#when it's bad ooo that's when the obsession lasts decades

[johnlockissess]

never felt what i feel about bbc sherlock about anything else ever. it's complete rage. it's deep love and fondness. it's such a profound sadness over what has never been. i could tear walls with my utter anger alone. i love johnlock so much. it's like my child. i'm so angry. it's so beautiful. i want to come back to it. i must desist otherwise it will be my end. i'm gaslit and i love it. i hate that trash show. it's really bad writing

[eyesteeth]

fionna and cake e6 spoilers + thoughts on the endgame for this series

firstly, on ice prince: i think it's good for simon's development that he got to see this. but it could also be very bad if he doesn't allow himself to ruminate on it. ice prince spends most of the episode making simon feel like shit, because ice prince apparently conquered the madness of the crown out of sheer force of will, will that simon apparently lacked. and ice prince is living the life, having everything simon wishes he could have - the benefits of the crown with none of the downsides.

except, that's a lie. it's only until the very end of the episode is it revealed that he was actually broadcasting the madness of the crown into bubblegum, showing that this ideal cannot exist. the fun magical simon everyone claims to want is a falsehood. you cannot have the magic without the sadness and the madness.

what i find very curious about this universe is that it seems to run very similar to ooo. all the candy subjects are present, albeit mutilated by bubblegum's crown-influenced mind, and we even see a young ice marcy with the same axe bass ooo marcy has. so the simon of this universe had to have gone down nearly the exact same path as ooo simon, with a few exceptions:

he somehow had the thought to beam the madness away from him, implying he had help or some level of cognition or malice ooo ice king never had.

he and marcy are no longer on speaking terms (why recreate a person if you can just talk to them).

he's not obsessed with betty.

the last one of these is the one that stands out the most. the (outwardly) most functional simon we've seen so far does not care about betty. she died and he got over it. which leads me to my main thought about the ending of this series:

i don't think simon and betty should end up together.

their story is very much one of cycles, a loop of loss and finding and being lost again. simon has been grieving betty for decades, given how much finn's aged, yet simon never seemed to get out of the third and fourth stages of grief - he's cycling between depression and bargaining and seems to have been for a while. this is definitely not helped by being a normal man in a world full of magic when that magic can't even bring back the person he wants.

and if he does find her in the other multiverses, it wouldn't last. either she wouldn't be "his betty", or he'd become an anomaly just like fionna and cake, and would end up wreaking havoc anyway. he needs to accept that the woman he loves is gone. even if he somehow made his way to golbetty, betty's wish in the AT finale was to keep simon safe. golbetty is NOT safe, that's why she left so quickly during that battle. if he approaches her, there is no guarantee that she'll stay put. she could even boot him back to ooo.

much like his desire to get the crown and be magical again, his desire to find betty is founded on the falsehood that everything will be fine if he just has this one thing.

now, granted, this doesn't mean i wouldn't like to see him try. he is so dedicated to this line of thought that it's very likely he could end up regressing into ice king if they do manage to find a crown. that's the point of this kind of narrative, seeing the protagonist struggle and fail before eventually coming to the final realization. it's a story of grief and addiction, and those are never linear things. we still have four episodes left, and a lot could happen.

which, to that point, i think the marceline episode is going to be in the next batch, either e7 or e8. i am fairly confident this will be a world where either a) simon did not find the crown and died in the bombing, b) simon briefly spent time with marcy but died in an attack, or c) simon left marcy earlier and she ended up falling in with the vampires. her manner of dress in the trailer and promo image seems to suggest that this is a marcy who was either raised by her father and proudly wears the crown of vampire queen, or was raised by the vampires who were killing humans after the bombs. i believe this could only happen under those three circumstances.

this is going to be especially important for simon's development on two fronts. firstly, it shows that simon's time as himself was worth something. marceline is much better off having had his help during the years right after the bombing. even though he left in the end, what he did to help her prevented her from becoming whatever she is in this upcoming episode. and, secondly, it's a reminder that the marcy back at ooo is still someone he can talk to. just because she has a girlfriend/wife now doesn't mean that he's unwelcome in her life. it's the classic depression isolation, and maybe this realization will get him to break out of it somewhat.

also for future episodes, betty shows up in the trailer, and i'm willing to bet(ty) that this is going to be either e9 or e8, depending on how long simon's going to sit on this interaction and process it. i can see it being in the next batch if e9 and e10 are going to be the climax and resolution, but i can also see this betty scene happening in e9 and pushing him into regression and a mental spiral in e10, which is mostly him having a horrible time and the world of fionna and cake shaking up as a whole.

it's snowing over there now. maybe they get some earthquakes as foreshadowing to the breakdown simon's about to have. truly, who knows? we just gotta wait. but it will be interesting either way, i think.

[just-mebs]

Ooo can i ask what what Dell's role in your AU is? he seemed to worn and sad in the scene you posted I want to give him a hug

OMG 🥺yes of course! Link to scene

Okay so like I mentioned in in my mini summary, the entirety of the Penitent Father AU is focused on the idea of "What if Scout didn't come back?". For the most part it focuses on everyone 10 years later and how his death have impacted them. Some have dealt with it pretty okay, some struggled at first but eventually was able to move on..

And then there was Dell.

For Dell and Jeremy, they were really close, like REALLY close before he died. It didn't take a genius to figure out that they both liked each other, loved each other really. In my AU at least, Dell is the one that kind of saves Jeremy from himself. Helps him realize who he is and helps him actually like himself again. Jeremy does much of the same for Dell too, breaking down walls and barriers that he'd be force to build in order to be safe. They were in love and they cared so SO deeply for one another. The only reason they weren't ever together was because Dell got cold feet.

For the most part its because he can still see that Jeremy has SO much more pain he needs to work through (at this point Dell has no idea that Jeremy has a son) and doesn't feel like its right for him to enter a relationship until he's managed to work through those problems at least a little. On the other hand Dell is scared, he's so scared that Jeremy will leave him, or that he isn't good enough, or that he only likes him because of everything he's done to help him.

And so he pushed Jeremy away, left him thinking it was for the best, that it would be better for the both of them. Jeremy kind of relapses after this, though not long after he ends up dying. Dell isn't there when he dies, he's with the Administrator. He's the last one to find out that Jeremy is dead and is kills him.

The depression that hits him, hits him hard. He closes himself off from the rest of them, spends all his time in his workshop just building and building trying to distract himself from the grief that's ripping him apart from the inside out. By the time we see in the AU he's a shell of the man he once was, he can play the part of friendly southern engineer, but truthfully he hasn't smile honestly in over a decade.

Tavish is the one that eventually pulls him out of it, their entire relationship deserves its own post to be honest, but know that it takes a lot of time and patience for them to get somewhere happy.

Bonus facts about Dell that I wanted to share:

Both he and Jeremy are trans men, that's one of the big things he helps Jeremy with before he dies

He has a... bit of an obsession with building Scout bots in his retirement. He has so many, both life size and tiny ones, that help him move around/do things

Oh yeah, he ages really bad. A lot of it is the depression but other is just him taking poor care of himself

He fucking hates Emile (My Spy OC/Jeremy's dad/JJ's grandfather). He knew Emile was Jeremy's dad before Jeremy died but couldn't tell him due to it being confidential. He blames Emile for every bad thing that happened to Jeremy + his death itself

Interestingly, he has a poor relationship with JJ too. A lot of it is him just seeing so much of Jeremy in JJ (which JJ rejects a lot), though there are some other reasons too.

Sorry this got really long but !!! Thank you so much for asking 😭😭💗

[shnuggletea]

For Inuyasha Sin Week, here is the prologue of my fic! @lemonlushff​ @neutronstarchild​, I offer this fic as tribute to this awesome event. Now if I could only get all the other chapters done!

Synopsis: Tired of heartbreak and disappointment, Sango, Kagome, and Kikyo decide to "create" their perfect mate. Clearly, no one told them to be careful about what you wish for. For Inuyasha Sins Week 2020!

TAG WALL!!!!!

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Prologue

“The beginning is the most important part of the work.” ― Plato, The Republic

It had been an hour and I still sat, drumming my nails on the table I reserved for us. I only paused in my drum solo to run my hand through my hair again, the curls I forced on my pin-straight and plain black strands falling flat long ago. Why was I still here? The guy clearly wasn’t coming. Or did took one look and left right out. 

Fucking blind dates. 

Having enough of the embarrassment, people watching and making bets on how much longer I would last as well as the waiter asking yet again if I wanted to go ahead and order, I made sure to strut as much as I could out of the place. It was all an act, the lovely feeling of my skirt on my thighs not the same post ‘date’. 

I had been assured that this guy was ‘great!’ and ‘perfect for me!’. My perfect man didn’t stand me up. Especially in such a high-class restaurant. 

The ache of exhaustion had little to do with the heels I flung off my feet to toss next to the door. I was tired of disappointment. I was tired of heartbreak. But most of all, I was tired of being lonely. 

And I was far from alone, plopping to the occupied couch. She gave me a hard look with her bright blue eyes that I ignored as long as I could. “He didn’t show?!”

Damn. I hated how Kagome could do that, see through people so easily. “No, he didn’t show.”

“But Kikyo said…”

“I know! She was wrong about him.”

Kagome sighed gently, wrapping an arm around my shoulders to pull me close to her. “I’m sorry, Sango.”

The coffee table was filled with a strange array of books. Their bindings all odd titles, this time about witchcraft and alchemy. “Got a test soon?”

Sitting up, she fingered through the collection. “My dissertation. Just haven’t figured out my main topic yet. I think I wanna do magic and science? How the two intertwine making both real?”

Sounded like nonsense to me, but most of what Kagome studied did. A weird mix of medical science and folklore. Or something. I didn’t know what she was studying because it was all a wash of information it seemed. 

“Anything in there about finding your soul mate? Because I think we could both use that magic or science.”

Kagome frowned, knowing I was right. It had been a long time since Kagome had felt the love bug. The dates she went on and the guys she became ‘serious’ with panned out as well as mine did. Woefully falling short in one way or another. And the last time she had a boyfriend… it didn’t end well. 

My phone rang and for a heartbeat, I thought maybe it was the guy calling to apologize. But no, it was Kikyo so I hit speaker right away. “How did it go?”

“I’m answering your call at 8:45, what do you think?”

Kikyo hissed, “that bad?”

“Terrible. He didn’t show!”

She gasped, “what? That doesn’t make sense…”

“It doesn’t matter. No more blind dates. I’m just going to die alone.”

“Where’s Kagome?”

I glanced her way and Kagome had a book in her lap. A big one. “Right here on the couch, next to me.”

There was a giggle on the line from Kikyo but it wasn’t towards us. Then a ‘stop it’ and I was ready to hang up on her. “Sorry, hold on a second.” I rolled my eyes towards Kagome and she smirked and shrugged. Kikyo never seemed to mind rubbing her love life in our sad-sack faces. “Okay, I’m back.”

“So how’s Yougi?”

Kikyo scoffed, “Yougi? I dumped him last week! I’m with Jin. But he’s so clingy, I’m going to dump him soon.” Here I was, a starving woman talking to a woman who was drowning in men. It left me less than pleased. “I can’t believe Ken stood you up. I’m going to call him right now and…”

“Wait, his name is Ken?” Kagome had a sudden interest, looking at me and the phone. “Isn’t that the guy you dated last month? The one that asked you to marry him?!”

“.... yeah so?”

My skin pricked with irritation. “You set me off with one of your castoffs?!”

“He’s a great guy!”

“Great? Then why don’t you marry him?!”

Kikyo huffed like I was joking, “he’s a little too boring for me. No imagination in the sack.”

I was sure a blood vessel or two bursts in my brain. “Kikyo… as much as I… appreciate your efforts, no more blind dates. Especially ones that are your sloppy seconds!!”

“So you don’t want Jin when I’m done with him?”

“No!!”

Kagome leaned into the phone, “Kikyo, they’re people. Not items. You can’t just pass them to the next person interested. It doesn’t work like that. What did you tell Ken to get him to agree to a blind date?”

The line was silent and the heat under my skin slowly began to rise with each second waiting. “I told him I’d see him after to… talk.”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!!” I screamed. 

“I wasn’t going to do it! I figured he would go and have such a good time with you that he would forget about me!”

“Instead, he hoped to trick you into thinking he saw me first and chose you instead! Good night Kikyo!!!”

The beep the phone made as I ended the call wasn’t nearly satisfying. Grabbing a random book on witchcraft, I popped off the couch and made for my room, holding the book up like a hostage. “I’m borrowing this and looking for a hex or curse to put on Kikyo’s vagina!!”

Kagome’s mouth dropped for a second before twisting into a smile. “Pretty sure there’s already one on it, seeing as all those who enter get dumped soon after!”

The chuckle I released was a sad one, lacking any happiness even with Kagome trying to cheer me up. No, only magic could cheer me up now. I had been kidding about a spell but as I laid restless in bed, I found myself thumbing the pages all night long. 

oOo

It was decadent. Even more so for breakfast. But after the night Sango had she would need comfort. 

I carefully flipped the crepe I had in the pan over and took a sip of my tea. Strawberries chopped behind me and chocolate melted, all that was left was cooking the bread and wrapping them up. 

The knock on the door had me quickly flinging the finished crepe to a plate and tiptoe run to answer it. I sighed and shook my head at her, but stepped back to let Kikyo in. 

“How mad is she?”

“Pretty mad. What were you thinking?”

Kikyo flicked a short black lock around her ear, showing off her pretty diamond earrings. Probably a gift from a guy. “I was thinking that Ken was a really nice guy even if he wasn’t right for me.”

Sighing, I relented. Kikyo meant well but just didn’t get it. But she never struggled to find love just struggled to find love in her own heart. 

She took a seat at our small dining room table, facing me as I danced in the kitchen with my work. Pouring more batter into my pan, I lifted the metal to swirl it around for my circle. I loved watching the liquid become solid before my eyes. An instance of science that looked like magic to me. 

“Any coffee for me?”

I pointed to the pot I made for Sango when she got up. Kikyo had just placed her full mug to her lips for a sip when Sango’s bedroom door flung open. We both jumped, yet somehow, Kikyo’s coffee landed on me. I pulled away from her attempts to clean and apologize to flip my crepe instead. 

“I found it. I found the answer!”

Sango looked wild. Her eyes were red from lack of sleep and her hair was in knots. She also didn’t care that Kikyo was there or that she was running around in a large t-shirt with no pants. I had seen her like that many times but Kikyo never had for a reason. Sango has a thing about her thighs and ass. I thought she looked great but she didn’t so Sango rarely let anyone see them in daylight like this. 

Kikyo was still trying to dab coffee off my sleeve while I knew a change of shirt was inevitable. “What are you talking about?”

Kikyo’s tone didn’t deter Sango in the least, holding up the book she borrowed last night up in the air. “I found the answer to our boy problems!”

Glancing at the binding, I quickly read the title. It was an old text on witchcraft. More importantly, one that included spells and incantations instead of history and theories. I had searched for years for a text like it and Sango was brandishing it around like a sword. 

“Be careful with that!!”

Now she clutched it to her chest, changing from a sword to a precious child. “It has what we all need. Kagome and I especially. Kikyo… you don’t need it like we do but you can make up for last night by helping.”

“What are you talking about?” Kikyo spun to me, “what is she talking about?!”

Like I had a clue? That book was full of silly and ridiculous rhymes and rituals. Most that involved sacrificing something like blood or an animal. 

So I shrugged and we both turned back to a manic Sango. Who grinned wide before slapping the book open to a page. “To Summon a Perfect Mate.”

“Mate?” Kikyo questioned. 

I glanced from Sango to Kikyo, catching her genuine confusion and rolling my eyes. “A lover.”

“Not just any lover! You can mix and match your perfect soul mate!!” Sango jittered, more excited than I had seen her in a long time. “Whatever you want, you can put into the man and make him perfect!”

Pulling the book from her grasp, I spun it around to look. Only to have my heart drop into my empty belly. “This isn’t summoning a man, it’s summoning a demon!”

Sango spun the book back to herself and continued to smile. “But we can choose what kind of vessel they’re in! We can but then in a human body!”

“They’d still be a demon, Sango!”

“I don’t know,” Kikyo purred, “a demon lover sounds hot.”

They were serious? Seriously considering it?! I knew Sango was struggling, so was I but this hardly seemed like the answer! 

My crepe had burnt to a crisp, quickly flinging the black bread into the sink before it caught fire. When I turned back, Kikyo was studying the text closely alongside Sango. It made my heart jump from my stomach to my throat. 

“Guys. Come on. It’s not like it’s going to work!”

Sango shrugged and grinned. “Then there’s no harm in trying then, is there?”

oOo

It had been a week since Sango showed us the spell. It took three days to convince Kagome to at least try and then we had to wait for the next full moon. Which was tonight. 

I had my list in my purse of the things I wanted in my man; strong, confident, independent, smart. I also wanted him to have long, dark, wavy hair but I didn’t know if the spell worked like that. It didn’t mention physical attributes. 

Kagome opened the door for me and I was taken aback, her blood-red dress was pretty and one of her nicer outfits she usually only wore when we went out. “What’s this?”

Looking shy, Kagome tucked her head into her chest and pulled away from me. “When this fails, you guys are gonna want to go out and drink.”

“If it fails!” Sango called out but she was dressed up too.

Moving to the living room turned mixing pot, I took a seat on one of the three pillows on the floor. Sango sat as well on her purple shift dress and crossed her legs. Kagome hovered over us. 

“You guys have your list and your animal?”

It was weird, the most I got but the animal? Damn pagans making things weird. It was the only part that made me hesitate but after some research, I found the perfect animal. And then found my item for it. 

Sango pulled out her list and a plastic bag so I pulled out my things as well. Kagome sat, holding a piece of paper and what looked like a dog collar. Then I looked at Sango who had octopus tentacles at the ready. 

“Seriously?”

Sango gave me a slanted glance, “they’re clever. They can get out of any situation.”

“They’re also sticky and gross!”

“I love octopus! They’re cute!” Kagome cried, defending her friend. 

I pointed to her collar, “and you’re using a…?”

“A dog.” She stated. 

A laugh sputter from me and Sango but she recovered first. “A dog? Why a dog?!”

“Because they’re loyal!”

Both of us stopped at that, understanding instantly why Kagome made that choice. I had thought she had moved on from that but maybe it was something you never got over. 

“And they’re sweet, dependable, and cute…”

“We get it.” A sighed and now it was my turn. “It’s a raven’s feather. Smart, independent, and strong. Just like my ideal man.”

“Your ideal man sounds like you with a dick.”

Sango smirked but I just grinned, “thanks.”

“Okay, let’s get this over with. I really need a drink already.”

Now all of us sat, placing our lists before us with our item on top. The candles in the middle were quickly lit, black, white, red, pink, green, and blue. It was a fucking rainbow. I didn’t question it since Kagome was the master of all this and had read the spell a hundred times before today. Majoring in weird-ass shit was finally paying off. 

“Once I finish the chant, we all burn our lists in the flames and kiss the item while thinking about our… person.”

“You mean lover.”

I giggled at how Sango purred the word but Kagome was already in serious mode. So we cut it out quick and let her get to work. 

“Domena irepi calidus. Domena irepi calidus. Domena irepi calidus. Domena irepi calidus….”

I lost count to how many times Kagome repeated the same line. But then she grew silent and we all shook as we held our list over the flames. 

Dropping them before we burned our fingers, our items were in our hands and pressed to our lips. Kagome and Sango had their eyes closed so I did the same, imagining my perfect man. Tall, built, with dark eyes that pulled me deep. 

And a large cock that made me scream. 

I wished we were saying these out loud, I worried the others didn’t think about sex. Well, Sango probably did but Kagome wouldn’t, I was sure of that. 

Now we waited. Time passed. Babies were born. The moon rose and was beginning to fall. But nothing inside the apartment happened other than breathing and waning excitement. 

“I’m sorry guys…”

Sango looked truly disappointed and I felt for her. I would have been happy if it worked but Sango was dependent on it. Kagome looked guilty as if it was her fault. “It’s not your fault, Kagome. It was stupid in the first place.”

Sango wipes her face and got to her feet. “Let’s go get a drink.”

We were a little silly as we walked back to Kagome and Sango’s. I was feeling more honest than I should be. “This is why you guys are still single. Wasting time on things that don’t matter.”

“Like what?!” Sango cried. 

“Well… take Kagome for example. She picked a dog. A dog! And you an octopus? The problem is, you guys don’t think of men like you should, expendable.”

“Yeah because they're not a purse you change when you please,” Kagome muttered loudly. 

“Yes, they are! And if you treat them as such, then you’ll never get hurt when they leave you. Because you’ll be leaving them. There is no such thing as a soulmate anyway. No man is perfect enough to be your one and only.”

Sango wrapped an arm around my shoulders and grinned. “You know what? You’re right. Fuck men!”

“Fuck ‘em and leave them!” I shouted, not caring that we were now in Kagome and Sango’s hallway. No one came out to fuss so who cares?

Kagome did, getting her keys in the door and freezing. “Do you guys… hear that?”

We stopped too, Sango hiccuping once before straining to hear with me. I heard something but I was wholly confused. Because it sounded like scratching. 

“What the hell is that?!”

I pulled back from Sango too late to keep her from screaming in my ear. Kagome hushed both of us, pressing her ear to the door. “It sounds like… a dog. Scratching at the door?!”

“Fuck!”

I was thoroughly creeped out. Sango stood right behind Kagome as she took a deep breath and pushed the door open wide. I hung out in the hallway like a chicken but I didn’t care, I was scared shitless. 

“Oh… my god…”

Sango didn’t sound scared, just shocked. So I rounded into the apartment to nearly fall back on my ass. 

Kagome was a few steps from the door and Sango stood closer to the living room. But there were three other people in the place with them. I could see long hair on all of them, two of them were dark while the one closest to Kagome nearly glowed with bright white hair. But that was all I caught, black eyes zeroing in on me and causing my breath to catch in my throat. 

Tall, dark, and handsome he reeked of power. The confident air, he had drawn me to him like a moth, and as soon as I stepped up to him, he wrapped his arms around me. “Hello.”

“Hi.”

He didn’t have clothes and we didn’t have names but one thing was clear, we were meant for each other. I didn’t even glance back to the others, taking him out the door with me. I think I caught sight of the man near Kagome now licking her neck. Maybe she had considered sex when thinking about her man?

Either way, the spell had worked and I had my perfect man in my hold, heading straight for my bed. 

More to come, god willing! Be sure to check out all the amazing fics coming out this week for this sinfully good event!!!

[canyouhearthelight]

The Miys, Ch. 21

This chapter starts out as a bit of fluff, but I have an actual plot *gasp* that starts toward the end of this chapter.

The only warnings I would say apply to this chapter are fluff, anxiety, and crowds.

As always, please read, review, and comment.  I really do love feedback.  Also, this chapter is the first to be cross-posted to my Wattpad account the same day it is posted here, so you can go there and review as well!

Edit: Added the break, which was there when I drafted it but poofed when I went ahead and posted it.

Arantxa had borrowed my kitchen to make a pseudo-chicken stew with chili paste on the side for those of us who liked our food in the nuclear range of the Scoville scale – Noah had evacuated my quarters when she started making it, because apparently just the fumes started to give them chemical burns. Miys are allergic to capsaicin. Good to know.  Also, they were completely horrified to find out we intended to ingest it.

“What’s a Hufflepuff?” Antoine asked as we all sat down to our next family dinner.

I choked slightly as my sister smothered a chuckle.  “One, how do you not know that?  And two, where did that question even come from?”

“I overheard Sam calling Derek a Hufflepuff and laughing. Derek did not appear amused, at all.”

“Oh, Derek’s totally a Gryffindor. Sam’s the Hufflepuff,” Arantxa laughed as she spooned chili paste into her stew.

“Does everyone know what that means except me?” the Frenchman asked with no heat behind it.

As he glanced over at Tyche, she nodded enthusiastically with an innocent expression on her face. “It’s from a book series published at the very end of the twentieth century, later a series of movies made in the first decade of the twenty-first century. I managed to choke down four out of seven books, but I think I stopped after two movies.  Soph was obsessed with them when she was in her twenties, so I learned by proxy.”

I nodded enthusiastically before launching into an excited chatter. “The main setting is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the students are sorted into four houses: You might belong in Gryffindor, where dwell the brave of heart. Their daring, nerve, and chivalry set Gryffindors apart. You might belong in Hufflepuff, where they are just and loyal. Those Hufflepuffs are true and unafraid of toil.  Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, if you’ve a ready mind, where those of wit and learning will always find their kind. Or perhaps in Slytherin, you’ll make your real friend. Those cunning folks use any means to achieve their ends!”

“She needs to sort out her priorities,” Conor stage-whispered to Arantxa as he pointed his fork at me.

“Clearly a Ravenclaw,” Arantxa nodded seriously, only a small smirk breaking her façade.

“Nope, total ‘Puff,” I announced proudly, stuffing a mouthful of now-orange food in my mouth.

“None of these houses sound bad, so why would Derek be offended by being called one over the other?”

“Well, there’s another version of the song, mate,” Conor explained.  “See, the Houses were named after the founders of the school, who chose the attributes that their students had to have: Said Slytherin, ‘We’ll teach just those whose ancestry’s purest.’ Said Ravenclaw, ‘We’ll teach those whose intelligence is surest.’ Said Gryffindor, ‘We’ll teach all those with brave deeds to their name’. Said Hufflepuff, ‘I’ll teach the lot and treat them just the same’.”  It kind of implies that to be a Hufflepuff is to be whatever is left over when the purest, most intelligent, and bravest are taken out of the mix.”

“Well, I would be offended by that, too,” Antoine nodded

“I don’t hold with that, though.” I may have gushed a little bit, I admit.  “One of the boldest, best warriors in the book series was a Hufflepuff. And the original Champion of Hogwarts was a Hufflepuff, don’t forget.”

He smiled a little at that. “And it is considered normal to actually figure out which of these houses you actually belong in?”

“Mmmm, kinda?” my sister answered, tilting her head. “It’s certainly fun.”

“Then what are you?”

“Oh, Slytherin, all the way. Cunning, resourceful, determined, prideful, intelligent,” she ticked off.

“Same here,” Arantxa nodded. “But I still say Sophia is a Ravenclaw.”

“Seriously, I’m a Hufflepuff.  Think of it like this: if I was given a million dollars, would I buy books or would I feed hungry children?”

“Hungry children, hands down,” Conor smacked the table gently. “Total ‘Puff.  I can’t see you sleeping at night if you didn’t feed hungry children.”

“Annnnnd that is exactly how Tyche explained it to me,” I laughed. “I love knowledge, but I am compelled to help people.  I will burn a book to keep people warm, and I have, and it didn’t even hurt.”

“Pleased to meet a housemate,” he grinned cheekily.

“Oh nonononono. You’re such a Gryffindork. Nice try.” I glanced around to see Tyche nod enthusiastically while Arantxa was a little more sheepish with her agreement. “Brave, loyal, adventurous, and chivalrous.  Total Gryffindor, sorry sweetie.”

“I’m too nice to be a Gryffindor!”

“Two words,” my sister laughed, counting them off. “Neville. Longbottom.”

“I can accept that,” Conor agreed grudgingly.  “But how are you a Slytherin, Arantxa?  You always say you spent your entire life studying!”

“Ravenclaws study for the sake of learning,” she shrugged. “That’s why I thought Sophia was one. I studied as a means to an end. ‘Any means necessary’ is actually part of my house motto.”

“What would I be?” Antoine asked curiously, spooning more stew in his bowl.

“Hufflepuff,” we all four responded in unison. “They always make the best healers and most calming presences,” Tyche clarified.

“Ooo, what about the rest of the Council?” Arantxa asked playfully.

I took a sip of wine and tilted by head, thinking. “Well, Grey is clearly a Ravenclaw.”

“But Grey is so – out there,” Conor pointed out. “Not in a bad way, just so different.”

“Luna Lovegood, most Ravenclaw person next to Rowena herself,” I argued.  He put up his hands, conceding defeat. “Xiomara is harder.”

My sister let out an indelicate snort. “No, she isn’t. I’ve worked with her before.  She’s Nymphadora Tonks all over again.  Loyal, patient, hard-working, and dedicated.  She’s the last person to do something recklessly. She had to be forced onto the Council, so no ambition, and she is only cunning enough to spot it when it happens. She’s intelligent for the sake of using it to benefit others.  Hufflepuff, all the way.”

“I have to agree,” my assistant seconded. “I don’t doubt her bravery, but more than anything she is looking out for the safety of everyone on board. Hufflepuff.”

“Okay, that’s fair,” I agreed with a nod. “Huynh?”

“Ugh. He’s good at his job, don’t get me wrong, but I would definitely say he’s a Squib,” Conor spoke up surprisingly.  It was the least nice thing I had ever heard him say.  He shook his head and his customary smile was back on his face. “What about Simon and Zachary?  Since we’re sorting everyone we all know,” he teased gently.  “Personally, I think Simon’s a Gryffindor.  I mean, he went along with a group of aliens with intentions to save the world.  Yeah, he cocked it up, but it was very brave and reckless thing to do.”

After nodding at each other, Arantxa, Tyche, and I agreed.

“I think Zach’s a Ravenclaw, too,” Arantxa mused. “Think about it. He’s smart for the sake of being smart.  He isn’t cunning or ambitious, or reckless.  And he is pretty loyal once you earn it, but the one thing everyone remembers about him is how fucking smart he is.  He just gushes about anything he knows about, even more than you do, Sophia.”

We all laughed at that, even Antoine.  Just as I was about to get another glass of wine, our laughter was cut short by dimmed lights and deep-toned klaxons.  My stomach sank.  I didn’t know what caused them, but they were clearly alarms and that was never a good sign.

“Attention, Residents of the Ark,” Simon’s clear voice rang through the speaker. “I repeat: Attention, Residents of the Ark. Due to unexpected sensor damage we have dropped out of FTL.  I repeat: Due to unexpected sensor damage we have dropped out of FTL.  All personnel with pilot certifications please report to Level One.  All personnel with pilot certifications please report to Level One.”

Just as the announcement ended, my Council pendant started to chime gently.  It wasn’t the normal, clear tone that indicated I had a meeting, but instead a low repeating sound that reminded me of an ocean buoy. “Simon,” I looked sharply at the ceiling. “What is this signal?”

“It’s a locator beacon, Councillor Reid,” he answered in a tone far more confident and firmer than what I was used to hearing. “We need the Council to report to Level One as well, along with all administrators.  The chime will notify everyone on board to let your group through.”

“I have Arantxa Bidarte and Tyche Reid with me.  Will Antoine Costa be allowed through as well in his official capacity as Administrator Reid’s support personnel?”

“Temporarily.  The Miys are bringing additional bodies out of hibernation to attend any injuries and assist with crowd control, but if we need him to lend a hand with those who panic, he may be asked to leave.  We’re rather short-handed on licensed therapists.”

“I’m good with that, as long as he can get me through the crowds,” my sister stated, a determined set to her jaw.

“Do you want me to drop Mac with Derek, Tych?” Conor asked.  “The poor puss looks upset, and Sam and Derek need someone with them, besides.”

“Yeah, that works,” she nodded, shoving the distressed animal into his waiting arms and ushering them out the door, the four of us exiting immediately after and heading the opposite direction.

Contrary to Simon’s word, we were stopped on several occasions by people who flooded the corridors in panic and wanted information on what happened.  After numerous apologies and explanations from myself, Arantxa, and even Antoine that we knew as much as they did, my sister finally broke. “Stay behind me and whatever you do, don’t stop,” she ordered the other two as she placed an iron grip on my wrist.  With that, she walked with a determination that spoke an ill fate of whoever she was headed to face, glaring down anyone who so much as looked like they may try to ask us a question. To absolutely no one’s surprise, we had no further interruptions on our way to Level One.

Knowing she was at her limit for dealing with large groups of people, I shoved Antoine over to her as I addressed Xiomara. “We need to do more safety drills.  I was stopped entirely too many times on my way here, despite being assured by Simon that that my pendant would alert everyone to let me through unimpeded. My sister had to basically play breaker for us to make it.”

“Agreed, but I will deal with that when we figure out what is going on,” she nodded sharply.

Taking a deep breath, I glanced around the room. Several men and women I did not know were grouped together at one end, talking amongst themselves.  I assumed they were the pilots. Grey stood to one side of the Council, speaking with the Miys.  While the body was familiar, it wasn’t Noah.  Instead, it was one that usually worked in the Medical bays.

“Greetings, Sophia,” Grey did not look up from their data screen as I approached.

“Wisdom,” the Miys buzzed. Before I could voice a request for additional information, it started to explain. “As you know, there has been damage to ship sensors.  To avoid going dramatically off course while travelling, I have reduced ship speed to sub-light.  However, until the sensors are repaired, I am unable to identify where we are located.  Additionally, we do not have the resources on board to repair the sensors, so we will need to locate at least the materials necessary to fabricate anything that needs to be replaced.”

“How are there no replacement materials on board the ship? Surely something like this has happened before?”

“Your assumption is correct: when the Yjg departed for Earth on the second occasion, replacement sensors were on board.  As we discussed when you first arrived, races with the ability to perceive photonic radiation are very rare, and so the sensors are essential to navigation.  Redundant systems and multiple replacement parts are as much a standard requirement on the ship as a crew is.”

“Then how are there no replacement parts now? Have they already been used?”

The Miys shifted, and had it been human I would have said it was uncomfortable.  Instead of it replying, Grey spoke up. “The replacements sensors were found destroyed.  Physically.”

“WHAT!?” I shouted, drawing looks.  With a deep breath and a firm pinch on the bridge of my nose, I lowered my tone. “What do you mean, physically.”

“I mean it appears to be a deliberate act, Sophia.  Before you arrived, I was discussing with our host how common it is for both sensor systems to malfunction or sustain damage at the same time.  While it does happen, it requires significant ship damage that would impact other systems.  There are currently no reports of any other ships systems malfunctioning, however. Add to this the fact that all replacement parts were methodically destroyed, and it begins to look like someone is acting with intention.”

“How sure are we that the replacement parts weren’t damaged by accident?”

“Completely,” Grey replied before looking over my shoulder. “Giang, may I please borrow you for a moment? We’re discussing what you saw earlier.”

“You saw the damaged parts?” I asked as the Vietnamese man trotted over.

“They were completely destroyed, yes.”

“Please detail the nature of the damage for Sophia.  She wants to be completely certain that the damage could not have happened accidentally.”

“There’s no way, Councillor Reid. Some parts were smashed, some were burned or melted, others had been cut to pieces.”

Shit.

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