Vaggie: “No kidding. If I’d known inviting your dad here would get Alastor looking like a wet cat, I’d’ve pushed for it sooner.”
Charlie: “I’m just glad you pushed when you did.” (smooch) “Thank you. I’ve missed him.”
Vaggie: “Looks like he’s really missed you too, babe.”
Charlie: “Mm. Not enough to call, though.”
Vaggie: “Ehh, calling can be scary. Good thing you’re plenty brave.”
Charlie: “Only when you’re holding my hand!”
Vaggie: “Husk would say that’s an act of fucking bravery all on it’s own, letting yourself get grabbed by the small, mean, grumpy lady. Remind me not to help him out at the bar again ever. I think there’s vodka in my hair.”
Charlie: “I’ll try, but you know you’re gonna help anyway.” (second smooch) “Can I get a ‘you’re welcome’?”
Vaggie: (chuckling) “Charlie, I didn’t do anything.”
Charlie: “You do lots.”
Vaggie: “And thank hell Angel Dust isn’t around to hear that…”
Charlie: “I’m serious! You got me to call dad in the first place!”
Vaggie: “I just suggested it, you’re the one who did it, and you two worked things out together like a real father-daughter team.”
Charlie: “And we’re a great team too.”
Vaggie: “Well I’m definitely a pretty big fan of us. Although…. Sir Pentious and Keekee are giving us a run for our money. And the Niffty plus a lock of Lucifer’s hair combo might just have us beat.”
Charlie: “Blegh! She actually got that in the end? I thought her scissors couldn’t even cut it!”
Vaggie: “They didn’t. She used my spear.”
Charlie: “She WHAT-”
Vaggie: “And asked your dad very nicely to please take off his hat so she could trim off a piece without ruining the rest of his hair.”
Charlie: (sigh) “I guess as long as she ASKED…”
Vaggie: “D’you think her whole room is just a shrine to quote unquote bad boys?”
Charlie: “Oh don’t say that. We need to introduce her to some boybands or something.”
Vaggie: “We?”
Charlie: “Yes ‘we’, little miss likes making lesbian covers of the songs normally sung by teenage boys while you’re in the shower and think the sound of running water can in any way drown out your beautiful, heart stopping voice-”
Vaggie: “I- you- You’ve been listening!?”
Charlie: “Eeeev-er-y morning yep! Heheh~”
Vaggie: “Diablo mio… I need a drink.”
Charlie: (giggling) “To go with the vodka hair?” (nibbles Vaggie’s fringe) “Nom nom nom. Delicious~”
Vaggie: “Scratch that- clearly WE need some SLEEP.”
Charlie: “How can I sleep at all tonight, though? Vaggie- we’re gonna get a meeting with the top angels of creation! We’re gonna be on cloud nine! Literally! In HEAVEN!!”
Vaggie: “And sleep won’t be enough to prepare me for that but you definitely need it.”
Charlie: “It’s impossible! I need to SING!!!!!”
Vaggie: “You need to go shuck off those shoes and get in your ruby slippers while I put in your fav movie so we can get some rest.”
Charlie: “If you put in the Wizard of Oz you know I’m 100% gonna sing anyway right.”
Vaggie: “Yeah, but you’ll be singing in bed so you can keep watching the movie, and that’s good enough for me.”
Charlie: “I love youuuu~”
Vaggie: “Love you too sweetie. Slippers. Bed. Z’s. Now.”
Charlie: (kicks off shoes) “Ta da! There’s no place like home!"
Charlie: (clicks hooves together)
Charlie: "Heheheheh...!”
Vaggie: “I meant on the bed in your pajamas and under the actual covers- vaya, whatever. Scoot. Don’t go running off to Oz without me.”
Charlie: (snuggling vaggie in a hug instead) “I’m never going anywhere without you, Vaggie. Including heaven.”
Vaggie: (awkward laugh) “Great…”
Charlie: “Wanna know whyyyy?”
Vaggie: (smiles) “I make a great hand-holder, apparently.”
Charlie: “Yes. And, you’re home.”
Vaggie: “….yeah? I’m here? This is our room?”
Charlie: (snorting) “Vaggie-”
Vaggie: “In our hotel??”
Charlie: “Vaggie nooo- Anywhere else would be home too, with you there.”
Vaggie: “…..”
Vaggie: (deep breath)
Vaggie: “…... Charlie-”
Charlie: “You gonna press play?”
Vaggie: “-huh? Oh. Yeah.”
Charlie: (snuggling her) “This has been an amazing day. Wish every day could be like this, forever.”
Vaggie: “Yeah.” (hoarse) (curling up as close to charlie as she can) "Me too.”
-101 minutes of Oz later-
Vaggie: "Charlie?"
Charlie: "... nnnoooo..."
Vaggie: "Charlie, c'mon, at least let's get your coat off."
Charlie: "Mmrrr... mi mi mi..."
Vaggie: "You can go 'snork mi mi mi' afterwards. Work with me here, Dorothy- I can't get you settled into Oz without help."
Charlie: "Hmmheheheh... so im Dorothy..?"
Vaggie: "Definitely. You've got the ruby slippers on and everything."
Charlie: "I love that you call my hooves that~ Thats so silly. You're so silly, Vaggie."
Charlie: "Remove the suspenders... delete the suspenders..."
Vaggie: "Get your horns tangled in the suspenders somehow, wait, hold on-"
Charlie: "SUSPEND the SUSPEDERS!"
Vaggie: "Alright, good enough. That's all the annoying stuff gone anyway. You should be good like that, right?"
Charlie: "Sleeeeeepy. Snuggles?"
Vaggie: "Snuggles right after I change, give me one sec okay."
Charlie: "Mmm."
Charlie: "...vaggie."
Vaggie: "That was half a second."
Charlie: "Vaggiiiiie."
Vaggie: "I'm right over here, stop making grabby hands."
Charlie: "Vaggggiiiiiiiee...!"
Vaggie: (huffs) "Fine, fine..." (snuggles) "Not like my nightie would cover much anyway. But if we end up having to get up in the middle of the night for something exploding again, you're going out first, and I'm stealing your jacket."
Charlie: "You look good in my clothes."
Vaggie: "I look like a ten year old. The sleeves have to be rolled back to the elbow just so I have hands."
Charlie: "I like your hands..."
Vaggie: "Thanks." (kiss) "Go to sleep, Charlie."
Charlie: "Wait- heheheh- wait, Vaggie-"
Vaggie: "What?"
Charlie: "Vaggie, Vaggieeee~!"
Vaggie: "Giggling into my boobs isn't helping me understand what you're saying, babe."
Charlie: "Vaggie. If I'm Dorothy, and youuuu are GAY, then.."
Vaggie: "Little scared to see where this is going, not gonna lie."
Charlie: "Does that make-" (snickers) "Does that make you a girlfriend of Dorothy's?"
Benedict bumps into you, quite literally, at a ball while trying to escape his mother's attempts to find him a partner. You decide to humour him with a dance, not realising just how entwined you would become with him. It seems the universe will find every excuse to push you and Benedict together, no matter how much you fight it.
{Masterlist}
{Next Chapter}
Season one
Chapter One - Mr Bridgerton
♡♡♡
A day late. No matter. At least you would be in London for the season, though you wouldn't be able to debut properly, much like the other ladies of the season.
It mattered not to you. You would rather keep to yourself than be shown off to the Queen in a satin gown, announcing to the ton you were eligible.
If you were to find a husband, it would be on your own terms. You swore by that. You would play the game much like all the others, but without shouting about it and making a statement.
Yes, you intended to marry. Perhaps not this year, but soon enough. It had been something you had thought about a great deal over the winter. Still, you'll see what the ton has to offer this year.
Though you were not there, you had received word that a Miss Daphne Bridgerton had been called a diamond of the first water by Last Whistledown in her gossip column.
Everyone was talking about it.
Bridgerton was a name you had heard but not quite familiar with on any personal terms. They were known for being beautiful. Handsome sons and beautiful daughters. Dowager Violet Bridgerton was very proud of her children, even when they vexed her sometimes.
But that was all you knew. It did not surprise you that her daughter would have the eyes of the ton on her. She would find herself a wonderful match, surely.
You sit at your vanity table and watch the reflection of your dear mother in the mirror as she enters the room. She saunters in and places your gown delicately on the bed. She then turns so elegantly toward you and smiles, coming to stand beside you. Her hand settles on your shoulder.
"You will look beautiful, dear."
You only smile softly and look at your reflection. You have no intention of standing out at all. You would go in, make yourself acquainted, and perhaps dance with a few friendly faces.
Within the hour, you were dressed and decorated with pretty jewels and accessories. Your mother owned a fine collection of jewellery, some of the few things she still had from the old house. Since the passing of your father, your belongings had shrunk as you moved around the country.
"Thank you, Mama." You touch the necklace with your gloved fingers gently, admiring the way it glittered in the light.
Before you knew it, you were on your way to the ball. Lady Danbury, a well-known figure in the ton, was hosting. Apparently, it was going to be quite the night. Your mother was most excited to see you dance tonight.
That is, should anyone take a liking to dancing with you.
The ballroom was well lit and full of colourful gowns and sparkly necks. Fans fluttered softly, barely brushing the chins of the beautiful ladies present. Gentleman circled the room looking for a partner to either dance or converse with.
You mother gave your arm a squeeze as she smiled, looking around the room.
"You shall find a man in this room, I am certain of it."
"Mother..." You sigh. You knew you weren't getting any younger, but you still had time to find someone for yourself. You did not want to feel the pressure of society weighing down on you because you were looking for someone suitable.
Love matches were rare, and you doubted you would ever be so lucky to have such a connection with someone. Your mother had not been in love with your father when they married, nor up until his death.
Love was rare indeed.
You scan the room, watching people dance, other converse, some take a turn around the room. There was much activity. All debutantes were here looking for a match.
"That young gentleman over there, I believe that's Colin Bridgerton. Mrs Brooks told me of that family in quite some detail." Your mother says. "Handsome, is he not?"
You hum softly as you continue looking about the room. A young woman in a bright yellow gown seems to be watching Colin Bridgerton with interest.
People star to turn toward the entrance. You move your head in the same direction to find three beautiful people entering the room.
"Ah, that there is Anthony Bridgerton, the eldest of eight. On his arm, I believe that is Daphne Bridgerton, and that's their mother, Violet Bridgerton." Your mother harpers on.
There is no denying the beauty that family holds. Each one is utterly perfect. They all look so like, yet differ in the most wonderful ways. You wonder what it would be like to have so many siblings, or any at all, for that matter.
"Isn't she beautiful?"
"Yes," you agree. Daphne was quite the sight. "She shall have no issue finding a husband, I am certain."
Your mother squeezes your arm. "Nor shall you."
You find it less likely than Daphne, but you will humour your mother for her own sake.
One such young man approaches Daphne, but after a short conversation with her brother, he scampers. You wonder what was said to leave a man looking so dejected. Surely she hadn't rejected him so easily. You begin to wonder if Daphne will have any ease at all.
You watch Anthony escort his sister around the room and decide you might do the same. No one was particularly paying you any mind anyway. You free yourself from your mother's hold and begins to drifting away from her side. She watches you go, sighing softly.
You stroll slowly along the sidelines, eyes fluttering from one couple to the next. A large group was already dancing. Everyone looked so dignified and elegant.
Not a single person was sparing you a glance. You almost expected as much. It was hard to stand out in a room full of such lovely people. You continued to watch other dance as you strolled.
With Daphne in Anthony's care, Violet Bridgerton felt she needed to take this chance to push one of her other sons in the direction of some of the fine ladies.
Colin was already out dancing.
Benedict was in her line of sight.
With a smile on her face, she began to approach her second eldest son. Benedict had been talking to Lady Danbury. However, when he caught sight of his mother coming over, he panicked. He bid a quick and barely audible farewell and hurried off into the crowds.
Violet came to stop beside Lady Danbury, knowing full well she wasn't going to chase her son down. The two ladies chuckled softly.
Not knowing his mother had decided to just let him go, Benedict fled further into the room. He was determined to put space between himself and his mother. He was so busy checking behind him, be wasn't paying attention to anyone in front of him.
It happened quite suddenly.
Benedict collided with someone. He moved so quickly, grabbing onto the other person and spinning them around to slow down his momentum and prevent them from falling over. He looked down and found himself looking into a pretty pair of eyes.
"I am sorry." You say, looking up at him. It clicks instantly that he's a Bridgerton. He looks like his brothers.
"No, no. Allow me to apologise. I wasn't looking," he says.
Benedict takes a moment to realise his hands are settled on your upper arms. He drops them instantly and takes a step back. No one seemed to take much notice, but he spotted a couple of people turning his way. People always notice his family.
You look at him silently for a moment. You feel awkward, not knowing what else to say.
"Well, good night," you curtsy and try to walk away, but he stops you rather quickly.
"Wait."
You turn back to him.
"Dance with me?" He asks suddenly. He can see his mother amongst the other faces in the crowd. She's looking for him, he is certain of it.
"Oh, um. Very well." You're caught off guard by his sudden invitation.
You take his hand and allow him to guide you to where the others are dancing. You get into position and begin. Benedict doesn't say anything for a while. He is keeping his gaze locked on the crowd. You break the silence between you by giving him your name. Benedict snaps out of his daze and looks at you.
"Oh, right. Yes. I'm Benedict. Bridgerton. Benedict Bridgerton." He gives a little smile.
"I've seen your other siblings here tonight."
"Yes. My sister is debuting." His eyes flicker back up to the crowd. Violet has spotted him she looks ecstatic. Benedict wonders if that's better or worse.
"She's breathtaking."
He looks at you again. "Yes. I suppose she is."
You get the idea that he isn't much in the mood for talking, and you keep quiet for the rest of the dance. When the music comes to a close, you curtsy, and he bows. The next piece begins to play.
"Well, thank you," you say softly.
Benedict snaps back into focus and looks at you. He takes your dance card and writes his name on it before excusing himself. You watch him go and sigh. You look at the card and see his neat penmanship.
"Benedict Bridgerton. Who would have thought." You mutter to yourself.
You leave the floor.
Your mother comes over quickly and snakes her arm around yours again. She looks delighted.
"You danced with a Bridgerton! That will certainly gain some attention for you." She sounded far too happy for your liking.
"Yes, I suppose it might."
As she begins to yap on in your ear, you turn in time to see Anthony and Daphne speaking to their mother. After a moment, they leave the ball altogether.
Could I please request a kiss goodnight with Copia dearest Oak?
A Kiss Goodnight
Copia x Reader
Warnings: little bit of dirty talk but otherwise just a sweet moment between you and Copia, nsfw just in case so 18+ only, mdni, 1100 words (thank you to @gothdaddyissues for the dividers and @foxybouquet for the Italian help!)
He had fallen asleep again.
You couldn’t blame him though, he had been touring for three months straight now with two more to go. Their tour bus was nice but it was still a bus and not the most comfortable place to sleep. Plus add eight ghouls and well…things were cramped. There were a lot of clashing personalities shoved into a small space and at this point in the tour nerves were frayed and everyone was on edge. On edge and exhausted.
Copia muttered something too soft for you to hear before snorting and jerking awake. Your view of him tumbled as he knocked his phone from its perch on the pillow next to him. When he came back into view you had to stifle a laugh seeing the pillow creases on one side of his face. There was still makeup tucked into the wrinkles you loved so much and his hair was wild, the salt and pepper strands sticking up aggressively.
Your heart ached with how much love you had for this man.
“You should go to bed, Papa. There’s another show tomorrow, yeah?”
“Si, tomorrow and the next day.” He reached a bare hand up and rubbed at his eyes, smearing the makeup that was still there around some more. “But I’m good, mi sento bene. I want to hear about your day.”
It was hard to stifle your grin because you had actually told him about your day already. He had just been so out of it he was half asleep when you’d started and snoring by the time you were done. You decided to humor him though, clearing your throat and starting an abridged version of things.
“Well, Terzo and Secondo were summoning more ghouls but apparently they got into an argument half way through the ritual.” Copia rolled his eyes and dropped his head back onto his pillow with a laugh. “Next thing I know, Primo is running down the hall screaming about hell hounds.”
“Hell hounds?! Quegli idioti, is everyone ok?”
“Oh yes, Alpha and Omega were able to keep them contained in the summoning circle. When Primo showed up he banished your brothers into the hall and then the hounds back to their home.”
“Lucifero, those two are going to burn the abbey down some day.”
You were both quiet for a moment, Copia’s eyes were drooping again and you just smiled softly as you watched the lines of worry smooth out as he relaxed. Hopefully next tour he would let you tag along. These nightly video calls were nice but you missed seeing him in the flesh. You missed holding him close and burying your nose against his neck to smell his cologne. You missed his touch, the way the leather of his gloves felt on your skin.
You missed his kisses.
“Amore?” It was your turn to startle and you gave him a sheepish smile, half hiding your face behind your blanket. He had a look of amusement on his face, his eyes suddenly a bit brighter and more awake then they were a moment ago. “Thinking of anything in particular?”
“You.” He grinned as he brought his phone closer to his face while you did the same. “It’s always you. Idiota.”
“How cruel you are to me, I should punish you.”
“Punish? And how will you do that from so far away, Papa?”
“Hmm, maybe tomorrow night I’ll be too tired to call. You’ll have to go to sleep without seeing my handsome face.”
“Oh that would be cruel.” You bit your lip before you decided to take this a bit further, letting out a little grunt as you stretched out in the bed. “I’ll have to find something else to occupy my time in this big bed of yours.”
“Like what?” Copia’s voice had gotten a little deeper, his eyes not leaving yours as he stared at you through the phone screen. “Tell your Papa what you would do.”
“Hmm, I think I’ll slip into your bed naked. These sheets feel so good against my skin.” He groaned a little before you continued, “If I can’t talk to you I’ll just have to pretend you're here next to me. Touching me in all the places I like to be touched.”
“I do enjoy touching you,” He groaned a little louder and you shushed him, not wanting him to draw the attention of the ghouls. Copia ignored you though and you watched as his shoulder shifted, his arm no doubt moving so he could touch himself instead. “With my hands and my mouth.”
“I enjoy that too, Papa.” You let your hand travel down your body, your fingers dipping into your underwear so you could touch yourself. “I love your mouth on me.”
“Fuck, yes. I’d taste you everywhere.” Copia’s arm began to move faster and he let out a feral sounding groan before he spoke again, “Want to dip my tongue as far into you as I ca–”
“No phone sex on the bus!”
You and Copia both yelled out at the sound of Swiss’s voice. Your cheeks flamed and you slammed your phone face down onto the bed. Their voices were muffled but you could hear Swiss and Copia yelling at each other. You didn’t move until the noise had quieted down and you heard Copia’s voice softly calling out your name. When you grabbed your phone to look at him again he had a sheepish look on his face.
“Eh, I forgot I made this rule after the first week of the tour. There was an incident with Cirrus you see and,” Copia trailed off and shrugged. “Maybe one of these nights I’ll get a hotel room so we can try this again.”
“Sounds like a plan, Papa.” He smiled softly, his face once more showing how tired he was. It was time to say goodnight so you both could get some sleep. “What will we do for tonight though?”
“Tonight? Uh, I’m not sure I can stay quiet enough…”
“Can I at least get a goodnight kiss?”
“It would be my pleasure.”
You couldn’t help yourself and reached out to gently touch your screen with your finger, the yearning to actually be able to touch him so strong you wanted to cry. He brought his phone up to his face, waiting for you to do the same, the both of you gently pressing your lips to them at the same time. When he started whispering something soft in Italian you pulled away, your eyes trying to trace every part of his face before you said goodnight.
“Same time tomorrow?”
“Yes, Papa. I’ll be here.”
“Naked in my bed?” He laughed when you rolled your eyes, reaching up to get ready to flick the light switch. “Buonanotte, amore.”
“Goodnight, Copia.”
You let a few tears fall after the call ended and you quickly buried yourself in the sheets to surround yourself with his smell. Two more months without him was too long and you decided then and there to see about that hotel room first thing tomorrow.
And a plane ticket so you could share it with him.
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Synopsis: It’s been over a year since we were brought under Alastor’s watchful eye. We’ve unlocked our Demonic powers, discovered our own talents, and began building the Safe Haven with Charlie and co. Alastor seems increasingly interested in the power we hold as one and intends to use it properly.
Previous part
Part 30: gone
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I woke the next morning to an empty bed. Alastor's presence wasn't near but the bed still felt warm where he had been. He must've left in a hurry but for what? Normally I would've just went back to sleep and asked him about it later.
But something was off about this, something wasn't right.
I quickly jumped out of bed, falling harshly on my knees from my still lack of energy, and went to my room. I changed as quickly as I was able and went into the haven. The morning sun was coming over the treetops and the first few set of workers were already up and about. I made a beeline for Angel's hut where I know Husker should be. I felt his presence and pushed on it, at the same time knocking on the door. Fortunately, I didn't have to wait long as he came padding quickly to the door.
"What is--"
"Alastor's gone."
His tiredness faded. "What do you mean he's gone?"
"I mean he's gone. Our connection it's...it's like before. I don't really...feel it." I was struggling with ways to describe it.
"Where have you checked for him so far?" he asked next.
"Just the house and down here. I'm going to check with Rosie but maybe you can ask Charlie? I have a really bad feeling about this."
He let out a sigh and fixed the strap that had fallen off his shoulders. "Alright. I'll go over and ask. He's probably fine."
"Why does everyone keep discounting what I'm saying?" I half mumbled as I spun away. I melted with Alcine and ran up to the back of the house. I stood over the symbol and teleported myself into Hell, right outside Rosie's store.
Her store was closed but I did the exact same thing I did with Husker, impatiently waiting at the back door. When I explained everything to her, a look of worry finally came across someone's face.
For the next several days, I looked for him. His radio broadcast remained ever silent and our connection remained thin. It was impossible for me to reach him like I had before with Blackwater. He wasn't anywhere in Hell or on the surface. He was just...
Gone.
My panic over Alastor possibly being in the hands of any Angels was somewhat soothed by a conversation with Lucifer. He told me that Angels didn't have power to hold souls in purgatory - that was essentially his job in a way. He also revealed a conversation he had with Heaven. Well, with Adam.
Apparently, Heaven has been upset with how rampant Demons have been on the surface, a place where they naturally didn't belong. They've been arguing for years but nothing was ever done about it. Angel refused to let people know they existed because only their high father could control such events.
It didn't make sense to me.
Regardless, Alastor wasn't in danger with the Angels. That meant he must be somewhere else. Yet there were only two realms. So where was he?
Husker told me that it wasn't uncommon for Alastor to go missing every once in awhile. Apparently he did this right before he helped Charlie with her hotel. The only issue with him disappearing for some time was that he didn't tell me. Considering how we had been the night before he vanished, I had thought he would tell me he would do such a thing, or at least leave a note of some kind.
Perhaps I was wrong.
For the first year, I kept radios in every room tuned to his channel and a single one tuned to random channels. Maybe he would give me a sign through them. Maybe this was something he couldn't tell me for safety reasons. Surely he would want to give me a sign of some sort, a sign that told me I wasn't being abandoned. The only clarity I had of the situation was that he was alive since I was still alive.
The second year I turned some of the radios off and left one on for each floor. I still slept in his bed, wishing and dreaming that he would magically be there when I woke up the next day. Each morning was a disappointment. It was around this time that the hallucinations of him began.
By the third year, everyone had known that the great scary Radio Demon had disappeared. Our location had been leaked by one of Blackwater's men so Humankind and Demonkind alike came after our haven. While the remaining surface Overlords, or anyone wanting new territory up here, tried to attack and disband Blackwater's empire, I was focused on keeping the haven safe. At first it wasn't hard since it was relatively small groups that bit off more than they could chew, however, as time went on, people started bringing in huge groups and powerful Demons.
By the fourth year, I had truely pieced myself back together as a new woman and established myself as the guardian of the haven. I killed enemies, struck deals with new allies, and taught newcomers a thing or two about fighting. The hallucinations came to a near stop.
By the fifth year, the haven had expanded even more. Arleen, who was our lovely architecture and seamstress, was never seen resting. She had gorgeous red wings that mimicked a butterfly's and her personality was as sweet as nectar. She designed a new layout for the rest of the town—though, now it could really be considered a small city. We had multiple teachers, Vivian remaining as the head of them all, several healer apprentices for Althea, a few seamstress assistants for Arleen, an open pasture for cattle, plenty of fishers, many more guards, and so much more.
With the haven expanding and having new things, I also wanted to change my own living place. I painted the outside of the house a more vibrant maroon and fixed the shingles so they didn't look so tattered. I knew the house had belonged to Alastor's mother so I didn't want to change it too much should he return at some point. Reagan and Lucas occupied Husker's old room since Husker and Angel moved to their own secluded apartment in the haven.
My old room was now occupied by two siblings: Nym and Thatcher. They were a rambunctious pair with a thirst for adventure. Nym was six and Thatcher was five when they first came to the haven. They were also children of the ring fights and found it increasingly difficult to make the transition from the ring to the schoolroom. I began working closely with the pair since all other resources had been exhausted, and soon found myself feeling attached like I was with Reagan. Vivian and the others insisted I adopt them, mostly in an attempt to fill the empty house and gaping hole in my heart. So I did.
By the sixth year, I had completely forgotten about Alastor. I would go weeks without thinking of him. I had so much I was focusing on, so much I was keeping myself busy with, that I would fall asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. Occasionally I would think of him and it would hit me hard. When that happened, I tried not to be around anyone for the whole day. It left me annoyed and snappy at everyone, even Husker and Reagan. Fortunately, Nym and Thatcher were now able to attend school without attempting murder on any of the children, leaving me with more time on my hands.
By the seventh year, things had fallen into a routine. I was still the sole protector of the haven and mother to now three children. As things became mundane, I decided to assist the other Overlords in banishing the lasting traces of Blackwater. There was still one large factory hidden somewhere and I would be the one to find it. My reputation had shifted around in the past few years but this would solidify it for good.
Humans have three cone cells in our eyes that are how we perceive color in the world. I often think red, green, and blue, but apparently people studying them use Long, Medium, and Short to be unambiguous (just for one example, if you activate M really strongly and not L or S, the color people report seeing is yellow-green). Each type activates at different strengths to different wavelengths of light. Here's a lovely graphic from Wikipedia showing response levels of each cone type to different wavelengths:
So you can see that if some light activates L some, but not M, we'll perceive deep red, activates them both a bit, we see orange or yellow, depending on the specific amount.
It's interesting that some effect (a specific mix of pigments, or some structural coloration) could be producing some mostly 495nm light, or a blend of some slightly higher and slightly lower wavelengths, and either way we see cyan. (And a good thing, too, otherwise our display technology would be extremely unconvincing.)
Of course, then there's what happens when we get activation of L and S at once, but not M, our eye-brain systems don't infer "yellow-green", because green is specifically what's missing from there: we generate magenta, a non-spectral color. (And when all three activate we get white, of course.)
I found myself thinking about birds, with their four cones.
They're more evenly spaced too, the bastards. (These bastards are specifically finches but I'm under the impression that most birds are similar.)
(Of course, "violet" actually means ultra-violet here. Look at the graphic, their UV cone stops responding where our S cone starts. I would edit this, but spent like half an hour discovering that tumblr doesn't support table under html or code/"preserve formatting" under markdown anymore; so you get a screencap of what I sent on discord.)
Birds could see "vio-green" (accepting name suggestions) as a color region as distinct from blue/indigo as green is from purple/magenta.
Look at that. Two whole ass independent spectral color divisions we don't have, and six non-spectral inferences. Eight whole categories of visual perception more than us. Decadent.
The heart quails to imagine what the 16 color receptors of a mantis shrimp would create. I mean, okay, it doesn't because we've studied their eyes and brains and they don't blend colors the way we do, smooshing them down to a much simpler set of perceptions.
But imagine if we rebuilt our eyes and brains for it! Color indicates chemistry, with that level of subtle blending of characteristics, would vision become like tasting everything we look at?
Please pet the bear that is with me on your way out.
As I see the word around me turning pink (or, in some cases, purple), I've decided that it's time to make a sequel to that tma post. Yes, I'm at episode 20. No, I'm not okay (I promise). Perhaps, I need therapy. Anyways, enjoy:
The Magnus Archives but I've met the fandom (and am even more confused)
There's an Archivist (you have to use the capital letter if you want to survive), his name is Jon,sometimes Jonathan and sometimes Jalapeño.
He is also somehow the author of the podcast, and the guy speaking. I don't know how. Nothing feels real anymore.
Apparently, he brings the romantic side of the podcast. I'm glad. He should think about bringing the "makes sense" side too.
There's Gerard Keay, who doesn't have anything to do with Gerard Way (I checked), and I love him.
He's also very dead. My point still stands.
WHERE IS THAT FUCKING HOMOPHOBIC VASE WHY DON'T YOU WANT ME TO UNDERSTAND YOUR INSIDE JOKE, WHY?
There's a guy named Evan Lukas, whose name reminds me of another guy. Was it James Lukas? Peter Lukas? George Lukas? Not a single idea.
Five people told me to be scared of the Mikes.
Who are they?
Is that a sect? A typo? A secret level you unlock once you understand what that vase joke refers to?
There's a secret link between everything.
Is it that every one of the stories involves being scared of something, and being alone?
Wait. Nevermind. That's a horror podcast, people are usually scared in these. I'm trying to be logical here.
I miss Gerard Keay.
OH WAIT WAIT SORRY I DIDN'T TELL Y'ALL THAT JALAPENO CAME OUT OF HIS RECORDING CLOSET TO TALK TO A MADAM. THAT REALLY DISTURBED HIM AND HE HAD TO LOCK HIMSELF AGAIN TO RECOVER, BUT I'M PROUD OF THE PROGRESS HE MADE
Michael is not okay. Do they need help?
I don't know their pronouns, and people answered with really disturbing and unhelpful things. Could someone help?
I kinda like Michael. Even if they're blonde.
Unless they're part of the Mikes. I have a bad feeling about the Mikes.
Uhh lots of blood, spiders, worms, death, spooky nights, people being alone, eyes everywhere, insanity, blood sacrifices, the Unknown, and evil books.
Oh, and drugs. Very important, the drugs
Leaving you with that, hope I didn't miss a very important point. May the stars shine in your direction, or whatever.
Whomst've asked me this. You're fuelling my unending obsession, thank you.
I posted about the tones before! Most of it is listed in this post! But I'd like to add some stuff now that it's been some time since then.
The tones are noises made by the spires on Mercury (Lighthouses). Whenever someone dies, the spires emit a tone. They basically react to death in various ways, depending on how the death happens; there's different tones to dying to Light as well as different tones to a perma-death. This is peculiar because nobody could hear them except Brother Vance.
He made Trials of Osiris to study them (because it's an endless source of Guardians dying over and over). Mara knew about his research (Trials was accessed in the Reef in D1) and warned him to stop because it's dangerous. It's unclear why. Osiris did the same years later. As a matter of fact, Osiris was super dramatic about it:
"What I have discovered…"
"…is dangerous enough to destroy every man, woman, and child in existence. You're meddling with forces outside your grasp," Osiris reprimanded.
The tones are interesting because they're still largely unexplained. Mara implied that they symbolise Guardians being attuned to Darkness and being able to wield it, which is true, but Osiris' reaction implies something more. And it has to be more, because Osiris detected the same tones as coming from the anomalies of the missing planets and from the Pyramids. Long post under:
In my previous post I also connected that to the fact that egregore seems to be emitting some sort of sound/frequency attuned to the same thing: anomalies, Pyramids and, obviously, to the source of it all (the Witness). So there's some sort of frequency in Darkness that is audible and comes from all places connected to the Darkness network (and that network manifests physically as egregore). And in this case, anomalies and Pyramids (and ships infested with egregore like Glykon and Leviathan) are fine; it makes sense that they link to the Witness!
But spires on Mercury? Why them? My bestie made a post recently after we went unhinged (again) because the same lore book that deals with the tones also makes a really strong implication that the Vex were deliberately led to Mercury by the Pyramid Fleet in the Collapse. There, the Vex drained Mercury of Light, hollowed out the planet and used its materials to make the spires (and the Infinite Forest, a simulation engine) and then they waited for the Pyramids to return. Which they did, in Arrivals.
To make things more complex, after Titan came back, it was confirmed that the Witness did not take the planets randomly. There was a purpose to each one being stolen. Mars was taken to search through our Golden Age and Collapse database in order to find where the Veil may have been hidden. This could've been just a random coincidence, but then Titan came back and we learned that the Witness wanted Ahsa dead because Ahsa not only knows the origins of the Witness, but also how to get through the portal (and who knows if she has any other potential powers to helps us get in there or help us otherwise).
Io is unclear, but there are many options; it may have been taken for the Pyramidion and Vex stuff which Asher got ahead of. It may have been taken to study the Tree of Silver Wings (the Witness had another seed it gave Calus in Lightfall), or it may have been taken to study the Traveler's past or the Light in general or maybe something else. The point is, there are options that we can understand.
But Mercury? Zero clue. The only thing that may have been of interest is the Infinite Forest, but Vance sealed it so if the Witness took Mercury for that and couldn't get into the Forest, then Mercury would've been useless and probably released sooner unless the Witness is just keeping it out of spite or thought that maybe it would be able to find a way inside. And of course... there's the spires and the tones. Mercury is somehow linked to Darkness and the Witness, it has to be, and we have no clue what the Witness wants with it.
Not only that, but there's another curious thing about Mercury, or rather, the anomaly of it. It was mentioned in Duality dungeon, by Calus. When Calus tried talking to the Witness on the Glykon, the Witness eventually responded and it told Calus to come to the anomaly of Mercury:
Through the Crown of Sorrow, the Voice in the Darkness called out to me, beckoning me to the absence of Mercury. At first, I feared the Leviathan would not survive the journey, as the Glykon had been rent asunder by a similar journey. By my Leviathan, it is strong. Its heart beats anew, and as it pierced the veil of creation... the Voice greeted me. There were such sights to behold.
So when Calus disappeared off the Glykon, he went back to the Leviathan and bolted straight for the Mercury anomaly in which he was able to communicate with the Witness. Why Mercury? Glykon went into the Mars anomaly. Why couldn't the Witness speak to Calus in there? Or in any of the other anomalies? Why specifically Mercury? This is driving me insane.
But if Mercury is somehow connected to the Darkness network through the spires, is it possible that it serves as some sort of a communications hub? Maybe that's why the Witness is still keeping it? And it still is! We can see it in Root of Nightmares, in the Witness' room. Titan is still obviously there as well because it came out before Titan returned, but Mercury and Io are still trapped. This is also confirmed by the tiny excerpt we can see from the TFS Collector's Edition which I talked about in here.
Or the reason for Mercury is something completely different. We have no clue why Mercury was taken and what's going on there and why the Witness called Calus there and why the tones happened and why are they the same tones that can also be heard from anomalies and Pyramids.
To fuel me even more, they decided to drop two lore pieces in Season of the Deep that relate to Mercury and the tones tangentially. I know literally everyone and their grandma thinks that Targeted Redaction is just there to be funny (and so did I at first), but I genuinely can't accept that as being just a joke. The gist of it is that Osiris has no clue who Vance is and that is, to put it simply, impossible.
Obviously Osiris did not like the Cult and they were annoying to him, but he knew Vance. He spoke to him only once, but Vance is the one who told him to "plant the seed," a message that Mara gave him years before. This literally sets up the entire Season of Arrivals. Not only that, but Vance told Osiris about the tones and Osiris was deeply troubled about them. He's the one who continued the research and went around the solar system after planets disappeared, investigating anomalies and discovering that they emit the same tones. He mentions Vance, by name, twice in Immolant:
"Do you hear that?" Osiris asks, turning to Sagira. He turns the ship's scanning array toward the anomaly. "Like the tones Vance described. From the spires, and then the Pyramids. It was coming from the anomaly that replaced Io as well."
"We could use the Crucible right now. Your trials. This will be very helpful. You mean to stay, yes?"
"I will. Long enough to show you how to implement the simulation; but tonight, I must disembark," Osiris says.
"So soon?"
Osiris tenses his jaw in forced silence. He twiddles with code. "I'm worried about what Vance found."
At the same time, Osiris also sends us the seasonal artifact from Hunt, Fang of Xivu Arath. In it, he mentions:
The zealots that followed me to Mercury have proved themselves useful… twice now, actually. They possessed an artifact in their stores: a Hive fang.
The zealots being useful "twice" refers to Vance telling him about the seed and having this artifact kept safely in the Lighthouse (technically, it's three times: in Curse of Osiris, Vance told us where to find the machine to bring Sagira back and it was being kept by the Cult, but it's unclear if we told Osiris the details). Osiris, again, specifically mentions Vance when he recounts where he got it from, in Immolant:
Sagira had chided him for storming the Lighthouse and ransacking Vance's possessions. "They're my relics," he said to silence her protests.
I know Osiris has been through a lot, but his memories are completely and perfectly intact... Except for Vance. That's bizarre to me, given that there's several important points that tie them together, like planting the seed on Io (something he wouldn't have known to do without Vance relaying Mara's message) and research of the tones, something that Osiris spent a lot of time doing and was explicitly worried about; so worried, in fact, that he was willing to part ways with Saint just to continue that research.
In my old post I also mentioned how Osiris even went to Ana to tell her to ask Rasputin if he heard any tones in the Collapse, but Rasputin wasn't up yet. And when Rasputin was finally up, we had much bigger problems to deal with so I assumed that Osiris never asked because the priority was to find what's on Neptune. But now I think that Osiris didn't ask because he doesn't remember. Because the memory of Vance and tones and whatever they mean was deliberately removed from him while Savathun had him imprisoned. Or, perhaps, the Nezarec tea messed with it. After all, Darkness is memory.
This would obviously imply that the tones are something so important and dangerous that Savathun (or someone else) wanted Osiris' knowledge of it removed so that maybe she could have leverage or to know something we don't or perhaps for some other purpose by some other actor. This was such a big point that the entirety of Immolant part 1 is almost exclusively dedicated to Osiris inquiring into the tones.
Another possibility is also that Osiris' memory of Vance was messed with because of Io and the seed and Tree (and then as a consequence, obviously, he would also forget about the tones).
There's also a possibility that Savathun is literally right now messing with me and she did it for no reason at all just to generate imbaru or mess with Osiris or maybe she even wanted to do one nice thing for him and remove the memory of the weird Cult and the tones aren't important at all.
But I don't know. The fact that they're the same thing that the whole Darkness network uses and that ultimately leads to the Witness seems like something that should be important. However, I don't think Mercury will return before TFS, especially since TFS CE has Eido writing about how Mercury is still in the Witness' grasp. But, consider also that we don't know the timeline of when Eido's writing is set. It has to be set after Ahsa's reveal about the Witness' origins, but before TFS. We don't have enough information to tell more. There's also Vex shenanigans to consider, something that will certainly be a plot point post-TFS and Mercury is a prime location for that.
Either way, there's something going on here, added also with the second lore tab release in Season of the Deep that tangentially ties to Mercury, which is Unexpected Resurgence. In it, Shayura is approached by Sister Faora, an incredibly niche character who was leading the Cult of Osiris before Vance. She's shown still wearing the insignia of the Cult. We never learned why she stopped leading them and why Vance took over; she just kinda disappears from the lore book (Trials and Tribulations, the one about the tones). But apparently she's in the City and she's still wearing the Cult robes and she's back in the story... for some reason??
It honestly feels like some sort of a setup for something in the future, something that might deal with Mercury's return. I need to stress just how small she is as a character: she only actually appears in three lore tabs before Unexpected Resurgence, all in the same lore book. The rest of her stuff is just flavour text on the Kairos Function armour pieces from Curse of Osiris. That's it. Why return her in Season of the Deep? Mind boggling.
This whole thing about the tones and Mercury consumes me every day and night. The fact that Deep mentioned Vance in a way easily dismissed as a joke (but also, note the name of the weapon: targeted redaction) as well as Faora coming back is just too wild to me to be a random throwback or a just a joke. Not when it's beyond clear that Osiris should remember Vance, the Cult, the tones and the rest of it. It's even unclear at this point if he remembers that he planted the seed on Io.
So what are the tones? What are they indeed. They're music from the spires of Mercury that reacts to death and uses the same frequency as the entire Darkness network with the Witness at the top. What is their purpose and what is the purpose of Mercury and why did the Witness take it and what is this plotline and when will it be resolved? Summary:
Generally I think the 2023 Camelot cast recording does a very good job of conveying the onstage vibe of pretty much all the songs with the dialouge snippets. However in my heart of hearts I truly believe the Simple Joys of Maidenhood feels incomplete without the moment of Arthur realizing Guenevere has run away and right to him after she sings her intro. I'm sure I could choose many hills to die on for cast recording opinions but apparently the one I feel the most is a particularly good delivery of the word shit.
The directory of all the various DC related books (that I own) has been completed!
Not all of the scans are mine, when other people have shared for the main series and spinoffs over the years, but a very solid chunk are my scans of all the ‘unimportant’ material. (If other people had good scans, I opted to save my own time, even if I could scan my own copies, basically.) And now it’s all fairly organized in one easy access list!
Includes: Conan, Kaito, Yaiba, the novels, movie manga, educational manga, activity books, tokubestuhen, archives, game guides, etc.
Now that it’s caught up, I’ll try to keep it up to date when I get more books in the future.
ID: A black and white photograph of Ali Cannon holding his baby son close to his chest and looking at the camera. Cannon is shirtless, and has short dark hair and facial hair. He has been photographed in a room with a sofa, armchair and multiple book shelves. His son is resting his head on his father’s chest and seems to be asleep. There is a tagline at the bottom reading: Ali Cannon is a Jewish writer and poet from the San Francisco Bay Area with a poetry book coming out in the summer of 2005. His wife and photographer, Jessica Israel, is a Jewish bisexual woman who is passionate about her trans husband, and maybe even more passionate about their son, Rephael. ED.
Ali Michael Cannon (he/him) is a writer, organizer, activist, and public speaker who is a recognized leader in the transgender community. Professionally, he has worked in the education field for 30 years, serving as a District Administrator and a Non-Profit Manager. Currently he works as a consultant, supporting schools to become more LGBTQ+ inclusive and address issues of equity and bias. A proud father and husband—he lives in Oakland with his wife, Jessica, an Oakland Public School Principal, and their high school son. He has a godson who just graduated from college, reflecting how much chosen family is a vital part of his relationship to building and sustaining queer community.
His writing has been published in From the Inside Out: Radical Gender Transformation, FTM and Beyond. His provocative illumination of Jewish and transgender themes can be seen in the film, It’s A Boy: Journeys from Female to Male and his essay (co-authored with TJ Michels), Whose Side Are You On: Transgender at the Western Wall. Cannon founded the theater group, Transmen Tell Their Tales, and was a long-time writer, performer, and producer of Chutzpah—a Queer Jewish theater group in San Francisco.
Ali earned a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Feminist Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz and San Francisco State respectively. He served on the Board of Our Family Coalition, the Bay Area’s LGBTQ Family Organization for eight years.
(Note from me: this picture of him was featured in a trans man calender produced by FTM International for 2005-6 called “Heroes: (Trans)Male Role Models, Part 2“, you can view some of the other pictures here)