#perhaps in 1 of 3 party forts

[monstersdownthepath]

Homebrew Horror: Gremlin, Firgor

(Art by Wayworncrow!)

There are only a handful of items more useful to an adventuring party than Bags of Holding, items so valuable that few adventurers--even ones which tend to travel on their own--would live without for more than a few weeks into their careers for fear of traveling unprepared, or for fear of being forced to leave loot behind. Whenever the opportunity to obtain one arises, most would jump at the chance! And who wouldn't? You never have to worry about encumbrance again with one! The money you'd save hiring carts is astronomical! Unfortunately, nothing so convenient could exist without the whims of some fiend or Fey attempting to make a mockery of it, and these creatures are proof of it.

Without a need for air and having the ability to turn invisible on a whim, Firgor spend the entirety of their lives nesting within Bags of Holding and other extradimensional storage spaces like them, sustained partially by whatever morsels they can rake into their lairs with their long, rubbery arms, and mostly by "sacrifices" delivered right to them by unwitting explorers, adventurers, and merchants. Hidden by ramshackle suits of camouflage built from whatever knickknacks the bag's owner hoards, an unwitting victim may 'host' a Firgor for months or even years without realizing it's even there, and all the while the gremlin wreaks small but meaningful amounts of havoc on their lives.

No one is entirely sure when the first of these strange, alien-looking gremlins began to manifest across the world, and it's entirely by their own design. Firgor possess a small but potent number of psychic abilities granted to them by their unusual nature, chief among them the ability to simply force others to forget their presence. Any creature not looking directly at a Firgor tends to swiftly forget they ever saw it, and any item rendered invisible by the gremlin's spellwork is similarly forgotten until the gremlin decides to give its new 'toy' back for one reason or another. As Firgor age, they gradually leech magical power from the countless items introduced to their homes and gain magical powers of their own, culminating in the awakening of more powerful psychic abilities, such as the ability to temporarily seal away a victim's knowledge and skills. This intangible theft is the ultimate goal of all Firgor, who draw immense joy (and perhaps even psychic sustenance) from the chaos which erupts when someone cannot remember crucial information or access skills they once possessed.

How many times has it happened across the world, that otherwise competent and well-trained adventurers simply forget the true extent of their apocalyptic armory, misplace otherwise impossible-to-forget trophies, or lament the loss of a useful tool they should still have? Why do highly-skilled Fighters and raging Barbarians simply lose the ability to use the techniques they've been honing for years? How is it that Wizards and Witches smarter than entire rooms of people put together, alongside Clerics and Paladins who are guided by higher forces, cannot remember what spells they've prepared for the day? How many times has an adventuring party said, with panic tinged by exasperation, "You could DO THAT/You HAD THAT this whole time?!" in response to one of their members producing a heretofore unseen (or forgotten) item or skill?

In many of these cases the next two words out of the victim's mouth are tinged with surprise, then frustrated realization: "I... Firgor."

FIRGOR GREMLIN CR 2

Neutral Evil Tiny Fey Init: +2; Senses: Darkvision 120ft, low-light vision; Perception +6

------ Defense ------

AC 16, touch 14, flat-footed 14 (+2 Dex, +2 natural, +2 size) HP 18 (3d6+6) Fort +3 Ref +5 Will +3 Defensive abilities Bag Lair; DR 5/Cold iron; SR 13

------ Offense ------

Speed 10ft, climb 10ft Melee 2 claws +5 (1d2-2), OR improvised weapon +1 (1d4-2), claw +0 (1d2-2) Ranged Improvised weapon -1 (1d4-2) Space 2 1/2ft; Reach 10ft (with claws) Special Attacks Out of Sight, Out of Mind Spell-like Abilities (CL 3; Concentration +5)

3/day--Detect Magic, Mage Hand, Prestidigitation, Read Magic 1/day--Memory Lapse (DC 13)

------ Statistics ------

Str 7 Dex 15 Con 14 Int 12 Wis 11 Cha 15 Base Atk: +1; CMB -3; CMD 9 Feats Deft Hands, Weapon Finesse Skills Bluff +8, Disable Device +5, Escape Artist +8, Perception +6, Knowledge (Arcana) +3, Sleight of Hand +12, Stealth +16 (+18 while inside lair), Use Magic Device +8 Racial Modifiers: +2 to Sleight of Hand, +2 to Stealth while inside its lair Languages Aklo, Common SQ Compression, Longarm, No Breath

------ Ecology ------

Environment: Any Organization: Solitary Treasure: Incidental (and usually yours already)

------

Combat: Firgor are lazy and cowardly, and do not to engage in combat if it can be avoided, preferring to quietly slink into their lairs if danger passes. Their first response to danger is withdrawing into their lair and attempting to become invisible to make everyone forget they saw it. When inside their lairs, they usually forego using their claws and instead will use whatever items they can to attack their enemies, whether it be used as an improvised weapon or a dangerous magic item.

Morale: Firgor always try and retreat into their lairs when possible, but if their enemies follow them into their lairs, they will threaten valuables and heirlooms with destruction if they are not left alone. If this does not work, they have little recourse but to fight to the death.

------ Special Abilities ------

Bag Lair (Ex): Firgor nest inside of Bags of Holding and other small, portable extradimensional spaces, holding onto the insides with their tiny legs while they use their arms to move and attack. Whenever a Firgor moves, it can drag its bag lair with it. While in its lair, a Firgor has cover from everything outside its lair. As a move action, a Firgor can fully withdraw into its lair, making itself impossible to target or affect with anything outside of the lair, often requiring combatants to enter the lair to chase after it. It cannot target or interact with anything outside of its lair until it uses another move action to relocate to the lair's entry.

Longarm (Ex): The long, rubbery arms of a Firgor give it exceptional reach for a Tiny creature. In addition, it possesses an eye in one of its palms, allowing it to perform feats such as making skill checks or attack rolls from cover without penalty and without exposing its body.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind (Sp/Su): As a full-round action that provokes an attack of opportunity, a Firgor can become invisible, as the spell. While invisible in this way, any creature that saw it within the last minute must succeed a DC 13 Will save or forget what they've seen, retaining only a vague recollection. 1d2 rounds after failing the save, the victim completely forgets about the gremlin's existence. Any item the Firgor carries that is also affected by its invisibility is affected by this memory leakage; any creature searching for such an item forgets they were doing so if they fail the Will save, and forgets the item even existed 1d2 rounds later. If the item was especially important to the creature, or if its existence is reinforced by another creature who succeeded the save (or was just unaffected), an affected creature will rationalize the lost item as simply misplaced. Similarly, a creature that was attacked by the gremlin but was forced to forget about it will believe the wounds were sustained in an unrelated incident. Any creature damaged by the gremlin in the last minute has a +5 to the save against this ability. This is a mind-affecting effect, and its saving throw is Charisma-based.

-------

Firgor Malefactors

Over time, a Firgor gains even greater power due to absorbing latent magic from its surroundings and establishing a deeper connection to the Astral Plane, gaining psychic abilities. A Firgor Malefactor gains 2 to 4 additional racial Hit Dice and the Psychic Magic ability alongside a handful of spells which differ from gremlin to gremlin, typically keeping in line with the theme of its most precious stolen treasures. Some, even rarer specimens instead gain 2 to 4 levels in an occult class, typically Mesmerist or Occultist, and advance from there.

In addition to whatever powers they gain from their advancement, all Malefactors gain the following abilities:

A deflection bonus to their AC equal to their Charisma modifier, minimum 1.

An additional eye in their other palm, granting them All-Around vision.

Both the Catch Off-Guard and Throw Anything feats as bonus feats.

Brain Fog (Su): Once per hour as a standard action, a Firgor Malefactor can force a mental block into a creature's psyche, cutting it off from its own experiences. The target must be within 60ft. The target must succeed a Will saving throw with a DC of 10 + 1/2 the Malefactor's HD + the Malefactor's Charisma modifier or lose access to one of the following: all of the ranks in X of its skills, X of its prepared spells, X of its feats, X of its spell-like abilities, OR one Extraordinary or Supernatural ability it possesses, all chosen by the gremlin. "X" is the Malefactor's Charisma modifier. A creature can only be affected by one instance of Brain Fog at a time (the Malefactor blocking a new ability releases the old one), and its abilities remain locked away for 24 hours or until it receives the benefits of any spell which would cure mental ability score damage or restore memories (such as Modify Memory, Psychic Surgery, or Restoration). Creatures affected by this ability often simply forget they had access to the blocked abilities at all. A creature unaware of the Firgor, such as if it's asleep, takes a -5 penalty to the saving throw against this ability.

[biggie-chcese]

An Overanalysis of Coalescence

(rain code spoilers below)

shoutout to copy abilities in media, gotta be one of my favorite genders. first time i saw yuma sensing aphex use his forte, i knew i was in for a treat.

in fact, the fortes are interesting in general. i absolutely love how well-established the rules and limitations are for each one: fubuki cannot rewind time further after doing so once, halara cannot see living beings in their postcognition, vivia cannot touch anything in spectral mode, desuhiko gets exhausted when he's disguised for too long, and yuma....

wait actually what are the limitations of coalescence?

shinigami tells yuma that, with coalescence, he can only use it if he gets consent from the other party and holds hands with them as he uses it. those are some pretty good limitations, i'd say. they fit very well with yuma's arc about depending on others, too!

except... neither of those limitations are true. makoto has the same exact powers as yuma, yet he thoroughly breaks both of those rules.

first of all, he uses it to copy the handwriting (put a pin in this btw) of the other master detectives while they are unconscious. now, im sure we're all aware of this, but being unconscious is, notably, not giving consent. yet makoto seems to have no issue taking their abilities in such a state. extremely naughty of him.

but, if we look at the scene in the ch 5 bathhouse, he still asks yuma to "give me a hand" like some sort of fae creature pulling a "Your name, please?" trick. perhaps an argument could be made that the person doesn't have to give consent, but you can't use coalescence if they actively deny you. so...

Rule #1 - To use coalescence, you need the other party to not not give consent.

so how about that second rule? you need to hold hands, right? i think that's somewhat true, but yuma is definitely under the misconception that you need to be holding hands the whole time. this is wonderful to me, by the way. how terrible life would be if he wasn't adorably holding hands with his friends... but of course, it's not necessary, because makoto only needed to grasp yuma's hand for a little bit to gain all the benefits of the mystery labyrinth.... except getting his own big titty goth gf. sorry, pal. anyway,

Rule #2 - Hand-to-hand contact is required to activate coalescence, but it doesn't need to be maintained.

we kinda knew this from the start, though didn't we? not only were all the other master detectives able to enter and stay in the labyrinth (put a pin in this too) without keeping a hold on him the whole time, but also yuma could sense the other fortes being used on the amaterasu express without holding hands at all...

wait why the fuck could he do that? also, why does he never do it again??? is sensing fortes a part of coalescence? is it because of his nebulous mind-fuck bond with shinigami still not setting itself in stone? did the writers simply forget he could do that? once he reaches kanai ward, he doesn't sense when any of the other detectives use their abilities unless he's holding hands with them. does the rain cause some interference? what the fuck was up with this? okay, whatever.

Rule #3 - Without holding hands, those with coalescence can still sense when other fortes are being used in close proximity... sometimes.

with that wishy-washy rule set in place, let's unpin the thing about the detectives sharing yuma's access to the labyrinth. shinigami tells yuma that coalescence "works both ways" when used, which is really interesting to me. in this case, it automatically gives the mystery labyrinth access to his friends without yuma consciously doing so, which implies a lack of control over what the other party gains from him when he uses coalescence. but this raises another question: what would the other person gain from him if he doesn't have the book of death's pact?

when makoto uses it on him, yuma gains nothing new, but that could just be because makoto has nothing to give that yuma doesn't have. what happened to people that pre-game number one used coalescence on? did they temporarily gain a weaker version of it? did they get imperceptively better deductive reasoning skills? did they gain some extra trauma? either way, im interested in how this "both ways" thing works when yuma doesn't have shinigami equipped.

Rule #4 - Coalescence works both ways. If the user takes an ability, they will unconsciously give an ability in return.

now it's time to unpin the part where we mention that makoto uses coalescence to copy handwriting, because this opens a whole other can of worms. the whole game, i was under the impression that coalescence only copied fortes. or, at least, i thought it exclusively copied supernatural abilities, since the labyrinth is technically not a forte. then again, desuhiko claims his forte isn't supernatural, so i guess that's on me.

but still... handwriting? that's a very mundane thing to copy. what else can he copy? skills? trades? physical abilities? could he hold hands with neurosurgeon and get the job done just as well? if he held hands with halara and chose to target their fighting skills instead of postcognition, would he, too, be able to take out a hoard of peacekeepers?

i can say one thing almost certainly: he can't just copy over knowledge. as in, if someone knows something about the case, he can't just shake their hand and get the answer transplanted into him. he doesn't even get the knowledge of how the fortes he borrows works- everyone has to tell him the rules. so it seems to be limited to skills and abilities, even though we could theoretically blur the definition of what makes a "skill" and what constitutes as "knowledge."

but that's not all, is it? one of the strangest usages of coalescence we see is when yuma shares fubuki's power. it's never yuma who's rewinding time. it's fubuki, but yuma instead gives her a support buff in stamina by sharing the burden of her exhaustion debuff. and while he never seems to be nearly as tired as she is (cowardice from the dev team for not giving us suspiciously flushed and sweaty sprites for yuma like they do with fubuki), from this alone we learn that coalescence doesn't just copy abilities, but it copies... feelings too?? does this mean he could reasonably act as a healing salve to anyone who's exhausted- not just forte users- by sharing it with them? at the very least, he can share the burden (or boon possibly?) of any side effects or drawbacks of someone else's forte. that just makes me curious about what'd happen if he used coalescence on someone who's forte has a drawback of making them horny. who said that.

Rule #5 - Coalescence copies fortes, skills, supernatural abilities, and can even lessen the side effects of abilities through sharing.

edit: i forgot about one more rule, but the game outright tells you this one and it's indisputable, so i won't go into any deep analysis. still, for the sake of completion:

Rule #6 - Coalescence can only hold one ability at a time. Copying a new ability will automatically overwrite a previously stored one.

and that's it, i think. these are all the rules and limitations of coalescence. absolutely busted ability too, especially in a world with heavy limitations like melami's or zange's. but with that in mind...

why did shinigami lie?

or, well, i guess a better question would be "why was she mistaken about its limits?" my theory is that number one lied to her about those limitations on purpose.

we all saw how makoto used coalescence- with lots and lots of trickery. while his grand scheme through the whole game plan could not have been done alone, he still uses people quite extensively, especially the detectives.

i used to always wonder if number one even used coalescence, because there's something real ironic about it being the ability of Number "I Work Alone" One von RainCode. knowing what i do now, i think he used it like makoto- tricking people into grabbing his hand and using their skills as a means to an end. he never considered it "working together" because it truly isn't.

but when he forms a pact with shinigami, he tells her the rules of coalescence. and he lies. he lies by making a set of rules that'd force his amnesiac self to depend on others, and i genuinely love that.

i love that a lot

[rielzero]

Original by for-tymora's blog, altering this slightly and removing some bits to prevent overly spoiling my oc.

30 Questions for Your Tav! [ Ask Meme ]

Your Tav as a Companion

1. What would your Tav’s greetings be (at different levels of approval)?

Negative (<0):

He stares just at you, Clicking his tongue in an annoyed tone.

"Got nobody else?"

"I would prefer if you'd find a better source of entertainment."

Neutral (0 - 19):

"Seems like you've got something to say."

He stares at you, just raising a brow and cocking his head sideways.

“This better be important.”

Medium and up (20+):

"Hmm? Sorry, you caught me off guard."

"Feeling chatty? I don't mind."

"I'm all ears." Gestures to his ears.

When spoken to by someone other than the player character:

"I'd prefer to be in touch with someone better suited for important conversations. No small talk."

Flirting:

Pretends he wasn't intensely eyeballing your back earlier, winks.

"Something wrong, love?"

"Hey, caught you staring.''

"I was hoping you'd talk to me."

"You're looking dreamy today."

"Hello, love."

"..Hmm? Hmm.." He seems happy.

"I was wondering when you'd need me again."

Partnered:

"Hello, partner in crime." Mischief on his face.

"Say what you need, I'm here to listen."

Act 3 Vampire - Partnered:

"You look hungry, or maybe I'm... Heh."

"Ask me anything, anything, anything.."

"I'd kill if it'd make you happy."

"My love, we are so close to victory, I can almost touch it." (To Astarion Origin)

''You're looking splendid and magical today.'' (To Gale Origin)

"Yes, my sun?" (To Astarion Origin)

''Yes, my love?''

Broken up:

He Just looks at you emptily, and disappointed. Dead eyed.

2. Describe their tent setup! What’s on the outside? The inside?

It's the most put-together you've even seen. Stitched to the brim, looks like it can collapse and barely covers the bedroll. Has a bunch of bags surrounding it and crates to support the rest, kind of like a pillow-fort situation.

3. What would their character quest be titled? Why?

I personally haven't decided on this yet. Rat-themed perhaps, or something to do with him looking sickly.

4. What would your Tav’s romance scenes look like? How many would they have?

Probably depends on the Origin character, I can't picture him being romanced by anyone other than Gale or Astarion at this time. There would be romance and bonding scenes.

5. Describe their idle animations!

Cracking neck, cracking bones, stretching uncomfortably.

Pondering, tapping his foot on the ground with arms folded.

Wiping his face and looking at his hand for a moment before wiping it off his pants.

Tightening his arm wraps (would look like he's rubbing his lower arms.)

Casting Shocking Grasp, just to look at the sparks in his hands, then waves it off.

Pulling out his journal and browsing through it or jotting something down.

Sitting down and drawing (Stops upon approach.)

Act 3 idle Animations would be conditional adittions.

Poking his teeth, then stare at his finger..

Observe his wrist scars, turning it around and stroking it.

Scratch his neck scars, stretch.

Looks like he's smelling something, clearly bothered by it.

Pull out a bottle of blood and sip from it excessively.

Sitting down and drawing (doesn't stop when approached.)

6. How would the player go about meeting them in Act 1? What is their introduction?

I've done a post on this before I think, but it would be in the location near the intellect devourers, hunched over and trying to keep himself from hurling.

8. After Act 3, What are they talking about at the reunion party?

Probably about the change of appearance and hairstyle, and how he's doing better than he was after the defeat of the netherbrain. He's still settling down and getting used to things, 6 months wasn't enough.

Back to Basics

9. What’s the significance behind your Tav’s name?

Locke misspells his name, because he came up with it when he was sixteen. In his mind, Loki is written Locke at first because it sounds like ''Lock-i'' to him, he was the lockpicker in a gang of orphans.

10. Does your Tav have a last name? Is there a meaning behind it?

He comes up with it on the spot, it means ''Trick'' and its very much meant to be a trick.

12. Does your Tav have any tattoos or scars? Why?

Locke's facial tattoo is magic ink, its a protective ward of sorts. Won't elaborate. His scars are all from abuse, different people.

13. What is your Tav’s main color palette? Why do they choose those colors?

Has a strong attachment to purple because of his dead childhood friend, who was a purple tiefling.

14. Where are they from? What was home like?

Baldurian sewers. Not much of a home, more like a nightmare.

15. Is your Tav more likely to fight/flight/freeze/fawn?

He fights in most cases.

17. Do they have any enemies outside of the main plot? Any friends?

He has acquaintances, his closest being a fatherly figure, The Undertaker, Jermaine.

Deep Dives

20. What is their relationship to touch? Do they shy away from it? Do they need it to feel present?

Very much touch-starved, but dislikes casual friendly touch because he's afraid of affection at first.

21. Describe a defining moment from their past, which makes them who they are today!

He has CPTSD, it wouldn't be a singularity, though I'd say the moment he became a warlock is pretty big.

22. How is your Tav’s relationship with their family? Their parents?

The woman who raised him thoroughly abused him, so did the other orphans he was raised with. As adults, their relationship is strained and reduced to just being familiar with one another. He doesn't view them as family. He simply can't.

24. What does your Tav consider to be their own biggest character flaw?

He desires to have something of his own, but fails to give it a place. He feels like everything that he does have will never be completely his own, at times. (I'm being vague on purpose.)

25. What is something they would die on a hill over?

Wizards being prone to explosiveness. He will not accept the reality that some wizards never blow themselves up in any capacity. They're all one wrong step away from exploding themselves.

27. What is the worst thing they think they’ve ever done/said to someone they loved?

Say no to his ex-boyfriend.

28. Describe a smell that reminds your Tav of childhood.

..Cooked Dwarf roast.

29. What fears keep them up at night?

Sleeping in the dark.

30. What does your Tav want more than anything?

Power, or to feel like he's worth something.

[obsoleteozymandias]

"Hmm...it seems I'm right where I need to be"

Moira Thea has arrived at the Glimmering Soiree!

{ Voice lines, full design, credits, and extras below! }

Voice Lines:

Summon: "I knew you'd come looking for me."

Groovy: "All of us here tonight, intertwined in the moonlight - how enchanting."

Set Home: "What a pleasure that our fates may meet yet again."

Home Idle 1: "I do wish my cane matched my dress... Ha! How privileged I must be to be concerned over such things."

Home Idle 2: "Might I have this dance?"

Home Idle 3: "I can't say I'm surprised that Mr. Shroud has yet to appear. He is such a... hmm... let's say a recluse."

Home Login: "It's a pleasure to be here with you this evening."

Home Idle Groovy: "The orchestra here is wonderful. I must ask for them at our next party."

Home Tap 1: "Why yes, this dress is custom made. I made sure every thread was in its place. You've got a good eye."

Home Tap 2: "It's a same I can't behold the decorations tonight. I bet they're lovely."

Home Tap 3: "I will remember this night for eons to come, I'm certain of it."

Home Tap Groovy: "I can't recall when I last felt so... light. Is this your doing? Or perhaps the music's?"

Full Body Art:

Credits:

Thank you to the lovely and talented @starry-night-rose for holding this event, it was an absolute delight to draw for :)

Extras / OC Information:

Moira is based off of the fates from Disney's Hercules! Her design took me a very long time to get down, hehe.

As such, she's wearing clothes inspired by Ancient Greek peplos.

She's blind! I didn't draw her with a cane here, but in future art I may.

She is a fae related to the Shrouds through marriage (Idia and Ortho’s cousin, in theory. Families are weird) and is 18 years old.

She has two older sisters.

Her unique magic allows her to see and behold both future and past events, although only pertaining to one subject at a time.

Personality wise, she’s a somewhat pretentious and high maintenance woman, but still caring and generous. Kindness and subtly are not her forte, but she wants the best for those she cares about (and the worst for her enemies).

MBTI is INTJ

If she were in a TWST dorm, it would be Pomefoire.

More will be added when I feel confident in her story!

[usermischief]

♞Pairing: Steo ♞Characters: Stiles Stilinski, Theo Raeken, Mason Hewitt, Liam Dunbar ♞Tags/Warnings: - ♞Words: 5320 ♞ @steodiscord's SteoSpooktober Vol.5 - Costume ♞Part 1 - House of Darkness / Part 3 -

a/n: This fic can be read without reading Part 1, but there will be references to what happened in "House of Darkness".

ao3

***

once upon a do-over

Stiles pushes his hands in the pockets of his jeans, squinting at the old structure maybe 250 feet away from them. It might have been a castle once. The sand-colored bricks and tower still left standing seem to hint at it. There’s no shot it’s from royalty; there would have to be records of that. Biting the inside of his cheeks, Stiles squints at the tower. He can’t quite figure out why, but something about it makes him feel a bit… queasy? Perhaps. He just doesn’t like the feeling it causes in the pit of his stomach. There’s something wrong about it, Stiles can’t put his finger on what. Although, it could very well have everything to do with the no-trespassing signs all over the goddamn place.

What he knows for certain, however, is that he’s been right. Not the biggest surprise. He didn’t expect Mason to calm him months after the Conjuring House debacle to invite him to a costume party. Luckily, Stiles will be going on a costume party later today, so, Lydia’s three hour-long makeover will not be for nothing. Her very recent obsession with American Horror Story’s first season has translated into his costume, and since she wasn’t allowed to paint Jackson’s perfect face white, Stiles ended up as the Tate Langdon to her Violet Harmon. The good thing about this costume is, the skeleton make-up does make his face unrecognizable, something he’s still very much interested in. The bad thing? His clothes – especially his black jeans – are tight, much tighter than any clothes he owns.

Still, since Mason and Liam clearly lied to him, questions need to be asked. “Why are we here?”

Mason turns to him, beaming like a thousand watts. “Because this is Satan’s Castle.”

Liam bounces on his heels, clearly sharing his best friend’s excitement. They’re infuriatingly happy about absolutely everything. It’s terrible.

“No,” Stiles says, gesturing back and forth between Theo and him – because, yes, Theo joined this trip as well – “why are we here?” This isn’t an emergency, especially none that required Stiles and Theo. Together. Joining Liam and Mason on their stupid little exploration. They’re not friends. Never have been. Lydia asked Stiles to keep an eye on these shitheads during their visit to the Conjuring House. That does not mean he’s required to be around all the time whenever they go to some shady sounding places.

It's not that he wouldn’t, Stiles simply hates that Theo is here too after he finally stopped being pissed at him.  

But, hey, this is what he gets for taking a gap year and deciding to live closer to home again. Not that Los Angeles is that close. Ever since the Conjuring House adventure, Stiles isn’t sure he wants to become an FBI Agent. That was his dad’s dream until a kid was in the picture. Stiles gets the appeal, and part of him still wants to help the living. The more time he spends away from Harvard, working jobs most people don’t even know exist, he wonders if perhaps the dead and other creatures not fit to be around the living are his forte – and it pays more than well. People are giving him surreal amounts of money even if he just tells them they have rats in their walls instead of a poltergeist.

Mason exchanges a quick glance with Liam. “Well,” he says because the latter decides that his camera is a lot more interesting than the conversation, “you’re brilliant and mysterious and can see dead people, and you—” Mason cocks his head to the side a little and shrugs, “you’re hot.”

Theo raises his brows. “You mean I have the money.” That he's ignoring the comment about his appearance says a lot about what type of mood he's in. Although Stiles doesn’t have any idea why Theo is mad. He’s not the one who’s been ghosted for seven fucking months.

“Our viewers don’t exactly care about that,” Liam says barely loud enough to be heard.

Stiles folds his arms over his chest. “There’s no costume party.” Mason is a terrible liar, but Stiles agreed to this because as angry as he’s been with Theo, part of him wanted to see that asshole again – either to draw a line in the sand officially, or to give this another shot. He’s not quite sure yet. He’s not exactly proud of it – and he's even less proud of allowing Lydia to put him in these ridiculously tight jeans.

But it’s working; he’s caught Theo looking more than once.

Mason tugs on his own costume – Count Dracula, judging by the impressive cloak he keeps stumbling over – and pulls his shoulders up. “It’s a Halloween special.”

“It’s a—" Theo cuts himself off and turns away with a roll of his eyes.

“You didn’t even come in costume,” Liam snipes, who – very lazily, mind you – threw on a pair of scrubs and a doctor’s coat.

Theo bares his teeth, fangs looking as deadly as always. “I don’t need one.”

“I think the more pressing issue is that you guys lied to us.” Stiles isn’t the biggest fan of being used. It’s fucking rude in general, but after being a meat puppet for a 1000-year-old fox demon, shit like this hits very differently. “You could’ve just asked.” Although Stiles isn’t entirely sure he would’ve agreed after the disaster the Conjuring House ended up being. He really didn’t appreciate being flung around like a ragdoll.

Fucking demons and their audacity.

“I wouldn’t have come—”

“You agreed the moment I mentioned Stiles,” Liam shoots back, clearly done with everyone’s attitude.

Stiles glances at Theo, who resolutely stares in the other direction. Even his gnashed teeth don’t hide the slight tinge of pink on his cheeks. Fuck. What the hell does that mean? Theo never called after the night they spent together, and Stiles gave up after his second text went unanswered but read for months – and that’s why he should have said ‘no’ instead of ‘sure, why not?’ the moment Mason brought him up.

Yet here he is.

Sighing, Stiles raises his hands in mock defeat. “Fine,” he says, trying his hardest not to sound as delighted as he feels, “we’re already here. Give me your research.” He beckons for the phone Mason has been clutching to his chest like his prized possession.

The huge grin on his lips certainly proves that he’s been waiting for his request. “The story is wild,” Mason tells him as he hands over his phone.

Stiles draws his brows together. “The first sentence states that—"

“I know.” Mason waves his hand around dismissively. “But every legend has a kernel of truth, right?”

“I mean… in theory, I guess, yeah…” Stiles trails off, understanding why they wanted him to come so desperately, they dragged Theo here as well. They want to figure out the truth, or rather, they want someone to confirm this research. Frowning at the phone, Stiles sighs. He’d like to be a bit more optimistic, but everything Mason found points in a very different direction. Nothing is known about this place, not even who built it; the best guess is some random tycoon living in the late 1800s. They can’t even say what it was used for — only that Robert Atkinson apparently owned it at one point. Otherwise, the usual rumors are attached to these ruins, dark rituals, satanism, secret tunnels, and— “fucking hell.”

“400 kids?” Theo asks, startling Stiles as he leans even closer to continue to read. “They flew them back and forth and nobody noticed?”

“Not at once.” Stiles rolls his eyes. Still, Theo does have a point. “Also, it’s the ritualistic assault that’s concerning me more, but good to know where your priorities lie.” Shaking his head, he hands the phone back to Mason. There’s not really anything in there that’s remotely helpful. It sounds as if people are desperately trying to fill the history of ruins that should have plenty already. Of course, they want to believe that means some bad shit went down here. People are wired that way. But the ruins are part of somebody’s backyard, and it doesn’t look particularly decrepit. So, whoever owns it, takes pretty good care of it — and unless they’re a Satanist, too, it’s hard to imagine something’s going on here.

Besides, Tara, who once again decided to follow her brother around, has no qualms inspecting the place. She’s been quite nervous at the Conjuring House. She’s completely different here. Perhaps, she is enjoying the view as well.

The Rim of the World is undoubtedly breathtaking.

Staring at the horizon isn’t going to get him any faster to the party, though. Stiles sighs again and heads towards the ruins. “This better not be a waste of a good costume.”

“And my priorities are out of whack?” Theo asks with a snort.

Stiles shoots him a look over his shoulder. He grimaces a little when he spots Liam already handling the camera. There’s no way he’s ever going to enjoy or get used to being always filmed.

“Are you seeing anything?” Liam asks.

Now that Stiles has stopped ignoring every single ghost, it has gotten significantly easier to see and hear them. It’s quite unsettling, if he’s entirely honest, because blocking them out becomes increasingly harder. Here’s to hoping the same doesn’t go for anything else. “Aside from the ‘No Trespassing’ signs?” Or the aggressive neighborhood watch sign informing them that the police will be called immediately. Stiles is very glad his face is obscured by paint because there are most likely more cameras around.

“Ghosts,” Liam deadpans. “Demons. Entities?”

“Take your pick,” Theo adds with a bark of laughter.

Stiles rolls his eyes. “No, there’s nothing.” Well, aside from Tara roaming the grounds, but she hardly counts. Her relaxed state and the absence of other ghosts can only mean one thing; nothing happened here. If there had been as many satanic rituals as the research suggested, the place would be crowded. They are dawn to evil places, to places with a brutal history; all those lingering negative feelings are like catnips to the spirits who refuse to move on — or to the entities who have no business being here.

“We’re not even there yet,” Mason mutters, sounding more than annoyed as he walks off the street and heads towards the field, his cloak swooshing dramatically after him.

Liam follows his friend, panning the camera slowly away from Theo and Stiles, over the ruins, and to where Mason is now awkwardly stumbling downhill. Someone clearly has no intention of getting too close to the person owning the castle. Probably not the worst idea. If they have to trespass, it’s most definitely smarter to do it from below. They’re taking a risk, overall, and it would suck if they did so for nothing.

But Stiles doesn’t want to play pretend or straight-up lie, and he doubts they would want that either. He doesn’t know the guys very well, but their final product about the Conjuring House has been pretty honest. It was more of a documentary than a scare-fest, littered with solid history spoken over beautifully shot B-roll of the house. Maybe that’s why people enjoyed it so much. There was no script, no weird sound effects — just the raw footage cut together into a mostly coherent narrative. They’re probably planning to do the same for this place.

“You don’t have to feel guilty.”

“Keep your nose out of my chemo signals, Theodore.” Stiles narrows his eyes and studies the other boy for a few moments; the fact that he looks amazing in his leather jacket, tight jeans and skintight purple tank top suddenly pisses him off, although it’s not Theo’s fault Stiles got his hopes up. “You lost that right when you couldn’t pick up the fucking phone or text me back.” He’s not usually this aggressively honest about his feelings, but Theo’s behavior really got to him. It felt different. He didn’t sound like the usual dickhead trying to talk his way into someone’s pants.

And usually, Stiles is a magnet for those exact dickheads. He should’ve listened to his gut, but no. Trust the jock with the sad childhood story, why would he end up as a cliché? Clearly, Stiles was very wrong about that, and he’s not planning on making that mistake again.

“Okay,” Theo amends, the smirk betraying his apologetic voice, “I know, but I—"

Stiles holds up a hand and turns away. “Save it.” This discussion can wait, or even better yet, it does not need to happen. It was clearly a misunderstanding, although Stiles isn’t entirely sure what could be misunderstood when they’d both exchanged numbers. Theo changed his mind, or maybe he simply did it to placate Stiles, thinking he’d never see him again.

Whatever.

Stiles turns away and heads down the hill to join Mason and Liam. The last thing he needs is being alone with Theo any longer than strictly necessary. They’ll have enough time to pass between each other when Mason and Liam gather some B-roll.

The hill is a lot steeper than it looked from up top, and the ground underneath his feet isn’t exactly sturdy. Rocks and dirt roll down the hill. Neither his Vans nor the tight jeans Lydia forced him into are helpful in this endeavor.

What was he even thinking? That Theo would magically change his mind just because his ass looks great? He’s such an idiot, and soon, he might be an idiot rolling down a mountain on camera. This evening is going swimmingly. But at least he’s not sweating his ass and makeup off.

“Fuck,” Theo curses softly. A moment later, he falls past him, a bunch of rubble joining his tumble down the hill. He ends up on his ass and slides a bit further down until he manages to stop himself on a bigger rock jutting out of ground.

Stiles presses his lips together, trying his best not to laugh.

Heaving a breath, Theo glares at him over his shoulder.

Liam and Mason are still engrossed in a conversation, checking something on the latter’s phone.

“Pay me enough, and I didn’t see a thing,” Stiles tells him, carefully continuing down the mountain. If he falls, his pants are toast, and he’s certainly not going to be on camera with his jeans ripped in unfortunate places.

Brushing off dust and dirt, Theo huffs out a breath. “Name your price.”

“You wouldn’t be able to afford me,” Stiles shoots back instantly, although he’s not entirely sure about that. Judging by all his comments, Theo seems to be loaded. He’s usually the one driving, and he was the one paying for the hotel back in Rhode Island.

He’s almost reached Mason and Liam standing by the tower when something catches his eye. It’s a flurry of motion, drained of color like ghosts usually are. Stiles cranes his neck to see where it went, unsure if it’s Tara or someone else. In this moment of inattentiveness, he puts his foot on rubble and dirt that instantly gives way underneath him — his balance goes straight out of the window. Stiles curses under his breath as he frantically looks around for something to catch himself on.

There is nothing.

Of course.

Liam turns around, probably alerted by noises of stones rolling down the hill right behind him. His eyes grow wide, and he presses the camera into Mason’s hands. Before he has the chance to move, however, strong hands grab Stiles’ waist, stopping further disaster from happening.

“Careful now, we don’t want you to ruin your costume, do we?” Theo’s voice is barely a whisper. It’s sending shivers up and down Stiles’ spine.

He loathes the effect this guy has on him regardless of the months of frustration he suffered. But that’s in the past. Stiles let his guard down once, he’s now learned from his mistake, and he will not do it again — although Theo’s hands on his waist feel amazing regardless of his current resentment of the guy. He certainly wouldn’t complain if his hand slipped under— no. Absolutely not. “I think I saw something.” Stiles straightens himself, his foothold just secure enough that the ground won’t give away under him, and elbows Theo in the ribs. Sharp pain travels up his arm. He grimaces.

Fucking werewolves.

Mason’s eyes light up. “Where?” he asks, pushing the camera back in Liam’s hands.

“Somewhere over there.” Stiles points in the opposite direction of the ruins. “It might’ve been Tara. I’m not sure.”

“Where’s she now?” All the playfulness has left Theo’s voice. His sister remains a sore spot. It probably hasn’t gotten any easier now that he knows she’s following him around; if he believes it, that is.

Stiles shakes his head. “I can’t see her right now.”

“And that’s a good sign?” Liam inquires, glancing around the mountain.

“I don’t know yet.” Although the place doesn’t necessarily feel as evil as the name Satan’s Castle would suggest, now that Stiles is up close and personal with it, something feels… weird. Not inherently evil. This is nothing like the Conjuring House, but there is something. He just can’t tell if it’s bad history or something entirely different.

Mason rubs his hands together. “Could fire cleanse this place?”

“You mean ‘burn it down’? Theo asks, stepping so close his shoulder bumps against Stiles’.

It’s almost impossible to shut down the shouting match between his brain ordering him to move away and his body begging to step closer. Instead, Stiles crosses his arms. “That depends on how they did it.”

“With fire?”

Stiles turns to glare at Theo. “Do you ever shut up?” Despite everything he went through at the Conjuring House, he’s still a fucking shithead. Unbelievable. How the hell can he still be so doubtful regarding everything that’s going on?

The grin spreading on the other’s lips doesn’t bode well. “Feel free to use kisses as a method to shut me up any time.”

Stiles has never been so happy to wear makeup because nobody can see his cheeks flushing under all that white covering his whole face and throat. Maybe he should consider wearing costumes more often — especially when he’s around Theo. He’s not at all interested in giving the guy any inclination about his feelings for him. Once this is over, the first thing Stiles is going to do is teach himself how not to be hung up on people who only give a shit about him whenever he’s conveniently around.

After a moment of silence, in which even Mason and Liam stared at Theo in surprise, Stiles merely shrugs. “If they salted the place, then yes, they might have cleansed it.”

Although the evening sun is still having enough strength, a shiver runs down his spine. It’s too quiet for something to be here. Maybe it’s just the place itself that gives him the creeps. Ruins often have this effect on him. There’s something strange about being in a place that used to be full of life, that was a home to someone; its history lost, and all that’s left are rumors that can’t be disproven. The tower with its five points — so easy to believe it’s meant to be a pentagram — does the rest. Stiles wonders if it’s the shape that gave birth to all the horrors people believe happened here.

“So…” Liam trails off, the camera still facing Stiles and Theo. “It’s not haunted?”

Stiles sighs. “It might not be no.” It’s not the answer either of the boys wants to hear — Theo most likely won’t care — but it’s the only one he can give them if they keep standing beneath this goddamn tower. Seeing a stray ghost, that may or may not have been Tara, isn’t proof for anything. “Wait here.”

“What? Why?” Mason asks, his voice stuck between frustration and hope.

Raising his brows, Stiles gestures past the scrub surrounding the tower — probably to keep people out. “Because I’m going to go there.”

“There’s a ‘No Trespassing’ sign right next to us,” Theo points out, raising his brows and looking at Stiles like he’s seen him for the first time.

Stiles snorts out a laugh. “Aw, are you worried? That’s so sweet.”

Unsurprisingly, that hits a nerve. Theo narrows his eyes. “It’s your trespassing charge. Have fun.” He really acts as if he’s never done anything wrong before in his life. That sounds insanely boring.

“I’ll be back in a few minutes,” Stiles promises, watching as Liam and Mason exchange a look that’s more than a little loaded. It’s not like they could technically stop him from “I’m just going check for any activity. If anyone asks, you tried to stop me.” It’s not the first time Stiles trespassed. So far, he hasn’t been caught, and now, he’s got a few more tricks up his sleeve. He’s going to be in and out. Well, not really in. Still, he should probably remind them to cut this part out. Although nobody can see his face, his trespassing doesn’t need to be on video for the world to see.

Giving the two boys a thumbs up, Stiles presses as closes to the tower as possible to shimmy between the scrub and the wall. He’s not interested in going any further down that mountain with his tight jeans — even this is a terrible idea.

“Theo!” Liam snaps.

“Go get some B-roll,” Theo calls over his shoulder.

Stiles glances at him. “Shut up.” Although people are most likely aware that they’re sneaking around here, they really do not need to announce their trespassing. Carefully, he pokes his head around the tower and surveys the area. The castle must’ve been huge before they burned it down, but the thing that interests him the most is the doorway across from him. He doubts that’s where he’s going to find the entrance to a tunnel, but for now he at least wants to check if this place even has graffiti that could potentially be satanic. The tower itself is suspiciously clean for an abandoned and allegedly haunted location.  

With Theo right behind him, Stiles hurries along the old path, his steps silenced by the overgrown grass. He ducks under the ivy covering the top of the doorway and steps into the room. The drop in temperature is noticeable, but that’s pretty much the most exciting thing. It doesn’t take more than two people to make this room almost a bit too claustrophobic for Stiles’ taste. The charred walls don’t exactly ease the tight feeling in his chest.

This part of the history is plain to see. People have burned this place down. Stiles swallows around the lump in his throat while brushing his fingertips over the cold stonewall. Nobody burned, at least not in here.

“Well, that’s anti-climactic.” Theo steps next to him, nudging the leftover chain-link fence on the floor. “Anything on the ghost radar?”

For a moment, Stiles contemplates elbowing Theo in the face, but it’s not going to be worth the pain he’ll feel. “If you think it’s so funny, try living with it.” Stiles turns away from the unused fence and furrows his brow at the graffiti on the opposite wall. ‘Spikey Kelly’ in bright red. That’s really the only thing of note in the whole place. All the other graffiti is worn with age.

Stiles has no idea what that even means. Is that a name?

“Sorry.” Theo offers him an apologetic smile. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around your whole thing.” He gestures around, and for what it’s worth, he seems genuine.

Stiles opens his mouth, tempted to ask, ‘is that why you never called me back?’, but he shakes his head instead. “There’s nothing here.”

There’s absolutely no way he’ll have this conversation in the burned down ruins of an allegedly satanic castle — a satanic castle with no satanic symbols whatsoever. An evil place is easy to recognize by the shit all over the wall. Spikey Kelly, however, doesn’t exactly invoke fear. Stiles shuffles around Theo and pushes the ivy away.

“At least the view is great.”

That’s hard to deny. The view from up here is breathtaking, almost like they’re in a completely different world with the sky and a picturesque landscape as far as the eye can see. It’s hard to imagine Los Angeles is just a little over an hour away. They’re standing on top of the world, free, ready to fly at a moment’s notice.

Stiles wishes it were that easy.

Theo steps next to him, his body warm. “I bet the sunset is beautiful up here.”

Yeah, it’s probably worth the drive.

Ignoring the loaded statement, Stiles turns towards the tower. There’s a white wooden door leading into it, so new it ruins the image of the castle — as does the light just above it. This would be the first place Stiles prefers to be by day. “Let’s check out the tower.” Knowing his luck, the door is locked.

“Stiles.” Theo grabs his arm and pulls him back in, pulls him almost too close. “I know you’re mad—"

“I’m not mad,” Stiles interrupts, and he’s very clearly lying. The thing is, he is more pissed at himself for falling for the same bullshit over and over again. “You made your choice, whatever. Just don’t expect me to fucking swoon because you’re gracing me with your presence.” He pulls his hand free, not ready to admit out loud that Theo is still very successful at working his magic, and Stiles very much could swoon every time he simply smiles at him. That pisses him off even more than Theo not having the balls to tell him he wanted sex and nothing more. “Let’s go. I don’t want to hang out here any longer than I have to.” There is still the risk of being found, after all.

Without waiting for a reply, Stiles turns on his heels and hurries towards the white door. Here, he is very much out in the open. The light above his head turns on, but the door doesn’t budge.

Fuck.

“Why does that lamp have a motion sensor?” Theo asks, hovering directly behind him. Looks like he still doesn’t have any respect for personal space or boundaries.

Stiles covers most of the door with his body, brushing his thumb along the lock. “Try sneaking in at night when this place lights up like a Christmas tree.” Anger and spite have been surprisingly great teachers. Instead of wallowing in self-hatred, Stiles spend his time leaning into what he can do post-nogitsune. If he didn’t accept himself for who he is, how are other supposed to take him seriously? So, he buried his nose in books and has gotten the hang of little magic tricks, like opening and locking doors. It has worked on his apartment door every time so far, and this can’t be too complicated a lock.

He hears a soft click.

Yes.

Stiles pushes the door open just enough to slip into the room behind it.

“How,” Theo asks, closing the door swiftly behind him and plunging them in total darkness, “did you do that?”

A moment later, light illuminates most of the room and confronts Stiles with an almost disappointing reality. He didn’t exactly have his hopes up high, but he still hoped to find something. This? This is a waste of everybody’s time. No doors, nothing that even hints a secret door. No pentagrams, no 666, no graffiti that could even remotely been considered satanic. But the room isn’t looking too clean either. There are random graffiti smeared all over the walls, and the room itself looks like a bomb went off on it. Clutter is lying all over the ground, and the shelves are filled with it as well. It’s a miracle they didn’t step on anything.  

It’s nothing more than a storage room.

Stiles scrunches up his face. “That was a bust.”

“Excuse me?” Theo snaps his fingers in front of Stiles’ face. “How’d you get that door open?”

“It was stuck.”

“I heard the lock click.”

Stiles makes a dismissive gesture. “You imagined that.”

With an exasperated sigh, Theo points the flashlight directly in his face. “I get it. You’re still mad—"

This again. “Put the fucking flashlight down.” Stiles cannot believe he has to tell him that. He blinks and squints a little, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the dimness of the room.

“Stiles—”

“Fine.” He barely resists to throw his hands in the air. “I thought you giving me your number meant we’d stay in contact. You didn’t call or text me back. I moved on.” Quite literally, in three occasions. Well, four if he counts the thing with Lydia and Jackson. It took him longer than he’d care to admit, but it’s not like he broke down crying. His mind simply liked to play the ‘what if’ game. What if Theo did call back? What if Stiles just tried one more time? What if he visited Beacon Hills and accidentally bumped into him? Endless possibilities, none of them happened. “I thought you were different. That’s why I was mad at first, but if you think I cried my eyes out because a jock doesn’t want me back, you’re dead wrong.” And that’s the truth. As angry and a little heartbroken as he was, his dignity wouldn’t allow to shed a single fucking tear for Theo Raeken.

Theo raises his hands defensively. “I want you, but the whole thing with my sister…” he trails off, staring at the ground for a moment.

Stiles stares at him in shocked silence. I want you. Three simple words that shouldn’t stun him, that certainly shouldn’t get to him. But they do because he can’t shake his attachment to people no matter how much he likes to pretend that’s not the case. He swallows drily. Those three words aren’t what he should focus on. He takes a deep breath. “You think I wouldn’t have understood if you told me?”

Theo glances up at him, smiling apologetically. “I regret ghosting you. No… no pun intended.”

Rolling his eyes, Stiles carefully steps away from Theo. He’s pissed. Again. This time because Theo is essentially opening the door, Stiles fully intended to keep shut. “Yeah well, I regret a lot of things too,” Stiles mutters, trying his best to shut his feelings off. “Having this conversation? It’s at least in the top five.” It’s uncalled for, Stiles knows that, but he’s not interested in talking about this any longer — even less inside this disappointed, entirely non-satanic storage room.

Theo stares at him, opening his mouth before deciding against whatever he’s intended to say first. A mask slips onto his features as he steps closer, a hand reached out to grab his arm. “I wanted to see you again, desperately, so I could apologize.” The smirk returns in full force, eyes flashing almost mischievously as he inches closer. “But maybe my tongue can do a better job of saying sorry than my words can.”

Stiles’ heart stutters in his chest, cheeks flushing hotly once again. Fucking hell. Theo shouldn’t be allowed to have this much power over him still, but it’s like his body is drawn to him, impossible to get away, impossible to fully let go. Get it together, Stilinski. “Tempting offer,” he replies, hoping that his voice won’t give away how he really feels about the words — even though it doesn’t matter, Theo can probably smell how bad he wants him too, “but I’m not going to waste this costume on you.”

The response startles the smirk off Theo, and he lowers his arm, brows drawn together. “What’s that supposed to mean?” Relieve flushes through Stiles when he realizes control is firmly back in his own hands. Now, all he needs is to get out of here. “We’re going to a costume party.”

[theaggressivewriter]

The Grave and the Terrible (Boss Fight #002, 02/05/2024)

Welcome to Boss Fight, where every Monday I take a monster and make a unique boss fight out of official material. Today, we'll be making an official encounter for a L10-L12 party. We've been focusing a lot on lower level bosses, today we'll be taking a spin on higher level threats. In addition to the boss fight itself, we'll be discussing where to use the fight in your narrative as well as how to modify the fight to your liking.

Tired of running Liches as your undead leader? Want a warlord to lead a militant army of undead?

(Art by Tomas Duchek)

Graveknights are perfect for this. Rather than hiding in a cave somewhere, Graveknights would rather fortify a position and lead armies into battle, as they once did in life. They're knights who died in their armor, typically doing something nefarious, and rise by clanging on to their armor before leaving to the other side. Able to wield any weapon, they storm fights with ruinous weapons, unleashing elemental fury from their spirits through the weapon they wield. In addition, they also are innately capable of summoning a spiritual mount, likely the spirit of their mount in life. For our high level party, we'll need to pull out a Graveknight Warmaster.

There are quite a few ways you could spice this encounter up. Our target party level is L11, giving us a fair +3 monster, leaving us 40xp for an extreme encounter. What do we fill this with? Well, our imagination could run wild with what we have as source material. We could use some sort of elemental focused creature that aligns with whatever ruinous element we choose for our Graveknight, perhaps use a spellcaster to make them more of a Gish. But let's get real, we want something that makes this boss really stand out. We know that Graveknight's have the innate ability to summon a Phantom Mount, right? Well, what if we included this Phantom Mount as part of the encounter? We have the budget for at most an 11th level creature, and what comes to my mind when thinking of an awesome creature to mount and ride into battle?

(Art by Thek560)

Who said the mount had to be conventional? You may be wondering: is there an official ghost-like T-Rex in the game? No, there is not. This is the point where we're going to make something new out of older material. The problem with making the T-Rex a phantom is that phantoms normally have no Strength, and the T-rex relies on its ability to use athletics to grapple, which is also the requirement to use Fling, so we can take one of two directions: ignore this normal design limit and allow the spirit to have a strength score, symbolizing its ability to effect the physical realm as well as its innate physical strength, OR edit the T-rex by making dexterity be switched with its strength, make ref their highest save, switching it with its fort save. From here, we replace the plus grab and fling abilities and add spells to the T-rex that resemble spiritual powers rather than actual spells being cast, and keeping the damage of the strike it deals around the moderate range. I'll have a sheet written up for this in the reposts.

Combining these two requires knowledge of how mounting creatures work. RAW, both creatures would only have 2 actions during both of their turns as neither of them have any specific riding abilities that allows them to circumvent this restriction. It is an honest way of doing it, as both of them having effectively two actions if you made the T-rex count as the Graveknight's minion and giving them the command action, however I would run this as if the Gravemaster treated whatever it mounts as a mature companion so that the T-rex will take 1 action even if the Graveknight doesn't take the command action. You also are free to ignore all the mounting rules and just let each take their individual turns with three actions for both of them.

So why would a Graveknight be riding a ghostly T-rex? How the hell did that happen? You can just pop this in to your setting and pretend this sort of thing is normal, creating the classic 80s metal vibes for your Pathfinder campaign (I love this style of campaign and wish this kind of game existed, dungeon crawl classics is making me feel ttrpg envy), but a good reason for why this happened is that the Gravekeeper wasn't a Fighter, they were a Ranger. Slightly different skill set, but a Ranger can be just about as equipped as any Fighter, we can easily just say that they're wearing medium armor and the whole reason the Graveknight mounts the T-rex is because they tamed it in life as a Ranger who likely either turned against society or betrayed a druidic circle it was betraying or what else have you. Let your imagination go wild, the options are endless.

What if you don't want a T-rex? Well there's plenty of cool options to name here that fit the level range: Greater Nightmare, Thunderbird (honestly might be cooler than the T-rex if accompanied by a electricity based Graveknight), one of a couple of Dragons, a Deadly Mantis. The options are quite plentiful.

If you liked this discussion, please consider following my blog for more. I am in the planning stages for writing my own supplement for boss fights for Pf2e, and you can find updates on that on my blog as work is done on it.

[cassmouse]

One More Moondance - Honkai Star Rail fanfic✨

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pairings: Bronseele! There's also some Natasha and Seele being major found family in there

summary: Bronya decides to throw a party in Belobog's old ballroom, so she teaches Seele to waltz (or at least tries to).

words: Just over 3k

part: This is part 1 out of 2!

author's note: Here we are with my second fanfic! This was an absolute JOY to write, and I hope you all enjoy reading it just as much <3 It's also posted on ao3 and you can find the link in the post before this! Any support or feedback is very much appreciated ✨

warning: Again, it's set after the Express crew leave Belobog, so there's spoilers for the Jarilo-VI storyline

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Bronya's heart still ached a little when she thought of Cocolia.

It was to be expected, really. Considering Cocolia was the person Bronya fully believed to be her birth mother for most of her life, the hole she left was palpable. It pained her to watch the dull shadows of her memory run wild around Qilpoth Fort. To tell the truth, they never stopped pushing themselves to the front of her mind. During meetings, she would swear she saw her mother sitting at the other end of the table for a moment. When she focused on paperwork, there was her mother approaching her. But it never was. It was just the guilt coming back to haunt her.

This pattern was no different when she entered Belobog's signature ballroom for the first time since... the incident. It hadn't been used in a long time, and she wasn't entirely sure if the room had even been cleaned. Sunlight streamed through the grand windows that were lining the wall in front of her, illuminating the hard floor like a magic spell, and again the memories flooded back to her, as clear as if they were playing out right that second. This was where Cocolia taught her to waltz. Her hands holding Bronya's hand and waist. Her voice calmly talking through the steps. Her feet demonstrating where Bronya should put hers. A few months ago, this was a good memory. Now it was sour and almost too painful to dwell on.

The Supreme Guardian almost had to shake her head to physically dislodge her thoughts. She had to repurpose this room. It was beautiful, after all, and going to waste. Bronya's memory shouldn't diminish the place's importance for anyone else.

As she wandered further in, she started to picture what holding another party in here would look like. Belobog citizens dressed in their finery, eating specially-cooked delicacies and listening to joyful music. Perhaps it could be an attempt to unite the people from the Overworld and the Underworld.

Seele would like that idea.

The thought of Seele made the sudden image of her appear in the centre of the room. In Bronya's fantasy, she was slow dancing with her, and the shock at her own imagination made her cheeks glow scarlet. She didn't consciously choose to imagine this- But the heart wants what the heart wants.

No, what was she thinking? She couldn't be fantasising about someone that way. She never had in the past. It was... distracting, it was useless, and most of all it was unbecoming of the young Supreme Guardian.

But, even after telling herself all of this, she couldn't deny the way the thought of the other girl lit up the room even more. It warmed those dark, shadowy corners where dark remnants of her mother lay.

That's what gave Bronya the idea.

Maybe if she could physically get Seele in here, if she could somehow replace the memory with a stronger, positive one, then she wouldn't be so afraid to step into this room. She would teach Seele to dance the way Cocolia taught her all those years ago. Who knew, maybe Seele would enjoy it?

Bronya's fantasy could be real. Even if she told herself it didn't mean anything.

"So, what's this thing you wanted to show me?" Seele was there a few hours later, curiously following Bronya down the corridors of the Fort.

"It's a surprise. But I promise you, it will be worth it." Bronya replied, not slowing down for a second.

Just as she'd theorised, just being here with Seele made these almost empty corridors a little less scary. The purple-haired girl's presence was big enough to silence the memories rushing through Bronya's mind for even just a moment. And it was certainly a welcome relief. It made Bronya want to reach over and grab Seele's hand for support. She didn't, of course. She just carried on walking.

"Hey, I don't think I've actually been round back here yet." Seele commented as they approached the grand doorways to the ballroom.

"I haven't had much chance recently. But, I looked this morning, and remembered we had this room at our disposal."

With this, Bronya reached forward and pushed the double doors open a little eccentrically to add to the effect.

"Oh shit Bronya, this place is amazing! What was it used for?" She exclaimed, raising her eyebrows as she looked the room over, taking in the view from outside and the decorated walls.

"There was a time we would throw the most lavish parties here." Bronya explained, walking forward as she spoke. "But we haven't had the chance in years."

"And... you're showing me this because... you wanna throw another party here?" Seele suggested casually, secretly hoping she'd guessed correctly.

Her plan worked, because the other girl looked taken aback.

"Yes, actually. I thought that it might be a good idea to hold an event here to encourage people from the Underworld and Overworld to become better acquainted."

Something in Seele's expression changed; the perfect blend of surprised and absolutely delighted. It made Bronya's heart soar.

"Shit Bron, that's a surprisingly good idea coming from someone who didn't care about the Underworld yesterday." Despite her happiness, she didn't hold back when it came to teasing the Guardian a little.

"I didn't- I never- That's not true, Seele-"

"Hey, hey, I know." She came to stand in front of Bronya, smiling reassuringly.

"It's a great idea. I'm all for it, if you wanted my permission or anything."

"I'm just happy to have it." The silence that followed that was surprisingly charged, with the two just standing in front of the windows... looking at each other.

"Hey, um, as I was going to be throwing the party, I was thinking..." Bronya started, avoiding eye contact. This was not something she did often. "Did you want me to teach you how to ballroom dance?"

Seele probably would've made fun of Bronya for her sudden shy demeanour, had she not immediately mirrored it. Admittedly, the question caught her extremely off guard. She didn't know much about ballroom dancing, mainly that it involved a couple sort of hugging each other and spinning about. And probably looking into each others' eyes.

Could she handle doing that with Bronya?

She realised with a start that she hadn't answered the question yet, fumbling for her reply,

"Uh, yeah sure. I don't... I don't mind. What's- Will it be easy to learn?" She internally congratulated herself for rediscovering words.

"It won't be too difficult. It just takes a little practice." Bronya explained, before holding out a hand. "May I?"

The question hung in the air between them like the moon in the sky. Undeniable and beautiful.

"Sure."

Seele took her hand and mustered a smile, ignoring the way her heart started working overtime.

Bronya gently moved their clasped hands to one side, then reached over and put her free hand on Seele's shoulder.

"Put your other hand on my waist." She said, trying not to overthink the words.

"Put my hand where? Why?"

"It's important." Seele sighed, covering her embarrassment with mock frustration.

"Okay, fine." She did so. It was an oddly comforting gesture.

"Okay, now pay attention to where my feet go." Bronya instructed, her voice all business. She wasn't prepared for a second to give away what was running through her head.

Seele just nodded and did what she asked, looking down and watching as Bronya stepped to the left and then put her feet together again.

"Copy me, okay?"

Seele stepped to the left with her, staying silent to focus on copying Bronya's position.

"And then I'm going to step forward, and you have to put your left foot back, okay?"

"Um, okay-" Seele mumbled back, fumbling a little when Bronya's foot came forward but managing to get her own leg out of the way as the other girl had instructed.

"There we go, that's great." Bronya looked up and smiled, and Seele had to fight to stop herself blushing. An immense feeling of pride bloomed in her stomach.

"And now, it's a similar movement with the right foot. Move it to the right with me, okay?" Seele nodded absentmindedly, too concentrated to give a proper answer. When Bronya moved her leg this time, Seele tried to move in sync with her, vaguely managing it.

Bronya appreciated how much she was trying.

"That's it, you'll get the hang of it in no time Seele, trust me. Now, try to move your right foot forward with me so we end up in the same position we started. Like a box, see?"

"Uh, yeah, got it-" The other girl mumbled. Bronya stepped back slowly. Seele moved forward with her, immediately going too fast and stepping on Bronya's foot. The both of them flinched.

"Shit, sorry- Er, this isn't even difficult, I'll get the hang of it-" Seele was already getting frustrated about not getting it right.

"No, it's fine, that happens. Those are the four basic steps, so there's not much else to learn."

"Oh, really?" The grin returned to Seele's face. "This'll be easy to master, then."

Bronya chuckled. "I'm sure it will be. We can try one more time, then I'll put music on."

"Bring it on."

Despite her confidence, Seele was far from perfect. The step order confused her, and she moved her left foot when she should've moved her right or vise versa many times before even remotely getting the hang of it. Once Bronya went and played some classical music for them, it only got worse, with her trying to keep up with the tempo but the slightly demanding speed challenging her.

"This is too difficult!" Seele practically growled after about ten minutes of practice. In a fit of frustration, she let go of Bronya's hand and waist and stepped back.

"I don't think I can do this, Bron. I'm just... not really cut out for this kind of elegant shit."

"Ah, um, that's okay. You don't have to learn, it's fine. No one will expect you to know."

"Yeah... sorry, Bronya." She folded her arms, guilty expression washing over her face.

"It's alright." Bronya smiled, even if disappointment tugged at her a little. "You'll still come to the ball though, won't you?"

"Yeah, course. I'd love to."

They both nodded at each other, standing a little stiffly. Bronya biting back disappointment. Guilt weighing on Seele's shoulders. It hadn't gone exactly as either of them expected.

After Seele left very shortly after, the failed dance steps didn't leave her mind. She found herself trying to practice them while she did other things. She hummed the music quietly to herself and slid her feet forwards in the correct order. Or tried to, anyway. She couldn't help but feel like she'd let Bronya down by giving up so quickly. She looked so hopeful when she asked her if she wanted to learn.

Maybe Seele should try harder.

But she couldn't ask Bronya for help, not after she'd given up earlier. Because if she gave up again it would just worsen her disappointment. Who else would be able to help me with something like this? Not many of the people she knew, that was for sure. Hook had better things to learn. Sampo would just piss her off. The only person remotely graceful enough for a dance like that was...

"Natasha?" Seele called, knocking on the pharmacy door a while later.

Natasha had managed to relocate her small hospital to the city, and was a lot better off for it. She could help more people at a time, and was even considering hiring people to help her out. Seele said she would, but she'd just been so busy recently that she hadn't had much time to do so.

"Seele?" Natasha opened the door with her signature warm smile, pulling her gloves off and setting them down on a nearby table, "It's nice to see you. Anything you needed?"

"Um, yeah, actually. I need... some help with something."

The woman just waited for her to continue.

"Do you know how to ballroom dance? Like- Waltzing with a partner and all of that?"

Natasha laughed when the question was asked. Actually laughed.

"Yes, I can. But I haven't tried in a long time now. And I certainly wasn't expecting you of all people to be asking me."

Seele crossed her arms, a little annoyed at this response, "Yeah well, here I am. I need some help about the whole thing. Bronya, um... she tried to teach me how earlier. And I was shit."

"Maybe I should've taught you when you were younger."

"Are you kidding? I would've had none of it."

The two of them laughed together this time. "I can try to help you. It would be a nice break from my work today."

Natasha moved a few chairs and put some music on, just as Bronya had done.

"Okay, how much do you know?" She asked, holding her hands out.

Seele thought back to her lesson with Bronya, taking Natasha's hand and putting her hand on her waist. It felt a lot more natural and less awkward than it did at first with Bronya.

Natasha smiled kindly.

"Very good! Now, did you also learn the box method?"

"Yeah, think so. It's... like this, right?"

Seele tried to recreate what she'd done earlier. Left foot left. Back. Right foot right. Forwards. Natasha moved with her, accomodating Seele's slight slipups or pauses with ease.

"You're almost there, Seele! It's a good thing you came to me for help, it would be a waste for you to give up now."

"Yeah... yeah, you're right."

"You need to keep in time and just remember; left left, right right. Stepping in time with your partner makes it a lot easier for both of you. Should we try while I count?"

Seele nodded, going over the steps in her head.

"Okay, here we go." Natasha started to move, gently without doing her steps too large to help Seele.

"One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four..." She counted, able to get Seele to pick up her rhythm again when she almost stepped on Natasha's foot.

"See? You're getting the hang of it even more!"

Practicing with Natasha definitely managed to take some of the pressure off Seele's shoulders. She had loved practicing with Bronya, but the pressure to get it right to impress her had been what got in her way. Which was... disappointing, to say the least. She really hoped the streak of trying too hard to impress her didn't continue. It wasn't helping anyone.

With Natasha, there was no need to prove herself. She just took it slowly, eventually getting a hang of the rhythm, and ingraining the steps into her mind. After a few songs, she had almost perfected it.

The first time she got it right, she was overjoyed.

"Nat, Nat! Hey, I did it! I actually managed it, wow. You're a pretty damn good teacher."

"Am I? Most of that was just you practicing. I'm sure Bronya is the one you should be thanking." Natasha deflected the thanks, humble as ever.

"Maybe so, but you've still been a massive help. Thanks!"

"No problem, Seele." Suddenly, the purple-haired girl wasn't the only one flushed with pride.

They continued until Seele had almost perfected it. Which was about when she decided she was sick of practicing and was ready to show Bronya right that second.

Natasha sent her off with a wave.

"See you later, Seele! Let me know how it goes with Bronya."

She was wearing a knowing smile when she said the second sentence that Seele didn't entirely understand. But, ignoring it, she just waved back, thanking Natasha a final time.

Now to find her dance partner.

"Bronya!" She called, bursting into one of Qilpoth Fort's rooms and, as per usual, not knocking beforehand.

"Oh, Seele-! You started me." The other girl replied, sitting at a desk in the back of a room. She had been alone in there until then.

"Bron, I have something to show you, you need to come with me to the ballroom again."

"Seele, I'm a little busy, I don't have the time to teach you to waltz again-"

"No, just- Just trust me, okay? You won't need to. Please follow me?"

Seele gave her a pleading look and they both just gazed at the other for a moment.

Bronya sighed, knowing she couldn't refuse.

"Okay. Okay, that's fine."

"Yesss, okay, you won't regret it."

Bronya followed Seele down the long corridors of the Fort, predominantly just confused about what the other girl wanted to show her.

"Okay, now stand in the middle of the room again. Er, hang on." Seele jogged to the corner of the room to put on the same piece as they'd tried to dance to earlier.

"I, um-"

She hadn't thought this part through. Time to wing it, she supposed. "May I have this dance?"

Undoubtedly taken aback, Bronya held her hand out like she would at any other ball.

"Of course." She replied after a few beats of confusion.

Seele took a breath and put her hand on Bronya's waist again, getting into the correct position. The Guardian just followed her lead this time.

When Seele started to dance, Bronya was admittedly surprised at the tempo and accuracy she managed. She performed the steps with a lot more elegancy and confidence than she had before, and for a moment, Bronya had no idea what had happened.

"Wow, Seele, you- How did you lea-"

"Shhh." Seele murmured. "I have my ways. Maybe I'm smarter than you thought, huh?"

The other girl had formed a brief inkling about how she might've improved while they were apart, but... she didn't want to ruin the moment.

They moved in sync with each other, their clasped hands sending waves of warmth straight to their hearts. The music kept them close together. Their emotions kept them in time.

"Okay, should we spin a little?" Bronya suggested, keeping her voice at a low volume out of fear of breaking the delicate soap bubble they were encased in, where the rest of the world didn't exist and they had no other problems.

"Go ahead." Seele nodded, their dynamic switching a little as Bronya took back the lead.

It was only them, the music, and the sun streaming through the windows. And just as Bronya had suspected, the magic this room could hold was reborn all over again.

[therentalgram1]

Rent a Big Villa in Lonavala for Republic Day.

Introduction:

When was the last time you gathered your favorite folks, packed your car, and just left the city behind?    No traffic, no meetings, no continuous notifications — just vibes, late-night laughing, and unforgettable “chai on the balcony” moments. Sounds like a dream, right? So, this Republic Day weekend is your opportunity to make it happen.    January in Lonavala is idyllic. The mornings are crisp, the afternoons are warm but not scorching, and the evenings? Perfect sweater weather. The weather creates the ideal atmosphere for drinking hot chocolate by the pool or snuggling up with blankets for a night of stargazing or watching movies.

And if you’re up for some exploration, Lonavala has its own appeal. The neighboring glistening lake is a must-see, and the Temghar Dam is a tranquil area for a picnic or to simply relax. If you enjoy nature, you’ll find pathways that snake through the thick foliage, making you feel as if you’ve walked into a postcard.

Lonavala Group Activities:

1. Trekking Adventures. Lonavala is surrounded by green hills and pathways, ideal for a group hike. Rajmachi Fort and Lohagad Fort are famous destinations with breathtaking vistas and plenty of picture possibilities. Bonus: the hike to Tiger’s Point is simple, so everyone in the party may participate.

2. Bushy Dam & Pawna Lake

If your group enjoys picturesque areas, visit Bushy Dam for a relaxing afternoon or travel to Pawna Lake for a picnic by the lake. Bring food, music, and positive vibes — that’s all you need.

3. Exciting Della Adventure Park

For adrenaline junkies, Della Adventure Park is a must-see. Consider ziplining, ATV rides, zorbing, and dozens of other activities. What is the best part? It’s all intended for groups, so you can compete, encourage one other on, and laugh at your mistakes.

4. Shopping at Lonavala Market.

What’s a vacation to Lonavala without buying some chikki and fudge? The local market is ideal for finding sweets, unique gifts, and perhaps even matching keychains for the group.

5. Karla & Bhaja Caves

Explore these ancient rock-cut caverns with beautiful architecture and interesting history. It’s a calmer excursion, but ideal for people who want to combine some culture with their pleasure.    6. Sunsets from Lion’s Point

Gather the group and head up to Lion’s Point for sunset. The panoramic view of the hills and valleys is unrivaled, and it’s the type of experience you’ll remember long after the journey is over.    The Best Bunglows in Lonavala for Rent

The Earth Song is a 7-bedroom magnificent property nestled in the natural vegetation of Lonavala, intended to accommodate up to 30 people, including your pet companions! This pet-friendly refuge combines earthy tones of white, beige, champagne, and gold to create a warm and welcoming atmosphere that feels like home. This mansion is extravagant in all the best ways. You’ve got modern decor right out of an architect’s Pinterest board, a private pool that nearly shouts, “Cannonball time!” and enough room to make you and your gang feel like weekend kings and queens.    Let’s be honest — whether you’re lazing by the pool with a refreshing drink, listening to some Arijit Singh records as the sun sets, or converting the living room into your own late-night. The magic unfolds on the dance floor at these homestays in Lonavala. It’s secluded, gorgeous, and entirely yours for the weekend.    What makes The Earth Song special?

Elegant living spaces:

The ground floor welcomes you with a spacious living area that includes a television, a well-equipped kitchen, and a dining area. The property features an atrium with a gazebo and swing under a frangipani tree, ideal for relaxing or playing Antakshari.

The bedrooms are luxurious.

The property has seven bedrooms spread out across three stories, each with its own ensuite bathroom. The first-floor apartments have linked balconies with stunning views, while the second-floor bar has everything from a poker table to foosball, carrom, table tennis, and even a projector for movie nights or corporate presentations.

Outside Bliss 

Enjoy stunning mountain views from the villa’s terrace and expansive outside space, perfect for cricket, barbecues, and relaxing by the bonfire.    Elderly-Friendly Design 

The villa has an elevator, making it accessible to visitors of all ages.    Now, let us answer the obvious question: why The Rentalgram? So, we just got it. From the minute you book, everything goes well. There are no hassles or hitches, only luxury on your own terms.

We understand you’re here to unwind, so they’ve taken care of everything. Need a chef? Done. Do you want recommendations for nearby restaurants? We got you. And don’t forget that every villa they provide, especially The Earth Song, is all about seclusion, comfort, and the small gestures of hospitality that make all the difference.    Okay, here’s the deal. The weekend is the ideal time to collect your friends, hit the road, and create some memories. Whether you’re celebrating Republic Day or simply living life, The Earth Song has it all.    Book your stay before someone else takes it. Trust us, this is the retreat you’ve been looking for.

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[harshal1346545]

Some of the best night out places in Hyderabad; making it a night to be remembered. 

You are now done with your ISKCON and are ready to find a decent night club in Hyderabad. Are you lost as to what to do and where to turn? As it perhaps is effective to say, all cannot be accomplished in a single day. But as the night advances you know it is a night you can easily make memorable if you know what information and resources to use. 

Thus when discussing the best night out places in Hyderabad here is a slightly uncommon list of some of the best venues that range from the most vibrant and stylish nightlife spots to the peaceful and calm. 

Hyderabad boasts of some of the best Nightout Places to visit and some of them are mentioned below. 

1. Two Forts 

Perhaps surprisingly, one of the best night out places in Hyderabad is the Golkonda Fort and bring a torch for the fort and the sound and light show is the highlight of the evening. It has a narration by the one and only, Amitabh Bachchan and background score by none other than the great Ghazal singer Jagjit Singh. Another place where you can watch the sound and light show is the Warangal Fort and the show is just as educational as it is spectacular. Most shows last up to an hour, and multiple events occur in the evenings throughout the week. 

2. Charminar 

Unquestionably, Charminar is one of the most famous places of Hyderabad and illuminating at night makes the structure mesmerizing! Indeed, you should definitely rejoice the opportunity to observe the sight of the towering building at night when the amount of automobiles is minimal and, besides, you can see the gorgeous illumination too. 

3. Moula Ali Hill 

Still one among the top nightout places in Hyderabad for those who like to stay a bit quiet and calm, the Moula Ali Hill provides a spectacular scenic view of the Hyderabad city. This takes a whole new level at night hence can be considered as one of the best nightlife destinations indeed. 

4. Hard Rock Café 

Hard Rock Café does not need any introduction and the one at Hyderabad is just as full as the other Café. Excellent atmosphere, most of the foie gras they serve and the beverages as well. You can have a pre-taste of these here at Hard Rock Café and at the same time, experience the chance to hear or watch some of the best and biggest artists in the business. 

5. Altitude Lounge Bar 

Hyderabad being the city where 9O9 lives, Altitude Lounge Bar, is one of the best night out places in Hyderabad to really party up, complimented with bird’s eye view of Hussain Sagar Lake, cool and rocking music. This is one of the best trips for clubbing till wee hours! 

6. 10 Downing Street 

Party people must of course give importance to the 10 Downing Street which is less crowded and is much more personal. The place best suits night out, hanging out with friends and listening to the lovely music, enjoy the karaoke nights or other events and the delicious meals at a relatively cheaper price, the same as the beers. 

7. Shamshabad Go Kart Track 

One is bound to ask why go-karting, which is as casual an activity as one can imagine features on a nightlife list? Well that is Hyderabad’ s charm for you, or so as they say. This is for the fun lovers or in particular the adventure and fitness freaks or anyone looking for a moment of fun. One can minisky at this track without his or her company till 4 AM the next day. Yes this is true from Monday to Saturday and it is open till 12Am in the night on Sundays. 

8. Necklace Road 

Nighttime drives are the best and this stretch is named after the Marine Drive part that looks like a string of pearls, or more appropriately, the Queen’s Necklace. This has a beautiful promenade with splendid views of the lake and gets best recommended for a lovely night, with preferred company on a romantic gentle cruise. Of course, you should not forget to accompany such a dinner with great music as well!

9. Café Abbott 

If you feel like going for a casual hang out joint for various nights to capture up with friends, or order some snacks or smooth blend, then Café Abbott is highly recommended. That has the perfect setting for midnight snacking and decadent flavored hookahs that will have one kicking back and really unwinding after a long day! 

10. The Moonshine Project 

This lounge café ‘n’ resto-pub is one of the top rated night out joints of Hyderabad if one wants to have a peep into Hyderabad’s budding artists. The beverages are so tasty and as for the meals, they are delicious too. The atmosphere, in turn, can be considered really comfy in all meanings of this word. 

11. Pirate Brew 

Pirate Brew will make you get into the groovy spirit, literally. The correct theme of the restaurant is a pirate ship and karaoke nights are held on Wednesdays which are highly appreciated. The list of dishes varies from breakfast all the way to dinner and besides tons of beverages. Let me just say that the overall performance, especially the public ones, are, to say the least, fantastic! 

To further describe the bars and clubs one can literally write a book on Hyderabad’s nightlife but again as they say the hangouts have got to end somewhere! When it comes to Pubs, Lounges, Bars, Clubs and whatever you name it, Hyderabad has the best of its kind! It also has a range of many of the most unconventional and untraditional night spots perfect for those willing to explore.

Hotels in Hyderabad

Hyderabad is a UNESCO world heritage site, famous for its architectural monuments and colorful traditions, as for the accommodations the offer is vast. Consumers may choose to book grand hotels equipped with elegant en-suite facilities, or budget Hotels in Hyderabad where they will obtain all the necessities after a day of sightseeing the tremendous markets, rich historical backgrounds, and scrumptious foods the city offers. When one is going to sleep in Hyderabad they will realize that whatever type of accommodation they may want whether business or leisure will be met with comfort and a fine blend of what the modern world offers and what is ancient.

[anishblogs3107]

A Trip to Goa

Planning a trip to experience the nightlife in Goa can be an exciting adventure. Goa is known for its vibrant nightlife scene, with numerous beach clubs, bars, and parties. Here's a suggested itinerary for a memorable nightlife trip to Goa:

Duration: 3 nights and 4 days

Day 1: Arrival in Goa

Arrive at Goa's Dabolim Airport or the railway station.

Check-in at your chosen hotel or beachfront resort.

Relax and freshen up.

Evening: Head to Baga Beach or Calangute Beach, known for their lively atmosphere. Enjoy a beachside dinner at one of the shacks and savor Goan cuisine.

Night: Explore Tito's Lane in Baga, a famous nightlife hub with numerous bars and clubs. Start your Goa nightlife experience with a visit to Tito's Club or Mambo's.

Day 2: Beach and Water Sports

Morning: Relax on the beach, soak up the sun, and swim in the Arabian Sea.

Afternoon: Try water sports like parasailing, jet skiing, or banana boat rides at Calangute Beach.

Evening: Enjoy a beachside dinner again, perhaps trying a different restaurant.

Night: Head to Club Cubana, one of the most famous nightclubs in Goa, located on the Arpora Hill. Dance the night away to the tunes of international and local DJs.

Day 3: Cultural Exploration

Morning: Visit historic sites like the Aguada Fort and Chapora Fort.

Afternoon: Explore the vibrant markets like Anjuna Flea Market or Mapusa Market. Shop for souvenirs and local handicrafts.

Evening: Have dinner at a beachfront restaurant with live music.

Night: Experience a psychedelic trance party at one of Goa's famous rave spots like HillTop, Shiva Valley, or UV Bar, if there's a party happening during your visit.

Day 4: Relaxation and Departure

Morning: Relax at the beach or indulge in a spa session at your resort.

Afternoon: Check out from your hotel.

Evening: Before departing, enjoy a farewell dinner at a beachside restaurant, relishing Goan seafood specialties.

Depart for the airport or railway station to head back home.

Tips:

Ensure you check the event schedules and party listings for the specific dates of your trip, as Goa's nightlife scene can vary depending on the season.

Stay hydrated, especially when dancing the night away, and drink responsibly.

Respect local customs and regulations, and be mindful of your surroundings.

Use reliable transportation options or prearrange for a designated driver when needed.

Remember that the nightlife scene in Goa is diverse, and you can tailor your trip to your preferences, whether you prefer beach parties, EDM clubs, or more relaxed evenings by the shore. Enjoy your trip and stay safe!

#GoaAdventures #ExploreGoa #GoaWanderlust #GoaDiaries #GoaVibes #GoaGetaway #GoaVacation #GoaBound #GoaExploration #GoaEscape #GoaBeaches #GoaLife #GoaHolidays #GoaExperience #GoaLove #GoaDreams #GoaSunsets #GoaParadise #GoaFun #GoaMemories

[unitednetizen]

Top 10 Best Places in India: With its various landscapes and rich cultural legacy, India has a multitude of breathtakingly beautiful sites. The country is a treasure trove for vacationers, with snow-capped mountains, tranquil beaches, and old architectural treasures. 

1.The Taj Mahal, Agra:

The Taj Mahal in Agra is perhaps one of the world’s most recognisable monuments, standing as a testament to love and architectural majesty of Emperor Shah Jahan’s ivory-white marble mausoleum is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a symbol of timeless beauty.

2. Jaipur, Rajasthan:

Jaipur, often known as the “Pink City,” enchants visitors with its sumptuous palaces, majestic forts, and colourful bazaars. The City Palace, Hawa Mahal, and Amer Fort are architectural wonders that represent Rajasthan’s regal legacy.

3. The Backwaters, Kerala:

Kerala’s calm backwaters, with their network of interconnecting canals, lagoons, and lakes, provide a tranquil getaway from the chaos of city life. A classic houseboat cruise through the emerald-green lakes is a wonderful experience.

4. Ladakh:

Ladakh is a Himalayan country of steep mountains, crystal-clear lakes, and Buddhist monasteries and Ladakh is a sanctuary for nature lovers and adventure seekers due to its stunning scenery, which include the spectacular Pangong Tso Lake and Nubra Valley.

5. Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh:

Varanasi, one of the world’s oldest inhabited cities, is a spiritual haven for Hindus and this holy city, located on the banks of the sacred Ganges River, is famous for its ghats, where pilgrims assemble to perform rituals and see mesmerising sunset aartis.

6. Goa:

Goa is a seaside paradise, with palm-fringed beaches, a thriving nightlife, and Portuguese-influenced architecture of Goa has something for everyone, whether you wish to relax on the lovely beaches or participate in water sports and beach parties.

7. Munnar, Kerala:

Munnar is a scenic hill station in the Western Ghats known for its tea plantations, mist-covered valleys, and tumbling waterfalls of Munnar is a refuge for nature aficionados due to the panoramic vistas of undulating hills, particularly from the famous Echo Point and Top Station.

8. Udaipur, Rajasthan:

Udaipur, often known as the “City of Lakes,” is home to gorgeous palaces, tranquil lakes, and romantic boat rides of the towering Lake Palace in the midst of Lake Pichola, as well as the elegant City Palace, are must-see sites that represent Udaipur’s regal grandeur.

9. Hampi, Karnataka:

Hampi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a testimony to the Vijayanagara Empire’s splendour and set against a beautiful rocky environment, the ruins of ancient temples, palaces, and bazaars create a surreal ambience that transports visitors back in time.

10. The Andaman Islands:

The Andaman Islands are a tropical paradise with pristine beaches, coral reefs, and lush flora in the Bay of Bengal to the Exploring the abundant marine life while snorkelling or diving in the blue waters surrounding Havelock Island is a wonderful experience.

 India astounds visitors with its vast natural beauty and cultural diversity. The top ten best places in india described in this article, including the Taj Mahal, Jaipur, Kerala’s backwaters, Ladakh, and others, offer one-of-a-kind experiences that will captivate you with the country’s natural and architectural grandeur.

[tomos-pm-blog]

“Lionel”

my favorite youtube man Thomas Gore comedy genius

[monstersdownthepath]

Monster Spotlight: Apocalypse Locust

CR 6/MR 3

Chaotic Evil Large Outsider

Bestiary 4, pg. 12

These tormented and insane creatures barely resemble the mortals they once were, corrupted by the powers of the Abyss into insects that delight in causing pain and death more than literally anything. They are not demons, but something else; a swarm that longs to cause as much agony to as many living beings as it possibly can, kept on a leash by whatever vile presence created them in the first place (perhaps Deskari or Pazuzu?), held in reserve until they must live up to their name: causing an apocalypse on a town, city, country, or even continent-wide scale.

It wouldn’t be a very fast apocalypse, but it’d be an unpleasant one. The Locusts go out of their way to keep from killing victims in favor of torturing them, sometimes for hours, giving victims a taste of what awaits them in the Abyss’ embrace, for that is where victims are sure to be going when the Locusts arrive, dragged kicking and screaming through whatever portal the horrors emerged through. Their primary means of causing harm are their sharpened forelimbs, each pair of them forming a pincer; this gives them two pincer attacks a round, each of which deal 1d8+3 damage (they have Mythic Power Attack but aren’t likely to use it unless desperate). Worse still, the Locust locks on to any victim it successfully pinches, Grabbing them and subjecting them to an additional 1d8+9 constriction damage each round they fail to break the grapple. With the ever-irritating Flyby Attack, the Locusts can make use of their 60ft of fly speed to swoop down and attack with their claws over and over again until they successfully maintain a grapple... at which point victims have three choices: kill the thing, die by its constriction, or die when they break the grapple and plummet to the ground below, because as a Large creature they can abduct Medium-sized ones straight into the air.

Of course, it’s not just the claws. If a Locust wants a target DEAD it uses its claws, but if it wants a target to suffer (and it always does), it unleashes its sting. The stinger of an Apocalypse Locust deals 1d6+6 damage and injects victims with a poison that, technically, doesn’t harm their internals as a normal poison would, but wracks them with so much agony that their bodies begin to shut down from sheer pain anyway. The poison inflicts a tiny 1 Con damage a round for up to 6 rounds (thus, a single sting is unlikely to kill the victim), but during that time victims are subjected to an Abyssal Torment, suffering a -4 penalty to attack rolls, skill checks, and ability checks. Due to the poison’s low damage, the average citizen can typically survive two full bouts of it before finally succumbing, something the Locusts delight in doing, often to their own detriment; an innocent screaming in agony is a surefire way to draw the attention of an adventuring party, and Locusts don’t flee even when outnumbered.

Granted, they don’t really need to. Though they lack any elemental or debuff resistances, their Fort and Will saves are deceptively high thanks to their 3 Mythic Surges a day adding +1d6 to any d20 roll they make, potentially carrying them out of the range of a level-appropriate party’s attempts to bring them out of the air, letting them plink at a party with their sting + Flyby Attack until the pain sticks, then settling in with their Full-Attack. What you really want to go after is their laughable Reflex of +2 or their incredible 9 touch AC, their jagged and tortured forms rigid and inflexible. Once a party’s got them on the ground--one way or another--they have to deal with another fact that caused me to dismiss ranged combat entirely: their DR 5/Epic.

If you have an Epic-quality weapon while combating CR 6 creatures, you’ve either got the most generous DM in the world or have been handed a plot device that must be protected at all costs. Few ranged weapons available to players hovering around level 5 or so will be able to deal meaningful damage to the Locust before it shears massive chunks of HP and Con from the party, and melee damage is likely to be quartered or even halved... if it hits in the first place, thanks to their 20 AC, higher than most averages at that level. The party will need Mythic power of their own to keep up, especially if there’s multiple Locusts in an encounter. Three, to be precise.

Three Locusts in the same battle causes their beating wings to form a Maddening Buzz, a cacophony that causes any creature within 100ft of a given Locust to operate under a permanent Confusion spell unless they succeed a DC 15 Will save every round or kill off the bastard bugs until there’s fewer than three. Again, difficult thanks to what is essentially DR 5/-- at any point before level 12 to 15 without a generous DM or plot device, and if you think the party Paladin can swat them like annoying mosquitos with Smite Evil, the Locusts have ways around that, too. The breath weapon of an Apocalypse Locust looks pitiful on paper, dealing only 1d6 Fire damage and avoidable with a meager DC 15 Reflex save, and on top of that it recharges after 2d4 rounds rather than 1d6... But this is a safety measure. A mercy.

Any creature damaged by their blazing breath weapon becomes inscribed with a demonic brand that whispers foul temptations and wicked desires into its victim, tainting their minds and bodies with Evil. For 24 hours after suffering the damage (or until removed with Atonement), any Lawful or Good creature with classes, items, or class features that rely on their alignment staying Lawful and/or Good stop functioning as though they had broken their codes of conduct or otherwise become Chaotic Evil. This is devastating, often game-ending for characters like Clerics, Paladins, and Druids, who find themselves struck nearly useless for a full day with a single failed save, and though Atonement can lift the brand, it creates a catch-22 if the only person who can cast Atonement is the one afflicted with the brand in the first place. If a Locust is one of the early encounters in a given adventuring day, it may be the only one the players can stand doing as a single 30ft-line of a breath weapon strips half the party of their features. Characters afflicted by the brand are typically stuck swinging whatever weapons they have on them which, again, has to contend with their DR.

It’ll take precisely one encounter with a group of Apocalypse Locusts to get players to start carrying around scrolls of Atonement, though perhaps the necessity for the spell in and of itself can make for an interesting plot thread. Namely, re-consecrating a desecrated temple of a Good deity to make it a safe haven in the middle of an apocalyptic scenario, giving the party some reprieve from the demonic hoards and giving them somewhere they can retreat to every time they fail a Reflex save. Something to think about if you ever want to bring them into your game, since players tend to not like being useless for most adventuring days!

You can read more about them here.

[thecreaturecodex]

Anchheri

“Nocturne” © Lois van Baarle, accessed at her ArtStation here

[Commissioned by @abominationimperatrix​. The anchheri is a monster from Uttarakhand, the state in India making up the foothills of the Himalaya. As related in the superb book Ghosts, Monsters and Demons of India, its characteristics have been transplanted into the “acheri”, an “Indian” undead attributed to the Chippewa that does not exist in any authentically native sources. GMDI doesn’t say who’s responsible for this, but I know. The oldest attribution of the “acheri” to “Amerindian tribes” is in Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were by Michael Page and Robert Ingpen. I’ve complained about this book before. Whether this was an intentional alteration (the book has many of those), or a result of lazy scholarship (confusing “Indian” for India with “Indian” for Native American), the damage has been done, and most images of the anchheri online are clad in buckskins. The most accurate pop culture anchheri, possibly because its creators weren’t relying on English language sources, is in Shin Megami Tensei]

Anchheri CR 7 CE Undead This humanoid child has an odd, cruel smile, clawed hands and sunken, glowing eyes. Her skin seems tightly drawn around her bones, and has a hue of decomposition.

An anchheri is both tragic and dangerous, as they are the undead remains of children who died an unnatural death. They hide during the day in mountainous caves and crevices, and descend from the mountains at night to frolic and play. Mortals who join in these games risk being attacked. An adult will usually be just shredded with tiny claws, or put to sleep and its blood drunk, but anchheri are more subtle on their attacks on children. The touch of an anchheri’s shadow spreads plague, and a child who dies from this disease becomes a new anchheri. Thus, a single one of these monsters can become an infestation rapidly, and tales are told of entire villages emptied of children.

Anchheri are difficult to slay without access to magic weapons and divine magic, so some communities have taken to propitiating them instead. Anchheri love gifts; clothing, jewelry and toys are all appreciated. They fear the color red, perhaps because it reminds them of their own blood spilled, and so people wearing red clothing are usually safe from an anchheri initiating attack. Giving an anchheri red clothing, however, is a sure way to insult it and invite violence. The mind of an anchheri is childlike, and they are fairly easy to trick.

An anchheri stands between three and five feet tall. Because of their willowy frames, they are treated as creatures of Small size regardless of height.

Anchheri                CR 7 XP 3,200 CE Small undead Init +4; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +10 Defense AC 19, touch 15, flat-footed 15 (+1 size, +4 Dex, +4 natural) hp 85 (10d8+40) Fort +7, Ref +7, Will +6 DR 10/magic; Immune undead traits Defensive Abilities channel resistance +2; Weakness red aversion Offense Speed 30 ft. Melee 2 claws +12 (1d4-1), shadow +7 touch (disease) Special Attacks blood drain (1d2 Con), create spawn, sneak attack +3d6 Spell-like Abilities CL 7th, concentration +11 3/day—deep slumber (DC 17), fly, stone call Statistics Str 8, Dex 18, Con -, Int 13, Wis 9, Cha 18 Base Atk +7; CMB +5; CMD 19 Feats Combat Expertise, Deceitful, Improved Feint, Nimble Moves, Weapon Finesse Skills Bluff +14, Climb +10, Disguise +17, Escape Artist +12, Perception +10, Perform (dance) +6, Stealth +19 Languages Common, Necril Ecology Environment any land or urban Organization solitary, pair, gang (3-6) or party (7-12) Treasure standard Special Abilities Create Spawn (Su) Any humanoid child killed by an anchheri’s disease rises as a free willed anchheri at the next new moon. Disease (Ex) Bubonic plague—contact; save Fort DC 19; onset 1 day; frequency 1/day; effect 1d4 Con damage, 1 Cha damage, target is fatigued; cure 2 consecutive saves. The save DC is Charisma based. Red Aversion (Ex) An anchheri must succeed a DC 20 Will save in order to attack a creature wearing red clothing. If the anchheri fails that save, it cannot attack that creature for the next 24 hours. If that creature attacks the anchheri, the aversion is broken. Shadow Touch (Su) An anchheri can make a touch attack with its shadow as a secondary natural weapon. A creature touched takes no damage, but is exposed to the anchheri’s disease.

[shemarmooresfedora]

Home

Series Summary: After being arrested, Spencer Reid desperately tries to get back home to his daughter, Camellia, who was placed into foster care in your home.

Pairing: Single!Dad!Spencer x Foster!Mom!Reader

Content/Warnings: smut at the very beginning (18+), fluff, one brief sexual remark at the end, swearing

Word Count: 1.2k

Masterlist

Chapter 11

6 years later…

“Fuck, you’re taking me so well, angel,” Spencer praised as he had you bent over the cool granite bathroom countertop.

“Please, Spence,” you moaned.

“Please what, pretty girl? You’ve got to use your words. I know that mouth of yours works. We just tested it in the shower,” he grunted back, continuing to thrust into you.

“Harder. Need you to ruin me so bad,” you whined.

“God, I love you so much,” he groaned as he picked up the pace.

There were 3 loud bangs in the door.

“HEY! YOU HAVE A BEDROOM, YOU KNOW?” Callie screamed in disgust.

“Shit,” Spencer pulled out of you, still painfully hard as you both rushed to redress, “I was just giving Y/N a massage because of her back pain. That’s all,” Spencer panted through the door.

“Very believable,” she scoffed.

“I thought you were going on a date tonight with Sienna,” you spoke.

“I am. I just forgot my makeup bag here so I stopped by to get it. I didn’t realize I was going to have to be traumatized for life,” she replied.

You got her makeup bag from the cabinet and opened the door just a crack to give it to her.

“Okay, give me 1 minute to make it to the front door before anything continues,” she yelled.

“Okay! Don’t forget about Spencer and I’s vow renewment at 6 tomorrow!” you reminded her.

“I won’t! Bye, Dad! Bye, Mom!”

You heard her sprinting down the stairs, perhaps scared you would start right back up again.

“Be safe!” Spencer called back.

Spencer lifted you back up on the counter, taking off his t-shirt that you had put on, “Now, where were we?”

-

A lot had happened in the past six years. You continued to foster along with Spencer as joint guardian. Your first foster kid together was a toddler named Caleb. You had him for 3 months.

Poor Spencer wept when he got adopted and had to be taken to his new family. It was a loving young couple that had been carefully reviewed by the foster care agency so you had no doubt Caleb would be in great hands.

You held Spencer that night and told him that yes, it’s hard to let them go but you can’t keep all the kids you love because then you wouldn’t have any room for the ones in need.

A few days later, Eileen called you with another case. A six-year old girl named Rosie who loved to read.

Spencer got so excited and they had nightly book clubs where they would build a pillow fort and read together as you baked them cookies.

Then after that, a 10 year old boy named Eli who loved to go on hikes. Spencer would make a little wilderness fact sheet for him to take with you guys as nature wasn’t always his forte but he would join you on smaller walks.

Spencer, with Callie’s approval, presented you with almost completely filled out paperwork that would allow you to become Callie’s other legal guardian. It just made things easier than saying “ex-foster child whose dad I am now dating.”

He made such a big deal of it, throwing you and Callie a party to celebrate the adoption.

Spencer proposed to you after about a year of dating. You hadn’t stopped living together at your house so it was easy for him to transfer the last bit of his and Callie’s things over and sell the house.

You had a very small wedding the following month in a wildflower field. It was simple so you weren’t stressed out about planning and allowed you just to focus on having a good time.

5 blissful years later, you were going back to the same field to renew your vows.

You were wearing a simple yet elegant white satin gown that just barely brushed the ground. Your bouquet just as it had been before was wildflowers that you freshly picked from the field.

The ceremony was just for the two of you. Callie would be the officiant but there would be no other guests. You both just wanted an intimate moment to declare your love for one another once again.

Instead of walking down the aisle alone, you and Spencer approached Callie together, holding hands.

“We are here today for Y/N Y/L/N and Spencer Reid to renew their wedding vows 5 years later and reproclaim their love. It is a love that’s always there even in the smallest, subtlest ways,” Callie spoke, “Dad requested to go first.”

Spencer took a deep breath, “I need to get this out before I get emotional,” he unfolded a piece of paper from his suit pocket, “You always tell me Winnie the Pooh quotes so I thought I would return the favor with a one I found very fitting…‘If you live to be a hundred, I hope I live to be a hundred minus one day so that I never have to live without you.’ Y/N, you and Callie are the best things ever to happen to me. While the way you came into my life was definitely unconventional to say the least, I would do it all over again just to be able to meet you. You are the most generous, loving, courageous, and intelligent person on this planet and I feel so grateful to get to be the person who loves you the most in this world.”

“Oh god,” you held up your head to the sky, trying to blink back tears, “How am I supposed to get through mine?”

“Take your time,” Spencer spoke, “I’ll be here forever.”

You opened your little journal, “Spencer, all I can say is I love you so damn much. I can't even remember my life without you and Callie. Looking back on it now, I realize now how incredibly lonely I was. Yes, I had Winnie and the occasional foster kid but I really had no one. No one who understood my facial expressions without words, no one who knew exactly what to say to me, no one to be loved by. You and Callie showed me what I was missing. I’m so beyond happy to be a part of your family.”

“We are even happier to have you,” Callie added, “With that, you may kiss your wife,” Callie smiled.

Spencer leaned in to kiss you and cupped your cheeks. You pulled him in even closer by his tie.

“Alright, alright, break it up, you two,” Callie warned, “Here’s a hotel key. It’s a gift from me and Sienna but also so I don’t have to be traumatized again.”

“Thank you, sweetheart” you hugged her, accepting the key.

“We’ll see you tomorrow,” Spencer kissed the top of her head.

Spencer, always a gentleman, opened the passenger side door of Penelope’s convertible that you were borrowing. You picked the sides of your dress up to climb inside.

Spencer ran around to the other side and hopped in, pulling you back in for another passionate kiss.

“I’m going to absolutely ruin you in this dress tonight, angel,” he whispered in your ear.

“Looking forward to it, husband,” you grinned.

With that, you drove off into the sunset together, the back bumper painted ‘5 years down, forever to go’ as you tossed your bouquet into the warm breeze.

A/N: i apologize if this final chapter seemed a little rushed. i just moved into college and i start classes soon so i’m going to be too overwhelmed to finish it for a while! thank you to everyone who read this series, left comments, reblogged, etc <3

main taglist (just ask to be added/removed!): @samuel-de-champagne-problems @ssacalumsg0lden @spencerreid9 @averyhotchner @coldlilheart @k-k0129 @ickleronniekinsemotionalrange @harrystylesandthegoobs @cmily @jswessie187 @rem-ariiana @hoodpankow @mochionly @spencerreid-187 @babymetaldoll @fics4arainyday @ssavanessa22 @all-tings-diego @idonotexiste @beepbooptoop @tvandfanfic @mggsprettygirl @big-galaxy-chaos @navs-bhat @spencerreidsmommy @this-is-doctor-and-its-calm @mggs-sidehoe @rexit-mo @hufflepuffhaze @thisismynerdyself @xoxospencerreid @wifeyprentiss @reidsbookclub @spencersrose @pinkdiamond1016 @muffin-cup

series taglist: @ilovespencerreidmarryme @nani-2305 @obsessivelysearching @fantasynerd09 @bvttercupbby @britishspidey @ladyravenclaw @belledawnidk @annesauriol @smokey102 @lady-himbo @kaitieskidmore1 @westanspencerreid @manuosorioh @haylaansmi @unhea1thy0bsessions @meganskane @lovergirl24 @queenariesofnarnia (additional tags in reblog)

[murdockparker]

Multi-Fandom Masterlist

Marvel 

Matthew Murdock x Reader

Rising in the East

Matthew Murdock wasn’t sure of many things in life, but was certain about three. The first two were nothing in comparison to the third, however.

Ask Me Tomorrow

Nelson, Murdock and (Y/L/N) doesn’t have the same ring as Nelson and Murdock, this was true. If only there were a way to keep it the same… perhaps changing a last name would help.

 Four Words

College was rough, if only there were a way to blow off steam while also totally not catching feelings, right?

After All

One night stands were not her forte or common practice, but there was something thrilling about trying something new with him. The morning after the fact, however, was more daunting than she anticipated. 

Flaking Fancy

Part 1

Reader invites Foggy and Matt to her family’s holiday party. It’s a fancy affair, one that she’ll need all the help she can to get through.

Peter Parker x Reader

Winter Winds

(Y/N) had a nasty habit of waiting by the window. How could she not? If your boyfriend was out fighting crime late into the night, you would too.

Bridgerton

Benedict Bridgerton x Reader

Foolish Endeavor

Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 , Part 4 , Part 5 , Part 6 , Part 7 (18+) , 

Benedict Bridgerton was certainly no fool. Bad at cards, sure, a bit taller than most, that was a given, but he was seldom called a fool. Though, one could argue that falling for your best friend was a foolish endeavor, indeed.

Summer Nights

Benedict was born to be a father, she was sure of it.

A Million Dreams

He didn’t believe he could be so taken with her, taken with such a lady of the ton. If only she were to stay in London, stay with him.

In the Oven (18+)

She was never all that good at baking, so perhaps a bit of assistance from her husband would be a sufficient help?

Expectations 

While the honeymoon may be well and over, the new Mrs Bridgerton has yet to make her presence in the ton since the wedding. Anxious as ever, she listens to her husband and gives it a go.

Our Cottage

A first anniversary is nearly as important and memorable as the wedding day—if only she had remembered it. Or, at the very least, hoped her husband also forgot. Knowing her husband? Unlikely.

Stranger Things

Eddie Munson x Reader

Good Vibrations (18+)

Eddie never backs down from a dare, even if he had to drive out to the middle-of-fucking-nowhere to a sex shop to prove it.

Steve Harrington x Reader

Paralyzed 

She walked in on a Friday afternoon. Steve needed nothing more than to get to know her–if only he could find it in himself to speak to her.