#like holy fuck i felt a hole in my chest expand and bleed more and more.....

[kpop-dungeon-dark]

Hell. (Lucifer Kris Wu/Yifan x You)

•TRIGGER WARNING•

Warning(s): Non-Con and fucked up twisted shit. You are legal in this. Read at your own risk.

"Mmm…" She hummed and smiled, nuzzling into the much older man and inhaling his scent while he held her tight to his chest. "Oh… I should get going now~ I have class in an hour~" glancing at the clock on the bedside table, the girl sat up slowly with a pout.

"Get going?" Yifan chuckled at her before grabbing her ass and pulling her into him, clicking his tongue. "Nah… you'll stay here with me like my good toy now~" Y/n looked at him and giggled, taking the covers off to her to get out of bed.

"Chill dude… we just met like last night. Don't expect anything only because we fucked. You have a looooong way to go if you want to impress me…" Before she went to step off the bed but her hand was captured in Yifan's much bigger one.

"Impress you? Tsk. You're branded as my belonging now that I've fucked you, finally. You're mine now. Nobody and nothing can get you out of my world now, you're officially a satanist after you opened your legs for The Devil. You're nothing but my fuck toy now." His lips brushed against her ear as he chuckled to himself. "You don't have a choice."

Turning around to look at him, Y/n started struggling as she got creeped out. "U- Uh… okay… weirdo… I really gotta go now~" trying to back away, she tried to break out of his grip. Her friends were right. Maybe single older men really were fucking nutjobs.

"You're not going anywhere!" Yifan's complexion darkened before horns grew out of his temples whilst his hair turned white and back to its original length which was til his waistline. "I came up here looking for a new toy as the last one…" He sickly grinned. "Anyways. I've found you now and have decided that you'll be my little slut from now on." Y/n was shaking as his pupils disappeared, blank white eyes staring down at her now.

"O- Oh… m- my fucking G- God… n- no way…" She whispered, only causing the man to laugh at her. "H- Holy fucking shit-" she was cut off when everything around them started to disappear, as of they were standing in a tornado, their surroundings starting to spin before getting distorted to the point where Y/n's human mind couldn't decipher it anymore.

"Welcome to your new house, my pet." Yifan mightily spoke when it finally stopped and they were standing in a dark hall now that was illuminated by an unknown source. "There's only one rule for little slaves like you. Behave well, get treated well." The man- fucking Devil's voice was so much deeper and inhuman now, his tall frame growing even more as well as expanding.

"T- This can't be real… th- this can't be real!" Y/n shook as she looked around, her senses numbed whilst she knelt in front of him, the shock too much for her legs to still work.

"Tsk. It is real. Very real. Since the beginning of time. And now you're a part of it." His teeth seemed sharp, almost like fangs.

"They're awaiting you in the court, Father." Y/n jumped when she heard an even more inhuman voice from behind, making her gasp and stagger towards Yifan when she looked back at the abomination of a creature standing behind her, staring at Yifan through its plain black eyes.

It was a literally mutilated half bull and half human looking thing. Her head was spinning.

"I don't condone a pathetic little human like you being disrespectful to my people!" A harsh kick landed in her side, making her groan in pain. "Pathetic fucking slaves like you show respect and please their owners. Tsk. Apologize!" He boomed while glaring down at the shaking human, expecting her to just suck up the fact that her one night stand had turned out to be The fucking Devil and had brought her to Hell. "Apologise, I said!" A whip appeared in his hand before he controlled her mind, making her get on all fours while crawling to the creature that was waiting silently. "I DON'T HAVE ALL DAY!" Before the whip made of lightning whipped her back, making a whole jolt go down her back.

"I am sorry! I am s- sorry, Master! P- Please forgive me!" The girl shook while crying, the mind control forcing her to kiss the creature's animal-like feet. "I didn't m- mean to-! Please!" When Yifan landed another whip, she cried out in agony, holding the creature's feet desperately.

It only nodded in response, silently saying something in a language of whispers and hissed she didn't understand before it left.

"Good slut." Since her ass was in perfect view, Yifan kicked it from behind, making her let out an embarrassing yelp before he grabbed her hair. "Now. Let's go and introduce you in court." Starting to walk swiftly, the Devil basically dragged her against the rough floors by her hair, his own feet in the air, almost.

It wasn't long before they reached two huge doors made of gold which instantly opened for Yifan, a huge courtroom like that of a king inside. Y/n felt her heart beat getting even more erratic when The Devil started to drag her inside, causing her knees to start getting torn now, all the creatures standing on either sides almost impossible to decipher by a human mind.

"This, my people, is my new toy and slave!" Lucifer announced as his people cheered, letting go of Y/n's hair in the middle of the court and ascending up the stairs and onto his throne, sitting like the royalty that he was. "But this pathetic little human here thinks she can deny me and disrespect our kind!" Everyone let out angry hisses and groans, speaking in that one language she didn't understand, making her let out a sob.

"We must teach her a lesson now, shouldn't we?!" Everyone cheered in response, rushing to the screaming girl when their Ruler nodded at them, pulling and pushing at the smaller body from every direction. Y/n wanted to call out for help to no one in particular but her tongue froze upon The Devil's power.

The human was on the verge of knocking out but she couldn't, forced to take all the slaps, pushes, pulls, pokes and abuse. Yifan laughed like a maniac. "Now now, don't touch her little privates. That's mine~" her slits closed up. "Take her elsewhere until I am done with court, we have important business to do here~" and with that, those creatures dragged her out of court.

She couldn't speak, she couldn't run, she couldn't knock out and she couldn't die.

.

"That's enough!" After what felt like days of turmoil, Lucifer finally stopped those creatures that had destroyed Y/n's body again and again only for it to heal again. "Come here now…" Grabbing at her arm, he pulled her up to her feet as her slits opened up again, gesturing at everyone to leave before he looked down at her. “Have you learned?” The human had no choice but to nod in desperation, ready to do anything to not go through the turmoil those God forbidden creatures put her through.

“Good.” Before her brain could decipher any of it, they were standing in a huge room and a heavy door was shutting behind them, The Devil throwing her naked form on the bed before his own clothes disappeared. “See, I am not a bad Master, my slave” crawling on top of her, he deeply spoke before kissing her cheek and then her soft lips. “Not at all… I take well care of my toys and play with them all the time but…” Dipping his middle finger in her mouth, Yifan picked her up and closer to him by snaking an arm around her waist, plunging his middle finger in her pucker and making her cry out wordlessly as she couldn't use her tongue.

"But for good treatment you must show good behavior, my little toy…" Kissing her lips harshly, he tortured her asshole before his red and hot tail slipped in, replacing his finger as he kissed and bit at her tits now. "Fuck… you're so tight and soft" Yifan grunted and rubbed his balls against her soft folds, healing her hymen back up just so she could bleed when he plunged his huge cock in, moaning even more when he felt it's shape in her stomach.

The human wanted to struggle and scream but instead let out moans under compulsion, her body betraying her mind and making her try to ride him more and more, the shape of his manhood very clear to see. Y/n hated how good her pussy felt because of his compulsion.

"You like this, don't you, my little pet? Tsk. Look at you! Being raped by The fucking Devil and enjoying it!" He smacked her cheek before gripping it and kissing her deeper, pushing his tongue in her mouth and entering it in her throat, gripping her neck and feeling it, moaning loudly in satisfaction while pumping his cock in and out of her pussy whilst his tail toyed with her ass.

"Look at you! Shaking and crying like a needy little slut!" Gripping her hands, he pinned them above her head and licked at her tears with his now long Devil tongue, thrusting harder and harder, her holes expanding more and more when the girth of his cock and tail was increased by him.

"That's right. You're mine! My toy! My little slave! That's all you are and will ever be good for! Fuck!" The human couldn't help but helplessly nod and moan. She was powerless.

And Yifan wasn't done just yet. They had a long way to go before he'd be satisfied for the day.

[callunavulgari]

“In the past I lay out on the land Stretched my legs felt my chest expand If we could flow together someday Then we will float away”

Heather’s Top 25 50 Songs of 2018!

guts — alex winston // sweet dreams — mark hadley // africa — toto // go to war — nothing more // smallest light — ingrid michaelson // my friends — oh wonder // knocking on heaven’s door — raign // rememberance — balmorhea // hazy shade of winter — hidden citizens // time after time — joseph william morgan // live in the moment — portugal. the man // killmonger — ludwig goransson // daddy issues — the neighbourhood // no roots — alice merton // run for your life — k.flay // play with fire — sam tinnesz // the sailor song — autoheart // warrior — steve james // IV. sweatpants — childish gambino // hello — via audio // daddy — emeli sande // paradise valley — honey and the sting // attila the king — nick glennie-smith // foolish — lauren shippen // experience — ludovico einaudi // singing in the rain — through juniper vale //  hello stranger — barbara lewis // end credits suite — nicholas britell // ahead by a century — the tragically hip // achilles come down — gang of youths // without you — leslie odom jr. // natural — imagine dragons // sky full of song — florence & the machine // broken people — logic & rag’n’bone man // flesh and bone — black math // nina cried power— hozier // kol nidrey — the yuval ron ensemble //  stronger — the score // rise like a phoenix — conchita wurst // heroes — mans zelmerlow // cut to the feeling — carly rae jepson // the greatest show — hugh jackman // the plains/bitter dancer — fleet foxes // always starting over — idina menzel // if i could turn back time — cher // new rules — dua lipa // fernando — cher // it’s quiet uptown — kelly clarkson // movement — hozier // seasons of love — rent cast

short version | long version

so, fun fact. if you start a playlist in january and add a song every time you really love it or find yourself listening to it a lot, by december you find yourself with... a very, very large playlist. 261 songs, 17 hours and 17 minutes large to be precise. which hey, last year the mix was 262 so that’s a pretty spot on average.

i sort of prefer the long one, but i mean, hey. there’s large playlists, and then there’s listing all 261 songs. so i broke it down into a moderately more digestible abridged version with only 50 songs. if you want the original playlist, the link is there. have fun. til then though, here’s my 50 most played.

i. guts || alex winston i know you're a liar, throw me into the fire man i should have known, i should have known god damn you're a liar, threw me into the fire

This song is one of those where the catchy jingle sort of hides that the meat of it is relatively dark. It’s a gorgeous song, one that I listened to for most of January, and off and on throughout the rest of the year. Alex Winston’s voice is like a dream. ii. sweet dreams || mark hadley ft. dresage Hold your head up Keep your head up, movin' on

This song I actually listened to a lot at the tale end of 2017, because it was released as part of the Wrinkle In Time trailer and it was absolutely gorgeous. This year, I found it on a Stranger Things fanvid and it’s been on my Stranger Things mix ever since.

iii. africa || toto I hear the drums echoing tonight But she hears only whispers of some quiet conversation She's coming in, 12:30 flight The moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me towards salvation

Speaking of songs that are on my Stranger Things playlist... I’m kind of at a loss as to why this got so freaking popular this year. I mean, it is a truly dope song and I’m super fond of it but like. Was it Stranger Things? Did it just become that anthem of the year? For me, it was that I wrote fanfiction to it and also we played it on loop while we were playing beer liquor pong on vacation. It was... super surreal. iv. go to war || nothing more Hush, my baby, make no sound Maybe we can wait each other out It's a cold war Let's go to war So, this song I actually heard driving home from my friend Alex’s after marathoning a few episodes of The Flash and it just hit me super hard. I mean, it’s a great song for my kind of ships, but also, it’s just a great song. v. smallest light || ingrid michaelson Just because you don't see us Doesn't mean that we don't exist Sometimes the smallest light Shines so bright I think I originally found this song on the Watercast playlist on spotify? And I really liked it, because I like most of the songs on that playlist, but like. I was driving to work one day and like, just got hit with the biggest plot bunny for Will and El as siblings. And like, I just had that bunny and this song percolating in my head for the rest of the day, and the song just kind of stuck with me. This song is Will and El’s anthem. vi. my friends || oh wonder Can I beat within your heart? Can I bleed within your love? Oh my friends

Okay, so like show of hands- who here has read We Were Liars? This is a mostly hypothetical question because I’m not sure anyone actually pays attention to these anymore but I like them, so fuck it. Point is, I was listening to the watercast playlist a lot while reading that book and this song was playing when we made certain discoveries that most of us had already guessed, and it made me cry. vii. knocking on heaven’s door || raign It's gettin' dark, too dark to see I feel I'm knockin' on heaven's door

This fanvid happened around the time I was writing that Will and El as siblings fic and I basically played it and the video that inspired the next song on the list on repeat until I finished. This cover is lovely and haunting and just, such a freaking earworm.

viii. remembrance || balmorhea instrumental Yeah, this is the video. I actually used this song in a fanvid of my own a couple years ago, when I got to make a fanvid for @iki-teru​‘s fantastic Yuffie-centric fic All Through the Circling Years which... I can no longer find, so maybe it was taken down? Either way, I loved the song immensely before, but that fanvid with Hopper is so fucking tragic and beautiful. ix. hazy shade of winter || hidden citizens Seasons change with the scenery Weaving time in a tapestry Won't you stop and remember me

There... are a lot of songs on here that are also on my Stranger Things playlist. And I’m a sucker for haunting covers. x. time after time || joseph william morgan If you fall I will catch you, I will be waiting Time after time This is the last of the Stranger Things songs. Well, at least the last of the ones that aren’t Harringrove related. Another fanvid that caught me off guard, because just. Damn. There are so many beautiful fanvids for this fandom, it kills me dead. xi. live in the moment || portugal. the man Come back Sunday morning With that soul to sell When you're gone Goodbye, so long, farewell Not 100% sure where I first heard this one, but it stayed with me for a good portion of the spring and summer. I discovered their song feel it still around this time last year too, so clearly they’re just a real good jam for when you want to feel the sun on your back. xii. killmonger || ludwig goransson instrumental

There are a couple songs from the Black Panther soundtrack on the longer version of this mix, three from the score and one, maybe two from the credits. I freaking loved that movie so damn much, but it’s soundtrack blew my goddamn mind. It is literally all I listened to for weeks, and this song in particular fucked me right the hell up. Just listen to the flutes and the bass. Just, damn. Killmonger, you’ve got the best theme in the entire movie. xiii. daddy issues || the neighbourhood I'd do whatever I could do I'd run away and hide with you I love that you got daddy issues And I do too And heeeere it is. This was the first song that I associated with Harringrove for uh, very obvious reasons. Definitely had this and a few others on repeat whenever I had to write sexy scenes for the boys. xiv. no roots || alice merton I like digging holes and hiding things inside them When I'll grow old, I hope I won't forget to find them 'Cause I've got memories and travel like gypsies in the night

This song hits the same part of me that fell absolutely in love with Guts when I first heard it. Alice Merton’s voice is just fantastic. xv. run for your life || k.flay Bite off the venomous head Follow the chemical scent Look for the hole in the fence Take everything you demand

I got to see K.Flay in concert sometime late last year, and even though I didn’t know her very well (I told my friend that I’d see K.Flay with him if he saw Glass Animals with me) her music was sweet enough that I could appreciate the concert even knowing none of the songs. Let me tell you though, I fucking wish she’d played this song then because holy fuck. xvi. play with fire || sam tinnesz Insane, inside the danger gets me high Can't help myself got secrets I can't tell I love the smell of gasoline I light the match to taste the heat Kuroshitsuji is something I haven’t really thought about in like half a decade. And then I ended up seeing this vid while I was waiting for my connecting plane to arrive so I could go see my family. I only saw the damn thing because it was made by the same person who did this one, which I hunted down because I was reading Yuri On Ice fic on the plane and the point is: pingvi is amazing and all of their vids are a goddamn delight. xvii. the sailor song || autoheart I was your sailor, your demon Your lover, your overbearing best friend Hoping for some attention

So, while I was down visiting my family sometime during the spring, I had a brief dizzying spiral where I fell head over face into the Pacific Rim fandom, because Uprising quite emphatically fucked me up. Anyway, because of this I spent the night after I saw it scrolling through fanart and reading half a decade old fanfiction while my brother was trying to make me pay attention to him. And yeah, that’s how I found this art and listened to this song for like the rest of the fucking year. xviii. warrior || steve james I got my head high, my chest out, my eyes open wide I got no fear, got no doubt and, god, I feel alive I'm not stopping for ya, I'm a fucking warrior

My brother showed me a bunch of fanvids on my first day down there, but my favorite was this one, because I’d recently watched Little Witch Academia and this was so freaking cute and all kinds of lovely. xix. iv. sweatpants || childish gambino Rich kid, asshole: paint me as a villain

Another thing that happened to me that week was the discovery of lipgallagher’s fantastic harringrove fic (shoot the lights out, hide) till its bright out. Which is all kinds of great and lead me to this song and the realization that Donald Glover does music? xx. hello || via audio How could it be Someone could find me Too scary to say hello to This was one of the songs on Damien’s fanmix from The Bright Sessions. And because The Bright Sessions suckerpunched me with feelings, I spent like a month straight listening to that mix and getting into that garbage man’s headspace. It was wonderful. xxi. daddy || emeli sande He's out your system yeah it took you a while You got your family back and you got your smile And you promised your sister that you'd never go back again I spent the better half of this year shipping Harringrove and Mark/Damien, which are both ships that are... well, not exactly the healthiest of relationships. Mark/Damien fucking ruined me. Listening to the last bit of The Bright Sessions was basically physically painful because like, okay. Logically I know that Damien is a garbage person. But also, he’s got a shitty power that would lead to some pretty interesting moral dilemmas even if you were a normal nice person (cough cough Mark), and like. They’re both so fucked up and Damien is so in love with Mark even if he’s not entirely sure how to be a fucking person and I have never had a pairing come after me as hard as this one did. Like it really came after me. Anyway, this was my true Damien/Mark anthem, because it’s fucking perfect and awful and fantastic and I just want them back in my life, guys.

xxii. paradise valley || honey and the sting In the past I lay out on the land Stretched my legs felt my chest expand If we could flow together someday Then we will float away

This here is my most played track of 2018. I first heard it during the special two hour episode of Wolf 359 and the whole end of that episode just blew my mind. So I immediately went to spotify, found it, and have basically listened to it all year since then. It helps that Nick loves it too, so every once in a while he’ll be playing it, which reminds me why I love it and just. It’s so soulful and beautiful.

xxiii. attila the king || nick glennie-smith instrumental

Yeah, I literally have no idea how this made it to the top 50 much less the top five, but apparently it did. It is really good writing music, but still.

xxiv. foolish || lauren shippen The impossible happens every day No matter what you do it won’t go away Don’t ask for more But then what are you waiting for

This was my year for podcasts - in one year I fell in love with Wolf 359, The Bright Sessions, and EOS 10 all over again when it came back for its third season. Near the end of the series though, The Bright Sessions did a musical episode! I listened to it in my car on my way to work and basically spent the entire freaking time smiling like an idiot. Truly my favorite episode. xxv. experience || ludovico einaudi instrumental

The Sense8 finale came out in June and it was absolutely wonderful. This song was playing during the last scene of the series and I fucking cried my eyes out. The song itself is fucking gorgeous, but what’s more is it made that last scene so much more than it would have been if they’d chosen any other song. It truly was, and forgive the corniness, a fucking experience. xxvi. singing in the rain || through juniper I'm singin' in the rain Just singin' in the rain What a glorious feeling I'm happy again I went through a phase in June-July where I checked out a bunch of old movies from the library. The first one was Philadelphia, because it was mentioned in the musical episode of The Bright Sessions and I just really wanted to watch it? But I also picked up Singing In The Rain, because I’d never seen it before and just, damn. I watched it before work and it was raining that day and the drive to work was the most fun because I just listened to different covers of the song and sang my heart out, and I was just so damn happy. It was dumb, and nice, and it probably going to be one of my happiest memories that I take with me into the new year. xxvii. hello stranger || barbara lewis Hello, stranger (ooh) It seems so good to see you back again How long has it been? (ooh, seems like a mighty long time)

I also watched Moonlight sometime in late June. It was one of those quiet nights where nothing really seems good enough, where you feel just a little bit empty inside and nothing is helping. So I watched the movie and read @notbecauseofvictories​‘s A Cornstalk Fiddle on my back porch afterwards and the movie combined with the fic and the music turned that quiet empty night into something just as quiet, but a million times more full. Another good memory from 2018 that’ll stay with me for awhile.

xxviii. end credits suite | nicholas britell instrumental From the end credits of Moonlight - I played both this and Hello Stranger on repeat while I finished up the fic I mentioned above.

xxix. ahead by a century | the tragically hip No dress rehearsal This is our life

I watched Anne With An E. I was sad a lot at the time, and got to a part early on in the second season that kind of lead me into an uncomfortable headspace so I actually still haven’t finished it? But it was really nice for awhile, and I hope to go back and finish it sometime.

xxx. achilles come down | gang of youths Just humour us, Achilles, Achilles, come down Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?

I’m not 100% sure where I found this song either? My gut reaction is that it was a song I found while I was reading either The Cruel Prince or The Goblin Emperor, but I’m not sure. Good song, though.

xxxi. without you | leslie odom jr. The earth turns The sun burns But I die Without you

Oh man, I found this cover one night while I was reading, and like, I was reading, so at first I didn’t really process what I was hearing, just that it was familiar and that I liked it. And then my brain connected the dots and I looked up and saw that it was a cover by Leslie Odom Jr and immediately restarted the song and just listened.

xxxii. natural | imagine dragons Deep inside me, I'm fading to black, I'm fading Took an oath by the blood of my hand, won't break it I can taste it, the end is upon us, I swear Yeah. I like Imagine Dragons. Honestly though - this one might not have made the cut if I hadn’t heard it a few months later on an EOS 10 playlist.

xxxiii. sky full of song | florence & the machine Grab me by my ankles I've been flying for too long I couldn't hide from the thunder In the sky full of song So, a while back there was that video going around where Florence literally sang this song while a storm started up around her, and like, that was the first time I heard this song? That was the first I heard that she even came out with a new album, so I basically sat down and listened to the whole thing, but this one was still my favorite.

xxxiv. broken people | logic & rag’n’bone man Broken we ain't beaten There's no glory in defeat We won't fall into the cracks between our streets

I uh, may have watched a couple fanvids after Infinity War. This was one of them.

xxxv. flesh and bone | black math Break the truth inside of me Climbed down to hell on the devil’s tree I clutched a branch of soot and flame The thought that rose, to scorch my feet

I walk alone Beside myself Nowhere to go

This was another.

xxxvi. nina cried power | hozier It's not the song, it is the singin' It's the heaven of the human spirit ringin' It is the bringin' of the line It is the bearin' of the lie It's not the wakin', it's the risin'

So last year Take Me To Church made it to my Top 38 or whatever I had it narrowed down to, mostly because I went through a Les Mis phase. But I kind of joked on that post last year about Hozier releasing an album next year and how unlikely it was, and lo, here we have it. Maybe not a full length album, but five new beautiful songs.

xxxvii. kol nidrey | the yuval ron ensemble Nidrana lo nidrei, V'essarana lo essarei Ush'vuatana lo shevuot. Maggie Stiefvater posted this song to her blog a couple months ago and I was really fond of it. It’s incredibly beautiful.

xxxviii. stronger | the score I do this with conviction I write truths and never fiction My disease is what you fed I can't stop with my ambition

Oh look, another Marvel fanvid.

xxxix. rise like a phoenix || conchita wurst I rise up to the sky You threw me down but I'm gonna fly So honestly, basically the rest of the mix are songs from Ryan’s OR mix which is an official EOS 10 playlist. It’s phenomenal, and I basically spent all of October and some of November getting stuck on various songs in the mix. xl. heroes || mars zelmerlow Don't tell the gods I left a mess I can't undo what has been done Let's run for cover

Yup. Giving me feels and also super catchy.

xli. cut to the feeling | carly rae jepson Ah, I wanna cut through the clouds, break the ceiling I wanna dance on the roof, you and me alone I wanna cut to the feeling, oh yeah Okay, but like - why did nobody tell me that Carly Rae Jepson had other songs and they were super fucking catchy? I spent the last few days of being a waitress driving to work blaring this and the last two songs and it did fucking wonders for my mood.

xlii. the greatest show | hugh jackman Ladies and gents, this is the moment you've waited for (woah) Been searching in the dark, your sweat soaking through the floor (woah) And buried in your bones there's an ache that you can't ignore Taking your breath, stealing your mind And all that was real is left behind

Breaking news, The Greatest Showman was amazing and I cried. I fucking missed hearing Hugh Jackman sing, and like the fucking lead up, of starting the movie with this song and then ENDING it with this song, with that performance, with those fucking lines (this is the moment you’ve waited for) - was so goddamn energizing. I just could not fucking deal.

xliii. the plains/bitter dancer | fleet foxes I should have known one day you would come All of us walk so blind in the sun Midnight feeder, beggar pleader

Okay, okay. So there's this playlist called Wet Black Leaves that I listened to a lot when I started my new job, throughout rainy October and November, everything was just a little too wet and a little too cold, and this whole mix is so atmospheric and gorgeous. I absolutely adore it.

xliv. always starting over | idina menzel Am I always Starting over? In a brand new story Am I always Back at one After all I've done?

The finale of Wolf 359 fucked everyone up, right? Yeah, obviously. Okay, well the final episode of season 3 of EOS 10 also fucked me right the hell up. Like we’re talking messy crying in the car on the way to your like second or third day at the new job. Anyway, I kind of spiraled and then I went back and listened to Ryan’s mix and found this song and just wanted to kick my heart around for awhile.

xlv. if i could turn back time | cher If I could reach the stars I'd give 'em all to you Then you'd love me, love me, like you used to do If I could turn back time MESSY CRYING. But like, I also really like this song. So MESSY CRYING and also screaming all these words as loudly as I can within the relatively safe confines of my car. I guarantee you that people next to me at stop lights thought that I’d gone through a messy breakup.

xlvi. new rules | dua lipa Three: Don't be his friend You know you're gonna wake up in his bed in the morning And if you're under him, you ain't gettin' over him Okay, but also some of the Ryan songs were catchy in a not heart breaking way, unless you think about the untold story of what exactly went on between Ryan and Akmazian and fill in the blanks and break your own heart.

xlvii. fernando | cher There was something in the air that night The stars were bright, Fernando They were shining there for you and me

Cher did an entire cover album of Abba songs in like, late October, I think? And like, my little gay heart fucking exploded and I listened to Cher singing ABBA songs for like three whole weeks and it was fucking fantastic. This... was actually not my favorite of the bunch until I went into a Barnes and Noble to pick up a copy of The Wise Man’s Fear and had a completely transformative experience when I heard it playing softly over the stacks.

xlviii. it’s quiet uptown | kelly clarkson If I could spare his life If I could trade his life for mine He’d be standing here right now And you would smile, and that would be enough

And after a brief detour into delightful cher/abba combinations we’re back to tragic EOS 10 songs. Additionally, I’m sick of Hamilton songs fucking me up. I get to see it in person in 2019 and I’m going to make a fool of myself when I cry my eyes out in front of Nick and our friends.

xlix. movement | hozier So move me, baby Shake like the bough of a willow tree You do it naturally

And just when I thought we were just going to get the four songs out of Hozier in 2018, we got this gem, which I think I like more than all the others.

l. seasons of love | rent cast Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes How do you measure the life Of a woman or a man?

I will never be over this song. I will never be over this musical. Merry Christmas, guys.

[theghostofashton]

“nothing is wrong with you.”

okay this needs some background.

so my friend and i were talking and she was telling me about a dream she had about awsten and geoff because of calamity (i'm not spoiling it you're about to read it) and i was really inspired by it and i asked if i could write it and she practically begged me to do it.

also that sounds so weird omg she had a dream inspired by my fic and now i'm writing a fic inspired by her dream wtf

this isn't really triggering it's just happysad okay enjoy milli i hope this is what you wanted ily

The accident was six months ago.

He still remembers it like it was yesterday, remembers the flashing lights and crunching metal and the smell of holy shit is that blood what the fuck just happened where's Awsten is he okay why isn't he saying anything.

It was the worst day of his life.

He woke up to white walls and sterile tape and a smell so bad it bottled itself up and flew into his nostrils and put down a flag right behind his eyes, set up roots and began infiltrating his entire body with the ache. It multiplied like bacteria, colonies growing and spreading out until every part of him was infected, unable to run, unable to hide, unable to do anything because it was inside him and it was growing and he would never escape.

He remembers getting the news and just stopping. Someone had taken a sledgehammer to his body and hit right at his heart, one hit that had everything crashing down, like in those cartoons, it's fine until someone says those words or does that thing and then it's cracking and breaking and disintegrating into a pile of rubble, never to be rebuilt.

He lost a part of himself that day.

It hasn't come back.

He feels like his heart is made up of several pieces. A different part hurts or bleeds or pulsates when something happens. They're all various shapes and sizes but somehow manage to make his heart whole. Each person in his life owns a piece; each person adds a necessary part to keeping him whole. They fit together and when the tiniest bit of one is missing he notices it, feels it, acknowledges it, like someone ripped his entire heart out of his chest.

Awsten's is the biggest one.

He remembers how bad it hurt, like someone had put a bullet through his stomach and the hole was expanding, taking, pulling, ripping, until all he could do was collapse to the floor in a flood of sobs and thank god they weren't waking Awsten up yet so he'd have time to pull himself together.

He remembers crawling into bed beside Awsten's limp body, taking him into his arms as best he could amongst all the wires and tubes, feeling his heart detach from its position in his chest and sink down to the pit of his stomach where the nausea was housed, as he reached down to move Awsten's legs and entire bottom half onto their side as well. He remembers biting his lip and trying to look away, feeling the pain explode behind his face and splatter against his skull at the realization.

Awsten would never be able to do that on his own again.

He remembers when they reversed the coma, feeling Awsten come back to life in his arms, feeling only the top half of his body squirming, feeling his eyes start to burn and his head start to ache and biting a hole in his lip because you will not cry in front of him do you fucking hear me you will not cry.

And he didn't cry.

But Awsten did.

Choked, guttural cries that were like arrows shot straight through his heart. He felt them going in and out, felt each subsequent hole they made in his chest, one after another, piercing a new spot each time until the piece of his heart belonging to Awsten was dangling from the rest of the muscle by a single thread.

Awsten cried, ruined multiple of his shirts and didn't lift his head for a very long time. And he bit his lip and rubbed Awsten's back and tried to think of what to say there was nothing he could say there was no way to make it better there was no silver lining to trading in legs for wheels, independence for dependence, the world as he knew it to one that didn't fit him anymore.

He's heard about it in movies and TV shows, how people can literally shut down, but he always thought it was exaggerated, overplayed for the drama, because how is it possible for a human being to actually shut down like that's not a real thing that can't possibly-

And then he watched the brightest, bubbliest, loudest person he's ever known draw the shades and close every curtain, turn from prismatic to achromic, all in a matter of days. The old Awsten was gone and the replacement was someone he couldn't have recognized if they personally came up and hit him in the head.

The hospital told them about heightened mental health issues and the commonality of depression with this type of injury. They told them about seeking out therapy and possibly taking medication and being aware of what was going on before it got too bad.

They didn't tell them about the days upon days of silence, the countless nights spent falling asleep to the soundtrack of Awsten's sobs, the arguments over transferring and accidentally making Awsten piss himself because he couldn't get him to the bathroom in time, Awsten's attempts to turn in his chair and subsequent crashes into every piece of furniture in their apartment, coming home to find him trying to lift himself onto the countertop and struggling to make his legs go in the proper direction, walking in on him trying to dress himself with frustrated tears running down his cheeks as he lifted each leg into the pair of pants and struggled to wiggle them up his ass.

They didn't tell him how unwilling Awsten would be to talk about it, how many slammed doors and outbursts of anger there would be. They didn't tell him about the nights he would pull Awsten as close as he could and try to get him to talk, get him to say something, and all he would get in response was stony silence, how he would eventually give up and act like he'd gone to sleep and unknowingly agree to be witness to Awsten's confession about how everyone would eventually leave, how he would eventually leave, how he'd end up alone.

Who would want someone who has to spend the rest of their life in a wheelchair?

He remembers when Awsten's piece of his heart broke in two.

...

"I really don't think this is a good idea..."

He swallows, feels the saliva travel down his throat and settle in a layer on top of his stomach. Looking down at his lap, he winds his fingers together and begins to slowly pull them apart, bringing his lip in with his teeth.

"Love, hey, look at me." Geoff lifts his chin and bends down onto his knees. "It's gonna be fine. You're gonna be fine. It's Jawn's birthday. Don't you wanna have some fun?"

"Invalids don't have fun."

"Awsten." Geoff's voice seems to harden. "You are not an invalid." He grabs both of his hands and squeezes. "Please sweetheart, I hate when you talk about yourself like that. You're doing so well, you deserve to be proud of that. Of yourself. I'm so proud of you."

He inhales. The breath catches in his throat and he stifles a cough. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Geoff cranes his neck to kiss him. Awsten smiles and wraps his arms around Geoff's neck and Geoff moves – still not breaking the kiss – to sit on his lap. One of Geoff's arms snakes behind his back and stays there even when they pull back. He presses his forehead against Geoff's and breathes out again. "Tell me what you're thinking, love."

"I-" His breath hitches. "I don't wanna make a fool outta myself. Don't- don't want the looks if I can't do it. S'gonna ruin Jawn's day. I just- I just wanna be normal, Gee. Like everybody else."

"Oh sunshine, you are." Geoff brings his other arm around and squeezes him tightly. "You are just like everyone else. Nothing is wrong with you, okay? No one's going to laugh at you or get mad at you or anything. We all just love you, Aws, and we want you to have fun today. You deserve to have fun today. Jawn's your best friend and today's his birthday and that's all he wants."

"I got him a gift..."

"The best gift you can give him is having a good fuckin' time today, okay?" He feels the kiss against the top of his head. "Just try. That's all we're asking."

...

Geoff knows Awsten is nervous.

His hands are shaking and slipping off his wheels as he tries to turn them. His eyes are shiny and his cheeks are pink, face flushed from – is that embarrassment? Shame? Discomfort? It's not the kind of pink Awsten turns when he kisses him, all blushy and grinning. It's not a light, sparkly pink. It's a dull and red bordering, Pepto Bismol-esque, fearful, discomforting pink.

His gaze travels from the top of the bouncy slide to its exit. Geoff watches it. He can practically see the wheels turning in Awsten's head, the should I should I not I don't want to make a fool out of myself I don't want to fuck up I don't want to be embarrassed. It's what plays on loop every time he's out in public, the fears and insecurities he's spent so many nights crying over, the confession he made one day, said one word and unleashed an avalanche, burst into tears and eventually told Geoff how bad things really were.

And he got him into therapy and researched every possible way to reassure him and lift his spirits, and for the most part, things are better. The Awsten right after the accident was petrified to leave the house in fear of what could happen. He didn't take any risks or do anything; he locked himself in his room and stared at the wall and punched at his useless legs in hope it would kick start them back into life.

This Awsten is different. He smiles more. He's been wearing color again. He's still nervous and very unsure, covered up by tight smiles and white-knuckles on his chair, but he's leaving the house and going places on his own and accepting the fact that this is permanent and taking his life back.

He's come so far in such a short amount of time, made so much progress, conquered so many obstacles, broke so many barriers...

Went from wishing he'd died in that accident to working out new ways to live with it.

"Geoff?" He shakes his head to clear it and glances over at Awsten. He's fiddling with his hands again, a small, shy smile on his face. "I...I think I'm gonna do it."

"Did you guys hear that?"

"He's gonna do it!"

"Go Aws!"

The pink on Awsten's cheeks deepens. He begins to wheel himself over to the slide and Geoff rushes to follow, slips his phone in his back pocket and brushes his hands together.

"I'll help you up, okay? And then I'll get down and come around with your chair." Awsten nods. His hands are still shaking and his eyes look wild, pupils slightly dilated. Geoff leans in and kisses his cheek. "You're gonna be fine. You can do this. I believe in you."

"I can do this," Awsten repeats softly. "'Kay..."

He slips one arm underneath the crook of Awsten's knees and pushes the other one behind his back. Jawn moves behind them and grips the handles of the chair, and in one fluid motion, he lifts Awsten into his arms and Jawn pulls the chair back.

He carries Awsten over to the slide and proceeds up the stairs to the top, where there's room for both of them to sit. Awsten's legs go first, and then he slips out from under his body and scoots in beside him, takes his hand and brings it to his lips. "You can do this. You are so strong and so brave and I believe in you, okay? Everyone down there does too. We love you so much, sunshine. We're so proud of you."

Awsten is silent for a few moments. He squeezes Geoff's hand and turns up to him, rubs at his eyes with his free hand and swallows visibly. "I'm ready."

Geoff pulls his lip in with his teeth and watches as Awsten pushes off, watches him slide all the way to the bottom and let out a loud cry. It sounds light and airy, full of the mirth he's been missing for so long. There's liquid collecting in his eyes and his vision is blurry because this is all he's wanted for so long holy fuck.

He jumps down from the slide and grabs Awsten's wheelchair and makes his way to the other side of the slide, just in time to hear Awsten speak.

"I just went down a bouncy slide by myself for the first time since the accident."

The words are almost like an admission to himself. He sounds in awe of himself, like he hasn't quite grasped what he's just done. And it's those words that bring a flurry of footsteps and gather a huge crowd around the bouncy slide.

Awsten's sitting on the edge with everyone – Jawn, Daphne, Zakk, Travis, Andrew, Grace, Otto, Gracie – standing around him. Everyone's smiling but Geoff can't take his eyes off the grin on Awsten's face, stretched so wide it looks like it hurts. His eyes are shining. His cheeks are pink, that beautiful shade of rose, glowing in the warm summer light.

"You did it, Aws."

"You were amazing!"

"It's justa slide." Awsten ducks his head slightly. "S'not a big deal."

"It absolutely is a big deal you fucker." Jawn breaks out of the crowd and kneels down in front of the slide to pull Awsten into a hug. Geoff can't hear what he says to him, but the smile on Awsten's face grows, if even possible. He's never seen someone smile this much.

Travis says something and Otto rolls his eyes and reaches over to shove his shoulder and everyone starts to laugh, but again, all Geoff can focus on is the musical laughter leaving Awsten's lips, the light shining from his eyes, the flushed cheeks and warmth emanating from his form. Jawn picks him up and twirls him around and he giggles, hangs onto Jawn's shoulder and closes his eyes, lets himself fly in the wind.

The past six months have been the hardest of his life, and today...

Today he just went down a bouncy slide for the first time since the accident.

Tears are streaming down Geoff's cheeks as he watches Awsten laugh, watches him grin and reach out for Travis, challenge him to do what Jawn just did.

Paralysis used to be the end.

This feels like a new beginning.

[ii-thiscat-ii]

And here’s something else I’ve written!

Trigger warnings for parasites. Certain other things too, like blood and surgery without anaesthetic, but mostly parasites. Beware.

(Oh, and for the second part, which you can read even if the trigger warnings scare you off, you might like to revisit the list of sheep in the flock.)

On Ao3

Dipper’s day began normally enough.

He had been bored out of his mind for the last… unreasonably large amount of time, and so had decided to try the whole human thing out for a bit again. It was going surprisingly well. He was pretty sure around half his neighbours believed him to be some kind of vampire or something, which was a very distinct improvement from the last time.

Right now, he was headed home after grocery shopping, which was a perfectly mundane activity, even if his shopping list was mostly sweets and soda. It was a bright, warm spring day. The sun shone, the birds were singing, and the first few bugs were starting to buzz around. One had even stung him earlier.

It was a small, subtle thing. If he had been anyone but himself, he probably would not even have noticed it, but he was and he did. For a fraction of a moment he even considered letting it live, as a tribute to the pure nerve it took to sting him of all people, but no. Stinging bugs did not deserve his mercy.

He was just rummaging around in his shopping bag, looking for a small chocolate bar, when he felt something weird. It was almost like itching, a small movement just below his skin. He scratched at it while still focusing mostly on finding his chocolate, and diverted a miniscule amount of power towards removing the irritation. It was almost as if he reacted to the sting, even if the thought of him having an allergic reaction to an insect was laughable.

His efforts to remove the irritation did nothing. He furrowed his brows and paid more attention to it, but still most of his focus was on trying to get his chocolate bar out of the bag without tipping the largest soda bottle out of it.

Then there was another sensation. The smallest on feather touches on his power reserves, so much deeper than any part of his physical body.

He jerked his hand back in violent surprise, throwing the bottle wide and paying it no mind. By the time he realized exactly what was going on, it was already too late.

---

The man they wheeled out of the ambulance looked terrible, arms twitching feebly and clothes splattered with blood. He looked like he was just coming out of teetering on the edge of unconsciousness. Still, when his eyes cleared, they were open and attentive despite the trickle of blood running from them. He looked like he was following the conversations going on around him easily enough, but Maggie had learned never to assume.

“Mister Pines?” she said, using the name that was written on the ID in his pocket. “Do you know where you are?”

His eyes turned to meet her, and she was sure that yes, he was completely lucid, if in pain. “Emergency room,” he said to confirm her question. “I collapsed on the street and started bleeding, and someone called an ambulance for me.”

She nodded. “Very good. Now, do you know what’s happening to you? Would you be able to tell us?”

He nodded, and she let out a quiet breath of relief. Patients with strange unknown ailments did not happen as often as the medical dramas implied, but they still happened, and they were never fun.

“Static worm,” he said. “I need it out.”

She reconsidered her relief.

She knew what a static worm was, of course. It was one of the many things anyone who worked with non-human medicine had to know, but were unlikely to ever encounter. They were increasing in number, but still counted as rare creatures.

They preyed on shapeshifters. Any kind of shapeshifters, from werewolves through selkies to those strange, bug-like, subterranean things. They found their prey through unknown means, and would proceed to lay eggs in them, which would almost immediately hatch into the larvae the species was named after. The larvae would then somehow freeze the shapeshifter’s shapeshifting ability, no matter how the ability worked, and feed on the magical powers involved until it was fully-grown and ready to release its offspring on the world, all of which was more or less traumatic and possibly fatal to the host.

They also never preyed on non-shapeshifters, like humans.

“Okay,” she said, jogging alongside the stretcher as they moved him along. “Then I’m going to have to ask you some questions. They are only for your own good and will not be made official in any way in case you’re worried about hiding. Exactly what kind of shapeshifter are you?”

“Nothing you’ve ever encountered before,” he said.

“Are you sure?” she asked. “The more we know, the more likely it is we can help you.”

“My kind is very rare and practically invulnerable. We-” He swallowed, probably trying to get the blood out of his mouth. She wondered how much of his lungs was actually filled with air. “We don’t show up in hospitals very often. I’m sure.”

She nodded. Okay, unknown preter. She knew the procedure for this. “Healing factor?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “Damn good one, but this thing’s stopping it. Just get it out and I can fix the rest myself.”

“That’s very good,” she said. Then she called out to ready the damn surgery room already before she turned back to him. “Anaesthetics that work on you?”

“Only one,” he said, squeezing his eyes shut in pain. “But its side effects would… complicate things. A lot. We’ll have to do without.”

“What kind of side effects?” she asked.

“I’d get very high, try and probably succeed in running away, and if you did manage to help me despite that, I’d probably immediately kill you once my powers came back.” He looked her in the eye. “We’ll do without.”

“Yes,” she said. “It sounds like we should. Will you be okay?”

The way he scrunched up his face showed clearly enough that he was not looking forward to the experience, but he nodded. “I don’t experience pain like you do. I’ll be fine.”

They finally got him wheeled into surgery and onto the table. They started cutting off his clothes and he complained about losing his favourite shirt. One of the students joked that if he could complain about that, he was doing fine.

“I hope you don’t mind we’ve got students observing, do you?” Maggie said. “This is a perfect opportunity to see an unusual case.”

“As long as you get this thing out of me I don’t care what you do,” he said.

Maggie absently noted that without his clothes he was more obviously unusual, lacking certain features human males tended to have.

“Would you be able to tell us approximately where it is?” she asked.

He nodded again. “Inside the ribcage, cosied up under the right clavicle.” He dragged his hand over to indicate the spot. “Crawled through my lung a few minutes ago.”

Powerful shapeshifters tended to have unusually good internal sensory systems. She realized he probably felt that quite clearly, and she tried not to cringe. Working in Emergency for a long time would harden anyone, but certain things still got to her, and parasites were unusually horrible.

“I love powerful healing factors,” the surgeon muttered, cutting into the skin of his chest with little regard for if he would be fine later. Maggie quietly agreed. It made things much easier when they wouldn’t have to worry about killing anyone on the table as long as they succeeded in getting the worm out. Honestly, for being a critical case with an unknown species, the situation was almost ideal. At least the patient was awake, cooperative, and had some knowledge of his own anatomy.

“Your limbs seem a little weak,” she said, partially because it might be important, and partially because Pines seemed like he could use a distraction. “Is that something we need to worry about?”

“I kind of half-assed the body today,” he said. “Wasn’t doing anything strenuous, so I skipped on a lot of the detail and compensated with my abilities. Paying for that now. Should probably warn you I didn’t fix up any proper organs either.”

“Yes, I see,” the surgeon said, having just broken through his ribcage with almost disturbing ease. They had an odd look on their face, and they hesitated for a few seconds, looking down into his chest cavity, before they continued.

“Er, are those lungs?” one of the students asked, pointing at a couple of vaguely lung-shaped, muscled organs, one of which had a big hole in it and lay flat like a punctured balloon.

“The heart isn’t plugged into anything either,” the other one said, pointing at a lump about the size of a fist whose only apparent function was to make the sound of a heartbeat.

The rest of the chest cavity was filled with some sort of blackish red goop, which might explain where the blood came from, what with the heart not working.

“I did say I was half-assing it, didn’t I?” Pines said. “I needed enough to sound human and not much more.”

Maggie had to admit that having the patient sass at them during the operation was a bizarre experience, especially with his insides open to the world and also apparently torn up from within, while she could see his one working lung-substitute expand and contract as he talked despite his chest being depressurized.

Then she was distracted by the surgeon swearing like a sailor. They found the static worm.

“Holy fuck,” she said when she saw it.

She had never personally seen a static worm before, and she suspected neither had the surgeon, but they had both seen the pictures. They were white, shapeless worms with sharp spines sticking out of them, varying in size depending on the host. They should not get much bigger than her pinkie finger. This one was as thick around as her wrist, and almost as long as her forearm. It curled around his uppermost rib and had its spines deeply embedded in the bone.

It also moved, squirming away from their attention with vigour.

One of the students had to go excuse themselves.

“Just…grab it?” Maggie asked.

“Just grab it,” Pines growled. “Get it out, before it gets worse.”

The surgeon only hesitated for a moment before they grabbed at the thing, shoving their hand straight up under the ribs, but the worm squirmed away. It broke off several spines and slithered out of the surgeon’s grip, down through the lung it had already passed through, tearing the hole much bigger as it went.

“Fuck! Get it!” the surgeon exclaimed.

Maggie grabbed a scalpel and stabbed at it, to which it reacted by wiggling behind the spine. Pines growled loudly and suddenly, and there was a sharp sound of something cracking. It might have been one of his fingers where he clenched them against the table.

The surgeon dived for the worm and just got their hands on it before it could disappear through the diaphragm, whereupon Maggie stabbed it through the middle.

It violently tied itself into a knot a few times, spraying goop and blood everywhere, before it finally stilled.

The surgeon picked the worm up and put it in a tray.

“You missed a few pieces,” Pines said, and then they all watched as he stuck his hand into his own chest and pulled out the spikes stuck in his ribs.

He dropped the spines on the table and let his hand flop back down.

“If you don’t mind,” he said, “I’m going to pass out now.”

No one particularly felt like objecting.

They all took a few moments to gather themselves before they put their tools down and started looking for the needle and thread.

“Do we even need to stitch him back up?” one of the students asked. “He did say healing factor.”

“Yes he did,” Maggie said, and pointed to the edges of his wounds, which were slowly starting to knit themselves together. “He was probably right too, but we don’t know what he is, we don’t know what this thing’s done to him, his entire ribcage’s cut open, and he’s passed out on the operating table. We’ve all heard stories of people with broken legs who think they can walk it off. Never take a patient on their word that they’ll be fine unless you’re sure yourself, and this time we’re not.”

“We stitch him up,” the surgeon continued, “as best as we can, and then we keep him under observation until he either wakes up or we’re sure he’s stable, to make sure there are no complications. If he’s fine when he does, he can walk.”

With that, they started putting him back together. Or trying to. Maggie picked up a big piece of unidentifiable something that had been thrown around during their chase through his chest cavity, shared an awkward glance with the surgeon, and dropped it somewhere around where the lungs should be. He was still breathing, somehow, when they were done, so they assumed it could have been worse.

---

People on the street were staring. Of course people were staring, they were making a spectacle of themselves.

Lolonja sighed deeply and massaged her face with a hand, but said nothing. At least the hands were nice, if unusual. This whole situation was unusual.

The Master was unwell. That was the most unusual part of all. It happened, but very rarely and never for long. This thing that had infected him and tried to steal his power had left traces, and this time he needed time to recover.

She understood the instinct, to steal power. Anyone who had ever lived wild in the Mindscape would. Still, the mere concept that something so small could even dare to harm her Master made her angry. She was glad it was dead now. It deserved nothing better.

Most of her siblings seemed to agree.

The Master was unwell, but he was also recovering steadily, and at the moment he was staying in a human hospital. This was unusual, but also an opportunity, so Lolonja and several of her flockmates decided to go visit him, because that was what people did when their loved ones were hospitalized.

Unfortunately, the hospital did not admit animals. As a workaround, someone had the bright idea to disguise themselves as humans. Lolonja probably should have realized from the start how badly they would end up messing that up.

None of them looked human, that was for sure.

Groknar (the Destroyer) was a little over two and a half meters tall, had arms as wide around as an average child, skin as black as coal, dangerously sharp teeth and a set of ram’s horns on his head. Star (the Survivor) was about one forty, snow white skin with golden highlights in her hair, three fingers on each hand, a short tail and eyes that were bright blue from edge to edge.

No one else were much better. Lolonja admitted that the hooves she were walking on were not very human-like, but at least her eyes had pupils. Incandescence, who after an incident a few weeks after she joined the Flock would never again take a human-like form, walked beside the small group as a large, neon, rainbow-coloured poodle.

People were staring, and whispering. She swivelled an ear (also not human?) to listen. Everyone seemed to realize they were not human immediately, so that was a moot point. On the other hand, no one seemed to realize what exactly they were. Guesses circled around some kind of satyr subspecies, which was good enough.

Either way, the hospital came up in front of them, and they walked in.

They crowded around the front desk once it was clear, looming just a little over the receptionist, except for the couple of dreams, who could just barely look over the counter.

The receptionist’s eyes widened steadily as he looked between them, and he started smelling slightly of fear. “Can I help you?” he asked.

“We are intending to pay someone a visit,” said Devil’s Child, attempting to give a reassuring smile.

The receptionist flinched back at the sight of a mouthful of needle-sharp teeth. “Okay,” he said, swallowing. “Who?”

Devil’s Child seemed to realize that he was not being reassuring, so he licked his lips with a forked tongue and tried to hide his teeth a little more when he continued. “He is likely checked in under the name Tyrone Pines, after an urgent surgery. It would please us if you would tell us where to find him.”

The receptionist gave another nervous glance at the sharp quills sticking out of Devil’s Child’s hair before he started tapping away at his computer. After a few seconds of that, he looked back up at them. “So, er, you’re his… friends?”

“He is our Master,” said Baaasly.

Lolonja punched him in the side and hissed, “You don’t say that to a human!”

The receptionist paled, and she cringed before glaring back at Baaasly. Baaasly just looked confused.

“Why not?” he asked.

“Humans get twitchy about the ethics of person ownership,” she said. “They tend to react badly to that.”

“How come?” Thalia said, looking up through the bright pink curls that hung in front of her eyes (and grew down her spine and arms.) “It’s not like humans can even own each other. They don’t work like that.”

“One day,” Lolonja sighed, “I’ll have to sit you all down with a history book and teach you some things about humans.”

She glared for another second, (and punched Killer in the ribs for good measure, as she had mostly been snickering and not helping at all,) before she shook her head and caught the receptionist’s eyes. “It’s a… mutually beneficial arrangement,” she said. “Don’t worry. We’d just like to know where we can find him?”

“A- ah, yes,” the receptionist said. “I, uh, I have the room number here. Just, er, you’re not allowed to bring animals?” he gestured at Incandescence.

Incandescence sat back on her haunches and looked very petulant. “But I don’t want to wait outside,” she said.

“I… guess you’re not an animal, then.” He looked just a little shaken, but he did eventually give them the number and instructions as to how to get to the room, and they smiled their thanks and left.

The next obstacle they met was the elevator.

Killer read the sign saying how much weight it could take, took a quick headcount, and crossed her arms (and claws). “We’re not all going to fit,” she said.

The group exchanged looks.

“I… suppose we could split up…” Lolonja suggested, dubiously.

They exchanged a few more looks before everyone ended up looking at Star and Thalia, their two bright, small, breakable dreams that had insisted on coming along and should definitely not be left alone in any way for any amount of time, lest they may get hurt.

“Stairs,” Groknar said.

“Stairs,” Lolonja agreed.

They took the stairs.

They found the room just as a nurse was exiting it. She closed the door, preoccupied by her tablet, turned around, and stood face to face with the group of disguised sheep.

She opened her mouth and made a choked squeaking noise. Then she closed it again. “Sorry,” she said. “Didn’t see you there. Can I help you with anything?”

“We are just here to visit Mister Pines,” Lolonja said before anyone else could say anything.

The nurse swept her eyes over them and cringed a little. “There is a visitation limit of three people, I’m afraid,” she said. “Some of you are going to have to wait outside.”

They looked blankly at her, and she faltered.

“I… really don’t think there’s enough room for all of you,” she said.

“It will work,” Groknar said, crossing his arms.

She swallowed, and stepped away from the door so they could pass.

The room fit them all easily enough, though it did look as if it was a little bigger than it should be, almost as if someone had changed its dimensions from the inside. The Master looked up at them from the bed, a book open in his lap, and he had a look of utter amusement on his face.

“Did you guys walk here like this?” he asked.

Incandescence jumped straight onto his bed, tail wagging like an electric fan, and licked his mouth. He grinned and pulled away just enough to give her a hug and bury his face in her fur instead.

“We did!” she said. “We got some very funny looks and Lolonja was sighing all the time, are you okay?”

He laughed. “I’m perfectly alright. I just need to wait until the block on my power disappears on its own, since I can’t burn it out myself without taking half the city with me. I’m not actually in any trouble. I hope you didn’t worry.”

“Of course not,” Lolonja said. “We just wanted to visit and bring you some snacks.”

Then they crowded closer around him and handed him what they had brought of chocolate, cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and the jar of pickled eyeballs from his pantry in the Mindscape.

At some point as they sat there in what was basically a pile on his bed, another nurse came into the room, looked at them, and backed out slowly.

They barely noticed. Hospital visits were fun; they should do them more often.