#throw down the clocktower too

[ghost-bxrd]

Okay so I know this wasn’t the intention, but I read the most recent part of Owl Song and now I can’t stop thinking about Ivy, Jason, and Dick.

Like, in canon she fought both of them as Robin (I think??? I’m pretty sure she was around for Dick’s Robin) and she’s one of the better Rogues in terms of motive and morals. She probably cared for both of them somewhat, so how do you think she (and the other semi-decent rogues) took it when Jason died?

Ah I see how it is, we’re unpacking the good questions now!!!

So at first Ivy probably didn’t notice. Let’s be real, she’s got better things to do then play “keeping up with the batfamily”, and yeah, sure, some of her plants have been getting agitated the more days went by without sightings of either Robin or his loyal shadow (either Batman or Talon/Nightwing), but eh, maybe they’re on vacation or something.

But then Batman is back on the streets and it’s BadTM. Even simple thugs need to be hospitalized, more than one comes close to actually dying (one even flatlines for a moment) and Ivy gets suspicious. Not enough to raise any alarms just yet, still, odd. And still no sight of Robin anywhere.

And then the Joker keeps being found. All over Gotham. Her plants her agitated, they keep whispering about the child-from-the-clocktower and the-one-who-is-cold. And even Ivy can’t keep turning a blind eye.

At first she checks in with Harley, but her girlfriend she doesn’t have any insight either having just returned from a mission with the Birds of Prey (timeline? What timeline). So, dead end. And Crane is a no-go because the Bat hospitalized him with way too many broken bones just the other day.

Two-face it is, but Harvey (both sides of him) are equally as disturbed by the Bat’s sudden volatility as Ivy and he is now on board with trying to find out just what made the Bat snap.

(At this point she’s having a veeery bad feeling about this. Especially because even weeks later Robin is still suspiciously absent from the streets, and there are only whispers of Talon/Nightwing and even her plants can’t seem to pin down either of them.)

Next up is the Riddler, who is already neck-deep into investigation (because how dare Batman not appreciate all his carefully laid riddles and instead punch in faces of low time criminals! And also he may be a teeny-tiny bit worried about the sassy sidekick but SUE him, the kid grows on you like a particularly stubborn case of the pocks ok!?) and immediately agrees to a temporary ceasefire.

So now we have part of the rogue gallery joining forces to find out just wtf is going on, and their next bet is the elusive Catwoman.

And let’s say Selina doesn’t know who Batman is but she’s got soft spot for the big burry anyway so she’s CONCERNED ok? It doesn’t take much persuasion to join forces with the rest of the rag-tag group of high profile rogues to figure this out, and her next proposition is this: grill the Penguin for information.

Oswald Cobblepot is SO not prepared for the joint forces of Catwoman, Two-Face, Riddler, Harley, and Ivy and before long he’s telling them what little he knows about the Joker and his excursion to Ethiopia.

And they all just kinda— freeze. Because— what? No, Robin can’t be dead. Robin is magic. That spunky little kid who’d throw pebbles at Riddler, the one who’d always try to pick-pocket Catwoman, the one urging Harley to leave-the-Joker-he’s-an-ass, the one who always drives Harvey insane with his prime numbers, the one who’d stalked all the way into Robinson park just to ask Ivy how to save the little potted plant he’d been gifted—-

No, no he can’t be dead… right?

But he is. And the talon who’d always kept him safe? That one is gone, too. Nobody knows where he went, but Batman is unspooling, and unspooling fast. And the rogues… well, for once they keep quiet. they don’t give Batman any additional grief (god knows he’s got enough) and instead now make it a point to keep kids out of their business in silent solidarity.

From that day forward any and all people who try to associate themselves with the Joker get taken down by them with extreme prejudice. You think Batman is bad? Try spouting some Joker loving bullshit in front of Ivy. She doesn’t even have to ask her plants to gut you and hang you from the carousel at amusement mile like a Christmas ornament. And god forbid you say anything negative about Robin.

[melodiclune]

The theory that winners are the only ones who remember the happenings of the games is one that really sticks with me.

Grian going into the first game, with nothing except the whispers of a life he has elsewhere, and the murmurs of the Watchers in his mind. One thing leads to another, and his game ends with blood on his hands and tears in his eyes.

He falls. He dies. But he remembers.

Because then he spawns into a new game with the same people and- and nobody remembers anything. They're all lost, forming alliances and enemies in such stark contrast to everything they had the previous time. Grian is the only one who remembers, and all he can do is watch, like he's always doomed to.

Scott wins, and Scott remembers now. He remembers the flower fields, the burns of betrayal and war and distrust from his own game- and now his own ally from before, Pearl, remembers none of it. He can only watch as they abandon each other, nothing like the first time. Pearl spirals down, down, down- and Scott is the one who remembers how different things used to be.

And he still cares for Pearl. So he lights the TNT, and gives her the blessing (the curse) of remembrance.

Pearl, exhausted, betrayed and tired has no luxury of ignorance anymore. She only has the same people with blank memories to connect to all over again. And she's much more calm this time round, because she remembers the games before her own, too. Allies have been had before, and all she can do is trust, hope, that they will happen again.

(They do. She wants to lead them to the very end.)

And this time- she's killed by her own ally. (No, that's wrong, they were only allies two games ago, and conflicted in the previous- what are they now? Friend or foe?) She can't hold it against him though, of course she can't. They both understand too much for it.

Martyn wins- and he remembers all his past loyalty. The cold of the Red King's rule, the Southlanders and his foray into a game with soulmates with no connection to his own. He has the clutches of betrayal and the corruption of the Watchers guiding him into their next game, and all he can do is listen, as the others make new friends and foes all over again as though nothing before ever existed. The loyal alliances are but an echo of his betrayal and victory.

(Have you ever noticed how winners hardly ever team up with each other? They're all so focused on supporting their allies, after they win, and they hardly cross paths with the previous winners. It's like they know, that the memories leave their connections in confusing pieces. Nobody knows where they lie with each other anymore, and they don't have the blank bliss to take comfort in. Grian never did.)

Grian can only watch, like he's always doomed to- as Scar dons a cloak with poppies and lilacs embroidered, and he's the one who remembers. He's the one who knows what those flowers mean, and Scar is all alone this time round. Pearl throws herself into fire if it means her allies have a shot at winning. (They all fall before her, and all she has is an ally she makes on the same day.) Fighting Scar at the very end is like fighting herself from the past- she's grown so much, since then. She can only hope Scar does too.

Martyn has no one but himself, now that Jimmy's gone, and yet he's betrayed no one this time round. Scott holds his head down as he lets Gem take his final life- he already has the curse of remembrance. For Gem, with such a strong will to win and things to prove, it would mean the world to be the last person standing. She has no memories to recall. It would be far easier on her, than anyone else.

And yet, it's Scar who wins. And he remembers. The burning sun of the desert, the cold winds of a forgotten and lonely mountain, the pandas and the dripstone, the clocktower and a family of old.

All he can do is stare, at the blood on his hands and the quiet stillness of the world. Every other winner understands, the cruel irony of their final stand being the one that reminds them of every other game. The cold clutches of terror when they realise nobody else remembers the way they do.

Maybe that's why they're so understanding, so self sacrificing, and so true to their allies the second they get them. Throwing themselves into each game time and time again, not because they want to win again, but because that's easier than bearing the brunt of the trust and betrayals of the past.

[gabbbyyyyyyyyyy]

So called “Free thinkers” when there’s a bandwagon circulating around one of their favs

My take on Clock Tower / Glockenspiel headcanons!!

this man has me in an actual chokehold sorry not sorry

-Basic HCs

He/It

Clocktower/Anthro Clocktower robot

CANONICALLY 59 yrs old (going on 60 in may)

Voice HC: The Landlord (Oh!Super Milk chan- English/Americanized Dubs)

Height = 36’9 (36 ft 9 inches)

His personality can be summed up as being Sweet, fatherly, and calm—But can occasionally go overboard with his emotions, whether it be him acting too protective or sweet to the point of obsession, or going cuckoo (pun intended) over even the most minor of inconveniences. Everything else aside, he’s as sweet and smooth as honey, as long as everything is in moderation, he will be too.

-BATCH 1

This guy is basically the Timekeeper of the Wasteland, keeping track of certain dates and events in the wasteland, etc.!

Despite claiming that he knows the time, at any given moment, by heart (knowing his 50+ years of experience), little things, such as Daylight Savings time, may throw him off…and when he DOES get thrown off, he’d usually throw fits out of embarrassment.

There was once a time where the Small World ride was closed down (by Glockenspiel himself) for a whole week simply because he got the time wrong by 1 hour once (1) due to Daylight Savings… THAT IS HOW MUCH HE TAKES HIS JOB AS THE WASTELAND TIMEKEEPER SERIOUSLY.

As a nod to the OG Small World clock’s facade, and how it opens up to show the time—He has a chest crevice, which he can open up at given request, and show the time. Sadly, he can’t change the time by himself, and usually needs someone (usually a gremlin) to go and fix the time for him, when necessary (Time can be rearranged VIA differently shaped/sized Cogs inside said chest cavity

Both the cogs + The aforementioned chest cavity are incredibly sensitive, and even the slightest pains can throw the big guy off…

Also don’t tell him this… but the damned song that constantly plays on repeat in his daily life … actually comes from a Gramophone stored inside said chest cavity

-BATCH 2

Was actually still alive prior to the events of his boss fight (thinner/canon route), It just took like. Day or two before someone came and threw paint back on the poor guy

Still holds a grudge against Mickey after the maingame events, Despite the fact he’s practically required to just smile and wave at everyone willy nilly… here’s a visual demonstration

Has the memory of an elephant, once you do something to him, he (most of the time) remembers like it was yesterday… which isn’t too much of a good thing, given you know what

Drama Queen, very very big Drama Queen

Longlasting memory + Drama Queen = Hell no.

He can also recognize and perfectly memorize any face or object, so anyone who vandalizes the small world, or just any person thats worth seeing in a negative light, can be immediately recognized, and brought to justice

-BATCH 3 (+some Doll HCs)

Acts as a teacher/legal guardian figure to all of the dolls in the ride,

The dolls have Hivemind mentality, usually doing things in-sync and in unison, without rehearsal, as well as deciding how to act

Some times they’re pains in the ass to Glockenspiel, other times they usually help with certain chores and tasks, such as cleaning, getting certain things, etc.

Despite the fact the dolls resemble kids + have the mentalities of tweens, they’re extremely skilled and talented, even in tasks or activities that are normally considered hard, even for adults. But alas, the same cannot be said for their social skills, considering how their only real interaction is with eachother, and Glockenspiel

Though the dolls may cause some trouble or discomfort to Glockenspiel himself, any physical harm to them, from ANYONE (unless from another doll, without extremely malicious intent). Will set him off, no matter how bad the doll in question was behaving

If anything, if you break ANYTHING in the small world attraction, he will literally go over there and smack the Hickory Dickory FUCK out of you

Please note that Glockenspiel isn’t strict in the slightest, so you need to do something BAAAD to set him off like that.

The dolls carry information from the outside world, such as different cultures, fashion senses, food, etc.

As taken from a friend, Glockenspiel can reflect his own emotions onto the Dolls, if dormant, the dolls will act as normal, But if Glockenspiel goes into thinner form, the dolls will either:

Go completely stationary, not dare make a peep whilst the Clock Tower works his “magic”

Will wreck havoc on whatever person Glockenspiel is agitated at, Especially if said person has come with the intent to harm Glockenspiel, or the Small world in general. Please note that these dolls are approximately (in headcanon) 6-7 feet tall, and weigh about 250.

-BATCH 4

Glockenspiel usually feeds off of Oil (as a coffee-like substance) , and literal Computer chips (as snack)

Despite this, he doesn’t mind indulging in human cuisine every hour or so every once in a while, even having grown a bit of a sweet tooth from it, as well as having the aforementioned dolls make little foods for him, even if it’s not always perfect, or… even if it’s even considered edible. (Not like he cares though… he’s a damn robot!)

Speaking of how Oil acts as a sort of “coffee” to him, he’s. Pretty much addicted to the point that the oil may be apart of him, given how he has to deal with the 200+ sentient dolls, timekeeping, sitting around doing NISH. Keeping the ride fine and dandy, and listening to the same dumb song on loop for over 50 years…yeah!!!

If he doesn’t get his frequent dosage of oil, he’s just gonna be bitchy bitch mcbitcherson for the whole day, many complaints were filed to the gremlins for that and the ride’s service hours got cut short because the bitchiness was getting too much

-BATCH 5 (backstory edition)

He was apparently popular in the outside/“mainstream” world back in the 80s, in which he looked extremely different, with his appearance resembling that of those punk/rock idols that catered to the rebellious teen generation

His appearance in the 80s was much more lively and had much more going on than the mellowed out old man we have today—though i have not drawn an actual design for it yet, it’s color palette is heavily similar to that of the Glockenspiel shown in the Epic Mickey comic “Clocktower Cleaners”, that + just being reminiscent to Hong Kong Small World

Was a massive pushy egotistical jerk back in the 80s, partied a lot (not a healthy amount for a 36 foot tall, 6 ton weighing Clock tower), typical “young and free” hooligan—way less soft and collected as he is today

Something happened one day that cut his fame short, possibly an accident at a party that caused him to get thrown off from the Mainstream world, and straight into the Wasteland, where he was forced to be on some googoo gaga weenie hut Jr. ass ride for the remainder of his time as a punishment for his recklessness

There were even rumors that have diffused to the Wastelands from the Outside world that they even went on to REPLACE Glockenspiel with somebody else…it doesn’t bother him as much, but it’s definitely worth noting

-BATCH 6 (more physical stuff)

Despite all laws of physics, regarding the texture and form of metal, wood, and all things that create a mechanism such as himself…. He is squishy.

Specifically on the face (considering one of his attack animations in his boss fight), and certain bodily areas. Though this shouldn’t, and can’t be possible… it is… very much so

Despite the latter, he is also somewhat soft on other areas of his body, especially due to a protective inner rubber layer on certain parts of his body, like his chest and limbs, you can’t feel it much considering it’s *inside* of his metal shell of a body, but it’s there

However, his stomach contradicts acts this, having the protective rubber layer outside of the body, given how he doesn’t have a shell on his stomach, but rather another, thicker rubber layer to replace it (making his stomach’s exterior just be two layers of rubber) making his midsection area, and his face, the squishiest parts of his body

His forms can also control the heat of himself + the environment around him, given his tremendous size

In Paint form, everything is at a comfortable, room temperature, and leaves the Clock tower being warm to the touch, especially on the facial area, given the fact that this man is literally competitious with the actual sun, given the fact that he’s just this big ball of artificial sunshine when he’s not being all moody

However, his Thinner form causes the environment around him to be uncomfortably cold, not in a “hoohoo chill breeze” way, but in a “Holy shit. Its cold. im gonna get sick out here” kind of cold, Any physical touch with this guy in thinner form feels like you just took him out a freezer, which may or may not feel worse when you’re getting absolutely crushed by this absolute mammoth of a man

It’s a rumor that if you hug, or squeeze him in a tight/forceful way, he’ll make one of those cartoon squeak noises (specifically the one in MLP)

-CRACK/MISC HEADCANONS

Allergic to dust, somehow (also canon?)

Probably caused an earthquake like 45 times now

Actually put a crack in the floor once because he tripped

Without his glasses, his sight is equal to that of a 144p video

Touch starved.

Actually very clumsy, the size doesn’t help at all…given the last few entries

His favorite “human” food so far is probably pavlova, specifically pavlova cake rolls. The dolls make that for him a lot

Somehow is able to decipher any. ANY given language, speak it, and even translate it under any circumstances

Lullabies are one of his strongest weakness

Lemme elaborate—There was once a time where the Gramophone in his chest got damaged, and they had to replace it with a music box (the ones used for lullabies), and ended up having to close the ride because this mf decided to go Night-night after about 30 minutes into opening hours

Adores anything considered soft by texture, especially fabric, in clothing or blankets

Developed insomnia from constant oil consumption

Will usually call people who wander into the ride “little one”, regardless of physical age, to him, everyone is small

Got turned into a human once and nearly made like. Half of the Wasteland faint

Shortly after he was turned human, the first thing he did was hug somebody. It did not go too well considering his physique

Lives with 3 other objects in the Small World, which take form of a Cloud, a Sun, and a Hot Air Balloon, which may get separate HC dump posts sometime soon (once i find out what to do with them)

Cracks a lot of Time puns. the dolls really don’t like them

[blooming-violets]

Shit I forgot to put this in my rb but I wanted to ask what do you think would happen to reader if Peter actually went through with it? I'd like to be a but optimistic and say she surely but slowly recovers from it all but I'm not so sure. How would Aunt May react to that? Becoming a widow then a grieving mother in the span of a few years? Sorry I don't mean to be pushy but like I said I loved the way you beautifully crafted this story from an ask

Trigger Warnings!!!!: it's all about suicide and talking about it and discussing it, it is not something everyone feels comfortable reading or conversing about so please don't continue if it is too upsetting for you, Peter Parker kills himself and I write about it, Gwen's death ptsd is explored and he sees her as a rotting corpse version of herself who talks to him before he dies, the grief of losing someone you love to suicide is also talked about, it's all depressing but if you love depressing angst shit then come on over and join in (not join in on the killing yourself part jfc I mean joining in on the talking about this story) READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION only you know what you are capable of handling when you read. I can't help you any further than explaining the warnings.

Previous posts where this is all discussed:

[first part] [second part] and I rewrite this drabble from two years ago to fit this story but you can read the original here if you feel like it (it ends with less death that this one).

One of my darker, more angsty headcanons is that Peter kills himself by throwing himself off the same clock tower Gwen died in. It takes a few years for it to get rebuilt back to it's former glory. Peter patiently waits those years until it's finally finished. Almost a quiet, stoic sort of patience. A little scary with how composed he is. Like not given any indication of his plans. He wears a beautifully composed mask until the day it happens because he is so sure in his plans and doesn't want a single person to sway him from them. He's stubborn and set in his ways and this is what he feels he needs to do. This headcanon doesn't exactly fit into the story I wrote as that version of Peter is much more unhinged in his actions, and I don't think clocktower Peter could ever let himself get into a relationship because he's too obsessed with Gwen still and knows he's going to die so he's not going to bring anyone else into that mess, but it's just a little random headcanon I always had so I thought I would share since this is suicide talking hour. Maybe I can rework it a bit to fit with this story better.

Let's say unhinged Peter (as I'm calling him now lol) does let the ghosts win. What happens to our Reader character would entirely depend on when in the relationship he went through with it. If she's too far gone and too far down the hole after Peter, then I sort of fear for her future. Unless she has someone really important in her life who would help her, I think she would just keep sinking until she ended up back on that ledge, except this time there's no Peter to catch her. And I personally don't think she has anyone that close to her, especially after mentioning that all her friends stopped texting her or asking her to hang out. They all kind of gave up on her so, when she's at her lowest, I really don't think anyone would be the wiser due to the isolation they both put themselves in.

I want to rewrite something I wrote two years ago that either wasn't that great and people didn't like or it just slipped under the radar (because it wasn't about an x reader or love or anything, it was just Peter's ptsd taking over and sometimes people don't give a shit about a fic if it isn't tagged with x reader). It fits really well in this new story to help show what could go on in Peter's head with how terribly Gwen still sticks with him and what exactly it is he's "seeing" that would push him to throwing himself off a building.

Cut to me pausing to frantically google if Peter Parker could survive a fall off a building or if his super powers make him strong enough to withstand it...

Okay maybe falling isn't the best plan of action but I really like (like isn't the right word but I'm going with it) that idea of him mimicking Gwen's death because he's so haunted by it. He would want to feel what she felt. He would want to go the same way. So for the sake of this story, he's can't withstand that fall.

“Leave me alone!” Peter shouted into the dark shadows of the clock tower. He sat huddled against the newly built glass wall that domed up over his head. The bright, white light of the moon hung in the sky above him and casted wavering shadows around him to mess with his vision. The turning of grinding gears below him haunted his memories of the night Gwen died. Eight years and she still haunted him every time he dared to fall asleep.

He couldn't take it anymore. His head was a mess. His thoughts were spinning.

He was just so tired.

He had fallen asleep here accidentally. Maybe if he went to the source of the problem, she would disappear. It was a stupid plan

It only made her stronger. This was where his ghost of her was most alive.

Maybe that's why he really showed up. He wanted to see her. He wanted to finally confront his demons. She was calling to him and he had to answer.

He had slipped a crushed up sleeping pill into his girlfriends water during dinner. He carried her bed, tucked her in, and kissed her soft and gently. She didn't need to see this. This wasn't for her. She needed to be free of him. He needed to let her go before it was too late. She wouldn't understand at first but, maybe, with time...

What had time ever done for him except make Gwen stronger?

He slipped an envelope onto the bedside table beside her. One for her. One for May. He wasn't sure if he would make it home this time. His mind could still change. He could still make it back before she woke up.

But they were.

Just in case.

He couldn't leave them with nothing.

She was here now. Ready to haunt him like usual. Ready to take over and ruin him. Night after night. Day after day. She was always there. Gwen never left. She walked beside him through it all.

Tonight, she was angry. Furious. This was where he had let her die. Of course, she would be the most powerful here.

He no longer had his girlfriend to help soften Gwen's blows. There was no one to intervene. Only him and Gwen. Stuck in a staring contest. Sizing each other up.

The sunken in face of his dead lover glared back at him from just below his edge of his of his perch, trembling from the sight under him. She was standing on top of a giant gear, watching him, judging him. A large smile grew across her pale, bluing lips. It was too wide. Too big for her face. Her teeth looked rotten and jagged inside of her mouth. A trickle of blood slowly trailed out of her nostril.

“What’s the matter, Peter?” She taunted. Her sickly voice swirled around his head like a swarm of mosquitos. “Did you miss me? Is that why you came here? To see me clearly again? Well, here I am. Look at me. Dead. Putrefied. All for you. Aren't I beautiful? This is what you've done to me.”

A loud sob shuddered through his chest and ripped out his throat. He brought up a hand to wipe away the snot flowing freely out his nose. This nightmare was too familiar. He knew this too well. He didn't feel like he was dreaming this time. He never did.

If it wasn't a dream then his mind was truly gone. Distinguishing between reality and fiction was something he no longer had control over.

This was as real to him as anything.

“Please, Gwen. Please,” he pleaded with her. “Go away. I can’t do this again. Please. You have to let me go."

She tutted her tongue in annoyance and shook her head with disbelief, “Oh, Peter. I have to let you go? Do you think I want to be here?” She became climbing up the gears and the scaffolding towards him. She looked more like himself as she climbed, enhanced and spider-like, taking the movements straight out his brain until she was perching on the ledge beside him. “Do you think this fun for me?”

Peter whimpered in response. His tears were blurring his vision but he was afraid to wipe them away. He was terrified of what might happen if he took his eyes off of her, like watching a snake in the grass, it's better if you can see it in your sights instead of letting it hide and able to strike.

Gwen walked with slow, purposeful steps towards him until she stood directly over him as he cowered backwards on all fours. Under the pale moonlight hanging above them, her skin turned yellow, painted with purpling hues and blacks, and rotting away around her cheekbones to show parts of red, bleeding muscle under the pulled back skin. Her, once vibrant, blonde hair now hung in patchy strands from her head. Most of her hair had fallen out leaving her balding and sickly. When she smiled, browning, broken teeth shone back at him, they hung lose in her jaw, rattling around when she spoke.

She was a walking, decaying corpse sent to haunt him every time he closed his eyes.

“Look at what you’ve done to me!” Her shrill voice echoed off the glass walls. She spun around to show him the back of her head. Her skull was caved in. Parts of brain matter clung to her hair and blood stained what was left of the blonde a deep red. She turned back to face him, leaning in close so she was mere inches away. He could smell the heavy scent of freshly dug dirt and wet grass clinging to her rotting finger nails like she had clawed her way straight out of the ground to find him.

She snarled, “You did this, Peter! This is your fault!”

Peter flinched and scrambled backwards to get away from her, “No! Please, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry. I didn't know...I didn't know...I thought I could catch you. I thought I could save you. I'm sorry. Please, Gwen. Please. I'm so sorry.”

“Sorry doesn’t change the fact that I’m dead,” she smirked, eyes darkening, enjoying his torment. She sunk down to her hands and knees to crawl over him, pressing her skeletal body against him, until he was laying flat against the ground with no where else to go.

"Look at me," she whispered into his ear. “I was going to go Oxford. I was going to be a scientist. I was going to change the world. The only way I can change the world now is by letting the worms feast through my flesh until there is nothing left. Something tasty for the bugs. That's all I am now.”

Peter whimpered, turning his head away from her and flinching into himself.

He heard her sniffle like she was about to start crying. He hated hearing her cry.

"Don't you love me anymore, Peter?" She whined. "Don't you care about me? Why did you find someone else? Why did you forget me so quickly? I loved you so much and you left me for the worms. Only they kiss my skin now."

His heart sank and guilt flooded him. Slowly, he turned his head to face her, blinking up at her. For a moment, she looked just like he remembered. Beautiful. Whole. Healthy. Alive.

Peter gave a shuddered, shaky breath, whispering in awe, "Gwen."

She beamed down at him. There were no rotting teeth, no blood, her hair was full and luscious. She was glowing under golden light with happy tears in her eyes like his memory of her on top of the Brooklyn Bridge.

"Kiss me," she whispered against his lips. "Like you used to."

Peter's eyes slipped close. His heart ached.

"I can't," he mumbled back. "I love someone else now. I love her like I loved you. She..."

He needed to get back to her. She needed him. He needed her. He should have never left her tonight. He had to leave.

A wailing growl shot ice through his veins as Gwen let out a shriek of pain as if she had read his mind. She was back to her decaying corpse. The sight terrified him.

"You will not leave me! I won't let you! You're mine, Peter! Mine!"

Peter kicked up his feet to shove her off of him. He scrambled backwards away from the haunting vision.

"I can't, Gwen," he pleaded. "I can't be with you anymore."

He frantically shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut, in an attempt to make her disappear. Usually by now, his girlfriend would hear him screaming. She'd be here to block Gwen from his sights. She'd be there to force her away until he was safe.

Tonight, there was no one but him.

"This isn't real," he muttered to himself. "She's not really here. She's dead. She's buried underground. Locked in a coffin. This isn't real. When I open my eyes, she'll be gone."

He peaked an eye open. A sense of relief washed over him. He was alone in the clock tower. There was no one here but him.

He could still go home. He could still make it back to her before she woke up and rid her bed side of those letters.

She would never have to know.

Peter took a deep breath, half way through exhaling it when he felt a tap on his shoulder.

Gwen's decomposing face poked into his peripheral vision as she whispered menacingly in his ear, "Boo."

He screamed, jumping away, to the sound of her taunting laughter.

"I'm still here, Peter!" She cackled. "You can't get rid of me that easily! I am always going to be here. I am always going to follow you. I will never let you go." Her voice softened. Almost sweet. Sad. Longing. "Because I'm your path, Peter. I am always going to be your path. Follow me everywhere just like you promised. I want you to follow me. I need you..."

She reached out her hand for him to take. The skin had rotted away around the tips of her fingers leaving nothing by bones reaching for him.

This wasn't his Gwen. His Gwen was dead. She was buried in the ground surrounded by fresh flowers. The thing in front of him was nothing but a product of his own twisted mind. Birthed from his guilt and excruciating pain. A monster of his own creation.

"I can't," he choked out through his tears. "Someone else needs me now. I'm sorry. I love you. I will always love you. But I can't follow you. Not yet."

Anger flashed over her darkened, bloodshot eyes, “No! You promised you’d follow me anywhere. Follow me to the grave, you liar!”

Peter cringed at her harsh words. Tears blurring his vision. He had promised.

"Gwen, please," he begged. "Let me go."

Her face softened. He watched her grow back into old self again. Her rich purple dress. Lace tights. Knee high boots. Pale blue jacket. All highlighting her perfectly beautiful face. Large, bright green eyes without a blonde hair out of place. Always so put together. Always nothing less than perfection.

"You want me to go?" She asked, turning around slowly for her to take him in. There was no crack in the back of her skull. No blood.

His breath caught in his throat. He tried to reach out for her, to draw her closer against him, but she stepped away. Just out of his reach.

"You want me to go so I'll go." She whispered. "But you'll have to watch. Again and again and again. You'll have to listen to the sound of my skull cracking against the pavement. Hear my spine snap as your web jerks me upwards. Smell my blood pouring from my open, split open head." A trickle of red blood started to leak out her nose as her eyes closed. "Only you can make it all stop. Only you can make me go away. You know exactly how to do it, Peter. All you have to do is follow me. Just like you promised. Follow me and it will all end."

He blinked through his tears, taking a slow step towards her.

"Follow you," he muttered in a trance like state. "I'll follow you anywhere you go. You're my path. I'll write my love for you across the Brooklyn Bridge so everyone in New York can see it."

She smiled, soft and sweet, "Follow me. Don't leave me alone. Stay with me, Peter. Forever."

"Forever..."

Her arms out stretched to her sides and she leaned back, stepping off the ledge and sinking out of sight past the giant gears, hurdling straight towards her death.

"No!" He shouted.

Without thinking, without caring, Peter leapt after her. He had done this move so many times in his nightmares. He had obsessively walked through every single second of her death. Again and again just like she said. He knew it better than he knew himself.

He jumped on instinct. He leapt after her like he always did.

Keeping his promise. Following her down any path she took.

I know you asked how May and Reader would respond to such a thing afterwards but that's like one topic that's just a little too hard for me to write about. I know it's weird that I can talk about Peter throwing himself to his death and I can write about depression and suicidal ideation and self harm and ptsd and guilt and feelings of worthlessness but writing about someone like May (who I relate far too much to my own mother) finding her boy dead is just a hair too much for my heart to take haha. I was originally going to write a scene of his funeral but then I was like nah too much for even me. I can't watch May cry over her dead kid.

I will say that he would be buried next to his parents under the same gravestone which sits besides Ben's. It's a few rows down from Gwen so Peter can always be near her.

I don't even think I actually answered your original ask but I got carried away with Peter in the clock tower!

Also May puts matching flowers on both Peter's and Gwen's graves every time she visits. hahahaha i gotta stop writing fuck me

[pyropsychiccollector]

Shiro Harem: Holy Grail War... of Love 1/7

As you guys know, the poll ended up being a 3-way tie... Technically. Although, based off the accidental "first" poll where Artoria had more votes tying her with Sakura... I'm gonna be generous and throw the King of Knights in here as an "unofficial" winner. It's the only poll that changed drastically enough, and I feel bad for flubbing up the first time. XD

... So, uh. Yeah. I'll be writing up 4 posts before posting anything. Be sure to cycle through my posts to find your favorite girl(s)... The official winners are Rin, Sakura, and Luvia. I'll be getting to Mitsuzuri, Illya, and Reines later. XD

Let's get to it, then. The first girl~... (人◕ω◕)

The Beginning

I'm gonna be weird here. I'll focus on Luvia first. (人◕ω◕) Why? Because Sakura, Rin, and Artoria are pretty predictable pairings for Shiro (all of them I support, but they're still pretty well-known ships), and they'll still be posted alongside Luvia here anyway. Let's give Luvia her day in the sun~...

Well. Her full name's Luviagelita Edelfelt. Heiress to the Edelfelt family. As far as members of the harem go, she's pretty late to the festivities... She's not even a participant of the Holy Grail War, which is a defining moment in Shiro's young life. Before we tread too much farther, I'm going to make a clarification...

Fate: Stay Night is all about branching timelines. As such, to cater to all seven members of this harem in a single worldline, we'll be looking at an AU separate from the canon ones, regardless of how similarly events may play out. Just a forewarning.

With that friendly public service announcement out in the open, let's jump right into it. (人◕ω◕) We'll be digging into the particulars of this AU's Holy Grail War in the other posts. For this one, I'm focusing on the postwar situation, since that's when Luvia came into play.

Luvia... is a young magus studying at the Clocktower in London. Pretty much the center of the magical world, the place where most magi want to end up, at least if they want to be distinguished or want to grow stronger. ... Sometimes both. (人◕ω◕) Luvia comes from an affluent, aristocratic family that practices Jewel Magecraft. As is the standard with their family lineage, she has a younger twin sister who remained behind in Finland, and is the complete opposite of her as a quiet introvert. ... Which is to say, Luvia is quite extroverted, and usually has a pleasant, graceful demeanor.

... Unless you happen to be Rin Tohsaka, in which case Luvia is always ready for a brawl. (人◕ω◕)

Did we mention she's rich? Because she is. She bought a European-style mansion not far from the Clocktower, but usually stays in the dorms, alongside Shiro and Rin... She attempted to purchase 28 rooms in the dorm to have a full floor to herself, but Rin got in the way of that, possessing a letter from Lord El-Melloi that allowed her and Shiro to have rooms on that floor... (人◕ω◕) You can imagine what transpired. That poor, poor receptionist's desk...

Still, in spite of Luvia's catty relationship with Rin, the young aristocrat is quite taken with Shiro... Or Shero, as she adoringly refers to him~... This is in part because...

1: Shiro is not a Tohsaka.

2. Shiro is the ideal gentleman type.

So even if Luvia and Rin brawl, Shiro doesn't intervene unless the sparring goes too far. Especially not in scheduled Clocktower classes. (人◕ω◕) Sure, Shiro tries politely getting them to tone it down, to get along... But Luvia can tell Shero understands that sometimes, ladies need to vent. And she does appreciate that kindhearted, empathetic part of him. Really. It's one of his defining traits. (人◕ω◕)

Luvia first met Shiro on the day he and Rin arrived in London, looking for lodgings. They were both lost, and ended up helping each other out. Luvia even brings him on as a part-time servant at her mansion. Helps pay the rent. (人◕ω◕)

But even after that initial phase of getting to know one another... Luvia became quite enamored and interested in Shiro~... He's a very interesting man: The adopted son of Kiritsugu Emiya, a veritable boogeyman of the magi world, and by proxy adopted grandson of Norikata Emiya, a sealing designate. He really is nothing like his family, at least not in the ways that matter. Shiro isn't hunting magi, he's not performing illegal experiments... As far as Luvia knows, he's following all the rules of the Clocktower as Rin's apprentice, and he genuinely cares for Luvia as a friend despite how roughly she treats Rin. (人◕ω◕)

The Middle Act

It does make Luvia curious, however... With how wonderful Shero is, there must be some darkness in him. Some blemish or skeletons in the closet... Luvia probes into Shiro's background, using what contacts and resources she has. Not because she's paranoid or thinks he'll stab her in the back... But you can never be too careful with fellow magi. They certainly like keeping their secrets.

The answers that Luvia stumble upon are... shocking, to say the least. There's apparently a ritual in the East called Heaven's Feel, which can be used to gain access to the Root. Something that all true magi seek to one day get to... But that information isn't what fascinated Luvia. The ritual itself became... contaminated, corrupted. And it's a ritual that repeats itself after several decades of storing up magical power, the Grail picking out seven people to summon Heroic Spirits to fight to the last man...

Again, not even that part interested Luvia. Not really. She already got the gist of the Grail Wars because her ancestors participated in it... The corruption tidbit was something she hadn't heard about, but apparently the problem was dealt with in this last Fifth Holy Grail War... By Shiro, Rin, and a few others. There was even indications that King Arthur himself had retained a physical form after the war, and resided in Japan... at Shero's home.

Yeah. Those were the shocking tidbits. Or that began to cover them, anyway. Not only did Shiro help stop a cataclysmic event, but he also held a deep bond with the King of Knights. ... Shiro also had a habit of being selfless to a fault, nearly sacrificing himself several times throughout that war... Even tried going toe-to-toe with Heroic Spirits... There wasn't many details of Shiro's past, though. Let alone the tales of his exploits... They were apparently getting the Top Secret treatment from the Clocktower, Luvia was lucky enough to find out what she did.

... So she attempted going straight to Shero about it. Find out what kind of man he was, because Luvia was too invested to stop digging now. Still... Luvia's questions were uncomfortable for Shiro; he couldn't bring himself to open up to an "outsider" the kind of trauma he's endured... Ultimately, what stopped him from talking about it is how everyone he's opened up to has reacted.

Anger.

Deep sadness.

Pity.

Rin made no attempt to hide the fact she disagreed with his dream of putting everyone else before himself... It's kinda why he ended up coming to the Clocktower with her. Shiro wanted to appease Rin, even if he had every intention of carrying on as he was. The Holy Grail War was a huge moment in his life, and it solidified his path forward, at least in his mind.

Sakura was just as distressed and displeased about Shiro's selflessness as Rin was. The same went for Illya, Medusa, Saber, and Mitsuzuri. They were letting Rin "handle it" for the few years they'd be at the Clocktower, attempting to "fix" him, but Shiro knew he'd be in for it when they eventually returned home... This is why he had no doubt Luvia would react in a similar way as them.

And... Shiro just didn't want to hear it from an outsider. Someone who hadn't been there in the Grail War. It was hard enough bearing his heart to his precious people who had been there at one of the most harsh and unforgiving battles in his young life... If he put others before himself, that was his business. He didn't need Luvia or anyone else telling him, "That's not right!" ... Cuz he got plenty of that from Rin. ... And Sakura.

... Of course they would be sisters...

So Shiro ran away from that conversation, leaving a very vexed and troubled Luvia Edelfelt in his wake. Sure, Shiro didn't have to share anything he didn't want to... But to completely clam up like that? Shut her out...? Luvia would be lying if she said that didn't hurt...

She wouldn't have much time to plan out her next steps, however. Rin would hear about Shiro's sudden dour mood, and bicker with Luvia about her nosy behavior.

It, uh... (人◕ω◕);;; It wouldn't take long for Lord El-Melloi II to break them up. Massive collateral damage, even going by their standards, and they got a massive chewing out for "inappropriate conduct in the halls of the Clocktower."

It also wouldn't take Rin and Waver long to figure out what Luvia was prying into. And though they believed the questions more pertinent to Shiro's state of mind were his to answer, they did reluctantly satisfy what they could of Luvia's curiosity. Hopefully to keep a repeat of this debacle from ever happening again. Rin didn't think it was Luvia's place at all to ask about Shiro or the Grail War, but Waver allowed it... (人◕ω◕);;;

And even with Waver's charity... Even with the understanding Shiro was an orphan from the ending of the Fourth Grail War, and that being how Kiritsugu adopted him... Luvia just had to know why Shiro didn't want to talk about any of this. From what she was told, it didn't sound like Shiro had PTSD... not per se. She honestly just wanted to know how being saved by Kiritsugu made him the man that he is today. The brave, yet admittedly brash, hero.

So Luvia cornered Shiro again, despite Rin's warnings to leave him alone. And upon seeing that she had learned the long and short of his life's story... he grudgingly opened up to Luvia, knowing full well she was gonna react just like everyone else.

The thing is... Luvia didn't. She didn't react the way Shiro was expecting. After hearing his dream, hearing what made Shiro Emiya tick... Luvia grew thoughtful. Sure, she could see why Rin was so frustrated with his selflessness... It wasn't a "proper" way to live, not by any stretch of the imagination.

... But as an Edelfelt, Luvia knew the mindset of dedicated servants. You could flat out order someone to retire, to settle down, be happy... And the most loyal, the most obstinate, the most stubborn of servants wouldn't be able to honor that request. Because they placed the happiness of their masters first. Shiro was absolutely thinking along those same lines, putting the rest of the world above himself because he didn't want anyone to cry...

It was a fool's dream, and Luvia couldn't fathom even a fraction of that selflessness as an heiress to her noble family.

But... Luvia had found ways to make her family's servants feel like people, to have moments of happiness even if they didn't prioritize their happiness... She could understand Rin's outrage perfectly well. Of course Luvia was concerned for Shero as well. But it's not possible to change the mindset of a servant on a dime, to let them have autonomy and a sense of self.

You have to take it one step at a time. Reflect back the loyalty you're given. As he is, Shero couldn't possibly imagine what it's like to be "happy". To have fun. To be even a tiny bit selfish.

And that's perfectly alright. Shero had signed himself on as her servant, even if just part-time, and that made Shero her responsibility. (人◕ω◕) Yes. Her Shero. Rin will just have to deal, the bratty Tohsaka heiress didn't know a thing about "true" royalty. if she did, Rin wouldn't be trying to brute force Shero into being a "normal" person. Because that's just not happening anytime soon. (人◕ω◕)

Despite his "servant" mindset, Luvia doesn't see him as truly below her. She quite sympathizes with the "commoners", and prefers a simple man to one of her station and caliber. Shero shall be her "pet project". ... Whether Rin likes it or not. (人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)

The Future

Shiro doesn't stay at the Clocktower for long, just a few years as he's allowed. And Rin goes back to Japan with him, despite resolving to return to properly study there someday.

... And to both of their chagrin, Luvia also comes to Japan with them. (人◕ω◕) It took some time, but Luvia arranged for the ruins of the old Edelfelt castles to be scrapped, and for a new one to be erected. ... Well, calling it a castle might be a little overexaggerating. (人◕ω◕) More like... Luvia paid an exorbitant amount of money to have a European-style mansion to be built within five minutes of where Shiro lives. Basically a stone's throw away. (人◕ω◕)

Luvia explains to Shiro that she's taking a break from studying at the Clocktower, too. And despite appearances, she won't necessarily be staying in Japan... Not permanently. Only when Shero's there. And she will be funding any trips around the world that he may be drawing up in his head, in his efforts to help people...

Of course, Shiro doesn't like being a burden to Luvia. Dictating her life in any way. And, well. Luvia says that's too bad, cuz she's going to help him even if he refuses it. The Edelfelt fortune is quite vast. And no matter where he tries to run, Luvia will find him. (人◕ω◕) He's a bit unnerved at her tenacity, and knows not to underestimate her resources...

But moreover, he's terrified of Rin, Illya, Saber, and Sakura's violent reactions to Luvia showing up out of the blue and pampering Shiro left and right. He was not expecting Sakura to get worked up, that's for sure. And he knows Medusa is still fiercely loyal to Sakura-chan, so Luvia's in trouble if she's set off too much... (人◕ω◕)

Luvia in general is... terrifying. (人◕ω◕) No matter how hard he tries, she just keeps showering him in generosity and charity. And in spite of his dream, Shiro finds himself... softening up to all the kind gestures. Mostly because Rin revels in the lavish stuff, like heavenly soft beds, state-of-the-art baths, imported chocolates... All except for the technology stuff. ... Don't talk to Rin about Blu-Ray players. ...... Don't. (人◕ω◕);;; In all seriousness, Shiro doesn't care about wealth or exceedingly rich and elegant stuff... But seeing Rin mooch off of him, enjoying Luvia's gifts... Luvia knows full well he wants his precious people happy, and so to make them satisfied through gifts given to him... She knows damn well how to play the game. Shiro can't object too much if Rin - or now others - are enjoying Luvia's very gracious gifts... Deep down he wants to, but knows he can't. (人◕ω◕) It especially gets vexing when Luvia gives him the world on a silver platter when it comes to renovating his kitchen. His one sanctuary in his home. (人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕) People know to let him handle the cooking... So for Luvia to give him the nicest kitchen one can buy...

... Well. It's probably the first time Shiro is perfectly fine being selfish.... Because he can take care of his precious people better with a state-of-the-art kitchen. (人◕ω◕) Yeah, that's the excuse he's running with. Don't you judge him. (人◕ω◕)

Luvia will keep softening Shiro up as the years go by. Loyalty gets repaid in spades, as far as she's concerned. (人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕) Now... if she "hypothetically" arranges for a marriage between Shiro and herself, obtaining his signature while he's distracted making dinner one night... If such a little thing were to happen.... (人◕ω◕)

Of course this begins World War 3 in the Emiya household. ... Or perhaps a new Grail War? Who can say? (人◕ω◕) The ladies are certainly plotting marriages and baby Shiro's, anything to keep him from being a suicidal idiot that later became a bitter idiot in the guise of a Heroic Spirit...

But that's a story for another time. (人◕ω◕)

[melanie-ohara]

Rulers Make Bad Lovers - Chapter 2

Whumpuary2024, Day 24 - Prompt: Unfair Fight

Running from her responsibilities lands Emily in more trouble than she can handle

AO3 Here

Emily set off across the rooftops at speed. She had run the route often enough she could do it with her eyes closed, and she wasn't even relying on the bright moonlight to find her way out of the estate district and down towards the Wrenhaven river, where she turned inwards towards the centre of the city. She made faster progress once the rooftops came closer together, and soon she was flying over the streets faster than a carriage could travel on the roads below. 

Fighting with Wyman hurt, because it had never happened before. Usually, they were eager to indulge all of her worst behaviours with that lopsided grin she loved so much plastered across their face. This wasn't like them, and she refused to reckon with why that might be. At least, not tonight. That night she was focused on beating her record time to the clocktower. Every night she ran it faster and faster, and soon not even Corvo would be able to match her. 

It was her confidence that brought her down. Her foot caught on a railing and instead of hopping across she fell face first into the hard slates of the roof and started to slide backwards. Her fingers scrabbled for purchase but all she managed to do was dislodge a roof tile that skittered down after her. Emily cried out as she fell to the alley below, until the air was knocked out of her by the cobblestones slamming into her back. Her head rocked back and bounced off the ground, making her vision flash and blur. She didn't feel the pain for a moment, but then it shot through her all at once like pistol shot. Her lungs were empty but she tried to scream anyway, but all she managed was a gasp. 

Someone still heard it.

"What's this then?" The voice was harsh and thick with a Dunwall accent that spoke of years of cigarettes and whiskey. It wasn't friendly. 

All Emily could see from her back was the moonlight gleaming on the bricks of the buildings on either side, but she managed to lift her head to see the people approaching her out of the shadows. Three men and two women, some of them dragging heavy metal pipes ripped out of the city plumbing behind them so the grating sound and the kicked-up sparks would intimidate their prey. 

"Looks like someone fell off the roof," one of the women commented. "You alright there, sweetheart?" 

Even if Emily could reply, the sing-song sarcasm of her voice made her think it would be a bad idea. She had to force herself to her feet before they reached her - the odds were bad enough without starting the fight on the floor - but it was hard. The bolt of pain from the impact had slowed to a throb, but it hadn't eased much, and taking her weight on her arms to push herself up felt like she was going to snap in two. Emily tried to suck air into complaining lungs as she dragged herself upright, and by the time she had staggered to her feet she was just about able to breathe in and out. It was enough that she didn't immediately pass out, and that would have to do.

"Someone doesn't know how to stay down!" one of them said as she swung for Emily's head. She was sluggish from hitting the ground so hard and only just managed to whip her head out of the way. For a moment, she wished she'd paid attention to her advisors when they told her how popular she was with the populace: as it was, she had no idea if telling them she was the Empress would make them leave or just kill her quicker.

Then one of the street toughs raised their pipe and instinct took over instead. She raised her arms, taking the brunt of the blow across her forearms as she stepped into the attack. It hurt like hell, but it was better than broken ribs and it brought her close enough to throw a jab into his eye, forcing him to take a step back with a cry of pain. Emily skipped backwards too, staying mobile the way her father had taught her. 

The one advantage she had in the fight was that they hadn't circled her before they attacked, which forced them into only coming at her two at a time instead of all at once - but they were between her and the exit, and she hadn't brought her sword. There were five of them. Even Corvo would balk at a fight like that, and Emily didn't have anything close to his skills. The next one to take a swing at her had a knife, a great curved blade that was more like a raider's cutlass than a dagger, and she wasn't fast enough to dodge the blade. She was lucky the blow was weak and only cut through her jacket and nicked her ribs: much harder and it would have buried itself in the bone. In response, she broke the woman's nose with her fist and then slammed the heel of her other hand into her chin to whip her head back and send her sprawling on the floor. It didn't do her much good, because there was another armed thug to take her place a second later and Emily couldn't block and redirect and dodge forever. Eventually, one of them would get a lucky hit in and it would be all over.

She lasted longer than she expected, but eventually she ran out of alleyway. The thug with the knife backed her up another step and she felt the back wall of the alley stop her from dodging the pipe coming for her head. It burst across her temple in a shower of sparks and she collapsed sideways onto her hands and knees. It was a strange way for an Empress' rule to end: clubbed to death in random street violence. No grand assassination or elaborate coup for her. She heard a gunshot, and then something hot and wet splattered into her eyes. The blood tasted bitter and metallic in her mouth. She wondered how long it would take to feel the pain. How long it would take to die. 

*

Alexi Mayhew's second shot wasn't as clean as the first, and the second thug standing over Emily took the bullet in the shoulder. It at least got them all to leave her alone, and instead they turned to face the alley entrance where she stood, alone, in her parade uniform. She had spent both her rifle rounds now, but she still had her sword. 

"You have one chance to surrender!" she shouted down the alley. Her voice reverberated off the walls and she hoped Emily was still conscious to hear how defiant she sounded. "This is not a fair fight!"

Someone laughed. None of them seemed to mind that she had just blown the head off one of their friends, but life on the street was cheap. "Damn right!" they shouted out to her. "There's more of us than you!" 

Alexi drew her sword, and at the signal a shadow that had haunted the city its darkest year dropped from the roof above them and landed sword first in the leader's neck. Corvo Attano wrenched his folding blade free and turned it on one of the others, severing his head from his shoulders before he could even raise his weapon.

"Not any more," Alexi said, but the last remaining gangster was already running. She dropped her knife and was too afraid to even try and dodge Alexi: she had to step out of the way herself. As soon as she passed out of her field of view she turned her attention to Emily, sprinting down the alleyway so fast she overtook Corvo before falling to her knees at Emily's side. She was dazed, but alive, and her eyes just about focused on her face when Alexi cupped her cheeks and called her name.

"I had it under control," she mumbled. 

"You're an idiot," Alexi told her. It wasn't the playful tone she usually used. "You've gone too damn far this time."

"How did you find me?" Emily asked. Her voice was slurred, and Alexi was sure she needed medical attention before they moved her. 

"There's a City Watch surgeon coming," Alexi assured her, more to reassure herself than Emily. "I woke the Royal Protector and we came looking for you."

Emily tried to push her away but Alexi refused to budge. "I don't need babysitting, Alexi."

"You almost died, you selfish brat!" She let go of her head and stood up, leaving Emily to slump awkwardly against the wall. "You have to stop this, please!" she yelled at her. If she wasn't so angry she'd be begging. 

"Alexi." It was Corvo's voice. A moment later his hand came down gently on her shoulder and she turned to face him. Tears pricked at her eyes but she ignored them. Corvo had seen worse, she was sure.

"I'm sorry," Emily whined from the ground. "Wyman, I'm sorry. I'll… stay… don't… Alexi shouldn't have to worry…"

"She's delirious," Alexi said. "Where's that damn surgeon?"

Corvo squeezed slightly so she focused. "She loves you both," he said.

"Then why in the Void won't she listen?" 

Corvo smiled. "The day you understand that, I can resign as Royal Protector."

In spite of everything, Alexi let out a short chuckle. 

"My head hurts," Emily complained thickly from the floor. "I'm sorry." 

"Go to her," Corvo said. "The surgeon will be along."

Alexi nodded, sniffed, and wiped her eyes on her uniform sleeve. When she next looked back up from Emily, Corvo had vanished.

[theloathsometwinkeater]

ranking random soulsborne (mostly elden ring) bosses based on how much i like them but my takes are kinda bad

uhh 30 least liked and number 1 is my favorite

30. godskin duo

nuff said tbh. terribly designed boss. from had no idea how to make it hard so they just chucked two enemies in the dumbass room

29. the monkeys from sekiro

boring copy and paste of guardian ape

28. elden beast

elden beast is probably one of my least favorite fights in elden ring. for some reason torrent isnt available in its arena so you have to go chasing after it every time it runs away 😭😭 average int build fight

you could literally give me melania spamming scarlet aeonia, maliketh with 3x his normal health, and the double crucible knights all in the same tiny cramped room and i would still probably like it more than elden beast

the execution leaves much to be desired; especially for a final boss. give me cool insane bloodborne esque attacks not penis dragon spamming elden stars

27. fire giant

i dont like the fire giant fight. yeah im probably gonna get a lot of 'git guds' for this one but he always gmfu. WHEN HE GETS STUCK ON THE FUCKING TERRAIN I START TWEAKING ITS SO ANNOYING

26. ornstein and smough

smoughs fatass ruins the fight for me i srsly cant take him srsly with that goofy ass giggle

25. death rite bird

design is cool but i really dont like the fight

24. night's calvary

:-( this boss couldve been really cool. its so glitchy in game tho

the altus plateau calvary glitch is really funny tho. if youve never seen it essentially it bugs out if you stray too far from its locked spawn point and gets stuck and stops attacking

23. renalla

ehhhh. i hate int builds. plus i think her fight is kind of boring. maybe im biased

22. magma wyrm makar

hes just annoying. i dont like his design. the lore is cool!!

21. orphan of kos

cool bossfight but i still need to git gud so he ranks low bc i keep dying

20. radagon

ugh. first, hes ginger. second, his attacks are insane. third, hes ginger

19. friede & ariandel (i think thats how you spell it)

fun boss in design but the three phases is insane

18. astel

ehhh. i like astel for the design but the fight reminds me of elden beast. lots of running away for like no reason

at least astel has a somewhat enjoyable fight

17. red wolf

i like the dog bc i think its funny it can do fucking magic and wield a sword but the fight is kind of annoying especially if ur strength build

16. mergos wet nurse

very fun lore wise but the fight is so eh

15. sif :(

such a tragic fight. i think it was well designed tbh but since all ds1 bosses are easy as shit he doesnt place as high on my list of liked bosses

14. godrick

godrick is probably one of my favorite fights due to how fucking dumb he is. he literally crawls toward you and throws wind at you. he has to attach a dragon to his arm to beat you and still fucking loses. all those limbs he grafted to give him power just weigh him down and i think thats really funny

13. margit

margit is a very fun first story boss. his moveset is pretty cool and i have his voice line engrained into my skull

12. moon presence

i love this boss mostly bc of the cutscene since the fight is kind of underwhelming

11. divine dragon

i love the music plus the fight is cool. i like the genre of souls bosses that are very sad and pathetic looking

10. mohg

mohg is one of my favorite fights. i love his voice. i love his music. he gets major points for being a lolicon tho #freemiquella #mohglordofbloodisoverparty

9. artorias

I LOVE THIS FIGHT. whole game you hear about this dude and the fight doesnt disappoint imo. i wish they kept his voicelines

8. maria of the astral clocktower

shes so cool. i love her sm

7. LUDWIG

amazing fight

amazing music

amazing lore

what more could you want points off for being british

6. isshin

isshin is VERY cool. i havent played sekiro in a while but i remember enjoying the fight

5. maliketh

his first phase is eh but his second phase is insane

the attacks are so cool and the fact he bounces off his own fucking attack is insane. what the fuck hes so cool

4. midir

very fun fight. yes its hard but you can really feel how angry and sad he is

3. malenia

honestly one of my favorite fights in ER. yes its hard as shit but her design is so cool and her lore is tragic

points off for nuking radahn

2. fortissax

i love the ost and i love just how... sad and tragic the whole fight feels? hes clearly suffering from the deathblight and the fact hes been fighting it off is so cool. even an immortal dragon cant fight off the deathroot which is insane.

radahn

i love radahn so much

seriously it might be my favorite fight in the series

his attacks are cool. his design is cool. his lore is fucking cool. his fight is so cool-- leading an army into battle and charging radahn is my favorite moment. plus the fact he fucking holds back the STARS is fucking awesome what the fuck hes insane

the tragedy of that accidental patch will never not be funny to me. pre-patch radahn wasnt even that fucking hard 😭😭😭 git gud you fuckign loser. pushed fromsoft so hard they accidentally nerfed him

honorable mentions that include some normal enemies (dislikes):

crucible knight duo

god i fucking hate this fight. crucible knights are annoying on their own but this is a whole new level. dungeon isnt even worth it

rykard

hes... fine... but his pool of lava is annoying plus the magic spam

fia's champions

how the fuck is this an actual boss

valiant gargoyles

FUCKKK THIS BOSS.

agheel

his lore is cool and i like that the dragonburnt ruins hollows like... worship him? its kind of cool. but his fight is either just cheesing or chasing him around. plus his moveset is shared by like every dragon in the game

erdtree avatar

literally just asylum demon

castle sol knight

iykyk. fuck this guy

gideon

FUCK YOUUU

rune bears

what the actual fuck. my first playthrough they absolutely clapped my cheeks

black blade kindred

nuff said

godefroy

literally just a copy and paste of godrick

istvan

weirdly hard? his attacks are insane

pets from dark souls 2

ew

ulcerated tree spirit

the fact that its attack is just flailing around in the tiny ass spaces theyre always put in is so annoying. the one in caelid is insane

honorable mentions that i actually liked

ekzykes, borealis and adula

i think theyre cool. yeah they essentially share the same model as agheel but like... magic dragons

plus i feel bad for ekzykes

placidusax

very cool boss. love him

[aurorawest]

Reading update:

Look, I am clearly on a mission to read every mlm book written, AND I love a lovable rogue, AND I love magic, AND I love the World’s Fair. That said, this book didn’t grab me the way I thought it would? It was a solid read, but I never feel head over heels for it the way I expected to. I think part of my issue with it was that Hutchinson was deliberately anachronistic with the acceptance of queer relationships, which is not something I have a problem with in theory, but it just didn’t really work for me. That said, it was a lovely book, and I really liked all the characters.

DNFed this after 12 pages. It read like crap fanfiction. It was like...you know that dude you know, who thinks he’s really great at writing? And you read his thing because you’re nice, and it’s just like...oof. Someone should have knocked you down a peg or two before you self-published this.

And then I DNFed this one, too! I was so bummed—the premise sounded so fun: real life partners have a home renovation show, and also have to solve crime. But then, the main character is ALSO a YA author, and his boyfriend is ALSO an actor, and the murder took way too long to happen, and what made me nearly throw this book across the room (a mere 10 pages after I grit my teeth and said to myself “It’s not that bad, I’m going to soldier through it”) was a pointless, rambling, utterly obnoxious aside about the main character’s writing process. Quote: “More recently, I’d taken to writing on my mobile phone, using Microsoft’s Word app.” OH my FUCKING GOD DUDE JUST STOP. Literally this is where I put the book down. He goes on for a solid two pages about his writing process.

Whew well after the two-DNFs-in-a-row fiasco (I can count on one hand the number of books I’ve DNFed in my life, so that was a bad experience), I had to choose something I knew I’d love. Thank you Cat Sebastian, who’s never written something I haven’t adored. This is a sequel and we get to hang out with James and Leo again. I still love them, I still love the setting (post WWII), I love how queer the mystery is. I hope we get another book.

Then my copy of Nona The Ninth came, and I knew I’d be seeing spoilers since I was too lazy to block anything, so I read it. I...didn’t love it? There was stuff that I loved so so SO much, but then there was also stuff that I’m just predisposed to not like, which is a personal taste issue. I would have liked things to be a little clearer at the end. I appreciate that Muir doesn’t baby her readers and just tosses them into things, but I kept waiting for that moment where I Got It, as I did in Gideon and Harrow, and it never came. I know this book wasn’t planned as a separate book, and was split out from Alecto The Ninth, which is maybe part of the issue? That OH SHIT moment was maybe always in Alecto. But of course, even if I didn’t love the book, Muir’s writing is amazing. Read this for the Sixth House, if nothing else.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. It was a fun premise—kind of a queer Back to the Future. Unfortunately I found the main character incredibly obnoxious. The point of this book, I think, was to teach him that the world doesn’t revolve around him, and that also, being queer in 2022 is really different than being queer in 1985, and that people who lived through unaccepting or less accepting eras carry that baggage. Except I just continually wanted to smack him for accusing everyone of homophobia or being a coward. Also the author 100% copped out on the time travel stuff, which was lame.

I did love the 80s nostalgia though.

Currently reading:

The first thing I noticed when I cracked this book open was that Enfield, UK was included on the map. My wife is from Enfield, so that made me grin. I think she’s going to read this solely for the fact that it’s largely set in Enfield. I’m only about 100 pages in but I’m liking it so far—it’s an alternate history type book where clocktowers control the flow of time, and it centers on a young mechanic who meets a clock spirit. I enjoyed Tara Sim’s City of Dusk a lot, so I picked this one up after I read that.

Captive Prince Brainrot. Jord and Aimeric 😭😭 And I’m even having feelings about Ancel??? And Berenger? I’m totally reading these out of order, because I’m saving The Summer Palace for last.

[halothenthehorns]

Chapter 4: Would You Rather

James and Sirius swung open their door quietly, for once, as it was well past curfew and Moony and Wormtail were supposed to be asleep.

One of them was, Pete snoring away in his four-poster was obvious enough, but Remus was shifting all along his bed restlessly, his breathing a hairs past labored.

"Still having nightmares, is he?" James sighed as he eased open his trunk to put the cloak up.

"Every night this time of month, like clockwork," Sirius agreed as he began rummaging for his pj's.

He eased into the bed with his boyfriend, which seemed to at least temporarily settle him as Sirius shifted his weight along his back, but as he tried to relax into the bed, Remus bucked.

Sirius crashed into the nightstand, the sharp crack of his head smacking the corner not nearly as loud as Remus sitting up trying to poorly muffle a scream as he clutched his scar and gasped what could be his last breath.

Blood. The smell of blood was clogging his nose and it was dark, somebody was shouting and all of his friends were dead, Fenrir had found him, or worse he'd done the deed himself...

Peter was multi-tasking like a fiend, he deserved a cake to himself for being startled awake and still keeping the door shut on the nosy Prefect from seventh year trying to ask what that noise was and what the troublesome boys were up to.

James was quickly mending the gash along Sirius's forehead and trying to keep Remus from hyperventilating any more than necessary by prattling off what they'd rigged up the clocktower to do tomorrow, shouting over Peter's shoulder everything was fine and doing a piss poor job of it all as he smeared a bit of blood on his hands when he brushed Sirius's hair back from his face to make sure it had all mended.

Sirius was ignoring the annoyance as the extra student was finally shooed off. He clambered back into the bed pulling him close, and hummed softly until his breathing finally evened out, but sleep was not coming back to him any time soon.

Fixing one problem for sure now, he levitated the stand to smack against his own on the other side of the bed. Prongs and Wormtail only watched for a moment before accepting what they suspected was coming when Padfoot waved his wand again to close the curtains around them.

His boyfriend was just too uncomfortable in his own skin tonight, it was going to be a sleepless bout for both of them. So Sirius asked, "would you like me to sing to you all night, or something else?" Throwing a silencing charm around the curtains now no matter the answer.

He meant it as an honest question, but Remus pressed his face farther into his chest to suppress his laughter before he answered, "something else, but not what you had in mind." Then continuing before Sirius could even ask, "would you rather only have to do homework, or only tests?"

Sirius laughed back, Moony dropped his hand from that scar and found himself almost able to relax in the heat of his presence, and so the game progressed for hours as the two easily passed the time.

Remus found himself comfortably now sprawled out as Sirius kept his loud voice low just for him until the sun was threatening on the horizon, but bit his lip as he knew he should finally ask on his next turn.

It was still Sirius's go, "would you rather get a massage every night, or breakfast in bed every morning?"

"Hmm, can't I please pick both, just for this one thing?" He pouted up at him as Sirius's foot twitched against him a hyperactive beat. It still blew Remus's mind he could ever hold Sirius's attention nowadays among his usual hyperactive energy.

"If I can't stop time whenever I want and also be able to talk as Padfoot, than no, you can't."

"Well I refuse to allow both, and I will always choose sleeping in over staying awake, so the massage it is."

Padfoot gave him a promising, lingering swipe down his back, and Remus chickened out, again, as the first hints of light filtered in through the windows edges, soft yellows lighting the red carpet the most depressing color to him now. "Would you rather have immortality, or know exactly when you'd die?"

Sirius kept gently rubbing up and down his back and didn't even hesitate, "running out of hard ones now are we? The second."

"Not even going to consider it," he asked in surprise.

"Why on Earth would I want to live forever without you lot, unless we're talking getting my hands on the Philosopher's Stone or something, then we could share it and that would be agreeable, but I thought you meant more spontaneous perfect good looks forever, and it's still a pass, all for you love," he finished grandly and a rough kiss to his temple.

Remus sat up from his arms, his heart thudding a painful beat as he looked at him. Sirius blinked in surprise, opening his mouth with a question and even a bit of unease as if he thought he'd done something wrong, but Remus leaned back in and gently grasped his face as he forced himself to stop putting this off.

"Would you rather-"

"Hey, it's my turn," he tried to protest, but he merely kept watching with a furrowed brow now.

"I've an important one," he promised. "Would you rather give up Padfoot-"

"The second," Sirius snapped at once, even trying to lean out of his hands now, clearly offended.

"Let me finish," he whispered pleadingly, and Sirius finally went still to really watch him.

He took a ragged breath before finally blurting out, "would you rather never have to change again because I might have a chance at another solution?"

Sirius watched him steadily as if waiting for the rest, before it clicked. "They finished the Wolfsbane brew?" His tone was not promising at all, but he only sounded frustrated rather than furious.

"Lily wants to give me the first round tonight," he whispered, equal parts dread and euphoria still leaving him a twitching mess. "We'll know this time in a week if it works."

"Moony, I don't like this," Sirius reached up and held his hands in place now. "Using you as some ruddy guinea pig-"

"I know that Pads, you've told me this a dozen times. I'd never for a moment wish you or our friends to think I haven't valued every day you put into your animagus's-"

"This isn't about us," Sirius finished. "Remus, you don't owe anyone a way to fix you!" He used his boyfriend's own word.

"But what if it works?" He feverishly reminded, leaning in closer, his hands trembling under his boyfriend's grasp. Even he wasn't sure if it was excitement or fear. "It could help so many others Padfoot, werewolves who don't have animagus friends, maybe once there's a way to, even us out during full moons, maybe wizards will ease up on us? I'm willing to find out for them." Maybe even more, a way to stop him ever changing again...

Sirius scowled as he shut his eyes but dropped his hands and instead crossed his arms. "It's not like I can talk you out of it, if you really want this," he admitted, opening his eyes and still not looking happy.

"I'd like your support," he reminded sadly, brushing his thumbs gently across.

Sirius's stomach burned like magma as he looked back at him. "You know I'd do anything to give you a real cure love, but I just don't like the sound of this stuff, it didn't actually seem to help you in that book! You were always described as exhausted and strained as ever."

"Perhaps because of other things going on," he wheedled. He didn't need to elaborate, Harry's third year had not been a kind one, and it had been Snape brewing the potion after all. He wouldn't have cared much for his health aside from suppressing the monster, whereas Lily and Frank had been actively doing their very best to try to make this as close to a cure as they could, with Slughorn's and Dumbledore's supervision over every step. "Even if it doesn't work whole hog, it's a step in the right direction."

It was a lie that coursed over his tongue, but he would not stand in his way. "Okay, then you have my full support." Moony smiled hesitantly, but he knew his boyfriend was still holding back, so Sirius took a deep breath and teased, "would you rather I be beside you holding your hand, or learn how to brew it myself?"

And there in the bright dawn light, on their bed, in the room they'd shared their entire time knowing each other, Sirius finally got to see that smile. The one he'd been so long convinced he could never really give him. Remus Lupin beamed brighter than anything Sirius had ever seen as true hope for the future chased away any purpling shadows under his eyes as he leaned in and kissed him.

The look of disgust on his face when he took the first sip was just as memorable though, as Sirius tried to suppress a snicker.

"Sorry," Lily pouted while Frank guiltily frowned from the sugar and back.

"It's all right," he waved off as he plugged up his nose and tried again, half the goblet down now. "It's better this way, right, means it at least tastes as foul as it should."

"I'd have hoped for some improvement," she huffed and glared into the cauldron, already reaching for a quill to add some refinement.

"One step at a time Lils," James reminded as he caught her hand. "Let's see if this batch even works first before we worry about his taste buds."

"You're feeling alright?" Sirius demanded the moment he'd doused the last droplet.

"Normal," he shrugged, tipping the steaming, empty goblet this way and that before giving a reluctant smile to them all. "Not better, not worse. I'll let you know if I drop dead though."

"Yes please, with timestamps," Sirius snipped back.

Padfoot was up his boyfriend's arse the entire week, he couldn't go to the bathroom without Padfoot following him in and the snide comments Remus gave about the color of his piss and Sirius holding his hand in here seemed to fall on deaf ear; making Remus even grumpier and snappier than usual when he tersely answered all of their questions to check on his health. By the time the night in question was on the horizon he'd rather a wolf burst out of him just to get him to stop freaking out that he'd somehow been accidentally poisoned while the greatest minds of their time tried to help him.

He slammed back the last goblet full like it was toilet water and resisted giving them all the bird as he suppressed a yawn. "Still feel normal, same as always."

Lily and Frank looked disappointed, they'd been hoping he'd feel as good before as he did after his run, but Dumbledore serenely waved his wand to still the tree as the four boys slipped into the roots.

Lily was being restrained from going to keep an eye on any more results on her best friend by both Frank and Alice now as they trudged off up to the shack.

"How come Dumbledore never thought to give you a portkey to some remote island or something?" James asked to break the awkward silence. "Why leave you on the school grounds at all?" Not that he wasn't grateful, their solution worked just fine for them and he was as worried as Sirius about what this was going to do to their friend.

"To keep an eye on me, I assumed," Remus grumbled back.

They hung around in more awkward silence than usual in their place of solace, so Remus finally snapped at his glowering boyfriend, "what do you think is going to happen, I'll really drop dead?"

"I don't know," he protested back, rather than the werewolf for once, he was growing more stiff and cold as the full moon raced towards its peak. "Why am I the only one bothered by that?"

"You said you were going to be supportive," Remus reminded bitterly.

"I haven't knocked it out of your hand yet have I! Bloody hell, I actually studied the shit they put in it myself, what else do you want from me?" He huffed back.

"Where's that annoying optimism about my future now Mr. don't overthink it!" He snapped.

James and Peter were watching their back and forth with a very uncomfortable look on their face, they weren't sure if the two were about to start snogging or go for their wands, it was oddly hard to tell with them.

"I'm starting to wonder if you even want this to work!" Moonlight was cracking through the thin walls. Remus was yelling louder than the creature who would soon be taking his place could ever howl. "You love your little risky adventures to much to ever give it up!"

They were pretty confident this was a full fight now.

"The hell's the matter with you!" Sirius could yell better than anyone, even a cursed victim perfected for it. The scrutinizing, studying look he'd been giving his boyfriend all week finally morphed into the angry lines Remus should have known were really there all along. "I think you just don't trust us, you still don't trust me to stop your ass!"

"You shouldn't have to! Dammit Sirius, this isn't about-" he was stopped by the horrible, deafening sound of his spine snapping in half. His words turned into a guttural shout of pain as the transformation began.

Remus woke up with his head pounding so hard he wondered who had beaten it against a wall all night, himself, or Sirius. His mouth was cotton dry, his muscles were quivering like he was still fixing to explode out of his skin any moment, and he was unreasonably hot, yet had no energy to readjust a single trembling limb. Strangest of all, he wasn't hungry. He always woke up with an empty stomach even if he had managed to hunt as Moony, yet this time he was so nauseous he dreaded even opening his eyes for the vertigo would surely get worse.

Yet he remembered everything, for once in his life.

The pops of his animal friends joining him had gone unheard as he'd landed on all fours. He had seen them, known them, but it was as if he were recalling the events through a foggy filter. His brain was slogging through the night as he'd curled up on the spot, to addled to even glance at the hatch, let alone return a nuzzle like Padfoot had come over to give. His legs had folded under him and he'd wished he could sleep, but even that escaped him, he was trapped in limbo of the two. He'd seen through his own eyes rather than the monster for once, and what was better, he couldn't have hurt a soul if he wanted to. It had worked.

"Moony?" The soft brush of skin contact on his neck made him groan miserably, he wretched which only cleared his mind a bit more, made him more aware of how heavy his body felt. "Come on love, show me you're awake, please?"

Dragging his eyes open was an awful chore, but the concern in Sirius' voice made it paramount. Had something else happened while he'd been safely away?

Padfoot's face was gaunt, and did not suit his haughty features. He only got a fleeting, hazy look at his grey, bloodshot eyes before he turned away and shouted, "Pomfrey!"

The sharp yell made him groan all the more and wish to nod back off, but his body was thrumming with misery. 'Suck it up,' he firmly told himself. The trade-off was entirely worth it.

"No, no, hey," Sirius was stroking his face persistently, his fingers trembling... was Padfoot's skin unreasonably cold, or was it his flush fever? "Please stay awake, please?"

"It worked," he slurred, the smug urge to brag wasn't even at the forefront of his mind, but he couldn't stand that desperate edge in his boyfriend's voice and was honestly trying to cobble any words together, maybe a stupid joke would get a smile out of him. "Take, tha..."

"Now, now, Mr. Lupin. Drink up," a smooth glass was being pressed to his lips, the fresh cool water was heaven and he gulped greedily.

The hospital wing finally swam into focus, his nerves were stopping their nonsense and the pounding in his head was now wavering up and down like a bad reception as he adjusted and had his fill.

Sirius was quivering on the spot, like the chair under him was about to explode, looking angrier at him than he'd seen in quite some time now. "It worked did it," he spat, color back in his face as he looked from the nurse checking him over with a few spells back to him with a curled up lip. "You've been out for nearly four days and look like death warmed over! Sure Remus, it bloody worked! You were drugged out of your mind, let's celebrate!" His shouting about anything should have been a familiar comfort, but this time it only made the pain in his head start traveling down like lead, freezing him in place.

"Mr. Black, he is awake," the nurse said in a no-nonsense voice, "that was the deal. Run along now, you have classes and your own bed, piles of homework I'm sure-"

Sirius was already storming out the door and slammed it shut behind him before she'd finished.

"Is it that bad?" He whispered, blaming his watering eyes entirely on the echoing noise searing his headache back at full swing.

She pursed up her lips and went to jot something down in a book before answering. "You were doing much better having your run of the forest, but let's not fool ourselves, this is safer dearie. You'll, ahem, adjust I'm sure." There was nothing left in him to be surprised Dumbledore had told her their secret, he was to busy trying to convince himself Sirius wasn't going to run off and do what he used to do when he was upset...he didn't even have the energy to curl up onto his side or press his face into the pillow as the hateful words they exchanged left him feeling exactly as Sirius must have while waiting for him to wake up. Of course he trusted his Padfoot, but surely he'd see this was better?

He hadn't beaten and attacked himself, but he hadn't the sizzling freedom of the animal. This was some sort of awful median.

Sirius did not come and visit him again, but all of his friends did. They all looked just as freaked out, so he couldn't even kid himself his boyfriend had just been overreacting, but he seemed to assure them much better it really wasn't so bad and they all left with smiles at least.

Prongs and Lils came around the most, even offering to leave him the map so he could watch them go around classes, (and not stare forlornly at Sirius alone in his dorm he kept telling himself,) but he declined the offer because he didn't need it. He did know better.

It took a whole week before he was back to his normal color, schedule, and energy and the nurse let him go. He both envied his adult self being able to escape her, and couldn't imagine being in the noisy school of kids like this. His time as a teacher must have truly been the most pleasurable part of his life to continue enduring month after month. When he was released it was thankfully in the late evening and he could at least have this out in their dorm, where Sirius was alone, all the better.

He looked up from an essay and gave him a weary smile from his rarely used bed by the window, looking back down and managed a pleasant enough, "there are some notes you can copy in my bag."

Remus hoped that meant the fight was over entirely, Padfoot didn't bring it up even during the next time he drank the wolfsbane potion.

Sirius was never afraid to share what was on his mind, he kept telling himself as he still lay in his warm arms every night in their bed closest to the door, but their overnight conversations never seemed to last very long anymore.

Padfoot didn't even open his mouth the last twenty-four hours before it began again, and if he wasn't feeling so ill he'd have laughed himself to death at the puppet like display.

The side effects were exactly the same the next time he woke up.

His boyfriend wasn't there, and that hurt more than any headache he could ever have in his life. The last time he'd woken up in the hospital wing alone was not a pleasant memory he wanted to wake up to, this shite was supposed to chase that away!

A soft rustle of movement stopped him from fully panicking and wondering if he was still trapped in some nightmare, and before he could finish the next sharp breath the cloak was falling off of James and Lily holding hands and watching him in concern.

"Hey Moony," Lily whispered softly while James handed him a drink. "You feeling any better?"

"No," he said gratefully to the company as he smiled at the two. "Thanks though."

James's heirloom was passed around between all of their friends until he was released, and none of them brought up the empty chair.

Remus kept hoping he would adapt to it too, but Sirius clearly had no more faith in their two failed attempts. He'd devoted years into being an animagus on an unfound theory, Remus didn't get the difference! Padfoot wouldn't talk about it though, every time Remus broached the subject Sirius found some reason to excuse himself, unless Remus wanted to yell after him in the corridors. In their dorms was worse, Sirius would say he needed sleep for this or that tomorrow and go to his own bed, so Remus stopped bringing it up rather quickly while ignoring whatever pitiful looks James and Peter exchanged.

Lily and Frank were going spare trying to figure out how to deal with the dosages of what they could and couldn't take out and adjust to help. He'd still had nightmares too the week preceding, but so were most of the others, though none would admit it either. Even a glimpse of their future hadn't cured any of them of their fear of the unknown. He kept telling himself it had to get worse before it got better, his life had always been one sickness after another...

Decidedly still in the worst of it, as the two kept getting quieter and talking less with every week that passed. The worst part of all was Padfoot kept trying to pretend otherwise, giving him the fakest smiles and answering any time he was spoken to without a trace of, anything. Just, calm, casual answers. His boyfriend was officially avoiding him whenever he could, finding a new outlet of being on his broom at all hours when he wasn't falsely being a cheery ghost of himself. Remus had convinced himself after Padfoot tried to bring his homework down to the pitch if they didn't share a dorm he'd have ditched him by now, Sirius didn't even have a reason to be friends with him anymore now that they didn't have their monthly adventures to talk about!

Padfoot still made a few jokes and laughed with Prongs, but even that was regressing into horribly awkward and stilted talks that broke off when Remus approached.

He longed to ask James, but knew he'd only tell him to go talk to Sirius about it. Lily was starting to resemble his sick visage at all hours as well as she desperately tried to help solve the problem, but it wasn't going to be a potion to fix this mess.

"This is my fault," he whispered under the simmering water of her boiling the aconite while slouching on his uncomfortable stool next to her. "I trapped him into this with my stupid mouth and now he feels obligated not to dump me." He was pretty sure she wasn't even listening to his petty mutters and had just finally taken the chance to vent while she was so invested in her work.

She looked so sharply at him he fell off his stool. Her hair was a frizzy mess from the fumes and her near constantly running her fingers through it and her sharp green eyes looked ready to use that spiel on him. "Remus," her voice cracked, then she put her face in her hands and for a horrible moment he thought he'd made her cry!

Then she looked back up at him and he realized she was pissed at him too, but she had no problems telling him, "screw staying out of it, stop being such an idiot! That boy has never let a soul tell him what he can and can't do, he won't start with you! You two need to ruddy talk to each other, he thinks he's helping how you want and now you think he hates you! I'd lock your dumbasses in here to fix this if I wasn't trying to fix one problem at a time!"

"Oh," was the only lame response he had to that as he accepted her hand and offered to read the definition of a few plants to her again as if she didn't have them all memorized.

He whispered in his ear after dinner to go on a walk with him and lead them out into the Forest. Sirius didn't hesitate to nod and go with him, but he also didn't run ahead laughing and then circle back trying to brag about running laps. They didn't get far, he was too exhausted and sore to go even off one of the trails, and he hated it only seemed to prove Padfoot's point this wasn't healthier even as he made himself clear, "this is my choice."

"I know that," Sirius sat down with no need to do so, only hoping his boyfriend would too, and it worked. Remus slumped onto a mossy log beside him and kept looking out into the darkness with a relieved sigh he tried to hide. Sirius reached out for him, then dropped his hand, pretending he'd heard nothing. "I'm trying here love, I really am. I, just, I can't stand seeing you like this." Not when he knew there was a better way, it felt like Moony was needlessly punishing himself, again.

Remus turned back to face him with a sad smile. "Would you rather spend forever in a forest, or on a beach?"

Sirius blinked a few times but played along, "forest, sand's a bitch to get out of my fur and hair." Moony snickered and reached for his hand, Sirius offered it willingly and twined their fingers together as his stomach twisted. "I know, I've been an arse. You know I just want what's best for you, but I promise I'm trying, thinking ahead more, it's for more than our benefit. At least there is an option now, even a shitty one." The frustration in his voice he couldn't just make every wizard be an animagus to somehow equal out this problem probably wouldn't be funny to anyone but his boyfriend. "Prongs was just telling me how his parents are setting up funds to offer this stuff up for other werewolves too, the Ministry's drafting up papers." Remus watched him really trying to put enthusiasm into that at least, but Sirius still wouldn't quite meet his eyes. "I'll be there after the next one and pretend you look dapper no matter how much that nurse puts her boot up my arse, I'll be there as long as you want. I swear, I'm not going to bring it up again."

"Stop with that, please," he corrected, twining Sirius's arm around his shoulders, twisting his wrist to not let go and keep him tighter around him. "Disapprove, fine, tell me I look like shit all day, but don't put on a brave face, I bloody hate it. It's all my mother did until she figured out this wasn't going away. You are a blunt asshole who's supposed to be calling me out on my crap. Frankly, I'm surprised you haven't thrown in my face yet I'm doing another werewolf experiment."

Padfoot scoffed and gave him a moody frown, he was looking at him now. "While we were trapped in that shite!" There was that lovely shout his voice always had as he made himself very clear with all the emotion packed into every word. "My qualification is null in void considering nobody is under pressure to die here! I know the difference you prick."

Remus laughed at somehow, even now, his boyfriend could turn anything into a sarcastic comment, even that. "I have no qualms telling you to piss off if you start to annoy me, love. I just want you, all your emotionally over-dramatic arse."

Sirius chuckled, he could feel it around his whole body and exhaled at last when he didn't even deny it, instead kissing his temple. "I promise."

"I have a compromise instead," Remus leaned into his side and smiled when his boyfriend reached up to cup his neck, still trying to nudge him closer. "You probably won't like it, but the point of a compromise is neither of us are going to be fully happy."

"I'm listening," Sirius encouraged when he still hesitated.

"I do trust you," he finally finished that stupid argument. "Please don't ever think that. There are other circumstances going on though. I talked to Dumbledore, and I can't leave the school grounds when I transform, that way if anything ever happens he'll always have claim to know of my whereabouts if anyone comes knocking, so I'm going to be taking the potion the duration of my education." He exhaled sharply for how hard Sirius shivered at that and ground his teeth together, his hands convulsing tightly, protectively, as he audibly muttered his frustrations mostly in cussing, but Remus smiled all the same he didn't say anything until he continued. "After though, when we graduate, we'll find an island, hell, we'll conjure up our very own forest in the middle of nowhere and put up every damn charm and barrier in the world to keep anybody out but animagus's and me, I won't take it again unless there's extenuating conditions. Fair?"

Sirius mulled it over for quite some time before nodding, his long hair tickling all over. "Deal. I do want it to work you know," he corrected too. "I swear Moony, I'd never want- Merlin, if I could throw all the gold in the world into this and give you a real freedom, I'd give up Padfoot for you, anything."

"I know," he promised as he beamed up at him a smile of complete love and an unburdened future.

HPHPHPHP

I have written other depictions of the various levels of how Remus wakes up from his full moons, this is the last in a long line of comparisons. I've read multiple variations on the topic of his different stages throughout the month, and each have a uniqueness to them that fascinates me.

[ofprythian]

☾— half alive

he looked like hell. the incessant beeping of machines, the sterile scent of hospital starting to make her head dizzy. all the rest was quiet aside from the hushed voices of nurses and doctors she heard every once in awhile, a cup still full of coffee on the table beside his bed. she knew she couldn’t have looked much better, long tendrils of hair falling around her face unkempt and messy. tear stained cheeks, puffy irritated skin and all she had on was her skirt and his shirt that he been discarded beside it. all she had deemed to throw on as the paramedics ushered her away, it was a miracle she even had done even that considering the state she had been in. still was. it was impossible for her to take her eyes off of him all hooked up to those machines. iv’s and cords scattered around him like a web, how he looked just a little too pale. at least his lips looked normal again, she would take small favors.

her smaller fingers curled protectively, tightly around his large ones. being careful of the iv’s. afraid of letting go. afraid of losing him. eyes scanning him over and over again, wondering how the night had gone so wrong. still felt the remnants of their impassioned activities between her thighs, inside of her. brows furrowing and eyes closing softly. tiredly. heart aching in her chest. ana was terrified, so much so, that she was thankful the fear hadn’t paralyzed her. hadn’t stopped her from getting him help. the needle, the spoon, the lighter scattered on the floor. had she been so oblivious? or was he that good at hiding it? probably, both. she realized. even if she had known something wasn’t right since she stepped through his door. it had all come blaring like the headlights of a semi truck aiming right for her that he was dying, slipping away from her as the seconds passed. somehow her body had moved her to find a phone, fumbling and messy, scared as she clicked in 911. how tightly she gripped it while she kept calling for him, begging him to wake up. luke, luke, luke. hadn’t even felt the tears wetting her skin until later. 

“i’m not ready to say goodbye yet.” 

the pain had rang through her louder than a clocktower bell. she couldn’t find the will to care about herself right now. as her adoring eyes peered up at the boy that had burrowed his way into her soul, had made her want to focus more on reality than any fictional world she was consuming with her mind. how she needed him. all of her craving just to be near. woven directly around her big thumping heart. the way he made her feel so vividly alive. the understanding and comfort, heated serenity. the warmth that poured through her every time she was around him or even just thought about him. how the fear of losing him had overtaken her entire being, it had changed her. wrapped her in knowing and above all, resolve.  it had become so clear. she would stay with him for as long as they would allow her, help him in whatever ways she could, never let go of his hand. he hadn't told her for a reason and while it was impossible for her to know all of them she could assume a few. especially as her fingertips slowly, gently ran down and up his forearm past the marks that marred his skin. only now seeing them for what they were, that feeling bubbled in her throat, made her eyes burn. she couldn’t stop trying to soothe him still.

"please be okay," she whispered, softly horse and cracked. "please let him be okay." she wasn't sure if she was talking to him or whoever, whatever, might be listening to her silent pleas. her chair scooted closer and her head fell against the hospital bed, against him. i won’t leave him, i won’t let him go. it was a promise, a binding, as if it had been inked on her skin.

[maybestoryideas]

Out on a Limb

For perhaps the very first time since you first arrived at Night Raven College, your day had been perfectly normal. There were no mishaps in class that required a teacher’s intervention, lunch passed by without anyone throwing a snide remark or fist, and there was no safety-endangering conflict for Crowley to foist onto you. And as you sat at your desk, working on the homework Trein had assigned for tomorrow, you realized how absolutely BORED you were. Maybe it was some demented version of Stockholm Syndrome, but you suddenly missed the chaos and danger that normally followed wherever you went. That must be why, when Ace showed up at Ramshackle Dorm with a pair of brooms and his usual grin, you didn’t immediately slam the door in his face.

“Wanna have a race?”

You blinked.

“What?”

“Do you wanna race?” he repeated, “The Magift club just finished up practice and I offered to put away the equipment.”

“Why would you even offer something like that?” Grim asked, getting up from his spot on the couch.

“Well I never said I’m doing it for free; I offered to help in exchange for answers to next week’s test,”

Of course he did.

“So, what do you say to a race?”

“Sorry,” you groaned, “But I’ve got to finish this assignment for Trein.”

“Aw, c’mon (Name)!” Grim whined, having joined you and Ace at the front door, “We haven’t done anything all day. A race would be fun.”

As soon as Grim and Ace agree on an idea, that’s when you know it’s a bad one.

“Nope.” You moved to close the door.

“Feh, you’re no fun,”

“No, I get it,” Ace sighed, “I won’t force you to fly if you’re scared.”

You stopped halfway through closing the door. It’s a trap.

“Scared?”

“We’re in the same class; you think I wouldn’t notice how you freak out whenever we have to fly?”

It’s an obvious trap.

“I do not ‘freak out’!”

“No, it’s fine. I understand. You’re magicless; it would be scary to anyone if they grew up in a world without flying brooms.”

It’s an obvious trap and you’re not going to fall for it.

“I am not scared!”

“Really. Care to prove it?”

…You’re an idiot.

“Okay, the rules are simple: We start at Ramshackle, race to the clocktower off of Main Street, and then back to the dorm. Grim, can you count us down?”

“What?”

He looked up from his spot at the front door with a look that was a mix between confused and annoyed.

“Why do I have to do it? I wanna race, too!”

“Hehe, sorry but this is between me and the Prefect. Tell ya what, loser buys you a can of tuna.”

The cat-monster grumbled, “Fine…” before walking ahead and turning to face you.

“On your marks…”

You braced yourself against the broom, feeling your feet lift off the ground as you rose a few feet.

“Get set…”

Your guts felt like they were tying themselves in knots, either from the flying, the race, or both.

.

.

.

“GO!”

The air roared past your ears as the path below you blurred into a winding line. You were pretty low off the ground - just high enough to safely avoid hitting any bypassing students - but the speed alone was enough to get the adrenaline rushing.

You had to squint your eyes against the wind, but you could clearly see Ace a few feet ahead, and the clock tower slowly coming into view from the horizon. Tightening your grip on the handle, you tried to make yourself as small as possible and began closing the distance between you and Ace. The tower was getting closer, a couple hundred meters at most, and you were neck and neck with Ace - you could probably reach out and touch him if you felt like sending the both of you spiraling out of control.

He looked up at you - finally noticing the narrowing gap - and smiled. He had to shout against the wind, and even then it was hard to hear what he was saying, but you could clearly hear his laugh.

“Not bad, not bad at all! You’re really giving it your everything!”

You would’ve thrown back a clever reply - maybe warn him to keep his eyes on the path ahead - but it was taking all of your concentration to not topple over, so you just gave him a smile.

Then he grinned.

“So I guess that means I don’t have to hold back.”

Wait wha-

PCHOOOOOOOO!

Before you could even register what happened, Ace had reached the clocktower, circled around, and was headed right towards you. You veered to avoid colliding and watched as he started flying back down the path to Ramshackle Dorm. You might as well have been standing still.

“Have fun paying for Grim’s tuna!”

Maybe it was the adrenaline clouding your judgment. Maybe it was your pride. Or maybe you just didn’t feel like buying Grim any more tuna for the week.

Either way, Ace wasn’t getting away that easy.

You reached the tower and started circling around.

All the while, pulling back and flying higher and higher, until you reached the very top of the tower. And, as soon as you could see the top of Ramshackle…

You launched yourself.

Over the library and Sam’s shop, over the trees, and hopefully over the ravine that had only one proper bridge to connect the path to Ramshackle with the rest of the campus. At least, for those going on foot.

There was a split second where the roaring of the wind became a droning buzz as the castle lazily passed by your view. It almost felt like you were riding in an airplane rather than on top of a broom. Then you began descending. Launching yourself had been the easy step; now it was time to reentry. The woods and botanical garden, and with it the ground, were rapidly growing bigger and closer. You braced for impact before diving into the first clearing you could see.

The trees and forest blurred into a mess of colors and shapes as you weaved in between the trees, keeping yourself as small as possible. Ramshackle Dorm was only a little further ahead.

Then you saw it.

A low-hanging branch.

The wind was literally knocked out of you.

THUD!

CRACK!

Was that you? The tree? Who knows?

You were properly doubled over the branch, head spinning and body tingling from the impact.

When you opened your eyes - when did you close them - you were staring down at the ground.

From all the way up in the trees. If you had any spare air in your lungs, you would’ve screamed.

The sight was enough to jolt you back into action; you quickly wrapped your arms around the branch and scrambled to get on top and press yourself against the tree trunk. Thank the Great Seven the branch was sturdy enough to support your weight. But you had a bigger dilemma to deal with.

Your broom was gone, probably lying somewhere on the forest floor.

“Hello!” you shouted, chest still aching a little, “Can anyone hear me!?”

Silence.

With both hands firmly grabbing the tree, you carefully peered over the edge and looked down. You were at least thirty feet in the air; no way you could safely fall from that height. Perhaps you could try climbing down…

No good; you couldn’t get a solid grip on the tree. And you didn’t have anything to tether yourself if you fell.

Wait! Your phone! You could call for help!

You pulled your phone out of your pocket - thankfully it wasn’t damaged in the crash - and turned it on.

You groaned and leaned back against the tree, clutching your phone to your chest. While you had no doubt that your friends would come to help, there was no guarantee when they would find you, or if they could find you on their own; even you had no idea where you were exactly. No matter where you turned, all you could see were trees; you couldn’t even see the garden from where you were sitting. But at least they got the message. Now there was nothing left to do but sit and wait for help to arrive.

-

A/N: Welp, there's the first thing I've ever written for Twisted Wonderland, and the first "chat-fic" too. Hope you liked it! As usual, any and all critiques are greatly appreciated.

Kind of want to do a thing where each post is a different character coming to save (Name) and possibly fail. Suggestions for first character?

[gyucore]

at the end of the chase

pairing: witch hunter!yeonjun x witch!reader

tags: fluff, enemies to lovers, supernatural au

word count: 1.9k

warnings: light swearing, mentions of death

— tasked to retrieve an intruder's soul, you find yourself stuck between a game of cat and mouse where you end up catching something entirely different

this takes place in the same setting as in the orb except on a different timeline !! ^^

“Nowhere to hide now, you monster!”

Backed against a wall in one of the dark alleys near your destination, you'd hoped for things to have gone smoother with tonight's escapade.

“Sorry, human, but I've got a soul out there with my name on it, and I'm not about to let that vermin get away from me this time.” You smirk, taking out a pouch of flour from your bag and throwing it against the hunter's face.

A cloud of white dust fills the air, and you use this opportunity to escape from her clutches, dashing out the alley and right back on the path to your oh-so-evasive prey.

You're about to summon your familiar when someone grabs you by the shoulders, stopping you in your tracks and lifting you up in the air, rendering you motionless. “What do you think you're doing?!” You attempt to squirm.

“I should be asking you that, witch.”

You fall silent at the sound of a familiar voice. It's definitely not the hunter from earlier. “Ugh, not you.”

“Yeah, like I want to breathe the same air as you right now.” The hunter scoffs, placing you back on the ground and turning you around.

“You can let go of me now, you know. Or perhaps, has the great Yeonjun finally been disarmed by my irresistible charms?” You tease, batting your eyes and trying your best to flip your hair back only for it to get stuck halfway on your hat.

The hunter, Yeonjun, shudders at the thought. “Please don't make me kill you twice tonight.”

“Like you'll ever get the chance.”

“Watch your mouth, witch, or I might just make your next words be your last.”

“That's cute.” You say, winking. And in a split second, you vanish from his grasp and pop up at a random rooftop a few meters away. You stumble a bit after using too much energy on teleporting but can't help but giggle after seeing Yeonjun looking around for you from afar.

He's been trying to capture you for months. When will he ever learn that he'll never catch you?

It's been a week and your elusive little target, Beomgyu, has managed to slip past your radar every single time. And frankly, you're getting tired of chasing him around.

The coven gave you until the next full moon to collect his soul as payment for his crimes. Stealing one of the sacred grimoires was considered a major offense, and for doing so, one must be punished by having their soul taken and incinerated. You don't even know the guy but you're starting to feel sorry. Alas, work is work.

“Just where could that bastard be hiding?” You mutter to yourself, watching the entire village from above the clocktower.

“If you'd look in the mirror once, you'd find out.”

“HOLY HECK—” You're startled by the sudden appearance of a certain hunter, and lose your balance.

You were about to fall down the roof when Yeonjun grabs your waist in time, pulling you to safety with a huge sigh of relief.

Heart beating rapidly, it takes you a full moment to realize that he still had his arms around you. “Oh, gross.” You shove his hands away, choosing to safely hold on to the rails instead. “You could've killed me!”

Yeonjun shrugs, mind blank after the incident. “Isn't that the point?”

“Really?” You huff. “Then why bother catching me then? You could've just let me fall and all your problems would've poof! Magically gone away.”

“I..“ Yeonjun pauses, heat rushing in his cheeks as he looks away. “I'd preferred it if I subdued you with my own hands.. intentionally.”

Although it did make sense, you found yourself growing annoyed at his ridiculous response. “Well, you're wasting my time. So if you don't have anything important to say then I'm off.”

“What?” Yeonjun gives you a bewildered look, as if he hadn't expected you to disappear as usual. “Hey, wait a minute! I haven't even—”

“See ya later, hot stuff!”

And with a quick tap on his shoulder, you were gone from his sight. Again.

“Hot stuff?” Yeonjun repeats the phrase quietly, thinking it sounded better when you said it. “What am I saying?”

He slumps back on the tower, hand going through his hair as he stared up at the darkening sky. “I'll get you someday, witch.”

“I got you now, you little snake!” You exclaim, adrenaline pumping as you chase Beomgyu into the forest.

“C-Can't we settle this in a civilized manner?” Beomgyu attempts to negotiate, leaping from one tree to another in hopes to shake you off.

“Not happening! Unless you find a way to return the sacred grimoire you stole, you piece of—!” One quick pause and you're drawing a glyph in the air, sending a beam of fire towards Beomgyu. “Crap!”

Beomgyu manages to dodge your attack by jumping down from the trees. Surprisingly enough, your flames had no effect on the surrounding nature.

“There's no way I'm returning that thing. She needs it.” He says between pants, wiping away the sweat gathering on his forehead with his sleeve.

“What are you talking about?” You tilt your head at his statement.

Beomgyu grits his teeth, blade drawn, and lunging at you in full speed. “You wouldn't understand! You're just like them!”

His sudden offense catches you off guard, and you instinctively brace for impact, closing your eyes and crouching down helplessly as you wait for the attack. Except it never came.

“Huh?” You rise up, eyes searching around for Beomgyu until you spot him with his sleeve pinned on a tree by an arrow. Perhaps luck was on your side today.

“Looks like you're coming with me, human.” You say victoriously, tone laced with a hint of arrogance and gloating. “Now be a good boy and—”

You're left stunned as Beomgyu vanishes in thin air the moment you moved to grab him. “H-How? What?” You run towards the spot he stood, looking around for any traces of him left. “How is this possible?!”

Beomgyu's words from earlier ring in your mind as you looked for him.

“There's no way I'm returning that thing. She needs it!”

Could it be?

“He's working with another witch?” And with that realization, his face comes to mind.

Your eyes drift towards the arrow from earlier. To test your hypothesis, you reach your hand out to the arrow. And not even a few inches away, it lights on fire, burning itself down until there's nothing left but ashes.

Called it. You grin to yourself as you realize that the arrow had been enchanted. There were only a select few individuals that use this type of weaponry, and one just happened to be hellbent on capturing you for a series of crimes you did not commit.

He probably heard it himself if he was close enough to shoot an arrow at your prey. And with Beomgyu's disappearance, you can't help but wonder of this is what Yeonjun felt whenever you pulled the same vanishing act on him.

Guess you'll never know.

“Burn the witch for her sins!”

“Avenge our families!”

You were absolutely done for.

The hunters had managed to capture you by forming an alliance with the villagers. In normal circumstances, you would be able to escape on your own, but they've managed to put an enchantment on your holding cell and binds, trapping you inside with no way out.

They'd brought you down into the basement of the town hall to await your execution.

It's funny. You somehow find yourself thinking of him even in these dire circumstances. Despite having chased you around all this time, he was nowhere to be seen during your capture. Had he given up? Was he too busy to give a damn anymore?

You're pulled out of your thoughts when you hear footsteps approaching your cell.

Perhaps this was for the best. The full moon was set to rise tonight, and you still haven't gotten your hands on Beomgyu's soul. Punishments are worse for witches who fail to do as the coven commands. They were completely erased from existence. Not only were their souls incinerated like what was to come to Beomgyu, but the elders would make sure not a single trace of them would be left, even in the memories of those who they held dear.

You figure this was the best way out. At least a version of you would still exist out there in someone's memories. With you gone, the elders themselves might take this matter into their own hands. Beomgyu will have to face retribution eventually, unless he somehow avoids his fate by getting trapped in another dimension of space.

You sigh. “This sucks.” You weren't even the one responsible for all those mysterious deaths. The only individual who could toy with human life like that would be the holder of the grimoire Beomgyu had stolen. That fucking witch. “I don't deserve to be here.”

“For once, we agree on something.”

Your heart skips a beat as you look up, finding yourself face to face with the person you wanted to see the most. “Yeonjun.”

The latter flashes you a warm smile, something foreign yet so familiar. You can't help but tear up at the sight of it, just like how you can't help but feel all those unnecessary emotions whenever the two of you were together.

“What are you doing here?” You ask, turning away. The last thing you wanted him to see was the sight lf you crying.

“I thought I was being obvious enough. Are you really this slow?” You're left staring up at him in awe and confusion. “I'm here to capture you.”

You blink. “What?”

Yeonjun groans, taking five steps back, and charging at your cell. The gate breaks apart upon impact, and he rushes in to undo your shackles.

The cell and binds were witch proof. The moment you tried to use any magic, the cell's enchantment would pierce through your heart like an arrow, and you surely weren't fond of that feeling. The only way to escape was for a human outsider to break you out, but the hunters didn't take into account the possibility of that actually happening.

“You still got some energy left in you?” Yeonjun asks after fully releasing your binds. You nod, and he sighs in relief. “Good. Sorry to put you in this situation but I need you to teleport us away from here fast.”

“Wait.. Us?” You were honestly still having a hard time piecing things together.

“I told you, didn't I? I'm capturing you. I'm holding full responsibility for your disappearance.” He grins. “We're going far far away until things settle down. Far enough that even the witches in your coven can't find us. Got any place in mind?”

“I think I do, actually.” You find yourself smiling deviously alongside the hunter. “But why are you doing this? Isn't this what you wanted?”

Yeonjun falls silent, and you're taken by surprise when his hand comes down to hold yours. “What I wanted was for the witch who's responsible for all those deaths to be brought to justice. And you're not her, Y/N.”

“Yeonjun, I—”

The moment was cut short when a few pair of footsteps could be heard echoing at the end of the hallway.

Both of you get up from the floor and step out of the cell. You pull Yeonjun close to you, holding onto him tight as you muster what's left of your energy into one important spell.

“Let's get going, hot stuff.”

[cedricslover]

Future

Pairings: Sirius x Remus & George Weasley x Fem! Reader

Warnings: vomiting 

A/N: this is a sequel of the this oneshot. Requested by @georgeweasleydumbhoe. I didn’t really proofread this so if there are any grammatical errors I’m sorry everyone.

Word Count: 2.2k

“Hello” you kissed George on the cheek and you sat beside him, it must have been two years and a half since you two saw Hogwarts. You handed him a bar of chocolate that he just accepted, he was used to this, you were just like your father, chocolate was your life. 

You two just sat in the fountain in silence, you were at the Clocktower Courtyard, it was just a spur of the moment decision for you to visit Hogwarts. As you bit your chocolate you felt your left hand being slowly picked up by George, and when you felt a cold thing enveloping your ring finger your gaze went there. You gasped when you saw a ring was placed on your finger. 

“Do you think you should ask first? That’s how proposing works?” you laughed at George while he just shrugged. “I don’t like that. Besides, you’re technically the one who asked me to marry you” he offered his hand and you two stood up. 

“I don’t think so” your eyebrows furrowed trying to remember what he was pertaining to, he grabs your waist that made you bump into him. “I think you forgot when I officially met your parents you asked me if we would be like them, therefore you wanted me to marry you sweetheart” he grinned at your face that went from confused to ‘oh I suddenly remembered’

“Yeah, I was just seventeen that time” you rolled your eyes at him ‘I told you so’ face. “But you loved me so much that you thought of us marrying each other” he cups your face, you closed your eyes waiting for a kiss but seconds after, there was nothing. 

“I’m Fred” he said that made you open your eyes, lines forming on your forehead, he wants to play this game huh?

“Oh yeah totally forgot. Just please don’t tell George hmm?” you looked concerned, trying to be in character even after his face went pale. 

“Fred?” You snapped your fingers, “You won’t tell George about us, right?” Now, you gave him a soft smile while his lips twitched and his face was tight. Maybe he was thinking of how to confront Fred, or how to kill him, he was starting to plot whatever he wanted to do with his twin brother.

“No, I'm just joking. I love you” you gave him a lopsided grin and removed his arms that wrapped your waist, you ran as fast as you could to get away from Hogwarts ground so you could disapparate. 

You looked back and George seemed to be catching up and was also running, trying to stop you. Your hair blew because of the wind and your laugh was the only thing you could hear. 

“Oi!” George was almost catching up, but luckily you arrived at your destination. You turned to him and saw he was a few feet away from you, “Bye-bye Georgie! See you when I see you” you waved, blew a kiss, and winked before disapparating, leaving his panting face behind. 

“Y/N!” you jumped as soon as you apparate in front of your house at Grimmauld Place, you looked back and saw Sirius with his eyes wide open, his wand was out that made you look around. 

“I thought you were someone!” he added when he finally breathed fine. You just laughed and was about to give him a hug when someone apparated in front of the both of you. Sirius immediately pulled you to his back and he drew his wand again. 

“Where do you think you’re going, young man?” Sirius shouted at George who was about to knock on the door of your house, he wasn’t aware that you and Sirius were just behind him. George instantly turned around and mischievously smiled when he saw Sirius. 

“How are you pops” he hugs Sirius while you look at him like he just did something unbelievable. “What the fuck?” you mouthed to him as he was embracing your father. His smile was still there and he showed his left hand, gesturing the ring on your finger. “Goodie points” he mouthed back to you. 

“I’m doing good son, how ‘bout you?” Sirius talked with his amused voice after they broke their hug. “Been a long time since I saw you” he added and opened the door. George winked at you before he followed Sirius, leaving you there dumbfounded. 

‘Yeah, I just got engaged? Me?’ 

You shake your head and entered the house too. 

“Hey dad” you saw your other dad, Remus, sitting on the couch. “Hello princess. How was your day?” he puts down the book that he was reading, ‘Good. Just got engaged to the love of my life, nothing interesting’ the voice in the back of your head talked. “Just the usual. Well, we did visit Hogwarts earlier.” you kissed his cheek and sat beside him. 

“Are you tired?” he asks as you leaned your head to his shoulder and closed your eyes. “Yeah” you nodded. You two just sat there, in peace, well not really as you two heard the loud laughs of Sirius and George. They weren’t in the living room and you bet they were at the kitchen, drinking that fine wine Sirius has. 

You felt Remus’ hand shift as he opens his book again. Maybe it was for 10 minutes, you just relaxed on the shoulder of your father, not until he begins to notice. 

“Princess?” he softly called you, seeing if you were asleep or not. You hummed as a response. Now feeling a little sleepy. “Is that an engagement ring I see?” he muttered that made your eyes shot open, the sleepiness you felt a second ago? Gone. The relaxation you felt earlier? Gone. 

Your breath hitched and you sat straight. “Uhm” your eyes cannot even focus in a certain direction. 

Your dad chuckled when he realized that you were nervous. “You two have been dating for what now? Four years? It’s not a shock for him to ask for your hand in marriage. Although I would be really sad because you will eventually leave us” he smiles at you, that smile that states that he is happy for you and he wants you to know that you would always be their little girl, no matter how old you are. 

“Dad…” you pouted and hugged him, “Congratulations daughter” he whispered. 

While you had that heartfelt conversation with your other dad, little did you know George was wooing your other dad, Sirius. And well after a little while of “You better take care of her” “Are you financially stable?” “Do you love her unconditionally” “I’m going to kill you myself if she cries because of you, remember that time I almost did when you two had a huge argument?” and many more. He eventually said congratulations and gave George permission to marry you. 

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

“Merlin” you breathed in and out, you were about to walk the aisle, a garden wedding, just like how you dreamt. It was perfect. But you can’t understand why were you nervous, it’s not like George is going to run away because he realized you were the wrong woman she wanted to spend a lifetime. 

“Angel, you okay?” Sirius taps your arm that was linked to him. “Yeah, just a lil bit nervous” you inhaled deeply before you smiled nervously at your father. 

“Don’t we all experience wedding jitters” he said and slightly laugh as he reminisced his wedding day. 

“Sirius, you’re not helping” Remus butted in, his arm was also linked to your other arm. You were at their middle, “Yeah dad, you’re really not” you both looked at him. He just shrugged and acted to zip his mouth. 

“It’s going to be fine Y/N.” Remus assures you one last time before your cue to walk. 

And there you felt blissful, everything was perfect. As you saw your future husband, standing beside his twin brother, both of them teary-eyed that made you almost laughed, you saw the end and another beginning. An end for individuality and the begging of a life together with him, the guy that made you laugh even at the darkest days, the guy that stayed with you, loved you, took care of you. The guy you are going to spend your forever with. 

 ------------------

“Shit” you groaned before you threw up again, this was the second day that instead of having a peaceful morning, you were greeted by your own vomit and the toilet. 

“We should take you to the hospital” George declared as he was woken up by your swearing and throwing up, you glanced at him, he was at the doorstep of the bathroom, just wearing a pajama, nothing on his upper body, and if you were just feeling well you might have drooled and ask him for a little breakfast in bed and he is the breakfast. 

You didn’t want to go to the hospital, but you knew this isn’t a normal thing, and you’re afraid that you might be sick, but you shouldn’t just ignore it. 

“Yeah, I’ll just get ready” you replied and washed your face, “You’re fine, it just might be some little nausea” George’s voice went soft as he walked up to you and hugged you from the back. 

“But what if it’s not? You know I’ve been feeling sick the whole week and-” you failed to finish what you were saying when you felt another round of vomiting. 

“What the bloody hell was that smell? Did you bought a new perfume?” you flushed your vomit and headed to the sink again where George was leaning to. 

“What? Move” you raised an eyebrow to his stupid face who was now smiling, he moves a little to give you space. “Go away George, you smell bad” you told him as you were brushing your teeth. 

“Love, what day it is?” he asks you once you finished brushing your teeth. “I don’t know, check the calendar” you said and went out of the bathroom while he followed you. 

“It’s 25” he told you as you were choosing what you would wear. “Okay” you replied and shuffled the jumpers. “Love, it’s 25” he repeated it, now he was looking at you, “And? What about 25? I don’t remember the month being December” you turned to him and now your hand was on your hip. 

“You’re late” he says it like it was something you should know-well it really should be. Your eyes went wide as you slowly registered, you were so busy that you forgot your own period. 

You were about to ask him that what is the problem if you’re late when you realized-again, that you have morning sickness, you were becoming moodier, you pee more than usual, your breast feeling swollen, and you hated George’s smell, which you loved, always. 

Without even thinking twice you got the pregnancy test and ran to the bathroom and locked it. 

“That’s not fair!” George calls you out but that didn’t remove the nervousness you are feeling. You might become a mother, you will experience what your parents had gone through, you knew this was going to happen eventually, you were ready, you both were, but you didn’t expect it to be today. 

“Honey,” you called George who was lying on the bed, waiting for you. You stayed there for almost 30 minutes, you didn’t know why but you just had to think before you took the test. 

“I’m pregnant” you uttered, you still can’t believe it. It was just like yesterday when you met at Diagon Alley, it was just like a second ago when he asked you out, and now, you’re pregnant, with his child. 

He jumped out of bed smiling widely and hugged you, he picked you up and started spinning around. 

“YES! I’M GOING TO BE A FATHER!” he repeatedly said, he finally puts you down and started punching the air. 

“And about what you said earlier? It shouldn’t be “I’m pregnant” love” he cups your face and pressed his lips onto yours, the kiss went long that it made your arms wrap around his neck and his hands linger on your back and waist. 

“We’re pregnant. You’re not alone, we’re both in this. Together” he smiled and kissed your forehead. “We’re both going to take care of them” he caressed your belly. 

“I love you” you look at his eyes, those brown captivating eyes that you could stare at for centuries. “I love you too” he tucked few strands of hair behind your ears. As he does that, you saw a glimpse of George, the younger George, maybe it was your hallucination, but you suddenly saw yourself, with him, back at Hogwarts. The two of you, sharing your first kiss. 

“You alright?” the tall Gryffindor ginger asked you after he pulled his face away from yours. “Never better” you replied and grabbed his face, now you were the one initiating the kiss. Because you know, this man would be the one you will spend your life with, and you just didn’t know, you saw. 

“Oh, I never told you huh?” You asked George as you two walked the dark hallways, hand in hand. “Told me what?” he asks, you didn’t bother to look at him, it would be useless, the only one that assured you that he was there was his hand, his body, close to you. 

“I can see the future” you admitted, now having a sly smile. “Really? And what did you saw for OUR future?” his voice sounded interested and teasing. “It’s a secret” you replied and a chuckle left your mouth. “But I promise you. It’s a good one” he bit your lower lip, remembering what you just foresaw. This man is your future. 

[themadlostgirl]

Chaotic Coupling

*FINALLY! This f**king request took so f**king long! It matter not now because I finally finished it. It is also really long so hopefully that helps make up for how long it took. I do not mean it lightly when I say it is long. This took up 14 pages in google drive. You have been warned.*

Prompt: Reader is the goddess of chaos exiled to the Underworld. It is plenty boring but then she meets the recently deceased Peter Pan. He seems like he could be fun!

Requested by: anon

Warnings: language

~~~

What is more sweet than chaos? What is more freeing then giving into desire? What is a life if one does not indulge in their sins?

Boring. Tedious. Peaceful.

Not at all fun.

Y/N was a goddess of chaos. Messing with mortals by causing trouble and anarchy wherever she went. It was chaotic and threw mortals into a hysteria but that was not how Y/N saw it. Oh no. When she looked down and saw what her actions had wrought she only saw beauty. The anger, confusion, sadness, and raw untethered emotion bursting from every lifeform like a volcano. She loved it.

Unfortunately the other gods did not. She was warned hundreds of times to stop causing such blatant and unneeded mess around the globe but she never listened. It was not like the gods ever punished her. The world would always need a little chaos. Trying to contain it would only build it up until it was unleashed like a hellstorm causing much more damage than she ever could by herself. She almost wanted them to detain her just so she could see what her release of chaotic energy would do to the world.

That was not what happened. After centuries of warnings the gods did finally punish her. She was not put in a crate like a pup as she had almost secretly hoped. The gods were smarter than that. Instead she was put on a leash. Banished to the Underworld to help her Uncle Hades. Her presence would still be felt throughout the world but she could not incite anything truly chaotic as long as she was regulated to the Underworld.

At first she tried to keep her head up. Though she had never visited the Underworld she had to believe it would be fun. It was where all dead souls went. Good and bad. They may be dead but that didn’t mean they were free from chaos.

As she soon learned though nothing she did made much of a difference in the Underworld. Her Uncle Hades ran a tight ship so she could never get away with anything too bad. How could this punishment get anymore boring? She was practically debasing herself with these petty squabbles among the dead. It was humiliating and it was boring! What she would give to be able to leave but so long as she was under Hades watchful eye there was no escape.

It was another miserable day in what was essentially hell. Y/N was taking a walk along the street of the town Hades had modeled the Underworld to. All of the sudden a new soul materialized in the center of the square. That was nothing new. New souls appeared all the time. There was something kind of off about this one though. They had an energy about them that practically made her mouth water. Who exactly had died?

She made her way over to them. “Hello there,” She said and the soul turned sharp on his heel. It was a boy. Young. Disheveled brown hair and piercing green eyes blown wide like a cornered lion. “You have some bite don’t you?”

“Who are you?” He snarled.

“I’m Y/N. Goddess of Chaos and unwilling permanent tenant here in the Underworld.” She stalked around him assessing him up and down. “And you are?” She reached a hand out to touch him. He grabbed her by the wrist halting her. He pulled her closer his eyes hard like stones and his words dripping with malice

“Don’t touch me,” He growled.

Y/N chuckled. “You are fun.” She inhaled deeply, “You absolutely reek of it.”

“What?”

“My beautiful chaos. It’s been so long since I’ve caught a whiff of such potent mayhem. Far more intoxicating than any wine.”

“Get away from me,” The boy shoved her off, “Insane woman.”

“You would be insane too if you were stuck here for centuries unable to have any real fun.” She followed after him, unperturbed. “Well I guess you are now.”

“Why are you following me?”

“I’m bored. Duh. Also, I still haven’t learned your name my delicious little anarchist morsel.”

“Stop talking to me like that. My name is Peter Pan.”

“Hm,”

“What now?”

“Such a boring name for someone who absolutely reeks of pandemonium. Care if I call you something more interesting? Like Balthazar or Zebulon.”

“No.”

“No fun.”

That seemed to irk him and he reared on her with a fury. “You do not know who you are talking to. I have fun more than anyone. The world is my board and everyone else in it are pawns.”

“Really? Cause you seem straight boring now. Peter Pan. Blech, and here I had such high hopes for you.”

“Oh woe is you. So sorry to disappoint Your goddess-ness. Unless you can get me out of here then I have no use for you.”

“If I can’t get out of here then there’s no chance you can. If you decide you want to stop being such a stick in the mud come find me. I live in the clocktower.” With that she walked away. Such a shame. She had gotten her hopes up for a minute just for him to let her down. She wondered what he had done in his life that made him smell so delicious though. Oh wait! She could!

She entered the library and went to the secret section in the back. No one could enter here except for gods. Millions of books lined the shelves. The life stories of everyone that had ever lived. “Peter Pan.” She said his name and waited as a book levitated off of one of the many shelves and flew into her hands. “Let’s see what is so interesting about this Peter fellow.”

Lots of reading later and Y/N understood better exactly who she was dealing with. This Peter Pan was a lot like her. Living on his own island doing whatever it was that he wanted. Instigating violence and anarchy in the name of fun. He was also far older than he appeared. Since time stood still on his island, his Neverland, he lived for hundreds of years without growing older. How had she missed such a place? It sounded like somewhere she would have thrived.

It was almost eerie how similar the two were. At least in the context of his book. The real thing seemed a lot more boring. Perhaps that was due to him dying. Death just took the life out of everyone. Metaphorically speaking.

A few days went by of Y/N stalking Peter to see what he would do. After reading through his novel she was sure he’d be one of those that roughed it in the wilderness but to her surprise he took up residence in a secondhand shop. Why there?

Curiosity overtook her and she went inside the shop. Pretty little trinkets long ago lost lined the shelves and glass cases. Something stood out to her amongst all the sparkly treasures. A doll. A simple straw doll with a little blue coat on it. It stood proudly on a pedestal all by itself. What was so precious about this?

She took the doll off the pedestal to inspect it further.

“Drop it.” A cold voice demanded. There was Peter Pan behind one of the cases. His eyes narrowed at her.

“What? This?” She waved the doll, “If you don’t want people touching it you should really put it somewhere more secure than a pedestal in the middle of the room.”

“I said, drop it.” Peter urged again. Y/N didn’t miss the hint of panic in his voice.

“What if I don’t want to?” She produced a flame from her finger, “What if I burnt it to a crisp instead? It’s awfully dry. It’ll be ash in seconds.”

“Put it down!” Peter roared, he had jumped the case and in a split second had a dagger pressed to her throat. “Now!”

“Why is this so special to you?” She asked. He pressed the blade closer to her neck, not saying a word. Something clicked in Y/N’s head right then. A mention of a doll in Peter’s book. A smile creeped back onto her face.

“It’s your doll. The only toy and the only friend you ever had until you came to Neverland.” She extinguished the flame on her finger. “How sentimental.”

“How did--how did you--”

“I know everything now, Peter Pan.” A shadow passed over his face, “And I mean everything. The mother that never wanted you, the orphanage, the fairy that guarded you, your attempts to go back and have a real family failing year after year until you decided you were too old to be anyone’s son again--”

“AGH!” He slashed her throat but not a mark was left on her skin. Not a drop of blood.

“Now that was rude,” Y/N rolled her eyes, “I think I’m owed an apology.”

“But how did…” Peter stared at the dagger.

“Seems you need a reminder.” Y/N took him by the throat. The doll and dagger clattering to the ground as she hoisted him into the air. “I am a goddess. The Goddess of Chaos. Did you really think it would be that easy to kill me?”

He clawed at her hands but they were like stone around his throat. “Remember this Peter Pan, my body takes an insane amount of power to break. Yours, not so much. So remember your place in this world. You are no leader here. You are no threat. You are my toy and I can throw you away whenever I want. So either be a good toy or I will destroy you.” She dropped him. He collapsed to the ground gasping for breath.

“This was fun,” She knelt down next to him and pulled his chin up to look at her, “I’ll be back to play again.” She left a kiss on his forehead. “Farewell.”

Y/N did not go back to see Peter Pan again for several days. For days she watched him stew in his paranoia. Constantly looking over his shoulder like a frightened deer everywhere he went. He liked games. Y/N knew that much. But it looked like he wasn’t having as much as she was with this latest one. Every so often she would walk by him on the street, acting like she hadn’t noticed but all the while watching him from the corner of her eye. He got so tense when he saw her but never withdrew. He would glare at her until she passed.

It was fun having someone to torture like this again. He still had fight in him.

Then came the morning everything changed. Y/N was walking along the street as she usually did this time of day when she noticed Peter exiting the diner. What luck!

“Good morning!” She sidled up next to him, “Got some breakfast did you?”

He didn’t reply. Just shoved his hands deeper in his pockets and kept walking.

“Oh come now, it’s no fun if you don’t reply.” Y/N said, “If you don’t say anything I’ll just take it as a challenge.”

Nothing.

“Fine.” She sighed, “I just thought you’d like someone to talk to. You don’t talk to anyone around here. I think the only person I’ve seen you talk to is my uncle and that was only once. Don’t you find it boring doing this routine everyday? Don’t you want to try something new? We can have a lot of fun if you would just remove that stick up your ass. What happened to the fun boy full of mayhem that I read about? Did he die when you did? I wouldn’t think death would change a person so drastically. People usually retain their personalities from when they were living into their death but not you. You are more boring than watching grass grow and trust me, there is no grass growing here. You are as boring as watching non-growing grass. Isn’t that sad? I think--”

“SHUT UP!” Peter shoved her hard against the wall of a store. His arm was pressed against her neck pinning her in place. “Leave me alone!”

“Ha!” She laughed, “I told you I could get you to talk.”

“There has got to be a way to kill you.” He muttered.

Y/N smiled. Peter’s arm dug into her neck harder. “Stop smiling.”

“You have fire,” She grinned wider, “I like fire.”

Something clicked in his head. His grip on her easing. She figured that would get his attention. He backed away from her slowly. Y/N turned to a potted bush next to the store window. Peter watched her with a growing sense of interest.

“Don’t you like fire too?” She produced a spark in her hand and flicked it at the flower bush. “One little spark of fire and from that spark it grows. It grows, it spreads, it devours everything in its path leaving behind nothing but torment in its beautiful inferno. It’s the most breathtaking form of destruction I’ve ever come across.”

“You’re kinda crazy aren’t you?” Peter asked, watching as the flower bush was consumed by the flames.

“Perhaps.” she fluttered a hand over the fire making it grow faster. “Being the goddess of chaos kinda does that. I thrive off of disorganization and pandemonium. It would only make too much sense that’s what my mind is like as well. I may be impulsive but that doesn’t make me dumb. You have to find the right nerve to hit to maximize your effect. Groom them with little incidents of mayhem here and there. Then, when the timing is right you hit them where it’ll hurt most and watch the beauty unfold before you. Just like a flame can engulf an entire forest, one perfectly hit nerve can destroy an empire.”

“What do you do when it’s all in ashes then?” Peter asked.

“Not my area. I can bring civilizations down but I’ve never really put much thought into raising new ones up. That’s what the rest of my family is for. They take the ashes of what I have done and create new life. It’s an endless circle of life and death. Gods, I miss it.”

She stared deep into the fire.

“Is that what you’ve been doing with me? Bothering me with little annoyances for days on end before trying to strike that nerve that would drive me insane?”

“A bit.” She shrugged, “Not a fan?”

“Not really, but I guess that’s the point.” He sighed, “I think we’re a lot alike actually.”

“I thought the same thing while I was reading through your book. Did death really suck all the fun out of you?”

“Not much fun to be had here. None of my boys are here, I have magic but there’s nothing for me to control outside of a stupid little shop, and the residents are insanely dull and sad. I fear that you have been my only form of entertainment since I got down here.” Peter waved his hand and the flame from the one flower pot jumped into the next catching that one on fire as well. “What did you mean when you were talking about my book?”

“Oh, there is a portion of the library only accessible to gods. It holds books that contain the entire lives of everyone who has ever lived. I read through yours. That’s how I know everything about you.”

“I see…”

“Would you like to see it?”

“Sure,” He nodded. “Don’t think this means that I like you now or anything. You’re merely the most interesting thing here at the moment.”

“Which is precisely why you do like me.” She elbowed him, “Come, I think you’ll like this place.”

They went to the library and Y/N entered into the area reserved to gods. Peter pouted outside since he couldn’t get past the invisible barrier that shielded him from entering. Y/N grabbed his book and returned with it. “See?”

“Do the gods have these as well?”

“Yes, but they are kept on Olympus. Did you want to read mine?”

“I thought it only fair seeing as how you read my entire life story.”

“Well you would be reading mine for a long time. I do a great many things and I have lived far longer than you have. There’s no need for you to read my book though. Whatever you would like to know you simply have to ask. I have no secrets.”

“Forgive me if I don’t trust anyone who is that open about their past. No secrets? At all?”

“There is nothing I have done in my life that I feel ashamed or embarrassed about.”

“I believe that.” A grin started to spread on his face, an idea latching in his mind, “But that doesn’t mean you don’t have anything personal that you’d rather not share. Acts of wrath and embarrassing moments aren’t something you would feel bad about sharing. Intimate moments though, personal moments, that’s where you clam up.”

“Is this your clever way of trying to dig into my exciting love life?” She smirked. “Afraid I don’t have any secrets there either.”

“Oh no, you misunderstand. I don’t care about any past lovers. I can tell what really gets to you.” Peter stepped closer, “Your family.”

“I don’t care about my family.” Y/N said, she tried to sound casual but his tone gave her pause.

“Yes. You’ve said so. They kicked you out and it is dreadfully boring down in the underworld. But beyond that, you miss them. The only one down here is Hades and I doubt he’s great company. But the other gods and goddess, your other family, even though they banished you here you still yearn to be a part of their world.”

“You don’t know anything.” Y/N’s voice was quiet. She hadn’t expected him to turn the conversation around on her like this.

“I know a lot actually.” Peter continued, “And what I know best is when someone is lost. You may be the Goddess of Chaos but you know what I see? I see the same sadness and desperation that many of my boys wore on my island. You are just a lost little girl crying for your family.”

She hadn’t realized she threw the punch until she saw Peter collapse on the floor. Her breathing was heavy and her hands were shaking. This boy had drilled down into the very core of her being with no effort. He had seen through her as plainly as glass. It was unnerving and she may have reacted a tad harshly to his assessment.

“Punched by a goddess,” Peter stood up again, rubbing at his jaw, “Can honestly say that’s something I hadn’t expected to happen in my life, er, death I guess.”

“You’re not angry?”

“Hardly. Figured you were gonna react like that.” He sighed, “Still not the worst hit I’ve ever taken.”

“You are a strange boy.”

“It’s what keeps me interesting.” He collected the book that had fallen from his hands off the floor.

“Does this mean you still want to kill me?”

“I’m debating it.” He said. “This interaction doesn’t change the fact that you are incredibly annoying.”

“Hurtful but accurate.” Y/N shrugged as she made her way to the stairs that led up to the clocktower. “In another life I think we could have been a very good team.”

She paused. She turned around and saw that Peter had the same look of contemplation. Their eyes met and twin smiles sprouted on their faces. “Is this my magic at work or are we on the same page?” Y/N asked.

“I believe we are.” Peter approached her, “Neither of us wants to be trapped in the Underworld and neither of us individually has the power to escape. But if we work together…”

“We can escape this hellhole.” Y/N finished. “Think you can survive teaming up with me long enough to get out of here?”

“If it means freedom then I will be at your side until we both see the blue sky once again.” He held out a hand, “Partners?”

“Partners.” She shook his hand, “This is going to be so much fun!”

Time passed quickly after Peter and Y/N teamed up to find a way to escape the Underworld. Y/N already had a headstart on research since she spent so much time when she was first banished here finding a way out. She shared her findings with Peter and the two spent days pouring over every detail that looked like it could be useful.

With no need to sleep or eat in the Underworld they would spend several days straight huddled in the library plotting their escape. In between all their research and brainstorming sessions Y/N got to know Peter Pan beyond what she had read in his book and in return he got to know her. They were closer. He still said she was the most annoying thing in all the realms and she teased him often when he got too serious.

When things got especially tense and they needed to blow off steam they would go out together and cause mischief in town. They even snuck into Hades’ office once and stole some of his decanters of fancy liquor. For the first time in a very long time Y/N was truly having fun. Torturing and messing with souls was all well and good but she found she was actually enjoying her time with Peter. She was laughing a lot more with him. Peter himself seemed to grow more at ease with her with every passing day.

Before she had even realized it their begrudging partnership to find a way out of the Underworld had blossomed into friendship. Y/N couldn’t remember the last time she had a friend. She couldn’t remember if she ever did. No one had ever wanted to be very close to her. Causing chaos wherever you go, even unintentionally, threw people off. It never bothered Peter though. He called her annoying but he smiled and laughed at the havoc that naturally happened around her. He played along with it.

“Good morning, Chaos,” Peter let himself into her clocktower bedroom. “Got you a muffin from the diner.” He tossed her a paper bag.

“Thanks.” She caught it. “So, look at this thing I found. So we know that the only way anyone can get out of here is if Hades opens a portal, right? Well, apparently it isn’t solely Hades that can open portals out of the Underworld. Any god can by either being more powerful than Hades like Zeus or by usurping him as the ruler of the Underworld.”

“So you could open a portal out of here?”

“Theoretically yes. But we would have to usurp my uncle.”

“I think we can take him together.”

“No. Here’s the problem. The only way for us to usurp him is to kill him and it is hilariously, nearly impossible, to kill a god.”

“But there is a possibility?”

“I mean I guess but it is hardly a viable option. The only way I know how to kill a god is with the Olympian Crystal which Uncle Hades keeps heavily protected. It is also broken with no way to fix it. Trust me, he brought it out once for me to try and fix but I couldn’t do anything.”

Peter pondered it for a minute. “Okay, you couldn’t fix it all by yourself but what if we tried combining our powers? Do you think that could do it?”

“Maybe. Hades and I tried together once but he said it wouldn’t work since his heart isn’t beating.”

“What does that have to do with--”

“It was part of his own banishment. He can’t leave the Underworld unless his heart starts beating again or something like that. So even though he has the means his dead heart keeps him trapped like us.”

“Alright, is he tied to the crystal in any way? Is there any way he could track it if it went missing?”

“No. So long as it is broken he shouldn’t be able to find it. Why? Plan on stealing it?”

“Yes.”

“Stealing my uncle’s most prized possession from right under his nose, sounds risky...I love it!”

“I thought you would.” Peter grinned, “Seems that for the first time we have a real plan. I say this calls for a celebration.”

“Not too premature?” She asked.

“Well, if we fuck it up then we are both doomed so we might as well celebrate now before anything potentially goes wrong.” He pulled what was left of the liquor they stole from Hades out.

“I won’t object to that.” She took a sip before passing the decanter back to Peter. She stared wistfully out of the clocktower window and sighed. “It’s so strange,” Y/N said, “To be this close to freedom. I have so many memories of the world above but they feel more and more like fantasies I’ve created than something I was ever a part of. I don’t even know what I would do when I get up there. Where would I go?”

“You’re more than welcome to come cause havoc on Neverland if you’d like.” Peter said. “Give my boys a challenge.”

“You really want me on your island? The most annoying being in all the realms?” She teased.

“If you happen to be near at least.” He smiled, softer. “I’d blame it on the liquor but it doesn’t affect us so I guess I’m just gonna have to say this.”

“Say what?”

“I think I am actually gonna miss you when we get out of here.”

“Really?”

“Yes, Chaos.”

“I suppose I’d miss you too.” Y/N shook her head, “I take that back, I know that I’ll miss you.”

“Well that’s enough mushy stuff,” Peter said quickly, dropping his gaze, “We have a crystal to steal after all.”

“Right, of course,” Y/N nodded.

More time passed and Y/N found herself in a new and frightening headspace. She was confused. All her life she had lived through chaos, so much so that it was what she was named the goddess of. Anarchy was where she was most comfortable but yet, when that same pandemonium she thrived in was pushed inward she didn’t know what to do. She could do well in chaos because she always had a focus point. Herself. She was the eye of the storm. She was safe while everything happened around her.

So why did it feel like she was caught in the hurricane?

It had all started that day she and Peter had decided to steal the crystal and usurp Hades. Something about that day disturbed her. When she looked at Peter now her mind wandered. When he sat close enough to touch, her brain burnt out. Yet nothing had changed.

No. That wasn’t entirely true. At some point during all their scheming Y/N had grown to really care about Peter. She’d even call him a friend. When she thought of her life outside of the Underworld she couldn’t think of one where she wasn’t hanging out with him. She already missed him and he wasn’t even gone yet.

What was wrong with her?

Whatever it was it would have to wait. She had a mission now. It was finally the day. After tons of careful and meticulous planning they were going to steal the crystal. Peter was serving as a distraction for Hades while Y/N snuck in and bypassed the traps and wards Hades had around the crystal. She figured she’d have five maybe ten minutes max to get in and get out before Hades got bored of Peter and came back. That’s if she didn’t trip one of his traps first.

By the time she finally got the safe unlocked her whole body was sweating and shaking from nerves. She had come so close and now all she had to do was grab it and get out. She took down the last ward and grabbed the pieces of the crystal and shoved them into her bag before slamming the safe closed and putting the wards back up as quickly as she could.

And done. Phew. Now all she had to do was get out.

“Now this is a surprise.” Y/N froze. Damn. She had taken too long. She poofed the bag away to her room in the clocktower before turning to meet her uncle.

“Hello, hope you don’t mind that I popped in.” She said as casually as she could. “Life up top was getting dreadfully boring.”

“I would say so, it is a rare thing for you to come visit me.” He scanned her up and down, “What entertainment do you think I can provide?”

“I don’t know. You have the billiard table. Care to play?”

“Not now.” He shooed her, “I have work to do so you can scamper along and torment some other poor soul.”

“Boo! You really are the god of the dead.” She stuck her tongue out at him. In the next instant she reappeared in her room. She collapsed back on the bed in relief. Hades didn’t suspect anything.

She heard the sound of pounding footsteps and Peter barged in. “Did you get it?”

Y/N held up the bad with pieces inside. “Who do you take me for?”

“Yes!” Peter was so happy he lifted her off the bed and into the air in a tight hug, “We’re gonna get out of here!”

And the inner turmoil was back. Heat crawled up her neck and burned her face. Had Peter ever held her like this before? Why did it feel so nice to be in his arms?

Just as quick as it started Peter dropped her back to her feet and reached around her for the bag. He pulled out the pieces and set them on the bed, looking over them carefully. He was talking about how it looked like it should be an easy fix but there were other logistics to take into account and whole lot of other technical mumbo jumbo that she really didn’t care about. Well, not so much cared about but couldn’t bring herself to comprehend since her mind was still being tossed around in a tornado of unfamiliar feelings.

“Hey” Peter shook her shoulder, “Were you listening?”

“Spaced out. What were you saying?” She asked.

“I tried a spell on my own but it did nothing. Care to try with me this time like we planned?”

“Got it.” Y/N took her spot next to him and stared down at the broken pieces of crystal. She picked up one and Peter picked up the other. “Here goes nothing.”

They faced each other and started the spell. She was channeling all of her power into it, willing the crystal to come together. This had to work. It just had to. The spell died and when she looked down she frowned at the still broken crystal in her hands.

No. No! It was supposed to work! This was supposed to work! She slid down to the ground, her half of the crystal laying limply in her hands. Peter knelt down with her.

“It didn’t work.” She muttered, “It didn’t work, Peter. We went through all of this and our one way out of here is still just a hunk of junk!”

“We’re never going to see the world above again.” Tears started to slip from her eyes and down her cheeks.

“Don’t say that,” Peter tilted her chin up. His large green eyes bore into her. “We are not giving up now. Not after we have come this far. We are going to see that big blue sky again, Y/N. I swear it.”

“How? We have no other way to get out of here unless we kill Hades and we can’t kill him without this crystal.”

“We’ll find a way. We will not rest until we get out of here. I don’t care how long it takes. Do you wanna know why?” He brushed the tears from her eyes, “Because I want us to go on adventures together. I want to see what you can really do when you can let chaos run free. I want to show you my home. I want you to see Neverland. I want us to have fun together outside of here.”

“Peter…” The whirlwind within me started to ebb, “I want that too.”

“And hey, in the meantime, we can still have fun together right here.” He smiled.

That’s when it hit her. What that chaos reigning inside her really was. Why it felt so strange yet so pleasant at the same time.

“I love you.” She said.

Peter blinked at her. “Huh?”

She grabbed his face and brought him closer so her nose touched his, “I love you, Peter Pan.”

He didn’t respond. Not with words at least. The distance between them, as small as it was, closed and she felt his lips brush against hers in hesitant kiss. She pulled him closer again and the kiss deepened. The spark that ran through her felt like a bolt of lightning and she should know since she had been struck by one of Zeus’ blasts before. This was a lot better though and it certainly didn’t leave a coppery feeling in her mouth.

A flash of light made them break apart. Down at their knees was the Olympian Crystal in one piece. Y/N picked it up. She could feel the power running through it. “But how did…?”

“Through the most powerful magic of all. Something that not even a god could compare to.” Peter grinned, “True love.”

“Are you saying that we have true love?” Y/N teased. Truthfully the thought made her want to jump up and down but she would never admit it.

“Seems so. Only makes sense that I would fall in love with the goddess of chaos.” Peter ruffled her hair. “And she made the unfortunate decision to love me back.”

“Why’s that unfortunate?” Y/N asked.

“Cause now you’re stuck with me forever, Chaos.” He pulled her into his arms.

“I think I can live with that.” She kissed him again. She held up the crystal with a wicked smile. “Now, my love, how do you feel about killing a god for our first date?”

“Sounds perfect to me.” He matched her insane smile. They were going to have so much fun!

[corner-stories]

an archer walks into a hospital

Mia Dearden. Dinah Lance.

Visits. Injuries. Villains With Oddly Specific But Fitting Names.

semi-sequel to this

1105 words.

(ao3.)

It was not the first time Mia Dearden had walked into a Gotham City hospital. Two months ago Speedy and Robin had partook in a plain-clothes mission on the east side. Unsurprisingly, an encounter with a guy called Razor Blade Throwing Man ended with the two needing stitches — several of them. Fortunately, most Gotham ER staff didn’t ask questions.

Mia’s current reason for visiting the hospital was mostly unrelated to the Bats. The local Ginger in a Clocktower had told the Arrows that their Screaming Bird had gone up against a D-list villain named Chainsaw Hands Dan, who’s name explained everything one needs to know about him. Dinah had won the fight and handed the guy to the cops, but not without an injury that necessitated a hospital stay.

After sweet-talking her way past the receptionist, Mia made her way through the various halls until she arrived at Room 47. Through the window in the door she could see the Bird in the cot with her right leg elevated. Near the window were a few flower bouquets and playing on the TV in the corner was the local news.

When the Plucky Archer entered the room, Dinah looked away from the screen and broke out into a smile.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes, Kid.”

Mia gave out a grin of her own and walked to the edge of the cot, happily reaching over to give Dinah a hug. “You too,” she replied, pressing a quick kiss to her cheek.

Once Mia let go she took a seat at a conveniently placed chair, because every hospital room needed a place for a patient’s loved ones to sit and ponder.

“You got the goods?” asked Dinah.

Mia gave a sly smirk and nodded. “Of course,” she said smoothly, reaching into her inner coat pocket. After procuring a plastic bag of sour gummy worms, she tossed it over to the Bird. “It’s not the strangest thing I’ve smuggled past security guards, but I get it. Hospital food sucks.”

Dinah caught the bag and was quick to tear it open. “You’re the best, thanks.”

As the Bird enjoyed some sweets to stave off the pain of her leg in a cast, Mia looked at the TV in the corner. The screen was broadcasting the most current news-worthy events — there was a sunken cruise ship in the north Atlantic, a possible swarm of crossbred half-fish half-bird mutants running amok in Canada, and more importantly, Tim Wayne was seen on a date with a pretty blonde!

Sometimes the priorities of journalists left Mia amazed, but not surprised.

“Can I turn that off?” she asked. “It’s depressing as shit.”

Dinah nodded. “Go ahead.”

After grabbing the clicker and shutting down the newsfeed, Mia kicked back in the flimsy plastic hospital chair. “So… mind telling me exactly how this happened?”

The older Bird seemed confused. “I thought Babs said it all.”

“She did, but I’d like to hear your perspective.”

Dinah sighed and put down the bag, licking some sour sugar off her thumb. “Long story short — Chainsaw Hands Dan blew up a car, a chunk of shrapnel flew out and hit me right in the shin. I ended up using the lining of my jacket as a bandage so I wouldn’t bleed everywhere. Worst cab ride of my life, I tell you.”

There was a beat, then Mia’s eyes went wide. “Holy shit,” she started, clearly processing every word she heard. “So Chainsaw Hands Dan doesn’t use his chainsaws?”

Dinah shrugged as she grabbed another gummy worm. “He does, he just felt like taking out his rage on a nearby Corvette. You know how it is.”

“Yeah,” Mia nodded along. “Have you met a Corvette owner who wasn’t a total dick?”

Somehow, Dinah managed to laugh.

Chainsaw Hands Dan was certainly one of the more interesting foes that Mia had heard of, but frankly after her encounter with Tar-and-Feather Guy last month the bar of normalcy was on the ground.

There was an endless amount of questions she wanted to ask: Who was the true identity of Chainsaw Hands Dan? How did he blow up a Corvette when he has chainsaws for hands? Did he always operate in Gotham? Were his chainsaws part of his body or a pair of exceedingly heavy gloves? Was his name really Dan?

But in the moment, Mia could see that Dinah had other priorities, ones that involved laying back and taking a break from bland hospital food.

In terms of shrapnel injuries, she got off pretty easy. The fact that she had only sustained a tibia fracture meant that she was immensely lucky, and it certainly wasn’t the first time she broke a bone and needed it fixed with a metal rod. All she could really do was wait for it to heal and pray shit wouldn’t hit the fan in the meantime.

So instead Mia asked — “Anyone else visit you?”

“Ollie and Connor did this morning, Babs came by an hour ago, and Roy’s gonna bring Lian later today,” Dinah started. “You should stick around, I’m sure they’d like to see you again.”

Mia shrugged and leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms comfortably across her chest. “Well, sure. Why not?”

“They miss you, y’know,” Dinah brought up, her voice sounding gentle. “Seattle’s a long way from Star City.”

Mia exhaled and smiled gently. She figured that the topic would come up eventually. It was to be expected for a family to feel this way after a significant change, even something as simple as one member moving out. At least Mia stayed near the Pacific this time.

“It is,” she soon answered. “But the Arrow’s gotta leave the quiver eventually, right?”

Dinah rolled her eyes. She should be used to archery puns by now, but they always managed to creep up on her.

As the Bird facepalmed, Mia grinned proudly and rested her hands on the back of her head.

“Besides, I’m doing fine on my own,” she assured. Although, maybe Dinah didn’t need to know that she had stale peanuts for breakfast because she was too tired to cook.

Dinah raised an eyebrow amused and unconvinced. “Didn’t I hear about some ‘Archer Girl’ and ‘Doctor Mid-Nite’ dropping a helicopter into Elliott Bay last week?”

Frowning, Mia leaned forward and shot a glare at Dinah.

“That wasn’t my fault!” she insisted, gesturing wildly to emphasize her point. “The perp escalated things, me and Red Robin just acted accordingly. He had a chopper and we weren’t gonna let him get away! The whole thing losing power and falling was a complete accident, I swear!”

[elia-de-silentio]

Recap on The Decay of Angels

Above, our introduction to the villains that have dominated the Bungou Stray Dogs manga for a few years as of now. It tells us two main things: that they are terrorist, and that they are five. Of them, two are known: Dostoevsky, already introduced in the previous arc, and Gogol, who debuts in this chapter.

As of chapter 88, all of the five members are known, and a few of these identities have been puzzling for the public at large. So, I want to try and recap what we know of them, and maybe make a little sense of it (spoiler, I didn't, but I found a few interesting facts).

We already met Fyodor in the Cannibalism arc, and gained an idea of who he is, how he operates, and what he wants. He's the leader of his own organization, but fights his battles mostly indirectly, by manipulating others into fighting for him.

He aims at destroying Yokohama to find the famed Book, the one to rewrite reality, for the purported reason if creating a better world, one without the 'sin' of ability users. Why he does think like that, or exactly what kind of different world he does envision, is unknown to this day.

Later, in chapter 56, we are shown the Decay of Angel's deeds, four in one week, which our resident nerd Kunikida explains are related to four of the five signs of the imminent death of an angel (or 'deva' in the Buddhist conception):

They skinned a legislator's torso, made a shirt with the result, and put it back on him, all in five minutes = the angel's robes are soiled.

They melted off the face of a deputy commander in the coast guard with a corrosive poison = the angel's garland melts away.

They stuck an air compressor in the mouth of the secretary of a general in the ministry of defense, causing his blood vessels to pop out = the angel's radiance fades.

Lastly, an official for the military police was injected a drug that caused him to kill himself = the angel's armpits start to sweat.

Moreover, they're suspected to have ties in the government; turns out, Gogol was cosplaying as a secretary in there.

He takes hostage a bunch of government officials, and threatens to saw them in two ("losing delight in their heavenly thrones")

The next chapters are dedicated to introducing Nikolai Gogol: an eccentric individual with a powerful ability and the most likely perpetrator of all the aforementioned crimes (since Fyodor was in jail at the time and, as we'll see shortly, the other members aren't particularly suited to these kinds of jobs).

However, he admits that he does feel guilt for what he does, and it's the reason he keeps doing it: he wants to free himself from the concept of morality, from his own conscience.

While this is a rather interesting philosophy, it doesn't expand much on why and how he joined the Decay of Angels. Was he a 'normal' person with particular ideas on morality that were brought to the extreme by the other members in order to make him useful, or was he already a murderer, and joined the Decay to have a wider choice of targets?

Boh. We'll only know quando Asagiri si decide a recuperare il suo arco porca pupazza with time. Still, the important part is that he doesn't seem to share Fyodor's objectives, nor does he say anything about the greater plan and his ideas on it. This is the first indicator that the Decay is a rather fragmented group, everyone is in for his own goals.

However, the last interesting thing is that the plan involved his own death: those in the Decay have no problems sacrificing their own members (even if I have a little theory that Fyodor might have planned for his survival, but I'll talk about it in another post).

Next, a wounded Taneda adds an information about the Decay of Angels: of the three members still in the dark, one has the ability to exchange knowledge he wants for information the person he touches wants. Namely, they're looking for a book, one that makes so that what is written on it becomes the truth - something already hinted by Fyodor. They managed to locate one page of it, and used it to frame the Armed Detective Agency to create a chaos and instigate a sort of Ability Civil War to destroy the city.

Their 'knowledge broker' is revealed to be Sigma; a reveal that is quite a surprise for the reader, since the manager of the Sky Casino has been introduced rigging a game to allow a person desperately in need of money to win; a very positive introduction, for a member of a 'murder association'. Later, it's revealed that he didn't even want to stab Taneda, only scare him off.

In fact, he hasn't even joined them because of some ideal: Fyodor found him when he had no past nor family nor anywhere to go, and offered him a place to belong in exchange for his services. When it turns out that his colleagues in the Decay have planned his demise (and two!) and Atsushi shows him kindness, he promptly cooperates with the Agency; or tries to, before one of Fyodor's lackeys shoots him.

It's also revealed that the group has created some explosive coins, released to the population at large to make some other acts of terrorism.

After some other shenanigans, we are introduced to their boss: Ouchi Fukuchi, officially the war hero who wants to save the world from the 'terrorists' known as the Armed Detective Agency by instituting an international police force.

Unofficially, a former torturer sanctioned by the government, traumatized by what he found himself doing. He wants to take down every nation, throwing the world into anarchy, because he believes countries and governments responsible for wars; and he also wants to stick it to his childhood friend who wasn't with him on the battlefield and got a found family he didn't have, and so framed him as the leader of the terrorists.

His actual plan was to terrorize the population and the government enough that they would gladly let him create an international armed force at his commands, which he would actually have used to break down the concept of 'State'.

Lastly, the fifth member: Bram Stoker. Another interesting case: like Sigma, he doesn't have any particular ideal that brought him to the group; on the contrary, he dislikes them. He used to be known as a calamity for his ability to turn others into vampires, and swore to never do such a thing again. He breaks this promise because Fukuchi threatened to kill him otherwise, and already keeps him in a state of prisony; personally, he has no interest in destroying the world, and thinks Fukuchi should do it himself. Considering that he interacts only with him, and doesn't keep track of the time well, I wonder if he even knows the other people in the organization.

Another interesting thing, is that he is the first British author to get introduced, except for Agatha Christie, who is hinted to be the leader of an organization of European Ability Users, but hasn't made an appearence since chapter 12/Dead Apple, and insofar hasn't had any impact on the plot. Maybe Stoker will be the element that brings the 'Order of the Clocktower' in?

Anyways, here they are: a group of people with vastly different goals and mindsets, ready to send each other to death and put dents into the others' plan (Sigma being ready to tell everything to Atsushi, Fyodor likely putting intentional mistakes in the Page he redacted to undermine Fukuchi).

Honestly ... it's amazing such a branco di disagiati group of people that want so wildly different things managed to last so long, let alone do this much damage. I mean ... how and why these people came together? What do they have in common?

To try and find answers, I did a little research.

First of all, the name 'Decay of Angels' comes, surprise surprise, from a book.

'The Decay of the Angel' by Yukio Mishima is the last novel in a tetralogy that follows the story of Shigekuni Honda, law student in the first novel and retired judge in the last, as he spends his whole life looking for the reincarnation of his deceased schoolfriend, finding them in people that seem to inevitably meet an early death, and ultimately destroys himself.

In the last installment, Honda decides that the reincarnation is an orphan, Toru, that behind a nice and normal facade hides antisocial tendencies. The interesting thing is that Honda notices them, but dismisses them as 'guile': what makes him decide that Toru isn't the reincarnation of his friend is the fact that he doesn't die on a certain date. And after all he had decided that he could be his friend after noticing a similar mole pattern; both very superficial things to originate and conclude such a fixation.

So what? I don't know.

Is a reference on how Fukuchi envied his childhood friend Fukuzawa for never dirtying his hands the way he had to do, and for having a found family, or a 'path in life', and decided to do a distorted version of such, with a few criminals and a plan to destroy the current order? Not sure.

Let's move to the artist, then!

Yukio Mishima was something of a conservative, and he strongly opposed the westernization of Japan, arguing that it left its people rootless. By this, I mean that he founded a private militia, the Tatenokai, composed of a bunch of students recruited with the newspaper, who until the 1970 did not much more than physical exercise and worship of the Emperor.

On the 25th of November 1970, however, Mishima plus four (!) of them briefly seized control of the Self Defense Force headquarters and tried to encourage the soldiers in a coup d'etat. They failed; Mishima and Masakatsu Morita, one of said four followers, committed suicide by seppuku, the latter despite his commander's wishes. The other three ended up in prison.

So, we have a strong believer in the traditional values of the State; quite the opposite of the 'anarchist' Fukuchi.

However, Mishima does not appear as a character, even if, since he was a writer, he could very well have. Instead, a bunch of appearently unrelated figures compose the terrorist group.

Fukuchi Genichirou was a translator, journalist, and playwriter. He, too, was a conservative: in his youth, he wrote an article criticizing the government and was subsequently arrested; he was released for the intercession of an influent friend, but this is remembered as the first episode of suppression of free speech in the Meiji Restauration.

He later founded a very short-lived political party that pursued the sovereignity of the Emperor, enforcement of a Constitution established by the Emperor and election among limited people. This party disbanded after one year.

Fyodor Dostoevsky is best known as a novelist, short story writer and journalist. He was also involved in politics: initially, he was interested in socialism, fluctuating among several groups due to an interest in social reforms in favor of destitute people.

The last group he joined (despite having been described by Bakunin as essentially a bunch of posers) got him convicted for reading papers that criticized the Russian government and religion, and nearly sentenced to death; the letter by the Tsar that commuted the sentence in prison and hard labour arrived just as the convicts were right in front of the firing squad, leaving them all free to enjoy this deeply traumatizing experience. He was considered one of the most dangerous prisoners (he read some books). Later in life, he moved towards more conservative beliefs (conservative for Russian standards: he criticized both socialism and capitalism, idealized the monarchy, and asserted that every social problem could be solved with Orthodox Christianity); but he didn't try to take an active role in politics.

Nikolai Gogol was a novelist, short story writer, and playwriter of Ukrainian origins. Despite costantly satirizing the government in his works, he was a strong supporter of the tsarist monarchy and criticized those who wanted a costitutional monarchy.

Fittingly for 'a character with no past', researching Sigma was a real pain. Shoutout to @gravitycantstop for pointing me in what is probably the right direction.

Sigma was a pseudonym of Russian journalist and writer Sergey Nikolaevich Syromyatnikov. Appearently, decent information about him is available only in Russian. Now, one day I'll speak every language in the world, but insofar my knowledge of Russian is limited to 'vodka' and 'syrniki', so I can't say much about him. If anyone who reads this speaks Russian and can provide information, please do so!

[Edit: thanks to @heydeliah , now we know about RL Sigma's political inclinations: he was a conservative who supported an authocratic monarchy, just like the above two]

Lastly, Bram Stoker: he had a keen interest in Irish Affairs, was a strong supporter of the Liberal Party, which favoured social reforms, personal liberty, and reducing the powers of both the Crown and the Church of England. He supported Home Rule brought about by pacifist means, was an ardent monarchist, and believed Ireland should stay in the British Empire, which he saw as a force for good.

So? I'm not sure what to make of all of this. The only thing I can say is that a bunch of real-life right-wingers has been turned into essentially a bunch of far left extremists? Sure, Stoker has been around for too little to express any ideology besides 'fanculo 'sta merda I want to sleep', and the lack of information on Sigma means that I can't make theories on him. But still, it's the closest thing I could find that binded them all together.

I admit I'm still unsure about what this could mean. Surely they weren't the only boomers ante litteram strongly conservative authors Asagiri could find, so ... I guess we have to wait and see? I literally made this post as I went, trying to find a common denominator, and this was all I could manage.

Anyways, I hope this can be somehow interesting.

Thanks to anyone who bothered to read my ramblings!