As soon as the word had left Hanjiās lips, Angelās eyes had lit up. Truthfully, she hadnāt been paying much attention at first - the scientist had a tendency to go on and most of the time Angel just zoned out, waiting for some actual point to the conversation to fling out and ping her in the face. A lot of the time it wasnāt even a good point; or rather, it often wasnāt a point the monarch cared much about. Thankfully, today was different.
āYes, your majesty!ā Hanji confirmed with a nod, grinning wide.Ā āA birthday surprise, just for you!ā
Angelās full attention had finally been grasped. She too was smiling now, a little bounce in her step as she turned to face Hanji properly.
āDo you have it with you?ā she asked.
The scientist shook her head.Ā āRather impossible, your majesty.ā
āImpossible?ā Angel narrowed her eyes, tapping her bottom lip with a finger.Ā āSo itās something big. Youāre not gonna make me guess, are you?ā
āNot if you donāt want me to.ā
āI definitely donāt fucking want you to.ā
That made Hanji chuckle as she held out a hand, waiting for Angel to grasp it before she walked off, leading her to a different part of the mansion entirely.
The whole house was bustling now - the sun had barely risen and yet most everyone was awake, at least amongst the inhabitants that actually had to sleep. Those that didnāt, namely the royal children themselves, had been working for even longer. Decorations were strewn all about and came in all shapes and sizes, though even Angel had to admit that they were excessively red. The ballroom in particular was a violent scarlet hue, attacking her eyes from the mere glimpse sheād seen of it, and part of her wondered whether it might be wise to start adding a secondary colour to her aesthetic. She could already hear Prospero chantingĀ āpurpleā in the back of her mind, making her snigger a little even as Hanji kept talking.
ā--and so thatās when I...ā The scientist trailed off, turning her head back to look at her queen.Ā āAre you listening, your majesty?ā
Angel, whoād been busy waving at Archie as he wished her a happy birthday, suddenly snapped her head back.Ā āWhat? Yeah, sure. Something ābout, uh...ā
āTransportation.ā
Her brows furrowed in confusion, betraying how little attention sheād been paying, but she gave a small nod regardless.Ā āJust what I was gonna say. Weāre not going somewhere fucking crazy, are we?ā
Hanji shrugged before giving another of her slightly manic chuckles.Ā āSort of.ā
āSort of?ā
āItās a surprise!ā
Though Angel had been excited at first, now she was starting to get annoyed.Ā āWould you just tell me what it fucking is?ā
The snapping barely made the scientist jolt - she was used to it by now, living in this house - but she still adjusted her tone to accommodate.Ā āIām sure youāre aware of Perditaās... concerns.ā
āConcerns?ā
Hanji sighed a little.Ā āI hadnāt wanted to bring it up on your birthday, but... she wants you to spend much more time on Sesharrim than you have been. She says you need to be more hands on if youāre serious about being queen.ā
āOh, that,ā Angel said, her face contorting as she stuck out her tongue.Ā āShe doesnāt half nag sometimes. Yeah, I told her Iād go when shitās less... busy. It takes a fucking age to get there for starters and she always wants me to stay for bollocking months. I aināt staying there that fucking long! This Isleās my project, I told her so. Does she know how many fucking coalition meetings Iād miss to shake hands with some poncy cunt that wants more funds for his stupid fucking town planning bullshit? I donāt see why they canāt just come the fuck here instead.ā
āWell, your majesty, I think my latest invention might help with that!ā
āWhy? Is it something thatāll shut my cousin up?ā
āSounds somewhat tempting...ā the scientist mused, getting distracted for a moment before shaking her head.Ā āBut no! What Iāve invented is a teleporter!ā
Angel stopped entirely then. Hanji only noticed when the hand she was holding went taut and stopped her in her path.
āIs something wrong, your majesty?ā she asked.
āA... teleporter?ā the monarch started. āLike a real, actual... from place to place teleporter?ā She paused, frowning slightly, remaining in perplexed silence whilst the scientist nodded in response.Ā āIām not fucking sayingĀ āBeam me up, Hanji!ā or some stupid shit like that.ā
Hanji tilted her head with a small confused smile on her lips.Ā āThereās no... ābeamsā, your majesty. Should there have been?ā
āNo, itās a--ā Angel struggled to find a way to explain and shook her head as she sighed.Ā āNever fucking mind. Are you going to show me this thing or not?ā
āAh!ā the older of the two exclaimed, her beaming smile splitting her face in two once again. She pulled her queen off in the direction of the surprise as she suddenly burst into a torrent of excited speech.Ā āThis device has been a long time in the making, your majesty. I first conceptualised it many years ago, though it never really amounted to much. You see, pure science alone canāt do everything - in fact, Iād say this invention is almost directly inspired by you. Much as you harnessed the power of, uh...ā
āNecromancy?ā
āYes, yes, that! Much as you used magic in your own scientific pursuits, I too began to consult the many magics of this land. You see, portals and the such have long since been a part of the infrastructure here. I hear the fey in particular are very fond of them though, as Iāve since discovered, more human-based species can also create them with a little help from spells and potions. I signed up for a few magic classes, slaved over books, asked around in the pub... I even participated in a coven meeting at one point. They had some rather... strange requests before I was allowed to attend but it was well worth it in the end. Ah, here we are!ā
Suddenly Hanji stopped before a closed door, turning on her heel and pulling out a blindfold sheād been hiding in her pocket.
āReally?ā Angel asked as a frown began to form on her face.
āYes, really! You do want this to be a surprise, donāt you?ā
Angel sighed.Ā āFine. You do realise Iāve seen Sesharrim before though, donāt you?ā
The queen might not have been able to see Hanji now that thick fabric covered her eyes but she could certainly hear her laughing as she opened the door before her and carefully lead her inside.Ā āOh, your majesty, Iām afraid this teleporter doesnāt go to Sesharrim. This is the prototype - I had to test my device on somewhere much closer to home before simply jumping into intergalactic travel, Iām sure you understand.ā
Angelās frown only grew beneath her blindfold.Ā āThen where the fuck does this go?ā
āThatās the surprise!ā
Hanji stood the monarch stock still inside the room before darting off, her shoes making distinct noises on the wooden floor as she flitted around pulling levers and flicking switches. There was a loud electric buzzing noise as something before the blinded queen burst into life, giving her a start that made her exclaimĀ āFucking hell!ā with some ferocity. Only then did the scientist return and lightly grasp Angelās shoulders, steering her in the direction of her birthday gift.
The sensation of passing through the teleporter was something the monarch couldnāt quite describe. It almost tingled, a little like the static buzz you could get off everyday objects, but at the same time it was almost nothing like it. There was something... refreshing about it, she supposed? Though maybe that was the stark coldness of their new location - it was indoors, but it clearly wasnāt heated. If she hadnāt known any better, sheād have thought sheād just stepped out of the back door on a chilly day.
With one swift tug, Hanji pulled the blindfold off of Angelās face and all at once she forgot about what the teleporter mightāve felt like. A torrent of noise greeted her instead as, out of comparative silence, burst a sudden cry ofĀ āHappy Birthday!ā from all around her. She had to blink as she took it all in; at first it was merely from the sudden brightness, but soon she was trying to force back the tears which had crept slowly into the corners of her eyes.
They were in her old home, many miles away on Mokās Island--no, her island now--and before her was an endless crowd of her own children, all seeming to want to be at the front all at once. Their smiles were wider than Angel had seen them in years and, she noticed as she began to blubber more, many of them had started to cry too. The only person that didnāt quite belong was sat right in the middle, zombies trying to clamber over her shoulders to wave at their mother, but she didnāt seem to mind. At first, Angel almost hadnāt recognised Prospero - the others had clearly given her a makeover only they couldāve achieved. She was decked in leather her queen could never have imagined her wearing, looking scruffier than sheād ever seen her, and eyeliner ringed her eyes to an extent that made her resemble a panda. Theyād even sprayed some colours in her hair, temporary Angel was sure, that seemed to glisten like a mismatched rainbow when she moved her head to laugh.
āHanji wanted to show you this weeks ago,ā she admitted.Ā āBut Iām afraid IĀ insisted on giving it to you as a birthday present.ā
Angelās bottom lip wobbled as she tried to sniff her tears away. She couldnāt help but laugh too even as her crying got worse, wiping one of her eyes as she spoke.Ā āIs it... permanent?ā
Prospero nodded and all of Angelās kids mimicked the movement.Ā āYou can all live together again,ā she confirmed.Ā āJust like you used to.ā
A little sob escaped the monarch then before she suddenly darted forwards. Prospero tried to get to her feet to meet her outstretched arms but all it did was send them both hurtling to the ground when Angel collided, squeezing her tightly even through the harsh impact against the tiled flooring. Her queen was crying onto her chest but not because she was sad. The sight brought a smile to the commanderās lips and, as she stroked the younger girlās hair, she pressed a soft peck to her temple.
āWell!ā Hanji called from above them with a clap of her hands.Ā āI donāt know how the teleporterāll react if you all try to force your way through at once, so an attempt at decorum would be appreciated.ā
āWhatās a duh-floor-em?ā shouted one of the kids back.
Hanji thought about the answer for a while before shrugging.Ā āIām not sure. You can take it to meanĀ āgo through in single fileā if you like.ā
Predictably, the mess of zombies that followed did nothing of the sort. They all wanted to see their motherās mansion before the others and as soon as possible - they were shouting and elbowing each other and a few of them even started a fight over what single file actually entailed. The scientist was doing her best in her attempts to organise them but it was as futile as sheād expected.
As the crowd around them began to dissipate, Angel and Prospero started to stir too. The smaller alien lifted her head first and then the rest of her body, unfolding her arms from where theyād been tucked around her subordinate. She placed a hand on either side of her, about to lift herself up properly, when she came to a sudden stop. She was supposed to be getting up and going, of course she was, but something about the commanderās piercing eyes made her just want to sink back down and stay there, at least for a few moments more. The thought brought warmth to her cheeks and, perhaps worst of all, Prospero had definitely noticed. Angel jolted then, scrambling to her feet in an attempt to act like nothing had happened. She thought sheād gotten away with it at first, even if her face had reddened, when a hand on her own stopped her.
āCome now, your majesty,ā Prospero said softly, lowering her head so she could speak into her queenās ear. The sounds of the chaos in the room almost seemed to ebb away then, shooed by the warmth breath that tickled Angelās skin.Ā āItās your birthday, isnāt it? Thereās no need to resist doing the things you want to.ā
The monarchās eyes had widened even before she turned on her heel. As soon as Prospero was in her field of vision, she wasted no time in leaning further in, pressing her lips quite firmly to Angelās own. They were soft, terribly soft, and the faint wafts of her flowery shampoo almost threatened to envelop her. Was this what people meant when they talked about how good girls smelt? Prospero certainly smelt good - far better than her queen would have ever expected a soldier to.
The kiss had barely begun before it was over. Prospero merely let it linger on Angelās lips as she pulled back, the fainest lipstick stain at her mouth betraying her otherwise collected demeanour. It only became more obvious when she grinned and the crimson tones contrasted with her teeth. Her lips couldnāt rival her queenās face, though - even Angelās jacket struggled to be as red as she stuttered in the air, uncharacteristically lost for words. Prospero mightāve kissed her once before but sheād been prepared for that one! This one... This one was...!
āHappy birthday, your majesty,ā the commander said with a voice that almost seemed to taunt her.
Angel didnāt have a response - she merely followed Prospero with her eyes when she moved to leave. She was concentrating on her face at first but, as she got further away, she felt them drift lower, tracing the way her leather makeover clung to her body. Had her subordinate always been this...? Well, this...? Her brows furrowed; she didnāt know what word to use but whatever word it was, she didnāt want to say it. That would only be admitting it and, if Angel was going to be anything on her birthday, that thing was stubborn.
Name: He doesnāt have one. Iāve been affectionately calling himĀ āHat Boyā because he wears hats and is a boy. HisĀ āmotherā never named him and, besides the mild problems that not having a name causes him, he doesnāt mind not having one. He encourages other people to use whatever name they might deem appropriate and, if they eventually come up with a popular consensus for what to call him, heāll adopt it by proxy.
Faceclaim:Ā He doesnāt have one of these either.
Age: Itās a mystery.
Hair: His skin suit has blonde hair but he himself has none.
Eyes: He has a number of eyes he can use of varying colours but normally he has none.
Height: 5ā²11ā³
Species: Skeleton
Powers:
Heās a skeleton. As such, he has no need to eat, drink or rest. If you try to break him apart, he can merely piece himself back together again, and he cannot be stabbed. Well, I mean he can technically be stabbed, but itās not going to do anything. Itāll more just be a mild inconvenience - the sort of thing you might do if he cut you off at a roundabout. He also has a little bit of magical power but, since heās usually using it to stay āaliveā, heās very prudent about using it for literally anything else.
Weaknesses:
Well, heās a skeleton. You can very easily stop him by just... pulling his arm off. He also has little to no understanding of societal cues and how to interact with others.
Personality:
It would be most accurate to say that Hat Boyās personality is his distinct lack of one. By all accounts he isnāt a person - heās a thing pretending to be one. He doesnāt know what expressions heās meant to be pulling, he doesnāt really understand humour (although he keeps trying to make jokes after a heavy suggestion that itās a good way to meet new people) and he especially doesnāt understand that a lot of his quirks can make people... uncomfortable. At the moment heās merely stumbling through life and learning whatever he can, trying to find some sort of meaning and concept to his own state of being.
Job: He doesnāt have one.
Residence: The Lad House
Other:
He was brought to life by a necromancerĀ called Marikit. At first he was merely a skeleton and that is, at his core, his true form. Heās kept alive by magic which, at first, was being maintained by Marikit herself. Ever since heās been living on his own terms though, heās been given his own control over it.
Hat Boyās human disguise comes in the form of aĀ āskin suitā. Itās what heās been calling it anyway, for lack of a better name. As you mightāve guessed, it is in fact the skin of a person, though Hat Boy doesnāt know who they were or where it came from. He can put it on and remove it at will, putting it into place with more magical assistance rather than just thrusting his bony appendages into each fleshy, floppy limb. That would not only take a lot of time but also would look... bad. The purpose of his skin suit is, after all, to try to look like heās not a skeleton.
Hat Boy can choose how much magic he puts into his appearance. It takes very little to merely wear his suit but the effect is very uncanny valley and is the main purpose of his hats - the suitās natural seam lies on the back of his head and, as opposed to expelling extra energy to conceal this glimpse of exposed skull, he just plops a hat on his head instead. Frankly, who hasnāt done that?
Most of Hat Boyās glamour magic specifically goes into trying to make himself look more human. He helps the skin blend into his features more but he can also give it more colour (normally he looks very dead), use it to fake expressions (though he often gets them wrong and leaves himself smiling eerily at inopportune moments), and even simulate regular bodily functions. For instance, due to a lack of organs, he doesnāt have an inner mouth or a tongue. He can just magic one into existence, if need be.
Hat Boy does not have eyes and he does not need them to see. He does, however, have a collection of... uh, re-purposed eyeballs. Theyāre a little fiddly and uncomfortable and can dry out quickly. He has to use eye drops on them, something he quickly learnt youāre supposed to apply by tipping ur head back and dripping them in, not by yanking your eyeballs out in public and carefully dotting the bottle onto them before slamming them back in.
To avoid people gawping at his empty eye sockets, Hat Boy often wears large dark shades.
Hat Boy doesnāt wash conventionally - he removes his skin suit to clean it and then leaves it to dry like one might do clothing.
When he isnāt wearing his skin suit, he often just walks around as a skeleton, since people on the Isle donāt often seem to mind it very much. He will, however, occasionally cover his head and body entirely with veils and capes, turning himself more into a shapeless mass than a person. Heās yet to realise that this is, in many ways, a lot more unsettling.
Name: Reggie de Luca
Animated: Reggie Mantle from Archie
Faceclaim: Charles Menton
Age: 22
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown/Hazel
Height: 6ā²0ā³
Species: Upir
Powers:
Reggie can change into a wolf-man at will, a form that gives him heightened speed and power. Heās already much faster and stronger than a human and is effectively immortal, in that he wonāt die of natural means. He also has skill for hunting, sneaking and skulking, and has always been good at lying to others to gain their trust.
Weaknesses:
Reggie can be killed, usually via beheading. Heās also not very experienced at using his powers. Not only is he prone to losing control of his shift in the face of children, heās also been devoid of guidance from a member of his own species for a long time.
Personality:
Often known as the class clown when he was still in school, Reggieās always been prone to pulling jokes and pranks and seeking out a fun time. Heās very open and confident and not afraid to be himself... at least the version of himself that he allows others to see.
Internally, Reggie has a very big struggle with his identity. Despite his motherās support, heās only become increasingly aware with time of how much people would despise him if they knew the truth of his nature. He tries his hardest to seem something akin to normal, even going as far as to openly lie about his species, but he canāt help some of his odd quirks, especially when around children.
Job: Officially, Reggie works for Ireneās childcare.
Residence: Ireneās house
Other:
Upirs are Russian creatures with both vampire and werewolf elements. They turn into vampiric wolf-human creatures when they feed on people, by eating them as opposed to merely sucking their blood. Theyāre famed for eating the children of a family first in front of their parents which is, frankly, rude. Unlike either vampires or werewolves however, they tend to strike during the day instead of at night.
Reggie is Ireneās adopted son. His real parents are dead. They were lynched by their community because they kept... well, they kept eating peopleās children. Itās generally looked down upon. Irene, a family friend, snuck Reggie out and claimed him as her own. His parents had mostly been using him to lure children to their doom under the guise ofĀ āplay-datesā andĀ āfriendshipā.
Despite it seeming to the contrary, Reggie can in fact eat food that isnāt human beings. It just isnāt nearly as satisfying and will leave him feeling hungry, even after heās eaten an unbelievable amount of it.
Reggie doesnāt have to specifically eat children. They just taste better.
Being around children is very uncomfortable for Reggie. He gets super hungry and starts obsessively snacking and eating. His appearance tends to change too, with his eyes reddening and his teeth beginning to sharpen into fangs.
Even though Reggie says that he works with his mum, he never helps with the childcare. He mostly just eats incessantly and avoids touching the children at all, much to Rahneās annoyance.
Name: Vulture
Animated: Otabek Altin from Yuri On Ice
Age: 18
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black
Height: 6ā²2ā³
Species: Zombie
Powers:
Vulture, like most zombies, doesnāt get tired or feel much pain. Heās good at physical fighting and knows how to use weapons too, both in the form of blades and firearms.
Weaknesses:
If you shoot him in the head, he has a tendency to die. Heās also stupid. Like, really stupid. Vulture can barely even spell and itās a good thing heās going to school because I donāt know how heās surviving as is.
Personality:
Vulture is a bit of a dickhead, in that he has little to no self control and generally only does things because he think theyāll be funny to do. He has no respect for the law, or indeed rules of any kind, and is obsessed with keeping up his aesthetic of a punk aspiring for total anarchy. Most of his time is spent getting involved in antics, from graffiti to, surprising no-one, murder. He has a bit of a temper, like all of Angelās children, but heās mostly just in it for the ride.
Job: High school student
Location: The Mansion of Angeldom
Other:
Vulture has a mohawk that he is very proud of and spends a lot of time maintaining. He also has a crazy amount of piercings and tattoos, because theyāre cool.
He rides a motorbike, because itās cool.
Vulture can barely spell his own name, even though Angel made sure all of her children could at least do that. Heās even worse with other peopleās.
All of Vultureās attempts to text are horrendous and almost illegible. He just gets frustrated when people donāt understand him. Please teach this boy to write.
Itās fine. Very beautiful, particularly around here - you canāt see it right now, but thereās some lovely hills beyond the river, just perfect for walking. I mean, Iāve heard plenty of... odd things, to say the least, but Iām sure I donāt need to tell the trespassing faceless question askers that, do I?
Now if you donāt mind, me and the bathroom have an early morning appointment.
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