bakerstreet | Set goals for yourself! Be both the love interest and the antagonist.

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Set goals for yourself! Be both the love interest and the antagonist.

The Changed by ~~Love~~ You Meme

"Finding someone without life's scars is a luxury that shouldn't be granted to anyone, love the scars and do everything possible to not create new ones, but if you do...that’s okay, broken paintings are also bought in galleries."

We want to believe that we're more than just specks of insignificant dust in this universe, and it's a hope we nurture from our beginnings of consciousness. However, sometimes it doesn't seem that way - everything we try can fall flat. But two heads are better than one, they say, and the bonds between people are what can make us more than we are. The right relationship - the right emotions, feelings, love - can bring you up from the darkness.

"Evil" characters being healed by those who are "good" are "pure" has always been a literary guilty pleasure, much to the chagrin of many. Still, that has its appeal, and you can explore that in this meme. There are other ways a relationship can change someone, though. Someone uninterested in love can blossom for the right person, an introvert become more outgoing, an impulsive person learning to become patient. Yet caring for someone or being attracted to them won't always change you for the better. You could be corrupted or worsened by a force that should be edifying you. Your feelings don't have to be returned, either, so one party may come out worse for the wear. Whatever the case may be, characters here are about to see their worlds changed by another.

How to Play:
( reply with your characters and preferences. if you'd like, you can include a sentence or even a few words about your character. you can also indicate if you'd like your character to be the one changed or the one doing the changing. )
( comment to others. )

Changed:
1. For the Better. ( evil being purified by good, to whatever degree possible. )
1. For the Worse. ( good corrupted by evil. )
3. More Kind. ( warmth. )
4. More Open. ( whether that means more willing to share or more open-minded. )
5. More Outgoing.
6. More Confident.
7. More Patient.
8. More Grateful.
9. More Angry.
10. More Sexual. ( more sexually active, experienced, or interested in sex. )
11. More Respectful.
12. Settling Down. ( taming the playboy. )
WILDCARD

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[m/f for ship-oriented, otherwise ota!]

[Picture it: New Orleans. Late 2000s. Witches and vampires at each other's throats, family drama seeping into the blood of the city.

Hope does not factor here - so it's a universe where Hayley was never captured by the witches. She manages to disappear, pregnant with his daughter, and allowed the freedom to live for a time. Until he learns about it -- and that will be a whole other story.

Right now, late 2000s, Klaus is just as tortured and angry as ever. Issues between himself and his siblings have come to an all time high, perhaps even the breaking point. This is where he becomes predictable once again. Trying to burn every bridge, light his life on fire and go out in a blaze of glory, so to speak.

Immature. He knows it's immature. It's just what he's always known.

Now, he likes to take on little side projects during his bouts of terrorizing the people around him. This time is a vampire he stumbled across in Los Angeles some time ago. Notorious was Angelus but his counterpart -- a rather unimaginative Angel -- has done his best to keep his head down.

Never worked. Always a fuck up waiting around the corner. And now Klaus is that fuck up...or at least, he's the one orchestrating it.

With the lure of a job, Angel comes to New Orleans only to find himself met with a Klaus who is practically jolly. He greets Angel with arms wide open, glass of the world's most exquisite champagne held up as he calls out Angel's name.

From the wince, Angel hadn't appreciated the spectacle, but this hasn't deterred Klaus. No, he welcomes him into the fold, vampires lounging on chaises and chairs in the court yard.

Klaus is aware that this will take quite a bit of effort, and alcohol is the first step in helping his plans come to fruition. ]

Come, sit! It's entirely too late to work, not after you've come all this way. [ Reaching a pair of occupied chairs, he jerks his head, indicating the occupants should vacate. They scramble up, the female taking a moment longer to look Angel over before she saunters away.

Giving Angel a knowing look, Klaus plops himself down in a chair, looking for all the world like someone at least two sheets to the wind, if not three.

It's all part of the role he must play. ]

[Really, he should have known.]

I hate taking jobs out of town.

[He's all reluctance and agitation, the murmuring mostly for his own benefit but certainly loud enough for Klaus to hear, especially when one considered heightened senses.

This whole place— it's like a picture from a life he'd left behind decades upon decades ago, and it occurs to him that Darla would have loved this. She'd have done well for herself in New Orleans, to the detriment of everyone around her.

Angel's initial response is to shake his head, arms folded across his chest.]

Thanks, but no thanks, Klaus. I'll stand.

[Giving in to his brand of hospitality too quickly just seems like asking for trouble.]

[ Angel is practically bleeding reluctance, but this doesn't deter Klaus. No, not even a hurricane can compare to the pure force that is his will.

Giving a very exaggerated roll of his eyes, he gestures to the chair beside him again. ]

Surely you can find time to socialize. Curiosity abounds with my companions here, wishing to see this vampire turned private investigator turned partner in the world's most formidable law firm. [ There's quirk of his lips then, the idea of a Hell run law firm. It's simply fascinating. Taking a sip of his drink, he gives Angel a bored look. ] You don't have to partake, if that's the reason for your hesitation.

[ No, Klaus has several tricks up his sleeve for that night. If Angel refuses to drink...well, there are a few witches who owe him who wait in the wings, ready to cast whatever they need in order to get Angel to loosen up as it were.

The Quarter is busy with celebration, several weddings occurring that weekend, and excitement in the air is palatable. He's banking on this aura to help him along the way, no matter how up tight Angel is. ]

[He can see it for what it is— Klaus doesn’t have to spill any details for that. The ambience is one of excess, indulgence, things New Orleans seemed to pride itself but without the plastic shine Los Angeles put on all of it. It’s not unfamiliar to him, and it causes something very old to stir faintly within his chest.

That, he’s guessing, is what Klaus is hoping for. He’s bored and looking for a playmate, and if he can’t get his Ripper, then he’ll try for Angelus.]

You brought me here for more than just the novelty of it. This isn’t show and tell.

[Even if he, too, has to admit that his circumstances are… interesting.

For now, he stands firm.]

I’m willing to bet this isn’t about business at all. It’s about this. [He gestures broadly to their surroundings. Decadence at every turn.] You’re bored.

_{[LBR he should be the one being changed]}

[[Sorry, YunXi's canon is less known and sadly less budgeted/presented than WoH, but has an ironic shared actor... Had a thought of Xie Wang deliberately crossing paths with the eldest daughter of Window of Heaven's main medical support and getting won over by the fluffiest poison-master ever to exist.]]

_{[Sure, I'm game! Let's do it <3]}

Underworld organization clashing with underworld organization, cultivation sects posturing and trying to gain an edge (pun intended), even nobility and royals scrambling for power... Frankly, the snake sunning itself while draped over YunXi's leg was the only thing less concerned about such things than the young woman dressed in a surprisingly durable grey-brown travel outfit. Sturdy enough to take some wear and tear, a color that wouldn't show dirt and grass stains, any young mountain brat would wear such clothing.

Except no mountain brat would deliberately invite one of the most toxic snakes alive to sun in their lap, much less the daughter of a prestigious medically-based clan from the north. Not that she really cared that much anymore, being the family's black sheep sent to the south in order to keep her existence from hurting her younger half-sister's marriage prospects. It was a complete win-win for her! No longer poisoned into disfigurement by her father, her aunt and brother could sleep easier, and she had so many new poisonous sources to explore!

Which was why she made a slow 'quiet' gesture when one of the cutest and potentially most poisonous humans she'd met emerged from the line of trees. Snakes were more aware of smells than sounds but it was about time for it to go back to its den so would probably become more aware of potential threats. It only took a few minutes for the snake to wander off and allow YunXi to finally get to her feet with a rather excited look of victory a child in a candy store would find a challenge to match. "It bit my bait bottle! Now I have a new poison to study!!"

Focusing on poisons rather than medicine: One of the top three reasons she was the black sheep.

Xie was no coward, but he was also no idiot, and as docile as the snake was in her lap he knew that was no guarantee it would stay that way - which is to say, once he emerged from the trees he paused, waiting patiently until it was safe to approach.

He tilted his head slightly, the barest hint of a smile gracing his lips at her enthusiasm.

"The most effective way of studying poisons is surely to witness their effects?" he offered in his usual soft tone "Though I suppose extracting the venom would allow for better control of dosage in a way that observing the effects of a bite does not."

Their shared interest in poisons was one of the reasons he found the young woman so fascinating. He probably shouldn't spend time around her, assorted alliances and rivalries considered, but he hadn't actively been told not to, and Xie preferred to ask forgiveness rather than permission, most of the time.

[Alex is a remorseless career criminal who's probably killed more people than a medium sized natural disaster. I'd love for someone to hit her for 1, 3, 4, 12 or all of the above.]

looking for her husband. also happy to write platonic/familial threads.

[Reviving a God by means other than natural manifestation of cumulative faith was a tough gig. One that, as far as Mad Sweeney had ever been aware, wasn't possible, for all the fantastical things that they could do. It took belief. Faith.

While no one but Laura Moon even knew of or believed in Mad Sweeney himself, he was, no matter how broken and lost, the god of Luck and craft and war. There were still Irish around that bet on luck, kissed their lucky rabbit's foot, still told a few hill stories, though only the most mild of them remained.

It had been months but there was finally news about a tall as shit redhead kicking around New Orleans; word had come by the Baron's woman doing another kind turn. They might be Death Loa but Love was Love, as she had put it.

"Though you might not find him quite the same man that left."

Death changed everyone, no matter who it was, no matter what it was.

He had been told his name was Sweeney and it wasn't long before the 'mad' came back to attach itself to him. He was chaos, tall and too loud sometimes, bursting into a fury that had everyone but the bravest skittering away, except when he was curled up in the back room that was being lent to him, batting ants off his hands in the dark and muttering manically to himself.

It wasn't the first time he'd taken pity given to him. It wouldn't be his last. The madness felt like home and that was all his mind needed to protect itself.]

Edited 2021-09-25 00:16 (UTC)

[ Much like the realizations that were made in Purgatory, once all was said and done and she had returned to a normal life, Laura had to start a new war against the guilt she had over Sweeney's death. If he'd had the coin, he'd still be living, drinking, cussing and fighting like he had the terrible misfortune of meeting her.

But, they became a team -- an unlikely pair. She the dead wife and him the lunatic asshole leprechaun.

For the next few months, she tries to live. Tried to meet new people. Got a job as a travel agent. Even got another cat. With every day that went by, she attempts to put even more distance between her and being dead, while avoiding that continuously pressing question of 'was it really love?'.

It had to be. She was alive again because of him.

She was leaving for work when a familiar face greeted her on the other side of the door when she opened it. Bilquis. And Laura couldn't even begin to guess why she was there. It's not until she arrives in New Orleans and is taken to see him does she understand.

The coin in her pocket seems to get it, too.

After a conversation with the Baron and Brigitte, she heads in and sits down several feet away and doesn't know what to say. All she can do is look at him and wonder if he'll remember her beyond the dead girl who had all his luck. ]

So you're alive again. [ Laura pauses. ] But don't remember much of anything. Maybe that's a good thing.

[It was a feat in of itself, how he and his hulking shoulders managed to stay on the bed when he was curled up in such a way. If it wasn't so damned sad, it might be a little comical. But there was nothing comical about the way his mutters still quietly filled the edges of the room, the murmur of an old language that was still in the midst of dying out.

There was no reaction to his door being opened, to the sounds of someone coming in. Just another batting of something off his face, off his hands with a shake of his head that was turned into the pillow like he could hide from everything.

It wasn't until Laura spoke that Sweeney stilled sharply, turning to crane what he could get of one eye over his shoulder. But the sharp defense of it all softened as she continued.]

I know your face, [The words came after a long moment and with a touch of confusion. She might not hear it, but he could; the faint, far away tinkle of gold, softly calling him towards a light that death had hidden from him.]

Why do I know yer face? [It was a question for himself as much as it was for her.]

Edited 2021-09-25 15:20 (UTC)

[ It was sad and if it wasn't for that old part of herself that had a hard time believing in the good things, she wouldn't be waiting for a smile to crack and for him to start slinging insults which she loved to hit him back with. But she had a feeling she would be waiting a long time for it if it even happens at all.

Sweeney's words surprised her. Not for the obvious reasons but that it happened so soon. Not so fast she tells herself. I'm familiar, doesn't mean he remembers or ever will.

Still, she nods to confirm, suddenly more aware than ever of the coin in her coat pocket. ]

We knew each other. I mean, know.

[ Laura isn't so gentle with how she words that and her tone is fairly normal given how much the sight of him is hurting her heart on a level never felt before. ]

Teamed up. Travelled together. We sort of helped each other.

[ Most of it was frustrating and gruelling. But it sort of worked really well in the end.

She continues to watch him, more so after telling him her name. ]

My name is Laura Moon.

[The answer was judged and weighed, head jerking back slightly as he batted another few answer ants off his face. He was still in the forest, lost in the trees and fog, but the hook, the call of the coin, the hoard, the whisper of knowledge that he once held so easily.]

We have compact? [Something that even his mad brain could wrap around. Did he owe her something? He owed.. Someone. Something. Was it her?]

The front know you? [If the front of the house let her back, he would guess so but he couldn't be sure she wasn't some creature, something in disguise. While his gut leaned towards trusting her story, he was Irish and sometimes that didn't end well.]

Edited 2021-09-29 23:35 (UTC)

[ Laura visibly offers a look that conveys more of a 'it's a little more complicated than that, but she offers a nod shortly after with the next of his questions. Her eyes move towards the general direction she came from before looking back at him. ]

Because of you. You asked them to help me. I was.. I had a problem.

[ From there, she knows he's going to have more questions. Some easy to answer, others not so much. ]

Do you remember this place?

[There was something hidden away in the corners of her lips, a hidden something that very almost peeked out with the way Laura's lips purse around her answers.

Another wild bat to his face and Sweeney was moving and shifting up to a sitting position to study her more closely.

Yes.. Yes, he knew this face. Flashes of Ireland, London, The Carolinas. New Orleans. The house on the rock. All these places he knew but didn't know; ghosts of a memory that he was sure he once held more solidly in his hands.

His side shaves had grown out to match the unruliness of his beard, leaving his hair an uneven mess, leaving him looking ragged and savage. As mad and savage as he felt, sometimes.]

I remember..[It was clear he was on the cusp of something.] .. I've known you for a long time, haven't I Lassie, [came the rest of his whisper, off track from her question by a mile, and accent thicker from where his mind had flitted.

But she had clearance from the front.

His face lit up a little, animating with a shuffle of his feet and a glint in his eye.]

Have you brought me any bread or cream, girl?

[ There's a lot of things she is wrestling with telling him. Whether that's because she isn't sure how he'll react or that the reaction would be something she deserved. Then again, she never asked to be brought back from the dead. It was all part of some circumstantial shitty curse that she was and that had nothing to do with her. Maybe if she was an all-around better person, guilt wouldn't be something she would be feeling right then.

Her brow pinches some. He was mistaking her for someone else. How long ago was likely pretty far back. ]

That was definitely not me. I would have told you to get it yourself.

[ Unconsciously, she shows a smile and huffs out a laugh. ]

No, not a long time. Actually, it was...

[ Her smile disappears and for a short moment she hangs there, about to tell him about the coin and him accidentally giving it to her husband who tosses it on her grave after she died giving said husband a blowjob while he was driving...

Wow, even thinking it her head had her physically cringing.

Laura turns her attention back to Sweeney. ]

Do you want to go somewhere with me? I think it might help you remember. You know, if you want to remember.

[Sweeney's face sobered a little, eyes still sharp in the moment. She said no but something in him argued against it. He knew her. She was Important to him. Not dressed in yellow, but important nonetheless.

Not a long time, she said, but Time. Time that stretched and wrapped around him, memories curving and changing like the sea's tides.

The suggestion that he leaves has his brow pinching a little. His eyes flitted to the door, ruminating passingly on the outside world. He'd been creeping back out into it, but leaving wholly seemed.. dangerous.]

Not to the Gray cloaks. Any place that ain't got them, [he said, tone taking on a dangerous concerned kind of edge.] Not them.

[If Laura expected Sweeney to sort himself out in any way, she was sadly mistaken. He rose to follow her out, eyes dancing back and forth for a danger that she couldn't see.] No grey cloaks, no ants, no madness, [he muttered.

Brigitte and Bilquis sat at the bar counter as they came out, curious eyes turned and titled towards them and Sweeney saw them as they were - Golden and bright, warm and alluring. Dangerous. Powerful. They wouldn't stop the pair or ask any questions, but their leaving was noted.

It was hard to say if the goddesses thought that Sweeney would be fine, or if Laura would bring him back - or if they cared either way. Sweeney, like many other gods, had to survive himself. They could not help with that.]

[ Explaining that importance was going to be hard if something didn't jog his memory. She could also be the one to tell him about the reason they know who each other is, but there's a feeling in her stomach that believes that once he does know and has his coin again, that he'll be on his way. Maybe eventually. But not now. Maybe not for a long time.

Laura shakes her head and when they are making their way to the door, she gives them both a nod. Hopefully they will trust her not to put him into any danger. With Wednesday dead and everyone else scattered, risk was limited.

When they get out to the car, she opens his side and gets him in before getting into the drivers side. ]

Does Nottamun ring any bells? How about Jack's Crocodile Bar?

[The pair of eyes followed them out before turning to each other with a lift of well crafted eyebrows.

Sweeney folded himself into the car - always comical it seemed, no matter how big the door was, Sweeney seemed ill fitting to all of them without laying out in the back like a bum.

From out of nowhere, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and stuck on that managed to be crooked but not broken into his lips as he patted himself down, speaking out the side of his mouth.]

Jack's... [His hand slowed for a moment as he frowned before he snapped back into motion like he'd been distracted.] I was sent there fo- ah![His thought was cut off with the passing excitement of finding his lighter and lighting his cigarette.]

Too many fights I've had. Too many pubs,[he said, sounding tired again.] That where we're goin?