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breakingbranchesbella · 2 days

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Self-Indulgence; A Criminal Minds Multi-Fandom Fic.

Also found on Wattpad, Quotev, and Ao3 under the name BreakingBranches

Warnings: violence, gore, the usual criminal minds episode warnings.

Word Count: 14k in total, split into two parts due to tumblr’s restrictions.

CHAPTER 2 {PART 1}- I Am Not As Strong As I Pretend

Season 1. Episode 16. The Tribe

"Here."

Cassie looked down at the torn off edge of a notecard. It had chicken scratch on it. A second, more in-depth glance offered the insight that it was not, in fact, hieroglyphics, but instead a series of numbers.

"What?"

"It's... a phone number... ever heard of those?"

"I'm not that archaic. Why?"

Morgan's right corner of his bottom lip protruded for a moment. He'd suck the top part between his teeth and bite down. He let it go with an exasperated sigh.

"We all need to have each other's numbers eventually, call it a safety precaution."

"Alright, then eventually." She'd push the paper back towards him. Dark hands raised in disinterest. "Keep it." Derek urged. He wasn't going to give her a chance to refuse him directly, and with a swift turn he was gone towards some other end of the parking garage.

Cassie had half a mind to throw it away. Not because she harbored any ill intentions towards Morgan. Mostly the opposite, she just didn't deem it necessary. She hardly answered her phone. Didn't like it all that much. The countless missed calls and unread messages that clogged the tiny blue screen were a testament to that nature.

Though, she weighed the option of telling him she had blatantly thrown out the piece of paper when it came time for all numbers to be exchanged. Which wasn't high on her want-to-do list, so she'd keep it. Stuff it in the back back pocket of dark blue jeans and call it a day.

The parking garage being so full wasn't surprising, three government buildings sat just a few yards away, what was surprising was the fact she was staying. Actually, she was walking towards her car. It had a weird ring to it. It wasn't a rental, or from work. Her car. Technically someone else's given to her. Cassie fought off the urge to spend a few more moments meandering the cold and green-hued structure. She knew where the car was, she didn't want to go home yet.

Yeah, she had one of those too now. A home, a car, pretty soon she'd be registered as a functioning member of society. What a horrible feeling, really. Dark boots kicked up loose concrete just outside the car's driver's side door. The black forester wasn't her style. It stood out too much in her opinion. She hadn't peeled the decals off of the back window. It had been eight months. She should do that.

She got in the car anyways and didn't think about it for the next two weeks.

The drive wasn't too far, only thirty minutes if you pretended to avoid traffic. Thirty-five if you didn't. Cassie lived in the suburbs of a neighboring city with a white picket fence and a perfectly mundane neighborhood. The house was blue with white accents and a brown roof. The lawn was taken care of, freshly mowed by some teenage boy looking to fund his future mustang. Cass didn't know how far he'd get with that, especially as she watched a gaggle of boys his age rush down the dark streets with bags full of convenience store items.

The garage had two tall metal shelves on either side. Clutter covered every inch of open space. Holiday decorations, yard work tools, paint supplies, and more that was covered by the former. The forester slowed to a stop, then relaxed forward and jolted her in her seat. The nylon seats didn't offer much cushioning.

Above her head was a blinding white light with a motion sensor on the fritz. It blinked on and off, and then on again. The door to the garage led to the washing room, and from there the kitchen. Cold white and black quartz was accompanied by walnut cabinets. Unlike the garage, the rest of the home lacked any sort of decoration. Instead of a couch she had a chair, and instead of a grand dining table, she had one found off the side of the road. The decor didn't match the rest of the home. Then again, neither did Cassie.

All that was left out besides necessities were a few photographs on tall coffee table. She'd breeze her tan fingers past them every-time she walked past. The first few photos featured her and a group, though off to the side there was a handful of photos that were different from the others. The people in these pictures weren't wearing any sort of uniform. They were professionally taken at some park. A man, his wife, and their two children. A young girl, and a toddler. Those four individuals were featured in various poses, all still professionally taken. Some even in this home.

She couldn't look at them for too long. She stepped around the table and moved towards the chair. She slumped down on it, her elbow rubbed against fabric that was ripping. It would last a few more months before her aimless movements had completely destroyed it. That was a problem for later. Right now she just wanted to—

Beep.

Do nothing.

Beep.

The same three numbers had been messaging her all day. Two of them had contact names, the third didn't. Booth, González, and an 800 number. She still wouldn't respond.

Cassie was obviously full of great ideas, which is why she chose not to reach out to those wondering about her, and call a different number. She knew it by heart, dialing it instead of searching through a contact list.

"Hello?"

"Gabriel—"

"Cassie? Jesus... it's almost ten, I just put the kids to sleep."

"..."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Im fine. I just... I haven't found anything but..."

"I know, you miss her. But you can't call this late, not unless it's important. You promise you're okay?"

"I'm fine."

"The house treating you okay?"

"Just fine."

"Good. Then you have a roof over your head, and you say you're fine so I'm going to believe you. Im going to hang up now, ok? I have work tomorrow. I hope you do too."

"Wait. They're both asleep?"

"I'm sorry Cassie. I really think it would be better if you spoke to someone else about this. I know a few good therapists in the area, Talia used to go all the time. It really helped her."

"..."

"She'd want you to move on, you know. It's been almost a year now. You deserve to live too, and I deserve sleep at a reasonable hour. Call me if you need something, an emergency. Otherwise, please, don't."

"Alright, I'm sorry, I just wanted to—"

The line went dead. A short buzz sounded in her ear, and then nothing. He had a point about the time, but nothing else really registered. More the therapy than the no calling policy. She could listen to instructions, she had been doing that for years. Yet the idea of not getting to speak to the last connection to Talia hurt. It hurt more than she could ever begin to explain. Emotions were never a strong suit, even worse so with the ones she couldn't control. It was like a pit in her stomach, akin to the feeling of nausea. She'd want to vomit, and nothing would be there. No remedy made the feeling go away.

Slowly, she'd look around the mostly empty house. It was the opposite of a remedy, it made the feeling that much worse. That's why Gabriel hadn't fought Talia's will, he was feeling the same melancholic air that she was. Did most twenty-five year olds write a will? Probably, probably not, she didn't know.

Reid most likely did. Or something along those lines. He'd have some statistic that felt made up ready to fire the moment something related back to it. That line of thinking led her to rifling through her jeans pocket and pulling out the crinkled piece of paper. She read the number off twice before dialing it.

What was she even doing?

"Derek?"

"Hey— oh?"

"Cassandra, Lorayne, from earlier."

"Yeah I figured that out."

She'd sit up straight in the chair, biting the bottom left corner of her cheek.

"Sorry."

"Huh? No, you're all good sweetheart. I just didn't expect you to call so soon."

"Don't call me sweetheart."

"Babygirl?"

"I'm hanging up now."

"Wait wait, I'll stop. Scout's honor."

"Good."

Cassie looked around the room again, this time she'd pick the phone up and head over to the fridge. She held the phone against her ear, not saying anything. Just breathing softly against the electronic device. It was late, but she was hungry all the same. Big girls needed big meals, or something like that. Talia always used to say it when she went on her breaks.

"Well?"

"You're the one who called me. Did you need something?"

"No."

"Mysterious, I like that."

"Please don't."

"Alright alright, but seriously, you ok?"

"I... yeah, no, I'm fine. Just," There was a sandwich wrapped in plastic. With a swift motion she pulled it out and tossed it beside her onto the counter. Grabbing a few other items, she continued, "A desperate single woman alone on a Sunday night."

"Desperate and single?"

"No. I was joking."

"I picked up on that."

"Oh."

"I'm sure some of it is accurate though."

"Which part?"

"Definitely single."

"Ouch."

"You said it, not me."

"I didn't expect hearing it to hurt as much."

"Don't beat yourself up, we could start a support group."

"For?"

"Desperate single agents."

"But Garcia."

"Nah, she's too good for me. She deserves someone a little more reliable."

"I'm glad that's your excuse."

Cassie fought a frown off at his comment. Then she realized nobody was there in the big empty house to see her, so she stopped fighting.

"I'm glad that you're glad."

"Good."

Morgan let out a grunt. Cass' brows furrowed upon hearing it. A cough caught in her throat as she tried to question him.

"Are you—"

"Fine, just didn't finish the paperwork I was supposed to today."

"Not fun."

"No, definitely not."

"If I'm distracting you I can..."

"It's good you called me. I have your number now, can't throw mine away."

"I wasn't going to."

"I'm sure."

"Maybe I thought about it."

"Heartbroken."

"Apologies."

"You can make it up to me."

"How?"

She had finished her monster of a meal. Frankenstein would be proud, and then possibly disappointed she was letting pickles touch the mayonnaise.

"Tell me a little about yourself."

"Like?"

"Whatever comes to mind."

"I like..." Green eyes were yet again surveying the room. "Home ownership."

"Home ownership?"

She thought about Talia.

"And sightseeing."

"Home ownership and sightseeing. I would have never guessed."

"I lied."

"Which part?"

"Both."

"And here I was getting the idea of you hiking through the woods in my head. Maybe your hobby is lying."

"Something like that."

"Nothing else comes to mind?"

Even if sharing parts of herself had never been easy, she almost wished she would have had something to hide now. But there was nothing. Not one thing she could use to define her interests. Work, work, more work, and an obscene amount of tragedy. Greasy breakfast diners, protein bars, beaten down chairs. Those weren't great choices.

"What about you?"

"I enjoy hockey. And Kurt Vonnegut."

"Pearls before swine?"

"Mother night."

"Grim."

"Your choice isn't much better."

"Not much of a reader. I'm trying to get better about it."

"Self-improvement is good."

"You think?"

"That's what it means, no?"

She didn't answer.

"Jeez. Usually my late night calls are less entertaining but..."

"You don't mean that."

"Maybe."

"But it's late, and you should go. Because we both have work."

"When you put it like that, I guess we should."

"Were you expecting anything else?"

"Honesty?"

"The supposed best policy."

"Then, no. I wasn't."

Her face burned.

"Goodnight Morgan."

"Hey— hey, it was nice talking to you. Goodnight Lorayne."

She decided to be the one to hang up this time. Cassie wasn't sure she could handle the sting of the dropped tone a second time that night.

————————————

Getting up early wasn't unusual for Cassie. The normal nine to five had never been part of her skill set. She thrived off of the freeing feeling of absolutely nobody being around at the odd hours of the morning. Except in Quantico there was always somebody. A lot of somebodies to be particular. She had only been through the office once, but memorizing it hadn't been an issue.

Making her way through the glass doors she noticed Elle and Garcia were doing anything but talking to each other. They were staring at someone else.

She didn't get it.

Crossing her arms and standing next to them, she'd tilt her head to the side. "What is—?"

"Hi, Sean, I'm looking for—"

Good. She wasn't the only one getting cut off. Though the fact that it was Morgan didn't make her feel much better. He wrapped around the three women and outstretched his hand towards 'Sean.'

"Derek, and I'm guessing you're looking for your brother?"

The blonde who had just interrupted her, and subsequently received immediate karma walked off with Derek towards Hotchner's office. Elle turned to the two of them. "That's Hotch's brother?"

"Maybe he's adopted?"

Cassie looked to the side, as if there was supposed to be some sort of camera. A gag reel waiting for her. She still didn't get it.

"Why?"

Elle smiled, then hid it between tightly pursed lips. She blinked a few times. "Well, you see Hotch is... textbook agent and his brother..."

"—A forbidden siren with luscious blonde locks."

"That."

She rolled her eyes in disinterest. It clicked. No further questions or comments needed. Still Garcia bit the tip of a plastic pen between her teeth and snarled in his direction. Sadly the only person it caught the attention of was JJ. Her right eyebrow sat lower than the left, which would raise at an arch. "What are you three doing?" And instead of explaining anything, the BAU had to engage in the oddest morning ritual Cass had ever seen. The tall brunette took JJ by the wrist and led her over to her desk. Leaving Garcia and Cassie to follow along like lost puppies. The four crowded around the half cubicle and watch as Sean finally emerged from Aaron's office.

"Hotchner's brother."

JJ's gaze bounced between the three of them, and then back to Sean as he stormed off in a huff.

"I didn't see it before, now I do." Hotch's attention left his brother and found the four women unabashedly staring. JJ creased her fingers under her chin. She'd slip away from the group, only to return with a stack of Manila folders. Cassie and Elle were both handed one, the latter ushered for Cass to follow her towards a meeting room beside Hotchner's office. A moment later Gideon, Reid, Morgan, and Hotch joined them. JJ filed in behind and closed the door halfway. She passed out the remaining folders as she spoke. "Five dead, all from Mesa University, New Mexico. No sign of theft or sexual assault."

The table was small, almost everyone's elbows narrowly missed one another as they sifted through the information. The sun was finally starting to rise, it glared in through the side of the building. Morgan raised a hand instinctively as the bright hues shone through. "There's not many defensive wounds. And one of them was impaled on a six foot pole." Derek's voice cracked at the end of his first statement, more of a question than not.

"Why would you want to torture five college freshman?" Elle folded a page behind another and skimmed over the new one. The scrawny kid tossed his head sideways in an attempt to realign a stray strand of hair. He looked up and met Cassie's half smile. He coughed, then found interest back in his paper. "There's no way one single unsub could have had this much control over this many people."

"More than two?" Greenaway responded.

Pushing up his glasses, Gideon would respond. "More like a pack."

"And that is?" JJ looked around, her hands between her cloth covered knees. Like an eager student in a silent classroom Cassie found herself interjecting. The epiphany of knowing the terminology properly filled her with a sense of pride, then as she was speaking, disappointment in herself. If her old unit could see her now, using the words that she was, they'd have her head on a spike. Playfully, of course. Hopefully. Maybe.

"It's three or more that kill in unison, as it is in nature. Their survival is dependent on their hunt. Essentially, the killing is what keeps them together."

"And they stay together until they're stopped."

Nobody spoke up after Gideon for a long time, they were all still processing the case. It was grizzly, a little anachronistic. Usually torture fanatics followed methods employed by the English and eastern cultures. This was different.

It wasn't long before the group was packing up and heading out. Cassie still wasn't used to the Jet. She settled into a white leathered seat towards the back. It was facing the walkway of the plane. She guessed it would be a four to six hour flight, somewhere in between those times. Which meant she had ample room for conversation.

This wasn't necessarily a good thing.

Reid, Gideon, and Elle were crowded around the few seats that were accompanied by a table instead of just open leg room. They chattered amongst themselves, sometimes about the case, sometimes not. Hotch chose to sit across from her. The single section seat wasn't pointed towards her, but he'd turn to face her anyways.

"How long has it been?"

Cassie opened her mouth to speak, then closed it as she thought more intensely. She'd bit her bottom lip, thinking about events that happened before and after, creating a timeline of the good and bad to pinpoint an actual date. "Two... no. Yes, two years?"

"Two sounds about right."

"You haven't changed."

"You have."

She looked to the side, towards the three still talking. JJ and Morgan were asleep. "Is that a bad thing?" Her gaze still lingered on the back of Reid's head. He was going on a tangent now. Elle was fact-checking him. She knew he was going to be right either way.

"I think it is."

"I hope you're right."

Cassie leaned back, slowly peeling her head away and looking towards Hotch. His expression sympathetic. She'd curl inward instinctively, kicking off her shoes and pulling her knees as close as she could get to her chest. She knew what was coming next.

"Don't be."

Aaron cocked his head.

"What?"

"Sorry. Don't be sorry. Please."

"Alright. Then I'm not."

"It happens."

His chest would rise and fall with slow, calm breaths. "It happens?"

"It's the line of work we chose. If it didn't happen then, it was likely to happen another time. That's life."

"You're right."

"I know."

"Good talk Lorayne."

Any harder now and she'd puncture the soft flesh of her mouth.

"I'm sorry. I appreciate it, I do, but I just don't want to hear it anymore."

"I'm not mad."

"I don't care if you are, I'm just explaining myself."

"We don't have to keep talking about it."

"Please."

She tiptoed around the edge of desperation. Narrowly missing the tone that threatened to tug at her voice. It was time to work, not think about what had and what could have been.

————————————

Despite the earlier conversation, Cassie still went with Hotch, Reid, and Gideon to the crime scene first. She didn't have the luxury of mulling over her feelings beyond the few hours given to her. It was time to work, no other way around it. She had spent her formative years adhering to a certain standard of professionalism. Still, mistakes were made. They were going to repeat themselves one day. For now, she'd swallow whatever lumped in her throat and move on.

There was another rental van waiting for them. Same as they always were.

The steely black vehicle pulled parallel to the concrete just before the house seen in the photos. Yellow tape was tied in a loose box around the property. Two brown police cars sat parked, a few detectives and local cops were talking outside. Aaron tucked the plastic end of his sunglasses behind his ear and wasted no time in addressing the sheriff.

"Agent Hotchner, Reid, Gideon, Lorayne."

"Is this all?" The sherif peered over Hotch's shoulder towards the van. Nobody else was coming. Aaron didn't miss a beat.

"The other agents are at the station house checking out the victims files. What has forensics come back with?"

The older man rubbed the knuckle of his pointer finger against his nose in a sweeping motion twice before answering. "CSU went through trace evidence and prints, they think looking at the footprints would be a waste with all of the workmen coming through here. Follow me." He pulled one end of the long line of tape up so the team could walk under it into the house.

Cassie waited, she was staring towards the ground. Gideon caught her lapse in pace. "Something the matter?"

She shouldn't have been as nervous as she was. Well, she didn't feel all that nervous, it was more of a feeling of displacement. But that word felt too emotional for her liking. So she'd pretend it was nerves. Just nervous, not worried about what all she should be contributing to the team. Cassie would find her grove soon. What she really wanted to do was call the sheriff inane for not checking for footprints anyways.

Instead, like the charming young woman she was, she'd shake her head and follow after the other men. Her expression didn't really read charming, though, more annoyed.

The house was practically empty besides a few tables here, some blood splatters there. What was interesting was the mess, or lack thereof. In the photos the bodies had been skinned, yet the floor got away with only a handful of stains. Reid and Hotch picked up on it too, the scrawnier of the duo flipped through some of the photos with a fervor. Cass craned her neck over his shoulder and pointed her heels upwards. He was flipping too fast for her to concentrate on just one thing.

Finally he stopped skimming through them and looked back to her. His face changed. "Look at this." He held one of the gore filled pictures towards her. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to be looking at in particular. He pursed his lips at her confusion and spoke loud enough for everyone to hear his revelation. "Whoever did this purposefully avoided cutting the skin at the wrist and the throat. He was avoiding where the veins and arteries are closest to the surface."

It was the sheriff's turn to be confused. Cassie interjected. "They weren't supposed to bleed out, the intention was skinning them alive."

It wasn't just a brutal way of murder, it was a brutal way of torture. The sheriff flinched at the idea and shook his head. Again he'd brush the top of his nose with his knuckle. His head was down as he gestured towards the next room. Inside were bear cans, bottles, makeshift party games. Two sleeping bags, and one upstairs.

"Not the type of party to bring a fifth wheel to."

"It's unlikely that they were a fifth wheel. It's possible there was a third girl here." Gideon looked from Cassie to the Sheriff. Who looked to Hotch when he picked up where the former two had left off.

"Have your deputies canvas the area, see if anyone saw the other girl with them."

He'd nod and take a step towards the sliding glass doors. "There's one more thing you should see."

The group traveled out towards what was a dust filled backyard. A large metal spike sat covered in dried blood. Reid took a step towards it, then another one back. Cassie brushed past him and circled the thing. "He was alive when they impaled him, just like the others." The brunette's nose creased.

"This is going to sound strange, but, the way that these victims were flayed alive and- and mutilated, impaled, they're all war rituals that the Native Americans used."

"That ring any bell?" Hotch had taken off his glasses. Cassie preferred it this way. She could follow his eyes properly.

"It does. I mean, look around you, everything we're walking on is Apache land. This basin is a sacred burial ground. As I understand it, it was the sight of a handful of her massacres."

"So you're saying this development is on their land?"

The sherif looked back at Hotch. "It was their land. But they didn't want to build on it, so the town ended up seizing it."

Cassie crossed her arms. A few months ago the Supreme Court had ruled that cities could now seize private land for development. A lot of people were angry, not just Native Americans. She had nothing besides a gut feeling of different rational. She understood the BAU tried to think like their unsubs, and she was trying it too. But if she was them, murdering five college students wasn't how you get your point across. Maybe it was someone from the reservation, but there had to have been something else. A piece of information they hadn't gotten yet. A better reasoning for torture.

If it were her she'd set a building on fire. Not kill drunk teens.

"Have there been any violent outbursts on the reservations part?" Gideon leaned back on his heels and flicked his stack of photos through the air. In response the sherif only shook his head. He was looking down at his feet again.

"Anybody on the reservation you think is capable of this?"

"I wouldn't know, it's federal jurisdiction."

The lines of Gideon's face seemed more prominent. Maybe the heat was getting to him. The bottom part of his nose twitched.

"Sounds like that's where we need to go."

He'd make his way back through the sliding glass door and towards the front of the house. The Sherif followed soon after. Hotch nodded towards Cass and Reid, who were both evidently distracted with something else. Cassie was still debating the possibility of a reservationist and Reid was too busy staring at the bloodied spike.

"You two," they both turned. "Get our girl on the line, see what she can find."

Hotch was following Gideon, and Reid was following Hotch. Cassie had nobody's number besides Morgan, hadn't been given the chance to get any yet. So she'd just meander behind the brown haired man as he spoke to Garcia on the phone. He'd given her a rundown, any Apache on the reservation who fit the profile of a right's activist. A moment later Reid handed the phone to Hotch. A few more seconds went by before Hotch turned to the sheriff. "You familiar with Blackwolf?"

"He's been in a bit of trouble related to his activism, yeah, nothing's ever been violent though. And certainly not around here."

"Should we call the reservation police to alert them anyways?"

The sherif got an odd look in his eye. He'd turn his head, swap the flesh of his cheek back and forth before his mouth opened with a click. "I don't think that's a good idea. Blackwolf is the reservation police."

Looks were exchanged, but this was nothing new to any of them. Or at least it wasn't to Cassie, and she hoped the others were in the same boat. Military was a whole different world. A lawless land that found it couldn't run without those laws. So they'd appoint new people to new positions, the only problem was the police there weren't being asked to detain regular citizens. They were being asked to arrest soldiers. Trained killers. For their country, of course, but that didn't mean those skills couldn't be used elsewhere. From a first day private to a Navy SEAL, Cass had seen it all. Those guys were good, she had to learn to be better. Maybe not stronger, but smarter.

The black van tumbled down the gravel road that filtered into dirt. Gideon sat diagonally to her, they locked eyes through the rear view mirror. She was getting a little tired of this. "You don't think it was him?"

All eyes were on her now, even Hotchner made the attempt to look back through the mirror. Though his attention was mostly on getting them from point A to point B without any casualties.

"Did I say that?"

"No, but you don't look very confident."

She didn't say anything to that. The vehicle bounced against the lack of road. It was almost as jarring as the sounds the van made throughout the trip. It narrowly pulled through an open grated fence. There were no parking spaces, but stopping before the woman standing and watching them seemed appropriate in some people's eyes. The sheriff's busted car rolled to a stop alongside their own.

"This is Jane Bear, Jane, these are FBI agents. Gideon, Hotchner, Reid, Lorayne." Cassie shook her hand last, it was cold, well taken care of. "Miss Bear is the principal of the reservation school here and the president of the tribal council." Busy.

Cass wasn't the only one thinking it. At least she had the decency, or something else, to keep her mouth shut. There was a clear standoffish nature about her. Not that she was rude, or that she didn't have any right. Cass could empathize with something being taken from you. In this case it wasn't just freedom, she couldn't extend her understanding beyond that. She wasn't going to try. It was a shitty situation. Shitty government. And yet she was here like a lapdog on a leash, as per usual.

"Where's John, Bear?" He rested his hands on his hips. Like a lightbulb turning on, it clicked for her. "I'm sorry— is this about the Terra Mesa killings?"

"They just want to talk to him Jane."

"Blackwolf has done more to help this place than anyone, he wouldn't jeopardize that. Jim, you've called him countless times to find lost hikers. He's not a violent man."

"No, but he'd defend his people if he felt he needed to."

"And that relates to Terra Mesa how?"

Hotchner cleared his throat and took a half step closer. "If John considers the development an attack on Apache land, then..." Jane pursed her lips and turned on the heel of her beaten boots.

"Those developers have paid people a lot of money to move. With so many gone we can barely fill a single class."

Who they could only assume was Blackwolf stood in front of an old green chalkboard. The class was full, but the students looked to be a fair bit older. She'd guess the younger students were more dispersed between classes. The current subject was history, there were scribbled dates on the board and maps hung over every free inch. She heard someone whisper beside her, and there stood Reid mouthing the answer to every question. Until he was given the opportunity to answer someone else's question. Hotch shot him a dirty look. He got the memo after that.

"John, I'll take over." Jane's brows raised as she quickly attempted to deescalate the rising tension. He'd make no attempt to hide the large knife he pulled from the desk drawer as he followed the group outside.

It was Gideon's turn to do the introductions for everyone. Except there were no firm handshakes or pointing this time. Just a harsh puff of air through his nostrils and an attempt at reading them. "You look like a college professor. You look like his student. You, well you look FBI. But she's not." He paused, tilted the end of his knife towards her. "Military." She'd sat through her fair share of distaste in her profession. It came with the territory. No reason to argue over it.

"We're with the Behavioral Analysis Unit."

"Then you ought to know better."

Hotchner squared his stance. "How do you figure?"

"We don't massacre. You two do, your government."

"Mr. Blackwolf,"

Cass frowned, she grabbed the stack of photos she had in her bag. Pressing them into his hands roughly, she'd swing the pack over her shoulder. "What am I supposed to do with these?"

Gideon attempted to play damage control. "You're an expert in Native American customs. We want your opinion."

He'd flick through the photos, his eyes widening ever so slightly. He tried to hand them back to Cassie, but she crossed her arms and stared blankly instead of taking them back. "I need to see the sight, I don't make opinions off of pictures." Which was a relatively privileged way of thinking, but nobody had the capacity to argue with him.

From one place to another, they were back at the house. Blackwolf was intent on checking the grounds outside. Maybe he wasn't entirely dense.

He proved her right, and then wrong a moment later. Reid had gotten curious, and poked the wolf.

"Why don't you carry a gun?"

"Twenty-one feet."

"Excuse me?"

"Ask your friends, they're heavy-handed."

Hotch smoothed his hair under the end of his glasses. "The minimum distance an attacker with a knife can travel before someone with a firearm can react."

Which was correct. What wasn't was solely relying on that fact. Cass didn't like the statements always and never, there was always a sometimes. But her sometimes and Blackwolf's were different. He'd rather run, she'd rather aim to kill. Difference in reasoning she supposed. Didn't make her like him anymore. Her opinion was middle ground. Better than most people got.

Being egotistical wasn't something that was a required personality trait for the FBI, even if most agents were. Cass bit back the smile when Blackwolf made his first stop the back of the home, and subsequently the dirt beneath their feet. He looked between the photos and the scenery and then stood back up.

"They used war rituals, sure, but not solely Apache rituals. Not one tribe ever used all of these techniques, at least not like this. They'd know that if they were Indians."

He walked in a slow circle.

"There was a sixth woman here. She was ambushed, there. At least two sets of footprints. Six back there."

"You're saying there were eight?"

"Maybe more."

Gideon cut in, "Eight perpetrators, one hostage."

————————————

The station house lighting was dark, dreary. There wasn't much in the way of legibility of the papers taped to cork boards that littered the short hallways. The BAU had been a board that moved and half the space of a cramped office. An unhappy officer was pushed out to an open desk, however the briefing seemed to redirect that anger elsewhere.

She'd prepare herself for the 'who's it' portion of their conversation. Reid started, he spoke of their inability to understand practical Apache culture. Their knowledge of it was important, but it wasn't that of a native's. More someone staring into a room without ever hearing the words spoken. Morgan took over afterwards, covering the topic of surrendered identities in these groups. Whether they followed religious, racist, or political ideologies, they didn't think of themselves as individuals, but as parts of a 'greater' whole. Hotchner and Elle took turns. They put faces to names, referencing other groups with similar motifs and behaviors. Kidnapping was the hill they were dying on, it's what made it different. Whoever the girl was had been important enough to keep. Slaughter wasn't their only goal, which meant it could have been a sign of domestic terrorism.

The earlier, disgruntled cop turned his nose up at the profile. "These are Indians we're talking about though, right?"

Cassie's imagination came and went in waves. Currently she found herself putting Blackwolf's head on a small slider of like to dislike. He was going up a little more, she was able to appreciate how he shut the other man down.

The conversation ended shortly thereafter. The profile was finished. Nobody had anything else to add. There just wasn't enough evidence to immediately point fingers. And where they had, had already been ruled out. Reid and Morgan stared towards the moveable board, photos and papers littered the entire expanse. Cassie thought about following the other four members of the group into the office besides their impermanent one.

"Hey."

She no longer thought about following them. Her brows curved upwards as she met Morgan's gaze. The other occupant of the room wasn't paying attention. Cassie took tentative steps forward, closing the gap so she could lower her voice. Someone else hearing the ensuing conversation would 'knock her street cred'. That's what she told herself.

"Hey."

"How was it?"

"I wanted to apologize—"

They had both spoken at the same time. Awkwardly she clasped her lips shut and looked towards the single office desk in the room.

"Apologize?"

"Don't worry about it, I don't want to anymore."

Derek laughed. She felt childish. In another life she wouldn't have cared. That was still this life, she should be doing better. As though a switch were flipped she crossed her arms and hardened her expression. Not angry, just apathetic.

"It was fine, earlier, I think we shared the most important pieces with the 'class'. Well, beyond Blackwolf being a caricature."

"Of?"

"I'm not sure yet. Something. You should know."

"I get what you mean."

They both let out short, heavy breaths.

"Well?"

"Nothing just wanted to ask you about it."

Her eyelids creased. Reid was only just now paying attention to their conversation. Which was sign enough for her to stop talking. Thankfully, a second later JJ peered around the corner and informed them they may have a suspect. Roy Minton, founder of what he called the American Defense Unit. In short, racist fueled militia. Not a very well kept secret. Not an uncommon group capable of committing murder in the way they had. The ADU sounded a lot like the Bible that some military men read. Whatever had been beaten into their heads made them think they were deserving of the end all be all on how this country should be run. If they needed to do that through force, they'd find a way. Nine times out of ten she ended up arresting them for their ideologies taking them too far out of the normal standards of society. Hatred bred fear, and fear breeds violence. The cycle never stopped. Not here.

Not long after and Minton was being lead through the various hallways towards, well, just another office. They didn't have a free interrogation room on hand. So he was shoved in there with Hotch. Who requested Morgan join him. It was a little brazen, a little unprofessional, but Cassie pushed her way through the door right behind the latter. She got a quick look, but nobody seemed to tell her to leave. Interrogations were her thing. Technically, everything was her thing because it had to be. She was still trying to relearn that she could trust her team.

Derek pulled a free chair and swung it around on one leg until it was facing away from Minton. His posture tensed up for a moment. He avoided eye contact with Morgan at first. Only seemed to feel that Hotchner was the person worth speaking to.

"Mr. Minton, do you have any idea who might be behind the Terra Mesa killings?"

He lulled his head to the side, and loosened up a little. "The Indians have a long history of violent outbursts. You know the Apache used to kill white settlers. Put their heads on pikes."

"That was a long time ago Mr. Minton."

"No. That was the other night. They killed those college kids, I'd know, my family has been dealing with those Indians for a hundred and fifty years."

Morgan's hands clasped around the back of his chair. He leaned against the cool leather rim of the seat. "That rhetoric is the type of thing people use to justify their own violence."

He was abashed, unnerved by having to speak to Derek. He couldn't make eye contact. "We're fighting them in court, not in someone's backyard."

"You don't usually need twice as many guns as your men for a court case." Cass' nostrils flared as she let the right part of her hip lean against the desk besides Aaron. Her arms crossed under her chest.

"Exercising our constitutional right."

She'd scoff, maybe it was a laugh.

"It's our right to protect ourselves, our home."

"You're paranoid."

"Not in this day and age."

Which was as paranoid as it could get. Indians weren't his biggest worry. Or they shouldn't have been. Cassie's laugh signaled to Hotchner to talk over. The rest of the interrogation was short. A few questions about his members, a few questions about the lawsuit. They'd let it go after that.

The group gathered in the small office, Aaron called the sheriff in to join them. Cassie pressed tan palms to the rough wood of the desk and push herself up until she was sitting on the edge of it. Elle and Morgan spoke loudly back and forth. They shared similar views on the type of person Minton was. However, from what they had learned he wasn't shaping up to be a great suspect either. He was a racist, sure, but he was mostly using it as a stepping stool. He was money hungry, but money required labor and labor required a purpose. Mob mentality. He'd use it to get what he wanted. This made him less likely to commit the acts himself, and more likely that it was small group of people he riled up.

"Have some of your men put Roy under surveillance."

Gideon shoved his hands in his pockets.

"You really think it's him?"

"No, but he's likely to lead us to whoever it is."

The sheriff didn't get to ask any more questions. A light ringing tone sounded from Morgan's pocket. He pulled the device out and flipped it open. Holding up his left pointer finger he murmured 'Garcia.' "What do you got for me?" Silence, then a compliment. He closed the phone and nodded a few times. "Garcia thinks she found our sixth victim. Fingerprints match up." He slid the phone back into his pocket and moved behind the desk Cassie was sitting on. "Ingrid Greisen." It seemed whatever they were looking at was the full ID of the young woman. Which she doubted was actually in the county's system, so Garcia must have sent it over. She turned slightly so that she could watch the others watch the screen. Hotchner leaned over Derek and pointed. "There's the address. Elle, JJ, Morgan, let's go." Which meant the rest were supposed to sit here and mull over invisible evidence. Not her preferred method of solving cases.

It was getting late after that. The sun was setting around eight, but Cassie chose to stay anyway. There were a few officers who went in and out. She watched them, preferring a corner of the wide open space instead of squeezing into the small office. Someone had lent her a laptop, which she was grateful for. And then not so much when she opened the first tab. In hindsight, she shouldn't have been so optimistic. She closed out of a few things and tried to shake the images from her head. Not as bad as they could have been, but she didn't need to see in-depth advertisements for hair plugs.

Being a new member left her with little say, or at least she deemed it that way. Where she was from the newbie always caught the most flack. Here wasn't too awful, she was treated with respect.

There was still a divide, however. Whether it be from worldview or something else. The team was close. She was trying, and failing, to not find any attachments here. So, instead of moping around any longer over the disconnect, she put her feeble internet skills to work. Logically in a 'tight-knit' community like this, there were bound to be groups beyond the ADU. Because tight-knit didn't exactly mean friendly, it simply meant everyone else was in each other's business. There were online forums, groups, meetings at local libraries and mom and pop shops everywhere nowadays. If someone had an opinion, someone else had to disagree. But it couldn't just be one voice, they had to prove that the fact they were disagreeing was important. So they'd make fliers, MySpace posts, you name it. If they didn't like blue flowers, they'd call themselves the people in protection of the red plants. Which would spark outrage, which would spark a million other disagreements. Everyone had to share their opinion.

She tried to remember what she was like when she was a nineteen-year-old girl, what would have caught her attention? Nothing that a proactive teen would have liked. So she started over. Something catchy, something that would make people feel like they were accomplishing a goal. A couple of slow and meaningless clicks took her to a forum she found pretty interesting; only for the imagery before her to change. Instead of a fuzzy blue screen, sat a black tweed bag. A palm landed flat on the tiny makeshift desk beside the laptop.

"Miss Greenaway."

"Lorayne."

Cass couldn't make out if this was a good expression or a bad one. The similarly tan-toned woman cocked a brow. "Come on, the others are headed to the hotel. You're rooming with me."

Silence followed.

"Don't look so disgusted."

"Sorry."

Elle grabbed the bag and took a few steps back.

"Well?"

Lorayne didn't budge, she was trying to find that forum again. "Well what?"

"They want us out of their office space."

"No, they don't."

"No, but we should give it back anyway."

"They won't use it." She was having a harder time navigating the machine for some reason. Maybe it had just been a miracle that she had been able to in the first place.

"Are you the type to work yourself to death?"

This comment grabbed her attention. She looked up cautiously and shook her head. There was a hint of genuineness to her voice. A hint of confusion too. "I'm not. It's only nine."

Elle's bottom lip hung open. "What can I say to get you to come along?"

The other debated then frowned and closed the laptop. "I'm coming. I'm hoping this isn't some sort of drinks after the workday type of ordeal."

They made their way out of the building, Elle took the lead as they walked down the street. There was enough semblance of a put-together town for that to be okay. Neither of them were worried about the figures that lingered behind them in the dark. Cassie could only guess there was some dinky motel down the road, and using the large rental vans wasn't needed for this trip.

"I can't believe you think so little of me."

Greenaway's tone was a little taught. Playful or not, best to play it safe. "Not really. I wouldn't blame you too much."

"Wow, how thoughtful."

"Sorry."

The streets were illuminated with bright neon signs, they did more work than the streetlights. It seemed every other was busted beyond repair. Some flickered, others were shattered from however long ago. "What were you and Hotchner talking about?"

She'd turn her head while walking. "Why do you ask?"

"Small talk. You're new to the team and we haven't spoken much."

"Do we need to?"

"Are you always like this?"

Cass pressed the tip of her tongue against her cheek. Her lips pursed. "Not always."

"You and Morgan seem to be friends."

"I could say the same about you and Reid."

Secretly she was hoping that comment would elicit a reaction. They locked eyes, both hoping for the same thing. It didn't come in the way they were looking for, but they'd laugh anyway. Elle's was cathartic to hear. Cassie's was stifled by her embarrassment.

"I'm sorry." She waved a hand after composing herself.

"Stop saying that. You can say sorry by telling me what you and Hotchner were talking about."

She was getting tired of having to owe people. "Does it have to be truthful?"

Elle thought about it for a moment, almost genuinely pondering her question.

"Preferably."

"We used to know each other."

"Well, I figured that much."

"That's about it. He asked me how I was, I think."

The sidewalk got worse the further they walked. Which probably meant the hotel was close. Within another minute or so of walking it was across the street. A two-story little thing, painted blue with brick accents. There weren't many cars parked outside. Save for a BMW and a rental.

"Hotch took care of the room arrangements earlier. JJ lucked out, a whole room to herself." Elle flashed the one steel key on the metal ring. Their room was on the second floor. Two beds were covered in what was a scratchy wool decorative blanket. Two hard pillows, a thick white comforter that was tucked tightly beneath the mattress. It felt like what home was supposed to be.

Rifling through the bag she had taken from Elle, she pulled out a shirt that would look to be a little tight on her. She'd strip her own off anyways, and then her bra, and then her pants. Blatantly in the corner of the room. Little to no shame. Cass pulled the tight, graphic T on over her toned arms.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Elle opted to change in the bathroom. Lorayne didn't get it.

————————————

#criminal minds #dr spencer reid #derek morgan #spencer reid #aaron hotchner #x reader #bau team #elle greenaway #jason gideon #seeley booth #hannibal lecter #will graham #bones tv #hannibal #x oc #spencer reid x reader #derek morgan x reader #jj jareau #jj x reader

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twiststreet · 1 month

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Am I an elderly man who is excited that Conan O'Brien just casually dropped an all-time Conan O'Brien appearance 31 years into his broadcasting career, over there on Hot Ones? Yes. But I'm also excited for all the other elderly people who get to use this to yell "CONAN IS FUNNY!!!! WANT TO HEAR WHY I THINK HE IS FUNNY?" again-- NOT FOR OUR FIRST TIME, the opposite of that-- at each other, from the crawlspaces we all dug into the abandoned ruins of social media, briefly tasting the sunlight we all once enjoyed, before the sandstorms send us all fleeing back into the dark.

This used to be every day. I saw someone incoherently reference a comedy sketch they heard in high school-- just entirely indecipherable out of context ("I remember some kids on the bus in high school kept shouting gravy boat lighthouse" ... hell yeah, no idea what this means, let's go let's fucking goooooo). This was immediately followed by seeing someone say that Conan, a 61 year old man, "can get it." Are those people, are they all elderly? Maybe not. Maybe not! But I basically am, and I am ready to talk about Hilton the Chainsaw Guy. I'm always ready. He had a chainsaw that he used to cut prices and that's a fact, Jack. This used to be every day!!

In the old days, the government would give us our own national holiday every year to get these energies out of our system. And a piping hot bowl of peyote. Whatever Conan comedy sketch we saw in our visions would be our name in the tribe after that. We used to be people.

#comedy nerdery

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theroyalsims · 2 years

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QUEEN DEFIES ADVISERS, ATTENDS “CONTROVERSIAL” EVENT IN “PRIVATE CAPACITY”

What Queen Emilia wants, Queen Emilia does!

Brindletonites were treated to a surprise royal appearance by no less than Her Majesty The Queen (accompanied by Prince Jacques) to this year’s Brindleton Freedom and Equality Talk. The annual summit is hosted by the Brindleton Equal Love, Equal Life Alliance (BELELA), a group dedicated to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community and to offer support to its many members. One of this year’s topics includes a discussion on the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Brindleton.

The Queen was reportedly invited earlier this month by BELELA President Emorie Narisse. Narisse, prior to taking on the head position of the alliance, was Her Majesty’s press secretary for over eleven years. She left her post after marrying her wife abroad, and to focus on starting a family. Obviously, no bridges were burnt by her departure. The Queen reportedly maintains her friendship with Narisse, and the two continue to exchange cards and presents during holidays and special occasions.

The invite, however, has ruffled feathers, especially with Her Majesty’s royal advisers. The Queen was reportedly warned and advised not to attend as royals are expected to remain apolitical.

Although members of the LGBTQIA+ community are free to express themselves and are guaranteed safety in Brindleton, just like the rest of the populace, same-sex marriage is still deemed not legally recognised in the country. This is despite the massive push, especially by the youth, to legalise said marriage, in keeping with the rest of the world.

The Queen’s government, however, has struck down several same-sex marriage bills in the past, and to this day, no law authorises it. Same-sex marriages of Brindleton citizens that were acquired abroad hold no legal effect in Brindleton, and the same-sex spouses are not entitled to the rights afforded to legally married couples in the country.

In recent years, the matter has been at the centre of several heated debates. The older generations, especially those who are devout members of different religious groups, form a large part of the opposition. Sadly, that demographic comprises a large part of the Parliament. Meanwhile, groups like BELELA and The Brindleton Gender Awareness and Tolerance Society are at the forefront in the fight for the legalisation of same-sex marriage.

This is perhaps why Her Majesty was discouraged from attending the summit. One royal expert suggests:

"Her advisers are left in a tizzy. Her attendance would mean putting a ‘royal seal of approval’ on the issue, and of course, that just can’t be. Royals are never allowed to be political. They’re free to live their life of grandeur and elegance, but they should never meddle with politics or the law.

The last time a monarch meddled in politics, Brindleton was torn apart, a civil war erupted and the country was forever changed. The Queen should be careful with what she does in the future. There is no such thing as attending an event in a “private capacity” if you’re the monarch. That’s just ridiculous.”

The Queen, however, was having none of it. Instead, she declared that she will be attending in a “private capacity,” in support of her friend. The Queen reportedly remarked:

“I’m supporting my friend. I’ll be there to listen. It would do you all a lot of good if you’re, at the very least, willing to listen.”

And listen, she did. Her Majesty was spotted alongside Prince Jacques during the three-hour symposium, right at the front row. The Queen and Prince Jacques also stayed a little longer after the event, to chat with the attendees and even pose for photos.

This is not the first time The Queen and Prince Jacques have shown their support to the LGBTQIA+ community. Years earlier, Her Majesty and His Royal Highness attended a closed-door meeting with the Brindleton Equality Trust, a charity focused on pushing for equal rights and acceptance, as well as offering support to members of the community and their families.

(Above: Her majesty poses for a photo with her former Press Secretary, Emorie Narisse. The Queen not only defied her adviser’s advice, but Her Majesty also broke protocol by posing for selfies and photos with several attendees.)

The Queen’s attendance also comes after news of Prince Nicky’s sexuality made headlines. The Brindleton Sentinel published a set of photos declaring Her Majesty’s son as “openly gay” and the “first gay member of the royal family.” However, Prince Nicky has yet to publicly come out. As expected, and quite rightfully so, the article has been met with harsh criticism by several groups. However, the Palace has remained oddly quiet. But this is reportedly part of the game plan:

“The palace has always been sly and cunning with their lawsuits. They’re not one to go screaming about suing people, but you know that the gears are already set in motion. I’m almost certain that the royal legal hound-dogs have been deployed.”

(Above: All White with a Splash of Rainbow - Her Majesty wore a tailored white suit and accessorised with a bejewelled rainbow clutch.)

For the “private outing,” Her Majesty wore an all-white suit, and kept her blonde layers in casual loose waves. However, The Queen did amp up her ensemble with one very distinct and very significant accessory - a sparkly rainbow clutch. One royal correspondent suggests that Her Majesty’s outfit was, in itself, a message:

“The Queen is known for her ‘statement outfits’ - that is, her outfits are almost always a statement of some form. In showing up wearing all white, she’s focusing everyone’s eyes on her only colourful accessory: her rainbow clutch. So I think this whole look is basically her saying, ‘I may not be allowed to speak on the matter, but I am here, I see you, I hear you, and I support you.’”

Good for you, Your Majesty (and Prince Jacques)! We stan a supportive Royal Couple!

#ts4 #theroyalsims #ts4 story #ts4 legacy #simblr #ts4 royals #ts4 royal family #ts4 royal story #ts4 royal legacy #emilia #mystory

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creampill · 2 years

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HI its ur husband in law and rival 🧃

oddly specific but can i ask for sova wanting to celebrate m!reader's bday which happens to also be on halloween?? tyty (⁠~⁠￣⁠³⁠￣⁠)⁠~

hello this is your wife-in-law here with your government mandated sova fic

(if this isn’t want you wanted feel free to hate crime me I’m sorry)

Sova/Reader - Celebrations

Halloween was a foreign concept to Sova.

Of course, he knew the fundamentals. Dress in spooky costumes, go around and get candy then watch shitty horror movies for the night.

If he didn’t know, he would’ve learnt quickly, as some of his fellow Protocol agents were very excited about the holiday (legends say that Raze is still trying to convince Viper to dress up to this day).

But Sova had never celebrated it. It just wasn’t something that happened back home.

Birthdays, however? He’d done plenty of those.

Not only was he from a big family, but Sova was an especially sentimental man, so birthdays meant a lot to him. He'd both attended and planned many in his time; he knew how to pull out all the stops when a celebration needed celebrating.

This, however, was not how birthdays usually went. At least, in his experience.

"It's a classic," you teased, brandishing a DVD with the title 'Corpse Bride', "how haven't you seen it?"

"I'm not sure," he answered. He hadn't seen a DVD since his childhood, and even back then it was becoming an obsolete technology, so he was more shocked at how you managed to get your hands on one (and why the Protocol dorms had DVD players installed in their high-tech monitors).

You flopped onto your couch, various pillows surrounding you, and beckoned him over. He obliged, sitting on the opposite side.

"This is not how I'm used to birthdays going," he admitted, "but if it makes you happy, I'm happy."

You grinned, and he felt his heart melt a little. You clicked on the TV and said, "it's a Halloween tradition for me to watch it. Even if it wasn't my birthday, I'd probably ask you to watch it anyway."

He chuckled as the opening sequence began to play.

You looked over to him.

"Y'know, you don't have to sit that far away from me."

Sova swallowed thickly. "I didn't want to make you uncomfortable."

"It's okay," you smiled, "plus, it's my birthday. Don't I get a cuddle?"

With a little tired- and slightly bashful- sigh, Sova opened his arms. You happily accepted, cuddling right into him, so close that he could smell your hair and feel every dip and curve of you against him.

He was glad the movie was distracting you from his face, lest you see how red he got at the contact.

What a birthday, indeed.

#reader insert #asks #x reader #sova x reader #sova #HEY ALEKS #SORRY THIS TOOK LIKE #THREE YEARS #IT IS PROLLY SHIT #BUT THAT IS FINE #NO IT ISNT BUT IM SORRY OKAY #<3

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hummiscellanea · 8 months

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sun palace concept art

lore post!!! way more detail than anyone could want under the cut

In this post I'm sharing lore about Hesti, the place Concorde is from. Its climate and geography is very similar to Italy's. Hesti is in the equivalent of the Renaissance: an explosion in the popularity of all kinds of art. I will now go into way too much detail about it. Yippee!

Politics

Politically, Hesti has some traits of feudalism and some of early modern European governments. There is a caste of nobility, which own large manors; the lower classes pay rent to live on land owned by the aristocracy; there is also a growing middle class, usually living in urban areas, of merchants and artisans. The royal family is currently consolidating power. The difference between Hesti and Europe is that dragons and humans live together.

It's kind of complicated to explain how the dragon-human politics work. Humans are basically second-class citizens. Or, more accurately, it goes thus: female dragons > male dragons > male humans > female humans. Hesti is a very gendered society. Dragons operate under a matriarchal system, while humans operate under a patriarchal system. Each side thinks the other is backwards.

(Also note: because "female" describes sex, not gender, I wanted a word that was the equivalent of "woman" to use for dragons. yes, i know "dragoness" exists, but that's not good enough: it implies male dragons are the default, and Hesti society does the opposite. So I coined the terms "wodragon" and "wifdragon" for this purpose. why yes I am a linguistics nerd. how did you guess?)

Humans in Hesti are at about the same level socially as poor dragons. The richest humans are artisans (humans, with their clever little hands, are really good at making art with the intricate detail that is so popular. so fine weaving, pottery, carving, etc), but most of them are peasants basically. They usually settle disputes amongst themselves, but if it can't be resolved then they will appeal to the local lady (who is a dragon). In urban areas humans sometimes have their own local government, which answers to the main city government. The royal family has recently started trying to enforce laws on humans as well as dragons; however, this is unpopular with pretty much everyone except the queen.

Religion

Won't go into too much detail on religion, mainly because I'm too lazy to come up with names for a whole pantheon. Hesti is polytheistic, worshipping a pantheon of goddesses. There are a few token male gods, such as the god of protection, childcare, and marriage, but they are mostly goddesses. They can be referred to as a group ("By the Goddesses!" --Concorde says this a lot), but usually you focus on worshipping the goddesses most relevant to your life, not all of them. There are plenty of holidays, festival days, and feast days devoted to certain goddesses or myths related to them.

The flame goddess used to be the most popular (in fact, she is the original patron goddess of Hesti), but the royal family has in recent years been strongly promoting the sun goddess. For example, they built a grand Sun Palace with plenty of solar imagery. It's all tied into their consolidation of political power under a central monarchy: build as association between the queen and the sun goddess, then promote worship of the sun goddess. While the sun goddess is becoming extremely popular, not everyone is pleased with this development.

Gender

As touched on before, Hesti is a very gendered society. For the humans, the gender roles are very similar to historical European gender roles, so I will focus on the dragon side.

Hesti dragons, like humans, do not have much sexual dimorphism. The main distinguishing feature is the number of horns on their head/tail tip: biological females have one set of horns, while biological males have two.

Wodragons (or as they would say, dragons) are taken as the default in Hesti society. They are believed to be more intelligent than wifdragons (untrue) and, as a consequence, more artistic, more skilled, and better at managing their emotions. Wifdragons rarely receive a good education, which makes it a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy. One prevailing (also untrue) belief is that wifdragons are unable to learn anything complex after a certain age. For example, that if an adult wifdragon doesn't know how to read, he will never be able to learn.

there is even more. but for another post

#continuity lore #my art

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travelbuddysindia · 8 months

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Travel Safety in Kerala :

The most handy manner to attain this place is thru a flight. There are direct flights from all of the main towns connecting Kochi. From Kochi, you can travel throughout the country by way of road. The first-class way to enjoy Kerala is by traversing through the landscapes thru avenue.

The public transport isn't advocated for travelers on a holiday because it may be overcrowded. For touring around, cabs with drivers are noticeably endorsed. The alternatives are each cost-effective and pleasant alternative. Therefore, select to book an all-inclusive Kerala tour bundle. It is vital to down load Google maps and apps like translators, maps and so forth. Which can help you navigate to any destination in Kerala with none hassle earlier than you start your adventure.

Kerala is one of the maximum famous visitor locations inside the global; therefore, many vacationers inclusive of massive companies select to come back over to Kerala. There are distinguished taxi offerings in Kochi which renders safety and protection for guests whilst journeying. There are offerings which provide extra care for visitor specially night time travelers. Safety is an critical component because of the injustices across the world. Nevertheless, there are many secure journey offerings in Kerala so that you can assist make your journey memorable in addition to secure.

Most of the excursion operators provide professionally skilled drivers who're fluent in English and Hindi. Therefore, you will no longer face a language barrier and it's going to make your travel simpler. If you are traveling as a pair, you could select AC Sedan automobile or any cozy car for a handy, comfortable and secure tour. However, if you are visiting with family or a collection of extra than five, then you could choose a larger automobile depending upon your travel necessities and budgets together with Tata Indigo, Toyota Innova, Chevrolet, Enjoy or Mahindra Scorpio.

Accommodation Safety in Kerala :

Kerala caters to all sorts of visitors proper from finances to luxurious travellers. There are various accommodation options ranging from buget to five-famous person luxury inns and spa hotels, houseboats to homestays. However, it's miles important that to make your bookings in advance and select a resort/inn in Kerala that enhances your tastes in addition to your price range. The lodging in Kerala is secure with whole sanitisation after every checkout to make certain the protection of each visitor coming to Kerala. The facilities presented in Kerala are eye-catching and of the greatest high-quality. Almost all of the lodges and motels are under CCTV surveillance. Moreover, there are not any troubles of theft. In order to revel in a hassle-unfastened journey, plan your experience well earlier with any reputed travel business enterprise in Kerala.

Hospitality in Kerala :

Ancient Kerala welcomed vacationers and buyers from internationally consisting of the Romans, Arabs, Greeks, Portuguese, Dutch, Chinese, French and the British. Their imprint may be visible on structure, delicacies and literature in some form or the opposite.

It is stated that the very best quantity of gala's are celebrated in Kerala. Also, you are in all likelihood to discover a temple, mosque or church round every nook in the country. Plan a trip to God’s own us of a and revel in the hospitality and resplendent beauty of this area.

Food Safety in Kerala :

Food protection is taken very seriously in Kerala. The meals protection branch often conducts surprise tests on the great of meals merchandise presented at popular visitor spots to enhance hygiene, avoid food adulteration and ensure that high-quality merchandise are presented at reasonable costs.

Food is incredibly cheap all throughout Kerala and even at a luxury motel; you could revel in a great meal for much less than equal general in any overseas us of a. Also, this region gives an great possibility to strive out one of a kind cuisines like –idli, masala dosa, appams, uppuma, puttu, and many others. Which has been rated because the pleasant breakfast within the international. You can have fun with the taste of traditional Kerala Cuisine at maximum of the eating places in Kerala. Apart from usual Kerala meals, you may get a selection of cuisines options along with Continental, Chinese and Indian at preferred restaurants across the kingdom.

Law and Order in Kerala :

Kerala is first-class acknowledged for its regulation and order throughout the nation. Year on yr it's far ranked because the high-quality in phrases of its regulation and order. Moreover, there are protection checks on cars and frequently luggage, in addition to earlier than entry to any of the main tourist spots, shops and inns.

Although it's far extraordinarily secure to roam around in the course of overdue evening or night time, it's miles vital to note that you reach your resort before 10 PM so that you get sufficient time for enjoyable and re-energizing your self for tomorrow and if you are journeying to Munnar and Thekkady, there may be fog on the street which might make the tour throughout the night hard and uncomfortable.

The Bottom Line :

In end, it could be mentioned that Kerala is absolutely safe destination. Therefore, plan your experience to Kerala and revel in serenading in the laps of nature. Kerala Holidays is a famend excursion and journey employer working in Kerala. We offer finances to luxurious Kerala journey packages at low-cost fee. Get in contact with us to e-book your Kerala excursion bundle and go away the entire stress of making plans your journey on us.