don't you know that you're toxic?

          Their downfall had always been arrogance--utter certainty that they would succeed. With ashes crumbling to nothing before her, a foolish hunter succumbed to the same arrogance. Her prey was already gone, lost to his thirst and nothing more than a pile of crumpled fabric on the ground now. What did she have to fear? All that was left to do was close the wound left behind...

          Shit. 

          From trembling fingers, her all-important gauze fell to the ground and rolled across the dirty pavement. Blood still coursed from her wound with every heartbeat, and she could only cover it with one hand while she dizzily stumbled closer to her lost bandages. 

          A single misstep, and she was on her knees. Closer to the ground at least, easier to reach the dirtied gauze while her bloody hand released the wound to support her weight. More of her precious weapon dripped onto the black pavement, and a trembling hand fumbled forward for the gauze she needed so urgently. Would she even have the coordination to wrap the wound now? 

          Slowly, achingly, she managed to drag dirty gauze around her neck, again and again and again, as tight as she could manage. Her vision was fuzzy, growing less and less clear as moments passed. No no, she repeated in her head, No this isn’t happening...

I mean it’d be a crime if I didn’t put this nerd in the Dawnguard....

It’s really hard. This is probably the simplest lace pattern ever but I’m a newbie to lace and its thin yarned wiles. 

The most obvious factor of Viola’s blood is its uncanny ability to kill vampires. A handy little trait in a world where one has to accept that such creatures exist. However, the oddities don’t end there. There are many facets to her unique toxic defense mechanism.

In Vampires: By the time they’ve swallowed for the first time, it’s too late. The burning sensation of the blood’s causticity against their undead flesh doesn’t register until the damage is already done. If they’re aiming to kill, they won’t survive it. Ashes to ashes. A few drops sting the skin like holy water in legend, but only drinking it is their death. 

abalone:what kind of situations compromise my muse emotionally

          Not a feat easily accomplished, for one who operates on suspicion and pessimism has learned better than to leave emotions open to harm. She is isolated, making her living from home, with only her cat as a companion--she protects against loss by having no one to lose. 

          Still, one small part of her remains soft to the world, the reason she goes through with all of this in the first place: so no one else gets hurt. She is the last victim of every vampire that preys on her, and that knowledge makes all of the hardship worth it. 

ammolite: how lucky or unlucky my use is

          Even by the most generous, all things serve a purpose of mentalities, Viola was dealt a rather difficult hand in life. She acts as both bait and trap for the world’s most wicked things, and they keep coming whether she wants them to or not. Some say people make their own luck--in Viola’s case that came in a simple shift of perspective.

          When she stops seeing attacks and starts seeing opportunities, she’s a lucky, lucky girl. 

apatite: a headcanon about my muse's intuition

          When one expects the worst in people, they’re either right, or pleasantly surprised. Viola’s intuition is, perhaps, a tad oversensitive. With a touch of paranoia coloring her perception a sinister shade, few are above suspicion of evil. 

abalone: what kind of situations compromise my muse emotionally

aegerine: my muse's opinion of the supernatural

agate: how my muse calms down

blue lace agate: my muse's favorite form of communication (verbal, letters, texting, etc.)

fire agate: if my muse is brave or cowardly

moss agate: if my muse has a high or low opinion of themself

amazonite: what kind of situations call for my muse to be dishonest

amethyst: what my muse would most like to be able to shape-shift into

ammolite: how lucky or unlucky my use is

angel aura quartz: my muse's opinion of LGBT+ issues

apache tears: a sadness headcanon

apatite: a headcanon about my muse's intuition

apophyllite: my muse's religious/spiritual beliefs

aquamarine: where my muse feels most calm/relaxed

biotite: the biggest problems my muse is currently dealing with

bloodstone: how my muse sees themself as part of the world at large

calcite: my muse's social tendencies (introverted vs extroverted, parties vs one-on-one conversations, etc.)

carnelian: an art-related headcanon

celestite: how my muse deals with anxiety

chalcedony: the saddest my muse has ever been

chalcopyrite: how my muse deals with ending relationships

charoite: who my muse looks up to

chrysocolla: a money-making headcanon

copper: how I think my muse will end up when they're older

coral: how my muse views the natural world

diamond: a sex headcanon

dolomite: a sleep headcanon

emerald: how my muse tells someone they love them without words

fluorite: what my muse's room looks like

fossil: what my muse's dream job is

galena: what it's like to be in a relationship with my muse

garnet: what my muse's perfect partner would be

gold: my muse's financial situation

hematite: how squeamish my muse is

hiddenite: how much of an "inner child" my muse has

iolite: my muse's drinking habits

jade: if my muse would ever cheat on a partner

jasper: what my muse would be like as a parent

kyanite: an anger headcanon

lapis lazuli: where 'home' is to my muse

lodestone: what kind of people gravitate towards my muse

malachite: what my muse as a child thought they would be when they grew up

mica: what my muse views as their worst personality trait

moonstone: my muse's opinions on outer space

mother of pearl: if my muse tends to lift people up or bring them down

nebula stone: how good my muse's memory is

obsidian: which of the seven deadly sins my muse would be

opal: how creative my muse is

pearl: a mental health headcanon

petalite: what my muse would do if they found a wallet on the street

pyrite: a physical health headcanon

quartz: how my muse thinks other people see them

rhodonite: if my muse prefers elegance or convenience

rubellite: if my muse has any 'triggers' that inspire painful memories

ruby: a happiness headcanon

sapphire: if everyone my muse knew was hanging off a cliff and they could only choose three to save, the rest certainly dying, who they would choose

serpentine: how my muse would seduce another [alt: how my muse makes their money]

silver: if my muse prefers masculinity or femininity

tsavorite: if my muse believes in destiny or fate

ulexite: how empathetic/sympathetic/compassionate my muse is

unakite: what my muse's ideal pet would be

verdite: my muse's ethnicity/family history

zebra stone: what gets my muse excited

          If ever there were a grey area, that one would fall squarely into it. She glanced over her tablet at him, taking details in snapshots rather than long pointed looks. With all the metal lodged into his skin, he could have easily been one that wanted to seem like something undead, rather than actually one of them. Still some of the red flags flew; when she innocently passed to retrieve a wayward lipstick that had rolled from her hand, she could have sworn she smelled the faint, lingering scent of blood on him.

          Was she reading too much into this one? Was it just her imagination?

         Some nights were easier than others, she’s found. Her hands were still shaking as she adjusted the chiffon of her scarf, obscuring stark white bandages. That tremor in her hands, along with a fuzzy haze over her consciousness, added up to a small undoing--in her struggle to open a sports drink, her grip became unsteady, and the open bottle surged outward to splash upon some poor unwitting soul.