#I wish I could express this better bc its been floating around my head for days at this point
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okay I have had thoughts percolating within my brain about tim drake and his life going to shit like as soon as he stepped out of "normal boy" and into the lives of vigilantes.
this is incredibly rambling steam of consciousness meta bc I can like. Feel the thoughts I'm trying to express but words are hard and typing on a phone is a pain in the behind.
because: Tim was introduced and intended to be a counterpoint to Bruce, as they both had similar backgrounds, and yet Tim had no great personal tragedy compelling him to help others. he simply wanted to do the right thing, in his own clumsy way
but as SOON as he got involved with Bruce he started experiencing personal tragedies at an ever increasing rate. his mother dies, his father is paralysed. he copes. his father wakes up, they have relationship issues, things improve and remain 'stable' for a long while. he gains a stepmother, and a brotherly relationship with dick. he's still the Normal Robin, with school and parents and girl troubles.
but his relationship with his father suffers because he is Robin. jack can see the shape of the secret that lies between them and every time they seem to work things out, they fall apart again. is Robin to blame for it? that one thing Tim must hold back from his father, that his father can see being held back? Jack certainly seems to think so, judging by his reaction when all Tim's obfuscation falls away and Jack discovers his costume (hidden in the closet, something that won't gain any hidden layers of meaning for a good long time)
so tim loses Robin. he does not cope well with being fully demoted to civilian. it chafes at him like outgrown clothes. and the universe punishes him for leaving his role! his schoolmate dies. his girlfriend dies. his father dies and his stepmother is hospitalised until she too dies. his best friend dies and his other best friend dies.
52 happens. he goes away for a year to leave the tragedy behind and recentre himself. he comes back and cass has been brainwashed into being evil and he almost gets a friend killed.
and then Bruce dies.
the universe itself seems to punish him when he tries to stay away from being robin. and then, when he returns to robin he gets bad shit happen to him because that's what happens to superheroes and people who put themselves in danger. danger comes to them. this is a meta thing but, also, is a narrative thread across his life.
and to me it all comes down to one panel.
batman and robin are orphans. therefore, tim drake must become an orphan. the laws of the universe bend around him to give him the motivating trauma he did not have before stepping into his role. causality runs backwards. events happen because of their consequences.
the will of the world demands tragedy.
congratulations on becoming Robin; the red will spread across your body as the blood pools underfoot.
#this is also why on a meta level I'm not as keen on fics where they ramp up the trauma and issues Tim faced in childhood#there was definite emotional neglect there but no evidence of physical or financial neglect or abuse#and to me his life falling apart when he becomes Robin and due to being Robin is just a meatier way to tackle it#because he didn't choose the tragedy and loss but he did choose Robin#without knowing what that choice would lead to#tim drake meta#tim drake#my posts#I wish I could express this better bc its been floating around my head for days at this point#and I didn't even get into recent tim stuff which I do have thoughts tying this to post n52 and modern tim comics#and why his character can't seem to move beyond a Robin mantle#but again writing sucks and typing on mobile hurts my fingers
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tomorrow, summer ends // percival de rolo (1/?)
a/n: this was a beautiful idea from a couple of lovely people: @strawberryjamwitch & @theriverstyx-runscopper (i'll tag you two in each addition, and if anyone else wants the same let me know) and i really couldn't pass it up. i hope no one minds that this is going to be multiple parts as my imagination ran wild and it would feel far too rushed for me to put it into a one-shot.
this is set in a little more of a modern!au, so things might be a little bit different. maybe i'll botch (i'll definitely botch it bc that's all i do with anything actually) it like a bad nose job and it'll be uber shitty, idk, but i'm gonna keep on with it bc my brain laid an egg and i am determined to hatch it. im so fired up rn i don't even care if everyone hates it.
now excuse me while i go try and feel again. p.s. no i couldn't think of a better name for the doctor so just sue me already
It was almost chaotic, the setting of the office; papers strewn and books scattered on glass tables, chairs moved in an unorganized fashion, and he could see the specs of dust floating in the sunlight peeking through slitted blinds. One would have to wonder if this was actually a respectable establishment with its unkempt appearance. Perhaps whoever took care of the managerial aspect could blame the fact he was there before opening but is a place not supposed to look its finest at all times in case of an inspection, and if operating times really mattered why was the damned door unlocked?
He idly picked up a Cosmopolitan magazine, only to carelessly drop it back down on the table, not even bothering to give an uninterested once-over, an overwhelming need to do something. A moment of silence passed his thoughts, like a radio tower shut-off and suddenly he exhaled sharply, hanging his head, slowly leaning forward and allowing it to lightly bump the wall. That tower powered back on, bringing massive feedback in its wake as he asked himself one simple question:
Why the hell was he here so early if he didn’t even want to be here at all?
He could have laughed at the predicament that question now left him in, and what better place to sort that out if not in this fucking office. He could take the time to dwell on it, but as the front door to the office suddenly flew open with more force than needed, his back straightened and he wiped any noticeable expression off his face, bringing himself back to a presentable front. Percival wished he could say the interest working its way onto his face was feigned, watching you look back at the door in confusion before you cautiously closed it, opened it, and repeated the process at least twice. “Oh,” a soft noise escaped your mouth, and if he hadn’t been listening intently, he probably would have only heard incoherent mutters. “I guess he fixed it.”
There was doubt in his mind about this place, to begin with, so maybe it was biased that he wasn’t surprised the door was apparently broken at one point, or perhaps it was just his desire to be anywhere but here, rather. He was bound and determined with a negative attitude to find everything he could wrong with this place, an excuse to never step foot into it again. He didn’t need to be here - it was only a waste of good money for him to not be here.
It was only a waste of good money for him to be here.
Perhaps he could have stopped staring - well, yes, he should have stopped staring, actually. With the group of people he associated with, the idea of someone being perplexed by a door really shouldn't have interested him so much, or maybe their uninhibited actions were beginning to rub off and have some influence on him. So when you turned around, finding him staring at you, he couldn't do anything but quickly turn his head to stare interested at the wall, just a hint of heat rising to his cheeks.
Good on him for trying to use the typical 'i actually happen to find this non-existent spot on the wall the most interesting thing in the world' play of action, but looking at it now, he couldn't deny that it was a rather beautiful shade of sage green. He might have to remember that - his workroom was in need of a new coat soon, maybe a change wouldn't be bad for it. Everyone (whose opinions really didn't matter) kept nagging at him to brighten it up there, but he wasn't about to do it because they told him to.
A soft titter met his ears, pulling him to glance from his peripheral. "Well, this is a disaster," your head turned, surveying the room.
It was obvious you were talking to yourself - you had no reason to address him, he was a stranger that you - him assuming - embarrassed yourself in front of. But Percy couldn't help but quip sarcastically, "On the contrary, I thought it looked rather charming." you stopped mid-push of returning a chair to sit against the wall, gave a small snort of amusement, and finished your mission.
Silence fell over the room, the only sound being your shuffling around, moving things here and there. Perhaps he could have been ... less rude and offered to help, but it wasn't his job (if it was even yours - you didn't look like you worked here), he didn't even want to be here.
Why was he here?
'It's just not healthy to bottle everything up, darling,' the sound of Vex's voice echoed in his mind, reigning on top of a cluster-fuck that could build in his chest until it exploded and shatter his ribs for all he gave a damn. At least, he told himself so, because what was the point in any of it?
Percival de Rolo was well enough acquainted with the villains that lived in his head that he had become bigger than them, better, meaner. He beat them away in his shop, pounding iron and steel to the heat of the forge until they were nothing but a material molded for his personal use. His heart held vengeance, hatred, and his soul craved for the idea of redemption on what was taken from him and he could bury them behind a consistent pile of work that would occupy him for hours on end, a sickening feeling of power as he used and manipulated them as he had been.
Inwardly he felt himself wince because when he put it that way, of course, it sounded wrong, but he was dealing with it in his own comfortable way. What was so wrong with that? He had made it this far in life with a devil on each shoulder, so why did things have to change? Fingers dug into the fabric of his pants, fists lightly clenching, the silence in the room rang in his ears, and he could hear the thrumming of his own heart. One might find it soothing, but to him, it was only a reminder of what he lived for.
Looking up, Percy was met with a set of eyes looking at him from across the room - he expected pity, muscles tensing before he even read the expression on your face, but he was met with a sight of apprehension. He wanted to throw a snide remark as his lips pursed in displeasure, but when he held that gaze, feeling irritatingly vulnerable, a timid smile crossed your lips and the golden rays peeking in the room felt a bit more alive.
Whatever connection was being made broke as the door flung open once more, the both of you quickly looking away, amaranth light dusting your cheeks as the air in the room became quickly awkward. He could vaguely make out your fingers fiddling with the corners of the pages of your book, but he was trying not to look at you. Not that it wouldn't be fair with how you so rudely watched him like he was some bird in a fucking tree.
"You must be my 9 o'clock," a new voice entered the room, and Percy looked up to see an older (though not much older than himself) gentleman with tied-back hair and a shadow of a day late shave.
They exchanged a firm shake. "Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III," he confirmed, letting his hand drop to his side. "But you may call me Percival."
The man smiled, nodding his head. "Wonderful - I'm Dr. Mercer, but you can call me Matthew, or Matt if that makes you more comfortable." Percy held back his look of distaste at the man in front of him. There were no real hard feelings, he didn't even know this man, but he couldn't help but slightly project his undesire to even be here.
Nothing could make him comfortable right now.
Dr. Mercer's face changed, confused, looking between Percy and you for a moment. "How did you two get in here?"
Neither of you skipped a beat responding to his question:
"The door was unlocked - "
" - you forgot to lock the door, again."
He found himself looking at you once again, both of you perplexed before turning away quickly, looking in opposite directions once again. He could see Matt flash a quick but very curious look between the two of you. The Doctor shrugged nonchalantly. "At least there's nothing important in here."
Yeah, there was definitely nothing that could Percy comfortable with being here.
The walk back to his actual office was uneventful, to say the least. Percival could only keep a straight face, mentally running through a hundred scenarios and answers to different questions, perhaps in a way that would cut all this short and he would never have to come back again. Walking through the door, all Percy could think to himself was that at least it was more organized than the waiting area.
Matt gestured to a seat, any seat, in particular, Percy assumed as there were three armchairs and a couch, before sitting down in one of his own beside an end table that had a legal pad, a cup, and a pen on it. Once he took a seat, the Doctor rubbed his hands together almost playfully. "So, Percival," he began laying his forearms across the arms of the chair, his one hand resting right on his notepad. "How - "
While anyone would appreciate the casual setting, a Doctor trying to seem normal for a situation akin to walking on thin ice. It would have been comforting if he had half a mind to even care about being here. "Listen, Doctor," Percy began, sitting down in the armchair right across from him, crossing an ankle over his knee in a subtle display of comfortable dominance. "I'm not here for you to prevaricate your questions - in fact, I'd be rather insulted by it," he admitted smoothy, gaze not wavering from the Doctor.
There was a moment of silence and Percy could feel his finger methodically tapping against one that it was laced with on his lap. Hostility it was it could very well be viewed as, and while he felt like he had something to defend, it wasn't a lie that if he was going to sit here, he wasn't going to be treated like porcelain that could crack with one wrong word.
He was stronger than that.
Dr. Mercer's demeanor didn't change one bit, in fact, he seemed almost more relaxed than before. "You're right, my apologies - we're both adults here," he agreed, nodding his head and proceeding to ask: "So, why are you here?"
Now that was the fucking question, wasn't it?
Whatever flame Percy held in his chest slowly began to simmer out, dwindling down to burning embers and he felt his breath catch in his throat, suffocating him. He had an answer, he just needed to say it. It wasn't hard. He had faced horrors beyond this. But why did something within him hold back on his scripted words?
Collecting himself, his back straightened. "I'm here because a group of assholes decided to pay for several sessions in advance," he began steadily, igniting the flame of confidence, building up a wall as sturdy as Rome. "and one of them values money more than life itself."
"So you don't feel the need to be here?" Matt asked genuinely curious, and they watched each other intently. "There's nothing you want to talk about?"
It was an honest question that would receive an equally honest reply. "No," Percival responded, turning his head to look out the window. The sun was shining, birds plucking berries from the trees and the sky was clear, and he was wasting his time here. Not that he would even be outside enjoying it if he wasn't. "I don't believe in talking about the past when it cannot be changed."
A thoughtful noise came from Dr. Mercer, followed by a soft click. "I see,"
Percy's eyes narrowed slightly, turning his head to look at the Doctor in suspicion as the sound of writing. "You - what are you doing?" he asked, seeing the doctor's hand off to the side, moving the pen against paper. "What are you writing?"
Matt only gave him a sheepish smile in response, finishing his work and then fiddling with the pen between his fingers, flicking it back and forth like a metronome and Percival sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in annoyance.
Maybe he should just let Vex kill him for letting the money go to waste. He felt like it already was.
#WOW THIS WAS A LOT#don't touch me im in pain#this really got away from me#just like the piece of banana i lost on my couch and now i cannot find and am mildly concerned#plot twist my couch is actually a mimic#guess it means it eats ass all day SDKFFF#ill see myself out#percival x reader#vox machina x reader#critical role x reader#percival fredrickstein von musel de rolo iii#percy de rolo#the legend of vox machina#percival de rolo x reader#percy de rolo x reader#percy x reader#percival de rolo#critical role
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In the Golden Dark
a/n: Having never done any ship writing before I’m just going to jump feet first into the deep end with a little Hotchreid for you today. It’s nice. No warnings except maybe some angst because we are who we are. Probably the softest thing you will see from me so enjoy the moment. Completely unnecessary disclaimer that I would find this relationship wildly inappropriate in real life but thank god we’re out here in the lawless fiction of the internet. And you’re getting full on song lyrics bc Hotchreid is nothing if not decadent af. There’s more but I’m impatient so here’s the first bit. ~ 2.7k
what the hell am I doing here in the golden dark?
feeling like I’m someone else who looks the part
I built up barricades to block my heart
cause I don’t wanna fear you
He leaned back in his chair, reaching his arms up and clasping his hands behind his head, arching his back slightly. With his eyes closed it could be any time of day. He inhaled deeply and pretended for a moment that he was nowhere. He even gave himself a few extra seconds, indulging in the quiet that was the office at night. If only he could feel so peaceful in the right moments—before sleeping perhaps. When he opened his eyes all he could see was the reflection of his office light in the black windows. There hadn’t been daylight for hours. He’d switched off the overhead lights in favor of the small desk lamp that pooled the light only in the area of immediate relevance. Everything beyond its reach faded in and out of existence as his focus fell deeply into the forms in front of him.
He pressed his elbows back as far as they would go, pulling up slightly on the base of his skull, stretching out a day’s worth of stress, countless hours spent bent over report after report. He never could have imagined that saving people would require so much paperwork. Reducing the chaos of the lived experience, the searches and the takedowns, the intricate patterns of dozens of personalities layering choices upon one another; it turned out to be quite difficult to do. It took him hours to wrap up cases, even with everyone doing most of their own reports. Which, through no fault of their own, wasn’t always the case. He usually ended up siphoning off a fair number of those reports in addition to his own.
He didn’t mind, he needed to go over everything, needed to make sure that any possible negative feedback that came back would fall to him and he would be prepared if it did. His team were his responsibility, he would be neglecting his duties if he didn’t ensure that things were handled properly. None of them needed the headache of administrative errors. He was good with details, good with forms, good with protocol. He would happily be the filter that saved them all the trouble of little errors even if it hadn’t been part of his job.
But that didn’t change the fact that it was eleven o’clock on a Wednesday and everyone else had gone home hours ago. Only the late night janitorial staff wandered in and out occasionally, nodding at him in silent greeting as they reset the offices to give the illusion of an endlessly renewable supply of fresh starts. People that didn’t stay late never gave this transformation a second thought. They left the office with full trashcans and small debris scattered on the old carpets, only to return the next morning to find a place untouched by human presence, metal fixtures shining and glass doors free of oily fingerprints. That was just how the world worked for them, generous with new beginnings. People who lingered knew better, that effort was put into the effect. Beginnings were never easy, never flowed so inevitably as the set and rise of the sun.
Hotch had been working late for many years, long before he was even in the BAU. He had learned in law school how to brew the coffee strong enough to stay up all night if need be. How the indoor lighting changed without the support of daylight, tinting the world a thin sickly green color without the natural light to round out the fluorescence. He only got worse about it once he joined the Bureau, the stress of the job causing old habits and old secrets to float to the surface. He compensated by working the hardest, doing the most, never allowing anyone to see him need things that other people needed. He could handle this job, this was all he ever wanted after all. To save the world. Or maybe, more modestly, to save the world of a few.
Now, with Haley gone, Jack with her, somewhere well out of his disastrous reach, there was no reason at all not to fully give in. No reason not to let his insomnia at least be productive. To let the latent self destruction that fueled his actions at least have a positive impact on the people he cared about. He could do that at least.
He rubbed his face with his hands, he was getting loopy. There was no reason to be letting his mind wander so far, there were still reports he could get through. Perhaps, as unlikely as the idea felt, he could even get ahead. He looked back down at the paperwork, letting his feet settle flat on the floor. The letters swam in front of him and he sighed, rolling his pen beneath his thumb, considering. He could probably make it another hour. He could get another pot of coffee into himself. He cast about for his mug, finding it empty on the shelf behind him. He sometimes kept it there to prevent his reports from acquiring telltale dark rings. Rolling back from the desk, he hooked the handle with two fingers and headed out to the kitchenette.
Wrapped up in making plans for what he could finish tonight and what could be left for the morning he was startled to find a light still on in the bullpen. He was certain everyone had gone home long ago. They’d each passed by his office, offering him an out as they made their ways home—perhaps their exit could be the motivation he needed to break out of his office, to head towards his own home. What they didn’t realize was that home was not better for him. Work was far better, far safer, with tasks to complete, a purpose. If he was smart he would stay at work forever.
So he waved to them as they checked out, giving them small smiles that, though imperceptible to strangers, they recognized as both apologies and well-wishes. He knew they worried, that they didn’t like to see him tied to his desk late into the night. They thought it was one of his many methods for making himself suffer but he didn’t have the heart to tell them that this was him making a good decision, this was him trying his very best. In his experience, nothing good happened at home.
He thought he remembered everyone leaving, each goodbye. But every day was the same and they all bled together so he must have missed one because he cannot deny the light down below. As he walked down the stairs, confused by the discovery that he was not as alone as he had been imagining, his tired vision focused better. He could make out dark blond curls and a darker sweater hunched over the desk in the middle of the room.
“Reid?” The name came out as a croak, he hadn’t spoken in hours and probably hadn’t had any water in that time period either. He cleared his throat and said it again, louder and closer to the other man than before. Reid’s head snapped up, expression as guilty as a child caught out of bed.
“S-sorry,” he stuttered, eyes wide.
Hotch frowned, not because he was upset but because he was still a little disoriented and his muscles fell back into the most familiar actions.
“I—“ Reid ducked his head and started pushing papers together on his desk, shoving them haphazardly into a file folder. “I was just…” he trailed off, not really having intended on explaining himself. He was simply also startled and reverting to the familiar.
Reid explained compulsively, able to handle the world when parsed down to facts and numbers. He didn’t have a fact for why he had stayed so late, only a feeling and that he didn’t know how to explain. Nights had been particularly lonely recently so he had allowed himself to stay later and later, getting lost in his thoughts at his work desk. Even without people around there was a sense of occupancy, their faint impressions lingering in the air. Plus there was always Hotch up in his office. He didn’t actively think about him or what he was doing but he liked knowing the man was nearby. Hotch’s solid presence always made him feel more secure, less concerned with whatever might jump out at him from the shadows overlapping the world and his mind.
He couldn’t tell Hotch that, was far too embarrassed to admit that sometimes, even with all the lights on, it was too dark in his apartment. No matter the illumination, he couldn’t quite dispel the unease of the night when he was alone. It wasn’t always like this, sometimes he had enough brightness to spare. Recently, however, things had been hard. So much had been going on, he couldn’t quite pinpoint why but he knew he felt uneasy. Too much had changed, there was too much risk that the floor could still fall out beneath him at any moment. And it hadn’t been so long since he’d escaped the consequences of his kidnapping, his addiction, that he trusted himself to be able to manage too much more uncertainty. Backsliding was always a risk and right now the world tilted at a frightening grade. So he let himself stay late in the safety of familiarity, sometimes working but more often not, idly rereading the books he had brought in and forgotten around the office. Tonight he had actually started to doze off, which contributed to his shock upon being discovered.
Hotch continued to frown at him, watching as the thoughts raced across Spencer’s face. He noticed how deep the shadows were beneath his eyes, the way darkness pooled in the space below his cheekbones, as if they were concave impressions filled by seawater. He knew Spencer didn’t eat enough, was all too familiar with the ways too much coffee and not enough calories pinched the skin and exposed the fine lines of capillaries beneath the surface.
“Sorry,” Spencer repeated.
He looked genuinely ashamed and it made Hotch a little sad. Couldn’t Spencer see that he was just as guilty of whatever it was he thought he was doing wrong by being here? He made a conscious effort to soften his expression, to show the warmth he felt for the younger man. After having spent his entire life masking his emotions, protecting himself one of the only ways he could, it wasn’t always easy to show his affection. Especially not at this time of night, when all he could do was cling to his walls and hope to find himself still on solid ground when the sun rose. Spencer wasn’t looking at him, too caught up in his own maze.
“Let’s go get something to eat,” Hotch said, trying a different tactic. He was smart, he knew not to make it a demand or a comment on Spencer’s health. It was only an invitation, firm enough for Spencer to know he meant it, that it was not just a pleasantry or an obligation he’d rather avoid. A hand extended, an offer of easy company to pass through a little more of this unwanted time. Spencer looked up from where his fingers were worrying at the corner of the file in front of him and smiled shyly. Hotch smiled back, a real smile that scrunched up his dark shining eyes.
“Give me five minutes to close up,” he said and turned back toward his office. As he packed his briefcase, his heart felt like it had been wrapped in a soft blanket. He didn’t bother questioning it—who didn’t like finding someone to commiserate with when they’d only expected more of the lonely dark?
*
Their late night meals became a regular occurrence. Not every night but once, maybe twice a week, they found themselves the last ones in the office. They fell into a rhythm, each learning to read more from the other’s subtle cues. They almost always went to the same place, a 24-hour diner near the office with deceptively strong coffee and a seemingly endless variety of pancakes. Hotch rarely ordered food, though he encouraged Reid to get anything he wanted. He accepted bites of whatever the younger man ordered, happy enough to reciprocate the excitement over strawberry rhubarb or cinnamon blueberry pancakes.
They talked about inconsequential things, mostly Hotch listening as Reid spun out information on whatever topic was on his mind that day. Reid, for his part, made mental note of the things Hotch responded to and had opinions on. Spencer sought out more information in that vein to bring up. He loved to talk, sure, but what he loved more was to discuss. During the day there was rarely time to let his thoughts wander so freely. It was a dream to have someone there, following along and challenging him with questions, building up new conclusions.
On the nights that followed difficult days, when they were both too stubborn to order anything of substance, they drank their coffees and avoided looking at each other too directly. Those nights they were both tied up in their own thoughts, islands separated by more than just distance, but there was something undeniably pulling them together. It was probably just the natural consequence of having opposite dominant sides but they mirrored each other perfectly across the table. Once, they both happened to reach for their mugs at the same time and the backs of their hands brushed against each other. They each noticed but responded differently. Hotch repressed any reaction, pretending the quick touch of bony knuckles and cool skin hadn’t registered. Maybe it hadn’t. Reid, on the other hand, jumped as if shocked, sloshing the hot coffee into a puddle on the table. This only flustered him more and he yelped at the sting of the liquid and the sting of embarrassment. It wasn’t like they’d never touched before. But here, in this nowhere time they’d constructed, it felt different. In his mind that brief touch became nails dragging across his skin, impossible to ignore. But he pretended the mug was too hot and Hotch didn’t argue, quick to assist with napkins and sounds of agreement to accompany Spencer’s half-coherent excuses.
When their meals were done, mostly cleaned plates of syrup and crumbs stacked to one side, they hesitated before standing up. Hotch always offered to give Reid a ride home, Reid always declined, insisting he could get there himself. This led to Hotch giving him a doubtful look and insisting that it was no trouble. Reid, secretly wanting a ride the whole time, struggled to argue for his self-sufficiency a little longer before giving in. It became a silly thing, both of them knowing exactly how the argument ended but they held onto it for some reason. It was a part of their ritual now, an important piece of the night. It kept this, whatever this was, contained, strictly occasional, random even. Not something they planned for, not something they looked forward to.
Hotch waited for Spencer to get in the door of his building before driving away. He knew it wasn’t necessary, Spencer was a grown man and a trained FBI agent with a weapon. Still, it made him feel better to see him safely inside. Sometimes he thought he would feel even better if he could walk Spencer all the way to his front door. But he knew that would be asking too much. As it was, the nights when they shared this extra hour or two together, extended further by the drive home, had been giving him more than he could have imagined. He wouldn’t dare impose himself further. The brittle excuse of safety would crumble if he were to start following the other man inside. He was not ready to find out what that would mean. He smiled unconsciously as he drove to his apartment. For now, it was enough that he had found companionship on these late nights when he would otherwise be slowly, meticulously, working his way into the grave.
~Part 2~
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hello! can i request "You didn't do anything wrong, there's nothing to apologize for" for any ship of your choosing? or any AU you want? i just really love how your writing flows, it's so cohesive-- don't take this the wrong way but like. i adore sitting down and actually analyzing your stuff structurally? seeing how it works and weaves together to make a whole just makes the shriveled up eng lit major inside me really happy.
w o o f this one ran away from me a little bit, it incorporates some Things I was thinking of re: forgiveness/webgott last month, and it's bit different than pure H/C but I hope you find something to like in it! Thank you for your lovely compliment~
Yes, it's webgott bc i am chained to The Rhythm
4. "You didn't do anything wrong. There's nothing to apologize for."
He cleared the drawer once more, eyes scanning into its dark corners for any sign of a missed sock, undershirt, some hidden treasure that he had many years ago deemed worthy of being put in the back of the underwear drawer. Raising his brows, Joe shook his head at himself as he closed it resolutely, tossing his bounty into his pack and stuffing the top with the sack that contained his bathroom shit.
Even remembering the days he used to be able to leave the house with just his keys made him want to sigh like a goddamn cow in the summertime. Now he needs the bag, the car, and Web just to go across the bay.
Speak of the devil, Web padded into the bedroom with his usual September expression: weary, exhilarated, slightly frustrated. Wordlessly, he crossed past Joe to the bed and slumped face-first onto it with a groan.
“Done?” Joe questioned, zipping up the bag.
Making a soft grunt of a sound, Web curled his arms around his head. “Done,” he said, face mashed against the bed.
“Well, get to it,” Joe said, stepping over to land a light smack against Web’s ass and grinning at the outraged whine he got in response. “Don’t want to be late,” he tossed over his shoulder as he stepped back out to the hall, making for the kitchen.
Even out here he can hear the sound Web makes, somewhere between a groan and a sigh. “I’ve changed my mind!”
“No you didn’t!” Joe called back, grabbing the butter left on the counter and shoving it in the fridge, letting his eyes make one final sweep around the kitchen. “If you don’t show your reputation won’t ever recover.”
“Your mother loves me,” Web toned, and Joe couldn’t help a snicker as he moved through the hall back to the bedroom, where Web had at least moved to lay on his back, knees up. “She wouldn’t care, she’d probably let me move in with her if you ever kicked me out.”
Rolling his eyes, Joe stood at the food of the bed, arms folded. “Not with Yom Kippur, you’re not allowed to fuck around. She was happy you said you wanted to come, you don’t want to disappoint her.”
Heaving out a long breath, Web folded his hands behind his head, eyes lowered as he peered down at Joe. His knees tilted just so, his lips quirking, and Joe could see the fucking thought forming in his head before he had a chance to open his mouth.
“No.”
“We have time,” Web said, extending one leg to poke his toes into the left side of Joe’s stomach.
Clicking his tongue, he took hold of the other man’s ankle, giving it a soft pull and smiling in satisfaction as Web tried to pull it back to no avail. “If you think I’m going to miss my last fucking meal just to fuck you then you have another thing coming, alright?”
With a disgruntled twist of his lips Web pulled his leg in again, a little jerk that ushered Joe down onto the mattress as well. “You weren’t this dedicated last year,” he noted lightly, free of the reproach that might have accompanied the words if his family had said them.
Shaking his head, Joe decided to throw Web a bone and settled beside him, at least staying up on his elbows. “Different places,” he said simply.
Web looked up at him fondly, hand coming up to smooth over Joe’s hairline, sweeping it back and trailing behind his ear. “So, how will we spend tonight, then?” he asked quietly, eyes still following along where his hand moved. “If not in bed.”
Breath going slow with the contact, he tilted his head into the touch contentedly. “Well, tonight we’re going to eat like kings, Rach will probably be trying to get drunk in the pantry and hoping nobody notices, we’ll sleep in the attic, then tomorrow we spend a lot of fucking time at the synagogue.”
“And we don’t eat,” Web stated, assured.
“No eating, no drinking,” Joe nodded, brow furrowing at the sight of an eyelash on the other man’s cheek, reaching for it mindlessly.
Humming, Web closed his eyes to accommodate him. “Does this have a corresponding Catholic holiday I can retrofit in my mind?”
“I don’t know, you guys got a day where you feel really guilty about everything?” he asked, presenting the lash to Web balanced on the tip of his finger.
Blinking, Web frowned thoughtfully. “Birthdays.”
“Make your wish, you prick,” Joe grumbled, holding back his smile as Web grinned up at him, pausing momentarily before blowing the lash away into the room. Indulgently, he moved in closer, cupping the warmth of Web’s face in his palm and looking down on him with a feeling as close to serenity as he ever has here, in their bed, the sunlight coming in through their window.
Web returned his gaze, his own hand tracing along the back of Joe’s neck. “Do you confess?”
“Sure.”
“Alone?”
“All together,” he corrected, absently rubbing at the spot on Web’s cheek where he had plucked the lash. “You recite it, while you do this,” he said, shifting gently to bring his hand down to Web’s chest, knocking gently against him, just above his heart, with a loose fist.
Web watched his fist, a bemused smile growing over his lips. “Why?”
Settling his hand over the spot, Joe rubbed gently at him. “To punish your heart.”
Smile stilling over his face, Web absorbed his words with quiet interest, eyes floating down along Joe’s neck to the dark burrow of his chest where it pressed against the bed. “Isn’t the sinning hurt enough?”
Trust Web to try to loop him into a conversation about semantics of all fucking things. He must be more anxious to start his classes than Joe thought. “I don’t know,” he half-shrugged, eyes on his own hand over Web’s heart. “If you’re the sort who doesn’t like hurting people, maybe.”
Web nodded, accepting, smile turning more wistful, thoughtful “That’s nice, to be able to get it all out of the way at once.”
“What, you turned in a paper late?” Joe teased.
Flicking behind Joe's ear, Web looked up at him balefully, just a touch of that familiar humor at the edge of his mouth, like a dimple made of light. “I’d apologize to you, obviously.”
Huffing out a surprised laugh, Joe looked discerningly down at him. “You got something you want to tell me?”
“Don’t be stupid,” Web shook his head softly, hand curling around his neck once more and seeming to anchor him down even further, their faces close enough to see the earnest upset around the angles of the other man’s eyes. “You know.”
Web does this. Likes to see monsters where there are none, invent storm clouds heading for them, and it makes him behave like a child sometimes and a man others. He’s a contrarian, down even past his bones and into the dust of the universe that lived in his being, it is an unchangeable fact. Telling him that there’s nothing to worry about accomplished nothing at the best of times.
Not that it’s ever stopped him trying.
“You don’t have to apologize to me for a fucking thing,” Joe rebuked solidly, hand moving from Web’s heart to his head, fingers resting just north of the delicate point of his hairline. “Sincerely.”
“I do, I…” Web parried, eyes unyielding where they looked up into Joe’s, somehow free of the sort of conflict he contained when he started thinking he and Joe had different opinions. “I know that this isn’t easy, dealing with me. And you do,” he continued, and this close he can see the way his eyes are stuck on his lips, the thought filling him with affection. “And you’re amazing.”
Giving in, chest bowing in like the hull of a sinking ship, he caught Web’s lips with his own, a hot smack of a thing that stole his breath, gave it to Web, who in turn gave it back to him better, better. “You don’t have to apologize for living, doll,” he shook his head, their nose practically knocking. “That’s not the point.”
Web didn’t seem soothed by the kiss, still appearing occupied with some train of thought that sought to carry him off and away from Joe’s eyes. “I still think of it sometimes, you know.”
Joe frowned. “What?”
“That day,” Web said, as though it should be evident.
He has to pause and think. They’ve lived a lot of days together, not just these ones that they’ve spent in this apartment, but the ones they spent as voices over the phone, words on a page, men in uniforms hiding from each other like chameleons. How is he meant to know which day Web means from the thousands they’ve had?
Looking down, the blue of Web’s eyes reminds him absently of Austrian skies. Mountains.
Yes. He knows.
“I think sometimes I should apologize to you and never stop,” Web said gently, managing to keep hold of Joe’s eyes as they blinked back and forth and back and forth into the memory.
He hadn’t thought about that day in a long time. Which isn’t to say he never does, but it’s been a time. If he concentrates he can still feel the sun on his neck, the unnatural sweatiness of his palms, how his face had somehow felt cold, waxy. Picturing the house, the dark guts of it with the man inside squirming like half-digested meat, still fills him with the primal sort of rage that only visits him in his dreams. All around the periphery of the memory is Web, that day he had decided that whoever David Webster was he wanted no part of it.
“It’s in the past,” he excused weakly.
Web pulled in a short breath, face carefully open. “I know it is.”
“So let it be.”
Frown deepening, Web’s brought his eyes back down, and even this small departure felt like shrapnel. Joe combed through his hair, rubbing at his scalp, jostling him enough to win his eyes back. Web opened his mouth, struggling, before settling into the intention. “Do you still think about it?”
“Of course,” he said dully, voice still caught somewhere in his memory.
“Do you ever think I owe you an apology?” Web asked, voice quiet and eyes steady.
The question drops through him like rain. He’s thought of that day hundreds of times, thousands. When he lets his mind walk back up that hill, shining in the sun like the cover of the storybooks his mother would read to him, it isn’t Web he’s thinking of. He thinks of a forest of trees, of the way that one can become millions, and those millions become legion. That day had been about a lot of things, he hadn’t ever intended for Web to be one of them.
Web has apologized to him in too many ways to count. But this memory is deeper than they are, the kind of wound that might close over but will still carry a piece of metal, even smaller than a sliver, nestled inside of them both.
Web gives him grief, for better and for worse. But he gives him peace, too. That’s all the apology he wants.
His silence has drifted over the room like fog, but Web looks at him with the sort of clarity that only a few years ago made him feel like a bug on a pin, but now simply makes him feel known.
“I’ll punish my heart for forgiveness tomorrow,” Web said softly, smile turning up his lips, hand against Joe’s neck.
Huffing, Joe shook his head, taking up Web’s mouth once more, briefly. “You have it,” he rasped, kissing just the corner of his lips, and then the soft heat of his cheek. “You’ve had it.”
Web smiled into the kiss, leaning up to press a matching one to Joe’s own cheek. “Good.”
Swallowing, he followed Web back down, their faces close. “Will you accept mine?”
A disbelieving laugh rumbled up Web’s throat, his head giving a dismissive shake as he gave Joe’s neck a hard rub. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” he criticized, eyes bright, cheeks flushed. “There’s nothing to apologize for.”
But they haven’t always been that lucky. This sort of luck isn’t a permanent state of being.
“I don’t know,” he muttered, before pausing momentarily. “Let’s say you forgive me for the first sin I haven’t committed yet.”
Laughing, Web took his hand from Joe’s skin, holding it up beside them in some offering. “Deal.”
“Deal,” Joe confirmed, taking his hand, giving it one firm shake, enough to gather up Web’s laugh, before bringing it to his lips and laying a kiss across its back. “Now come on, let’s go.”
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Universe Falls Chapter 78
Oy this one’s a mess but whatever I needed to get through it to get done with it. Plus heyoooo one chapter left after this one till RMD yeah boiiiiii. Anyway this one is, ok... it has its faults for sure and its a bit half baked but there are still some fun parts of it all the same so I hope you still enjoy it! (and again for formatting please read this on AO3 or FF.Net, Dumblr is the worst when it comes to formatting). Enjoy!
Previous: https://minijenn.tumblr.com/post/617233070438907905/universe-falls-chapter-77-part-3
***
Chapter 78: Monster Falls
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“Now, now, Yellow, just hold onto your hand ship. These things take time! You just gotta be patient!”
“I’ve been patient for over 5,000 years now! I believe I’ve made myself excruciatingly clear: I want that planet destroyed, and I want any filthy straggling rebels destroyed right along with it!”
“Hey, we’re on the same page here, Yellow! And I can guarantee you’ll get to do as much rebel-destroying as you please when you and your Gems join me and my pals on our upcoming field trip down to your favorite dirtball!”
“Ah yes, an excursion that’s taking far too long to actually happen! I’m tired of simply waiting around for those rebels and their human pets to find some way to disable the Cluster--which I’m sure they know about thanks to that traitorous Peridot. If you won’t wipe them out like they deserve, then I’ll do it myself!”
“Whoa-ho-ho, no need to be so hasty! You wanna nip those Crystal Chumps and their human buddies in the bud? You got it. Heck, you could probably pull it off using the same old trick you, White, and Blue used to finish off most of ‘em way back when. Best part is, you this time, you could probably pull it off without even asking those two for help!”
“...You mean use my power… alone? I fail to see how that would-”
“Not alone! I’ll lend you a hand instead. Between the two of us, all it’ll take is a direct hit straight on their “base” or whatever ya call it, and they’ll never know what hit ‘em!”
“Hm… I suppose it is worth a try. Especially if it will finally wipe the last of those despicable Crystal Gems and their wretched leader out of existence once and for all.”
“Yeah, sure, that’s absolutely what it’ll do. So, what are we waiting for? Let’s give those chumps a real blast from the past…”
“Thanks for coming over and helping me with my spring cleaning, you guys!” Steven grinned down to Dipper, Mabel, and Connie from his spot up on the loft. The kids had spent the better half of their morning sorting through Steven’s belongings to help him decide what to keep and what to throw away or donate. A rather mundane task compared to what they usually tended to get up to, but a surprisingly enjoyable one all the same.
“I think you mean summer cleaning, Steven,” Connie chuckled as she neatly folded up a shirt.
“...Huh… yeah, I guess I do!”
“Not that any of this stuff even needs cleaning,” Mabel said as she carried a box of various nick nacks up onto the loft. “I wish I could keep all my Crying Breakfast Friends merch as organized as you do, Steven!”
“So do I,” Dipper remarked to Connie more than Mabel. “Especially since her “merch” usually ends up on my side of the attic.”
“Well, Pearl once told me ‘the cleaner the room, the happier the human’, so I--oh no!” Steven stopped short with a sudden gasp as he lifted one of his several stuffed animals. “MC Bear-Bear! You’ve got a tear-tear!”
“Not MC Bear-Bear!” Mabel exclaimed just as dramatically as Steven showed off the relatively tiny tear under the bear’s armpit. “He was too young! Too pure!”
“It’s a stuffed bear, Mabel,” Dipper deadpanned.
“A beautiful bear with so much to live for!”
“I should have been more careful,” Steven added onto the round of laments. “We’ve lost too many good bears this way. Well don’t worry,” he said to the bear as he held it close. “You’re hurt, but I’ll look after you.” With this, the young Gem planted a gentle kiss on the bear’s head, and as a result, his healing spit swiftly did its jobs, magically mending the tear back together until it looked like it had never even happened at all.
“Huh, well that’s one way to patch up a tear,” Dipper noted, genuinely impressed.
“Yeah! Way to go, Steven!” Mabel cheered. “Ya know, I have more than a few stuffed animals of my own that are due for the ol’ ‘Magical Healing Kiss’ treatment too… if you’re up for it, ‘Dr. Universe’.”
Strangely though, Steven didn’t answer as his focus was still on MC Bear-Bear, his expression much more thoughtful and serious than it had been a moment prior. His silence wasn’t lost on the others as Connie spoke up to address it. “Uh… are you ok? You sure are staring MC Bear-Bear down pretty hard there…”
“Huh?” Steven blinked, looking between his three friends before turning back to the bear once more. “Well… I was just thinking… We’ve done a lot this summer--saved the town, the whole world, even, but… there’s still something we haven’t done… Guys,” his tone was earnest as he glanced up, resolved. “We haven’t helped any of the corrupted Gems…”
Dipper, Mabel, and Connie alike all quickly adopted the young Gem’s solemn manner at this. “No, I… I guess we haven’t,” Connie admitted with a frown.
“To be fair, we have been pretty busy,” Dipper countered. “Besides, it’s not like anybody really even knows how to-”
“I know how!” Steven interjected, raising his hand. “I-I mean, if my healing powers can fix up humans and Gems and even MC Bear-Bear, then I don’t see why they wouldn’t work on corrupted Gems too, right?”
“You really think it could?” Mabel asked, curious. “Cause if you’re right then that’s a lot of monsters you’re gonna have to smooch…”
“Which sounds… sort of dangerous,” Connie noted worriedly. “Maybe you should try a test run first?”
“That’s a great idea!” Steven hopped up from his bed just as the temple doors slid open just in time. “Guys!” he called, tripping over the side of the loft, only to land squarely on the couch between Dipper and Connie. That hardly stopped him however, as he rushed over to the Gems as the others followed not too far behind.
“Hey, what’s up, little Ste-cup--and amigos?” Amethyst asked, offering the kids a casual grin.
“Guys! I used my healing spit to fix a rip on MC Bear-Bear!” Steven proclaimed, holding the stuffed animal up for them to see.
“Oh, uh… that’s… nice?” Pearl said an uncertain smile, though clearly she wasn’t sure what the cause for the young Gem’s excitement was.
“Good job,” Garnet smiled, sending him a thumbs up.
“That all you wanted to tell us?” Amethyst asked, crossing her arms.
“Not even close!” Steven continued. “What I really wanted to tell you is that we were all talking and, well… we wanted to see if we could try-”
“No,” Garnet staunchly cut him off.
“Uh… Steven didn’t even ask you anything yet,” Dipper pointed out, confused.
“And even if he had, it was gonna be something you should totally say yes to, by the way!” Mabel added enthusiastically.
Yet even so, Garnet shook her head. “With my future vision, I can see that you’re going to ask me if you can try healing one of the monsters in the bubble room.”
“So… that’s a no then?” Connie inferred.
“Can you see if we can get you to change your mind?” Steven ventured, offering the Gem leader a pleading smile. Soon enough it was one that Mabel, Connie, and Dipper all picked up in turn, each of them eager to assist the young Gem in his altruistic plan, even if it was a rather risky one. And though Garnet seemed to hold her ground at first, against all four of the kids hopeful smiles at once, she ultimately found she was no match whatsoever.
“Why did you agree to this?” Pearl asked Garnet as they all filed into the temple’s bubble room moments later.
“I lost a battle of wills,” the Gem leader said plainly.
“So, who are we healing up first?” Mabel asked, eagerly running into the room as she pointed out a handful of bubbled Gems. “Ooo, what about this one? Oh! Or we could try her, I bet she’ll be a ton of fun when she isn’t corrupted anymore!”
Despite these spirited suggestions, however, Steven already had his sights set on one bubbled Gem in particular. With a floating leap, he was easily able to catch the bubble and bring it down to its level, looking over it with a small, hopeful smile. “And gotcha!”
“Hey, isn’t that…?”
“Yeah,” Steven answered Dipper’s unfinished question with a sincere nod. “It’s Centipeetle. If I can help any of them, I want to help her first.”
“Oh, isn’t she that monster we fought at the beginning of the summer?” Connie asked, intrigued.
“Yeah, but also she totally saved us from turning into dino-chow,” Amethyst pointed out. “Oh, speaking of chow, don’t forget about these!” She summoned her whip to pull down another bubble, one that had been hanging next to Centipeetle’s with a familiar bag of chips in it.
“Chaaaaps!” Steven exclaimed excitedly as he unbubbled the snack. “They’re her favorite! Okay,” he said, taking in a deep, determined breath as he looked to the others. “Everybody ready?”
Garnet nodded, giving him the go-ahead while Amethyst and Pearl braced themselves, stepping protectively in front of Dipper, Mabel, and Connie just in case. With everyone in place, Steven gently popped the pink bubble, allowing Centipeetle’s spherical gemstone to hover free from it, glowing all the while as the monster began to take its form.
“Come on, dude, do your thing!” Amethyst encouraged eagerly.
“You’ve got this, Steven!” Dipper added just as supportively.
“Put that sparkly spit of yours to the test!” Mabel chimed in with a bright cheer.
“B-but be careful about it!” Pearl advised anxiously.
Amidst all this, Steven landed a hearty, wet lick across his hand and, just as Centipeetle’s monstrous body was starting to fully take shape, he placed that hand squarely on her gemstone. The stone sparkled radiently, Steven’s healing magic flowing through it as Centipeetle’s silhouetted form shifted completely. Her long, mandibled body grew smaller, much more humanoid as her many tiny legs became a single pair of normally-proportioned arms and legs each. By the time her transformation was seemingly complete, Centipeetle collapsed to the ground, resting on her hands and knees as everyone else started at the incredible change she had just undergone in dumbfounded awe.
“I-is it working?” Pearl dared to ask, catching the apparently healed Gem’s attention.
However, as she suddenly turned around, it was clear to see that Centipeetle hadn’t been as healed as she might have seemed. She retained her thick mane of white hair, as well as the singular eye that was her gemstone, but just below that was a smaller version of the fanged beak she had when she was fully monstrous. In addition, she had kept a few other insect-like features, namely her pinchered abdomen protruding from behind her, but other than that, she looked decently healed. Physically speaking, at least as she let out a loud, unintelligible shriek of alarm.
“Boy, did it ever work!” Mabel grinned, sharing Steven’s immediate excitement over Centipeetle’s strange new form.
“What? No, it didn’t,” Dipper noted incredulously.
“I mean, it sort of worked…?” Connie said with a diffident shrug. “She isn’t completely a monster anymore, but…”
“Centi! You’re back!” Steven filled the awkward bout of silence that followed this in. Despite the whispered warnings both Amethyst and Pearl sent his way, the young Gem hurried forward to greet the former monster, chips in hand, though he quickly stopped as soon as Centipeetle met him with a harsh, sudden hiss. “Whoa! What’s the matter?” he frowned, approaching her much more carefully as she cowered away from him. “You want some Chaaaps?”
“Uh… I don’t think she remembers them…” Amethyst spoke up as Centipeetle let out another angry squawk.
“Forget the chips then,” Steven pushed the bubbled bag of Chaaaps back up into the air as he addressed Centipeetle patiently. “You remember me, don’t you?” Though she didn’t react as fiercely to this, Centipeetle still tilted her head in confusion as her singular eye stared him down unknowingly. “I… have a bad feeling this didn’t work how I wanted it to work…”
“You think?” Dipper said, crossing his arms.
“Aw, well… at least you still tried,” Connie smiled sympathetically. “And hey, something’s better than nothing, right?”
“I don’t know what you guys are talking about,” Mabel placed her hands on her hips. “I think Centi looks better than ever!”
“Better… but not all the way better,” Steven said, taking another step toward the confused semi-corrupted Gem.
“W-wait! Don’t go closer!” Pearl cautioned nervously.
“Maybe she just needs a little extra love!” Steven suggested, refusing to give up so easily. Fortunately, Centipeetle didn’t lash out to attack him as he leaned in to plant another brief kiss on her gemstone. However, it did little to heal her as she instead reeled back, closing her eye tightly as she covered it with both hands, growling in both pain and annoyance all the while. “Oops! S-sorry…” Steven let out a small, anxious chuckle as he reached out to help Centipeetle back up.
“Hm…” Garnet mused as she watched Steven and Cenitpeedle’s interactions from afar. “This is the best we’ve ever seen it work.”
“But it didn’t work,” Pearl countered. “I guess it’ll take more than a kiss to heal damage from the Diamonds…”
“But why?” Steven turned to the Gems with a fretful frown. “My healing powers have been working great lately. I-I should be able to do this.”
“It’s alright, Steven,” Pearl reassured earnestly. “Remember, she’s not cracked; she’s corrupted, and that’s something different, something nearly… impossible to describe. U-unless it’s by a Gem who’s actually been through it.”
“But, ya know, most of the Gems who have…” Amethyst nodded up at the countless bubbled Gems above them. “Aren’t really doing a ton of describing these days…”
“It’s sort of like… if MC Bear-Bear didn’t just tear the fabric of his arm,” Garnet explained as accurately as she could. “But the fabric of his mind.”
“Whoa…” Mabel gaped, mistified by such a deep explanation.
“That’s… kind of horrifying,” Dipper shuddered, unnerved.
“I guess it’s times like these when being a human really has its perks,” Connie said offhandedly. “At least something like that couldn’t happen to any of us.”
Garnet adjusted her shades upon hearing this, her future vision nearly catching a glimpse of something, though it flashed by far too fast for her to really make anything of. So instead, she shook her head to clear it before addressing the apprehensive young Gem once more. “Steven, I’m impressed with your ability to bring the Centipeetle this far, but it’s time to let her rest again. Amethyst-”
“Uh, sure,” the purple Gem shrugged, summoning her whip again. “I’ll poof her.”
“W-wait!” Steven protested, hurrying to shield Centipeetle as she curiously looked over her new form through a reflection on the wall. “She’s not a monster anymore!”
“Here,” Garnet pulled Steven close, pressing his face against her as she extended a hand out to the other kids as well. “You don’t have to watch. Same goes for the rest of you kids.”
Though Mabel was really the only one to take her up on that offer, Steven suddenly pushed himself away from the Gem leader to rush back over to Centipeetle. “No, please! She can walk, a-and talk! Just like you guys!” Surprisingly, Centipeetle chimed in with a contented squeak, her maw forming something that almost seemed like a smile as she turned back to face Steven. “See?”
“Aw, how can you guys say no to that face?” Mabel said, sending the Gems the same pleading look Steven was.
“Yeah, she doesn’t really seem like she’s that dangerous anymore…” Dipper agreed.
“Definitely not as dangerous as she was the day the four of us met,” Connie said with a small, fond chuckle.
“See? Centi was the one who brought us together in the first place,” Steven said, motioning between himself, Connie, Dipper, and Mabel. “M-maybe she wasn’t the nicest back then, but she’s our friend now! I helped her--we helped her this much; maybe we can help her more. We have to try, I made a promise! Please?”
The Gems exchanged an uneasy glance at this, none of them too keen on the idea of letting a corrupted Gem, even a semi-corrupted one like Centipeetle, simply run around unrestrained, especially around the kids. And yet, even despite her strange form and unpredictable behavior, for the most part Cenitpeedle seemed much calmer and more civilized than she had been before, even if she was still rather skittish and couldn’t quite communicate in anything other than squawks and hisses. But what really broke through their hesitancy was the kids, all four of whom were staring up at them pleadingly in their shared resolve to do whatever they could to help Centipeetle even more than they already had.
So the Gems let out a unified relenting groan as they lost a second battle of wills, much to the kids’ mixed relief and excitement. Still, that didn’t mean that the Gems didn’t have any dissention toward this newfound haphazard arrangement. “S-so what are we going to do with her?” Pearl asked, wincing as she stole another glance over at the semi-corrupted Gem. “Let her move in?”
“Aw, yeah!” Amethyst cheered, in favor of the idea. “Corrupted roommate!”
“Oh, Amethyst, be sensitive,” the white Gem rolled her eyes.
“Oo! She could stay down at the shack!” Mabel suggested enthusiastically.
“Wait, what?” Dipper looked at his sister incredulously.
“Yeah! I bet Mr. Pines will love having Centi as a house guest!” Steven readily agreed.
“I bet he won’t,” Dipper interjected once more.
“That’s what makes it funny,” Amethyst chuckled, amused.
“Well… it’s better than her staying here, I suppose…” Pearl muttered, aside.
“Wherever she stays, whether it’s here or at the Mystery Shack,” Garnet spoke up, evenly catching all four of the kids’ attention. “You kids need to be careful with her. She can stay unbubbled, but you must understand: some Gems are beyond our help.”
While the kids didn’t exactly have much of a plan to help completely cure Centipeetle of her corruption, they were still largely optimistic that they could all the same. Though the Gems still had some reservations, Steven managed to convince them to allow the semi-corrupted Gems to accompany him and the other kids down to the Mystery Shack. And though she was certainly much more tame than the animalistic way she’d been before, it was clear that Centipeetle still wasn’t exactly used to being out and about as the kids did their best to coax her out of the house alone.
“It’s ok, Centi,” Steven urged patiently as he held the door open for her. “We’re just gonna take a nice walk down to the Mystery Shack. How does that sound?”
Centipeetle let out an uncertain chirp at this as she lingered behind the doorway, nervously peering out from it. Her curiosity soon turned to terror, however, as a sudden breeze happened to blow by, tousling the semi-corrupted Gem’s hair and catching her off guard completely. She stumbled back, eventually falling to the floor as she shrieked in alarm, even as the gentle wind started to die down outside.
“Whoa, hey! It’s ok!” Connie hurried to the Centipeetle’s side to calm her down. “That was just the wind. It’s nothing to be afraid of, even if it’s something you can’t see.”
Centipeetle eased up at this, clumsily picking herself back up to stand as she attempted to venture outside once more. This time when the wind blew by her, however, she cowered much less than she had before as she actually managed to step out to join the others on the porch. “Yeah! Way to go, Centi!” Mabel cheered, though her excitement was completely lost on Centipeetle as she shrunk back in fear once more.
“Mabel, not so loud!” Dipper chastised. “You’re scaring her.”
“Oops! Sorry! I meant--way to go, Centi!” Mabel tried again, this time in a cheery whisper.
“Ok, Centi--Oh,” Steven stopped short as he led the way down the stairs. “I guess that’s not really your name. What should we call you?” Centipeetle answered in a series of unintelligible chirps, one that left all four of the kids staring at her, dumbfounded. “Oh, right, can’t talk…” Steven rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
“Maybe we could try to guess your name,” Mabel suggested. “What about… Lindsay?”
“Mabel, that’s not a Gem name,” Dipper said flatly as Centipeetle shook her head. “It’d probably be something more like… Oh, I dunno, she’s green, so… Emerald?”
Once again, Centipeetle made a face, obviously not a fan of that name either. “Well, there are plenty of green gemstones out there,” Connie noted. “I picked up a book on different gemstone types awhile back for… reasons. So, off the top of my head, I can think of… Jade, Tourmaline-”
“Peridot, but we’ve already got one of those!” Mabel chimed in.
“Demantoid, Aventurine, Nephrite-” Centipeetle suddenly cut off Connie’s list with a loud squeal, which she paired with hopping up and down on the balls of her feet as soon as she reached the bottom of the stairs. The kids exchanged a curious look at this, none of them really knowing what to make of it until Steven spoke up.
“Well, that can’t be it,” he frowned, not noticing Centipeetle’s disgruntled sigh. “We’ll just stick with Centi for now, ok? Just like we did before. Do you remember any of that?” he asked Centipeetle with a hopeful smile. “That time you saved me from a crow, or how you took on that pterodactyl baby, or how we helped the Gems electrocute--uh, actually, do forget that one.”
Centipeetle tilted her head in confusion, though her singular eye suddenly shot wide with alarm as she stumbled back into the porch staircase. The kids didn’t understand where this newfound bout of fear was coming from until she pointed a shaking hand past them to the animal that was peacefully grazing several feet away. “Oh, that’s only a deer,” Dipper explained to Centipeetle. “Don’t worry; it won’t hurt you. In fact, it’s more likely to run away from you than do anything else, see?” Sure enough, by now the deer had noticed the group standing nearby and had taken off, bounding back into the woods it had come from. By now, Centipeetle’s fear had turned into intrigue as she attempted following the deer, only to stop short as she stumbled across something else that caught her eye instead.
“Whatcha got there, Centi?” Steven asked, walking over to where the semi-corrupted Gem had knelt down. She chirped brightly as she pointed out a patch of pink wildflowers, apparently fascinated by them as she turned back toward them. “Oh! Those are some really pretty flowers! Here, hold tight for just a second.” Centipeetle continued to curiously watch as Steven picked a few of the flowers, tying them together into a simple, yet fashionable crown, which he proceeded to place on the semi-corrupted Gem’s head. “Tada! It’s for you! Do you like it?”
Centipeetle did seem to enjoy the flower crown as she cooed happily, though she kept trying to really look up at it to no avail. “Oh, you wanna see how you look?” Mabel inferred, grabbing her hand. “Well, c’mon! You can check out your fab new style right here.” She led Centipeetle over to the nearby stream, allowing her to get a full and proper view of how the flower crown looked on her. The semi-corrupted Gem managed a satisfied smile as she looked at her reflection, though that reflection was soon broken by the small fish that happened to briefly jump out of the water. Centipeetle flinched, afraid, as she fell back into the grass, her flower crown landing right beside her. “Aw, Centi! No need to freak out!” Mabel chuckled as she repositioned the flower crown on her head. “That was just a cute little fish! It can’t hurt you. Well, unless we’re talking about some of the big boys out in the ocean, cause something like a shark isn’t exactly the kind of fish you wanna-” She stopped short upon meeting Centipeetle’s nervous expression once more. “Uh… you know what? Never mind.”
“Boy,” Connie grinned as the semi-corrupted Gem peered back into the stream for another look. “She sure is curious, huh?”
“She must not have gotten to see a whole lot of the Earth before she was corrupted…” Steven frowned sympathetically.
“Speaking of which, I’ve been thinking,” Dipper interjected. “If we really want to help her uncorrupt completely, then maybe what we need to do first is figure out how she was corrupted in the first place and work from there.”
“Didn’t Pearl say something about ‘damage from the Diamonds’?” Connie mused. “What kind of damage could they have done to cause something like… well, what happened to her?”
Centipeetle turned at this, though she quickly froze, her eye going wide as she stared at something beyond the kids gathered before her. A piercing, downright terrified screech escaped her, catching the others completely off guard as they all turned their attention back to her. “What’s the matter?” Steven asked, placing a gentle hand against her arm, which was trembling every bit as much as the rest of her body. “Are you ok? A-are you remembering something?”
Centipeetle reacted harshly, clutching her head tightly as she closed her eye, screaming all the while. She somehow managed to get back to her feet, looking to the sky once again as she finally pointed a shaking finger at what had her so scared to begin with.
Despite the summer skies being crystal clear, a large, bright golden star had seemed to take up a place within them. It shined brightly, clashing with the familiar blue atmosphere, and while the mere sight of it outright horrified Centipeetle, the kids largely had no idea what the cause for alarm really was at all. “Uh… what is that?” Dipper asked, somewhat unnerved.
“Maybe it’s like one of those jet plane thingies you always see in the sky super early in the morning?” Mabel suggested. “Only the pilot on this one woke up way later than he should have.”
“That doesn’t look like any jet I’ve ever seen, even from a distance,” Connie shook her head.
Steven, meanwhile, was largely distracted by Centipeetle, who was looking around in just about every direction, seemingly trying to find some way to escape. “Whoa, Centi, i-it’s alright,” he advised, grabbing her hand. “You don’t have anything to be afraid of when you’re with us!” The semi-corrupted monster was hardy listening however, as she looked back to the “star” once more. It flashed brightly, but briefly, and that alone was to throw her already palpable alarm into an all-out panic. With a manic screech, she pulled her hand out of Steven’s and took off, running off into the forest as fast as her newly-reformed legs would carry her. “W-wait!” the young Gem called, intending on running after her until Connie reigned him back in.
“Uh, S-steven?” she grabbed his arm, directing his attention up to the “star” once more. By now it was practically burning yellow in the sky, yet it hadn’t moved, hadn’t done much at all until it suddenly dialated dramatically.
And then, before anyone had any time to say or do anything else, it exploded.
A bright, blinding golden light flooded the entire area, spreading out far and wide across all of Gravity Falls at a supersonic speed. It overtook nearly everything, from the temple to the shack to the forest to downtown, even as far as the lake and the outlying countryside, all centralized solely on the tiny timberwood town itself. In its wake it covered everyone, humans, Gems, and magical or mythical creatures alike (though only one group among those three would emerge from it unscathed). And as it shined upon them all, if its overpowering, devastating radiance hadn’t momentarily defeated them, they might have heard the briefest bout of twisted laughter, accompanied by a single voice raised in vengeful song.
And just as quickly as the light had come, it was over. It faded, leaving the sky crisp and clear and blue once again. Slowly, nature reawakened after being so sharply silenced as gentle birdsong filled in the late morning air once more. That quiet din was what first roused Steven, who sat up slowly, placing a careful hand against his now-aching head as he did. And yet, before he could even really get his bearings back, the first thing he happened to notice was that his hair strangely didn’t feel much like hair at all. Rather, it had a much softer, lighter texture, almost akin to flower petals, which made the fact that his fingers were seemingly much sharper than he knew they should have been all the more bewildering. Confused as he was, he tried to stand, though as soon as he got to his feet, he received a sudden, involuntary boost into the air. Briefly, he thought he’d accidentally activated his floating powers, until he happened to notice the series of sturdy green vines that were somehow propping him up.
“Huh?” Steven frowned, glancing back only to see that the vines didn’t just seem to be coming from behind him, but from him. They sprouted from his back, and a few of the more thorny ones had twisted themselves around his arms and legs, though those thorns didn’t dig into his skin, which was an odd shade of pale pink. “W-what is all this…?” he wondered to himself, briefly glancing up from himself to look around. The first thing he realized was that Centipeetle was nowhere to be found, having run off into the woods just moments prior, a thought that worried Steven far more than his current peculiar condition did. “Oh no! Centi!” he gasped, alarmed as he searched for any sign of her. “Where are-”
“Ugh… Steven…?” The young Gem immediately stopped short as soon as he heard Dipper’s voice somewhere nearby. Despite his attempts at turning around, the vines suddenly did so for him as they somehow moved on their own accord. Still, Steven ignored how startling the vines, the thorns, and even the surprisingly sharp claws he now had were, in favor of checking on the others instead.
“Dipper! Are you ok--Ohhhhh my gosh!” Steven’s jaw dropped in shock as soon as he actually looked at Dipper, who had just started to partially pull himself up off the ground.
As he did, however, he clearly noticed something was off, particularly about the texture and shape of his nose and ears. “W-what is…” Dipper trailed off as he tried to properly sit up, only to not receive the sort of usual feedback he would have expected from his legs. “Why… why can’t I-” He cut himself off with a sharp, frightened gasp as soon as he so much as caught sight of the lower half of his body. Because by all accounts, it looked identical to that of a deer’s, complete with not just two, but four long, lithe, thin legs, brown fur spotted with specks of white on his back, and even a tiny tail that was currently twitching out of immense agitation. As he fully took in this inexplicable shift, Dipper let out a tight, terrified cry that didn’t sound exactly human, though he didn’t seem to care as he gripped his front set of legs to confirm that they were, in fact, actually his. “W-what’s going on?!”
“Whoa, Dipper!” Steven exclaimed in equal awe as he leaned forward as much as the vines would allow. “You’re like… some kind of deer-centaur! A deertaur!”
“Ok, two things,” Dipper said crossly amidst trying to position his new, rather awkward set of legs to stand. “One, I’m pretty sure that’s not what this is called and two... WHAT? WHY? HOW? What happened to me?! What happened to you?! What’s with all the vines? Why does your hair look like a bouquet?”
“It does…?” Steven frowned, reaching up to thumb one of the “petals” that now apparently made up his hair. “Huh.”
“Seriously, what happened?” Dipper reiterated as he made his first real attempt at standing up. And yet, as unused to his strange new form as he was, balancing on his feet, or hooves, rather, proved to be quite a challenge as he unsteadily wobbled before ultimately falling right back to the ground clumsily. “And why a deer?!” he let out a small, frustrated huff through his now pert, black nose. “It’s not even like they’re even my favorite animal or anything! This makes no sense!”
“W-well, if it’s any consolation,” Steven began with a small, reassuring smile. “You do look pretty cute like this.”
Dipper flinched at this, but said nothing in response as he crossed his arms and glared away, blushing, at least until he picked up on something else. “Hey, wait a second, where’s-”
“Oy, what smells like fish…?” Mabel suddenly spoke up as she finally started to wake up herself. She let out a long yawn, not noticing the dumbfounded looks Steven and Dipper were both sending her way as they realized she’d also gone through an unnatural transformation. For her own part, however, it took Mabel a moment or two to register that transformation as she sat up and stared directly at the scaly pink finned tail that had taken the place of her legs. “Huh… Well that’s new,” she noted, glancing over her now-webbed hands before balking at her tail again with a huge gasp. “OH MY GOSH!” she practically screamed, stars in her eyes as she hugged her tail excitedly. “I’m a mer-ACK!” Mabel sucked in another sharp gasp, an involuntary one this time as her breathing grew short and shallow, her eyes widening in panic as she gripped her throat frantically.
“Mabel!” Steven and Dipper both exclaimed in concerned alarm. On impulse, Dipper rushed to get up to help her, completely forgetting about the current state of his legs until he inevitably ended up tripping and faceplanting right back into the grass again. He didn’t let that stop him however, as he prepared to try again, he happened to catch sight of something Mabel apparently hadn’t as she haphazardly threw off her sweater so she could breathe easier. “Gills…” he gasped in realization. “She has gills! She can’t breathe! Steven, she needs water! B-but I can’t-”
“I’m on it!” Steven readily agreed, his vines moving in accordance with him this time. It was almost as if they knew exactly what he was thinking as they kept him propped up, essentially “walking” him over to Mabel, who was still gasping and choking on air that wouldn’t do anything for her now. While Steven tried to help her himself, the vines did that for him too as their tips gently coiled around her arms before they swiftly pulled her into the nearby creek, submerging her completely.
Both Steven and Dipper waited for an anxious beat for Mabel to emerge from the relatively shallow water, though when she did, she let out a rejuvenated sigh of relief as she perched herself against the side of the creek. “Ah! Much better!” she grinned happily, splashing more water against the small pink gills on her neck. “Guess I just needed to wet my whistle! So, whaaaaaaaaaaaaa-?!” By now, Mabel finally noticed just what had happened to Dipper and Steven, and as soon as she did, a huge, delighted smile broke out across her face. “Ohhhhhh, Steven! Dipper! You guys look so adorable!”
“Uh, thanks?” Steven chuckled.
“Ugh, this is just gonna keep getting more and more embarrassing, isn’t it?” Dipper scoffed, dryly.
“Embarrassing? Bro-bro, what are you talking about? This is amazing!” Mabel proclaimed, flopping back into the creek behind her so she could admire her tail fins noce more. “Check it out! I’m totally a mermaid! Oh, if only Mermando was still here! We could be the cutest mer-couple ever, and have mer-babies, and live in a mer-castle under the sea! And sing mer-songs all day!”
“Yeesh,” Dipper rolled his eyes at his sister’s flights of fantasy. “You would enjoy this, Mabel.”
“Hey, has anyone seen Connie?” Steven asked, glancing around in newfound concern. “I haven’t seen her since all this happened. Do you think maybe she could have gone after Centi when she ran off?”
“What are you talking about, Steven? I’ve been here this whole time!”
Steven, Mabel, and Dipper alike all froze up at this, each of them looking around for Connie upon hearing her voice, only to find no sign of her anywhere. That is, until she happened to reappear out of nowhere right in front of Steven. All three of the other kids let out a startled round of alarm at this, though Connie didn’t share it as she let out a small sigh of relief instead.
“Ah, finally you guys can actually see and hear me!” she exclaimed as she hovered up into the air a bit. “I’ve been trying to talk to you for the past several minutes, but it’s like you all just kept staring right through me!”
“Aw, sorry, Connie!” Steven apologized earnestly. “We didn’t mean to! But I couldn’t see you until now, much less hear you!”
“C-Connie?” Dipper spoke up, trembling slightly until he caught himself doing so. “A-are you… I-I… I don’t know how to say this, but… I-I think you might be-”
“Oh! A ghost!” Mabel guessed bluntly. “I got it right, didn’t I?”
“What? A ghost?” Connie shook her head incredulously. For her part, she largely looked the same as she always did, though like Mabel, her legs had been traded in for a tail, albeit one that wasn’t anywhere near as fish-like. But even beyond that, she had taken on a pale blue parlor, her entire body being more or less completely translucent as it radiated with a dull, unearthly sort of glow. That, paired with the fact that she was able to float above the ground freely, added up to far too much evidence for anything else to really be true, as much as Connie wished something else was. “Oh my gosh, I-I think you guys are right! I-I really am a ghost! B-but why? And how--wait, no, I don’t even want to think about how! A-anyway, w-what happened to you guys? To all of us?!”
“I think I know what happened,” Mabel said as she pushed herself up out of the stream a bit.
“Really?” Dipper asked, skeptical as Steven began to use his vines to help him properly stand. “You know what happened to us when none of the rest of us do?”
“Of course, I do,” Mabel grinned proudly. “We all got turned into totally awesome magical creatures! I mean, think about it: I’m a super sparkly mermaid (with a tail in my favorite shade of pink, might I add!). Connie’s a really cool ghost why can fly and turn invisible-”
“I don’t know if I’d call either of those things ‘cool’ in this instance…” Connie frowned as she accidentally phased her intangible hands into each other.
“Steven’s, uh… w-well he’s some sort of flower… guy… person… thing…” Mabel ventured, uncertain. “B-but that’s awesome, since pink is totally your color.”
“Oh, you think so?” Steven grinned, looking down at his light pink arm with a newfound sense of fondness.
“And Dipper is a super cute deertaur!”
“Again, I’m 100% positive that’s not what it’s called,” Dipper spoke up as he stomped one of his hooves down in annoyance. “Also, would everyone please stop calling me cute?!”
“Maybe once you stop being cute,” Mabel chuckled with a teasing smirk.
“Which will be never!” Steven added much more earnestly.
“Ugh, look,” Dipper began, addressing the enthused pair evenly. “I don’t know if you guys realize this, but this is serious. We just got turned into monsters, or magical creatures, or whatever, completely out of the blue. Something like this doesn’t just happen, not even here in Gravity Falls. Something caused this, and we need to figure out what it was so we can find a way to undo it and get all of us back to normal.”
“Aw, but I like being a magical mermaid!” Mabel pouted.
“Do you like not being able to breathe outside of the water?” Dipper countered flatly.
Mabel flinched, recalling the frightening experience she’d just been through moments ago, an experience she certainly wasn’t keen on going through again anytime soon. “I… see your point.”
“Maybe that star had something to do with it…” Connie mused, looking up to the now-empty sky. “It was the last thing any of us saw before we woke up like this, right?”
“Oh, yeah,” Steven agreed as his vines formed something of a seat for him to recline on. “Oh, thanks!” he said to the vines themselves before returning to the matter at hand. “Plus, Centi seemed to be really scared of that star. She might even know what it was! Maybe if we can find her, then she can-”
A sudden thunderous clamor cut through the conversation like a knife, a clamor that came from the temple, to be precise. The chaotic noise only amplified as the front door burst open and, as opposed to any of the Gems, what seemed to be a monster jumped outside instead. It wasn’t very large, though it was just a bit bigger than the kids, with a purple, bulky four-legged form and a full, thick mane of lighter lavender hair. It unleashed what sounded like a wild howl as it pounced off the porch, its clawed front arms allowing it a square landing on the ground. It didn’t seem to have any eyes, with a set of bright purple horns in place of where they would have been, but it still managed to spot the kids gathered just a bit down the hill from it. The monster’s toothy maw split into an expression that was almost akin to a grin as it made an animalistic sound that sounded a bit like a laugh, though it was still completely unintelligible. Its apparent excitement prompted it to stampede toward the group at a rapid pace, much to their shared alarm,, and at least in two cases, outright fear.
While Mabel and Steven simply gasped in surprise as the monster rushed for them, Connie completely disappeared into thin air, not even making a single sound or uttering so much as a word as she did. Dipper, on the other hand, froze up, his eyes wide but his expression otherwise largely vacant and unreadable. And as the monster drew even closer, he suddenly took off, somehow completely capable of using his new legs, which he couldn’t even properly stand on mere moments ago, galloping at full speed into the nearby woods. Mabel let out a startled cry as she watched him easily leap over the stream she was sitting in before he disappeared into the forest just before the monster could arrive.
“Wait! Dipper!” she called, frustrated by her inability to get out of the water to go after him. Both her and Steven were met with an all-new concern, however, as the monster suddenly slammed down right in front of them, focusing on the young Gem in particular as it reared low with a small growl.
“S-Stay back!” Steven warned, summoning his shield to ward off the beast. The monster leapt at him anyway, however, barreling into him and knocking him to the ground, even despite his vines trying to keep him upright. The young Gem braced himself for a vicious attack as his shield disappeared, yet instead, he was met with a sudden, wet lick from the beast’s large tongue. “Huh?” Steven frowned, looking back up to the monster, who still had him pinned down, but was now panting happily. Though he was already confused, his bewilderment only grew tenfold as he happened to notice the very familiar purple gemstone resting on the monster’s chest amidst her unruly tufts of hair. “Wait… A-Amethyst?!”
The beast nodded vigorously, finally stepping away from the young Gem as her long, messy tail wagged excitedly. While his vines picked him back up above the ground once more, Steven exchanged an uncertain glance with Mabel before he looked to who he could only assume had to be Amethyst once more. “D-Did… you shapeshift to look like this?”
Amethyst shook her head, apparently unable to properly speak. She turned her attention back up to the temple, where another monster seemed to be stomping out, though it was much easier to discern the identity of this one from its appearance alone.
“Garnet?!” Mabel and Steven exclaimed in shock as the creature the Gem leader had turned into jumped down from the porch to join them. There was no mistaking her, namely because of her pair of heads, one of which bore semblance to Ruby in coloration, though the only feature of her face was a fanged maw, while her other head was clearly Sapphire with her singular eye and long blue hair. The rest of her body was much more akin to Garnet herself, though quite twisted, her arms massive and muscular as they reached down as long as her much shorter legs did, her huge clawed hands acting more as her main form of transportation as she slowly lumbered forward. She towered high over Amethyst and the kids, letting out a low, inhuman groan that almost seemed to be a greeting, though despite her admittedly mangled appearance, she seemed just as calm as she always was.
“Garnet… Amethyst...” Steven looked between the monstrous pair, quite shaken. “W-what happened to you? And… where’s Pearl?”
This question was met with a sharp, high pitched squeak from above as a large shadow briefly covered up the sun. That shadow had been cast by a large, majestic bird-like creature, one that nervously touched down to join Garnet and Amethyst. There was no question this was Pearl, from the tell-tell gemstone on her now-eyeless head, resting just above the long, pointed beak she now bore. Her form was sleek and graceful, with a thin, curved, swan-like neck, wide, sweeping peach and white feathered wings and a set of long, narrow legs that carried the same spiraled design as her spears. Pearl let out another unintelligible shriek, one of apparent surprise as she caught sight of Steven and Mabel, her wings flapping anxiously, at least until she heard Amethyst’s amused gruff cackle beside her. The white Gem shrieked shrilly at her in annoyance, though she merely kept on “laughing”, at least until Garnet silenced them both with a heavy, commanding grunt.
“No way…” Steven shook his head incredulously. “I-it really is you guys! A-are… are you… corrupted?”
All three of the Gems reacted to such a claim in shock, Pearl fiercely shaking her head as Amethyst tilted her head, confused. Garnet remained still and silent, though after a moment of thought, both of her contrasting heads finally nodded, much to the shock of her teammates. An argument of various squawks, roars, and groans erupted at this as the Gems “communicated” with each other, though neither Steven nor Mabel could even hope to make out what they were trying to say.
“This is so weird…” Mabel frowned, leaning against the creekbank. “Aren’t corrupted Gems supposed to be all wild and crazy? Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl are just… acting like themselves.”
“Maybe they’re not entirely corrupted?” Connie purposed as she suddenly reappeared, catching Steven and Mabel off guard. “O-oh! Sorry! I really gotta learn how to control this whole randomly disappearing thing better…”
“But… why do they still look like monsters?” Steven wondered, catching the attention of his guardians. “I know you guys can’t really… talk right now, but… you can still understand what we’re saying right?” All three of the Gems nodded, though what little their malformed expressions alone could convey told they were just as baffled and concerned as the kids themselves were. “So… you’re all basically half-corrupted then… just like Centi! Man, I really wish she hadn’t run off earlier; she’d be so much in figuring all this out!”
“Speaking of running off…” Mabel said, turning back toward the forest. “It’s ok, bro-bro, everything’s cool! You can come out now! There’s nothing to be afraid of out here.”
“I-I wasn’t afraid!” Dipper protested as he peeked out from the tree he had taken refuge behind. “I-it was just really loud and a lot of things were happening at once and I… might have panicked. J-just a little!”
“Well, deer do have a reputation for having a pretty sharp flight response whenever they get startled, so that might explain it,” Connie pointed out.
“Ugh, great…” Dipper sighed as he fully emerged from the forest. “Just another reason to find a way to get us all back to normal as soon as possible. Especially for you guys,” he said, flinching as he looked to the Gems in particular. “You three look--uh… y-you look great!” he played off whatever he was going to say with a nervous laugh. The Gems didn’t quite buy it however as Amethyst teasingly stuck her tongue out while Pearl squawked, apparently flustered as she nudged one of her wings with her beak.
“Wait a minute,” Connie interjected. “If that star, or whatever it was, somehow transformed all of us, then… maybe we weren’t the only ones affected by it…”
Everyone else took pause at this alarming thought, especially as they all happened to look down the hill toward the Mystery Shack. As they did, Dipper and Mabel in particular exchanged a nervous glance as they both considered exactly who else could be going through the exact same thing they currently were experiencing. “You don’t think…?”
Unsure of what they’d find, once the group of monster-turned kids and externally-corrupted Gems arrived at the Mystery Shack, Connie volunteered to head in first since she could more or less slip in unseen to scope things out. The only problem that arose with this came from Amethyst, who suddenly, impulsively decided to join her right as she floated toward the gift shop door. Connie stopped just as Amethyst rammed into the door horns-first, easily breaking down as she stormed in, eager to find Stan and show him her new form, much to the alarm of everyone else outside. Pearl let out a frantic squeal as Garnet slammed one of her heavy hands to the ground in an attempt to reel Amethyst back in, though the purple Gem, rowdy as ever, hardly paid them any mind. Likewise, the kids also watched with concern as she rushed inside, ensuing a chaotic clamor almost immediately as she haphazardly crashed into several display cases and quickly catching Stan’s attention, just as she’d intended.
“Augh!” the conman shouted furiously from inside. “What in the--wait, Amethyst?! N-no, no, no, no! You better not--” He was cut off by another huge crash, one that promoted Pearl and Garnet into action while the kids stood by just a bit past the door.
“Oh man, I wish we could see what’s going on in there!” Mabel exclaimed, leaning out of the small swimming pool Steven and Dipper were filling up for her. “I bet Grunkle Stan is totally freaking out!”
“Uh… I don’t know if that’s entirely accurate…” Connie frowned as she peered into the shack just as Amethyst scurried out of it, laughing all the while. Likewise, Garnet and Pearl both stumbled back themselves as Stan tried to burst out of the shack, revealing that, much like the kids, he’d gone through a rather monstrous transformation himself.
By all accounts, it seemed as though the conman’s skin had turned to moving stone based on its rough, gray texture. Beyond that, both his fingers and his tones bore sharp, talon-like claws as he sported a small set of stony horns just above his now acutely pointed ears. But his two most notable new features were his eyes, which seemed to shine a bright, almost ominous kind of yellow, and the wide set of pointed wings on his back, which were currently caught on the doorframe, essentially holding him in place as he angrily tried chasing after Amethyst. “Ugh, again? Seriously?” the conman growled in annoyance as he somehow managed to retract his wings in a bit. “I’m already sick of these stupid things. And as for you, Amethyst, I--aye, yi, yi…” Stan trailed off, shock overtaking his expression as he noticed Pearl and Garnet’s changed forms too. “Yeesh, and I thought I had it bad between the new wings and the horns. You three look terrible!”
Pearl let out a harsh, offended hiss at this, though Garnet didn’t really respond. Amethyst however, let out a teasing roar, one that Stan didn’t seem to follow at all. “Uh… what, are you guys done speakin’ English or do you just expect me to understand ‘monsterese’ now?” he asked dryly.
“Uh, actually, Mr. Pines,” Steven spoke up. “They can’t really… ‘talk’ right now…”
At this, Stan stole a glance over at the kids, only to balk in bewilderment at each of them in turn. “W-wha… what the heck happened to you kids?!” he asked, stepping over toward them. “Dipper--or Steven, I don’t care who since either of you if not both is usually behind anything wacky or magical happening around here--explain. Now.”
“We would if we actually understood what happened to begin with,” Dipper replied, crossing his arms.
“Well you better figure it out!” Stan snapped, irritated. “Cause I don’t know how you expect me to send you runts home to your parents with you looking half like a deer while your sister’s flopping around like a fish outta water.”
“Aw, it doesn’t sound anywhere near as magical and cool when you put being a mermaid like that…” Mabel cringed as she popped her head out of the water after refilling her gills.
“You won’t have to send us home looking like this,” Dipper countered, resolved. “Because we’re going to find a way to undo all of this and get everyone back to normal.”
“Yeah!” Steven, Mabel, and Connie all chimed in support of this plan.
“Oh really? That’s awesome, dudes!” Soos exclaimed as he stepped outside of the shack. Upon a first glance, he seemed to look just as he always did with no peculiar transformation in sight, at least until a piece of his arm quite literally melted right off.
“Uh… Soos?” Steven spoke up, all four of the kids looking to the handyman in immense concern.
“Oops,” Soos scooped up the strangely mouldable clump of his arm and easily slapped it back on as if it had never fallen off to begin with. “I’ll tell ya what, being made of clay may seem like it has its perks, but it’s starting to get way less cool the more times a chunk of me randomly melts off…”
“Could you at least stop melting all over the shack?” Stan asked dryly. “The last thing I wanna do is clean up bits of Soos off the floor.”
“Sorry, Mr. Pines,” Soos apologized as he smoothed up the side of his cheek before any clay could drip off of it. “I guess clay and a hot summer day aren’t a great mix…”
“Ugh, consider yourself lucky, man,” Wendy spoke up as she came out of the shack herself. “At least you’re not covered in fur…”
“Whoa, Wendy!” Mabel exclaimed in fascination as Dipper, Steven, and Connie looked to the cashier in shock. “Are you-”
“A werewolf? Ugh, yeah, I guess,” Wendy rolled her eyes as she absently scratched behind one of her now rather dog-like ears. Sure enough, her entire body was covered in thick red fur to match her hair color, and alongside that she bore a bit of a snout with a wolfish nose and plenty of sharp, fanged teeth to match the sizable claws on her hands and feet. Yet despite her rather canine appearance, she was still perfectly able to walk upright, which was apparent enough as she leaned against the side of the shack, annoyed. “All those movies with the hot shirtless werewolves totally oversold this, by the way. The real deal totally sucks between being hot and itchy all the time. So if you guys are dead set on getting us all back to normal, then more power to you.”
“Don’t worry, we will,” Connie assured, though her confident smile quickly fell. “If only we knew where to start…”
“Maybe Great Uncle Ford can help,” Dipper suggested. “After filling up three whole journals, it’s safe to assume he is the resident expert on magical creatures around here. Where is he anyway?”
“Ugh, please don’t get me started on Ford and all those stupid riddles he’s been throwing around since this whole mess startled,” Stan huffed crossly.
“Riddles?” Steven asked, confused.
“Precisely, my boy,” Ford interjected as he rounded the far corner of the shack. For his part, his appearance had taken on something of a lion-eque motiff, with golden-brown fur, a long, thin tail, large (but still six-fingered) paws, and even a rather feline nose. But what set that motiff apart were his wings, just as wide as his brother’s, though bright and colorful and feathered instead of grey and stony. He only briefly regarded the Gems and the kids’ changes in appearance, seemingly not alarmed by them at all as he continued just as calmly. “For instance, what do you call a creature that’s steeped in ancient Greek and Egyptian mythology and has a penchant for presenting all who cross its path with puzzling riddles?”
“Annoying?” Stan ventured, sending his brother a bored look.
“No, Stanley,” Ford countered flatly. “A sphinx. Which seems to be what I’ve turned into. Maybe you’ll have an easier time figuring this one out: what’s the term for a creature that’s made of animated stone and also happens to be what you’ve become?”
“I’m sticking with my first answer and saying annoying,” the conman reiterated, glaring back at his unwanted set of wings.
“A gargoyle, Stanley, a gargoyle,” the author huffed, exasperated. “Come on, that one wasn’t even hard at all.”
“Yeesh, if you’re gonna be a wisecracking know-it-all, then can’t you just get to the point about it?” Stan rolled his eyes. “Do you have to keep at with all these pointless riddles?”
“...Yes,” Ford said bluntly before turning to the kids. “Anyway, children, do you know what a living, human-like being made of an earthen material such as mud, rocks, or in this case, clay,” he nodded over at Soos. “Is called?” The kids exchanged an uncertain glance at this, though it wasn’t long before the author filled in with an answer to his own riddle once more. “A golem. A clay golem in this particular instance, I believe.”
“Oooohhh so that’s what I am,” Soos mused, fascinated. “And I was just gonna keep calling myself “Soos: Clay Edition” but a golem sounds way cooler.”
“Furthermore,” Ford posed another riddle. “A creature with the arms, head, and torso of a human, but the body and legs of a deer is called a…?”
“A deertaur!” Steven and Mabel both chimed in with an enthusiastic answer.
“Ugh, for the last time, you guys, that’s not what it’s called!” Dipper protested, his tail flickering in aggravation.
“You’re absolutely right, Dipper, that’s not what it’s called,” Ford pointed out with a knowing grin. “You’re actually a cervitaur.”
“Eh, that doesn’t have nearly the same ring to it…” Mabel said, looking to her brother dubiously. “Grunkle Ford, can you do me next!”
“Mabel,” Dipper cut in, shaking his head. “We already know you’re a-”
“A creature that’s half girl and half fish would be known as…?”
“A mermaid!” Mabel immediately guessed. “I know because I am one! Right now!”
“Correct,” Ford nodded, pleased. “Now… hm… this one is a bit trickier. A physical spirit tied to… well, traditionally trees, but I suppose just about any form of flora works, as is the case with Steven here, so that would make him a…?”
“Uh… Mabel guessed flower guy earlier so, I’ll go with that?” Steven suggested, though he really had no idea himself.
“Actually, my boy, you’re what’s known as a dryad,” Ford corrected. “Or more accurately, the male form of a dryad, a drus. A rose drus, from the looks of it…”
“...It had to be roses, didn’t it?” Steven muttered to himself as he rubbed his thorn, covered arm apprehensively.
“Now, rounding things off, a creature that’s wolf-like in appearance, but-”
“It’s a werewolf,” Wendy interrupted boredly. “Already figured that out as soon as I realized I had a tail, man, it’s not that hard.”
“Ah,” Ford said somewhat awkwardly before continuing. “Then how about an immaterial spector that’s-”
“A ghost,” Connie readily filled the answer. “Sorry, Mr. Ford. We… kind of already figured that one out too.”
“...Very well then,” the author noted as he glanced over at the Gems. “As for you three, I… can’t quite seem to think of anything-”
“Oh, thank god,” Stan said, breathing a sigh of relief.
“Are… are they… corrupted?” Ford asked the kids in particular.
“Sort of?” Steven shrugged. “They’re still themselves though, right, you guys?” The Gems let out a variety of unintelligible answers at this, but all of them seemed to confirm this to be true.
“Fascinating…” Ford adjusted his glasses as he looked over each of the Gems’ semi-corrupted forms. “All of this is just so… fascinating! I could fill up an entire journal alone with all of the scientific discoveries to be found here! And while I’m on that note, another riddle! What’s-”
“No!” Stan quickly cut him off, leaping forward with a powerful flap of his wings to practically tackle Ford to the ground. “You are not asking another one of your dumb riddles on my watch!”
“...Well, you could have just asked, Stanley,” Ford huffed, pushing his brother off him. “You didn’t need to be so extreme about it.”
“Oh, hey!” Steven cut in, pointing to a familiar van driving toward the shack. “Looks like Dad’s on his way here!”
Sure enough, Greg’s van pulled up to a sudden stop in front of the group gathered outside the shack, with the former rock star poking his head out the window frantically. “Steven!” he exclaimed, startled by what had happened to both his son and the others. Greg himself had also undergone a rather alarming transformation, as he was seemingly wrapped in browning bandages from head to toe, with what little skin showing between those bandages looking drastically pale and almost lifeless. Yet he hardly seemed to care much for his own appearance as he threw the van door open to check on his son and the others instead. At least until one of his bandages got caught up in the door as he slammed it shut. “Aw, not again!” he huffed, pulling the bandage out before hurrying over to Steven. “L-look at you!” he exclaimed, practically having to look up at his son thanks to the vines still holding him aloft. “Are you ok? Is everyone ok?”
“Yeah, we’re all fine,” Steven nodded.
“E-even the Gems…?” Greg asked, sending them a worried look.
“Yeah, they’re ok too,” the young Gem mustered a small smile.
“Ah! Here we go!” Ford piped up with a brand-new riddle. “What would you call an undead creature typically wrapped in cloth bandages to try and preserve the decaying body?”
“U-undead?!” Greg balked, glancing down at himself fearfully.
“Join the club…” Connie spoke up as she hovered nearby.
“A mummy! Greg’s a mummy! Geez!” Stan swiftly answered, shoving his brother out of aggravation. “What did I say about the riddles?!”
“Oh, honestly, Stanley! You don’t have to be such a brute!” Ford took a swing at the conman with his claws, only for them to hit solid stone instead.
“And you don’t have to be such a pain!” Stan countered, utilizing his wings to gain the literal upper hand over the author before he could lash out again. Ford didn’t let him get away that easily as he also managed to take flight, and soon enough both brothers were engaged in a midair chase that everyone briefly stopped to watch before returning to the matter at hand.
“So yeah, like Steven said, we’re all doin’ pretty good,” Soos reiterated obliviously.
“I-I can’t believe this whole monster thing happened to all of you guys too!” Greg exclaimed, running a hand through the hair that was sticking out from under the bandages.
“What do you mean ‘too’?” Dipper asked, confused.
“Haven’t you seen the news?” Greg asked, incredulously.
“Oh, yeah,” Wendy spoke up as she pulled the latest town news report up on her phone before holding it up for everyone to see. “Check it out.”
“This just in,” Shandra Jimenez, who seemed to have been turned into a harpy, reported urgently. “Monster madness has taken over Gravity Falls! Residents all over town have reported being suddenly transformed into magical or mythical creatures.” Sure enough, the accompanying footage proved this to be true as every citizen shown seemed to be some sort of monster or cryptid or creature, each in some varying level of surprise or panic over their new forms. “The cause for this town-wide transformation is still unknown, but experts believe the large flash of bright light that encompassed the entire area earlier today might have had something to do with it. For now, residents are advised to continue on with business as usual until some sort of cure can be found. We’ll be back with more details at 5, but for now, I’m Shandra Jimenez, and it’s time for my hourly preening session.” With a loud squawk, the anchor signed off to pick at the feathered wings that had taken the place of her arms and putting an end to the news briefing in the process.
“T-this is happening to the entire town?!” Dipper asked in disbelief. All four of the kids exchanged a startled glance at this as they realized this problem was much more widespread and far more serious than they first thought. Which, of course, would only make finding an elusive solution for it much more difficult than they had originally hoped.
“Yeah, it is, and somebody better do something about it! Soon.”
“No way…” Dipper gasped as he was the first to notice who was emerging, or rather slithering out of the nearby forest. “Pacifica?!”
Like all of the others, Pacifica’s appearance had drastically changed, primarily by the way of her legs being replaced by a long, light gold, snake-like tail. That reptilian theming continued with her hair, which was no longer really hair at all but a horde of snakes, each of them alive and autonomous as they moved about on their own accord. The heiress-turned-gorgon clearly cared little for her own snakes as she pushed the unruly reptiles back as they hissed and maneuvered about freely. Yet her frustration quickly fizzled into shock as she spotted the group of various creatures and monsters in front of the shack, though she focused most of her concern on her boyfriend in particular.
“Oh my gosh!” Pacifica exclaimed, clumsily slithering over to her as Dipper tried to meet her halfway every bit as awkwardly on his still rather unsteady legs. “D-Dipper, you… look-”
“Please don’t say adorable,” Dipper interrupted, deadpan.
“...I was gonna say like a deer, but…” Pacifica couldn’t help but crack a small smile at this, revealing her new set of sharp fangs. “You definitely look better off than I do right now…”
“What? N-no!” Dipper countered, trying to reassure her as best he could as he suppressed a nervous cringe as one of her snakes drew in a bit too close to him for comfort. “You, uh… you look…”
“Don’t lie,” the heiress warned coldly.
“...S-snakes,” Dipper finished, unable to really say much else as he realized he was slightly trembling again.
“Yeah, snakes,” Pacifica scowled, reigning her snakes back again as several of them started crowding around Dipper, their almost hungry stares making him quite uncomfortable. “Please tell me you’re working on a way of undoing this whole mess…”
“Of course, we are,” he said, suppressing his sudden anxiety as he took her hands to comfort her. “We’ll figure something out, I promise.”
“AW!” Mabel suddenly gushed from her pool. “Even like this, you guys are still the CUTEST couple ever! What I wouldn’t give to have my camera on me! Though then again, maybe it’s better that I don’t… I don’t think it’s waterproof…”
“Oh, come on, really?” Pacifica asked in disbelief as she glanced over at Mabel. “You got turned into a mermaid? I wish I could have been that lucky…”
“Tell me about it,” Connie sighed as she suddenly materialized right beside the heiress, startling both her and her snakes in the process.
“Ok, everyone,” Dipper addressed the others, outside of Stan and Ford who were still engrossed in their petty brawl above. “Let’s get back on track. We need to start looking for some way to get all of us back to-” A high, loud screech abruptly cut him off as it echoed through the air, though it didn’t take long for everyone to discover the source of the noise as it came from above. Stan and Ford’s ongoing argument was only briefly interrupted by the arrival of a winged creature that suddenly blazed right past them both. That blue, jellyfish-esque creature was apparently holding something with its thin set of lengthy tentacles, a much smaller, bright green, six legged spider-like monster. While a pair of such peculiar creatures would have normally been cause for alarm, as the jellyfish gently set the spider down on the ground before coming to hover just above it, it soon became very apparent to just about everyone exactly who these creatures, or partially corrupted Gems really were.
“Wait a second…” Steven said, focusing on the familiar gemstones on each of the monsters. “Isn’t that-”
“Oh my gosh! Peri!” Mabel practically squealed with delight at the spider-like form Peridot had taken on. “You look so CUTE! You’re like an itsy-bitsy Gem spider! If I could get out of this pool, you better believe I’d be giving you the biggest hug right now!”
Peridot let out a flustered hiss at this, her large, dark eyes narrowing in apparently frustration and embarrassment as she stomped her two front, disjointed legs down in annoyance. An apparent testament that the green Gem still retained her annoyance at being referred to as small, even in her now largely-corrupted form.
At the same time, Dipper was completely caught off guard as the jellyfish creature suddenly flew over to him, remaining completely silent as several of its long tendrils reached out toward him. Immediately, his relatively new panicky instincts washed over him as he froze up, staring at the monster with stark, fearful, yet quiet alarm. The creature quickly noticed this and drew back a bit, seemingly confused and concerned, though it was still unable to make so much as a sound to convey either of those things.
“Uh, Dipper?” Steven placed a steadying hand on his shoulder as his vines carried him over to him. “I… think that’s Lapis…”
At this, Dipper quickly snapped out of this forceful bout of shock, recognition filling his features as he spotted the teardrop shaped gemstone that was clearly visible through the jellyfish’s somewhat transparent blue body. “L-Lapis…?”
Lapis “nodded” as much as she could in her current form, slowly reaching her tendrils out once more so she could better see how Dipper had changed too. This time, he allowed her to, albeit a bit anxiously as one of her naturally wet tentacles found a gentle spot against the side of his face. “Uh… s-sorry,” he said, backing up a bit. “This is just… really weird…”
Though Lapis didn’t really respond to this, Peridot certainly did in a series of plaintiff hisses as she skittered around in apparent frustration. “Yeesh, even like this she’s still a loudmouth,” Pacifica noted to Connie and Mabel, aside, both of whom couldn’t help but agree.
“So, you guys got corrupted--er, s-sort of corrupted too, huh?” Steven asked Lapis and Peridot, who both nodded in what almost seemed like resignation to this fact. The young Gem let out a small, fretful sigh as he took a moment to glance over the pair, as well as other Gems’ rather monstrous forms. Likewise, he took another moment to take stock of what had happened to his father, to Soos and Wendy and Pacifica, to Stan and Ford, to Mabel, Dipper, and Connie, and even to himself. For whatever reason, they had all undergone some kind of unknown, and in most cases unwanted, transformation, one that had disrupted their lives and left them all with more questions than answers as they tried to adapt to what had so suddenly happened to them, a plight that faced the entire town and everyone in it, Gems and humans alike. And while Steven knew Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl weren’t particularly equipped to save Gravity Falls from such a plight as they usually would have, he figured that someone else would just have to step up and do exactly that in their stead.
“All right, enough is enough,” Steven said, his tone stern and serious as he looked to Dipper, Mabel, and Connie. “We need to do something about this.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying this whole time,” Dipper huffed, his tail twitching in slight aggravation.
“I know…” Steven admitted as a few of his vines curled back in embarrassment. “B-but this time, let’s actually do it! We can find a way to undo this and get all of us, everyone--the whole town, back to the way they’re supposed to be, I know we can! So, are you guys up for another mystery?”
“You bet!” Mabel eagerly chimed, slapping her hand over Steven’s as he extended it to the others. “Mystery Kids!”
“Mystery Kids,” Connie agreed, hovering her hand over the others even though she couldn’t really touch them herself.
Dipper sighed, though he did so with a warm, resolved smile as his hand joined the pile. “Mystery Kids.” He paused right after this, however, as he stole a glance over at Pacifica, who stood on the fringes of the group, glancing away awkwardly as even her snakes seemed to hang low and quiet. She started, however, as she caught sight of Dipper silently motioning her to join them. Considering her less than stellar history with the other members of the group, she hesitated, but she ultimately folded upon meeting her boyfriend’s soft, reassuring smile.
“M-Mystery Kids…?” Pacifica ventured as she slithered over to the group and placed her hand atop theirs. Steven, Mabel, and Connie all offered her the same eager, welcoming smiles, which helped to set her at ease just as much as Dipper reaching up to lightly, supportively squeeze her hand did.
With another daring cheer, the four--now five--Mystery Kids solidified their brazen mission to uncover the truth behind what had happened to Gravity Falls and find a way to solve it. A lofty, brazen goal to be sure, but one they felt largely equipped to handle; after all, they’d faced impossible odds like this more than a few times before.
“Ok,” Dipper said as they all retracted their hands. “Let’s get started.”
“Good luck, dudes!” Soos encouraged with a bright wave, though his hand ended up melting off his wrist before it splattered onto the porch. “...Oops.”
“Uh, you guys might wanna hurry up on that,” Wendy noted as she watched the handyman reclaim his hand with a concerned frown. “I don’t know how much longer Soos can hold out with it being this hot out. Or how much longer I can hold out either for that matter…” she growled, scratching away at her own thick fur.
“Wait, hold up,” Stan cut in as he finally came in for a landing, Ford following not too far behind him as their disagreement had reached a stalemate. “The entire town is cursed or something, and we’re just supposed to rely completely on you kids to get us all back to normal? N-not that I don’t trust you four, but you gotta admit you’re a little wet behind the ears. In some cases, literally,” he nodded over at Mabel.
“Guilty as charged,” Mabel chuckled, showing off her now fin-like ears, which were, sure enough, soaking wet.
“Stanley, don’t be so inconsiderate,” Ford scolded. “After all, who has accomplished impressive feats of discovery and problem solving through pooling their respective talents together on several occasions over the past few months alone?”
“We have!” Steven proudly proclaimed.
“Exactly,” the author nodded, ignoring his brother’s irritated glare over yet another riddle.
“Well, you kids have definitely got my vote of confidence,” Greg soundly agreed amidst resecuring a loose bandage around his arm.
“Thanks, Dad,” Steven grinned, leading the way toward the forest. He stopped short, however, in front of the Gems, all of whom, including Lapis and Peridot, regarded him affectionately as best as they could, even if they had to do so without using words. “Don’t worry, guys,” he assured them with a hopeful smile. “We’re gonna fix this, no matter what it takes. I promise.” Though none of the Gems could properly express it, their pride was clear through the round of various indiscernible, yet clearly happy cheers that rose up among them. Their warm support only gave a boost to the young Gem’s smile as he turned back to the other kids. “Ok, you guys ready to go--oh…”
His question was answered before he even finished asking it, for while Connie was able to freely hover just about anywhere with few problems, Dipper and Pacifica were still quite unsteady on their hooves and tail respectively and Mabel was essentially confined to her tiny kiddie pool (which her long tail was actually halfway sticking out of). “Uh… right,” Steven let out a small laugh, realizing that the others didn’t have an autonomous set of vines to tote them around like he currently did. “We should probably figure this out first…”
The solution when it came to transportation was actually pretty simple, and a large part of that came down to Steven’s several sets of sturdy vines. As intangible as she was, Connie couldn’t really do much to help, but Steven hardly minded as he allowed both Dipper and Pacifica to cling onto a few of his vines, as well as each other, for support as they began to make their way through the woods. Mabel had been a bit tricker, but they’d eventually devised an idea upon finding an old pair of skateboards stored in the back of Greg’s van. It took a bit of doing (namely in getting Stan and Ford to cooperate long enough to work together to lift Mabel’s pool onto the boards) but eventually the pool itself was fully mobile and ready to be pulled along by a few more of Steven’s vines (of which he fortunately had plenty to spare). And just like that the small, but enthusiastic group set out on their daunting quest, though exactly how they were supposed to go about it still wasn’t exactly clear.
“So… what are we out here looking for anyway?” Connie finally posed the question that all of the others had been thinking.
“A way to get everyone back to normal,” Steven replied with a steady grin.
“Ok, but like… how?” Pacifica asked, just as confused as Connie was.
“Uh, well…” Dipper began, exchanging an uncertain glance with Steven. “We… don’t really know what we’re looking for exactly. To be honest, a lot of the times when we do this, we just tend to look around for a bit until a solution just sort of comes to us.” At that exact moment, the entire group came to a grinding halt as something, or rather, a certain semi-corrupted Gem to be exact, abruptly fell out of the canopy of trees just in front of them. “...Like that.”
“Centi!” Steven exclaimed as he reached a vine out toward the disoriented Gem to help her up. “You’re back! A-and… whoa, you look just like you did before!” Sure enough, Centipeetle hadn’t been transformed whatsoever like all of the other Gems had, for she still retained the same semi-corrupted appearance she’d had since Steven had tried to heal her. Likewise, she still seemed to have a rather skittish mindset as she cowered away from Steven, not seeming to recognize him or any of the others in their strange new forms. “Hey, i-its ok!” he said, pulling his vines back a bit so he couldn’t scare her any further. “It’s just me: Steven! I know I look a little different right now, but you don’t have to be scared, ok?”
Centipeetle eased up a bit at this, looking Steven up and down before calming down as she met his comforting smile. She let out a somewhat confused chirp as she walked over to him, and that confusion only seemed to grow as she looked over the other kids as well.
“So this… “Centi” is a friend of yours?” Pacifica asked Dipper to gain a better sense of context. “Yikes, it looks like she got hit by this whole monster thing really hard…”
“Um, actually, she looked like that before any of this happened,” Dipper carefully pointed out.
“...Oh,” Pacifica glanced away awkwardly. “My bad…”
“I don’t understand,” Connie spoke up as she flew closer to Centipeetle, who flinched away from her slightly. “I know she’s already partially corrupted, but why didn’t she fully turn back into a monster like the other Gems did?”
“Good question,” Steven said, watching as the semi-corrupted Gem sauntered past him. “You got hit by that light too, didn’t you, Centi? Do you have any ideas about what might have happened?”
Centipeetle didn’t respond as she was instead far more fascinated in the small pool Mabel was sitting in. Or rather, the pool that Mabel had completely submerged her entire head under for far more than just a few mere minutes now.
“Oh my gosh, Mabel!” Dipper gasped, not hesitating to stumble over to her as fast as he could. Though her tail was hanging over the side of the tiny pool, the rest of her body lay face-up under the shallow water, her expression completely blank as she stared up at nothing at all as her gills “breathed” in the water surrounding her at a steady, synchronized pace. “Mabel!” Dipper reached into the water, grabbing her by the shoulder to rouse her from this bizarre trance. It worked as she gasped, darting up with a start and unintentionally splashing her brother in the process.
“W-whoa!” she exclaimed, pressing a hand against her head. “Uh… sorry,” she offered Dipper an apologetic grin as she noticed he was now dripping wet. “Not sure what happened, I guess I sorta zoned out there. Oh hey! Centi’s back!”
“Ok, can we not backtrack here?” Pacifica asked, somewhat impatient. “We’re supposed to be finding a way to fix all this, remember?”
“Right,” Steven soundly agreed with a hopeful smile. “And I think Centi might just be the key to helping us figure that out.”
Centipeetle tilted her head, letting out a curious coo at this, yet a few of the other kids weren’t so convinced. “Uh… Steven? I know you still want to help her, and we do too, but… we sort of have bigger problems to deal with right now, don’t you think?” Dipper asked apprehensively.
“But Centi was corrupted, just like the Gems sort of are now,” Steven pointed out. “And whatever corrupted them transformed the rest of the town too. So maybe whatever did that did this too!”
“But we still don’t know how corruption even happens to begin with,” Connie noted with a frown.
“Maybe we don’t, but Centi might!” Steven turned back to the semi-corrupted Gem. “What do you say? Do you remember anything from before you--I-I mean… from long ago?”
Centipeetle took a moment to ponder this question before she answered it with a surprisingly enthusiastic nod. Likewise, she began to explain, albeit in her usual language of inhuman squeaks and squawks, none of which any of the kids could even begin to decipher.
“Well, this isn’t gonna work,” Dipper remarked flatly.
“Oh! I have an idea!” Mabel raised her hand. “If her memories are still in her head, we just gotta draw them out. Literally! Through the language… of ART!”
“...Or she could just write it all down,” Pacifica countered much less dramatically.
“Yeah, that would probably be a little easier,” Connie nodded.
“Now, if only we had some paper and a-” Steven stopped short as Dipper suddenly pulled both a notepad and a pen out of his vest.
“I never leave home without them,” he said with a proud grin. “Especially since you never know what you’ll run into next around here. It never hurts to be prepared.”
“Dork,” Pacifica teased, lightly elbowing him, which he was more than happy to accept given the flirtatious nature of the gesture.
“Ok, Centi, check this out,” Steven said, writing his name onto the first empty page of the notepad. “Ste-ven. That’s me! Can you do that?”
Centipeetle nodded, taking the pad as she began to scribble something down onto the page. When she was done and presented her work to the kids, however, the series of jagged, mangled lines she’d drawn didn’t bear semblance to any legible words at all.
“...You know, maybe having her draw might not be such a bad idea after all…” Connie said somewhat fretfully.
“Yes!” Mabel cheered. “Art always wins!”
“Ok then, let’s try this,” Steven sketched out a quick stick figure sketch of himself so Centipeetle would understand what they wanted her to do. “You can tell us whatever you want to through pictures! You try it.”
Centipeetle reclaimed the pen and pad and began to do exactly that, sketching something out in record time before showing her work to the others. “That looks like… some kind of spaceship…” Connie inferred, hovering above as she glanced down at the Gem’s rough, yet understandable drawing. “Is that how you came to Earth?”
Centipeetle nodded, flipping the pad to a blank page as she started doodling something else. “Ooo, they look like you!” Mabel pointed toward the trio of stick figures that bore a passing semblance to the semi-corrupted Gem. “Centi, did you used to roll with a super cool crew back in the day?”
Centipeetle let out a happy chirp at this, pointing to herself with something of a proud smile. “You were a captain?!” Steven gasped, stars in his eyes. “That’s amazing! Sorry, I mean--that’s amazing, sir!” he chuckled with a playful salute before he happened to catch himself. “Oh, right, you guys don’t salute like that. It’s more like… this, right?” The young Gem awkwardly tried to cross his arms, though he couldn’t quite position them in any sort of comfortable manner. “Ow! Oh, this looked so easy when Peridot did it....” It didn’t take long for Centipeetle to catch onto what he was trying to do as she showed him the corrected cross-armed salute. “Oh yeah! Like that!” Steven nodded as the semi-corrupted Gem let out another noisy chirp before she resumed drawing out her tale once more.
“Ok, so… you’re saluting someone…?” Dipper guessed as they all gathered closer to watch Centipeetle draw. “Is that your commander or something?” The semi-corrupted Gem nodded, pointing back to her drawings with another pointed squawk. ‘
“She gave you an order,” Connie continued inspecting the drawings. “And you and your crew got on your ships and--oh, lots of ships. Heading through space to… Earth.”
“You landed and started building stuff,” Steven mused as Centipeetle sketched out the start of Homeworld’s colonization of the planet. A colonization which soon turned to a violent conflict. “But then… the Gem war! You joined the fight…” Centipeetle’s drawings grew a bit more aggressive and hectic as her hand started to shake. She swiftly crossed out several of the Gems she had drawn, symbolizing their brutal ends that happened so long ago. “You and your crew kept going…” Steven faltered as Centipeetle suddenly ripped half of the page she was working on, tearing away her fellow crew members away from her. “You got seperated, but you were still fighting. Then, new orders from your commander… to retreat. Everyone’s running-” The sketches shifted to a massive crowd of Gem soldiers fleeing from some unknown, unseen threat. And among that crowd was Centipeetle, lost in the shuffle and hopelessly confused as to what was really going on. “But from what? You don’t know. Where’s your crew? Where’s your ship? You stopped.” Centipeetle froze in her drawing, captivated by the sky as a large star, three stars rather, appeared in it. “You heard something--from the sky, a sound. A song? And then…”
Centipeetle tore the last page away entirely to a completely blank one. She covered that empty page with her hand as tears started to slip out of her eye and splash down onto the paper, dampening it as she let out an agonized sob. “C-Centi?” Mabel spoke up, concerned.
“That light…” Dipper began in dawning realization. “That’s the same light that hit the entire town! Where did it come from?”
Centipeetle whimpered once more but drew one last image upon the empty page: the familiar symbol of a trio of diamonds. “D-damage from the Diamonds…” Steven whispered, his eyes wide with alarm.
“Uh… what does that mean?” Pacifica asked, largely out of the loop compared to the others.
“It means… none of this makes sense…” Connie shook her head incredulously. “The light from the Diamonds corrupted Gems back then, but… it didn’t work on humans before… did it?”
“N-no, it… it only worked on Gems, like Centi…” Steven frowned, recalling what Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl had told him of corruption before. “But this time, it only affected the Gems’ bodies, not their minds like it did with all the others… And it did work on humans… So, what’s different now?”
“Bill,” Dipper said starkly, panic filling his expression as he recalled a very significant, very frightening recent revelation. “H-he’s working with the Diamonds now, o-or at least Yellow Diamond, remember? What if they teamed up to do this to us?!”
“B-but why would they-” Steven didn’t get a chance to finish his question as Centipeetle suddenly caught his attention. The semi-corrupted Gem was hacking horribly, acid spilling out from her beak-like maw as she abruptly collapsed to the ground. “Centi! Are you ok?!”
Centipeetle let out an anguished cry as light enveloped her arm, forcibly mutating it back into its previously short, insect-esque appendange. “W-what’s happening to her?!” Mabel asked, leaning out of her pool worriedly.
“She’s reverting!” Steven exclaimed, alarmed. “Here, I’ll heal you again!” The young Gem hurried to do so, swiftly licking his hand and placing it against Centipeetle’s gemstone. She reacted harshly, however, her eye slamming shut as her arm glitched out, but ultimately stayed corrupted as the rest of her body began to do the same. “W-why isn’t it working?! How can I help you?!”
All Centipeetle could respond with was a loud, piercing, pained screech, one that echoed through the forest and set off a series of varied responses in the process. As startled as she was, Connie was no longer able to keep herself visible as she abruptly disappeared into thin air once more, despite Steven’s desperate plea for her to stay. Likewise, as horrified as he already was by thoughts of Bill and the Diamonds and their twisted alliance, Dipper found he was completely helpless to resist his new flighty instincts overwhelming all sense of reason and logic as they prompted him to flee, running swiftly off into the forest, even as Mabel and Pacifica both tried and failed to reign him back in.
And yet, Dipper and Connie weren’t the only ones to take off out of fear as Centipeetle started doing the same, distressed as she startled scrambling back through the woods herself. “E-everyone, wait!” Steven called, distraught as he realized things were only going from bad to worse.
“W-what do we do?” Mabel asked, immensely concerned.
“Uh… um…” Steven stammered, racing to come up with some sort of plan, which he surprisingly managed to do in record time. “Pacifica, can you go look for Dipper?”
“Um, yeah, I’ll try,” Pacifica agreed, more than willing to do so, even if she wasn’t entirely sure how far she’d be able to go on her difficult to maneuver tail.
“Mabel, you… stay here.”
“Yeah, I… kinda can’t really do much else,” Mabel noted, pointing to her tail. “Oh! I know! I’ll see if I can get Connie to come back!”
“Great,” Steven nodded as his vines turned him around. “I’m gonna go after Centi. I’ll be back soon!”
“Good luck!” Mabel called after both Pacifica and Steven as they set off on their own respective missions. She paused a moment after they were gone, more than set to call after Connie in the hopes of getting her to appear. Yet just before she could, her own bizarre newfound instincts took over as she silently plunged herself back under the water of her pool, unable to really do anything else, even if she could have tried.
Fortunately, it didn’t take long for Steven to catch up to Centipeetle given how surprisingly fast his vines could carry him. The semi-corrupted Gem had just broken through the edge of the forest, apparently heading back toward the temple, yet as Steven did the same, he was quite taken aback by what he saw happening at the Mystery Shack.
The entire area was awash in chaos as it seemed as though almost everyone who had gathered there had also fallen victim to whatever instinctual impulses that came along with their new monstrous forms. Stan and Ford had apparently gotten into another brawl for whatever reason, though this one was much more violent and aggressive as they chased each other around the sky again. Wendy attempted to follow along on the ground, running on all fours as she growled almost ferally, and though she missed Centipeetle, she did notice Steven and tried chasing after him as well. The young Gem narrowly managed to avoid her using his floating powers to jump on top of his father’s van, though that hardly stopped the frantic scene on the ground below. Soos seemed to have tucked himself away inside the shack to avoid melting any further, and Greg was seemingly nowhere to be found, at least until Steven peeked into the back of the van to find his father sleeping soundly within it.
“D-Dad!” Steven exclaimed, hurrying to his side, only to notice Greg’s arms were crossed squarely over his chest, much like a traditional mummy’s would have been. “Dad, wake up, please!” he shook his father’s shoulder to try and rouse him, though it didn’t do any good. “D-Dad…?”
A sudden screech quickly caught the distraught young Gem’s attention, one that came from Pearl, who he realized was standing right behind him alongside Garnet and Amethyst. While Lapis and Peridot had taken to the sidelines, unsure of what to do, the main trio of Gems had been doing their best to ease the mindless uproar between the others, though there wasn’t much they could really do with their forms as monstrous as they currently were. “G-guys, what… what’s going on?” Steven asked them, realizing they were much calmer than everyone else seemed to be. “Why’s everyone acting so weird?”
Though she couldn’t really give a proper answer, Garnet replied in the form of a low grunt, nodding up toward the sky, or rather, toward where the apparent corrupting light had come from. “C-Corruption… yeah, we know,” Steven nodded, “We think it might have been Bill and the Diamonds this time, but they... “ He gasped as the newfound, horrific realization struck him. “They corrupted everyone’s bodies… but only the minds of the humans! That’s why they’re acting like this! W-we have to help them! B-but how?”
The Gems seemed to agree, though the only way they could really convey their idea to do so was to step aside so Steven could see Centipeetle, who was still frantically making her way up to the temple. “Centi?” the young Gem wondered anxiously. “D-do you think…?”
The Gems exchanged something of an uncertain glance but ultimately they agreed that the semi-corrupted Gem would be their best course of action right now. Something Steven couldn’t really argue with since he was largely out of ideas himself. “Right,” he nodded, his vines starting to pull him forward so he could follow her. “You guys stay here and keep everyone safe. I’m gonna find a way to fix all of this. I mean it this time.”
Even if they couldn’t exactly speak, the Gems still sent him off with a chorus of warm, proud well-wishes, voicing their firm belief in their young ward just as well as any words could have. Their faith did give Steven something of a confidence boost, but as he set off after Centipeetle he couldn’t help but feel quite worried all the same, especially now that the stakes seemed higher than ever before. What if he couldn’t find a way to return everyone to normal? What if his friends, his family, possibly even himself with time, were all eventually lost to their monstrous forms and mangled minds, just like previously corrupted Gems like Centipeetle had been centuries ago?
These were all thoughts Steven could hardly bear to face, so he decided to embrace the opposite instead, the hope that he would find a solution. That he could fix this and save everyone, just as they were all counting on him to do, even if they didn’t even realize it.
The young Gem burst into the house just moments after Centipeetle had, finding her propped up against the warp pad as she desperately tried using it. No teleporting light emerged from it however, much to the semi-corrupted Gem’s distress as her leg started glitching back into its previously corrupted appearance. “I-it’s not working because you’re corrupted,” Steven noted, hurrying over to her. “Where do you want to go? The battlefield you fought at? Your ship?”
Centipeetle squawked out an immediate response to this, though Steven still didn’t quite understand. “Is there something on the ship that can help you? That can help all of us?” The semi-corrupted Gem only screamed louder at this, slamming herself down onto the warp pad as she practically begged him to use it. “O-ok, just… hold on,” Steven said, grabbing her hand to calm her down. “I’ll get you there.”
Despite his own condition, fortunately Steven was still able to use the warp pad as usual. Its light enveloped them both, taking them to the very same abandoned Gem ship that Peridot had tried trapping them in what felt like ages ago now. As soon as she so much as spotted her ship, Centipeetle took off, running through the jungle as she called out for someone she only barely remembered. “Hey! Wait!” Steven ran after her, or rather his vines did, at least until Centipeetle suddenly stopped short. The corrupted Gem unleashed another agonized scream as she collapsed, clutching her head in pain as more traces of her monsterous form began to overtake her: her multiple tiny legs, her lengthy, multi-tiered body, her long, pincher-like snout. As this horrific, slow transformation continued, Steven briefly watched in frightened alarm, before he took the initiative, gently latching onto her with a few of his vines. “You want to get to the ship? Then let’s go.” As unable to walk as she was, Steven let his vines hoist Centipeetle up as she continued whimpering loudly, her form continuing to unsteadily shift as her mind tumbled into madness all the while. Yet despite her wild manner starting to flood her once more, she still somehow recognized Steven, still somehow trusted him to take her where she longed to be. And sure enough, that’s exactly what he did.
The young Gem carefully set Centipeetle down just as all traces of her once human-like form gave way to her former corruption. She squeaked pitifully, acid dripping out of her maw as she looked to Steven almost pleadingly. He shuddered, wishing he could do so much more to help her, but for now, the most he could do was open the door to her abandoned ship and let her back inside of it for the first time in eons.
Silently, Steven followed Centipeetle inside the derelict vessel, only to find that they weren’t alone. Two other creatures, identical to the corrupted Gem, had scaled its dusty walls and had taken up shop there, though as they noticed Centipeedle herself, they greeted her with cheerful chips of greet. “Other Centipeetles…?” Steven wondered, watching as his own corrupted companion scurried over to join the pair. “T-they’re your crew… aren’t they?”
Centipeetle stopped short at this, turning back to Steven as she skittered over to him once more. He offered her a small, sad smile that was quick to fade as he looked between his corrupted friend and her crew. “I-I… I’m sorry….” he sighed morosely. “I wish there was more I could do to help you. T-to help everyone! All of the other corrupted Gems, and especially everyone back in Gravity Falls right now! They’re all in danger and I-I… I don’t know what to do to save them! My friends… e-everyone I know needs my help, a-and I… I can’t do anything for them…”
Tears started to well up in the young Gem’s eyes, yet before they could fall, a gentle, almost kindly chirp from Centipeetle caught his attention instead. The corrupted Gem pulled her lengthy form up a bit so she could gain some height over Steven, and then, in much of the same way he had done for her before, she delivered a soft “kiss” of sorts upon his forehead using the very tip of her beak. It wasn’t much, but in a strange way, it offered him exactly the sort of comfort he needed at a hopeless moment such as this.
He mouthed her a silent ‘thank you’ as she turned again to join her crew, all three corrupted Gems chirping warmly amongst each other as they reunited after centuries of painful separation. Steven stood by, watching them for a moment or two, his mind lingering on Centipeetle’s “kiss” all the while. And the longer he thought about the touching gesture, the more it made him think about how his own healing kiss had, at least in some way, truly worked to partially cure the corrupted Gem, even if it hadn’t really worked as well as he had hoped. Yet still, it had worked on some level all the same. Which made him start to wonder if it could possibly work when it came to another, newer kind of corruption instead.
Steven wasn’t exactly sure what the result would be as he glanced over the back of his now-clawed hand, but as he looked to the vines sprouting from his back and thought about the pink petals that had overtaken his hair, he figured it was at least worth a try all the same. The moment he so much as skimmed the back of his hand with a gentle kiss, however, he found that everything went completely white and numb, until just as quickly, everything abruptly returned.
Except plenty of things didn’t. Because instead of being involuntarily propped up on vines as he had been all day, the young Gem found himself sitting on the floor of the abandoned ship with not a single vine in sight. His skin had regained its usual pallor as opposed to the unnatural shade of pale pink it had become and his hands and hair, he found, were both just as normal as non-floral as they should have been. “I-I… I healed myself?!” he gasped, jumping to his feet, though he just as quickly collapsed to the ground. “O-oops, guess I gotta get used to walking around on my own again, b-but still, this is great!” He grinned brightly up at the trio of Centipeetles curiously watching him from above. “Thank you,” he said to Centi in particular. “I-I know my powers won’t work on you guys, but… maybe someday they will. And when they do, I’ll come back for you first, Centi, I promise.” Centi let out a bright, affectionate chip at this, one that Steven couldn’t help but return with a small, joyous laugh of his own. “B-but for now, I’ve gotta get back and see if I can help everyone else!”
Steven wasted no time in doing so, waving one final, fond farewell to Centi and her crew before he took off to return to town. And all the while, the trio of Centipeetles remained aboard their broken vessel, happy to be, if nothing else, together again, just as they had yearned for all that time apart.
As soon as he warped himself back to the temple, Steven rushed out of it, running as fast as his admittedly sore legs could take him in place of having his vines tote him around. The chaos unfolding at the shack had hardly changed in the time that he’d been gone, withe Gems desperately trying and largely failing to reign the maddened humans among them back in. Still, as soon as they spotted Steven in his usual appearance, the Gems were all quick to hone in on him in rapt, excited, fervent attention. Still, despite the crowd, Steven steadily got to work, even if he did have a few doubts about whether or not his plan would really work at all. All the same, he started with Amethyst, landing a brief kiss against her muscled arm, one that, sure enough, enshrouded the purple Gem in light before reverting her form back to how it usually should have been. While grateful for Steven’s assistance, Amethyst did have the slightest complaints, namely that she had found her corrupted form to be rather fun and enjoyable, something Pearl readily disagreed with as soon as the young Gem healed her up next. Garnet was more than relieved to have her future vision back on hand as Steven healed her, and with her usual level-headedness, she got her teammates into action to round up the scattered humans while the young Gem healed Lapis and Peridot next.
It had taken some doing, but between the three of them, the Gems had managed to round up Stan, Ford, and Wendy just as Steven finished off returning Greg and Soos to normal. The trio was still quite rowdy and untamed, which made approaching them a bit of a challenge for the young Gem, at least until Amethyst came up with the idea of a spray bottle on them. Miraculously, this managed to work as Steven mixed in a bit of his own healing spit into the water before the Gems spritzed the aggressive group with it, healing them in short order and leaving each of them quite embarrassed when they realized what had happened.
With everyone at the shack healed up, Steven made it his immediate mission to find his scattered friends in the forest, a mission that the Gems were more than happy to join him on. Lapis took to the skies alongside Peridot to try and find any signs of Dipper (and Pacifica for that matter) while Steven and the others took to the ground to regroup with Mabel and hopefully Connie. They found the latter first, who had managed to reappear and nearly flew right into them while searching for the young Gem herself. As surprised as Connie was by how Steven had managed to heal everyone, they both found a unique challenge when he tried to do the same for her given her currently intangible form, one that he couldn’t seem to touch at all. That is, at least until Garnet suggested that they fuse. It was a bit awkward and difficult to do so, yet somehow, it worked, with Stevonnie taking on a partially physical form, though they did still hover above the ground while retaining something of a ghostly glow. Still, it was enough for the young Gem’s healing powers to work as they kissed their own arm, returning not just the fusion, but Connie herself back to normal once they warmly unfused.
Since she was essentially unable to go anywhere else, Mabel had remained in her spot in her pool, staying under water the entire time so she could breath easier. Her expression was absolutely empty and she remained completely silent, even as Connie began propping her up out of the water so Steven could heal her. And as soon as he did, Mabel immediately snapped right back into her usual chatty self, even if she was a little disgruntled by her now wet skirt, socks, and shoes as she finally got out of the pool, able to walk on her own two returned legs once again.
By then, Lapis and Peridot had returned with their report that they had spotted Dipper running off deeper into the forest. Not wanting to waste any time, Steven, Mabel, and Connie all raced to catch up with him, though when they found him, he wasn’t exactly alone. Pacifica had also managed to find him, though by now her newly predatory instincts had overtaken her as she cornered her frightened boyfriend as both her and her snakes prepared to take on their easy prey. This tense confrontation was put to a quick end as the other kids arrived to break it up, with the girls making use of the spray bottle on Pacifica while Steven managed to keep Dipper from slipping away again with a well-timed bubble so he could properly heal him. And as soon as the couple were both back in their right minds and usual bodies, they both soundly agreed to never speak of what had almost just transpired ever again.
From there, healing the rest of the town from their monstrous plight was quite a daunting task for Steven and the others, though the spray bottle scheme did make doing so quite a bit easier. All it took was one spritz to each citizen-turned-creature and they were back to their usual fully-human forms. With the Gems and the Pines teaming up together to spread out through the town, it was only a matter of hours before every impacted resident had been healed (even if most of them had no idea exactly what the water that had done so actually contained). Still, the general consensus was a glad and grateful one amongst its citizens as Gravity Falls slowly but surely started getting back to normal (or at least as normal as the strange little town could be).
“And that should be everyone,” Garnet noted, relying on her future vision to confirm that their mission was complete. While a handful of the others who had lended a hand had already headed back home, the kids and the Gems were the last to dole out healing to any remaining stragglers. And with the last few townsfolk healed and human again, the sun was just starting to set as the last of the group began to make their way back to the temple and the shack as well. “Good job, Steven.”
“Yeah! Magical healing powers for the win!” Mabel cheered as she ran alongside the young Gem. “Seriously, I’ve never missed having my legs this much!”
“And I’ve never missed having only two,” Dipper readily agreed with a sigh of relief. “Let’s just hope something like this never happens again. I don’t know if I can handle the whole “mindless deer panic” thing again.”
“Well, if it does ever happen again,” Connie spoke up, glancing over at Steven with a fond smile. “We know who we can count on to save the day next time, right?”
“Wrong,” Steven finally spoke up, his dejected expression more than apparent. “I couldn’t save everyone. You guys were right,” he looked up to the Gems. “I couldn’t help Centipeetle..”
“You brought the Centipeetle back to her ship,” Garnet said, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “You brought her back to her crew. They were waiting for her there. They didn’t want to leave her behind.”
“Wait…” Steven raised a confused eyebrow. “How did you know any of that?”
“She told us,” Garnet held up the previously discarded notepad Centi had sketched her story in.
“Her drawings…?” Steven flipped through the book, perplexed.
“Her writing,” the Gem leader corrected.
“It’s actually decently legible!” Pearl pointed out the seemingly unintelligible scribbles Centi had written out.
“Wow!” Steven grinned, glad that someone could make it out where they hadn’t been able to. “Um… did she mention anything about… the corrupting light?”
“Mm… no,” Pearl shook her head as she looked through the notepad. “Why do you ask?”
“Well…”
“Cause the light that turned everyone into monsters was totally the same thing!” Mabel interjected. “Or at least we think it was.”
“We also think Bill might have had something to do with it,” Dipper added disdainfully. “That’s why it actually worked on humans this time.”
The Gems exchanged a worried glance upon hearing this, none of them liking the idea of Bill and the Diamonds collaborating, especially on something like this, however plausible it might have been. Yet even so, they did manage to find a few holes in the kids’ theory all the same. “Uh, if it was corruption, then how was Steven able to heal us all up when he couldn’t do the same for your girl Centi?” Amethyst asked, confused.
“I… don’t know,” Steven frowned, puzzled. “Maybe it just wasn’t as powerful this time? Even with Bill’s help?”
“Or maybe it was only one of the Diamonds instead of all three…” Garnet muttered quietly before Pearl quickly cut in.
“W-well anyway, I suppose it doesn’t matter that much now that it’s all over and done with!” the white Gem exclaimed with a bit of a forced smile.
“But… if Bill and the Diamonds can do something like this, then don’t you think we should be worried about what they’re planning next?” Dipper asked warily.
“I-in the long term, yes…” Pearl ventured somewhat anxiously. “But for now-”
“For now, we won,” Garnet interjected. “Let’s celebrate that instead of worrying about what’s to come.”
Though Dipper let out something of a disgruntled sigh at this, the other kids largely agreed, especially Steven. Because just a few hours ago, he had thought he might have very well lost his friends and his family for good, to something that had been far out of anyone’s control. Yet now, through a miraculous turn of fate and a little of his own miraculous magic thrown in, here they all were, together and back to their normal selves again, just as they should have been. Well, almost all as they should have been.
“Hey, Pearl?” Steven began, glancing down at the notepad once more. “Can you teach me how to write in Gem?”
“Oh, Steven, it’s very complicated,” Pearl said with a small smile. “And you won’t have much use for it.”
“Oh, I just want to know a few things like, ‘Hi, how are you?’, ‘Where’s the bathroom?’ and-” Steven stopped short as he flipped to the last drawing Centi had left behind, of the trio of diamonds representing the ones who had damaged her, and so many other innocent Gems in the process, seemingly beyond repair. Or at least it was for now, something that he could only hope to somehow change someday for Centi and her friends, just as he had for all of his. “And ‘I’m sorry’...”
Next:
#jen writes#universe falls#gravity falls#steven universe#monster falls au#monster falls#steven universe/gravity falls#dipper#mabel#steven#connie#garnet#amethyst#pearl#centipeetle#stan#ford#wendy#soos#pacifica#peridot#lapis#greg#monster reunion#keyword is transformation
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cassian x (fem) reader
warnings; language, a very suggestive moment oml, acowar spoilers?, azriel and the reader were a thing for 2 seconds bc its canon azriel has had past lovers
prompt; reader is a princess at dawn but cass didn’t know lmao
requested; this prompt was an idea given to me by the lovely @sippy--sippy
word count; 5656
a/n; legit i spent two hours on this until 2 am and i got just a little carried away. 10 pages worth. love yall. sorry its so long also i have only read like the first two chapters of acofas that they offer at the end of acowar so bear with me
Living without a wall was hard. Humans were still terrified of Fae. And to be fair, they had a good reason. Just not four months ago, Prythian had defeated Hybern. Feyre and Rhysand had defeated Hybern. Everyone had taken hits, Rhys the worst of all.
Rebuilding was hard as well. Even on the Fae side of things. Feyre was running non-stop meetings with other High Lords. Even some lesser fae to try and help volunteer for physical assistance. Hybern had destroyed a lot of land that needed physical rebuilding and she felt it was her task to help with that as well. Only occasionally Rhys would attend with her to help as well but he had his own High Lord things to do.
Cassian occupied himself with helping Feyre rebuild and sometimes accompanying her with more ‘official’ meetings. The ones that didn’t talk of reconstruction of people’s villages or homes, rather the reconstruction and editing of a certain treaty. She frequently went to meet at the Dawn Court as Feyre found Thesan the more neutral High Lord. Until today, she had gone alone, sometimes taking Mor. But today would be different.
Today was a special meeting, Feyre would bring everyone with her, feeling their presence was needed. That included Rhys, Amren, Azriel, Mor and Cassian.
“Now, I think Thesan and I can come to an agreement we will share with other High Lords when we get the chance, but it may take a while to organize the logistics of my idea so we will be staying in Dawn Court for a few days. We arrive today, get rest and the meeting starts tomorrow.” Feyre instructed everyone who was gathered in the town house kitchen.
“What could be so important that you needed all of us there?” Amren spoke up, crunching on an apple. She winced a little. It appeared that regular food was still a very new concept to her.
“Amren, you’re coming because you are much wiser than I am. And older. I have a feeling your opinion one what’s best, what technicalities to look at will be highly valued. Rhys is coming as another consultant. He’s also High Lord and has been a High Lord of Prythian for longer than I have been. Azriel, I need you to scout the Dawn Court before we arrive.” He nodded and vanished leaving little more than a cloud of smoke to dissipate behind him.
“Cassian, you’re coming for protection. And Mor, you can work with Amren to help fact-check.” Feyre finished as everyone processed their new tasks.
“Why would you need protection?” Cassian piped up. “I thought you trusted Thesan?” He asked. It wasn’t like him to question orders. He wasn’t really, just curious. Although, he did have some plans. A night on the town. He hadn’t gotten a break and the next few days he had nothing planned. Up until now.
“Well, Thesan has told me Beron might arrive as well.” Everyone’s facial expressions changed. Everyone understood now. Feyre trusted Thesan. She was still wary of Beron. Mor was thankful she was given the task of ‘fact-checking’ with Amren. It would allow her to busy herself away from Beron or even Eris if he decided to show.
They left the moment Azriel had returned with news that the palace was safe. Bags packed, each winnowed into the palace, the beautiful court looking as stunning as it did when they had their meeting just months ago. Before Hybern.
Thesan greeted them. “Feyre. Good to see you again.” He smiled and welcomed her with a hug. He had grown warmer since the meeting. Feyre had seen a lot of Dawn Court in these past months, finding a new friend in Thesan, his Peregryn lover, his army and almost everyone residing at the palace.
Once inside, Cassian overheard Feyre inquiring about a princess and Cassian found it odd he had never heard of a princess in Dawn before. What was more shocking is that Rhys, Azriel and Mor were also concerned about where this ‘princess’ was. How was he the only one to not know?
“Oh, she’s retired for the night. She’s spent all today preparing the palace for your visit and the day before, running around with our aerial legion helping out with citizens. She told me to inform you that she is terribly sorry she couldn’t greet you.” He informed them and Cassian noted Mor’s shoulders sagged a bit.
“Well, that’s alright. She sounds like she needs the rest. She will be attending the meeting tomorrow, yes?” Rhys asked and Thesan smiled. “Yes of course, though, my money is that if Beron does show, she starts a fight with him within the first five minutes.” Mor giggled at this.
“She does dislike the man greatly.” Feyre commented and Thesan laughed. “Yes, she is a handful. Amazing at being a princess for politics but when it comes to personal things, she tends to forget etiquette.” Thesan laughed and everyone else joined in.
Their talk of the princess didn’t last much longer and therefore it lost Cassian’s immediate interest. He trudged his way back to his room and stared at the ceiling for a good while before drifting to sleep.
Princess of Dawn Court. The words ran around his head, confusing him to no end. Even Mor knew. How could she not tell him?
He dreamt of her that night. He didn’t see her, though. She was always just out of his sight. Causing him to turn around just as she would run by and escape his peripheral. He was in the throne room of the palace. She hid behind one of the thrones. The one, Cass was sure, that belonged to her, only the faintest of a blush pink gown peeking out from behind the legs.
He smirked, thinking he had caught her and would finally meet this mystery, but just as he reached her, there was nothing but a cloud of light pink, orange and lavender in her wake. A sunrise.
He jolted when he heard laughing from the doorway. Azriel. Almost mocking him. This made Cassian even more annoyed.
His brother. Keeping a secret from him? Now Cassian was jealous of Azriel. Like an odd twist of fate. Cassian began walking towards the shadowsinger just as he noticed the similar gown poking out from behind the warrior. Cassian touched Azriel to move him but just as he did so Azriel turned to shadows and the princess turned to that cloud. They floated away and intertwined and circled Cassian.
It made him spin as pink and black swirled around him. He remembered Bryaxis and his black and red cloud of nightmares. And of course, as the subconscious is the minds worse enemy, the cloud turned into just that, it’s darkness, Bryaxis’ evil, making an awful shushing noise.
Cassian began to crouch as the shadows engulfed him, his heartbeat reaching an alarming rate. It was then he realized it was not making a noise, but words. “You will find her. Today.” It said, over and over. “Foolish warrior.” The words slipped and swirled around him overlapping to make the horrid noise he first perceived it to be.
It was enough to make the war prince collapse to the floor, hands over his ears.
He woke up in a sweat, his sheets tangled around his naked form. He had kicked the comforter off of the bed, seemingly a while ago as he felt that they were cold. Stark contrast to his soaking, nearly steaming thin sheets.
He shook his head, nearly ashamed to still have nightmares about Bryaxis. He was gone, no, he was on the loose, and clearly nowhere near this palace. But something inside him, something deep in his bones made him remember the thankful cries of the people in Velaris after the war had ended.
They had called him fearless. And that small, deep part of him, wished he truly was.
Shaking his head, he strapped on his Illyrian leathers going for a little early morning training. It was nearly dawn. He decided now a better time than ever to get all worked up and sweaty. Well, more so than he already was. He just needed to blow off the nerves he had.
He found the gardens soon enough, not bothering to wake anyone up to ask where the training room was. He began to swing at nothing, practicing upper cuts, balance, stance, etc. A few kicks here and there, using his wings to balance them out.
Bryaxis, no, dream Bryaxis said he would meet her today. Which was nothing special. Of course he would, she was going to be at the meeting and so was he. He knew that already. He rationed this to himself in his mind, scoffing at how stupid he was to have been frightened by a dream.
It was just a dream after all. He soon came to the explanation that Cassian already knew he would see the princess later today and therefore his subconscious was telling him not to worry. “Crazy fucked way of telling me not to worry.” He muttered to himself as he prepared for another kick.
“I haven’t said a word, let alone tell you not to worry.” A voice came from behind him, surprising him enough to where his kick was botched, caused him to lose balance and fall flat on his back. He winced, trying to regain the air that just got knocked out of his lungs.
Light, airy chuckling that made Cassian’s stomach flip sounded out behind him and he groaned as a young girl came into line of view. If he had to estimate in human years, she looked a few years younger than him. She was wearing training clothes. Tight pants of a russet color with mesh stripes of merigold, boots that reached the top of her shins of a similar color. They had slits up the sides, most likely for stylistic purposes and under them he saw gold. Her top was form fitting with a neckline similar to a halter but did cut low enough to show her bare collar.
Well, it wasn’t exactly bare. There was a gold body chain that wrapped around her neck like a choker and ran down her midsection and separated in several sections. The top itself was that same gold, marigold color but this time it shone in the small light of the retreating moon and the sun that hadn’t even kissed the horizon yet. Similar plates lined her humerus in layers for protection.
A cape of sheer light gold and orange draped off of one shoulder, nearly touching Cassian’s chest as she leaned over to offer a golden wrapped hand for assistance. Her arms were snaked in more gold, similar to his tattoos but he could tell these were temporary. They were sharp enough to be weapons yet didn’t cut her skin.
“Y/N. You must be Cassian.” She laughed a small bit. He grinned, trying not to look so confused. His body’s reaction to her smile, that is what was confusing to him. It made his heart lunge and render his brain useless. She was stunning. Fae were supposed to be beautiful but she really was ethereal. He even noticed she was slightly sweaty. She was training.
“I am. Nice to meet you. You’re up this early to train?” He asked and she smiled. “Yes, it is Dawn Court. Everyone here is kind of a morning person.” She joked and he found himself letting out a breath in a way of chuckling.
She looked around, towards the East mainly. “We still have a few minutes before sunrise. Want to have a look around?” She offered and he nodded, feeling like a gentle giant next to her small form.
She showed him the palace’s vast gardens, weaving through the bushes and flowers and weeping willows on a small pathway. She told him of how she was the commander of their army. Their grounded army. One of the Peregryn’s commanded the aerial legion. She spoke of how she was constantly around sadness and fighting and pain so the gardens were her favorite part of living at the palace. So she lived there? Maybe she knows the princess.
“Do you know the princess?” Cassian asked as sound of water in the distance reached his ears. She stopped smelling a flower to look at him, barely noticing the sun. A sliver of it was looking out beyond the horizon. “The princess?” She asked and he nodded. She smiled to herself.
“I know the princess.” His eyes lit up at Y/N’s words and he asked more of the Princess. “Well, she’s very beautiful. But she doesn’t think so sometimes. Honestly, shes very smart but Thesan doesn’t see it. She can also be a little ditsy sometimes, kind of hating the role she has to play. I’m very close with her.” The young commander spoke.
Y/N thought that if she hadn’t been the princess, she would have been sad to see Cassian’s obvious interest. But nonetheless, she was the princess and he would see in just a few hours.
“Why are you so concerned?” Y/N decided to ask. She wanted to know if Cassian was more interested in title rather than personality.
“Well I never knew there was a princess! I just found out yesterday and I have been racking my mind non stop to try and think if I ever saw or heard of a princess before. So far I’ve come up empty. No one has told me.” He told Y/N and she believed him. He seemed genuinely baffled.
“Well, you’re in luck,” She dove into the conversation again. “She has a type. She likes tall men with long hair and hazel eyes. You’re right up her alley.” She told Cassian and watched as his cheeks turned into the color the clouds were going to be in a few minutes.
“I’ll put in a word for you.” She said, turning to face Cassian, only this made her look at the sun beyond him. It was a quarter of the way up. Her eyes flared and she gasped, grabbing his hand and turning to run.
“We have to go!” She shouted as Cassian found himself recovering from the whiplash of the moment. “You’ll miss it!” She shouted behind her to the big lug she was dragging by the hand. Cassian shouted back, chuckling. “Miss what?” He asked, getting distracted by her hand around his. It was small compared to his hand. He felt something warm start to form in his heart when he found the source of the water.
It was like a giant pit in the ground except instead of dirt it was layers and layers of stones. Both rare and common. Water poured from the crevices in between each layer allowing the growth of the flora that nearly covered all of the rocks. Dozens of flowers that showed colors similar to a sunset were closed, waiting to bloom in the morning sun.
A stone path led all the way to the bottom where there was a circular walkway of clean granite surrounded by the water that spilled into the bottom.
The water ran off in three different directions, Y/N explaining an underground watering system that helped water the rest of the garden from underneath. She led him to the center which was small. The pathway was wide enough for two Dawn Court people side by side. Cassian was not of the Dawn Court. He was large and burly.
So he walked the circular path in awe at the waterfalls and flowers around him. He had not seen so many different kinds in his life. In the center of a circle there was a marble center that could only hold two at once.
Y/N attempted to say something from the other side but Cassian couldn’t hear her. They silently worked out to meet in the middle. In theory it would work. In practice, they almost fell. Cassian caught Y/N just before she fell and chuckled as she held onto him seemingly for dear life. He smiled down at her, loving the way she seemed to smell of all of the flowers around him. As if their scent had all clung to her as she descended the path down and embedded itself into her skin, altering her natural scent to be that of those around her forever.
“I was going to say,” She said as she noticed their proximity. He was so close she felt his breath on her face. She knew, as a princess, it was inappropriate to be this close to him. But he didn’t know, and for once she was allowed to be herself without any preconceived notions. “That I helped plant most of these myself, helped them grow.” She left out the part where she used her royalty given magic to literally make them grow, but she did explain some of the flowers there.
“Most of the green you see is Sedum. They are immune to heat and drought, but obviously they don’t have to worry about that here. They actually grow bigger each year on their own and require little care.
“While we tried to even out the amount of flowers, the most popular planted are Delphiniums, Daylily’s and Asiatic Lily’s.” She told him and he smiled to himself. She loved flowers. “Now, I know I sound like a major green thumb, but really I wasn’t always like this. My mother actually loved to plant flowers and she used to want me to help her. Growing up, I wasn’t a huge fan of the outdoors and therefore never wanted to help her. But now that shes,” Y/N took a moment and Cassian saw the look in her eyes change. She looked up shyly at him before continuing.
“Anyways, I keep this garden well cared for, for her and I’ve loved growing ever since. Some other flowers are Dianthus’, Bearded Iris’ and Peonies. They all bloom in the sunlight.” She told him with a large smile, gesturing around her. Cassian made a joke about her getting along with Elain. She explained she had not met Elain, even though she had, and how she had only heard of Feyre and Rhys. The sun was just fully above the horizon now, the bottom barely kissing the Earth, sending the sky into hues of blush, lavender and gold.
The water reflected off of the sky. Cassian realized the bottom of the pool was made of mirror and some broken bits of mirror were also embedded into the rock around them for this reason. It turned the water the color of the sky.
He understood why she loved it so much. They stood there and spoke for nearly another hour. She is beautiful. There is no one else more stunning than her. He thought to himself as they stood there. He thought that she should have been princess just on her personality and laugh and beauty alone. She spoke of palace guards and some of the other royals she knew, sometimes talking badly about them but this made her real to Cassian.
She wasn’t a friend to everyone and wasn’t afraid to speak her mind. He was just about to ask her if she was seeing anyone when they heard shouting in the distance. People calling her name.
“Shit!” She cursed and checked the sky. Cassian’s eyebrows raised but nonetheless he chuckled. It seemed she was late for something. “I’m sorry. I have to go. I would stay here forever if I could. Maybe I’ll see you later?” She offered, speaking frantically. “Will you be at the meeting later?” He asked and she smirked a little, seemingly less frantic for a moment. “Maybe.” Was the only answer she offered him before standing on her toes and pressing a kiss to his cheek and running off, ascending the way they came.
She got about half way up when she stopped, confusing Cassian, and she ran back down. “Oh, and don’t come after me. Wait until you think I’m far enough away from the gardens.” She instructed him, gave him another kiss, and ran all the way back, disappearing behind the ledge at the top. She heard her yell out, “Coming! I’m coming!” Before her voice faded completely.
Cassian’s hand touched his face where her lips had been, somehow mesmerised that he had spent an entire morning with this stranger. Not so much of a stranger anymore. After waiting for about five minutes in a trance, he ascended the walkway all the way back to his room, hoping he would see more of Y/N.
Cassian got ready for the meeting alone. He spent the entire shower contemplating what he believed in. Was love at first sight real? He already knew he liked her. Wanted to court her. Would she feel the same? When would he tell her? Cassian brushed these thoughts out of his mind by running his hands through his hair and shut off his shower with a forceful push.
Cass arrived early, meeting up with Azriel, Feyre and Rhys right outside the meeting room. “Where were you this morning?” She asked. “I was out exploring the gardens with someone.” He smirked and Rhys looked nearly astonished. Azriel looked at him with a quizzical expression but said nothing. “Really? Who is this mystery girl?” Rhys inquired. “She’s the commander here. Not of the aerial legion. The ground army. If she’s here I’ll introduce you.” Cassian gave an innocent smile.
Rhys gave Feyre a look and Azriel found it hard not to smirk himself. Cassian began to look puzzled which cued Feyre to shake the look off of her face. “I’m thrilled to meet her. She sounds like an interesting girl.” She took Cassians hand and patted it with her own. Rhys agreed and clapped Cassian on the back and Azriel just nodded. The trio prayed Y/N would play along as well, as she was approaching them now.
Cassian turned just to see her in time to notice she had changed out of her fighting armor, had showered and had light makeup on. A thick, gold choker that pointed to her sternum and reached her shoulders hung around her neck. Sleeves did not attach to her dress but instead occupied most of her arm, stopping just below her armpits as the skin tight sangria colored fabric faded into gold that swirled and faded up her arm.
That same dark purple-red color turned darker as it descended her forearm and stopped at her wrists. The dress itself was gorgeous. Strapless, that sangria color shone in the daylight and was tight and only reached her hips similar to a corset. The only odd part about it was right around her midsection there was a shield shaped opening that revealed the rest of the dress’ fabric. It was more of a neutral blush, slightly beige colored fabric that flowed and split down the sides.
The slit was as high as her hip and was more suggestive than Cassian would have suspected. Her feet were adorned in heels that snaked up her calves like golden snakes. Her hair was done to fit the type of cut and on one ear was a gold feather, accented to the small gold stud in her other one. She smiled at everyone, winking at Cassian, who literally tripped on his way to greet her.
Azriel’s eyebrows shot up at his stumble as he brought Y/N over. “Hello, Cassian.” Y/N said, smiling up at him, her eyelids low. Cassian choked at the sound of his name on her sultry lips. She looked like a predator who’s prey was tripping in it’s own trap. Her eyes never left him even as his eyes could barely look at her without his cheeks turning red. Feyre and Rhys both had never seen Cassian so flustered.
“Everyone,” Cassian began after regaining himself, clearing his throat and fidgeting with his siphon. “This is Y/N.” Cassian introduced the young woman and finally her eyes tore from his face. God, she knew she wanted him.
When Y/N was sure Cassian wasn’t looking at her, she winked before ‘introducing’ herself to everyone. Feyre was willing to play along. “I am Feyre. High Lady of Night Court. This is my mate, Rhysand, High Lord of Night Court. This is Azriel,” Feyre introduced the shadowsinger Y/N had already met a thousand times and he smirked as he leaned forward and kissed her hand.
He smirked under the dorsal side of her hand, knowing he was going to get a couple bruises from her for that later. Y/N and Azriel were actually quite good friends and a long time ago, hundreds of years, had been lovers for a singular night. She had seen Az loved Mor, also one of Y/N’s closest friends, and settled for being Az’s best friend instead. In her eyes, she enjoyed his company more that way.
Mor had walked into the hallway at this point and her eyes shone at the sight of Y/N the moment their gazes connected. Feyre must have sent her a message through her mind because Mor’s eyebrows went back down and she walked over, asking who this is.
“Y/N. Commander of the ground legion here at Dawn.” She introduced herself. Mor shook her hand skeptically and looked to Cassian. Quickly putting two and two together, Mor’s eyes seemed to say ‘Oh!’ before smirking and introducing herself. It was a wonder Cassian hadn’t caught on by now, but he didn’t have time to dwell.
Two guards emerged from the room chosen and informed everyone that the meeting would begin soon. Cassian had begun to filter into the room with everyone else but stopped when he noticed Y/N wasn’t following. “Y/N?” He asked, walking towards her, noticing more officials walk down the hallway. They were aways away and Y/N looked as though she was waiting for someone.
“Go inside, I’m alright. I’m supposed to, uh, be here when the princess arrives. She’s always the last to show.” She explained and kissed Cassian on the cheek before he nodded, worried, but relented and went into the room. Cassian could have sworn he heard her arguing with someone just before the doors closed and Cassian took his seat.
Cassian noted Beron and his sentries. No Eris. He was relieved. Mor didn’t need him to be here. The meeting began with Thesan. “As you all know, we are here to discuss a new idea for the treaty. Now there are many, many details to be worked out. We have brought Beron here because he is the closest to where the wall was before right next to Tamlin, who has declined to come.” Cassian saw Feyre fidget, just for a moment, in her seat.
“If we come to a conclusion, we will share it with the other High Lords. But of course, not everyone is here yet. Please rise and welcome my cousin, Princess of Dawn Court,” Cassian rose with everyone as the doors opened behind him. Thesan’s arm extended to point behind Cassian and Azriel. Harps begun to play as the royal entered the room. Cassian turned around just as Thesan finished speaking. “Y/N.”
Y/N entered the room, her fingers intertwined with each other as she walked through the room, her dress trailing behind her, as she took the empty seat next to Thesan. This time, her head was adorned with a small crown she had not been wearing moments before. Gold racing in between each other like vines, coming down to a point. No gems. Elegant but simple. Cassian swore he heard his jaw hit the floor. Seated not but three feet in front of him was the commander he met that morning, her hair sweaty in the dim light.
‘I have to be with the princess when she gets here’ my ass. She is the princess!
The meeting continued, charts splayed across the table sometimes finding new homes on the floor. Beron barely spoke and when he did, he wasn’t speaking from his ass but giving good advice. Cassian was too distracted to notice anyways. She had flirted with him. Opened up in front of him. Cursed in front of him. Kissed him and at one point, literally burped in front of him. Kissed him, albeit on the cheek, but kissed him nonetheless. Acted the opposite of a princess. Yet, here she was acting as poised as ever, as if she was a cut and press copy of a fairy tale.
He watched her seemingly delicate hands cross over the maps, the papers, rough drafts as though they were glass. Be he knew how hard they could grip. How sloppy they could move. He knew how her soft lips felt when they were chapped on his cheek. Azriel leaned over and explained everything when he felt the meeting was beginning to wrap up. No conclusion but ideas were flowing. A proposal was made that Cassian didn’t hear.
Azriel explained of him and the princess’ past and how it was over before it began. Cassian was angry at him for this but cooled a bit when Az explained she had never looked at him the way she did at Cassian. Azriel instructed him to go to her when it was over. She wasn’t untouchable and was single and could court people from other Courts.
Cassian mulled this over that night, knowing now she would definitely be at dinner later.
He really liked this beautiful girl. She was an angel. She was funny. She was kind. She wasn’t afraid to be judgemental and real and truthful. She wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty. How could she find a partner in Cassian? Runt-of-the-litter, grown-up-in-a-dirt-camp Cassian? She had grown up in the palace, learning how to keep her elbows off the table during her three meals every day while he learned how to hold a spoon to efficiently get enough soup into his mouth while he was still caked in mud and rain?
At dinner, she had saved a spot especially for him next to her and Thesan had whispered his approval, making her blush. They talked again all night. She had felt no one else was at that dining table but them. At some point she had gotten food on her cheek and Cassian had reacted by instructing her to stop moving. This caused her to stop giggling, as well as the chatter of most of everyone else at the table.
Thesan, Thesan’s lover, Feyre, Rhys, Azriel, Mor and Amren all watched as Cassian leaned in extremely close to the princess, took his thumb and wiped a bit of sauce that had somehow ended up on the side of her cheek. She looked up at him, her heart rate increasing at the intimate touch he had just given her. His thumb was still very close to her mouth. The whole world stopped around them as she carefully placed his thumb on the edge of her lips, closing her mouth around the finger tip and licking lightly.
Cassian felt a shiver go down his spin as her tongue lightly brushed the pad of his finger, forgetting they, in fact, were not alone. Her eyes were dark looking up into his hazel ones, but the moment her lips released his thumb, she gave him a bright innocent smile and said, “All better.” She then returned to her food, frantically trying to use her powers to keep the burning sensation from reaching her cheeks.
She had never been that bold. With anyone.
Rhys had coughed and muttered something about the two of them needing a room as Thesan continued to pick at his plate uncomfortably. She had known Y/N since she was merely a child and to see her do that, something very adult like, he had been whipped with the realization she was not that child anymore. It was a very difficult thing to grasp, yet, he was doing his best to do so.
Cassian did not spend the night in his room. But in Y/N’s. They did not sleep together in a sexual sense, however they did spend most of the night talking about their lives. They shared their first real kiss that night and while they didn’t go all the way, Cassian woke up without a shirt the next morning. He remembered the last night as the princess, still in asleep in his arms, stirred.
He had revealed small parts of him even Feyre did not know yet, and wouldn’t unless she decided to raid his mind. She fell for him that night and Cassian brought up the idea of courting her. She had decided that would be an amazing idea and the next day, Y/N told Thesan she would be visiting the Night Court when Cassian and the others would leave. Not forever, she had clarified. Just for a visit.
And visit she did. When in Velaris, Cassian flew her over the city at night. Showed her the House of Wind and the Rainbow of Velaris. He showed her what the sky looked like in the darkest part of the city and she had stared in awe at how beautiful it was. Cassian made a comment it wasn’t as stunning as her which caused her to cackle and eventually snort which in turn made Cassian burst out laughing.
Normally it was embarrassing for her, but with Cassian, it felt normal. She felt at home. Suddenly Y/N recalled how Feyre felt at home in Velaris as well and she wondered if that was just an effect the city had on her. One look at Cassian told her it wasn’t Velaris that made her feel like she was home, but Cassian. Cassian was her home.
#Cassian x reader#cassian acotar x reader#cassian acotar#azriel#rhysand#rhys#feyre#mor#amren#acowar#acomaf#acotar#acotar imagines#thesan
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Heyo! Could I request a scenario where lan jingyi, lan sizhui, Jin ling, and mo xuanyu(wei Wuxian) wake up in the modern world (specifically the reader’s house) and they can’t find a way back so they stay with her and they start having a crush on her ?? (Maybe a little blushy bc they see the reader in shorts and that’s never happened in ancient China lmao) sorry if this is confirmed but tysm 💕💕
We didn’t even notice how long this got lol
Istretched on the couch, my back crackling pleasantly as I changed position andcontinued reading my book. It’s so nice when it’s peaceful and warm like this.
I turnedanother page when I heard a rumble. I looked towards the sound immediately. Itwas coming from the room next door.
“Are youokay?” I heard a soft voice.
“I will bewhen you get off me”, second voice said and then there is a crash.
Did theybreak something?
“Where arewe?” another voice asked.
“I don’tknow, let’s explore”, a cheerful voice answered.
Instantlysitting up I could feel my heart staring to beat violently. Who’s in my house?I turned around panicking, looking for my phone to call the cops.
The soundof several footprints and voices started coming my way. And my only escaperoute was right through that door.
Four menbarged in, all dressed in ridiculous clothing. Large swords hung on their hips. What’s with the weird costumes? Thefirst one, dressed in red and black clothing and was grinning widely, noticedme first.
And I alsonoticed something. My phone.
I sigh.
It’s onthe cabinet behind his back.
I’mfucked.
I’m goingto be murdered by a four cosplaying lunatics.
Wait, that sounds so wrong. And how did they get in myhouse because I am sure they didn’t use the front door.
“Who areyou?” I ask, going on the offensive.
“I’msorry, miss. We didn’t mean to scare you, we don’t really know what is goingon”, one of the men in white practically bows, but is still looking away fromme.
Now when Ilook better, they are all looking away. The cheerful one was grinning. “Sorryfor the intrusion, my lady”, he winked, taking a part of his robe of andhanding it too me. “If you wish to cover yourself.”
Covermyself? I’m fully clothed!
“It is distracting”,the man in yellow shook his head and his long hair swayed. They all have suchlong hair. And it doesn’t seem like a wig.
“Whatcentury did you come from?” I huff, meaning it as a joke, a sarcastic remarkthat is about to blow back in my face. I mean, you don’t see people lookinglike them everyday. Especially not in your house.
One of themen in white told me what year it is. What year it is to them. Is this somekind of aggressive roleplaying?
“What?” Ilooked at him skeptically, actually getting a bit mad.
“Well, itwas the last time I checked. Now dress yourself, please”, he begged.
I threwthe robe around me and the cheerful one spoke again: “Don’t give him that deathstare. We got on the wrong foot, haven’t we? Let us introduce ourselves! I’m MoXuanyu.”
“I’m LanJingyi. Nice to meet you”, the one who asked me to dress myself was finallyable to look my way.
“I’m LanSizhui”, the other white one gave me the warmest smile I have ever seen. Thenhe jabbed the yellow one in the ribs, making him talk. “Jin Ling”, he hissed.
I givethem my name and only then I realize that I might have been stupid for doingthat.
“Whatexactly is going on?” I try to stay calm.
“We kindof don’t know either”, Lan Jingyi scratches the back of their head nervously.
“What?”Are they joking with me?
“Well,this doesn’t seem like our world”, it’s Mo Xuanyu who turns around his heel,looking around.
Our world?
“No, thisis my world and my house. So explainyourself!”
They allstare at each other for a while, everyone mostly afraid of me it seems. Butthen just when I decide to speak again, Mo Xuanyu cuts me off. “As much as Ican see, we are not from this world, or not this time”, he pokes the plasticplant on my cabinet, weirded out by its texture. “And I sense no energy fromyou”, he looks at me, still smiling. “Not that you would believe me thateasily, huh?”
What. The.Hell.
“Seriously?”I look at him angry.
Instead ofanswering he draws his sword and throws it in the air.
“What areyou…?” I don’t finish when I see the sword floating in the air.
I sit onmy sofa, too shocked to stand.
Am Idreaming?
“Tell memore.”
…………….
And that’show I ended up living with four gorgeous idiots. I sipped my coffee, watchingthem. It was still hot as hell, but I had a long dress on with a sweater overit. They couldn’t even look at me otherwise.
“Whathappens now?” Lan Sizhui stood in the kitchen.
“You’llsee, just wait”, I waved my hand. Loud noises from the living room annoyed me.“Mo Xuanyu, stop changing tv channels and come get breakfast!”
“Coming!What’s there to eat?” He looked ecstatic as he ran into the kitchen. Modern dayclothes really looked good on him. Even though I spent almost all my money ongetting them dressed, it was worth it.
“Eggfs andbeffon”, Lan Jingyi was stuffing his face. I guess he liked the food at least.
“Theremight not be enough sugar”, Mo Xuanyu laughed his ass off when he saw Jin Lingon the other side of the counter, putting cube after cube of sugar in hiscoffee.
“Why don’tI just make you tea next time?” I offered even though I knew he would refuse.My tea tasted terrible apparently. Next thing I’m going to need to buy isproper tea making set.
A popfollowed by a scream came from behind my back. Lan Sizhui clung onto me.“That’s how a toaster works. See”, I gave him his bread and he seems a littleless scared now.
I’mactually really enjoying living with them. They are admiring and looking in aweeverything I show them. It is really cute. Not to mention they are all reallyhot.
“No fair!”Mo Xuanyu looks like he is pouting, then he launches himself on me and Lan Sizhui,pulling us both in a hug. “You can’t be the only one who hugs her”, he stickshis tongue out playfully.
I feelblood surging to my face. “Get off, you’ll make me spill my coffee”, I try tokeep a cool head. Needless to say, it’s useless, because Mo Xuanyu is still notletting me go. On the contrary, he placed both hands around my shoulders.
“Youremind me of a cat”, I sigh in defeat. I’ll just have to somehow manage untilhe lets go.
Others arelooking at him funny, almost like they are glaring. Don’t tell me they aresnugglers to? I’m only one, they should all snuggle together.
“You aremaking her uncomfortable”, it was Lan Jingyi who first said it. “You should lether go.”
“You’rejust saying that so you could hug her”, Mo Xuanyu rebelled and held me tighter,Lan Sizhui now backing away a little.
I sigh andhead chopped Mo Xuanyu. That makes him cry out and let me go.
“Youdeserved it”, Jin Ling huffed.
Lan Jingyichuckles while Lan Sizhui just smiles.
I findmyself watching them with fondness. I haven’t known them for a long time, butthese few days were enough for me to grow somewhat attached to them.
“It is myday off today so is there somewhere you want to go?” I ask smiling at them.
“Amusementpark!” Lan Jingyi exclaimed.
“Zoo”, JinLing shrugged like he didn’t care, but I can see he really wants to go.
“I want tosee a museum”, Lan Sizhui said shyly.
“I want tosee a movie in cinema!” Mo Xuanyu expressed his wish.
They areall so different. How should I decide this?
I guess Ihave no choice. “We should hurry then if we want to see it all”, I sighed, butstill smiled at them.
“It’s adate!” Mo happily clapped his hands.
“A date?”They all looked at him in shock.
I decideto call his joke, but before I could the rest respond.
“Thatsounds great!” Lan Jingyi smiles.
“You watchtoo much television”, Jin Ling deadpans, but then adds quietly. “Not that Iwould mind if it is date.”
Lan Sizhuilooks troubled, like he is in conflict with himself. “I guess it would be nice…but don’t bother her, remember she is taking care of us here.”
“I said itwas a date first! You children should just stay out of it”, Mo tells them, buthe looks somewhat amused and grins when he sees their face.
“Notfair!” The rest shout in union.
It is never boring withthem, I laugh watching thembicker.
#neko-nyan#kurohime#mo dao zu shi#grandmaster of demonic cultivation#the founder of diabolism#the founder of evil magic#wei wuxian#wei ying#lan jingyi#lan sizhui#jin ling#modern au#mo dao zu shi fanfiction#fanfiction#scenario
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I may be late to the party but "You forgot to pay the electricity bill and now our lights just went off. What now?" for fitzskimmons if you've still got left over free time to fill lol
AN ~ anything for you! :D this one goes out to anyone doing finals r/n i know that feel. shoutout to that time I had a breakdown bc there was no meat in my sandwich whoot. I hope everything goes well and I wish you all the mental equivalent of a soothing bath when you need it most.
in the meantime, there’s fitzskimmons (with extra skimmons)! this is a little hurt/comfort, arguably mild angst w/ happy ending, rated G/T, I hope you like it!
Read on AO3 (~1300wd)
-
“OHHHH! HEY!”
“NO, YOU CAN’T-“
“SSHH! Shh, shh-“
“You’re right, shh,”
Jemma rolled her eyes at Fitz and Daisy’s shushing from the other room. They’d recently acquired a new videogame and had agreed to play it quietly, since Jemma was still studying, but it wasn’t really working out. Jemma could hardly blame them, she supposed, even as she bit her lip and turned her music up a little to drown them out. Even she was getting to that point in semester where she’d rather hang upside down off the back of the couch and join in with their shoot-em-up antics. And she loved homework – so they said – “more than life itself.”
All of a sudden though, the universe had apparently decided this was one too many slips in their promise. The lights went out and the music went silent, and suddenly Jemma’s highlighter was the brightest thing in the room. Even the clock was out. The only other light came from her phone – alerting her that it had been taken off charge – and the little corner of glow-in-the-dark space stickers above their bed that Daisy had put there once, for fun. They spoke to a whimsy and self-assurance that Jemma usually loved about her…
Just not when it came with this level of forgetfulness.
Jemma ground her teeth together, and tried not to throw open the bedroom door too hard as she stalked back into the lounge.
“What was that?” she demanded icily, glad the others could not see her expression properly. She was way too stressed out and exhausted to think about this rationally.
“Power’s down,” Fitz said. “Did you have the kettle and the microwave on at the same time again?”
“In the bedroom?” Jemma challenged, raising an eyebrow.
Then Daisy raised a hand.
“Uh, guys, I think this is my bad,” she confessed. “I may have forgotten to pay the electricity bill. Well, I mean, I didn’t forget. I was sort of in a standoff with the building manager about the laundry situation and I said I wouldn’t pay our electricity or our water til it was fixed because it’s in our tenancy rights but –“
“Is it?!” Jemma challenged. “Is it in our tenancy rights? Well that’s fantastic. Is there a bloody great candle in there too? Hmm? Perhaps some glow sticks?”
“Jem, come on.” Daisy held up her hands in surrender, trying to step lightly. “You were mad about it too.”
“I still am!” Jemma jabbed a finger back at where her study notes were waiting – “but I have exams to do. Did you have to take this stand now of all times? It’s finals, Daisy! I need power! I need my computer! I need light! How could you be so inconsiderate? Or were you just so thick-headed that you didn’t see this coming?!”
“HEY!” Fitz stepped forward, putting himself between them. “That’s uncalled for, Jemma. Come on.”
“You’re taking her side?” Jemma glared, tears in her eyes. “You know how important this is to me!”
“I just think you need to calm down, that’s all. Daisy made a mistake, but –“
“But I’m being ridiculous. Okay. It’s only my whole future resting on these results. But okay. I’m going downstairs.”
Wiping her eyes, Jemma stormed back into her room, swept her belongings into a bag, and stormed back out again, right past Fitz and Daisy and out the door.
-
Once Jemma was gone, Daisy sunk back onto the couch and checked her own eyes for tears.
“She’s right, I’m being stupid,” she sniffled, digging for her phone in the pile of clothes and food packets that had built up around them. “I’ll call the landlord and sort this out right now. Just pay the damn thing.”
“I don’t think you should do that,” Fitz advised, taking her hands gently in his to stop her fretting. “Otherwise when are we going to fight this? Christmas? New Year? Then we’ll all be back to school and it’ll start again. Stick to your guns, Daisy! Or are you going to give up your principles for a girl, hm?”
He nudged her playfully, and the tiniest of smiles cracked through the fear and onto her face.
“There she is,” Fitz encouraged. “Come on, you know Jemma would be right alongside you on this crusade any other day. She’s just stressed out of her brain right now. And you know she has these exams in the bag. She’ll be fine. And a new washing machine won’t shrink her sweaters, so she’ll thank you in the end, right?”
Daisy sighed.
“I guess you’re right,” she agreed, and with renewed vigour, tossed the phone back onto the pile of mess on the couch. “Screw that guy, it’s Jemma we’ve got to worry about. And I’ve got an idea.”
-
“Jemma. Jemma.”
“Mm?”
Jemma jolted awake to the feeling of someone tapping her elbow. She dragged her face up off the table and blinked, bleary-eyed, surprised to find herself in the internet café around the corner, with Daisy in her face and Fitz standing at the end of the table, looking on with concern. She was not sure how much time had passed since she’d left. Was it morning already? Or was her tea still warm?
“What ‘re you doing here?” she mumbled.
“We’re here to bring you home,” Daisy promised. “I’m sorry about the blackout, but I think we’ve reached a compromise you’ll appreciate.”
Jemma nodded, feeling too tired for words like compromise and appreciate, and preferring to all but flop into Fitz’s arms where he waited, as Daisy wilfully entangled herself in all of Jemma’s belongings (“how did you get all this down here?!”). Her brain was full of white noise as they made their way back to the apartment, but by the time they stepped over the threshold, Jemma was starting to remember why she was mad. It didn’t feel as visceral anymore – she felt burnt out, and she was still drop-dead tired – but she clenched her teeth together. Whatever Daisy had, she thought warningly, had better be good.
Fortunately, it was.
“Now, admittedly, I didn’t do this all myself,” Daisy confessed. “But Fitz has rigged up this place with a generator, so the fridge, kettle, and the odd charger should be working. Your laptop battery is supercharged, and… I found a couple candles.”
Daisy led the way and Fitz walked Jemma into the kitchen, where candles were clustered near the chargers and keys; the sink; the kettle; the fridge. The lounge and coffee table had been cleared of clothes, and rubbish, and other junk, and dotted here and there with candles too. As Daisy led her and Fitz down the hall, Jemma even spotted candles in their bedroom, but Daisy kept going all the way to the bathroom, where a warm and rosy scent floated out to meet her. Daisy smiled apologetically, and pushed the door open, gesturing for Jemma to continue inside.
“Daisy,” Jemma whispered, her eyes trailing the display of candles that danced around the room. There were a couple of new glow-in-the-dark stars in the corner of the mirror. She smiled. “What is this?”
“I’m sorry I was inconsiderate with my timing, and that our landlord’s a dick. And I’m sorry that you’re so stressed out. Fitz and I will shut our faces - for real this time – so you can take the night off, okay? We love you. I love you.”
Jemma nodded, tearing up. “Love you too, Daisy. Sorry I called you thick-headed. You should know, your stubbornness is one of your best qualities.”
“Yeah, well,” Daisy scoffed. “Enjoy that warm bath while it lasts, ‘cause our water bill’s on final notice too. Loveyoubye.”
Blowing her a kiss, Daisy ducked out the door and shut it behind her. Jemma opened her mouth to reply, but nothing came to mind. At this point, she was not even sure she followed what was going on. What she did know was that her body seemed to be climbing into a warm, lovingly prepared bath of its own accord, and she was hardly one to argue with that.
#fitzskimmons#ot3: fitzskimmons#prompt me stuff#aospositivitynet#aosficnet2#clara's fic tag#buskidsburgade#polyamory
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Survey #114
“oh yeah, i’m a reaper man; every good thing, i kill it dead.”
What kind of makeup do you think is appropriate for church? Who cares. Wear what you want; I don't see how your makeup affects God's opinion on you while in His house.
What would you wear to church? I don't dress up for the same reason as above. I just wear my usual.
Would/do you like having brown eyes? I like having blue eyes. It's not that brown isn't pretty, it's just so common.
What kind of gift would you appreciate for your birthday? I'm just asking for money again. Can already go see Sara, time to work towards the tattoo.
What do you use Facebook for? My main reason is legit funny pictures lmao. There's few people I'm actually actively interested in keeping up with.
Would you rather be called a geek, a nerd or a dork? A geek is 100% a compliment lol.
Do you like pretzels? Soft ones, yes. Especially the ones from those little shops at malls, omgggg. I'd prefer to not eat hard ones.
You want your next pet to be what? A bearded dragon. Or two rats.
Would you spend 20 dollars on a candle? Ha. No.
What is the goriest thing you’ve seen in real life? There was a deer that died directly beside the road leading to our old house and it was decaying. I still remember all the maggots squirming around in its side. @_@
Do you take any meds? If so which and why? Mood stabilizers, anxiety med, something for nausea if one of my mood stabilizers causes it, Melatonin, something for heartburn, and birth control unless I want my uterus to tear me apart from the inside.
Is "no glove, no love" your STRICT policy? If I actually was to have sex, yes. Even with me on the pill, I'm not taking any risks. Not getting pregnant.
If someone breaks a law, should they be punished if they did not know it was a law? Depends on the law.
Name a band you sort of like: What a thing to admit, but Blood on the Dance Floor. I like some of their songs, while others are just too repulsive.
In your head do you call yourself 'I’ or 'you’ or both? Usually "you," and always when I'm trying to calm or reassure myself, because it's like hearing validation of something from another person.
Someone tells you 'well there are black people, and then there are (removed term bc fuck that word)’. What do you think? My former friend used to say that and I fucking hated it.
Who REALLY has a higher sex drive, girls or guys? How can you tell? I might be mistaken, but I'm pretty sure there's science behind men having more of a libido.
Do you enjoy wild parties? I literally could never.
Have you ever been stereotyped? As what? I was called both emo and goth in high school. It wasn't offensive to me personally, but I don't think I totally fit any stereotype.
Who do you know that you believe does not masturbate? I don't for a number of reasons, and I can name a few others I'm pretty sure don't.
Does a cloned human being have a soul? Why or why not? explosion.gif
Who looks better naked, men or woman? Women. I'm bi, yes, but penises look fucking disgusting to me personally.
Is there anything you won’t say unless someone else says it first? Nothing immediately comes to mind.
What’s your favorite type of doughnut? Either glazed or cake (the totally plain ones).
Do you have any candles in your bedroom? Do you light them often? No, I have an incense burner. I use it often enough.
What is your least favorite thing about your full name? I just don't like my last name, and my middle name's too common, but at least I like the name itself.
What’s your favorite kind of Poptart? Probably the chocolate sundae one. But I don't like Poptarts much.
Do you think you look good with a hat on? I can't remember the last time I wore a hat.
Are there some songs you can’t listen to because they remind you of something? "The Mortician's Daughter" and "Stairway to Heaven."
Do you live near a street light? No.
Do you wear any rings? A red gem one I got from Mom, then a "bitch/jerk" friendship ring (Supernatural reference) with my girlfriend.
Do you put collars on your cats? When we had cats, yeah.
Do you like celery? Ew no.
Did you cry while watching the Notebook? I've never sobbed at a movie, but I cried, yeah. I've cried in subsequent watches too lmao. I think I've always teared up, actually.
Do you have a protective mom and dad? Mom's extremely protective of me. I'd say Dad's pretty normal.
What field trip did you last go on? Probably for a band competition in high school.
Five ways to win your heart: Uhhh. Show compassion, patience, generosity, wisdom, and maturity.
Your views on mainstream music: It's getting too vulgar to be on the radio. I firmly believe children don't need to hear profanity (they don't know when it's inappropriate to use) or talk of sex, and songs just have so much censorship yet lack thereof now. If you're going to censor almost an entire song, why the hell play it? Then some songs are so clearly about sex or just openly say the word that it bothers me. I wouldn't wanna explain what sex is to say my like five-year-old if they heard some of the shit on the radio and asked questions.
Put your iPod on shuffle and write that 10 first songs that play: 1.) "Clocks" by Coldplay, 2.) "Paradise City" by Guns N' Roses, 3.) "Blessed With a Curse" by Bring Me the Horizon, 4.) "Let It Die" by Starset, 5.) "I Don't Love You" by My Chemical Romance, 6.) "Animals" by Nickelback, 7.) "Shoots and Ladders" by Korn, 8.) "Divinity Statue" from DMC3, 9.) "Float On" by Modest Mouse, 10.) "This Is Gospel" by Panic! at the Disco.
A quote you try to live by: "Life's hard. Shouldn't you be, too?" ... It's not meant to be an innuendo.
How do you know when someone thinks you’re attractive? I would literally have to be told lmao.
Which one of your relationships was the shortest? Two weeks and it was fucking stupid.
Which was the longest? Almost four years.
If you want to get married, what age? I don't have a set age in mind. Just whenever my s/o and I are ready.
What did you end up getting for Christmas? A PS2 after mine broke years ago ahhhh, way too much money from my dad, his wife, and my grandpa, a "meerkat lover" street sign, a meerkat puzzle I'mma do and frame for my room, some pajama pants, an iHome for my iPod, Pikachu and Grumpy Cat plushies that're too cute, among other things that aren't coming to mind rn.
Do you think buying underwear/bras at Victoria’s Secret is a waste? Meh, mixed feelings. Like they are way too expensive for some damn bras and underwear, but if they make you feel more confident or pretty in your body, buy them.
Do you like glittery things? Usually.
Do you like Red Lobster? It used to be my favorite restaurant, but after I got sick after eating there, I haven't gone since. Even though I was feeling sick before we went, it's just an association thing.
What are you most scared of? Relapse, losing certain people.
Favorite video game? "Silent Hill 2"
Do you believe that leaving a significant other for someone else is ever a good idea? YUP. because if you loved the first person, you wouldnt even consider the second. <<<< This.
Do you have any possessions that you’re very attached to, and you’d be absolutely devastated if you damaged or lost them? Absolutely devastated... the little rock I got from my partial hospitalization at Holly Hill. When someone "graduates," you pick a shiny rock from a jar that gets passed around the room for your "classmates" to wish you well and say anything they'd like to say about you while they hold it. I cherish that thing so much.
What’s the naughtiest thing you’ve ever done, and you got away with it? I guess have oral entirely naked on the old chaise in the living room. But we were home alone.
How much do you want to weigh? I was totally happy at 120, but I was fine at 140. Supposedly I should be like 130-something.
If you HAD to do your holiday shopping for EVERYONE in only ONE store what store would you pick? Uh probably Walmart lmao.
Do you believe that guns don’t kill people and that people kill people? Why? People kill people, and that's coming from someone afraid of guns. You have a choice where you're pointing that thing.
What is the difference between a good poem and a bad one? I don't like ones that are virtually impossible to understand.
Which do you need more: sugar, caffeine, alcohol, drugs, sex, sleep? I'm addicted to caffeine, I can't go two days without it. @_@
Who is someone you know should deserve more respect? Ha, my Dad from my mom.
What movie would you like to see again, that you haven’t watched since you were a kid? The first movie that came to mind was "Shiloh."
Are birds happy in cages? Are pets happy indoors? I truly doubt birds are happy in cages, but maybe if they have enough entertainment and it's big enough? But I'm sure like dogs and cats are fine indoors considering a whole house is much bigger. Though I think bigger dogs especially need to be let out to run around sometimes.
Hula hoops or jump ropes? Jump ropes. Loved it as a kid. Now my knees would murder me.
Can you understand sign language? No. But I remember learning this song in elementary school that we had to sing and do sign language to, but I don't remember any of it.
Does anyone in your family hunt? Nicole, my little sister.
How about fish? Me and Dad, maybe his dad.
Do you pronounce the "l" in salmon? No.
Have you ever gotten stuck on an amusement park ride? Thank Christ no.
Have you ever seen an albino animal? Maybe? I've seen a white alligator, but it technically wasn't albino.
Have you ever tried summoning Bloody Mary? No.
When is the last time you consumed alcohol? New Year's Eve. I drank a margarita way too fast but felt nothing because my alcohol tolerance is God-Tier. ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ (Though I like never drink.)
Do you ever judge people based on if they believe in God or not? No.
Are you sometimes scared to express your opinions in fear of what others might think? Y U P
Do you ‘bless’ strangers when they sneeze? Sometimes.
Would you rather go to a University or a community college? The latter if they offered good classes. It's cheaper, and you can still get a worthy degree.
What’s your favorite kind of bread? Pumpernickel.
What toppings do you like on your pizza? Only jalapenos or pepperoni.
What color or design does your shower curtain have? It's just white.
What color is your microwave? Black.
Could you ever give yourself a shot? If I had to, yeah.
Have you ever been so embarrassed that you cried? Story of my life.
How many people have told you they were in love with you? One.
Would you ever have sex with the last person you texted? Well, we're both girls, so actual sex would be psychically impossible, but I'd do as close as we could to it if she made it very clear she wanted to.
Does it bother you when people don’t answer questions with exact answers? Yes, especially if I'm asking them a question about needing validation for something. Don't be vague.
Have you ever watched a needle go into your own skin? I usually do so I know exactly when it's coming. And if I'm getting my blood drawn, I watch it for whatever reason. @_@
Have you ever seen someone get a piercing/tattoo? Yes.
Do you like strawberry and banana smoothies? Strawberry. I doubt I'd like banana.
Do you know someone that is mute, deaf or blind? My sister Ashley is literally blind in one eye, I think her right? For the other two, idk.
What’s your favorite horror movie? I really like both "Blair Witch Project"s, as well as "The Crazies."
Is it true that people with depression CAN’T function in society? Sometimes, absolutely.
Can you think of any person or group you cannot empathise with? Pedophiles, rapists, racists, abusive people, homophobes, the list goes on.
Do you want to get married? If so, what color will your dress be? It'll be either black, white, or ivory, idk.
Do you like peanut butter and fluff sandwiches? NO.
Do you play video games? If so, what kind? Yes, just about exclusively story-based ones that usually involve horror. But I like many others, so long there's actually plot to it.
How old is your oldest and youngest friend? Oldest is like... 32, youngest is 17, I think.
How weight conscious are you? Only extremely.
Stripes or polka dots? Polka dots.
What was your first word? "Dada"
What's a show that you absolutely refuse to watch? "13 Reasons Why"
Do you remember how old you were when you started swearing? 7th grade.
Have you ever been involved in a custody battle before? I'm actually not sure. I don't think so. If it did, Mom never told us.
Did your parents ever let you play in the pits of those multicolored balls? Yes, until I think a dirty needle was found in one of McDonald's ball pits.
Do you think biting is weird or sexy? I like it so long you don't leave a mark in an obvious spot.
Do you have a class ring? No.
What type of internet browser are you using? Chrome.
How long do your showers typically last? Not even ten minutes.
Can you cry on cue? No.
Were you a Nancy Drew reader when you were younger? No.
Are you the kind of person that takes pictures with a drink in your hand? No, and quite frankly, it's obnoxious. You're getting intoxicated. Congrats.
Do either of your parents have a mental illness? Mom has depression, and she says Dad's bipolar, but I absolutely don't see it now that they're divorced.
When you were growing up, did your family rent or own your home? Own.
When was the last time you wore a full face of makeup? I couldn't tell you. The most I ever wear is eye liner, shadow, mascara, and lipstick, but I don't consider that a "full face of makeup."
Do you own an iPad? No.
Have you ever experienced sleep paralysis? No, thank goodness.
Do you think it’s wrong for people to say 'retard/retarded’ as an insult? I FUCKING HATE IT.
How many people of the opposite sex have made you cry? I think two.
Would you eat a live tarantula for $1,000? No, I just wouldn't be able to. If it didn't have its fangs, maybe?
What’s one health problem you wish you didn’t have? Anxiety. Shit would be so much better without it.
Is your mom or dad the older parent? Mom by one year.
Do you have any close friends that were adopted? No.
Do you believe that people can be psychics? No.
List these apple types from greatest to worst: green, red, yellow. Red, green, yellow.
Does your house have more than one fireplace? We don't have even one.
When it rains does it leave a lake in your front yard? No. My original home was like that, though. It ALWAYS flooded.
Do you dread when people ask you to sign their yearbooks? No, I actually found it flattering to know they wanted me to sign it.
Where is one place that you’d never be caught dead in? A strip club, to name one.
Do you have a favorite Scooby-Doo movie? I loved the Phantom Virus one. Even had the game.
Do you dislike when people ruin the endings of anything for you? Yes, unless I ask to just be told.
You are holding onto your grandmother’s hand and the hand of a newborn that you do not know as they hang over the edge of a cliff. You have to let one go to save the other. Who do you let fall to their death? What was your rationale for making the decision? ... Whoa. I'd feel fucking godawful, but I'd save my grandmother. I'm not calling the baby less human, but my grandmother is more conscious of life and everything, I guess?
Which would you choose: true love with a guarantee of a broken heart, or never loved at all? Why? Never love at all. Heartbreak is fucking awful.
Have you ever seen the movie "A Walk to Remember?" Cliche or worth watching? I think it's worth watching. Very sweet movie.
Do you know how to sew? What’s your favorite thing to sew? No.
Do you own many pairs of shorts? I don't own any.
Do you ever have movie nights with your significant other? Ye<3
Do you like fiction or non-fiction books more? What’s your favorite? Fiction. "Johnny Got His Gun" and "The Outsiders."
Have you ever slept in the same bed as your friend? Yeah.
How many tattoos would you get? I want LOADS.
What brand of toothpaste do you use? Crest.
Would you ever tattoo the name of a bf/gf or spouse on yourself? No. I'd get a matching tattoo relatively deep into marriage, but name, nah.
What’s your least favorite season? Summer. D:
What’s your favorite dessert? Red velvet cake.
Do you like cotton candy? Meh, I can have a couple bites.
Do you have any shirts signed by famous people? No.
Where do you normally get your hair cut? A family friend's salon.
What would your dream engagement ring look like? I really like dragon's breath opal rings or rose gold ones but idk how expensive either are. @_@
What’s the longest your hair has ever been? Like to the small of my back.
How do you feel about bleach blonde hair? Gorgeous on some people, not for me.
Do you know anyone who has been arrested? Yes.
Name 2 questions that you will most likely never say ‘no’ to: 1.) "Do you wanna go get a tattoo?", 2.) "Do you wanna Skype?" if it's Sara.
Imagine someone has a great personality, sense or humor, family and job. they also really really like you a lot. Would you consider dating them if they:
Were fat? Yes.
Limped? Yes.
Were a midget? Yes.
Had HIV? No, because I'm too scared to put myself at risk.
Were paralyzed in one arm? Yes.
Had a glass eye? Yes.
Had only 6 months to live? No, that would destroy me.
Would you get married on TV? No. I don't want people I don't care about watching.
Do you own a metal detector? No. I did as a kid, though.
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Copy & Paste a WIP and Tag 10 People
Tagged by @magicandmalice
Uuh, this got a little long but I couldn’t decide on an excerpt. Also! Not tagging anyone bc it’s been so long I don’t know anyone on here anymore lol. Feel free to tag me in this if you want to do it tho!
"Ah, si sta parlando inglese. Who summoned me?" asks the shadow, this time in heavily accented English. He sounds lackadaisical like he's been through this sort of exchange one too many times.
"Summoned you?" Joseph parrots, cocking his head to the side. "Looks like we got us another crazy here, eh Smokey."
Smokey slowly reaches into the back pocket of his jeans. Joseph knows what he's going for. "Hey man, I asked you somethin'! Who are you and what're you doin' here?"
"And I asked you a question," the man says, sounding quite sane for a mad man. "Who called me out?"
"We have no idea what you're talking about," Smokey says as he looks to Joseph. Joseph signals for him to remain calm and not pull out the switchblade he knows Smokey carries but is terrified of using. "No one called you, man."
The stranger sighs. "Just my luck... un paio di idioti."
Joseph grins as he cracks his knuckles. "Not sure what language you're speakin' but I'm pretty sure you just called us a couple of idiots. Why don't ya come out of the shadows there mate and show us your ugly mug."
Smokey stays where he is, crouched protectively over his belongings as Joseph takes a few more steps into the alley. The silhouette moves too, moving towards Joseph in a graceful stride that makes him appear like he's floating. When he finally steps into a streak of sunlight, Joseph gets a better look at the man. He's wearing a diamond checkered top hat, fashioned lopsidedly on his head and its pattern matches his waistcoat. The jacket he wears looks like it's made of crushed velvet, rich burgundy in colour, like a fine merlot. His pants appear to be normal black slacks, slightly oversized and stuffed into black knee-high boots. His hands are sheathed in fingerless leather gloves with brass bulbs on the knuckles.
He looks like a ridiculous magician, Joseph scoffs inwardly. Like a mad hatter.
"Right well. This bloke is definitely not right in the head, eh Smokey. Let's split."
Smokey rushes to gather his things, the items clanking against each other as he wraps them back up in his jacket.
"Are you sure you want to do that?" the man asks, tilting his head to the side that mimics the slide of his crooked grin. As he does this, the illumination clears the brim of his hat and reveals the upper part of the man's face. Light catches his eye and it gleams an unnaturally raw emerald. Below his eye is some sort of purplish smudge, triangular in shape. It's too bright to be a bruise or a tattoo.
Joseph makes a fist and grinds it into the palm of his hand. "You sure you wanna keep bein' a prick?"
"C'mon, JoJo," Smokey urges, cradling the bundle of junk in his arms.
"Be my guest," the stranger lilts, sweeping his hand in the air as if he's allowing them safe passage.
Joseph laughs nervously and an unsettling feeling begins to bubble in his gut. "You're off, mate. Let's get out of here, Smokey." He takes a few steps back, never taking his eyes off the man and waits for Smokey to get a good distance behind him. The man doesn't move and watches Joseph retreat without expression. Joseph doesn't think he even blinks. Once his back clears the mouth of the alley and there's a good forty-somewhat feet in between the weirdo and them, Joseph finally turns to Smokey and whispers, "Run."
Smokey doesn't need to be told twice, he takes off like someone's just lit a fire under his ass and Joseph isn't too far behind. The heavy knot in his stomach keeps nagging him to look over his shoulder but that same knot is preventing him from doing so. Anxious adrenaline courses through his veins and his blood rushes between his ears.
"I left the crystal ball!" Smokey yells apologetically but he too doesn't look over his shoulder to see if Joseph is following him.
"Forget the bloody thing!" Joseph shouts back, his chest pulling tight as his lungs struggle to retain a steady stream of oxygen. "That guy probably followed us from the market lookin' to get that junk back for that old bat — or he was lookin' to make a quid himself!"
"I thought you said this stuff was worthless!"
"Never said that mad hatter thought the same thing now, did I?"
Smokey looks back over his shoulder again and grins wildly. "He did look like a mad hatter, didn't he?"
"As mad as they come," Joseph agrees, leaping over tin garbage pail rolled out in the middle of the sidewalk. They're nearing a street corner and this being New York, Joseph knows there's gotta be a vendor on it. He could really use a Coke right now. "Hey — didn't he kinda remind you of a ringmaster? Y'know, like the bloke that runs the circus?"
Smokey laughs. "Yeah, he did! Maybe that woman in the market was a carnie or something. Maybe there's like, a band of them..."
The pounding of his heart drowns Smokey out as Joseph dares a glance over his shoulder. The streets are crowded as usual but there is no oddly dressed man in a top hat in pursuit. For this, Joseph breathes a sigh of relief and he's about to turn around to share this news with his friend when he knocks into something head-on. There's a hollow clattering on concrete and when Joseph catches up with what just happened, he sees that he's run into Smokey and knocked him onto the sidewalk.
"S-Smokey!" Joseph stutters as he scurries to pick up his friend from the ground. Then he stops short when he sees the reason for Smokey's abrupt stop.
The stranger is somehow in front of them, standing with his arms crossed and a fist curled under his chin. His eyes are closed, his expression reads annoyance as he sighs heavily.
"What in the hell," Joseph starts as grabs Smokey's arm to pull him up. His friend's eyes are just about bugging wide out of his head, his mouth agape in shock. Smokey looks like he's just seen a ghost. "Where the hell did you just come from — how the bloody hell did you do that?!"
"We have a problem here," the man states, opening his eyes finally. "If —"
"Now look here you —"
"If both of you can see me," the man continues, "then that means both of you touched the crystal ball at the same time."
Joseph scrunches his nose in disdain. "What are you on about?"
The stranger sighs again, this time more exasperated. "The crystal ball? You gentlemen rubbed it?"
"Y-yeah, we rubbed it," Smokey stutters, finally breaking his awed silence. "So?"
"Well here I am, you've summoned me, granter of wishes. Unfortunately, that is a problem because only there can only be one wisher at a time."
A sardonic laugh erupts from Joseph. "Oh my god. Are you saying you're some kind of genie? Like Arabian Nights, the magic lamp and all that crock?"
The man clucks his tongue. "Not genie, jinni. And it was a crystal ball, not a lamp. Are you blind as well as stupid?"
"Who're you callin' stupid?" asks Joseph, pushing up his shirt sleeves. "You expect us to believe you're a genie — jinni whatever, same difference — and we're the stupid ones?"
"I rubbed it," Smokey says quietly. "Remember, JoJo? With the scarf."
"Yeah, I remember but this bloke isn't a genie, Smokey. He's some mad man that followed us and saw you rub the stupid ball with the scarf. He's just tryin' to have a go at us so that we'll give him the stuff you looted."
"Try me," the man challenges.
Joseph nudges his friend's shoulder. "Just give him the junk, Smokey. Supper's in an hour, let's get on with it."
"Wait, JoJo," Smokey says, tugging on Joseph's sleeve. “Let's see if this guy's really telling the truth."
Joseph can feel the heat of eyes all around him and when he chances a look, the passersby on the sidewalk all seem to be giving Smokey and him a look that says they ought to be locked up in the local loony bin. Perhaps they aren't looking at them but rather at the man dressed like a ringleader but when Joseph follows their judging stares, none lead back to the strange man claiming to be a genie. "Right well... if you're going to have at it then let's get out of the middle of the street, yeah? People are lookin' at us like we're the ones who are mad."
Smokey nods and retreats a few feet to the nearest alleyway with Joseph and the man following.
"You got a name, genie man?" asks Joseph.
"Caesar," he answers without skipping a beat. "Caesar Zeppeli."
"Sounds like quite the unimaginative stage name," Joseph mutters scornfully.
"I wouldn't expect a brute like you to understand what's in a name," Caesar replies.
"I should make you eat one of these bloody pigeons for tryin' to take advantage of my friend," snaps Joseph.
"Please. I bet you couldn't even fight off a woman."
"Why the hell would I wanna fight a woman, you twit?!"
"Guys!" Smokey interrupts, stopping once he's hidden in the dark of the alley. "This will take five minutes, JoJo. Once this guy proves he's a fake, we can leave, okay? I just wanna see what he's got."
Joseph makes a face, "Yeah, he's a fake alright. Some wannabe street magician that should be workin' in Vegas by the name of The Great Zeppeli —"
"Actually, my grandfather was a magician of sorts in his time and he went by the name of Zeppeli the Eccentric," Caesar says pointedly, pulling on the brim of his top hat. "This used to be his."
"Thanks for that useless piece of information."
"JoJo, please."
Joseph sighs defeat and slumps against the dry brick of an old building. He uses one foot pressed into the wall to prop himself up. "Well — we're waiting," he says to Caesar expectedly.
"Before we begin, there are a few rules we must go over," Caesar announces.
"Of course there are," Joseph mumbles, rolling his eyes. Both Smokey and Caesar give him a look and Joseph says nothing more on the subject.
Caesar clears his throat. "There are rules to wishes that the jinn and wisher must abide by. The first one being I cannot grant a wish that interferes with free will."
"What does that mean?" asks Smokey, raising a brow.
"I cannot make someone fall in love with you or hurt themselves in any matter. Anything that a subject would not do otherwise with their own free will. Understand?"
What a crock of shit, Joseph thinks.
"Yes," Smokey croaks.
"Secondly, I cannot make something from nothing. The third rule is that no wish may change the natural order of life and death and bring one who is dead back to life, nor can I cause one's death."
"Yeah, I got it," Smokey interjects with an audible gulp. “Free will.”
#magicandmalice#caejose#jjba#jojo no kimyou na bouken#unfinished#ru.writes#i couldnt pick one bc i have so many lolol
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mbti (functions) related thoughts on me, juni, her brother
juni is prob enfj (ive been thinking about it for a long time just unsure) and it makes sense to me that my adult general persona (of which juni is one iteration) is enfj in this way -
intj (self) - high ni low se; low fi
enfj (persona) - high ni low se; high fe (= high F)
due to trauma and abuse, as well as growing up with 3 ppl who have high se, ive developed my fi se (my last 2 functions) much earlier and much stronger than the average intj (by excessive forced introspection and forced behaviours and practicing), but no matter how much it develops, fi is still a low function for me.
however, i put strong emphasis on fi se and care about it a great deal (easy to compare to average intj who tend to run with the “i dont need feelings i like being cold” thing and repress for some time, or for their whole life). without fi specifically i see no point in being alive.
due to being an intj with strongly developed F, i relate a lot to enfj’s (fe ni se related) worldview about love and appreciation for every single creature and thing in the universe (for some reason infj on average are less like this than me which i think is interesting). theres a certain kind of dissociation into ni where all the dots connect and the patterns overlap. when you have strong F, this floating in the ni “view of the entire universe at once” habit, becomes something relating to love and perspective of how great and small everything is at once, etc.
anyway, my point is that that whole thing is a very enfj thing, but something that also is me as an intj with strong fi se, and for various reasons my main “big sister” persona (juni and other iterations) who is sort-of-me-but-not-quite and who is healthy and mature, ends up being enfj. not bc i would want to be enfj, i want to stay intj, but i think the idea of the removal of the very painful fi is soothing, probably. a symbolic wish to remove the pain by removing all of fi but still having strong healthy F.
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(when i was a teenager my persona was closer to esfp or 1st se in general (i had two estp in my life at the time alongside *sfp) in order to survive in society (”introverts cant survive you have to become extroverted” etc, abusive concepts forced by my “parents”). i was loud and physically expressive (and threatening) which was part of the whole thing with me developing fi se more than the average intj, because i USED fi se a lot to fake being a different person for coping and survival. the place where you can see my personal relation to esfp today is in winterborn, juni’s horse, who is esfp in order to express that part of myself; winterborn is a relatively healthy esfp.)
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juni’s brother is my actual self during deep depression so i assume hes intj (i dont think i can really know unless i see his character develop). he is at any rate deep in an abyss of ni with fi, which is very painful. his te and se are repressed - being trapped in pandoria (similarly to anne but for his whole life) represents the inability to stimulate/use te and se in healthy ways; he has nobody to talk to or interact with (te), nothing to physically do since he’s unable to move freely or healthily (te + se), and pandoria being toxic to humans and confusing is disturbing to se. he’s in a sort of physically forced ni-fi loop with close to zero input from the world around him, but he also isnt able to develop fi much as he has nobody to interact with. (the fi here is more in the story itself being symbolic of my pain, parental abuse, isolation, anhedonia)
when juni rescues him from pandoria, he is thrown into a world that would let him stimulate and use te se, (and having juni with healthy mature se to guide him to appreciate the world if he wants it), but he isnt used to it and has gone so far into the ni abyss (getting to the core of everything; looking from a wide universe view; etc) that its hard for him to see the point of anything (to feel any motivation to use te se). he has been locked into a ni spiral with fi, in his mind, alone, and its hard to break out of that since when ni gets to the true core of everything, you deeply realise how completely pointless and meaningless everything is. if you cant engage your other functions at that point to distract yourself from life’s futility, it becomes destructive to your own mind.
in juni’s mind it seems as a natural development for anyone with se to grow into feeling love and appreciation for everything big or small in the world, but she’s too healthy (she didn’t suffer much) to comprehend what it’s like to be in the ni abyss and to be repressed and isolated for your whole life and how that affects your ability to care. for her it seems that as soon as he could breathe fresh air and feel the sunlight on his skin and taste a fruit for the first time, he would experience the se he needed and start healing and developing his se, but this is not possible as he is too far gone (he never had the chance to even start developing normal te se since he’s been alone in pandoria since birth). it would take incredible amounts of time and work for him to be able to have even close to average te and se without the ni (fi) going “this is pointless and i cant care” in the background.
(also worth noting that enfj has higher se than intj to begin with, so juni’s se is stronger than what an average intj’s se would be)
the above is symbolic of how ppl keep talking as if my mental illness could be solved with basic simple measures like “get exercise” or “think positively”. i ALREADY have been doing those things for most of my life and it didnt change a thing, because my mental (emotional) illness is severe. those people only know about people with basic level depression and problems, and can’t comprehend what its like to live with the level of mental illness those of us have who have double depression for our entire lives, who have anhedonia for years, who have (c)ptsd, personality disorders, etc. its not a matter of eating more salad or “just trying harder to get happy”. (not to say diet doesnt have an effect - its very good to eat healthy - but it can help you cope better with severe mental illness, it doesnt fix it, and when your mental illness is at a certain point, a healthy lifestyle isnt enough to help you at all)
anyway, yeah, juni’s inability to help her brother heal (much) once he’s been rescued - in other words, she could make a positive physical change for him but she can’t help him emotionally or mentally - is representative of both what i said above and of the fact that my personas can only help me cope with certain things but not others. having juni in my head can’t fix me, but sometimes i can imagine my big sister persona taking over my body and forcing me to go cook or take a shower or make the bed, which again is a physical help even if imaginary.
juni having fe (being a person with strong F but lacking fi) is also relevant since she just cant relate to how her brother feels. regardless of how good her fe is, she will never have fi. (it feels weird for me when i think too much about juni not having fi bc its such a core thing in me and she is part of me so how can she not have fi? whats it even like to not have fi??? but thats just a feeling, i do think it makes sense for her to have fe)
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if anyone read this ill have to assume youre a real nerd. shakes hand
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