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laurfilijames · 3 years

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Jealous Heart

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Requested by my naughty anon “E”, who wanted a needy/jealous smutty Kili. Thank you so much for coming to me for this! It’s been such a pleasure to write and I hope it meets your expectations. I’m honoured to have received this request- my first one ever! Enjoy your possessive and jealous Kili!

Pairing: Kili x female reader

Words: 3,222

Warnings: rated E. Vaginal fingering. M/F intercourse, unprotected. Kili is quite possessive in this.

Kili sat with his back rigid against the cold stone wall, arms folded across his chest, watching Y/N with fire in his eyes.

The tavern was bustling tonight. There was barely enough room to pass through the crowd to get to the bar for another ale, but still all Kili could focus on was you as if you were the only other person in the room.

He wanted you. Bad. But there you were for another night, laughing and being wooed by other patrons in the tavern. Other patrons who were far more suited to you than he could ever be.

The man who was currently stealing your attention, or caught completely under your spell was more like it, was a tall dark-haired man with a full, thick beard. His size towered over your frame, his rugged charm working to bring out your gorgeous smile, and the scene filled Kili with rage and jealousy.

He was a dwarf for pity’s sake, yet here this human sported facial hair that could challenge even Thorin’s kingly beard in all its glory! There was no way he could compete with that.

Kili felt like a disgrace, his mood continuing to fall as he began to pick at the bindings on his boot that was resting up on his knee.

How many times had he imagined you pressing your lips along his stubble-coated jawline, praising him for the intense pleasure he provided, begging him for more? Each time he touched himself it was to thoughts of you, pretending it was your gentle hands tugging on his hardened shaft. Since reclaiming Erebor he’d been with a few women, most of them eager to show their gratitude to one of their heroes, but the only one he really wanted, the only one he longed for, was you.

It seemed as though every other man in town- dwarf, elf or human- was captivated by you and tried for your affection. Who could blame them? You were perfect.

But watching them all set out after you night after night started to take its toll on Kili, the green-eyed monster rearing its ugly head in the depths of his heart.

“You need to make a move, Kili, or Y/N will be long gone before you even have a chance to call for another ale,” his brother said pointedly with a nudge to his shoulder, bringing him out of his thoughts.

He shook his head in defeat, glancing up to watch you throw your head back in laughter. Gods, you were a sight.

“There’s no use, Fili. I mean look at her!” he waved in your direction, your charisma infectious to everyone around you. But his doubt left him as soon as he looked your way again, feeling a rush of urgency to have you, to push away any man who threatened to seize you from his own reach, to claim you as his.

He sighed and looked at his brother beside him who took a long drag from his pipe, regarding you from across the room with an odd expression on his face. It almost looked as though Fili himself was considering making a move on you and the thought made even more anger rise up in Kili.

“Don’t even think about it,” he warned, having seen that same look on Fili’s face before when he was interested in a woman. He wouldn’t think twice about dumping his ale over his brother's head if it came down to it.

“No, no, I wouldn’t,” he assured him, “It just doesn’t seem like she’s actually enjoying herself,” he tipped his head in your direction, his moustache braids wagging with his movements. “You should go and rescue her.”

“You think?”

“Yes! Just go!” Fili gave him a hard push on his back, causing him to almost trip over his own feet as he stood from their table.

Kili took a deep breath before he made his way over, and when he was close enough he noticed a faint tinge of falseness in your eyes, an annoyed expression crossing your face. A feeling of possessiveness came over him now that he knew you weren’t interested in this man’s company, and he found it hard to control his anger.

“Kili! I was wondering when you were going to make your way over to see me!” you exclaimed with enthusiasm the second he joined your side, hoping he would catch the thanks that laced your tone for interrupting your conversation with the man who tried his best to persuade you into his bed each night.

“Y/N,” Kili greeted you shortly, staring up at the man across from you with a venomous look. “Is this man bothering you?”

You couldn’t help but notice how dark his eyes were and you wondered if the young Prince was jealous.

So you decided to have some fun, thinking maybe this was the way to get him to finally admit those feelings for you you always suspected he had.

“Not in the slightest,” you cooed, biting your lip to hold back your smile as his head whipped to look at you, his brows knitted tightly together.

When you saw his reaction, you couldn’t keep your face from splitting at his sheer disbelief that you could have been enjoying yourself. The other man sulked away and you sighed with relief, “I’m kidding! Thank you for coming over, I could only be nice for so long!”

Your hand automatically rested on his forearm, feeling the muscles shift underneath his skin when he clenched his fist, the movement sending a sensation through you that made your breath hitch.

Kili didn’t return your smile though. He looked at your hand that remained on his arm and shook his head slightly as he turned away from you.

“It’s nothing,” he said in a low voice, but you could see through his words. He leaned forward against the bar, forcing you to drop your hand from him, refusing to meet your gaze when you shifted your body to try and face him again.

“Is everything okay?”

“Fine.”

Another lie. You wanted to tell Kili just how badly you wanted him, that there was no way any other man could compare to him. You could sense his unease and longed to erase it with your lips, desperate to admit that anytime you were intimate with anyone it was him who you imagined being with.

Kili glanced over his shoulder, rolling his eyes when they met Fili’s who nodded at him to continue talking to you. He rubbed a hand over his face, strongly considering getting his next pint and heading back to the table without saying another word. There was no way he could muster the strength to push his jealous feelings aside and just tell you he fancied you.

But he was quickly persuaded, feeling the gentle touch of your hand on his shoulder.

“Kili, what’s wrong? You know you can tell me,” you said faintly. Even through the noise of the crowd your voice sang to him clear as day, and he longed to hear what other soft sounds he could coax from your lips.

“I can’t stand seeing you with other men,” he declared, the words leaving his mouth involuntarily as if staring at your lips had him in some sort of trance.

Your eyebrows flew up in shock as you processed his words, making him panic slightly. He reached for his full tankard and turned to leave, but stopped when you spoke.

“Why is that?”

He sighed again and brought himself to face you, looking at you with an unashamed need.

“I want you to be mine.”

You nodded slowly, hoping you heard him correctly over the commotion around you.

You’d had your eye on Kili ever since you were young, and seeing him now as a grown and proud warrior after reclaiming Erebor had you yearning for him even more. The truth was that you were often jealous of how much attention he received from other dams throughout the kingdom, constantly having to listen to them all gush over him. And now he was telling you he wanted you?

Not daring to miss your opportunity, you leaned your body close to his, pulling him toward you by tugging on his coat with one hand, the other moving to wrap around his muscular torso.

“I want you, too, Kili…”

His gaze made you squirm where you stood, his expression enough to break your boldness and make you want to submit to him right then and there.

Before you had any more time to think up the things you wanted him to do to you, Kili grabbed your hand and gave you the cheeky smile that made your heart do flips, spinning on his heel to drag you through the crowd behind him.

“Where are we going?!” you asked, surprised at his sudden ambition.

“Away from all of these people!” he explained over his shoulder, a mischievous look plastered on his face.

The pace of your steps matched his, equally zealous to get away from the crowd and find a quiet spot to be together, but before you even made it out the back door Kili turned toward you and pressed you against the wall, eagerly taking your lips in his.

His hands groped at you while your tongues collided, the warmth of his mouth and body radiating through whatever part of you he touched.

You moaned into him, his large hands pulling at your dress, trying to expose more of your chest to him. Kili’s lips left yours and flew to your neck, kissing a trail down your ticklish skin which made your moans turn to giggles. Just as he drove his thick thigh between your legs to part them someone walked past, interrupting your activities. You both broke out in laughter, unable to believe you were actually fondling each other in the hallway of the busiest tavern in all of Dale.

He attached his lips to yours again in a hurry, backing up to remove you from the wall and pulling you with him. You were stumbling over each other in your search for the exit, bumping into walls before finally crashing against the door that led outside.

You couldn’t get enough of each other and before you even made it around the corner you had successfully torn open his tunic, revealing dark hairs covering his strong chest. Your hands carded over his bare skin and you pushed your tongue deeper in his mouth, ecstatic to be in this moment with him.

You couldn’t help but squeal when he lifted you up and wrapped your legs around his middle, carrying you the rest of the way over to a more secluded area behind the row of buildings.

“Kili, someone could see us!” you worried, but you didn’t truly care, knowing just how much you wanted the dark-haired archer. He placed you down, but you didn’t trust your shaking legs, your arms remaining around his neck for support.

“I know, but I need you, Y/N,” he looked at you with an ache in his eyes and you knew he meant it. “I need you now.”

You tugged at his hair as he consumed your mouth again, his hard cock pressing against the material of your dress which was straining to get through his trousers.

Your fingers fumbled with the laces on them, desperate to feel him in your hand. Teeth nipped at your neck in response to your endeavour, a deep groan leaving his mouth to air over your flushed skin as you reached in and freed his length. You knew he would be impressive in size, but this was more than you were expecting and your thighs squeezed together at the thought of him stretching you.

Your name came out of him with a hiss as you began stroking him, your thumb running small circles on his leaking tip, your touch turning him feral.

He bucked into your hand and attached his lips to yours once more, one hand clutching your waist to pull you closer while his other tore at your neckline to expose your breasts to him.

He parted from you to take the sight of you in, your bare chest heaving in anticipation, nipples taught in the cold, night air.

Kili’s face plunged to your cleavage, his hand squeezing the soft flesh of your breast as he sucked on your peak while he gathered the material of your dress to ruck it up over your hips.

Although you were almost delirious from his actions, you continued to slowly pump his throbbing shaft, pausing only when he glanced up at you with a possessive look. His fingers grazed up your quivering thigh and now lingered against your wet folds, waiting for your consent. You pushed your hips forward, a signal of your need for him to touch you more. He happily complied, plunging a large finger inside your warmth, his thumb finding your swollen bud to circle and press on it. A moan left you and your body shuddered to his touch as he moved his finger in and out of you, then adding another to stretch you further.

“Kili…” you gasped, gripping onto his broad shoulder as you rode his hand while still jerking your own along his length in a steady rhythm.

He removed his fingers from your fluttering folds and gripped around the back of your thigh, pulling your leg up to wrap around his waist. You felt his spongy head press against your wetness and you gasped at the sensation, more than ready to take him in.

“I will make you forget any other man who has ever touched you,” he vowed in a rough tone, and you knew it would be true.

Kili grabbed onto your bum, pulling you closer to his body as he pushed through your entrance. Your head fell back against the wall as you stretched to fit him, thankful for how wet he had made you. But even with the amount of slick that coated your walls, his girth was enough to make you whimper and cry out.

“Am I too big for you, amrâlimê?” he asked in a low, husky voice, his breath tickling beside your ear, still continuing to push deeper into you regardless of your answer.

“No, Kili,” you managed to say through a moan, “Please don’t stop.”

He moved to rest his forehead against yours, placing a gentle kiss on your lips as he bottomed out in you, his hips pressed firmly against yours.

“Good, because I want you to think of me with every step you take tomorrow.” His eyes were black in the moonlight, his words and his stare making you shiver. Kili moved so he was almost all the way out of you, making you miss the fullness he created, but thrusted back into you in one swift motion and you cried out again.

The sound of hips slapping against each other and your combined panting filled the quiet air as he worked to set a tempo, the tip of him contacting your deepest spot with every plunge that sent fire through your veins.

“You’re mine, Y/N,” he declared, increasing his pace, determined to prove it.

You tugged at his hair and nodded in agreement, pulling him closer to you to capture his parted lips once more, eager to have him fulfill his promise.

As much as you didn’t want this to end, you knew neither of you would be able to last long. Feeling every inch of his thick cock slide in and out of you, hitting the perfect spot every time had your head spinning, each pump rubbing his coarse hairs against your swollen clit, getting you closer to your end.

His name fell freely from your raw lips, a mantra to the ecstasy he was giving you, which only brought more inspiration to the Prince.

“Kili…”

“That’s right, say my name,” he begged as he gripped harder on your hip to allow more traction to pound into you with even more force.

In addition to his ferociousness, the things he was saying to you wasn’t helping to prolong your session either. Kili continued spilling possessive proclamations from his mouth any time your lips weren’t locked together, making you feel powerful to have such an effect on him.

“I will be the only man who gets to make you feel this good,” he said hoarsely beside your ear, his intensity somehow increasing.

A cry escaped your lips as you began to climax, your walls clenching tightly around his member, your nails clawing at his back.

“That’s it,” he coaxed you, “let go. Let me have you, ghivashel.”

Allowing your body to give in to what it longed for so desperately, you did just as he told you and let yourself fall, shuddering around him as you came harshly, Kili not holding back as he pounded you over the edge. You felt him pulse inside you, filling you completely with his spend. He growled and with a twitch came down from his own high, your bodies in sync with each other, working as one. His lips met yours again in urgency while he still rocked slightly within you, the thickness and heat of his seed feeling exquisite against your fluttering core.

Kili remained encased by you, enjoying the feeling of you around him as he slowly softened. His forehead pressed against yours as you shared the same breath, and he couldn’t help but relish in the satisfaction of having you. You were his…

“I’ve needed you for so long, Y/N,” he admitted, “I needed to make you mine. I couldn’t bear to watch another man touch you, let alone look at you for another night.” He brushed his nose against yours, his lips moving against yours faintly while he spoke. “I should have done this long ago.”

You gave him an eager nod, “Yes, you should have, Kili. But we can make up for lost time.”

His mouth consumed yours again, a silent agreement that this wouldn’t be the last time he would prove to you that you belonged to him.

After a moment he pulled away from you, breaking the seal on your lips as well as the connection that remained of him inside you. As if feeling the loss immediately, he looked at you with a worried expression and tucked a piece of hair behind your ear.

“Will you stay with me tonight?” he asked you, searching your eyes with a gentleness that contrasted to his earlier passion.

“Of course I will,” you responded with a smile, seeing how your answer instantly brought one to his own face, his brown eyes glowing.

He kissed you sweetly and cupped your cheek with his warm palm, “Thank you. I want to be with you any moment I possibly can.”

Your smile grew at his confession, seeing the love he had for you, your heart swelling at what could come to fruition between you and the Prince.

Now that Kili had you, he knew he could never be without you. He took your hand in his and thanked Mahal as he led you through the night toward Erebor that he was now with his One, the only one he ever needed.

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Everything: @guardianofrivendell @midearthwritings @cassiabaggins @lilith15000 @trishthedishofreis @linasofia @unbeatablecurlgirl @the-poldarkian

Kili: @valquiria3000 @fandomfaery

#kili #kili smut #kili smut request #request by anon #the hobbit #the hobbit kili #smut #smut fic #jealous Kili

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imkylotrash · 3 years

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The Noble Kind

Pairing: Sir Gwaine x reader

Request: She's the queen, married to uther but is just a year or 2 older than Arthur. She has magic. They had an arranged marriage cause her kingdom which is extremely powerful didn't want to go to war with uther as they were taking in refugees to protect and didn't want to inforce the idea that magic is evil. She has an affair with gawain and they run away when she's pregnant. Anonymous

Tagging: @bitchwhytho @music-of-melody @shadowhuntyi

“It’s for the greater good,” you mother tells you right before you marry the King of Camelot in an attempt to prevent a war. Uther is a great king for the most part but he is frightened by what he doesn’t understand. Magic is one of the things he knows nothing of - leaving it up to your kingdom to take in the refugees running for their lives.

“To a strong alliance,” he toasts at the wedding party and you keep a smile plastered on your face through the entire evening even though you hate every second. You’ve always said you’d marry for love but there’s no lost love between you and Uther. He agreed for the alliance and nothing more. You agreed because it was the right thing to do for your people. None of you could afford to go to war with each other.

“A strong alliance,” you echo lifting the glass of wine placed in front of you. In the crowd, you spot Gwaine looking at you with sorrow in his eyes. He didn’t want to believe it until he saw it with his own eyes. But then something changes, you see the flip switch as he raises his glass to you before downing the whole thing. You should’ve known he wouldn’t take this well.

“Have I lost your interest already?” Uther asks with a sparkle in his eyes of something you can’t quite figure out.

“Of course not, dear. I was simply amused by the people dancing.” You’re quick to recover having been taught etiquette and manners your entire life. You know the game well enough and you’ve only gotten better after your mother abdicated and handed the crown over to you. The loss of her king, your father, had been too much. You stepped in knowing you’d had to give up what little life you had acquired. Gwaine was the only thing you refused to let go of.

“You should join them. Show them they can trust their new queen.” You wonder where Arthur but that question doesn’t go unanswered very long. He comes in by a back entrance quietly sitting down next to Uther.

“As you wish, my king.” You join the common people dancing and they’re quick to welcome you and show you the steps. It’s the most fun you’ve had all night. You don’t see Gwaine in the crowd though which worries you. It won’t do anyone any good if he gets drunk enough to make a scene.

“He’s in your chamber,” Merlin whispers using his magic to carry the sound to you and only you. He must’ve figured out who you were looking for.

“Thank you,” you whisper back. Merlin is the only one who knows about you and Gwaine but he’s promised to keep quiet. He doesn’t want to cause problems for neither of you. It’s another hour before you feel it’s appropriate to retreat for the night. Uther doesn’t object when you inform him that you’ll be spending the night in your private chambers and you don’t feel guilty for doing so. The marriage is strategic and you both know it. Besides, there’s something about only being one summer older than Uther’s own son.

You finally reach your chambers having sent your servants to bed with the promise that you’ll be able to take care of yourself. It’s an excuse to keep them from seeing Gwaine. He’s drunk when you enter, he’s very drunk.

“Do you ever stay away from trouble?” you ask noticing the split lip and the bruise on his cheekbone. He’s been fighting again.

“You know, I had the strangest dream,” he starts but you’re too tired to make sense of his metaphors. You want him cleaned up and ready to sleep.

“Let me,” you whisper carefully wetting a cloth and rinsing the worst of the blood from the cut.

“You could always do the witchy woo,” he says wiggling his eyebrows and puckering his lips.

“It’d do you some good to heal naturally. Perhaps you wouldn’t worry me so much,” you reply but the second he mentions the pain you’ve lost all resolve to let him heal on his own. You can’t let him be in pain when you can take it away.

“Fine,” you whisper placing your hand right about the cut and closing your eyes. In mere seconds, the wound has closed as if he’s been waiting for you here the whole time and not been out looking for trouble.

“Thank you,” he says this time a little more serious. You feel as though you can finally exhale as you crawl into bed with him. These are your moments of peace, the moments where you can avoid the pressure of your title and the expectations that come with the crown.

“You know, you did just get married. Normally, there’s something you’d consummate the marriage as well.” He’s drunk and out of his mind, but he’s your crazy drunk and looking into his eyes you feel nothing but love.

“Sober up and I’ll think about it.” You don’t consummate anything that night but you do the following nights. You get careless and before you know it, you’re late. Gaius confirms your suspicions and congratulates you thinking it belongs to Uther. But Merlin knows the truth though which means he’ll be the only person who can help you.

“We must leave tonight,” you confide in him. If Uther finds out that you’ve disrespected him in these manners, he’ll have you hung and declare war on your kingdom. If you flee, you’ll be able to have the baby and come up with some sort of plan for your return. It’s the safest option.

“Meet me down here tonight. I’ll get you out of Camelot but then you’re on your own,” Merlin murmurs already concocting a plan for how to distract Gaius as he helps you escape. There’s no time for excitement when you tell Gwaine what has happened but you can tell he’s over the moon.

“And it’s mine?” he whispers eyes full of affection. He never thought he’d want to become a father but learning the news of your pregnancy has proven him wrong.

“Of course it’s yours,” you say with as much dignity as you can muster. How could he ever think it wasn’t his? You stop dead in your tracks when Arthur appears around the corner.

“Sir Gwaine. My Lady.” He kisses your hand from obligation rather than willingness.

“Could I have a moment with her Highness?” Gwaine knows he can’t say no but the hesitation is enough to raise suspicion. He continues down the hallway as you remain with Arthur.

“He’s good with a sword but that brainless head of his is going to get him killed one day.” You chuckle having said the exact same thing to Gwaine many times.

“Perhaps his sword skills will be the thing to save him from the troubles his brainless head creates?” you suggest hoping the talk of Gwaine will distract you from the real question; why are you down here? But it doesn’t and you mention the only thing that will make him run the other way.

“I have terrible cramps. Gaius promised he had a potion that could help.” The mentions of menstrual cramps is enough to send him running and you hurry on laughing at how easy men can be distracted. Sound travels through these tunnels and you’re close enough to hear both Gwaine and Merlin.

“I used to think you hated nobles,” Merlin laughs enjoying the company of his best friend one last time.

“Yeah, well... maybe that one’s worth dying for, eh?” You don’t mention their conversation as you enter but your heart is beating a little faster after hearing his declaration. That night you and Gwaine escape Camelot with help from Merlin. You seek refuge in your own kingdom using magic to distort your features and remain hidden. By the time, Uther realises what has happened, you’ve taken in too many sorcerers for him to launch an attack that will ultimately lead to a war he will lose. Not too long after the birth of your child, you return to the throne with Gwaine by your side and a little heir running around the throne room.

“Is it wrong for me to miss being on the run?” Gwaine asks you as you walk in the garden surrounding the castle.

“I miss it too sometimes. But I couldn’t abandon my people.”

“You just might be the first noble to care for their people,” he smiles. He takes your hand in his and the topic is never brought up again. Gwaine settles into his role with grace leaving behind the tavern fighting instead focusing on little Merlin and you.

“I’m pretty proud of our little family.”

“Me too.”

#gwaine x reader #gwaine blurb #gwaine imagine #gwaine bbc merlin #bbc merlin blurb #bbc merlin imagine #bbc merlin #sir gwaine x reader #sir gwaine blurb #sir gwaine #king arthur #merlin #uther pendragon

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shoutaaizawas · 4 years

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For the au prompt event can I requst a fantasy!au Shinsou with the prompt "Is there a reason you're blushing like that?" please!

thank you for the request!! 💖

↳ shinsou hitoshi x reader → remember

event: au prompt event summary: shinsou hitoshi was an assassin sent to kill you but he didn’t and your trying to figure out why. word count: 2,479 tags/warnings: fantasy!au, light angst, happy ending a/n: this was a fun idea and it was kind of hard to fit it in to a one-shot

Was Shinsou an assassin sent to kill you? Yes. Were you sort of friends at the moment? Maybe. Friends was probably too strong of word to use for him but he wasn’t trying to kill you at the moment so that was good.

You were a princess, next in line to rule. You had been traveling to another kingdom to meet your betrothed when you were attacked. It had happened so quickly. The strange purple-haired man had a blade to your neck but he hesitated. You weren’t quite sure why he stopped but you weren’t complaining.

Somehow this all lead to you traveling home with this assassin. With his change of heart, he decided to escort you back to your kingdom. Unfortunately, you were a very long way from home so this would be a long journey.

Maybe that wasn’t a bad thing. You weren’t looking forward to seeing your home. The pressures of being royalty were simply not for you. You would prefer to live a peaceful and simple life. But you were stuck in a world where you would be a leader and not only that but you’d be wed to a man you didn’t even know. All of it was terrible.

At first, your travels were stale with this assassin. He barely talked to you and would hardly look at you. This left you with the sound of your footsteps and whatever sounds the forest made.

Sometimes you would take in his features, his pale skin and the scars that marred it.

“So, been an assassin for a long time?” You asked trying to break the silence. You were tired of being stuck in your thoughts of what awaited you at home.

“None of your business.” He said simply.

“Just trying to make small talk.” You huffed.

“I don’t do small talk.” He replied.

“No small talk, just murder.” You retorted.

“I didn’t murder you.” He said shooting you a glare.

Okay, so small talk wasn’t going to work. You ended up counting the trees to keep yourself busy but there were too many trees so you gave up on that.

“I spy, something green.” You said after another hour of silence.

“I’m not playing a child’s game.” He said.

“Oh come on all this walking is so boring.” You said.

“I’m sorry that I don’t have a pretty carriage for you or a white pony, princess.” He said.

“It’s not the walking it’s just the silence.” You said. "I used to have a white pony, her name was Snowflake. She was such a good girl." You reminisced about your childhood horse.

Shinsou just looked at you with an odd stare.

“It was that tree, by the way.” You said answering the game you had tried to start earlier.

There was a lot of walking through forests, it all started to blend in together. Some days you sang until he told you to shut up. Others you attempted asking him questions to be shot down. Sometimes you would just start telling a story since that required no response. He would eventually get annoyed with that.

One night you sat around the campfire he created, keeping yourself warm in the harsh cold. Watching the flames dance you imagined a life where you could live in a small cabin far from others, tend to your own crops and animals, and simply enjoy life. Maybe even share it with someone else.

“Why didn’t you kill me?” You asked breaking the silence.

“It’s none of your business.” He replied not sparing a glance.

“It feels like it’s a little bit of my business. You know if you hadn’t spared me I’d be a dead body floating down a river right now.” You said.

“That’s not how you dispose of a body.” He scoffed.

“I’m not sure that’s what I wanted to hear but I’ll take it since it’s the first thing you’ve said that’s not ‘it’s none of your business’ or ‘shut up’.” You said.

Slowly but surely he slowly opened up. Maybe opening up wasn't the most accurate phrase for it but he would let you sing a song as you walked. Sometimes he would answer one of your dumb questions.

One day you were walking along the dirt path leading you to the next town when you started talking about your kingdom. You hadn’t been thinking much about what you were saying but you got on the topic of your role as princess.

“You know, I don’t even want to be queen.” You rambled on. “I don’t want to marry some random guy I’ve never met, I don’t want the responsibility of leading people. Sometimes I just want to run off and never look back.” You sighed.

“What?” You were shocked at the sudden interest that Shinsou showed.

“Hmm?” You hadn’t expected that he was listening. “I was just saying I don’t want to be queen.”

“But you have to.” He said seriously. You hadn’t expected that either.

“I mean who’s gonna stop me if I don’t go back?” You shrugged. “What’s the difference between that and me being dead?”

Shinsou was silent but despite the fact, he was hard to read, you could tell he was deep in thought.

It was yet another day traveling home, you were close maybe a few days out now. You felt nauseous. You didn’t want to go home to a life you hated. You wanted choices, you wanted freedom.

You weren’t expecting the sudden attack. You were tackled to the ground and fear seized you as you looked at your attacker. He wasn’t on you for long, Shinsou ripping him off you. You watched helplessly as he fought off the attacker along with three others that had been apart of the group.

You hated that you couldn’t help, you hated being so helpless. You let out a gasp of horror as a blade sliced against Shinsou’s side. Even with the wound, he fought them off with a lot less trouble than you expected someone to fight four people by themself.

“You’re hurt.” You said going to his side.

“I’m fine, let’s get out of here.” He said, waving away your concern before grabbing you by the shoulder as he gripped at his side.

After insisting he finally gave in and stopped at a local tavern that doubled as an inn. You wanted to help bandage him up and let him get rest. Once you were in the room you sat him down, you reached for the pack you had with first aid. Worry filled you at the sight of the blood that had soaked through his clothes.

“You don’t have to, I can do it myself.” He said.

“You got hurt defending me, I’m not going to sit here.” You huffed. “I already didn’t help in the first place.”

The last thing you were expecting was for him you grab your chin tilting your gaze from his wound to his eyes.

“I’ll always protect you.” He said in a soft tone that had your heart skipping a beat.

Not a moment after Shinsou’s eyes fluttered shut and he fell back onto the bed unconscious. Okay, maybe that was the last thing you expected in retrospect.

You panicked for a moment before you reached for his side pulling aside cloth to look at his wound. It didn’t look right, it was foaming. It hit you, you had read it in a book once, the blade had poison on it.

You recalled a night a few weeks ago where you had been poking through his bag, he had vials of poison himself as well as antidotes. Thanking yourself for your curiosity you dug into his bag looking for the vile.

Shinsou was now shaking and convulsing on the bed and fear gripped you even stronger now. You couldn't lose him.

Pressing it to his lips you tilted his head so he could drink the antidote. Once it was all gone you pulled him onto the bed fully before starting to tend to his wound.

The antidote was working, his body stilled and his breathing evened out. His body was burning up but you assumed that that was part of the poison leaving his body. You hoped that you had done everything right.

After you cleaned and dressed the wound you pulled off the outer layers of his clothing so he would be more comfortable. He was sweating, touching his forehead you could feel he had a fever. You went down to the tavern to retrieve water.

You sat at his bedside, dabbing his forehead with water and doing whatever you could to help him be more comfortable. Watching his unconscious form you appreciated how handsome he was even looking sickly as he did right now. You had stared at him before but he would usually catch you and it almost felt like he didn’t sleep considering you only ever saw him awake and on guard when you set up camp. But now you could take in his peaceful features.

His long purple hair that rested against his shoulders, his sharp cheekbones, and the darkness under his eyes that was oddly attractive.

It was a hard thing to admit to yourself but you had slowly grown close to this man along your travels. It may have taken a while to get him to talk but once you did you weren’t expecting his dry sense of humor or the soft tone he took with you when you did something that could get you hurt.

Shinsou stirred in his sleep, tossing and turning. You cleaned the cloth off in the cool water and dabbed it on his forehead.

“Princess.” He mumbled out and you quirked an eyebrow.

“Shinsou, how are you feeling?” You asked leaning foreword to hear his quiet words.

“Princess, I can’t go I have to clean out the stables.” He said. Your eyebrows furrowed. What was he talking about?

“What are you talking about?” You questioned.

“I’m sorry princess, next time.” He said softly.

Suddenly you were pulled into a memory. You were young, maybe around ten years old. The boy in the stables with the purple hair and the soft eyes that matched. Oh, how you loved how gentle he was with horses, how he talked to you in that soft voice of his. He was so kind-hearted.

You spent so much time with him, talking to him, telling him stories, singing. You always wanted him to go with you to the forest and explore and run around. But he always had to work, even when you asked your father to let him have the day he refused and said you shouldn’t be hanging out with such a lowly servant. It didn’t stop you, you spent every day there with him for years.

Oh, how you fell in love with the sweet boy, Hitoshi. As you got older you both planned to run away far away from it all and get married. You could live a life free from your family and the things that kept you apart.

But one day he was gone, you went to your father only to find out that he had him sent away. You cried and cried for weeks, heartbroken at the loss. You looked for him but there was no trace of him anywhere. You missed him so dearly.

How had you not realized sooner? How did it take this to make you realize your lost love was in front of your eyes the whole time.

“Hitoshi?” You said, tears welling in your eyes.

This pulled him from his feverish dream. His eyes snapped opened and focused on you.

“You remember?” He asked cautiously.

“I don’t know how I could forget you, ‘Toshi.” Your tears broke and rolled down your cheeks. You moved forward, perching on the side of the bed so you could pull him into your arms as carefully as possible.

You tucked your face into his shoulder and his arms pulled you in.

“It’s okay princess, I’m here now.” He said, stroking your back.

After a few moments of resting in his arms, you pulled back looking into his purple gaze.

“Let’s run away together, I don’t want to return. Let’s run away from it all like we talked about when we were kids.” You said.

“We’re not kids anymore, we’re adults and we have responsibilities now.” He replied in a stern tone.

“Oh yeah, like murdering people?” You bit back, pulling away from him.

How could he say that after finding each other after all this time? You could finally be together.

“You don’t know what I’ve been through!”

“How am I supposed to know you just disappeared!” You shouted back. “You were gone and I was so alone, I couldn’t find you no matter where I looked!”

“Your father sent me away, he sent me to an assassin’s guild. They trained me to be some kind of monster. I realized what real life was like, not like the little fantasies we dreamed of. How am I supposed to be worthy of someone like you with all the blood on my hands? How could you ever love me?”

You stared at him in disbelief. How could he think that?

“You’ll always be that boy in the stables that I loved nothing could change that.” You said softly. It didn’t matter what he had done you could work past it. “You don’t have to kill people anymore, we can both leave our lives behind and start fresh.”

Shinsou started deep into your eyes, his own eyes filling up with tears.

“That sounds nice.” He said.

Shinsou leaned up, minding his wounds, pulling you in before pressing a kiss against your lips. You were shocked for a moment before melting into it and wrapping your arms around him.

"Is there a reason you're blushing like that?" He said as he pulled back taking in your red cheeks.

“No, no reason at all.” You teased. He gave you that smirk that you loved so much and it was easy to imagine the boy you fell in love with even with the scars he had now.

“Let’s get some rest.” He said pulling you down to the bed with him, holding you firmly in your arms.

“Tomorrow is the start of the rest of our lives.” You whispered into his ear unable to hold back the smile on your face.

As you laid there wrapped up in his arms listening to the soft music that drifted from the tavern below it was easy to imagine the rest of your life with Hitoshi.

A small house secluded away from the harsh realities of your past. A warm fireplace to sit next to in his arms with a warm drink. A life free from what you were both born into. A life made on your own terms.

#shinsou hitoshi #shinsou x reader #hitoshi x reader #shinsou hitoshi x reader #bnha x reader #bnha #mha #mha x reader #my writing #au prompt event #starri-night

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yourlocalorcishbandit · 3 years

Text

An Orcs Promise part 3

The Date

Link to part 1: https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/646150675798032384/an-orcs-promise

Link to part 2: https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/646294553661423616/an-orcs-promise-part-2

Part 4: https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/646477938321244160/an-orcs-promise-part-4

Part 5: https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/646486100736638976/an-orcs-promise-part-5

The chosen: Ellera https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/646559933035364352/an-orcs-promise

The chosen: Oridan https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/646771371691622400/an-orcs-promise

The chosen: Killian https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/647330998732881920/an-orcs-promise

The chosen: All https://yourlocalorcishbandit.tumblr.com/post/647482818600009728/an-orcs-promise

The dates: Oridan

Warnings: Mama Alicia is angry other than that none!

You woke up this morning feeling pumped after your date with Ellera. Knowing the siblings constantly tried to out do one another you had some higher expectations for Oridan. Sure he was a flirt but could he walk the walk or simply talk the talk. You’d have to find out and maybe today you’d dress a little nicer than your last date. Yet you had no idea what to wear, you didn’t know what Oridan planned for you. He and his sister wouldn’t tell you shit!! How were you supposed to guess if you were mountain climbing or going to the nice tavern. You weren’t. The element of surprise you were told whenever you asked, frankly you didn’t mind but you just wanted to know how to dress.

Deciding on a more formal article of clothing you fixed up your hair and wore a few jewels to maybe match Oridans aura. Maybe he might not show up? What if he got cold feet maybe his sister scared him off. Would you make a fool of yourself? Would he hate the alone time with you? So many thoughts now raced your mind. You weren’t as nervous as you were with Ellera but, you knew her better than you did the twins. You were scared they wouldn’t like you just by yourself.. what if you talked too much or you didn’t talk at all?? Would Oridan think you’d be a good partner for the rest of his life? Would you think he would be a good partner?

“Darling Oridan is here!! Please hurry and come downstairs “ You could hear your mother’s sweet voice travel around the house. He was here early is that good or bad??? Oh you didn’t know.

Scurrying down the steps you smiled softly when you saw him. Oridan stood tall and proud with some flowers in his hand his skin much darker than Elleras. For she was mossy and soft, he was bold and dark emerald green. Truly and simply handsome with his hair braided up and decked out in the finest of jewels, you felt appropriately dressed this time! Success.

“I picked these for you nearly died by some hornets.. but for you I’d happily go through hell and back if you so wished” A true words man your date hadn’t even begun and he was making you blush. Maybe this won’t be as bad as you thought.

“You’re too sweet.. thank you they are beautiful and I know any of you would do that for me.. did you get any boo boos you want kissed better” laughing a bit at your own comeback as you gently took the flowers from his hand and put them in a vase. His face grew a beautiful shade of dark green as he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Now where are we going ? “ maybe this time you’d get lucky and learn what was happening for your date!

Oridan smiled softly showing off his tusk bands as he took your hand. “We are going out to lunch than to a show later on today I hope that’s alright with you “ His confidence seemed to falter as he spoke almost as though he was worried that you wouldn’t like his plans.

“That sounds absolutely wonderful! I look forward to what kind of show you have in mind” He actually told you! You know what’s happening, at least now you can plan your actions and thoughts a little better now. “Which tavern are we going to?” There were two in your village and one closer to the edge of the village.

“Hmm oh we’re going to the Drunken Dragon it’s a little far but the food there is to die for and they have the best desserts and I figured you might not have been there yet. “ You held his hand tighter smiling wider as you felt all giddy. He was so kind this was certainly a side you hadn’t seen from him before yet.

“It does sound lovely my mouth is already watering at the thought!! I’ve always heard the food is really good, isn’t it run by a few of the fae I’ve heard they had the best cheesecake in the kingdom !! “ You laughed a bit as you mumbled on about how much you couldn’t wait to try their desserts. Oridan smiled softly listening to your enthusiastic voice talk about all sorts of different sweets. He’d have to keep that you have a sweet tooth in mind, oh how he could listen to you speak for hours and never grow tired of listening.

“Good I’m glad you’re just as excited as I am. Frankly I was worried this wouldn’t go all that well after Ellera bragged so much. I’m glad my feet didn’t grow cold” You held his hand tighter knowing how he felt. Nodding and humming in agreement with his words you were glad he came though. You’re really enjoying your time together.

“Here I know a little shortcut to get there quicker, do you trust me ?”

“Hmm well seeing of how you were such a brave boy with those hornets to get me such lovely flowers.. I trust you. “ Oridan smiled and picked you up carefully and held you close. He’s probably feeling a little jealous that Ellera had gotten to carry you but, you don’t mind it’s nice being carried. Watching as the trees flew past your face Oridan ran almost full speed and barely broke a sweat it amazed you at how he was so nimble and graceful. “So how short is this short cut?”

Laughing a bit breathlessly Oridan smirked as he set you down. “Short. We’re here “ you stated up at him in amazement completely in awe at his speed.

“Wow.. that really was short and you barely.. broke a sweat how’d you do that ??? “ Oridan laughed and gently wrapped his arm around your waist as he walked you to the doors of the tavern opening the door and letting you in first.

“I’ve got stamina honey bee” He said with a wink leaving you a blushing mess as you hid your face in your hands for a moment. Composing yourself you smacked his arm though you’re sure it felt nothing more than a fly landing on him.

“We are in public you can’t make remarks like that!! Oridan!” Staining up at him bright red you felt everyone’s eyes on you. He only laughed a bit as he ruffled your hair.

“Relax no one here pays attention to couples except for Mama Alicia she keeps the kids all in check for such a small woman she has so much anger, it’s terrifying. “ Shaking his head Oridan lead you to a table more in the back and farther away from the more rowdy customers. It was a nice tavern perfect for eating in the middle of the day or drinking the night away. Mama Alicia did a good job.

“What can I get for you two huns?” A small woman with curly bright orange hair waddled her way over to your table. She seemed so sweet with her rosy cheeks and small accent.

“I’ll have- “ Oridan tried to order first giving you some more time to decide on what you wanted. Everything seemed so good you couldn’t decide between the Thief’s stew or the adventurers breakfast! They both had everything you liked plus a side of fruit of your choice!!

“Manners boy!! Dates first I thought I taught you better Oridan. You should most certainly know that by now. Always fawnin over them and treatin them like royalty when you serve them yet now with one of em in front of ya you forget everything I taught you !! Disgrace a shame. “ smacking Oridan with mighty force Mama Alicia made her point quite clear. Turning back to you a sweet smile on her face as if she hadn’t tried to murder your date with a small booklet. “Now what can I get for you hun. “

“Oh I can’t pick between these two.. do you think you can help me? “ She had a wider smile as she looked at your choices. You’d be a perfect fit for Oridan in her mind you’d keep him in check and on the right path.

“Of course, they both have great qualities but if you’re going out again after this I suggest the breakfast over the stew that will keep you full for days and if you want dessert after. “ Making your choice you kept with the breakfast while Oridan got the knights feast. Waddling away Mama Alicia got to your orders and brought you some freshly made berry juice.

“I told you. Little woman lotta rage. Scary thing she is. “ Laughing a little you couldn’t help but check his arm for any bruises you swore that woman could’ve taken his arm off if she wanted to. “I’m fine honey bee but I do feel all flattered you’re worried for me. “ smirking a bit to hide his nerves as you checked his arm. You felt his skin grow warm under your touch and it was nice.

“So you work here? I thought you would’ve been off working as a blacksmith with how you carved that blade.” Satisfied with your check of his arm you pulled away and glanced up at his face. Admiring his chocolate brown eyes for maybe a little too long than you intended.

“Hmm oh I do work as a blacksmith just up in the strong hold with my uncle down here I work to gain a few extra coin to treat myself or to treat someone else.. I haven’t had the chance to do the second until now and I must say it’s very nice I’d be happy to treat you again.. “ Your face went red as you shook your head, scarfing down your drink trying not to say something that could get you far more embarrassed. Yet you wanted to, you hadn’t felt confident in saying things on your mind before. Nows as good a time as any.

“Hmm picking up an extra job for little old me you’re too kind and maybe I like being treated by you.. “ You added your own little wink and smirk mimicking Oridans own actions. You couldn’t hold your laughter in Oridan nearly spit his drink out his nose! He wasn’t ready for you to make such a comeback!

“Honey bee now where did that come from ? I’m not complaining but wow I think I’m rubbing off on you “ you only laughed more as he tried to recover, suddenly realizing how loud you were you quickly quieted yourself down. Oridan loved your laugh it was like sweet music to his ears he loved hearing you laugh so hard you’d snort. Staring at you with such love in his eyes he truly hoped you chose him.

“Oh foods here.. wow that’s a lot of food” Mama Alicia smiled as she placed down your plates of food then waddling over to Oridan and giving him his plates. “Thank you so much Mama Alicia!” You couldn’t wait to dig in. It smelt so good and your mouth was watering.

“Enjoy huns “ she refilled your drinks and left you be. You could be polite and not eat your weight right now in front of your date but, you were with an orc the last thing he’d do is judge you for how and what you ate.

“Hey can you take these? I don’t really like them.” You handed over some vegetables you weren’t really fond of and his face seemed to light up that you were sharing your food with him. Nodding his head he easily scarfed them down. Impressed at watching you devour your own food.

“Where’d you fit all that you have the stomach of an orc honey bee. “ laughing softly as he stole some of your food which got him a smack to his hand and a mighty glare. Laughing more Oridan pulled out his coin sack and left a handful down on the tables edge when you were both done.

“I have a large appetite thank you very much. How’d you know.. right you work here you must have everything memorized strange man” Getting up from your seat you smiled as you waited for him. Oridan smiled more as he wrapped an arm around your waist leading you out of the tavern then it struck him you missed your show time.

“Oh I’m so sorry I got so caught up I completely forgot what time we were supposed to be there “ By this point you had completely forgotten about the show having too much fun with Oridan.

“Hey hey it’s okay!! I had fun anyways I like spending time with you besides there’s always another time. I suppose we should start heading home it looks like a storms coming soon. “ Nodding his head a bit relieved you weren’t upset for missing the show Oridan lead you home parting ways with a soft kiss to your cheek. Once he left you rushed to your room all giddy flopping on your bed and kicking your feet. Your expectations for Killian were set high.

You couldn’t wait for tomorrow.

#fanfic #fluff #fantasy #fiction #reader insert #orcs #orc boyfriend #orc siblings #orc lover #monster lover #monster date #monster boyfriend

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caradocsparadox · 3 years

Text

Oh, yeah? You think that's going to work? Just sitting down and asking questions? I'm not sure if you're confused about who you think I am, or...

Ah. Well, if you're buying the drinks, I suppose I can give you the short version of it. The long version? Nah. You don't have enough in trade for that sort of thing. Otherwise, you wouldn't be paying in whiskey, would you?

Okay, where to start.

Well, first thing to know about me is where I'm from. Four Winds. I've lived in this cess pit of action my entire life, and I promise you that if I hear you ever call it a cess pit, it'll be the last thing I hear about you until your widow is crying over your grave about how sudden and inexplicable your death was. Don't worry about her, though. I'm not one to let a good widow go to waste.

See if you aren't a long term resident of Four Winds, you don't get it, do you? No, you think it's some strongpoint of the war that's been traded back and forth long enough that it's basically forgotten what it should be, and that's why none of the damn five kingdoms could bear to let one of the others hold on to us. And you'd be wrong. You know what my home town is?

The only goddamned winner to come out of three centuries of fighting between those huge armies and the idiots that command them.

Yeah, I said idiots, and I meant it. Do you know why? Because they spent three centuries, a solid chunk of time even to a blasted dragon, fighting each other back and forth, borders shifting and this city trading hands and thousands bleeding out every damn year. And they got nothing for it. Oh, maybe this scrap of land or that or they embarrassed the Duke of something-or-other in battle and got a pretty ribbon for it. But they still lost the damn war. And why was that?

Simple. Because they thought that their swords and their magical explosions and the number of bodies they left dead behind them was what really mattered. And they were wrong. Secrets mattered far more. Secrets and influence and power and that's why they all had to agree to bring this bullshit war to an end without a winner. Well, except for Four Winds.

Yeah, so I've lived here my whole life. Lotta folks around here did. You'll find a lot of us who are people like me, children of the war. One army rolls in, sacks the town, occupies it. Some jumped up soldier gets bored, heads out to find someone to celebrate with, whether that's in a tavern or a brothel or somewhere else. If the kid is lucky, the same army is still even in town by the time mom starts showing. But not always, and they're almost never sticking around long enough to be in place for the birth. Though sometimes they're back by then, had a buddy whose mom was part of an army that captured Four Winds, she got pregnant, they got driven off a few months later, then retook the city about six months after that, so she had a few more months of bed rest occupying the town before he was born. Kid got left with his dad next time her cohort got driven off. You see why the war can fuck with the lives of some kids here?

Me? Mom was a fence. Trading some goods some bright officer from one nation or another wanted to smuggle in- hell no I'm not telling you which one, you're not buying me booze that good enough. Doesn't matter anyway. He left her a bit more than just the smuggled weapons, as she found out a month or so later. He'd already fucked off home with the money, so Mom never talked to him again. Whoever he was, he wasn't one of the officers who showed up again later for a different occupation. Didn't really fucking need him anyway. I had Mom and I had my grandparents and I had two uncles, three aunts, assorted cousins, and eventually a baby sister. Between that and all the other families in our little warren of a neighborhood, that was plenty of family, what did I need some asshole who lied about the daggers he was selling, knocked up my mom, and skipped town before the watch found him?

What, you want to hear about my childhood? My favorite toy as a kid, charming stories from my fourth birthday? Not much of that. It was fifteen years trying to keep my head down so I didn't draw attention from whoever had invaded us most recently. Sister was born when I was six, so I had to help take care of her. By the time I was ten, I knew enough to help Mom with some of her work. I was fourteen the first time someone tried to press gang me into their army to fight off a siege, so I was fourteen the first time I had to disappear into the warrens as someone's death got investigated. The one good thing about armies getting chased out of town often enough was that it meant they didn't stick around more than a week afterward, and I got an award and a pat on the shoulder from the next set of invaders when they found out I'd left some officer bleeding in an alleyway. Happened enough times, I've got commendations from four kingdoms and I'm responsible for ending the live of at least one citizen of all five.

Blades aren't my game, though. Nah. Messy and dangerous. I know which end to hold, but this bit of shine is more to scare off the idiots when I don't want to waste a bit of magic. No, because- remember what mistake those kingdoms all made? Yeah, that's right. Cared more about steel than secrets. I learned that early enough, and that's not a trap I'm one to fall for. So while my mother worked in stolen goods- and made good money on that, no question, my sister took over the reins there- I took some of the lessons of her trade, and went a little more esoteric with them. When you're one of the war urchins, there aren't a whole lot of opportunities for you, unless you decide to pitch in with whatever army is occupying town at the moment. That wasn't for me. So I had to be a little more careful. Stealing books gets noticed, so you have to be sly. Take it, copy it, put it right back where you found it. You can learn a lot that way.

That's how I learned magic.

Oh, yeah. Not the big flashy fwackooom bullshit the mages love to use on the battlefields, but quieter things. Subtler. Little things like that touch of enchantment you didn't notice when you walked in that pulled you over to my corner of the bar, or the illusion that distracted you while I was slipping the poison in your drink. It's taken effect by now, so... Oh, calm down. If I was going to kill you, I would have already. That little potion was just to make you tell me the truth when I ask you these questions.

I told you. I trade in secrets. And you've got a few that should go for good coin. Now, let's start...

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elderbwrry · 3 years

Text

Even if he doesn't say so - Chapter 2/?

Kylo/Hux/Poe Witcher AU

Chapter summary: The trouble with trinkets is they make people jealous. Or maybe that's just Kylo.

Chapter 1 here, 2 below or on Ao3, 3

Wordcount: 2029

Kylo raised his sword and brought it down fiercely on the horrible carnivorous vines he'd been hired to clear out of the local village's moor edge. The things had already munched their way through a cow and half a sheep, and the villagers were worried a child would be next. Perhaps to his own detriment, Kylo wasn't really all that interested in the reasons why he'd been hired; he was far more interested in the coin he'd get out of the experience, and the opportunity to really let loose some destructive energy.

Of course, Kylo had been trained well in fencing, dagger fighting, stave fighting and in hand to hand combat, but for his typical work, he favoured the longsword. The weight of it felt so right in his hands, the swing of it, the sharp edge or the blunt hit, the way it gleamed red after drawing blood. For most monsters, it worked perfectly well, but even then the necessity to dodge or force down some kind of potion usually took the pleasure out of the pure heft behind it. These vines, however, were easy game. They thrashed, shot out poisonous barbs, but mostly they stayed in one place. That meant Kylo could swipe the metal through them with abandon, and still be assured he'd meet his mark.

He hacked and slashed, let a furore course through his veins and out into his surroundings, over and over and over through whatever fleshy leaf, woody stem, fibrous buds he could reach with metal and intensity. When finally he let his sword drop to trail its point through the under-brush at his side, it was carnage. He went around the area, plunging the blade as deep as it would go into each root stump until he was satisfied that nothing was living, before stalking away from the destruction.

Chest heaving, he found a flat, dry piece of ground and lay down, looking up at the clouds and basking in the feeling of action still tingling through his arms, into his fingers, out into the earth and the air around him. He felt connected – to the ground he was lying on, to the source of his own power, without being worried he was lost in the force of a potion. This was all him.

Back in the village, when they'd described to Kylo what he was out to fight, Hux had listened carefully and given a fancy academic name for the vines. Kylo stuck with the common name, shrugging and standing to head off immediately. Hux had reprimanded him and delayed him until he'd found an anti-toxin potion to order Kylo to take before engaging the things, which Kylo had ignored. Now, looking down at his legs and seeing several barbs sticking out of them, Kylo again heard Hux telling him, “They have poisonous thorns, you know,” in exactly that tone that could piss him off just as much as it could make him want to pounce on Hux and make his annoyance known by ripping a few tunic seams in the process.

Still, the mage was right, as per fucking usual.

Kylo hauled himself up to sit, drew the potion out of a pocket and downed it, picking the barbs out while he waited for it to take effect. The pricks tingled a bit, but it wasn't anything too bad, certainly not to the severity that Hux's wariness had suggested. Though it was nice that he'd given him the potion. It felt like being looked out for.

He let his mind drift to how Hux and Poe would be doing. The mage was likely offering common-sense medical advice to the villagers in the most deadpan delivery possible, or flicking through one of the books he'd brought with him in his seemingly bottomless bags. Poe had been eager to do his usual thing and perform a little in the tavern. His voice was so wonderful, Kylo found himself thinking, the sparkle in his eyes as he reached the punchline of a bawdy tune, and the way he could command a room, tell a story better than anyone else before...

Well, Kylo should be getting back.

He stood, gave the area one last cursory look for any vines he'd missed, and, seeing nothing, turned to go. He was just sheathing his sword when he stopped, eyes catching on a clump of cheerful orange and white flowers which had managed to survive his visit, just on the edge of the carnage.

“Hmm.”

When Kylo returned to the village tavern and gave Poe those same flowers, Poe's face lit up with a smile. “Well, don't I feel special.”

Kylo noticed Hux eyeing them. Shit, had he done something wrong? “They're not poisonous too, are they?” he asked.

Hux seemed to snap out of some kind of reverie. “No, they're... they're just normal flowers. Excuse me,” he stood from the table he was sat at and made for the stairs.

If Kylo didn't know better about Hux's taste in “useless gestures” like flowers, he would have thought he should have brought Hux some as well.

[break]

They stopped at the next city. Kylo wasn't sure they should stay – there were no contracts of the style he took, and, in his opinion, staying pointlessly at a place like this was a recipe for trouble – but Poe wanted to get some supplies and try out a some new material with a more cosmopolitan crowd, and Hux claimed he had someone he wanted to visit, so stay they did.

Hux disappeared off into the bustling crowds early in the morning, and, later, Poe dragged Kylo off to the market. Kylo started to suspect he was only there so that Poe could make him carry things, which would grate on him usually, but he found didn't mind all that much, since it meant he got to spend time with the bard.

Poe was a people person, a fact which Kylo had always known, but it was never so clear as when he was not trying actively to entrance people as he did when performing – somehow not putting it on made it all the more obvious this was just him. He would flash charming grins to the women and manoeuvred through the crowds with an ease Kylo was jealous of.

For his own part, Kylo always felt the need to keep his hood low, to keep out of sight, even going so far as to cast a glamour some witch had taught him years ago. It was a weak thing, but eyes slid off him like water droplets off a bird. With Poe, however, he didn't need it; the man was so magnetic as it was, there was barely anyone who would bother to stare at anyone else. (Kylo included himself in that number.)

Finally, they came to a stand selling all sorts of gold and silver jewellery, pretty trinkets, gemstones on cords. One brooch caught Poe's eye – a dragon. “This is some amazing craftsmanship,” he noted, striking up an easy conversation with the stall keeper. When the man had to tend to another customer, he turned back to Kylo. “I'd love to fly. Do you think I'd be a good dragon?”

“You'd be great,” Kylo told him honestly. He was certain Poe would command the skies, given half the chance, and push back against the hunters until the entire Continent was dragon territory once again. The mental image morphed into one of Poe in front of a victory banner, the name of a great flying lizard no more than an epithet used by the forces he'd become leader of. It was a good look in him; he may not want to be in charge of his home kingdom, but with a cause like that, and people to follow him, he could be formidable. Lost in the daydream of Poe as some kind of dragon king of the skies, Kylo pointed at the brooch. “Do you want to get that?”

Poe looked at it thoughtfully, enough that Kylo could see the conflict in his thoughts. “Nah,” he said eventually, “it's expensive and... I have stuff at home.” He began walking away, and Kylo trailed after him, thinking it was a pity – the brooch would look so wonderful on him. “Maybe I could get Hux to transfigure me or something,” Poe mused, a glint of humour in his eye as Kylo blanched.

“I'm not sure that's how it works...”

“Imagine it though. Flap flap, blagh, I'm a dragon.”

[break]

A day after they left the city, they made their first camp at the edge of a copse. Kylo was checking over his armour while Poe and Hux were sat on a log opposite him, Poe cooking a fowl on the fire and Hux watching him do it. Kylo had let himself fall into a somewhat meditative state as he worked everything over, but a glint of silver and amber across camp hooked him out of it.

Hux had withdrawn a small pouch from his pocket, and withdrawn from that again a brooch. Another second let Kylo confirm – it was the very brooch from the city market. How had he known? Then he was handing it to Poe with a smooth, “I saw this and thought of you.” Bastard.

Poe was speechless for a second. “You shouldn't have,” were the first words out of his mouth.

“Well I can always-”

“No, I'll...” Poe reached to take it from Hux's hand. Kylo's jaw clenched as Poe's fingers lingered for too long. “Thanks, Hux. This is... wow.” He put it on, pinning it over his heart.

“It isn't straight.” Without waiting to be asked, Hux reached up with deft mage's fingers to fix it, smoothing out the fabric more than was necessary. “There.”

The leather armour in Kylo's grip creaked. Poe didn't hear it, but Hux shot him a look and... was that a smirk?

Then it hit Kylo; those flowers he'd given to Poe weeks ago must have made Hux jealous. It did not enter into Kylo's conception that Hux could simply like seeing Poe happy – happiness could be a part of it, certainly, but Hux was too cunning, too driven by ulterior motives for it to be that simple – or that Hux's feeling at seeing Poe like another person's gift could be any different to what Kylo himself was now feeling at seeing the same.

Well, if this was to be a game of one-upmanship, Kylo was sure he'd find a way to win. To make Poe smile like that, run a hand through his curls self-consciously as he now was – Kylo could do that just as well as Hux could. The rest of the evening, his mind was spinning with things he could give to the bard, trinkets of affection he could source the next time they crossed a place which dealt in such things.

The fire burned down and Hux retreated into his tent for the evening, Poe and Kylo settling on their bedrolls. They ended up facing each other, so Kylo, with his Witcher eyes, was not spared the view of Poe's finger fiddling with the brooch as he smiled to himself.

“He shouldn't have got it for me,” Poe mumbled again, as if sensing Kylo's train of thought, “It's probably gonna get broken.” Then, quieter, “I worry enough about whether you two will stay in one piece, I'd rather not worry about tiny things like this as well.”

Kylo thought about that for a minute. “You worry about us?” He couldn't keep the surprise out of his voice. Out of all of them, Poe was the one who should be being worried about – Kylo himself was nigh on destructible, and Hux would probably survive anything out of sheer spite, even discounting his magic.

“Shut up,” Poe chuckled.

Kylo watched him smile up blankly at the canopy. And... if Poe could be happy like that without being showered with gifts, if it would please him more to worry about them less, maybe Kylo didn't need to compete with Hux. Perhaps the three of them were good enough as they were.

#darkgingerpilot #armitage hux #kylo ren #poe dameron #kylo/hux/poe #kylux #darkpilot #gingerpilot #my writing #fanfiction #witcher au #fantasy medieval au #star wars #even if he doesn't say so

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omniswords · 4 years

Text

We Were Never Different [Sylvain Jose Gautier/Dorothea Arnault]

According to the books, it took Sylvain upwards of ten proposals before Dorothea agreed to marry him.

The eleventh time, she said yes.

(happy birthday @trebuchials ! and cheers to my first?? ever???? FE3H fic! signed, the fool who hasn’t beaten Azure Moon OR Crimson Flower yet. oops.)

It’s the end of the world, and at almost thirty years old, Dorothea knows it.

Maybe she should have known it six years ago, when it actually did feel like the end of the world. When she and her professor and a handful of her old classmates seemed to stare Death itself out of existence. Twice. When she trekked through parts of the Empire and the Kingdom that she had only ever heard long-gone suitors try and fail to wax poetic about. When she… when Edelgard…

Maybe that was the closest to the end of the world. That, and the streets of Enbarr.

But as far as she’s concerned, childhoods are never as pretty as people try to describe, and all her life she has been nothing if not resilient. The Mittelfrank Opera Company would have plenty to say about that, and so would Garreg Mach Monastery. And so would her professor, if they could see her now from wherever they are.

And so would Sylvain.

Sylvain, who has made it a point, in these last six years, to offer her marriage ten times.

Sylvain, who knocked on her door tonight for what she presumed is the eleventh. Who’s sitting across from her at a dinner table in Gautier territory, and who opens his mouth to confirm it.

She’ll have to admit, he’s developed a sense of decorum and tact over the years. He’s lost the wiggle in his eyebrows in favor of a gallant kiss to the back of her hand. He doesn’t lean in her doorway, whenever he comes to her home, as though he intends to darken it with some despicable arrogance. No, there’s something noticeably different about him, something that sets him apart from other nobles—and perhaps from who he was when he tried chasing her skirt eleven years ago. There’s a sparkle in his eye that he makes no effort to hide. A softness in the cadence of his voice, the sort that betrays just how deeply they know each other. What parts of each other’s hearts they’ve touched, and cradled, and taken with then whenever they parted ways in the halls of the monastery and in Faerghus terrain.

Things like that don’t just happen to you when you inherit the title of Margrave Gautier.

“Dorothea.” By Seiros, even the way he says her name and keeps her gaze in between spoonfuls of peach sorbet holds a different kind of weight. “I meant what I said before, about… everything. I’m confident you know that much.”

“I know.” They may be in the corner of a local tavern, a place Sylvain claimed as some old stomping grounds, but she’s allowed to hold onto some of her airs. He told her once that it was one of the things he liked about her. He might have said, years ago, that her stone-cold attitude and the way she held him at arm’s length only spurred the thrill of the chase; nowadays, when he rides beside her on horseback or dares to brush her hand on a leisurely walk, something in the way he carries himself tells her she’s commanded his full respect by virtue of existing. “So did I.”

“I don’t disbelieve you,” he says; he must be leaning back in his seat because elbows on the table are unbecoming, but he inclines his head like he means to study her. “But your answer has been the same every time. And you haven’t told me no. All you’ve said is, ‘Not yet.’ So when? When will you say yes?”

She’ll credit him on two counts: that his tone his measured and far from demanding, and that his words are accurate. She never has said no to his proposals. Perhaps she’s had to stave off an onslaught of girlish butterflies, or memories of a hushed, heartfelt conversation in Garreg Mach’s reception hall. But her answer has hardly been more than a faint smile, Not yet, Sylvain, and a closed door.

“Sylvain,” she says almost in the way that she might issue a challenge; an elbow on the table means little to her when her chin rests so delicately against her knuckles. “Why do you think I haven’t agreed to marry you yet?”

He pauses. And then he chuckles. “That’s a loaded question with a lot of answers, coming from you,” he admits. “Maybe you’ve just been waiting to see if I’ve got all the flirting out of my system. I suppose any woman who knew my… track record… would wait for that.”

To her surprise, Dorothea can’t think of any other woman besides herself these days. She’s the only one he’s so much as mentioned in the time they’ve spent together—not counting Ingrid, who’s been steadfastly overseeing Galatea territory on her own, or Annette, who according to him now happily goes by “the Duchess of Fraldarius.” But she is the only one he’s invited to dinner. Written to regularly. Secured land for in Gautier territory, in her name, and given her time and space to tend. All without need for thanks. All without asking for repayment besides a smile and a reply and perhaps, if he’s in good spirits, a song.

That’s the pleasant thing about Sylvain. He’s almost always in good spirits.

“That may be true,” she concedes as they leave their meal behind and he helps her into her cape, “but I have other reasons.”

“And you’re going to make me guess them all, huh?”

“No,” Dorothea says, and when he takes her by the hand and leads her into the cold, she doesn’t quite let go of him. “I trust you enough to tell you.”

It’s a long walk back to her home, where Sylvain’s horse is graciously being fed and watered, but neither of them minds the trip. In fact, she’d like to think they both quietly relish it, especially in the dark, away from the prying eyes of nobility. “So,” he says. “Your reasons?”

Dorothea draws her hood, and even afterwards her hand still looks for his. It feels so distant, gloved all the time. Perhaps once they reach her house he’ll allow her just a few forbidden seconds to peel them away, to feel out the lines in his palms and the calluses from all that lance work. “Well,” she begins with a deep breath and a vague sweep of her arm. “I think the first reason is obvious. You’ve had to help repair so much in the Kingdom, haven’t you? Not to mention all the responsibilities of being a margrave.”

“I can’t tell if you’re saying it like that because you’re respecting me or because you’re mocking me,” he shoots back, like the hard-to-get quips of old times, but the laugh in his voice, weak though it is, makes itself known well enough. “It’s been years since I’ve inherited that title. It’s not exactly new, and neither are the responsibilities of being a noble. No matter how much of a buffer we’re supposed to be for the north.” He shrugs. “You learn a lot in five years. And then six more.”

Whatever he’s learned, it sounds as though he doesn’t want to talk about it anymore. “You’ve done good things in those years,” she murmurs. “Maybe I wanted you to see that I see those good things, instead of… what you’ve always thought women saw in you.”

“You can say it,” Sylvain mumbles. “Not talking about my Crest doesn’t make it not exist anymore.”

“Talking about it gives it weight. Relevance.” Dorothea spares him a glance, gestures between them with her free hand. “Whatever this is between us has nothing to do with it, or nobility, or lofty… whatever you want to call it. It never has. We are who we are—together—because of what we’ve done together. What we’ve seen. Sylvain, I’ve told you things, written��things, that I never thought I would tell anyone, and your Crest wasn’t even on the list of things I was thinking about when I confessed them.”

“So what was?”

She stops, muscles tense, heart lodged in her throat. All the old symptoms of stage fright with none of the excitement. “How… scared I was. That once you heard them, or read them, you’d… have nothing to do with me anymore.”

In the silence, broken only by their footsteps, Sylvain squeezes her hand. Neither of them has to say, like everyone else. Neither of them has to give any more words to ghosts left over, or walls that haven’t quite crumbled.

“Maybe I was testing you, after all” she admits; the only evidence of her words are the puff of air in the cold. “How long you’d bother waiting for me. If you really did still think there was more to me than my looks or my voice, or…” She shakes her head, locks of hair tickling her cheeks under her hood. “If, at the end of the world, if… you would still want someone like me around. Almost-grandma and all.”

Dorothea’s home is in sight just uphill—the house the men of Gautier built, the stable that shelters Sylvain’s horse—and quite frankly, she can’t tell if it’s relief or regret settling stone-heavy in the pit of her heart. She’s yanked back before she can take a step further, and when she turns, Sylvain is simply standing there, watching her, making her stomach twist all over again. “Do you want to know?” he says quietly. He’s still holding onto her. “What it is I don’t want?”

She nods, but not after a pause heavy with pros and cons. “Yeah. If you trust me enough to tell me.”

Sylvain tugs her close, firm but not forceful, so that she could nearly swallow his words. So that he could feel all almost-thirty years of her. “I don’t want to wait anymore,” he confesses, his voice a low rumble. “I don’t want to not take care of you anymore.”

It takes a while for her next words to come out. “Sylvain,” she murmurs, half-shivering. “I think all you’ve ever done is take care of me.”

He squeezes her wrists, and he reaches for her face, and he slants his mouth against hers like he doesn’t want to wait for that anymore, either. It’s not the first time they’ve kissed, for whatever impropriety that holds. They’ve stolen plenty in the monastery, when she teased him for his skilled tongue and eager hands and other body parts rising to the occasion, however ready or not she was to indulge them. And however many times the world has almost ended for them both, he’s kissed her just before then, too, as though she was the last thing he ever wanted to remember about his life before he left it behind. Pressure, urgency—there is none of that here. There’s only intimacy, the last dregs of patience, and, if she leans enough into his touch, a promise.

“Dorothea—Arnault—” He’s never panted her name against her jaw before, never pressed his forehead to hers before. She thinks she could get used to both. “Will you grow old with me?”

Dorothea thinks, somewhere between the eleventh question and the first yes and slipping on the ring Sylvain’s been carrying on him for half a decade, that impropriety means next to nothing when she could take him inside and get used to more of him all over again.

#fe3h #fire emblem three houses #sylvain x dorothea #dorovain #sylvain jose gautier #sylvain gautier #dorothea arnault #all i can offer you is a big ole shrug emoji #also for explanation: i paired them together in verdant wind lmfao

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frosty-yang · 4 years

Text

Incubus Knight: Calix

-This story is of a third person point of view to get all aspects of the story-

In the dark of night, he prowled for his new prey. He’d been here and there, but never in a kingdom. Calix was the sort of incubus who was wary about big towns, usually sticking to small villages. Not that he was scared, but he had heard stories of what humans did to his kind, torturing them. Therefore, he was always cautious where he fed, but he needed more now, more of a steady food source. Sex was just food to him, sure he could just eat regular food, but that wouldn’t give him all the energy he was used to. He would only seek out single women, making them think it was a good dream, disguising himself as a handsome man. As an incubus, he wasn’t unattractive, just not what a human woman would allow into her bed. His skin was a pinkish tone and he had small black splotches covering him, leathery wings sprouting from his shoulder blades, his hair was raven colored and curly, and on his temples, small horns jutting from his skull. He was by no means ugly in any sense, but humans feared what they didn’t understand.

He found his target, now he’d strike. She was in her bed, so he seduced her, but he slipped up this time, he lost control of his human form and reverted to his true self, making her scream, causing him to flee. He flew away into the night. Word spread about this encounter, leading everyone in the area on edge. So he took refuge in a neighboring kingdom, taking on the guise of a young knight from a fallen stronghold. Joining the ranks, he excelled and became a top knight. This made it easy to feed, now that people knew who he was and would gladly sleep with him.

His charade has gone on for about two months now, he had become close to some of the other knights, seeing them as friends, but when word got out that there was an incubus loose in the kingdom, he stopped sleeping around, realizing he messed up one night. He had left a woman’s home after she fell asleep, but he flew off from the roof top, meaning someone saw him for a brief moment. He kept his guard up, playing along as if he too was going to keep watch.

“Byron, what if the incubus left? He hasn’t been spotted since two weeks ago?” Calix tried to mislead his fellows as if everything was fine.

“Come on, we both know they need to feed, they’re savage creatures who live for taking sexual control over people. I know he’s still here. Besides, I have to make sure my fiancé is safe, can’t have one of those things lay a hand on her.” Byron, Calix’s best friend, said this with hatred.

“I get it, oh hey, weren’t you supposed to set me up with her friend? Iris wasn’t it?” Calix scratched his neck, changing the subject.

“Yeah, she’s real nice, maybe you can meet her tomorrow, go on a date?”

Iris woke up that morning, scratching and feeling refreshed. She hadn’t had a good night’s rest in a while, being that her friend was trying to set her up with a popular knight. She was sure he wouldn’t be interested in her; she was what you’d call full figured and not as slim as the some of her friends, so she never got much attention, some, but not a lot. Her hair was orange and straight, she kept it shoulder length to make it easy for herself to maintain. She longed to have a steady relationship, never “one and done’s” with the guys she met. They never wanted anything real, but she gave in for the sake of feeling like they loved her for an hour. But hopefully, Calix wasn’t like that, she hoped he was a nice guy and wanted something long term with her...but that was just a hope for their date tonight.

Leaving the house, she met with her friend Victoria, learning about some of the things Calix might like. She heard he was very handsome, strong, skilled fighter, and had an amazing personality. She had seen him from afar, and she liked his look; his tanned skin and dark curls were enchanting, but his eyes were what stuck out, they were a dazzling grey. She’s never seen that before, but she was enamored by them. Victoria led her to a tavern where they were to meet up with Victoria’s fiancé Byron and Calix.

“Ah, you must be Iris, Byron told me a bit about you.” Calix stood and kissed Iris’ hand.

“And you must be Calix, your reputation surpasses you. Now tell me, are they true, or are they just rumors?” Iris smiled and sat down at the table.

“It depends on what it is, what is it that you’d like to know?”

“I heard you like to play around, which isn’t surprising. A knight like you, with your looks and rank, I’d be surprised if you weren’t that type of man.”

“Not anymore, no. I’ve changed my ways, especially when Byron told me of his fiancé’s very nice friend.”

-This probably won’t get any attention, but here it is. Hope you liked it if you made it this far. If you did, leave a like and I’ll probably finish it when I think of something.”

#incubus #monster boyfriend #interspecies romance #interspecies relationships #terato #ficlet #human x monster #monster lover

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nerdywriter15 · 4 years

Text

Once Upon a Stardust: Chapter 10/?

Summary: Follows the basic plot of the movie Stardust with a Captain Swan twist. In an attempt to win the affection of Neal Cassidy, Emma Swan leaves her home in the town of Storybrooke and travels to the Kingdom of Misthaven in search of a fallen star. Once there, she discovers that the star is in fact a person, a man who goes by the name of Killian Jones. Together, they must face many dangers, including sorcerers and pirates, in an attempt to return Emma to Storybrooke and Killian back to the sky.

Rating: T (It’s probably more K+ but I want to be safe. Also, the rating will remain the same throughout the whole thing.)

Word Count: ~ 2,329

Catch Up: Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9

Read on FanFiction, AO3

Notes: I really have no excuse at this point. If you're still reading this, thanks so much for sticking with it even in spite of my abhorrent updating schedule. At this point, I think I'd just be fooling myself if I said I knew when my next update will be, but I do promise that I will finish this story eventually.

Also, I'm sorry for any errors! I was eager to get this posted, but I might go back and do another round of edits later.

~/~

Rumplestiltskin stood in an open field and gave an audible huff of frustration. He had been traveling all day and consulting his runes as to the location of the star. But they weren’t making any sense; he wasn't being pointed in any direction. He had tried interpreting them in every way possible, but he just couldn’t seem to get anything usable out of them.

There wasn’t anything left to do. He really didn’t want to use any further magic, but it couldn’t be helped. As much as he loathed to admit it, he needed assistance.

He conjured up a small mirror. He rubbed it roughly with his palm. A few moments later, the faces of Ursula and Maleficent appeared before him.

"You’re looking a little worse for the wear, Rumple," Maleficent said, gesturing toward his arms, which were now covered in scales all the way from his fingertips to his shoulders. You of all people should know magic always comes with a price. I would have thought that would deter you from using it carelessly."

"Of course I know the price magic comes with," he replied. "But I’m in need of counsel."

"I never thought I’d see the day when you admitted to needing help," Ursula said, chuckling deeply. "Not the powerful Rumplestiltskin."

"We don’t have time for this," he spat out. He could feel his temper flaring to life, but he managed to keep it enough under control to calm his voice and say, in a very measured tone, "You know as well as I do that the more I use magic, which includes using this mirror, the more my appearance deteriorates. And I need to blend in to accomplish what I set out to do. Now, if you’d both be quiet and stop making jokes at my expense, maybe we could get down to the pressing matter at hand. Or do you want to wait another who knows how many years for another star to fall?"

That seemed to sober the two witches, whose faces immediately adopted twin looks of chastisement. Although, if he really thought about it, he could have sworn that he saw a twinkle of mirth in Maleficent’s eye and a twitch at the corner of Ursula’s mouth. He restrained himself from saying anything, but just barely. It wouldn’t do to get angry now. As he’d said, he had something far more important to accomplish.

"Now that you’ve stopped being children," he said, "I need your opinion on these runes. They’re not telling me to go anywhere. I think they may be faulty."

"Impossible!" Maleficent said. "Those runes have served us well for many years."

"See for yourself," he replied, tossing them in the air. When they hit the ground, he turned the mirror towards them so that the witches could see what they said.

"You see?" he asked, turning the mirror back to his own face. "They're not working."

"You imbecile," Ursula yelled. "I knew we shouldn’t have sent you! The runes couldn’t be simpler!"

"How, dearie?" he snapped back. "Where can I go if they’re not telling me to go anywhere?"

"You’re not supposed to go to the star," Ursula said. "How much more obvious could it be?"

"You’re supposed to wait for him to come to you," said Maleficent.

That brought Rumplestiltskin up short. How could he have not seen it? It was such a simple explanation. As much as it pained him to admit, he really did deserve to be reprimanded for his oversight. But before Maleficent or Ursula had the chance to gloat any further, he banished the mirror. He didn't want to listen to them making a mockery of him.

He had preparations to make.

~/~

Killian felt like he had been riding all day. He knew that it had really only been a couple of hours at most, but he was exhausted, despite the fact that this was normally the time when he would be wide awake. His left hand hurt like crazy. He had tried to favor his right hand to stay balanced atop the unicorn, but since there were no reins, he was occasionally forced to use his left to grab ahold of the unicorn’s neck to stay balanced.

He had thought about asking the unicorn to slow down, but he knew it wasn’t a wise idea. He didn’t want to sleep outside, where anyone could happen upon him. They needed to press on until he found somewhere safe to rest his head for the night. And the sooner they found a place, the better.

Almost as if the universe was listening to his thoughts, he and his companion came turned around a bend in the road and came upon a wooden building. Out front, there was a large green sign that had the word "Inn" printed on it in large letters. Killian sighed in relief. This was just what he needed: somewhere to rest before facing the next day and figuring out what he should do next.

He urged the unicorn toward the door of the building and dismounted.

"Wait right here," he said. "I’m going to see if I can get a room." Suddenly, a sinking feeling entered his stomach. "Although I’m not sure if they’ll give me one since I don't have any money."

He felt a few raindrops fall from the sky and he glanced up. The light of the moon was still fairly bright, but he could see storm clouds gathering and blocking out the light from his siblings above.

"I’ll be back soon," he said. "Hopefully they have a stable where you can stay out of the rain."

The unicorn huffed in acquiescence and lightly tapped his snout against Killian’s head.

"Thanks for the reassurance," Killian said, giving the unicorn one last pat before striding toward the door and knocking.

He barely had to wait a moment before the door swung open, and he was met by the sight of a middle-aged man standing before him. He wore a long, heavy brown robe, with the hood pulled up over his head, and Killian noticed that his hands were covered by some thick black gloves.

"Yes, dearie?" he said as he opened the door. "How can I be of service?"

"I’m terribly sorry to trouble you," Killian said. "But I’ve been traveling for a while and I was just looking for somewhere to stop for the night."

"Of course, of course," said the innkeeper. "Please, come on in. We are an inn after all."

"Oh, but that’s the problem, you see." Killian replied. "I don’t have any money." He had thought about not mentioning his inability to pay until the morning, but he found himself losing his nerve. He couldn’t do that to this man who was just trying to make a living and hadn’t done anything to harm him.

But this was stupid. There was no reason this person, a complete stranger would let him stay here for free…

"Oh, no matter, no matter at all," the innkeeper replied, stepping back from the door and gesturing for Killian to come in. "It’s looking like we’ve got a storm on the way. I can’t in good conscience let you sleep outside in the rain."

Killian couldn’t believe his luck.

"Oh, thank you!" he said, feeling his body sag with relief. "I can’t tell you what this means to me."

He stepped over the threshold and the innkeeper closed the door behind him.

"Don’t let it trouble you at all," the innkeeper replied. "You can help me with gathering firewood or something of the sort tomorrow and we’ll call it even."

"That certainly sounds fair," Killian said. "More than fair actually."

"I like to do what I can," the innkeeper said, placing his hand on Killian’s shoulder and gently guiding him toward the inside of the inn. It was a quaint little place: small and simply decorated but clean and cozy looking. There was a wooden bar off to one side and tables and chairs spread throughout the floor, clearly showing that it was meant to double as a small tavern as well. On the far wall was a fireplace, which already had a roaring fire inside it.

Killian hadn’t realized how cold he had been. He felt his body start to warm up almost immediately.

"We can see to all of that in the morning, however," the innkeeper said, breaking Killian out of his thoughts. "For now, I think the most important thing is getting you some rest. Why don’t you head upstairs," he continued, gesturing toward a flight of wooden stairs toward the back of the room, "and we can get a nice, hot bath drawn for you."

"Oh, but my ride," Killian said, thinking of the unicorn who had come to his rescue standing outside alone in the rain. "He needs to be taken to the stable."

"Oh, no need to worry, no need to worry. My wife can take care of that while we get you settled," the innkeeper said. "Dear!" he then called loudly. "Can you please get this young man’s steed situated in the stable?"

Killian didn’t see anyone else in the room, so he was expecting to see someone come down the stairs. Rather, a woman rose up from behind the bar. Instead of coming around the edge of the bar to get to the door, she jumped straight up onto the bar and stood there for a moment, just staring straight ahead. Killian noted that she looked…just a little bit…different from other humans he had seen. For the most part, she seemed like any normal person, but her curly brown hair was sticking up at somewhat odd angles, and her jaw was set strangely, almost as if she was jutting it out on purpose. There also seemed to be some kind of blankness or emptiness behind her eyes.

Before Killian had a chance to consider her any further, she had jumped off the bar and headed out the door. He had half a mind to ask the innkeeper if she was alright but thought better it. He had spent many years observing humanity and if there was one thing he had learned, it was that there were all kinds of people who behaved in all kinds of different ways. Best not to bring it up.

"Now that that’s taken care of, I’ll have my son show you to your room," the innkeeper said. "Son, could you come here?" he called.

Killian looked back toward the bar nervously, half expecting another person to jump up on top of it, but he didn’t see anything. Rather he heard some heavy footfalls coming down the stairs. He looked up to see a man who appeared to be a few years older than himself walking down.

Killian was relieved to see that although he appeared perturbed at having been called downstairs at the late hour of the night, he didn’t seem quite as strange as the innkeeper’s wife had been.

"Yes?" the man who he assumed was the innkeeper’s son asked, a note of annoyance clear in his voice.

"Please show our guest to his room and run him a hot bath," the innkeeper said. "I’ll be up to assist in a moment."

"Of course," he replied. Then, directing his gaze toward Killian, "Right this way, sir."

Killian started up the stairs, relieved at the prospect of getting to rest. When he got to the foot of the stairs, he turned back.

"Wait," he said. "I never got your name. I’d like to be able to know it to be able to properly thank you for your kindness."

"Mr. Gold, dearie," the innkeeper replied. "You can call me Mr. Gold."

~/~

Rumplestiltskin let out a sigh of relief as he watched the star head up the stairs. For a moment, he had been sure that his plan was going to fail. Before the star’s arrival, he had transformed the goat into a woman and had restored the goat’s owner to his original human form. He had also put a spell on them to compel them to do anything he asked. He had thought that presenting the star with a picture of a loving family would make him more inclined to trust them and to stay.

Initially, it seemed as though his spellwork had been adequate. However, after the star had arrived, it became apparent that the goat was still very goatish, and that the goat’s owner — whose name he hadn't bothered to learn — had still been able to show some discontentment with the situation he found himself in. He had half expected the star to sense something was wrong and run out the door and back onto his unicorn screaming.

However, it appeared that he needn’t have worried. He knew that even though they had the ability to watch everything happening upon earth from the heavens, stars could be incredibly naive. He was glad that it had worked in his favor tonight. He was already having to cover himself up with his heavy robe and gloves to avoid displaying the scales that were taking over his body; he wasn’t sure he could afford using any further magic to strengthen his spellwork.

But the spells had worked, and all that was left to do now was to make sure the star felt as comfortable as possible. The more content a star was when it died, the more powerful the magic its heart contained. He just needed to wait for the right moment.

Walking back behind the bar, Rumplestiltskin pulled out his weapon of choice: a large dagger with a black hilt and a jagged silver bade. A long-favorite possession of his, the blade of the dagger bore his name, which was carved straight down the middle.

This will do quite nicely when the time is right, he thought to himself as he slipped the dagger into the pocket of his robes and headed up the stairs.

#cs ff #once upon a stardust #captain swan #ouat #my fanfic

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wordsablaze · 5 years

Text

21~ Laced Drink

Magic and Misery Merlin might use magic to help Arthur but he rarely uses it to help himself, which leads to an awful lot of misery… written for whumptober, enjoy!

A/N: this one was pretty fun for me so it may not be for you, just saying ^.^

Merlin doesn’t drink.

Although Arthur seems to think otherwise because Gaius keeps using the tavern as an excuse to cover up mysterious absences, Merlin hates the very idea of being intoxicated.

He’s only ever had alcohol to stop Arthur being poisoned and occasionally when he’s come across Gwaine, who sometimes doesn’t let him go until he’s had a small sip.

So naturally, when Arthur invites him to a tavern party for a drink, Merlin politely declines.

Or rather, tries to politely decline.

“Oh, come on, Merlin,” Arthur all but whines, “you’re always at the tavern anyway!”

“I am not!” Merlin argues, folding his arms.

Arthur makes a face. “Sure. Whatever you say. But I can’t very well attend the event on my own, can I?”

Merlin sighs. “Can’t you get some of the Knights to go with you?”

“And have the rest of them complain that I play favourites?” Arthur scoffs, as if Merlin had suggested that he jump off a cliff.

“I’m sure they’d understand-”

“I think you should be the one to understand that it would be easier if my manservant were to come with me.”

Merlin glares at the interruption but sighs again, knowing he won’t win this argument. And anyway, it’s an evening full of people that could potentially want to hurt Arthur so it could actually be in his benefit to go.

“Alright, fine. I’ll attend your weird party,” Merlin agrees.

Arthur positively beams at him. “Great! Make sure you wear something nice.��

“I’m your manservant, Arthur, I don’t need to look fancy,” Merlin points out, picking up the laundry basket as he rolls his eyes.

“Yes, well… you don’t want Camelot to be known for having… strangely dressed… royal servants, do you?”

Internally laughing at Arthur’s inability to articulate his thoughts, Merlin just shakes his head. “Certainly not.”

As he leaves for the night, Merlin wonders if it had been such a good idea to agree with Arthur so quickly. While an evening filled with princes from different kingdoms could pose a threat, he’s just not sure about being surrounded by alcohol; it never seems to end well.

“The things I do for you, Arthur Pendragon,” Merlin grumbles to himself as he finishes up his chores and heads to bed.

He almost forgets all about it, what with wrestling Arthur out of bed, helping the Knights during their training, running delivery errands for Gaius, and trying to bargain some bread from a cook because he’d forgotten to eat breakfast.

“Merlin, have you seen my- are you eating?” Arthur demands as he walks into his chambers, forgetting what he was looking for.

Swallowing the last of his bargained bread, Merlin gives him a sheepish smile. “Not anymore, why?”

Arthur just sighs. “I can’t find my sword.”

Confused, Merlin glances at the sword in his hand.

Expectedly, Arthur rolls his eyes. “My other sword, Merlin. The one I always take to events like the one tonight. Or have you forgotten about that?”

Groaning, Merlin brushes the crumbs off his hands and takes the sword from Arthur. “That sword’s not left the armoury for weeks, it’ll be covered in dust.”

“Well, you’d better go clean it then.”

Only mildly irritated, Merlin goes about doing just that, not seeing Arthur again until they set off for the remote tavern open only to the nobility, supposedly safe from chaos.

“Do I really have to go in with you?” Merlin asks once they arrive, already disliking the noise coming from within the building.

Arthur just grabs his arm and pulls him along, only letting go when they’re inside and greeting people Merlin couldn’t care less about.

As Arthur sinks into the mix of polite chatter and slightly obnoxious jokes, Merlin busies himself with getting Arthur a drink when he needs one or otherwise staying at the edges of the room so he can observe everyone.

It goes well until Arthur calls him over and one of the other princes buys a round of drinks, a round of drinks that Merlin seems to be included in.

The other prince’s servant seems delighted and doesn’t hesitate to accept his drink but Merlin just fiddles with his glass, not comfortable with his presence being so obviously acknowledged.

“Come on, Merlin, one drink won’t kill you,” Arthur laughs, nudging him.

Merlin smiles hesitantly. “I don’t want to end up drunk… Sire.”

“Oh, go on!” the other prince urges, glancing at Arthur. “I’m sure Arthur won’t mind you being a little slow at getting him a new drink.”

Sighing and not wanting to make a fuss, Merlin takes a sip of the wine. It tastes strange, an odd mix of sickly sweet and oddly bitter, but he’s not knowledgeable enough to know how it’s meant to taste so he just ignores it.

Of course, Arthur accidentally on purpose nudges him again and he ends up pouring half the glass down over himself. Once he’s finished spluttering, he shoots Arthur a pointed glare even if he’s grateful that it means there’s less wine he actually needs to drink.

The other prince seems satisfied too, turning back to Arthur and laughing at his own manservant.

“I’ll just go and clean myself up, then,” Merlin mumbles to himself, putting the glass down.

Arthur smiles at him as he gets up, possibly a little tipsy. “Don’t take too long!”

Telling himself that Arthur’s safety and smiles are worth it, Merlin heads outside, where he knows there’s a water pump he can use to try and wash the wine out of his soaked shirt. He stumbles as he goes but chalks it down to bumping into other tipsy nobles.

It’s not until he gets outside that he realises something’s wrong.

He can’t see properly.

Everything is slightly blurry and he can’t focus his vision.

Frowning, he tries to find the wall to lean on but ends up falling over, misjudging his surroundings entirely and landing on the ground with a dull thud.

“No, no…” Merlin breathes, pushing himself up.

Confusion takes over and he finds his thoughts twisting, tangling.

He has to get to Arthur.

If he’s been drugged, because he must have been drugged somehow, there’s a chance Arthur’s suffering the same fate and he has to help, has to get back.

Blinking rapidly as everything suddenly becomes louder, Merlin groans, struggling to pull himself to his feet but just about managing, taking a moment to steady his shaking knees.

He doesn’t get very far, though, because someone grabs his arm, steering him the other way, the wrong way.

“No, wait... Arth-”

“Arthur doesn’t know how lucky he is,” someone says, and it takes Merlin far too long to realise it’s the prince that had offered him a drink.

Oh no.

The round of drinks must have been a set-up of some sort. Merlin can’t figure out why he hadn’t gone after Arthur - if he had, Merlin could and would probably have saved him by now and all of it wouldn’t matter anyway.

Merlin struggles but he can barely feel his limbs so he can’t resist being pulled along as the prince carries on, “To have such a loyal and... pretty manservant and to take it for granted…”

Any other day, Merlin would agree that his loyalty should at least get him a day off but he’s too confused to say anything, all his energy wasted on trying to turn around, even if he can’t even tell which way he’s meant to be going anymore.

“I h’v to… Arth’r…” Merlin slurs, groaning as his head starts aching, his arm stinging from where he’s being dragged along.

“Arthur’s probably too drunk to know what he’s missing,” the other prince scoffs, his footsteps echoing in Merlin’s ears like physical blows.

Maybe this time, it wasn’t directly Arthur’s life in danger at all. Maybe it was his. Who would have known?

“Wait…”

Merlin is once again cut off as the other prince laughs. “Wait? I’ve been waiting all night for you two to finally separate, nobody warned me how hard it would be!”

He wants to protest that he can’t be separated from Arthur because his destiny says otherwise but he feels a weird kind of sick and doesn’t want to accidentally mutter a spell instead so he keeps his mouth shut, trying not to trip over his own feet as they speed up.

He can’t do magic, he can’t reveal his magic, he can’t use magic, he can’t-

He trips over something.

With a cry, he hits the ground again, the other prince hissing something at him as he’s yanked back to his feet and they carry on walking.

Where are they even going?

Merlin just wants to go back to Arthur.

Who was Arthur again?

Oh, right: his other half.

“Need… Oth’ Ha’f…” Merlin manages, trying to get his arm free again.

The other prince just laughs at him, tightening his grip and making Merlin whimper as they speed up. He still doesn’t know where they’re going. But he knows Arthur won’t be there.

“Sto’… Pl’s... ” Merlin tries, almost surprised when they do actually stop walking.

“Listen to me,” the prince orders, shaking his shoulders and making the world wobble painfully, “you’re my servant now. Arthur doesn’t matter anymore. Do you understand?”

Automatically, Merlin nods.

Then he shakes his head despite the pain.

That can’t be right; he was born to be Arthur’s servant, he can’t serve someone else and especially not someone who’d drugged his drink.

“No, Ar’ur…” Merlin moans, barely able to keep his eyes open.

“What did he do to make you so loyal?”

Merlin grins lazily at that, forcing his eyes to open even though it makes no difference because everything is hazy and he can’t even see the prince right in front of him, never mind figure out where they are or where they’re going.

“M’s be mag’c…” he whispers softly.

And then everything is golden.

And the world is stopping.

And there’s a prince yelling in shock.

And someone’s being thrown into a wall.

And the world starts spinning again.

And people are shouting something.

And somebody is collapsing.

Oh, wait.

That’s Merlin.

Merlin is collapsing.

Thump.

dun dun dunnn...

like/reblog but please don’t repost, thanks! masterlist

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bad-at-names-and-faces · 4 years

Text

Exploring Arendelle

Chapter 7

Chapter Index

[painting by Henryk Pillati, circa 1860]

Lars had taken an early morning walk into town. The fishermen were too busy to be bothered, so he wasn’t able to ask them anything, and most of the shops weren’t open yet, so he simply got a better sense for the layout of the town. He remembered that Frederick, as the oldest prince had insisted he call him, had offered to show him around the countryside if he wanted to go riding. He had also told him to stop by the castle kitchen any time he wanted something to eat, but he didn’t feel comfortable with imposing like that.

As he was walking back toward the castle, he noticed a bakery opening up, and he realized he was getting hungry. It looked like a local bakery, and he really wished that his mother had been the sort to do her own baking, because he had absolutely no idea what he should order.

A bell rang as he walked in the door. The woman behind the counter turned around and smiled. “Good morning,” he began, “what would you recommend?”

“You can’t go wrong with a kringle,” she said, “I assume you’re not from around here?”

“No, in fact, I just arrived yesterday,” he said, then realizing the chance, “but my parents were from here.”

“Really?” she asked, moderately interested, “so, kringle?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Here you go,” she said, handing over the kringle and accepting his money, “and, who were your parents, if I may ask?”

“Jan and Margit Nilsen. Jan Nilsen died before I was born, so I never knew him.”

“Nilsen is a common name around here,” she said, “but I might ask my great aunt when she stops by this afternoon. Are you staying a while?”

“Yes, I’ll probably be here for a year,” he said, finishing a bite of his kringle.

“Ah, well, I hope you enjoy your time here. How is the kringle?”

“Very tasty,” he said after a few more bites, “I’ll be sure to come back often, thank you.”

“And now, I’ll be heading back,” he said as he finished the pastry.

“Have a nice day,” she said as he left.

He heard boys’ voices as he entered the castle gates. Fred was just running toward the stables from the other side of the courtyard.

“Good morning, Frederick!” Lars called out. “Are you planning to go riding today?”

“I hadn’t really thought about what I was going to do,” Fred admitted, “but if you’d like me to show you around like I promised, that would be great.”

The two walked to the stables. Two boys popped out of the stable. One looked like a smaller version of Frederick, the other, a little bit taller, had reddish blond hair.

“Oh! Hey, Fred,” the blond one called out, “Who’s this?”

“Lars,” Fred replied, “He’s from Corona.”

“I’m Peder,” he replied, “and this is Anton,” he said, pointing to the other boy.

“Pleased to meet both of you,” Lars said, bowing slightly to each boy.

“If Father comes back, tell him I’m taking Lars here out for a ride,” Fred told them.

“You really don’t mind?” Lars asked him.

"Of course not!" Fred said, excitedly slapping Lars on the back enough to make him stumble a bit. Fred was already as tall as him, which wasn't surprising by itself, since his sister was just as tall, but the boy didn't seem to know his own strength.

He knew the full names and dates of birth of everyone in their family, but he hadn't even been able to recognize their father out of the formal dress of the official portrait that was sent to every kingdom. He wondered what else there was that he was unaware of not knowing.

He followed Frederick into the stables, and as his eyes adjusted to the change in light, he looked around a bit more. He heard less excitement from the horses than the previous morning, but the horses and the reindeer combined were still making enough noise that he couldn't hear what Frederick was saying. He heard another voice behind him.

"Hi there!"

Lars was not prone to startling, but upon turning around, he screamed.

"Oh, sorry, I get that sometimes. Let's try again. Hi there, I'm Olaf!"

Lars stood completely still and just stared. A snowman was apparently talking to him and wanting to shake hands.

"Sorry, Lars," Fred interrupted, "I should have warned you about Olaf. This is Olaf. Olaf, this is Lars Nilsen, from Corona."

Lars was still just standing and staring. The snowman said something about nice to meet him and going to visit Samantha as he walked away.

"You know," said Fred, "I think I'll just take you around town and maybe up the fjord a bit for a nice view… you probably aren't ready for what I was going to show you…"

"Umm… that's fine," Lars finally stuttered. He now started to remember some of his mother's stories about Arendelle that he had dismissed as fairy tales. He would need to write to her.

They walked their horses out of the stables and mounted them. Lars followed behind him out the gate. The horses walked very slowly through the town toward the hillside. More shops were open, and people were going about their business. It all looked so completely ordinary. He wanted to ask Frederick where he had originally planned on taking him, but he decided if the boy thought he wasn't ready to see those things, then he would wait. He would be here for a while.

"So, Frederick," Lars said before they left the main part of town, "do you know people in the town who might know a lot about someone who left Arendelle twenty years ago?"

"The tavern, they might know," Frederick replied.

"I really don't think my mother would have frequented a place like that," Lars said somewhat defensively, "and the way she talks about my father, I really can't imagine him, either."

"What do you mean? What kind of taverns do you have in Corona?"

"It's a respectable place, then?"

"I hope so. We go there sometimes. I think that makes it respectable."

"I apologize if I implied otherwise."

"Don't worry about it. We can stop there on our way back and you can ask."

They had left the main part of town, and the horses began to trot up the hill. The view of the fjord was spectacular. They slowed down as they approached the top of the cliff. Frederick hopped off his horse, and Lars did likewise. The prince pointed out all the major landmarks they could see, and mentioned the directions of various locations that Lars wasn't familiar with. As they went to get back on their horses, two men on horseback were riding back toward the town, one in royal livery, the other appearing to be some nobleman who was definitely not at the state dinner the night before. They stopped when they saw Lars and Frederick.

"Your Royal Highness!" The men bowed slightly.

"We're just out for a ride," Frederick replied, "what are you two doing?"

"Queen's business," the nobleman said, "it seems I've been called back to the castle. Do you know anything about this?"

"No. Why would I?"

"Oh. Nevermind, then. We'll be on our way. Enjoy your ride, Your Highness."

As the men rode back into town, Lars looked around where they were on the cliff. There were paths going into the woods away from the town, but it seemed that Frederick was taking them along the fjord.

"What's in the woods over there?"

"Trolls."

After this morning, Lars had no idea whether to take him seriously or not. Was the boy teasing him now? He was prepared to believe anything at this point.

"If you're getting hungry, we could just go back into town and I'll introduce you to Halima at the tavern," Fred suggested.

"I'm fine, really," Lars protested.

"Well, actually, I'm hungry," the boy admitted, "and I do wonder what those men were rushing back to the castle about…"

"Is that normal?"

"Not really," he said, "that is, I don't remember mother having a meeting like this when she's this close to having a baby… maybe Inga remembers better. On the other hand, I never go to meetings, anyway. Inga sometimes does. They tried having me sit in on a meeting once or twice this spring, and I ended up kicking the table and one time even knocking my own chair over, and I couldn't tell you what they were talking about…"

"Oh, sorry…"

"It's fine," he said, but sounded a little angry all the same.

"You wanted lunch, then?"

"Yes, let's do that," Frederick said, cheering up a bit.

They turned around and headed back at as close to a full gallop as they could, only slowing down when there were more people using the road.

"We should probably take the horses back to the castle first," Fred suggested as they went through the middle of the town, "it's not very far, and we should give them a rest."

Lars nodded, and followed Fred back. The stables were quiet and nearly empty when they got there. The other horses were eating.

"They've probably gone to the garden," the boy suggested.

After getting their horses settled and fed, the two walked back out into the town. It was almost noon, and Lars had to admit to himself that he was beginning to feel nearly as hungry as young Frederick. The tavern was somewhat crowded, with men and women from the town taking a break for lunch. A freckled girl with brown braids, perhaps ten years old, ran up to Frederick.

"Hello!"

"Oh, hi, Meibel," said Frederick, "is Halima here?"

"She just left, but she'll be back in an hour. Why?"

"My friend here just arrived from Corona, and he's hoping to find out about some people who lived here twenty years ago."

"Are you going to introduce him?"

"Sorry… Lars Nilsen, Meibel Stensland."

"Is he someone I'm supposed to bow to?" Meibel asked, looking at Frederick.

"Lars, I leave that up to you," Frederick said.

"Um, I don't think I'm in that kind of position, certainly not yet," he said, extending his hand to the girl.

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Nilsen," she said, shaking his hand vigorously.

"And now," Frederick said, "I think I need lunch. What about you, Lars?"

"I'll have whatever you're having."

"I'll be right back!" Meibel said, running off.

"She looks very young to be working here," said Lars, watching her go into the kitchen.

"She doesn't, not really," said Fred, "she's their ward, but she likes to help out."

"Whose ward?"

"Halima and General Mattias," Fred explained, "they took her in when she was young."

"The general?"

"Well, he's officially retired now, but yes."

"I suppose that's why she seems so… familiar with you?"

"I'm familiar with a lot of people here," he said, somewhat confused.

The door opened.

"General Mattias," Fred called out, "I want you to meet someone."

The general blinked as his eyes adjusted, staring at Lars.

"Hello? You are?"

"This is Lars Nilsen, he came with the ambassador from Corona, but his family's originally from here, so we were going to ask Halima if she'd know them."

"I'm sure she will," he said, "there's something familiar about you. Which family?"

"His parents left here twenty years ago," Fred interrupted, "that's why I suggested Halima."

"Well, my mother left here," Lars corrected, "my father was already dead."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Mattias said, "how old was he? It's possible I might have known his family."

"You know, I don't remember. I have a lot of things to ask my mother in my next letter… I should have thought to get a photograph of them before I came. That would have helped a lot. Mother says that Karl, my brother, that is, looks just like my father when he was younger."

"I suppose you take after your mother, then?" Mattias suggested.

"I've never been told as much," Lars said somewhat sadly, "but I suppose that's one problem with growing up so far from any family, I've never heard about this uncle or that cousin that looks just like me. I'm really not even sure what any of my grandparents looked like."

Meibel brought the food out, and Fred started eating right away.

“Are either of you eating?” Lars asked the general and his ward.

“I grab a snack every time I’m back in the kitchen,” Meibel admitted.

“Don’t tell Halima,” the general laughed, “and Mr. Nilsen, if you’d rather have a private meal, we can go to another table.”

“I think that’s up to Frederick,” he said, “but I’m not on duty, anyway.” “Oh, please do join us,” Fred told them between bites of food, “I figure if we learn anything, we’ll get some more stories, and I’d like that.”

Lars enjoyed the meal, especially since he hadn’t had a very substantial breakfast. He was quite full, but Frederick asked for second helpings, which Meibel gladly went to the kitchen to fetch for him. While she was in back, Halima returned, and Mattias waved her over to their table.

“This is Lars Nilsen,” he explained, “and he tells us that his parents are from Arendelle, and he’s trying to learn more about them.”

“Nilsen is a common enough name,” she said, “when did they live here?”

“My mother left before I was born, so about twenty years ago, I think it was during the winter. My brother was about a year old, and I was born in April. Her name is Margit Nilsen.”

“That sounds familiar,” Halima said, “and I think I remember a woman with a baby whose husband died around then… and I didn’t see her again, but I figured with the little one she’d probably go live with family if she had some anywhere. I didn’t know she was pregnant, but that’s certainly easy enough to hide for a while if you want to, I suppose.”

“Why would you want to hide that, though?” Frederick asked.

“Never you mind that,” Halima told him, “not everyone is in your mother’s position.”

“I don’t think she was hiding anything. She and my father had wanted more children, but I think she wanted a change after… all that…”

“Have you had a good life in Corona, then?” Mattias asked him.

“Oh, very nice,” Lars said, “we’ve been well taken care of. My brother is in the navy, I was telling Frederick a bit about him last night.”

Meibel had returned with the second helping of lunch, and Frederick was too busy eating to respond.

“You’d think they never feed you,” Halima laughed.

#my fic #chapter 7 #kristanna

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gwainefest · 5 years

Text

Gwaine Fest 2019 Prompts

Thank you everyone for signing up! Below the cut are the prompts that are available for claiming. If you have signed up to participate, then please peruse these prompts at your leisure. The claiming form will open on Friday, October 25 at 12:00 PM PST (noon; countdown clock here) and will remain open until Monday, October 8, or everyone has replied (whichever comes first).

You will be asked to list your top 3 choices.

>> Claiming Form << >> Countdown Clock <<

Prompts below!

1. Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Gwaine/Percival, Gwaine/Arthur/Merlin, just general knight friendship and shenanigans Prompts: Modern au: knight group secret Santa and/or snowball fights Either canon or modern: gwaine getting really excited about snow and someone finding it adorable. Bonus points for a grumpy Arthur snowman existing Cuddling for warmth. Preferably Gwaine using Percy as a human space heater. Can be established relationship or catching feelings. Any tropes that really get you excited? I am a sucker for bed sharing, fake relationships, and soulmate au Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? First snow of the year, gift exchanges, drinking warm drinks by a fire, obnoxious sweaters. If modern au, lots of lights (though i guess with magic that could work with canon). Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: No major character death, non-con, dark themes. Its a holiday thing, so mainly looking for fluff here. Hurt/comfort super okay as long as it gets resolved Anything else you'd like your match to know? I'm pretty easygoing!

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Gwaine, Merlin, Arthur, Knights of the Round Table Prompts: Gwaine’s nobility getting revealed, Merlin and Gwaine going on an adventure, Gwaine finding out about Merlin’s magic and/or dragon lord heritage Any tropes that really get you excited? Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Whump Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? Exchanging gifts!! That’s where it’s at Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: Smut or slash

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? I’m a sucker for all things Perwaine, but also ALL THE KNIGHT SQUAD BOOOIIIISSSSSS i love them Prompts: Soothing nightmares, Gwaine’s childhood, surprise holiday gift, SNOWBALL FIGHTS, traveling around the kingdom, GWAINE WRAPPED UP IN A FUZZY BLANKET WITH SOME HOT COCO WITH MARSHMALLOWS HOLY CRAP Any tropes that really get you excited? Most tropes get me pretty excited Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? Snowball fights, hot coco, roaring fires, SLEDDING, s’mores over said fire, cats playing in wrapping paper, homemade Christmas ornaments, ugly sweaters Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: No smut please. No death please. Keep the clothes on please. Anything else you'd like your match to know Gwaine+ponytail/bun=adorableness

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Gwaine/Percival, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (secondary pairing), Morgana, Kinghts of the round table... Prompts: 1. Gwaine is in the tavern one night when he gets attacked by a group of guys. Percival saves him. 2. Gwaine finds out about Merlin's magic and decides to have fun with it. Any tropes that really get you excited? Hurt/comfort, fluff, humour, angst with a happy ending... Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? Yule or Christmas, but anything is fine! Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: Mpreg, A/B/O dynamics, rape/non-con between main characters, vampires, werewolves, fuck or die, magic made them do it.

5. Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Gwaine and Merlin and Arthur is an iconic trio if this is all about friendship, ship wise I'm into Merthur!!! Prompts: GWAINE TRYING TO GET MERLIN AND ARTHUR TOGETHER SOMEHOW? OR MERLIN MAKING GWAINE GO CHRISTMAS SHOPPING WITH HIM FOR ARTHUR ?? Any tropes that really get you excited? I like meet cutes!! BED SHARING TOO THOUGH IDK HOW THAT WOULD WORK. Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? MISTL E TOE BABEYYY !!! OVERSIZED SWEATERS ADN BEING WARM?? So CUDDLES... I celebrate Christmas so it would be fun to see that~ Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: Don't have anything I can think of from the top of my head! Anything else you'd like your match to know? Nope!

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Percival/Gwaine; (Just a hint of Merthur, maybe) Prompts: - Gwaine helping couples get together, but being totally oblivious to his own love life - Gwaine and snow/winter activities (e.g. ice skating, building a snowman, etc.) That’s it. - A pile of Love Letters to Gwaine just magically shows up on his doorstep and they date back all the way from a decade ago to present day - Or Gwaine writes love letters to this one person he likes over a decade, and they miraculously disappear. Until he realizes someone found them and sent all of it to the addressee (ala To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before) just in time for the Christmas party at said person’s house - Winter ball/masquerade (maybe?) Any tropes that really get you excited? Caught underneath the Mistletoe; Accidental confessions; Scarf/Umbrella-Sharing; Snow in Hair/Eyelashes/Etc. Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? Hot cocoa; snow days; Christmas; Cuddling by the fireplace; Air so cold that your breath can be seen; Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: Character death (it’s unlikely to show up, but still! I can never be too sure.) Anything else you'd like your match to know? Angst is perfectly fine (I actually kinda love angst), so long as a happy ending is involved.

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Besides Gwaine, Arthur foremost (Gwaine/Arthur would be awesome). Merlin and the other knights would be great, too (as friends, but I'd be interested in Gwaine/Leon romance too!). Prompts: Gwaine finding home and hope in Camelot (basically, a missing scene between S3 and S4). Gwaine sharing a personal holiday tradition with one or more of the boys. As many of the boys as you want having a peaceful and joyful gathering in Arthur's chambers. Gwaine and Percival getting up to no-good in the castle during the holiday festivities (and maybe dragging some of the other knights into it). Any tropes that really get you excited? For Gwaine/Arthur - soul bonds/marks. And generally speaking, I just like the idea of brotherhood among the knights (+ warlock)...is that a trope? Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? Christmas Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: Dub/non-con between the main pairing. Pure smut (Nothing against it! I'd just like something more character-driven this time). Anything else you'd like your match to know? Just how excited I am to see what they create! :)

8. DROPPED

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Perwaine for sure :) Prompts: Snowball fight Fireplace Ice skating Ugly Christmas sweater! Sharing a scarf!! Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? H o t chocolate!! Mistletoes !! Snow!! Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: I’m fine with everything ! Anything else you'd like your match to know? I’m french, English isn’t my first language !

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Merlin and Gwaine's friendship / Knight of the round table / Just Gwaine alone is also fine Prompts: Getting up to trouble together / Strength, courage and magic / Fighting side by side / Having a feast together as a family Any tropes that really get you excited? Found family / Chosen one Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? Christmas Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: Shipping

10.

Characters or pairings you'd like to see featured? Merlin/Gwaine, Gwaine & Merlin, Gwaine & Aithusa, Gwaine & Gwen Prompts: - Modern!Merwaine: First holiday together. - Golden Age AU: Aithusa has to stay in the castle over winter because it's cold - she and Gwaine get up to all sorts of mischief. - Or, Merlin has to do something and asks Gwaine to babysit her. - "And there was only one bed" - Merwaine: Gwaine is gone on an extended patrol, filled with pining and letters - Or, really, just general winter shenanigans with a Gwaine and/or Merwaine focus would make me happy lmao Any tropes that really get you excited? - Hurt/Comfort - Angst with happy ending - "I didn't know how much I cared for you until I almost lost you" - Domestic fluff - Epistolary fic - (Gwaine!)whump with happy ending - Reunion after one of them thinking the other is dead - Druid Centric AUs - Accidental Baby Acquisition Favorite wintery things? What winter holidays might you like to see featured? Yule, Ice skating, hot chocolate, watching the snow fall Squicks, triggers, or other content you do NOT want in your fill: - Large age differences/underage - Please no Merlin/Arthur even if it's only background Anything else you'd like your match to know? I hope you have fun :D

#gwaine fest #gwaine fest 2019 #claims post #mod post

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vulpinesaint · 5 years

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Nyctophobia - Ch. 4

A tale of assassins, amnesiacs, and probably something else that starts with a.

Sebastian explicitly trusts one person—and it’s certainly not the strange boy who washed up on the shore of his island kingdom.

link to chapter one

link to all chapters

Chapter Four - The Attackers In The Night

The queen showed no concern for Robin’s wounds when the group arrived back at the castle. The two maids employed by the royal family quickly helped the injured young man away from Sebastian and up to his room. The prince was beckoned to his mother, who pulled him into a firm, gentle embrace. He was taller than her by a few inches, now, but she managed to hold him as tightly as she had when he was a child.

She didn’t show it—not in the same manner as other parents, at least—but Sebastian was well aware that his mother loved him. Their situation didn’t often allow for grand gestures of affection, but there were little things, like the pride in her eyes when she saw him fight, and the gentle touches and kisses before he would go somewhere. If there was a place that Sebastian felt safe, it was in his mother’s arms. He knew it was a childish thing to think. He didn’t really mind that much. He knew that he could trust his mother. Anyone else had the potential to turn on him at any time, even Raymond and Marianna, but he knew that the queen would never do anything of the sort.

Ceola pulled him down a bit further to kiss his forehead. “Stay safe, love. I know you can.” Her green eyes were sharp against the brown of her skin, as always, but there was tenderness and care beyond her fierce features. It was something that the prince had been able to see from the time he was young.

Sebastian felt a lot less frustrated after that.

Raymond requested an hours’ leave to escort Anna back to her home. He reasoned that the streets weren’t safe alone, and that as capable as she was, it wouldn’t hurt to have an extra sword on her side. The queen visibly bristled at the idea of leaving Sebastian alone so soon after an attack, but the prince was still itching for the feeling of independence and granted Raymond the time that he’d requested.

“I’ll stay in the castle,” he promised his mother, taking her hand to reassure her. “I can take care of myself.”

Ceola put her shoulders back and nodded. “Very well, then.” A small smile creased the corner of her mouth, just slightly, and she squeezed her son’s hand. “I trust you.” She was called away soon after to go over the finance issues concerning the inland farms, and Sebastian was left to his independence.

As it turned out, Sebastian was not entirely comfortable on his own. As much freedom as he had in the castle, he was used to Raymond’s presence somewhere in his vicinity. He did have the space to think, however, and after calming down a bit, he was realizing how foolish he’d been earlier. He didn’t like acknowledging his fault, even to himself, but it was eating at him. He was reminded of Robin, alone and injured in his room, and felt the sudden urge to apologize. The young man hadn’t been stabbed, and Sebastian had done nothing but snap at Raymond and be immature.

He pushed the feeling away, at first, and kept walking. It wasn’t his responsibility to be nice. It was his responsibility to stay alive, and he obviously wasn’t doing a very good job of that, if recent events were any evidence.

The thought kept nagging at him, though, and eventually he sighed and turned to head toward Robin’s room. It wasn’t right to leave Robin on his own, and anyway, maybe having someone else in the room with him would help his feelings of unease without Raymond. Besides, Robin couldn’t exactly jump up to sacrifice himself again, so there was nothing for Sebastian to feel bad about. If anything, Sebastian would be the one protecting the other young man in case of an attack. That was kind of a nice thought. Protecting someone else.

He knocked twice on Robin’s door, and after a quick exchange to verify his identity, he went inside.

Robin sat in bed, propped up against the headboard and cushioned by pillows. He set the history book he’d been reading down on the sheets next to him as Sebastian entered. It frankly seemed too big to Sebastian to be a functioning object.

The prince leaned against the stone wall, near the door. After a moment of mental deliberation, he crossed his arms—something he wouldn’t usually do, considering how much easier it was to reach a weapon when one’s arms weren’t so twisted, but he figured that it might be more polite to not be on high alert.

“How’s your wound?” His tone was almost apologetic.

Robin half-laughed, managing a bright smile despite his situation. “It hurts. Being stitched up isn’t as pleasant as it looks.” He glanced down at his wound. He’d gotten a new shirt, one that wasn’t mangled and bloody, but the outlines of the bandages still showed through. “Isn’t it more standard to give the patient something alcoholic to drink first? To dull the pain somewhat?”

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. “I’m not sure you’d want what we have. Maybe drinks are more pleasant where you’re from, but the only thing we have here is the stuff that the inland kids make. It’s terrible, from what I’ve heard.”

“Don’t you have taverns, or something else of the sort?” Robin looked genuinely confused.

Sebastian shrugged, unconcerned. “We must’ve lost the people who knew how to make that sort of thing in the first power struggle, if they came over at all.”

“Hm.” Robin considered that for a moment. “So you’ve never had alcohol?”

The prince shrugged again. “Even if I wanted to try peasant booze, Mother would never let it into the castle. She says it dulls the senses. Seems like a huge disadvantage in combat.”

Robin laughed, which Sebastian didn’t really understand. “That’s certainly true.” He broke off, thinking. “I suppose it’s just a method of relaxation, for some. And dulling the senses is certainly helpful when one is in pain,” he said, looking teasingly at Sebastian.

Sebastian waved him off. “Alright, I get it.” Robin grinned. “Nice to see that you’re remembering something, though.”

The young man had to process that for a moment before he realized. He brightened up considerably. “I did remember something, didn’t I?”

There was a moment of silence between them.

Robin smiled at him, open and happy. It was a nice smile, different from the teasing smile that he’d get from Raymond of the proud smile of his mother. It occurred to him that Sebastian didn’t get smiled at that often.

It also began to sink in, just what Robin had done for him earlier. He’d jumped in front of a sword for him, with no real reason for it. They’d known each other for less than a month, for the sky’s sake. Sebastian could think of exactly one person who might do something like that for him, and she’d known him for far more than a month.

“Thank you,” he said, and his voice was softer than he’d intended, as if it’d lost the edge that his tone always had. He cleared his throat. “For—” he took a breath, and continued, forcing down his pride. Robin, who waited patiently for him to finish his sentence, was owed at least a thank-you. “For saving me. Earlier.”

“Of course,” Robin said, as if it were the easiest thing in the world. His expression was so stupidly compassionate that Sebastian almost found it endearing. “I wasn’t going to let you be killed.” As if it were the most obvious thing, to risk your own life for someone else.

At that moment, Sebastian decided to trust Robin, as idiotic of a decision that was. He was so trusting and selfless, so open with his emotions. He couldn’t see anything that the newcomer had to hide—on purpose, at least.

It also occurred to him that someone with such a lack of self-preservation would need someone to keep them safe. Luckily for Robin, Sebastian had a couple of sharp knives and an urge to protect him.

Dawson Caulman, the noble, stopped in the next day to talk with the queen. Sebastian sat in on the meeting, as per usual, so that he could be up to date on affairs of state and consult with his mother at a later point. He said nothing of importance besides the vague statements that he usually spoke in, though Sebastian noticed that he brought up the mainland, which he thought was odd.

“Are you sure that we remain undetected by the continent?” he’d asked, near the end of the meeting.

“I wouldn’t worry about the continent, Dawson,” Ceola had reassured him, chin lifted and tone suspicious. “We haven’t heard anything from them for hundreds of years now. The chances that they found out about us—”

“Very well, your majesty,” Caulman said, cutting her off mid-sentence. The queen glared at him. Nothing else came of it.

The next month passed more or less without incident. Robin healed well, and was functioning fine within a couple of weeks. The queen was noticeably less hostile toward him after the whole incident.

When Robin was up and moving again, Sebastian would walk around the castle with him, often answering questions about the history of the castle and its occupants. What he recounted was probably wrong in places, and always paraphrased, but Robin seemed satisfied. As time passed, the prince found him to be a good conversational partner. He half forgot, sometimes, that the young man had no memory of his former life. He just seemed like such a complete, happy person.

Part of that was Robin’s strange habits. Sebastian was unsure of whether it was normal for people on the mainland to switch the rooms that they slept in every so often, or to sit so quietly, but Robin certainly hadn’t picked that up in his time on the island. He’d pointed that out to the young man, once, and Robin had been delighted to have some hint at a former lifestyle. Sebastian had resolved to try and notice more things like that.

The sudden increase in time that Sebastian spent with the young man did not go unnoticed by anyone in the castle. While Raymond dutifully kept his mouth shut, Marianna didn’t waste an opportunity to tease the prince and ask if he had a new sweetheart. Sebastian told her no, and to mind her own business.

The queen warned her son not to get himself killed for someone else’s sake. They didn’t discuss it any further.

Sebastian was a light sleeper. He didn’t know whether it was a natural thing, for him to be woken so easily, but the constant threat of being killed certainly factored into it.

He used to have nightmares, when he was younger, of someone sneaking into the palace and killing his mother as they had killed his father. The dreams would send him running to the queen, and she would hold him and whisper, “Shhh, shhh. It’s alright. If anyone gets in here, I’ll protect you.” She had given him her knife, a silver one with a sapphire embedded in the pommel, the first time he’d had one of those nightmares. He had slept with the weapon under his pillow ever since.

Sebastian was still woken by those nightmares, but he was an adult now. He didn’t run to his mother anymore.

That night turned out to be one of those nights. The dream followed the same course as always—Sebastian heard footsteps in the hall outside, leading toward his mother’s room. The sound was faint through the thick wooden door of his room, but he heard it all the same. Then there would be the sound of wood breaking, echoing through the stone corridor. There would be a scream, and Sebastian would wake up to silence.

This time was different. Sebastian was definitely awake, now, and the scream was definitely real.

His hand closed instinctively around the handle of the dagger under his pillow. He detangled himself from his blankets to crouch behind his bed, placing the wood bedframe and the mattress between himself and the door. Several sets of footsteps rushed by. Another scream rang out, and he winced, curling in on himself. That was his mother’s voice. He was sure of it.

Sebastian took a breath. There were plans for this. He couldn’t throw his life away with indecision. He reached under his bed, retrieving his emergency pack. He stopped only to tug on his boots, his knives still in their sheathes where he had left them. He picked up his mother’s knife once again.

He wasn’t left with many options at that point. With intruders in the hallway, his best chance was likely to go out the window. He was prepared for this. If his mother was compromised, he had to go then and save himself.

A voice in his head told him that he was strong enough; that if he rushed out into the hallway right then, that he’d be able to overpower the attackers. His mother could be alive. Maybe the intruders had just taken her hostage. He had to save her. He had to.

His mother’s words echoed in his head as another scream rang out, telling him not to be a self-sacrificing fool. This scream was cut short. Sebastian flinched, but stood, nonetheless.

A cold wind forced its way into the room as he opened the window, and he shivered as he climbed out onto the windowsill. There were ledges outside the window for a multitude of purposes, one of which happened to be an escape plan. The wind ran through his hair, but Sebastian was stable enough to keep his balance. He jumped as a pounding sound started up, along with the sound of splintering wood. The intruders were breaking down the other doors. There were empty rooms, between Sebastian and the queen, but it would only be a matter of time before they got to his room.

He glanced over the windowsill, and noted the position of several trees. If he jumped, he’d be able to climb down and escape. A dull crash sounded off the stone. One door was down. He quickly counted the rooms between him and his mother. There were four, which left three before they got to him and—

Robin. Damn it.

The ledges were close enough for Sebastian to jump between them. The pounding started up again; closer this time. He had to alert Robin. The young man’s window was closed, which meant that he hadn’t thought to get out that way.

Sebastian’s gaze drifted to the right as he faced away from the castle, toward his mother’s room. He jerked his eyes away. He was wasting time. He had to save someone that he knew had a chance, and he’d promised himself that he’d protect Robin. He couldn’t leave him defenceless now, when it was most important. Holding his mother’s dagger in his mouth to free up his hands, he jumped to Robin’s windowsill, heart beating loud in his ears.

There was a moment where he was in midair, hovering above the world, and his heart skipped a beat. He scrambled at the indentation of Robin’s window for purchase as he landed. The second door fell. He was running out of time.

Grasping the dagger in his left hand once more, he pounded on Robin’s window. He couldn’t see the boy through the glass, and panic kicked in as he realized that this might not have been Robin’s room at all, considering his habit of switching rooms unannounced. He was about to give up on the young man when his eyes adjusted to the dark interior of the room. His gaze caught on a flicker of movement—Robin’s form, pressed up against the side of the door frame with a weapon in hand. What was he doing? Sebastian pounded on the window again, and in the moonlight, he saw blue eyes focus themselves on him through the glass.

Robin ran to the other side of the room, and Sebastian moved aside so that he could open the window and climb out. “What were you thinking?” the prince whispered furiously, extending a hand to help the smaller boy up onto the ledge.

“I don’t know. I—” Robin trailed off, glancing down at the dagger in his hand. Confusion stained his expression.

Sebastian took a sharp breath as the pounding kept up. “No time. Jump.” He looked back over to his right, back toward his mother’s room, and made a decision. He twisted, readying himself to jump back over the windowsills. Robin made no sign of movement. “Well?” Sebastian hissed over his shoulder. “What are you waiting for?”

“What are you doing?” Robin asked, worry replacing confusion. The third door fell with a crash, and both of them flinched. Sebastian’s grip tightened around his mother’s dagger, while Robin pressed himself back up against the window.

“What I have to. Get in the tree.” Sebastian turned away, placing the dagger between his teeth again, and leapt over to his windowsill. There was a rustle of leaves behind him. Good. Robin was safe. Taking a breath, he took a few steps back and got a running start before leaping across the ledges that marked the windows of the empty rooms.

A shout came from the third room. “There’s someone outside! They’re headed toward the queen!” The pounding stopped, and there was a flurry of movement as swords scraped against sheathes and footsteps echoed through the hallway.

Sebastian cursed under his breath, but cleared the final ledge to land on his mother’s windowsill. Taking the dagger from his mouth, he bashed in the glass, intending to rescue his mother and pull her from the castle.

What he saw froze him—Ceola, the queen, his mother, askew on the mattress. Her blankets were thrown to the side. There was a knife in her limp hand. And her throat had been cut.

Her mattress was soaked through with blood. Too much blood. Her nightgown was stained red in two placed on her torso, and though her eyes were open, there was no life in them. She sat at an odd angle, as if she’d gotten to her feet to fight and then been forced back. Sebastian almost stumbled off the ledge as it hit him, choking on the night air.

His mother was dead.

“Sebastian!”

A voice jerked him from his reverie as men in armor started to pile into his mother’s bedroom, weapons in hand. Sebastian turned to see Robin, frantically waving to him. With a last glance at his mother, he jumped to the nearest tree and scrambled to the ground, falling half the way. Upon reaching solid land, he grabbed Robin’s hand and started to run toward the beach.

The weather in Mendacium was almost perpetually warm. Of course, it was cool in the nights, but even in the cold season, it was never really enough to trouble a person. His tutor, before she had tried to kill him, had explained that the island was in the southern part of the world and that its position was what made it warm.

That night was cool, but Sebastian’s blood was rushing so fast that he couldn’t feel it. Robin couldn’t quite match his pace, and was being half dragged as they ran.

If his mother was dead, it was too late for him. He couldn’t take down the number of people that he’d seen in the queen’s bedroom, and he didn’t even know if that was the whole of the attacking force. His only remaining chance was to get off the island.

hey hey, everyone! i got an update out a little quicker this time!

please, let me know what you thought! i edited this in kind of a haze (i was frustrated from editing all day and i just had natural by imagine dragons on repeat so i was kind of in a state) and i didn’t bother to reread it before i sent it out. i’m just that bitch, you know?

let me know if you want to be added to the tag list!

~ love from rai ~

TAGS: @virgils-jacket , @nemothesurvivor , @deathshadowrules , @yayroos

#nyctophobia #original writing #chapter four

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swanqueeneverafter · 5 years

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After The Sunset, Pt.8

Wonderland. Past. (Tiana and Prince Marias look out at the view from the balcony of Tiana's family estate.) Prince Marias: “It's a beauty beyond words, Princess. Thank you for sharing.” Tiana: (Walking back inside:) “My father spent a lifetime building this kingdom.” Prince Marias: (Following her inside and noticing the medal on the mantelpiece:) “Was this his?” Tiana: “Yes. It's a Firefly Ruby. They awarded it to him after the war.” Prince Marias: “He must have been quite the hero.” Tiana: “He didn't start that way. (Moving over to the mantel:) He enlisted as a cook. (Lifting the glass case:) But when the King's horsemen took the camp, he was the only one left. He threw down his ladle and picked up a sword. (Picking up the medal she shows it to Robert:) And it became the turning point in the war. It's how he caught my mother's eye. Her love made him a Prince. (Both share a smile. Walking back to the balcony:) After the war was won, he rebuilt her lands into a great kingdom. Now we might lose it all.” Prince Marias: (Joining her:) “Not if I can help it. Tonight was magical. I'd like to see you again tomorrow.” Tiana: “That would be nice. (Robert turns to leave and Tiana lets out a giggle, spinning in a circle before noticing that her father’s medal is missing:) Stop right there. (Robert rushes for the door but Tiana catches him and holds him against the wall:) Thief!” Prince Marias: “I'm sorry, I had no other choice. (Tiana retrieves the medal from him:) It was Dr. Facilier, he made me. I didn't want to.” Tiana: “Facilier? Why would I believe a prince would steal for a drifter magician?” Prince Marias: “Because I'm not a prince. I'm just a commoner. (Tiana releases him:) He took my true love captive and separated us in the cruelest of ways. I'm a man, and my love is a frog. Facilier promised he would let her free. He said that true love's kiss would break the curse and we could be together again if only I brought him that Firefly Ruby.” Tiana: “No, there must be some other way, someone else who could help you.” Prince Marias: “You've seen what it's like out there. Who else is there to turn to?” Tiana: “Go. I don't ever want to see your face again. Go!”

Enchanted Forest. Past. Early Morning. (As the Merry Men sleep off a heavy night's drinking, Will Scarlett attempts to make a quick getaway.) Robin Hood: (Calling out from the trees:) “You sold us out, Will.” Will: (Turning quickly:) “I was just getting fresh supplies.” Robin Hood: “Don't even try. I know you did. (Catching up to him:) What I don't know is why. What was so important you'd go after magic? Was it debts? A sick parent? A woman? It was a woman, wasn't it?” Will: “I've got my reasons.” Robin Hood: “Well, whatever they are, they're not good enough. You made a bad mistake last night, and it will haunt you.” Will: “What are you going to do to me?” Robin Hood: “Worst thing possible. Nothing.” Will: “You're gonna let me go?” Robin Hood: “Yes. You will meet the fate you've earned. The fate you deserve.” Will: (As Robin turns to walk away:) “That's rich, coming from the prince of thieves himself!” Robin Hood: (Turns back:) “Today you've shown yourself to be the only thief among us.” Will: “Because I'm stealing for meself and not living by your code? Well, I've gotten along just fine living by my code, thank you very much.” Robin Hood: “Well, for your sake, I hope your luck continues. But my experience tells me different.” (Robin walks away.) Storybrooke. Present. The Dragon's Lair. Back Room. (Stood with Tiana, Will places a golden looking glass on the desk before him.) Will: "Now I know this isn't the one I stole from ya but I just..." Tiana: (Helpfully:) "We wanted to make things right." Maleficent: "We? (Flatly:) How adorable. (Glances at the looking glass, then back to Tiana:) This was yours, I assume?" Tiana: (Nods:) "An old family heirloom." Maleficent: (Sighs:) "Thank you, my dear, that was very thoughtful. But I'm afraid what your boyfriend took from me was more than just a mere looking glass. (Turning her attention to Will:) What you took from me was the ability to communicate with the man who would become the father of my child." Will: "I know that and I'm sorry-" Maleficent: (Scoffs:) "You know? Tell me, thief, do you know what it's like to be with someone you don't trust, but can't be without? Do you know what happens to a person's mind when they're left alone in their fortress while their partner is out there on the high seas doing god knows what with god knows who?" Will: "Well, I do have some experience with solitude, yes." (Tiana grabs his arm, urging Will to stop talking when Maleficent rises to her feet.) Maleficent: "Let me tell you what happens, thief. You begin thinking, your mind twists and turns in all sorts of directions. Usually leading you to think the worst. (Walking slowly towards Will to loom over him:) So, because you stole my looking glass, I shut myself off from everyone. Including the one person I was longing to see. (Perching herself on the edge of her desk:) But I'm not going to blame you for what happened next. For the fact I lost my child for thirty years or that I spent those years trapped underground in my dragon form. That would be unfair. (Brightens, unnervingly:) After all, you've given me this wonderful gift as an apology. So thank you, thief, all is forgiven. (Standing tall once more:) Now, let me do something for you. (Placing a hand on Will & Tiana's shoulders:) For both of you. How about I wave the introductory couples rate and we all head down to my dungeon for awhile. What do you say? (Both Will & Tiana's eyes are wide with fear, unable to utter an intelligible answer between them:) No? Oh well, perhaps next time. (Leaning closer to them:) You know the way out. (Not needing to be told twice, Tiana and Will both turn and head for the office door, pushing each other aside in an attempt to leave as quickly as possible. As the door shuts behind them, Maleficent smirks:) Hm. Now that was fun."

The Dragon's Lair. Underground Dungeon. (The sounds of chains rattling. Following the chains down from the ceiling, we come to stop at two hands manacled to them. Further down, we see Emma's face twisted with effort as she tests the strength of her restraints.) Emma: "Is this really necessary?" Regina: "Oh, I see, when it's you tying me to the bed, it's different?" Emma: "No, what I meant is, why are we doing this in some dank dungeon when we could be at home?" Regina: "Because we're being supportive. Mal didn't have to buy this place from me, and I owe it to her to make sure her new business is a success." Emma: (Rolls her eyes:) "An adult nightclub in Storybrooke, how could it fail? (Testing her restraints again:) Roni sure has a lot to answer for." Regina: (Smiles:) "Maybe later. For now, it's your turn to answer for your crimes." Emma: (Confused:) "Crimes? (Looks to see Regina raise her eyebrow and catches on:) Oh, yes, My Queen." Regina: "That's better. (Walks over to a table behind Emma, which is laden with implements. Picking one up, she glances back over her shoulder and, using her magic, removes her captive's jeans:) Much better." Emma: (Looks down to find her lower half clad only in her red panties. Whispers to herself:) "Oh, crap." Regina: (Smiling broadly:) "My, such an interesting shade of red. Shall we see if I can get your backside to match them?" Maleficent: (Stepping out of the shadows:) "Mmm, I'm betting that you can." Emma: "Ahh!" Maleficent: "Oh, don't worry, dear. I've just come to check that everything is to your satisfaction?" Regina: (Playing along, watching her wife try to cross her legs while on tip toes:) "We haven't got around to the satisfying part of our evening just yet." Emma: "Gina!" Maleficent: (Watching Emma squirm, to Regina:) "Are you sure there's nothing else I can get you?" Regina: (Walking to stand beside Maleficent in front of Emma:) "We're actually just getting started." Maleficent: "Ooh well, in that case, perhaps you'd let me join you?" Regina: (As Emma's eyes widen and is about to retort something less than friendly:) "I think we're fine on our own, Mal. But thank you, just the same." Maleficent: (Raking her eyes over Emma’s body once more before sighing:) "Fine. Just scream if you need anything." Regina: (Smiling:) "We will. (With that, Maleficent turns and heads up the stairs, leaving them alone once more. To Emma:) Don't look at me like that. I was only teasing." Emma: "Yeah, right. I know that evil little glint in your eye. You were totally considering-" (Emma stops talking as she feels another change to her lower region. Glancing down, she confirms that her panties have now been magically removed.) Regina: (Holding the underwear in her hand and dabbing some perspiration from her chest:) "Now, where were we? Oh yes, I remember. (Walking forward:) Open. (Frowning, Emma takes a moment before complying:) Good girl. (Placing the panties inside her mouth:) Now, do you remember the rules? (Emma nods her assent, her mouth now otherwise occupied:) Good, then let's begin."

Enchanted Forest. Past. Tavern. (Robin stands alone in his tavern when the Sheriff and his men enter.) The Sheriff: “What a crowd. (To one of his men:) While I try to get the barkeep's attention, you see if you can find us a table. (To Robin:) Business a little slow? Well, I hope that didn't prevent you from making the money that you owe.” Robin Hood: “I don't have any money for you.” The Sheriff: “Well, debtor's prison will be a fine place for you to think about what you've done.” Little John: “Not so fast.” The Sheriff: “Brigands! Seize them!” (Quickly, the Sheriff and his men are surrounded by the Merry Men, all standing with their weapons trained on them.) Robin Hood: “You were right about me, Nottingham. Thieving is in my blood. But I’ve learned how to be a thief with honour. Do you want to know how? (Taking the Sheriff’s purse from him:) By stealing from those who have too much and giving it to those who have too little.” Enchanted Forest. Recent Past. Alice's Cottage. (Alice gathers some wood in the forest as Robin approaches.) Alice: (Spotting her:) “Oh! Robin.” (Alice turns and drops the firewood onto the pile as Robin lowers her hood.) Robin: (Smiling:) “Alice. Sorry to keep you waiting. Here, my homework assignment.”

Alice: (Taking the letter from Robin while handing her another:) “And here you go. Are you sure you still want these assignments? I mean, I’m not sure what I’m doing, I’m not even a proper teacher.” Robin: “No, I love them. Trust me, I don’t relish the idea of sitting among a bunch of fourth graders at school, and you’re an excellent teacher.” Alice: “Aw, well that’s very nice of you to say. You’re an excellent pupil.” Robin: (Awkwardly:) “And... I also brought you this.” (Robin gives Alice a friendship bracelet.) Alice: “Oh, it's beautiful.” Robin: “One of the few things I saw at Storybrooke Elementary before deciding traditional schooling wasn’t for me. It’s a friendship bracelet, all the kids were making them, and when you're finished, you're supposed to find someone to swap with.” Alice: “Oh. Well, I'm afraid you're gonna be terribly disappointed, because I don't have anything for you in return.” Robin: “Oh, that’s not-” Alice: “Oh! No, wait. (Reaches into her pocket:) I do have this. (She hands Robin a pocket watch:) It's from one of my adventures in Wonderland.” Robin: (Looking at it:) “That's amazing. I've never seen a watch that moves backwards. (Sighs:) I wish I'd done as many exciting things as you.” Alice: “Yeah, well, as much fun as traveling realms is, I'm starting to learn you can have a lot of other adventures just staying put. Good ones, too.” Robin: “Well, I should get going. (Chuckles:) My mom will be wondering where I am. I'll see you soon, Alice.” Alice: “Yeah. I hope so.” Wonderland. Past. (Tiana stands looking out from her balcony once more, as her mother approaches.) Tiana: “Dresses and hairbrushes? I've been so self-centered.” Eudora: “I saw the world the same way when I was your age.” Tiana: “But, Mom, those people, the beggars in Tent Alley and the man who tried to take this from us.” (She still holds her father’s medal in her hands.)

Eudora: “It was desperation. I've tried hard to protect you from the realities of what the Kingdom has become. There was no way you could have known.” Tiana: “So, what, we just look the other way?” Eudora: “All your life, you've been told great stories of your father's successes.” Tiana: (Sighs:) “I failed to find someone like him.” Eudora: “No. I failed you when I sent you looking. After the way you took action tonight, I realize we already have everything we need, everything our people need. (Taking the medal:) Your father's legacy isn't this little prize. It's in you. (Pinning the medal to Tiana’s dress:) All you have to do is embrace it.” Storybrooke. Swan-Mills House. Present. (In her pajamas, Regina is looking through some papers that are spread out on the bed. Turning off the bathroom light, Emma re-enters the bedroom and, mischievously, flops herself down to lay flat across the bed. Regina tries not to smile as Emma immediately regrets this and turns quickly onto her side.) Regina: (Wincing sympathetically:) "Still tender?" Emma: (Cringing:) "I'll live. I just... (Rearranging herself on the bed:) have to get comfortable. There. Perfect." Regina: (Leans down to kiss her:) "I'm sorry." Emma: "No, don't ever apologise for that. Today was unbelievable." Regina: (Beams:) "It was, wasn't it?" Emma: (Nods:) "Storybrooke's tax dollars well spent." Regina: (Laughs:) "It's not my fault the coupon expired on a Friday." Emma: "It's fine. It's not like there was any huge crisis happening anyway. I think we're entitled to the occasional three day weekend." Regina: "Agreed. (They kiss again:) Emma, earlier with Mal... I hope you realise that I'd never want to-" Emma: "No, I know. Me either. But, I gotta admit..." Regina: (Laughs:) "Admit what?" Emma: "Well..." Regina: "Hey, no more secrets, remember. You can tell me anything." Emma: (Purses her lips a moment, then relents:) "Okay, but don't freak out or anything." Regina: "I promise." Emma: "Okay well, there may have been a little part of me... and I'm talking a tiny, minute part." Regina: (Her curiosity piquing:) "Out with it, Emma." Emma: "A little part of me thought it might be hot if she'd stayed in the shadows and watched?" Regina: (Her mouth opens a few times before she can form the words:) "Seriously?" Emma: (In a rush:) "Well, not specifically Maleficent, but, you know, the thought of getting caught. Haven't you ever thought about that?" Regina: "The last time someone caught me in a compromising position, it was my mother with Daniel... right before she crushed his heart." Emma: (Winces:) "Ah. (Rallying:) But even so, haven't you thought about it since then?" Regina: "Emma, you're the one who used to need confirmation of Henry's physical location before we did anything sexual in the house." Emma: "Yeah, but that's different. If we scar him for life, we have to pay his psychiatrist bills. Seriously, the risk of getting caught doesn't excite you?" Regina: (Shrugs:) "I can't say I've really thought about it much." Emma: "Alright. (Scooting herself up the bed to get under the covers:) I suppose it makes sense, given your upbringing." Regina: "My upbringing?" Emma: "Yeah, you know, being a princess and then a queen. Having to be proper and well behaved all the time." Regina: "I don't think I'm-" Emma: "Babe, it's fine. I don't think you're like that now. Not since I've had my influence on you." Regina: (Laughs:) "Is that right?" Emma: "Oh yeah, you're much less tightly wound now than when I first met you." Regina: "Hmm." Emma: (Leans up and kisses her wife goodnight:) "Well, goodnight." (As Emma rolls over onto her pillow, Regina stares at her for a long moment before a wry smile crosses her lips. Rolling onto her side and turning out the light, Regina bids her wife goodnight, a plan already formulating in her devious mind.)

#sq #swanqueen #swan queen

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thewitcherdeacon · 4 years

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Toss a bard to your Witcher

So I wrote a thing, its a bit messy but I spent way too long on this not to post this. The first song is Fire on the Mountain and the second song is one I wrote.

Geralt and Jaskier endeavor to find his brothers bards...

The keep of Kaer Morhen was usually a sullen place, sunk high in the blue mountains. A quiet place for the Witchers to take refrigue in during the harshest months of the year. It had not always been this way and on this night there was music and laughter.

Jaskier was playing a classic tavern song that had most of them singing along. He smiled brightly, a ray of sunshine on a dark and cold night.

“How’d you get so lucky. You bastard.” Lambert snipped at Geralt after the song was done and the bard had sat back down.

“Hmm.” Geralt thought for a moment, but his thoughts were dulled by strong alcohol. “Don’t know.”

Eskel put his head in his hand and looked at the bard wistfully, then looked back into his drink.

“I want one.” Lambert was clearly drunk, perhaps he had started before them

“Tsk tsk." Jaskier chorded, “If you wanted a bard, all you had to do was ask.”

“Shut up.” Lambert gently pushed the bard, the pair laughed and that was the end of that conversation. The night continued on much like the others this winter with heavy drinking, silly games and saucy stories, but they all headed to bed before they had to scrape anyone off the floor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Geralt woke the next morning with a pounding headache and a half baked idea inspired by the previous night’s conversation. He waited for the bard buried under the covers next to him to wake up.

The smaller man yawned and opened his big blues eyes and tossed a lazy “Good morning.”

“Good morning.” Geralt paused, “What you said to Lambert last night, did you mean it?”

“Oh my, you must be more specific.”

“That stuff about bards.” he grumbled.

“Whatever do you mean, love.” Jaskier was teasing him now, he knew exactly what he meant and maybe he had been thinking it as well.

“My brothers want bards.” he finally said after a long moment of deliberating.

“That's an excellent idea.” Jaskier said quickly. “It’ll take some doing. Not any bard will do for my wolves.”

“Not any bard is willing to travel with a witcher.” Geralt added.

“You’d be surprised. Adventure, romance, monsters, the stuff true masterpieces are made of.”

“A witcher’s life isn’t glamorous.”

“That's true.” Jaskier smiled, “But I’ve got a few talented minstrels in mind.”

“I’d want to meet them first.”

“Of course. There is a festival in Gult in late May, you can meet them there before the festival.”

“And introduce them to my brothers afterwards.”

“I must head off on my own once the path is clear to arrange everything.”

The plan had been laid, now he just had to convince his brothers to visit the festival. He decided to slowly drop subtle hints, having loud conversations about the festival with his bard, having him describe in detail the festivities. There would be singing, a fire juggler, a sword swallower, and a plethora of food. All the talk made even Geralt want to legitimately go to the fair.

Eskel was the first to relent, Jaskier was describing in detail what a sword swallower does, explaining that it has nothing to do with magic and all about disciplining your body.

“Sounds like somethin’ worth seeing.” the dark haired witcher chuckled, and Geralt was sure he would see him there.

It took longer to weather Lambert down, the five of them sat in the great hall by the roaring fire after dinner and before the drinking had truly started. Vesemir was reading, Lambert was sharpening a sword, Eskel and Jaskier were talking while Geralt listened intently.

“Is this town open minded?” Eskel asked, the question was clearly about how two witchers would be greeted.

“Yes, a few of the visiting troubadours are nonhumans and Gult is fairly diverse itself. Two witchers will hardly be an imposition.”

“You seem to know a lot about this fair.”

“I’ve been a few times, and have traveled on rare occasions with this band of troubadours.”

“Fine! I’ll go, just shut up about it!” Lambert yelled but his eyes glinted.

“Jeez even I’d go at this point.” Vesemir grumbled

“Are you planning on attending?” Jaskier smiled broadly.

“No. Three witchers is enough for one town.” the elder witcher shook his head, he definitely suspected some sort of scheme but thankfully never said a word.

The rest of the winter passed without incident. Jaskier and Geralt parted ways at the bottom of the mountain with the promise that they would meet in Gult.

Geralt busied himself with contracts, making himself some coin as he slowly made his way to Lyria. The town of Gult was tucked away in the small kingdom, but he was not in a rush to get there.

He found himself drifting into Gult just in time, the town was moderately sized and they were still in the midst of preparing. Nobody paid him much mind as he rode through, maybe it was the bustle of the place or everyones general good mood, but the witcher was not going to question it. He dismounted Roach and led her through the loose group to a man who was directing some others in their work.

“The troubadour camp?” he asked.

“Haha, its a’that away.” The man shook his head, “Can’t wait to see what a witchers’ going to perform.” Geralt would have argued with the man but thought better of it and walked the direction the man had pointed.

The camp was outside of town, a simple wagon sat horseless, a couple horses were grazing untacked nearby and he let Roach join them. He surveyed the group, most seemed to be splintered into small groups talking quietly by several fires. He saw Jaskier sitting alone with another bard away from the fires. The other bard was a woman, a lute case strapped to her back, and she was listening intently to Jaskier. She laughed at something he said, and Geralt suddenly felt dirty watching them; was it too late to walk away, forget the whole thing?

It definitely was too late, Jaskier had just caught sight of him and was beckoning him over, he walked deftly over to the pair and sat in the grass with them.

“Geralt, this is the bard and one of my oldest friends Dandelion.” Jaskier said with slight flourish. “Dandelion, this is Geralt of Rivia.”

“It's a pleasure to finally meet you.” the woman smiled and extended her hand in greeting, she had light brown hair that went past her shoulders and wore a simple light blue doublet and matching pants. He shook it cautiously, and looked to his lover who simply winked at him. Oh, this was one of the bards that Jaskier mentioned, one of the candidates.

“Dandelion has only recently started traveling as a bard, but has always been quite the artist.”

“You flatter me too much.” she pushed him gently, “I’m just a simple bard, you’re the famous one.”

“You're not looking to be famous?” Geralt asked.

“Not really. I want to travel, see the world and have some adventures. The troop is helping me do just that.” She had a horizontal scar on her left cheek and he wondered how she got it.

“Have you ever thought of traveling with a witcher.” the white wolf decided that he liked her.

“All the time.” she blushed and looked over at Jaskier.

“We never know where paths may lead.” the other bard said cryptically. “Now I’d like to talk to my witcher alone.” With that she stood and scurried away. “What do you think?”

“You’ve never mentioned her before.”

“I have, Dandelion is her stage name, Marlina Joanna Pankratz just doesn’t roll off the tongue.”

“Marlina? I didn’t think you’d offer your sister.”

“Actually I’ve been thinking about setting her and Esek up for awhile but this works just as well.”

“I haven’t heard her sing, but I like her.”

“I would not pick talentless louts Geralt.” Jaskier sighed. “Do you want to meet the other candidates?” The witcher nodded and followed his bard.

“Now my next candidate is a mandolin player named Garond.” he gestured to a young man with blond hair that was pulled into a ponytail.

“You think he’d be good for Lambert?”

“I don’t know him incredibly well, but he has similar energy and he's a lot of fun.”

“Maybe somebody with opposite energy.” The last thing anybody needed was Lambert with an enabler, it was bad enough with Jaskier around.

“The last candidate is a violinist named Reena.” he gestured to a woman with long burgundy hair. “She’s older than Garond, more patient. I was honestly a bit surprised she was interested in traveling with a witcher."

They walked over to the three women, Reena, Dandelion and another woman. The third woman took one look at Geralt and walked away, he was used to the blatant fear but it still got on his nerves.

“You must be Geralt, the white wolf. My name is Reena.” Reena gave a small smile. “Do you need something?”

“No, just wanted to talk.” he said, Reena wore a simple dress but held herself with poise. “How’d you become a traveling minstrel?”

“I’ve always enjoyed the sound of a violin, my father paid for lessons and I ended up playing professionally with my teacher. But I quickly grew tired of performing for a bunch of entitled pricks and began travelling. What about you witcher, why do you travel with a bard?”

“At first he stuck to me like an annoying layer of mud. We became friends, and I can’t imagine things without him.” His speech was a little more heartfelt than he preferred, so he added “He’s still annoying though.” Reena nodded thoughtfully and Dandelion suppressed a chuckle.

“Why don’t we go sit by one of the fires.” Reena suggested, the light was fading and a light spring chill was settling.

The four of them settled by one of the less occupied fires and talked. First about music, then about their various travels. Reena had been just about everywhere with one troop or another, she told the story about a group that she traveled with hired a witcher as a bodyguard once and how they had become friends. Jaskier regaled them with tales of his own adventures, Geralt occasionally correcting him, but largely letting him boast.

Dandelion had not been traveling for long so did not have any tails of adventures, but she did tell a story from her childhood with Jaskier. The story involved a young Jaskier and her desperately wanting a dog. Being a wonderful big brother, he claimed, took off to find a dog despite their father forbidding it, he of course found the dirtiest most flea ridden thing possible, but they loved it. They both got increasingly involved in a series of lies, sneaking the dog in and out of the house since their father refused to have it inside, culminating in him walking in on the dog, Jaskier and Dandelion having a tea party.

Renna commented on them needing rest for the performance tomorrow, most of the others were turning in for the night, Geralt had hardly noticed the passage of time with the conversation being so good. He laid his bedroll out next to Jaskiers and went to sleep under the stars.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning after breakfast the troup set off towards town to start the festivities, Geralt had most of the day to himself since the concert would happen near the end of the day. He meandered around town watching a few of the more interesting tricks and tried some of the food. He caught sight of Eskel in the town square talking to the sword swallower, the men were in deep conversation so he did not bother them.

There were some games set up and Lambert challenged him to one, this drew a small crowd as people watched the witchers compete. Lambert won, Geralt grumbling that he let him win.

After some time had passed a pudgy man climbed the make-shift stage in the town square and announced in a booming voice “The concert will now begin. It is with great pleasure that I introduce the illustrious bard Jaskier!”

There was some cheering as Jaskier stepped up onto the stage that died down as he started to play. He played a couple of songs and some of the town's people danced to the beet.

"Now it is my utmost pleasure to introduce you to the bard Dandelion." Jaskier announced as Dandelion joined him on the stage, she nodded and they started playing toss a coin to your witcher. He simultaneously hated and loved the song, it was catchy and changed their reputation for the better. The two bards were performing it with great skill and looked like they were having fun.

After they finished the song Jaskier took his leave and Dandelion started playing. It was not a song that Geralt knew, but he was pretty sure it was inspired by one of the stories Jaskier had told her. After that she played a tried and true love song, it was not an original piece but he liked her rendering of it. The concert continued on as the next bard took over after Dandelion was finished, he was not as good as her and Geralt was glad when Garond took the stage. The mandolin player sung a pleasant rendition of a popular drinking song that had many singing along, and a couple other cantankerous songs. By the time Renna took the stage it was getting dark and the crowd thinned a bit. Renna played her violin like it was second nature and tapped her feet to the beat, and she sang an interesting ditty.

“Long distance runner, what you standing there for?

Get up, get out, get out of the door

You're playing cold music on the barroom floor

Drowned in your laughter and dead to the core

There's a dragon with matches that's loose on the town

Takes a whole pail of water just to cool him down” She sang a chorus of “Fire! Fire on the mountain!”

“Almost ablaze still you don't feel the heat

It takes all you got just to stay on the beat

You say it's a living, we all gotta eat

But you're here alone, there's no one to compete

If mercy's a business, I wish it for you

More than just ashes when your dreams come true” She sang another chorus, joined by some of her troup, “Fire! Fire on the mountain!”

“Long distance runner, what you holding out for?

Caught in slow motion in a dash to the door

The flame from your stage has now spread to the floor

You gave all you had. Why you wanna give more?

The more that you give, the more it will take

To the thin line beyond which you really can't fake”

After the chorus ended she took a deep breath and played a much slower song, a classic elvish song that paired beautifully with her playing. Geralt did not understand much of the words but it sounded like a song about traveling that he had heard once.

“I thank you all for your time.” The pudgy man that had started the concert said after Renna ended her performance.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Somehow Geralt had convinced his brothers to join him at the troubadour camp, maybe it was the concert or the amount of alcohol being consumed, he was pleasantly buzzed, but they came along with minimal resistance. Now the six of them sat around a fire, three witchers and three bards, talking and laughing. No one had been wearing armor all day, and it was nice to relax in good company. Eskel kept stealing glances at Dandelion, while Lambert and Renna were exchanging dirty jokes.

“So, Jaskier. How’d you meet your girlfriend?” Lambert asked with a sly grin, the siblings were leaning close with their hands together on the grass.

“Girlfriend?” Jaskier looked at his sister and gave her a soft push, “Stinky is more like it.”

Dandelion laughed as she bumped Eskel's left shoulder, “He’s my brother and he shouldn't call anyone stinky when he’s the one that smells like Geralt’s feet.”

“Are you saying my feet are stinky?” Great asked in mock annoyance.

“Nobody’s feet smell good, hun.” Renna chuckled. Jaskier gave his sister a pointed glare and shook his head.

The night continued on like that, everyone was having a good time and Geralt almost forgot they were in a forest clearing. Dandelion’s shoulder was pushed against Eskel’s, but he had not pushed her away and they were talkinging in a hushed tone. Lambert was drinking and adding snide remarks to the story Renna was telling him. Jaskier went to stand at one point, probably to say something stupid, revealing their plans, but the white wolf just grabbed him and pulled the bard into his lap.

The next few days of the fair passed in a blur of concerts and performances, fun and games. His brothers were getting to know the bards Jaskier had picked for them. The last day of the fair Eskel asked Dandelion if she wanted to travel with him, she of course said she would be honored. After the festivities were over on the last night Renna announced that she would be traveling with Lambert, he grumbled about not needing a babysitter but did not protest further.

~~~~~~~~~~

That next winter Kaer Morhen was the fullest it had been in a long time. The three witchers and their three bards, a cat witcher named Aiden, and Coen had come to spend the winter with the eldest witcher. Nine people was a far cry from the dozens that used to call the keep home, but in the main hall the warmth of the company easily overpowered the warmth of the hearth.

“Why don’t you birds sing something?” Vesimer said, his mouth quipped into something like a smile.

“We have been working on a little ditty just for you witchers.” Jaskier stated and the three bards arranged themself so they could stand and be seen by everyone. They started to play and Dandelion started singing softly.

“One fated morn

I traveled with my wolf

Up to his den.”

“A keep so gray

Set in mountains blue

A cold wind blows

Telling a tale old

Of ghosts bold.”

“Can't let that keep us down

Let's fill this cave

With music

With laughter

Fill the cups

Till their full” The music’s pace quickened, Jaskier started to sing along and Renna tapped her feet to the beat.

“Let’s chase away the ghosts

With music

With laughter

Light the fires

Break out the lyres”

“Let’s drink away the chill

It’s still quite a thrill

In the den of the wolf

Fill the cups

Till their full”

“Can't let that keep us down

This cave is a home

Let's make it warm

With music

With laughter”

The witchers clapped and hollered when the chorus finished and the bards took a bow at the sudden praise from their usually stoic audience.

#the witcher 3 #the witcher #geralt of rivera #jaskier #eskel #lambert #text post #im the worst #this is trash #just pure fluff #I changed some stuff #edited kind of #i hate how tumblr fucks all my formating

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