#yeah what is happening to Opal was almost HIM

[topaz-mutiny]

I have to say, Dorian really truly fits with the group Bells Hells.

He's messy. He can be mean. And you cannot be a Bells Hells without some Severely Messed Up Damage like with what just happened here tonight.

Here's to you Dorian. Not just a pretty face meant to be the hot comforting shoulder to cry on, but just as fucked up as everyone else. A true Bells Hells.

[blazingstar24]

Dorian actually liking Ludinus and his plan is so juicy because yeah this is the guy who was down to clown with the dark powers that be of the Circlet if it would help him and his friends. Mr. Dorian “I can do anything with my friends…destroy the world with my friends” Storm.

And honestly the one who was in the prime position for Ludinus’s pitch to work was Dorian. Of course post Downfall, post seeing that there was a chance for the Betrayers to not be around, post seeing the Primes choose their sibling over the mortals they swore to protect, he is taken by Ludinus’s plan. Because Dorian was Cassida not 3 days ago.

Dorian had to watch, powerless, as Lolth took Opal for a cause she was already joining. He had to watch as his friend’s free will, mind and soul got corrupted all because Lolth wanted a solider only dedicated to her. He had to watch as two Prime deities who previously guided them, watched over them, choose their Betrayer sibling over Opal.

Dorian was Cassida, hopeful that the Primes would be what they said they are. Believing that one of them would have stepped in to help Opal. He saw the way Asmodeus treated Cassida, the cruelty in which she was murdered and think of Opal. Seeing a woman who the Primes said they would protect until she was no longer useful and they failed at that. Did he think of Opal who was forced to serve and wonder what may become of her if she was no longer useful? Did he think about “the line is who matters and who does not” and know exactly where the Gods saw him and his friends in that moment?

So yeah of course Dorian falls for Ludinus’s plan. Because he has just been shown that what happened to him 3 days ago was not some freak incident, not some one time bad decision. It’s a pattern of behavior. Seeing Downfall just put salt in his wounds, made that desire for revenge stronger.

It’s almost ironic. Ashton rightfully calling Ludinus’s plans a gamble. And who just took up the Gambler’s Blade?

[eatingfireflies]

2.2 is coming and if I don't write this now, how can I get jossed later?

This is the moment when I started to wonder if their 2.0 conversation was a role play.

Like, we know this issue is a sore point for Ratio. The fact that this guy he called a loud peacock in 2.0 made a joke about his failure to get into the Genius Society and all he said was 'I was being sarcastic'?? Babe, is something wrong? You barely touched your sharp and witty comeback.

(Btw I checked both Cn and Jp, he says 'It was just a joke.')

And I don't want to bring up the voice acting because the way voices sound is subjective and what I hear might not be what you hear, but the Double Indemnity scenes with Ratio are probably the most relaxed we ever see Aventurine ever. (I'm talking about the Cn version, but I played in Jp audio and I could hear it there too.) He's playful and his voice is higher pitched, so different from what we've seen of him so far.

It sounds like Ratio and Aventurine have known each other longer than they want us to believe in their 2.0 convo.

I mean, the implication here is Ratio did some research on Aventurine's background recently and that's how he found out about Aventurine's past. So we make the assumption that they haven't been working together for long.

Look, they even did a Penacony remix of their Final Victor conversation

But honestly, you'd think Ratio would have figured out if he trusted Aventurine or not at this point, considering he came back for more after Final Victor (lmao??)

Also, we know Aventurine had been planning for Penacony since his call to Topaz, where he asked for her help. It's hard to believe that he went through all the trouble of asking two different Stonehearts to lend him their cornerstones and then went to Penacony and the Dreamscape with Ratio, whom he barely knows. That's too much gambling, Aventurine!

We know the Family won't let anyone from the IPC to enter the Dreamscape and Aventurine only gets a pass because of the Watchmaker's invite

But Himeko is wrong here: Aventurine didn't go inside the Dreamscape alone and he does have someone backing him up. It just happened that almost no one else saw Ratio in Penacony and the one scene where we did see him talking to Aventurine was 2.0, where he got angry and left Aventurine babbling to himself.

But now that we're here, what did Ratio do in Penacony aside from bicker and betray?

His initial job is to gather intel, afaik. Aventurine tells him to go look into things in 2.0 before he left. And he does give Aventurine updates in 2.1 (Aventurine finds out about Firefly from Ratio) so good for you, professor!

Ratio is Aventurine's connection to his colleagues outside. Once Aventurine's plans enter the Dead phase, Ratio is the only one left to tell Topaz and Jade if the plan had been a success or not. (Aventurine also makes a joke about the Genius from the Council of the Mundanites offering to be his undertaker. In the Jp version, he says 'So the Genius from the Council of the Mundanites wants to claim my corpse? What an honour.' So there's also that... Uh. Idk how dead dead Aventurine really is, but at least we know someone's looking after his body while he's gone lmao??)

But also he's Aventurine's bait to Sunday, the (fake) weak link in Aventurine's plans that Sunday thought he could exploit.

And the 3rd one is a bit complicated, because it is a gamble. Remember Aventurine's E1? Prisoner's Dilemma? Yeah, it's kinda like that. I talked about it before, but let's copy paste it here for easier reading (and because this post totally needs to be a wall of text)

Let's zoom out a bit again and remember that Aventurine was sent to Penacony because Diamond thinks this whole affair could still have a peaceful resolution. Meaning: Aventurine is the kind option. The IPC could have sent Opal instead, but it sounds like that means there would be a body count.

And I think that's why Ratio is here and why he agreed to cooperate. Because if Aventurine's plan works out, only Aventurine's life will ever be in real danger. (And we know from Ratio's note that he also took steps to increase the chances of Aventurine coming back.)

Ratio being there is important to the plan because

Him being from the Intelligentsia Guild removes some of the heat from the Family. If Ratio is coming in as a plus one, the IPC (in this case, I'm assuming it's Aventurine because he's the guy in charge of the operation) chose the best person for the job. It makes the Family happier knowing there are not two IPC envoys walking around the Dreamscape and Aventurine has a buddy who can move around more freely than another IPC employee could

But because Ratio is an outsider, he's also the weak link in Aventurine's plans. Another IPC employee will probably not betray Aventurine, but the Guild has no particular horse in this race. We were also led to believe from their 2.0 conversation that Ratio doesn't like Aventurine very much. This is what I meant when I said Ratio is a bait: Aventurine was pretty much dangling him in front of Sunday, making Sunday think he could use Ratio to ruin Aventurine's plans. The important thing of course is the trust the two of them have for each other (yay, Prisoner's Dilemma). Ratio could ruin Aventurine's plan if he wants to (very bad for all involved because I'm guessing Opal is the next step) and Aventurine could fail (not as bad for everyone involved after 2.1 because the IPC has already won regardless. There's still a Phase 2 in Aventurine's plan and Ratio seems to want him back after that, so I guess he'd consider it a failure if Aventurine doesn't return?), but trusting each other means they win.

Tl;dr Ratio's presence in Penacony is a bit of a gamble on Aventurine's part but it worked well for him so far. Ratio is here to make sure everyone stays alive. (And maybe the Phase Flame? I honestly don't know if the Annihilation Gang will ever come back again, but for now I'm going with the obvious and assuming Ratio is here because he thinks Aventurine's plan will work and work with the least amount of pain for everyone.)

Thank you for getting this far. Why do we think they deserve Oscars?

Aside from the movie references (we'll get to that), we have 3 different instances where Aventurine mentions acting / the 'script'.

The most direct is the conversation with future!Aventurine in the garden maze: future!Aventurine praises Ratio's acting while Aventurine says 'Or he might not be acting at all' (the inability of these two to admit they are friends, but more importantly they don't think the other person thinks highly of them, is2g).

The next one is hidden in the mission description

And the other one got lost in translation. This was translated to 'You catch on quickly' in En. In Jp he says something like 'You have a good sense for drama, professor' (Sorry Idk what this is in the og Cn)

Finally, Double Indemnity. I haven't seen the movie, but it seems to be about an insurance salesman who gets seduced by a hot wife femme fatale into helping her get rid of her husband so she could claim his insurance. Double Indemnity refers to this clause where the insurance gets doubled if the person suddenly dies of an accident.

I've thought about this so hard, let me tell you. What could this possibly have to do with Aventurine and the mission? (For example, 'Hot wife Sunday seduces Ratio the insurance salesman into helping him get rid of Aventurine' etc.) And I honestly still don't know but one detail does help my theory so I'm pulling it out:

The relationship between the insurance salesman and the hot wife femme fatale was known only to the two of them. To the insurance claims adjuster, who was investigating the case and trying to prove the husband's death wasn't an accident, those two are unrelated people who might have seen each other once or twice. The claims adjuster suspected the wife, but had no idea of the insurance salesman's involvement. The truth is, they actually knew each other a full year before the plan was set in motion. Hey, doesn't it actually fit nicely now?

(Spellbound otoh, I still don't know. I have a Sunday and Gallagher reading of it, but Hvy keeps telling me no and making it gay instead so Idk.)

[violetsdaisy]

I just reached 101 subscribers on AO3 and 10k hits on Opal Eyes overnight 😭✨🤍

I know this is probably annoying for me to keep saying this, but it’s never happened to me before and it just means so much to me.

I wanted to post my notes for OE as a little behind the scenes but apparently I deleted it 😆 So here’s a sneak peak into my new story that’s coming in August.

It’s going to be different than what I’ve written before. Which is funny to me because I say that every time I share a story.

But here it is! I hope you like it. 🌷

boy is mine Chapter 1 sneak peak:

A kid was sleeping in a dueling arena where anyone could come up and do who knows what to him. He couldn’t just let that slide.

Atem walked down the darkened street to the arena and used his access card to get inside. He headed straight for the announcers table to hook up a microphone.

He tried really hard not to let his fury overtake his voice, but he was positive it carried over.

“Yugi! Get your ass down here.”

Silence met his ears, which only fueled both his anger and fear of something happening to the kid.

He lost his patience after five more seconds of waiting.

“Now!”

Footsteps sounded and echoed throughout the arena almost instantly.

Atem lifted his gaze to find a small, delicate boy begrudgingly walking toward him. His head was low, allowing Atem no insight on what he looked like apart from his baggy, dark clothing and extremely unruly dark hair.

The kid stopped a good few feet away from him.

Atem understood why Mana was so protective over him. Atem wasn’t a tall man by any means, but the Yugi was downright tiny and desperately trying to become one with the floor.

Atem cleared his throat and moved away from the microphone. “You must be Yugi.”

The boy nodded but didn’t look up at him. Atem crossed his arms.

“Do you understand how dangerous it is to be sleeping out here all by yourself?”

Yugi nodded again but Atem had a feeling it was more compulsory than actual understanding.

“Then you know that this can’t happen anymore,” Atem told him, leaving no room for arguments.

The boy didn’t though. Not how anyone else would have. But Atem’s keen eye noticed how Yugi scrunched in toward himself, leaving the backpack he wore to seem larger than him.

Atem sighed heavily. “Come on. I’ll take you back to the hotel.”

Yugi went willingly, keeping a good distance from Atem and not looking up at all. It was a wonder how the boy could even see to walk.

Nonetheless, Atem was relieved when he stopped them at the hotel room Yugi had led them to when Atem had requested for directions.

“Alright,” Atem said with a deep frown. Yugi seemed troubled and painfully shy. It was no wonder Keith had singled him out. The poor kid. “Get some sleep. We have a flight to Taiwan in the morning and you need rest. I’ll send Mana to come find you when we land. She was worried about you.”

Yugi nodded and tiny, little pale fingers tightened on his backpack straps.

Atem sighed and then left him there to get back into his room. Atem was exhausted. It was nearly three in the morning and he really needed to sleep. His head was starting to pound.

But first, he stopped off at Mana and Mahad’s hotel room, knowing Mana wouldn’t be sleeping at all with how worried she was. Sure enough, when Mahad opened the door, Mana pushed past him and grabbed Atem by the arms, eyes wide and hopeful.

Atem smiled and rested his hands on her shoulders. “I found him. He’s alright and back in his hotel room. I get why you were worried. He’s a shy kid.”

“He is,” Mana sniffled. “Thanks Atem. I was so scared something had happened to him.”

Atem squeezed her shoulder before releasing her. “Nothing happened to him. But I did find him sleeping in the arena.”

“Arena?” Mahad asked from his stance against the doorway. “He was sleeping there?”

“Yeah,” Atem nodded at them both. “Apparently, the others in his hotel room party all night so Tristan Taylor decided to bring it on himself to send Yugi to sleep there.” He crossed his arms and shook his head. “Anything could have happened to him.”

“But I understand why,” Mana said with a wobble to her lip. “I saw what was happening in there when I tried finding him. I can’t imagine how he’d ever sleep. Yugi just isn’t like those other guys.”

Atem frowned disapprovingly. “Well, he has to, Mana. He signed up for this job and it’s how things are. If he can’t do that then he needs to find another place of employment. Which probably wouldn’t be a bad thing. He’s young and I’m sure he could do a whole lot better.”

“Well all that matters right now is that he’s safe,” Mahad replied, gently pulling his wife backward toward him. “Let’s get to bed now, shall we, love?”

Atem felt the familiar tug of being horrendously single momentarily bother him. He adjusted his stance in the hotel hallway to remove it.

Mana nodded up at her husband and then looked at Atem with a tired gaze. “Thank you, Atem.”

Atem smiled warmly back at her. “What are friends for?”

After leaving the couple, Atem headed toward the elevator to get back up to his room. He ran a hand through his hair and felt his eyes burn. He really needed sleep.

Of course, life had other plans because as soon as he pressed the button of the elevator, he was shocked to see a familiar head of messy dark hair and a heap of black clothing on one of the benches near the wall.

“You have got to be kidding me.”

[indigayghost]

The Proposal

It wasn't supposed to start at all. When Nandor asked him to polish his opal ring, Guillermo smiled, taking the ring.

It was supposed to be an easy task. But then he saw the pile of dirty clothes and if he didn't take care of it now he would forget, he didn't want to lose the ring so he put it on his finger. It wasn't supposed to stay there, it was just to make things easier.

And it did! It did make things easier! He put the clothes on the washing machine, took the clean ones to the fancy room, fold everything, b-lined to Colin Robinson's room and threw his neatly folded beige shirts and pants in like he was delivering food to a solitary cell, noticed the rugs needed to be vacuumed and better to do it sooner than later, and, well, you can't blame him for forgetting the ring.

When Nandor found him, he was humming some pop song and calmly brushing Barry the Bear's fur.

"Guillermo, did you-" He stopped, furrowing his brows.

Guillermo jumped a little bit, cursing to himself by being taken by surprise (he and Nandor do not not have a friendly competition about who can scare the other the most and he would be lying if he said he didn't matter losing) while turning to face his master.

"Oh, good night, Master!" He greeted him. It took him half a second to realize Nandor was staring at his hand and half a second more to remember why. "Oh my- Sorry! I wasn't! I wasn't using it! I just put it on and I forgot-"

"Keep it." Nandor said, interrupting Guillermo's attempt to take the ring off.

"What?"

"Keep it." Nandor repeated, looking away. "I don't even like this ring that much."

That, Guillermo noticed, was a lie. Nandor never takes this ring off, but he wasn't going to point that out now, was he?

After a moment, not as a second thought, but almost as something he wasn't sure he was supposed to say, Nandor added:

"It looks good on you."

And then he vanished in a dark smoke, as Nandor often does when he puts himself in situations he's not ready to face, leaving Guillermo to process what the living fuck happened.

So, yeah, it wasn't supposed to happen, but it did. And now Guillermo has to deal with the consequences, mostly Nandor acting as a spoiled brat and a thousand more boxes for him to stuff in the "don't think about it" storage room of his mind.

He is so good at not thinking about it, in fact, that he didn't at all in the past five days since it happened, and he would gladly continue to not think about it if he wasn't being forced to by an overly aggressive Nadja.

"What the fuck did you do this time?" She said, cornering Guillermo between her coffin and her taxidermy armadillo.

"Nothing?" Guillermo responded, trying to decide if he would manage to squeeze below her arms.

"Exactly! Nothing!" She flap her hands in annoyance. "Are you dumb? Are you idiot?"

"Look, you're being really mean right now." Guillermo ignored how Nadja looked like she was visualizing all the ways she could kill him in favor of putting his hands on his waist and pretending he has no clue what she's talking about.

"You'll see how mean I can be when i rip your fucking head off, you dumb stupid donkey!" Nadja took a deep breath and fixed her skirt. "Gizmo, my silly little baby, how much longer will you let Nandor brood around like someone kicked him in the balls before you say your cheesy gay little speech about how 'oh Nandor of course I want to marry you' or something?"

Guillermo opened his mouth to say some smart little response before his brain finally got what she actually said.

“Of course I want to what?!” He almost screams- almost, he has some self respect, after all.

“Oh, oh please don't tell me this is another one of those situations none of you talk to the other and we all have to suffer through it!” Nadja flaps her arms like some kind of delirious chicken and turns her hands into fists when she sees Guillermo's “of course it is one of those situations” stare. The one he does where you can literally see the question marks dancing around his tiny little brain. “I'm going to kill you all!”

Nadja screams. She thinks about really doing it. Ripping Nandor's heart out and snapping Guillermo's neck. It would be easy, practical, and she would never need to deal with their crap again. But then she would miss them, so she sighs, recomposes herself and says, the calmest she can muster.

“My sweet stupid human, Nandor asked you in marriage. Please accept it before he kills himself.”

Guillermo just stares at her for a second. And then stares back at the ring, now heavy in his finger. Then back at her again. And then he screams.

“What kind of shitty marriage proposal was that?! He didn't even- He didn't even ask! It's not even a wedding ring!” He argues, as if that's the strangest part of all this and not that Nandor is asking to marry him. He decides not to think about that part yet.

“The guy is one thousand years old, what did you expect?!”

“She asked Gail all right.” Guillermo says, the disgust he feels remembering Gail is clear in his tone.

“Well, yeah, but Gail wasn't for real. He didn't want to marry her, don't tell me you believed that.”

“I did!” Guillermo lies. He lied for about two seconds before he chickened out below Nadja's piercing eyes. “Look. It's just… How do I even respond?! He didn't ask it. I can't go to him and just say yes!”

“Then fuck him yes. He'll get it.” Nadja says, shrugging.

Guillermo, as much as he wants to argue, doesn't really have a good response to that

[ladykailitha]

Oh For a Muse of Fire! Part 11

Not much happens here, but we have a little side drama with Nancy and Eddie willing to jump in for Steve’s sake.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6  Part 7  Part 8  Part 9 Part 10 

*

Steve parted with Eddie at the walkway between their two buildings and slowly made his way back to the apartment. He opened the door to see Robin on their couch with a tub of ice cream and a spoon.

“You okay?” he asked. “You dipping into the ice cream reserves?”

She shook her head. “Just wanted a little bit of cookies and cream today.”

Steve hung up his jacket and flopped down next to her. “How are your parents?”

Robin smiled around the spoon in her mouth. “Good.” She pulled the spoon out. “They missed you though.”

Steve smiled back at her. “I missed them too. Eddie impressed Dustin.”

Robin’s eyes went wide. “Someone impressed the genius child? Say it isn’t so!”

Steve laughed and told her all about the un-date.

“He’s got it so bad for you, dingus,” she said. “It’s almost embarrassing.”

Steve blushed and ducked his head. “It’s not like that, Robs. I promise.” He looked up. “I mean, yeah, he fixed my car, impressed the unflappable Dustin Henderson, and lent me his jacket, all that says is that he’s a good person.”

Robin batted her eyelashes at him. “Sure we could discount all that as just being a good dude. Fine. Whatever. But how did he dress for tonight?”

Steve’s blush spread from his cheeks to his ears, and down his neck. “He looked hot, Robs. Like full on sex god. I was weak in the knees for Christ’s sake.”

Robin giggled. “Sounds like you went on a date to me.”

Steve’s jaw dropped. “But we didn’t call it date.”

She shook her head. “Doesn’t mean you weren’t on one, my dear dingus.” He looked at her skeptically. “Look, I’ll tell you what. If at the concert on Saturday there isn’t a new song about you, you can go back to calling it whatever you want. But if there is a new song about you, not necessarily a love song. Not yet. But a song about how he’s changed his opinion about you. You are going to call dinner tonight a date.”  

Steve thought about it for a moment and then nodded. “You’re on.” He stuck out his hand and they shook on it.

Robin smiled like she had already won.

*

Saturday arrived and Robin was still as smug as ever, having to have bore witness to Eddie and Steve constantly texting each other and their little coffee breaks after class.

Steve just rolled his eyes. They weren’t even friends yet and Robin was already planning their wedding. It would be here, of course at the Queen’s Crown. Steve would be in white and Eddie would be in black.

She had even picked out the flowers when Steve smacked her with his dish towel.

Opal laughed as they chased each other around the bar. They were about to open and start letting in the pre-concert crowd. The regulars that just came for a cocktail and a good time. Most of those would be gone before the band started setting up at six.

It was Steve’s favorite time on Saturdays. It was calm and fun. And he didn’t have to fob off numbers and flirtatious drunks, like he had to once the band started playing. He didn’t have time to date. Not really.

Eddie and his band showed up and started setting up.

It took everything Steve had to not stare. Eddie was dressed in a sheer long sleeved black shirt with three rips across the chest like an animal had clawed it. He had on tight leather pants and heavy combat boots. And over the shirt to complete the look was a denim vest with pins and patches all over the front and a cutup old Dio band shirt on the back.

Steve didn’t know who Eddie was trying to impress, but he secretly hoped it was him.

About half way through the set, Eddie pulled out a stool and his acoustic guitar. He adjusted the microphone and said, “You’ll excuse this minor indulgence. But I wanted to play you this song. It’s called Thorns and Thistles.”

He cleared his throat and began to play.

“Holy shit,” Opal cursed. “I’ve never heard this song before. I thought I’d heard all of their original material.”

Robin came bouncing up to Steve with a feral grin. “I told you.”

Opal looked back and forth between them in confusion and then she went, “Oh.”

She turned to Robin. “I think my boy is crushing on your boy.”

Robin laughed manically. “That’s okay, my boy has been crushing on your boy for years.” She danced away from Steve’s dish rag as he cracked it at her.

Steve listened to the rest of the song in silence as everyone in the bar was entranced by the crooning vocals, the heartfelt lyrics, and the soulful guitar. Once Eddie was done, the entire bar was in an uproar.

Eddie blushed and said, “Thank you. We now return to our regularly scheduled metal concert.”

The audience laughed as Eddie put away the stool and traded his acoustic for his sweetheart.

He stepped back on the stage and crowd howled as he setup the opening licks for the next song.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a crowd get this pumped up before in all my years of working here,” Steve told Opal.

Opal grinned. “Yeah, Eddie’s good at putting on a show. But that song? Thorns and Thistles? That was pure electricity. Everyone in the club felt it.”

Steve nodded. It was pure Eddie.

*

It took every ounce of courage Eddie had to look at Steve when he started playing Thorns and Thistles.

The look of awe and admiration on the other man’s face is what helped Eddie get through the song without sobbing horrifically.

He was riding the high of a job well done when he spotted her in the crowd. Thankfully at that same moment Chrissy sailed past him on her way to the bathroom.

“Chrissy!” he hissed, crouching down on the stage near the edge.

She turned to snap at him for calling out her real name but he stopped her with, “Code pink!” Code pink was their phrase for when they ran into someone they wanted to avoid. Usually exes or her parents.

Her mouth snapped shut and she skidded to a stop. “Shit! Who? Where?”

“Garnet’s ex. Her name is Nancy,” he rushed to explain.

Her eyes went to Steve who was chatting with a patron. “What does she look like?” she asked turning back to Eddie.

He let out a hysterical laugh. “A shorter, female version of me in a black pencil skirt and a pink blouse.”

Chrissy nodded. She spotted the girl in question and yeah, that tracked. She pointed her out to Eddie. “You stall her, I’ll get Steve out!” And turned on her heel, running back to the bar.

Eddie nodded.

“Garnet!” she hissed. “Code Pink!”

Steve frowned at her in confusion. “A what?”

Chrissy rolled her eyes. “Your ex is here!” she explained. “We need to get you out back.”

Steve nodded and let her throw a towel over his head to lead him to the kitchen.

Robin, who had been on her way back to the kitchen with dirty glasses spotted what was going on and immediately sped up. “What the hell is going on?” she hissed.

Steve pulled the towel off his head. “Nancy’s here,” he explained.

Diamond knew it was inevitable that they would have friends and family come to the bar, but only if they understood they had to call the employees their gem names. Or at least keep the mistakes to a minimum.

But he also knew that there were times that were out of everyone’s control. Times were an ex or distant (or not so distant) family members that might stumble on the bar by accident. In cases like that it wasn’t about protecting the vibe of the bar.

It was about protecting his people. Protecting them from those who would want to harm them. Especially in Garnet’s case. He knew that there were going to be people who recognized him from the news. But here he could honestly say that he wasn’t Steve. He was Garnet and any resemblance was coincidental.

So when he saw Garnet, Pearl, and Opal make for the backroom, he knew it was one of those times.

He immediately was out there to take over bar-tending. He nodded to Topaz, who nodded to Onyx. The two of them started making their way to the bar.

Opal came out as they reached Diamond. “Garnet’s ex-girlfriend is here.”

“Shit!” Topaz snarled. “Sorry, boss. That’s on me. We’ve been dating awhile and I told her Peridot had called in sick and I had to come in...on our anniversary.”

Diamond closed his eyes. “See if you can head her off, Topaz.” He turned to his bouncer. “Follow close behind, I have a bad feeling about her being here tonight.”

Both men nodded and blended into the crowd.

“The next round is on me!” Diamond called out to the patrons. And a cheer went up.

Topaz made it to Nancy and saw that she was chatting with Eddie.

“I didn’t make you for a metal fan,” he was saying.

Nancy rolled her eyes. “I’m not. I’m trying to find my boyfriend.” She tried to get around him.

“Maybe I could help you find him,” Eddie suggested, deftly sidestepping back into her way. “I’m taller. I could spot him better.”

Nancy scoffed. “Lose it, Munson. I’m not in the mood.”

Topaz rushed to her side. “Hey, babe. What brings you to the club tonight? I told you I was working.” He reached out to kiss her the top of her head, but she stepped back.

“I just wanted to see where you worked,” Nancy said. “I wanted to see the new bartender you’ve been banging on about.”

Topaz and Eddie exchanged wide-eyed looks.

“Nance,” he murmured. “I’ve told you. There is nothing between us. She’s gay.”

“Maybe I just wanted to see for myself,” she defended.

Suddenly there was a shadow that loomed over her and said with a thick Russian accent, “No harassment of the employees is allowed.”

Nancy’s spin straightened and she gulped. She turned around slowly to face the man known only as Onyx. The one that didn’t like anyone.

“Oh, hey,” she squeaked. “I wouldn’t. I wasn’t going to. Friend of my boyfriend and all that.” She smiled wanly.

“Come back on a less busy night,” Onyx said, deadpan. “Come on Monday. That would be better.”

Topaz went to kiss the top of her head and this time she let him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I got so jealous, I couldn’t see straight.”

Topaz hugged her close. “Go home, we’ll talk when I get off.”

Onyx walked her to the door, she turned back and smiled at wanly at Topaz as if in apology.

*

Diamond came back to the back room and gathered all his people.

“What the fuck happened tonight?” he growled. The four of them looked at the ground. “I’m not blaming you. Shit. But she came in like a hell cat bent on destruction.”

Topaz coughed. “Now that things are picking up here at the bar and I’ve been busier, I think she thought I was cheating on her.”

Opal laughed. “Dude all your female co-workers are hella gay.”

Topaz blushed. “I don’t think she was worried about Opal, despite what she said.”

All heads whipped around to stare at him in shock.

“Does she think you’re bi or something?” Pearl asked.

Steve coughed and looked away. “I think she’s worried that since her first boyfriend turned out to be gay...”

Diamond sighed heavily pushing the palms of his hands into his eyes. “Her current boyfriend might be too?”

Steve nodded, biting his lip.

Opal laughed again. “No, no, I know it’s not funny, per se, but god what a trip. Why would she think you have a crush on Garnet?”

Topaz looked down at his feet sheepishly. “I deliberately don’t talk about him because I worry I’ll let it slip it’s St–I mean Garnet.”

Pearl boggled at him. “So her mind went to you having a crush instead of disliking the guy or even being ambivalent toward him?”

“Take her out to a nice dinner tomorrow,” Diamond suggested. “Wine and dine her. But if she comes in again, guns blazing, I will ban her. Am I understood?”

Topaz nodded.

“Take her to Mama Cleo’s,” Steve suggested. “Henderson’s place. It’s great place for a date.” He winked at Pearl who laughed delightedly.

“Damn straight,” she agreed.

Topaz nodded.

Part 12 Part 13  Part 14  Part 15  Part 16  Part 17 Epilogue

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[sparkbugs]

Thinking bout Chip Jrwi

This has spiraled from ramblings to character analysis to whatever it has turned into. I rewatched episodes too JUST to make sure I had the right information and plot points in mind cause I want to make sure I’m not making a fool of myself in front of all of Jrwiblr.. ANYWAYS! This is a lengthy read. Total words being 1318 under the cut. Yeah, I’d say the hyperfixation is hyperfixating for sure. Chip Jrwi you are my blorbo atm and you mean everything to me <3

Do you guys think that before they went to the Black Sea, before they left Canella, before they left the town of Zero that Chip looked at his crew, his friends, and his family and wondered if he should stop? Yeah, he lost his old family years ago, and he wanted to do everything in his power to bring them back, to do something about it that his 9-year-old self couldn’t. But do you ever stop and think that maybe he’s realized that he has a family now, a new one and that he’s afraid to lose it to the Black Sea as well? But they’ve come so far now, they found Drey and Finn, hell Finn had been with them the entire time!! They’ve come so far now, and they’re expecting him to want to keep going, to find Arlin, and maybe even some of the other crew they lost as well. I think about it a lot, maybe too much at this point.

Back in the Feywild when Chip could’ve reached out to anyone, he could’ve talked with Arlin again, but he didn’t. He didn’t because he saw something in his nightmares in Liquidis while being cured of his curse. He saw Arlin, covered and surrounded by this black ichor, and he talked to him again. He saw Arlin, the man who took him in when he had nowhere to go, and he had looked at him with so much rage and hatred.. and he had attacked Chip. This would honestly terrify me if I were in Chip’s place. The person who showed me all the care in the world suddenly turned and attacked me? And saying that this has happened before? In a nightmare situation that felt so real, Chip knew it was real… I’d be terrified to find him if he thinks I’m gonna kill him, he’d be fighting for his life too, I’m sure. The Black Sea has affected Arlin too, I don’t think they’ll be able to convince him that they aren’t going to kill him unless somehow Drey and Finn can get through to him, but it seems highly unlikely. 

I think if Chip feels this way at all, maybe not like all I’ve written exactly, I think he feels immensely guilty. He doesn’t want Arlin to be trapped in the hole in the sea, but he’s also immensely terrified as to what he’s going to find once he gets to him. He doesn’t want the person he’s looked up to for so long, the person he’s risked his and his friends' lives for, to hate him. But I also feel that somewhere in his heart (or lack of one), Chip doesn’t blame Arlin for hating him, cause he’s starting to hate himself for getting his new family dragged down into this hole in the sea as well.

Yes, they all chose to come with him to the Black Sea, but if anything happens to them, Chip will forever blame himself for it. Hell, he lost his heart and he has no one other than himself to blame. Jay almost lost her leg (did she? They haven’t made it clear if she did) and I feel that Chip blames himself for that too. Yes, they helped save everyone on the island, but Gods is Chip scared he’s going to lose his family again. Being on this ocean reminds him of when he was just a scared little kid, but now he can do something about it. He’s trying but he’s still so fucking scared. 

Speaking of his heart- he’s trying to hold onto himself. He’s an undead now, and by meta the mechanics of it are roughhhhh. I rambled a bit on another post about one of my characters named Amani, an opal Tiefling whom Chip is starting to remind me of- not exactly but they both have had their hearts taken!! Doing the checks to see if he loses a part of himself terrifies me each and every time and I know there’s going to be more, we can only hope the dice are in Bizly’s favor as we do not know when Chip will be able to get his heart back. It could be months from now, years maybe. I dread the session they head back to Zero and Chip is still undead. I dread Chip reuniting with Ollie. I don’t think Chip wants Ollie to see him that way, he can hide it with the bandana as much as he wants, but the stench of rotten flesh will give it away. Ollie told him to come back alive! Chip wasn’t able to keep that promise. It kills me to think that Chip dies at 19. Yeah he wasn’t a kid, but he was still so young- yeah he might come back once getting his heart but how much of his humanity will he have lost? How much life experience would he have gained in this undead state? He hasn’t even had the time to grieve the loss of himself with everything that's been going on, and I am really hoping with the next episode of Riptide we get to see some of his thoughts on being undead. Yes, he’s made jokes about it! But I feel he still hasn’t fully processed it all and once he finally does it's going to be PAINFUL. 

He’s grown so much from this journey with Jay and Gillion, he was using them at the start, to get back his family. I mean I could be wrong here, but it certainly feels like it at the start of everything anyway. Along the way though, he started opening up a bit and he realized that while sailing and learning about the whereabouts of his family he’s lost, he’s made a new family. And it’s become precious to him. It shows how he has grown during the fights he had with Gillion, the first fight they had dealing with Chip lying and pranking him, wounding Gill’s pride. They resolved it after communicating and getting to know each other better. The second fight was initiated by Chip himself because he knew he was in the wrong and that he had hurt his friend by keeping the fact that Edyn was working with the Navy a secret. He remembered how much lying had hurt Gill, and as much as he didn’t want to tell him at the time, he wanted to protect Gillion from the truth of his sister potentially doing something dangerous behind his and his friends' backs. There hadn’t been much time in between Gillion escaping the pearl and the time that he found out about Edyn, and Chip had tried not to think about it but those damned bracelets (WHICH I WISH THEY WOULD USE MORE?? WHERE DID THEY GO-) outed him on those thoughts. He stayed up ALL NIGHT just to build the arena, just to show Gillion he was sorry and that he needed to fix it, he wanted to fix things between them both. He goes on and on about how Gillion’s actions helped him change for the better, about how he cares about him, and that he never meant to hurt him. Of course, this ends in them battling again, them starting the fight and Jay ending it like the girlboss she is, but this battle was never out of malice or anger, it is light-hearted and fun, and it shows that they’ve all grown stronger together. 

I love Chip Jrwi, I am so happy that he got a second third chance at a family- He deserves it and the world. I totally will be coming back to this at some point but this is all I have to say for now! Feel free to reply/reblog to this with ur thoughts, or even send me an ask bout it cause I would love to continue talking about this boy!

[crowentity233]

Spare Shadows (pt. 5)

(Slow Burn Type Story)

Mako x Reader

Pt 6 Masterlist

Summary: Darkness is hovering over the city. Dae is one of many struggling to survive in the city without any control. Police have exhausted all efforts to save the city. The Avatar saves Dae after being captured by Bolin and Mako. Dae, a master swordswoman, then follows the group to save her spirit friends in the city.

Dae rolled over in the bed. She grumbled incoherent words in her sleep.

"Dae... it's time to get up." Asami nudged her.

"No, it's not." She grumbled again.

"Yes, it is." Asami nudged again.

Dae squinched her eyes and rubbed the sleep away. "I liked it better when I slept in. Good morning, Asami."

Asami giggled. "We did too, but we're almost there. We have to get ready for the waterbenders."

Asami left the room to help Mako with breakfast.

Dae got dressed and walked to the kitchen. "Good morning, everyone." She called out.

Bolin sat on the couch, feeding Pabu. "Good morning." Dae walked to the kitchen. "Can I help with something? I can make the tea."

"I got it." Mako said through gritted teeth. It was quite different from just the other night when his voice rang the same words in a caring way.

"Oh, okay. Is there anything else?" Dae asked. Asami eyed Mako from the side. He was normally an asshole but it was usually directed at her and Korra's PDA. Not at just anyone.

"You can do the dishes with Bolin after breakfast." Asami smiled at Dae.

"Alright." Dae said, walking back to Bolin and Pabu.

"Did you sleep good, Bolin?" She asked, sitting next to him on the couch.

"Like a baby turtle duck." He flashed a toothy smile. "I'm super excited for you to meet Opal. We are almost there. Korra is out watching for land."

"I'm excited to meet her. What is she like?"

Bolin told her all about how incredible Opal was and how much she meant to him. Each word seethed into Mako. The vegetables he chopped became smaller and smaller. The sound of the cutting board became louder and louder. Mako slammed the knife into the board. Silence fell over the room. Mako walked to his room, slamming the door.

Dae stood up and walked to the kitchen timidly. "Can I help you, Asami? Did something happen?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing... he was fine until you came in." she trailed, trying to say it in the most polite tone possible. "Yeah, can you make the tea... and tell me what's going on with Mako?"

"I just talked to him last night." Dae said, turning on the stove and putting the pot of water over the stove.

"What did you say to him?" She asked.

"Respectfully Asami that stays between us. I can't tell anyone. That wouldn't be right." Dae said, steeping the tea in the warm water.

"Fair enough, but whatever it is, you both need to fix it. Remember, we are going against spirits that feed into their environment and the energy around them, " Asami warned.

"I'll see what I can do." Dae said.

Breakfast was made. Bolin went to get Mako, who had calmed down enough to sit and eat. Korra came down from her watch point and sat at the table. "We are almost there. We will be there in the next few hours."

Dae stayed quiet, fearing that anything she said would set Mako off again.

"Pabu is excited to be there, right Pabu." Pabu was wearing a cute little winter outfit.

Korra and Asami's gaze met each other, feeling the tension in the room. Asami smiled at Bolin. "I love Pabu's outfit. I have to get my winter clothes set out. Dae, do I need to get some ready for you?"

"Yes, if you dont mind. I have a long sleeve shirt. I'll have to double-check my bag for a jacket." Dae said, not lifting her eyes from the plate. She continued her silence for the rest of the time with the group.

Breakfast finished up. Mako started up the fireplace and retreated back to his room. Asami set out some winterized wardrobe for herself and Dae. Bolin and Dae cleaned up after breakfast.

Asami leaned against the doorway. "Dae, I'm getting the clothes ready for when we get there I have some pants, and have the shirt you gave me but I don't have a jacket did you find one when you double checked your bag?"

"No, I didn't." She washed the last dish, handing it to Bolin to dry and put away.

Asami chewed her lip. She already knew the answer but figured she would ask. "Bolin, do you have an extra jacket?"

"I can go check." He put the dish away and walked to his room.

Asami walked across the kitchen. "Are you okay? Did Mako say something to you? I'm sorry. I thought that you upset him, but I didn't even think about it. It could be the other way around until I saw you at the table."

"I'm fine. Like I said, this is between us. Don't worry about it. I'm sure we'll be fine." Dae took on a timid smile.

"Okay..." Asami trailed. Her eyes turned to Bolin as he stepped into the kitchen with a jacket in hand.

"Mako said he had one you could wear." Bolin flashed his toothy grin again. He handed it to Asami to put with the other clothes. Asami's brows lifted her eyes, widening towards Dae. "Okay. Then I have your clothes when you're ready to change. Thank you, Bolin. I'll have to thank Mako." Asami said, walking out and back to her room.

A few hours later, Korra called out that they were docking at the North Pole. Everyone had changed into their winter clothes. The door opened, revealing snow on the deck. Dae crossed her arms, trying her best to keep her heat in. The snow crunched under their feet. They made their way down into the village. "Opal!" Bolin yelled, disbanding from the group. He ran to her, and they held each other close. They kissed each other deeply. "I missed you so much," Opal said softly but loud enough the group could hear. "I missed you more." Bolin held her tighter.

Mako tensed. Dae never met his eyes but could feel the energy shifting around him. He looked away from the pair scowling at the ground.

"Dae, this is my girlfriend, Opal. Opal, this is our new friend, Dae." Opal and Bolin had made their way to the group. Opal giggled softly. "You're the crazy girl?"

"Yup, I'm the one. It's nice to meet you, Opal.  You're just as gorgeous as Bolin said."

"Thank you. You're not as Crazy as Jinora said but just as pretty."

"Thanks," Dae giggled.

"Hey, Mako." Opal turned her attention to him. "Hey Opal, it's good to see you." Mako put on a half-hearted smile.

"It's good to see you too." Opal moved onto Korra and Asami, greeting them, leaving Mako and Dae to themselves.

"It's pretty here. I just wish it wasn't as cold." Dae tried to break the ice with Mako. He was still stone cold to her. "It's freezing." Mako said quickly, then walked towards the center of the village. The group followed after him, still just catching Opal up on the plan.

The group all arrived where people were gathered. Opal and Jinora had already been there to inform everyone of the problems that they were all facing.

Korra stepped up in front of the village. She began her speech to get the waterbenders to board the ship with them to stop the spirits. Of course, adding the possible impact to both tribes if they didn't.

Dae stood next to Mako. It seemed this would be a regular thing now that Opal was with Bolin. Bolin was holding hands with Opal, and Asami was standing at the stairs waiting for Korra to finish her speech.

Dae looked up at Mako. She figured she should set things right, or they may be stuck together in an endless sea of couples sharing embraces on a ship where he hates her. "Thank you for letting me borrow your jacket."

"You would have been a block of ice out here without it."

"Yeah, it's so cold out here. I bet if you told someone to freeze before arresting them, they would."

Mako broke into a smile. "That's stupid."

"You had to stop yourself from laughing, so it's not that stupid." Dae looked back towards Korra, smirking.

He rolled his eyes, and his expression was more neutral and relaxed. "You were right." He spoke suddenly.

"What?" Dae's eyes lifted again.

"Don't make me say it again." He said his eyes were still trained on korra.

"No, I heard what you said. I just expected you to still be mad. You exploded this morning."

"I was mad at you until Bolin started talking about Opal. Then, I was mad that you were right."

"Oh." Dae looked back towards Korra, who was finishing her speech.

"I'm sorry." He spoke softly. His eyes traveled down to Dae. "I'm sorry I've been so harsh. I was going through a lot. You didn't deserve any of this."

"Don't worry about it." Dae shook her head.

"Thank you for not telling Asami about our conversation. I could hear you two in the kitchen." He admitted.

"I'm never going to tell someone your business. I got your back, remember." She lifted her eyes meeting Mako's gaze.

"Y-yeah. I remember." Mako stumbled over his words. Something about Dae standing there wrapped up in his jacket smiling up at him was shifting his confidence.

"Follow me." Korra called out to the group of waterbenders along with her friends. Everyone began boarding the ship.

The group all began settling in with the waterbenders. Kya helped guide everyone into rooms, setting them up to have a bunk to sleep in for the travel.

TagList:

@caityrayeraye

@staygoldsquatchling02

(Just ask to be added id be more than happy.🥰)

[grigori77]

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 93

Nord VERSE? Hmmm ... where's this going, then? Reboots? Oh gods ... a million dollar idea? Yeah, and worth NONE of the pennies ... an "impendent" woman? What's that, then? "Crusty" ... yeah ... ohj boy ... wow, even Ashley can't keep a straight face ... oh wow, this is just THOROUGHLY derailing itself ... that was ... yeah ... so awful ... XD

Matt's evacuating the seat! Alert! Alert! Aabria has arrived! Yay!

FINALE of the Crownkeepers? Oh fuck ... not a good sign ... not at all ... AAAAAAAAAAND just stright into it ...

Aabria vows to knock away Matt's Bless no matter what ...

Ojh boy ... Dorian and Dariax are the only ones with ANY idea of what's going on and even then the ain't seeing the same thing ... oof ... meanwhile the Spider Queen is DETERMINED to finish this NOW and it's really not good ...

Wow ... Opal is currently trying to TALK THIS EVIL DEMONIC BITCH OUT OF MURDERING EVERYBODY ... yeah ...

Yeah, reckon it's safe to sday Spider Queen IS scared. ALL the gods will be scared right now ... oh, so she's gonna kill two of them NO MATTER WHAT? Oh no, THAT'S not at all acceptable ...

Did Opal REALLY just SPRITZ the Spider Queen? You spritz Lolth? You spritz her like the cat?

14 points of Psychic damage? ARGH ARGH ARGH ...

She ATTACKS hope? Now that's just CRUEL ...

Dick-adjacent? Hmmm ... Morrighan, what are you planning? Oh, she's gonna cast Bane on the spiders? Okay ... yeah, do it, do it ... yeah, no, spiders are NOT insightful beasts ... ABSOLUTELY hits ... ooh, Divine Smite? Yeah ... no, spiders are just NATURALLY armoured, it's an exoskeleton ... a weird fluorescent purpleness? Huh? Oh fuck, she's ENRAGED IT ... and it's SPITTING on her ... shit! Oh thank the gods for that dex save ... that was almost SO BAD ... yeah, KILL that horrid beasty ... another Divine Smite? Yeah ...

"Fuck Aabria"? Yeah, 6th Edition IS "weirdly mean" ... LOL

Whoa! Inspiration! Always cool ... WHY are you fighting? Hmmm ... oh okay, a godly lore dump ... maybe not the BEST time for this ... oh, so it has direct relevance, of course it does ... Georgina? Oh yeah, Opal's original name, okay, that's cool ... also O.O ... gods yes, TELL HER!!! And now she's just getting WARNED OFF in immense fear ... wow ...

Dorian! Help you bro! Oh, so the Double D are inventing baeball? Hmmm ... Chromatic Orb? Whoa ... Doirian bringing out the big guns! Oh yeah, I should THINK 26 would hit to spider ... 17 points of Thunder damage ... oh wait, WHAT? And now Matt literally MANIFESTS Dariax ... oh wait ... NO, not Cyrus! Shit! Now HE'S taking all that voltage too ... fuck ... yeah, Dorian just IMMEDIATELY flies to his brother ... or AS CLOSE as he can get this turn ... bloody game mechanics! Wow, and now the illusion's REALLTY doing a major number on him ...

Fy'ra CANNOT see Opanl ... this is not useful ... oh boy ... offered an ultimatum by OMISSION by the Wildmother ... hmm ... DOES SHE give herself over ENTIRELY? Yeah, okay, this is just getting heavy ... godly familial discord ... hmm ... spending a ki point might do it, yeah ... oh yeah, Fy'ra is CRAZY smart ... okay, and now she's JUMPING ON OPAL HEAD-ON ... oh boy this feels SO DUMB for such a smart lady ... Step of the Wind, then ... and FIREBALL?!!! Holy fuck ... but Opal COUNTERSPELLS ... crap! yeah, I'm not surprised that Fy'ra's actually RELIEVED that didn't work ...

Fy'ra shouts "I accept!" and Dariax is now extremely confused ...

The Darkness is dispelled? Okay ... that's a relief, at least ...

It's Ted's turn? interesting ... yeah, Ted's just going to BACK HER UP right now, right? Please? Oh, right, sounds like that's NOT a good idea, then ... crap ... so Opal speaks to the others ... oh balls, THIS doesn't sound good, what's happening NOW? O.O No, not the Double D! Oh wait, no, that's not so bad ... make them make out, that's not so bad ... oh ... please be gentle,. Opal, please just ... do what you can ... "Just walk away. Go see Orym." Oh yes ... that might do it ... yes, this IS totally a mercy right now ...

Whoa ... the spell lasts for TWENTY-FOUR HOURS?!!! Holy fuck ...

NOW Ted's going ... oh shit ... a Crit Fail? Ouch ... yup, Ted's loose ... balls, no, not the reverse psychology ... oh yeah, she's TOTALLY unleashing on Morrighan now ... THREE attacks? Fuck ... one miss, but the next hits high and ... OH FUCK ... a bloody NAT20 ... 21 points of slashing damage from the first ... oof ... and another 23 points of THE WORST possible damage, that is some NASTY sounding shit ... AND a con save ... crap, yeah now she's POISONED ... the effects of THAT are pending, apparently ... but somehow she STILL has her Haste on ... amazing ...

Now it's Opal's turn ... very gently she casts Banishing Smite on her ... oh wow ... on the back of her knees? How the hell is she gonna do that? Oh, it doesn't hit anyway ... hmmm ... oh, so it DOESN'T cast yet ... but ... sdo wait, it's still primed but she can't actually USE IT? Huh? I'm so confused now ...

Dariax is DEFINITELY trapped in the spell, clearly ... so he's just casting Cure Wounds instead ... yeah ... 23 points back to everybody? Nice ... and now he's booking it away as fast as he can ...

Matt FINALLY remembers the Wizzkids plug! Yay!

Cyrus is being IMPALED by spiderlegs? Fuck ... wait ... is he DEAD?!!! Are you fucking KIDDING ME?!!!

The other spider jabs Morrighan while she's distracted? Ouch ... oh ... NO!!! NOT THE GEMS!!! SHIT!!! And now Opal no longer remembers her original name? Oh man ...

Whoa ... Fy'ra's taking a seriously LETHAL wound? NO!!! NO NO NO ... fuck this is so bad ...

Holy fuck ... Opal DOES NOT KNOW WHO TED IS ANYMORE?!!! SERIOUSLY?!!!

Oh what the fuck is THIS SHIT?!!! Oh that's just SO WRONG ...

Cyrus REALLY IS out? Fuck ... a Death Save with disadventage? Crap ... yeah, he is now DYING ...

The new MEGA spider atacks Cyrus ... an AUTO Crit? Really? Fuck ... no ... Cyrus is DEAD. Fuck ... no ... no no no ...

Morrighan IMMEDIATELY senses that, as she would, of course ... yeah ... oh man ... the Matron is HIDING the worst of the knowledge from her ... oh man again ... she pulls a Rabbit Hop and goes STRAIGHT for the big ass spider ... full charge ... two attacks, both hit ... another Divine Smite ... of course ... just the WRATH of the Matron ... yeah, she EVISCERATES this thing on the spot ... yeah, definitely, no glory, this is just COLD ... but she grabs the last of the dick gems, at least ... what does she see? What memories are saved?

Erica is just DESTROYED right now, totally ...

Yeah ... Cyrus was a moron, but he was OUR moron, and he was such a total sweetheart ...

Oh wow ... the fight's just GONE from her now, Morrighan just wants to run ... oh, that's ... FASCINATING ... so she takes Cyrus with her as she goes, because she's a Paladin of the Matron ... wow ...

EMOTIONAL DAMAGE indeed ... yeah, Dorian is just BREAKING ... his brother's dead, what do we EXPECT?!!! Yup, that's it, he's just leaving same as Dariax ... 7th Level Geass? Huh?

Oh, it HITS ... holy fuck ... this thing has to KEEP ATTACKING the Spider Queen for A WHOLE YEAR, without ANY chance to shake off the compulsion ..., holy fuck ...

Yeah, the Spider Queen is PISSED ...

But Dorian's grief is TOO STRONG ... wow ...

Oh shit ... how much IS Fy'ra actually aware of right now? Is she on her own in carrying on the fight right now? Opal is just BEGGING HER TO MESS HER UP AS MUCH AS SHE CAN ... okay ... this is about to go SO BAD ... wow ... Anjali is SO ANGRY right now, she really is ... whoa ... Fy'ra just GRABS THE FUCKING CROWN ... she completely NAILS the strength chekc ... are you kidding me is she REALLY just ripping that evil thing off right now?

Matt is so completely in the zone right now, clearly ... the boy has ONE functioning braincell right now ...

Negotiations? What?

Circlet of Barbed Vision? Wow ...

Oh wow, I love how snarky Lolth is all of a sudden ... XD

DO NOT roll below a 20, Anjali ... a TWO? What? Oh fuck ... wait, okay, maybe this is salvagable ... 9 points of piercing damage ...

So this is a take them both or not at all kind of situation? Interesting ... Intimidation check with advantage? Okay ... with Matt's help, then ... 21 ... nice ... oh wait, is this ACTUALLY WORKING?

Opal doesn't want this for her, but she has NO CHOICE in the matter right now ... oh yeah, this is just HAUNTING all of a sudden ...

Soooo creepy, Aabria ...

Oh yeah, that's it, there's NO WAY Fy'ra's leaving her now ... this is getting SO VERY TRAGIC ...

Wow, the Spider Queen REALLY doesn't like the Wildmother AT ALL, does she? LOL

Dariax is now AT THE BOTTOM of the cliff ... and he sees Cyrus dead ... oh fuck ... oh yeah, he's off, definitely ...

This really IS IT ... the end of the Crownkeepers ... fuck ...

And now for a very painful epilogue ...

Dorian and Dariax head for Zephrah ... yeah, of course they do ... they're just moving in silence, then ... okay ... then the Compulsion's gone ... hmmm ...

Yup, the bigger picture takes hold once more ... fucking Ludinus ... and then they're there, in Zephrah ...

NOW they finally get to start mourning at last ... ouch ... "tropes" ... oh, here we go ... ah yeah, here we go, BARD LESSONS ... XD

Matt: "It is awful." Aabria: "Fuck you, gimme a Performance check!" Matt (rolls): "It's not as awful as you'd think!"

Oh boy ... Dariax's first public busking session ... I am SO nervous right now ... wait ... what ... IS HE RUNNING OUT on Dariax? Are you kidding me? Please tell me he's not doing that ...

Oh, I see ... he's just being anonymous in the moment ... drinking it all in ... this place ... it's beautiful ... oh, and it's KEYLETH!!! Hey! And she SEES HIM anyway, even though he's invisible ... and NODS ... oh ... wow ...

And now THIS is where she chooses to call it for this session ... wow ... I mean it's beautiful ... but now Aabria's gone ... nuts ...

Time for a break, then ...

Soooooo ... it's just Robbie left, at the table ... hmmm ... I guess that means it's just Dorian and Dariax alone here, then ...

Keyleth's now speaking to him directly ... okay ... that's just so totally Keyleth, straight to mothering mode ... I love her so much ...

Here we go, yeah ... just tell her everything, Dorian, she'll understand ... oh yeah, could they get Cyrus' body back? yes ... good, that's good ... meanwhile these two DEFINITELY need to just recharge, clearly ...

Oh yes, and TOTALLY they need to get to Orym and Fearne ... yes ... but yes, rest and resupply, definitely ... and yes, of course she's happy to indulge them in both. I really do love her so much ... oh yeah, it makes total sense that Dorian responds so positively to this. Yeah ...

"A shared solace and grief" ... oh yeah, totally ... makes perfect sense ... meanwhile ... oh yeah, she's still got a lot to deal with, definitely ...

Dorian receives Orym's Sending Stone message ... wow ... and he responds: "I'll be there." Oh man ...

Oh, okay ... looks like this might be their chance to tag along ...

Ah yeah ... this is A LOT to dump on him all in one go, surely ... and an invitation, yeah ... he doesn't hesitate, either ... oh, here we go, resupply such as they can in the time, at least ...

The tree! Yeah, here we go ... and it opens up ... yeah, so they're going RIGHT NOW, definitely ... straight through, then ...

Ruidus in the sky ... great ... that's still as creepy as ever ...

"Seven figures"? Wait ... already? Really?

They're all there ... but ... no ... no, they're not ... that one's NOT somebody he knows. FCG's not there ... oh man ...

HERE THEY ARE!!! BACK AT THE TABLE!!! WITH ROBBIE!!!

Proper reunion ... it's been SO LONG, but FINALLY ... SQUEEEEEE!!!

Orym doesn't even WAIT, does he? He just jumps right on him. Fearn's close behind ...

Catching up ... yeah ... and now ... oh fuck ... broaching the subject of their loss ... their fallen comrade ... oh man ...

Ah yeah ... Evoroa ... this'll be interesting ... nobody here's seen a Bormodo, after all ... wow ... that is SO OBNOXIOUS of Dorian ... WOW ... but he likes her. Awwww ... :3

Yeah ... how DOES the situation lie right now? Yeah, reckon they COULD use some rest after what they just went through ...

oooh, this is NICE ... cosy comfy, just what the doctor ordered ...

Cool transformation ... yeah, she;s definitely showing off a little there ... points for a dramatic entrance, at least ...

Dorian tells them what happened ... yeah ... this is ... a whole lot of heaviness ...

And then the story of FCG's last stand ... man ...

Aww, the crystal dancer! Awwwwwwwww ... :3 Yeah, Dorian would TOTALLY love that ...

BOO PREDATHOS!!! Yes.

And now Laudna's pulling out dead stuff ... it's business as usual for Dorian again ... he loves her but she makes him uncomfortable! It's adorable! :3

Is he staying? Dorian: "If you'll have me." YAY!!!

Ashton: "This is how ska starts." XD

The conversation just got a whole lot more serious ... oof ...

Oh yeah ... Deni$e ... yeah ... XD ...

The pronunciation of Predathos ... oh, I love it ...

They need drink. Lots of drink. Drink is necessary ... much alcohol, please ... nice one, Ashton.

Ashton interrupts Keyleth and Evoroa's conversation. Hmmm ... wow ... that was brief and intense and ... interesting ... back to alcohol ...

Ah yes ... the changes in Ashton and Fearne both ... yeah ...

Yes. To Letters ... time to get shitfaced ...

And that is it for the night. Perfect place for it, really ...

Adn ROBBIE'S BACK!!! I'm so happy ... it's been TOO LONG ...

[skybrushus]

Crow Shanks almost blacked out as his head slammed into the concrete wall. He was down in the basement of his butcher shop. The male griffin slid to floor with groan. His collision with the wall had been instigated by one of Chrysalis's own enforcers. The griffin shook his head as he slowly got back up to his hands and knees. He coughed a couple of times. The 3 other figures in the room silently towered over him on the floor. Finally he spoke.

      I swear! I don't know why the fucking cops knew ta intercept yer shipment last night! Damn it why would do it? I took as big of a soaking as ya did on it!"

      Chrysalis stepped forward and glared down at the old griffin. "Crow Shanks. You stupid pigeon! You dimwitted, senile collection of feathers. The money is not the problem. Deals go bad sometimes. That's danger of enterprises like this. What I can't afford is having one of my best lieutenants captured by the RESF! WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT HAS HAPPENED!" Roared the queen.

      The queen of the changelings started pacing back and forth in front of the griffin. Her muscle just stood there and loomed ominously. The queen pinch her brow. "Now! I am confident 7228B won't willing compromise me or the hive. I raised him better than that! However! That doesn't mean the Royal Sisters or Celestia's damn protege Twilight won't figure out someway to get inside their head. I keep my various business enterprises compartmentalized just for contingencies like this, but 7228B was part of my inner swarm. So they know more than most drones! Now at least a dozen other enterprises are potentially jeopardized due to their capture!"

     Crow Shanks sat up and leaned against cold concrete wall. "Yeah! Yeah I get it! Yer worried about him squealing ta cops! But why are ya taking it out me?! I said I don't know how cops knew...."

      The griffin's voice tapered off as Chrysalis conjured a small image of young female griffin in her right hand. "Look familiar? Know her Crow. Hmm. Yes. Yes she look familiar to you doesn't she. You took her to the Opal Waves 3 nights ago. A night club I own. Didn't know that fact Crow? Surprise! You 2 had a grand time. You ate, you drank, you talked and talked.

  Chrysalis clenched her right hand into a fist and the illusion vanished. "You told her you were some hotshot griffin who was so smart. You impressed her with how wily of an operator you were. All so you could get her back in your nest.”

    The changeling growled. "She was an informant for the Ft. Trotterdale Police. The next morning she literally waltzed into the central precinct with a pretty story for the police. Then last night my shipment got raided! I dealt with her before coming over here today. She's providing sustenance for the alligators as we speak. Now I just need to decide what other wildlife around here needs feeding."

    Crow Shanks swallowed and started frantically looking back and forth a the 3 changelings. One of Chrysalis enforcers spoke up. "Your Majesty. Do you want us to finish him for you?"

    Chrysalis's horn flared and a silence bubble engulfed the basement. She shook her head.

     "No. I'll do it myself." In one quick motion she drew her pistol and fired 8 rounds of 9mm JHP into the griffin's head and torso.

    Chrysalis reholstered her pistol and looked back her 2 enforcers. "I will leave it to your discretion to clean this up." She casually gestured at the fresh corpse. "And please dispose of this rotten piece of meat."

    The 2 enforcers nodded their heads. "Of course your Majesty!"

   A moment from my Royal Equestria Security Forces (RESF) dreamscape. In several previous postings I’ve mentioned the RESF personnel dealing either directly or indirectly with the activities of changelings who are still loyal and serve Queen Chrysalis. However I've never drawn the changelings effectively on camera. Well, I've fixed that. The queen has set up her main hive in the Ft. Trotterdale area. She likes the warmer climate there and being a port city it makes it easier for her to conduct a variety of smuggling and trafficking operations.

[leebrontide]

Secondhand Origin Stories, Chapter 9

Here's this week's chapter! Reblogs welcome!

For those of you just joining us, I'm posting a chapter a week of my free near future scifi/low neon cyberpunk YA/NA novel, Secondhand Origin Stories, which has been described as

"-a character driven, compelling story full of family, queerness, corruption, brain altering nanites, secretly teen parenting AIs, and taking aspects of the superhero genre to their very human and rarely-explored natural conclusions."

For content warnings and more, check here:

You can follow along by following #SHOSweekly

Chapter 9

Martin’s voice in the elevator was enough to put Opal on edge again. The unexpectedly plush chairs of the clinic waiting room weren’t enough to fix it. The staff here all seemed so grim, somehow. And up this high, the sound of the storm blanketed every other noise with the static, as if it was keeping secrets in the constant shushes of rain and the grumbles of thunder.

She’d settled on calling her mom. Mom’s ridiculous sheep-patterned pajamas and her enthusiasm for Shani’s history project helped. Apparently Opal would be getting a lengthy account of it whenever she managed to reach Shani between summer sleepovers. 

“Everyone still treating you all right?”

Opal smiled, trying to get comfortable. “Aldis and the guys have been great. You got the pictures I sent you of the VIP suite? Oh! Did I tell you Capricorn said he thinks I have grit? And Helix agreed with him.” She couldn’t mention the rest of it-- not here, at least. She couldn’t make up her mind what she really should say. 

“Oh, baby, I’m so proud of you. Are they as handsome in person as on TV?”

Opal laughed. “Mom. They’re all like, 40 and up.”

“And that might as well be a hundred to an 18-year-old. Yeah, yeah.”

“Hey, have you--” 

“I still haven’t heard from your dad. I promise I’ll let you know the minute I do. But you know how this goes. Any little thing.” And they’d revoke his phone “privileges.” It’d been months, once or twice before. Then he’d reappear, looking a little older, a little less steady, chastising Opal for having worried. She hadn’t gotten any letters, either. It was never good when he couldn’t even send letters. But she’d sent hers. She hoped he got them. 

She glanced up as a familiar figure ghosted through the edge of Opal’s line of sight. “Jamie?” Jamie turned, looking haunted. “Hey, Mom. I’m sorry, but I’ll call you later, OK?” 

Martin had said there was a family emergency. If Jamie was down here, it must be a bad one. 

Jamie was, impossibly, paler than usual. She seemed almost blue. Her posture was hunched, as if she was expecting to have to bolt at any second, with her elbows pulled in tight against her body. She also seemed to be by herself. “Hey, are you OK?”

“I’m trying to find Issac’s doctor, but they just keep telling me to go wait with…I need to tell them what happened with Issac. I’m the only one who was there.”

A nice, straightforward request. Opal stood, flagging down the nearest medical professional who didn’t seem to be rushing. She put on her most professional tone. “Excuse me. Ms. Tillman-Voss needs to speak with the treating physician for Issac Tillman-Voss right away. She has important information relevant to his condition she needs to share.” Hanging around Mom’s job when she was little had given her a few tricks, at least.

The woman nodded, and led them to a nurse’s station before disappearing to find the doctor. 

“Ms. Tillman-Voss?” Jamie asked under her breath. “I think they think you’re my bodyguard now.”

Bodyguard? She’d been going for PR intern. “Whatever works,” she muttered back. 

Jamie’s smile was tiny and wobbly. “You do look really grown-up in that.”

“You look like you’re going to faint. You’re not, are you? My mom’s a nurse, but I am very much not.”

“No. I need to talk to the doctor.”

“Are you going to faint after that?”

“I hope not. They won’t treat me here. I’m not altered.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure if LodeStar’s kid faints in their waiting room, they’ll pull something together.”

Jamie muttered under her breath, “Not sure he’d care.”

That didn’t sound good. The doctor showed up before Opal could ask, and then she was too busy keeping up with the story Jamie was telling. Every bit of which sounded 100% illegal. By the end of it, Jamie’s voice was painful to even listen to, it was so high-pitched and breathless, but Jamie pushed through. She even brought them a copy of a thesis Issac had written on the subject. It’d be impressive if it wasn’t so horrifying. Brain-changing nanites? You didn’t have to try to think of all the ways that could be misused.

The doctor rushed off as soon as Jamie was done. 

Opal was hit with more doubt than she’d ever had before. What and who had she gotten mixed up with? OK, the Sentinels as a family struggling to cope, she could understand. But a family that attempted to cope by developing more and scarier technology, and testing it on themselves in secret?

Then again, that was how Bion had started. But that was back before altering tech laws had been around. Issac must have known what he was doing was illegal. He should even know why it needed to be illegal. His family took down people conducting illegal alterations all the time. 

But maybe those rules didn’t apply to their son.

She shivered. Exactly how many rules didn’t apply to them?

Jamie didn’t notice Opal’s existential crisis. She was staring down the hallway towards the handful of private waiting rooms like she was expecting a firing squad. She took a tiny, unconscious step backwards, towards Opal. 

And all Opal could remember was Jamie’s comment that nobody would even notice another couple of bruises on her. All three of the kids seemed incredibly isolated. How many laws could the Sentinels get out of?

Opal put a hand on Jamie’s shoulder. Leaned in to ask quietly, “Are you OK?”

Jamie didn’t look at her. But she pressed her lips so tight they almost vanished. Her eyes were pink. She shook her head, still staring down the hall. 

Maybe it was nothing. Jamie’d had a terrible morning by anyone’s standards. 

Maybe it wasn’t nothing. 

Jamie started, looking at Opal. “My dad! He needs a doctor, too. If he’s in the waiting room, then they must not know. His collarbone’s broken.”

“What? How did that happen?”

“Yael.” Jamie said, flinching as she realized too late that that was bound to beg questions. “There was a-- xe was afraid he-- but that doesn’t matter. He needs a doctor!”

This time it was even easier to get someone’s attention, but Jamie was a lot lighter on the details. She didn’t even mention Yael. Whatever had happened, she was less likely to explain it than she was Issac’s breach of international laws. Nobody pressed her for more details. Doctors rushed to help the injured superhero, and Opal and Jamie stayed put.

Neil Voss passed by a few minutes later, escorted by a nervous-looking medical person and Capricorn. Capricorn looked grim, and had a hand on LodeStar’s arm. LodeStar ignored Opal completely, his attention stitched tightly to his daughter as he passed. Neither of them said anything to the other. 

Jamie watched him with her own intensity, and a disquieting stillness. LodeStar looked half possessed. His eyes burned blood-red where the whites should have been. His steps were unsteady and slow, but the muscles in his shoulders were coiled, prepared to strike, his hands working themselves into huge metallic fists. Flexing again. Stretching, as if he was imagining grabbing something. Opal had never seen anyone more terrifying in her life. 

He was cordoned off in another room after what felt like an eternity. The two of them both exhaled at the same time. 

Oh God. Opal was in a Gothic novel. And the head of the house was as powerful and utterly unhinged as any she’d ever read. And she’d spent the last...more than two weeks now, trying to move into his house, work under his orders? This was not going to work. She could never trust the orders of someone like that. She could never hurt or arrest anyone on his say-so. She didn’t even want to be in the same room with him.

She’d go home. Go back to Detroit. Save up, and try another team, later. They couldn’t all be like him, could they?

Jamie sat suddenly, barely catching a chair instead of landing on the floor. She was struggling to catch her breath.

Shit. None of the doctors had even looked at Jamie. No one was going to check in on what was happening in LodeStar’s home. What made Jamie look like that? What drove her brother to experiment on himself, rather than have something he might see as a vulnerability in that household?

Opal reached for the only failsafe she could think of close by. “Hey, maybe we should go find your mom?”

Jamie cringed, but nodded, dragging herself back upright. Opal followed close behind, hoping to find some kind of resolution.

* * *

Issac drifted in and out of consciousness several times. Reality had turned slippery, and even awake, he couldn’t seem to grasp hold of it. This time, when he woke, the ground under him felt a little more solid. Time felt a little more linear. 

He kept his eyes closed, trying to shut out reality. Trying not to notice what he couldn’t detect. He tried to focus inward. His mouth and tongue hurt, as if he’d cut them. A seizure, he remembered. Someone had told him he’d had a seizure, one of the other times he’d been awake. He must have bitten himself. His mouth tasted like blood.

He shifted his attention again, but his body was no refuge. His pulse was speeding; his back hurt like hell. There was a needle in his arm. His torso was canted upwards. Another hospital bed. 

More missing monitor noise. 

His mind had never been good at silence. He’d never been able to get it to shut up. To stop noticing. 

Then again, at least it was still working right. At least he did still notice things.

At least he’d woken up. 

Tears pricked at his closed eyes. He’d failed. Air escaped his lungs unevenly, and he sucked it back in, straining against ribs that whined about it, just like the last time. 

Whoever was in the room with him-- there must be someone-- didn’t notice his tears or any unwanted noises. There was no touch to his hand or face. No anything. If he wanted something, he’d have to signal it. He’d have to open his eyes and face whoever was there.

He pried open crusty, itchy eyes. This time, his vision landed first on his own paper-clad lap. 

There was a card in his hand in unfamiliar handwriting. Issac - you have had a seizure. Some confusion is normal. It will go away in a while. Please stop trying to remove the monitoring equipment. Your family will return soon. 

Soon? None of them were even in here with him? He looked up.

There was a man in the room. He was wearing a three-piece suit in brownish gray, with graying, sand-colored hair, and a severely bleached smile plastered on his face. He was sitting in the chair between Issac and the door with his ankle on his knee. As if this was a perfectly normal way to meet someone.

This was not a doctor. 

Issac gasped as his vision developed sudden spots. Black fractured the image in front of him. 

It was text. Good afternoon, Mr. Tillman-Voss.

Issac was wearing contacts. Revulsion rolled through him. He wanted to pull them off. He couldn’t stand the thought of touching them. Either the stranger knew he had them, or he thought Issac could hear. The man stood, still smiling. He reached into his blazer pocket, producing a little slip of paper. He walked the few paces between them, holding it out. A business card. Before Issac could read it, more text crowded the image out. I’m Frank Lasansky of Lasansky Security Technologies. Sorry if I’m catching you at a bad time.

A bad time? Issac wasn’t even wearing pants. How did these contacts end up on his eyes? Where was his family? I heard a while back about what happened to you and I think that’s a shame. Just a real shame. Still smiling. Issac would have punched the guy if he was more confident in his ability to stand up without falling down. There was something off about him-- a fakeness that went beyond his over-bleached teeth. Issac took the business card, but kept watching the man’s face.

It didn’t move right. Some kind of partial paralysis? 

And I thought, there’s a young man I’d like to meet. And my lucky day, I come to find out you’re in this very building when I am! Well, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity like that, could I? Huh? Right?

Issac didn’t know what else to do, so he shook his head “no.” Did this guy not know Issac lived in this building? How could he possibly not know that? It was Sentinel Plaza.

Lasansky. That name was familiar.

The weird smile stretched wider. Great! Glad to hear it. Because I am just dying to chat with you about those nanites of yours. Issac went cold. The nanites. He must be from the APB? Maybe he was here to take Issac away. Issac felt an irrational urge to check to make sure all his arms and legs were still attached. That they hadn’t been replaced with weaker models. He knew better, and he was being watched. Now, I already heard that this trial didn’t work out. That’s why I took the liberty of providing you with some hardware to help us out in our little chat. He tapped the space next to his eye, looking pleased with himself.

Issac recoiled. He would have assumed that either his parents or a nurse had put the contacts on him. That would have been bad enough. But to think that this random businessman had been touching Issac while he was either asleep or too out of it to have a say sent a spiky, electric chill up his spine. OK, he had his legs, but it felt that much closer to Jenna's fate, all the same.

Lasansky continued, either oblivious to Issac's alarm or electing to ignore it. But hey, these things happen. You can’t get it right on your first try every time, right? Issac wondered whether he was supposed to shake his head again, but this time Lasansky didn’t wait. I want you to know I’m not going to judge you for that. You know? I want you to hear that it’s not your fault. You didn’t have backup. No support. No team. 

Issac's horror ebbed a little, and he tried to shove it down faster. Don’t think about his eyes. This was obvious, and well-thought-out, flattery. This total stranger knew exactly what Issac wanted to hear. The polar opposite of what he’d be forced to sit through whenever his parents showed up to replace the stranger. 

Why was he flattering Issac?

Issac studied the man. The suit was high-end, and almost perfectly tailored, but cut a little too big in the shoulders. There was the smallest of silver roots visible at his hairline. His hands looked noticeably older than his face.

Ah. His face. He’d had too much Botox, too many face-lifts, or both. That’s why his expressions seemed off. Everything about him was pretending. 

Lasansky. Lasansky. He knew that name.

But a little birdie gave me some good news. Word on the street is, it’s your biggest birthday today! He leaned in conspiratorially. Issac leaned in, too, as if it mattered what volume the man spoke at. You’re a free man, Mr Tillman. The world is your oyster.

A free man. So, not arrested, anyway. Lasansky stood. Now I know this is irregular, God knows it’s not usually how we run things at Lasansky Security International, but you, young man, are special. I couldn’t run the chance of them squirreling you away in the attic all alone without my having spoken to you, first.

Of him being sent away like Jenna. 

Mr. Tillman, I am here to make you an offer.  Because the problem with working for the family business is, you have to work for your family! You have to be the baby at work and at home. Have your boss at the dinner table. Be constantly surrounded by people who have what they think are your best interests at heart, but who, deep down, can’t appreciate you for the adult that you are! Now the fact that you had to run this all by yourself tells me that they already gave you the vote of no confidence. They only see Issac the boy, not Issac the man. But I have seen your patent list, and I am ready to give you my full vote of confidence. I believe in your tech. I believe there’s a need for it, and I believe that with the right support, you can deliver your gift to the world. I am prepared to offer you just that support. 

This stranger-- this fake man in a thousand-dollar suit-- understood. Had grasped the whole dynamic of the situation without ever even meeting Issac. Issac glanced down briefly, thinking, and his eyes landed on perfectly shined shoes with a subtly higher-than-average heel. Trying to look tall.

Lasansky was the head of what had to be a huge, heavily politically-connected company, but even he had to pretend to be taller, healthier, younger than he was. No wonder he could understand Issac’s need to fix himself. Even Lasansky wasn’t high enough in the hierarchy to risk exposing even the smallest, most irrelevant weaknesses, like wrinkles or narrower shoulders. 

Well, even Mom wore tall shoes and sought the occasional nip and tuck, didn’t she? She just wore it better, or maybe invested more. 

If even the people at the top-- everyone who wasn’t altered-- had to protect themselves with artificial health and height, where did that leave someone with an actual weakness?

Lasansky approached the tilted hospital bed. Issac had to crane his neck back to keep watching him. He smiled down at Issac with gleaming teeth. Mr. Tillman, how would you like to join the Lasansky Securities family?

* * *

Time bled by Yael at an agonizing crawl. Xe didn’t know how long xe’d been sitting on the cool tile floor of xyr bedroom, not really seeing anything. Xyr back was still against the door, where it was easiest to hear Papa not coming after xyr, not trying to argue through the door. Xe’d let xyr mind go blank, listening to that silence.

When xyr phone went off, Yael jumped so hard xe banged xyr head against the door. Xe grabbed the phone out of xyr pocket, answering to stop its intrusion. Xe forgot all about Papa for a moment when xe realized it was Issac. Or, at least, Issac's phone.

“Hello?” xe asked cautiously, not sure who to expect on the other end.

Issac himself answered. “Yeah. Uhm. Hi.”

Yael's head dropped back, hitting the door with another bang. “You’re OK. You’re OK, right? Oh my Gosh, can you hear me? You’re on the phone!”

There was a pause. “I…no. I have translation software. I can’t hear you.” 

“Sorry it didn’t work.” And xe was, a little. Mostly, xe was happy he was conscious, coherent and alive. Now they just had to get through the fallout with the APB. Nodiah wasn’t going to be happy.

Issac didn’t even try to hide his discomfort, which was refreshing. “Yeah.” Yael looked behind xyr, as if xe could see through the door. Xe had no idea where Papa was, if he was hearing all of this. “I need your help.”

Yael crossed xyr legs, straightening. Trying not to think about how “helping” him this morning had gone. “What do you need?”

“An escort? I, uhm. I got a job. Just now.” Yael pulled the phone away from xyr ear, and stared at it, baffled. Was Issac actually coherent? “I know that’s weird. But it’s this guy who works with the APB, and he actually believes in my research. Wants to use it to help people.” Official approval! Thank heaven. Issac would be safe, now. Problems were knocking themselves out left and right. 

 “I’m eighteen. I can move out, any time I want to. They can’t stop me. But it’s like… I’ll have to live in just like…a place. Just standard security systems. I’d feel better if you came along, too. You’re almost eighteen. Can you?” A flicker of hesitation. “Will you?”

Yael rushed the phone back to xyr ear, glancing back against the door again. Hopefully Papa hadn’t heard that.

Xyr first impulse was to tell Issac “no.” He was hurt. He needed his family. He needed to be protected, here at home.

Except now, home wasn’t safe, either. He needed safety and family. Maybe Yael really was his best bet for both. Papa wasn’t listening to Yael-- maybe none of the others would, either. 

“On one condition. We have to bring Jamie, too. We can’t leave her here.” Xe hoped Melissa would protect her, but if nobody but Yael saw the danger--

“What? I. But. I mean. If she wants to…You think she would? But she’s sixteen.”

“We have to try.”

“Uh. Sure. Try away.”

“Is…Your mom isn’t with you, now.”

“Obviously.”

“You’re alone?”

“I…I guess they came in earlier. I don’t remember.”

“Have you seen Neil?”

“I guess.”

“Jamie?”

“I don’t remember, OK? Seizures can do that. Just…pack up. I’ll get home when I can to do the same.” He said his goodbyes, which Yael echoed in a haze, then hung up.

Moving out? Xe’d never planned to leave. Xyr room had always just evolved with xyr. This was Yael’s home.

But a home wasn’t such a big thing to sacrifice for your brother and sister. 

Xe heard shuffling outside. Papa’s normally light footfalls were slow and plodding, either because he was just that tired, or to warn xyr he was coming.

The handle beside xyr head turned, and Yael looked over at it as the door tried to shift inward. Yael was more than heavy enough to keep it closed.

Papa’s voice was muffled, but only a little bit irritated. “Yael, I’ve bought you a very large bed, two futons, and an office chair. Why do you insist on sitting on the floor?”

Xe didn’t even bother to pretend to be angry. “I’m being a barricade.”

“Well, stop being a barricade and go back to being my daughter. I need to talk to her.”

Maybe it was just because xe was so upset about everything else, but xe was suddenly annoyed by his misgendering, and didn’t watch xyr tongue. “I’m not your daughter.”

Shit! Yael’d said it before thinking, then realized how Papa would hear it. Xe scrambled to xyr feet and threw the door open.

He was standing there, half turned from the door, his expression a broken attempt at stoicism. He met xyr eyes with a piercing, angry gaze and a mouth that tugged down at the corners, obviously hurt. 

This time xyr blurted words did better. “I didn’t mean it like that! I meant-- ugh. You’ve heard Jamie and Issac use non-gendered pronouns for me for five months now. Take a hint!”

The pain in his expression cleared, some, replaced by sincere confusion. “You never asked me to call you that.”

“I thought it would be obvious.”

“I didn’t want to assume. Sometimes siblings have things they don’t want to share with-- I was trying not to intrude!” He shook his head. “This is absurd. Yael, aren’t we having enough fights today? Let’s put this on hold.”

Surprisingly diplomatic of him, even if he was sidestepping something important to xyr. Xe tried to stay calm. Xe crossed xyr arms. “All right. Which fight do you want to have first?”

Papa replied with an exasperated, but not entirely unamused sigh, and stepped forward. Xe let him in. He paused. “How about the one about how your room looks like you’re afraid of drawers, closets and boxes?”

“Really?”

He shoved over a pile of hoodies and sat on one of the futons. “No.” He rubbed his face. 

The silence stretched out. Papa was lost in thought. Yael collapsed onto the opposite futon, toying with the corduroy.

Finally he looked to xyr. “Which do you want to start with?”

Yael spread xyr hands helplessly, shaking xyr head. Xe had no idea how to untangle all of this. But xe didn’t want him to leave.

Xe didn’t want to leave.

To xyr amusement, he pulled out a coin. He looked at xyr. “Heads, your fight with Neil, tails, the…the other thing.”

Xe nodded, and he flipped the coin, catching it and slapping it to his hand. “Heads,” he announced. 

They looked at each other, bracing for a fight neither of them wanted to have. “Tell me what happened. I won’t say anything until you’ve finished. Just this once.”

Too good an offer to pass up. “Issac was following in his father’s and Jenna's and Drew's footsteps. He decided to fight his limitations directly, and he had the science. He limited the MARTIN sensors and used his nanites to try to repair his audio nerve.” Xe refused to look ashamed. “Jamie and I helped him, and kept his secret. And I am not sorry we did.” That was much easier to say now that xe knew he really was OK. “He has the right to try to better himself.” 

Xe couldn’t read Papa’s reaction, so xe just kept going. “But he had a seizure, Jamie used the failsafe, and we called for help. The EMTs got Issac, and Drew went with them, and as soon as Neil and Jamie and I were alone, he started shouting at her, and then he lunged for her. I intercepted him and tried to make him back off. He wouldn’t. That’s pretty much when you came in.”

Papa might not have interrupted, but now he was shaking his head. “You misinterpreted. You were upset and you misunderstood.”

“How would you know? You weren’t there!” xe challenged. 

“Neil wouldn’t. He adores Jamie. He loves all of you kids.” Yael shook xyr head, glaring daggers at the floor as he continued. “You’ve known him your whole life. You know he would never hurt any of you.”

“I’ve been trying to believe in that, and in him. This whole time I’ve been trying. But he’s not the man I grew up with. That man would never abandon Issac for days at a time like this. Not for any reason. And today-- I’ve seen enough film of your missions to know he can kill with less rage than that. I wouldn’t let anyone looking like that near Jamie or Issac.”

Xe readied for arguments and shouting yet again. Instead, Papa looked distracted and troubled.

Deep down, part of Yael wanted to be wrong. Even hurting Neil unfairly would be better than Neil being a real danger to Jamie. Neil would heal. If he was the person Yael thought xe remembered, he would even forgive.

But Papa had stopped arguing. Xe couldn’t imagine a more hollow victory.

They sat in painful silence for a moment. 

“I…I’ll talk to him. And Melissa,” he promised.

“There’s more.” 

He looked horrified. “More? How could there possibly be more?” Realization dawned. “The phone call.”

“It was Issac.”

“Well then, that’s good!”

Xe nodded, hesitantly. “Yes, that’s good,” xe hedged. “You know it’s his birthday.”

“What a birthday.”

“He’s eighteen. He called me to say he’s not coming back, except to pack his things. He’s moving out. And he sure is Melissa’s son, because he’s somehow landed himself a job since this morning.”

Papa’s mouth dropped open. “You can’t be serious.”

Yael threw up xyr hands. “It wasn’t my idea!”

“Well, tell him not to!”

“When has that ever worked? At least it’s APB-backed, so he won’t get arrested for this morning.”

“He can’t just go out there, alone.”

Here it was. “He won’t be alone.” Yael gulped, but raised xyr chin. “I’m going with him.”

Papa rocketed to his feet.“The hell you are!” All his bombastic energy was back from before. “This is absurd! We had a fight! That is no reason. No. Reason.”

Yael didn’t have it in xyr now to fight about this. Instead, xe kept xyr voice low, which had the surprising effect of making Papa pause. “I know. I’m not going to get away from you. I’m going to protect him. Because he shouldn’t go out there alone.”

“I forbid it.”

“Then be prepared to fight me with real force every single day. Be prepared to break my legs faster than they can heal, because that’s what it’ll take.” 

Papa was visibly repulsed. “This is no time for dramatics.”

“I’m being sincere. I know you don’t have a lot of recent practice with honesty, but try and remember what it sounds like. If you’re not willing to go that far, then you won’t keep me here. And you don’t want to.”

“Of course I want to! You’re my--” Xe had to hand it to him; he stopped before ‘daughter’ this time. He was trying. “Family. And you belong here.”

“Do you want to leave Issac unprotected? Out there? He’s your family. He’s hurt. Are you going to abandon him?”

“This is madness.”

“I told you that I’d defend them. From anyone and anything. I meant that.” Not a hero’s oath, but the one that came from xyr heart.

“What about Jamie?” 

“I don’t know yet. But you’ll protect her, won’t you?”

Papa sank down on the futon, hands over his eyes. “There is nothing about this that I don’t hate.”

“But you will.”

He scowled at the ceiling from behind his hand. “Yes, of course I will.”

Silence swallowed them up, and Yael noticed the rain for the first time. Rain was supposed to cleanse. Yael didn’t feel cleansed, but at least some things between them were out. The inside of xyr head felt a little cleaner for it. 

Eventually Yael commented, “I think that was the quietest fight we’ve ever had.”

“I think I lost.”                          

* * *

“Ms. Tillman-Voss? Your brother would like to see you.” The nurse looked at Jamie and Opal, and all the empty chairs in the private waiting room. “Is your mother not here?”

“She went for coffee,” Jamie answered automatically. That had been three hours ago, but it still stood. Jamie had no doubt that wherever Mom was, she’d have a cup of coffee with her. Jamie explaining the morning to Mom hadn’t gone well. Jamie stood, then hesitated, looking back at Opal. “Can you--?”

“I’ll wait here,” Opal assured. It helped. Opal had been sitting with Jamie this whole time, even though Jamie was too full of waiting to be any kind of good company. She’d spent most of the last hour giving Jamie entertaining summaries of Gothic novels with unflattering appraisals of characters’ decision-making abilities. She’d kept it up, even though Jamie didn’t have it in her to laugh at anything right now. They made her almost smile and kept her partially occupied, and that was more than Jamie could have asked for. 

Jamie glanced back over her shoulder as she followed the nurse out, getting one more sympathetic smile and encouraging wave from Opal before following the nurse down the same hall her dad had disappeared down three hours ago. She hadn’t seen or heard from him, since. She told herself it was because a broken bone could take a while to treat.

Issac was sitting up, awake and lucid, when Jamie slipped quietly into the room. The nurse shut the door behind her, leaving the two of them alone. His lips weren’t blue. His eyes were focused, if bloodshot. He had on two medical bracelets and a white paper card in each hand. One large, one small. The sensors were still on his forehead. He watched her with trepidation, licking his lips. 

Jamie almost tripped over her shoes crossing the space between them. She wrapped both arms around him and pulled him close enough that she could tell that he was warm, that he wasn’t shaking. She tried to make out a heartbeat, but her own heart was pounding too hard. He put one hand on her back, hesitantly. The hand didn’t shake or jerk. It was steady. 

She took a deep breath, pulling away, and grabbed his pillow from behind him. She cataloged all the sensors on his head, his sternum, and his wrist bracelet. She aimed for his forearm and stomach, and hit him with the paper-wrapped pillow almost as hard as she could. “Never! Again!”

Issac raised his arms, trying to fend off the unexpected attack, but neglecting to grab the pillow. She gripped it, dragging it off the side of the bed, glaring at him with stinging eyes. Even if he didn’t know what she’d said, he should be able to work out why she was mad. 

He was still for a second, hands still raised defensively, not sure whether she’d strike another fluffy vinyl blow. That was fair; she wasn’t sure she wasn’t going to hit him again. She was gratified to see him frantically searching for an appropriate response. 

Tentatively, he reached out a hand, and that was enough invitation. She grabbed him in another tight hug, dropping the pillow back on the bed so she could grab him with both hands and be sure she could feel him breathing. “You jerk. I threw up four times because of you. If you ever try that again, next time I’m just going to let you--” She couldn’t finish the sentence. Couldn’t even finish the thought. Didn’t want the twitching, blue-lipped vision it conjured up. She realized belatedly there was no way he could hold a tablet, because he was actually hugging her back this time. She was just as happy he hadn’t heard her threat. She sniffed hard, trying not to get snot on his paper pajamas, and squeezed him again. 

He answered anyway. “I promise not to ask you to do something like that again. Sorry.”

She muttered with her head on his shoulder. “You better not. Practically gave me a heart attack.”

“Liar. Your cardio system is like the only thing on you that halfway works right.”

Jamie startled, letting go. “You heard me!” Oh thank G-d, it was over. Whatever came next, it would all have to work out. Issac's gambit had paid off. Mom and Dad would have to forgive them for it eventually, now. She was almost lightheaded with relief. 

“No. I’m wearing the contacts.” 

Shit. She could see it cost him to even say it. But seeing him turn red in the face was good. Red wasn’t blue.

“Oh. Well. I’m glad you can use those now. I can’t even tell the difference!” He couldn’t hear her tone, but she was pretty sure it was still unconvincing. Not because it wasn’t true, but because of everything she knew would come with it. She gripped the paper of his hospital gown. “So…are you OK?”

He didn’t look at her this time, watching his own hand tap the sheets. “Well, I’m not dead. There doesn’t seem to be any more brain damage. Still can’t hear. So, mostly the same, I guess. My back hurts,” he added offhandedly. Jamie’s gut flipped, remembering the unnatural looking way it had bowed off the bed. “But I guess…mostly the same.” 

He turned his hand over. There was a handwritten notecard in it, in an unfamiliar handwriting. You are in the hospital due to a seizure. Some confusion and soreness-- He closed his hand around the card, then looked at the other card, which seemed to be a business card. He didn’t turn that around, so she couldn’t read it. 

“So uhm. I guess my experiment got someone’s attention at the APB--”

Her hand clenched around the paper of his shirt again. She looked down at his wrist. He wasn’t cuffed to the hospital bed or anything. Looked around the room. No sign of any security measures beyond the default. 

Issac was OK, but would he stay OK? Would they ship him off to some hellish prison in Detroit? Issac couldn’t make it in a place like that-- hearing or not. 

Jamie couldn’t protect him from that. From anything. “We’re at the APB,” she interrupted. He paused, then looked around the room, realizing it was true. “MARTIN called them,” Jamie added furiously. Stupid super-intelligent security system didn’t understand the risk it was putting Issac through.

“Oh. MARTIN.” He was quiet so long she had to squish the urge to bend over and check his eyes, to make sure they weren’t rolled back. Then he took an expansive breath. “Anyway, this guy who works with the APB is interested in my research. He offered me a job.” His eyes skittered up to meet hers. “And I took it.”

They stared at each other. He had the good sense to look a little hangdog. Finally, Jamie spoke, trying to sound as even-keel as possible. “I don’t want this to sound mean, but I think they should scan your brain for injuries again.”

Issac looked supremely unimpressed, but pointed at a monitor with a display that meant nothing to her. “Read all you want. I have.” He held up his phone. “I even got some notes from them.” He shifted, sitting straighter and warming to his subject. “Look, this is what I need. Just…some space to figure things out. Some backup so I can work without…” He gestured at the machinery behind him without actually looking at any of it. Jamie's eyes skimmed along them. There were a lot of them. A lot of things the doctors were worried about.

Legal protection. That was worth a lot. Was it more than their family could provide? 

“But you live with Mom,” Jamie attempted to reason. “She owns everything in your lab.”

He frowned. “Well, obviously I’m going to have to move out. That’s fine. I’m old enough.”

Jamie thought of Mom’s torn up cuticles and the cracks in the dark glaze on her nails. This morning, the cracks had been gone, and the plum glaze traded out for a less obvious nude color. Tidied up, but with the expectation of future chips. 

“I was going to move out soon, anyway. What’s a few months’ difference?”  

“Mom’s going to see a difference.” 

“Well, then that’s her problem,” he answered with attempted glibness. Jamie’s heart sank. “Yael wants you to come. With us. Xe’s moving out with me. As a bodyguard kind of thing. I don’t mind. If you want to.”

She made up her mind in an instant. She’d failed Issac once already today. She couldn’t quit now. She nodded, just once, and he seemed both pleased and surprised. 

She’d figure this out one way or another.

[moon-kid39]

This One Stays

Officially starting my career as a writer, just a little thing I wrote for Halloween (yes I realize how late this is). Hope you enjoy👍🏾

Synopsis: Brooke recalls the best day of her life, which turns out to have been the worst, and the last

Word count: 1.8k

Warnings: blood, vampires, manipulation, false memories, death, stalking(let me know if there’s anything else)

“Hey, Brooke! Come on, it’s time to rehearse my entrance! I don’t know about you, but I will not be falling flat on my face in these heels tomorrow.”

“I’ll be up in a sec Isa!” I crouched down to get a picture of a butterfly outside the window. I had seen this same butterfly for a couple of days now. A beautiful opal on its wings, outlined by white strokes, as if an artist had painted it. It almost looked unnatural.

“That’s weird”, I muttered to myself. The picture came out perfectly, almost. There was some kind of distortion. Not like an average blurry picture, everything else was clear. What’s weird is that this has been going on for a couple of days. This is a brand new camera, the newest model, and I just cleaned it before I saw the butterfly. I wonder-

“Brooke! Come on, now!” Isabel always was impatient. “Where were you? It’s been five minutes. I know you aren’t the most athletic person, but come on, it’s one flight of stairs.”

“That’s not why I took forever”, I said, rolling my eyes. “I was taking a picture of this butterfly outside the window, but part of the photo came out blurry. It doesn’t make any sense, Isa.”

“Well, maybe you just had a shaky hand when you took it. It is pretty cold downstairs during this time. Or maybe there was a smudge on the camera, after all, when was the last time you cleaned it?”

“You know it hasn’t been out of the case today until I got here.”

“Yeah, ten whole minutes ago. A lot can happen in that time.”

At the time I just laughed at her. Ten minutes is the time it takes to get from her house to mine. Ten minutes is the time it takes me to walk around the neighborhood. Ten minutes was all it took for everything to fall apart…

The day after the butterfly photo was Isabel’s birthday, and it was time for her party. We were up in her room waiting for her cue to enter. She had a sparkly red dress, blood red. I can remember the sparkles and frills vividly. Off the shoulders and just above the knees, showing off her almond skin. I was wearing a black dress, simple really. Off the shoulders like Isa’s, but without sparkles, longer, and form-fitting.

“Alright Isa, I’m gonna head down so I can get some pictures of the party before you come down.”

“Alright, can you set aside a cup and lid for me? I don’t want to spill any of the juice on my dress and ruin it.” Ruin her dress? Her dress was expensive, so I can understand not wanting to spill anything on it, but staining it? Why would she be worried about that?

“Brooke, you there?”

“Yeah, just zoned out a little. I’ll see you down there in a couple of minutes.” Going down the stairs, the music got louder and louder, I’m surprised there hasn’t been a noise complaint yet. There were tons of people dancing, eating, drinking, and just having fun. Some people were in costume, others were dressed nicely. Thankfully everyone followed the dress code, or else Isa would-

“Woah, oh my gosh I’m so sorry.” I had bumped into a blur of blue. A tall, beautiful blur of blue. He was perfect, pale like a ghost with long, silky black hair. Shoulder length, pulled into a ponytail with some strands framing his face. His face, so pretty, ethereal. It was like a glow was emitting off of him-

“Miss? You’re staring.” Crap.

“No, I’m not staring. Just, admiring your costume”, I said matter of factly. Of course I was staring, who wouldn’t? If you saw what I saw, you’d be staring too.

“Admiring my costume, meaning the couple of stitches I painted on my face, and with my face being attractive, I can say you were definitely admiring. Just not my costume.”

I puffed my cheeks in annoyance. “Okay, you caught me. I was mesmerized by thou’s striking beauty.”

“Why thank you, my fair maiden. Though I fear I have nothing on the magnificent beauty that goes by the name…” He quirked an eyebrow, waiting for a response.

“Brooklyn, but everyone calls me Brooke.” He takes my hand in his and bends down to kiss it.

“I’m Felix, but my friends call me Felix.” Charismatic and a sense of humor, this man must’ve stepped right out of a book, because there’s no way this is happening right now. My heart is racing and my skin is heating up, is this what blushing feels like? I’ve never been more thankful for my dark skin.

We just hit it off. We danced, we talked, we laughed. It was like we had known each other our whole lives. He even helped me take some pictures of the party, and he was great at it. Crisp photos of Isabel’s entrance, cute shots of the decor, and candid shots of unsuspecting partygoers. Before we knew it, the party was over and it was time to clean up.

“You know you didn’t have to help clean. I could’ve done it myself.” We had finished everything. It was like no one had been in the house today at all. We grabbed our coats and began to head out.

“It was nothing. I clean all the time. It helps with my peace of mind, keeps me from going insane.” We both laughed at that. “Can I take you home?”

“Yeah, just let me go upstairs to say bye to Isab-”

“No! There’s no need to do that. Some friends of hers told me that they went to check on her earlier and she was out like a light.” I didn’t think much about it, didn’t notice how nervous he suddenly looked, how urgent it seemed that I didn’t check in on Isabel.

“Okay, yeah, sure.”

“I just heard that she does not like being woken up.”

“Well, you would be right. You might’ve just saved my skin there.” We walked towards his car side by side. He smelled good, a nice earthy smell, with a hint of something. Metal, maybe. Interesting, he didn’t smell like that earlier. What’s more, when we get in the car I’m hit by a wave of that same scent. Overall, he was a good driver. He drove with one hand on the wheel and kept a good conversation.

“Hey, do you mind taking a little detour, I wanna show you something.” He said it with a smirk, a pretty one. On a regular day, I would’ve said no. On a regular day, I wouldn’t have even gotten in the car with a man I just met. But something about him was so compelling. I couldn’t resist him. One look in his eyes and I was hooked.

“Yeah, no problem. I’d love to go.” A little while after, we pulled up to a cliff and parked. It was pretty secluded, with a beautiful view of the stars and the city below. I get out of the car and head towards the edge. I can hear him walking up behind me, so I turn towards him and we make eye contact. He smiles, but… there’s something different. Before, he was charming, comforting. Now, it seems like something’s wrong; like it’s forced.

“Felix, is everything okay?” He started getting closer, like a predator looking at his prey. Every step he took towards me I took two back.

“Yeah, everything’s great. But I think I should be asking you that question.” He reached out to me and grabbed my arm. It was harsh, sure to leave a bruise. He pulled me towards him and walked us behind the car. The trunk was open and inside was…

“No..” He started to chuckle behind me. In the trunk was Isabel. My best friend, in her red dress… no, not red, white. Her beautiful white dress stained red. Tears started to fall from my eyes. I backed away in shock, feeling like I was going to puke.

“What’s wrong? You should be proud of her, she was a fighter. She fought too much if you ask me. It truly is a shame though. Such a pretty thing going to waste. She wasn’t strong enough to withstand losing all the blood though.” Drain her? Why in the world would he need to drain her?

“You see, I’m a vampire, Brooke. I just came here a few days ago, and I’ve been watching you for some time. All your routines, all your friends, family, everything.” He was starting to circle around me, stopping behind me and bending down to sniff my neck. I could feel his teeth poking at my neck. “Of course, I had to get Isabel out the way. You two were inseparable. Now, I can just sit back and enjoy the main course… You.”

I didn’t realize what was happening until it did. He bit into my neck harshly and I could feel the life being drained out of me. Just as I was about to pass out, he let me go. We were both panting heavily, and I started to crawl away.

“Ah ah ah”, he grabbed my ankle and pulled me back towards him. “Just where do you think you’re going? I can’t have you blabbing to the whole town now can I?” He lifts me up and puts me in the back seat of the car. I can’t even move anymore, I’m still bleeding. “Stay here, and I’ll go deal with your friend.” I know he means he’s going to get rid of Isabel. I can hear what sounds like digging and a body falling. After a couple of minutes, he comes back covered in blood.

“You know, you’re going to die soon. I can hear your heart getting slower, your breath getting fainter. I’m sure you can feel it.” He was right, I could feel it. I always thought death would be a scary thing, and it was. But, after the fear, came peace. Of course I felt weak and sad that I didn’t get to do a lot of things that I wanted, but I wasn’t in pain. In fact, I was almost happy with how gentle he was when he was collecting the remainder of my blood, like a warm blanket, the comfort of someone who loves and cares about you. He pulled me out of my thoughts by caressing my cheek.

“So beautiful, even in death. I’ll make sure to visit you everyday”, he said gently. I started to groan in protest, but he stopped me. “Shh, shh. It’s okay. Close your eyes and let the darkness take you.” And so I did.

[echantedtoon]

Love Doesn't Do Encores Ch14 Battle Gym Leader Bea

You two had found yourselves out of Hammerlocke by sundown that day. But not before you went back into the town and stopped by that cafe you both had passed earlier, and each gotten a free piece of cake and small cup of tea from those coupon things that Applin Boy had given to Gloria as thanks for helping him. Cake and tea weren't exactly what you would call dinner but you weren't going to complain about free food. Your drizzilie sure tried sneaking it from you but settled for the small bag of fruit you tossed at it after you told him no. 

"So," you asked Gloria after taking another sip of the tea you received, "You mentioned challenging Bea next right?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Remember how I told you there was four gyms that gave the same badge?" You nodded. "The Fighting Type and Ghost Type gyms give the same badge. While the Ice and Rock gyms give a different badge from the Ghost and Fighting gyms, they give the same one as well. So either someone can just chose the Fighting or Ghost type gyms then move on and chose either the Ice or Rock type gyms. But I plan on stopping by both. The closest one just happens to be the Fighting Type Gym run by the Gym leader Bea. Not only is she the top fighting type pokemon trainer, but she's been the winner of the Galarian Martial Arts Championship seven years running undefeated. They say she can go bare fists with her machomp and win."

"Wow. She sounds really strong."

"She is. Which is why I think that's why Hop's going there too." She frowned stabbing at a piece of her free cake. "He said he wanted to become stronger. Challenging another strong gym leader right after defeating Kabu but loosing to Bede sounds like he's trying to conquer another hard challenge to prove he's strong. ...I'm worried about him."

"I know, but don't worry," you assured with a smile. You remembered enough about the game to know Hop would definitely bounce back, and after hearing him speak the other day, you knew he'd be fine. "He's a strong and has enough determination in him to move a mountain if he felt like it."

...She smiled at you. "Thanks Y/n.  I knew I made a good choice in my traveling buddy."

You paused a moment...before blinking. "That reminds me. Why did you want me to come along with you back in Postwick? I mean it's not that I mind, but we were practically strangers then."

She shrugged. "I really don't know. I know it's gonna sound weird, but there's a really good atmosphere around ya. Like...You just give off good vibes, and my gut feelings are usually spot on anyways. An' I wasn't wrong!" She smiled. "You've been a great friend ta us!"

You smiled. Well that was strange. It was almost like what Sonia said about your 'good aura', but you weren't going to complain about the nice compliments. 

"You're one of the gym challengers endorsed by Leon, aren't you?" Both of you looked up and blinked at the sight of an older woman, who looked older than Kabu, dressed in a blue and pink outfit with accessories, an umbrella in one hand, was pretty tall for someone you'd expect, and aquamarine eyes looking at Gloria curiously. Stunned that you two hadn't noticed noticed her walk up to you before now, both you two looked at each other before Gloria looked back to the old woman and nodded. She hummed for a moment before suddenly holding out something to her you recognized right away. "My name's Opal. If you want to know more, have a look at my league card." Gloria's brown eyes stared at the card for a moment before taking it from the lady. "I'll keep an eye on you, Child. I want to see what you can do when you go all out."

Both of you watched silently as she silently just...turned around and walked right out of the cafe. Like nothing had just happened. Leaving the two of you sitting there looking after her blankly before looking at one another with blank faces wondering if that actually happened.

Eventually you blinked as Gloria looked at the card handed to her. "Who was that?"

"According to this..she's Ms. Opal." She looked up to you holding up the card in her hand, "And the Fairy Type Gym Leader from Bellonlea!"

"What?" You held out your hand as she offered it to you. "Lemme see that." And true to Gloria's word, it was an official League Card with the picture of the very same elderly woman you just spoken too on it. "Huh." You handed it back to her. "I wonder what she was doing all the way here in Hammerlocke then?"

She shrugged before pocketing the card. "The same thing as Lee? Like maybe she's seein' the Chairman too? Or maybe traveling since I don't think anyone would challenge her yet. March is almost over so it's still pretty early in the year for anyone to gather many badges."

Wow. Almost three months had passed already? You must've lost track of time from traveling so much. You weren't too sure but shrugged. "Who knows? C'mon. Let's finish eating and hit the road before it gets too dark outside."

After the meal the two of you headed back out on Route Six as the sun nearly set in the sky making everything lightly darker but had enough light to still see. The lights of Hammerlocke shining out as the two of you left the dragon town. You were a bit nervous about running into Raihan or that Mr. Rose again, but you ran into neither as you left the town. Thank goodness. You and her then fell into the familiar routine of walking, camping, and more shaking of berry trees as you passed by them by chance. Only this time Gloria seemed to pick back up her hobby of taking pictures for her dex challenge again. The photos Victor had given her had filled up a good sizable amount of the book already but there was still more photos needed for it as well as for that curry dex challenge book she needed. It was a bit random but you were glad she found something to keep herself occupied on the way there, and photography was a pretty neat hobby. Although she didn't seem to be as into it as Victor was. If she wasn't doing that, she battled a pokemon here n' there as you either watched or gathered food or some other needed thing to be done and like before you traveled past a few small towns, houses, or other travelers heading in the opposite direction. No signs of the boys, but you were glad not having any more run ins with those Team Yell grunts as days passed as you two slowly made your way towards Stow-on-Side.

"So how long until we reach Stow-on-Side?," you asked one day while walking.

Gloria hummed for a moment before whipping out her phone and flipping through the screen once it turned on. Lately the region around you had started to get rockier with more and more hills and cliffs jutting out of the earth until it slowly consumed both side of the path the two of you walked. "According to Rotom we should be there sometime tomorrow if we keep on goin' down this pathway." That was great news! "Also accordin' ta this, there's another historical wonder protected by the Galarian Conservation Society! ...Hmm. I wonder if she'll be down here too??"

You rose a brow at her. "Her who?"

She looked at you. "When I was chattin' with Sonia at the vault I showed 'er some old pokemon fossils I picked up. Useless really. Ye find 'em sometimes and see 'em in your science classes n' museums and the like. I was gonna give 'em to Hop as a gift since he's into that kinda stuff but she told me an old scientist friend of hers was in Stow-on-Side trying out this new fossil restoration or somethin' like that. But she couldn't find any fossils to try 'em out on."

......You blinked. "Since when did you get fossils??"

"I found two by accident back when we 'ere in the Wild Area. Y'know. When I fought that wild diglett in the cave." You groaned remembering that experience. "And then some bloke traded me two he didn't want at the pokemon center for the applin I was gonna put back when the red-headed bloke didn't want it. I completely forgotten I even had them til I remembered just now."

"That reminds me. Whatever did you do with those other pokemon you were given? Especially that baby toxel. It looked pretty young."

"Ah! I sent it to Mum to take care of! She mentioned being lonely without us there so I thought she'd like raisin' the wee tyke!"

You rose a brow. "Can she handle a toxel??"

"She sent me pictures of the lil thing sleepin' with Munchlax so I think they're doing just fine!"

"If you say so."

The both of you traveled until the sun went down and you set up camp under a shady ledge before quickly packing up the next day at day light and going to travel again. Until coming to a bunch of bright stony ledges and cliffs in a dead end where the path ended just a few yards in front of the cliffside. .......Which left the both of you confused looking around.

".....Does this mean we're at Stow-on-Side?," you asked pressing you hand against one of the rocky hills before yanking and waving it back from the heat of them sitting in the sun all day. Speaking of which it was hot as you traveled. Must be entering summer territory. Your f/c eyes scanned up and down the cliffs surrounding you all and a hand pressed above your brows to block the sun. "Or did we make a wrong turn somewhere??"

"Can't be! We followed nothin' but Route Six all the way here!" Gloria had already brought out her phone giving it a little shake. "Accordin' to this Stow-on-Side's just up ahead!"

"So either your phone's broken or we have to suddenly learn how to rock climb." Your eyes scanned the ledges more. They looked a little too dangerous to just be climbing without any professional gear or unless you were a rock climbing expert. To which you had neither...."What about that corvisquire you have?"

"It's not big enough to fly either of us up these mountains!...*sigh* We might have ta just call a flying taxi at this rate."

Yeah. That might be the best option either of you two had at this point. ....Your Drizzilie, which had taken to fully putting itself into your pack with just his head peeking out from under the lid to avoid the sun, suddenly gave a look towards something shiny. Before it's eyes widened and it gave a loud chirp poking it's head out fully to the both of you. You looked over your shoulder as it continued to make noises at you. "Whoa! Hey. What is it boy?" It's arm popped out and he pointed his hand towards the other side of the dead end you were at. You both looked over and you blinked at something against the cliffside shining in the sunlight. "Hey! What's that over there?" You pointed and began walking towards it...Gloria blinked, before putting her phone away and quickly following after you. You approuched the shining thing and soon discovered it to be a- "It's a ladder!" Walking forward more it was indeed a metal ladder. Secured and bolted to the cliffside and going up until it ended at the very top of it. "....What's a ladder doing here?"

"That must be how people get ta Stow-on-Side from 'ere," Gloria reasoned. "Ya think they'd actually make this more easier to get too."

"You'd think so. Good Boy!" Drizzilie gave a huff before returning to it's spot inside your bag. Ok be tsundere. Pausing to look at it for a moment you grabbed it before immediately letting go from how hot it was. "...You really think this is the way?"

"There's no other way around here other than a taxi, and what do we have to lose? The worse case scenario is that we'll hit another dead end or just climb to the top and hail a cab like we were thinkin' anyways."

She had a point. And if you did end up just going to the top of the cliffs here you could get a better look of your surroundings. So reluctantly you nodded. "Alright. But let me go first to make sure it's safe."  Slowly and with a sigh you grabbed the metal ladder wincing in pain when the hot metal stung your hands lightly, and began to climb up. It wasn't too hard or high of a climb, and you were fast to release the ladder as hard as you can also considering the weight on your shoulders, it made it a bit more difficult. Once you reached the top however and climbed up all the way, you noticed there was nothing but more ledges, dead grass, and...another ladder leading somewhere ahead of you. Standing up, once you deduced it was safe, you carefully looked over the edge to Gloria looking up at you and waved. "It's safe! And I found another ladder!"

Gloria didn't even hesitate after that. In her excitement you weren't sure if she just didn't notice the pain or bared it to climb up but you were there to offer a hand and pull her up with you once she was there. And you two wasted no more time and got climbing. Not baring to stand in this heat anymore. The second ladder you climbed up lead to the top of one of the larger clifftops, a small pond of some sort, and another much longer ladder leading you further and higher into the mountain sides and you two went. Your muscles were sore and tired from the extra weight of your Drizzilie who peeked out and down from your bag every so often, and your hands burnt under the ladders' metal. You were sure it wasn't enough to be badly hurt for a long time, but it sure stung, and you were paranoid that at any moment you would fall. But luckily you didn't and by some miracle forced yourself NOT to look down before making it to the third ledge and ..another ladder. Gloria right on your heels. Rinse and repeat. Climb, pray to whoever heard you that you wouldn't fall, get to the top, and then do it again. The both of you must've been on your seventh or eighth ladder and ledge at this point and you were resting on your knees exposed to the hot sun tired, breathing heavy, and shaking your sore hands. Gloria doing the same with her hands before reaching up to wipe her brow and look around ...Before spotting and pointing to yet another ladder.

"Hey look! It leads up to a tunnel of some kind!"

You looked to the giant black whole that the ladder lead into and groaned. "Oh PLEASE tell me this isn't going to be another mine."

"Only one way to find out!" She happily bounded towards the ladder, and with another groan, you slowly forced yourself to stand and followed after. Where does she get so much energy? And in this heat? She was already half way up the ladder by the time you got there and began slowly climbing, grip so hard your knuckles turned white to keep yourself from falling. Gloria making her way right into the tunnel and disappearing from view as you got closer to the top yourself. "Y/N!!" She suddenly shouted echoed by the tunnel. "Ya gotta see this!!"

"I'M COMING!!," you strangled out in a shout still making your way up.

Gloria was waiting for you when you finally got to the top, letting her grab your arm to pull you with a grunt into the shady tunnel with her. With a sigh as your sore hands touched the cooled floor of the cavern, you twisted your legs around, and just sat there breathing and wiping at your forehead from the long trip you two had suffered. Gloria was kind enough to let you catch your breath, considering it must've been harder for you with your Drizzilie being no help, for around five maybe ten minutes before you turned your head..and blinked at the light coming from the other side of the short tunnel. Gloria went ahead and started walking towards it...and you again forced yourself up and walked after her. But slower this time considering how tired and sore you were. She stopped by the cavern opening and once you caught up, your eyes widened.

"Holy smokes!"

Carved into the cliffside was the BIGGEST statues you had ever seen! The stone digletts stared out blankly onto the horizon and were blocked off by a chained fence embedded into the stone ground below it. Was this the historical landmark Gloria spoke of yesterday? She started walking forward and after a moment you followed staring up at the massive stone beasts before you. A flash of light going off as she snapped a picture of it while passing....Before she turned and with a gasp that had you snapping forward pointed excitedly. 

"Y/n! Look! We found it!" What was unmistakeningly a stadium shone brightly in the sunlight as you looked and blinked, and before it was a couple small buildings, one including that classic pink pokemon center. You two wasted no time in jogging towards it past the statues and up a small flight of stairs carved into the stone floor, past under a wooden gate of some kind and over to the buildings ahead. Where you saw people. PEOPLE!! Walking around doing their everyday lives as usual! You two had successfully found Stow-on-Side! The tall two story buildings were all carved from stone as well with a couple small tables in the pathway you two walked that had a few people yelling at passerbys to come and bye from them as they sat under umbrellas from the hot sun. As you walked past everyone Gloria took out her phone again and after a few taps on it nodded in glee. "This is Stow-on-Side alright! Apparently the diglett statues we saw are part of some famous ruins including an ancient mural up the path by the stadium! We should go check those out once I'm done with the battle here!"

"Once we rest first!" You sighed and again reached up to rub your temple. "I'm beat from all that walking and climbing! And it doesn't look like this place has any inn or public place besides the center we can rest up in." 

You both turned right still walking along the path towards the stadium. 

"Yeah? Well I can check on my regional map of Stown-on-Side. It should tell u-" She stopped. Freezing like someone paused her on tv. Her face suddenly drawing a blank. Curiously, you stopped too and turned around to give a raised brow at her suddenly blank expression. Before you turned to look where she was looking. A whine coming from your backpack as your Drizzlie poked it's full head out. And you under stood why she stopped. IT WAS THE BOYS!! Both were talking to each other walking down from the stairs leading to the big stadium, until they happened to look down towards the both of you and stopped. The four of you staring at one another in surprised silence...Before Gloria straight up BOLTED towards them both! "HOP!!"

"Glori-AH!!" The poor boy didn't even get a chance to finish talking before he was glomped by the brunette nearly knocking the both of them over in the process. 

"I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!! YA PURPLE HAIRED LOONEY PONYTA!!," she shouted with a smile. "YA HAD ME SO WORRIED!! DON'T DO THAT!!"

"N-Nice to see you too!," he forced out strangled by the crushing hug, "M-Miss Y/N help!"

You walked on over but didn't need to pry them apart thankfully as she let go and let Hop breathed and clutch at his chest by the time you got there. Victor looking annoyed opening his arms. "And what am I? An invisible Sobble?" Gloria giggled before giving her brother the expected hug he wanted.

"We thought we'd miss you guys here by how long it took! Were you here that long?"

"Sadly yes," Hop answered rubbing at where Gloria nearly crushed him to dust. "Turns out there was a few people here itchin' to battle Bea before going on to harder gym leaders like Kabu, so we had to camp out for a bit for an opening."

Gloria paused...slowly retracting her hug from her brother and turning to him, face concerned. "Does...D-Does that mean you didn't win?"

...He smiled. "Took me two tries! But I managed to get my fighting badge!"

"You did!! Hop that's amazing! I told you, you could do it!"

He chuckled....before his face turned back to a neutral one. "But...Glory." His hands came to stuff themselves into his pockets. "I'm still not too sure what I should do about all that stuff I told you before. About me being weak and dragging down Lee's good name and all, yeah? "..He smiled again. "But the only thing I can do is get stronger right?"

With a sigh Gloria gave her own determined smile, reached over, and made him blink as she flicked his nose. "That's what we've always told you, Hop. I never lost doubt in ya."

He paused for a moment gold eyes blinking and looking cross eyed at his nose, before his face went pink again and he chuckled. "Y-yeah! A-Actually I was hoping for a b-battle with ya the next time I saw you." Your Drizzilie whined more. "Vi-Vic's been battling me and helping me build up my team and come up with new s-strageties on how to battle upcoming gym leaders. So I'm gonna try out all kinds of different things against you and see what works!..If you wanna battle that is?"

"Do you really need to ask? You're on!"

"Then let's do this! I bet an all out battle with my true rival will help me get my head on straight-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH-"

A screech that pierced your eardrums interrupting Hop from saying anything else. Immediately all your hands shot up to your ears and you all made some kind of cringed face or closed their eyes from the scream that came from directly behind you. You forced yourself to turn around at your drizzilie's head poking out from your bag. Mouth open wide and yelling at the top of his lungs before he abruptly stopped upon noticing you had looked at it in utter shock.....How could such a small thing make such a noise!! Slowly, the others uncovered their ears as well giving the three back and forth looks, before also looking in the direction of your bored looking drizzilie.

..........Victor blinked and pointed at your backpack. "What the absolute Arceous was THAT!?"

"I......have absolutely no idea." You eventually managed to get yourself to talk. "I've never heard him make a noise like that before."

"Could there be something wrong with him?," Hop asked rubbing one of his ears, "It is pretty hot and he's a water type. Maybe he's gotten dehydrated from lack of water or something?"

You jumped. YOU HADN'T EVEN CONSIDERED THAT WHILE TRAVELING!? WHAT THE HECK!! YOU WERE AN AWFUL TRAINER!! "I...." You swiftly turned nearly nailing Gloria in the side with your back pack in a panic. "I-I gotta get him back over to the center just in case! You two go ahead and have your battle!"

"I'll come too!" Victor stepped forward. "I meant to stop by anyways to grab some potions from the center."

If you heard him you didn't pay him much mind as you practically stumble-ran your panicked self back down what few steps you had climbed up towards the stadium and RAN towards the center with Victor right behind you. You nearly tripped and slammed in your haste turning the corner and RUNNING past the vendors calling out towards that bright pink building. The people inside jumping and looking on in surprise when you practically ripped the doors off their hinges bursting inside and without missing a beat flew to the wide eyed nurse joy standing behind the counter, swiftly turning your back where your drizzilie still bored looking despite everything that was happening right now, and in panic DEMANDED she'd take a look at him NOW!! Surprisingly no one moved, too shocked to really know how to react. It took Victor coming in and explaining calmly to the startled Nurse Joy what the drizzilie did and politely asking her to look him over did she finally react accordingly. She took her sweet time in the next ten minutes pulling your water pokemon from it's hiding place, making it sit on the counter as you watched a nervous wreck with Victor assuring you he was ok, and slowly and carefully examining him as a doctor would a patient during a physical....All to just smile at you and tell you essentially......Your Drizzilie...Was throwing a tantrum akin to that of a moody angsty teenager during puberty. ....You blinked and had to be explained to again as, even though Drizzilie was a little dehydrated from the hot weather, he was actually throwing a tantrum because he was hungry. So you, worried you might have let something bad happen to your pokemon without knowing, had panicked over nothing and rushed him over here to be told he was acting like a toddler not getting their way because he was hungry......WHAT!?

"He's perfectly healthy, you probably just haven't fed him today yet and he was just expressing that to you in what way he thought you'd understand. Although in this heat he is naturally a little dehydrated, and you yourself look it too and exhausted. My advice to the both of you is to rest here for an hour or two out of the weather and have you both drink some water. I'll lend you some and some pokemon food so it doesn't happen again. After all we don't want anyone dropping from the heat."

You sighed. Relieved Drizzilie wasn't really hurt, but annoyed he had scared you for no reason. You shot a scowl at the pokemon standing next to you and as soon as it made eye contact with you looked embarrassed to the floor. Nurse Joy was nice enough to give you some bottled up water and a small bowl of pokemon food for the two of you and you thanked her before Victor was nice enough to help you carry them over to the table and chairs in the corner. You gladly plopped yourself down in one chair exhausted, sighing as at last your muscles got a chance to rest among the cool ac of the center. Victor sat across from you as your drizzilie plopped itself on the floor by your feet with it's newfound food and water to make it happy. 

".....Hey. Y/n?" You hummed from where you had laid your head against the table. "Are you ok?"

".......Yeah."

".......Would you like some water?"

".....Yeah."

He was nice enough to hand you a bottle of water which you chugged down before resuming your position of laying against the table silently resting. Even when the other two finally caught up to you and entered the center.

"My strategy goes right to the pot when I've got all these bad thoughts running through my head," Hop's voice came as you heard the door open just didn't look up.

"Yeah. But I also barely won. I blame the heat. 'Sides you're gettin' better!," Came Gloria's voice right after him.

"Hrmmm. I tried switching my team members in and out to max out their potential in every match up but we just couldn't get it together somehow. Maybe that's why I'm still so weak?"

"Call yourself weak again n' I'll drag ya ta Lee myself kickin' n' screamin' and have him talk ye out o' that crazy mindset!"

"Ok! Ok! I won't! No need to go all charmander on me, Mate. .......Oh! Y/n! Hey!"

"......Hi," you mumbled to Hop.

"So how'd it go? Is everything ok?"

"Oh yeah. Turns out he was just throwing a big whiney fit cuz he was hungry like a big baby, but he should be fine now. How was your battle?"

"OH! That's good to know he's not hurt or anything. It was fine thanks. I got to see how my tactics work on the battlefield and what to improve on. In fact I think we're ready to move on. Are you ready to go, Victor?"

"What?! You mean you're both leavin' us again?!" This time you did force yourself to look up. More out of concern than anything as Gloria stared at the two boys, and you noticed Victor had stood up from his seat. "B-But we just caught up with you!"

...Hop sighed. "I know, and I don't really wanna split up either but I still have some things I need to work out myself. And I wanna make more good choices when it comes to battling and strategies for them. .." He smiled. "But Lee really is the greatest trainer, and I don't want people laughing at him all because his little brother is rubbish. It's not enough. I've got to try harder and harder and hard 'til no one's laughing!"

"But....you're not rubbish to me."

Hop paused again before sighing again. "I know...That's why you make such a good friend and rival, Glory."

"............Hey Hop." The three looked at you and you hesitated for a moment. Would this change the game's story events?? Well it wouldn't hurt to give him some words of encouragement like you gave Sonia. "Listen. You got the Fighting Type badge right?" He nodded. "Then you're not rubbish! You said it yourself that there was a few other gym trainers were here because they didn't want to challenge Kabu yet. But you did. And you won against the guy that supposedly makes their numbers drop."

He blinked wide eyed, not really expecting that. "Yeah...But just barely. And not exactly how I would've liked."

"So? That didn't stop you from winning on your FIRST try either way. How many trainers besides you two have those bragging rights?? The dude's so powerful he personally says congrats to anyone who does beat him. A guy doesn't do that unless only a few actually manages to get past him. Sure Bede may have beaten you. Sure he said a bunch of stuff about you and your brother, but he's just doing it because he's trying to get under your skin. He's trying to make you doubt yourself. He's trying to make you lose." You pointed to the wide eyed looking boy. "Hop. You CAN'T just be calling yourself weak. Leon and you are both strong. Just in different ways and Leon sees that in you. Why else would be agree to sponsor you in the first place? Haven't you seen what you've been able to do so far?" You gestured to his back pack. "In there somewhere is four badges ok? Four badges that you won on either your second or even first try. Do you think I could have done that? Absolutely not. You have four badges and you just need eight to compete at the end of the year! It's been three or four months and already you've come farther than most of your rivals in the challenge." You smiled. "That's not rubbish or weakness Hop. That's your true strength plain and simple."

Hop continued to stare at you with those bright gold eyes for a long moment, before the biggest smile you had ever seen on him came through. "...Yeah...YEAH!!" He pointed at you. "You're absolutely right! ...I...Still need some time to think about a few things, but I appreciate the words."

You smiled and nodded. "You'll figure it out eventually. Until then, just keep calm and work hard and you'll get there. Don't worry yourself over what Bede said because Gloria's right about him being wrong."

With a nod, Hop turned back to Gloria who blinked back at him. "I'm off, mate. Off to find the kind of pokemon that I can really draw the strength out of."

She frowned. "We'll meet up with you later tho...Right?"

"Oh you know we will! I still have to beat you sometime. I'll see you around. Ok?"

....Gloria nodded and the two of you watched as they bid farewell and after a moment they were gone. You two looking after where they left....before you looked over at Gloria's sad face. "Hey. Are you alright?"

After a second or two she nodded. "Y-Yeah." She inhaled. "Yeah I'm good. It's just a bit unfair y'know? Gah!" Her hands came up to grip her head. "I wish I could just get my mind off all this!"

You opened your mouth to speak- "That child." And practically yelped, jumping up, as the both of you whirled around face to face with....Opal. The elderly woman staring at where they boys left. "Gym Challengers should battle for the sake of their own pokemon. Why worry about saving the Champion's name? We all know he's unbeatable."......You exchanged a look with Gloria. "Anyway, here's a little something for letting me watch your battle." To your surprise what she handed out (more like put in Gloria's stunned hand-) was another league card. "Now on you go, Child. You're headed to the Stow-on-Side Gym next, no? The Gym Challenge is about having fun."

You both watched silently as she once again appeared out of no where, before ignoring anything she just did, and just...Left! Gloria finally blinked before curiously looking down at the card in her hands. Slowly turning to you as she rose a brow. And looked up to you. "..This is Bea's League Card."

....You blinked. "You mean the gym leader from this gym?" She nodded. "Why on earth would she have that?"

"I'm more confused on why she's here too."

"I'm more impressed she managed to do all that climbing required to get here. Wouldn't be surprised if she did the smart thing and grabbed a taxi....But she's got a point." You pointed to the card in Gloria's hands. "We came here so you would challenge Bea. If you want to get your mind off things, then a battle against her would be the best thing to do just that."

Gloria stared at you a moment. Before looking down to the card in her hands a determined look coming over her as she inhaled and pumped a fist into the air. "You're right again! I came here to challenge the fighting type gym and it's leader! I didn't spend days travelin' and climbing an unholy amount to just quite now! Hop plans on challengin' me 'n the finals! I owe it to him to at least try my best to get there with him! If he can do it then so can I too!" She turned, her mind dead set and seeming to forget you. "Look out Bea! Cuz 'ere I come to get that badge!!"

"You can do it!," you called after her as she suddenly ran out of the center, fist still high in the air. And leaving you sitting there by yourself. After a moment you sighed and leaned your cheek back down against the table. You were too tired and sore to move at the moment and your back could use a rest from days of lugging that troublemaker aro- The chair in front of you creaked as Drizzilie climbed onto it, before pulling itself onto the table and sat there next to your head, careful to not sit on your hair spilt over on the table behind you. After a moment it gave off a questioning sound and tapped your head as if expecting an answer outta you. You blew out a breath. "I get you're used to being carried around by now, but now you're bigger and heavier. And it's starting to strain my back out." It made another squeak noise. "That means you're a big boy now. One day you're gonna be taller than ME!" You were right that Inteleons were genuinely taller than most humans if you remember right. "What then? You can't expect me to piggy back ride you everywhere. It tires me out. So after today, how about you start giving walking a try?" Your answer was a few pats to your head. "I'll take that as a yes. Because there's NO way in heck I'm trying to carry you back down those ladders."

It was...mostly a blur right after that. It was almost embarrassing how fast you were to fall asleep sleeping half way on a table, but you must've been more tuckered out than you thought. You weren't even too sure how much time had even passed. All you can remember was waking up to a flash of light from behind your retinas making your sleeping body flinch....And your hearing picking up giggling from a far distance. And the feeling of something pressed against your neck. It felt like a cool water balloon just laying again your neck, not that you didn't mind being inside from the heat and all that, but you definitely shied away from the something that was shaking and as COLD AS ICE sniffing at your cheek. With a groan from being deep in sleep for so long, your eyes slowly blinked open to blurry yellow-....Yellow?? You blinked back more in your sleepy stupor as your drizzilie laid lazily like a cat in the crook of your shoulder and next as you yawned. Reached a hand up to rub at your eyes. And looked at the yellow dinosuar as it tilted it's head at you curiously. Blank faced you sat there and stared at it. ......It blinked and gave a small noise. And you yelled up immediately shoot up to your feet as the thing gave a scared sqawk like a parrot and dove itself to cower behind Gloria shaking. Drizzilie chirping in annoyance at being disturbed from it's spot of rest on the table next to you! Everyone in the center was either hiding behind the counter or like you pressed against the walls away the scary looking pokemon who looked like a giant yellow dinosaur trapped in a blue upside down acorn. The thing gave a sad noise as you stared at it, body pressed against the wall, your chair knocked over in the process of getting up. Gloria was already cooing at it soothingly and patting it's head, camera slung around her neck and a picture in her other hand........You pointed.

"WHAT THE HECK IS THAT THING!?"

"Calm down, Y/n. Ya gonna scare Arctozolt even more than the wee babe already is," she said calmly patting it's head.

......You blinked. "I SCARED HIM!? Gloria what IS that?!"

"Oh this?" She gestured to the thing glancing around nervously. The only ones not so freaked out about it was apparently her and your Drizzilie who looked more annoyed it's nap was cut short. "Remember that scientist las I mentioned before? Well I found 'er wonderin' around with the weird contraption in hand. You were still sleepin' when I went back out for food so I figured why not give it a try? This is only one of four new wee ones I've got....But I wanted to come to you straight away because...well..." She looked nervously at you with a strained apologetic look. "I think we might have ta make a run for it."

.........You blinked. "....Run from what?''

She hummed making a rolling motion with her now free hand. "That scientist lady may be lookin' 'round for me cuz I ran off with her 'research'." She gestured to the pokemon who pressed it's nose against her arm curiously. 

......"Gloria." You peeled yourself from the wall finally. "PLEASE tell me you didn't steal those pokemon."

She scowled stuffing the picture into her pocket. "I nay stole anything! Especially since it was mine in the first place! They were my fossils she just did some science whatcha-may-callit to 'em. It's not my problem she throws a fit once she sees me flee with 'em. 'Sides. Do ya really want them cooped up in some lab being studied like statues?"

....Well...You couldn't argue with her there. So with a breath in you breathed out calming yourself and held up your hands. "Right." You quickly moved to grab your bag, Drizzilie taking the hint and hurrying to climb off the table to join after you. "Ok then. Let's leave. And put that thing in it's ball-" You paused. ".....hey. What about Bea?"

"I told you I came for the Fighting Badge didn't I?", she asked pulling out a pokeball, in a flash of blue the light the thing was gone. "And I walked out with it as well! No need to worry ye head off!"

You nodded already going to the door. TIME TO LEAVE!! The last thing you wanted was to be arrested by a scientist for tampering with her research or stealing or-...Or whatever Gloria did while you were out cold. Darn it you had to stop being such a deep sleeper! You should've went with her instead of sleeping in! "Which is the fastest way out of Stow-on-Side?" You asked speed walking to the doors with your pokemon at your heels easily keep up with Gloria in tow behind you.

"The fastest way out is the back path leading behind the stadium." She said pointing as you sped walked out into the hot sun. "It's up that long stairway past the mural!"

You nodded. Sounded good to you! And your body was well rested from that powernap so you had the energy now to spare. Footsteps slapping against the stone pavement the three of you sped walked past people who looked like they'd seen a ghost. Oh no. Don't tell me Gloria paraded whatever ancient thing that was on the way there! Looking around, you peeled your eyes out for any sign of an angry scientist with a machine or anything the like. And you did run into a scientist. Just not the one you were fearing. As you two made it up the first flight of steps that lead to the stadium and path to the mural, a dash of yellow side lined you.

BARK!!

WHOA! You yelped and swung your arms out as you stumbled a step, only saving grace was Gloria who thanks to her quick reflexes grabbed onto your pack and pulled you back upright. Catching yourself back onto your feet as the yamper culprit wagged it's lightning bolt tail and panted happily at the both of you before giving off another loud bark. ....Wait a second. A yamper?? What was a yamper doing all the way up here? That could only mean one thing.

Footsteps rapidly approuched. "I'm so sorry!" You both turned. "Is everyone ok?"...Yep. It was Sonia. You both sighed in relief to see her. Thank goodness! It was just her. The red headed scientist quickly approuched scowling at the happily panting pokemon before wagging a finger at it and placed one hand on her hip. "Bad boy! You know better than to run off and scare people like that!" The dog pokemon tilted his head at her but otherwise didn't change it's expression as she turned to you two apologetically. "I'm so sorry about that. He can get easily excited. But it looks like my yamper really likes you, huh?"

"Sonia." A hand on your chest as your headed tilted back with a smile of relief, "Thank goodness it's only you."

"What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to come examine the ancient ruins and mural around Stow-on-Side after flipping through all those history books in the Hammerlocke library." They had a library?? "I thought maybe something was here. Anyway, we've run into each other at a good time." She happily turned and gestured up the way towards the stairs you two were about to run up anyways. "You know the mural here in Stow-on-Side I just mentioned? It's said to tell the story of the hero of Galar as well. Though what's there today is actually a replica of the ancient art that used to be here."...She paused...and you blinked as she turned to Gloria with seemingly a bright new idea in her mind. "Say. You tend to have surprisingly sharp eyesight, so I was wondering what you might think when you see the ruins?"

Gloria blinked..her hand coming to rub her arm embarrassed. "Uh..Actually I haven't see the ruins or m-mural yet."

She blinked taken a back. "Oh really?,'' she asked surprised. Gloria nodded embarrassed and Sonia held up a hand in assurrance. "Hey that's alright. There's a first time for everything. Since you haven't see it yet, how about we go together since I'm heading there anyways?"

"Would we!?," Gloria beamed and you coughed to gain her attention.

"Aren't you forgetting we're supposed to be leaving town for something?," You pressed raising your brows.

"Yeah. We're still going the same place anyways. But don't ya think running would make us look more suspicious?"

You opened your mouth...but closed it. She had another point. It's make you both look suspicious if either of you just ran outta here like a ghost was chasing you, it'd make you look like you were fleeing the scene of the crime. Acting along with Sonia like tourists would probably help you both blend in here a little better with the other people walking up and down the stairs...You nodded. Alright. You'd do that but then you two had better skedaddle while you had the chance too. Sonia looked please at your answer and would've probably expressed it too, if it wasn't for the earth rattling KA-BOOM sound that went off like a bomb somewhere above all of you. The echo of it boomed across rattling the sky, and you and the other two girls, and a whole bunch of other people looked up in alarm at the frightening sound. Which had come in the direction of the very place you were about to head off too. Sonia's yamper made a distressed bark sound and scampered behind the woman's legs. Drizzilie too seemed mildly surprised at the sound. The best you would describe it as a far away grenade or a firework going off, but who'd have either of those around here!? 

"Wha...What in the world was that!? What's going on up there?!," Sonia managed to asked out before another ka-boom noise had you all more startled. "Sounds like it came from the direction of the ruins, too!"

"Maybe some of the old things are collaspin' in on themselves from age?", Gloria suggested.

That made a worried look come over the young scientist and a hand came up to her cheek. "Oh no! That's not good! Those are historical sights we're still studying!"She gave a look to the pokemon still cowering and shaking behind her heels. "Let's have a look! Come along, Yamper!" Her heels left loud footsteps in her wake as she turned and ran towards the stairs the yamper whimpering like a scare dog before quickly running after it's owner. 

You yelped as Gloria suddenly grabbed you too and yanked you into a run after her. "Come on! We gotta see what's goin' on too! That's are way outta here remember!?"

You didn't argue with that. Only willed yourself to ran with Gloria after Sonia who was already ahead of you running up the flights of stairs as fast as her legs could carry her. Without the extra weight on your shoulders anymore it was really easy to keep up with them as you all ran past people who were looking with concerned, confused, or scared faces up towards the top of the stairs. One little boy even gripping the pants leg of who must've been his grandmother sobbing in fright. Sonia was the first to reach the top of the hot weathered stairs and stop facing what must've been the source of the sounds because ANOTHER giant boom noise echoed throughout the sky. Your heart raced in your throat, and your lungs heaved as you picked up the place. The second one to get there was Gloria and then a minute later you right behind her and then your Drizzilie who had resumed to running on all fours just to keep up with the lot of you. And the source of the noises were laid at your all's feet. No it wasn't a grenade. Or fireworks. Or even ruins collasping in on themselves from old age. It was a HUGE elephant looking pokemon who must've been the size of a large soccer mom's mini van who had it's trunk halfway stuck inside the cliffside where this strange but beautiful looking hand painted mural was drawn onto the cliffside. A giant hole was in the mural sadly disrupting it's beauty as many spiderweb cracks surrounded it as the elephant thing forcibly pulled it's trunk out of it scattering rock dust and tiny fragments at it's base. And the white haired boy encouraging it on as he pointed. 

"Yes! Destroy it! Destroy it all!," he shouted to the elephant pokemon in absolutely frustration, "We're going to find those Wishing Stars!" Your eyes widened in absolute SHOCK. Holy heck!! It was BEDE!! What in the world was he doing!? The others must've been in shock too because they didn't react at all staring in horror as the thing raised it's trunk again and with a sickening crunching gravel sound slammed it's trunk back into the whole it created. More cracks slowly forming across the pretty painted picture. "We've got to bring the chairman more wishing stars if we want to please him! Copperajah! If you're truly the chairman's pokemon then you should feel grateful for this chance to help him find wishing stars!" The thing gave out another elephant sound and repulled it's trunk out from the now slightly bigger hole it made.

"BEDE YA BLOODY KOOK!!," you both jumped as Gloria finally found her voice, hands flying to grip her head as she stared horrified at the destruction before her. At the sound of her scottish accent Bede let out a high pitched wail of surprise and whirled around back pressed to the pokemon's side as his wide purple eyes stared. Surprised no doubt to see Gloria there. She threw her hands at him and his mess. "WHAT IN THE WHOLE STUPID HAIRBALL BRAIN SCHEME OF YERS ARE YE DOIN' NOW!?"

Bede continued to stare at her wide eyed for a moment, before instantly righting himself and dusting himself off. "Oh my. You again." He was WAY to calm for this to be normal. "So you think that you can start collecting wishing stars now and get in the chairman's favor? That's the way of things, is it?!"

Gloria blinked and looked at him like he was stupid for accusing her of something so...so...Well stupid too. "Have ye stumbled and hit your head on somethin' or is your head so stuffed full of that fluffy hair ya can't see what you're doin' right there!?" She pointed even more at the destroyed mural. "And what are ye goin on about wishing stars for!? Like I give a ratatta's arse 'bout lil rocks when I already have the one I need!"

"I see. So you have some cunning in you. But I won't have it!," he growled pointing back at her in anger. "I won't allow anyone to stand in my way! I have to win this for the chairman! Do you really think I'd let you keep me from everything I want!!"

"Did ya even hear what I just said!? I don't want ta git in your way! I want ye ta stop damagin' that thing! Are ye deaf!?"

He chuckled without any happiness. "Oh yes. My partner's move is simply splendid, wouldn't you say?" He held up his hand and with a snap the copperajah as he called it gave a giant elephant roar before lifting it's trunk back up and striking back into the same place it had been before hand. "Now leave me be until I can figure out what to say to you officially!" He turned back around. "I have work to do."

"What do we do!?," you turned to Sonia in a panic as she as panickedly looked back to you as you helplessly pointed at the GIANT elephant thing. "I can't take that thing on with Drizzilie! I can barely beat my own sleep time!!"

"I-I-..." She stammered looking around panicked hands lightly shaking not sure what to do herself before whipping to the stairs to everyone there. Sweat on her face. "SOMEONE GET THE GYM LEADER!! SOMEONE GET BEA NOW!!"

Good idea! Bea would absolutely be able to stop this but by the time she got up here that mural would've been nothing but rubble- ?! "GLORIA NO!!!" Your hand snapped to stop the girl but she was too fast as your hand grabbed empty air. 

Gloria had dropped her bag to the ground. Her hands gripping her camera so hard her knuckles were white as she charged forward with speed you hadn't seen her use before. The copperajah pulling it's trunk back again to slam it for the hundredth time back into place in the crater it made in the rock as Bede persisted in barking at it to do so. It's trunk lifted high to the point it was about to slam it back down, when Gloria slid her way between them and the mural, before holding up the camera- "SAY CHEESE!!" And a flash of bright white shot out. The copperajah gave out a pained wail as it turned itself away from the flash quickly shaking it's head. The trunk that was raised to strike the mural more instead coming to it's own body to rub at it's eyes. Bede himself flinching back with a angry cry followed by a growl and gritted teeth as he was stopped.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?," he cried out angrily to her arm wiping at his eyes before blinking wide purple eyes full of confusion at the scowling girl. "I'm doing this for you! I'm doing this for everyone in Galar!!"

"What you're doin' is destroyin' Galar! Not helpin' it ya dummy! Why would I want ya doin' this for me!?" Bede stopped seeming stunned and...it might've been your panicked mind but he looked a little hurt at her words as she glared and held up her camera at him like a weapon. "Now stand down before I get more evidence of yer crimes!"

"...I...But why? How can this be?" ..He numbly pointed at her. "How could someone like you get in my way? I was the one chosen by the chairman! I was the one to defeat the champion!" He cried out at her. "I'm one of the elite! Someone who can shoulder the future of the Galar Region!" He pointed at her. "YOU EVEN AGREED WITH ME!!"

"Since when did I agree with destroyin' ancient sights for bloody sparkly rocks!?"

He didn't get time to anwer. In fact none of you did as a group of footsteps made their way from from behind you and your Drizzilie chirped in surprise before diving in front of your legs to avoid being swarmed by a few people in police suits like you'd often see Officer Jenny wear, a few gym staff people in white suits, and at least three pokemon that you supposed was to help restrain the culprit. You and Sonia looked around yourselves surprised but relieved to see the police coming FINALLY, and Bede suddenly looked even more panicked hands at his sides and lookig around widely as he was affectively surrounded. 

"Make way for the Chairman!" Hey! You recognized that woman's voice. And turned just in time for the Chairman himseld and an angry Oleana part their way through the crowd. But instead of feeling relief anymore, a bad feeling pooled at the end of your stomach. "Challeger Bede!" She yelled and just when you thought Bede couldn't have gotten any paler, his skin turned such a white the bright white of his hair could've been considered darker than his skin tone. "I wondered what you were up to when you asked to borrow Chairman Rose's copperajah.I can't believe you'd try to use the chairman's pokemon to destroy a historical sight!"

Wait wait WAIT! HOLD UP!! They actually let Bede borrow THEIR pokemon without asking what he was doing and surprised about this!? ..A low rumble noise came from the wall as a piece of it slid away between the cracks around it. A few pebbles falling from it and landing right behind Bede's feet. No one noticed but Gloria who was still standing between Bede and the destroyed mural, blinking and looking up at the stone wall. You all were too busy watching the show between Bede and his sponsors to notice. 

Bede had stood there stunned for a moment before scowling and pointing at her, but his tone was obviously scared. "Who cares for some ancient ruin when the next thousand years are at stake!? Did you stand in the path of a pokemon's simple beam or something?" Wrong move. Oleana looked even more angry now. "How do you expect to support the Chairman with that sort of thinking!?"

More pebbles fell down and Gloria looked right up, twisting her body around as she took a few steps back staring at the wall. 

"Bede." Bede Froze. Absolutely. Freaking. FROZE as the Chairman addressed him holding a hand up to Oleana who immediately stood down at his motion. "Young Bede." His hand was slowly returned to his pocket, the chairman's eyes scanning his pokemon who still shook it's head and the absolutely destructon of the once beautiful mural. And shook his head. How was he so calm about this? "It pains me to say this but I am truly disappointed."

".....W-What?"

"It's true that I'm the one who found you, back when you were all alone." He sighed reaching a hand up to rub his head. "I saw talent in you. You reminded me a little bit of myself back when I was young. That's why I sent you to a trainer's school, to give you a chance at success. But trying to destroy the mural, part of Galar's history! You show no love toward Galar!" He looked back up to the boy who by this point was lightly shaking. Just staring at him like a little scared mouth. "You are clearly not a worthy challenger for the Gym Challenge." 

"W-W-WHAT!?," Bede shouted at him. "B-B-But all I have ever done was for you!" He placed a hand to his chest. "All I have ever done was for Galar! Y-You must be joking right!? You're disqualifying me from the Gym Challenge?! But you're the one who endorsed me! T-T-There are a hundred different ways we could sort this out!" He insisted more desperate. "Why are you chosing the worst possible option?!"

Mr. Rose just held up a tired hand again. "I don't want to hear anymore from you, Bede. We will decide what to do with you later. For now you will return to Hammerlocke with us."

"B-B-But-.." He looked around in a blind panic around himself at every staff, policeman, and other adult there watching him. More pebbles falling and Gloria's eyes widened in danger. "I-I REFUSE!! THERE WAS A MISTAKE!!"

"Challenger Bede," Oleana stated firmly, "I'll be taking those wishing stars you have gathered. And you WILL be returning with us to Hammerlocke." 

"I- N-No wait!" He was grabbed by two men in those white gym uniforms and his purple eyes shrank as Oleana walked towards him.

That's when the Chairman turned towards the rest of you and smiled apologetically. "AH! Sonia! And Gloria and her friend too!" You both turned to the Chairman as Gloria paid no attention to you, the Chairman, or Bede's shaking form as Oleana collected what looked like more sparkling gems out of his pockets. "Terrible shame all this." he gestured to the seen before him and you wanted to hurl at how disgustingly calm he could POSSIBLY be about all this! "An absolute disaster." OH YOU THINK!? "I never wish to see us lose challengers for this sort of reason. Yet we do what we must do to keep things fair and sportsmanlike."

"Then why did you lend him your copperajah without watching him?," you found yourself saying with a frown, "Or have a young boy collect stones from possibly dangerous mines?"

He fell silent, giving you a look that could have been surprised at what you said as you still stared at him. The reality of what you had said not catching up to you then and there because on top of what just happened something else struck. The sound of cracking walls and moving gravel made everyone look up as the cracks and wall of the cliffside moved ever so slightly under the weight of the lose boulder as it slipped free and fell down towards the earth. Down right towards the scrambling and screaming people. Right towards the frozen form of Bede as his mouth opened in a silent scream at the heavy rock barraling towards him as he stood in it's shadow- Well the rock did made contact with the ground, shattering into lots of tinier pieces on impact. Everyone yelped and cowered, arms flying up to shield their faces or turning away as the tinier rocks flew everywhere. Bede and Gloria laid upon the ground sprawled out from where she tackled him out of the flying death maker's way. Both groaned out before sitting up. Bede once again freezing at the sight of Gloria being so close and pulling him up into a sitting position with a scowl! 

"Ye alright?"......he slowly nodded. "That's good." Before she began shaking him. "WHAT THE ABSOLUTE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU!? NOW DO YA SEE WHY IT WAS A STUPID IDEA YA DUMMY!? YA COULD'VE BEEN CRUSH BY A STUPID FLYIN' BOULDER!!"

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!?" A loud female voice cried out and if you thought Oleana's loud voice was scary it was nothing compared to the slightly smaller than you woman who stomped her way through the crowd barefoot, angry, and with at least three fighting type pokemon behind her. Just how many people were going to show up here!? And how could she stand walking around barefoot on the hot ground!? The grey haired woman looked absolutely shocked at the state of her town's mural and all the debry around the ground from it, but unlike everyone else who stood around taking a long time to react, her reaction was instant. Anger flooding her features and her face looked like a tea kettle ready to pop as it turned beat red. An accusing hand was pointed at the destruction caused. Wait. She looked familiar. "WHO'S RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS!?"....Oh right! You saw her on the card Opal had given Gloria! It was Bea the gym leader of this place!...And she did NOT look happy to see what happened. Even more unfortunate for Bede some people around him pointed him out to the angry woman and once she snapped his gaze to himself still half held by Gloria, you could tell he was just one more heart attack away from fainting. "SO IT WAS YOU!!" She pointed right at him. "IT'S BAD ENOUGH YOU INSULTED THE TRAINER I ENDORSED BUT NOW YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY OF RUINING MY TOWN'S SUPPLY OF INCOME TOO!? WHERE DO YOU THINK SOME OF THE MONEY TO KEEP THE STADIUM RUNNING COMES FROM YOU LITTLE PUNK!? I SWEAR BY THE TIME I'M THROUGH WITH YOU YOU'LL BE GLUING THE ENTIRE THING BACK BY HAND WITH NOTHING BUT A LITTLE CHILD'S GLUE STICK!!" By now Bede looked pale enough to pass as a ghost.

"Bea now, now." The Chairman held up his hands to her in a calm manner. "Calm down. I'll pay for all the damages and repairs to be fixed. We'll have an exact replica of the mural back up in no time at all. It'll be like this never happened."

"WHAT?!" She snapped a look towards the chairman. "AND LET THIS LITTLE TROUBLEMAKER GO UNPUNISHED FOR ALL THE TROUBLE HE'S ALREADY CAUSED!?"

"I never said he wasn't going to be punished. We were just about to figure that out just now I assure you."

She huffed crossing her arms. "Oh yeah? Is that right? If you ask me you should take away the gym badges from him-"

"NO!!" Bede gave off an 'Oof' as Gloria suddenly grabbed him to her in a protective manner and his face hit her shoulder as he blinked confused. The adults looking at her in a way that made you nervous just standing there watching.

...Bea got a look of realization over her before she pointed at Gloria. "Hey. I know you. You're the trainer that I just badge the Fighting type badge too. Are you in on this too?"

Gloria shook her head no. "NO!! Are ye kiddin' me?! I'd never do somethin' as stupid as this!" Her hand pointed at her. "BUT YA CAN'T TAKE AWAY HIS GYM BADGES!!" She then pointed at the Chairman who blinked at her. "AND NEITHER CAN YE!! BEDE WON THOSE FAIR N' SQUARE!!" Bede blinked and looked up to her in shock. "YER RIGHT THAT HE SHOULD BE PUNISHED FOR DOIN' WHAT HE DID!! BUT GYM BADGES ARE A SYMBOL OF ALL THE HARD WORK YOU PUT IN AS A POKEMON TRAINER JUST TO GET THEM!! ONCE A GYM LEADER GIVES THEM TO YA IT JUST SHOWS HOW MUCH YOU IMPROVED AND GROWN FROM THEN!! IF YOU TAKE THEM FROM HIM THEN YOU'LL BE DOIN' NOTHING BUT TELL HIM HIS WORTH AS A TRAINER IS NOTHING AND I WON'T ALLOW THAT!!" Her grip on him increased slightly. "Punish him for what he did to the mural if you want, but don't you DARE take his gym badges from him!"

You weren't sure whether you wanted to bury yourself under a rock or be proud of her in that moment, but her words got the Chairman to stare at her a moment. Humming and eyeing her protective stance frowning at him before he sighed and nodded. "She's right Bea. I won't tamper with the progress he's already made thus far, but he sure will be answering for the mess he's caused everyone today." He gestured back down towards the stairs. "Come. Lets discuss what we can do about the mural out of the hot sun alright? Ms. Sonia I don't suppose you could stand by until my team gets here could you?"

Sonia blinked."...OH! I-i-...Sure."

The two of you stood there as everyone and their pokemon trickled out of the destroyed area and back down the stairs after the chairman and gym leader who shot a nasty glare at Bede before she left. ...Bede slowly pried hmself away from Gloria falling back onto his bottom as she blinked. He got up shakily, dusting himself off in the process, before looking back to her. The two of them silently staring at each others for the longest time.

"Bede," He jumped and turned to Oleana as she stood there waiting for him expectantly, "Come along. You're aware the Chairman doesn't like to kept waiting." Bede paused for a moment looking between her and Gloria exactly once, before turning and started walking towards her. She turned and walked away from the three of you as Gloria slowly stood herself. Bede not sparing either of you a head glance as he walked past the two of you head down without a word. 

The three of you stood there watching everyone leave down the long flight of stairs silently ...before you finally broke the silence by looking at the mess as the copperajah lumbered past after it's owner. ".....Well I can say for certain that this so fair has been the most eventful day I've ever had in my life."

"Tell me 'bout it!" Gloria grumbled dusting herself off as she walked over to you to which you looked at her.

"Hey. Are you ok? You're not hurt are you?"

She shook her head no to your relief as she still deeply frowned. "I know the show ponyta was a looney but I didn't think he'd have the gall ta pull somethin' like this."

You hummed. ".....Somehow I don't think that was exactly all his fault."

"Whatcha mean by that?"

You went to answer her but was cut off yet again by voice. "Now that I think about it..." Both of you looked to Sonia who hummed. "You know. During one of Bede's matches, I heard the announcer say that Bede has no family. Apparently it was Rose who took Bede under his wing, and so Bede was battling for the Chairman's sake." Gloria looked between you two surprised, but you were more angry than surprised at this point gaining a frown. You had pretty much picked up on that by now. "*sigh* But that's a story for another day." She looked to the destroyed Mural. "Oh poor Bea. What an awful turn of events. I hope the mural survived all that."

"I doubt that." Gloria kicked a decent sized rock away from her at the mention.

And then that's when the rumble started. Just like the sound of the rock that nearly crushed Bede, only there was a lot more of it! The three of you looked up in horror at the cracks in the once pretty mural finally giving away under the strained weight, and it fell apart.

"LOOK OUT!!"

You quickly grabbed Gloria and yanked her behind you as your Drizzilie once again ducked behind your legs for cover as the rocks fell away and crumbled to the ground in a heap. Sending smaller rock fragments and dust everywhere making the three of you cough up a storm. But it's when you looked up however, is when the REAL mystery began. Because when the two of you looked up....your eyes widened. In place of where the mural used to be was a pile of rubble and a hole in the cliffside. But in the hole ..was a couple of statues. Two of which were two GIGANTIC dog looking pokemon holding a sword or shield in their mouths, and behind them were two kings carved into the stone. 

"...Hey." You glanced at Gloria shaking dust from her hat and Sonia walked up wide eyed to the statues. "Are you ok?" She nodded before plopping the hat back onto her head. "Good. What about you Sonia?.....Sonia?" You blinked and looked over to the orange haired woman gaping up at the statues...Huh. Why did they seem familiar to you?

"......Not a brilliant turn of events, but the ruins were brought into the light for us to see!," Sonia finally said after a long moment of silence. "What does this tell us about Galar's legends?"

"Uuuuh." You rose a brow up at the statues. Not really sure if she was talking to you or not. "A....sword and shield?" You guessed based off what the things were holding in their mouths...Hey. Wasn't this whole game's thing revolved around a sword and shield or something??

She nodded. "Right! More than any hero, there's those things that appear to be pokemon that stand out! Not just that, but those pokemon appear to be holding a sword and shield as if they were using them! Anything else look interesting to you?!"

"Uuuuh. ...Those two guys there." You pointed to the two king statues. They're the same as the tapestries aren't they?"

"I didn't notice that! Oh good observation! There really were two heroes. But if that's the case then why only the one statue at Budew drop inn?"

You shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe whoever built it didn't feel like making two giant gold statues."

She hummed. "More than any statue of a hero or old tapestry, these ruins made in truly ancient times must show us the real truth! Which means that....."

"....The sword and shield are pokemon?"

"YUP!!" She snapped with a smile to you making you blink. "I was thinking the same thing! Seems like at some point in history the sword and shield were combined with the two actual pokemon and treated as the same thing!" She hummed looking back to all the rubble. "But then what? They just faded from history? Two young heroes. The sword and shield were actually pokemon. But why would the truth of these ruins be hidden when their stories were depicted in artwork?" 

"...Maybe they had something to do with it?" She looked at you and you pointed to the human statues. "The kings or whoever they are. They went through a lot of trouble hiding this..maybe it was to protect the things that protected them."

She hummed. "Possibly. We won't be too sure until I get Mr. Rose's approval to study it more. Thanks! With your help I really feel like we made a big discovery here!

"Not sure how I helped but your welcome!"

"..So there was history being covered up by all that over stylized artwork. I'm gonna have to look into this some more. OOHH!! IM SO EXCITED!! NO RESEARCHER HAS EVER MADE SUCH A DISCOVERY-" A bark caught both of your attention as Sonia looked down at her feet in time for her yamper to drop something white at them. And she blinked. "Hey boy. Whatcha got there?" Not a bone you hoped. She quickly reached down as you leaned over to look and she stood up with a white mask in her hands. It was covered in does and a bit yellowed with a few scrapes, and had three black holes in it presumably for a person's mouth and eyes. "Well would you look at this. I dont think this is from the ruins. ...It kinda reminds me of the one's Allister wears."

"Who?," you asked trying to see it. Sonia handed it over to you and you grabbed it from her to get a better look. 

"Allister. He's the boy who's in charge of the Ghost type Gym just down the road there." She pointed towards the exit path from Stow-on-Side. "It's located by the Stow-on-Side cemetary, but it'll take a full day just to get there from here. I just mentioned it might be his since the only one I've ever seen with that kind of mask was him at the Entrance Ceremony....But I guess you'll be headed to Bellonlea next, right?"

You opened your mouth- "Y/N!!!" You were nearly knocked to the ground when Gloria ran up to you and grabbed you suddenly. Yanking you forward hard enough to send you stumbling a few steps as she panicked. "It's that restore scientist lady! She's headed up the stairs this way!" She pulled you into a run away from Sonia as she watched bewildered down the path away from here. Your Drizzilie running at your heels.

"Bye Sonia! Good luck in your research!!," you called back.

Guess you'd be able to finally leave Stow-on-Side.

[awaytobeunshaken]

Angstpril 2023 - Day 29: Cast Away

This wasn’t what Dariax expected from Dorian’s return. For one thing, he assumed all three of them would stay together, that Dorian tracking them down in this bar meant that whatever job they’d run off on for Orym’s people had been finished and the gang could get back together.

But Dorian had arrived alone. Almost alone, save for the man he indicated lingering nervously near the bar. His fucking brother, apparently. That was fine. They all had sibling issues just lying in wait, apparently; well, Opal did, and Fy’ra Rai. Fearne didn’t seem to, though Orym was harder to read. The way he just sat and stared up at the moon some nights, there had to be someone. Either way maybe Dariax should have been the one to go to Marquet after all. Keep things simple. No missing brother to have to smuggle out to Tal’Dorei until they could bail him out of some trouble with the law, or the aristocracy, or whoever the fuck was in charge there. As far as he knew. It might not be a bad idea to check in back home.

At least Dorian was back, though. And hadn’t left Fearne and Orym alone; they had other people they were working with, good people, and Orym had at least started to find what he’d gone looking for, although apparently there was more to it than that, but Dariax was confident that their friends were safe, and they even had a line of communication to check in, find each other again eventually.

For now, though, he’d kind of missed Dorian the most. He was the perfect size and shape to cuddle up against, and who could fault a man for appreciating a good cuddle? Dorian, apparently, who’d barely given him a second glance since returning. Who seemed to miss Orym and Fearne more than he’d missed the rest of them. Who constantly hovered over his older brother trying to keep him out of trouble. Who shied away from Dariax’s touch at night, instead cradling that sending stone that he was so fucking precious with despite insisting that he could use it every day if he wanted to.

Orym. That had to be it. Even Dariax hadn’t been able to miss the way Dorian’s eyes rested on the halfling as they traveled, but Orym wasn’t here now, and Dariax was, and he wasn’t, like, the worst kind of guy to be with, unless… shit.

He watched Dorian struggle awake as he perched on a boulder keeping watch, leaning on his spear propped butt-end in the ground. “It’s early,” he said quietly as Dorian approached.

Dorian shrugged. “I’m awake; might as well.”

“Since you’re up, I’ve been wondering… Something going on between you and Orym?”

Dorian looked startled at the implication. “No. He’s in Marquet, how could there be?”

“It feels like you’re still there, too, half the time.”

“It’s not about Orym. Not entirely. More… all of it. It was a lot. I mean, we went there for Orym’s thing, and we made some progress, but there’s still further to go there and…” He pulled out the stone. “He’ll tell me if something’s wrong, I just… it’s hard not knowing.”

“What was Orym’s thing exactly? What happened to drag him all the way to fucking Marquet?”

“Not for me to tell.”

Dorian settled onto the ground in front of the rock to begin his watch. Dariax wrapped his arms around from behind and settled his chin atop Dorian’s head. “I did miss you, you know. Didn’t expect to still be missing you after you came back.”

“Shit.” Dorian laid a hand on Dariax’s. “I’m sorry.”

“That stone works both ways, doesn’t it? You could always check in if you’re worried.”

“Twenty-five words at a time, but yeah.” He looked up at the sky. “Should be daylight there, and I’m up anyway. I’ll give it a try.” He pressed a kiss to Dariax’s knuckles. “Now go to sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”

ao3

[samuraiko]

Could you write a vignette about Orym having a spider Queen nightmare? (Bonus have Dorian and fearne comfort him once he wakes up)

Hmmmmm...

"Black Strands"

He could see Dorian, Fearne, Dariax, and Opal walking ahead of him, talking amongst themselves, laughing...

But then slowly, ever so slowly, their shadows began to lengthen, and spread, even though the sun in the sky above hadn't moved, and no trees or buildings lined the road upon which they walked.

"Hey, guys?" Orym called out, but something choked the words in his throat and no sound came forth.

The shadows around the other four started to shift and writhe, crawling up their bodies, but still none of them noticed.

"Guys?!" Orym tried to call out again, but again his words were stifled, and so he began to run to try to catch up with them. But the faster he ran, the further away they were, until there was nothing left but their shadows.

"FEARNE!" he shouted desperately. "DARIAX! OPAL! DORIAN!"

Something lashed itself around his throat and pulled him off his feet, and the halfling found himself surrounded by black threads stretching out in every direction. He struggled with all his might, and as he thrashed, trying to get free, he saw that he was in the center of a vast, elaborate web...

Then he screamed as with no warning, four shapes abruptly dropped down in front of him like marionettes on strings.

Opal, Dariax, Fearne, and Dorian, their faces blank and expressionless, their eyes and sclera completely pitch-black.

Orym fought the urge to vomit, even as he felt the bile stinging and rising in his throat.

You cannot win... not against me...

"LET THEM GO!" he shouted, thrashing even harder, but the thread around his throat continued to tighten.

What I cannot corrupt...

His breath gurgled and choked, and still he fought.

What I cannot control...

Four more threads lashed out of the darkness and wrapped around his wrists and his ankles, pulling them taut.

I WILL CONSUME.

And then came the pain as his body was torn asunder while his friends still hung there, limp, unmoving, as still and as empty as death, even as his blood spewed across their faces-

"NO!"

Orym came awake with a scream, his eyes wide, his heart slamming so hard in his chest that he thought it might burst, and icy sweat drenching his entire body.

"Orym! Are you all right?!"

"Orym, what happened?!"

For several seconds, Orym couldn't move, couldn't even breathe, his whole body shaking.

"Dorian, quick, the blanket-"

"Right, got it, here, Orym, sit up, let me put this around you-"

The halfling's teeth were chattering in his head, tears stung his eyes, and he was only dimly aware of Dorian sitting him up, wrapping a blanket around him, and then embracing him hard from behind while Fearne lit the candles near the bed, then anxiously rubbed his hands in hers, trying to warm them.

"It's okay, friend, we're here, we're both here, you're okay, you're safe..." Fearne's soft crooning, as well as the warmth of her hands on his and Dorian's body against his, slowly brought Orym back to himself, and he looked from one to the other as the tears spilled down his cheeks.

"You're... you're okay," he was finally able to whisper, his voice so hoarse that it was barely audible. "You're okay."

"We're okay?! My gods, Orym, worry about yourself!" Dorian held him tighter. "What happened?!"

"It was..." Orym swallowed hard. "A dream... a nightmare."

"About what?" Fearne kept his hands in hers, gently massaging them.

Orym closed his eyes briefly and shuddered. "I saw... you two. And Dariax. And Opal. And... you were... all of you were... consumed by... these shadows. And then I was... in a spider web. And so were you. But... but it wasn't you. You were all... puppets. And I heard a voice. But not like a voice-voice."

"Like a voice in your head?" Dorian asked quietly, and Orym nodded.

"Yeah. And I think... no... no, I'm almost certain that it was... it was the Spider Queen." His hands closed hard on Fearne's. "And she... she... tore me to pieces."

Fearne leaned forward and hugged Orym awkwardly, as Dorian was still holding him.

"It's okay now... everything is fine. I know you're worried about Opal, but I'm sure she's okay. And Dariax is with her. And Fy'ra Rai, if needed."

"Yes, I'm sure Fearne is right. And Opal's strong, you know. She can take care of herself."

"I guess so," Orym whispered. "I hope so. And I'm sorry I woke you two up."

"What are friends for?" Dorian reassured him.

Eventually, they lay back down to sleep, Orym in the middle, Dorian in front of him, Fearne behind him. As Dorian turned to blow out the candles, Orym stopped him.

"No... leave them lit. Please."

"Of course."

The other two drifted off, but Orym lay awake in the candle-lit room.

"It was just a dream," he whispered to himself. "It was just a dream."

Then he looked down at his friends' arms where they were both wrapped around him.

And saw the faintest glimmer of black silken strands on each of them.

[likeadragonfruit]

I’m surprised that I don’t have as much to go over in separate posts this time. So it’s roundup/brain dump time for book 3. Also yeah it’s been a few months haha 😅

Big Picture

Overall flow

This is the best season so far. I’ve even seen people say this is better than ATLA, and I don’t know that I’d go that far, but this is probably the most watchable it’s been so far. (And watchability isn’t damning with faint praise, Law and Order built an empire on being watchable.)

It does a decent job picking things up from the previous season and moving forward from there, especially considering how much book 2 looked like it was setting up a series finale.

But that cast size problem? Getting worse. We’re now up to Korra and the rest of Krew, Tenzin and his family (including his siblings still), Lin, Korra’s family (minus Unalaq), and adding in Lin’s family, airbenders (most prominently Kai) and the Red Lotus members

Also, the trend of breaking Korra in some way at the end of each season  continues, expect this is the one without a hasty recovery

Korra and the airbenders

It’s the event that shapes the whole season: new airbenders emerging post-harmonic convergence

And it’s ambiguous exactly what happened but Tenzin (acting as an authorial mouthpiece) attributes it to Korra

So the point is consequences? She (supposedly) created a bunch of airbenders but also kickstarted the Red Lotus plot via Zaheer’s escape

Which later almost kills her, except for the other airbenders who prevent Zaheer from escaping

Anyway, the way this plot is introduced initially bothered me a lot, but since it’s what the season revolves around, I kind of had to deal with it regardless.

Politics:

The politics of moderation reign once more

“(Bad) monarchs are bad, but so is anarchy” is a take I suppose

It’s kind of weak with the Red Lotus being more straw man anarchists than anything

Character opinions

Korra: I’m actually a little bothered by how little I have to say about her currently.

Mako: as said previously, I didn’t hate him and he’s even better now that they’ve freed him from the love triangle. But they’ve also been quarantining him with Bolin.

Bolin: oh Bolin, you’d be so good if you were good. He’s more tolerable this season at moments, and so obnoxious at others still. (Yes I’m ignoring last season.) Ultimately I still landed on not liking him.

Asami: she still isn’t getting storylines, but she’s basically the best supporting player there is. She works well with any character you pair her off with.

Tenzin: pass

Jinora: pass

Kya: oh you get to do so little this season, but I still love you.

Bumi: was alright this season.

Kai: a pretty classic jerk with heart of gold, but the classics are classics because they work.

Hou Ting: pass

Lin: I was actually a bit conflicted because the whole “being forced to interact with Suyin” thing during her mini arc was not a good look on her.

Suyin: so for her all her faults, I actually kinda like her, and it’s hard to explain. The best way I can think of is she scratches the part of my brain that’s a fan of Gon Freeces. And put in a way comprehensible to non-HxH fans, it’s that her selfish and hypocrisy reminds me of other characters where those flaws were critical to their arcs, even though I already know this series will never call Suyin on it, really.

Opal: the only of Suyin’s kids worth mentioning this season. 

Zaheer: he gets talks up a lot as he franchise’s best villain but meh. 

Ghazan: I want to come up with more, but basically I like him, for the little we get

Ming-Hua: see Ghazan

P’li: better than the last combustion bender we got. But most of the positive things I could say are either design or action related. She just got so little to do character wise compared to the rest. 

Shipping

yeah, still keeping this section

Korrasami: well they’ve spent more time together this season. As far as build up, umm…

Jinora/Kai: they’re cute, puppy love

Zaheer/P’li: meh

Bopal: love/hate relationship here. Sometimes I’m just like, “ugh, no, run Opal.” Others, it scratches that “aww dorks in love” part of my brain. But ultimately “girl, run” is winning. (You can do better, Opal!)

Stray observations

This season, having been ordered at the same time as season 4 is clearly setting up things that will come back in the next season. Are they the best use of these connections? Umm…

It’s odd seeing Kuvira this season as a dancer in her (background) introduction and for the rest of the season as the guard captain Lin and Suyin bark orders at, save her saving Tonraq’s life. It’s also a shame since so much more could be done with her and better set up the next season

Why is spirit projection an airbender technique? Because Jinora is an airbender, therefore it must be a form of airbending somehow?

You know, I actually really like the Mako detective moments. While I wouldn’t say I’d like a spin off, an au fic would work

If I had a nickel for every time a villain threatened to or tried to wipe out the airbenders/airbending, I’d have three nickels…

In the “Enter the Void,” Grey’s Ming-Hua starts slipping more into her Azula voice

Okay fuck Bolin for this moment

8 years later and I still vibe with Ghazan’s death over prison attitude

It’s been a very different experience watching book 3 like this, even more so than book 1 and 2. 8 years ago, I was watching books 3 and 4 during a stressful time in my life and didn’t necessarily mind all the details then

And with that, we’re in the homestretch. Just book 4 left now…