#briar valley are you okay. is it something in the water. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

rggie · 2 years

Text

twst first-years as your roommate!

characters: sebek, jack, ace, jack, epel ortho. [ ortho’s is strictly platonic! ]

cw: gn!reader, crack & fluff, pining, sfw, unedited.

sebek zigvolt

“malleus, oh malleus! you are truly illustrious, and above all benevolent! i pledge my life to you! I KNEEL BEFORE YOU MY KING!!”

new drinking game. take a shot every time sebek says malleus

you wake up every morning to sebek chanting to his malleus portrait like he’s truly standing with you in your room. you don’t need an alarm clock when you have him bellowing at 5AM. you press your pillow against your ears but to no avail. you can still hear him, he’s that loud!!

he literally kneels down to the painting as if he’s getting a knighthood (he’s practicing for the future, okay?)

tells you that you should also join him and prostrate yourself before his lord… if you tell him to shut up he will look at you with an incredulous expression as though you’re the crazy one. are you silencing him, and in association, lord malleus? your insolence besmirches you!

if it gets too much for you he starts whispering aggressively instead, offended: “FINE.. ( •̀ - •́ )”

sebek spends a long time getting ready. so if you’re running late in the morning, you’ll want to beat him to the bathroom.

it’s because of his hair... he’s styling that thing with an abundance of gel. your bathroom cupboards have so many products for his hair there’s literally nowhere for you to put your things.

it’s crazy because he would look so much better with his hair down. when you tell him that he refuses to believe it, stating that all the elderly in briar valley love his current hairstyle.

he wastes 10 minutes alone hyping himself up in front of the mirror. flexing his muscles, practicing his smile, dimpling his cheek with his fangs. he rehearses saying “salutations, lord malleus!” or “hello, dear human!” but if you catch him in the act he’ll deny deny deny as pink bursts across his cheeks and the tips of his ears.

he’s a bookworm, and that’s probably when he’s the quietest. yes, he’s quieter with his nose in a book than he is sleeping because he’s a sleep talker.

⇈ if you’re interested, sebek will recommend you some good pieces of literature!! he’s also really helpful if you need help with similar things in class. he annotates his books neatly with sticky-notes and highlighters, so if you ask nicely he might be gracious enough to let you skim over his hard work.

in return, if you’re good at subjects like maths, please assist him. numbers and him are like oil and water—they just don’t mix. he’ll be so grateful, he might humbly tell you a story of malleus’ childhood

you have to save sebek from lilia’s antics. he once told sebek balancing books on his head whilst sleeping standing up would help him become more resilient, so at night he would just be standing in the corner of your room… menacingly... it was honestly frightening.

you thought he’d fall over and crash onto his desk, having to physically drag him to his bed and tuck him gently each time he tried. he never once made it through the night. yes, he tried several times.

pretends the whole situation never happened. it was his lowest point.

sebek always makes sure you’re eating well, since he’s a big eater himself. when he’s feeling particularly chivalrous, he’ll get himself extra food just to lend you some, a coy smirk playing against his lips when you thank him.

ace trappola

ace has a basketball hoop on his side of the room. he likes to practice his trickshots often, so he’s probably hit you several times with it when he misses. which is often.

imagine you’re just walking into your room after a long day and—thwack!—you’re getting knocked out. he will laugh at you before pulling you up and making sure you’re actually okay. i’d be worried he has a vendetta against you or something.

⇈ says “it’s your fault for standing there”, pressing a hand against the point of impact tenderly.

standing where??? in your own room??? where it’s supposed to be SAFE???

makes a mess all the time in the bathroom. probably leaves toothpaste in the sink and water on the floor. he’s going to make you have wet socks and then he’ll roll his eyes when you complain.

you have to push him to clean it as he feigns innocence. “maybe it was you and you’re just blaming me!” “just clean the toothpaste, ace!”

he flicks tap water in your face.

when it comes to doing laundry he makes you play card games with him. whoever wins has to deal with it. he is a cheater and proud! he’s doing whatever he can to win and grinning like the chesire cat the whole time as if you’re not already aware of what he’s up to.

you have to force him to do his homework. he just so happens to always forget. but wait! you’re here! you’re instantly now his study buddy regardless of whether you wanted to or not. it doesn’t matter how smart you are, he’s always trying to copy your answers.

when it’s late at night and he can’t sleep, he’s texting: ‘u up?’ to check if you’re the same. if you don’t reply he literally pads up to your bed and looms over you. he puts his face inches close to your yours and whispers your name because he never believes that you’re truly sleeping.

brace yourself for a lot of late-night kitchen runs. he’s grabbing your hand and racing with you down the halls, telling you to hush and pressing a finger to his lips when he’s the one stomping and giggling outside riddle’s room.

don’t worry, he doesn’t eat anything he knows is his housewarden’s. he doesn’t try to get collared, you know. then he practically steals someone else’s lunch (the ‘someone else’ in question being deuce) and then shares it with you.

you get caught every time, ace’s stomping waking riddle up. he doesn’t even attempt to protect you, claiming it’s not stealing because it’s going to a good cause—your ‘date’.

he’s only ever joking about the date thing. he just likes seeing your reaction.

…but if he wasn’t joking, hypothetically… would you agree it’s a date?

deuce spade

he’s trying so hard to be a good roommate to you. he really is!

at first, he tries to impress you with his full bookshelf. in an attempt to turn over a new leaf, he borrowed a ton of magic related books from the library but he’s only read one

every time you walked into the room he frantically grabbed a book from his shelf and opened it, placing a finger on his chin to suggest that he was deep in thought.

“what’s gotten you so interested, deuce?” “oh it’s nothing. just a book about…psychology and stuff. really emotional. yeah.”

intrigued, you approached his side only to find out he’s reading a children’s picture book. upside down.

each time he thinks back to that moment he is filled with so much shame. whenever you bring it up he slaps a hand to your mouth with a shout, overly flustered. he’s always been honest about himself after that.

he’s another messy guy. overall? he’s clean—but when he eats he leaves a lot of crumbs behind on his bed and himself. you have the urge to wipe them from his cheeks all the time. this could be reiterated for all the first-years except ortho, though.

deuce excitedly shows you pictures of the latest blastcylces (he has posters all over his side of the room) and tells you all about his bleached hair days. he even lets you try on his blastcycle helmet and jersey. has a picture of you in it and treasures it as ‘a reminder to not go rouge again’

you study together but the pair of you always get distracted by having silly little side conversations. one second you’re talking about pythagoras; the next, it’s a passionate discussion about what animal you’d be if you were reincarnated in another life.

he moves around in his sleep a lot. he goes to sleep spread out like a starfish and ends up on the floor, bedsheets half-on him and the worst bed-head ever.

you have to fix his hair in the mornings for him. he’ll barely be awake, sleep still in his eyes as you’re patting his head to keep the stray hairs at bay. he’ll lean into your touch but he won’t remember doing it till halfway through the day.

⇈ he’ll just be in the middle of flight class, randomly think about the proximity of your faces, then almost falls off his broom. ace laughs till he cries.

when he comes to your room wounded he appreciates how you ask him if he’s okay before asking what happened. when it’s the other way around, he always rechecks your state even though the school doctor patched you up fine and deemed you well enough.

he calls his mother often to make sure she’s okay, and you’ve gotten more than acquainted with her.

she loves you and thinks you’re a great influence for deuce. she’s even happier that he’s made some friends!! she’s always gushing about how she’s proud of him, or asking you to come over with in the holidays.

“deuce, when you come home bring your lovely friend okay? i like them.”

he agrees without hesitation, because he can’t deny her wishes—and he likes you, too.

jack howl

your room either smells like sweat and the mens body spray he uses or caramel scented candles that he swears his younger brother and sister bought for him.

it’s mostly the second option, because jack is good when it comes to personal hygiene and also doesn’t want to make things uncomfortable for you. (his side of the room is very clean, and he takes pride in that, so if yours isn’t he’ll tell you to fix up very bluntly.)

he’s very perceptive and values personal space, so he’s thoroughly checking to make sure you’re comfortable. will give you space and alone time if you need it.

he’s got ‘motivational workout quotes’ framed and hung up on his side of the room

gives you a similar one for your birthday, in order to give you motivation for the rest of the school year. he’s given one to all the first years, even ortho, so you’re not special or anything.

yours is just slightly bigger.

from far away it looks aesthetically pleasing, contrasting nicely with all the greenery from the plants he’s raising (he’s a plant mom)

then you get closer and read: “Train The Quit Out Of You.” “Single Taken At The Gym.” “In This House, Only Hard Work Matters.”

he goes on morning runs, so he’s out before you can even open your eyes. sometimes, he leaves you notes behind wishing you a good day, since he’s not much of a texter even though you’ve exchanged numbers. sometimes you’ll find notes around the house just saying some words of encouragement.

if you’re awake, he might ask you to join him. but it ends up being him running out of earshot so fast you lose sight of him. he’ll be running back as you’re still on the first stretch, out of breath. he’ll try his best to wait for you to catch up, though…

⇈ you might not enjoy it as much as he is but he’ll be really thankful that you came along anyway. you don’t even have to run if you don’t want to, just sitting and watching him somehow gives him a newfound burst of energy.

as a reward for sticking with him, he’ll make sure you’re well fed. not that he doesn’t do that already; jack sits next to you, the two of you sharing a plate of breakfast together as the other first-years just share a look like (·•᷄‎ࡇ•᷅ )?

you often find him talking to his cacti. his tone is so soft it’s endearing, conversing as though they’d speak back before watering them. in fact, you find out more from him speaking to the succulents than you do when he’s actually talking to you.

it’s not that he doesn’t talk to you. he does!! but the conversations are always short because he’s too busy trying to hide the wag of his tail and twitch of of his ears.

you speak to his cacti, because if jack truly believes it will benefit them you also want to help. he’s so fond of them. when he finds out you’ve been doing so, he tells you that he’s sure they’re standing stronger and looking healthier because of you <3

he lets you name them

Congratulations. you are both now Plant Parents.

it might take a lot of convincing but if you can get him to cuddle with you in his wolf form you will get the best sleep ever. he’s super fluffy, which makes him really cosy to lean on and snuggle up to.

⇈ but you both tend to oversleep and end up late for classes whenever you do it. jack scolds you for it because he doesn’t want to be a troublesome student, but he won’t deny you when you ask again.

everyone’s convinced you’re dating.

epel felmier

why are there apples everywhere

the saying ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’ doesn’t apply to you! an apple a day is bringing you closer to the doctor. (epel has boxes of apples for his carvings. they’re overflowing, causing apples to spill out onto your floor creating a trip hazard.)

he seriously doesn’t mean to make mess but the apples just keep on coming! at this point you both have enough apples to keep you going for at least a good few months—but you’re not allowed to eat them.

okay, fine, you can have one… or two..

pomefiore’s bedtime is 10pm, so both of you share the struggle of hiding that you’re awake. you’re both chuckling under your own bedcovers, messaging each other on your phones with your brightness at the lowest setting: ‘is he gone yet? u check’

vil will be standing in the doorway, hands on his hips waiting for you to peek your heads up. he knows what you’re doing.

you keep doing it anyway until vil threatens to split you up.

the two of you will try to stay up till early hours of the morning doing anything and everything. on one occasion you tried to juggle with apples, ending up hitting yourselves in the faces. it left marks.

plenty of times you’ll send epel a funny video of something or the other and he’ll double over in laughter, wheezing so loudly you’re sure everyone can hear you. your phones get confiscated for a week.

he’s on his best behaviour now, he swears! and you are too—you know vil only sets specific guidelines for you to follow because it will benefit you both in the long run.

if you’re injured, epel will tend to your wounds skilfully. he’s been in more than a few accidents being a wild child, and also knows a lot about medicinal herbs and magic pharmacy. arguably does a better job than school staff.

when he’s injured, he’s rushing back to show them off to you like battle scars. look at the the one on his knee, quick! he stood his ground and won, isn’t he cool? (it’s absolutely tiny and will definitely fade away. he wants to be leona so bad)

he always lets you see the process of his apple carving and even gives you lessons. he’s delighted that he gets to teach someone something he learned back in his hometown—it’s not much of a big deal, but whenever someone shows interest in it, his chest puffs with pride.

and when it’s you specifically complimenting him and harveston, he’s super smitten.

ortho shroud

ortho is only just finding out about himself, exploring his tastes and developing his own opinion. (he’s really glad he can share these self-discoveries with you!)

idia is Not Happy that his brother is being stolen off him, but wishes ortho well nonetheless.

you will never be late to class from now on because he will wake you up on time. and don’t think about skipping or faking illness, because ortho can see right through you.

asks how your day has been after school because he genuinely cares. he wants to know everything! school is just so fun to him. he’s so happy about going to class that you start to feel guilty for dreading them. he’ll tell you about his day too, very elaborately. you might be sitting and listening for a while because ortho does not miss a single detail.

⇈ you somehow end up finding out what scarabia resident B did last summer with his family, though you’re sure it had no relevance to ortho’s magic history class at all?

asks you to take pictures of him around your room, literally even if it’s a mundane activity. half of your camera roll is just images of ortho studying. he also wants to take lots of pictures with you, so he can keep the memories he spent his first real roommate fresh in his mind forever, so say cheese!

you make a bucket list together so he can check things off along the course of his life. you take him out to places he wants to go, and he helps you in return. need questions answered? he’s got the best results at the fastest speeds. hungry? he’s flying off to sam’s store. your preferences are already stored in his memory system, so expect something yummy when he returns!

he gets very attached to you very quickly, and perhaps even a little protective. if you’re ever going to do anything reckless ortho is sitting you down and telling you the pros and cons, success to failure ratio and extra precautions you should take.

as he’s only ever lived with his brother and never really had friends for himself, ortho is still used to idia’s social recluse/anxious ways. you could be ordering over the phone and if the person on the other end of the line mishears you ortho is suddenly speaking up for you very angrily.

ortho: excuse me they asked for NO. PICKLES. 😡😡

introverts love him. fast food branch owners fear him. the ice cream machines won’t be ‘broken’ on ortho’s watch.

if someone’s bothering you, just tell him. he won’t hesitate to dox a bully or two online. he learned from the best. NOT afraid to resort to physical attacks. has a high-intensity laser beam ready to fire whenever you need it.

ortho is not rainbows and sunshine all the time. he’s a nrc student, after all.

3K notes · View notes

harunayuuka2060 · 1 year

Text

Malleus: Why have I only found out a few days ago that you transferred in this school?

MC: Why are you surprised? You're always like this, Malleus. It's like when I'm sending you an invitation.

MC: You had never accepted any of it because you failed to notice. *frowning a bit at him*

Malleus: *clears throat* Well that's because most letters going to Briar Valley are being delayed.

MC: ...

MC: *smiles* I know. But now that we're in the same school, I'm sure you won't have the same reason again.

Malleus: *smiles back* Yes. I can assure you that. However, I'm a little bit suspicious of you.

MC: What do you mean?

Malleus: In your last letter, you've said to me that you'll be retiring.

Malleus: What happened to that?

MC: What? Can't I change my mind?

Malleus: Hmph. I've known you since you were a child.

Malleus: You're the type to be bored easily. And the only way for you to settle is if you find something or someone that fascinates you.

MC: ...

MC: *chuckles* I've yet to confirm that.

Malleus: ...

Malleus: I hope you will.

MC: *when they were younger and was already famous in the entertainment industry*

MC: *has visited a play where Vil and Neige were being part of it*

Their father: Look. That's Neige LeBlanche. Isn't he adorable?

MC: He's okay.

Their father: ... *keeps silent and let them watch the play*

MC: *seems uninterested not until Vil shows up on stage*

Vil: Clean this again.

Neige: B-But...

Vil: *kicks the dirty pail of water* See? Everything is dirty. You should start all over.

MC: ...

MC: Who is he?

Their father: That's Vil Schoenheit. The son of—

MC: Vil Schoenheit... *smiles*

Their father: ... *ended up smiling and the next day, proceeded on contacting Vil's father*

Rook: Fleur tordue! Great work again!

MC: *smiles* Thank you, Rook.

MC: By the way, is Vil Schoenheit doing alright? He seems to be exhausted.

Rook: Oh, so you've noticed. Roi du Poison is working hard lately. And as you have already known, his aura has always been elegant and imposing.

Rook: That the one playing for the antagonist role is feeling quite intimidated.

Rook: So he's trying to tone it down.

MC: ...

MC: Heh. *chuckles*

Rook: Fleur tordue?

MC: Pardon me. I just find that cute.

Rook: ...

Rook: Oh. *chuckles* Vil won't feel happy about that.

#twisted wonderland #twst mc #twst vil #twst malleus #twst neige #twst rook #twst what you truly deserve

472 notes · View notes

kalims · 2 years

Note

Hey! First, I want to apologize for any spelling mistakes. (I do not speak English very well) Second, can I ask prompts 3 and 20 for jamil and malleus? Thanks in advance and sorry for any inconvenience. By the way, take care of yourself and drink plenty of water, you are an important being and you have to take care of yourself❤

<- back to event page.

includes : malleus draconia, and jamil viper.

prompts :

3. affection — how willing are they to shred a reputation to give you the love you deserve?

20. no touching — on a date but they can't initiate any physical contact whatsoever, does he finish through or fail?

hey hey :D thank you! you're very sweet. you as well okay? also no need to apologize, I understand

ⵌ malleus draconia :

3. affection —

pardon my language but he genuinely doesn't a give a single fuck.

I mean the students don't even want, or bother for that matter to associate themselves with him so, even if he doesn't really care about it if they aren't someone ha cares about— it isn't their business anyways.

if he feels like giving his significant other a shred of his love then why would he care about them? he has everything right in front of him after all. ;) just, let's you do what you want with him.

oh you wanna get a ride on the back to see the world from his perspective but taller? of course. though you'd have to do it when sebek won't be present because malleus knows the boy is gonna be having a crisis and would demand you to get off this instant.

oh you ask him to bend down for a kiss? absolutely. count him in! he won't pass up an opportunity to feel love from you <3 ignores the students that openly gape, point, and whisper cause he's too busy experiencing heaven itself.

*his soul ascends to heaven pic*

20. no touching —

actually I'm struggling to come to have a conclusion about it but I'm leaning more towards the 'sucess' part.

generally, I'm pretty sure malleus is really respectful. it's an etiquette that was taught to him ever since he was of age, and when years pass by, wisdom comes to him naturally as well. he has the brains to know not to do something you haven't consented to.

atleast to his end (it's normal for couples but malleus is a different case :D). before doing any kinds of affection with you he'd either ask, or wait for you to ask first. it's funny and a little ironic since he's in that singular number amongst the most powerful in the twisted wonderland and...

here he is politely asking you permission for a kiss cause we love malleus.

briar valley when their future ruler is some otherworldly humans simp:

ⵌ jamil viper :

3. affection —

no.

it's a little mean but it's a no from him. he's willing to succumb to any of your desires when there's no one near the vicinity but if there's a crowd, or audience and you're feeling clingy he will gently pull you off.

look he build the average reputation thing for a year now, sure relationships are normal and it's NRC were talking about here. even as a school, there are only a few in actual relationships cause the others are either too prideful to confess, or anxious.

he'd rather not draw more attention on himself for being one of the rare ones in a relationship.

but yes. since he loves you (a lot) you can ask for whatsoever in private. he'll even let you talk with najma, with his phone if you ask and somehow discover her existence. jamil might be a little secretive and if you find out, there's no stopping you anyways.

as long as you keep your promise ou basically have infinite privileges.

20. no touching —

wins through a landslide.

it might seem bad but it's jamil, understandable to be honest. he's not that touchy-feely with a lot of people anyways and it's you that usually initiates any sort of physical affection with him.

like hug him or something and he'd just stand there and let you.

this is easy for him, all he needs is your presence anyways. it's enough, your verbal, and physical love is only an added bonus he shrugs a cold-ish side to. don't take it the wrong way, he's really happy.

not /s

but yeah! sometimes he does drape an arm over you in bed when it's only the two of you and he's exhausted as hell and you just somehow comfort him even if you're just snoozing away.

316 notes · View notes

lightvsdark18 · 1 year

Text

Alice tucked Grim into bed and slowly closed the door, heading downstairs to refill her water bottle and place it in the fridge for the next day. She held a plastic water bottle to drink in her room when she faintly saw green lights through the windows on the front doors.

What is Firefly doing out this late?

She approached the door and swung it open to see the black haired, horned figure on the front yard wearing a starry robe.

"Firefly," she called, "what brings you here?"

"Child of man, good evening. I wished to pay you a visit before the night ends."

She closed the door behind her and walked over to him. "So, what are you wearing that robe?"

"It's the attire the third years wear on their birthday."

Birthday?

"It's your birthday?" He nodded which made the young woman a bit sad.

"My apologies for not inviting you. I wished for you to join, however, my worries of how you would react if you heard my name stopped me. But I do not desire to leave you out completely."

He presented a plastic container in front of himself. "They are food from my home, Briar Valley, my dorm members made for my party. May we enjoy them together?"

"Yes, come inside." She turned back to the old dorm and gestured for him to follow. She led him to the lounge and requested him stay quiet for the cat is asleep. He chucked and promised, placing the container on the coffee table and peeling off the lid carefully.

She ran to the kitchen to grab plates and another water before sitting beside him on the sofa. The two talked and ate the treats he brought, enjoying each other's company and retelling stories of their home.

His gaze turned curious and focus as she stopped talking to drink some water for her dry throat. "There's something I might ask you." She looked up and gestured for him to ask.

"I heard rumors of you about you facing an overblot during the break, blackmailing Crowley to letting you stay in the school."

He slightly smirked at the blackmail part, then frown as he asked the hard-hitting question. "Being from another world... I originally brushed that specific rumor off, but it has been stuck in my mind for awhile now. Tell me, are you from a different world?"

Her heart sank at those words. "Yes, I am."

His eyes widened slightly, then looked away and touched his chin. "How interesting." His gaze turned back to her. "And how did you arrive to this world?"

"I don't know." She faced the fireplace. "I woke up in the coffin, or gateway, and that's it. I don't know how I got here or why I'm here. I can't even remember what I was doing before waking up in your world. But I do remember it was raining and I was running in the dark, but that's it."

He held his chin in thought. "Is that why you weren't scared?"

"Hm? What did you say?"

"Have you been looking for a way to return home?"

"Well, Crowley is apparently looking into it for me, but I'm not holding my breath."

He studied her face, trying to read her expression. Sad? Tired? Angry? He was unsure on what she was feeling.

He took her hand between them and lifted it up to his lips. "Since you are new to this world, I would gladly teach you everything I know of my world if you wish."

He softly kissed her hand and a bit of a blush colored her cheeks. "I, appreciate the thought. Thank you."

He smiled at her. "I must go. My retainers are probably looking for me."

"Oh, okay."

The two stood up and walked towards the doors where he opened it and glanced back to wish her a good night. However, she stopped him and asked him to wait for a second, running up the stairs and down the hallway to her room.

She had been working on a painting since getting those art supplies from the mystery bag. She picked up the finished painting and quickly went searching a white paint pen to draw her symbol, then raced back downstairs.

She breathed heavily and presented the art work to him. "Happy birthday, Firefly."

A small painting of a starry sky greeted him. He smiled and took it into his hands. "Thank you, I will treasure it."

He walked out into the cold air as she stood in the doorway, waving towards him and wishing him a good night.

"Sweet dreams."

The door closed, her shadow disappearing from the window as he walked away. However, at getting onto the path to the Hall of Mirrors, he stopped and turned back to the dorm. The wind blew through and carried his long black hair, gripping the art work to his chest and smiling as his heart felt at ease.

"You're a charming woman, Katelynn."

#excuse me as i die from sweetness from the ending #twisted wonderland #alice #malleus draconia #written work #stories

9 notes · View notes

clan-fuildarach · 7 years

Text

the railway children

delta, seafra, and neven stumble across one of the unfortunate side-effects of industrialisation. then they catch a train.

By the time Delta reached the western border of Dragonhome, he felt just about ready to give up. They'd passed right through the old Fuil Darach territory, which was as hopelessly empty as ever. Then Seafra had brought him and Neven to her territory which was equally empty and equally hopeless.

“No,” she said, staring down the valley at the desolation. “No, I swear it was here – there was a forest...” Arms out for balance, she skidded down the slope. Neven stuck close behind her, effortlessly navigating the mess of churned earth and exposed boulders. Delta followed with a little more caution, casting a wary glance over his shoulder.

The place looked eerily similar to the old Fuil Darach territory, but it had been like this for longer. New shoots of scutch grass had started to push up through the exposed soil at the bottom of the valley. But the trees that had been chopped down would not grow back. Stumps lined the valley, and without the support of living roots the soil had started to slip down the slope, piling untidily into what had once been a river, but was now a thin muddy trickle.

“Are you sure?” Neven asked bluntly. “There is no one here. I can not even smell anyone. You must be wrong.”

“I'm not wrong,” Seafra snapped, frantically scanning the decrepit valley.

“You are mistaken,” Neven said, wandering away a few paces to prod curiously at a rotting tree stump.

“How could I be mistaken about my own home?” There was more distress than anger in Seafra's voice. “I grew up here.”

Delta set a hand awkwardly on her shoulder. She leaned into his touch, seeking support of any kind.

There wasn't really much to see in the valley. Someone had come in, cut up all the trees, and left. Delta would have assumed that the trees had been taken as building supplies, but there were no visible buildings or structures. And who would have cut down so much wood only to fly it away from here, when far more accessible forests cloaked most of the shared border with the Starfall Isles? It didn't make sense.

“Come on,” he said, “we'll just keep going west. Maybe we'll find signs of your clan, right? They can't have gone far.”

With a small nod, Seafra drifted away from him, down to the uneven valley floor. Deep tracks cut through the mud, as if someone had driven a wagon of some kind along the ground. Bare to the elements, the valley was a natural wind tunnel. With a shiver, Delta drew his grubby blanket closer around his shoulders.

“Hey,” he said in undertone, nudging Neven. “This couldn't have been Rezann, could it? I mean, it looks so much like what happened to our clan...”

Neven shrugged helplessly. “It is possible. The Commander did come through here. But...” They indicated the tree stump. “Maybe things have changed since I was his general. But when I travelled with the army we did not cut wood like this. And if we needed to clear trees we would just destroy them. There would not be anything left if the Commander had done this.”

Travelling west would only put them closer to the Commander's stronghold by the Observatory. But there was nowhere else to go; south was the inhospitable Scarred Wasteland, north was the ocean, and east was Court Dorchadas. At least in the Starfall Isles they could perhaps catch a ship south to the Whirlwind Plateau. That was Neven's home country, and perhaps their kin, the elusive Venzan dragons, could help them.

There weren't a lot of options.

“Okay,” Delta said, under his breath. Seafra, still standing in ankle-deep mud at the bottom of the valley, didn't seem capable of deciding to move on. “Seafra?” he said, gingerly making his way down the slope towards her. “Hey, we can't stay here. C'mon.”

She nodded, quickly turning away to unobtrusively wipe her eyes as he approached. He pretended not to see, glancing politely to one side.

“You know,” she said dryly, as the three of them climbed the western slope, “it's times like this when I miss that fucking dungeon.” Another blast of freezing wind dragged her hair across her face. She waved it irritably away. “At least we got regular meals there.”

There was a pointed undertow to her words. Winter had gone one for so long that there was almost nothing to eat around the wasteland of Dragonhome, which had in turn forced the three of them to save energy by walking rather than flying.

The Starfall Isles were forested. Apparently. As the three of them crossed the border, nothing really changed. Desolate fields of tree stumps stretched out in all directions.

“I wish that shade guy had given us a map,” Seafra muttered.

Delta was about to speak – to suggest finding a shelter for the evening, before the frost set in – but Neven stopped dead. They held up a hand for silence.

“There is something...” They trailed off, ears twitching, and pushed past Seafra to take the lead. Directly ahead, lit from behind by the setting sun, was a huge, tangled stand of briars. Neven pushed through it, ignoring the thorns, forcing Delta to bend double to fit through the tunnel they made.

On the other side of the briars was a raised bank, like a levee at the side of a river. But Delta couldn't hear any water. He climbed the short slope and paused, eyes widening.

A pair of shining parallel metal tracks had been set into the earth, separated by wooden sleepers. Gravel had been poured into place under the tracks. They were roughly five feet wide, polished to an impossible shininess on top. The tracks stretched endlessly away from west to east, vanishing into the distance.

“What the...” Seafra poked one of the tracks with a foot. “I don't remember these being here.”

Neven crouched by the tracks and set both hands on the shiny metal. They recoiled after only a moment.

“There is something coming,” they said.

Delta could just about hear it, at the very edge of his awareness – a faint resonance, as if the metal tracks were vibrating like a tuning fork. He'd seen tracks like this before, only those had borne Rezann's cannons, and had been fifteen feet wide at the very least. And he'd seen the distant cannon crews constructing and de-constructing the tracks as the cannons passed, leaving nothing behind but deep furrows in the earth.

“More cannons?” he guessed.

A bright light lit up in the east, opposite the setting sun. It was a flickering lantern-light, and above it streamed a plume of white steam. The vibration of the tracks grew louder.

“Should we hide?” Seafra said helplessly. “What is that?”

“I don't know.” Delta had never seen anything like it. The orange sunlight illuminated the front of the approaching machine, but what he saw made no sense to him. It was turning a shallow bend in the tracks, revealing a trailing line of boxes pulled in its wake, mounted on metal wheels that spat sparks into the encroaching night. An unfamiliar crest was emblazoned on the side of the machine.

“It's going west,” Seafra said suddenly. “Hey – look, some of those carriages are open.” She pointed.

Delta caught her meaning and quickly shook his head. “No way – no, we can't-”

“Look how fast it's going! We'd be at the Observatory by this time tomorrow. There's a whole city there, we're bound to find help,” Seafra said eagerly.

“There could be anything inside that machine,” Delta said, backing away.

The noise of the thing's engine was getting so loud that he had to shout to make himself heard. Seafra ducked into the brambles again as, quite suddenly, the machine was unbearably close. Its front part shot past, pulling the boxes along in its wake. The noise and wind generated by the thing was incredible.

Seafra was getting ready to jump.

There was nothing to do but follow. Delta wouldn't allow her to blunder into enemy territory alone, without his help. So when the open-sided box approached, he seized Neven's hand and jumped.

The noise wasn't any better inside the box. Delta sat down on a stack of crates and stared in amazement at the countryside whipping past beyond the confines of the box. He had to admit that it was better than walking – maybe even better than flying, since there was no effort on his part.

Seafra poked through one of the crates and came up grinning, a stack of woollen blankets in her arms. The same unfamiliar crest marked each blanket. She tossed one to Delta, who took it with a nod of thanks, vaguely overwhelmed.

“Hey!” Neven called over the rattle of the machine, “there is food here!” They'd uncovered a crate full of vegetables packed in straw. Another crate held bundles of meat.

Although the three of them shared the easiest and most comfortable meal in weeks, Delta could not sleep afterwards. He sat by the opening and watched the fields and fields of tree stumps flash by. By the time the setting sun had finally covered the land in darkness, he still had not seen a single forest.

#quill darach #delta cfd #seafra cd #neven cfd #choo choo

11 notes · View notes

weracetogether · 6 years

Photo

SwimRun Lake James... and the Whistle. https://ift.tt/2GZXkRo Race reports often start at the start line, but this report is going to start with the story of a whistle... Packed up and ready to go we headed up to Nebo, North Carolina. Yep, we have all of our gear. Yep, wetsuits, newly bought sleeves, newly bought gloves, swim paddles, swim buoys, tether, compression bandage, goggles, swim caps, run shoes, socks, and whistles... oh um... whistles? Well, we thought we had everything, that was until after eight hours in the car when we showed up for check-in. Here are our wetsuits and compression bandage pack, and....now where did we put those whistles. "You got them, right?" This seemed to be the phrase said a lot over the next ten minutes. Just to give you some insight if you don't know what a SwimRun race is, you are swimming and running in remote areas in the wilderness. You are out where a lot can go wrong, so you are required to each have a whistle in the event of such an emergency. Our whistles, a multitude of whistles, were back those eight hours and four states at the house.

Here we are in Nebo, NC at the race venue with no whistle. What to do? Well, go find a whistle before the 1730 Mandatory Athletes Meeting -- how hard can that be? It seemed like a simple task, after all this was a lake community with kayaking and boating which requires whistles. This logic may have been reasonable if it was May or June and the tourism of the lake would be in full swing. But here at the beginning of April the lake was not a hopping location and the lake front harbor stores were not open for business. We drove on. Next stop a Dollar General- nope.Then a Fire and EMS Department- nope, doors locked. Then an auto parts store- nope. Then a second Dollar General- nope. Then we call a few suggested places- nope, nope, and nope. Then a few gas stations- nope. Then Tractor Supply- nope (but they had baby chicks, adorable, and they make a lot of noise). On the way through the town we passed a Sheriff's station, a last resort; which was quickly making its way to the top of the list. Next stop Wal-Mart (a place we don't frequent in our normal lives)- YES!!! Old school coaching whistles, TWO PACK!! Game on!!!

SwimRun Lake James Photo

We check out and literally run across the parking lot back to the Jeep, jump in, and take to the mountain roads. We cleared the hills and valleys and twists and turns, to arrive back at the park, just in time to get through check-in with all supplies in hand and still managing a smile. Now, let me go ahead and tell you there are extra whistles in the Jeep already. We sat through the athletes meeting about supply stops, blazes (trail markings), and the course. In all honestly this meeting made me a bit nervous. Initially I felt good on the cut off times but as the list of turns and swims and turns added up my math started to fail me and the task at hand was making me nervous. This is where having a calm partner is beneficial. Patrick simply told me, "We'll be fine." Then smiled and we were off to the hotel for a restless night's sleep. About that sleep, it wasn't race jitters, it was the hotel neighbor playing ESPN at top volume through the night. I now know way too much about this baseball season. As usual race morning came right on time. Up, shower, repack, dress... breakfast?? What??? We never get breakfast, especially not at the hotel. But the hotel started breakfast at 0600, and with race time not until 0800 we had time to eat like normal people on vacation.

After breakfast we headed out to the race site. Which unlike "normal" road events, is in the middle of a state park. A peaceful place at 0630. As the sun lit the day, we met other athletes, laughed as our wetsuits were all too small (a common problem each time you put on your perfectly sized wetsuit), and we listened to Tom Petty be cut short by announcements. An exciting bonus to this race was Patrick's Mom was able to come see us leave out (and finish). It was awesome to see familiar and excited faces as we left out on our adventure. The National Anthem played, a deep breath was drawn in, a final kiss to my partner, and GO!!! Right quick let me say, I love race starts no matter the race. I love the National Anthem sing along; I love the vibe; I love the smiles. But in SwimRun (especially mid/back pack) there is another sound- LAUGHTER, more like giggles. See this group is the group that knows we will be out there for a while, but we also know the person with us is our best buddy (for a lifetime or just for the day) and we would not want to be out there with any one else.

As we leave out we are back of the pack. Remember that whole "oh my wetsuit shrunk" comment? Well, for me my wetsuit did not shrink and I did not get bigger, my wetsuit just does not fit. You see Patrick and I don't (well didn't, more on that later) have SwimRun wetsuits that have pockets and front zippers and cool features. What we do have is Patrick in a surfer Seadoo shorty and me in a Blue Seventy tri wesuits with the sleeves and legs cut short. The reason my suit was ideal for cutting was it never fit; not the arms, the legs or the torso, none of it fit. SwimRun was originally a one time race so we felt no need to upgrade. Then on the second go around the idea was, "well this worked last time." So here we are running and swimming in a surfer wetsuit and a too small wetsuit. The factor of my suit being too small, in addition to gloves and sleeves added on took their effect in the first two mile run when I started to overheat a little. Plus I was running in an odd arm due to the new sleeves and poor posture position due to the wetsuit being too short. At about a mile I took off my left glove to help temperature regulation. I also walked for a minute to stretch out. Patrick was giving me grace, which was good because I told him he had to be like our friend L. Bacon who on a ten mile trail run recently was motivational and patient. The phrase I would say to Patrick was "be like Bacon", to "Bacon patience", to "BP". And he was very patient as the athletes in front of us gained ground and I paused to stretched my calves out. Unfortunately, Patrick's mom came by leaving the park as I was walking, but she was still full smiles and kind words. They waved and wished us luck.

SwimRun Lake James Photo

Soon we could see the bridge that would be the first turn into the woods and would mark that we were only a few more steps from our first dive into the mountain waters. As we weaved through the trees and brush, following the well hung blazes, I could see other teams prepping to enter the water. This race marked the swim outs really well (which is awesome); they were marked with US flags and strobe lights. The flags were easy to see and to judge that you were actually getting closer-- with trees as the only other measure we were glad to have something easy to find in sighting.

SwimRun Lake James Photo

I hit the water first and Patrick right behind me. The water was breath taking- beautiful and cold. Unlike at home where the salt water rushes your senses, you taste it and feel the salt against your face, in the fresh water it is a different feeling and taste. The water is clean but with a hint of mud. I wonder if those first to hit the water tasted it or if this is only after it has been churned up from those before. This first time in the water I kept off my glove (which was shoved in my wetsuit), mostly just not thinking about it. It did not seem too bad, but this was only 800 yards.

At last swim.

We found out quickly that putting on swim caps and goggles with gloves was more difficult than expected, leading to Patrick having goggles that often times did not seal properly. This made finding that happy place where your goggles fill with just a little water to swish and clear the fog very difficult. We hit the next runs and swims with little problems. The segments were longer swims and shorter runs. This would be a theme in the second half of the race as well. I began to notice that this short time on the land was causing me to get cold fast, it seemed warming the water in my wetsuit to keep me warm was draining my body heat. For the first half of the event this was not a big deal but I knew what was in front of us. After about 3 running miles and 1800 swimming yards we were at the first aid station. I was glad to find a smiling face saying we were ahead of the first time cut off. When you are in the woods almost alone, it seems like the drop line is hot on your heels; knowing this was not the case eased my mind. We grabbed Tailwind and water and headed out on the long run. With over seven miles to run I went from being cold to being very warm. The best I could do to help with temperature regulation was to take off my gloves and unzip the wetsuit. Since our wetsuits zipped in the back it was an interesting feat to get it unzipped. Over the bib, under the bib; oh, and then thinking the zipper strap was attaching me. Before the race, Patrick and I had agreed that if we needed to take off layers or make adjustments we would stop to do so just to be safe. Guess what I did not do? Yep, I was running behind Patrick while making adjustments. I got the zipper unzipped and went to take off my gloves in that moment a root jumped out of no where and attacked me. Okay, maybe that's a bit dramatic, but as I was headed head first into the trees and briars my glove let loose, I may have said a curse word or two, and Patrick asked if I needed to stop. I quick stepped just enough to catch myself with only a single push back from a tree. Nope, I was good to go- except for the other pesky glove I needed to take off. Gloves off and stuffed down my wetsuit, I was back to "normal".

SwimRun Lake James Photo

This long run took us through beautiful woods, quiet woods. We ran and walked and ran some more, Patrick always remembering to approach the situation with "BP". In this stretch we hit the route elevation, up and down and up. It was nothing like the climb we had for SwimRun NC but it did prove a challenge. We also went past abandoned houses with satellite dishes, camp grounds, and fire roads. I hummed songs, like the theme to Gummy Bears and Walking on Sunshine. As we approached the end of this long run we found ourselves facing the longest swim for the event, just under a mile. Once again we got notice that we were ahead of the cut off and not at risk of getting pulled. There were still a few teams behind us, making us not feel alone in the quiet. There were times we would hear the other teams talk or laugh, times when we would see a glimpse of green or orange through the dense trees. It was nice to know we were all in this together.

SwimRun Lake James Photo

We approached the long swim just behind another team. The kayaker pointed to a flag in the distance and a strobe light that could barely be seen, then made the comment, "Its just over there, sight the mountain". I just smiled and pointed, "over there". Ok let's do this. We had gear all back on and were zipped back up. Step, step, step... and swim. This was a large lake crossing, 1600 yards. I had to laugh a few hundred yards into the swim, because what land people and kayakers don't realize is that at water level the mountain gets hidden behind the trees quickly. It seems like a great idea to start with but the hint of heading for the side of the island ended up being a much better spotting point. In the middle of the lake a boat passed in the distance. Given that we swim around boats frequently this part we were will trained for, in minutes the waves came over us and rocked us back and forth. Unlike back home the waves were consistent as there was only one boat and they were smooth since there was no wind to complicate things. After a few pauses to adjust goggles we made it across the lake. Cold we stumbled a little up the bank and into the woods. Here is where things got a little more "interesting".

Last Swim

Again the quick land masses led way to water again. Each time our bodies warmed water in our wetsuits it was drained out by the land crossing leaving space for the cold water to come in again and again as we dove into the water. Fill and drain, fill and drain. The time on the islands was only minutes. Of course I used this land time to make a fool of myself. As we crossed one island I was looking at the next swim out and stepped down the bank carefully as Patrick had told me to do, just not carefully enough. As I laughed sitting there on my butt in the clay/mud, I stated, "well, that's going to bruise". I guess it was loud enough to make the team behind us chuckle then I heard one partner say to the other, "we should be careful here." At least I was helping others!!

Last Swim

In this over hill and dale section we came to a point where there was a buoy but no visual of the out point. All of a sudden some how we were totally alone. We eventually waded out in the water to be able to look around the point and see the out. "Found it," I yelled to Patrick. Once the swim was over he mentioned recalling something from the athletes meeting about there being a buoy to swim to and then we would see the out. Hey we found that spot, too bad we forgot about that conversational point until after standing on the shore for a few minutes.

Last Swim

After this we ran past the final check point still ahead of time. One more long swim (1300 yards), two more land crossings, two more short water crossings, and one final hill to run up to the finish. It seems like a lot but we were nearing the end. As we approached the water for the 1300 yard swim we spoke to one of the race directors, Kristen, who appeared comfy in the Fish and Wildlife Boat. She was friendly and made sure we were okay. It seems we always run into a race director near the end. This is one of those things about the SwimRun events that we have done that I appreciate- the RDs are on the course not only for safety but to be a support and a friendly face in a much needed moment. We headed out into the water, last long swim. On this swim we were accompanied by a kayaker and then two. Along the way Patrick was fixing and clearing his goggles, which made the kayakers a little nervous. Maybe because after a long day in cold waters a swimmer who was floating face down for a moment then flipping on his back seems like a swimmer in trouble. I assured the kayaker that my buddy was okay and that it was just a need to clear his goggles. I was happy for their protection but I had to laugh a little, mostly because it was late in a long day and even if I had to drag him we were finishing this on our own. But I knew I wasn't going to need to drag him but if we hung out in the water longer he might be needing to drag my ashore.

Yes I was laughing at his fall.

Up on land after this swim it was clear we were close. A half a mile run, then

New Zone 3 suits- Ready for Next Time

water, then a skip on land, then we heard it the finish line. More so what we heard was Patrick's mom yelling, "there they are!!!" She was so delighted which made me smile. Of course in true team Decision-Making Paradigm" fashion I entered the water gracefully (ha ha ha) and Patrick hit his head on a small branch distracting him from the branch in the water he tripped over. We started this race laughing, we would finish the same way. Across the last of the water and up the steep boat ramp hill. Kristen was there cheering and encouraging us-- oh and telling us that our next SwimRun we would be dawning new wetsuits form Zone3. Super excited about this win!!

That's Kristen running up the hill too.

The finish line came into view at the top of the hill. I can here Patrick's mom cheering behind us. As we hit the gates leading us to the finish I reach out my hand to Patrick and again hand in hand we cross the finish line. This is my favorite part of the day. Not only is it the end to a long day or an accomplishment of making it through this challenge, but for us it is one more notch on our belt of marriage. I can't imagine spending this time with anyone else I know now one could be so patient or make me laugh so hard. I suspect one day he will want to race tied to a faster and quieter partner, but for today he has ME and he doesn't seem to mind.

We crossed the finish line smiles and hugs and yes again laughter. Oh, and burritos!!!! SwimRun Lake James was an exciting adventure with mud, briars, canopying trees, clear waters, and fun. Over 14 miles of running and 3.5 miles of swimming for SwimRun Lake James. Each running mile filled with the beauty of spring buds and the swimming miles smooth. We hope to return next year to SwimRun Lake James and to do a few other races of the SwimRun sort. We ended our trip with snow and family!!!

#IMCHOO #IMTraining #Triathlete #Triathlon

0 notes

bertel-king-blog · 6 years

Text

In These Woods

“Stand there,” Shauna said.

“Here?” I asked.

“Yes, no. I mean yes, but not like that.”

She skipped over to my side and adjusted my shoulders. One of her fingers brushed against the side of my neck.

Funny how the same touch can provide a thousand different sensations. When my dad’s hand touched my neck in this way, it meant there was a mosquito there, and I could expect his palm to soon come down on it. I would complain. Mom would complain. Everyone would complain. Dad never understood why people didn’t like being slapped, or, excuse me, being saved from having their blood sucked.

But Shauna’s hands were half the size and soft. They weren’t soft compared to most girl’s fingers. I hadn’t been with other girls, but I knew Shauna’s hands were outdoors too long to be delicate. They gripped tree banches and dug through mud. Her nails had never seen polish nor, due to her habit of biting them, a nail clipper. I knew for a fact she spent less time on her hair than I did.

“Better,” she said. “Don’t move.”

Shauna skipped back to her foot prints in the dirt a toenail away from stream water. Her camera went up to her face, aimed at me, standing alone atop a rock jutting up from the water. My stance felt sculpted, but I was only standing. Photography can require so much work to make things look natural.

Her lips curved ever so slightly upward. “You look good,” she said.

“I do?” I asked on my way down from the rock. My toes joining hers in the dirt, she took my hand and showed me the viewfinder.

“I don’t see it,” I said.

“That’s okay,” she said into my eyes. “I do.”

I preferred to be the one behind the camera. We both did. That’s how we spent most of our time together, going places where we could point out creatures, critters, and creations to point our cameras toward. A few months back we took a trip to Roanoke, but we preferred the woods and the mountains to the city. There were enough people taking pictures of that place, Shauna liked to say. Let’s go find something forgotten.

Something forgotten. That’s how the both of us felt. My dad flew out of Roanoke every week, and my mom was always up to her neck in papers. Shauna’s parents hadn’t lived together since she was seven, and they hadn’t liked each other since before she was born.

No one really cared what we got up to in these woods.

No one cared what the squirrells got up to in these woods either. That’s why we never tired of taking their pictures. Or bird’s. Or butterflies.

We saw all kinds of life mating near the water or between bushes. We didn’t take those pictures, but the inspiration would make one of us double-check our pocket for a condom.

We thought of ourselves as wild. Not in the way you would expect from neglected children (our mating aside), but like the animals we cohabitated with among the trees of the Roanoke Valley.

The more time we spent around them, the less we cared what other people thought or said. And people did talk. Shauna and I gave off the impression of being both siblings and lovers. We were too close, and the way we were treated only made us closer. We regarded school as an unsafe place that taught us little worth knowing. We got good grades anyway, because like other animals, we knew how to adapt and survive. We knew our grades would get us somewhere someday.

“There!” Shauna said, letting go of my hand to point. At the other end of her finger, high up in a tree, was a great horned owl. We froze in our tracks. The bird was resting but alert.

Shauna lifted her camera, quieted the shutter, steadied, and snapped. She watched the owl. I watched her. Only when she started to lower the camera did I look back up at the bird. She, too, was beautiful.

I don’t know when Shauna fingers slipped back between mine or when we started heading back home. Life was like that for us. Fluid and aimless. As long as we were close together, safe in our habitat, not much else mattered.

It surprised me to see her bring a tripod on one of our walks. She used it as a walking stick, though it only made her clumsy.

“I want a picture together.”

She sculpted me again, then latched onto my side, her left arm intertwined with mine.

“The flash is on,” she warned me. That was unusual. We usually left that off so that we didn’t bother the rest of the woods.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“If I tell you here, I might not go back.”

“What do you mean?”

She didn’t say. Instead, we walked mostly in silence, her awkwardly walking with the tripod in one hand and maintaining a tight grip on my hand with the other.

She told me after we had made our way back to her house.

“We’re moving.”

I never imagined that could happen. I won’t pretend I took the news well. I didn’t. But I knew not to take it out on her. Her pain, I came to find out, was much worse than mine.

There were still two years left of high school to go. I went to class. Things happened. Honestly, I don’t remember much. What stands out are the hours I spent in front of my computer screen, instant messenger open, staring at the words that appeared beside her screen name. We worked through our pain together. It was weird for us, a couple that had for most of our lives communicated more through being in each other’s space than through words.

But like other animals, we knew how to adapt and survive.

She found her way to Sweet Briar College. I ended up at Randolph College. Both shared a city that was smaller than Roanoke but still too big for us.

“Stand there,” Shauna said, holding a camera, gesturing for me to step a bit closer to the ledge.

“Here?” I asked.

“Yes, just like that.”

The shutter snapped. Then she skipped over and took my hand. We wandered off together back into the woods.

In These Woods was originally published on Bertel King Jr.'s website.

#short stories #short story #fiction #writer #writing #author #creative commons

0 notes