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#evil marcy au
creatingchimera · 1 year
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was it worth it
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shitty-kinda-doodles · 4 months
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I might have created a whole AU when I was watching Fionna and Cake
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At one point I ditched Aiko's bear ears for bunny ears, yes
(self-indulgent part 2 incoming)
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xenia12 · 1 year
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Lost her marbles by being a little too silly (aka flat-out insane. Deranged. Batshit crazy. Un-fucking-hinged. Ballistic, even.)
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Context: I have an evil Marcy AU called “Losing Marbles” and couldn’t resist making a dumb joke fjdjbfjfskhd
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happi-tree · 1 year
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👀 your pfp is from your fae amphibia au right? i would love to know more about it <3333
Actually, my pfp is from a different Amphibia au that I haven't talked about at all on here! I've tentatively called it "the raven and the dove" and it's roughly based on the movie (the MOVIE, not the books) The School for Good and Evil and my friend @toonteller came up with a lot of it (hi, toon, hope you don't mind the tag!). If you're at all familiar with the characters from that, Anne takes Agatha's role while Marcy takes Sophie's and Sasha takes Tedros'. You don't have to be familiar with the characters at all for the au to make sense, though!
Basically, Anne and Marcy are two girls growing up in a rural village. They've been friends since they were very small, sticking close together and facing the mean-spirited remarks of their peers together. Marcy happens to stumble across a book one day that tells her of a magical place that trains the heroes and villains of fairytale stories and becomes very determined to find it, while Anne rushes along after her because she doesn't want to lose her only friend and sincerely doubts that any good could come of this. The two of them end up getting whisked away to The School For Good and Evil, where they are promptly deposited into their respective schools - Anne into the School For Good, which trains heroes, and Marcy into the School For Evil, which trains villains. And obviously this is a huge mistake, because not only does Anne want to get back to her parents, but also Marcy cannot possibly be evil! There isn't a vindictive bone in her body! The headmaster, Andrias, tells the girls that the only way to prove Marcy's innate Goodness is a true love's kiss (because villains don't get one of those in the stories, right?). They end up causing quite a stir among the students, as they are both generally disruptive and the first to enroll from outside the fairytale realm in a long time, and the shenanigans draws the attention and disapproval of one Sasha of Camelot, heir to the throne of the Storied and the School For Good's golden child. And. Well.
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Quite a lot of chaos ensues in an attempt to get Marcy into the "proper" school and get Anne home, including but not limited to a Marcy corruption arc (and one for Anne, to a different extent), some identity/morality/sexuality crises on the part of Sasha, magic and shapeshifting, a slow dance (with evil overtones), gay archery lessons, ruminations on the societal expectations of beauty, attraction, gender roles, and morality, women covered in blood, true love's kiss(es), and LOTS of impractical fantasy costume changes. It's quite a bit of fun (and Sashannarcy endgame, obviously), even if I haven't thought about it in awhile! :DDD
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wixelt · 2 years
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just went through the entire hermitphipia au and cannot stop thinking about the hermits driving Andrias absolutely insane
Zedaph seems to make contraptions with the sole purpose of them accomplishing a net zero or acting to detriment but with every contraption they get at least one discovery that revolutionizes their technology out of the principals so he ends up being too valuable an asset to not give unlimited funding and a tram do document everything he builds or any experiments he conducts
Andrias thinks Impulse is one of the more reasonable ones and possibly capable of keeping the others in line so he assigns some of the troublemakers under him not realizing that these are the exact people he is only responsible enough around to assure none of them die (we're talking either ZIT, Boatem, Soup Squad, or all of the above)
Keeping Grian occupied becomes a top priority quickly, and soon extends to nearly the entire 26
When Xisuma shows up, Andrias thinks he finally has someone who can handle the others' mischief. Upon learning that while Admin is short for administrator, Xisuma does not, in fact, administrate the hermits but instead the world they settle on, he is both disappointed and concerned on multiple accounts, one of which being this guy is apparently a God in certain realities and that is a problem for the plan.
Joe Hills
Andrias ties himself in mental knots trying to predict these strangers. Marcy & Mumbo were both easy to understand, even if the latter still regularly baffles him.
But add more than 20 other varied, chaotic humanoids to the mix & everything's on fire again as he & the Core try to work out not just Hermits' individual quirks, but also the unique chaos that stems from certain Hermit combos.
His saving grace should've been that he's introduced to them gradually as they reunite one by one, but he has the disadvantage of meeting Mumbo first, who on his own is chaotic but in a benign way Andrias has quickly adapted to & can manipulate, if only by nudging the spoon as needed.
But then Anne Boonchuy & the Plantars rock up to Newtopia with False & Grian (& maybe others, but definitely those 2 at minimum), & Andrias sees bumbling Mumbo become a nonsensical prankster with one braincell to share just by being in earshot of this force of chaos in red.
But friends bring out different sides to a person, so that's expected... right?
Zedaph's a whole other can of worms. I'm not sure when they meet, but Andrias has gotten so used to Mumbo's ingenuity & order that he expects the next Hermit engineer he meets to be of a similar ilk.
He almost retires to his chambers with a headache after he finds out Zed's built a perpetual motion engine from salvaged parts... & is using it to power the world's (deliberately) slowest elevator.
He actually retires when Zed's genuinely confused by the idea of using it for anything else.
The only thing calming the king's growing frustration with Zedaph is what he can achieve if he combines the engine & Zed's other breakthrough with Mumbo's advances.
So yes, Zed gets funding & test subjects a team.
At some point after comes his first meeting with Impulse & he thinks "Finally! One of them who's sane!" (False is, almost, but she's hard to control unless nudged via Anne).
He sneakily puts Impulse in a position of keeping an eye on Zed & maybe Tango as well by this time.
An all new brand of chaos breaks loose.
Andrias isnt sure what happened, but there's a hole burnt in his throne room ceiling & the ZIT trio are stood around acting innocent. Impulse is covered head to toe in soot.
It's taking all Andrias' mental effort to keep his composure.
Andrias lucks out with Grian. Though his interactions with Mumbo make it clear the waffle haired builder's a force of prankster chaos of godlike proportions that cannot be halted, he spends a lot of time focused on going on adventures with Anne or making secret plans for a revolution (it's an instinct for Grian, & he doesn't know the context nor which side he's on til True Colors).
That doesn't mean there aren't a few surprises Andrias has to curb, though. The city-wide game of Tag that pulls in every Hermit in Newtopia at the time, plus Anne, Marcy, the Plantars, Yunan & more than a few others is one incident that comes to mind.
Andrias is relieved when Grian's plans for whatever 'another Demise' or 'a new take on Life' might be are put on hold by him remembering the Hermits don't currently have lives to spare.
Thankfully for him, Andrias doesn't meet all 26 Hermits before True Colors. Given how chaotic the ones he has met are, though, that isn't saying much.
And then there's X.
Xisuma is a concern for Andrias as soon as they meet, but he's unable to tap into most of his admin powers nor ping the damaged Hermithius in far orbit. After meeting the suited man - he may be one of the Hermits with Anne when she arrives in Newtopia, but I haven't settled on that - keeping him depowered becomes a priority once its clear he's only the de facto leader of the Hermits by unanimous understanding & won't step in unless things get out of hand, but could absolutely shut down the Core's plans with admin access.
All X's attempts to track down Amphibia's 'admin' & work out a deal seem to fail, & it isn't til True Colors that he realises Andrias has been feeding him bad info.
By then its a bit late to do anything, though.
In the meantime, Andrias seems interested in X's anecdotes about Evil X. What could that be about...?
And yes. Joe Hills. Andrias' worst nightmare: The bard.
Because nothing's scarier than a man who can tear you a new one without lifting a finger.
(I have more ideas about Joe, but this is already too long & I'm tired. :P)
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monarch-maelstrom · 1 year
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The owl house AU short story - #4 truth or punishment
“I have a great idea!” Star said, clapping.
“Is it a safe idea?” Willow asked.
“Mildly.”
“If it will amp up this sleepover then I’m in!” Luz said excitedly. Tonight was another perfect moon for a moonlight conjuring. So Luz managed to convince Eda to let her have a sleepover at the owl house. And this time it was an even bigger sleepover. With Willow and Gus as usual. But also Marinette, Star, Marcy, Anne and Amity. Luz wanted to invite Adrien. But he said he wasn’t allowed to.
“It isn’t a horror movie right?” Marinette asked, hiding a little.
“No no it’s called Truth or Punishment. It’s a game my friend in Mewni showed me so I bought it.” Star said, bringing a little box out of her bag. Everyone crowded around it. Star pushed a little button and the lights dimmed. The cube projecting only blue light.
“Deceit and fable, lies and fiction,” The cube started. Marinette shifted uncomfortably. “Even with complete conviction, if truth is absent from these events all will face the punishment.”
“Ooo! Seems fun!” Luz said excitedly jumping.
“I don’t know Luz, this seems a little… fishy.” Amity said.
“It’s fine though, right Star?” Gus said confidently.
“Last I remember the punishment was tickling.” Star said bubbly.
“See not that bad!” Luz said pressing the button for it to go on. Amity exchanged a look with Marinette and Willow though. Luz trusted Star and she trusted it wouldn’t be that bad. I mean sure they do things differently on the foot or also known as Mewni. But it’ll still be fun. The cube opened up to reveal an animal with its mouth open.
“Pledge an oath of truth! Pinky swear to me…” The cube said. Gus looked at the cube amazed. Marinette backed up a little and Amity crossed her arms unsure.
“Oh oh! This will be like truth or dare won’t it?” Luz said excitedly. She put her finger into the animal's mouth. “I promise to tell the truth.”
“I don’t know what that is but probably.” Star said doing the same thing as Luz. Everyone did the same thing and when everyone took their turn the cube closed.
“It’s time for truth or punishment.” The cube said ominously. A spinner opened on the cube and it started to flip. Marinette fidgeted with her hands and Amity glared at the cube. Gus bounced excitedly and Willow looked unsure. Marcy was captivated with her game and Anne was trying to get her to finish quickly. “What is… your favorite color?” Everyone let out a sigh of relief. That was easy.
“I’ll go first!” Star said, bouncing. “Yellow. Wait no. Pink. Wait blue. No… I like them all!”
“I guess it’s pretty obvious. Purple.” Amity said.
“I like blue!” Luz said happily.
“Pink.” Marinette said shyly.
“I also like blue.” Anne said taking Marcy’s console. Marcy grumbled but paid attention to the other game. Luz high fived Anne laughing.
“I like neon green like my hair.” Marcy answered.
“Green like plants!” Willow said.
“Teal like illusions. Also teal is just pretty.” Gus said.
“Everyone answered honestly! Onto the next level!” The cube said. It started to rise up and glow brighter.
“Uh Star what is it doing?” Anne asked, concerned. Marinette shuffled backwards and Willow put her arm around her in a comforting way.
“It’s the second level!” Star said, clapping. The cube summoned an even bigger cube around the players. Capturing them in the game. Everyone gasped, scared.
“Is it safe?” Willow asked, concerned.
“Should be!” Star said.
“What’s your… biggest fear?!” The cube asked.
“Oh pfft easy! Nothing!” Star said with a hand wave.
“My mom not liking the boiling isles.” Luz said, putting her head on her knees. Amity held her hand. And she smiled.
“Luz breaking up with me.” Amity said sheepishly. Luz kissed Amity on the cheek.
“Adrien dieing…” Marinette mumbled.
“That’s a little random?” Gus said. Willow shot him a glare.
“No it’s not, it's understandable to be worried about your loved ones.” Anne said, smiling. “I’m scared they’ll never release Love Choice 2! I mean what’s more odd than that!” Anne said laughing.
“I’m anxious that my friends won’t like me anymore and won’t be my friends.” Marcy said. Anne smiled and Marcy smiled back.
“Okay Mari don’t get offended but I’m scared of
ladybugs.” Willow said laughing. Marinette pretended to make some offended noises.
“I’m scared of jack in the boxes.” Gus said, shivering.
“SOMEONE IS LYING!” The cube exclaimed. Everyone gasped scared as the cube lit up red. Suddenly the cube projected things in front of everyone. A projection of Luz’s mom appeared in front of her. She looked at everyone aghast and started telling Luz to never come back to the boiling isles. In front of Amity a projection of Luz saying something then walking away appeared. And so on and so on everyone’s fears were projected. Luz looked around as the room plunged into chaos. Marinette screamed as she watched Adrien fall to the ground suddenly. Gus ran behind Willow as a ladybug and jack in the box appeared and started creeping towards them. Amity looked at Luz frightened.
“Okay whoever lied please just be honest!” Amity exclaimed.
“I-I’m actually kind of terrified of the owl demon thing on your door Luz!” Star said nervously. The projections burst into sparkles.
“Star’s worst fear is a tube with an owl face!” The cube exclaimed. Luz let out a sigh.
“It’s okay Star, honestly I think everyone’s a little scared of Hooty.” Willow said laughing.
“I-I think the g-game should be o-over now.” Marinette said clutching to Willow. Luz felt really bad for Marinette. Out of all of the people in the room her fear was the worst.
“I agree let’s end this game before we’re traumatized even more.” Amity said walking towards the exit. Everyone tried following but the door extended and pushed them back down to the ground.
“The game is not over yet!” The cube exclaimed. “One more level to go!”
“Star…” Gus said.
“Okay okay I guess I didn’t know that it wouldn’t allow us to exit the game. But it’s just one more level! What’s the harm?” Star said with a shrug. Everyone groaned.
“Fine let’s get this over with.” Anne said, annoyed.
“Who is… your crush?” The cube asked slyly.
“O-oh.” Marinette squeaked.
“Oh come on, we're all friends here! We can trust each other. I'll go first. Marco Diaz.” Star said with a wave of her hand.
“Well obviously Amity.” Luz said laughing.
“Huh? No way! I like you too, Luz!” Amity teased. Everyone laughed really hard. “What about you Mari?”
“Oh uh I don’t like anyone at the moment.” Marinette mumbled her face, flushing a little.
“Oh me neither I don’t really like anyone right now.” Anne said bubbly.
“I uh I-I like uhm I like…” Marcy said she mumbled something else but no one heard her.
“What was that?” The cube pressed. Marcy’s face turned red.
“I-I like…” Marcy took a deep breath. “I like you Anne!” She said nervously.
“Me?” Anne asked.
“Uh uh well moving on! Gus?”
“Ah uh I’m not interested in anyone either.” Gus said, a little concerned.
“I think Hunter is a little cute but I’m not majorly interested in anyone.” Willow said casually.
“Hunter?!” Amity said astounded.
Luz was almost as surprised as Amity. “I mean he’s not the worst but it’s not like he’s the-“
“SOMEONES LYING!” The cube exclaimed suddenly. Cutting off Luz. Suddenly the room started getting smaller and smaller.
“Okay before this gets really bad someone be honest!” Gus said.
“Well we both know Amity and Luz aren’t lying and Marcy wouldn’t jokingly confess like that.” Anne said, her face a little red.
“So then who’s-“ Luz started but then realization hit Luz. “Mari? You’re not lying are you?”
“Wha what? No why why would I be lying?” Marinette said laughing nervously. Everyone shot her a glance.
“Mari please!” Star said. The room was very very small now and everyone was crouched together in the small box.
“F-fine yes I do have a crush!”
“Mari, that's not enough! The question was who is your crush!” Marcy said, her face really really red. Marinette whimpered.
“I-I’m in love with Adrien!” Marinette screamed.
“Correct! Marinette has an attraction to catboys!” The cube said. Marinette laughed dryly then fell to the ground.
“Excuse me while I sleep forever…” Marinette said muffled. The giant cube around them disintegrated and the cube fell to the ground. Everyone was really winded. So there was an awkward and uncomfortable silence.
“So uh about that moonlight conjuring?” Anne finally managed to get out.
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8-0mph · 4 months
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Forbidden Dream
This is all of my Adventure Time AU in chronological story order. Thanks to my friend for proof-read.
Act I: Prismo and Betty
This takes some time after the events of F&C. Prismo and Scrabby inhabit the TR(TimeRoom) and Golbetty has gotten restless with her time in space. She decides to reach out to other multiversal beings, but no one wants to associate with Golb. She finally finds someone that puts up with her ..that being the Wishmaster.
Prismo is scared of Golbetty at first, especially Scrabby since he has a little bit of history with her. He scurries off or hides behind Prismo when she is in the TR. To Scrabbys surprise, Pris and Betty hit it off and become good friends. They find they have something in common, which is their “human” past. Theyre both mortals turned to immortals.
The duo start off by drinking and making fanfics together, but then Betty proposes the idea of making these fics “real”. Prismo is hesitant at first but lately he doesn’t mind breaking the rules.
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At first they visit universes that Prismo considers safe. They treat them like vacations, and a lot of these worlds do not have the typical AT characters. Theyre peaceful docile places. Prismo gets daring, telling Betty that he wants to feel alive again. The two of them agree to visit a dangerous world, the Vampire Kingdom.
Notes:
- Betty chose her physical form to look like magic Betty because she felt it would be strange to appear as she normally did in the past.
- Prismos physical form is what he looked like as a younger human. He thought it would be more fitting for the “adventure”. Also.. He hates how clothing feels on him, so the see-through garments suffice.
- Scrabby is not happy about their friendship. He feels that Prismo has gotten even lazier, foregoing his Wishmaster responsibilities and even worse, ignoring him. The scarab thought he found someone that was happy to spend time with him for the first time, But feels like he has gone back to being the “forgotten” one.
EP II: Vampire Kingdom
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Once Pris and Betty teleport here, theyre immediately caught off guard by a group of vampires that whisk Prismo away and the two are separated. Betty gets surprised by a starved vampire!Simon, who at first doesnt recognize her until he gets a good look at her face.
He refuses to believe its actually Betty and rather a wizard attempting to play tricks on him. Marcy calls his name and he flys away, leaving Betty stunned.
The vampire world is an AU where Vampires take over, but Simon never died and was able to stay with Marcy. Marcy isnt evil here. Simons crown was stolen before he could make a complete transformation into IceKing, and his sanity was kept in part to Marcy turning him to save him from a group of hungry vampires. One curse was replaced with another.
Marcy was turned at a younger age by the VK, but Simon saved her by scratching at the VKs eye (his face scar). Even though the King is furious at Simon for this, he thinks it is more amusing to keep Simon alive and suffering from vampirism. Vampires are starved in this world just like “The Star” episode, but Simon proposes the idea to wrangle human (and animal) survivors and keep them on a reserve to supply the Vampires with a food source. He inevitably becomes the person in charge of the Blood farms. Keep in mind, Simon did this to save humans, otherwise they would have been hunted to extinction.
Unlike the safe worlds PrisBetty visited, this world has most of the original cast in them. Finn is a survivor of the Blood Farms, swearing to kill Simon who he believes imprisoned him in there (which.. is true). The farm is surrounded by booby traps all around the perimeter, no one can get in or out without some level of flying.
Finn always managed to get close to escaping But eventually gets caught in one of the traps. The last attempt caused him to cut his own arm off to be freed and helped by Huntress Wizard. She is one of the few wizards to help the freedom fighters, a band of humans and candy people led by Commander PB. Wizards are hated by Vampires since theyre the few beings that can overpower them. They try to stay out of each others business But huntress is an exception as she feels that the vampires are disrupting the balance of nature.
The Candy Kingdom is fortress walled with wooden spikes and garlic (I thought it would be silly Lol). PBs armor consists of wooden stakes and reminiscent of Golb who she is a follower of. She has access to the Enchiridion and sees Golb as a being that she should harness the power of if the vampires happen to overwhelm her people someday.
The end of the story would involve PrisBetty helping Simon overthrow the VK after Marcy discovers the vampires ability to “drink red” instead of blood. They team up with the help of PB and Huntress. Simon never truly reconciles with Betty as his defense mechanism is to push any feelings of his past away. But he does have a newfound respect for her and tells her to visit him again. Simon will assume the role of Vampire King and free the humans afterward.
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Notes:
- Simon is the only vampire dressing in traditionally “Dracula” clothes. Because hes a nerd and thinks its fitting.
- Marcy is raised by Simon here instead of VK, so she is a lot kinder and sympathetic to the humans and candy kingdom (even if she doesnt show it for a while).
EP III: Winter Kingdom
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After the Vampire world, Prismo and Betty decide their adventuring is “complete” and attempt to teleport back to the Time Room with Prismos magic. This doesnt work out. Turns out, their human forms have been draining their magic slowly, making it so that they need to find a magical item to recharge. This being the Enchiridion.
This is a totally different world than (Canon) Winter Kings as obviously he is alive here.
Ooo has been mysteriously frozen over and put into an eternal Ice Age. There is hardly any life (apart from immortal beings and those resistant to the temperatures) so hardly anyone lives on the surface. Prismo automatically assumes WK is responsible, but Betty refuses to believe Simon would be the cause of this destruction. WK has a much larger kingdom with a variety of ice people, a lot of them more human-like in appearance. It seems like he is trying to mirror a human society.
Here WK has Bettys skeleton and attempting to use the cloning machine he has in F&C to clone a “real” Betty (which is why he doesnt have an ice clone of her).
The backstory of this WK mirrors my au version of him.
Prismo and Betty are briefly separated and I wont go into too much detail on the story. Betty gets the “safe” tour of the kingdom by WK and Prismo is left to wander in search for the Enchiridion. He starts to see things that point to a darker scene (fire people fighting ice soldiers, lack of any plant life, and ice clones of people who no longer exist). At the same time, Betty is off-put by WKs controlling nature. He reveals to her that he has been in a 100-year war with the Fire Kingdom “who destroy everything” with their flames, while ice “preserves it”. Betty is shocked to see the extent of destruction the Ice Kingdom has caused to Ooo and manages to slip away to do her own investigating. She eventually ends up in the room Bettys corpse is kept, which is the only place that WK allows plant life to grow. The Enchiridion was sitting on skeleton Bettys lap.
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The two of them engage in a fight where he details his plan for her and Ooo.
Prismo manages to save her at the end of it. Up until this point hes been a pacifist in the story. They use the Enchiridion to teleport home and they end up.. not there.
Notes:
- I had a bonus page where Scrabby is reacting to PrisBetty not arriving back in the Time Room. He thinks they didnt teleport back on purpose.
- This page also has WK grabbing Bettys ankle right as she teleports. I was going to have WK teleport with them so there was some kind of threat. I am not sure yet.
- The fight scene was supposed to be a lot longer with Betty having the upperhand at first, But I didnt want to draw all of it.
- Winters appearance slowly turns back into Simon when separated from the magic crown.
EP IV: Back Home
They end up in Ooo where the magic teleported them into the sky, making them fall a great distance. They are a little injured, but Betty is mostly shaken by her experience in the Winter world. She redirects this into frustration at Prismo for not teleporting them to the correct place and that they would need to search another “sucky universe”.
Prismo is frustrated and goes off on his own to find another magical object. Betty stays put in the forest. When looking up, Prismo realizes the universe they teleported to was actually the main Ooo upon seeing the floating human city. He rushes back to where Betty was sitting, telling her to go find her Simon here in Ooo, that he knew that he had the Enchiridion in his closet. Betty refuses, knowing that she already said goodbye to Simon years ago and him seeing her again will only hurt him.
Prismo is annoyed at this but walks off, and Betty wanders around the forest until she encounters one of the transport boats that take people up to the city. In her reluctance, she hitches a ride. Meanwhile Prismo reaches a graveyard on the outskirts of the woods, he hides in the bushes and sees a familiar person, Finn, walking up and leaving a bouquet of flowers at the grave.
When Betty makes it up to the city, she explores for a bit before approaching Simon (who is signing a childs book). Before she could say anything, she covers her face with her hat and speeds off. He is at first confused by this but is immediately distracted by the kid again.
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Betty is in shock and retreats onto the boat leading her back down to land. She eventually catches up to Prismo, who is kneeling over Jakes grave. She attempts to comfort him, but the words fall short. He asks her if she visited Simon, but Betty says she couldnt do it. At this point Prismo feels like he wasted his time in the Time Room when he could have been spending it in his human form visiting Jake. He remained trapped in the TR unable to spend time with the mortals he built connections with. He feels that Betty is going to suffer the same regret he feels after Simon inevitably dies.
In a turn of events, Prismo places his hand on the grave and it teleports them back into the Time Room. They are amazed by this, Jakes grave acted like a magical object would have. They temporarily celebrate before Betty is impaled by an angry Scrabby.
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Bettys human form is heavily injured as Prismo and the Scarab fight in several rooms. Scrabby tells him that he alerted the auditors about their misdeeds. That they will both be locked away for thousands of years or perhaps forever just like he was trapped in the Time Room.
Prismo temporarily subdues Scrabby and goes back to the main room where Betty is. This is where he turns her into a fox to keep her hidden, and promises that her memories are all stored in her body dormant in Golb (Like how Prismos form is dormant in the Time Room).
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Fox!Betty wakes up in Ooo, no memories, a feeling of disconnect from her body, and hungry.
End of Act 1
Act II is all about Bettys life as a fox in Ooo. Its a lot calmer and slow burn in comparison to Act I. Upon landing in Ooo, fox!Betty encounters posters advertising Simons* sci-fi series Casper and Nova. She is convinced he is knowledgeable about space because a talking dog told her he was.
*EDIT: Someone pointed out that C&N was written by Astrid (it is implied heavily). Pretend the posters are the two of them working together, maybe Simon helping Astrid write them since she is just a kid.
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She starts pestering Simon at one of his book signings and he already dislikes foxes because earlier in the week, a band of them stole his draft for an upcoming book. Betty proposes that she will find the notes and return them to him if she can have a place to stay (Even though he says no, she crashes at his place anyway).
I thought about Simon giving Betty a nickname so that she isnt just referred to as “fox”, so she is “Sunny” since she really likes when he makes sunny-side up eggs. She really likes eggs as a fox that is her quirk.
Update 1/21/24: Sunny encounters Simon after breaking into his home and snooping around for clues. Simon ambushes her in the Golb ritual room, assuming she has come to steal the Enchiridion. Sunny explains herself and claims that she can get Simons draft back from the fox thieves. They go on an “adventure”. It is revealed that fox!Betty can transform into Betty only when unconscious/sleeping. Simon wakes up next to her but assumes he is hallucinating..
Post about Simon and fox!Bettys dynamic.
I couldnt fit all images into this post as there is a 10 photo limit. I decided to link additional photos to underlined text. If you want further context, check those out. I love reading others AUs and was inspired to do my own. Any questions can be left in comment. Thanks for read..!
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gameboyhamazing · 2 years
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love stories where the big bad evil possessing one of our main characters is actually really chill and wasn’t actually planning anything nefarious or destructive or whatever, just wanted to exist in some way, anyways you wanna hang out with them or something? no they’re being completely serious, they don’t have any other motives they just wanna chill and do random fun stuff
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cutetanuki-chan · 1 year
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Commission
commission info
Description of AU: “Amphibia crossover with the Riordan books. Commission predates a lot of later Amphibia including Marcy's journal but the base ideas are far from unsalvageble.
Designs began from the Aquarium art piece and developed from there. Marcy was designed with the idea of taking her black cyber suit and making it less evil and less all encompasing to show this is a Marcy who has discovered new adventures. The wonders she loved in fantasy are real even back home. A new adventure, and one she can still do with her friends.
Sasha also finds herself in a similar but different boat to Marcy. Anne meanwhile came up surprisingly like Hazel, no relation. But she does still have her calamity powers.
I do have ideas for this concept further, in art or writing. This will not be the last one sees of this idea. Hope you all like it as much as I do to see it visualized.“
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gerblinbones · 7 months
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Hello! Love your could be worse au! I was wondering three things. All of these are queer, because I want to start LGBT+ history month on a high note!
One:Does Bubbline have the same relationship that they have in canon? Like, with the whole multi-century breakup and eventual get back together?
Two:What does Gumlee look like in this au? Do they have the exes to lovers dynamic too, or the more wholesome dynamic that they have in Fionna and Cake? Have they even started dating at all?
Three:do Finn and Ghoulio does is gay? I’m joking, I’m joking. But in all seriousness, what does their friendship look like by the end of the show, and does Ghoulio have a redemption arc beyond downgrading the seriousness of his crimes?
Sorry to bother you! Love your au and your art!!!
Hi!!! Thank you so much :) super happy to answer all of these!!!!
1. Yes! They’re just as dramatic and pining as in canon. That stays the exact same, and actually ends up impacting how Marshall and Gumball’s relationship pans out.
2. They’re really sweet, like in Fionna and Cake. But with Gumball’s best friend and Marshall’s sister being so bitter about each other for centuries, it makes it very hard for them to get together for a really long time, despite consistently having feelings for each other for hundreds of years. Very Romeo and Juliet-y, just more silly lol.
3. Honestly, I wanted to keep Finn’s relationship status ambiguous at first, but the idea is actually kinda growing on me. As for their friendship though, they’re super close and hang out all the time. He ends up denouncing all his crime and evil doing, and goes on adventures with Finn and Jake every once in a while (usually alongside Marcy and PB). Their friendship was already a little unconventional in terms of stereotypical male friendships as there’s a tenderness between them, albeit platonic, so it’s a tossup how their relationship develops. I feel like that’s partially up to how the people into my au jive with Ghoulio’s character once I flesh him out more.
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karahalloway · 4 months
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(Less Than) Noble Intentions: Chapter 16 - Snakes in the Garden
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Fandom: TRR
Pairing: Drake Walker x F!OC (Harper Gale)
Series Summary: The social season may be over, but Harper Gale’s problems are just beginning. With everyone at court a potential suspect, can she and Drake survive the engagement tour and get to the bottom of the plot against her and clear her name? An AU take of TRR2 featuring my OTP - Harper & Drake.
Masterlist: (Less Than) Noble Intentions
Chapter Summary: Harper greets the world as the new Duchess of Valtoria, but that is not the only newsworthy item that rocks the Apple Harvest Festival...
Word Count: 7,300
Rating/Warnings: M (swearing, angst, possible ulterior motives)
Chapter theme song:
A/N1: Things are slowly coming to a head! Thanks for bearing with me on this series - I know I have a lot of other projects in the works, so I have not been updating as much as I probably should. But, we are finally getting to the exciting parts (as if what's happened until now hasn't been exciting 🤣) as after this chapter, we are into the meat of the engagement tour, and all the juicy plot changes that I have been wanting to write for over a year will finally come to a fore! *evil laugh*
A/N2: If you have not heard of TURN - the TV show from which I borrowed the chapter theme song - then, I can highly recommend it (especially if you like historical dramas, US history (specifically the Revolutionary War period), or just really good story-telling)!
A/N3: This is also much submission for @choicesjanuary2024 Day 12: Smiles / Secret
Chapter 16 - Snakes in the Garden
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"Are you sure I look okay?" I ask, nervously pulling at the high-necked strip of emerald lace that circles my throat.
"Stop fiddling!" Bertrand berates, slapping my hand away. "We are running late as it, and we cannot afford to lose any more time to last minute touch-ups!"
"Yeah, but—"
"You look great, Harper," Maxwell assures me with a beaming smile. "Marcie did a great job."
The petite make-up artist that the Beaumonts had procured out of thin air bobs a curtsy to my right. "It was my pleasure, Your Grace."
Her words hit me like a whiplash.
Your Grace.
My new form of address. One I'm not sure I'm ever going to get used to. Lady Harper had been one thing, but that had always felt like a curtesy. A temporary formality that had been extended to me by virtue of my sponsorship by the Beaumonts during the social season.
But there is nothing temporary about my current situation. The weight of the ring on my hand — and its implications — bears down heavily on my finger... and my thoughts. Especially since I still haven't found a moment alone with Drake to finish our conversation from this morning... or bring him up to speed on my new status.
Because no sooner had my ennoblement been sealed with the very expensive — and very potent — champagne, than the Beaumonts had shown back up (somewhat mercifully) to crash Christian's surprise party.
And from there it had been a whirlwind of hair, makeup and outfitting for the all-important Apple Harvest Festival where I am due to make my grand debut as the new Duchess of Valtoria.
A position of some importance — Bertrand has stressed, multiple times — given that in addition to the impressive estate that I am now the official caretaker of, I also have a seat on the infamous Council, as well as a seat on the even more exclusive Privy Council. Not to mention my own fleet of staff, vehicles, bank accounts, and carefully curated online profiles.
Which is why — on top of everything — the ever-industrious press corps have worked at record speed to throw the fruits of yesterday's labours together into an exclusive, twelve-page spread as part of a special edition of Trend magazine, which dropped this morning.
And while I haven't actually had a chance to read through the copy that currently sits on the coffee table of my room (together with every other major national and international news publication), Maxwell has assured me that the social media reactions have — so far — been positive. The snaps of my stress-fuelled efforts at yesterday's apple pick have apparently helped.
Which means that Jonathan's PR gamble is starting to pay dividends, and I now have a public image to maintain. Not just for myself, but for Cordonia as well. Because when I step outside today, I'll be representing everything that the kingdom under Christian's burgeoning rule is striving to be — beauty, modernity, opportunity.
Definitely not the best day to wake up with a litany of awkwardly situated bruises!
Thankfully, both Maxwell and Bertrand seem to have had a chance to pull themselves together after this morning's surprising (and definitely explosive!) turn of events, and — after the initial shock — have set about covering for mine and Drake's mess with the same coordinated precision that they employed to pull the Beaumont Bash out of their butts.
With the result that they somehow managed to transform me from the black and blue disaster I woke up as, into the picture of a polished and refined lady.
I glance apprehensively out at the bright sunshine blanketing the hills. Hopefully, the carefully applied window-dressing survives the literal trial by fire it's about to be subjected to. Because just like yesterday, the temperature is set to climb into the mid-90's today as well, which means I'll most likely end up sweating buckets again, thanks to the Edwardian nature of my dress's neckline.
And what I definitely don't need today is for all the blush and cover-up getting smudged away so that everyone at the event can start speculating about the intimate placement of my of hickeys!
I close my eyes wearily. God, I can't wait for all this to be over...
"No catnaps!" snaps Bertrand, slapping a wide-brimmed hat onto my head. "The people are waiting on us!"
I barely have time to grab my matching clutch before the Beaumonts are whisking me out of my room and down the length of the corridor towards the manor's lawn.
"Surely the Festival can start without us...!" I gasp as I stumble after Bertrand in my heels.
"No, it cannot," he reprimands. "All members of the Council must be present for the ceremonial tree planting."
I frown. "Tree planting? Isn't that a little... agrarian for the aristos?"
"It is a time-honoured tradition!" corrects Bertrand. "Cordonia owes its existence and livelihood to the noble Ruby, so it is the duty of the Council to ensure that the fruits of our bounty are secured for future generations! Hence, the requirement to plant new saplings at the end of each harvest!"
"If you say so..." I concede as we pass through the back doors of the manor.
Based on what I saw at the apple pick, Bertrand's pronouncement seems optimistic at best, given that none of the aristos even bothered to lift a finger to a tree yesterday.
But, looks can always be deceiving, so maybe today is the day that the I am pleasantly surprised for once.
A deafening cheer erupts as the Beaumonts and I step out onto the manor's steps.
Snapping my head towards the source of the commotion, I see what appears to be thousands of people crammed behind velvet-lined cordons, screaming and jostling for position like they're in the front row of a Taylor Swift concert...
...and it takes me a second to realise that it's my name that they're shouting.
"Duchess!"
"Lady Harper, we love you!"
"You're the true Apple Queen, no matter what anyone says!"
"Wow..." I blink, taken aback by the fervency of the crowd's reaction. "I didn't realise I had such a rabid following..."
"Best wave to them," suggests Maxwell, leaning in as he raises his arm into the air with a wide smile.
"Okay..." I concede hesitantly, turning to the crowd to do the same.
The last time I experienced anything remotely like this had been on the red carpet at the Derby — my first public outing as a suitor. But even the bright flash of the cameras and the intrusive questions that the reporters had flung at me paled in comparison to the reaction I am receiving today.
Phones and cameras are thrust into the air as the Beaumonts and I descend the manor's stairs to the accompaniment of the increasingly frenzied cheers and shouts of encouragement. Even a few bouquets of flowers fly through the air, narrowly missing my hat.
And I can't help but smile in the face of the genuine outpouring of support from the crowd. Because it sure as heck feels good to be on top for once!
However, arriving at the edge of the orchard where the tree planting ceremony is due to take place, I am greeted by a very different type of welcome.
Snooty expressions drip down the ends of aristocratic noses as the members of the Council pass silent judgment on my somewhat bombastic entrance.
"They're just jealous," Maxwell whispers to me as we take up our spots at the edge of the gathering.
"Yeah..." I agree with a stilted voice. "That's what I'm worried about."
I know firsthand of the lengths that these people are willing to go to in order to exact vengeance for perceived slights. And I did not particularly feel like painting a target on my back a second time while I am still trying to recover from the hurt caused by the first.
Maybe this is a mistake...
But I don't have time to think on it long, because the public erupts into an even more deafening outburst as Christian appears with Madeleine on his arm.
"Look at her..." snips a voice from behind me. "Acting like she's Queen already."
I whip around in disbelief. "Olivia!"
The Duchess of Lythikos cuts her green eyes over at me with a derisive look. "Oh, don't look so surprised, Harper. Just because you are now a duchess, does not mean that the rest of us have taken early retirement."
"Trust me," I grumble under my breath, "this was not the plan."
"Opportunities multiply as they are seized," she replies sagely.
I quirk a brow at her. "Meaning?"
"Meaning," she expounds surly, "opportunity breeds opportunity. And only by exploiting every advantage will you uncover previously hidden gains. Do they not teach The Art of War inyour schools?"
"No..."
She scoffs under her breath. "Explains a lot."
I roll my eyes at her as Christian and Madeleine pause on the steps for photos and a couple of quick sound bites. "I guess this means your sabbatical was productive?"
"Exceedingly."
I heave a breath. "At least one of us is making progress..."
"Oh, don't sell yourself short," she counters out of the corner of her mouth. "Your recent advancements have served as a welcome distraction..."
"Not sure if that’s a compliment, or not..." I admit sourly.
"You have more power than you realise," she insists quietly. "Make sure you use it."
"Wow..." I mutter, glancing over at her in genuine surprise. "Friendly advice from the Scarlet Duchess? What else have you learnt during your time away?"
"Our interests are temporarily aligned, nothing more," she replies, shooting daggers across the lawn towards Madeleine. "And I'll fill you in shortly."
"Well, it's good to have you back, regardless," I say with a dip of my head. "Your Grace."
Olivia shoots me a sidelong look. "Don't get sentimental on me, Duchess."
But I can see the hint of a smile pulling at her lips.
Christian and Madeleine arrive at the edge of the trees. Stepping up to the row of waiting saplings, Christian pulls a stack of notecards out of his pocket and delivers a short speech to the click of the cameras.
As the mandatory applause dies down, he slots the pieces of paper carefully away... and pulls off his jacket.
"What are you doing?" hisses Madeleine as the crowd descends into a hubbub of excited reactions.
"Taking a leaf out of the Duchess of Valtoria's book," he replies, handing his jacket off to the closest shocked Councillor as he sets about rolling up his sleeves.
"Out of—!" Madeleine bristles in indignation, while trying to maintain an outwardly calm composure. "The only thing you have taken is leave of your senses! Now get back here and—!"
Ignoring his fiancée's outburst, Christian grabs the ribbon-bedecked shovel out of the hands of the footman that was holding it, and steps up to a clear patch of grass. Adjusting his grip on the handle, he digs the metal blade decisively into the ground to the accompanying slew of clicking camera shutters.
"Shall we?" asks Olivia with a sly smirk as she pushes her way to the front of the line of gawping nobles.
"Let's," I agree, instantly catching onto her plan.
"Lady Harper!" hisses Bertrand from behind me. "What do you think you're—?"
"Lending a hand to the King," I throw back over my shoulder as I step to the front of the row of aristos who are looking mutely onto the sight of their monarch working up an actual sweat before them.
Grabbing another shovel from the pile in the corner — these ones obviously having seen some honest work already, judging by the dirt encrusted on their faces — I join the King of Cordonia in enlarging the hole in the ground.
Because regardless of Christian's underlying motives for ennobling me, and whatever his broader game may be, what he is doing right now is bigger than me, bigger than him, bigger than any of us. And that deserves recognition. Especially when he is taking such active — and public — strides towards being the change he wants to see unfurl during his rule. Where the ruling class doesn't just offer empty platitudes and hollow ceremony, but actually practices what it preaches. So, what better way to do that, than by planting the seeds of change in front of thousands of people in the literal heart of the kingdom?
Christian rewards my arrival with a nod and a smile as I take up position next to him.
Hefting my shovel, I slice it into the earth that he's already uncovered, using the somewhat flimsy sole of my heeled sandals to drive it deeper.
Scooping the blade back out, I suddenly feel a presence to my left. Looking up, I see that Maxwell has also joined our impromptu work crew.
Throwing me a wink, he drops his shovel in next to mine.
With the three of us working on tandem, it takes us almost no time at all to dig out a hole large enough to house the new apple tree.
Wiping the sweat from my forehead — the weatherman had not lied, that's for sure! — I see that Olivia, with some assistance from Hana, has already prepared the sapling by shunting it closer to the hole and removing the burlap covering from its roots.
Laying down our shovels, we help her manoeuvre the tree to the edge of the dint. Cheers and applause rise up from the onlookers as the sapling thuds into the earth. Olivia uses one of the knives from her hidden arsenal to slice off the twines holding the branches together, and the tree unfurls itself with a satisfied snap.
"Your Majesty!" shouts a reporter, who I recognise as Frederick Capone. "One for the Cordonian Times, if you please!"
"And for the CBS!" adds Donald Brine, muscling his way to the front.
"Certainly," accedes Christian graciously, holding his arm out. "It was a group effort, after all."
We all gather in — sweaty and dirty, but smiling — as the press corps immortalises the scene...
...and I innocuously sweep my hair over my shoulder in a vain effort to try and hide any bruises that may have become uncovered as a result of the unplanned exertion.
"Thank you for joining me in my moment of impulsivity," Christian acknowledges softly as the bulbs flash.
"Please," scoffs Olivia out of the side of her mouth. "It was coordinated from the start."
"The people don't seem to mind," counters Hana with a demure smile as she faces the cameras.
"With the exception of about half-dozen," I note, glancing back at the disgruntled looks of the Councillors from behind us, as they try to save face by applauding our efforts together with the rest of the crowd.
"They'll fall in line." Christian assures me as he lifts his hand with a wave.
I feel a prick between my shoulder blades. Turning my head, I catch sight of the cold fire radiating out of Madeleine's gaze from behind the mask of her perfect smile.
"Maybe not everyone..." I mutter under my breath as I turn back towards the paps.
I'm already on Madeleine's shit list for daring to return to court after my very public humiliation and banishment. On the night of her engagement tour launch party, no less! So, the fact that I ended up upstaging her — again — probably means that I've sunk even further down the ladder of her estimations.
To what end, I have no idea. But I'm going to have to start being more careful from here on out.
Once the press are finally placated, we disperse across the lawn in search of some much-needed refreshments.
"Harper!"
I swallow a groan as I'm brought up short, mere steps from the freshly squeezed, rosemary-infused lemonade that I desperately need after toiling away in this heat. "What now, Bertrand...?"
"I... uhm..." He clears his throat as I turn to face him. "I wanted to apologise for my earlier outburst. It was unseemly... and in retrospect, short-sighted."
"What do you mean?" I ask with a frown. Bertrand very rarely — if ever! — apologised.
"The public reaction to the tree planting has been overwhelming," he clarifies, pulling his phone out.
My eyes bulge as I take in the view count on the screen. "A hundred thousand views already!"
"And counting," Bertrand adds. "And that is only one website."
"And look at the comments!" I exclaim, scrolling through the feed. "They're loving Maxwell as well!"
"Yes, it appears that my brother has a keener instinct for media relations than I do..."
"You should tell him that," I say. "It would mean the world to him."
Bertrand looks momentarily taken aback. "I... Well..." He clears his throat again. "Yes. Maybe I will. He deserves some recognition for his efforts in diverting — at least temporarily — the negative attention away from our financial predicaments."
"A simple hug and a 'thank-you' will do," I tell him with a knowing look.
Bertrand reels back in abject horror. "I will not subject my brother to such a sordid display of affection! Especially in public!"
I heave a sigh. "And there's your problem, right th—"
I trail off as I spot a familiar figure signalling to me from over Bertrand's shoulders.
"Excuse me," I say, palming Bertrand's phone back to him as I move towards one of the marquees that had been set up at the edge of the lawn.
Slipping inside the flap of the tent, I come face-to-face with Ana de Luca.
"Your Grace," she nods, dipping into a curtesy, something she hasn't deigned to do before. "Thank you for making the time."
"Ana," I nod in return, wondering why the influential editor of Trend chose to pull me away for a private meeting. Especially after I cornered her so forcefully at Madeleine's garden party a few days ago.
"I suppose congratulations are in order," she continues, straightening back up. "Since returning to court you have managed to elevate yourself not just in rank, but in the eyes of the public as well. Rolling your sleeves up in tandem with the King was a masterful piece of image enhancement."
"I didn't do it for myself," I reply evenly.
"Of course," she nods quickly. "We must all step in line with our new King. But your reputation is certainly reaping the benefits as well."
"As is your bottom line," I point out.
"Your initiative is markedly boosting sales of this month's special edition, as well as traffic to our website," she concedes. "For which Trend is very grateful. But that is not the reason I pulled you aside."
"What is it then?"
"I found out the name of the photographer," she replies, reaching into her handbag.
I feel my heart jump in my chest. "You're joking..."
She raises a brow at me from behind the lenses of her black-out Versace shades as she pulls a small flash-drive out. "I can assure you that I am not."
I quickly pull myself back together. "No. Of course not..."
Handing the drive over, she adds. "On there you will find all the pertinent information I was able to obtain through my own means."
"Thank you," I say sincerely, taking the piece of plastic from her. "I honestly was not expecting this..."
She shrugs an elegant shoulder. "I said I would look into it, so I did. It is not much, but I am sure you have people who can hopefully take it further."
"I do," I affirm, slotting the device into my clutch.
"After all," she adds with a knowing quirk to her lips. "You are not the only one with a vested interest in seeing your name cleared, Your Grace."
With another quick bob, she exits the marquee.
I let out a low exhale as the tent flap drops back into place in her wake. "Thank God..."
Some much-needed progress at last!
Hopefully, Drake can take the information from the drive and do a deep dive into the photographer to see if they ever crossed paths with whoever it is that has it in for me.
Which reminds me...
Opening my clutch up again, I pull my phone out and type up a quick message to my elusive boyfriend.
I haven't seen or heard from him since the event started. And now I have two pieces of critical information I need to share with him. So, rather than chasing after him like some damsel in distress, I'm going to make him come to me for a change. Because time is of the essence, and I don't want to wait.
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Hitting send, I exit the tent and head back towards the orchard. I figure that since everyone is on the lawn, the secluded garden hidden amongst the trees will give me and Drake the best chance to meet in private, away from the prying eyes of the court and the press.
Slipping between the tree trunks, I try to make my way as casually as possible through the orchard, as if I am simply out for a walk, in order to ward off potential suspicion. But, as I drift further away from the Festival, I start to pick up the pace, mindful of the short timeframe I gave Drake... as well as the exposed roots on the ground.
Because as much as I might want to hurry, I definitely don't want — or need — a twisted ankle the day before we're due to start the international leg of the trip. As Mom was right — I should take advantage of the upcoming whirlwind tour of Europe to at least try and get some sightseeing in. As who knows when I'll get the chance to do this again...
...especially if I'm forced to become a hermit because we fail to expose the mastermind behind the press scandal.
I shake my head. No. I need to stay positive. It's the only way I'm going to get through—
"Competing with a herd of elephants, Gale?"
I snap my gaze up at the sound of Drake's voice... and nearly trip over a hidden apple lodged in the grass.
"You try sneaking ‘round in four-inch heels," I grumble back at him, while using the trunk of a nearby tree to steady myself.
He mutters something under his breath as he steps over to me with an outstretched hand. "Here."
Grabbing his hand, I navigate gingerly away from the tree, only to find that the slightly rotten fruit has become impaled on the end of my stiletto.
"Great..." I groan, trying to flick the stupid thing off... But it stays stubbornly stuck.
"You're a walking disaster, y'know that, right?" drawls Drake as he drops down in front of me.
"Ha-ha, funny," I snark back at him while trying to balance on one foot on the uneven ground.
He meets my eye with a wry look as he finally manages to pull the offending fruit off with a squelch. "You're only gripin' 'cause it's true."
"Yeah, well, not all of us have... reflexes... like Neo..." I reply sardonically as I save myself from tipping over by grabbing onto Drake's shoulder.
He stifles a scoff as he tosses the apple into the trees. "You good?"
"Yeah," I confirm, righting myself again and letting go of his shirt.
Drake regards me critically for a long moment — as if expecting me to keel over again at the drop of a hat — before pushing himself up.
"Thanks," I say, laying an appreciative hand on his arm.
The humour fades from his gaze at the contact.
"Drake..." I start...
...but he's already pulled away.
"What did you want to talk about?" he asks, not quite meeting my eyes as he slots his hands into his pockets, the momentary lightness of our previous interaction gone.
I heave a breath.
We really need to talk about what happened this morning. But his suddenly standoffish demeanour makes it clear that he's not quite ready for that yet.
So, I decide to start with something less contentious.
"We have a lead on the photographer," I tell him, reaching into my clutch.
His head perks up with interest. "That was fast."
"Teamwork makes the dream work," I agree with a smile, pulling the flash drive back out and holding it out to him.
His posture suddenly stiffens. "The hell is that?"
I glance around me uncertainly. "What?"
"The fucking ring on your finger," he declares dispassionately, his accusatory gaze scorching into my outstretched hand.
My heart drops. Oh, no...
This is not how I wanted to break it to him. But unfortunately for both of us, the cat has now ripped itself out of the proverbial bag, so I'm just going to have to scamper after it.
Taking a steadying inhale, I look him square in the eye. "It's my new signet ring." I turn my hand over to show it to him.
His face darkens. "Fils de pute de—" he grits under his breath, snapping a hand out to grab my wrist.
My eyes widen. "Drake, what are y—?"
A storm is raging in his espresso gaze. "Signet rings go on the little finger. On the right hand."
"Oh," is all I can manage as he swipes the golden band off my left ring finger.
"You didn't know, did you?" he asks softly, reaching for my other hand... more gently this time.
I shake my head with a constricted throat. "No, I—"
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
My head jerks ‘round at the sound of the unexpected voice. "Christian!"
"I see you couldn't resist a somewhat impulsive stroll through the orchards, either?" he asks, more rhetorically than anything else. "The scent of apples is truly luscious this time of year."
"Erm... yes...!" I manage to squeak out, shoving my right hand behind my back. "Smells like apple juice!"
Christian's brow quivers ever so slightly at my slightly random — and obviously unexpected — comparison.
But I'm too busy coordinating with Drake to get the signet ring shoved back onto my hand while trying to palm the flash drive off to him without dropping either in the process. As both outcomes would lead to some very awkward conversations!
I feel the warmth of the metal slide onto the index finger of my hand (Drake had probably ascertained that the circumference of the band was too large for my pinky), and I'm finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.
Embarrassing backpedaling, narrowly averted!
Drake uses the opportunity to extract the flash drive from my hand as well, dropping the device casually into his pocket as he moves beside me. "She ain't wrong."
"No," concedes Christian, eying the two of us for a second longer than strictly comfortable. "She rarely is."
"So, umm... Are you hiding from the paps as well?" I ask in a bid to diffuse the growing tension in the air.
"No, I came looking for you, actually," he corrects, taking a step forward. "I saw you slip into the orchard, and thought it prudent to follow you."
"Oh?" I say, feeling my stomach tighten again. "Worried I might get lost?"
"I was hoping to catch you alone," he corrects, coming to a stop in front of me.
I swallow tightly as I see him glance over at Drake.
Please don't fight... Please don't fight...
Christian's gaze reverts to me. "But I suppose it is convenient for Drake to happen to be here as well."
My heart skips an uncomfortable beat. "It is?"
"Yes," he affirms. "I have received some news that you'll both be interested in hearing."
"Well, don't keep us in damn suspense, then..." mutters Drake with a noticeable edge to his voice.
I try to reach discretely out to brush my fingers against his, to reassure him that come what may, we'll get through it together, that—
"We found Tariq."
Christian's words hit me like a kick to the chest. The breath explodes out of me so forcefully that I am actually forced to take a step back in a bid to maintain my balance as the apple trees descend into a spin around me.
No way...
"Where?"
Drake's voice floats across the edge of my awareness. And even in my spaced-out state, I can feel the weight of the cold, calculated fury infused into that single word.
No corner... No mercy.
"Dubai," replies Christian, who also sounds like he's miles away. "He—"
But Drake's already spun away. "Send me the coordinates."
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"Harper?"
I blink up at Christian in a daze. "Huh?"
"Are you alright?" he asks, laying a concerned hand on my cheek. "You... You looked as if you were about to faint..."
"I..." I swallow past the sudden dryness in my throat. "I'm okay."
"Are you certain?" he presses, peering down at me. "I could ring for a doctor, and—"
"No," I insist, pulling away from him. "I'm fine. I... I guess I just got caught off-guard..."
"It is an unexpected development, certainly," he concedes. "But hopefully still a welcome one?"
"Yes!" I blurt out. "Of course! I want to clear my name more than anyone, and Tariq is key to that! I just..." My voice trails uncertainly off.
Christian flashes me a knowing half-smile. "Feel some trepidation about the prospect...?"
"I guess so," I concede, my fingers moving unconsciously to the horseshoe charm at my wrist.
Because as much as I may want Tariq to pay for what he did from a rational point of view, from an emotional standpoint, I’m terrified.
As even though I know in the back of my mind that a lot of my trepidation has to do with the fact that I am still trying to recover from the psychological trauma that Tariq inflicted on me, a major part of me is also scared of what setting the record straight would entail in practice.
Christian had mentioned that there were 'methods of persuasion' that could be used to force a confession from Tariq. But then what? Would I be made to very publicly relive the entire horrible episode in the form of TV spots and interviews, or would we be able to get by with one official press release? And given my spotty history with the press, will people actually believe my side of the story...?
I mean, Meghan and Harry didn’t exactly fare well in the court of public opinion when they tried to counter the official royal narrative...
On top of all that, in light of my very visceral reactions to returning to Applewood, I have no idea how I'm going to react to seeing Tariq in person again. Would I burst into tears? Have a nervous breakdown? Dissolve into a panic attack? Stab him in the gut and then the nuts?
And (possibly worst of all) what if we discover that Tariq had been acting alone? And his attack on me — while traumatising — is in no way connected to the larger, and definitely more dangerous plot to remove me from the running for Queen? What then...?
"Your qualms are not as misplaced as you may initially think," Christian consoles. "It is a daunting prospect to face the person who actively sought to harm you."
Something in his tone catches my attention. "What do you mean?"
Christian heaves a sigh. "I do not know if you are aware of this, but several years ago, I was the target of an assassination attempt."
I nod tightly. "Yes. Drake told me."
"Then I presume he also told you how deeply the experience affected me," he says, catching my eye with an uncharacteristically guarded look.
"Yes," I affirm, thinking back to the conversation in Olivia's wine cellar that felt like years ago.
"What he probably didn't tell you, however," he continues, "is that I visited the perpetrator in prison."
My jaw drops. "You what!"
"Not publicly and certainly not in any official capacity." He shakes his head wryly. "I did not even talk to the man."
"Then why...?"
"I... I was having trouble reconciling with what had happened," he explains. "And moving past it. The trauma councillor that I was working with suggested that it was perhaps because I was subconsciously endowing the gunman with too much power, and thereby transmuting the man into something more akin to an evil monster."
A shiver runs down my spine at Christian's words. It's like he's talking about Tariq...
"So, to help break the negative emotional associations I had built up, my councillor arranged a clandestine meeting where I would have the opportunity to face the man."
"How... How did that go?" I ask nervously.
"I was terrified, of course," Christian admits. "I had no idea what to expect and each scenario I imagined in my head was worse than the last. But, when I finally got into room where the meeting was to take place, I was surprised by what I saw. As rather than some hulking, shadowy fiend, it was a pale, somewhat diminutive man sat across from me."
"So… what did you do?"
"We simply sat at a table and stared at each other," he recounts. "He with more than a bit of contemptuous malice, I have to admit, but in that moment, I realised that he was a flesh-and-blood person who had fallen prey to the same misguided emotions as I — anger, fear, resentment — just manifested differently. And that helped set me onto the path of true healing. As ultimately, I was able to forgive him."
"Forgive him?" I gasp disbelievingly. "For trying to murder you?"
"Nobody acts in isolation," Christian advises calmly. "Even the most unconscionable horrors perpetrated by the villains of humanity — torture, mass murder, genocide — sprout from the basis of an emotional or psychological motivator such as love, fear, greed, jealousy... to name but a few. So, while we may disagree with and condemn the action retrospectively from the safety of the moral high-ground, it is very possible that had we found ourselves in a similar situation, we would end up being just as guilty as the person we are looking to condemn."
"So, what?" I demand testily. "I should feel sorry for Tariq for what he did to me?"
"Showing empathy and compassion towards our counterparts does not mean forgetting or excusing the harm suffered," counsels Christian. "But it will certainly allow you to start on the path of true healing."
I shake my head as I turn away. "I'm not sure Tariq deserves that..."
"It is by no means an easy assignment," he admits, laying a hand on my shoulder. "But even if you cannot find it in your heart presently to forgive him, do at least try to keep yourself open to the possibility down the line. You may be surprised by the results."
Looking up, I can see that there is sincerity welling on his emerald gaze. And — for once — I don't doubt the true intent of his words. "Thanks. I'll think about it."
"As diplomatic as ever," he smiles, the tips of his fingers brushing down my back as he drops his hand. "And, regardless of what you choose to do, I'll be right by your side to support you."
"Thanks," I mutter with what I hope is a genuine smile, suddenly acutely aware of the fact that with Drake’s abrupt departure, it’s just me and Christian amongst the trees. Taking a step back towards the way I’d come, I ask, "So, umm... How did you end up finding him?"
"Instagram," replies Christian with a wry chuckle as he falls into step beside me.
My head snaps up in bewilderment. "He posted his whereabouts?"
"No," he laughs, looping my arm through his in reassurance. "Not intentionally, at any rate. He took shelter on his cousin's yacht docked off the coast of the Palm Jumeirah, and—"
"What's that?" I ask with a frown.
"One of a trio of artificially constructed archipelagos located off the coast of Dubai," he explains. "They are so called for their shape, which resemble stylised palm trees."
"Sounds... fancy," I admit, while trying to maintain some semblance of platonic distance between the two of us.
"They really are a sight to behold," he affirms, pulling me back to his side. "But it is part of the reason why we were not able to locate him initially — we knew he has family in the Emirates, of course, but—"
"He does?" I interject in surprise. This is certainly news to me...!
"Yes," he nods. "His father is a Cordonian nobleman, but his mother hails from the House of Al Falasi, the branch of the Bani Yas tribe that also produced Dubai's ruling family."
My eyes widen. "So, his mom is royalty?"
"No," chuckles Christian. "She is not directly connected to the Al Maktoum dynasty. But her family is nevertheless influential in the region. Which is why when we hit a roadblock with the French authorities, we decided to focus our efforts on countries where we knew he had familial or business connections. The Emirates, however, boast a multitude of private airfields, not to mention water-based ports of entry, so attempting to narrow down Tariq’s possible time and method of arrival and determining where he went from there was providing to be a complex undertaking. Especially since we had to ensure to conduct our enquiries outside of the official channels."
"Specifically, via social media," I supply dryly.
"Yes," confirms Christian, only half jokingly. "When we realised that Tariq must have switched off or changed out his phone, Drake suggested that we set up a facial recognition-based search algorithm that could scour the various social media and news portals in a bid to help us pinpoint his exact location."
"That sounds... technical," I admit.
"A few years ago, it would have been, But the technology is relatively commonplace now, thankfully."
"So, you managed to get a hit?"
"Yes," he affirms. "One of his cousins on his mother's side posted a selfie featuring his new yacht a couple of days ago... and someone who partially matched Tariq's features was visible on the edge of the frame. But it wasn't until this morning that our man on the ground was able to obtain independent confirmation that it really was him."
"Wow..." I manage. "Talk about blind, dumb luck."
"Never underestimate the awesome power of serendipity," counsels Christian with a smile as we reach the edge of the trees again. "It certainly played a hand in crossing our paths."
I swallow nervously. "Yeah, I—"
"You have some nerve!"
Before I have a chance to realise what is happening, Madeleine has swooped in from seemingly out of nowhere to intercept us with all the wrathful precision of a homing missile.
"Ow!" I hiss, feeling the ends of her manicured nails sink into my arm as she wrenches me off Christian like I'm some kind of plague.
"One would think you would be grateful to His Majesty for his benevolent generosity in elevating your previously non-existent status to that of a duchess," she spits with barely disguised contempt as she pulls me nose-to-nose with her.
"Get off me!" I grit, trying to shake her loose.
"Madeleine..." interjects Christian from behind me in a voice that I only heard him use once before... in the hallway at Ramsford when he realised that Drake had brought me back to Cordonia. "You overstep."
But the Countess of Fydelia seems to hear neither of us as she tightens her claw-like hold on me. "Yet instead, you repay him by not only by hijacking a royal event to serve your own shameless self-aggrandisement—"
I shake my head in disbelief. "Wait... Wh—?"
"—but then you have the unmitigated gall—"
"Madeleine," says Christian again, more forcefully this time. "That is enough."
But Madeleine is oblivious to the quiet threat suffused into the sound of her name, choosing to continue her tirade instead, "—to sneak off into the bushes with my fiancé in order to do God-knows-what when he should be—"
"I said, enough!" snaps Christian, coming suddenly between Madeleine and me with a face of thunder.
The force of his command is loud enough to cause a few heads on the edge of the lawn to turn curiously towards us.
Even Madeleine startles somewhat in response to the uncharacteristically vehement order. But not enough to let go of me.
"Can you not see what she is doing?" she demands indignantly as she turns to face Christian. "Or does she have you wrapped so tightly around her finger that you cannot even—?"
"How I choose to spend my time with the Duchess of Valtoria in private is of no concern to you, Countess," interjects Christian bluntly. "Or do I need to remind you of the conditions of our engagement?"
Madeleine's alabaster cheeks flush scarlet. "No..."
"Then I strongly suggest that you unhand Lady Harper, and ensure that this kind of juvenile outburst does not happen again."
Madeleine's eyes blaze with cold fury. But she relinquishes her hold on me, nevertheless. "My apologies, Duchess..." she snips, her voice dripping with insincerity.
I reach up to rub the spot where her nails had been on the verge of puncturing my skin.
Bitch...
Christian nods tersely in approval. "Now that that is sorted, I believe our guests are waiting. Lady Madeleine, if you'd be so kind..."
Madeleine takes his arm with a look that could've killed. "Of course, Your Majesty."
"Lady Harper," acknowledges Christian with a dip of his head as he starts to steer his seething fiancée away.
Knowing that all eyes are still on us, I drop into a quick curtesy as they walk past, on one hand grateful to Christian for shutting Madeleine down, but on the other hand wondering how badly we kicked into a nest of hornets in the process.
As it is clear that Madeleine is still raging with jealous insecurity... Perhaps even more so than she had been back at her manor when she cornered me in the bathroom. And the fact that — despite the massive diamond on her finger — I now technically outrank her is definitely not helping the situation!
So much for making allies at court…
Blowing a wayward strand of hair out of my face, I turn back towards the festivities…
…only to be greeted by a wall of judgemental eyes, and more than a few camera lenses.
"Great..." I mutter under my breath.
Whether catching me with Christian had been the genuine straw that snapped Madeleine's cool, or whether she deliberately fabricated the showdown to undermine the positive reactions I got from the press earlier, the end result is the same...
I'm going to be on the front page tomorrow. Again.
Exactly in what form, I have no idea. But I've been at court long enough now to know that the whole thing will be blown completely out of proportion, and the resulting story will generate even more press frenzy.
But if there’s one thing that Drake has taught me, it’s that I cannot allow myself to give the aristos the satisfaction of ever thinking that they’ve managed to squash me into the dirt. Because that would undermine the entire reason why I came back to court in the first place, and given how close we now are to claiming back the truth, it would be a massive and premature admission of defeat.
So, raising my chin defiantly, I make my way back across the lawn to rejoin the remainder of the Festival.
The story continues in Chapter 17 - News Flash
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creatingchimera · 1 year
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chronicbeans · 7 months
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Ice Princess Marcy AU (Iceline)
So... I thought of another sad AU-
So, Simon died in the wastelands after the Mushroom War, but he still had the crown. Marcy finds his body, tries looting it for supplies, only to find a picture of Simon and Betty in it, so she kept it to try to possibly find Betty and ask for help. She ends up putting the crown on after not finding anything, thinking that maybe she could play dress up or something with it to give her a morale boost. Instead, she ends up becoming the Ice Princess, not remembering her name after a while and choosing something vaguely familiar (Iceline). She makes an Ice Simon and Ice Betty to be her parents, since she just wants a family and friends to care for her, and Simon and Betty looked so happy in that picture she saw. She now kidnaps random people in Ooo to try to make a bigger family for herself.
Hunson does find her after she put on the crown, but by then, she already doesn't remember a thing about him other mother. She also ends up flipping out once he tries to tell her that he's her dad, claiming that Ice Simon and Ice Betty are her parents. After a while, Hunson just gives up, leaving her to rule over her little Ice Palace. He couldn't convince her to do anything out of malicious intent, or to do anything evil (besides kidnapping people, which she doesn't do out of any sort of evil intentions), so he doesn't see any reason to stick around. Though, he does show small signs of missing her.
I already have a design for Ice Princess Marcy, Ice Simon, and Ice Betty, but I still need to do a little touch up to each sketch (so it can actually look coherent to people other than me my goodness why are my sketches so MESSY). But, I decided that, since Marcy only saw a picture of Simon and Betty, she made the ice versions of them based on what she saw, not knowing what they completely look like. Since she didn't see the bottom halves of them, she simply guessed when making the outfits they wore, and made completely new personalities for them based on what she wants out of a mother and father figure. So, I'll just put the picture she saw here for now-
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So, while the upper half looks very similar to them, just a bit more jagged due to being made of ice, the lower halves of their outfits are going to be different from their normal designs. OwO
Probably the only time Simon and Betty get to be married and have a kid and it isn't even the real versions of them.
I finished Ice Princess Marcy's design! Here y'all go!
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xenia12 · 1 year
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@froggythesculptor and I have been working on an animatic for our evil Marcy AU, so here’s a sneak peak of what we got so far!! We’re about halfway done eheheheh
I mostly line, color, and edit while Froggy storyboards and sketches!!
Also, the animatic focuses on chapters 4-5 of our fic:
(I know I haven’t updated in ages but I SWEAR I’m working on it, I posted part of ch6 here on Tumblr XD)
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kirythestitchwitch · 2 months
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Klaroline WIP Wed - Waffle House AU - Kol Drinks Coffee (questionable)
Part One here Part Two here Part Three here Part Four here Part Five here
“Order your own,” she glared.  
“How can I when—”
“Oh sorry, Caroline!” Short June scooted up next to the table, pulling her pad and a pen from her apron. “Didn’t see you had company, and Marcy’s in the back.” She shook her short black bob out of her face and smiled at Kol. “What can I get you?”
Kol leaned one arm on the table and propped his head up on his hand. “Hello darling. What can you get me?” His smile was all charm.
Caroline kicked him under the table.
“Oh.” His smile bounced off June like a rubber ball. She pointed at the menus stacked behind the condiments at the end of the table by the window. “Menus are right there, I can come back after you’ve had a chance to look them over. Do you know what you want to drink?”
Caroline was having this horrible moment of kinship with Caroline Bingley in Pride and Prejudice—the 2005 version, her favorite—when she asked if they are soon to be beset by every Bennet in the countryside: was every Mikaelson in the area going to show up and personally annoy her?
“Oh, he’s not stay—” she started.
“Coffee would be excellent.” Kol’s smile followed June as she left, and then he turned back to Caroline. “That hurt, you know,” he pouted.
She ignored that. “So fine, you’re alive. Congrats! What are you doing here?” Déjà vu.
“Well for starters, I’m—oh marvelous, darling,” he said, as June stopped by with another mug, a dish of creamers, filled his cup up, and left.
“For starters,” he continued, “I’m having coffee in what the internet informs me is a staple of Southern Americana.”
“You googled Waffle House?” Caroline asked, momentarily distracted by that detail.
Kol began opening creamers and dumping them into his coffee until it was an astonishingly light color. “I google everything. It’s the only way to catch up after being in a box for—” he lifted a hand, silently counted a few fingers, “—ninety-six years.” Pulling six sugars out of the sweetener caddy, he ripped them open and dumped the lot in. Stirring his concoction with a spoon, he said, “I love YouTube. Learned how to drive from that.”
Caroline winced as he took a sip from his cup. Good thing vampires couldn’t get cavities. “Okay so your no doubt stellar driving aside, what are you doing here, bothering me? We’ve literally never said two words to each other.”
He smirked at her over the rim of his mug. “Is Rebekah the only one who’s allowed to visit now? My, that will twist Nik’s knickers.” He snickered at the alliteration.
She leaned back in the booth and crossed her arms. “Your evil sister—”
“She’s my only sister, the evil part is implied.” Picking up the menu, he perused his choices.
“—wasn’t visiting, she was interrupting my late night study session. The way you’re doing.” She glanced pointedly at her notebooks.
“Didn’t look much like studying.” Kol smiled now, with teeth. “Looked like hunting.”
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sticks69 · 7 months
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More of my Asylum au! I saw that some people actually liked it so I made more.
Huge spoilers for Fionna and Cake, if you haven't watched it yet, please go watch it. You'll regret but you also won't (it's a good show just messes with you a lot.)
So we all know that we saw that world Hw bite it by her own arrows from the Vampire King sadly, but her body was eventually found by the crazed killer and her sad lil man. She uh took her clothes and dumped her body by a skeleton that was Vamp world Finn, which she also stolen to give to her Finn.
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Idk how to explain the portal but hey now the crazies are in vamp World we saw with evil Marcy ahh. Now traveling with Pb, and Marcy (who isn't actually an doctor but is just has the coat on anyway)
So they might be stuck in this world for some time…maybe they would run into this world Pb..or maybe someone else…
At least they have each other and of course the lesbains! ✨
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