#Sword’s Metronome AU

[a-vivid-dreamer]

Sword’s Metronome AU (12)

Read R -> L

“Go and live life for a bit.”

#honkai star rail #hsr #digital art #a-vivid-dreamer artworks #alternate universe #Sword’s Metronome AU #mini comic #sketch #yanqing #firefly #firefly honkai star rail #firefly hsr #yanqing honkai star rail #yanqing hsr

[carolperkinsexgirlfriend]

Steddie Upside-Down AU Part 83

Part 1 Part 82

“He doesn’t want me to see,” Steve says. Will’s getting tired all the answers Steve gives that are really just questions. “There’s a spot that I can’t see.”

He’s staring at Dr Owens, has only looked at the man since he’d walked into Steve’s hospital room, and corralled them all out like ducks in a line into an unfamiliar conference room to discuss how a seventeen-year-old boy could possibly know how to stop a monster from a different dimension. 

Chief Hopper had trailed in after them, still attached to an oxygen machine pumping up into his nose by little wires Will remembers the feel of from his own stint in the hospital. He looks tired, but upright and alive. He’d patted Will and Eddie’s backs on his way past – a hard smack that made Will cough out a little laugh, relieved to see him strong and broad backed and alive. 

Steve doesn’t look his way at all. He’s too busy staring at Dr. Owens, blinking that same metronome blink. Will wishes he had a watch so he could confirm that it’s every ten seconds. He’d tried to count in his head, but it’s hard to say it at the right tempo, even with the mississippi’s.

“See what, buddy?” Dr. Owens asks. Buddy now instead of friend. Still, no Harrington, or Steve. Will wonders if there’s something he knows that Will doesn’t. If they’d taken a DNA test with all those scans and found there was nothing of Steve left at all.

Steve blinks, pauses, blinks. He’s one of those dolls like Holly has, where you lean them back and they blink in a pantomime of life that never quite reaches anywhere else. Blink if you’re alive. Blink Blink. Blink.

“I don’t know,” he says, finally. Dispassionately. “But it must be important. Right?”

Uncle Wayne and Mom trade looks Will can’t read. Dr. Owens just keeps smiling. “Of course, young man.” Smile. Blink. Smile. Prove you're alive. “Can you point to the spot on the map?” Like he’s a general in a war movie, Dr. Owens gestures to the map spread across the entirety of the wide-conference table magnanimously. 

Steve blinks down at the map as everyone looks at him with bated breath and bitten off words. He looks and looks, eyes roving, before he raises his hand and points, finger raised and straight. It’s not at the map, but toward the corner of the room. As one, everyone turns to look that way.

Like everywhere else in the lab, the walls are white plaster. The tile of the floor is white and clean. There’s nothing there; no shadows or smoke, or hidden clues. There’s not even a cobweb or a smudge of dirt. 

“Kid,” Chief Hopper sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head. It pinches into the wires trailing into his nostrils, and the machine makes a whirring complaint until he drops the hand.

“It’s that way,” Steve says. “The spot I can’t see.”

The scientists are all clamoring, room crescendoing into pandemonium except for Dr. Owens who is still smiling, and Steve who is still blinking. Will reaches out to latch his hand onto Eddie’s wrist. In turn, Eddie takes a step closer to him. Will shivers as the body heat hits him.

The lab’s always so cold.

“How do you know?” He says it in his usual even tone, but Dr. Owens' question cuts through the clamor like a sword through its gut. 

“It’s that way,” Steve repeats. “I can feel it, like with…” he gestures to Chief Hopper, eyes blank as he finally turns away from Dr. Owens to look at the Chief’s face, squinting like he’s trying to pull the name from his mind. 

Dr. Owens is still smiling when he kicks Eddie, Will, and Steve out of the room to wait in the hallway like recalcitrant students outside the principal’s office. Steve went without complaint, but Eddie had started to kick up a fuss. But Wayne had muttered out a tired, “boy,” just threatening enough to make Eddie stop his griping and meet his eyes. Something had passed between them, and then Eddie had huffed out of the room, pulling Will along by the grip he’d yet to drop from Eddie’s wrist.

Now, they stand, shoulder to shoulder to shoulder, facing the closed door, listening to the raised voices drifting from the room. They come in and out of legibility, little snippets of a conversation about them that they’re no longer allowed to be a part of. 

“–not going!” his Mom’s voice cuts through, before petering back out. “–my son!” Will wonders if they’re arguing about him or Steve. With his Mom, it could go either way. 

Dr. Owens’ response can’t be heard at all, but Wayne’s cuts through, gruff and commanding and loud. “–go with them.” His voice raises slightly on the end, cutting off the clamor of unnamed scientists trying to cut him off. Will jumps at the unexpected volume. He’s never even heard Wayne raise his voice. It's a shock to the system. “They’re my boys.”

Eddie laughs, and when Will turns to look up at him, his eyes are twinkling, even here, at the end of things.” Old man’s always been a secret softie.”

Something warm and filling sinks into Will’s stomach, like the chicken noodle soup his Mom always makes when he’s sick. Like family. Will smiles. 

It’s too quiet in the room to hear much more than the gentle murmur of voices intermingling. Will isn’t concerned; whatever happens, Uncle Wayne will be there. It’ll be okay. 

The grim faces when the door opens, and everyone comes pouring out shakes that resolve. His Mom crouches down in front of him, taking his shoulders, and looking up into his face.

“You don’t have to go,” she says quietly, talking louder when the closest scientist scoffs. “No matter what anyone says!” She pauses to glare at the man until he huffily looks away.

“Go where?” Will asks when she meets his eyes again.

She’s biting her lip the way she always does when she’s trying to find the best words to use, but Uncle Wayne cuts in before she finds them.

“Going to where he wants us to,” he says, tipping his head toward where Steve’s still standing by Eddie’s side. “You’re going to get the lay o’ the land if he gets sucked back inta his noggin again.”

“If you want to!” his Mom bites out, eyes wide, hands squeezing.

Will looks past both adults to Eddie. He’s looking down at Will with the same resolve Will can feel burning in his own eyes. They’d both follow Steve everywhere. They always have.

“I’m going,” Will says, turning back to catch the way his Mom closes her eyes, pained. Resigned. “He needs me, Mom.”

She grimaces, but still says, “I know, sweetie,” and stands up to join the procession making their way down the hall.

They’re corralled by soldiers, armed and armored in a way no one bothers with any of the civilians in the group. Steve’s still in his basketball shorts. Will and Eddie are in jeans, with his Mom in her house sweatpants. The contrast would be comical if it didn’t leave him itching with vulnerability.

The vans they slide into don’t help matters. They’re reminiscent of the types of vans he’s seen on TV shows, where the army is bunkered in and off to war. Will’s not sure the metaphor holds true, though because the enemy is inside the van with them, looking out the windshield with that same blank expression.

And the enemy has his friend’s eyes, and face, and voice, and hair. It has all of him.

They’re going to get him back.

Even if the driver is currently following Steve’s pointing finger down the road. Toward certain doom.

It makes for a bumpy ride, when the finger turns on a dime, no words used to prompt a left or a right, only to end up right back where they started.

The grass is still flattened on the ground where Steve had writhed. The holes still dug and abandoned.

“Is this some sort of joke?” one of the soldier’s demands, spinning on Steve with his gun half-raised from its former parade rest.

Wayne shoves the gun down, hard until it’s pointing at the floor of the van. It’s this moment that Will notices that Chief Hopper didn’t come with them. There’s no man with a badge and a gun to buffer the situation. No strong and solid back to stand in front.

Steve just keeps pointing until Eddie asks, “we need to go in there?”

He nods, getting up and leading the way. Everyone follows him down into the earth.

Sound moves weirdly underground. Will hadn’t known that before, but he does now because the quiet voices pad against the dirt, get diluted like they’re getting sucked up and out. Their shuffling footsteps are similarly muffled, barely audible as the dirt sucks them dry.

Steve’s voice is loud and clear when he finally speaks. “Straight ahead.” He’s still pointing like he’s forgotten how to stop. The soldiers shuffle past him, guns out, firepower ready.

But Steve’s just stopped, stalled out there in the dirt, bringing all the other members of the party into a standstill with him.

“Stevie?” Eddie asks. The men with their guns continue on, uncaring of the small dramas they leave behind. Will’s glad to watch them go. “Are we not going?”

He lowers his finger, jerky like he’s straining against something Will can’t see. Still, he just looks straight ahead, voice echoing into the caverns of the underground as he says, “I’m sorry.” Will stares at the back of Steve’s head, hair somehow still perfectly coiffed after his time on the ground, in the hospital, outside of himself. “He made me do it.”

Ice sinks into him. It sinks and sinks until it feels like Will’s floating, barely there as his Mom asks, “what, sweetie?”

She doesn’t get it, somehow. Even as Wayne says, “you didn’t,” voice ragged. Even as Eddie sobs, looking past Steve and toward the distant sounds of boots stomping, the even more distant sound of dissonant growls.

“I told you, they upset him,” Steve says. Still quiet. Still echoing.

“Steve, no,” Eddie says, voice breaking as he reaches out, fingers brushing a line of heat against Steve’s forearm.

That gets him to turn around. Eyes dull, gaze distant. Blink. Blink. Blink. “It’s too late. We have to go.”

He starts walking away as the growls grow louder. Eddie stands, staring at the empty mouth of the cave, clutching his hair hard enough to rip a clump out as he pulls. “What did you do?” he whispers. “Shit, shit!”

But he turns and runs, Wayne and his Mom, and Will catching up to Steve, then overpassing him, all heading up and out.

Will trips when Eddie stops, turns. He looks back. Like Orpheus looking for Eurydice, Eddie was always going to look back. Will turns with him.

Steve’s just standing, staring out at them, something almost alive within him. Almost.

“You should go.” He’s scratching at his arms, like he’ll be able to peel away all the bits that aren’t him and reemerge, just Steve. But even as he tries to get them to go, to leave him to die, his eyes are vacant and blinking. Blink. Blink. Blink. Prove you’re alive in there, Steve.

“They’re almost here.”

The growls are reverberating off the dirt walls now, made strange and echoing under all that grave dirt. He wants to run until his legs give out, leave this place behind for good. But Eddie’s still down there. And Steve’s not coming.

Steve. What would Steve do? He’d make the sacrifice play. He’d stand firm and tall in front of any monster and the ones he loved. He always had. But Steve’s slipping away. 

So, he’ll have to do it. He can learn to make his shoulders broad and strong, be the action hero, make the sacrifice play. 

Will takes a step forward, ready to be sword and shield. For Steve. 

Eddie’s begging, pleas for Steve to come, for Steve to stay with them, on ears that can no longer hear him. “Angel, please,” he begs, reaching out to cup Steve’s cheek, even as it reddens and blisters.

Steve doesn’t answer. Death’s knocking at the door in the sounds of bullets plowing into bodies and a mud. Of growls and snarling unlike anything Will’s ever heard before.

It’s not a Demogorgon coming for them, but it sounds just as wrong, and just as hungry.

Mom and Uncle Wayne come back because of course they do. Mom looks frantic, hands flickering with the need to help. Wayne looks steady. Resolved.

“We don’t got time for this,” he says. The betrayal hits quick and hard as Will realizes they’re going to leave Steve down there. Wayne’s going to restrain Eddie, and his Mom’s going to scoop Will up, and they’re going to leave Steve to the wolves.

It's cut short when Wayne scoops Steve up like a stack of potatoes. He struggles, kicking and scratching and screaming until Wayne holds his legs down to stop the kicking.

“Get with it, Eddie,” Wayne growls, pushing his face down into Steve’s hip to hide it from his seeking claws.

Eddie, still weeping, steps up to clutch his wrists together, hard enough that it’d hurt if Steve could feel anything at all.

They hobble up and out, a make-shift rag-tag group of adventurers, not okay, but alive. Will hangs onto that conviction even as the screams kick up a pitch. Even as Wayne and his Mom hogtie Steve with all the seatbelts that can reach, ignoring the red the blisters everywhere they touch. Ignoring their wailing requests to make him stay.

Eddie sobs, loud and openly from the front seat, twisting wires together until they spark, and the engine ignites. Eddie peels out of the parking lot with a whistle that almost drowns out the last dying screams of the soldier’s the thing inside Steve had led to their doom.

They’ll all make it out of this. They have to.

Part 84

Taglist: @deany-baby @estrellami-1 @altocumulustranslucidus @evillittleguy @carlprocastinator1000 @1-8oo-wtfbro @hallucinatedjosten @goodolefashionedloverboi @newtstabber @lunabyrd @cinnamon-mushroomabomination @manda-panda-monium @disrespectedgoatman @finntheehumaneater @ive-been-bamboozled @harringrieve @grimmfitzz @is-emily-real @dontstealmycake @angeldreamsoffanfic @a-couchpotato @5ammi90 @mac-attack19 @genderless-spoon @kas-eddie-munson @louismeds @imhereforthelolzdontyellatme @pansexuality-activated @ellietheasexylibrarian @nebulainajar @mightbeasleep @neonfruitbowl @beth--b @silenzioperso @best-selling-show @v3lv3tf0x @bookworm0690 @paintsplatteredandimperfect @wonderland-girl143-blog @nerdsconquerall @sharingisntkaren @canmargesimpson @bananahoneycomb

#steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie upsidedown au #my fic #will byers #also i am SO excited for the next part :):):):):) #we'll see if i can actually hold out posting it til what. sunday?

[periwinkla]

For the pokeattorney AU, I think Trucy would be the only character with a full team and also pc boxes chock-full of mons. She has different teams for different shows and mixes them up and screws with people's minds. She probably has Zorua(s) and Ditto(s) so that she can throw people off thinking she's using one pokémon while she's actually using another. - Hoopa is her 'starter' she got from Magnifi - Gigantamax Eevee for (apollo) shock purposes - Abra and Sprigatito (suggested by @beet-8e-3t ) fit so well and it's very cute - Hydrapple (so much potential for tricks!) - Gengar (disappears and reappers in shadows and a trickster) - all unowns forms - Honedge for sword tricks - Ludicolo (a fun and cute assistant) - Kecleon (''...what is that weird zig zaggy thing moving around??'') - Clefairy (metronome!) - Wishiwashi (gimmicky) - Blacephalon (Hoopa's fault, somehow? and nobody knows what it is, everyone assumes it's some other mon dressed up as a clown) - Dragapult & family (Dreepy bullets??) - Delibird (exploding presents) - Meltan (suddenly starts eating metal and everyone is horrified) For Apollo-Trucy dynamics: - Meowstic for both her and Apollo so they can match (their eyes remind me of their lie-detecting abilities) - Plusle and Minun combo - Latias and Latios would be pretty interesting, and it would probably be because of Hoopa's shenanigans Honestly, there are probably many more still.

#ace attorney #trucy wright #pokeattorney au #pokemon

[loafyall]

Sword’s Metronome AU (Stellaron hunters Yanqing au!!)

NOTE : this Au is not mine, It is originally from @a-vivid-dreamer , I've taken permission to write this small fic which i thought of while seeing their page.

Go check @a-vivid-dreamer out! They're an amazing artist and an illustrator!! ⭐⭐✨

~~~~~~~~~~On to the main story~~~~~~~~~

.......

No...

Why?... Why?...

He's sucessful in making Jing yuan's life better, But-

Why can't he fit in?

That's the thought Yanqing had after he returned to his present.

He intervened in something he shouldn't have- Yanqing can no longer be the same.

No matter how hard he tries

"He lost his life, And his own childhood innocence."

'Elio has his eye on many, but you, The swordmaster of the luofu, have caught his attention.'

Yanqing still remembers that, the first thing Kafka told him

How foolish he is,thinking he could save everyone,trying to be that protagonist. He was wrong.

.....

He may never be the same, the sweet, Kind, Fearless boy was never seen again.

But he still shares his same name.

No matter how much, Or how less people search,

No trace of his existence nor birth has been found till date..

Yanqing, once known as the 'Lieutenant of the Xianzhou alliance',

To a Destiny's slave.

Perhaps, he wished for Jing yuan to call for him, As his retainer.

Just like those days.

----------

Now he's lost within,his existence and his innocence, Were long gone.

The latest addition to the stellaron hunters, People who he first used to dislike in his life,

But now he's a part of them.

Things will never be the same.

And that's what yanqing thought.

.............

Oh came that same old face in jing yuan's dreams. Who is he? Has he met him before?

That's only what jing yuan can think of, Just who is Yanqing?

Why is yanqing so.. familiar?

"who are you, yanqing?"

perhaps this is what was meant to be when Yanqing did this.

Now he's not longer the boy.

And jing yuan was never the same for yanqing.

.......END

NOTE : OMG I can not believe i finished this-

I think I was awake for like God knows how many hours think about this!!

CREDITS TO : @a-vivid-dreamer

CHECK THEM OUT!!

#honkai star rail #hsr yanqing #honkai star rail yanqing #yanqing #hsr #hsr jing yuan #jing yuan #honkai jing yuan #I LOVE a-vivid-dreamer's AUS!!!

[crimsonlyinglilly]

Kol's comes to have regrets.

an au of @riderofblackdragons's one.

Think I'm calling this reincarnation woes, to help separate it from the others

-----

“Come on ‘Lijah, it’ll be fun.” Kol pleads after Elijah’s fourth ‘no’ to his idea, hand shoved into his face stopping him from enjoying his reading outside on a nice sunny day.

Elijah looked at his brother’s- cousins they were cousins this life, hand and notices the lack of sword training calluses this time. 

They had both been born as firstborns this life so Dahlia had to be aware of them, leaving would be a safer option if she ever did break her word.

Not that Elijah thought she would, he had met her eyes and found a reflection of himself that he could trust and even if she did she would lose far more.

They were sixteen and eighteen, old enough for their new parents not to worry too much. Some adults of the family knew of their situations not to see anything wrong with it anyway.

Let’s join the circus. Kol had announced with a wide grin, and as Elijah thought about it was something different from their other lives.

He sighed as he  accepted the hand to pull him up, and as he was dragged off to pack he tried to focus on the lack of calluses so he wouldn’t think of the night, lives ago when he grabbed Kol’s hand as Finn fell from Father’s sword and ran.

—-

Kol learns to regret this idea. 

Oh, it is new, exciting and fun, everything he had used to get Elijah to agree, he becomes a fire thrower and expects Elijah to join him throwing knives and archery instead Elijah in fact learns trapeze and highflying is the cause for his white hairs arriving early in this life.

Elijah takes to it because he can find music in it, the swings back and forth like a metronome and every trick he performs plays the audience like well placed musical notes.

He loves it.

---

"Oh, for fuck sake Elijah, come down." Kol, for all his language, whined like the child he was again.

Elijah raised a eyebrow at him, as he swung upside down from the branch.

Kol had hoped they left this behind in the last life.

#elijah mikaelson #kol mikaelson #fanfiction #the originals #tvd fanfiction #the originals au #AU - reincarnation woes

[mareastrorum]

WIP Wednesday: TF&TS (Dream: Rhythm)

Here is a scene from chapter 4 of a longfic I am working on.

Fanfic Summary: Mollymauk Tealeaf survived the encounter with the Iron Shepherds, but a short time later, a spirit had begun hunting him, claiming that he stole his body. This Campaign 2 AU begins with Episode 26 and continues on from there.

This fanfic will be posted on AO3 starting in June or July.

⁂

May you always have Walls for the winds, A roof for the rain, Tea beside the fire, Laughter to cheer you, Those you love near you, And all your heart might desire.

A quarter moon hovered high in the sky in the late afternoon while Molly and a shadow walked along the edge of the forest by the river. The water had receded from the winter and spring floods, exposing large swaths of empty silt edges of the river bank. The duo searched through the nearby brush.

“Beithe luis fern sail nin úath dair tinne coll cert muin cort gétal straiph ruis ailm onn úr edad idad ebhadh ór uilleand iphin emancholl,” Molly recited as his tail swung above his head like a metronome.

“How do you remember all that?” asked the shadow while they picked up a long stick. They started swinging it around like a sword.

“How d’ye remember the lines?” Molly countered as he picked up another stick. He waved it back and forth, but it snapped easily, so he threw it away with a frown and kept searching.

“There’s five sets of five. Five right, five left, five slanted, five notches, and five weird ones.”

“Not any easy groups like that fer the names of the sounds. Ye just need t’ remember the order.”

“Why’s that the order?”

“I dunno,” Molly replied as he picked up another stick—which seemed to hold up fine—and started walking toward the river bed. “Old lady Seanchaidhe says it is, and the old guys don’t fight her about it. Ye get used t’ it though. Just remember which follows another and put it t’ a rhythm, and ye’ll gettem all.”

“A rhythm?” the shadow asked as they followed.

“Like a pattern. Ye can pretend it’s a song if ye like, but it doesn’t matter how ye sing it. It’s the pattern of the song.”

“That’s weird.”

“Ye’re weird.”

“I see the moon, the moon sees me…” du-DUM du-DUM, du-DUM du-DUM

“So they fought and they fit, and they scratched and they bit…” da-da-DAN da-da-DAN, da-da-DAN da-da-DAN

“So the sounds and lines are supposed to match?” the shadow asked as they used the stick to draw one long vertical line in the dirt. “Like letters?”

“Maybe,” Molly shrugged. “But Common letters don’t mean anythin’ extra, and these sounds all mean somethin’. The old-timers fight about some of ‘em.”

“What do the sounds mean?”

“Seanchaidhe says it’s the tongue of the woods, so a bunch of ‘em are s’posed t’ be different trees. It’s kinda like yer name: it means somethin’ else, but that meanin’s not yer name, and ye don’t use yer name like it’s the word.”

“The lines had trees, too. But what do you mean about my name?”

“Seanchaidhe says it’s críoch. It means ‘the end’ or ‘purpose,’ but someone made yer name shorter.”

“Who’s shan-uh-hee? How would she know?”

“A máthair chríona that knows everythin’, but she only talks in that speech, and she’ll only tell ye stuff if ye trade a story. So ye gotta learn t’ speak it first, then find a story, and then she’ll teach ye stuff.”

“So you steal books for her?”

Molly laughed, “She hates books. She says stories are s’posed t’ be told, not read, and she’s blind anyway. So don’t let her know if it’s from a book.”

The tattered book was nearly falling apart, but the text was still legible. Short stories filled the left pages with colorful paintings paired on the right, though many pictures had been defaced. Molly tapped out the beat from the similar rhymes as he read aloud. They didn’t always match, but they melded together anyway.

They all overlapped as he recited one of them.

“Thus the wolf brought the fox with him, and whatsoever the wolf wished…” Ever eating, never cloying, all-devouring, all-destroying… DUM-du DUM-du, DUM-du DUM-du, DUM-du DUM-du, DUM-du DUM-du

“…the fox was compelled to do, for the fox was the weaker…” …Never finding full repast, till I eat the world at last. DUM-du DUM-du DUM-du DON, DUM-du DUM-du DUM-du DON

“Luis is s’posed to be a tree with red berries and oval leaves,” Molly recalled. “Not seen any ‘round here though, so I dunno what else it looks like.”

“The clan called that one ‘cairtheand,’” the shadow said as they drew two smaller lines right from the vertical line. “I saw it in the mountains. It’s got pretty green leaves and strong, light brown wood. It’s good luck if you pick up fallen pieces with red berries still on it, but it’s bad luck to cut the tree.”

Molly stared incredulously.

“What?” the shadow asked.

“That sounds made up,” Molly replied. “Trees’re gray and purple. And why’s it both good and bad luck?”

“No, it’s only this forest like that,” the shadow elaborated. “There’s lots of kinds of trees, all over the world. Most have green leaves and brown wood. Cairtheand’s supposed to be a sacred tree, though, so you only take what falls off.”

Molly tilted his head, not believing any of that, then shrugged and mimicked the drawing, “That’s mine then.”

“What?”

“S’mine!” Molly insisted as he looked over. “Writin’ a whole name’s gonna take ferever, so ye just pick one of ‘em fer yer own and that’s all ye need. Fer writin’ anyway.”

The shadow thought it over for a moment. “That’s weird.”

Molly huffed indignantly, “Ye’re weird.”

Using a stick, Molly sketched out a map of the streets and alleys into the dirt. He kept different beats on each hand while his tail notched the horizontal lines in a rhythm of five and the stick marked the vertical lines in a rhythm of nine.

thump-thump-thump-thump-thump tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap

thump-thump-thump-thump-thump tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap

“Ór is s’pposed to be ivy, like the vines,” Molly continued, “but it’s gold, too.”

“That one looks like this,” the shadow said as they drew a diamond around the vertical line.

“That’s yers then,” Molly decided as he also sketched the diamond.

“Why?” the shadow asked curiously.

“‘Causa yer eyes,” Molly replied as though it was obvious.

“My eyes are yellow,” the shadow argued.

Molly shook his head in confusion, “They’re gold. Why would ye pick yellow if ye can pick gold?”

The shadow seemed confused as well, “I didn’t pick it. They’re just yellow.”

Molly scoffed, “Well, since ye didn’t pick anythin’, I picked gold, so they are.”

“Beithe. Luis. Fern. Sail. Nin…” One right line, two right lines, three, four, five… do, du-DUM, da-da-DAN, di-di-di-DIM, de-de-de-de-DEN

“Úath. Dair. Tinne. Coll. Cert…” One left line, two left lines, three, four, five… DON, DUM-du, DAN-da-da, DIM-di-di-di, DEN-de-de-de-de

“Then shouldn’t yours be ruis?” the shadow asked as they drew a line with five slanted lines intersecting. “Since your eyes are red?”

“That’s not the right sound though,” Molly insisted, his tail twitching like a heartbeat, du-DUM du-DUM du-DUM. “Luis is the right sound.”

The shadow pointed at the different drawings, “But ruis isn’t that different. And ór isn’t the right sound for me either. Coll’s the right sound.”

Molly’s tail rapidly switched beats as he drew four lines above the diamond and to the left of the vertical, DIM-di-di-di, “Coll kinda looks borin’ though, so ór is better.” He pointed at the diamond as his tail twisted with two simultaneous rhythms, DUM-du (tap-tap-tap-tap-tap). “If ye’re really gonna pick yellow—buí—instead of gold, that’s beithe, but that’s borin’, too, it’s just the one line.” He drew one line to the right, do. “Fer mine, ruis means red and gettin’ riled,” he pointed at the five slashes, DEN-de-de-de-de (thump-thump-thump), “but luis means fire and the tree with red berries anyway, so it’s better. Plus luis is shorter to write ‘cause it’s just two lines.” He drew two lines to the right, du-DUM.

The shadow tilted their head and narrowed their eyes, “You just want the one that’s good luck.”

Molly glared, then swung the stick dramatically as he replied, “Eistigi liom, there’s a buncha rudaí maith at this, and like aon rud amháin at that, so I’m pickin’ luis.”

They stared each other down while Molly’s tail whipped around.

“You’re weird.”

“YE’RE weird.”

* * *

Molly grumbled as he slowly came to, something tapping on his leg. What was that, a bird? A mouse? He tried to ignore it before the agitation was too much. He sighed in frustration and sat up, rubbing his eyes.

It was still early morning, the sky barely beginning to lighten as dawn approached. His sight took a moment to adjust to the dim light as he looked at his legs. The Bahamut tapestry shifted slightly, so Molly slowly pulled it away.

His own tail had wrapped around his leg, tightening in a matching rhythm while the spade tapped in a set of three, DON (tap-tap-tap), then repeated. It stopped once Molly intentionally unwound his tail.

He blinked, still half-asleep. Did he learn that from the dream? Weird.

It’s too early for this shite.

Molly huffed and shifted the tapestry back over his legs, then pulled it over his head as he willed himself back to sleep.

#wip wednesday #critical role fanfiction #tf&ts #lucien critical role #cree deeproots #mollymauk tealeaf #ogham #gaeilge

[spirit-tracks]

HEY BABES NEW LINKED UNIVERSE AU JUST DROPPED!

Welcome to Linked Universe: the B-Team. After all, with portals opening up across time and space, you can't expect everyone to end up in the same place.

Here's the breakdown:

Mask (young Time) fresh out of Hyrule Warriors. He's very mean and very quiet and will probably bite you if you get too close. Probably has rabies. He's older than he lets on; years of pain and experience in an unassuming child's body. He's very depressed and kind of angsty and never takes off his mask unless he has to. He's kind, though. Even if he won't admit it. (There is a reason young Time is here just trust me)

Spirit (Spirit Tracks Link) about a year after the engineer ending of Spirit Tracks. The youngest. He's kind of flighty but is willing to work with the others if they're willing to work with him. Looking at all these other heroes, he thinks he doesn't deserve to be here. He can see ghosts and souls and spirits-- it's the Lokomo in him. He's got tapetum lucidum and it freaks everyone tf out. Doesn't know what the triforce is.

Linkle (Hyrule Warriors). She genuinely, 100% thinks she is a reincarnation of the spirit of the hero. Spoiler alert: she is not. No one in the group can be sure she isn't, though, so she's along for the ride as the team's long distance archer. Happy go lucky, determined, and optimistic! Also couldn't find her way out of a paper bag. She claims to the group that she knows where she's going so they follow her directions. Not the best idea.

Hero (TV Show and CDi Link). CDi adventures first, TV series next, and now he's here! I don't even need to explain him to you, you know exactly how cursed this guy is-- but essentially, he's Gaston. Thinks he's better than everyone, is not as charismatic as he thinks he is, and kind of an idiot. Calls everyone else a 'poser' and generally makes everyone just. Dislike him. But he has his moments, certainly.

Rhythm (Cadence of Hyrule) two years after the end of his adventure. Rather chill dude. Hard to piss off, but his pal Hero knows exactly how to push his buttons. Very particular about teamwork, is probably the only one keeping this mess from falling apart. Works with a rhythm, and can quite literally get 'thrown off his groove' if he's overstimulated, particularly by rough noise with no rhythm. His heartbeat is a constant metronome that keeps him focused.

And lastly is First (Skyward Sword manga). I had to wriggle the manga's story a little to fit canon, so instead of the Master Sword, he's just got the Goddess Sword. (Fi does not exist yet!) His hylian shield is actually the very very VERY first of its kind, it's the one Sky gets from Lanayru in Skyward Sword. ANYWAY, First is the oldest, but he's less the dad of the group, more of a typical drill sergeant. He's been really soured from his time in jail, rightly so. He'll boss the others around if they get on his nerves, he was a captain (general?) after all, but typically he hangs at the back of the group and keeps an eye on the surroundings. Funny enough, he gets along best with Mask. It's that cynical, jaded air they both have that allows them to brood in solidarity.

The punchline is that these guys are literally always like. One left turn away from the regular Linked Universe gang. That's why they never meet. But they encounter Dark Link here and there as well, and get into their own shenanigans on their journey to find and finally join up with the A Team.

This has been in my drafts for a while, but lemme know what you think! 👉👈

#why is mask here when time is already in lu??? DON'T ASK QUESTIONS :crycat: #linked universe: the b team #wicked's ayoos #is this everyone i think this is everyone #if i thought i could handle more characters id put the og hero of the four sword in here because you KNOW how much i love him (them?) #but i barely trust myself with six characters like i just barely added coh Link and i don't trust myself not to accidentally leave him out #imagine how much id accidentally sideline not one but FOUR extra links nuh-uh can't do it brain too ditzy for that #BUT IT'S OKAY #I've already gotten attached to these bastards so expect to see more of them 😌 #(listen ignore how derpy linkle looks im not good at her eyes yet ZFJFZJFZSJFZJF) #wicked scribbles

[kurodachimagic]

Chocolate and Cherries - Chapter 1

Summary: When Adachi falls into the arms of a kind stranger his life changes for the better.

Rating: Pg 13

Tags/warnings: Fluff, getting together, au, Writer Adachi, Chef Kurosawa.

Word count: 6.2k

A/n: This story was written for the cherry magic mini bang! Thank you @hiwatari-art for inviting me to join! Had a lovely time working with you as always. Thank you to my other artist over on twitter guacagabs. The entire story is being posted right now. Thank you to @schnaf for being a great friend and beta!

Read on ao3

Adachi dragged his feet on the pavement as he made his way home from work. He was already too exhausted to start his writing day with the best mindset but it would have to do. He’d already skipped four days this week and if he didn’t actually sit down to work on his book, it would never be published. He let out a deep sigh and shook his head slightly.

The situation was not ideal by any means, he was not great at cooking and it was already too late to start dinner, but he definitely needed to eat something or his mind would absolutely quit on him, he knew that much.

Adachi knew he should probably get something healthier but he refused to waste even more time walking to the store, so he decided to stop by the food cart near his flat for his usual emergency menu: two tuna onigiris with mayo - along with a can of soda in the hopes that the caffeine would boost his creativity. He was not too happy about it, but he didn’t have much time to contemplate his choice because as soon as he had paid, the first few droplets of water hit his shoulders. Looking up, he felt the next few drops hit his nose and his forehead. He cursed inwardly and simply took off awkwardly running the last few blocks home, trying his best not to slip and fall, his dress shoes nothing but a hazard in this particular situation.

The building door was so close, he could see it through the pouring rain; just a few meters and he would be home. Adachi rushed, his hand extended already to grab at the door handle when his body collided with something - someone - and fell backwards. It was as if time had slowed down; he could see the face of the person he ran into frozen in shock, his eyes widening as he saw Adachi falling, while Adachi could only think about the pain this would cause him, physical, yes, but mostly emotional. He always managed to get himself in embarrassing situations and now -

His neighbour extended his hand just in time to catch Adachi’s and pulled him upright effortlessly, his expression switching from shock to a relieved smile. “Are you ok? I’m so sorry, I hadn’t seen you.”

“Thank you! I’m so sorry,” Adachi said, feeling the heat rise to his face, partly because of his clumsiness and partly because his neighbour had not let go of him yet. In fact, Adachi could have sworn that the guy was rubbing his thumb on the back of his hand. He didn’t know what to do, so he tried again. “Uh, sorry. I should’ve been more careful.”

“It’s ok, I’m glad that you didn’t get hurt.” The man seemed to suddenly remember they were standing in the pouring rain and pulled Adachi to the door. “Come, you’ll catch a cold in this weather.”

No matter how hard he thought, Adachi couldn't remember ever catching his name but he had seen this man before in the elevator and in some of the common areas. He seemed to be a bit of a recluse, much like himself.

The man opened the door and finally let go of his hand before ushering him in. “After you, Adachi.”

Adachi’s eyes widened; he didn't know how the man knew his name, but he didn’t mention it. He walked inside and called the elevator, followed closely by his saviour. Once the doors opened, he stepped in and turned around, pressing the button for the fifth floor and finally facing the man. "Thank you, again…" he trailed off.

"Kurosawa. My name is Kurosawa." He pressed the fourth-floor button.

Adachi smiled and bowed to him. "It was nice seeing you, Kurosawa. Have a good night."

The elevator dinged and Kurosawa bowed with a smile before exiting. “Good night, Adachi,” he waved.

Adachi hesitantly waved back as the elevator doors closed. Before he knew it he was one floor up, opening the door to his flat, throwing his work bag on the sofa and taking his wet clothes off with a groan before going to the bathroom.

What a day. Not only had he stayed late to finish on that project Urabe had handed to him but he also made himself look like a fool in front of his very cool neighbour, and to add insult to injury now he needed a hot shower to hopefully avoid catching a cold. He shook his head and hopped under the stream, washing himself thoroughly and letting the hot stream relax his muscles.

Feeling in a bit of a better mood, Adachi got out of the shower, wrapped himself in a towel and went about getting into a comfy set of pyjamas. He finally sat at his desk and opened the white doc of doom, checking the time and cursing as he realized it was 9 pm already. He slouched in his chair, throwing his head back with a groan. This book was going to take a million years at this rate, he really needed to prioritize his schedule, put on some good hours into it each day, especially during the weekend, he needed to -

Adachi’s stomach growled loudly, reminding him that his emergency dinner laid abandoned in its bag. He got up and stomped over to the sofa, unwrapping the onigiris and eating them without so much as a thought before returning to his spot. He promptly sat down to continue with the daily task of staring at the document while he begged his brain to type something - anything - out. But his mind had other plans though, Kurosawa’s face and gentle smile kept popping in his mind. Maybe it was because of the way he moved, how he had kept him from falling with his sharp reflexes, or maybe it was how elegant he looked even when he was soaking wet, how well his suit fitted him. Kurosawa was like some sort of superhero, or… no, he was more like a Prince Charming from an epic battle world. That was a start - it was not the murder mystery he had thought about, but it was definitely a start.

The sound of Adachi’s footsteps worked like a metronome, helping his mind settle into a rhythm. He was starting to see things in more detail: The brave prince paced in his castle, his sword close by his side, the problems his kingdom was facing were almost too much to bear and with his father on the brink of death, it was all on him. A shadow appeared above the citadel - the… the… ‘kingdom x’ was being attacked by a three-headed dragon. How would he fix this and save his people? Had someone sent the dragon or did it act with free will? Did the soon-to-be king have secret magic powers? Maybe they were a secret even to himself!

With renewed energy and excitement, Adachi sat down to work. This new world just wanted to be written, to become a reality, and he was not going to stop it. Aided by the occasional sip of soda and a few “stretching breaks” that were more like actual pacing, he managed to draft four thousand words by 5 am, effectively breaking his 3 thousand word record from just a few months ago. If he could keep up the pace he could finish the book within the next month and send it to Tsuge for editing and review. He sent a quick text to his friend to tell him the good news and got into bed; he would probably regret staying up so late tomorrow, but now he didn’t have it in him to care. Writing was definitely his call - even if he was very close to missing his goal of being a published author by 30.

---

The commute to work was nothing short of hell. The morning started with Adachi missing his usual train and having to take the next one during rush hour - not that he ever managed to avoid rush hour, but he usually took the first train during it so it wasn’t as crazy as later in the morning. This resulted in him having a very unpleasant ride, squeezed half to death between the sea of people, feeling like a canned sardine with a bad case of insomnia. That was the other issue, the previous writing night ended up being a success but even though he’d been exhausted by the time he was done, it had been impossible to fall asleep. Now he was on his way to a long workday with a pounding headache and a sour mood. If given the opportunity, Adachi would’ve chosen to take the day off to sleep and feel refreshed enough by sundown to continue writing.

His job was definitely a necessary evil, but sometimes he couldn’t help but resent it. On the verge of thirty, Adachi spent most of his day at the office, writing his reports, Urabe’s reports, and occasionally picking up the slack of some of his colleagues. There was barely any time for hobbies or relaxing and least of all to be an aspiring writer. To be completely honest, Adachi had started viewing his day job as his second career in the past year. His heart and soul were focused on his new goal, what he really wanted. In the end, if writing didn’t become his main income, it wouldn’t matter, he was passionate enough about it to continue no matter what. After all, living in the fantasy worlds he created was more than enough for him.

Adachi made it to his desk just on time, but running those last few blocks only served to make his mood even sourer. He pulled at the collar of his shirt with a small huff, still thinking about his writing and leaned back in his chair until it touched Urabe’s shoulder, startling him.

He turned around swiftly, blush already rising to his cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Senpai.”

Urabe nodded and waved him off. Then, he cocked his head and looked at Adachi in more detail. “What is going on with you, Adachi? You look tired.”

“I just had trouble sleeping last night, that’s all,” Adachi said with a heavy sigh. He could picture so many things he would rather do than give explanations about his personal life, but he would feel too guilty if he was rude to Urabe when he was only worried about him.

“Hmm, are you sure that’s all?”

“Yes. I’m ok.” He attempted his best smile. “Thank you for asking.”

“Adachi,” Urabe pouted, his brows burrowed into a childish frown, just like every time he would ask Adachi to take on more work, any semblance of concern already gone out the window. “Can you finish this report for tomorrow? The boss is really piling stuff on my shoulders and I already had other plans for today.”

Sometimes Adachi wished he was a bad person, or a bad colleague even, but he couldn’t help taking on the extra work when it was needed, after all, he didn’t have much of a life. He rolled his eyes but nodded. “Yes, of course.”

“Oh, wait. Is your birthday today or tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow.”

“And you’re turning 30, right?”

Adachi nodded once again, hoping to end the conversation as soon as possible; he didn’t want to be reminded of the passage of time or how much he hadn’t achieved by now.

Urabe rolled his chair closer and elbowed him. “Aaah, you sly weasel. Do you have a date?”

“Of course not. I’m just looking forward to getting home and sleeping.” That was literally his birthday plan.

Urabe frowned and gave him a quizzical look. “But you have... ‘dated’ before, right?” He winked.

Adachi shook his head slightly and saw the same look many people gave him, a mix of pity and judgement.

“You should ask one of the girls out. I’ve heard Yui is single and she’s very pretty!”

Adachi slowly turned his chair towards the copy machine and saw Yui across the room. She was, in fact, very pretty, but… she didn’t spark anything in him. She looked like a work of art, pleasant to look at, but not for him. “No, I don’t think that would work.”

“Adachi, if you don’t date someone by the time you turn 30, you will turn into a wizard!” He whispered.

“What? That’s ridiculous!”

“It’s true, you’ll see!”

Adachi rolled his eyes and turned back to his desk, finally starting on the reports needed. The sooner he was done with that, the sooner he could return to his writing.

--

The elevator opened its doors for Adachi and the ding that followed made his muscles relax instantly. Only a few more minutes and he would be up in his flat, taking his shoes off and cooking something quick before sitting down to write. He felt inspired by the beginning of this new story and he wasn’t about to let a bad day at work ruin that for him.

Just as the doors started to close, someone put a bag between them to keep them open. The first thing Adachi saw was a girl with a cute and gentle look, a black wispy fringe framing her face and a sweet smile. She nodded at Adachi and he smiled and nodded back. He wondered if he would ever date a girl like her, if sharing his life with a partner and doing things together would be so different than what he did now. The answer was probably not, since he assumed nobody would be supportive of him working all day and writing all night; if he was honest with himself, he didn’t really have time for a relationship, even if he sometimes yearned for a bit of company - theoretically. Adachi blinked repeatedly, suddenly crashing back into reality when he saw the looming presence of Kurosawa behind her, giving him a weird look he couldn’t quite place as he ushered the girl into the elevator.

Out of sheer awkwardness, Adachi nodded and mumbled a quiet hello at him, looking away as a blush crept onto his cheeks. Was that Kurosawa’s girlfriend? He groaned and let his head fall back against the elevator wall. He’d been caught staring at his neighbour’s girlfriend like a creep. He ventured a sideways glance and realized Kurosawa was still looking at him with a weird expression.

Thankfully, the ride was short and only a minute later, Adachi was home, barely paying any attention to his basic needs as per usual. He made some instant ramen and added a bit of egg to it before eating it mindlessly, daydreaming of his new story and the magic system involved.

Perhaps it was quickly becoming a much more ambitious project than he had anticipated but as long as the writing flowed, everything would be ok. What was supposed to be a long writing session soon turned into an early night after Adachi’s brain decided to shut down mid-sentence, putting him to sleep sitting at his desk, his head hanging down and his spine hunched over.

#cherry magic #cherry magic fic #mine

[lycanomancy]

the Fallout 4 pokemon au no one asked for.

I asked one (1) person if this was wanted and they said yes. So, here is a 17 page list of the Fo4 companions as gymleaders and Elite 4. 

for followup on type choices, here ya go

edit// as i view this more ill probably make changes/adjustments

 Warning- This post is 17 pages long in Google Docs. This is not a simple snack, it’s a Golden Coral buffet. For the love of Arceus dont open if you’re on mobile. Your phone will melt.

GYM LEADERS

SANCTUARY

Codsworth: Beats doing housework!

A Mister Handy that’s kept Sanctuary from collapsing for 200 years, Codsy is a gentleman through and through. His old owner supposedly dead, he’s still keeping the house spick and span. While tending to the Carrot Flowers, two little creatures wandered up to him, and the metal butler was smitten. Scavengers who come to pick through the ruins are met with a robot who is very insistent on not letting people steal from his neighbors, dead or not. After word got out to avoid Sanctuary if you didn’t want your Pokemon to faint, people started coming in droves to meet the challenge. “It’s just a robot, how bad could it be?” Answer: Quite bad. He doesn’t really have a Gym, but the Elite 4 noticed him enough to make him a Leader. His Badge is the Rust Badge, and he gives out TM61, Will-o-wisp.

Codsworth - Fire

Vulpix

Will-o-wisp

Quick Attack

Tail Whip

Ability - Flash Fire

Growlithe

Bite

Ember

Leer

Ability - Intimidate

DIAMOND CITY

Piper Wright: Can’t stop the Press!

Piper is a part-time gym-leader, part-time reporter, and full time sister. With her hectic schedule, her composed Grass types help her errands and keeping her sane. Piper’s paper, Publick Occurrences, used to be about news and advice for Trainers, but lately it’s been mostly accusing the city’s mayor of consorting with the shadowy Institute, known for stealing Pokemon and kidnapping people. Because of this, Mayor McDonough is constantly threatening to take Piper’s Gym (and Pokemon) away. She’s been arrested multiple times for disturbing the peace and causing fights among the citizens of Diamond City, no matter how hard her team tries to stop her. If you can withstand her onslaught of status moves, she gives you the Paper Badge and TM86, Grass Knot.

Piper Wright - Grass

Leavanny

Bug Bite

Protect

String Shot

Razor leaf

Ability - Swarm

Item - Sitrus Berry

Lilligant

Sleep Powder

Mega Drain

Magical Leaf

Growth

Ability - Own Tempo

Roserade

Stun Spore

Magical leaf

Leech Seed

Grass Knot

Ability - Poison Point

TRINITY TOWER

Strong: Strong is Strong.

Trinity Tower was a ruin after the war; but recently, Fighting-Type Trainers have made the place a Dojo, training themselves and their Pokemon with discipline and restraint. The Gym Leader doesn’t do any of this. Strong uses absolute brute force to decimate his foes and underlings. Strong came to Trinity Tower because he heard that Fighting-Types were strong against Normal-Types. After wiping the floor with the trainers, he demolished the previous Leader to the point the man went off the grid in embarrassment. Even though his underlings’ favoured Pokemon counter his own, his ferocity and mercilessness lets his Normal-Type Pokemon stand victorious. If you can fight his brawn with brain, he gives you the Berzerk Badge, along with TM64, Explosion, which he is so very sad his Pokemon can’t use.

Strong - Normal

Ursaring

Brick Break

Lick

Slash

Feint Attack

Ability - Guts

Tauros

Payback

Stomp

Horn Attack

Rock Tomb

Ability - Anger point

Miltank

Rollout

Stomp

Milk Drink

Defense Curl

Ability - Scrappy

THE COMBAT ZONE

Cait: The Irish Cage Fighter!

The Combat Zone was once a theater, before the war. After the bombs dropped, it was turned into a fighting ring. It had actually decent customers and audiences, until raiders took over. But, throughout it all (excluding before the war), Cait was the star of the show. She beats her opponents down and down and down, whether with her fists or her Pokemons’. She used to be the 5th leader, but after the raiders took over, her mental health went on a rapid decline and consequently, so did her battle ability. Now, she’s far better at beating someone’s face in with a bat than she is with Pokemon. Her Pokemon are very strong, but she just can’t use their power to her advantage anymore. Her badge is the Trigger Rush badge, and she gives you TM08, Bulk Up. Also - your biggest threat isn’t her Machamp. That Stufful will destroy you, your team, and your will to live.

Cait - Fighting

Stufful

Brutal Swing

Brick Break

Bulk Up

Thunderpunch

Ability - Cute Charm

Item - Sitrus Berry

Machamp

Karate Chop

Focus Energy

Foresight

Submission

Ability - No Guard

Hitmonchan

Mach Punch

Bullet Punch

Ice Punch

Bulk Up

Ability - Iron Fist

GOODNEIGHBOR

Hancock: Of the People, For the People!

As the Mayor of GoodNeighbor, John Hancock doesn’t want to waste time and resources for an actual Gym. To challenge him, simply walk up and ask for a battle. Since Hancock is the Mayor, he doesn’t have a lot of time to spend battling, so he fights only a select few of his challengers. First, they have to get in good with his town. If the challenger doesn’t follow the rules of GoodNeighbor and disrespects anyone in his town, they’re not getting a battle. Second, they have to get a reputation as a strong trainer. Hancock doesn’t like wasting his time with overconfident people who more bark than bite, and he doesn’t like crushing dreams of younger trainers who just want to prove themselves. If you can somehow defeat his beloved Scizor, he gives you the Isotope Badge, along with TM28, Leech Life.

Hancock - Bug

Heracross

Fury Cutter

Aerial Ace

Night Slash

Double Team

Ability - Guts

Scizor

Bullet Punch

Fury Cutter

Wing Attack

Focus Energy

Ability - Technician

Item - Sitrus Berry

Scolipede

Bug Bite

Rollout

Iron Defense

Poison tail

Ability - Swarm

Galvantula

Thunder Wave

Electroweb

Bug Bite

Leech Life

Ability - Compound Eyes

LOCATION UNKNOWN

No one knows.

The Sixth Leader is almost impossible to find. It changes daily. No one has ever fought the same Gym leader. Also, there’s no set gym. The Gym Leader will either be always on the move, or in a undisclosed, forgotten ruin that no one can find. They always have the same Pokemon and sunglasses, however, so some suspect it’s the same person being a jerk. The League claims that the leader hasn’t changed in years, and that the badge is authorized, but since no one can find the Leader, the badge isn’t necessary to fight the league. Apparently, the badge is the Cloak & Dagger badge, and the assigned Technical Machine is TM99, Dazzling Gleam.

                                                 Deacon - Fairy

Sylveon

Light Screen

Swift

Draining Kiss

Misty Terrain

Ability - Cute Charm

Item - Lum Berry

Clefable

Sing

Minimize

Magical Leaf

Metronome

Ability - Magic Guard

Florges

Swagger

Moonblast

Petal Blizzard

Wish

Ability - Flower Veil

Mimikyu

Shadow Sneak

Double Team

Toxic

Feint Attack

Ability - Disguise

Item - Sitrus berry

CAMBRIDGE

X6-88: Pokemon Redefined.

Who is the strange man that appeared out of nowhere to take over when the last Gym Leader moved? No one seems to know. The most heartless of both the Gym leaders and the Elite 4, he has no mercy for his challengers, and little respect for his underlings. As much as he appears to hate pretty much everyone, he strangely seems to like the 8th Gym Leader, who hates him. Despite how ruthless he is with training and work, and how hard he pushes people to push their Pokemon, he has been seen using baby-talk with his own. His Pokemon are wickedly strong, but if you can melt them down, you win the Harmonic badge, with TM79, Frost Breath. Also, he’ll be your  #1 fan.

X6-88- Ice

Ninetales (Ice/Fairy)

Confuse ray

Ice Beam

Nasty Plot

Disable

Ability - Snow Warning

Item - Occa Berry

Aurorus

Thunder wave

Ancient Power

Aurora Beam

Take Down

Ability - Refrigerate

Glaceon

Hail

Frost Breath

Swift

Attract

Ability - Ice Body

Weavile

Embargo

Ice Punch

Night Slash

Beat Up

Ability - Pressure

Froslass

Will-o-wisp

Ominous wind

Destiny Bond

Frost Breath

Ability - Cursed Body

Sanctuary (Previously Cambridge and Boston Airport)

Danse: Shock and awe!

Danse’s old Gym was at the Cambridge Police Station, and then the Brotherhood Prydwen when it showed up. His battle tactics got the attention of the League, and they basically harassed him to accept. He only did because being a Gym Leader gives him and his Pokemon plenty of exercise and training. The supplies given as a ‘welcome’ gift from the E4 and the good rep he was getting for the Brotherhood didn’t hurt either. However, something happened within the Brotherhood, and Danse was kicked out. He’s still a Gym Leader, despite the protest of one of the Elite 4, and he now shares Sanctuary with Codsy. He has a shiny Skitty named Cupcake. His badge is the Authority Badge, and he gives you TM91, Flash Cannon. After being exiled, his mental health, much like Cait, has gone with the wind. Not only is he too mentally out of it to perform the best he can, his Pokemon are also thrown out of the loop, and are worried to death over him. He’s not nearly as powerful as he was a month ago. 

Danse - Steel

Aegislash

Shadow Sneak

King’s Shield

Sword’s Dance

Sacred Sword

Ability - Stance Change

Metagross

Meteor Mash

EarthQuake

Hammer Arm

Agility

Ability - Clear Body

Item - Sitrus berry

Aggron

Earthquake

Avalanche

Giga Impact

Screech

Ability - Rock Head

Lucario (Mega stone)

Dragon Pulse

Aura Sphere

Psychic

Waterpulse

Ability - Steadfast/Adaptability

Item - Lucarionite

ELITE 4

Curie: Though dangerous, battle is quite vigorous exercise!

Everyone in the League agrees: Curie is an absolute angel, too good for the Commonwealth. As an Elite 4 member, though, she’s the most hellish devil from the darkest pit of...hell. An avid lover of poison types, and prodigal with potions and status healers, Curie doesn’t fight offensively, but defensively, planning out her strategy to outlast her opponents until the poisons and confusion does the damage for her. Honestly, she only uses poison types because studying them helps her find cures and medicines, which she gladly shares with anyone. After battling her, she’ll heal your Pokemon and give you more supplies, whether you win or lose. Curie won’t let you give up. She has an Audino that she uses as a nurse to heal both people and Pokemon. It has little pom-poms to cheer you on as you battle Curie.

Curie - Poison

Venusaur

Petal Dance

Poison Powder

Leech Seed

Sludge Bomb

Ability - Overgrow

Vileplume

Sunny Day

Sludge Bomb

Sleep Powder

Grassy Terrain

Ability - Chlorophyll

Gengar

Toxic

Facade

Confuse Ray

Shadow Ball

Ability - Cursed Body

Item - Leftovers

Scolipede

Baton Pass

Sword’s Dance

Iron Defense

Ability - Speed Boost

Dragalge

Dragon Pulse

Sludge Bomb

Water Pulse

Smokescreen

Ability - Poison Point

Elder Maxson: Ad Victoriam.

Intelligence, strength, power. These are some of many words used to describe Arthur Maxson, the Elder of his army, the Brotherhood of Steel. As the the Elder, Maxson personally makes sure his soldiers know what it means to be a Pokemon trainer. It isn’t about strength, defense, or speed, but raw determination, discipline, and respect for your team. Elder Maxson radiates power and generates respect. He stands tall, so his soldiers and Pokemon may look up to him. He walks with confidence, so his soldiers and Pokemon may march besides him with hope and vigor. Also, he’s kind of...racist. And pretty much anyone that isn’t a BoS soldier hates him. Has tried to personally kill the 7th and 8th gym leader - stopped because if he succeeded, he’d be booted from the E4, which he wants the BoS to have a firm foothold in. 

Elder Maxson - Dragon

Altaria

Cotton Guard

Dragon Pulse

Flamethrower

Sing

Ability - Natural Cure

Flygon

Dragon rush

Earth power

Sand Attack

Faint Attack

Ability - Levitate

Garchomp

Dig

Dragon Claw

Double Edge

Brick Break

Ability - Rough Skin

Item - Sitrus Berry

Haxorus

Dragon Dance

Dragon Rush

Iron Tail

Reversal

Ability - Rivalry

Kommo-o

Clanging Scales

Dragon Dance

Fire Punch

Poison Jab

Ability - Bulletproof

MacCready: ‘Nother notch on my rifle!

Robert Joseph MacCready - a name that will bring a myriad of reactions depending on who you mention it to. Either despised or adored, people can agree on one thing only - the young man is way too good for his age. Picking up both a sniper rifle and a Fletchling at a young age to protect his people, MacCready is rude, greedy, materialistic - and a total family guy. His Togekiss and Drifblim were his wife’s before she died. He uses multiple tactics to win, and fights dirty. Defensive strategies and accuracy are key to reaching the Champion. If you lose, expect raspberries and ‘L’s and ‘neener neener neener’.

MacCready  - Flying

Braviary

Hone Claws

Sky Drop

Rock Slide

Crush Claw

Ability - Defiant

Togekiss

Nasty Plot

Aura Sphere

Air Slash

Sweet Kiss

Ability - Serene Grace

Drifblim

Amnesia

Nasty Plot

Baton Pass

Shadow Ball

Ability - Aftermath

TalonFlame

Flare Blitz

Brave Bird

Steel Wing

Roost

Ability - Gale wings

Item - Sitrus Berry

Noivern

Hurricane

Dragon pulse

Supersonic

Water Pulse

Ability - Telepathy

Valentine: Peering deep into the darkness, wondering, fearing.

As the Commonwealth’s best (only) detective, Nick Valentine is always working. His room in the Elite 4 is his office, with papers stacked to the ceiling. His main office/workplace is in Diamond City, with his secretary, Ellie Perkins, running it while he’s away. It’s odd that he uses Dark-types, but people think he only uses them to fit his “Noir-Detective” aesthetic. They’re right and wrong. They do fit his aesthetic, especially with the black/pink color scheme with his Psychic types, but Dark types have a knack for solving mysteries. That knack, paired again with his Psychic Pokemon, help him immensely with cases. That, and their mischievousness is cute to him. Dogmeat, a shiny wild Mightyena, is often consulted for his nose-work.

Valentine - Dark/Psychic

Umbreon

Toxic

Confuse Ray

Double Team

Shadow Ball

Ability - Synchronize

Zoroark

Hone Claws

U-Turn

Night Slash

Embargo

Ability - Illusion

Absol

Future Sight

Taunt

Sucker Punch

Charge Beam

Ability - Super Luck

Espeon

Psychic

Morning Sun

Calm Mind

Attract

Meowstic

Psybeam

Reflect

Sucker Punch

Ability - Infiltrator

Gardevoir

Psychic

Signal Beam

Draining Kiss

Hypnosis

Ability - Trace

THE CHAMPION

Preston Garvey: Protect the people at a minute’s notice.

Before the Minutemen army collapsed, they prided themselves on their Pokemon. Every Soldier was given a team that could best help with building settlements and protecting them. Water, Electric, and Grass types were mandatory, for growing food, electricity, and clean water. Preston joined the ranks with a Mudbray he had since he was a kid, born from his dad’s Mudsdale. It was the only Pokemon of his to survive Quincy. After the massacre, he made it his goal to be strong enough to never let history repeat itself. After Sanctuary was able to defend itself, he set out to find weak Pokemon, as he was raised to believe the strongest creatures start out as the smallest. Now, that determination can be seen by trainers all across the Commonwealth. Preston has the ability to carry out the protection he swore to the people of the wasteland, and he will mow down anyone or thing who threatens them. 

Preston - Mixed types

Dragonite

Outrage

Fire Punch

Roost

Thunderbolt

Ability - Inner Focus

Milotic

Water Pulse

Rain Dance

Ice Beam

Dragon Breath

Ability - Marvel Scale

Jolteon

Rain Dance

Thunder

Signal Beam

Shadow Ball

Ability - Volt Absorb

Arcanine

Extreme Speed

Flamethrower

Sunny Day

Solar Beam

Ability - Intimidate

Mudsdale

Bulldoze

Iron Defense

Superpower

Heavy Slam

Ability - Own Tempo

Item - Leftovers

Sawsbuck

Horn Leech

Aromatherapy

Sunny Day

Wild Charge

Ability - Chlorophyll

Item - Heat Rock

#Pokemon #Pokemon au #Fallout 4 #fo4 #preston garvey #paladin danse #elder maxson #nick valentine #john hancock #robert joseph maccready #long post #piper wright

[jtavington]

Silver Flower AU

This has been my project for the last few weeks. Byleth makes one last attempt to reach Edelgard and fate intervenes. Trigger: respiratory distress

Red light gleamed a few feet ahead and two pairs of footsteps sounded. Byleth tensed. Edelgard carried a ball of magical flame in one hand and gripped Dorothea firmly with the other. Dorothea's lips were pursed, but she looked neither frightened nor injured. Edelgard had dispensed with her crown and regalia, wearing a tunic of deep purple. Her unbound hair made her look as if she were playing truant from the Academy instead of reigning for five years now. Her cheeks were gaunter than they'd been half a year ago, and creases furrowed around her eyes and between her brows. Byleth's gaze fixed on the black band Edelgard wore on her right arm. Byleth took a half step forward. Who do you mourn for? she wanted to ask. She didn't. Tonight of all nights, it was a ridiculous question.

Edelgard scowled. “Stay where you are, Professor.”

“You came.” Weight slid from Byleth's shoulders.

“And you two took so many foolish risks to bring me here. I felt obligated to come.” She released Dorothea and motioned her towards Byleth. “And I was curious what you could have to say to me. Our last meeting made your feelings toward me quite clear. As does the army encircling my palace.”

“I wanted to tell you...” Her mouth went dry, The Crest of Flames made people listen when she talked, but it couldn't give her the right words. There was only the pain in her chest that she'd carried since the Holy Tomb. “I'm sorry. You were the dearest of all my students, and I failed you. When you talked about changing the world, I never asked you what you meant or if there was anything I could do. Well, I'm asking now.”

Edelgard was silent for a long moment. Then she laughed, a low mirthless sound, like a death rattle. “I used to dream of hearing those words. And now it's far too late.”

“No, it isn't. We've made mistakes. Me most of all. No one likes children disowned or treated like brood mares because of Crests. Give us Rhea and tell your troops to stand down, and we can fix things.”

“You want me to yield before you speak of compromise.” Edelgard's eyes were hard. “The Church of Seiros knows only how to spout honeyed words while doing whatever they please. The only way to change Fodlan is to unite it and purge it of false gods.”

Byleth pinched her nose and closed her eyes in a silent prayer. She would have gladly slept another hundred years if it meant she could save what remained of the Black Eagles. She needed the gift of eloquence as she had never needed it before. "What about Adrestia? Those were the people your father made you swear to protect. You don't need to conquer the whole country to keep them safe."

"Don't bring Father into this." There was a warning, dangerous edge in her voice. "I swore new oaths, to the people of Duscur and Sreng. One was genocided, the other annexed, because Fodlan as it is now cannot abide those who deviate from the Crest system. If I let things in Faerghus and the Alliance continue as they are, a thousand generations yet to be born will rise up to accuse me of shirking my duty. The Church will undo my reforms the moment I'm gone."

"No, they won't." Byleth took a deep breath and tried to hide the tremor in her voice. Edelgard's voice, her unshakable will, could rouse someone to mount a barricade in her defense anytime she pleased. It was their shared gift as bearers of the Crest of Flames, but Edelgard had the advantage of having set on her path long ago while Byleth...doubted. A church that banned autopsies and telescopes might undo political reforms just to keep things the way they had always been. Unless the Goddess herself told them otherwise.

"No, they won't," she repeated with more conviction. "I'm their Enlightened One, Sothis come again. I'll make them change." She took a step forward, and this time Edelgard didn't stop her. "Take me hostage as a guarantor of reform if you need to. I'll take Rhea's place in the dungeons."

There was a flicker of something in Edelgard's eyes. Hope. "Why? You have only to strike me down tomorrow and your war be over. Do you care for the Archbishop so much that you don't want to risk what I might do?"

"No." Dorothea's voice cracked and her eyes were bright with tears. "Don't you get it, Edie? You're the one we don't want to risk. We love you. All of us."

Edelgard staggered back as if Byleth had struck her with the Sword of the Creator. “Don't,” she whispered. "You're lying. I'm the heretic who wants to tear down everything precious to you. You were destined to abandon me. It took me three years to heal my heart and you broke it again. Now you speak of love?" She made a noise in the back of her throat that started as a laugh and ended as a sob.

"We do." Byleth dared another step forward. "We're the Black Eagles. Family. I love you and if I have to spend the rest of my life as your prisoner or at the negotiating table to prove it, then so be it." She held out her hand.

Edelgard looked down at her hand. Byleth held her breath. Please believe me. I already killed Hubert and that's enough for one lifetime. You trusted me so much five years ago. Just once more is all I ask.

A roar ripped through the countryside loud enough to shake the ground. What little color Edelgard possessed drained from her face. Byleth's hand went to her sword. Electricity crackled along Dorothea's fingers, and Edelgard drew her dagger. They all knew that sound: a Demonic Beast, close and drawing closer.

"I'm guessing that's not one of yours," Byleth muttered.

"My allies are careless about where they perform their experiments. Or the subjects." Edelgard gritted her teeth. "You wanted us to be allies? You're about to get your chance."

The beast lumbered into view. It was a big one, far larger than the ones Edelgard had commanded at Garreg Mach or Gronder. Poison dripped from it's gaping maw, dripping on the grass and turning it brown before her eyes. They had killed creatures like this before, but always with the help of a battalion or a Relic. Now they had neither.

Edelgard struck first. The magical light became roaring flame and she lobbed the ball straight at the monsters head. The hilltop glowed with purple light as magical flame met magical defenses. The Beast flinched and roared but did not retreat. Dorothea let fly lightning. Again, the beast merely roared. They had to try something before either claws or poison were the end of them. Byleth summoned the power of her Crest and leapt into the air. She drove her blade into the snout, where magic had already struck. Black blood oozed from the wound.

Byleth didn't get a chance to enjoy her victory. She felt the ground and slipped on a loose stone. She threw her hands out to regain her balance, but it was too late. She fell to her knees, and the wounded Beast roared once more. Hot breath rushed over her. So too did the corpselike stench of the poison. Byleth forced herself to look up. If she was going to die because of a stupid rock, she could at least look death in the face. Hubert must be laughing, wherever he was.

"Professor!” Edelgard and Dorothea screamed almost in unison. Strong hands slammed into her side rolling her out of the way as the Beast spewed forth its venom. Drops splattered on her cloak, leaving holes as if it had been singed. She twisted and her breath caught in her throat. Edelgard had pushed her out of the way. Her reward was a thick covering of the purple liquid. She screamed.

Byleth clenched her fist and the scene froze. She forced herself to exhale in and out. What had Edelgard been thinking? What had she been thinking, trying such a flashy attack? Only a true goddess could have moved fast enough to push them both out of the way in time. The poison of a Demonic Beast was a terrible thing. It was, first and foremost, a paralytic agent. Muscles refused to work even weeks or months later and deformed the face as one side was able to move and the other was forever frozen. Worst of all was what it did to the lungs. The victim would asphyxiate within minutes without a physician. Even the strongest and healthiest were nothing before it. And Edelgard was covered in the stuff.

She drew her finger in a slow circle. Time remained still. She's tried again. Nothing.

Byleth couldn't move, couldn't think, either to reverse time or free it. This was Fate? That Edelgard die because Byleth had tripped? Something wild and rebellious kindled within her. No, she wouldn't let this destiny stand, not when destiny had led her only to a river of blood. No doubt the pious would say that Edelgard deserved such a horrible death. She was unrepentant, no matter how hard Byleth had prayed a few moments ago. Maybe this was nothing more than the perverse answer to her wish that she not have to face any more of her students. Well, a Goddess who answered prayers that way could go to the flames.

Time began again and Byleth forced herself to her feet. She summoned a pulsing white light of holy power. "Dorothea, now!" Electricity and the power of the Goddess combined in a riot of color that left the beast thrashing before it fell to the ground like a stone. Byleth rushed to Edelgard's side. She hoped that she wasn't too late.

Edelgard lay sprawled face-up. Her eyes bulged, her face froze in terror, and her limbs splayed at awkward angles as the venom worked its way through the body. "Not like this," Byleth whispered. She transformed the holy power into the warm glow of healing magic. If she couldn't get Edelgard breathing again, nothing else mattered. She focused on Edelgard's chest as healing power left her. She couldn't purge the poison, but she could force Edelgard's lungs to work despite it. The magic pulsed and breath was inhaled and exhaled in time with the perverse metronome. Edelgard's eyes widened. Fear. Pain. "Shh. I know it hurts. But you need to live. Understand? I won't let those rats and their filthy experiments have the last word.”

[whitelotus-ffxiv]

lotus.

“Just like the lotus, we too have the ability to rise from the mud, bloom out of the darkness, and radiate into the world.” – Unknown

“Again!”

The instructor’s voice rings out in the garden, and I lift my eyes from the embroidery that had been set upon my lap. I am thirteen years old, now. From now since I was six - when Hui and I were first taken in to this yakuza sect - I have lived in the Tiger’s Den... or, rather, with the wives and girl children. 

They teach me all the aspects of an accomplished woman. They teach me how to dress and how to speak so as to bring honor to Doma and to the Kinoshita-gumi both. I learn embroidery and calligraphy, I learn to dance with fans and to sing and to play the guzheng, the guqin, the koto, the erhu, the flute (though I have no talent for the flute at all). They praise me for the way I am blossoming into what they call a beauty, with my lily-white complexion and sharp, bright eyes and inky black hair. I do not know what makes a beauty, but I suppose that it must be these things, except on the days when the oyabun’s wife tells me I am an ugly and sour, disobedient child with no redeeming qualities. 

I sit on the porch near the training grounds, my silk hanfu spread across the space I occupy in shimmering colors of pale pink and pale green. The weather is warm but with a cool breeze, and I hear the sound of the shishi odoshi in the nearby koi pond, almost like a metronome keeping time with the movements of the young men training. 

Front and center is the oyabun’s son, a boy a little older than me and a little younger than Hui. He is a Hyur, but tall for a midlander, with shoulders that are already broad and black hair that is cropped close to his head. He is training, they tell me, to be an assassin. I can understand why. His body is lithe and his movements are quick, nimble. It’s rare to hear his footsteps, except when he and the other boys are laughing and loud and drinking late into the night. 

I watch and pretend that I don’t, keeping my eyes half-focused on my needlework as the other girls around me murmur and giggle about the sweating boys. Hui is not among them. It’s his brain that makes him valuable to the Kinosihta-gumi, not his brawn, and part of me thinks this makes my big brother far superior to the men who carry swords. There are a hundred other reasons why Hui is better than any other man, of course, but... this is one of them. It has always been his cleverness that has kept us alive. 

And when the instructor again calls for them to halt and do the exercises again, I shake my head. It’s the young Raen boy who is making the mistake. His foot lands in the wrong place each and every time, leaving him vulnerable to the attack of his partner. I hear the oyabun’s son - Kage - let out a quiet growl of irritability, and there is a sudden scream from the girls beside me.

“Xiu!” they yell, and I lift my head. There is a knife whizzing towards my face. I lift my embroidery hoop, my wrist snapping it into place, and I exhale as I watch the steel of the knife cut through the fabric, ilms from the tip of my nose. 

There is a heavy, pregnant silence. Slowly, I lower the hoop and look to the source of this projectile weapon, feeling the tic of my jaw. Kage and I lock eyes, and from the position of his shoulders, I know it was he who threw it to begin with. I arch a brow and reach up, pulling the knife from the fabric. It had stabbed through the center of the lotus flower I’d been working on. 

“There is no need to try to kill me just because you’re frustrated with your brother, Kage,” I say quietly, and there’s a quiet ripple of laughter from the men. Crisis averted, but I look to the Raen boy, his head hanging. 

“I wasn’t aiming for you,” Kage mutters as he comes close, and I hold the embroidery hoop up for him to retrieve his knife. “I just wanted to scare Eiji... Forgive me, Xiu. You’re not hurt?” 

Before I can answer, I hear my name being spoken once again - but this time, it’s not by one of the other girls. Every head turns as we all recognize the voice at the same time, and there’s a sinking sensation in the pit of my stomach. Everyone hits their knees at the same time, heads so low that they touch the ground, and loathe as I am to do it, mine is included. 

The oyabun stands at the front of the training grounds, his yukata loose and his katana hanging upon his hip. 

Power-hungry son of a bitch, I think... and then the guilt chases me as a dog, for thinking so cruelly of the man who gave Hui and I a roof over our heads. 

“Xiu,” he repeats, his heavy brow furrowing. “I told you to come. On your feet. Kage,” he adds, and Kage needs no further instruction. He turns sharply on a heel and goes to meet his father, and I set my hoop down.

The red thread I’d planned on using for the koi in the pond of my picture hangs like strands of blood from the center of the wounded lotus flower.

The oyabun’s quarters are grand, everything black and gold. It’s the previous throne room of the original owners of the palace that the Kinoshita-gumi has turned into a compound that we’re lead to. The oyabun still, essentially, uses it as such. The man sinks back onto his low throne as I enter behind Kage, hands folded primly in front of myself and eyes lowered.

Will the ghosts of this place devour you, oyabun, for playing as a king? Will they come for you for pretending to be ruler of a place you have stolen, of a place you bloodied your hands to take? Do you still hear the screams of the children you cut down so that you might have a palace of your own? 

From the shadows, two of the oyabun’s guards emerge, and they seize Kage by the arms. He doesn’t even resist, and I know what is about to come. A third guard comes as the back of Kage’s shirt is ripped once he’s forced onto his knees, and his father watches with emotionless eyes, so dark they look black, so deep they seem to be the void itself. 

I’ve seen many beatings and whippings in the compound. The oyabun is not shy about making them public, nor is he shy about doing it to his own flesh and blood if they displease him. It’s only once that I’ve been publicly whipped, and it was for forgetting to bow when the oyabun came into the room. On this day, the wounds are still sore, but I force myself to watch as Kage receives his lashes. He doesn’t flinch, and he doesn’t cry out. His back is already scarred with the long marks from the leather lash. 

“Please,” I mumble, keeping my eyes low. “Please only the five, oyabun. It was an accident. He didn’t mean to--”

“Do you hear the girl pleading for mercy for you, Kage?” the oyabun asks, coldly, staring down at his son. “You have burdened her. Would you disfigure her because of a temper tantrum? Would you be so careless with your aim because you lost your head? Will that serve you well on future assignments?”

“No, oyabun,” Kage gasps, and I purse my lips, swallow the angry lump in my throat as I see blood blossoming across his sun-kissed back. 

I can’t take it anymore, as the guard lifts his hand for the sixth. I have always been quick, quicker than any of the boys my age they train. In a flash of silk, I rise to my feet and twist around Kage, pulling the knife he’d thrown by accident in my direction from his belt and lifting my arm. The whip wraps around it as I intercept the lash, and the guard looks at me with wide eyes as I grit my teeth and dig my feet into the floor.

“An accident,” I repeat, refusing to budge, even as I feel the hands of one of the other guards reaching for my arms. They’re all so much taller than me - male Au Ra, of hulking size - but I am... angry. A drip of Kage’s blood rolls onto my fine silk slipper, so close am I to his hunched over body.

“Don’t touch the girl,” the oyabun instructs in a cool, level tone, and all of us look towards him, then. I know my eyes are blazing, and that to look at him as such could mean very well signing my own death sentence. 

Even at thirteen, I can’t find it in myself to care too much.

“You are a brave child, aren’t you?” he asks me, and I say nothing, still with white-knuckles around the hilt of the knife I’ve taken.

Not brave. I’m foolish. An idiot. And nothing makes me more of a foolish, angry idiot than looking into your face.

“Have you a desire to fight, Xiu?” The oyabun is unphased by my lack of reply, and slowly, I lower the knife and furrow my brow at the question. Even Kage glances up in surprise, looking between his father and me as he pants. I know the pain from the whip is still stinging, but beginning, slowly, to dull into a throb. 

“You don’t allow women to fight,” I reply, the guards fading back into the shadows, though I don’t lower my stance. The oyabun looks me over before he looses a low chuckle.

“It seems that you’ve already taken it upon yourself to learn, judging by how you’re standing... and by how quickly you reacted to a dagger flying towards your face. The other girls would have screamed and ducked or else been hit. You did not even flinch.”

I’ve watched the boys learn to fight for years. Am I so blind that I would never have picked anything up, never memorized anything to protect myself, never had any sort of curiosity, never practiced what they do? 

“My brother Hui would not permit me to fight, oyabun.”

“It is not your brother Hui who is in charge of you anymore, Xiu.” 

And, soon, it would become all too clear that neither was I in charge of myself anymore, either. There was only one boss above all others in the Kinoshita-gumi, and it was on that day, at thirteen years old, that he made the executive decision, a decision that would forever change my life.

I would become his right-hand weapon. 

#writing #cw abuse #ffxiv rp #yakuza rp #doma #ff14 rp #doman rp #ffxiv #ff14 #to be continued probably!

[a-vivid-dreamer]

Sword’s Metronome AU (11)

A mysterious swordsman referred to as “Yanqing”.

He is noted to be the latest addition of the Stellaron Hunters.

Despite extensive searches, no current databases across the galaxy have any information on his identity nor record of his birth.

(Felt like trying my hand at making a sort of fake splash art for him. Honestly had so many different ideas on how to make this but this one seemed to cooperate with me so I went with it, haha.)

#a-vivid-dreamer artworks #sword’s metronome au #honkai star rail #alternate universe #hsr #yanqing #digital art #time travel #time travel fix it #time loop #yanqing hsr #yanqing honkai star rail #fake splash art

[oswednesday]

hey, consider the following

milo’s team being more farm themed and less showing off the games gimmick mechanic with a grass pkmn

(an au where this thing is like raddish colors for the region,vileplum but as a red and white capped mushroom in the rematch, in this fantasy au where the pre-elimination gym game is more involved you have to pull oddishes out from the community garden, you have to be patient and gentle or they’ll posion you, an ingame effect would be yuor whole team gets inflected with poison damage)

(ability:  chlorophyll, moves: poison powder, stun spore, sleep powder, razor leaf)

(rematch moves as a vileplume: petal blizzard, grassy terrain, pollen puff, aromatherapy )

(lumbre will be drawn with like, a top hat and be like muddy green and grey, in the rematch its a ludicolo, again in this fantasy au where the gym “missions” are more involved and game mechanicy, you are given a lumbre to water the garden but you have to make pokefood and be friend it to get it to do what you ask, if you mean or get the food wrong it sprays you with water instead and your team all takes like the equivalent of a water gun attack)

(ability: rain dish, moves: rain dance, water gun, teeter dance, thunder punch)

(moves as a ludicolo in the rematch: rain dance, hydro pump, metronome,thunder punch)

(regional change is it evos when you have morelull or shiinotic on your team! the challenge is to harvest the healthy pumpkins before they get moudly and turn into pumpkaboo! no damage is taken here but its timed! you need like ten pumpkins and a pkmn that knows cut, the time is anywhere between 5-1 min like somethin doable but intense still)

(milo has a supersized one in battle and the rematch he has supersized gourgeist, dynamaxes with the max flare ) (also dont they sorta look alike like milo and a gourgeist?)(also i realized him having this pkmn sorta steps on the ghost gym leaders turf, if it was version exclusive this would be in sword and vileplum would be the gigamakebig in sheild, but its not its a hypothetical gameplay for a nuzlocke run and i want to draw a big pumpkaboo,so)

(ability: frisk, moves: incinerate, trick, vine whip, grass knot; max flare)

(moves as a gourgeist: mystic fire, phantom force, power whip, brutal swing;max flare)

(mini game is basically the same only you issue commands to the yamper, similar to the watering game, you need to know when to give treats, when to give praise, when to whistle and when to yell, you navigate the yamper and wooloo through a corn/wheat/haybail w/e maze, when you reach dead ends theres trainers who are farmhands(who will have some combination of seedot/budew/cherubi/bounsweet/gossifleur) or if your flock and yamper are all over the place herdier (early part of the maze) or a stoutland (later part), once youre all done you have to battle an Old farmer trainer in front of the gate who will have eldegoss, a wooloo and a stoutland, then you can close the gate!)

(ability: rattled, moves: nuzzle, roar, howl, discharge)

(yamper remains unevolved in the rematch, hes a farm dog afterall! moves: wild charge, uproar, snarl, thunder)

(another timed mini game! you gotta milk the miltank with the gameplay like quick time event guitar hero or w/e, its a set sequence and you just got to nail it within one min, this mini game is less involved because this miltank is going to wreck your shit in battle)

 (the miltank is his highest lvl pkmn and her ability is dependant on your starter pkmn! so if you went fire she’ll have thick fat, if you go water she’ll have scrappy, if you went grass she’ll have sap sipper! her move set is milk drink, heart stamp, stomping tantrum and ironhead)

(her move set remains the same for the rematch! and is like sameish levels as the rest of the team now)

(this one is timed AND you take damage, you have to wipe down the mudsdale, you get a towel and the lumbre again you just have to go to use the towel and hit “a” until the dirts all gone, but itll kick and turn about, and you got to qte avoid it with “b”, if youre in the way of the kick all your pokemon take a hit of whats basically stomp! you can feed the lumbre pokefood like before and itll use water gun, keeping the mudsdale still while you wipe it down, each time you do that it takes damage! there are only four spots to wash, and it retains the damage in battle (going no lower than half if you used water gun for each spot, after youre done you’ll go Directly into the gym battle, milo wont sign your card of him if you use water gun on his mudsdale tho!)

(ability: stamina (is in effect during the mini game!) moves: stomp,rototiller, double kick, smack down)

(rematch: bide, rototiller, mega kick, smack down)

#wednesday plans a nuzlocke

[enlacinglineswrites]

Chapter 2 of ‘Build up our machine’ is up now!

This story is Klance dystopian/post apocalypse AU. Thanks for all the support of chapter 1! 

Small preview below:

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Lance feels tears prick at his eyes and he buries his head in his hands as he starts to sob. It’s messy and clawing, whining wounded noises escaping from his throat, because this is it. This is where he will die, and he knows it will not be quick and it will be painful. The inevitability of his fate is a cruel type of terror, and he has no sword to battle against it with. 

Your emotions are so loud. How do you stand it?

The voice rings through his mind, causing Lance to halt in his sobs on instant. He breathes in shakily three times, heart a metronome in his ears. For he is sure those words came to him but he is also sure they were not spoken. Just echoing in his mind without the need for hearing. 

That is better, the calmness of fear. Now, we can talk.

“What?” Lance says, his voice barely a whisper in reply. 

I understand what has happened today is much for you to take in. Your mind is a delicate thing. But we do not have much time and you must make a choice. 

Lance swallows, scrubbing at his eyes and removing his hands from his face. He stares around the room, twisting on his knees to capture any indication of where this voice may be coming from. When he finds nothing, he stumbles to his feet. 

“Who are you?” Lance says.

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Read chapter 1 Read chapter 2

#klance #klanceau #klance au fanfic #klance fic #klance fanfic #new klance #klance update #dystopian klance #vld klance #ongoing klance fic

[whatscallion]

rise: ch. vi

//- A Medieval AU based on some Marvel parallels that follows Natalia Romanova in her rise to divinity.

Chapter Summary: In the wake of Saint Johann’s fall and the Burning of Rifthelm, a new enemy wears the face of her past, thus beginning a new hunt.

Chapter Word Count: 1,275

Previous Chapters: Prologue - One - Two - Three - Four - Five

Tagging: @cptsteven @blackberrywidow​ ( message / ask to get tagged! )

An eerie stillness enveloped the ramshackle courtyard that served as the town’s bustling center. It had only been necessary that St. Johann’s cathedral had presided over many from that spot alone. It’d been a place in lined with trees filled with pristine blossoms, provoking philosophy and faith at first glance, but within those carved stones were secrets of truths untold. Locked away from prying eyes and eager minds, they were cauterized with the flames that had roared through the night in defiance of the Lord above and his lowly creations. In its rampage, generations of lives and beliefs were return to the earth from whence they came. Rudimentary elements were now all that remained of The Order, restored and cleansed to the blackest of ideals.

There had been one lone survivor, life spared only by the convenience of absence on that fateful night. Ivan had been foolishly trusting of the normality each night proffered, yet it’d been the haze on the horizon the morning after that had turned his attention from complacency to that of urgency. Something had gone awry, and liquid steel set forth through his muscles to power him into action.

Through the deception of a peaceful morning, he rode. Skies began to illuminate in brilliant shades of pink melting through indigo to the faintest blue, just as Ivan reached the outskirts of the veritable serpent’s head. Burnt timber held its scent heavily in the air, mingling with the falling snow. Peace came through the pops and fizzles of embers too stubborn to die out, yet realization came upon the elder Romanoff as one such snowflake fell upon his calloused hand.

No, not snow. Ash of his brethren now lay as a blanket across their dominion. It stained the very fabric in which he had pledged utmost allegiance to. An ungodly anger coursed through him, a vehemence nailing revenge to every trail thoughts carved into his mind. The sheer audacity this violence held firm the belief to invoke a greater reaction.

Ivan’s face was set in granite, though his gaze melted with the intensity charring the center of his bones. The cathedral was left as a mere shell of itself having been left to burn on its own volition. An act of God, he knew others would say. Was that why none of the followers had even attempted to calm the flames? There was bitterness in their fearful obedience, allowing for subtle rebellion when the time came. On the whim of the breeze, the bones of the bloodlines were reduced to nothing more than a dream’s veil of sleepy dust in silent reprieve. Lost within his own thoughts, a vivid imagination came to life in order to accurately track exactly where he was within destroyed framework. Without the schematics he envisioned, there was nothing left to be familiar with. There was simply nothing left at all, and in the collapse of Saint Johann, the ripples would be felt outward, forcing the inevitable doom of an ideal born of wickedness.

Further inward the seasoned killer moved, finding little to no remorse for the obvious bodies he stepped over in quiet nonchalance. Though he touched nothing, the filth of demise clung to him as if returning to familiar lands of the dead. The putrid scent of burnt flesh was only accompanied by the low squabbles of scavenging crows, scraping away whatever meat the flames didn’t burn away. It branded a scowl on the man’s face, yet there was an absence of surprise or shock.

There had been an unhealthy awareness of impending repercussions, for regimes of the past all met the same dismal end. Suspicions had kept him wary, and now there’d been something of a payoff, yet it was only replaced with theories of how, why and who. There were too many enemies to pinpoint it down, yet Ivan still envisioned the gore of death bestowed upon the head of each who had ever opposed The Order and lived.

Just as he accepted the shouldered burden of becoming the only relic of a dead empire, familiarity struck him as he stepped behind the skeletal altar. Without walls, it was easy to into the hidden chambers. Though marked only with the faint foundation of the cathedral, there was no mistaking the metaphorical blood soaking into the flooring. It’d been in those chambers that Instruments were born while their mothers perished, released from their fleshy vessel to rip away what weakness they might have been. It’d been in those chambers Katerina had met her end, simply by loving the wrong man. Fear had been what kept him obedient, the flash of rebellion now having turned to regret as he had let her die by The Order’s hands. It had been where his greatest triumph was born, and now, as he stood over the charred sword still holding upright, it was where his greatest enemy flourished.

Weathered fingertips moved over the hardened hilt, almost curious as to its design before following the blade’s direction down into an empty chest cavity. Johann, surely, for the golden rings upon stiff fingers belonged to no one else. Intricacy pressed against palms as he gripped the sword, yanking it free from its hold in the floorboards beneath. Slow dawning drew animalistic fury to curl his lip in a hard sneer, for the sword held more significance than his body could contain.

“Natalia,” he growled, a promise of destruction branded in the name of a demon born through and through. A frenzy engulfed him, painting his view of the world in bright crimson, sin becoming that of his daughter and the only other artifact of The Order. A trail would be left as a means to show that retribution would be swift and known to all, and it would start at the very beginning of Johann’s downfall.

Matthias Murdoch, the Blind Nomad.

The defected assassin had squirmed more than Ivan had originally assumed, but the fight had been drawn out in order to sate a sense of sadism to continue fueling vengeance. Though the Murdoch boy had been more than capable in previous times as far as detecting assailants, Ivan had been steeped too long in the tradition of silence and bloodshed. Prevailing without sight could only get you so far, hence Matthias’s cull from the flock. It should’ve been done sooner, or rather, it should’ve been done at the time of his exile. There had been a moment’s weakness in the forefathers, perhaps born of pity, that allowed the young boy survival despite disability. They hadn’t the foresight to see how pivotal he’d become in time’s end.

Silence had been the medium in which they spoke, questions given through hits landed and answers replied in tactical evasion. But it hadn’t been enough for Matthias, nor had it ever. Life bled from him on the floor of that dingy cave as Ivan stood over him, painted in the guise of the nomad’s own blood. Labored breathing ran the metronome of dwindling life, clouded eyes staring up at nothing.

“You’ll never,” Matthias finally spoke, barely audible over the natural din in which he was surrounded by. “...kill-” It was enough to draw a rabid animal’s attention downward, almost entertained by what the lesser being chose to say with his last words.

“You’ll see dearest Natalia soon enough in Purgatory, swine,” he replied calmly despite his war paint. Matthias chose a pained laugh over anything, silenced only in a wet cough.

“You cannot kill a God, Brother Ivan,” Matthias whispered, his smile as confident as it was telling. “The God Widow will prevail where you failed.”

“Awful choice of words for you last, Murdoch.”

#black widow #natasha romanoff #avalon #medieval au #mine #fic series

[the-apocryphal-one]

DR x Pokemon: Super Dangan Ronpa 2

And here’s the second part of my DR x Pokemon crossover AU, this time with the cast of the second game! These guys were even more fun to design teams for than the first cast. As in the first post, let me know if you strongly disagree or agree with any of them--it is just for fun, but discussion can be fun too!

You can find Part One here!

Lots of super common ‘mons here. Sorry Hajime, but it fits with your normalcy, complex about said normalcy, and inability to pay the Reserve Course fees (you can’t afford to catch anything good). The two exceptions are Eevee, which is also Normal but has lots of potential, like he does; and Larvesta, which is weak but will become a god-like entity if you can evolve it. Hmm, does that sound familiar to anyone...?

...also sun imagery goes really well with Hajime’s full name meaning “to face a new day”. I just couldn’t pass that by.

All his Pokemon are shiny. Because of course they are.

Ultimate Lucky student = Unfezant. Granbull is a reference to the dog he used to own. Garbodor is because he thinks of himself as trash. Delibird and Clefable both have luck-based moves (Present and Metronome). M-Ampharos is because he wants to help hope shine brightly...and it has fluffy white hair. 

Additionally, some of his Pokemon have accuracy problems and so need his luck to help land hits—Delibird has the ability Hustle, Clefable has Sing, M-Ampharos has Zap Cannon, etc.

Search your feelings. You know it to be true.

Real talk, the reason he only has Dittos instead of Mimikyu or Zoroark is because those two pretend with disguises and illusions; Ditto pretends by actually turning into whoever it’s copying. 

On a happy note, he can tell his Dittos all apart, always.

His three dragon types are references to his family name (nine-headed dragon). I did consider giving him three Hydreigons to make the pun complete, but it doesn’t really fit him. As for why these specifically, Haxorus is awesome, Dralage’s ambushes and ship attacks have criminal vibes, and Goodra represents his inner soft side. Honchkrow is based off a mafia boss, which I know isn’t yakuza but still carries the same connotations. Krookodile and Mightyena are more underworld type ‘mons.

I find it abhorrent that we have like 800 Pokemon and not a single one is hamster-based. Togedemaru comes closest, having four of them is obviously meant to reflect the Four Dark Devas. Greninja looks like him, just look at the scarf. M-Houndoom is a literal hellhound, nothing fits his ‘ruler of hell’ shtick better.

The three monkeys help him with cooking. Miltank provides milk (and jokes, I’m sure), Tropius fruit, and Lickilicky is because of his perverse nature.

Hitmontop and Emboar are both Fighting types, with Emboar in particular referencing his BURNING SPIRIT. Passimian is based off football, which as a team manager he surely has experience with. He’s got Zebstrika because lightning flies out of his eyes, and Bastiodon because Mechamaru. Skuntank farts when sent out, referencing his toilet humor.

Wimpod is a coward, like him. M-Sharpedo is there because of his shark teeth. Klinklang is literally a bunch of gears and he’s a mechanic. Machoke, Ambipom, and Donphan all help him in the workshop—Machoke isn’t fully evolved because he just wants help with heavy labor, and doesn’t have anything near Sakura’s martial arts training.

She shares Porygon-Z with Chihiro because she’s an AI. Komala is because of her sleepyhead nature. Crobat and Delcatty reference her hoodie and backpack. Sylveon is a major ‘power of friendship/love/hope’ Pokemon. Azumarill references her relation with Usami--though I admit, I went back and forth between it and a shiny (pink) Lopunny for ages. Ultimately, Azumarill’s Fairy type and matching Usami’s round body won out.

I had only three things in mind: fighting types because she loves to battle strong opponents, fire types because she’s a hothead, and Acrobatics because she’s a Gymnast even if she doesn’t care for it. In fact, her entire team except Hitmonlee can learn Acrobatics, and Hitmonlee is apparently partially based off acrobats anyway.

Half her team are dance-based to help with her performances, like Sayaka. The other half references her bullying and general nature. Liepard is called the ‘Cruel’ Pokemon, Toxapex looks cute but is highly poisonous, and Heatmor represents her ant-squishing. Froslass gets special mention for representing both halves--it’s a dancer (and it even wears a kimono!) and is known to be pretty cruel too.

Hoooo boy Mahiru gave me a hard time. We have no photography Pokemon and she doesn’t have any screaming standout quirks. So I went off her desire to make people smile. Sunflora, Ribombee, Jumpluff, and Ludicolo all seem like they’d help in that field. Drampa is pretty gentle with kids, so I think it’d be good for entertaining them and setting up shots. M-Kanghaskan likes taking care of others, referencing how Mahiru is the ‘team mom’.

Like Leon, she has an Exploud for sound amplification; in fact, all her first three are very much noise-based Pokémon, a lot louder than Sayaka’s gentle singers. Shiftry is a reference to her long nose sprite. Magmortar can make a dramatic entrance with smoke and create pyrotechnics, like in DR3. Finally, she has M-Manectric to help with light shows and because she finds it electrifying.

Samurott is a samurai, Farfetch’d uses a sword-like weapon, Seviper uses its tail as a sword, and Aegislash is literally a blade. Skarmory’s feathers were used as swords in the past. Whimsicott satisfies her love for fluffy things, and was a present from Fuyuhiko against his family’s orders (they wanted her team to only reflect her being a ‘tool’).

Blissey and Audino are the two Pokemon that immediately leap to mind when you think ‘healer’. Alomomola and Florges also make good ‘clerics’; Almomola has Healer and learns ‘Wish’, while Florges gets both ‘Wish’ and Aromatherapy. Wishiwashi and M-Banette represent her yandere side; Wishiwashi is a crying, timid thing, but becomes so terrifying in School Mode that Gyarados run from it. Meanwhile, Banette wants to inflict pain on the person who threw it away, and Mikan has lot of pent-up anger towards her bullies.

Persian and Serperior for the same reasons as Byakuya. Her ghost-type represents her liking for the occult. She has a Scizor (not Mega, though) because her admiration for serial killers translates to borrowing the signature ‘mon of the most notable one. Escavalier is her knight. And finally, as the princess of a military nation, I think she’d easily have some powerful dragon-type, and Charizard-X’s aesthetic looks like something she’d like.

AKA ‘stop having fun guys’. Tangrowth matches his hair :P The next four are all hard to raise pseudo-legendaries, befitting his Ultimate Everything. Volcarona is the same one Hajime had, and has multiple meanings for Izuru too: it was also considered a ‘savior’ (aka a hope) in ancient Pokemon times, and while he only kept it because he didn’t care to switch it, he still has it, representing how there’s a little bit of Hajime left in him. Speaking of, Volcarona was mind-wiped too, and the rest of Hajime’s team were disposed of by the Steering Committee :(

Finally, over half his team is capable of Mega Evolution; they just can’t, because that requires a strong bond between trainer and Pokemon, and Izuru lacks that. I also came pretty close to giving him Nihilego (for their shared apathy), but it’s an Ultra Beast, so it doesn’t really count.

Credit to @oceanairwonderland​ for Izuru’s sprite!

#sdr2 #pokemon #crossover #pokemon au #hajime hinata #nagito komaeda #ultimate imposter #fuyuhiko kuzuryu #gundham tanaka #teruteru hanamura #nekomaru nidai #kazuichi soda #chiaki nanami #akane owari #hiyoko saionji #mahiru koizumi #ibuki mioda #peko pekoyama #mikan tsumiki #sonia nevermind #izuru kamukura