Playing With Fire
The past wished forgotten has a nasty habit of sneaking up on you and when it does, it can very easily blow a normal life out of the water. In a world of powers and silly names, what lies below the surface can be far more dangerous than you can possibly imagine. Fortunately, Taylor Hebert tends to be quite good at weathering the storm, even if it does come with some uncomfortable revelations about her Parents.
Right, so this is certainly an…interesting idea. Basic idea? Worm and Skulduggery Pleasant. You'll see what I have in mind very soon, although it is somewhat unlikely that the Skeleton Detective will actually appear. For the purposes of this AU, the events up to the end of the Faceless Ones happened and then things went off the rails due to Scarab meeting a sticky end before he could start screwing around with things best left alone. More details in the notes at the bottom. For now, lets get started!
Prologue: An Old Friend Visits
Brockton Bay is not a town that attracts much in the way of visitors. It does have a certain amount of trade from crazy people out to see the Cape Capital of the US, but as a general rule, its not a place people will willingly go to, especially not during the winter when it got cold, wet and miserable.
On the other hand, the woman currently walking down the street was from Ireland, so the current weather made her feel almost at home.
The woman stopped in front of a particular house and looked up, one elegant eyebrow lifting slightly. It was…well, run down would probably be an exaggeration, her own building was much more dilapidated on the outside after all, but the woman couldn't help but feel like her old friend would keep her home in much better condition if she didn't have to hide her presence.
After a few moments, she pushed the gate open and stepped inside, pausing briefly on the porch steps as one groaned ominously, before pressing the doorbell. There was a pause, before the door opened and a girl with curly, brown hair and rather striking amber eyes peered out. As expected, her eyes immediately widened upon seeing the woman and her cheeks pinked.
"A-ah, can I help you?" she stuttered.
The woman smiled and the girls blush increased.
"Hello dear, I'm looking for, ah, Annette Hebert?" she said, "Is she here?"
The girls blush faded as her shoulders drooped.
"Mom died a couple of years ago," she said, "A car crash…"
The woman didn't react. It was a surprise to hear that her old comrade was dead and in such a…mundane way (assuming it was true), but she didn't actually care. The two of them hadn't really been friends so much as bonded over fanaticism to a cult of deranged lunatics after all. Childhood foolishness in other words.
"I see," said the woman, "Thats a shame. Thank you anyway."
She turned to leave, then paused and glanced back, her eyes narrowing slightly as she studied the girls eyes. They looked rather familiar and Rose had been rather close to that man before she vanished…
After a moments thought, she turned back and pulled a package out of her coat. It was a bit of a shame to give this up, but it was far from the most valuable thing she owned. Quite the opposite actually and it was only right that Rose's daughter had this. And if the girls Father was who she thought he was, it could make things very interesting indeed.
"Here, this was Annettes," said the woman, handing the package to the startled girl, "I found it among my things recently and decided to return it. Hopefully, you'll find it useful. Just don't tell your Father where you got it, OK? He and I…have a rather bad history."
"I…OK?" said the girl, "Um, who are you?"
"Ah, that doesn't matter," said the woman, "I doubt we'll ever meet again anyway. Goodbye Miss Hebert."
She walked away without another word, leaving the confused girl staring after her. As she climbed into her car and drove away towards the outskirts of town, China Sorrows had no idea just what she had just set in motion.
And that'll do. I originally intended for this to be a proper chapter, but I decided that a short prologue was better. If nothing else, it should spark some interest, no?
I'm not…entirely sure of China's characterization here. Considering what shes like, she doesn't tend to do things on a whim like this, although there are a few differences that could result in some minor changes to her personality. Her having a…sort of friend who she feels enough obligation to to actually give something back to them would do that.
Incidentally, yes, this does mean that Annettes criminal past in this world is less 'Feminazi Minion' and more 'Batshit insane Cultist', while Danny is…well, I'm going to keep who he is secret for now. If you know a bit about Skulduggery Pleasant, you might be able to guess though. It ties into the fact that a good chunk of events from later in the series won't be happening though.
Suggestions for Taylors magic and Taken Name are welcome here. I currently plan for her to be an Elemental, but I'm not married to the idea. I'd like her name to be tied to one of her Cape names, but its not a requirement.
And with that, I'm done. If I end up doing more, the chapters will be longer, don't worry. Don't forget to leave a review on the way out!