Shadow Puppet

indie mutant oc est. 8.31.16; moved 4.19.18 TRIGGER WARNING FOR CHILD ABUSE

[shadowofhimself]

justsoldiers‌:

“I suppose they must be.” Laura agrees, unsure of exactly what had changed that had set her on that path. Perhaps it was just the passing of time or the change in scenery. She raises an eyebrow at him. Laura knows what he means and has a feeling that she imagines is something like shame bubbling in her stomach remembering the night that had begun their friendship. “Better than I was, yes. And you?”

“I... still have nightmares.” Almost always. He’s had them nonstop for the last couple of nights, which is why he wants her company tonight. He feels calmer with Laura around. He never thought he would trust someone like this, but she makes things... better somehow.

[shadowofhimself]

justsoldiers‌:

Slowly, Laura leans back until she’s laying on the mattress beside the male. Normally she didn’t like to lay on her back, hated staring up at ceilings because it reminded her of all the time she’d spent strapped to gurneys and hospital tables. She turns her head to look over at him, wondering what it is he wants to hear from her. She assumes it’s probably the truth. “Yes. But… sometimes I do not. I used to only have nightmares.”

“That’s... good then. It means things are getting better, right?” It means that things can get better, which is... comforting, although that isn’t why he asked her. “Are you... doing better?”

[shadowofhimself]

justsoldiers‌:

“I will not.” She replies, sitting down on the edge of his bed. Laura figures he doesn’t need the assurance that if she found him revolting then she never would have stuck so close to him.

“I’m... not so sure. But I appreciate the sentiment.” He sits down beside her, flopping onto his back and staring up at the ceiling. It’s a sign of trust that he’s willing to be so relaxed when she’s so close, but he doesn’t think she’d hurt him. He knows she could, she has the strength. But he doesn’t think she would turn it on him. “Do you still get nightmares?” He remembers checking on her once, when they first met. Her nightmares seemed like they could rival his.

[shadowofhimself]

justsoldiers‌:

She didn’t really understand that expression. Well, in some ways she understood.  She understood what it felt like to look at some people and feel bile rise in your throat, but she had never felt that with Blair. “If I can tolerate Logan, then I can tolerate anyone.”

The smile softens at her response. “Then maybe you wouldn’t get sick of me.” It’s hard to imagine, but it was hard to imagine having a friend before he met her and now he knows what that’s like.

[shadowofhimself]

justsoldiers‌:

“Then I will stay.” Laura assures him, part of her wanting to reach out for him. She furrows her brows at herself, unsure of why she would wish to do such a thing. “For as long as you wish.”

He offers her a small, wry smile. “If you stay as long as I want, you’ll get sick of me.”

[shadowofhimself]

justsoldiers‌:

“If that is what you need.” Laura answers, a bit taken off guard by the question. “Or.. what you want?”

“Uh... both, I think.” He’s had too many nightmares lately, too much trouble sleeping. But having Laura around always seems to help with those.

[shadowofhimself]

     @justsoldiers

“Stay with me tonight?”

[shadowofhimself]

      { @amongstmortals }

She scowled when she open the door and saw him there. He looked rough, but he always did when he came to see Inez and she couldn’t help but wonder if he liked getting hurt. She leaned against the door, eyes flickering over his figure. “So what is it this time? Stitches? Setting a bone? You know you could go to a fucking doctor. It’s not like this is how I wanna be spending my Friday nights.” She sighed, stepping out of the door way and gesturing for him to follow. “Come on. You know where the bathroom is.” Where she kept all the first aid supplies.

[shadowofhimself]

ofmythandlegend‌:

“Mm, that sounds like something that the nargles would do. They once stole all of my sneakers until my feet had grown a size bigger and then returned them to me after they were no longer needed.”

She giggles. “Sorry, that is... a shame. But it’s also really funny. I think they have a strange sense of humor. Wizards have underestimated them.”

[shadowofhimself]

ofmythandlegend‌:

“Nargles are very strange creatures. I imagine they will eventually return your book when you least need it.” She gives her a strange sort of smile. “Until then, we could share my book if you wanted. At least, I believe we’re in the same year?”

“That sounds like exactly what will happen. They may even wait until next year when I no longer need it at all.” Toni smiles. “Yes, I think that could work. At least until I can... borrow or steal Inez’s copy.”

[ofmythandlegend-blog1]

ᴏᴩᴇɴ ꜱᴛᴀʀᴛᴇʀ

“I hear that you’ve lost something? I’d suspect Nargles if I were you. Mischievous little creatures.”

[shadowofhimself]

She hums a moment before nodding. “I suspect you’re right. It was probably Nargles. But maybe they needed it more than I did? I’m not sure what they’d use a potions book for, but I think I can get by without one.”

[edgars-ramirez]

Keiynan Lonsdale answering fan questions. [x]

[shadowofhimself]

ecriivant‌:

     as the other reveals  herself,  nova  thinks  less  &&  less  that she might be a cop,      here to kick her out—or some  strange  G U N S L I N G I N G  landowner with an      i t c h y ᴛʀɪɢɢᴇʀ ғɪɴɢᴇʀ. but  if  living  on  her  own has taught her anything, it’s to      not trust a n y t h i n g at face value, so she keeps her eye on the other.

     even so, that  answer  was—UNEXPECTEDLY p h i l o s o p h i c a l .  nova  can’t      help that look of absolute  ( c o n f u s i o n )  that  flickers  across her face && she      just looks the other over, trying to figure out if she's—

   ( uh—N U T S ? )

   “ i don’t know, ”  she answers finally, when it  looks  like  an  answer is a c t u a l l y      expected. “ i didn’t exactly v o l u n t e e r to be born either. ”

    that gains a soft laugh in response. though she wanted an answer, she’s     not used to most people indulging in her inquiries. sometimes inez will,     depending on how patient she’s feeling, but most people don’t bother and     fewer still bring up an entirely NEW point into the conversation.

    she settles down onto the ground, making herself comfortable despite     the lack of invitation to do so. toni could probably find a way to be     comfortable in the most hostile of environments, but she has yet to try.

    "fair point. unless you DID? maybe reincarnation is a... thing and we     ALL volunteered to be born again? i find that more appealing than the     alternative, i think. what do you think?”

[shadowofhimself]

apocalypseguard‌:

“I really wouldn’t touch me.” If she was talking like that she might actually be something other then human which meant more complicated. “I don’t have much control right now.” A fellow nonhuman meant maybe he could at least say that he wasn’t completely helpless, even though he was. His chest gurgled sickly and he felt waves of black start to cloud his vision. wishing his phone was still working, “No hospitals.” Was the last desperate thing he could say before he passed out. 

She could work without touching. And she could respect that sort of boundary, especially when there seemed to be logic behind it. She had questions about the control statement, but they would have to wait. Her hands hovered above him and she focused on the iron in his blood, feeling the way it called to her. It was slower than she wanted it to be, but she didn’t want to mess up, so she focused on getting the blood back where it belong, removing it from where it didn’t, and hoping that would be enough to help him out. Otherwise she’d have to call Inez, who was a paramedic in training, and she was really hoping to avoid doing that.

[shadowofhimself]

inpetals‌:

“I think my shoulder’s been dislocated.” Rose told her, and gave a wry smile. A couple ribs were broken, too; Rose could feel that familiar pain. She knew there was nothing that could be done about that. They would heal. She was lucky one or both of her lungs hadn’t collapsed. “Beyond that, I’m pretty peachy. Just plenty of scrapes and bruises.”

Her nose scrunched at the information. It wasn’t a difficult fix, at least, but... “It’s gonna hurt to put it back in place. A lot,” she warned. “Probably not as much as dislocating it in the first place, but pretty close. And you really should go see a real doctor for x-rays and all that crap.” She knew Rose wouldn’t, but she still needed to say it, if only for her own piece of mind. She headed towards her bedroom, gesturing for Rose to follow. “You’re gonna need to lie down so I can fix this.”

[shadowofhimself]

inpetals‌:

“Blair.” Rose repeated, committing the syllable to memory. He insisted again that he hadn’t done anything, and her reply came in the form of a faintly sly (though still sweet,) smile. She pinched his jacket sleeve and tugged it twice, before starting to walk down the sidewalk. “C’mon, Blair. It’s alright.”

It wasn’t alright. It was bad. This was not a wise thing to have done and he still wanted to sprint away from her. But that wouldn’t help at this point, so he took a deep breath and followed after her. “What, uh, what did you mean when you said you know too?” He knew other people could... do things. Not quite the same things, but they were out there.

[shadowofhimself]

amongstmortals‌:

“I’m fine, I promise.” Or she would be, once she was able to assuage her guilt. It had never been her intention to immerse him in such horrible memories—she hadn’t gone searching for them, even. She couldn’t leave until she’d cleaned up at least some of the damage her powers had managed to create. It’d mean revealing her psychometry, but her secrecy was hardly a hefty trade for his peace of mind. 

Besides, she’d seen that he had some secrets of his own. 

“—Shit.” She blew out a harsh breath, disturbing the hair that had fallen into her features. Ara knew that he likely would have emotional backlash. With what he had been hiding in his mind, she would have been surprised if he had assured her he was fine. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” 

Clumsily, she climbed to her feet, leaning heavily against the bookshelf behind her. Her legs still felt weak and rubbery, but she needed to address the other with some composure. “It doesn’t happen often.” She shook her head. For a moment she was silent, just studying the stranger. He deserved to know what had happened, but she wasn’t certain how to broach the topic. Ara had no doubt he hadn’t wanted to share the memories she’d seen. She’d become an intruder in his mind.

“Did you have plans after this?” She pointed to his books, a slightly concerned frown passing over her features. They needed to address this now—if only to put her own mind to rest. “I think we should talk in private. I-I saw what you did.” 

“Why are you sorry? I’m not the one who fainted,” he pointed out. Sure, he was shaken up, but it wasn’t exactly her fault. Just his own brain betraying him with bad timing. That wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary. (Why would his brain ever be convenient with its failings?)

He stood with her, considering offering assistance, but she didn’t seem to want it, the way she was using the bookshelf, and he knew that sometimes you just needed to do something on your own to prove it could be done. He knew that better than most people, really, and he didn’t want to make things more awkward for her.

His heart skipped a beat and the panic welled up all over again. I saw what you did. It was... vague enough to pertain to anything, but he’d used his powers to ease her fall and that had to be what she was referring to. What else could it be?

“I’m, uh, I--” He gathered up the books again, glad to have a convenient excuse to flee the scene. School was hard-- God, was it hard-- but at least it kept him busy. “I need to go. I have an exam to study for, y’know? And if you’re fine, I really should be leaving, because I’m not going to pass if I don’t study.”