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wickedsrest-rp-archive · 4 years

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Invest-eye-gation || POTW Chatzy

TIMING: Current LOCATION: In a conference room at the WC Morgue SUMMARY: The WCPD and ME’s Office are hard at work trying to analyze as many eyes as possible, and learn more about what it all means.

It felt wrong to move the trays of eyeballs out of the autopsy suite and into the conference room, but if they were going to get as many of these finished as possible, she needed all hands on deck, and it wasn’t feasible to cram everyone in there. Regan stayed in her corner of the conference room, trying to keep her distance from everyone while slowly and methodically pulling vitreous humor from each eye, and squirting it into the tubes laid out in front of her. At least no one was urging her to take a break and go on a coffee run after she failed to return from the last one. “Test tube rack is full. Can anyone grab me a new one?” She sighed, looking over at the remaining trays full of eyes. So many of them. “Any new locations to pin on the map?”

"Mmm-St Loo" Agatha wrinkled her nose and swallowed her bite, looking over the screen of her laptop with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, St Louis. Mark Everett, went missing in October 1988," the detective picked up her coffee mug and took a long sip. She didn't know for how long this all would last, but each time she crossed out a DNA profile, it seemed like her list of profiles to check had gotten longer again.

In another circumstance, maybe it could have been nice to finally see Regan after a few days. Considering Kaden still wasn't sure if that scream was for him or not. This however, was very much work. And he wanted nothing to do with sticking needles in eyes. So database duty it was. "We got Argentina listed yet? Looks like this person went missing off the coast. Reported in November 2004."

He didn't want to be here. Why was he here. Simon handed Regan the rack she asked for, deciding that it would've been easier for him to help deal with the samples than the database files. He remained quiet, content to listen to the conversation and do whatever it was that needed to be done or marked though part of him had a mind to just... mark a big circle around the entirety of the map.

Roland had spent most of the past week at the station or morgue, going through the database and connecting the eyeballs to as many missing persons cases as he could, trying to make any connection he would. The dates spanned so far back his head was spinning. How were these all turning up and why now? "Got Huntington Beach, California. Lisa Claymore. December 1995," he answered.

Cece had kept herself busy helping collect fluid from the eyes, but had briefly taken a break from the duty to study the map. It was just coincidence that people started naming off towns and locations while she was by the map anyways, so she began adding thumbtacks onto the board, “St. Louis. Argentina. Huntington beach. These eyes have been all over the place. Really seen some things.” She grinned at her own joke, too focused on the map to force others to laugh at her joke.

Simon did, in fact, quietly chuckle at the joke.

Regan gave Simon a nod as a thank you and got back to work. It was hard to completely tune out what everyone was saying -- none of this made sense, and she couldn't reconcile the dates with the eyes in front of her. "1995." She repeated. "Yet the eyes are intact. Not a blow fly egg to be seen on them." Decomposition would be far more comforting, in this case.

Touching eyeballs was not on the agenda for today, so Marley had stuck herself on file duty. She'd been doing work similar to this, anyway, so she was used to combing through files for any sort of connection. Each time a new name was called out, she pinned it up on the board, then wrote the name and area on the list. She stuck a new tack in St. Louis, Argentina, and Huntington Beach. "Can't imagine the things they've seen," she chimed in, reaching over for her pen to write some more names down.

Kaden shook his head at Cece's joke. And of course Stryder chimed in. "And they came to White Crest of all places for final observation." He downed some more of his coffee, it was the only thing keeping him upright staring at all the numbers and charts and shit. "Shit. This case is a John Doe from 1973." He double checked the results. "Uh, can someone check I put this in right? That can't be right."

"What I wonder is, how are these things still in good shape after so many years?" There must have been a logical explanation to it, and she expected Regan to answer this question, or Cece, whose joke brought the usual ugly laugh from Agatha. "Cece !" She might have sounded like she was shocked but her laughter told another story. "Mmmmh, this one's from Bogota. He was reported missing in January 1991." Hearing Kaden's question, Agatha stood up from her seat to have a look. "Let me see." She adjusted her glasses back up her nose and looked over his shoulder, squinting at the screen. "What's the matter?"

Roland wasn't quite amused by the jokes, but didn't want to ruin morale during such a crazy time. Everyone was a little worn thin right now. Better to not aggravate anyone though the mention of 1973 got his attention. "1973? That can't be right. Let me take a look." That was nearly 50 years ago. How could they be turning up in good shape now and here of all times? He looked over Kaden's screen and confirmed everything was input correctly. "No, you got that right. That's... How is it possible for them to be turning up so many years later?"

"Lucky them," Marley said, giving Kaden a side eye as she finished writing down her new names. Dates were less important to her, but still noteworthy. "Seriously?" she asked, perking up at the new discovery. She stuck a pin in Bogota as Sarge and Agatha made their way over. She wished Jane were here, she needed someone else here to know that the explanation wasn't going to be found in this lab. Someone to exchange "that glance" with. And she needed her coffee.

There was no doubt in Kaden's mind all this shit was supernatural. Clearly. He kept hoping there'd be some sort of pattern they could see here but this was fucking weird. Even by White Crest standards. "So you're telling me a fully intact eyeball from October 19 fucking 73 was just put into evidence? Putain de merde." He sighed and looked over the file again. "There's no way these are preserved or something, right?" He looked over at Regan and then at Cece, hoping for some answers.

"These aren't typical post-mortem eyes." Regan said, studying one closely. "They're perfect. No decomp at all, even from the ones that have been outside for days. I don't -- there has to be something preserving them. Perhaps they were kept in a freezer for years, until recently. But more likely, this is the work of some compound. I intend to dig into it further."

Jane stumbled into the room with a neat stack of files under her arm and her coffee and sunglasses on her face. She had a pounding headache, her mouth felt like sandpaper, and pain and exhaustion crept into ever step she took. She was technically on leave, so she didn't even know why she was here - there was no plausible explanation anyone was going to believe anyway. Maybe it was to drive the guilt of buying drugs away, but she hadn't been this hungover since college and she knew she looked like shit. When had she gotten so old? Jane mumbled an unintelligible greeting, pointedly looking anywhere but Regan, before going to go sit and start picking through files with Marley.

The room engulfed Regan as Wu stumbled in, adorned in mismatching clothes and dropping files with each step. Wasn't she taking time off? The only reason Regan was here, and not stuffed into her office doing this work alone, was that she thought Wu would be absent. The eyeball in Regan's hands fell back onto the tray and she sank back into her seat, willing it to swallow her whole. She looked over at Simon. Then Kaden. Then Wu. Back down to the eyeballs. At least she could make eye contact with them.

Simon caught the look Regan gave him and he quirked an eyebrow in turn, his own eyes darting from the doctor to Jane; something changed when the latter stepped into the room. And she was kind enough not to bring any coffee for anyone else. His shoulders drooped... someone should've told him so he could've been anywhere else but still helping.

"Yikes," Marley mumbled as Jane stumbled in-- still looking relatively alive. She noted her aversion of Regan, glancing anywhere but her, taking the files she handed over and muttering, "so did you kill the tequila or did it kill you?" quietly, hoping only Jane would hear. She glanced back at the others, then to her board, before writing down the okayed 1973 date next to a John Doe. "Seems almost...impossible, right?" braced for the onslaughts of it's not impossible if it happened and etc. But she'd already turned away from them, filing through more papers. There had to be a connection. And she would find it.

"For real?" Hands on her hips, Agatha looked at Jane from where she stood. Late, without coffee for anyone but herself, and looking like she was in no shape to help. Perfect. She tried not to roll her eyes and glanced at the sergeant instead, expecting him to say something.

Cece abandoned her post immediately, flocking to Jane. “Word of advice? Steer clear of the eye stuff. Not as glamorous as it looks. Take the casework.”

Kaden didn't expect to see Wu show up at all. Hell, he wasn't sure he was going to show up but he sure as shit needed something to do instead of fucking panic. "Thanks for completing that coffee run. Oh wait." He caught the look Regan gave him and considered going over. No. Seemed bad to bring up any personal shit. Not with Sarge right behind him. Putain. His eyes narrowed at Stryder's comment. "Yeah. It's a little fucking weird. Like just about everything here. You can double check the fucking file if you want, though. You know. If you don't believe me," he said, crossing his arms across his chest.

Roland was surprised to see Jane walking in the room, looking like she'd been to hell and back. She was supposed to be on leave due to some emergency and she didn't look like she was in any shape to be working. He cocked a brow and asked, "What are you doing here, Wu? Aren't you supposed to be on leave?"

Regan tried to just keep her head down. Keep extracting some of that beautifully cloudy fluid from impossibly perfect post-mortem eyes. But every time she heard Wu's name, the panic in her chest tightened and her lungs started to burn. "What Bishop said!" Regan yelped, her voice sharp and screechy, just for a moment. At least the glass in the morgue was more durable now. Or... most of it, she realized with a pang of horror, as a few of the vials in front of her cracked. Regan quickly brushed them aside like it hadn't happened. No one would notice, right? "Don't help with the eyes, Wu. Do... something else. Something over there." She pointed to the opposite side of the room.

"I'm, uh..." Simon cast another quick glance at Regan, then did a head count of everyone else in the room sans Jane before flinching and covering his ears again at Regan's noise. "I'm... going to get some coffee." He finished the rest of his sentence quietly, going over and retrieving yet another set of tubes for Regan and maneuvering around everything and everyone to leave the room. "I'll be back."

Jane shot Marley a look, snorting quietly as she shook her head. What exactly had she done last night? Jane didn't remember. There was a bar, then nothing until she woke up early the next morning in someone else's apartment, where she stumbled home to feed her pet step stool French Fry before she remembered step stools didn't eat, and ended up here at work instead. About to answer Cece, Sarge cut in and she gave a half shrug. "Yes. But I'm here figuring you'd need help combing through paperwork." Regan pipped up, quite literally, and she flinched. Jane turned her head, pulling her sunglasses down over her nose to peer at her. "As much as looking at the actual eyeballs sounds riveting, Kavanagh, I'll stay here and work on the case files. Just try to keep it down. Please."

Agatha finally rolled her eyes and headed back to her laptop. Another day of unprofessionalism going unpunished, she supposed. "Maybe we could back to those eyes, perhaps?" She had pulled her hair up into a bun and stuck a pencil in to keep it up. "Carol Griffin, Canberra, went missing in November 1979," she did not look up from her screen this time, instead picking up her notepad to go to the next name. "Germaine Lacroix, Toulouse, reported missing in December 1997."

Winston was aware that they were late. But they'd been held up working through some glitches in the database that they'd been building for Roland. They had lost track of time and then several of the other interns had started pestering them with questions. Pushing their glasses up the bridge of their nose, Winston looked up at everyone and smiled tiredly. "Sorry, I know I'm really late but I got held up with other stuff. What did I miss?"

Okay, something was clearly going on between Kavanagh and Jane, but Marley wasn't sure what. It couldn't just be because Kavanagh was on Jane's ass about the werewolf thing. Marley knew Jane's normal annoyed behavior, and this went beyond that. She'd have to bother her later, though, because as she pinned up a few more locations from the file, she noticed a pattern, finally. "Hey, Sarge," she waved, "check this out." Pointed to the map, filled with plenty of tacks now, and all of them around large bodies of water. "It looks like almost every case is around a lake or near the ocean. Or some sort of water. That's gotta be something. We should check in to activity around the lakes at the times some of these people went missing. I bet we'll find something interesting." Like, cultists activity, perhaps?

Dahlia didn't really have a good excuse for being late. It had taken her longer then expected to get her notes together. She had to come prepared. It was her job role it was just as important to keep the supernatural truth from those she worked with you remained in the dark. She slipped in, and just in time it seemed. "Speaking as someone who understands people it makes sense that whoever did this had a preferred hunting ground."

Kaden winced at the slight screech from Regan and braced himself for any breaking glass. Nothing, just a few vials. Still, he shot a look at Wu. Keep it down? Fucking really? Sure she might be dying soon but she'd come fucking back. Unlike him. Well, so long as he didn't have to kill her, that was up in the air for the moment. He went back to the database and plugged away at another result. "Ethan Drummond. Portland, Oregon, reported October 2012. So far your shit checks out, Stryder."

The second Dahlia entered the room, it felt like bugs were biting into Regan's flesh. She jolted uncomfortably, glad that Simon had momentarily left and couldn't press her on it. Between Wu and Dahlia and the risk of breaking more glassware when they really needed every last piece they could get, Regan wasn't sure this was the best idea. But Stryder's comment gave her pause. "I think you're right. I mean, based on the map, I know you are." She considered. "Do you think the cultists wanted their eyes?"

Roland didn't want to push Jane any further in front of everyone else. Her arriving out of sorts could be addressed later. He understood the need to work through a crisis, but perhaps a group setting wasn't the best idea. He ignored it and plugged away at the database, when Stryder called him over. He looked over the map and every pin was near some body of water. "Strange," he mused, "That does seem like it could be cultist, taking eyes near a body of water. Can't say I've ever heard of anything like it though." There had to be some other connection in the database. Were these happening around a certain time? What were the ages of the individuals? These were connections that needed to be made. "Good eye," he told Marley, grimacing as he realized his wording may not have been entirely appropriate.

"It's within reason for that to be assumed," Marley said, rubbing her chin as she examined the map, blocking out the useless chatter. "We've seen other radical behaviors from cults, though collecting human body parts has never really been one. Cults usually have more of a set of goals and rules, though it's not unheard of a cult leader to convince their subjects to do things they'd never consider themselves." She stuck another pin in when Keen piped up, but did not take her eyes from the map. "What's the database looking like, Keen?" she asked, finally turning away.

"It could be a cult," Agatha stood up from her chair once again, this time heading to where Marley stood. "You said that it's connected to the water," she held a finger up, checking the dates on Marley's pins. It couldn't be a coincidence. All these people, they had been reported missing either in October, November, December or January. No one in the spring or summer. "Okay, so. The years don't check out, but all these people disappeared somewhere between October and January. We all know how sometimes things are reported way too late," she trailed off. "Maybe we could narrow it down a bit. I think it's safe to assume, considering how little of them were reported in January, that they all disappeared in the last third of the year."

"Not that unlikely though, not if the eyes were part of a ritual, or something to show alligiance to the leader," Dahlia chimed in. A cult would be a good cover regardless of whether it was the truth or not. "I've studied and written about them before, I can find my old notes." She began pulling out her laptop, letting then carry on talking about all things detective.

Kaden continued to work away at the database while the detectives chatted. His brow furrowed when the results came up. "This one's recent." It was right around when he came to White Crest. "Last seen date was October 2, 2019. Shit." He felt a pit drop in his stomach. "Officer Kim McPhee. Last seen headed towards the Drop Off. On an animal control assignment." Kaden stared at the file. This was who he replaced. She was-- He could be next. Just as quickly. He was going to be sick. It was easier to have distance with the other names that came up. The ones from years ago. Suddenly it felt very real.

Simon slipped in almost as easily as he left in the first place, carrying two large bags rather easily all things considered and muttered an apology, presumably for the noise he made temporarily as he pulled out several drink carriers of coffee and managed to find places for each of them on the tables for people to reach - and he made sure he got enough for everyone to have at least one. He folded up the bags neatly, apologising again and he awkwardly made his way back over near Regan's desk, crossing is arms as he leaned against the wall and picked up where he left off to observe the rest of the team's findings - looked like they got a lead.

Marley shot a look at Dahlia. "I'm well aware of what cult leaders can influence their subjects to do. I did study human behavior, after all," she said, "lengthily." She turned to focus back on the dates with Agatha. "That's good. Maybe narrow it down somehow? Can we cross check reports to see how long people were missing before they were reported?"

Eventually, Cece found her way back to her original job. Collecting samples from the eyes. For whatever reason, Regan seemed to have beef with Jane. Which was probably the most interesting development at this shindig. Collecting the fluids felt like a waste of time anyways. At this point, it was pretty obvious that this was supernatural. Cece could run every test available on every single eye they had collected and they still probably wouldn’t find anything. It seemed obvious which people here still didn’t want to believe in the supernatural and which had resigned themselves to that fact already. But at least the cult talk was some sort of middle ground for the group. “It’s a lot of eyes. A cult could explain how so many eyes got here. Not like cults need any logical reason for the crazy shit they do.”

Actually, a cult wasn't that outlandish by any means. "People could have be being sacrificed between October and January to... whatever it is they believe. That makes sense. How all their eyes ended up here, however..." Jane mused, considering a moment. Her gaze snapped to Kaden, though, brows knitting together when he mentioned the animal control officer that went missing last October. Considering recent screaming circumstances, it probably wasn't a good thing to think about. Her head was pounding, and she just shook her head. "I'll start cross referencing reported dates to when the victims were last seen," Jane said, leaning forward to pull a stack of files towards her.

"I can run all of these reports through various pattern recognition algorithms and see if there is any combination of dates, locations, demographics, age, gender, socio-economic background, we can really narrow everything down if you can give me the specific information on it." As Winston spoke they tapped away at their laptop. "The more information that we can get on the database the easier it will be to develop some level of correlational analysis."

The last animal control officer went missing. That information chilled her marrow, and Regan looked over at Kaden. It was rare that he looked so shaken, and she wanted to help, but that seemed like a poor idea given everyone else in the room with them right now, and the professional setting. Still... "Kaden." Regan said, taking a very short break from the tray of eyes in front of her. "We're going to prevent this from happening to others." They had to, right? What else were they good for if they couldn't protect? "There are far too many eyes here for one individual to be responsible, and that's ignoring the -- well --" the motioned over toward the map, stuffed full of pins. "A cult makes sense. Bishop, I'd like the two of us to proceed with testing the eyes for any uncommon drug presence. I know we ran the standard tox panels, but I'd like some ELISAs run for preservatives. Substances not usually found in decedents."

Roland gave Winston an approving look as he walked back over to his own laptop. A cult or some other sort of group made the most sense with the sheer volume of eyes they had to go through. Either way, there was a pattern there with the time of year that he wasn't surprised Keen had picked up on. "Good catch, Keen. Here are some to start inputting, Winston." He pushed his own stack of finished files with his updated notes over to them.

Agatha looked from the pinboard to Jane, arms crossed over her chest. Her stance relaxed as the detective agreed with her, although, just like her, she reacted to Kaden's words. She had known Kim, and her going missing had shaken up the station quite a lot back then. Agatha went back to her seat and shot Winston a small smile as she did. Considering what had just been said, she didn't feel too cheerful. "You can add those to the Sergeant's," she told them, sliding her stack across the table, with a chocolate donut on top. "I'll help you with that, Jane," she too went to grab a stack of files and before starting to get to worked, she mouthed at her a "Are you ok?" She might not have been too happy with her earlier, she could tell something was off.

Jane started flipping through files and reports, nodding at Agatha as she joined her. She saw her attempt to checking, and Jane almost laughed outright - not because Keen had said something funny by any means, but because it was just funny that Jane had even bothered to show up. She made a note on her computer, before glancing back at Agatha. "Well, I'm still alive, so." Jane replied in a low voice, chuckling humorlessly to herself as started combing over another file.

Kaden thought about getting up and leaving. To do... what, exactly? Fuck. The last thing he wanted to do was collect the fluids from the eyeballs, wondering what sort of connections he may or may not have to any of those while looking at them. But he couldn't take the result off of his screen just yet. He looked up at Regan and all he could manage was a nod. "Yeah. Well. That's the plan, at least." No single police unit or hell, any police unit was going to be able to figure out shit about whatever supernatural crap was going on here. Let alone prevent it. So hardly a comforting thought. "The cultists on the beach and the lake, they all seem to have their eyes sewn shut. You think these belong to any of them maybe? Like they ran away from home, gouged out their own eyes or something?" It sure sounded crazy but with the supernatural involved, likely not the craziest way to lose an eyeball.

Winston set to work with the new information that Roland had provided them with. They were apprehensive about the WCPD becoming heavily embroiled with anything related to the cult. After all they had already demonstrated that they were willing and capable to hurt others if it suited them. Winston just hoped that whatever they had done with all of these people wasn't too heavily supernatural. After all, there were plenty of officers that weren't going to be able to play nicely with that. "Thanks Agatha," Winston replied taking the doughnut appreciatively and typing as quick as they could, "there have been reports that the cult is operating out of the lake, but do we know if there is any leads as to where they have their headquarters set up?"

The janitor part of Simon was acting up, despite everything else that was going on around him with their findings of cults and eyes and dates and stuff - so he did what he would've done anyway and picked up some MORE glass that Regan broke. As he moved over to collect the broken vial on her desk, noting her break to address Kaden and reached over the trey of eyes, one of them vibrated before lifting and clinging to his hand as if the two were magnetized. Well, this was new. Doing his best to not freak out about it, he subtly placed his fingers around the eye and attempted to pull it off but as he applied pressure, something flashed before his eyes. A big flash, a sign - the White Crest sign, sitting there before exploding in a dazzle of... magic? He had only seen magic utilized a few times before this point but never like this. The sign splintered, crackling like electricity and he flinched away from it as a shard of wood propelled itself towards him, holding his hands up to shield his face from it like it was actually happening and backing into the wall roughly.

Regan wanted to tell Simon to forget about the broken glass, she'd get it later, but before she could say anything, one of the eyeballs seemed to propel itself toward Simon's hand. It slithered around before settling itself into his flesh, and Regan jumped up from her seat, a screech forming in her lungs and emptying from her throat in a split second. The rest of the tubes in front of her shattered but, more importantly, Simon was writhing around, trying to yank the eye from his hand, but it was like it was glued on there, and for a moment, his eyes flipped in and out of focus like he was elsewhere. Backed himself into the wall covered in sweat. Regan bounded toward him, less concerned about helping him up than she was about carefully extricating the eye from his hand in one piece. She gave it a tug, and it popped off, though part of her thought it might not have been anything she had done. Regan gave it a close inspection before plopping it back onto the tray. Blinked at the eye, the broken glass, and Simon. Then looked around the room. This was fine. None of that just happened. More hallucinations. "Um, did you trip? Over something?"

Cece nodded at Regan. Just as expected. She would run the tests. Most likely, nothing would come back from it, but why the hell not? Better to just run the tests like the Doc instructed. She was working on another eye when she noticed the eye attach itself to Simon. Cece’s head tilted curiously, watching the scene as it seemed be absorbed into Simon’s skin. She stood back, examining it silently until Simon started moving around. What the hell was that? She moved closer to him, mumbling under her breath so maybe only he and Regan, who seemed to have noticed the moment too, could hear. “You alright dude? What… just happened?”

As Winston watched Simon's eye pulled from his hand, even though it wasn't actually his eye, Winston couldn't help but feel a shiver run down their spine. The eye in their own hand itched and Winston looked from Cece to Regan to Simon and then down to their own hand. Pulling the sleeve of their hoodie over their hand. "Woah, what happened?" they said as they tried to act like they couldn't put it all together, "There's broken glass we should probably try and clean that up and did something happen with that ... eye?"

Simon hadn't quite recovered from what he saw when suddenly Regan screamed again and he whimpered this time, breathing quickly as his other hand covered the ear it could reach. Though he was far from surprised and not paying all that much attention, Regan seemed more focused on the eye than him. Once it was off, he pulled the hand that the eye stuck to close to his body, shaking his head erratically as if trying to get rid of the scream that made his ears ring. "I-I don't know," He murmured to Cece, managing to hear her question though the noise. "There was-- the uh... White Crest sign and it- it blew up." He stuttered. "I don't-- it was there and then-then it... wasn't."

Everything happened before Marley could get a grip on anything. Her hands immediately went up to her ears as the scream shattered the glass vials in front of Regan. Whatever had happened to the weird janitor dude, which, why was he here, anyway? Wasn't this police work? Not that Marley cared, really. Everyone was gathering around him now, but something struck a chord in Marley's brain, her mind churning. A banshee had screamed for Jane. Jane was mad at Regan. Regan had just screamed at an ungodly decibel. The only conclusion-- Regan was the banshee that had screamed for Jane. Fuck how had she not noticed? She turned back to look at Jane, one brow raised. "Twice in one week," she muttered to her, "hopefully you don't lose your hearing before you die..." and pinned another tack on the board in white crest. For Kim McPhee.

"... Dude, what the hell," Agatha her fingers rubbing her ear, looked at Regan from over her glasses with an eyebrow raised. What was going on over there? Did ... Simon pick up an eye? Was he stealing an eye? Whatever had happened, it seemed like the medical examiner was handling it, but clearly, screeching like this was not necessary. "You should go get some fresh air, Doctor," she observed, going back to her computer, trying to ignore the ringing in her ears. "So... I already have 4 people who stopped being seen in October," looking up from her notepad, she glanced over at Jane. "What do you have?"

Kaden almost missed the fact that Simon was having some kind of issue because all he heard was another fucking scream and his hands shot to his ears while he let out a few choice curse words in couple languages. What a great fucking time to have sensitive hearing. It was nowhere near as bad as Brimm Stonne Court but putain. He looked back to see what the fuck had happened, rubbing his ears a bit as if it could dull the ringing. "The fuck was that?" He considered getting a dig in but it seemed like a bad fucking idea with Regan and Hills in the room. Not worth it. His eyes narrowed as he described the sign. "You saw something?" But he was a werewolf. Those didn't get visions. Couldn't be for that. He crossed the room to Cece. "Might want to check that one for more than just fluids," he whispered to her, hoping she caught the potential connection, too. The potential magical one. "Seems like it might have belonged to someone unusual."

Fresh air. Right. That hadn't been a hallucination, had it? Regan didn't make eye contact with anyone as she peeled out of the room. Wait. They were in the morgue. Her morgue. She backed up. "Bishop. You're in charge." She darted out of the conference room again and ran down the hall for her office to catch her breath, to will the panic to subside and her lungs to stop feeling so tight. And, if it were even possible, to stop the image of trays full of eyeballs from burning into her retinas.

Jane let out a loud curse as Regan screamed again, hands clamping over her ears. "What did I just say?!" She hissed. At least it was less catastrophic than the last time. Her ears ringing again for just a moment, she shook her head, the pounding in her head getting worse as people flocked around Simon. Something had happening, but she had missed it while her nose was in her files. Regan and Cece and everyone else that wasn't her was handling it. Good. She glanced to Agatha, brows knitting together. "Mine stopped being seen in October too," Jane replied. She pinched the bridge of her nose. Goddamn it. Whatever this was, supernatural or not, screaming banshees or not. "This," she mumbled to herself, "Is the bad place."

#wickedswriting #wickedsevent

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calligraphist-artemisia · 4 years

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Harry Potter and the Best Summer (5 | An Unwelcome Visitor)

Summary: AU - canon divergence. Harry had barely been back at the Dursley’s for two weeks, when an unexpected visitor arrived at the door. He quickly finds himself spirited away back to the wizarding world and learns some secrets that have long been kept from him.

A sequel to Of Family and Unexpected Friendship. Also posted on AO3 under the username Kishirokitsune.

And for anyone who’s interested, I made a Harry Potter discord server! Introducing, Virtu Alley! (like “virtually”, get it?) Feel free to pop by and chat if you’d like. (https://discord.gg/AUq3eXY)

[Sorry for the lack of hyperlinks, but my posts have once again stopped showing up when I search for them when I include them. I will reblog later to include links at the bottom of the post.]

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5 | An Unwelcome Visitor

If Harry thought his first day at Oakstone Manor was hectic, it was nothing compared to the next morning, when he awoke to a loud crash coming from the hall, quickly followed by a stream of apologies from Nymphadora Tonks (who threatened to hex him if he dared called them by their full first name) and Andromeda's much quieter admonishment.

Harry found himself grinning despite the rude awakening. It was so much better than getting woken up by Aunt Petunia.

He'd met Tonks the night before when they arrived just as dinner was being arranged on the table. The very first thought he had was that they were the embodiment of everything the Dursleys hated. Short, bright pink hair was shaved on either side of their head and the length on top was gently spiked upwards. Several piercings dotted their ears and whenever they gestured with a wild flourish Harry could see that their fingernails were painted pink to match their hair.

“Wotcher, Harry,” they said with a wink and their hair shifted from pink to purple to blue and then back again.

Harry thought they were brilliant.

Andromeda's husband – Ted Tonks – was a cheery and friendly man who engaged Harry in effortless conversation about growing up in the muggle world and how shocking it was to be thrown into the magical one. He spoke only a little of his work in the pediatric ward of St. Mungo's, instead choosing to focus on learning more about Harry, as well as catching up with everyone else.

Altogether they were the picture of a healthy, functioning family.

Morning flew by and all Harry could do was sit back out of the way and watch everyone rush around in preparation for the rest of the day. Ted was the first to leave, kissing Andromeda on the cheek before flooing away to St. Mungo's. A short while later, Tonks headed out the front door, giving an explanation that they were meeting their mentor in a secret location. Harry watched as they spun on their heel and vanished with a popping sound.

Andromeda sat them all down for lessons after that. She gave Leona and Aquarius worksheets to do and then cast a silencing charm around Harry's chair so she could verbally quiz him and help fill in any blanks in his basic knowledge. He was pleased when he remembered most of what Leona had taught him, but faltered when it came to naming other Heirs he attended school with.

From there he listened with rapt attention as Andromeda covered the current active Lords and Heirs of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, of which House Black was one.

Their studies took up the rest of the morning and it was only after lunch that Harry was saved from going back to it.

Remy went with him to St. Mungo's for his appointment, only stepping out of the room for the examination and vaccinations and returned once Harry said it was okay. He wasn't terribly surprised when his healer – Adam Rue – told him that he was undernourished and that his eyeglass prescription was out-of-date.

“I am prescribing a nutrient potion for you to take with dinner each evening. I understand you'll be going back to Hogwarts in September and I will make arrangements to inform Madam Pomfrey that you are to take one each day,” said Healer Rue.

Harry fidgeted, a little worried about his schoolmates finding out he needed potions. “Do I have to take it in the Great Hall?”

“If you truly wanted to, you could always travel down to the hospital wing each evening however, the way we typically handle potions like this is to simply charm it into your goblet so that no one else is aware. The house-elves of Hogwarts are quite talented when it comes to matters of secrecy,” Healer Rue said with a reassuring smile.

He then told Harry and Remy that they could visit the offices just down the hall to either update Harry's eyeglasses or have his vision corrected completely.

“Mr. Potter, I don't mean to make assumptions about your care growing up, however I'd also like to recommend visits with one of our mind healers for the rest of the summer,” Healer Rue told them. “If for no other reason than to ease your transition into a wizarding household. All of our mind healers are sworn to keep the secrets of their patients, but if you are still uncomfortable with speaking to someone in Britain considering your status, you could hire a private healer from overseas. I would be happy to recommend a few who I have personally worked with in the past.”

“Healer Rue, can I ask about the damage left by the Magic Block?” Remy asked.

“We have removed it, of course, and taken the time to examine the damage from the curse scar. It seems that the block prevented your magic from fully cleansing it, Mr. Potter, and now that it is gone you'll see a significant ease in using your magic. That being said, our recommendation is a minimum of two weeks before you cast any spells in order to give your core time to adjust to the influx of power. A month, if you can manage it,” said Healer Rue.

Harry nodded. It wasn't like he was allowed to use his magic during summer anyway. He was sure it would be easy to go another month without casting.

Remy asked a few more questions about Harry's health and then Healer Rue handed her the prescription for the nutrient potions, which was signed and marked with his magical seal to prove its validity, as well as a list of recommended mind healers. He then guided the two of them down the hall to the office which specialized in eye-care, stepping inside to inform the receptionist that they were there for a thorough exam.

While they waited for one of the healers to become available, Harry got the chance to browse through the different frames that were available and, at Remy's urging, tried on a few to see if he liked any.

Each one was an improvement on the cheap, circular frames the Dursley's had “graciously” given him.

Remy chuckled as she glanced over a selection of frames catering to the older crowd. “Your father was always fond of horn rims. He thought they made him look rather smart. Your mother always said it made him look like more of a ponce than he already was.”

“She really said that?” Harry asked, looking away from a pair of frames that was continually shifting colors.

“Well, at first,” Remy corrected herself. “Your father was a good man and a good friend, Harry, but as a teenager he was... well, a bit entitled. Sirius was as well. I imagine it comes from being part of an old pureblood family. It all made it so your mother was less than impressed by him which only made him try harder. He came around by our sixth year, but I'll have to tell you more about it later.”

She nodded towards something over Harry's shoulder and he turned to find a woman in soft green robes walking towards them. Her badge bore the name Healer Agatha Newmark.

“You must be Harry,” she said in a chipper tone. “I'm Aggie. You can both come with me and I'll get you sorted out.”

Harry and Remy followed her back to a smaller room, where Harry sat down in a chair that faced a poster with differently sized numbers and letters. She first had him remove his glasses and attempt to read the lowest line, which he found impossible. He couldn't fully make out any letter until the third line down, but even that was blurry enough that he struggled.

A few waves of her wand had an enchanted quill scratching out the details of his eyesight and once it finished, Healer Newmark went into detail on the options available to him. Harry could get a new pair of frames with his updated prescription, charmed unbreakable and scratch resistant for up to two years, or he could get his vision corrected completely and no longer need glasses.

“Everyone is a little different and I know just as many people who like the way they look while wearing glasses as I do people who jumped at the first opportunity to have the correction done,” said Healer Newmark. “The correction is, of course, more expensive than a pair of frames, but we do have a finance program for anyone who prefer a staggered payment.”

“Harry, it's up to you,” Remy said quietly.

He didn't think about it for long. From the moment he first heard there was a chance he wouldn't have to deal with his glasses any longer, he hoped it was true. No more crooked frames. No more feeling around for his glasses every morning. No more worry about a bludger knocking them from his face and leaving him completely blind.

“I'd like to get it corrected.”

- - - - - - -

Harry expected that they would be heading home after he was finished at St. Mungo's but instead, Remy whisked him away into wizarding London to a street near Diagon Alley named Asymetric Alley, which looked like a village out of a history book, with rough, winding cobblestone streets and old timber-framed shops all pressed close together.

It gave a cozy, warm vibe that Diagon Alley didn't have, giving the impression that loitering was welcome on the streets and stopping to chat with those you walked past was a way of life.

Harry didn't spare that more than a passing thought, too busy marveling over the clarity with which he was able to see the world. There were so many details that he hadn't been able to see before! Things that he'd come to accept as being blurry around the edges suddenly had sharp outlines and signs that he once had to squint just to read he only had to glance at and know what they said!

Remy treated him to ice cream and then they were off to visit a number of shops where Harry was asked to pick out clothing, new shoes, and then helped pick out ingredients for dinner that night so Cici could make his favorite meal. Their last stop was a used bookstore, where Remy picked up an order that was waiting for her and she encouraged him to take a look around.

Harry wasn't terribly interested until he spotted a small book titled Fallacies of the Rankings of the Sacred Twenty-Eight and after reading the back cover thought that if it turned out to be something he didn't like, Hermione was likely to find it fascinating.

He was about to turn to go when a heavy thump stopped him. When he looked, he saw a dark green book laying face-up on the floor. Swooping gold lettering informed him that it was called The Magical Court of Camelot – The Truth Behind the Legends and that it was written by someone named ML Black. He picked it up and took it to the counter.

“Aunt Remy, look at this,” he said, holding up the book for her to see.

Remy examined it with interest, her eyes lingering longest on the name of the author. “ML Black... It's not a name I'm familiar with, but it Andy might know it. Would you like to get it?”

Harry nodded. “And this one too,” he said, as he passed to her Fallacies of the Rankings of the Sacred Twenty-Eight.

She seemed a bit amused by the second book but didn't say a word against it, quickly passing it off to be rung up. Remy paid for it all and even got Harry a tote bag to carry them in and then they were off once again.

“I think it would be best to side-apparate on our way back. Floo travel is more difficult when you're carrying packages,” said Remy.,

She explained what it was and how it worked as she lead him towards a sectioned off area marked: Apparation Point. One side was designated as Arrival and the other Departure, which Harry supposed helped keep things more orderly. He felt a little nervous as he looped his arm around Remy's and squeezed his eyes tightly shut as she directed him to spin on his heel with her. Harry felt the weight of pressure all around him and his stomach roiled uncomfortably, and then it was over and they were on the road just outside of the gate to Oakstone Manor.

“Unpleasant, isn't it?” Remy asked, sounding apologetic. “I know it's not a comfort right now, but you will get used to it as you get older. By the time you learn to apparate, the most you'll feel is that pressure around you.”

Harry didn't know how to respond to that and simply shrugged his shoulders before following her through the gate (which opened at their approach) and back into the manor.

“Evie?” Remy called out.

There was a popping sound and then a new house-elf in gray and blue appeared. She immediately bowed, which caused the bright yellow kerchief to start slipping off her head until it got caught on her massive ears. When she straightened up, she beamed at the sight of the bags in Remy's arms. “Do you need Evie to take them to your room, miss? And put them away?”

“That would be wonderful. Only the books go to my room. Everything else will go to Harry's,” Remy told her.

Evie nodded quickly and turned her attention to Harry. “Evie will organize them very nicely, young sir! If it's not to your liking you can call for Evie or Cici and we'll come help!”

“Oh, um, thank you, Evie. I'm sure you'll do great.” Harry wasn't sure if that was the right thing to say, but Evie didn't look upset as she bounced over to take the bags. Once she had them in her arms, she popped away without another word.

“Tonight I think we'll burn your hand-me-downs,” Remy said conversationally. “But for now, you deserve a chance to rest and do whatever you'd like until dinner. Leona still has another hour of tutoring to get through, but Aqua should be free by now. She'll be in the library, if you'd like to find her.”

Harry needed a refresher on how to get there and once Remy gave him directions on the easiest path to take – up the main staircase to the second floor, take a left and go to the end of the hall, where you take another left, and enter the second door on the right – he set off to find Aquarius.

Just like Remy said, she was sitting in the library in a squishy armchair beneath one of the windows, a heavy looking book open in her lap. Aquarius looked up when she heard the door open and beamed when she spotted Harry peeking inside.

“You're back! And you're not wearing any glasses?”

Harry grinned at her as he stepped fully into the library. “I don't need them anymore.”

“Brilliant!” Aquarius responded. “You have a letter, by the way. Butternut brought a response from your friend while you were away.”

Harry looked to the side table where she gestured and saw a envelop sitting there. When he walked over and picked it up, he found himself recognizing Hermione's tidy handwriting and eagerly ripped it open to see what she wrote.

Dear Harry,

I'm so glad to hear you're alright! Ron and I were terribly worried that something awful happened to you once you got home. Please thank Aquarius for sending me the letter saying that you're safe with her and Leona. She says that you're not going back to your muggle relatives. Is it true? Did they do something to keep you from receiving letters? I know you are all looking into what happened, but I think I'll do some research of my own and see what I can find. I'll keep you updated!

I've talked to my parents about visiting you this summer and they have agreed to it, though they'd like to talk to Leona's mum about it first. I think they want to make sure it's alright with her. Will Ron be joining us as well? He hasn't mentioned any visiting, but it does sound like the Weasley's have a full house anyway and I would hate to add to that. I think meeting up at Diagon Alley would be a far better idea, especially since it would let my parents meet the Weasley's. They didn't get much time to talk at King's Cross.

It probably won't surprise you but I've done quite a lot of reading so far this summer. Most of my homework is already complete, except for that essay on goblin wars that Binns assigned. I must admit, even I find it a bit droll and difficult to complete. All I can hear is his voice droning on. If you'd like, we can review our summer studies together when I visit! And please tell Leona that I've finished the books she recommended. I suppose I should just write a letter to her instead of using you as a personal owl.

What's Oakstone Manor like? It must be exciting to see a wizarding home!

Hermione's letter carried on like that as she wrote about whatever came to mind. She spoke a little of her parents and how excited they were to hear about her first year at Hogwarts and then went into more detail of how she spent her summer when she wasn't studying or reading. Every now and then she'd circle around to ask him a question about what it was like living with Leona. Was there a library? Had he had time to do any of the summer homework?

There was only one reference to Professor Quirrel, who had disappeared sometime before the End-of-Term feast, and that was to say there was a small article in the prophet about there being a warrant for his arrest and how any sightings should be immediately reported to the DMLE.

Harry wondered if Tonks knew anything about that. Would they be able to tell him anything if they did?

He folded up the letter and stuck it into his pocket, resolving to answer Hermione when he had time later. “Reading anything interesting, Aquarius?”

She silently tilted her book so he could read the cover and Harry was delighted to find he could see the words without having to squint. The Complete Beginners Guide to Potion Brewing was the name of her book and Harry wondered just how in-depth it went to make it so it was at least five centimeters thick.

“Leo says that Professor Snape will probably look for any reason to take points from me or give me detention, so I thought if I start studying now then he won't be able to find as many,” she explained with an easy shrug.

There was something about the idea of Snape harassing Aquarius that rankled Harry. She was a ten-year-old girl who hadn't done a thing wrong and she was already prepared to be utterly humiliated by one of her professors, who took issue with who her parents were. It was bad enough that Snape targeted him and Neville – though he still didn't know why he demonstrated such loathing towards Neville.

Instead of saying anything, Harry left Aquarius to her reading and took a seat in a nearby chair to check out his two new books. The first one he grabbed was the one on Camelot, which reminded him of a question he had.

“Hey, Aquarius? Do you know of anyone called 'ML Black' who might be related to you?”

“Not in recent history,” Aquarius said slowly. “It does sound familiar, so there must be someone with those initials on the family tree. Why do you ask?”

“They wrote this book I found. The Magical Court of Camelot – the Truth Behind the Legends,” Harry told her.

Aquarius marked her page and set it aside, her eyes alight with interest. “And it's written by a Black?”

Harry nodded.

“Follow me!” Aquarius said, hopping up out of her chair.

Feeling a little bewildered, Harry left his things in his seat and got up to follow her through the tall shelves of the library and to a spot tucked away in a back corner. There was a heavy, navy blue curtain hanging across an elaborate archway and stepping through revealed a rounded alcove. Candles on either side of the arch lit themselves when they stepped through, illuminating the nearly black walls to reveal a massive tree painted in silver ink, its branches rigid and following a clear structure.

Most notably, it was upside down, with the base of its trunk resting where the wall met the ceiling.

“This is the Black Family Tree, which dates back to our earliest magical ancestor, Ambroise Fabron,” she said, pointing up to the top. “They were blacksmiths. He brought his knowledge of the craft to the magical world and then applied enchantments to make it even better. His greatest achievement was a charm embedded within cookware that made it easier to clean without repeatedly using scourgify.”

Harry's brows knitted together. “But that means... he was muggleborn?”

“If you go far back enough in a pureblood line, you'll find many muggleborns. It just didn't matter as much back then,” Aquarius said. She reached out and placed her hand on the wall, waiting for the space to light up silver before dragging her hand down. As she did so, the tree scrolled down until the trunk was nearly eye-level with them and the rest of the branches danced across the floor.

“Ambroise had three children. Two were girls who married into other lines and the other was a son, Michel, who continued the name Fabron and took up his father's work...” Aquarius continued to move down the three, explaining a little more about what little they still knew about their ancestors, until she came to Michel's third son, Célestin, who moved to the UK and changed his surname to Black before going on to revolutionize the production of cauldrons. “Oh! Harry, here she is! Mnemosyne Lucinda Black! She married Célestin! No wonder the name sounded familiar!”

“There could be another ML Black somewhere,” Harry pointed out.

“There could be,” Aquarius agreed. “But considering she was born in the seven-hundreds, I think it's probably her. It's too bad the tree doesn't list maiden names. I would have loved to know which family line she came from but I don't think any of our records have it listed. We can always ask Leo or Andy.”

Harry almost wanted to continue looking at the family tree to see if there was anyone else, but there were so many names. Not to mention Aquarius had a good point about the timeline. Mnemosyne would have been born close enough to the era of King Arthur's reign that she could gather correct details about that period. Maybe the book itself would have something in it to confirm his thoughts.

Aquarius released the magic that lowered the tree, allowing it to move back to its correct location across the wall. “I bet the Potter manor has a tree showing all of your ancestors too. You must be excited to go see it.”

“I hadn't thought much about it, to be honest,” Harry admitted. “Haven't had the time.”

There was a lot he suddenly had to think about and he wished he had the first clue where to start. Maybe if he had a moment to himself, he could slow down to think things through.

“If you want some time to yourself, you don't need to stay here with me in the library,” Aquarius said, sounding sympathetic.

“You don't want to look at the book?” Harry asked.

Aquarius shook her head. “It's yours to read first. I may take a look around and see if we have a copy on one of the shelves. Its likely, since it was written by a Black.” She pushed the curtain aside and then walked through, continuing to hold it for Harry as he followed.

After a bit of thought, Harry remained with Aquarius in the library and the two sat silently read their books until Leona came to fetch them for dinner.

“Hey, bookworms, it's time to eat!”

She grinned at the pair of them when they looked up, both surprised at how much time had passed. While Aquarius marked her page and set her book aside to read later, Harry put his back in his bag so he could take it to his room after dinner.

“How were your lessons, Leo?” Aquarius asked.

“Dull,” Leona responded with a groan. “Andy has me practicing with old speeches so I know how to properly present myself during Wizengamot meetings. It's important, sure, but I can't think of anything more boring.”

“History of Magic,” Harry responded immediately.

“The Annual Yule Ball at Malfoy manner,” Aquarius supplied cheekily.

“Brats,” Leona said affectionately. “Yeah, you might be right. Those are both pretty boring as well.”

Harry almost asked about the Yule Ball, wondering what it was and whether or not he'd be expected to attend it as well, but Leona changed the subject before he could say anything.

“Mum and Andy say that you'll officially start lessons tomorrow, Harry. She wants to go over a few things before you go back to Gringotts and talk to the holder for the Potter accounts. Mostly etiquette and stuff so you don't accidentally insult someone. Easy stuff,” Leona said with a shrug.

Harry hoped she was right about that. There was so much he felt like he didn't know. Stuff that Leona and Aquarius spent their entire lives learning and experiencing. He felt hopelessly behind compared to them.

Was it the same at school? How many of his peers had he unintentionally affronted with his behavior and language? It never seemed to matter that much in Gryffindor, but was that because he spent most of his time with Ron and Hermione?

Harry resolved to do better.

- - - - - - -

Andromeda smiled as she watched her family merrily converse over dinner.

Ted and Remy were in the middle of a rousing discussion on experimental medicines; a topic she hadn't expected Remy to show much interest in knowledge in, but the younger woman seemed to be holding her own even as Ted delved into more advanced potions.

The kids were all at the other end of the table with Leona and Nymphadora leading most of the conversation while Aquarius made comments and Harry primarily listened. Every now and then laughter would break out and Harry would grin, bright and carefree, and Andromeda was reminded of the way he was treated by his relatives and how glad she was to have gotten him out of there.

Dinner went well until just before dessert, when Milla popped into the room and got Andy's attention with a single tap on the arm.

“A guest has arrived, Miss. Milla be telling them it is rude to intrude over dinner but they insisting.”

“Thank you, Milla,” Andromeda said as she gently set aside her utensils. She patted her mouth with a cloth napkin and then excused herself from the table with a soft apology. She briskly walked to the foyer and made sure to compose herself before entering the room.

Standing near the door was an old man with a long beard and twinkling periwinkle robes.

“Albus,” Andromeda cordially greeted. “It is considered rude to visit during dinnertime.”

He met her aloofness with a polite smile. “I do apologize, Lady Tonks, however there was no other time I could get away and there is something of grave importance that I must discuss with you.”

Andromeda arched one eyebrow. “Oh? And what is so important that you would arrive completely unannounced and interrupt a family meal?”

“It has come to my attention that you removed Harry Potter from the care of his Aunt and Uncle. You have to understand how important it is that he remain with them,” Albus told her. “There are blood wards in place around their residence. So long as he calls Privet Drive home, he will be protected from those in our world who would do him harm.”

Andromeda had a myriad of choices before her. She could play along with his little game, letting him try and garner sympathy for his actions. She didn't doubt that he genuinely thought he was doing the right thing, but she wouldn't stand there and allow him to speak up in defense of those horrid muggles.

“Harry will not be returning to that place and especially not by your hand.”

“My dear-”

“No,” she interrupted firmly. “You have no right to determine where he lives. You had no right to send him to those people; the only people who Lily herself specified he was never to go to. We have heard their Will, Albus. The boy will stay with his Magical Guardian and there is nothing that you nor anyone else can do to change that.”

Andromeda stepped back, never once taking her eyes off of Dumbledore. “Bastion!”

With a pop, a house-elf appeared. He was clad in the same gray and blue as the others, but he bore the Black Family shield across the back of his shirt and carried a tiny dagger on the belt around his waist. He bowed to Andromeda.

“How may Bastion help?”

“Please escort the Headmaster from the property and place a ban on the wards to prevent him from returning without permission,” Andromeda instructed.

Albus looked pained by her words, but politely inclined his head and went without a fuss, leaving Andromeda to stand in the foyer by herself. A few minutes later she felt a slight shift in the wards. Only then did she feel comfortable returning to the table.

“Everything alright?” Ted quietly asked as she sat down.

Andromeda nodded. “Nothing to worry about, dear. Just an issue that needed to be handled sooner rather than later.”

She would tell him and Remy more about their guest later. For the moment, she wanted to sit and enjoy dessert with her family.

#harry potter #harry potter fanfiction #harry potter au #HP and the traditions of the magical world

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winntir · 5 years

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I want to post about one of my autistic characters this month and this turned out to be my only opportunity due to general laziness. Sorry! Yes, my Fallout 4 character is autistic; all of my RPG characters are autistic.

Name: Hazel Martinson

Nickname: Blue, Nuka-Girl

Age: 31 (241 post status)

Height: 5’9” (1.75m)

Weight: 142 lbs. (64 kg)

Specials: 6 ST, 5 PE, 6 EN, (+) 8 CH, 7 IN, 7 AG, 7 LK

Eyes: Hazel

Hair: Cool Brown, Unscrupulous

Body type: Ectomorphic

Status Pre-War: Legal Advisor (maternity reasons), Court Lawyer (out of practice)

Status Currently: Minuteman General, Brotherhood of Steel Paladin, Railroad Heavy

Relationship Status: Dating, formerly widowed

Spouse: Nate Adami (deceased)

Sexuality: Pansexual

Gender: Cisgender female

Ethnicity: Jewish-Irish-Danish

Family: Shaun Gianni Adami-Martinson (biological son, deceased), Shaun/S9-23 (adoptive son)

Languages: English, Yiddish, Latin

Disabilities/Illnesses/Injuries: Molerat Disease; former Strep throat

Allergies: Gluten, dairy

Scars: Three facial scars (one over left eye, one on the temple descending the cheek, one under her eye)

Physical traits: Angular facial features, prominent freckles, pointed nose

Voice: Low, gravely and sweet

Clothing: Minuteman General Uniform and tricorne hat, Minuteman outfit and militia hat, Agatha's Dress

Fashion Style/Lifestyle: Handyman, militia

Weapon of Choice: Focused Six-Shot Laser Musket, Deliverer, Electrified Chinese Officer's Sword

Skills: Marksmanship, Lockpicking, Hacking

Weaknesses: Brushes easily, radiation sponge

Poor skills: Swimming

Affiliations: Minutemen, Railroad

Former Affiliations: Nash & Hobbs Law firm (non-canon), Children of Atom

Enemies: Institute, Gunners; Raiders, Super Mutants, Trappers (Hostis humani generis)

Neutral Affiliations: Arcadia, Brotherhood of Steel, Far Harbor

Religion: Reform Judaic (non-practicing)

Likes: A challenge, A job well done, Nuka-Cola, A well cooked meal, Piper Wright, Cait, Jazz, Historical studies, Hobby work

Dislikes: Killing dogs, chems, alcohol, Nuka-Cola, dogmatic persons

Hates: Murder, bigotry, deception in social circumstances

Friends: Nick Valentine, Preston Garvey, Robert Joseph MacCready, John Hancock

Acquaintances: Glory, Deacon, Old Longfellow, Jack Spencer (deceased, OC), Strong, Curie

Former friends: DiMA

Enemies: High Confessor Tektus, X6-88 (deceased), Mayor McDonough synth (deceased), Conrad Kellogg (deceased), Arthur Maxson

Pets: Dogmeat

Fallout OC friends/family: Winston Nash (deceased, OC), Franklin Hobbs (deceased, OC), Joan Maynard (deceased, OC), Robert Martinson (father, deceased), Ruth Martinson (née Mandelbaum, mother, deceased), Ethel Blum (née Martinson, sister, deceased), Arther Blum (brother-in-law, deceased)

Personality: She's an inquisitive soul whose social anxieties go away if she can learn something from them. She doesn't think about the things she does, saving thought for when she has the time. She protects what people she's still close to from cruel fates. Friendship is optional when it comes to the people she knows.

Favorite color: Mauve

Favorite foods: Noodles, Omelette, Deathclaw steak, Mirelurk Queen steak, Grilled radroach,

Favorite drinks: Refreshing beverage, Vim, Ice cold Nuka-Cide, Dirty Wastelander

Favorite Sweets: Chocolate, Pudding

_____________________________________

Other info:

Hazel was a successful lawyer before the war. She was a well-liked member of the Nash & Hobbs Law Firm, which had liberal leanings throughout its lifetime. She was accused of being a communist multiple times in her career, and went up against obstacles most wouldn't be comfortable with, but didn't quit. She only took a break because she had a baby and want to spend a year off to take care of him, having the ability to work in an advisory capacity at that time.

Her relationship with Nuka-Cola has so much baggage. She doesn't really like the flavor or caffeine kick, but will drink Nuka-Cide when she needs a pick-me-up. During her career, she defended the company's copyright issues regarding Nuka-Quartz and Vim Quartz, which made her "Nuka-Girl" in the eyes of most who didn't know her personally.

An awkward part of her new life is finding love. See, she's attracted to both Cait and Piper, both physically and romantically. The options are choosing one or the other. Polyamory might no go over well with Piper. She's currently in a relationship with the reporter, but she's trying to broach the topic of adding to it.

The part of Hazel some are appreciative of while other despise are her chess master mentality. Everything is a game of wits to win, but that hasn't gone well. In her fight against the Institute, she was juggling everyone to get the best possible result, but made mistakes along the way. In her adventure into Fair Harbor, she tried to do what was necessary to minimize casualties while keeping the peace, but found little comfort in what she'd done. She tries to be clever, but that hasn't always paid off.

#fallout #fallout 4 #autistic character #jewish character #pansexual character #sole survivor #minutemen #autism acceptence month #actually autistic #I'm not jewish so I hope this isn't offensive #original character

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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Endeavour: the Series 8 Finale’s Easter Eggs and Homages

https://ift.tt/3ueDoj9

Warning: contains spoilers for Endeavour Series 8 Episode 3 ‘Terminus’.

Fittingly for a drama about a detective with a taste for The Times cryptic crossword, the murder mystery is far from the only game in an episode of Endeavour. As we explore here, the prequel’s films feature nods to pop culture contemporary with the episode’s time-frame, references to Morse’s past and future cases, and of course, the traditional hat tips to the character’s creator Colin Dexter.

Series 8 takes place in 1971 and so winks at Get Carter, Mr Benn, the first Confessions of a Window Cleaner book, all released that in year, among others. Join us in parsing the references and Easter Eggs of Series 8 finale ‘Terminus’, written by Russell Lewis and directed with real horror flair by Kate Saxon.

This isn’t the first time Endeavour fans have seen the book being read by student Richard Blake on the top deck of the Number 33 bus. Its title is ‘Plighted Cunning: The Murders at Shrive Hill House’ and its author is Stephen Fitzowen, the very same character who appeared in Series 2 episode ‘Nocturne’, played by Desmond Barrit. Later in ‘Terminus’, Blake tells the others that Fitzowen also wrote a book on the Tafferton Park Masquerade Ball bloodbath. In this interview, Endeavour creator Russell Lewis explains the character’s origin as a nod to a Dashiell Hammett character Owen Fitzstephen in 1929 novel The Dain Curse.

Endeavour series eight takes place in 1971, which saw the release of the On the Buses film, a feature-length continuation of the popular TV series. References abound in this episode, from the graffitied ‘It’s a Grand Life On the Buses’ poster at the terminus (the film’s theme song was called ‘It’s a Great Life On the Buses’), to shared stops along the Number 33’s route Town’s End, Wellfield Street and Mulberry Circus, to the name of cheeky conductor Les Grant, a namesake of actor Bob Grant, who famously played bus conductor Jack Harper on the television comedy.

The first murder victim is Professor Stanton of Wolsey College, the fictional Oxford college invented by Inspector Morse creator Colin Dexter as a stand-in for Christchurch College, so named because it was founded by Cardinal Wolsey.

Is it a coincidence that the Chipping Compton church outside which Stanton is murdered is named St. Agatha’s, perhaps in honour of the patron saint of crime fiction…? (Not an Easter Egg but perhaps interesting that the murder took place on the 10th of November, dating Morse’s pub newspaper to Armistice Day on the 11th. If remembrance poppies were worn in 1971, you’d think ex servicemen Thursday, Morse, Strange and Bright would all have marked the occasion.)

Continuing a long tradition of Colin Dexter cameos in the Inspector Morse, Lewis, and Endeavour television series, when Morse is investigating Stanton’s college rooms, the framed photograph of the boy on his desk is of a young Colin Dexter himself, as written about in this article.

When Thursday confronts Endeavour about his drinking, he suggests that the detective sergeant visit “a place down in Sussex run by a fella called Wain. Kind of health farm, very discreet.” That wouldn’t be Joshua Wain whose Sussex health farm ‘Shrublands’ featured in Ian Fleming’s 1961 James Bond novel Thunderball, as well as in two of the series’ films?

Inspector Morse had 33 episodes in total, and ‘Terminus’ is the 33rd Endeavour film, a milestone marked in the shot above not only by the number of the ill-fated bus route, but the large illuminated number 3 in this shot, and the fact that Thursday and Strange’s visit to the bus terminus happens at 3.30pm.

Endeavour Series 8 Episode 3 Review: a Turning Point for Morse

By Gem Wheeler

Agatha Christie: Easter Eggs and Symbolism in the BBC Adaptations

By Louisa Mellor

Win Thursday tells Fred that she received the worrying news about their son Sam from “a Captain Stanhope from his unit.” It’s a reference to R.C. Sherriff’s 1928 play Journey’s End, which is set among a group of officers during the First World War. Like Morse, Stanhope’s character struggled with alcohol.

Could Linda Travers – the fake name given by Warren Loomis’ sister to the bus passengers – be in reference to British film actress Linden Travers, who played ‘Mrs’ Todhunter in Hitchcock’s A Lady Vanishes? It seems more likely when you take the names of fellow travellers Percy Walsh and Hilda Bruce-Potter, both also classic British film actors, into account…

Warren Loomis, the name of the young maths genius framed by the Football Pools cabal so they could steal his rightful winnings, is a tribute to Dr Loomis, Michael Myers’ psychiatrist in John Carpenter’s Halloween film franchise, which is largely set in the Illinois town of Haddonfield, another bus route destination in this episode (see timetable above).

Endeavour creator Russell Lewis confirmed on Twitter that the fancy dress element of ‘Terminus’ was inspired by the seventh of Colin Dexter’s Morse novels, The Secret of Annexe 3, which revolved around a masked ball at a hotel. It’s the only of the Morse novels not adapted for television (perhaps because the fancy dress theme ‘The Mystery of the East’ led to some culturally insensitive costumes.)

Agatha Christie may not only have provided the name of the local church in ‘Terminus’, but there were echoes of her novel And Then There Were None in the ‘band of strangers being picked off one by one’ plot. The snooker table scene between Walsh and Yeager in particular, featured in both the 1945 and the 1974 film adaptation, when it was Richard Attenborough and Herbert Lom making a pact over the baize. Student Richard Blake tinkling on the piano in the Tafferton Park drawing room also recalls the same happening in both film adaptations.

‘Terminus’ composer Matthew Slater deliberately designed the episode score to echo that of 1982 horror film The Thing, he confirmed to a fan on Twitter, continuing the homage to director John Carpenter.

On the seating plan for the doomed 1963 Masquerade Ball, just above the Cawdor House reunion table was a very special guest by the name of one C. Dexter. Tell us what else we missed below!

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Read about the special poignancy of the Endeavour Series 8 finale’s last lines here.

The post Endeavour: the Series 8 Finale’s Easter Eggs and Homages appeared first on Den of Geek.

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gospelmusic · 3 years

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Catholic Daily Reading + Reflection: 5 February 2021

Readings at Mass for Friday February 5, 2021

Week day (4) Vestment: Red Today’s Rosary: Sorrowful MysterySt Agatha, V.M. memorial

FIRST READING

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever.”

A reading from the Letter to the Hebrews (Hebrews 13: 1-8)

Brethren: Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them; and those who are ill-treated, since you also are in the body. Let marriage be held in honour among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled; for God will judge the immoral and adulterous. Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, “I will never fail you nor forsake you.” Hence we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid; what can man do to me?” Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God; consider the outcome of their life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever.The word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Psalm 27: 1.3.5.8c-9abc (R. 1a)

R/. The Lord is my light and my salvation.

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; whom should I dread? R.Though an army encamp against me, my heart would not fear. Though war break out against me, even then would I trust. R.R/. The Lord is my light and my salvation.For there he keeps me safe in his shelter in the day of evil. He hides me under cover of his tent; he sets me high upon a rock. R.It is your face, O Lord, that I seek; hide not your face from me. Dismiss not your servant in anger; you have been my help. R

ALLELUIA Luke 8:15

Alleluia. Blessed are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bring forth fruit with patience. Alleluia.

GOSPEL

“John, whom I beheaded, has been raised. ” A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mark 6 : 14-29)

At that time: King Herod heard of Jesus; for his name had become known. Some said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead; that is why these powers are at work in him.” But others said, “It is Elijah.” And others said, “It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” But when Herod heard of it he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” For Herod had sent and seized John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife; because he had married her. For John said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.” And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe. When he heard him, he was much perplexed; and yet he heard him gladly. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and the leading men of Galilee. For when Herodias’ daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will grant it.” And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” And she went out, and said to her mother, “What shall I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” And she came in immediately with haste to the king, and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” And the king was exceedingly sorry; but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard and gave orders to bring his head in. He went and beheaded him in the prison, and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.The Gospel of the Lord.

Today's Reflection:

The evil of wrongdoings do not pass with their execution. Their consequences, guilt and sorrow are capable of destroying the perpetuator of the action. Herod, having ordered the execution of John due to political arrogance and blind commitment to an oath, was continually haunted by his guilt. Thus, the growing fame of Jesus was seen by him as the return from the dead of John whose head he had cut off. A lot of people are in bondage with their past sins, and are constantly perturbed by guilt. We need not remain entrapped by past iniquity when the cleansing blood of Christ is present in the sacrament of Reconciliation. God took away David’s sin and gave him a glorious throne. In Christ, you are more than the sin of your past!

Today’s Saints and Quote:

St Agatha – February 5th-To be a servant of Christ is to be truly free.

Personal Devotional

I thank You Father for teaching me the secret of true love, Help me to appreciate that all good gifts are sent from heaven above and that nothing I have that was not giving to me for the sake of my fellow brothers and sisters and my neighbours, assist me to be more conscious of the dangers of selfishness, all these and more I ask through Christ our Lord. Amen- Please ensure you express an act of kindness and love to somebody today.Meditation: Matthew 25:45 Please help spread the gospel. Share our posts on social media using the share buttons. He who wins a soul is wise. God bless you abundantly! Follow us on social media: Facebook: @hottestnaijadotcom Twitter: @wherehot Instagram: @hottest9jablog

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placestostayflorida · 5 years

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Anna Maria Island Images

Contents

June 17: 15th west island

Visiting local farms

Maria island fishing charters

Trendy st. armands circle

What a fun towel idea, Anna! I just ran to the mailbox and grabbed my aqua stripes and chocolate multi-dots (ran out and needed more for my sofa pillows and quilt) that came in the mail.

Anna Maria Island Museum Anna Maria Island O Que Fazer Maria D’Onofrio, 514-485-5018 … youbethestar.segalcentre.org. june 17: 15th west island Blues Festival, D.D.O. Park, 12010 de Salaberry Blvd., benefiting West Island Women’s Shelter, Alzheimer … Série de mistério baseada nos romances e contos de suspense de Agatha Christie estrelada por seu famoso personagem, Hercule Poirot, o ex-policial belga que

Pictures of his adventures line the cluttered walls of the … the Rod and Reel Pier or the Anna Maria Island City Pier. The latter boasts more elbow room in its restaurant, but the cramped space at …

Lifeguards also tweeted photos as dead fish lapped up along the shores of Anna Maria Island throughout the day Saturday. Informational pamphlets about red tide were being made available at lifeguard …

Living on Anna Maria Island, Florida. All about sunsets. People rush out at the magic hour, and the island is so narrow that, if you can’t see the Gulf, you can turn around to see Tampa Bay.

When she’s not at the office, she’s usually visiting local farms, gardening, taking food photos, or developing recipes in her … Located on Florida’s Gulf side, about halfway down the state, is Anna …

2203 Avenue C Anna Maria Island 2203 Avenue C # A, Bradenton Beach, FL 34217-2259 is currently not for sale. The 2,148 sq. ft. condo is a 4 bed, 3.0 bath unit. This condo was built in 2004 and last sold on 12/28/2017 for $6,214. Anna Maria Island New Restaurants Anna maria island fishing charters Fishing around anna maria island is

It’s countdown time for the Waterline Marina Resort & Beach Club on Anna Maria Island’s Holmes Beach. The Waterline will have soft opening the end of April and a grand opening on June 3, said Joe …

This week on Anna Maria Island: Wednesday, March 27, 2019. Jack Elka visits the work site in Tampa Bay with a camera and drone March 23 to document progress on the future Anna Maria City Pier.

The Pine Avenue Restoration Project has put Anna Maria Island on the ecotourism map … A dozen spots on the campus post signs and pictures to illustrate the details of the solar panels, rainwater …

Anna Maria Island O Que Fazer Maria D’Onofrio, 514-485-5018 … youbethestar.segalcentre.org. June 17: 15th West Island Blues Festival, D.D.O. Park, 12010 de Salaberry Blvd., benefiting West Island Women’s Shelter, Alzheimer … Série de mistério baseada nos romances e contos de suspense de Agatha Christie estrelada por seu famoso personagem, Hercule Poirot, o ex-policial belga que se mudou de vez para Londres

Siesta Key to Anna Maria Island (via Lido & Longboat Key) (Scroll down to the bottom the this page for map and photos.This is a fairly long ride that will bring you through Sarasota’s downtown waterfront, Lido Key and its trendy st. armands circle, a long stretch of unobstructed road on Longboat Key, and Anna Maria Island, where it is still possible to get a sense of what ‘Old Florida …

The post Anna Maria Island Images appeared first on CSITND Travel Blog.

#Museum Maria Island Anna

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st-agatha-city · 5 months

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I’m obsessively interested in this game, but I don’t have a PC or MacBook (u don’t even want to know how hard I tried to get it to work with shady Windows-emulator apps and sheer dumb hope 💀 ) SOO I was wondering if anyone has posted a play-through or anything? Or if there’s a wiki or smth where I can at least read the lore? Idk help I’m going insane 😭

Oh my gosh - I am so flattered!! There are no play-throughs YET (barring my own crummy demos of like... 2 different routes?), and there are infrequent streams from small creators, but I will absolutely be posting here if I or anyone else releases a Let's Play!

My YouTube can be found here! Animatics and voice actor previews are put here, as well as some AMV oddities and the like :) I haven't updated in quite some time because YouTube scares me now I've been busy with IRL stuff and programming, but I intend to update the channel in the future :)

My St. Agatha Play Through footage can be found here!

As for keeping up to date with fan content, projects, and lore -

My Toyhouse acts as an informal wiki. Many pages are under construction or contain outdated info, but will be updated overtime, especially if prompted to make any pages or characters a priority :) You can do that in my DMs, inbox, on Toyhouse, or via Discord (more on that in a second.)

If you want a Toyhouse code to join the site (as anyone can view, but only invited members can utilize it's services) for the purpose of leaving comments, saving things to your favorites, or for storing your own characters and lore - DM me here! I can get you one no problem :) I also make tutorials and answer questions on how to use the site, as it has a fairly steep learning curve, but is WELL worth the time if you have it to spend. I love it so so much now that I know how to use it.

People who are sixteen or older can join the Discord! It's invite only, but you are encouraged to message me for access! You can meet other fans, see WIPs, and ask questions to me or others in-the-know more directly :) I also do dev tests and we host live play throughs there!

⚠️ Heads up - the themes and subject matter of this game are discussed openly. This is a mature, but not adult game. There is no nudity or pornographic content, but there might be references to this as well as to gore, death, drug use, assault, and animal violence. As for other potential triggers - suggestive humor, references and cartoon depictions of violence and mild gore can be seen in art and fan art. Any art involving blood will be censored :) We do not tag self harm scars, but do tag open self harm wounds in art. That's another thing to keep in mind.

These are matters of importance or passing importance in the game, mostly in character backstory, they can be expected to be brought up in the server, and I don't advise joining if this might be a deal breaker for you

This server is also plural friendly, and hosts both pluralkit and tupperbox. The server is also pro-endo, and I will not be entertaining discourse on the matter.

I'll do some asking around to see if anyone has seen or has been considering doing a Let's Play! I've had some people bring that up to me before.

Thanks for sending in the ask!! And thank you for your interest 💌

#st agatha city #st agatha post office

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netmyname-blog · 6 years

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Ursuline Averell DC

New Post has been published on https://nerret.com/netmyname/ursuline-averell/ursuline-averell-dc/

Ursuline Averell DC

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#Ursuline Averell

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trip-ability · 7 years

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Visiting Malta with a disability

Great blog post from our friend Karen Cox who has gave us full permission to share with you all on her time and experiences whilst visiting Malta. Thanks Karen and a big shout out to our friends at Flying Scholarships for Disabled People because of their incredible work they gave her the confidence to be able to travel overseas for the first time with a disability, check them out!

I have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, hypermobility type, osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia. I am able to walk short distances, but have muscle weakness and joint pain throughout my body. To get around, I use my mobility scooter and a walking stick.

We booked through a local travel agent and flew with Ryanair. IMPORTANT Despite booking special assistance, Ryanair split my husband and I up, so be aware to try and make sure it doesn't happen to you. You can pay the extra to choose your seats, however do be aware that Ryanair will move you anyway, because they board special assistance from the rear and want them seated in the back rows.

Special assistance at Malta airport is very good and the staff are extremely polite and happy to help. The airport can be busy, but I felt better looked after than I have at Gatwick and Edinburgh in the past!

We booked a private transfer to our hotel as there was some concern that my scooter might not fit in the coach with all the suitcases.

Our hotel had disabled rooms and were all said to have walk in showers, but on arrival, ours didn't. However, within 5 mins, we had been moved into a room that did. They love their marble floors in Malta, which look beautiful, but are a little tricky when you wet feet and little balance! Again, within 10 minutes the hotel had sent up a couple of rugs and my husband just helped me from rug to rug when I came out of the shower.

The Paradise Bay Resort Hotel is fully disabled accessible, including the restaurant, dining room and bar. There are three outdoor pools and one indoors, all using salt water. All are wheelchair accessible, bar one, but none have hoists. Our bathroom was a good size, the toilet had a pull down hand rail and the sink was raised. The whole room was a good size and I could get my scooter onto the balcony (we left it there under cover every night). The hotel has a private beach, which is fully accessible, up to the sand at least.

Malta is a great place to visit and the people are incredibly friendly and helpful. There's a very low level of crime on the island and it does feel like there's an honesty code among bathers. We would put our valuables in our bags and leave them on the beach when we went swimming, on several occasions, and they were never touched.

The Maltese are very proud of their island, heritage, food and culture and I found them more than happy to answer questions and help where they could. I never felt intimidated or ridiculed, in fact they almost seem to revere disabled people and genuinely want to make sure we get the most out of our visit.

We hired a car, but you can get a bus ticket for around €21 which lasts for a week. Most of the buses are wheelchair accessible, but as I didn't use them, I can't vouch for their standards, only that we saw bus stops all over Malta and they are well used by tourists and locals alike. Parking is generally free, in fact I can't remember paying for parking once, although there are unofficial car park attendants who will control the traffic and expect to be tipped for their work.

Getting around the towns generally depends on the town itself. I took my scooter around Sliema, Cirkwenna (where we were), Rabat, Valletta and Mdina as well as the craft villages on both Gozo and Malta. The craft villages were easy to get around, but there wasn't always access to the shops. However, on a couple of occasions, I was told they could have got me a ramp, or there was one at the back door. St Julian's, Paceville, Sliema and Valletta are all very busy, but people are very considerate and will generally give way to a wheelchair etc.

Sliema was busy, but as long as you are patient and keep an eye out, there are plenty of crossings, most of which have lowered kerbs. There are disabled parking spaces and you can use your blue badge (you don't need the time clock). One word of caution though, parking in Malta is haphazard at the best of times, the Maltese seem to make up their own rules and whilst they always respect disabled spaces, it doesn't mean they won't park as close as possible! To access the beach area, we parked in a disabled space at the end of the main promenade (just past Il Torri restaurant) and I took my scooter along the path that has been shaped out of the rock along the beach. It was bumpy in places, but doable and would be ok for a wheelchair. We parked the scooter up and found ourselves somewhere to sit on the rocks, but there are plenty of areas you could park a wheelchair. Getting in and out of the water there is tricky. There are ladders down into the salt pools and some areas where you can walk down to the edge, but most of it is a case of working your way across the rocks, which is difficult under foot. There's hardly any tides on Malta, so what you can do is use a stick etc to walk as close to the water and leave it with your shoes, ready for when you come out. That's what we did and, once again, nobody touched our stuff - we weren't the only ones as it seems common to leave hats and sunglasses at the water's edge!

Even Rabat (Victoria) had disabled spaces close to the catacombs and in the main car park, just outside Mdina walls, where there was a really good disabled toilet (always remember to tip the attendant if there is one).

On the subject of toilets; it can be hit and miss for toilet rolls and soap, so I always had tissues and hand sanitiser with me.

Obviously, the catacombs in Rabat aren't disabled friendly; they are a two hour walking/standing tour, so well out of my ability too. The catacombs ticket office did tell us about another catacombs that you could visit (not St Agatha's) but I can't remember where. I am sure the website or the Rabat/Mdina tourist information offices could help.

Although only residents are allowed to drive in Mdina there are two disabled parking spaces in the city. If you want to park inside the walls, you simply contact the local council the day before and give them your registration number. This will make sure you don't get a fine when the police camera photographs you on your way in.

If you want to travel to Gozo, contact the ferry terminal the day before and let them know, so they can make sure you are looked after. We didn't know about that, but they were still able to make sure we were parked next to the lift. The ferries go every 45 mins until quite late and if you show your blue badge, you will get a discount. The craft village on Gozo is accessible, if you are willing to be patient for the lowered kerbs, although some of the shops are small and didn't have ramps but I am sure the shop owners would come out and show you their wares. We drove down to Ramla Bay beach, parked in the disabled space and used the wooden walkway all the way down to the beach. I left my mobility scooter on the end of the walkway and we sat nearby. Again, not once was my scooter touched. We also took a boat around the caves from the inland sea at Dwejra. Again, we left the scooter, this time next to an ice-cream van, and it wasn't touched or moved. The boat crews were so helpful, getting me in and out of the boat but with no back rest it was tricky to keep my balance. Thankfully, my husband was able to sit with his arm behind me for some support. I didn't see any disabled toilets there.

As most places have outside seating, eating out isn't an issue, although the toilets may be upstairs, so that's worth checking before you settle on a venue. Any place we ate at were more than happy to have my mobility scooter parked at their door and the waiters would often even help me to my seat. They really couldn't do enough for us.

Valletta is the European City of Culture for 2018, so there was a lot of building work going on and it was a bit chaotic. We didn't stay long or travel around it much as we arrived late in the day for an evening meal. Personally, we preferred Mdina to look around as it was quieter.

We took a boat trip around the Blue Grotto but again there was no back support on the boat. I do think though, that if anyone was determined to go, you could ask about getting a wheelchair on a special boat. It's always worth asking! I took my scooter right down to pier, but I imagine it would be very hard work to push a wheelchair back up. You can get a buggy lift for €1 per person and you may well be able to fold a wheelchair on there to get down the final slipway.

Blue Lagoon is not disabled friendly at all. I took my stick and struggled with my footing and it's VERY busy! Saying that, when we were waiting for our boat back, I needed to sit down and they rushed to sort me a chair. You can get large boat tours there, but then even getting off is difficult, but you could perhaps organise something privately if you really wanted to swim there.

If a sandy beach holiday is your idea of heaven, then Malta is probably not for you. Sand is at a premium and any beach with sand is generally overcrowded and parking is difficult. At Golden Sands they have to park over a mile away and walk to the beach, which they are more than willing to do! Probably best to avoid weekends as they are much busier because the locals enjoy their beach time too.

I would happily go back to Malta, but next time I would have more awareness of how well they cater for disabled people and plan ahead.

#Travel Disability Holiday Disabled Blog Blogpost Malta Accessible Accessibility Abletodoit Wheelchair Tourism Advice Review

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