#- to have children despite possessing the ability to do so was very stupid. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nelyoslegalteam · 4 months

Note

please tell me about your dnd campaign, stranger

hi hi hi hi hi hi hi do you have any idea how happy i am to get this ask. you have activated my trap card this is going to be SO long i am sorry in advance but The People Need To Know About My D&D Campaign.

so we’re playing in Adventures in Middle Earth, which is. supposedly a Tolkienverse-specific 5e mod but frankly it’s robust enough to fully count as its own system if you ask me. like it has its own guidebooks, character sheets, premade adventures, and features mechanics that 5e just straight up doesn’t have. it’s like if 5e were actually good. anyway. may i present to you:

｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆ The Mirkwood Campaign ｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

so what, exactly, happened in the intervening years between the events of the Hobbit and LOTR? we did, BAYBEEEEEE!!

we are:

Murdoc, a hobbitish warden (adventures in middle earth’s version of a bard), played by yours truly!! raised in the shire and eventually moved out to the middle of mirkwood by an eccentric uncle who idolizes bilbo baggins, murdoc is the heir apparent to the brandybuck family inn. unfortunately for murdoc, he has developed extremely nasty prophetic dreams and is now burdened with the ability to see the future! a skill that has definitely left him with a very normal relationship to his new day job of Being An Adventurer!! i am unhinged and have uh. Talked About Him A LOT If You Care To Read This, but he is full of murderous rage and also tea and loves his friends very much. he also, more recently, surrendered himself as bait to the great werewolf plaguing mirkwood, trusting completely that his friends would come and save him. he was right. they did. and he lost his right hand in the process. :)

Ríros, an elven warrior (aime version of a fighter), played by @jaz-the-bard. tall, buff, sunshiny, and an absolute himbo. ALSO loves his friends VERY much and this is KEY. unfortunately for ríros, he is a redhead, and that does cause problems in a world where maedhros feänorion once existed. (stranger, i am so sorry if you are not one of my silmarillion regulars and did not know what you were getting into by asking me, a silmarillion blog, to tell you about my d&d campaign, and now have no idea who or what the fuck i am talking about). ríros is notably not maedhros though! he isn't even noldorin!! maedhros is a ghost who lives in his sword (and who is also played by jaz)! and who also maybe kind of accidentally possessed him one time, if you wanna read this here for a better explanation of ríros mostly but also all of the above.

The Bearer, a human slayer (aime barbarian), played by @thymo-leonta. grumpy old man. unwilling father to all these young and stupid adventurers he’s been stuck with. are they all adults? yeah sure. they’re still Children. we are making him go grey. also full of murderous rage. looks like he's running from his perfectly normal, happy, loving family. is actually acutely aware of the fact that he has been doomed to die. killed the werewolf that took murdoc's hand. as a consequence, became the werewolf that took murdoc's hand. has two dogs, both named Dog <3

Déorwyn, a human wanderer (aime ranger), played by @shadowkat2000. resident party Horse Girl. a fellow sufferer of The Bad Prophetic Dreams^TM. because this is not quite unfortunate enough for her, déorwyn Hears Dead People. apparently our GM gives her extra secret bonus ghosts that the rest of us do not hear or know about! this being the source of her foresight makes her pretty distinct from murdoc, despite them both seemingly suffering from the same thing, in ways that i have LOTS of emotions about. her horse is named windrider and Their Bond Is Unbreakable uwu

and @potatoobsessed999, our obligatorily Extremely Ominous GM!

(we are also occasionally joined by Ioreth, a human treasure hunter (aime rogue), whose player is unfortunately not on tumblr. a founding member of the party, has earned the epithet The Feral, mostly loves to hang out in the woods by herself, look for shiny things, and cause chaos. as a beorning, she CAN astral-project herself as a bear. it rules. once got possessed by a ringwraith, probably holds the most compassion for characters who have been through similar out of any of us. is usually covered in mud.)

initially in the employ of radagast the brown, a tenure that did not last due to murdoc's insistence that saruman is evil (i mean. yeah lol.), we're a group of adventurers traveling mirkwood with the aim to defend it as sauron slowly gathers power. we are

very

successful at the Fighting And Killing Things part of this

we specialize in:

lugging unconscious bodies through the woods!

lugging DEAD bodies through the woods!

lugging EACH OTHER'S bodies through the woods!

lugging things through the woods in general!

setting things on fire (usually murdoc's fault)!

making fun of our enemies so bad they just give up!

INCLUDING the ringwraiths (shoutout to ríros)!

serving annoying politicians subpoenas!

murdering them like the one time it was totally justified we promise!

accidentally convincing the council of mirkwood that murdoc's inn is a small fiefdom!

being generally cursed (except for ríros) (he just looks that way)!

HIRE US to take care of whatever problems are happening in YOUR local cursed forest! wights? patricidal politicians? generally awful politicians? sauron? the same fucking werewolf again? it's definitely just tuesday to us!

you can count on

｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆ the union of murdoc ｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

anyhow, jaz is absolutely wonderful and has written several fics of our party, including (but not limited to):

Cooking Contest for the Free Peoples, based on an in-game conversation about beating sauron at competitive cooking,

In Which There Are More Ghosts, which is not canon to game but is in fact Extremely Representative of the exact kind of nonsense we get up to (campaign's haunted),

A Stranger With a Friend's Face, a canon to game horror story of how ríros got slightly possessed, the party acquired maedhros, and neither murdoc nor déorwyn managed to explain the presence of the vengeful ghost residing in murdoc's scepter and bullying him in his dreams to any of the rest of the party right up until this very moment,

and this wonderful drabble from the horror arc in which we were isolated inside of a haunted longhouse. complete with party memes here.

there's more, and i am going to a.) pick on jaz to add them if they can find them, and b.) pick on my beloved friends in general to Please Help Me Infodump About our Game!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Top to Bottom, Left to Right: Murdoc, the Bearer, Déorwyn, Ríros, Ioreth]

#so sorry to this random stranger. the op of the post about d&d games being five-person fandoms. who was kind enough to Ask Me This.#this is way more than you bargained for #even if you care about none of this I Love You Now. Just For Asking.#you must understand. i am compiling a sales pitch for my campaign. i need to get tumblr Invested.#also i truly have NO art of one-handed murdoc and this i MUST correct #my boy! does not have that second hand!!#his design has changed so much from even the point when this art was commissioned but that's a post of its own lmao #begging my friends to Descend upon this post because there *are* Things I Have Missed and i want them to infodump too .w.#mirkwood campaign #<= is my tag for everything from this game!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! go check it out pls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!#nelyo askbox #hoping that this doesn't have a million typos before i finally post this lmao

29 notes · View notes

marinahavik · 3 months

Text

Introducing my Oc's today's episode Dione Havik

Havik: This Dutch surname is derived from the word “havik” which means “sea hawk”

Dione

The name Dione is a graphic variant of Dioni, a nickname for Dionysia, which has Greek origins. Some meanings associated with the name Dione are “spirit of the waters” and “the sky and the waters”.

She comes from an influential family in the Coral Sea, they are known mainly for their jewelry making, and because of this they gained a noble title.

The family symbol is pearls, the Havik family became a noble family just over 100 years ago, due to their parents Aerion (This name has Greek origin and means “divine water”) and Aria (This name has Italian origin and means “air” or “melody”. It is often associated with the element of water due to its fluidity).

Aerion is a hawk fae while Aria is an ocean nymph, both species can live for many years.

They started a jewelry business that over time became a great success, so much so that wearing jewelry made by the Havik corporation means that you are someone with a very high status, some of the main customers are the Al-Asim and the kingscholar.

Despite all the wealth, no one in the family tends to waste luxuries and riches, they tend to prefer a quieter life.

To avoid problems, the family's house is located inside a cave, which is guarded by huge sea serpents.

You rarely see anyone from the family at the fancy parties that noble and royal families usually throw, but the few times they appear, all the attention goes to them.

To prevent the children from receiving too much attention, especially Marina and Dione, Aerion and Aria rarely accept invitations to parties, and the times they attend, they are without the children, they do this to protect them, after all, since the beginning of time, the Nymphs are often persecuted for their beauty.

About the nymphs

They are beings linked to nature, they are divided by ecosystems, so there are flower nymphs from forests, the sea, rivers, etc.

They are considered the fastest beings in Twisted Wonderland, every year fleeing from mortals, gods and monsters since ancient times, made them undergo evolutions, making them faster, and with their senses enhanced to the maximum.

In addition to being very fast, they have the ability to transform into plants and animals to escape their pursuers.

They are experts in animal language, being able to communicate with any type of animal, whether magical or not.

As an ocean nymph, she possesses great command over the waters, her unique magic only enhancing these abilities.

About your personality

Unlike her younger sister, Dione is calmer and calmer, and does not have as much energy as Marina.

Dione is someone who doesn't usually talk much, preferring to remain silent analyzing situations, she only speaks when she thinks it is necessary.

Of the two sisters, she is the more responsible, and tries to prevent her sister from doing something stupid, or ending up going overboard when it comes to doing their work.

In the same way that her sister's appearance makes others think she is not dangerous, which means that other people may either let their guard down around them, or try to intimidate them, neither of these decisions is a wise decision.

Like her sister, she really enjoys Yumi's company, and was very angry with Azul and the twins when she found out that they took Ramshackle.

Appearance

Dione is 1.66 tall

She has short black hair that is always loose, has bangs pulled to the right side, and wears a blue bow at the back of her hair, and has very beautiful green eyes.

Her uniform consists of a white button-down blouse, a gray vest, black and gold jacket, black ruffled skirt, dark tights, and black boots with gold details.

Curiosities and more information about her

A first-year student at Octanaville, she is also part of the first-year problem class

And right-handed, she likes to collect old things, and just like her sister likes cute animals

She likes anything that involves music, she is part of the board game club.

She is childhood friends with the Leech and Blue twins, as well as Sebek and Silver, as her father is friends with Lila and Sebek's grandfather.

Despite being half fae, she and the rest of her family prefer to live in the coral sea.

Her maternal family is practically a secret to the rest of her friends, they may even know her mother Aria but the only thing they know about her maternal family is practical.

Sometimes she and her sister, along with her mother, and other female relatives go to an island called Temiscira, where it was magically protected to prevent men from entering, so it's basically a vacation island for women, they ended up taking Yumi on one of these trips. So the girl could get some rest, and on this trip to Yozakura she ends up learning more about her own language and her family's origins.

has a crush on Azul, but never talked about it, tired of seeing their friends having feelings for each other but never talking about them, Marina, the Leachs and Yumi (who ended up in the operation by accident) got together and came up with a plan to that Azul and Dione finally became a couple

How they met (azul and the Leech)

Azul met the Havik family, on an ordinary day for him, he was running away from some classmates, and hid in a cave, the cave in question served as the entrance to the Havik house, the twins were leaving when they found the little one hidden octopus.

He was very scared and it took him a while to trust the girls and consider them friends, but her family accepted him and treated him so well, that Blue was happy to finally have friends.

Some time later the Leech also met the Havik, and they became a much respected and feared group in the Coral Sea, and their fame continues in the Raven night.

how things work in octanaville

She and her sister usually work as secretaries at Azul, they also work as waitresses and on the days they work the Lounge is crowded.

Because many students only go there to see them and make the poor customers spend more than they have, leaving the poor without money and having to work in the salon to pay off the debt.

Octanaville has rules to make the lives of employees and customers comfortable, especially for the girls, breaking the rules means the Leachs will break their bones.

Many end up being afraid to approach the Havik, as there will always be a Leech nearby acting as a bodyguard. In Dione's case it would be Jade, as she is not afraid of the eel and they both get along very well.

Because of her pretty appearance and "naive" appearance, many tried to trick her or intimidate her because they believed she wouldn't react, but it's not like that, all the idiots who underestimated her ended up in the infirmary, but it was her sister Marina who ended up becoming more famous, as it sent 5 Savannah students to the infirmary with serious injuries

Blue and the Leeches rule Octanaville and, as they are childhood friends, the twins have some privileges. Marina, in particular, tends to enter the office without knocking, and she and her sister have permission from Azul to take care of the Leeches (especially Floyd) when they cause trouble. As scary as it is for the Octanaville students, a common scene that happens sometimes would be Marina using her hydrokinesis to make them behave, so seeing Floyd tied up by the water currents and being dragged away became an everyday scene.

In the same way that it ended up becoming common to see Dione dragging jade by his ear, when he tries to feed someone with poisonous mushrooms.

I hope you enjoyed the post, likes and reblogs are appreciated, the next post will be about the Yozakura family

#twisted wonderland #my ocs #night raven college #original character #twisted oc #twst original character #octavinelle #oc x canon #octavinelle oc

8 notes · View notes

blaisenova · 8 months

Text

how not to talk someone off of a ledge

Miguel O'Hara likes to go up to the roof of Spider-Society to think. What about? That's no one's business but his own. Though, unfortunately, Peter doesn't seem to agree.

or:

Peter B. Parker REALLY doesn't know how to talk someone off of a ledge.

-------------------------------------------

my first TRUE atsv work on here!

it's a bit of an exploration into miguel and the way that he reacts to things in atsv because i think it's really interesting. angry man? aggressive man? no, just stressed and afraid. plus can you really blame a guy for having a bit of a breakdown when everyone keeps pushing all of his buttons and doesn't stop even when he makes it VERY clear that they should?? he needs to learn how to handle his feelings better (read: learn to TALK ABOUT THEM AT ALL) and everyone else needs to learn when to BACK OFF. i'm looking at you peter. i love you so so much but you know how to push miguel's buttons and you USE THAT KNOWLEDGE.

you also get a bit of a parental miguel moment because he is soft for children and i will not be told otherwise. idiot parents or not, miguel would do anything for little mayday. apologies again for if any of my spanish is off at all. i'm fairly advanced but there's still some stuff i struggle with. if you speak spanish, please feel free to correct me! i am always always open and willing to learn!

i should warn you that there's some very brief religious exploration at the very beginning of the work, but it's not the main focus by far so i haven't tagged it. there is, however, a deep exploration of miguel's suicidal thoughts, so please watch out for that!

as always, the link to this work on ao3 is in the reblogs if you prefer to read there like i do, and thank you so much for reading!! <3

--------------------------------------------

A peculiar fact of life, as undeniable as the sky being blue or the sun being a star, was that the wind rushed with more and more desperate urgency the higher up into the atmosphere you got.

Of course, Miguel knew, logically, why that was – there was less friction at higher altitudes, so the air was able to travel more freely – and he knew, even more logically, that it was stupid to try and find some sort of bigger meaning in something; that it only ever made him feel even more small. But, sometimes, despite knowing it was stupid and that he was indescribably tired of trying to find meaning in the meaningless or humanity in the inhuman, Miguel would get caught up in his own head, and he would begin to wonder if, maybe, the wind at the top of Babylon Towers pulled at him so desperately because it was trying to bring him over the edge. As if it knew that, even though he could catch himself, he wouldn’t. As if it knew that, if he just got one sign that he was meant to fall, he’d let himself.

It shouldn’t have meant anything, that the earth was functioning the way that it was meant to, especially since Miguel was the furthest thing from a spiritual person, but it wasn’t as easy as he’d like to pretend to forget the way that he’d been raised.

Miguel didn’t believe in a god.

Maybe it would have been easier to blame all of his woes on some higher power that had written his suffering into the stars millenia before he was born, but it felt like a shitty excuse for all of the things that he’d done to himself. It was supposed to make him feel better, to know that it wasn’t his fault that everything he touched fell apart, but all it did was make him feel trapped; suffocated. Who would want to be written into a destiny like this?

No, Miguel didn’t believe in a god.

His mother had raised him to be Catholic; fearing of a God with a capital g that had the power to save and destroy him all at once, but Miguel had always thought that his father had possessed that same exact ability and there was nothing all too godly about him. Having power didn’t make you a god, he’d decided, and the sentiment had only been made to feel more and more true as time went on. After all, he had power, and he was even further from god than his dad had been.

Miguel didn’t believe in a god.

But he would be a liar if he said that there weren’t still times that he wanted to break down and pray to a higher power – that either didn’t exist or loathed him completely – to make his pain stop. It was stupid, and childish, and Miguel thought he’d grown out of the urge the first time he realised that he had the power to stop the pain. Miguel was no god, though his life was in his own hands, for better or for worse, so he’d stopped praying. Even when he could think of nothing else to do but plead, Miguel did not pray.

Nevertheless, as his legs hung off of the edge of the roof of Babylon Tower’s – Spider Society’s carefully built and refurbished headquarters and, also, the location of what used to feel like home – Miguel could only silently ask of the wind to do what he was too afraid to.

There was no afterlife. That’s what he was counting on.

Each inhale burned his lungs, and he couldn’t be sure if it was because of all of the pollution in Nueva York’s atmosphere or if it was just because he was trying so hard not to burst into tears. Daring to take a breath would be to invite a sob, and Miguel was far too tired to cry any more tears, so, instead, he stilled his chest until he could no longer, then sucked in as quick of an inhale as he could before stilling once more.

There weren’t even stars anymore. The lights of the city were so blindingly bright that they drowned out the entire sky. Before figuring out how to jump universes, Miguel had never seen a star except for in pictures. Before he knew how beautiful they really were, it hadn’t really bothered him; he couldn’t have known what he was missing without having seen it for himself.

Even the most high definition of screens couldn’t capture the way that a million stars dappled the sky like freckles, twinkling and dancing; unmoving yet ever-changing.

The first time Miguel had seen the stars – really looked at them – on Earth 47219 (he could never forget), he’d been frozen in place. It felt as if he was being gazed upon by the universe itself, and he was staring right back; unabashedly marvelling at them. He remembered feeling small, and that was hardly a new feeling to him but he’d never felt it quite like he had in that moment. It wasn’t something he was being made to feel by another person, and, somehow, that had made it okay. He was small, but small in the way that he never got to be; small in the way a child was, or should have been.

And, really, stars shouldn’t have been the thing to wow him; after all, there was an entire, infinite multiverse with billions of versions of himself and every other person. The scope of the infinity of a single universe shouldn’t have compared to the scope of the infinity of the multiverse that contained it, but they were both infinities, weren’t they? So, in the end, they were the same, right?

Nevertheless, there was something about being faced with the natural vision of space’s endlessness that didn’t compare to computer generated strands of code that simply painted a picture of what infinity might look like. Nothing could be such a wholly genuine picture of boundlessness other than the real thing.

As Miguel looked up at the sky now, though, and was met with nothing but a blank grey-blue, he almost felt even smaller than he did when looking up at the stars. Small, but in the way that he was used to feeling; small, but in the way that made him afraid.

There were more Spider-People resting within the confines of the building beneath him than he would ever bother to count, so why did he still feel so alone? Infinite universes, infinite people, infinite opportunities, and, yet, Miguel had never felt so lonely. He’d searched for a solution to the hollowness once before, and he’d only found great loss – a loss he shouldn’t get to grieve when he was the one who’d caused it. Why weren’t the people he had here enough for him? Why couldn’t he just believe that Gabriel loved him, and that Xina no longer loathed him for how he’d hurt her?

None of it was ever enough, and, at a certain point, Miguel had to admit that it wasn’t something lacking in anyone else that left him so empty; it was the fact that he tore himself open further and further each day in search of anything to fix him and was bled out in the process.

Infinity really was an unfathomably large concept. How could anyone be expected to stop the bleeding of a wound that was ever-expanding?

The wind whistled loudly in his ears, almost deafening. It urged him ever closer to the edge and the great fall that could swallow him up if he’d let it. It felt like a comfort; an assurance that maybe everything could be okay, even if only in those brief moments before it stopped, though that was a bit of a comforting promise, too.

The wind, thousands of feet in the air on top of Babylon Towers, was so loud, in fact, that Miguel missed the sound of footsteps approaching the door until it had already swung open and it was too late.

“Miguel?!” a voice shouted over the whipping air current.

Miguel’s shoulders grew even more tense, if possible. He peered over his shoulder, scowling at a certain Spider in a fluffy pink robe before he turned his attention back to the cityscape before him. If he tried hard enough, he could almost pretend that the passing headlights of cars and the faraway lit up windows of apartments were a starscape; one that didn’t inspire such unfathomable fear.

“Hey, man, what are you doing up here?” came the call once more, and Miguel tucked his head down as he hunched over.

“Avoiding you,” he shouted back, voice whisked away by the wind, but Peter seemed to hear him anyway.

“Well, you’re not doing a very good job of it!” he said, and Miguel was sure he could almost hear a laugh.

He grumbled, twisting his body just enough so that he could glare at the intruder without breaking his neck in the process. “I was.”

“Yeah, well, you know how it is,” Peter called, stumbling forward against the wind to unceremoniously plop himself down next to Miguel with a huff of exhaustion. He scooted himself over, pressing his shoulder against Miguel’s – which Miguel narrowed his eyes at and leaned, ever so slightly, away – and swung his feet in the open air with an almost irreverent glee. “Spidey-sense takes me all sorts of places that I’m not invited.”

As Miguel opened his mouth to tell Peter off, he felt a small hand press against his arm, and he looked down in horror at the bright eyes and wild red hair of Mayday parker. With one hand, he took her hand into his own, then gently brought up his other to cover her eyes. His gaze immediately darted back up to her father, who he flashed his fangs at unabashedly in a snarl.

“Peter, did you bring your sho- Did you bring your baby up here?” he seethed.

And Peter, in all of his carefree naivete – which Miguel knew wasn’t fair to think when he was well aware of all the hurt the other Spider had gone through to get here – had the gall to shrug. “She needed the fresh air!” Then, after a sniff, he corrected, “air.” Then, another sniff, and his face screwed up into one of disgust. “Actually, I’m not even sure I can call this air. What do they do in your dimension, man?”

Having enough, Miguel hissed out, “Ay, pendejo, ¡cállate!” and he carefully removed his hand from May’s face to give her a fangless smile. “Hola, criatura pequeña,” he cooed, and her hand wrapped around his finger even tighter as she beamed back up at him. “Está bien. Tu papá es un idiota. ¡Sí! ¡Sí! No tiene ningún cerebro. No. Es muy tonto, yo sé. Yo sé.”

She babbled up at him in glee, and Miguel couldn’t help but to laugh, rubbing his thumb over her little hand as he babbled back.

Apparently deciding that he’d had his fill of being left out, Peter joined in on the laugh a bit awkwardly. “Hey, Miguel, I-”

“¡Cállate!” Miguel hissed again, shooting the other man a glare once more, though far more muted now that Mayday could see. “We’re having a conversation.”

And, seamlessly, he shot back into a stream of lovingly spoken Spanish. “Sí, me entiendes, arañita, yo sé. ¿Puedes decir ‘¡qué lástima!’? ‘¡Es una pena que mi papá sea tan estúpido!’” He hissed the last word with a pointed glare at Peter, knowing the man would know what the word meant, and, sure enough, he frowned. Then, Miguel immediately turned his attention back to Mayday, voice sweet once more. “Está bien, criaturita. No permitiré que nada te pase a ti. Lo prometo.”

“Miguel, please,” Peter interrupted again, tone desperate. “Don’t teach my daughter how to trash talk me in Spanish. I don’t know what I’ll do if I accidentally upset her one day and she starts prattling off fluent Spanish insults that I only half-understand. Or, god forbid, if it happened to M.J. instead. She took French in school, Miguel.”

More than happy to oblige, Miguel sat up, looking Peter straight in the face, and, in the same sweet tone as he’d used with Mayday, deadpanned, “You’re a moron.”

May blew a raspberry up at her father, giggling delightedly.

To his credit, Peter did manage to laugh, albeit a bit breathlessly, and he ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah, alright, I guess I did kind of ask for that.”

“Do you ever think?” Miguel shot back, voice finally falling back into frustration, though only enough for Peter to pick up on.

“Well, I do have a degree-” he began only to cut himself at the look he was receiving. “Look, she’s fine!” he insisted, gesturing down to Mayday who was pulling at the yarn ends of her Spider-Man hat as they were whisked in every which way by the wind, secure in her carrier. Peter moved his hand to lay on Miguel’s shoulder, and Miguel immediately batted him away, which earned a frown but, fortunately, a bit of distance. “It’s you that I’m worried about, Mig.”

At that, Miguel’s eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”

A finger pointing to his own skull, Peter smiled a bit grimly. “The Spider-Sense never lies.”

“Right,” Miguel drawled, rolling his eyes and biting down the rising sense of dread in his stomach. “Let’s put complete trust in your magic psychic abilities you got from a Spider over two decades ago. What could go wrong?”

“It hasn’t failed me yet,” Peter hummed. Out of the corner of his eye, Miguel could see the way his hand gripped onto Mayday’s when a particularly strong gust of wind hit their backs and minutely pushed them forward. It was a small comfort. Then, “You never answered my question. What’re you doing on the roof, man?”

Questioning why all of the people he associated himself with now were insufferably stubborn – and, more importantly, what that said about him – Miguel leaned forward, elbow on his knee and head resting on his hand. His other hand was still occupied by a little Mayday hand, and he wouldn’t dare let go until she decided she wanted to. His eyes peered over the edge of the roof, at the staggeringly long way down – so high that it almost gave him vertigo – then shifted slightly up to focus on the buildings that littered the view beneath them.

“Thinking,” he finally replied after a long pause. “I came up here because nobody bothers me.” The words were punctuated with another glare, albeit somewhat half-heartedly.

Smiling a bit sheepishly, Peter leaned back onto his free hand. “Well, you can’t win ‘em all.”

“You make it very difficult to win any,” Miguel grumbled.

“Hey, I have my moments,” came the retort, backed by a snort. Then, “y’know, if you really wanted to be alone, you could’ve just locked yourself in your room, angsty teen style.”

Unamused, Miguel didn’t grace the suggestion with any more than a scoff. His eyes were once again drawn downward, fingers curling upwards around his jaw to dig into his cheek minutely, and he hummed in thought, the sound barely inaudible over the rushing air. The sheer wind cut right through Miguel’s suit, and he shivered as a chill ran over his skin, though the feeling wasn’t entirely unwelcome; a reminder that its silent urges hadn’t given up on him just yet. Unfortunately, though, neither had Peter, who leaned over to briefly brush his shoulder with his own, brows furrowed.

“I don’t like the way you’re looking at that drop, Mig,” he said. Then, with a bit of a nervous laugh, “I mean, I’ve looked at drops plenty of times, but in a ‘I think that’d be fun to skydive off of’ sorta way, not… whatever this is.”

“I’m not talking about this in front of a child, Peter,” came the immediate retort.

“Miguel, she’s a baby,” Peter insisted. “She can’t understand anything that’s going on.”

“You don’t know that,” Miguel insisted in turn, his brows furrowing. He tore his eyes from the ground below to peer at May with thinly veiled concern.

“You can’t keep cutting everyone off, Mig,” he tried again. If Peter was trying to meet Miguel’s eyes, he wouldn’t let him, keeping his full attention on Mayday instead. “You keep finding excuses to not talk about things, and I-”

“It’s not an excuse,” he interrupted, a bit too quickly.

“Miguel-”

“Don’t make me argue with you in front of Mayday,” Miguel practically demanded, finally meeting Peter’s gaze with a vulnerability neither of them were prepared for. “Please.”

Startled, Peter’s eyes went wide, and he immediately went silent, mouth, mercifully, snapping shut. Miguel heaved in a breath and forced himself to look back out at the city. He steeled himself, forcing the weakness back out of his mind, but wasn’t quite prepared for the gentle way that Mayday squeezed his finger. The feeling made Miguel perk up a bit, and he snapped his attention right back onto the baby, on unreasonably high alert. May’s big blue eyes shifted from their hands to Miguel’s face, and she babbled at him, a strange worry in her gaze, too.

“Is- Is she okay?” Miguel asked, hating the way that he stuttered without meaning to.

With a hum, Peter glanced down at the baby, shifting her hat so he could see her face. She glanced up at her father, making more nonsensical sounds that somehow still resounded as urgent in Miguel’s ears, but Peter just smiled at her softly, petting her head. “Seems like she’s worried about you, too, big guy.”

“Wha- Worried about me?” he echoed, voice strained. “Peter, she’s a baby. She can’t understand anything that’s going on.”

“You don’t know that,” Peter countered, giving him such a stupid grin that Miguel couldn’t help but to frown.

“Don’t do that.”

“Don’t do what?”

“Use my words against me,” Miguel hissed. “That’s not funny.”

Holding back a smile, Peter raised a hand and tilted it from side to side. “It’s a little funny.”

“You brought your baby onto a roof, Peter,” he reminded almost exasperatedly. “Don’t try to act smart now.”

“I have a degree-”

“In what? Incompetency?”

Giving an irritated laugh, Peter shook a finger in Miguel’s direction. “You know, you are a very difficult man to talk off a ledge.”

“I’d say you’re doing a fantastic job,” Miguel said with false sweetness, then pointed towards the ground thousands of feet below, “if that’s the direction you want me to go.”

“Okay. Alright. I’ll give you that one because it was actually kind of funny-”

Miguel scoffed, letting his head fall back onto his hand. “How kind of you.”

“-but I’m being serious here.”

“Wow,” he deadpanned. “First time?”

Seemingly not as amused now, Peter frowned, and his hand gently fell back onto Mayday’s head, who squealed delightedly despite the confrontation. “Alright, you’re pushing your luck now.”

“I am?”

“How is it even possible for one guy to be in this bad of a mood?!” Peter half-shouted, throwing his head back in frustration.

Again, Miguel scoffed, and his head fell to one side to stare at the other man, unimpressed. “Would you like your answer in the form of a list or an essay?”

“I’d like an answer at all, actually,” he said desperately.

“Ah, now that’s asking too much of me,” came the response, and Miguel turned his gaze away once more.

Gawking, Peter sputtered for words for a moment before pausing, falling silent, then trying again. “Are you impossible to talk to on purpose? Jess says it’s on purpose, but Ben… Well, actually, I don’t remember what Ben said.” He laughed awkwardly, waving a hand. “It’s kinda hard to focus on the words coming out of his mouth when he’s basically a clone of me. Or- Or literally a clone of me, actually. Isn’t that freaky? Poor guy. But the point is that it was probably the same answer. Everyone thinks that-”

“Are you done?” Miguel finally interjected, glaring with every bit of vitriol he could muster, but Peter wasn’t impressed.

“I could be,” he hummed, “or I could keep going. I didn’t think you were going to answer the question, and someone’s got to fill the silence.”

Now it was Miguel’s turn to gawk, and it took a few blinks for him to muster up the wherewithal to actually answer. “You are so childish.”

“Sticks and stones, Mig,” Peter mused. “I haven’t even gotten started. I could talk for days, if you let me. Next topic?”

Still holding onto both of their hands, Mayday squealed and bounced a bit in her carrier with a spitty razzberry, and Peter immediately smiled, drawing a preemptive groan from the man by his side. “Mayday!” he exclaimed. “Oh, I could write a book about Mayday. She’s only a baby, but she really is sophisticated, you know. She’s a baby with layers! With complexities! I know I’ve already shown you all of her pictures, but-”

“Ay, Dios, enough!” Miguel hissed, his free hand running through his hair and his eyes wide with exasperation. “Yes, it’s on purpose. Because I want to avoid this!” He gestured between Peter and himself vigorously. “This drives me nuts, get it? You drive me nuts. I don’t want to talk, and everyone seems to get that but you.”

An exasperated laugh fell from him, though he gently squeezed Mayday’s hand to assure her that everything was okay. “I came up here because I didn’t want to talk to anyone, Peter. Do you not get that? Do you not understand that I don’t want you here?” He pointed a clawed finger in Peter’s face, mouth open in a snarl. “Listen to me closely because I need you to understand this before you get hurt. Leave me alone. Leave me alone.

“If you want to talk to me about work,” Miguel continued, “or if you want to talk to me about Mayday, or M.J., or anything other than this when I’m not trying to be alone, then, please, be my guest. But I am not talking about this.” He pulled his hand to his chest roughly, the fabric of his suit getting caught on the talon he pointed directly at himself. “I will not talk about this. Leave me alone.” Then, more insistently, “leave me alone.”

For a moment, then, there was silence, only filled by the whistling rush of the wind around them and Miguel’s heaving breaths. His nostrils were flared in rage, hand hanging in the air, but his anger faltered when he finally caught sight of the look on the other man’s face; a chill ran over him that was almost worse than the one caused by the roaring wind. Beside him, Peter wore the most impassive expression Miguel had ever seen on him, and the look, admittedly, scared him a bit. His hand fell back to his side, and his brows quirked upward in quiet unease as his eyes darted between Peter and literally anything else.

“Miguel,” Peter finally said, and his tone matched his face, “I’m not just going to leave you to kill yourself on a roof.”

And, all at once, with a startled and impossibly frustrated bark of laughter, the fury returned to Miguel’s chest, chasing away the chill of fear and concern that had previously gripped him. Gently, Miguel slid his hand out of Mayday’s grasp and, less so, stood to his feet.

Immediately, Peter’s eyes widened, and he half-shuffled to get up himself, stumbling onto one knee. “Wait. What are you-”

Without a word, Miguel stepped off the edge and into the open air, a strangled screech following him.

“Miguel!”

A horrified face popped over the edge of the building, where Miguel’s talons dug into the metal plated siding, and he couldn’t help the bitter sort of amusement he found in the reaction. Served him right. The thought was chased away as the wind continued to pull at him, beckoning him downward, but Miguel didn’t give in to its pleas. There was a strange sort of satisfaction to defying what was asked of him both by Peter and by the very world, though such nauseating satisfaction was probably what had kept him around for so long in the first place; whenever the promise to himself to be useful in his wretched existence managed to fail him. Maybe, for now, bitter contentment could be enough.

He snarled up at the other man, pointing at him with his free hand. “I’m not riding the elevator down with you.”

And, with that, he loosed his grip on the building a bit, allowing himself to slide down the side, followed by a half-enraged, half-relieved shout of, “yeah, fuck you, too!” and an even quieter, “don’t repeat that, Mayday.”

#blaise writes #miguel o'hara #peter b parker #mayday parker #spiderman 2099 #spiderman 2099 comics #spider man 2099 #atsv #across the spiderverse #spider man: across the spider verse #spiderman across the spiderverse #atsv fanfiction #fanfiction #cw: suicide #i do love peter so so much but also i think sometimes he pushes miguel's buttons a bit too much #like i know he means well and that miguel can see and appreciate that but also goddamn he doesn't know when to stop sometimes

17 notes · View notes

anendoandfriendo · 6 months

Text

SERIOUSLY THE VERY FIRST YU-GI-OH HAMMERS THE FUCK DOWN ON THE PLURALITY.

Random screenshots we've grabbed from...who in our system even remembers where tbh:

Apparently the guy who wrote is isn't alive anymore? We might be wrong. But if we are right that is very fucking sad because we would literally just be like "OMG thank you we're plural but like, permanently, and this isn't exactly like us but also you gave us an endogenic framework to exist where other pieces of media did not," which we know isn't everything but also, when your neurotype is so demonized, is assumed to be caused by one thing only rather than coming a very diverse range of origins and experiences just like every other demographic, had essentially zero visibility or physical open community and advocates during your childhood(s), and there is no healthy model of selves-cooperation for said neurotype, it might as well be something close your whole entire world, to be honest.

What we could have obtained from Yu-Gi-Oh's Yami and Yugi, we got from Hunter×Hunter's Alluka and Nanika instead though, as those two were probably the first very explicit multiple system we ran into whilst actively being aware that plurality isn't seen as the norm.

Where they weren't forced to fuse. Where a loved one either immediatly accepted them as a system or was forced to confront their plurmisia and change their outlook on plurality. Where you could argue that Nanika and Alluka are endogenic-protogenic/a natural system/an innate system/etc because Nanika is a literal nen ability or holds a nen ability, amd in the Hunter×Hunter anime it's pretty much implied that's innate/natural/endogenic.

Where despite everything, despite all of the little things that should have queued us in, where we were not remotely aware the songs about people "running through my head," or whatever were not literal statements of an autonomous individual who does not control the brainbody but a metaphor for unrequited attraction, where we always took possession stories to be literal and felt this pang of digust the demon should be exorcised instead of just getting along with the person being possessed, all of it, and we were just never aware of it.

We could have had a much healthier model of plurality very early on in our life, but we simply thought being multiple people was mundane and the idea of a system playing card games and switching to another one of his "modes" to do it was stupid because it was mundane. But at least earlier on, nobody noticed because we were at an age everything could have been dismissed as imaginary friends.

So we just have some VERY mixed feelings about Yu-Gi-Oh and Hunter×Hunter both, but especially the former, we guess because we could have had that to work off of as children but that could have posed us an actual danger considering that back in 2001 we were — *checks notes* — bodily three, in 2012 we were, uh, hold on a second — *checks notes again* — bodily 13, and while our plurality precedes any type of trauma or abuse we were in fact actively being abused by the ex-stepmother by then and had also undergone abuse by the school system dragging us into seclusion rooms for (rightfully) acting out against autimisia and other such bigotry.

It's really a question of, if we had the choice, and we knew what we know now and also kept every single one of our headmates that we have now, and went back in time and were bodily three again, would we still have chosen to hide it from others?

That's what Yu-Gi-Oh and how we treated it as children represents to us so we haven't been able to pick it back up quite yet, sadly.

6 notes · View notes

lumilasi · 1 year

Text

The mother/head of the Chiba household. I wanted to keep Toshiko's old weapons even though she's no longer part of the same story, so I gave them to kaede with just different coloring

Info below:

Name: Kaede Chiba (First name means Maple tree)

Nicknames: Eda-chan (Ryoushi)

Age: 53

Height: 168 cm

A former Assassin/demon hunter guild member which specializes in eliminating cults and other dangerous groups trying to harm people by summoning dangerous demonic beings.

Role: retired mother running a farm with her family.

Family: Son Shou, Daughter Akiko, adoptive sons Milo & Silas, husband Ryoushi

Love interest: Ryoushi, her husband

Friends: Shura (a spirit being), Shika (A chimera healer), Erena (priestess in a water-based healing temple) The Murasaki siblings & their cousin from the Kureshima bathhouse.

Powers:

Like you'd expect from a pro like her, Kaede’s got pro stealth skills, ability to use blades and throwing knives, and is very acrobatic despite her age. She's also well versed in Judo, Karate and Kendo specifically.

She has an excellent understanding of different types of magic seals and traps, and knows how to diffuse/open/neutralize them.

Her main spell out of those taught to everybody in her guild (Invisibility, levitation, sleep inducing spell) is levitation, she can hover for long periods of time and even glide quite the long distances, up to 5 miles.

Kaede is very famous for her insanely fast reflexes, able to dodge super fast flying projectiles or deflect them. She's also quite physically strong, able to haul logs over her shoulder with ease for example.

Weaknesses:

She's older and not as fast/strong as she used to be, often getting her bad stuck for straining herself too much. She also has a bad habit of working too hard and thus often injuring herself. She's kind of rowdy and can sometimes annoy other villagers, especially when drunk.

Personality:

She is a relaxed and easy-going person, although she never lost her wit and always keeps an eye out for danger, being cautious about what she shares with whom. Among the family she is the most practical person, most in-touch with both her emotions and logic.

She is willing to go very far to protect her family, even ready to make difficult choices such as sacrifice herself for their sake, though so far they've managed to prevent her from doing something stupid like that needlessly.

BG story:

Kaede was a part of a specialized Assassin/Thief guild that specialized in working together with Demon Hunters and aiding them in defeating such threats, typically handling the human side of things (eliminating crazy occultists trying to summon stuff for example)

She was partnered with the Demon hunter Ryoushi, namely to balance out his more idealistic, emotion driven tendencies with her down-to-earth logical side. This overtime resulted in the two developing a close-knit bond that eventually turned romantic. Once Kaede became pregnant. Then, after a very traumatic and near-death experience with Ryoushi, that their eldest unfortunately witnessed, the pair decided to retire from their jobs for the most part focusing on raising their children and running Ryoushi's family farm. They do still act as guardians for their home village, but are no longer considered active hunters.

Fun facts:

Kaede is Bi like her husband, and they both sometimes talk about their crushes when drunk, both men and women.

She tends to like her food extra spicy

Her other eye was blinded during the incident their poor son saw, where Ryoushi got possessed briefly and almost died.

Milo, their other adoptive son, is close with her, because her also having an eye-patch made him feel bit less alone with his gnarly scar.

Her japanese voice claim would probably be Tsunade from Naruto, and Eda from The owl House for english.

She often argues with Akiko about her desire to become a demon hunter, because she knows first hand how dangerous the job is, and doesn't really want her children going through the same trauma. (They already traumatized their poor son by accident)

#lumi’s chaotic creations #lumi’s art scribbles #oc reference #digital art #kureshima bathhouse #character bio #Kaede Chiba #steel mom #tried to make her appear older a little bit #since she doesn't have the advantage of slower aging as a human #like many other characters of mine

5 notes · View notes

legends-of-time · 2 months

Text

Amelia’s Story (BBC Merlin Story)

Chapter 16: The Labyrinth of Gedref

Masterlist

Amelia's POV

Once again Arthur has done something stupid. He has killed a Unicorn despite the fact that they are incredibly vulnerable and rare as there are only a few left. Arthur however does not understand this and had just thought about how great it would look for Camelot if it had one. Idiot.

It is not long before Camelot begins experiencing the consequences of Arthur's actions. Amelia realises this when she sees Arthur, Uther and some Guards rushing out of the Castle gates and coming back looking very concerned. Turns out the crops had failed suddenly despite having looked perfectly healthy days earlier.

Amelia stands in the Physician's Chambers with Merlin and Gaius watching Gaius mixing various liquids etc., trying to figure out a medical reason for this sudden crop failure.

"Any ideas what caused the crops to die?" Merlin asks him.

"I'm here to complete all the tests. No disease I have heard of could spread through the entire Kingdom in a single night." Gaius responds.

"What could kill all the plants other than a disease?" Merlin asks.

"Not all plants," Amelia says. "Hedges and trees near the crops are healthy and unharmed."

"Unfortunately, you can't eat trees and hedges." Gaius quips.

"It's only killing plants we can eat?" Merlin realises.

"It appears so," Gaius says.

"If it's not a disease, it must be magic," Merlin says. Amelia agrees with him because what else can it be.

"We can't assume that, Merlin. Perhaps there is something in the soil and water that can explain it. I can't tell the King it's caused by sorcery until I'm completely certain."

——

They have to begin rationing and Villagers are having to stand in a long queue for a Guard to give them grain.

The livestock begins either to die or has been eaten. Food and water are deficient as well. People begin fighting over food. Amelia and Anne along with Morgana and Gwen begin sneaking out Castle kitchen food to hand out to families with small children.

Of course, things get worse. When Gwen tries to get water from the well and instead there is only sand. Turns out the underground reservoir is full of sand as well. No water left.

Anne and Merlin decide to jointly try to turn the sand into water in Merlin's Chamber.

They sit with a bucket of sand and his magic book open in front of them while Amelia stands off the side watching.

"Gréot gecymen, lecan. Gecymen gé drýe wæter." Merlin chants but nothing happens.

It is then that they all notice that Gaius had entered.

"We were... We were just, er..." Anne stumbles.

"I was hoping either of you might be trying to turn it back into water. I know I've cautioned against using magic, but if ever there was a time to use both of your talents, it's now." Gaius takes a seat in a chair.

"Well, I wish I knew how. We've tried everything. If it is magic, it's more powerful magic than I possess." Merlin says sadly.

What are they going to do? The repeated hunts for the 'sorcerer' has meant that Amelia has been too afraid to even get out her notes to see what will happen.

——

Anne's POV

Anne and Merlin are just entering the Square when Anne hears a voice call out their names.

"Merlin. Anne. You do realise there's a curfew?" Arthur calls, walking over to them from the direction of the Drawbridge.

"Oh, I was just heading home. My chores took me longer than I thought." Anne replies.

"Yeah, I was in your Chambers, hunting for the rat." Merlin then pipes up.

"Did you find it?" Arthur asks.

"No."

"So you have been outwitted by a rat?" Anne watches them amused.

"They do say rats are very intelligent."

"It's true," Anne says causing them to turn to her. "They are the only animals besides humans and some primates to possess the ability to think."

They both look at her oddly. "Sorry, something Amelia says." She mutters. She herself does not really understand what that means.

"Well more intelligent than Merlin, it would seem. Go home. It'd be embarrassing to have to lock up my own servant for breaking the curfew. And I doubt Amelia would be pleased if I arrested Anne."

Arthur looks to the left of them as if seeing something by the Courtyard Corridor. "What was that?"

"What?" Merlin asks as he glances over. Anne looks as well but she cannot see anything.

Without answering them, Arthur runs toward the Courtyard Corridor. Anne looks at Merlin and they both chase after him. Arthur jumps over the Courtyard Corridor ledge. Anne then sees a figure ahead as they chase it down the Upper Corridor, down some stairs, and down the Wrought Iron stairway to the Burial Vaults where they lose him.

Arthur signs to her and Merlin that they should go the other way so as to cut the person off. They nod and Anne turns the other way as instructed, but notices that Merlin had begun to follow Arthur.

"That means you go the other way and cut him off," Arthur says irritably, gesturing behind Merlin.

"Okay," Merlin says.

Anne gives Merlin a smile and they both head in the opposite direction of Arthur. They loop round. However, they end up back at the Wrought Iron stairway without seeing anyone. Then Anne sees a man's silhouette as he briefly rounds the corner. Arthur has her and Merlin go the opposite direction again. After looping around, they end up back at the Wrought Iron stairway again.

"Where is he?" Arthur demands.

"I didn't see anyone," Merlin says.

"He was right here! Don't tell me you let him get past the two of you."

"Arthur, no one passed us," Merlin says.

"Are you blind?!" Arthur says, practically yelling.

"Have you thought that perhaps he got past you?" Anne says, annoyed that Arthur is blaming them.

Before Arthur can answer, a voice interrupts them, "Are you looking for me?" They turn and an old man is standing there in a white cloak with his hood up and holding a staff in his right hand. "I am Anhora, Keeper of the Unicorns."

"Camelot is under curfew. What's your business here?" Arthur asks him.

"I have come to deliver a message," Anhora says.

"And who is this message for?"

"It is for you, Arthur Pendragon."

"Is it you who's responsible for killing our crops, turning our water into sand?"

"You alone are responsible for the misfortune that has befallen Camelot."

"Me?! You think I'd bring drought and famine upon my own people?" Arthur asks angrily.

"When you killed the Unicorn, you unleashed a curse. For this, Camelot will suffer greatly."

"If you have put a curse on Camelot, you will lift it, or you will pay with your life." Arthur is getting increasingly angrier.

"The curse was not my doing." Anhora talks as if he is speaking to a child.

"Undo the curse or face execution." Maybe he is right to as Arthur is not listening.

"Only you can do that. You will be tested."

"You're under arrest." Arthur reaches for Anhora, but he disappears and Arthur stumbles.

"Until you have proven yourself," Anne spins around to see that he had reappeared on the stairs, "and made amends for killing the Unicorn, the curse will not be lifted. If you fail any of these tests, Camelot will be damned for all eternity."

——

Amelia's POV

Anne comes to her the next morning and tells her of the events that had happened last night and the challenge this Anhora has set for Arthur.

"Do you think it's true?" Anne asks.

"Well, it makes sense considering what the legends say about Unicorns. That misfortune comes to anyone who slays a Unicorn." Amelia says.

"The issue is that Arthur doesn't believe it's his fault. He's convinced Anhora's responsible for it." Anne says.

"Well, let's hope we will, along with Merlin, make Arthur see sense," Amelia argues.

Anne nods before placing Amelia's breakfast on the table in front of her. "Less for breakfast again I'm afraid."

"Yeah but more than the starving people in the Kingdom are getting," Amelia says. "I'm in no position to complain. You should join me."

"No, I—" Anne tries to say.

"Anne." She stops. "You are doing more hard work than I am. You deserve it."

——

Amelia walks to Arthur's Chambers hoping that Merlin has made progress with Arthur but when she reaches the door she hears Arthur yelling.

"Then you're a fool. You cannot trust a single word a sorcerer says. You'd do well to remember that. Now, I think I've figured out what Anhora's next move is going to be, and when he makes it, we're going to be waiting."

Before she can move, the door suddenly opens to show Arthur standing on the other side. "Hello?" She says awkwardly.

Arthur huffs. "I assume Anne has told you. You can come to the stakeout tonight. We'll need a pair of extra eyes. Bring Anne." He then storms past her.

Amelia steps into the room and turns to Merlin. "Going well then?"

Merlin scoffs. "He's not listening."

"Well Arthur, despite evidence to the contrary, is not a complete idiot. He will see reason."

——

Amelia and Arthur have left Merlin and Anne near the grain store to keep watch but when they return, Amelia sees Merlin leaning against a pillar near the grain store with his eyes closed, smacking his lips and Anne slumped next to him. Arthur walks up to them and hits Merlin with a broom.

"Don't you worry about keeping watch, Merlin. You just make yourself comfortable." Arthur says sarcastically.

"Why not tell off Anne?" Merlin asks.

"Because she's Anne," Amelia says as if it explains everything. She thinks it did.

Anne smiles cheekily at him. Merlin sighs and smacks his lips.

"Stop smacking your lips. It's annoying." Arthur tells him.

"I'm thirsty."

"We're all thirsty, Merlin," Amelia says. Merlin sighs.

"Pst! Someone's coming," Arthur says, drawing his sword and Merlin follows him into the grain store. Amelia draws out her dagger. They see the intruder's silhouette.

Arthur motions to Merlin and Anne and mouths, "You go over there and come in." Merlin and Anne nod. They step off to the side. Amelia and Arthur walk into the room.

"Show yourself, before I run you through," Arthur says. A man edges around the corner with a shovel in one hand and a sack of grain in the other.

"Who are you?" Arthur asks.

"My name is... My name is..." the man stumbles nervously.

"Speak up!" Arthur demands.

"My name is Evan, My Lord." He says. Merlin and Anne come out of hiding. Merlin carries a scythe hook while Anne carries a broom. Amelia makes a note to get Anne a good dagger.

"I see you think you can help yourself to our grain reserves. My father has ordered that looters be executed." Arthur says.

"Please, My Lord. I-I do not steal for myself. I have three children they have not eaten for two days. They are hungry." Evan begs.

"It's the same for everyone," Amelia says.

"I... I know that it is wrong to steal. I couldn't bear to see them starve."

"And could you bear for your children to see you be executed?" Arthur asks. Evan shakes his head, close to tears.

"Then you should go home. If you're caught stealing again, I will not spare you."

"Yes, My Lord. Thank you." Evan smiles, puts down the sack of grain and shovel, and starts to leave.

"Wait." Arthur picks up the sack of grain and tosses it to Evan. "Use it sparingly. It might be the last food you and your family get for some time."

"You have shown yourself to be merciful and kind, My Lord. This will bring its own reward." Evan says before leaving.

——

The next day water returns. Amelia sits in Morgana's Chambers with Anne, Morgana and Gwen, gulping down water.

"I think I'm in love." Amelia declares. The others laugh at her. "Don't laugh! Do not tell me none of you are not enjoying it!"

"Not to the same level you are Amelia!" Morgana says chuckling.

"Whatever."

"I wonder what caused the water to come back?" Gwen questions.

"Seems a mystery," Anne says but shares a knowing look with Amelia. Amelia knows what she is thinking. Arthur showing mercy and pity for that man last night and the water returning can't be a coincidence.

——

Amelia stands next to Morgana and Arthur in the Main Square watching even more people continue to queue outside the grain store.

"Who are they?" Amelia asks.

"They've come from the outlying Villages in search of food. There's not enough rations to feed the people who are already here." Arthur says.

"You shouldn't blame yourself. I'm sure you're doing everything you can." Morgana says, trying to reassure him.

"It is not enough," Arthur mutters before he leaves and Gwen approaches them.

"Did you manage to find any more food?" Amelia asks. Gwen pulls a cloth back from her basket revealing some bread.

"Kitchen?" Morgana asks. Gwen nods.

"Share it out amongst the children and old people. Make it go as far as you can." Morgana tells her and Gwen steps away to begin her task.

——

Amelia, Anne, Merlin and Arthur search through the woods. They are all spread out in the same area.

"I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking for," Merlin says.

"You're looking for footprints or broken branches. Anything that would indicate someone passed that..." Arthur trails off and cries, "Anne! Merlin! Amelia! He's here!"

Amelia runs towards the voice but only finds Merlin with no Arthur or Anne insight.

"Arthur?!" Merlin calls. Amelia then hears what sounds like sword fighting and runs towards it. She hears Merlin follow.

"Arthur?! Arthur?!" Amelia calls. She and Merlin climb up into a clearing to find Arthur lying on the floor looking defeated while Anne stands behind him. Looking disappointed.

"What happened?" Merlin asks.

"He failed the test. He let his pride get the better of him." Anne answers. "Camelot is doomed."

——

Turns out that is true as the last remaining supplies of grain has rotted.

Amelia stands with Merlin and Arthur on the Balcony watching people continue queuing in the Main Square.

"They do not yet know that there is worse to come," Arthur tells them.

"What do you mean?" Merlin asks.

"My father is going to stop distributing food to the people. They are to be left to starve."

"Will he not ask other Kingdoms for help?" Amelia asks.

Arthur shakes his head. "He believes we will be attacked once others realise we are weak." So Uther has made the decision to prioritise his own ego over his own people. Typical.

"I had a chance to lift the curse. And I failed them." Arthur continues.

"You weren't to know you were being tested." Merlin tries to reassure him.

"My people are starving. Camelot is on the verge of collapse. And it is all my doing."

——

Merlin had gone to Anhora to ask that Arthur be given another chance. Anhora has given it and Arthur needs to go to the Labyrinth of Gedref where he will face a final test. If he fails, the curse will destroy Camelot. Anhora has not told Merlin what the test is.

Merlin had told her and Anne this after Arthur had rushed off on his own to do it, determined to succeed even if it meant he would die.

"We must go after him," Anne says. "We cannot let him die."

Amelia agrees and all three of them head off after Arthur.

——

They arrive at the Labyrinth and enter. After following many twists and turns, they are suddenly confronted with Anhora in the middle of it.

"You said Arthur would face a test. And here you are, preparing a trap for him." Merlin says accusingly.

"The trap isn't for Arthur. It is for you." Anhora says ominously. "Gehæftan." He chants and before they can react, they are all wrapped in vines from the labyrinth hedges.

They are taken to the exit by the sea. There is a table with two chairs and two goblets on a stony beach. Anhora has Merlin take a seat while Anne and Amelia are told to stand at the side with Anhora next to them.

After a few moments, Arthur bursts out onto the beach and spots them further along.

"Merlin? Anne? Amelia?" Arthur calls.

"I'm sorry," Merlin says.

"Let them go. I'll take your test, but not till they are released." Arthur bargains.

"That is not possible. Merlin is part of the test. The others as witnesses. Please sit. If you refuse the test, you will have failed and Camelot will be destroyed." Anhora replies.

Arthur takes a seat. "I thought I told you to stay at home," Arthur says to them before turning to Anhora. "Let's get on with it."

"There are two goblets before you. One of the goblets contains a deadly poison, the other goblet, a harmless liquid. All the liquid from both goblets must be drunk, but each of you may only drink from a single goblet." Anhora says.

Arthur scrunches up his face. "What kind of ridiculous test is that? What does that prove?"

"What it proves is for you to decide. If you pass the test, the curse will be lifted."

"Let's think about this. What if I drink from my goblet first?" Merlin says. Amelia chews her lip anxiously. She wishes she knows how this is going to end.

"If it's poisoned, you'll die," Arthur says.

"And if it's not, then you'll have to drink from yours, and you'll die. There must be a way around it."

"It is perfectly simple. One of us has to die. We have to find a way to determine which goblet has the poison. And then I'll drink it."

"I will be the one to drink it."

"This is my doing. I'm drinking it."

Amelia's eyes dart between them nervously. She is too afraid to say something, worrying that she will divert the course and make things worse.

"It is more important that you live. You're the future King. I'm just a servant." Merlin says.

"This is no time to be a hero, Merlin. It really doesn't suit you." Arthur says. Arthur clearly cares about Merlin, no matter what he says.

Merlin sighs. "What if I drink from mine first, and if that's not poisoned, I will then drink yours?"

Arthur glances over to Anhora. "He said each of us is only allowed to drink from a single goblet. I had no idea you were so keen to die for me."

"Trust me, I can hardly believe it myself," Merlin says sarcastically.

Arthur snorts. "I'm glad you are here, Merlin." He turns to Amelia and Anne. "All of you." He gives them a small smile. Amelia tries to return it and she sees Anne try to do the same.

Arthur sighs.

"I've got it. Right, we pour all the liquid into one goblet and then we can be sure it is poisoned. Then all the liquid can be drunk, and it will be from a single goblet." Merlin says.

"You never cease to surprise me. You're a lot smarter than you look." Arthur jibes.

"Is that actually a compliment?"

"Look out!" Arthur suddenly yells. Amelia along with Anne and Merlin glance over to where he points. But when they turn back after seeing nothing, Arthur has taken the two goblets and poured all of the liquid into one of them, holding it to drink.

"No! I will drink it!" Merlin cries.

"As if I'd let you."

"You can't die. This isn't your destiny." Merlin says desperately.

"It seems you're wrong again."

"Listen to me!"

"You know me, Merlin. I never listen to you." Arthur toasts Merlin. Then Anne and Amelia.

"Arthur!" Amelia shouts. But Arthur drinks it.

"No! What have you done?" Merlin exclaims. Arthur falls off the chair, unconscious.

"Arthur! No!" Merlin tries to shake Arthur awake. Amelia and Anne rush over. "Arthur. Arthur. Come on! Arthur, come on. Come on. Come on! No... Come on."

"Oh god." Anne sobs.

Merlin turns to Anhora. "Please. Please! Just... let me take his place!"

"This was Arthur's test, not yours," Anhora says calmly. Amelia frowns in confusion. Is something else going on?

"You've killed him! I was meant to protect him!"

"He is not dead. He's merely consumed a sleeping draught. He will come round shortly." Anhora explains.

"What?" Amelia says.

"A Unicorn is pure of heart. If you kill one, you must make amends by proving that you also are pure of heart. Arthur was willing to sacrifice his life to save yours. He has proven what is truly in his heart. The curse will be lifted."

——

Amelia, Anne, Merlin and Arthur ride into Camelot and dismount. Townsfolk are carrying around platters joyously all around them. Amelia breaks into a smile and turns to Anne, who has a similar expression. They hug in celebration.

Gaius comes up behind them. "Anne, Merlin, Arthur, Amelia, there is good news! The crops are growing once again! They are bringing in the harvest!"

"You did it," Merlin says to Arthur.

Uther comes up to them then. "Is this your doing? Is the sorcerer dead?"

"He won't be troubling us anymore," Arthur says.

"Good, make sure the grain reserves are re-stocked," Uther says before walking away.

"I'll see to it," Arthur says then muttering to Amelia, Merlin and Anne. "There's something we must do first."

——

Amelia, Anne and Merlin all stand around in the forest as Arthur lays the Unicorn's horn in a burial mound of stones.

"I should never have ended your life. I'm sorry." Arthur says. They all begin to lay stones over the grave.

"Hey....." Merlin calls. Amelia looks up and sees a Unicorn standing there in the distance among the trees.

"Wow...." She whispers in awe.

The Unicorn looks at them before walking away.

——

A/N: Please leave comments on how you're enjoying this story and what you think.

#bbc merlin #merlin

0 notes

bloodfestgf · 3 years

Text

Okay, Bridgerton is done and dusted after watching it at 1.5x speed so I’ve got that going at least.

#the first few episodes were good but I mostly spent the latter half of the show bored or trying not to puke #the scene wasn't very bad but the whole take about simon doing something ~wrong~ by not specifying that he didn't CHOOSE -#- to have children despite possessing the ability to do so was very stupid.#he made his boundaries very clear and daphne did not respect them #anyway my issue with the penelope thing still stands #marina was essentially abused by a whole family and later betrayed by her only friend. wow.#at the same time pitting penelope against marina really pissed me off #whatever I'm going to pretend that only the first three episodes exist and ignore the rest #the excessive amount of sex was just plain annoying too in the last few episodes #or maybe I'm just being ace on side #dfksahg?#text #tv #my post #bridgerton

22 notes · View notes

3rensgf · 3 years

Text

stupid/annoying, but endearing, things they do in a relationship eren, armin, jean, connie, erwin, levi, reiner, bertholdt, porco, zeke, colt, hanji, mikasa, sasha, annie, pieck

word count: 2.3k

warnings: one mention of sex in erens, reader uses makeup in jeans, mentions of injuries and dilf!reiner in reiners

notes: this is a gn!reader. there are mentions of makeup being used, but i feel like any gender can use makeup. it's not even anything serious like a beat face. just some lip gloss n mascara. chapstick too but thats not makeup. it's just one line, so you can skip over it if you would like to!

✩ eren bites you. its not even in a sexual way, he just likes to bite. they’re like a second form of kissing to him. you could be chilling together on the couch watching a movie, and he’ll just chomp on your shoulder. even when you were trying to focus on something, he swings by, bites then leaves. eren has no shame, so he does it in front of your friends too. you could be having a normal conversation with mikasa and he’ll just bite you, then the two of you carry on as if it was normal. it’s not normal. but you love it. sometimes you bite him back too. but only in private.

✩ armin gives you random things he finds. armin likes to go out and explore, with or without you. when he comes back after an adventure you opted out of, he always has something for you he found. a rock, a seashell or a cool flower are just some of the things he gets for you. if he can’t find something, he finds a gift shop to get you something instead, saying, “well, (y/n), i did find it in the gift shop.” he always looks so proud giving it to you, rambling about the story of how he found your gift. you have a small box tucked away with all the treasures he gives you.

✩ jean steals your things. whenever he comes over, he likes to mooch off your possessions. if he’s spending the night at your place and needs a shower, he’s using your shampoo, conditioner and body wash. if his lips are chapped, he swipes your lip balm to use on himself. one time you even walked in on him trying your mascara and lip gloss. another time he had your clothes on his giant frame. but he always replaces whatever he uses, venmoing you within the next few days with some cash and a sorry note. “sorry for using ur lip balm baby, buy some more <3” with $20 attached to it. you tell him that lip balm doesn’t even cost that much, but he tells you to treat yourself to lunch with the extra money.

✩ connie makes plans without letting you know beforehand. at 3am, you are woken up by an influx of messages and calls from your boyfriend. in your sleepy state you go to answer him, only to be told to get dressed and come out. he’s right outside of your house and hungry. you remind him it’s very early in the morning and you both have class. “but i’m hungry and craving burgers,” he repeats. you have no choice to get in the car with him. this can happen throughout the day, not just early in the morning. one time he whisked you away in the middle of your online class because he didn’t tell you he bought tickets to a movie showing in 30 minutes. the memories you share on these spontaneous dates are always your favorite ones with him.

✩ erwin buys you whatever you like in bulk. it’s not even an exaggeration when you say bulk. you mention one thing to him, and the next day there are boxes upon boxes sitting on your kitchen counter. “these oranges taste pretty good,” you mumble to yourself as you peel your 2nd one. erwins sharp ears hear this, and first thing in the morning he’s off to buy multiple bags of your supposed favorite oranges. it takes you days, sometimes weeks, to finish whatever he decided to buy you. you always tell him he doesn’t need to buy so much, but he never listens. though, you always appreciate how attentive he is to your likes and dislikes.

✩ levi cleans up for you and ruins your organization. it’s always a blessing when someone else decides to take on the burden of cleaning for you, and you thought you hit the jackpot with a boyfriend who loved to clean, clean, clean. but it could get annoying when you suddenly couldn’t find anything you placed anywhere. if you’re anything like me, you’re messy but organized. you know where things are. when levi comes to clean, he places things where he thinks they should go. you’re sent on a wild goose chase looking for your pencil case, only for it to be in a completely different drawer than the one you usually kept it in. despite this behavior, it’s always nice to come home from a long day from school to see your desk organized. what was once a mess of papers and other supplies have been filed into their correct places, the table wiped down from any lingering coffee stains and your supplies being organized in a way so you knew where everything was. sometimes there’d be a plate of fruit with the note, “good luck on your exams,” written in your boyfriends neat writing beside it.

✩ reiner coddles you too much. whenever you express any sort of discomfort, reiner is always rushing to your side. “are you hurt? do you need medical attention? how many fingers am i holding up?” he asks, checking you for any cuts or bruises. thank you, honey, but i’m fine. just bumped into the counter. despite that, he’s dragging you over to the bathroom to fix up your imaginary injuries. you always find it a bit much when you’re fine. it’s during the times where you’re actually hurt where you learn to appreciate it. he’s so gentle cleaning your cuts, kissing them softly once they’re dressed. you wonder if he’d be like that with your future children.

✩ bertholdt is too nervous around you. it’s been years since the two of you got together, and he still refuses to make eye contact with you. his hands get sweaty and shake when you attempt to hold his hand. he always stumbles over his words when speaking to you as he tries to find the right words to say. he even blushes when he introduces you to other people as his significant other! you remind bertholdt over and over again that he doesn’t need to be so shy around you. but you cant help but coo over him showing up for your date, flustered mess and thrusting flowers into your hand. “they reminded me of you,” he said quietly, refusing to meet your eyes. you giggle and press a kiss to his hot cheeks.

✩ porco is too cocky for his own good. he’s always parading around the house, boasting about his latest achievements. he beat colt in a video game colt was a supposed god in. he can throw a baseball farther than zeke. he can run faster than pieck. if he’s taller than you, he's always making fun of you for being shorter than him. if you’re taller, you’re not exempt from his wrath either. he’s boasting about how he’s perfect height to not hit his head on doorways. he never goes as far as to hurt your feelings, always knowing when to stop. though he has a big ego, he would let it crash and burn just to see you smile after beating him at smash bros. you laugh and taunt him, happy you beat him in one thing. he doesn’t mind, instead watching you with a soft smile on his lips and love in his eyes.

✩ zeke forces you to work out with him. and it’s not like in the afternoon to help you stretch out. it’s not light yoga or a couple minutes on the treadmill. no, this man wakes you up at ass crack in the morning to take you on a 5 mile hiking trip. you barely have any time to register what is happening around you before you’re already standing at the start of the trail with your gear. “come on! we can’t slack off!” he says, clapping his hands together. the sun is beating down on you and your feet hurt, but this man doesn’t let you stop for a break. “we’re almost there,” he says. your complaining goes out the window when he shows you the view at the top. its one of the most beautiful things you’ve ever seen. hiking up long ass trails to see beautiful views with your boyfriend was so worth it in the end.

✩ colt accidentally turns your dates into babysitting sessions. you show up at his house with the promise of a good time, only to be met with a guilty looking colt and his little brother falco behind him. “sorry,” he says sheepishly, “gabi got sick with the cold, so i couldn’t drop him off there. i hope you don’t mind him staying.” you hide your disappointment behind a wide smile, nodding enthusiastically as to not hurt either of their feelings. you just wanted to spend some alone time with your boyfriend, and it would have to wait. hanging out with falco wasn’t actually that bad. the three of you had an amazing time together, watching tv, playing games and even baking together. if you hate kids, you can’t bring yourself to hate falco; he’s just the sweetest boy you’ve ever met. you and falco are already asking colt when the three of you can hang out again when you have to go back home.

✩ hanji is always talking. you don’t discourage them from talking about their interests. they’re very passionate about the things they love, and can’t help talking about them. its like the scene where hanji kept eren up all night talking about titans. when you’re trying to focus on something or go to sleep, hanji is just yapping away. you’re honestly amazed at their ability to never run out of things to say about the most mundane things. hell, one time they talked for an hour and a half about a building color they saw when they were out one day. but hanji just looked so happy when talking. their face would break out into a huge grin, and their arms would fly around as they told their story. it was too cute for you to tell them to stop.

✩ mikasa hovers too much. every corner you turn, every place you go to, mikasa is following. she claims she’s not clingy, but in reality she is. it’s like a cat who hates affection, but needs to be in the same room as you at all times. you don’t mind her following you into the bedroom or living room or kitchen. you had to draw a line when she tried to follow you into the bathroom. even when you’re out, she’s always following you around. you tell her it’s okay to break off from you and spend some time by herself, but she always shakes her head and follows you to your next destination. you’re always grateful for her hovering when a group of drunk people try hitting on you, whistling and telling you they’ll give you a good time. but one look at your girlfriend who showed up from out of nowhere, and they’re running away with their tails between their legs.

✩ sasha eats your food. she can’t help it. she likes to snack. she’s always hungry. and you get that. to stop things like this from happening, you have separate places to keep your food. just so sasha and you have your favorite snacks and takeout separated. you respect the rule, but your girlfriend seems to lose her reading skills when hungry, one too many times you have walked in on her with her hand deep into a bag of your chips, something you’ve been waiting to eat all week when you were supposed to watch that new horror movie on netflix with her. you huff and puff and retreat to your bedroom. sasha comes back after a few hours, looking upset with tons and tons of snacks in her arms. “i’m sorry i ate your chips,” she frowns. she sets down all the food she got on your bed. “i got all these snacks you liked as an apology. and 3 bags of your favorite chips.” you could never stay mad at her cute face.

✩ annie complains about spending time with you. “i like my alone time,” she says, brushing you off when you asked why she didn’t want to watch a movie with you. some people were introverted, preferring to spend time by themselves rather than with someone else. you were like that too; you had your moments where you didn’t feel like being around your girlfriend. but it became an annoying problem when she constantly shot down your attempts to hang out with you. when she finally agrees, she’s always finding something to complain about. but during important dates or when you’re not in the best mood, she’s always the first to remind you or initiate a hang out/date. she shuts her mouth and enjoys her time with you, not one criticism or groan leaving her lips. she would never admit it, but being around you made her so happy.

✩ pieck is always sleeping. you have to wait a few hours to get a text or call back from pieck because she’s always dozing off somewhere. “sorry sweets,” she yawns into the mic, “was taking a nap. need something?” good luck trying to reach your girlfriend during an emergency. when you come home with takeout for dinner because neither of you wanted to cook, she’s sleeping at the dinner table. when you’re watching a movie she wanted to watch, she’s snoring away, curled up at the end of the couch. during lectures you share together, she has her head in her arms and has the audacity to ask you for your notes in the end. and it’s not like she’s not getting enough sleep, no. she gets her recommended 8 hours of sleep and then some. it’s nice to have a sleepy girlfriend, though, when you’re dead tired from living. you drag your feet into the bedroom to see her about to take her nth nap for the day. she notices your zombie-like state and opens up her arms for you. the two of you cuddle and nap together, sleeping the stress away.

taglist - @liaxxx109 , @prxttyguardian , @jeansbabycake

if you would like to be added to my taglist, submit a form HERE!

2K notes · View notes

humancomedy · 2 years

Text

Human Comedy: Tragedy - 12

Shu: Protecting, loving, and caring for one's family is not quintessentially human; it's a trait shared amongst all animals.

Content Warning!

Mentions of familicide, suicide, and murder in general within.

Location: Fruits Parlour

Shu: Protecting, loving, and caring for one's family is not quintessentially human; it's a trait shared amongst all animals.

Conversely, what is uniquely human is our ability to senselessly massacre those we consider our cherished family.

"There isn't enough food", "We need to reduce the number of mouths to feed"... without even possessing reasons such as those, we're able to kill one another on a whim.

It isn't a matter of whether or not the deed is actually committed—human nature is precisely the capability to deliberate and fulfill that choice.

I have said this before, and I shall say it again: the will to oppose one's instincts is what distinguishes humanity from all else.

The results of choices that defy one's natural tendencies, such as continuing to devote oneself to painting—despite knowing one will die without eating or sleeping—materialize and eventually accumulate; that is what art is.

Tell me, do animals build pyramids to serve as their tombs?

Do they feel fulfilled simply by listening to Mozart's music, reading Shakespeare's stories, or admiring Dalí's paintings?

There are a great many other tasks that must be undertaken to sustain one's life, are there not? Despite that, we, humankind, create art. That is why I love it.

At the same time, I wish from the bottom of my heart to be an artist.

Living merely under the rule of one's instincts can be painful indeed.

Those with more physical prowess monopolize food and all else that is fundamental to survival. They trample on the weak, find a mate, and beget children.

In the animal world, to lose is to face a swift death. Their world, where instinct is law, rapidly culls those who fail to keep up.

However, it isn't as if humans have lost all their instincts; we often behave similarly, particularly in more underdeveloped societies.

We bully the weak and sneer at the stupid, we kick around and ostracize those whom hamper us. Doing so is more conducive to our survival, to the preservation of our progeny.

If you look at the big picture and think holistically, that is how our offspring become more robust and able-bodied.

If the foolish and weak live long enough to produce descendants, they would only face a fate of certain ruin by the elements of the world around them.

And, just like that, those shamelessly strong ones are given a sense of legitimacy through their successors and instincts.

They speak about love, dreams, and righteousness, all while hypocritically disregarding and abusing those weaker than themselves.

Animals don't express any complaints about that reality. They merely die. It's only humans that protest.

The ones that are trampled upon create art to comfort their hearts, bringing forth value on an axis completely separate from instinct.

Even if they're unable to fight, even if they're weak, even if they're not loved by anyone at all... They can continue living.

When life is too painful, the paintings and music made by virtuosos of past and present can give us solace.

When I was younger, I was weak; all I would do was cry. However, those creations saved me.

The dolls my grandfather gave me, the embroidery Kiryuu's mother taught me, the songs performed by idols on TV—

Every single piece of art I encountered preserved my life and my heart. I found salvation through them.

Even at this very moment, I want to impart that same experience to those being crushed by the concept of instinct.

That is why I create art. I am trying to bestow blessings upon those who were raised according to reason.

Kagehira. This may be difficult for you to comprehend, but that is what the humanity I speak of is like.

It's not all beautiful... On the contrary, it's also repulsive and illogical.

However, I plan on sacrificing myself to move towards that ideal, and I want you to do the same. I expect that you'll aspire to become a "human" in that same vein.

Yes, I want you to become a human, an artist...

Banish those fanciful lies found in fiction from your mind; a dullard like you most likely won't be able to interpret whether they're the product of instinct or reason.

What you're experiencing and thinking now is everything. If you obey the voice of your heart and mindlessly act in accordance with it, you're nothing more than a fool enslaved by his instincts.

We are human precisely because we can consider doing the opposite and making our own choices, because we can exercise our free will.

Mika: Umm. I ain't got a single clue 'bout whatcha sayin'... Oshi-san?

Shu: As I expected. Well, then, I shall explain more concretely.

Kagehira, you will unconditionally obey my orders, correct? If I told you to die, you would, wouldn't you?

Mika: Y-Yeah. I'm yer doll, after all. I'll do whatever ya want me to...

Uhm, so if ya order me to drop dead an' I do, does that mean I'm human too..?

Shu: It appears you've understood absolutely nothing, Kagehira. You're no more than an animal if you truly think you want to yield to my every order.

You can't even become a human, much less one of my beloved artists.

Kagehira. I order this of you... Kill me right this instant.

Mika: ...?

Shu: Kill me. As brutally as you can.

Mika: Um, uh... Why? What's goin' on?

Shu: Are you not able to do it?

Mika: I-It ain't about whether I can or can't—I don't get whatcha sayin' in the first place!

Why do I gotta k-ki... I don't even wanna say it! There ain't no way I could do that!

Shu: You're a strange boy. You're willing to throw your own life away, but you're unable to kill me. Do you adore me that much...? However, this is precisely what marks you as a failure.

I should have told you this sooner... Return to your hometown, Kagehira.

Mika: W-Wh...?

Shu: I don't need a doll that merely follows orders; I can make as many of those as I wish.

From here on out, the unknown awaits me, so I need someone who will give me inspiration—a fellow artist whose growth will spur my own.

You cannot become an artist, nor even a human. A puppet like you... is not qualified to be by my side.

You don't have the right to remain in my life; you're nothing but a nuisance.

Any time I spend on you is a waste, so pack your bags and leave my house as soon as possible. Disappear, and don't ever dare to stand before me again.

Mika: ......

...Are ya throwin' me away after all, Oshi-san?

Shu: "Throwing you away"? That's incorrect; I never owned you in the first place... I'm going to erase your name from my memories and forget you ever existed.

I'll drown you in darkness, without leaving behind a single trace of your existence.

Isn't that an apt destiny for a failure? You'll disappear for all eternity, not even remaining in my memories. You're fine with that, aren't you, Kagehira?

Mika: ......

Shu: Where's your reply? You're my unconditionally obedient doll, aren't you?

← prev ❖ all ❖ next →

#enstars #ensemble stars #enstars translation #mika kagehira #shu itsuki

87 notes · View notes

kaypeace21 · 3 years

Text

People seem to misinterpret what I’ve said in the past about mike “projecting his feelings for Will” on to El. So I’ll clarify.

When I say mike is “projecting his romantic feelings” for Will on to el. That doesn’t mean mike doesn’t care about El (at all) as a friend. Or sees El as Will (that’s not even how projection works -or what I’ve said). Although Mike isn’t perfect, he’s naturally empathetic and grateful for all El has done to help him and his friends. And he does see Will & El as 2 different people- despite the romantic projection. And unlike Will, he sees El in a more familial way- rather than romantic (despite him trying to force it to be romantic) .More on that later.Heck, Mike has already incorrectly projected his NON-ROMANTIC emotions on to 3 other characters other than El (it’s a pattern of his to project his feelings about one person on to another)- which yes I’ll also discuss.

I guess I have to specify what projection is -like i’ve already inferred in prior posts .There’s a difference between projecting “feelings” you have for one person on to another VS thinking those 2 people are literally the same person with no differences between those 2 people/or not acknowledging the unique personal relationships you have with both. This misconception is used as a popular counter-argument/strawman argument -rather than just debating the points i’ve made) . Ex) It’s like if you’re anger at your boss- but you can’t yell at them so you (subconscious or otherwise) are (unfairly) angry/irritable to your romantic partner later. It doesn’t mean you literally think your romantic partner and boss are 1 in the same - or there is no distinction between those 2 relationships. The same goes for how Mike views El and Will, despite “projecting” his “romantic feelings for Will” on to El (although Mike does so poorly).

Mike most likely projects his romantic feelings for Will on to El

In s3) he kisses El with a drawing of Will behind her head -that he can look at as he kisses her ... that should be an obvious hint he’s projecting (subconscious or otherwise) .

That’s Will -light brown hair/bowl cut, has fire powers like ‘Will the wise’.There’s also the fact that multiple characters in s1 mistook El for a boy (specifically Will) . Benny saying to El, “trying to steal from me boy?” Another man at Benny’s place mistook her for Will and said she could be “the byers boy... same height”. Hopper tracked El for most of s1 thinking it was Will. Homophobic Troy who harassed mike / talked about Will being gay said about El “ her head’s shaved she doesn’t even look like a girl”, officer callahan said “what’s Will doing with a shaved head?” The writers of ST are trying to tell you to pay attention to the fact el had a “ boyish /Will-like” appearance (and despite this- Mike was supposedly into her in s1). Then we had s2 byler parallel s3 mileven to show him fail to project his romantic feelings of Will on to el: Crazy together vs blank makes you crazy, , shed scenes: most important thing vs it was the best thing, Will & El calling for mike in the upsidedown (and mike coming for Will only), “they’re not in love they’re not even from the same planet” vs “welcome to my world”, Will having pics of Mike smiling on Halloween looking at him vs El having a pic of Mike glaring on Halloween, mileven paralleled to luke/leia & byler to king tristan/Han, byler paralleled to Venkman/Dana a ghost busters couple vs El just being a ghost and mike a ghost hunter, the s3 fight vs breakup and the various contrasts between all 3 (showing Will upset and El happy - and mike caring more about resolving his fight with Will than El- and never apologizing to El for lying ). I went into more detail here about the parallels between mileven/byer, mileven,stancy,Karen/ted , etc here.

And when he tells El “I can’t lose you again” It’s supposed to be ambiguous-cause Mileven like stobin is a straight bait. The fact is 2 prior times in season 2 (when mike was in the center of the group) he sadly watches Will as Will gets in a car and drives away.

Hinting to the viewer he’s actually thinking and worrying about losing Will (that 3rd time in s2 when he’s talking to El and seeing the cars with El/ Will drive away) . He once again is in the center of the group like the prior 2 scenes. And he already lost Will before and Will (like el) also had a fake d*ath. So yeah...we hear mike tell el that line and mike watches both El and Will leave in cars (and starts to cry) since mike knows that Will (unlike superpowered El) may d*e from his possession and he may never see him again. And it’s not like he can tell Will that line when he’s unconscious/possessed (especially in front of his friends) .

Just like in s2, when mike watches El and Will drive away .... he does so again in s3. And it’s similarly ‘ambiguous’, on who he’s upset seeing drive away. But, Mike turns to looks at the byers house, and tries to catchup with his friends (which has identically framing to an earlier scene in s3 of Will sadly turning to look at mike leave with El and then turning back to rush and catchup with the gang). Will turned around cause of Mike (not El) just like Mike turned around thinking of Will (not El). Just like s2,s3 uses earlier scenes in that particular season to give us hints about who he’s actually sad about driving away .

And in that moving away montage - it only pans to mike and Will .

And has Mike hug his mom in the same way he did in s1. Both represent moments representing him ‘losing Will’ (through his fake d*ath/moving away). Mike both times storms into the house and Karen rushes to him nervous and unsure why he’s upset , but goes into hug him when mike reaches for her (needing comfort). Unlike the mileven hug that’s outside and he doesn’t reach for her at all- she hugged him because she was worried (was he upset -sure but it’s not a parallel to the s3 hug). And they played “we can be heroes” for both hugs - cause both times mike lost Will.

And that s2 car scene where he talked to El (just like the prior s2 car scenes) was indicative of his fear of losing Will (not El). Which happened at the end of s3. It all ties together. Cause again , he was thinking of Will!

They even had several movies on the st list (altered states / children of paradise) have this concept of projecting romantic feelings of someone they’re in love with on to someone else. Altered states -has a guy just like Will hallucinate flashing to another dimension . People say about him and his wife “he’s crazy and she’s crazy about him”. And when they weren’t together she says she had to pretend everyone she dated was him (but that it only made her feel worse cause it wasn’t him) .And she says about doing so “’it’s crazy”. And her friend says “i think that’s how it’s supposed to be.” CAN THEY GET MORE CLEAR with the projection?

Heck, even El projects on to Mike. While mileven is separated between s1-2 she watches the soap opera (’all my children’) and pretends to be Erica kane (who in the episode El was watching) got into a rushed elopement to MIKE ROY (who was a writer).Aka she projected romance from soap operas/her possible crush of MIKE roy onto MIKE wheeler.And Erica/Mike weren’t endgame- even had a lot of st*liking after the break up (similar to El’s spying)

Mileven and Byler are very different- much to Mike’s annoyance. And Mike projects this anger of not being able to love El romantically on to Max,Will, & Hopper.

Mileven and byler are very different even if mike wishes he had romantic feelings for El (like he does for Will). Mileven is paralleled to hopper/el cause mike truly sees her in a familial way- both teach her the definitions of compromise vs promise (and make promises to her), say to eat “real food” and not eggos, keep her hidden away and safe. Both say her new look is “cool” and El in response to both says it’s “bitchin” and both say back “yeah bitchin”. Both claim someone is “corrupting” El (when trying to dictate her romantic decisions ) and Joyce/Max tell both guys they don’t respect El’s ability to make her own “decisions”. And El says to both of them “you lie” while Max says El should figure out what she likes and not simply listen to Hopper and Mike. Also similar to what she does with kali /Max (a sister/friend) El copies expressions from all 4 of them ( bitchin, i make my own rules , not stupid, mouth breather/friends don’t lie). Mileven is also paralleled to Luke/leia, and multiple people say El is like a “sister “ (lucas) and “cousin” (dustin) in s1. Even El asks before he first kisses her if Mike will he be “like (her) bother.”

In s2, Max (with the gang at Will’s house) asks how mike can still trust Will despite being possessed and in s3 max (with the gang at El’s house) calls out mike for not trusting El. “El has saved the world twice. And Mike still doesn’t trust her!”And instead of Mike admitting that truth -that he doesn’t trust El who he doesn’t know well (who spied on him) he projects all the blame/distrust wrongly on to max saying “you want to talk about trust ?REALLY?! After YOU made eleven spy on us!” And when max says it was el’s idea he yells exasperated into Max’s face “guess girlfriends don’t lie they spy!” He shows he’s aggravated with the fact El is so against lying but had no qualms with spying. But only yells at Max (not El) and he even tries (incorrectly) claiming Max is “corrupting” El and making her do things she didn’t want to do . Cause he’s still in denial and wants to fall in love with El- and doesn’t want to see any of El’s flaws that would make it harder to do so ( so he just projects that anger on to max instead).

And we know during the byler fight: Will calls El “stupid” but he was just projecting his own feelings about himself on to EL-since right after this he calls himself “stupid” 4x. So it’s likely when Mike yells back “El’s not stupid. It’s not my fault you don’t like girls!” Like Will, It’s AGAIN Mike PROJECTING his insecurities about himself (aka not liking girls) and his relationship issues with El - on to Will. Rather than an actual statement on Will’s se*uality. Sort of like Mike lashing out and projecting his anger about his failing romantic relationship with El on to Max .

The simple fact is el is mike’s safe option (she physically resembles Will but is a girl and thus he’s allowed to be attracted to her- in conservative 80s America). However, we see the more El develops into her own person and differs from Will in personality (plus , the fact puberty is making the distinction between genders more apparent) the harder it is for Mike to fool himself and project.The writers in s3 make a telemarketing joke just to have mike say “el, no, not interested” (aka his true feelings).Mileven in s3 was called “b*llshit” like stancy (which have multiple parallels and weren’t in love ). And nancy admitted to Jonathan (a byers ) she wanted to be with him the whole time. But ,despite that, got back with Steve (and continued to kiss Steve all the time, and even lied saying she loved Steve for an entire year) essentially mileven. Karen /ted also is paralleled to Stancy & mileven- who were “never in love” . Then , Max says friends don’t lie but “boyfriends (mike) LIE all the time” (aka he’s lying about his romantic feelings), and when lucas asks WHY he lied to el -it pans to Will (the real reason he lies to El about his feelings for her). When El asks “why do you lie” (he just is silent and stares up guilty). Lucas says about mileven (right before Dustin says they’re “bullsh*t” that “they’re lying”.And when he tries confessing to El, he never apologizes for lying and just used the similar ‘crazy’ line he used on Will (in s2). Cause if he actually stopped lying - he couldn’t continue to use her as a beard and date her/try and get back together. Plus he also fought with Hopper in s2 (’about El’) in WILL’S ROOM . He wasn’t actually calling Hopper the liar he was PROJECTING and calling himself “a stupid disgusting liar”out of self hate . That scene was foreshadowing his lying to El in s3 (about his feelings for her). He blamed Hopper for his feelings for Will cause he told himself it wouldn’t have escalated if El had been around to ‘fix him’ . “I BLAME YOU! NOTHING ABOUT THIS IS OK! NOTHING ABOUT THIS IS OK. YOU STUPID DISGUSTING liar, liar, liar, liar”.starts crying. And then it zooms to Mike’s crying face and pans to El (who he would lie to constantly the next season).

I also discussed in detail here how the bathroom stobin confession paralleled the mileven grocery confession- and again 1 in each of the couplets is gay. Heck, the “first i love you” plays only 2x in s3: when steve confesses to gay-robin and when el confessed to mike and kisses him and Mike doesn’t kiss back or say he loves her back. When she kisses Mike- it’s in WILL’S ROOM room AGAIN, Will’s old teddybear between them, as they kiss in front of Will open closet door) . in s2ep1 the lyrics are “just a little more time can open closing doors” (as Mike kisses El and it pans over the ‘Will the wise’ drawing & a rainbow-heart-Mike drawing, that blend together). But , In the same ep- when Will says he won’t fall in love the lyrics are “love that is new to you, you open up the door.” Later in the song it even mentions the “wheeler house”. So yes- after “a little more time” (3 months) mike and El kiss once again like ep 1- but it’s in front of Will’s open door and Mike is not feeling it- and it shows what is going to begin in s4 (byler). That after some time- despite the byler-doors appearing to ‘close’ they open up again after the mileven breakup/mike realizing the depth of his feelings and the fact he can’t ‘fix himself’ and be straight.El saying she loved him- and him not feeling any different after... was probably the catalyst for that realization.

Before this, we saw him project “his feelings” for Will on to El in romantic situations. But, he refused to integrate her into his friend group like his straight friends did with their gfs-unlike lucas with max, or how dustin tried to do so with Susie) . Cause he’s unfairly used El as a beard and wanted to compartmentalizes his friends and romance as much as possible (since faking it all the time not only with El-but with his friends would be exhausting).

Does he care about El- sure in his own flawed way. But, sorry (in my opinion) to act like mike” loves Will and El equally “ is kind of ludicrous . His actions show the opposite. And he’s only known El for 9 months as opposed to knowing Will for 9 years. And he’s known all of his other guy friends and the Byers much longer. What do they have in common?Are they friends ? Sure... technically but “friends don’t lie”. And mike has done plenty of that to her - so until they sort that out- and are honest to eachother- they can’t really have a strong foundation of friendship in my opinion. It’ll only improve once they start being honest and respect each other’s autonomy (aka stop dating and actually establish a friendship... and stop lying /spying on eachother). At the moment- Mike stunts El’s character growth and tries isolating her from the outside world, doesn’t respect her autonomy/ability to make decisions, doesn’t trust her in general, lies to her, and treats her like he’s her overly controlling dad. The relationship isn’t balanced or healthy (like byler or Mike and his other peers). In s1 he called her “a weapon” they could use to save Will (a lesson he appears to have learned from).But Max has to yell at Mike in s3 “she’s not yours! she’s her own person-fully capable of making her own decisions!” And EL says Mike treats her like “a pet” and “garbage”. So yeah... I don’t get people being ‘offended’ by me pointing out the romantic projection he does- and saying it supposedly ‘destroys’ the ‘beautiful relationship/friendship’ they have. Before I can consider mileven a “beautiful/loving friendship’: Mike needs to stop projecting and seeing El as a perfect beard to ‘fix him’- AND see El as her own person and NOT someone he needs to ‘take care of’ (cause he wrongly infantilizes her) . I think the 2 will eventually become good friends- and Mike will see he was wrong. But they’re not there yet- in my opinion.

#byler #byeler #anti mileven

298 notes · View notes

doloresdraws · 3 years

Photo

| time-lapse of the painting on my youtube |

❤ I wrote these for Twitter, but decided to post them here as well ❤

Werner Adler, Nosferatu residing in San Francisco, Embraced in 1970 in his mid 30s.

1. Werner is pretty chill most of the time, more than angry he gets frustrated from not being satisfied with his writing or when he says something that makes complete sense, yet the other person still fails to acknowledge it, especially when it is about something important.

2. I think he never believed in soulmates, until he met Leslie. Now when she is gone, a part of him is gone too.

3. His pet peeves: When people call themselves stupid or speak about themselves in a degrading way, especially women and children. Also when he sees grammar mistakes like they're/their, etc.

4. Unfortunately, what used to be his happy place now brings him a lot of pain, so he rarely allows his thoughts to venture there. When Leslie was still alive and he thought she was living a happy, fulfilled life somewhere, he often thought about their life together.

5. He has suffered from depression since his teens, but his happiest time was when Leslie said yes to his clumsy proposal, they got married and were planning their future together. Despite his coming and going depression and some bad days, she made him very happy.

6. His least happy time: Finding out that Leslie was dead, running to the hospital morgue and seeing and holding her lifeless body in his arms.

7. I think he is neither. He would sit at the bar minding his own business.

8. As a mortal, he never had any serious physical injuries (mainly because he was at home most of the time) As a vampire he got his wrist broken by the Gangrel who had found him after the Embrace, Werner didn't understand anything and wanted to just run away.

9. He doesn't really remember his Embrace as he was passed out sleeping, so the Embrace itself isn't a traumatic experience for him. There is a lot he would rather forget during his Kindred existence, but nothing tops his desperate attempt of Embracing Leslie's dead body.

10. His childhood wasn't exactly filled with many good memories. His parents argued a lot and it ended up in divorce that left him living with his quite overprotective mother. His fav memory would probably be time he spent hanging out with his best friend, a neighbor kid Mike.

11. Honestly, no, he doesn't have a type. He was seriously in love only with Leslie. They had a connection right away as she as an artist understood his need to be sometimes left alone with his writing and at the same time possessed quite a different, more positive outlook in life.

12. A pen that he bought from his first salary. Lucky for him, he was able to keep it even after his Embrace. Also his and Leslie's wedding rings and her journal that he stole after sneaking into her husband's hotel room and going through her things.

13. +14. No tattoos or piercings, even if he wasn't a Kindred/Nosferatu he wouldn't even consider it. He is quite old school, he doesn't really like them.

15. He had his dream house already. Not long before he got Embraced, he and Leslie had bought a house in a small town in Maine. It wasn't much, but they had so many plans for the garden and for the kid's rooms.

16. I think others, especially Kindred of other clans wouldn't probably expect him to be so well-mannered, gentle and well-spoken considering his dishevelled, unclean looks. He just sees no point in showering or caring for his look when he isn't really socializing with anyone anyway.

17. He is very thoughtful when it comes to gifts. He is that kind of person that would give you a present out of the blue, just because he would see something that he thinks you would enjoy.

18. He has a love-hate relationship with his writing. Some days he thinks he is really good at capturing the right mood with his words, other days he is questioning his writing skills and if he should even continue. He isn't proud of anything that he does, unfortunately.

19. A stranger would probably describe him as a sad man who desperately needs a bath and new clothes.

20. A close friend (Kayley) would describe him as kind & caring, but broken man who is trying his best and tries to do the right things.

21. He actually isn't concerned about his looks at all, he didn't care much about his looks even when he looked normal. His biggest insecurity is fear that somehow deep inside he is a bad person and that he somehow deserves what happened.

22. Physical: dexterity, non-physical: Intelligence.

23. If he knew that the lie was for his own good, he would actually appreciate the thought. If it was a lie to spare him from fear (I am looking at you Kayley) he would get upset at the sheer irresponsibility and the harm that could have happened and you would be in for a lecture.

24. He doesn't care much for the weather when he's spending most of his nights alone in his sewer haven, but he finds rainy nights inspiring and accurate to his own feelings of despair. He sometimes goes to the cemetery when it pours, stands in the rain and allows himself to cry.

25. He has no problems saying I love you to the people that he cares about when it feels right and appropriate to the situation. Though he usually never says it first, but more as a response :)

26. He doesn't like to talk about his worries - like when he was a mortal he really didn't like to talk about his fear of not having enough skill to make it as a writer, as he felt like he was failing Leslie to not make enough money for them to be able to raise a family.

27. He murdered a man that was a threat to Kayley and Jane. He really thought that there wasn't another way, but he sent the children away while he did it, so they didn't have to see. He was on the verge of frenzy and part of him could justify the murder as the man was a scumbag.

28. He isn't ticklish, but he would probably try to stop you tickling him anyway.

29. As a mortal, he had pretty low pain tolerance, but as a Nosferatu and after Leslie's death he realized that any amount of physical pain was nothing compared to the crippling pain and guilt that he feels inside everytime his mind slips and he thinks about what happened.

30. He wishes he had the courage to walk up to Kyle (Leslie's then husband) and tell him that he was sorry, that he was weak, selfish and negligent and that it was his fault that Kyle lost his wife and his unborn child. But of course, he never did it, and now Kyle is an old man.

31. Messy: feeding is a very stressful ordeal for him, he only feeds on the homeless men from his herd and he gives them money for it. It's always a terrible time for him, it takes him a while to actually bite down and then he wants to be done with it as soon as possible.

32. When 14 yo Kayley made him bite her after she found out the truth about what he was and she wanted a proof that it didn’t hurt when he fed on people, despite him reassuring her it didn’t. He was deeply hurt by this request, but he forgave her, he realized she was just a curious child, she didn't know how much pain this was causing him.

33. When Leslie found him and despite seeing how he changed, she still told him she loved him and was willing to stay with him. And maybe even more when they had met a few years later and despite the time, he could still see love for him in her eyes like nothing had changed…

34. Hard choice between vision & touch. Both would hinder his ability to write and that is that is the only thing that keeps him somehow sane. Well, together with caring for Kayley, but as she is growing older it is better she sees less of him and has a normal life.

35. He can hold on small talks pretty well,it's actually the only kind of talk he is willing to have with other Kindred after Leslie's death. Mirabelle especially noticed the change in his behavior, but she understands that they weren't really friends and she has no right to pry.

36. He would ask Leslie if she can forgive him for what happened to her and her unborn child. But the truth also is that he is absolutely terrified at the idea as he fears that the truth is that wherever she is, she hates him.

37. The past-so he would have never traveled to San Francisco, or at least he would have traveled to the night when Leslie came to him and this time he would be stronger and pushed her away, not letting her touch him... The future is pointless, there is nothing left there for him.

38. Positive - Leslie made him feel understood, Kayley - gave him some will to live back, Jane - made him feel like he made a difference in her life by persuading her to own her mistakes.

Negative - His Sire who made him question why he deserved this fate for his kindness.

39. He was used to live alone, then he met Leslie and then he was alone again. He was always a solitary person, so the solitude and isolation actually didn't even bother him after the Embrace.

40. The worst had already happened to him, so for a time there wasn't really anything that would make him terrified. But then he met Kayley and of course he fears for her safety as he feels responsible for her. He's afraid that her compassion will one day cost her her life.

#OC Werner #clan nosferatu #vampire the requiem #vampire the masquerade #World Of Darkness #my art #doloresdrawsocs #digital painting #vtr #VTM #nossies #vamily #nWod #chronicles of darkness #ocs #digital portrait #clip paint studio #digital paintings

26 notes · View notes

l-rojas · 2 years

Photo

TASK #005

FULL NAME: Leonardo Miguel Rojas MEANING: Leonardo--Lion, brave // Miguel--Who is like God // Rojas--Redheaded, Ruddy NICKNAME(S): Leo PREFERRED NAME(S): Leo BIRTH DATE: April 14th, 1995 AGE: 27

ZODIAC: Aries GENDER: Cis Man PRONOUNS: He/Him/His ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: Demiromantic SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Questioning, used to call himself bisexual, but has started to question if some of that was some leftover compulsory heteronormativity, and is thinking he may actually be gay, or at least only attracted to a select few women NATIONALITY: American ETHNICITY: Venezuelan and White (Spanish) CURRENT LOCATION: Downtown, Eureka, California LIVING CONDITIONS: studio apartment, still in that awkward half furnished state that he has no excuse for because he’s been living in it too long. he could definitely afford something nicer on his salary, but has always been a frugal bitch. TITLE(S): RN, working on getting that sweet sweet PA title

BACKGROUND

BIRTH PLACE: Caserma Ederle Military Base in Vicenza, Italy HOMETOWN: does not have a hometown in the traditional sense, as he moved around so much as a child, but the closest thing he’s felt to a ‘hometown’ would be San Francisco SOCIAL CLASS: Lower class. He’s recently gotten a raise after he let it be known to his employers he was studying to become a PA, but still is a nurse making fairly low pay as well as having to pay for schooling to become a Physician’s Assistant. EDUCATION LEVEL: BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing), and is currently in a PA (Physician’s Assistant) program FATHER: Gabríel Rojas. Despite Leo’s general flouting of authority, which drove his father absolutely crazy and ended in more fights than either of the two could count, they’re on good terms. Leo decided to move to Eureka to stay close to his aging parents. MOTHER: Anny Rojas. Leo had always been a bit of a momma’s boy, if that wasn’t clear from the fact that he followed in her footsteps of becoming a nurse. Despite his love for his father, Leo always did feel more connected to his mother. SIBLING(S): Andrea, Gabríel Jr, Claudia, and Ismael. All older than him, and all very important people in his life. The five of them often stuck together over socializing with other kids, knowing that they were just gonna be gone in a couple months at the least and a year or two at the most. Despite being the little brother to all, Leo always acted more like an elder sibling. BIRTH ORDER: Andrea, Gabríel Jr, Claudia, Ismael and then Leo CHILDREN: N/A PET(S): Nah. He’s thought about adopting a dog, but he knows with his hours it wouldn’t really be fair to the animal. And then he’s thought of getting a cat, but figured with his current life style it would only come off as pathetic. OTHER IMPORTANT RELATIVES: N/A PREVIOUS RELATIONSHIPS: TBD ARRESTS?: No PRISON TIME?: No

OCCUPATION & INCOME

PRIMARY SOURCE OF INCOME: Charge Nurse at Bayview Medical SECONDARY SOURCE OF INCOME: N/A TERTIARY SOURCE(S) OF INCOME: N/A APPROXIMATE AMOUNT PER YEAR: 70,000 CONTENT WITH THEIR JOB (OR LACK THERE OF)?: While Leo loves being a nurse, he could do without the duties of being the charge nurse, a job which he only took for the money so he could pay for continuing his schooling. It’s too much paperwork and scheduling and bureaucracy for him. PAST JOB(S): He worked stupid little summer jobs whenever his family was in a place for long enough, but never had anything long term. SPENDING HABITS: He’s as tight fisted as a Scottish drum, half of his clothes are things his family gave to him as gifts when they were annoyed with how often they’d have to beg him to get something that didn’t have holes worn into it. MOST VALUABLE POSSESSION: Well most expensive he’d have to say his stupid degree in it’s stupid cheap frame.

SKILLS & ABILITIES

PHYSICAL STRENGTH: Fairly strong. He doesn’t really work out for the gains, but after years of having to transfer patients and do the other strenuous daily tasks of a nurse, he’s got some muscles SPEED: he hates cardio, but always thought he was a speed over strength type of guy. INTELLIGENCE: high, sometimes a bit too high for his own good. being a smart kid who was a bit precocious and eternally the ‘new kid’ made him a target sometimes. ACCURACY: high, it’s needed in his line of work AGILITY: medium STAMINA: high TEAMWORK: he should probably work on it tbh, as a lot of the work in nursing requires working along with fellow nurses and medical professionals TALENTS: always seeing the worst in everything and everyone SHORTCOMINGS: pathological pessimist, brash behavior, inability to connect LANGUAGE(S) SPOKEN: spanish, english DRIVE?: yes JUMP-STAR A CAR?: yes CHANGE A FLAT TIRE?: yes RIDE A BICYCLE?: yes SWIM?: yes PLAY AN INSTRUMENT?: no PLAY CHESS?: yes BRAID HAIR?: yes TIE A TIE?: yes PICK A LOCK?: yes

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

FACE CLAIM: Sean Teale EYE COLOR: Brown HAIR COLOR: Black HAIR TYPE/STYLE: well his mother would simply call it ‘floppy’ he prefers ‘relaxed’ GLASSES/CONTACTS?: contacts DOMINANT HAND: right HEIGHT: 6′1 WEIGHT: 181 lbs BUILD: lean EXERCISE HABITS: leo gets most of his exercise from work, but usually tries to go to the gym about once a week for upkeep SKIN TONE: tanned TATTOOS: none (yet) PEIRCINGS: had his left earlobe pierced at one point, but has since let the hole close up MARKS/SCARS: just the usual knicks and knocks picked up from being a latchkey kid USUAL EXPRESSION: eptiome of a RBF CLOTHING STYLE: fairly simple, when out of work: jeans, t-shirt, flannel, boots JEWELRY: a cross that his mother gave him ALLERGIES: N/A BODY TEMPERATURE: runs cold DIET: as a healthcare professional it should definitely be better, but he generally consists off of caffeine (in whatever form he can get it), whatever food is leftover in the break room or his fridge PHYSICAL AILMENTS: N/A

PSYCHOLOGY

MORAL ALIGNMENT: chaotic neutral ELEMENT: Wood PRIMARY INTELLIGENCE TYPE: logical MENTAL CONDITIONS/DISORDERS: N/A SOCIABILITY: low, he’s not a fan of talking to people he doesn’t know, and even when he does know them, isn’t the most chatty and can come off a bit blunt and brash and harsh EMOTIONAL STABILITY: high. leo’s constantly changing life throughout his childhood has given him the gift of being able to adapt to almost anything, and there is no pill too big for him to swallow. ADDICTION(S): N/A DRUG USE: N/A ALCOHOL USE: Within normal limits, at most a couple drinks a week, but usually less. PRONE TO VIOLENCE?: no

MANNERISMS

SPEECH STYLE: tends to be a fast speaker, more on the monotone side ACCENT: he doesn’t consider himself to have one, simply because he’s lived so many places in his life it was hard to develop them, but he’s sure he has some regional bits and pieces QUIRKS: constantly chewing sugar free gum, super good at advanced math but can’t do addition for shit, can only play clocks by coldplay on the piano and nothing else HOBBIES: rowing, loves to watch movies, is considering picking up some sort of craft just for shits and giggles HABITS: doodling on random bits of paper NERVOUS TICKS: snaps his gum POSITIVE TRAITS: family oriented, assertive, honest NEGATIVE TRAITS: brash, nihilistic, callous SENSE OF HUMOR: dry as the unseasoned chicken breast your mom made you last week DO THEY CURSE OFTEN?: oh yeah

FAVORITES

ACTIVITY: working (gag) ANIMAL: Goose BEVERAGE: aperol spritz BOOK: TBD, he believes its stupid to have a favorite book, because he’s had a ‘favorite’ only to go back and read it and find he hated it second time around CELEBRITY: n/a COLOR: orange FOOD: Tajada FLOWER: bird of paradise HOLIDAY: N/A MODE OF TRANSPORTATION: bike (local) ship (long distance) MOVIE: TBD, holds the same opinion of movies as he does of books, plus as an avid watcher, there’d be too many to name anyways MUSICAL ARTIST: The Eagles (much to his siblings distaste) QUOTE/SAYING:

SCENERY: mesas, red rock formations, desert SCENT: hot pavement SPORT: gross SPORTS TEAM: gross TELEVISION SHOW: real housewives of beverly hills both ironically and unironically WEATHER: he really loves a nice, dry heat. (think arizona, southern texas) VACATION DESTINATION: Venezuela

ATTITUDES

GREATEST DREAM: he’s a simple guy, he doesn’t dream of anything wild, but just to be secure and happy in his life, maybe with someone he loves or not, maybe with kids or not GREATEST FEAR: losing loved ones, which sucks, considering it’s an inevitable fact of life. MOST AT EASE WHEN: he’s around his family, they’re the only people on the planet he doesn’t feel constantly annoyed by, and can be his true and entire self, prickly thorns included, but they get the petal more often than not LEAST AT EASE WHEN: waiting for a trauma to roll into the ER WORST POSSIBLE THING THAT COULD HAPPEN: losing his mother, which sucks because unless something horrible happens to him first, it’s not if, it’s when. BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT: graduating college BIGGEST REGRET: not trying to make more friends growing up, putting himself out there more MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT: you need to sign a NDA first BIGGEST SECRET: he’d tell you, but then he’d have to kill you. TOP PRIORITIES: Work, family, work

#eurekatask #( * leo rojas | about. )#( * leo rojas | muse. )

3 notes · View notes

bansheeoftheforest · 3 years

Note

Look!! Another dead bird for you!!

---

Okay, have you seen Wolf Children? Because that's my thought process here. One of Jekyll's parents was a cat-shifter and Jekyll inherited that ability. When he gets emotional he can start transforming, so at times he might have to hastily smooth his hair back in an attempt to hide a sudden cat ear or something. Nobody knows what he is because his human parent was kinda sorta ashamed about him, so he's hidden it all his life.

Just.. Cat Jekyll napping in Maijabi's lap. He feels so guilty because no one knows it's him but Maijabi pets so gently and coos at him in a language he isn't quite fluent in and he feels so safe. Cat Jekyll going to injured Lodgers to purr and nuzzle them. Cat Jekyll pointedly knocking things off of tables that could very well end in Lodger stupidity if left intact. Cat Jekyll climbing Adam/Creature and he is so enamoured with this little animal that doesn't fear him in the slightest.

Okay but also Jekyll slipping up in human form. He slow blinks at Jasper and Maijabi and Zosi and everyone else he likes. He starts to purr whenever he's happy and scrambles to cover it with a cough. He plays with string and gets tangled in it. He hears someone mention that Jekyll Jr. looks a bit funny with his curled ears and bob tail and just grumbles 'that's a standard appearance for Highlander cats, you arseholes-'

Does he bring people dead animals? Does Hyde? Hyde definitely would, just 'oh there's Rachel! I'm gonna put a dead mouse in her pocket :3' and she gets a feelimg of deja vu because it feels like Hyde's pranks but cats don't prank do they?? Cat Hyde showing off his new injuries proudly to the others then trying to run away when they try to patch him up because NO, he wants them to SCAR so he can look TOUGH.

If you go the Jekffin route, maybe Griffin's cat is normally skittish of others but just.. adores Jekyll. They're always rushing to greet him and rub on his legs and Jekyll just understands their body language and needs so well and is so patient with them and ah FUCK, he's crushing on Jekyll, god this is the worst-

Y'all at this point I get so many dead critters from you guys I could make a tiny graveyard sdfsdf

I have not seen wolf children but in all fair honesty, it looks like something my weeb-friend-trying-to-force-me-to-watch-anime would force me to watch <3 ANYWAYS. Still love that idea. Ooohohoho I don't know what's better, his father being the catshifter and his mother being deeply ashamed of the relationship combined with the premarital stuff bc of societal rules (hence why she was immediately scolding Henry for that dead bird) or his mother being the catshifter in a classic fairytale-esque way but being ashamed of it herself or knowing the father is ashamed about it, trying to hide all cat-ness with both her and Henry... Mmm, angst and parental trauma my beloved <3

...My brain immediately started thinking Henry's father getting seduced by a catshifter, accidentally fathering Henry, only for the catshifter to leave bby Henry on his doorstep and then just... Fuck off into the woods again. Does not make sense bc Henry has a mo- NO WAIT. OOHOH I GOT A BRANCH IDEA. His father already being married when Henry was born or his father marrying when he already had Henry, but telling Henry that his wife is his mom and that Henry was cursed from birth and that's why he can transform into a cat? Idk if Highlanders can be black but especially if he is a black cat??? ohoohohhoho ...Maybe that's why Morcant took such a liking to him immediately when they met, because he was supernatural? oohohoOHOO

I also just want to imagine that, despite his catness, his parents still loved him, even if they were a bit ashamed of who he was. Bby Jekyll having nightmares and it made him so upset he is stuck in cat form for a bit, creeping down the stairs to find his parents in the living room in front of the fireplace, him slowly creeping up on them and his parents immediately cuddling and doting on him when they see him... <3 (also this is just a bit of a branch, any other idea /idea for how Henry's relationship w his parents are welcome! <3)

I'm half if Maijabi should know about Jekyll being the cat bc of his spirit eye or not, bc that is used so much in my aus that it's kinda becoming cliche so I'm going to use the route that he doesn't. Just finding this lil cat with funny ears and a bobtail and immediately taking a liking to it. Debating adopting him because he knows that Jekyll would not have had the heart to kick Jr out if he has already adopted him. Scratching him under his chin and being the only one allowed to rub his belly. Henry getting so used to Maijabi's cuddles that the moment he is near him (in cat form) he stands on his hind legs and reaches his front legs up like a child wanting to get picked up and Maijabi always chuckles and picks him up, resting him against his shoulder. Henry sometimes getting a bit possessive bc Maijabi is his favorite lodger and tries to groom his beard and hair because it's always so wild. Maijabi just getting used to carrying a basket around or an extra shirt where JR can hang in bc he is so clingy and always wants attention. The Lodgers joking that Jekyll JR can sense sadness like a shark can smell blood and immediately rushes towards them to cuddle the everloving fuck out of them. The Lodgers cooing over him and telling him that he is so smart when he accidentally saves them from disaster, making sure to give him extra treats. Henry prowling the Society where he suddenly meets Adam. Adam stops dead in his tracks, having never seen this tiny cat before and being thoroughly confused as to why he isn't running away from him. Henry immediately walking up to him and rubbing his face against his leg, Adam hesitantly crouching down and reaching out his hand and Henry continues to happily sniff them and rub his face against them in that "I'm going to rub my teeth against your hand so you are mine now and you can't do anything about it" kinda way, Adam being close to tears bc this is the first time a living thing hasn't immediately run in fear away from him, Henry immediately using him as a stepping stool and climbing his arm until he can lounge over his broad shoulders, which quickly becomes his favorite nap spot.

(Adam secretly being very very amused when this tiny lil cat loves him immediately but hisses at Frankenstein)

Catboy Henry my beloved <3 Henry often not noticing how long he lets his nails grow until he accidentally scratches a Lodger (or the Lodgers clip his claws in cat form and it suddenly feels like his nails are going down to his bone. He never forgives them for that, even if he reluctantly accepts the treats). Loving to run his hand through his own hair with the perfect excuse that he is just making sure it doesn't get in his eyes. Him being so caught up in an experiment he doesn't notice that happy little butt wiggle he makes when he is focused. Him just being very loud and very yelly whenever someone isn't listening or giving him attention (although it's much more whiney and "PaaaaYyYYY aaaAAaAattention to meeEEeEEeEEE" kinda way). Just... Oh my god. Such an adorable lil bastards sjdfhsjdfh jshd <3<3<3

I have a feeling his instincts would get the best of him and he would start hunting the rodents around the Society when he is bored or hungry. Sometimes he sees a Lodger staying up late and the cat in him decides that they are not taking care of themselves and if they aren't taking care of themselves, they need food. Or that they have done such a good job and they deserve a reward. Maybe the longer he stays in cat form the more he gets into that "cat mindset" and doesn't realize what he just did until he is human again. Just... Drags a dead mouse over to a Lodger, jumps onto their table, proudly sets it down, and yells for them to get a snack. Maybe he would do a good job at hunting the invisible mice around the Society? Hyde definitely would hunt and bring in dead animals just because, although mostly bc he wants to show off his hunting skills. Him parading injuries and running away when people try to help him is so on brand sdfsdfsdfs

Griffin's cat loving Henry more than Griffin my beloved <3 Griffin realizing quite quickly that if he can't find his cat, they're with Henry. Griffin being so confused as to why his cat was never scared of Henry when they were even scared of Maijabi and Lavender. Griffin wondering if his cat genuinely fell in love with Jekyll JR bc he always finds them cuddled up together. Would Henry be able to understand Griffin's cat and be able to speak with them? Would he understand other animals as well? Jekyll and Cat having a deep conversation about the best lodger to cuddle or who gives them the best treats <3

#Ask #thejeksburyguy #banshees au #catshifter au

11 notes · View notes

justasimplesinner · 3 years

Note

Hey sinner, I was wondering, Ince it's my birthday on Monday and all, could I maybe have some Arkham Riddler and/or scarecrow Headcanons pretty please?

no problem baby, hope you have a kickass birthday!!

Arkham!Riddler hcs:

Ed can't sleep without you. he literally cannot fall asleep. that's one of the main reasons he doesn't sleep all that much - because you're not always there. y'know, he always had this thing where he hugged the first thing he got his hands on in his sleep, be it a pillow or even a wrench. but then you came. first time he slept in one bed with you, when he reached out, you never pushed him away. he clung onto you and you hugged him back and caressed his hair and back as he snored into your chest

when he sleeps with you, he doesn't wake up from nightmares. actually, first time you let him rest on you, he slept for 12 hours straight, only stirring once when you tried to wriggle out of his grasp and go to the bathroom. and that manchild fucking got out of bed and trailed after you, quietly waiting until you're done so you can both go to sleep. he'd sit on the fuckin toilet with you if he could

as i mentioned earlier, he snores, and does so pretty loud - after having his nose broken so many times, it started healing a little crookedly and he started snoring. you'll have to get used to that. oh, and he also snorts. when he laughs sincerely, y'know, that real belly laugh, he snorts like a pig and it's really endearing (he was a little self-conscious about it around you at first)

he spoils a lot with gifts, partly to make up for the time he spends working, partly to show you he can give you things nobody else can. some of the gifts are store bought, but most of them are handmade - sometimes he'll make you something to make every day life easier and help with chores, sometimes he'll build you a fucking coffee machine from scratch because you said your one broke, sometimes he'll just create a little decoration to remind you of him, so you know he's always there

his thugs are really fond of you - not only are you polite and actually treat them like human beings, but you keep Ed at bay. your presence is obviously calming to him and you have a lot of good influence on him, which they're grateful for. they like to joke around with you and sometimes even invite you for a simple chat with beer or a game of poker. Edward was really opposed to the idea of you spending time with them but at some point he landed with a beer in hand, fries on the table and cards laid out before him and you didn't hear him complain. well... not that much, anyway

his robots are part-sentient, in a way that they're able to feel curiosity about the world around them and constantly learn new thing by themselves, without him having to constantly reprogramm them. they're kind of like children - but only kind of, and they treat you two kind of like parental figures. especially you, since Ed programmed them to see him more as a god or something along those lines. also, whenever there's any oncoming danger, the robots closest to you immediately run to your side to be ready and protect you

a stray cat once wandered into the orphanage, where you were currently helping Ed with painting the walls, and the robots immediately percieved it as a threat and almost anihilated it. it was a shitshow. and you also kept the cat, much to Edward's displeasure (he was bullshitting, you saw him baby talk to it and pet it more than once)

Arkham!Scarecrow hcs:

before the Croc accident, he was really chaotic and energetic and also a hazard to society. you were never bored because Jon always did some stupid shit, most of the time only because he's just clueless about social norms. you saw him eat coffee straight from the jar once because he was to fixated on his research to wait for the water to boil

he really loves making you laugh with his sarcastic quips. honestly, he just loves making you laugh. but also scream. he's a master at sneaking up on you and suddenly gripping your arms/waist or enveloping you in a hug out of nowhere and in the most unexpected places. he once did that while you were making dinner and ended with a whole pan worth of spaghetti on his head

he was a contortionist and could manipulate his body any way he wanted, and let me tell you that he scared you half to death because he was laying on a position so inhuman that you just thought he fucking went and killed himself on accident and landed with his limbs all over the place

he loved dancing with you, he was a very skilled dancer before he suffered all that damage. after the accident, he can't really spin you around like he used to. to be honest, he can't really do anything he used to do with you. he's really changed after the accident, and he really needs your help with practically everything. he hates it, especially since he knows he often took what you two had for granted and wasn't the best partner out there, and suddenly not only will he never be able to have fun with you like in the past, but he's also become kind of a burden - no matter what you say, he can clearly see how exhausted you are from dealing with him all the time. quite frankly, he has no fucking idea why you even stayed with him

he really does everything in his power to show you how grateful he is for all you do. he often has trouble expressing his true feelings because he hates being percieved as weak (this intensified after the accident) and can't get it through his thick skull that telling you he loves you doesn't make him weak, but he spoils you to the best of his abilities. you always get what you want and his gifts are always thoughtful, and whenever he gets you a book, he somehow always knows which one you'll like the most. he does everything in his power to pay you back for your kindness

that man actually shed some tears more than once over the fact that you love him so much that you decided to waste your life with him. of course he fucking wants you and it'd kill him if you left, but he knows it'd be better for you if you did. but despite all the self-loathing he feels at himself, he's possessive as hell. despite the fact that behind closed doors, he feels like he doesn't deserve you, he makes sure everyone knows not to touch you or even think about touching you, because you're his. you choose to stay with him, even after what happened, and there's no way you're getting out of this one

and listen, he may have become more... tame, but he's certainly not boring. despite everything, this man is still the chaotic god of the universe, and he'll be damned if he stopped making you laugh to the point of tears. and let's not forget that man has crows as pets - the shenanigans that ensue are not like any other and you'll never see anything even slightly similar to that dumbassery on planet Earth

#riddler #edward nigma #edward nygma #the riddler #jonathan crane #scarecrow #the scarecrow #arkhamverse #my writing #headcannons #fluff #angst #rjshepherd

104 notes · View notes

jarienn972 · 3 years

Text

Weathering the Storm - Part Four

For a multitude of reasons, it has been ages since I've been able to update this story. I had the chapter all plotted out, but never seemed to be able to find time (or sometimes just motivation) to write. I appreciate those who reached out to me asking if I planned to update it and I thank you so much for your patience! I absolutely plan to finish it and right now, there are 2 more planned chapters to close everything out.

For now though, since it has been a few months, here’s a quick recap of where we left off in the last chapter: Emma braved the elements to investigate the abandoned Sheriff cruiser, and after seeing the dashcam video, knows that her husband is injured after the disastrous traffic stop. She's made the assumption that Killian would try to make his way to the closest dwelling to the lonely stretch of highway - Zelena's farmhouse. We're going to pick up at that same farmhouse as the unrelenting thunderstorm continues.

If you’d like to catch up from the beginning, you can find all of the current chapters on FF.net and AO3. Tumblr: Part One Part Two Part Three

Despite the warm glow from the flickering orange and gold flames in the fireplace behind her chair, the lingering dreariness of the day was wearing heavily on Zelena's mood. The sky was still laden with dull, grey clouds unleashing unholy torrents of rain upon the farmhouse's metal roof and continuous gusts of wind threatened to blow away the fluttering blue tarp which was only barely protecting them from the elements.

Oh, what she wouldn't have given right now if she could still possess the ability to poof them all away from this isolated outpost deep in the forest. Maybe she shouldn't have been so hasty and rammed that beat up old jalopy of hers into the Black Fairy. She wasn't particularly good at driving the beast but perhaps she could have managed to get into town… Oh, heavens...who was she kidding? In this weather, she wouldn't have made it to the end of the drive, and anyway, the ugly, metal death-trap was still sitting on a lot in town, rusting away as it awaited repairs. It hadn't been a high priority to fix when she'd had electricity and a working telephone to call Regina who'd pop in with supplies and whatever if she needed a hand with something. If she couldn't solve the problem with magic from a distance, she'd drive out to help her sister and niece, but she certainly couldn't do that right now.

At least, she could be thankful for the simple fact that Robin would sleep through almost anything when she had a full tummy. She couldn't recall the exact time she'd put her daughter down for her afternoon nap, but she estimated that it had been about an hour and a half, meaning her child was going to awaken soon and Zelena would have to figure out a way to entertain a cranky toddler in a dark, drafty house. For now though, the exasperated mom was enjoying the quiet reprieve from this stress-filled day before Robin was awake and wanting to play ,and then Zelena would also have to figure a way to keep the baby from bothering their guest.

Their guest.

How long had it been now since Hook showed up sopping wet on her doorstep? Two hours? Closer to three? Surely Emma would have realized that something was amiss if she'd not heard from her husband by now. How long might it take before someone realized that he was lying on her sofa right at this very moment? He was still semi-peacefully slumbering after taking a swig of the children's pain reliever which might have taken enough of the edge off to allow him to rest - or he'd just passed out from sheer agony and exhaustion.

Either way, she tried to distract herself with a little bit of reading by the firelight. The dancing flames cast odd shadows across the pages making the text difficult to see at times, but then she wasn't fully paying attention to the prose before her. She could scarcely recall a thing she'd read from the prior chapter, much less the last paragraph. She just needed something - anything - to keep her weary mind occupied during this brief reprieve. She was going bloody stir crazy, even beginning to believe she was hearing things that weren't there. She'd swear she just heard something rapping on the kitchen window, but quickly dismissed the thought, figuring it was just the swirling wind rattling the creaky door.

Until she was certain that she heard the sound of her name being called over the howling of the storm.

**********

Emma had briefly considered poofing herself right into the center of Zelena's kitchen, but decided against it at the last second, instead materializing from a cloud of pale grey smoke on the front porch instead. While she was somewhat protected from the storm by the narrow extension of the roof, rain water poured over the eaves in sheets. Considering that the gravel driveway leading up from the road had morphed into a shallow, muddy lake, the porch was relatively dry in comparison, although Emma wasn't certain just how protected she was from Mother Nature's fury when a bolt of lightning lit up the darkened skies. The tin roof above her head probably wasn't the safest right now…

She took a long stride closer to the door, wiping away some condensation from the glass with her sleeve as she peered through the window. She couldn't make out much inside the empty kitchen as it was fairly dark with a faint orangish glow in the distance. Zelena probably had a fire burning to provide some light and heat to stave off the chills with the power still out. She couldn't hear any voices emanating from the interior of the house, but it was possible that the noise of the rain striking the metal roof was drowning out any sounds from inside. But in the dim backlight provided by the firelight, Emma could make out a dark mass draped around the back of one of the ladderback chairs - a shape that looked decidedly like the collar and shoulders of a coat. A dark coat that had enough of a sheen on its surface to reflect the warm hue of the flames. Just like a certain black leather coat that her husband had been wearing when he departed for the station this morning.

Please, let that be Killian's coat, she begged of whatever higher power might be listening as she knocked anxiously on the window. Not noticing any movement inside the farmhouse, she rapped again, but this time on the wooden door instead of the glass as her sight fell upon a ruddy stain upon the white paint. Was that blood?

"Zelena?" she shouted, hoping that her voice would carry louder than her knocking. "Zelena? Are you in there?" Well, that was a stupid question...Of course she had to be inside. Most people wouldn't leave home with a fire still burning and where exactly would she go? Even if she'd managed to get her crappy car running, there was no way she would have made it into town in this downpour. She probably wouldn't have reached the end of the driveway… "Zelena!" she cried out even louder this time.

Seeing the familiar hue of the former witch's wild auburn hair through the steamed up glass, Emma's nerves abated momentarily and she let out a relieved exhale as the door was yanked open.

"Emma?" a startled Zelena muttered as she found the drenched, blonde sheriff standing at her doorstep, but her mood instantly lifted. "I am so happy to see you! I was hoping that you'd soon figure out your husband came here to seek help."

"Thank goodness. There weren't many places he could have gone, so I was really hoping he made it here. He recorded the whole thing on the dashcam, so I know he was shot. Is he alright?" Emma tried to keep her nerves in check, but as she rambled on, she knew she was failing miserably.

"He's in on the sofa. He's sleeping right now. Well, at least I think he's sleeping… He's been in and out of consciousness," Zelena explained as she waved Emma inside. Emma brushed past the redhead who closed the door quickly before the wind blew any more of the never-ending precipitation into the kitchen. Zelena continued detailing all she'd done to help, even though she doubted Emma heard half of it. "I've tried my best to get the bleeding under control. It isn't near as heavy as it was before, but he still lost a lot. The bullet that hit him went clean through and I don't think anything too vital was struck, but I really don't know for certain. He's still a bloody mess and a bit feverish. I tried giving him some of Robin's baby ibuprofen to help with the pain too, but I don't have a bloody clue how well that worked..."

Half-listening as she rounded the corner into the living room, Emma made a bee-line over to the sofa where she discovered her husband curled on his side with a woolen blanket draped over him. Even with the golden glow cast by the flames, his skin bore a deathly pallor. "Oh, Killian…," she sighed as she dropped to her knees on the floor beside him. She cupped her palm around his cheek, finding it cool and clammy beneath the warmth of her fingers. A muted, but guttural moan escaped his throat as he stirred at her touch. He blinked twice in the low light but as his sight adjusted, his eyelids parted fully to focus on the unexpected, but magnificent face of his true love.

"Swan?" he mumbled, his muddled brain trying to determine if she was real or just a cruel hallucination.

"It's me," Emma smiled, happy to find him conscious and communicative. "I'm here and I'm going to get you help…"

"Now that you can heal him, it'll all be fine," Zelena spoke up. "I would have already done that if I still had my magic, but now Emma can get you all fixed up," she gave a nod to Killian but the expression that crossed Emma's face confused her.

"Unfortunately, it isn't quite that simple…," Emma groaned in frustration. "Because this situation involved criminals from outside of Storybrooke, I had to have David notify the state police and put out a bulletin to watch for the vehicle. They'll have questions about the shooting, and if the deputy who they can see being shot on dashcam footage is suddenly, miraculously healed, those questions are going to get uncomfortable and weird and cast doubt on the whole thing. I don't even think that saying Killian was wearing a bulletproof vest would hold up under the circumstances…"

"So, what does that mean?" Zelena questioned.

"I'll have to get him back to Whale - transport him directly to the hospital…"

Emma was cut off mid-sentence as the storm unleashed a tremendous gust of wind that blasted through the broken window, billowing out the tarp until the nails could no longer hold and the resulting gush extinguished the fire. Swirls of raindrops, leaves and other debris were forced through the opening as the tarp floundered and flopped about the floor. Without a moment's hesitation, she spun around and raised her hands. In a split-second, a magical wave of bright light filled the room, vanquishing the tarp and all of the storm debris as it repaired the damaged window, restoring it to its original state like its twin further down the living room wall.

Zelena breathed a sigh of relief as the threat of further damage subsided for the time being, even though the room was plunged into darkness without the flames illuminating it. She wasn't going to miss that ugly plastic sheet, nor would she miss the drafts and rainwater that seeped in around its edges.

"Thank you for fixing that awful eyesore," Zelena said as Robin let out a terrified wail after being awakened by all of the commotion. "I'm coming, my love," she assured her daughter but she also gave Emma a quizzical look before heading over to the play yard. "Do you think you're going to have to explain that one?" she asked Emma with a gesture towards the repaired window.

"Hopefully, it won't come to it, but I suppose I'll think of something, if necessary," Emma replied as she turned her attention back to her wounded husband while Zelena scooped up a whimpering toddler. "Okay, one crisis averted," she whispered as she gently squeezed her husband's bicep through the blanket. "Let's get you into town so we can get you fixed up too."

Killian gave a weak nod and allowed his eyes to fall closed again as he steeled himself for teleportation, never knowing how rough the landing may be when they re-materialized. The commonplace of magical transport was something this grizzled mariner was still getting used to.

"Take us with you," Zelena interrupted. Unprepared for such a request, Emma glanced upward into the pleading eyes of the redhead who was still bouncing a teary-eyed toddler on her hip.

"What?" Emma stammered, her brow knitted in confusion. Had she heard that right?

"Please… Will you transport us there with you? I promise, we will be out of your way as soon as we get there. I'll call Regina to come pick us up, but I can't stay isolated out here in this bloody storm with no power and no way to get in touch with anyone. I hate not having magic anymore… I don't want to be a bother, but please…?"

"Um...sure, I guess," Emma responded. "For everything you've done for Killian today, I suppose it's the least I could do."

"Oh, thank you! Thank you!" the former witch gushed. "Let me grab Robin's things. I'll be less than a minute!" She scurried into the bedroom to collect Robin's diaper bag as well as a jacket for each of them, then quickly darted into the kitchen to grab the baby's pre-made evening bottle, which the little one eyed greedily as they returned to the living room. Her final task was to toss a pitcher of water onto the smoldering remnants of the fire to ensure it was completely out before they vacated the farmhouse. Returning to Emma's side, Zelena gave her daughter a tight hug and exclaimed: "All ready."

"Then off to Storybrooke Hospital we go," Emma stated, swishing her wrist before the magical cloud enveloped them.

#cs ff #cs fan fic #captain swan ff #killian whump #weathering the storm #gunshot wound #i know this update has been long delayed and is a little short #but i needed to break it there

20 notes · View notes