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CONTENT WARNINGS: Death, physical and emotional abuse, burning, Nolan and Tamaya, gruesome descriptions of dead physical appearance, Salam Witch trials type era
Is it banshee or banhee for men???
His death was tragic and I mean extremely so
He was abused as a child (More physically than Idol! Nicholas)
His father angry that he was born sick and couldn’t take care of the family in his absence
His mother was no help of course
In fact she would make it worse
Constantly berating him and comparing him to other boys in their village
His sister would get beat if she tried to help him and no one would believe them when they tried to get help
“What? Nolan is a good man. He saved my daughter. Why would he hurt his own children?”
“No, not Tamaya. She loves children. Always sacrificing for others.”
You probably think he was abused to death by his father or died due to neglect
Nope
He was taken from his home and executed publicly
Nolan had committed a tragic crime trying to save someone else’s child so he gave his own child away to save himself
Nicholas was burned to death and his screams echoed through the village and the forest
His cries still haunt the area centuries later when it becomes a park for an apartment complex
People hear him before a family member passes
A child, adult, pet, or otherwise
Sometimes he will leave a small, black wide toothed comb made of wood that has been chipped over the years
DO NOT TOUCH IT
He doesn’t leave it to be touched
He leaves it as another sight of death that just isn’t his screams
He cannot talk
Any time his mouth opens the screams of pain from him burning alive come out
Banshees have long hair that sometimes cover their face until they start screaming
His hair is in locs so long they touch the ground and drag across the floor
The hair doesn’t cover his face but his face is covered in black soot and his eyes are black sockets with mushy eyes that are completely white
Like when your eyes roll back and you see your sclera.
His jaw is slightly dislocated and hangs limply, off its hinges, when he opens his mouth.
I genuinely wonder if people realize how many projects get abandoned because the readership "wasn't there", when in reality, the readership just stayed silent. It's a big thing in trad pub that book series get discontinued because readers pirate the books or wait until the series is finished to buy a copy, leading the publisher to think that nobody actually wants the book enough to continue the series, but it happens with indie creators too.
I've discontinued a lot of free, online series because it's not worth putting 3-5 hours a week into posting a project for no readers. Sometimes I finish the series for me but just never post it again, other times I don't finish it at all because it feels more worthwhile to put my time into other things. Sometimes I hear from readers who are sad or upset that I didn't finish something they were liking, but the *reason* it never got finished is because I didn't know anyone liked it. If you like something, tell the creator, tell your friends, make some noise about it. If you would be sad if a story never finished, make that interest known because one of my biggest considerations before discontinuing a series is "will people miss this? Will I be letting people down" and 9/10 times, I come to the conclusion of "no, it doesn't even seem like anyone's reading this" only to learn after I've moved on that apparently someone was.
I've said this before in a different way, and this post said it so well. With real examples.
If you like something, tell people.
If you want more content from an artist or author, if you like their stuff, tell them. It will give them creative fuel to keep going. And often it gives them other resources as well.
Recommend a work to other people. Leave a comment or a review. It doesn't have to be long, just genuine, a sentence or two.
Not many people know that a book's success is judged by book reviews as well as sales. Review the book on Amazon or another site to help it pass the metric of success and be recognized by publishers and retailers.
Widowed Willow | Chapter 1: New People, New Beginnings
Series Masterlist
Word Count: 8.4k
Content Warnings: Second hand embarrassment, Pre vampire Caroline, bit of bloody talk, mention of dead parents, car crash mention, shitty teacher, awkward teenage conversations, Tyler's attempt on Vicky, Vicky's relationship with Jeremy, Emotional cheating but none of them are together (good luck figuring out who this focuses on)
You DO NOT have my permission to put any of my work into an AI.
You DO NOT have my permission to repost my work anywhere.
Routines are comfortable. You know what to expect every day down to the very minute. They’re different for everyone, but they all do the same thing. It’s a set of events in a set order to ease the mind. For a teenager on weekdays, it’s full of school and home on repeat. You get dragged around by your parents to do what they want for you or themselves, and expect you to become your own person through it. Some routines are unintentional. It’s just the easiest thing to do to get through tough times, like grief.
Death is always a surprise, even if you know someone is dying. It could be an elderly person in a hospital or someone bleeding out in your arms, but when it happens, it hits differently. It numbs some, and it breaks others. Amari didn’t realize she was in a state of constant repetition until that routine suddenly broke. At first, it was her parents' sudden disappearance when she was seventeen.
The town moved on quickly, but she still waited for them. Sheriff Forbes kept telling her that she still had people searching, but Amari knew that everyone believed her parents were dead. And maybe they were, but Amari wouldn’t believe it until she had proof. Amari nearly went in foster care, but her best friend’s parents, Miranda and Grayson Gilbert, adopted her. It wasn’t a hard change, not really.
She was already practically living there before her parents vanished. She spent every weekend there and always ended up in their house before breakfast. Miranda gave her the guest room and decorated it with her and Elena’s help. She never took the time to think about her parents' leaving. Her attention is constantly switching between Elena, Jeremy, Ashanti, and school.
But then the accident happened. The day was ingrained into Amari’s head like bleach staining the fabric of her memories. May 23, 2009, Miranda and Grayson drowned after their car went off the bridge. She still blames herself for it. She was legally an adult, but she still needed her parents. She still needed Miranda to be there to greet her in the morning and tell her she’s okay. She still wanted Grayson to look at her paintings and tell her what he loved about them.
Amari didn’t think she’d fall into another routine after the deaths and disappearances of four of the most important people in her life. But she did. She, along with Jeremy and Elena. They fell into the familiar routine of school, home, shower, repeat. An endless cycle, occasionally broken by Jenna forcing them to eat or one of their friends checking on them. Everyone grieved differently. Elena sheltered herself, Amari stuck to reading and painting, Jeremy pushed his family away and went to drugs, and Jenna was left to pick up the pieces and mend them back together.
“Toast!”
Amari flinched at the shout, blinking quickly to wet her dry eyes and watching Jenna run around the kitchen. She inhaled deeply, ignoring the frantic woman, and looked down at her sketchbook. A half-finished drawing of an obscured raven coming out of a cloud of fog. She had been drawing ravens for a while. This past summer had been chaotic and not in the normal way. Everyone was giving their condolences or telling her how strong she was.
Arms wrapping around her waist, and she tenses before smelling the familiar scent of jasmine cherry blossoms. Elena. “How are you feeling?’ She whispers in Amari’s ear, rubbing her hands against Amari’s sides.
Like I lost my parents again, Amari thinks with a tilted head, but she doesn’t say it. She lifts her hand in a so-so motion before lifting a mug of coffee and placing it in Elena’s hands. She barely manages to take a sip before Jeremy comes by and snatches it from her, taking two big gulps before handing her the mug back.
“It’s your first day of school,” Jenna said, breathless from running around. She rummages in her bag with furrowed eyebrows, repeatedly pushing her hair out of her face when it falls back down. “I am unprepared.”
Amari and Jeremy share a look of exasperation as Elena looks at Jenna with a tilted head. “Don’t you have that presentation?”
“Yes, I’m supposed to be meeting with my thesis advisor at-” Jenna looked down at her watch, slumping in defeat. “Now.”
Amari blinked, and Jeremy sighed heavily as he rubbed his temples before lifting his hoodie over his head. His eyes were red-rimmed from his current high, and he quickly accepted Jenna’s lunch money offer. Ignoring Amari’s narrowed eyes, Jeremy casually packed his bag with a tumbler and a plastic baggy of what looked like gummy bears. He glanced towards Jenna, “Can Ash spend the night?”
The strawberry blonde paused, tilting her head in thought as she hummed. She didn’t notice Elena’s frantic head shaking and nodded anyway. “Sure, I don’t see why not. Just no sharing the bed. I don’t want another incident like last time.”
“We weren’t even doing anything,” Jeremy sighed as he slung his bag onto his shoulder. Jenna stared at Jeremy with a blank expression while Elena and Amari shared unimpressed looks. He shrugged and left the house before anyone could say anything, quickly followed by Jenna so she could drop him off.
Elena sighed in defeat. At first, Jeremy constantly wanted to be around her and Amari, needing their support. He stopped coming to Elena when she pushed him away after he found her crying in their bathroom. Her eyes snapped toward Amari as the taller teenager stood up.
“Give him time, butterfly,” Amari told her with a sad smile, slinging her backpack onto her shoulders. A honk from outside stops Elena from replying, and they both go outside to Bonnie and China dancing wildly in the car to some pop song.
Elena sighs softly as she climbs into the passenger seat, making Bonnie turn the volume down. Amari gets in the back with China and smiles softly at the twins. “Hello, my gorgeous girls.”
Bonnie smiles brightly in greeting while China gives a soft, murmured reply. Just like that, Amari’s vision grows blurry, and she closes her eyes to lean her head against the window. The car moves, and she breathes slowly and deeply to quell the nauseous feeling spreading through her body. Her phone buzzes again, but she ignores it. It’s Tyler reaching out to her again, wanting to apologize and hopefully become friends again.
The screeching of tires and the car jolting to a stop as China throws her arm out in front of Amari to stop her from slamming into the back of Elena’s seat. Amari’s ears ring, and her vision is full of flashing lights. It sounds like she’s underwater; everything muffles despite Bonnie turning to check on everyone. Her mouth is moving, but Amari can’t hear anything but screaming and the screeching sounds of glass breaking as a car flips before going over into the water. Again. And Again.
Elena glanced back at her, reaching back to rest her hand on Amari’s leg to rub lightly at her knee. She frowns when she gets no response and smiles in reassurance at Bonnie and China, but it looks more like a grimace. “She just needs a moment. We’re okay.”
“What the hell was that?” China snapped, looking out the window at the road to see if there was anything left.
Bonnie shrugged as she looked around, too. Her eyes wide, equally shaken up as China, she huffed, “It was, like, a bird or something. It came out of nowhere.”
“Hey,” Elena called, drawing their attention to her. She rests her hand on Bonnie’s arm as she glances between the two. “It’s okay. Really. We can’t be scared of cars all our lives.”
Amari frowned to herself as she leaned back in her seat, blinking slowly. Cars, trucks, and any vehicle that had more than two wheels were a no for her. She only got in the car this time because she didn’t feel like walking to school. There was a high chance that the weirdo with the blue eyes would be there, and despite Michelle constantly reassuring her that he wouldn’t hurt her, Amari had a bad feeling about him.
Bonnie smiled softly as she finally began driving the rest of the way to school. She looks at China in the rearview mirror with a teasing glint in her eyes before looking between Elena and the road. “I predict that this year is going to be kickass. I predict that all the sad and dark times are over and there will be nothing but happiness for you two.”
Amari couldn’t bring herself to smile more than a twitch of her lips. She leaned her head against the window again and sighed softly as the other girls laughed together.
This year was going to be long.
The halls were loud and full of students excited to see each other. Amari scoffed as a boy ran down the hall and jumped up to slap the clock hanging from the ceiling. It’s like people lose their minds over the break and forget how to act when they come back. Everyone was laughing, talking brightly, and smiling without a care in the world. Like someone—two people actually—hadn’t just died. It’s a small town; people should be more affected.
It was different when it was just her parents. Amari’s parents were sketchy people and shitty parents. She wasn’t surprised when no one batted an eye at their disappearance. In fact, she’s certain that people were glad they were gone. An older man, Larry was his name, told her she was better off without them, and it took everything within Amari not to snatch his dentures out.
But this was Miranda and Grayson Gilbert.
Miranda was well known for being a kind woman who cared for everyone. Literally, everyone. It was annoying to Amari, but that’s what made Miranda so special to the town. She was the type to put a blanket in the dryer before driving to the park to give it to a homeless person. Grayson had his own clinic and office to help people. The man saved lives and was studying more ways to improve health for everyone without charging ridiculous prices. He was going to save even more lives, but he couldn’t even save his own or his wife's. The fucking irony is ridiculous.
Amari flinched as China smacked her on the arm. A girl wearing a poorly fitted dress drew their attention, and China snorted, “Look at the shower curtain on Kelly Beech.”
“She looks like a hot…” Bonnie paused to tilt her head. “Can I still say trainee mess?”
“I’m pretty sure that went out before summer started when Lisa- I mean, Liam came out,” Amari muttered as she opened her locker, placing her belongings inside and sorting through to grab what she needed. She practically shoved her book bag into her locker, pulling out her sketchbook and leaving everything else inside. It’s not like she’d be paying attention anyway.
“Find a man and coin a phrase. It’s gonna be a busy year,” Bonnie joked as she closed her locker, turning to face Elena and China.
But Elena wasn’t paying attention. Her focus was across the hall, slightly further down, to where a blond boy was staring at her. Matt Donovan. He was in a daze, earbuds in his ears, and his eyes foggy. Elena smiled slightly as she waved awkwardly at him, only to frown when he slammed his locker and stormed away. She sighed as she turned to the girls again. “He hates me.”
“No, that’s just his ‘You dumped me, but I’m too cool to show it, but I’m listening to Air Supply’s greatest hits.’ It’ll pass,” Bonnie assured, rubbing Elena’s arm in comfort. They shared a soft smile and flinched when Amari shouted a curse. She was trying to help China open her jammed locker. Bonnie sighed as she gently pushed them aside to open the locker, looking at them with an unimpressed frown when it opened for her.
“Show off,” Amari muttered under her breath, laughing as Bonnie swatted at her arm. A mass of blonde hair collided with them, and Amari had to slam her hand against the locker behind her to prevent herself from falling over.
“Girls! Oh, my goodness,” Caroline shouted directly into Amari’s ear, and the taller girl winced. Caroline Forbes is both the joy and bane of Amari’s existence. She pulled back to look between Elena and Amari with furrowed eyebrows and a pout. “How are you? How are they?”
She didn’t give them a chance to reply before turning to Bonnie and China. Amari and Elena shared a look of disbelief before Elena smiled awkwardly. “We’re fine, Care.”
“Really?” Caroline cooed as she cupped Elena’s face. She smiled when the girl nodded before leaning to kiss her cheek and Amari’s nose. She squeezes them into a tight hug and ignores their whines of protest.
“Hug them any longer, and they’re combust,” China snickered, poking the blonde in the side. Caroline giggles as she squirms away from the ticklish touch and releases the two girls from her hold. She sighs, shaking her hair out, and looks between the four girls. “See you later?” She’s gone before they can reply. Her heeled boots click against the floor as she struts down the hall to her next class.
The remaining four girls remain silent in a confused pause before sharing a laugh. Bonnie links her arm with Elena’s and leads the group through the halls. She pauses as they nearly pass the office, her head turned to look inside, eyes wide and eyebrows raised. “Who is that?” She whispers.
Elena tilts her head to try to see, but frowns when she can’t. “All I see is back.”
“Maybe he’s a new student,” China suggested with a grin, turning her head to look at Bonnie. They were staring and didn’t care. Amari gagged and wrinkled her nose at them. All they see is this guy's back, and he’s wearing baggy clothes, so it’s not like they can see anything about him, yet they were staring like wolves at a lamb.
“I’m sensing Seattle,” Bonnie nodded with a smirk. She squints slightly before nodding again. “And he plays the guitar.”
Amari groans as Elena laughs while China side-eyes her sister and sighs, “You’re gonna drag this into the ground, aren’t you?”
“Yup,” Bonnie grinned.
Elena suddenly stormed off and entered the men’s bathroom, making Amari raise an eyebrow. But someone lunged at her, and she barely managed to catch herself and the girl in arms before they could fall to the floor. She groaned slightly, sighing when she realized it was Michelle. “Get off me.”
“Sorry, I missed you,” Michelle whispered back and tilted her head at Amari. She glanced between Bonnie and China with a glint in her eyes. “What’s this about someone being psychic?”
“Grams says we’re witches, so Bonnie keeps making predictions, but the only thing she successfully predicted was me burning my toast this morning,” China explained, leaning away from Bonnie’s swatting. The girls laughed, Amari even joining this time with a light smile as they parted. China, Bonnie, and Michelle are off to their classes, and Amari is headed towards the bathrooms to find Elena.
Jeremy came storming out of the men’s bathroom, straight past her. She watched him leave with furrowed brows, but chose not to say anything when he went out the exit rather than go to class. She shook her head, knowing where Jeremy went, and turned to see the new guy with Elena, who was stammering to come up with an excuse for why she was exiting the men’s bathroom.
“Elena,” Amari called, jogging over. She tripped on her untied shoelaces, stumbling into Elena’s shoulder and nearly knocking her to the floor. She stands quickly and dusts herself off. “Did you see Jeremy?”
“Uh, yeah. I sent him to class,” Elena smiled, silently thanking Amari for her timing.
The dark-skinned girl nodded as she went to walk away again. The new guy tried to step out of her way, but accidentally stepped in front of her. They side to side but block each other again. It happens two more times before they both pause with a laugh. “I’m Stefan,” He mutters, smiling down at her as he gently grabs her by her shoulders to keep her in place as he steps to the side.
Amari smiles awkwardly, but doesn’t give her name back. Her cheeks warmed up as she quickly walked away with Elena giggling beside her. Before she turns the corner, she glances back to see him looking after her with furrowed eyebrows and a small smile that makes her smile back.
School droned on like a content snail looking for food. Slow and in one direction. Geometry was a pain in the ass, and Amari wishes she hadn’t been kept back a year. Taking that class again, despite already passing it the first time, was hell. Then she had Biology, which wasn’t bad, but it definitely wasn’t the best. She liked her English Writing class. Mostly because Ms. Maze let her get away with a lot of stuff since she passed her class with a 98% last year, but her point still stands.
History, however, was a new type of hell that Amari never wished on anyone, maybe on Larry, that old hoe, but not on anyone else. She loves history and believes it to be a very important subject. She just cannot stand the teacher.
Mr. Tanner.
He was the type to let students pick their seats only to choose his own seating plan instead. He doesn’t even sit the students in groups. He’s got rows or columns of desks, depending on who you ask. He sat Amari in the best spot unintentionally and just couldn’t be bothered to change the seats again. She sits behind Elena, in front of Matt, and next to Bonnie. This spot was hell when Matt and Elena were dating. Passing notes between them and not getting caught was a pain.
It doesn’t help that Mr. Tanner is unattractive. He isn’t ugly, of course not, but he certainly wasn’t easy on the eyes. But it could just be his attitude towards life and other people that made him ugly. In fact, it's how he earned the nickname Sir Grumpy, although most students used it only when they were hiding who they were talking about.
Mr. Tanner wasn’t a terrible person to all of his students, but he had shifted his attention over the summer to Elena Gilbert, for some reason.
“Once our home state joined the confederacy in 1861, it created a tremendous amount of tension within the state,” Mr. Tanner droned on, and Amari sighed softly. She leaned back in her chair, running her fingers through her curls to push them out of her face.
His voice wasn’t too bad. It was actually kind of nice if you ignored what he was saying. But then again, he’d say whatever he could to make someone feel bad about themselves. Meaning that sometimes, even when a student was completely correct in their answer, Mr. Tanner found a way to make them question themselves. Especially if a student were correcting him, he’d tell them to teach the class instead.
Amari’s phone buzzed in her pocket, and she ignored it. Her focus on the black wolf she was too busy shading in her drawing. Her notebook was already full of notes from last year about the same thing Mr. Tanner was talking about. She sighed softly when her phone buzzed again, then discreetly pulled it out.
‘HAWT-E STARING @ U’
Amari pursed her lips at Bonnie’s text message, squinting for a second before sliding her phone in her pocket again. She had a feeling Bonnie was talking about the new guy, but she didn’t have the time or the energy to deal with it. She leaned forward to continue sketching.
Just how much information can you know about someone without talking to them before you start coming off as a stalker? Is there a code or something that gives the distinct amount? In a small town, everyone knows everyone, but they don’t know them. You know? It’s like being at school. You’ve seen that person’s face a lot, but you don’t remember their name. You just remember that they performed at the school talent show, but it didn’t go right because the backstage folks didn’t listen. Yeah, good times.
“His name is Stefan Salvatore,” Caroline smiled, walking to one of the tables in the Mystic Grill as she told Bonnie, China, and Amari what she found out about the new kid. She was jittery and kept fidgeting with her hands, tilting her nose up in pride at how much information she had found.
“He lives with his uncle at the Salvatore boarding house and, get this!” She grins as they sit down at the table, pressing her hands against the table top with a wide grin. “Michelle is his fraternal twin sister.”
“So that’s where I’ve heard that last name before,” Amari hums under her breath as she looks at the menu. She’s not looking for anything really. She already knows what she wants. She just doesn’t want to give Caroline the satisfaction of knowing that she’s listening.
“I know, right?” The blonde gasps, flagging down a server.
Vicki tells her to hold on and continues her talk with Jeremy. Ashanti is nowhere in sight, and Amari hopes it’s because she had plans for something else, not because Jeremy blew her off for Vicki again.
Caroline rolls her eyes and turns back to her friends. “Apparently, he hasn’t lived here since he was a kid. Military family and stuff, so they moved around a lot. He’s a Gemini, and his favorite color is blue.”
Bonnie blinked in surprise, “You got all that in one day?”
“Please,” Caroline scoffed as she flicked her hair over one shoulder. She smirked, “I got all that between third and fourth period.”
“Stalker,” China and Amari muttered, smiling at each other right after.
Caroline stuck her tongue out at them before smiling dreamily as she rested her chin on her hand. “We’re planning a June wedding.”
She slammed her hands on the table, scaring Bonnie and Amari. Her eyes were wide as she looked over China’s head at Michelle entering the Mystic Grill. Caroline grinned wolfishly before shooting up from her table and chasing the raven-haired girl down to learn more about Stefan. The remaining group of girls exchanged amused looks before frowning when a blue-eyed blond sat in front of them. Amari groaned.
Matt Donovan, the football team’s quarterback and Elena’s ex-boyfriend. He wasn’t too bad. Just a teenager trying to survive high school, but Amari felt he was a bit boring, though. His sister, on the other hand, Vicki, was hot. Too bad she didn’t like girls, though. And she’s dating Tyler while leading Jeremy on. It’s a weird thing, and Amari’s surprised Ashanti hasn’t fought the girl yet.
“How’s Elena doing?” Matt asked, breaking Amari from her thoughts. She blinked her vision clear and glanced at him to see him staring at her. She didn’t get to answer before Vicki slid a paper boat of french fries and an Oreo milkshake in front of her with a wink and a smirk before walking away again.
China stared at Matt in irritation as she pointed at his phone on the table. “Ask her, Matt. That’s why phones were created, so we could communicate more easily when people couldn’t see each other.”
Bonnie sipped her soda as she glanced around in hopes of seeing their brunette friend. She noticed Vicki making sex eyes at Amari from across the bar and raised an eyebrow at Amari, who was too busy dipping french fries into her milkshake. Bonnie’s nose wrinkled.
“It feels weird talking to her. She broke up with me,” Matt sighed, slouching in his chair with a shrug. He looked up with a hopeful gleam in his eyes, and China nearly felt sympathy for him. But then he opened his mouth. “Has she said anything about me?”
“Matt, buddy, listen,” Amari said as she set her drink on the table and leaned forward. Her eyes are gentle, but her words are cold. “We’re not your messenger girls, okay? If you want to know how she feels, take the time to reflect on why she broke up with you, and then talk to her. Or just stew in your grief over your relationship. But leave us alone about it. Please.”
Matt looked like he was ready to give up. Slumping further in his chair and staring at the ceiling with slightly furrowed eyebrows and a little frown on his face. He looked back down when Bonnie placed her hand on his shoulder with a soft smile. “Give it more time, Matt. She’ll come around when she’s ready.”
The bell on the door dinged before Matt could reply, and the group looked over. Elena walked in with Stefan holding the door open, laughing at something she’d said. And just like that, Matt resembled a deflating balloon. He stood from the chair with a huff, “Time, huh?”
He didn’t give anyone time to reply or stop him before he walked toward Stefan and his ex-girlfriend. Caroline practically lunged for the empty seat now that Stefan was here, and Elena walked straight past Matt to get to the table.
“Hi,” Elena smiled softly at everyone, though her eyes focused on Amari. Amari was back to dipping French fries in her milkshake and eating them like they were the best thing since sliced bread. Everyone replied with gentle greetings except Amari, who simply hummed and continued eating.
Stefan came over to sit in the empty seat between Amari and Elena. Before he could even properly adjust himself, Caroline was on him. “You know, with you being new, you don’t know about the party tomorrow night.”
Stefan’s eyes narrowed slightly as he shook his head cautiously. His confusion is clear as day. Bonnie smiled in reassurance and leaned forward to explain. “It’s a back-to-school thing at the falls.”
“This is your invite. You’re invited,” Caroline smiled brightly, tilting her head at Stefan. She ignored China’s grumbling and Bonnie and Elena’s amused looks.
The boy nodded slowly before turning his attention to Amari. He smiled at her when she looked at him with a fry hanging from her mouth. “Are you going?”
Amari shrugged, chewing on a fry. She didn’t really want to go. She wanted to stay at home with a book or finish her painting. Maybe even do homework. Anything but go to the party: too many people and too much noise.
“She’s going,” Elena answered, smiling at Amari from behind Stefan’s shoulder. Her eyes were mischievous, and Amari smiled awkwardly when Stefan brightened at the news.
Back at home, Amari still couldn’t relax. She paused in the doorway at the sound of arguing from upstairs. It sounded like Jeremy trying to explain himself and Ashanti yelling back at him. Something about him being with Vicki and Amari winced as she and Elena shared a look. Jeremy and Ashanti weren’t dating. Technically, no. But they may as well be. Sure, Jeremy is fifteen and Ashanti is fourteen, but they practically did everything, like boyfriend and girlfriend, except for sex. At least, Amari thinks they haven’t had sex.
She hopes they haven’t or that they at least used protection. Ew.
“It’s been like this since they went upstairs,” Jenna sighed from the couch in the first living room. Amari and Elena looked over as the shorter teenager finally closed the door. Jenna sat in the corner of the couch, feet tucked under her, watching some Housewives show on mute with a glass of wine in her hands.
Elena and Amari blinked at the sight. Since when has Jenna been doing stuff like this?
“I’m being nosy while acting like I’m not.” Jenna glanced over with a shrug as she gestured to the empty spots beside her. For a moment, the girls stared at her. They should tell her that she shouldn’t be doing this and that she needs to try to stop the arguing happening upstairs. They should remind her that she is now their guardian, not just their aunt. But then again.
They’re teenagers.
“What happened?” Amari asked as she hopped over the back of the couch to sit beside Jenna. She watched the blonde cradle her wine glass so as not to spill any before smiling apologetically.
Jenna shrugged, “They came home. Ashanti greeted me while Jeremy stormed upstairs. He looked like he had already gotten in trouble on the way here. Me and Ash talked for a while before I finally let her go upstairs. And maybe five minutes later, I hear her shouting something about him kissing Vicki.”
“Jeremy kissed Vicki?” Elena repeated, entering the living room again and throwing a bag of Sour Patch Kids at Amari. She ignored Amari’s flailing and sat down with a glass of juice. They had to fit the part, of course.
“Did she kiss him back?” Amari asked after finally grabbing the bag. Her nose was wrinkled and her eyes wide with furrowed eyebrows. She gagged when Jenna nodded to both questions. “That’s child molestation. Isn’t she seventeen? She’s literally turning eighteen soon, and Jeremy just turned fifteen, like, yesterday.”
Elena’s face scrunched up. “Amari, his birthday’s in October. He’s been fifteen for”—she paused when Amari glared at her, quickly changing her sentence. “Okay, that’s not your point. He’s a child compared to her. That’s gross.”
Jenna shrugged, sipping her wine. Amari and Elena stared at her through squinted eyes, sharing equal looks of suspicion. Jenna should be raising hell. She would be if she hadn’t done something. Amari raised an eyebrow, and Jenna shrugged again. “He’s grounded, and I’ve informed the school to keep them separated. She’s on watch when on school property.”
“Oh,” Amari murmured, looking away with pursed lips. She blinked a few times before nodding and scooping a handful of sour patch kids into her mouth. She barely got to chew before everyone looked to the stairs when they heard Ashanti yelling.
“I am not jealous! I’m disgusted that you kissed her and did whatever you two do before crawling into my arms. You fucking stink! You smell like weed and cheap perfume!"
Amari choked on the candy going down her throat. The bag fell off her lap and, thankfully, landed right side up. She coughed, beating at her chest while Jenna patted her back and Elena got her some water. They all were trying not to laugh, but it was just too funny. Jeremy probably shouted back, but Amari was too busy trying to dislodge the wad of chewed candy from her throat to hear.
“He’s going to spend the rest of the week making it up to her,” Jenna sighed, shaking her head and rubbing light circles into Amari’s back.
“Please,” Elena snorted as she handed Amari a glass of water. “Try two months. Ashanti already told him she doesn’t trust Vicki around him, and he told her not to worry.”
“Fifty dollars, they start dating at some point without telling anyone, and we all just assume they’re still friends until they casually admit it,” Amari coughed before clearing her throat. She smiled at Jenna and Elena, who grinned and nodded in agreement.
“Deal,” Jenna nodded.
“I think they’ll get together sooner than you think,” Elena smiled, leaning her head on Amari’s shoulder.
It’s the second day of school, and people still have no sense of what's going on. Amari walked through the halls with Aiden at her side this time, and everyone was talking loudly for no reason other than to hear themselves over others. They wouldn’t have to talk so loudly if they all talked quietly. But no one is ready for that ideology, so Amari keeps it to herself. Thankfully, the day is almost over, so she won’t have to worry about any other classes. However, she does have to go to the field after school.
“Ugh, can’t we just skip today?” Aiden groaned, slumping against Amari’s side. He ignored her frown of discomfort and leaned even further against her. “It’s not like Sir Grumpy will miss us.”
He chokes as Amari’s elbow collides with his ribs. She blinks innocently at him when he glares at her, and she keeps walking with a shrug. She doesn’t bother giving him a verbal response, knowing he’ll still go to class if he doesn’t want to get in trouble with his parents.
He skipped once in his entire life and never skipped again.
They enter the classroom with big, fake smiles as they greet Mr. Tanner. The teacher is in a good enough mood to greet them as they take their seats. It’s more so a grunt of something between “Hey” and “Go sit”, but it’s something. He turns from the board and walks to the front of his desk to lean against it.
“The battle of Willow Creek took place right at the end of the war in our very own Mystic Falls. How many casualties resulted in the battle?” Mr. Tanner asked, glancing around the room with his arms crossed. No one raised their hands, either flicking through their notebooks or doodling in them.
“Miss Bennett?”
Bonnie jumped in her seat, snapping her head up and nearly dropping her pencil. She blinked a few times, and he repeated the question for her with a sigh that she tilted her head at. Bonnie shrugged, “A lot? I’m not sure. Like, a whole lot.”
Amari wheezed lightly, exchanging amused looks with Elena, chuckling with a few other students in the room at Bonnie’s sarcastic answer. The laughter stopped when Mr. Tanner smirked with a snark, “Cute becomes dumb in an instant, Miss Bennett.”
The room tensed slightly along with some of the students, hoping he wouldn’t choose them. His sharp eyes looked around the room, and they landed on Matt, who sucked his teeth. Mr. Tanner grinned, “Mister Donovan, would you like to take this opportunity to overcome your jock stereotype?’
Matt nearly looked like he was considering the sarcastic offer before shaking his head. “I’m cool with it.”
Muffled laughter rings out again, and Mr. Tanner’s eyes narrow. He heaves a heavy sigh, tilting his head to pop his neck before his eyes land on Elena. “Miss Gilbert!” He calls, drawing her attention from her notebook. He raises his eyebrows. “Surely you can enlighten us about one of the town’s most significant historical events. It’s only one of the many events your ancestors were a part of.”
Elena’s mouth opens and closes a few times, wracking her brain for the answer. She shook her head lightly. “I’m sorry, I don’t know.”
Mr. Tanner sighed again, and Amari sent a sympathetic look toward the back of Elena’s head, hoping he wouldn’t be too hard on her. He stood up from his spot against his desk and leaned forward slightly, slowly walking forward to get in Elena’s space. “I was willing to be lenient last year for obvious reasons, Elena. But the personal excuses ended with summer break.”
Elena’s apologetic face dropped, and she leaned back in her chair. Her hands moved from the desk to her lap as she felt everyone glancing between her and Mr. Tanner. Her embarrassment grew strong, and Amari sighed, “I feel so sorry.”
“Excuse me?” Mr. Tanner scoffed, leaning away from Elena to look at Amari. But she wasn’t looking at him.
Her eyes were trained on her sketchbook, shading another drawing of a raven. She tilted her head to get the right angle, adding more details to her drawing. She shrugged, “I feel sorry for whoever you end up with. Though I don’t doubt it will be because they pity you, they’ll still be miserable.”
Mr. Tanner glared at her, taking the few steps from Elena’s desk to Amari’s desk, and leaned down into her face. “Do you want me to send you to the principal’s office?”
“I want you to get out of my face,” Amari said, leaning back and closing her sketch book. She packed her things, careful not to get too close to Mr. Tanner, who was still leaning in her face. “We can’t just switch our emotions off. That’s not how humans work. Her parents died, sir. Not everyone is an emotionless windbag like you.”
“Get out!” Mr. Tanner yelled, spit spraying from his mouth as he sat up.
Amari grimaced as she wiped her face and stood up. “With pleasure,” She muttered, lightly pushing past him with her things in her hands. She paused in the doorway to look at him again. “There were 346 casualties, unless you’re counting local civilians.”
“347 casualties, actually. Minus civilians, of course,” Stefan corrected—a curious look on his face with lingering amusement in his eyes.
“That’s correct. Except there were no civilian casualties,” Mr. Tanner chuckled as he walked to the front of the room to lean against his desk again.
Amari poked her head back in the door with a pointed look. “There were twenty-seven, actually. Confederate soldiers fired on the church because they believed it housed weapons.”
Elena bowed her head to hide a smirk. Her eyes glanced to the side when Stefan continued for Amari.
“They were wrong,” Stefan nodded, smiling slightly at Amari before looking at Mr. Tanner with raised eyebrows. “The founder’s archives are stored in the city hall. I think? If you’d like to brush up on your facts, Mr. Tanner.”
Amari smiled back at Stefan before walking out the door. The poorly concealed laughter of her classmates followed her as Mr. Tanner sputtered out an excuse. She leaned against the lockers across the hall and down the wall until she sat on the floor. The sketchbook was immediately brought to her lap, and she worked on the raven drawing again.
It seemed like only a few seconds passed before she heard the light click of heels and keys from down the hallway, headed towards her. She raised her head the tiniest bit to see who it was before looking up with a grin. Her favorite teacher, Ms. Maze, was walking toward her with a confused expression.
“Why are you out here?” Ms. Maze asked, tilting her head as she pointed between Amari and the history classroom. She frowned when Amari shrugged before sighing. “Come on. You can sit in my class.”
Amari smiled at the offer but shook her head. “No, thanks. It’s nearly the end of the day, and I’ve gotta go to the field with Elena. I’m just waiting for her.”
Ms. Maze narrowed her eyes, seeming to stare into Amari’s soul, before smiling and nodding. Her heeled boots clicked against the ground again as she turned the corner. Amari’s attention had returned to her sketchbook long before the teacher had left, and she was immediately engrossed in her drawing again.
She didn’t even notice time flying by so quickly until the abrupt sound of the bell ringing broke her thoughts. She gathered her things quickly, standing with the same speed so that she wouldn’t get stepped on by the sea of kids escaping their classrooms. She slid her things into her book bag and slung it onto her shoulders right as Elena walked out with Bonnie.
Stefan followed soon after, Aiden’s arm thrown over his shoulders and talking about football tryouts. Amari stepped away from Elena and Bonnie, who both kept walking, to walk on the other side of Stefan. “So, you’re a history nerd? Or just like showing up to mean teachers?”
Aiden cringed at her attempt at striking up a conversation with Stefan. His sentence died in the middle as he shook his head and walked faster to escape them. Stefan didn’t even spare Aiden a glance, laughing slightly and shrugging at Amari.
“Both, I guess,” Stefan answered. “You seem to know your history pretty well, too.”
“History is the story of our lives, Salvatore.” The brunette shrugged with a grin as she started walking away, turning to walk backward. She raised her voice over the growing chatter of the students in the halls. “It helps to know it so we don’t repeat it.”
After catching up with Elena and Bonnie, Amari turned forward and followed them out the school doors to the football fields. “See you tonight, Salvatore.”
“I don’t see him.”
The party wasn’t as loud as Amari thought it would be. Then again, it could be because she has two edibles and shared a joint with Aiden earlier. How she’s still functional is beyond her. Elena and Bonnie are with her after they found Amari sitting alone on a cooler. Now they’re drinking beer while Amari drinks water. And she’s almost ninety percent certain that the conversation is about the new boy now. They were talking about Caroline ditching them, but then the conversation somehow turned to Stefan.
“He’s got the romance novel stare,” Bonnie said, grinning when Elena swatted her arm. She widened her stance and held her hands in the air as if telling a dramatic tale. “Stefan looked deep into her eyes, piercing her very soul.”
Amari hears their joking, but she’s more focused on watching these two ants fight over a crumb from the sandwich she just finished eating. An abrupt uproar of laughter makes her look up at them.
Elena looks around discreetly. “Have any of you seen him?”
Amari tosses an arm up in Bonnie’s direction with a limp shrug. “She’s the psychic one.”
Elena turns to Bonnie as well, and the Bennett girl snorts. Bonnie tilts her head side to side and rolls her shoulders, putting on a show of hyping herself up. “I forgot. Give me a sec. Grams says I have to concentrate.”
“Wait!”
Amari and Bonnie flinch at Elena’s outburst and watch her run around. She comes back with an empty beer bottle. “You need a crystal ball.”
Amari blinks a few times. “That’s a glass beer bottle.”
“That’s not the point,” Elena narrows her eyes at Amari before holding the beer bottle out to Bonnie. But when their fingers graze each other, a sharp shock runs up Bonnie’s arm, and she gasps sharply, eyes widening and misting over.
Amari shoots up from the cooler, tipping it backward and spilling out ice on the dirt. Her hand was resting on Bonnie’s arm to prevent her from tilting over. Like cold water splashing over her, Bonnie inhales deeply as her eyes blink hard.
“Oh, that was weird. When I touched you, there was water everywhere,” Bonnie trailed off, eyes darting around her but not focusing on anything. “The water sparkled, and there was a man.”
Elena’s eyebrows furrowed, and she shared a confused look with Amari as they stepped closer to shield Bonnie from the sudden cold breeze. Bonnie shook her head clear, blinking hard before looking up at them. She grinned, but it wobbled at the edges, and walked backward away from them.
“I’m drunk. It’s the drinking. There’s nothing psychic about it.” Bonnie sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than she was trying to convince them. Walking away before they could question her. “I’m gonna go find China.”
“Bonnie!” Elena called out, running after her friend with Amari following.
But Amari had been smoking and doing edibles. She stumbled slightly, waving Elena’s concerned look off and sending her after Bonnie. Amari leans against a tree to catch her breath, looking around the crowd to count how many things she can see and breathing slowly with each one. She catches sight of Jeremy walking off into the woods and runs after him.
“Jerky!”
Jeremy groans at the nickname but slows his pace to a brisk walk. He doesn’t even have ot look to know who it is. “What, Mari?”
“Oh, nothing.” Amari bumps her shoulder into his own before wrapping an arm around his neck to ruffle his hair. “Just wondering where my little brother is running off to.”
Jeremy shoves her off him, not stopping his strides even when she trips over a root. “We aren’t actually brother and sister. You remember that, right?”
“Sshh, semantics,” Amari shushed him, catching up to him and tugging her jacket back on correctly. “Blood isn’t the only binding source.”
“You sound like a shit etsy witch.”
Amari’s laugh rang out loudly through the forest, scaring off a crow. It was interrupted by the sounds of struggling and an abrupt shout.
“Tyler, stop! I said no!”
Vicki.
Amari ran off with Jeremy following. A little further in the woods, pressed against the oak of a large tree, Vicki has her hands pressed against Tyler’s face, pushing as much as she can. Amari slows to stop, sagging against a tree and breathing heavily. Jeremy runs past her to ram into Tyler’s side, shoving him into the dirt and unintentionally knocking Vicki over.
Finally catching her breath, Amari jogs over to help Vicki up. “You okay?”
“I’m fine,” Vicki smiles shakily while dusting her pants off.
Their attention moves to Jeremy and Tyler rolling around in the dirt—a few punches land until they finally separate. Tyler shoves Jeremy off him as he stands up, not bothering to dust the grass and dirt off his pants.
“You know, Taylor, I’m starting to realize why I stopped hanging with you.”
“Because I care about consent?” Amari asked rhetorically, rubbing Vicki’s back as the girl coughed to rid the burning feeling in her throat. She could already tell that Vicki would have a bit of bruising on her throat from Tyler choking her.
Tyler doesn’t bother giving a verbal response. He steps past Jeremy’s crumbled body on the floor to walk toward the two girls, only to be shoved backward by Vicki.
“Enough! Tyler, get the hell away from me!” Vicki shouts, shoving him away from her and Amari.
“Wow,” Tyler drags out, holding his hands up placatingly with a sharp grin on his face. “Vicki Donovan says no. That’s a first.” He glares for a moment longer before walking away. “Fuck you.”
Amari throws a small rock at him, hitting him on his shoulder. He flicks her off without turning around. She watches until she can’t see him anymore, which isn’t far since she isn’t wearing contacts or her glasses. Her attention is brought to Jeremy when he groans as Vicki helps him off the floor.
Vicki tugs him off the floor, resting a hand on his chest. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Jeremy grunts while rolling his shoulders. “Are you okay?” His hand goes to her waist while his other hand cups her chin to tilt her head back and to check on the bruising on her throat.
Amari doesn’t stay to hear Vicki’s answer. Her nose wrinkles as she stumbles trying to get away faster. Tripping over yet another tree root, Amari finds herself looking for Tyler. Sure, he’s a dick and shouldn’t have been trying to force himself onto Vicki, but Amari wants to make at least sure he gets it through his elongated head that he’s a piece of shit.
“C’mon, asshat! Where are you?!” Amari calls out, spinning around slowly to catch a glimpse of him. It’s warm out, but the forest is cold. Her jacket isn’t doing much to help, and her high is starting to buzz off.
Stupidly, she continues through the trees even as fog rolls in from seemingly nowhere. The fog thickens till she can’t see the ground, and she’s walking mindlessly. The only sense of direction she has is the tall trees surrounding her and the slight pathway between them. A twig snaps, and her head snaps in its direction.
“Tyler?” She calls out, stepping forward slowly. Another twig snaps in a different direction, and she looks over that way. The sound keeps occurring in different areas, driving her to spin in slow circles to follow it until she realizes that whatever is making it is coming closer.
“No!” Amari shouts, running in a random direction. She follows the trees with broken branches. “No, no, no! Such an idiot. This is how they get you in the movies.”
It’s like the fog follows her. Swirling up her legs like it’s trying to pull her back. Laughter, rushing water, and music eventually break through the silence of the forest, and she follows the noise like a beacon in the dark. She glances over her shoulder exactly one time before looking forward again, but it's enough to make her stumble. She catches herself against a tree and pushes off it, running a few more feet and bursting through the tree line.
Straight into someone.
Both people grunt as they fall into the dirt. Amari doesn’t give herself time to check on the person, let alone figure out who it is, before she’s getting back up and stumbling away from the trees even further.
“Hey, whoa, wait!” A hand grabs Amari’s arm and pulls her to a stop. Stefan. His eyebrows furrow, and his eyes are wide as they trail her face. “What happened? What’s wrong?”
Amari gestures behind her to the trees, opening and closing her mouth equally wide. Her skin is clammy, and her hair clings to her nape. She’s struggling to breathe, but she doesn’t know if it’s from the panic of what just happened or from running for so long.
She’s not the most athletic person. She will fully admit that.
“Yeah, um,” She stammers, stopping in the middle of her sentence as she looks at the tree line. There’s nothing there. Not even the fog from before. “Something was following me. Probably just an animal or something. I’m not gonna test that theory though.”
Stefan nods along encouragingly, his hand on her arm moving down to grab her hand and gently rub along the bone of her wrist. He hums, short and simple, when she looks at him again. Her other hand finally dropped to her side. He glances at the trees but doesn’t see anything either. “Maybe it was an animal or someone playing a bad prank. Let’s get you back to Elena or Bonnie—”
“Somebody help!”
Elena’s call for help interrupts Stefan, and they both turn. Elena leads Jeremy, who’s carrying Vicki’s unconscious body, out of the treeline along the path back to the party. Amari pushes past Stefan, following Matt to where Jeremy lies, Vicky on a picnic table.
“Somebody call an ambulance,” Matt yells, looking around before cupping Vicki’s face and lightly slapping her cheek. “Vicki? Wake up!”
Amari finally pushes through the rest of the crowd and herds them back with Elena’s help. “Everyone, back up. Put the phones away. Give her space.”
China and Bonnie push through the crowd, freezing for a moment at the blood before rushing forward. Bonnie takes her own scarf to tie it around Elena’s scarf against Vicki’s neck. “What the hell happened?”
“Something bit her,” Jeremy explains, snatching Elena’s scarf and pressing it against the bleeding wound on Vicki’s neck. Something bit through her neck, as if something had torn her neck open.
With everyone’s attention on the bloody scene, no one sees Stefan leaving the party.
✧*̥˚Wish I Could Shelter The Boy I Knew*̥˚✧ | Stray Kids Extra Member AU
Wish I Could Shelter The Boy I Knew is the second solo album by Nicholas Ross, released in February 2025. The album consists of 8 songs.
SONGS
Devil in a Dress (Originally by Teddy Swims)
Lose Control (Originally by Teddy Swims)
Sign of the Times (Originally by Harry Styles)
Never Knew a Heart Could Break Itself (Originally by Zach Hood)
It Only Cost Everything (Originally by Victor Ray)
Someone Who Loved You (Originally by Teddy Swims)
The Door (Originally by Teddy Swims)
What Other People Say (Originally by Sam Fischer & Demi Lovato)
NOTES
☾ Nicholas's album, Wish I Could Shelter The Boy I Knew, was released on Valentine's day, February 14th.
☾ It is believed that this album is about the same ex Nicholas spoke of in his album, Damage.
☾ There has been much discourse on Nicholas being in a relationship as many fans had not been aware he was ever in a relationship. Some find it odd that there was never any hint or sign beyond a mention in the song Lie in his Damage album.
☾ Despite a lot of the negative comments, there's been majority positive feedback on the album. Many relating to recovering from a recent break up, leaving a toxic relationship, surviving an abusive one.
☾ The discourse over Nicholas's role in Stray Kids and tthe argument of if he belongs was further "backed" by the release of this album, as many of STAY believe the mixed idol should be more focused on Stray Kids instead of his own projects.
☾ Nicholas has not admitted who this album is about, but said that he's amused by how close many have gotten to who it is about.
☾ Shortly after Wish I Could Shelter The Boy I Knew reached top charts, a woman by the name, Shadeen Wright, posted screenshots of text messages between herself and, who she claims to be, Nicholas Ross.
Twelve-year-old Elena stands outside her house, clinging to her best friend, Amari Taylor. It seemed the world matched their moods; the sun was nowhere to be seen, just clouds. The trees stopped their dancing in favor of leaning towards the pair, a stray vine wrapping itself around Amari's leg. At the end of the driveway, a black woman leaned against her car quietly arguing with a white couple.
The birds that usually chirp and sing are quiet, and the squirrels who used to run around sit in trees as if watching. The sound of Aiden’s and Jeremy's laughter is missing, replaced in their tears. It seemed like the world paused; it was quiet.
A soft chuckle broke Elena from her thoughts, and she looked up, her best friend's sad smile blocking her face from the sun. The sun shone behind her head like a halo, an angel. Her angel.
"Look," Amari whispered in a quiet, soft voice as she pointed towards a brown butterfly. It fluttered around the two before flying at Jeremy and back towards the sky. Her gaze followed it until she couldn't see it, returning to meet the eyes of Elena.
"Cameron said brown butterflies mean a fresh start, new beginnings." She reaches up to unclip her necklace, placing it in Elena's hand. "I want you to keep this and take care of it for me."
Elena frowns at the piece of jewelry, leaning her head into the hand running through her hair. She looks up at her friend and smiles at her, before yanking her forward in a hug. "I love you, Mari."
“And I love you, butterfly. We’ll see each other again.”
I’m bored and didn’t have anything to post so have this.
CW: This is written with the Cullens/Stray Kids not mated. Bit of gore talk in Minho's part. This might open your eyes to how creepy the Cullens are if they already aren't. Rosalie's background (R@PE!). Jasper didn't fight for the confederate army in this because... no... um... just no. I tagged all of these types of readers because the reader in this is very generic and I don't specify anything. It switches between Reader and Bella when talking about someone. Mostly in Seungmin and Jisung. (Jisung's is... for a certain reason though...)
Bang Chan
Hate to be stereotypical but Chan is Carlisle… its not even because their both considered “leaders”
It’s the control they have. How calm they stay unless something happens to their family or if they notice an injustice. And it has to be extremely bad for them to snap. It’s the time they take to think through the course of their actions and how it affects everyone involved. He’s not incapable of being angry. He just has that self control and understanding that lashing out might not get the job done.
Now that we've talked about the similarities, let's talk about how unnerving it is. Because they are, in fact, vampires. And every thing we know about them is from Bella's perspective and she's already enamored with Edward so we don't get a full terrifying count about them.
Chan, as Carlisle, is not just about control in himself, it's control in his environment. Control in the area he considers his territory. He knows everything that goes on in Forks do to the gossip of such a small town. He doesn't care for gossip at all, but he does care about knowing anything that might affect the day to day living of his coven.
Now, Carlisle!Chan's control prevents him from immediately trying to implement himself in your life. It's like that with Esme until her accident, so I'm certain it will be like that with you. But if you're persistent and want to be with him and do not cower when he finally relents and agrees... that's your trap your walking in.
His control is also, in a way, manipulative. He assures you that everything is okay and that everything is under control. You have nothing to worry about. He gives off the illusion of you having free will, but he slowly takes over your life to be "better" for yourself blending with his.
It's not like Edward's controlling portrayed in the movies: prevention from hanging out with certain people, continuing to isolate you from your family, etc. No, Carlisle!Chan is controlling in a mind that puts you in the mind of a sugar daddy. Like... he gets you finically independent on him, and if that doesn't work, he invests in your hobbies or helps you find one to build that brain chemistry that notes him as a happy space for you.
You'll keep coming back for more of that feeling of stability and warmth. Which doesn't seem all that bad until you try to go out of the norm, like going outside to sit on the porch without saying anything or for a walk by yourself, and he questions you as if you just said you no longer want to eat cooked food and now want to just eat raw humans. and he doesn't relent until you say something, and you never know what it is, that assures him of something inside him even he doesn't notice needs to be coddled.
Lee Minho
Stuck between Rosalie and Esme. Rosalie because Rose is a "bitch" but secretly a softy. At first glance Minho is “mean” but we all know he’s a softy.
Esme because she’s motherly and Minho isn’t necessarily motherly, but he does do what fathers should do with their kids. You know… be there for them mentally, not just physically, but actually puts in genuine effort to care for them. He’s silent with his care and sometimes you might not know it was him doing the little things. He remembers the tiniest details and how they affect the others.
We as a society are just not used to seeing much beyond the bare minimum in men so when we see more we automatically associate it with the feminine counterpart to the male title. BUT! that's a topic for another day.
Let's say Minho is Esme. Because I'm going to make Rosalie be Hyunjin. I'm going to say something that might get me attacked by the Twilight community, but we need to unpack this. Just like with Carlisle, we only see the version of Esme that Edward projects onto Bella. SO!
Esme!Minho is not motherly! He is stock in the body of postpartum depression and grief. The baby literally was born only to die two days later and Esme!Minho tried to commit suicide MAYBE an hour or so later. If even an hour.
Esme!Minho, like Rosalie!Hyunjin, craves that baby more than anything. Sure, he's happy with Carlise!Chan but you have to think about it. Vampires are alluring creatures, they are meant to cater to their victims (even if you aren't the intended victim) to draw them in. Esme!Minho is nurturing, loving, and heavily adaptable. It's even worse if you have parents like Bella (in particularly a shitty mother like Bella's) because you're more likely to fall for the nurturing charm.
It's the equivalent of your parents, trusting people who have shown love and respect to you, bringing you downstairs into the basement during a storm and as you all are huddled together, she turns and takes a bite out of your neck that leaves only half of it remaining. I'm talking your head only connected by a slither of skin.
Be glad Esme!Minho only drinks animal blood because that is how your story would go if they didn't.
Seo Changbin
Emmett… that’s all. They’re both buff and can look intimidating but they’re really sweet.
No but seriously. Emmett’s character is often watered down to his muscles or his personality as a teddy bear just like Changbin. He’s both, not just one. He’s playful and loves to joke but is ready to defend someone if needed. But, like an actual bear (like the one that mauled him) Emmett!Changbin has his moments where he's just existing in the peace of himself. He's always trying to make sure his loved ones are okay and that they're set, even if it's at the expense of himself.
Silencing himself to let his loved one lived their dreams repeatedly because they can't have one thing they were taught to and genuenily want.
Changbin works out and often looks like he’s ready to punt a kid across a parking lot. Yet he’s one of, if not the first, to try and help someone in need. He also has a habit of keeping quiet during interviews and just looking around at the others, like his taking a moment to remember the moment in case it's taken from him.
Emmett!Changbin was young when he died. And he definitely hadn't wanted to die. He was living a happy life, living freely and playing wildly, until he went too far into woods and got kissed by a bear of death. He too had no say in his death or being brought back to life and was taught that he's basically indestructable so he can't die. Not being able to die, Emmett!Changbin made the most of it and was lucky to fall in love... or be loved bombed until he couldn't tell the difference between love and tolerating someone.
On the official wiki an din the freaking book and movies, it states "Rosalie was noted as saying that it took nearly all her strength not to kill him. She also said that she brought him to Carlisle so that he, with his stronger endurance to human blood, could save Emmett, being afraid that she would kill him instead. Emmett describes this experience as "being saved by an angel who brought him to God". " That's another creepy thing about Carlisle/Carlisle!Chan, he's a fucking hypocrite and Carlisle is a racist shit but I digress.
Hwang Hyunjin
He's either Rosalie or he's Edward and both ideas make me laugh. He’s silent yet expressive, and poetic in his anger. (imagine if he was jasper LMFAO)
Rosalie’s character was made as representation for the blonde beautiful bullies in high school but she wasn’t written properly to be a bully. Ms. Stephanie was just really shitty, racist, internally misogynistic, and... really self projecting. ANywayyy! Edward… is a fucking idiot with depression and obsessive issues. Movie Edward is. Book Edward is just an oddball with slightly watered down stalker syndrome.
Hyunjin is often pictured to be extremly romantic based off... whatever y'all base that on (GIVE ME SOMETHING THAT'S NOT THE STEROTYPICAL ROMANCE SHIT AND QUICKLY)... and because everything about a vampire is enhanced, that love is put forward tenfold. Hyunjin is beautiful and moves elegantly with captivating grace. He’s often picked at because of those things. “Take off the filter.” Type of picked at.
Both descriptions, romance and beauty beyond the surface, can apply to both characters, Edward and Rosalie, beautifully. For the sake my sanity and the length of this post, we'll go sterotypical and say Rosalie.
Rosalie!Hyunjin is believed to be self-absorbed, shallow, materialistic, rude, a bitch, and I could go on. In reality, they are! Rosalie!Hyunjin grew up comfortable and was raised oblivious to the struggles of life until marriage happened and one too many drinks turned into a drugged drink turned into a nightmare that he woke up as a completely new person.
That mindset has kind of transpired over and upheld even in the vampire life. Rosalie!Hyunjin hates that the choice to live was taken just as his choice in that night that caused it was taken. It's one whole loop of trauma, forever stuck in his after assault dead cell body, forever tormented with the reminder that the body everyone thinks is so beautiful is the one that was violated and "survived". But is it really survival if you didn't want to be "saved"?
It's even worse when Rosalie!Hyunjin realizes that he did get to have a child... he just didn't survive the night she was conceived to get to meet her.
Han Jisung
I honestly didn't know who to choose for Jisung and Felix but we gon keep it pushing. Emmet! Now hear me OUT!
Jisung has been gaining a bit of muscle recently, not overally buff like his hyungs but he's not a noodle like in his youth. But that's just it. Jisung's personality matches Emmett perfectly. Rewinding to everything I said in Changbin's part, Emmett's character is so much more than the funny, buff himbo people make him out to be. He's definitely got anxiety and stress about keeping his loved ones (Rosalie) happy.
Emmett!Jisung is a hyperactive, introverted ball of anxiety, stress, peer pressure, and the occasional mental breakdown. Add freaking Bella to the mix and that's just like chucking a wrench into a pot of soup. YOU DON'T FUCKING DO THAT!
ahem... apologies. let's continue. Everyone is all worried about freaking Edward and his lonely ass because he likes to fucking brood like a emo teenager in an early 2000s movie. Fucking idiot. And even though Emmett!Jisung is not required to do anything, unless Carlisle!Chan pulls that "We help our family. And Bella is family whether you like it or not" bullshit to gaslight those objecting helping out, Emmett!Jisung just hates seeing his actually loved ones hurting. And in comes his people pleasing!
As someone who has severe people pleasing tendencies, it's so fucking easy to be manipulated. Especially when you don't understand basic social ques. Like... ugh... put those problems and enhance it after turning into a vampire and voila. You've got a potential mind explosion.
But, for real, Emmett!Jisung actually avoids Alice!Felix because of the hyperactive shit unless he's in the mood to participate in it. Which is sad because Jasper! Seungmin/Jeongin helps keep Emmett!Jisung calm.
Lee Felix
…I'm pretty sure you already know where I'm going with this. Alice! or Jasper. Mostly leaning toward Alice for obvious reasons. If Alice's way of using her powers didn't fucking annoy me, she'd be an amazing character to me. And I'm going to make the creepiness of her character so fucking obvious its going to rewire how you watch twilight next time. If you aren't already as aware as I am... or most psychology students.
Anyway! Alice's backstory is actually very sad and makes me want to cry. I'll give her that. Go check out her backstory if you don't know it or need a refresher. Moving to the Alice that Bella knows and sees.
Alice!Felix is a manipulative, doe-eyed, happy-go-lucky little shit. Alice!Felix's vision are of great help don't get me wrong. If there's a chance of something life threatening happening then he can give a warning about it and action can be taken to prevent the vison from coming true. But Alice!Felix also has a habit of subtly guiding everything around him to the vision he deems the best for everyone. Sure, he may take your feelings and opinions into account, but he's still changing the tiniest thing to make it out to be what he thinks will make you happy.
From commenting on updating your wardrobe to changing the lightning in your room to telling you if you should or shouldn't go shopping on that specific wednesday, it's everything. And it's so subtle because of how long he's been doing this and because of his vampiric nature. It blends and enhances Carlisle!Chan's control so perfectly. Just like Edward!Seungmin or Jeongin does. Of course, Alice!Felix is going to agree with you constantly coming over (Despite the chance that he missed a chance of seeing a vision happening of Jasper getting hungry and killing you) as long as it makes Edward happy. Of course, Alice!Felix votes for you to become a vampire because you want to and not because the idea of immortality has been planted in your head like a seed that's been watered by Carlisle!Chan, Esme!Minho, and himself.
Because it makes Edward happy, which makes the others no longer have to worry about him, which makes everyone in the coven happy. And, if Alice!Felix can help the others make it seem like it's your idea, who's to say it's such a bad thing that he does?
Kim Seungmin
Edward!Seungmin. Honestly, it was hard choosing ebtween Jasper and Edward for Seungmin... I had already wrote a bit for Jasper so I'll leave that as a bonus at the bottom, but I stuck with Edward.
Edward!Seungmin has just been chilling for most of his vampiric life after the others joined him and Carlise!Chan. Don't get him wrong. It does get a little annoying seeing everyone have their own best friend or companion while he's kind of floating on the outskirts of the coven. EVEN THOUGH HE'S ONE OF THE FOUNDERS AND ORIGINAL MEMBERS OF THE COVEN.
But at least they're all happy and occasionally remember that he exists beyond needing a designated companion to cope. He could pair with Emmett!Jisung since he's technically the only on without one, but it's not something he wants to force. Honestly, he's not even upset that Rosalie!Hyunjin sometimes wants to throttle him since Carlisle!Chan literally only turned her because he thought she'd be a good companion for him (Edward!Seungmin).
Again, Edward!Seungmin is simply chilling in his life and is happy with it. So what people think he's rude for sticking to himself and rejecting attempts at romance. He physically cannot bring himself to entertain a human while restraining himself. It's just too much work.
Then Bella hops on over and is fucking enamored with him because of his vampiric beauty. And he can't help but think she's interesting. Why? Because she smells good (nevermind Jisung saying she smells like burnt candy and vegetables) and he can't read her mind. Basically, he got bored being lonely and Carlisle!Chan nagging him for being lonely, so he found someone to entertain himself and found it in Bella.
He likes that he can't read her mind or hear her thoughts. It's a lovely break from everyone else and he likes how... shy she is. (More like awkward). She's entertaining and cute. Maybe because she looks like a vampire who hasn't fed in a while, but whatever. She's entertainment to Edward!Seungmin's boring life and nothing more. He can't exactly give her anything she can't find in someone else. Besides vampire life. But other than that, nothing.
Yang Jeongin
Jasper!Jeongin. Like I said before, I was stuck between Jasper and Edward. I chose Jasper because of his alikeness to Jeongin (I'll explain) and because of the way Jeongin is with Felix during fan service and such.
Jasper!Jeongin who is constantly overstimulated around the other younger members of the coven. In particulary, Emmett! Jisung, Emmett!Changbin with Rosalie!Hyunjin, and what used to be Edward!Seungmin's rapid growth of irritation at being bothered before meeting Bella. Now it's Edward!Seungmin's fucking feelings for Bella and the pain he causes both of them when hes trying to "protect" Bella. Ugh. He hates miscommunication tropes.
So, what does Jasper!Jeongin do when he's mentally overstimulated? Go to the most hyperactive member of the coven they have of course. Now, common sense would say not to do this. But Jeongin is used to this noise. It's grounding. It's like watching your favorite comfort show or movie when you're upset. Or eating your favorite comfort food.
Creepy part? Or rather, what's bad for Bella.... Jasper!Jeongin is wrapped around Alice!Felix's finger. He likes keeping Alice!Felix happy and if he needs to tamper with your emotions a little while Alice!Felix is doing his own bit of tampering, who the fuck is going to stop him? Not Esme!Minho who just can't let Edward!Seungmin be sad as he's Esme!Minho's first boy to live (nevermind the fact that Edward is older than Esme). Not Carlisle!Chan who doesn't want his first son, his first creation, a walking piece of himself to remain so upset. (Huh... I'm seeing more correlation to Carlisle acting like God... MOVING ON!)
Point is... no one is stopping Jasper!Jeongin unless you get away before you're in too deep or you find help.
BONUS! Jasper!Seungmin is said to be mean, sarcastic, quiet, and to have an ugly smile that's more of a grimace like he's always in pain. Because he is. Everything is enhanced for him. Lights are constantly too bright, noises are too fucking loud, scents are too strong, and the allure of blood is constantly nagging him like a slice of freshly baked cake on a strict sugar free diet. Honestly, he balances out Alice!Felix's hyperactive shit and is a grounding point for Emmett!Jisung which is why they're always playing around ad such. He does not give a single shit about Bella and is more so focused on why she smells like cauliflower and burnt sugar than anything else. And on preventing Jisung from vibrating through the fucking window trying not to run.
I don't know why I expected to get some interaction when I logged in today. I guess I'm still a fool. Call me a whining idiot, I do not care anymore, but being on Tumblr is demoralising now. Ignoring the connections I myself fumbled (the collab, the friends, everything), but even when I was the most active here I never really got interactions. I got likes.
That is not why I am here. That is not what a community is about.
A few people interacted with me (sometimes they still do), and for them, I am forever grateful. I truly am. But I cannot keep pretending I look forward to trying to post here again when it's a lie.
If this won't change after I somehow force myself to finish and post Unfamiliarity and the rest of my asks, I will most probably abandon this blog. I grew tired of begging for asks, for comments or reblogs, and being given next to nothing. Not to mention the site itself is trying to change the most fundamental mechanism of itself: the reblogs.
NO, RONNIE MY DEAR, I AM STILL HERE for now, LIFE'S JUST BEEN BEATING ME THE FUCK DOWN (what's new) AND SO I HAVEN'T FINISHED ANYTHING TO POST HERE YET-
Oh my god, I am so happy to see you again. You have no idea. Welcome back, dear. Can't wait to see what chaos will unfold itself on your blog next.
Also, like, sometime when we're both free and available, we could collab? I was serious about it in the past and while I am not experienced in this regard (never collaborated before, just once), I'm very open to ideas! But even if the answer is no, my DMs are open, whenever, for whatever. I'm just a depressed idiot with Dal brainrot. I'm always free to chat.
Honestly my mind and blog is all over the place. Major mental issues and shit happening on my end and I was going to push that onto Nicholas but it wouldn't make sense for the way I want his character. You know?
SO! I'm hoping all over the place with fandoms and my recent fixations. Quick question, you got any ideas on ship names for the SKZ members and Nicholas? all of my ideas sound weird even when im doing them with his stage name
Totally would love to collab when you're up for it. it's going to be a pain finding out what it should focus on though lol
FANDOM: Vampire Diaries
SYNOPSIS: We teach most people vampires, witches, and werewolves are the only supernatural creatures to exist. But there's a world much older, more powerful, and it's finally taking its part.
PAIRINGS: Characters x OCs
WARNINGS: Abandonment issues, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, self-harm, suicide thoughts, toxic behavior, toxic relationships, abusive relationships, low self-esteem, near death experience situation, and death. I'll put warnings, inside of each chapter, pertaining the story.
Hi guys! I have no clue how many of you are still here, but I've got five things in the queue right now. 2 are nicholas related. 2 are for TVDU. 1 is just Stray Kids/twilight focused. I have a Yandere!Stray Kids x reader series in the works. I also have two made up kpop girl groups that I'm thinking of posting at some point. Not sure if anyone would like that. but It will be out at some point.
GIMME SOME SHIP NAMES OF NICHOLAS WITH THE STRAY KIDS MEMBERS PLEASE
"i don't comment on ao3 because i don't wanna be annoying or weird" skill issue + you greatly underestimate the power dynamic here, writing multi paragraph comments is like feeding a bunch of deeply insane and possibly starved ducks at the park and watch them go completely mad over having received a piece of bread
I don't know why I expected to get some interaction when I logged in today. I guess I'm still a fool. Call me a whining idiot, I do not care anymore, but being on Tumblr is demoralising now. Ignoring the connections I myself fumbled (the collab, the friends, everything), but even when I was the most active here I never really got interactions. I got likes.
That is not why I am here. That is not what a community is about.
A few people interacted with me (sometimes they still do), and for them, I am forever grateful. I truly am. But I cannot keep pretending I look forward to trying to post here again when it's a lie.
If this won't change after I somehow force myself to finish and post Unfamiliarity and the rest of my asks, I will most probably abandon this blog. I grew tired of begging for asks, for comments or reblogs, and being given next to nothing. Not to mention the site itself is trying to change the most fundamental mechanism of itself: the reblogs.
