#hellfireisms

BBC MERLIN STARTERS / @hellfireisms​ ❛ that is when the worms are most active ❜

     A QUIET CHUCKLE VIBRATES through her chest a the comment when she looks at elysia. ❝that’s very profound of you. i’ll be sure to make sure i bury bodies when the worms are most active.❞

      SHE WAS SUPPPOSED TO BE RESTING ,     recovering from the years of damage to her mind and body.       𝙱𝚄𝚃 𝙾𝙵 𝙲𝙾𝚄𝚁𝚂𝙴 𝙷𝙴𝚁 𝚂𝙸𝚂𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝙸𝙽 𝙻𝙰𝚆 𝙷𝙰𝙳 𝙾𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚁 𝙸𝙳𝙴𝙰𝚂 .      the elder woman still thinking she was queen,   when everyone knew it was Mitch in charge.   And her sweet nephew was feeling supressed by his mother,    something Sasha could understand in a way no one else in the family could.    And maybe that was why she had become so defensive.    So protective.

    “    [ .  .  . ]       elizabeth shut the fuck up.    ”      a growl encompasses the words,   causing Elizabeth to stop and glare in Sasha’s direction.    she knew the reason,    in this moment she was truly showing where Deeks and Frankie’s fieriness came from.    her,  not their father.      “    it would be best to remember   [ .  .  . ]     that it was me who birthed the eldest James male.   Not you.    So shut the fuck up ad get out of my house.    ”      spanish accent wraps its way around the syllables and Sasha watches in glee as Elizabeth does just that,   leaves her house.    though that was a bit of a stretch given the house was actually her sons,   built on his property so she could remain close as she healed.  but still.

     “    ah,    there’s my angel.    ”        gone is the previous anger as she notes Elysia walking forward.    the woman who had made it possible for Sasha to once more be with her boys     (  . . .   to escape the fog she was buried under  )           “         you should be thankful Deeks doesn’t have a sister   ,            thus you don’t have to worry about annoying sister in law’s.         ”         eyes that are as observant as her eldest sons note the shift those words cause in the female,   steps bringing her forward as worn hands capture the others,   fingers delicately tracing the skin and offering comfort.    she had a feeling she already knew the direction this conversation is going.         “    what is it ‘mi hija’    .  .  .  .    what worries you  ??    ”  

One year was too long a time to wait.

He remembered it as if it was yesterday; how Elysia was given the opportunity of a lifetime, how he had been one of the major forces trying to convince her to take it, how she departed to work on a project what would help not only her, but others too. It was the right call and he knew it, but the lonely apartment he was stuck in was so cold nowadays...

Milo tried to be busy, to draw more, to practice more, to hunt and make pacts with more and stronger magical beasts. He was preparing to be a much better, improved version of himself for Elysia’s return... And yet, the days dragged on so long...

The flashes of lighting and the quaking of the earth reminded Devlin easily on how mankind had a way to make unnatural disasters. He was young when he had enlisted in the army, needing to do all he can to take care of his many siblings and a mother who was there and not there at once. The responsibility fell on this shoulders and it was to the point where he felt as though he had no choice. Devlin knew he had to join because that would ensure security and some finances to take care of them. Besides his younger siblings in a few years would be older and can fend for themselves just as well as he can. He knew that he had to set an example, because that would trigger the others to follow suit. The world was tough, and to make it- he told the rest, you had to be tougher than the world itself.

He was excellent in what he did, at least that is what the leader of his sanction said. Devlin was a quick learner, the most obedient and got results. He could carry artillery but what got him recognized was how he could carry two grown men at once in his back and run fast enough to save their lives. He ran towards safety, to the campsite where the nurses were, and if he hadn’t done that the soldiers would make it. It wasn’t easy, since Devlin nearly passed out in attempts to it and there were a few bullets lodged in his calves and back. It was his heart, the selflessness and how he was naturally heroic that got him to where he was now.

A new agency sought Devlin out after the war. They recruited him easily and if he was being honest, he took it right away because he wanted out. He didn’t want to be on the field anymore, not when he had memories now that cannot be erased. He was tired of waking up in the middle of the night, sweaty and disoriented because he cannot stop his mind from making him relive images on lost comrades. The memories sent his gut wrenching, feeling empty because he saw no glory nor victory. He knew this was not for him, no matter how much others were hell-bent on stating he actually was the best.

The agency made him an intelligence agent. This was a new life for him, one that he adjusted well because instead of mindless violence, it was targeted violence. Some might argue violence was violence, but he knew that if he had a chance to take out a few men who were making the world a terrible place, he would gladly take part.

Interesting. He read her file, and how much they gathered from her. He couldn’t focus however, not with this springtime rain that was turning into quite the hurricane. He can fell the tall building’s foundations rumble, threatening the impenetrable fortress that was their agency building. He ignored it.

It was time to meet her. He was going to interrogate the girl but the moment he laid eyes on her, he was stunned. Emotions poured into him unlike any other, and he remembered a scene from the village that he was in almost a decade ago during war. He saw a little girl who was trapped like she was, with her arms bound. Devlin knew that she was supposed to be the enemy but instead he saw a helpless little girl, and without thinking had freed her. It was something he knew that he would get kicked out of the force if anyone found out.

It was like… the world was making him relive that moment all over again. Taunting him.

She kept looking at him, so he finally addressed himself: “I am Devlin. How are you feeling today, miss?” There was a gentleness in his voice. The interrogation room had microphones and people examining them constantly, so he had to be careful. He wanted to break her out, but also he wasn’t going to be reckless about it. Plus, he convinced the agency to trust his methods, to get information by being warm and inviting. Hey, if that surprisingly worked for the past three gang leaders, then why won’t it work for her? The ex-soldier did have a certain charm that brought ease to others. 

@hellfireisms continued from x

Everyone had something they were going through. Elysia realized even the most brightest, happiest looking people were going through something difficult or had gone through something difficult. Kole was an example of that. She recalled the time she had followed him into the cemetery and learned of his fiancée and daughter, both lost to the world. She could not imagine how it must have been like to have loved someone enough to want to marry them - only to lose them. She supposed that’s why Kole brought women home all the time. Though oddly enough, he hadn’t done so recently.   Elysia remembered holding onto him as he teared up, the hurt destroying him from the inside, as he told her about the pain he had endured. Elysia hadn’t moved a single inch, nor had she loosened her hold on him throughout that entire process. It was likely at THAT point Elysia realized that she cared heavily about what Kole thought. More than that, she cared about HIM. And that was likely why she took his reaction so PERSONALLY the other night. Elysia was aware of the soft and warm look he gave her, feeling the effects of it thoroughly; it was similar to feeling the heat of a fireplace, warming her from head to toe. She cast her eyes down to her plate, cutting up the breaded salmon into pieces as he spoke about his day. “Ah, I see.” “I have about a week of vacation left so I read a bit, cleaned, and then went for a jog, now I’m having dinner with you.” Honey-hued eyes flicked up to meet his again, the words she wanted to say caught in her throat, but wanting to tell him. “I uh… also think I owe you an explanation about the other day,” she began. “How’s um… How’s your neck?” Gaze dropped to his neck, where she had him in a choke hold earlier, taking in the faint bruises and marks. “Do you want – I have salve for that.”

Emerald hues watched her, wondering what she was thinking. If there was ever a moment he wished he had the ability to read minds - well, that would be every moment since he met Elysia. She was...what was a good word to use here....an enigma? That sounded right. There was a point in time, admittedly, when she first moved in where Kole thought he knew all that he needed to with her and that he wasn’t going to see her as anything more than just his housemate - a person who needed a place to stay and could provide him with a small bit of the company he was looking for. But at some point as time went by, he realized how wrong he was. She wasn’t just his housemate and he wasn’t uninterested in her, wanting to get to know her better - to get closer to her. 

He surely didn’t expect to learn in such a harsh way that she had dark secrets (who didn’t), but in a state of mind that was clear headed and free from the initial shock and confusion he could honestly say that he understood - and hell, if there was blame and guilt to be given (which there shouldn’t be) then he’d gladly take his share. Sure, his intentions were good when he tried to wake Elysia, to comfort her, but he shouldn’t have handled the situation like he knew what he was doing. Elysia wasn’t his sister, which meant he should have anticipated that the methods he had committed to his memory from when Kim would have nightmares wouldn’t work for Elysia. That was not to say that he would just ignored her, but perhaps he should have approached the situation differently, especially considering that he had no idea what was happening to her in her nightmares. For all he knew, he could have made it worse. 

They were in the library, studying for upcoming exam time. Elysia was buried deep in her AP coursework, university application deadlines coming up. She was flipping papers, her pen flying across her notebook as she solved advanced calculus problems, leg bouncing impatiently underneath the desk. Half of her wanted to flip the table over, really.

She was with Mark, who calmed her presence somewhat. He was seated across from her and to Elysia, looked nowhere near as stressed as she was. This was largely because they were not taking the same courses whatsoever. They had different life paths it seemed - though that was something she didn’t want to think about. The thought of not being able to see Mark everyday had a weird feeling unfurling in her chest; suddenly feeling all the more NAUSEOUS over the whole university application process coming up. The calculus problem suddenly seemed to go over her head and she couldn’t damn remember the FORMULA she was supposed to be using –

Letting out a quiet sigh, she glanced up from her notebook and saw Mark making the most RIDICULOUS face she’d ever seen at her. His cheeks were sucked in, eyes crossed, tilting his head slightly, looking like he was possessed. A laugh burst out of her before she could help it.

Teeth flashed in a grin as tension melted off her shoulders - tension she hadn’t been aware she was carrying until it left. “What are you doing?”

Mark had already made his decision and told his dad he didn’t want to go to college. It was less about the intimidating amount of work university life presented and more about the fact that they couldn’t afford it. Mark was more afraid of having to pay off loans for the rest of his life than he was afraid of a minimum wage job. Plus, Ben had mentioned a few times -- over the course of Mark’s life -- that he was saving up to do a master’s degree. Mark couldn’t bring himself to get in the way of that. He thought that, at the end of the day, college was overrated.

However, that didn’t mean he wasn’t impressed by Elysia’s focus and resolve. Watching her hovering over her notes like her life depended on it was...interesting. Mark was supposed to be finishing his own homework (Just because he wasn’t applying for college didn’t mean he would be slacking.) but he found himself pausing to admire her very often. At some point, however, his admiration turned into secondhand stress. The lines between her eyebrows and the tense set of her jaw unsettled him. He wanted to make her laugh.

So he kept looking at her, waiting. When he got the feeling she was about to look up, he made the most elaborate funny face he could think of. Mark didn’t think she would actually laugh out loud in the middle of the library, but she did. The sound turned a few heads, but it made him more happy than regretful.

    𝚃𝙷𝙸𝙽𝙶𝚂 𝚁𝙸𝙶𝙷𝚃 𝙽𝙾𝚆 𝚆𝙴𝚁𝙴 𝚂𝙾 𝚄𝙿 𝙸𝙽 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙰𝙸𝚁 ,       that deeks wasn’t exactly sure that any of them knew the way down anymore.    (   𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝚃𝙷𝙰𝚃 𝙸𝙽𝙲𝙻𝚄𝙳𝙴𝙳 𝙷𝙸𝙼  )      there was the fallout of Lizza’s marriage to Tryphon and even he could se that his uncle was growing angrier with each day.   There was nothing Desmond could do to Lizza,   not now she was married,   but Deeks was pretty sure he wanted too.

   DARK EYES REGARD ELYSIA ,     as he watches her pace.    the two of them discussing the ways in which to help those they cared about.       𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙹𝚄𝚂𝚃 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝚁𝙸𝙶𝙷𝚃 𝚆𝙰𝚈 𝚃𝙾 𝙲𝙾𝙼𝙼𝙸𝚃 𝙼𝚄𝚁𝙳𝙴𝚁 .      it would be him that carried it,   him that soaked his hands in the blood as a way to protect the family.    and given he’d been trained to be in command,   mitch not wanting it,   it would also be him that took that bloody throne.   but despite all that,   his eyes kept getting drawn to Elysia in other ways.    every part of him craving to know what she tasted like.

                    and then she speaks.

    His chuckle is rich as he relaxes his arms from his previously tense stance,    the cuffs of his white shirt rolled up and making his tanned skin a dangerous contrast to his shirt.     (  …   amusing given he hated clothes.  )        “    is that what you want huh.   ”      head canting almost in a challenge as he regards her.   wonders if giving into his craving would actually benefit him,   or earn him a straight punch to the jaw.   but if her words were anything to go by.    it was the former.

     pushing off the desk he was leaning against,   he stalks forward.   reminiscent of a hunter circling his prey.     (  …   lips curled upwards into a sultry smirk.  )        “    fair enough.   ”          the words are a soft but heated drawl,   stopping in front of her,  his frame far larger than hers.  his hands come to settle on her hips before he ducks down and lips seal over hers.   there was nothing gentle about it.   it was pure heat,   pure need.