#yeah yeah. abbie's brain worms got me again

[maximilff]

me after approximately 0.01 seconds of seeing rhaenyra and alicent look at each other for the first time

[hamletteprinceofdenmark]

the 100 ask game

tagged by the lovely @pendragaryen

1. What station on the Ark would you be from?

Whichever used to be the Australian station I guess.

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark?

I’d like to say I’d go down for something brave and heroic but it would probably something stupid and trivial, like the space equivalent of jay-walking.

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground?

Not at first, but I’d definitely take it off for that sweet, sweet panther meat after a day or two.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..)

Well, first of all, I’d punt him halfway across the dropship camp before he even had a chance, so jot that down.

But an elephant, I guess, ugh.

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be?

Fox, poor baby, I miss her.

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they?

Bellamy, Murphy, Roan, Clarke, Diyoza

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to?

Floukru babey, take me to the sea!

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? (example: Octavia=Okteivia…just make it up!)

Lucia ... but emphasis on the second syllable... so like ... Lu-SHA. It would probably just get shortened down to Sha.

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious

Finn Collins is the boy who you think is cute at first, but then he turns out to be that middle class white boy who thinks he knows more than the professor in Philosophy & Ethics 101 and interrupts then at every chance he gets. He has a BLM tshirt but also insists on knowing where any POC he meets is “from”. Goes to the Gender Studies class, but you heard through the grapevine that he’s cheating on his girlfriend. Shallow, third-rate garbagé who thinks he knows better than you because he’s ~sensitive~

Finn Collins could die in a fire and I would not care.

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does?

A chip that cures my mental illness and helps me live the day to day nightmare that is Earth? Hell yeah I’m taking it.

11. What character do you relate to most?

Probably Harper actually. I too am a Mum friend who is sweet and caring and who will absolutely rip you a new one if you attack any of my adopted kids.

12. What character do you like the least?

See Question 9.

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical)

black skinny jeans, combat boots, blue long sleeve shirt white singlet layered combo, and big green army surplus jacket.

14. Favorite type of mutant animal?

Pauna. Rest in peace you chaotic 2-tonne plot hole.

15. What would your job be on the Ark?

I probably would have been in the childcare system, or some kind of human relations work.

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked?

Of course! I gotta keep our girl Clarke alive in there! Imma be real with you though chief, I would probably be looking at the wall the whole time. I don’t have a great stomach for body gore.

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive then who would have made the best commander?

Out of all the Nightbloods? No one jumps out at me as particularly competent tbh. I’ve got high hopes for Madi though.

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty?

Probably sobbing, stuck within the dark inner workings of Depression Brain. I have absolutely no faith that I would have a good trip.

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach?

Charlotte needed help desperately. I would have pardoned her.

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone?

Bellamy and Clarke as co leaders.

Kane and Indra as consultants. Raven is head of Tech. Let’s go people!

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis?

I would’ve been on Kane’s side

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there?

New books probably.

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint?

I’d probably have the tatts and war paint of my kru. I loved Octavia’s hair during season 2, so something along those lines, or wild and free with beads and braids like Luna.

24. Favorite quote?

“The dead are gone, Clarke, the living are hungry,” is a fucking raw line.

“It won’t survive me,” is another banger.

“You may be the Chancellor, but I am in charge,” cemented my love for Clarke Griffin.

I could go on...

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning?

Team Cockroach. Murphy.

Clarke and Bellamy have that Plot Armour though so I like their chances.

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE

Least fave: I have been prohibited.

Fave canon: Memori.

Fave non-canon: I have been prohibited.

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo?

I am waiting for them to use Bloodsport by Raleigh Ritchie. Or something by either Delta Rae or Sara Barielles, simply because I love them.

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time?

Probably be a couch potato. My latent doomsday brain would kick in and I’d just give up, so the bunker finally opening would be a nice surprise.

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die?

I was chipped and never seen again bro.

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of?

I want more Aurora flashbacks so bad it hurts but I know we’ll never get them. I just want people to stop treating her like she was a deadbeat or even an abusive parent. She wasn’t. She was doing the best with what she had, which was fuck all.

31. A character you��d bang?

They’re all my children ... I couldn’t.

On the other hand, if Lindsey Morgan was interested...

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden?

EDEN. Are you kidding? I’ll take berries over algae or bunker meat any day.

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground?

I would follow her cause if I didn’t I Would Die. I would spend my time trying to be as quiet and small as possible, and stay out of her way!

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits?

Someone reported me muttering dissent when I didn’t think anyone was around.

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with?

This may come as a surprise but I don’t bond with people very easily (lol). Harper probably sought me out and made sure I was okay. Echo and I have the same sense of humour so we’d probably be close. Monty too. Murphy would drive me up the wall.

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself?

2 weeks, tops.

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do?

Hide and observe from a far. Don’t attack or provoke in any way.

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite?

DIYOZA.

McCreary.

39. Would you Spacewalk?

If I’d passed all the tests and training and it was all above board? Sure. If not? Absolutely not are you crazy?!

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat?

The right answer is algae, but my tastebuds say steak over bugs or glorified pond scum. Sorry.

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it?

I won’t win a fight to the death, so you best believe I’m going to use diplomacy to it’s absolute limits and then some.

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes?

USB to the arm 100% percent. In and out, quick extraction, no pain caused since they’re already dead, and thumb drives aren’t vicious, carnivorous murder worms which is a huge plus.

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia?

If my sister had gone that far off the deep end? Probably. I can’t really imagine it though, my sister is so level headed.

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper?

I’d volunteer to be a custodian. It suits me. Getting to live in peace, taking care of the people I love for the rest of my life after the chaos and trauma of the ground seems near heavenly.

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet?

Bellamy and Clarke.

I tag: @clarkgriffon @honeybellarke @nvermindiseeyou @ffaraday @galaxydanvers @marvelscaptainss @raven-reyes-of-sunshine @perpetual-fantasy @prosciuttoe @fen-ha-fuck-you

The above is in no particular order, and you should feel no obligation to fill out the questions if you don’t want to. This is all fun and games. Take care 💖

[nickireadstfc]

The King’s Men, Chapter 8 – Baby, Now We Got Bad Blood

In which Neil’s birthday surprise bloody sucks, I have opinions about the Terrapins’ naming choices, Matt is too good for this world, and the Twinyard’s first attempt at Actual Human Interaction doesn’t quite go as planned.

Sounds good? Then it’s time for Nicki to read The King’s Men.

(This is a longass chapter and lots of shit happens, so this is a longass update. I’m sorry in advance.)

             Neil flipped his phone open to stare at the date. It was Friday, January 19th. “Neil Josten” was supposed to turn twenty on March 31st. Today Nathaniel Wesninski turned nineteen years old.

OH SHIT IT’S HIS BDAY!!! HAPPY BIRBDAY MY BOY!!!!!

And we almost made it in time as well! 12 days late, but still – happy late birthday, my dude.

Actual footage of my baking disaster ass making a cake for our birthday boy.

Sadly though, Neil doesn’t care much for his birthday, and because he tragically keeps his mouth shut about it for most of the chapter, neither can anyone else.

I love birthdays. How dare you deprive me of some good good festivity. This is a gosh darn shame, Josten.

             Neil knew he went to his classes, but he didn’t learn anything. He wrote down what his teachers said but didn’t absorb a single word.

In other news, when will Neil in uni stop being such a goddamn #MOOD.

Exam season is hitting me hard right now folks, and while I’m tryinfg to play catch-up on my notes this just feels like an unnecessary callout post to my lazy past self.

In other other news – it’s time for Orange Sportsball again!

Our Foxes are playing a home game against Belmonte which, if you’ll all kindly remember, resulted in The Most Epic Move Andrew Has Ever Pulled, Ever last time we played them.

So, you know, no pressure.

Before Neil can pop a boner about being on an actual game court again though, he has a little birthday surprise waiting for him, and it’s, well, how do I put this –

A bloody hell of a situation.

             It exploded in his locker, triggered by the door opening, and Neil recoiled as it cascaded over everything insde. (…) The bag looked big enough to hold at least two gallons; it was more than big enough to destroy every single piece of gear Neil owned.

WHAT THE FUCK.

For all y’all non-American folks, two gallons are about 7.5 litres. SEVEN POINT FIVE LITRES.

For further reference, that’s about as much as would fit in this bucket.

Yeah.

THAT’S A FUCKLOAD OF BLOOD.

WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON.

             Neil wrenched the broken bag off the hook. When he turned to throw it Andrew caught his wrist. Neil hadn’t even heard Andrew cross the room toward him. (…)

             “It’s ruined,” Neil said, voice ragged with an awful rage. “It’s all ruined.”

Yup – his entire gear, complete with helmet and shoes, now looks like it played a supporting role in the Red Wedding, and really took on some method-acting for it.

But we’re not done here, oh hot diggity shit no.

             Matt’s startled voice echoed off the bathroom walls. “What the hell?” (…)

             Written in blood across the tile was a bold message: “Happy 19th Birthday, Jr.”

OH SHIT.

OH SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT.

DAD’S HOME, FOLKS.

I am decidedly NOT FUCKING LIKING THIS.

I don’t even want to think about what this means.

If this is the Raven’s doing (which was what I thought about the blood), then that means they’re more in touch with Daddy Wesninski than we thought, which is super bad.

If this is Daddy Wesninski’s own doing, then he’s way more in touch with Getting Revenge On Neil than we thought, which is super super bad.

Either way –

(I also immediately regret calling Wesninski Senior ‘Daddy’. Please remind me to bleach my eyes at the next convenient time.)

             He grabbed the fledgling sense of panic and buried it deep, the same way he’d smothered his broken heart long enough to burn his mother’s body. He would have to react to this later, but if he did it now with all of the Foxes as his witnesses he was going to lose everything.

And bury it he does – Neil, that badass motherf*cker, just buries oh, y’know, the realization that his childhood abuser and indirect killer of his mother is figuratively right behind him,  somewhere in his brain and moves the fuck on.

What a dude.

             “Can you play?” Kevin asked.

             “I’m pissed off, not injured,” Neil snapped. “I’m not going to let this keep us from winning tonight. Are you?

GO GET EM, MY BOY.

WHAT A DUDE.

             “I will give you one chance tonight,” Wymack said. “If I think your head isn’t in the game, I will pull you so fast you’ll get whiplash.”

HSM basketball gifs will never not be appropriate for this team.

In the cleanup process of the Bloody Hell of a Situation, Matt steps out to grab some underwear for a half-naked Neil, and when he comes back he takes the opportunity to remind us all again what a genuinely great character he is – lest we forget.

             Neil opened the door just far enough to realize it was Matt in the hallway and was startled into saying, “You knocked?” (…)

             It wasn’t the first time the Foxes had gone out of their way to accommodate Neil#s privacy issues, but they usually had time to think it through. Matt was late for warm-ups because of Neil and shaken by Riko’s awful trick. Despite that he’d remembered not to barge in.

Matt, you sweet considerate spikey black Billie Joe Armstrong, LET ME LOVE YOU.

And now that Neil is all suited and booted (and had his anger horn tooted), let’s fucking go.

             The ghost of [the blood incident] egged him to go harder and faster. Kevin didn’t warn him to scale back, and they crashed into their backliner with an unusual aggression.

To the Foxes, what the fuck is unusual aggression?? Instantly fucking murdering a dude right there on the field?

“Unusual Agression” is pretty much those guys’ team motto, folks.

Unsurprisingly, our Foxy Sportsball Squad totally rules the following game, no biggie.

Nothing like a bit of blood, childhood trauma and accidental nudity to get fired up before a big game.

             Two minutes later, the Foxes got the chance they needed. A Terrapin striker got around Matt and raced at the goal. (…) Andrew was outside of his box in a heartbeat, and he body-checked the striker hard enough to floor him.

GET REKT.

Also, to remind y’all non-Native English speakers (like me) what a Terrapin is, it’s these cute lil fellas.

Not exactly a threatening opponent.

Not so much a fast one either. Who the fuck thought that naming choice was a good idea, like “yeah, sure, let’s call our skilled Sportsball team after fucking turtles”.

The Team of Poor Naming Choices gets what they deserve, in any case – the Foxes run right over them and celebrate an epic 8-5 victory.

             Wymack and Abby were waiting for them, Wymack with a toothy grin and Abby all smiles.

I love me some supportive Fox Parents.

However, the party is pretty much over instantly as the Foxes are back on their infighting bullshit.

             Allison (…) kept her eyes on Neil. “I’ve hit the limit of what bullshit I’ll tolerate this week, let alone this year. I need to know how much worse this pissing contest between you and Riko is going to get.”

Can we have literally….. 5 seconds of happy celebratory peace up in this bitch, thank you.

At least Wymack feels me.

             “I’m instigating a new rule where everyone is required to be happy after a win. You downers are going to suck the life out of me before my time.”

Thank you, my man.

Allison is kind of right, though – they do need to really fucking talk about this.

             “First off: the massacred elephant in the room. Massacred birds, rather. I called in a favour with the faculty and got Abby access to the microscopes in the science labs.”

Oh, that is morbid.

If that Bloody Hell of a Situation was the Ravens’ doing, then that is the most macabre symbolism I’ve seen in a while.

If it was Wesninski Sr’s – then I don’t want to think about the symbolism, quite frankly.

Which reminds me of an interesting point: Everyone is automatically assuming Riko did this. This makes sense considering almost no one knows of the existence of Neil’s dad, but Neil does not only seem to be playing along, but he seems to have the same opinion. The writing on the wall clearly said “Junior” – why isn’t he considering the fact that it could have just as well been his dad?

Obviously, don’t get me wrong here, knowing their power situation Riko/Tetsuji are still behind all of it and would know of what Neil’s dad is doing to Neil. But to me, this doesn’t sound like Riko’s style. Gallons of blood set up like a crude school prank and words written in blood – this sounds much more like a man who calls himself The Butcher than a rich sleek featherfucker.

Unsurprisingly, Neil isn’t exactly a fan of presenting his entire life story to his team. However, a certain someone who is still massively Salty™ at Neil for ratting him out to his girlfriend intervenes.

             “They’ll never find proof that Riko was involved in this,” Aaron said, “but they might find you, right? (…) Your looks, your languages, your lies – you’re running from something or someone.”

Ohhhhhhhhhh shit.

This is CALLOUT CULTURE.

While the team is busy collecting their jaws from the floor, Neil makes a weak attempt at sassing his way out of this situation.

             Keeping his voice calm took every ounce of energy he had left. “You know, I expected low blows and backstabbing from the Ravens. I thought Foxes were better than that.”

Don’t generalize, my dude.

Dan, Matt and Renee would never.

Neil then does worm his way out of this situation, though – by making a Bad Callout Situation a Worse Callout Situation, Like So Much Worse, Oh God.

             “I’m still waiting for a thank you,” Neil said. “From both of you, to each other. You’re even now, aren’t you? So why can’t you just wipe the slate clean and start over? (…) You don’t want me to be right, because if I am it’s your fault she’s dead.”

             Andrew finally joined the argument. “No. It’s always going to be her fault.”

Oh no, honey, please don–

             “I told her what would happen if she raised her hand again. She had no right to look so surprised.”

DID YOU JUST.

             Wymack pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled noisily. “Could you at least let us leave the room before you confess?”

Same, my dude.

Also hah, nose puns.

             It took Aaron a minute to find his voice again. He still sounded angry, but there was a muted edge to his, “You wouldn’t even look at me. You wouldn’t say a word to me unless I said something first. I’m not psychic. How was I supposed to know?”

             “Because I made you a promise,” Andrew said. “I did not forget it just because you chose not to believe me. I did what I said I would do, and fuck you for expecting anything else.”

And this paragraph right there, this is so, so important because it just sums up both their worldviews perfectly.

Aaron is still the more “normal” one of the twins – hard and bitter, but eventually the more grounded, the more realistic brother. But he also never really got to know Andrew, the real Andrew – whether out of fear of him or out of Andrew’s refusal. Andrew didn’t talk to him, and Aaron never learnt who exactly he was dealing with, so how was he supposed to know?

Andrew, on the other hand, makes promises and sticks to them, absolutely no matter what. He doesn’t care about the means to achieve his goals, he is colder and more ruthless than Aaron – or any sane person – ever could be. And in his world, this all makes sense – legit murder isn’t out of proportion, nothing can be, when it comes to keeping those he cares for safe (lizziedunbar99 made an excellent point on this the other day). When he protects someone, he protects them, all or nothing, and fuck anyone for expecting anyone else.

Yes, hello, I love these idiots.

             There it was again: a hint of that infinite anger at Andrew’s core. (…) He put his hand up between [the twins]. A heartbeat later Andrew’s expression went dead. Neil regretted his intervention immediately. No one could let go of that much rage that easily; Andrew had simply buried it where it could hurt only him.

And the moment that anger finally, healthily (!) breaks free will be the happiest day in this goddamn series.

Or, y’know, everything will go up in flames, but them’s the risks when you’re dealing with our favourite Murder Maniac.

In other news – in case you forgot (which I did), the other Foxes are still present, and they do kind of want answers at this point.

             “Is [your past] going to be a problem?” Dan asked.

             “No,” Neil said.

             Allison arched a brow at him (…) “Are you sure about that?”

I want Allison to please barge into conversations like this always, her head appearing over the scene John Cena-style.

This meme is long dead, but watch me give no shits.

             “Riko knows who I am because our families operate in similar circles, but he is a Moriyama in name only. He doesn’t have the resources to do more than threaten me.”

             “Damn, Neil,” Matt said. “Your parents must be something else if even Riko’s got to follow the rules.”

Oh hon, oh my sweet summer child, you have no idea.

And with that, the conversation is blissfully over, and we have only two tiny things to get to before this monster of a chapter is finally done.

First, Neil gets a text message:

             He didn’t recognize the number or the area code. He understood the message even less: “49”. Neil gave it a minute, but nothing else was forthcoming. He deleted the text and put his phone away.

Ah well, I’m sure this ominous and vaguely threating thing was merely a wrong number and is totally not going to come back to haunt our asses a few chapters from now.

And second, the Normal People Squad still has some opinions on the Murder Situation:

             “Just like that,” Matt said dubiously. “You’ve always known what he’s capable of, but you said he’s never given you a real reason to be afraid of him. What the hell are your parents into, if you can glide past murder like it’s no big deal and get in Riko’s face all the time?”

OH HON, OH MY SWEET SUMMER CHILD.

Also, me a few books ago.

Oh, how far we’ve come.

Unsurprisingly, yet to my great delight, Renee is not as shellshocked as Dan and Matt about Andrew’s confession, and offers some much-needed insight.

             “We cannot understand the situation entirely, Dan. We will never know Andrew’s frame of mind at the time or how bad life with her was for them. All we can do is make a choice: believe that he was protecting Aaron or condemn him for taking the most extreme path. I would rather go with the former.”

Mic drop, sweet smile, Renee out.

God, I love this girl.

If you like what I do here and you want me to continue writing fun things for you, why not buy me a coffee? Every lil bit helps, getting me through uni and all that jazz. Thanks so much!

[tostiarepa]

❧ prompts: worms; nightmares; graveyard; past

❧ fandom: doctor sleep

❧ warnings: corpses; references to child death; misogynistic slurs; body swap

❧ also on ao3

I should've known better, I'm sorry is what she'll tell Dan so he can go back to bed at the hot spice he still works at, hopefully on his way to dreamless sleep, no boogiemen to roam his halls anymore.

But now, kneeling in the dirt in an abandoned factory in Iowa and digging with her clammy hands, Abra knows only of this: Every missing kid is sleeping down here in this earthy bed calling out for her to help them back up, to please recover all their baseball gloves because she needs to give them back to their mommies and daddies.

So she keeps digging, caring not for her bleeding fingers and her torn off nails or how worried her own parents must be; but the dirt keeps piling on and on, going forever and ever and how long has she been here? isn't she now digging her way into the center of the earth? Isn't she-

And the thought hits her just as hands clamp around her skull and begin doing their own digging there, pulling her up by the hair, tearing at the roots (-digging her own grave?)

She shrieks, her hands coming away from the dirt to tear behind her (we killed you, we killed you, we saw your corpse and I was so glad you were dead) momentarily looking down at her interrupted handiwork to see a flash of

Something

In the dirt

(No.

Someone.

Someone, because that's an empty eye socket and it's crawling with worms and so are her hands and so is the dirt around and below her and so is her mouth and how didn't she notice that-)

She yells, trashes, closes her eyes and edges closer to her assailant, her hands finally digging into rubbery skin, wanting to cause some pain of her own while the fingers cave her skull in

(dead, Abra, she's dead, dead alright because her skin is rubbery, but still she's back and she got you, Abra, Abby-doo, you fucking moron bitch girl, a year late but she got you)

The worms slither their way into her tongue every time she groans in pain. Her skull feels wet. Blood, bleeding, and soon will come death. Dazed, Abra shouts for help the only way she'll allow herself to: by opening up her mind, calling for the only other person who understands-

(DAN THEY'RE KILLING THE BASEBALL BOY AGAIN DANDANDAN)

and feels him wide awake all at once, miles from where she is but meeting her in the mental room with the wheel, the fog of sleep a ghost behind his eyes, his hands turning the wheel with her, their worlds switching in a hurry-

And when the wheel is turned, when he gets to see with Abra's eyes and fight with Abra's body,

He's lying chest down on her bed with his face smushed against her pillow. But nothing else.

(Just a dream, Abra.)

Silence from the other end of the line and then:

(I should've known better, I'm sorry.)

(Don't be... Do you want me to stay awake with you until you fall asleep again?)

(No, I'm fine now.)

Dan doubts that.

(For real, uncle Dan.)

He shows her a picture of a thumbs up.

Nothing for almost a minute besides his thumping heart. Then he thinks at her again.

(Can I huh- go back to my own room, or-?)

The line quivers. Dan's heart quivers too, but then she flashes him a picture of her cartoon self slapping her forehead next to a speech bubble that reads "D'oh!"

They're both chuckling when they meet again in the wheel room.

<hr></hr>

"As I've said before, I don't feel guilty about it, but, "

He hums and sips his coffee, waits for her to say something else. When she speaks, he pauses on his tracks. Her eyebrows are pinched together. Not worry but anger, or a close cousin at least.

"Will the nightmares ever stop?"

What she sees - either on his face or his thoughts - must be enough of an answer, albeit not a satisfactory one. Her grimace says as much. She nods in grim resignation, but she's looking away from him.

"Maybe," He starts, touching his shoulder against hers where she sits next to him. "your dreams are not shine dreams, just nightmares. They don't necessarily mean that Rose is coming back for you, just that your brain is still processing what happened,"

(The lady in room 217 came back for you though, and so did-)

(I know, but-)

But she sits straight up again before he can finish that train of thought, and looking down he discovers that her fists are clenched on her lap, her knuckles as white as a ghost.

Her temper is back, just like that. The old family temper but with an injection of teenage bravado.

No wonder Rose was so scared of the girl, in the end.

"Yeah. Yeah, she was." She says, talking out loud. "And you know what? I killed her once and I'll kill her once again if she ever comes back."

A heaviness settles between his ribs. He places one of his hands on top of her clenched ones and squeezes softly. The time to tell her about himself and his father and his grandfather (warn her about her heritage: shine, anger, alcoholism) draws closer with every flare of her temper.

But not this year. She's young still, despite it all, and just as he protected her from having to see the corpse of a long dead boy, he shields her from the past.

Dan speaks so only they can hear and feels her fists unclench slowly beneath his as she replies.

"Of course. I know I'm not alone, don't be silly."

Abra rests her head against his shoulder, humming and then laughing when Dan recognizes the tune as one of 'Round Here's singles: Kisses on the Midway.

It's not easy, he thinks only to himself, but she'll bury the corpses of the past. Already is.

Next year, then. Next year it is.