when the villains fall;

Evil beware. We have waffles.

[ravenzinthos]

”Have you lost something? Can I help?” (Yennefer)

"One of my earrings.” Raven said with a frustrated huff, looking around trying to get a closer look at the ground outside the library. It had already been a shit day, and she was even more pissed. Her favorite, too, and the hole was going to close if she didn’t get a new one.

[ravenzinthos]

karazoreldanvers​:

***

“Hey, Linda!” she replied, not sure where the name came from but it was the first that popped into her mind. Kara was thankful for whoever ‘Linda’ really was at the moment though. The hug was stiff, but Kara was sure it was passable to the casual observer, especially if the casual observer was this guy.

The man frowned at looked at Kara expectantly as if she was going to dispel the confusion.

“Yeah, I haven’t met her, but I’ve had a few people call me Kara before,” Kara said with a shrug. “I wonder if she takes her coffee the way I do? … black. No sugar for me!” Kara hated the very idea of black coffee. Coffee wasn’t supposed to taste like coffee. It was supposed to be sugar with a hint of coffee flavor before you consumed it.

“You’re Kara,” the guy insisted again. “You have the same voice. And! You both wear glasses.”

Linda? Raven cringed internally, but she’d gotten so good at hiding her emotions over the years that faking them was just another step in that direction. It was pretending to be happy that was hardest, though. She nodded sagely, like the coffee was her friend... Diana’s? 

“Believe it or not, a lot of people wear glasses.” She said to the guy, her smile a little too bright, voice a little too high. “If you’re so into this Kara girl you can tell her voice after only meeting once or twice, then I’d be a little concerned. You’re probably just mixing her up with someone else.” She said, rolling her eyes. “And - hey, didn’t you have that cold last week, Diana? Your voice sounds a little bit more congested than normal.”

[ravenzinthos]

abeastofaboy​:

“Oh yeah? I bet you’d like it, you should watch it sometime! It’s a web series but there are a bunch of movies too, although definitely don’t watch the most recent two, they rebooted the series because of the puritan tight-ass parents who think that a show about kids embracing what makes them different and not bullying eachother because of those differences was turning their kids evil- well to be more accurate the stores selling the dolls were catering to those parents and Mattel changed because of the stores but same difference really- but I think you’d like it!! Oh oh and there’s the sister show Ever After High wich is about this school for the kids of fairytale charectors and they have to commit to following in their parents’ footsteps or they’ll cease to exist, and the main charector’s name is Raven- she actually kinda reminds me of you, she’s my FAVORITE- refusing to make the commitment because she wants to be herself and not be forced into the role of a villain just because people are telling her to- it’s so so great, and it has one of the first same sex kisses in a kid’s show! Not sure how much LGBTQ+ stuff matters to you but I’m bi so that’s always a draw for me, sorry, am I talking too much?”

Probably, almost certainly, Gar knew that he talked way too much even when he wasn’t obsessing about something, and when he was obsessing, he could really go on alot…

“Ooh I love Chinese food, and you work at a library? That’s really cool! I’m not much of a reader admittedly, short attention span ya’ know? But I love the library here! I used to go there alot more when I was a teenager and rent movies, there’s such a great energy in that place, it’s so calm and peacefull, I mean I don’t know if you believe in stuff like that, like, you know, energies and stuff? But it’s a nice place to be, how long have you worked there? What do you like to read? You strike me as a non-fiction kinda person, or maybe like… Edgar Allen Poe? Am I close atleast?”

Personally, Gar was a sci-fi fan more than anything else, he didn’t read much but when he did, it was usually superhero comics and sci-fi short stories, although he had to be carefull not to get any of the sci-fi/horror, horror had a tendency to give him nightmares….

It was always nice to see characters who weren’t straight in shows, and Raven hadn’t realized why she felt that way until somewhat recently. Growing up, she hadn’t really had crushes, hadn’t really been attracted to anyone, and thought she was weird. For a little while, she’d heard about asexuality - it hadn’t seemed quite right, but it had come closest to how she felt, so she’d stuck to it until she’d met Malchior. 

The guy had been perfect - too perfect. One of her dad’s interns who had been so sweet and made her feel happy. Made her feel beautiful. And for a minute she’d felt attraction in a way she never had. 

Malchior had just been looking for Gordon Company approval, and in the end, had just been using her. Raven had been more than pissed, but it had also taught her that she was demisexual, so perhaps it had meant something. She just hadn’t really had emotional attachment to anyone before, and... Well. She didn’t need to be capable of sexual attraction, but it felt good to want something, and to know for sure at least one thing. 

“Definitely close. I like Edgar Allen Poe.” She said with a small smile on her lips. The poems soothed her, and made her darkness feel a bit less severe. “I do like fiction. Non-fiction always feels... Too normal? If that makes sense?” She shrugged. “Ever tried graphic novels? They seem like your type. Maybe I could recommend a few.”

[ravenzinthos]

saxons​:

Go out, meet the people, Tanya had said. It’ll be good for your image. True, his image did need sprucing up. He’d been buried in paperwork lately, and done a few press releases, but when was the last time he’d met the unwashed masses? Shaken a few hands, rubbed shoulders, all that? He couldn’t remember the last time he’d done any of that. So, he’d taken his P.A.’s advice, for once, and actually bothered to leave the office for lunch.

Holding the pathetic packed lunch that Lucy had made for him (consisting of a sandwich, a chocolate bar, and an optimistic piece of fruit) in a paper bag, he headed for the nearest bench, where a teenager who looked like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders was sitting. She didn’t seem to care that he was approaching, so he said, in his most polite tone, “Do you mind?” It was ridiculously out of character, but he had to keep up appearances. But the response he got reminded him why he never did this.

He just about managed to keep smiling, reminding himself that this was for his own best interests, and nodded at the bench beside her. “D’you mind?” he repeated, raising his lunch a little. “I just had to get out of my office to eat.” He was quite proud of how genuine he sounded.

Raven shrugged, and slid back on her headphones. The guy looked vaguely familiar - maybe he’d been on a bus ad, or something? One of those park bench slimy lawyers? They always gave her the creeps - usually because they were the type who backed her father when he got into trouble in business. The ones who ended up getting bad people out of prisons. 

She heard him talk again and slipped them off, sighing and acknowledging that she was going to be making - shiver - small talk. She’d meant to show she didn’t really care where he sat, but apparently he wanted to sit and talk, not just use the bench. “Yeah? Where’s your office?” She asked, trying for more polite than she felt as she picked around at her takeout, glancing around to see if maybe she could see the office. 

[ravenzinthos]

“You look very different to your profile picture…”

“Old picture. Taken when I was a really different person.” She said, standing up and brushing off her pants from carrying the dusty desk. She was trying to sell some old junk, stuff that had been in the apartment she bought when she moved, but selling on the internet had been... Maybe not the best idea. “Not sure anybody looks like they do in pictures.”

[ravenzinthos]

teethonedge​:

Something wasn’t right. 

The air was thick with the smell of pine. October sun beat down through the trees, casting shadows on the pine needles. Glinting off the pools of blood. They weren’t the problem. He was used to seeing blood, it was in his job description. Dexter Morgan, forensic expert, specializing in blood spatter analysis. He was no stranger to crime scenes. This body wasn’t a particularly bad one. He had seen worse, certainly. The woman half-buried in the pine needles, looked almost peaceful. 

But she was number five in six weeks. That was too many, too fast, even by his standards. And that was the real problem – this wasn’t his work. He had nothing to do with this, or the other four bodies he’d worked. There was a serial killer in Echo Springs. Another one. 

He snapped another picture with his camera. “She bled out from a single wound to the head,” he pointed out. “But she wasn’t bludgeoned. No, she was… pushed,” he said slowly, making a sweeping motion with his hand. “The killer shoved her to the ground with enough force to crack open her skull.” Which should’ve been impossible given the surrounding area. It was as if she’d fallen out of the sky. The detectives clearly shared his thoughts, and they started to murmur between themselves. 

Dexter reached for the extra camera battery, and realized it was missing. “Be right back,” he called to the detectives. He picked his way back towards the road. A small crowd had begun to gather, even all the way out here. Someone was even leaning against his car. “Sorry,” he called, a cheerful smile on his face, hiding the rising irritation in his chest. “I actually need to get in there, if you don’t mind.” 

It was creepy, but Raven wanted to know more about the bodies. One of the kids at the posh school her father had forced her to go to would have likely commented on how it made her even weirder - and maybe it did. Morbid curiosity was likely how most would describe it. 

She didn’t like the bodies, or want to be around them - that would really and truly make it weird. It was just - Raven couldn’t help but feel like she should be involved. Should have been doing something. So, when rumors about another body being found in the woods made their way to her, she decided to try and see what had happened. But she couldn’t get much of a look - the crime scene was pretty tightly covered, and she wasn’t about to sneak past. She wasn’t that curious. For the most part.

So she’d remained by a nearby car, hoping to look like she belonged, or at least, like she wasn’t poking around an active crime scene. But with her luck, someone involved with the investigation was nearby, looking for that very car.

“Oh, yeah, um -” She shuffled out of the way, moving across the clearing and trying to lean past a tree to see what was going on, who it was, how they’d been killed. All while trying to avoid the crowds of people, but then was momentarily interested in the man himself, the camera. “Journalist?” She asked, surprised they’d allow media there so soon.

[ravenzinthos]

0wlprince​:

Stolas blinked, he hadn’t realized that he had been staring- and that really must have been quite creepy to the poor girl- but… she just reminded him so much of Octavia…. it was hard not to be a little bit dumbstruck by it

“Ah, I’m so sorry, I just….. this is going to sound a bit strange but you remind me so much of my daughter Octavia…. she’s away with her mother on a vacation right now and I miss her terribly, it’s just…. I guess I sound pretty odd, but it was a little startling to suddenly see someone who resembles my little owlette so much,” he explained, pausing a moment and wringing his hands

“If… you don’t mind terribly…. what are you listening to? I’ve been trying to understand Octavia’s tastes lately, especially when it comes to music, she’s quite fond of it, but I’ve been flopping around like a fish all this time not really knowing where to begin…. I want to surprise her when she gets back by being able to share some of her musical tastes with her, so…. if you don’t mind my troubling you for reccomendations? You look like you would share her interests quite well,”

{ tw: abortion mention } Gritting her teeth, Raven tried not to react. To think about how bitter she felt, when she met people like this. People who loved their kids, who actually cared for them instead of using them or regretting them. 

She remembered the day her mother got high and told her that she should have listened to her own mother, gotten rid of Raven before she came and ran away from Tristan Gordon. High out of her mind, didn’t even know she was telling a six year old that she wanted to get rid of her baby. The day at eleven her father showed her off to his business associates and then told her to shut up when she told him one of them tried to grope her. It seemed so foreign, that good parents existed, and for a moment, she was furious. 

This kind of rage... it came in fits and starts. The thoughts of tearing her father to shreds. Of digging up her mother’s corpse and begging her to tell her why she left her alone, why she was unwanted. Of screaming at a mere child that they didn’t deserve what she’d never gotten. Family. 

“That’s... Sweet.” She said, biting back the pure anger and focusing. Darkness. Calm, quiet, nothing. He was a father talking about his daughter. It should be wholesome. It should be nice. Fathers are kind, fathers protect you, fathers raise you. Had she said that, once? “I really like Florence and the Machine right now.” She said with a shrug. “Or Nirvana is good too.”

[ravenzinthos]

abeastofaboy​:

“Oh um… I can understand that, I mean, you know, there’s dark like Hannibal and stuff, and then there’s just… dark like real life, so… I get it,”

He didn’t want to explain that he understood better than most about how uninteresting tragedy could be, he’d lost his parents as a kid, been kidnapped, tossed around between foster homes and then when he finally found a good one those parents were killed too….

But he didn’t want to explain it, he didn’t want to make her feel bad or like he was trying to take the attention away from her or anything, so he decided to keep it to himself, atleast for now

No one in real life actually liked tragic backstories after all

“OOh yeah I’ve seen a few episodes of that!! I’d watch more but it doesn’t come on cable or netflix so I’m a bit out of luck,”

Gar wasn’t the most technology freindly person on earth, he’d readily admit, he wasn’t necessarily bad at it, but he wasn’t really on the up-and-up either, so most streaming services as a concept sort of went over his head anyway

“Oh that’s cool!! Personally my favorite cartoon of the past few years has been Monster High, have you seen any of it? If not maybe we could watch a few episodes sometime, they’re really short since it’s a web series,”

Maybe he was being presumptuous- ok no he knew he was being presumptuous- but he just…. he just wanted to see her again….

“Raven….” he repeated he slowly, in a near sigh, dreamy and full of bliss, as though he was swooning over her, falling in love with her right then and there

“My favorite bird, it’s such a pretty name too!!! It’s really really nice to meet you Raven,” he smiled sweetly

“Sorry, I’ll try not to be too annoying, but I’m glad I’m not boring,” he winked back, moving just a tiny bit closer

“But you’re right, I’ve talked alot, too much probably, tell me more about yourself!! You’re so damn COOL, I wanna know everything about you, not in a creepy way, but just…. I don’t know, like, in a freindly way? Does that make sense?”

It was already oversharing, that much she was sure of. Raven had never really talked, to anyone, about her life. She’d at one point started trying to do online therapy, but after her father found out, he took away her laptop. Something about their family reputation, and that she was being overdramatic. It wasn’t the truth - that much, she was sure. It was because her father wanted control over her and to keep being able to manipulate her. But right now, he didn’t have a hold on her - it was just difficult to let go, even without him there.

“I haven’t.” She said, looking at him for a second. An invitation to watch television? It seemed so oddly... Normal. And she didn’t think it was just her life that made something so normal seem strange. It was him, too. He felt like someone she might’ve known before, almost, but not someone she regularly only watched TV with. More like someone who watched TV while she slammed the door shut and ignored. 

But that didn’t mean it sounded bad. “Maybe.” She said, biting at her lip. 

Hearing him say her name made her blink in surprise. Why did she feel like he should be calling her a nickname? Rae. No one had ever called her that, and yet, the first syllable felt so right coming from him. But it was crazy, she was acting crazy. “I... Okay.” She said. Self consciousness washed over her, and she wished she wasn’t so emotionally constipated, not for the first time. That she could say I’m glad I met you too or even sorry, I’m not used to people actually enjoying my company. Something other than sitting there in semi-shock at the fact that someone was chattering away next to her. 

“There’s not much to tell.” She said, picking at the edge of her shoe, trying to keep from looking at him. “I’m pretty new in town. I work at the library.” She shrugged. “I like Chinese food.” She added, trying to at least share some semblance of personality. “And - I like to read. I guess that makes sense since I work at the library. Don’t know too many people who work at libraries who don’t like to read.”

[ravenzinthos]

snowflakesandpawprints​:

“Oh it’s ok, I totally understand, I get like that too,”

All it took was one Taylor Swift song and he was officially tuned out of everything else around him…. and also one or two opera songs for some reason….

“Oh good, neither does Veeya,” Yuri promised, bending down to set the pup back on the ground, shaking his head as she immediately returned to her attempts at getting the stranger’s food

“Kureijī... you’re not getting her food you silly thing, don’t I feed you enough as it is?” he teased, though Veeya seemed too interested in the food to even acknowledge him, causing Yuri to shake his head

Though, he was happy to make conversation with the stranger, smiling sweetly up at her

“She’s just under a year, still a puppy really, you can pet her if you want, like I said she doesn’t bite, although you smell like food now so she might lick you to death if you let her,”

She gave a soft chuckle, petting the dog’s head. She liked dogs - or at least, to the extent that she was okay with one this close to her. She’d never really had the energy or emotional capacity for a dog that needed constant energy or attention, but if a dog were to curl up beside her that would have been fine. A puppy would be a lot, though. Still, she was cute.

“I think this may just be too spicy for you.” She said, pulling the food a little further from the dog. She leaned into the pets, licking Raven’s fingers in search of more food, and she found herself smiling, surprised by it being genuinely pleasant. “So... Veeya? That’s an interesting name.”

[ravenzinthos]

abeastofaboy​:

“Really? Why’s that?” Gar asked curiously, deciding to take it upon himself to sit down next to the stranger, she had shown enough interest in him now that he felt it was warranted

“Well cartoons don’t always have to be for kids, anime is hugely popular with adults, and even alot of western animation is pretty mature, and I’m not talking about like… The Simpsons and shit, but have you seen Marvel’s What If?? That’s pretty gruesome! And even stuff that’s technically aimed at kids like Legend Of Korra and Steven Universe can get really dark and brutal, heck even Miraculous Ladybug- the like, clorox clean, CLEANEST of clean- the secondary main charector has some reaaaaally serious childhood neglect and abuse happening like… all the time as a major part of his story, screw Harry Potter, this kid’s got it bad, probably gonna end up as a human sacrifice type bad, if he’s even human at all, there’s this theory that he’s like… that world’s equivolant of a magic robot conjured up by his so-called ‘dad’ just to do his bidding, for a show with a villain named Mr. Pigeon it can get hella dark! Not to mention all that doom and gloom Disney brings about, I mean you can’t spell ‘Disney princess’ without ‘dead parent’ right?”“

Actually that was kind of true for most Disney charectors wasn’t it?

“Walt Disney- who was kind of a horrible person in alot of ways, surprisingly? Like he was super racist and misogynistic and shit and he tried to design a capitalist utopian city wich failed so it became part of Disneyland- believed that the only way to send his protagonists on these heroic journies is if they had no parents and that forced them to be independent-… I’m sorry, I’m not boring you am I? It’s just, I’m autistic so sometimes I can’t tell, I’ve got no idea how long I’ve been talking,”

He paused, taking a breath and rubbing his neck

“Yeah, I can, I’m sorry, I know alot of people find it really annoying, I’m trying to get better at reining it in, it’s just that usually the only person I really talk to is this lil’ guy and, ya’ know, he never jumps in to stop me when I’ve gone off on a tangent,” he explained with a grin, scratching under Kong’s chin sweetly, although the monkey was ignoring him in favor of the girl at this point- Gar definitely couldn’t blame him

“Thank you!! And his name is Kong! I’m Garfeild, but seriously just call me Gar, what about you?”

Explaining why her life wasn’t very child friendly... Well, it would take a long time, and more importantly, she had no plans to explain it to a stranger. Even if he was a stranger who seemed content to share every detail of his life with her. Normally, she’d hate that - people’s private lives were their own business. But it felt, more than anything, like comfort. Like turning on a television in the background to relax her. Not that she wasn’t listening, but... His rambling didn’t annoy her as much as she would have thought. “Just not something you’d want to watch on television, I guess.” She said cryptically. 

The bitter part of her - the part that sounded all too much like her father - snapped with angry reddened eyes that it wasn’t his business. That she should run off. But that was cruel and she wanted... What? To be free of that little voice? To get away from dad? Hell, how much of a cliche was she going to become?

“A lot of people like My Little Pony. Although that wouldn’t exactly be considered dark.” She said before she could stop herself, and then snapped her mouth shut. No one knew about her enjoyment of the children’s show - no one. She kept it absolutely to herself, watched in secret... No. “Or so I’ve heard.” She tried to cover up, grimacing. It was just... Nice, to watch something so pleasantly warm. To watch characters learn lessons that, in her sheltered upbringing, she’d never gotten. “Raven.” She said. It was strange, how the name rolled so comfortably off her tongue. She’d been born Rachel, but that name had never felt right. Too normal, too... Human. “You talk for a while. It’s fine. I’m just not used to this much talking.” She said with a shrug. She was the opposite, it seemed - never had any idea what to say, what to do. Normally, either she said something that made someone run off because she was rude, or she didn’t say a thing. It was better that way. Maybe she should have made some small talk - even if she hated it. 

I don’t want to pretend to be someone else with him. 

Where had that thought come from? It didn’t make sense, and yet, Raven knew as soon as the thought passed to her that she didn’t want to pretend to be bubbly, friendly, excitable. “It’s definitely annoying.” She said in a deadpan. “But the last thing I’d describe you as is boring - Gar.” 

[ravenzinthos]

abeastofaboy​:

Gar was pretty sure that this was the point where the universe revealed it’s self to, in fact, actually be a Disney movie in disguise, and all the shit he’d been through in early childhood had just been his tragic backstory, priming the audience to love him so that they’d root for him getting Princess Charming

Well… maybe not, but he had a feeling he was close! There was no way the real world could be this good to him, after all

This girl was just…. amazing…. she made him feel like he was floating, there was definitely Disney music playing in his head, he was close to swooning

“You really think so?” he beamed excitedly, eyes practically glowing with happiness

“Gee, that’d be really cool!! I wish I could draw, I’d totally make it a children’s book if I could, but you don’t wanna see my drawings, they are NOT pretty, I’ve never met a straight line I could draw!” he laughed

A children’s book about him? That sounded AWESOME! He’d be the protagonist- a really fun type like the Kratt Brothers or the Yellow Hat Man from Curious George, or maybe Steve from Blue’s Clues!- and Kong would be his sidekick- well, probably more like he’d be Kong’s sidekick actually- and this gorgeous girl would be like… the informative type that was always giving out information and making him look better! Like a scientist or a princess or A SCIENTIST PRINCESS… oh man that’d be cool…

“Um, kinda? I have a permit, promise! But he’s like… not like a pet pet you know? I mean it’s not like I was just like ‘you know what would be awesome? A pet monkey’ and then I bought a monkey from someone, he’s a rescue, my foster parents worked at a zoo and Kong was in the illegal pet trade as a baby so when they rescued him he was totally unable to function as an actual monkey, and the other monkeys would pick on him and isolate him and stuff, and he basically couldn’t live a monkey life ‘cause he wouldn’t survive, he was too dependent on humans, so my foster parents took him in, and when they died I took over as his caretaker, it’s alot like those ‘who rescued who?’ bumper stickers about rescue dogs, ya’ know?”

The longer he talked, the more Raven’s eyebrows went up. The guy could really keep going, couldn’t he? Normally when people talked a lot she got... Well, annoyed. And she was, a little bit, but that wasn’t just it. It was a kind of annoyed that made her happy? If that made sense? No, it definitely didn’t make sense - but neither did the guy in front of her. 

Too many men just liked to hear themselves talk, but that really wasn’t the vibe she was getting. This wasn’t someone who just liked himself, he was just... Eager. Excited. Nothing like her, she guessed - all that energy and passion about something seemed so foreign, and yet, oddly familiar. Like she’d sat through more than her share of these rambling sessions. As much as she was surprised by the seemingly boundless enthusiasm, she couldn’t help but allow a small smile - it was endearing, in a way. 

“It’s not exactly a compliment, but if you wanna take it that way. I don’t think I’d want to be in a cartoon... Maybe a fantasy novel with a lot of illustration. I don’t think my life is very children’s media friendly.” She said, going up to the monkey and giving him a head scratch. The monkey was excited, seemingly eager and apparently wanting to play as she allowed it to inspect her fingers and make little happy noises. She ducked her head, realizing how close she was to the guy in front of her. He was a good half foot taller than her, with eyes that were such a startling shade of green it almost knocked her over with their intensity. “You can really talk, huh?” She asked with the slightest smirk as the monkey went to travel along her arm and started to play with her hair. His story washed over her and she felt a spark of something warm, pleasant. Admiration? “That’s really sweet.” Even if he was sharing... A lot of information with a perfect stranger. Then again, he doesn’t feel like a stranger. “What’s his name?”

[ravenzinthos]

abeastofaboy​:

“C’mon buddy, you don’t wanna play with that squirrel, he’s clearly busy, I mean, winter’s comin’, he’s probably trying to bury the last of his nuts…”

This was common fair for Gar, he tended to talk to animals more than people- he liked animals more than people so it was kind of an obvious trickle down, and he had the very firm beleif that animals could understand him just as well as- if not better than- people, so having conversations with them was just natural to him

Plus, for so long, they had been the only ones who gave a shit about him anyway….

With a little chirp, his favorite pal jumped off of his shoulder and started for the park bench, earning a chokey, half-broken laugh as Gar followed after the little Capuchin, watching him scamper towards the tree as the squirrel hurried up to a higher branch

“Kong, did anybody ever tell you you’re like, more like a dog than most dogs?” he teased, not even having realized he had paused in front of someone until he heard her voice

And oh what a voice

The moment he glanced down at her, he swore to every god out there that he felt his heart stutter, he actually almost hated the feeling, it felt kind of like he was going to choke or burst into tears but….. there was something so familiar about her that he just… he just wanted.…… he wasn’t really sure what he wanted but he knew it wasn’t to leave

“Hi….” he breathed dreamily, a crooked smile spreading over his face, a full beat passing before he actually registered what she had said

“O-Oh! Uh, sorry, no, I wasn’t- I mean- I didn’t mean to uh…. bother you… it’s just um, I’m just the two-legged breathing vehicle for my little buddy here, just think of me as a chauffeur,” he finally answered, giving a little tug on Kong’s leash, earning a squeak of acknowledgement before the monkey ran back to Gar and climbed up to his shoulder again

The first thing Raven noticed about the guy was that he was... Off.

That sounded bad. It made it sound like she thought the guy was weird. And, yeah, he definitely was - because a pet monkey? - but there was something... Something utterly familiar and yet completely off. The uncanny valley. When something was so similar and correct but then had tiny flaws that sent up warnings in her mind. If she could just figure out what it was that was so off about him... but that was crazy. She was being crazy. Crazy if somehow those ears should have been pointed. Crazy if the green stone on his necklace felt comfortable.

The second thing she noticed was that he was cute. Which was immediately followed by finding him annoying. “Uh... Hey.” She said, her voice a deadpan, a lack of emotion, but she couldn’t help but feel like her cheeks were turning a little bit red, even so. Or maybe more like a grey. Her skin was so pale sometimes it seemed like she didn’t get any color in her face. It fit with the whole look - but usually, with that look - intentionally scary, complete with glare), people didn’t look at her like this guy was. 

Tucking a leg up onto the bench, she watched the monkey. It was honestly adorable; Raven had never had a pet, although there was a time when she was younger where she would have done anything for one. She’d always felt something comforting in animals. The same kind of feeling she had with that smile. A tiny part of her seemed to melt at the smile. It was goofy and silly and made her heart want to leap into her throat. She forced the feeling down, swallowing the excitement, the elation at the something that she couldn’t recognize. Heard her father’s voice telling her that she’d be in big trouble if she stepped one toe out of line. “A chauffer for a monkey. You sound like something out of a children’s cartoon.” She deadpanned. “Is a pet monkey even legal?” She asked, getting up to step closer to the monkey - and the man who was apparently now his mode of transportation.

[ravenzinthos]

karazoreldanvers​:

Kara hadn’t meant to interrupt. Not intentionally. The park wasn’t overly crowded and she was sure there were other park benches to be found, but she’d caught the familiar smell of her favorite Chinese takeout while looking for a place to breathe after finishing her 5 mile run and her feet were carrying her and her mouth was open before she could stop herself.

“Uh, sorry,” Kara stammered and had the grace to at least look a little bit apologetic. “Mind if I sit for a minute?” She gestured at the empty half of the bench with her water bottle. She took the silence for an invitation and sat down as far from the girl as possible, realizing that her 5-mile-sweat wasn’t the best way to make friends. “Is that Chen’s? His crab rangoon is the best.”

“Kara, is that you? Remember me? Steve?” A man approached them with a puzzled but excited look on his face.

Oh right. That’s why she had really stopped. Too Persistent Steve had spotted her from across the park and made a beeline for her, and Kara had only just erased the awkward ‘date’ that she’d gotten herself into on accident the month before with him. He was… nice… in a way. Way too eager. Really into hockey. Didn’t know how to read the obvious signs that Kara… wasn’t interested. “Who’s Kara?” she asked, voice a bit high pitched. “I think you’ve got the wrong person!”

Raven shrugged, not really minding if someone sat beside her, about to put her headphones back on before the girl asked about her food. “Yeah, they have -”

She was interrupted by the guy who walked up to them, immediately talking to the girl next to her. Immediately, she got bad vibes from this guy. He wore the kind of clothing she’d seen kids in the wealthy neighborhood she grew up in wear - clothing meant to look cheap and low quality, but actually designer. Like someone intentionally wanted to look like they didn’t care how they looked, with jeans halfway down their ass and ratty shirts. He had a fucking man bun. 

Looking at the girl beside her, Raven made a split second decision, and put on the biggest smile she could muster. It felt like it was going to crack her face, and probably looked more scary than happy, but if it could get the guy to go away, good. “Diana? It’s so good to see you!” She exclaimed, pulling the blonde girl into a huge hug that had her able to whisper into her ear. “Play along.” She whispered, pulling back and turning to the guy. 

“Yeah, I think there’s a girl named Kara around town who looks a lot like Diana. I don’t really know her, but I see her at the coffee shop all the time. Maybe you’re thinking of her?” She said in the most fun, fake voice she could manage. It felt so weird, but she had the oddest desire to be a hero at times, and - well. He seemed like one of those guys who used all natural deodorant and tried to argue the ‘devil’s advocate’. 

[ravenzinthos]

snowflakesandpawprints​:

Yuri generally liked taking Veeya for walks, even in the afternoons when people were more apt to stop them to ask if they could pet her- he didn’t mind that really, he wasn’t a people person but Veeya was, and Yuri knew the healing power of dogs, he never wanted to deprive anyone of that

And if he took it as a teeny tiny source of pride that people liked her so much… well that was his compensation for the free puppy pets

But sometimes she was just so rambunctious…. it was hard to handle, especially after having barely slept the night before, dreams keeping him up…. the same dreams he couldn’t quite figure out….

And then she smelled food and everything was a lost cause

“V-V, c’mon, please don’t bother the nice lady… she’s not going to feed you,” he sighed, following his dog as though he were her loyal butler, wich was kind of the dynamic they tended to have

But she didn’t seem to listen to him, tail wagging up a storm as she started pawing at the bench next to the stranger, he was getting ready to bend down and pull her away when the woman suddenly snapped at him, jolting him back a step

“S-Sorry… um… my dog just.. smelled your food and… she tends to think all food automatically belongs to her…”

He paused, clearing his throat and quickly scooping Veeya up

“S-Sorry, that was a dumb joke, um… we’ll be out of your hair, I promise,”

She sighed, annoyed at herself once more. A part of Raven always snapped, always grew angry, and she couldn’t control it. Funny, how she’d spent most of her life trying to be in control and yet she couldn’t keep from snapping at people. Worst of all - she didn’t even feel too much remorse for it. That’s my girl, whispered a voice. She flinched. It had sounded like her father, too much like her father, in her head. Raven shook her head; that made no sense. He was far, far away. It was just Tristan Gordon, wanting his daughter to be exactly like him. 

“Sorry.” She said, trying to sound guilty. Or at least not rude. “I was, um, in the middle of a good song.” She said, pausing the music on her phone to make it look, at least partly, that she was telling the truth. “You can put her down. I don’t bite.” She commented, trying for a joke but pretty sure it sounded like a real assurance, because hey, some people might think she did. 

Polite conversation. That was what to do here, right? It had always seemed like a waste of time to Raven, but she was trying to meet people in town, and well - it couldn’t hurt. “How old is she?” She attempted. 

[ravenzinthos]

Echo Springs wasn’t a big town, but then, Raven hadn’t met too many people in the short time she’d been there. Getting to the town was a process in and of itself; getting away from her father, mostly. So her time wasn’t exactly spent meeting new people. 

Then again, she’d never been good at people even before coming to town.

Today had been the day. She was going to try to meet actual new people, sit somewhere populated for lunch, maybe a diner or something, possibly even make a friend... And then she entered the place, saw a bunch of people, and her feet were carrying her off to get takeaway from the empty Chinese place and eat it on a park bench. Her discomfort with other people was only rivaled by her dislike of them.

With her headphones on and lunch in her lap, she was distracted until she saw someone’s feet in her peripheral and realized she heard their voice, the music drowning them out. She pushed off the headphones, looking up at the person. “What?” She asked, realizing a split second later that it came off more annoyed than anything else. Coupled with the chokers, all black, purple hair? Great start, Raven. 

[ravenzinthos]

raven muse: surprise bitch i bet you thought you’d seen the last of me

Name: Raven Roth Fandom: DC/Teen Titans FC: Odeya Rush Age: 21 Pronouns: She/Her Occupation: Librarian Biography: 

Her parents were never in love. Not really. Or at least, that’s what Raven suspects, when she had no memories of her mother being sober and happy. Her father was a wealthy businessman and her mother was a trophy wife, but behind the perfect exterior of a couple, they were miserable. Her father was cruel and rude to her mother, driving her mother to alcohol and drugs before she was even born. When Raven was born, she was born to the name Rachel Gordon; Tristan Gordon, CEO and founder of the Trigon Corporation, was equally cruel to his daughter. It only got worse when her mother overdosed. 

After that, Rachel - still going by that name - was forced to be exactly what her father needed, to control her emotions, to not be who she wanted to be. She wasn’t allowed to smile or to be happy or to have any friends. She started to go by the name Raven - a small rebellion from her father because he thought it was silly. 

The older she got, the worse he became, and Raven was terrified of her father. She wanted to be away from him, far away, but he refused her anything, keeping her in their home constantly and not allowing her to socialize, to do anything she enjoyed, or to have any pleasure in her life at all. He would claim he needed her, but she hardly saw him except for when he came to tell her what she’d done wrong that day. 

Eventually, she’d had enough. Raven wanted to get away, and she knew she’d have to get far away, due to her father’s power and influence. She ran off, dyed her hair, wore the clothes she actually wanted to rather than what her father purchased for her, and started going by the name Raven Roth - the name she liked and her mother’s maiden name. From there, she ran as far away as she could and found herself in Echo Springs, getting a job at the library. 

Memories: 

The shadow of a raven, cast over her, as dangerous as it was protective.

Anger that was not her own coarsing through her veins and causing unimaginable pain.

Friends. Family. People she could rely on despite the fact that she’d been taught to rely on no one but herself. 

[ravenzinthos]

Strength doesn’t come from your memories. It comes from your heart.

And the heart never forgets.