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Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

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Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Cracker Island - Cracker Town - Cracker Bar - The Cracked Pysche of Lila

INTERACTIONS PRA, @Punished GN Stormy@Blizz Luca, Bianca @FernStone

Jasper blushed as Luca vomited out his words. His mission was a success, With just one phrase he now had a little bit more information about where Luca was, and he couldn’t help but smile wider at the revelation. He kept the smile up as his thoughts began to race. These thoughts were still very new to Jasper, the thought of what might come next was scary. Like, really, really scary. He kept telling himself that this was not a feeling that he wanted to confront tonight but he could not help himself from feeling them. He knew that he would need to slow down, not only for Luca’s sake but also his own. He thought that but did not mean it. There was something deep within him that made him want to experience more firsts with Luca. Jasper would need to confront these feelings before long but he once again told himself that tonight was not the night for it. Too much had happened, and much more might happen later in the night. Still, he found it hard to pull his eyes off his friend.

Instead of pressing the advantage while he had it, Jasper kept his smile up as he looked over the group again. He listened to the PRA as they explained themselves further, and listened to the agent named Maximilian as he smoothed things over. Jasper let out a deep breath of relief as he said the right words in the moment. They were still words, and Jasper would want to see something more concrete than those, but it was still progress. Sycamore Tree was the new kid on the block, and having peace with the town’s ‘police’ would be useful as time passed. Also, if the Snake ever managed to free itself, all-verse forbid, he knew everyone would push their feelings to the side, even Lila and Linqian. Jasper turned his head towards Stormy. He managed to play the diplomat well, and his natural charm, confidence, and teacher's voice allowed the coven to get an explanation and an apology from the PRA agents who had hurt them. Jasper would need to thank him later. He flashed the diplomat a smile before he turned his head towards Meifeng before his head was drawn towards Luca standing up. His first instinct was to jump up alongside him and help him to wherever he needed to go but Luca had this determined look to him.

Jasper watched as he walked to Lila, and he raised an eyebrow at the mention of continuing the party at Luca’s. That sounded much more fun than talking to the PRA, facing off with 8th Street, and even going through with the rest of the festival itself. That was not because he did not want to eat the festival food, visit the haunted house, hang out with the coven, or anything like that. He was more concerned with making sure Luca, and Lila, were okay. And if that meant he needed to stop at the store on the way home to grab a maid outfit then so be it. ”Yeah, we’ve been through a lot tonight already Lila. Plus, if we do have an after-party we can be selective with the guest list. Do you want to head home?” Jasper looked at Luca and knew he needed the same. ”What about you Luca?”

---

Lynn whispered a soft “yay” as Bianca confirmed she had the same number as a decade prior. Lynn knew that the text history was empty, but she also knew that it would not remain that way for long. Lynn grinned at the comment about kidnapping someone. “I’ll need to find a sidekick for my kidnapping schemes then,” Lynn chuckled before she took a drink from her drink. Lynn sighed happily as the buzz was finally here. She wasn’t drunk, however, she was feeling pretty good. Right now all she wanted to do was drink slowly to stay at this level of drunk, get some good food, make some poor choices with a man or a woman, and then have a great night's sleep. She took another sip. If life was good she would be able to stick to the plan. If life was not good she would be able to adjust the plan as needed to ensure she maintained this buzz.

Lynn pulled her focus back to Bianca and smiled when she confirmed she would want to catch up again soon. “I can always check for you when you might be free, or I can leave it a mystery for you. Regardless,” Lynn paused as she raised a glass, “Whenever you are free I am sure it will be great to catch up in a less chaotic setting.” Lynn watched as Stormy put his money on the table and raised an eyebrow as a smile crossed her face. He seriously doubted her liver at that moment by putting that little money down. And then, Bianca made a comment about drinking Stormy under the table and this caused Lynn to smile the hardest she smiled in a while. “How did we never hang out more ten years ago?”

Lynn pulled herself away when the Pink Power Ranger began to ask if Lila was okay. Okay, they noticed the obvious and the obvious was strange enough to force the entire PRA congregation to stare her down. Lynn did not like that. Lila was having a moment unlike any other before, and right now her power was not only unpredictable but also unable to be suppressed by Stormy sitting nearby with his aura on. Lynn knew they were making amends with the PRA right now, however, if Lila was going to become a threat she worried they might shepherd her away. Lynn quickly slipped into the possible future, checking to see if Lila was in any danger from the PRA and if Luca’s suggestion was the right move for her. Her eyes glazed over in an instant and her head remained steady for a few seconds, coming back to the present a second or two after Jasper finished speaking. She had a bewildered look on her face as she looked towards the festival and the faint sound of a conga line was present in the air. Lynn looked back to Lila with a concerned look on her face, and her eyes shifted to Lila’s dress.

“An after-party sounds much more fun than what is coming our way,” Lynn paused as she pointed in the direction of the toga crew. “Sully and Drake are drunk and have formed a toga conga line, and it is heading straight towards us right now. Emily and Vashti are in the line and will not be happy to see us. If we leave now, we can avoid all of that,” Lynn paused as she waited for Lila to respond.

---

Something is not right here

Anxiety, Lila’s old friend, had returned in full as she caught sight of just what happened with her hand. It wasn’t the feathered arm or the claws that caused her heart to sink, but rather the crimson-red color that dropped down from them both. She felt the stares of the table as the one PRA asked if she was okay. Lila was anything but okay. She did not know why, but this transformation had ended up feeling different, and painful, like the claws themselves had dug their way through her fingers to get out. Her eyes grew wide as she saw the tips of where her fingers would have been. The skin was broken and bloody, and the claws themselves carried with them specks of both flesh and blood. Her fingernails were in pain as they were forced upward at a sharp angle to make room for the claws and she felt like the bones in her fingers were misaligned or pushed out of place. It hurt. It hurt really, really, bad and that pain was finally allowing itself to be felt in this moment. The pain wasn’t localized to her hands either, all up her arm she felt like she had experienced a hundred cuts where the feathers had pushed their way through her skin. The bones in her arm also felt like they were not where they were supposed to be, and she felt something ielse alongside them. Under the canopy of feathers, she felt the steady, consistent trickle of blood which alerted her to the bleeding. Lila tried to take a deep breath but all she could manage was shallow and quick. When her eyes drifted down to her dress she could see a splattering of her blood on it.

What the fuck was going on? Lila thought back to the first transformation she underwent earlier in the night. Did this happen then and she did not notice? She would’ve remembered the pain, but she did not look at her arms after the claws and the feathers went away. Was the Maiden hiding the pain from her then? She looked over to Lynn who was staring at her dress and Lila made herself look even smaller in response. Maybe? But then again, Lynn and Luca would have noticed if she was bleeding. Jasper would have been too busy staring at Luca to notice a thing. Something changed with this latest transformation, and she wondered if it was the ‘gifts’ becoming permanent. She took a deep breath and looked back down to the clawed hands that rested on the table. They looked familiar as she looked them over like she had seen them before many times in a forest far away. This was beginning to scare her.

Lila pulled her hands back across the table, claws digging a path clean into the wood before she hid them under the table. She did not mind that she had a feathered hand, or arm, nor that her eyes were as black as the sky above if it were devoid of stars. What she was worried about was looking not in control in front of these PRA agents. She needed to calm her mind, she needed to push out The Maiden, and she needed this to happen right now. Thankfully, Luca showed up and gave her an out. His words had a calming effect on her mind, he had gone through something like this many times and had managed to pull himself back out the other side. He had The Rot inside of him for the better part of the past decade and he was still here, and still able to live a normal life regardless. If Luca could do it, Lila could too. Lila took a deep breath and shook her head up and down. She thought about the after-party at Luca’s. They could just put on a crappy movie, eat some popcorn, invite everyone who was chill, and then go to bed. Before the party she could take a shower, fix her hair and makeup, and make herself look and smell cute again. The thoughts calmed her mind even more, and a moment later pain in her hand doubled as the claws began to pull themself back into her hand. Slowly, inch by inch, they retreated back into the holes at her fingertips before the claws were gone from sight once more. As they retreated she felt her bones inside her hands and arm readjust and she nearly collapsed over in pain. The holes remained, more or less, and they would not be able to grab, grasp, or use them at all. All across her arms the feathers also found themselves pulled back inside. As they left sight, they left a feather-width hole in her skin. While not large, it still continued to allow blood to flow out easily, and soon her arm was covered in small streams of it.

As the final feather disappeared, and her eyes returned to normal, Lila looked to her friends and smiled. “We’re good, but let’s get out of here,” Lila shifted her focus to Meifeng, shifting it to Cindy, and then to the next agent as Lila still could not look at the maids without blushing, “I’m fine, Emily said something that messed with my head a bit and my power is tied to my emotions,” Lila thought to herself ’ apparently’ as she shook her head, “could I borrow your healer, if they are here?” Inside, Lila vomited. She did not want to ask for help, she was fine. Totally fine. There was nothing wrong with what was going on, the bleeding was normal and happened to everyone who was cursed by a fucking bird. She was cool, calm, collected, and confident. She was not panicking. Lila knew that asking for help was her way of telling the group that she was cool talking to the feds now, and that she was okay with Stormy playing the diplomat and nothing more. There was nothing else it could possibly be. Right? Lila forced a smile across her face, a pained smile. She held it as she forced herself to look at Meifeng and stared her in her eyes. She hoped that the stare read along the lines of ’‘we’re cool, we’re chill, nothing else is going on and we’re totally okay and nothing else will happen tonight I promise, and if something did happen tonight it totally won't spiral out of control, I'm not that drunk so you don’t need to worry about me……………please.’

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Lila’s updated abstraction + weakness, Jasper soon up!

_{Abstraction
^{▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔}}
"Let..me…in”

TYPE ⫻ Aberration (Agent)

ABSTRACTION ⫻ Due to having The Maiden sealed inside of her body, Lila can now utilize all the powers of The Maiden freely.

ABSTRACTION DESCRIPTION ⫻
Lila is now the Aspect of the Maiden after Britney's failed attempt at sealing The Maiden away. As such, as an Agent Lila now has access to the full power of The Maiden, however, the power she has access to is corruptive.

A MURDER IN ST. PORTWELL ⫻ Lila, every since becoming the agent of The Maiden, has gained full control over the murder of The Maiden. She no longer needs to offer them gifts or even verbalize her command, she simply needs to think it so and they will do it. They do like their gifts still, and Lila will get a stronger reaction out of them if she gives them a little something for their struggles. She can use the crows in three different ways.

• ASSAULT Lila can have her crows attack her target in many different ways. From going for the easy spots like a throat or eyes, to completely enveloping a target in an angry swarm, Lila has a few easy ways to hurt someone. In a fight, she can use her crows to do more complex attacks. She can have her crows fly together in a tight stream, flowing over and attacking her target as a massive swarm. Each one will strike with its claws.
• PROTECTIVE SWARM When an enemy gets in too close, Lila can command her swarm to protect her. In this form, the crows will often fly circles around her in either a loose or tight shell. The crows will take the brunt of an attack, whether physical or magical, and replenish the shell as needed with fresh bodies. This shell will also lash out at targets that get too close.
• THE HIVE MIND Lila has gained a small telepathic connection with the birds. She still can’t understand them, and they can’t communicate with her, however she’s gained the ability to glean information from them. This is useful when she sends the murder out to scout and or look for something. She’ll never get the complete picture but she gains something from them all the same.

THE CORRUPTIVE VOICE OF THE MAIDEN ⫻ As well, a side effect of Lila having to maiden sealed inside of her is that she is beginning to adopt a lot of characteristics of the maiden, and her crows. She has already begun to develop talons, and feathered arms. As time goes on she’ll eventually sport the wings, and a more feathered body on her legs, arms, and face. The maiden has also begin to influence Lila on an emotional level, forcing her own feelings and thoughts into Lila’s mind to push her to let more of The Maiden out.

• THE MAIDENS GIFTS As Lila and The Maiden now share a body, the maiden has begun to offer Lila her gifts. This has started with the black eyes and the feathered arms and claws of The Maiden appearing on her body. This augmentation brings with it terrifyingly sharp claws that cut through flesh and armor alike with ease. As well, she’ll gain strength that pushes her towards peak human strength. The black eyes also bring with it enhanced vision. Eventually the maiden will bring further gifts, the extent of them remain to be seen. Eventually, these gifts will become permanent if Lila uses them too much.
• THE INFLUENCE OF THE MAIDEN The Maiden knows what Lila is feeling, even if Lila does not know it yet. As well, The Maiden knows what Lila should be feeling. As time goes on, The Maiden’s influence will grow stronger and stronger. As The Maiden gains influence, she will begin to pull Lila away from the present world and into the realm of The Maiden.
• THE MAIDEN TAKES FLIGHT One of the most powerful gifts the Maiden brings to Lila is her wings. While they are not functional in the sense that she can not fly (she can glide), they bring with it added defenses and a terrifying hex that can turn her enemies into the very crows she controls. The wings come in two forms, active and inert. The inert wings are jet black and offer limited applications outside of a shield that Lila can use in a fight. In their active form they have an enchanting green glow that seems to come from every feather. This green glow is a curse that compels those that fall under its allure to move towards the wings. This can achieve a few different things. Either it will leave the victim open to attacks with get claws and her crows, or she’ll let them get close to grab one of the cursed feathers. If they pull one from the wing they will have a curse mark burned onto their hands, and will be forced to turn into a crow within the next day

WEAKNESSES ⫻

A MURDER IN ST. PORTWELL ⫻ Despite the change in abstraction, the crows will still follow Lila everywhere subconsciously, and the only way to make them go away for a while is to offer them a gift. This still creates a massive and conspicuous mass of birds that anyone can identify, making stealth very difficult. The crows are weak against pyromancy, aeromancy, pyromancy, etc., and any other magic area-of-effect magic that can take out a large chunk of them at a time. Because she is more connected to the crows, every time one of them dies or is injured, she feels their pain and receives a psychic backlash. This psychic backlash is a brief but intense headache and the more crows are killed at once, the longer and more intense this backlash is - with a large amount of her murder dying at once being enough to knock her unconscious.

THE CORRUPTIVE VOICE OF THE MAIDEN ⫻ The act of transforming Lila's body is an incredibly painful process as flesh and bone are forced into the strange image of a crow. However, using the Maiden's abstraction allows the Crow Maiden to be in her mind, and by overusing it, she will allow the Maiden to influence her mind. Eventually, allowing the Maiden to temporarily (or maybe permanently) take over her body.

_{Abstraction
^{▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔}}
"If I don't make them perfect they will never be able to help."”

TYPE ⫻ Adept - Red/Yellow/Gold Lux with his channeler being a paintbrush.

Abstraction ⫻ A stroke of paint - Jasper can bring his paintings to life and enhance them with different colored paint

ABSTRACTION DESCRIPTION ⫻
Jasper can pull his paintings from canvas and bring them to life with specific purposes. He needs to paint the figure or object first and channel his intention for it as he does. If he wanted to create a figure to attack something he would need to channel that attack into his brush as he paints, and if he wanted to create a barrier unit he would need to also channel that defensive intention. While he can still pull paintings from the canvas without this specific intention, they would be much weaker and melt faster than ones with a specific intention. Jasper can enhance these constructs by using color.

Ever since Luca and Jasper came under the constant assault of Skelly, Jasper has learned that even at his fastest his constructs still take too long. As such, he’s expanded his skill set into creating easy-to-make weaponry and has begun to explore this application of his power further.

PAINT IT BLACK ⫻ Jasper can pull his paintings from the canvas and bring them to life. The first step in the creation of any of these constructs is painting the Canvas black. While he can instead outline the construct with the brush, the spell works best when the entire canvas serves as the channeling surface. If he chooses to go forward with the outline instead the construct will be weaker and may melt into a puddle of acrylic or oil within a few minutes. During the process, he must constantly make his intention known and channel it into the paint itself. By using his channeling power, the oil or acrylic paint will dry instantly and be ready for the next part and he uses the other end of the paintbrush to channel this effect.

• A DASH OF DETAIL ⫻ Once the canvas is dried, he can then move on to creating the construct. Detail is incredibly important in this step. Any mistake he makes, such as a leg being shorter or disproportional, will make its way into the summoned construct. The more detail he adds will also make the construct more powerful. Depending on the situation he can spend three minutes on creating a basic construct that would serve for its intended function, or ten minutes to make an incredibly skilled and powerful construct. He has practiced the creation of three basic constructs to a near-machine level efficiency and can now get them out in three minutes. The knight, the paladin, and the ranger. The knight is modeled after the typical knight in armor with a long two-handed sword. The Paladin has a large shield and nothing else while having a bulkier armor style than the knight. The ranger has a longbow and is devoid of any armor. Much like painting the canvas black, he can quickly use his Lux to dry the painting allowing a rapid application of the next layer.
• A SPLASH OF COLOR ⫻ If the situation calls for it, Jasper can spend more time on each painting and can add different effects to each one. The two colors that he focuses on are red and yellow. The red color is an offensive-focused one. When he paints the knight's sword, the paladin's shield, or the ranger's arrow if he paints them in a red color he can channel his Lux to give his constructs a fire effect. The knight's sword is engulfed in flames, the paladin's shield radiates intense heat, and the ranger's arrow explodes in a firey spray. As well, if he paints the Paladin with a yellow hue, or adds yellow to the knight's sword, it makes the construct more durable in those locations. He can only work with red and yellow paint for this purpose, and he can not combine the colors to combine their properties.
• PUT IT TOGETHER ⫻ When he finishes the painting, he can use his paintbrush to pull the construct from the canvas and into the real world. As they are pulled, they grow in size at a rate of three to one. Thus, a painting that is two feet by one foot will become a construct that is six feet by three feet. It is here where any imperfections will be truly highlighted. The more complex constructs, like the knight, paladin, and ranger, can last five minutes on average, meanwhile, a quick outline without doing the full spell may last a minute at most.
• A fine paintbrush ⫻ Jasper's paintbrush is a special one. He only uses it to create his constructs and for no other painting. It, when combined with his lux, ensures that not a drop of paint is left on the bristles after use. As well, the bristles themselves remain as new as the day he picked it up.

ARISITAN ARSENAL ⫻ Jasper can take the lessons he has learned in creating his powerful soldiers to create short-lived, but powerful, weaponry for himself and his friends. These weapons all draw power from his innate connection with his red lux and typically exhibit a powerful fiery effect. These are not artifacts, and much like his constructs, these will only last for a specific duration before they are turned back into the ink, oil, or paint used to create them. These weapons follow many of the same rules as his constructs. He can only have one canvas worth active at any given time, whether that is one or three weapons, they require a high attention to detail, and require Jasper to channel his intention into the weapon. Colors become even more important for this aspect of his craft, as a plain white hammer will be a plain hammer.t.

• ARTISIAN’S FURY ⫻
  The first tool that Jasper created with this new focus was a hammer much alike the sledgehammer he bought to defend both himself and Luca. This hammer is a vivid red color, matching the color of the sun as it descends across the horizon. It is embellished with fine details with a yellow vine wrapping around most of the handle save for the designated area for his hands. This hammer is a powerful tool with its enhancements, and any blow that Jasper connects with will create a small but powerful explosion at the point of impact. The harder he swings the hammer the more powerful the explosion will be. It is protected with a weak barrier spell from its heat, though this does not mean it will not break down in time. Indeed, Jasper has tested it to be able to hit a target five times before the barrier breaks and one time more before the hammer is ruined by the heat. Jasper can paint two such hammers at once, summoning both at the same time. He can use both however he is not strong enough to truly wield them together. As such, he will gift the second one to another fighter.
• THE BULWARK ⫻ The second tool is The Bulwark, a large heater shield that is colored a yellow as vivid as the dandelions found in nature at their most beautiful stage. It is a pure defensive instrument that can withstand an enormous amount of punishment. The shield itself finds detail on the front surface, facing outward from the user. It has numerous decals most resembling his paintbrush, and other tools used in his art and these add a layer of protection for the shield. While he has been unable to test it against any form of magic, he suspects that it would be at least twice as strong as his paladin’s and able to withstand blows from even the strongest monster for a hit or two at most. The shield itself draws power from his yellow lux, and if needed he can add in a splash of red to enhance it with a radiating heat that can singe anyone who dares get close.
• MAGNUM OPUS ⫻ The third and final tool that Jasper has been able to develop thus far is his Magnum Opus. It is a large, bolt-action-styled rifle-looking weapon that is a combination of colors in both the gun and the painted bullets it fires. The barrel itself appears to be twisted together, with three noticeable groves that snake down the barrel. It is a vivid yellow color much like the sun on a hot summer day at noon. These twists and Yellow lux fuel its stability and durability which allows for the barrel itself to withstand the heat and power of the shots it fires. The gun is very much his first attempt at creating a weapon like this through his art and there are many unknowns with it. As such, Jasper opted for the bolt-action style to limit the number of shots he could send before failure, and to test if his magical barriers were even strong enough to withstand the power of the weapon. The bullets are all colored red, and the spell behind them is designed to help them penetrate a target before exploding inside a moment later. He can only create one of these at a time due to the space needed to get the details right.

WEAKNESSES ⫻ Jasper’s spells have an elemental weakness in the form of water and heat. Water will instantly destroy his constructs and cause them to wash away. Heat will cause them to dry up, lose their mobility, and become more frail until they cannot move. By bringing his art to life, he puts a little of himself into it... As in his life force. By doing so, he will make himself weak, and pushing himself too far can cause organ failure. Drawing requires focus and leaves him vulnerable and open to attack, so it's not advised he draws while being attacked.

ARISITAN ARSENAL ⫻ Same weaknesses as his regular constructs.

ARTISIAN’S FURY ⫻ The hammer's explosion is enough to cause a sort of "recoil" that could knock Jasper over or off balance. Jasper is alson't impervious to the heat generated by the hammer, and it will eventually begin to burn him.

THE BULWARK ⫻ While the shield can block attacks, it cannot fully stop impact, and specific strong attacks will be enough to break Jasper's arms or send him flying.

MAGNUM OPUS ⫻ Much like regular rifles, the Magnum Opus has a recoil, and its enough to throw Jasper off balance with each shot.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Cracker Island - Cracker Town - Cracker Bar

INTERACTIONS PRA, @Punished GN Stormy@Blizz Luca, Bianca @FernStone

Jasper once again traced his fingers across Luca’s back, moving slower and more deliberate as if he wanted to feel every available spot in his path to his side. Jasper felt how close Luca got for the photo, and Jasper wanted him just a little closer still. As his hand reached Luca’s side Jasper grabbed just above his hip, his large hands easily covering the real estate, before he pulled at his friend ever so gently and pulled him closer.

”Alright Luca,” Jasper paused as he looked over to Luca and smiled. He looked back towards his phone, raised it to the perfect angel, and hovered his hand over the photo button. “Three, two,” his smile grew ever so slightly as he felt Luca on his side, “one,” as he finished the countdown he flashed the camera a big smile. This photo was the greatest photo he’d ever taken. And it was all thanks to Luca. Jasper looked over at him and smiled again. “You always have that amazing smile, instantly made that photo twice as good” Jasper said as he let go of his grip on Luca’s side, “I might steal a few more moments from you if you’d let me!”.

Jasper did not know what he meant by that. More photos? More hand holding? A close hug? Maybe a…. Jasper shook his head. There was absolutely no way Luca felt like they were anything more than buddies, best of friends, comrades, compatriots, allies , associates, homies, bros. Absolutely no way. But Jasper looked at how close Luca had moved, he was practically sitting in his lap and his head was practically on his shoulder, still. This was not something that was found in the very accurate bro code. He needed more information, he needed to gauge how he felt. And he needed to do it slowly and with purpose.

“Hey Luca,” Jasper paused as he leaned in oh, so close to Luca. His hand rose up and placed his hand on Luca’s shoulder. “I hope you know that photo was just the start,” he paused as he thought over what words he would use to begin his investigation. He found the perfect sentence, and showed Luca the amazing photo he’d just taken. “You know, your smile always brightens my day.”

---

“… Then don’t.”

Lila turned her head back towards Meifeng. This bitch. Lila’s hand managed to find her drink without the use of her eyes and she pulled the straw out and pulled the drink to her lips. She drank, without break, until the drink was completely finished. A strong taste of alcohol lingered on her lips and tounge, and Lila was not done there. No, no she was not done. Her hand found her second drink and she once again removed the blemish that was a ‘straw’ and once again forced the alcohol into her system. Tonight may have been a wash but it might get better if she got drunk. Meifeng was a cunt, but maybe Lila could eke out the rest of this meeting if she was just a little more drunk. Lila hoped that her pre-gaming and general lack of food tonight would help her see this shit-show through to the end.

“It won’t ever happen again; I can only promise that.”

Fuck. This bitch. This colossal bitch was lying, lying, to Lila right to her face. It didn’t matter that she was on a short leash, it didn’t matter that her agents were upset about the raid. No.. She was a biiiitch. Lila knew she was a bitch. This alcohol was just making the thought that much more powerful. Lila shot her eyes over to the other side of the table and saw Lynn still had a few beers in front of her, and Lila pointed towards them. Lynn’s thumb up was all that was needed. A hand, suddenly feathered, shot across the table and grabbed one of the beers. A second later it was back at Lila’s side, open beer in the clawed hand. A singular feather floated down to the table below, a beautiful and vivid black color. Lila did not seem to notice, nor care as she began to drink from the beer. She did not seem to notice that her eyes slipped back to that pitch black color as well.

Lila wished there she could just keep an eye on these federal fucks. Just a few eyes, a thousand plus eyes would be a few. She’d be able to make sure she’d keep them to their word. Catch them in the act when they fuck up or something like that. The more she thought the more she felt something different in her mind. She felt power, authority, and command. “We’ll see,” Lila's eyes twitched as the sound of a thousand faces shifting at once filled the area around them. The entire murder had shifted their focus onto the PRA agents. Lila’s eyes shifted and caught the feathered hand once again and could only mouth a ‘fuck’ as she shook her hand trying to get it to turn off. Another feather fell as she did and this one landed right in front of her. This was killing her mood. She needed another drink, she needed excitement, she needed fun. And she knew she could find something fun to do. But most importantly, she needed to get away from the PRA agents when she was birding out. No, most importantly she needed to find that fun that she so craved in this moment.

No. No, no that’s not what she needed. She needed water, she needed rest, and she needed to suck it up and stay with her group. Not just for protection, she needed to be here for Luca. She needed to talk to them. And if that meant she’d get drunk while half bird with a bunch of feds then so be it. Actually she would need to be much more drunk. She looked to Stormy with a look in her eye that she hoped read as ‘sorry, I will pay you back for this but you brought this on yourself’ before she looked to the bartender.

“A Moscow mule,” as she ordered she turned her attention to Jasper and Luca. The way Jasper was pulling at Luca made Lila smile. She was going to protect them, and she wanted her crows to do so much to do so. She felt that feeling return, that command and authority. She thought to herself that she wanted her crows to keep an eye on the 8th street, on Emily in particular. To never leave sight of her new enemies. In an instant her crows took to the sky and flew across the island. Anywhere an 8th street tread a hundred crows would follow.

---

Lynn was not going to let Lila hog all the free drinks. “Make that two Moscow mules,” Lynn said as she winked at Stormy. She was not going to let Lila drink herself into oblivion… alone. And she was enjoying the conversation to this point. “To greener pastures, and to the friends who help us get there,” Lynn raised her drink up towards Bianca.

Lynn watched as the entire murder departed from the scene and raised an eyebrow back to Lila who had suddenly turned into a chimera once more. “That one worries me,” Lynn whispered hopefully to herself but it was loud enough that Bianca may have overheard. She shook her head as she took another sip from her drink. What she would give for her one true love to make an appearance right now. Lynn shook her head, the chalice would appear when she needed it most and she knew this.

Lynn shook herself from her dreams. “You still got your same number from before,” Lynn pulled out her phone and pulled up the contact card for Bianca, “since I’m back in town we should catch up, away from the chaos that this festival,” Lynn paused as took another sip, making room for the Moscow mule that was put in front of her. “Off the record, of course,” Lynn chuckled as she drank from the new drink.

---

Halloween Festival

INTERACTIONSSully @Atrophy Leon @AtomicEmperor Linqian. @FernStone

“Why are they doing that,” Alex whispered as their eyes locked onto the most strange display of adulting they’d ever seen.

“I suppose it’s fun,” Jordan pondered as he stroked his beard, “like they’re bonding over a moment of public intoxication and humiliation?”

“It’s got to be deeper than that,” Lori chimed in.

“In what way,” Zeri shifted in place, raising an eyebrow as they did.

“I mean look at that one,” Lori pointed with her violin bow at a tattooed woman trying to make her move on the douchey looking dude, “obviously this is some weird coven mating dance..”

“What,” Jordan sighed as he rubbed his temple, “no, it’s literally not. They are just drunk and having fun, there’s nothing more to it..”

“You’re right,” Zeri said as she pointed at an out of place dragon under a toga. She just caught a singular glance at the face of the woman underneath but there was no mistaking who it was. “That, right there, is Emily Reed.”

“No way she’s allergic to fun,” Alex scoffed as they searched the area for Emily, wasting several seconds before they gave up on the search.

The group all pondered on the information. Alex was right. If Emily Reed was here it was nothing more than it seemed. Emily was well known as an anti-fun, anti-sex, tyrant who ran the 8th street with a viciously tight fist. If she was involved in the toga conga line, that would dispel any chance that these covens were up to some freaky sex ritual or anything of the sort.

“I told you,” Jordan smirked.

“I was wrong,” Lori sighed.

“These covens and their,” Zeri gasped

The group gasped. They all looked on as one at a giant of a man as he ripped his clothes off in front of them, and they all saw the pillar and stones that held up the body of Adonis. Jordan shifted his glasses up his face with his mouth agape, Lori fanned her face with her bow, Zeri tilted her head as her mouth dropped open, and Alex turned their head away from it all, their face a shade of red that Bob Ross would have used to paint his autumn trees. A second later the offending jewels were thankfully put away and the group looked at each other.

“Okay that changes nothing,” Jordan coughed. His eyes searching the heavens above for distraction.

“He’s just a little too drunk,” Lori lowered her gaze as she mouthed an ‘oh my’.

“These covens and their hot members,” Zeri gasped.

The group gasped. They all looked on as one as little red riding hood changed into an toga underneath her cloak. While they did not see anything, the fact that two sycamore’s had stripped down, in public, with families all around, had stunned the art world. Jordan pulled his glasses off his face and wiped them with his robe, he mouthed a ‘what the fuck’ as he did. Lori fanned her face with her bow as she stared a little too long. Zeri’s eyes were back on the Adonis of a man, meanwhile Alex had decided to walk towards the conga line.

There was a curiosity in their eyes. This was something that they had never quite experienced before. The brazen disrespect for those around, the public intoxication, the weird fun. The 317 had their fun moments but there was always so many arbitrary rules that the leadership broke all the time. They looked at the toga’s and then down at their button up shirt. Would they need to strip down as well if they joined? They quite liked the costume, and did not want to ruin it by taking it off. They sighed. Obviously they could just put the toga overtop.

“Alex,” Jordan whispered as he rushed up next to Alex, “careful, they might rope you in to-“ Jordan paused as he looked over and saw the toga line too close. “Alex,” Jordan sighed, “you want to join don’t you?”

Faith’s word echoed in Alex’s mind. They wanted to have fun, they wanted to brave the weird crowd, the noisy situation, the gross smells, and the complete lack of personal space. Or did they? Their head tilted to the side. No, no they did not want to. They just wanted to go home, get some snacks, and just listen to their music as they painted and… Alex’s face snapped up as they saw the giant man with a mustache getting closer and closer. A decision loomed. And Alex needed to make it.

“Hey,” Alex spoke somewhere between a question and a statement, directed towards the ringleader of this circus “can I join?” The sudden flutter of wings pulled Alex’s attention as they shifted their eyes. The crows were back, and they had eyes for the dragon and the tattooed woman.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Cracker Island - Cracker Town - Cracker Bar

INTERACTIONS Britney, Meifeng, @Punished GN Stormy@Blizz Luca, Bianca @FernStone

Britney was here and she said it was time to get to the bottom of whatever was going on with The Maiden. Nothing would distract her, nothing would pull her away, and nothing would happen from here on out. The Maiden would get sealed again, Lila wouldn’t have to worry about turning into a fucking bird, and she’d no longer want to rip throats out of people. This was good. This proved that Britney was changing, and would be a good person to not just herself but everyone else she affected ten years ago.

Lila watched as Britney was informed about the Feds. Linqian was good at telling the details in a unique way that somehow gave a more or less correct portrayal of what had happened. Which was good, Britney deserved to know what happened in her absence and she deserved to know that it was these fucking Feds right here that did it. Lila smiled at Linqian as she described how big of a bitch Meifeng was.

And then Britney spotted Luca and her whole demeanor changed. Lila gasped as Britney took a step back, waved uncontrollably at Luca, before she spoke a series of words so fast that Lila could only hear the final ‘bye’ at the end and left. Britney just left her. She was ready to help and decided, in the blink of an eye, that it was no longer worth it because of the fucking Feds and her guilt. Lila snarled as she crossed her arms. A rage began to form in her mind, and it was only going to grow from here. Lila was scared, whatever Britney did had messed up the sealing and she was being subjected to a horror that she did not ever consider a possibility. And all Britney could do was not know what she did, and then run away? All good will Britney had been given by Lila dried up, and Lila knew that she would find it very difficult to get back on her good side again.

Lila shook her head and with it the thoughts. That rage wasn’t her own. Britney did not know what happened, yet, but that did not mean she wouldn’t help. Lila knew that she was just informed about Emily and the other whores from 8th street being here, a group that wanted her dead. She was also just introduced to the group who had attacked her friends just a week ago. It made sense that she did not want to stay around. Just because she ran today does not mean she ran from Lila, and Lila focused on the thoughts of reaching back out after this night was done. Lila shifted her focus to Luca. She hoped, above all, that Britney would help him too. Luca deserved some happiness after all. When the duo of Jasper and Luca began to follow Stormy, Lila did the same and took a seat next to them. She hated being here. Being near the agents that had hurt them last week. Breaking bread. Though Lila also hated the idea of walking off on her own, being away from the aura of Stormy, and away from her friends. She did not feel safe now with 8th street having ammunition to attack her. She ordered a tequila sunrise, and then she ordered a second moments later.

“Lynn would never forgive us if we didn’t take this opportunity for a group photo,” Lila whispered to Luca and Jasper to distract her from those thoughts, “especially if you’re rotless and I’m not a bird.”. Lila knew that she’d take a good photo of Luca and Jasper together just in case, but hopefully someone could help them take a nice group photo. Maybe she could use a few crows?

“I am fine here Luca, Stormy’s aura is helping and I don’t want you to have the rot come back quite yet,” Lila smiled, Luca was truly too kind.

Lila’s attention was pulled by Meifeng talking and it made her blood boil. On one hand Lila thanked the stars that Meifeng had the bare minimum self awareness to know that she fucked up least week. Like wow, congratulations Meifeng for stating the fucking obvious. At least the leader of the local PRA wasn’t a complete waste of air. On the other hand, how dare she try to make amends without taking action to make things better. Would there be someone there to check the bitch who had a clear problem with her anger? Would there be any accountability? Lila eyes shifted from Luca to Meifeng and immediately shifted them again to the PRA agent next to her. Lila still could not look at Meifeng while she wore that costume. And then Meifeng said that she hoped that the coven and the PRA would have a positive relationship going forward and Lila’s eyes finally allowed her to look Meifeng directly in the face.

“A positive relationship, a positive-” Lila pulled the words back as she shot her arms up to the sky, turning her head to Stormy. She did not know if he would understand the look she was giving him but she hoped it read as ‘you fucking dick, how dare you fucking play nice with these fucking Feds after what they did to us’. Lila hated talking to the Feds, she hated that she was silencing herself because Stormy was trying to play diplomat, and this anger was uniquely her own. Lila shifted her eyes back to Meifeng as she leaned back into her chair, crossing her arms as she did. “It’s going to take more than words for some of us. We got gassed, I got tased, Jasper got tased twice, Luca nearly died, a fucking church burned down,” Lila paused as she shook her head. It was a mistake for her to come over here, it would’ve been a mistake to go anywhere else alone right now, and all Lila wanted to do was go home and take a shower to get the smell of beer out of her hair. This sucked. “I do appreciate the apology but you’re not forgiven.”

---

“I’ll have sex on the beach,” Lynn said to the bartender before she returned to her beer.

Lynn turned her attention to Bianca and her smile faded just a little. Thinking about her past with Kari was not something she expected when she started this day, but she would need to keep her mind off of the subject as much as possible if she was going to keep up the facade of being okay. “That’s rough, I’m sorry you were on the other end of all that. Maybe she was just not ready for a relationship at the time, you know?” Lynn knew that these words were originally used against her, and the memory made her smile fade even more.

Lynn looked around the table, at all the unfamiliar faces and waved. No one had listened to Bianca and introduced themselves but Lynn would not let that last. “I’m Lynn, I’m sure you all know who we are because you’re the Feds and are in our phones,” she smiled as she finished. She turned to Bianca and winked. It was nice catching up with Bianca, while the two were not exactly close back then it was still refreshing to actually be able to hold a conversation with someone that wasn’t Lila, Luca, or Jasper. Bianca was also a good drinking buddy thus far, proper etiquette and all. Lynn knew that she would want to hang out more after tonight, even if she was a fed.

Luca suggested the greatest thing in the world in that moment, however, and somehow Lynn’s phone had appeared in her hand with the camera ready to go before she even moved a muscle. She quickly took one photo of the group together and frowned at the results. Luca and Jasper looked cute, but Lila was just staring off into space. “Lila, come on! Smile,” Lynn said with a playful tone. Lila turned her attention to the camera, flipped it off, and then smiled a big smile. Lynn quickly snapped the photo and looked at the result and smiled. Perfection. “Now lean in close,” Lynn said and she watched as Jasper pulled Luca in from his shoulder, and Lila leaned over with an annoyed look on her face. Lynn clicked the camera several times before she looked at the photos. Not quite perfection but Jasper and Luca, once again, looked cute. “We will need a group photo though once we’re done here.”.

Lynn turned to Meifeng and smirked. “Yeah, it’s going to take a minute for us to really get over all that. I’m lucky that whoever shot at me was a bad shot,” Lynn’s smirk grew larger, “though I think I’d be more partial to forgive and forget if a certain wolf figure is found and the threat of a sudden death removed from my and my friends possible futures.”

---

Jasper made sure to support Luca by holding him as tightly as he could without crushing the smaller man. Jasper was beyond happy that Luca appeared back to normal more so than just before, and having him this close only made that happiness swell. Jasper followed Luca’s lead and helped walk them towards the new drinking area and even after they sat down he kept his arm across Luca’s shoulders. Jasper squeezed his friend as he leaned in. ”As soon as you want to go we’ll go,” Jasper paused as he watched Lynn begin to take some photos, posing for them as she requested, ” I’m on your schedule for the rest of the night.”. He pulled his hand off Luca’s shoulder but carried it gently across his back as he did. For some reason Jasper really liked having his hands on Luca.

Jasper listened to Lila and Lynn as they aired their grievances about the PRA raid but it appeared they were keeping themselves calm for this meeting. Jasper knew that Lila was only here for Luca, and for Stormys aura. Lynn was only here because there were free drinks. He also knew that he was here for Luca, and whatever that meant. He did not expect this meeting to last forever and he was ready for a long nights sleep. But he was not apart of the conversation, nor was it something he was particularly interested in joining in on. Maybe it was actually time to think about whatever he was feeling? It was in this somewhat calm meeting that Jasper took a deep breath, closed his eyes, cleared his mind, and looked inward for just a minute.

Despite him trying to clear it his mind refused to fully vacate. He felt like he was not doing enough to help this coven, that he was worthless if a fight broke out, and that his whole life had been turned upside down within a weeks time. There was so much he still needed to do with his art, so much expectations on the pieces he had not finished, and a constant worry that if he did not keep pushing himself artistically he’d be forgotten and worthless. But then he thought shot Luca, and his smile, and all that fear, doubt, and insecurity melted away. He opened his eyes and looked back to Luca with a smile. A warmth radiated from within once more. Jasper still did not want to question anything much further tonight, but he knew better than to not embrace the feeling he was feeling. It was a cozy place to be after all.

Jasper turned to Luca as he pulled out his phone. ”I know we got one earlier but let’s take another one,” Jasper said as he pulled out his camera app and pointed to the camera, ”a proper photo, just for us.”.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Interactions: Bianca @FernStone
Cracker Island - Cracker Town - Cracker eating area

---

“Why can I tell even though he’s wearing a costume,” Lynn joked as her eyes remained locked on the power ranger in question. There was a creepy aura that seeped out of the costume, one that screamed ‘HR code ppl violation speedrun champion’ and Lynn couldn’t help but laugh some more. He even stood like a guy who has a book of violations on file. Lynn joked about being in HR because of her behavior but she knew that she would never actually be a problem like that. Lynn shifted her eye from PRA member to PRA member. In this place, they did not seem all that bad. Maybe they were truly just trying to make the world a safer place. Maybe they weren’t all that different from a coven. Maybe they did not really mean to tear gas a peaceful gathering of people. Maybe. Regardless, Bianca believed it so and, as a good drinking partner, Lynn would not question it much further. Lynn turned her attention back to Bianca. “I’ll trust you on this,” Lynn paused as she pointed to her eyes, slipped to the possible future, before she returned back a second later. “I’d be able to tell if you lie,” she smirked as she returned to her drink.

Lynn shook her head as Bianca mentioned that her last boss was much worse. “What was bad about the last boss, I’ve been out of the magical scene for a minute.”She took another sip of her beer, slowing down to match Bianca. Lynn caught sight of Linqian and Lynn leaned forward as a quiet rage filled her face. It remained there for a minute before she pushed it back. Lynn could be angry all she wanted, but she fucked up when she said what she did, even though she was still very happy that it hurt Linqian the way it did. People that fought alongside Jinhai were also hurt by what she said. Lynn wondered if Bianca had known Linqian brother well. Still, the frost bitch of the sycamore tree coven seemed to be not paying attention to her so Lynn did the same. Fuck her.

Lynn knew that she would need to make amends to everyone who was hurt by her words, but tonight was not the night to start. It will come soon. Words would not be to tell her friends how sorry she was, instead it will be her actions.

Lynn looked over to Lila, and then Jasper. Her eyes caught Lila’s and Lynn made a movement sign with her hand (her pointer and middle finger walking on top of her other palm) before she pointed to Stormy. Lila waved her off, and used her thumb to point to Britney. Lila gave her a thumbs up and flashed a smile before she returned her attention to Britney. “I’ll follow the group for now, I don’t know if I want to stick around here much longer,” Lynn said in reference to Linqian, “though you’ll have to introduce your friends to me, I only know mommy Meifeng, Lynn whispered the name as she snuck a quick look back to the maids.

“Let me clean up my mess first,” Lynn said as she grabbed the empty bottles and walked over to the rubbish bin and disposed of them.

“I’ve been there with ex’s though, on both sides of the block button. I had to block my one ex Kari at..” Lynn winced as she dammed the alcohol for making her say something she otherwise would’ve kept secret. Lynn did not like revealing that the two dated. “.. the end of our relationship. I’ve had a few dudes block me as well though they were all giant pieces of shit.” Lynn tried to steer the conversation away from Kari.

The accidental reveal caused Lynn to think about her relationship with Kari for a brief moment. It was her introduction to the queer world she now frequents, and it was the last time she had a serious relationship with a woman. She would tell her stories about the possible future and what it could bring and Kari would do the same but with tales from the other dimensions. Lynn smiled at the thought. Their relationship wasn’t perfect but Lynn was happy back then, happier than she was now.

“Shall we,” Lynn motioned with her arm towards the departing PRA agents and Stormy.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Halloween Festival

INTERACTIONSAuri’s paintings.

“Alex?” Faith asked as she leaned back in her folding chair.

Alex heard her but chose not to respond. They was tasked with an important task, a task that came down from the three horsemen of the artpocalypse. Their gaze remained fixed, never moving nor wavering. They never shut, and they did not move. To fail this task was to fail the 317, and to fail the 317 was to fail everything. At least at this moment.

“Alllllex..” Faith asked again as they leaned forward.

This mission was too important to give up in some meaningless conversation. Their target was in conversation with a strangely dressed woman. There was no chance Alex was going to let them win. Alex was unable to really pull much useful information from their conversation but they knew it must be important.

“Alex,” Faith shouted as she stood up. She walked to the side of Alex and waved her hand in front of Alex, trying to grab their attention. “What are you doing?”

“Staring contest,” Alex whispered as they swatted at Faith’s hand.

“With who?”

“Them,” Alex pointed towards Auri who was looking at their strangely dressed friend and not towards Alex.

“They’re not even looking at you,” Faith groaned as she buried her head in her head. Why were her artists all so weird?

“They were,” Alex paused as they finally looked away from Auri and towards Faith. “For a second. I think I may have misread a signal here.”

“Yeah,” Faith rolled her eyes as she returned to her seat. The stall was one of two that the 317 had for this festival, and this was primarily filled to the brim with paintings, information about the artists, as well as a catalogue of unsold art still at the 317. The second stall was further away, and was a more hands on one that featured educational displays by members of the 317, face paintings, and class signups and registration. “What are you still doing here, by the way? I released the other creatures to a night of fun, I can manage the stall by myself.”

“I was..” Alex paused as they blinked.

“Having a staring contest with someone who wasn’t involved in the staring contest?”

“Yes.” Alex returned their gaze to Auri but noticed they were running off into the distance, and their friend was following close behind. Alex stood up and followed them down the road with their eyes. They spotted a mass of crows in the direction they ran.

“You should get out and explore the festival some, have some fun. I told you that you don’t have to do anything to help here. We’re good, I can man the fort myself,” Faith said as she sat back down and grabbed a cup of tea.

Alex frowned. These types of crowds were not their usual idea of fun. There were people, noisy people, who had no concept of personal space. The food smelled, and none of it was anything that they would eat. The drinks were weak and overpriced. What about this was fun? They knew that prolonged exposure to this space would mean their anxiety and stress levels would be annoying. An idea streaked across their mind as they shifted their eyes across to the now closed stall. Alex saw the paintings. They wondered what the world on the other side looked like.

Alex waited for their moment to strike and it came when a rather large dude began to peruse the stall. They shot up, their Bob Ross wig bouncing as they did, and began to make their way across the street. Faith saw this. “Alex?” They tried to follow but could only do so with their eyes as the man who was browsing the stall began to ask questions about the art.

Alex quickly found themself at the edge of the stall and Auri’s pathetic attempt to stop them with a ‘closed’ sign. They quickly made their way behind the stand and found themselves in front of their paintings. Auri was good. Alex placed their hands on the first two paintings, channeled her power, before they went to the next. They continued until every last painting was linked. Every painting would now have a new road painted in that ran towards the horizon. They were all linked to their power now, and Alex would visit them before long. They did not want anyone slipping through on this end so Alex closed the open portals here, leaving the path open from the other end.

A caw sound grabbed their attention, and they left the stall to explore what was causing a massive murder to get so upset.

---

“He seemed nice,” Summer chuckled as a child sat down for their turn at getting their face painted. Summer was dressed as Audrey Ramirez from the Atlantis movie.

“He was a grown as..a grown man,” Jason said as his eyes scanned the crowd. Seeing a few parents staring at him Jason averted his gaze, pretending to check inventory. He was dressed as the cabbage guy from Avatar, complete with a pair of cabbages in his hand.

“It’s the Halloween festival,” Jordan responded as he sat down. He was dressed as a Jedi knight. “He just wanted to look a little more festive.”

“Exactly,” Summer said as she turned her attention to the kid in her chair. “What animal do you want!” She asked with a nearly infectious enthusiasm.

“A deer,” the kid spoke through missing teeth.

“Fantastic choice,” Summer smiled as she began to paint the kids face. “Besides, it’s money for the restoration fund. And I don’t think there’s ever an age limit on getting your face painted.

“What do you think is going on over there,” Jason said as he pointed towards a small gathering and a localized rain storm.

Jordan looked over and squinted. It seemed, to him at least, like a fight was about to break out with a crocodile. He watched as it heated up as more people joined before everyone left on their own. As the crocodile left, so too did the storm. “Looks like coven crap,” Jordan signed, “just what this festival needs.”

“Jesus, it’s like they have a hard,” Jason paused as he swallowed the word he wanted to say, he spotted a patent in the cries who was shaking their head at him, “time not being terrible people.”

“And that,” Summer pointed towards a mass of crows. It looked like they were quite agitated.

“More of the same,” Jordan shook his head as he stood up, “you two got this? I want to check that out.”

“Yeah we’re good” the twins spoke in unison.

Jordan waved as he took off towards the murder. He arrived shortly after a very large and attractive woman did, and he spotted Alex trying to blend into the crowd while maintaining eye contact with the PRA agents dressed as maids. Jordan shook his head. He knew that the PRA did not show up for no reason, and with Jasper standing in the midst of it he could only guess that a fight had broken out. He saw how Jasper held the small man and raised an eyebrow. Jordan would want to get confirmation, on both accounts. He pulled open his phone and pulled up the notes app and started writing down what he saw and heard.

Halloween Festival

INTERACTIONSBritney, Meifeng @Punished GN Stormy@Blizz Luca, Bianca @FernStone

Lynn watched as Bianca downed the beer right in front of her, and Lynn’s smile grew wider. She grabbed the ten that Bianca dropped and she put it back in her hand. Lynn grabbed a second beer and pushed it across the table until it was right next to her new drinking buddy. “Your money's no good here,” Lynn winked as she laughed. Lynn looked back over to Cindy and Meifeng and laughed some more. “that’s one of many reasons I could never join up. I’d have a new HR case every other week. Don’t worry your secret's safe with me, I won’t tell them.” As she finished she gave Bianca a wink, downing her beer after she did.

Lynn’s demeanor changed when Bianca asked how she was. Her eyes lingered for a second, but they eventually needed to retreat. She was the same as always. Depressed, too sober, and constantly fighting off the creeping realization that she was going to die alone. She was always the same, but she added a realization that she was a colossal bitch sometimes. And Lynn knew Bianca heard what she said to Linqian. Lynn did not know if the Fed was close to Linqian’s brother, but she had to assume that they were at least friendly. Lynn knew that everyone from the old coven must hate

“Well I would be doing better if,” she paused as her eyes narrowed a bit, locking onto Bianca’s with an intensity, “you know, I didn’t get tear gassed a week ago.” She let the statement sit for an uncomfortable second as her eyes never left Bianca’s. “But it’s been more good that bad recently,” Lynn’s demeanor shifted, softening as she pulled herself back to her normal, “More good than bad. It’s been really awesome being back in town, seeing everyone again,” she paused as she looked at Luca getting close to Jasper, “has been amazing. If you weren’t a fed I’d say it’s really good seeing you again.”. She smiled genuinely. “I lied,” Lynn paused as she offered up her beer bottle with Bianca to give her a cheers, “it is good seeing you again. What’s new with you?”

Lynn watched as Britney arrived on the scene. This prompted her to look to Lila. “Do me a favor, watch my drink,” Lynn paused as she slipped into the possible future, her eyes glazing over. She spent several minutes in the future but only a few seconds in the present. “Oh we might need more drinks for Lila after this exchange.”. Lynn turned her attention towards Lila. She took another big drink as she leaned back in her seat, and tossed Bianca another smile.

---

Jaspers face was more red than it had ever been before. It felt like it was radiating heat at this point. Luca…was…wrapping his hand around his waist. The hand holding was one thing, that Jasper knew that Luca’s arm around his waist was a completely different thing all together. Luca was holding him, and Jasper felt good because of it. He felt happy, safe, and above all else he felt like he could sit in his embrace for the rest of the festival. And then Luca leaned into the embrace and he felt that his face grew a shade redder still. He did not realize how cute Luca was until he was this close.

Luca asked him to help him stand up, and Jasper knew that in this moment Luca could ask him to do anything and he’d say yes. Maybe. This was all so confusing. ” Of course, I got you Luca. After we finish up here how about I carry you back to get that food? And then hang out with everyone? I’ll carry you the whole night if you need me to” Jasper said as he smiled down to Luca. His face was very red, was it because of the rot? That must be why it was so red. The rot must have taken its toll and now his poor, cute face was flushed. No other reason. Jasper helped Luca stand up more, noting that his really good friend was very light.

The moment Stormy offered everyone a drink Jasper’s smile lost it’s intensity. Jasper felt like he could go for a drink in a safe way but, after everything that happened tonight, he knew that it could spiral quickly from there. All drugs could spiral quickly, and he was not going to chance it tonight. Not while Luca needed him, not while he had Luca in his hand in a friendly way. ”Water for me too,” he joked with Luca.

Jasper noticed a sudden, and jarring change in Luca’s disposition. Did he do something wrong? Did he upset his friend by the way he was holding him? Jasper followed his eyes and spotted Britney. She was asking Lila if everything was okay. Not Luca, Lila. Sure, Jasper understood that Lila recently got help sealing the creature inside of her and that something went wrong. Sure, Jasper knew that this development was sudden, and scary. But Luca was also hurt. Luca was in pain. And Britney did not check in with him. He followed Luca’s direction as he turned his head towards Lila. ”Yeah, Lila you doing okay?”

---

Lila further buried her eyes in the dirt as she spotted the other PRA agent dressed in a maid uniform. Oh how Lila hated Halloween at this very moment. Lila would normally protest breaking bread with the Feds. By all accounts they’ve done nothing to earn the goodwill, and the coven in general needs to distance themselves from association with the PRA. Words escaped her lips, and she would wait to voice her displeasure until the coven. But she had to say something. “Stormy, I don’t think we-” her voice cut as she spotted the cause of her torment coming towards her. And she dared ask her what happened.

What happened? What happened!? Lila was no expert in sealing but she knew that Britney had failed with it. What happened? Emily had fucked with her in a way that brought the maiden back to her, and she let her the fuck back in. And it turned her into a fucking furry. What happened? Lila could not question it further, she did not know what happened and questioning it further would only make her angry.

Luca pulled her attention, he was making sure that the rot did not hurt her. Lila flashed a smile that was, once again, not her own. “No, no, no you did not hurt me.”” Lila looked to Luca, and saw how close he was leaning on Jasper and how red the two of their faces had gotten. Her genuine smile returned. It did not last long as her eyes slowly slid over towards Britney.

“Britney,” her voice lost its edge once again. What happened, what truly happened? Lila thought back to the sealing, to that night. They were so drunk by the time they got around to the sealing, but Britney said that everything went okay. The maiden was gone, and things were good. But why was the maiden back now?

“I can spoil the secret,” the maiden whispered.

No. No it was not possible. Lila looked to Luca, and Jasper still held him in his arms without rot. Stormy’s aura should still be active, and she should be free of the maiden at least while the aura was still active.

“I have nowhere to run,” the maiden whispered. She felt the maiden chuckle, and the chuckle turned into a full laugh. “he makes me weak but he can’t keep me away”“You should be mad right now,” as the maiden spoke she felt the anger rise inside herself. She should be angry. And as the anger grew, she felt herself being pulled back away from the present. It was much slower, much more difficult, and Stormys spell was very much limiting the pull. Yet it did not stop her eyes from turning black for a brief second as her head tilted to the side.

“Britney, what did you do?”, Lila whispered as she forced her way back to the front of her mind, causing her eyes to return to normal. It was easier now than it was before. The maiden was like a flickering light in an old dark room right now. Every now and again its light shined through, but for the most part the maiden was kept in the dark by Stormy. And the longer she stayed in his aura the weaker the maiden got. Something told her that it would never truly push the maiden away. Lila focused on her breathing. She needed to remain calm. She could not let her emotions get out of hand again. And most importantly, she needed a drink, a good night with friends, and a safe place to be protected from 8th street. She could accomplish none of that if she truly told Britney how she felt.

“I’m okay, I’m okay. We need to talk, in private, soon,” she whispered to Britney, throwing a weak smile across her face.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

Halloween Festival

INTERACTIONSEmily, Meifeng, Fiona @Punished GN Stormy@Blizz Luca @FernStone

Lynn opened another drink as the 8th street fuckers began to leave. She had stopped paying attention to them Stormy stepped in, and was instead focused on the more important task of getting hammered. She did enjoy watching Emily and George, however, she was saddened that she could not turn the twins into new drinking friends. The threat from Emily and George did not fall on deaf ears. Lila, and Luca, were targets for Emily’s revenge now. And if she was anything like she was back in the day, she would not take kindly to this embarrassments she endured. Lynn was smart enough to take the threat seriously and began to think of the different options they would have to protect themselves. Staying at Lila’s would not be an option, at least not alone. They would either need to find someplace to lay low for a while, or find someone strong enough to stay with them.

As well, Lynn would need to figure out what happened to Lila. Luca and rot was well known to her, and she knew he would need time to recover. But what toll did the Maiden bring? Would Lila need time to get better, would she get better, and will the Maiden come out to play once again? All it took was one transphobic comment for Lila to let her back in again, and Lynn knew this world was a terrible place. She’d need to work with Lila to find answers. Her expression dropped for a moment. She hated this. She hated seeing her friends hurt.

She became so engrossed into these thoughts she almost missed the PRA arrival. Lynn tried to not pay attention to them. What were they going to do? Tear gas them again? In public? Lynn did not think to much into it. Of course they would tear gas then again, in public, in front of these crowds. They were a wild organization, with no accountability, and they made themselves very clear after the church. Lynn took another drink of her beer. Lynn knew that they would be led by the bitch Meifeng. Lynn needed a distraction, Lynn needed to be more drunk this time. She took another drink from her beer as she side eyed the Feds. Yet there was no distracting force strong enough to keep Lynn away from the sight before her. Lynn nearly did a spit take as she spotted the French maid outfit on Meifeng and her eyes lingered far too long as her mouth dropped. Heaven was real and it took the form of a beautiful woman.

“I love women,” Lynn choked out, grinning as she did, as she leaned back into her chair. She took another drink from the beer. Suddenly playing nice with the Feds was back in her possible future. Especially if Meifeng could commit to wearing that outfit all the time.

---

What was this feeling? Jasper looked down at Luca’s hand as it squeezed his gently. His breathing became quick, his heart skipped a beat before it surged to twice its normal speed, and it felt like his core had suddenly come alive and became warm. His face became a shade redder, and it soon became almost as red as the dress that he wore. Here he was, a straight man that had come to the festival with his newly refound best friend, feeling a feeling he never felt before. At least, never felt before for a man. Jasper had dabbled before with men, and he knew he would dabble again before long, but he never felt this sensation. This was new. This scared him, this excited him, and this confused him.

Jasper breathing quickened even more. What did this mean? Did this mean he liked Luca? Of course he liked Luca, Luca was a good friend. He was a very good friend. A very good and a very cute friend. The two have been through so much together, they’ve fought side by side against the Snake and it’s minions, fought side by side against the skeleton monster that has ruined their life, and now here they sit, side by side, holding hands. What did this mean, these feelings? What did this mean for his future? Should he panic? Was he already panicking? He should panic. He should not stop panicking, he should scream.

Jasper heard Luca talking about his medicine, and Jasper reached with his free hand. He pulled the bag close and reached around until he found a pill bottle shaped object and pulled it out. He put the bottle in between his thighs, holding it tight, and he opened the top with his free hand. He passed the open bottle to Luca. Why didn’t he use his other hand to open it? Why did he have to keep his hand on Luca’s? And why couldn’t he get him off his mind? The 8th street just threatened Lila, he should be focused on making sure she was okay and would be protected. His eyes shifted down to Luca as he made his joke about his appearance, and he couldn’t help but force a smile across his face.

“At least we still match,” Jasper chuckled as he looked down at his own zombified frame. He caught Meifeng walking up, and he caught the pink power ranger out in the crowd waving to him. Jasper tilted his head and waved back with his free hand. How strange. He didn’t linger long on the strange sight, as he caught Lynn fawning over the maid outfit Meifeng wore. That, at least, was not strange and made perfect sense for Lynn. He pushed these thoughts out of his mind. He pushed the thoughts of the fight with 8th street, the threats that they made, and Lila’s strange new powers out. He pushed the waves of doubt, insecurity, and fear over whatever he was feeling out. He pushed the worries he had for the future, for Luca, and for his coven out. He pushed everything out, except for the thought that he needed to be here for his friend. At least for now, he would need to confront these thoughts, feelings, and wants soon. He smiled as he looked back down to Luca. He squeezed his hand to reassure him that he was here for him, holding the squeeze for a comfortable duration, and he hoped that Luca would know that he would not leave his side.

---

As the Rot came out of Luca Lila felt the strange forest return and overwhelm her vision. It felt like Luca, her friends, and the fight was suddenly a tiny screen a thousand feet away from her present vision. She could still see, but it felt like any action she took in her body was delayed, fought against. Lila looked around the forest and felt like she was in a strange place, but there was something familiar about it. Something that she’d seen before but in a different lens. Lila could tell that there was a clearing ahead of her, and she began to make her way towards it. That was, before the area erupted with a screeching bird like sound. She felt herself pulled back away from the forest as her vision of the outside world grew larger once again. Soon enough she was back in the present world, body back to normal, and brain clear of the maiden.

“Thank you, Stormy,” Lila choked out as she nearly fell over at the sudden change in perspective. She gritted her teeth as Emily deadnamed her again and again, and she wanted to lunge at her when she made her threat. Yet watching her walk away covered in bird shit, wine, and embarrassed that it was lowly Lila who caused all this made her laugh. “Byeeeee,” Lila did a little wave as they walked further out of view. A smile as wide as it could be grew across her face. Her head turned to Luca and the smile quickly dropped. How did the rot know the maiden, and was it flirting? What..the..fuck? The more important thing was that it looked like Luca was as okay as he could be, and he had two big strong men talking care of him. She spotted Luca and Jasper holding a hand and she raised an eyebrow. A curious development.

That threat did not fall on deaf ears. They would come for her, eventually. And she needed to be ready. Would she get ready by working with her coven, and having them help make sure that when Emily did come for her revenge she had friends to help, or was there some strength in embracing the maiden? Lila never felt stronger personally as she just did. She never felt as impactful, nor did she ever feel as complete. It was like some long lost part of her had returned home to roost? Lila never felt stronger totally like she did when she fought with her coven. When everyone fought together , for a common cause, Lila knew the answer was obvious. She would bed to put faith in her friends. The maiden scared her, and she’d need to find a way to address that problem before long.

Then, the situation got worse. Meifeng’s voice filled the air, and Lila could not help but groan. “Oh fuck-” Lila lost the ability to speak as she saw what Meifeng wore. Lila stumbled backwards, her eyes going wide, as she forced a swallow as she quickly composed herself. She fanned her head for a quick second. “Oh fuck off,” her voice softer, more diminutive. Lila lost the ability to look at Meifeng directly, but she did her best by looking at the ground off to her side.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

The Festival

INTERACTIONS: Luca@FernStoneStormy@Blizz

---

This whole situation had gotten out of hand fast and Jasper did not know what he could do to make it better. He watched as another fight of crows banked into the scene, leveling off for a second, before white glob bombs were released. Their aim was impeccable, and Jasper found it hard to not smile as they hit their target, Emily’s face, dead on. Emily was the only person on the planet who competed with Sloane for most hated, so seeing the aftermath of the punch, the wine pour, and now bird shit, was hard not to celebrate. Yet his eyes could not linger for long. There was something, someone much more important that he had to be sure did not get hurt. He shifted his focus onto Luca, and his mouth dropped open.

“Luca,” Jasper whispered as he took the steps forward. His eyes saw the flesh peeling, the destruction happening to his body, and he wanted nothing more than to try and help him, hold him; his own body be damned. He took another few steps forward but stopped as Luca looked at him and told him to not get any closer. To stay away. It took every bit of strength for Jasper to listen. To not run in to help. To not be there to protect the man who meant so much to him. His friend was in pain, his monster was pushing its way out, and Jasper could do nothing to help. Luca’s eyes changed color, and Jasper’s heart skipped a beat. He had to do something, he had to be there for Luca, to get through to bring him back. “Luca, don’t let it out, come back to me,” Jasper spoke to Luca, hoping his words would travel through the sound of flapping wings and caws.

Thankfully Jasper was not alone in this. Stormy had made his power known and had begun to send away the monsters that plagued his friends body, and he watched as Luca fell limp into his arms. Jealously brewed in his head, it should’ve been him to catch Luca. A totally straight, friendly, and normal kind of jealously. All Jasper wanted to do was hold Luca close in his arms and do everything he could to make him feel better. Jasper did not wait for the all clear from Stormy that Luca was safe, instead he took off as fast as his feet could carry him until he reached the side of the most important man in the world.

“Stormy,” Jasper paused as he slid to his knees and hit a wall of decay, he mouthed a quick ‘thank you’ to him as Jasper turned his attention towards Luca. The rot had begun to impact his body, but Jasper was no stranger to the sensation. He’d endure it for his friend, he’d endure it for the most important person in his life. “Luca, it’s Jasper. You need to push the rot out, I’m here for you, I got you.”

Jasper looked towards George, and then Emily. Anger began to swell in his eyes, these two were responsible for everything that was happening. They were the reason the rot broke free. And he wished that they were not in public, in front of the blind and otherwise. If Luca wasn’t in danger, if he wasn’t hurting, he’d make use of the apparition be gone to bring the fight back to fists. He turned his focus back down to Luca, ready to be here for him.

Recollections: Under The Sycamore Tree Part. 1

The Festival

Interactions: Luca,@FernStone,Emily/George @Punished GN, Stormy @Blizz

---

Lila heard Luca speak clearly for the first time and it shook her. He sounded angry. He was angry. And he had moved in between the two. Lila’s expression softened as much as her black eyes would allow. She did not want to risk hurting Luca when Emily eventually said some more shit. All she wanted right now were her normal hands, and several beers to forget that she had heard her dead name. “Don’t push me out so soon,” The Maiden whispered, “I’m just starting to enjoy this” Lila winced as her voice tried to push her back towards the anger. Lila did not let it stay for long. Instead she turned her head and watched Luca passionately stand up to Emily, her eyes turned slightly and saw Jasper also watching Luca do the same thing. She shifted them back to Luca, and smiled when he called her his friend. The more he talked, the more the rage pulled away from her mind, the more quiet the maiden got, and the more herself she felt.

And then Luca said to not hit her again. To not take this any further. Lila smiled a little wider. As she smiled the feathered claws retreated and soon she was left with her normal hands. As this feeling, this power of friendship, enveloped her The Maiden chuckled. “You’ve let me in once, I’ll be back soon.”. A few seconds later her eyes returned to normal and she felt all of The Maidens rage fall away with her. She took a deep breath. It felt like she hadn’t taken a full breathe since the maiden returned to her. “Me and you are on break again. You do not play with my emotions like that.. Emily may have had it coming but Jesus fuck this could’ve been bad,” she thought to herself.

Lila turned and saw Stormy. She remembered he had complimented her swing, and asked what was going on. “I don’t usually punch people, Emily is a fucking transphobic cunt though.”. Lila turned her head towards Lynn, and saw that she had several beers in hand. She was placing them down gently on a table. The two locked eyes, Lynn quickly shifted hers down to Lila’s hand before a smile spread across her face. Lila turned her head and spotted Jasper who was still staring at Luca. Lila tilted her head. That was strange, he has been staring at Luca for a couple of minutes now. Lila turned her eyes back to Luca and flashed a quick smile.

“Thank you. You’re right Luca, that bitch is not-“” Lila paused as an ice cold liquid was poured on her head. The smell of cheap beer quickly overwhelmed her senses. In an instant that anger returned, this time ten fold. Whoever was doing this would pay. And then she heard George talk. In an instant her feathered hands shot outward, and this was soon followed by her eyes returning to their void like color. Her hand quickly moved to her throat and she ripped her choaker off. She then reached into her bag and pulled out a variety of cheap rings and other worthless jewelry she simply had on hand. She did not expect to make an offering and she’d need to find some tacky shop selling jewelry and fast . “My, my that was not long. Shall I give you your next gifts, or will you do better suffering through some adversity to teach you respect?” Lila’s anger became visible on her face as she thought “go fuck yourself” as she she dropped her offerings to the ground in front of her.

“Shit all over Emily and George, aim for their mouths”.

The crows swarmed the offering before they took to the skies. Immediately they began to do just as instructed. Lila turned to Luca with a devious smile. She felt herself slipping away, being pulled towards a distant, dangerous place. The more she met the maiden in, the more it pulled her away from being a hundred percent present in her body. It was like she was in two places at the same time. She could see Luca, clear as day, but she could also see a forest, and a green glow coming from within it. The forest seemed familiar. She focused her vision on Luca instead, pushing the forest to the corner of her vision. Lila’s eyes seemed a little more devoid of life than before. Her smile a little more wicked. Her presence a little less Lila.

“What fun!”, Lila paused as she laughed, “Shall we, Rot?”

---

---

Lynn watched as George poured the beer over Lila’s head. Lynn turned her head and waited for Jasper to react yet his attention was firmly on Luca. Lynn turned her head back towards the fight. She was less surprised that George would do something like that and more so surprised that someone so tall and big was able to sneak up on Lila like that. Lynn grabbed one of her own beers and simply drank, and drank, and drank it until it was empty. She placed the empty bottle down and grabbed a second one and did the same. As she finished the second one she saw the feathered hand of Lila return and watched as she began to prepare an offering. A few seconds later Emily and George were being peppered by bird shit, and the way Lila was talking and looking make Lynn nervous.

“Stormy… It might be time for the monsters to go to sleep,” she paused as she took another deep drink from her beer.

She did not think Emily would do anything, nor did she think Emily would allow George to do anything. The problem was everything that they did to Emily now would be returned twice as vicious down the road. Punching her was one going, but humiliating her? In front of the entire town and tourist? At the Halloween festival? Lynn did not need the future to see that trouble would come their way, and Lynn might make it even worse if she was allowed to continue. She could always blame Britney, it was her fault that the maiden was still here. Would Emily listen? Would she care? Lynn turned her head back to Jasper, hoping he would be moving towards the fight to dosomething but his attention was firmly on Luca still. How strange?