𝘚𝘌𝘊𝘖𝘕𝘋𝘈𝘙𝘠 𝘖𝘗𝘛𝘐𝘖𝘕

( halston sage. 25. she/they. non-binary. ) are you a VIGILANTE? something tells me that earthquakes living in your bones, a blonde wig on the kitchen counter, earths beating heart inside you make you who you are, LORNA DANE, with the powers of ELECTROMAGNETISM MANIPULATION, you’re sure to have a adroit, callous personality — and you definitely belong to UNAFFILIATED. were you listening to ATOM BOMB BABY by THE FIVE STARS on your way to the subway? it suits you. we can’t wait to see what you do next! ( jelly. 22 they/them. nzdt. )

𝚝𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚢: what no

𝚝𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚢: i just watched kung fu panda

𝚝𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚢: more like i was forced to watch kung fu panda

[ ✉ ] → 𝚝𝚘: 𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚗 ( @reshieldedstart​ )

𝚝𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚢: quick question

𝚝𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚢: well everything i say is quick

𝚝𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚢: how is it statistically possible that EVERYONE was kung fu fighting? that’s unrealistic af

@reshieldedstart​

where: truly any hotdog stand on the corner of any street in nyc. ​

“i am begging you to get a grip,” eddie huffs, he’s about had it for today, last night they had taken down a criminal on their way home, it wasn’t often that they did it, it seemed like there was quite the monopoly of superheroes here and whenever eddie and venom got involved it was more often than not more of a scene that needed to be, they were still arguing over last night, venom had been in a mood lately, maybe it was the fact that eddie had moved them not that long ago because the last flat they were in was even more of a health hazard than the one they had now, it was one of the many quirks that eddie was still learning about—he didn’t like change. “you cannot keep doing things without telling me,” it was like chiding a small child, unfortunate for eddie, he wasn’t a victorian one—his chiding wouldn’t absolutely kill venom—in fact it made him worse. well maybe you need to be more considerate to my needs, eddie! “i am considerate to your needs!” he yells back, watching as people watch him talking to himself. by the time he makes it to his destination he is sweating and defeated, “can i please get a hot dog?” you made us walk all the way over for this? “fuck off and let me enjoy my hot dog in peace.” he says, shoving the cash into the man’s hands. “if i could strangle you with my bare hands right now i would.” it’s the last thing eddie says before realizing there was someone standing right next to him, his eyes are wide for a second before he shakes his head. “not you, sorry. i’m sure you’re—uh, lovely.” instead of saying anything else he takes the hot dog and starts stuffing his mouth. 

“And you do?” If only Niko knew, but he was much too fixated on what facts he could see. She was difficult to read, there was no denying that, but he constantly moved back and forth between pursuing more about them and simply awarding her no place in his mind at all. At least, that was the goal when the cat wasn’t clawing at his door. Then Lorna moved to the forefront of his mind in a rage that was blinding, one so pure that it barely had a hue except for being bright and burning. 

He watched every point of their face, looking for the way skin rippled over tense muscles or wrinkled away in disgust. That was the only confirmation of how deep her tone rang, since it never seemed to shift. He studied them in that short amount of time when he caught her attention, one he knew was valued since Lorna hardly awarded him any of it. It gave Niko the opportunity to not strive for so much perfection, but also test just how far she was willing to turn the other way to prove a point of not caring. 

“Is that what your sculptures are suppose to reflect on, some complexity and bullshit?” He asked. Fucking artists. “I don’t give a shit about the poetic aspect of it, or it becoming better. It’s a house cat. It’s fucked either way. Keep it away from my apartment because if you don’t train it how, I will.”

“yeah.   i’m pretty fucking confident i do actually.”   it’s beyond her usual biting tone,  it’s down right rude.   even if she feels justified—   she does have a phd.   not in evolution or biology but he doesn’t need to know that.   (since being a mutant isn’t exactly  ‘a qualification’).   “don’t know where the fuck you got your degree but i’m thinking my phd  &  i are probably more educated then your absolutely insufferable ass.”

irritation claws across her features,  nose scrunching  &  her teeth grit harshly.   it’s almost impressive how well he gets under her nerves.   an art form, almost.   more annoying then every single member of the x-men combined and even more annoying then fucking juggernaut.   just think:  you’ll make your mutant paradise and never have to deal with him again.   progress,  progress.   you’ve got this.   

❝  something  …similar  to  that  ,   yes  .   it’s  a  bit  more  complicated  ,i  -  ❞    and  wanda  maximoff  has  the  urge  to  BARE IT ALL  to  green  haired  girl  ,   and  it’s  the  environment  that  stops  her  from  doing  that  all  -  that  and  the  SHAME  repressed  in  her  ,   the  guilt  from  ruining  the  lives  of  people  who  used  to  live  in  westview  before  wanda  maximoff  came  barreling  through  .❝  the  situation  i  put  the  town  in  ,   my  family  in  -  tommy  and  billy  were  in  my  stomach  and  suddenly  were  literally  grown  up  and  -  ❞    she  missed  so  much  of  their  youth  with  them  even  in  westview  ,   and  it  rings  true  to  …  whatever  the  world  had  become  .

            AND SHE CAN STILL FEEL THE PAIN,   of  the  havoc  that  she  wreaked  on  the  small  town  of  westview  ,   of  how  many  lives  she  ruined  ,   of  having  a  family  for  such  a  short  amount  of  time  but  lose  them  even  quicker  ,   it  seemed  .   how  does  one  recover  from  losing  everything ?   by losing themselves  .  

❝  lorna-  ❞   the  name  of  her  sister  is  tested  on  her  lips  ,   and  it’s  a  surprisingly  natural  feeling  ,   like  maybe  the  greenhaired  girl  speaks  a  truth  and  you already believe it  ,   don’t  you  ,   wanda ?❝  the  parents  pietro  and  i  had  -  they  died  when  we  were  very  young  .   so  when  you  speak  of  …our  father  -  you’ll  have  to  give  me  some  time  to  fully  process  this  ,   okay ?❞   wanda  says  very  slowly  ,   reaching  out  to  take  her  … sister’s hand  ,   giving  it  the  kind  of  squeeze  she  used  to  give  pietro  and  hoo  boy,   this  would  certainly  take  some  time  for  her  to  process  .   but  she  will  .   for  her  sake  ,   for  lorna’s  sake  .❝  i  feel  like  this  isn’t  the  right  time  to  get  into  …the  dna  of  belonging  somewhere  ,   but  do  know  that  i  believe  you  .  ❞

         she’s  hesitant  .   and  she’s  also  hopeful  .   wouldn’t  it  be  nice  to  have  …  something  of  a  full  family  again ?  

      wanda  takes  a  deep  breath  ,   pushing  a  head  of  curls  away  from  her  face  ,   letting  out  a  low  sigh  .❝  billy  and  tommy  were  -  are  the  best  little  boys  i  could’ve  asked  for  .    they  …  were  one  of  the  people  who  wholeheartedly  believed  in  me  ,   who  made  me  stronger  ,a  better  person  .   they  just  loved  .   and  billy  has  my  powers  ,   tommy  has  pietro’s  -  they’re  just  like  us  .  ❞    her  voice  cracks  being  able  to  talk  about  her  boys  and  family  in  the  present  tense  .❝  did  you  ever  know  vision ?❞

“i’m starting to think complicated is our family’s middle name.”   she tucks a curl of hair behind her ear,  ducking her head for a moment  &  it’s to stop her reaching out,  to clasp  &  cling to her sister in a hug.   (she misses it:   misses being hugged.   she misses her family).   it pangs at her heart,  tugs at the strings  &  eats her alive as wanda pours her heart out.   billy  and  tommy...   everything she must have missed...

“ — i’m sorry.   for the loss of your parents.   it’s terrible.   i’ve lost a few parents and frankly,  you didn’t miss much having him as a dad.   he rewrote my memories after discovering i was his child so i would forget who he was.   really not all that cracked up.”   she ends it with a biting laugh,  somewhere between trying to repress an old wound  &  a bitter fondness.   how far you’ve come.   how far they’d come... as a family.

the laugh become a little more real,  nose scrunching with it.   it’s bizarre.   it’s something straight out of a movie.   someone else might have turned their nose up  &  laughed at it.   “thank you,  wanda.   i... i can’t imagine this is easy to swallow.   and i know how it sounds.   hi!   i’m your sister from another universe!   i’d not want to believe me either.   but it means a lot to me.   truly.   i want to know you:   this you.   and your family.   they’re important to me too.   being alone...   it’s terrible.   and i’m sick of it eating away at me.   the other people i used to consider by family...   we don’t speak anymore.   & honestly,  i’m sick of sitting alone in my apartment and fighting with my neighbor.”

He drops the cat into their arms, skin lifted in a thin veil of white where its nails dug into him. It was free of any red accent, hopefully from a learned behavior to not instigate a fight with him. A few scratches wouldn’t mean much, though. Niko’s skin was always littered with black and violet where bloodshed had healed over. 

His foot found the crack of the door where she had opened it, and his body moved into the door frame. He wouldn’t have it slammed in his face again with another dismissal about a goddamn cat again, and more importantly, he wouldn’t get nothing more than a glance into the apartment from that angle again. There was something hidden, and surely it was more than a rejected gallery submission for whatever it was that she busied herself making. 

“The people living in this shit hole take what they can get. They’ll succumb to any сука because it explains how cheap the rent is,” He interjected, his accent biting at his tone as soon as his native language rippled his tongue. There was a click at the end of his words, his jaw clenched to keep himself tame. “It’s not the stone age. Cats are nurtured out of their nature. He’s a meek predator and he can be domesticated, and if not, at least put a fucking bell on him.”

back in the days when it was still of help to wish for a thing...     she might have considered it.   reached out  &  whispered the right words in the right ears.   but she’s alone now,  the last one left.   (hellfire club,  how far you have fallen).   suffering from a kind of loneliness that never goes away.   perhaps evolution requires isolation.   she’ll pull the earth together,  she’ll evolve them a home  &  create safety.   create sanctuary.   and she’ll do it just as her father did.   even if no one stands by her side.

if her biggest annoyance wasn’t trying to detangle the earth from chaos,  it would be him.   he was a very close second.   banging  &  yelling,  dragging crap down the stairs and she’s far too tired of him.   so she holds the cat a little closer and thinks about jamming his foot in the door,  eyebrows furrowing.   

“yeah?   is it the hair?”   it’s the first time she’s properly laughed in a long time.   and maybe she deserves a laugh.   they’re a few drinks deep,  tipsy enough that her common sense is slowly going out the window  &  the comment doesn’t come as a shock.   it always happens.   but she’s laughing too hard,  messily trying to tell her sister a stupid story while also trying to shove hummus on a chip,   “i matched with this guy on tinder,  right?   he tells me:   you’d look nice with your natural hair.   and i’m sitting there thinking..  how do i tell him this is my natural hair?   i didn’t and on our second date... he brought me a box of hair dye!   i’m serious!   and it wasn’t even a good brand!   he brought the cheapest box of black hair dye he could find.   men are insane.”   

open to: @magnetiics​ | lorna dane location: the only apartment complex that would give residence to an art major and a corn syrup enthusiast

There was a simple predictability that came with certain practice. While simply throwing knives at a stagnant target was nothing more than numbing with its lack of complexity, it seemed to ease Niko. The split of the wood under its point, the crackle of its resistance when he tugged it free brought on a briefly lived comfort. Whether it was because Niko never craved any form of coddling, even by his own repetitive behavior or his lack of attention on an activity with nothing to gain, he’d never know.

 His precision was dependable, and so was the wretched scratching of claws at his door insistent to be let in. It was unmoved by the sharp thud of the weapons on the other side of it, practically entertained with every response of the door’s shake. He moved forward, almost a stomp to his step as he swallowed the fury instilled by its interruption, and pushed the door open. Lying on its belly, a feigned surrender, lied the кот. Niko slid his fingers under its collar, dragging it down the hall where his fists slammed over a door harder than his knives ever had the chance to. It lacked the grace of the blades, a reflection of the fracture in the expectations set for him by the room he was raised in. 

 “Get your fucking cat,” He said, not caring if the knocks— though they were more like punches— to the door rang out over his voice. He didn’t care why the cat was free, no concern if it was its owner’s attempt at sparing it of paint fumes and the consumption of small wire-y parts he was sure littered the apartment. He could see some of it from his window because of the angle a bay window offered him, and all Niko was certain that whatever expressionist take his neighbor had, 3D models and peculiar metal work, never quite alleviated them of any anger or whatever it was that artists tried to do. He had the justified belief that no matter how long he knocked, she’d simply be ignoring him. 

it’s like pulling the earth apart.   she feels it within her,  humming  &  turning;  each twist  &  turn.   the grind of the earth’s plates against each other.   &  where everything terrible occurs.   (here’s how it goes:   there’s a giant portal in the middle of new york city.   and it wails,  a rip in everything that holds earth together).   it’s ugly,  a mesh of wire and scrap,  something disgusting pulled together from leftovers and stolen parts—  a fusion of metal.   the earth,  with every anomaly connected in an interweaving web.   and  maybe  she’d  actually have  a  chance  to  finish  it  if  her  neighbor  wasn’t  so  annoying.

“what the fuck is wrong with you?   are you  trying  to break my door down,  arschloch?   i want my fucking deposit back and if you bang any louder on it,  i’m not getting it back.”   so maybe she does purposely ignore him.   if he was nicer,  she might come when he knocked but he’s been  nothing  but an asshole since day one  (and not that she’ll admit it,  but... she’s also been an asshole since day one).   besides:   she isn’t a dog and isn’t going to jump at his beck  &  call just because he’s got an issue.   she grabs the cat,  scooping him into her arms to prevent any further adventures for today  (a soft whisper of  silly katze!  what were you doing?)  before she looks back to him.

NORMAN   LISTENS   TO   THE   WOMAN’S   tangent   not   saying   much   but   he   knew   that   she   had   a   POINT.      it   was   PATHETIC   these   heroes,   these   so   called   SAVIOURS   who   liked   to   H  I  D  E   behind   cataclysmic   events   like   cowards   .   〝   oh   i   understand   perfectly   ,   〞he   says   in   response   to   her   words.   leaning   against   the   balcony   he   FROWNS   lips   curled   in   distaste〝   i   was   here   when   it   happened   you   know   ??   〞part   of   him   still   even   now   F  E  L  T   the   fresh   pain   of   the   blip   lingering   in   the   corner   of   his   mind,   〝   they   called   it   the   blip   ,〞norman’s   mouth   raises   into   an   UGLY   sneer,   〝   such   a   funny   name,   for   it   ,   〞   norman   SCOFFS   lifting   his   champagne   glass   to   his   lips   ,   〝   for   five   years   ,   i   mourned   my   son   and   thought   he   was   gone   forever   ,   〞the   man   shuts   his   eyes   TRYING   not   to   think   about   it   .   as   much   as   he   liked   to   say   that   he   D  I  D  N  ’T   care   about   harry   truth   was   he   did   care,   more   than   he’d   dare   admit   ,   〝   well   he’s   back   now   but   that   doesn’t   change   the   fact   those   heroes   or   whatever   they   call   themselves   these   days   did   nothing   at   all   after   the   blip   happened,   〞   norman’s   fist   TIGHTENED   around   his   thin   glass   ,      〝   my   son   was   gone,   and   yet   did   they   help   ??      〞

text version in the undercut.

COCONUT:  FAVORITE PERFUME?

like half the population,  lorna went through a  ‘i only wear chanel N°5 phase’  before prompting ditching it in the trash.  her current choice is  weirdly  ariana grande’s cloud perfume.  a drunk girl in a party told her to wear it and she hasn’t taken it off since.

GRAPE:  IF YOU COULD TAKE A VACATION ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD, WHERE WOULD YOU GO?

a billion miles away from nyc?  back to somewhere that she knows her family?  probably the bahamas.  get a suntan and away from the drama.

APRICOT:  WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU'RE SAD?

text version in the undercut.

       agatha  harkness  was  right  .   wanda  was  full  of  so  much  power  that  even  with  all  her  time  with  the  darkhold  ,   she  was  still  wrought  with  confusion  ,   tackled  by  grief  .   to  lose  your  husband   (  not  once  ,   but  twice  )  ,   to  find  your  dead  twin  brother  back  and  made  up  ,   to  know  that  your  own  two  children  got  engulfed  by  a  darkness  that  came  from  your  own  fingertips !  to  have  them  and  then  have  them  torn  apart  from  your  soul  after  you  made  them  from  just  that :   your  soul  .  

           𝒂𝒏𝒅  𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕’𝒔  𝒂  𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒄𝒉  𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉  𝒏𝒐  𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒍 ?  

      her  innocence  was  torn  away  first  .   the  moment  that  missile  was  blinking  in  front  of  and  her  brother  ,   for  days  on  end  .   how  much  focus  had  she  put  on  that  machine ?  how powerful was she before the experiments ?  does  more  power  mean  you’re  less  deserving  a  soul ?   it  was  some  of  the  thoughts  she  had  in  isolation  ,   drowning  in  old  champagne  made  in  foreign  counties  ,   cold  and  stale  coffee  to  stay  awake  during  dark  ,   tears  warming  her  cheeks  when  she  realized  nothing  was  working  ,   not  a  single  thing  .    ‘  my  sons  .   billy  and  tommy  .   it  didn’t  feel  like  they  were  gone  and  -  ’     why on earth was she telling this woman this ?  wanda  didn’t  know  her  ,   definitely  didn’t  know  if  she  was  trustworthy  -  but  the  words  came  out  so  easily  .  

MAYBE  THERE’S  SOMETHING  IN  THE  DNA  THAT  TELLS  THEM  TO  TRUST  EACH  OTHER.  IF  ONLY  WANDA  KNEW.

        shakes  her  head  ,   swallowing  .   she  shouldn’t  let  herself  get  ahead  ,   and  should  focus  on  the  woman  in  front  of  her  .    ‘  i don’t think i was specific enough .  ’   find my family  .   find my family .   find my family  .   except  the  visions  didn’t  bring  her  to  her  family  -  unless  …  doe  eyes  gaze  at  the  younger  woman  ,   not  calculating  ,   but  curious  .    ‘  i  was  working  with  this  book  ,   one  that’s  very  …  useful  for  the  right  people  .   trying to see if my family was still out there  ,   because  i  have  been  a  first  time  mother  ,   but  they never felt dead  .  ’   so  maybe  there  was  a  small  bit  of  her  soul  left  .  

          ‘  a  you  who  isn’t  -  i’m  sorry  ,   pause  .   who are you ?  ’   she  takes  a  pause  ,   accent  getting  heavier  as  she’s  saddled  with  confusion  ,   depression  ,   and  …  an  odd  sense  of  hope ?   and  brows  crinkle  ,   she  puts  her  hand  on  the  woman’s  shoulder  ,   leads  her  to  the  hallway  .    ‘  i  have  a  twin  brother  .   dead  .   not  a  sister  .  ’   but  you  see  it  ,   don’t  you  ,   wanda ?   the  recognition  in  the  other’s  green  eyes  ,   her  own  fear  reflected  back  ,   her  own  HOPE  reflected  back  .   they  look  nothing  alike  but  that  cupid’s  bow  sure  looked  familiar  ,   doesn’t  it  ,   wanda ?   ‘  as  far  as  i  know  ,   wanda maximoff  doesn’t  have  a  sister  .  ’ 

        but  she  didn’t  know  much  (  see :  the  agatha  and  wanda  montage  through  wanda’s  trauma  from  childhood  to  adulthood  in  marvel’s  wandavision  -  only  on  disney+ !  )  ,   did  she ?   she  didn’t  know  how  pietro  and  her  lasted  how  many  days  without  being  killed ?  how  she  and  pietro  were  the  only  ones  to  survive  the  experiments ?   ‘  i  did  find  them  .   tommy  and  billy  .   maybe  …  this  is  the  same ?  ’  

SHE’S TRYING.

“it felt like they were gone but they weren’t.  an unexplainable feeling,  isn’t it?  in your gut,  burrowed deep  &  wormed in.  a tumor that cannot be removed.”   she’s quiet when she says it,  reopening a fresh wound.   but that’s what tonight has become.   pulling away at the new collagen layers to stop it from ever setting.   reopening again  &  again with new trauma,  a new infection to live in the wound.   because this doesn’t have a happy ending.   it never does.   oh to the house of m,  cursed forever.  

HOW DOES IT GO AGAIN?     I AM CONSTANTLY TRYING TO COMMUNICATE SOMETHING INCOMMUNICABLE, TO EXPLAIN SOMETHING INEXPLICABLE, TO TELL ABOUT SOMETHING I ONLY FEEL IN MY BONES AND WHICH CAN ONLY BE EXPERIENCED IN THOSE BONES.

it’s eating away at her,  destroying all the remaining fragments of hope.   she really doesn’t know you.   “ —  lorna.   lorna sally dane.  that’s who i am.  occasionally known as polaris and the half-sister of wanda and pietro maximoff.  or rather,  former  half-sister it seems.  we —well,  the other.. — the we that isn’t us,  shared a father.  a slightly erratic,  well-intentioned but sometimes poorly guided father but a father never the less.”