#I will draw wizard leons for as long as I still have ideas of what kinda wizard to turn him into. there are like three in queue rn

[b4kuch1n]

wizard of the sky (again!!!!)

#pokemon #swsh #champion leon #reworked the sky wizard design because I wanted to proper it up. and it turned into an entirely different design #but! I prefer this one! there's thought put into this one! #can't fault the other one it was made during a 2hr break or something #also. how come I've put out there a buncha see-thru áo tấc and nhật bình and have yet to see anything return. why is no one making these #do I have to make these myself. I would! one of these days! thats a threat! #I need to eat chips n lay down now but I had fun doing this one :] #I will draw wizard leons for as long as I still have ideas of what kinda wizard to turn him into. there are like three in queue rn #its so dang fun doing these wah!!! #have a good night lads!! use hook to bring opponent into close quarter

[alpydk]

Cabinet of Oddities (Part 25)

Ah have the next part as well before the weekend break

Summary: We’re going to kill him, my sweet mask. And we’re going to enjoy ourselves doing it. You have no need of the ill-fated wizard, only of me. Your vampiric friend is competent though. He’d make a fine ally in our world.

Ao3 Link

There is always a way to kill someone. You just have to be creative enough . Astarion had been thinking over this line ever since Nana had uttered it. Creative enough… He’d gone through the normal plans of how to murder someone using poisons, stabbing, decapitation, hells, even drawing Cazador into the sun but he knew none of these ideas would work. Cazador wanted him and he sure wasn’t going to hand himself over. But what if I could though?

He waited until she was alone before he approached, skulking up behind her. 

Nana jumped out of her skin. “Gods, Astarion! Why do you insist on doing that? Walk like a normal person!” 

He gave a smirk. “Where is the fun in being normal, darling?”

She sighed. “Still. Don’t sneak up on people. Or at least not me. Sneak up on as many bad guys as you like.”

He took a seat next to her trying to judge where her mind was at right now. “Your little soirees with Gale seem to have made you your old irritating self again, I see.”

She blushed, his words still having their old effect on her. “Thank you, I think.” She curled a lock of hair behind her ear. “You’re here to talk to me about the painting, aren’t you?”

“In a way I am.”

“I’m sorry. I know I shouldn’t have taken your form. It’s a huge consent thing and I wasn’t thinking, I didn’t think you would find out and please don’t get angry with-”

He turned to her quickly. “Stop. I’m not angry with you. At least not at this moment. What you did was quite sweet, I suppose. But no, I actually wanted to ask-” He hesitated, a moment of weakness for this ? “I wanted to ask for your help.”

She looked over at him with curiosity, “And what might that be with?”

“Cazador.” He said, letting the name roll off his tongue distastefully. 

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

Nana looked around, a creeping sensation rolling up her spine. Astarion had spoken to her for some time about what he wanted of her and although she had wanted to object, to tell him there was a better way, she had found herself nodding, recommending tips on the best ways to break into the Szarr Palace. You’re here again. A prickling in her fingertips as if they wanted to move of their own accord. She closed her eyes, the silence of the last few days now becoming a cacophony again.

We’re going to kill him, my sweet mask. And we’re going to enjoy ourselves doing it. You have no need of the ill-fated wizard, only of me. Your vampiric friend is competent though. He’d make a fine ally in our world.

She gazed over at Gale and watched as he softly smiled back at her. She could feel the guilt in her heart knowing what she was hiding. I could tell him about you…

And what would happen? He’d reject you for the killer you are. If he knew what you had just agreed with the pale one. Torture? So, is that what you like to do?  

Nana climbed into her tent to hide herself away from the world. They would be safe if she was alone.

Come, my sweet. Tonight will be good for you. Just like old times.

She grabbed the new journal that Gale had given her and began to write. Please forgive me.

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

Nana stood at the grand entrance to the Szarr Palace in Astarion’s form considering if she should just knock or waltz in confidently. Don’t think. Just do. She took a step forward and then another, the delicate shoes stepping lightly on the cobblestones. She pushed the door open and immediately felt the threatening eyes on her.

“Brother, you have returned to us.”

Nana scowled at the vampire spawn, giving herself time to remember Astarion’s run down. Leon, long hair, vampire. “You doubted my return?”

“No, of course not. Though you know how he will react. He believes you left out of spite. He’s going to punish you.” Leon’s voice seemed like he was trying to read her as he uttered the words. It was clear that in Astarion’s absence, the punishments and torment Cazador normally inflicted on him had simply been moved to his siblings, the traces of blood on his skin, the bruises on his neck.

Nana looked away trying to show how little she cared. “Worry not, darling. Take me to him.” Astarion, I hope you’re ready.

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

Astarion had crept through the sewers and found the ancient door to his master’s chambers. He’d never seen it before but often he’d heard rumours of its existence and he’d known during his year in solitude that it was close by, a room where Cazador would retreat to if needed. And he sure as hells would need to tonight. 

He’d found the hall and stood by the sarcophagus with his pack in hand. It’d been weighed down by bottle upon bottle of holy water as recommended by Nana. Initially, he’d asked her for something simply just to get him close to Cazador but as he’d explained his plan she’d come up with something much more elaborate but also much more satisfying. He started to empty the bottles into and onto the stone coffin making sure not to let any spill on himself. Soon Cazador would be here and then the fun would really begin. 

He had warned Nana of what Cazador was like. Of his strength and abilities, but she had responded by saying that those things would just make him arrogant and easier to get him alone. Astarion tried not to concern himself with what she was doing, he’d seen her in combat and although she could handle herself at range, up close she had been weak and easy to best. Maybe we should have done this differently. He considered going to her, but she had been adamant that once they had begun there would be no changes in the plan. She could always betray me as well. Shit.    

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

The blow to her head had been hard but it had not been enough to knock her out. Cazador had initially tried to control her as he originally used to with Astarion but when it didn’t work, he’d grown frustrated, lashing out. “Impudent lout!” he shouted as she fell to the ground, Astarion’s hands in front of her breaking her fall. I like this one, it will be a shame to kill him. Cazador kicked her again before turning to grab his adorned dagger.

This was the plan, and she knew it. She hated it but she was willing to do this, just this once to let Astarion be free. If she couldn’t then at least he could be. And then they would return back to camp. She’d see Gale’s smile, and everything would be okay again. She could feel the bruising already emerging under her ribs, the pain a small sacrifice for saving her friend. It’s time.

She closed her eyes, allowing the memories of Thomas to flood through her. It had been so long and yet she felt him twisting and turning in her mind like a large beast emerging from hibernation. She knew how this would go and she only hoped that she would regain enough control to afterwards be able to reclaim herself. Thomas had always been faster than her, stronger. He was experienced in so many ways of how to kill efficiently, disarming Cazador with ease before plunging the dagger into his neck without hesitation. She watched as the shock in his eyes emerged, seeing his slave turn on him with such hostility. The dagger pushed in deeper, the blood causing a rising gurgle in his throat. Deeper, a twist of the blade. A shame he does not breathe to give us that intoxicating melody. Cazador crumpled to his knees, his hands gripped on the blade before transforming into mist and making a hasty exit. 

She sighed and followed the red cloud from the room. Vampires… Such pitiful creatures.  The subtle creases of the suit Astarion had chosen were now wet with his master’s blood and she could feel her lips curling into a smile. She spotted the face of Leon watching her as she walked the corridor. He held out an arm to approach her but on seeing her cold murderous eyes he hesitated. Another lamb to the slaughter. No Thomas. Not him. Stick to the plan.   

Nana descended to the lower floors. Numerous spawn had seen what they believed to be Astarion coated in a thin layer of their master’s blood and although they knew they should’ve stopped him, none attempted to. She walked with purpose after the apparition and in the distance spotted the real Astarion waiting for her. You’re doing all this for him?

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

Nana poured a bottle of holy water onto the brow of Cazador’s head, slowly at first. A drip drip drip just to wake him before allowing it to run more steadily. He’d tried to leave the coffin repeatedly, but his weakened form forced him to return back instantly, the holy water inside hurting him further. An endless loop of self-inflicted pain. As she poured the water Astarion circled the sarcophagus. He had taken to inflicting random elements of harm on the body of his master. A small nick to the skin, a nail pulled slowly, comments of loathing towards his tormentor. This would be just the start.  

Their night together was one he relished. This was more than killing Cazador, this was retribution, and this was what he needed for true freedom again.

It wasn’t until they left the palace that Nana changed her form to her natural changeling one. He had been bothered seeing himself at first. She was almost an exact likeness but small things like how she carried herself had irritated him. She walked with too much pride; her eyes were too bright. Now though, now that he couldn’t see himself, he found himself missing it a little. But now would be different, maybe he could be more like her version, the way she saw him.

They walked in silence for some time, both covered in various degrees of blood, both trying to process what had happened. Astarion had gone ahead a little trying to get himself as far away from the palace as he could. He wanted to move on now, he wanted his life back.

The cool blade held around his throat however prevented that. He froze expecting to hear the wary voice of Leon or another of his vengeful siblings. What he did not expect was the emotionless tones. “Far too trusting, little ivaebhin .”

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 gale #gale of waterdeep #gale dekarios #bg3 astarion #gale bg3 #galemance #bg3 fanfiction #ivaebhin #Elvish (“boy filled with brightness”

[beck-a-leck]

So I got prompted for an AU in a discord server for an event. And me, being Extremely predictable, bypassed all the other AUs for a (not SW) fandom and went straight to Star Wars.

I promptly sidled up to the car. Slapped the hood, and proudly told myself "I can fit so many AUs in this sandbox."

And it was just supposed to be a joke. But then I thought about it and started putting serious thought into it and now I am going to share because I want to.

For both WIP Wednesday, and Star Wars Wednesday, I present to you: The AU that entertains exactly one (1) person, me.

Rune Factory 4, but throw it in a Galaxy Far, Far Away.

Takes place during the Imperial era, for obvious Sechs Empire = Galactic Empire. They even both come with an evil Emperor. It basically writes itself

Earthmates = Jedi. Rare to the point of being mythological/urban legends. Super special and power (Space) wizards. Very few remain after the explicit (sw) or implied (rf) genocide of their kind enacted by the Empire

World building: each town is now a System, and the whole kingdom is now a Sector. Therefore, Town of Selphia in Kingdom of Norad becomes Selphia System in the Norad Sector.

Now for characters!

With so many more alien races to choose from I can go absolutely ham with everyone, and I really only have the vaguest ideas of who is what now in this AU.

I think the Guardians are all going to be Force Users of different kinds. They don't all have to be Jedi, but I want them all to be strong with the Force.

Ventuswill: similarly to canon, she is an ancient, god-like being who has watched over Selphia since time immemorial. Extremely strong with the Force, kind of on the scale of the Bendu. May or may not remain a dragon. Because space dragons!

Frey/Lest: former Jedi. Depending on when in the Imperial era the story happens they could either be a Jedi or padawan who survived Order 66, or an initiate who escaped the temple. Because they are an rf protagonist, they still get amnesia that wipes their memory completely blank, so even they forget who/what they were. But Venti does help them reconnect with the Force and realize they were a Jedi. And very suddenly they become Selphia's biggest secret. Which doesn't stay secret for long because Jadi cannot help what they are, and they must do good.

Oh my gosh I've just realized Frey can be a twi'lek, and her skin can be the same green color as her hair in game! She even gets to keep her signature look with the pigtails!

Arthur: hate to say it, but he's an Imperial. Being Norad royalty sent to take over Selphia in rf transfers easily to being an Imperial Governor. His father, Moff Lawrence, rules over the entire Norad Sector, and he sends Arthur to be governor of the Selphia System, because while it may be small and relatively unimportant, it is a good source of materials for various, nefarious Imerial means. However. Arthur, still being Arthur, shows up on his first day of governing and says "fuck this job" and deliberately tried to Not Do It. A sort of malicious compliance, because getting nothing done will draw scrutiny, but doing the absolute worst of the bare minimum means everybody just kind of ignores Selphia and him. Leaving Arthur free to practice his dark and dirty secret, which is spying for the Rebellion and skimming off what funds and resources he can to help fight the good fight.

Most of the town cast is still doing their in game roles with just environmental changes for the AU, so they could be aliens or have a different back story, and I won't hash them all out here (because I'm also not 100% settled on some details)

Doug: still a spy, sent by the Empire to keep an eye on Ventuswill, because even if she has spent the last 1000 years being Exceedingly neutral and minding the business of her planet and nothing else, the Empire is not just going to let an extremely powerful force being go unmonitered.

Leon: a Jedi from a long time ago. I still think there's going to be a need for the guardians to have sacrificed themselves to help Venti sustain herself over the centuries, so that whole plot line is still viable. Meaning Leon is a Jedi, but he is Extremely out of date compared to what the Jedi Order was before the genocide. And considering the Empire's pretty successful 'delete the jedi from cultural memory' campaign, and Leon being Leon, and Lest/Frey's amnesia, all sorts of chaos and fun times and trading can ensue while Leon helps Lest/Frey with their Jedi training.

I haven't figured out yet what I want the other guardians to be, force-user wise. But I do think Dylas is gonna be a dark-sider, he has the anger and passion and I think that vibes more with him than traditional Jedi teachings. Amber I think is too sweet and pure to be anything but light-side. Dolce I could go either way on, she needs more thought.

Someone needs to be a wookie, and I am torn between it being Volkanon, the most emotional and huggiest wookiee, who has dedicated his very long life to being Ventuswill's companion. Or Porcoline, who just keeps finding lost souls and adopting them. Much like one rescue stray kittens.

Maybe both. Both could be funny.

I'm still working on the rest of the townsfolk!

It would not be star wars without droids! And I think Lest/Frey get a companion droid, as a treat. Maybe an astromech, or someone small and travel-sized like a BD unit.

PLOT TIME!

Okay, it really doesn't differ much from the rune factory plot. Your protagonist is on the way to Selphia to make an important and secret delivery, Imperial sabotage, they crash land and get amnesia.

I'm thinking instead of rune crystals, they are bringing special kyber crystals to replace the guardians that Ventuswill was previously relying on to stay alive/in power (because there aren't enough forse sensitives left in the galaxy. And also, living sacrifices are not sustainable.)

The different dungeons each of the guardians are in are the ruins of former temples of their own Force Practices.

There's still a showdown against the Empire, but I don't think it's on the same scale as it was in the rf game. Probably just messing up some Grand Moff's shiny new battle station so he can't enforce his cruel will upon the sector.

But that's what I've got so far! I had a boring day at work and lots of time to think about things while I was avoiding tumblr to not see any Mando spoilers 😂

EDIT: I had more thoughts! Mostly about Leon being a Jedi.

Just thinking about Leon waking up after his long sleep and instinctually reaching out into the Force to feel the presence of other Jedi in the galaxy, only to find the post-order 66 aching void left there. He probably lived through or in the aftermath of one of the Sith wars, he knew Jedi could be few and far in-between, but he's never felt emptiness like this. He's never felt the dark side so strong.

On a brighter note. Leon training Frey/Lest. Leon, 1-2 thousand years out of date for Jedi teachings, and Frey/Lest with so much head trauma they can't remember anything. Y'all know that scene from TLJ, where Luke is teaching Rey on the rocks? That's Leon teaching them 😂

Leon: close your eyes. Reach out.

L/F: *puts their hand out*

Leon: 🙄🙄🙄 ... fine. *picks up some long grass* reach out with the Force. Feel the energy around you, binding everything together *tickles their hand with the grass*

L/F: gasp! I feel it!

Leon: you do? *wiggles grass faster* Wow you must be really strong with the Force! *whacks them with the grass*

L/F: wow really? Ouch! ☹️ *betrayed*

Leon: do it again, properly.

#becky writes things #star wars #rune factory 4 #rune factory #star wars is such a fun sandbox to play in and I never want to leave #damnit i wish i could draw. because I want to see everyone sw-ified right now 😭😂

[bitsandbobsofwriting]

The aftermath of Merlin snapping, and yelling at Arthur in the middle of the forest;

Arthur pushes for change, the gang takes bets on when Merthur will happen, and someone, somewhere, is grumpy.

Part 2 of Merlin’s Angry Outburst. 

Part 1   Part 3   Part 4   Part 5

Once Arthur has a first draft of the repeal, the first people he brings in on it (with Merlin’s approval, of course) are the 5 knights, Gwen, Gaius, and Morgana.

(Morgana, who later that evening comes back to Arthur's chamber in tears (Merlin is also there) to reveal her magic, and thank him for not being Uther.) 

All of them enthusiastically agree, after only a little conversation.

Elyan and Leon are the most... dubious, but only because of the practical factor, they don't disagree with the actual repeal.

After months of the gang working in secret, they reveal their best draft to the council. At least half the council are new members that Arthur appointed, the rest are left over from Uther’s time.

They argue back and forth for a while, half vs half. A few of the older members, who were around before the purge, slowly start changing their minds.

In the end, it takes them maybe a month to get a majority, and Arthur overrules the remaining opposition. He is King after all, technically, he doesn’t even have to have a council.

Days after the agreement is reached, Arthur goes out personally to collect a few specific Druids, who had been waiting just outside the border for the go ahead.

It takes maybe another month to go through all the laws thoroughly, changing and editing and altering what needs to be altered. With the help of Arthur's close advisors on the political aspects, and the help of the Druids, Merlin, and Gaius, on the magical aspects (what should be allowed freely, what should be monitored, and what should remain fully banned).

The city celebrates when the announcement is made, they all loved the new King anyway, and had been overjoyed with the drop in executions, and deliberate ignoring of small instances of magic.

After a feast to celebrate the new found freedom among the people, the gang gathers once more, in private, and Merlin tells a shortened version of the story he'd told Arthur all those months ago.

None of them are that surprised (Gaius, Morgana, and Lancelot already knew, of course).

If they hadn't suspected Merlin of being a sorcerer before this whole thing started (Leon, Gwaine, and Gwen definitely suspected) , then they had certainly begun to in the last few months. They cheer when Merlin finishes telling them "just how often I've saved your oblivious arses" .

They cheer even louder when Arthur announces that he would be made court sorcerer, and it would be made official in a ceremony before the week ended.

There are no cheers when Morgana stands.

Curious eyes land on her, probably due to how terrified she looks, but the small encouraging nods and little smiles she gets from her brother (her Brother), Merlin, and Gwen, give her the strength she needs to tell everyone of her magic as well.

They see she is frightened, they imagine how difficult it must have been, being at first Uther’s ward, and then his daughter. They smile gently, and she receives hugs a plenty. Once all the congratulations are out of the way, she sits back down next to Gwen, still shaky and full of adrenaline, but happy.

She spends the remainder of the group’s quiet celebrations with her hand gripped in Gwen's under the table.

(Read this how you want, I personally envision it as the start of something)

So the days draw on, Merlin is announced Court Sorcerer, Arthur hires another manservant and gives Merlin a large set of chambers in the same hallways as Arthur's, complete with all the books on magic Arthur can find, and several of the magical artefacts that had previously been kept locked away (Merlin and Arthur are the only ones who are able to gain access to the room, something magicky I guess).

(No one mentions that that corridor is supposed to be for royalty only. Leon figures they're bound to realise that they're in love with each other any day now, and then Merlin will practically be royalty anyway so... might as well cut out the middle bit of having to shuffle chambers again later on).

The kingdom is prospering, and for months after the initial announcement, and implementations of the new laws, sorcerers and nobles from all over Albion, visit Camelot, to give congratulations to the King.

They give gifts and provide knowledge.

The Druids, however, are a slightly different story.

The ones who had been helping with the paperwork, had been... odd(?) around Merlin. But they respected his wish to keep all of that under wraps, or at least until it was announced publicly.

Arthur and Gaius know the whole Emrys story. Lancelot and Morgana know bits of it... but other than that... as far as anyone is concerned, the newly promoted Court Sorcerer is just another wizard.

The new Druids entering the kingdom are paying brief respects to the Forever King (I mean... at this point, he's still only King of Camelot... which is what he was before the magic ban repeal), before staring in reverence at the Court Sorcerer stood by his side.

They respect his wishes to keep the worshipping and gift giving to a minimum, though they still come to him for requests of miracles and ask him to perform druid ceremonies (blessings and name-givings and weddings and funerals (though they prefer to call them celebrations of life, rather than commiserations of death) and such).

Merlin can only brush off so many displays of such awe before the rest of The Gang demands to know what’s up, at which point he has to come clean about the whole... “Most Powerful Warlock To Ever Walk The Earth” thing.

Much to Merlin’s chagrin (and everyone else's amusement) the Druids still insist on calling him Emrys. The stubborn ones sometimes even go for "My Lord Emrys", which gets them a scowl from Merlin (and barely concealed laughter from everyone else).

Maybe... later on... when Morgana is more comfortable with her magic, after a few months practicing with Merlin (with a supportive Gwen Always at her side) , she is announced as the Court Seer.

Merlin had never had much luck with prophetic visions, but once Morgana’s fear died down, once she learned to let it flow, and breathe through it, the visions come easier, and kinder.

She stops seeing only visions of doom, and worst case scenarios, instead she has dreams of the many paths the future may take.

She does not panic when a path seems grim and dark, for she has a King and a Warlock and Gwen, by her side. Always. And they work through the future together.

So the ban has been repealed officially for around 6 months.

Arthur is a couple months away from completing his second year as King. And he and Merlin are still beating around the bush.

The betting pool for when they’ll finally get together has been growing bigger and bigger. Practically the whole castle is in on it now, with Gwen and Morgana as the ring leaders. Whoever wins... will be very lucky.

(It's Leon in the end, he pays attention, and he know what his boys are like. But he's a noble and has no need for the money, he pays for a few rounds of drinks and donates the rest to one of children's homes in the lower town).

But the war comes first.

~

Camelot has been prospering, and has many supporters throughout Albion, but one of the kingdoms, it doesn't matter which, you decide, does NOT like this.

Scouts and small patrols have been needling Camelot’s borders for months now, and Arthur and his Council (and Inner Council) have been making quiet preparations. They know that some sort of... something, is coming soon.

Especially when Morgana begins to dream of battles and blood and lightening.

They prepare for, and expect, a full scale war, but they hope for some negotiations and a peace treaty with the opposition.

Their hopes are dashed, when a messenger is escorted into the throne room, wearing The Opposition’s colours, with a letter.

Said letter is an angry rebuttal of everything Camelot stands for, full of accusations of abandoning tradition, and spitting in the face of great leaders, of which this soft boy-king should NOT be counted as. 

At the end, there was an official declaration of war.

The messenger boy was obviously scared to death, and once Arthur read the P.S, which invited Arthur to torture and/or execute him to the whatever extent he wants, he understood why. Without any hesitation, he offers the boy a job in the stables, a new wardrobe of clothes, and a servant’s bed in the castle.

After the official council meeting on the matter, setting up war committees, laying out contingency plans, organising the distribution of emergency evacuation plans, and discussing potential aid that could be requested from allies, Arthur pulls the gang together, for their own meeting.

“We knew this was coming, and there is no need to panic yet. Our outer borders are well patrolled, and we’re still getting up to date reports. The city walls hold strong, but I want to send out patrols to warn the villages of what’s coming. Start closer to the border, and work our way in. Leon?”

“My Lord, I have teams prepared for exactly that already, I just need to give the word and they’ll go.”

“Good. Morgana, I need you to try and keep focusing your visions, if we have even a small idea of how they might try to initiate the first battle, it’ll be a huge advantage.”

“Me and Merlin have been practising some new techniques to control where and when I can see, we’ll write everything down, and ask the Druids if they’ve seen anything as well.”

Arthur holds in a smile at the confidence in her voice. He is unendingly proud of how far his sister had come, and made a mental note to tell her that when all this was over.

“Brilliant, keep me in the loop. Gwen, when we’re done here, go and let the forgery know, the Royal Household will pay them extra to push out as much long range ammunition as they can. Arrows and crossbow bolts, we need as many as they can produce.” Gwen nods, and Arthur finally looks towards Merlin:

“And Merlin, I need you to be ready. Don’t wear yourself out too much in the next few weeks, I need you in good condition, if we’re to win this with minimal casualties-”

He glances over at Morgana before he continues:

“If the two of you could also ask the Druids if they have any volunteer healers. Make sure they know they aren’t obligated to come, but any help in the infirmaries would be greatly appreciated.” Morgana nods once more, as does Merlin, before he speaks:

“There’s a camp a couple hours ride outside the city at the moment, we’ll head out at first light-” He pauses and closes his eyes for a second, tilting his head, before looking to Morgana:

“They’re expecting us.”

Arthur addresses the room again:

“Right. I think that’s all for now, anyone have anything to add?”

Gaius responds after a moment:

“My Lord, if I could make a request for a few servants to help me set up supplies for the infirmary? Extensive preparations will need to be made to ensure that I have all I’ll need. Preferably people with rough herbal knowledge, if at all possible.”

Arthur nods straight away, responding:

“Yes, of course, I’ll ask the Housekeeper and the Steward who they can spare this evening, and they’ll be ready for you in the morning. Anything else?” At the silence in the room, Arthur tells everyone to get to work.

Leon marches straight down to the training grounds (Lancelot, Gwaine, Percival, and Elyan following him) to ring the summoning bell and inform the knights of the developments, and their tasks.

Gwen heads straight to the forgery (her and Elyan still oversee work there, but they have employees (and a few trainees) to run it) to give the Kings order.

Gaius shuffles out, and makes his way back to his quarters, already making mental lists of ingredients needed, and work to be done.

Arthur, Morgana, and Merlin are left, the royal siblings thinking to themselves, and Merlin thinking to someone else. Arthur contemplates that the whole mental link thing he had going on with the Druids was extremely useful.

Both his and Morgana’s thoughts were interrupted by Merlin huffing, and clenching his fists as he opens his eyes, obviously unhappy with whatever was said:

“Merlin?” From Morgana has the Court Sorcerer looking up from scowling at the table. He replies after wiping the frown off his face:

“Oh, it’s fine. They just made a... stupid suggestion is all. Don’t worry about it.”

“Stupid? Doesn’t sound like the Druids. What was it?”

Merlin looks mildly uncomfortable at that, and replies slowly:

“It... doesn’t matter. I’ll tell you another time. It’s late, you should practice some meditation and head to sleep, no potions tonight. And remember to keep some parchment and a quill by your bed, so you can scribble down anything you see-”

Merlin stands abruptly and heads towards the door:

“-I’m going to check the wards on the outer wall, and push a little more energy into the wells. I’ll see you both bright an early.” With that, Merlin heads out the room swiftly.

Arthur looks to his sister questioningly, but she shrugs as she responds:

“Who knows. “I’ll tell you later” means he doesn’t want you to know, OR he’s hoping I’ll forget because he doesn’t want either of us to know. He’s right though, I should meditate for a while-”

Morgana stands at this:

“- hopefully I’ll see you before we head off, if not, I suppose it’ll be dinner in the evening. Good night, brother.” Morgana leaves the room gracefully, heading in the direction of her chambers.

Arthur thinks for only a moment, before rushing off, catching up with Merlin as he readied his horse, preparing for the journey to the outer walls:

“I’ll come with you. I find I quite enjoy watching you do magic, and to be perfectly honest, I could do with some fresh air to help me think.”

Arthur pretends to ignore the slight blush that dusts Merlin’s cheeks, and readies his own horse. The two of them ride out of the stables and make the journey down the cobbled roads in comfortable silence, side by side.

They take their time on the journey, and the 15 minutes of companionable silence is finally broken by Arthur, who looks at Merlin curiously, as he says:

“So what did they suggest?”

Merlin looks up sharply at that, broken from his deep train of thought as he dumbly replies “What?”

“The Druids. What was the stupid suggestion?” Merlin’s eyes widen at that, and he blushes once more as he looks determinedly forward:

“Oh. That. I told you, it doesn’t-”

“Merlin...”

“Oh fine! They suggested that I... that I forge a mental link with you. Like the one I have with them.” The sorcerer purses his lips at that, and continues to avoid Arthur’s gaze:

“You can do that? Well... would it be such a bad idea? I mean we aren’t going to be able to meet and discuss things as often as I’d like through this whole ordeal. AND you’re basically the Kingdom’s powerhouse, I’m sort of relying on your magical know-how here. Surely it wouldn’t be a bad thing? For us to be able to converse across the battle fields?” 

Arthur, in an effort to not be hurt, reminds himself that he doesn’t know all that much about magic, and it very well could be a stupid suggestion, instead of one that Merlin is just personally opposed to.

Merlin, in response, looks to Arthur in great shock, before sighing and looking down to his horses mane:

“It.... is possible. And fairly easy, technically. But it would be painful, AND permanent. I wouldn’t be able to undo it after we won. And a temporary connection takes far too much energy to maintain, even for a short time. I just figured you wouldn’t want me in your head for the rest of our lives.” He tries to inject a little humour into his words, but it falls flat, and he just seems sad.

Arthur pretends he doesn’t notice however, and responds quickly:

“How painful are we talking? I mean I’ve been hurt pretty badly before. And... how exactly does it work? Would we be able to read each other’s mind constantly, without the other knowing? Or what?”

Merlin raises his eyebrows in shock at that, and his answer comes out slowly as he looks at Arthur:

“Like... a really bad headache? Imagine the hardest you’ve ever been hit, without passing out. It would last for a few minutes after the connection is initially forged, but would fade slowly over the next day or so. And no. Once the connection is established we wouldn’t be in each other’s head all the time, we would just be able to sort of... project our voices to one another. Other thoughts would be safe, even if you were thinking about me, I wouldn’t hear it unless you were thinking to me... if that makes sense.” 

By the end of his explanation, he’s looking nervously at the King, who is deep in thought:

“Hmm. Ok. I... only if you agree but... it might not be a bad idea. Even after the war is over. There have definitely been times where I’ve needed your opinion on something but you’ve been elsewhere, or we’ve been in the presence of someone else. Of course we’ve been fine so far, if you don’t want to, but-”

Merlin interrupts him, speaking quickly:

“I’m fine with it. I agree, it would be useful. So... I can bring what we need back from the camp tomorrow?”

Arthur nods firmly:

“Yes. The sooner the better, we can do it tomorrow evening, if that’s enough time for you?” Merlin once again looks shocked at this, as Arthur stares at him:

“Oh! Yeah, Yes. That’s fine. Like I said, it’s not particularly difficult, and I can ask Gaius to prepare us something for the pain during the day. Are you... are you sure? It is Permanent.”

Arthur rolls his eyes and huffs:

“Yes, you said that already Merlin. Are you sure?”

Merlin nodded his head decidedly, and spoke confidently:

“Yes. You’re right, it’s not a bad idea. Come on, if we hurry, we’ll make it to the walls, and then to the main well, and then back to the castle, before dark.”

The pair of them hurry their horses, and after another 10 minutes of comfortable silence, they finally reach the City Gates.

The guards give a quick bow, and The King and The Court Sorcerer jump off their horses before handing the reigns to one of the Gate stablehands.

Arthur (and the guards) watch in barely concealed wonder as Merlin presses his hands against the rock of the wall, and closes his eyes.

The golden glow can still be seen from below his eyelids, and he hums slightly as he frowns in concentration, seeming to push into the wall.

Arthur sees a short of... sheen, ripple across the rock, and extend into the sky. Merlin steps back and nods, admiring his handy work:

“They’re holding strong, I’ve extended the height as well. Kilgharrah and Aithusa should be the only ones able to get over it without alerting me now, from the air at least-”

Merlin heads to retake his horse, Arthur following him, before he continues:

“Though I still want to check the tunnels again at some point in the next few days.”

“Of course. Relax Merlin, it’s barely begun, and the borders still hold strong. We’ve plenty of time before things kick off in any way.” He makes sure to speak quietly. A public announcement hasn’t been made yet, and it would be bad if rumours started spreading before The King had time to put together a proper disclosure.

Merlin nods distractedly, and urges his horse to go faster as he heads towards the main well, in the town square. It’s late, not long until sunset, so there shouldn’t be many, if any, people there. Arthur speaks again:

“Why are we visiting the well? I wasn’t aware of any problems?”

“There aren’t any, but once the announcement is made, and once the outer villages are told what’s happening, we’ll have hundreds, probably thousands, of people flock to the city for safety. I just want to make sure we’re prepared for such an influx, and boost our water levels a little.”

Arthur nods at his response, but doesn’t say anything. He chooses instead to admire the man Merlin had become. He held himself differently, more strong, confident in who he was. Just like he had back when he was still a manservant, he served Arthur, and his people, above and beyond his job description. Merlin took upon himself, not only the politics he was supposed to oversee, but the personal safety of both the King, and every Camelot citizen, and he did it all with an alarming amount of grace.

Arthur sometimes catches himself thinking that it was almost as if Merlin was built to be a king. He may not like the spotlight, but he was a protector, and leader, unlike anything Arthur had ever seen before.

“I don’t think I ever thanked you, Merlin. It feels like years ago now, that you yelled at me in a forest.” He says it with a grin, but Merlin flinches. He continues before The Sorcerer interrupts him though:

“Really Merlin. Thank you. You were right, I would’ve got there in the end, but it wasn’t fair for people to suffer in the mean time, and you took the fall in their place. You’re a hero to your people... and to me. You should be proud of your accomplishments, I know I am.” 

Arthur resists the urge to duck his head as Merlin looks at him in bewilderment, a definite flush on his cheeks as he replies:

“I... thank you, Arthur. I always had faith in you-” Merlin begins to grin before he continues:

“-and besides, someone had to knock you down a peg. Perhaps you should hire someone to take you into the forest and yell at you every once in a while.”

Arthur laughs at that, and Merlin tries to push down the blush as Arthur responds:

“Now Merlin, why on earth would I hire someone for such a job, when I already have you?”

Merlin chuckles as he answers:

“Yeah, and don’t you forget it, My Lord. Hold the horses, I’ll just be a minute.” With that, Arthur realises they’ve made it to the well, and dismounts as Merlin has, holding both of the horses reigns as he watches Merlin approach the well.

The Sorcerer crouches down, and once again closes his eyes in concentration as he presses his hands into the stone of the well. The glow is a little less bright this time, but Arthur admires it nonetheless.

Merlin finishes quickly, and gathers his horse from Arthur once more, nodding towards the castle.

Arthur follows as Merlin hurries towards the looming building. He wasn’t sure why he was in such a rush, but he only begins questions it when Merlin hurriedly hands the horses of to a stablehand, and continues to run up the castle steps.

Arthur can only just keep up with Merlin, not having the breath to ask him what’s wrong, before Merlin suddenly comes to a stop, catching his breath for a moment to go through a door leading to the highest balcony on the West of the castle:

“Merlin... what.... what are you-”

Merlin wordlessly interrupts The King as he points to the skyline, the sun only a few minutes away from touching the horizon.

There’s not a cloud in sight, and the sky is painted in oranges and pinks in front of them, bleeding into deep purples and blues behind the castle.

Merlin finally mutters, not looking away from the sunset:

“Call me a girl all you want Arthur, but nothing compares to this. It’s beautiful, I come to watch it whenever I’ve got the time.”

Arthur had only glanced briefly at the sunset before looking back at Merlin in wonder, a fond smile on his face (not that Merlin would notice).

He stares at the side of Merlin’s face, the orange sky making the gold in his eyes look even brighter, and the glare of the fading sun making his hair shine. A gentle breeze has Merlin shiver slightly, and Arthur’s smile widens as he responds, so quietly he’s not even sure if Merlin hears him:

“Hmm. Beautiful.” He doesn’t look away.

~

THIS IS COMPLETED! All 5 parts have been posted:)

If y’all want my thoughts on anything specific let me know✌️

#merlin #bbc merlin #merthur #arthur #king arthur #the knights of camelot #the knights know about merlins magic #arthur knows about merlins magic #court sorcerer merlin #merlin/arthur #sir leon #leon #sir percival #percival #sir lancelot #lancelot #sir elyan #elyan #sir gwaine #gwaine #morgana #good morgana #gwen #guinevere #fluff #merlin is a bamf #bamf merlin #powerful merlin

[steve0discusses]

S5 Ep10: Kaiba Embarrasses Himself on International Television Again

We start off this duel by teasing us into believing that this is a part of a theme park:

The Kaiba theme park is a weird mix of actual horrorscapes and animal crossing cutesy stuff...you can really tell what parts were Mokuba and what parts were Seto in this park.

But Leon takes it well, just kinda standing there as he’s done this entire arc--being a general forgettable nice boy who just...doesn’t do anything. Like he gets up, he plays cards, he sits down. Having him on top of a rock with melodramatic Little Mermaid waves crashing at his feet is laughably the opposite of Leon’s whole vibe.

Leon just seems like the type that listens to coffee shop ambient Youtube videos when he wants to amp himself up. This kid appears to attend a private school...somewhere...I think, and just went to a dueling competition in his school outfit because he literally doesn’t have a style of his own hanging in his closet.

Like Yugi wears his school outfit, but he does that ironically, to off-set the amount of makeup and hair spray he has in his hair. Leon wears the school outfit maybe because he admires Yugi so much, but is like “time for my rogue bow I wear in my hair. That’ll scare my competition.” He completely missed the point of the 00′s alt school outfit scene.

I do way too much art to not see the imagery. I feel like this is half my job, and playing “where’s the hidden Freudian meaning?” is half the fun of going to any art museum.

(read more under the cut)

Anyway, Seto got tired of no one paying any attention to him, so he stepped out of his 14-monitor mancave, he very quickly pulled his Dragon outfit out of the (dirty) laundry, flicked a couple sea crabs out of his pockets, spritzed it with Febreeze and called it “good enough.”

Like, is it just me, or has dragon jacket greyed out a tad from last season? Like it’s starting to get a little...worn? Like what funk is coming off of Seto Kaiba right now?

Also notice that he brought his giant stash of cards to the duel. He’s going to put on this show as if he’s not going to pull out the giant stash of cards. But like...he’s going to pull out the giant stash of cards. Like Hell boring ass Leon is going to play his deck of Candyland characters again.

Leon is declared a winner on Technicality and it’s like.

Damn Seto, for reals?

So congrats, Leon, you did literally nothing, again, and yet you mystifyingly  persist on this show. Clearly you aren‘t going to grow a second head out of that ponytail like professor Quirrel in the last act of this arc.

That’s when Yugi’s hazy memory recalls something from the Before Times of “that time period before I was possessed by a needy ghost that eats up 3/4 of my memories and time.”

So Schroeder is Atari. Neat.

Also, this makes Zigfrieds outfits a hell ton more endearing when you realize he’s this Willy Wonka game company owner making toys for children. Kinda makes you wonder why Seto’s such a stick up the ass in comparison when it’s like--dude Kaiba, maybe you could learn a thing or two about whimsy. It could really help out your inconsistent park.

Anyway, Kaiba quickly realized who hacked the park and so, understandably, he asked Zigried to leave, which...backfired?

Y’all card culture is a lot. Everyone in the audience covered their faces in shame because they were so embarrassed by Seto Kaiba and I’m like...not sure why? Because he didn’t do a duel? Against this guy who snuck into his tourney not unlike Rex and Weevil? This asshole?

Recall that the last time Seto played a guy who had a fake name it was Marik freakin Ishtar and he killed a LOT of people (actually, it was Alister, pretending to be Pegasus, but he also killed a lot of people so that still tracks). Card culture can’t seem to learn from their mistakes, although Seto clearly sees the problem with dueling a professional hacker in a digital card game on a hologram that may or may not be able to murder you. At least its not a magic.

And so, tired of being humiliated on television, Seto decides to bust out the dueling gloves (well, not those gloves. You know what I meant) and use the equipment he BROUGHT WITH HIM and clearly never intended not to use in the first place.

(I hope you enjoy this dutch angle that wasn’t quite dutch enough, so it just looks like they’re lounging)

Roland patiently walks over from...somewhere? I don’t know where Roland comes from whenever he pops up, but he waltzed over to hold onto this suitcase as if that’s a formal part of his job.

I say this so often but like...I don’t know what Roland’s job is. He’s like a valet/butler/duel referee/duel cheerleader/CEO/and I will spend the rest of this series trying to understand it. Part of me is like...could Roland be a temp worker at an agency who just gets rehired for a different Kaiba Corp job every couple of weeks?

That weird ass fourthKaiba, I will never understand Roland.

Just one letter away from being a Zigfriend, Kaiba. Just one letter away. I know this because I misspell friend a LOT.

Zigfreind? Zigfriend? Damn it, both of them look the freakin same to me, this sucks! Why can’t I spell friend without autocorrect!?

Just the amount these two fight when Seto clearly barely even remembers who this guy even is.

Leon shows up in the seats, pretending that he’s totally cool about winning on a technicality right after Zigfried went on a rant about how shameful, irredeemable, and mortally embarrassing winning on technicalities are.

He seems to take it pretty well, smiling, sitting next to Rebecca, and then dissolving right into the background because this kid’s whole deal is being way too nice to exist on this show.

Y’all we just had that art meme where people were redrawing that “How to draw manga face” and guys...that’s what our anime used to look like.

I mean look at that uncomfortable chin there, that tapers in for some reason. Those eyes melting off of her face. The lack of any 3d sense. This was an anime ideal for a very, very long time.

Anyway, the “how to draw manga face” is a perfect masterpiece and never needs to change. (But it is fun to make fun of it although I guess the person that drew it was actually a kid, which makes sense from a publishing perspective to have a kid make a book about how to draw stuff for kids.)

We see a little flashback of Schroeder and why he hates Seto Kaiba, and can I just say, I kind of love this little outfit. Kind of a shame that it’s stuffed into a flashback.

Which is when we found out that Zigfried thinks Seto Kaiba did a plagiarism.

Which is hilarious because it was Gozaburo Kaiba who was plagiarizing Seto, so like...who did it first?

OK guys. Lets talk about this.

APPARENTLY, there was some sort of contest to work with Pegasus...kind of like an architecture contest (which is a thing, when a city is doing a big project, they send out a call, and big firms will compete to see who builds it) and I GOTTA know what Pegasus’ theme was.

Like did he say to all the little rich kid geniuses “I would like something that makes my cards ALIVE, can you do that?” Then when Pegasus got a hell ton of holograms and was he like “But ALIVE--it makes it alive, right boy?” And when he was shaking the hands of each stupid kid was he like “So if I hypothetically put my dead wife on a card and slapped it into the machine--could she EXIST. Like...enough? I just need her to legally exist is all, and not like..literally of course...but enough literally to be a sin against God, can you do that?”

I just want to know if Willy Wonka Wonderkid Von Schroeder had any idea he was creating a resurrection chamber for a dark wizard. Like he has no idea that he dodged getting his business bought straight from under him and his soul shoved into a card. And it’s not like Schroeder was going to abduct Yugi’s Grandpa and ensure that Yugi would be there to save him down the road. Like I’m pretty sure Schroeder would have been sacrificed waaay before that whole island contest even went down.

Zigfried got so freakin lucky. I can’t believe he’s mad. But then again...

...the man swims in milk pools so like...maybe his logic center is busted? Maybe he wanted to die in a horrific murder island? I don't know what Zigfried is into, but I do know that because Zigfried doesn’t have millennium rod powers linking him to the millennium eye--so would it have mattered? There’s destiny reasons that Pegasus chose Kaiba.

Course...we never found out where the scales ended up, have we? We think it’s Shadi, but have we seen Shadi bust those out since Season Zero?

Man that would be a good plot twist that will absolutely not happen.

Yo, make horse guy into a dark wizard, show, I dare you!

Anyway, that’s all for now, but if you want to read from the beginning, here’s the link:

https://steve0discusses.tumblr.com/tagged/yugioh/chrono

#ygo #yugioh #yu gi oh #S5 #Ep10 #Seto Kaiba #Yugi muto #Duke Devlin #Tristan Taylor #Tea Gardner #Mokuba Kaiba #zigfried von schroeder #leon

[twoidiotwriters1]

Written In The Stars CXXXIX (Harry Potter xF!Oc)

A/N: I’m scared to see how you guys will react to this one, hope you at least find it enjoyable despite my very self-indulgent plots -Danny 

P.S. Huge s/o to @bwbatta​ bc I decided to update my fic and now I have pretty dividers in all my books! Most of the ones I ended up using are her work so go check it out :)

Words: 4,641

Series’ Masterlist

Book V // Next Chapter

Listen to: ‘Need Your Love’ -by Joshua Wicker

Chapter One: Dumbledore's Mission.

"A galleon says Erick will crash the car —"

"Shut up!"

"Don't make him nervous," Emily scolded Harry. "If you continue this I won't teach you how to drive!"

"We don't need to learn," Mel snorted. "We'll apparate everywhere..."

"I thought you hated it," Her mother raised a brow.

"Yeah, but she's lazy," Harry smirked.

"Why is Harry here? He's not allowed to leave the house, is he?" Mel frowned.

"He's not allowed to be alone outside, there's a difference. We're babysitting two infants, unfortunately..." Erick taunted.

"What's the matter, Flint? You have stage-fright?" Harry replied.

"Oh please, he feeds on attention! Like a dementor but in a more annoying way..."

"Enough!" Emily looked over her seat. "Is that the kind of things you want to teach your brother?"

"I doubt he'll remember any of this!"

"We know he can do it, Em, we're just teasing," Harry said blithely.

"Yeah, he's the only adult here apart from you, mum. It's kind of his obligation to be good at driving."

The baby let out a squeal of agreement, he was three weeks old but had a good set of lungs that he was happy to use at any given time, especially while everyone was sleeping.

Harry leaned and checked that the baby's blankets. Mel beamed at the sight, the boy had pretty much adopted the boy as his own brother, which she thought made a lot of sense, not only because it was Sirius' son, but because he'd been part of her family for so long that anything else would've been silly.

They were well aware that bringing little Regulus to their driving lessons was a bit risky, but Emily wasn't as keen to leave Mel and Harry alone in the house as she used to, so she put a few safety spells on the chair once the baby was seated while Harry and Mel sat on both sides of it.

Erick turned out to be a good driver, but he still had a bit of trouble understanding how cars worked.

"I have to be pulling and pushing stuff all the time!" He complained as he activated the windshield on accident for the third time. "Why can't I just turn the key and press the pedal?"

"Cars don't work like that," Emily said patiently. "It's complicated, but you're good!"

"He's only gone up and down the street for half an hour, Leggie fell asleep already," The girl huffed.

Emily looked over the seat once again, she was frowning. "Erick, switch seats with Mel."

"You're joking... right?"

"Erick," The woman repeated.

"On it," He said happily. "C'mon Mel, are you scared?"

Ten minutes later, Erick was in the backseat and she was tightly holding onto the wheel.

"I'm doing it!" She said. "Is not that hard, is it?"

"A slug could move faster," Harry was looking at the roof of the car and dying of heat. "I thought you were going to be more... the reckless type of driver."

"Me too..." Erick agreed lazily, he was playing with one of Reggie's feet.

"I'm not going faster, my brother's in the car!" Mel scoffed.

"We're not asking you to! Just enough so we can feel like we're actually moving!"

"Bringing you three was a bad idea," Emily said over the boys' laughter.

"Fine!" Mel pressed down the pedal, the car immediately gaining speed. "I'm was just being careful!"

"Which makes me proud," Emily softly patted her shoulder. "It feels like it was yesterday when you were running around Remus' house in nothing but a diaper and now you're driving!"

"The other night I ran into her wearing no pants, so she's hasn't changed really," Erick murmured nonchalantly. "I stepped on Grey's tail thanks to that... maybe that's why he hates me so much."

"What?" Harry's head snapped to the side so fast he hurt himself.

"I forgot you live here now! Sometimes I sleep like that, s'not a crime!" She looked at Harry through the rearview mirror. "I've been an only child for sixteen years, sometimes I forget there are more than two people in my house..."

"I'm surprised her scream didn't wake up Leon," Erick sniggered.

"He's a heavy sleeper like his dad," Emily responded distractedly.

The conversation died instantly. It wasn't the woman's intention, of course, but it'd been only a few weeks since Sirius' passing, sometimes they would forget for a moment, just a brief second, then one of them would talk about Sirius and everything would start again...

It was painful, and it was weird. Mel had never endured something like this with anyone except Harry. Having a larger group of people sharing the same pain was strangely comforting.

Mel cleared her throat. "It's Harry's turn..."

"I'm okay," He said quickly. "I can learn another day..."

"Glasses, you and I have a tradition of experiencing things at the same time," The girl stopped the car and turned to look at him. "You're not going to ruin our streak. Besides, I need to know if I'm better than you."

Harry stared at her in amusement, then he looked at Erick.

"Is it fun, having her bossing you around all day?"

"I boss her around too," Erick smirked.

"They take turns," Her mother sighed.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Harry gave the woman a look of sympathy as he stepped out of the car.

"There are worse things than being stuck with two pushy teenagers..."

"Hey!"

"Sorry," Emily smirked. "A pushy teenager and a pushy adult."

"If it annoys you that much I'll move out," Mel offered humorously. "What d'you say, Prince? Should we try our luck outside our comfort zone?"

"You wouldn't last a day," Erick taunted.

"Fiddlesticks," Mel muttered, to which Harry laughed.

It was around three in the morning when someone knocked on her door. She'd been awake for a while now, so she stood up and opened it.

"Hi," She rubbed her eyes. "What's up?"

"Can't sleep," Erick mumbled. "Care if I stay a moment?"

"Go ahead..."

She went back to bed, Erick sat at the edge and stared at her for a moment. Grey let out a sleepy growl, curling further away from his reach. Erick pulled out his pocket watch, now hanging from a chain he'd found in Regulus Black's room back in Grimmauld Place. The reason why he'd taken it was unknown to Mel.

"What's up?" She mumbled, suppressing a yawn.

"I'm thinking."

"About?"

"How lucky I am."

Mel let out a puff of air without replying. He would do this often, say he was lucky to be there, that she'd saved his life... She just wanted him to shut up.

"I really don't want to punch you, Prince, I'd ruin your pretty nose."

He smiled, unbothered.

"You know, a few years ago you would've been pleased to hear me say that, you ungrateful git."

"Yeah well, a few years ago my biggest dream was to become a princess," She joked. "So you see my priorities were a bit messed up..."

"You'd make a cute princess."

"C'mon —"

"I mean it."

"Erick," Mel said in a tone of warning. "Stop."

He'd been acting like that for a whole week: flirting when no one was around, complimenting her... Mel had closed up so tightly around herself that she was barely capable of saying I love you to her mum. Erick had lived deprived of affection his whole life and was just getting out of that environment. At what point had she become the cold, distant one, and he the ray of sunshine?

She knew right away what he was trying to do, but she was so numb... Mel cared about him, but she was not there yet.

Erick leaned on the wall and tilted his head a bit so he could look at her.

"I'm sorry."

"Why?" She replied. "It's not your fault... I just — I need time."

He nodded shortly.

"We can talk later?"

He was wonderful, but she was in the middle of all that was wrong in their world, right next to Harry and the lifeline that she still hadn't decided whether she wanted to keep or not.

"We should go to bed," She murmured, still unable to make any real decisions for herself.

"Yeah," He stood up, carefully putting the blankets back in place and dropping them all over Grey on purpose. He put the watch back in his pocket as well. "Sweet dreams, Mely."

The Ministry of Magic

PROTECTING YOUR HOME AND FAMILY AGAINST DARK FORCES

The Wizarding community is currently under threat from an organization calling itself the Death Eaters. Observing the following simple security guidelines will help protect you, your family, and your home from attack.

"I have a better way to protect our house," Erick groaned, he was gently rubbing his temples. "Let Leon cry the whole night and not even Voldemort will try to enter... I myself am starting to consider living on the street just to get away from the noise."

"S'not that bad," She answered, the dark circles under her eyes giving her away. "It's hard to get used to being a human, you know?"

"Look at this," Emily unfolded the newspaper. "'Scrimgeour succeeds Fudge' — Well, haven't met him yet but I hope he's got a bit of brain, Tonks told me a few months back that he's certainly a bit brisker..."

The doorbell rang and Mel left to open the door.

The routine at that point was established even if it had been only two weeks since their arrival; Erick got used to life at Privet Drive quite easily, he spent two whole days examining every corner of the kitchen, and when Mel showed him what a movie was, he wasted a whole day in the drawing-room watching the movie adaptations of the books she'd lent to him.

Harry would go daily to check on"Reg". Once he'd stayed the night but refused to sleep in Mel's room, not that she'd tried to convince him otherwise.

"Goodmorning," She opened the door without paying attention, "you're a bit late for breakfast but I'll let it pass as soon as you —"

She stopped talking at the sight of her great-uncle, Dumbledore smiled at her and walked in.

"I can't stay for breakfast, but I dare say I regret it deeply."

"Professor... I — Is everything okay?"

"Certainly."

"To what do we owe the pleasure?"

Mel turned to see her mother standing near the stairs, gazing at Dumbledore coldly.

"Emily," Dumbledore said. "Good morning... I'm here to speak with Mr Flint."

"Is he in trouble?"

"Quite the contrary, I believe he's never been better."

"Professor," Erick's posture changed when he walked into the room, suddenly he looked more like a young man and less like a boy. "What can I do for you?"

"I have a mission for you... Mel as well, but only if she wishes to go."

"She's not of age," The woman replied quickly.

Mel was ready to accept whatever it was he wanted her to do, she needed to feel like she was doing something. Although she wasn't exactly happy to see him so soon after the end of their last term.

"As I said, only if she wishes to come. I assure you she'd be safe."

The girl looked at her mother and then at the men standing in front of her.

"Can I hear what this is about first?"

Emily crossed her arms without uttering a word, her uncle signalled towards the couch.

"A word, then?"

Erick nodded, making a beeline to the closest armchair. Emily turned to leave, but Dumbledore spoke again.

"You can stay."

The woman shared a look with her daughter, Mel couldn't hide her eagerness to hear what the old man had to say.

"I won't sit there and watch history repeat itself," Emily sighed.

The woman left before Mel could say anything. She would talk to her later, but first, she needed to talk to Dumbledore.

"I beg you not to interrupt me while I speak."

Both pupils silently agreed to his petition.

"Now, I find myself in need of a new Professor, but the man I'd been contemplating for the job has been on the run for almost a year — He's not guilty of any crimes," He added, noticing the way their faces grew worried. "He's just afraid like everyone else... I need you to track him down and point me to where he is so I can have a word with him."

"I'll do it," Erick responded instantly.

"Alone?" Mel frowned.

Dumbledore stared at her for a second too long.

"If I remember correctly today is your sixteenth birthday, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"Mr Flint turned seventeen in January — You may know that's considered to be the start of our adulthood."

"Yes."

"Erick is allowed to do magic outside school... But you still have a year left."

"I don't see  —"

"You have Matthew's spirit when it comes to saving a friend, Mel. When you were eleven you left this house with Hagrid so you could look for Harry yourself... The time has come for me to finally be honest with you."

"What do you mean 'finally'?" The words were burning a hole in her brain. "You mean all the things you told me when I was in your office last month... that wasn't it?"

Erick stared at them with polite interest, even though she knew he was dying to ask. Mel hadn't told him a thing about that night out of respect for Harry's privacy.

"That was all I had to tell you regarding the Harry," Dumbledore replied. "There are plenty of things I haven't said, and I wish to talk about them with you."

"And if I agree to go with Erick on this mission... you'll tell me?" Mel raised a brow.

"I'll tell you whether you help me with this or not, but I believe there's nothing else I can teach you, Mel. All that's left for you is to start putting your knowledge to use; I recommend you to go on this mission."

"What about my animagus lessons?"

"Ah, yes," Dumbledore smiled. "I'll help you with that, but that'll be it. You've concluded your lessons with the highest marks, dear girl."

She would've been elated hadn't been because of the strange way her uncle was acting.

"Aren't you happy?" Erick nudged her arm gently. "You've worked hard for years, you should be proud!"

"I am proud," Mel replied shortly. "And I'd love to help, but I can't leave my family, it's not safe."

"They'd go to the burrow if you leave."

"What about Harry?"

"He'll go to the burrow too, but I have a few matters to attend with his family first."

"If Mel wants to stay that's alright, I can go on my own —"

"You can't."

Erick looked at her irritated.

"It's not like you can do magic outside school."

"It takes more than magic to survive out there — You don't know how to blend in with the muggles, do you?"

"You can discuss this throughout the day," Dumbledore grabbed a letter from his pocket. "In this, you'll find all about Horace Slughorn's last known whereabouts and a picture so you can identify him. If you do, don't approach, he'll know you're following him. As soon as you find him come back to Privet Drive and write to me."

"This is all just in case we decide to go, right?"

"I'm going," Erick scowled at her.

"We'll talk about this after dinner," She glared back.

Dumbledore stood up and they followed, Emily was at the entrance ready to let him out.

"I'll wait for your response, then," Her uncle stared at her for a moment. "You and Harry..."

"We haven't decided," She was quick to reply. "We need time."

"Very well."

"You're quiet."

"I have a lot to think about."

Her day had been slightly ruined by her great-uncle's visit. Although Lupin had been there for a couple of hours and stayed for dinner. Mel and Erick talked about the mission and she'd promised to tell Harry after the party was over, which was now.

The Slytherin was upstairs taking a shower and Emily was putting Reggie to bed. Mel and Harry were sitting on the grass, watching the stars above them. She'd fallen into contemplative silence, pondering what to do. She could go chase some stranger for Dumbledore's benefit, or she could stay and look after her family.

"This would be much easier if my mum had asked me to stay!" She pouted.

"I reckon she knows that," Harry responded, throwing small rocks over the fence.

"Won't you?"

"Hmm?"

"You won't ask me to stay?"

Harry stared at her.

"No."

He didn't explain his reasons, but he didn't need to. Mel had made up her mind even if she didn't want to admit it. That was exactly why she was so upset, she wanted to look after her family, but her responsibilities were keeping her apart. Three years of hard work had led to this, and although Mel was a big sister now, winning the war was more important than changing diapers.

Her mother was a whole different problem too. Around them she was always cheery, but Mel was sure she'd heard her cry when none of the boys was around to hear.

She believed it was about Sirius, but it could also be about her and Harry, that she was scared for them. Mel didn't have the heart to lie if her mother were to ask about the prophecy. It was, as they had agreed without even having to speak about it, too much weight to put on their loved one's shoulders. The idea of Emily, the closest thing to a mother Harry ever had, finding out there was a big chance one of them would die after having lost Sirius in such a brutal way...

"I don't think I'll be able to look at Dumbledore in the eye if I come back empty-handed..."

"You're one of the best witches I know," Harry shrugged. "You'll be fine, just try not to murder Flint while you're away."

"He's less annoying now," She grinned. "Ever since he left his parents' house, dunno, he's improved. Although I might murder him if he doesn't stop —"

She was going to say 'flirting', but for some reason, she didn't feel ready to talk about that with Harry. She wasn't ready for anything and yet the world was forcing her to keep moving, it was exhausting.

Mel got up and offered her hand to her friend.

"Do you remember when you were just Harry and I was just Mel, and we were the odd kids at school?" She fixed her gaze on her bedroom window. "Wish we could go back to that."

"When I didn't know I was a wizard?"

"Things were easier back then, don't you think?"

"Maybe," He retorted. "But they were never entirely good."

In Harry, Mel found another reason to stay.

They could have the summer to talk about the things they needed to. She would stare at his aged features and compare them to the ones of that young boy she used to call her best friend...

Their bond still had thousands of cracks that had to be fixed, Mel was having a hard time letting him in again and they needed to be okay in order to know if they wanted to keep the lifeline or not. It wasn't that she didn't want to like him, she wanted the comfort he used to provide, the warmth and security of having someone who understood.

He knew it, and he was trying his best to not mess it up, but Mel didn't want to love him again, cutting the lifeline was the best way to assure that... It was easier said than done, though.

Harry was confused. Sometimes it felt like nothing would ever happen, then an overwhelming affection would crush his chest whenever Mel laughed or touched him. He didn't want to put a name to it, he was terrified of saying it, even to himself. All he knew was that the connection was a way to make sure Mel would be safe, and he didn't want to give that up.

"I should go."

"Yeah..."

"Happy birthday," He said. "I have to be honest and tell you that your present was meant to be sent last Christmas, but..."

"I didn't give you a present either, it's okay... I'm a bit angry though, that was a missed opportunity, I could've won."

Harry laughed.

"You'll have a new chance this year, but I doubt you'll be able to beat me — I've already gotten yours..."

"It's July!"

"I know," His smile vanished suddenly, then he added. "Be careful out there, please."

"Erick'll make sure I don't do anything stupid," Mel smiled. "He's so obsessed with protecting me — as if he didn't know I can do it alone just fine!"

"Yeah, but now's different."

"Different how?"

"We need you alive," He told her. "You want to live long enough to become Headmistress, right?"

Mel froze, not knowing what to answer.

"What?" Harry tilted his head.

"I lied," She blurted out. "I never wanted to be Headmistress — I saw you that night, in the mirror... I saw..."

"What?" He asked again, this time softer.

"You kissed me. A real kiss... like the type we used to gawk at as children."

Harry cleared his throat. "Oh."

A tense silence surrounded them. The variations of colour in his eyes were remarkably easy to notice from where she was standing. She was tilting her head up now, perhaps they were too close.

"Be careful."

"You told me that already," Mel whispered, unable to look away. "Anything else you'd like to say?"

"Yes," He paused, his eyes took a quick glance to her lips. "But if I say it you'll get mad."

Harry kissed her, Mel responded by pulling him down.

It was hard to tell whether she was euphoric or scared, perhaps both, or perhaps neither. As soon as it happened Harry jumped away, and she was dropped back into reality.

"I can't do it — We haven't talked about  the lifeline — We won't make the right choice if we let our feelings —"

"You're right! Yes!" Mel said, acting just as agitated. "It's a terrible idea — I like you, but—"

"—it's confusing," He said anxiously. "Do you have feelings for me?"

"Do you have feelings for me?" Mel asked in a high-pitched voice.

"No!" He responded, but his voice trembled with a lack of confidence. "I care about you a lot —"

"— I care for you too —"

"— But just —"

"— as friends!"

They stared at each other with the same frightened expression.

"I'm sorry if I made things uncomfortable," He groaned, running a hand through his hair. "I... I don't want to lose you."

"We need to spend some time apart," She nodded, avoiding his eyes. "We can ignore this happened, right?"

"Absolutely," He agreed. "You're spending the summer at the burrow?"

"My mum and my brother will be there, so I kind of have to... is that okay?"

"It's okay," Harry looked around. "We... we should go."

"Did you ever regret falling for my dad?" Mel asked randomly. "I mean, you ever wonder how things would've turned out if you'd stayed as friends?"

Emily stopped folding her clothes.

"Something nagging that head of yours?"

"I think relationships are a waste of time. They all break and you always end up hurting..."

"What makes you think such nonsense?" Emily raised a brow, leaning back on the couch. "Who are you and what did you do to my daughter?"

"You don't think that way?" She asked doubtfully.

"Because I lost my partners that means I have to be bitter?"

"I didn't mean it like that," Mel replied quickly. "But... yeah."

Emily remained silent for a moment, gathering her thoughts.

"Solitude can do weird things to your heart, love. It can pull you towards bad or good places... People that make you feel a little less lonesome, someone who understands you. You should hold onto that for as long as you can, no matter how scary it is. You never know what wonderful things may bring you..."

"Sirius said something similar a year ago," Mel said quietly. "Something about finding my equal, that the earth's full of options and stuff..."

"I won't force you to find a partner if that's not what you want, but you're young and the world is big, you can't turn your back on every opportunity."

"It's not like I have lots of prospects right now..." She huffed.

"You don't need lots, just the right one."

Mel hesitated for a moment, then added:

"I know you used to have a crush on James Potter."

Emily looked up from the laundry again, she raised a brow. "Oh?"

"I know it was a long time ago," She shifted in her place awkwardly. "But do you ever wonder what would've happened if you two..?"

The woman sighed.

"Only once."

"When?"

"When I found out Voldemort was after his son," She folded the last shirt and handed it to Mel. "I asked myself if I had made the right choice by giving him up... When I look at you I know it was the right thing to do. What happened to James and Lily... it was horrible, but it wasn't my fault. I was happy with your father; maybe Matthew wasn't my first love, but when it comes to this, your first love rarely is the one that lasts."

"Mel?" Erick walked into the room. "If we're planning to drive around all day tomorrow, you should sleep," He nodded shortly at both of them and left the room, her mother chuckled.

"You know, Erick reminds me of your father... I know Sirius said he was like his brother, but Regulus made all the wrong choices... Erick's done all this for himself, to be better. Just like Matty."

Mel's gaze lingered on the doorway long after Erick had left.

"Thank you, for letting me go," She sighed, looking back at the woman. "I don't love following Dumbledore's orders but I... I want to make this world a better place."

"Love," Emily cupped her face adoringly. "I know why you're doing this. Just how I knew why you flew that car to save Harry, and why you went to the Ministry... but you're my daughter, and it's my job to worry about you anyway."

Erick and Mel took three changes of clothing and put them in the trunk, Emily gave them muggle money. Mel had a fake driver's license as well as Erick, and they would take turns driving. Harry was nowhere to be seen, but it was expected since it was five in the morning. She hadn't mentioned the kiss to either her mother or Erick, she was determined to keep it that way, much like the whole lifeline stuff and the prophecy.

'Just pile more secrets on top, why don't you,' She thought bitterly as she walked out of the house.

Emily hugged both and let them kiss Reggie goodbye, Mel promised they would see each other soon, and Erick vowed he'd make sure Mel would be safe (she snorted loudly at this). Once inside the car, her friend took a deep breath.

"Ready?"

"This isn't our first adventure, Prince."

"This one's the first we do with permission."

"You're an adult, you don't need anyone's approval."

"You know what I mean," He rolled his eyes.

"Sorry. I get defensive when I'm —"

"I know," He sighed. "I talk too much when I'm worried."

"I know," She put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed lightly. "I'm ready... We'll be okay."

Next Chapter —>

Taglist.

@dee123ksha @vampiregirl1797 @siriuslysirius1107 @stardusthigh @mikariell95 @vernon-dursley @thesuitelifeofafangirl @tomshollandz @wlwmaximoff @reverse-hxlland @hamiltonwc @omiwashere @t-rexs-world @just-here-to-escape-from-reality @21bruhs @i-am-scared-and-useless-bisexual @dielgonacoffee @thelastpyle

#twoidiots writing #hp fanfic #Harry Potter #harry potter xoc #harry potter fanfiction #WITT fic

[lyranova]

Leon and Alistar

Hi guys! So here’s Part 1 of a co-op fic of mine and @thoughtfullyrainynightmare ! We had to split it into 2 parts because it was so long 😅! Anyway hope you all enjoy~! Also this isn’t edited very well my apologies!

Word Count: 3,034

Taglist: @eme-eleff @jovialnoise @simpingforthisonedeer @succulentsunrise

Warnings: None

———

Clouds floated through the blue sky as people started gathering at the training grounds of Magic Knights' headquarters. New squad members had been admitted to the squads once more this year, but for most of them it was a day off.

However, that wasn't the case for these knights, who had been off on the evaluation day, since their parents had admitted them to the squad even without partaking into the exam. And this training took place for the purpose of bringing together the next generation of potential squad captains, or those who'd otherwise most likely end up in prominent roles in the kingdom.

The young knights were no strangers to each other; having passed each other by because of their parents' relationships, but this would be the first day of properly training together. Training and building towards a a more unionized generation of Magic Knights, where the robe you wore wouldn't be a stigma, creating "us or them" mentality within the knight ranks.

The Wizard King and Magic Knight Captains considered it one step closer to realizing their dreams of making one unified society. Alistar Vangeance, son of the Golden Dawn’s Captain, was the first to arrive at the Magic Knights HQ for this ‘bonding’ exercise. He admittedly thought it was a good idea, but he was a little hesitant as he didn’t know much about the other children except for Hikari. He leaned against one of the walls in the room as he watched the other children enter one by one, the Captains were all seated in the gallery above so they could get a bird’s eye view of the exercise.

“ Hm I wonder why the Vermillion kids are?” Hikari asked suddenly, making Alistar look at her. All the other children were there except for them.

“ Maybe they’re just running late?” He shrugged simply before the doors opened to reveal the Vermillion twins. Leonidas and Cyraleona.

“ Sorry we’re late, we got held up in the city, it won’t happen again.” Leonidas promised as his sister nodded in agreement. Fuegoleon sat down in his seat quickly as well.

Alistar admittedly had only met the two in passing and was usually very polite. As the orange haired young man walked past him Alistar nodded politely.

“ Leonidas.” The young man turned and nodded politely as well.

“ Alistar.”

Cyraleona quirked an eyebrow at her brother. He was keeping it civil, but there was something about the exchange that seemed tense, more so than usually. It was supposed to be about building better relations, but instead it seemed, at that moment, more as if both of them being prepared to defend their family honour.

"Hikari,"" she acknowledge with a smile while glancing at the raven haired girl next to Alistair, in the hopes of gently nudging her brother.

"Hi," Hikari greeted back. "Nice day, isn't it? Training is much more fun when it's not pouring down."

"Yes," Leonidas agreed with a small nod, glancing at Hikari and giving her a polite smile.

"Indeed," Alistair agreed as well, doing the same.

A moment of silence hung in the air as the grown-ups talked amongst themselves on the balcony; probably going through the day's agenda.

"I wonder what will be in store for the day," Hikari pondered out loud. "I can't imagine we'll be sparring for the whole day."

Alistar shrugged as he also looked up toward the adults. He was sure they probably had more planned then just fighting, especially since they kept calling it a ‘bonding’ experience. He noticed the Vermillion twins doing the same.

“ I would like to think it’ll be more than training. But who knows with our parents, especially since they do like to surprise us every now and then with something unexpected.” He chuckled and Hikari nodded.

“ They’ll probably have us start out with sparring and maybe even have us go out on a mock mission or something to test our skills as a team.” Cyrleona said softly as she turned to look back at the small group. Leonidas nodded.

“ That would be the smartest move, pair up two people to spar against one another and then make them have to work together.” Alistar placed a hand thoughtfully under his chin.

“ You sound like you know a lot more about this than you’re letting on.” Alistar meant it to come off as a joke, but it came out more like a serious statement. He watched Leonidas’s eyes narrow a bit before Hikari sighed beside him.

“ Well if that’s the case I hope I’m not paired up with you Alistar,” Hikari said quickly changing the subject. “ As your bodyguard I’m meant to protect you, not hurt you.”

As Alistar went to open his mouth to reply he watched as all the adults stood at the balconies edge and faced their children

"Listen up you brats," Yami was the first to speak up as he let his gaze travel around the room freely, but still looking at Hikari fondly for a brief second. "We have a full day planned ahead for you, so listen first and ask questions second."

Charlotte glanced at him from the corner of her eye, clearly disagreeing with his choice of words. But. He had always been like that, and though he was much more gentle around their kids, he hadn't changed the way he spoke to other's kids.

"Thank you Yami," William smiled at him. "I believe we all know why where here, so we can skip right through to the events of the day. You can probably guess that our aim isn't to only have you train in combat, but also grow in other areas of life."

Hikari could see a faint smirk pass over Alistair's lips as his father spoke the word 'grow'. But the moment only lasted for a fraction of a second, and no one else had noticed.

"You will begin the day by sparring in pairs, and to avoid our personal opinions on who should train with whom, we'll be drawing lots for the pairs," Fuegoleon continued. "And after you have sparred, you'll be partaking on a treasure hunt with your peer."

"A treasure hunt?" Cyra mumbled to herself. Her voice was full of surprise and spoken with a delicate tone, one that no one but the four of them could most likely hear.

“ Now,” Charlotte began as she stepped forward with a small goblet full of lots with the childrens names on them. One by one the Captain’s pulled out the names written on them. Alistar partially hoped he would be training with Hikari, but a small piece of his heart protested; he didn’t want to fight her, ever. Because that meant he could possibly hurt her.

“ Alistar Vangeance,” Yami suddenly announced as he looked at the lot with the white haired boy’s name on it. He hoped beyond hope the next lot would be Hikari’s, but his hopes were dashed when Yami read. “ Leonidas Vermillion.”

The two teens looked at each other with wide eyes as did the young girls. None had been expecting that. Alistar couldn’t even remember what Leonidas’s affinity was and Leonidas happened to be thinking the same thing.

Leonidas and Alistar quickly looked up towards the adults and saw the looks on their father’s faces; there was no way out of this.

“ Which leaves Hikari and Cyraleona as the last pair, we’ll be calling your names randomly to start the sparring matches.” William announced and the kids went off in their pairs. Hikari looked at Alistar apologetically and quickly mouthed ‘you’ll be ok!’ before going off with Cyraleona.

“ Well you were right; our parents do like to surprise us.” Leonidas told him before walking away and Alistar nodded in agreement before following after him to a nearby corner where they stood somewhat uncomfortably next to each other as they watched the other kids spar when their names were being called.

They walked up to the training grounds, standing on opposite side of the arena and looking at each other. Alistair took out his grimoire, leaving Leon wonder if he should do the same.

‘I've just finished crafting it, and I've been fine until now... But mom always says that I shouldn't rely on more simple spells at all times.’ He thought to himself, seeing Alistair frown.

‘Why isn't he taking out his grimoire? He does intend to use spells, right?’ His gaze shifted for a moment to the adults who hadn't yet given them permission to start the battle.

At the side of the field, Cyraleona couldn't help but lean a bit forward, while trying to keep herself otherwise composed. Leonidas hadn't yet shown her his grimoire, and he had used a good while in the process of making it in the first place. Thus, she couldn't help but feel the flicker of excitement of probably seeing him fight with it for the first time.

‘No... I think I can manifest it during the battle if need be. Because your grimoire is your lifeline, right? Any attacks to it would mean certain death, right? Because Cloverians' life is connected into their grimoires while for Theans it's a manifestation of their powers, right? And I'm both, so I can't say for certain.’ He took a deep breath and set his mind to the task.

"Oy-oy Vermillion. What's up with your boy?" Yami asked on the balcony. "He's not taking out his grimoire."

"It's something he gets from his mother's side," Fue only commented. "I can't say that I agree with it, but it's his choice to make."

William frowned at Fuegoleon’s comment but didn’t say anything, he just turned to look back at the battle. Alistar looked calm and relaxed, but those that knew him knew better; he was anticipating his attack. Possibly even trying to guess what the young Vermillions first move would be.

“ You may begin!” Nozel shouted suddenly just as Alistar tilted his head curiously.

‘Let’s see what you’ve got, Vermillion.’ He instantly flipped through the pages of his grimoire as he finally landed on a spell. He smiled slightly before it disappeared, this would probably be his safest bet to try since he didn’t know what magic to use.

“ World Plant Creation Magic; Ice-Plant’s entanglement!” He watched as the fire resistant plant began to spring up from the floor and tried to wrap around Leonidas.

The boys began to dodge and maneuver around the arena as they cast offensive and defensive spells at one another. Hikari watched with a smirk on her face; he was giving Alistar a run for his money, the only one she had seen ever give him this much of a challenge was herself.

‘Come on Alistar you’ve got this! Push past your limits!’ She cheered internally, she wanted her best friend to succeed.

“ Your sons doing a very fine job Fuegoleon.” William complimanted, Fuego smiled and nodded.

“ As is yours. We raised two very capable mages I think.” Fuego said as his son sent another spell towards the young Vangeance

"Burning Sun Magic; Sunrays!" He called out while shooting scorching rays at Alistair.

‘Damn it! I can't win like this. This isn't Thea so I don't have a nearly endless pool of mana from which to draw. He's going to run out of mana too if we keep this up, but then it'll be a question of which runs out first. And relying on the 'chance' that it'd be him, would be just bad tactics.’ He took the moment he had while Alistair was dodging his attack to collect his mana, and manifest his grimoire before him.

"Hm?" Yami hummed while leaning closer. "He's creating a grimoire?"

"'Creating' wouldn't be the correct term to use here," Fuegoleon commented. "He has had his grimoire for a few months now, but for some reason he refuses to use it."

William glance at Fuegoleon, unsure of how to feel because of the explanation. But if Leonidas indeed refused to use his grimoire freely then that must've meant that Alistair had forced him to do so. And that could be counted as a compliment, right?

Leon collected mana, as if waves of pure energy collecting in his hands. And as soon as it had formed into a shape of a book, he let the pages flutter open as he called out: "Burning Sun magic; Heat wave!"

The arena became flooded with scorching, burning mana, while Leon spoke out: "I might not be able to burn your plants. But they can still wilt, right? And even if your magic won't, the 'you' can get dehydrated, right?"

‘This is my safest bet. I might not be able to hit him, but if he can't get far enough from my spell's reach, then he has to go all out and maybe, maybe exhaust himself.’ Leonidas thought.

———

Alistar and Leonidas stood there listening as the Captain’s explained the Treasure hunt. Both had fainted from excessive mana use, which was somewhat embarrassing, but not as embarrassing as Hikari chewing Alistar out for it in front of everyone, while Cyraleona had gently scolded her twin. Fuego and William both shook their heads in disapproval, but their battle ending in a draw meant two things; one, that they were evenly matched, and two they both still had a lot to learn.

“ Now the rules are simple; each team has a map and a compass, you are not allowed to use mapping spells as not every mage has one. You have 2 hours to find the treasure, if no one finds it then it will be a draw.” Vangeance explained quickly.

“ Your time begins now.” Fugeo announced and each team went off in different directions.

Alistar glanced over at Leonidas as they went off in the direction the compass led them, he gave Leonidas the compass while he held the map. They walked silently for the most part, saying a few coordinates here and there.

“ What does this thing even look like?” He muttered and the orange haired male shrugged.

“ Like a box I assume.��� Leonidas muttered as well, both were feeling a little defeated at their sparring match, but maybe if they found the treasure before anyone else would make up for it. Alistar for sure wanted to find it before Hikari, they had made a small bet that the losing team would have to do whatever the winning team asked for an entire day.

"I really thought that they would have had something more... intellectually stimulating in store for us...." Alistair muttered to himself as they continued forward.

"Yeah..." Leonidas agreed. "Something more than travel an X amount of miles to a given distance and dig up a box would have been nice."

"If it even is a box," Alistair frowned while looking at the map in his hand.

"What else could it possibly be? It has to be something small enough for us to carry, right?" Leonidas shrugged again while looking at the white haired male.

"That's true," Alistair admitted. "But the girls went to the opposite direction, so we aren't competing for the same treasure. That has to mean something."

They shared a glance as they both thought about what it could possibly mean while a silence settled into the air.

"How far is it supposed to be?" Leonidas asked after a while of pondering.

"Well, given how much we've moved during this time, I'd say half an hour more," Alistair commented.

"You think it could be a dungeon, or is it an open area?" Leonidas asked, wanting to have a better idea of what they'd be instore for.

"I don't think it really qualifies as a dungeon, but there might be a structure nearby it."

“ Hm,” Alistar looked around before he started walking again. “ they would want it to be concealed but not too concealed where we can’t find it.” He muttered looking around.

“ How about that building over there? It looks like the perfect spot.” Leonidas pointed toward a small, half standing building in the distance. It was in an open area but behind it stood dark woods, an ambush could easily be inside. The two boys quickly made their way towards it slowly.

“ Be cautious; we don’t know what we’re in for.” Alistar said and the orange haired boy nodded in agreement, Alistar and Leonidas stood still for a few moments. Both trying to sense if there was mana inside the building.

“ It’s faint, but it’s there.” Leonidas said as he looked towards the white haired boy who nodded.

“ Yeah, someone’s in there. But it feels like one person so I think we can take them.” Alistar said thoughtfully before the two boys rushed in and saw...nothing?

“ Hm this is odd, why do we feel mana but there isn’t a single person here?” Leonidas mused as he looked around, Alistar shrugged as he walked to the center of the room where the “treasure” sat.

“ Well, this is anticlimatic.” Alistar chuckled. “ I was hoping it would be something *more* then just a box-.” He didn’t get to finish his sentence as they were attacked suddenly by people in bandits robes.

“ Ah I should’ve know; our parents wouldn’t make getting the treasure that easy.” Leonidas chuckled as he and Alistar began to fight off the “bandits”.

Luckily it was the two of them against three, and since they knew it to be a fake fight, the battle didn't take long. And, as suspected, the "bandits" turned out to be members of their parents' squads. ‘Too easy’ Alistair and Leon thought to themselves.

They were able to grab the box, which was a simple wooden one, seemingly nothing much on it. There was only a faint glow of mana from it, almost as if long forgotten, dormant mana.

"Should we still see what's inside of it?" Leon thought out loud.

Alistair turned his head for a moment before shrugging. "Well it's not against the rules, so suppose there's no harm in it."

The two halted their steps to inspect the box. The lock of it didn't pose any problems to them, so it didn't take long for the two of them to crack open the lid to reveal... an image of a red herring.

———

Part 2 will be posted shortly! Thank you guys for reading and I hope you all have a good day~!

#black clover fanfic #oc fanfic #oc; alistar #oc; leonidas #leonidas is not my oc #oc; hikari #hikari is not my oc #oc; cyraleona #cyraleona is not my oc #william vangeance #fuegoleon vermillion

[elishamanning]

Now I've listened to the whole podcast (not that long this time) and OMG, Christoph Kramer please marry me!!! I completely understand Manu's heart eyes, and Leon's, if he's always like that (and he sounds completely authentic). First of all he's a few minutes late because he was playing cards with a player from the U21. They're talking about the Bayern game, obviously, and how important was knowing Yann Sommer was behind them, outdoing himself? Suddenly Chris is gushing about "beautiful Yann in his hot navy-blue jersey, everything about him perfect, everything on point that evening, not a hair out of place, you could tell it would be a great night for him". (you can practically hear the twinkle in his eyes) At another point in the podcast talking about how Flo Neuhaus is so photogenic and usually looks great in photos, but how the wizards from the media department even made himself look good on the autograph cards, him, who's the opposite of photogenic! "There are photos of me... you can't imagine!" and always getting nervous when a photo's about to be taken, "because you want to do something, and I always fail" Like, he went to the Supercup with some friends and they wanted to take a selfie to send to another friend and "...well, let's say we sent it anyway" hahaha. Knippi says he gets Chris' problem there, ChriKra "Oh, but you have such a lovely profile!" (Flo N meanly keeps confirming how bad ChriKra is on/with having his picture taken) They talk about the Bayern game, obviously, and in detail, the game itself, blablabla. Anyway, Chris loved - and Flo agrees - Knippi introducing them while they were out on the pitch "hearing the fans shout your name, the best feeling ever. Was that your idea?" Knippi says, no, that was only because of the whole entertainment programme they had to get through for the season opener. They're disappointed. Chris: "But can't you keep it like that? Like draw the whole stuff out to do the lineup when we're already out? While we're still in you could tell jokes or something!" Knippi says "Sat1 (TV channel) is back in the football business (they used to have the BuLi rights in the 90s and then not for a long time), how did you like that? Do you even care?" C "Not really, but it's all too much, I think! I wanted to watch Bundesliga on the weekend so turned on Sky and waited and wondered why it didn't start, turns out DAZN has the rights now for the Sunday matches. The next tournament will be on RTL or something? It's too much!" "So you don't care who does the post-match interviews?" "Not really, no. They're all... well of course when you get Ecki Heuser and you think 'now please don't ask me the mentality question on the first matchday of the season!'" HAHAHAHA "I think it should all be on ZDF!" Flo and Knippi laugh. C: "Yes, well. I do." Gushing about Bela Réthy. "I don't usually agree with him, but just his voice! I just associate it with football, and with great tournaments and excitement! If he wanted to read me a bedtime story every night, I wouldn't mind." The anniversary of Chris' first BuLi goal. "Oh yes I saw that on our social media." Flo "Yes, what did they caption it as? 'Not beautiful but important'?" Chris: "'Not beautiful but rare'" Flo "HAHA, EVEN better!" (He is so mean to him and Chris is so nice to *him*) Anyway. Chris reminisces about that moment and says he was sooo happy, he nearly cried. Like, he really had to swallow thickly, but then Flaco jumped on his back and everybody was roaring and he roared along with them, but he was... sooo happy. Then Flo remembers his first goal. (Chris also remembers it in detail, the opponent and the game itself. "First you assisted Papi (=Raffael), then you scored yourself.") Knippi: "Did you also nearly cry?" Flo: "No, of course not, I was more happy." Chris "I was happy, too!" Flo: "But you talked about crying!" "Yeah, crying from happiness? Don't you know that feeling, when you're so happy the tears start coming?" Flo "No." HAHAHAHA

Okay. I have to go to bed and this has already gotten too long. But anyway. Christoph Kramer, I love you. He's amazing. And the other two are great, too.

omg thank you so much for this he’s so wonderfulllll

"beautiful Yann in his hot navy-blue jersey, everything about him perfect, everything on point that evening, not a hair out of place, you could tell it would be a great night for him"

lmaooo chrikra obsessing over how beautiful yann is is literally all of us (as it should be tbh)

the opposite of photogenic

chrikra if you aren’t photogenic i’m almost afraid of how pretty you must be in person

'now please don't ask me the mentality question on the first matchday of the season!'

god i hope he wasn’t stuck doing any post match interviews today lol

Chris "I was happy, too!" Flo: "But you talked about crying!" "Yeah, crying from happiness? Don't you know that feeling, when you're so happy the tears start coming?" Flo "No." HAHAHAHA

lmaoooo i relate chrikra i cry with basically every extreme emotion haha

they’re really just both so wonderful i love them a lot

#answered #anonymous #christoph kramer #florian neuhaus #thank youuuuuuuuu

[ittybittywordsmith]

Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story

August 2nd, 2014 — the 43rd anniversary of the death of Leon Reynolds.

This day was always the hardest. Even as it had gotten easier, even as time had done its sacred duty and healed her wounds, it was still the hardest day of the whole year. Aurora preferred to take the day to herself. Her children would have accompanied her, if she had allowed it — Circe knew that they, perhaps even more so that herself, deserved that right, but they respected their mother's wishes for peace and tranquility. Sometimes others would be there when she arrived, or would join her shortly after, but over the years, they had all dropped away quietly. All but one. But today — today Aurora could see no one waiting for her. That was fine. Some conversations were best had in private, were they not? The August air was warm as Aurora walked through the grounds of Elysium, the light breeze whistling softly through the lush green grass that surrounded tombstones and grave markers. Elysium was a beautiful place, for a cemetery. It wasn't where Aurora would have wanted her husband to be buried, but Leon had been an American hero as well as a wizarding spy, and it turned out national security still took priority in her husband's life, even after death. It took her several minutes of walking by names that had grown so familiar to her over the years, she could recite them off the tip of her tongue without ever having seen the faces they belonged to. Men and women who all died around the same time, who all gave their lives and sometimes their deaths for their people and their countries. Aurora had never learned their stories. She didn't need to. They each had their own to mourn them, after all, and she'd had her fill of tragedy without adopting theirs. So Aurora continued to walk, until she found the headstone she'd been visiting for more years than she'd even been married.

Leon Reynolds. December 9th, 1937 - August 2nd, 1971. Beloved friend, husband, and father. A hero to us all. A sigh escaped Aurora's lips — the same sigh she had been carrying around in her chest for the last forty-three years, it felt like — and she folded her hands across her abdomen. "Hello, darling. I know it's been awhile. . ." 

When Aurora was twelve, she met Leon Reynolds for the first time, in a tussle with her eldest brother on the streets outside her family estate. Leon was a strange boy — grubby and skinny, with a touch of wildness about him that called to something deeper inside her. Aurora chased off her brother before he could do too much damage to this strange wild boy, and together, they ran so fast that Aurora thought her feet might very well lift right off the ground without the help of a broom at all. And just like that, he became her strange wild boy, and if her brother ever wanted to knock him to the ground again, he had to go through her. 

"The children are doing well. I knew you'd want to know." Aurora spoke conversationally as she pulled the bouquet of dying flowers from the vase that had been sitting in front of her husband's gravestone for more than a decade now. The flowers had once been lovely, with large white petals — daisies, perhaps, although she didn't have an intimate enough knowledge of flowers to be certain — but they had wilted long ago, the petals beginning to curl into a dry and dismal brown. Aurora had no idea who had brought them here. Not herself, she was reasonably certain, but it could have easily been Celeste or Castor, or any of the number of random individuals she'd met throughout the years that had attributed their lives or their loved ones' lives to some action or another of Leon Reynolds. Aurora had never tried to keep track of them — the grief had been hard enough, back then, without the reminder that there were absolute strangers who knew more about that part of her husband's life than she did. "Celeste is still drawing star charts, though I find myself wondering if she will give it up any day now. New Orleans was a good place for her to settle — bright and vivacious, just like her, and just like you, really — but now that the children are all readying to leave the nest, I can see her growing antsy." Aurora twirled her wand around the vase, conjuring a new bouquet of deep red roses yet to bloom. She gave the flowers a tap, and a charm to extend their limited shelf life shimmered over the petals. It was a tidy bit of spellwork — if there was anything Aurora had learned by spending half her life in a school, it was how to keep her magic tidy. "If that husband of hers isn't careful, she'll drag him out to Timbuktu before he even knows what hit him." Aurora pulled a cloth from within her robes and began to wipe the dust from the vase. "Meanwhile Castor has thrown himself into his astrolabes. He seems to think he's on the verge of developing a new model that will nearly double how far we can project accurate astrological readings. I swear, that boy sends me a new letter about it twice a week. He's considering seeking a new patent for it." Aurora clicked her tongue and shook her head as she adjusted the vase, centering it against the headstone. She tilted her head just slightly for a moment, considering, before she gave a small, self-satisfied smile. "Still — our son, the inventor of a new and improved way to read our universe? Wouldn't that be something." 

When Aurora was fifteen, she was in love with Leon Reynolds. Despite being two years older, that Reynolds boy was as good as Aurora's shadow, or so whispered the teachers at school. Aurora didn't mind. Leon still had a wildness to him, and being near it reminded Aurora that there was more to her than star charts and ink stains and her mother's expectations. Her greatest fear was June, when he would leave her behind in these cold stone walls forever, whatever he promised about summers and letters to be sent. But no matter how slow time seems, it never stops, and the day came and went. Aurora kissed him after he crossed the graduation stage before she let him go. A few days later she returned to her home estate and waited on the humid streets just outside, but her strange wild boy didn't come back that day, or for a very long time. 

"The grandchildren are all growing like weeds — I'm sure you're not surprised, but still, it manages to catch me off guard all the time, and I see them more often than most grandmothers can claim, I think." Aurora had moved on to dusting the headstone herself. There was no need, really — either magically or otherwise, Elysium was well maintained, gravestones included — but still, it made Aurora feel better. Like there was something she could still do for her late husband. "You would be proud. Little Fae is busy working for Spirito Santo. Jeanne Marie is off putting her chaotic energy to professional use — much to Celeste's relief. I thought maybe she'd worry herself into an ulcer there for a little while. You'd think she'd have more sympathy now for how difficult it was when she was a teenager, but Celeste doesn't seem to enjoy the irony." Aurora smiled to herself as she brushed away a fallen leaf from a corner of the headstone. "Then again, I remember you used to get a little surly too, whenever I was right. And she certainly is your daughter." It was almost funny, how personality traits like that could manifest on their own. Celeste was her father's daughter, and Castor his father's son, but between them they could hardly manage a single coherent memory of Leon Reynolds. "Castor's twins graduated school this year. Calypso's ready to go out and grab the world by the horns — clever as the devil and twice as pretty, that one is. She looks so much like my mother, have I ever told you that? And Cassiopeia is going into professional quodpot. Do you remember the fights that you and Orion used to get into? You swore up and down that quodpot was the world's most useless sport — but oh, darling, how you would change your tune if you could see your granddaughter in the sky now. She's a natural — that part, at least, I'm certain she didn't get from you." Aurora sighed again, and pulled away from the headstone. It was perfectly clean now — had been clean in the first place, if that were something she was willing to admit, but now there wasn't anything Aurora could even pretend to tidy. "The others are still in school. Auriga, and Lucian, and Aquila. Even little Fox will start in a week or two. But before you know it, I'll be here again in a blink of the eye, telling you about how they're all making their way into the world themselves, young and proud and full of life. Like you and I did, not so long ago. Time is funny that way, isn't it?" 

When Aurora was eighteen, she found Leon Reynolds mulling around the streets outside her family estate, casual as sin and waiting for her like it was just any other summer day from their childhood. Like there hadn’t been almost four years of absence, of grief and yearning and silence between them. Aurora had slapped him, quick and hard as she could manage, a burst of wildness that had suddenly returned to her after vanishing without a trace more than three years ago. She’d pushed him away — and then just as quickly, pulled him back, wanting nothing more than for her strange wild boy to make up for the years he should have spent touching her. 

"They would have come, if they could. Celeste and Castor, perhaps even the grandchildren, if someone had asked them. If I had asked. But I didn't. I hope you'll forgive me." Aurora closed her tired eyes and took a deep breath. This was always the most difficult part — when she ran out of things to do, of things to distract her from the fact that she was standing in front of her husband's grave. In other years, she would have taken her leave at this point — but not this year. She still had more to say. "I don't quite know when I got this old," Aurora admitted to the headstone, the echo of a mirthless laugh in her voice. "Castor and Celeste have started to worry when I do things on my own — have started to worry, even, of my living in the school, as if I didn't have an entire army of house elves at my beck and call. And for this — I thought Castor was going to insist on accompanying me, really, but I suspect his wife talked him out of it. Perhaps that is selfish of me, not to bring your children here to see you. But they know where you are, and how to get here, and are perfectly competent in doing so on their own, I imagine. And you and I — well, they say parents need to take time to themselves too, don't they?" It wasn't a funny remark, not even to Aurora, but if Leon were actually here, and not merely a stone in the ground, she knew he would have smiled. "Mostly, I wanted to speak to you in private. To say the things that I have only been saying to myself for the past several years. I know you can't answer — I am not so aged out of my own wits as to expect a talking headstone — but. . . you can still listen. After everything you put me through, Leon Reynolds, you owe me this much." 

When Aurora was twenty-two, her younger brother died. Little Altair, who in truth hadn’t been any smaller than Aurora herself, and only two years her junior. But he had always been clever, far too clever for his own good. His own cleverness had been his downfall �� it had led to overachievement, and then to boredom, and then to experimentation. As it turned out, drugs didn’t care about cleverness, and in the end, the overdose won out. Aurora stood alone at the funeral while her elder brother supported their mother, and when Leon Reynolds showed up late to the wake, he hadn’t tried to stop her from yelling or shoving or crying. He simply waited until she wore herself out, and then offered her an escape — to run away with him, to marry him, to live with him in New York where the rest of his new life was waiting. Aurora loved her family and her home, but it was broken now, and maybe she loved her strange wild boy more, so she went. 

"Did you know?" The breeze picked up into a short gust at her question, like the air itself could sense her agitation. Aurora didn't even know exactly what she was asking. Had Leon known — what, exactly? That he had sired a child on some nameless woman on another continent? That his child would one day go on to wreak the worst destruction magical America had seen in decades? That Aurora would one day be summoned to the presence of the Director of Magical Security and asked with pitying eyes whether she could identify her husband as the father of another woman's child? She shook with her rage and indignation, but closed her eyes, taking a deep, steadying breath. Her anger wasn't the point here. "Would you have told me, if you'd had the chance? I can't imagine you had the opportunity. They say he's a little younger than Castor, and when you left, Castor wasn't — well, I suppose that hardly matters. Because I don't think you would have told me. You never wanted to tell me things, when they were hard. You always ran away when things were difficult, and blamed it on your job, your unknowable life that I could never be a part of, and I always took you back. Did you think I wouldn't have taken you back after this? You were probably right, but that doesn't make you any less of a Circe-fucked coward over it." Aurora bit down hard on her lip and looked away, trying to reign in her anger. It took her several long seconds before she could continue in a more controlled voice. "I didn't tell them." Castor and Celeste, she'd meant, and the grandchildren in turn. Hadn't told them about their father's betrayal, about Scott James sliding a picture before her and explaining that the man who had just struck such a blow against their nation had come about as part of her husband's infidelity. "How could I tell them? I raised them to idolize you, damn you. I told them you were a hero. And what's worse, I believed it. I let it dictate my life. The impossible standard of Leon Reynolds, war hero. Martyr. Love of my life. And now what have you left me with in my final days? Leon Reynolds, traitor. Adulterer. Liar." Aurora spat the words, feeling her rage draw tears to her eyes, but she didn't dare cry. She had never cried when she and Leon fought — only after he was gone, and had left her to pick up the pieces of her life alone, as she always did. "And of course, in a true coward's fashion, you went and died, and don't even have to deal with the consequences of this mess you've made. Damn you." 

When Aurora was twenty-nine, she and Leon had a fight that would haunt her for the rest of her life. She had always hated this career of his, no matter what Leon preached about truth and justice and serving his country. She loathed this agency that had swept her strange wild boy away from her before he’d taken more than two steps from the graduation stage, that continued to take him away from her night after night, week after week. The nights when he returned home to her were the easiest — all she could remember was how she loved him, how she missed him, how to get lost in him, and after Celeste, the sounds of him murmuring stories in the dark as he tucked her into bed filled Aurora with a contentment that felt like it would never fade. But inevitably the nights when he would leave would come — those were the hardest. The incessant tapping of the owl at the window, and the feeling inside her heart as she watched him walk away into the night. Once, she fought back and asked him to stay — for her, for their daughter, for their growing family. The back and forth grew so loud, Aurora thought it would wake Celeste, and by the time the man who had once been her cherished strange wild boy strode into the night, she was not sorry to see him go, and not sorry that she didn’t tell him about the subtle swell of her belly. 

"But do you know what I think I'm most angry about, Leon?" Aurora had grown quiet in her words, so intent was she on this lifeless gray headstone before her. A flock of hippogriffs could have begun mating rituals just behind her, and she wouldn't have noticed. No, she needed to have it out between her and her husband — even if he did quite conveniently happen to be dead. "If we put the lying, and the cheating, and the fact that you apparently fathered a mass murderer aside — I think what I'm most angry about is that you never did live up to your promise. Do you remember it, darling? I was standing in a cemetery just like this, after Altair. . . and you said that we could make a life worth living together. But we didn't, did we? I made it. We made Celeste, and Castor, but you were never there for them. You were never there for me. All those promises, and what did you ever give me? A lonely house, a cold bed, and an ugly headstone." How many years had Aurora wanted to say such an unthinkable thing out loud? All those years she had let those thoughts fester with the guilt inside of her. Not anymore. Not after this. Leon Reynolds, Circe rest his soul, did not deserve her guilt. "I love you," Aurora Belmont Reynolds whispered into the warm August air. "And I miss you. But the thing is, my darling — I missed you before you were dead." 

When Aurora was thirty, an unfamiliar man showed up at her door and brought news that shattered her world. Her strange wild boy was dead in some strange wild land across a sea, and he would never return to her arms again. Their last words were argumentative, and mean, and full of hurt — but how could they have known it to be their last fight, their last conversation, their last chance to embrace, slipping through their fingers? Knowledge was power, they said, but what power could there be in knowledge that arrived too late? It took Aurora days upon weeks upon months to come to terms with the reality — that Leon would never be more than a figment of their daughter's memory, and a stranger to their son. It was cruel, and unfair, and all Aurora had left of the strange wild boy she'd loved all her life. It may have been Leon's story, but it was Aurora's to tell. 

Tell his story she had — except she hadn't known quite all of it, had she? She hadn't known the full truth of the man she had always considered the love of her life. But she did now, and she had questions. And if she was being honest, it wasn't Leon she had come here to speak with.

#writing #my writing #tgswide #one shot #starter #character background #canon #stargazer #character specific #relationship #leora #who lives who dies who tells your story #rp #hp rp #npc #npc specific #leon reynolds #elysium #I actually wrote this as a thread starter for my site but I'm really proud of it so here it is

[tracle0]

I’ve had a lot of thoughts recently and haven’t really put them anywhere so I’m gonna just. Dump them all here and hope you enjoy the ride if you chose to come on it. 

I will put it below a cut so if you decide to skip this trip, then you won’t have to scroll.

So first of all, it’s Inktober, which is cool and will keep me occupied until the end of the month. I have been posting the drawings on here, they will be posted in reblogs by week, should you be interested in That. 

After Inktober is obviously NaNo, which has me more hyped than I can say. I get to!!!!!! finally write!!!!! wip4!!!!!!!! 

Which is terrifying!!!!!!!!!!!

I know like. The vague shape of it, yknow? I know most of the stuff that happens in it, but like. How does it start? I think it starts with Mika being pick-pocketed at a train station but I ain’t sure. So that’ll be fun to figure out. 

2019 NaNo - which was DIAS’s year - was very assisted by having a plan written out before everything started. It was basically a chapter summary for every chapter, basically saying what I wanted to write in that chapter. It was handy cause I figured out how to structure (Ant+Leon alternate chapters, Simon gets every 5th chapter) as well as what was roughly gonna happen. At some points I deviated. That is legal. 

That’s a very long way of saying I need to do that again for wip4

Character wise wip4 wise.... mm yeah lotsa thoughts. Lots of little ‘oh start a chapter like this’ thoughts that I need to remember for now. Very fond of thinking about Percival and Abby. They’re gonna be fun. Abby’s gonna be a lot of fun. Percival’s mostly gonna be blankly going along with stuff, until he doesn’t, and then he gets fun.

I think I’ll be good. I’m excited.

I’m double terrified cause I thrive on like... minimal time slots to write in? Like ‘oh five minutes spare during lunch, scribble down some words, then edit as you type them up in the evening’ time slots. It made the NaNotebook something I look back on fondly, as well as keeping me thinking through the day. I don’t do good by having endless time to write, which I’m worried is what’s gonna happen this year. 

Saying that, I’ve been speaking to job people about getting a job, might be able to get one in November, fingers crossed. 

Other news other news - hey do people remember Sonder??? Sonder is a thing, that existed once. I mean, it still does, but I’m not writing it as it is anymore. 

‘Oh that’s very specific phrasing Trade why so specific’ you can blame @joyful-soul-collector for everything I’m about to say. 

So what if Sonder but like... fantasy AU. We take the towns of Sonder and Glalis and make them kingdoms, take the characters and twist them just a bit, take a conflic and see what happens then. 

This would improve. A lot of issues I have with Sonder. First of all, I’m bored of its current plot, so entirely new setting and conflict would be fun. Secondly, it’d fix the POV issue - I had to use Sam as a POV character because she was not infected with The Weird, whereas everyone else was. If the whole thing is fantasy, then The Weird is just life, any POV character would do as long as things are explained. 

This does not mean Sam is being scrapped, it just means she won’t be a POV character. I could use someone else. Say, oh, I don’t know, Andy???? Who, side note, would be a prince. 

Don’t worry it makes me feel as sick as you I’m sure c;

Anyway the main issue with fantasy AU Sonder is I don’t want to write it. I keep coming up with plot to do with it - Atlas being a bastard wizard who thrives on tormenting Andy, they have to go on a quest together to find a cure to a disease that’s struck the lands, oh say that disease comes from the mushrooms in Glalis - but I don’t. Want to write it. 

Yknow what I can do though. Yknow what I’m not too bad at. 

Guys, gals and non-binary pals, I might just make a comic out of this Sonder AU. 

This is very dependent on my interest post-NaNo - so we’ve got like, two months of me stewing on this idea before any canon content will be made. However, I’ve also been stewing on this whole idea for a hecking long time. Thanks, Marko. 

I’ll also make a post about it by itself, and maybe a seperate blog for it, should I decide to pursue this, so if you’re interested... keep your eyes peeled for a taglist or announcement about it.

Beyond that, updates are just about beating myself into doing Stuff again, which I’m glad to report I did, and personal shit, which I don’t share here.

Ciao

#rambles #ain't got many tags for this one lads I'll just talk here a bit #wip4 has me hyped which is not a surprise I always get excited around this time #I want!!! to write it!!!! #i also think I suffer from being nervous about plot starting #once plot starts I'm peachy keen; words flow #we good when plot starts #but getting the plot to start is a terror because I feel like I need to explain stuff yknow? worldbuilding kinda???? there's like #there's stuff in the world of wip4 that I know about but which I don't think is relevant to the story #and I need to decide what goes into the narrative and what I can just cut out #which is why draft 1 is so fun and sloppy haha #sonder au! that's also a thing! #weirdly the thing that's making me nervous about it isn't the plot? Or the yknow... task of drawing a comic #it'd be a long project but I could do like. weekly or biweekly #nah it's the fact that atlas would use their ability to mimic voices a lot more in this au #and idk how I'd draw that #speech bubbles being different maybe #or quotations in the speech bubbles #or whatever haha #we'll get it sorted #but yeah I hope I can have time to do that; getitng a job may inturrupt that desire but yknow what else do I have going on #nothing much my dude

[shame-cubed]

i’ve been thinking way too hard about what i wanna do for the fantasy prompt for bederia week. definitely knights, totally wanna draw them as knights. bede’s a fancy ass with a white horse and gloria’s just got a hunting dog and a scrubby ole set of full plate armour. anyway the imagery got my mind spiraling into AU hell instead of sleeping because i’m deranged now apparently

buckle the fuckle up shuckle cuz i’m about to spill the brain juice all over this bitch

- Once upon a time there was a king named Rose and he was beloved by all his subjects for ruling the prosperous land of Galar with world-renowned grace and dignity. his advisor Oleana oversees his court, conducts his every word with a fist of iron and thorns, for Rose only wants the best for his people and certainly knows what he’s doing and couldn’t possibly be wrong ever

- one fateful day the kind King Rose meets a street urchin named Bede while on one of his trips into town to see a jousting competition or some shit, and in some sort of publicity stunt he takes the bread-thieving kid in to live on his vast estate and makes him a squire and trains him for battle, eventually knighting him and everyone praises Rose for his incredible generosity and compassion towards the poor

- no one is more grateful than Bede himself, his loyalty unshakable, although he rarely sees the King. He is just a very busy ruler, using the shreds of his spare time to brood atop some tower in his vast castle away from his subjects. surely it is because he is a Great King with Galar’s future in mind. Some nights Bede wistfully gazes up at the tower as it glows with an odd, beautiful light. He watches the shadow in the window that must be his King and hopes someday Rose will look down from there and shine that light on him, too

- Hop, Marnie, and Gloria were also squires who trained with Bede and became knights but did not live on the estate like he did, they go back to their little towns when they are not on duty. Most of the gym leaders are also Dukes/Duchesses/Lords under Rose who govern their respective patches of land and are high-ranking commander knights as well or whatever. I should probably research this shit. Anyway the highest ranking of them all is Leon. Rose often calls on Leon to do his dirty work, manage his armies etc. 

- Everyone respects Leon very much, except Bede, because while wandering the halls, he overheard Leon and Rose get into a disagreement. Bede thinks it treasonous for Leon to question his King and vows to be better than him and follow Rose’s orders without question. Perhaps Bede was expected to eavesdrop, for he gets his wish, Rose calls for him personally and sends him on a variety of special assignments.

- These special assignments turn out to be rather questionable, but because Bede is such a loyal knight, he enacts his duties no matter what. In the end, it is all for the prosperity of the region and the love of his King. He often runs into the other knights his age while on his missions, and Gloria in particular tells him what he’s doing just ain’t right. He tells her to fuck off and do her job, and she says her duty is to serve the people first and foremost, and Bede’s missions are not doing the people any good. He sneers at her, for his duty is to the King and therefore more important than she could ever imagine.

- Of course this is where shit hits the fan. Leon has assembled a rebel army against Rose because he’s just that charismatic, aiming to expose Rose’s crimes by breaking into his tower where he’s keeping fuck-knows-what. The rebels storm the castle but both Rose and Oleana escape through an underground passageway and his tower is empty because they knew he was coming. It’s Bede who rats Leon out, hearing of his plans through Hop or Marnie or a gym leader idk yet. Gloria and Bede cross swords on the battlefield but can’t bring themselves to kill each other because they share some kind of mutual unspoken respect from their days as squires and don’t know how to deal with it so Bede runs away.

-  Bede tries to escape with Rose and Oleana but turns out the secret passage has been blocked off. He was only ever meant to serve as a tool and a distraction and was promptly left to take the blame and die. He barely gets away from the fighting and drags his bloody body into the nearby woods where he passes the fuck out. Fairies take pity on him and bring him to the old wizard living deep in the heart of the woods. The wizard, who is Opal obviously, heals Bede who tells her his fucked-up tale of betrayal and naivety. While he’s talking, Opal sets out not 2, but 3 teacups and Bede silently wonders if she is insane.

- Cue motherfucking Gloria bustin in on this joint. She’s got a scrap of Bede’s bloody uniform in hand and her hunting dog Zammy has followed the scent, leading her to the wizard’s home. She seems relieved that he isn’t dead and Bede can’t fathom why. He calls her an idiot for caring about him after everything he’s done. Gloria agrees that she is, indeed, an idiot. Soon the idiot is distracted by the fact she is in the presence of the legendary wizard she had been told about in tales as a wee babe. She freaks out a bit, then chugs her tea to calm down.

- Gloria begs Opal to help the rebels, for Rose has gone absolutely mad, he has been dabbling in the dark arts/necromancy in his tower all along and is raising the fucking dead in droves to fight for him. Bede feels sick as he realizes it was probably part of Rose’s plan for him to get killed and become part of his undead army. He reveals that his special missions from Rose were to rob graves, gather strange artifacts, rare flora/fauna, and even some fresh human body parts. This makes Opal hum in wizened consideration. She recognizes these items as ingredients to awaken an ancient and powerful dragon which once brought vast bounties upon the land, a dragon that had been slain long ago by a pair of foolhardy princes with bad hair and would no doubt be quite angered to be disturbed from its eternal rest.

-  Opal agrees to help, for it would be a shame to watch Galar crumble to ruins. She divines Rose’s location and Gloria decides she needs to tell Leon immediately. Opal shows her the secret shortcut out of the woods and Bede tells her where his horse is hitched so she can get to the rebels faster. Gloria thanks them both and leaves her dog with Bede, telling him how to command Zammy if he needs to find her. Bede says she’s wasting time, insists he already knows how to deal with a damn dog, and yells that she better not dirty his horse as she leaves. Opal can’t believe they’re still bickering over stupid shit while the region's at stake and turns to her spellbooks. There’s a way to calm the beast in one of these dusty old tomes, so Bede better get cracking and help her out instead of staring out into the woods worriedly like a dumbass.

- Gloria gets to Leon who’s still at the castle, undead bodies slain all around him, and tells him where Rose is hiding and about his plan to resurrect a powerful dragon. Leon says he had an idea that Rose was gonna do something crazy like that but didn’t think it was actually possible and that they must make haste to stop him. They gather up the rebels and head the fuck out to confront Rose. Hop is there, always at the ready to back up his bro, and he brings his own hunting dog, Zacian. Together with Marnie and the remaining gym leaders who didn’t get fucked up in battle, they lead the charge to Rose’s secret hideout, which is the tomb of the dragon in a deep-ass crater on a mountain.

- Leon’s horse is named Charizard

- The rebels arrive and cut through the undead armies protecting the tomb. Oleana tries to stall them, and fails, but she escapes last minute to tell Rose of their arrival. Rose chides her for not being stronger, but it’s all well, for the dragon has been awakened at last. Finally the steel castles of heights beyond imagination, the vast towns of everlasting glittering lights, all these great wonders of his design which have been appearing in his dreams for many a night will be realized! This is his moment, where he will bring Galar into a shining new era advanced unlike the world has ever seen! He laughs jovially as if he had not just brought about hundreds, maybe thousands, of deaths in his pursuit of this grand future. Sickly red light pours out of his hands and fractures the earth. Debris is flying fucking everywhere as a scaly, skeletal mass of rotten flesh rises from below, bellows and shrieks in horrible pain.

- Leon and friends arrive, there’s a big scuffle with Oleana and some undead gym leaders, Gloria takes a nasty fucking hit when shockwaves from the dragon send her sword and shield flying out of her hands and an undead fuck stabs her in some weak point of her armour, unmistakably hitting some vital organs, she crumples to the ground but tries to get up anyway cuz she’s a hardy bitch. Hop notices and is pissed, calls for Zacian to protect her, and the dog brings her the discarded sword and starts snapping viciously at anyone who approaches.

- Opal, Bede, and Zammy arrive outside of the tomb in a blast of unnecessarily sparkly pink magic. Bede protects Opal as they make their way inside to join the rebels, for the wizard needs to save her strength if she’s about to subdue some ancient undead beast. Spotting Gloria hunched over coughing up blood, Bede loses it and cleans the fuck up, dispatching every undead bitch in sight-- he even manages to wound Oleana, who scrambles away to hide. Once he’s certain Opal will be fine, Bede runs over to Gloria’s side with Zammy in tow and tells her she’s stupid. Zacian growls at first but after seeing Zammy, it backs off to join its sibling alongside Hop as the non-wounded survivors regroup to close in on Rose.

- Gloria had dug her sword into the ground to keep herself upright, but as another blast of energy washes over the battlefield she loses her grip and Bede catches her. She smiles up at him because she didn’t think he cared. He cradles her in his arms, shielding her with his body and admits he couldn’t not care, she’s the only one who stuck by him even when he felt he didn’t deserve it. She confesses she loves him, and the poor guy breaks cuz no-one’s ever said that to him before. He leans down for a kiss, and apparently some of Opal’s healing magic is still in him, because their lip-lock somehow manages to heal Gloria’s injuries. I don’t care if it’s dumb I’m so weak for this shit... 

- While Rose is busy trying to control the increasingly unhinged dragon, Leon fucking stabs him in the back. Rose tries to ramble a bit with his dying breath but everyone’s just like Shut The Fuck Up. All the summoned undead fall apart, save for the giant dragon. Oleana comes out from behind her rock, freaks out, calls Leon a fool, because now there’s no way they can stop the beast from wreaking havoc without Rose’s dark magic. Opal saunters in all like, really now? And starts chanting some weird spell and sprinkling herbs everywhere or something. Magic bullshit. The dragon tries to resist the weird pulses coming from this elderly wizard bitch, and hovers low to the ground to slash at the rebels protecting her.

- Bede and Gloria finish making out and get up to join the fight. Everyone is attacking the dragon to keep it at bay, even the dogs, so Opal can pull off her fancy spell. Eventually a final flash of light appears in a blinding pulse outwards from the legendary wizard, and all the red magic holding together the pile of bones that is the undead dragon crackles and disintegrates. The skeleton crashes to the ground and dust flies everywhere, everyone looks around, all like, is it really over? They smile and celebrate when they realize, yes, the skeleton war is in fact over. 

- Opal is not looking well after using all her power like that, Bede rushes over to help her up and she pats his shoulder, saying he’s got the potential for magic in him. He’s like, what, no way, but Opal just nods all like I saw that fucking healing kiss, you’re a wizard, bitch. She grips him tightly, pours the remainder of her powers into him, and disappears into thin air. RIP.

- Leon becomes king, repairs Galar with the help of his trusted knights, Oleana goes into the dungeon to repent, Bede and Gloria get married (it’s fancy af, the dogs are flower girls) and everyone who isn’t dead lives happily ever after. The end.

WHEW, obviously I don’t have the time to flesh this out any more than what I have here, maybe in a couple months. I got too many irons in the fire rn, I just had to get this shit out of my head or it would haunt me forever. Perhaps I can finally sleep uaaagh

#cubewrites #this is quite long for an outline #g'nite #bederiafantasyAU

[bastionkeeper]

Ficlet idea for ya: Kravitz and maybe Ango teach Taako to love winter again [TBH he hasn't loved winter since age 11, it's always associated with Bad Times for Taako]

Another fine idea for you: Fluffy Taakitz where Taako catches some vicious 'flu and starts off being a whiny li'l bitch, but Krav is just so CONCERNED that Taako tries to play it down but it's too late, he genuinely feels like hell by then...

I’mma combine the two BOOM

“Yeah, this is unnecessary, I’m gonna go back inside,” Taako said, jerking a thumb back towards the house and shivering. He was wearing a sweater, a coat, a cloak over the coat an enormous scarf, a hat, mittens, and a pair of earmuffs shaped specifically for elven ears. Still his teeth were chattering.

“Awww, please don’t go in yet sir! We’re making a snowman!” Angus said, beaming up at Taako with glittering eyes.

“Look, it’s a snow-Leon,” Kravitz chuckled, drawing a frowny face on the snowman. 

“...okay that is pretty funny, but Taako is freezing his cute little ass off out here so...” Taako turned and was about to head back inside when a snowball collided with the back of his head. 

Taako whipped around, his ears twitching and his eyes folding into a furious glare. Kravitz and Angus immediately pointed at each other. 

“Okay, you’ve done it now,” Taako smirked, pulling a spare wand from his pocket and casting cone of cold on the pair.

“Sorry, sir, but Kravitz and I are expert snowball fighters!” Angus pulled out his own wand and cast a dispell, giving Kravitz time to launch another snowball at his husband. 

The next several hours were spent in all out war: Kravitz and Angus against Taako. It might have seemed like an unfair match, but Angus and Kravitz mainly stuck to snowballs while Taako was casting spells left and right. At one point Garyl showed up and kicked a snowbank over onto the pair. Kravitz and Angus popped out of the pile like fresh flowers and laughed so hard tears came to their eyes.

“Give up?” Taako smirked from his perch on a nearby tree branch.

“Alright, we surrender!” Kravitz put his hands in the air. “Please oh merciful wizard, all we ask for peace is your famous hot chocolate and cookies!”

“Hmmm...well I suppose you losers do need something to cheer up after I totally destroyed you,” Taako said.

“You cheated!” Kravitz laughed.

“There’s no rules in war, bone baby.” Taako jumped down from his branch and lifted Kravitz’s chin with his wand. Then he helped Angus out of the snow pile. As the three walked home Taako was surprised to find he was smiling. 

Winter had been nothing but a risk of freezing to death for as long as him and Lup had lived on the road. Then it had become an uncomfortable reminder of freezing fingers and aching bones, it wasn’t like Taako had gotten any better at regulating his temperature. Still, hanging out with his man and his boy in the snow had been fun. 

So fun that he didn’t realize he was shivering harder, and sneezing.

The next morning Taako woke up at three in the afternoon, groaning and moping around the house with a blanket wrapped around his body.

“Good morning, sleeping beauty,” Kravitz teased, kissing where he assumed Taako’s forehead was under the blanket. 

“Mmph.” Taako grunted, laying down on the couch.

“Are you alright?” Kravitz asked.

“I’m dying,” Taako croaked hoarsely. “You and the twerp killed me. I’m dying.”

“Did you catch a cold?” Kravitz asked. He reached a hand into the blanket and felt Taako’s forehead. It was warm, but not too concerning yet. “I’ll get you some tea, you’ll feel right as rain in no time.”

“No I won’t, I’ll be dead. You’ll have to take me to the astral plane.”

Kravitz decided to fix Taako a very late breakfast to go with his tea, and by the time he was finished with that it appeared the elf had fallen back to sleep. Kravitz chuckled softly and sat down on the couch in front of the elf. He brushed some hair out of Taako’s eyes and as he did his hand brushed against his forehead. 

Kravitz swore, Taako was burning up. He may not have much experience with mortals, but he knew a fever that high was bad. 

He wished Angus hadn’t been at school, he could have asked him what to do. 

“Taako,”Kraivtz hissed, shaking the elf lightly hoping to wake him up. Taako just flailed loosely and groaned quietly. “Oh my god Taako are you really going to die?” Kravitz shook the elf harder.

“Krav...quit it...” Taako murmured, still not opening his eyes. Then he shivered and drew the blanket closer around himself.

Kravitz felt his stomach swirl in fear and he went into full over-protective husband mode. Seeing Taako shiver, he pulled the elf onto his chest and manifested his reaper wings. He folded Taako into his feathers and tried to keep him as warm as possible. Whenever Taako coughed weakly or murmured in his sleep Kravitz almost whimpered with panic. 

By the time Angus got home to inform Kravitz that Taako, while most likely miserable and very sick, was not in danger of dying, Kravitz had fluffed out his wings like a mama bird and had made his arms sore from clutching at his husband. 

“He just needs some rest, Magnus says that Taako gets like this when he’s sick. He probably has a very low immune system,” Angus explained. 

When Taako finally woke up from a fever induced nap, Kravitz kissed his forehead a dozen times and swore: “I will never make you stay out in the cold again.”

“You big baby,” Taako smirked, kissing Kravitz back.

#blatantbalderdash #taakitz #taz #the adventure zone #internutter

[toaster-hair]

random silly theory i randomly made bc im bored

long fucking post down below lol

so you might be thinking to yourself “hmm i wonder what this theory is about” 

well im gonna tell you; its about kazuichi soudas design and why his ass is so fucking fat in the first place.

first, ill need to discuss this image. as you can see on the right side of the image, kazuichi has his back facing the viewer. this backside shows us kazuichis thicc megatron ass.

now you may be thinking to yourself “toastie, what the fuck.”. ill explain further;

my hypothesis is that the person who made kazuichis original final design mistook him as a girl and ran with it until getting feedback from kodaka or someone else working on the game.

now youre most definitely thinking “toastie, what the fuck.” and i dont fault you for that. even i dont believe it. but ill go over my little evidence anyways.

this is his supposed “beta” design. obviously it is different from the final product, however it is practically the same. if i didnt know about this design and saw someone draw it, i wouldve just guessed they messed up on the design.

unlike a lot of other danganronpa characters, it appears he only has one beta design. to explain this, i bring up this idea; there was a bit of miscommunication with the design and art team, leading to kazuichi having a completely different design that mightve been controversial and releasing this beta as a cover up. this led to all of kaz’s other designs being unreleased/lost.

this is most definitely a stretch, but i do think the dr team not releasing or even losing references and designs is a possibility. how can i prove that? with his goth counterpart; gundham. fucking. tanaka.

this is his final design, and like kazuichi he only has one beta design we know of.

(i couldnt find a bigger pic sorry, the same image is up on his wiki) im sorry, but there is no way in my mind that these are even the same person. itd take more than just one beta design to go from some guy who looks like hed be a member of blood on the dancefloor to an edgy anime wizard. there were obviously a few more beta designs that didnt make it to the public.

“but toastie, how do you know if the main designer for kaz thought he was a girl?” well tumblr.com user, i dont. but somethings that help that theory is;

sdr2 has a pretty different style compared to dr1. ndrv3 also has a different style but it was released like 7 years after the first game i think? so i can excuse its style. while sdr2 was made only 2 years after the original (and couldve been in development way before 2012), so to me itd make more sense if they had new people.

kazuichi is still pretty androgynes (hell, maybe even a bit feminine), even more so than chihiro. the only characters that look similar to kaz (kaito and leon) are still pretty damn masculine when compared.

pink hair big hips and sharp teeth isnt what youd first imagine when you hear the word “mechanic”, is it?

to wrap up this post; while i dont think all of this theory is the absolute truth, i do believe that there is probably a lot of lost danganronpa media, whether it be a lost anime episode, a spin off novel everyone claims exists but has no original internet trace, or even a few beta designs. this theory will get confirmed when pigs fly.

#danganronpa #danganronpa theory #theory #kazuichi souda #sdr2 #gundham tanaka

[dorianharker-blog]

About Dorian Harker. Long read alert.

Greetings! So who the hell am I, anyway? I tend to use three words as of late: writer, artist and supervillain. Yes, I'm on the Dark Side, baby. It all started way back when I was watching Transformers: Beast Wars, when I suddenly realized that my heart lies with Megatron and team evil. I cried when Darth Vader died. My favorite scene in The Lords of the Rings is this awesome battle where Sauron shows everyone who's the boss. "But the power of the Ring could not be undone".  Boom-shakalaka! Get'em Sauron! Get'em! You get the picture.

That's probably not very Dale Carnegie of me. I mean, I gotta make a good first impression here, right? Plants. I like growing plants. Leon style. How's that? Still weird? I would include a photo of myself with a dog if I could, but I'm allergic to pretty much all mammals, so... Green thingies. I care about them. See? I'm all right. Everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine. We're all fine here now. Thank you. How are you?

For your information, when I talk to people I tend to have about 3 separate lines of thought and I switch between them back and forth, and if I have enough room to talk, I can go on for long time about some little detail just so I can better highlight the major topic of a conversation. Actually, I saw a description of something pretty similar on wikipedia, somewhere in "mental disorders" section. But I prefer to think about it more as a writing quirk. Sooooooo... remember Sauron? Let's continue from here. Fantasy and sci-fi. I love them! Video games are in my blood since 1997 (my first ever game - Imperium Galactica, 4x space strategy, awesome stuff). I was a modmaker during Warcraft III era, went on to win a map-making contest hosted by a local game developer, and first set my foot inside a "gamedev" office and left my signatures on contracts when I was 14. But the dream life of a leathercoat-wearing teenage mutant ninja developer didn't happen for me. It was only a decade later when I actually got a real job in gamedev. That was... a disappointment. Managers give you shit, managers of these managers give you shit, "deadline" is everyone's favorite topic of conversation, crunches suck the soul out of you, and... woah, that's got too depressive too quickly. But don't worry. I know a magic word for such occasions: "Anyway"... Imaginary worlds. I was  always fascinated with them. Dune. Legacy of Kain. Vampire: the Masquerade. Thief. Trinity Blood. Planescape. Dark Sun. Warhammer 40k. I dreamed that when I grow up, I will create stuff like that. The idea was that it will probably happen inside some gamedev company. But even before I got there, I started writing my first fantasy book. I always took writing very seriously, but I had these game developer ambitions to be a part of something on Bioshock/Mass Effect level. Making games is hard, but it's not just rocket science, it's a psychological state that requires you to sacrifice everything. It was holding me back from what I really wanted to do. Imaginary worlds. MY worlds.

Writing took over. I finally figured out what I need to do to align with my childhood "when I grow up" dreams. Of course, writing turned out to be even tougher than making games, you have to motivate yourself, fight the all-devouring self-doubt, no one is paying you salary, you live only for as long as you have savings, and when the money starts to run low food rationing comes into play and... ugh... Anyway...

Lemme see... Writer, supervillain... Ah! What's up with this "artist" part? Well, I've been drawing since I was 6, but I had lacked education. Then I discoreved that I'm the absolute devastator in the realm of 3D graphics. I used to compensate my poor drawing skills with making cool 3D. Then, by accident, I started sketching in subway on my way to work/from work. And the nature of going to work is (BREAKING) 5 days a week, every week. After a year since I started doing subway sketches, I realized: "wait a minute... this looks pretty good..." So now I'm in the middle of drawing and painting everything that I wanted to draw and paint since ancient history. It's hot and sexy girls, mostly. Why that pacticular topic? Because female body is the most beautiful thing in the world. I do appretiace the male physique, too and male anatomy is on my "to do" list, but for now I'm focusing heavily on my ladies. I'm also into achitecture, fashion, big-ass Warhammer armor, mecha, dinosaurs, but I already tried to spread myself thin as a kid, that didn't work. So, ladies. Yes, sometimes naked. With naked boobs. I hope you don't have a problem with that, because I sure don't. So be advised. I haven't written any sex scenes yet, but I outlined them. I don't want to make a big deal out of it, it's just in my fantasy world, people have sex. I also say "fuck" a lot. My characters are not different. Stevie King once wrote about writing that "you have to tell the truth". And the truth is, I find that swearing is fucking hilarious. It's a positive thing for me. Oh, dear. That's all definitely not very Dale Carnegie of me. Plants. Green thingies. Leon. About a week ago I put this onion in a glass tube filled with water, just water, no soil, but the roots just keep growing! True story.

I hope you enjoyed this little piece of writing. That wasn't easy, writing about this regular dude, who's just trying to make his way in the universe. I don't usually do that. I write about magic! Explosions! Power of black holes in a wizard's hand. Stick with me, if you're interested.

PS: Oh, if any Deception loyalists are out there, let me know. Total Domination of the Universe! All hail Megatron!

#creator