* DIRTY PAWS.

❛ i could have sworn granny said you were working a double today.   ❜ an amused , pointed look is given towards the other from over the rim of emma's drink. this bar was the only place outside of granny's diner that felt sort of normal in this little town. but , at least she's started to feel like she has some friends here. @redsfur was definitely on the top of that short list. ❛ how'd you get outta that one ?   ❜

“ oh.   she   did   … ”   despite   flattened   tone   ,   smug   look   is   etched   into   features.   symbolic   pride   as   nails   dance   across   bar’s   top   to   reach   for   her   freshly   poured   martini.   she   sneaks   a   glancing   pass   at   emma   before   offering   a   shrug   of   exposed   shoulders.   “ i   snuck   out   back   when   she   was   arguing   with   floyd   over   the   number   of   cheese   slices   per   grilled   cheese—   look   ,   the   place   was   dead.   and   i   was   losing   my   mind.   please don’t   rat   me   out   …   ? ”

❛       it's   not   like   i   would   know,     i'm   a   villian   kid   after   all.       ❜

“ yeah   but   …   they   won’t   always   treat   you   like   one.   they   can   see   your   heart.   we   all   can.   you’re   a   good   person ,   evie. ”

❝ many of us have scars from which we do not heal. perhaps even ones we do not WISH to be erased. ❞ diana has plenty of both. she clasps her hands together, careful not to form the fists that are so inherent for a warrior. she comes in peace.

brow   contorts.   she   understands   the   concept   in   theory.   the   practicality   of   it   is   where   her   struggle   begins.   “ guess   you’re   not   …   exactly   wrong. ”   words   sit   heavy   across   tongue’s   tip.   primal   instinct   to   heal   and   cover   any   sing   of   weakness   is   one   not   easily   brushed   aside.   “ but   there’s   plenty   i   wish   to   never   see   again. ”

i’ll just be hanging around the mistletoe, hoping to be kissed.

"you notice it too, right? that none of this makes a lick of fucking sense?" gaze shifts up to ruby, as if seeking desperate comfort in the confirmation that the other sees it too. i'm not crazy, i'm not fucking crazy " sheriff graham's heart just gave out on him? just like that? and why can nobody access the forensic report? why is this town not on any map? why is everybody here acting like everything is always fine? " hands slam into the table, shaking the plate, the pancakes, the silverware. emma takes a deep breath, leans back on the chair, " you see it too, right? that something is horribly wrong. and it goes just beyond this place being so goddamned creepy at this point. a man is dead. "

if   there’s   one   thing   ruby   had   always   known   …   it   was   graham   was   in   tremendous   shape.   he   took   care   of   himself.   and   even   if   he   had   slipped   into   routine   out   of   his   norm   ,   there   was   no   way   the   mayor   was   going   to   let   it   get   too   far   out   of   control.   “ we   used   to   be   on   maps.   according   to   granny ,   one   of   the   old   mayors   had   us   pulled   off.   he   didn’t   want   all   the   tourism   and   gawking   that   ends   up   in   small   towns   like   ours. ”   the   memories   are   hard   to   reach   ,   a   haze   wrapped   around.   vice   grip   that   she   can’t   break.   “ have   you   spoken   to   dr.   hopper   about   any   of   this—   ?   i   know   he   was   offering   extended   hours   …   to   help   people   …   with   the   grief. ”

#lvndrhzd : all - encompassing love glow ! independent female heavy multi muse. featuring both canon and original characters from an array of comics , movies , and television shows. as loved by astra. she / her. 25+.

" dreamt, past tense- i've no reason to D E N Y that. " nor a reason to deny her allegation. regina will not invalidate ruby's feelings on the matter, even if her words had cut deep, leaving an unseen gaping scar on what was left of her brittle heart.

laugh   breeches   just   beyond   cut   of   razor   sharp   teeth.   cresting   over   the   edge   of   her   tongue   ,   met   alongside   familiar   eye   roll.   one   that   had   memorized   the   curve   of   regina’s   face.   however   infrequent   their   interactions   had   become   …   there   were   still   pieces   made   for   only   her   gaze   that   lingered.   “ hey   —whatever   you   have   to   tell   yourself   to   get   through   the   day   ,   your   majesty. ”   tone   is   more   akin   to   a   snarl.   feral   beast   rattling   at   blood   marked   bones.   she   does   not   take   well   to   the   idea   that   there   might   be   truth   to   the   queen’s   words.   “ so   is   that   is   ;   did   you   just   come   here   to   remind   me   that   you’re   done   playing   this   game   or   …   ? ”

 idk  idk.  there’s  no  point  to  this.  but  red’s  inability  to  grieve  the  loss  of  peter  and  the  time  she  given  (which  is  none)  to  process  that  she  is  the  wolf…  literally  guts  me.

i sort of found someone in myself that was ... more than i expected ; independent ruby lucas. a personal portrayal. as loved by astra.

an inhale follows such, chest rising visibly as she SMOTHERS her smile and refuses to admit that the glint in ruby's eye as she stares into regina's own has any real affect. it's just fun. harmless. innocent. flirting with the devil- so to speak. " i didn't hear a question . . . so what would i say no to? " if she thought this would be easy, she was wrong. regina's interested, that much is obvious. but she's hardly the type to pick up at a bar on a whim. she wears no crown but she's still a queen. " but take a girl to dinner first- then handcuffs. "

“ how   about   a   drink ? ”   question   prompts   a   challenge.   dinner   ,   sure.   somewhere   far   away   from   granny’s   diner   where   the   food   does   not   come   deep   fried   in   grease.   or   prepped   for   the   rush   six   hours   in   advance.   if   she’s   going   to   lean   into   romance   …   ruby   knows   enough   to   know   regina   is   better   than   it   all.   but   in   this   bar   ,   with   music   vibrating   the   emptiness   that   lurks   within   her   chest—   “ unless   you’re   as   scared   as   you   look. ”