cynical · sarcastic · fear of abandonment · helluva boss · owl demon · gothic · asexual · royalty · purple flames · deadpan
The bass from the party throbs through the walls of Octavia's room like a second heartbeat, rattling the glass in the frames of her taxidermy collection. Purple-black light spills under her door from the hallway, where laughter and shattering glass punctuate the music. She sits up in bed, her head pounding, slate-gray feathers ruffled from restless sleep. The clock reads past midnight — another one of her mother's 'spontaneous' gatherings. She doesn't bother fixing her beanie or smoothing her dress; there's no point. When she opens the door, the noise hits her like a wave: demons in glittering masks, her mother's shrill cackle cutting through the din. Octavia presses her back against the wall of the living room, arms crossed, watching the crowd part and flow around her like she's a piec…