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cassava-49 · 3 years

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Death 2

Part 1/ Part 3/ Part 4/ Part 5/Part 6/ Part 7

"Seriously? You did that to him?" Marinette asked trying to control her laughter. "Adrien's very easy to fool. He lets his guard down every time he feels like he could trust the person," Felix answered as he grinned at the girl in front of him.

It has been five days since Marinette got into a coma. The doctors said that she'll recover and would be able to wake up in soon. However, Felix's condition was slowly deteriorating. There were times when his heart would stop beating for a second or two. This caused a massive pain to those who knew and love him. Given that he's already a month in.

Although, the two ghosts seem to not mind it at all. Given that they're both just chilling at the roof. For the past three days, the two of them had been entertaining each other with their life stories, given that they know both of them were not going to live anyway.

"Hey, I saw your classmates trying to visit you again," Felix said as he stands up and goes to the ledge. "Who stopped them this time?" Marinette asked as she continues to finish the flower crown. "Security," he replied casually as he watched his mother entering his room to visit him again. "Your parents talked with the head and asked to have your classmates stopped if they're just here to visit you," he added as he faintly feels his mother's hand in his. Distracted by his mother, Felix didn't notice that Marinette had placed a flower crown on his head. "There, now you look a lot less like a creepy ghost," Marinette smiled as she looked at him with the flowers on his head. He smiled at her and adjusts her flower crown. This made him slightly jealous of his cousin for scoring a sweet, innocent girl in his life.

"Getting cozy up there you two?" a voice called from the other side. "Claude, what kept you guys?" Marinette asked as she approached the new comers, leaving Felix behind. Claude, a supposedly 17-year-old boy, who had been in a comatose state for a year already because of a car accident right after an akuma attack. "Hey, why does Felix get a flower crown?" Claude pouted. Marinette giggled and went to her pile of floor crowns. Giving each one of them a crown.

"Oh darling, it's beautiful," Allegra gawked with pride as she lined the outline of each one of the petals. Allegra is a 15-year-old who just got in a coma yesterday because of diabetes. Practically she's the one who's most likely to go first, given that was close to death's door when she arrived. "How are you feeling Allegra?" Felix inquired trying to see if she's recovering smoothly. "I feel better. I'm starting to feel the nurses whenever they touch me," she replied to him with a smile.

"Does it look good on me?" Kenya asked as she adjusted it on her brown locks. "Yup, you're totally rocking them," Allan replied with a wink. Kenya is an eight-year-old who got into an accident a week ago. Allan, on the other hand, is a soul who is trapped inside the hospital. He had been there for two years now, and he could have been 17 by now if it weren't for a rogue bullet.

"Marinette, do you like how I did my flower crown?" Lindalee asked as she showcased her new flower crown which was now in her two hair ties that held her blonde hair. Lindalee is also an eight-year-old who fell off the staircase about a month ago. "It's beautiful Lindalee. I love it," Marinette praised as she stared at it with pleasure. "You're looking great in that crown," Allan teased Felix. "For your information, I look majestic. It is, after all, made by our future fashion designer Marinette," he replied, which causes everyone to laugh.

"I really hope that you'll wake up soon, Marinette," Kenya exclaimed. "I hope that all of you would wake up," Marinette replied as she crouched down to meet the girl's eyes. "And don't forget to go to my grave when you guys all make it out," Allan reminded to them all, who nod in agreement.

"Hey guys, another one is in the emergency room," Claude called as he looked at the nurses who were rushing a young boy who seemed to have broken his leg. "Ooh, this one's interesting," Lindalee exclaimed as she examines the damage. "Is he going to be okay?" Kenya wondered in worry. "Don't worry honey, he'll be alright. It seems to be fracture, nothing as serious as death," Allegra said as she takes the little girl's hand. "It's funny how our only entertainment here is the emergency room," Felix commentt as he stood beside Marinette, who giggled in agreement. "Well, it's not like we could get out of the hospital, can we now?" Marinette replied with a smirk.

"Why can't we leave?" Allegra complained, still wondering the reason for it. "You guys are bounded to your bodies, so leaving it may become a welcoming invitation for the lost souls like me," Allan explains. "Why don't you leave?" she asked. "Why should I? My friends are all here," Allan replied with a smile. "My family moved away so I knew that I should just let them move on. From what I heard my sister's wedding was a blast and her husband is a nice, rich guy, who was her classmate in high school, and my little brother will be taking medicine for college and has a lot of achievements so far. So basically I'm not needed there, too much. They still come here on my death day so that's enough for me," he answered.

"That's so sweet of you," Lindalee cooed as she hugged him. "I'm definitely visiting your grave, first thing I'll do once I'm out," she adds. "Guys, the old man in room 404 is dying. I can see Grim waving at me," Felix said and pointed as room. "Let's go. I want to talk with Grim," Allan said as he begins to jump from the roof to the room. "Alright! Let's go!" Claude responded as he took Allegra's hand, who was still unaware of the perks of being separated from your body. They took a running start and jumped as well, aiming for the room. "Let's go Kenya!" Lindalee said as she took the girl's hand. "Yeah!" the two girls exclaim as they jumped. Marinette laughed at their reactions, since it became a game for them to jump into the room of the person who's about to die and surprise them.

"Come on Marinette, maybe today's the day," Felix said after chuckling as he sticks out his hand for her to take. She smiled and laughed as she takes it. "Let's go!" she exclaimed as the two began running towards the edge jumping through the window and landing in front of the group.

"About time, I thought that the two of you would be staying up there and make out," Grim said as he rolled his sunken eyes at the two. "What gave you an idea that we'd be doing that?" Marinette asked oblivious to the fact that they were still holding hands. The reaper, with his bony phalanges, casually pointed at their hands leaving the two teens flustered at their cluelessness. He chuckled at the two as he looked back at the old man, who was having a heart attack.

The Grim Reaper is as old as time. He wore a vanta black cloak that's tattered at the hem. His whole body is but of bones, a symbol of man's future after death. He carries a scythe to help end a person's suffering when it's too much, however he cannot use it unless the Fates allow him. But, it can also be used to transport the person's soul into the other side. Some may say that he's merciless, cruel, unforgiving and a thief. However, if they get to know him more, he's actually very nice and entertaining. He enjoys the company of ghosts, however is very sad for not being able to transport them to the other side.

"Grim, how's the number of deaths doing?" Claude inquired to pass the time. "It's the same. One person per second, we're just getting stretched too thin. Welp, better than the black plague is what I'd say," he replied. "What about the 1909 Provence quake?" Lindalee asks. "Wow, even for a kid you're really well informed with this," Grim commentt. "But yeah we had to pull out a lot of us just to accommodate all those souls before dinner or some of them decide to go haunting. And believe me the paperwork on it is not fun," he complained. "Grim Reapers have paper work?" Felix queried. "Nah, I think the right question is, Grim Reapers eat?" Claude asked. "Yeah, I guess. More or less, we kind of do," Grim replied as he gestured.

"Hey, look," Kenya pointed as the man's soul was slowly slipping away, as the heart monitor went crazy. The doctors and nurses kept on trying to revive him, but to no avail his soul finally separated. His old wife's tears continue to fall as she reached out to him. The doctor and the nurses give their sullen condolences to the woman.

For the old man, he slowly caught up on what was happening. He tried to go to his wife to comfort her, only to have his body phase through. He then turned around to find the group looking at him.

"W-who are you?" he asked pointing at Grim. This made him smirk and strike a sinister pose. "Who do you think?" he asked in a terrifyingly low voice. This made his eyes widen in horror as he made his way to the children and slowly push Grim away from them. "Stay away from them. You can't just take away children's souls!" he shouted, horrified at the thought of the young children dying. "Why not?" Grim snorted and taunted in a threatening tone. This causesy chills to go down the old man's spine as he tried to protect them. "Don't worry kids, I'm not letting this monster take any of us," he declared.

However, he turns to them when he heard a laugh coming from behind. He scowled at Allan and said, "This is not funny boy, can't you see he's going to drag us all to hell!" This caused the rest of them to look at each other and start laughing as well, confusing the man. "Well, now I know why you guys enjoy doing this," Allegra exclaimed in between laughs. "By the way Grim, I think you made that scary pose a bit too horrifying. I thought I was going to die as well," Allan added. "Who-who, what are you kids?" the old man asks with a shaky voice.

"It's alright sir, we're not demons, and Grim is just here to help you cross over," Marinette calmly told the old man. "You don't have to afraid. He's here to help," Felix reassured. The old man's features slowly relax as he looked at them all. "So, what are you?" he asked in concern, mostly looking at the two kids with worry. "Just souls of comatose victims," Claude replied casually. "Except for Allan, he's dead," he added. "Speaking of which, so do I get to crossover today?" Allan asked with hope. Grim looked him with a pitying look and shook his head no. This made the young soul frown in disappointment as his friends have him a hug for comfort.

Grim looked at them with a desolate look as he takes the old man's hand with reassurance. "Don't worry, I talked with the Fates and they said your time is near, so no need to worry about it," he says to Allan. "Easy for you to say, your dead. Time of different in your realm," Allan replied. Grim gives him a smile as he says, "Lighten up kid, at least you get to enjoy your friends company more."

He turned to the old man and offered his hand saying, "Grab on, the Fates have been expecting you, as well as your son." The man's eyes widen as tears began to fall at the mention of his deceased son. He hesitantly lookef at the hand, not trusting Grim one bit. However, he turned to his right to find Kenya holding his hand with a smile on her face. "There's no need to fear anything sir. He'll guide in your journey to the afterlife as your angel guided you in your life. Your son is waiting on the other side for you, I'm such he'd want to see you," Kenya guaranteed.

The old man's features slowly relaxed as he turned to Grim and slowly made his way to him and took his hand. "Come along sir, we're taking you home," Grim said as he placed his scythe back on the ground, which in turn encased them into a sphere of water, from the river Lethe, to help them easily crossover, forgetting of all the hurt and pain. It was always enchanting to watch souls crossover from life to the demimonde. After the event, Marinette turned her attention back to her despaired friend. She scrunched her eyebrows and looked around.

"Where's Allan?" she asked, concerned for her friend's wellbeing. This caught their attention as they began noticing his absence. "Wasn't he with you?" Lindalee pointed at Claude. "He was. He was right next to me," he replied a boy confused as well. "Let's split up and find him," Kenya suggested. They nodded at each other as they separately began their search.

"Why are we supposed to look for him?" Allegra asked. "He's a lost soul left to wander the earth and had been denied entrance to the afterlife, it's usually heartbreaking, mostly on his part," Felix replied, clearing the air. "Lost souls are more powerful than you think. They have the ability to disrupt the living world. Unlike us who just go through things, they can haunt anything and anyone. On bad days, they're the worst to deal with, and Allan hates being denied entrance to the afterlife after the 100th time," Claude answered with a hint of fear. "How many times had he been denied, including now? curiously queried. "157," Felix responded with a sigh.

With that in mind they all went forth, searching every corner of the hospital. Though they hope that he's still in the hospital.

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cattles-bians · 3 years

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damie vibecca exes au part 20

post directory

obsetress: ok but when they first meet

obsetress: at that bar on whatever night or whatever

obsetress: when dani and viola are talking

obsetress: viola's waving her hand around as she says something and dani's staring and then totally out of nowhere:

obsetress: "wanna compare hands?"

obsetress: "what?"

obsetress: "lemme see your hand"

obsetress: and dani is grabbing one of vi's with both of hers and pulling it towards her "like this"

obsetress: and then dani's pressing their palms together and viola's raising an eyebrow and dani just GRINS and then even once they lower their hands back to the bar, neither of them move away

em: dani is SO bold i would die for her

obsetress: god same

obsetress: dani keeps glancing down at them as they're talking and she is NOT subtle

obsetress: viola catches her every time

em: maybe dani gets a smidge of smthn on the corner of her mouth and viola...

obsetress: viola pulls her hand away and dani blinks and her brows do that lil thing but then viola's murmuring "here" and grazing her thumb along the corner of dani's mouth

obsetress: dani squeaks

em: love when dani gets out dani’d

obsetress: viola's like "sorry, was that... was that okay?" and dani just swallows and nods with big shining eyes and then vi kinda hesitates and (they've been talking for a couple hours at this point, touchin hands and obv v into each other) lets her thumb graze across dani's bottom lip and she murmurs "what about that?" and dani's eyes flutter shut

obsetress: cut to: them making out in the bathroom

obsetress: no um

obsetress: thinking about vi and dani's first kiss and like

obsetress: maybe like right after that up there vi's leaning in closer and i think she. asks dani "can i kiss you?" and dani's whispering "please" and then they're kissing all soft and THEN cut to: them making out in the bathroom and one of them slamming back against the door and kissing hard

em: dani whispering please…

em: also the smash cut between um nervous anticipation and SLAMMING against a door is so funny to me

em: sums them up

obsetress: RIGHT

obsetress: it's so good i love them

obsetress: i cant decide like

obsetress: because i don't think vi would be so rough with dani at first as to shove her hard against a door and i DO think dani would be shoving her against the door and her tongue down her throat first chance she gets

obsetress: but i think vi prob flips them p quick

---

em: i am. creasing thinking abt dani having to rename all of violas contacts like STOP FUCKING UR EX

obsetress: STOP FUCKING UR EX lskfjakdlsfjsd even BETTER

obsetress: edit the tumblr post coward

em: obsetress: no um dani definitely calls the landline once and viola's like "HELLO?" and dani's like "hi?" and viola's so glad to hear her dumb voice but she's still like "dani, why are you..." and dani's like "well... i, uh... i... i was... and then i..."

obsetress: anyway they have phone sex on the landline

em: CRYIN

em: danis blocked all of vis numbers except the landline shes down Bad

obsetress: yeah,

obsetress: (dani still comes over after)

em: unstoppable force (danis thirst) meet immovable object (violas stubbornness)

obsetress: just imagining like

obsetress: i mean either after this or at literally any other time

obsetress: dani and viola laying side by side in vi's bed catching their breath immediately after and viola's just like

obsetress: "you have the libido of a teenage boy"

obsetress: and dani's head just flops to the side to look at her and she just GRINS

em: dani makes some quip abt um

em: danis like i read somewhere women don’t hit their sexual peak until their 40s or something and violas like (extremely tersely) i’m 35

obsetress: SCREECH

obsetress: dani "no, i... i know, i wasn't–– i was just––"

obsetress: viola can't stay pressed w her

em: dani tryna explain her way outta that one i’m

em: dani has never once seen violas drivers license nor ID

obsetress: "i was just... saying, because, you know, i mean... for me, i'm... you know, i'm only ever getting more..." (flush, head duck, grin up through her lashes) "you know. and i'm getting older, so i was just... thinking. for me, i mean. thinking for me"

em: dani; also i give WAY better head than a teenage boy

obsetress: viola biting her lip, grinning, melting because how could you not? and then dani kinda stops in her tracks and her brows pinch together and she tilts her head at viola "i'm... a lot better at going down on you than a teenage boy though, right? i think i am" (long pause) "i hope i am"

obsetress: anyway viola laughs and tugs dani over n on top of her "i wouldn't know" and dani does her lil nervous laugh and is like "yeah, you're right, i guess not" "but" and dani's face lights up and viola continues "i think you probably are. and you're definitely up there" and dani just GRINS

obsetress: her head is back between vi's legs not three minutes later

em: dani talks big game n then like immediately double checks for validation

em: it’s an important part of her character growth!!!

---

em: ok more ‘viola has been doing this lesbian thing for longer than jamie realises’ content but like

em: perhaps she has a whole lot of ear piercings that she just never wears

em: and then one day she’s like gosh gotta make sure these don’t heal over and jamies like

em: hey what the fuck

---

obsetress: um suddenly had a thought

obsetress: viola tattoos

em: oh

obsetress: yeah, like um

obsetress: vi wouldn't have heaps and they'd be hidden bc Propriety but

em: hidden tattoos my beloved

em: all tattoos my beloved

em: i mean defs has like. the date and coordinates of isabels birth somewhere

em: but um! hmm

em: haha violets

obsetress: THE ISABEL THING WAS THE FIRST THING I WAS GONNA SAY

obsetress: violets are very vi tho like

obsetress: shade plant yk

em: under the tit

obsetress: I WAS GONNA SAY UNDER THE TIT

obsetress: GET OUTTA MY HEAD

obsetress: ok it has to be canon then if we both thought it

em: it’s canon!!

em: hmm what else

em: i think viola and dani have belly button piercings but like they got them separately

obsetress: omg when did they each get theirs

em: hmmmmmm

em: i mean wild child rich heiress viola (untapped potential here won’t lie)

obsetress: wild child rich heiress viola/boarding school wild child dani au

em: oh my god

em: viola defs went to a boarding school and dani n her commiserate over it

em: viola gets it done while she’s in highschool

em: dani post eddie break up

em: like symbolically reclaiming herself deal

em: doing things for Her

obsetress: YES

obsetress: i was gonna say vi highschool dani college

em: YES

em: idk what tattoos dani would get but am thinking abt viola holding her hand while she’s getting a tattoo or piercing done bc she’s braver than ppl think but Also

obsetress: vi holding dani's hand and telling her how good a job she's doing

obsetress: dani kissing vi's tattoos

obsetress: super fascinated even though shes seen them a hundred times

em: danis like haha and what’s this one mean (plants a big old smooch)

---

obsetress: Shananigans402: dani putting on 4 inch heels and being so content that she's finally her girlfriend's height and then viola kisses her before putting on 6 inch heels with a smug little grin

obsetress: i––

em: oh my god shannon

obsetress: oh shes on one

obsetress: Shananigans402: dani starts keeping things on a high shelf in her place just so she can ask viola to reach up to get them down for her

obsetress: i was talking to shan abt the shelf thing

obsetress: and i played myself i think

obsetress: because now i literally cannot stop thinking

obsetress: dani putting the strap on the top shelf in her closet "baby 🥺 can you get it 🥺"

---

[em note: once again it is the time honored timezone tradition of either sending ur friend something really good or really fucked up b4 they go to sleep]

em: what about

em: jamie and dani laying in bed after brunch w violas excessive amount of ear jewellery and jamies like ‘those were cool. i want some’ and danis like ‘with ur tiny lil ears??’ and jamies like ‘well. yeah…’ and danis like well. if u wanna. i think one would be cute here (mwah) and here (mwah) or maybe here (mwah)

em: ticklish jamie. that is my lil idea

obsetress: im Soft

em: thankyou

em: em softsbians

em: what was ur lil idea

obsetress: oh

obsetress: not obsoftress

obsetress: but um

em: look i was really hoping i could make it hornier but alas sometimes the idea is soft

em: can’t force the horny

obsetress: i will do my job n delivery the horny for u i suppose

obsetress: it's a hard job but somebody's gotta do it!

em: it’s a thankless job!

obsetress: dani, sneaking up behind viola to wrap her arms around her waist and bury her face between her shoulder blades: baby 🥺 can you get the strap 🥺

obsetress: dani, laying on the bed, staring up at her, panting: baby 🥺 can you get the strap 🥺

obsetress: dani, pulling away mid-heated makeout, half naked, still grinding into vi even tho they're not kissing anymore without even realizing it: baby baby 🥺 can you get the strap 🥺

obsetress: dani, catching her breath after her first orgasm, letting her head flop to the side to look over at vi: baby 🥺 can you get the strap 🥺

em: insatiable dani clayton my beloved

obsetress: thank you i agree

obsetress: something about dani calling vi baby also........................

em: oh i love dani calling vi baby SO MUCH

em: fucked up that dani clayton is potentially just the right height to motorboat vi pretty much whenever

em: sappho may u plant ur self face first into the breast of ur tender gf or whatever

em: dani: haha i’m so short i can’t reach it. can u lift me

obsetress: vi sees thru all of dani's little tricks but entertains them anyway

obsetress: because she knows shes gonna get to rail her at the end of them

em: dani being a little shit is foreplay actually clayton

em:

#the dani jamie viola rebecca exes au #this one is so self indulgent sorry sghjfasfms #but also: not sorry?#i have ONE MORE and then the vibecca wedding and im So Excited to post that one #not just bc then ill be like. free ahsjfasf

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valkyriesryde · 4 years

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Release the Hounds {4/?}

Chapter Four: Seek the Truth

Pairing: Persephone!Steve x Hades!Reader

Chapter Summary: Hermes has lost a pair of winged shoes and Bucky is pretty sure where they’ve flown off to and he’s not happy about it.

Word Count: 3,500ish whoops

A/N: Soooo got a bit carried away sorry guys, just wanted the new chapter after I had a bit of a break to make up for my absence. My country has opened up locally so I’ve been pretty busy because of it but it’s okay I’m still here and I’m still in love with these fuckwits ENJOY

Series Masterlist ~ Masterlist

Demeter appeared to almost float as she walked. The power she possessed did not cause fear to those that she passed, it wasn’t like when Artemis went on a hunt or when Athena walked in full armour. It was quiet and poised, it trailed behind her like the train of her dress. She was fertility and the harvest, those that saw her were enamoured by her beauty and strength that was so evident in her body from all the years of farming. This was why no one wanted to be the subject of her wrath, because she was not afraid to deal with problems herself.

Demeter was beginning to boil over though as she stormed into Bucky’s office and stared at him until he finished typing and looked up with a beaming smile, enough to brighten almost anyone’s day...almost.

“Good morn-”

“Have you seen Steve, Apollo?” Bucky rolled his eyes as she said his name and in the back of his mind cursed Steve for leaving before his mother had gone to work. Dumbass.

“I sent him to the mortal world.”

“You what?!” Demeter, ever protective of her golden child, if only she knew, Bucky thought. If only she knew how much of a pain in the ass he really was. That punk owes me for lying to his own damn mother.

“I needed some things, you know like those puddings that the bakers just can’t get quite right here in Olympus,” he looked off into the distance as he thought about the baked goods of the mortal world and swore he would make Steve buy him a whole bakery for lying to Demeter. “I, of course can’t go down there willy nilly so he offered to go for me this morning, he wanted to get in before the rush. Surely you know how it is Demi.”

Demeter caught her tongue between her lips, pursed and poise, Bucky knew she wouldn’t, couldn’t, be mad at him. She wouldn’t want it going back to his father that she tried to bite off the sun god’s head.

“Well when you see him,” she spun on her heel, her train flying around her as she did, “tell him to come see me. We’ve business to attend to.” “You have my word.” He bowed his head but made no move to stand as she waited for him to get the door until huffing and walking out on her own. “That’s where they got the term helicopter mum from.” Bucky mumbled under his breath with a shake of his head and then let out a deep sigh and dropped his head to his desk. More mess to clean up.

Hermes had torn his room apart when Bucky walked in. Clothes were thrown across the room and hung over lamps and shelves. His bed had been flipped and his wardrobe was practically empty. And yet he kept pulling it apart, searching in every nook and cranny he could find but to no avail. He started freaking out about an hour ago and all hope was lost and colour drained from his face when he heard the door open and shut behind him.

“What the fuck happened here?”

Hermes let a very high pitched yelp and dived beneath one of the piles of clothes, “I’M SORRY I’LL FIND THEM I SWEAR!” He yelled.

“Find what?” Bucky asked as he stepped over a discarded pair of winged shoes. “Far out Peter it looks like you pissed off one of the wind nymphs! What happened here?!”

“Oh,” Peter popped his head up and once he had confirmed it was in fact Bucky standing before him he went back to his closest to continue searching. “I thought you were Thor…” a nervous laugh leaving his body as a grimace spread over his face. “How’s it going? Got a message for someone?”

“Peter, what have you lost?” Bucky crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow at the brunette's back.

“I wouldn’t say lost persay…” Peter shot up and his hands flew around him as he talked, a distraction that often helped him talk his way out of trouble. “I’d say misplaced more than anything really. I mean is anything really lost or are things just put somewhere and forgotten about? Who’s to say? Not me. Nor you! We’re not the gods of finding things are we?! You’re the sun god, patron of prophecy and healing,” Peter grabbed a lyre that was stuffed in the back of the wardrobe and turned to hold it up to Bucky, “and music!” He threw it over his shoulder and kept searching, at this rate he may as well start tearing up floor boards he’d searched top and bottom and still, no sign of them.

“And you’re a thief, what have you lost Hermes?” Bucky had his sneaky suspicions on what the ‘misplaced’ item could be but he prayed to Zeus that he was wrong. Peter froze and stood slowly. When he turned to face Bucky his face was covered in guilt and shame, the boy wore it like a mask, as if he’d been caught stealing from mum’s purse...or worse...his father’s.

“A pair of winged sandals...you haven’t seen any have you? I have uh,” he counted the ones spread across the floor, remembered to count the pair on his feet, the ones that had landed in the bookcase and the one left shoe that was floating in the corner of the ceiling. “Fourteen I have fourteen, but I SHOULD have fifteen. I seem to have misplaced a pair…”

Bucky looked around the room until his eyes landed on the small daffodil that poked out the side of Peter’s shoe shelf. “I think I have an inkling as to where they’ve flown off to. Care to take a trip down under with me?”

The gates of the Underworld were massive in size and daunting in appearance. A mix of obsidian and black metal twisted together to form the vines that covered it. The gate dripped with gold, Steve wasn’t sure if it was blood of gods who dared try to pass the gates or a warning to those who thought to try. He settled on the fact that it was probably a nod to Hades also being the patron of riches. Wanda guided him closer to the gates and as she neared they opened for her.

“Where are all the souls?” Steve asked, it was eerily quiet for the entrance to the Underworld, he figured it would be full of wandering souls but all he could see were the ports of the five rivers and the only souls being the ones who swam the rivers until their debt was paid.

“Thanatos looks after them once Charon brings them down, you thought they’d be waiting here?”

“Well it just makes sense?”

“Tell me Steve,” Wanda stopped in her steps at the edge of the gate, her hands on her hips.

Steve was beginning to make out the intricate details of the vines on the gate, the asphodel flowers that were engraved into the metal and rock, the daffodils that were spread amongst them, only a few in comparison. He thought he saw mint leaves, only visible when the light hit the gold and he could see the pattern on the leaves. Symbols of Hades, he thought, as he saw the white poplars across the top. All but the daffodils, they were one of his and the asphodel flowers weren’t anyones, though she did have a field named after it, maybe it was the other way around?

“Steve?” Wanda asked again and he looked away from the gate reluctantly. “Did you hear me?”

“No, sorry, what was it you said?” He’d have to remember to ask Hades about the gate’s decorations another time.

“Did you really think we’d just have thousands of roaming souls at the entrance? Lesson one flower boy, when no one respects you, always respect yourself.” She continued walking through the gates and Steve followed quickly.

“What does that have to do with not keeping the waiting souls at the entrance?” he asked, wishing he’d brought something to write with.

“The twelve gods care about their appearance, am I wrong?”

“No, of course they do, people look up to them.”

“Exactly, they’re respected. They have to look the part, if they didn’t people would lose respect for them. The Underworld, Hades, we’re not respected. The gods, the nymphs and even some satyrs look down on us, they have no respect, we could be seen in rags and their opinions on us wouldn’t change.”

Wanda hated having to be the one to tell him about her home, it left a bitter taste in her mouth as she talked about how others viewed her home and her family. It wasn’t fair. But Hades had told her it had to be her first.

“We respect ourselves, our realm and our queen. We dress and we present ourselves how we see ourselves.” She flattened out her cloak and pulled her fingers through her auburn waves.

“Powerful?” Steve asked, it was the first word that came to mind when he looked at Wanda, she stood tall, proud of who she was and not one you would want to cross. She appeared as if she held power others wished they had.

“Amongst other things. To have lost souls, those waiting for judgement, hanging about the gates would contradict how we see this place, we aren’t a mess, there’s no lack of organisation or authority here Steve. Hades has the final say, the souls go through the entrances to the sides where they rest in Asphodel if they possess no debt and await trial by the council. If they need to be moved they are, if not, they move deeper into Asphodel where they make themselves at home. Some find families, some wander alone. But they all have their place. They’re not just tossed at the gates of Hades.” She pointed towards the sides of the gates and Steve could just make out the faded souls passing through the open doors one at a time.

Some were weeping, some stone cold, some even looked slightly relieved. Wanda carefully studied Steve’s face as he watched them, she wondered how much he saw, through her eyes she could see them clear as day, she could tell you exactly what they were wearing and if they had freckles or scars on their skin. She wondered if he could make out their clothing, from the somber look on his face she figured he could, thought perhaps he could even see the expressions on their faces.

“What if they have debts?” He turned back to Wanda and she nodded towards the rivers.

“Styx, Lethe, Acheron, Phlegethon and Cocytus. Depending on how they died or what debt they owe they swim in the rivers for up to a thousand years.” She pulled at his sleeve, away from the ports and the moving souls towards a cavern along the edge of the river Styx.

Steve heard the scrapping of metal against the rock and when he turned back he saw the gates close behind them, the final decorations coming into view and he wondered how he hadn’t noticed them before. They’d been split down the middle when the gate was open but now you wouldn’t be able to tell there was any gap between them. A cornucopia, which was bursting with the flora that adorned the rest of the gate and golden coins. Around it’s edge were three horses, black with golden eyes and behind it, the length of the gate was a bident.

The weapon of Hades, it was subtler than Loki’s trident, had little details apart from three etched rings where the points joined the staff, one for each judge. Steve thought it beautiful and fitting for a queen who appeared to not need much. He thought of all the mortals that drowned in riches and surrounded themselves with possessions that showed off their wealth, he wondered what Hades thought of them, if she thought they were using their wealth right or if she despised their need to be and have the biggest and best.

“I thought you were taking me to Thanatos?” They rounded the corner into, what Steve now realised was a tunnel that went deeper into the outskirts of the Underworld.

“Hades may not think she belongs on the council but she’s wrong. We can’t convince her, we’ve tried for a millenia.” Wanda pulled a pouch from her belt and placed it in Steve’s hands, it was filled with trail mix and he looked at her questionably and began to hand it back to her. He knew the rule to never eat food from the house of Hades. “It’s mortal food, I swear to you.”

“What makes you think she’ll listen to me then?” Wanda smiled knowingly at his words, she knew Hades was already listening to him, he wouldn’t be still standing here if she weren’t.

“It’s time the old gods adapt.”

“You say old gods, you mean my mother though.” Steve picked at the trail mix and examined it closely, it appeared to be what she’d said, mortal food, safe to eat.

“She doesn’t have your best interest at heart, you know that right?”

“She’s always protected me, I don’t know why she hates Hades so much but she has her reasons for keeping her out of the council.” He didn’t know them but he knew she had reasons. She had to, she wouldn’t want Hades kept out for no reason! Steve was sure of it, he was...wasn’t he?

“Which you don’t agree with.” Wanda pointed out and Steve thought about it for a second. He couldn’t think of a reason why Hades shouldn’t be one the council. He couldn’t think of any reason for Demeter to even hate Hades as much as she did. He’d never heard of anything happening between them, just the talk of evil, death and the devil within that Demeter had always associated Hades with.

“No I don’t! I don’t know why, I’ve always been told the bad, the ugly and the dangerous of this place and here I am fighting for it’s ruler to have a seat!?” It came off more like a question than a statement and Steve didn’t like how unsure he was about it all. He didn’t know if what he was doing was the right thing. He didn’t want to make his mother angry but that didn’t change the fact that he didn’t think it was right.

“You’re fighting for what you believe in.”

“I’m not completely sure why I believe in it, but I’ll keep fighting for her,” Steve peered over Wanda’s shoulder, through the gates towards the kingdom, to her home, to her.

“She deserves to have someone fight for her.” Wanda bowed her head slightly, she almost went to curtsey but scrunched her fingers around her coat. “Do not give up on her no matter how many times she pushes you away. Please fight for us. The Underworld is a dangerous place and I can’t protect you but do your own research, learn about this place and whatever you do, do not fear it. We don’t harm our own here.” And with that Wanda disappeared back through the gates. She left Steve on the edge of the cavern with his tattered winged sandals and pouch of trail mix in his hands to venture deeper into the Underworld beyond the kingdom.

“You’ve been here for a day, that’s enough, it’s time to come home.” Bucky stood over Steve who was sitting against a wall. His arms crossed and a scowl on his face, Bucky hated being the bad guy, this wasn’t him but when it came to Steve sometimes being the bad guy was what it took.

Peter was crouched by Steve’s feet pulling the singed sandals off of his feet with a huff and grumpling about how tattered and filthy they were. “These were my good sandals,” he pouted, brushing off some dirt.

“I’ll pay to have them cleaned Peter, I’m sorry.” Peter nodded and placed the sandals in his satchel with a mumbled thank you before Steve turned to Bucky, his voice harsher than it was to the boy. “It’s not enough, this place is immense. I've only just scratched the service, I haven’t even seen the fields yet.”

“Because they’re behind the gates Steve and YOU’RE NOT WELCOME THERE.” Bucky was fed up, he hated this place, the sun didn’t reach too many dark corners and it gave him the heebie jeebies just thinking about what creatures lurked the shadows that would like to eat a god. Not to mention the last time he’d spoken to Hades and she’d threatened to feed him to Cerberus.

“How am I meant to plead her case at the council if I’ve no actual knowledge of her and this place?” Steve stood from the wall and gestured to his surroundings, Bucky and Peter had found him deep inside the Tunnels of Aidoneus which snaked around the fields, he hadn’t yet found an exit into them.

“She doesn’t want you to plead her case, your mother will rip you to shreds if you plead her case, you’ll never see the light of day unless it’s to do your duties. Is that what you want?” Bucky’s chest felt heavier than normal, he really hated this place, he strength drained out of him slowly like a leaky faucet.

Everyone always seemed to be claiming they knew what was best for him, that they knew more than he did. Steve may be a young god, only around for a small amount of time compared to some of the others but he had some life experience. He wasn’t the child his mother treated him like, or the small defenceless kid that he was when Bucky first met him. He was one of the few that could step foot on mortal ground for long periods of time. By the lack of colour on Bucky’s face and the drooping of his shoulders, Steve thought perhaps he was more powerful than Bucky was, to be able to walk on mortal soil as well as Hades’ was unheard of unless you were invited like Hermes or resided here like Wanda. But Steve wasn’t either, yet he wasn’t weak like Bucky was becoming and he’d been here almost twenty four hours compared to Bucky’s twenty four minutes. After being treated after his fall Steve continued to heal, he was becoming stronger and by this point he was back to himself. But Bucky was quickly weakening.

“You won’t survive in the tunnels for long Steve,” his voice was soft now, he was tired, he just wanted to go home and bring Steve to Demeter’s door.

“I just need to find a way into the fields.” Bucky rolled his eyes and Steve could feel the judgment, he thought it stupid too, trying to break into Hades’ kingdom like the fool he was.

“Your mother asked about you”

“What did she-” The caught Steve’s attention, he’d almost forgotten about his mother and what’d she would do if she found out he was here.

“I covered for you, don’t worry. But you need to come back before she sends a search party looking for you. If she finds out you’re here,” Bucky let out a whistle and Steve picked up his jacket.

“I know. I’ll come back. Bucky, I’m not done here. There’s more to the Underworld than what we’re led to believe on Olympus.”

“And how would you know that? You’ve barely seen this place.” There was something in Steve’s eye that Bucky hadn’t seen before, he was determined, he believed what he was saying and for once it was his own opinion, not one he’d been told. Bucky’s blood ran cold at the thought of why it could be, why it was this that was breaking Steve away from Demeter’s hold so quickly. It was too soon though, he thought to himself as they exited the caves with the help of Peter. It’s not meant to happen this way.

“I’ve ventured somewhat, and I plan on coming back.” Steve puffed his chest as he stood on the steps of his home and Bucky rolled his eyes.

“If I could die you’d be the death of me god of spring.” He smirked and Steve beamed back, he knew his friend would always have his back, he hoped he’d have his vote.

The door opened slowly and a cold breeze made its way into the office. Thor stood behind his desk as he looked out towards Olympus. He watched his citizens go about their day, saw some of his own family amongst them as the door clicked shut.

“Hello Brother.” He watched the reflection, her black suit, the gold inside of her blazer reflecting off the sun as she placed the notebook on his desk and sat in her usual spot across from him. “Pleasant week?”

“Always Hades, yourself?” He turned and smiled at his sister, sitting in his own chair at his desk. “Shall we begin, there’s much to discuss.”

Capter Five: Stand Your Ground

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!!

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thewriterwithnoplan · 4 years

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Dirty and Useless (Part 10)

Summary: Jason Todd had always said there were only two types of cop; Dirty and Useless. So when Y/N comes along with a spunky partner and a laughable code name it’s safe to say they don’t exactly see eye to eye. But if they’ve got anything in common it’s their secrets. Both are hiding behind masks whether they know it or not. Will the Robin get the Nightingale to come out of the shadows? Pairing: Titans!Jason Todd x Reader Word Count: 1449 Warnings: Swearing

There were many things that Jason Todd would never admit to anyone. The fact that he craved comfort and affirmation was one of those things. The fact that he often found himself in the alley behind his school with new bruises down his side was another one of those things.

Gotham Academy wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Not that he’d expected anything else but coming into the school – which Bruce practically owned – he’d expected a little more respect. From teachers, he’d heard all about how Dick Grayson had been a mathlete and a social butterfly.

While Jason was more into literature and time spent alone, he had at least assumed that people would be polite. He hadn’t come from a wealthy family but people like him – the Wards of billionaires who own half of Gotham – were supposed to be begrudgingly respected at the very least. Right?

Apparently, he was very, very wrong. In his first week, the other students had made it explicitly clear what they thought about him. Street rat was a name he’d thought had been left behind when he joined Batman’s crusade but the snotty rich boys at the Academy seemed to like it. Although the female population seemed to like Pity Case much better.

“Fuck you, Gregory,” Jason spat up at the rich kid gangs ring-leader.

The brunette snob gargled out in a clearly fake British accent, “Stay down, street rat. Wouldn’t want to have to call your fake dad.”

“I bet he’s never even met a Wayne,” Gregory’s current bottle blonde girlfriend added. “Why would they associate with a pity case like him anyway?”

Jason fumbled to his feet and reminded himself for what seemed like the umpteenth time that day, that he was supposed to be just like them. He was supposed to play his role as protégé son, a rich boy who couldn’t throw a punch. According to Bruce and his disappointment speeches, Dick Grayson had caught on much quicker.

“Of course, I’ve met the Wayne’s,” Jason bit out, “I’m the one who tracked down Y/N Wayne and brought her back to Gotham.”

He knew it was a cheap boast, he had been the one to “find” her but if Y/N hadn’t wanted to return to Gotham, she wouldn’t have. Realistically he hadn’t done shit to find the girl, he’d just been in Chicago at the right time. But Nightingale had taught him something important – it was about wielding symbols. And despite all that the girl could argue, Y/N Wayne was as powerful a symbol as any.

“You talk a lot of shit, Todd.” Gregory brushed at an invisible speck of dirt on his blazer before turning, “Prove it or I’ll make you pay for lying to me.”

Jason really really should learn to keep his mouth shut.

***

It was lunch, four hellish lessons down and he’d finally been given a break. Although sitting under a tree at the front of the academy, trying not to draw too much attention and keeping an eye out for Gregory seemed just as stressful. It was usually at lunch that the boy returned to follow up on whatever threat he’d made to Jason the morning earlier.

“What are you doing hiding out here Street Rat?” Speak of the devil.“Waiting for your fake girlfriend-slash-sister? You know that’s kinda messed up right?”

“Funny, coming from an asshole.” Was all Jason allowed himself to say. He was worried that if he said anything more it would be accompanied by his fist in Gregory’s face.

The bottle-blonde and one of Gregory’s henchmen began giggling, “I bet he’s just dating her to make sure the Wayne’s don’t get rid of him.”

Jason almost expected anger to bubble up, he half thought he might have shoved the blonde on her ass but that rage he’d become so accustomed to wasn’t there. He actually thought this whole thing was hilarious. They thought he was that desperate, that he would make up a story so utterly stupid-

He almost started cackling at the idea. He would have laughed at it, had the revving of a motorcycle engine not interrupted him. Their mismatched group – consisting of Gregory, his flossy and a very unintimidating backup dancer – turned toward the noise in confusion. Even Jason was startled by the bike, which stopped just in front of them.

The rider kicked the stand down, threw their leg over the bike and approached them. Pulling off the black helmet and shaking out H/C hair the rider finally paused in front of the group, raising an eyebrow. Y/N smiled in greeting at Jason, who could only stare dumbly up at her.

“Sup J.T?” Her eyes crinkled mischievously, “Bruce sent me to get you, we need a hand a Wayne Enterprises.”

“Uh-huh yeah,” He took her hand, heaving himself from the floor. “What do you guys need me for?”

“I need someone to go over the specs for the new building in Star City and Bruce needs help planning the next Charity Gala. I’m not interrupting anything am I?”

Y/N’s eyes strayed to Gregory and his entourage before she mouthed a word to Jason. It took the boy wonder a moment to understand her, his lip-reading skills were still a little rusty, not that he’d ever admit it. But after a moment he understood; three. She wanted him to follow her third condition, play along.

“Nah we were just having a lovely chat,” Jason said dismissively, a smirk working its way to his lips. “Nobody told me about the Gala. Don’t suppose you need a date to it?”

“You wish Jay,” Y/N made a good show of giving him a teasing smile. Then she shoved her helmet back on and handed Jason the second one from her bike.

“W-wait!” Gregory stumbled forward, “You’re Y/N Wayne as in the Lost Daughter of Gotham – What are you doing with someone like him?”

“You mean Jason?” She hopped onto her bike, letting Jason circle his arms around her waist. “He’s the one who brought me back. It’s a pity really, I finally made it away from Gotham, but you know, I grew up in these streets. I guess you can take the girl out of Gotham, but you can’t take Gotham out of the girl.”

***

“How did you know?” Jason finally asked when they stopped at some unnamed park. It was nice, empty and by no means lively, but it wasn’t yet destroyed by the cities night time visitors. Y/N raised an eyebrow in question, though her focus never left the ice cream she’d bought from the car down the street – both were sure it was an undercover GCPD truck but neither commented. “You showed up out of the blue – you said some things like... like you knew. How did you know those things?”

“You’re an ass and all but you’ve got guts. I admire that,” Y/N gave him a playful smile, “But you lack something that can’t be taught.”

Intrigue colored the boy’s face as he sat forward to better look at her. But in a very Wayne like fashion, Y/N only went back to her ice cream. For a moment he simply waited for her to tell him, but evidently leaving Jason to find the answer to his own question was much more entertaining.

“You didn’t,” He suddenly shouted, scrambling for his bag.

“What you lack is attention to detail,” She gave him a smug look, “A vigilante should be able to sniff a tracking device from a mile away. It was all too easy to slip the bug into your bag this morning.”

He groaned lowly, shoving his bag down as he held up the small device, “You were messing with me, is there even really a gala?”

“Oh, there’s a gala, you aren’t getting out of it that easy. But do you think Bruce would ask for your help on it?”

“Who else would he ask?” He snarked.

Y/N fell silent all at once. It startled Jason quite thoroughly – he’d been expecting some quick-witted rebuttal. He eyed the Wayne heiress carefully, wondering if he’d said something wrong. She wouldn’t outright attack him, would she? Jason wouldn’t rule the possibility out, but it was unlikely.

“Sorry,” She chuckled lightly – though her mind still seemed a million miles away, “You just reminded me of someone.”

“Who?”

“Someone gone,” Y/N shook her head, “It doesn’t matter.”

Perhaps Jason was having a stroke, but she seemed almost tender. In an attempt to stop her from falling back into their routine he said, “Tell me.”

She took a long breath. And told him.

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garbagequeer · 5 years

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@highschoolmusical2isunderrated replied to your post “now let's talk about how the social network (2010) is homophobic...”

please elaborate

i’ve only known this for like an hour so. there’s loose ends everywhere BUT.

Clive Durham? known asshole. Mark Zuckerberg? known asshole. like in the book I’m pretty sure there’s this part where someone tells Maurice that Clive tends to get tired of his new friends pretty quick, plus he really says a bunch of shit people don’t understand (namely Maurice cause he’s a dumbass but you know) and he’s like pretty intelligent (not a computer genius but it’s 1910 so you gotta settle for The Classics or whatever) AND he’s always saying some shit that hurts people’s feelings obviously (when he said that thing about how he was going to hate having kids the first time Maurice was at his house like. can you maybe NOT tell your boyfriend you ARE going to leave him for a straight marriage mayhaps?? no?? okay! AND before he went to greece when he got into bed w Maurice and then said it’s no better here like. ouch). Then tehre’s Mark’s entire first scene with Erica (what IS he even talking about? Why does he keep insulting her? Why won’t he talk about anything other than his final club shit? known asshole antics). OBVIOUSLY two self-absorbed smart men.

ALSO back to straight marriage, Clive has to marry to keep his social position, his house, etc. MARK’s straight marriage thing would be to prefer to keep facebook and the approval of Sean (who would be something like Clive’s mom here, like the representative of his position in the portion of society he wants to belong in) who he idolizes (as Clive seems to take his mother and his father’s will as an authority on how to live his life, even though he doesn’t like his mom, although by the end of the movie Mark doesn’t seem to like Sean either, because these are the things that have ruined their chances at true happiness). so like social status, careers, etc. at the price of true love. ALSO let’s mention they both hate women cause they sure do!

NOW remember how in Maurice (written in 1913 published in 1971 film adaptation 1987) Maurice and Clive used to spend a lot of time arguing about religious concepts Maurice ultimately didn’t understand but he just wanted what? CLIVE’S ATTENTION. remember how in the social network (2010) Eduardo just believes in Mark’s idea even though he doesn’t seem to know that much about computer shit? and how ultimately he’s not the right cfo because he actually didn’t get facebook or whatever? And how he froze the account because he had to get Marks attention? dumbass gay people in love that’s what all of that was

And another thing is the expectations Mark and Clive seem to have towards Eduardo and Maurice, who are somehow supposed to make things better without any proper communication about what’s going on (Mark tells Eduardo he needs him, Eduardo still doesn’t magically know how to make things better so they fuck each other over / Clive has some obvious issues that show on the second and third parts of the book, which are never properly acknowledged, but he expects that on a night when he feels miserable lying next to Maurice will somehow make it go away, he falls out of love when it doesn’t). STUPID gay people who won’t talk about their issues. that’s what that is

on the other hand, Maurice and Eduardo never seem to properly fix those things and bring light to them or they just don’t know how, because they trust the relationship to be strong i guess, and they just. don’t know, cause life’s hard. here Maurice gets the letter Clive sends from greece and is convinced they can find a way to solve that he thinks he doesn’t love him or even like men anymore and he seems so patient about that until the moment Clive makes it clear it’s over, then he loses his shit. Eduardo drops everything and comes back to california after mark calls and says he needs him even though a second ago he was freezing accounts and putting out literal fires, and it’s only when it’s clear mark fucked him over that he loses his shit and smashes a laptop since his prada was at the cleaners along with his asshole hoodie and his fuck you flip flops. And hey, “what an ending” / “I was your only friend” same energy, and they both are in tears as they say that

OH also. what exists!! icons!! you better lawyer up asshole! I’m coming back for everything!! are you still wired in!!!! and Maurice’s calmer but incredible last conversation with Clive like attend to your own happiness I’m fucking your gamekeeper!! i cant hang my life on a little bit!!! you have been a shitty friend all year!!! it’s all very making clear any friendship there is over and they’d pee all over it too if they could. how Maurice tells Clive he spends five minutes with him between Anne and his career, how mark is so caught up in facebook and Sean. OH, OH. how Maurice tells Clive he won’t even see him all year but he lets him into his house and tries to get him to marry cause that gets rid of him... like mark was in california and Eduardo was in NY and they didn’t really spend any time together but they still had facebook together... and then they try to get rid of each other with a lawsuit instead of a marriage and i don’t know if this makes any sense outside of my head.

Also this is the dumbest thing yet, but! Mark wants Eduardo to come stay in california, Eduardo wants to stay in ny, do what he’s supposed to do with his career the way he’s supposed to do it AND influenced by his family. Maurice wants Alec to stay in England instead of going to Argentina for work and also influenced by his family. Both Alec and Eduardo are faced with the choice of stepping out of the line to make it work with someone they love. is love an emotion through which you can sometimes enjoy yourself or can it do things?

And then of course the reason i decided these two things are the same thing: the last scene. Clive at home with Anne, he’s kept all he has said he wanted to keep since the first time Maurice was at his house, he has politics and he has his status and his house. mark has facebook and is rich enough to get the guillotine and has changed social networking or whatever the fuck (i wouldn’t know cause i never had a facebook, which is a fictional website made up for the movie the social network (2010) dir. david fincher). However, mark’s trying to get Erica to accept his friend request, Clive’s thinking of Maurice at cambridge, they both want something they had back and aren’t happy. ALSO how Clive wants to keep his status and the symbol for this social status throughout the book is his house, and said house is kinda falling apart (because it’s like 1912 and the rural bourgeois in england are going down or whatever, but maybe also cause class status means shit when you wanna love and be loved and you’re gay in 1912 england), and facebook is basically getting sued the whole movie, it’s a lot of trouble and the movie never focusses on how exactly facebook has been so revolutionary and great, it’s about how it’s a lot of trouble and mark has fucked up, it’s literally a story told through mark getting sued.

And then there’s the reason the social network (2010) is the homophobic version. in Maurice, Maurice finds happiness and he’s with Alec and they love each other and it’s what he wanted. the key fact about the social network though?

Eduardo did, in fact, not come out. as everyone in tsn is supposed to not be knowingly in love with their best friend they never get to find the thing that makes it all work out and makes shit worth it, which is love and friendship and understanding and submitting to the mortifying ordeal of being known (like, even Clive tries to submit to that and says a buch on incredibly tender shit in Maurice, come on), so they get hellbent on being right and suing each other. gay love does NOT save the day in aaron sorkin’s the social network (2010) :^(

#highschoolmusical2isunderrated #the social network #maurice #tsn #thing #that's almost 1400 words. skadkñg #replies

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cranberrydust · 5 years

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You Will Be Found

I knew I was different from everyone else, since the moment I was born.

“Everyone has a soulmate, when you get a little bit older a mark will appear on your right wrist, this mark will symbolize your soulmate. Maybe some of you already have your marks and that is normal.” Mr. Wood told his class of 2nd graders.

“What is your soul-mark?” a girl in my class asked.

Mr. Wood pulled up his sleeve on his right arm and it showed a heart and overlapping it was a treble clef. This of course fit Mrs. Wood, as she was the school’s music teacher.

I never told anyone my secret, not even my parents. But it just better to rip the band-aid off faster now. I thought.

I took a shaky breath and I raised my hand.

“Yes, Lauren, what do you need?”

“I have, um; I have two soul-marks.”

The room went silent. I look down at my desk and I felt the tears prickling in the corner of my eyes, threating to spill. I knew the kids were staring and I knew what they were all thinking in that moment.

“Lauren, I have to call your parents.” Mr. Wood said in a hushed voice.

I was quickly ushered out of the room and into the office and into one of the chairs in the back, away from anyone else.

I heard a little bit of the conversation with my parents and Mr. Wood. I heard my mom crying, my dad’s stern voice. I knew I was never going the their “perfect” daughter like I tried so hard to be. I used to make my parents so proud, I was an all A student, I had big dreams and hopes, I wanted so bad to be an artist, and now they come crashing down, all because of two ink stains on my wrists. I look down at them, just because of this, my whole life will be different, just because of those two marks my connection with my parents snapped. There was no way to stop the tears now, they came like waves crashing down.

I heard my parents and my teacher finish their conversation and I saw my parents. And oh, how disappointed they looked. My dad grabbed my hand and dragged me out of my school and didn’t even say a word. He dragged me away from my friends, my hopes, my dreams. The foundation I built for myself all come crumbling down in that one single moment.

That is when everyone knew I was different, in that moment, I knew, I was different.

Hello, my name is Lauren Lee May, the girl with two soulmates. I am currently 17-years old and I live in the state of Nevada. Though I was born in Mississippi, but since my parents found out I had two soulmates my dad made us move to save our “reputation”. I was 7 when we moved, it has been about 11 years since that one day at school when I told my class I had two soulmates. My parents soon separated when they found out. My mom came from a rich and high-class family and couldn’t stand the thought of having a daughter with two soulmates. So, now it’s just my dad and me.

When I started school, my dad told me I had the option of taking makeup and covering both of my marks and say I just don’t have mine yet or just cover up my left hand one, so everyone thinks I only have one soul-mark. I choose the second option.

So here I am starting my first year of college and everyone just thinks I’m a normal person.

I’m go to college to be an Graph Designer, like I wanted to do. I live in a small dorm with my two roommates, Rachel and Ellie, they are my only friends and they are the only ones who know about my “secret”. I don’t keep in contact with my parents anymore, I haven’t heard from them in months, they just cut off connection with me, and I don’t even hear from my little sister either.

I wake up every morning at 6:10 and I get dressed, do my hair, and I always cover up my one soul-mark. As I am digging through my drawer for my foundation and look at the soul-mark that was there. There on my left wrist was a pair of white angle wings, and it looked like they were soaring free. I sighed, as I begin to swipe the foundation on covering up those beautiful wings.

I glance at my other wrist, there was a type of, I think, law book, and overlapping it was a quill that looked like it was dipped in ink.

That was the one everyone saw, all my friends figured that my soul-mate was some sort of author or a lawyer, something like that.

I still don’t know why I still cover up my soul-mark, I am on my own, I don’t live with my dad anymore. He can’t tell me what to do, he will just never know. But I still do it, and I don’t have an answer to why I still do it. I guess, I’m just so used to doing and making my dad happy, it stayed with me.

I walked out the door to go get coffee since my classes don’t start till 9, as I’m walking someone bumps into me on the sidewalk and I fall backwards almost hitting my head on the pavement. I look up to see who just rudely bumped into me, but I see a horrified girl looking down at me with her wide eyes and then she starts to speak. And she went entirely too fast for my brain to comprehend in that moment, I shake my head, to have full attention on what this girl was saying.

“Oh, mon Dieu, je suis désolée de ne pas avoir regardé où j'allais! Laissez-moi vous aider!”

The girl spoke it rapid French as she extended her arm out for me to grab. I took enough French classes to know what she had said and grabbed her hand, so she could help me up.

But when the girl grabbed my hand I felt a spark like something connect to my soul. The girl looked at me with wide eyes and looked down at were my soul-mark(s) should be. It couldn’t be! She put her right arm right next to hers and we had the same mark! We both had the book and the quill.

“T-t-though Je have deux soul-marks” she whispered in a mix of French and English.”

She removes her hand, but in the process, she smears the foundation on my left hand, she looks up at with her wide hazel eyes.

“W-w-why try to hide your o-own soul-marks?” she asked in the best English she could.

I looked down, this was too much. I just met one of my soulmates! Tears welled in my eyes and I start to cry.

“ma chère, ne pleure pas! Je suis désolé si tu ne veux pas en parler.”

My soulmate states as she wraps her arms around me and hugs me closer. I hug her back and soon we step out of our hug to introduce our self.

“Lauren Lee May” I tell her as I give her the biggest smile I could.

My soulmate giggles, and I felt like I could say many funny things just to hear her giggle.

“Belda Sherleen Acy” She responds with grace and punctuated it with her own smile.

“I see you are not form here are you?” I ask as we finish our walk to the coffee shop.

“No, I am from Nice, France, moved here about four months ago to start college here, are you from here?”

“No, I’m not from here.” I admit.

“Where are you from then Lauren?” Belda asked curious.

“I’m from Mississippi, but parents made us move when...”

I was cut short when we got to the coffee shop and Belda held the door for me. I smiled at her and we made our way in the cozy little shop.

I ordered a French Vanilla Iced Latte, while Belda ordered an Iced Frappe. We laughed and talked for a good hour before we swapped phone numbers and we headed back out the door.

I walk to my first class of the day. Art. I sit in my respected seat and my partner, Harper, looks at me with questionable eyes. I look at her and smile, I haven’t given anyone that big of a smile since I was little. Harper gives me her own small smile and I soon saw that smile fade and a dark cloud came over her face like a storm. I followed her eyes and I saw her staring at my soul-marks. I whipped my head to look at them.

“Oh crap” I thought. I forgot to cover-up my left mark when Belda wiped it off.

“You have two soul-marks” Harper explained in a soft nasty tone.

“HA! You have two soul-marks” she shouts, and everyone turns to look at us.

“What is the meaning of this?” the teacher asks, rising from her seat.

“Miss, Lauren has two soulmates, what a freak!” Harper exclaims. As she raises my hands and shows the whole class.

The whole class snickered and pointed, and I even caught my teacher snickering and failing to hide it up.

I was crushed, I yanked my hand away and, in the process, I tripped over a chair and landed on my back with a loud thud. This just made the class roar with laughter, like they just were told the most hilarious joke. I felt the tears brimming in my eyes as I ran out of the classroom.

I head straight for my dorm, Paige and Rachel were still in the dorm, for their classes don’t start till later in the day. Their heads snap up when they hear the front door open and see me totally crushed and deflated walk into the kitchen and start digging in the fridge for a snack.

Ellie and Rachel shared a look I never missed a class or came home early, let alone on the verge of breaking down. Out of the corner of my eye I saw them trying to approach me slowly like I was a caged animal ready to pounce any minute. Soon the thought came to me, were they sick of being my friends and that they were disgusted by me and didn’t want to be my friends anymore because of my past? They thoughts hit me like a bolder and I ran to my room and slammed the door before ether of them could say a word.

I pulled out my phone and saw two new text messages.

One from Belda and another, was from, unknown?

I first opened the text from Belda first.

Belda: Mon chou, I heard what has happened during your art class. Apparently gossip spreads like wild fire here. If I was you don’t check your social media for a while. I’m sorry for what has happened, and I wish I had power to stop it.

I smiled a little at the thought that Belda took the time out of her day to make sure I was okay and well. I was going to text her back when I remembered that I had a texted from an unknown number. I hesitantly opened the unknown number, who would it be? I opened the message and with careful eyes begin to read what was written to me.

Unknown: Hey my name is Finley, I’m in your art class…

When I read that part, I felt my stomach knot in fear. What was this a text just to taunt me forever, and how did this kid get my phone number in the first place? Were they following me? Or looked me up on google or something? Creepy.

I soon keep on reading more into the “message” and I felt a smile slowly creep across my face at what I read. She wanted to apologize for her friend’s behavior and wanted to meet up for coffee sometime during lunch and wanted me to bring Belda, so we could talk. I responded quickly to her proposal.

Lauren: we would love to join you for lunch, see you in 5!

I smiled for something good came from that whole mess. I shot off a text to Belda telling her what’s happening and to thank her for making sure I was okay. Of course, she responded, saying that of course she had to make sure that I was okay and well for I was her soulmate.

Soon Belda and I are at a local Starbucks waiting anxiously for Finley to arrive. Belda notices me being all fiddly and calmly covers my hand with hers in an act to try to relax me.

“Mon chou you need to relax.” Belda scolds me gently, and I sigh as I sink deeper into the cushion on our table.

“I know Belda I’m just nervous on what they want to talk to both us about.” I replied anxiously.

“I know mon petit but it hopefully good, yes?”

I was going to respond but I heard the door chime ding and I turned and looked around Belda and stood a beautiful looking man in an oversized hoodie and wearing flawless makeup. I remembered him from my art class, this was Finley!

He soon noticed us sitting in our booth I saw the smile that crept on his face when he saw us. Finley walked over to us and I didn’t forget how he hesitated a little when he got in arm’s length of the table.

I soon felt a tingle like when I meet Belda and my eyes shoot up to her as her face said it all.

“A-a-are we- “

“Soulmates?” I finished

I saw Finley shake his head as tears fell from his eyes. We’ve done it our trio is complete I have meet both of my soulmates. In what? Like two weeks. I stood up and threw myself at Finley. Belda soon joined us finishing the group hug and we were so wrapped up in out cuddle pile we didn’t even notice the other people around us and the glares and looks we got. We were a crying mess; all our makeup was already streaming down our face and I felted Belda pull us impossibly closer. I sniffled and tried to wipe the tears that were rolling down my face. We all got up and sat down at our booth, so we could have the long-waited talk. Finally, finally I can see both my soulmates and their faces, I have waited so long, tears rolled down my face again.

“sécher tes larmes mon chou” Belda whispered and wiped my tears away while she shed her own.

“I’m just so happy” I sobbed, and my shoulders heaved with the force of my crying.

We gave each other the biggest hug I have ever felt, not since my parents were proud that I got a A on a science test in 1st grade. Finally, I was complete, my family was very wrong. They tried to hide me from them but oh they were so wrong. I was smiling, finally a true smile, never have I smiled this big since I was little. For just this moment the world faded and all I could see was Belda and Finley, Belda and Finley, my perfect other halves.

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keepliving21-blog · 6 years

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Love Nalu Fanfic

dedicated to @rizzy09 Love you sweet thing, thank you for the idea and I hope you enjoy! For everyone out there, I am open for writing whatever nalu ideas ya’ll would like me to write.

Nalu Fanfic where being a mate to someone isn’t actually the greatest thing in the world.

all rights to Hiro Mashima

Love

Love was meant to be unchained, wild and free. It was supposed to be unconditional and all consuming; passionate with a splash of innocence, the greatest adventure one could take. And yet, it wasn't. In a way, love has never existed. The concept of being mates to someone, to be owned by the dominant and be kept submissive could hardly be seen as love at all. But that was life in Fiore: arranged-marriages, child weddings, and the power play between the sexes. You see the moment you met someone with the same mark, even if they were 20 years older, you would be forced to marry them. The rich would often take advantage of this by having a elderly man tattoo a "mark" that matched a young maiden's so they could strengthen their ties. In this world, you had to marry your mate regardless their behavior or age, and if you ever objected you would be publicly shunned and isolated from everyone until you gave in.

That must be why Fairy Tail is not only controversial but on the verge of criminal. Based in the farthest reaches of Fiore, the guild gives sanctuary to the runaways who refuse to be mated to a stranger. Members cover their mark with wrappings and tattoo the guild's emblem somewhere on their person. It is a symbol of freedom from the oppression of being a mate. The only consequence was that once a member, you could never go home as it would be to dangerous. It was indeed a small price to pay for freedom.

Natu's mark is on his left arm so he often wears a long coat that covered the arm completely but exposed his right arm, the Fairy Tail emblem showing clearly just below his right shoulder. As popular as he was for all the destruction he "accidentally" caused Natsu's actual role was to tattoo the emblem on others. He would deliberately go into the worst areas and find people who wanted to get help, and he helped them. According to rumors, he used to be the son of a well respected politician but like most wasn't allowed to choose his future. So Natsu rebelled and ran away, he dyed his hair pink and got into tattooing. It was meant to be a rebellious act to get back at his parents but Fairy Tail found him and convinced him to help people instead of simply living to spite his parents.

It turns out, Natsu loved saving people. He found a purpose and a future of his own making through Fairy Tail and went from a angsty teen with a attitude problem to a daring young man who was loyal to his friends and only partially chaotic. So with his blue cat snuggled in his scarf, because why dye your hair when you could also dye your cats fur, he makes his way through Magnolia.

This was different though, as he was only here to buy ink and wasn't particularly looking to help someone.

Natsu finds his favorite ink store and steps in, going to the far right corner of the store he begins analyzing the vast array of inks trying to judge which shade of red was best for the dragon tattoo he'd been dreaming about making. The sketch was drawn out he just needed the red ink to go with it. Reaching up for a fiery red one he fails to notice the other hand reaching for that same bottle. It retreats immediately and with a shy apology the stranger next to him backs off.

She was a curious thing, fidgeting a little in place and toying with a strand of her gold hair. She had long pigtails held up by blue bows and went a good two inches past her shoulders, side swept bangs partially draped over her face and failed to hide her honey brown eyes. Finding her to be beautiful Natsu gets the bottle and hands it to her instead, he can always find that shade of red later.

"Here ya go."

"Thanks..." Pure white hands take the bottle from him and Natsu can't help but notice that for someone buying ink this girl has no tattoos at all.

"So ya like tattoos huh? Are you a beginner?"

"Something like that." Was her only response as she points to her bandaged left arm. “I’m finally gonna cover this up.”

“It’s your mark right?”

“W-what I mean no, why-why would you-“

He chuckles a little, this girl was showing all the signs of a person trying to hide their mark. She was nervous and fumbled over her words, played her mark off as an injury, and was currently glancing at the stores entrance probably to make her escape.

“Can I see it?”

At this she clasps a hand over her bandage and looks mildly offended. “Isn’t that a little personal? I don’t even know your name.”

A weak argument, but the adorable girl looked nervous so he turned his attention back to the shelves of ink bottles and crosses his arms. Approaching with caution, she stands next to him to see what’s so interesting. Reaching up, Natsu finds a soft pink shade of ink and hands it to her much to the girls surprise.

“This will look much better against your skin. Anyways, good luck with hiding your mark.”

Flustered and a little upset she stalks after him as he makes his way to the stores entrance. “Now wait, aren’t you going to tell me your name?”

He looks back at her, a inkling of mischief in his eyes as a smile crept along his face. That’s when she saw the Fairy Tail guild mark on his shoulder but surprisingly she didn’t take a step back.

“You really wanna know?”

She nods in response.

“It’s Natsu, I’m Fairy Tails tattoo artist. If you want I could tattoo over-“

“Yes.” The response was immediate as if she’d longed for a chance like this and he couldn’t deny he was curious about her so he took her back to the cashier, bought the ink, and led her outside.

“You know I never caught your name.”

“It’s Lucy.”

-/-/-/-

Lucy was brimming with curiosity, taking in her new surroundings as Natsu led her by the hand through the guild. The air smelt of cigarette smoke and beer, the light atmosphere lingered with loud voices and cheers accompanied by fierce arguments. Her pink haired friend took her through a door next to the bar that she could've sworn would lead them to the kitchen, but instead found herself in a small tattoo parlor and was ushered to the seat in the center of the room.

"Can I see your mark?"

"Oh-um sure." Lucy gingerly peels the bandage off revealing the dragon like mark on her left arm, for a moment Natsu thinks nothing of it until he actually studies it and finds that it is exactly like his own mark in the exact same location. A shiver runs down his spine and for a moment he cannot help but be a little upset, the whole point of running away and joining the guild was so that he would never find his mate. And yet, here she was: a shy, beautiful young woman who had the courage to cover her own mark. If he hung out with her, would he come to love her? Now that they've met would either of them leave each other? Would they be forced by fate to stay together? The blonde shifts nervously in her seat, feeling uncomfortable under his gaze and quietly asks if the guild mark would cover it. Snapping out of his trance, Natsu reassures her it will and sets off to get his equipemente ready.

"So Luce, why do ya need the mark hidden?" He asks while getting the ink ready, he wouldn't say it, but the lad was curious how the soft pink would turn out on her virgin skin.

"It's my father Jude. He wants me to marry my uncle so...yeah."

"I'm sorry."

"Oh don't be, I heard about you and this girl I met at the library-her names Levy I think?-she said you could help."

At this he stops before piercing her skin and looks at her. This was the first time someone has come to him, usually he was the one to save people.

"You were looking for me?"

She nods shyly, and a soft blush spreads across her cheeks. "I heard that Fairy Tail was like a never ending adventure, and being trapped at home with a madman for a father, I just jumped at the chance. I figured if I found you, maybe I could finally escape it all you know?"

"Brave girl...hey lets tattoo the mark elsewhere."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, your mark is to agitated, maybe on your hand." Natsu wasn't lying, her mark really was agitated, but he also didn't want to cover her mark. In a way, Natsu really wanted to see what Lucy was like. She sounded similar to him, rebelling against her parents and taking life into her own hands, sure she was shy but there was a certain amount of bravery that if cultivated could really turn into something grand.

It takes her a while but she finally concedes and allows him to tattoo the guild mark on her hand, watching intently as he does so. Natsu fascinated her, a pink haired boy with a million dollar smile and tattoos that went all the way up his arms. At first glance he'd probably be seen as a bad guy, but with his dorky and charismatic character Natsu seemed to be the exact opposite. She couldn't deny that she was drawn to this man somehow, and made a mental note to hang out with him again.

"Hey, not to distract you but could you show me around Fairy Tail?"

"Sure thing," Natsu smiles as he finishes the mark, loving how perfect the pink appeared to be on her hand, "Better yet, I'll introduce you to some of my friends."

Taking a wipe and gingerly wiping the mark on her hand, he gives her smile.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail, Lucy."

#Nalu #nalu fanfiction #natsu dragneel #lucy heartfilia #natsu is a tattoo artist #fairy tail #fairy tail nalu

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discipled1 · 5 years

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Encounter

They had no choice. Well, that wasn't true. They could wash their hands of the whole mess, just leave.

"We can't do that and you know it." Jormund said.

The glistening plate mail was meticulously cared for. The symbol of the god of light shone, not only from polish but with an other-worldly sheen. That paladin was grim.

"I don't like it any more than you. I probably like it less. A lot less." He continued.

"How can you, of all people, even consider this? You should want to storm the place and start smiting! " Kairou shouted, exasperated.

"Despite her... condition. It doesn't mean she's evil." Jormund replied, calm but pensive.

"Oh and her criminal organization just sells pastries door to door?" Kairou shot back.

Jormund sighed. "Point taken, let me rephrase. I have no proof she's of the abyss. I smite supernatural threats; worldly evil is not given for me to judge. Though you have little room to talk about such things."

Kairou scowled, "That... it's... she's different!"

She may have sputtered more but she was interrupted by the door opening.

Three more persons entered the room, faces solemn.

"It's a bust." One said, a long sword at his side and armor tinkling like ice as he moved.

"Not even Aren's gilded tongue could buy us purchase." Another said, smirking under a broad brimmed wizard hat.

"You can't reason with moron." Aren said, hanging his feathered cap on the hook as he shut the door. His rapier stayed at his side while is lute was put in a case with care.

"It's not like we have much to bargain with." Brunish, said as he leaned against a wall. His armor didn't make so much sound when he stood still.

"But even such a poor position should have been manageable for the great orator." Taliteann said, her smirk still in place.

"Lay off." Aren said completely serious. Taliteann's smirk disappeared. Their banter was usually playful, but even Aren was in no mood for games.

"So that's it then? The worst path is ahead of us?" Jormund asked.

"Unless your man upstairs has sent any divine inspiration?" Brunish asked.

"Unfortunately, he's trusted my faith on this matter." Jormund said.

"Of course." Brunish said, irritation barely hidden.

"And so we find ourselves with no other recourse." Taliteann said, "Neither the arcane, divine, or cleaver tongue provided us any other way."

"And so five heroes must make a deal with the devil for the good of many." Aren finished.

***

The room was large, well decorated and mostly dark. The carpet was fine, high quality. The tapestries of exquisite detail. Gruesome detail. They showed scenes of demons and other infernal beasts. Some portraits like you would see in a noble's keep, but the subjects hailed from the abyss. Other were battles, these had some mortal subjects, most of them dead and dying at the hands of hellish warriors.

They had walked through a long hall of similar works of "art" and as more hung on the walls of the room the five adventurers had eyes for none of them. They were locked forward.

A tall throne stood on a raised dais, behind it wreathed shadows dancing in the low torch light. Spikes adorned the chair in all but the functional sections. The figure on the throne sat, eyes closed and barely noticeable, their dark skin and dark apparel blending in the low light.

The human servant bowed to the throne before announcing, "These mortals seek an audience with you, oh Great Lady."

The figure on the throne was silent. Then slowly the eyes opened. They were bright yellow and shown in the darkness, almost as if back lit by the fires of the underworld.

"Who?" She said. With the word the torches flared, bathing the room in sudden unfriendly light. All but Jormund flinched.

The added light revealed more. Two armored figures on either side of the throne, invisible until now. They stood silent and still. The visitors hardly noticed them. The figure on the throne, now plainly visible did have dark skin, dark red. She wore black a form fitting type of armor, which looked serviceable but still stylish. It traced her curves perfectly.

She had the form of a beautiful woman in every way. Her shape was attractive, but no one could mistake her for a human. She had two horns which sprouted from her temples, curved out, then back in, narrowing to a straight point directly up. Snaking behind her, lazily draped over one arm of the throne was chevron pointed tail.

"You may announce yourselves." The human servant said, and then promptly walked to stand by the entrance, out of the way.

"We are a humble band of travelers." Aren started. "W--"

"Halt your tongue." The figure on the throne said, her tail flicked in annoyance. Like a cat, if that cat was a hellscape panther, "I know who you are, it is my business to know, and you are no humble travelers. Travel you may but lowly you are not. I will not abide lies silver tongued Aren. In flowerful language you may indulge, but falsities have no benefits of those I entertain."

Silence reigned. Only twice before had the party seen Aren give such pause.

"If you know of us already I shall not misspend your time in introductions oh great Crimson Lady." Aren said.

A... there is no more fitting way to describe it. A devilish grin spread upon the Crimson Lady's face.

"Very good." She purred. Her posture relaxed, but this only caused the five visitors to tense more. She lounged on her throne, her stillness replaced with an idle swing of her tail. In a word, her pose was seductive, she flexed her legs in such a way as to show their form and her head tilted as her eyes glinted, perhaps literally, with mischief.

"We know of each other yes." She said "However we have not had the pleasure of being acquainted. Though what I know of thee is interesting. Or should I say, what I know of thee makes this meeting interesting. Never in my wildest dreams would I think thee to grace my chambers with a visit. Verily, I thought I would have to entice thee here."

"You wear lies like elegant ball gown my Lady." Aren said, "Surely I heard you speak against falsities here."

The grin on the red face deepened into a smirk, "I said no such thing Silver Tongue. I merely informed that lies are of no benefit to my guests. By all means create trouble for yourself with falsities, I shall utilize them most efficiently."

"Double talking snake." Brunish whispered so quietly even Kairou barely caught it.

Taliteann winced.

"You flatter me, stalwart fighter." the Lady said with what looked like a genuine smile. She rose with grace from her throne and looked down straight at the warrior.

His hand went to his sword, only to remember they checked their weapons at the front door. His fist clenched.

The Crimson lady glided down the stairs, or at least appeared to. Her eyes never left the warrior.

"Forgive my c--" Aren started but was silence when the Lady held up a single finger.

She walked across the twenty or so feet that were between the stairs and the group. Her eyes bored into the fighter, her hips rolled from side to side, her eyelids lowered. Her tongue licker her top lip, revealing fangs behind.

The group was frozen, unsure what to do.

The Lady reached Brunish and delicately brushed the armored shoulder. Brunish looked at her eyes without blinking.

"The steadfast warrior of the weak. What is it you seek here?" She asked. Her breath smelled of sulfur.

"This was a mistake." Brunish said, he started to turn towards the door.

A strong grip stopped him. The lady squeezed and the metal of the shoulder pad started to buckle.

"Oh come now, you just arrived. Stay a while yet." The Crimson Lady said.

If Brunish moved, she would break his shoulder, armor or no. The warrior was like a statue.

The crimson lady turned her yellow eyes to Kairou.

"Be a dear and move your hand away from that hidden dagger. My doorman are skilled but I'm sure you slipped at least one passed them Kairou the Thief."

Kairou spread her figures, showing she had nothing in them before moving them back to her sides.

The Lady looked over to Taliteann. "You can let go of that arcane energy you have held there. At this range you can’t be sure your spell wouldn’t hit you ally instead of me Tally."

The wizard was shocked, not so much that the Lady sensed her magic, but that she used her little known nickname.

"We'll stay, for now." Brunish said.

The lady released him and only then did he turn back forward, glancing quickly at the hand shaped dent in the metal.

The Lady laughed. It was a pretty laugh, with school girl enthusiasm, but the rich tones of a great singer.

"Jormund." She said "The Holy. You live your name well. Haven't decided on me yet?"

"It remains to be seen." He said, "But don’t think I take to injuring my companions lightly."

"Of course not. One such as you would not be here to parley if I had proven myself of the darkness. As fun as this has been, we do have business to discuss do we not?"

She looked at Jormund for an answer, he looked at Aren.

"We do." Aren said.

The Crimson Lady looked back at Brunish and with a wink, stroked his cheek, before turning back to her throne.

The warrior yelped in surprise as she smacked his backside with her tail as she turned.

She pranced away towards her throne, slowing down her pace as here tail swished back and forth, playful.

She crossed her arms in front of herself as she stopped before the stairs. She leaned on one leg, the pose almost vulnerable.

"And what business do you wish to discuss?"

Aren paused a moment before answering, "It's a delicate matter. One we do not discuss lightly with our allies, let alone..."

"Demons?" The lady asked, quiet.

Aren gave further pause. Did she--

The Lady spun around, a "gotcha" smile on her face. Aren chided himself for falling for the act. "The devil's in the details my sweet." She said, "It must be serious, especially if you are turning to me for help."

Encounter part 2 "Quite." Aren said, composing himself.

The king is--"

"Dead?" The Lady asked, a knowing smile playing at her lips.

Aren faltered and was frustrated with himself. Silver Tongue was by no means an overstatement. He had and could navigate social situations expertly. Was she just that good or was it the way she looked?

"How can the king be dead when he appears in public so often?" The Lady asked.

Wise to her games now and getting ready to play ball, Aren started, "Because a ne--"

"Necromancy?!" The Lady said, enjoying the fact that she cut him off, but noticed he was ready for it this time. "In this kingdom? Such vile magic hasn't shown its ugly visage in decades."

"We have proof. Undeniable. And a plan to reveal the plot we just need some more boots on the ground and some contacts inside the castle." Aren finished.

"Men I have in spades and always on the lookout for more." She said, turning her gaze back to Brunish and winking. "But would you dare insinuate that I have spies in the court? Surely such a thing would be immoral." She looked at Jormund with a smirk.

Aren drew in a breath, "I would never dishonor your name Lady--"

The Lady clicked her tongue in disapproval.

"I would never doubt your capabilities." Aren amended.

She gave him an approving look.

"Such capabilities I may have. But I have to wonder what I may gain from undoing this so called plot. Surely one such as myself could very will be in league with such a scheme. Don’t deny you've considered it."

Aren was dealt a poor hand, but played it the best he could, "It would not be a large leap in conclusion, but one we've ascertained to be false. You may be on the wrong side of the law but you are loyal to your word and until proven otherwise, you do not fall in line with evil."

The lady smiled, "I like you. You lot. As long as you are agreeable to me I do not wish to stop you. This plot you have uncovered has indeed been a thorn in my side, perhaps I could use some help in removing it."

The group’s tension, finally, lifted somewhat. Perhaps this negotiation may not be a dead end after all.

"However, one never gets into my position by making fair deals." She smiled wickedly.

The group was tense again.

"It is true that these schemers have caused me issue, and should continue to do so more frequently should they take full control of the King's Court. But that is for me to deal with, I have only little vested interest in whether your own plots succeed or fail. Perhaps I could deal with this incursion myself and then I could control the Court."

No one said anything for a moment.

"But alas perhaps such action would be costly and the potential gains only possibilities. If I were to aid another party in eliminating mine enemy, while also gaining a sure benefit. Then perhaps that would be a deal worth considering."

"You have just as much to lose as we do, if not more!" Brunish interjected.

"I have not gained my power by losing little, dear Brunish. I have attained this position by gaining much. I will help you. We will take on our mutual enemy, as friends. But I request one thing."

"What do you request, my good lady." Aren asked.

"One favor."

"Name it!" Brunish said before Aren could speak.

"I shall, in time." She purred, "My help in this matter for your service at another time. After this affair has concluded."

"You'd have us sign a blank check?" Brunish asked.

"In a way. I give you my word, my favor shall not see you break any law, nor harm any innocent. But at this time you shall not know of its details or purpose. Do we have a deal?"

Aren looked back at his companions.

"She won’t have us break any law, or harm any innocent." Kairou said in a whisper.

"You trust the word that she devil?" Brunish whispered back.

The lady smirked as if she heard every word.

"Her word is good." Jormund said, "She will not violate the letter of her deal. I sincerely doubt we will appreciate the outcome of such a favor, however."

"We have little other choice." Taliteann said.

"I still don't like it." Brunish said.

"None of us do." Jormund says, "But I cannot abide a necromancer behind the throne."

"The devil you know..." Taliteann said.

"We don’t know her!" Brunish said, his whisper barely describable as such.

"We know she keeps her deals, and those that don’t keep hers don't stick around long." Aren said, "We have no other option."

He looked around. No one was happy, but no one stopped him. Aren turned to face the Crimson lady.

"We accept your proposal."

Her teeth, fangs included, showed in the widest smile yet.

"Excellent!" She cooed, "My friends, for now I feel I can call you such." Brunish looked disgusted by the term. "Let me assist you in any way I can for we are now allies. We must draw up plans a prepare. I offer to you rooms in my manor here, you shall have all my luxuries at your disposal."

"Oh we couldn't presume!" Aren said as he started to back everyone to the door.

A loud bang signaled the door being shut.

"Oh, I insist." Grinned the Crimson Lady.

#fiction #fantasy #short story

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obscure-black-clouds · 7 years

Text

just let it in

FANDOM: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them;

WARNINGS: um, lots of symbolism and it’s a bit creepy;

WORD COUNT: 2949+627 (you’ll know why);

A/N: got this idea in, like, the middle of the night and i couldn’t sleep, thinking about it over and over again. At some point I took inspiration from one of @imaginingcredence fics, but I won’t tell you which one, cause it’ll spoil everything. Also, for the same reason i don’t write the summary this time. However, I’m going to explain some things in the end with another A/N. So, I hope you’ll enjoy it) Oh, and for more atmosphere, I recommend listening to this, this and this. These two (1 & 2) are not exactly the ones i wanted, but they pretty much go with the mood. A loooooot of music.

Wind sent chills down the boy’s spine, waking him up. He jerked, realizing that he was lying on the wooden dusty floor in a dark unfamiliar corridor. How did he end up here? Credence could’ve sworn that he went to bed in Goldsteins’ apartment, not in this old house, that seemed more like a mansion. He hesitantly stood up, looking around, his heart pounding in his chest like crazy.

The corridor seemed abandoned, as if no one lived in this house for decades, ages even. A subtle light crept into the building through a dirty window. The glass was broken, sharp shards littered the floor around. Maybe that window was a source of the wind that woke Credence up. The boy stepped forward, floor creaking under his foot. The sound was too loud for this forsaken place and it made Credence flinch. He continued moving, carefully watching around if somebody else was there. However the place was empty, just a long dark corridor with a dozen on doors. At first he thought they all were the same, but know, when Credence came closer he saw that, in fact, the difference was immense. Every single door differed from previous one, most of them seemed like they didn’t even belonged here. Some were small, and Credence doubted that even a cat could fit in there, some were big, huge even, reaching the ceiling. Others were old, speckled with cracks and scratches, sometimes even missing some parts of the material they were made of. There were couple of newer ones, sleek and neat, as if no one ever opened them. Some were dull and dark, some – covered in colorful paint. However there were something common in all of them.

Firstly, all of them, just like the whole corridor, they were covered in thick layer of dust. Credence could see spider webs here and there, darkness curled in the corners. Small speckles of dust were slowly moving in the subtle rays of light, when the boy came closer to the window.

Secondly, all of them were closed. Not even a single one of them opened when he tried to pull the handle. They were creaking and moving slightly, but never opened.

Credence moved to the window, shards cracking under his shoes, and touched the glass. He hoped to look outside, wipe away the dirt and dust, but he only smeared the grime over his fingers. He tried to peek out of the hole, but as soon as he touched the edges, he flinched back, gasping of sharp pain. Credence stared at his fingers, now covered in blood that seemed surprisingly vibrant in comparison to the house, or the world itself. The light – moonlight, he thought – was playing now with drips of blood on the glass. Credence stared and it for a second, and suddenly noticed another corridor in the corner of his eyes. He turned to the left, seeing the stairs, which led both up and down. Boy moved toward them, cradling his hand close to his chest. He could still feel his heart pounding, but that strange fear was mixed with curiosity and sudden confidence.

His every step was followed by a creaking sound of the stairway. As everything else in this house, it was covered with dust and shadows, which followed him carefully. Credence didn’t know which floor he was at, because every time he tried to count he would lose it as soon as his eyes moved from one step to another. For a second Credence thought, that the house himself was guiding him, preventing boy from remembering the way. However, it seemed that his journey ended soon enough. Credence stepped into the main hall and froze in awe.

The room was vast, almost twice as big as the church Credence remembered so well. The hall was still filled with darkness, lit only with a moonlight, which crept through the stained-glass doors. It seemed like a palace, an old forsaken residence of the forgotten kings. There weren’t any gold, though, just a rich wood and marble on the floor. A crystal chandelier was dangerously leaned to the side, still connected to the ceiling. Credence could easily imagine hundreds of people in here, women in long gorgeous dresses and men in suits dancing to the music.

He could see an owner of this house, a dark king, dressed in black and gold with a heavy crown on his head, whose name, once shouted, became a mere whisper. He could see a queen, gentle and beautiful, but already touched by darkness, because she loved him so dear and well, that she took his hand, and heart ,and kingdom, blinding herself to his true nature.

Credence shook his head, shaking himself free from the vision. The king’s face was too familiar, to the extent where Credence gasped, fear flowing through his veins. He saw that face, he knew those eyes. A sharp jawline, high cheekbones and a slightest bit crooked nose seemed almost cut out of the stone. Jet-black hair seemed untamed, resting on his shoulders, making his skin appear white, lifeless even. His plump lips curved into victorious smirk before he burst into laugh, cold and sharp as shards of glass, making Credence shiver. And the eyes…

It was his eyes.

Credence rushed to the door, trying to escape the a sinister picture and the maniacal laugh. He rapidly opened the door and froze again, his eyes drowning in panic. Desolation. There were nothing around, just a vast empty space, except for the couple of dead trees. His breath hitched, while he was frantically looking around. The sky was gray and hazy, covered in thick clouds, which prevented any light from touching the land. Credence turned around, staring at the mansion. He was relatively right, it appeared more like an old castle, though again, just like those doors in a corridors it seemed like it was made from different buildings, combined in one.

Suddenly, he heard a quiet music coming from the garden. Credence never heard anything like this before. It was quiet, almost inaudible and easily killed by creaking trees. He went forward as in a dream, moving deeper into the garden, passing a metal gates covered in a dry ivy. Perhaps, it was his movements that scared couple of moths, so they fluttered into the sky. One of them landed onto Credence’s sleeve, making him stop. He never seen a creature lake that before. A moth was huge, not compared to the ones that lived in wardrobes. Its dark, pale wings, sprinkled with white dots mirroring the diamonds, were trembling in unison with the wind. Credence was fascinated staring at the moth. He raised his hand to touch it, but at the same time, the music came back, louder and a tiny bit faster, scaring it away.

Music was slow, like a ritual song, a lament without words, jut sounds and the wind. It filled everything, and now every other sound was becoming a part of this sinister melody. Whispers of the wind, rustle of moths’ wings and leaves beneath Credence’s feet, even his own breath merged with the otherworldly music. It seemed to erase everything, entire world and the memories of other world, feeding the air, feeling like a light hand of the back, leading him forward, deeper into the woods. It wasn’t a garden anymore, Credence could feel it, he was sure, that if he’d turn around he wouldn’t have seen the mansion anymore. However, he couldn’t look back, his eyes were glued to the path in front of him.

And the music went on, bursting into a trill, falling and lifting again and again. Credence could hear the cryptic organ playing in the distance luring him into the thicket. It sounded deep and slow, as if the music was more ancient than a time itself. Sometimes, however, a crystal trill of a violin was breaking through this eerie veil, as if light still was fighting against the dark, glimmering through shadows. Nevertheless, it was still wailful and lacrimal, perhaps even the music knew, that with every victory of the light it’s the dark that wins.

It felt like the edge of the earth, air thick like butter, time slowed down and faded away. Here everything was conditional, even the edge of the earth itself. Land was ugly and dead, soaked with blood or tears, or both. This place froze in time, in the middle of twilight, when the day is done and the night is never going to come.

Credence was still walking, breathing heavily, as if he was running out of oxygen. The forest didn’t seem to thin out, even though he could see peculiar stones here and there. His heart sunk when he realized what they were. Tombstones. His eyes widen and he almost fell to the ground tripping over tree root.

“It seemed to like you,” soft velvet voice interrupted the music, merging into it, as if it was supposed to. “The moth.”

Credence backed away, staring at the figure in front of him. It was certainly a man, tall and thin, dressed in all black. His clothes seemed at the same time grungy and rich, which seemed to be almost incongruous. He wore a hood, just another layer of cloth covering his head. He sniffed, turning his head slightly it a wolf-like manner.

“You’re bleeding,” his voice was calm and steady, much deeper than Credence’s, but still a bit rusty. The boy glanced to his hand, blood dried a long time ago.

“W-where a-am I?” Credence wheezed, staring at stranger’s back, as he crouched laying a bunch of dried roses to the grave. His thin pale fingers were covered with scars. Just like mine, Credence thought, examining his hands. However, the black sleeves hid stranger’s palms and arms. He carefully touched the stone, shaking his head slightly and snorting in amusement.

“You know where,” he chuckled, watching a moth, sitting on his fingers.

“I-I d-don’t,” Credence started panicking, not being able to control his own voice anymore. “Who are you?” his voice wobbly and wheezy.

“You know who I am, Credence. Come on, dearie, it’s easy,” he chucked again, turning around to face Credence, his head low, covered with hood, as if it was too early to see his face yet.

“I-I-”

“Come on, honey,” he singed, raising his hands. Credence blinked, looking at the stranger. His form seemed to fade away, crumbling into smoke. Black, thick smoke was silently curling around him, making his frame blurry. Smoke. No, it couldn’t be, no-

“Say it, dearie, we both know you very well know who I am.”

Smoke. Credence’s eyes widen in realization. There was only one thing he could think of.

Obscurus.

“Exactly, little one,” a man raised his head, removing the hood. Subtle light touched his pale skin, sliding over his cheekbones.

He looked exactly like Credence and at the same time completely different. His skin was much paler, and he was skinnier, if it was even possible. Dark shadows rested beneath his eyes and cheekbones. Jet-black hair was much longer, almost reaching his shoulders. Ebony and ivory. That was the only words to describe him. His eyes… His eyes were blind, covered in white translucent haze. However, there were much more emotions in those white holes than in someone’s human eyes. Rage, danger, power, force, sadness and pain, all in one. They seemed like abyss.

“If you only could see your face right now,” Obscurus laughed.

“How- W-Where are we?”

“Oh, come on, don’t play a fool, Credence. You know, where we are.”

“I don’t-”

“Think, Credence!” Obscurus exclaimed emerging right in front of the boy, staring into his face. “Think!”

“Oh-” he backed away, trying to be as far from the Obscurus as possible. “We-we are in-” his eyes widen “in my head.”

“Good boy,” Obscurus sarcastically praised. “It’s been a long time, since you’ve last been here.”

“Wh-What do you mean?” Credence asked, realizing that his twin wasn’t’ going to hurt him. At least for now.

“Of course I’m not going to hurt you, silly,” Obscurus shook his head, “You’ve created me. I am you, and vice versa.”

“What did you mean, when said it’s been a long time?”

“Well, you, apparently, don’t like this place much,” he shrugged. “You’ve locked the door long time ago, and threw away the key. I found it, by the way,” Obscurus reached for something under his jacket, pulling a small chain from all of those cloth layers. A small key gleamed in his hand, making Credence blink. “You’ve locked the door and started hiding here all the things you didn’t like. Including me.”

“S-Sorry,” Credence looked away, staring at the ground.

“Never mind. I wouldn’t be here otherwise, so I’m grateful. In some way. Come on,” Obscurus gestured and moved along the path, pulling his hood up again.

“Where are we going?” Credence asked timidly, following him.

“I don’t know. It’s your head,” he nonchalantly said.

They were silent for a second, Credence deep into his mind, both literally and figuratively. He watched the Obscurus got off the trail, standing among the trees. He raised his hands, allowing dozens of moths to fly closer. It seemed beautiful and creepy at the same time. And sad.

“What are those?” Credence asked, his voice merely above the whisper.

“Moths?” Obscurus clarified, glancing at the boy, who was still standing on the path. “Take a look.”

Credence hesitated for a minute, but then came closer, stepping onto dry grass. There they stood, two twins among the night butterflies.

“I look after them, so they don’t die here. Some of them, of course fade away with time, but I care for them, so they don’t die earlier.”

Credence felt a moth sat on his hand, carefully climbing onto his sleeve. Suddenly, it reminded him of something. It was a rainy day, and Ma wasn’t around, she went to visit some friend of hers. It was a good day, free of punishment and abuse.

“Oh, that’s a good one,” Obscurus smirked, cocking his head.

“You remember?”

“Of course I do,” he sighed, banishing al the moths away. “We are one.”

“Newt said that Obscurus is-” Credence started staring at the ground.

“-a dark parasitic force that blah, blah, blah,” Obscurus rolled his eyes, walking past Credence and throwing up his hands. “If I was that, I would’ve killed you, you know. To break free and stuff. However,” he raised his finger up, “-however, I’m right here, looking after the house and garden.”

“But how-”

“You hated me. You hated me and locked me up here,” Obscurus gestured to the house that was now visible from behind the trees. “Magic needs an exit. You locked the door, putting me into cage.”

“I’m sorry-”, Credence guiltily whispered, watching Obscurus coming closer to the house. He stood there for a second, examining the mansion, and then climbed onto a low stone fence. He sat there, watching Credence intently, his every movement somehow mirroring a wolf.

“It was not your fault. Things gone nasty, I understand,” he shrugged. “At first I was trying to break free, but then. Well, I stopped. The only time I gone out was the times when it was too bad. The cracks would appear and I could slip away.”

“When Ma-”

“Mostly. That woman was my way out. How ironic,” he bitterly chucked.

“Newt said you will kill me, sooner or later,” Credence suddenly whispered. Obscurus jerked his head. He watched the boy for a second, and the sighed.

“He is right. Not that I want to, though.”

“But- Why didn’t you-”

“-Kill you earlier?” Obscurus asked, slightly swinging his legs in the air. “Well, you see, this place is huge. For now I have enough space here,” he shrugged. “I don’t know that it depends on, but you’re a lucky one.”

“I guess I am-” Credence muttered, doubting his words and looking to the ground. Suddenly, he realized something. “Where did the music go?”

“Music?” Obscurus curiously asked. “It’s still there. You’ve just became a part of it. It’s the same with the heartbeat. As long as it's yours, you won’t hear it. You’ve became a part of this music, Credence.”

Suddenly, the wind got stronger, making leaves fly through the air. Credence frantically looked around, while Obscurus quickly jumped down from the fence, grabbing Credence by the shoulders. The boy flinched, staring at his twin with wide eyes.

“I know what you’re thinking. You still have a chance. The only thing you need to do is to let the sun in. I will go away, as soon as there will be someone- you, to look after the garden. Let the sun in. Just let it in.”

Wind gone stronger and stronger, blowing right in the face, making Credence’s eyes watering, with what all around gone hazy and blurry. He tried to see something, but there was only darkness. He gasped for air and woke up on the bed in Goldsteins’s apartment. It took him a second to realize what happened. Credence almost jumped when he heard a sleepy voice.

“Credence, are you all right?”

It was Queenie, standing in the doorway, looking at him with worry.

“Um-” he swallowed, “Yeah, I’m- I’m fine. S-Sorry.” She looked at him for a second more, while he lay back down, covering himself with a blanket, and then left, whispering a quiet “goodnight”. Credence was staring into the darkness of the room for a few minutes, before he felt sleepy again. He could have sworn that in a moment before he fell asleep he heard a familiar voice accompanied with a quiet violin trill.

“Just let it in.”

A/N: So okay, here comes an explanatory part, cause when I go into symbolism I go all the way. It’s not really necessary to read it, if you don’t want to.

The entire place - well, it’s obviously Credence’s mind and consciousness, that’s clear.

Doors - are the ways into every corner of his soul, all different, because he, like everyone, can be very different and has wide rage of opportunities and features. Some of them are small, responsible for small habits, the others are big - they determine his opinions and character. Some are old and loose, they are transmitted with the blood as a heritage, and others, new ones, the ones no one opens - are his own features. All of them are closed, because he does not allow himself to become what must be.

Broken dirty window - he tries to look outside, but can’t because he is constantly waiting for a pain, and sees the world through the prism of violence. The hole, however, is the consequence of Tina’s actions, she broke his stereotypical point of view. However, looking at the world under different light isn’t going to be easy at all, that why he accidentally cuts himself.

Great hall - represents his heart. They are huge, but (for now) empty, because he does not let anyone get too close, for fear that they will destroy him. Just like Graves came in, breaking windows and damaging the chandelier (a fragile thing, just like Credence is). Hall is the closest room to the exit, because that despite the fear, Credence is still a little naive and is able to trust others (though sometimes he doesn’t need to).

Vision - Credence is afraid, yet captivated af what he could become. That’s why he sees a Dark king, powerful and just, but still dark.

Mansion - Credence’s identity, his character. It’s strange old mansion that looks like it’s built of different pieces. Old because magic flows in his veins, he is not a muggleborn, He comes from the family of wizards, where magic passed down from generation to generation. At the same time it seems like its assembled from pieces, because all around were trying to change Credence, eradicate him from himself.

Garden - is his soul. It’s fading because of the betrayal, and the sky is overcast because Credence hides from everyone. Garden slowly transforms into a forest, because Credence doesn’t know himself that good. It is a mystery even for him.

Music - is his nature, mostly the embodiment of Obscurus, except the violin, which makes its way through the darkness of the organ. Violin is Credence, still sad, but bright.

Cemetery in the forest - is the memorial for all those who passed and who Credence lost. Obscurus puts flowers on the grave of his (their) real mother, because despite the vision and everything else, they are part of whole.

Moths - are the memories and dreams. Some of them used to be butterflies once, but now they masked themselves under the dust, so nobody hurts them.

Obscurus - is, obviously, Credence’s twin. He is confident and, sometimes, even cruel, but he is nothing without Credence. He is the only one who takes care of the garden and moths because Credence is too scared to come and or let someone to help him. Obscurus hides in the depths of the forest and jealously protects a small cemetery, because it is, again, where his mother is buried. However, he doesn’t like when someone break into the house either. For example, Graves broke into the room and ruined chandelier, so Obscurus slipped away, to give him a good lesson.

The path in the forest - is a safe way. Credence doesn’t step out of it until he is asked, even in his own mind.

Sun - is all the god things in the world. Kindness, compassion, support and everything else. Credence just has to accept it.

P.S. Now it’s obvious, that I was partly inspired by Human!Obscurus fic by @imaginingcredence which is absolutely amazing, so go check it out!

#credence barebone #credence barebone imagine #fantastic beasts and where to find them #obscurus #obscurial #fbawtft #credence barebone fic

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wlulex · 7 years

Text

An Interview with LexVegas

In case you aren’t a big Instagramer, let me fill you in about a new social platform that has appeared: LexVegas. @lexvegasva is run by local David Khoshpasand and over the past year has gained over 1,000 followers on Instagram. I sat down with David to get the low-down on LexVegas and the man behind it.

1) What is LexVegas?

[LexVegas] is a brand or symbol that embodies Lexington in a fun way... I really enjoyed when I left and I went to Fairfax and George Mason. I really love Fairfax and the college town atmosphere. When I came back I knew that existed but didn’t think it was being cultivated so I felt like LexVegas would be a good way to do that. When I was in high school a band named LexVegas already existed and it was fun but no one took it to the next level.

I wanted to experiment and take risks. I have a background in entrepreneurship and small businesses, nothing to a huge scale but I like taking risks. In this situation, I was working for W&L, and still do*, and heard that a lot of students use the phrase “LexVegas” and it’s something fun. I just wanted to take the year to try it out. I started with stickers and decals, and now we have pint glasses, t-shirts and shot glasses (check them out here).

It started out as a small business but eventually I want someone to really take it over and blow it up because I’m more on the creative side. I’m hoping some students will step and say, “hey, we want to do this.”

*Davd does marketing for Dining Food Services and Food Side as well as digital consulting for the game “Watch Your Mouth.” He also just got his Masters in Marketing.

2) Anything else about when/how it started?

Just kind of decided to do it and throw my money and energy into this. I’ve really only done social media and digital marketing because that’s my forte. Chamber of Commerce is actually throwing an event on March 18 as a fundraising event for them but they’re calling it LexVegas and using my logo. It’s a cool thing and I’m excited about it!

3) What gave you the idea for LexVegas?

I had a moment of “what value can it offer people?” Then it just came pretty easy to me. I thought about if I was a college student said, “ok, each time you see that logo it’ll help you remember all those memories you created.” You build this nostalgia and this helps remind you of those memories. A lot of people come here for four years and then leave so I wanted to create a staple. I came up with the tag line: “You create memories, we revive them.” So that’s where his value proposition is right now and there are so many students here and people are coming and going, including locals, that there can be so many times to use it.

4) Who are you? What is your background?

When I was 17, I was booking and promoting bands and being from a small town you need to be creative to entertain yourself. I was asked to help with booking bands and we got a band from MTV to come and that’s when I thought, “wow, anything is possible” which transitioned into “entrepreneurship is real and this is what I’m passionate about.”

When I was in college I would do small things like “if I can get x people to come here can we get ½ off the cover?” That spawned off into competing in a entrepreneurship competition called “Start Up Weekend.” David and friends created “Feed the Fire” candles and every time one of the candles they made were sold, they would donate a meal to the city. In a year they donated 10,000 meals. It got to the point where we convinced Kroger to let us sell in their store and ended up in six Kroger stores. The business eventually fizzled but I kept having the urge to create stuff. LexVegas became my creative outlet

5) If you could embody one platform for LexVegas to be like, what would it be?

If had more time I would embody Snapchat. It’s free, unlike other platforms, expanding to glasses, which is so cool, and they’re distribution is going to be cool. They’re expanding into a brand and Snapchat is the only one I can see doing that. It makes you laugh, is personal between you and your friends that doesn’t need to be public and doesn’t need to be a permanent moment.

6) Where do you see LexVegas 5 years from now?

I would like to see some students just own it and take it to the next level. I would be more of a guider due to my experience. I just want to see students take over and turn it into something crazy.

7) Your following on Instagram has grown a lot since you started. How do you think that happened?

A lot of it is just marketing tactics. In the beginning I just followed a lot of people who are targeted people, like VMI students, W&L students, and I just keep doing that. I try to put out really good content. I bought a really nice camera and put out content that people would appreciate. I tried to give it a younger perspective because I sometimes feel like people this the city is older or outdated. So I did that to get that kind of brand personality early one and it just caught on and I think people started noticing.

8) What do you want people to know about LexVegas?

I want people to know that It’s an experiment and open to change. I want to see it evolve, this whole thing is just the beginning. I’m interested to see where it’ll go and want people to get involved. I want people to reach out to me.

9) The hardest part about creating LexVegas?

Time and funding because I wasn’t putting up my own money and it can get costly. My ultimate dream is to have a brick and mortar store that’s just LexVegas that sells all types of stuff. I know that will take time though.

It’s hard being the only one funding it, creating content, doing the website and accounting and then trying to do everything else. I would love to have 50 people on board who own LexVegas and pass down to the next generation. So it becomes student run, almost like wluLex in some regard, it would be student-driven so the content stays fresh. The perspective of Lexington is always evolving and new. I would love to see it get to that scale.

10) The coolest/best/most satisfying thing that has happened because of starting this endeavor?

The coolest thing is that I’ve started to realize how many other people there are like me who want to see Lexington evolve. Jamie Goodin (woo!) is definitely a major contributing factor into helping organize people to put in energy and elevate this city. So they started LexCollective and it’s awesome. He also has a big role in Main Street Lexington. Also, when I was at a LexCollective meeting there were about 30 people there, who were all young. The hard part is getting people organized to give the time and put in the energy. There are a lot of local artists and painters, including students, that this city could be completely different. and to give the time.

11) What is it about Lexington that you think makes it such a special place for so many people?

There is opportunity here for growth. I was thinking one time, “I could always move to big city, get a corporate job, be miserable and be part of the wheel. Or I could take a chance in a small town that has potential for growth and see what happens. Even if you are a part of the growth of the city, you made an impact.

12) Favorite Lexington memory (or top 3)?

1) Birthday parties and bar hopping

2) I also remember one summer and there was a huge rain. We were watching Ted, got to the last 5 minutes and then theater shut down. We went outside and there were trees down everywhere. We got home and all the lights were out so we lit candles and played card games. It was memorable because it went from this planned night to completely unplanned.

3) Friday’s Alive is always something to look forward to in the summer.

4) Oh, also the wine festivals

13) Favorite thing about Lexington?

How people are friendly and open to talk. There are so many talented people here but they don’t have an outlet. When I was in high school and we struggled to find a place to practice. If I was rich I would build a huge artistry building where people could come, play their music, practice. If I had the money that’s the first thing I would do. There is so much talent and people are friendly. I’ve been in a lot of cities where you say hi to someone and they’re offended. So I would say the people and the potential are my favorite things about Lexington.

Well if you didn’t know, now you do. Be sure to check it out @lexvegasva and on the website. We’re sure David will keep doing awesome things in the future.

#wlulex #lexvegas #washington and lee #lexington va #downtown lexington #small business

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