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waynedunlaptheorgandonor · 3 years

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watched s11ep1

i will provide you with a quick review before i disappear back into the ether of twd avoidance

lots of spoilers under the cut. also i wrote way too much and i worked all night and haven’t slept so i didn’t bother to reread literally any of it, so it might be completely nonsensical, tho if you don’t expect that from me by this point idk whose blog you’ve been reading

enjoy:

hokay, first off, i’ll start by saying that i enjoyed it more than i expected to. i’ve been avoiding any sort of discussion about stuff, but my google algorithm is so fucked at this point that i still get recommended articles and stuff every now and then, so i was already pretty aware of what i was walking into, and was expecting it to be eh, but actually i prob enjoyed it more than i enjoyed the finale

(don’t get too excited tho, the finale was rly boring lmfao)

anyway

episode starts off with a tense scouting mission

it takes .005 seconds into the episode for caryl to exchange a look of longing, establishing that they are still having weird conflict and are both too fucking stubborn to do anything about it even tho they hate it desperately

i imagine that will continue for a while

rosita, kelly, carol, maggie, what’s her face with the bad hair, and lydia (i think that’s everyone?) lower down to some army bunker or something, where a bunch of walkers are taking a snooze, and the girls are very respectful of walker naptime, and do their best not to wake them up

obviously they eventually wake up, but i’ll get to that in a sec

as they’re tiptoeing through the walker tulips, there’s this split second where carol spots a machine gun, and looks at maggie with a face like, “can i plzzzz, i am mad horny for that machine gun,” but maggie tells her no. (i 110% expected her to defy orders and accidentally wake up all the walkers, but she actually behaved herself for once. well. mostly)

never fear, tho, after the girl gang collects a bunch of MREs they go back to wait for the dudes waiting up top to pull them up, and bc men ruin everything, one of the ropes break, and daryl catches it before it falls, but then a slow motion drop of blood falls on a walker’s face, and just like that, walker naptime is over, and carol uses her bow and arrow for two seconds before she is like “fuck this” and whips out the machine gun

yes, she is super hot using it

yes, daryl watches her do it

anyway, all the other girls get rescued, and carol is about to be pulled up, but bc she is a #girlboss, she first makes a beeline for one more crate full of MREs. daryl covers her while she gets the loot, and when she gets back up top they have another charged moment as carol hands him back his knife

just fuck already, jfc

titles!

cut to alexandria where everything is still not smilestimes

BUT, we do get to see uncle daryl run and hug rj and judith (and dog), and FUCKING HERSHEL JR, LIGHT OF MY LIFE is also there

istg, they could not have casted a better child, i a d o r e him

oh, and some friends of maggie’s show up too, idk

cut to a staff meeting where everyone is like, whomp whomp, we’re all gonna starve to death unless we figure out something quick

cue maggie going, “oh, i know where food is, but it requires me to tell you my tragic backstory, in case anyone didn’t watch my bottle episode”

she tells her dramatic backstory about all her friends getting slaughtered by the reapers for no apparent reason, and then she’s like “anyway, let’s go back there!”

no one thinks it’s a great idea, but a group of people decide to go anyway, including daryl and gabriel. rosita is super pissed that gabriel is going, and carol doesn’t go, probably partly bc it’s a shitty fucking idea, and also bc they have to keep caryl apart bc otherwise they’ll fix their problems ahead of schedule and they won’t be able to drag out the needless angst

daryl looks kind of annoyed that carol doesn’t volunteer to go

bitch, i thought you wanted her to stop putting herself in the line of fire! make up your damn mind!

moving on

cut to a thunderstorm, where, if you look closely, you’ll notice daryl is wearing the STUPIDEST hat i’ve ever seen. just get an umbrella, jfc

for some reason negan is with them, bc ig he knows his way around washington dc, and no one in six years has bothered to figure out how to get around the city and/or get a map, and he is like “hey guys, maybe we shouldn’t try to walk in this fucking hurricane,” and everyone is like “FUCK YOU NEGAN, YOU’RE NOT THE BOSS OF US!!!”

this will be a common occurrence

but eventually daryl is even like “actually, it’s rly unpleasant out here, and my hat is mad stupid, can we go inside plz?”

so they go inside an old metro station, which is actually a rly cool cinematic choice. i rly like the idea, and they executed it rly well

speaking of executions

there are some fucking RULL CREEPY walkers. idk why they bothered me so badly, but they were what they at first assumed were corpses wrapped up in tarps, but turns out none of them had been properly put down, so they go through killing these rotted bodies that had supposedly been there since The Fall, and it’s very gross and cool

this entire time, btw, negan is like “hey, i know i’m a shitty person, but i have some rational arguments about why we shouldn’t be doing this right now,” and everyone is like, “FUCK YOU NEGAN, YOU’RE NOT THE BOSS OF US!!!” and he’s just like “god fucking damnit”

(i forgot to mention that at one point, when they’re headed into the metro station, negan is trying to warn ppl of the potential danger, and everyone is ignoring him, and he tries to talk to daryl, and daryl is like “fuck you, you think we’re BUDDIES?” and negan is like “oh, ok, so you’re gonna be like that too? fanfreakingtastic” and it’s very funny)

anyway. a fat monster zombie escapes its tarp at one point, and tries to eat some npc, and negan saves him, again is like “hey, anyone else realize that this is a FUCKING BAD PLAN?”, and everyone is like “we don’t care, you’re still shitty and we’re not listening to you, and you don’t actually care about random npc i would literally not be able to pick out in a lineup bc his face is so generic, you’re not the boss of us!!!”

it’s at this point that negan finally is like, “why am i even here? bc i know how to get around washington dc? do none of you have a map?” and i was like, “right?! that’s what i said!”

it’s then revealed that maggie only brought negan along to murder him under the guise of “oops, he got hurt in the line of duty, it wasn’t my fault,” and daryl has this look on his face that says, “i seriously need to stop hanging out with lethal women bent on revenge bc it’s gonna give me high blood pressure,” and maggie has a badass moment where she points a gun she has for some reason at negan and is like “i have like, one shred of human compassion left inside of me, and if you keep pushing me i will fucking kill you without a second thought, so shut the hell up”

(in her defense, negan had just dropped glenn’s name to purposely antagonize her, which was rude as hell)

(for the record, i’m completely on maggie’s side here, but negan still is right that trapping themselves in a metro station is a bad call)

anyway, moving away from that briefly

i think this jump cut happens sooner, i don’t actually remember, but whatever who cares, point is, we get to the part of the show that actually matters, and that’s anything involving my love, juanita “princess” sanchez

and also eugene, yumiko, and ezekiel

they are being asked increasingly invasive questions by commonwealth ppl, some of which i wish they actually would of answered (what do they use to wipe their asses with?? surely toilet paper has long since become extinct)

zeke, who is so much more tolerable as a character now that he’s not larping as a king, has this incredibly weird and sort of sexually charged moment with a dude in an orange stormtrooper costume, where he’s like, “i bet you were an asshole cop back before The Fall, you stupid fascist, #fuckthepolice, mb literally? idk, this moment has a lot of pent up aggression that could easily translate to hate sex, it might just be the intense eye contact, but w/e, let’s just move along,” and then he has a coughing fit to remind the audience that he’s currently dying of cancer, and orange stormtrooper is like “lolz, loser, drink some water you dumb piece of shit”

cut to the wholesome foursome sitting at a picnic table in a guarded courtyard eating gruel, and yumkio, who finally has a personality, and princess are like “hey, this place fucking sucks, can we leave?” and zeke is like, “yeah, i met this orange stormtrooper who i think might be dtf and/or murder, so we should probably bounce”

but eugene is like, “but i want some hot stephanie ass, and also some bullshit excuse about how mb commonewealth will save alexandria” which, they left before things went super downhill, right? idr. it was after hilltop fell, but they don’t know alexandria got fucked either, if i recall? w/e, not important

two seconds after he says this, they talk to some people who are like “we’ve been here for four months, or maybe it’s been nine, i don’t actually remember, i’ve stopped processing the passage of time,” and the wholesome foursome takes this as a bad sign, tho that’s just the life i’ve lived as a night worker during a pandemic, so i was like #mood

but then they watch some guy get dragged away screaming to get “reprocessed” and eugene is like “ok, nvm, let’s bounce”

(my theory on what “reprocessing” is, is that they’re stuck in a room and have to watch hours and hours of customer service training videos on vhs from the 90s)

i definitely got my jump cut scenes mixed up bc i think the negan accusing maggie of a murder plot thing happened in between this scene and then the next commonwealth scene, but w/e, i’ll just finish what happens in the commonwealth arch

the wholesome foursome are trying to hatch a plan to escape, except princess, my love, is distracted watching some stormtroopers flirt, and the other three are like “wtf, dude, how can you even tell any of them apart?” and princess then tells them every stormtroopers backstory bc she is brilliant and pays rly close attention to shit, and the other three are like, “this is useful information, thank you for being an insane person”

their plan involves yumiko and eugene dressing up as stormtroopers and leading princess and zeke out of the place, which works fine actually, except on their way out they come across the Depressing Wall of Probably Mostly Dead Missing Loved Ones

they’re about to leave, when princess is like, “wait, yumiko, you’re on here, that’s weird huh?”

sure enough, yumiko is on the wall, with a note from ig her sister

the scene ends with yumiko going, “guys...i can’t leave...i have tragic backstory to unveil”

tragic backstory to be continued ig

back in murder metro town, npc and some other npc have stolen all the supplies, there’s a train blocking the track, and a horde of walkers are coming towards them, so things are not going fantastic

they horde is too big to take down, so they start to climb on top of the train car to get away

but dog runs away!

and daryl, being every pet owner ever, is like “gotta go get my dog, guys, try not to get killed while i’m gone, c u soon!” and he ducks under the train and disappears

#priorities

the episode ends with maggie climbing up the train car but getting grabbed by a walker and dangling off the edge, and negan is there and they have a lion king moment where maggie is like, “scar! help me!” and negan is like “long live the king, bitch” and walks away into the shadows, leaving maggie to a potential death

which, while i know isn’t actually going to happen, would be a really fucking funny move on the writers’ part

like, “look, lauren’s back! and now she’s dead, bet you didn’t expect that!”

anyway

my assumption is negan will actually end up helping her up or something, continuing his ambiguous morality bullshit that actually isn’t ambiguous bc he BEAT GLENN TO DEATH WITH A FUCKING BAT WRAPPED IN BARBED WIRE IN FRONT OF HIS PREGNANT WIFE

the maggie/negan arch is kind of dumb, but whatevs, i’ll tolerate it, as long as my boy glenn gets justice in the end

anyway, cue credits!

final assessment: good episode. i’m much more interested in commonwealth than the reapers, tho i am hoping that daryl’s personality-less ex turns out to be a monster killing machine with no conscience, that’ll be fun. princess is a gift from god. hershel jr needs his own tv show. needs more carol (and caryl)

the end! going back into my walking dead free chamber! see you next episode!

-diz

#i didn't mean to recap the entire fucking episode lol #sorry #it's to make up for my lack of content lately #or something #anyway #caryl #twd s11ep1 #twd s11 spoilers #dunlap tp

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enigma-im · 3 years

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Third Day of Christmas...

Trope: Enemies to Lovers (NSFW) Relationship: Minotaur x Human Word Count: 4,025

It all started with a note on the door.

Imani didn't expect to find a letter taped to her door that morning, or any morning for that matter. For a good couple of seconds she feared it was from her landlord, an eviction notice of some kind. That went right out the window as she read the chicken scratched handwriting.

Dear apartment 23 resident,

I'd appreciate it if you would keep the noises to a minimum after 10 pm. The singing has kept me up well past midnight. The stomping at all hours has been less than appreciated. Also, I hate to point out that your dog hasn't been a saint either, barking every morning at 7 am. So if you would please, muzzle the dog and stop the late-night parties.

Signed, apartment 15 resident.

Imani is confused for a moment, walking back into her apartment while rereading the letter. All of it is not true, starting with the singing. She does not sing, especially that late in the day. The neighbor on the other hand has a daughter who doesn't understand her own volume, blaring out BTS songs at odd hours. The stomping is a ridiculous accusation, almost typical in these situations. The only time she can admit that her walking would be loud is when she first gets home and hasn't gotten to removing her shoes. Besides then, she is as quiet as a church mouse. An hour after she gets home she spends most of her time lounging in the living room. so how can she be making noises if she isn't moving?

The woman drops the note onto her kitchen table, put off by the audacity. She looks over to her little dog, shaking her head as she thinks back on the next line. Her dog doesn't bark! He is as silent as can be, never even growling. The most this 'resident' can accuse her pooch over is his nails scratching at the floor. Even then that shouldn't even register through the floors.

With the morning turned sour, Imani quickly organizes her things and heads out for work. The whole day is spent thinking hard on her letter, thinking about what needs to be done. Should she ignore it? Pretend she never got it and go on with her life? That would be the easy approach, even kinder one, but she ain't that kind of bitch.

When she got home late that day she storms into the kitchen, making sure to stop with her shoes still on, and grabs a notebook. She jots down a little message for 'resident 15' with as much passive aggression as she can put into words.

Dear resident 15,

The bold claims you have taped to my door have been read. I'd like to take the time to inform you of your misguided claims. I, for one, am not the local American Idol star. That award goes to Tiny Tina in apartment 22. I don't know why you have such an issue with her music, BTS songs are a bop.

Next on the list is my 'stomping'. Excuse me for correcting you again, but I do not 'stomp' around my apartment. The minute I get home from work I am sitting on my ass watching television till it's time for bed. So I ask you, how can I be stomping around if my feet do not move off the couch?

Finally, my dog. My dog is a saint, for your information, he is the quietest animal I have ever owned. I haven't heard so much as a peep from him since he was a puppy. Maybe check around for other noisy pooches because mine isn't the problem.

With this all said, I hope you find a solution to your problem because bugging me was not it.

Sincerely, resident 23

Signed, sealed, and ready to be delivered. The next morning on the way to work she tapes the little note to the numbers on unit 15. smug, she walks out of there with her head held high.

Feeling proud of herself even further into the day she isn't ready for the speedy reply taped to her door, along with a missing doormat. With a huff, she snatches the note and heads inside. She unfolds the sheet, reading:

Dear 23,

I am not mistaken, and I'm taking your welcome mat until you know how to be a proper upstairs neighbor.

-15

She gawks at the letter, put off by the blatant admission of theft. Are they a child, taking away things as a punishment? This is completely idiotic! She should march downstairs and confront the fool who thinks this is a proper course of action. Well, she would if she didn't also want to get back at them.

Throwing the paper onto the coffee table she flops down on the couch to think. What is the best way to get back at them?

A floor below rests Church the Minotaur. He is getting ready to go on a run, sliding on his sneakers as he opens the door. Glance to the side he catches sight of a gaudy plethora of stickers and glitter, his door dressed to the 9s with rainbows. He is taken aback, looking at the decorations with ire. Above it all sits a folded up piece of paper taped to the door. He quickly snatches it, reading it.

15,

Return the doormat and I'll clean your door.

-23

Church chuffs, grinding his teeth as he looks to the door again. He didn't think he was being unfair when he first gave them a letter. It was a polite way to ask them to shut up. He just wanted some sleep, was that too much to ask? He looks to the door again, apparently, it was.

Imani opens the door fully expecting the letter. With a bit of a pep in her step, she grabs it, reading it as she walks to her car. She snorts, crumpling the paper and tossing it in the trash.

23,

This means war

-15

The next few weeks are filled with pranks of varying variety. The two start small, Imani stomping around upstairs with her heaviest pairs of boots, Church banging his hand against the ceiling during the quiet hours of the night. Next with more glitter courtesy of Church, a well-timed package that exploded in Imani's kitchen. He swears he could hear her surprised scream from below. Imani gets him back with a similar package, one with a jump scare card.

It's a back forth of one-upping the other. Church orders Imani eight pizzas, forcing her to reluctantly pay for it when seeing the nervous kid trying to deal with the mix-up. Imani manages to hook her phone to his Bluetooth speakers, playing random screams at all hours of the night. Church gets her back by attaching an alarm to her door so when walked out that morning she was startled by a firetruck worthy honk.

It seems it’s the last straw for Church when he receives his own glitter bomb of confetti cocks. It gets caught on the carpet, sneaking into the couch cushions, and sticking to his clothes. Quickly dusting himself off he charges upstairs, reaching her door and banging on it. He taps his foot frustrated and angry.

The door clicks open, Church already ready with his rant. Imani is equally prepared, excited with the chance to chew him a new one. When the two see each other they stumble on the words, looking one another over with confusion. Neither of them expected the other to be anything but some angry middle-aged person looking for a fight. They hardly assumed that the other would be so…attractive.

"I, uh," church shakes his head," You! A damn dick bomb? Do you understand how ingrained they are into my carpet? I sent you a cheap one, something you can easily clean up but you couldn't even consider that!"

"What," Imani comes back to her own," those craft herpes were not easy to clean, I'm sure it's still in the kitchen now and staining my clothes. So don't you dare come at me with 'woe is me' look like you had any consideration at all for my floors."

"Well excuse me, I didn't hack into your speakers to play Halloween screams all through the night. I damn near had a heart attack at 2 in the morning because of you," he points to her, debating on jabbing her in the chest. She slaps his hand away before he gets the chance, scoffing.

"At least I didn't make you spend money on eight pizzas! Do you know how much eight pizzas cost? It was like seventy bucks. I'm just glad you didn't splurge on something more than a single topping pizza. But fuck you for making them all pineapple you monster," she bites back.

The two ramble on long enough for the neighbors to peek their heads out. Embarrassed, they close out their argument with a huff and a door slam. Church heads off to his apartment, falling onto the couch while grumbling to himself. Imani growls and mumbles in her bed. They both can't help the thought that ruins all their anger:

God, they were hot.

The pranks don't stop in their frequency. The two continue, using their frustrations at their traitorous thoughts to fuel their revenge.

Imani still plays with his speakers, using screamo songs to annoy him in the afternoons. Church booby traps her door again with more glitter, his preferred weapon as of lately. She takes up tap dancing, he pays the kid next door to blare BTS near the shared wall of her apartment. She puts a fake ticket on his car, he puts vulgar stickers on her's. the childish game goes on and on.

Imani sits in her room one night, frustrated beyond belief with the sexy minotaur. She can't get his face out of her head. Why did he have to be cute? It's not like it makes the little game they have going harder to do. No, it just makes it seem more than it is. She has to constantly catch herself praising his wit in some of the stunts he pulls. Scolding herself nonstop for wanting to stop by his place and yell at him some, just to see him. It's stupid, wanting to actually get to know him.

Church relaxes in bed, feeling more bothered than Imani. He has hit a bit of a dry spell in his sexual life, or his solo sexual life. He can't jerk off without picturing the little hellspawn upstairs. It would be easy to give in and just think of her but it would be too much. She is an enemy, not a potential interest. So what if she is one of the sexiest humans he has ever seen? Who cares if her ability to keep up with him in this little war is kind of turning him on? It doesn't matter, right?

He sighs in defeat, "I don't think I can believe that even if I tried," he grunts as he clenches his shaft.

Imani is at home setting up her next plan when someone knocks on the door. She looks to the clock surprised at someone visiting this hour. Confused, and cautious, she gets out of bed and walks to the door. Looking through the peephole she rolls her eyes at who she sees.

Imani opens the door," if this is about the folk music I'll tell you now I'm not changing it back."

"No," he growls," this is about the tap shoes. Metal on wood makes for some very undesirable sounds."

"Well, excuse me for trying to take up a new hobby. What about you paying off the kid next door to play her music next to my wall? I swear that little demon doesn't sleep," Imani scolds.

"Speaking of little demons, can you for the love of god shut your dog up. Every morning I hear his damn barking and I'm seriously debating calling someone," he takes a step into her space, scowling at the dog behind her.

"He doesn't bark," she pokes at his chest," I have never heard him even make a yelp since he was a puppy so I suggest you come up with a better lie than that."

"A lie," he shouts," your fucking dog barks, stop thinking he is some sort of mute."

"He does not," she shouts back.

"Does too," he steps closer.

"Does not," she raises her chin.

"Does too," he grabs her hips.

"Does not," she tugs at his shirt.

"Does too," he says, lowering closer to her. Before she can get her turn he quiets her with a rather harsh kiss, mashing his lips to hers. They grapple one another, pulling the other closer as they stumble into her apartment.

Church kicks the door shut as he fumbles with her shirt. She helps, parting from him long enough to cast the clothing aside. He tugs her back in for a sloppy kiss, delving his tongue into her mouth as she unbuttons his top. Thrusting his shirt down his arms while they bump into the sofa. Church beings unclasping her bra, uncoordinated as she sucks on his tongue.

The two fall to the couch, church not wasting any time with her freshly revealed tits. Imani gasps, petting down his chest to his pants. As he suckles on a nipple as she pulls him from his pants, holding his cock in her hand. He stutters in his attentions, panting heavily against her chest as she jerks him off.

"Oh, fuck," he groans.

"Like that big boy," she steals his attention, him looking at her cocky smile.

"Shut up," he reaches down to her pants, palming her through her jeans. She bucks into his hand, rolling her eyes at his smirk. He quickly discards her bottoms, tossing them away without a care. He watches her as he pets at her pussy, delving between her lips to feel how soaked she is for him.

"Am I wrong to assume this is all for me," he pushes a finger in. she clenches her jaw, groaning from the intrusion. He chuckles, feeling rather confident as she rides his hand. Not caring for his large ego she reaches for his cock once more, feeling him throb in her grip.

"Am I wrong to assume this is all for me," she mimics back smugly. He throws her an annoyed look, removing his fingers and slapping her hand away. Dropping a hand beside her head he leans down, looking between them as he prods his cock to her pussy. They both flinch, eager above all else. They both watch as his head parts her lips, poking at her clit with short nudges.

"You think I can make you scream like those damn Halloween recordings," he jokes as he grinds into her.

"No, I don't think you have the stamina," she jabs back, trying to stop the urge to buck against him. Church leans down and nuzzles against her neck, pressing a sweet kiss under her jaw.

"I guess we will just have to see," he grins, feeling less confident than his words suggest. His cock is damn near ready to burst with just his tip being coated in her sweet juices.

Church reaches between them, pressing his cock to her entrance. He guides his tip in, stretching his arm up to rest it beside her head. The only warning he gives her is a sultry smile before he shoves forward, both crying out at the suddenness.

"Oh, shit," Church whimpers beside her ear. Imani grabs at his arms, feeling utterly stuffed. He pulls back, thrusting forward quickly. Imani appreciates him not wasting time just pistoning into her. The need has been building up all week, the denial adding a new level of appeal to this want.

He rams into her, listening to her try to hide her cries of pleasure. He feels her body tell him what he needs to know, feels her walls pulling him in with every buck of his hips. She wants him as badly as he wanted her. It's satisfying to church to know this. To know that she needs this as much as he does. Not wanting to miss a thing he sits up, grabbing her hips as he does.

"Look at you," he groans," trying to hold back those little moans and whimpers. Don't fight it, babe, I wanna hear you." Imani startles herself with a cry, arching her back as his words add kindle to the fire. She wants to pretend this isn't happening, that she isn't getting fucked by her apartment enemy. But damn, does it feel fantastic.

Church watches her writhe on the couch, his stomach clenching as he tries to fight off cumming at the sight. Her tits bounce with each clap of their hips and it's driving him wild. Reluctantly he shuts his eyes, thinking about anything else to prolong this blissful torture.

Imani wails and whimpers as her insides are set aflame. As her orgasm comes rushing to the forefront she locks her legs around his waist, grinding like a madwoman into his thrust. She cries out her pleasure, utterly wrecked as she falls apart.

Church chokes on his breath as she clenches around him. He can barely think as she holds him in a vice grip. His hips go wild as he finds himself coming to an end. It's only half a thought that he undoes her legs and pulls out, grinding against her as he cums on her stomach. Imani watches in rapture as he tosses his head back and moans, the sound going straight to her already throbbing clit. She watches him spray out over her and she can't look away for even a second.

Church falls onto his hands, panting as he holds himself over her. He can't believe it. He got to fuck the cute hellspawn that has been tormenting him all month. At this moment he couldn't even think about the countless hours of sleep missed because of her little pranks. Right now all he can think of is holding her close and taking a much-needed nap. As he attempts the action he looks to her stomach.

Imani is bone-deep satisfied. Her body is relaxed against the couch and she feels like she's on cloud nine. She hardly notices when Church climbs off her, his footsteps fading away. When she does notice, it stabs at her heart a little. She watches him button up his pants, reaching to the floor to grab his shirt. I guess he's leaving, she thinks.

Church grabs his shirt from the floor, bunching it up as he turns back to her. She looks surprised when he crouches beside her and mops up the mess on her stomach with his top. He wants to laugh at the shocked expression but bites his cheek against it. With her all clean he tosses the shirt away and crawls in beside her. The couch is rather small so he lifts her onto his chest, lounging on his back. He cradles her against his front, ready to take a well-deserved nap.

Imani is rather confused as she watches him fall asleep. She fully figured he would dip after everything, she surely didn't expect anything from this. They were still in a war. A truce was never called but she can't help but think this changes something.

Shrugging, she snuggles up to him, enjoying his soft fur against her cheek. This is a problem she will deal with in the morning.

Imani wakes up alone in her bed. She is nearly tempted to figure the night with Church was all a dream till she feels the subtle ache in her legs. Ride a bull, you should expect some soreness. She chuckles to herself as she dresses. Walking into the kitchen she prepares for a lazy day indoors while she figures out how to deal with Church and her's relationship. As she gets ready to feed her pup does she realize the lack of said pooch.

"uh, Giovani," she calls out. No answer. She calls out again, searching around her apartment frantically. Did he get out while the door was open last night? Surely she would have noticed if he managed to sneak past. She rounds the apartment again just in case before she runs to the door, throwing it open in a rush. Out of the corner of her eye, she spots something hanging on her peephole. She tenses at the sight, snatching it.

Imani I have your dog Church

Imani scoffs, crumpling the letter as she marches downstairs. She can't believe she let herself think that things would change between them. That this little prank war can be swapped out for an actual relationship, friendship or otherwise. Above all, she can't believe he stole her dog.

Rounding the corner and stopping at door 15 she pounds her fist against the wood. She continues pounding till the door opens, revealing a smirking Church.

"Hello, babe, what brings you here so early," he asks, leaning against the frame.

"You stole my fucking dog, I want him back," she snaps, no ounce of playfulness available. Church nearly stutters on his act, a little worried about her protectiveness over her dog.

"Now, I stole him for his own good," he explains," with his separation anxiety I figured it is best if he got used to my apartment since I'm going to take up training him."

Imani scoffs," Excuse me? My dog doesn't have separation anxiety nor does he need to be trained by some dog snatching idiot with horns."

Church deadpans," idiot with horns?"

"It's early, they can't all be gold," she rolls her eyes," doesn't matter, give me my dog back."

Church shakes his head, frustrated at her denial. Instead of answering her, he calls for the pup, leaning down to pet him when he comes trotting over. With the dog properly excited he takes a step into the hallway with Imani and shuts the door. Imani looks from him then back to the door.

"What are you doing," she asks.

"Just wait," he holds up a finger. They both stand silently, nothing happening. Imani opens her mouth to acknowledge the ridiculous of waiting in front of a door when her dog begins whining, yelping loudly from inside the apartment. Church looks over to her with a smug grin, "Told you he barks."

Imani flusters, gawking at the door and listening to her dog cry out. Church opens the door, the pup running out and jumping at Imani. Still embarrassed, she pets at her dog before picking him up and walking away. Church watches her turn the corner, not saying a word as she departs. He sighs.

It's a good day of nothing that picks at Church. Surely he didn’t push too far, he didn't really intend to keep her dog so it wasn't that mean. He just wanted to prove that her dog did bark, finishing the month-long war on a hopeful note. It wasn't meant as another attack against her. He really did intend to help by offering to train her dog.

Throughout the day he debates going up there and apologizing, to offer an olive branch of some kind so he can actually get to know her. Last night for Church was…amazing. It was something he wants to do again, to explore further. That may be a pipe dream now.

Late into the afternoon church gets a knock on his door. He jumps up, feeling rather stupid as he quickly answers the door. Expecting Imani he is left disappointed as no one is there. No one could have left that fast. He looks down the hall, left to right. Nothing. With a defeated sigh he begins to close the door. He stops when a fluttering piece of paper catches his eye. Excited, he snaps it off the door unfolding it swiftly.

Church,

Dinner at my place, 8 pm

-Imani

Church smiles to himself, refolding the paper and heading back inside to get ready.

#12 days of christmas #12 tropes for christmas #Enigma-IM #monster boyfriend #exophilia #enemies to lovers #minotaur boyfriend

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riotwritesthings · 4 years

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The Curious Witch and the Cursed Wolf

Chapter 2: A Meeting and A Revelation | AO3

Chapter 1 here!

art by the fantastical @gayspacesprinkles

Haha I’m so happy I wrote all of this ahead of time this has been a MONTH so far

Title: The Curious Witch and the Cursed Wolf (Chapter 2) Collaborator(s): Riot @buckybarnesbingo Square Filled: K3, Just do it Ship/Main Pairing: WinterIron Rating: T Major Tags/Warnings: fantasy AU, witch!Tony, wolf!Bucky, fairytale vibes, Non-graphic injury Summary: Once upon a time there was a man, and a wolf. They both went into the forest looking for different things, and instead they found each other. Word Count: 1,871

Once upon a time there was a wolf, injured and alone, crawling his way towards the forest, looking for safety.

The wolf waits until all he can hear is the rush of the water, the rustle of the grass on the cliff above, until the hunters leave.

They must think he’s dead. He should be dead, still unsure how he managed to drag himself out of the cold water and onto the shore.

He still might die, bleeding heavily until the scent of it fills the air, drowns out everything else. He needs to move, he can’t risk that the hunters are just circling around to finish him off.

The forest still seems so far away.

The wolf forces himself to move, and slowly, so slowly, he begins dragging himself on three legs towards the tree line.

He wakes up to the snap of a branch and the wolf snarls weakly, sluggishly looking around for the source of the noise.

There’s a man, hidden behind a tree and given away by the loud, terrified pounding of his heart.

The wolf snarls again because it’s all he can do, too weak to move.

The man doesn’t smell like danger, he smells like rain and clean earth. When he pokes his head out around the tree his hair is a mess, leaves caught in the loose brown curls and dirt smeared across his face.

“Hi,” the man says softly, and then squeaks when the wolf growls low in his chest, big brown eyes going wide.

The wolf stops growling, feels a little bad about the scared-deer look in the man’s eye because no, that’s not what he wants. He doesn’t want to be a monster, what everyone accuses him of being.

So he whines instead, and the man steps out from behind the tree, moves carefully closer.

“Okay, okay hi,” the man says. “I want to help you, but um- fair warning I have very little medical expertise, unless you count bandaging myself up, but I do actually have a surprising amount of experience in that, so, oh—“

The man’s rambling cuts off with a soft sound as he gets closer, close enough to see the missing limb, the ground dark with blood beneath them.

“Okay,” the man says again, voice breaking, but he’s still stepping closer. “Wow, you- we gotta stop the bleeding, I-I’ll be right back.”

He wants to tell the man not to bother. The man’s clothes look torn and he looks tired, like he has enough to worry about. The wolf has been running for so long, it was bound to end eventually.

But the man is already turning, running off into the trees. The wolf lets his eyes fall closed again.

He's just so tired.

The man comes back with a couple uprooted plants clenched in one hand and halfway through stripping off his tattered shirt with the other, the scent of goldenrod and yarrow thick in the air.

He approaches slowly, warily, but he smells more like worry than fear. There’s a slight glow around him, spreading from a point in the center of his chest like trapped starlight.

"I'm going to try and stop the bleeding," the man says, voice shaking. "Please don't eat me, I'm going to go slow and tell you everything I'm doing, so- well, I guess that's assuming you even know what I'm saying, but I've seen a lot of crazy shit the past couple weeks—"

Just do it, the wolf thinks, and the man’s eyes widen a little.

He doesn't pause though, drops to his knees beside the wolf and gets to work.

His hands are calloused, but gentle, pressing crushed herbs against the wound, using his own shirt as a bandage, talking softly the entire time.

His name is Tony, and he came to the forest to learn, because he wants to know more, wants to learn how to make things better.

Alone? The wolf thinks, trying to distract himself from the agony of Tony tightening the makeshift bandage.

Tony gives a tiny shrug and his smile is even smaller.

"I'm always alone," he says.

The wolf whines softly, because he understands, but Tony apologizes in a broken voice, gentles his hands impossibly further.

He strokes along the wolf’s side, fingers gentle and so warm as they slide through his fur.

The wolf falls asleep to warm blue light growing brighter around him, the scent of sun-warmed stone and clear nights.

Tony’s hands are warm and the pain is slowly fading away.

The wolf wakes up feeling rested, feeling healed, still down a leg but the ache of it is completely gone.

Tony is still there, retreated across the small clearing to give the wolf some space.

“Hey,” he says, perking up when he sees the wolf watching him warily. “You’re awake, I wasn’t sure—“ he pauses, lets out a slow breath, and then smiles so wide that his eyes shine with it. “I’m glad.”

The wolf flicks his ears forward, thumps his tail once against the ground. When he works up the energy to shift his shoulders there’s no pain.

He’ll live for now.

Thank you, he thinks, and Tony smiles, and the wolf expects that to be the end of it.

Tony will leave, or demand a favor and wind up very disappointed when he learns he wasted his time saving something with very little power of its own. Then the wolf can get on with figuring out if he can actually survive.

But instead Tony just stays, brings him rabbits and tries to hide his wince when the wolf gobbles them up in one bite. He sleeps on the other side of the small clearing, dug in amongst the roots, shivering slightly.

He stays until the wolf can stand, until he can walk, only a little unsteady on his three legs.

“Lookin’ good!” Tony cheers, curled up against his tree with plants and rocks scattered around him, a tiny notebook spread across his lap.

The wolf knows that he should leave, before the hunters find him again, or someone else, before Tony realizes that he’s saved a monster.

Instead he steps carefully closer, head down, trying to look as harmless as possible, making himself smaller. A careful smile starts to grow on Tony’s face.

"Well," Tony says slowly, "I guess, you probably want to be on your way, unless—“

“There you are!” Comes a tiny voice from the bushes, startlingly close to where Tony is seated, soft and sweet if incredibly frustrated.

The wolf is across the clearing before he knows it, standing protectively between Tony and the noise and growling low in his chest, fur standing on end.

“Finally staying in one place, been following you since you activated the damn crystal," the voice continues, and whoever it is is talking more to herself than anything, leaves rustling around the source of the noise.

"Do you know how hard it is to keep up with you when you won’t stop exploring?!” the voice demands, raising again. “Damnit Tony, I am very small!”

Sure enough, the creature that emerges from the brush is quite small, barely bigger than a rabbit and the wolf can definitely eat it in one bite if he needs to.

Maybe he shouldn't though. The ball of light with fluttering wings glows a soft blue that matches the glow in Tony's chest, and maybe they're friends.

He probably shouldn't eat Tony's friends.

Except Tony's quick heartbeat still echoes in the wolf's ears, fuels the low growl still rumbling through his chest, and Tony's voice shakes a little as he asks “Um, do I know you?”

The wolf growls again, snaps his teeth, and the ball of light floats up a little higher.

“Call off the dogs,” she says, sounding more offended than anything, “I have something important to tell you.”

"Wait,” Tony says, crawling out of his nest in the tree roots. “Were you the one talking to me by that river a little while ago?"

"Yes!"

"Oh my god I thought that was a bird!” Tony groans, slapping his hands over his face and further smearing himself in dirt. "I gave it my last bit of bread!"

"I told you not to!" the ball of light cries, bobbing in the air in apparent distress.

"I thought it was a trick!" Tony whines, slumping back against the tree and kicking his bare feet a little.

The wolf isn’t sure what to think. He sits back on his haunches, tilts his head to the side. The ball of light doesn’t seem aggressive, at least, even if she does smell strangely of rain.

“Okay,” Tony says, pushing himself upright again, warm eyes shining in amusement. “Okay, you had something to tell me?”

“Yes,” the ball of light says, then makes a sound like a tiny throat clearing. “You’re a witch, Tony.”

Tony blinks slowly. Opens his mouth and then closes it again. The wolf whines.

“I’m a what,” Tony finally says.

“A witch,” she repeats and the wolf whines again, slinks backwards.

He knows that word. It’s what the hunters called themselves, makes him think of smoke and fire and screaming and changing.

But Tony isn’t like that. Tony smells like sunlight, like fresh air, like the forest around them and the dirt rubbed into his skin, like the leaves caught in his hair and the herbs he’s always collecting, like life.

Tony isn’t like that, he can’t be.

Even now, Tony is still blinking in confusion, face open and eyes so warm as he glances down at the glow in his chest and asks “Because of this?”

“No,” says the ball of light, then wavers in the air a little. “Well, kind of. It’s why the crystal called to you, although you weren’t supposed to just grab it.”

Tony grins sheepishly, and the wolf huffs softly.

“You seem to be alive though,” the light continues, tiny voice dry and still musical. “And if anything embedding that shard in your chest has just made you crazy powerful, so, congratulations I guess.”

“What do you—“ Tony starts to ask and then pauses, turns to look at the wolf with eyes widening in understanding.

And suddenly the wolf understands too. It’s why Tony was able to heal him, why there’s no pain, why he’s alive.

Witch or not, Tony isn’t much like the hunters at all.

A wide smile spreads across Tony’s face, eyes nearly glowing along with the stone in his chest, and the wolf completely forgets that he’s supposed to be leaving.

“What happened to your clothes?” The ball of light asks, floating a little closer as the wolf’s fur finally smoothes down, his ears flicking forwards.

Tony isn’t listening though, too busy pushing himself to his feet and excitedly asking ”Wait, can I fly?!”

“You know you can just make more clothes, right?!”

“Flying,” Tony insists, staring at the ball of light flatly.

The wolf lets his tongue loll out in a fond smile.

The light seems almost reluctant to answer, but finally says “Yeah, if that’s what you really want, but—“

Tony drowns out the rest of the sentence with high pitched excited noises, and the wolf whines again, ears ringing with it.

#my fiic #bucky/tony #winteriron #starkbucks #buckybarnesbingo #buckybarnesbingo2020

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thisentertaining · 3 years

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As the Blue Spirit Howls - Chapter 3

STORY SUMMARY:

Zuko was not a good shifter.

Azula could switch between her wolf and human skins between steps. Not Zuko, he needed several minutes before he even started the shift, and that was on a good day. If it had been Azula who Animal Control found in that alley, they would have walked away convinced that their eyes had played a trick on them. There had never been a dog there.

But Zuko’s long transformation would have only revealed his kind to the world. Father may think he has no honor, but he wouldn’t stoop so low as that. Even if that meant being dumped in animal shelter, trapped as much by the 24/7 security cameras as by the cage bars.

He had the worst luck. -

“Come on guys!” Aang said as he lead his friends through the clamoring barks of the shelter. “I want to show you my favorite dog! He’s a sweetheart.”

Aang lead the pair to where a monstrous beast of a dog was growling with raspy barks loud enough to drown out the rest of the shelter. His bright white teeth contrasted against golden eyes and a bright red scar that stretched over the side of his face as he lunged against the cage door.

Sokka laughed nervously. “Did the word ‘sweetheart’ change meaning when I wasn’t looking?”

Chapter 1

Chapter 4

Read on Ao3

“He’s actually being a pretty good dog.” Katara said as Zuko paused to sniff on a bush right outside the door. Her leash was lightly looped around her wrist, as was Aang’s. The other boy had a death grip on the ugly nylon.

“Maybe hold that judgement after we’ve been walking him more than five seconds, sis.”

The girl scowled at her brother. “You know what I mean! When we say him going crazy in there, I didn’t think he would ever calm down. Especially not this quickly.”

“He’s really a good boy!” Aang said. “Once he calms down at least. He’s just kinda... spirited at first, but look how happy he is to be outside! Now he’s all wags, no growls.”

Zuko flicked an ear and took a longer sniff at the bush. As the first plant directly outside the shelter, it was covered in… messages from other dogs. Fairly typical. Mostly healthy, some fear or aggression but not much. It was a pretty good shelter. You know, assuming you were actually a dog. He wasn’t enjoying his time.

The good thing was, he now had plenty of examples of 'good-dog' behavior to copy. He thought back on what made a 'good dog' that would convince them to take him home. First of all, he couldn’t actually escape. Not pulling on the leash at all would be suspicious (not to mention a test of self-restraint that Zuko knew he could never pass) but he had to make sure not to pull so far that he was actually at risk of escaping.

Second, he had to put away any lingering pride he’d managed to retain. Dogs were… silly. Foolish. They played games and begged for attention and touch and made messes. He hadn’t acted like that since he was a child with his mother. If he’d even done it then. He doubted it though, Father would have disapproved.

He eyed one of the other dogs as they were bundled into the car of a little girl with large, poofy pigtails. The English Bull Terrier pup wiggled happily in her lap as he went on to his forever home, licking the giggling child’s face. Zuko sighed impatiently as the children holding onto his multiple leashes continued to talk instead of actually walk him anywhere. He couldn't act like that. This was going to be impossible.

A new car pulled up as the girl with the bull terrier left. This one was fancy, new, and streamlined. It was the kind of money that almost never darkened the halls of a shelter. Despite himself, Zuko watched with interest, curious at who it was. When the door opened and a familiar scent wafted out, he felt a growl start rumbling at the base of his throat, going steady at the sight of the familiar girl exiting the luxury car.

The teen’s behind him stopped their chatter, Aang kneeling beside him hesitantly and running a soothing hand down his back. “Hey bud, you okay?” He pet Zuko with steady, careful strokes that would have calmed any actual dog quickly, but the beast’s steady growl didn’t falter. “It’s okay boy, you’re okay. You’re okay. Guys do you-“

“What are you doing with Snarly?” A young, feminine voice demanded.

Aang looked up, seeing a short unfamiliar girl in green overalls and a matching headband standing over them. Despite being several inches shorter than the rest of them, she seemed to tower as she crossed her arms and scowled.

“Snarly? Do you mean Blue Spirit?”

The girl scoffed. “That’s a stupid name. Naming a dog after a bar? Can you say ‘lacking imagination’?”

Behind Zuko, Sokka hummed. “Snarly does kinda fit him better.” The boy mused, ruffling the top of his head. The dog snapped at the hand. Nowhere close, but enough that the teen jerked his hand back.

Well. Being a good dog was going great.

“Exactly.” The girl said with a grin as she reached out and pet his head just as Sokka had. The boy made a noise in warning, but for her Zuko simply turned to that his unscarred side was by her searching fingers. “That’s why he’s my favorite. I can always tell where he is.”

The Avatar and his friends shared a confused glance at that comment before realizing as one that the girl hadn’t looked at them once through the whole conversation. Filmy-white eyes stared over their heads as the girl tucked the previously-unnoticed cane under her arm and knelt to pet Zuko with both hands. “Don’t tell him though.” The girl continued with a wicked grin. “Don’t want him getting a big head.”

Zuko barked in protest, never once halting his continuous rumbling growl.

Aang perked. “Does that mean you’re here to adopt him?”

The girl, Zuko had never gotten her name, frowned with a heavy sign. “No. My parents won’t let me. They’re worried that getting another dog would distract Badger-Mole.”

“Right, right.” Sokka said, “And that is a…”

“He’s my seeing eye dog. And it’s stupid because tons of people with guide dogs have pets too. I even asked the trainers, and they said it’s perfectly fine. He’s trained to work with distractions. But no.” She drug out the word sarcastically. “My parents know better than the professionals.”

“That stinks.” Katara said genuinely.

“Yeah. But whatever. Apparently, he was adopted anyway. Sorry I yelled at you, I know they said that it would be hard to find him an owner so I overreacted. Probably not a great way to convince people to keep a dog.”

“Probably not.” The Avatar laughed. “But it’s okay. We aren’t adopting him though, just fostering so that he can be in a home until someone does come to adopt.”

“We are talking about foster- you know what, I give up.” The eldest boy sighed. “I know we’re getting the dog.”

The girl scrunched her nose before eventually shrugging. “Fine, as long as he’s out of Long Feng’s grubby hands. That dude gives me the creeps.”

Zuko barked in soft agreement as the other kids laughed.

“Name’s Toph.” The girl introduced herself, sticking a hand out nowhere near the other three.

Katara moved to take and shake the hand. “My name is Sapphire.” She lied. Zuko’s ears perked, recognizing that the name was very different from the one that the others had used for her earlier. If he was to complete his mission, learning their false names could only help.

“Wang,” Sokka added with a useless wave. Zuko committed the false name to memory.

Aang jumped to his feet to shake her hand. “I’m Kuzon. It’s great to meet you. We’re going to take Spirit-“

“Snarly.”

“For a walk if you want to come with.”

The girl’s head cocked to the side, as though listening to something. After a moment, she simply shrugged. “Why not?”

From behind them, a loud clearing of the throat sounded from the front of the car, where a driver glared at them from behind a window. Toph sighed explosively. “Give me a second, I have to go check in before my busy body parents call the shelter.”

She stomped her way into the building, cane swinging wildly as she grumbled.

The group watched her, Aang’s hands still running down Zuko’s back as the growling petered out. “Awww,” Aang cooed. “Such a good boy.”

“That’s really impressive though.” Katara cut in. “He realized that she was blind and made sure that she could hear him. He must be really smart.”

Sokka made a disagreeing noise. “He probably just realized that she was happy when he was growling, gave him extra treats or pats or whatever and accidentally trained him to growl. Dogs can be taught to do anything these days.”

Zuko was offended. As he wasn't an actual dog, he wasn’t sure he should be.

“It’s still smart.” Katara argued with the passion of a sibling arguing against another. “He’s only been here a week or so and already trained himself to do that? That’s really smart for a dog.”

“Hey, I’m just saying. He’s a dog, he was trained to do a trick. Congratulations, you and Pavlov can compare notes.”

Aang glanced between the pair nervously. “Calm down, we don’t-“

Katara wasn’t listening. Zuko was just hoping that she wouldn’t have the same resources his sister had when angry to sit on. “You are such a-“

“Fight! Fight! Fight Fight! “ Toph chanted as she made her way to the group. She had a leash coiled in her hands, and when Zuko started growling again she managed to find his collar and attach it with little fumbling.

The other teens scrambled to explain their argument, but Zuko was getting tired of waiting. With a loud bark, the wolf started towards one of the walking trails, dragging Sokka, who had somehow wrapped the leash around his wrist enough that his was significantly shorter than the others. The boy yelped.

“Well, guess we’re going.”

“Sorry buddy.” Aang laughed. Zuko flicked an ear towards him but otherwise ignored the apology. He stuck to the cement path running through an open field rather than the wooded paths that called to his wolf blood. It wasn’t because that would be easiest for Toph. Really. He’d barely even noticed that. Really. He just thought that if the path was easier they would talk more and he would get more information out of them.

Really.

That was it.

“So, if you can’t get another dog, why are you at the shelter?” Sokka asked the stranger.

“Volunteering.” The girl answered, “Duh. I’m homeschooled and I was going absolutely insane sitting at home every day. I was sneaking out but,” She shrugged. “I knew eventually that they would realize that those pillows under my blankets weren’t breathing. I threatened to run away for real if they didn’t find a way to let me out of the house sometimes, and so.” She shrugged. “A compromise. For now.”

“That’s cool.” Aang said sunnily. “This is a great shelter, I come here every Tuesday and Thursday to volunteer too! I’m kinda surprised that we hadn’t seen each other before, but I’m usually here a lot earlier.”

That was good information. Wait. Was it though? If Zuko revealed himself or ‘ran away’, he probably wouldn’t come back. But it did mean it was a time that he was alone and out of their house fairly consistently. If Zuko could arrange for someone to go after him at the right time…

He really wished he had anyone he could trust to do that without taking the glory for themselves and leaving him out to dry.

Okay, so that wouldn’t work. But it still would be a good thing to know. This wasn’t going well. He wasn’t getting any good information on his actual targets and- rabbit!

Zuko stood stock still, nostrils flaring as he followed them to see a fluffy furry brown ball chewing at a clump of clover in the corner of the path. He ceased the low rumbling he’s been admitting since Toph joined, going stock still as he crouched into a predatory stance. Ear’s up, head close to the ground, feet carefully placed, Zuko slowly stalked forward towards the entirely unaware prey creature.

A predatory wolf’s blood was running through his veins, begging for the chase and hunt that he had been denied for the weeks he’d spent in a form born in it. He licked his chops, ignoring the babbling distractions behind him as the predator centered on prey.

“Hey!” Aang suddenly yelled behind him with a laugh. “Run Bunny, Run!”

Startled, the rabbit took off. With a growl, Zuko lunged after it, jumping forward on strong, muscular legs. There were a myriad of cried behind him as the group was sent sprawling by the force of his leap, but as the shelter administer had said, he couldn’t exactly drag four people across the yard. Well, he could. He was strong enough. He just wouldn’t be fast enough to catch the rabbit so what was the point?

He stopped after a few steps and whined as the rabbit disappeared into the woods.

Toph, miraculously the only one to keep her footing, laughed uproariously. “Why did you think it was a good idea to make the rabbit run, idiot?”

“Oops.” Aang mumbled from his place on the ground.

Sokka spit out a mouthful of grass. “Well. Are you ready to sign some papers? This seems like a great idea.”

#avatar: the last airbender #ATLA #fanficton #MY FANFICS #Zuko #prince zuko #Aang #Sokka #Katara #Toph #Werewolf AU #Modern AU

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surveys-at-your-service · 3 years

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Survey #385

“I am a human being, capable of doing terrible things”

Who in your family has been married the longest? (and how long?) Uhhhh. I don't know. Do you take your shoes off when you come inside? Yes. What’s your favorite movie series? I think Shrek when you consider all the movies' (well, I haven't seen the last one, but...) quality. No memeage here, I just genuinely love Shrek, haha. I would say The Lion King, but miraculously when you consider the focus on meerkats, I actually don't like 1 1/2 much. What was the first color you ever dyed your hair? Hm... I think I got purple highlights? Do you want to move anytime soon? Even though we haven't even lived here a year, yes. I don't like living in an urban area, and I also reeeeaaaally don't like our family friend being our landlord. I know that sounds very weird, but she's just a very controlling person who forcefully inserts herself into my family's lives now more than ever, and I have a pretty deep fear that a potential argument finally erupting will lead to us being kicked out. I genuinely don't think Tobey would ever do that, but the fear is still there. How good/bad was the quality of education you received in high school? Average, I guess? What was the most interesting year of your life, and why? "Interesting," maybe... 2017 or 2018? I learned a lot about myself in that time range. But at the same time, my life was (and still is) VERY uneventful. Just a lot of mental stuff went on. What was the first social media site you ever used? Myspace. Do you have any exes you really regret dating? REALLY regret? No. I wish I'd never dated Tyler, but it's not a massive regret or anything. He was still a cool guy that I have a few nice memories with. Have you ever lied on a resume? Or even in a job interview? Ha, I'd definitely stretch the truth about being more of a people-person than I am. I couldn't go too far with lying, though; I'm just not comfortable doing that, 'cuz like, they're gonna find out eventually that it's not true. Of all your friends & family, who has the most nicely-decorated home? Maybe my friend Summer. Her room has always been super cool. What brought about the end of the worst relationship you’ve been in? Apparently, not talking to him every second of every day two weeks into a relationship was a no-no. Where was the last place you spent the night other than your own home? The sleep study building or whatever it's considered in the medical plaza. Do you have any step- or half-siblings? I have both. What do people always seem to think is weird about you? The fact I don't watch TV. Do you ever braid your hair? It's way too short for that. Even when it was long, I didn't do it frequently at all. Is there any certain style of architecture you really enjoy? Roman, in particular. What was the last thing you gave up on? uhhhhhhhhhhh If you watch Parks and Recreation, who is your favorite character? I don't. What’s the last DIY project you did, if any? If you can’t remember, what’s something you’d be interested in doing? I'm not really into DIY stuff, honestly. I'd rather just buy products that were made better than I could, or commission someone who can. What's a song that makes you feel happy? I dunno. It's rare a song alone makes me happy. What is your favorite clothing store? Rebel's Market. How did you meet your best friend? YouTube, back when it was a more social platform. What is something you do well? Catastrophize any situation. Assume the worst of everything. What's a good idea you've had recently? Probably to re-engage with a calorie-counting app I used to use. I'm back to trying to use it consistently. Do you like to wear high heels? Does ANY person LIKE to? How many slices of pizza do you usually eat? Two or three depending on my appetite and the size of the pizza. Do you play any instruments? Not anymore. Do you always smile for pictures? Not always. What are you most excited about right now? To see the results of my TMS therapy. What's the last song you listened to? "Ex’s and Oh’s” by Elle King. What's the last YouTube video you watched? I'm watching an Erosium livestream rn. Newest channel binge, haha. Do you know anyone who's died in childbirth? No. Would you ever consider moving to another country for your career? No. I don't want to leave my family. Do you wear foundation? No, I hate the feeling of that crap. Do you know anyone who has run for public office? No. Do you have a cartilage piercing? I used to, but the hole closed when I had to take it out for the hospital. :/ I plan on getting it repierced. Have you ever been taken to the emergency room or urgent care? If so, why? Yes; for being suicidal, a suicide attempt, and when I had a horribly infected cyst and just existing made me want to sob with pain. Have you ever had to visit anyone in the hospital? Yeah, a few times. What is the most pain (physical, mental, emotional) you've ever felt? Physical: having the aforementioned cyst drained when I was not nearly numbed enough. Mental and emotional (what's really the difference?): my breakup with my first real boyfriend. What is the longest time you've spent crying? Oh, hours on end, fluctuating with intensity. Have you ever been stolen from? Yes. Have you ever been to a ghost town? No, but I would FUCKING LOVE to. Let me bring my camera and it's a field day. Has anything in your house ever caught on fire? Not in this current house. Have you ever been inside of a vacant house? No. Have you ever been attacked by a dog? No. What is the most disgusting thing you've ever seen? The massive cyst my late dog Teddy developed on his lower belly. That fucking thing hung on by a THREAD and was absolutely nauseating to look at. How old were you when you learned how to read? I don't recall, I just know it was earlier than most children. Do you prefer cats or dogs? Cats. Which book series was the first you read? I want to say Hank the Cowdog. I was hooked on it. Would you rather write a book or direct a movie? Haha, what a question, as I've considered both of these as potential careers. I think write a book. What dream that you’ve had has stuck in your head the most? Describe: A nightmare about my dad that I'm not going into. What emotion do you find yourself trying to hide from others? I'm very uncomfortable revealing jealousy or envy. How emotional/sentimental would you say you are? Extremely. What is the most fun game to play? Shadow of the Colossus, probably. What is your sense of humor like (dry, dark, sarcastic, etc.)? I don't know, maybe dry. How many languages can you say "hello my name is…" in? Two. What language do you think sounds the nicest? I don't know, it's not like I've heard every language be spoken. What language do you want to learn more of? German. Do you have any form of OCD? I'm diagnosed with OCD. Do you make promises often? No. I take promises VERY seriously and am not about to make one unless I'm certain I can keep it. What is it that you are responsible for? My pets, keeping my room clean, stuff like that. Do you have a lot of secrets? Not "a lot," no. Are you more likely to be verbally aggressive or physically? Verbally. I'm only physically aggressive in my nightmares. What warning has someone given you that you wish you’d have listened to? Hm. What warning has someone given you you are glad you didn’t take? I also don't know. What is your favourite video of on YouTube? I can't pick just one. Name one creature that freaks you out/scares you? Maggots. Just the word makes me squirm. What was the last thing you wrote down on paper? My signature. Have you ever watched Breaking Bad? No. Are your fingernails always painted? They never are. What color is your bed frame? A rich brown. Did any of your neighbors come over to welcome you when you moved into your current house? No. What's something you didn't realize how bad it was until it happened to you? Heartbreak. Do you like Taylor Swift's singing voice? No. It's squeaky and annoying to me. Does it bother you when people get super emotional? Why the fuck would it bother me? Let people be in touch with their emotions. Have you ever worked in a restaurant? No. What was the last drive-thru you went through? Ummm I want to say Starbuck's w/ Mom after my TMS appointment. Do you know anyone who claims they can see/feel spirits or other supernatural "things?" No. Does your house have any unoccupied bedrooms? Yes. Do either of your parents have a mental illness? My mom has depression, and she personally suspects something's up with Dad, but idk. He's never seen a doctor about that kinda stuff. What fun things are there to do where you live? Ha! Do you know anyone with a really poorly-trained dog? I know many like that. When you were growing up, did your family rent or own your home? My parents owned it. Can you see the stars at night where you live? I actually haven't paid attention at this house. I'm certain it'd be harder now living in an urban area, though. What job do you know you'd be terrible at? Like, everything? I'd probably be worst at promoting stuff to people and trying to push them into buying something. No being a salesperson for me. Do you do meal-prepping? No. Do you know anyone who got preggo less than a year into their relationship? Who doesn't? And now, for the greatest question of all time! Toilet paper- should it go over or under? I literally couldn't care less about this. Fun fact though to "end" the argument, the original concept art of the idea (the word for that is evading me...) has it designed to go over. Are you afraid of mice? Not at all, they're adorable. What type of souvenir do you usually purchase when on vacation? I don't have a specific "type" of thing I get, really. It depends. Do you vacation often? Not at all. Are you comfortable wearing your pajamas in public places? It depends on the place, really. Generally, I really don't care, so long as I put a bra on. What’s your favorite candy bar? That one that's a bunch of Reese's squares composed into a rectangle. It. Is so. Fucking. Good. Do you own more than one copy or edition of a book? No. If you could see any musical on Broadway right now, what would it be? I don't like musicals. Do you own a helmet of any sorts? No. Does your family generally decorate for most holidays? Just for Christmas, really. Do you eat soup when you’re sick? I'm not a soup person. Have you ever watched Doctor Who? I saw one or two episodes with Sara. If so, what do you think is the scariest creature yet? N/A Do you read tour guide type books before you visit places? No.

#survey #surveys #questions #lyrics: ''run'' by awolnation

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cheemerthelizard · 4 years

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Crusader of Life 2: Chapter 16

Another day passes by, and it’s another day where nobody except for Lily knows about Yoshikage Kira. Well, for now, at least. Jotaro brings up something about a murderer, and Lily is highly suspicious that the murderer is the man who threatened her life.

“No, no, it’s your turn to look after Emily until Josuke’s free.”

“My turn? I did it last time.”

“Really? Because I wrote here, on this paper, ‘I took care of Emily last time.’”

Kakyoin sighed. He knew that Lily stayed home last time Josuke had school, but he couldn’t shake this bad feeling he had. “Please, let me go out today, you can have two extra days tomorrow, I promise.”

“Noriaki, what’s wrong?” Lily asked. “You’ve never begged me to stay home.”

“I… don’t know,” Kakyoin answered. “I just have a really bad feeling that if you go out today, something will happen to you.”

Lily chuckled. “But what if that bad thing happens to you?”

Kakyoin went silent.

“Here. Just in case your bad feeling is true, and something happens to me, I’ll linger a little longer today.” Lily walked up to Kakyoin, pulling his head down to give him a kiss. “And, just for you, I’ll be extra careful today while I’m out. But I promise nothing will happen.”

“You can’t promise that,” Kakyoin pointed out.

“You’re right,” Lily sighed. “But I can promise this won’t be the last time we see each other.”

“You promise?”

“I promise.”

Kakyoin smiled. “Okay. I’ll let you go. Be careful, alright? That one part of my brain is screaming at me for letting you go out, so you better come back in one piece.”

Lily laughed. “Don’t worry about a thing. I love you.”

“Love you, too. See you tonight.”

Once the door closed, it took all of Kakyoin’s power to stop himself from running after Lily. Surely that bad feeling in his gut was just a feeling, right? Lily was careful, she could get herself out of danger. Still, the back of his mind told him otherwise.

It’s just a feeling, he told himself, no need to go after her.

While Kakyoin was doing that, Lily was already walking down the streets, on her way to her next task. Apparently, a girl had not only survived the arrow, but also didn’t die right away from her Stand. Her father had been reporting his daughter screaming in fear, pointing at nothing for a couple of days now.

“So, another one like me, huh?” Jotaro said. At this point, Lily was sure Jotaro was using Star Platinum to startle her.

“What do you mean by that?” she asked.

“I never told you?” Jotaro replied. “My first few days of having my Stand were in a jail cell. I thought an evil spirit possessed me, and so I stayed in there to protect people from him. Sounds like this girl is going through something similar.”

“Hopefully, with a quick talk, I can show her that the spirit following her isn’t evil,” Lily chuckled.

“You’re the best one for the job, since your Stand isn’t aggressive,” Jotaro added. “Well, I should get to my task today. I’ll see you later.”

“You too,” Lily smiled.

“Oh, one more thing. Rohan and Koichi heard something about a murderer who’s been killing people in Morioh for years now. We’re not sure if he’s a Stand user or not, but keep an eye out, alright?”

Lily froze in her tracks. Without thinking, her hand grabbed her neck, where the bomb was placed not too long ago. It couldn’t be. No, surely Kira wasn’t the one they were looking for. But with his ability, it would be really easy for him to live under the radar. Was he really a murderer?

“Are you alright?” Jotaro asked. “I mentioned a murderer and you just grabbed your neck.”

“I-it’s nothing,” Lily lied. “I’m fine.”

Jotaro narrowed his eyes, but left it at that. “Whatever you say. See ya.”

“Bye, Jotaro,” Lily muttered. As she walked, her mind was racing. Does Kira know? Will he assume that she told them? Is he actually the one they’re looking for? How far was she willing to go to protect her life? Although she knew better, she couldn’t help but keep rubbing the crook of her neck.

Right, no time to think about that now. The only thing that should be on Lily’s mind was the task that needed to be completed, helping a young girl understand her new abilities. In fact, she was almost at the house where the girl and her father lived. According to Lily’s notes, the name of the girl was Emiko, and her father’s name was Hiroki. The only other person in the house was Emiko's baby brother, and the mother died a few weeks ago from unknown circumstances, probably the arrow. Ever since her death, Emiko had been screaming in terror, pointing at nothing, begging something to get away from her. Hiroki had been reluctant to send her to an insane asylum because she might be mistreated there, but he saw no other choice. However, after sending her there multiple times, she always seemed to come right back home. When he asked about it, all she said was, “the spirit brought me back, I don’t know how.”

Yup, that sounded like a Stand’s work. Poor girl was probably so confused and terrified, and her father couldn’t even see the problem. Looking down at her notes, Lily double checked the address, then knocked on the door.

“Hello?” When the door opened, a man with honey blonde hair and green eyes appeared on the other side. “Look, if you’re here to confiscate my daughter, I’m afraid there’s not much you can do. She keeps coming back home somehow, I’m not sure that you can keep her there for long.”

“Sir, I’m not here to confiscate your daughter,” Lily replied. “I’m here for quite the opposite. My name is Lily Kakyoin, I work for the Speedwagon Foundation. We think your daughter might have obtained a strange ability, and I’m here to help her understand it.”

“A strange ability?” Hiroki asked. “Like a superpower?”

“Something of the sorts,” Lily answered. “I promise, no harm will come to Emiko. I’ll talk to her for a little, and then be on my way. Is she home?”

“No! Stop! Stay away from me!” A distressed scream came from somewhere in the house.

“I think that answers your question,” Hiroki said. “Please, come in.”

Lily entered the house, and followed Hiroki to his daughter’s room. When he opened the door, the first thing Lily saw was Emiko cowering in a corner, with a strange, blue, somewhat humanoid reaching its hand out to touch her hair.

“Why me?! Why do you want to haunt me?!” Emiko screamed.

“She’s not schizophrenic, that’s for sure,” Lily told Hiroki. “I can see the spirit. I’ll take care of this, sir, don’t worry.”

“Emiko,” Hiroki knocked on the door he just opened, “you have a visitor. She says she can see your spirit.”

“Can she make it go away?” Emiko asked hopefully.

Lily gave the girl a light smile. “There’s no need for that,” she said. “I’m only here to help you understand it. Your spirit isn’t here to hurt you, I promise.”

“How do you know?” Emiko’s tone suddenly dropped.

“Because I have one of my own,” Lily answered, summoning her own Stand. “I call it Ace of Pentacles.”

“You’re haunted, too?” Emiko stepped back a little. She stepped back away from her Stand, which had almost made contact with her.

“It isn’t really ‘haunted’, like you say,” Lily explained. “You were struck with an arrow, right? You survived that arrow attack, and it granted you a special ability called a Stand, which is the spirit following you. It’s basically a physical, well, semi-physical, manifestation of your soul. It won’t hurt you, and you’re not haunted.”

Emiko tilted her head.

“Just… let it mess with your hair. It looks very curious.”

Although the very thought terrified her, Emiko trusted Lily. She tensed up, but let the thing next to her twirl her hair a little bit.

“I can feel hair moving through my fingers,” she said.

“Well, your Stand is a part of you,” Lily replied. “Whatever happens to you happens to it, and vice versa. If you get hurt, it gets hurt, and when it has hair moving through it’s fingers…”

“Are there other people like us?” Emiko asked.

“There are,” Lily nodded. “There’s too many. Lots of them like using their Stands for personal gain, through any means necessary. One of them killed a girl just to keep his identity hidden.” And if Kira is discovered, it’ll happen again.

“That’s awful!” Emiko exclaimed.

“I’m glad you think so,” Lily smiled. “That’s why I’m here, as well as a couple of friends. We’re here to make sure those people never get the chance to hurt anyone, ever again.”

Emiko let a slight grin appear on her face, before it distorted back into a look of disgust. “It feels so weird having my fingers touch stuff when they’re really not.”

Lily laughed. “Just tell it to stop, and it’ll stop.”

“St-stop that!” Emiko ordered, although it sounded more like a plea. Like a dog obeying commands, her Stand stopped running its hands along the table.

“Are you alright to figure the rest out on your own?” Lily asked. “Or would you rather me walk you through it?”

“I think I can figure out the rest from here,” Emiko answered. “Thank you very much for helping me!”

“Of course,” Lily smiled. “I hope I’ll see you around!” As she left the house, she sighed happily. Moments like these were the best part of her job. But as soon as she left, her mind started lingering back to Kira. Now that she was thinking about it, he seemed like he’d be the perfect potential for a murderer. A Stand that lets him turn anything into a bomb? And when Lily met him, she saw him reach down and grab her severed hand, almost like it was a prize for taking her out.

“You’re doing it again,” Jotaro told her.

“Doing what?” Lily asked.

“Rubbing your neck.”

Lily snapped her arm back to her side. How did she keep doing that without even realizing it?

“Anyway, I came by to ask if you wanted to eat lunch with me,” Jotaro continued.

“Oh, that sounds great!” Lily chimed. “Where are we going?”

Before Jotaro had the chance to speak again, Josuke ran up to both of them from behind, startling them.

“Mrs. Lily! Mr. Jotaro!” he exclaimed. “Shigechi’s gone!”

When the two turned around, they saw Okuyasu and Koichi with him, clearly distressed.

“Shigechi?” Jotaro asked. “Who’s that?”

“He was a friend of ours,” Okuyasu explained. “We saw his Stand, Harvest, explode out of nowhere, and when we looked for him, we couldn’t find him anywhere.”

Lily gulped, making sure her hand didn’t instinctively cover up where the bomb was planted.

“The only thing he left was this button,” Josuke said. “I think our murderer is a Stand user, and I think Shigechi encountered him.”

“He was only in middle school,” Okuyasu gritted his teeth.

Lily bit her lip. How was it that a middle schooler was more willing to give his life away for a better cause than she was?

“I didn’t know Shigechi personally, but we have to start looking for the murderer!” Koichi urged. “If we don’t find him, who else will lose their life?”

As the five of them talked, they continued down the streets. When Lily turned her head, she saw Kira, with an unhappy face and his hand in a thumbs-up, hiding in an alley. Gulping, she straggled behind the rest of the group and went to confront him in the alley.

“Look, I swear, I told them nothing,” Lily promised. “It was Shigechi.”

“I know that full well,” Kira replied. “However, I told you specifically, if they found me, I’d blame it on you. And that would mean your demise, as specified in our deal.”

“Well, they haven’t found you yet, so what do you want me to do?” Lily asked sarcastically. “Distract them?”

“Precisely,” Kira chuckled. “I want you to tell them that you’ve met me, and then tell them what I look like. But I want you to lie. I want you to give them a false sense of what I look like. That’s not too hard, is it?”

“Now, hold on,” Lily scowled. “That was never part of the deal.”

“Anything’s a part of the deal when your life’s on the line,” Kira smirked. “And now that they’re already hunting me down because of Shigechi, there’s no reason for me to keep you alive, unless you do as I say. That’s our new deal.”

Lily balled up her fists, but let them go, sighing. There was no reason to fight. Her life was already in his hands. Any protest and she would be killed in an instant. “Alright,” she mumbled.

Kira smiled. “Good. Now, go out there and show me why I shouldn’t kill you right now.”

When Lily emerged from the alley, she was met with four faces staring her down.

“Care to explain why you snuck off without telling us?” Jotaro asked.

“Oh, that?” Lily nervously laughed as she approached the little group. “I just thought I saw something suspicious and decided to go check it out. I was just imagining things, though.”

“You should have called us back there,” Josuke replied. “It would have been safer in numbers.”

“I didn’t think about that… oops.” If she played dumb, maybe they would leave it alone.

“Okay, you know what? I’m done,” Jotaro said. “I want the full truth, and I want it now. No messing around, no beating around the bush, tell me exactly what happened, and why you’ve been acting weird, especially after I mentioned a murderer.”

Lily gulped. “Well, um, uh, it’s kind of hard to explain…” She hated lying to everyone like this, but she wanted to keep her life. Thankfully, that was no longer a part of the deal. “I had an encounter with the man who took Shigechi’s life one day while I was taking a walk,” she admitted. Everyone gasped.

“And you didn’t tell us?!” Josuke exclaimed. “Traitor!”

“No, wait, let me finish!” Lily cried. “I’m not a traitor, I swear! You see, the way I met him, he planted a bomb on me, and he activated it, but I got away just in time. But then, he discovered me, and the only way I could save myself was promising I wouldn’t tell anyone about him.”

“But he’s a bad guy, why didn’t you tell us?” Koichi asked.

“Because he planted another bomb on my neck to make sure he wasn’t discovered,” Lily continued. “He told me if he was found, he’d blame it on me, no matter what, and he’d kill me.”

Everyone just stood there, stunned.

“Well, what does he look like?” Okuyasu urged. “Come on, we need to know so we can catch him!”

“I’m getting to that, don’t worry. First of all, his power is deadly, he has the ability to turn anything into a bomb. If he moves his thumb down to his fist, it’ll activate the bomb. Secondly, his looks…” Uh oh. This part was completely unplanned. She looked over at Jotaro. “Black hair…” then at Okuyasu. “With a shaved cut minus the top…” Josuke. “Blue eyes…” Koichi. “And a short stature.”

The others nodded, but Jotaro looked at Lily with disbelief painted across his face. “Weird. You listed one of our traits as you looked over at us. It’s almost like you had to improvise.”

Lily went silent.

“Who exactly was in that alley, Lily?”

She went pale as her throat got caught. She tried saying something, but nothing came out.

Jotaro ran towards the entrance to the alley, practically pushing Lily aside, and everyone else followed suit. Lily, too scared to move, just watched them as they peered to where Kira was just a moment ago.

“Looks like they didn’t believe you,” a menacing chuckle came from the other entrance Lily was right beside, making her gasp in fear. “It’s a shame. Well, you’re no use to me now.”

“There’s nobody here!” Jotaro exclaimed. “Quick, we need to check the surrounding areas!”

Suddenly, a terrified scream that was ominously cut short came from where Lily was standing just moments ago. When the others turned their heads to it, the spot was completely barren, no sign of her in sight.

Everyone was too shocked to say a word. They knew what just happened, but it hadn’t quite processed yet. Josuke was the first to speak.

“She… she’s still alive, right?” he asked hopefully. “She could’ve been kidnapped or something! We need to find her!” But deep down, everyone knew. Josuke knew that Ace of Pentacles would make a copy of Lily if she were being taken away, and Jotaro knew that Lily’s horrible lying skills would not let her think of a Stand ability like the one she described before she suddenly disappeared.

“But… but how would we tell Mr. Kakyoin if… if she’s really…” Josuke tried forcing the words out of his mouth, but he couldn’t say it. Tears were starting to form in his eyes, and he clenched his teeth together.

“Serves her right…” Okuyasu growled. “Traitor…”

Something clicked in Jotaro when Okuyasu said those words. “You would have done the same thing in her situation! Don’t act all high and… mighty…”

One look at Okuyasu and it was easy to tell that his words were nothing more than a vain attempt to stop his crying. “I was so mad at her just seconds ago,” he said, choking on his own tears. “So why? Why do I miss her already?”

“Mrs. Lily… she’s not really…” Koichi sniffled. Suddenly, he burst into tears, as well, clutching his heart.

Jotaro looked at the three grief-stricken people around him, and if he was honest, he tilted his hat down and shed a few tears himself. Tears for their friend, who would never come back to them again.

#crusader of life #oc #diamond is unbreakable #jojo's bizarre adventure #fanfiction #my fanficiton

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sepublic · 5 years

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Proposed origins for Butt Witch

(Keep in mind, these are just for fun, speculation, and/or fanfic purposes. Thus, while some suggested origins are theories, most are just headcanons I came up with.)

-Butt Witch is just the embodiment of Reggie’s insecurities over growing up, puberty, womanhood, etc. Her unusually possessive view of Endless and expectation of it to be tailored to herdesires are fake memories and delusions planted into her mind by Endless, meant to darkly reflect Reggie’s center-of-the-universe view of Endless, and likewise show how she expects Endless to be for HER, even though evidence suggests otherwise that it’s for anyone who enters and Reggie has no actual claim to single ownership of the island.

(Personally I’m not too sure about this one, because Butt Witch, again, acts very surprise in general about Endless, as if she was expecting something else. Likewise, while other creations from real-world objects have memories, they’re usually adapted from their real-world experiences –like Brown Roger’s love of Reggie- and not from anything on Endless.)

-Butt Witch is the embodiment of someone else’s fears of growing up, created from whatever they buried or naturally generated by Endless itself. She tormented this previous human visitor but was later defeated and trapped in the volcano.

-Butt Witch was a friend of a previous human visitor, either made from the sand or by Endless itself. The two both wanted an adult paradise out of Endless and got it, but due to some falling out Butt Witch was trapped in the volcano and later summoned by Reggie’s personal issues. She feels entitled to Endless because beforehand, Butt Witch was her human friend’s equal and was thus given sway over the island and its populace during their friendship. Alternatively, her human creator decided to permanently leave Endless and trapped Butt Witch under the volcano under false pretenses, not wanting to break the truth. Perhaps Butt Witch tried to keep her human friend from leaving Endless, too, and even tried to sabotage escapes by breaking the key.

-The popular one; Butt Witch is a human visitor to Endless who arrived long before even Elmer. She’s been there for so long that her Endless-form has transformed into an extreme caricature of itself, and she may or may not have forgotten parts of her previous life. During her initial reign on Endless, the island was a more ‘adult’ place (whatever that means). Inexplicably, she was trapped in the volcano and apparently summoned by the puberty books, possibly because her personality was the ideal representation of whatever being Endless would have created from Reggie’s insecurities. In other words, the island brought her back as the manifestation of Reggie’s fear of growing up, assigning Butt Witch this sole purpose.

-Branching out from the aforementioned human origin, Butt Witch is a hybrid of a transformed human and whatever being that was created from the puberty books. Butt Witch was buried in the volcano a long while ago, and when Reggie threw the books into it, Butt Witch, who was also buried in the lava, was included in the transformation, the same way various items when buried together (like Todd’s possessions and Borbo’s drawing) merge into a fusion. Because she was human, Butt Witch didn’t start transforming until a real-world object was added into the burial.

As a result, if she remembers her past life or is aware of the circumstances of her rebirth, she may have an identity crisis as she questions what part of her actions and motives are her own, or just the will of the island trying to make a point to Reggie. The two don’t have to be mutually-exclusive, either.

-Further adding to the original human theory (and acting as a possible extension to the hybrid theory), is a VERY crazy, edgy, and not-to-be-taken-seriously proposal for a dark fanfiction. But what if… Butt Witch was a homunculus born from a dead body.

Essentially, a previous human visitor lost a loved one, and knowing how Endless gave life to buried objects, brought the dead body to Endless and buried it. Instead of being brought back to life, the body instead transformed into a hollow imitation of the original personal, a shallow facsimile and caricature; In other words, the being that came about was like a Homunculus from the Fullmetal Alchemist 2003 anime series.

The human who buried the body was quickly disappointed when they realized their loved one wasn’t really brought back from the dead. Unable to handle their failure, and seeing the Homunculus as a constant reminder of their grief and loss, the human buried the being within the volcano to hide the evidence, out of sight and mind, and eventually left Endless. This buried Homunculus eventually became the being known as Butt Witch thanks to the puberty books- Her small speech to Brown Roger about being ‘thrown away and buried like a dog would bury a luscious bone’ applies to this idea.

(Honestly, I’m half-tempted to write a fanfiction about this concept, but it might be toodark and edgy.)

-As a slightly alternate take to the resurrection theory, Butt Witch was once a human who visited Endless with another friend. Like Reggie, Todd, and Esther, they got into a fight, but this ended up actually going too far and killing Butt Witch. Her human friend panicked and buried her in the volcano to hide the evidence, or tried to bring her back to life by burying the body in the sand. It didn’t work, and Butt Witch has possibly mistaken that friend’s burial as them abandoning her.

(A less edgy take on this idea is that instead of dying, Butt Witch just got accidentally trapped and buried by her friend, who thought her dead and gave up on finding her body. Either way, she has abandonment issues and resentment.)

-Butt Witch was a human visitor who got transformed and whatnot, BUT she intentionally put herself in the volcano to willfully forget her lost life. She got trapped in Endless because her key broke while she was on the island, and unable to return home, she yearned to forget the painful life she missed. So, she buried herself- Possibly to escape the pain of existence through sleep, or to hurry up the process of forgetting her past life. Either way, Butt Witch forgot, with only a general idea of Endless being for her and whatnot remaining.

(Melding with the human friends proposal, perhaps they had a fight that broke BW’s key, and the friend angrily stormed off and left Endless. Butt Witch however realized her key was broken shortly afterwards, and she waited for her friend to return to bring her back, but she never did… The friend never looked for BW because they assumed she could leave whenever she wanted with her key and thought BW choseto stay in Endless forever. Butt Witch thinks the friend willingly trapped her in Endless to die and intentionally broke the key to do so.)

-Butt Witch was one of THE original inhabitants of Endless, naturally born, before the island began appealing itself and attracting human children. This original proto-Endless was a more grotesque, nightmare realm of which Butt Witch and other eldritch beings naturally inhabited, but when the island began changing its appearance to invite visitors, Butt Witch was buried within the volcano due to her unappealing, aggressive nature and appearance.

By the time she comes back from the puberty books, Butt Witch has no idea why her home has inexplicably changed and why these random human kids have claimed it and act like it’s been catered to them this whole time. She’s essentially a different flavor of victim of Endless, a native displaced and rejected by her own sentient world, brought back only for her usefulness.

-Butt Witch created Endless from scratch to be her own ‘adult paradise’, and may or may not have been a human who did so. However, another human child desired their own escapist world and in turn was summoned to Endless, more or less hijacking the island from Butt Witch and imprisoning her in the volcano.

Further expanding on this idea, perhaps Butt Witch created Endless to lure edgy people in who desired an ‘adult paradise’ to feed on their negativity and presumptions of maturity, but then it backfired when someone took the opportunity to grow as an actual person and challenge her reign.

-She was an inhabitant of Endless born from negativity in the form of those worms, or whatever other possible origin. She hijacked Endless from the human visitor at the time and turned it into her own Adult Paradise for a while, but was eventually defeated and trapped.

-Butt Witch was human, but her transformation was influenced by her actively eating the negativity worms. That, or she brought visitors to Endless to torment them, cause discourse, feed on their negativity, etc.

-Butt Witch is what happens when those negativity worms are able to grow on their own and develop. Perhaps the original batch fused together to create BW.

#twelve forever #buttwitch #endless island #reggie #speculation #theory #headcanons #fanfiction

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whitehotharlots · 5 years

Text

So we’re just gonna straight up embrace conservatism?

A few months ago I came across the story of a group of young trans activists who wrecked up the opening of a feminist library in British Columbia. To avoid accusations of taking sides or whatever, here’s what the feminists had to say about it, and here’s what the trans activist kids had to say about it. (Direct link: https://www.facebook.com/notes/gag-gays-against-gentrification/response-to-vancouver-womens-library/379623995740078 )

Both sides agreed that the activists physically disrupted the opening of what was purported to be a feminist space, caused several hundred dollars worth of property damage, threatened physical violence against the library’s proprietors, and demanded that a dozen or so books be removed from the shelves.

I decided not to write about this. Firstly, because engaging with trans discourse in any way other than nodding politely guarantees you will be accused of Literal Murder, and I just don’t want to mess with that. More importantly, I felt I couldn’t say anything that wouldn’t amount to a simple, maybe even pedantic observation: namely, it’s kinda weird how we’ve begun to fear subjectively perceived, metaphorical “violence” so intensely that we’re willing to accept literal, physical violence as a response to it. It’s easy to make fun of people who say that using gendered pronouns is a direct cause of murder or whatever, but these people aren’t just obscure cranks anymore--they control the discourse; we’re living in the world they’ve built.

Here’s a sample of what I tried to write:

Here, in the interest of objectivity, it’s traditional for a writer to point out the tremendous amount of danger faced by those trans people who committed violent acts against the cis feminists and have demanded that the cis feminists radically alter their own space. A writer should re-cite the oft-cited statistic that over twenty trans people were murdered in 2015--and that, no doubt, at least half of them were beaten to death with a copy of Andrea Dworkin’s Pornography. And I don’t mean to be facetious: should a trans activist suggest that these books were being wielded as literal, physical weapons, there might at least be a smidgen of logic behind their demands. But such a connection, however tenuous, is never proffered. We are left instead with a vague implication by association: the trans activists understandably don’t like trans people being murdered and they also don’t like books they assume question the essentialist foundation of their self-understanding, therefore a responsible author will make sure to establish a sense that the former is indeed caused by the latter. Or, if it’s not a case of actual causation--since obviously it’s not and no one would ever be so daft as to suggest that it is--at the very least we should respect the trans activists’ sensitivities toward literature they find upsetting, seeing as they’re acting out of a sense of extreme fear that they at least believe to be justified. Criticizing them at lashing out would be like getting mad a cornered raccoon for showing its teeth.

Just… can you believe this? Honestly? Here, very real violence and property damage is excused simply by putting in the context of the emotional state of those who committed it. Can you imagine any parallel situation taking place in contemporary America? A black man would have a much more solid case in going down to his local police station and wrecking up the place. Police violence against black people is an actual, direct, and literal thing--no flimsy metaphors are required to explain it. If such a thing were to happen, however, the black guy would be killed or imprisoned and his actions would be condemned in all but the most radical of spaces (try to find a mainstream publication that supported Chris Dorner. You can’t). Or more on point: let’s say a group of radical zionists entered a store the specializes in classical music, so at to disrupt a talk about Wagner. They post threats on social media. They wreck merchandise. They tear down posters, shove some elderly classical enthusiasts, cause several hundred dollars worth of damage, and leave a manifesto demanding that certain naughty works be banned. Again: they’d most likely be arrested. They would find no defense within the mainstream press. Their sense of victimhood would certainly not be used as justification for their actions, and no serious person would yield to their demands that certain works of music be banned from stores.

So… yeah. I was having trouble not sounding dismissive. But since then other shit has gone down, and it’s dawned on me that this tendency to prize the metaphorical over the literal isn’t new. It’s very old. It is, simply put, the general grounding of the American conservative worldview. It just happens to be coming from woke people now.

For an example, take a look at a piece about trans activists vandalizing a rape crisis center with death threats. The vandalism was, of course, denounced on all sides. But check out the phrasing here:

Trans people face employment and housing barriers, Jenkins said, and the graffiti could be a product of a trans person’s pent up frustration. Vancouver Rape Relief, she said, is a visible organization at which to point a finger.

“A lot of the actions of Vancouver Rape Relief through exclusion of trans women I think are symbolic of society’s disdain for trans people generally,” she said.

“So I can understand that for someone who is having a really hard time generally, this is a symbol of everything that is wrong with the world that is treating me terribly — which is no excuse, but I can see how someone could get to that point.”

Just… fucking seriously? Again, can you imagine this kind of even handedness being afforded to any other marginalized group? The only time you see violence regarded in such an apologetic or celebratory manner is when cops and soldiers do it.

But, oh, it gets even weirder and stupider:

More graffiti adorns the sidewalks of Commercial Dr., further east from the Vancouver Rape Relief location. In support of trans people, the message “Trans women are women” appeared on sidewalks near Grandview Park earlier this summer.

Another message reads “Lesbians unite,” coupled with a double Venus symbol. Claire Ens, president of the Vancouver Dyke March and Festival Society, said the two Venus symbols are a coded threat to trans people.

“The two Venus symbols, that may seem innocent and to some even a call for lesbian rights and women-power, but in fact it is the opposite,” she said.

Two Venus symbols, side-by-side, is a larger symbol for “biological essentialism,” she said, a belief that peoples’ identities are determined by their genitals or chromosomes, which is inherently discriminatory to trans people who may have genitals that don’t match outdated ideas of what it means to be a man or a woman.

“The Venus symbols are meant as a warning sign to trans women, to state that trans women are not included nor welcomed, and is a perfect example of ... ‘dog whistling’ (because it is) innocent to those who aren’t in the know about it (but) harmful and hateful specifically to trans women,” she said.

Oh... oh dear.

I’m reminded of the time when I was in 8th grade and my best friend did some weird art project where he put an arrow through a George Jetson doll he won at the carnival and painted the wound with a red marker. His mom found the doll. She spoke with her evangelical busybody cunt friends at work, who informed her that the “ritualistic sacrifice” of stuffed animals was a surefire sign that the boy had been brainwashed by Satanists. She then had him involuntarily committed. A state official determined him to to be depressed but not under any demonic influence, and so he was released under the condition that he start going to cut-rate therapy, where yet another evangelical busybody cunt informed him that the doll was, in fact, a sign that at least one satan lived within him (possibly several) and advised his mother to throw out all of his cds and videogames and keep him under constant watch. Oddly, this did not help with my friends’ depression. Made it a lot worse, in fact. Kicked off about a decade of severe substance abuse. But that’s neither here nor there--the point is, he did something objectively harmless that a bunch of hateful conservatives found offensive, and demonizing and bullying him was a small price to pay to get him to stop doing said harmless-but-offensive things. He might not have meant the plush art project to be a sign of aggression. A dispassionate observer would most likely not regard it as such. But the subjective, spiritual harm suffered by his mother engendered a violent reaction, and the cruelly conservative social structures of our community prized her perceived victimhood over any actual harms, and so they therefore encouraged her to damage the boy so as to make herself feel more safe. Nobody wins. Everyone was worse off. But the woman got some momentary catharsis, and that’s what was important.

Uhh… shit. I was gonna try to connect this to something else, but I think maybe I made my point. If you don’t agree with me yet, you’re never going to. But just remember, pedantic as this argument may be, there’s a reason censorship has historically resided in the conservative purview. There’s also a reason why it used to be considered virtuous, in liberal spaces, to not regard your own tastes and pet peeves as moral issues that warranted vicious remediation. Conservatives are conservatives, regardless of their color of their skin, the people they like to fuck, or whether or not they regard themselves to embody the gender they were asigned at birth. Cruelty is likewise always cruel. A cunt is a cunt. And there’s nothing to be gained by denying these basic truths.

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reddogf13 · 5 years

Text

Horrors Below ch 1

Pennywise x Beverly

summery: after Beverly's return, pennywise works to gain her trust as "Robert Grey" while also avoiding the cold rains of April. when unintentionally Beverly convinces him to question his very existence. what has lead him to become the monster so many children fear was below their beds? what will he do when he no longer wants to be that monster? can a monster truly become a human?

status: complete

rated: M - fowl language and gore

previous chap: None

next chap: Horrors below Ch 2

_____________________________________

~ch:1 Welcome home~

Rain fell hard upon the bedroom window darkening its once clear view. the bright flash of lightning across the stormy skies blaring down through water streaked glass. Inside the sheltered bedroom was Beverly, sleeping peacefully on her bed. Far too exhausted from her recent travels from LA back to home town of Derry. She had no chance to notice the lingering horror hiding below her bed. Unaware of how vulnerable her hand hanged limply over the edge.

Fiery glowing eyes intently staring toward the delicious treat. Belonging to a clown all dressed in silver grinning widely with inhuman, slim, jagged teeth. Twisted unnaturally in the small under space of the girls cozy bed. Drops of drool splattering onto the bare wood floors to collect in puddles. The creature not worrying a bit of the dripping noise he was causing. The heavy rain draining all the sounds away under its deep rumble in the night.

He waited so long to get back at all those children, but one by one they moved right after their high school graduation. The clown Pennywise, known as IT, having assumed he would never see them again. That changed now that Beverly marsh, the girl who caused him pain by an iron rod shoved through his eye, had returned. He HAD to wake early to take his chance of revenge. Risking his weakened state of a body to joyfully terrorize her in the night. Planning to yank her under the dark cramped space to maul right into her horrified face. Enjoying her dying screams let out between his crushing jaws of death.

Excitedly stretching out his white gloved hand toward the hanging arm. Licking the drool dripping off his many rows of fangs. A flash of light tensing him by the sudden touch of Beverly grasping his hand. taking a gentle hold of the threat ready to pull her under as a live meal. He froze at first thinking she had awakened early from her deep slumber. Untensing at seeing no other movement that would suggest so.

The clown growled at the touch, pulling his hand back in attempt of breaking free. Finding it difficult without using more aggressive force without waking her. He did not want her to wake by him freeing himself of her stupid hand. Didn't want to give her spare time to become aware that something was wrong. Give her the time to fight like he mistakenly allowed before. He wasn't going to make the same mistake like last time!

She woke in his lair, tried to run, he had all the power over her, but in the end she wasn't afraid. Her flesh in his mouth wouldn't be as satisfying if he ate her right then and there. He had to break her in his lights. Twist her into a delicious meal before his long hibernation. Then it all fell apart when those boys jumped to her rescue. Somehow pulling her from the twisted environment he assumed trapped her like all his other victims. Ending on them all beating him back despite all his powers to cause fear.

“Pfft, I'll wait.” he growled to himself. “she'll let go and I can try again. Simple.” resting himself to the ground without much else to do.

Beginning to stare around the room that hadn't changed since the day she left. A small vanity desk across from her bed covered in pink frilly sheets. A dresser so old the paint was peeling off at the corners. A tall full form mirror coated in so much dust it couldn't be used unless scrubbed. Books covered in dust piled around the room next to old dusty toy figures. Old posters faded from the sun pouring in after many years. A faded wall spot would surely be under them if moved.

It had been 7 years since she left Derry to live with her aunt. On account of her father going mad that same day. A failed attempt at scaring her to be more of a meal. From her aunt's place she moved on to college someplace in California for fashion. Hard times forcing her to return back to her dads door step. At least that's the summary he got from spying on the conversation between her and her dad. Her aunt seeming to have kicked the bucket leaving no other choices of living space. Her dad happily accepting her back into the home at 3 in the morning.

Meanwhile her dad being less of a threat now that he was crippled. That porcelain block to the head didn't only leave a little bump, after all. To this day he still has trouble walking for more than a minute. Remembering things or keeping a firm grip on a simple coffee cup. Trapped in this puny apartment on disability checks for a depressing income. His old job as a janitor long gone after he could no longer mop the floors. Having his daughter back to care for him must have been a loving sight in his eyes.

“how long will this take?” grumbling at the hand still holding his. “biting it may give the same effect. Gnaw off the hand like a trapped dog would. Only it wouldn't be mine.” clacking his teeth together in temptation. “no, still not as fun.” staring to her hand when she gave his a light squeeze. Through his gloves he could still feel the softness of her skin. The warmth surrounding his cold hand off hers. It interested him somehow that she was holding on so long. He'd seen humans holding hands affectionately that he felt was stupid.

lightly squeezing her hand back. “why do it? Such an unnecessary thing unless its to keep them from running away.” Begrudgingly enjoying the heat she was transferring to him.

He lived in dark cold tunnels underground, but that didn't mean he hated heat. He worked quite a bit to make his nest warm under a pile of hoarded toys. Stuffed animals forming most the piles hollowed out core. Naturally he was cold blooded until he focused energy to create his own heat. An exhausting task when done 24/7 that ultimately wasn't worth it. He wouldn't die from the cold, but would if all his energy was spent for comforting warmth. Relying on that skylight above allowing natural warm sunlight to heat his nest. Something that thundering storms like this ruined by their gloomy cloud cover. He honestly hated storms that infested the month of April.

All the humans would lock themselves inside buildings, no warmth of the sun on his nest, lucky to find one human out doing tasks. It was an annoying time to push through before the hot summer kicked in a month later. Summer time was the best hunting season with the fairgrounds returning his favorite none meat treats. Unfortunately there were still 4 weeks of stormy April to deal with first. Even the winter storms weren't nearly as bad as the rains. At least children would be out making snowmen, igloos, and having snowball fights.

Grumbling over noticing that the thunderstorm had ended. “this night has been ruined.” The blue morning light invading the room to wake the girl for her new classes.

Beverly slipping her hand away in turning over in bed. The clown below glaring at his empty hand as if insulted by it. Agitated that the warmth he was leeching off her was stolen from him. unmoving to from his spot underneath to consider his options of the situation.

“tomorrow.” thinking to himself. “Being startled by me now wouldn't season her much. I should enjoy this, after all.” crossing his arms underneath his chin. Having nothing else to do to leave for or anything more entertaining he didn't bother to move. Hearing her alarm eventually go off on her bed stand. Watching her get up to freshly redress for the day. Scenting the moments of fear sparking off as she glanced at the bedroom door. Stuffing things into a backpack to then stand frozen in front of the door. Curiosity over her actions catching ITs full attention. Absorbed into how she took a deep breath to gather the energy to simply open the door. When she left, the clown followed out into the living room. Spying hidden within an old family photo of the fair hanging on the wall. Catching the wave of fear flowing off her when he heard her talking with her father.

The man sitting in a comfy armchair in front of a large box TV. While she stayed a distance away in the small hall off to the side leading to the front door. Her father looking over twice his age with graying hair. A noticeable scar marking the side of his head being a forever reminder literally marking the day Beverly stood up for herself. Even though she could physically see that moment she still acted small under her father's gaze. The look he gave her being that of a hungry wolf hunting its prey.

His voice rough when speaking to her so early in the morning. “not going to give your old man a hug?” voice oozing sweetness in a poor attempt at hiding his real intentions.

she hurried the discussion along. “I have to go or I'll be late.” Practically flying out the door to get away from his presence.

“interesting.” Pennywise taking note of the situation. “still afraid of her father. Waiting a little longer wouldn't be too bad in that case. Maybe another day of this fear will have her ready.” drooling at the lovely thought of her soaked in fear. His body fading to the blackness on the intention of returning later.

Between his stalking rounds, throughout the day, he would spy on her. Watching her attend the community college of Derry that offered many courses there. Working at a bench using a sewing machine on dresses in the long fashion classes. Talking between a few classmates she was friendly with as the day went on. Lots of topics he didn't care for on fabric or color that, that her teachers spoke on and on about. The only moment of entertainment he caught was the meeting with her college counselor. Discussing her sudden transfer after questionable attendance in her other college. The show was short lived after Beverly explained her aunts death that required her to uproot her life. Returning back to dull lectures IT couldn't stand to sit through for another moment.

When she returned home he was soon to follow. Spying out from under the bed in the hopes she would have more fear. Finding that to not be the case as she began work on a sewing machine she brought home. Spending far longer on it into the night over a reasonable bedtime. The work internally calming her from the harmful environment she was trapped in.

“go to bed already.” he grumbled in thought. Going on the hopes that she would at least suffer some nightmares. A knock on her door startling her into bumping the machine, letting out a hard buzzing noise. The room oddly silent afterwards as if making a noise would kill her. Not answering right away to take a deep breath.

Her voice overly soft when answering the knock. “yes?” she asked toward the closed door. Lovely fear building up all over again creating a grin on the clowns face.

her father shouted on the other side of the door. “turn that damn machine off! I am trying to fucking sleep!”

“okay.” waiting for him to leave before looking back down to her fabric. Untangling it from the machine to hold it up. Sighing at her beautiful sowing work suddenly skewing off in a jagged mess. She grabbed a pair of nearby scissors to carefully snip the unfortunate line away. Tending to it carefully in making sure the mistake made wasn't noticeable.

IT watching her use flimsy needle and thread to finish the rest of the work. Spending the next few hours this way. “I could do better.” he judged in thought over the threaded weaving. Looking to her alarm clock reading 4:31AM. She was meant to wake in only 2 more hours.

“another day wasted.” attention turned back to her setting everything away. Sluggishly walking to bed in settling down for the remaining night. As soon as she switched off her bedside light she was out like a rock. Her arm limply hanging over the edge In front of the clown feeling as if he was being mocked.

“this girl is testing me. The little fear she felt here and there still isn't enough. I'll have to keep being patient.” gaze locked on the tempting arm. His patients tested further at the sound of rain freshly tapping the window. Grumbling at the same freezing cold that would surely fill his nesting area. At least staying here provided some warmth from Beverly being so near.

“not much.” feeling the weak warmth hitting his back. Focusing forward back to her hand in front of his face. Thinking back on the warmth he was able to take the last time. Hesitantly he reached out his hand to wrap around hers. Being gently held back by her warm soft hand had him easing to settle down. Tolerating the cold for the rest of the morning before she had to wake.

He watched her do the morning routine of getting dressed, grabbing her bags, and that long wait in front of the door. The oozing of fear the entire time she rushed to keep the conversation short with her dad. IT going his separate way to find another meal. Visiting the Derry college to momentarily spy on her again. Her work sluggish from lack of sleep. Hiding it when talking to her new friends she had recently made. When she returned home he was sure she would immediately head to bed.

Excitedly following her more closely into the house. Noticing before she did that her father was waiting to ambush her in the kitchen for a talk. Excited for the show, Pennywise spied from his high point hidden in the fair family photo. Drooling from the wonderful smell of fear as she passed her father. Grin twisting upwards on his face when her father called her back down the hall.

“so close.” the clown mocked at the sight of Beverly's hopes of sanctuary being crushed. Enjoying the show of her hesitantly returning to the kitchen.

“yes?” her voice soft around her father.

“we need to talk.” her father's tone grimly serious. “how long do you plan to live here?”

“ … only a semester. ...hopefully.” the last part barely hear able.

“thaaats quite a few months then, right?”

her answer souring. “ … yes. 3 months.” obviously hating how long she would be stuck in the apartment.

“you understand it's hard paying for two, right? I can't work like I used to since my skull cracked. You remember that accident in the bathroom.” his tone heavy on the last bit. “something needs to be worked out. Don't you agree?” taking an unwanted hold of her hand. She flinched away from the touch.

her soft tone twisting to something more defiant. “i remember. That accident would have got you in jail, but we agreed on something else.”

“yes, that you move and keep your mouth shut. That was a while ago. Things are different now that you're back home under my roof.” a smirk easing onto his face.

boldly speaking back to him. “I'll find a job. Paying rent should be enough, right?” The mans smirk dropping, but not his hard glare.

sounding disappointed.“i guess.” It wasn't the answer the man wanted, he was aiming for something more. “I forget how grown my little girl is.” voice disgustingly sweet. “You look so much like your mother. Soft hair, smooth skin, all looking so lovely. I am sure you won't mind helping a crippled old man in the house either, will you?” approaching her. She swallowed a lump of disgust building in her throat.

“if I am free of class work.” holding back all her disgusted rage. “which I need to get started on.” leaving to go hide in her room. Inside the small space the clown watched from his spot under the bed. Her locking the door first before stumbling to her vanity dresser. Wheezing through each breath to prevent herself from crying.

All the wonderful fear built up replaced by useless anger. The clown slumping under her bed ready to rip his hair out. When Beverly pulled herself together she started on her work. Sowing a new dress through the night. Another storm raging outside flashing lightning across the sky. Hours later into the black night the room flickered. having Beverly stop to stare wide eyed at her ceiling light in panic.

“no!” she exclaimed at the mass flickering light before the power shut off. She growled at the ceiling, defeated, machine unable to work now. Forced into bringing out the classic thread and needle to once again sow overnight the long way. Under the narrow cone of light from a flashlight held in her mouth to even see.

IT waiting slumped over himself under the bed. He was going to get something out of this situation. Coming up with the idea of completely waiting for the end of April. Surely by then she would be full of enough fear and in the meantime he would have something warm throughout the cold stormy nights.

“now if she'd only sleep.” checking the time of the clock. 1:00AM. “how long was it humans could go without sleep?” trying to recall a humans limits.

A few more hours passed before she started setting stuff away. Falling into bed without bothering to switch her bedside lamp off before knocking out. When the clown was sure of her being asleep he took her hand, her grip tighter than usual. Holding on to him as if he was a badly needed comfort in her sleep. He tolerated it as long as it gave him warmth.

From that day on, he fell into a routine. The morning came, she left for classes he practically attended himself to spy on her. Her returns home interrupted by looking for a job. Then making it home for fearful talks with her father over the job situation. home work almost through the entire night and finally bed. This was the routine for the next 3 days. On the fourth day he stopped following her as she went job hunting. Taking time to find a few meals caught out in the rain. A couple of men having the worst luck today of their truck caught in the thick mud. They didn't last long enough to call anyone for a tow.

The now abandoned trucks insides coated in blood. The clown happily tearing chunks of meat off a severed arm. Sitting in the seat next to him were two body's stripped to the bone in a gory pile. Finishing off the last scraps of meat from the bone he tossed it away. The bloody bone clinking off the exposed rib cage down to the trucks floor. Licking up the blood coating his hands. Cleaning off the last of it using a bit of manipulation to the liquids existence.

“Beverly should be home by now doing work.” gazing over his arm for possibly any blood left behind. Dubbing himself officially clean he headed back to her home. Scurrying low to the ground in the form of a rat. Avoiding any attention along the way up to her apartment door.

He didn't even make it inside yet when the scent of blood hit him. Shrugging it off at first as the smell being stuck to him from the meal not too long ago. sneaking under the house doors however, had him learning it was definitely not. Head turning upwards to the source finding it to be Beverly's father holding a bag of frozen peas over one black eye. Spitting blood into the nearby kitchen sink already covered in red. Having been leaning over the sink for a bit of time now since his injury's. Looking more thoroughly, Pennywise could see the man covered in more bruises. Lined by scrapes all over any exposed skin past his short sleeved shirt.

“Fuckin brat.” the man poured a shot of whiskey. Taking care to hold it close over the counter in case it slipped through his weak hand. Another aggressively red mark shown covering the same hand swollen to a large size. Fingers stiff from obvious pain while a few others now had homemade splints.

IT laughed at the man's misery. “the dumb fool doesn't learn.” scurrying off down the hall to check on Beverly. He wanted to see how scuffed up she was compared to her dad. A little surprised to see her room dark as she already was in bed asleep. Normally shed be working for quite a while after returning home. He twisted his body from being a small rat to his full clown height to loom over her. Examining her injuries closely off his morbid curiosity.

Bruises covering her arm in the form of distinct hand prints. A cut lip under her, now dry, bloody nose that left a speckle of blood on her pillow. The collar of her shirt stained as well in the dried blood splotches. Obvious marks of her being in a scuff, but nothing serious like the ones she gave her father. He snickered at the thought of her still being here and sleeping at that. It was so stupid of her to continue living here next to a threat that could come for her another time.

Joking with himself by that. “oh, look who's talking. What extraordinary predator sleeps by prey for some warmth?” about to back away from her when she grabbed him into a hug. Locking up in reaction to her holding onto him like a teddy bear. Her arms wrapped around his neck while her face buried into his ruffled collar. By how tight she was holding him he couldn't slip away without waking her. Forced to stick by her until her grip loosened.

His grumbling over being trapped stopped by one of her hands gently petting him. Smoothing her hand back and forth in a short space. He so badly wanted to snap off the very hand out of retaliation. How dare some weak human treat him like a household pet. Even worse was he enjoyed the soothing treatment. Holding back from letting out a deep content purr that could wake her.

“i am not being petted. I don't get petted. I am worshiped as a god. This is a way of being worshiped that I am allowing.” working to twist it into something he can tolerate better. Shutting his eyes to the warm hand he eventually allowed himself to purred along to. Relaxing his on guard body into nesting down a little more against her. Chest laying against hers his tall length making it easy to sit down without pulling away.

“At least this close contact is giving far more warmth then hand holding under the bed.” hearing fresh rain coat the window over her bed. Being so close to her he eventually caught the light scent of sunflowers on her. Questioning if that was her real scent or a made up one in those disgusting bottles humans loved spraying so much. Either way he quite liked the scent on her. Enjoying the closeness all the more through the night.

At one point she started to wake early in the night. Loosening her grip enough for Pennywise to slip free back under the bed. Watching from his low view how she sluggishly rose off the bed to head out of her room. Hearing her walk down the hall to take some time in the bathroom before returning. Looking cleaner of blood then when she left with her once bloody collar a bit damp. She sat on her bed in silence where he couldn't see her expression. She got back up to pull an unfinished dress from her bag to set up on her vanity desk. Starting work with her needle and thread to finish a long pinned together seem.

he judged from under the bed. “ugh, that dumb threading.” Missing the warm attention he was getting a few minutes ago. “why would she have to wake now? When it's the coldest hours of the night.” unintentionally clawing into the wood floor boards beneath him.

She worked the entire time up to her alarm going off. Packing things carefully into her bag for the school day. Pennywise was sluggish on going out into the rainy weather. Going back and forth on staying below the bed all day or attempting to hunt in the storm. Without any heat left in the room from Beverly he went out. Stalking the flooded streets around the most populated areas for an unsuspecting meal.

Lurking in the drains as humans walked between stores. Waiting for one to make a fatal mistake of breaking away from the crowd. Attention hooked by a can of food falling through a ruined paper bag soaked by the water falling. The poor human determined to get their simple food back driven closer to the storm drain. Closer and closer as they rushed in a reach down to stop the can disappearing down. They didn't notice the bright glowing predatory eyes of hunger. All the more making an easy meal as the clown lunged out. A clawed hand hooking into the human to yank them right down into the dark tunnels. Not a soul around to see the disappearance taking place nor hear the screams under the thundering storm. Another human added to the mass list of those gone missing in the small town of Derry.

Pennywise grimaced at the cardboard tasting meat he worked to chew through. “can't wait for the fair to come. Some good meat walking around seasoned perfectly by the high rides.” Taking his time to work around the awful taste unsuccessfully. Slowing down his devouring of the fresh prey on each bite tasting worse than the last. Reaching the point where he couldn't eat anymore of the disgusting meal. Snarling at the meat he was going to waste while meals were already difficult to snag.

Trying to get through the day was a chore for him. Hunting for a better meal failing miserably with the storms thrashing powerful winds forcing the rains sideways. Down into a painful sting that made all things rush to the safety of warm indoors. Giving up on it all as soon as he knew Beverly would be home to warm the room. Slipping under the front door as a rat loving that the whole house was darkened for him to easily slip by.

Pausing at noticing Beverly's father sitting in the living room chair. Appearing more beat up then when he last saw the man. “did the fool really fight again? That short memory really comes in handy.” mocking along his way to Beverly's room.

Starring toward the door he approached slowing to a stop. Listening to the crying sobs on the other side of the door. He smelled the air at the doors base for what Beverly's condition could be. How injured was she made this time? The air had no fresh scent of blood or any fear. Slipping under the door now to check on her physical state more closely. Noticing her roughed up again, but nothing that caught his attention as serious. Observing her cry into her arms at the vanity desk when a ringing sounded from her pocket. Beverly wiping away her tears in preparation of answering her flip phone. Clearing her throat as she flipped it open in a quick snap.

“yes?” speaking as calmly as she could. “... yeah I'll definitely make it …. no, I don't need a ride ... yeah, I am sure … okay, meet you there. Bye.” snapping her cellphone shut. Taking a deep breath with a shove of her phone back into her pocket.

The hidden rats whiskers twitched at the conversation. “hmm, going where? Must not be far if she needs no transportation. Some stupid school trip I missed during the thrilling lectures?” sarcastic thoughts filling his head around the matter. “what could they possibly be doing? Touring the fabric factory's? Hope some poor thing doesn't die of excitement from it all.”

the rat scurrying to hide under her desk before he was seen as Beverly rose up. She walked straight to bed where she buried her face in the pillows. Switching off her light without a glance up toward it. The room so quiet that he didn't dare move. Concerned that she would hear his small steps tapping across the wooden floor. He waited until he was sure of her being fully asleep. Moving along the wall to slip underneath her bed where his body twisted out into his more regular form. Outreaching his hand toward hers to hold for that pleasing warmth. Hand left hovering by at the thought of simple hand holding not being enough, he wanted more.

He enjoyed being pett- … worshiped with affection. Crawling out from under the bed to glance over her sleeping form. Now how was he exactly to do this? Looming over her in thought at what he should do. Gently settling his chin on her shoulder to bring up some reaction from her. It worked, her arms wrapping around to hug him closer. Burying her face again in his ruffled collar like she wanted to hide in it from the world. He purred at the embrace warming him thinking this so easy a thing to do. The dreary rains of April will fly by if he kept this up.

So wrapped up in the idea that he didn't pay any attention to the red flags that morning. Beverly woke and packed all her things away on top of what was already in her bags. Going further to shove in a few things from around the room. Pennywise assumed it was a human thing to bring comforts on a trip. They were all sheep too afraid to leave the herd for long without some sort of comfort. For good reason they should be afraid to be alone in Derry. Especially for her unknowing to the mark looming over her head.

She left then he left to hunt the day away. Annoyingly fighting with the stormy rains while searching for one small meal to snatch. The rains going on longer throughout the day meant even less prey going out. Soon he'd have to hold on the hunting altogether as rain turned to hail and finally a bit of snow. He returned back to her home assuming shed be back by now. Remembering then that she was off on a trip.

“oh well. May as well stay here where its dry. She'll return soon.” settling himself under her bed. The next day seemed no different. Hunting to later return home, but Beverly was still not yet back. “still on her trip? What is she doing? How much fabric factory do they need a tour of?” settling under her bed. The third day of her not being around becoming a nuisance. Then the 4th day came and he had enough of this waiting. Searching everywhere for her along the usual path she took to school. Even on campus she was not around in her classes.

“where is she?!” He growled inside her empty room. Even her father seemed to have no idea where she went or even cared. an idea hit him of where she went causing A pain to seize his chest of realizing he may have failed his ultimate hunt. “did she leave Derry?” After searching frantically the remaining daylight away he managed to unintentionally find her. The night sky revealing a bright glow of a campfire far off into the woods.

“what moron is camping in the woods as it rains so heavily?” he thought when first spotting the camp. Taking a momentary detour of his search to scope out the spot. “i could snag a dumb meal before continuing my search.” stalking up to the campfire. Discovering Beverly speaking among a group of friends. Giggling around the fire between 3 other girls roasting food on sticks.

The clown tapped his fingers against the bark of a tree. Clawing into it to mark rows across it. “so this is where she has been. Spending all this time in wet woods for what?” leaving another claw mark. Spying on the group from far off between the dark damp trees.

One of the girls checking over a half roasted hot dog before continuing to roast it. Turning her attention to Beverly in the meantime. “see, told you camping was a great stress killer. Even if it is raining cats and dogs.”

“yeah, you were right.” Beverly nodded, checking on a burnt marshmallow she was roasting. “feels great to escape … it all.” the smile on her face faltering for just a moment. Hiding it by eating the marshmallow off her stick.

another girl chuckling as she started eating as well. “sucks we gotta get back to school tomorrow. You got everything packed right? Aside from your tent. Need help packing it tomorrow?” taking another bite of food.

“no, I got everything. Honestly I am gonna leave everything here and grab it on the way back home.”

the third girl speaking up. “you sure about that? What if somebody steals your stuff?”

“ha, nothing of mine is worth taking.” stabbing another marshmallow on the roasting stick. The first girl standing up into a wide stretch of her arms.

“welp, I am going to bed, night girls.” throwing her stick into the fire. The other girls sitting nearby letting out yawns of agreement.

“same here, night guys.” Beverly stretched to her feet with a wave goodnight on the way to her tent.

The clown slumped against the nearby tree grumbling to himself. “At least she'll be returning tomorrow and I'll get my warmth back.” forced to return back to his nesting pile for now.

The morning came and went, finishing his spying as she went off to school. Another poor hunt of a human caught in the rain. Returning early to wait for Beverly under the bed. He waited and waited, but no sign of her came.

“ugh, where is this girl?” coming out from under the bed. It was far too late for her to be at school, or anywhere for that matter. Reading the clock he saw the flashing time of 10:56 PM. “still camping?” he wondered. Heading off into the woods at the campsite she stayed. For some reason she was still there and all her belongings left unpacked. Even more curious was her working on a dress by the campfire.

“why doesn't she go home to bed? Wouldn't it be better to sow there?” posting up against a tree with a cross of his arms. She sowed for hours to finish the dress. Cooking a small meal of instant noodles on the fire before bed. A boring show that kept him waiting for her to pack. “she said all her things were packed. Why aren't they? Is she not planning to return home?” fingers tapping rhythmically across his arms in thinking. “this won't do, no place to hide inside the tent, I'll have to sneak in some other way to leech her warmth.” standing away from the trees. “humans held hands all the time during that … dating time. I'll just turn human and request her to date. Heh, this will be far easier than sneaking around as she slumbers.” smiling to himself at his clever thinking.

“see you for our date tomorrow Beverly.” Walking off into the night to perfectly plan for tomorrow's meeting.

________________________________________________________

A storm thundered across Derry blotting out the sun. The college campus suffering the most under the storm. puddles creeping under the doors to flood the lower classrooms. Needing to be relocated to higher ground for them to continue. One affected class being Beverlys as they all scrambled to save the electric sewing machines. highly valuable fabrics also needing protection from the rising water. Requesting aid of the main office to help with transportation of heavy materials.

Pennywise, freshly disguised, hid away in the new fabrics closet location. The students dropping things off were separated from each other in large gaps. he saw his chance to approach Beverly in the rush back and forth. Being separated from all the others allowing a private chat in the dark storage. A flash of lightning as Beverly entered hid his presence from her in the moment.

Approaching from the darkened corner to gleefully greet her. “hello Beverly.” his sudden appearance having her jump. She wasn't expecting any body to be hanging out in the darkened fabrics closet.

The presence of the stranger putting her on guard. “hello?” answering out of politeness, but not wanting to stay and talk. Aside from being all around intimidating, to her, something wasn't right about him. Staring down unblinking with blue steel grey eyes. Watching her every movement through them on a deadpan expression. Knowing her name yet she'd never seen him before on campus. All of that convincing her to keep holding onto the large fabric roll in her arms. Something to keep them separated if he tried anything.

He had massive muscles on his towering height of 7 feet. bright red hair in a neatly slicked back look contrasting against his perfect pale skin. Clothes far too out of place on the young man, as if they were from over a century old. Wearing a tight dark vest over a white shirt mostly hidden under a dark brown leather duster coat. Dark pants leading down to black heavy boots.

His expression changed to a wide smile making her even more uncomfortable. It was the exact reason why he was smiling. Enjoying the fact he was scaring her without need of a complicated form. He could read her like a book on all her feelings. The twitches, the side glances, and all the scents flowing off her to make easier judgments on what to do.

She swallowed nervously before speaking to break the tense air forming. “do I know you?” asking to figure out the stranger. A name to give campus security, or police, would be nice to have as well.

“mm.” he hummed in glancing to the side. Thinking of what to answer with. “ ...once … we've met. Many years ago.” speaking boldly in knowing she would never guess it was him.

“oh, uh, sorry. I don't really remember you.” seeing in her eyes she was searching for an escape from him.

“I didn't think you would. Our meeting was quite brief.” chuckling on the old memories. Having to hold back more laughter as she fidgeted in front of him.

“was nice seeing you again. ... I uh, have to finish moving some stuff-” her wrapping up of the meeting ended by him interrupting.

“will you go on a date with me?” he outright asked.

“no.”

he didn't expect her to answer that. “no?!” he questioned a little too aggressively. “why no?!” insulted at being rejected.

“already dating.” answer blurting out quickly. He thought at first she was lying, but her eyes said it was the truth.

“who?!” he snapped. The two separated by other students walking in together holding a huge roll of fabric. Carrying the long roll at its each ends. Beverly stuffed her fabric onto the nearest shelf before bolting away to freedom out into the storm. He let out a long hiss of displeasure following out into the rain. “already taken? I'll fix that!” thinking that he needed to find the damn male she was dating to drag them off into the sewers. Wouldn't be too hard if he kept up with her around campus. Between here and her tent she didn't stop anywhere else. Watching her from the sidelines as she went through her classes. Then he saw the male blocking his plans. Labeling him the one at seeing how Beverly greeted him by Hugging with disgusting kisses. Using the form of a rat he approached closer to listen in on their conversation.

“you coming to the party tonight?” the male asked.

“David, I said I cant. I got so much work to catch on after that camping trip.”

“come on, we've barely hung out together. You said so yourself we should have another date soon. Since our last date was cut short because your dad called throwing a fit. Then the other one we skipped due to school. We can hang out at the party. Really get to talk about what we like and stuff.”

“... okay, for a couple hours.” her tone not sounding the most thrilled. The rat hiding by sure was however. A crowded party in the night having all the goers too drunk to notice somebody going missing. A perfect time to make a competitor vanish out of sight.

The rat smirked. “a date for tonight then.” spending the rest of the day waiting. When the night came he followed Beverly from her new “home” to join up with the male at a diner nearby. Picked up in a rusted rickety old car to drive barely 10 minutes down the streets. Stopping in front of a rich kids mini mansion covered in flashing lights swarming with drunk college students. Pennywise had only been here a second after Beverly and her boyfriend's arrival and already he despised the place. Hating how idiotic drunks kept acting like fools. The loud annoying music blasting around from screeching stereos. Needing to tune them out for the hunt he was actively on.

Walking through the crowds so easily without anyone giving him attention. As if the stranger no one knew didn't exist at all. Staring intently above the rest to stalk the annoying male hanging around Beverly. Ready to pluck him off as soon as a mistake was made. Going off alone for a drink or possibly separated by the dancing drunkard crowds. The clown saw his chance to approach when the male left to grab another drink.

“hello there.” he greeted in the same disguise he approached Beverly in.

“hey there.” the boy listlessly replied.

“not having any fun?” smiling down on him.

“ugh, no. my girlfriend keeps wanting to leave and we've only been here for 10 minutes.”

“aww, such a shame.” playing along to the males discontent. “I know a place to gather for a bit of fun not far from here.”

“oh yeah? Doing what exactly?”

“a bit of betting in a group.”

“betting over what?”

“it's super simple really. A challenge to see who will enter the dark drainage pipe connected down the stream. I've seen a couple do it for an easy $50.” tempting the poor sap on false promises of money.

“hmph, is that all? You know i've heard something that eats people lives down there. Like a massive crocodile that was flushed down the toilet once.”

“you don't say?” not caring for whatever the male was rambling about. “does that mean you're too scared for the dare?”

“naw, i'll take the stupid dare for 50 bucks, but you have to show me the money first.” this male really annoying him. The waiting was grinding his patients down apparently the same for how Beverly was feeling. Spotting her approach he disappeared back into the crowd.

“David I really have to go home now! Its late, I have work to do before class tomorrow!” she begged the boy around the snack bar.

“can you stop being a Debby downer? Ever since we got here you've been wanting to leave. You still hadn't talked to me despite anything I ask. I ask if I can drive you home after class, no answer. I ask if I can meet your dad, no answer. I ask if we'll ever get a proper date, but you don't seem to want that either. Do you really want to date me?” sounding done after her constantly asking to leave. The crowd surrounding them not noticing the argument except for a pair of blue eyes.

“i do! I have a lot going on and it's hard to focus right now. Please David, take me home. I'll make it up later, okay.” watching her boyfriend sigh.

“fine.” tossing his half empty cup onto the lawn as Beverly followed behind on the way back to the car. Unknowingly being followed by someone else on their drive. Curiosity peeking when the car stopped in the middle of town. Muffled arguing heard from the car then Beverly stepping out. The male shouting from inside. “you can fucking walk home! I am tired of you keeping secrets, its over!”

“asshole!” she shouted back as he slammed his car door. Making a fast U turn back toward the party. Beverly left walking alone through the deserted town under the clouded night sky. Flashes of lightning warning of an oncoming pour down.

The disguised creature grinning from the shadows across the street. “looks like my job was made much easier.” following not too far behind as Beverly walked down her street side. The fresh falling rain drowning out his precise steps when approaching.

Eyes locking onto two other new following figures. “what?” he stopped midway between the street to glare at two other male figures catching up with her. “friends of hers?” annoyed at his approach being complicated again. He didn't want others around to interfere.

They managed to stop her by asking a question. “you got a phone?” one asked.

“we've gotten stuck out here in the rain. Did you get stuck out here to?” the other questioned. Beverly gave no answer to the two. Both men being far too eager to learn she was out with no ride or a phone.

making up a story as best she could. “I have a friend waiting for me. If I am late, she'll be upset.” Against the fresh rain he could smell the fear coming off her. They weren't any friends of hers like he first thought. She didn't like these men, which made him not like them either. Taking a slightly different approach to step into the situation. He appeared out of nowhere in a flash of lightning. draping an arm around Beverly in a dominating claim over her.

Greeting her again. “hello Beverly.” Having himself give off the sweet scent of cinnamon rolls to fake a comforting aura about him. Calming her body that flinched at his touch at first when he hugged her to his side. Letting him do so at least only for protection against these other males. Looking over her expressions he could see she was still far too afraid.

thinking off her reaction. “thinks I am with them?” he challenged the males in a cold stare down. “who are these two?” Knowing full well they were as terrified of him as Beverly was of them.

“I don't know.” hearing her answer quietly. The two males shrinking away under his unbroken stare. Smart enough to know they weren't getting their prey now.

“let's go home.” directing her along without giving her the chance to argue against it. The two men left behind to disappear from their sight. Once they were gone she started to speak up for herself.

“thanks, I uh, can walk the rest of the way.” pulling away from the side hug, which he allowed. Beverly walking further ahead of him to create some distance. Another thing he didn't push to keep her from getting scared off.

Yet still insisted on walking her. “oh no, you shouldn't be out so late while alone. Don't you remember the curfew? Bad things happen in Derry and I couldn't take the guilt if you disappeared.” hiding his displeasure of losing the warmth he had so close.

“what are you doing out so late then?” tone leaking suspicion.

“cant sleep is all while that loud party plays looking like a rave. I've also forgot to mention my name.” going down in a halfway bow of showing off. “I am Robert grey, simply grey is fine.” his unusually wide smile not easing her worry.

Not recognizing his name she brought up what he mentioned last time. “where exactly did we meet before?”

“around Derry, in a few places, actually. I've been gone for quite a while only now coming back.”

“heh, I recently came back too.” giving off a nervous chuckle.

“so I've heard. I had to see you again after so long once I found out.”

“y-yeah …. did I see you in school?”

“heh heh, no … I was homeschooled, strictly.” making up a cover. Laughing mainly on the inside at her attempts at guessing.

“the park?”

“maybe in glimpses, but never a meeting. Same for a lot of places around here.”

“tell me where we've met then.”

“oohhhh.” he smiled at her getting frustrated. “it's really not that important.”

“... kinda strange.” she muttered. “can't make conversation when you barely know someone.”

“you're one to talk. I heard you don't like sharing things about yourself either.”

he saw her tense up at the claim striking a nerve. “do I have to?” Shooting him an offended glare.

still smiling he shook his head. “no, I don't mind secrets. What's one more in little ole Derry, Right?” knowing how her ex demanded answers he knew not to question her. Neither did he need to, anyway, when he saw all and knew all that happened in Derry. The many secrets this small town hid from the world that it didn't matter what else was added to its closet of skeletons.

her body relaxing off his answer. “yeah … my home is not too far now. I should make it from here, without you.” subtly trying to hint she didn't want him to follow.

knowing how close her tent was he didn't argue. “if you're sure.” stopping his steps at a curbs end.

She fidgeted her sleeves in her hands as she stood a few steps ahead. Turning back to look at him. “... thanks, for helping me back there. I'll try to return the favor somehow.” giving her best shot of a not so nervous smile.

“go on a date with me?” he asked without any hesitation. Enjoying her squirming reaction by the uncomfortable question.

“I can, go on one.” answering hesitantly. “ a small one, after class.”

“small one after class is fine.” which it was as long as he got into her good graces. Opening up for easier physical contact for warmth. “wish to meet at a diner? I'll be happy to get you something.” aiming for something she really wanted, food. Having watched her eat instant noodles for the past few days, she would surely want something else.

“that's fine.” sounding a lot more excited for the date. “I'll see you there after my classes. Somewhere around 5:00pm.”

“see you there.” waving goodbye on there separation. Going only far enough to leave her view. Coming back around to hide by her place of rest. Watching her eat another pot of instant noodles. Then spend hours on sowing fabrics before bedtime in almost the sunny morning hours.

Waiting through the day to immediately pounce her for the anticipated meeting. Walking across flooded grass lawns of the college campus. The sky darkened black that It was a surprise to everyone in Derry that the rain had not rushed down yet. Coming up to her last class exiting, straight to Beverly, as she walked beside her classmates. Almost jumping out of her skin when he appeared through another flash of lightning along the choppy clouds.

Rain falling hard right after his appearance as if an omen of dread.

She froze in surprise that he found her so easily. By her reaction he could read that she did not expect him. Another part hinting disappointment that he did manage to find her somehow.

Giving his unsettling smile. “ready for our date?” holding himself back from snickering at her giving a shaky breath.

her voice oozing anxiety about this situation. “ah, y-yeeeah.”

“want to hold hands on the way?” offering his hand out before she could answer. She, with another nervous breath of air, took his hand. Anyone else would see her doing this out of obligation to not be rude. Be accepting that she wasn't comfortable and retract their hand by courtesy. He didn't care, wanting to leech the warmth off her rather then contact for bonding. However he knew his handling needed to be gentle despite so badly wanting to snap her arm backwards for the thrill of it. Keeping his grip on her a soft looseness. Taking the chance however to hug her against his side within his coat. Falsely protecting her from the pouring down rain drenching them both.

Chaperoning her down the few blocks to the diner. Holding hands the entire way until they entered the diner filled with a comforting warmth. Beverly pulling away entirely to get away from all contact with him. His frustration picking up on her lack of keeping close contact. Burying his anger under knowing he needed to be patient on luring her close like any prey. Attention turning when they were greeted by staff then taken to a nearby booth.

If it weren't for the place shutting down each night he would consider this to be a greater heat source to stick by. Beverly ordering a coffee for her drink while he ordered nothing. Her relaxation of entering a public place disturbed back into anxiety over his fixated staring.

He didn't pick up the menu, like she did, seeing no reason to bother. Choosing to stare at her from across the small table in promoting her fear to stem further. Still choosing to be polite she didn't outright call him rude. “are you going to order something?” trying to hint that he should stare at something else.

“no … my diets a little limited.” realizing that him not eating wasn't appearing normal. Making up another lie on the spot to cover his odd behavior.

Unfortunately this brought up further questions to her. “limited how? Like allergies or choice?”

“ both. My body doesn't handle certain things.” almost retching at the thought of anything leafy green. Cooked animals getting the same reaction of revulsion over the ruined meats. “I heard you were in LA for a while.” changing the subject.

“I was.” suspicious of how he knew so much about her. “where have you been hearing this stuff exactly?”

being honest this time. “all over town.” having heard through the literal pipe work of Derry the talks about her. Aside from his own spying right under her nose on conversations. Some of the newer towns folk, unknowing of the rumors, were quite nice to Beverly. The old folks, not so much, still spreading rumors of supposed looseness with men. The news of her return was the talk of the town in such a small place where nothing happened.

“what else have you heard?”

“you were going to a fashion school there.” she was getting too suspicious now. May have not helped he mentioned hearing about her all over Derry. Nasty rumors about her being a good reason that she hated being talked about. To ease her worries he kept to the basics surrounding her success. “impressively high grades, many scholarships earned, but you were forced to come here on short notice. Your dads been really sick as of late. Is that why?” pointing toward the topic of her father that would surely cause her to retract from further talking.

the mention of her dad on top of why she returned having her shy away. “no, its other reasons. I don't want to talk about it.” her turn to try moving the conversation away. “where have you been all this time?”

“far off lands.” farther than she could imagine. “visiting my original home for a while to do work. Yet, this place always felt more natural for me to embrace. Much smaller, less complex, easy to keep secrets that nobody bothers to care about.” proudly talking about his private hunting preserve.

“that's Derry, keeping secrets to spreading false rumors.” slouching back in her chair. “sorry, I must sound like such a downer.” sitting straight again to show a small smile.

“it happens to everyone in this cold weather. I love the warm summer times far more then the rain.” reading off her body language of relaxing the longer their talking went on. Bringing out the fresh scent of cinnamon rolls around him to speed the process quicker.

“it really is. Have to avoid the flooded roads everywhere. So much mud that I swear my boots will get a permanent layer of it.”

“I don't like the cold. It's a nuisance to keep away and makes Derry a ghost town. Hard to find someone running about during the storms.”

“now that you mention it, it can be pretty lonely. I've been so busy I haven't had the time to really notice. All my friends must think I am a workaholic or something that needs to get out more. That's the price of education I guess, can't afford to let my grades slip now. Do you go to the college?”

“yeees. I work in the office.” answering in the most general way. He kept hearing students mention work in the office. Though he didn't know exactly what that meant aside from those students were very busy. alongside rarely seen unless called down for help by a professor.

“ahhh, an office boy.” something he didn't know clicking for her. “Should have known when I saw you in the fabrics room. I don't think I could do the office job involving that boring paperwork and running errands all day for teachers. Do you have to go in the rain a lot? I assume no since it's just a bunch of office desk work inside.”

dipping his head side to side. “ so-so.” Thinking how often he spied indoors vs hunting out in the rain.

“must be brutal against your class schedule. What are you taking?”

trying to avoid the question. “ it's not very interesting.”

“aw come on. If any class is uninteresting, it's mine. Spending hours staring at fabrics to sow together for the next day.”

he heard students talking most about one subject. “engineering?” Beverly not noticing his almost questioning answer.

“wow, and you're taking an office job too?” sounding impressed on his choice. “which engineering branch are you studying in?”

fuck, he didn't know that. “uhh-” saved from answering by the waiter coming to take their order. Not wanting anything while Beverly got hot bowl of clam chowder sided with fresh sourdough bread. When the waiter left he was expected to answer.

It bought him enough time to think something up. “I don't want to talk about work.”

“I get it. You probably deal enough with it as is. I am not too fond of fabric conversation either after so long.”

“yes.” he nodded. “want to hold hands?” he brought up. Having craved the warm touch this entire time, but didn't want to scare Beverly too much on his forwardness. She awkwardly agreed, holding out her hand for him to take. The talking dying down once he took hold. Fidgeting under his silent intent stare locked on her. The tension broken somewhat by the arrival of food to focus on. Needing to separate they're hand holding so that she could eat. A hot clam chowder was perfect to warm her up in the freezing rain and to all the more spread the heat over to him while touching.

When the meal was finished, he looked at the bill. Having a hard time deciphering what the proper amount of bills were. It was never an issue for him up until now to figure out human money. He knew one particular bill that seemed to usually cover any meal. Setting a $100 bill on the order paper without a further thought over it.

“shit, grey.” Beverly commented on the massive tip he left on a $15 meal.

“what? Is it not enough?” unsure of if it was. Her surprised reaction telling him that something he did was highly noticeable.

“uh, no its fine.” chuckling at his lack of money concern to be giving that much away.

“would you like me to walk you home?” holding out his hand for her to take as they left.

Her nervously taking his offered hand. “sure.”

“having a wonderful time?” enjoying the large amount of warmth transferred over. Keeping up her relaxation around him as long as possible to promote this dating forward.

“yeah. Really nice to get out of the house for a while.”

“where are you living exactly? I know your father continues to live in those apartments and that's not where I dropped you off.” his aim was to be taken to her home eventually. Staying inside someplace filled with warmth without need to hide away the entire time in a darkened corner.

“one of the boring houses on the block.” generalizing her location in that area.

“maybe I should come visit?”

“uh, no. very busy with a mess of school work all over the place.” chuckling on the excuses she made to keep him from coming over. “which I really need to get to work on for tomorrow's classes.”

“mm, well since we cant hang out any longer today how about another date tomorrow?”

“alright, we'll meet for some coffee.” smiling up as they walked together holding hands.

#It (2017)#pennywise x beverly marsh #pennywise #beverly marsh #7 years after movie #horrors below ch 1

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yasumi222 · 5 years

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KILLING STALKING ANALYSIS :D PART UNO

Ayz, u ppl r so nice, luvz :D

And I was thinking for some days already, about that bizarre plotline in the recent chapters, so I came up with theory – or more likely a perspective. I love Killing Stalking – but only psychological aspect of it – the part of investigation is… bad. Real bad. Still, plot holes are there to stick a finger in them. And I have a lot blabbering to do, so I suppose I won’t post it all at once XD Still, I’ll make kinda tl;dr to maybe at least announce what I have in mind and we will see how it goes.

So tl;dr – last chapters are (not 100% aware) Sangwoo suicide attempt, he did not “murder” Chief Kwak, he has inner demon fight – inside his head - Seungbae is something – and I will call it a villain.

And for the beginning – I’ll start with the analyse – what made Sangwoo to be in the situation he is right now, and why he called it upon himself. I’m saying that right now XD ill divide part one in two parts, because it will be long ass shit, and I will be crazy surprised if someone read one part in one go.

I will go for the more juicy plot holes later, after I make a point in that suicide of Sangwoo matter – because – in my opinion it is the opus magnum of that story.

PART I – SANGWOO CHARACTER ANALYSIS

Let’s start with Sangwoo. Within chapters in S3 its vivid that he cares no more about his wellbeing, he is not scared of death – he is scared of one particular way of dying – the painful one. Risky way of driving, talking about his crimes out loud, lack of joy in the thing that should provide some sort of warmness inside his broken heart.

I think Sangwoo after such traumas is divided between two personalities. Either it is some strange dissociative identity disorder, where the split is not fully achieved, but its present, or its very severe case of borderline disorder. Either way - I will assume – that indeed – inside his head lives two characters, which are fighting over leadership. And one of them is 90% of the time victorious. Let’s call him KILLER – that crazy, murderous personality, without empathy, full of himself – absolute and terrible monster. That “Killer” is the one who has hallucinations about his mother, that “Killer” believes he killed not only a mother, but a father too. That “KILLER” was created the day – when his mother put a knife in her throat, and is surviving till today. And that KILLER is the schizophrenic one – who hears bangs on the door, who reacts with aggression with every hallucination that appear. I’m pretty convinced that the first killings from Sangwoo – were not committed with the full sanity of the act. They were not accident, of course, but he was killing over and over his mother - then his mind needed to accustom to such horrific act. And the KILLER matured. Killings were most probably soothing shattered mind, he killed hallucination after hallucination – letting himself for a moment of peace – in such horrific manner.

And Bum was the one, who managed to snap the KILLER out of his mania – with very simple words. I love you. Because if mother of the KILLER was indeed loving him, even after rape, she wouldn’t die. She wouldn’t get the knife inside her throat. She wouldn’t reject him in such disgusting act. She hated him so much, she preferred death over letting herself love him. She would be still alive, alas KILLER wouldn’t be born.

And the KILLER stops. Bum survives.

But stopping the KILLER is way different story than overcoming him. He is pushing every way possible – to force Bum to hate him – testing him, trying him – and still like a child, who kicks his dog – he still expect that the dog will come back – lick his face, wiggle tail in happiness. It’s not logical. But Sangwoo expect absolute love – even in the face of true terror.

Maybe because he regrets, he didn’t show his love to his mother – even during the most disgusting act – because he loved her unconditionally, and maybe – maybe if he didn’t complain – she would not reject him.

And KILLER is angry when Bum rejects him. But then, try after try, when our fucked up in the head Bum manage to still show his attachment to Sangwoo – the KILLER starts to shine less, and something old – something long forgotten is starting to look at Bum with different eyes. The moment of Bum attempted suicide is crucial moment, when the KILLER is for the moment gone. Hidden. Bum is trying to get rid of himself – not because he do not love Sangwoo – but because Sangwoo is not loving him. And Sangwoo see for the first time – himself in small figure of Bum, he sees that rejected, scared boy, who cries his out eyes, and who is ready to give up his life – not for him, but as an act of rejection of the world without him. Sangwoo for the first time believes Bum – because there is no lie in the blood. There is no lie in the tears.

Sangwoo hurt him. And he is aware of that.

And that Sangwoo – of that moment – is the man who will sustain on doing any harm to his beloved Bum. That is the second persona, who will lose again and again in the battle with the KILLER. But it’s the persona that I love. The persona who tries, and tries. But that persona needs help, needs constant sustain, needs the directions – to learn again how to behave, how to notice others. When I’m in pain – for example – having an headache – I’m really focused about my wellbeing. It’s easier to get upset over someone, because during pain I’m more self-centered. And Sangwoo agony is going on and on and on and on, without any pauses. And him trying to see through his trauma other person is almost impossible – and yet – he tries. Not as a hero, he won’t get any applause for doing that. And – even during tries – he is fully aware he will fail. Again. And again. Victory was never an option.

And we can all agree – KILLING STALKING – shouldn’t have a happy ending. And there was never an intention of getting one - as Koogi showed us. Sangwoo is suicidal. He was, he is and he will be. But there was one thing – the most painful death – that he feared with all his mind, wholesome of his heart. The lonely, painful death. And it was a curse placed upon him. The dagger poking his neck. And he was well aware it will never go away. Then – he asked the only person – which reached his softer, calmer persona for one thing. To die with him. To be with him – even in the most scary moment – to be with him – and in that way – even if he was devoured alive but monsters, drenched in the well, crushed to the bones – he would not die the most painful way. He needed Bum to protect him from alone, dark and scary death. And in that way he would – no matter what – be protected from the curse, that his mother placed upon him.

Still – the perspective of death was not so… vivid back then. It was in front of him, but not clear, close but not too close yet. They were drown in the ceremony of their own bonding, their honeymoon before actual wedding. And I truly believe – he wanted to cherish those moment, but his broken mind was not able to fulfill any boxes of happiness. Dysphoria. Sangwoo lost an ability to feel actual happiness, but still – seeing such joy in the eyes of Bum – forced his own mind to borrow a little of that light. And that was the moment I truly loved Bum. That was his strength that Sangwoo lacked, the ability to still light that fire. Joy. Happiness. Love.

But I can only imagine what an actual feeling that was for Sangwoo. The realization of the hollowness of your own being.

And he was shattering.

And I’d like to think that – the murder of the lady during ski trip – was an actual parallel to the first time – when Sangwoo killed someone. Haunted with the pictures of his mother, with trembling hands, and tears in his eyes – it was not a KILLER who killed her. It wasn’t thought through, it wasn’t calm and ironic. It was madness, absolutely terrifying madness.

And Sangwoo ran. Shattering more and more of the defenses he set years ago. He was naked in his own filthy, murderous self, in his own disgusting, horrid trauma, and drowned in the fear of dying – most painful, most painful, most painful… way…

And he ran to Bum. He cried next to Bum. Even if he didn’t expect him to answer, his presence was his safe place. He believed he won’t be rejected, or maybe at least hoped so. Even if he expected silence – it was the first time – when he – in very clumsy way – reached to Bum for help. Dependence was set hard in the stone. For the first time – Sangwoo was really vulnerable – and in the future – that vulnerability will only grow stronger.

Thank you if you reached the bottom of that mindsea :) I hope, even if it’s some rambling of anon in the internet – maybe a tiny bit of it was entertaining for you; as it is part one ill try to post second asap :D even if only for myself :’D cheers!

#killing stalking #sangwoo #Ilovesangwoo #verylongasspost #analyse #ilovemydogandisayhitohim #ks #ks spoilers #oh sangwoo

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writings-of-a-narwhal · 5 years

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Frosted Eyes: Chapter Three - The Journey

[a Warrior Cats AU for Broken Thrones. can be found on wattpad]

[prologue] [one] [two]

Paw steps on wet grass and crickets chirping are the only noises. Not even the wind makes a noise, there’s no grass rustling or whistling in her ears. Rose sighs. Head heavy, paws aching, and a pain that punctures her heart every time she breathes, she can barely make herself walk, but she must. She couldn’t bear saying goodbye to her dads. Not after the walk they had yesterday…

So she crept off in the middle of the night, just as she did when she ended up at the Moonstone, at least that’s what Ravenpaw called it. She’s fairly certain they were both awake when she left, but neither Ravenpaw nor Barley tried to stop her, thankfully. Now, though, she’s cold and alone, venturing into land that she’s never been before.

It’s terrifying.

She thought that Lionclaw would be there, walking beside her. She laughs to herself. That was a childish thought, wasn’t it? He hadn’t been with her all these moons except for that one dream and suddenly she thinks that he’s going to be at her side, leading her the way her dads would. Now she has neither Lionclaw nor her dads. It’s just her and the night air.

Ears back, she tries to force those thoughts out of her head. She has to do this. She has to tell the Clans of this prophecy, no matter what. It’s her mission.

“You’re so strong, Rosie…”

She stops in her tracks, a warm scent surrounding her. “Lionclaw!”

A purr fills her ears, overwhelms all the other sounds around her. “Of course, Rosie, I could never leave you to be on your own. Nothing will part us again, I promise.”

Rose lets out a purr herself, rubbing against Lionclaw and burying herself in his thick fur.

“Come on, then, Rosie, we have to get going if we want to make any progress in our journey tonight.”

“Right!” she purrs, prancing away from Lionclaw, her legs getting tangled and her chin hitting the ground. She huffs and sits up, then stands.

Lionclaw laughs, “Just as clumsy as ever.”

Rose huffs again but can’t help the grin on her face.

As she walks, Lionclaw’s scent leads her, but he himself doesn’t. His ‘solid’ form fades, yet she doesn’t feel alone. He stays by her side, or he might as well be by her side as his warmth is everywhere around her, the one comfort she has as she walks through the unfamiliar terrain.

Squeaks reach her ear, as do the hoots of owls and other noises that she can’t quite put a name to. It’s spooky, and Rose wishes desperately for Ravenpaw and Barley to be here at her side to lead her through the land and tell her she’ll be fine. Yes, she has Lionclaw and his ‘presence’ is comforting...but it’s not the same. Having him around is not the same as having her dads with her. She should’ve known it wouldn’t be the same. Her heart already aches for her dads, and she’s only just left them.

Rose sighs and keeps walking.

Her paws start to burn, every step making her want to groan and whine, but after a while they begin to go numb, and that feeling begins to creep up her legs. It’s barely dawn when it gets to the point where she feels she has to stop. The smell of dawn washes over her, bringing her just enough energy for her to be able to find a place to settle down to rest, a little dip in the land where the grass is lush and no dangerous smells linger.

Dew from the grass makes her shiver, but Rose couldn’t care less about it. All that matters is that she has a fairly comfortable place to sleep.

The next few days follow a similar pattern. She wakes, walks until she almost collapses, and when she smells prey she does her best to hunt it. Though, some of the time she has to scavenge for food as she isn’t the best hunter out there. It’s a bit disgusting, and not nearly as easy as she believed it would be, but she’s surviving. She’s walking and making her way toward the Clans. At least, she thinks she is. Lionclaw’s scent is still leading her, as faint as it seems now.

On the morning of the fourth day away from the barn, she comes across a Thunderpath. The smell is overwhelming, it suffocates her. Much worse than the Thunderpath between the barn and Highstones. It’s so much louder, like a bunch of bees buzzing in her head and then more. The ground beneath her trembles but her body shakes even more.

Still, she keeps walking.

The closer to the Thunderpath she gets, the more her senses leave her. Almost she stops walking, but a breeze hits her from below where the Thunderpath should be and she turns to follow it.

Her paws hit water and the pads on them burn, just as the smell of said water burns her nose. It stinks horribly, but it seems to be a way through that’s better than crossing the Thunderpath. And if it were the wrong way to go, Lionclaw would tell her, right? So she continues through the tunnel, weaving between harsh bars that are on either end of the tunnel.

On the other side, she bolts, the smell of Twolegs stronger here than it was on the other side, hoping that she’s not leading herself onto another Thunderpath. And luckily she isn’t. Her paws hit grass that goes from short and harsh to tall and soft. She heaves a sigh of relief, heart pounding in her chest.

She never wants to be anywhere near a place like that again.

With an aching body and claws tearing at the inside of her stomach, she continues on through the grass. She does stop to hunt, and as terrible of a hunter as she is, she catches a mouse that fills her belly with warmth the way no other mouse has ever done before.

She lays in the field, soaking in the warmth of the sun, letting her paws rest and her heart calm. Birds chirp above her, a kind sound, familiar. Stretching out, she lets herself drift off into the first fairly peaceful sleep she’s had since leaving the barn.

At sunset she wakes, and by nightfall she has travelled through the field she slept in and arrived at a new place; one with smell that she doesn’t recognize, along with the faint smells of Twolegs and dogs.

Tentatively, she moves forward, slinking under a fence of wood. A few tail-lengths into the sectioned off field, she can tell that the creatures inside are much bigger than her, but also that they’re quiet and not moving around too much. Keeping low to the ground, she creeps between the legs of the creatures, jumping at every slight noise around her.

After reaching the edge of the herd of creatures, Rose breaks into a run. She runs and runs and runs until she reaches the other end of the sectioned field, squeezing herself under the fence once more. And once she passes that fence, it’s only a foxlength to yet another Thunderpath.

She sits just beyond the edge of the Thunderpath, head hanging, chest heaving, and throat aching.

Why do Twolegs build so many of these things everywhere? Why?

She wants to cry.

But, after catching her breath, Rose forces herself to her feet and runs across the Thunderpath, not even checking if there’s a monster coming to kill her. She can’t tell if the roaring is from a monster or the blood pounding in her ears. Even after she crosses, the smell of monsters lingers around her, Twolegs are everywhere, and the ground burns her paws with every step she takes.

Beneath those smells, though, are the scents of cats, at least three. She’s not sure whether to run toward or away from them. They could attack and chase her off or they could be welcoming...or neither. She doesn’t have a chance to make the decision, as she realizes too late she’s right next to the source of the cat smells.

Rose tries to back away, fur on her back raised, tail puffed with fear.

“Woah there, kit,” one of the cats says, but it’s not enough to calm Rose down. He might not sound aggressive, but that doesn’t mean the others are friendly.

Ears pressed against her head, she takes a step back. Something rushes toward her, grabbing the scruff of her neck and yanks her toward were she was a moment ago. She squeaks, claws at the air, but it’s to no avail. Nothing except dirt gets between her claws.

“That was a close one,” he mews, releasing Rose from his grip. “M’ name’s Diesel, by the way.”

“I-I’m Rose.” She lifts her nose. He smells of Twolegs and monsters and he carries the scent of two other cats.

“Where are you trying to get to, Rose?”

“Oh, uhm,” she hesitates, wondering if this cat will actually help or if he’ll just think she’s crazy. Well, she has nothing to lose. “I’m looking for a big group of cats, uh, they’re near the place where the sun drowns.”

“Huh.”

Anxiety wraps itself around Rose’s heart. “Wh-what?”

“You’re the third cat to say you’re looking for that place.”

“Really?!” Her heart pounds. There’s more than just her looking for the Clans?

“Yeah, the others are inside. Follow me.”

Paws feeling lighter than they have in days, Rose trots after Diesel, following him into a space between two large structures. Twoleg buildings, she assumes. It smells like crow-food over here, but the smell of other cats is stronger.

“Graystripe, Millie, there’s someone here lookin’ for the same place as you two are.”

“Really?” comes the voice of another tom cat, curiosity filling the air, but Rose can also detect pain in his voice.

“This is Rose, she said she’s lookin’ for a group of cats near the sun-drown place.”

“Rose,” the tom breathes, “Millie, isn’t that the cat that Ravenpaw told us about?”

Instantly Rose’s ears perk up. “Ravenpaw? You saw him? When? How is he? What about Barley?”

“It was two dawns ago when we stopped at the barn, Ravenpaw said that you had just left them. Him and Barley both seemed like they missed you, and they were worried.”

Rose lowers her head, sitting and wrapping her tail around her paws. “Did he tell you why I left?”

Millie speaks up now, her voice gentle. “He didn’t say exactly why, but he said it was important.”

She nods. Thinking about how her dads makes her throat tighten. I’m sorry, she whispers to them, I’m so sorry…

“You actually got here just in time. Graystripe and I were planning on leaving tonight, if you want to come with us rather than travelling alone…”

“Really? You’ll let me come with you?”

The idea of not being alone makes Rose’s heart soar. She’s never been alone for days at a time like this, and it’s like basking in the sun to be offered to travel with someone. And they’re all going to the same place!

“It’ll be safer if you do some with us,” Graystripe murmurs, and Rose can’t help but wonder what’s going on in his head to cause that tone.

Rose purrs, all of her exhaustion and weariness forgotten.

That is, until she realizes that they’re going to be climbing in the back of a monster to travel faster. Diesel is with them, telling them which monster is the one they want to climb on. He says it’s because of the boards on the back of it, whatever that’s supposed to mean. For Rose, she just has to trust him blindly and hope that none of these new cats are going to lead her into something overly dangerous.

Before she tries to jump on the back of the monster, she thanks Diesel, not only for saving her from being attacked by the monster, but for introducing her to Graystripe and Millie and for being so hospitable towards her. He just flicks her ear with his tail and says it was nothing.

Then she turns to the monster, the stench of it not registering in her nose any more. She reaches up with her front paws and finds a ledge, which she jumps on, and when she reaches up again, there’s a small ledge and then empty space behind it. She jumps toward the scent of her two new companions. As soon as she’s in the monster, she crouches down next to Graystripe, pressing herself against him for comfort. Whether the comfort is more for her or him, she isn’t sure, all she knows is that both of them are trembling.

When the monster comes to life, it’s even worse. The wind whips around them, louder than just hearing the monsters roar by on the Thunderpath. She presses closer to Graystripe. Meanwhile, Millie seems to be having the time of her life, enjoying the way the wind tears through her fur.

It seems like they’re travelling in the monster for moons, but when it slows down, Graystripe says it’s night. They’ve travelled on the back of the monster all day, and Rose hasn’t slept a wink. Luckily, they all climb out of the monster for the night. Rose can’t be bothered with hunting or eating, she just curls up near a wall and falls asleep.

Waking up is a shock, as she hears yowls and the sounds of fighting all around her. Heart in her throat, she strikes at the unfamiliar scents. Claws rake her side, teeth sink into her skin, but she does the same in response, fighting for her life. Nothing but the pounding of her own heart can be heard. She doesn’t stop her makeshift fighting until the enemies retreat, leaving her with Graystripe and Millie.

Barely, they have a second to breath when Millie yells out; “Our monster’s leaving!”

Rose takes off after the two bigger cats, but she’s falling behind quickly. Even Graystripe with his hurt shoulder is moving faster than her. She isn’t sure of all that’s happening, but she knows that Millie makes it on the monster, and then Graystripe disappears from in front of her….and she keeps falling further and further behind. Millie is yelling at her to keep running, to keep trying, that she can make it, but Rose knows that’s not true.

Still, she uses the last of her energy to burst forward and jump. Flying through the air makes her stomach drop and she’s afraid that she might be a goner. But paws and teeth grab her and yank her inside the monster.

Trembling, she can’t speak.

But she made it.

That’s all that matters.

let me know if you want to be tagged for this wip !

#the narwhal's writing #Broken Thrones Warriors AU #WIP: Frosted Eyes #OC: Rosefrost / Rosar #ooof completely unedited #enjoy !#ignore the typos pls!

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shebuujie-blog · 5 years

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The Fuck Is Karma?

I had no idea what karma was until I saw my dog get it

It made me question, how could something so innocent and controlled get hit by something called karma?

How could she be hurt by an idea that if you do bad it comes back to serve you the same dose?

Once I witnessed her get hit by something adults have feared as a spiritual entity, i knew once and for all that this thing called karma has much more to it than we think.

Now, as a human being, we have the option to speak, act and communicate amongst each other. We can choose the body language we use whilst doing anything.

Humans have opposable thumbs and we also can do what we want. Make our own decisions and control our surroundings and environments.

Animals don’t have the same freedoms and liberties as we do. Yet, we enjoy the company and fellowship even the love of animals. But we don't really give them the attention we should.

My puppy Shanel is what you would call a “Pit Bull”. She is not used for fighting or solely kept for protection. She is apart of the family like any other house kept animal ( pet ). I tend to pay attention to her a whole lot more because we discovered throughout her time with us that she is extremely intelligent and very caring. She learns quickly and she never gives up.

I know that animals cannot plot or create an idea to do something bad KNOWING that it is bad.

It simply cannot happen. She would have to b trained at this and it would only be a reaction to a specific action or reaction by another person or object. That is the only thing I could imagine an animal doing to put Hatred behind an action unless raised in that fashion.

When I have the intention of doing something to harm another person, i get what you would call karma right? WRONG.

I would only experience karma if I did something or someone did something to make a series of events happen at the right time. Now I am not saying coincidences are true, I am only pointing out that Karma as a n idea is up for challenging.

I have kind of built my life up thinking that Karma is something i should be aware of. It isn't. Let me break it down to you.

Karma: What goes around comes around. Do good it comes back to you> Do bad it comes back to you. What ever you put out there will always come back to haunt you.

True: Bad things happen to those who are good. Bad things happen to those who are bad

Good things happen to those who are good. Good things happen to those who are bad.

False: There is a spirit flying around following people keeping track of what they do so that they can give them a dose of their own medicine for sport.

True: If i drive over someone with my car and keep going the only CONSEQUENCE is jail time or fines in some states...lol

If i drive over my car and SOMEONE SEES THE ENTIRE THING (OR A CAMERA WAS INVOLVED) AND CALLS AND REPORTS ME, I would than get this consequence RIGHT?

The difference between the first scenario and the second is consequence. If you do something wrong, your intention will not be the cause of your consequence, the actions you take or allow will control that. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE. We could discuss the timing of this as well. Lets dig deep.

Scene: A group of gang members are standing in front of someone's home being very loud and obnoxious. A white woman lives in this home. It is her choice to live in this neighborhood. She also happens to be racist. The gang members are ALL BROWN SKIN people. This happens often. She hates it. She calls the police and reports dangerous activities outside of her home. She doesn’t ask anyone anything or even bother to see why they were even standing there. She owns a gun. She also knows that the police will not come to her house fast enough. She decides to ask them to quiet down a bit or move up the block a bit. She didnt want any problems. They said ok sure and went on up the street.

Everybody wins. She forgot she called the police. She decides to let them show up and explain that maybe a sign should be placed on the sidewalk or her home. Why not?

On the other side of town; a young girl just so happens to have robbed a young couple with her older brother. Running home after a bust. Laughing and excited on adrenaline they head home as fast they can. They are both BROWN SKIN people. They live on the EXACT same block as The woman and the gang members. The women has just returned to her room to read after the noise has been silenced outside. She is also still a bit agitated at the fact it happens often. She is also contemplating moving or getting aggressive to assert herself. She chooses assertion, no one will run her out of her home! The two siblings are now almost home. Coming down the block they notice the gang members. They decide to talk to them and show them the stuff they got. Not knowing, they have just been asked to quiet down, they get loud and rambunctious again. They two children now head home after praises and lectures. They continue to be loud as they walk and the woman has just missed a part of her favorite show because of the noise the siblings are making.

She gets her gun to threaten, not use against the loud people outside assuming that it is the gang members yet again. It isn’t. These kids just so happen to be stealing to feed their family. Mom is ill and dad passed away due to work related illness. They have been struggling for a while, so this was awesome. Money and jewelry!

Yes. You think that no one should be doing anything bad to anyone else. It is not like that for everyone on this planet. Keep in mind we all have issues. No one issue is more than another.

The woman grabs for her gun and goes to the front door. She opens the door and sees the two siblings standing there loudly playing with each other. Coincidently dressed as the gang members. She points the gun and screams for them to leave now. They are frantic in haste and cannot understand whats happening. The brother is not armed but has a bag in his hands. The woman being racist assumes they are going to rub or shoot her first. She pulls the trigger as the sister tries to step between them and calm the situation. She drops to the floor.

Sister needed her brother to help her execute the plan. Mommy is hungry and no one can work yet. Their too young.

The siblings did indeed perform an unforgivable act. The victim also has performed acts of their own. The woman has also performed many acts in her life before this moment.

Not one of these people experienced karma. They only experienced time and consequence.

There is a consequence for every action you take and decision you make. Even making a choice at the wrong time can be your ending. The split second can change everything in your life.

Karma is an idea. It is something we grew up to fear. The bible has many lessons inside of it. Yet, The only true god is YOU. You are the only one in charge of your life. You are the only one who can make things happen. Time is your only friend. Use it wisely. The future you grow towards will not be there unless you choose to.

Yes there are things we can not explain. Those can also be explained. The choices another person makes can and will affect you if it may. Do not call that Karma. Call it Real Life.

My puppy only gets hurt because she isn’t paying attention. I tell her no. She doesn’t listen. She runs into a table leg. Now she is listening. That isnt Karma, that’s Real Life.

--SheBuujie

#writer #artist #inspiredaily #thought #motivational speaker #writing #blogger #blog #newblog

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youngster-monster · 5 years

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a soul that’s born in cold and rain

(lek belongs to @arcquos. check out his art!)

(ayin, thyme and sable belong to @baronetcoins on ao3. check out her writing!)

Death is the endless starlit road, going from and to nowhere. On each side sprawls a forest of pines, branches heavy with snow, held silent and still in darkness. He must walk, though he is lost and alone here: the only way out lies ahead, whatever it may be.

There is no light save for the distant glow of silver stars, no movement but the snowflakes falling slowly from the sky, no sound but the crunching of snow under his feet. No colors but white and grey, the world dimmed by frost and night.

And then all of this changes.

Northern lights held in the shape of a beast, cosmic colors swirling in dreamy patterns as it stands in his path, its bright eyes boring into his.

"I'm supposed to walk," he says, more a question than a request.

"When have you ever done what you were supposed to?" She asks.

On these words she turns her back to him and walks into the woods. The warmth of her presence lingers like heat on a summer night until her tail disappears between the dark trees.

He steps off the path and follows her in the dark.

(Cayde-6 comes back to life shivering, his body freezing except where a furry body is pressed against his side.

"Hello, Guardian," the wolf says, her open maw like a smile, teeth sharp and eyes bright.

He names her Sundance, for the way the weak winter sun shines over her tawny coat. She laughs, hyena like, and calls him a sap, but there's genuine warmth in her eyes when she looks at him.)

Death is the yawning abyss that devours all, the great beast waiting at the end of entropy, that which is and comes from oblivion.

The darkness is smothering, cold and heavy where it sits on their chest, inside their throat, reaching, spreading, covering them, burying them–

They grip at their throat, gasping for air, refusing to give in to the great nothingness stealing their breath. The sound of it is like claws digging into dirt, a persistent scratching, scrapping, searching–

Until it gives out, ever so slightly, all of it, the weight in their lungs and the sound in their eyes. The darkness seems to crumble on itself, just a piece of it, just enough to allow through a small head, tall ears, eyes like black light, dark and luminescent all at once.

"If it catches you, it will kill you," she says, voice like the whispers of wind. "But first it must catch you."

They want to say they are already caught, already trapped, but the darkness gave in, gave out, and there is just enough space for them to stand. As long as she is by their side they would always be just enough space to stand, to breath, unburied.

Uncaught.

She runs, then, as is in her nature. And it must be in theirs, too, because they follow, through the winding tunnels of darkness.

(Occam claws their way back to life, through of six foot of graveyard dirt and the suffocating fear of what lies below. Up above they hear scratching, digging, scrapping, searching–

For them.

They drag themself to the surface and the first thing they see is the rabbit, jittery eyes and ever-moving ears even in her prey-stillness.

She doesn't speak but her small body is soft and warm, alive in a way they forgot they knew. They burry their fingers in her fur like a man drowning and their hearts beat as one, rabbit-fast.)

Death is a pond, quiet and dark, overgrown with weeds, and the water clings to her skin and tries to drag her under.

"You're drowning already," the duck says, sounding unconcerned but not unkind. The feathers he is grooming are milky-white, like the moon seen through clouds. "Why not take the dive?"

He plunges his head in the water. His voice comes out distant as he warns her, Keep your eyes open.

She does even though she feels like she should not. She dunks her head into the water–

(Lek comes awake gasping for breath, waterlogged white hair being gently groomed by the duck sitting on her chest.

"It does no good to linger," he says, "In life or in death. You look terrible, dear."

She shrugs the comment off, as unbothered by it as he is by the water on his back, and lets the sun on her skin and the weight on her chest chase the cold of the water away.)

Death is a crushing ocean, is an endless plain of tall grass, is blindness and silence, is the wide open sky.

(Salvation is a grasping octopus, is a lioness with fur like wildfire, is a hound pressed against your side, is teeth and claws and wings and a thousand things to find the way back home.)

Death is great and inescapable and ever changing.

(So are they.)

Razel's Ghost is not settled.

It's hard to miss, what with the way he shifts constantly. In the field he does it to better fit their surroundings, hiding under Razel's clothes and fighting at his side in turns, one moment a small gecko under the collar of his coat and the next a tiger tearing through Vex circuits like it's tissue paper. In the Tower he is no less restless than Razel is, and while he fidgets and runs around his Ghost orbits around him in his robotic Core form, lands on top of Ikora's desk as a cat before jumping above the rail and taking to the sky on the small wings of a sparrow.

It's obvious. Doesn't mean Razel notices it.

Or rather, he doesn't notice it's not the norm. Most Ghosts keep to themselves, only talking to their Guardian rather than for them. He assumes the same goes for their shapeshifting. Maybe it's a social no-no, letting your Ghost go through a dozen form a minute in front of everyone. That would explain why they keep staring at Cubix and him like… that.

He goes to ask Ikora, eventually, because he trusts Cayde with many things but social etiquette isn't one of them.

"Ghosts typically settle after a few resurrections, most after the first one," she tells him, watching Cubix flit between forms, trying to decide on which one to wear for the day. "It's not that they don't shift in public. It's simply that they can't, ever. An unsettled Ghost after so many resurrections is practically unheard of."

"But... Why?" Razel asks. There are so many advantages to having an unsettled Ghost, after all.

She smiles at his confusion. "They only take this form to better guide our souls back to our body- to life. Once they find the most adapted to the task, they stop changing."

"That makes... Like, no sense. At all."

That brings a calculating look to her face. Her eyes go to Cubix briefly before she brings her attention back to him.

"Tell me, Razel, what do you see when you die?"

"Hm- what? I mean. Nothing, because I'm like. Dead?"

She hums thoughtfully at that but doesn't explain herself further. Razel takes it that the conversation is over and leaves quietly, even more confused than before.

He asks Cayde first, as usual.

Well. Technically, he asks Sundance.

"How did you know?" He asks, cross-legged in front of her.

She doesn't usually talk to people outside of Cayde, but he found that he's an exception to many things, this included.

"He was already a wolf," she says.

"I'm pretty sure he was also a robot back then."

"In soul, not body. He was a hunter, but a lonely one. Lost without a pack to hunt at his side. I became that pack."

Thats answers literally none of his questions. By the wolf-grin she gives him, she knows it.

He groans. "Thanks. I guess."

Time for a poll then.

"She has the heart of a lion," Jason, Ayin's Ghost, tells them. He trapped Cubix under his paws to stop him from running around and has been aggressively grooming him since the beginning of their discussion. Cubix looks disgruntled by it but doesn't dare try to break free. Smart Ghost. "A born leader. A huntress. It was only natural that I take the shape of her soul to better guide it back to life."

One last good lick and the lion releases Cubix. Immediately he turns into a hummingbird and flies up to Razel, hiding in the fold of his collar least Jason decides he needs another bath.

Jason is still laughing when they walk away, a low, rumbling sound that follows them out of the room.

Sable's Ghost is an octopus. She doesn't need water, because she's not a real animal, just a pure manifestation of Light shaped like an octopus, but Razel still feels uneasy watching her wrap her tentacles around Sable's shoulders. He wants to dunk her in a bucket of water just in case she actually needs it and they both forget it. It wouldn't be a surprise: Sable forgets a lot of things like that. Sleeping, eating regularly, where she put her keys...

A bit like Razel actually. They're the Tower's less functional Warlocks, which is really saying something.

"She has a mind like none other," Virgo says. Sable smiles distractedly at the compliment. "And I'm a cephalopod like none other. The way she thinks- always moving, adapting..."

Razel watches the constant curling of Virgo's tentacles around Sable's arms and shoulders, the way she changes colors until making all but one with Sable's lab robes, and thinks he has an idea of what she means. Probably.

They don't even notice him go. He makes a mental note to bring Sable something to it tonight. And an aquarium. Just in case.

Sunny is a delight to be around. She has a voice like summer rain, clear and comforting, and a permanent dog-smile on, even when things are tough. Razel would love to pet her but he's not sure if he's close enough to Thyme to ask that.

"Thyme needed a guide," she says, his head pillowed on her Guardian's thigh while she pets him. "And a friend. I knew she would like a Golden Retriever, and so here I am."

"That's it? She just wanted a dog?"

They both shrug in unison. "It doesn't have to be complicated," Thyme says.

Guess it doesn't, huh.

"So it comes from either my heart, my mind, my soul, what I want, or any combination of those four." Razel stares at Cubix with narrowed eyes, eyebrows drawn together in deep thought. Then he heaves a sigh and drops on his back. His mattress dips under Cubix's weight as his Ghost – currently shaped like a farm rabbit – hops next to him and smuggles against his side. "That didn't help like, at all."

"Do you want me to settle?" Cubix asks.

"I- huh. Not really, I guess."

He likes having Cubix turn into a bear during a fight, but it doesn't seem like a very convenient shape to sleep with – his ship only has so much space.

Cubix tucks his head in the crook of Razel's arms. "There you have it, then," he says and promptly falls asleep.

And that, as they say, is that.

Apparently you're not supposed to touch other Ghosts, either.

Shame they didn't learn that before Razel got his hands all over Sundance.

She just looks so fluffy, dozing next to Cayde while they chat. And they touch all the time – Razel and Cayde, Cayde and Sundance, Sundance and Cubix. It kind of makes sense to cut the middle man and just get his hands on her, right? She must be so soft.

He extends his hand and brushes his fingers between her ears.

It's the slightest touch, because he may be an idiot but he's not an asshole, he respects people's personal space. He's waiting for her to give him permission for a full petting session. But he doesn't get further than that.

His bare fingers touch her and it's like he's touching a live wire and dipping his whole body is fire and holding a star in his hands, all at once. His arms tenses and he gasps soundlessly, chest heaving, and so does she, so does Cayde–

The sensation eases in a second and he snatches his hand back as soon as he can, cringing at the pained sound she makes. Cayde's fingers are inches from his, reaching to stop him and frozen in place.

"Sorry," he rushes out, rubbing at his fingers and not quite looking at Cayde. "I didn't-"

Cayde's hand slowly falls back in his lap. He opens his mouth and makes a faint clicking sound, inner mechanisms rearranging themselves to better accommodate speech, and if he had a flesh and blood body it would be an audible swallow, probably. That's what it reminds Razel of, at least.

He's tremendously fond of Cayde's little noises.

"It's fine," Cayde chokes out eventually. "You- It's fine."

It doesn't sound fine, but Razel isn't going to put up a debate. He nudges the donut box Cayde's way, instead, in silent apology. There's only one left. He can have it... Just this once.

The feeling of it– lingers. A static-y kind of feeling under his skin, an itch he can't scratch.

He has to do something about it

"Here."

Cayde looks up from his report to Razel, who's standing there like an idiot, Cubix dangling from his outreached hands. He's shaped like a cat today, because they both consider that to be his most pettable form.

"What?"

He sways Cubix slightly. "Take him."

"... What?"

Cayde is very eloquent today. He's not often speechless but right now he's blinking owlishly at the two of them, mouth opening but no sound coming out.

Razel sighs. "I shouldn't have touched Sundance without asking. I'm sorry. But you can touch Cubix, if you want. As, you know. Payback or something."

Cayde shakes his head as if waking up from a daydream. "I told you it's fine," he says. "You don't have to feel like you have to-"

"I want you to though."

Back at it again with the dumbfounded blinking. Sundance, who he's carefully not looking at, follow the gentle swaying of Cubix his in grip with her golden eyes, no other part of her body moving.

"You what?"

"I asked Lek, about the whole... Touching daemons thing." Lek is an expert, or she acts like she's one, which is kind of the same thing. She never says no to explaining stuff to him, even if she spends most of her explanation laughing at him. "So, it's fine if you don't want me to touch Sundance. But you can touch Cubix. If you want. Because I do. Because you're important to me and I like you a lot. But it's fine if you don't want to."

"I- What?"

Traveler, he's slow today.

Razel takes matters into his own hands, crosses the space separating them in two steps and drop Cubix in Cayde's lap.

Cayde's hands fly up and stay there, hovering above Cubix. The cat has already curled up in his new spot, carefully not touching any bare stretch of metal in case Cayde doesn't want this.

Again, that faint clicking sound as Cayde glances from Cubix to Razel back to the Ghost.

Slowly, carefully, giving them both time to say no, say nevermind this is weird actually. They don't. His fingers brush against Cubix's back.

The reaction is... Quieter, this time around. A shivers that goes through all four of them. Razel's breath stutters in his throat. Warmth bloom in his chest, spread through his limbs to the very tip of his fingers. He exhales slowly, shoulders relaxing, opens eyes he didn't notice himself closing.

Cayde is carding his fingers through Cubix's fur with a dazed look in his eyes. Every touch is like static, settling into bonfire-warmth in the pit of Razel's stomach.

"Well," he says, then stops. His brain isn't exactly up to words right now. "Cool."

He sits down on the ground next to Cayde, folds his legs, lays his shaking hands in his lap and his head against Cayde's thigh. He breathes in deeply, closes his eyes again, and lets the feeling of absolute love and contentment radiating from Cubix lull him to sleep.

#writing #destiny 2 #cayde-6 #my ocs #razel #occam #daemons

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