In the sequel to Bat Out of Hell, mutant Willow Wren finds herself grappling with the realities of her past with the Panoptes Foundation and its troubling connection with the sinister HYDRA. As she starts her first year of high school, the winged girl falls down a rabbit hole of conspiracies and half-memories, all leading to a devastating loss and unlocking the horrors she tried so hard to bury. Even with her friends Marty, Kate, Peter, and Ned at her side, Willow must face the unfortunate truth: she may never get the "normal" life she always dreamed of.
coming august 27, 2022
catch up on Bat Out of Hell here: Wattpad | Ao3
follow Bat Out of Hell: The Teenage Wasteland here: Wattpad | Ao3
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tag list: @royaltywhxre @deliahscrush2003 @ruvaakke @ocappreciationtag
Characters: Willow Wren, Kate Gray, Marty Fields, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds
Prompt/Tag:
“Oh no, you are not dragging me into this.”
“It’s about time.”
Summary: Willow and her friends goof around after play rehearsal
Timeline: November 2015
Song: Seventeen - Heathers
A/N: is willow a theater kid? well....?
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“Come on, guys,” I said to Peter and Ned. “Kate’s been waiting!” We were walking the halls after a decathlon meeting, debating answers, and rolling our eyes at one of our teammates, Flash. “Marty and Annabel are going to be there, too. She says she has news for us.”
“Oh, this is going to be good,” said Ned. “I hope she found bigfoot by now.”
I laughed. “Probably not.”
“Who would have thought we discovered aliens before bigfoot?” Peter asked.
“Okay, can someone explain the aliens thing to me,” I asked, “because I’m still not a hundred percent sure—”
Ned pushed the auditorium doors open and Kate yelled us down from the stage. “It’s about time!”
“Sorry,” I said. “We ran late! How was rehearsal?”
“Long,” said Kate. “Way too long. Kind of wish I did tech like you.”
“Until hell week,” I said. “Then it’s going to be… well… hell.”
“Okay,” said Kate. “Here’s the deal. Peter, Ned, you too.” The auditorium doors opened again, and Marty came jogging down the aisle to the stage.
“I’m here!” he said.
“Look how the tables have turned,” I said.
“I’m not late,” Marty said. “Kate just texted me.”
“Okay,” said Kate. “So, we have a few more weeks before the fall musical and we’re wondering if you guys would be interested in helping us fill out our chorus on one or two songs. We need more male voices, but also voices in total.”
“Oh, no, you’re not dragging me into this,” Marty said. “No. I don’t sing.”
I shifted my stance uncomfortably, thinking about being on the stage in front of an audience of people. “Yeah, I don’t know Kate. We’d need costumes…”
“You can wear normal clothes,” said Kate. “Just something nice.”
“I’m in,” said Ned, and our heads all turned. “I don’t know. Could be fun.”
Peter stood with his arms crossed as he thought, and we made brief eye contact. I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about our conversation only nights before, but it seemed like it was something we were going to bury.
“I’ll do it,” I said, not even believing my own voice. “Sure. C’mon, Peter. Marty.”
“Fine,” Peter sighed, but he began to smile. “Do we get our names in the little books? It’s just for like one or two songs?”
“Yup,” said Kate. “Marty?”
The peer pressure was on, and Marty finally related. “Fine, okay fine.”
“Yes!” said Kate. She was elated and began filling the boys in while I sat on the edge of the stage, my legs dangling off. My right hand absently moved to trace the letters hidden underneath my upper left arm. Sumerkey. I thought back to the Facility, the things they used to teach us about attachment or friendship. The world will never understand your abilities. But what you are doing is a gift to humankind. Everywhere you go, chaos will follow.
But it didn’t. I’m still here.
I was shaken from my thoughts as Kate turned on the auditorium sound system and the boys started goofing around, dancing to the number that was playing and half-remembering lyrics. I watched as she sprinted back up to the stage and climbed up, gesturing for me to follow. I leaped up after her and as Kate used a remote to switch between songs, Marty and I reenacted the number we had seen the cast work on when sitting in on a rehearsal the week before.
Peter and Ned broke into a fit of laughter as Marty and I hit the chorus, belting the lyrics at each other, and Kate cranked the volume.
“Yes—hit those harmonies!” Kate yelled, and Marty and I faltered out into embarrassed giggles before continuing. I felt euphoric in that moment, running around the stage with my friends in an exaggerated performance and almost didn’t a quiet creak in the tech booth. My gaze lifted up to the booth in the dark back of the auditorium and I saw a figure standing up there, but I couldn’t make out who it was, or how long they had been up there.
It’s probably a teacher. Someone checking in on all the noise.
I turned back to my friends, determined to let myself remember and forget on my own terms.
Characters: Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Kate Gray, Marty Fields, Jeri Hogarth
Prompt/Tag: “Are you trying to scare the mailman again? I think he is immune to our bullshit.” x / @dewysbride
Summary: Willow celebrates the holidays with her friends.
Song: Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree – Brenda Lee
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I’ve never celebrated the holidays with anyone before. The Facility ignored birthdays and holidays, even when we pleaded with them as we got older. I have vague memories from when I was a young child, before the Facility, but nothing else. A holiday party is a first for me.
Peter, Ned, and Kate come over to celebrate and do a secret Santa swap. As Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree blasts through dual speakers, Peter and I jump around the living room area, headbanging to the Christmas classic. Marty and Kate mosh nearby, while Ned is jumping on the couch.
“DECK THE HALLS WITH BALLS OF HOLLY!” I yell.
“Those aren’t even the right lyrics!” Kate yells back.
Peter and I nearly topple onto the tree before I jump onto the coffee table and continue to boogie.
“Okay, someone cut Willow off the sugar!” says Marty.
“Okay, guys, let’s do, this,” I say, climbing down. “Secret Santa time.”
“Quiet down,” says Marty. “You’re gonna make my dad yell at us.” Marty’s dad had gone into his room around seven and hadn’t been seen since.
“Okay, yeah,” I say. “True.”
We gather around the coffee table and pull out of respective gift bags. The rules were for no actually serious presents, so we were in for a treat. “Who wants to go first?” Kate asks. I’ve never done a gift exchange before, so I just sit there until Marty volunteers himself. “I’ll go,” he says, and hands a large bag to Ned. “I had you!”
Ned tears through the tissue paper and pulls out a giant, plush Doge blanket. “Oh, no way!”
Marty grins. “Thought you would like that.”
“I’m putting this on my bed,” Ned says, and wraps the blanket around him. “Dope.” He hands a bag to Kate. “I had you.”
She opens the bag and pulls out a rolled-up poster that she unrolls. “Yoo, and X-Files poster! Yes, Ned!” The amateur paranormal investigator holds up the poster in triumph. “We should watch more episodes over winter break,” she says, before handing a bag to me. “Willow, you’re up.”
My face reddens, even for a Leo this is a little too much attention for me. Don’t ask me why. I pull back the tissue paper from a rather tall bag and out comes a green umbrella, pasted on both sides with Shrek’s face.
Kate and the others burst into laughter. “I don’t know how when it rains you come to school wetter than everyone else,” she says. “You needed a fucking umbrella.”
I laugh and open up the umbrella to reveal the grinning Shrek. “Wicked,” I say, not mentioning that an umbrella won’t help when I’m late and flying to school in the rain. It’s the thought that counts, plus something I could totally rock when I’m grounded.
“Okay,” I say, “I had Peter. And this is a weird one.”
I hand him a bulky bag. “There’s two things in there,” I said. The first was a slogan tee-shirt that I had seen at a comic store, with some nerdy chemistry joke on it. I didn’t get the joke, but I knew Peter would love it. The other was an old projector I had found on the curb the other day.
“I know it’s a weird gift,” I said, “But I know you like that stuff and you could probably strip it for parts or something.”
“No, this is awesome,” he said, peering through the lens. “I could use this!”
“Dope, okay,” I said. “Phew.”
As Peter handed his gift to Marty, I heard footsteps in the hallway outside the apartment, and before the person had the chance to knock, I was already up and walking to take a peek through the peephole. We’re not expecting anyone.
“Are you trying to scare the mailman again?” Marty asked, watching me peer through the hole. “I think he is immune to our bullshit.”
“There’s no mailman this time of night,” said Kate. “Who is it?”
I groaned. “Awesome.”
Before she could even knock, I opened the door.
“Willow,” said Jeri Hogarth, taking a step back. “How did you—”
“I’m having a party right now,” I say. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to talk to William,” said Hogarth. “Not you. We work together. It’s not all about you.”
“Oh,” I said, and then yelled into the living room, “Marty, it’s for your dad!”
Marty’s dad steps out of his room and surveys the chaos that’s unfolded. He rubs his forehead with his fingers. “Uh, yeah, Jeri, we can meet in the study.”
“Have fun!” I yell after them, and turn back to Peter, Ned, and Kate who are still staring.
“My lawyer,” I say quickly. “Also works with Marty’s dad.”
“Wait, so why do you have a lawyer again?” Kate asks. “I’m… like… still not sure how you…”
“My parents’ lawyer,” I say, quickly. “You know… when we lost them… she helped me find a place to live. With Marty.”
“Oh,” said Kate. “Well she seems nice.”
“Nah,” I say. “She’s the worst. Let’s make some hot chocolate or something.”
Characters: Willow Wren, Marty Fields, Ned Leeds, Kate Gray, Kilgrave
Prompt/Tag: “I’m going to ask you something and you have to answer me honestly.” x / @anti-solidcoffee
Summary: Willow goes out for the night and encounters a sinister figure
Song: Hot in the City – Billy Idol
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It was a chaotic Saturday night at Kate’s apartment as we lounged around her bedroom, tossing pretzel sticks at each other and passing around the bag of wine that Kate had stolen from her older brother. I sat crossed legged on the floor, scrolling through my phone and trying to find a game for us to play while squishing a ball of putty that I found on Kate’s desk.
“Kings,” I ask. “Anyone want to play that?”
“We don’t have any beer cans,” said Kate. “What’s the point? Unless you want to use Sprite.”
“You guys want to watch a movie or something?” Ned suggested. “Oo—like maybe a really bad one.”
“I could do that,” I said. “When’s Peter supposed to get here?”
Ned shrugged and checked his phone. “I don’t know. He told me he got tied up with something.”
“Should we wait?” Marty asked, with his usual zero-tolerance for tardiness. “I mean, I don’t want to wait all night for him to show up and have him bail on us again.”
“I’m cool starting now,” said Kate. “I don’t want to wait either.”
“What’s taking him so long?” I asked Ned. “Dude’s literally always late.”
“Probably the subway,” said Ned. “It’s been a nightmare this week.”
While Kate opened up her laptop and pulled up Netflix, I shut my eyes and listened to the city beyond her apartment, blocks away, trying to identify every voice that I’m suddenly zero’ed in on and every beep, hum, and crash. It was like a finger on the pulse of the pavement, a background static that I could tune into when ready.
I was almost ready to snap back into reality when I heard a cry, and it cut through the rest of the fuzzy wall of sound. Close. Could have been a few blocks away at most. You don’t have to do anything. You have no obligation to move off this floor. But didn’t I?
“I gotta grab some air,” I said quickly, standing up. “I’ll be right back.”
“What?” said Ned. “We’re about to start the movie.”
“Start without me,” I said. “I want to buy us snacks.”
I rushed out the apartment door, clattered down the steep staircase to the street, and found myself standing on a crowded sidewalk, as New Yorkers flowed like a river around me, many of them in line for the club next door. Focus. Where did that sound come from?
I took a few steps in one direction and then I heard the cry again. It was more defined now. Close. Close. I started running, pushing past other pedestrians, the crowd thinning out, and before I knew it, I was alone. Raised voices echoed off the buildings, and I followed them to an alley, where a haggard-looking woman was pushing back against a man making a grab for her backpack. Next to the woman sat a cardboard mat and several plastic milk crates. Everything of value she had was in that backpack.
“Hey,” I called down into the alley. “What’s going on?”
The man made a final pull for the backpack and stumbled back with it when I spoke.
“He trying to take my stuff!” said the woman, gesturing wildly. “I told him I didn’t have anything.”
“Dude,” I said. “Give her the backpack back.”
In a split-second decision, the man slung the bag over his shoulder and started running down the alley towards me in an attempt to flee.
The adrenaline hit like a wall when I realized how much bigger this guy was than me, but he was gaining on me and left me with few choices. My coat fell to the ground. The wings came out, and their shadow engulphed the dark alley.
“I said, give her the backpack back.”
Now the man cried out and fell back. “Fuck, who the fuck are you? Jesus, God fuck—”
“Easy nelly,” I said.
He fumbled for something in his coat, and as I moved to grab the backpack, out came the gun.
Aw fuck. Nice one, Willow. Really nice.
I lunged for the gun, just as he raised it. Shot fired. Miss. I clawed at his face and kicked upward, as hard as I could. I was so focused on that though, I missed the punch coming for my face and it hit my mouth straight on, splitting my lip wide open.
I may have enhanced skills, but I don’t have any enhanced resistance to pain.
“Fuck,” I yelled, and then screamed a war cry. Motherfucker was going down now.
I spun and the wings clapped him, hard, throwing him against the wall, the gun and the bag falling free. “You freak,” he said. “I’m calling the… police!” The woman scrambled to pick the bag up and I kicked the gun away.
“Get out of here,” I said to him. “And stop harassing homeless people you hoggish asshole.”
He got up and ran. I turned towards the woman, and she still had a look of horror on her face. The wings. I folded them back a little, but it was too late, it was too weird for her. Backpack fastened around her torso, she mumbled something and also took off running.
Whatever, I thought. You’re welcome. I retracted the wings and sighed, popping my headphones in for my walk back to Kate’s.
I shouldn’t have even left. It was stupid. Stupid. I’m not cut out for this stuff. I just get hurt and it sucks.
My phone buzzed and I stopped to open the text.
>Ned: Where did you go lol we’re still waiting
As I texted Ned back, I suddenly became aware of a figure stopped in front of me, from behind me on the sidewalk. I looked up from my phone and a man was standing there. He motioned for me to take off my headphones. Oh great. Please don’t be a missionary.
I graciously pulled out a single earbud. “What?”
“You should turn down that music. It’s bad for your ears.”
“Okay,” I said, and turned down the volume on Billy Idol.
“I was calling after you,” he said. “I saw what you did back there. It was tremendous. I’ve never seen anything like that.”
He was charismatic, over-the-top, and his voice gave me a prickly feeling on the back of my neck. But I stayed. Right there on the sidewalk. Listening. Get out of here, Willow. Get out, get out, get out.
“What’s your name?”
“Willow. Wren.”
Jesus, Willow, move now! Go, run!
“I’m going to ask you something and you have to answer me honestly,” he said, grinning. “I saw the wings, what else do you do?”
“I’m a fast healer,” I answered. “I can fight. I can hear really well.”
“Superhearing,” he mused, drawing it out like it was a song. “I bet that comes in handy.”
“Yeah.” Willow, you don’t EVEN tell someone about your powers! What are you doing?
“Give me your phone number.”
I gave it to him.
“When I call you, you’ll pick up, right?”
“Right. Yeah.”
“With wings like that, you must be a flier.”
“I am.”
“Good,” he handed me an envelope. “Deliver this for me. Address is here. She’s a bit difficult to get to. Shouldn’t be hard for you though.”
I think I did it, but I’m not sure. I couldn’t remember the rest of that night.
Prompt/Tag: “I became a vampire so I could be mysteriously attractive and wealthy, what do you mean I look the same and I don’t have a victorian mansion? It’s been a day!” x / @villanellesclown
Summary: Willow makes a few new friends at school
Song: oh baby - LCD Soundsystem
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Now, I expected one of two things on my first day of school (based on my study of high school movies on Marty’s dad’s Netflix):
1) With the allure of “new girl” I would become immensely popular with people falling over each other for me
2) Something completely embarrassing would happen and I would be ostracized forever
Turned out, neither of those things happened. At least to me. The school is so big that a new face really doesn’t stand out, and it takes a lot to embarrass me. So, my first day at Midtown Middle was completely typical. I think.
The guidance counselor gave me a cheat sheet of where my classes were located, which I lost within minutes of leaving for my first class. By second period, I was wandering the halls, halfheartedly looking for my next class, but mostly itching for school to end so I could go back to the apartment.
I heard her coming before I saw her: my superhearing guaranteed that. I heard the jangling of a backpack covered in pins and keychains, the soft step of ballet flats, a pen clicking in and out. She rounded the corner. “Hey, hallway girl!”
I looked up from my phone. “What?”
She had brown skin and curly red hair, freckles all over her face. And she was grinning.
“Just saying hi,” she said as she walked past me.
“Oh… uh…” I started as I fumbled for my list of classes on my phone. “Do you know where Mrs. Dern’s room is? I’m supposed to have English there.”
“Oh, yeah,” said the girl, stopping. “You new or something?”
“Yeah. I’m Willow.”
“Kate,” she responded. “Kate Gray, spelled the American way. Also, you lucked out, ‘cause I’m late to that same class.”
“For real?”
“Yeah,” she smiled. “And now I can use finding you as an excuse. Sound good?”
“Sure.”
“Pretty dress, by the way.”
“Oh, thanks. My lawyer bought it.”
Kate gives me a weird look. “Oh?”
“Nah, I’m kidding,” I laugh. “A lawyer? In this economy?”
Kate laughs too. She briefs me on our English class on our walk there. “We’re reading Dracula right now,” she says. “You read it?”
“Nah,” I say. “That’s one of the vampire ones, right?”
“Yeah,” says Kate. “One of them.”
“I don’t get the whole genre,” I say, trying to sound like I have a shred of an idea of what I’m talking about. “It’s like, where are all the normal vampires? Like, what about a modern one that’s like I became a vampire so I could be mysteriously attractive and wealthy, what do you mean I look the same and I don’t have a Victorian mansion? It’s been a day! You know?” Oof, that was a trainwreck.
I do this thing when I’m nervous and I put on this funnyguy persona, crack bad jokes and ramble, sometimes going off on a whole bit.
But Kate doesn’t seem to mind. “Totally,” she agrees, to my surprise and relief. “It’s like… where’s the representation? Where are the regular vampires? I want a vampire who lives in a studio apartment and has student loans. I was actually just thinking the other day…” Kate goes off on a tangent that ends with “…have you ever seen What We Do In The Shadows?”
“Is it on Netflix?” I ask.
By the time we arrive at Mrs. Dern’s class, I’m certain I’ve made a new best friend. Not too bad, Willow. Not too bad. Wait until Marty hears.
I eat lunch that afternoon with Kate, Marty, and some kids from the Academic Decathlon team; a few of them I recognize from my classes. I’m feeling pretty good—and even though I’m constantly shifting in my dress, making sure my wings aren’t visible, for a moment I think this might work out.
All of that grinds to a halt in last-period biology class.
