Kie,” Y/N’s head was in her hands now. “I know, it was stupid.”

“Not completely,” John B offered. “Technically, it’s still you and JJ’s words against Groffs. That’s got to count for something. JJ nodded. 

“I just… can’t get what Kie said out of my mind. Groff could easily take us down with him. What if this shit goes to court?”

“He’ll be gone before that,” JJ cut Y/N’s line of questioning off before she could go further. “He told me he’s headed to Morrocco. At the cemetery. Said he had everything: the map, how to read it.” 

“Why would he tell you all that? He didn’t even admit you were his son until it was convenient.” JJ tried not to let Y/N’s words sting. 

“He was trying to make me sound crazy like I was plotting to take the crown somehow by posing as his lost son. He kept saying it was ‘too late for anyone to take what was his’. I don’t know,” JJ shrugged. He avoided the pitiful gazes of his friends by looking out at the now night sky. 

“I guess that’s something. But it still doesn’t get rid of the what if. This is a murder case, so if JJ and Y/N are linked to it, they’ll go to court. We all know KCPD doesn’t have a great track record of putting the real murderer in jail.” How Sarah could speak about her family trauma so nonchalantly, JJ would never know. “We can’t let Y/N perjure herself if they find out JJ tampered with evidence.” 

The Pogues let themselves sit in what Sarah said, trying to find any solution. JJ was never the problem solver, but right now he couldn’t even come up with one of his bizarre ideas. Well, except–

“Guys, I know I was joking before, but…” Pope gave Y/N and JJ a sheepish look, lifting one shoulder in a shrug. There was an absence of even a trace of humor on his face.

“No way,” Y/N argued. “That’s crazy. We can’t get married.”

“Yeah, what?” JJ agreed, even though he’d been thinking the same. He didn’t actually think that would be an option. 

“Y/N…”

“Cleo, there’s no way you think that’s reasonable.” Y/N and Cleo often did this thing where they’d communicate with only their eyes. JJ’s not sure if they actually knew what the other was saying or if they just filled the gaps with assumptions, but whichever it was it had Y/N storming inside the house. 

“Y’all aren’t serious right?” JJ asked, but he had a feeling he didn’t want to hear the answer. 

“Spousal privilege, JJ. If Groff tries to bring you two to court, the only witnesses to his story are you two. If they can’t force you to testify against each other in court, then he has no leg to stand on.” JJ hated that Pope’s silver tongue. He could make almost anything sound like it was right. 

“It makes sense,” John B added. JJ looked to Sarah who was nodding, but giving Kiara a sad look. 

“Us getting married is not being left to a group vote.” 

JJ turned to look at Kiara and felt his face flush. He hadn’t had a full conversation with her since he’d told her about the letter, but in his defense, he’d been a bit tied up. He’s not sure if it was completely intentional, since whatever he and Kie had wasn’t acknowledged in the group, but Pope, Sarah, and John B all went inside. 

Kie avoided JJ’s stare, as she sat on the bench picking at imaginary cuticles. JJ walked over to her slowly, not feeling deserving of talking to her now, after he’d been so shut off. Still, he had to say something. 

“Kie,” His voice was soft as he sat down on the bench. 

“They’re talking crazy right? Marriage.” Kiara asked, letting her brown eyes meet his blue ones. “You’re nineteen.” 

JJ and Kiara had a complicated relationship. For the longest time, JJ had a crush on Kiara. All the boys had at some point, most of those points overlapping. She was a pretty girl and for a while the only girl who hung out with them. It was impossible not to have a crush. But as they got older, JJ was able to look past that, and see Kiara for who she truly was. To him, she held the same place as John B and Pope did in his life, just with the bonus of being hot. Nothing ever came of that childhood crush and JJ didn’t think of Kiara in any way other than a friendly one for many years. Until they’d started working on Poguelandia 2.0.

Maybe it was because they were surrounded by couples, but the air between them had changed, and it wasn’t just on his end this time. When JJ would flirt, Kie would flirt back. When he’d sit a little closer than necessary on the couch, she’d close the gap. He’s not sure when or how, but it hadn’t taken them long to take that give-and-take into the bedroom. He couldn’t say that’s all they were– friends with benefits– because of course that wasn’t all they were. They’d been best friends before everything and you couldn’t sleep with your best friend and not let feeling get involved. But neither of them ever tried to define their relationship and JJ didn’t know if they ever would. Sometimes he would think of it as a situationship that would fizzle out, but then he’d feel guilty because this was Kie. He loved her. He knew he did, but was he confusing platonic love with romantic? And if he wasn’t, if he did romantically love Kie, did she even feel the same? They never talked about those thoughts though and the other Pogues never gave their fire the air it needed to grow– except one time, over a beer, John B had echoed JJ’s thoughts and let it slip that he thought that their arrangement would end eventually. Regardless, she still deserved for him to address her role in all of this. 

“They’re definitely talking crazy, but…” He lacked the conviction he knew she needed to hear. JJ watched Kie’s nose scrunch, in the way it always did when she had something to say but wouldn’t let herself. “What? Say it.” Kie’s nose scrunch disappeared and she gave JJ a small smile. 

“I just…” Kie’s scrunch returned, but she pushed through. “I know we’re not exactly exclusive. But I just thought we were more than…”

“We are,” JJ insisted, his hand reaching out to take hers. “Of course, we’re more than that.” Kie squeezed his hand once, but her smile was half-hearted.  

“Are you seriously going to go along with this?”

“Y/N would never agree,” JJ said to ease her worries, but really to ease his own.

“If she did, though?” Kie’s hold on JJ’s had tightened and it felt like her hand was wrapped around his heart. He let his mind run through that possibility, deciding what he’d do.

“It’s my fault she’s in this situation.” That’s all that JJ could offer Kiara. Because in truth that’s all he knew. No matter what plan of action the Pogues took, his priority was making sure Y/N came out of this unscathed. He couldn’t live with himself if one of his friend’s lives got ruined because of him. 

Kiara took her hand away from his and he felt the lack of it more than the touch itself. “If you do, we couldn’t keep doing…whatever we’re doing.”

“It wouldn’t be a real marriage, Kie,” JJ argued, but he felt gross as he said it. It wasn’t a real marriage, but he couldn’t expect Kie to stick around and wait for all of this to blow over.

“It would just make everything weird,” Kiara voiced JJ’s thoughts. JJ didn’t get a chance to offer any more to this conversation, because John B was yelling his name from inside. Sighing, JJ got up and waited for Kie to stand before they headed inside the house. 

“What?” JJ asked, taking in the Pogues, who had now assembled in the living room. Y/N stood in the corner, her arms crossed across her chest and a look of defeat on her face. Y/N never looked defeated. 

John B clapped his hands with a shit-eating grin on his face, “I’m gonna be your best man, right? Not Pope?” 

What? 

“I’m not walking down the aisle with you,” Cleo shot at John B.

“There’s no aisle,” Sarah reminded. “It’s at the courthouse.” JJ felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise. 

“What’s at the courthouse?” He shouldn’t have asked. He already knew. 

“Your wedding, of course.” JJ wanted to wipe that smile off Pope’s face with his fist. 

taglist: @theater-bitch @ayy1234567 @tpwkyarely @lovesanimals0000 @B3rryb3t @mvaldez7821 @ummmmokaynotme @velyssaraptor

[hurricanek8art]

I had to start trying to explain to my mom (strictly a movie/tv fan) why the Jedi are like this at this point in time, and it finally clicked in my head. The perfect way to explain how they're so rigid and strict and have such huge sticks up their butts at this point in time.

The Jedi of this generation are the result of generational trauma.

(Spoilers for episodes 1 and 2 of The Acolyte, Phase One of the High Republic books, and some barebones setting spoilers of Phase Three under the cut. Also a big wall of text because I never know when to shut up 🙃)

So I'm behind on Phase III of the High Republic books (got a few chapters into The Eye of Darkness when it came out, brain farted out on me on reading ability, haven't gotten back to it yet 🙃😖) but I know enough to know that things are really going bad. The Nihil are rampaging, the Nameless are turning people to stone, the Stormwall has cut off like a third of the galaxy from the rest of it. It's a lot! It's really bad! And we see how it's affecting our heroes. Avar and Elzar are reeling without Stellan. Vern's questioning about how the Jedi are responding to this threat throughout Phase I has led her to become a Wayseeker. Padawans like Bell, Burry and Reath have been elevated to Knighthood a lot sooner than any of them expected to be. All of them are incredibly traumatized.

But that's just the Jedi we've seen. The heroes, the big names. Imagine being a nobody at this time. An extra. A child.

Imagine being a youngling in this era. There are literal nightmares hunting you. People are dying right and left, they're being husked and turned to stone or just plain shot/stabbed/whatever. The outposts are being closed down and everyone's being recalled to Coruscant, and that's the ones who've survived so far. They knocked the Starlight Beacon out of the sky, something that was supposed to be impossible. And less than five years ago, this was a golden age of peace, of light and life and great works that were bringing the galaxy together, a united front. That's horrible, that is terrifying.

We as the readers know it's going to work out, because it has to, because this is a prequel. They don't know that. They're just kids, and the world has suddenly turned upside-down, and the galaxy is big and scary and dark.

So everything works out, the day is saved. But these kids, they have to live with this trauma for the rest of their lives.

And when they grow up, and they train Padawans, those Padawans are going to carry the lessons they learned onwards. There is no lesson a Master can teach in this era that isn't going to carry the grief of the Nihil or the Nameless. There is no lesson any Master will ever teach again, from the moment Loden Greatstorm was captured by Marchion Ro all the way to Luke's temple burning to the ground, that won't somehow, in some way, be touched by this. It haunts everyone, everything. Those lessons are passed on, and on, and on.

Yord Fandar is intense about protocal and following the rules and making sure he's the perfect Jedi, because a hundred years ago maverick Elzar Mann played fast and loose with the rules while he was stationed on Valo, and then the Nihil turned the Republic Fair into a bloodbath. Sol is worried about Osha's (so far) inability to put her grief to the side and remain objective in chasing Mae because Imri Cantaros lost control and nearly murdered the Nihil who caused the death of his master during the Great Disaster. Vernestra Rwoh is refusing to charge into this without talking it over with the Council because she remembers what happened when she kept information from them a hundred years ago.

These aren't isolated incidents because they happened to the heroes, every Jedi of that era has some story like this, where the lines blurred in the fog of war and they made or nearly made horrible mistakes out of fear. And now, every Jedi is going to want to rise above that. To not make those mistakes, because that past is past. It's peaceful again. They're better now. But that trauma's lurking under the surface, just like the Sith. The Nihil won't win, but the Order isn't going to, either. Because what the Nihil did changed them, permanently.

The plot of the High Republic books is supposedly unrelated to the show, because it's a hundred years later. But the plot of the High Republic books explains everything about the Jedi in this era of the galaxy. They're carrying the trauma and grief of an entire generation that was brutalized unlike anything the Order had ever seen before.

And the Sith have watched, and waited, as that trauma has become so internalized, so central to what the Jedi are. The Jedi might not even realize that's what's happened to them. But the Sith see it.

And now it's finally time to begin the grand plan.

[thiscityneedslessfog]

Behind the Curtain: Teddie Hanamura and Rise Kujikawa

this is a comparison piece between Rise and Teddie and it was inevitable. Rise’s my favorite character and I’m looking for any excuse to talk to her, and I’m having a “Category 5 Teddie Event” out of nowhere. Their shared identity issues and their discomfort with how they are and can be perceived are mainly what I want to talk about. It’s why Teddie’s Shadow, Kintoki-Douji, just suddenly pops up out of (almost) nowhere to call Teddie out after he saves Rise.

Starting with Rise. Rise Kujikawa’s primary arc is about identity and how she can express herself and trust in the people around her to allow her to do that. Her relationship with masks and theater and performance is woven into her character. I’ve done two entire writeups about her and her relationship with identity.

Himiko exists because Rise is having an identity crisis. As a Shadow, she is the embodiment of Rise’s terror over not having anything beneath the mask, that she really is just the doll Himiko portrays herself as, existing for the audience. Hell, the floor design in her dungeon is full of eyes. She’s terrified that she can’t escape their hypercontrolling gaze.

And Himiko rants about Rise’s identity crisis and how much she hates being in this situation where she just… can’t be perceived. Where does the mask end and the face begin? Who is she? Is she truly nothing? And is Rise just naive for wanting someone to see her as “herself?” What is “herself?”

Himiko’s berserk design has her body in every color, the only feature identifying her connection to Rise being the twintails she has. Her face is a series of mirrors, a kaleidoscope.

On Teddie’s end, Kintoki-Douji is the representation of the terror Teddie faces over the fact he is a Shadow. He sees Shadows, and by extension himself, as monsters to be fought. He’s a shard with no whole in his eyes. Less than human. Again, Kintoki-Douji’s design fits this perfectly.

Both Rise and Teddie are afraid that what they’re portrayed to be, a mere doll and a monster, respectively, are correct interpretations of them as people, and how they both feel chained by public perception of them. When for both of them, they realize this isn’t true.

Now this goes about differently for both of them. Rise’s arc is about herself and her ability to find her own identity and passion, and also stand up for those that can’t do it for themselves yet.

Rise, after being rescued, ends up finding friends who accept her for who she is. But she’s still not entirely sure on how she’s supposed to express herself yet, as she puts on an energetic persona and admits she’s not sure whether it’s actually how she’s supposed to act??

But as her Social Link goes on, she gets a taste of freedom and loves it, and as the story continues she becomes more comfortable with the Investigation Team. She loves being able to choose and when she’s worried she loses the choice to go back to her passions, she’s terrified because she realizes her passions are as much a part of her as anything else.

And the little girl in her Social Link, like what she says in her epilogue rank. She doesn’t want anyone to be as vulnerable as her, and now even though she’s returning as an idol, she’s now mainly self-managed so she has more control over herself.

Teddie’s is about his friends, and how just because Teddie is “fundamentally different” from his friends due to being a Shadow, this doesn’t make him any less worthy of love as a person. After all, Teddie’s main fear is related to being accepted by the Investigation Team. I've done a writeup about him, too, which covers Teddie in a lot more detail, and how he hates the idea of what he is.

The whole point of soothing Shadows and awakening Personae are about facing yourself and accepting who you are. Which strongly implies Teddie, by facing Kintoki-Douji, has acknowledged to himself that he’s a Shadow… but Teddie doesn’t admit this to everyone else until the Midnight Channel Killer is revealed. Because even though I'd argue he knows he’s a shadow at this point, that doesn’t mean he likes it. He’s still terrified of the idea of being perceived as a Shadow, because he’s still (mistakenly) interpreting Shadows, and by extension himself, as a monster that shouldn't be interacted with...but he loves the Investigation Team!

And he only admits that he's a Shadow when he’s in the Velvet Room and planning on leaving, and then later convinced to come back because at least Yu didn’t care he’s a Shadow. And then Yosuke just says this.

Both Rise and Teddie ended up being accepted by people who didn’t ostracize them for any specific details, and just were willing to be their friends and offer them support, even against the fear they had for themselves. It’s okay if they’re “empty” or whatever, they’re still people and deserve love. They didn't fully accept themselves, but the people around them did, and that's what helped them get better and become more confident as people.

Also, as a final note, both Rise and Teddie have primarily support-based Personae. For Rise… Himiko is literally a Navigator Persona. Rise doesn’t really fight. I’ve mentioned it before in a little ramble about Teddie, but you can easily build Teddie as pure support, even though he does have both physical and magical attacks. Which fits with their personalities, not just the idea of how they struggled with the idea of a “self” so that their Personae are by necessity “selfless supporters,” but these two are super sweet and incredibly important to the team.

anyways I am so feral about these two

[world-smitten]

i've not read the children of blood & bone books, but as a nigerian diaspora kid, i'm still gonna poke my nose in & have an opinion. I'll just say that Tomi Adeyemi, a Nigerian-American woman who only connected w/ her Nigerian ancestry in her 20s, was never gonna have anything "less" than an black-diaspora-excellence adaptation. In an ideal world, a Nigerian production studio would've brought the story to life with Nigerian actors who could at least pronounce Orisha w/o getting tongue-tied. But Tomi Adeyemi has put out a book with incredible success and has gained a limited fame that puts her among Black American celebrities, who are the people that she rubs shoulders with. She wouldn't "settle" for her NYT Bestseller book being adapted by a small(er) Nigerian production company w/ limited reach beyond the African continent & diaspora, featuring Nigerian actors whose names likely mean nothing to her (has she heard of Richard Mofe Damijo? Funke Akindele? Ramsey Nouah? Genevieve Nnaji? has she even glimpsed any of their films?). Paramount Pictures have the reach, they have the money, they have the glamour that fits the kind of glossy black-excellence narrative that has built the book up (hers was really the first African-flavoured YA fantasy books to get any kind of popularity/push in a western market). Paramount have seemingly thrown all the hottest Black diaspora actors into the pot, w/ no attempt to even look anywhere else. And again, I think Adeyemi defends the casting because she's sincerely very happy with it - a prestigious cast as deserving of a NYT bestseller, by a woman who clearly and understandably enjoys her success (if her insta is anything to go off).

It's an American adaptation of an American book, by an American author whose engagement w/ her heritage was severely limited by design (which I don't judge her for, I'm not exactly miss naija myself). I think this outcome (all diaspora Actors) was kinda inevitable, but idk why the ppl in charge of this film ever decided to pretend that was going to NOT be the case, by doing that whole "open casting" song and dance. Like just be straight up, you're not going to cast anyone who isn't 100%, bulletproof bankable. Like wth is Amandla Stenberg doing here lollll, always at the scene of the crime, that girl.

I'm pleased people are upset though. Black Panther was tolerable, but this isn't a Wakanda situation - Orisha, indigenous religion practitioners, the ethnic group it emerged from are very real. That being said, I think if you want fantasy works that sincerely engage with African cosmologies, you can easily do much better than Adeyemi's book. Nigerian SFF literature is on the up and up - you can start with the Nigerian authors in the Africa Risen anthology, who have published great work everywhere. These authors' works are very accessible - they're published in various online magazines. My personal faves are Dare Segun Falowo and Pemi Aguda - Falowo's work reads like a heady, nauseous fever-dream, but Aguda is always controlled, she knows the perfect moment to twist the knife. Her anthology Ghostroots was one of the best things I read last year. Falowo's Ngozi Ugegbe Nwa is a terrifying riff on old stereotypes about women living the high-life in the big city. And Aguda's Manifest is a total encapsulation of her work, her ability to condense societal anxieties into just a few narrative beats. I could go on and on (Wole Talabi, Oluwatomiwa Ajeibe, Chinelo Onwualu etc). While I don't know if I believe in a singularly "authentic" Nigerian culture that can be codified and then represented, these authors are living (or have lived) & publishing straight from the continent in spite of everything, so check them out.

[mewpathy]

FINALLY. THE REASON WHY I MADE THIS SIDE BLOG. HER.

Been having a TON of brainrot from TOH again and my old mlp next gen habits kicked in sooooo... yeag

More ab her under the cut bc WOOOO BOY i have SO MANY THOUGHTS ON HER

So! I think I should begin with just the fact that she is, for lack of a better term, a anomaly. Grimwalkers have never been recorded to reproduce- on top of her being a weird mixture of not really human and not really witch... Uncanny valley for both species yk?

Hunter and Luz were in their mid-20s when Luz got pregnant with Lunala,, which was a shock for both. More Hunter than Luz lmao she was cruising. At the time the two had just started up a cultural exchange of sorts with the human realm so on top of the stress of new baby... yeah it was a time.. Doesn't help that halfway through Luz's body was like- smth,, smth aint right and so while not on bedrest, she did have to tone down her activities and now, with medicine advancing, many theorize that the left over Titan magic in her is the only reason she survived.

Then out popped Lunala! Lil freak of a girl. Hunter cussed out the fact hes a clone bc bby girl gots her wack goofy ahh cousin(?)s blue eyes- Phillips last F u lol- the yellow from Mama only started coming out when she turned 4-ish. On top of that, she got the staple four digits with pawpads all Grimwalkers have and EXTREMELY horrible equilibrium and thermoregulating ability. She is bundled up 24/7 and cant walk without her cane. Messed up gal.

Due to the irregularities of magic during her formation her bile sac cannot filter magic properly- some days she'll be equal to a fully grown witch and others she'll be bedbound due to her own bile sac essentially leaking the excess out of her when a usual one would get rid of the "used up" magic via normal ways- another reason why she uses her cane. On top of this, the excess magic (if she hasn't used any in a while) starts to drip out of her mouth, being almost acidic. A fine line she has to walk between literally spewing acid and being poisoned by her own body. She survives tho! Also her teeth too big for her gotdamn mouth,, queen of braces

BUT OH HO HO. THIS DOES NOT STOP HER FROM BEING A LIL CREECHER. A GOOFBALL. A MENACE. She looks /TERRIFYING/ when happy/scheming but genuinely means well- taking her Mama's words to heart- "It becomes bullying when no one but yourself is having fun" and essentially tries to make others laugh/be in a good mood,, unfortunately a lot of people find her to be unnerving- only really finding a few good friends in Ophelia- Willow and Amity's adopted daughter-, King, Collector, and a school friend Ricardo- a human on the Boiling Isles via the cultural exchange program.

Outside of other's around her age, she gets along with her parents and family wonderfully! Lunala can be very quiet when she wants too and has found a particular gift for essentially reading people and being able to help them- magical therapist if you will. On top of exploring the human realm with her Auntie Vee (Who has become a cross country explorer and nature conservationist), she has a hell of a time helping her Dad practice for his games or his most recent pailsman carving, or helping her Mama document the entirety of the Boiling Isles or be a proof reader for her Mama's books. Fun stuff!

Her pailsman- Manny- is named after Luz's dad, after seeing pictures her Abuela left out. Manny and Lunala are two peas in a pod- with both being seen as unnerving. On top of that, Manny being a King Cobra gives a slight hint to Lunala's... less than spectacular anger. She doesn't get angry often but when she does her bile sac works overtime with the amount of adrenaline she gets from her anger, which, of course, leads to the acidic overspill and very... unsightly view.

As she gets older, and learns to control her anger more, she'll become a terrifying politician both in the Boiling Isles and in the human realm and hobbyist child psychologist.

ANYWAY ITS MIDNIGHT AND I GOTS SCHOOL BYE HOPW YALL ENJOY THIS RANT

[indelen]

This is me finally reaching the end of The Screaming Staircase in the great Lockwood and Co reread organized by @blue-boxes-magic-and-tea, I usually make a general summary of several chapters and then post bits and pieces that jumped out at me, but honestly, I don't have much to say here except that with some hindsight I'm amazed how much seeds of the further plots are laid down here in very subtle ways. Sometimes just a line or two.

Part V: Chapters 25-26

Again that seed of doubt, possibly spurred on my poor Annie Ward and her controlling relationship. This is the first of many times Lucy will be frustrated at Lockwood hiding things, doing things behind her back and in secret. From the beginning Lucy and Lockwood’s main conflict, which comes to a head in the 3rd book, is inevitable. Holly was just the final straw, the last symptom of a prolonged illness. If she didn’t come along some other argument would have boiled over to the same end.

See kids, this is why you don’t help work for cops.

The fascinating thing about Kipps is that he is, at the start of the book, in the highest possible position and has the best possible future of any kid who enters the agency system.

On paper.

On paper he survived being an agent, was recognized for his Talent and promoted, he was deemed valuable enough to be retained at Fittes as a supervisor after his Talent faded and his team is productive enough to be contracted out to DEPRAC. If it’s all written as a CV it looks quite impressive. But in reality all it really means is that Kipps has two sets of people treating him like garbage and barking orders at him. He answers to two sets of higher ups who could not care less if he and anyone in his charge lives or dies. And this is all dressed up as quite the honor, so Kipps doesn't really realize just how powerless, overworked and run into the ground he is.

Not yet.

Babies! Absolute children.

I get why they were aged up for the show but it was a bit jarring to see Cameron Chapman grab a beer from the fridge because in the book these are very clearly kids for whom the height of hedonism is binging on junk food Kevin McCallister style.

George is genuinely amazing because when did he manage to squirrel these away and how? But also, what I think is fascinating is that George asks Lucy’s opinion on something quite sincerely here, as one would a colleague. And Lucy … gives him a correct answer, she recognizes the sign! Because here’s the thing, Lucy was deprived of an education sure, but she’s not dumb. And as we later learn she’s quite artistic, she likes to draw. And if you’ve ever flipped through even one art book you would know how a Greek lyre looks like, even if you don’t know its exact name and meaning. And that is precisely the type of knowledge that Lockwood and Geroge would not have.

“Some flowers bloom

Where the green grass grows

Our praise is not for them

But the ones who bloom in the bitter snow

We raise our cups to them

We raise our cups and drink them up”

Gods give me strength, I will get to the symbolism of Stroud picking specifically the mythological Orpheus for this plotline of the book and how it relates to Lockwood … eventually.

I think from the start Lockwood kinda hopes that Lucy can talk to Type 3s. This matches with his attitude at the interview. I think he’s both terrified of Lucy’s ability to communicate and be so close emotionally and physically with ghosts (because of his own past) and sort of completely taken in and fascinated by it. It’s both similar and completely alien to what he can do. It would explain why he is always a bit aloof with her but always 100% has faith in her talents and is always by her side. It also explains why he doesn't process his feelings about her until much, much later.

Now girl, that’s not the way to talk about your future boyfriend.

Yes it was disappointing to see Skull on screen without his sass and much more of a spook jar but at the same time i can’t imagine how to thread this sort of needle in a live action adaptation. At the very least the more expressive, book loyal Skull would have cost a fortune to render with CGI. But I do miss him. Little gremlin shit disturber (affectionate).

I love this ending because it shows Lockwood and George, at last, as kids. Just two 14 year old boys laughing at the height of 14 year old boy humor - a rude story about nudity (I'm assuming the cut-happy US editor left the words as is and this is the UK “pants” which is actually “underpants” but please correct me someone with unexpurgated version if that is not the case).

Death in Life and Life in Death.

And Lucy chooses to go to them rather than stay with Skull. From cold into warmth, from darkness into light, from amongst death towards the living. The end of the series is already given to us, if we squint.

Final Lockwood smile count: 12!

Will Lucy beat her own record in The Whispering Skull? Stay tuned to find out!

[shychick-52]

Headcanon

The main reason Cedric was always so deeply reluctant and resentful to help Sofia (and even the other kids, including her friends) in the first two seasons was really because of the Incident from his childhood. He'd developed a real "No good deed goes unpunished" mentality ever since then. He once tried helping his sister make her big entrance at her ball special, and look what happened. So, ever since then, he wanted nothing to do with helping others (unless it was on the king's orders, but that's different) or doing good deeds if asked (and certainly never voluntarily).

Even though he always knew the Incident from his childhood wasn't his fault, the pain of everyone in the kingdom- including his own friends and family, those he thought he could trust- immediately turning their backs on him and treating him with lifelong contempt/ridicule over what they perceived was a mistake (and refusing to even believe it wasn't his fault) never left him.

It was to protect himself, a defense measure, similar to why he also emotionally distanced himself from everyone. So, as part of how he masked his insecurities, he acted like it was a waste of his time or like it was a huge bother for him to help Sofia. But it was really his fear that if something went wrong, whether it was his fault or not, Sofia would immediately turn her back on him too. And she was the first one in so long to have such faith in him and his abilities, consider him a friend, and treat him with such kindness and support; it probably both terrified him and meant so, so much, and he knew it would make it all the more painful if one of these days she too changed her mind about him if something went wrong when helping her... especially the closer he found himself getting to her.

In fact, Cedric was probably shocked at first that Sofia constantly had so much trust in his abilities to keep relying on his help (when everyone else didn't think he was capable of anything and saw him as a clumsy bungler), because he was not used to that.

But gradually, the more he helped her, the more he realized he genuinely enjoyed it. He realized it felt great, like how it felt when he was so eager to help Cordelia all those years ago. He slowly realized he was good at doing good. Nothing bad happened. And Sofia and her friends, and even James and Amber, saw him as a good sorcerer (he began to realize he was earning others' respect and appreciation without seizing control of the kingdom). Best of all, he had a true friend in Sofia.

I think Cedric seemed especially reluctant in s3's 'Cedric Be Good' because even tho he'd already been gradually learning from Sofia about how rewarding it is to help others throughout the show, he'd never had to do so many nice things for others all in a row (of his own choosing to, no less, even tho it was technically for selfish reasons) like in that episode, and it intimidated him more than any time Sofia asked him to help.

And because he always struggled with his whole 'no good deed goes unpunished' trauma, that's why he told his mom in 'Cedric Be Good' he doesn't know the first thing about being good (despite all the good he already did during the series). He was still scared to wholly embrace it, because he was still scared something would eventually go wrong and it would be the Incident all over again.

And 'Cedric Be Good' very cleverly showed that he is far better at being good than evil. Every time he did something nice for others, people would be happy and he'd be granted a power from the amulet, but every time he did something bad he'd be cursed. I love the subtle symbolism! And by the end of that episode, he truly reached a milestone in his character development/arc (especially when he returned her amulet; he did it not only to rid himself of the last horrible curse inflicted on him, but also because he truly realized how much it would mean to her, so a big part of it was from his own heart).

@bettathanyou @fantadym @moonypears-blog @mushroomsie224 @majoresca @ushsblog @sweetmariihs2 @cedric-my-beloved

[circlejourney]

I'm finally watching TOH and I'm on S1 E6. no one tell me anything about this show at all, but here are my thoughts so far:

I love Hooty. adore him even. I go "hooo" every time I see his face onscreen

overall the show does a great job of trickling in the thematic throughlines and worldbuilding and masking foreshadowing under comedic misdirection. like it's already building that overarching story shape even this early on

there are some slightly unwieldy moments of "we need to make the characters mention this thing in passing so that we can set up for a certain future plot development" - par for the course but as far as YA TV series go, this is less heavy-handed than some.

intrigued by the commentary it seems to be developing on formal education as an instrument of societal control. I'm hoping it ends up being a big theme of the show overall, because the subject is very important to me. I'm also curious about why this society is seemingly so over-policed, and how that contrasts with some of the wild, perilous magic we've seen so far. those 2 things feel related, the most straightforward explanation being that something Bad happened in the past and they want to prevent the Bad Thing happening again.

clearly Abominations is some sort of Prestigious Track in the school like specialising in the sciences in Singapore lol poor Willow getting shoved into a specialisation she absolutely does not want to do despite a clear interest and aptitude in botanist magic.

On that note, I'm concerned about Willow's tendency to cast really strong magic unintentionally, and her lack of self esteem surrounding her clearly quite devastating abilities…she's so cool

also on that note the covens are creepy and the idea of >1 different magic type being a privilege allowed only to certain witches…oh god Luz is gonna not only be able to cast all the different magics but also do so without an innate skill in it…her existence basically threatens the precepts of this society…

the whole show has this quirky gothic horror sensibility (albeit kind of played off as comedic?) that I'm enjoying. fond of settlements that are built inside the remains of dead things - why so many giant dead things around though? what caused them to all die here? is this related to Bad Thing That Happened In The Past

Amity is my favourite character other than Hooty, she's kinda relatable (in the sense of being identified as skilled by the schooling system, being placed under immense pressure to perform, and perhaps believing as a result that she has to not only do well but also beat everyone else to be worthy of whoever's putting that pressure on her...or at least that's my read right now, later eps might reveal something else) and really signifies the terrible things that a system like the one she's in can do to even their most skilled. she has shown a lot of depth in 3 appearances. I hope they do some sort of "defrosting" plotline where she discovers the other characters' depths and vice versa.

I know people ship her with Luz and. I am a Huge fan of rivals to lovers. I haven't seen any of it onscreen and I am already rooting for it. if it's canon (and I'm assuming it is on some level because the show has been lauded for LGBT+ rep) and they pull this off well, it could stand to become my favourite romance in any animated TV show. possibly.

ok if Willow and Amity ever teamed up they would actually terrifying together. so I'm doubly rooting for them to come to respect each other

I've already said I wish it didn't have that episodic Monster of the Week/one-conflict-an-episode format and that they didn't have to wrap up a mini plotline every single episode but I get that those are the constraints of funding

I think the fact that I already have so many thoughts 6 episodes in speaks for itself

[theladyofshalott1989]

Writing Prompt #1: Imelda Reyes x f!MC/Female Reader

Thanks to @endless-starlight-legacy for providing the first prompt:

f!MC telling Imelda about her ancient magicImelda Reyes x Female MC This is my first f/f one-shot, as well as my first story written in second-person perspective! Enjoy :) Word Count: 846 Rating: Teen ✨✨✨

“Hey you, Gryffindor!” a voice rang out from directly behind you, catching you off guard just as you vanquished the last Ashwinder, while using your ancient magic no less. Strands of hair clung to your damp forehead. You quickly brushed them aside.

Shit.

You hadn’t realized that someone had been watching. And, of course, you recognized the distinct Scottish brogue. Imelda, of all people! You were in trouble now. 

Swiftly stashing your wand, you smoothed down your dusty robes and turned as gracefully as possible, arranging your face into the most innocuous expression you could possibly muster.

“Hullo, Imelda. What a pleasant surprise to see you here.”

Imelda greeted you in her usual stance—arms crossed, hip cocked, a defiant glint in her eye.

“What was all that about, then?” she asked, unfolding her arms and gesturing dramatically, as if reenacting the spell-casting she had just observed.

You gulped. “What do you mean?”

“Don’t play coy with me, fifth-year.” 

A solitary bead of sweat trickled down your temple. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Enough of this,” she spat out, her words sharp as a blade. “You’re about as unobtrusive as a troll, galumphing around the Highlands, challenging everything that crosses your path.” Pausing to shoot you a scowl, she finished with: “You can trust me. I know how to keep a secret.”

Did Imelda just compare you to a troll? And did she really just suggest you could trust her? You tried and failed to hold back a snort. That was a mistake.

“Are you mocking me, Gryffindor?” 

You couldn’t help it. The laughter burst forth, spiraling out of control. This situation was rapidly deteriorating. Terribly so. Yet, you found yourself powerless to stop it.

“Laugh all you want. I know you’re hiding something.” Imelda’s cheeks were flushed a brilliant red. It was truly a sight to behold. Your own cheeks grew hot, but not from embarrassment. What was this unsettling sensation? Was it Imelda's doing?

After regaining your composure, you drew in a deep breath, then said, “No, Imelda, I apologize. It’s just…”

“Just what?” she cut in. “Am I that much of a villain to you?”

"No, no, not at all," you stammered. You decided to ignore the troll comment, for the time being. You continued, "It's just... we've hardly exchanged more than a few words beyond your broom trials, and to imply that I could confide in you... it's just..."

To your complete and utter shock, Imelda’s face fell. “Well, excuse me for talking about my passion! You’re just like Nerida…” she muttered under her breath. She clenched her fists at her side and cast her gaze downward. 

Witnessing Imelda’s struggle to conceal whatever inner turmoil was currently coursing through her stung more than you could have imagined. Why did she suddenly have this hold on you? Weren’t you terrified of her? 

“Fine,” you began, the words tumbling out before you could stop them. This was probably a mistake, but you were sick of hiding. Your ancient magic ability wasn’t something you should have to bear alone!

Imelda's head snapped up, a flicker of shock passing over her face before she quickly composed herself. 

Taking a deep breath, you hesitated for a moment before beginning. "I possess... a special type of magic. Ancient magic. It only manifested when I turned fifteen. It’s very rare and I’m not quite sure of the full extent of my abilities yet.” You absently toyed with your long braid cascading across your chest. “It’s all a bit much, to be honest with you…” 

“Figures,” she interjected, followed by a rather unladylike guffaw.

Your eyes widened. “Now who’s mocking whom?” you managed to utter, only for Imelda to laugh. Again.

Despite everything, despite the confusing tangle of emotions that were currently holding you hostage, you found yourself joining in.

The next thing you knew, you were doubled over, hands on your thighs, gasping for air. The touch of a hand on your shoulder jolted you back to reality.

“You and everyone else need to get a thicker skin,” Imelda drawled. “But I appreciate you telling me. Can’t say I’m surprised.” 

You parted your lips to respond, but the words eluded you. You were stunned into silence by Imelda’s scent—fresh grass kissed by light rain, the subtlest trace of sweat, the undeniable aura of competition, if scent could capture such a concept. 

You hoped Imelda couldn’t tell how enraptured you were by the moment, by her. That certainly wouldn’t do. 

“Having fun, are we?” she teased, arching an eyebrow. 

Shit. 

You stammered out something unintelligible, running your hand through your hair and accidentally pulling your braid out in the process.

“Kneazle got your tongue?”

“Erm, no, I—"

“No matter,” she interrupted. “We'll talk more later." She raised a hand in salute. "See you around, fifth-year. Your secret is safe with me.” She then, presumably, began the long trek back to the castle. 

Once Imelda was out of sight, you heaved a sigh of relief. That could have gone better, but… maybe, just maybe, opening up to Imelda hadn’t been such a terrible idea after all.

[alystrin03]

Untitled Crow Game 🐦

A short story about the most punished apprentices in House De Riva: Micah (@only-slightly-terrified OC!) and my Alecto. They are both fledglings, they are both training under Viago's orders... and nothing good comes when they are together (but Viago still tries to make then work)

When Alecto walks back to her room, she finds a succinct note on the bed. Normally she wouldn't see it - she tends to lay out the sheets in any way - but it's placed in such a manner that it catches her eye as soon as she enters the alcove

"I have a contract for you. In my office, as soon as you read this. V"

Alecto sighs, jaded. She's been waiting a long time for a serious job, her first kill, something that would get her promoted to full-fledged Crow, but she's grown accustomed to rather disappointing assignments. Maybe she will drop by the pantry on the way and manage to misplace a flask of rum. As she starts to fold the note for safekeeping, she sees that it has something written on the back, in the same calligraphy.

“Don't even think about it.”

A mischievous smile lights up her face: her instructor knows her all too well. She wouldn't mind if they got to personally know each other a little better, anyway, she's been in love with him ever since those kinds of emotions popped into her teenage mind. Who knows, maybe dazzling him with a flawless execution of work will bring them a little closer.

Shaking her head, she heads straight for Viago's office, though she'd be happier with a drink on her hands. She smiles broadly as she sees Micah at the door, too, waiting to enter.

"Punishment or work?" the elf asks her as soon as he sees her.

"Work. Although it might be so boring I'd prefer a proper punishment" they both laugh. They have known each other for years, are good friends and sometimes so alike it's scary. The two apprentices who have spent the longest time punished at House De Riva, no doubt about it, but also two of the most promising recruits. Perhaps that's why Viago has taken them on.

A voice they recognize perfectly sounds from within. "It's about time. Come on in. Both of you."

The young fellows exchange a glance. It doesn't look like there's going to be a scolding, though Viago doesn't often get them together: the pair's ability to cause him headaches triples when Micah and Alecto are together.

"Glad to see you know how to follow simple instructions, if only because it's early in the morning and you're still sober" Alecto purses her lips to stifle a smile, and knows her friend is doing exactly the same "The thing is, there's a job to do and I've decided, contrary to what my common sense tells me, to assign it to you two, as a team."

For an instant Alecto doubts whether someone is controlling their instructor or whether he has overdone it with his morning dose of poison. But Viago seems completely serious, so she focuses on keeping her attention on what he is saying.

“As you already know, not only do we take care of who lives and who doesn't, but we Crows have our own businesses, a way to get extra funds” Viago goes looking alternately at both apprentices, making sure they listen carefully "But, from time to time, some asshole thinks of attempting to take advantage of the situation and try to steal from us. That is precisely what is happening. Several shipments have disappeared into thin air and, although it's not that it's valuable merchandise, we can't allow it. We know where they are stored. Your job will be to make the message clear that the Crows are not to be trifled with.“ The eyes of his pupils light up in unison ”if possible, without turning it into a bloodbath. Be convincing, but little more. If you manage to recover part of the goods you will have earned a bonus. Have I expressed myself clearly enough or do you need me to draw you a picture?"

Alecto's annoyed face is unavoidable. She has the feeling they are being sent on a minor errand, again, something much more suited to someone younger or less experienced. However she nods, they have no choice but to obey.

“Very well” Viago's voice indicates that the conversation is over "Come back as soon as the job is done. Dismissed"

"And... another fucking shitty job" Alecto folds her arms back, stretching, as soon as they leave the office

"At least we're in this together" Micah is also disappointed, but smiles at her. She returns the gesture: it's one of the things she likes most about him, his light humor and ability to always see the bright side of things. "Let's get this over with soon, we'll come back, get drunk and, if we feel like it, we can hang out and see if we can find someone to fuck"

Alecto lets out a chuckle "Deal. Although the one we want to fuck is precisely the one who's been screwing us, and not literally at all. If we get the bonus I plan on splurging on beer and finding a cute girl to spend the best night of my life with. Or a pretty boy, although for that I don't have to look very hard" She glances sideways at her friend, with a half-smile. Although there is no romance in their relationship, the two tend to have sex fairly regularly, being particularly noisy when it occurs in Micah's room which, coincidentally, is wall-to-wall with his instructor's.

After picking up the sheet containing the information and taking the supplies needed for the job, the two meet at the exit of the House, just before the entrance archway.

They walk together through the streets to the outskirts of Salle, where the warehouse with the goods is located. Micah twists his face: the warehouse is quite large, with too many entrances and exits to be able to control them all from a higher point. In addition, several guards are stationed at each of the doors: it will be difficult to get through them easily.

Both are hidden in one of the surrounding buildings, which looks abandoned enough not to be surprised. Certainly, two armed young people - one of them with a bow - would attract attention.

“Don't look so serious, I like you better when you smile” Alecto bumps her shoulder against his and gives him a giggle "I'm going to take a quick look around. If you can, take note of who's coming in and out, and if they take anything with them. Put those pretty freckles of yours to work."

She doesn't even give him time to answer her. Alecto winks at Micah and quickly leaves the place, stealthy as a cat, until he loses sight of her. The girl slips between the buildings, looking for places where it is more difficult to be detected. She's been doing it for years, and she knows it's her strong point when it comes to her work. Alecto finds a handhold on which to reach the rooftops with ease and continues circling the building: it's a little lower than she'd like so they could enter from the top floor, but it's a possibility. Through the windows she sees movement inside, that's going to be a problem. If they want to avoid being seen, take as much merchandise as they can and make sure the message is going to be delivered, they need to work pretty hard. There's also the logistical problem: she doesn't know how they'll be able to transport everything they manage to recover.

She shakes her head in annoyance. Not much more will be clear from the outside. She returns to her original position after a while, where Micah is impatiently waiting for her.

“Two levels” Alecto wastes no time trying to explain the situation "it's relatively easy to get to the upper one from the adjacent buildings, but I doubt the windows are unprotected. Besides, there's someone inside. On the lower level, four doors, three guards at each. Whoever wants to fuck with the Crows is working their ass off.“

”I've seen rather little, but maybe we can make something out of it. Several elven servants come and go regularly, the guards seem to know them. They might be able to tell us something useful.“

”Already thinking of baiting someone, handsome?" Alecto purrs, speaking in a silky voice “And here I thought you only had eyes for me”

It's Micah's time to grin mischievously and leave her holding position, minding his bow and keeping watch. He hasn't gone unprotected: he has his daggers with him, and he's also incredibly skilled in close combat, Alecto herself has a hard enough time keeping up with him when they are sparring.

Alecto looks for a comfortable position and leans on a piece of wood: Micah will probably take a while to return. She has no doubt that the elf's personal charm works miracles, effortlessly winning over anyone who engages him in conversation. At dusk the guards change shifts, although they keep the same number of men on duty. Her companion returns after a few hours, with a satisfied smile reflected in his pink eyes.

“It’s seems someone has had some fun” Her voice is playful, mischief in her eyes.

“Don't ask the details if you don't want me to tell” His crooked grin says it all. He pulls out a simple diagram, drawn on a small piece of paper “But I already know more or less where is everything. What's more, my new friends have offered to help us transport stuff, as long as we share our bounty. You were right, the upstairs is protected too, but there is one area that has some loose boards, they haven't repaired them too well. We can get in that way.”

Alecto's mind is running at full speed “We go in, knock the guards at one of the entrances out of the way and get out what we can. Have you agreed on any signals with the elves?”

“Nah. They've told me where they are and the door we can most easily access, they'll wait in hiding until they see me come out. I think one can 'mislead' a wagon, with that we'll take what we can to the House, they'll take what's left over. It's a good deal.”

Alecto stands up and stretches, crunching the vertebrae in her neck. “Well, let's get going. I'm starting to need a drink, a shag, or both.”

Micah follows her down the route Alecto has previously scouted. The darkness and silence of the night hangs over them, helping them to remain unnoticed. In one leap they manage to reach the roof without getting hurt, but also without making too much noise, nothing that doesn't sound like a cat scurrying about. Following the diagram in Micah's hands, they arrive at the indicated spot where, indeed, the planks are so badly fastened that a gust of wind could blow them away. They open a hole large enough for both of them to pass through, and both Crows check that no one is in sight before slipping inside.

Alecto leads the way. The space is too narrow for Micah to use his weapons without attracting attention, and Viago has explicitly asked them to try to avoid unnecessary deaths. The entire floor is guarded by a single, reasonably burly man: whoever owns the warehouse does not expect unwanted visitors from upstairs.

Micah sees how Alecto stands behind him, jumping on his back and squeezing his neck from behind with one arm, preventing him from breathing. When he falls unconscious, the woman quickly gets underneath him to prevent his body from hitting the floor and making unnecessary noise. For a few minutes she places a cloth cloth over the man's airway, soaked in a liquid she takes from a hidden vial.

“With this he will sleep for a good while. Plenty of time for what we have to do.”

Micah runs down the stairs quickly, once he has checked that there are no more guards inside. Alecto follows him after checking everything's safe, and they quickly find that there's not much there: a few crates of rice, fruit, assorted spices and, to their delight, enough drinks to stock a couple of small bars. As Viago said, nothing particularly expensive, although spices can always be sold at a good price.

Micah approaches one of the doors and knocks on it a succession of times, then immediately crouches in a corner. Without saying a word to Alecto, he gestures for her to do the same. She deduces that it will be an agreed signal among the guards in case there is trouble inside, reasoning that she sees right once one of the men enters, with extreme caution, which increases even more when he does not see his companion.

But something is wrong. Instead of going deeper, he goes out in search of another of the guards, while the third remains outside. Well, nothing they can't deal with.

Between the two Crows they knock both men unconscious, dragging them so they can't be seen from the outside, and their companion soon suffers the same fate. Micah peeks through the door a bit, and after a few scant minutes several elves make their entrance in complete silence, lifting what crates they can carry. Alecto watches them as they do so, realizing that they rather look like slaves disguised as servants. She wrinkles her nose in disgust: if there's one thing she hates, it's fucking slavers.

The cart is practically full - Micah and Alecto have personally seen to it that most of the boxes with liquor are inside, for whatever reason - and the elves are taking the leftovers in turn, although the Crows insist that they take some more: without their help they would not have managed to carry out the order so quickly.

“What do we do with the powder?” What looks like the leader of the newly freed elves has a key in his hand, which he holds out to them.

Micah looks at Alecto without either of them knowing what to say. The elf opens a hidden trapdoor in the floor, revealing a few crates filled to the top with black powder.

“I guess we'll take that too” Alecto sighs at her friend's words, without much enthusiasm. "We can't let all this stuff get into the city. Besides, maybe Viago will get some use out of it"

The crates are not only fucking big, but also heavy. Most of the elves are gone, so it takes them quite a while to carry them up from the basement.

“One more effort” thinks Alecto “just a little more and we'll be back home in my warm bed”. It's been a while now that what she appreciates most is being able to sleep, whether she's accompanied or not.

However, luck is not on their side at the time. Alecto stumbles as she climbs the last step, causing both Micah and her to end up on the floor, as well as the box they were both carrying, which shatters with a clatter that would wake a dead man, spilling its contents everywhere.

“Me cago en el Hacedor” as soon as she utters these words, all the doors open in unison: no doubt the commotion has alerted all the watchmen.

Micah shouts to the remaining elves to flee, things are about to get very ugly. They watch with relief as they manage to escape, but half a dozen men are surrounding them with weapons raised, while both Crows are in the center of the room, back-to-back.

"Any more great ideas?" Micah sounds a little angry, but Alecto knows it's not a reproach: sometimes plans get screwed up. However, the “no victims” policy has just gone to waste.

"Fuck it. We ball”

Micah lets out a chuckle before unloading a volley of arrows that knocks his assailants back, piercing a couple of them. Alecto, meanwhile, conjures the orb with her deft hand and unsheathes the dagger, materializing right behind it and hurling the unwary in her path. Micah's daggers clash incessantly against the raised swords, without losing position. They may both be apprentices, but one does not survive in House De Riva without knowing how to fight.

However, there is one thing they both know they must avoid at all costs: a prolonged fight would attract too much attention, potentially alerting more enemies around them. And they have enough problems at the moment.

Alecto moves back to Micah's side as their enemies regroup, catching their breath. “How fast can you shoot an arrow and flee across the roof?”

Micah looks at her as if she's lost her mind, but the smile on her friend's face makes him realize she has a plan. A good one, apparently. Alecto winks at him and in a matter of seconds turns around to grab onto him, causing them both to materialize upstairs. It's a pretty complicated spell, but she only needs to do a little more. She ignites the tip of one of Micah's arrows, making it red hot: whatever it touches will burst into flames.

They exchange a quick glance and Micah doesn't even need to point to the ground, where his pursuers are starting to rush up the stairs. As soon as the arrow whistles out of the bow they both break into a sprint towards the open hole in the roof, knowing that only a few seconds separate them from their own demise. But agility combined with adrenaline is excellent fuel, and in a while they are far enough away to avoid being run over by the explosion that lights up the sky over Salle, setting some of the surrounding buildings on fire. The shock wave, however, throws them to the ground, but they both know how to fall without hurting themselves. Micah bursts out laughing, while Alecto sits up and rests one of her hands on her chin. “Do you think they got the message?”

Viago De Riva is awakened by the scandal in the next room at an hour he finds particularly intolerable. He recognizes the voices, the laughter: Micah and Alecto are once again having their own particular party without caring who they might disturb. This time he won't allow it: both apprentices had work to do and, as far as he knows, it doesn't include late-night revelry.

He storms across the hall, bursting into Micah's room without even knocking. As he expected, both fledglings are there - clothed, thank the Maker - but surrounded by no less than half a dozen empty bottles. He doesn't have to be particularly observant to know they're completely drunk.

“What the fuck are you two doing here? I told you I didn't want to see you until I had completed the assignment, I told you -”

“And we did!” Alecto rolls on the bed, staying on her back with her head hanging over the edge, as she speaks, laughing ”there's a cart in the back full of interesting things. Well, one of the boxes was broken, I think some of the bottles are missing.”

Viago could look straight into the inside of his skull from how much he rolls his eyes. He tries to talk to Micah, in case he's a little less affected. “Have you guys been clear with the message that you don't fuck with the Crows?”

Micah bursts out laughing, making it clear that his state isn't much better than his friend's “That head there has more than her little braids” He points to Alecto, who winks at him as she tosses him one of the bottles that still contains something “They can't steal anything from us if they have no storage left to keep it in.”

“BOOM” She says, making a gesture with her hands, as if imitating an explosion, then laughing in turn as well.

Viago looks at them in despair, not knowing whether to chastise them for the fuss or for literally blowing a building to smithereens when he explicitly asked them to avoid too much commotion. In the end, he decides to let it go and exhales a long sigh.

"I have no idea why I'm surprised at you two. At least you're dressed up today"

"Meeeeh that can be arranged" Alecto winks at him and uses her silkiest voice. “Though everything would be made better if you joined”

Viago is dumbfounded at such sass “You've got to be fucking kidding me.”

“Of course she's teasing” Micah clarifies with a mischievous chuckle “Unless...”

He's had more than enough. Viago leaves the room, satisfied with the job accomplished but exasperated at the overly relaxed attitude of both apprentices. The next day's scolding about respecting the Masters was going to be epic.

[itty-bitty-demon]

🍁 OOC lore dump 🍁

I've got some Sylvia lore for y'all and I need ya to be ready for it cuz it's a LOT

So I've been thinking about all this (my thoughts are very organized rn I promise) and I've got lots of lil tidbits!!

So here's a bit about the two behind it all (mainly one of the sinners)

As we all know, Sylvia was created, not born. She also never died.

She was just.. there lmfao

The two sinners that created her are named Derek and Roman (I plan on drawing em soon)

Derek is a bit more experienced with voodoo than Roman so he was the one who messed up and made Sylvia alive.

Roman is kind of the mastermind behind it all though.

Roman has had beef with Alastor in the past. He wants to be an overlord and he believes taking down Alastor and gaining power in that way is the only way to do it.

Alastor could care less because Roman isn't anywhere near as powerful as he is but I digress.

Roman is also kinda in kahoots with Vox but not entirely.

Roman and Derek met at a bar one night. Derek is a bit more powerful than Roman in a dark magic sense, but not as experienced because he doesn't really interact with people.

Though he and Roman kinda hit it off, and Roman kinda took Derek in as his right hand man.

The only reason though is because Roman knew Derek had abilities that he could use to his advantage.

So imagine how pissed Roman was after Sylvia was brought to life.

Roman is also the cause of most of the physical and verbal abuse Sylvia endured for the short amount of time she was there.

Now I'm gonna dump about Sylvia because ye!

Sylvia is a peaceful little demon.

The idea of hurting or killing people does not and never will sit right with her.

She's spoken out about this too. It's not something she feels okay with.

She respects Charlie a lot because they kind of share this belief.

Though Sylvia has hurt people before, albeit on accident.

Being so young, she doesn't know how to control a lot of her powers.

She's only able to control radio frequencies like Alastor, and she's able to bring dolls to life.

Which I will get to don't worry. I'll get to all her powers in a bit.

When Sylvia was created, she didn't know what was going on at all.

She was thrown around and yelled at and threatened. She was terrified.

She'd just gained consciousness and she was being treated like this.

Sylvia thinks that this is a normal thing. It's never once been explained to her that most people in Hell aren't created in such a way. She's never been told what she went through is not normal, nor is it okay.

Sylvia goes through life thus far thinking this is normal and everyone just eventually grows up and accepts it. Some even embrace it.

Which is also why she hates the idea of other's being hurt or killed.

She will always associate hurting/killing with her own traumatic experience because no one's told her it's incorrect thus far.

Granted, she's never brought these feelings up, so no one's had a reason to tell her.

Its a small way her and Alastor differ though.

While Alastor is an absolute psychopath (/affectionate haha) and enjoys seeing people suffer, Sylvia is a pacifist and a genuine sweetheart who hates it when people so much as cry because she wants to make sure everyone is okay.

Which is kinda not a good trait in Hell.

Sinners hurt. Sinners kill. Sinners are fucking monsters and they're ruthless and they crave violence like all the time because it's Hell and they already lost everything. They have nothing else to lose, so why not embrace it?

There's quite literally nothing Sylvia can do about it, and her having such an empathetic trait in this place is extremely dangerous.

Alastor knows this as well.

HEHE POWERS AND ANGST TIME! Here's what we know so far (aka what I've all come up with so far)

I'm going to split this up into a few sections, so this first is gonna talk about her radio powers and her doll powers.

Like all demons, Sylvia has a demonic form. I'll get to it though.

Sylvia is also, again, able to control radio frequencies. She can emit music and static. The static often comes out when she's under a lot of stress, or anger, or pain - basically negative emotions are easily spotted with her because her static gives it away.

The level of emotion determines the volume and intensity of the static noises.

Also! Memories can be heard with her! She practically broadcasts them. Whether she's daydreaming or reminiscing or having flashbacks, if you're close enough you can actually hear it!

Though with memories and flashbacks, the quality of it depends on how well she remembers it.

If she remembers a stroll in Hell with her father a few weeks ago, the ambiance of the street and the conversation they had can be heard quite well!

Though if it's something like when she was first created, then not so much.

Sylvia doesn't really completely remember all of what happened. So when she flashes back to it, the yelling and smashing of objects and all that is quite distorted and garbled.

Think of a radio that can't quite reach a certain frequency. You can kinda hear the music, but it sounds far away and distorted and almost unrecognizable.

Now just think of that, but with yells. Terrifying, genuine rage filled yells.

That's slightly unsettling, isn't it?

Now!! She has good control over one of her powers.

Which happens to be bringing dolls to life, though not in a way she was.

Her dolls stay dolls. Her dolls are unable to talk, but they can make these cute little chirping sounds.

Think of the sound Niffty made when she was first summoned, and that's what Sylvia's dolls sound like.

No one can understand what the dolls are saying with their chirps except Sylvia. And the dolls know this. So with others, they use body language to try and communicate.

Which is quite silly to think about. Tiny little dollies playing charades with someone.

Her dolls also kinda work like voodoo, but on her.

She feels what they do, both physically and mentally.

There are three main dolls that Sylvia use. Evangeline, Marianne and Argos.

All the dolls use it/its pronouns even though they look like and have names that correspond to a certain gender.

Sylvia actually let the dolls decide their names and pronouns.

After all, she decided her own! And that felt kind of nice!

Evangeline was Sylvia's first. First doll she got, first doll that came to life, all that. So Sylvia has a stronger bond with it!

Evangeline is the only one Sylvia can actually "tune" her senses into.

She often sends Evangeline to eavesdrop or spy on others, and when she does, she kinda tunes out of her own mind and into Evangeline's.

Sylvia gains the ability to see and hear EVERYTHING Evangeline does.

Marianne is one of her more cautious dolls. It takes after Sylvia's caring personality, so Sylvia often sends it to check on others and make sure their doing okay.

If someone is going on a walk, Marianne is often perched on their head or resting in their bag.

It gives both Marianne and Sylvia a sense of security. A sense of knowing what's going on.

But if something goes wrong and Marianne feels it, Sylvia does too. The bad part is she doesn't get to see ot hear what's happening.

If Marianne is feeling anxious, Sylvia knows something is wrong and feels almost helpless because she can't do anything at all.

Argos is one of Sylvia's newer dolls, and Sylvia protects it with her life.

Mainly because Argos has only one eye, which makes it harder for the lil cutie to see.

The amount of times it's bumped into walls is concerning.

Argos, though, is extremely smart.

It makes sure to let any of the grown ups know if something happens.

Sylvia mainly sends it to make sure Atlas (@silly-goat-demon) is alright, since he tends to overwork himself.

This was mainly a thing Sylvia wanted to do for her dad.

All three of those dolls represent parts of Sylvia's personality.

Evangeline is Sylvia's inquisitive and curious nature.

Marianne is Sylvia's caring and cautiousness.

Argos is Sylvia's cleverness and more mature nature, even though it's the more recent of the three dolls to come into Sylvia's possession.

Now we get to talk about her demonic form and how it ties in with Alastor, Roman and Derek (because it will tie in)

So when Sylvia experiences any sort of trigger, her fight or flight kicks in big time.

This causes something in her to shift and she turns into a more demonic version of herself.

The demonic version is more impulsive and reckless. She's more aggressive, but it's out of fear.

She's essentially like a scared dog that only bites and attacks because it feels threatened or in danger.

Often times the triggers are any sort of loud noises, or bad nightmares.

She's transformed into this demonic form in public before, and Roman has seen it.

Roman knows she has the ability to hurt if he's able to get a hold of her and use her.

He wants to be able to make her demonic form come out, and use that against Alastor. If he manages to yoink her away from Alastor and purposefully trigger her, he'd be able to cause Alastor pain.

Sylvia is no where near as strong as any demon in Hell, though she can hold her own.

Roman is an asshole. He doesn't care if she's a literal child. He just wants that power Alastor has. If he gets Sylvia, he not only gets to hurt Alastor physically, but also emotionally.

One is more impulsive and reckless when they let their emotions show. Alastor and Sylvia both know this better than anyone, so if and when his daughter gets taken, Roman knows for a fact it'll be a bit easier to get to Alastor.

So yeah that presents a new challenge in this silly little timeline!

Andddd that's it! I plan on using this account more because Sylvia is one of my more unique OCs and I think she's got more to her than I let on. And I know I said I'd reveal this all through asks but I am impatient! I'm also on new ADHD meds today and my thoughts are very organized right now (/gen) so I wanted to get all of this down before I forgot.

That being said this will be linked in the pinned post for anyone who wants to refer to it when asking questions or potentially roleplaying with Sylvia! I hope yall find this useful or interesting!!

[iviarellereads]

A Wrinkle In Time, Chapter 10 - Absolute Zero

(THIS PROJECT IS SPOILER FREE! No spoilers past the chapter you click on. Curious what I'm doing here? Read this post! For the link index for the Time Quintet, read this one! Like what you see? Send me a Ko-Fi.)

In which we finally have a minute to talk.

Meg regains consciousness slowly, as she listens to Mr. Murry and Calvin talking about Camazotz. Calvin asks how they resisted at all, and Mr. Murry thinks nobody's resisted IT in so long, the ability to force compliance atrophied. Calvin also asks why Mr. Murry was on Camazotz at all, and the man admits it was an accident, he meant to only go to Mars.

As the conversation goes on, Meg's vitals get stronger, and the men notice between their chatter. Calvin asks if they shouldn't go find help, but Mr. Murry thinks part of why they got into trouble on Camazotz was not taking the proper time to prepare and deal with what was in front of them. Mr. Murry opens up about the team he was on. He was the second to go, and the first man never returned or managed to get a message to them in a year, but Mr. Murry had to try.(1)

Finally, Meg wakes up enough to start talking, slowly regaining sensation and control of her body. She keeps asking where Charles is and where they are. Finally, it comes out: Mr. Murry didn't grab Charles on the way out, and he's got no control of his tessering, so they could be anywhere. If he'd tried to take Charles with them, IT might have damaged him in the process.

She had found her father and he had not made everything all right. Everything kept getting worse and worse. If the long search for her father was ended, and he wasn’t able to overcome all their difficulties, there was nothing to guarantee that it would all come out right in the end. There was nothing left to hope for. She was frozen, and Charles Wallace was being devoured by IT, and her omnipotent father was doing nothing. She teetered on the seesaw of love and hate, and the Black Thing pushed her down into hate. “You don’t even know where we are!” she cried out at her father. “We’ll never see Mother or the twins again! We don’t know where earth is! Or even where Camazotz is! We’re lost out in space! What are you going to do!” She did not realize that she was as much in the power of the Black Thing as Charles Wallace.(2)

Mr. Murry says he's only human, and fallible. But, he and Calvin both think they're here for a reason, not by accident, putting his faith in God's purpose. Meg lashes out again, asking why he almost let the darkness take her. Calvin points out that Meg has never taken well to tessering.

Meg says Mr. Murry shouldn't have taken her until he was better. Neither Mr. Murry nor Calvin has anything to say to that, but her father keeps massaging her extremities, until she starts getting a tingling pain and accuses him of hurting her again. He says quietly that it's going to hurt to recover.(3)

Just then, Calvin tells them to look. Three figures are approaching, grey-skinned with extra arms, tentacles for fingers and hair, and slightly less than human faces. Meg is terrified of them, thinks her father's killed them all bringing them here, but they only ask who they are, and Calvin tells them. Then, one of them squats next to Meg and touches her face lightly, and the scent and the touch make her feel warm and sleepy and above all, safe. The beast picks her up gently, and when Mr. Murry asks what they're doing, they say they're taking her.(4)

=====

(1) Insert something pithy here about whether you could and whether you should. (2) Because one of the first manifestations of evil is losing trust and faith in those you love, and lashing out at them. We can't control our feelings, but we must be responsible for our actions, and Meg's been a bit led by her emotions all book. (3) It's really hard to do this justice in summary, but it doesn't feel important enough to quote directly. The vibe I get is that Mr. Murry is sad and upset that his daughter is lashing out at him and blaming him, and in no small part blaming himself. Her feeling enough to hurt is a good sign! But he DID grab her and tesser out without her permission, he knows that, and that if he'd left her on Camazotz she'd be uninjured except for her soul. His statement that it is going to hurt isn't just because feeling means pain, it's to himself as well. It's going to hurt to recover from all this trauma and from knowing he hurt his daughter. (4) Unnecessarily ominous!

[clangenrising]

Haha, no offense, but starting now, I really dislike Aldertail. She judges cats by their covers (ahem, Mystique, ahem). Also, I am a Scorchplume Hater now. She used Mystique, who was kind enough to help her, and now is like, “She deserves it.” When she’s imprisoned. Once again, no offense intended, just my personal opinion.

You are definitely entitled to your opinion but hoo boy I'm about to go to bat for my girls.

Out of all of the characters in RisingClan, Aldertail and Scorchplume are the ones who have recieved the most trauma and abuse, both at Razor's hand (directly or indirectly). Both of them have been deeply affected by that abuse in ways that can be ugly and messy! And thats normal and okay.

Aldertail has severe anxiety and OCD. When she heard there was an Exalted cat in camp (not just that but the sister of the dictator she's been running for her life from) she very justifiably went into a panic attack about it! Youre right that she doesn't know before she judges here but she does know what the Exalted are like. Most of them are cruel or at the very least indifferent to the suffering of the Chaff.

This would be like if a person in a fascist regime was on the run because they were going to be put to death for a thing they didn't even do and then a cop from that regime showed up in their new home. They would be pretty justified in think that cop would want to have them put to death! It doesn't matter if the cop is a nice person, they're still a cop and they have a great deal of incentive to follow the law that would get this person killed.

And with her anxiety/OCD, those fears quickly get out of control as in she cannot control them. They become all consuming to the point where she gets physically ill and she starts compulsively tearing up the fur on her legs in an attempt to soothe herself. Aldertail is terrified and it's not a moral failing for her to be that way. Its a result of her mental illness and PTSD.

Now, Scorch is less justified in her treatment of Mystique and I understand the people who are wary of her. She enjoys being mean to people, especially when she's feeling scared or upset. But this is itself a defense mechanism and a result of her PTSD. She has come to associate the ability to talk down to someone with the safety of being above them. If she can hurt you and not face consequences that means she's safe in her mind and so it reassures her to say those kinds of hurtful things.

And, like I said in another ask, Scorch's anger at Mystique is almost entirely based in the idea "if you wanted to help me this whole time, why did you sit by and do nothing while Razor was abusing me?" It feels like an injustice! And since she can't do anything to make Razor accountable for what he did, she settles for making the bystander who enabled him feel miserable.

Is that healthy? No. If she continues to do those kinds of things, she will likely end up isolating herself from everyone around her. But it is a very common response to abuse and it shouldn't be a moral failing on her part that Razor fucked her up. Of course, she is responsible for her actions, but what she needs is someone who will love and accept her even despite her flaws and who will try to help her move past them.

This is what restorative justice is about! If anyone who developed a harmful or maladaptive coping mechanism was immediately disqualified from having friends or receiving kindness or sympathy that would be a deeply terrible world to live in, I feel.

So yes, while I understand how you feel and you're entitled to your own opinions, I would urge you to practice exercising compassion. Look at people and think "why are they like this?" instead of immediately writing them off as Bad and Wrong.

[swordduels]

Regalia was going to eat her! It reminded her of every story that she had grown up with in their home village. Everyone from the town’s drunk to other street urchins spoke about Regalia as a terrifying beast who kidnapped women, men and even children to her castle to never be seen again. Some said she gobbled them up. Others thought she was a vampire who kept people alive while feeding on them. Now as Echo was facing her she realised how much of it was actually true and how foolish they had been to not heed the warnings when traveling closer to Regalia’s lands. Regalia was not only a beastly creature who grew stronger by drinking blood, she was also a vampire horse and a dirty, dirty liar. 

If only they had never left home in the first place… Red marks began to grow along Echo’s forehead with each hit against the metal. Her hues moved in golden and honey colored spirals while more tears kept falling. With the flooding tears came a golden trail of smudged powder. Each sniffling whimper and every word she spoke was followed by intense whispers that echoed around them. It moved out of Echo’s cell and throughout the dungeon. She could feel Regalia’s cold gaze that seemed to get under her skin for whatever reason. Something about Echo’s blood was special but she didn’t understand why. If there was something special about it, then why did everyone leave? Even Narkissos ran away, again. “I miss Narkissos. I didn’t mean to hurt him.” Echo began to hiccup while slowly meeting Regalia’s gaze again. “Please don’t hurt him, pretty please.” She would probably die of sadness if he got eaten. They had always been together and she would have nowhere to be except by his side. Echo couldn’t perform without him. That would be so lonely and sad. It wouldn’t be a clown duo anymore. Their mirrors wouldn’t work either.  Echo would be all alone until Regalia decided to eat her too. Maybe she should ask to be eaten first and get it over with. But it didn’t seem fair either. Narkissos was hopeless on his own. He constantly forgot to eat or drink water. He had little to no awareness of what happened around him and crowds made him anxious. What would happen to him if he was all alone? It didn’t seem fair to die first and leave him. But there wasn’t much she could do. Their combined abilities were nothing compared to Regalia’s incredible powers. Besides, Echo was still learning about the whispers and mirror. They were difficult to control compared to her invisibility. She barely had to use it anyway since people kept ignoring her.

Echo rose to her feet and stared as Regalia turned to leave. Each step seemed like a silent message of death and failure. Despite the danger Echo was in she couldn’t help but yearn for more attention. She wanted to feel Regalia’s gaze upon her. It tickled in her fingers to do something naughty and make sure no one would look away again.

Narkissos was always stealing the attention on stage even though he was clumsy and slow…

She looked at Regalia’s back with wide eyes that stung after crying with such intensity. The tired expression turned into one with growing hope and a sliver of fear. “I am. An entertainer. I can, sing and dance. I can do some tricks with my mirror too. I. I’ll make a fantastical show.” Echo stuttered while backing away a few steps when her cell door was opened. There was some hesitation before Eco slowly tripped out with quiet steps while staring at her captor with thousand questions lingering at her tongue. Some of them seemed to be far less important than other ones. “Am I actually free…?” She didn’t want to upset him or Regalia for the kindness but how else would she get answers to her questions if it was forbidden to ask?

“I mean, can I leave this kingdom?” It wasn’t that she wanted to run away or worm her way out of the deal. No. Echo wanted to search for Narkissos so they could perform together. Though it might be a bad idea to lead him here he was probably safer with her than being on his own. “And, and if I can’t leave. Can I have my mirror back…?” @fallesto

Regalia just watched them, her expression unchanging, as if the child’s distress was merely a mildly entertaining sideshow. She had seen countless people beg and plead for their lives before her, and their desperation had long since ceased to affect her. But this one was different. Echo had potential, a spark that could be molded and shaped to serve her purposes. The queen leaned closer to the bars, her eyes searching the depths of the girl's soul. She could end her life, devour her, or try something else, keep her alive, see if she can drain her power from her.

For a brief moment, she considered letting Echo go. Perhaps it was unwise to keep a child locked away, especially one so obviously filled with spirit and fire. But then again, the girl had been the catalyst for so much trouble. The guard shifted uncomfortably, aware of his queen's indecision. He had served her for years and knew the cost of failing to bring her what she needed. Yet, there was something about the siblings that intrigued him as well.

Regalia took a step back, her eyes lingering on the trembling form of Echo. The child's pleas grew louder, more desperate, but she remained silent. Her mind raced with the potential consequences of her actions. If she released Echo, would she be seen as weak? Would it be the final nail in the coffin of her reign? The whispers of treachery and doubt that had been growing louder in her court would surely reach a crescendo. Yet, if she kept her, she could use her in the ritual. The guard felt the tension in the room thicken, his own fate intertwined with the girl's.

With a sudden decisiveness, Regalia turned her back on the cell and began to walk away. She had seen enough. "Release her, I’ll give you one week, to ready yourself, you said you are an entertainer, then in one week, you will put on a show, and I will decide your fate there and then." She said to them without looking back. The words hung in the air, a stark contrast to the silence that had dominated the room. The guard approached the cell door with a heavy set of keys.

The clanking of metal was the only sound as the lock was turned and the door swung open. The guard stepped aside, his face unreadable. Regalia continued down the hall, her thoughts racing. She needed to focus on the task at hand, the ritual that would bring her form and her life back to her. The siblings were pawns in a much larger game, and she could not afford to let her emotions cloud her judgment. Her curse was nearing the end, the last thing was her voice and if she lost that, she would be doomed, but she was fair, she had to be, to those with sin within them, and so she gave this one a chance.

[astaroth1357]

Demigod MC Series: Poseidon

Fishy fishy fishy… I honestly could write 100 more things for Poseidon MC and Levi. I just love the dynamic between an insecure, otaku shut-in and a chill California surfer dead set on becoming his friend.

Demigod MC Series: Intro, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hades, Dionysus, Demeter, Athena, Hades Pt. 2, Poseidon 

For anyone unaware, Poseidon is also the god of horses. I know it's a weird combo, but I didn't write the mythos.

Lucifer

…..

They came out of the portal….

On a horse….

They brought the mortal down to the Devildom…

On a goddamn horse….

There's a demigod on a live horse brandishing a weapon and doing laps around the Student Council Room…

Congratulations, he already wants to pull his hair out!!

Honestly, it would have been preferable to pluck them out of the sea. At least then they'd just need a towel! What the hell were they going to do with an entire horse!?

And his nightmare didn't stop there. Poseidon is a notoriously mercurial god, prone to bouts of anger and spitefulness for reasons far less grievous than kidnapping his children… 

Their apology was swift and (seemingly) effective, though the tide waters around the Devildom did rise by several feet for some time…

As for the MC… uh… Well, they're an energetic one to say the least…

Lucifer hasn't met a more active individual since Mammon. They horseback ride, swim, surf, skateboard, and probably do ten other things - the point is, they Hardly. Keep. Still! 

They're also annoyingly easygoing… He can't count the number of times they've told him to, "Just chill out," or, "Hang loose…" What does that even mean??

Between having to order a stable made for their horse and just trying to keep up with them, Lucifer already thinks this mortal has caused him more trouble than they're worth… At least they keep Mammon busy...

Mammon

Upon first meeting them atop their horse, Sunset, his first thought was of course:

"I wonder if I sell that...?"

After that, they nearly fed him to sharks for trying to take their beloved steed on same night. Safe to say, he never touched a hair on its head again…

These two had a rocky start, but their relationship mended fairly quickly. As it turns out, the MC is literally one of those "go with the flow" types. You can say it was water under the bridge soon enough.

Mammon actually thinks the MC is a hell of a lot of fun, even if they're super laid-back. Most of the time, they won’t take his drive for money (or fear of his bills) all that seriously and tell him that he’s worrying too much, but they’ll still lend a hand if its on their way.

He finds their ability to control water pretty cool as well. Levi has it to some extent, but the MC can make a whole-ass whirlpool or use water like a whip! 

He once begged them to call up some rare fish for him to sell, but they got all pseudo-philosophical on him about how “trading life for material wealth” is “not cool, dude...”

He also made the mistake of challenging them to a splash fight only once…. They managed to drench the whole family with a single wave….

The only thing that bothers him is their weird insistence on being Levi's "Best Buddy…" Why would someone like them even bother with a shut in??

Is it the water? … Probably water. Levi, that lucky bastard…

Leviathan 

Thinks they're a big normie, no scratch that, a HUGE normie! The biggest normie he's ever met!! They skateboard and horseback ride for Devil's sake!!

...But they’re also, undoubtedly, the best friend he could've ever asked for.

To be fair to Levi, their friendship was sort of forced upon him. The MC took one look at him, his aquatic-themed room, and his pet goldfish then declared their new friendship status at that moment. 

Unfortunately for him, though, they're energetic, extroverted, and generally have little understanding of personal space… aka, an introvert's worst nightmare…

The next month could accurately be described as the MC doing everything in their power to make their stubborn "senpai" like them.

They would drag him out to the aquarium, beach, or pool; they befriended Henry so he could put in a good word for them; and they'd even bring him little gifts or trinkets they'd find on the ocean floor. Pretty shells and stuff like a cat bringing its master a dead mouse.

After he finally began to accept them as a persistent fixture in his life, he introduced them to gaming and anime and started accepting them little by little...

By the end of their stay, these two were practically inseparable. Not just because they like spending time together, but because they figured out they could have a telepathic link due to Levi being part sea serpent. 

No matter how far they are, they can always have a chat! (That no one else can hear so people think they’re just crazy...)

Satan

Satan honestly isn't the MC's biggest fan, he generally finds them too loud and gregarious for his liking. But their horse…?

He never really thought that he'd be a horse man... Yet it didn’t really take long for Satan to adore Sunset, their beautiful golden-maned mare. Apparently she's not their only horse, but by far their favorite traveling companion.

Sunset is a wonderful horse - brave, strong, and well-trained. It only took a few weeks before he was regularly sneaking out to the stables to brush her fur or feed her apples...

After the MC taught him how to ride, that was it. All other forms of transportation were inferior to him now.

Satan would ride Sunset everywhere and he looked damn good doing it! It takes all that fairytale Prince Charming thing he has going on and puts it through the roof.

It's a good thing too, because when I say everywhere, I do mean everywhere. Lucifer had to put seals on the House doors to keep Satan from riding Sunset through the hallways...

Of course, he’ll always let the MC have Sunset back when they need her!... with a little complaining but nothing terrible.

The MC doesn't mind much because Sunset likes him and they know he takes good care of her, but the rest of the House is slightly unnerved at how quickly he went horse crazy… What if they brought a giant crab instead?? No one wants to deal with crab-Satan...

Asmodeus 

Their body is just scrumptious. Oh, how he could look at their swimsuit-clad figure all day!! 😩

Between the swimming and the fighting, their form is toned to all hell and he can't get enough of it! Yes baby, yes!! Take those clothes off again!!! He'll help~! 😘

When he's not staring at them “totally respectfully,” then he's inviting them out to pool parties or begging them to take him riding...

There are parts of horseback riding he doesn’t like, the smell and the jostling specifically, but there is a kind of… romance to it, no?

He loves having the chance to snuggle up to the MC as they trot around the Devildom! It's so romantic, like they’re his knight in shining armor! (Or his demigod in a damp swimsuit, either works. 😏)

His Devilgram is just full of selfies of him and MC riding on the back of Sunset or sitting by the edge of the pool or them in the middle of a swim meet…

Yeah his Devilgram is now a one part him and one part MC-Appreciation account.

After the pact he'll eventually cool down some and stop staring at them like a sex-object, but even then he'll be at every swim meet. Don't you worry~

Beelzebub 

He actually really likes them! It's great to finally have another athlete in the House. 😊

The MC joined the RAD swim team just as soon the coach was able to convince Diavolo that having the child of a water god wasn't completely cheating... 

Since swim and fangol practice ends at about the same time, they walk home together a lot and complain about... sports things... (Forgive me, I don’t know sports. Uhm... Rival teams? Coaches? That one drill everyone hates? Stuff like that.)

Beel also can surf, skate, and snowboard so the two have a healthy competition going. They're about on equal footing so they tie often (except in surfing but Beel doesn't think that should count cause they’re probably cheating).

The only thing that he has to watch out for is Sunset… As in, he has to watch himself around Sunset because he absolutely could eat her on accident… 

Look, he doesn't want to and he doesn't even like horse meat that much, but even he has to admit there are times he gets hungry enough to consider it…

Of course, he knows that if he ever did Satan would rip him limb from limb then the MC would drown the rest so he really, really tries to control himself… but still… She’s a very healthy horse...

At least he didn’t try to sell her like Mammon. The MC hung him over a shark tank for that stunt… He’d feel bad, but Mammon kind of had it coming.

Belphegor 

The first time they met, the MC smelled like beach water and called him "dude-bro…" He didn't like his prospects.

For a while, he genuinely thought that they had a lump of sand where their brain was. They were just too chill!! Here he was saying that he's being held captive and they were like, "Well that sucks, man… I'll help ya, but I've got practice tomorrow. You can wait, right?"

It's not like he expected them to jump on top of it, but some urgency would have been nice…

When they eventually got around to helping him, he was actually looking forward to choking the life out of them for the extra wait. Unfortunately, they apparently had a horse…

Yeah, Belphie found out just a bit too late that the MC could summon their steed to them whenever they wanted and ended up with Sunset's hooves firmly bucking into his back for his trouble…

What followed was Belphegor running circles around the attic from the weapon-totting MC riding their terrifying murder horse until Lucifer finally intervened....

Thank the gods he wasn’t near any water….

As it would turn out later, as long as he's not being held captive in an attic Belphie kind of vibes with their laid-backness… They say they approach life "one wave at a time" or something.

He could care less about what that actually means, but what it translates to is "Stop stressing out and just keep chill" which he's all about.

Everybody should just chill out!... dude…. Nah, he'll let them stick to the “dude”-thing, it feels weird...