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The Best Creepy Horror Movies

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Creepy isn’t the same as scary.

Of course horror movies can be scary simply by using loud noises and sudden movements to make their audiences jump, but creepy is harder to pull off. To be effectively creepy, a film needs to establish a certain atmosphere; it needs to draw you in and make you care. It needs to give you something to think about when you’re trying to drop off to sleep at night; to make you wonder whether that creaking noise down the hallway was just the house settling or something lurking in the shadows. Creepy stays with you. It gives you goosebumps.

Here are 85 of the best horror movies (in no particular order) to chill your bones. Enjoy the nightmares.

Us (2019)

Jordan Peele’s follow up to his award winner Get Out is another social horror. While it might not be quite as accomplished or coherent as Get Out (the end is a bit of a mess) Us is arguably scarier than Get Out as a family staying in a holiday home find themselves tormented by evil replicas of themselves. It’s a film that keeps you constantly on edge with the performances of the main cast – Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex – absolutely pitch perfect and never less than convincing as good and evil versions of themselves.

It Comes At Night (2017)

Though the marketing material was somewhat misleading, featuring the above scary-looking dude (who really isn’t a big part of the film at all), It Comes at Night, from director Trey Edward Shults is a claustrophobic slow-burner that insidiously ramps up the creep factor. Joel Edgerton plays the patriarch of a family holed up in a cabin in the woods to escape an unnamed wide spread virus. But when a man, his wife and their young child arrive seeking shelter his family life is disrupted. A coming-of-age horror with one of the bleakest endings around.

Mr. Jones (2013)

Nobody knows who Mr. Jones is. The artist is a recluse, but his bizarre sculptures have made him world famous. When a documentary maker and his girlfriend stumble across what looks like his workshop, they become obsessed with finding out the truth about Mr. Jones, but the truth isn’t particularly easy to stomach.

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One of the most stylishly shot found footage movies you’ll ever see, the makers know the rules of the genre well enough that when they break them, it adds to the story rather than detracting from it. Also, those scarecrows are petrifying.

Under the Shadow (2016)

Set in war-torn Tehran in the late 1980s, Under the Shadow sees a would-be doctor battling the forces of evil for her daughter (and her sanity) even as everyone around her flees to safer ground. The juxtaposition of earthly and unearthly threats makes this a uniquely terrifying film, and Shideh (Narges Rashidi) is a wonderfully complex and sympathetic heroine. Not many films could make a sheet of printed fabric terrifying, but Under the Shadow manages it.

Gaslight (1940)

Bella (Diana Wynyard) thinks she’s losing her mind. She keeps losing things, and the lights in her house seem to flicker, even though her husband Paul (Anton Walbrook) tells her he can’t see anything wrong. Plus there are those footsteps upstairs… Just from that description, you might think that Gaslight will turn out to be a haunted house story, but the real explanation for all the weirdness is far more sinister than that. Walbrook does sinister like no-one else.

The Babadook (2014)

A character from a terrifying kids book comes to life to haunt a single mother (Essie Davis) grieving for the loss of her husband in this beautiful, sorrowful meditation on depression and despair. Top-hatted Mr. Babadook with his horrible, terrible grin is of course creepy as all, but Noah Wiseman as her needy and uncontrollable child gives him a run for his money in creepiness.

The Clairvoyant (1934)

Maximus, King Of The Mind Readers (Claude Rains) performs amazing feats of clairvoyance on stage every night in front of adoring audiences. The problem is, it’s fake – the mind-reading is all done through a secret code Maximus has invented to communicate with his assistant wife, Rene (Fay Wray). But one night, he meets Christine (Jane Baxter), and his abilities become real. He really can predict the future. If you’ve already guessed that’ll turn out to be more of a burden than a gift, you’re right. Gorgeously shot, wonderfully acted, this is a creepy delight.

Sleep Tight (2011)

The second Jaume Balaguero film on this list is just as bleak and horrifying as the first: Sleep Tight sees a concierge secretly breaking into the homes of the people he’s supposed to serve to try to make them as miserable as he is. When Cesar (Luis Tosar) finds one tenant is harder to upset than the others, his behaviour escalates until he’s committing unimaginably grotesque crimes against the poor girl. The ending will have you shuddering in your seat.

Lake Mungo (2008)

This strange found footage film from Australia takes the format of a mockumentary focusing on the family of a dead girl who think there are supernatural goings on surround their house. It owes a debt to Twin Peaks in its odd neighborhood vibe, and the twisty plot holds many surprises, as the movie wrong foots the audience time and again. It’s creepy throughout but by the time you finally discover what’s really going on it’s not only terrifying but emotionally devastating too.

Dead of Night (1945)

Probably the best horror anthology ever made, this Ealing Studios production includes five individual stories and one wrap-around narrative. The wrap-around sees a consultant arrive at a country home only to find that he recognizes all of the guests at the house – he’s seen them all in a dream.

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Spooked, the guests start recounting their own stories of the uncanny, each more unnerving than the last. Well, except for the one about the golfers, but that one’s just there for light relief before the film hits you with the scariest ventriloquist’s dummy ever committed to film. Just excellent, all round.

Hereditary (2018)

One of the most truly harrowing movies of recent years is Hereditary, the feature debut from Ari Aster. Toni Collette stars as a mother trying to hold together her family in the aftermath of a tragedy while around her supernatural goings on begin to escalate.

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Nina Forever (2015)

Rob (Cian Barry) can’t get over his ex-girlfriend. Nina (Fiona O’Shaughnessy) died in a car crash, which is bad enough, but when he tentatively begins a relationship with his co-worker, Holly (Abigail Hardingham), he finds himself haunted by Nina. Literally. She materializes in his bed every time he and Holly have sex – she might be dead, but she’s not letting go.

“Creepy” doesn’t feel like a strong enough word to describe this film – “devastating” might do it. It’s a sensitive and horrifying portrayal of grief, with a sense of humour as dark as the inside of your eyelids, and some extremely upsetting gore. Brilliant, but not one for the faint-hearted.

Robin Redbreast (1970)

When she moves away from London to a tiny country cottage, Norah (Anna Cropper) expected the change to be a bit strange, but nowhere near as weird as it ultimately turns out to be. As she gets to know the locals, she finds herself being pushed towards a relationship with karate-loving Rob (Andrew Bradford), and while she’s initially game, she soon discovers that her choices are being made for her. It’s a little bit Wicker Man, a little bit Rosemary’s Baby, and a lot of creepiness.

It Follows (2014)

Inspired by a reccuring nightmare director David Robert Mitchell had in his youth,It Follows is a clever, freaky take on the slasher movie, featuring, well, a sexually transmitted ghost. Maika Monroe plays a young woman haunted by a shape shifting spectre after a sexual encounter who slowly but relentless trails her everywhere – the film plays with the audience expertly, making us guess whether background characters could really be the monster. Ultra modern and highly effective, this one will leave you jumping at shadows long after the credits roll.

The Masque of the Red Death (1964)

A tyrannical landowner is plagued by, well, a literal plague in Roger Corman’s adaptation of an Edgar Allan Poe story. Vincent Price plays the Satanic Prince Prospero, who rules over his village with an iron fist, condemning people to death for the mildest offence and abducting any woman who takes his fancy, but all of his evils come back to haunt him when he throws a masked ball and Death shows up. Fittingly, it’s got the hallucinogenic quality of a fever dream, and the various incarnations of Death are wonderfully creepy.

As Above, So Below (2014)

A group of explorers heads deep into the Paris catacombs, only to find they’ve gone a little too deep and stumbled into an alternate dimension that might actually be Hell. It’s a brilliantly over the top concept, and the way it plays out is incredibly eerie. Yes, it’s found footage, and yes, it’s a little bit on the silly side – it chucks in quotes from Dante and a few too many sad-faced ghosts – but some of the scares along the way are properly frightening. Suspend your disbelief and let it freak you out.

Oculus (2013)

Eleven years ago, Alan (Rory Cochrane) bought an antique mirror… and then died, along with his wife. According to the police, they were murdered by their 10-year-old son. According to their daughter, the mirror is haunted, and something supernatural caused their deaths. Now Tim (Brenton Thwaites) is out of prison, Kaylie (Karen Gillan) wants to prove he was innocent by conducting an experiment on the mirror… But inadvertently puts both of them in danger all over again.

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It’s chilling. The way director Mike Flanagan plays with reality, building unbearable uncertainty through camera angles and false memories, makes this film both incredibly scary and impossibly sad.

The Witch (2015)

After being cast out of a New England plantation for not interpreting scripture in the same way as the colony’s elders, a family strikes out alone, and soon discovers how inhospitable their unfamiliar new home country can really be. The Witch is a period piece, and the language is suitably archaic, but don’t let that put you off: it’s a brilliantly chilling portrayal of Puritan life, where belief can mean the difference between life and death, and horror is only ever one failed crop away.

The Amityville Horror (1979)

The Amityville Horror is the haunted house story. If you were only ever going to watch one haunted house movie, it should be this one, because this is the archetypal story: a family moves into a house where horrible murders happened, and then bad things happen to them. It manages a lot of things later imitators didn’t, though, which is that it makes the Lutzes’ decision to buy the house make sense, and also builds the horror slowly, so that they almost don’t notice when the things going wrong in the house switch from annoying issues to outright horror. If you’ve moved house in recent memory, this one’ll hit you where it hurts.

The Conjuring (2013)

If you were only ever going to watch two haunted house movies, the second one should definitely be The Conjuring. James Wan’s ode to ’70s horror has plenty in common with The Amityville Horror, but it also has plenty of ideas of its own – and at least half a dozen moments that’ll make your heart leap into your mouth.

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The camerawork, the music, the cute kids stuck in the middle of epic spiritual warfare… it all adds up to a completely terrifying experience. You’ll probably need to sleep with a nightlight for a week afterwards.

The Changeling (1980)

George C. Scott stars as Dr. John Russell in this classic ghost story, which is a favorite of The Others director Alejandro Amenabár. Following the tragic demise of his wife and son, Dr. Russell moves into a rambling Victorian mansion to compose music and pick up the pieces of his life. He’s soon being woken by relentless booming sounds coming from the heating system, precisely at 6am every day… Then there’s the old “apparition in the self-filling bath” trick (actually, this may be the first time this happened onscreen, but it sure won’t be the last).

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This is one of those movies which hits up all the clichés: people go into the dark, gloomy attic to search for clues, and to the library to look up old news archives on the microfiche; they visit the graveyard, and finally, hold a séance (which is overwhelmingly creepy). The eerie soundtrack and skilful storytelling result in a film which peels back its mysterious layers slowly for a satisfying finish.

The Hallow (2015)

If you go down to the woods today, make sure you don’t steal anything or break anything, or the Hallow will get you. Tree surgeon Adam and his family move into an ancient farmhouse to start sizing up the land for developers and quickly fall afoul of the supernatural creatures lurking in the trees, which turns out to be a really bad idea. This film’s got it all: foreboding mythology, grotesque body horror, and the most amazing line of foreshadowing dialogue you’ll ever hear.

The Uninvited (1944)

A couple of Londoners holidaying in Cornwall stumble across a gorgeous abandoned house on the seafront and immediately decide they want to buy it. The owner, a grumpy old colonel, is happy to sell it to them on the spot, but his granddaughter is reluctant. Turns out the house has got secrets, and, yeah, a ghost. The dialogue in this film is incredible in a very 1940s kind of way, and the tone can occasionally be accused of jolliness, but it’s also got its moments of proper creepiness. Best enjoyed with a glass of sherry.

Saint Maud (2019)

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It’s a film about conflicts between mind, body and soul, but it leans her into genre territory as Maud (Morfydd Clark) hear God talking to her directly and punishes her own body in an attempt to feel closer to her spiritual side, while the cancer riddled Amanda (Jennifer Elhe) celebrates her body as it lets her down. Shot in Scarborough everything about Saint Maud is unsettling right up to the indelible finale. An absolute must watch.

Crimson Peak (2015)

Director Guillermo del Toro insists that Crimson Peak isn’t a horror film but is, instead, a gothic romance. That doesn’t mean that it isn’t creepy as all get-out, though. When aspiring author Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska) meets charming baronet Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston), she falls madly in love and agrees to move back to his ancestral home, Allerdale Hall – aka Crimson Peak. But the house is crumbling and full of ghosts, and Sir Thomas’s sister doesn’t seem terribly friendly, either…

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Del Toro’s visual flair is in full effect here, and every frame of this film (even the scary ones) are stunningly beautiful to look at. It’s a treat.

Baskin (2015)

A group of cops answers a call from the middle of nowhere and unwittingly stumble into something that can only be described as ‘a nightmare’ in this skin-crawlingly nasty Turkish horror. Abrasive, aggressive and deliberately difficult, this is the kind of film that burrows deep into your brain, only to resurface later at the worst possible time. Then again, by the time you’re stranded in the middle of nowhere with only dead colleagues and Silent Hill-style monsters for company, you probably don’t need memories of a horror movie to freak you out.

His House (2020)

A Netflix movie which could make a mark come award’s season the directorial debut of Remi Weekes sees a Sudanese refugee couple seek housing in London only to find themselves haunted by ghosts of the past and present. This is proper horror and it’s creepy as hell but it also leans into the horror of the refugee situation with the two marginalized, restricted, and treated as outsiders from the start – it’s a powerful but uncomfortable watch.

Host (2020)

The defining horror of 2020 – written, shot, edited and released on Shudder in just 12 week – Host is so much more than a lockdown gimmick. Following a group of friends who decide to do a seance via a Zoom chat, this ingenious movie trades on the real life friendships of the cast and crew and the absolute ubiquity of the video software during isolation. It’s seriously creepy too, utilising visions in the shadow but later some seriously impressive stunt work. Director Rob Savage and writer Jed Shepherd have signed up for a three picture deal from Blumhouse on the strength of this movie which absolutely needs to be seen.

The Haunting (1963)

Not to be confused with the remake of 1999, this retro gem not only features some classic sequences of spooky happenings, but a philosophical take on the paranormal. As John Markway says, “The preternatural is something we don’t have any natural explanation for right now but probably will have someday – the preternatural of one generation becomes the natural of the next. Scientists once laughed at the idea of magnetic attraction; they couldn’t explain it, so they refused to admit it exists.

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Dr. Markway (Richard Johnson) is investigating the mysterious Hill House, whose inhabitants often die in odd circumstances. With him he has Luke (Russ Tamblyn), the cynical heir to the home, the psychic Theo (Claire Bloom, way too cool for school) and Julie Harris as Eleanor, who has some ghosts of her own but figures a free stay in a mansion is as close to a holiday as she’s going to get. Markway is pleased the ladies haven’t done any research into the bad reputation of the house “So much the better. You should be innocent and receptive.” (The old dog.) This is a great, character-driven story with a dry sense of humor, and a mysterious heroine who feels oddly at home with the supernatural.

Unfriended (2014)

A cautionary tale about the dangers of cyberbullying, Unfriended achieves the seemingly impossible and manages to make the standard sound effects of everyday computer programs terrifying. The whole story is told through one character’s desktop, so you get to watch as she Skypes with her friends, posts to Facebook, or picks something to listen to on Spotify. The details are fascinating, and it’s kind of brilliant how the filmmakers manage to express so much about a character through her browser bookmarks and the messages she types, but doesn’t send. Once the horror kicks in, though, you’ll be too scared to notice much more of the cleverness.

Shutter (2004)

Jane (Natthaweeranuch Thongmee) is driving back from a wedding with her boyfriend Tun (Ananda Everingham) when she hits a girl – in a panic, they leave the body lying in the road and try to get on with their lives. They start feeling rattled when Tun’s photography is blighted by misty shadows and they both suffer from the odd hallucination which seems to show that their hit and run victim (Achita Sikamana) isn’t resting in peace.

Where would horror films be without photographic dark rooms? Even in the digital age, the dim red light and slowly emerging pictures remain classic tools of terror. Not to mention the room with rows of jars containing pickled animals, and the surprise homage to Psycho. This story has it all. There are also touches of dark humor throughout (the praying mantis is a recurring motif) and one of the most bone-chilling scenes has a hilarious payoff.

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Directors Banjong Pisanthanakun and Parkpoom Wongpoom skilfully create real characters and have the ability to communicate some of the most powerful and eloquent moments without dialogue. The mystery deepens as more sinister evidence comes to light and the climax is truly chilling. This is one which will stay with you long after Halloween.

Spider Baby (1967)

The Merrye children live out in the middle of nowhere, with only one another and their family chauffeur, Bruno (Lon Chaney Jr) for company. Which is for the best, because they’re all afflicted with the family curse – a bizarre quirk of genetics that causes members of the Merrye family to begin to de-evolve once they reach a certain age. When some distant relatives come to visit, intending to challenge the kids’ right to stay in the house, things go sour fast. It’s a horror comedy, this one, but if you’re not a little bit creeped out by Virginia (Jill Banner), the Spider Baby of the title, and her spider game, well, good luck to you.

What Lies Beneath (2000)

Robert Zemeckis directs Michelle Pfieffer and Harrison Ford in this glossy supernatural thriller, with predictably high quality results. Clare and Norman Spencer live the perfect life – especially now their daughter has left for college and they’re enjoying empty nest syndrome. But the neighbors are causing some concern – especially when the wife disappears and Claire believes she is trying to communicate with her from “the other side.”

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Zemeckis has admitted that this is his homage to Hitchcock, and true to form, the suspense builds deliciously slowly. When Claire starts seeing faces in the bathtub (where else?) she goes to talk it over with a psychiatrist. A session with a Ouija board proves that somebody is trying to contact Claire, and it’s not long before she’s stealing keepsakes from grieving parents and reading books with chapters helpfully entitled “Conjuring the Dead.”

The result is a strong movie whether you’re enjoying the ghost story or the “Yuppies in peril in a beautiful house” aspect of it (and it doesn’t hurt that Michelle looks luminously beautiful).

Cat People (1942)

Serbian immigrant Irena doesn’t have a friend in the world when she meets Oliver. He’s kind and attentive and they soon fall in love, despite Irena’s lack of physical affection. She’s convinced she’s living under a curse that will mean she’ll transform into a panther and kill any man she kisses, and despite seeing a (deeply inappropriate) psychiatrist, she can’t shake her beliefs. Oliver is initially patient but eventually finds himself falling for his much more reasonable colleague, Alice. There’s no way this love triangle can end happily and, well, it doesn’t. Cat People is sad as well as eerie, with an increasingly paranoid atmosphere enhanced by skillful shadow play.

The Nameless (1999)

Five years after her daughter Angela went missing, presumed dead, Claudia starts getting weird phone calls. A female voice claims to be Angela, and begs her mother to save her. A series of weird clues leads Claudia to investigate a weird cult… but when things slot into place too easily, it seems like someone might be luring her into a trap. Thematically, The Nameless is similar to Jaume Balaguero’s later film Darkness; there’s a similar feeling of hopelessness and despair, a creeping horror that doesn’t let up, topped off with a horribly downbeat ending. Brrrr.

Dead End (2003)

The Harrington family are driving home for Christmas when they decide to take a shortcut. Obviously, that turns out to be a bad idea. Picking up a mysterious hitchhiker is an even worse idea. Dead End isn’t a particularly original movie, and it does have a truly awful ending, but there’s something about its characters, its atmosphere, and the way it tells the well-worn story that’s really effective. And creepy, of course.

The Others (2001)

Every ghost story introduces an element of uncertainty: are these things really happening, or are they in your head? Like The Innocents, The Others is partly inspired by Henry James’ novella The Turn Of The Screw. Grace (Nicole Kidman) has turned being neurotic into a fulltime job; her children apparently suffer from a sensitivity to light, which means the gothic mansion they inhabit must be swathed in thick curtains at all times. This makes things difficult for the new servants, who have turned up in a most mysterious manner…

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Grace’s daughter has an imaginary playmate called Victor; her insistence that there are “other people” in the house vexes Grace until she begins to hear them, too. A piano playing by itself, shaking chandeliers and some truly traumatic hallucinations add to the panic as Grace questions exactly who she is sharing her home with. The tension builds to almost unbearable heights before a truly haunting ending. An intelligent script with a superb twist, quality acting and an atmospheric set (complete with graveyards, mist and autumn leaves) – what more could you want in a creepy movie?

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

“It is happening, and no one is safe.” Night of the Living Dead features some of the most brilliantly ominous radio broadcasts in all horror. When a group of strangers end up trapped in an isolated farmhouse together after the dead begin to rise, no one is in the mood for making friends, and it’s their own prejudices and stubbornness that leads to their downfall. (Well, that, and the fact that no one realized getting bitten by a ghoul would lead to death and reincarnation. Oops.)

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The zombie imagery is some of the most haunting ever committed to film, as vacant-eyed ghouls wander in and out of the shadows, chewing on dismembered body parts as they lurch around, constantly in search of fresh meat…

Candyman (1992)

Say his name five times into a mirror and the Candyman appears. Despite his sweet-sounding name, that’s not something you really want to do: Daniel Robitaille was a murdered artist, stung to death by bees in a racist attack, and so he tends not to be in a good mood when he shows up. Set in an urban tower block, this film demonstrates that horror can strike anywhere, not just in spooky old mansions in the middle of the countryside. It’s gory, grimy, and really quite disturbing.

M (1931)

A child murderer is stalking the streets of Berlin and, as the police seem unable to catch him, tensions run high. In an attempt to stop the nightly police raids, the town’s criminals decide to catch the killer themselves, and a frantic chase begins. Though there’s no actual onscreen violence, Peter Lorre is amazingly creepy as the whistling killer, and there’s a sense of corruption pervading the whole film. (Since both Lorre and Fritz Lang, the director, fled the country in fear of the Nazis soon after the film was made, it’s tempting to speculate on what M might be saying about Germany at the time, which only makes it all the creepier.)

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

An early example of the found footage genre, The Blair Witch Project has been aped and parodied by everyone and their grandma, but there’s something unsettling about it that hasn’t quite gone away. Most of the film is improvised; the actors are really filming the scenes themselves, working from a loose outline of the plot, but without prior knowledge of what half the scares were going to be. That ambiguous ending lets you make up whatever explanation you like for the events of the film, which means whatever the scariest thing you can think of is, that’s what the film is about.

The Orphanage (2007)

Laura (Belén Rueda) is returning to her childhood orphanage with her husband and son in order to open it as a care home for children with disabilities. She’s busy, but still has time to notice that seven year old Simón (Roger Príncep) has found an imaginary friend, Tomas. He might have a sack over his head, but what’s a little creepy mask between pals?

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Simón is adopted, so it’s only a little odd when a social worker shows up without an appointment. It’s slightly more odd that she’s snooping around in the shed at night. During a daytime party, Laura has an encounter of her own with a masked child, and then experiences every parent’s nightmare: Simón is missing. What follows is the story of a mother who takes the search for her son to the limits of her sanity. Geraldine Chaplin makes an appearance as the medium who conducts possibly the most spine-tingling of all onscreen séances, and there are some truly terrifying shocks during Laura’s search for the truth.

Director JA Bayona makes every shot count; the movie is visually beautiful as well as fantastically sinister. It’s a bona fide horror film but the ending might make you cry.

Ring (1998)

Ring isn’t a perfect film. It’s a bit too long and ponderous and there’s a bit too much irrelevant mysticism in there. But in terms of pure creepiness, it’s pretty damned effective. The idea of a cursed videotape was brilliant – who didn’t have zillions of unmarked VHS tapes lying around the house at the time? – and that climactic scene where the image on the screen crossed over into reality is bloodcurdling. Sneaky, too, since it managed to suggest that no one was safe. Especially not you, gentle viewer, because didn’t you just watch that cursed tape, too? An awful lot of people must have breathed a sigh of relief once their own personal seven-day window was over.

The Innocents (1961)

Based on Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw, this film sees a young governess heading out to an isolated old house to take care of two young children who appear to be keeping secrets from her. Their previous governess died, along with another of the house’s servants, but their influence still seems to be lingering about. Or is it? Just like in the original story, it’s possible to read the ghosts either as genuine spectres or as the fevered imaginings of an over-stressed and under-sexed young woman. Either way, though, the film is terrifying.

The Skeleton Key (2005)

In a decaying house on an old plantation, an old man is dying. Caroline is hired as his carer, but although her job should be simple enough, she begins to suspect that something weird is going on – especially when she finds a secret room in the house’s attic filled with spell books and other arcane bits and bobs.

Is the old man actually under a spell? Why does he seem so terrified of his wife? And might Caroline herself be in danger? The Skeleton Key is one of those films that’s far better than it has any right to be; it slowly ratchets up the tension to a crazy finale and ends on an incredibly creepy note.

Insidious (2010)

Insidious uses just about every trick in the book to creep out its audience, and for some people, that might seem like overkill. There are lurking monsters around every corner; there’s a child in peril; there are wrong-faced nasties; and there are screeching violins every five minutes. On repeat viewings, the plot doesn’t quite hold up (halfway through, the film switches protagonists, which is baffling) and the comedy relief seems grating rather than funny. But the carnival atmosphere, the nods to silent German Expressionist films, the demon’s bizarre appearance, that dancing ghost… there’s something brilliant about it, nonetheless.

Dark Water (2002)

Part of the initial wave of soggy dead girl movies, Dark Water is occasionally very daft, but still effectively creepy. Yoshimi Matsubara is a divorcee, forced by circumstances to move into a crumbling apartment block with her young daughter, Ikuko. Their new home isn’t in the nicest of areas, but it might be alright if it weren’t for the leaky ceiling – and, um, that creepy little girl lurking in the shadows, the one who’s never there when you take a second look. Directed by Hideo Nakata and based on a book by Koji Suzuki, Dark Water might not be as terrifying as Ring, but it’s still pretty eerie.

A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)

The effects are dated, and the sequels utterly killed Freddy Krueger’s menace, but the first A Nightmare on Elm Street film is still creepy, in its way. The premise is amazingly disturbing – a dead child molester is attacking children in their dreams – and, combined with some of the deeply weird nightmare imagery in this film, it’s more than enough to give anyone a few sleepless nights. All together now: one, two, Freddy’s coming for you…

Uzumaki (2000)

Slowly, inexplicably, a small town is taken over by spirals. Some people become obsessed; others are killed, their bodies twisted into impossible positions. Uzumaki is a live action adaptation of the manga of the same name, and it’s incredibly weird. Unspeakably weird. Visually, it’s incredible, although the green filters look less interesting than they used to due to overuse by every horror and sci-fi movie since. Still, most films don’t go to the extremes that Uzumaki does.

The Devil’s Backbone (2001)

Yup, it’s another soggy dead kid movie, but this time the kid is a boy and the action is set in civil war-era Spain. A young boy is sent to a creepy orphanage, where the other boys scare one another by telling stories about the resident ghost, Santi, who was killed when the orphanage was bombed. Written and directed by Guillermo del Toro, this isn’t your average ghost story – it’s a companion piece to Pan’s Labyrinth, but it’s much more of a horror movie than its better known counterpart.

The Vanishing/Spoorloos (1988)

Saskia and Rex are on holiday when Saskia suddenly, inexplicably, disappears. Rex dedicates his time to trying to find her, but to no avail. He can’t move on, can’t live with the uncertainty, so when Saskia’s kidnapper reveals himself and offers to show Rex what happened to her, his curiosity wins out. It’s a simple yet eerie story with an utterly devastating ending.

Audition (1999)

Takashi Miike’s Audition is more often described as extremely disturbing rather than creepy, but if you can get over that ending (which, let’s be honest, most of us watched through our fingers or from behind a cushion while shouting “NO NO NO NO NO” at the screen), the rest of the film may well creep you out. It starts off slow: a middle-aged man is thinking about dating again, but rather than trying to meet women via traditional methods, he holds a series of fake auditions for a non-existent movie. He meets Asami, a shy dancer, and starts wooing her – but Asami isn’t as sweet and innocent as she seems. Pretty much every character in this movie is an awful person, and the way they treat one another is disturbing on many, many levels.

One Missed Call (2004)

Also directed by Takashi Miike, One Missed Call is a parody of the endless string of soggy dead girl movies made in Japan at the time. But somehow it’s still really creepy. The premise is that, as the title suggests, teenagers are receiving missed calls on their mobile phones. The mystery caller leaves a horrifying voicemail: the sound of the phone’s owner screaming in agony. And since the call came from the person’s own phone, and appears to come from a few days in the future, it’s clearly a sign of impending doom. Sure enough, the kids all die just as the missed call predicted. There’s a nasty little backstory about evil little girls, and a bonkers televised exorcism, and generally, it’s a great film whether you love or loathe stories about scary dead kids.

The Last Man on Earth (1964)

You might’ve thought about how you’d survive the apocalypse, but have you ever stopped to consider whether it’s actually worth doing? In The Last Man On Earth, Vincent Price is the only survivor of a mysterious plague that’s turned the rest of humanity into walking corpses, hungry for his blood. Every day, he tools up and goes out to kill the bloodsuckers; every night, they surround his house and try to kill him. It’s a dismal way to live, and a depressingly eerie film. It’s based on Richard Matheson’s novel I Am Legend – so skip the Will Smith adaptation and watch this instead.

A Tale Of Two Sisters (2003)

Part melodramatic family drama, part psychological horror, A Tale Of Two Sisters is all scary all the time. When a pair of sisters return from a mental hospital, having been traumatised by their mother’s death, they find their new stepmother difficult to adjust to. The nightly visitations from a blood-dripping ghost don’t help, either. But as always in these kinds of films, nothing is what it seems – you might need a second viewing to get your head round the ending.

Night of the Hunter (1955)

Robert Mitchum might have claimed not to be interested in movies or acting, but he’s great in this. As Harry Powell, a bizarrely religious conman, he’s terrifying, whether he’s preaching about the evils of fornication or chasing the children of his latest victim across the country in an attempt to steal a stash of money he knows they’re hiding. The use of light and shadow in this movie is just stunning; the first time Powell arrives at the Harper house is a particular highlight. Robert Mitchum’s singing voice isn’t half bad, either.

Peeping Tom (1960)

Peeping Tom was so controversial when it was released that it effectively ended director Michael Powell’s career. It’s violent, voyeuristic, and since it tells a story from the villain’s point of view; it’s entirely unsavoury. And it’s wonderful. It looks great, it has an amazingly twisted (and tragic) plot, and Carl Boehm is brilliant as Mark, the awkward, mild-mannered psychopath who feels compelled to murder as a result of his father’s deranged experiments. (That’s not a spoiler, by the way – but if I told you how he killed his victims, that might be.)

Psycho (1960)

Happily, 1960’s other movie about a disturbed serial killer was less of a career-killer. Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho is wonderful, sodden with guilt and tension right from the opening scene. It’s a shame that so many of its twists are so well-known now, because watching this without knowing what was going to happen must have been brilliant. It’s still great – beautiful to watch, genuinely tense and frequently unnerving – but it has lost some of its shock value over the years. (Also, the bit at the end where the psychiatrist explains everything in great detail is utterly superfluous.) Anthony Perkins’ final twitchy, smirky scene is seriously creepy though.

City Of The Dead / Horror Hotel (1960)

Getting the timing of a holiday wrong can have disastrous consequences, as City Of The Dead illustrates. Nan Barlow is a history student who, under the tutelage of Christopher Lee’s Professor Driscoll, becomes fascinated with the history of witchcraft, and decides to visit the site of a famous witch trial… but she arrives in town on Candlemas Eve, probably the most important date in the witches’ calendar. Um, oops.

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City Of The Dead is often compared to Psycho, and there are enough similarities between the films that you could assume it was a cheap rip-off – but though the campy US retitling supports that assumption, this was actually made before Hitchcock’s motel-based chiller. It’s definitely creepy enough to be worth watching on its own merits.

Village Of The Damned (1960)

For no apparent reason, one day every living being in the English village of Midwich falls unconscious. For hours, no one can get near Midwich without passing out. When they wake up, every woman in the village finds herself mysteriously pregnant. Obviously, their children aren’t normal, and something has to be done about them… Based on John Wyndham’s novel The Midwich Cuckoos, Village Of The Damned is more of a sci-fi movie than a horror movie – but it’s super creepy nonetheless.

Dolls (1987)

Re-Animator director Stuart Gordon toned things down a bit for this creepy fairy tale, but not much. When a group of awful human beings are forced to spend the night in the home of a couple of ancient toymakers, they soon get their comeuppance at the hands of – well, the title gives that away, doesn’t it? You’ll never look at Toys R Us in the same way again.

The Woman In Black (1989)

When a reclusive old lady dies in an isolated house out in the marshes, a young lawyer is sent to sort out her estate. But there’s something weird about her house, and the townspeople aren’t keen on helping sort things out, either. The TV version of this movie is far, far creepier than the Daniel Radcliffe version; there’s one moment in particular that will etch itself on your brain and continue to creep you out for years after you see it…

The Perfume of the Lady in Black (1974)

Beautifully shot with a great score, The Perfume of the Lady in Black is a dreamy, unsettling film where nothing is ever as it seems. The wonderfully named Mimsy Farmer plays Sylvia, a scientist haunted by melancholy and hallucinations. She’s never quite recovered from her mother’s suicide, and when she goes to a party where talk turns to witchcraft and human sacrifice, her sanity starts to unravel. But are her problems really all in her head, or is there something else going on? The film doesn’t reveal its secrets until the very end, when all that creepiness pays off spectacularly.

May (2002)

May was always a weird child, and unfortunately she’s grown into a weird adult, too. Unable to form any meaningful relationships with the people around her – not even a class of blind children she thinks might be kinder to her than the people who can see how strange and awkward she is – May decides she’ll need to take this “making a friend” business into her own hands. Dark and twisted and incredibly gory, May is as sad and sweet as it is creepy. A lot of that is attributable to Angela Bettis, whose performance is adorably unnerving.

Nosferatu (1922)

In this unauthorised take on Dracula, the evil Count is depicted not as a tragic or romantic anti-hero, but as a horrifying embodiment of the plague – complete with an entourage of rats. Max Schreck makes a brilliantly weird-looking vampire, all teeth, ears and fingernails; his shadow is especially unnerving. Although the ending as presented seems a little abrupt, it’s conceptually horrifying – as is the fact that, due to a copyright claim filed by Bram Stoker’s estate, all but one copy of this movie was destroyed back in the 1920s.

Vampyr (1932)

In a spooky old inn, Allan Grey is visited in the night by an old man who leaves him a gift-wrapped book, with instructions to open it only on the occasion of the man’s death. Which turns out to be soon. The book explains that the town is plagued by vampires – and, helpfully, gives instructions on how to kill them. Vampyr is an early sound film, so while there is some sound and a little dialogue, most of the silent film conventions are still in place. It has a fairly straightforward, Dracula-esque story, but the plot’s not the point. It’s a deliberately strange film, full of disembodied dancing shadows and weird dream sequences; there’s something almost otherworldly about it.

Dracula (1931)

Bela Lugosi is the definitive Dracula. With his eerie eyes and wonderful accent, he’s brilliantly threatening as the charming Count, but despite his iconic performance here, he’s not the creepiest thing about this film. Nope, that honor goes to Dwight Frye’s portrayal of Renfield, the lunatic spider-eater under Dracula’s control. He’s amazing, all awkward body language and hysterical laughter. Lugosi’s oddly cadenced speech has been emulated and parodied a zillion times, which takes away some of its power; Frye’s performance, on the other hand, is just downright disturbing.

White Zombie (1932)

A year after Dracula, Bela Lugosi starred as Murder Legendre, an evil voodoo master, in one of the first ever zombie movies. The zombies here aren’t flesh-eating ghouls but obedient slaves, working tirelessly in Legendre’s mill. Even when one of them tumbles into a grinder, work doesn’t stop. When the plantation owner goes to Legendre for help winning the heart of the girl he loves, he’s handed a dose of the zombie potion – and now the only way to break Legendre’s spell over the innocent girl is to kill him. Lugosi is suitably menacing, and the drone-like zombies are properly eerie.

The Cursed Medallion/The Night Child (1975)

For a few years, in 1970s Italy, Nicoletta Elmi was the go-to creepy kid. She pops up in Mario Bava’s Bay of Blood and Baron Blood, and in Dario Argento’s Deep Red, among others, but she’s never more creepy than she is in The Cursed Medallion. Here, she plays Emily, the daughter of an art historian who’s making a documentary on demons in paintings. She’s given a medallion but, as the title suggests, it’s cursed, and she ends up possessed by the spirit of a murderess. It’s atmospheric, lovingly photographed and, of course, Elmi is awesome in the lead role.

The Descent (2005)

A group of friends go off on a spelunking holiday, but get more than they bargained for when it turns out that the caves they’re exploring are dangerous in more ways than one. There’s enough time spent on character development that you really feel it when the group starts to get thinned out; there’s some incredibly painful-looking gore; and there are some amazingly freaky monsters. Watch it in a darkened room to make the most of its wonderfully claustrophobic atmosphere.

Paranormal Activity (2007)

The shine might’ve come off this movie because the Paranormal Activity franchise has become Lionsgate’s new one-every-Halloween cash cow, but there’s something deliciously creepy about this movie. Rewatching it now, even knowing when all the scares are coming, it’s still chilling. In a neat twist on the traditional haunted house story, Paranormal Activity’s entity haunts a person, not a house – so its victim can’t just pack up and move. The found footage conceit is used to great effect, making you stare intently at grainy nighttime footage of an empty room, straining your ears for distant footsteps, before making you jump out of your skin with a loud bang. (Pro tip: the movie has three different endings, so if you think you’re bored of it, try one of the others.)

Ju-on: The Grudge (2002)

So much of the effectiveness of a horror movie comes down to its sound design. A well-placed creak, groan, echo, or jangle can make the difference between something completely normal and something terrifying. New scary noises don’t come along very often, but Ju-on: The Grudge managed to come up with something unlike any other scary noise you’ve heard before. Its ghost makes a weird rattling, burping groan as she approaches; it’s kind of like a death rattle, kind of like a throttled scream, and it’s creepier than anything you’ve ever heard before. The film is relentless, light on plot and heavy on jump scares, but it’s that noise that’ll stay with you.

Julia’s Eyes (2010)

Julia and her twin sister, Sara, both suffer from the same degenerative disease – one that causes them to go blind. When Sara undergoes experimental surgery and subsequently kills herself, Julia suspects foul play – and, indeed, something weird seems to be going on, with whisperings about an invisible man lurking in the shadows. But as Julia gets closer to the truth, her own eyesight suffers more and more…The film restricts our vision almost as much as Julia’s; it’s almost unbearably claustrophobic, and ultimately heartbreaking.

The Eye (2002)

Another film about eyes and the horrors of going blind, The Eye follows Mun, a classical violinist from Hong Kong, as she undergoes an eye transplant. Although the transplant seems to be successful – Mun can see again – something isn’t right, because now she can see dead people. And most of them are terrifying. The ending is vaguely preposterous, but the rest of the film is creepy enough that it’s forgivable.

Zombie Flesh Eaters (1979)

Lucio Fulci’s unofficial sequel to Dawn Of The Dead features perhaps the creepiest zombies ever committed to film. When a boat turns up in New York harbour with only a zombie on board, investigative reporter Peter West sets out to find out where the boat came from and what’s going on. He ends up on the island of Matool, where the dead are returning to life to eat the flesh of the living… and they’re really, really gross. Zombie Flesh Eaters was initially classified as a video nasty in the UK, and it’s not difficult to see why. Its atmosphere elevates it above your average exploitation movie, though; there’s something really melancholy about it.

[REC] (2007)

When a local news crew decided to tag along with the fire brigade for an evening, they probably didn’t realise they’d end up fighting from their lives in a zombie-infested tower block. Co-written and co-directed by Paco Plaza and Jaume Balaguero (yup, him again), [REC] is a decent enough zombie movie, until the final reel, when it reveals an even more terrifying ace up its sleeve.

Let Me In (2010)

Although remakes are usually terrible, Matt Reeves’ take on this unusual vampire story was both respectful of and different from the original and, for my money, it’s creepier. Lonely tween Owen doesn’t have any friends until the equally strange Abby moves in next door. They embark on an odd friendship/proto-romance, but Abby has a secret: she’s a vampire. The use of a candy jingle is, against all odds, really eerie, and by paring the story down to its most essential elements (and getting rid of that daft cat scene) Let Me In makes for a scarier watch than Let The Right One In.

Carnival Of Souls (1962)

After a traumatic accident, weird things start happening to Mary. A strange man seems to be stalking her, though no one else can see him, and she feels irresistibly drawn to an abandoned pavilion out in the middle of nowhere. Once upon a time, the pavilion housed a carnival, but now it’s just an empty building… or is it? There’s nothing surprising about the plot of this movie to a modern audience – you’ll have the whole film worked out within about five minutes – but it is gloriously creepy. The climactic scenes at the carnival are pure nightmare fuel.

The Shining (1980)

Probably the most effective of all the Stephen King adaptations, The Shining plonks Jack Nicholson down in the middle of a creepy hotel and lets him do his thing. Nicholson plays Jack Torrance, a struggling writer who gets a winter job as caretaker of The Overlook Hotel, where the isolation and/or ghosts send him out of his mind. There are so many creepy images in this film: the twin girls who just want to play, the woman in room 237, the lift full of blood, and, oh, lots more.

The Cabinet Of Doctor Caligari (1920)

Appropriately, watching The Cabinet Of Doctor Caligari feels like slipping into a nightmare. Caligari’s cabinet holds Cesare, the sleepwalker – a catatonic oracle able to answer questions of life and death with eerie accuracy. Is Caligari a hypnotist, a murderer, or both? It’s a strange story, made stranger with a twist ending, and rendered impossibly creepy by the Expressionist production design. The weird, distorted hand-painted sets give the film a crude, unreal beauty and, if anything, the passage of time has increased the film’s creepiness, because it’s so utterly unlike modern films.

The Exorcist (1973)

An obvious choice, but The Exorcist is genuinely scary. It’s deceptively simple: the filming style is realistic, the locations are ordinary-looking and, by comparison to more modern horror movies, there aren’t many elaborate effects or stunts. But the film makes every scary moment count. It’s atmosphere is oppressive, claustrophobic – there’s an ever-present sense of dread throughout. It ought to feel more dated than it does, but even now, the demonic makeup and scratchy voice of the possessed Regan gives me goosebumps.

The Omen (1976)

Damien is probably the ultimate creepy child. Adopted by the Thorns when their own newborn dies, it doesn’t take long for his dark side to emerge: Damien is the Antichrist.

There are so many iconic moments in this film, so many things that have shaped both the horror genre and our culture’s idea of evil; something about this film really struck a chord, and even now it’s pretty effective. Every death scene in this movie is memorable, but the suicide of Damien’s nanny at his birthday party particularly stands out.

Ghostwatch (1992)

Originally shown on UK TV at Halloween, Ghostwatch scared a whole generation shitless. It’s presented as a live broadcast, starring familiar BBC faces: Michael Parkinson plays host, while Sarah Green and Craig Charles report from the scene as a normal family recount their experiences with the terrifying ghost they’ve dubbed “Pipes”. The shadowy figure of a man is glimpsed several times throughout the show, some appearances more obvious than others, and as viewers call in to share their own stories, things get weirder and weirder…Okay, this isn’t technically a film, but it is so amazingly creepy and brilliant that it couldn’t be left off the list.

The Wicker Man (1973)

The Wicker Man is a wonderful mishmash of genres: it’s got humour, horror, singing and sex. It frequently teeters on the edge of absurdity. But at heart, it’s deeply creepy. When devout Christian Sgt Howie visits the isolated community of Summerisle, he thinks he’s investigating the abduction of a little girl – and the villagers certainly do seem to be acting suspiciously. But as his investigation continues, it becomes clear that something entirely different is going on. Howie runs headlong to his doom, and its final scene is downright spine-chilling.

Suspiria (1977)

Suspiria is Dario Argento’s finest hour. It’s eyeball-meltingly beautiful to look at, all unnatural neon lighting and ridiculously lavish set design; the music is cacophonous, a never-ending wall of sound that doesn’t let up; and the plot is, well, it’s functional enough.

Suzy, an American ballet dancer, flies to an exclusive dance school in Germany only to find herself in the midst of a murder investigation – and something weird is definitely going on with the teachers. If you haven’t seen Suspiria in a while, treat yourself to the Blu-ray. There’s nothing restrained about this movie, nothing ordinary; it sneaks up on you and worms its way into your brain. It’s brilliant.

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cheryls-blossomed · 4 years

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this is kinda random but i wonder if the reason the latest seasons of the flash have been so team flash heavy is becuz the villains have become less personal in a way. like the "big bad" in the first 3 seasons were either some sort of direct foil to barry or literally himself in the case of savitar (still dont know how i feel about this whole storyline tbh). i think that has left the later seasons feeling a bit more, boring for lack of better words since they stopped focusing so much (part 1)

on barry's inner demons since they wanted to move away from having speedster villains i guess, which i get. in s5 it seemed as if they were returning to this focus more on barry and his family (i.e. iris, joe) with the introduction of nora but the cicada villain never felt like he had that much consequence to me. anyway idk where i'm going with this lol

I can definitely see this argument, and I think it’s a good one (you make a lot of good points, especially re moving away from Barry’s inner demons), but in my opinion, I actually think it’s the other way around: because the show chose to focus more on the Team, the villains felt less personal. Leaving aside Reverse Flash (because of his long-standing history with Barry, including his hatred of and obsession with him) and Savitar (who was Barry’s Time Remnant... like you can’t get more personal than that), pretty much all the villains had the potential to have a pretty personal vendetta against Barry. There’s no reason, for example, that DeVoe or Dwyer couldn’t have been similar to a Zolomon-type villain for Barry. Zoom sort of served as an Evil Counterpart to Barry. DeVoe and Marlize were poised as the super-villainous pair to Barry and Iris’s super-heroic duo. DeVoe framed Barry for his own murder; he deliberately made their animosity extremely personal, but the narrative was more interested in having Barry play second fiddle to Ralph, and so the personal connection that was literally right there in the skeleton of the season withered away, and DeVoe just become everyone’s villain, particularly Ralph’s, by the end of the season. Dwyer and Grace were quite clearly meant to parallel Barry and Nora, but the writers were just not committed to Dwyer’s Cicada, and so there were very few moments where things felt personal, because Dwyer and Grace were just, essentially, mass-murderers. Grace didn’t even feel like Nora’s villain, quite honestly, even though she apparently was supposed to be. But season 5 also had Reverse Flash, but failed to capitalize on that potential until the final episode (where the animosity between Flash and Reverse Flash got extremely personal, even more so than ever before).

The thing is, Russo was actually quite a personal villain for Barry. He was a dying man, just as Barry was a man contending with his impending demise. Russo offered Barry a temptation that was impossible to refuse for a hero who has fought and saved the day over and over, but still is condemned to die no matter what. The problem is that the story was more concerned with a sloppy build up to Crisis than exploring the potential rivalry and even ally-ship between Ramsey and Barry, so there was such a strange focus on the team dynamic, while everything that Ramsey could tempt Barry with was only explored in the final two episodes of season 6A (and then really only in 6x07, quite honestly). So, I think skewing towards the team dynamic in season 6A was because of how sloppily the build-up to Crisis was handled more than anything else.

Season 6B was supposed to mirror season 6A. The execution was just fumbled on both ends. But consider the skeletons of both: 1) Barry is trapped by his own impending demise in season 6A and is suffering mentally; Iris is physically trapped in a Mirror and is suffering physically and mentally. 2) Iris (and everyone else) has to contend with a life without Barry; Barry (and Joe and everyone else) has to contend with a life without Iris, if he cannot save her. 3) Ramsey and Barry are both dead men walking; Eva is an Evil Counterpart to Iris. 4) The speedforce went through it in season 6A/Crisis (lol); the speedforce “dies” in season 6B, with Barry having to preserve whatever little speed he has left. So, Eva is supposed to be a very personal villain to Iris; she trapped Iris in a Mirror, where Iris is undergoing immense psychological trauma. The problem is that the narrative didn’t spend enough time on Iris and Eva’s dynamic, the way the show didn’t spend enough time on Barry and Ramsey’s dynamic. There are just one hundred side-plots to accommodate the secondary characters in season 6B.

So, I would argue that it’s actually the other way around: the villains feel less personal, because the show wants to make the greater Team dynamic more prominent. As I said, there’s no reason none of the post season 3 Big Bads couldn’t have been Zolomon-type villains, because they all parallel and therefore have a personal connection to Barry the way Zoom did (with the exception of Eva, but Eva has that personal connection to Iris, which was the whole point of season 6B... to create mirroring arcs in season 6A and season 6B).

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eviesmyspiritanimal · 4 years

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Paint It Pink

Summary: When Mal, Evie, Uma, Audrey, Jane, and the rest are all hanging out at Evie’s house, they get into a rather interesting conversation about whether boys or girls should be the bosses. Soon enough, they’re launched into an all-out paintball war as they struggle for dominance. Huma, Bal, Jarlos, and Jaudrey but ultimately friendship and family feels. Warning: an attempt at fake suicide.

“Yo, Whitey Tighty, get me a coke!” Uma called to the white-haired boy over nearby the fridge in Evie’s kitchen. Carlos looked at her strangely and furrowed his brow.

Currently, all of the group was gathered in Evie’s house for a relaxing evening to just enjoy one another’s company. Evie, Mal, and Ben were relaxed on one couch while Uma, Harry, and Gil were on another. Jane, Audrey, Jay, and Carlos had been sitting on the opposite one to the Sea Three’s. That is, until Carlos got up to go get himself a drink.

And now Uma was demanding that he get her one as well.

“How about a please?!” Carlos questioned loudly, unappreciative of Uma’s bossiness.

“Oh, go please yourself!” Uma replied to him with a dismissive wave of her hand, despite the fact he couldn’t see her. Mal raised an eyebrow at the other girl from her position with her head on Evie’s lap and her feet on Ben’s, and Uma smirked at her.

“I’m not somebody’s servant,” Carlos smartly replied, but he nevertheless withdrew a drink for the pirate and himself.

“Ah, yes. Good boy. Now I know who to go to for getting my bunions scraped,” Uma declared, and Mal snorted a bit in response to the pirate. Evie rolled her eyes slightly.

“I’m not scraping your bunions,” Carlos replied to her, and Uma just raised an eyebrow.

“Why not? You should be an expert since you did it so much for your mother,” Uma informed him, and Carlos just ignored her as he sat down next to Jane who wasted no time in taking his hand in her own.

“Dadgum. You know, it’s a good thing my boys listen, ain’t it?”

“Does that mean we’re your servants?” Gil questioned worriedly, and Uma just gestured flippantly at the boy.

“Gil, please. You practically signed your soul over to me when you became part of my crew,” Uma sassily replied.

“I don’t recall tha’ bein’ part of the deal,” Harry piped up, and Uma looked at him almost offendedly. She then turned her gaze to Mal.

“Look at this, Mal. This is ridiculous. These menfolk getting out of hand. You know what I mean, don’t you, girl?” Uma questioned desperately and almost dramatically as she looked over at the faerie.

“No, not really. Ben always does as I tell him,” Mal informed Uma, and Ben immediately turned his gaze to her in surprise.

“Yeah, it’s practically me and M running the kingdom,” Evie expressed with a grin, and Ben furrowed his brow, unappreciative of the two girls and their determinations.

“Wow. Harry Barry, you need to take some lessons,” Uma told him, smacking his stomach lightly, and Harry sighed a bit in response, unimpressed with his captain.

“I wish Jay would mind that well,” Audrey expressed, offering Jay a slight glare of irritation.

“Well, dear, I think you’re forgetting that I usually do because you spend the majority of your time nagging me to death,” Jay replied to her, and Audrey’s mouth fell open in shock as she glowered at the boy.

“I-I think we should all just work together and help each other equally,” Jane expressed, but her opinion was quickly lost in the midst of the uproar that had started with some of the rest of their group.

“I think that y’all are getting out of hand. I am the captain, remember?” Uma told Harry and Gil.

“But that doesn’t make us your servants, does it?” Gil questioned confusedly, and Harry immediately shook his head in response to the other boy. Uma just growled under her breath as she cut her eyes in the Gil’s direction.

“And, Jay, how dare you accuse me of nagging?!” Audrey demanded, and he rolled his eyes as he scooted forward a bit.

“Alright, look, I’m not talking about this and letting it blow up into another one of our giant explosions or whatever. I still remember the last time we were all hanging out and we got into a bit of an argument. My stomach’s still suffering from that prank cake,” Jay spoke up, interrupting things before they could get too heated.

“Carlos, how’s your new paintball game on your PlayStation?” Jay asked, pointing to Carlos as he directed his attention to his little brother.

“Of course. The new topic of conversation is video games,” Uma muttered under her breath. Carlos shot a dirty look in Uma’s direction before replying.

“It’s really great. It’s a first-person shooter, and the graphics are stellar,” Carlos described, and Jay nodded as he grew more engrossed in the conversation. Ben looked at Carlos oddly, and he leaned forward a bit.

“Is there character customization?” Ben questioned curiously, and Carlos nodded emphatically.

“Totally, dude, it’s so awesome!” Uma rolled her eyes, sharing a glare with Audrey.

“Multiplayer?” Harry questioned, and Carlos grinned widely as he offered affirmation to Harry’s question.

“I think we need to meet up and play that one,” Jay expressed his opinion on the subject and Carlos laughed, looking over at the older boy.

“Yeah, definitely. Shoot up the other team, am I right? Get your aggressions out!” Carlos aimed a fake gun and he made a few shooting noises. Uma’s eyes widened and a smirk came onto her face as she got an idea.

“How about I’ve got a better idea?” Uma spoke up, and everyone looked at her.

“What if we had a real paintball match?” Uma suggested, and Carlos suddenly looked quite thoughtful.

“A paintball match?!” Jane squeaked, and Evie had a big grin on her face as she looked at Uma.

“Ooh, that sounds fun… What do you think, M?” Evie asked, and Mal could see Evie’s eyes glowing with that competitive spirit. Mal sat up and moved her feet off of Ben’s lap so that she was sitting more closely to Evie.

“Sounds good to me, E.”

“You wanna be on my team?” Evie offered before leaning close to Mal and whispering playfully. “I have a high likelihood of winning, but with you, it’d be guaranteed.”

Mal grinned at her best friend, and she slid an arm around Evie’s shoulders.

“Sure. We’ll win,” Mal told her sister confidently, and Evie beamed.

“I propose girls versus boys. What do y’all think?” Uma questioned, and Carlos nodded excitedly. Jay, Harry, and Gil seemed to be rather intrigued as well. The only boy who wasn’t so enthralled with the idea was Ben, and he looked somewhat apprehensive.

“I don’t know about that,” Ben started to protest, but Audrey’s next statement almost completely made any effect of his words disappear.

“And let’s make it a bet,” Audrey added, and Uma grinned wickedly at her. After all, Uma wasn’t through with their entire conversation about servants and who bossed who around, and she had a feeling Audrey wasn’t either if her sly expression was anything to go by.

“A girl after my own heart, eh, Princess?” Uma questioned, and Audrey just shrugged a bit as she smiled smugly.

“What exactly is the wager?” Jay questioned with an eyebrow raise.

“The team that wins will have the other team as their servants for a whole day. You have to do whatever the winning team tells you to do,” Audrey firmly spoke, and Uma nodded approvingly.

“That sounds fun,” Evie excitedly expressed, and Mal nodded. In fact, everyone except Ben and Jane seemed excited at the prospect of the battle. Once he had looked at all of the boys and seen that all except Ben were in favor of the idea, Jay nodded with a grin.

“We’re in.”

“Cool. And you guys will set up the gear?” Uma questioned, and everyone but Ben nodded eagerly.

“Definitely,” Carlos answered with a sparkle in his eye. Uma leaned back in her seat with a slight smirk as she glanced at the other girls before returning her gaze to Carlos.

“Perfect.”

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

“I think I look like Katniss Everdeen,” Evie declared proudly as she fingered her braid before lifting her gun with a raise of an eyebrow. Mal looked over at her sister, taking in Evie’s pose. Evie looked at Mal and she bounced one eyebrow playfully. Mal immediately laughed at her, and she side-hugged the girl tightly, pressing her forehead to the side of Evie’s head.

However, to her surprise, their helmets clanged together hard, and they both jumped a bit in surprise before giggling again.

It was two days later, and all of the girls were gathered around the edge of their chosen field in the dead zone as they made the last few preparations to their uniforms before they went out to meet the boys who were already finding their positions.

Evie and Mal had went out together to go and buy the group some armor pieces. Particularly, they had helmets, chest armor, and shin guards.

“Well, I’m glad you do. I look more like the Michelin tire man,” Audrey proclaimed in a bit of a whine, and Evie shook her head as she started to say something.

“It’s an improvement, honestly,” Uma replied immediately, interrupting Evie. Audrey narrowed her eyes and growled under her breath as she set her jaw in irritation. Uma strapped on the last bit of armor as she turned around to face the rest of the girls.

“Okay! We ready to whoop some boy behind?” Uma questioned as she looked at the lot of them, her hair pulled back just a little as she gazed at them with her helmet lifted.

Audrey rolled her eyes as Uma tried to look imposing and intimidating with her gear.

“No!” Jane whimpered, her mask already down as she fearfully hid behind it. Uma just offered Jane a slight smirk.

“Then let’s do this,” Uma spoke, flipping the visor part of her helmet down before leading the way over to where the boys were already standing. Evie and Mal followed suit, closing their helmets, and Audrey just scoffed, but copied their movements as she went after them and dragged Jane behind her.

“Took ye long enough!” Harry called out in a taunt, and Uma rolled her eyes at him, unimpressed with his jeering as she led the group behind their big rock that would serve as cover.

“Alright!” Jay called when the girls were in their positions on the battlefield.

“We know the rules! One shot and you’re down, and don’t shoot anybody after they’re hit that one time,” Jay announced, and the girls expressed varying forms of agreement. “And after they’re hit, they head over there to the dead zone where they’ll wait until the match is over.”

“We’re good?” Jay questioned loudly, but Audrey quickly raised her hand, and Jay looked at her.

“And don’t shoot anyone in the head?” Audrey questioned, and Jay furrowed his brow.

“What? No!” Jay replied, shaking his head as if that were the oddest thing he’d ever heard.

“The beauty of this game, gorgeous, is that you can shoot anywhere!” Harry added with a wild look in his eyes, and Audrey suddenly lost all of her calmness about the idea of the paintball fight as her jaw slackened.

“Are we ready?!” Jay shouted, and Mal and Uma gave out thumbs-ups in response to the boy as they ducked behind their rock. Ben shook his head quickly, and Harry just shoved him down behind their rock.

“Let’s do this!” Uma called in response, and they all five jumped as Harry shot a paintball nearby Uma’s shoulder that hit the rock with a splatter. Uma wasted no time dipping down behind the rock to hide behind it more fully.

“Huh. He’s a better shot than I thought,” Uma pointed out with a slight chuckle as she started to aim for the boys with her paintball gun.

“AAAH!!! The paintballs splatter?!!!!” Audrey cried, and Uma looked at her strangely.

“Well, yeah.”

“And let me get this straight! They can shoot at our heads?!” Audrey demanded, and Uma looked at her with a slight chuckle and an odd glance.

“Yeah, Princess, duh.” Uma then looked to Mal. “Is she not a fast learner? She obviously knows nothing about violent sport.”

“Don’t worry, Audrey, you won’t be getting hit in the head today. I’m going to win this match easy!” Evie declared before starting to fire at any signs of movement around the boys’ rock.

“What the— did they give us pink paintballs?!” Uma demanded, and Evie looked at her paintball gun strangely as she took in the fact that her gun did indeed eject pink paintballs.

“Because you’re a bunch of girls!” Carlos declared, obviously having heard Uma’s question.

Evie narrowed her eyes, and Mal watched as Evie’s entire stance shifted as her mind moved into competition mode. Evie aimed for Carlos’s head and she pulled the trigger like a madwoman, paintballs shooting toward the boys’ rock and covering it with pinkness.

“Take that, you scumbags!!!” Evie cried as she unloaded on them. Mal and Uma paused, and Uma stared at her in shock.

“Does she always do that?” Uma questioned as she jabbed a thumb at Evie as she bared her teeth and blasted the paintballs.

“Pretty much,” Mal replied simply.

“Remind me not to get roped into family game night,” Uma muttered with a slight laugh, and Evie shot back down to the ground as the boys fired some balls. Evie narrowed her eyes, and she looked as if she might hop over the top of the rock.

However, Uma and Mal both grabbed her before she could begin to do that.

“Evie, stop, you can’t go out there!” Mal told her best friend, and Evie looked at her confusedly as she gripped her gun firmly.

“Why not? I might have a better chance at hitting the boys.”

“Because you might get hit,” Uma told her, and Evie just laughed a bit.

“Well, one person getting hit is no big deal. You and Mal and Audrey can go on without me as long as I hit two or three of the guys,” Evie informed the pirate, and Uma shook her head.

“E, you don’t get it. First of all, we need you to stay in the game as long as possible because I kind of want to keep our whole team out of the dead zone. Second of all… Well, Evie, those paintballs hurt when they hit you,” Mal expressed, and Mal watched as the crazed look in Evie’s eyes slowly started to fade away as she seemed to realize the possibility for pain that was in this game.

“Oh. Oh… That’s not… Well, that sounds not too fun,” Evie replied to Mal as she sunk down behind the rock next to Jane who was currently hiding behind the rock in a curled up ball. Mal nodded in agreeance and Uma rolled her eyes as she tried to position her gun a bit better over the top of the rock in case she could possibly manage to hit the boys.

“The paintballs hurt?! As if it wasn’t bad enough with the mess!” Audrey proclaimed, almost completely hysterical. “And people make this out to be a fun game?! It should be called painball instead of paintball!!!”

“Look, Princess, suck it up. By the time we’re through with this match, you’re going to have an ugly raised up bruised place on your body and you’re going to be messy,” Uma informed Audrey in a matter-of-fact tone as a paintball suddenly splashed nearby the girls and the paint shot out onto Uma’s hair.

“Did ye hit ‘er?!” Harry gleefully shouted, and Uma narrowed her eyes.

“Try again, Hook! You missed by a mile!” Uma cried in return, but she hid a bit better behind the rock as she looked at Audrey to resume their conversation.

“Uma! Your hair has blue paint in it!” Audrey cried in unadulterated horror. Uma looked down at her hair, and she sighed slightly before shrugging.

“It’s going to happen, and it’ll probably happen to you,” Uma informed the princess.

“I can’t do this. My hair can’t do this! I can’t have my hair messed up! I CAN’T DO THIS!!!” Audrey screeched.

“AAAH!!!!!” Audrey shrieked as she suddenly left from behind the rock, trying to get away for fear that her hair would be ruined by the paintballs. Mal and Uma shared a blank glance before looking back at the runaway princess. After a long moment, Uma just slowly shook her head as she stared at the girl.

“Wow. That is purely impressive,” Uma commented in shock as they watched Audrey take off across the battlefield. Audrey ran, dodging paintballs as she took off screaming at the top of her lungs.

However, after a moment, Gil jumped out from behind the rock, aiming for Audrey as he ran toward her. Of course, Audrey couldn’t do much about him because she had somehow or another ended up leaving her paintball gun behind. Uma smirked as she saw her opportunity.

Before Gil could even begin to shoot the princess, Uma hit him in the center of his chest with a pink paintball. Audrey hadn’t stopped the entire time as she ran for her life and tried to escape.

“Darn it, Gil!” Harry cried out, and Gil sighed deeply as he held his gun above his head and ran off of the field.

“WHOO!!! First hit!” Uma called, and she could practically feel Harry’s glare at her.

During this, Audrey was still running for her life, and Uma quickly noticed that Jay was peeking out from behind the rock in an attempt to shoot her. Mal apparently saw this as well, and she shot up so that she could see just above the rock, and she shot at Jay multiple times.

But her paintballs very unfortunately didn’t hit Jay, and he ended up successfully blasting Audrey in the behind with a blue paintball.

“OUCH! JAY!!!” Audrey screeched and held her paintball gun above her head as she glared at Jay. He just smirked wildly at his girlfriend, waggling his eyebrows, and Audrey growled as she fled.

“Don’t hit me, please don’t hit me! I’m already fatally injured!” Audrey cried, and Uma rolled her eyes at the other girl’s dramatics.

“Man, that diversion worked like a charm,” Uma informed the other girls, and Evie nodded with a slight smile as she looked at Uma and Mal.

“I’ll say. And we didn’t even mean for it to be a diversion. Audrey just went nuts and ran,” Mal informed Uma with a slight laugh as she tried to get an idea of the boys’ position. Mal narrowed her eyes as she watched Carlos dart out from behind the boys’ large rock in favor of hurrying over to a tree that was closer to the girls’ place.

Mal raised an eyebrow.

“In fact, I think we need another diversion,” Mal spoke up, and Uma grinned widely, not knowing what Mal had in mind, but perfectly willing to hear it. Mal looked to Jane, and Jane’s eyes went wide as she stared at the purple-haired girl.

“Why are you looking at me?” Jane questioned, and Mal smirked slightly.

“We need you to run over to that tree,” Mal pointed to the one that Carlos was hiding behind, “and distract Carlos by telling him that you’re scared and don’t know what to do.”

“Oh, I get it! Lure him out from behind the tree and then we blast him, right?” Uma questioned, and Mal grinned. Evie just looked between the both of them and shook her head as she reached around and tried to ensure that her braid was still firmly intact so that she could avoid as much disaster to her hair.

“Isn’t that a little cruel?” Jane questioned worriedly, and Mal shook her head.

“All’s fair in love and war, dear Jane,” Mal muttered as she repositioned her mask a bit.

“Get out there now, okay? We’ve got to win this,” Mal informed the other girl, and Evie sympathetically squeezed Jane’s shoulder.

Jane sighed deeply, and after a moment, she rushed out, trying to hide behind different trees as she approached the de Vil boy.

Before long, she was nearby him, and he jumped out from behind his tree, about to shoot. However, he froze as soon as he realized it was Jane.

“Jane?! What are you doing?!” Carlos questioned, obviously not thinking that Jane would try to actively participate in their game.

“This is scary! I’m scared!” Jane proclaimed, and Carlos’s eyes softened. Jane truly hated to do this to him, and she wished that literally anyone else could’ve taken the job instead of her.

He stepped a bit closer to her, and to her shock, he was suddenly covered in pink paint all over his stomach. His eyes went wide and he gaped at his front.

“WHOO!!! Nailed it!” Uma whooped victoriously, and Jane offered Carlos an apologetic glance. He just narrowed his eyes at Uma and groaned before running off to go and join Audrey and Gil in the dead zone.

“Y’know, I’m starting to not mind that our team color is pink. It’s extra embarrassing for those ‘manly men,’” Uma sarcastically referred to the boys before laughing heartily.

Jane just watched Carlos running for the dead zone, and she looked down at her shoes, feeling terribly guilty, but she suddenly jumped as a paintball whizzed by her.

“Crap, I missed!” Harry cried, and Jane quickly dove for the other side of the tree as she tried to avoid getting hit. Her blue eyes were wide in fright.

“Jane, come on! Get back over here!” Mal cried, and Uma launched a few warning shots that hit the boys’ rock in an attempt to give Jane an opening so she could escape. Evie looked up at Mal, grabbing her hand as she got her attention.

“M, she’s too scared,” Evie informed her, and Mal looked at Evie softly before nodding.

“Jane, it’s okay, just run back fast! Uma’s stopping them!” Mal called, and Jane looked at Mal trustingly. She started forward, but before she could get too far, the boys nearly hit her again. Jane immediately flung herself back against the tree, breathing hard as she calmed down from the fact that she was almost hit with a paintball.

Uma groaned deeply, and she fixed her mask more solidly upon her face as she readied herself to run out from behind the girls’ rock. Mal looked at her strangely, and Uma returned her gaze.

“I’m going to go and get her. Cover me!” Uma called as she readied her gun. Evie scooted out of the way, holding onto her almost empty gun.

Uma waited for only a moment before darting out toward Jane. Harry, and Jay immediately began actively firing at her with Ben hiding behind the rock fearfully. Mal started shooting intensely in response to the boys, and their fire was a little scattered since they were now spending more time dodging.

Uma hurried over to Jane and she took the girl by the arm, trying to guide her out from behind the tree and back to the rock. She had almost made it halfway back when the boys managed to hit Jane in the back.

“Oh!” Jane cried as it hit her, and Uma stopped for just a moment as she pushed Jane in the direction of the dead zone.

“Get out of here, Jane!” Uma instructed, and she made a mad dash for the rock. Evie reached out for Uma’s hand in an attempt to pull her over to their side quickly.

But to the girls’ surprise, Uma was suddenly splattered with a paintball, blue paint hitting Uma’s helmet and splattering onto the front of Evie’s helmet.

Mal narrowed her eyes as she saw Harry standing there and laughing his behind off behind the rock, and Mal pulled her trigger quickly as she blasted Harry in the front of his helmet with a paintball.

Uma stopped in frustration, growling under her breath, and Evie and Mal looked at her regretfully. Uma offered them a slight smile right before she looked over at the boys with a snarl. However, her grin quickly returned tenfold as she realized that Harry was heading off to the dead zone as well. Uma then returned her gaze to the two girls left behind.

“Spank them like babies, okay, y’all?” Uma questioned, and the two left behind nodded resolutely. Uma offered a two-fingered salute before hurrying toward the dead zone where Gil, Audrey, Carlos, and Jane were currently seated and where Harry was currently running for.

Suddenly several balls splattered nearby Mal and Evie, and they quickly dipped a bit lower behind their cover.

“E, if we’re going to win this, we’ve got to get out from behind this rock and get closer to Jay and Ben,” Mal spoke, and Evie nodded in agreeance, somewhat distastefully wiping a bit of the splattered paint from her shoulder.

“But where can we go?” Mal trailed off, looking around, and Evie squeezed Mal’s shoulder as she looked around as well. After only a moment, she caught sight of a place that would be perfect for them to hide at. Evie wasted no time in pointing.

“M, look over there. There’s a rock that looks like it might be just big enough for me and you,” Evie told the faerie, and Mal followed Evie’s finger. She grinned at Evie widely and looked at her adoringly.

“Awesome job, E. Let’s make a run for it,” Mal praised her best friend as she kneeled and peered just barely around the rock as she held her gun in her arm carefully.

“One… Two… Three… Go,” Mal quietly told Evie, grabbing Evie’s hand tightly as she darted out from behind the rock. Evie wasted no time in running with Mal.

“Aha! Give it up, sisters!” Jay called as he shot at them. Mal and Evie both tried desperately to dodge the paintballs, and just barely made it behind two trees as they paused for a moment.

“Okay, E, let’s go again…. Now!” Mal called, and they both shot out from behind their covers. Jay immediately started shooting at them again, and Evie felt a paintball whiz by her head as Jay got dangerously close to hitting her. Evie was getting quite tired, and she was starting to realize that their rock was farther away than they had originally thought.

“In just a second, let’s make a run for it again,” Mal told the other girl, and Evie nodded despite the fact that she was running a bit short on air. Before long, Mal jutted her head in the direction of the rock, and they both shot out from behind their trees as they made a run for it.

However, to the bluenette’s shock, she tripped a bit in the midst of her running. Naturally, hearing Evie’s grunt, Mal paused as she considered running back to Evie, but Evie had managed to catch herself, and pushed Mal ahead as the paintballs whizzed by them.

Soon enough, they reached the rock, and Evie nearly collapsed behind it.

After only a moment, a paintball almost hit Evie’s head.

“Evie, get down!” Mal cried, grabbing Evie’s shoulder and pulling her down to Mal’s level as yet another paintball flew above her head. They were both breathing hard, and Evie was beginning to think that she couldn’t take much more of this game if it consisted of more of this constant running, despite her competitive nature. If this would have been something like charades, Evie would’ve likely already cheated at it, but as it was, she couldn’t cheat in this game, so her hopes of winning were rather dashed.

“E, we gotta keep going until we make it around so we can get a clear shot at the boys. This rock’s good, but we’re still not quite where we can reach them,” Mal informed her, almost as if she had read Evie’s mind. Evie furrowed her brow, raising up her mask slightly so that she could look at her best friend. Mal was peering from around the rock they were both hidden behind, checking to ensure that the boys hadn’t changed positions.

“Why did we agree to do this in the first place?” Evie whined a bit, allowing a bit of her emotions to slip into her voice. This challenge was getting a little harder than she was quite prepared for.

“Evie, just think of how wonderful and sweet that victory will be when it comes in the form of being able to make the boys wait upon us hand and foot,” Mal informed her, and Evie sighed a bit as she smiled just barely.

“Besides… This is Mevie, remember? Mevie can do anything,” Mal told her sister with a loving grin as she took Evie’s hand in her own, lacing her fingers through Evie’s. Evie nodded slowly, feeling a bit of her resolve return to her.

“Come out, come out! Ready to get smashed?!!!” Jay called as he shot a paintball nearby their hiding place.

“C’mon, E. For some reason, we were the last ones standing on our team. I think it’s because me and you were meant to win this,” Mal informed her sister. Evie’s eyes hardened and she looked significantly more determined at the mention of winning. Mal smiled fondly, knowing that Evie’s signature competitiveness was lying just beneath the surface.

“Let’s go kick their butts,” Mal told her, and Evie swiftly snatched Mal’s arm and pulled her back near the bluenette.

“M, I’ve got an idea,” Evie informed Mal, and Mal furrowed her brow as she looked at her sister.

“I’m going to run out and distract them,” Evie expressed, and Mal’s eyes widened as she shook her head.

“What? No! Evie, are you crazy?” Mal demanded, giving Evie a onceover.

“I’m going to run out and trip and fall on purpose. I’ll act like I’m hurt, and then we can shoot Jay because he’ll come running,” Evie explained her plan to her sister. Mal furrowed her brow as she moved just a bit to peer in the direction of the boys.

“How do you know it’ll work?” Mal asked.

“I don’t. We just have to take a chance,” Evie solemnly replied.

“E, that’s suicide… And I can’t afford to lose you,” Mal expressed, and Mal almost thought it sounded like something out of a war movie. She was definitely getting a little too carried away in this game.

“In war, Mal, some sacrifices must be made,” Evie told her, a dead seriousness to her voice. After a moment, she grinned, alleviating the tension. “Besides, you’re going to run out to check on me so it’ll really sell it, and then you’re going to shoot him when he comes out.”

Mal couldn’t help but grin at Evie as she laughed.

“Y’know, I love you,” Mal affectionately addressed Evie.

“I love you, too.”

“And you’re an evil genius,” Mal complimented her before squeezing the bluenette’s arm. “Now get out there and trick them.”

Evie just offered one of those thousand-watt grins before taking off through the battlefield. Naturally, several paintballs were launched at her.

Evie managed to successfully dodge them all, and after a moment, she decided it would probably be a good time to fall on the battlefield.

Evie wasted no time in dramatically tripping and collapsing on the ground. Before Jay could shoot her, she cried out in pain, immediately reaching for her foot as she brought it up closer to her body.

“AH!!!” Evie yelped, making sure that she sounded as hurt as she possibly could. Mal, ever loyally playing her part, rushed out to Evie, diving for her sister and hitting the ground hard as she crawled over desperately to the other girl. Evie had to give it to Mal. She could definitely offer a convincing performance.

“Evie?! EVIE!!!” Mal cried, grabbing Evie’s mask where her cheeks would be as she looked her over. She wasted no time in taking Evie’s hand tightly, and Evie resisted the urge to smile. If she smiled, she’d no doubt soon laugh.

“Evie? Is she okay?!” Jay called, and Mal didn’t respond, just shaking her head. Evie could see the slightest hints of a grin on Mal’s face as she removed her hand from Evie’s as she placed her hand on Evie’s thigh while she got a better look at Evie’s fake injury.

“It hurts, M!” Evie yelped in what she hoped was a pitiful manner, but the end of her cry was interrupted a bit by a laugh. Fortunately, it sounded more like a sob than a laugh, so it worked to Evie’s advantage.

“Evie?! Is she alright?!” Jay called louder, and Evie realized he was getting closer. Ben was even peeking out behind the rock somewhat curiously. Evie glanced at Mal, and the faerie simply brought both of her hands to her gun slowly.

After only a moment, Mal turned and she blasted Jay. He wasn’t nearby, but he had just left from behind the rock, and before he knew it, he was shot in the chest with pink paint. His eyes widened and he stared at the girls blankly.

Mal just laughed and Evie giggled along with her. Jay growled unhappily as he glared at the other two, the entire trick dawning upon him.

“That was unfair! You used my emotions against me!”

“Now, now,” Mal playfully reprimanded.

“Who shot Audrey in the butt as she was running away to safety?” Evie called with a slight laugh, and Jay furrowed his brow as he paused. However, after a moment, he groaned, realizing that the girls were in the right.

“All’s fair in love and war, Jay!” Mal told him.

“Besides, we’ll never do it again,” Evie added with a sincere smile as she sat up and started to get up with Mal’s help.

“Unless we’re playing paintball!” Mal laughed, and Evie nodded in agreeance. Jay just rolled his eyes, knowing that the girls had played fair or at least as fair as he had played.

“Well, we’re not playing paintball anymore!” Jay announced as he hurried off toward the dead zone, but Mal could hear that he was not entirely serious.

Mal and Evie shared a glance and shook their heads. However, after a moment, they both headed over to the boys’ rock, aiming on finishing it once and for all so that they could win their prize.

They very carefully snuck around the edge, both of their guns pointed at Ben as they approached. Ben’s eyes widened, and he shook his head quickly.

“No, no, no, don’t shoot, don’t shoot! I give in! I give up! You win!” Ben cried. Mal lowered her gun a bit, and then to everyone’s surprise, a blue paintball crashed straight into the visor of Mal’s helmet. Evie gasped as she stared at Ben.

He looked just as surprised as Evie, but before he knew it, Evie had unloaded pink paintballs all over his front.

As soon as she had emptied what was left in her gun, Evie pointed at him accusingly, a fire in her eyes as she glared at the boy.

“YOU! You killed her! You killed her!!!” Evie declared, sounding almost crazed. Ben swallowed hard as he started to try to wipe paint from his visor.

“It was an accident!”

“Uh-huh, likely story! How dare you?!!! I loved her!!! And now she’s gone!!!” Evie cried, and Mal just furrowed her brow as she wiped the paint from her visor.

“At least I won. But even my victory means nothing without her!” Evie spat, sounding as if she might cry.

“I can’t go on in a world without her!” Evie announced before putting the end of the paintball gun to the side of her helmet and pulling the trigger.

However, after several pulls, she realized it wasn’t working. Evie pulled the paintball gun away from her head and she examined it strangely. She groaned as she realized that she had emptied her gun.

“Darn it, I wasted all my paintballs on you!!!” Evie whined, and Mal took off her helmet as she grabbed Evie.

“E, I’m alive, and I’m fine,” Mal assured her, and Evie looked between Mal and Ben.

“He shot you in the face!” Evie protested. Mal rolled her eyes and took Evie’s helmet in her hands as she pulled it off. She then grabbed Evie’s face in her hands and stroked her cheeks with her thumbs.

“Of my helmet. Besides, this is a game. It’s a game, E. Chill out,” Mal told her, and Evie just sighed deeply. Evie’s warm brown eyes met Mal’s cool green ones, and they both shared just a tiny hint of a smile after a moment.

“I guess I got a little too into it, huh?” Evie questioned somewhat sheepishly, and Mal chuckled under her breath as she squeezed Evie’s cheeks before letting her go.

“Just a little,” Mal replied before she suddenly heard loud whoops and yells. Mal looked to the direction that the yells were coming from, and before she knew it, her and Evie were being grabbed by several sets of arms.

“WHOO!!! WE DID IT!!!” Uma cried out victoriously as she grabbed Mal tightly. Evie was squished firmly against Mal as Audrey sandwiched the two best friends in the midst of her grabbing onto Evie and Uma. Jane hugged Mal tightly, and Mal grinned as she was surrounded by her team. She wrapped her own arm around Evie, and Evie quickly reciprocated the embrace.

“So… I guess ye girls won, eh?” Harry spoke up suddenly, and the girls released one another to look at the guys. Mal and Evie were still holding onto one another, and they quickly noticed that the guys were all gathering around as well to face the girls.

Uma grinned widely as she walked straight up to the pirate boy.

“Sure enough. And you know what that means, Hook?” Uma questioned, getting as close to his face as her height would allow. His eyes darted down to her lips for just a moment, but they soon returned to her gaze.

Uma grinned slightly, giving his face a onceover before stepping back.

“You boys are ours for a whole day,” Uma told him with a confident smirk as she looked back at the other girls. The group smiled widely as they looked at each other. Uma then looked back at the guys.

“Starting now. Now carry us to one of Ben’s limos and chauffeur us to Evie’s house.”

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

It was a little later in the day, and all of the girls were reclined on the sofa at Evie’s house. And they had all of the boys working rather intensely.

Jay was currently rubbing Audrey’s scalp, and she had her eyes closed as she was enjoying her treatment. Harry was brushing Uma’s hair carefully, and Ben was painting Evie’s and Mal’s fingernails and toenails. Gil was currently working as a footrest for Jane at Uma’s instruction.

And Carlos was massaging all of the girls’ feet and was currently having to do Uma’s.

“A little more fingertips, Jay,” Audrey instructed, and he complied. She smiled in satisfaction as she sunk down in her seat comfortably. “Ah… that’s nice.”

“Now make sure you get all the tangles out. Gently, mind you,” Uma told Harry, and he continued through her hair a bit slower and more carefully.

“Aww, these are so gross!” Carlos grumbled suddenly in a sour complaint as he coughed in response to the smell of Uma’s feet.

“What did I say about complaining?” Uma questioned, cracking one eye open just barely as she raised an eyebrow at the de Vil boy. He just closed his mouth, rolled his eyes, and wrinkled his nose.

“What I meant to say was by what miracle did I get the privilege to do this?” Carlos questioned in a falsely sweet tone as he squinted.

“Because you’re best at foot care, and you seemed to have a problem with my feet,” Uma replied simply as she sighed deeply.

They were quiet for a long moment before Uma finally spoke again, uttering the very sentence that started it all.

“Yo, Whitey Tighty, get me a coke.”

And all of the girls couldn’t help but laugh as Carlos now had to fetch Uma a drink.

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thankchaosforspellcheck · 5 years

Text

Genius omens au

(aka a Girl Genius/Good Omens crossover because I’m not gonna stop being on this kick until something better comes out. Which nothing has yet.)

So I’ve got at least 2 ideas for this AU, first one goes like this:

Crowley and Aziraphale are both low-rung minions for competing families. Neither are from canon, and while one of them prides themselves on the “help” they spread to the local commoners, the other on the chaos. (they are both pretty chaotic, honestly).

Gabriel and Beelzebub are top-ranked minions who mostly handle all the paperwork.

The actual sparks never appear. The spark for Aziraphale’s family (who is essentially god) is too busy producing brilliant inventions to help the world... and then forgetting to include any instructions or telling anyone how they work. (She actually does this on purpose, as a bit of an experiment to see if anyone will ever actually ask her how they work & to see if they can work it out on their own) Meanwhile, the spark for Crowley’s family (Lucifer) creates horrific inventions meant to insight chaos and disaster on all those who are within it’s aim! ...Which would be a lot easier to do if he had neater handwriting. Or used less obscure scientific terminology. Or didn’t spill coffee on half of it!

So Aziraphale & Crowley’s jobs are essentially to go out and try to figure out how the inventions work without getting themselves killed (the latter bit’s more for Aziraphale for Crowley, honestly. And even then they only say that because they’re the “good guys”, not because they actually mean it), as well as to try to prevent the neighboring family from using their’s.

They are surprisingly good at their jobs though.

Like, weirdly so.

Everyone kind of assumed they were gonna be dead within the first week like all the past minions were.

(what they don’t know, is that they have 2 advantages on everyone else:

1. they met almost immediately and both went “oh shit he’s hot, hEY WHY DON’T I HELP YOU WITH THAT” and not only figured out how each other’s devices worked, but also realized that they negate each other (ex: one is meant to end world hunger, the other is meant to cause massive famines, together they make all the farms have solidly mediocre years)

2. they are actually both minor sparks, not that either has realized it yet. See, Aziraphale’s breakthrough was probably the quietest breakthrough in the history of the world and Crowley just kinda vaguely sauntered his way through a breakthrough, and everyone else was too distracted by the latest disaster to notice (Aziraphale’s breakthrough sparkwork was a quick fix he did on the flaming sword he was given by the family spark (It was so easy, I hardly needed to be a spark to do it) which he immediately gave away to the Spark’s daughter (who’s as mundane as you get) since she’s going to be traveling through the wilderness with her husband. Crowley’s was the Bentley, which is a horseless carriage he bought off a passing spark and fixed up in his spare time (look, there was barely anything wrong with it. I just did a bit of tinkering here, welded a few wires together there, and after some polishing and a good wax she was good as new! Took me forever to finish ‘er anyways, a spark’d hardly take an hour to do what I did).

Both of them have noticed that the other is a spark and revert to minioning when the other gets in a fugue. Neither notices when the other is minioning while in said fugue, and they never actually bring the sparking out up. Because they’re idiots.

Now, The second idea (under the cut because boy howdy did this get long!):

They are both still oblivious minor spark minions (because I just think think this fits them really well) But this time it’s with some known families

Crowley is a Heterodyne Jager, though not one of the ones that’s particularly noticed by people (not one of the oldest, but not young enough for, say, Bill or Barry to have seen him take the Draught)

You know how 99.9% of Jagers take the draught because they are just so devoted to the cause and want to serve the Heterodynes for the rest of eternity? Well Crowley’s that .1% that did it because everyone else was chanting “DO IT DO IT” at the time and he was just like “Welp, it’s not like I have anything else to do” and downed it.

(He’s possibly the only spark to take and survive the drought, no one has any fucking idea so he’s just considered as one of the minor foot soldiers. Which is probably all the better for him, since he would have been on a dissection table in 5 seconds flat otherwise)

He looks more or less like he does in the show, just with scales under his clothes, black claws on his hands (which he generally hides with gloves, and some fairly small (for a Jager) fangs. He definitely still has sunglasses, and if asked claims either “they look cool” or “I’ve got an eye condition and I don’t want a spark to make it worse or put lasers in” depending on who he’s talking to and how much they’ve annoyed him. He also grew some black wings some time after he drank the draught (which, if the Heterodyne knew about, they would be extremely interested in) which he keeps under his clothes and extremely close to his back.

He also doesn’t have too much of a Mechanicsburg accent since he kinda just fucked off on the first mission out of town and away from the Heterodyne that he could get (look he loves his master and thinks they’re creations are fascinating but that doesn’t mean he actually wants their attention)

he’s also part of the same batch that Beelzebub, Hastur, and Ligur came from and hates all of them.

Meanwhile, Aziraphale is a minion of the House of Valois, and has been for quite some time.

See, around the same time as Crowley was made a Jager, someone from the Storm King’s line (probably a von Blitzengaard) Decided that enough was enough and they were going to make their own Super soldiers (but prettier! and with wings and a melodious voice like an angelic choir and-!)

Aziraphale was the only survivor.

(He was not what the creator was aiming for.)

He also looks more or less like he does in canon, with beautiful white wings and white curly hair. He looks strangely normal for someone who went through a version of the draught, honestly. He does, however, still have the increased strength, durability, stamina, and whatever else the brau includes. It just showed up at a much slower rate, so it was put down as a bad job and discarded.

(the reason he survived is because he was the only one out of all the subjects who had even the vaguest of sparks. I think the duality of this is nice. One survives in spite of his spark, the other survives because of it)

So when he fails to be Angel Incarnate he gets a disappointed dismissal from his creator and gets sent out on some away mission he’s meant to never come back from

(he doesn’t, but it’s only because he met Crowley on the way there)

Several Generations later, they are wandering around the wastelands, vaguely hear about the Heterodyne boys recalling all their Jagers and turning over a new leaf, shrug, and disguise themselves so that they can follow the kids from a distance (because they’re still his Heterodynes dammit).

(or at least that’s Crowley’s reason. Aziraphale’s reason is that Crowley’s there and that’s good enough for him at this point)

They keep this up on-and-off for a good while whole events with the other and the attack at the castle happen and they lose track of them.

Crowley’s a bit worried, but figures he might as well just wander around the Wastelands like the others are and if he finds them, he finds them.

He was not actually expecting to find either of them

So you can imagine his surprise when Barry shows up near him one day with a toddler following him like a lost duckling.

So he does what any reasonable Jager would never do, and immediately goes up to the two and introduces himself and his husband TRAVELING COMPANION as everything but a Jager and Jager-knockoff.

Barry is, of course, paranoid at these complete strangers that seem vaguely familiar in the weirdest of ways, but they both seem genuinely nice and they both hate the other with a passion so he settles into an uneasy trust.

They both end up showing him their wings and explaining that they’re constructs who were made in such a way that they are immune to wasps.

(Crowley offers to demonstrate by eating one. Barry hastily declines)

They start traveling together and, after that uneasy trust settles into an easy one, he asks if he gets whatever signal that made him decide to start tracking down the Other solo

But Punch and Judy aren’t there. He never managed to run into them at all,

Crowley and Aziraphale, however, are.

Part 2:

Agatha Crowley-Fell has had a very normal, if interesting, life.

She’s raised by her two fathers (uncles, they insisted for a good long while until she points out that they’ve officially adopted her and they’re as much her parents as her biological ones are, and that she doesn’t think they’re replacing them, just adding to them (to which the respond with hugging and crying)) in Beetleburg.

one of which works as a librarian at the local college (where he is more then happy to help anyone who needs anything besides books.)

an unofficial elective is “how to borrow a book from Mr. Fell”. Everyone who passes gets hired by the university on the spot.

Crowley, meanwhile, owns a flower shop where all of the plants are guaranteed to be vibrant and spotless! (or else)

Occasionally, they’ll come to her right before bed and ask to see her locket, “to keep it in the best shape possible” they say. One will take it to another room, while the other sits with her and sings a lullaby until she falls asleep

it’s always back on her neck come morning.

As time goes on, her headaches slowly get better. She’s still never able to finish a project, but it pops up less during mild excitement or frustration.

They’re still incredibly annoying though

And then comes the day when her locket is broken and the Baron comes to town, and her life goes from tame to disastrous in a matter of hours.

#girl genius #good omens #crossover #genius omens au #anthony j crowley #aziraphale #agatha heterodyne

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onedayiwillflyfree · 5 years

Text

When the Sun Begins to Fall Chapter 6: Brothers

Read the full story here:https://archiveofourown.org/works/21255530/chapters/51332665

Also: I am apologizing in advance for this...

If it was up to Gilbert, he would make small talk against the law. He detested sitting in most formal settings, talking about unimportant topics like sermon or weather. To him, it was a waste of time. But since he wanted to be successful going forward in his career, he had mastered the art of keeping himself active in the conversation without actually caring what is going on. It just so happened to be what he was doing as Rachel Lynde was gossiping to a particularly disheveled Mrs. Barry.

“Honestly, I still am in disbelief that the Pye’s let Josie go off to study in America. Alone, no less.” Mrs Lynde gabbed as she switched her needle to continue knitting her scarf that was already about five feet long.

“Yes, quite shocking indeed,” Mrs Barry responded half-heartedly, not looking at all interested in the gossip at this particular moment. She, in truth, looked almost as bad as Diana, her hair falling in strands, each curl frayed and pointing all different directions. Her skirt was covered in the same sludge as Diana’s, but luckily it appeared to have remained intact. Honestly, Gilbert was surprised at how calm she was behaving, half expecting her to have dragged Diana out of here by her ear. But when he caught the glimmer of a single stray tear, he realized she must have been informed of just how gravely ill Anne was.

She turned to Sebastian, who until now seemed to have gone unnoticed in the conversation, and politely asked how Dellie was doing. “I half expected her to come running down the hall when I heard you come through the door.”

“Ah, me mother decided to teach her how to make apple loaf this morning,” Bash smiled as if the thought amused him. Dellie, who was as smart as Gilbert, strong as Mary, and witty as Bash, had certainly given Hazel Lacroix a run for her money over the last three years. She would often try to scold the young girl only moments before they would break down into a fit of giggles. Throughout the years, she had truly turned into a loving and fun grandma, teaching Dellie all about spices and traditional recipes, and would chase her all about the orchards. It was truly a sight to behold. “She wanted to be here, fighting me tooth and nail to come see Queen Anne, but of course, she needs her rest now. ” Bash peered over to Gilbert sitting beside him on the couch, tension still brewing.

Unfortunately, the pair hadn’t had a moment alone to finish their conversations from the previous evening. Gilbert was woken up, before the sun had even begun to kiss the horizon, when he was pounced on by an over excited three year old, who wanted to introduce him to the farms newest calf. “Gilbur, Gilbur! See Nina, see Nina!” She had chanted all the way out to the barn, where they proceeded to play with the calf until the sun finally decided to wake. However, by then, it was time for Gilbert to greet Doctor Ward and Winifred at the station.

“Well she is very fortunate to have such a...wonderful relationship with...” Mrs. Barry’s voice caught. She couldn’t seem to say her daughters beloved friends name, fearing she might start to cry.

“Anne,” Mrs. Lynde finished for her, as she began pearling the new row. “For Lord's sake, she’s sick, not dead.” Conversation ceased after that, the silence broken only by the sound of Rachel’s needles clacking against one another.

A gentle pair of footsteps sounded down the hall as Marilla stepped through the entrance of the parlor with a tea tray filled with cookies and slices of Hazel’s apple loaf. Winifred trailed closely behind, anxiously watching as the tray shook with each step. “Miss Cuthbert, I really insist you let me carry this.”

Streaks of tears stained Marilla’s cheeks and her eyes puffed so much, Gilbert was unsure of how she could see two feet in front of her. “Nonsense,” Marilla sniffed. “You are a guest in my household and I will treat you accordingly.” She gently placed the tray down on the table, flipping over each teacup carefully. “Please sit, Miss Rose.”

Winnie hesitated, looking desperate to help in anyway. “Miss Cuthbert, I honestly...” Marilla shot daggers towards the young woman.

“Winnie, I wouldn’t argue with her on this,” Sebastian warned, standing so that she could take her place next to Gilbert. Winnie hesitated only for a moment before she decided the fight wasn’t worth it

“Very well.” She smoothed her skirt before she settled into the spot next to her fiancé.

Marilla cleared her throat as she picked up the tea pot, the lid rattling from her unsteady hands. Her eyes had begun filling once more as she attempted to pour the tea. Gilbert felt his breath to catch when he noticed daisies elegantly placed within the porcelain. It was the teapot that Marilla had promised to give to Anne for her own parlour one day.

“This has always been her favorite.” Tears began to stain her cheeks once more as Mrs Lynde exchanged a look with Gilbert. “I figured it may bring her luck...” Her hands were uncontrollable now as Gilbert and Rachel stood.

Gilbert stepped forward, placing a tender hand over top of the sobbing woman. “Marilla, I believe that you forgot the honey. It would taste most wonderful with the apple loaf, would it not?” He slid the pot from her hand, holding it tightly within his own.

“Yes, honey, of course. How silly of me. I’ll be back in a...” Another sob escaped her lips as Rachel held onto her, slowly guiding her from the room. The room was silent once more, the sound of Marilla’s sobs echoing throughout the house. Gilbert cleared his throat, turning his attention towards the cups and began pouring a fair amount of tea in each, knowing that he had stopped being a guest at Green Gables long ago.

“Mrs. Barry, how do you take your tea?” he asked politely, just loud enough to drown out Marilla’s cries.

“Oh, a little milk, please,” she whispered, tears welling within her own eyes. He did as requested and handed her the cup along with his handkerchief. “Thank you.”

He smiled, turning back towards the tray where he prepared everyone else’s tea from memory. Winifred a dash of milk and a single cube of sugar, Bash no milk and three sugar cubes, handing them each their cup before filling his own. Silently, he wished he had grown out of his sweet tooth as he plopped six sugar cubes into his tiny cup. Just as he was about to take his seat, Mrs. Lynde returned to the room, waving a hand at him to sit while she prepared her own tea. As she took her seat, Gilbert noticed the sobs had subsided and the room was silent once more.

Each person sipped their tea, no one wanting to speak first until finally, Mrs Lynde took the initiative. “So Winifred...” Winnie straightened, all of her etiquette training making an appearance. Gilbert brought his cup to his lips, only slightly relieved that he wasn’t the one to be addressed. “How have wedding plans be going?” she asked, taking a small sip of her tea.

Gilbert choked, tea spilling from his mouth back into his cup. How could he have completely forgotten once again that he was supposed to be sitting with Winifred’s parents in Charlottetown? The wedding was still nine months away, two weeks after his graduation, but it still continuously slipped his mind. All eyes shot to him as he put down his cup on the table and wiped the corner of his mouth.

“Sorry,” he mumbled. “Hot.” No one questioned it, despite all of their tea being poured around the same time. The only one who didn’t seem to believe him was Bash, who stared at him just a few seconds longer than necessary.

Winnie smiled at the silliness of her fiancé before turning her attention back to Mrs Lynde. “Truth be told, between all the travel and his studying, we simply haven’t made the time,” she replied politely, taking a small sip from her cup. “We were due to be meeting with my family to discuss florists and possible venues…”

“You’re not gettin’ married here?” Bash interrupted, the women in the room glaring at him. The question had been directed at Gilbert more than Winnie but she answered for both of them.

“Well, it had been considered but we wanted to keep our options open,” she continued calmly. “There is this most lovely church up in Nova Scotia…”

Bash interrupted once more. “Did Gilbert tell you that every person in his family has been married in the orchard for the last seventy five years?” Gilbert glared at his brother, unsure of where these outbursts were coming from.

“Well, yes he did…” Frustration was creeping into her voice as she peered over to Gilbert looking for support.

Bash’s eyes met Gilberts, anger simmer behind them. “And you’re okay with breaking that tradition, Blythe?” Gilbert swallowed as all eyes in the room fell to him once more.

“Uh, well if that’s what my bride wants, then yes,” He tried his hardest to hide the disappointment in his voice. Truth was, when Winnie first brought up where they should get married, he had suggested the orchard. But her mother had quickly shot down any thoughts of them getting married in Avonlea, claiming it would be too far for their family to travel. Bash shook his head in disbelief as he sat back in his chair, pulling himself from the conversation.

“Well, I think it is lovely that Gilbert wants to appease her,” Mrs. Barry spoke for the first time, breaking the awkward tension. She continued, addressing Winnie. “You said you were supposed to meet with your parents this weekend?”

“Well yes, but when we heard about...” her voice trailed off not desiring to bring the tension back into the room. “Well, I phoned them to cancel but they decided to come anyway, so I will be joining Charles on the six forty five train out this evening. My mother is worried we will run out of time.” She giggled, as if the wedding was still years away. “At the moment, I am more worried about Gilbert and his studies.”

“Ah yes of course. And Gilbert how are your studies going? Well, I assume?” Rachel asked, turning towards him.

If you mean getting three hours of sleep an evening and forgetting to eat most days well, then yes, they are going well. He politely replied, “Yes, they’re moving along rather well. The semester at Sorbonne and all the seminars truly helped expand my knowledge. There is still much for me to learn, but that will be ongoing my entire career. Medicine is ever changing and evolving.” He suddenly felt giddy, he was in his element. “Oh, did you know that a man recently discovered an antitoxin for diphtheria? He even won an award for it...” Winnie cleared her throat, pulling Gilbert from his rant to notice Mrs. Barry and Mrs. Lynde looking utterly confused. “Oh, apologies, I tend to ramble...”

“His professor adored his passions,” Winnie cut him off, saving him as she so often did. “Some even offering to keep him at Sorbonne for the rest of his studies.” Gilbert shot a look to Bash, who suddenly seemed to be interested in the conversation again.

“Well, it seems that Blythe seemed to neglect that in his letters...” Bash mumbled, slowly bringing his cup to his lips.

Winnie laughed stiffly, fearing that she was beginning to say too much. “Oh well, you know Gilbert. Always the humble one.” She looked over to him as he reached forward for his own cup, needing something to ease his anxiety.

“Well he should have every right to boast about himself,” Mrs. Lynde continued, oblivious to all the tension that was somehow building itself back up. “He was the smartest student in all of Avonlea, say of course minus Anne, but he was also known to be the most handsome boy around.”

Mrs. Barry nodded in agreement. “Absolutely, a part of us had always hoped our Diana would catch his eye, but you beat her to it Miss Rose.” Winnie smiled proudly, bringing her cup to her lips.

Gilbert shifted uncomfortably, he despised being spoken about like he wasn’t in the room. He sipped his tea as Mrs. Lynde chuckled lightly to herself. “Why, between the two of you, I suppose you will have the most beautiful children in all of Avonlea.”

Gilbert choked on his tea once more, only this time, he began to wheeze as it shot down the back of his throat during a cough. All four pairs of eyes shot to him once more as he put his cup down on the table, trying to catch his breath.

“Are you alright?” Winnie whispered to him as he held up his hand. He cleared his throat, feeling some relief.

“Yes, quite,” He managed to whisper before having to clear his throat again. “Apologies.” Winnie smiled, placing her hand gently on top of his in comfort.

Mrs. Lynde stared at the pair stunned. “My apologies if I have spoken out of turn, I simply assumed that the pair of you wanted children.”

“Well, of course...” he mumbled, unsure of how to finish his answer without creating tension.

Winnie, unaware of the consequences of her words could cause, finished for him. “It’s just that we will not be returning to Avonlea once Gilbert finishes his studies.”

Oh no. Gilbert’s attention immediately went to Bash.

“What?!” Bash’s voice boomed, slamming his tea cup on the table beside him, causing everyone in the room to jump. Winnie cast another glance over to Gilbert, biting her lip, realizing she had said too much. Marilla ran into the room with a jar of honey in her hands, her face a darker shade of red than it had been only a few moments prior.

“What is the meaning of this, Sebastian?” Marilla questioned, looking to anyone for answers, but no one spoke.

“What do you mean you aren’t returnin’ to Avonlea?” he cried, ignoring Marilla as he rose from his seat. “Nine months, that is what you told me when you left. Nine months and then you would be back in time for harvest.”

Gilbert stood, slowly stepping towards his brother. “Bash...”

Bash was now pacing about the room, trying to not let his temper get the better of him. “But I suppose since you already skipped out on that, I shouldn’t be surprised that you want to skip out on us forever.”

“Bash, if you would let me explain…”

“Why?” Sebastian stopped pacing, looking to his brother accusingly. “You just going to spout more lies?”

Gilbert winced. “No, I wanted to tell you in person...”

Bash held up a hand, stopping Gilbert from continuing. “Save it. I need to get back to the farm, our farm.” He turned to leave, stopping only to place a gentle hand on a stunned Marilla’s shoulder. “Apologies for the commotion Miss Marilla, if you need anythin’, don’t hesitate to ask.” He glared over his shoulder. “We’re family after all.”

“Bash, please,” Gilbert stepped towards him once more, reaching out to stop him but he was too late. He had already made his way to the door, not even stopping to grab his coat before he slammed the door behind him.

“My…” Rachel held a hand up to her chest. “I never knew Sebastian to have quite a temper.” Mrs. Barry looked on horrified as Marilla threw herself into a chair, confused and exhausted.

Winifred stood, placing a gentle hand on her fiancé’s shoulder. She squeezed it apologetically before she whispered, “Go.”

Gilbert didn’t hesitate as he ran to the door, stopping only for a moment to grab Sebastian’s coat before leaving behind his fiancé to mull over the whole situation.

—————

“Bash!” Gilbert called as he sprinted down the path leading away from the house. Bash had already almost made it to the fence, each step filled with purpose. “Sebastian, please!” His voice cracked as Bash continued to ignore him. He continued his pace despite the burning sensation forming in his lungs. When did I get so out of shape? “Stop!”

He caught Bash’s shoulder. Without slowing down, Bash ripped his shoulder from Gilberts grip, attention still focused on the gate that stood ten feet away. Gilbert slowed his pace before stopping fully to catch his breath. “Would you just let me explain?” No response. “I’m your brother, aren’t I?”

Bash halted, hands clasping into fists at his side as he turned to meet Gilbert’s gaze. A mixture of fury and heartbreak played on his face as he spoke, every word dripping with sadness. “I thought you were.” Gilbert thought he saw glistening in the other man's eyes, but he was too far away to tell. “But ever since you left, I don’t know you anymore. And it’s more than you lying to me about when you were coming home.”

“What are you talking about?” Gilbert questioned despite partially knowing what his brother was referring.

“Oh don’t play dumb with me Blythe,” he stepped closer as he spoke, closing the gap with a few large strides. “When I saw you yesterday I didn’t even realize it was you at first. And it was more than just that stupid hair style of yours, which just so you know, made you look ridiculous.”

“It makes me look more professional.” Gilbert replied defensively.

Bash let out a throaty chuckle. “It makes you look like a schmuck and you know it.” Gilbert bit the inside of his cheek, trying to remain calm and keep the anger at bay. Bash smiled, realizing he was dancing on a nerve. He took one more step, squaring his shoulders to Gilbert’s. “And the only reason you are wearing it like is because your rich girl thinks it will help you fit in with her schmuck friends..”

Gilbert’s cheek began to bleed. “Well, if I want to be taken seriously by my peers…”

“Do your peers know you’re an orphaned farm boy?” Bash continued, his anger becoming increasingly apparent. “Or about your black niece who would crawl into bed with you whenever she had a nightmare, because me slipping your mind, well that is forgivable, but Delphine? The Gilbert I knew would be braggin’ about her to anyone who would listen.”

Shame consumed him as he realized Bash was right. Over the last nine months, he had made no mention of his brother or his niece. He felt no shame of them but whenever the topic of family arose, he found himself silent, usually allowing Winnie to answer for him. And when he was alone, he simply mentioned that he was marrying into the Rose family and that was all the information anyone cared to know about him.

Bash swiped his thumb across his lips, laughing dryly once more as Gilbert fumbled to form words. “And the truth comes out.” Bash laughed once more as he ripped his coat from Gilberts grip, heading on his way once more.

Gilberts hands formed fists, tensing so tightly that he soon felt the blood drain from them. He was livid.

“You told me to go, that you supported me.” Gilbert shouted to Bash’s back as he started closing the distance.

“That was before it changed you,” Bash mumbled, not stopping or even giving a glance to Gilbert.

Gilbert ran in front of his brother, forcing him to face him. “You told me we would always be brothers. Why has that changed now that I am trying my damndest to live my dream?

“Oh yeah?” Bash stepped closer, squaring up with Gilbert again. Only this time, Gilbert could feel the rage radiating off of his body. “Lying about your family, using a rich girl for her money and connections...”

Gilbert resisted the urge to punch the smug smile off of Bash’s face. “How dare you. I care for Winnie deeply.”

“But you don’t love her!” Bash screamed. “Anyone with eyes can see that Blythe! And honestly, what you’re doing, it’s just wrong!”

Gilbert exploded, “Just because I actually courted her properly rather than taking her on a couple of walks and then bedding her after two weeks doesn’t mean that I don't care about her!”

Tension hung in the air so thick it could be cut with a knife. Gilberts mouth hung open, in utter disbelief of the words that came from his mouth, unsure if he would ever be able to atone for them.

Bash’s face was void of emotion as he took wobbly steps away from him. “Bash... I...” Gilbert tried to reach for him, but quickly pulled his hand away as he realized how horrible of an idea that was. He had no idea of where the words had come from, he had never felt that towards his family. Mary… Mary was his sister, the love of his brother’s life… how could he had said such cruel words. What is going on with me?

Gilbert wished Bash would say something, anything to let on what he was feeling at this moment... But no words came. Only prolonged silence.When Gilbert couldn’t take the silence any longer, the words came out in one frantic breath. “Bash, punch me, tackle me. Do something. Say something.” Bash met his eyes, Gilbert saw no rage, no anger. Just sadness. “Bash, I’m so sorry…”

Bash remained silent, glancing up towards Anne’s room as he pondered his response. After a moment, as if he recalled a distant memory, his mournful eyes met Gilberts one final time. “You make her better, then we’ll finish this conversation.” Without waiting for a response, he spun around, slamming the gate of the fence behind him.

————

Gilbert, despite his worry for Anne, had no intention of returning to the house immediately, knowing he would be bombarded with questions that he wasn’t ready to answer. Instead, he made his way towards the barn. His adrenaline was causing his fingers to twitch and he needed to calm himself before he could be any use to Anne. And he knew just how to do it.

Upon entering the barn, he realized that he had two companions rather than the three he had expected. Jerry must have taken Midnight out in the fields. A loud whiny came from beside him, causing him to jump. “Butterscotch! You have got to stop doing that buddy.” He reached up, Butterscotch meeting him half way as he nuzzled his nose within Gilberts hand. Instantly his nerves began to calm. Gilbert had missed many things in his time away from Avonlea but other than the people, he most missed being with the horses. “How you been doing?” Butterscotch snorted, desperately trying to convey his frustrations. Gilbert smiled sadly, understanding what the colt was meaning. “Oh, don’t get too upset with Anne, she would much rather be out here with you. What do you say I give you your brush today?” The colts ears perked as Gilbert walked to retrieve the brush, turning back to discover Belle had made her way over, gently nudging her foal out of the way. Gilbert rolled his eyes as he laughed. “Alright jealous, calm down.” Spying a bag of sugar cubes sitting near the stall, he grabbed two, putting one in front of Belles nose. “You’re still my best girl.”

She seemed content with his praise and offering, taking the cube with a soft snort before walking back over to her corner. His attention turned back to Butterscotch, who now impatiently waiting for his sugar cube. “You get yours after.” He led the young colt out, tied him to the rail and began to run the brush along the horses back, retreating into his thoughts.

What’s wrong with me? My temper… my temper is never uncontrollable. But that is twice today… both with people I care for dearly. Is it… because I’m worried… no, that’s crazy. Anne’s going to be fine. Just fine. Gilbert bit his lip, worry suddenly consuming him. He had only been away from her for a half an hour but he couldn’t stop the feeling in his gut that this wasn’t the worst to come, that she would get much worse before she got better… if she did get better. No you idiot, she will be fine… she will worsen over the next few days… pneumonia works its way through the body fast. Her fever should peak in a couple days. Which means I need to make sure we have enough pain meds to keep her comfortable. Also clean water, rags...

“There you are,” He resisted the urge to jump, not wanting to scare Butterscotch as Diana called from the front entrance of the barn, annoyance dripping from every word. Winnie stood to her left, her hands gently fidgeting.

“What’s wrong? Is Anne okay? Why aren’t you with her?” He dropped the brush beside him, ready to sprint up the stairs if need be but Diana rolled her eyes.

“Oh, calm down Gilbert.” She entered the barn, Winnie trailing directly behind. “Marilla is with her. She’s as fine as she can be right now.” Sadness crept into her eyes only for a moment before the irritated expression returned. Why is she so angry with me? I haven’t done anything to her... “Anne asked me to have you fetch something for her.” Diana held out her palm. Gilbert stepped forward to see a gold chain with a half locket and a key sitting in her palm. “She said you would know where to find her treasures.” He swallowed hard, taking the key tightly in his hand, knowing exactly where he needed to go.

“It’s a little far…” he mumbled, concerned about traveling that far from her.

Diana’s face softened for the first time, understanding he was just as worried for their friend as she was. “I will stay with her until you get back.” She smiled genuinely, putting some of his worries at ease. “Besides, Winnie hasn’t seen that much of Avonlea, I’m sure she would love to see where you grew up.”

Gilbert considered it, he hadn’t thought about how little he had actually shown Winnie of his home. “Would you like to join me?”

Her face lit up. “That would be lovely.”

———

Even though he had not wanted to be far from Anne, he did find himself relaxing the longer he spent time with his bride to be. Throughout their time in Paris, the pair had learned a great deal about one another and Winnie’s company was always pleasant. Although, at the moment, he did feel bad about dragging her through the mud on their way to the school house.

“Sorry, I didn’t expect it to be this wet.” He apologized for the third time, helping her over yet another large puddle.

“Gilbert, honestly, stop apologizing.” She jumped over the puddle with elegance, as if she had done this a hundred times before. “A little mud never hurt anyone before.” He smiled as she laced her arm within his once more. “So this is the path Anne used to take every day to get to school?”

“Mhm,” Gilbert nodded. “Normally Diana and her would meet at the crossroads and walk together. Although, on occasion…” Gilbert’s words trailed off, coming across a clearing that always had given him pause.

Gilbert had absolutely zero desire to leave his father. None at all. But John Blythe, in his best strict tone, had said that if Gilbert didn’t go to school then he would have to write a five page paper on the symbolisms within Romeo and Juliet. As much as Gilbert enjoyed the play, English had and never would be his strong suit and he preferred to do it as little as possible. So, with the promise from his father that he would stay in bed, he grabbed his favorite scarf and cap before rushing from the door.

It had been a year since he had lived in Avonlea but the beauty hadn't changed in the least. The leaves were falling from their trees, decorating the ground orange and yellow. The birds were singing soft tunes to one another as they prepared to migrate. It was such a comfort to know that nothing had changed too drastically.

“Sorry, I truly meant no harm. I…” he heard a quivering voice cry. He turned slightly, trying to find the owner of the voice when his eyes made contact with the back of Billy Andrews, who had grown about five inches since Gilbert last saw him.

“I’m gonna teach you a lesson, Fido.” His voice came out like poison, each word designed to instill terror into its victim. Even though Gilbert couldn’t see who he was talking to, he knew something had to be done. Billy had a habit of picking on those he deemed unworthy, often making jabs about Gilbert’s dead mother when they were younger. Of course, that was before Gilbert had grown into his harsh jawline and grown a solid ten inches since he left. He quickly made his way over to the pair, just in time to hear the victim tripping and dropping a stack of books on the ground. “You’re a bad dog. Bad little dog.”

“Hey Billy!” Gilbert shouted, causing the bully to pull his attention towards him. Little did he know then that one simple act would change his life forever.

“Gilbert? Darling? Are you alright?” Winnie asked, pulling him from the memory.

“Yes, just remembering something.” He smiled, not wanting to worry her. She politely smiled back, concern filling her eyes. They continued their walk, Gilbert making it a point to tell her random memories and facts about Avonlea along the way to help ease her mind. Shortly, they arrived at the simple white schoolhouse.

Winifred stifled a laugh. “This… this is where you went to school?”

Gilbert smirked, remembering Winnie grew up in a large cit. “Well, not this exact building, but the same design and concept.”

“What do you mean not this building?” She questioned as they made their towards the steps, stepping over the occasional apple. “Is there more than one?”

Gilbert laughed, picking up a stray apple core that had become a snack for a stray deer. “Well, the school house that I actually attended was set on fire a few weeks before our Queens entrance exam.”

Winnie’s eyes widened in horror. “Why would someone do something so cruel?”

“Anne,” he said surely, tossing the core far into the fields. Winnie’s eyes were bulging from her head, anxiously awaiting for him to continue. He cleared his throat. “Remember how I told you I was a co-editor of our towns local paper?” She nodded slowly, listening patiently. “Well Anne just so happened to be the other editor, and after a particular act of injustice,” he silently kicked himself whenever he thought about his lack of action the evening of the fair, “she decided to call out not only Avonlea for their small mindedness. At the time, I was furious with her for not consulting with me before she published it...but then I read the article. Truly read it. And honestly, it’s one of the greatest pieces of literature I’ve ever laid my eyes on.” He smiled, thinking back to when he first began to understand what Anne had meant with her words.

Winnie stared at him, his smile contagious. “Well, I hope for the opportunity to read it then someday.” He could hear in her voice that she genuinely meant it. “I did quite enjoy the stories she would send you while you were away. She has a special way with words.”

Gilbert nodded solemnly, his slight bit of joy disappearing as he remembered why they were there. “She does indeed....” He walked over to a vibrantly painted plant box and pulled out the spare set of keys Anne always kept hidden within it. He slid the key into the door, hesitatingly. It felt wrong entering the schoolhouse without her but she had asked him to fetch her most important possessions, so he took a deep breath and turned the key.

The door let out a loud creak as it opened. Upon entry, Winifred whispered “Oh my.”

The school house may have looked exactly the same on the outside, even the desks remained in their normal rows on the inside, but Anne had truly turned her classroom into her own sanctuary for learning. Miss Stacey had made learning fun, Anne made it magical. Potted plants lined the walls, each one painted differently by one of her students. Eccentric cloth hung from each of the window tops, embroidered with different equations and the alphabet. Gilbert smiled, remembering when she had asked him to come help her hang them because “even with a chair, I’m still much too short. Otherwise I wouldn’t require your assistance for such a trivial task.”

“This is incredible,” Winifred whispered in disbelief as she took timid steps into the room. Gilbert followed her, looking about the classroom despite having memorized it before he left.

“When Anne was in the orphanage, she didn’t get the opportunity to go to school,” Gilbert reminisced, walking farther into the room. “And when Mr Philips was our teacher, he wasn’t exactly… great. So she made a promise to herself when we graduated from Queens that she wanted to make it a place for children to fall in love with learning as she had. So when our old teacher, Miss Stacey, told Anne the school was now hers, she tried her best to make her promise come true.” He smiled softly, placing a tender hand on the third desk from the front. How much time had he spent staring at her from his desk when he should have been studying? Remorse stewed within him.

Winnie continued to stare around the room, taking in every detail. “She truly is a special person,” she whispered, eyes falling slowly to Gilbert’s as a smirk crossed her face. “So Mr. Blythe,” her voice flirtatious. “Where did you sit?”

He smiled as he ruffled his curls, walking over to his old desk. “Here.”

Winifred glided towards him. “So far back? My my, you never cease to surprise me.” She stood within inches from him, sliding her hand down his arm before pulling his arm around her waist. “I took you to be more of a front seat type of man”

In truth, Gilbert had sat in the front row for the beginning portion of his schooling, as well as his recent years at university. But when he returned from the cross country trip with his father, he had opted to sit a few rows back. He had used the excuse that he wanted to sit with the older boys when in truth, he had quite enjoyed the view from his row. “Well, I most certainly am now.” Returning her smirk, hand still awkwardly placed on her waist. Winnie stood as if she was expecting something, a coy smile designed to tempt him. He gently leaned in, wanting to appease her and placed his lips firmly against hers.

Despite being engaged for a little over two years, they had only kissed a handful of times before. The first being at their engagement party at her mother’s insistence, and then a few stolen in private there after. While he had found himself enjoying them, something felt very odd about them. Like they weren’t kissing for love but instead out of duty. He thought Winnie probably felt the same way, because often she would pull away from him and quickly change topics or insist she needed to go freshen up.

This kiss was no different. It was short, sweet. No passion behind it. No spark his father had told him he would feel. They pulled away from one another, stealing an awkward glance before he dropped his hand back at his side. He cleared his throat, eyes drifting towards Anne’s office. “I, uh, best go fetch her belongings.”

“Her treasures.” Winnie corrected, smiling sadly and refusing to meet his eyes. “I’ll give you some time.” His hand gently went to caress her face, to hopefully erase the heartbroken expression from her eyes, but she turned away and made her way towards the exit before he could.

Gilbert sighed, dread overtaking him. Oh Win, what have we gotten ourselves into? He quickly pushed away the thought, forcing himself to focus on the job at hand. Making his way over to the office, he unlocked door before he gently pushed it open.

The smile returned to his lips as he looked about the familiar room, not a single object out of place. From the bookshelf holding Anne’s ever growing collection of books, to the armchair she had stolen from Gilbert’s bedroom before he left, to the different paintings she had hanging about. He made his way into the room, fingers reaching gingerly to touch the frame surrounding a painting of a sea star.

“So, are you trying to get fired before your first day of teaching?” He joked as he began to memorize every stroke Oqwatnuk and Ka’kwet had carefully painted. It was one of Anne’s farewell gifts, along with allowing Gilbert to study under their medicine woman, before they were forced to relocate once more.

“Well, the council must simply deal with it.” Anne said matter of factly. “It’s horrible enough that the Globe refuses to publish my article but also that people of Avonlea continue to stand by and watch as children are being ripped from their families.” Anne’s face flushed as it often did when she was passionate about something. Her rage was beginning to boil as Gilbert made his way over to her, making sure to place his hammer out of arm's reach.

“Hey,” he spoke softly while putting a gentle hand on her shoulder, pulling her attention to him. “We know that Ka’kwet and her family are safe for the time being. And when they are ready to continue the fight, we will be there, right by their sides.” He smiled reassuringly. Avonlea still held a deep hatred of the Mi’kmaq but after Anne had given a passionate speech at graduation, a small group of brave individuals had discovered the errors of their ways and volunteered to help in any way possible. Gilbert included, who had been horrified to hear the details of what was happening to innocent people at the hands of their government. One night the following week, most of their classmates along with a few of the more open minded people of Avonlea met with Aluk and Oqwatnuk to stage a break in and free their daughter and as many others as they could.

Most of Ka’kwet’s tribe had gone into hiding after that, only allowing a few trusted people to know the location of their new home..Anne breathed deeply, calming herself before she threw herself into a fit. Gilbert was surprised how much she had matured while in Queens, not only in looks but learning to focus her temper, using it only when necessary. “You are absolutely right, Gil. Thank you.” Her eyes slid over to his hand, causing him to pull it away quickly.

Disappointment crossed Anne’s features as she turned back to her satchel and pulled out a rectangle package. Slowly she began unwrapping a copy of Jane Eyre, kissing it lightly before putting it away in the middle drawer of her desk. He tried to fight a chuckle but he couldn’t help it. Only Anne would kiss a book. She glared at him. “Make yourself useful and hang this up.” She carefully lifted up a mobile of seashells and colored glass. “Right in the center, I want it to catch the light.”

Gilbert smirked, picking up his hammer and grabbing the mobile from her. “Yes, your highness.” Anne rolled her eyes and laughed. As he began to center the hook, he saw from the corner of his eye, Anne pulled a small square book and a yellowed letter out of her bag, running her fingers gently over both of them. “Whatcha got there?” he asked curiously.

Panicking, she threw the objects into the drawer and slammed it shut. “Nothing.”

Gilbert reached up and touched the chandelier, causing the shells to clink together. “Oh Anne-girl, you are a special person indeed.” He stepped closer to the desk when something caught his eye.

It was the stained letter he had seen her shove into her desk, only this time tiny specks of blood covered the envelope. He hesitantly picked it up, only to discover he recognized the handwriting on the envelope.

“Make haste sending that love letter Blythe.” Bash had joked with him.

“It’s not a love letter!”

The letter slid from his fingers as he felt a sob rise in his throat. Swallowing it down as he reached into his back pocket to retrieve his wallet and carefully pulled out a folded piece of paper, stained and worn much like the one he had just dropped.

“I win...You love Anne!” Sebastian’s voice echoed through his mind as he unfolded the piece of paper he had been carrying around for five years, fingers gently caressing the swirled letters at the top when a single tear fell onto the paper.

Dear Gilbert.

———

No words had been spoken on their journey back from the schoolhouse, Winnie’s mind appearing to be preoccupied as she looked about the woods. He had wanted to ask what was conflicting her, but he couldn’t seem to find the proper words. So, the pair walked in silence, only stealing occasional glances at one another, eyes never meeting. After the day Gilbert had, he wasn’t sure if he could handle another person being upset with him. I will talk to her when we get back to Green Gables…

Upon their arrival, Gilbert realized he wouldn’t get the opportunity to speak with his bride to be. The entire farm was in a frenzy, everyone moving quickly about. Doctor Ward was raving about the fact that he had forgotten a meeting he had that evening that he simply couldn’t be late for. Jerry was running, trying to tack Belle as quickly as I could while dodging Mrs Lynde who was carrying in baskets of laundry. Through the window, he could see Diana being scolded by Mrs Barry for some unknown reason. Winnie and Gilbert exchanged glances, the scene sending them both into a fit of giggles.

“Well,” Winnie wiped a tear from her eye. “I suppose that is my queue.”

Gilbert peered over to Winnie, expecting to see a smile on her face as well as his, but her happiness had left once again. He lifted his fingers to caress her cheek, hoping to bring her some comfort. She turned her body to face him head on, avoiding his touch and keeping her eyes low. “Are you sure you don’t need anything besides clothes?”

Gilbert shifted awkwardly, adjusting Anne’s bag of treasures on his shoulder. “Uh, no, just the clothes.” He mumbled, biting his lip. In all their time together, he was unsure Winnie had ever been this upset with him. Fix it, don’t let her leave angry. Taking a deep breath, he reached down and snatched her hand before she could pull away. She shifted her gaze to his. “Thank you, Win.”

She nodded, her lips forming a tight smile. Jerry walked over to the pair. “Miss Rose, ready when you are.” Winnie nodded, turning back to face her fiancé, where she brought her lips to his cheek.

He smiled softly as she pulled away, Jerry assisting her up into the passenger seat. Doctor Ward was adjusting himself in the back of the wagon as Gilbert made his way to him. Charles smiled when he saw his young apprentice, accepting Gilbert’s outstretched hand.

“I’ll see you soon, sir.” Gilbert smiled, as he gave his mentor’s hand a small shake.

Doctor Ward returned the smile sadly. “See you soon so...Gilbert.” He corrected himself, causing a pang of guilt in Gilberts stomach. “And I am truly sorry about Anne.”

Gilbert bit his tongue, not wanting to start another fight today, and gave a polite smile as he made his way back at the front of the wagon, he looked up to Winnie, wishing he could do anything to make her happy. “I’ll see you Monday.” He said giving her hand another squeeze before giving Jerry a small nod.

“Walk on Belle.” Gilbert watched the group ride through the gate, closing it behind them. He waited for his fiancé to glance back, but she never did.

Gilbert swallowed, ashamed at the relief he felt. Bash’s voice began echoing through his head once more. You don’t love her...what you are doing to her, it’s just wrong. And though he wanted to hate Bash for what he said, in that moment, Gilbert knew that his brother was right.

#anne with an e #awae #anne shirley #anne x gilbert #gilbert x anne #shirbert #anne with an e fanfic #gilbert blythe

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mobius-prime · 5 years

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116. Knuckles the Echidna #21

The Forbidden Zone (Part Three of Three): The Many Facets of the Truth

Writer: Ken Penders Pencils: Manny Galan Colors: Barry Grossman

Cold opening, go!

As Heavy and Bomb are being swept away in the current, Locke's aircraft arrives and catches everyone in some kind of antigravity beam, pulling them up into the craft's interior. At one point before they're caught by the beam, just before they go over a waterfall, Heavy complains that they're in "deep doo-doo," and Bomb acts like this is some crazy newfangled term he's never heard of before, prompting Heavy to explain that he hears Valdez say it all the time when he's called on by Geoffrey. I just love the idea that "doo-doo" is some secret swear word or something in this universe. I mean, can you imagine some grizzled freaking Secret Service member being irritated by something his commander tells him to do and muttering "Oh, doo-doo" under his breath? Because that's exactly what Valdez apparently does. Canon.

Meanwhile, back in Haven, the various members of the Brotherhood start chattering to each other immediately about how much of a disaster this is for Knuckles to have found his way into Haven, while Tobor-itori Rex sulks in the background realizing his plans have just fallen to pieces right before his eyes. Archimedes poofs in to try to reassure Knuckles that "things aren't what they seem," but Knuckles isn't having it and brushes him off (which, to be fair, I know that Archimedes is probably just as indoctrinated into this regime as everyone else, but Knuckles still has a point that he could have told him more about everything before and actively didn't). Finally the Brotherhood decide to start introducing themselves and let fate decide what happens next.

Oof. Knuckles, having no real choice, follows Moritori to the medbay, and is surprised to see Hawking in one of the beds. Moritori explains how he fell into a coma when he restored Echidnaopolis to its proper place on the Floating Island, and quietly fills a syringe behind Knuckles back. Frankly, if I were Knuckles I wouldn't have turned my back on him even for a moment knowing what I know, but eh, we already know he doesn't always make the smartest decisions.

Meanwhile on Locke's craft, Geoffrey asks for more information regarding Elias' survival on the island all these years. He recounts how after the crash, he and the rest of the Brotherhood searched the craft and discovered everyone dead except for baby Elias and Queen Alicia.

The Overlanders came demanding to inspect the craft, but the Brotherhood was able to use their existing precedent as a neutral party in the war to deny them access, lying that they found everyone aboard dead. They decided not to return Elias to the king, fearing the Overlanders would think they took sides in the war, and instead raised him within Haven until he was ten years old, whereupon they released him to wander the island as he saw fit. They also put the queen into a stasis chamber, as she was in a coma and they didn't have the necessary medical knowledge to be able to revive her. However, they'd actually missed one survivor of the crash - the Colonel, who had been thrown clear of the wreckage when the craft broke up, landing somewhere further away. When he awoke, he wandered and was eventually found by the king's search party, but in grief he refused to go back with them and exiled himself to the royal compound on the island where he remained ever since.

While Locke is telling this story, the craft has been approaching the entrance to Haven, concealed by the holographic projection of the wall of flame. As they enter, with Geoffrey expressing his wish to speak directly to Tobor since he was particularly instrumental in helping clean up the site of the crash, we get to see what Fake Tobor is up to in the medbay. As you might expect, it's no good!

Well now, I hardly think Knuckles is the self-centered one here, Moritori. After all, you're the one who replaced a man's entire life with your own, sabotaging every relationship he's ever had and forcing him into a shameful exile just to get an edge for your own selfish goals. They fight some more, and Moritori reveals that his eyepiece can actually shoot lasers, because sure man, lasers! As they continue to duke it out, Locke lands his craft in their docking bay just as alarms start to go off. He decides to simply drop everyone off except for Lara-Le, giving Elias the task to take everyone to Sabre and privately telling him to tell Knuckles "I'm sorry." Wow, maybe Lara-Le has actually gotten through to him somewhat after all. As Elias' entourage makes its way through the hallways they narrowly miss being sliced in half by Moritori's lasers like they’re in a Resident Evil movie, and Knuckles starts tackling him again. Suddenly some heavy-duty doors start closing off the part of the hallway, and Archimedes poofs in to encourage him to jump to safety, trapping Moritori inside.

Just so we're aware, I don't think it's been mentioned so far, but Spectre is Tobor's son, meaning that for all he knows, right now he just saw his own father turn traitor. Of course, they'll all find out there's more to what's going on soon enough. Knuckles and Elias' gang meet up in the hallways, and Knuckles mentions something about hating having to fight the Dark Legion. At that moment the rest of the Brotherhood (sans Locke) turn up, shocked to hear an accusation that Tobor might have been affiliated with them, and Spectre opens the blast doors only to find that Moritori is gone.

According to Spectre, "Shinginta" is an old word in an ancient echidna language meaning "you will make friends with death." I'm not sure if we're meant to assume Moritori just randomly had pen and paper on him, or if he carved it into the wall with his eye lasers, but I'm going with the second option because it's way more metal. Back in Locke's craft, he's finally allowing Lara-Le to try to discuss Knuckles with him, but gets defensive almost as soon as she begins to speak, asking her sarcastically if she wants him to explain the birds and the bees, because he already has. Kind of a hilarious thing to include considering we're literally talking about Locke sitting baby Knuckles down and teaching him the ins and outs of echidna sex, and maybe not a comment necessary to include in a kids' comic, but hey, at least we know Locke is a good enough parent to give his son a decent sex education instead of leaving him in the dark like a lot of modern parents do, eh? Although, on the other hand, there's the ever-looming fact that Guardians are expected to enter into little heterosexual marriages and produce heirs for the family line, so maybe not so great of him after all. He then finds Remington, his pilot, Julie-Su and Wynmacher still stuck in their downed craft outside of Haven, because remember, all this time they've just been stuck in there while Knuckles randomly disappeared into the wall of fire.

Boi, you better get over your old feelings for her quick. Wynmacher is honestly a very likable character compared to him; look how polite he is to someone he knows broke his fiancée's heart, how kind he's been to Knuckles all this time treating him like his own son, and how well he looks after Lara-Le's feelings. He's a way better partner to Lara-Le than Locke ever was, and she deserves him after all Locke put her through. But anyway, meanwhile back in Haven, we finally reach the third day of Geoffrey's time on the island, and Elias brings him and the rest of the Secret Service to the chamber where his mother is in stasis.

Geoffrey plans to take the queen's stasis pod back to Mobotropolis straightaway, and Elias decides he will come with, as he wishes to see his father now that he knows he's alive and well. Knuckles, however, plans to stay in Haven and get the answers he's always wished for, and frankly has earned the right to know.

#nala reads archie sonic preboot #archie sonic #archie sonic preboot #sonic the hedgehog #kte 21 #writer: ken penders #pencils: manny galan #colors: barry grossman

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badlydrawndrawnings · 5 years

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Semi-formal critique/rant about a lack of P1/P5 comparisons

When the first Persona 5 PV came out, there was a general agreed consensus that Persona 5 was going to be the Persona 2 duology (with Innocent Sin being the most compared Persona 2 game) of the modern games. This consensus grew more and more as more playable characters were introduced, character info was released, and certain gameplay elements were introduced, like demon negotiation and GUNS as a secondary ranged weapon.

That last one is more of a Persona 1/SMT gameplay element but whatever.

By the time of the game’s release, and with more people playing the game/watching let’s play and walkthroughs (and the anime, and the seemingly slow release of the official manga I can only occasionally find ~not Mementos Missions btw~), this consensus was and is still around. It’s not as strong as before, but it’s there. There are also some people that like to say the two games were handle the same way (with Innocent Sin once again being the most compared Persona 2 game) via characters and certain plot points. I actually made an old post about it, right here.

With the Japanese Release of Persona 5 Royal, these claims exponentially rose again to strong levels to where I literally wanted to go into Tim Barry’s Royal Stream chat and type ‘please stop talking about persona 2 and nyary please stop talking about persona 2 and nyary.’ Why? Because after watching much of Royal to the best of my ability, I come to the realize that, Persona 5 Royal at least, is trying to be the Persona 1 of the modern games. And fair warning, I will go into major spoilers for Royal in depths, based off what is known.

We have Reiji Kido and Goro Akechi, bastard children who revenge over their father is their main goal. Yet due to one factor being present (or absent), they show the different outcomes of their fates, one being able to move on after his revenge for thirst and live a normal life with his own family, while the other who fate is unknown (in Original Persona 5; Royal will be touch upon under the read more) as his revenge possibly costed his life.

We have Masao ‘Mark’ Inaba and Ryuji Sakamoto, two good teenagers who are momma’s boys and delinquents at their school. Yet the title of delinquent is either truthfully earn because of actual delinquent-like behavior that will lead to a future career, or a title gradually earned after an accident that costed a possible future career had it never happened at all.

We have Eriko ‘Elly’ Kirishima and Ann(e) Takamaki, both who are in fact one-fourth American models. Yet given how they appear so differently, it must have factor into how are treated by other student, with one looking more of the typical Japanese person she is deem odd mostly due to her ‘eccentricities’, the other appearing more foreign with blonde hair and blue eyes due to a chance of genetics she is treated unfairly due to rumors and enforcing negative stereotypes.

Once you get into the Royal Third Semester, the comparisons grow into new levels that took me by surprise.

For one, we have Kasumi Yoshizawa. Kasumi can be best describe as the love child/clone of Maki (with that red ribbon and some parts of her personality) and Naoya (P1′s Manga Protag’s background of sorts). For you see, Kasumi is not Kasumi. She is Sumire Yoshizawa, twin of Kasumi Yoshizawa. Sumire loves the real Kasumi, but the poor girl is envious of her older and much more talented sister. It grew and grew until Sumire is full with such negativity and hate with her life as how it is and how she is, Sumire couldn’t handle it anymore and decides to go into traffic to possibility kill herself.

And the real Kasumi dies trying to save her younger. Needing counselling for her depression and guilt of what happened, Sumire’s cognitive of herself change into her believing (with someone’s help, who I will discuss) she is Kasumi and lives her life as Kasumi. It’s only until the Third Semester does Sumire remembers the truth. It took awhile, but Sumire was able to overcome everything and awaken fully, with what appears to be Kasumi herself -that’s right a dead person- becoming Cendrillon.

So one is wondering who the heck made Sumire believe she is Kasumi? It’s none other than Takuto Maruki! Everyone figured this man shouldn’t be trust, but oh boy. We weren’t expecting any of this sorts! For one, Takuto is a Persona User. Now, adult Persona Users are canon since the first game with Takahisa Kandori, but it’s Kandori we ought to focus on (and only Kandori in Persona 1).

Kandori is nothing like Takuto. Kandori is a business man through and through, being the head president of the Sebec Branch in Mikage-Cho. Both men believe it or not, have the same goal of sorts of imposing their ideal version of the world over reality with their own means, Takuto with his Persona Powers that sort became supercharge after Yabadadoo’s defeat by the PT, Kandori with the Deva System Sebec build.

Takuto honestly has good intentions, wanting a world where people can be happy without heartache and pain, which started when his former girlfriend had to go to the hospital after her parents died (in what I think was a burglary gone wrong). In fact, Takuto’s status as an antagonist is interesting. He knows the PT and has a Co-op/Confidant with Joker. While exploiting them for his research, he does so in his belief he is going to help them and everyone else because his way is the best. In fact, Takuto believes himself so much, he wants to make sure his ideal world will happen by trying stop Joker from sending a calling call by using Goro as one weird last resort.

Because according to Takuto, the real Goro is dead. The real Goro was taken hostage on Shido’s ship, but the destruction of the Palace pretty much doom Goro to a watery grave. Because of Joker’s unknowing wish to see Goro again (if you pick the right option), Takuto was able to use his powers to start the Third Semester on 12/24, the day where Joker canonically has to turn himself in. The Goro here is in effect, Dream!Goro who is eerily just like the real Goro. When Joker decides to listen to Dream!Goro of not accept the dream world and to accept reality as it is, that’s when Takuto takes out the big guns (aka, use his Persona). After losing to the PT via Personas, Takuto makes another go at it by almost became GOD by fusing with his Persona. When he goes back to his human self, Takuto fucking fights Joker in a fist fight and you pretty much ask yourself: how many times do we have to teach you this lesson old man? But at the end, Takuto accepts it, and is given a second chance at life.

Kandori is just a selfish prick who only cares for himself. How much of a selfish prick? When the Deva System got attached to Maki’s subconscious and her Ideal World, Kandori decides to exploits Maki’s powers (via Aki, aka, Girl in Black) as a mean to his own end of becoming GOD. He also couldn’t give a shit about the P1 crew, hating them all and likes taunting them. Kandori couldn’t care less about his half bastard brother’s revenge goal, but comments Reiji does have that Kandori blood lol.

And believe or not, Kandori is one of the few Persona villains to win. He actually achieves his dream of being God of a new world...and feels unfilled by it. By the time the Persona 1 crew confronts him, the man is particularly wishing for death because he has nothing else to live for since who knows how long his world can last. Kandori would have probably at surrender to them if Nanjo didn’t push Kandori into one last fight. Like Takuto, Kandori fuses with his Persona (though it’s not like he planned it), but he dies in this battle, pretty much as a empty man and as a possible warning of a wrong future.

Though Kandori gets the last word by revealing to the P1 crew that he isn’t the real person they should be focusing on. That goes to the real Maki, who is still sick in her bed (as it turns out, the Maki everyone is with is the Ideal Maki of real Maki’s dream, who is nothing like her).

(I forgot to mention it, but there’s also a brief moment on 12/31 when Joker dreams of an empty and dark Shujin Academy. It’s really similar to St. Hermelin during the parts the P1 crew have get lost travel through the school.)

With that being said about Royal, one can see what Persona 1 elements show up, how it works in both the original based game and Royal re-released, and the understand how Royal is trying to be the Persona 1 of modern Persona games. Yet people are still only taking about Persona 5 and how it’s like the Persona 2 duology (mainly Persona 2 Innocent Sin; I seen way too many people discuss in the Tim Barry chat how getting posses by your Persona came from IS but it was there since the first game).

And so I finally has to ask the question I thought I would never ask: Why do Persona fans tend to not make P1/P5 comparisons?

Is there something about Persona 1 that makes it easy to not make these comparisons? Like, I know the earlier games aren’t easy to play (especially one; I actually can’t play in First Person games in general because I get headaches from the format after half an hour or so of gameplay). That’s why the option to watch a let play walkthrough, reading the manga, listening to the audio drama, or do a combination of all the above exist.

But is there’s something in Persona 1 in all of its materials, that makes it unworthy of talk like Persona 2 to be worthy of a comparison to Persona 5? I am in no means bashing the Persona 2 duology at all but I genuine want to know, without the need to cause discourse.We already have enough as it is.

#persona 1 #persona 5 #reiji kido #goro akechi #ryuji sakamoto #masao inaba #eriko kirishima #ann takamaki #anne takamaki #persona 5 royal spoilers #persona 5 the royal spoilers #p5r spoilers #this is a text post #lol fix a few word mistakes

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margridarnauds · 6 years

Note

6, 12, 23, and 45 please!

Thank you!

6. List your OTP from each fandom you’ve been involved in.

So, I have no idea what we’re talking about as far as levels of involvement, but here are the ones I read fanfic RELIGIOUSLY for back in the day. So, behold my shame.

Cats (oh, my sweet, innocent 12 year old self) - Mistoffelees/Victoria.

Phantom of the Opera - Raoul/Christine/Erik, tbh. I started off E/C, then shifted to R/C when I realized E was a trashfire, then went to R/C/E when I realized that I loved garbage after all.

Van Helsing - Anna/Dracula. Which is impressive given I’ve never. Actually. Watched it. Sue me.

Carmilla - Carmilla/Laura.

The Pirate Queen - Graínne/Donal, one of the first fics I ever wrote. (And then never published.) Yes, he is a garbage fire in the musical, but in my very specific rewrite of it, he wasn’t. Though these days, I kind of lean towards Tiernan/Donal or Tiernan/Gráinne/Donal. Garbage pirate OT3 is garbage.

Dracula - The Countess (from Makt Myrkanna)/Lucy Westenra. The first explicit femslash I ever wrote, and it might very well never see the light of day because I do not forever want to be known as The One With The Blood And The Lesbians. Though, who knows? It might cleanse me of Printing Press.

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (Yes. Really.): Twilight/Princess Luna. I keep telling myself that my AO3 profile’s eventually going to be nothing but period dramas, my (1) Terra Nova fic, and…a My Little Pony fic, along with various Barbie Movie fics. For old time’s sake.

Terra Nova - Wash/Mira, due to @janetcarter‘s influence.

The Flash - Barrison. Specifically, Eobard/Barry. In many ways, it was my prep for 1789 with the whole “I murdered your parent” thing.

The Avengers - Loki/Tony Stark.

Les Miserables - Valjean/Javert

The Golden Compass - Mrs. Coulter/Lord Asriel

Arthuriana - Galahad/Mordred

Star Wars - Reylo or Finnlo. I don’t particularly have a preference, just let Kylo screw one of his various archnemeses straight to the side of the Light.

Star Wars: Rebels - Kallus/Zeb. Oh. Another enemies to lovers ship. Who would have guessed?

1789 - Peyrol/Ronan (Was there any doubt? If there was, I need to write more.)

Revolutionary Maximilien Robespierre - Madame Roland/Marie-Anne. In progress, but A Ship for me. Mainly because I’m a contrarian little shit who writes things when people tell me I can’t and then gets attached to the result.

Brennus, Enemy of Rome - Ahmet/Nissia. Which…I still need to. Write. My fanfic for that one. So that fanfic for it exists.

Lord of the Rings - Boromir/Aragorn

Friedrich: Mythos und Tragödie - Countess Orzelska/Wilhelmine and Fritz/Katte. Pretty much equally, though Orzelskine (?) Wilhelska (?) is starting to edge out Fratte.

La Legende du Roi Arthur - Leia/Guinevere in the French and Morgane/Guin in the Takarazuka.

Irish Mythology - Bres/Sreng. I will defend this one to the death and I will do it with citations and footnotes.

Scarecrow of Romney Marsh - General Pugh/Dr Syn. Yet another one I. Need to write the fic for.

Star Trek: ……..

………You know, my favorite thing about Star Trek is that, regardless of shipping preferences, we can all find something to enjoy. Kor/Kirk. While I can’t speak for DS9 Quark/Brunt, my current favorite from Discovery has to be Michael/Tilly, which might very well be the single most wholesome thing I’ve shipped in a very long time.

Ace Attorney: Phoenix/Edgeworth.

12. Who is your current OT3?

Chauvelin/Percy/Marguerite from The Scarlet Pimpernel. I do not accept constructive criticism on this one. Because Percy/Marguerite are sickeningly sweet on their own, Marguerite/Chauvelin has That Sexual Tension in Where’s the Girl and The Riddle, and Percy/Chauvelin fulfill all my requirements as far as enemies to lovers ships are concerned.

23. Name a fic you’ve written that you’re especially fond of & explain why you like it.

I’ve talked a lot about Forgiveness being one of the very few things I’ve written that I’ve ever liked and the ONE thing that I feel…gets my idea of how L/R WORK together and probably shows off my style best, along with Fowl Play (WHICH HAS FANART NOW. WHICH I’M STILL NOT OVER BECAUSE MY BABY HAS FANART.) So, instead, I’m going to shift to Pour la Peine, which…is my messy, messy child in many regards, not the least because it’s so much longer + still isn’t finished.

(Warning for various and assorted personal, squishy feelings, as well as cancer mentions)

When I first got the prompt from @fallenidol-453, it was January of 2018. Two months before, I’d received the news that my uncle had Stage Four Esophageal Cancer and my mother had moved from our house to his house to care for him, leaving me without her help for the first time in my life, which I deliberately kept as low-key about on here as I could be, given that, to be honest, dealing with the endless “I’m so sorry to hear that”s gets very exhausting after awhile and I was a college student with a schedule to keep. And he and I had a very…contentious relationship, despite the two of us being alike in many ways. Possibly because we were alike in many ways. And, by May of that year, he was dead. And I would learn shortly afterwards that my paternal grandfather had died in January, but no one on my father’s side had bothered to tell me. I spent a lot of time trying to deal with the stress of that time, juggling that with my schoolwork and my fanfic, which I tried to work on from the time I received the prompt onwards. (Tbh, I’d had the opening scene in my mind for awhile before, but I hadn’t had a larger plot + ending until the prompt.)

At first, I thought that I would publish it like I’d later publish Forgiveness, in one straight chapter, but as time went on and on and there became less and less of a shot of having it done any time soon, I ended up just publishing the first chapter and deciding to update it from there. And that chapter got a lot of ribbing from friends. “Her brother is dead” really came off as a very melodramatic first line, but I also decided, very early on, that I didn’t care about what the objective quality of it was; all I cared about was creating a snapshot of a time in my life, just like when I go through the stuff that I made when I was twelve and I laugh about the various and assorted OCs and questionable phrases but love them all the same because they’re my twelve year old self’s. And, where I was at that point in my life, writing Solène mourning a family member who she had a difficult relationship with while I mourned a family member who I had a difficult relationship with, it was the only line that felt right to me.

There’s a lot of things with this one that I’m still not sure about. There’s a plot twist that I’ve tried to be quiet about for all this time (that I’ve probably been really terrible about keeping, tbh) and that is either going to be the Jumping the Shark moment or the defining moment of it, and I’m obviously not sure how that’s going to be received though I want to believe I’ve foreshadowed it enough to not make it too much of a swerve, I’m not sure how I feel about the ending, there’s a lot there that’s murky and probably more reflective of my writing a year ago than not, and I’m not sure about how I’ve handled the character dynamics given what we’ve got in canon or the dynamic I’ve put them into, or whether the choices they’ll make reflect THEM or what I WANTED them to do. Hell, with a few things, I’m not sure how I’m even going to GET to the ending.

But, I’m really proud of how much I’ve had the chance to work with Solène and Olympe, I’m really happy with a lot of the work I put into sequences like the two chapters long March to Versailles, which involved looking into a LOT of personal accounts as well as secondary sources analyzing it, and I liked trying to flesh out Solène’s world. But, more importantly, of everything I’ve written, it and Le Cri are probably the most directly personal to me, and even though a part of me still says Her brother is dead is a hell of a melodramatic opening line, it fulfilled its purpose. And, tbh, sometimes that’s all a fic needs.

45. What is your all time favourite fanfic?

This is so hard for me, because there are so many fics that have left a huge impression on me throughout the various fandoms I’ve been in. In 1789 alone, I was thinking of at least two different fics at a given point, which is both fantastic and minorly stressful given how small this fandom is (one of which, incidentally, was Little Dove Heart, since that really gave me a huge push as far as Laz and his backstory and his characterization and his relationship to Artois, even if I tend to keep the latter more in the background). And there have been so many fics I’ve read that I’ll remember and go back to periodically, and that really helped me as far as looking at how character voices could be developed and how description would work and how to work a time period and a setting into a story.

Overall though, I think I’m going to have to give it to Vae Victis, which is a work by @sineala‘s. I’ve never been quiet about my undying love for the Gauls and for Brennus in particular. Brennus is one of my historical favs, and I felt like this fic did a really, really fantastic job of bringing that much-neglected period of time to life and developing the characters on their own, without me having any background in the source material. With fanfic, especially with a more active fandom, there’s kind of an expectation that everyone knows the characters involved, so to be able to work in a different time and to get the reader fully invested in the characters and their relationship in their own right is a really fantastic accomplishment, and to be able to show the Gauls and Brennus (in what little time he gets, because my boi’s not the focus and I accept that) as three dimensional figures rather than a rampaging horde is always much appreciated. And it has a WORKS CITED page at the end, AKA the eternal key to my heart.

#long post #berncat #sorry for the tragic backstory dump on PLP!#but there's a reason why it's still my baby despite everything

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radiantcutice-blog · 6 years

Text

No Honor Among Thieves

Len doesn’t know where it went wrong.

Maybe- Maybe it’s because he was distracted. Preoccupied by things back home, by Thawne and Barry and how the kids are- maybe that’s why things failed.

But even that isn’t right. Distraction doesn’t account for this mayhem, not when this plan has been in the works for months. Hell, it hadn’t even been Barry- if he had showed up, plans B through L are reserved for him, depending on when he arrived and who he’d gone after first.

It’s the damn Feds. Again, shouldn’t be a problem- except they know. They know every single move the Rogues make, every strategy in their arsenal, every single weakness. Things they shouldn’t know about this job in particular.

They go after Hartley first, taking out the ears of the operation, their early warning system, as well as the danger of his mind control. He goes down with a sonic blast targeted at his implants, flute forgotten as he scrambles to try and shut them off, fingers fumbling in his pain. It gives the Feds just enough time to slap cuffs on him, confiscate his gloves and his flute, and hustle him off. They leave the sonic device on to keep him in too much pain to pick his cuffs, twisting and writhing in the grip of the two agents that drag him along as he tries to escape the noise.

Rosa gets the Boot, fired off before she can even react, the hook clamping around her ankle and anchoring her to the ground in an instant. He snarls, reaching for his belt and the offensive tops within, but another squeeze of the trigger sends 90 thousand volts through him and he drops to his knees. The second the pulse lays them out flat, and the agents don’t even give Roscoe’s muscles the chance to relax before yanking their arms behind their back, making her cry out in pain as they cuff her wrists and begin confiscating her gear.

Mick they corner with a gun not unlike Len’s, bringing the temperature in the room down and meeting the gout of flame he sends at them with a blast of cold, causing the same explosion of steam that Mick and Len crossing streams usually does. It knocks Mick back, growling low as he struggles to his feet, but they’ve frozen the floor, too, like he’s a damn speedster they’re trying to keep off balance, and there’s a crackling crunch of snow cleats breaking through the thin layer of ice as they rush him. He manages a good few swings, clocks one with his gun and sets another’s gear on fire, but his teeth are chattering and he can feel the panic creeping up, and it distracts Mick just enough for a Fed to shove a cattle prod in the back of his knee to bring him down, leg muscles spasming painfully and losing any footing he had on the frozen floor. Crashing down, the Feds pile onto Mick even as he struggles against them, getting him restrained and his gun taken away before some asshole cracks him in the back of the head with their own weapon, and the blunt force head trauma on top of years of it makes Mick’s vision swim almost immediately.

They drag him into the hall where Lisa stands, looking frantic at first but then cold and hard, just like Len, teeth bared as she skates her way towards them, fists clenched. Mick tries to shout a hoarse warning, but Lisa’s too set on her icy rage and doesn’t realize one of the agents is brandishing Mick’s gun until the flames melt the ice from under her blades and send her hurtling ungracefully to the floor. The same cattle prod used on Mick gets jabbed into Lisa’s gut, making her convulse until they decide she’s had enough, cuffing her before one of the agents tosses her over his shoulder.

Another two agents drag Roy into the procession, the Rainbow Raider hanging unconscious between them, his glasses in one of their fists. His tech might be formidable, but Roy’s never been a physical fighter, and a flash-bang to overwhelm his hardlight constructs was all the Feds needed to get to the man himself and knock him out.

Len would have to be an idiot to ignore the explosions, breaking into a jog with his safety off as he heads towards the nearest Rogue- safety in numbers, they’ve got this down- only to find Digger backed into a corner and swaying, swearing up a storm as he clutches his head, his boomerangs scattered across the floor or stuck in the walls.

It feels like being whisked by Barry- going so fast that, for a moment, the world sometimes seems like it’s at a standstill- before Digger’s head swells and bursts outward, a splatter of blood and gray matter painting the walls and the ceiling, and Len hears a sound- is that his voice? Is he screaming?- before he fires his cold gun into the room, icing the four agents who’d surrounded Digger and watched as he-

As he-

In a burst of rage, he smashes his gun down against the forearm of the man holding the detonator, breaking it off from the elbow down to shatter against the floor as Len moves past them, reeling it all until there’s just a shard of ice where his heart should be. He’s calm. He’s rational. He can make this work, even with the plan gone to hell.

First priority is Digger’s body. Len is methodical as he ices it, like he would a patch of ground or a particularly tough safe; his eyes are vacant, unwilling to really look at the body of one of his best friends, the man who was a brother to him, fucking de-

Shaking off the thought physically, he releases the trigger and turns away from the flash-frozen corpse, shouting for Sam and finding him in the reflection off an iced Fed not a few seconds later, looking absolutely haggard.

“Cold, what the fuck’s- oh, Christ.” Even in the reflection, even behind his helmet, Len sees Sam’s eyes go wide at the sight of Digger. “Is he…?”

“Get him outta here, Scudder.” There’s no room for argument and Sam knows it, leaving the relatively safety of the Mirror World to collect Digger’s frozen body from the floor as Len ices over a large patch of the wall to make a larger surface for them to pass through.

There’s a plan in place for this, as much as Len hates to admit it. It’s been haunting him for years, the thought that they’re all mortal, and he’d hoped to never use Avernus for anything more than someone dying of old age in their sleep. Wishful thinking, he supposes, but who wouldn’t want their family to live their longest and fullest lives? Hell, nobody deserves to die like this, not even a miserable bastard like Digger, not even after he’d killed that Gotham capitalist.

Sam fires his gun into the ice and it ripples for a moment before settling, the younger man adjusting his grip on the body before looking back at Len. “Stay here. I’ll be back.”

“You don’t give orders,” he growls, but Scudder doesn’t relent, baring his teeth back at Len.

“Job’s gone to hell, Snart, you’ll stay fuckin’ put while I get everyone I can into the goddamn mirror, not go running around to get yourself offed by more Feds.”

Len’s hand flexes around the grip of his gun and then loosens as he nods curtly. “I’m last through.”

“I know, Len,�� Sam assures him before stepping into his reflection with Digger’s body.

He can’t help pacing while he waits- part of Len wants to smash the frozen agents to snow, part of him wants to run to find his sister, his husband- but Scudder’s right. Damn him, but he is. They need to get out of here, and Len running off half-cocked and angry, so angry, no matter how he’s tried to freeze it out, will just get him killed.

Like Digger.

Sam’s hand emerges from the ice a few long minutes later and Len takes it, stepping through the reflection, used to the way it clings to him, like emerging from being underwater until the surface tension finally breaks. The Mirror World is never pleasant, and he’s glad for Scudder’s hustle to the next bright spot in the murky and imbalanced dimension, dragging Len through the floor-length mirror in the front hall of the den and then firing his gun again to shut the portal down entirely.

It’s a good thing, too, because Len takes a few deep breaths before turning on his heel and slamming his fist into the mirror.

The way it shatters is utterly unsatisfying, the ugly way his knuckles pop bringing him no catharsis, and the voices that call out in response-

“Len!”

“¡Dios!”

“Cold!”

Only three. Three plus Digger, dead, headless, frozen, and neither Lisa nor Mick among them-

He turns back around to see Sam, Marc, and James staring at him in concern. Marc’s hair is more of a windswept mess than usual, Sam’s helmet is discarded to show the furrows in his brow, and James looks almost green, lips pressed in a thin line as he watches Len from behind his domino.

“What the fuck was that,” he asks aloud, and none of them answer, so he raises his voice. “What the fuck was that? That wasn’t Flash, or Icon, or Rocket- those were the damn Feds, and they nabbed half of us. They m-” The words stick in his throat, if only because he sees a bright puff of red hair around the corner.

“Uncle Len?” Owen.

Len wants nothing more in this moment than to have died in Digger’s place.

“Hey, kid,” he says softly. “Didn’t mean to wake ya.”

“Is everything okay?”

Swallowing back the shake in his voice, Len nods. “Just job stuff, Owen. You need somethin’?”

The boy almost shakes his head, then shrugs instead, looking at his feet.

“How ‘bout Marc comes and reads you one of his boring old books to help you get back to sleep,” he suggests gently, and Owen looks up again to shoot Mardon a hopeful glance.

“Can we keep going with Connecticut Yankee?”

At a loss for words for a brief moment, Marc spares Len a helpless look before smiling gently at Owen. “Of course, niño.”

Marc reaches out to squeeze Len’s arm before following Owen back through the house to the boy’s room, leaving him with Scudder and Jesse, the latter looking ready to squirm out of his skin as he glances at the hallway and then back down, not looking at Len or Sam.

Len watches James until Marc and Owen’s footsteps fade and Owen’s door clicks shut, a chill crawling across Len’s skin as his blood freezes in his veins.

“Trix. Look at me.” James lifts his head and Len sees his Adam’s apple bob, hands curling into fists as he holds himself back from drawing the cold gun once more. “Tell me you didn’t.”

“Snart, we don’t know it was an inside job-”

“Don’t fuckin’ gimme that, Scudder, we know damn well it was. No way the Feds would get the drop on us otherwise.” He steps closer to Trickster and the young Rogue flinches. “James. Answer me.”

A soft wheeze escapes him before he musters words. “Cold, I swear to God, I didn’t think-”

“You didn’t think what, Jesse? You didn’t think they’d really catch us? You didn’t think they’d get so many?” It takes everything in Len not to grab James by the front of his uniform and shake him. “You didn’t think they’d murder one of us?”

“No! No, I didn’t, I just thought-”

“They’re the fucking Feds, not the CCPD! They’re competent, especially when some meshugenah hands them all the intel they need because he thinks- what, exactly? What were you thinking, you fucking idiot?”

James shoves Len back, shame turning to something ugly and defiant in the face of Len’s anger, and Len has to put a hand up to keep Sam from stepping in.

“I was thinking about this, Cold! The way you treat me, the way the Rogues fucking treat me- how I never get the chance to prove myself-”

”Prove yourself?” Len cuts in, “Kid, what the hell are ya talkin’ about? You haven’t needed to prove yourself since you first joined up! You made it through the trial period, you showed us you had the skills- that was all we needed! You’re a Rogue! End of story!”

“But it’s not! You all still treat me like a child-”

“You’re second-youngest!”

“-and like you don’t want me around-”

“Because you’re an ass, James, not ‘cause you’re not capable!”

Jesse makes a disgusted noise. “Like everyone in this group isn’t an ass sometimes!”

“Not everyone’s a navel-gazin’ homophobic jerk, James, and you know it damn well,” Len snaps back. “You, you were a pain in my ass, in everyone’s asses, and I stood up for you. I played the leader card, more’n once, because you were family, James. You were my fucking son, and I wasn’t about to put you out.”

A hush falls as James stares at Len, the oh-so-clever Trickster finally at a loss for words. His breath shudders, and Len watches him struggle through his emotions as the words sink in. Sam shifts uncomfortably in Len’s peripheral vision.

“Cold- Len. I’m sorry. I don’t-” His voice falters. “I dunno what I was thinking.”

Len wants to forgive. He does. He didn’t spend years handpicking a team with the intention of giving up on them, or leaving them behind. He didn’t cultivate a family just to turn his back when things got rough, but this-

This is beyond rough.

He hadn’t brought James in, young and scared and alone but so, so brilliant, just to drop him on his ass again. It’s been years of Len trying to help James, make him a better man as well as a better criminal, and to see he learned nothing- to see him betray the family, to see him orphan Owen-

“You broke my heart, kid,” Len admits quietly, raising his hand to halt any answer and talking over James when he doesn’t take the visual cue. “You broke my damn heart, but if you’re out, you’re out.”

His eyes are steely even as Jesse tries to reason with him. “Len, come on-”

“That’s enough.” The words hurt, but Len gets them out, even if his voice is hushed. “Go tell your Fed buddies that James Jesse’s all theirs. The Trickster’s dead.”

James recoils, brows drawn together. “You can’t do that.”

“I can, and I am,” Len assures him. “Trickster’s dead. And if Jesse sets foot in the Gem Cities again, he’ll be dead, too.”

Stepping out of the way, Len gestures from James to the front door. “You know the way.”

The silence draws out between them as Jesse stands there, a tremor in his frame as he stares at Len, as if the look will change his mind, but Len is set. His hand drops to his gun when it starts getting too long for his tastes, and only then does James look away, eyes on the ground as he hustles past Len and Sam, leaving without another word.

Len watches him go and allows himself one shuddering breath once the door shuts behind James, covering his eyes for a long moment before he gets it together.

Cold. Hard. Calm. He’s fine. They’re all gonna be fine.

Everyone but Digger, that is.

He pulls his phone from an inside pocket of his parka, turning it on and dialing a number he knows by heart, eyes distant as he listens to it ring.

“Hey. Yeah. Yeah, I know what time it is. Listen, Flash. I need your help.”

#Execute The Plan; plot post #death/#violence/#long post/

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