#t;

[prelawboy]

i can’t believe they literally showed up to a crime scene like this and said hi we’re in the fbi

[frengles]

Every day I go out and live in the world with my language barrier is so cringe and embarrassing I understand how people can live in a place for years and not learn the language sometimes it’s insanely hard and takes conscious effort to continuously put yourself in situations that challenge your abilities but don’t overwhelm you in a way that you can’t learn anything. That being said I think the depiction of how quickly and grammatically accurately Jin learned English from nothing on the island in LOST without any access to explanatory materials and mostly separated from his Korean speaking wife who could have served as a teacher was highly unrealistic. All the crazy time travel island stuff tho? True to life

[singdreamchild]

Roses on Gravestones

Timing: Early August

Location: Eluria Cemetery

Parties: Cassius @singdreamchild & Xochitl @vanishingreyes

Summary: Cassius goes to leave the crypt, only to run into Xochitl visiting her friend's final resting space. An introspective conversation takes place.

Content warning: Topics of death and grieving

By all accounts, she should have hated graveyards, and she did. Usually. She hated the idea that Mackenzie had been alone for so long, even though Xóchitl was fairly certain she didn’t believe in life after death. There was no way her friend was still walking around anywhere.

Still, there was a weird sort of comfort to cemeteries, and at least there, people weren’t likely to bother her too much. It was a welcome antidote to the sheer amount of talking and solving of others’ problems that she had to do all day.

She’d found that sometimes bringing flowers to often-left-alone graves, since returning to town. Xóchitl figured it had to have been because she hoped that after everything, after two decades (plus), people still treated Mackenzie’s grave with respect. That maybe her favorite duck plush was still there, or had been replaced with a newer version.

She heard a crunch as she was laying down the flowers of the day (carnations), and Xóchitl turned around to see who was behind her, far too much of a part of her longing for it to somehow be her friend, claiming that everything had all been a joke.

This was the second time that Cassius had found someone too close for comfort at the crypt he spent his time in. At least this time it wasn’t a student, right? Before he gave himself away, he had noticed the woman laying flowers at a grave of someone who had passed away long ago. The crunch of the branch under his foot gave him away before he could leave without being detected. Damn, he really had to get better at his sneaking abilities. Cursing under his breath, he gave a polite smile to the woman. “Apologies, I did not mean to distract you from your mourning.” He spoke in a soft tone, smile going from polite to awkward in a few short moments. 

He wanted to keep walking, but something rooted him in place. He didn’t know what to say, to ask who they were to them, but that felt too personal. “I often come here to read. I find that the dead still deserve to have company.” He found himself saying instead, shifting his feet slightly so he didn’t appear so stock-still. Sometimes it was hard to remember to look as though he were alive. 

Cassius then looked to the flowers, nodding slightly. “Red carnations. They symbolize love and affection.” He noted, remembering the period in his life when he had fixated on flowers and their meanings. His sire had gone through a lot of bouquets of flowers in that time period, he wondered if he had ever appreciated it. Unsure if the woman intended the meaning behind them, he realized it was a rather odd thing to bring up. “I uh, used to study flower meanings when I was younger.” He then explained with a brief smile.

“Oh - no, not mourning. I was merely visiting a grave to ensure that whomever is buried here does not feel alone. Which may sound silly, but it is what I have chosen to do, and so I’d prefer to not hear ridicule.” Xóchitl knew logically that she shouldn’t lie, and yet it felt all too easy to do so. Better than having someone ask questions about why she was visiting the grave of a child, twenty years after the date marked on the stone.

“I find the same. Besides, there is something comforting about cemeteries. It makes the dead feel as though they aren’t as far away as we might think they are.” It sounded like something she’d heard manman’s mom say, once, about someone in her running club. Either way, Xóchitl was still hesitant to let her guard down, but there was something that she could do, and that was offer the stranger a smile, and a gesture to join her, if he so wished.

“That they do - did you really? Can I ask what your favorite flower and meaning is? Or top five, if choosing one is too difficult to do?”

Cassius nodded his head in understanding as the woman explained herself. “A kindred spirit then,” he said in response. “I often find that there are people here who never have flowers, some stones are more worse for wear than the others, those are the ones I choose to visit.” He explained as he put a hand onto the stone of the individual she had chosen to visit. 

“I am Cassius,” he introduced with a soft bow of his head. “I often find comfort in a quote from Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughter-House Five.” He spoke, eyes distant as he began to recite a passage. “When a person dies he only appears to die. He is still very much alive in the past, so it is very silly for people to die at his funeral. All moments past, present, and future, always have existed, always will exist.” He gave a sad smile for a moment, remembering all the people he had met in his life that got to die when he was stuck in a state of undeath. 

He took her invitation and sat down beside her. “I like the Forget-me-not.” He began with a nod. “It symbolizes true love and memories.” He explained with a simple shrug of his shoulders. “There is also the Greek story behind the hyacinth flower.” He spoke, pressing a finger to his chin as he recalled the tale. “A young Spartan prince that was loved by the Greek god Apollo was struck down by Zephyrus of the West Winds in jealousy. Unable to heal him, Apollo instead turned his body into the hyacinth flower, inscribing the petals with his love for him.” He shook his head, realizing he was rambling on about flowers. “Apologies, I tend to get lost in thought when I talk about things I find passion in.”

“Kindred spirit indeed,” she gave a slight nod of her head. “Yes, I find it sad if a stone is left to get too dirty, or if it looks neglected, though I suppose there comes the chance of a time when no one who knew the person is still around.” Which wasn’t such a pleasant thought at all, and one that Xóchitl did her best to rid herself of the first chance she had.

“I’m Xóchitl,” she responded in turn, “pleasure to meet you, even if it’s not in the most standard of ways.” There was something immediately comforting about his presence, despite him being a complete stranger. “That is a good quote – and — well, I’m sorry to have not been entirely truthful before. I do visit graves of those I don’t know but I - I did know her.” She looked down. “She was my best friend.” Her shoulders dropped, her typical sure sort of stance gone. “I am sorry for not telling you the truth. You are just so kind, so I couldn’t keep lying to you, even if it was only a small lie.”

He claimed apologies for getting lost in his passions, and Xóchitl only shook her head. “That is hardly something to apologize for, I think. I love hearing about what others are passionate about. Are you a florist, or is this simply a passion project of yours?”

His face fell as she spoke about the grave in particular. That she was important to this woman he now knew to be Xóchitl. “I am sorry for your loss.” He spoke, laying a hand down on the top of the stone, as if comforting it. “You have no reason to be sorry,” he began as he looked over to her. “Death is a personal thing. Sometimes it feels too vulnerable to admit the truth. As if speaking it aloud makes it more real.” He gave a sad smile, something he knew from personal experience with living as long as he had. 

“Simply a passion of mine from younger years.” He explained with a shrug of his left shoulder. “The information stuck and never truly left my mind.” He explained with a roll of his eyes at himself. He didn’t share that he had learned this in, quite literally, a different lifetime. Back in a world that no longer existed, where technology wasn’t even thought of, and people communicated their feelings in terms of flowers and hand-written notes.

“I am still sorry, but thank you – for your kindness, and for everything else.” Because he hadn’t had to say any of that, and yet he had, yet he’d stayed so kind, so giving, and just pleasant to talk to. Which wasn’t something Xóchitl always found around here. Or around anywhere, were she honest. “I would’ve thought I’d be used to it by now, but yes, I think you are right.” She offered him a cautious, sad smile back.

“A very neat sort of passion, if I might say so myself.” She nodded. “I think it’s kind of lovely, to be able to tell emotions or stories or any such thing without using spoken words, or even written words. Without words at all.” Xóchitl ran her fingertips along the top of Mackenzie’s grave. “Would a bouquet then show a whole range of things to say? If each flower means something different.”

Cassius felt a pang of sadness for the woman. He remembered when he had lost his mother, the last of his family to pass away and finally leaving him truly alone with no one but his sire to call family. He had gone back to England to check on her every now and again, and the last time he went, he had found that the house they had lived in was then occupied by someone else. He had went to the cemetery where his father was buried, only to find her tombstone next to his. He had never gotten to say goodbye. He frowned, a wave of understanding washing over him. “We live in a culture that does not talk about death. I find it rather normal to not get used to it. Such is the nature of grief.” 

He thought for a moment, the idea of a bouquet of flowers portraying all the things that he couldn’t say out loud, all hidden into different meanings. “I would imagine it would be a beautiful message to send, even if the recipient didn’t fully understand its meaning.” He had given flowers before, only for the message to be lost on deaf ears. He gave a sad smile to the woman. “I apologize for interrupting your mourning.” Cassius then said, taking a step away, not wanting to overstep.

“You make a very good point,” she began, “but still. It happened when I was little. It shouldn’t still impact me so much now.” Even though Xóchitl knew that that wasn’t entirely true. It just somehow, for some reason, felt better to say, even if it was a lie. Which was probably not great, but she’d gotten so used to telling white lies at this point that she was able to shrug it off perhaps more easily than she should have been able to.

“Oh, that does sound lovely, though I suppose I might only want to give them if someone knew the meaning. Otherwise I would just send a bouquet of their favorites.” Xóchitl shook her head, “not interrupting at all. It is rather nice to not be alone, but I am sorry if I’ve interrupted yours.”

Cassius shook his head at the woman’s notion of getting over it. “Please. I’ve lost people many years ago that still effect me to this day.” He insisted, waving a hand through the air. “Just because they left us, doesn’t mean the pain goes away as time goes on. You just learn how to cope with it better. That doesn’t mean there are times when the grief doesn’t take its hold.” He thought back to his family, he had lost them in the 1800s, now it was the 21st century but he still thought about it from time to time. 

“You have not. I simply go for a stroll through the cemetery.” At night. And he doesn’t leave. Oh yes, and he happens to live in the nearby crypt. All things he was thinking about burt didn’t dare to say aloud. “I come rather often,” Cassius confessed, shrugging his shoulders. “I shall bring her flowers from time to time, now that I know she’s here.” He then spoke, a soft smile on his lips that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I shall let you be. I should get back home.” He spoke, gesturing towards the exit of the cemetery, pretending as if he didn’t live in the cemetery. “We shall see each other again, I’m sure.” He spoke, tilting his head to the side with a sly smile. “After all, it’s a smaller town than we give it credit for.”

“I am sorry to hear that,” she offered, genuine. “That’s true – I suppose, or I’ve heard that said enough times that I think it must be.” Or at least, for the time being, Xóchitl could believe it. Even if a good part of her didn’t want to, or fought back and refused to. “You grow around your grief, not away from it.” That was something that some therapist had said to her at one point or another. Probably while they asked her to draw some picture and she drew one of what had to have been hundreds of her and Mackenzie, or her, alone.

None of those had ever ended up on her parents’ fridge. She’d torn them up, many times, crying and screaming about it all. Because the pictures were just a wish, they weren’t real, and it wasn’t good to stare at them all the time. She did that enough with the actual photos she had of her and her best friend. “Okay, it is a beautiful place to stroll through.” Even if Xóchitl was a bit curious about why someone would so willingly and easily go on a stroll through this place. “Thank you. She’s not picky, but she also loves colors and just anything pretty. Even dandelions.” She worried her lip for a moment, desperately wanting her friend back, desperately doing all she could to not cry. “Yes, I’ll – we’ll be – I’ll see you again, I’m sure.” Even if his knowing anything about Mackenzie made part of her never want to see him again.

But maybe it could be something of some sort of comfort, somehow. “I’m glad she’ll have someone else looking after her, too.”

[eliaskahtri]

Viper's Den || Elias & Marcus

Location: Side of the road somewhere

Timing: Current

Parties: Marcus (@thenavysealkie) & Elias (@eliaskahtri)

Summary: Elias's car breaks down in a rainstorm and attracts the attention of a beithir. Marcus comes running along and jumps into the car before the snake can attack him.

Content Warning: None

Sputter, sputter, pop! Well, that’s that. His trusty car had finally died. And there he was on the side of the road in the middle of a forested area. “Well, this could be worse.” He decided aloud. After he said that, a cosmic force somewhere decided it’d be the funniest timing to hit Elias with a torrential downpour. The clouds had been dark and foreboding, but he had hoped he would have made it to his apartment first. BOOM, a loud crack of thunder sounded overhead. “Me and my big mouth.” He muttered to himself, biting his lip and shaking his head. There was no point in getting out of the car to check under its hood if it would pour like this, was there? Another clap of thunder roared overhead, and Elias leaned back in his seat, letting out a deep and frustrated sigh. “Hilarious timing, universe.” He shouted up at the roof of his car, glaring at the cosmic joke that seemed to be his life. 

Of course, hearing his indignation, the universe couldn’t just take that lying down. Something THUNKed against the side of his car. Then he heard hissing. Not just any hissing, snake hissing. “Oh, you’ve GOT to be kidding me.” He then shouted, shaking his fist at the sky before looking out his passenger window to see a very large and vibrant green snake striking at the glass of his car window. Now, Elias was no stranger to snakes. Hiking as much as he did, one became familiar with different kinds of snakes and what to watch out for. Vibrant coloring? That didn’t mean anything good. He swore its eyes were almost glowing they were so red. “Ha!” He shouted at the snake, pointing at it as it struck the window again. “Can’t get me, can you?” He looked around his car, quickly picking up the umbrella in the back seat to use as fodder in case the snake broke the glass.

The snake began to circle the car after the third strike, hissing again as it searched for a way to its victim.

It was an unseasonably warm day for a Maine winter, and Marcus had every intention of taking advantage. While it was the perfect temperature for a nice run, he couldn’t help but notice the overcast skies forming overhead about halfway through his route. Giving a hearty sigh, he decided to finish his run since he was already so far from home. Besides, a little rain never hurt anyone, right? 

Just then, a massive clap of thunder boomed out, and suddenly a torrential downpour of rain dumped right onto Marcus’s head. He was immediately soaked to the skin, and struggling to see in the sudden monsoon. He was expecting a light drizzle that would build into a storm, not an instant avalanche of rain coming down on him in sheets. Worst of all, the rain was freezing cold. 

Wanting to get under a roof and into some warm clothes, he decided to take a shortcut in order to take the path of least resistance back home. As he ran down the road, he passed a parked car. While he normally wouldn’t look twice at it, just as he would for any other parked car, this one had something slithering all over it. It was a giant snake and there was a person trapped inside the car! Marcus couldn’t make out who the person was, but either way it was somebody who needed help. Reaching into his running shorts, he palmed his pocket knife and slowly made his way over to the giant creature. 

Elias watched in horror as a figure ran past the car, then did a double take and turned around. “No! Leave me here. You’re not safe out there!” He cried out as the man began to creep toward the creature. “Fucking do-gooders, all of you.” He muttered to himself as the snake turned its attention to Marcus. It let out another hiss, slowly raising its head toward Marcus, slithering towards him with its mouth open and fangs bared. Seeing this, Elias began to bang on his window, drawing the attention of both the man and, thankfully, the snake. The snake struck out at Elias’s window, long enough for Elias to motion for Marcus to the passenger side door. “Get in the car, it’s not worth it!” He yelled. 

Unlocking his doors, Elias continued to bang on his window to draw the snake’s attention. “Yeah, that’s right. Look at me, not at him. Get the tasty snack still in its wrapper and not the one conveniently behind you.” Elias goaded, pointing and leering at the snake long enough for Marcus to do something.

As Marcus drew closer to the beast, he realized it was much larger than he thought it would be. While he was never one to run away from a fight, he found himself frozen in fear as the large serpent reared its head towards him and bared its fangs, looking as if it were about to strike. Would his knife even do anything? He remembered the zombie from the ocean, the vampire, and even the giant spider he had taken down, each one with the help of some friends. None of those situations had made him more certain of his own doom than he was in that moment. 

Just then, he heard banging from the passenger side window, and saw the snake divert its attention to the driver of the vehicle. As the snake circled around, Marcus slowly felt himself able to move his body again as the fear and panic subsided. He then heard shouting for him to get into the open door, and Marcus certainly didn’t need to be told twice. 

“Fuck that thing’s big. Bigger than I thought, at least” he said as he closed the door behind him. Now they were both trapped with a hungry snake ready to pounce on them. They needed a game plan. Marcus turned to talk out a strategy with his unlikely partner when he really laid eyes on him for the first time. It was a familiar face to say the least. 

“Elias?” 

Elias blinked at the familiar figure as Marcus clambered into his car. He blinked. He knew his name. They had that discussion about mythical creatures, about both being from the west coast. “Marcus.” He answered with a nod of his head. He frowned, wishing he had something to offer the other to dry him off. “I’d drive away from the snake, but my car broke down.” He confessed. As the snake began to circle the car again, Elias locked the doors. He wasn’t about to find out if snakes in Wicked’s Rest could open car doors. As the storm raged on, lightning streaking across the sky followed by another roar of thunder, Elias leaned back in his seat. “Looks like we’re stuck here.” 

He glanced over at Marcus, recognizing running shorts when he saw them. He hated them. Elias would forever run in long pants before being forced into another pair of those skimpy shorts. He blinked, realizing he was staring far too long at the man to be acceptable. “Got caught in it while running, huh?” He returned to the car's windshield, watching as the large snake circled around the car again. Between that snake and the rain, they were going nowhere anytime soon. “So, uh. Anything exciting happen to you lately?” He decided to ask, not knowing how else to pass the time. He frowned as the windows began to fog, reaching out and drawing a frowny face before wiping it away, wanting to keep his eyes on the damn snake.

Upon hearing the man’s car wouldn’t start, Marcus almost wanted to run out of the car and make a break for it. After all, weren’t they both essentially sitting ducks if they were to stay there? But in spite of this, Marcus simply couldn’t work up the guts to open the door and give that thing a chance to take a shot at him. One bite would undoubtedly be enough to end his life right then and there. 

“Probably better to just wait for a rescue, I guess”. 

Marcus didn’t know much about cars, except that they need gas and oil changes. Sometimes the brakes go bad and you have to pay way too much money to get them fixed. So Elias’s car being completely broken down was well out of his realm of expertise. Besides, it wasn’t like he could go out there and pop the hood with that snake crawling around. 

He couldn’t help but notice where his old acquaintance’s eyes had gone. Is he checking me out? Marcus thought to himself. Of course, he already knew the answer to this question, he had seen that look before from both men and women alike. Well he was dressing for comfort rather to impress, he was pleased to see he could at least still grab his attention. Especially in a life threatening situation such as this one. 

“Yep, just as I had reached the farthest point in my run from home. Go figure. I swear, the weather in this town is almost as unpredictable as its residents. Do you run much?” 

“Well, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the whole town got coated in goo. So uh, I don’t know if you’d classify that as ‘exciting’, but it’s definitely noteworthy. Other than that…” Marcus took a long pause as he chose his words carefully. “Got something back that was very important to me. Not without a price, of course, but I’m very excited to have it back. And how about you? I know you went back out to La La Land, how did that treat you? Probably not great if you wound up back here”. 

Watching as Marcus’s face went through the stages of grief, Elias shrugged his shoulders. “Waiting is the only game I can play right now.” He responded, taking his phone out of his pocket to show Marcus he had no signal. There was no getting help unless the rain stopped or someone showed mercy on their sorry asses.

Elias knew cars. He knew cars because it was his nature to take things apart and put them back together. It’s how he learned how things worked. Sure, his dad hadn’t been happy about it, but he had put it back together! He blinked, snapping back to the present. There was nothing he could do about his broken-down car right now, not with the torrential downpour and a vicious snake.

Elias blinked at Marcus’s question, then nodded his head somewhat dumbly. “I go running every morning.” He answered. “Hiking and running help me clear my head.” He shrugged. I don’t know how you wear those shorts, he almost said. They leave nothing to the imagination. He made a face to himself, then looked out the window as the snake made another lap around the car. “How far do you go every day?” He then asked, finding it nice to find someone else who was a runner. He seemed to be running into many of those types of people lately.

“Exciting, running people out of their homes, oh yeah. I heard.” He frowned, not sure what to make of the whole situation. He tried not to think about what the hell was in that toxic sludge. Elias was stunned momentarily, realizing that Marcus had read about him. He wasn’t in many newspapers, but he was in enough that the other seemed to notice. “Oh, I, uh.” He frowned, unsure if he wanted to explain his complete breakdown to a stranger.

He sighed, shrugging. “Ran into some bad shit here, went back to California.” He explained vaguely. “Finished the project I was working on back at home, and it ended up being kind of a breakthrough in the field.” He scratched at the back of his neck, the anxious tick again revealing itself. He hated talking about this stuff. It made him feel weak. He was weak, wasn’t he? “Long story short, my assistant is from here, and I couldn’t tell her no when I was offered a place to continue my research at the local hospital.” He frowned, staring down at his hands. All of it still felt like one colossal mistake, even if it did mean he got to be reunited with friendly faces.

He had to admit it, Marcus certainly didn’t take Elias to be such an active runner. Something about his nerdy personality and demeanor had Marcus assume he probably didn’t get out much. He was happy to be wrong though, as he had met somebody who took physical fitness about as seriously as he did. 

“Couple miles into town, then a couple miles back home. I don’t run every day though, when it’s nicer out I prefer to swim. The water’s always where I’ve felt the most at home. When it’s in the ocean, that is. Falling down from the sky is a different story entirely” he said, glancing out the window again. The snake had made a few more half hearted attempts to lunge at the windows, but mostly seemed content to keep circling the duo as they waited for a miracle to come save them. 

Marcus heard the man’s story about having to move and nodded thoughtfully. When he went back home, the urge was certainly strong to stay in Washington and never look back. But the ghosts of his past continued to tether him to this town, and wouldn’t stop doing so until he handled his unfinished business here. He wondered if Elias had similar unfinished business. 

“I get it. There’s a lot of bad shit in this town. I’ve wanted to get away from it all countless times. Awfully noble of you to trade nice sunny California for the cold and gray New England life just to make your assistant happy. You must like them a lot. And it’s cool you can still keep on with your research out here. Who knows, maybe your talents are better placed out here anyway. Everything happens for a reason, right?”

Elias nodded his head as Marcus explained his usual routine. “That’s about what I do, just a few miles there and back. I like to take the nature trails. I’m an avid hiker as well.” He waved his hands as he spoke. “You could probably go swimming in the road right about now.” He then added, pointing to the quickly flooding sides of the street. “Fuck running home. You can do the butterfly home!” He exclaimed with a playful grin, looking over to Marcus and waggling his brows as if trying to tempt him into considering it.

He swallowed thickly as Marcus said he understood. Did he understand? Had he seen things that he couldn’t explain away? Things that defy logic? Defy reasoning? Elias suddenly became acutely aware of the emergency medication he kept stashed in his pocket. No, he wouldn’t have another breakdown in front of a stranger. A hot stranger, at that. No, not today. He took a slow breath, regulating himself back to normal. “I mean, I…” he trailed off as the snake struck at the car again. “That’s getting annoying.” He decided aloud, shaking his head as he tried to get back to what he was saying. “I met people here that I genuinely enjoy, so it wasn’t like it was a very hard decision.” He shrugged a shoulder. He didn’t mention that he was actively trying to find the things that his psychologist told him weren’t real. 

“Yeah. Right.” Elias murmured, brows knitting together as he worried about what reason he could possibly have in this town that had already driven him to the edge once. Still, he couldn’t deny that he was curious. Something was nagging at him to ask Marcus. So he did. “Have you seen things you can’t explain?” He asked, looking over at him with a genuinely curious expression. He just wanted an outside opinion that wasn’t Regan for once. “Like, things that don’t make sense in the realm of science.” He bit his lip, realizing he probably sounded crazy.

Marcus couldn’t help but laugh at the man’s suggestion of swimming in the road. He had to admit, the water was rising quickly, and this car may quickly become a very shitty boat. 

“Now there’s an idea, hop on my back and I’ll outswim the giant snake that’s trying to eat us,” he replied, turning to Elias and cocking an eyebrow. 

Marcus nodded understandingly. “There are some really good people out here. People just trying to make the best of everything. Probably why everyone in a town that’s so hostile can maintain some semblance of sanity, everybody supports each other. For the most part at least. I guess it’s a sense of community you can’t get just anywhere, eh?” He knew how silicon valley and most of California could be; cutthroat. The personalities and goodwill were as plastic and artificial as their faces. Most of the STEM bros he knew of would have fed Elias to the snake for just a little extra distance as they made a run for it. 

“I can explain plenty of what I’ve seen. You need to define what you mean by ‘science’. Because there’s the generally accepted info you get from those thick ass textbooks, and then there’s the science that you observe. If you saw a unicorn, but your books and research papers told you they didn’t exist, which would you believe? Your eyes, or your books? I believe that there’s a lot of the world that hasn’t been studied or understood, but that doesn’t mean those things aren’t real or unexplainable.” He knew Elias did work in medicine, but couldn’t remember exactly what area in particular. Either way, he may have been too much of a rationalist to deep dive straight into the supernatural, even with a gigantic snake beating at the window of his own car. 

Grinning at the suggestion, Elias nodded his head. “Now that’s what I call a solid plan.” He exclaimed, pretending to open the door. Nope, not even for the bit was that a good idea. He leaned back into his seat. His brows furrowed as Marcus talked about what he saw versus what research and textbooks would say. He blinked. He was supposed to tell him that he was being ridiculous, not try to get him to see that the way he was seeing things was wrong. He shook his head. No, no. Believing what your eyes were seeing were for people who weren’t prescribed anti-psychotics.

Elias frowned, staring down at his hands that gripped at his steering wheel until his knuckles went white. “Right. Well. Thanks for indulging me.” He spoke quietly, afraid to open that door. He couldn’t go through another existential crisis while a snake was desperate to turn him into snake food.

He opened his mouth to say more, but Elias watched as the snake stuck at his door, and this time, the glass began to crack. Eyes wide with horror, he leaned closer into Marcus’s space, flinching as the snake struck again, breaking through the glass. “Shit!” He shouted out, grabbing onto Marcus’s shoulder in a panic. “Open the glove box. I’ve got a knife in there!” He shouted, panicking as the snake began to slither in through the now shattered window. 

As Elias spoke, Marcus couldn’t help but feel as though he had struck a nerve. To be fair, he knew he may have given him the talk of the paranormal before Elias was ready to hear it. But at the same time, the man had been living in this town for how long? This revelation had to have come to him sooner or later. Looking into the maw of a hungry giant snake seemed like as good a time as any to come to terms with the existence of the supernatural. 

Speaking of the giant snake’s maw, it had managed to break through the glass and into the car. Marcus reached for his knife, and heard Elias instruct him to grab his knife out of the glovebox as well. For both of their sakes, he hoped that Elias knew how to use it. He would have appreciated the sudden closeness if not for the noodle of death right in front of them both. 

Marcus handed Elias his knife while holding out his own towards the creature. It seemed to halt the beast’s advance briefly, but it soon began its serpentine movements again towards the duo. Marcus slashed at it, but it quickly wiggled its body out of harm’s way before starting upon the two again. They would both need to attack this thing at the same time if they wanted to have any hope of actually doing some damage.

As soon as Marcus handed him the knife, Elias quickly flicked it open. He kept himself pressed up against the other man to get himself as far away from the snake as he possibly could. It was in the car, staring down Marcus with bared fangs. Elias swore that he could see the venom drip off of his fang the longer he stared. As it reared itself to strike, Elias stabbed through it as hard as he could. The snake began to struggle, trying to get away from the attack, but it was too late. As soon as it wiggled itself back and forth, he lost grip of the knife. The snake began to thrash around in the car, knife clanging against the car as it moved. 

Elias gaped. He couldn’t believe he had done that. He thought back to the giant rat that was trying to kill Kaden back when he had first moved into town. This wasn’t the first time he’d come across a wild animal that wanted someone dead. Elias reached out for the knife, grabbing hold of it before the snake tried to snap at his hand. “Fuck!” He swore as he yanked his hand away, knife in hand. Desperate to defend itself, the snake snapped at Elias this time. It came close, but not before Elias stuck out the blade, and it pierced through the snake as it launched itself at him. 

Eyes squeezed shut, Elias kept waiting to get bitten, but it never came. Slowly, he opened his eyes. The snake was lying in their lap, dead. “Ha!” He let out, staring down at the dead snake, feeling his body shake from the adrenaline, completely not realizing how close to Marcus he was until he turned his face to look at the man, and their noses practically touched. 

Marcus almost couldn’t believe his eyes. He thought that this man was a reserved, nerdy, and very naive man. But watching the way he carved through the snake impressed him on a level he couldn’t quite articulate. The beast lay dead, and the storm raged on just outside the vehicle. On top of all of that, Elias had nestled himself nearly into Marcus’s lap. The man turned to face him, and he found their faces extremely close to one another. 

Was he developing feelings? He definitely didn’t seem like Marcus’s usual choice of partner. While this would have made a perfect opportunity to steal a kiss, he didn’t want to complicate any feelings with William still hanging around in the background. Still, he couldn’t help himself from making a cheeky comment. 

“That was some damn fine knife work. Can’t wait to see how you handle something with a bit more weight to it” he said, with a coy wink. If there was any time to shoot his shot, this probably would have been the time, he figured. Even if it wasn’t anything serious, he never knew what would happen when he finally got William to piss off for good. 

Elias blinked at Marcus’s come-on and quickly put himself back into his own seat. “Uh. Ha!” He let out nervously, looking down at the now dead snake. “I… used to hike really tough trails. I did a hike that lasted three months one time, and I had to know basic self-defense. Never know what’ll happen in the woods with wild animals and other crazy people hiking the same trail.” Elias thought for a moment, then smirked to himself. “And yes, I know my way around a knife.” He spoke, shooting Marcus a knowing look before opening his door to shove the snake out of the car. 

He wasn’t sure what to do with such a statement. He wasn’t one for flirting. He wasn’t good at it, it made him feel all weird and clammy. He stared down at the snake, sighing as he let the rain pour down on him. Now that the window was broken, what was the point? “Well, at least the snake has been dealt with.” He spoke as he got himself back into the car and shut the door. He tried the ignition, and the car sputtered. He sighed, shaking his head. “Come on, you’ve never acted like this before,” he complained to the car. He tried the key again. This time, a little more happened, but still didn’t start. “It’s the alternator,” he explained. “And while I know my way around cars, I’m not big into fixing them in the middle of a rain storm.” He also didn’t have the tools with him. So it looked like he was calling a tow when the rain let up, and he could call someone. He looked over at Marcus, frowned, then decided to try one more time. The car sputtered but eventually roared to life. “Yes!” He exclaimed, patting the steering wheel. “Can I drive you back home? This rain isn’t going to let up anytime soon.” He asked as he pulled the car back onto the road. 

Marcus had to give Elias credit, he was growing to like the man more and more as a result of their little encounter here. He couldn’t tell if Elias was reciprocating his come on or not, so decided not to try anything further. 

“I hear there are a lot of people waiting out on those trails looking for people to rob. Good thing you didn’t have to use it until now, for both of our sakes I’m also glad you were prepared.” 

He watched in amazement as, by some small miracle, the engine finally roared back to life. Marcus figured sometimes turning the key and praying to every major or minor deity in existence can work wonders. If you believe in that sort of thing, that is.

“Well, I’d hate to cut our time short. But we’re both soaking wet and I don’t know about you, but I could use a change of clothes. I would love a ride home, the streets aren’t much good for walking right now. But we should definitely get together again some time. Probably be more fun without a giant snake trying to eat us.” 

If nothing else, Marcus was happy to make a new friend who seemed to share some interests with him. It was just as he said earlier, this town was full of very good people trying to help each other out. Elias was one example of this, and he intended to keep him around. After all, good friends could be hard to come by. 

[joongbuggie]

text: tae

joong: hey i'm just doing my weekly check in lol. seeing if everything is alright in your corner.

joong: things have been a bit stressful but it's like stress i cause myself you know? As you know i can be a of a perfectionist and really hard on myself.

joong: anyway, i hope you're doing well! you guys have been killing it.

[bxunbaek]

Text | Seulgi

baek: hey what are your plans this week? i was thinking we could get together and hang out. it's been awhile since we got a chance to do such things.

baek: i mean, if you get a chance. i know you've been super busy with concerts and whatnot. i don't want to get in the way of the that lol.

[jecnjvngkcok]

Text | Sannie

kookie: Sannie! What are you up to? I'm sorry I've been MIA, I have meant to text you but I've just been crazy busy ;-;

kookie: HOWEVER, I'm free now, so catch me up on things, please?

[yexxsang]

yexxsang: Does anyone else prefer the fall or is it just me? It gets so hot in Korea in the summer that I sometimes want to dump ice water on myself lol.. I just want sweater weather, with hot cocoa. Is that too much to ask? :p

[boymounter]

hi! if you have a sec, how are the graphics on the new pokemon? I keep seeing things about frame rate drop and lag, has that been noticable for you? I'm debating if I should get the game sooner or wait. thank you!

i haven't had any frame issues, although there was an instance of the camera clipping through an object during one of the battle panning shots. i think it looks pretty good overall!

[heartseeker]

“kill them with kindness” Wrong. CURSE OF RA 𓀀 𓀁 𓀂 𓀃 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆 𓀇 𓀈 𓀉 𓀊 𓀋 𓀌 𓀍 𓀎 𓀏 𓀐 𓀑 𓀒 𓀓 𓀔 𓀕 𓀖 𓀗 𓀘 𓀙 𓀚 𓀛 𓀜 𓀝 𓀞 𓀟 𓀠 𓀡 𓀢 𓀣 𓀤 𓀥 𓀦 𓀧 𓀨 𓀩 𓀪 𓀫 𓀬 𓀭 𓀮 𓀯 𓀰 𓀱 𓀲 𓀳 𓀴 𓀵 𓀶 𓀷 𓀸 𓀹 𓀺 𓀻 𓀼 𓀽 𓀾 𓀿 𓁀 𓁁 𓁂 𓁃 𓁄 𓁅 𓁆 𓁇 𓁈 𓁉 𓁊 𓁋 𓁌 𓁍 𓁎 𓁏 𓁐 𓁑 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆

[seravph]

We’re not making it out of this one

[prelawboy]

he was so unbelievably baby brother here like maybe the most he’s ever been. it’s no wonder dean immediately was like oh my god holy shit ok

[frengles]

ok

[singdreamchild]

Octopi, Vampires, & Zombies, Oh My! || Cassius & Mack

Location: Wicked’s Rest Zoo

Timing: July 10th, evening

Parties: Mack (@realmackross ) and Cassius (@singdreamchild )

Summary: Cassius and Mack meet up during one of the evening zoo events of the summer. Things go great until vampirism almost ruins it.

Content warning: None

Llama, as she wholeheartedly believed her name to be after Beau had stolen her real name, hadn’t been to the zoo in such a long time. Of course, usually when she went it was with friends or family. She remembered going to the San Diego Zoo with her cousins not too long before leaving to shoot Haunted. It had been ridiculously hot that day, until a random rainstorm had popped up forcing them inside the monkey exhibit with a few other people. It had been fun, until the monkeys had started going wild and screaming at Llama as if they knew what she had become. It didn’t help that it drew attention to her and her family who were soon trying to get videos and pictures with her. And without being able to wait out the rain, she immediately fled on the verge of a panic attack from all the noise and cameras flashing leaving her cousins disappointed. But that had been almost a lifetime ago, and tonight, she had hoped it would be much better.

“One ticket please. Thanks.” Pulling out some cash, she passed the exact amount over to the person working the ticket window. Taking the ticket in return and her small gift bag in hand, Llama walked inside and found a bench towards the entrance to wait for the man she was supposed to meet. If he had stood her up and chickened out, at least she could still enjoy the exhibits for herself, especially the llamas. Maybe that’s why her parents had named her Llama. They were her favorite. And a nighttime exhibit at the zoo just sounded fun in itself. A “treat yourself” kind of night. If it was one thing Llama had been lacking in lately, it was self-care.

Cassius hadn’t been to the zoo in years. While he appreciated the wildlife that they had on display, he’d just seen so many zoos over the years and felt an overwhelming sense of sadness for most of them, these animals were no longer able to roam free in their natural habitats. Moreover, he had a harder time when they would feed the carnivorous animals and being at a zoo in the daytime. Being a vampire made it hard to enjoy the little things he’d taken for granted while alive in another lifetime. He made his way up to the ticket booth and paid for his admission, nodding his thanks to the worker before making his way inside.

As he had said in his message to the girl, (who Cassius learned was named Mackenzie after looking through her profile online) he wore a long black frock coat with silver button details, black skinny jeans and combat boots. His eyes were lined with black eyeliner and smoked out as well as a multitude of piercings in his face, the only thing that didn’t match was his natural blonde hair amongst all the black. He stood around for a moment, Standing at the entrance, he looked around, hoping that she would recognize him based off of the description he had given her.

Letting her eyes scan the area near the entrance, Llama looked for the man. He had claimed it wouldn’t be hard to spot him, and when she saw someone dressed in black from head-to-toe with blonde hair, just as he had described, she smiled. He hadn’t stood her up, and with that bit of a rush knowing she wouldn’t be spending another evening alone, she scooped up the small bag she had brought with her and moved towards him.

“Hey, I think you’re who I’m looking for? We met online. I’m Llama.” The name was enough alone to make anyone question her sanity considering Llama was a well known actress who went by the name Mackenzie Ross. She might have been lying about her name (even though she didn’t think she was), but there was no denying her face absolutely belonged to the name plastered all over the internet, in tv shows, and movie credits. Even her IMDB page read Mackenzie Ross, but the girl swore up and down that her name was Llama, which was apparent in her innocent expression.

As the girl strode up to him, Cassius gave her a polite smile. When she introduced herself, he faltered. She had been saying her name was Mackenzie up until recently. Llama. Right. Was she going through a phase? He had worked with teenagers for long enough to not judge anyone and what they were going through, but he found this a little odd. “Cassius.” He responded with a slight bow of his head. “A pleasure.” He decided not to mention the oddness of her name, coming to the conclusion that he was simply too old to keep up with trends these days.

He walked over to the side so they didn’t block anyone’s way, then began to rifle through his pocket. “You told me you wanted to see the llamas,” Cassius mentioned with a raise of his brow. “Should we go see that first or would you rather save that for the grand finale?” He had never been to the zoo before, despite the fact that he had lived in the town for a good ten years. After a beat of silence before the girl could answer him, he began to dig through his pocket, pulling out a single lilac-colored octopus and holding it out on the palm of his hand. “Before I forget, I believe this is for you.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Cassius.” She smiled warmly in his direction, before following suit and moving off to the side. “And you’re right. I definitely do want to see the llamas. I think if it’s okay with you, I’d like to save them for the grand finale. Were there any particular animals you were looking forward to seeing?” The zoo was such a fun place, and she was glad to be sharing this moment with someone else, even if they had just met. However, before she could ask him anything else, Llama watched as he pulled the small octopus out of his pocket; the whole reason she had come to meet him in the first place. The llamas were just a bonus.

It was adorable and looked even better than the picture she had seen online. It was going to have a special spot in her home on the mantle over the fireplace next to her Emmy awards, “Okay, that is the cutest thing I’ve seen in a long time.” She gently took the creature from his hand and held it close, “Thank you. I’ve already got a place picked out for him at home.” She looked down at the small crocheted octopus one more time, before remembering her own gift. “And this is for you.” Llama raised her hand up containing a small gift bag. The contents inside, a book of new animal crochet patterns and some nice crochet needles, weren’t much, but she had hoped he would enjoy it.

Cassius looked down at the bag she had given him, full of crochet supplies and patterns. It was enough to melt his long stopped heart. “This is amazing.” He spoke, looking over to her with wide eyes. “You didn’t need to do this.” He then said shaking his head. He was never given things, and the fact that she had gone out of her way to get supplies specific to the new hobby he had picked up meant a lot to him. A stranger that had paid attention, it was sweet. “Thank you.” He then said, nodding his head enthusiastically. After they had exchanged their gifts, he gave a soft smile as he looked around. “So what should we go look at first?” He asked as he began to walk past the zoo’s entrance and into the main square, as it seemed to be. 

There were signs pointing toward big cats, another pointing in the direction of the birds, and a bigger sign that explained the zoological mission toward conservation and animals that were close to extinction in the wild that they had at the zoo. It made him change his mind a little about zoos, if only for this one specifically. “Honestly, I’ve always felt bad for the animals that are stuck in enclosures.” He admitted to her after reading the sign. “But I also suppose I don’t know nearly enough about what goes into a zoo that truly cares about its animals.”

Llama was so grateful that he liked his gifts. Now, he could make all kinds of animals, including llamas! “Hey, I wanted to. I practically begged for one these little guys,” she held the small octopus up, “So I had to do something in return. And besides, now you can make llamas!” She winked at him. Maybe crocheting was something she could try. But upon second thought, she didn’t have the patience for it. She had always admired people who did though.

Following along, she took in the sights around her including the signs explaining where they were at and the zoo’s mission statement, “You know, I think since llamas are the grand finale, you should pick first.” It was all a little overwhelming, but nice. And it being dark out made things even better, because it was going to take more than just a glance to really see who Llama was, “That’s not a horrible way to feel. You want to picture all these animals free and running around in their homelands, but I guess when they’re being threatened, it’s a totally different story. At least here, people aren’t trying to hurt them. I mean that’s the way I look at it, I guess.” She sent a soft smile in Cassius’ direction hoping that eased his mind a little.

Thinking for a moment, Cassius stood up a little straighter. “I am a fan of lions,” he admitted with a smile. “There’s something about big cats that just get me.” He admitted with a gentle shrug of his shoulder. He shouldered his bag of crochet goodies, then pointed to the sign that mentioned big cats. “Shall we then?” He spoke, pointing in its direction. Once Llama was in agreement, they set off in the direction of the lion exhibit. “So how long have you been in town?” He asked with a raise of his eyebrow. “I’ve been here too long, personally.” He then added, walking slowly so they could take in the other animals as they walked. A cloud leopard, a cheetah, then the lions. 

Upon reaching the exhibit, Cassius’s heart sank. They were feeding the lion. Raw meat. Blood. Hoping it wasn’t seen, Cassius’s eyes turned a bright red and his fangs came out. He squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his lips together. He hoped that she hadn’t seen. He gripped the rail, holding his breath so the feeding response to the smell would calm down. He peeked open a red eye, looking over to her. “I guess I should explain myself.” He spoke, staring at the ground. 

Llama loved seeing the big cats. While she definitely was more of a dog person, there was just something about lions and other huge felines that seemed so majestic, “Lions it is! And maybe it’s because they’re so graceful, yet still so powerful?” She looked over to the sign he was pointing at, “We shall!”

As Llama moved forward, she let her eyes scan the enclosures looking at some exhibits that seemed to be closed. She couldn’t help but wonder if those animals were asleep or if it was some other reason that they weren’t on display. She knew the zoo had well trained and certified vets and other people working there, but she couldn’t help but worry, even though just moments earlier she had reassured Cassius that everything was okay. However, his question seemed to pull her mind away from the thoughts, “Huh, um, a little over two months. What brought you here?” Finally she had caught sight of the other big cats on display including leopards and cheetahs. They were much more beautiful in person than the pictures she had seen on the website.

But when they finally made it to the lions, her eyes grew with excitement. Moving closer to the glass barricade, she watched as the caretaker pulled out fresh meat to feed to the lion, “Looks like we got here at the right time, Cass-” Llama’s words hung in her throat as she caught sight of his eyes changing and fangs appearing. Backstepping slightly, her eyes grew wider than they were watching the lion be fed, “Uh…yeah, that’d be nice. Should I be worried…” Her mind was screaming vampire, but vampires couldn’t be real, could they? This wasn’t Twilight.

Feeling foolish for being unable to predict something as simple as feeding the animals, Cassius shook his head, eyes still closed as he waited for the smell to leave his system. He was terrible at feeding himself, so being able to control his hunger wasn’t as easy as it looked. He wondered if vampires who fed regularly on any creature had as hard a time with this as he did. 

Once the lion had taken the food further away toward its den, Cassius opened his eyes, they were back to their normal blue. “Apologies, I didn’t mean for you to see that.” He admitted, leaning forward on the barricade, glad that they were the only ones watching the lions at that moment. “I will not harm you,” he began, gaze turning to one of worry. He looked around, noting that there was no one present. “I am a vampire.” He explained with a defeated look. “I try to live as normal a life as I can, but it has its limits.” He frowned, feeling silly. 

He looked to the lion eating its food, holding his breath so he appeared unnaturally still, watching the creature with an awed gaze. “I’ve always envied animals. They have no sense of right or wrong, only survival.” Cassius found himself saying, hands pressed against the glass. “I understand if you want to leave.” He then said, finally looking over to the girl.

A wave of relief washed over Llama’s dead form, when she saw his eyes turn back to their normal blue hue. She honestly wasn’t sure why she had been so afraid. She was dead after all. If he tried to suck her blood, he probably wouldn’t get anything, but a little bit of rot and decay. Which speaking of? Didn’t that mean he was dead too? And why was he telling her all of this? It seemed that most people would have lied, much like she had been doing, but seeing someone being open and honest with who they were gave Mackenzie a brief sense of peace, “I trust you. I…I guess I didn’t realize that vampires were actually a real thing, you know? Do you sparkle? Like in the daytime, do you sparkle?” What the fuck, Mackenzie? It was the only thing she could think to say.

Turning her attention back to the animals, Llama looked down at the ground embarrassed, “I’m sorry. I don’t know why that question came out. I’m sure you get that a lot.” She glanced back over at him, not fully paying attention to him, until he spoke again. “Look, you made it clear, you’re not gonna hurt me, and honestly, you probably can’t. Not much can anymore…” She wasn’t sure why or if it was the smartest idea, but maybe having one more person on her side would be nice, “I’m already dead.”

Cassius stared at her for a moment. Sparkling. He had just revealed himself to be a bloodsucking creature of the night and she wanted to know if he sparkled. “Vampires, much to popular media’s dismay, do not sparkle in sunlight. We burn. Sunlight physically hurts, it burns.” He explained, waving a hand in the air as he leaned against the fence, staring at the tiger eating in its sanctuary.

He looked to the girl who called herself Llama, exhaling through his nose loudly. “You too?” Cassius questioned with a quirked brow. “There’s more of us around here than I thought.” He muttered, brows furrowing as he thought back to how many supernatural folk he’d managed to meet in a relatively short period of time. He readjusted the bag of goodies that the young woman had given him, tilting his head from side to side as he found himself lost in his own thoughts. “It’s weird.” He then said, a slight frown across his lips. “To know that that I’m capable of hurting someone just so I can stay alive.” 

He moved his tongue across his teeth, furrowed brows finally relaxing. “I appreciate that you didn’t run off. And for trusting me with your own secret.” He gave a soft smile, one of understanding and acceptance. “So, you still want to see those llamas?” He then asked with an amused glint in his eyes. 

Of course they burned. It was more of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer bit rather than a Twilight bit. “Sorry. I’m still new to all of this “there’s actually vampires in the world” thing.” Llama had hoped she hadn’t offended him, and felt bad if she did. But she knew there were probably assumptions about zombies that weren’t true. She just didn’t know which ones were and weren’t. 

“Yeah, not a vampire though. A zombie. The brain eaters of the living dead.” She did know that much. Llama lived off of brains. Once a week, and she was good to go. It still didn’t make it any easier though knowing that she had to survive off of another human being's misfortune. Thankfully she didn’t do the killing, but it didn’t mean she didn’t still feel guilty. “Do you not have a supplier?” She looked at him curiously. Her assistant, Taylor, had been the one to find someone that dealt in brains surprisingly leaving Llama out of all of it. At this point she had forgotten about the animals. Being so engrossed in their conversation had pulled her mind into a direction she really didn’t want it to go, so it was a relief when he had eased up the moment, “It’s nothing, really. I would be a hypocrite if I ran off screaming. I’m just as capable of doing immoral things as you are, and besides, I figure it can’t hurt to have another friend in this town who knows my secret.” At the word llamas, Llama perked up, “Of course I do. llamas are what make this undead life worth living.” With a warm smile, she grabbed his hand, ready to head to the llama enclosure when he was ready, grateful to have a new friend at her side.

[vsingers]

since when did snapple start dabbling in elemental elixirs

[uglygirlstatus]

me when the shape in the middle of the road that I’ve already started pre mourning as roadkill turns out to be a shoe