#very well could be a situation no involved person wanted just because Flora wanted- | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

floralovebot · 3 years

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I'd love to read more about what you think about how often they get in trouble! And since you said Riven would get flack for Musa's songs, do you think he'd get flack for having dated Darcy?

FUCK YEAH DUDE

Fair warning, this is a bit long!

So, for the Winx, I said that most to least likely to get in trouble was Musa, Stella - Bloom, Flora, Tecna, and then Aisha. And for the Specialists, I said Riven, Sky, Brandon, Helia, and then Timmy. Again, I do think who's the most hated greatly depends on the planet and culture, so how often they get into trouble also depends on this (for instance, Stella having a more laid back approach to certain things may get her in trouble on Zenith, but not on Solaria).

Musa: The classic problematic. It's not that she's a bad person, she's just in the news a lot. Sometimes it's about another heartbreak song, sometimes it's about a fight she had with Riven in public, sometimes it's about her dry humor and sarcasm being interpreted as mean, and other times it's about some vague tweet she wrote and never deleted. She advocates for a lot of good stuff and definitely uses her platform to try and change things so she's not the worst celebrity out there, but she also tends to speak before she knows everything and that can occasionally be a problem. She fiercely defends the others when they get into trouble and constantly vagues "news sources" (aka drama sites) so people still view her as a little negative by proxy. (Also, some people think her being a fairy of music gave her an unfair advantage in the music industry and that she isn't actually talented.)

Stella - Bloom: I'm putting them on the same level because I think they're both fairly similar in how often they get into drama. As princesses who often get involved in things, their every movement is under scrutiny. Stella handles it a lot better than Bloom due to her media training and being watched since she was young.

Bloom usually tries to stay out of the negative spotlight but that often makes her seem avoidant of important issues. She does speak up about things but it's usually after days of editing and rewriting her words so she gets accused of only talking about something because people wanted her to. She also tends to get nervous answering anything about politics or Domino so that makes people reluctant to listen to her words. Then there's the obvious drama with Sky. While they aren't as public as Rivusa, things get out quickly and when they're in a heated moment they tend to forget about their surroundings. People from Eraklyon tend to hate both of them because Bloom is "too loud and angry and just being rude" and Sky is "forgetting his place and rising to the challenge, not a great sign for a future king". On the flip side, Bloom has saved the magical universe multiple times and continues to do so. Basically, she's one of those celebrities that you either really love or really hate.

Stella is another classic problematic! Again, it's not that she's a bad person, she just gets noticed a lot. People accuse her of being classist and ignorant just because she's royalty. They also hate whenever she spends a lot of money on things like clothing and makeup because it's seen as a wasted expense (since most of her money pre-S3 was coming from her parents). People absolutely see her as a spoiled brat that can't read the room and doesn't deserve to be queen. Stella often tries to prove those ideas wrong in very subtle ways because she knows outright denying them would only further the problem. But just like the others, she spends a lot of time advocating for the good and for the better. She also cares deeply about her friends and it's obvious to everyone, even the people that hate her. So while she is in the news a lot, most people can see through it and support her. But she does still get into trouble for her shopping sprees. Her spending a lot of money on things is largely why people sometimes have trouble being on her side. It's almost always seen as a spoiled princess move and a large factor in why people think she's classist and/or ignorant.

Flora: Flora is interesting because a lot of people initially assume that because she's a very shy and nice girl that she won't get into any drama. So it's a complete surprise when she argues with people online and starts calling people out. She's often fighting for the right thing and she rarely gets her facts wrong, but people hate getting called out and they hate it when someone they think should be quiet and nice goes to town on their ass. Even the people that agree with her often think she's too aggressive in her replies (while others think her tone is fine). Flora also isn't extremely open about her personal life outside of fighting crime with the Winx so that doubles her online persona as being just mean and "too political". People say that she should just stick to watering plants and leave the politics to the actual politicians. She responds by calling them hypocrites since they were just asking for celebrities to use their platforms. She gets called out for thinking she's a celebrity. She responds that she has a large platform and people follow her for her work. It's just a constant cycle and she never runs out of things to say (which isn't bad, but it always gets her into trouble). Tbh, I can also see the exact opposite where Flora just doesn't get involved in anything because she's too busy posting pictures of her plants and random dogs she sees but, I think eventually the need to defend her friends would win out and once she gets a little taste of activism, she wouldn't stand down (yknow how she constantly berates the Winx for wanting to attack the controlled animals? Basically like that. She has very strong moral opinions).

Tecna: I had some trouble with this because I almost wanted to put her last but overall I think her general personality would get her into trouble more than what happens with Aisha. Tecna is often blunt and she doesn't necessarily hide when she doesn't like something. So sometimes reporters will come up to her and ask her a question and she'll just hit them with an "I don't want to talk to you." and then walks away. Tecna doesn't see anything wrong with this because she views being honest to the media as relatively important as they could easily find out if she's lying through spying and technology. Overall, people just see her as a little too honest and she gets into trouble a lot with being open about not wanting to interact with fans a lot or being cautious about press.

Aisha: It's a bit surprising that a princess is the last on the list no? Andros has a very good handle on things like media and press, and while they definitely aren't controlling it by any means, most news sites know not to mess with them. They're very strict on things like personal boundaries and privacy and try to protect anyone who could be affected by the media (celebrities, online personas, royals, athletes, etc). Aisha also has the best media training out of all the Winx and is really good at knowing what to say and what to share. People know just enough about her social life through sns that they aren't constantly asking about it but not enough to try and cancel her for anything. She's almost seen as the goody-goody of the bunch since she just doesn't get into a lot of drama (and when she does it's handled extremely well).

Now the Specialists!

Riven: It's no surprise that he's first I mean cmon. With Musa being the most "problematic" of the Winx, Riven is bound to get his fair share of scrutiny. People absolutely judge him for having a past with Darcy. Although... I really don't think it would be the biggest factor. While he did genuinely like Darcy, she used magic on him multiple times to manipulate his thoughts and then later betrayed him. Riven wouldn't want to put unnecessary hate on all witches, but he'd also be mad enough to eventually allude to what actually happened (he'd never outright say it since it also hurts his pride). Most people accept that he got manipulated by Darcy and assume that the entirety of the relationship was based on that, which Riven doesn't like either, but trying to defend her wouldn't exactly help his case. On the other hand, the relationship he does get hated for is his relationship with Musa. Musa definitely shares the good and cute stories about them too, but her sad/angry heartbreak songs are always the ones that get remembered. People assume he's a lot worse than he actually is and whenever Musa or one of the others tries to defend him, they just assume Riven manipulated them into doing that. However, after S4, people get a lot more understanding of the relationship and there isn't as much hate towards him (he does still get called out for being a bit brutish though).

Sky: I almost put Sky as first, but then I remembered he's royalty and definitely has a PR team. Still, he gets into a lot of drama. The Diaspro/Bloom situation was blown out of proportion and every news site was reporting completely different things. To some, Sky is a dirty cheater that lied to his wife and got some random girlfriend, "who knows how many other girls he's talking to! Someone get his phone records with Stella". To others, Sky and Diaspro were happily engaged before homewrecker Bloom came in. And to others, Sky was just the prince trying to protect his identity and got wrapped into some catfight. No one knows what actually happened with them but a lot of people start to assume Diaspro was in the wrong once it's confirmed Sky is officially dating Bloom. They start actively hating her when she tries to magic her way into a relationship with him. And that's just the relationship stuff! Erakylon's politics are so weak and absolutely crumbling before our eyes. Sky would constantly get asked about specific things to try and break him and it doesn't help that the media sites from the other royal characters are the ones doing it.

Brandon: Is this ranking a bit surprising? Idk? But anyway, Brandon would literally just get hated by proxy. Most of his "drama" includes what's happening with Sky and/or Stella. If one of them is getting into trouble, then people are bringing him into it for absolutely no reason. Brandon knows more about Eraklyon and Solaria's political climates than he will ever need to know. While he doesn't have as much media training as Sky, he does have to follow some rules just so Sky doesn't get into trouble for what he says. That means he can't speak up about as many issues and he certainly can't constantly defend his friends from harsh words. He tries to get away with it by liking comments instead of making his own. It helps a little.

Helia: Helia gets into the same exact trouble that he gets into with the Winx fandom. He's quiet and he shares absolutely nothing about his personal life. He's an artist but he doesn't post about it nor does he talk about it. He avoids talking to the press and when he does its always vague answers that could mean anything. Helia cares a lot about Saladin and Red Fountain's image and we know that what he does affects said image. So he treads very carefully and doesn't involve himself in anything. However, this is largely what gets him into trouble. People hate that he's not open about anything and some even go to the extreme of thinking he's suspicious. While Saladin's legacy largely protects him from this, it doesn't protect him from the media and random people constantly asking about his personal life. Helia also rarely if ever defends the others online (1. as he almost never looks at it and 2. because he doesn't want to get involved). He comforts them and gives advice to their face but no one else sees that so people often call him things like "pretentious, two-faced, avoidant, etc". People are also weirdly suspicious about his relationship with Flora because "it can't be that good right? there's definitely something suspicious about them".

Timmy: Timmy's just a genuinely nice guy that rarely gets into trouble. He chooses his battles (so to speak) very wisely so when he does defend the others online, it's almost always something a majority of people will agree with. Almost all of his social media is about the latest in technology and gaming so he's pretty big in those crowds but most media sites can't really do anything with that. Sometimes people from Zenith see him as weird but they recognize that he's a good match for Tecna so they're okay with him. By the time all of the Specialists are truly in the spotlight, he's already gotten buffer and more confident so those issues from S1 wouldn't be a huge deal either. The others also speak highly of him so no one really doubts that he's a good specialist. For the most part, he just doesn't get into trouble and when he does it's always connected to someone else rather than something he alone said/did.

#hmmm not spell checking akjdghjdagh #Loved this!!!#i loved thinking about this it was amazing #winx club #winx headcanons #ahh... imagine if rainbow recognized that the winx are celebrities outside of giving them random concerts at alfea #like. imagine the drama!!#would love to hear more thoughts about this because i Love this topic rn #best discussion the fandom has had in months

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novelconcepts · 4 years

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fic: (above) a boring little pub

“See where that takes us,” Dani mutters. “Sure. Yeah. Smooth.”

She’d said it like it wasn’t nerve-racking in the least, like she does this sort of thing every day. Get up at the asscrack of dawn, trying to remember how to make a pot of coffee she personally feels out of her mind even considering putting in her own mug. Coffee makes her crazy, spikes her already-wild anxiety straight through the roof; she hasn’t tried to brew the stuff since she was fifteen and making a last-ditch effort to get on Mom’s good side.

And, still, it was the best idea she had for Operation Fix Things With Jamie. Four days laying awake thinking, four days with her brain half on the kids, half on making Jamie smile the next time she turned up at Bly, and this was the best she could do. A cup of coffee that, to her untrained eye, looked like muddy water more than anything else.

And she had handed it to Jamie. Just pasted on a smile and thought, Maybe the stars have aligned, and I woke up good at this today. Whether good at the coffee or the talking to Jamie, she wasn’t quite sure--but soon enough, it appeared the answer was “neither”. Terrific. Jamie, still stung from the other night. Jamie, clearly still not ready to leap off a cliff just because Dani reached out a hand.

Who could blame her? Jamie’s maybe the most patient person Dani has ever met, so long as you’re not shredding her gardens behind her back, but she is still a person. A person who has shown Dani an extremely unexpected willingness to listen, but not so much the desire to be jerked around. Dani gets it. There’s nothing she wants less in the world, than to make Jamie feel like a chew toy to be picked up and discarded again on a whim.

Hence, the world’s most insulting attempt at coffee.

And the invitation.

Dani does not have what a thinking man might call “a strong history” with dating. Part and parcel of being with the same person since you were ten, she supposes, and even if Edmund wasn't...right, he was still simple in his own way. The bravest she ever had to be with Eddie was in daring him to kiss her, a desperate, futile bid toward understanding all the girls at school who sighed and groaned over boys. Dani didn’t get it then, didn’t get it when Eddie closed his eyes and puckered his lips and gave her the most exaggerated dry kiss a human mouth can produce. Didn't get it, either, as he improved over the years, though she was tactically aware of him doing so. On a strictly data-driven level, she watched him get better at kissing, at smiling without nerves, at leading her by the hand wherever he felt they should go. And never, not once, did she feel it.

But one night in a greenhouse, wine in her blood and guilt on her lips, and she gets it now. She gets all of it. Jamie’s hands in her hair, Jamie’s mouth opening beneath her own--a symphony only they could hear.

And then she’d gone and ruined it.

So, now she’s here. Standing awkwardly in a small room in a huge manor, poking through the approximately ten outfits she’s been carting across Europe for half a year. She’d been brave with Jamie in ways she’d never considered with Eddie--brave to take her hand, brave to follow her into the dark, brave to kiss her, brave to ask her out on a...on a..

“Date,” she mutters, holding up a pink blouse and remembering Jamie saying wryly, There we are. She shuts her eyes. “Just a date. Normal person thing to do. Nothing to worry about.”

Jamie’s meant to be back here in--she flips her wrist, winces--less than an hour now. Jamie’s meant to be here to pick her up, like they’re teenagers heading off for a Friday night on the town, and Dani must genuinely be losing her mind. She didn't come here for this. She works with Jamie, works here watching the kids, and if she leaves...if she leaves, who knows what will...

A light rap at the door, so soft, she almost misses it. Hannah, gently smiling.

“Everything all right up here? Haven’t seen you in quite some time...”

“The kids,” Dani interjects. “Of course. I’m so sorry, I’ll just--”

Hannah raises her palms in a placating gestures, slipping into the room with a nearly unearthly grace. Why, Dani wonders helplessly, can’t I be like Hannah? So elegant and serene and sure of every step?

“I did not,” Hannah says, taking her by the shoulders and giving her a sisterly little shake, “come up here to scold you. The children are perfectly fine; Owen is running them through the finer elements of...” Her brow creases, some mix of affection and distaste. “Baking chemistry.”

“Oh.” Dani sinks onto the bed, head in her hands. “Of course. So you’re...”

“Here to make certain you aren’t, perhaps, talking yourself out of a nice evening out on the town?” Hannah supplies. She’s too kind to make fun, at least where this level of anxiety is concerned, and Dani is grateful.

“Not talking myself out, exactly,” she says. “Just trying to decide what to wear. I mean, what does a person wear to a pub in Bly with...with...”

“A perfectly charming young woman whose primary uniform involves denim and potting soil?” Hannah’s voice is just a little too innocent. Dani grins.

“I just don’t want to embarrass myself.”

“I don’t think,” Hannah says carefully, “there’s much chance of embarrassing yourself so badly, she leaves you alone in that pub. Or fails to return to Bly, perhaps, tomorrow?”

Color floods Dani’s cheeks. Her choice of sweater is suddenly the most interesting thing that has ever happened in this room.

“The children will be just fine with us here,” Hannah continues, blessedly ignoring the way Dani’s shoulders go rigid with mortification. “Owen’s already planning to stay, and you know how Flora goes on about sleepovers...”

She’s smiling, but Dani thinks there’s a bit of distance behind her eyes that wasn’t there last week. A beautiful, kind woman, Hannah; it’s strange to see her even the least bit detached from the goings-on of the house.

“You’re sure,” she presses. “I could still tell Jamie--”

“You could both use the night off, I think.” Hannah pats her shoulder lightly. Dani bites her lip.

“Well, I can definitely make sure I’m back before--”

“Lunch tomorrow?” Hannah interjects. “Yes, I quite agree, that would be perfect timing. Rumor has it Owen’s planning a feast fit for kings and very small children.”

Dani is out of arguments, and she suspects Hannah knows it. Her shoulders slump. “Okay. Okay, good. Glad that’s all...handled. Now...”

“This one, I think.” Hannah pats the light purple, her hand possessed of such surety, Dani is briefly envious. “Brings out your eyes nicely.”

She makes her escape with another smile and a very small wave, and Dani gives herself a minute. Just one minute, sitting on the edge of the bed with her face in her hands, to really process the situation. A date. An actual real date with an actual real person she actually likes. Not just likes, but feels...slightly insane around. Insane in the best way. Stomach in knots, fingertips sweaty for no good reason, ears going hot at the sight of her insane.

Jamie kissed her back. Jamie kissed her like there was nothing she’d like more in the world. Jamie kissed her, and then let her go the minute she didn’t seem ready for it, and even with the worst coffee in England as a peace offering, accepted the idea of a drink with her.

Which means...

“The sweater doesn’t matter,” Dani mumbles, feeling very much as though nothing has ever mattered more.

***

Jamie has never quite done this before, either; she thinks of telling Dani so, thinks of taking a quiet moment before leaving Bly Manor to get ready for a date and come back, sweet Lord, she must be out of her mind, to say, “Hey, no worries, Poppins, this is brand-new territory for the both of us.”

But Dani is busy with the kids, and also sort of looks like she’s going to combust should Jamie stand too near her, so she skulks out to the truck alone instead. The date--it is an actual fucking date, I cannot believe she did this to us, what am I going to do on an actual fucking date with this woman?--is slated for seven in the evening. Jamie’s done working at four-thirty.

She spends about an hour of that in-between time showering, picking out a clean t-shirt--nothing too snappy, don’t want to scare Poppins off again--and jeans and a jacket that ensures she’ll look presentably-cool, and mussing her hair somewhat badly. The rest, she spends pacing.

You know I live above that pub, right? Told you that already. And Jesus, how Dani had smiled, like she’d been thinking of nothing else for four fucking days. Four days Jamie had spent planning ways to distance herself, to stop feeling all of this flappy butterfly nonsense at the mere sight of the woman, and the first thing--first goddamn thing--Dani did upon her return was ask her on a date.

To which she had...said yes. She’d said yes, and now off she goes to pick up her actual, real-live human woman date.

It’s one thing, she thinks as she strides up the drive to the door, to take a woman to bed. It’s a very natural, easy thing, in fact, to take a woman to bed. Strip off your clothes, strip off your inhibitions, get used to the notion of never seeing her again once the sun is up. But this? Dani? Jamie’s never been here before. Never wanted something so badly before.

“Don’t,” she mumbles, pushing the door open, “fuck this up.”

She expects to have to go on a bit of a hunt to track Dani down--maybe to the kitchen, or even (heaven help her) up to her room, but no: Dani is right there. Dani is standing in the foyer in a black skirt and loose-knit sweater, looking for all the world like Jamie just caught her running a trench into the floorboards.

“Hi,” she says, all deer eyes and suddenly grinning mouth. Her hair is up, so very blonde and perfect, Jamie’s mouth goes a little useless at the sight of it.

“Hey. Uh. Are we meant to be speaking with the chaperones, or...”

Dani shakes her head, looking just a little punch-drunk. “Hannah made it sound like we’d be in trouble if we went back there. Owen’s doing something with chemistry?”

“All the angels couldn’t help those kids and their empty bellies now,” Jamie says, “if Owen is fixated on another goddamn chemistry lesson.”

Dani laughs, and suddenly, it’s like a sheen of ice cracks open and all the warmth she’s come to associate with Dani Clayton comes rushing into the room. Jamie reaches out a hand, slides palm along palm until Dani is fitted neatly against her lifeline.

“Shall we?”

She doesn’t say, I’ve never done this. Doesn’t tell Dani any of that. It doesn’t seem important, all of a sudden, not with the way Dani squeezes back and follows eagerly into the passenger seat of her truck.

Jamie, looking at her out of the corner of her eye as she prepares to back out, is struck with the wild idea that maybe they don’t have to leave at all to do this. She could just reach across the seat, lay a hand lightly over Dani’s knee, tell her she’s never met anyone like her. Never met anyone who makes her want to tell sad stories and bad jokes and goodnights that are only acceptable because there will be a good morning to follow.

Date, she reminds herself firmly, though there’s a perfectly nice kitchen, a perfectly nice bedroom, a perfectly nice hidden spot out on the grounds that would do the job just as well. Maybe next time. There are flowers she’s certain Dani can’t go her whole life without seeing.

But tonight: it’s a pub in the tiny village of Bly, where Jamie has lived for years without ever really caring to get to know its secrets. Now, watching Dani look around like she’s just stepped into Oz, she sort of regrets that.

“Usually not too busy on a Thursday night,” she says, guiding Dani with a light hand at the small of her back past what she thinks of as the Attention Grabbing section--the tables up near the bar proper, where the denizens of Bly most like to congregate after work--and toward her own preferred spot. It’s in the back, near a near-secret exit that leads straight up to her flat, and Cal is charitable enough to keep most folks away from it unless the place is full-up. Not a bad guy, Cal; he’s about four hundred years old and insists on calling her Janey, but he’s still got the back for long nights serving bad drinks, and he keeps the rent cheaper than dirt.

“You live here?” Dani sounds like she’s never been more delighted at a prospect. Jamie can’t help but laugh, slinging her jacket over the back of her chair and settling in.

“Thought about asking for a job when I moved in, but luckily Lord and Lady Wingrave got to me first. Not sure it’d suit me, spending every night with the town layabouts.”

She winks at Cal as he shambles past to let him know this is a joke. He snorts.

“Like I’d hire you anyway. Too damn short. Couldn't reach the good stuff.”

“Wasn’t aware you carried the good stuff,” she fires back. Dani, watching this exchange with delight, laughs. Cal raises an eyebrow.

“Your friend’s pretty. Poor sense of character, to be spending her night with a felon, but there’s no accounting for taste.”

The smile on Dani’s lips dies instantly. Jamie swallows a curse.

“Yes, thank you, Grandfather Drunkard, I hadn’t quite gotten to that part of the tale yet. Round to make up for it, if you please.”

He has the good grace to look slightly ashamed, patting her on the shoulder as he winds back to the bar in search of clean glasses. Jamie leans back with a sigh.

“Well, it was bound to come up eventually, I suppose. Frankly, probably for the best he spilled those beans before I could lose my nerve and put off telling you.”

Dani’s brow is creased, less like someone horrified by a glimpse into Jamie’s storied past, more like a white knight ready to draw a sword in her defense. Jamie finds herself reaching across the table, glancing over her shoulder, and touching the back of her hand with two cautious fingers.

“Easy, Poppins, Cal’s a good sort. Our sort, even, if there is such a thing.” It’s a bold stroke, a shot in the dark, but given that Jamie’s already had this woman’s tongue in her mouth, she supposes it isn’t so dangerous to assume. Dani raises her eyebrows high enough to make her laugh.

“He’s--I mean he doesn’t--”

“He’s kind, and he knows the value of a closed mouth,” Jamie confirms. “Says things are better than they used to be around here, but there’s no point courting trouble. Anyway, he won’t say a damn thing when we--if we--”

Cal takes pity on her, delivering a pair of beers and a platter of cold chips, “on the house, as penance for fuckin’ up your evening.” Jamie raises her glass in a salute to his retreating back.

“Did he?” Dani asks. Jamie, glass halfway to her lips, pauses.

“Did he what?”

“Fuck up the evening.” Jamie’s not sure she’s ever heard Dani say the word fuck before, and suddenly feels as though it’s the best single syllable ever to cross her lips.

“Nah. Not unless you’ve, ah, got a problem with felons sharing your table?”

Lifting her own glass, Dani shakes her head. “Not as a rule. I’d like to hear about it, though. If it’s something you’re all right sharing.”

And so Jamie shares. All of it. It isn’t the plan, exactly, but when she gets started, she finds it increasingly difficult to locate a logical place to stop. To explain the prison time, she first has to explain how a young woman finds herself in such a situation; to explain that, she first has to paint a picture of a particular kind of home life. Before she knows what’s happening, she’s leaning across the table and saying names she hasn’t spoken in years. Telling about the coal mine. The other men. The baby. The burn.

Dani listens to it all, enraptured, never interrupting with so much as a question. She makes small noises, nods encouragement whenever Jamie falters, takes small sips of her drink when Jamie pauses for breath.

She doesn’t ask what Jamie did. This, above all else, strikes Jamie between the eyes. She doesn’t ask if Jamie lied, or cheated, or stole, or bloodied anyone along the way (yes, yes to one and all, and if she did ask, Jamie would tell her; they're old scars, the life of someone she feels she barely knows now, and if she’s ashamed, it’s the shame of a distant dream). She only listens, nods, takes it in.

“I figure,” Jamie says when she’s run out of history to unfold between them, “you showed me yours, yeah? It’s only fair.”

Dani raises her glass. “To not being defined by the sins of the past.”

Jamie chuckles, obediently following suit. “To people being the most goddamn exhausting concept on the planet, and trying anyway.”

They drink. They drink, and Jamie thinks, Maybe that’s it. Maybe I’ve exhausted the conversation topics for one relationship already. Maybe she’ll finish this glass and we’ll head back to the house, and that’ll be that.

“I’ve never done this before,” Dani tells her. There’s something relaxed about her, something Jamie finds new and deeply interesting. Relaxed is the last word she’d generally used to describe Dani Clayton.

Jamie gestures for Cal, refills following suit in short order. “Been to a pub?”

“Been on a date with someone I...” Dani hesitates. For a split second, Jamie’s sure she’s about to look at someone Jamie can’t sense over her shoulder. Instead, she shakes her head, smiles ruefully. “Someone I felt things for.”

“Things, huh?” She leans across the table, props her chin on one hand, makes a show of tilting her head. “What sorts of things?”

“I think you know.” Dani is blushing. This is maybe the best night of Jamie’s whole life.

“Think you should tell me anyway.”

Dani swats at her, and they’re both laughing with an ease Jamie can’t wrap her head around. It’s one thing to flirt; Jamie’s good at flirting. Comes easy, comes naturally. She’s good at watching for the little buttons in people, the little signs of what makes them laugh, what makes them squirm. Promised herself a long time ago never to use this power for anything less than leaving a room warmer than she found it.

But this isn’t flirting. Not the way Jamie’s done it before. This is something entirely new, entirely specific to Dani. It’s in the way Dani watches her, eyes too blue, jaw held taut like she’s trying to keep something dangerous from spilling out. It’s in the way Dani lets her fingers linger when she reaches for a chip, allows Jamie to brush against her in a fashion that looks utterly innocent from the outside and feels anything but.

Jamie swallows hard, liking the weight of Dani’s gaze more than she’s prepared to admit. Liking the way Dani very slowly, very carefully, moves a hand under the table to press against her knee.

“Bold, Poppins,” she breathes. Dani smiles, so clearly proud of herself and so clearly terrified that it’s all Jamie can do not to lean all the way across and kiss her.

Best not. Cal’s a good man, their sort, but there are others in the pub now. People who wouldn't take kindly to a sight like that. And this night is going far too well for Jamie to waste where it’s going on a bar brawl.

***

Jamie’s flat is nothing like Dani expected. Admittedly, she isn’t sure what to expect when Jamie drains the last of her glass and gives a knowing glance to the exit. A very small part of her thinks this is all going entirely too well--her hand has been under the table, pressed with a confidence she hadn’t known she possessed to Jamie’s knee, for almost fifteen minutes. Even as her thumb traces small circles into the denim, even as Jamie’s eyes go a little darker, her lips parting in a way Dani finds entirely too interesting, she thinks, This isn’t me, is it? She can’t be feeling it, too. No one has ever understood this.

Even so, here’s Jamie, standing a little too quickly. Her chair scrapes back, her jacket swung over her arm, and she’s reaching out. Dani accepts the hand, lets Jamie pull her to her feet. A good idea. A bad idea. The kind of idea that will get them out of the public eye in short order, either way, and Dani can’t think of anything wiser in this moment.

There’s a set of stairs just outside the door, leading up to a second door. Thick brown wood, with double locks Jamie works without really looking. She’s staring at Dani even as her hands move, staring from inches away, and Dani suddenly thinks how good it is, that they came out tonight. How good it is to be away from the house, the kids, anyone else in the world.

“After you,” Jamie says, pushing the door open with a flat hand and gesturing for Dani to enter. Her voice is a little raw, a little huskier than usual. Dani moves past her, arm brushing arm, and just about jumps out of her skin at the contact.

The space is small, sparsely furnished, with a curtain hung to break up the room. In one far corner, a tiny bathroom. In the closest corner, a tiny kitchen, barely broken from the living space by a change in flooring.

Jamie, wearing an expression Dani has not yet learned to decipher, says, “This would be it. The castle, as it were.”

Does she sound embarrassed? Dani can't quite tell. She wants to say there’s nothing to be embarrassed about, this place is small and quiet and somehow perfectly Jamie in its easy nature. There are books, though not many, on a small shelf. There are plants, considerably more, lined up like soldiers guarding Jamie from loneliness.

“It’s a place to lay my head, anyway,” Jamie says, and that is definitely a touch of embarrassment in her voice. Dani shakes her head, moves to join her at the front door, takes her hand.

“It’s yours,” she says, unable to clarify quite why that is so special. “Thank you. For bringing me here.”

It sounds better in her head than it does ringing between them in a space so silent, Dani imagines she can hear the echo of her own voice. Jamie is just looking at her, the way she’d looked the night Owen’s mother passed, like if Dani were to give the word, she’d make a move that would light them both aflame.

She’d been too afraid that night. Was carrying far too much. Even the simple act of touching Jamie at all, of running her thumb across Jamie’s hand, had felt like heroism.

Now, things are different.

She’s got Jamie by the sleeves, hands gripping Jamie’s t-shirt just above the skin of her biceps, and this is what going over feels like. This is what it feels like, Dani thinks, to just let go.

***

Kissing Dani is different here. Back in the greenhouse, Dani had been largely somebody else, Jamie thinks; still Dani, but a version carrying too much on her back. A desperate, hopeful, sorrow-laden Dani who had grabbed at her jacket like it was a life preserver.

This Dani, sighing and squeezing her arms, feels like freedom.

Jamie finds herself spinning them both, pressing Dani against the locked door, liking the convulsive way Dani’s hands fist around her shirt sleeves. Liking the way Dani slides one arm around her neck and leans back just a little, just enough to gaze into Jamie’s eyes, and this is almost too much all on its own. No one has ever looked at Jamie while she was trying to kiss them. No one, not even once, has looked at her with such profound affection.

And want. So much want, Dani’s eyes are stormy with it. Jamie’s grinning, but there’s a fist around her heart squeezing so hard, she worries it might burst.

“All right?” she breathes. Dani could say no. Dani could say no at any time, and Jamie would understand it. Would lean back, comb her fingers through her own hair, offer the bed while she sets up on the couch until the alcohol’s out of both of their systems and the sunrise gives them another chance at it.

Dani, rather than answering, makes a low sound at the back of her throat and finds Jamie’s mouth with an eager, open kiss that sends Jamie’s pulse through the roof.

She hasn’t done this before, she’s told Jamie, but she’s coming to it naturally enough. Her lips are soft, parting for Jamie’s tongue, her hips pushing against Jamie’s body in slow, easy motions. When Jamie rakes her nails down her scalp, fingers pulling the scrunchie from her hair, she responds with such a low groan, Jamie has to bury her face in Dani’s neck for a moment to breathe.

“Sorry,” Dani mumbles. Jamie, shaking her head, laughs against her skin.

“In no universe, Poppins, are you to be sorry right now. About anything.”

She raises her head, looking for signs that Dani is sorry in a more important way, a way that will say stop, back up, let this go for now. Dani takes her face between trembling hands. Kisses her slowly, sweetly, tongue tracing Jamie’s lower lip like the only thing in the world is to memorize her in tiny, hopeful doses.

Jamie sighs, one hand buried in blonde hair, the other finding purchase on the sleeve of a too soft, too tearable sweater. She feels too large for her body all of a sudden, too much adrenaline coursing through her system, and every time Dani turns her head just a little, every time she brushes her nose against Jamie’s and makes that tiny, soul-searing little sound under Jamie’s kiss, she thinks she gets a bit closer to plunging off the edge into something she won’t be able to forget about in the morning.

“You sure?” she asks against Dani’s lips, the words lost when Dani moves an arm around her neck and digs her fingers in hard. She can feel Dani nodding, breathless, and it’s enough. More than enough. Jamie finds she’s walking them backwards, navigating carefully around her small table, her small couch, the shelf upon which she keeps a few precious plants.

With every step, Dani is kissing her.

With every step, Dani is tracing shapes into the back of her neck.

With every step, Dani is pushing in close, like if Jamie breaks for even a second, some beautiful, perfect spell will break with her.

They’re past the curtain now, in the little space where Jamie sleeps and wakes and hasn’t taken anyone since moving in. Dani, forehead pressed against hers, lips swollen, opens her eyes.

“This is--”

“Not much,” Jamie says. On the one hand, she’s glad they came out tonight, glad she’s getting to hear all the little sounds Dani makes as she’s kissed without worrying about eavesdroppers. On the other, there’s nothing inspiring about her flat, nothing to say Jamie can take care of someone. It’s just walls. Just walls and a couple of plants, and for some reason, Dani is looking around like they’ve walked through a mirror into a land of magic.

“Anyway,” Jamie says. “We don’t have to--if you don’t want to--”

***

“Don’t you?” Dani’s heart is in her throat, pounding in her wrists almost painfully hard. Jamie, one arm around her waist, leaning back with flushed cheeks and her bottom lip between her teeth, raises her eyebrows.

“Want to? God, yes.”

Relief, flooding Dani’s body almost hard enough to knock her over. She grips at Jamie with both hands, the slide of dark t-shirt soft under her fingers, and kisses her again. She feels so good kissing Jamie, so good she forgets how nervous she is about the whole thing. Jamie, her hand strong at the small of her back, her fingers brushing just under the hem of her sweater, leans back again.

“Just don’t want to pressure you into anything. S’all right if you’re not up for--”

"I’ll tell you,” Dani promises. If Jamie keeps doing that with her hand, if Jamie keeps tracing the base of her spine with small, reckless movements, she thinks she’ll go crazy. “If it’s too much. I’ll tell you.”

She pushes gently against Jamie’s chest, feeling bold and brave and absolutely petrified of her own actions, and Jamie lets herself fold backwards until she’s seated on the edge of a thin, clean bedspread. Dani follows her down, knees on either side of Jamie’s thighs, sitting carefully in her lap.

“Now what?” Jamie teases, even as she’s sliding both hands up Dani’s sides, firm enough not to tickle as she brackets Dani’s ribs and lets the next ragged breath push against her palms. Dani closes her eyes for a beat, swaying, untethered until Jamie tilts her head and kisses her again. All at once, it’s like being caught at the end of a string. All at once, it’s like being handed serenity.

She realizes she’s moving her hips, rolling them forward against Jamie’s lap, liking the way Jamie’s hands tighten on her body and begin gently pushing her back and forth. There isn’t enough friction to really accomplish anything this way, but it hardly matters; it’s still so much, so much she feels like she’ll come apart anyway. Something this new, a feeling this big, reaching across the expanse of her, consuming her--she thinks she’ll lose something here tonight. Gain something. Tie the two together and be something different come morning.

She used to worry about that, with him. Used to worry that if she ever gave in, ever tried that one last thing to feel how she was meant to with him, she’d be different the next day. She’d be someone else.

This is something else entirely--so much so, she almost can’t breathe around the realization. That she will be different tomorrow, and that she will not be less Dani because of it, but more, somehow. Something more Dani than she’s allowed herself to be in her whole life, because it was chosen here, tonight, with Jamie’s hands on her body and Jamie’s mouth under her own.

***

With Dani in her lap, skirt riding up around her thighs, hips moving restlessly, Jamie thinks for a second they’ve hit a wall. A very good wall to hit, she thinks hurriedly. If this is as far as they go tonight, it’s still worlds past anything she really expected from Dani.

So long as she doesn’t regret it, doesn’t run from me, I could stay here forever.

Dani, who has been kissing her for what feels like forever, breaks contact and just looks at her. Her hand, soft and cautious and more certain than Jamie expects, presses against Jamie’s breastbone. Pushes again. Jamie shifts backwards, inching up the mattress, pulling Dani with her until she’s flat on her back with Dani looking down.

“Up to you,” she says. She likes the simple pressure of Dani’s body atop her own, of soft curve fitting all the spaces where Jamie doesn’t usually think of herself as lacking anything at all. Now, though, knowing what it feels like, how the whole of Dani is pressed flush to her, she wonders if she’ll ever feel complete in this bed again.

“You still--”

“Want?” Jamie’s lips curve. “If you’re asking, there’s something I’m not doing right.”

“I’m sorry,” Dani says, then seems to catch herself. She sighs, smiles, laughs a little in that dizzy, self-conscious way that breaks Jamie’s heart. “This is...as far as I know. This is...”

Jamie nods, understanding. “You trust me?”

***

Dani is nodding, too, liking the way her body is moving almost of its own accord against Jamie’s. She hadn’t even realized she was doing it, hadn’t even realized she was still rubbing lightly against Jamie even as nerves pound through her system.

“Tell me,” Jamie says in a low, urgent tone. “If anything changes.”

She rolls, then, a quick flash of movement that makes Dani shriek-giggle. From this new vantage point, back pressed into Jamie’s mattress, head on Jamie’s pillow, she feels suddenly so much more intimate than while straddling Jamie’s lap. Doesn’t make sense, she thinks with a thrill of such powerful lust, all she can do is grab again at Jamie’s shirt and hold on. But this is hers, and I’m here, and she’s...she’s...

“Tell me,” Jamie says again, a quiet command that drags soft nails up Dani’s back. She shivers, nodding, and Jamie takes the lead at last.

***

She hadn’t thought, somehow, about this part. Not in so many firmly phrased words. She’d thought about the shape of it, of Dani in her flat, of Dani in her bed, of Dani kissing her, touching her, but somehow, this part slid away every time it tried to rise in her mind.

The part of the show where clothes go away. The part of the show Jamie has always liked the most, and the least, at the same time.

Dani is kissing her when she slides both hands beneath the sweater, easing it up, giving Dani ample time to pull away. Dani, instead, sits up just enough to allow the sweater to rise over breasts, shoulders, head. Jamie drops it off the bed, leans back on her knees, smiles.

“Is there...” Dani isn’t covering herself, exactly, but there’s a sort of nakedness to her expression that has nothing to do with clothes disappearing. “I mean, am I--”

She leaves it unspoken, a bit embarrassed: right? okay? enough?

“Perfect,” Jamie tells her. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

She takes the hem of her own shirt in her hand, waits, pleased when Dani sits up and covers that hand with her own searching fingers. She doesn’t want to go anywhere Dani isn’t willing to take her, and she certainly doesn’t want to deprive her of the small moments that make a first time with someone else so electric. When Dani guides the shirt up over her head, it’s like Jamie’s never done this, either--no woman has ever just looked at her, eyes steady and searching, in a moment like this.

Women are usually the fast, nervous, lights-off-don’t-talk kind of souls in Jamie’s bed. Touch me, kiss me, don’t look, don’t ask questions, don’t act like you want to be here. But Dani is looking at her with lips parted, hands tracing the lines of Jamie’s neck, collarbones, the dip between her breasts. Her fingers are shaking so hard, Jamie covers them with her own, pulls them to her lips.

“One thing at a time,” she says quietly. “Anything’s too much, we pull back.”

Dani pulls at her, guiding Jamie’s hands back to work the clasp of her bra, to cover her skin with soft, careful strokes. She arches into Jamie’s hand and whimpers, and Jamie thinks there was no way, no way she could have predicted any of this. Not as it is. Not as Dani is letting it be.

***

She’d thought, back in the greenhouse, that Jamie’s kiss was enough to drown in. That Jamie’s lips traveling from her mouth to her throat to her ear was enough to drive her wild enough that she’d forget her own name.

It’s nothing compared to Jamie kissing her now, holding her with gentle hands as she explores every inch of skin she can reach. She is all tongue, all soft bite, all lips on shoulder, on pulse, on everything Dani has never been able to imagine letting someone else even look upon.

Here, Jamie’s jean-clad legs intertwined with her own bare ones, her skirt rucked high, Dani thinks maybe this is the best it could possibly be. To be in Jamie’s bed, with Jamie’s hand light on her breast and Jamie’s kiss burning hot as she travels lower, as she moves like they’ve got all the time in the world, is maybe the best the world could ever get.

Every so often, Jamie raises her eyes, and Dani feels something hot and tight clutch in her stomach. Jamie, asking if this is all right. Jamie, sucking a mark into the skin of her belly. Jamie, one hand moving lower so slowly, Dani sort of thinks she’s going to scream.

***

She’s trying to go slow, trying to take this as easily as she possibly can, but every inch of Jamie is on fire. Part of her is hyper-aware of the reality of the situation: that Dani is nervous, that Dani is special, that Dani is someone Jamie couldn't bear hurting even on accident. And, more: that Jamie’s scar is out on display, that Jamie’s home is out on display, that Jamie is more visible and vulnerable with shirt off and jeans on and mouth pressed to the smooth arc of Dani’s stomach than she’s been in years.

When Dani takes her by the wrist, she’s sure they’ve gone far enough--that the heat between her own legs will have to wait, that Dani is going to roll off the bed and scramble back into her sweater and away from--

Her hand, wrapped around Jamie’s, slides beneath her skirt.

Her fingers, wrapped around Jamie’s, guide her to press against damp underwear.

Her back arches. Jamie groans.

“Okay,” she breathes, looking up at Dani’s too-blue eyes. “Okay, getting the picture.”

***

She didn’t know. Didn’t have the first idea what this would feel like. Didn’t have even the remotest frame of reference, and if she were anywhere else, if she were with anyone else, maybe she’d still be too keyed-up to find out.

But Jamie is sliding back up the bed, hand rubbing soft, testing circles between Dani’s legs, and yes--she thinks she’s starting to understand at last.

She kisses Jamie hard, without care of how she looks or being even the least bit smooth, her own hand fumbling toward the zipper of Jamie’s jeans. No time like the present, she thinks with a truly unexpected delight, pleased when Jamie spreads her legs and shifts her hips to help her ease between cloth and skin.

“Right for it,” Jamie pants in surprise, and Dani is too invested to feel embarrassed. Jamie is soft under her hand, wet, hips jerking to match her clumsy movements. She closes her eyes, concentrates on trying to mirror what Jamie’s doing with her own considerably more nimble fingers. Tries to match her in slow, gentle pressure--then a little faster, as Jamie sucks breath through her teeth--and faster yet, when Jamie presses up in a way she doesn’t fully expect.

She doesn’t even realize she’s losing control until she’s already halfway gone, her hand tripping and fumbling as Jamie uses two fingers and a series of quick, rhythmic motions to set a pace Dani can’t help but follow with her hips. She realizes she’s rolling onto her back, arching, making noises she’s never heard from her own lips, and Jamie rolls to follow, kissing those noises into muffled joy.

Jamie rides out the spasms with her, keeping her hand exactly where it is, slowing to a gentle rest of fingertips against ruined underwear. Dani’s vaguely aware her own hand is still down Jamie’s pants, no longer moving. She exhales.

“I--”

“S’all good,” Jamie says, her smile edged with something Dani thinks looks rather smug. “First time. Takes practice.”

***

It doesn’t surprise her, Dani falling asleep soon after. There were some mumbling sounds about reciprocation, about fairness, about wanting to feel Jamie twitch and groan under her fingers--but Jamie, jeans unzipped, feeling rather good about herself, only pulled her in close. Kissed her slowly. Let her fade into a gentle doze against Jamie’s shoulder.

Good, Jamie thinks, though her skin is buzzing and there is an ache she hasn’t felt in a long time low in her belly. Rest, Poppins. There’s always tomorrow.

If pressed, she couldn’t say why she feels such pride, such easy pleasure, watching the way Dani sinks into sleep in her arms. Maybe because Dani hasn’t looked like someone with the benefit of a good night’s sleep since Jamie met her. Maybe simply because Dani feels perfectly safe, perfectly notched against Jamie in this small bed.

Either way, it feels right, Dani’s warm breath spilling across her bare skin. It feels right, even in this dumpy little flat above the only pub in Bly, though Dani is surely too good for a place like this.

Maybe not for someone like me, though, Jamie thinks blearily, too pleased and too tired to pile upon that idea the weight of a lifetime not being good enough. Past doesn’t matter, not with Dani. It’s different, with Dani.

She drifts. Tomorrow, they’ll wake to sunlight streaming through thin curtains, and maybe Dani will be a little embarrassed about everything they’ve done--maybe she’ll want to talk about it, or want to pretend it never happened, and Jamie will figure out how to handle the pain of that then.

She falls asleep thinking this is possible--but somehow knowing it isn’t likely. Isn't Dani. It’s too early to know a thing like that, but all the same, Jamie is pretty certain there will be no mortified scramble for clothes, no pushing her aside as Dani runs for the door, no awkward small talk on the ride back to the house.

She does not anticipate, upon waking, Dani kissing her cheek. Kissing the corner of her lips. Kissing her neck and murmuring, “Morning...” with a question on the end of the word Jamie can’t help but laugh at before she’s even fully awake.

“First thing, huh?”

Dani smiles at her, the smile of a woman who selected this very date venue not out of any polite curiosity about a small village pub, but because this particular bed existed above it. “Takes practice, you said.”

Jamie inhales sharply as a hand cups very lightly against the front of jeans that feel entirely irrelevant. “I did. Yeah. I definitely did.”

#the haunting of bly manor #the haunting of bly manor spoilers #fanfiction #dani x jamie #jame x dani #all right all right something happy for once #for all the many anons who've been asking for the pub date #knew I'd get around to it eventually

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that-sw-writer · 4 years

Text

Empress for the Evening III

PART ONE, TWO

MASTERLIST

Note: Long time coming but here it is, I can’t tell if I love it or hate it... But this is the final part.

Summary: A whirlwind cycle passes, and now as the wife of Kylo Ren you have to make your most nerve-wracking gala appearance yet.

You’re a threat to many others who envy your position, and the rumours flying around about your relationship don’t help your stress as you prepare for the gala.

Chaos is bound to ensue.

Word count: 5517

"Please, be seated." You addressed your court as you made your way to your throne at the head of the table.

Your advisors sit as instructed to do so. Only two rotations ago you had been aboard the Finalizer, and the Supreme Leader had offered you his hand in marriage. Until now only you and Kylo knew about the engagement, he had been very considerate of your political situation and insisted that he would not mention anything to the First Order until you had told your own advisors.

Not even your closest confidants knew - and keeping such big news secret from them had been painfully difficult.

"Your Majesty, since your appearance at the gala we've received a number of messages from allied planets."

"I dread to think..." You waved your hand, motioning for them to proceed and inform you about what you were going to assume was nothing short of hate mail.

"I hate to approach the situation again, but some of them have withdrawn their proposals of marriage and suggested new suitors who they believe will be, um- more to your standard." Your chief advisor spoke, and the whole court looked rather nervous. They were used to you harshly shutting down any talks of marriage.

You knew they were simply delivering the messages, and it didn't surprise you that your associates from the gala were now suggesting different suitors - you would have been foolish to think that they would let it go just because you insulted them. Your planet's economy was booming, and the opportunity of a young, unmarried queen was priceless.

"You can decline all proposals." You began, taking a deep breath before finally letting out the secret that had been eating away at you, "I have already accepted one."

Mutters rose up from your court, and you allowed them to make their comments of surprise before raising your hand to silence them. They all rightfully had plenty of questions, so you answered them all before they could ask them.

"At the Gala Supreme Leader Ren asked for my hand in marriage, and I accepted." You tried to ignore the smile that threatened to break out on your face as you recalled the heated moment he had asked you to marry him.

"The Supreme Leader?" Jafan, the chief advisor, questioned in sheer disbelief. He was a trustworthy, honest man. He had spent years serving under your father and he had been nothing but a close ally to you since you had taken the throne.

"Yes. I know it seems unbelievable, and truly I'm still trying to wrap my own head around it, but I accepted nevertheless - it's what I want." You wanted to make it abundantly clear that you had chosen this, it wasn't for political gain, that was just an added bonus.

Your entire court seemed content with this response, and they all waited for Jafan to speak again on their behalf.

"Congratulations your Majesty, we can begin preparations for your wedding as soon as you wish." He smiled at you, and you returned it.

"I'll contact Supreme Leader Ren shortly and we can choose a date." You confirmed.

From there the meeting largely consisted of minor issues, as they always did. Morale amongst the workers in the steel factories was higher than ever, and production rates were still soaring - that was something you were determined to not let slip once you became Empress as well as Queen.

When you dismissed everyone after the meeting Jafan rushed after you, "my Queen!" He called, and you stopped to allow him to catch up to you.

"What can I do for you Jafan?" You politely asked him as he came to walk by your side.

"About the marriage, your Majesty. I wanted to extend my personal congratulations again, but I just-" He cut himself off, clearly unsure of how to word what he wanted to say without coming across as insubordinate.

"You have concerns, I understand." You softly told him. It was clearly going to be a big adjustment, and Jafan was simply doing his job by bringing the issues to your attention, you appreciated that.

"A marriage to the Supreme Leader will come hand in hand with plenty of benefits for us, but equally my concern lies with you needing to take on so many new responsibilities if you are to rule the First Order alongside him." Jafan was right to have these concerns, they were ones that had already crossed your mind.

"I thought about this. I won't abandon my planet or its people by any means, but I will be spending more time off-world, and in my stead I was going to ask you to chair meetings and be the acting head of state. I can easily stay in contact with you and I still intend to be here regularly." You confirmed. It was something you had given a lot of thought to. Jafan was someone you trusted, and he had more than proved himself through his years of experience and sound guidance he had offered you in your time as Queen.

"Queen Y/N, you honour me. Thank you." He stopped to bow before you, and you nodded in appreciation.

"I know you won't let me down Jafan." You smiled at him, and at this bid him farewell. You were itching to tell you handmaidens about the news, they hadn't stopped pestering you about what had happened at the Gala, and they knew you were keeping something from them - now you could finally tell them.

When you entered your chambers the three ladies were all sat on your bed awaiting your arrival, and they burst out into smiles when they saw you, rising to greet you properly.

"How was the meeting your Majesty?" Flora asked.

"Don't get up ladies, honestly." You waved your hand in dismissal, and they all sat back down the the bed with you joining them. "The meeting was eventful. I actually have something I've been dying to tell you all!"

They all looked at you, curious, but equally excited. They knew some good news had been coming, and finally you were able to share it.

"Supreme Leader Ren asked for my hand in marriage, and I accepted!" You excitedly told them all, finally allowing yourself to finally relax revel in the joy of the news rather than worry about the details.

The three women did nothing short of squealing like school-girls, but you were thrilled that they were happy for you.

"You two will be perfect together!" Kira exclaimed, having allowed the other women to offer their congratulations, they had known how fond you had been of him.

Kira wasn't wrong either, weeks passed and Kylo had made regular visits to your planet. He was invested in the wedding plans but left a lot of it up you, he had no finesse for organising these sorts of events, and you seemed to be in your element.

The big day flew by. The ceremony and following reception had been held planet-side, and you had been sure to keep it a rather quiet affair; despite the whole galaxy probably knowing of your marriage you were still inclined to keep nosy the representatives from other planets away from you.

From there you fell into a routine where you would spend four rotations aboard the Finalizer with your husband and the remaining three back home. It was a lot to juggle sometimes, but you wouldn't have changed it for the world.

The cycle passed in a flash, and in that time you and Kylo had grown ever closer. You knew of his past life as Ben Solo, you knew all of his fears and aspirations, and it all just made you love him more.

Meanwhile watching you rule so successfully not only as a Queen, but also as an Empress made Kylo fall for you more than he ever imagined possible. You had a mutual respect for one another, and you had easily cemented your place in the First Order.

However you seemed to never be far from scrutiny. For every day stolen away with your husband where he would whisk you off for a night spent away on a different planet, there seemed to be a new rumour circulating about your relationship.

It didn't bother you, you actually never involved yourself in such trivial matters. But it did unnerve you slightly to think about how many people working alongside you had heard these rumours, and namely how many people actually believed them.

Not only that but you didn't always feel safe around these people, you threatened their pride as Empress. You didn't doubt that Kylo would fiercely protect you through anything, but all it would take is for him to turn his back at the wrong second. It seemed to be an irrational fear, but you had turned down everyone in exchange for the most powerful man in the galaxy, and to outsiders it looked like a shady political move when really it was much more simple than that. Perhaps you were overthinking it, but you didn't trust any of the people you had previously associated yourself with to try something to remove you from the picture.

These thoughts were at the back of your mind as you prepared for the annual First Order Gala. Your handmaidens aboard the Finalzer could never compare to your closest confidants back on your home planet - they weren't nearly as chatty, but you couldn't deny that they still did an impeccable job of making you look like an Empress.

Your dress this year was one to fit your new title - there was no blending into the crowd anymore. The dress itself was black and strapless, leaving your shoulders bare. It was tailored to your waist and hit the floor, and it was embellished with luxurious stones boasting the smallest hints of red on the bodice and around your chest, the embellishments becoming more sparse further down the garment. However, the clear standout piece of this outfit was the flowing cape attached to the top of the dress just below your shoulders. It flowed to the ground and had a short train - the cape was equally embellished with stones which boasted eye catching red colours when they hit the light.

Your hair was set in loose curls, and styled to be pushed away from your face - it was held back by a lavish crown which was embedded into your hair, it was subtle but effectively asserted your position. The dark colours matched your dress, and your makeup was also darker than you would usually wear. But that was to be expected, you were the Empress of the First Order now, and they had a certain dark aesthetic you had to adopt at these functions.

"Thank you ladies." You stood before the mirror, giving your handmaidens a cordial nod. They muttered their pleasantries before you dismissed them - perhaps you would never have a good relationship with them, they were afraid to speak freely in case they put a foot out of line, a fear your ladies back home were free of.

Now alone in the large quarters you shared with Kylo you smoothed down your skirt and inhaled a deep breath - this cycle you truly had nothing to look forward to. Previously you had been excited at the prospect of seeing the Supreme Leader again, but now you were married to him, you could see him whenever you wanted.

As you thought of your husband, you were led to wonder where he was. Sure you could turn up to your own gala fashionably late, but you were pushing it for time now and you hadn't seen Kylo since your handmaidens had first arrived to begin getting you ready.

He sauntered through the doors right on cue, and you turned to face him with a grin on your face as you took in his appearance. He was wearing the same tunic he wore every year, and most days you now knew, but tonight is was accessorised by a black cape. It was not dissimilar to the one you wore, but rather than being covered in lavish stones and crystals his was adorned by a red lining - you looked subtly coordinated.

"You look incredible." He quietly exhaled as he approached you, his arms wrapping around your waist, "I can't wait to take it off you later." He then said as a raspy whisper in your ear, causing heat to briefly flood your body at the thought.

"At least I have something to look forward to." You smirked, pressing a short kiss to his lips.

"Mhm, I agree." Kylo reluctantly pulled away from you and traded his arms around your waist for linking his arm with yours.

He lead you out of your quarters. Both of you still hated these events, and now that you were married to the Supreme Leader you didn't have the exhilaration of wondering if Kylo Ren would talk to you, or kiss you - you didn't need a gala for any of that anymore.

Many of the rumours flying around concerned your personal lives, and they were just designed to make you feel uneasy in your position - but it wasn't that easy. People made many assumptions about your relationship with Kylo, but they didn't know who he really was. All they saw was his hard exterior and aptitude for violence, not the caring man he was behind closed doors who you had come to love.

When you approached the entrance you had entered the gala from every other year you wished you could have done the same that evening. It was so much easier to just slip in the back and have nobody notice you, you weren't ready to have all eyes and judgement on you.

"You'll be fine." Kylo quietly reassured you as you arrived at the blast doors he walked through every year. He had naturally taken to reading your emotions in situations - he didn't even do it on purpose most of the time.

"The last two cycles I've insulted your guests, this year they're our guests which doesn't bode well for me if I'm rude to them again." You nervously laughed. You couldn't stand being belittled by sleazy politicians, which is why you had lashed out so easily at them, but you feared you needed to be on your best behaviour now.

"They're our guests, but you're my Empress. If anyone disrespects you I could have them killed." Kylo spoke almost as if he were challenging someone to test his words, and you didn't doubt that he meant what he had said.

"Please all be upstanding for Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, and Empress Y/N Y/L/N." You heard the voice echo from inside, and just as you inhaled a deep breath the blast doors flew open, applause ringing out through the room.

Kylo led you down the staircase. Both of your expressions made you look as though you were above the whole event, and in truth you were - you'd rather have been in bed with your husband.

"Later." He quietly whispered to you with a smirk, and your cheeks flushed. You tended to accidentally project your thoughts to him - you had no idea how to stop doing it honestly.

You reached the bottom of the staircase, and didn't know where to begin. Usually you would have been busy pretending to interested in whatever gossip other guests were indulging in

Following Kylo's lead, you spent a long time going round from group to group to exchange pleasantries with your guests and thank them for their loyalty to the First Order. You constantly had a polite smile on your face as you gave your thanks for their compliments regarding your appearance and congratulations on your marriage. All in all things weren't going as badly as you had anticipated.

Eventually you spotted Jafan in the crowd, socialising amongst other representatives. You were impressed at how natural he looked in his role, but he was so experienced in politics and leadership that you weren't surprised, he had done you proud as acting head of state.

"I'm just going to see Jafan." You told Kylo who nodded at you and released your arm from his. He didn't generally show much affection in public, and you couldn't blame him, he had a tough and unbreakable exterior he needed to portray and he didn't want to seem as though you were a weakness to him.

"I'll come and find you." He replied, and you politely excused yourself from the group you and your husband had been addressing and quickly turned tail to walk towards Jafan.

"Your Majesty!" He exclaimed, a wide grin on his face as he bowed to you, and you smiled back at him. Whilst the First Order insisted everybody address you as Empress, your chief advisor was the exception to this rule - he had known you since you were a young Princess.

"It's good to see you Jafan, you look well." You nodded and he expressed his gratitude for your compliment.

"If I might be so bold I have never seen you look more beautiful, my Queen." He returned the compliment and you thanked him.

"How are you finding the experience? You seem to be better at it than I ever was." You joked, and he responded with a short chuckle.

"It's just good business your Majesty, I could think of many places I would rather be." He shook his head, and you appreciated that more than he could know. These events were the highlight of some people's cycles, but they weren't for everyone.

Before you could respond a shadow was cast over you both by the approaching Chancellor of Vardos, whose name you now knew was Darro Bernand - after your previous debacle with him and his entourage you had made a conscious effort to do some research on the man.

"Jafan, how refreshing to see you here!" Darro exclaimed, eagerly shaking his hand before eventually turning to you, "And Queen Y/N, always a pleasure."

Not only had he addressed you second and made a backhanded comment suggesting that he would rather have seen Jafan representing your planet than its own Queen, but he purposely used your wrong title. With other people you would have brushed it off as a simple mistake, but not Darro, he was an exceptionally bitter individual.

"That's Empress, Chancellor Bernand." You put on your cordial smile, speaking in as soft a tone as you could muster, "And on behalf of myself and my husband I'd like to thank you for your attendance and continued loyalty to the First Order." You went through the motions, you were determined to not allow yourself to become aggressive towards belligerence, you were better than that now.

"My apologies, of course Empress." He gave a clearly fake smile, "Congratulations on the marriage, you certainly have come a long way." There was a nasty undertone to his words, and you weren't surprised.

"If you'll excuse me Chancellor." You nodded, wanting to reunite with Kylo before you kick Darro between the legs. "I'll see you later Jafan, if you need anything let me know." You genuinely smiled at him before turning to walk away.

"Actually Empress," Darro called, rushing to walk alongside you, "I had actually hoped to apologise to you."

You stopped at this and turned to face him, confusion plastered across your face as you waited for him to speak.

"My behaviour towards you last gala was inappropriate , and I want you to accept my humble apology for being so abrasive." He seemed strangely genuine, but you didn't believe it for a second. Nevertheless you responded accordingly.

"I appreciate and accept your apology Chancellor, please enjoy yourself this evening." You attempted to continue walking away, but he placed his hand on your arm to keep your attention on him.

"Thank you for your forgiveness, I wish you a happy life with Supreme Leader Ren. I'm sure it hasn't been an easy adjustment for you." There was a sub-message in those words, and you wanted to ignore it and move on, but you had to know.

"What's that supposed to mean?" You questioned him.

"I just imagine having to split yourself between your home and this ship isn't where you pictured yourself back when you were a princess. I suppose you did what was best for your planet's political position, but I hope you didn't compromise on your happiness."

You were seething, and it was taking everything in your power not to have his tongue ripped from his mouth, "Not that it's any of your business but if I was going to marry for political gain I would have chosen a suitor from another planet long ago, I married my husband because he makes me happy and for no other reason." You had no duty to tell him any of this, but you were fed up of these rumours circulating.

"You don't have to lie Empress, everybody knows that the Supreme Leader is an aggressive man - and with no pregnancy? We could only assume that you were delaying the inevitable." His voice was no longer masking the venom behind his words, he was just a spiteful man.

"Speak to me like that again and I'll-" As you spoke you were raising your hand to strike it across the Chancellor's insufferable face but before you reached it there was a deafening explosion towards the far end of the room, causing you to instinctively stumble back a few steps.

"Y/N!" You heard a voice calling you in the distance, "Y/N where are you?" It was Kylo, he was shoving his way through the crowds to find you.

You turned around to get his attention, but stopped in your tracks when you felt the barrel of a blaster being jabbed into your back and the voice of the Chancellor whispering in your ear, "Don't say a word or I'll pull the trigger right now. We're leaving." His voice made your skin crawl, but you moved with him since it was that or die on the spot.

Somehow you assumed you were going to die either way, but if you delayed the inevitable you had a better chance of survival, that was at least what you told yourself in that moment when panic was flooding your veins.

Whilst everyone else in the room was still revelling in the shock of the explosion Darro pushed you towards the exit in a hurry. The explosion hadn't been huge, and it conveniently didn't seemed to have injured anyone - it was clearly a setup, perhaps you had been right to not feel safe around all these people who clearly loathed you.

"Why are you doing this?" You hissed, "I'm the Empress of the First Order, we'll have you killed for this."

"No, what you are is a just a girl meddling in matters she doesn't understand. You think we don't see through your naive princess routine? You married the most dangerous man in the galaxy to prove a point, and to make sure your pathetic little planet stays protected. Nobody in their right mind would marry a man like Kylo Ren for any other reason." He spat these words to you in a hushed tone and you were shoved out into the corridor.

To your dismay the Stormtroopers who should have been patrolling the corridors were missing. "So now what, you kill me? What good will that do any of you?" You scoffed, assuming that the Chancellor was not working alone - presumably he had allied himself with his associates from the previous cycle's gala.

"With you gone your planet's economy will be in open season, giving the rest of us a chance to win favour with the First Order for once and we won't have to jump into bed with Kylo Ren to do so." He snapped, and you were convinced he was ushering you to the hanger to make an escape. It was clever really, killing you aboard the Finalizer was a surefire way to get caught.

"That's just as well, because you're not really his type." You scoffed. If you were going to die then you certainly won't going to give the Chancellor or any of his associates the satisfaction of seeing you crumble - you just had to find a way to escape before he got you to the hanger.

You knew that Kylo would be searching for you, the biggest downfall of this scheme was that they overlooked your relationship with Kylo. They thought you were pushed into it, that he didn't care for you - their plan relied on the basis that Kylo wouldn't be concerning himself with your disappearance.

As that crossed your mind you remembered that you constantly subconsciously projected your thoughts to your husband, if you could somehow communicate to him that you were on your way to the hanger then he could beat the Chancellor there.

The hanger. You thought as you imagined it in your mind, painting as real of a picture as you could. Perhaps this was hopeless but it was the best idea you had.

When you rounded the corner you were met with another blaster being jabbed in your face, and you scowled at the woman holding it - the irony is you didn't even recognise her. There were people involved in this plot whom you had never interacted with. You knew becoming Empress would paint a target on your back but this was truly extraordinary.

"Your chariot awaits, Empress." The woman snidely remarked, before flanking you alongside Darro as you finished the last leg of your journey to the hanger.

"Now as far as anyone will ever know, you unfortunately died in an explosion at the gala - a tragic plot by the Resistance." The Chancellor let out a cunning laugh in your ear.

"So you used the gala as cover... This must have taken more planning than I'm worth." You scoffed.

"Oh you have no idea just how much you're worth dear Empress." He leaned forward and whispered directly into your ear, making your toes curl.

"You're disgusting." You spat back at him, but were just met with a harsh jab from the blaster by your spine, causing you to stumble forward a few steps as you entered the hanger.

Please my love, find me. You willed it a final time, praying to the Maker that Kylo could hear you wherever he was.

The blast doors flew open and you were pushed inside, immediately spotting a ship waiting to depart with two pilots visible through the cockpit viewpoint - you wondered how many people were involved in this scheme.

"So you kill me, claim my planet's economy and win the First Order's favour? You think it'll be that easy?" You thought the longer you could keep him talking, the more time you would buy yourself.

"You have no idea how long we have spent planning this. Nobody will be suspicious of your death, and with no heir? We will have no trouble-" Darro's snide words were interrupted by a sight which made your face light up.

"Step away from my wife." Kylo spoke in a slow growl as he approached from the side entrance to the hanger with a handful of Stormtroopers, facing you and your two would-be-murderers head on. His face was contoured by rage, and it was a look you recognised well, usually you would watch him slash at walls with his Lightsaber. But something told you he was about to take his anger out at the people pointing blasters at you, and you weren't complaining.

The only immediate problem was that his Lightsaber was sitting back in your quarters, but he had compromised by swiping a blaster on his way into the room. Relief was washing over your body despite the fact that you were still in immediate danger, you trusted him unconditionally.

"Stay back!" Darro exclaimed, suddenly behaving like a trapped animal. One of his hands wrapped around your neck whilst the other thrust the blaster into your temple.

Kylo took this vicious movement as an opportunity to fire a blaster bolt at the women who had been accompanying you, it struck her shoulder and as she moved to grasp the wound she was tackled to the ground by a Stormtrooper and quickly restrained.

"I won't tell you again." Kylo warned, taking cautious steps towards you with his blaster raised. He was struggling to get a good aim as Darrio was using your body to shield his own entirely.

"I'll shoot her, don't think I won't!" Darro's grip on your neck was tightening, and it was becoming uncomfortable. It was obvious that he never anticipated this plan to go wrong, and this was one eventually he hadn't prepared for.

Kylo's eyes met your own, "do you trust me?" He asked, as if ignoring everyone else in the room in that moment.

"Always." You quietly exhaled, knowing what he was planning on doing.

You took a deep breath and braced yourself for the impact that was to come. Kylo threw a hand forward and sent a blast through the Force which sent you and Darro flying off your feet.

The impact was largely cushioned by your captor's body, but Kylo's move had successfully released Darro's grip on you and before he could recover you were scrambling to your feet whilst the Stormtroopers rushed over to restrain him and confiscate his weapon.

With wisps of your hair now falling into your face you pulled yourself to your feet and turned to your husband, out of breath from the entire ordeal. Kylo's eyes met yours and he wasted no time in rushing towards you to pull you into his arms, squeezing your body so tightly he could have crushed you.

"I'm sorry, I should never have left you." He buried his face in your hair, and your arms snaked under his arms to link behind his back.

"Don't do that." You softly told him, "you have nothing to apologise for, this wasn't your fault." Your words were slightly muffled by your face being pressed so tightly to his chest.

Eventually he released you and held you at arms length, "I'm never going to let you get hurt again." He determined, and you knew there was no point in fighting him over it.

"Supreme Leader, what shall we do with them?" A Stromtrooper asked, having rounded up those who were also aboard the ship which had been destined for your escape.

"Take them all to the bridge, I'll handle them personally." His voice deepened, darkness having flooded his eyes at the thought of how he would punish those who dared to kill his wife.

Darro in particular had lost all sense of decency and innocence. As he was dragged away he yelled, "this isn't over! You think he can protect you forever? One day he'll grow bored of you and that will be your downfall!" His digs were contradictory to the evidence he had seen that night. If his analysis of yours and Kylo's relationship had been correct then no doubt he would have succeeded in kidnapping and subsequently killing you - but you had proven him wrong.

Just by looking at Kylo's face you could tell he was on the verge of killing them all right there and then, so you reached up and gently placed a hand on his face to have him face you again.

"We will have our revenge." You assured him, "But for now I'd just like my bed." You admitted, the events of the evening having caught up with you.

"Do you not need the Med Bay? I could get a medical droid of come to our quarters and food-" Kylo was gushing, but you placed a finger to his lips.

"Kylo, my love, I'm fine. I wouldn't be here without you - they underestimated our relationship and if they hadn't perhaps things would not have gone so fortunately. But you saved me, and now they will suffer the consequences." You reassured him that you were okay, and he went silent for a moment.

"I love you." He finally said. He didn't know what else to say, he was so blown away by how you had handled such a traumatic experience with such grace that somehow he found himself loving you even more - which he hadn't thought would be possible.

"I love you too." You told him, leaning in to softly kiss his lips for a few moments. When you pulled away you opened you mouth to speak, but shut it, prompting Kylo to speak instead.

"What? You were going to say something." He raised an eyebrow, arms securing themselves around your waist. At this stage he didn't care who saw the two of you showing such affection in public.

"It's just-" You tried to think of the polite way to say it, but you soon realised that in some scenarios being direct was the best option, "We're never having one of these fucking galas again." You concluded, earning a short laugh from your adorning husband.

"You won't hear me complaining." He mumbled, already capturing your lips in another kiss.

#kylo ren x reader #kylo ren #kylo ren imagine #kylo ren x you #kylo ren x y/n #kylo x reader #kylo x you #kylo x y/n

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butterfly-winx · 4 years

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Next baybee, is Mirta Wingert, in her pink punk barbie Enchantix, glow-ing!

In this AU, she is the Fairy of Emotional Illusions and very, very gay. Let’s hear the rest below! 😁

Mirta is the same age as the Winx, but through her mid-year transfer to Alfea that only got finalised after the Trix’s megalomaniac attack had been dealt with, she repeated a year and graduated while the girls were away in Gardenia.

Mirta is from an influential family in Magics that has brought forth many a council member, industrial and landowner. All of them witchcraft users, though. When Mirta manifested with magic it was not a question which stream she would pursue and that she would do it at one of the top schools of the Magic Universe. Mirta’s parents don’t immediately belong to the creme de la creme, but have enough influence to make things like this happen for their daughter.

Being part of the upper class industrialists, but at the same time being removed enough from them to allow independent thought shaped Mirta’s personality greatly and contributed to her explosive rebellious teen stage. She wholeheartedly believes in what the punk anti-capitalist philosophy stands for and has alternately tried either to change her family’s ways from within, or to break away and distance herself. Her generous allowance was always spent on local youth groups, anti-discrimination organisations and personal drives for people in need. Many a times had her parents have to drag her off the streets where she chilled with punk buskers and their dogs before they could set an end to it by sending Mirta off to Cloud Tower.

Could Tower, now that was something else. Despite growing up in a family of witchcraft users, her home was still just basic, good old Adquistes. She has never lived in an exclusively witchcraft using society like the Cloud Tower coven, so a lot of things came as a culture shock to her. The school preserved a lot of things that modern witches in an integrated society don’t observe anymore, just for the sake of teaching history. Not all of it became Mirta, especially not the antagonism towards the fairies. Her heart is huge and as a true punk she stood up to the system and what she believed was not right. This didn’t make her many friends among the hard-core traditionalist witch*ers and combined with her very short statue, got her pushed around a lot.

Her only comfort and friend was Lucy, a childhood friend of hers. They met in an LGBT youth shelter organised event where Lucy had been tentatively seeking help for transitioning. Mirta was there to volunteer and the two girls hit off really well complaining about the world and uplifting each other where they could. After that they stayed online friends and talked on various forums, not having much of a face-to face relationship before becoming dorm mates at Cloud Tower. There it became obvious that some of their attitudes towards life and witchcraft were very different.

Mainly the Trix, they argued about them incessantly before Mirta left. Despite their horrible treatment of her, Lucy saw an opportunity in staying in the good graces of the Trix, as there weren’t many career opportunities open to witches at the time, so she thought it would make more sense to conform to the stereotypes. She was tired of fighting just to be recognised as a girl, why add to that plate? Mirta empathised with that to some extent, but she had unwavering faith in that she could do good, and she would do good regardless of what people thought of her magic stream. She decided to start that by passing on what she knows about the Trix’s doing in and out of school to the Winx. They met at the start of the year at the school’s joint ball that very few witch*ers actually showed up to. Flora immediately swept Mirta under her wing and the five girls frequently invited her to hang out. Mirta knew how the Trix have made Bloom’s life hell and wanted to help out to give the girls an upper hand. Until then she had been under the impression that their antagonism was nothing more than bulling, but the Trix pretty openly discussed ripping stuff from Bloom’s chest, so she felt they needed to know and warn teachers. Not Cloud Tower teachers though, them Mirta didn’t trust. She was discovered sneaking out and the Trix cast an advanced spell on her turning her into a pumpkin.

Flora and Miss Faragonda cared for her while she was in that form at least for a few weeks before Faragonda was able to turn her back using her fairy dust. After reporting what she had intended to, which has by then become outdated, Mirta was hesitant to return to Cloud Tower. For one because of the Trix and the bullying, but also because of how she and Lucy had broken off. By that point Mirta had been nursing a giant crush on her friend and their angry parting words to each other broke her heart. While at Alfea she learned more about fey magic from the Winx basically by osmosis. She even had success with a few basic spells that absolutely amazed her. She was never the best student and she had to work so hard to keep up with witchcraft. This in comparison was a piece of cake. Faragonda then sneakily slid her a transfer slip before sending her home to her family in Adquistes. It took some convincing for them to come around to the idea of Mirta being a fairy, but Mirta was allowed a trial period which she aced with stellar notes, much to her parents’ surprise. She became a full time student the next semester, starting fresh with a new leaf.

She fell out of tune with the Winx a little bit after that, as their curriculum diverged greatly and they had each their own social circles to stay involved in. Tough a bit distrustful of her at first, Mirta’s room and classmates turned out to be good sport and she often hung out with them even after graduation. Mirta patched things up with Lucy eventually, both of them overcoming their shame over what had happened. As Mirta continued her work trying to bring the two schools together, their relationship seemed to grow even closer than it had been before and Mirta flirted with the idea of flirting with Lucy, before inevitably chickening out of it every time too afraid to ruin what they had. The year was over before they knew it and Lucy and Mirta went on their first sort of date at the end of the year ball. It was sweet and sapphic and filled Mirta with hope for the future. Then of course Valtor struck and everything went to shit.

When Valtor and the Trix took over Cloud Tower, Mirta was ready to bang down the Winx’s door just as they were coming to her to do the same. Inspecting the castle they of course stumbled into the monsters left for them and the brain-washed Lucy. Mirta was horrified, but no matter what she did, she couldn’t free her from the trance. Lucy herself seemed to resist the pull though and her eyes clear, momentarily looking at Mirta. Later, when the horror was over and Valtor had been defeated, Lucy shared that hearing Mirta’s voice cut through to her and made her fight against Valtor’s control. She felt like she had to come back to Mirta, to see her, to fight for her. There was only so much a girl’s heart could handle and before she knew it, Mirta was kissing Lucy. Lucy broke an incredibly powerful witcher’s spell on her because she loved Mirta so much, how could she not? How could she not love her back? They laughed it out telling each other about all their insecurities and pining, thinking the other didn’t feel the same and decided to go on a lot of dates to make up for that.

In the S6 AU timeline, she is settled in Magics City with Lucy, who is pursuing further magic education at Cloud Tower as a teacher assistant, ready to get her Master Witch exam and become a potions teacher. Mirta is therefore at the front line when Lucy’s voice message comes in telling her that the Trix have returned to Cloud Tower with a strange new witch and something about them being different. More sharp and dangerous. Mirta spends the rest of that story arc trying to free Lucy, then survive in a hostile witch infested Cloud Tower after she becomes trapped in there. (wink a good ending is in sight for her however)

Magic wise she is definitely competent, though not as battle hardened as the Winx. She gained her Enchantix in a very characteristically her situation. During the time of the reawakening of magic on Earth Magics was also experiencing unrest with a lot of people protesting how Magics planned to handle the situation, leaving Earth magic users to their own devices once again. Counterprotesters crashed the scene and escalated the violence, endangering bystanders and protesters alike. Mirta stood her ground way before peace keepers responded and her initiative saved a lot of people, triggering her Enchantix. With emotional illusions she could pacify people for the time being and allowed for vulnerable people to scurry away. Mirta’s powers don’t change someone’s heart like Believix powers do (though after she hears what Believix can do, she becomes keenly interested in it), however it overlays an overpowering layer of what Mirta wants them to feel in the moment. If her concentration fades, so will the feeling. In that way, her power is actually very similar to Darcy’s psychic illusions. Using witchcraft with this aspect always made Mirta feel predatory, offering power bearing items in order to control someone else’s emotions. With fey magic, it is more like she extends what she feels into the mind of other people. All her spells turn out stronger if she herself is feeling the emotion and has an immediate reference to draw on what it feels like to experience it. Unconsciously she sometimes spreads her stress or dread, which took Lucy a while to figure out after they moved together. Now she isn’t as freaked by it and just tuts when she recognises that the jaw-clenching stress isn’t actually her own. Mirta is working on it, she swears! The two of them then cuddle it out, though they always look for excuses to spend the day on the couch, so that doesn’t say a lot. :)

I have a lot of love and plans for Mirta, I think this has been going on for a while. All of this is also poured into my S6 AU, which is a “coming soon” kind of project atm.

#winx club #winx redesign #winx mirta #locally sourced art #punk fairy

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ladyloveandjustice · 3 years

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The Westing Game Chapter 12

The First Bomb

That’s right, it was a bomb that interrupted the meeting last time! Specifically, the Theodorakis kitchen has been bombed- but Mr. and Mrs T. are okay, it’s just some exploded tomato sauce cans and minor damage. They do need to close for a couple days, though

Obviously Mr. Hoo would be the prime suspect for this- he’s their competition, he makes NO secret how resentful he is about how well they do in comparison to his restaurant, and he immediately is very bad at concealing his delight at the situation. However, he’s SO obvious (Doug even notices how his dad is coming off and tries to cover for him) I can’t help but think he’s a red herring. Maybe the first bomb is intentionally trying to make it look like it was him. A second bomb might help us figure out the motive a little better, and this chapter title DOES imply a second will come. (OOH WHAT IF ONE OF THE THEODORAKIS BOMBED THEMSELVES. Theo did call everyone here...)

The sparks of the bomb being red and purple seems significant- purple waves? The red white and blue? Who knows.

(It would be really fantastic if it was Grace though. She’s the one who immediately wants to decorate after all. The idea of her crafting a bomb clashes so much which everything about her it’s just delightful.)

On the other hand, Alice laughs at the idea of her mother being the burglar, which makes me wonder if she is (Sydelle also strikes me as a potential suspect, maybe she started stealing people’s shit in revenge for being ignored and her notebook(. We also learn that Angela thinks “Turtle’s crutch is her braid”. In this context, it’s “crutch the get attention”- Alice’s braiding is the only time she really gets with her mother paying attention to her (and now she’s turning to Flora for that), a way she can get a second of closeness without openly asking for it. And maybe she enjoys the fact people are prone to tugging on her braid, it is after all, them noticing her. And a great excuse to establish a relationship through a good shin kickin’.

From Ford’s investigation, we also learn that George Theodorakis was Westing’s daughter’s escort at a party twenty years ago (is that why Westing’s going after his KIDS specifically? Because George was involved with HIS child? Did he have anything to do with her drowning?

She doesn’t find any other connections besides the ones we know. However, she is surprised when she looks up a PI- “was it a coincidence or dumb luck? Or was she playing right into Westing’s hand?”- and she recognizes the voice when she dials the number. So the PI is someone she’s met, and probably someone WE’VE met. Could it be the person Northup invited by “mistake?” (which was said to be one of the sixteen residents, so not Otis, Crow, or Sandy). Intentionally here to disrupt Westing’s plans? It would be hard for anyone with a family to pull that off,, so that leaves Sydelle or Flora. I’d love it to be Flora. MAKING CLOTHES AND CRACKIN’ CASES.

(Come to think of it, the mistake might also be Mrs. Hoo. Did Westing know Mr. Hoo had remarried? What if SHE has a secret agenda?)

Or maybe I’m completely off the mark and the PI is not the mistake- they could just be a coincidence or deliberately invited by Westing to shake things up, as Ford thinks. In which case it could be Otis or Sandy! OR Northup OR someone unrelated. Anything could happen from here on out, honestly, but whatever it is I’m sure it’ll be a blast.

#nev reads the westing game #this post is so useless lmao im just like I SUSPECT EVERYONE

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dazais-guardian-angel · 4 years

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Time for my feels dump thoughts on Diabolical Box...! y’all, this game. this game. I don’t think people give it enough credit for... a lot of what it does, despite the messiness of the plot reveals... but it’s so special and unique, in ways I’m only now appreciating. also this is gonna be really REALLY fucking long I am so sorry, but I have a Lot to say about the ending parts... i just love this game so much...... so i wrote a fucking novel bc of course i did.

also i played this in October, completely unintentionally, so that’s noice.

The amount of voice acting and cutcenes in this compared to CV is amazing, I love it so much, even if it is funny sometimes the dialogue they choose to voice and then abruptly cut off a few lines later.

I had COMPLETELY forgotten about Luke jumping on Chelmey and trying to rip his face off and it’s just the funniest fucking thing omg; Hershel in the background going “NO LUKE THAT’S HIS FACE” is comedic gold.

Will we ever know what Hershel was going to say when Chelmey asked him what Luke’s relationship to him was... dammit Luke why’d you have to cut him off.

Hershel calling the hamster “generously proportioned” is amazing. also “I’ve always said that helping rodents in need is among the duties of every true gentleman” Hershel... please tell me what other situations have made you say that... please...

Why is there an entire subplot about finding this Karen’s dog, just to make Chelmey look like even more of an idiot? if they needed to pad the game out more, they definitely could have done it with flashbacks or in places that I’m... ahem... emotionally invested in

Flora’s treatment in this game is so infuriating to me, like... why did they think this was a good idea? What was the point of bringing her into the plot for NO other reason than to be kidnapped and impersonated? Was it literally just because they needed a way for Hershel and Luke to run into Don Paolo and get the box back from him??? Why couldn’t, idk, Katia run into him in Dropstone and get the box from him and save Flora, that would still get the box to her and keep Flora in the group, and it would tip them off to Katia being related to all this even earlier, and Don Paolo could still be shown there if he absolutely has to make an appearance in each game. I know it’s because he has to be built up and then revealed, and because Hershel always has to have a dramatic point-n’-reveal every game, but whyyyyyy does it have to be at the expense of Flora. :))))) It would have been interesting to see her reactions to Folsense and Anton and everything, and not have Katia be the only female involved in all this; maybe she could, you know, actually have a personality!! hahaaaa who am I kidding...

beluga: “it’s already been a year since she passed away” me: whythehellyoucryingsodamnloud.jpg

Anderson talking about Dropstone and the sacrifices made to found it and how it can’t die out like “other towns”... with the song playing... whythehellyoucryingsodamnloud.jpg

The sheer coincidence of Katia going to Folsense on the same day that Hershel and Luke would end up in Dropstone and then there, and on the 50th anniversary of the town... not a likely one.

Didn’t some versions of the game come with a real version of the train ticket to Folsense? I want it D:

i also want a real Elysian Box, like can i commission someone to make one minus the whole you know actual gold, please, i’ll pay aNYTHING- *sobs*

LUKE HOW COULD YOU FORGET THAT HERSHEL IS AN ARCHEOLOGIST, AFTER ALL THE ARCHEOLOGICAL SHIT YOU’VE BEEN THROUGH

Hershel to “Flora”: “you’re as white as a sheet!” Don Paolo, minutes ago while the others aren’t looking: *furiously powdering his face mask or some shit*

Why was Anton’s diary lying in the street though... it doesn’t make sense that Katia or Beluga would have it, and they couldn’t open it anyhow. probably just a gameplay thing that should go unquestioned but I want to knowwww lol. Also wish Hershel and Luke had reactions to the entries.

Ilyana tho. Also bootleg Clive asdfghjkl

I LOVE THE TOWER OF HANOI PANCAKE PUZZLES

Am I the only one who doesn’t understand the obsession with the tea set... like yeah it’s fun to serve tea when you actually get it right, but I’m stuck with like two recipes missing and getting frustrated just trying and trying countless ingredient combinations on end because some of the npcs are NOT helpful enough in telling what to make :))))

Obviously Katia can’t reveal anything or say anything about why she’s there at all to keep the suspense till the end, but it would have been cool to see her working together with them and making a plan to get into the castle and help Anton aka I just wanted more scenes with Anton being nice and not flying into a rage over a misunderstanding ugh

It’s honestly pretty impressive some of the deductions/connections Chelmey makes in this game, despite his... other incredibly stupid ones lol

“iSnT iT oBvIoUs?”

WHY DOES HERSHEL RISK KILLING LUKE (AGAIN) WITH THE BOX. And why tf does it not do anything to them since they assumed it would...?

The biggest mystery of the series is how Pavel gets where he does, truly

The music in the forest is truly one of the best osts, god I love it. I also adore the Herzen Castle ost now, I never really noticed it before but it is WONDERFULLY creepy and heavy and melancholic and just... idk, those harpsicords go hard. damn.

Opening the Elysian Box is the best puzzle in the series, because of the meaning behind it. Or at least, it’s my favorite for that reason :^)

Alright folks so I’m gonna be completely, unabashedly honest here, and reveal myself to be the superficial, shallow fucker I am lmao: Anton is super hot and I’m still attracted to him even now, and I hate that we get so little time with younger him dklslskdfkflssd I AM SORRY I CAN’T HELP IT OKAY. BLAME THE VOICE ACTOR, HE HAD NO RIGHT TO SOUND SO UNEXPECTEDLY DEEP AND INCREASE ANTON’S HOTNESS LEVEL BY 1000%... just. god damn. damn. the dining room scene. the lighting. the way he puts his hands down and closes his eyes at one point. the way he says Herzen. the freaking sass with “chalk it up to my bad taste then.” the little clap. his entire design which just oozes Victorian era anime bishie beauty. kudos to the character designer who was like “well they said make someone cool and handsome and i wasn’t sure what to do but i tried and i guess it worked out” GOOD SIR BOY DID YOU SUCCEED. how dare this man turn me on so much, fUCK. And I know it’s super shitty of me to not like his old design as much!!! but just!!! why the beak nose.... why.... he was so gorgeous and then you give him the Bronev nose treatment..... i’m already so sad over the ending but you make him look so much sADDER, THE SADDEST POSSIBLE DESIGN FOR OLDER ANTON. It’s not that I mind him being old, I just wish he looked more like himself... there didn’t need to be such a drastic change. But I know I’m just being petty lmao. anyway stan Anton for most beautiful PL character always 🙏 Descole and Clive’s hotness have nothing on this man

*ahem* But to get back to serious topics, replaying this now when I’m older, with the ones after it in mind, I think I finally realize why this game stands out to me so much from the others, making it my favorite. To put it as best I can, Diabolical Box, to me at least, just has a different feel from all the other PL games. Yes, it’s still definitely a Layton game, you still investigate a mystery, there’s still puzzles everywhere, it still has a relaxing city or country feel to the atmosphere, there’s still lots of charm, but once you hit Folsense and the climax and the ending reveals, the tone sort of... shifts? Not drastically, but enough that’s different from any point in all the other games that I can remember; I feel like Last Spector might have the closest kind of atmosphere to Folsense at certain parts, but even then the plot of that game is nowhere near to having the same tone as this one. Diabolical Box, when you really look close at it and think about it, is dark. Dark in a way that none of the other games are, despite the darkness some of the others do have. And I think part of that is because almost every other game/movie is connected to the overarching story involving Hershel’s past and people involved with him, and so the drama and angst is very much grounded in London or other places Hershel would be/was, and in his time, but Diabolical Box is unique in that the story and characters in it have nothing to do with him. And to reflect this, Anton and Sophia’s story is based in the early 1900′s, the Victorian era, in a city so far separated from, again, everything to do with Hershel, that if you were to just watch their story by itself and take the professor and Luke out of it, and you knew nothing about the series, you could reasonably argue that it isn’t from a Professor Layton game at all. What I mean is that Anton’s story could be an entire anime all on its own surely it’s not obvious how badly I want that, nope, not at all, completely separate from this series, and it would work; it could be its own period era-esque drama series, still with all the supernatural shit intact later on. I can think of a few existing anime similar to what I’m imagining.

And I really do think it would be amazing, because like I said this story is terribly, terribly dark, and sad; as a PL game, like a lot of the other ones, it can’t go deep into the nitty gritty of what makes Anton’s story so fucking depressing, but just like... Imagine it. Imagine being alone, for so long in that castle, so long that you don’t even know how long it’s been anymore, with virtually no one, after having your heart broken and being abandoned by the person you loved the most, and who you thought loved you, and getting no closure about it. This long post goes a ton of detail about Anton’s character and things he was probably feeling/reasons for his behavior, but in short, Anton’s mother is never mentioned, so combined with how distant he was from his father and the fact that he feels alone in his role in society and that no one truly sees him as a real person, it’s quite possible that he clung to Sophia unconsciously as a mother figure, and, in general, she was the only person who made him feel seen, and loved. The only exception was Beluga, but Beluga leaves the town and Anton behind after quarreling with their father, so... It’s just extremely apparent when you read the diary entries and his dialogue (with the voice acting) that Anton was always alone and terribly insecure, and that Sophia made him the happiest he ever was - and so her leaving him was devastating to him. He was alone for fifty years (and who knows how long it actually felt, to him), in a lonely castle and emptying town, his entire family either left or dead, his body slowly aging without him even knowing it, while he had a daughter and granddaughter born without even knowing it, and all the while he’s left with the misunderstanding that Sophia might have loved someone “better” than him all along, never getting answers, having to live with all that grief and guilt and blame and jealousy and self-hatred over a situation that wasn’t even entirely true. Imagine what your MENTAL STATE would be like, jfc it’s a miracle he’s as sane as he is in the game!! Not to mention everything that crashes down on him within TEN MINUTES AT THE END. Yes, Unwound Future and the prequels very purposefully heap the angst on with Clive/Dimitri and Descole respectively, like “we are trying so hard to make you feel for this guy cry cry cry” and I fall for it like the trash i am love them too, don’t get me wrong, but Anton’s tragedy is much more understated but in my opinion is by far the absolute saddest of them all. I just... i’m crying y’all, this poor man. give him a fucking HUG. Anton Did Nothing Wrong 2k20; he doesn’t even hurt the people he lures in with his vampire scheme!! he lets them go without a scratch!!! what a guy... give him a hug and blankets please i love him so much, him and Sophia- *sobs*

and also as a side note, I honestly think Descole/Desmond would fit perfectly into this game for a lot of these reasons, in the trend of “trying to fit Descole into the first trilogy”; he’s got the right Aesthetic™ for one thing, but mainly just he and Anton have a LOT in common...! actually, now that I think about it, Randall and Anton do too, but I much prefer the notion of Descole and Anton interacting. honestly, I’m toying with the idea of an AU where Desmond and resurrected Aurora end up in Folsense and solve that mystery themselves instead of Hershel and Luke; i think it’d be fascinating.

However, by the same token, as much as I LOVE this game and characters for all of those reasons... it also makes no fucking sense ahaha. How the FUCK does the gas work. The illness that started killing people when the ore was first unearthed and is the reason everyone starts leaving, is THAT from the gas I assume?? but like why?? cause eventually it just turns to making the town appear as it was years ago and keeping people young, so...? ARE ALL THE TOWNSPEOPLE NOT ACTUALLY THERE, OR THEY ARE AND ARE JUST YOUNG LIKE ANTON; I’m still not clear on this!! because Hershel at the end says they’re illusions, and yet when you talk to the npcs so many of them complain about being tired and feeling old, so what is the truth!! It would make sense if newcomers see the town as it is in the pictures, but there’s no reason for them to not age... in fact, I don’t understand where the not aging thing comes from at ALL, since if the idea is that the gas makes what you think will happen happen, how tf did that even come about in the first place??? There’s no way everyone who inhaled the gas would think the exact same things and have the exact same hallucination. And if fifty years passed in reality, how long did it feel like to Anton/others; surely it couldn’t have been that long if they never questioned why they weren’t aging? If the gas in the box put Schrader in a coma, what was his theory about what would happen? Why does nothing happen to Hershel and Luke upon opening it when they clearly assume something will happen? Related to other things, how does the box become the source of a rumor, and how does Schrader even get it? Do people just assume Anton is dead or otherwise gone, or do they know/assume he’s still in the castle but don’t try to see him because of the vampire? Does Beluga know Anton is still there, if he does it’s pretty shitty of him to ignore him, and why does he think the box has to do with the fortune of all things if he possibly knew Sophia wanted it and knew it had something to do with her and Anton (seriously I don’t understand Beluga, I really wish they’d done more with him; he looks so shitty even if you give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he knew the least amount possible)??? Did Sammy know that the drugged flowers related to getting into Folsense? Did Katia know how to get into Folsense, and what was she planning to do if she never found the box in order to prove she was who she said she was? Why do some of the npcs act like they know the deep dark secret of Folsense and keep saying Hershel and Luke don’t need to know, and keep talking about the town being cursed, like do they really know the truth?? Or not??? LEVEL-5 I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS AND I’M TOO DUMB TO FIGURE OUT THE ANSWERS. EVEN LAYTON VS. WRIGHT’S STUPID REVEALS MAKE MORE SENSE THAN THIS AAAAAHHHH

anyway DB best game anton hot Even with all the weirdness though that makes this game the most Layton the Layton series has ever Layton’d lmao, I still love Diabolical Box so damn much. I love it so much, guys. It’s not part of a huge narrative, it’s not connected to the main characters; it tells its own little story and it does that perfectly. It’s so unique from all the rest, like I said, the plot has so much depth I don’t really see talked about, Anton and Sophia’s story is so beautifully tragic and underrated on a mature level that none of the other games really reach, and despite how upset I am we don’t get to see more of them, their love story is so impactful and emotional just from what little we do see, despite some of the oddities of how it plays out... they’re so sweet together and I cry so damn much over them ಥ⌣ಥ Iris is one of the most beautiful and touching songs in the series, too, and my favorite. And I’m a sucker for the Victorian era and cute romance lmao, so it just gets me like nothing else does... it’s so wonderful. saddest PL game, I will die on this hill. Even if I seem to talk a lot more about some of the other games/characters simply because there’s more content to talk about and there’s more to say about the more flawed content. you can’t improve perfection *chef’s kiss*, deep down, I think, this game will always be my favorite. ❤️

#professor layton #professor layton spoilers #meta #'thoughts post' more like Dana Rants An Entire Novel of Feels #but what is tumblr for if not this amiright #anton and sophia utterly destroy me and they always will #there's not much shown but what IS shown is so goddamn devastating and painful and bittersweet #i don't ship much but they're one of my otps so u know they good :')#i wanted to say even more here but i felt so guilty for how fucking massive this post was alksdfkfl;ss i cut some of it out already #i can kinda relate to Anton though tbh.... not getting closure on a relationship ending is truly painful; it's one of the worst things ever #so i feel for him </3 #and i love him #protect anton herzen always #and stan DB always

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zhuilingyizhen · 4 years

Note

Ideas on genderbend? Saw you asking for people to ask and now I want to know EVERYTHING.

Sorry for the late reply! There’s a bit of info here, but lemme go into more detail about plot. (Also if anyone wants to write or co-write this message me!! As I mentioned in an earlier post, I wrote a couple scenes of it, but it’s probably not gonna be done anytime soon.)

So. It’s a JL-centric au (I swear I can’t write following anyone else but him and it is a problem.) that basically explores his troubles in becoming recognized as a sect leader, but also he’s a she. I know that the Lan sect had a female sect leader, but Jin Ling being female is definitely going to affect how people see her in a political context. Plus, I expect that Jin and Lan views are quite different...

In this au, (names are the same bc i’m not creative) Jin Ling spent most of her childhood (1-5) at Lotus Pier. It took Jiang Cheng much longer to convince the Jin elders that Jin Ling was the rightful heir, bc they were very opposed to a young girl from another sect being their leader. The elders also thought it was some political scheme so that JC would have control over the Jin sect.

But since JC is very scary and very powerful, he gets his way. He even gets to (mostly) raise Jin Ling at Lotus Pier bc he doesn’t trust the Jins with his child niece. He treats her about the same as in canon, maybe just a little softer bc jl takes more after her mother (even though she has a personality of a young mistress, because she is a young mistress).

Growing up, jl is a bit on the tomboyish side, which worries the Jins because they were kinda expecting a soft, sweet young mistress, not this foul-mouthed, bratty mini-jc.

She’s about as good at JC at diplomacy, but a young mistress is much less threatening than a very scary sect leader w/ Zidian, so the Jins really have to train her in the art of not attacking people to get what she wants.

A lot of the Jin disciples are terrified of her, but also bully her because she’s an orphan. She eventually befriends someone who isn’t Fairy, one Ouyang Zizhen.

Everyone is somewhat okay with that, because Zizhen is actually great at politics. She doesn’t like it, but she’s quite good at it, so everyone hopes that she’s gonna rub off on a Ling.

Zizhen technically isn’t the heir despite being second oldest, but neither is her older sister. Her older sister is out travelling and refuses to consider being a sect leader, and Zizhen doesn’t want to do it either, so either their much-younger brother takes the mantle, or their younger sister if she decides she wants to.

Zizhen isn’t a cultivator, but she is much more involved in the political side of things to help out a Ling during her adventures through diplomacy (and her dad & sister, who is a cultivator taught her to defend herself). Zizhen is also very much a pacifist, and she uses her status to promote a lot of things that she supports.

Eventually, they send Jin Ling to the Cloud Recesses in hopes that it’ll straighten her out. Sadly for her, Jin Chan also happens to be there studying. It’s very tense between them (and I think the au in which Jin Chan has a crush on her is more viable here).

I want Zizhen to also attend, but since she isn’t a cultivator it’s hard to explain why she would be there. She is a representative of the Ouyang sect though, so she could be there on the pretense of establishing a marriage or something.

So the two friends go to the Cloud Recesses and meet two other female disciples: Lan Jingyi and Lan Sizhui. Sizhui’s backstory stays mostly the same, but I gave Jingyi a different one.

Her mother worked at the Cloud Recesses as a maid or something (she married a Lan cultivator who passed away and left her with child) so the Lans took care of them and let her stay there. Jingyi wanted to become a cultivator like her father, but Qiren was very skeptical. Eventually, after seeing her train by herself, he allowed her to join.

Sizhui depends more on guqin playing/dizi playing (she knows both) for cultivation than sword fighting, though she can certainly hold her own in a fight. She just prefers the musical aspect of cultivation (and probably gets along with Zizhen bc pacifism).

Jingyi on the other hand tries her hand at vocal cultivation. It’s a work in progress, but Lan Qiren is very proud of her and treats her kinda like a daughter. Even though she gives him a massive headache. Her mother doesn’t have a very active role in Jingyi’s life, but they are on good terms with each other.

The first time a Ling meets the Lans, she was probably in a fight with Jin Chan and Sizhui forcibly separated them. Fairy (sadly) isn’t here, but neither are the other Jin juniors. A couple other are also there, but those are the ones not-with Jin Chan.

There’s a crowd watching the Young Mistress of and heir to the Jin sect brawl with another one of the Jin sect disciples. It’s very intense, but Jin Chan likely still underestimates her, which leads to his loss.

From there, I hope Sizhui attempts to befriend Jin Ling, but Jin Ling being Jin Ling, is kinda prickly. But, she’s also a bit intrigued because she’s heard a lot about the perfect Lan disciple (Zizhen probably lowkey crushes on Sizhui bc who hasn’t gone through a phase where they crush on Sizhui? I think Jingyi never left that phase.), daughter of the second Twin Jade.

So they arrange to have tea or something the next day, and a Ling leaves, more enigmatic than ever.

Jingyi kinda doesn’t like Ling, but then the two of them hear Jin Chan talking about her very rudely. Jingyi’s inclined to believe him, but Sizhui scolds him for gossiping inside the Cloud Recesses (& bc the two of them had some sort of genuine hatred for each other + you shouldn’t be bad-mouthing your sect leader). Jin Chan is silenced, and leaves.

He’s probably gonna go through a crushing-on-Sizhui phase like every other junior has, but Jingyi beats it out of him quickly enough. The next day, while Sizhui & Ling have their not-a-date tea party, Jingyi meets Zizhen by accident when Zizhen wanders at the edge of the forest to look at the flora.

Jingyi happens to bump into her and lowkey falls in love at first sight (bc Zizhen is quite literally the personification of her type. In Jingyi’s defense: she’s a useless gay & falls in love way too quickly.

The two become fast friends. Jingyi is very smitten bc Zizhen is very cute and ahhh she looks adorable when she’s gushing about her family or flowers she likes or the hairpieces that female sect leaders used to wear when they were actually a l i v e.

Somehow, no mention of a Ling is brought up, though Jingyi probably mentions Sizhui a couple times, who Zizhen lowkey idolizes as the useless lesbian she is. So Jingyi asks what she’s doing here if she’s not a cultivator, and Zizhen explained that she came with a friend.

After they talk for a while, Jingyi offers to take Zizhen out to town next time she has a break. Zizhen accepts. They make plans and stuff, and probably part ways.

Sizhui & a Ling continue to quietly have tea and Sizhui manages to befriend Ling with her extreme niceness and as someone who is also the next heir to a sect if Xichen doesn’t produce a heir & Wangji gives up the mantle, Sizhui is somewhat involved in politics. So Ling & Sizhui kinda just talk about politics a bit (it’s good practice for a Ling).

It’s quite calm for a while, and the four of them eventually meet and somehow become friends?? woah. They do stuff together, as like the only four female disciples there.

Oooh, bUt, since this is about Jin Ling being accepted as a sect leader, something hAppeNs.

That something is that someone attacks the Jin Carp Tower, most likely going for Jin Ling. No one politically important was severely injured, but a couple of the servants and junior disciples got attacked/died. Jin Ling, is rightfully pissed off. So she does what anyone wouldn’t do in this situation: she recklessly runs away from the Cloud Recesses. Obviously she realizes that this could be her chance to prove herself (and avenge everyone who died).

No one is quite sure what’s going on, bc all they know is that the Jin sect just got attacked and the Young Mistress is missing.

She returns to the Carp Tower and demands to know wtf happened. At first, the Elders refuse to give her any information, but an upset JL is a scary JL, if she wants to be.

They tell her that she should be at the Cloud Reccesses but since this will eventually be your sect, they do give some information. Two servants died, and four disciples. Determined to figure out who did it, JL takes her bow & arrows & sword and runs away again.

JC is probably freaking out at this point bc where the hell is his child niece??

Meanwhile, Zizhen is very worried and she and the Lans decide to leave the Cloud Reccesses population of female disciples at none.

They know a Ling well enough to assume that she’s somewhere around the Carp Tower, so they rush to get there and extensively search for her bc yOu cAn’t jUst aBandOn thE jUniOr qUarTet!!

Meanwhile, JL is examining the newspapers and trying to figure out who could have done this. Sure, the Jin sect has enemies, but none of em are stupid to attack them... actually, it did make sense to attack them at that time, to kill the heir before she was of age & leave them in chaos. Several of the smaller sects could have launched an attack, but they wouldn’t risk it. They were all in the same area, and the Jin sect’s money was very important for the economy. A terrorist organization? It was the most likely option.

But a Ling has no idea where to start, until he gets a lead: apparently, the sect leader of the Meishan Yu sect was around Lanling the day before the attack. It leads Ling to believe that they may have seen something, or perhaps were another target. So he travels all the way over to Meishan.

When the other juniors finally arrive, they get news that someone was asking for directions to Meishan and others talking about how there was a rumor that the Sect Leader Yu had been there around the time of the attack. They put two and two together and hightail it to Meishan. Friendship.

Lan Wangji is distressed at the disappearance of his son. Lan Qiren is freaking out. Jiang Cheng is about to kill a bitch.

A Ling arrives, and finds out that his great-aunt, or Madame Yu’s sister, is the current sect leader. He gets himself an audience by explaining this relation, and Sect Leader Yu is intrigued. She doesn’t wish to help the Jin sect (she knows that they took away her sister’s girlfriend), but after seeing how desperate a Ling is to prove herself and avenge her sect, she agrees on the condition that a Ling visit her great-aunt & the sect more often.

Jin Ling agrees, and gets info.

COUGHTHAT’SALLIHAVECOUGHI’MSORRY

The newspapers hail the four stupidly indescribably chaotic junior disciples who somehow took down a terrorist group. WWX is very proud.

I haven’t completely figured out the plot (I usually do that as I write lol) & this au isn’t very canon compliant either, so anyone is welcome to contribute to the au or add in stuff!! I gotta update my masterlist soon...

#mdzs #mdzs juniors #jin ling #lan sizhui #junior quartet #but genderbend #ouyang zizhen #the untamed #lan jingyi #mo dao zu shi #headcanons #anon ask

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softsweetsuffering · 3 years

Text

OC LIST (New)

Trey:

Has an ability to mimic or amplify abilities/powers of others, as well as telekinesis

Was previously part of a group of people who also had abilities, however after mistreatment and other issues within the group, he left.

He's got a good wealth behind him.

Extremely gentle

Handsome ;)

Loves photography

Has lavender hair

Respects all

'Secretly' Plays violin

Lowkey a sugardaddy

Hamrish Benat:

Has four eyes!

Pink and blonde hair

He loves parkour (as in climbing buildings and leaping around in gyms)

Has PTSD (There are two AUS of which I default as to how he obtained it)

Ready to deck a bitch

Trained nurse

Loves teddy bears and fuzzy pink socks.

Also goes by Hami/Hayden

Andy peters:

Strong, kind.

The quiet Big Type, doesn't always talk, but his heart is in good places.

Wishes he could do more

Buff + Tall

Wears a pair of dogtags.

Has red streaks in his hair for the fun of it

Is extremely brotherly to Adrian

is friends with Hami

Adrian Géarán:

Nervous Malnutritioned anxiety filled tired mess

Has emotionally linked fire abilities (does not like having them)

likes to make little robots!

Easily bullied

Missing an arm

Struggles with normal life

Blames himself for Andys death

Looks unintentionally vaguely like Fry from Futurama

Chris:

Leader of a summer camp for kiddos

Huge fan of the outdoors

Loves to garden

Red head with freckles

Healthy!

Good build, a little on the below-average male height

Likes to hike

Loves kids

Strong but pacifistic

Great smile

Surprisingly a little shy around other adults

Bisexual

Himbo energy

Douglas Connelly:

Just a regular chubby guy

His chub is only important because this man gives some of the best hugs, he's like a marshmallow

He is outwardly confident about his size, even if it sometimes worries him internally

He loves music, loves to groove in the kitchen while making snacks

Always open for roommates and new friends (one of his roommates is a hot bartender called Donovan)

A bit awkward but he tries his best.

Tucker:

Badass

Bunny hybrid (ears :3)

White hair

Likes to wear denim jackets

Fast runner

Has had experience working in the force

Izekiel Iris:

Bruised and abused in a facility

Was turned from human into A being of made of Paint (Useful? no. Fun? yes. Rainbow blood anyone?)

Loves painting

Wallflower

Easily anxious

Loves to draw on his own arms

Matthew Libelle:

Aka Matty Very delayed development wise as well as Autistic

Very much a texture lad, soft blankets are his thing.

Doesn't like loud sounds ( who does honestly).

Tries his hardest to function normally but it's hard.

Watermelon colours are his fav. Green hoodie is his fav.

Has watermelon pink hair.

Gale:

Eldritch bab

Was cursed by a group of guys who were messing with magics they didn't understand

Did in fact murder said group of guys and is traumatised by the idea he has become a monster

hears voices

Has Tendrils that have burst out of his back

Has the ability to move from this realm to the Eldritch planes and back. (is terrified of said planes)

Doesn't have a home

Black curly hair- frizzy- shimmers like Slick oil

Shy type kinda, tall Pale. cold.

Kinda wishes he could just go back to normal.

Would really like to eat some fresh warm bread.

Rowan maverick

Was abandoned as a teen

Also known as Rogue/Red.

Lost some of their tongues making them mute

Trained Assassin.

Previously part of a cult

Addict to painkillers (Caused by the mental issues from the cult and the loss of tongue.)

Bad with Physical affection

Could use a friend

Jace

Cop/Ex Cop.

Laid off after an incident

Has a pubby called Otis

Likes the occasional beer

Dad energy

Issac Merewen

Was previously a Teacher - grade 11/12s

Kidnapped and kept Drugged the hell up.

Was given the new name: Jess/Jack. AKA The Jester

Now has Amnesia problems .(Anomic aphasia)

Was stored Cramped in box.

Needs glasses. (Long sighted. Cant see Infront of him for shit without glasses. He specifically likes round ones :3)

Natrually Blonde

He was very inspired by the Chitty Chitty bang bang scene, “Doll on a music box”.

- He naturally has two different coloured eyes :D

-He likes podcast n occasionally audiobooks. Its good for learning/remembering words, and way easier than straining his eyes. Although it is upsetting occasionally when he can remember more of a book/podcast he’s into more than real words or real-life things.

Tyrone Li

Incubus.

Wise, Patient, caring.

Brown tattoos wind up his hips and torso, curling around his chest around his heart, and around his back, flaring at his neck.

Glasses.

Loves plants and flora

Sex lost meaning when he was younger. He wants true intimacy again but he wants to find the right person..

Glamors hide the following features:

Tail, brown that gradients into Green, Leaf like tip.

Horns, curled. (green tipped :0)

Glamors break usually after a certain period of time regardless of feeding, however, during bad situations/fight the body may unglamour to reserve the last of its energy.

Caspian:

Basically immortal but can die (Reincarnations)

Not a pacifist, but not instantly into violence

He was blessed by the Heart of the Ocean (Shes wonderful <3)

Can control water, can do minor healing with water

Can make water bubble/ boil when angry

Glowy veins when powers are active

He has had many many lives

Soft..caring..Doesnt remember alot of his past..

Doesn't know how many times hes died

Doesn't have alot of family or friends

Goes on many adventures

Elio Solren.

Nickname: Sunshine

Good lad.

Is a shapeshifter Dealt with being told he was happy and always upbeat. People leaving or ignoring him whenever he wasn't started building this sense of need to be happy all the time for others.

Lots of struggles with self image. Being perfect. Appeasing everyone. Poor self body love/self body image.

Is scared about The hate from humans about shifters. The jealousy and fear about them being able to hide behind other faces.

Smiles to hide the pain

Punk/hipster vibes

Intricate golden tattoos

Doesn't open up easily

Doesn't like to admit to being in pain

Kotori

AKA Corey

Owl lad!

Bright yellow piercing eyes. But is totally blind. (Face scars)

Loves music.

Plays the uke.. hums..sings sometimes.

Big wings- like barn owl.

Likes to perch in trees

Jeremey Caulfield

Winter baby

Was left bleeding in the snow at some point

Father Lovely old man (John)

Mother died (Ellie)

Birthday December 23h

Blue eyes

Black hair

Russel

Box boy

Glasses

Red hair

Real sweetheart

Really needs more dev ; ;

Jules

Loves tofu n chicken

Touchstarved

Stubborn af

Kicks ass!

Has Sass

Wears binders/sports bras for Lotsa running n such

Black hair big messy pigtails

Dark brown eyes.

Has a navy bear sleeps with it ‘doesn't care’ about it but does

Gymnast/kickboxing. Bandages around hands

Loved swinging bars since being a kiddo

Trampolines!!

Participates in Underground fight ring to make easy money

Sleeps on just a mattress

Has a laptop for study work but she's slowly giving up on bothering.

(She's not one originally but Werewolf Jules is one of my fav things)

Miles

Part mole, part orphan

Lives underground

Very light-sensitive

Is colourblind

Absolute nerd

loves tinkering with things

is scared of humans

very foggy memories of his parents.

Leilah/ Lei

Can make/control shadows.

Owns a Magic skull(Speaks to it)

Lives in the woods

Wears a skull to spook off people from her woods

Has Tattoos that are shadow/absorb shadows

Kinda bad at maintaining friendships

Emotionally Distant

Wears a cloak.

Bao Ketsuyki

Blood magic bab

Short

East Asian.

Pink/red medium length hair

Big pretty red flower scar from blood magic use on her shoulder/ back.

Little bit foolish, little bit reckless.

Has almost died a few times from her magic use.

Oran Audun

Pale

Punk

Irish

Plays Guitar

Writes in journal, occasionally song lyrics, occasionally little messy ink drawings.

Easy to aggravate (On edge) however is trying to learn how to meditate and be calmer

Covered head to toe in scars but still tries to find confidence in himself. He doesn't find it unattractive, but he feels like others have no need to witness his scars.

loves wearing leather/fabric wrist bracelets

Unwelcome hands have used his body as a research object

Very very against physical contact, needs to break into it.

Ray

Social worker works mainly with kids.

Has a Shy guy tattoo.

His family consists of a Good ma, younger sister, and super baby brother

Dad died but dad was good.

Dirty blonde hair, kinda messy

Short, 5’

Socks the pupper is his helpful lil buddy (hes so round and white and fluffy)

Super dad vibes.

Owen

a hockey player n gymnast.

His mother died when he was about 9.

has an older brother who is a bit of a big jock type

quite protective and caring of his two much younger siblings.

ended up in a nasty scuffle though at some point during his more competitive years in Hockey

This leads to following his passion for Gym

Pole vault, the rings, trampoline.

Still plays hockey among mates or strangers on the weekends in the cold months tho

Ends up taking a position as a gym teacher for kids after taking a childhood course since he was so good at it.

actually a really sweet guy

Soft but likes his sport and jokes.

He can hold his own somewhat more than he appears.

has blue tips/stripes in his blonde hair.

He often wears varsity jackets or baseball tees. As well as a couple other sport wear shirts. (A. Good few are from his bro ofc. Free merch)

He's short but he's got a fairly decent build on him.

He's got a surprisingly good tackle if you aren't careful. And a good grip strength.

Nohea

but everyone calls him Noah.

Works at a Boba tea cafe..

likes to surf.

has an Epic board.

Back and shoulders all littered with lines and tic tac toe-like scars.

he's the type to brush off any questions and change topic while smiling. But not super bubbly. Just. Go lucky.

has a few friends who like to hang out at the cafe

Was in a surfing accident that involved a lot of rocks.

Ila

4’8 Soft. Short.

Ready to protect.

Loves to bake!!!

Smells like a vanilla cupcake most of the time

Isn't afraid to fight although isn't trained

likes Yoga ( and yoga pants)

Needs glasses but doesn't wear them (tsk tsk, unless tryign to read recipes)

Dyes hair silver/white

Jake

Homeless

Snake hybrid can transform his lower half from human legs to tail

Also has fangs, and therefore venom

He's got a lot of sass

Can be a bit of an asshole but soft around the right people

Isn't used to kindness

doesn't cry easily

Steals food

Mac Hiato

Also known as Caf

5’6

Very Grumpy.

Very often has bags under his eyes.

Hoodie is life

Insomnia has serious trouble sleeping.

Has nightmares of strangulation

Occasionally sufferers sleep paralysis

Scared of dark- night lights

Owns a mouse called Bean

Does freelancing webdesgisn/coding as job.

Sits like a gay.

Lives on coffee

Minorly Lactose intolerant

Has One bad eye

Neema

Egyptian

Mechanic

Her dad's a mechanic and used to bring her to work all the time

dead mum: which affected her ability to emote.

Works part time at the garage

Dad likes to bring gifts on their small catch-ups that happen every once in a while.

Sheeee. Suffers a bit of resting bitch face.

she's kinda stunted emotionally because she was raised by her dad, who, isn't great with emotions himself being a man's man and all.

She's very much a tomboy gal. Doesn't exactly get dressed up. because she finds it tiresome and not "her".

Also if she did/does have friends the nickname Nemo 100% crops up because it's sadly alll too fitting but also kinda sweet.

She's actually really into cars and mechanics. Which is one of the few good reasons her dad and her are close.

She's hard to get to know, very quiet. And if you're someone who dominates the conversation she won't speak up much, but you'll be surprised to how much she's listened.

Just because she looks tired and done doesn't actually mean she feels that way.

Samson (Lemonade boi)

His name is Samson, but he prefers Sun/Sunny. (Other more affectionate nicknames include Lemondrop and Sunflower.)

He really likes going out to markets and stuff like that, little stalls or knick knack shops to find the odd kinda items.

He also really likes wandering big forests. (Hes got some o that fae energy) He collects various cool stones/rocks/plants from some of them. He also has some small vials from waterfalls and ponds he’s encountered)

He wants to practice magic to become a witch! He loves the candles and rocks and other cool things that come with the craft. (He inherited things from his father)

He really likes loose fitting shirts too, like flowy things, ones with sleeves that drape past your fingers, or has extra fabric on the bottom that dangle down past hips. (Sometimes they come from the ladies section just because they’re softer and have more variety. Others from op shops and other niche little stores.)

He bought a cologne from a witch that looks cursed but the only curse is that it makes the one who puts it on smell like citrus..so not much of curse. (The bottle looks fuckin neato tho)

He looves fizzy drinks. Doesn’t mind his alcohol either, however it takes a surprising amount to get him on his ass despite looking like a serious lightweight.

He’s pretty average in build, bit of muscle in his arms, some fat on his thighs. Slight pouch of a tum (cause no ones flat and thats unrealistic :<)

He’s about 5′4. So not tall, but not the shortest of the short.

He kinda likes to backpack about. Not staying in places long if they get boring. Which means he is kinda jack of all trades when it comes to work, offering to fix things for pay, lots of casual work doing various things.(One of his favorites was helping a little old lady run a paint shop.)

He occasionally snorts when he laughs and tries not to.

He has his ears pierced, and he has a little yellow gemed stud in his nose.

The ring around his neck he found in the middle of a patch of mushrooms.

He has a couple other tattoos. One of them is of bubbles up his wrist :3 He also has some stars on his ankle, and a sunflower on one of his fingers on his left hand.

He’s not super in to gardening but he does have his lemon tree. He also wants to grow some mandarins

His eyes look silver in a lot of lights, but occasionally there’s some strange hints of yellow, and other times blue.

He has freckles!!!! that look alot like bubbles ;)

He has a twin brother called Fraser.

Scrunches his nose

Hides his laughter behind his hand

#OC List #ocs #god this took forever #B's Ocs #my list #oc list new #fuck me ; ;#im not gonna tag all of them.. its not worth it..#thanks for the reminder anon

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radbeetle · 5 years

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Bless me with your OTP!

Tagged by @tarberrymentats! I have... lost track of who all has done this one so uhhhh if you already have and I’ve tagged you, feel free to skip, but I’ll tag @ronqueesha, @its-sixxers, @lookbluesoup, @nukaworldnerd annnnnd @catastrotaffy

Do they fight often? If so, what is their dynamic like?

Oh gosh no. It's something Kate goes out of her way to avoid. She hates any sort of confrontation, and if she's on the receiving end, her most likely strategy is to just doormat. Nick is very aware of this - though there's not often any conflict between them. Nothing major, at least.

Who is the most skeptical of the two?

Nick, by far. Katherine definitely has her moments, but she has always been sincere, and has a tendency to believe everyone else is, to take them at face value. At least initially. If she's left alone to think about something long enough, she'll torn it over in her mind, doubt and question it endlessly - but rarely come to a conclusion. These thoughts can eat her up inside.

Who would be most likely to suggest a night of dancing?

Nick, but only slightly. It's not something either of them would gravitate towards in most situations (but it has happened... it's just rare!) Though Nick absolutely can dance (And quite well, when his servos aren't acting up), Kate? Cannot. But what she can do is follow a lead very well, when given instructions. She's got a very good sense of rhythm, just... not great at dancing.

What would they do if the other was injured in battle?

lmao at ‘if’, this has absolutely happened before. Nick has definitely just ignored injuries (don't have to worry about blood loss if you don't have any blood) which leads to Kate's disapproval if she notices a new bullet hole in his coat (or HIM.)

Nick, however, is far better at making it out unscathed. Katherine's gotten her fair share of scrapes and bruises, sure, but unfortunately, she has the tendency to also attract danger of a much higher caliber. (See: her history with vertibirds.) Nick has literally dragged her out of flaming wreckage on one occasion, and out of general danger on a few others. While Kate is usually cautious, her tendency to push herself has lead to a few close calls.

How do their fighting styles complement each other?

They're both distance fighters for the most part, though Katherine prefers an even longer range. Nick will usually hang back at first while she snipes, but once they've been spotted he won't hesitate to get in closer. There have been a few... incidents... due to this (damned harpoon gun) so they've had to revise tactics on occasion.

They very much try to have a plan of attack before going in, whenever that's possible. Whether or not that all holds together is something else entirely. They both have very good instincts, though, even if it has taken a long time for Kate to learn to trust her gut (and it's still something that she struggles with)

Do they want children? Does it frighten them? How many do they want?

Not gonna happen, for a variety of reasons. Kate has enough trouble taking care of herself some days, she absolutely could not handle a child, by her own admission - and really just doesn't WANT to. Kids are too much work. Not that she has anything against them but she just can't be a parent. The closest she ever comes is being Shaun's weird aunt.

As for Nick, well, the detective lifestyle isn't very accommodating when it comes to children, and also, /gestures vaguely. It's never really been something he's thought about much, as a result. He's good with kids, though, and he likes Shaun well enough.

What happened when they took them home to their families? If their families aren’t in the picture anymore, how do they feel about it?

"What, bring her home to meet the family? Sure, let's take her on down to the Institute, find the scientists who put me together. That'll be a great time."

Nick's only family, so to say, is DiMA, and Nick didn't know about him for the longest time. Hell, he and Katherine were already involved by the time they made that first trip out to Far Harbor and met him. Their relationship didn't come up immediately, of course, there were more pressing concerns...

(I am not going into too much detail about that because I do plan to actually write that event out! I just have to figure out the when and the how... but it does all go down quite well. It's a sweet kind of moment, in part because I read DiMA as having sentimental tendencies... maybe a bit of an understatement, heh.)

Katherine's family was just her parents - she never had any siblings - and they would have died in either the Great War, or if they survived that, they would have passed away in the 210 years since. Kate knows the answer is one of the two, and she's never gone to try and find which. It's better for her if she never knows, she thinks. But she has thought about the what-ifs.

It would have been an interesting first meeting, really. Her father was always a stoic man. Never mean, or angry, he was a good man, but just unexpressive, hard to read. He would have liked Nick, though it might have been hard to tell.

Her mother was very much the opposite - she had no problem making her thoughts known, and didn't shy away from speaking her mind. She was never aggressive, and was always good to Katherine, supportive, even if she didn't always understand. She would have been rather taken aback by Nick - and his relationship with Kate, in part because for her entire life, Kate had never shown interest in anyone in that way. No childhood crushes, no teenage dates, nothing. So, having Kate come home one day with Mr Synthetic Detective would have been more than a little confusing. But in the end, her mother would have approved as well, though perhaps tentatively.

How does each person show affection towards the other?

Neither of them are big on PDA, though in different ways - Nick doesn't think about it much , but he won't shy away from it, not now. (Things were very quiet on that front from both of them in the early days.) Katherine will avoid any overt forms of PDA because she's just nerves all the time. (And Nick knows this - the single most reliable way to fluster her is to kiss her when anyone else is around!) But she won't shy away from showing love, it's just in a much quieter fashion. She's a very tactile person (despite her issues around touching most people) so there a lot of hand holding, shoulder touches, cost and tie fixing... little things like that. In particular - this one always really strikes Nick - is that she won't shy away from holding his bare hand, despite the exposed metal.

She's also very liberal with the I love yous and will find any excuse to remind Nick.

Nick is very much one for the classic romantic gestures, albeit adapted for the wasteland life. More than anything, right now, he wants to find roses - or whatever irradiated flora has derived from them. It's a gesture that would have been so much simpler to make in the old world. Maybe that's why he's so determined. He so often wishes he could do more for her, though he knows she didn't mind. That she's perfectly happy with everything as it is.

That doesn't stop him from wanting to give her the world, though.

Who cries the most? Who is better at comforting?

Oh, Kate is the one who cries the most - she's never seen Nick cry. (... and wonders if he even can, but that line of thought makes her sad.) Though she struggles with sadness a lot, it's still very hard for her to actually cry, even when she wants to, or needs to. It's from years of forcing herself to stifle her emotions. So it takes a lot to push her to that breaking point, but when she hits it, it takes a lot out of her. Crying, for Katherine, is a messy and exhausting affair.

It's an uncommon occurrence, but it still breaks Nick's heart when he has to see it. He was very quick to figure out exactly what she needs when this happens, and that's something very simple: he just needs be there. When she's reached that breaking point, words, counselling, discussion, that's all no good. She just needs his presence, to be held. That's comfort enough.

Who is the bigger flirt?

Nick. Kate couldn't flirt her way out of a wet paper bag. The few times it has happened, it's been entirely unintentional on her part, so much so that she doesn't even realize it until hours later.

Mind you, Kate can be just as oblivious about being on the receiving end. She's gotten a bit more aware, recently, but there's still definitely been moments when Nick's said something and it just goes woosh over her head for a while, until she makes the eventual connection.

Nick isn't bothered by this at all. (He'd never admit it, but he finds it funny, watching her realize it later in the day with a 'nick oh my god'.)

#fallout 4 #nick valentine #fallout oc #sole survivor katherine #beetle's ocs #prompts #vancentine #screenshots #radbeetle screenshots

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grotesquegabby · 4 years

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Mmm, what might Ama's kiddos(or at least the little girl) think of the other kids of their age? Basically like Cordie's and Ula's kids

the Daughter:

Basil: Would really like Basil actually. Shes a bit younger than him but she would have been inspired to learn sign language cause she saw him doing it. So its really helped her out uwu plus hes so cool! and he builds saw like traps. Dont tell Amaranthus but shes snuck the movies when no one was awake or around. She found them quite fascinating at least the traps and such x3 , the little inventor. Plus Basil is fun and chill uwu

Rowan: Fun, energetic and knows a lot of good snacks. Plus similar to her brother feels and with Basil shed feel more like she can communicate compared to others. Plus she might even speak around him and Basil as well. Not too many words but more so then with others.

Frankie: a sweet boy who shed enjoy being around. I imagine shed really love to spend time with him as they can do whatever each other enjoys or do activitires they both like. Yes even the mafia stuff. uwu shed love to learn more about it

Flora: Would look up to her. Plus she just seems so nice and approachable. She hopes they can be good friends. Flora likes sports and shed be definitely up for supporting her in her ventures there. Shes not a very sporty girl herself, not so good with the running. Gets tired easily. But they can spend lots of time together doing all sorts of things I imagine uwu

Willow: Very sweet, I know for a fact shed love spending time with her as well. Maybe they could go on mini adventures at the park, beach, or in the woods together.

Dahlia: For Dahlia hmm im not 100% sure I want to say shed enjoy the mischief she does. Its entertaining for sure. Shed want to befriend her

Margaux: Very sweet and quiet as well, the two get along swimmingly. I imagine they tend to spend days doing arts and crafts together or chilling on the couch with some snacks and a movie marathon. They read in each others company quietly together with tea or hot cocoa uwu

Felix: Hes very interested in what shes doing, cause when they visit sometimes he likes to talk to her. She doesnt mind the company sometimes but he sure can talk. Sometimes he asks what shes doing and all she does is point cause shes not really comfortable explaining in words. Its a lot to take in. But they seem to have a sort of understanding and friendship going.

Damian: Very serious and clearly having a hard time. Shes understanding of it but isn’t the most confident when approaching such subjects especially because hes older than her. But shed try...shes a good listener. I think they would have a lot of quiet moments together and shed grab onto his hand if he let her. in a comforting way.

The Son:

Basil: quiet calm cool and collected. Someone he would consider having around in dire situations. Basil makes a good friend and its clear his sister looks up to Basil and enjoys spending time with him. So he would do the same.

Rowan: very energetic and much different energy from his own, but as they say opposites attract. And he cant help but feel more at ease with Rowan around. And more like he can let loose and have fun.

Frankie: Hed definitely know of Frankies mafia side, who knows he may get involved with it as well x3 but join in with Frankie. He lives for the dramatics and all that~. I imagine hed gift Frankie many rings. (many candy or halloween rings...maybe even a legit one he foun somewhere uwu) so he can mix it up if he wishes. He might offer to make things for Frankie to help in his mafia endeavors x3 just request what youd like and hes on it Frankie

Flora: He knows shes more than meets the eye but he likes that.

Willow: Would think her very sweet and would most likely be very good friends with Willow. They can spend time with one another chatting, reading, and whatever else catches their fancy uwu But I definitely see these two being close.

Dahlia: trouble~ I dont know why but I imagine these two getting into little arguments but not like bad like maybe he likes to tease her and get a rise out of her.

Margaux: sweet girl reminds him a little bit of his sister. I imagine they would have quiet moments together

Felix: another fun loving and very curious person. I think hed be a little annoyed with Felix at first but would begin to get used to him and enjoy his company. Felix asks a lot of questions but he does enjoy attention so~. But Felix will grow on him and they will be friends.

Damian: Finds it funny how angsty he is and would approve of Basils scare tactics with the guy. But after learning more hed understand why the guy is so gloomy hed be gloomy too. So some quiet understanding on his part.

Alrighty I think I got everyone sorry this took so long. uvu I hope this is good

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dazais-guardian-angel · 4 years

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This post has been sitting in my drafts since like mid-November around when I finished replaying the game, long enough for me to write and upload a fic about some of the concepts I wrote here, what the fuck. DGS brainrot is real. But aNYWAY finally, here are my massive thoughts on Unwound Future, the golden child of the PL series. This is literally *checks* 8k words, because I can never shut up!! and because there is just SO much going on in this game at all times, so many different interweaving plot threads and funny moments and incredible, fascinating characterization, especially combined with the games that come after it; I just had SO much to say. So much analyzing and headcanons and crying galore. :’) There’s a reason this is considered the best game, and that’s why I had so damn much to talk about.

behold the incoherent, rambling, unconnected mess of a novel that I hope makes a modicum of sense under the cut:

Continuing the trend, this game has simply AMAZING graphics/art/music, with a huge uptick in cutscenes and voice acting, and I feel like the sound/music quality is greatly improved too? I love the main bgm for London in this game, never really remembered loving it before, but it’s just *chef’s kiss* and so is the song that plays in other areas like the hospital and subway

Quickly mentioning the gameplay, I really love all the minigames, and the storybooks are especially hilarious to play with putting the wrong things in the spaces to create mad libs-esque crack that makes no sense; it’s so fun lmao

The beginning flashback segment with the time machine demonstration is honestly just so funny, for so many different reasons: Dimitri droning on and on with time travel technobabble while Luke, Bill, Chelmey, and Barton represent the definitive last four brain cells. Hershel being skeptical about successful time travel after all the magical shit they went through just like a year or two ago. The way that Bill’s sprite slowly and nervously shuffles onscreen after Dimitri calls him to the stage, like omg I don’t know why that cracks me up so much but it does. Dimitri’s lowkey savage shade he’s throwing at Bill throughout this whole thing. The way Bill says “wHAT” when Dimitri asks him to help, clearly about to shit his pants. Dimitri just standing there completely unfazed as the smoke from the machine flies past him. And of course, “sOmEtHiNg’S gOnE vErY wRoNg!”

…okay but in all seriousness, am I just stupid or do they never explain how they get Bill to the underground city, like the machine CLEARLY explodes with him in it, there was no secret elevator built into the thing like at the clock shop, so…???

also the presenter’s voice is really funny lmao

Still disagree that this is the biggest mystery they’ve ever encountered, despite being near the top; Luke you say that literally every game!! so what is the truth!!

Spring’s face is terrifying as FUCK in the two cutscenes in the clock shop… why they decided to show both of them in ominous, shadowed lighting in those scenes I do not understand a;lskdl;fds

I need someone to draw a diagram of how exactly the shop looks as a giant elevator because frankly I still can’t wrap my brain around it-

THE FACT THAT WE NEVER GET TO MAKE UP WITH HAZEL IS A TRAVESTY, HONESTLY

Belle… why…… ugh

Wish they’d had “Schrader” drop a casual nod to the events of Diabolical Box; it would have been cool :’) (especially since this is Paul so he’d know about all that)

College-age Hershel is just….. the pinnacle of adorableness. someone protect him from all the pain

One of the few flaws/plot holes in the story of Unwound Future that I only noticed during this replay with more media under my belt, is the that the developers didn’t really decide on what kind of time travel they wanted to portray, or more likely just didn’t scrutinize Clive’s fake role enough when writing it. This is blatantly obvious upon the very first meeting with Clive where he desires to test Hershel to make sure he’s really him. Obviously in a closed loop scenario, everything Luke and Hershel are doing “Future Luke” should remember doing himself in his past, so a test would not be necessary; this is a major trip-up on his part that it’s very odd Hershel doesn’t notice for how smart he is, imo. However, later on when meeting “Future Layton”, Paul calls Dimitri out on this exact principle, proving that he’s not actually Future Layton because he doesn’t remember the absence of a pen in Hershel’s pocket in this moment in his past, and it’s a nice little touch that Paul, on the other hand, an actual scientist, would mention this. Back to Future Luke, though, he should know how everything goes down with stopping Future Layton, because he lived it all as a child with Hershel, which makes it even more dubious to the fact that after seeing all this, Hershel still goes dark and everything plays out the exact same way it’s portrayed in the “future” of the game; it’s the idea that destined fate can’t be changed, but the suspension of disbelief is quite high, especially since we already doubt that Hershel would ever do such a thing, knowing what kind of person he is. Of course this wouldn’t be the case in an open-loop/branching timelines universe, but since the game uses the former type with the pen argument (and something else important I’ll mention in a second), I feel like the rest of the game should have adopted this idea as well and addressed it. Because Dimitri is outed via the fact that he should have memory of things he doesn’t, so it would have been easy to simply add Hershel adding that argument into his final explanation in the bar (”my suspicions were first raised when we first met Big Luke, and he didn’t know if I was really who I said I was- [etc etc]”). Even if they didn’t want Hershel to bring this up early else the entire story would fall apart, they could simply draw attention to the fact that he notices something in these moments, like with a “...” or “Hmm”, and then he explains it at the end like I said. Interestingly enough, Clive actually addresses these concepts at one point in the game with Luke in the statue plaza: he doesn’t want to tell Luke how things play out in his future, so that… things play out the way they’re supposed to…? Even though his entire story here is that he wished Hershel hadn’t gone dark and distanced from him, and ruined the city? But then he makes the suggestion that they could instead be operating on an open-loop/multiple timelines system, where in his past he never travelled to the future, but in our Luke and Hershel’s timeline they do. This is only a hypothetical he gives though, with him seeming unsure of how things truly are, which… again, in this story he’s concocted, he should know for sure, because if he doesn’t “remember” time traveling and how everything went down, then they’re operating on different timelines and it shouldn’t matter how much he tells Luke about his future. You can definitely argue that in-universe Clive didn’t think all this through when planning his dialogue for this role (but I honestly find that hard to believe, since he’s so intelligent, and he nailed the realism of everything else to a T), but it’s obvious just that the writers didn’t think it through, because like I said Hershel really should have picked up on his blunder when they first met, as well as later when Clive is surprised to see Flora suddenly with them and didn’t know for a fact that she and Chelmey/Barton would arrive there. Since the time travel scenario in 99% of the game isn’t actually real, I don’t entirely fault the writers for not getting every single detail right… and yet, that 1% exists where time travel is real, with Claire’s situation. It’s a very isolated incident though that wouldn’t be replicated, with only her going to the future… and yet, she does return to the past again, if only for a split second before dying and thus not enough time to do anything with her future knowledge, the real thing to note here being that they took care to show that she was wearing the same outfit when she died that she gets in the future, one she wasn’t wearing when she entered the lab originally. So they DID think about some things very well, like such a minor and easily-overlooked detail here (but that blows your mind once you realize it). All this is hardly enough to ruin the game or break the immersion completely though, especially since the player is already predisposed to heavily doubt everything with PL’s “the town is a lie” track record lmao, but I can’t help but be bothered by it now after playing games like Zero Escape and watching time travel shows like netflix’s Dark, which have bootstrap parodoxes and timeloops galore looool. My friend who watched me play the game blind this time around brought up all these questions as Clive said things, as someone who didn’t know if it would end up being real or not, and so I spent a lot of time puzzling (har har) it out with her… even though it wouldn’t matter lmao.

……In short, if it wasn’t obvious, despite Unwound Future’s time travel setup being completely fake, I’m really fascinated by the notion of how it would all work if it was real. >.> …and I mean, I know I’m not the first one; monocle Layton aus are popular, after all, but I don’t really care quite as much about the allure of an “evil Layton” as I do just about how everything else would be, I think.

Because, like, lets be real? taking the prequels into account with Unwound Future’s proposed setup, the potential is endless. It honestly KILLS me that the prequels didn’t exist yet at the time of UF, because!! so many people from Hershel’s past!!! SO MANY REASONS FOR HIM TO WANT TO HARNASS TIME TRAVEL AND CHANGE THE PAST, NOT JUST FOR CLAIRE’S SAKE. FOR RANHENGELA’S SAKE. FOR LUKE AND EMMY’S SAKE. FOR HIS PARENTS’ SAKE. FOR DESMOND. listen, listen, you don’t understand how much the idea of Desmond being involved in UF’s concepts destroys me. I wrote about this in my last fic but. imagine if Desmond learned about Hershel going down a dark path for his sake and everyone else’s, just like he did. Or imagine if, instead of Hershel being the one to do it, it was Desmond himself; he’s willing to play the bad guy once again, one very final, this time definitely final, time, if it means he can undo everything that caused all of them so much pain in the first place: his betrayals, the death of his former wife, he and Theodore’s separation, their father’s betrayal, ALL of it, and Hershel would never know. When Luke first is like “oh it’s gotta be Don Paolo right” and Clive says no, i LITERALLY screamed “BUT IT COULD BE DESCOLE!!”. JUST. PAIN. And where would Randall be in this future; what would he, too, think if it was Hershel going after time travel? Imagine him trying to smack some sense into him just like Hershel does in MM, trying to tell him that despite those lost 18 years of his life, despite everything wrong he ended up doing, he’s still happy, and so are Henry and Angela. So is Desmond. And Emmy, she wouldn’t want undone those years she had with Hershel and Luke and then Aurora and Desmond, despite how sadly it ended. Just… so much pain. So much potential. I hurt :’)

and adding on to this, i love love LOVE the idea of Clive knowing about some of this stuff in Hershel’s past, in order to faithfully play his role as Future Luke. Like obviously he wasn’t in Misthallory with them all, he wasn’t on the island in ED, he wasn’t at Monte’dor, and he wasn’t on the Bostonius or at all those Azran ruins that I can’t remember the names of right now, of course he wouldn’t know the intimate, specific details of what all went down, but if there was just one npc who was in the right place at the right time at any of these locations, who knows what beans they could spill? Maybe even an ex-Targent person or something. Hell, fucking Bronev is in jail for at least a little while before the events of UF. There are possibly MANY people Clive could have gotten information from to pull off this role - he’s a reporter, he’s skilled at digging for stuff. Not to mention just reading and hearing about large incidents in the news. And this makes his character so much better because he’s admired Hershel for so long, grateful that he saved his life all this time, to the point that he asks him to unknowingly come and save him again… and he most definitely didn’t know back when he first encountered Hershel that he’d already experienced so much loss and pain as well (some of which Hershel hadn’t even gone through yet by that point), but learning about everything he’s suffered? I think it would really affect him, and possibly contribute to why he asks him for his help in the first place in UF: because Hershel has suffered just as much as he has, and he feels a connection to him, feels like he can relate to him, and wants someone who can empathize with him, and show him how to cope. All of these reasons and emotions would probably be completely on an unconscious level, but they would exist - he’d use this limited but meaningful knowledge to try to connect with Hershel more when he’s still in Future Luke mode, to try to convince him he’s really Luke, at first, but unconsciously it’d be an effort to get closer to him emotionally, which is what he truly desires deep down, until his so-called act somewhat stops being an act, and talking about these things makes his vulnerabilities start to show (again, i wrote a fic about this). This all just adds to why Hershel is the perfect person to help and support Clive - the prequels make their similarities even stronger, more than just with Hershel losing Claire, and those accidental parallels when the writers hadn’t even conceived the prequel trilogy at the time of UF are just *chef’s kiss* beautiful.

THE CASINO SCENE IS JUST ICONIC, IT’S SO FUNNY. LUKE BEING SCARED OF THE SHOOTING AND HERSHEL JUST DITCHING HIM. CLIVE’S LITTLE HOP AND ROLL BEHIND THE SLOT MACHINES. THE SLOT MACHINE GUN IN GENERAL. THE CLONE FAMILY MEMBERS FALLING OVER LIKE DOMINOS UPON BEING HIT. BOSTRO CRYING AND SPLINTERS AND LOCKJAW RUNNING IN CIRCLES PANICKING WHILE LAYMAN JUST IS LITERALLY PUSHED BACK SLOWLY WITH ONLY A CHAIR TO DEFEND HIMSELF, I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH HOW FUNNY LAYMAN AS A CHARACTER IS TO ME. it’s just so glorious, oh my god. this series is ridiculous i love it so much lmao

Luke wanting to use the time machine though… there are so many reasons why he might want to, mainly from Azran Legacy. :’)

The statue is the worst thing ever for multiple reasons. The fact that it represents Hershel & Luke’s relationship, the two main characters, who have been through so much together and have such a strong bond that can never be broken, and how it ties into the whole Evil Layton scenario and seems to foreshadow that their bond does end up breaking, as “Future Luke” seems to be proof of (though the game doesn’t really put much emphasis on this; Luke is more worried about the fact that he’s moving away soon straining their relationship, and not the whole Future Layton thing. imo it would have been interesting to see his actual thoughts on/feelings about it, since he’s surprisingly calm throughout the entire game before the reveals happen; you can argue he just has complete faith in Hershel and doesn’t think he would ever go dark, but then why doesn’t he bring this up, insist that this can’t be true? I think he should have). The fact that as I just said it foreshadows how Luke will leave Hershel at the end of the game, something that Luke worries about later on in the game. And most of all, the biggest, worst thing it foreshadows… Hershel’s relationship with Clive. Clive had that statue made himself, put it in his giant set. He WANTS that kind of mentor-student bond with Hershel, that’s how he sees them, just from their one interaction in front of the exploding buildings… or at least, that’s how he wants to see it. He sees how close Hershel and Luke are throughout the entire game, and he yearns for that kind of bond with Hershel, too. The fact that the boy in the statue story has an illness that he eventually dies from, but that their friendship withstands… it’s probably meant to represent Clive’s insanity, that he hopes Hershel will save him from - he is Clive’s light of hope in his despair. Or, to be more accurate to the statue, even if Clive’s madness ends up killing him (which it very nearly does, and by that point he fully expects that it will), he’ll still have had those memories of that time he spent with him, and Hershel will never forget him, and that will mean something special. man though can you imagine an AU where Clive is literally terminally ill too, and that’s why he’s yolo-ing this entire thing so hard and doesn’t care if it ends up killing him in the end, at least he got to be with Hershel one more day; ahahahaha turn up the angsttttttttttttt-

Shmelmey and Shmarton do not at all look like Chelmey and Barton, smh

For everything Clive accounted for with his role and setting, he’s honestly way too rude and crass sometimes to be Luke lmao, even if you try to imagine a world where Hershel did go dark and Luke was changed by it… at least imo

the like 4 puzzles that give Clive’s solving animations/dialogue are the most serotonin-boosting things in the world

“you will come back, won’t you?” Clive asks Hershel about his trip to visit Chelmey, desperately wanting him to stop him before it’s too late :’)

Rosetta and her....... sessions....... with Hershel........ hajkkALSKDLD

Okay but Hershel is kind of dickish sometimes though, despite his whole “gentleman” thing??? There’s the elephant in the room which I’ll Get To, but like first he guilt-trips Chelmey into getting him access to confidential information about the lab explosion, and then he has the absolute balls to tell him “Bill Hawks is being held in the future” and that’s IT. No explanation, nothing else, just THAT, and then he LEAVES, after he’d promised to share every last detail with him. I don’t blame Chelmey at all for tailing them and barging in to get information himself, like damn Hershel, why so savage sometimes in not a good way

which brings me to Ranting About Flora’s Treatment, Part 3: The Finale. Y’all I literally cannot even BEGIN to describe how much the way Hershel and Luke treat Flora in UF specifically makes me seethe..... It was already bad in DB, no doubt, but in this game they are straight-up rude to her, mostly Hershel, for absolutely no reason, and I CANNOT fathom why. He constantly makes the excuse that he’s concerned for her safety, and that the places they’re going to are too dangerous for her, but it all exudes a level of thinly-veiled annoyance, even confusion as to why Flora is so upset that they never bring her along and wants to go with them at all... almost like her “frail” feminine appearance (which isn’t helped by how the games make her feel sick or dizzy or tired multiple times), compared to someone like Emmy who could fight and has more masculine traits, means she’s less capable in Hershel’s mind, which, like, even if it’s unconscious on his part... how about no?? I could accept being worried about her, even if I’m still frustrated at her being left behind, and her constant kidnapping (which isn’t Hershel’s fault, even if he probablyyy could do a better job both times at protecting her), but I CANNOT excuse how short and dismissive Hershel is with her in this damn game; it honestly borders on ooc to me for him, I don’t know what the writers were thinking; do they just hate Flora that freaking much??? He treats her like a burden the entire time, apologizes to people for her, acts irritated at having to accommodate for her, when poor Flora just wants to spend time with him and feel like an equal to him and Luke. Meanwhile Clive of all people is the first one to treat her with kindness and respect and pleasure to see her when they first meet, like when Luke bitches about Flora being excited to see the river and not taking things seriously and Clive tells him to go easy on her (Clive, the one who has been rushing them along this entire time himself). honestly can see why it’s so easy to ship them, when literally everyone else treats her like crap It’s SO depressing honestly. Flora asks them if they thought to wonder where her future self was, and Hershel is just like hhhhh we’re kinda busy thinking about... you know.... important things... sorry not sorry....... like BITCH I WILL STRANGLE YOU, BE NICER TO YOUR DAUGHTER!!! Luke at least is a kid, but Hershel??? there’s no excuse!!! Luke be like “damn I hope Becky doesn’t look down on us for leaving Flora behind... >.>” THEY KNOW. THEY KNOW IT’S NOT RIGHT BUT THEY DON’T CARE AND DO IT ANYWAY. I’M SO MAD

Beasly just gets... straight-up murdered yo... between him and Subject 3, what were they smoking when coming up with the animals in this game, jfc. Test subject animals?? that’s unnervingly dark, despite how glossed over it is and how hilarious Subject 3 is a;lksd

LUKE LOVES SHERLOCK HOLMES THIS IS NOT A DRILL. THE DGS CROSSOVER IS WAITING, LEVEL-5 AND CAPCOM. MAKE LUKE’S (AND MY) DREAMS A REALITY

the intentional zoom-in on Clive’s sinister face in front of the tower will never not amuse me, and baffle me as to why they drew attention to it lmaooo

And okay back to time travel bullshit shenanigans, WHY the fuck does Dimitri not pick up on why him not remembering about the pen is such a big deal as soon as Paul first brings it up?? bruh. bruh. aren’t you a fucking TIME TRAVEL SCIENTIST. WHY DO YOU NOT KNOW SUCH A BASIC CONCEPT THAT BREAKS YOUR WHOLE FACADE IN SECONDS. It’d be one thing if he just couldn’t provide the right answer, but no, he straight-up HAS NO IDEA WHY HE SHOULD HAVE TO KNOW ABOUT THE PEN. “HOW THE FUCK SHOULD I KNOW-” bruhhhh. Dimitri. my dude. i love you but you are actually so dumb sometimes, like holy shit (more on this later though)

Paul talking to Dimitri about his plan is really good; he has a “...” moment before telling him what he’s doing can’t be excused, like “oh shit let me jump on board, wait fuck i gotta stay in character, Layton is a wuss he would never agree to this god dammit Layton-”. jokes aside though, I’m honestly confused as to how much he actually knew before Dimitri’s exposition in the pagoda, and why exactly he goes along with helping Hershel stop him... and what Dimitri was thinking roping him into this. Because I can’t really figure out Paul’s motives here and how they changed, if they did at all. The only information we get about how he first became involved is that Dimitri was paying him a lot of money to get Hershel to the pagoda and to him - he knows that “future London” isn’t real, he knows Future Layton isn’t real, so the extent of his knowledge seems to be that “this man wants to screw Layton over somehow and is giving me $$$ to get it done; there’s no downside here, never mind this suspicious as fuck fake London and all these people that shouldn’t be here”, but then Hershel gave him more information, probably that Claire was involved in what Dimitri was doing, and his concerns about a traitor being involved if he had already begun to suspect Clive by that point, and then he suddenly decided to turn against Dimitri? Even though you’d think saving Claire would be a reason for him to want to help him...? Or did he plan to turn against him from the very start, and wanted Hershel to come because he knew he could stop all this (part of his character development)? The latter is the most likely, though I still don’t entirely understand or maybe I’m just having a brain fart, that’s very likely too. And Dimitri on the other hand, did he know that Paul liked Claire too and would want to save her (and maybe about his salt for Hershel too), and that’s why he got his help? That makes more sense... but also doesn’t, cause as I said it seems like Paul didn’t know Claire was involved until Hershel told him and then Dimitri told everyone at the pagoda, so maybe he literally just said “here’s some money, help me fuck over Layton, not telling how” and just trusted in him that much, even though Paul is an evil genius who could and does put a stop to all his plans with his machines... once again, Dimitri looking dumb....

Clive, in the most deadpan voice ever at the top of the pagoda: oh no, the prime minister is in danger, someone help him

Flora as they’re escaping the tower: “professor no please take me with you instead of future Luke” Hershel: *ignores her feelings and makes a decision for her yet again* Clive: “shhh don’t worry Flora; i know i’m going to kidnap you in like an hour but i’m just trying to rescue you from these insensitive jerks. not Don Paolo though; he’s a gentleman.”

It’s interesting to me that Luke and Hershel keep acting as if Future Luke and future London are legit even after Future Layton has been revealed to be a fake. Hershel at least probably knows none of it is real by now, even if he hasn’t exactly figured out Clive’s role in everything yet, and is just not revealing his knowledge for now, but Luke is still rolling with it... wonder what’s going through his mind by this point. again, it frustrates me that Luke really has no emotional reaction to anything in UF, aside from the statue and his worries about leaving Hershel soon and how that in particular will affect their relationship

I also wonder what Clive is thinking by this point. Now that the Future Layton jig is up, what kind of story is he going with now? We never find out because Hershel reveals everything completely the next time Clive joins up with them again, but in the (unreasonable) case that he hadn’t, would Clive have just acted like he didn’t know that Alain Stahngun was actually someone named Dimitri, who was actually pretending to be Layton, and that the real Layton was somewhere else out there that they needed to find? I don’t know WHY I’m so interested in details like these that don’t matter at all in the long run a;lksdfklfd, but I am... he tells Flora to continue the “investigation” without him, so clearly he still had something in mind, and didn’t expect Hershel to out him quite so soon after that even if deep down he wanted it

Chelmey really cares for Barton and it’s actually so sweet, oml :’)

I didn’t really praise Paul’s character development in this game enough before, but I really do love it, even if I don’t quite understand the circumstances that started it. It’s not something I would have expected with how he’s presented in CV and DB, but it’s very nice to see this be the culmination of his character, and it’s kinda sad that it feels a bit more natural than Descole’s sudden shift in backstory/character between ED and MM/AL... It’s very funny and good to see him and Luke bicker at each other, and how he seems to have a soft spot for Flora... it’s all cute. I just wish there’d been a bit more time for him to talk to them, but that’s what fanfic is for

Don’t make me have to see Hershel beaten up in the street :’(

The sprite of Dimitri standing in the bar is incredibly hot.... damn why are all the older male characters my type >.>

Alright but it’s about time I finally talk about Dimitri without dissing him for being stupid sometimes and say that in short, I love him. He might even be my favorite new character in UF, even more than Clive; I don’t know if it’s just the Liam O’Brian Tragic Sexy Tired Villain effect or what (nah let’s be real, that’s a huge part of it lmao), but he’s fantastic and utterly breaks my heart, in a much more understated way than how the game shoves Clive’s angst in your face, but his tragedy is nonetheless impossible to ignore. The flashback with young Dimitri is my favorite scene in the entire game, it is devastating and feels so cinematic, so raw and painful, and I’m glad they animated that part because it humanizes him so much more. Claire was his everything, he loved her so much, but it is so obvious to me (and to a lot of the fandom too, I think) that his love was entirely selfless - he might have been a little sad, but he was still mostly content letting Hershel have her, and when it comes to after her death, Dimitri would have been absolutely happy not being able to have her if he managed to save her life; he just wanted her to live. He was in love with her, yes, but he also loved her, as a friend, as a scientist, as a person whose time was cut far too short for entirely selfish and unnecessary reasons, and the majority of his anger and bitterness and drive came from a desire to fix such an injustice - to save an innocent person’s life. And the saddest part of him doing all this and trying to sustain Claire’s existence in the present once he finds her, if you go with the closed loop time travel theory, is that Dimitri should already know it’s impossible for him to succeed in this as long as he remembers finding her body in the past - him succeeding would create a paradox, thus, he can’t save her. But he’s so deep in his despair and obsession and insistence on preserving her life that I don’t think he ever stops to think about this - or he does, but refuses to acknowledge it. I’m sure he was incredibly sweet and kind and soft in the past, with her, and with his passion, and it’s heartbreaking to see how broken he is now, how miserable and tired he is, how much everything changed him. And wanting to get back at someone like Bill, who had it all to begin with and then carelessly used them to gain even more, well, I don’t blame him for that. >_> Not to mention his relationship with Clive, which is all kinds of fascinating to think about: the most chaotic, dysfunctional mess of a half-business partnership half-father/son relationship there is, ahaha... Both of them are unhealthy to the extreme in different ways, but with how much time they spent together, it’s inevitable they had vulnerable moments around each other... Clive is the only other person Dimitri would have around during his research to possibly grow to care about, even if it was entirely unconsciously. Learning he was using him would, well, ruin their relationship even more than it was already messed up, but maybe he would visit Clive in prison at least once, assuming Hershel was. I just crave content for them, ugh. Dimitri just deserved so much better, he makes me so sad </3 and I honestly hate that we don’t get to see him say goodbye to Claire at the end before Hershel; sure it would have utterly killed me, but surely he deserved that much...

The utter, frankly amazing, stupidity of Flora’s kidnapping has been stated everywhere, we all know it, but just.... yeah. smh

Seeing the mobile fortress be like *war flashbacks to the Detragon* “Not This Shit Again” Hershel why tf you putting Luke in more danger AGAIN???

The car scenes with the mobile fortress are, at least to me, the funniest parts of the entire game, even better than the casino, oh my god they’re AMAZING. Luke screaming and flailing his arms while Hershel deadpan flings the car towards the fortress, all the bumps they hit riding across it later on, the car just FALLING and Bill almost falling out of it, and then the plane, all the while Hershel displays no more than mild frustration while everyone else is PANICKING... “a plane? This is an automobile!” ...iconic. top PL moments ever. Luke don’t you recall the time when Hershel built an entire mini plane out of a chainsaw and a barrel in ED, come on now

Onto Claire. Claire doesn’t get much screentime, but some of the moments she does have are very good; she’s one of the best and most fleshed-out female PL characters imo, and like a lot of things, I appreciate her a lot more after this replay than I did years ago... LayClaire is a cute ship and all, but I was never really obsessed with it; rather, I’m realizing now I’m more invested in what Claire has to offer by herself. I hate to use the term “strong female character” cause that sounds so cliche... but she really is strong. The entire part with her wanting to save Clive, their conversation, and her bringing him out... god it gets me, it really does. She’s known she’s going to die for ages, and at this point in the game she knows it could be any moment now, so she has no reason to try to keep herself safe; she’s doomed no matter what, so she might as well spend the last few minutes of her life saving another life, and not just anyone: someone who’s just killed countless people, who anyone else would see as insane, who doesn’t care for her, doesn’t care if he lives or dies - but Claire is compassionate enough that, despite everything, she fiercely believes he deserves to live. Because of her own guilt and sins she believes she bears, yes, but also simply because she believes he can still change, and doesn’t deserve to die, despite the HORRIBLE atrocity he just committed. She’s just that good a person. It’s no wonder she and Hershel loved each other and were made for each other; both of them are such kind, loving, selfless people who see the best in anyone no matter what. Perhaps she hoped and suspected that Hershel would look out for and care for Clive once he was in prison, so she wanted to make sure that could happen, even if she wouldn’t be around to ever see it.

sorry I just get really emotional about this part, about the entire mood and tone of Claire desperately trying to save this kid, and the way the camera focuses on the massive scale of the fortress and how it dwarfs them in size... It’s a really powerful and melancholic scene (just like Dimitri’s flashback scene; have I mentioned how much I adore the atmosphere and cinematic direction of this game? cause god I do) with the knowledge of her real identity and circumstances, the visuals and the music are so good, ugh i just have so many feels. mom Claire hurts me </3 she’s so good... Despite the fact that she dies, and so much of what everyone is doing is because of her death, her presence in the story is so strong, and it never feels like her only purpose is to die for everyone else’s development and that’s it (unlike... well, a lot of other pl females :’); she has her own things to do, she stops the fortress alongside Hershel, and literally saves the main antagonist’s life. Seriously I just adore the fact that she of all people is the one to rescue Clive in the end even though she wasn’t at all obligated to (although I’d be interested and cry over an AU where Hershel saves him instead; it honestly surprises me that he wasn’t going to until Claire said something...), because Clive is the only character (of the adults) who doesn’t have a direct relationship with Claire, but they’re still connected by the explosion, and so it makes for an interesting and terribly sad dynamic, even if they only have a few minutes with each other, for all the reasons I said earlier. Claire doesn’t think what he did was right, but she knows what she and the other scientists did wasn’t right either - and it’s too late for her now, but it’s not too late for him; she knows he has a kind heart, deep down, and that he needs help if he wants to redeem himself. She feels responsible for him, feels like she owes him that second chance, after indirectly taking his parents from him and causing him such misery and brokenness... She’s so brave and strong-willed to be able to do and admit all that she does; I just love her. It clearly kills her to leave Hershel, I don’t think she intended at first to ever let him know who she was (hence Celeste), but she’s not too upset in the end, because she (rightly) knows that he will be all right. ;; She’s so beautiful, too... wish we could have seen her interact with so many of the other characters </3

and so my favorite “insert Descole into the main trilogy” AU is where Descole intercepts Claire and makes some sort of body for her, like how everyone headcanons that for Aurora post-AL. (or/also just mobile fortress vs. Descole robots, that’s cool too lol)

And finally, Clive, the infamous star of Unwound Future, thought I talked about him a bit already (and also in this post a few weeks ago). Clive is probably the PL series’ best written villain Anton excluded, I absolutely love him, like everyone does. Nothing really about him hasn’t been done before elsewhere, but that’s not a bad thing; when I was younger and first played the game I really only paid attention to his sympathetic side, but now I’ve also grown an appreciation and fondness for that kind of unabashedly awful, manic, evil insanity a villain like him has, it’s just SO entertaining to watch. If PL was a more mature/higher rated series I’d love to see his chaotic crazed energy played up even more, just to really hammer in how messed up he is, ahaha, but of course that would make it harder to sympathize with him..... and unfortunately, it already is kind of hard, because.... shit, the number of people he must have killed? It’s a LOT. A FUCKTON. The level of sympathy the game gives Clive and the way it presents him at the end is not at ALL relative to the astronomical amount of people that had to have been squashed to death by his machine, to the point that it honestly makes me uncomfortable, and I try to just retcon that in my head, as hard as it is to imagine a scenario where that thing could have come up to London and not hit any houses, because like..... There’s no coming back from that. He knew exactly what he was doing, madness or not, and I honestly just... don’t want him to be such a mass murderer. Maybe it’s wrong to ignore it, but the game wants me to feel sorry for him and see his potential for redemption, and his relationship with Hershel is so good... dammit game, why’d you have to show those houses being crushed. Ugh. Because Clive is so compelling as someone who feels betrayed by people in power, who desires revenge not only for himself but for all the people who suffered just like he has that he says he bore witness to as a reporter; it’s a very relatable position and a good story, for his well-meaning intentions to be skewed and lost in the midst of his rage and despair and hatred and insanity, where his very valid point of “hey people in government are fucked up and don’t give a shit about us and that needs to change” gets turned into “they all need to die even if the very innocent people I want to save get hurt by this as well”, and I really wish that whole angle of it had been played up a bit more, and there had been more of an opportunity for Hershel to reason with him and argue that in the midst of his blind need for revenge, he’s become even worse than the people who need justice handed to them (cue some Descole allusionssss). He wouldn’t have to win him over, Clive is already too deep by that point despite how much he wanted to be stopped, but just having more of that than just what happens in the surveillance room would have been sooooooo good, I love that conversation. It would have made Clive even better and really drive home that he’s 1) kinda right about some things and wants better for people 2) still very fucking wrong and selfish at the same time and has taken it all way too far 3) very fucked up and broken. Not that the third point isn’t already abundantly clear, but... yeah. It would have given him even more depth, made him more sympathetic, and helped juuust a little to offset how much the game handwaves his mass murders... just a little... One of my favorite Clive scenes though is when the fortress is breaking down and he’s still there, desperately trying to save it, still in denial about the fact that all his plans have failed and that everything he’s done (and himself) is about to go up in flames; I know everyone loves making fun of him and that that scene is pretty memeable (he does get bodied so much in the game, lmaooo), but it makes him look so vulnerable, all alone in there by himself, like a child, which is what he really is, deep down: he never truly wanted to do something so abhorrent and evil, but his emotions and mind spiraled so badly out of control and it led him to such a dark, horrible place, where he couldn’t stop himself, no matter how much he wanted to, and in the end all he can do is watch helplessly as the reality of what he’s done and his unwound future all comes crashing down in front of him, never to be salvaged. And he believes wholeheartedly that he is going to die, that he deserves to (this is my favorite Clive scene; he’s so hurt and resigned, the voice acting kills me ugh), he doesn’t understand at all why Claire wants to save him, especially if he knows she’s one of the scientists (as his line of “why are you of all people helping me” implies), because he always thought none of them ever cared about him and people he saw as like him, thought everyone was like Bill Hawks, but Claire still cared enough to want to save his life, even though she was one of the people he was actively targeting with his revenge... I wonder how he would have felt at the time if he had known about her situation and that she was dying. </3 I just want so many good things for him, as so much of the fandom does. He’s so messed up but that’s what makes him so interesting, and his potential relationship with Hershel that the ending of the game suggests could happen is so touching and lovely and uplifting, one of my favorite kinds of relationships in fiction: Clive’s issues would persist for so long, for forever, really, but Hershel would support him and help him heal, and be there for him always, no matter how much Clive would feel like he didn’t deserve it. I eat this dynamic up, I really do, every single time I encounter it in a story, and it’s made even better by the fact that as I’ve said, Hershel has so much in common with Clive, and so they would get along very well for that reason, and Clive could unknowingly help Hershel just as much Hershel tries to help him. They’re so good for each other. Add Luke too, and Flora, and Desmond...! just ahhhhh........ there’s so much goodness. Clive you absolute glorious, fucked-up mess of a character, I love you. :’) and I love fic writers who explore facets of his personality and write about him. He’s only in one game, and there’s still a few hiccups, as I said, yet he’s handled far better than Descole or Randall in my opinion (though I love them too)... just an amazing fucking villain, and character. I wish UF could have gone deeper with him than it did, but even so, the possibilities with Clive are endless. I love him, so much ;;

and some of the themes of the plot in this game, uhh, hit a little close to home in good ole’ 2020/21 time we live in? :’) #FuckBillHawks

Hershel saying goodbye to Claire.... god. One of the top scenes in the entire series, probably the #1 most iconic I’d even go so far as to say. I don’t even really ship LayClaire, but there’s an indescribable emotion that finale gives me... it’s just breathtaking, in the most gutwrenching, nostalgic, beautiful way. I still maintain that Diabolical Box’s ending is sadder than this one, for a multitude of reasons, just comparing the stories and situations the characters are in, but I 100% don’t blame people for bawling at this scene more than any other, just because of the way it’s done yes I know I won’t shut up about the cinematography; the lighting, the camera angles, the pacing of it, Hershel’s fucking kicked puppy faces, the dialogue oh god the dialogue; it ALL hits like a TRUCK and comes together beautifully. At this point in his life Hershel has been through so much loss, so much so that it is unbearable - when he cries that he doesn’t want to say goodbye again, that he can’t say goodbye again, that he refuses to, nothing in the world is more true: this man has been through too much, and he’s hit his breaking point. even if you don’t have the prequels in mind when watching this, as most people don’t/didn’t the first time through, the overwhelming sense of burden and loss Hershel is feeling is so palpable, so painful - you get the sense that this isn’t just about Claire; Hershel has never shown emotion like this before up to this point, so for him to finally break down like this... it speaks volumes. After so many years of holding everything in, he finally can’t take it anymore, and basically stabbing me in the fucking chest would hurt less </3 I complain about Hershel never showing emotion like this (never crying) in the prequels whenever he’s hit with an equally horrible bombshell, and I still feel that way, but at the same time a part of me is also glad that’s the case, because it makes the very last (two) scenes in the entire series hit so much harder, knowing that he finally loses his composure after dealing with so much. As the titular character of the series, Hershel’s development is very understated and subtle, so it’s all the more meaningful when he actually snaps, because it makes him feel so much more real and human than he ever is the rest of the time, when he maintains his facade of being a perfectly composed, calm, and together gentleman; this scene finally say that, no, Hershel is a person, and he is broken in a lot of ways, because some puzzles you just can’t solve no matter how hard you try, and it’s so sad. And this sad tone of loss and longing permeates the entire cutscene; the way the title is dropped in Claire’s dialogue (both versions equally haunting imo), and Hershel taking off his hat for the first time ever, and the pan up and transition back to show the falling snow as “Time Travel”, my favorite instrumental in the series, kicks in... y’all there is no other feeling in the world like the feeling that elicits, there really isn’t ಥ⌣ಥ ❤️💔 the only thing that might even come close to it is the ending of Azran Legacy with Surely Someday, simply because it was the ending of the series, but the ending of Unwound Future hits me harder knowing it’s the end of the timeline, and with everything else in hindsight. And then an unknown amount of time later, even with Luke gone and Hershel only having Flora there with him anymore unless we headcanon DESMOND COMES BACK BECAUSE OF COURSE HE DID RIGHT, Hershel is still no longer wearing his hat, to show that he’s finally started to heal from his pain, and accepted the loss(es), because throughout all of UF Hershel had never really gotten over Claire’s death no matter how much he tried to pretend like he had, but you don’t realize that until you see the ending, until he got one final chance to see her. I just... ugh I love it so much, so much. It means so much, for Hershel and for the series, and that’s why it makes me cry (and don’t even get me sTARTED on Luke’s goodybe, and how upsetting yet beautiful THAT is. yes, Luke isn’t a gentleman yet, and Hershel finally learns that maybe he doesn’t always have to be one, either :’’’’’’)

Unwound Future is a masterpiece. Diabolical Box has my favorite characters and story for the new characters, and favorite settings, personally, but Unwound Future is such top-tier storytelling and writing; it feels so epic and sweeping and (here i go again) cinematic, it’s so polished and everything flows so well, the pacing is wonderful, everything ties up so perfectly and there’s very little I would change Flora bitching aside and practically nothing that feels like filler, even though some of it technically is. The tone stays consistent and they really push the boundaries of how serious and heavy these games can be, and it works, and doesn’t feel silly or glossed over or too unrealistic or too heavyhanded like some of the other games are at times; the plot twists/reveals feel the least absurd and the most grounded in reality, despite still being wild, and it focuses on some really relevant stuff and themes (again, it feels really grounded and raw, and the least fantastical, which isn’t a bad thing for the other games/movie per se, but being more realistic works in this one’s favor. No one is going to have their family separated and murdered by a criminal secret organization working to unearth ancient advanced civilized ruins, or lose years of their life and memories in said ancient ruins, or have their life ruined in an eternal unaging state from hallucinogenic gas, but being screwed over by people in government who will do anything to make sure they never have to face consequences? now that’s a mood). It’s just a really fucking good game, by far the best Professor Layton game, and I’ll always stand by that, despite preferring DB just a bit more cause it hits more of my personal tastes (DB is still very good too though, don’t get me wrong), and it’s also enhanced even more by the prequels, though it stands perfectly on its own. The perfect culmination of Hershel’s character arc, and the absolute high point of the series. It’s one of the ones I keep coming back to the most, just because it has so much to offer; as someone who is absolutely enamored with near-perfect stories of this caliber, I couldn’t ask for more. ❤️

#professor layton #professor layton spoilers #meta #who wants to read 8k words about a 12 year old game: no one #who's still gonna post it: this bitch #i actually got emotional near the end writing hjklskdfkfldlksk watching the end of uf always hurts :' )#me: 'db is my favorite' also me: 'rants and cries about uf for almost double the length of the db rant'#It's About The Potential.jpg #i didn't even talk about the puzzles much at all lmaooooo none of them really stood out to me #just........ story........ so good...... emotions go brrrr #i need ALL the dimitri fanfic tbh #and dimitri and clive #and CLAIRE and clive #and clive and hershel ofc #catch me being obsessed with time travel in a game where 99% of it isn't time travel ahjsdffkldskkdfl #It Could Be That Deep.jpg #need to write my other uf ideas.... and then get to the prequels already #but i also wanna replay pl vs aa... and the aa trilogy...... so much to doooooo

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vincedeangelo · 4 years

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At a glance he may look like Grant Gustin but in reality they’re just 213 year old Vince De’Angelo, a witch here in Barton Hallow. They are a lone witch. They work as a professor of Horticulture and Biological Sciences here in town and are known for being energetic and distracted. I’d watch my back if I were you..

[History]

Saying that life has been complicated for Vince is a bit of an understatement. It didn’t start that way, but it didn’t start easily either. Being born at the middle of the 18th century in Europe to a distinctly Bohemian traveling family, his parents were already well aware of a long vein of magic running through the family tree, his several siblings and half siblings could attest to that much, but most of that magic was rooted into nature. Vince grew up in comfortable chaos, happy enough for the most part, within the shelter of a large family who looked after each other and, while facing a great deal of downward glances from the rest of society, were themselves excellent at thriving and enjoying life with very little in hand.

It was what, in later times, might be compared more to the lifestyle of a hippie commune once the family did finally settle in an area of Britain and became, more or less, the farming, earth-worshiping sorts. Which was all well and good, that slow pace wasn’t as appealing to Vince’s teenage self though and he sort of laments that he did take off when he had to see more of the world; the things he saw weren’t exactly pleasant. It did very little to unsettle his excitable, eager personality but more than a few times he made a mess of his efforts out in the world.

It wasn’t until his twenties that he began to test his magic more, at that point much of his time was spend engrossed in the the developing underbelly of London and how strangely different it was than his own upbringing. It was there that he met the person, or rather the vampire, who became his best friend in very short order. Unconventional, yes, but the two spent more than their fair share of time discussing philosophy, life and the world around them. They were inseparable. At such a pivotal point in his life Vince directed his studies towards darker magic, seeing no fear in exploring the limits of them at the urging of the vampire. It was the start of his studies as a necromancer, and one of the point of his life he still looks back very fondly on.

It seemed almost impossible to imagine but as close as they were, as much adoration Vince had for his dearest friend and companion, but that bond became strained when the prospects of relocating became as necessity. The world, again, was changing drastically, and becoming less kind to those who were not human but especially the undead in London. A few murders in the area had suspicions heavy and Vince saw it as the chance to finally leave Europe to see the States, but his friend wanted nothing to do with the idea. The xenophobia of walking into a seemingly new and hostile place was too much, the arguments spiked and eventually they split paths; Vince hopeful to change their mind later but left the argument unresolved.

Always far too trusting a soul, and lonely, Vince became involved shortly after in a particularly determined coven under the name of the Children of the Silent Voice; a group of witches who were mostly like himself and held necromantic or otherwise ‘dark’ magic as their most honed abilities. He believed that magic wasn’t evil in any form, that like anything it held a place in the balance. They recruited him under the guise of crafting a safe haven for those like themselves and Vince devoted years to helping them find other witches via communication with spirits. The breaking point came when the coven was attacked by Hunters, forcing Vince’s hand with the situation, giving him little choice but to step outside the realms of peace and right into bloodshed. He thought his intentions were good, thought his efforts held purpose in helping those like himself who suffered the cruelty of humans' fear of magic.

Something was deeply wrong though, and it began his reign as second to the High Priestess of the coven; the bloodiest time in his life. It built around him a reputation that still lingers now; he was a destructive force, the constant tip of power. After all, winning was easy when the fallen were your’s to reanimate and command against your enemies. He existed as a figure of terror, caught up in the fog that was those confusing years.

It was all for nothing, in the end. During one of his attacks on a village that had, supposedly, destroyed several witches, Vince picked up a particularly stubborn spirit that wouldn’t leave him alone. She persisted, a nightmare that haunted him in ways that others hadn’t managed, a lost child who perished before her time. Her misery broke that daze, finally, and forced him to take a step back and view what he had been doing, the horrible things that had left stains on his hands. His mind had been twisted by those he followed, and he finally saw that truth. When he approached the Priestess with his doubts she dismissed him as a traitor, banished him from their ranks and he was almost relieved to flee. His last act before leaving Europe behind was to urge the spirit who had followed him to move on, and once she had he decided it was time for him to do the same.

Living through the 19th century in the States was certainly an experience, one he absolutely would not have traded for anything else. Seeing both the best and the worst of what people were capable of was an eye-opening view of the world, and he naturally developed a certain fondness for the eighties and its’ flower-child mentality that reminded him so much at home. He bounced around, joined a cult or two out of curiosity, wandered off when he grew tired of it, even played a few lighthearted attempts at using his power to help people communicate with their lost loved ones but mostly maintained a human image as the growing uneasiness with the supernatural turned from tension to a sudden war.

One Vince wanted no part in, purposely avoiding to take sides on the matter and acting under the ideal that it was never going to solve anything. Having known real horror and being the cause of it before, he was approached time and again to join the ranks of various covens and groups but refused each time, no longer willing to be a part of such things. He expected it to settle down in a few years but they never did and the battles just kept hitting too close for comfort and sending him darting off to the next spot in search in peace. It never lasted long enough, but he just kept trying, looking for the silver lining and the end of that conflict that never seemed to come.

When rumors of Barton Hollow stirred up they caught his interest, the possibility of a new start in a place where he wouldn’t be constantly accosted for involvement in the bloodshed sounded wonderful. It was an easy choice and he quickly set off to what he hoped would be his new home for a while; in short order setting himself up as a professor at the college thanks to his handful of degrees earned over time and making himself useful to the local magic using community with his flair for cultivating wickedly dangerous plants and herbs.

Vince can be a bit much at times. He’s excitable, not at all reserved, and tends to ramble. That rambling may turn a million different directions in one conversation; he’s quite a mess about it. But he adores people; living, dead, human or otherwise. He’s very quickly becoming a relatively well known figure around the Hollow for his cheerful presence and willingness to engage people around him. It’s a sharp contrast to the history written in such bloody terms, but he doesn’t hide it. He’s open enough about his mistakes, but he certainly hopes that people understand that the past isn’t the measure of what a person is but who they were before they knew better.

As for that past, by all accounts Vince is considered one of the stronger necromancers left in the world, and one who has practiced dark magic for a very long time. Plenty of people seek him out for those skills and he does lend them to causes he thinks are going to do some positive change, but by the large his power is only used in small ways anymore. He can reanimate the dead but has learned the agony of what it costs to both himself and the poor soul, can communicate with the dead and does so when he needs information, and he knows an unsettling but rather effective way of stealing the last sights and few moments of death from a corpse's eyes. Not something to witness if you have a weak stomach. Of course he can also destroy life with a shocking amount of ease. But as someone who values life a great deal and knows the worth of it, he is far more careful in his practices these days.

While it really has very little to do with his abilities as a witch, he is known around town by the covens and the lone witches alike as the person who has an impressive garden of plants and herbs that are fairly lethal. He carefully tends to plants that are highly toxic, have properties that are considered dangerous and drug-like, and those that other witches use in spell craft but cannot access very easily because of their dangerous nature. He willingly offers this rare and deadly flora to those in need of it regardless of coven association, if he’s sure their intentions aren’t to use them in a malicious way. Just don’t try to steal his plants, that hits a nerve you don’t want to rub too thin.

Much of his gift for, and interest in, gardening and plants comes from growing up helping his mother and grandmother raise their garden in his earliest years. Those fond memories fuel his care in that work, but of course his magic influences much of his life so it seems like his real talent in the area is with those deadly species more than their mundane counterparts.

He has a pet cactus named Jared that makes the trek between his classroom on campus and his home in the downtown region of the Hollow daily; Jared is very well looked after and is a standard sort of his species. Nothing all too extraordinary to Jared, but Vince does enjoy putting little hats and costumes on him for various holidays and events the same way most people would dress up a pet. Jared has the distinction of being carried to and from home every day, Vince insists it would be cruel to just leave the poor thing all alone in the classroom at night.

Vince is demisexual, polyamorous; he's fairly unbiased to the gender of his partners though he tends to favor men a bit more, it certainly doesn't sway his interests too much from the rest of the gender spectrum. He’s had an interesting go with relationships in life but nothing ever stuck for long. His list of ex’s run the range but for the most part the breakups were civil, if awkward on his part, ones. He still maintains friendships with a few of them without much drama, still the occasional night spent in their company, but for the most part he’s been solitary for a good twenty or so years by his own choice. Having spent that time burying himself in education and the fascinating scientific world that has surged in the 20th century that took up most of his time. He’s very friendly but painfully awkward at the basic ability to recognize that people are interested in him, and equally bad at making his own interests known because by the large he doesn’t view intimate situations as solely outside the lines of friendships and his tendency to blur the two has made for some amusingly skewed situations in the past.

He is intensely afraid of small spaces; graves absolutely terrify him and any enclosed space causes him to panic. The reasoning lies in some of his conditioning early on in his necromatic practices when he accidentally managed to get himself trapped during the exploration of an older graveyard; the underground tunnels beneath it at one point collapsed and he was unable to escape. He was lucky that another witch who was mentoring him at the time found him but it instilled lifelong terror in him.

Vince loves to read, he’s been around a long while, he absolutely is enamored with knowledge and the creativity of people. It doesn’t matter what; from the most coveted early century tome to the most hilariously badly written new trashy romance novel; he reads with the sort of determined fervor that keeps him constantly hunting for new books. The internet, for that reason, is something else he loves; there’s always endless distraction on there.

He’s not the typical image for a necromancer but he hardly thinks that’s a bad thing. His students in particular he has a soft spot for, generally willing to go out of his way to do what he can if they need help. But really that extends to most people; he’s just a cheerful, upbeat sort who tries not to dwell too much on the bad. He’s also horribly clumsy at it though, but he’s good at laughing at his mistakes.

Vince misses being part of a coven, but even with the urging of those in the Hollow he hasn’t agree to join any of them. The past has made him wary of the intentions of leaders, and he doesn’t want to be a pawn once more. He’s toyed with the idea of starting his own but dismissed the possibility with the certainty that even as acting as second to someone he trusted as fully as he would have to another Priestess it’s unlikely anyone would be comfortable with someone with his power in that role, especially not with the shape the world in in with the ongoing war.

[Wanted Connections] To be vastly expanded on later, but to give a jumping off point for plotting:

Vampire he used to be best friends with.

Someone older than himself (213), was in Europe/London in those early years, and would have had a very close friendship with Vince. Basically the person he considered his companion and other half of sorts; he misses them very much but hasn’t seen them in a long time. They had a bit of a falling out over Vince’s involvement in the Silent Voice Coven back in the day and after the dust settled with all of that Vince went to the states and lost all contact with his friend. This person would know a great deal about Vince, would have been about as close as anyone could be, and very much needs to be back in Vince’s life again.

Siblings/Half Siblings

Vince had a large family, several of whom were witches themselves. He may have younger or older siblings or half siblings around, or could have werewolf or vampire siblings now depending on if they were human to begin with and were turned. He’s lost track of family over time but would remember them, this is very open to ideas and different sorts of sibling relationships. He was always an odd one in the family.

Witches looking to recruit him for various reasons.

The war, past or present tense, the covens, just in general. Vince has a lot of power, an unsettling amount in fact, but he’s actively avoided involvement with the covens aside from his supplying them with various plants and herbs since he’s moved to Barton when it first was established. Good intentions or bad; people who put that pressure on him to join them.

Someone human he can ‘adopt’.

Really Vince has a soft spot for humans, he finds them fascinating really and admires their drive in what amounts to such short lives. Someone he’s grown fond of in a brotherly sort of way and keeps an eye on, helps, and basically just tries to keep out of trouble. Bonus points if they are in fact a lot of trouble to deal with.

People who know his past too well.

There’s nothing all that hidden about Vince’s past and how bloody it was, but he’s put it mostly behind him. Some people haven’t, and some people like to give him grief over the idea that people can’t change. This person is an ongoing source of exhaustion for him but he’s toughing it out, trying to make them see the good; but it’s not easy.

Someone who knows his worst secret

Lots of witches use magic to lengthen their lives, but for those with necromanic abilities the spells are particularity gruesome. Vince did something a long time past that he isn’t too eager for others to know, for the sake of keeping his own life thriving well past his mortal years, but this person, somehow, has managed to get that knowledge. With that comes a degree of power over him, for the sake of keeping that secret. A dark fae he traded a favor to ensure his life never ended naturally, another witch he sought out for a spell that he never should have; I'm open to ideas on this one.

Hunters

Vince is a necromancer, a rather well known one. Over time he's come across people who have wanted to destroy him but has managed to evade them well enough. But this one is out for blood, maybe because of a contract, maybe his actions in the past did something to harm their family line, maybe they just really can't stand dark magic. Whatever the case it's a hard situation for Vince, not wanting to kill again but also very resolute on the idea of not dying.

#bartonintro #vince:intro

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