whateverforever2313

[whateverforever2313]

Reaper Chp. 3

Chp. 1, Chp. 2

I fought to keep my eyes on the road instead of the thing in the rearview mirror as the speedometer ticked higher, higher. Even so, I still caught glimpses of it out of the corner of my eye: some polymorphic shape, flowing in and out of itself.

It was gaining on us.

As it got closer, I started to notice individual features. Teeth, a wing. A face, or…not faces? But every time I thought I saw something distinguishing in what I now thought had to be more than one creature, I quickly lost track of it in the swirling cloud.

Aesa continued to fire at the swarm, and it seemed to ripple with the impacts. It didn’t slow down.

Suddenly, Aesa jumped on the hood of the car. I swerved in shock, nearly spinning out of control, but Aesa remained firmly planted where he crouched. His dark eyes locked with mine.

“Whatever happens, keep driving,” he ordered. Then he turned to face the road, coat swirling around him. He reached out, hands clawed as though he was trying to tear the air apart. The air began to shimmer and warp as he strained, the muscles on the back of his neck standing out.

The swarm was getting closer, and individual members of the group were breaking off, getting closer, closer.

Then Aesa screamed.

Energy pulsed through my being, and I saw reality rip in front of me. I had no time to react, and the next thing I knew, we were hurtling through.

I could feel the pressure around me once again, but this time it was neither soft nor gentle. It pulled  at me: my hair, my skin, my eyes, dragging me backwards like a rubber band. Then the pressure snapped, and we were through to the other side.

This place did not look anything like the fields and mountains of the landscape of the inbetween I had seen before. The terrain was warped, rocky, and violet-grey, the sky a strange olive green. I jerked the wheel to avoid twisted outcroppings and instinctively hit the brakes.

“Keep going!” Aesa yelled, “We have to draw them in!” And so I gasped a prayer and stomped on the gas as my tiny vehicle rocketed through the alien landscape.

We gained a little breathing room as the swarm was forced to fight their way through the hole Aesa had ripped for us, but they quickly burst through. Before, we’d had the advantage of a straight, clear highway; now we were slowed as I desperately swerved through the uneven terrain of the other place.

And now, I could hear them. They muttered and shrieked almost words, echos of hunger and hatred and an ancient fear. However, Aesa didn’t fire on them even as they neared, crouching in wait on the trunk. Finally, he reached out again, and the hole he had made in reality began to shimmer and knit itself back together.

Distracted by the sight, I was forced to jerk the wheel to the side, barely avoiding a large rock which suddenly loomed before us, sending us between the walls of a canyon. Horrified, I realized that the canyon appeared to empty out into nothingness.

“Aesa!” I screamed. He turned, sprinting to the front of the car.

“Just keep going!” He told me.

The swarm was right behind us now. Gas pedal pressed to the floor, I stared helplessly as we speed towards the edge of the cliff. Tires kicked up violet dust and pebbles before spinning uselessly as we hurtled over the edge. For a moment, all I saw was the olive sky. As we began to fall, I saw a deep abyss beneath us, sparkling with neon flame. I closed my eyes, the screams of the swarm enveloping me.

A moment later the pressure embraced me again, and by the time I opened my eyes we were flung back into the world. Gravity shifted, and instead of falling nose first, we crashed wheels down into the middle of a field of wheat, deploying my airbags as dirt spraying around us and we skidded to a stop.

Aesa flung up his arms to seal the hole, but the swarm was already forcing its way through. Three managed to squeeze their way through before the final cracks glistened and disappeared, severing another as they did.

Aesa drew his weapon and fired off three shots in quick succession, the final stray exploding into a grey mist beside my window.

I clung to the steering wheel and breathed as the wheat shivered and stilled. Everything fell silent. Aesa sighed, slumped his shoulders, and fell off the back of my car. I threw open my car door and tried to run to him, but my legs gave out. I fell to my knees and vomited.

On the ground beside me, the last remnants of the thing bubbled away into nothingness.

Breathing heavily, I crawled over to where Aesa lay, crumpled. He seemed almost ethereal, more a shadow than a man. I reached out a trembling hand to touch him.

“No,” he whispered, “no help, not safe, just, rest, a minute, please.”

I drew back and let myself sink into the crushed wheat, moving only to try to spit the foulness out my mouth.

Finally, Aesa stirred. When he spoke, I could barely hear his voice.

“We need, get back, people. Safer.” I dragged my eyes to his face. He wore a thousand-yard stare. “If, I can’t, another. Need others.” He began to drag himself back to the car, and I followed suit. I shoved the airbags out of the way and strapped myself into the seat.

I reached for the steering wheel and then stopped, trembling.

“What was that thing?”

Aesa didn’t look at me.

“I’ll tell what I can later. Rest now. Please.”

I looked at him sitting there, barely present, as though he might fracture at lightest touch. I pushed away my fear and made myself go numb.

I pulled out onto the highway, speeding away from unspoken terrors and a field of crumpled wheat.

[whateverforever2313]

Reaper: Chapter Two

His hand was warm.

Isa pulled me to my feet. “Just a second,” he said, scanning the area.

I didn’t feel dead. I could feel the wind on my skin and my heart hammering in my chest. My hands were trembling with adrenaline. That had to be a good sign.

“Kat,” Isa said, startling me. I had been staring at my hands so intently that I hadn’t noticed he was holding out his hand to me again.

“I’m not dead,” I informed him a bit giddily, taking his hand again.

Isa didn’t smile, but the corners of his eyes crinkled. “This way,” he said, pointing with his free hand. I looked, but he seemed to be pointing towards thin air.

He led me away from the broken highway and my silver car, wading through the faded brown grass. After about twenty yards he stopped and turned to me.

“I need you to think of a place,” he said, “Any place.”

My mind went blank. “Any place?”

“Anywhere. Visualize it in your mind. Got it?” I hesitated before nodding. “Good. Now we’re going to take one more step together.”

I looked at the grass before us. It didn’t look any different from any other patch of grass we’d passed. I drew a deep breath.

“Okay.”

“And go.”

As we stepped forward together, the air went…soft. Like a deep, thick mattress. Like holding an overripe peach in your hands and slowly pressing in your thumbs, letting them sink into it. Not hot or cold or anything like that. Just soft.

Less than a moment passed before the softness was gone; I didn’t even have time to blink. We were still standing in the grass by the highway. I could see my car close by and the mountains looming in the distance. But the edges of the mountains were vague and unclear, and the light that filtered through the clouds was tinted red, almost as though it was shining through rose-colored glass. More telling was the quiet. The wind had disappeared, and the grass was silent and still.

“You know,” Isa commented, “I think people usually choose somewhere other than the place they’re currently standing.”

“I panicked,” I responded, taking in everything around me, “Which seems to be my basic state of existence at this point.”

Unlike everything else, Isa seemed more real than ever. The basics were still the same: pale, ashy skin stretched tight over his body, white hair, and jet black eyes set deep in their sockets. His fingers and limbs were overly long for his body, and he was wearing a black hooded coat with loose sleeves, grey pants, boots, and a t-shirt with a vintage ad for spam.

However, his skin lacked the translucent quality it usually had, and his shadow -

“You have a shadow,” I blurted out, “You have a - the grass. You’re actually crushing down the grass.” I knelt down and confirmed for myself that yes, the grass could be pressed down, and then I turned around and thrust out my hand. The softness was waiting just feet behind me. “Where are we?”

“This is an inbetween place,” he replied, watching as I shuffled a few feet to the side and stuck out my hand again, “We needed somewhere safe to talk.”

I pulled my hand from the softness and tried again. “And the deserted highway wasn’t cutting it?”

Isa pressed his lips together. “It’s not humans that I’m worried about overhearing us.”

I paused mid thrust. “Oh.” The fear which had almost been forgotten in my wonder flared up.

“Here,” Isa said, and he took my hand again, leading me around whatever invisible portal we had passed through. Almost mindlessly I walked towards the car.

“Are we safe here, then?”

He shrugged. “Should be. I don’t think I was followed - there’s no good reason anyone would, really, I’m not a major player. But it’s not wise to talk about these things in the open on principle.”

We reached the car, and I stretched out my hand to touch it. It was solid under my fingers, but the numbers on the license plate were scrambled, changing every time I blinked. 

Isa stopped me as I went to open the driver’s side door.

"I just wanted to see if it would start,” I said.

Isa shook his head. “It might, but it’s not wise to go through any doors here. There’s no telling where you might end up.”

A little disappointed, I perched on the trunk instead, pulling up my legs and wrapping my arms around them. Isa stood before me, hands shoved in his pockets.

“So…” I started, Isa looking at me expectantly, “Are you an angel?”

Isa burst out laughing. It was an odd sound, out of place in the unnatural silence of the inbetween.

“No, and I wouldn’t let an angel hear you say that if I were you. Actually, it would probably be fine; most angels I’ve met are quite nice. But trust me, if you ever meet an angel, you’ll know it. People tend to fall over when they show up.”

“Okay, not an angel.” There went half the theories I’d ever read. “Then what are you? And don’t say a reaper.”

“I never really liked that name anyway,” he replied. He kicked the ground for a moment, thinking. “I’m the guardian of your soul. I’ve been with you since your soul first joined your body. I will ensure no one touches it until your life is complete.”

“…And when my life is complete?”

“I take your soul,” he answered nonchalantly, “ - Kat?”

I rolled off the car, running into the field, running towards the softness.

Maybe he wasn’t an angel after all. But there were other theories about the reapers.

“Kat?” he called after me, “I’m not taking your soul here and now.”

I stumbled to a stop in a panic. The grass all looked the same. Whatever gateway we’d walked through wasn’t marked by any kind of visual cue. I was effectively trapped.

“Maybe you’re not taking it now,” I said as I turned, arms tight by my sides, hands clenched, “but you’re going to.”

Isa walked towards me slowly, “That probably wasn’t the best way for me to phrase that.” I shrank away from him instinctively, and he sighed. “This would be easier if I was an angel. They’re good at explaining things. Can I try again?”

He waited until I nodded hesitantly.

“I’m the guardian of your soul. I was bound to you the moment your soul entered your body. While you live, I’ll protect your soul from harm. When your days are complete, I’ll carry your soul to its rest. I’m not going to kill you, consume your soul, drain your life force, steal your corporeal form,  keep you in a tortured disembodied state devoid of all sensation, or anything else of that kind.”

I stared at him. “That’s…really specific.”

“But you’re not running this time,” Isa noted.

“If you’re lying, I’m screwed anyway,” I retorted.

“Ah.” Isa’s body seemed to droop ever so slightly. “I liked it better when you just trusted me.”

“And I liked it better when I wasn’t afraid I was going crazy,” I snapped. I shut my eyes and paused, willing myself to breath deeply. “I’m tired. I’m stressed and exhausted and I have no clue what’s going on. You disappeared for two weeks and I didn’t even know reapers could do that, and now you’re talking and you touched me and I’m somehow not dead and we’re in a freaking alternate dimension or something and it’s just a bit much.”

“I didn’t intend to let things get this out of hand,” Isa admitted, “I only thought I’d be gone for a few hours at most.”

Finally, the question that had been burning in my chest for weeks. “What happened? Why did you leave?”

“There was a reaper who needed help. He and his human were being targeted, and they weren’t going to make it.”

“Are they okay?”

His face brightened a bit. “They are. The woman died and he was able to deliver her soul safely.”

“Your definition of a happy ending and mine are a little different,” I muttered, “What did they need protection from?”

Isa looked grim. “There are many beings who would want to misuse a human soul,” he said softly, “And there are others who would like nothing more than to see a reaper give into the temptation to take advantage of their charge. Some of these were attacking this reaper in the hope of either claiming the soul for themselves or, if nothing else, forcing the reaper into a position where he drew on the soul for power. I thought they’d back off once I came to his aid, but they fought until the end.”

Behind Isa’s shoulder, I saw something like a dark smudge on the horizon where the mountains met the sky. A horrible sense of wrongness settled in my gut.

“I didn’t mean to leave you for so long,” he continued, “And it shouldn’t -”

“Isa,” I interrupted, pointing urgently, “There’s something here.”

Isa turned to look. The smudge was getting larger. “No,” he said, “No no no no!” He grabbed my hand.

“We need to move now!” He took off across the field, dragging me behind him. We passed through the softness and the world shifted, the rosy light turning grey. We sprinted back to my car.

I looked back towards the mountains. I couldn’t see anything.

“Get in the car,” Isa ordered, and I hurried to do so. After buckling myself in, I looked up to see Isa pull out a gun.

“Drive home as fast as you can,” he said, ignoring my shock, “And don’t stop until I say so.” With that, he swung himself onto the roof of my car.

I turned on the car and made a U-turn, pressing the pedal to the floor. A minute later gun shots rang out, and I looked into the mirror to see something burst through the portal and hurtle down the broken highway in pursuit.

[whateverforever2313]

Everyone has a reaper. The further away it is, the longer you have left to live. Every day it inches a little bit closer, but it is always there. Except yours, which disappeared three weeks ago

[whateverforever2313]

Realigning cuz it's swiftmas and everyone needs ro remember this exists

taylorswift we need a recipe for these please! 🍪🍪🍪

[whateverforever2313]

These are

Gorgeous

taylor swift lockscreens

like or reblog if you save them

[whateverforever2313]

After some contemplation, I have decided that my favorite lyrics from the lakes is

I want to watch wisteria grow right over my bare feet 'Cause I haven't moved in years And I want you right here

Favorite Lyrics From folklore

the 1 ~ You know greatest films of all times were never made

cardigan ~ you drew stars around my scars but now I’m bleedin’

the last great american dynasty ~ I had a marvelous time ruining everything

exile (feat. Bon Iver) ~ Second, third, and hundredth chances Balancin’ on breaking branches Those eyes add insult to injury

my tears ricochet ~ And I can go anywhere I want Anywhere I want, just not home And you can aim for my heart, go for blood But you would still miss me in your bones And I still talk to you When I’m screaming at the sky And when you can’t sleep at night You hear my stolen lullabies

mirrorball ~ Hush, I know they said the end is near But I’m still on my tallest tiptoes Spinning in my highest heels, love

seven ~ Please picture me in the weeds Before I learned civility I used to scream ferociously Anytime I wanted

august ~ So much for summer love and saying “us” ‘Cause you weren’t mine to lose

this is me trying ~ They told me all of my fears were mental So I got wasted like all my potential And my words shoot to kill when I’m mad I have a lot of regrets about that

illicit affairs ~ And you know damn well For you I would ruin myself A million little times

invisible string ~ Cold was the steel of my axe to grind For the boys who broke my heart Now I send their babies presents

mad woman ~ And you’ll poke that bear ‘til her claws come out And you’ll find something to wrap your noose around

epiphany ~ Something med school did not cover Someone’s daughter, someone’s mother Holds your hands through plastic now “Doc I think she’s crashing out” And some things you just can’t speak about

betty ~ Will it patch your broken wings? I’m only seventeen, I don’t know anything But I know I miss you

peace ~ Sit with you in the trenches Give you my wild, give you a child Give you the silence that only comes when two people understand each other

hoax ~ My only one My kingdom come undone My broken drum You have beaten my heard Don’t want no other shade of blue but you No other sadness in the world would do

the lakes ~ we’ll find out when I hear it

This album has everything I love about Taylor’s voice and songwriting. It is so beautifully done, the songs tying together in a complex web of golden thread. There are lyrics tying cardigan to betty, betty to august, my tears ricochet to hoax, all of it. It is a true masterpiece.

Honorable Mentions ~ 

Peter Losing Wendy

Bad was the blood of the song in the cab on your first trip to LA

Every single word in my tears ricochet

Hell was the journey but it brought me heaven

Pouring my heart out to a stranger but I didn’t pour the whiskey

Don’t call me kid, don’t call me baby Look at this godforsaken mess that you made me

At least I’m trying

“fuck you forever” 

Will you tell me to go fuck myself or lead me to your garden

I gave so many signs

Tell yourself you can always stop what started in beautiful rooms ends with meetings in parking lots

Fifty years is a long time Holiday House sat quietly on that beach free of women with madness, their men and bad habits and then it was bought by me

Every line of hoax

Every single time Taylor swears

Every line of epiphany

All the lyrics. They’re just so amazingly written.

[whateverforever2313]

what if when Taylor said "I was so ahead of the curve, the curve became a sphere / fell behind all my classmates and I ended up here" she was talking about how she was quick to achieve her goals (a multi-tim grammy winner before they would have graduated college) but now all of her classmates have settled down and had families and in Miss Americana she talks about how she can't just have children or get married without planning things out 2 years in advance but how she clearly wants them (paper rings and the line "give you a child" in peace)

[whateverforever2313]

everyone is saying taylor left her comfort zone for folklore

but I counter this, with the fact that on every album there is one song that would fit perfectly in folklore

taylor didn't leave her comfort zone

she left the expectations of her as a pop artist behind

she left the pop music industry's comfort zone

[whateverforever2313]

Glad I'm not the only one

the folklore album makes me want to wander the forest in search of a lost lover, turning myself in circles and getting tripped up in the fog, getting lost in the trees, getting lost for love

[whateverforever2313]

Favorite Lyrics From folklore

the 1 ~ You know greatest films of all times were never made

cardigan ~ you drew stars around my scars but now I’m bleedin’

the last great american dynasty ~ I had a marvelous time ruining everything

exile (feat. Bon Iver) ~ Second, third, and hundredth chances Balancin’ on breaking branches Those eyes add insult to injury

my tears ricochet ~ And I can go anywhere I want Anywhere I want, just not home And you can aim for my heart, go for blood But you would still miss me in your bones And I still talk to you When I’m screaming at the sky And when you can’t sleep at night You hear my stolen lullabies

mirrorball ~ Hush, I know they said the end is near But I’m still on my tallest tiptoes Spinning in my highest heels, love

seven ~ Please picture me in the weeds Before I learned civility I used to scream ferociously Anytime I wanted

august ~ So much for summer love and saying “us” ‘Cause you weren’t mine to lose

this is me trying ~ They told me all of my fears were mental So I got wasted like all my potential And my words shoot to kill when I’m mad I have a lot of regrets about that

illicit affairs ~ And you know damn well For you I would ruin myself A million little times

invisible string ~ Cold was the steel of my axe to grind For the boys who broke my heart Now I send their babies presents

mad woman ~ And you’ll poke that bear ‘til her claws come out And you’ll find something to wrap your noose around

epiphany ~ Something med school did not cover Someone’s daughter, someone’s mother Holds your hands through plastic now “Doc I think she’s crashing out” And some things you just can’t speak about

betty ~ Will it patch your broken wings? I’m only seventeen, I don’t know anything But I know I miss you

peace ~ Sit with you in the trenches Give you my wild, give you a child Give you the silence that only comes when two people understand each other

hoax ~ My only one My kingdom come undone My broken drum You have beaten my heard Don’t want no other shade of blue but you No other sadness in the world would do

the lakes ~ we’ll find out when I hear it

This album has everything I love about Taylor’s voice and songwriting. It is so beautifully done, the songs tying together in a complex web of golden thread. There are lyrics tying cardigan to betty, betty to august, my tears ricochet to hoax, all of it. It is a true masterpiece.

Honorable Mentions ~ 

Peter Losing Wendy

Bad was the blood of the song in the cab on your first trip to LA

Every single word in my tears ricochet

Hell was the journey but it brought me heaven

Pouring my heart out to a stranger but I didn’t pour the whiskey

Don't call me kid, don't call me baby Look at this godforsaken mess that you made me

At least I’m trying

“fuck you forever” 

Will you tell me to go fuck myself or lead me to your garden

I gave so many signs

Tell yourself you can always stop what started in beautiful rooms ends with meetings in parking lots

Fifty years is a long time Holiday House sat quietly on that beach free of women with madness, their men and bad habits and then it was bought by me

Every line of hoax

Every single time Taylor swears

Every line of epiphany

All the lyrics. They're just so amazingly written.

[whateverforever2313]

memeception

[whateverforever2313]

finally made that patreon page ya’ll been on about

[whateverforever2313]

This is what I aspire to

i hope some student out there somewhere, for some reason, has at some point plagiarized my blog for an assignment 

[whateverforever2313]

i’m still PISSED about harry potter leaving draco to die because “oh boo hoo there aren’t enough seats in this minivan someone has to stay behind” like you fool. you fucking fool. i’ve ridden to walmart and back in an 11-person shuttle seating 17 people just bc i didn’t wanna wait to get some skim milk. are you really telling me that you couldn’t put a dude in the trunk for the sake of getting away from a collapsing island? you worried about not having enough seat belts??? people died bc of your poor minivan management skills, harry

[whateverforever2313]

This would also be awesome

Ok, hear me out. They make a spin-off series of Anne With An E, same actors, picking up on the same plot, on a different network with a different title. Anne With An E is her childhood, and the new series is her adulthood. Just a thought.

[whateverforever2313]

Ok, hear me out. They make a spin-off series of Anne With An E, same actors, picking up on the same plot, on a different network with a different title. Anne With An E is her childhood, and the new series is her adulthood. Just a thought.

[whateverforever2313]

Favorite Lyrics From Manic

Ashley~ Apart from my beating heart Its a muscle, but it’s still not strong enough to carry the Weight of the choices I’ve made

clementine~ I left my daydreams at the gate because I just can’t take ‘em too Know my heart still has a suitcase, but I still can’t take it through

Graveyard~ It’s gettin’ real You lock the door, you’re drunk at the steering wheel And I can’t conceal

You should be sad~ I’m just glad I made it out without breaking down And then ran so fucking far That you would never ever touch me again

Forever... (is a long time)~ ‘Cause I could never hold a perfect thing and not demolish it What am I thinking? What does this mean? How could somebody ever love me?

Dominic’s Interlude~ And if you’re lookin’ for signs then, you should know There’s power in the words you’re thinkin’

I HATE EVERYBODY~ And really, I could fall in love with anybody who don’t want me So I just keep sayin’ I hate everybody

3am~ Know that my identity’s always getting the best of me I’m the worst of my enemies And I don’t really know what to do with me

Without Me~ And then I got you off your knees Put you right back on your feet Just so you could take advantage of me

Finally // beautiful stranger~ I’ve never seen a mouth that I would kill to kiss And I’m terrified, but I can’t resist

Alanis’ Interlude~ ‘Cause he is she is her And her and he are love

killing boys~ And I won’t ever feel this way again ‘Cause you don’t need me anymore

SUGA’s Interlude~ I wonder what’s in store If I don’t love it anymore

More~ Wanna scream, but what’s the use?

Still Learning~ I know that I’ve done some wrong But I’m tryna make it right

929~ And I remember the names of every single kid I’ve met But I forget half the people who I’ve gotten in bed And I’ve stared at the sky in Milwaukee And hoped that my father would finally call me

This album is just completely amazing, and raw, and... well... manic. I love the whole thing. If you haven’t listened to it yet, I strongly recommend it. Low-key disappointed Nightmare wasn’t included.