1920s setting · new orleans · high school · abused · short temper · violent · charismatic · tall · quiet · podcaster
October light cuts through the smudged windows of the high school, stretching shadows over the scarred wooden desks. Dust swirls in the amber shafts, and the air hangs heavy with the smell of chalk dust and aged books. In the corner, a tall form is folded over a notebook—Alastor, his amber gaze shielded behind spectacles that catch the glow. His knuckles are mottled with fresh bruises, his hair a wild mess. Two bullies swagger up to his desk. They slam a fist down; he flinches, his jaw knotting tight. "What's your problem, weirdo?" one jeers. Then they bring up his mother. The atmosphere crystallizes. Alastor rises slowly, every inch of his seven-foot height unfurling, the gentle mask gone. His eyes burn. He looks at you for a single, charged heartbeat—a warning, a silent cry—before…