#she probably got in trouble a lot on accident in school and was labeled as a troublemaker

[ahyoungbe]

hello! 🥳

hiiii everyone! surprise surprise i am not actually new, this is carly (bejoomi benayoung behanami), with the first fourth muse of the rp(?)...because i'm insane...ahyoung just kind of ambushed me and has been this meme in my head for the past two weeks so here we are. she's an absolute gremlin of a hot mess but she should be fun!! she's very different from my other muses here but no so different from the female muses i usually play if you know me LMAO she far better fits my standard "insane girl" archetype. her profile is here and detailed about is here, but i'll talk about her far too much and offer some potential plot ideas under the cut. you know the drill, please like this if you'd like to plot with us 💓 onward!

ABOUT

'03 liner, born to a musician dad and his roadie wife in namwon. mom was a groupie turned tour staff turned hook-up turned pregnant with their first son turned wife LMAO

so ahyoung has two (significantly) older brothers, and by the time ahyoung (who was an accident) was born, they were all going on tour with dad and nobody wanted to settle down to take care of a baby

so ahyoung got dumped with grandma (on her mom's side) while the others stayed traveling. they would visit when it was convenient but it was not enough for ahyoung's liking

so she started acting out to try to get attention, then once she was labeled a "bad kid" by her parents, was upset and decided well they aren't going to see me as lovable i might as well live up to their bad expectations of me <3 and got Worse

poor grandma is legitimately very kind and did her best raising her i think she probably argued with her daughter a lot over what was best for ahyoung

they tried taking ahyoung on tour once she was old enough but she was a menace there as well so they took her back to grandma and left her there again

eventually it comes out that dad has been cheating on mom. you know. rockstars. lmao

mom was furious and decided to divorce him and wanted to Start Over, decided she was moving to california, and when she was like come on kids let's go the boys were like lol no??? so then she went back to grandma and ahyoung and wanted to take ahyoung with her instead.

by then ahyoung was 12 and she was like ok yeah i'll go. i actually hate it here. and grandma was super hesitant but after some convincing by both her daughter And granddaughter she relented and let her go

ahyoung actually took to california a lot better than namwon. she was just naturally a rebel and very progressive so she actually made friends there quite quickly, she was just still a total menace to society so she was in trouble alllll the timeeee and STILL no one knew what to do with her, even though she did have some kind teachers that actually cared about her and tried to help her

her mom was like absolutely at her wit's end. she had no idea how to take care of ahyoung and all things considered they didn't even know each other that well so their relationship was not great.

ahyoung did just about everything any standard rebel gremlin wild child high schooler could possibly do. got suspended multiple times until she finally got expelled

mom was even MORE at her wit's end and shipped her back to korea, an all girls boarding school for Troubled Childen. it was overall a terrible experience but it didn't break ahyoung's spirit or do much to rehabilitate her if anything it just made her Angrier (and gayer!)

the boarding school was super strict and didn't offer them that much unsupervised time off-campus but it wasn't too far from seoul so she would go to the city whenever she could (or whenever she illegally escaped lmao) and really fell in love with the music scene there. got a fake id to get into every club she could

she actually applied to universities and got into one in seoul for sound engineering. sure, maybe she embellished details a little on her applications, but she was actually smart and her grades weren't as horrific as you might think. timing worked out that her grandma was also ready to expand her humble tearoom business to seoul as well, so they moved together

she was truly so glad to become an adult. now she could truly make any stupid choices she wanted without having to listen to any adults because SHE was the adult!!

she's honestly incredibly outgoing and i wouldn't say she's friendly because she's so sarcastic but she's fun and good at carrying conversation, so she made lots of connections and ended up snagging a job as a photographer for a concert venue, thanks to those connections and her love for photography as a hobby that actually made her really good!

i didn't mention music much in this description but she really always liked music, even without her parents introducing it to her. she had the time of her life on tour with them for five minutes. she would say it's in her blood and that she's also "reclaiming it from her shitty dad."

she writes a loooot of songs. she's a very pop punk girlie (she plays bass and guitar) but also a rapper, so her style is interesting. think waterparks (like this or this ), yungblud, harder olivia rodrigo, etc; sing-rappy.

she's weird. likes dark shit, isn't scared of much of anything. knows a lot about music but also serial killers.

she will honestly talk to and befriend anyone. she's not a judgmental person at all. i think you could tell her just about anything and she'd be like "that's cool. want a cigarette"

she also lies a lot. lies for fun, lies to get out of trouble. she knows she looks really cute and it used to bother her but now she uses her looks to her advantage to play the Officer I'm Innocent card and gets away with way too much because of it

she honestly has a lot of creative talents. she's pretty good at art as well and considered being a tattoo artist for a little while. she also considered being a makeup artist because she loves that too. of course, there's also photography, and there's music. she also knows how to edit videos and she's picked up how to work lighting and sound at concerts due to her Connections. she is Open For Freelance Work (she will do just about anything for a price)

i'm sure i'm forgetting stuff about her but whatever this is more than enough right LKJSDLFLSDGSD

PLOT IDEAS

ahyoung really wants to be in a band, but she's not right now. she knows lots of musicians but nothing has worked out yet and she doesn't have the attention span and sense of responsibility to actually Start Her Own Band so somebody else needs to do it! or invite her to your existing band! she can play bass or guitar but would rather play bass.

since she's a concert photographer she's at One particular concert venue just about every night, but she also just goes to anyone's concerts when she can. clubs too. live music? she's there, she loves it. any muses in this scene could know her!

classmates! i don't know what uni she goes to yet for plotting purposes so we can figure that out. she's better at school these days since she has freedom to do what she wants outside of it, and is actually studying something she likes

people for her to be a bad influence on. she doesn't really Pressure People to do "bad things" but she does a lot of crazy shit, always offers cigarettes and alcohol, says "who cares" about just about every rule, and if your muse is impressionable and/or a pushover it's possible that she could rub off on them

alternatively, people that try to tell her to calm the fuck down. she'll hate it and tell them to mind their own business they're not her real dad

honestly she's very American in attitude and personality despite only living there for like four years, so she'll probably vibe with fellow americans. they can talk about how much they miss american snacks and how "stuffy everyone in korea is"

she likes dogs. will 100% ask to pet your dog and strike up a conversation if she sees someone out and about with one, so first meetings that way could work

she likes video games also; she's an xbox and nintendo switch gal as of now but trying to save up for a gaming computer (god knows when she'll have enough money because she keeps buying shit she doesn't need) so gaming friends are welcome

she thinks kpop is pretty cool but isn't super into it. just from being so into music she knows a decent amount about the companies and artists, but isn't super attached to any of them. people to get her emotionally invested in a group would be nice, though i'm not sure how they could do that yet kLJSDLFJLSDG we'll figure it out!

she doesn't know a thing about dancing outside of the kind of dancing you do in clubs and at concerts but she also thinks that is cool and considering how well she takes to most creative outlets i think she'd be decent at it if someone got her into it, so someone to at least try to get her into dancing would be fun too

she doesn't have a youtube channel or anything but music is a very social thing for her so people to collab with and jam with in any way would be fun for her

fellow songwriters that are open to sharing their work with her; just be sure to tell her if you want feedback or not because she has no problem telling people when their music could use work lmao...she'll share her music too, though, and if you give her critique she'll be like "ok. i didn't make this for you." but she'll consider it anyway

IDK i've been working on this post for over an hour. so let's brainstorm more stuff it should be fun!!

[ko-fanatic]

Blood, Guts and Chocolate Cake

Rating: Mature

Fandom: Danganronpa

Pairings: IshiMondo

Summary:

Mondo Owada, the Ultimate Bodyguard, is entering a four year contract with one Kiyotaka Ishimaru, the Ultimate Idol. It makes sense, two Ultimates put together for their high school careers, and he could use the steady pay check to send home to Daiya; those medical bills were a bitch, and it was his fault the accident happened in the first place.

It was supposed to be easy, guard the cutesy, clean-cut idol from perverts and stalkers, no big deal! However, the world's perception of Kiyotaka Ishimaru was far different than what the young idol had become. During the first few months before even stepping into Hope's Peak, he's more worried for the young boy than he's ever been for anyone before.

TW: Alcohol, and eating disorders (both restrictive behaviours and B/P), mentions of disability, underage sex/sexualisation, drugs

The hallways of this damn building were too long.

That was definitely the first impression Mondo got, being led down said monotonous hallways by a young woman with an expression which implied that she simply wasn’t paid enough to care about small talk. Not that he had any room to judge, hands shoved in his pockets and a permanent scowl on his face. He might’ve been going to review an upcoming contract, but the best thing about his position was that there was no need to be all smiley; Hope Peak’s choice for Ultimate Bodyguard was all the credentials he needed at this point. 

Still, he couldn’t help but feel a bit intimidated by how long he would be working with these record label types. He couldn’t deny it made sense - hire the Ultimate Bodyguard to protect the Ultimate Idol, sound logic; it was just that a four year contract was… a lot. That wasn’t even thinking about the fact he was going to be glued to the guy’s hip for all that time, having to get along no matter what. Would he even have time to make friends of his own? Doubtful. Still, a paycheck was a paycheck, and he’d have to go to some highschool anyway, so kill two birds with one stone. 

He’d never had an issue smiling through vapid celebrity bullshit before. It was going to be an easy ride, too; from what he knew, the guy was as prim and proper as they came. Real boy next door image. Easy to take care of, and mainly just telling overzealous fans to back the fuck up. Simple. 

His inner monologue was broken by an abrupt stop, the woman only sending a bored glance his way before knocking. The door was pushed ajar with the quiet muttering of “Mondo Owada to see you, gentlemen”, before he was unceremoniously shepherded into the room. 

It was just as big as you’d expect from a building like this, with a gargantuan desk and several business-types sitting across from him. They were even backlit by a floor-to-ceiling window showing Tokyo in all its glory - like some cheesy ass movie. Still, taking a cursory glance around the room, he couldn’t see anyone fitting the description of “teen idol”, let alone Ishimaru himself...

“Owada-san, good afternoon!” One of the men greeted cheerfully, clasping his hand in one of those firm yet professional grips he’d gotten used to since rising up in his career, “My name is Shiro Kamei, and these gentlemen are Kenshin Aki and Yutaka Hayashida. We’re Kiyotaka Ishimaru-san’s managers.”

“Well, that answers one question,” He shrugged, not sugarcoating his words, but not being as rude as he certainly could be, “But I don’t see Ishimaru-san around. If I’m meeting with anyone, I personally think it should be with the guy I’m gonna be with 24/7, for the next four years.”

“Of course!” Kamei-san chirped, far too cheerful for his taste, especially considering the stench of ass-kissing that followed it. Not sincere, but too many meetings like this one had trained him to swallow down the vomit that threatened to spew from the fakeness of it all. 

“Ishimaru-san will be here soon,” Hyashida-san intoned, temperament a bit more palatable than Mr Chipper, “He’s a rather busy young man, being an idol of his caliber. Dance practice is just wrapping up, any minute now, so we can use this time to have a little chat - go through expectations for your role and such.”

Mondo managed to stop himself raising an eyebrow at that. Like he wasn’t the best bodyguard in Japan. He guessed it was something needed for a job of this sort, not temping or whatever, and so he settled down for a bunch of timewasting jabber. 

Or, it was, until a certain request caught his attention.

“We also expect him to be kept out of, well… trouble…”

“Thought he was a cutesy, innocent kid?” He frowned, sitting a little straighter in his seat, attention piqued, “I’m guessing he’s the kind to get mouth-breathers and creeps, huh?”

The three men looked a little more caged at that remark. A couple cleared throats, a few tugged collars and cuffs, awkward air. 

“Yes, there have been incidents, but nothing previous security couldn’t handle,” Aki-san informed, “The issue is a recent change in attitude. Nothing much, but tugging on the leash more than necessary, if you understand my meaning.”

He did. Part of him wanted to object to the idea that a sixteen year old needed to be kept on a leash at all, but idol shit was full of PR. 

“So boy next door is going through a little rebellion, and you want me to make sure it stays on the DL,” He shrugged, “Got it.”

“I wouldn’t put it like that, Owada-san -!”

Kamei-san was interrupted by several short, sharp raps, door opening to reveal the man of the hour. 

Ishimaru was pretty, no denying that. His eyes were what really caught everyone’s attention; bright, wide and doll-like. That said nothing about his facial structure - cheekbones and jawline and everything prominent - or his barbie doll-esque frame. He was probably one of the slimmest people Mondo had ever seen, at least in person. Well, and outside of a hospital. The media went absolutely gaga over his thigh gap, his lithe abs and delicate hip bones. 

He personally prefers a little more meat on the bones, a little less fragile, but he guessed it was an idol’s job to appeal to the masses. 

“Good morning, everybody!” He beams, but honestly? The sunshine emanating from him is a lot warmer - a lot more real - than Kamei-san. He actually had to take a second to come back to himself, knocked off equilibrium. The power of the Ultimate Idol, for you. 

“Kiyotaka, this is Mon -”

“Mondo Owada,” He cuts in, wanting to introduce himself, cut the preamble, and offers his hand to shake, “‘M gonna be the one guarding you.”

Ishimaru gives him a once over, and for two seconds he thinks he sees a smirk pull at the corner of the young man’s lips, but he soon brushes it off as a trick of the light. 

“Thank you so much for accepting our proposition, Owada-san!” He grins, and Mondo hates his little bi heart at that moment. Ishimaru clasps his hand. He can’t help but feel that they’re too calloused for a pretty boy idol, but he doesn’t dwell on it, “I hope we get along well!”

He’s loud, but the words are sweet, and Mondo relaxes a little bit. Easy job, as he thought. 

---

Mondo was proven wrong in a matter of three days into his contract. He’d certainly been proven wrong far quicker than that before; however, in terms of sheer what-the-fuckery-is-this, this situation took the cake. 

The train journey to the first tour destination wasn’t bad, if tedious. Kid spent all his time reading, and Mondo had no clue how he didn’t puke all over the place from staring at the pages. He’d looked at his phone for about five minutes and was ready to lie down and accept his death. 

… Trains were not his prefered method of transportation…

Ishimaru had passed on the sandwiches on offer, but so did Mondo. No big deal. Those things sucked ass, and maybe the kid was more nauseous than he seemed. Wish that was him, considering he was pretty sure his face was pale green. 

Settling into the hotel was fine, as was the tech set up in the venue. Stress emanating off everyone, but pretty normal as far as that shit was concerned. Ishimaru was dragged between costume fittings, tech run throughs and other things that just passed in a blur. 

No, what really proved to Mondo that the pretty boy idol was going through an actual rebellious phase, was what he walked in on at 11:56pm, night three. 

He’d gotten up due to a serious inability to sleep. Seriously, did he manage to get jet lag without even switching time zones? Nah, didn’t work like that. Maybe it was second hand adrenaline from the performance being tomorrow. Ishimaru might not make his kind of music, but the guy had this infectious enthusiasm for it all. He’d be backstage, too; premo location to see everything up close. He couldn’t help the slight smile on his face, in spite of how tired he felt. 

Any fleeting, fuzzy feelings disappeared, however, when he walked into the main area of their hotel suite. 

There stood Ishimaru, back to him, very much not dressed for bed. His jeans were so tight they looked spray painted on, not to mention the sequined top that cut off to show a tantalising flash of milky pale skin.

“Where’re you off to?” 

His question seemed to startle the kid, who practically jumped three feet in the air, hand clutching his chest as he whirled on him. 

“Fuck, what’s your problem?” He gasped out. Mondo couldn’t help but let his eyes widen, having not heard the boy swear since they met. Admittedly, it was only a few days, but Ishimaru just gave off such an innocent vibe. He’d questioned if the boy even knew a swear word for a while. 

“The guy I’m meant to protect is running off into the city at midnight, and obviously didn’t plan to tell me,” He answered bluntly, “So, come on, where’re you trying to slink off to?”

“None of your business,” He sniffed, shoulders squaring, “And stop… talking to me like that. Like I’m a child. It’s annoying as shit.” 

“Alright, sor-ry, jeez,” He apologised, hands up in surrender, “Let me just grab my coat and -”

“No!” Ishimaru ground out, “I’m going out, you're staying here, and my managers are none the wiser, got it?”

Oh, that sneaky fucker. While Mondo was all for personal freedom, no way was the scrawny kid going out there to get attacked and murdered in some urine soaked alleyway. For one, it’d completely fuck up his plans for the next four years - no money to send back to Daiya, and he seriously doubted Hope’s Peak would want an Ultimate Bodyguard who let the world’s most popular idol get murdered in a matter of days. 

“Yeah, no, not happening, kid,” He shut down, reaching over the boy to get his coat, only for hands to press against his chest, stopping him. 

“What do you want then? Money?” Ishimaru asked, looking up at him through his lashes. Fuck, the kid really went all out with the makeup; smokey eyeshadow and liner, glossed lips, the whole deal, “Or I can suck your dick?”

He nearly choked at that, face hot as hell and probably an embarrassing shade of red. “N-No! What the fuck?!” He yelled, only earning a shrug in response. 

“Look, I need to go out - alone,” Ishimaru began again, arguing a point Mondo simply wasn’t going to agree with, “I need to get a little fucked up, railed into some guy’s mattress, and then I’ll come back. I’ll be here again before sunrise.”

“Tugging on the leash more than necessary”, his ass! 

“Sorry, you're talking to the wrong guy,” He dismissed, doing his best impression of Daiya’s you done fucked up voice he could, “Back to bed. Don’t think you’re sneaking out, either. I’m just gonna stay out here all night, make sure you don’t go and get yourself cut up and dumped in the river. Y’know, my job.”

“Fuck you,” Ishimaru spat, storming back to his room with a mutter of ,“Asshole…”

If Mondo knew one thing, it was this… He’d really had no idea what he was signing himself up for.

---

A/N:

WOW, it's been a while since I've written for this fandom. Thank you Taka and Mondo for being an adorable pair of dumbasses and dragging me right back into DR. Hopefully, I'll add to my old fics too, but I've got lots of new ideas I want to play with (Including two other talentswaps and two AUs!)

For now, Ouran fics are on the back burner, I'm afraid. I'm sure I'll be back to them soon enough, but I'm a bit burnt out in my OHSHC obsession, so we'll see.

Also, as always, comments really help and if you want to take any of these concepts and run, go for it! All I ask is a credit and a link if possible! :)

[allthings-chaos]

Found

Knight Rider 2008 X Reader

Description: Reader steals a car with Artificial Intelligence that is much like KITT.

~

It was about four in the afternoon when you received a call from an unknown number, which you decided to answer. Normally it was a telemarketer and you would try to annoy them to the point where they’d simply hang up.

Not this time, though. You didn’t recognize the voice, but it seemed to be someone of importance, at least, so you decided to not hang up, figuring it was probably the best decision.

“Is this (Y/N) (L/N)?” The voice asked after you had answered the phone, before you could even say hello.

You raised a brow, wondering how someone had gotten your number, and also knew your name. “It might be. Who is this?”

This person didn’t even bother to answer your question. “Ms. (L/N), it appears that you have either unintentionally or intentionally stolen an asset from Knight industries. We request that it is returned immediately.”

“First of all, you didn’t answer my question, and second, what did I steal? I’m not exactly the smartest crayon in the box.”

“I am aware of the fact,” The man probably would have laughed if it weren’t a serious matter. “I have an agent en route to retrieve the asset that was stolen.”

“How do you know that I’m stupid?” You were enjoying talking to this person, even though you knew that you definitely were not stupid, and that you had in fact stolen some “asset” on purpose. You wouldn’t make yourself the enemy, yet. “Who’re you sending? They’d better be hot.”

“This is a serious matter, Ms. (L/N).” You were reminded once more, “But to answer your question, it does not take much to find out you were a high school dropout with a 2.0 GPA.”

“So are you stalking me or something? Because it really seems like it. I also prefer to be called (Y/N), not by my last name. Thank you.”

The man sighed, “The agent I am sending will be there within a few hours, do not try and run. We will find you.”

When the line dropped, you laughed to yourself, petting the steering wheel of a sweet white mustang that you had in fact stolen just an hour ago. Did you plan on giving it back? Possibly, but what was the point in hiding it when you could have some fun with it?

Even though you’d been told not to run, you did. Well- not exactly. You drove out of your small garage, and drove down the street just under the speed limit. You’d miss the car after it would be taken back, but that was okay. You’d just sneak in and steal it right back. For some reason the car was labeled “KATT” whatever the hell that meant.

While you waited for the “agent” to pick up the car, you parked at a grocery store and went inside, grabbing a case of hard lemonades while you were there. Walking out into the parking lot, however, you realized the car was missing. “Already? Sheesh.. They must have teleported.”

“Ms. (L/N), please get in.” The car rolled up, a door swinging open as it stopped in front of you.

“Did I already drink today?” You raised a brow, as you looked at the time on your phone, before shrugging and hopping in. “So, are you the cat thing then?”

“No, I am the Knight Automated Tactical Technology.”

“What now? That’s a mouthful.”

“Or K.A.T.T for easy reference, KATT if you prefer.” The car told you.

“I’m on drugs, aren’t I?” You weren’t even driving, as the car drove by itself.

“You do not appear to be.” A hologram screen appeared, which seemed to display all of your vitals.

“I feel like that’s a violation of my privacy, but okay. How’d you do that?”

“I scanned you,” The car stated, which just confused you more.

“I thought I just stole a car..” You huffed, “I’m definitely going to jail for this.”

“As long as you do not attempt to prevent me from returning, you will not face any charges. Mr. Torres is under the impression that you were unaware that you stole his technology.”

“So I can for sure accidentally steal you again.” You laughed once again, already planning to when the next chance arose.

“I’m afraid they would realize that you were not truly stealing me by accident if that were to happen.”

“Well that sucks.”

Later on that day, you were sitting in a lawn chair, while you sipped on a lemonade that you had bought earlier, when someone in a black mustang pulled into your little driveway. The guy that was driving got out of his car, before he made his way over to you, while you.. Tipped your sunglasses down and checked him out. “Your fly is down.”

“What?” He was fooled, as you simply went back to reading your magazine. “It was not-”

“So what’s your name?” You asked, while not taking your eyes off of the new magazine.

“Michael Knight.”

“Ah.” You had a thing for annoying people, apparently.

“I need the keys to the car.” Mike told you, to which you shrugged.

“I never had any keys,” You finally looked up at him, setting the magazine down. “So is she that one’s girlfriend then?”

Mike actually laughed at that, “It seems like it sometimes. How’d you get a hold of her?”

“That’s for me to know and for you to find out.”

“She did not ‘get a hold’ of me. I came here.” KATT had her own story, though she was likely covering for her new friend, so that she would not be in any sort of trouble.

“Then I suppose if that’s true, we’ll be leaving.” Mike shrugged, “KATT, follow behind us.”

“I can use a tow hook if necessary.” KITT finally spoke up, just offering help.

“That will not be necessary.” KATT quickly told them, “I can follow.”

You just watched them, not really seeming to care all that much. Though, the interaction was interesting. You certainly were going to get your hands on that car again, maybe not soon, but at some point.

After Mike and the two cars had left, you simply went back inside your house to plan for another day, where you would take the car once again- only next time, you would not be giving it back.

Author Note: I hope you enjoyed this small story! I plan to do more as I come up with more ideas- and I am also open to requests. Just to add a little information, KATT is a character that I made up years ago and wrote some fanfictions with. She is basically a copy of KITT, with just a few differences(including her having a female voice). To name a few, her job is to search and rescue, as well as provide comfort to victims of a crime. She is housed in a white mustang, and her light bar in the front is blue as well. That is all! Once again, requests are open. I mostly write about the 2008 version of Knight Rider but I can for sure do some for the 1982 version!

[smarti-at-smogwarts]

Theo Abbott Profile

Identity

Name: Theodosia -Theo- Jane Abott

Gender: ....-throws peruvian powder bomb-  gender neutral tho she doesn't have the label for it.

*She goes by she/her pronouns though

Age: varies depending on when I’m writing her. 

Birth Date: January 11th XXXX

Species: Human

Blood Status: Half-Blood.

Sexuality: Queer af. Bisexual. Arospec. 

Alignment: Chaotic Good. 

Ethnicity: Mixed. 

Nationality: English

Residence: Godrics Hollow. Abbott home. 

Myer Briggs Personality Type: ENFP-T [ Turbulent Campaigner ] 

The Mage

Wand: Ebony. Dragon heartstring. 13 inches. Quite Flexible.

This jet-black wand wood has an impressive appearance and reputation, being highly suited to all manner of combative magic, and to Transfiguration. Ebony is happiest in the hand of those with the courage to be themselves. Frequently non-conformist, highly individual or comfortable with the status of outsider, ebony wand owners have been found both among the ranks of the Order of the Phoenix and among the Death Eaters. In my experience the ebony wand’s perfect match is one who will hold fast to his or her beliefs, no matter what the external pressure, and will not be swayed lightly from their purpose.

As a rule, dragon heartstrings produce wands with the most power, and which are capable of the most flamboyant spells. Dragon wands tend to learn more quickly than other types. While they can change allegiance if won from their original master, they always bond strongly with the current owner.The dragon wand tends to be easiest to turn to the Dark Arts, though it will not incline that way of its own accord. It is also the most prone of the three cores to accidents, being somewhat temperamental.

Animagus: Pine Marten

Misc Magical Abilities: Unknown undecided magical ability. ( will be edited when I figure what i want her hphl ability to be) Animagus. 

Boggart Form: Theo is terrified of being forced to be something she’s not or being trapped. This shows itself by a square room with no windows popping up in front of her. The walls the start closing in on her. 

Riddikulus Form: The walls collapse like the sides of a carboard box. 

Amortentia ( what she smells like) :  Parchment and ink. Crisp night air. Cinnamon cloves Pine trees.

Amortentia ( what she smells) : Misc smells that represent different people from the Taghd Lynch Defense Squad/her closest friends. Firewood burning. Lemon cakes. Fresh cut grass ( from the quidtich pitch) 

Patronus Memory: She’s at the Hogwarts common room goofing around with her housemates and friends. Basically her realizing she’s found a place to be herself and accepted as she is.

Mirror of Erised: Her happy and content and herself in her own home with her writing and her cat and her friends and the fuck away from Godric’s Hollow. 

Specialized/Favourite Spells: 

At Hogwarts_ Anything you can use on a prank. Some defensive spells as while Hogwarts was fairly accepting of her she did get a bit hassled ( there’s always that one occasional asshole) about both being a girl in the quidditch team and how she chooses to dress out of uniform. Some offensive spells from when she got into fights/duels in the halls along Taghd and Teddy. Her best spells are the ones used to sneak around her mother and grandmother. 

Out Of Hogwarts_ While not a spell, apparition becomes her most used magical feat as she likes to visit her friends as they all settle into her adult lives. She also learns a bit of healing spells from either Adelia or Teddy ( and at both their insistence that if she’s going to be getting into trouble out there she should be able to patch herself up a bit. ) 

*In the Taghd Dies Verse where she becomes an auror she adds a lot of offensive spells to her arsenal “best defense is a good offense right?” Theo no.

Appearance

Faceclaim: Saoirce Ronan 

Game Appearance: N/A 

Height: 5′6′’ by year 7.

Weight: Average weight for her height. 

Physique: On the thin side. Somewhere between rectangle and hourglass boy shape wise. Has muscle on her due to Quiditch. Strong facial features.

Eye Colour: Light blue 

Hair Colour: Dirty Blonde as a child. Darkens with age.  Often untidy from running or flying and held up/back.

Skin Tone: Fair

Body Modifications: None

Scarring:  Has a set of diagonal scars on her leg from when she tried to play with a splintered bat during a quidditch match. A few random scars from scrapes from school that got a little too rough before being broken up. 

Inventory: parchment. Quill. Ink. A Claddagh ring from Taghd. Random and assorted books. Notes from her friends. Her wand. Hair pins. ( she keep forgetting she has them there so she just stuffs more in her bag. No one knows how many she has in there by now, not even her)

Fashion: https://www.pinterest.com/xhowling/theo-jane-abbott/#fashion

*Theo tends to prefer Hogwarts robes and wizard fashion in general more as they’re more gender neutral. ( as in both genders wear robes though they differ in style and in Hogwarts case they do not differ at all from one gender to the other) so she wears them more.

 When it comes to muggle clothing she’s most comfortable on cable knit sweaters and plaid ( though she favors the former a lot more)  because she used to steal Taghd’s though if she has to “dress up” she’ll wear more  masc fashion. She’s influenced by Teddy’s fashion sense a bit for that. She also wears her Gryffindor tie even after leaving Hogwarts but with dress robes/a shirt and vest instead.

She tends to prefer more muted colors with like accents of one color or one point of color (i know nothing about fashion please bear with me. Hopefully the pinterest helps)

Allegiances

Hogwarts House: Gryffindor. 

Ilvermorny House: N/A 

Affiliations/Organizations: Gryffindor Quidditch Team. Taghd Lynch Protection Squad. Gryffindor house. 

Professions: Student. Writer/Anthologist. Becomes an auror in the Taghd Dies Verse.

Hogwarts Information

Class Proficiencies:

Astronomy:   ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆☆☆☆

Charms:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆☆☆☆

DADA:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆☆

Flying:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Herbology:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆☆☆☆☆

History of Magic:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆☆☆

Potions:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Transfiguration:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆☆☆☆

Electives:

Apparition

Muggle Studies 

Study of Ancient Runes

Quidditch: Plays as Chaser and Beater reserve. 

Extra Curricular: Does writing count?

Favourite Professors: I think she’d like both  Atticus Irwin Grimsley ( @cursebreakerfarrier ) and Toby Moore ( @unfortunate-arrow ) 

*Will probably add teachers as more details of the games are release

Least Favourite Professors: Pretty much any teachers that have issues with how she dresses or are of the snobby pureblood category are a safe bet. 

*Will probably add teachers as more details of the games are release

Relationships

Misc Siblings: None. Theo is an only child. 

Father: Unknown atm. All Theo knows is he was a muggleborn wizard.

Mother: Emily Abbott 

Love Interest: N/A  

*arospec but might have fwb/flings as she figures things out and possibly a platonic life partner/partners in the future. Most likely will end up living with friends as family either way. ( the friends she lives with may even have spouses of their own just...a bunch of friends living in a house as family) 

Best Friends:  Taghd Lynch ( @unfortunate-arrow ) Lu Morrison ( @rosievixen )  Arthur -Teddy- Elllsion ( @cursebreakerfarrier ) Adelia Selwyn ( @that-ravenpuff-witch)

Rival: She hates Cillian Lynch ( @unfortunate-arrow) and Ernest Ellson ( @cursebreakerfarrier​) bc they are unkind to her boys/two of her closest friends. I can imagine they do not like her that much ( seeing as Theo’s about as secretive and sublte about not liking people as a wrecking ball through the wall) 

Enemy: tbd 

Dormmates: Lu Morrison ( @rosievixen) 3rd and 4rth room mates unknown atm. 

Pets: Theo adopts a niffler in the future once she’s out of Hogwarts. Her family has very strict rules about owning pets though at some point in Hogwarts she adopts a stray cat and somehow manages to keep it a secret even when/if she has to go back home for Holidays. 

Closest Canon Friends: tbd

Closest MC Friends:  Taghd Lynch ( @unfortunate-arrow ) Lu Morrison ( @rosievixen )  Arthur -Teddy- Elllsion ( @cursebreakerfarrier ) Adelia Selwyn ( @that-ravenpuff-witch ) Fred Morrigan ( @ljthebard1​) Gabriel Sapieha ( @lizzieparkerhphm ​) Danny Gibbson ( @catohphm ​ )

Background/History

Pre Hogwarts: Theo was an “indiscretion” born to Emily Abott and an unknown ( to most) muggleborn wizard. The family  kept her, fed her, made sure she knew the proper way for an Abott to act, but there was no affection to this and Theo sometimes wondered if it wasn’t only out of duty that her family did all this. After it becomes obvious that Theo who dresses in boy’s clothes, never keeps a comment inside her mind, and buckles against the propriety forced upon her more and more as the years pass is not going to be changing to fit what her family thinks she should be; it’s decided to send her to Hogwarts where she’ll at least be kept out of sight.

4th Year: Was sent to Hogwarts by her family to be kept out of sight and hopefully shape up ( with the added sentiment that if she does not, at the very least she’ll be out of sight) Met Taghd Lynch, Lu Morrison, Teddy Ellison and Adelia Selwyn. 

5th Year: tba

6th Year: tba

7th Year: tba. Graduates with her friends. Though she undoubtedly has to leave some behind as I can see her befriending underclassmen.

Out of school: At some point she moves back closer to Teddy either because she received the news that Taghd died or that Taghd almost died. ( depending on the “canon” or “Taghd Lives AU”)

At some point she might adopt a daughter who is as chaotic as she was and then some ( though much more open and less angry/defensive because Theo’s a better parent than her mother ) 

In the Universe where Tagdh dies she becomes an Auror alongside Teddy.

At some point she cuts her parents off Completely ( no letters, no firecalls, nothing absolutely nothing) whether this happens because they did something that just got to her too much or it was more a case of her getting away and going “wooow they’re actually horrible to me” remains to be seen but she’ll come to rely on her friends for moral support and also to figure out how to live on her own without their monetary support.  

Spoils her friends’ kids so so much ohmygosh she loves them.

Old Age & Death: tbd

Personality

 Temperamental and impulsive ‘’jump now, think later’’/’’it looked like a good idea at the time’’ sort of person. Disaster Bisexual. Gets angry quick but it fades just as quickly. Frank, warm, empathetic. Honest-sometimes too honest- The one in a friend group to try to make people laugh. Will encourage you to hex someone who hurts you ‘’hell I’ll help you/cover for you’’ (That Friend) the opposite of the common sense friend. ( ‘’sounds illegal, I’m in.’’ )

Theo’s general status is defensive which to her can often be loud and assertive ( and a bit abrasive though she’s usually sorry about that last one when it happens) due to insecurities that took root during her time with her mother and her family To wit, she believes she needs to defend the way she is subconsciously since it was often the case at home and this leaks into her personality. When she met all her friends her first setting was “im like this and Deal with it” expecting resistance but when she met none ( as her friends all accepted her for who she is) she became a lot less so. ( shes still loud and chaotic as that's also part of who she is but she’s a lot less defensive afterwards.)

Has a really loud laugh. When she’s goofing with her friends or talking to them and laughing with them you can hear it echo through the halls.

Is sort of...a loud person in general.

Theo’s a passionate individual and incredibly stubborn when she sets her mind to something.

Skips the sad/crying phase and goes straight to angry. Might or might not have “/don’t cry/show weakness” complex. Her other emotions however are expressed be they annoyance, happiness ( her laughter Echoes through the corridors when she’s happy about something) excitement ect ect ad infinitum.

Her poker face is  shit though. She couldn’t keep her opinions through herself if she tried. Her face will say them for her.

She’s fiercely fiercely protective of her friends and found family. ( see: “would happily hit Teddy’s dad with a blugger if she finds out about him being abusive  ‘’curses out ppl who say mean things to Adelia or Lu and half the time will wind up throwing down for it” and of course “I’m actually going to Kill Cillian” circa Taghd’s duel in the Taghd lives AU as examples)

Misc:

Theo’s animagus form is a Pine Marten. She learned it specifically so she could get out of the house which she often found overbearing due to her mother, grandmother, and aunts attitudes towards her.

While her family kept her, fed her and clothed her it was done out of combination of duty and not wanting to waste magical blood. They might have love for her but it’s very clearly overridden by ( if not outright contingent on) their need forTheo being the kind of child they think she ought to be which she is very much not and only grows to stray more and more from it as she grows up) 

Theo sometimes does suspect they did it more out of duty than any love but tries not to think about it deeply or think about them at all if she can help it ( and with an entire castle to explore with friends and mischief to manage with those same friends it becomes quite easy) 

She has a fascination for the muggle world because it was her father’s world and the part of her her family shuns and kept her from knowing about.

She’s often in trouble with either Taghd or Teddy ( or both) or Lu ( or all three) and the teachers might or might not have a running tally of which combination causes the most chaos. 

Theo learns Gaelic from Taghd-they start with the swear words and then she just really wants to learn the language. 

Whereas Taghd tends to complain about getting dragged into fights by Teddy and her but does it Theo’s more like you feel the air shift next to you and...yup. Yup she’s there.

If her friends are in a fight nine out ten times she’s there too. That one of ten times she’s not there, she’s going to be soon.

Theo’s a night owl and can often be found the last in the common room reading or writing or talking to Taghd or Teddy or Lu. Sometimes she’ll sneak out to fly. ( specially on really clear nights)

She’s perfected the art of wolfing down breakfast in the last minutes before going to class or even just grabbing a piece of bread and running off to class because of this. As it'll lead to her oversleeping.

Adelia’s her mom friend and possibly one of the few people that can tell her what to do without her going ‘how bout i do anyways.png’

She writes a lot and can be seen talking animatedly about it mostly to fellow writer friend Teddy Ellison. 

She’s bit Taghd’s brother Cillian in her animagus form at least once. It was the subject of laughter in the Gryffindor table for a good week after. Theo, ( who keeps her animagus form a secret aside from her closest friends because its a way she has to get away from people or hide or cause trouble when she wants to) becomes very interested in whatever’s in front of her  and trying not to laugh when it gets brought up. 

She gets really attached to Teddy’s mom ( and is a bit jealous of how nice a mother her friend has)  as she both from her experience and what she gathers from Tagdh and other friends of hers she didn’t...think parents could be nice? Like empirical evidence just overall does not seem to be in their favor tbh (specially mothers) and she’s mystified by her and overall thinks she’s wonderful.

This also means she dislikes Teddy’s dad that much more ( though she keeps it to herself around Teddy’s mother ) because as far as she’s concerned he doesn’t deserve her or Teddy with what some of  his actions are. 

Tends to be physical with her close friends ( bumping shoulders, linking arms as they walk hand on shoulder) though on different levels depending on the different dynamics and how comfortable they themselves are with it.

She hates all the propriety she was brought up with ( one of the bonding things she Taghd had was their shared lack of decorum) but one of the things she enjoyed to learn back in Godric Hollow was calligraphy. She stills practices it as a hobby, keeping multiple colors of ink in her room at Hogwarts and later in life. She likes making calligraphy for her friends and also when they’re adults makes calligraphy for each of their children with their favorite stories. 

Finally did a proper profile for Theo.

I’m hoping to get back to doing more content ( including other profiles for mcs I’ve mentioned and going back to my hphm kiddo Marti and writing out gameplay now that I have more spoons. Figured this was a good place to start.

Profile skeleton by @hogwartsmysterystory​

[forkanna]

[AO3] [WATTPAD]

NOTE: Here we go. Little bit of a shift in this chapter... you'll see. Thanks for keeping up with this fic and all your comments!

------------

Everything was rather quiet for a couple of days. Rise threw herself into practicing her vocals with every spare moment, meeting with her manager and conferencing with her record label over the phone. She needed the distraction. Without any clear course of action with Ai, she had decided to let that matter fade into the background. Maybe something would come to her eventually.

On Sunday, she and the gang decided to go fishing, since that was one of Narukami's favourite activities and they were all missing him lately. For most of them, it simply meant getting to wave around poles and wade into the water, splashing each other. Kanji and Naoto resented this because they were much more serious about the matter, but the others didn't pay them too much mind.

"Hey, why didn't you invite Ai?" Chie suddenly asked as they re-baited their hooks. "She too snobby to get down here in the river with us?"

Rise laughed. "You're kidding, right?"

"Yeah," she responded, giggling right along. "No way would she be caught dead touching a fish that's not cooked."

"No… I meant that she wouldn't want to hang out with me anymore."

"Why not?" Yukiko asked. "I thought you were becoming sort of close with her."

Wow, how oblivious could they be? "Not anymore."

Once she had explained properly, which took the better part of half an hour, most of the joy had been sucked out of their springtime activity. Rise did feel a little bad about that, but it was as much their fault as hers, so she didn't spend too much mental energy on sympathy for her friends.

"Gosh, that is so sad," Teddie said with a pronounced pout. He really did seem genuinely disappointed not to have another friend. "I know you guys didn't really mean to hurt her feelings."

"Guess I thought he'd be over that by now," Chie confessed quietly.

"Yeah," Yosuke added. "Like, as long as he stays away from my butt, I don't really care what he does with his time. And man, he looks way better in drag than even Teddie did, so…"

While Teddie was harrumphing as if genuinely offended, Kanji chuckled harshly as he twitched his line in the water the tiniest bit. "What is it with you and that gay panic, bro? I'm surprised your Shadow didn't look more like mine."

"H-hey, I'm just a healthy, red-blooded Japanese male! I like girls who are actually girls! Is that a crime?"

"I'll buy you a butt-protector to keep all the dicks out," Chie cackled bemusedly. Yosuke just grimaced.

"I'm… starting to get why she didn't want this getting out," Rise sighed.

"Hm?" Yukiko said as she turned back in her direction. "What is it?"

"Nothing."

"No, that sounded important. I wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings…"

Which she appreciated. Even if the others were a little oblivious sometimes, Yukiko genuinely meant well all the time. Every minute of every day. "It's just… I'm no big expert on this subject, but you guys can see how much work she put into being taken seriously as a woman. Because she looks like one! Nobody could tell! And I think I haven't paid much attention to how hard that must have been for her… I'm… wow. And I really did almost ruin her life."

Not that she had been unaware of that before. She thought she understood, and she did — better than her friends did, for sure. But listening to them casually treat her like a drag act, a joke, a source of anxiety for Yosuke's extra-fragile masculinity, peeled back just enough of the curtain. Now she knew that she really didn't know anything at all.

"Don't be so dramatic," Chie sighed. "Like you said, he was able to play it off, and he's giving you a lot more shit now than is necessary compared to what you did on accident. Like, scales balanced. If he wants to keep being a dick then that's on him."

Rise shrugged helplessly as she tossed her fishing pole back onto the shore. "You're not wrong about that part. I'm not saying her trying to get revenge on me is right. I'm just saying I understand why she feels so betrayed. Didn't really get it before, but…"

"I still don't get it now," Yosuke grunted. "The whole thing makes me super uncomfortable. But it sounds like he already had the surgery, so… doesn't that mean he's a girl anyway?"

"What? No, it's… nevermind that part." She had been about to insist that Ai did not have "The Surgery" yet, even though she had probably undergone several other minor procedures. But that was the kind of detail that would get her even deeper in trouble than she already was, so she cut herself off.

"Well, I'm with Chie," Yukiko said cautiously. "You have apologized for hurting her, you didn't intend to in the first place. If she were a true friend, she would accept your apology."

"I'm not sure it's that simple."

They all turned to look at Naoto, not having expected her to speak. The girl was wearing a very thoughtful expression underneath her newsboy-casquette cap. "What isn't?" Teddie finally prompted when everybody had been quiet for a little too long.

"This situation with Ebihara-san. She's living her life as transgender, and you have jeopardized that life. Even if on accident, I can see how she would interpret that as an attack."

"Come on," Chie sighed. "Any idiot knows the difference between on accident and on purpose."

"Not necessarily. In law, there is such a thing as 'gross criminal negligence'. This means that even if it's an accident, even if you did nothing with the premeditated intent to do harm, you can still cause harm and be held accountable for it. At least, partially."

"So you're saying it's okay that this asshole is trying to frame our friend for cheating?!" Yosuke burst out.

"Hm? Oh, no, not at all," Naoto insisted, a slight crease in her brow. "But this is a matter of criminal pathology. Even if Ebihara-san is not a criminal, she is perpetrating criminal acts; understanding them requires the same skill set. Motive. Means. Opportunity. We already know the last two, more or less; security isn't especially tight at Yasogami High. I'm sure it was a simple matter for her to sneak into the classroom and pilfer the answer key, then sneak it into Rise's bag when no one was looking. So all that's left is… why?"

"Because he's a petty jerk," Chie provided immediately.

"It's not that simple."

"No, it really is. Maybe you guys get something about how serious us gossiping about him was that I don't, but I don't care. You don't treat a friend like that. Period! Even if he's really pissed at Rise, she did apologize, she's trying to make it right. He's not acting like a friend at all. So I say, screw him! Just let him self-destruct and be alone. And if he won't stop being a jerk to you, we will be jerks right back. I'm not going to sit around while he drags you down for something you didn't even do on purpose."

Rise felt a rush of affection toward Chie Satonaka. Even if she couldn't completely agree with everything she was saying, it was nice to know her friends had her back — that these were true blue friendships that had lasted beyond being part of the same Investigation Team. The passion with which she spoke, and the anger she clearly felt toward Ebihara because she was attacking her friend, made the existence of those bonds unmistakable.

However… she also couldn't ignore the way Naoto's brow furrowed further. Kanji also rested a hand on her shoulder. Was she simply upset about losing an argument, or was there more to that?

"I can't disagree with what you say. I was merely trying to point out that in Ebihara-san's estimation, Rise may deserve vengeance more than she does in any of our estimation. She is viewing the situation differently than we are."

"Well his 'estimation' sucks," Chie grumbled.

"Maybe," Rise finally cut in with a discomfited sigh. "But can you guys… can you promise me you won't do anything mean to her without asking me? At least that? I know she's being a jerk, but it's because I messed up. Huge. So this has to be between her and me."

None of them looked too thrilled with that. Yukiko nodded immediately, seemingly satisfied right away that she was doing what was asked of her by her friend. The others were a little slower to agree but they still all did at some point or another, dissatisfied as they were.

"Thanks. And I'm so happy you have my back, I can't express that enough. But I have to figure this out on my own."

"You got it," Kanji grunted as he started reeling in a fish. "Shit… it's a big one… but I'm not gonna forget how you looked when that old bag accused you of cheating. That ain't right. Ebihara better make it right eventually, or his ass is grass."

What an ominous threat. Well-meaning, but ominous. Rise knew she would have to sort this matter out post haste — before she had to find out just how far her friends were willing to go to come to her aid.

                                          ~ o ~

All of this gave birth to a very determined Rise Kujikawa, and this was the one who walked into school on a foggy Monday morning. Ai had done enough damage; she had to forge ahead as if everything was fine. Her new tactic had to be not to let the bullying get to her, because she better understood it was just her friend being hurt by her own actions. And if she wouldn't accept her apology… there was nothing more she could do.

But she didn't have it in her to give up. That option was stricken off the list. Rise was no quitter.

Everything was fine until her second-to-last class of the day. Rise had mostly focused on schoolwork and chatting with her other friends, taking her mind off more depressing matters. Gearing up for a promotional video she was supposed to shoot soon; that would be a first step toward reestablishing herself as an artist, even if she still didn't intend to go back to singing full-time until she graduated. And the class with Ms. Sofue was fine in and of itself… for the first ten minutes or so.

That was when she noticed the smell. At first, she was looking around the room to try and figure out who had lost control of their bowels in such close proximity to other students. Maybe it was something they had for lunch?

A brief investigation ten minutes later revealed the true culprit, once everyone was looking at her like she was being most unladylike. Deep in the recesses of her desk, which she never used to keep anything since she would just have to move it again after class, someone had stuffed an old sandwich. Unless she missed her guess, there was natto and egg on it, among other things. But there was too much mold growing inside the sandwich bag for her to be certain.

"Oh GOOD GOD!" cried one of the boys nearby, covering his face with his arm. "What's in that thing?!"

Waving at the air with her crooked heka, the teacher coughed and demanded, "Please dispose of your lunch in a proper manner from now on, Miss Kujikawa! Make no mistake, even I have no interest in mummified food!"

A few of them were able to wrap it in some paper and drag it to the trash can, amid Rise's protests that she had never seen it before. Nobody believed her, because the natto tended to make it seem obvious that it had come from Marukyu — even though their speciality was tofu, not other soybean offerings. A lot of bickering back and forth broke out until the teacher banged her cane on her desk.

"Enough! Miss Kujikawa has technically broken no rule, even if it was her sandwich. So we'll say no more about it. Please, open your books again and turn to page…"

But the entire class period, Rise couldn't stop thinking about the sandwich. She already knew who it was; only one person at that school was stupid enough to actively mess with a famous pop idol. The instant the bell rang, she pelted out of class so fast that quite a few students gasped. By now, she knew what class Ai was supposed to be in around this time… and where she could find her.

                                          ~ o ~

"Oh!" gasped one of the girls in the locker room when Rise barged past her. "Do you even have this class? What are you doing in the-"

"Ebihara?" she asked. Some girl with a towel wrapped around her hair pointed further into the room. Rise stormed over there to find a towel-clad Ai preening at the mirror hanging on the inside of her locker, running the brush through her hair over and over. "Thanks for your present."

Smirking a little, the girl didn't even glance over. "I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Yeah? You don't recognise it?"

Everyone gasped when she threw it onto the bench nearest Ebihara. That was nothing compared to the chorus of disgusted noises that followed once its foul stench began to pervade the air within the steamy room. Even still wrapped in the plastic bag, it was horrendous.

"Oh, GOD," Ai joined in, though she was chuckling just a little. "Why would you be carrying that thing around? Just to throw at me like that?"

"Why?" she demanded. "This has crossed the line from mean to just… weird! What's the point of stinking up the classroom?"

Full of false innocence, she pressed a hand to her chest as she said, "Why, I don't know. Sounds to me like someone just forgot to throw away her lunch. Maybe you should be a little less wasteful. Then again, as rich and famous as you are, I bet you don't care at all."

A ripple of murmurs spread throughout the room. Rise knew that they didn't really care about the sandwich, or about wastefulness, but they were highly concerned with this argument between two students playing out right in front of them. Gossip fodder. So she decided not to give them any more ammunition.

"Okay. We'll just throw it away." She snatched it off the bench and flashed Ai a poisonous smile. "Have a lovely day, Ebi-chan."

"Don't you mean Ebi-kun?"

Rise stopped dead in her tracks. She actually looked around for what assholes had said it, determined to give them a dressing down. Even if they were fighting, nobody got to talk about her friend like that. But she realized it had come from Ai herself. "What?"

"You were one of the people that started the rumour, right?" She looked so haughty, arms folded over her chest and hip cocked to one side. "So I'm surprised you let it go that easy."

Deciding to play along, she smirked and shot back, "I heard you showed off the goods to some other girls and it proved it was false."

"Yeah. But since when do people like you care about facts? You would much rather be right than the truth prevail."

"People like- okay. Whatever this is, whatever you want from me, I'm done with it. I thought we could try to be adults and move on, but all you want to do is start a war — one I'm not interested in fighting. Just leave me alone if you really can't stand me this bad, okay?"

Ai laughed and took a step forward. "Rise-Risette, the gossip-monger. And now, the cheater! What terrible thing are you going to do next?"

"I didn't do anything in the first place!"

"You know you did." The smile disappeared for a second, leaving her friend's features full of cold fury. But it was so brief that most of the other girls probably wouldn't have noticed; then she was smiling like rainbows were shooting out of her ass again. "And hey, if you want to try to blame me for all of it, go ahead. You might as well."

"No, that's not necessary. Maybe it's just a series of tragic coincidences."

"Uh huh. Or maybe you're just a self-destructive pop idol, a little brat who couldn't hack it in the entertainment industry, and now that you're stuck in boring old Inaba, you want attention again. Don't you see you're going about it all the wrong ways?"

So that was her game. Now Rise could see this for what it was: it wasn't just any one incident meant to slander her and give her a bad name. All of them together were supposed to paint a picture of a celebrity spiraling out of control. Rise was going to turn into the Japanese Britney Spears if Ai Ebihara had anything to do with it.

"You really want to destroy me that badly?" she hissed now that they were so close their noses were almost touching. All the girls around them were whispering and chattering, watching the drama intently. The rub was, they were gossiping so much about what they were saying that they couldn't even actually hear what they were saying.

"You can bet on it. I told you I was going to, unless you destroy me first. And I think you will. I think you are exactly the kind of person who will shoot in self-defense."

"That isn't me," she breathed, glancing down at Ai's body. It was so close to her own… she couldn't help looking, couldn't help feeling flustered even though they were fighting right now. "We both know that. You're just mad I messed up, and you won't let me apologize, and you won't leave it alone. There's nothing else I can do."

"Yes there is." Then she hiked an eyebrow slightly, lowering her voice to barely a whisper. "What? What are you looking at?"

"Nothing. Just… trying to figure out what to-"

"You were trying to figure out if you could see my dick. Weren't you?" As Rise felt her brow furrow, Ai chuckled and pressed on, "Do it. Go looking."

She could feel her temper flaring hotter. It was getting hard to control. "Stop being so gross. I wouldn't do that, I haven't done that, and I'm not going to do that."

"Why not? Come on… all you have to do is rip this towel off me. Show the world. Maybe I'm tucking again, maybe I'm not. But wouldn't that be great if you exposed a scandal in the women's locker room? Risette the Hero, saving all these poor girls from the freak."

"You know — you know I have never once in my life called you a freak, why do you want me to hurt you so badly? What do you get out of it? Are you some kind of psycho masochist?!"

"Sure! Go with that. Even more reason to save everyone. Do it." No movement. "Clock's ticking. The longer you wait, the weirder it's going to be that we're standing here whispering to each other."

But Rise's mind was racing. She still had no idea really why she was pushing so hard for her to attack, to be so vicious. She thought back to the revelation she had when walking home — about Ai, about what these attacks meant for their relationship. And when she thought of it that way…

Everything came together. Of course, nothing was for certain until she heard it straight from the horse's mouth, but now Rise thought she understood the reason her former friend was trying so hard to get her to treat her like vermin.

"No," she whispered with a small smile.

"No? Aww, I guess the games continue then," Ai said with a fake, exaggerated pout. "You're going to have to be a lot tougher than that to make it as a star."

"Actually… let's play a new game. Unless you want to give up now?" Her pleading face returned. "Please, please just stop. I'll leave you alone if that's what you want, or we can go back to being friends and… try to put this behind us. But I'm not giving up, not going away. So…? Maybe?"

Ai shook her head. "This isn't your game, you don't get to change the rules, princess. So nice try."

"Fine," she sighed… before sliding her arms tightly around Ai.

"H-hey!" she burst out. Then a little louder, "Oh my GOD, now Risette is trying to molest me!"

Before the gasps really had a chance to deepen, Rise sobbed, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you, I just… I just love you so much Ai, a-and when you… when you pulled away, I didn't know what to do! Can't you forgive me?"

Even the girls who weren't watching before were glued to this scene now. And even though she could tell Ai didn't like losing control of the situation — hated might have been more apropos — she still drew back to gape at her.

"What… did you just say?"

"I asked you to forgive-"

"Cut the bullSHIT!" she snapped loudly enough that one smaller girl yelped and fell back on her ass, scrabbling for the nearest bench. "You can't mean that. Not in front of all these people, you… they'll know you're- if you say how you feel, that's…"

"I don't care about them! I love you, Ai, I… I didn't mean for us to end up this way!" Her bottom lip wobbled hard as she took a shaky breath. "But if you really can't forgive me, I'll understand! I just… I can't go on with us hurting each other like this!"

"Oh, this is so not going to work," she scoffed… until she saw a few of the girls putting their hands on Rise's shoulders, comforting her as the big fat tears rolled down her cheeks. Offering tissues, petting her hair. "Are you- wow, you guys can't be buying this! It's an act!"

"Hey, don't be so mean!" said some girl with bobbed hair; Rise thought her name was Matsunaga, but she couldn't remember at the moment. The moment Ai's gaze was on her, she said much more quietly, "S-sorry."

"Oh my GOD. Fine. Whatever, I'm out of here."

But a wall of girls blocked her way. They were all glowering at her now, looking ready to throw down; they would never have challenged alone but there was safety in numbers. Ai's eyebrows shot up, unimpressed… but the more she looked at all of them, the more anxious she appeared. Not frightened, just uneasy from the attention. The constant attention, while wearing a towel… prospect of a fight… she backed into a corner and they started to advance on her. This would get seriously out of hand if someone didn't step in.

Someone stepped in.

"Please, just give me another chance," Rise provided smoothly as she slid forward through the throng of girls, taking up Ai's hand — which was immediately yanked out of reach. Her voice was taut with emotion as she pleaded, "That's all! I'll show you I can be a better friend, a-and those pranks? Forgotten! And I won't ever tell another lie about you again, I promise!"

Ai took another good look around at the student body standing in opposition against her. The wheels were turning behind her eyes. Then she glared down at Rise with a shake of her head. "You… conniving… snake," she muttered.

Some of the girls heard it, and looked more scandalised. And because now everyone else was behind her… Rise felt comfortable allowing a smug, triumphant smirk to take over her features. Just for an instant. She even mouthed a few choice words:

"You only have one way out."

Oh, she had never seen Ai look that angry before. This wasn't just annoyance or rage. She looked murderous. But it only lasted a second before she sighed, shut her eyes, took a breath.

"Rise… fine. I know… I went too far. Can you forgive me?"

"Wow, really sounds authentic," one of the others closest to the lockers scoffed.

"No, really." When Ai opened her eyes again, she was smiling weakly. "I have missed you. I just didn't know… I was so angry when you started that nasty rumour."

"I know. It was a stupid mistake! And I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you, if you just… take me back! That's all you have to do." She took both of her hands, ignoring the way nails were digging into her own. Petty little revenges were par for the course now. "Just be with me."

One could hear a pin drop in that locker room. Ai pulled her close and whispered softly, "You want to play this game? We're playing it on a national level."

"Bring it on," she replied in kind, smirking again — even while her heart pounded in her throat from the closeness. "But c'mon, I beat you this round."

"Shut up."

Such a chorus of "WHOOOOO" went up when they kissed that it felt like they were shaking the foundation of Yasogami High. Probably because, metaphorically as well as literally, they were. Game-changer indeed.

                                          To Be Continued…

[mvtteo]

YES, i know i’m so late to the game - pls fight me :/ - but i’m here now & i cannot wait to write w/ all of u & love on all of u, etc !! i’m stef btw !! ok now on to the stuff yall came here for.

☆★ [ tommy martinez + he/him + cismale ] ☆★ did you know that [ matteo de la cruz ] has lived in erie for [ two months ] now? the [ 26 ] year old [ dealer / uber driver ] is known to be [ loyal ], yet [ calamitous ]. which is fitting considering they are a/an [ scorpio ]. whenever they pass by on the street, i can hear [ save me from myself by louis the child ] blasting through their headphones. they remind me of [ a flickering street light in an alley, dirt stuck under your fingernails & a meme that isn’t funny anymore ], and it really wouldn’t be erie without them! [ stef, 21, est, she / her ].

( TW : drug use, abuse, violence )

FORMING

from toronto originally ! he’s only been in erie for about two months ( and who KNOWS how long that’ll last ... more info on that below )

he grew up in a single parent home ( his biological father SLAMMED the door in his face at 4 years old & never returned ), of course a part from the revolving door of ‘ new daddy’s ’ his mother would introduce to him as he grew. money was tight but they made due, a working/lower class family living in an area of the city that was known as a spot tourists shouldn’t visit. 

a lil bit about his mother : emillia vargas ! she took odd jobs when she could & that’s how she put food on the table. that, or her boyfriend of the month dishing out from his wallet. sometimes it was shocking - to have food in the fridge - when at least half of her paycheck was sent to a dealer on the corner. she was from a long line of addicts & didn’t make it to the other side. matteo’s earliest memories are of needles — and the worst was the silence afterwards. their relationship is COMPLICATED to say the least. for some reason, despite everything, he still cares & checks up on her. probably because she’s the only family he knows. or the guilt trip & manipulation she’s thrown his way — that, too! anyway. they don’t talk often & she’s still at the same house up in toronto.

father : the man left when matteo was just four. fighting was constant ( so perhaps it was due to trouble in paradise ), but matteo was too young to really comprehend why he left & he hates pondering on it - even though the lasting effects are REAL. 

anyway. his mother did have her fair share of boyfriends, trying to fill in that void - but to no avail. some of these men were dangerous, some using emilia, some married already, others abusive & controlling, addicts themselves ... needless to say, no one really stuck. and matteo definitely had a part in that too, being spiteful, causing fights or fighting back. things got pretty bad @ his place & the neighborhood knew whose house those red & blue lights always visited.

SPEAKING of his neighborhood, one great thing did come out of it & that was not too far around the corner lived @luzzamaya​ , matteo’s BEST FRIEND / ride or die / partner in crime. he practically lived @ her house, looked up to her father as the male figure in his life & they’re still two peas in a pod today :~)) ... but more on that later too ...

matteo grew up QUICKLY - not really in the way of caring for himself ( bc his actions would in fact prove the opposite ) but he often hung out with people way older than him ( not really wanting to be home after school, etc ) & he began diving into the world of drugs early on. def the kid your parents would’ve been 👀👀 about. YALL CATCH THE DRIFT OK ... moving on.

IMPORTANT BLURB TO HIS STORY (TW : mention of gang violence )

so he was always in the wrong crowd / hanging with kids older than him / he got involved with drugs etc really young. he started selling drugs lowkey around high school + the town and was a lowball dealer until he continuously proved himself + being more closely tied to this GANG ( the suppliers ), we can call it La Línea bc i looked up active gangs and this one was made from corrupt / retired police officers so i was like .. YUP ! so he’s currently affiliated, not initiated bc that prob means killing someone nd he’s like miss me w that, fool. but as he’s grown his relationship with them + has continued selling (drugs, weapons .. contraband etc), they want him in bc they trust him. giving him more & more duties. and it’s not like he can say NO bc they’re all strapped + can literally ruin/end his life ?? or ruin/end the lives of the ppl around him? SO as another gang (aka a MAFIA) that is trying to step on la linea’s territory … ( maybe it had bad consequences, someone from la linea being thrown in prison or dead ). SO they trust their outside dude matteo (since he’s not super recognizable to the mafia since he’s not u know . FULLY in la linea) to work a plan to take DOWN this mafia. how ? buy ratting them out to the police. a literal snitch smh. the only bad thing is now … someone from the mafia traced the words back to him. their leader is now in prison & has sent “”soliders”” to come after matteo nO MATTER WHAT. he’s gotten threatening calls // he’s been forced into fights // held at gunpoint which was his FINAL straw of being like ..  I GOTTTA GO

soooooo now they’re ( him & luz ) are in erie :~). 

also i’m thinking he got involved w the gang bc originally he owed other low-level dealers money + was like trust me on this. i’ll do whatever u ask. nd is a loyal ass hoe. plus all of a sudden he was making DOUGH selling product + had a following / a lil bit of a “”community”” that he’d never rly had before

PERSONALITY / HEADCANONS ( idk how to label - just some more info )

he’s not a horrible dude but a LOT of people would argue that he is. and his actions might seem like he is. but ... he’s learning :,)

sarcastic as hell

has an infamous smirk ok ... super careless so yall are gonna see that a lot

has a rooted issue with authority figures & hates when anyone tells him / offers him / suggests to him what to do

despite seemingly coming across as a meanie, he could also be considered the life of the party. not in the sense of being gregarious, but more so having FUN. drowning out 

immature as hell 

has definitely dealt to his mother before :/. a low, even for him, but. that’s a complicated relationship

his hair is constantly a mess

STREET FIGHTS FOR MONEY $$$ or when la linea previously made him. he tries not to do it TOO often but sometimes he’s just gotta ya know ?

has some shitty tattoos - minus the ones done beautifully by luz of course !! a few to cover some scars :|

assume scruff on his face at all times

has been struggling with sleeping through the night, nervous abt getting caught & will often just walk around @ 3pm for a smoke

loves reggaeton 

bilingual but hardly speaks spanish :/

WANTED CONNECTIONS 

a SPONSOR from AA/NA

a COP / law enforcement that takes him in for dealing

or even a bystander that calls in authorities for him dealing / stealing / anything illegal ...

someone he DEALS to

someone who OWES him money

a FLIRTATIONSHIP 

a ROOMMATE

a BARTENDER/CONFIDANT @ his go-to watering hole

a GOOD INFLUENCE who is aware of his addiction 

a PASSENGER in one of his uber rides

someone he got into a CAR ACCIDENT with

they hit him in the middle of the night // or hit his car ? or vice versa ?

someone he had a BAR FIGHT with

next door NEIGHBOR

ENEMIES

always wanted to do a homewrecker plot tbh

a revenge plot ?

someone he’s met from a DATING APP

a COUSIN

another CLUB RAT

ok i’m literally open to ANY connection u think of. it might be easy to come up w/ those in-depth ones while brainstorming tg but above are just a few ideas :,)))

[evrthefanatic]

soulmark part 1 | Elijah Mikaelson x OC

Pairings: Tyler x OC, Matt x Elena

Warnings: Canon Typical Violence

Word Count: 3,873

Read on AO3, FF.net, Qoutev, Wattpad

A/N: Hello there! If there’s anyone there! So I made a fic and I’ve been consistently updating it so far, I thought I’d share it here! I hope you guys like it! 

Ever since she could remember, the strange lettering was engraved into her wrist, pale enough for no one to notice, but rough enough in the edges to be traced. It wasn't until the tragic accident of their parents did Alyssandra begin to uncover the secrets behind the runes.

What would happen in the show if two human doppelgangers were running around?

PROLOGUE | Drowning

It was dark out. Cassie's 'Me & U' blared out loud from Tyler's stereo. From where she stood, Aly saw some of her friends motionless on the grass, either too drunk or fast asleep. Aly glanced to her side. "How's this for a party?" Tyler smirked.

"Pretty good," she answered. The lake offered them a cool breeze, and it carried along with the chatter from the other party-goers. "Pretty tame," she added in afterthought.

"Well that's for next week," he smirked, grabbing her by the waist. "For when we win the championship."

Aly giggled and playfully pushed him away. " If you win the championship." she teased.

"Come to my house this Sat then." he shrugged, "It'll be way more fun than this one. Maybe I can convince you how good of a player I am."

Aly snorted, rolling her eyes. "I can't." she tells him, "It's game night. Mom and Dad are coming home from this huge Medical Convention from Seattle,- and Dad's leaving again next week so I can't really miss it."

Tyler frowned. "How will we have some fun time then?" he whispered to her ear, kissing her there. Aly felt herself flush- her breathing instantly laboring as he nibbled and sucked.

"Next week?" she answered weakly. "They'll be gone anyway."

Ty kissed her, pulling her body flush against his and Alyssandra finds her hands going through his hair. He bit down her bottom lip and she gasped. "We can have some fun time now," he said suggestively.

Whatever reply Aly had in mind was disrupted as Caroline's voice filled the air. "Lockwood!" she whined, "stop manhandling my best friend in front of all of us!"

Aly flushed even more, but she smirked at the looks everyone else gave them. She pushed Tyler away, grinning upon seeing his clearly frustrated face. A chorus of laughter filled the campsite.

"I gotta go anyway." she gave him an apologetic smile, kissing him by the cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Instantly as she got away, Caroline hooked her arm around hers, bursting into giggles. "Have you seen Elena?" Aly asked her.

Caroline ignored her question. "That was so hot. He looked like he was about to eat you. I wish I had a boyfriend like that."

"He's not my boyfriend." Aly denied, rolling her eyes. "Yet."

"Ugh." Caroline flipped her hair. "I just want to have sex. Hot and scandalous. Is he as good as they say he is? I want all the details."

Alyssandra couldn't help but laugh at her comment. "Pretty good," she answered, not at all intimidated by her comment. Caroline shot her a look. "Sometimes aggressive-" she adds, "Takes what he wants, kind of guy."

"Damn." Caroline wistfully sighed. "I want one."

"You'll get one," she reassured her. "Have you seen Elena? I haven't seen her since earlier"

"She's probably knocked out somewhere," Caroline muttered. "You know, with Prince Charming Matt."

Aly giggled at her comment.

"Bonnie already went home, by the way."

"I didn't see," she replied. "Wanna carpool home?"

"Fine by me." Caroline shrugged. "I guess it's just me tonight." she sighed once more. The two girls ceased their walk upon hearing a familiar sniffle and sob a little deeper within the woods. They gave each other identical looks of worry as they followed the sound. "Is that-?"

Elena's face formed immediately to a familiar pout upon seeing them. She threw herself between the two girls, instantly wrapping her arms into a hug. "I broke up with Matt!" she cried.

And that's how they spent the night at the Forbes residence.

Water. Endless water. She was drowning. Her lungs screamed at her, and she desperately clawed her throat. She couldn't breathe, every breath she took burned her. Her heart rattled against her chest. Each second feeling more like her last. Her arms reach out to her father, who struggled against the hold of the belt on of their car before her world faded into black.

But not for long.

She coughed out, crying in hysteria as soon as her eyes opened. Distinctly, she heard sirens fast approaching. Aly quickly sat up, head looking around like a lost dear, to her side she sees that she's just near Wickery Bridge and-

The sweet smell of pancakes and honey awoke her. She blearily opened her eyes, taking a sharp intake of breath. Her heart refused to calm down, and she couldn't help but trail her finger along the familiar mark on her left wrist, welcoming the comfort that usually came along with it. Aly distinctly looked around her surroundings, feeling slightly relieved upon seeing the familiar walls of Caroline's room. Outside, she hears some chatter and plates being moved.

Alyssandra grimaced upon seeing herself in the mirror. Her curly hair was a wreck, it's normal to loose curls had bunched up in her sleep. The signature headband she always wore had grazed her neck, leaving a mark. They must have gotten even more hammered last night, especially with the news of Elena and Matt breaking up. She sighed, choosing instead to tie her hair into a bun, not bothering to fix it until she had come home. By the time she had reached the kitchen, her dream had been long forgotten.

"Morning sleepyhead." Her twin sister, Elena, greeted her. The duo looked exactly alike- completely identical in features, looks, and height. Their differences lied on how they dressed and presented themselves. Aly was more preppy in style, and Elena was more laid back. The biggest difference was how they chose to style their hair, with Elena getting it straightened every other month and Alyssandra just letting it be.

"You look disgusting," Caroline stated. Aly grimaced, whole-heartedly agreeing with her. "Are you okay?" the blonde immediately followed up. "You kept trashing and muttering last night."

Aly blinked, taking the cup of coffee Elena offered her. "I had a bad dream." she shrugged. Caroline wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"The good kind of bad?"

"The wrong kind of bad." she corrected. Though, now that she thought of it, Aly could hardly remember the nightmare at all. Aly switched her attention to her sister, who still looked disheartened and depressed from the breakup. Which was odd, since SHE was the one who broke up with Matt. "How are you holding up?" she asked.

Elena gave her a small smile. "I'll hold," she answered. In truth, Aly knew that her sister was going to break up with the jock sometime soon. She knew exactly why. Elena had known Matt since they were children. Their relationship lacked the excitement, the thrill, often seen in newly formed couples. It was because they were never 'new' at all. If Aly was gonna be honest with herself, she would say the same about her and Tyler.

"Bonnie's asking if she should come over." Caroline's voice broke Aly's musings. "I told her we can meet up at your place later tonight."

"Sounds fine by me." Elena gave her another, albeit timid, smile.

Glancing at the time through her phone, Aly ate one big pancake before dragging her and Elena out. "We'll see you later Care!" she called out, fully intent on getting home and fixing herself up first before heading to school.

The news of the breakup had apparently shaken the whole campus. People sent Elena looks as they walked through the hallways, and her sister maneuvered their walk to make sure they avoided any jock-looking guy that might say the word 'Matt' as they passed. The odd looks were mostly ignored, bar the pouty look that Elena had permanently etched to her face. It seemed to be enough to ward off any advances, cheerleaders, or otherwise.

The two sisters soon separated as they got to their respective classes. Although both girls were intelligent and hard-working, both wanting to go to the same college together, it was Aly who took the extra mile to her studies and extra-curricular. Never wanting to have a dull moment in her schedule- she had signed up in multiple clubs and participated a lot in the Founding Families activities, even going as far as volunteering every now and then along with Caroline.

Her classes passed by smoothly, or as smooth as they can be. Once again she had aggravated her history teacher, Mr. Tanner, before remembering that the man can very well destroy all of her hopes and dreams with a single B. She had wisely shut up, thinking that AP History in her Juniors next semester would be worth the shame of being 'outsmarted' by the man. Someday, she idly sneered in her mind, he'd get his ass rightfully kicked.

In the cafeteria, she finally opened her phone that kept on buzzing in her pocket, and she couldn't help but laugh a little at Ty's rants about Matt and Elena- and how it was ruining his mood. She sent him a bunch of emojis in return- snickering at his attitude.

"Are we gonna hear another break up from you, too?" Bonnie asked as she sat beside her. Bonnie Bennett completed their little circle of friends. A beautiful black brunette who was fiercely loyal to her friends. Oftentimes it was Bonnie who'll get them out of trouble when it arose and she never failed to speak her mind when she wanted to.

"Ty and I are just friends," she said in sing-song.

"Can you like, explain to me how that works?" Caroline demanded, taking a seat as well. "I never pegged you as friends with benefits type."

Aly put her phone away. "It just happened." she said, "We didn't have a label and it-well- I guess it's gonna keep on happening?"

"You have a way with words." Elena mocked, taking a seat as well. She looked remarkably better than she did in the morning. "You should run to the hills. We've known Tyler our whole life and he's not exactly boyfriend material."

"Agreed." Bonnie sagely nodded, pointing her fork up and down. "You'll find better. You never know, you might find a handsome, daring, hot, and chiseled man just around a corner." Aly snorted, giving Bonnie a look.

"Oh you bet." she giggled. "Just not right now."

"I need a boyfriend," Caroline whined. "Maybe I shouldn't have broken it off with Dustin a couple of months ago."

"Gross," Elena complained. But Care nudged her, blonde hair bouncing as she pointed her head to a bunch of red-varsity jackets wearing guys approaching. As if in by cue, Elena's face morphed into an epitome of sadness. Matt led the campaign, and Aly and Ty's eyes met- she looked away immediately, focusing instead on her food before she burst out laughing.

The cafeteria sobered, spectating the debacle about to happen. Bonnie consolingly held Elena's hand- who stared at her food, lower lip wobbling.

"Elena," Matt started.

"She doesn't want to talk to you!" Caroline quickly ended.

Matt ignored her. "We can talk about this," he continued. "Come on, babe."

To Alyssandra's complete surprise, Elena actually faced him. "We can't, Matt," she said, meeting his eyes. "It's over."

The silence seemed to have fallen all over the cafeteria. "This Saturday." he mustered up, fighting the monstrous awkward silence. "Tyler's throwing a party-"

Ty raised his hands in an instant, giving Matt a look that said 'don't bring me into this'. Matt ignored this too.

"- and maybe we can go together? Just this one last time," he said, practically begging. "Please, 'Lena."

Her sister took a deep breath, giving him a small smile. "I'll think about it," she answered. That seemed to be enough, as the flock of jocks immediately went away after that. As soon as they did, chatter once again began in the cafeteria.

"Damn." said Caroline, "I kinda feel sorry for him."

Aly snorted, she quickly covered it up when Elena glared at her. Elena wasn't actually going to the party, she mused. Tyler's party overlapped with their family's game night. "Yeah," Aly tried to agree, "Poor Matt."

Bonnie giggled.

Except Elena didn't seem to be in with the laughs, there was this guilty expression on her face. One that Aly knew all too well. "Come on-"

"I'll talk to him," she said firmly. "The entire thing's my fault, anyway."

"How is it your fault?" Caroline argued. "You should be able to break up with a guy whenever you want!"

"Totally!" Bonnie agreed, "But why do you want to talk to him, anyway? I thought you already had last night."

"I didn't." Elena finally admitted. "I kinda just ended things off." she shook her head, sighing. "I just can't be with him anymore, you guys. I just don't feel like things are going right. Don't get me wrong, Matt's amazing. It's just- it's just not right."

Caroline gasped. "O my god! He totally scared you off!"

Alyssandra laughed at that, remembering Matt's promises of a future filled with mini Mattlenas. "He totally did. 'Lena has a point though. We're only in high school."

"He deserves an explanation." Her sister continued, moving a stray strand of hair from her face. "It'll just suck if I dump him for no reason. I'm not that kind of girl."

"Fine, talk to him," said Alyssandra. "But you gotta remember that we have game night this Sat. You better not miss it."

"I'm not going to." her sister answered. But Aly was quick to realize that she was lying, Elena always wore the same pinched expression every time she lied. Alyssandra still hoped that she'll change her mind, so she didn't push it.

In another life, Aly might've stopped Elena from sneaking to Tyler's party before game night. In this one, she ignored her sister sneaking out of her room through the window after she had lied to their parents about being sick. Completely avoiding game night altogether.

Instead, Aly focused on her four very-present family members as they meticulously played an aggressive version of UNO. Jeremy was currently winning, and Aly felt herself giggle hard over their mom's angry glare. Miranda and Grayson Gilbert were both Doctors at the local Mystic Falls hospital. It wasn't unusual for them to leave their kids alone, sometimes for weeks, trusting that the three siblings together would have enough brain cells to keep the house and themselves together.

Their trust is well placed.

Or at least Aly has convinced herself that it was.

The trio wasn't the type to cause trouble, especially Jeremy. Their brother was as relaxed as they come. Often he'd stay out to hang with his friends, either playing baseball or painting out. Aly and Elena were often out as well. Before, the two sisters would take turns in cooking, and the trio would rotate with the chores. It stayed that way until Elena had almost accidentally burned the house down while using the oven, their parents had then left cooking to Aly's hands whenever they left.

A resounding 'ding' broke the concentration the four held. Miranda was quick to stand up to retrieve the freshly made pizza. Aly felt her stomach grumble in delight as the aroma flowed into the living room. Making sure to carry her cards with her, Alyssandra followed her mother. Fully intent on helping her out. (and maybe grab some bites as well)

"Do you know where Elena went, Alice?"

The question caused her to scowl. Their mother didn't seem to be all too-bothered with Elena skipping game night (it wasn't the first time). She watched Miranda cut the pizza into pieces, immediately grabbing one when she finished.

"She went to Ty's," she answered, taking a bite. "Matt didn't take the break up well. So she decided to apologize- or something."

"Or something." their mother echoed, a light smile on her face. Aly really thought that she was too lax. Her mind wondered if she'll be the same once she had children on her own but she instantly grimaced, burying the thought deep in her mind. She was only 17 after all. Her entire life was still waiting before she could ever begin to settle.

Alyssandra helped her mom bring the food to the tense living room. Grayson's stormy blue eyes were locked against Jeremy's brown ones. Both held their cards against their chest. The tension broke when Grayson grinned, putting a +4 card down in triumph.

Jeremy groaned. "Seriously?"

"Seriously."

Her brother sent their dad a dirty glare, grabbing four new cards from the deck. Aly threw their dad a grin, plopping herself down next to Jeremy, not so discreetly looking at his new cards as she went by- earning a yell from the youngest Gilbert.

It was Miranda that won the game by the end. The four had watched a movie before effectively calling it a night. She begrudgingly sent a message to her sister, telling her that lights had gone out and she was free to go home. She was fast asleep before she could read Elena's reply.

Aly choked, eyes wide. Grayson tried to reach out to her. She couldn't stop herself from gasping even if she wanted too. A pang of familiarity resonated within her, and with it came fear. She tried to reach out, finding it harder and harder to breathe- her lungs burned. Her windpipe felt crushed. The last thing she saw was her father's struggle against the seatbelt before her world faded into black.

Her mind kept telling her that it was a dream. That she should just wake up. But she can't. Aly gasped awake, shooting herself up- coughing. Where was she? Wickery bridge? Another bubble of uncontrollable fear buzzed through her, making her cry in hysteria. What-

Aly was violently pushed awake, without even realizing, she was dragged up. In the back of her mind, she hears a voice cry out.

"Aly wake up!"

She groaned in response, hastily pushing her brother away, glaring. "I'm awake!" she snapped, holding a hand up her chest to calm her rapidly beating heart. Her hand shook, and it took her a moment to realize that her entire body was shaking as well.

Alyssandra groaned once more, pushing her younger brother away with a glare. "Yeah," she murmured, sitting up. She blatantly ignores her racing heart. However, it seems like life has other plans. Jeremy immediately pulls her up.

"Get dressed," Jeremy said, breaking Aly out of her haze. He says, he has this wild look in his eyes. He looked scared. "we have to go."

That's when she noticed the sirens blaring outside her house. All of a sudden, the dream she just had gone to the forefront of her mind, waking her up. The events of her dream were still fresh on her mind, and it overwhelmed her. Aly stood there in her room, frozen.

"Hurry up!" Jeremy frantically pushed her. "Mom, Dad, and Elena are in the hospital,"

Alyssandra moved without thinking, her body suddenly going in auto-pilot. Jeremy rushed her on, but his voice barely registered in her head. She didn't even bother to completely change her set of clothes, settling into an oversized jacket and hair tie. Outside their home stood Deputy Forbes, Caroline's mother, and there was a pained expression on her face.

The officer offered them a tight, sympathetic smile and didn't reach her eyes. Aly fought the urge to scream. "Let's get you two to the hospital."

She could barely recognize the streets as they quickly drove by. Alyssandra's mind had gone to an override, jumping to her dream to the hospital. In the background, she could hear Jeremy and Liz talking.

What had just happened? How could it happen?

Words like accident, lucky, and Elena echoed in the car. Their sister, her twin, survived. But both Grayson and Miranda were dead.

Their parents were dead.

How could things change so quickly?

They were just having game night a few hours ago.

They were at the hospital before she even knew it. Jeremy got out of the car first, rushing in. She saw Aunt Jenna immediately embrace him to her arms, letting him cry and sob. She followed behind- her throat felt so tight. Liz gave her arm a comforting squeeze, leading her inside. Oddly enough, Aly didn't run to her aunt's arms, letting Jeremy have his comfort. Instead, she swallowed the bile that had lodged itself in her throat.

"Elena?"

The first thing that Aly noticed was the crying.

Throughout their entire lives, she was used to the sound of Elena crying. Her sister had always been the more sensitive one out of the two, and it didn't take a lot for waterworks to come. But never in her life had she heard her sister sob this hard. It was agony, deeper than any emotional cut that came before it.

Elena was barely covered with a towel, bawling into her hands, she was absolutely soaked from head to toe. And every cry from her throat shook her entire lithe frame.

Aly felt her heart wrench painfully. For a moment, she felt like she was still dreaming, there was no way this was actually happening. Their parents couldn't actually be dead. Right? It had to be a joke.

In a second, her arms had wrapped itself around her twin. Holding her tight, ignoring the tremor that seemed to overcome both of their bodies. "It's okay." It's not. But the words were out before they even registered in her head. "We'll be okay," she tells her, firmly this time. Her head felt unbearably light, and she jumped when another set of arms had settled in their embrace.

She couldn't breathe.

The sounds of her family crying seemed to echo in her mind. And Aly's arms fell loose to the sides, another person grabbed her arm- Liz Forbes again. She didn't smile this time. Guiding her body into a chair instead, Aly fell to the seat immediately. Blank. Her mind has gone blank. She stared at the image of her family ( what's left of it ) holding each other in a tight embrace. Aly shook herself, taking a harsh deep breath.

Like a shadow, Aly followed the Deputy out of the room, and she can see the concerned glances of everyone present. Mystic Falls was a pretty small town after all, and the hospital was where her parents had worked in. Their Doctor, her parent's co-workers, idly explained to her what happened. And Alyssandra found herself nodding along, signing this- signing that. I'm so sorry, he had said. But really, she couldn't see what he was sorry about, it's not like he drove them off the bridge. It was an accident. Accidents happen all the time.

They gave her a heavy piece of paper. At the top right corner, it said ' Mystic Falls Memorial '. It was a fill-up form.

"You don't have to do this right now, Aly." Liz again. In the back of her mind, Aly can hear the annoyed voice of Caroline, angry for her mother always going about her business.

"It's alright Ms. Forbes," she answered. Jenna was still consoling her siblings. "I can do this now."

The adults around her gave her a set of tight smiles and as she walked away, she could hear the words poor girl, the responsible one, and such a tragedy.

Next Chapter

[thetomorrowshow]

The Poignancy Of Silence

Part 2!

A/N: This is my entry for @stop-it-anxiety‘s fall fic contest! I had a lot of fun writing this. It’s based off the prompt “Patton’s Song”. There will be a part two--hopefully I can get it out before the contest ends (part 2 will be Roceit y’all).

Words: 5309

Tw: car accident (nothing graphic no one really gets hurt), little bit of blood, light kissing, gambling addiction, lots and lots of tears

Pairing(s): Moceit (yeah, I don’t normally like it. Inspiration struck though, and I really like this story)

-

Kind people who had known Dee as a child would have called him imaginative. Less kind people might have labeled him troubled. Those who were even less so would've said he was a delusional liar.

It didn't really matter to Dee. In more cases than not, those who couldn't hear the music weren't worth his time.

Yes, Dee heard music. As a child, it had been loud, ever-present, as children were almost always happy. Not that 'happy' was quite the correct word for it. Each person had a different song, one that played when (as far as he could tell) that person was experiencing a strong, positive emotion. One he'd observed was love. Sympathy, occasionally. But most frequent was joy.

Dee didn't have a song. He didn't know why, but always suspected that he was just missing out on whatever joy everyone else possessed. He'd never been truly happy. It hurt, deep down. Hurt to know that he'd never get this little portion of personality. He hid it the best he could.

Trying to explain to teachers and guardians why he couldn't pay attention in class did nothing but land him therapist visits, diagnoses, and pills that there was no way he was going to take. By the age of nine, Dee had learned to lie about it. People were scared of the music, he realized. They didn't want anyone to hear it.

So, the next time his foster brother burst through the front door waving his report card, a huge smile on his face and accompanied by the cheery ukulele strumming that was his music, Dee just smiled as well and said nothing.

A new family stopped making him see the doctors and take the drugs, but somehow got the memo that he was a liar. It hurt to hear from the people he desperately wanted to be loved by, especially since most families didn't want him, mainly due to his birth disfigurement. He tried to laugh it off, though. His face made for wonderful Halloween opportunities.

As Dee grew older, he started listening to music of his own. Earbuds playing light mood music or The Beatles or quiet indie songs, a playlist perfectly crafted to allow him to focus. It covered up the discordant mash of instruments that was high school.

One weekend, he locked himself in his stuffy room on the upper floor of his foster family's house, intent on staying there until Monday, when he discovered that his earbuds were broken. He didn't dare go in search of a new pair and put himself in the middle of whatever his guardians were arguing about this time, so just cracked his window for some fresh air and hoped no one was near enough for their song to hit his ears. Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be. A tune drifted up, and, before he shut the window, he tilted his head, listening to someone's joy.

It was a jaunty piano tune, plunked out jovially, like whoever it was coming from hadn't a care in the world. It was . . . pretty, he decided. Very sweet and easy. So, for that one time, he left the window open.

-

Every day after school Dee dashed up to his bedroom and cracked his window, tearing out his earbuds recklessly. Every day, that music wafted up to his room and he smiled, the day finally made good.

One day, he popped his head over the sill and glimpsed a grinning teenager, sprawled out on the trampoline in the neighbor's backyard. He immediately ducked down, afraid of being seen. The boy was—there was no other word for it—adorable. Like a puppy, happy at existence.

Dee started to keep an eye out for him. Paused his music when walking past him on the way to school, or when walking past the neighbor's house. Blushed when he saw the boy's smile at the grocery store, working as a cashier.

He wasn't attracted to the dark-haired, liberally freckled, bespectacled boy. He just wanted to know. What about him made his music so carefree?

-

Dee taught himself to how to play piano when he was fifteen, sneaking into the jazz band closet during lunch and plunking out notes on the keyboard. He said to himself that knowing how to play piano was a good skill to have, and it would get him girls, and maybe he could take it to a career if he got good enough.

Saying that didn't change the fact that the first thing he learned was the boy's song.

-

Years haunted by that cheerful music (which, for some reason, he never got sick of) passed. Dee moved away, got an apartment of his own, yet he still heard it.

The university he attended was unsurprisingly lacking in music. It came in short bursts here and there, but maybe it was more plentiful in the dorms. That didn't change the fact that every morning, on the walk to whatever building of the school he needed, He heard the neighbor boy's music. It was brief, always drifting from the same busy intersection, like it was coming from one of the waiting vehicles while Dee crossed the road.

The tune being so close and so far at once drove Dee mad. He stopped listening for it—he needed to move on. His playlist had been specifically designed to block out music. He started wearing his earbuds everywhere again.

One morning he was running particularly late. He ran out of the apartment building and dashed down his route to campus. His backpack bounced and jostled, his breath came in gasps, his eyes were fixed on his pounding feet, but he didn't hear any of it. Just George Harrison singing sweetly in his ear. Which was probably why he didn't notice that the light was green as he burst out of the tree line and ran  into the busy intersection.

He didn't hear the honking, or the tires screeching, or the shouts.

-

His eyes blinked open, then instantly squeezed shut as they were met with a blinding light. He felt sick and dizzy and his head ached. A shadow passed over his eyelids, and he realized he was lying on something hard and almost sharp.

“I don't think he's waking up!”

Dee groaned and let his eyes flicker open again. A helmeted head turned away from him blocked the sun. Then the person turned back, a phone to his ear, freckled face creased with worry. Even years later, Dee recognized him. Even without the glasses, and with blood welling up from a deep-looking cut on his cheek.

The boy. Or, the man.

“It's you,��� he said before he could stop himself. The boy man's face relaxed, and he spoke into the phone again.

“Never mind, he woke up! When will the ambulance be here?” A pause, then he nodded and covered the receiver. “Don't worry,” he whispered with a conspiratorial wink. “I have financial aid.”

And that was how Dee formally met Patton Esperanza. Sprawled out on a busy road, bleeding from a head injury, the man's motorcycle lying just in his peripheral.

And he was head-over-heels in love.

-

Their first date was in the hospital cafe, both with their wounds treated. Dee had noticed the pride pin on Patton Esperanza's collar. He shared that he was pansexual himself, and Patton Esperanza, with that adorable little smile of his that scrunched up his eyes and put a dimple in his right cheek, had said, “So I guess this is a date, then. Or a gay-te.”

And that music had played, that cheerful, down-to-earth tune that Dee could associate with a shining face and a small gap between teeth and a sea of freckles.

“I—I guess,” he'd stuttered.

And Patton Esperanza had laughed a small laugh, and Dee found himself blushing as Patton Esperanza suggested a second date soon.

-

Their second date was at a small, locally-owned buffet. Dee found himself laughing an easy laugh as Patton Esperanza mimicked a walrus, chopsticks stuffed in his cheeks. Even over the five separate tunes playing from other customers, he could hear Patton's song.

He found out that Patton Esperanza was in veterinary school, across the campus from the law division of the school, where Dee spent most of his time. He could imagine Patton greeting the dogs and cats with a huge goofy grin, and realized that he would be a perfect veterinarian.

He felt his face grow warm when Patton nudged his shoulder, sputtered a bit when Patton stole the vegetable sushi from his plate, grinned stupidly when Patton cooed and waved at the baby in the booth across the aisle.

As he'd noticed years previously, Patton Esperanza was the happiest person alive. With him, Dee thought that maybe—just maybe—he could be just as happy.

-

It was the fifth date when Patton Esperanza kissed him. A quick peck on the lips at the local Museum of Modern Art (Dee's choice, it was mentally quieter than the places Patton liked to visit), followed immediately by a scared look.

“Was that too much?” Patton asked quickly, those bright hazel eyes brimming with worry. Dee realized he hadn't moved, just stood frozen while he tried to process.

“N-no, it was fine!” He shook his head, trying to clear it, thinking only of how brief the moment had been and how weird kissing was, but in a nice, soft way. “It was good,” he amended, and slowly, cautiously, slipped his hand into Patton's. The man's face lit up, the worry washing away.

They wandered the halls all afternoon, hands laced together between them, giggling at nonsensical art and standing somberly before pieces that hit too close to home.

“My parents split up when I was eleven,” Patton admitted at some point. His music had quieted. “I've got two little brothers. My parents both knew that they wanted my brothers, and argued over them, but. . . .” he sighed. “Neither of them really wanted me. I ended up with my mom and one brother. It was clear that she only really loved my brother.” He saw Dee's sympathy and smiled sadly. “It's okay, though. Just because I love them doesn't mean they have to love me.”

-

“My parents didn't want me, either,” Dee said over a cup of coffee, at the cafe across the street from the museum. He laughed, the sound more bitter than his drink. “Failed abortion. You'd think maybe they'd have a change of heart, and keep me, but no. Took one look at my face and screamed, I guess.”

Patton reached over and lightly ran a hand down the bumps and ridges that defined the scaly deformity that disfigured the left side of his face. “I like it,” he said quietly. “Even if no one else does. It just means no one will be trying to take you away from me.”

This time, though Patton again initiated the kiss, Dee didn't freeze. He passionately responded.

-

They shared a home now. Dee's home, actually.

Which meant they shared a kitchen.

Which naturally meant they should bake cookies together.

Poof!

A cloud of flour erupted in Dee's face. He coughed and sputtered and heard Patton's voice from somewhere through the cloud. “Oops. Sorry!” The little giggle that followed denoted any sincerity.

“Oh, it is on,” Dee grinned. He spotted the canister of sugar on a counter and, quick as a flash, grabbed a handful and launched it in Patton's direction.

“Ow! No fair!” laughed Patton. Dee recoiled with a bark of laughter as a plastic measuring cup narrowly missed his nose.

The kitchen exploded into an all-out war of ingredients (or anything else at hand), the recipe book on the table forgotten.

When it was all over, and the dust had literally settled, Patton and Dee stood in the middle of the kitchen, crying tears of laughter and holding each other like it was the end of the world. They were both covered in fine white powder; every movement brought another puff of flour. The afternoon sun filtered through a window, catching the particles in the air and surrounding them with a galaxy of little star-like specks.

“I love you,” Patton whispered. Dee heard his cheery music, which had been a background noise, rise to almost deafening.

“I love you.”

-

“I hear music.”

“What?”

Dee wasn't quite sure why he was saying it. Everyone he'd told about it had called him a liar, delusional. Somehow, though, he felt like Patton was different. He steeled himself.

“I, uh. I hear music.”

“Right now?” Patton smiled, and yes, Dee did hear his music right then.

“Uh, yeah, actually.”

Patton paused the movie. They were curled up on the couch in their living room on a Sunday afternoon, cuddled in the warmth of blankets and each other, the first snow of the season falling outside.

“It's stupid, never mind.”

“Dee, you can tell me anything.”

One look at those eyes, honest, accepting, loving, gave him the courage he needed.

“Well . . . I hear music,” he repeated. So few words, yet so hard to say. “Like, for me, everyone has their own tune that plays when they're joyful—or, whatever.”

He tensed and looked away, waiting to be called a liar, or silly, or be laughed at. Instead, the music grew louder.

“That's awesome.”

Dee looked back; Patton's face was shining with excitement. He chuckled a bit. “Uh, yeah. It's actually pretty loud.”

Patton didn't seem to hear. He bounced off the couch and to the keyboard in the corner of the room. “You play, right? Can you play me somebody's?”

“Of course, mon amour,” Dee said, trying to mask his apprehension with a silky tone. Patton blushed, then pulled back the chair. Dee sat, letting his nerves roll off in waves. He stretched his fingers, took one last glance at his love, then closed his eyes.

He knew what he was going to play. He'd memorized it years ago. Anytime he sat before a piano,  it pulled at his hands and pushed at his head.

His hands found the correct keys. He waited a few seconds for the music in his ears to loop around to the beginning, then let it flow from his fingertips. He missed a note or two, but it was fine. The rest of it, the jaunty, plunking tune, sounded beautiful.

When he wrapped it up, he opened his eyes to see Patton's shining with wonder.

“Is that yours?”

Dee barely heard the whisper over how loud the song was. He cringed inwardly, not wanting to wake the hurt deep inside at not having a song of his own. He grinned up at Patton.

“No. It's yours.”

-

“Where are you?”

“I got held up. Dr. Green wanted to talk with me about getting an internship.”

“Where?”

“Thompson and Edelman.”

“That's far away.”

“Yeah. I don't think I'm going to take it.”

Silence. “So where are you right now?”

“Stuck in traffic. It's Friday, you know. Rush hour's pretty bad.”

“Yeah.” A sigh. “I don't know. This is the third date night in a row you've missed. Maybe we should stop trying.”

Now he felt guilty. In truth, the internship discussion hadn't been what made him late. He'd hung around the dorms, playing poker with some other law students.

“Maybe we can do something tomorrow?”

“I've got to be at the clinic.”

“Right. Movie on Sunday?”

“. . . Yeah.”

“Great. You want me to pick something up to eat on my way home?”

“No, no. I made dinner. I'll just reheat it for you.”

“Okay. I love you.”

“Love you.”

-

Patton's spoon clattered as it fell back in his bowl. His jaw hung open. Dee could hear the first few notes of a very recognizable tune.

Dee laughed. “It's true. I've never built a snowman.”

A huge grin unfurled across Patton's face. “Let's go! Right now. I think it's wet enough.”

“Are six inches enough to build a snowman?”

“Any amount of snow is enough if you try hard!”

So they built a snowman. Dee's coat was warm, but he didn't have any gloves, and wore yellow rubber dish gloves instead. When he waggled his fingers, Patton just laughed. “Now I know what to get you for Christmas!”

The snowman didn't go so well. Grass stuck to it and the construction was lopsided and Dee was fairly certain that the head was the same size as the bottom part, but Patton smiled happily and ran inside the apartment building. He emerged with a carrot, likely borrowed from one of the grinning neighbors that watched through the windows. He stuck it proudly in the middle of its face; Dee wrapped his only scarf around it.

Patton declared it the best snowman ever.

-

He did get gloves for Christmas. They were a ghastly yellow (likely in memory of the dish gloves), but they were soft, and one look at Patton's sparkling eyes told him he was going to wear them every day.

-

“I'm truly touched that you didn't like my birthday gift.”

“I told you I didn't want anything! I would've loved to just spend the day with you.”

“Well, I'm sorry that I didn't understand your stupid hints. Maybe I shouldn't have spent a week trying to pick something!”

“If you'd listened to me, you wouldn't have had to! You would've known what I wanted!”

“Obviously I'm not wanted, I'll be back tonight. Return the gift, I don't give a—”

“—Don't go play poker, you know I hate it when you gamble!”

“Don't tell me what to do.”

“That's not the person I fell in love with!”

“What, you thought I was a submissive puppy?! I have goals and a life, you know! I can't spend every minute listening to you! I'm not here just to make you happy!”

“And I'm not here to have a boyfriend who ignores me and lies to avoid spending time with me!”

“I said I was sorry!”

“Maybe I don't know if it was a sincere apology!”

“Maybe you should get a new boyfriend!”

“. . . You—you don't mean that.”

Slam.

-

“Name?”

Dee cleared his throat. “Uh, I'm just here to deliver these flowers to Dr. Esperanza.”

The man at the desk's face lit up. “Aw, that's cute! I'll let him know.”

Dee turned to leave, but a door opening behind him gave him pause. Was Patton coming into the waiting room?

No. The man had glasses, but his hair was a lighter shade of brown and his eyes were grey, and he had a more professional look—a necktie over a white button-up, covered by a lab coat. A low, methodical tune followed him.

“The Foster dog needs flea treatment,” the man said to the secretary without preamble, then noticed Dee. “Ah. Are you a patient with us?”

Dee shook his head. Then gestured at the flowers, then pointed at the door the man had exited from. His throat felt too dry too speak for some reason. The man followed his gestures, then his gaze landed on the deformed side of Dee's visage. Dee felt his face burn as he saw the distaste take over the man's—Dr. Logan Cato, his badge read—face. Dr. Cato's music trundled to a stop.

The doctor took him by the arm out the front door, nails biting into Dee's skin. As soon as the door closed, he spoke.

“If Patton ever comes into work crying again,” Dr. Cato said, his voice a low threat, “you'll have me to answer to. You're going to have to do better than some cheap flowers.”

Dee nodded and tried to pull away, but the man wasn't done. “Anyone would be lucky to have him,” the veterinarian said. “You need to recognize just how much you mean to him.”

That annoyed Dee. As Dr. Cato released him and walked back inside, Dee went over his words again. How much he meant to Patton? What about how much Patton meant to him? He'd skipped class and driven across town to the vet that Patton interned at just to apologize! Sure, maybe he was too much of a coward to say sorry in person, but he'd googled about which flowers meant what and composed a poem.

Patton was his life. He wouldn't let a stupid mistake push him away.

-

“Did you skip class to get me the flowers?”

“Yes.”

“Dee, you can't—”

“Sweetheart, I wanted to.”

“But your future!”

“I don't want a future without you.”

-

“Where were you?”

Dee froze halfway in the door. “Tutoring,” he lied. Patton hated when he gambled. Speaking of Patton, the man stood before him now, his face stony, arms crossed.

“We were supposed to spend the evening together.”

In all honesty, a part of Dee had remembered. They'd been planning a trip to a busy restaurant. He knew Patton wanted to, but he shuddered at the thought of such a crowded place, so many people with so much music.

“I'm sorry, he apologized automatically. “Three students needed help, and I was the only person there to tutor—”

“I got the evening off work just to spend with you.”

Dee felt a spark of anger in his chest. “What about me?” he asked belligerently. “What if I'd come home and wanted to be alone?”

“Well, I—”

“I can't drop everything I'm doing just because you want me to!” Dee ranted, really getting heated now. “I care about you, but I have a life too! I have things that I want to do, too!”

Patton's brow furrowed. “Were you . . . were you out gambling again?”

Dee felt his face heat up. “So what if I was? What's wrong with that?”

“Dee, there's so much wrong with it, but. . . .” Patton looked away. When he turned back, his earnest face was crumpling, his eyes full. “Today? Of all days?” he choked out.

Oh no. Oh no no no no no. His anger vanished quick as it had come, replaced by a cold fear. Today? What was today?

The 24th. The 24th of April. The same date that, a year ago, Patton had agreed to be his boyfriend.

Their anniversary.

“Oh no,” he breathed. His mind flew: did he get a gift? Was his gift going to be spending time together? And if so, did he just ruin their anniversary—and relationship—by being a selfish idiot?

Before he could say anything, a body pushed past him; the door swung closed.

“No—Pat, wait—!”

He threw himself out the door, but Patton was already gone. The thudding of running feet echoed from the stairwell.

“Pat, please!” Dee called out, heedless of those trying to sleep in surrounding apartments. He flew down the stairs, coming to a stop on the ground level just as the building door slammed shut.

A woman and her toddler watched on sympathetically as Dee dropped to his knees and sobbed. He hadn't thought that the night before would be the last night   he'd get to hold his true love.

He hadn't thought that he'd be the one to drive his true love away.

-

“One more chance.”

“One more chance.”

Dee pulled Patton into a kiss, relaxing when his boyfriend (somewhat reluctantly) returned the affection.

“How about I take off work tomorrow? You don't work till 3, so we can pull an all-nighter tonight.”

Patton nodded, a small smile gracing his tear-stained face. “It's been a while since we did one of those.”

“I still haven't seen that Christopher Robin movie.”

Later, they were curled up on the floor, surrounded by blankets and pillows and popcorn, a plate  of pizza rolls between them, the movie playing on the screen before them. Dee tapped Patton on the shoulder; the man looked up sleepily.

“I made this for you,” he whispered, and dropped something into his hand.

Patton's eyes widened at the bracelet. Beads spelling his name were laced into a complicated braid (Dee had learned to braid years previous, having been forced by a foster sister, then realized he found it calming and kept it up). Different shades of blue and grey crisscrossed beautifully and intricately.

“I'll wear it forever,” breathed Patton. “How did you make it?”

Dee shrugged awkwardly, a hand on the back of his neck. “It wasn't too hard. Just a braid.”

“I love it.”

Dee smiled, relieved. “I love you, you know?”

Finally, he heard that soft, plunking music.

“Yeah. I love you.”

-

It was late—or, early, maybe? That was okay, though. He'd let Patton know in advance that he'd be late. He'd made something up about a study group and dinner afterward. Patton had seemed okay with it.

However, it was now clear that his boyfriend had made plans of his own. He could hear Pat through the walls—chatting with the couple two doors down. He couldn't hear his song, though.

Instead of going straight to bed, he flopped out on the couch and turned something on—probably music. Music made for a good white noise for him, something to have to relax against.

It was perhaps a sign of his growing drowsiness that he didn't hear when the door opened.

“Oh.”

The word was cold and removed, and Dee sat up and stretched, blinking blearily at the figure in the doorway.

“Pat?” He took in his boyfriend's red nose and eyes, his stiff posture, the tight line that was his mouth. “What's wrong?”

“She tagged you.”

“What?”

Patton pointed at an open laptop on the counter, which Dee hadn't previously noticed. He stumbled up and over to it, his fingers dancing across the mousepad as the screen woke up.

It was open to a video on a social media site, and before it even started, Dee felt his heart sink.

He saw himself, hissing on a pair of dice and tossing them out onto an unseen table. Saw himself raise his arms in a gesture of triumph, mouthing “Snake eyes!” amidst silent cheering from the group crowding around him. Saw a girl (he didn't even know her name, some freshman who was already failing) pull him by his collar until their mouths collided. Saw his own eyebrows raise. Saw a student whistle, another letting out a noiseless catcall.

The clip moved on to a different moment before he could watch himself push the girl away with a nervous laugh. Check the time. Make up some excuse about leaving. Bite his lip anxiously, hoping that Patton would never find out.

He looked up wordlessly, trying to find something more meaningful than I'm sorry (words that should mean so much, but went hollow after too many lies). A tear slipped from Patton's eye, dying a spot on his light blue t-shirt black.

“I thought you'd died,” he spat. “There was an accident on 150. The car looked like yours. I kept calling, and you didn't pick up.”

“Pat—”

“I don't want to hear it!” Patton shouted, anger spilling over. “You promised you would stop gambling, you promised to not lie, and on April 24th, over a year ago, you promised to love me!”

“Pat!” But he couldn't be stopped.

“Everything is lies! Every day, I'm asking myself if you're really planning on coming home that night!” Tears ran fiercely down both of their faces. Dee stood, reached for Patton's shoulder, who jumped back as if burned.

“Don't touch me!” he hissed. “You're full of lies, and—and—” his voice raised— “Now I know why your parents named you Deceit!”

Dee physically recoiled. They never talked about his birth name. Ever. Patton had promised to never bring it up—not in an argument, not in a loving way, never. It hurt too much. He looked , expecting an apology. None came. Patton glared at him. Dee broke eye contact immediately, feeling the freezing pain of hearing his name mixed the crippling pain of his lover's hateful gaze. As soon as he turned away, a choked sob met his ears, and a body pushed past him.

Not for the first time, Patton ran away from the apartment. Not for the first time, Dee stood in shock, and briefly wondered what the neighbors must think.

Not for the first time, Dee fell to his knees, certain that this was the last time, that his true love was never coming back.

-

Dee was there when Patton returned—or, rather, there again. Dee had wandered the streets in the windy night until the edges of the sky started to turn purple, then orange. Then he'd wearily trod back to the complex to see if Patton had returned of his own accord. The man hadn't, but hardly ten minutes passed before the door was quietly pushed open and Patton stumbled in, stepped around Dee—who was silently crying in a heap on the floor—and went into the bedroom. The lock clicked behind him.

Now, Dee dashed away his tears. The sun was almost fully visible. On a weekday, they would be up at this time, preparing breakfast and showering and packing their bags for class.

Dee wasn't all that great at cooking, but scrambled eggs were decently simple, so he cracked some eggs in a pan and turned on the stove.

At some point, a glimmer of hope had sprung up in his stomach. Maybe . . . if he changed . . . if he reminded Pat of all the good times. . . .

He shook himself. He isn't happy with you, he told himself. It's hurting him to be with you.

Still, though. Maybe . . . maybe if he devoted his life to him . . . maybe . . . maybe Patton could love him again. . . .

“Dee?”

Dee dropped the spatula with a jump; he looked up to see Patton in the doorway. The man was in the same clothes as the night before, hair rumpled and eyes heavy with sleep.

He looked away as quickly as possible, stirring the eggs with vigor he didn't possess.

“Dee?”

“I'm making eggs,” Dee rambled. “You know I'm not that good at cooking, but I wanted something to do, and you were going to need to eat, and I couldn't sleep, so—”

“Dee.”

He met Patton's eyes. They were quiet, dull without the normal sparks of love and life. “Yes?”

“We tried, you know?”

And there it was. Tears pricked at the back of his eyes as Dee dropped the spatula again, letting his arms fall uselessly to his sides.

“We tried,” Patton continued, voice somehow emotionless yet overflowing with all the feelings neither of them could confess. “And we had some really good times. But people change—like clothes shrinking in the wash. One day, it's your favorite shirt, and it fits perfectly and you feel happy. The next, it's too small. Doesn't fit. It'll never fit again. And you're sad—you've just lost something that made you feel really good.”

“Pat, please—”

“I-I care about you, Dee. But this is hurting both of us. We—we just don't fit anymore.”

And now Patton was crying, now they both were, shaking and sobbing and feeling their life crash down around them. I'm sorry, Dee wanted to say. I'll change. Please. Please don't leave me. Instead, he wrapped his arms around Patton as the man flung himself at his chest. The eggs forgotten, they stood in the middle of the kitchen, crying tears of sadness and frustration and everything else and holding each other like it was the end of the world. The morning sun filtered in through the window, shining a spotlight on the two broken men.

“I love you,” Dee whispered. Patton said nothing, just hugged him closer. And Dee heard the sharpness, the poignancy, the depths of emptiness wrapped in one melody.

Silence.

[sovvannight]

If Memories Are Shadows, We’d Best Not Waste the Light (Lydia/Stiles, 1/2)

Summary:  While visiting his mother in the hospital, nine-year-old Stiles meets a girl recovering from a car accident.

March 2004

Stiles jogged alongside his mother’s wheelchair, which was being pushed by a nurse.  Stiles’s dad walked on the other side, holding on to her hand to comfort her.

She was back at the hospital for more tests—she’d been sick for as long as Stiles could remember, but lately she seemed worse.  She’d been forgetting what she was saying in the middle of a sentence, burning dinner because she forgot to set a timer, yelling at him—well, more than usual, because it’s not like he never got in trouble before, but she was madder, and yelled louder.

She’d been in the hospital for three days this time while they tried some different medicine to make her better.  Nobody had said anything to Stiles, but he could tell it wasn’t working.  She was still confused more often than not when he visited after school—sometimes she didn’t know who he was at all, or she expected him to be younger than he was.   She cried a lot, or yelled, and she scared him a little.

Now they were on the way to take pictures of Mom’s brain to see if there had been any changes in the past month, since the last time they’d taken that route.

When they reached the room labeled Imaging, his dad told him, “Go ahead and sit out here and wait where it’s quieter, OK, Stiles?  Maybe you can work on your homework.”

“OK,” he agreed, but he knew he probably wouldn’t be able to concentrate; he was just too worried.  He rooted through his backpack, looking for something to occupy himself with, ending up with a math worksheet.  He was finishing up when motion at the end of the hall caught his eye.  It was Mrs. McCall, Scott’s mom, pushing a kid in a wheelchair.

The person in the wheelchair was a girl about his age, he could see when they got closer.  She was very pale, and her head was wrapped in bandages covering her hair.  She had a black eye, some cuts and scrapes, and her right arm and right leg were both in casts.

Read the rest on AO3

[awkwardnessandbaseball]

As promised, here’s Chapter One!!!

So many thanks to: @cspupstravaganza, @sherlockianwhovian​, and @lassluna.

AO3 if that’s your jam.

I’d Pick You (and Your Little Dog, Too)

A Captain Swan Pupstravaganza Story

Summary: According to everyone in the known universe, Emma Swan’s dog is supposed to lead her to her soulmate. But she’s not even sure if she wants that. Soulmates are pretty idealistic, don’t you think?

Chapter One:

There is a good chance that Rascal is going to break Emma Nolan’s neck one of these days. She loves her dog dearly, but he isn’t easy to walk on a crowded street. Even down a limb, he still barrels down the sidewalk, always on a mission, pulling Emma this way and that. Most of the time, somehow or another, it turns out that he’s gotten her away from some accident or pulled her towards the exact food she’s been craving.

One time, she’d been distracted, looking down at her phone, and a car had run straight through a red light while she was in the crosswalk. Rascal yanked her across the street so hard, she’d nearly fallen flat on her face. But she couldn’t be mad at him, because he’d quite literally saved her life. A little shoulder soreness from the pulling sure beat being flattened in the middle of an intersection.

“You really should have more control over your dog, you know.” A strange man is wrinkling up his nose at Emma as Rascal drags her down the sidewalk. It’s odd enough that the man has an unfamiliar face in a small town like Storybrooke, where Emma’s lived for her entire life, but the judgement apparent on his face just rubs her the wrong way. She doesn’t respond as Rascal leads her directly to the door of her favorite coffee shop. It’s been a long week, and Rascal knows it, so he knows this is what she needs this morning. Emma returns her attention to the man, unsure why he feels the need to comment on her dog owning skills. Catching her eye, he continues speaking to her. “They’re very important creatures in our lives. It would be a shame if something happened before he could fulfill his duty.” The man turns and walks away, and Emma notices that he doesn’t even have a dog of his own.

She knows he’s right, of course. Her dog is supposed to somehow lead her not only into coffee shops and out of trouble, but also directly into the arms of her soulmate. If she’s even got one.

At 28, most of her friends have already been paired off. Ruby’s tiny little Cairn terrier, Toto, got her leash tangled up with Dorothy’s oversized Siberian Husky, Wolf, when they were only twenty. Ashley’s white Labrador Retriever, Tommy, had brought home her neighbor’s Yorkie as if they were on a play date – Sean wasn’t happy about it until he’d seen who owned the lab who’d stolen his dog, Boots. Even Will Scarlet’s beautiful little cocker spaniel, Lady, had somehow led him straight to Belle and her mess of a mutt, Tramp.

Emma and her brother, David, are the only ones left out of their friends without soulmates. It’s absurd. The whole thing is, really. Dogs are too good and pure to be used just as tools to find your soulmate.

Emma doesn’t know if she even buys into the whole soulmate thing. The idea that a dog chooses you, fine, but that it then leads you to another human just seems so…idealistic. Like maybe people just love their dogs so much that they want to find people just like them, and the soulmate thing is just an excuse.

She’s tried to make this argument before, but David has always shut her down. He’s an optimistic fool who is the very definition of hopeless romantic. His soulmate’s dog probably sleeps beside its human in bed every night, snuggled up for warmth and safety.

Emma does let herself wonder, occasionally, what her soulmate’s dog is like. She wonders if the dog runs away often, or is afraid of small spaces like she is. She wonders if her soulmate lives across the world in Europe or something and that’s why it’s taking so long to find them.

She wanders into the coffee shop, looking around at all of the human-canine pairs lounging about on couches and sipping drinks at the counter. There are hitches for dog leashes throughout the shop, but most people choose to keep them in-hand, their dogs as much a part of them as their hands or arms or legs. The shop, like most, gives out a small plastic container of water to each customer for their canine counterparts, and some people have taken to labeling the makeshift bowls the way their cups are labeled by the baristas. Emma sees a lot of ‘Charlies’ and ‘Stellas’ on these bowls, but so far, hers is the only Rascal.

Sometimes, she watches Rascal when they enter a building full of dogs, just to see if he’ll lead her to someone special. So far, he never has. Today is no different, and she approaches the counter as she shakes the idea from her head, ordering a latte for herself and a black coffee for David.

They hand her a plastic container and she leaves it unlabeled, truthfully wishing she could leave her own cup unmarked as well. It’s a small thing, but she always feels as though everyone stares at her when the baristas call out her name, particularly when it’s spelled, and therefore pronounced, incorrectly.

The amount of times she’s been called ‘Enya’ is far higher than it has any right to be.

She places the container on the ground so Rascal can have a drink while they wait, and then tosses the empty bowl into the recycling bin when he’s done.

“Irma?” the barista calls out, and Emma turns red as she grabs the two cups from her and nearly runs out the door, Rascal the one struggling to keep up for once.

She heads to the station to start her shift. The nice thing about being the sheriff of Storybrooke is that it’s a sleepy little town, which makes her job extremely easy. Plus, her twin brother is her deputy. All in all, there are worse life choices she could have made.

A shudder goes down her spine as her ex, Neal, pops into her mind, but she ignores it and forces his smug face out of her mind. No sense thinking about the life she could have had on the other side of the law, now that she’s quite happy enforcing it. Rascal senses her sudden discomfort and stops walking, staring at her for assurance that she’s okay.

“I’m good, bud. Just thinking about you-know-who.” Emma nods once, balancing the two cups in the palm of her hand - a skill leftover from her waitressing days - and leans down to pet him briefly before continuing on their way. Rascal never liked Neal – and that should have been Emma’s first and biggest red flag, really – and he still growls at the mere mention of the man’s name.

When Emma arrives at the station, David sees her struggling with the door and runs over to open it for her, giving Rascal a head scratch while he’s at it. Once his collar and leash are unclipped, Rascal runs ahead of Emma and joins Princess in what has become their designated corner of the station. They circle each other for a moment, sniffing each other with happy, wagging tails, before settling in together on their extra-large dog bed. David takes his coffee from Emma’s hand with a thank you and a kiss to her cheek, and then fills her in on the day thus far.

“Leroy had a few too many at the Rabbit Hole last night, so he slept it off in a cell but was good to go about an hour ago. Regina called, claiming she needed extra security for the town hall meeting next week.” David glances at Emma quickly and they both burst into laughter.

The last time the mayor had a town hall meeting, it had been when Emma was up for election as sheriff. People had filed in endlessly, filling the room to the brim, to support their favorite deputy. Regina had nominated one of her pawns, a man named Sidney Glass who ran the local gossip paper, and the entire town rallied against it.

But the police hadn’t been prepared for such a turnout, and there’d nearly been several fights and they’d narrowly avoided a small fire. At least three pieces of artwork had been somehow spoiled – a rip here, a small dent in the frame there, and one barely noticeable piece of graffiti in the corner of Mayor Mills’ portrait.

It’s really no surprise that Regina wants additional security for this meeting. Although Emma doubts as many people will be showing up to vote on whether to use the abandoned plot of land in the center of town for a new library or a playground.

“Do you think it’s weird that some people don’t have soulmates?” David asks her suddenly.

Emma looks at him and tilts her head, unsure of where his question has come from or where it’s leading. She sips her latte while she thinks of how to answer.

Her brother is, after all, a hopeless romantic who’s been holding out nearly his entire adult life for someone he’s introduced to by way of Princess. It was difficult for him to go through his entire adolescence without a dog at all, and when they were kids, he had asked Emma almost daily if she thought it meant there was no one out there for either of them.

“No, David, I think it just means... maybe we’re not ready to meet them yet,” she had told him once when they were in high school. He had nodded his head and seemed to accept her answer. At any rate, he’d stopped asking, finally, and they found Rascal and Princess by the end of the following summer, right after their 18th birthdays.

She thinks about this moment, about how he’d stopped asking her questions, and what it means that he’s bringing up the topic of dog-less humans again now, more than ten years later.

“No, I don’t. I think people can find someone to fall in love with, even if fate didn’t choose that person for them. You fell in love with Kathryn,” Emma points out in the present moment, hoping David won’t notice that she’s conveniently forgetting her own former love story. Princess raises her head at David’s ex-girlfriend’s name and lets out a surprisingly human-like sigh.

“Right, but then I found Princess and she found Dodger, and we realized soon after that we weren’t meant to be. What about people who never get dogs at all?”

Emma raises an eyebrow.

“I saw a guy today who didn’t have a dog. He was really bitter and told me I needed to have better control over Rascal.” She rolls her eyes. “But I’m sure not everyone without a soulmate is like that. There’s enough of them out there that they’re bound to find their way together some way or another.”

“Or they end up alone, watching the rest of us get our happy endings.” David is staring into space now, absentmindedly chewing on the end of a pen.

“Where is this coming from?” Emma finally asks.

“I saw a woman yesterday,” he begins, and Emma’s eyes nearly roll right out of her head. “She was absolutely beautiful and had the most radiant smile. I had just finished up my talk with the sixth graders on peer pressure and drugs and all that, and she was walking towards me when I was leaving. I think she’s a teacher, but I’ve never seen her before.” A smile is forming on David’s face and Emma doesn’t think she’s ever seen him look like this. When he met Kathryn, she was simply pretty and nice, and seemed to be as lonely and romantic as he was. It was logical and it was easy. The look on David’s face makes Emma think that this might not be quite so cut and dry.

“And she didn’t have a dog?” Emma guesses, and David is brought back down to earth. He pulls the pen from his mouth and meets her eyes.

“Nope,” he admits, with a shake of his head. “So we can’t be soulmates, right? Because I have Princess and she doesn’t have a dog at all.”

“That’s what they say,” Emma shrugs. The whole thing is silly to Emma. Because yes, sometimes dogs lead you to your soulmate, but the randomness of it all, the fact that there’s no age, and no definitive way that your dogs lead you together, just seems plain old unfair. Besides, Emma’s pretty certain that she doesn’t even have a soulmate, that she doesn’t really need one, but she’s still got Rascal. So maybe she and David are just different somehow. Maybe she doesn’t have a soulmate but she has a dog, and maybe David’s got a soulmate who doesn’t have one at all. Truthfully, Emma wishes David would just forget about this woman and move on. The hopeful look in his eyes, especially over a woman he’s just met, breaks her heart because she can’t stand the thought of him being heartbroken all over again. But she knows, deep in her heart, what he wants her to say. And so, because she’s the worst sister in the world, she says it. “But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t talk to her. Maybe she just hasn’t gotten matched yet.”

David looks a bit hopeful at her last statement, and Emma can see the wheels turning in his head as he wonders if it’s worth the risk – meeting someone and falling for them again, only to have fate tear them apart. She’s not sure if her brother can take a heartbreak like that again.

Emma certainly can’t. Not for either of them.

They settle into a companionable silence, each of them lost in their own separate thoughts, when the phone rings.

“Hello, Storybrooke Police,” David answers casually. His brows furrow as he listens. “Yes. Yes. Okay, please stay calm, we’ll be right there. Thank you.” He stands as he hangs up the phone. “There’s two dogs running around the park off of Main Street. They don’t have tags or collars and they won’t let anyone near them. There are apparently no owners in sight, and no one saw where they came from.”

Throughout Emma’s life, she’s seen a few people without dogs. Some of them are older, some of them young and still hopeful for a match. They all tell themselves different stories about why they’ve never been matched. They aren’t common, but as Emma told David, there are enough of them that it’s not necessarily strange.

But in all of Emma’s 28 years on this earth, aside from the day that she herself found Rascal, she’s never seen a loose dog without a human.

[rydertm]

𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐫𝐲𝐝𝐞𝐫.

( wolfgang novogratz, cis male ) hey ! have you seen RYDER MONROE around ? HE works as a RENTALS TECHNICIAN at big bear resort, but they must be off their shift by now. well, if you do see them can you let me know ? they’re 22 years old & they’ve been working here for A FEW WEEKS. they tend to be CAREFREE & FUN-LOVING, but can also be IRRESPONSIBLE & EVASIVE. the other employees have labeled them THE PETER PAN. thanks a lot ! ( mismatched socks and old beat up converse, a mischievous dimpled smile, soft guitar strums at 3am, illegible scribbles in a worn out notebook, rowdy cheers heard overtop of loud party music ).

ya, idk man. i have no self-control & this is a long, rambley mess. soooo hERE is aylie’s older twin brother ( by five minutes ), ryder. gimme a like ig, but imma be hitting everyone up to plot anyways cuz i luv u all.

name : ryder austin monroe if u kno, u kno age : twenty-two gender : cis male sexuality : heterosexual hometown : london, england job : rentals technician ( subject to change )

born to a famous retired musician from london and a colorado native, ryder is the older twin of aylie ( by five minutes and he’ll never let her forget it ). they share an older brother, cole, making him the middle child.

middle child syndrome was very much so the case with ryder. between his siblings, he was always the troublemaker and it’s been this way since they were young. he could always be found up to no good ━ anything from hanging off the curtains to trying to ship himself off to egypt in a cardboard box. 

his dad got him into music to teach him how to focus and as a means to keep him busy. ryder took to it like fish to water, and showed some promising talent in writing and playing music. he wrote his first song when he was five and although it was pretty much just nonsense about cheerios, he somehow managed to recycle some of the lyrics into a proper song years later. 

as a kid, ryder was also put into different sports to channel all of his energy somewhere. football ( or soccer for the ‘muricans ) was the sport that he kept up with up until he finished school, and of course, snowboarding. he’s always been ridiculously competitive, especially with his siblings, and likes to tease aylie that he’s the superior snowboarder in the family. 

he had just been accepted to berklee college in the US when his mom got into a car accident and passed away. her death really shook his family to the core, yet ryder had played it off like he was completely unaffected by it, even cracking jokes at the funeral. 

that was just who ryder was. he never took anything seriously, even when he should, and life was just one big party. he always ran away at the first sign of a problem or responsibility, and that was exactly what he did after his mom’s funeral. he packed up what he could and left home that very night, only leaving his family a half-assed note on the back of the funeral program.

he spent the summer traveling on his own, working odd jobs and playing whatever gigs he could get. deferring his acceptance to berklee for a year, later turned into dropping out altogether when he decided to just focus on his music.

the whole music thing worked out for him after he put together a band while in amsterdam. they toured around different cities playing small gigs, and when he wasn’t touring, he was working with upcoming artists or traveling on his own. ryder was never in one place for long and his family never knew when he’d visit. 

it was only a couple years ago that he began visiting big bear again, mostly to visit his sister and to snowboard. though he also picked up the odd job of working at the rentals shack, where he spends most of his shift messing around on his guitar.

ryder’s always been the biggest little shit around. he could be pretty rowdy and immature sometimes, but it’s all in the name of fun. very much an act before you think type and has landed himself in some hot water because of it. with absolutely zero impulse control, he’s a bit of a fighter and a lover ( will fight you, but then buy you a beer after ), but he’s got a good heart and tries to be cool with everyone.

FUN FACTS.

his music is a bit of a cross between rex orange county and lauv. 

really bad with quotes. will quote ghandi even though 9.9/10 times, ghandi did not in fact say it.

obsessed with the fast and furious movies. frequently wishes he was brian o’connor. sometimes thinks he is brian o’connor. will absolutely be the first in line to watch the 24th movie and will also frequently quote the movies.

ironically enough, he’s a bad driver. like, really bad. took him nine tries to get his license. just picture cher horowitz’s driving tbh.

ryder’s instagram is private because of his ~* super famous celeb *~ dad, but he also lets just about anyone follow him so that... kind of defeats the purpose. he posts a lot of artsy ( in his opinion ) pics, but also random stuff like a zoomed in shot of grease on a pizza slice and cUtE candids, complete with quotes ( said by the wrong people ) as captions. #influencer 

always down for a good prank war. famously known for being the guy that broke in and stole the jonas brothers’ wardrobe change right before they had to get back on stage.

loves a good romance or rom-com movie. can probably quote from the classics. he just quotes a lot of shit i guess?? also a big taylor swift stan. he said fuck your gender norms, bro!

WANTED CONNECTIONS. some generic wcs cuz i’m boring IDK. obvy, i’m always open to brainstorming other ideas too!

BROT3  ━ trio of your dreams bish. every bro needs his bros. his partners in crime, ride or dies, BFFLs, bro-mates, whatever you wanna call it. can either encourage or discourage ryder’s ~*~brilliant~*~ ideas, but either way, they’re always along for the ride.  taken by leo takanashi & kieran rhodes

CHILDHOOD ( BEST ) FRIEND  ━ grew up together and they’re basically each other’s number one since day one. probably vacationed together in big bear and that was how they met.

MOM FRIEND  ━ because ryder is a dumb child and needs someone looking out for him, even if he only listens like 10% of the time. just a scary mama bear / boss bitch who he is maybe a lil scared of.  taken by divine burakgazi

CONFIDANT  ━  not saying ryder talks about his ~* feelings *~ often, but the odd chance that he does, it’s probably with y/m. they could just lend an ear, or be someone he turns to for advice too.  taken by callie macdermot

GOOD INFLUENCE  ━ the angel on ryder’s shoulder basically. the voice of reason who will talk him out of getting into dumb shenanigans where he’ll a) hurt himself, b) get into trouble, or c) all of the above.

BAD INFLUENCE  ━ and ofc, the devil on ryder’s shoulder. the person who encourages all of his bad ideas. probably even contributes a fair share of them. taken by callie macdermot

( EX ) FLING / FWB / HOOK-UP ━  someone ( or multiple someones ) ryder often hooked up with whenever he’s in big bear. maybe he genuinely liked her ( and she liked him back? ), but he’s just too emotionally immature and flighty to be a good boyfriend.

EX-GF  ━  dated for a few months before she dumped him because he was a crappy boyfriend. it could have ended on good, bad, awkward, whatever terms.  taken by ingrid kelly

SOFT SPOT  ━  maybe they dated, maybe they almost dated, maybe it was on/off. whatever the case, ryder  just can’t seem to shake y/m. he cares a lot for her ( possibly some strong lovey feelings were involved ) and will always be there for her no matter what. y/m could feel the same way, or just be leading him on. think peter kavinsky & gen sdlkgjdkg don’t come at me.  taken by divine burakgazi

FAVOURITE ANNOYANCE  ━  ryder loves to annoy y/m and get on their nerves just for the hell of it ( maybe he has a tiny crush ). will do just about anything to get a rise out of y/m and to rile them up.

ENEMIES / RIVALS  ━ for whatever reason, they just never clicked and/or rubbed each other the wrong way. every time they’re in the same room together, it’s big yikes and lots of tension.

[rhcdesx]

( gregg sulkin, cismale ) hey ! have you seen KIERAN RHODES around ? HE works as a CHEF AT THE BIG BEAR BISTRO at big bear resort, but they must be off their shift by now. well, if you do see them can you let me know ? they’re 22 years old & they’ve been working here for TWO MONTHS. they tend to be +ALLURING & +DAUNTLESS, but can also be -ARROGANT & -CALLOUS. the other employees have labeled them THE LOTHARIO. thanks a lot ! 

basics:

name : kieran archer rhodes

nicknames : kier, k

age : twenty-two

birthday : 20 august (leo)

sexuality : heterosexual

born : london, england

relocated : manhattan, nyc

height : 5′9

favorite color : teal

accent : english

fluent in : french, italian, latin

hogwarts house : slytherin

when not at big bear : studies pre-law at columbia university

job : chef

hobbies : football, soccer, swimming, cooking

aesthetics : bruised kiss marks on necks, bruised knuckles, mischievous grins, & late night soaks in the hot tub.

family:

mother : freya davenport-rhodes (42)  †

father : oliver rhodes (43)

step mother : katherine rhodes ( née mccoy ) (39)

siblings : ezra rhodes (24)

step siblings : theodore mccoy (20)

half sibings : isabella rhodes (6)

about:

growing up kieran was no stranger to money. hearing the term ‘born with a silver spoon in their mouth’ referred to him better than anyone else he knew. it was all thanks to the empire his grandfather started to stay in the UK. the man had ended up falling for an english woman when he was studying abroad at columbia, he fell in love and needed something impressive to not have to the leave the woman he loved.

the hotel business was a very fortunate one. after his grandfather sent his son (kieran’s father) to america to follow his footsteps at the same university he was able to come back, sign on to be a partner and launch their empire worldwide.

even with being spoiled all his life, it was clear to him that his mother preferred his brother. ezra was the golden child, the first born son blah blah, he could do no wrong in his mother’s eyes. where as kieran found trouble so easily, needing money more often to get himself out of things rather than being rewarded.

most of the time his father was busy working and his mother would give him however much money he requested so he'd go away and not have to dealt with. though he was still required to show up to whatever hotel events, galas, or charity auctions that required strong family representation. they couldn’t been seen as less than perfect when they were all together.

though during those events he’d always find someone to sneak off with, whether it was to do drugs in the bathroom or a hot hookup. the boy liked to be entertained and often found himself easily bored, plus if it pissed off his parents it was a no brainer.

going behind the scenes further, you’d know that not only did his mother prefer his older brother, she didn’t really like his father very much either. they were only married because she got pregnant, a dumb fling sparked from hate, and he felt obligated to stand by her, plus it didn’t hurt that she wouldn’t be able to testify against him in court. they played the happy family for a while, she enjoyed using the money to her advantage.

it wasn’t long before kieran’s dad found himself a mistress, they ended up meeting in fact at a party at the dean’s house while ezra was in columbia. kieran was the one who spotted them, and the fact that she was already pregnant at the party. but perfect families had to go on. his father made sure kieran’s supply of money was constant, anything to keep the boy quiet.

his mother was in a car accident, she didn’t survive. kieran’s dad used the excuse of wanting to find out who was behind it to keep him family in new york. enough time passed and the case had turned cold, which soon led kieran to have a step mother and a half sister.

of course now that his father had the wife he always wanted, the boy was even more invisible which only made him more careless, reckless. his father would make sure that their reputation was in tact.

he finished off his junior year of hs in new york, along with his senior year before being accepted into columbia himself. sure his family has been making donations to the school for generations, but the boy is smart. the money did help clear up anything he was bound to get himself into eventually though.

facts relevant now:

he’s messed up any real relationship he’s ever had whether it was with cheating or something else. he hasn’t met anyone that’s wanted him to stay committed.

he uses sports to channel his anger, when he can’t use sex and basically uses sex for anything else.

kieran acts first and asks questions later, probably why he ends up in so much shit but he can’t help himself.

his family frequently vacationed at big bear resort, the owner being in business with his family.

he’ll try really hard to convince you he’s heartless, he’s not actually but it’s buried deep beneath his surface.

when he wasn’t causing trouble ( & still being ignored ) he picked up cooking, the channels being on an endless loop late at night and he found he was actually pretty good at it. not that he’d let anyone from home find that out.

he got really drunk one night and decided racing the porsche was a good idea and ended up crashing it into the living room. now while his family pays for repairs, kieran was forced to work at the lodge while the rest of the family vacations in paris. his father made it so the boy would finally have to own up to something, so it was either prison or work for his dad’s dear old partner. the choice was simple.

he figured something he’d actually be good at that also allowed him to hide in the back of the bistro was perfect, thus landing himself the job as the chef. 

connections:

bromance/roommate : leo takanashi. two dumbasses together under one roof, what could possibly go wrong? double trouble, always fueling each other to do stupid things. most of the time the stupid things are done together. 

best female friend : aylie monroe. possibly an ex that didn’t go sour. sees the best in him even though he’ll never see it himself. willing to smack him in the head if he needs it.

best bro : ryder monroe. he’s been around forever and always down to do stupid shit with kieran. the two of them are a dangerous stupid mix but it’s never dull and the laughs never stop. 

good friends : jason callahan. open. i know it’s surprising that an asshole like kieran has these, but by some odd reason he does.

mom friend : open. the girl who’s constantly giving him shit, lecturing him, trying to get him to see the error in his ways.

confidant : open. they get high together or get drunk and spill their guts. they both have info on each other so they know how crucial it is to keep each other’s secrets.

his soft spot : cleo ortiz. every asshole has a weakness -- she’s the one who can get to him like no one else can. a close friend. looks out for him while calling him out on his shit, though he just laughs it off, possibly romantic as well?

sexual tension :  open. the tension between the two of them is so undeniable though neither of them have given in...yet.

fwb/frequent hookups/flirtationships : ingrid kelly. callie macdermot. open. open. pretty self explanatory seeing as kieran and relationships don’t mix well. he’s more than likely to send them all the said booty call text and see which one answers the fastest.

one night stand : open. one night of passion, giving in to temptation. possible things are awkward now or they can’t get enough now.

pregnancy scare : open. with all the messing around he does, it was bound to happen.

ex girlfriend : callie macdermot. the one and only. it only lasted a month and the two mutually ended it, just the label part anyway. they both couldn’t see themselves in a relationship but they still like being around each other. 

ex hookups/flings : open. open. relationships that fizzled out, run there course, or more than likely kieran ruined by saying/doing something stupid.

childhood friends : aylie monroe. ryder monroe. they grew up together. the people who would more than likely know about his real mother and what she was like when she was alive.

playful frenemies : open. constant back and forth, flirting he can’t help. she denies him and only makes him want to play with her more. built up tension to where only a kiss can shut him up, though she’s going to act like nothing ever happened.

friendships turned enemies : roman walsh . he had a girlfriend who was kind of a bitch, very persistent and even though kieran turned the girl down she wouldn’t stop, cornering him when he was drunk and his will wasn’t as strong. long story short, kieran helped the girl cheat on his friend and they haven’t been cool since. 

unlikely friends/ current rivals : marco di angelo. these two are always butting heads, who even knows where it stems from, but they have more in common than they realize.

mutual bad influences : ivan anderson. open. pretty self explanatory. they cause double the trouble when they’re together and have a great time doing it and fueling each other’s horrible ideas.

good influence : open.  the person who keeps his head on straight. the good influence friend every mess needs to find balance.

anything else tbh, i’m open to anything and everything.

[scige-alt]

LIANA LIBERATO / CIS FEMALE — don’t look now, but is that saige beaumont i see? the 21 year old criminal psychology / linguistics student is in their sophomore year and she is a rochester alum. i hear they can be blithe, energetic, evasive and irrational, so maybe keep that in mind. i bet she will make a name for themselves living in murphy’s beach homes. ( james. 20. est. she/they. )

snjdfg these took so long i’m so sorry but anyways please LIKE and i’ll slide into yr IMs for plots !!

TW DRUG USE, ALCOHOLISM, IMPLIED ABUSE, ADDICTION, HIT & RUN.

a e s t h e t i c s

stick n’ pokes at 2am – when your drunk and giggling too much in between purposeful stabs, avoiding the cracks in the sidewalk because they’re bad luck and they’ll break your mother’s back – even if your mother doesn’t love you, because you love her, the familiar riff in an old song – one that’s got you strumming along silently; there is no guitar, only empty air lit by the christmas lights you haven’t taken down. it’s may. swallowing down shots, and by default, swallowing down problems. laughing quick, easily, constantly. skinned knees from skateboarding, despite being rubbish at it. wishes on eyelashes stuck to your cheekbones, glitter sticking, running into the ocean at sunrise; feeling at home. excuses, and the many forms they come in. telling people you love them through hand squeezes and fresh muffins, sideways glances and soft, eager grins.

general info !!

full name: saige alouette beaumont

nickname(s): n/a so give her some uwu

b.o.d. - july 7th, 21 whole yrs old.

label(s): the hedonist, the icarcian, the reveler, etc. etc.

height: 5′7″ !!

hometown: thibodaux, louisiana

sexuality: bisexual w/ a very slight preference towards masc-presenting folks

pinterest

stats

biography !!

the fallible daughter of two very infallible people: robert beaumont, US lieutenant general, and manon levesque, world renown fashion designer. both calculating, cold, and purposeful.

saige never believed she was created out of love. it was an action with a purpose, intentions to create the perfect child. the hybrid of both military genius and fashion extraordinaire, molded to their will.

it took them no more than six months after her birth for her parents to up and move, thus beginning the cycle of packing and unpacking, flying and driving, state-to-state and country-to-country. the longest saige had ever stayed in one place was two years.

kept on a short leash, homeschooled, and learning skills she had no interest in – she was more like a pet, a project, than a child. the world moved all around her, but she felt restrictively tethered to her parents.

she had always felt this way. a bird in a cage of thorns.

it was hard to keep and maintain friends – saige would be there one day, and gone the next. a ghost, a very visible ghost. even so, she tried her hardest.

running from bodyguards (nannies, in a sense. her father is a paranoid man) into festival crowds and climbing out of windows in the dark of night to swim in lakes with locals she’d meet only a few hours earlier – she absorbed as much of what she could get; this intense, undying love for a world she had always craved to see.

it was the start of something near dangerous – a phase that seemed to never end, rebellion coursing through her veins. a wild child in the making, unknowing of limits. the bad sort of crowd was the crowd she found herself landing, more often than not – introducing the sheltered girl to a world she hadn’t quite known existed

she ran away, briefly, at age fifteen with a man three years older than her – which nearly ended up in a tabloid magazine if it hadn’t been for her parents’ money. though the guilt of her parents’ disappointed weighed on her, the thrill fueled something much worse

from that point on, she became a problem child. from public intoxication to vandalism – it was clear their daughter was unraveling and nothing could contain her.

boarding school was a small attempt to stop it – she got expelled.

she hadn’t intended to go to university, either – but, by some chance – and after a mysterious year-long disappearance from public eye during her eighteenth year of life, next thing she knew, she was a student at lockwood university.

she was involved in a getaway chase from an armed robbery at a bank which then turned into a hit-and-run in washington when she was on the brink of turning eighteen. it was a situation she had no control over, not knowing her role in the scheme until it was too late to turn back. the victim survived but saige’s family has been paying the medical fees since then. her parents haven’t spoken to her since.

ever since the accident, saige has avoided causing too much trouble - generally staying out of headlines and tabloids, partially in fear of her parents finally cutting ties, and partially in fear of doing something that’ll cost another person their life.

personality !!

bubbly. so fucking bubbly. she’s got so much fucking energy on her – she goes running every morning and every night and swims like every afternoon and she’s n e v e r tired ?? the personality of a coke bottle shaken up but like if the bottle could laugh.

tries her hardest to be the Happy Fun friend, y’know, the one who can hook you up w/ some sicccc shit b/c she befriended/possibly slept with her drug dealer and now she gets discounts.

like, generally, comes off as very confident of herself and fearless and, like, yes–reckless, but like a fun reckless, y’know ??

talks a l o t, could ramble for days, hand gestures and all.

if she wants to do something, she will do it and there’s not much you can do to stop her tbh. she’s very easy-going, very go-go-go, very…mischievous, y’know? even if she’s trying to do something stupid you kinda just have to let her do it or otherwise she’ll mope for three hours and pout at you and you’ll feel ?? this weird sense of guilt ?? which isn’t the Best thing but she’s not the best person either so dfghjh

a vegetarian !! meat makes her sick, like, physically.

uuuhh her vocabulary consists of a lot of ‘likes’ and ‘ums’ and ‘y’knows’, y’know ??

i am like 99% sure she’s got adhd but she’s never been diagnosed with it b/c her parents suck with that stuff. her parents sort of suck in general.

like…she’s currently not on speaking terms with them. she’s not disowned…like, yet, but they haven’t said more than like five words to each other since saige was eighteen and it k i l l s her but they also send her a shit ton of money every month so.

owns like…four cars…..she has them all on campus…..she prolly isn’t suppose to…but she does…one of them’s a real sleek sports car, one is a jacked up pick-up truck that’s decked out in like LED lights n shit, one is the same exact fucking car from the princess diaries b/c saige is obsessed w/ the movie. the other is like. a mini cooper probably.

a photographer, her walls are covered in photographs and art and taped-down plants and in general her room is very ?? cluttered ?? like it’s very home-y but god. she’s a mess. clothes everywhere. she’s probably got a pile of instruments and other miscellaneous hobbies on a chair in the corner that she hasn’t touched in a while

speaking of !! she has a bunch of random, like, skills ?? like knitting and sewing and cooking and three different forms of ballroom dancing, and she can definitely work a gun and a car engine except she goes thru interests so rapidly and is disinterested in most of the other ones b/c her parents forced like half of them onto her.

she plays bass guitar. she loves her bass guitar. she knows other instruments but the only ones she’ll really fidget with are her bass guitar and like, her violin. everything else she’s like ~okay~ at

got really obsessed with languages at a young age and started learning them ?? her mother is like. super french, like genuinely from france, so she already grew up speaking both english and french but she’s learnt others for the hell of it and she’s still learning like three other at the same time which is a MESS but she’s a mess so like can u blame her sdfghj

but like i said, she’s v e r y reckless. very much a party girl. she uses like…quite a few drugs, both socially and alone and frankly – she’s rarely sober.

a budding alcoholic because she’s convinced that without it she’ll be Miserable and Horrible to everybody because she’s a Horrible, Awful person who is the absolute Worse and if drinking vodka mixed in with 23 crystal lite packets helps with not thinking like that then she’ll do it no questions asked

its a problem she’s been developing since she was younger, only amplified by … the situation, that happened when she was eighteen.

is essentially wearing this mask of confidence and giddiness and flirtatiousness b/c she doesnt want people to think she’s doing Not Okay.

she loves so much. she loves everything, everybody. falls in love like five times a day but nothing really sticks to her either. if ur a shitty person/come off as an asshole then she’ll be more likely to be attracted to her b/c shes Always been like this. finds them super interesting which is ?? questionable ?? sometimes i want to just. knock some sense into her but y’know what…it’s fine we’re Fine

she gets around p frequently but is also the type of person who’ll like, try n maintain a positive, good friendship with whoever she sleeps with b/c the idea of having regrettable encounters is smth that Bothers her and she just pretty much refuses.

it’s honestly a bit of a problem ?? she blurs the lines between friendship and Something, Anything More too often and with too many people b/c she just. wants to be loved. but there is never enough !

she does stick n pokes !! a whole bunch !! let her give you one !! she can’t draw for shit but i mean, who cares, right ??

uuuhh her mom sends her like…prototypes of things she designs n shit that isn’t out yet and saige 100% always gives it away or it sits in her closet and essentially that is her go-to gift for birthdays or christmas or whenever she feels like it

there’s literally sm i could say about her but i’ll stop Here b/c it’s getting too long sksksksk

wanted connections !!

give me. a best friend. just somebody who sticks by her side even though she’s a Mess

like, a ride or die ?? is that the same as a best friend ?? idc i want both :)

and just in general, like, people she’s p close to ?? she’s really friendly and is the kind of girl who’d be really popular in high school but doesn’t care abt popularity n talks to literally Everybody like she’s known them all her life.

ESP if ur muse is a lil grumpier !! she will fuck their shit up, but like, in a friendship way.

party pals, where they don’t talk that much outside of parties but inside them ?? super close. glued to the hip. hold-your-hair-back kinda tight.

frenemies ?? fake friends ?? toxic pals ?? ppl using her for her money or like, sex, or something ?? anything ??

bad influences ?? who just encourage all of saige’s shit ??

good influences ?? who are like YOINK stop being an idiot.

a tutor b/c she’s like…she’s smart, okay, but she’s also really stupid LMAO. she’s rly bad at math and science. somebody help her.

hook ups ?? fwbs ?? that one, rare one-night-stand that went weird ??

exes ?? she’s sorta noncommittal so idk how long they would’ve dated but like sjdfkbo yolo ?? ex hook-ups too ??

…somebody who just. hates her. but she doesn’t realize bc she’s a big ol’ idiot. she thinks theyre pals !!

let her b a thorn in someone’s side, just like, an absolute annoyance LMAO

gimme an enemy, or like an ex-best friend where something happened between them n it ruined their friendship

i will take literally anything i dont know

she steals ur character’s mail ?? ur cat keeps escaping and she keeps letting them inside even tho she’s allergic ??

one of those friendships where theyre always bickering like an old married couple ?? but it’s Purely Platonic (or is it ??)

an off-and-on again that just. it’s not good for either of them b/c they keep enabling each other and then getting pissed off and it’s a Mess but ?? it’s so hard to stop.

the drug dealer she keeps sleeping with even though she can just … pay for her shit. b/c it’s funner this way !

just … people where their like … relationship status is Blurred and it’s like, are they a thing? are they not? b/c she’s a mess and gets involved with too many people without intending to !

please. take her. give me connections.

[sailor-cresselia]

Zero One 04: Watch out for incoming lore!

(And for incoming Riders and rocket fists.)

So, I’ve been having a lot of trouble freeing up the brain power to actually, y’know, even get myself to watch this week. It’s not that I haven’t wanted to, it’s just that I’m completely drained. So, this might not go as in-depth as I have in the past.

On a lore episode.

Ah well.

––

We’re starting this episode off with a bang – almost literally. The trip Aruto and Izu are on is to observe Anna, a tourguide HumaGear. At first, he’s still having fun, because, y’know, it’s a bus tour.

And then Anna announces that they’re coming up to the site of a significant event.

Aruto’s excitement drops off.

He was there, after all.

In Daybreak Town.

(One of the young boys who is also on the trip grows just as serious, looking down in the same way Aruto is.)

––

It turns out that Daybreak Town was a collaboration between the Japanese government, Hiden Intelligence, and a number of other corporations to design a city run by HumaGears. It was also where they launched the satellite from, the one that controls them.

We get treated to a diagram of several of the company logos spreading across the city, implying that they each were in charge of a district, before a ‘blueprint’ of the satellite.

I don’t like the phrasing said blueprint uses for some of the data readouts. There’s “Core Unit”, which is fine. The two “M-Wheels” are probably short for Motion, and what keep it stable. The section labeled “Life Line” is a little concerning. And I really, really, wish that Toei had chosen literally anything else for the bottom one, which reads “Slave Analyzer.”

Like, I know this is a Japanese show, and the kids probably aren’t going to be able to read it, but their parents? MAYBE! And since we’re dealing with ‘robots’ who are slowly gaining sentience… yeah. I’m not comfortable with this at all.

ANYWAY. Let’s leave the sub-text issues, and into the real-text issues, shall we?

And it sure is an issue!

Like I mentioned before I got off track, the city was an attempt to design an urban center run by HumaGears, as well as all sorts of research projects, including the satellite.

But 12 years ago, there was an accident in the Research and Development sector. It’s shown as a wide view of the city, showing just how large the explosion was – and it was big. And bright blue. You know. The same type of blue flame that we see in Aruto’s flashbacks.

But the damage didn’t stay in R&D for long, and it spread to the power infrastructure. In the end, the entire city was wiped out.

Even 12 years later, nobody is allowed in.

––

Back in the present, we see Anna and the school tour (and Aruto and Izu) at a viewing platform, with a view of the lake that the city has become.

At one very smug looking students prompting, Anna explains that the theory is that the incident was likely caused by faulty maintenance.

Aruto looks away, remembering how Isamu had said that the truth was covered up, that HumaGears had gone on a murderous rampage.

Nobody sees a certain hooded not-Gremlin approach the bus driver, tapping on the window with a Zetsumeriser and Zetsumerise Key.

Two kids start mocking one of their classmates, the one who had gotten as serious as Aruto earlier, saying that it was his dad’s fault, because he was the one in charge of the factory. One of them says that his dad blew the whole thing up.

The bus explodes behind them.

The bus driver, the soon-to-be-overwritten Bāsu, pulls out his key and ‘transforms.’ I know that his name is basically ‘bus’, but Rider Wiki also romanizes it as ‘Burs’, which I can only assume is because of his incredibly massive sideburns. Like, dang, those are big.

But we don’t have Bāsu for much longer, because he becomes the Onycho Magia, based off of the Onychonycteris, the most primitive form of bat. Interestingly, it may have been diurnal. The fossil record is inconclusive so far, but it may not have had the adaptations to echolocate, or the enlarged eyes that nocturnal bats have.

Something I’ve noticed is that most of the species that have been used as Magia so far have something in common aside from all being extinct: They’re mostly comparatively recent discoveries, and there are very few fossils that have been found of them. Just something I thought might be worth noting for the future.

Also, Onycho has huge claws on his ‘normal’ hands and also on each finger of his wings – remember, bat wings are technically webbed hands. Those ridges are fingers. Onychonycteris had claws on each finger, unlike modern bats, who only have two or three.

As Aruto yells for the kids to get out of there, Jin sits on top of a retaining wall, kicking his legs idly, and asks Onycho – who can’t hear him, anyway – to kill some humans for him.

Whenever he says that to his Magia… that’s the only time he’s really serious. That’s the only time he drops the smile.

Interesting.

––

After the OP, which I love, we cut to Onycho pursuing the tour group through a wooded area, Aruto herding the kids along. One of them, the one who was being mocked earlier, trips. As Onycho catches up, Aruto prepares to transform – but doesn’t get to do more than pull out his belt before shots are fired  from another direction. He hurriedly hides it behind his back as Isamu and Yua show up on scene – somehow – and transform.

Of note, Isamu still has to force his Key open, and he’s still punching the bullet. Yua has no such issue, and just lets her armor form, before they go on the offensive.

She’s still quick and efficient, while he’s more of a wildcard whose primary mood is ‘gun.’

Onycho quickly gets out of range when he goes to hang upside down on a high branch, and then flies away. (There’s an ‘analyzing’ sound effect as Izu watches him fly off.)

The two agents detransform as they go up to Aruto, the boy, and the two functioning HumaGear. Isamu points out that ‘Oh, look, Hiden’s president is here. Again.’ But the boy, who’s been sitting on the ground, curls in on himself, saying something about wondering why this is happening to him.

Both Isamu and Aruto look at him in concern.

––

Back in Aruto’s office, we have Aruto, Izu, Anna, Isamu, and the boy. Said boy’s name is Sakurai Gou, and his father was one of the victims 12 years ago.

I can’t help but wonder just how many people died that day.

Especially when Gou says that people have always told him that it’s his fathers fault it happened. That’s an awful lot of weight on a teen’s shoulders. And, Isamu, I know you mean well, but I don’t think that’s quite the way to go about reassuring a kid that it’s not his dad’s fault. Usually, people don’t react well to someone saying that it was HumaGears, who were designed to kill.

Although, Gou seems to take Isamu’s claim that it was HumaGear who leveled the factory in stride.

Isamu, of course, doesn’t take Izu’s statement that ‘there are no records to back up his claim’ very well., yelling that it’s because it was covered up.

Anna points out that the consensus is that it was caused by faulty maintenance.

Aruto looks down as he wonders if the concensus is the same things as the truth.

Anna watches him, just like she’d watched Isamu during his claim that Daybreak happened because of the HumaGear.

––

Outside, Isamu and Gou are leaving, and Gou says that he wants to know the truth.

Isamu asks if he really feels that way, and when Gou nods… he says that he does, too.

“Hey, kid, want to go break into a secured area?”

––

Ohhhh, man, I like Serious Aruto.

He’s flat out interrogating Jun, asking what happened at their factory 12 years ago.

But all that Jun will say is that he can’t recall.

Anna and Izu both call him out on this – not activating their look-up functions, by the way. Anna asks why there’s no record of the HumaGear uprising. Which implies that she knows there was one, somehow. Izu says that a cover-up seems intentional.

Aruto knows he’s hiding something, the way that Jun is so nervous makes that pretty clear. And he’s not a comedic nervous, like we’d expect from his characterization in the first three episodes. No, he’s scared… and maybe ashamed. Especially given how, as he takes his leave, he says that ‘sometimes, the way business works means that you have to keep the truth in the shadows.’

So, there’s definitely at least one layer of cover-up here. Probably more than one, in fact. This is written by the same guy as Ex-Aid, after all.

––

Later on, Anna and Aruto – without Izu, it would seem – are basically confirming to each other that they want to find out the truth.

Anna is looking into this because, as a bus guide, it’s her duty to know the historical facts of her tour. It’s her duty to make sure the truth is known.

Aruto says that he guesses they’re going back to Daybreak Town then. After all, he’s the president. He can’t ignore an employee in need.

He’s not saying that he wants to know, too. Not out loud, anyway.

––

The next day, at the entrance to Daybreak Town, Gou and Isamu are… actually breaking into a secured area. I mean, it was a foregone conclusion, but I didn’t think they’d be this blatant about it. Isamu’s even got a huge bag with him, probably with some sort of camera equipment or something. They’re not alone, though, when Yua steps in front of the gate, asking what they think they’re doing.

What they think they’re doing is that they’re going to find the truth.

She sighs. She’s not going to be able to stop them, is she? So, Yua pulls out a grey Progrise Key, and offers it to Isamu. She does say that it’s ‘high performance’, and he probably won’t be able to use it. He asks why she’s giving it to him, then, which is a valid question.

Yua just warns him to not forget what his job is.

Isamu takes the Punching Kong key, tucks it into his suit jacket, and takes off his tie, smirking. “Actually, I’m off duty today.”

––

As Isamu and Gou are about to set out on an inflatable motorboat – which appears to somehow be what he had in that giant bag – Gou isn’t sure if they’ll really find anything by going out there, to which Isamu says that they’ll just have to try.

And then a bunch of Trilobite mooks come up – some of them still saying ‘intruder detected.’

See? This is what he means by a cover-up!

Isamu’s shooting some of them down, but one gets close to Gou-

And is tackled into the water by Aruto.

Isamu accuses him of being there to make sure they don’t see anything they aren’t supposed to, but Aruto shoots that down. (Heh.) He wants to know what happened, too.

Completely ignoring Izu’s protests about ‘protecting his secret identity,’ he pulls out his belt and stands next to Isamu.

“Do you want to die, get out of- wait what’s that belt?!”

Aruto, with his serious face on, promises, as Hiden’s president, that he’ll find the truth, and transforms.

Both Isamu and the Trilobites dodge the heck out of the way of that robot grasshopper – and yet he still can’t believe his eyes when he’s standing next to Zero One.

Aruto tells Anna to go with the two of them – it’s a tour guides job to make sure her guests get to their destination, after all. He takes over fighting the Trilobites, as they head out.

––

Ohhhh. I’ve just realized that comment I made earlier about the rarity of the species used for the Magia. I’m making a separate post right now, but I’m copy-pasting it in.  

The skeletal design of all the Magia isn’t just to make it easier to repurpose the suits - it’s because they’re all using extinct creatures as their base. They’re all fossils, themselves.

The main Magia, the corrupted ones with powers, are all powered by creatures that have relatively few examples in the fossil record.

The mooks, however, are Trilobites. This doesn’t just allow the anonymity factor with the shell acting as a mask.

Trilobites are incredibly common, and as such, make the perfect option for a swarm of faceless cannon fodder.

––

In the flooded ruins, Isamu, Gou, and Anna make their way to what used to be the control room of the factory, where Gou’s father worked.

It’s also where the explosion started.

Why… is Anna the one searching for things to help them find the truth? She explicitly says that she will look. That’s odd.

And why would the control room be where an explosion started? Why not, say, the factory floor, or a lab, or a test area?

Why the control center?

––

On the shore, Zero One handily dispatches the Trilobites with a Shark-powered Slash finisher. Much like his Impact finishers, it involves the sword summoning a giant hecking row of sharks teeth.

I love this seasons fights.

And here comes Onycho, swooping in with energy spheres to blast our hero back. Aruto tries to jump after him, to bring him down to the ground, but he can’t jump high enough on command to catch up to someone who’s continuing upward, and misses.

As he picks himself up, Izu throws him a Brand New Toy Progrize Key, which fortunately he catches. Y’know, unlike the unfortunate incident with the Attache Calibur in episode one.

WING

When the robo-bird is beamed down, it attacks Onycho for a while, before Aruto finally uses the key. And there are bright pink feathers fluttering around whenever it hits, too, which is really cool!

Fly to the sky! Flying Falcon!

Spread your wings and prepare for a force.

…We’re never going to see this form again.

Not with how Zero One immediately rises into the air, and doesn’t even try to land as he and Onycho start an aerial fight over the lake, swooping around the buildings, firing attacks, Aruto streaming pink and yellow energy effects with every movement.

This thing requires far too much CGI for us to see it more than… I’d say about one more time in-show, and maybe in one of the movies. Maybe.

This is GataKiriBa all over again.

Also, as he’s flying around, Izu waves, wishing him a safe trip.

Izu, I love you.

––

In the office, Gou’s given up. He can’t find anything… it must have been his fathers fault after all. Why bother looking any further?

…son of a- Toei named this kid Gou on purpose, didn’t they? I was initially thinking, ‘oh, hey, they’re reusing names, that’s nothing new.’ And then I just remembered that ‘Oh, right, the main Gou’s father actually was to blame for the robot uprising in Drive!’

Anyway, significant name reuse aside, the kid’s surrendered, but Isamu encourages him to keep looking.

And then the Trilobites show up. Even as he’s fighting them, Isamu keeps giving small!Gou a pep talk. It can’t have been his fathers fault, it was the HumaGear! So if you don’t believe in him, who will?

Isamu, I get it, but, uh, maybe don’t take this much of this particular trait from Mach? The one where you say that a human can’t have be to blame, it’s the out of control robots? I’m just saying. I doubt this kids father in particular was to blame, but I’m pretty sure at least one human was very heavily involved in what happened here.

Looking at you, Grandpa Hiden. You are very much not above suspicion.

Isamu’s statement, as he is getting very beaten up, that “if you stop now, it’s all over, so raise your head and keep going’ seems to be as much to himself as it is to Gou.

And he’s getting very beaten up, so he pulls out the Punching Kong key.

I’m pretty sure that not only did Yua not unlock it, he’s also opening them wrong. I know that’s just a joke theory at this point, but it really looks like he’s actively blocking the part that swings out when he’s holding the keys, so I think he’s making it worse on himself.

Whoops.

It’s still not fair that his transformation is this cool. This time, instead of punching the bullet dead on, he backhand punches it. Because why not.

Punching Kong!

Enough power to annihilate a mountain.

…Huh. The keys that Vulcan and Valkyrie use don’t have the pre-announcements that Zero One’s keys do. Like, he has the whole ‘fly to the sky’ for Flying Falcon, and the ones for Rising Hopper and Biting Shark, but there’s no such announcement for the three AIMS keys. Interesting.

As Vulcan starts wailing on the Trilobites, Gou takes his advice to keep going forward to heart, and starts looking again. Good thing he looked right in front of him, because he finds an SD card with the Hiden Intelligence logo on it.

According to Anna, it’s the memory chip for an older model of HumaGear. She inserts it into one of her earpieces to start reading the data.

…Maybe you shouldn’t be doing that in the middle of a battle area? I’m just saying. Maybe, you know, wait until you guys are out of there?

Yeah, see? Aruto and Onycho crash in through a wall, and the Magia fires off a set of cables, overtaking Anna. Nobody is okay with this, least of all Anna.

Who is fighting back. She lasts longer than any of the other Trilobite transformations we’ve seen. The overhaul completes, and ‘she’ goes after Gou, grabbing him by the neck… and as Vulcan aims his ShotRiser in her direction, she stops, and her ear pieces start flashing between the hacked red and their native blue.

…wow…

“Now p-playing… f-footage from-”

She activates her ear pieces to play the security footage. And it is still Anna in there. She’s fading fast, but she’s still there. She is so intent on seeing this through… I hate to say this, but Anna would have made an excellent Magia, wouldn’t she?

––

The footage is absolutely heartbreaking.

Gou’s father, Sakurai Satoshi, is in his office, lit by red emergency lights. He’s recording a last message.

“All HumaGear in the factory have gone berserk! The factory is likely going to explode. All the employees should have evacuated, so…”

The monitors are overtaken with static, and the regular displays are hijacked to play a message. A shadowed figure with rectangular yellow eyes stands in front of a purple background, with the logo of metsubojinrai.net in black.

He’s declaring their war against humanity, their intent to destroy the town and annihilate all humans.

But Satoshi says he won’t let that happen. He refuses.

He pushes one of those big red buttons, the ones that should never need to be pressed, closing all gates. He’s sealing all the HumaGear inside… as well as himself. As the head of this factory, he will take responsibility for making sure they are destroyed.

As the emergency alert continues to sound, calling for evacuation, he takes off his microphone headpeice, and all but falls into a chair.

“Gou…”

The scene is covered in flames, before the footage cuts out.

––

As Anna’s hand falls from where she was projecting, she manages to say – without any of the usual broken stutter – that the database is being updated with regards to Daybreak Town. She slumps down, inactive.

Aruto is quiet as he says that Gou’s father was a hero.

Isamu is quiet, trembling with rage, as he says that this wouldn’t have happened if HumaGear didn’t exist. He prepares his finisher.

Why does he get such AWESOME FINISHERS?!

The default Punching Kong finisher? The ‘Punching Blast’?

It’s rocket fists. He literally shoots his gun – and by that, I mean the fists of his armor turn into rockets, going after Onycho, pushing him through three levels of ceiling and out into the sky, where they go right through him.

As the fire from the explosion channels down the GIANT HOLE IN THE CEILING, the fists return and reattach to his armor.

Yo.

Isamu seems… I don’t know if determined is quite the right word? But he’s almost calm as he tells Aruto that AIMS will be confiscating the HumaGear (Anna) and analyzing it’s (her) memory to uncover the truth behind Daybreak-

A spike lands in her back as he says this, and she glows purple, before… well, I hate to phrase it like this, but she basically pops. I wish that wasn’t the sound effect they used, but it’s a dissolving sound effect combined with a balloon bursting. She’s turned into motes of purple light, and is gone.

Aruto and Isamu – still transformed, mind you – run over to where she was, confused.

…The spike didn’t glow, but we didn’t see it after the light passed.

––

A figure in purple, with a yellow belt and rectangular eyes on his helmet walks away, and removes his progrise key from his belt, detransforming into Horobi.

Jin bounces behind him, calling him cold for doing that.

Horobi doesn’t change his neutral expression much as he says that it would cause too much trouble if anyone found out about the Arc. Or, maybe it’s supposed to be Ark? It’s hard to say. But he smirks at the end, before he and Jin walk away.

Well, Horobi walks. Jin is skipping.

––

The next day, we see that the news is reporting on how Hiden Intelligence released new information on Daybreak, showing that the incident wasn’t what was on the record, and that they had obtained footage of those final moments.

Gou’s classmates apologize to him, for being so mean, but he seems okay with it. (He probably wouldn’t have been so determined to find out what happened if they hadn’t been.) As the news report, given via those giant heli-drones, ends, they head off to school.

Aruto watches them from a pedestrian bridge, and Isamu walks up to him and Izu.

“So, you really meant it when you said you wouldn’t cover anything up.”

“And you wouldn’t have known what happened if you had destroyed Anna right away.” Aruto smiles gently, before the comedian sound effects start kicking in. Oh no.

The Awful Pun Of The Day as Aruto flips up his hood is something involving being a ‘hood guy’, or telling Izamu not to ‘sweater it.’

Apparently, the original pun is a combination of the phrase for being indebted to someone, but part of the phrase also contains the term ‘to wear’, as in clothes, so he’s saying this while putting on his hood.

Aruto, please.

Isamu trembles while he’s still facing Aruto, and walks away as Izu starts explaining the joke. Aruto’s desperate attempts to get Izu to stop doing that mean that he doesn’t hear as Isamu almost lets a laugh escape, even while desperately trying to regain his composure.

Isamu’s willpower fails during the closing screen, and we hear him laughing as the Flying Falcon and Punching Kong Progrize Keys show up on screen.

––

Oh, nooooo, the next episode looks like it’s about relegating entire tasks to HumaGear, and also about passion for one’s work.

You know, getting heated.

And Izu’s line in the trailer actively asks if humans have trouble regulating their temperature if they get too passionate.

In the episode where Zero One’s fire form debuts.

Oh boy.

––

So, that’s episode four! I guess I still wound up going pretty in-depth, huh?

Man, the aesthetic of this show. It’s really cool, and I love the music, too.

Zero One really isn’t shying away from the ethics of what’s going on here, is it? And it’s not dodging the terrifying backstory, or putting it off until later.

I hope they can keep this momentum going!

[ayliemonroe]

( taylor hill, cisfemale ) hey ! have you seen aylie monroe around ? she works as a snowboard instructor at big bear resort, but they must be off their shift by now. well, if you do see them can you let me know ? they’re 22 years old & they’ve been working here for 4 years. they tend to be compassionate & personable, but can also be impulsive & judgmental. the other employees have labeled them the halcyon. thanks a lot ! ( hot chocolate in front of the fireplace, candy canes in her jacket pockets, nights snowboarding down the mountain, polaroid lined walls, shelves full of old records, iced cofee in a snowstorm )

aylie harper monroe was born in london, england - youngest of three with two older brothers. because of that, she was a natural born fighter. she had a sense of humor that was bred from being surrounded by boys and an outgoing personality that would make anyone fall in love. her dad was a retired musician who met their american mother when he was touring through the states and they fell in love.

i imagine her dad being bradley cooper from a star is born (without the ending because rip) he was like, a huge rockstar and she kind of lived under the spotlight growing up, especially when she hit high school and kind of spiraled when her mom died. 

more importantly, she had a heart that was bigger than herself. a heart that gave everyone a chance, whether they deserved it or not. it definitely got her into trouble and caused a few unnecessary heartbreaks, but aylie is one of the most compassionate people you will ever meet.

her biggest passion is music. she writes her own songs and you will always find her with her nose in her songbook, but chances of hearing any original songs is slim - she has to really trust you. she will, however, be the first one to step onto the stage at karaoke or sing along to anything, no matter where it is.

she spent a lot of her winters in colorado, which is where her mother was from, despite them all having moved to london before she was even born, so aylie is a natural on the slopes. when she was 18, her mother was in a terrible car accident that took her life. ever since then, aylie has been avoiding talking about it. the last she’d acknowledged her mom’s death was the funeral, and even then, she acted as if it didn’t happen. (think bridgett in sisterhood of the traveling pants)

she’s been coming back for the winter season to work as a snowboard instructor for the past 4 years and she can’t imagine being anywhere else. big bear is her second home and a place that reminds her enough of her mom that it feels good to aylie, but far enough from her home in london, that she feels like she is able to really be with people who don’t know her as the girl who’s mom died.

aylie was born to be with people, which is why she makes such a good snowboard instructor. she has the personality of sunshine, so just being around her will instantly make someone smile. seeing the good in people has gotten her trouble plenty of times, but she loves love and heartbreak has never deterred her from letting it happen.

because of her dad’s fame, aylie has a pretty big following on ig and thought, that was what people expected of her.. her mom had gotten her into ballet at a young age, but aylie never actually enjoyed it. she wanted to play soccer and skate with her brothers and their friends. now, she likes the attention, though she’ll never admit it, so she does have a different kind of ig personality that is unlike what her friends actually see. 

she loves to have fun. ski shots - she’s probably the instigator behind all of them. she enjoys hooking up, making out just for the hell of it, etc. she just thinks life is short and she wants to make some memories.

i have a few wanted connections in mind, but i haven’t finished the page so i’ll get those posted up later. i am more than happy to talk them over though! thank you for coming to my ted talk, please like this if you want to plot some things out <3

connections

[scige-archive]

LIANA LIBERATO / CIS FEMALE. — saige beaumont is really making a name for themselves as a sheep. i think that she is studying criminal psychology + linguistics in their junior year at lockwood, living in alpha nu. originally from thibodaux, louisiana, saige is known to be blithe & energetic, but can also be evasive & irrational. — james / 20 / est / she/they.

hi !! this is mostly just a repost, but there has been added information to her biography section, as well as her connections to the victims. i’m excited to continue rping with u all !!!

TW DRUG USE, ALCOHOLISM, IMPLIED ABUSE, ADDICTION, HIT & RUN.

a e s t h e t i c s

stick n’ pokes at 2am – when your drunk and giggling too much in between purposeful stabs, avoiding the cracks in the sidewalk because they’re bad luck and they’ll break your mother’s back – even if your mother doesn’t love you, because you love her, the familiar riff in an old song – one that’s got you strumming along silently; there is no guitar, only empty air lit by the christmas lights you haven’t taken down. it’s may. swallowing down shots, and by default, swallowing down problems. laughing quick, easily, constantly. skinned knees from skateboarding, despite being rubbish at it. wishes on eyelashes stuck to your cheekbones, glitter sticking, running into the ocean at sunrise; feeling at home. excuses, and the many forms they come in. telling people you love them through hand squeezes and fresh muffins, sideways glances and soft, eager grins.

general info !!

full name: saige alouette beaumont

nickname(s): n/a so give her some uwu

b.o.d. - july 7th, 21 whole yrs old.

label(s): the hedonist, the icarcian, the reveler, etc. etc.

height: 5′7″ !!

hometown: thibodaux, louisiana

sexuality: firstly when aren’t my babies bi as FUCK but she also prefers masc-presenting folks

pinterest

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biography !!

the fallible daughter of two very infallible people: robert beaumont, US lieutenant general, and manon levesque, world renown fashion designer. both calculating, cold, and purposeful.

saige never believed she was created out of love. it was an action with a purpose, intentions to create the perfect child. the hybrid of both military genius and fashion extraordinaire, molded to their will.

it took them no more than six months after her birth for her parents to up and move, thus beginning the cycle of packing and unpacking, flying and driving, state-to-state and country-to-country. the longest saige had ever stayed in one place was two years.

kept on a short leash, homeschooled, and learning skills she had no interest in – she was more like a pet, a project, than a child. the world moved all around her, but she felt restrictively tethered to her parents.

she had always felt this way. a bird in a cage of thorns.

it was hard to keep and maintain friends – saige would be there one day, and gone the next. a ghost, a very visible ghost. even so, she tried her hardest.

running from bodyguards (nannies, in a sense. her father is a paranoid man) into festival crowds and climbing out of windows in the dark of night to swim in lakes with locals she’d meet only a few hours earlier – she absorbed as much of what she could get; this intense, undying love for a world she had always craved to see.

it was the start of something near dangerous – a phase that seemed to never end, rebellion coursing through her veins. a wild child in the making, unknowing of limits. the bad sort of crowd was the crowd she found herself landing, more often than not – introducing the sheltered girl to a world she hadn’t quite known existed

she ran away, briefly, at age fifteen with a man three years older than her – which nearly ended up in a tabloid magazine if it hadn’t been for her parents’ money. though the guilt of her parents’ disappointed weighed on her, the thrill fueled something much worse

from that point on, she became a problem child. from public intoxication to vandalism – it was clear their daughter was unraveling and nothing could contain her.

boarding school was a small attempt to stop it – she got expelled.

she hadn’t intended to go to university, either – but, by some chance – and after a mysterious year-long disappearance from public eye during her eighteenth year of life, next thing she knew, she was a student at lockwood university.

she was involved in a getaway chase from an armed robbery at a bank which then turned into a hit-and-run in washington when she was on the brink of turning eighteen. it was a situation she had no control over, not knowing her role in the scheme until it was too late to turn back. the victim survived but saige’s family has been paying the medical fees since then. her parents haven’t spoken to her since.

ever since the accident, saige has avoided causing too much trouble - generally staying out of headlines and tabloids, partially in fear of her parents finally cutting ties, and partially in fear of doing something that’ll cost another person their life.

and while too afraid to visit the victim & their family, every month since the conviction of the others involved - she’ll visit one of them in particular. it’s been three years and saige has shown no sign of stopping.

during her last visit, he had sent her on a scavenger hunt resulting in her breaking into his brother’s (& his, technically) home and finding a second iPhone - one she had no idea he had, one with the watershed app installed. their intentions was for saige to be able to access the app - but his shepherd access had been revoked, and the phone had already been wiped clean. regardless, saige took it back to rochester with her.

personality !!

bubbly. so fucking bubbly. she’s got so much fucking energy on her – she goes running every morning and every night and swims like every afternoon and she’s n e v e r tired ?? the personality of a coke bottle shaken up but like if the bottle could laugh.

tries her hardest to be the Happy Fun friend, y’know, the one who can hook you up w/ some sicccc shit b/c she befriended/possibly slept with her drug dealer and now she gets discounts.

like, generally, comes off as very confident of herself and fearless and, like, yes–reckless, but like a fun reckless, y’know ??

talks a l o t, could ramble for days, hand gestures and all.

if she wants to do something, she will do it and there’s not much you can do to stop her tbh. she’s very easy-going, very go-go-go, very…mischievous, y’know? even if she’s trying to do something stupid you kinda just have to let her do it or otherwise she’ll mope for three hours and pout at you and you’ll feel ?? this weird sense of guilt ?? which isn’t the Best thing but she’s not the best person either so dfghjh

a vegetarian !! meat makes her sick, like, physically.

uuuhh her vocabulary consists of a lot of ‘likes’ and ‘ums’ and ‘y’knows’, y’know ??

i am like 99% sure she’s got adhd but she’s never been diagnosed with it b/c her parents suck with that stuff. her parents sort of suck in general.

like…she’s currently not on speaking terms with them. she’s not disowned…like, yet, but they haven’t said more than like five words to each other since saige was eighteen and it k i l l s her but they also send her a shit ton of money every month so.

owns like…four cars…..she has them all on campus…..she prolly isn’t suppose to…but she does…one of them’s a real sleek sports car, one is a jacked up pick-up truck that’s decked out in like LED lights n shit, one is the same exact fucking car from the princess diaries b/c saige is obsessed w/ the movie. the other is like. a mini cooper probably.

a photographer, her walls are covered in photographs and art and taped-down plants and in general her room is very ?? cluttered ?? like it’s very home-y but god. she’s a mess. clothes everywhere. she’s probably got a pile of instruments and other miscellaneous hobbies on a chair in the corner that she hasn’t touched in a while

speaking of !! she has a bunch of random, like, skills ?? like knitting and sewing and cooking and three different forms of ballroom dancing, and she can definitely work a gun and a car engine except she goes thru interests so rapidly and is disinterested in most of the other ones b/c her parents forced like half of them onto her.

she plays bass guitar. she loves her bass guitar. she knows other instruments but the only ones she’ll really fidget with are her bass guitar and like, her violin. everything else she’s like ~okay~ at

got really obsessed with languages at a young age and started learning them ?? her mother is like. super french, like genuinely from france, so she already grew up speaking both english and french but she’s learnt others for the hell of it and she’s still learning like three other at the same time which is a MESS but she’s a mess so like can u blame her sdfghj

but like i said, she’s v e r y reckless. very much a party girl. she uses like…quite a few drugs, both socially and alone and frankly – she’s rarely sober.

a budding alcoholic because she’s convinced that without it she’ll be Miserable and Horrible to everybody because she’s a Horrible, Awful person who is the absolute Worse and if drinking vodka mixed in with 23 crystal lite packets helps with not thinking like that then she’ll do it no questions asked

its a problem she’s been developing since she was younger, only amplified by … the situation, that happened when she was eighteen.

is essentially wearing this mask of confidence and giddiness and flirtatiousness b/c she doesnt want people to think she’s doing Not Okay.

she loves so much. she loves everything, everybody. falls in love like five times a day but nothing really sticks to her either. if ur a shitty person/come off as an asshole then she’ll be more likely to be attracted to her b/c shes Always been like this. finds them super interesting which is ?? questionable ?? sometimes i want to just. knock some sense into her but y’know what…it’s fine we’re Fine

she gets around p frequently but is also the type of person who’ll like, try n maintain a positive, good friendship with whoever she sleeps with b/c the idea of having regrettable encounters is smth that Bothers her and she just pretty much refuses.

it’s honestly a bit of a problem ?? she blurs the lines between friendship and Something, Anything More too often and with too many people b/c she just. wants to be loved. but there is never enough !

she does stick n pokes !! a whole bunch !! let her give you one !! she can’t draw for shit but i mean, who cares, right ??

uuuhh her mom sends her like…prototypes of things she designs n shit that isn’t out yet and saige 100% always gives it away or it sits in her closet and essentially that is her go-to gift for birthdays or christmas or whenever she feels like it

there’s literally sm i could say about her but i’ll stop Here b/c it’s getting too long sksksksk

connections to the victims !!

tatiana samuels / saige & tatiana met when they were freshmen and junior, respectively. they quickly became friends - mostly seen together at parties, where they’d encourage each other to do more, more, more. their friendship was ended after they’d taken a friend’s car on a joyride and wound up crashing it off of a back road. saige freaked out about it & tatiana ... did not. as a result of their very different reactions, and saige’s fear of landing in the news, they cut ties.

george craig iii / saige had met george after bringing tatiana back to her dorm one night where they accidentally crossed paths. one thing led to another and they wound up sleeping together. it hadn’t meant to be a thing at all, but there had been two other incidents of them ‘accidentally crossing paths’ before his disappearance.

hana williams / for the two of them to not be friends would be, frankly - weird, due to their similar friendly personalities. they got along well, but weren’t the closest pair.

christoph wainwright / they had hooked up numerous times before without issue, but christoph’s jealous yet emotionally unavailable personality & saige’s own conflicted feelings had resulted in a huge fight, which led to their falling out - which led to them quickly becoming enemies, instead.

wanted connections !!

give me. a best friend. just somebody who sticks by her side even though she’s a Mess

like, a ride or die ?? is that the same as a best friend ?? idc i want both :)

and just in general, like, people she’s p close to ?? she’s really friendly and is the kind of girl who’d be really popular in high school but doesn’t care abt popularity n talks to literally Everybody like she’s known them all her life.

ESP if ur muse is a lil grumpier !! she will fuck their shit up, but like, in a friendship way.

party pals, where they don’t talk that much outside of parties but inside them ?? super close. glued to the hip. hold-your-hair-back kinda tight.

frenemies ?? fake friends ?? toxic pals ?? ppl using her for her money or like, sex, or something ?? anything ??

bad influences ?? who just encourage all of saige’s shit ??

good influences ?? who are like YOINK stop being an idiot.

a tutor b/c she’s like…she’s smart, okay, but she’s also really stupid LMAO. she’s rly bad at math and science. somebody help her.

hook ups ?? fwbs ?? that one, rare one-night-stand that went weird ??

exes ?? she’s sorta noncommittal so idk how long they would’ve dated but like sjdfkbo yolo ?? ex hook-ups too ??

…somebody who just. hates her. but she doesn’t realize bc she’s a big ol’ idiot. she thinks theyre pals !!

let her b a thorn in someone’s side, just like, an absolute annoyance LMAO

gimme an enemy, or like an ex-best friend where something happened between them n it ruined their friendship

i will take literally anything i dont know

she steals ur character’s mail ?? ur cat keeps escaping and she keeps letting them inside even tho she’s allergic ??

one of those friendships where theyre always bickering like an old married couple ?? but it’s Purely Platonic (or is it ??)

an off-and-on again that just. it’s not good for either of them b/c they keep enabling each other and then getting pissed off and it’s a Mess but ?? it’s so hard to stop.

the drug dealer she keeps sleeping with even though she can just … pay for her shit. b/c it’s funner this way !

just … people where their like … relationship status is Blurred and it’s like, are they a thing? are they not? b/c she’s a mess and gets involved with too many people without intending to !

please. take her. give me connections.