#OH i loved the big tree too. with the glowing blue petals. so beautiful

[orcelito]

Yet again feeling guilty for not having written in weeks, but my brain is filled primarily with thoughts of "I can't wait to explore more in BG3" and "wow I miss my girlfriend I want to see her"[saw her literally 3 times last week & spent all Friday evening and Saturday morning with her] "wow if only I could see my girlfriend :("

#speculation nation #aka free time is being spent on girlfriend and BG3 almost entirely. #sorry itnl readers im gonna work on it. eventially. #rn i am consumed by the burning need to stick my hands into every bag and box i can find in BG3 #yes. every single one. not a stone gone unturned. Everything i can find. i am investigating. #im currently mostly thru the underdark rn. tho i wanna explore the mountain pass too #getting close to done with act 1 tho. xoxoxo #i love the underdark. wish there was more of it. wish there were drow that werent trying to fucking KILL MEEEE #im a drow in my game and it makes things so interesting. so many people down here are scared of me. whoopsies. #being a druid offsets it some topside but down here theyre like 'oh my fucking god not another one of you' #and im like '😭 please im niceys im niceys i swear!!!!' #the mushroom guys like me tho :] which i especially love bc im a spores druid. love that place so very much. #the wizard tower makes me sad :( alas. #im deep in the sharran temple atm. killed an important dude. took his head and now i gotta go deeper #for. some. flower? maybe. idk what it is actually. also a forge. normal underdark things. #OH i loved the big tree too. with the glowing blue petals. so beautiful #the environments of the underdark are fucking gorgeous. love this place. wish more of the game were like this. #anyways yea im enjoying bg3

[the-letter-horror-lover]

Take me into your loving arms; kiss me under the light of a thousand stars. Place your head on my beating heart. I'm thinking out loud maybe we found love right were we are." (Thinking Out Loud - Ed Sheeran)

Chapter 11: Ready or not

Notes:

AN: Here we are!!! I think you know what's coming. So a lil warning... semi graphic here, but I tried not to be too icky for you, yet keep it realistic. Oh and fyi, I have no children so I have no idea what this is like so any moms out there I'm sorry if it's cliché, all you ladies have my up most respect. It is something I could not do and don't plan to. Any who as far as warnings I think you should all be fine, any way the moment you have all been waiting for is here, so! Get your sodas and popcorn and hunker down for the big moment. Also! There is some Imagery here that brings us full circle, so if you notice those little easter eggs good for you.

Chapter Text

Ciel felt restless, he had been lying in bed the last few days and been oddly content to do so. After eight months of pregnancy, one would think staying off your feet would be welcome. It was for a while, he was perfectly fine allowing Sebastian to fawn over him all to the ravens pleasure.

However, now he could not be still.

With a bit of huffing and puffing Ciel managed to heave him upright and take hold of the bed frame, hauling himself into standing position. Moving around with the low hanging weight of four children had become a chore.

"Ciel... are you alright?" Sebastian asked feeling the bed shift; he rolled over watching the silhouette of his husband in the moon light slipping on a dressing gown.

"Yes, yes I'm fine go back to sleep I just need to get some air. Your children are being troublesome."

"Funny how their mine when your annoyed." The ravenette quipped watching as the once human staked out of the bedroom.

The false night in hell has a strange kind of beauty to it, the inky sky above and soft glow of the moon that so mirrored the one in the human realm. It was something that always seems to bring Ciel a sense of peace, so familiar and yet unnatural. The nights in the underworld brought back fond memories of his bonding ceremony all those years ago. If he closed his eyes he could almost ear the sirens songs and smell the incense in the air.

Sitting in the garden in an old swing the neko closed his eyes. The long navy robe he had been wearing fell open illuminating his pallid skin under the false moon, casting the taut creamy flesh in lavender light. Around him, ghost roses turned there haunting white blossoms up to the deep violet sky. Something about this night feels so familiar and yet like a distant dream.

Ciel breathed in the soft fragrance and let it soak in to his lungs, the calming scent easing the ache that had been radiating from his lower back. He ran a hand over his swollen womb, "To think, I was once in an abyss of despair, when chance was offered, the choice to crawl out and I took it. I decided not to give up and reached for it. I thought the greatest gift that demon could give me was revenge...I was wrong. You are all my gifts."

A warm breeze flowed through the garden, swirling through the hedges and blowing the vibrant blue petals of the rose's trough the trees. Ciel watched the cerulean petals dance in the wind, there was something ethereal in it. He could have never believed hell could be so beautiful; truth was life is what you make it. Even in the other world were the inhabitant could simply chose to surround them with whatever they choose. This was a world created just for him, of his and Sebastian's own making. This was in a way there first child; they wove this place. The stone paths of the garden, much like Phantomhive manor, the gates around there home...suspiciously like the gates of London cemetery. The roses, even the swing where he sat now that was much like the one at his Aunt Frances's home, where he and Elizabeth used to play.

Ciel could imagine his children in this garden, four little mischievous toddlers dashing down the walkway. Little girls with long ink black pigtails. Little boys with shining crimson eyes so full of curiosity and wonder. "Look what you lot have done to me hmm?" He said breathing out slowly feeling the twinge in his back wrapping around his lower belly. "You all wreak havoc and make me sentimental...ya know I was once feared, I tamed a demon you know. I was a captain of industry when most boys where occupied with their studies. It only took me a hundred years to grow up, yet it doesn't seem so long now."

The demon sat there in the slowly swaying bench swing for a while longer, leaning back when the tightening in his low abdomen returned. Ciel knew what it was now, but it was to early to bother with it now. He wanted to put of Sebastian crowding him and calling Claudia in. By the neko's calculations, these first contractions were still a good 20 minuets apart. He would be looking at a few more hours yet.

Sebastian was tiding up the bedroom; Ciel never had come back to bed. The elder demon was not concerned, he got a hint of irritation from the other across there bond every now and then but other than that nothing that would cause the crow, any pause.

After leaving the master suite and descending the staircase, Sebastian looked around the parlor and library with no sign of him mate. Ciel had a particular talent in eluding him, Sebastian supposed it was apart of his feline like characteristics. If the bluenette did not wish to be found, he would not be.

However, a search of the patio yielded results. Ciel was laying on his side on a cushioned lounge that over looked the garden.

"Soaking up the morning sun are we?" the elder commented

When Ciel did not answer, Sebastian left the doorway and crossed the stone pavilion. He saw the pinched look on his mates face as Ciel let out a breath slowly. "Ciel?"

"What..."

"Are you alright?" stupid question he realized as soon as he said it.

"Wonderful, just enjoying the view and waiting for your hell spawn to position them selves between contraction. The usual, perhaps you can make yourself useful and make me some tea yes?" The younger man complained

Sebastian folded his arms looking unimpressed, "Why didn't you tell me."

Ciel rolled up into sitting position, hand on the side of his bulky stomach. "What would you have done that I am not perfectly capable of doing now. Entertained me with all your tricks with table wear?"

The raven pinched the bridge of his nose silently reminding himself that it was to hormones talking. "I would have been by your side, just as I always have been."

Ciel waved him off before gripping the fabric of his dressing gown and breathing in sharply. He counted through the rippling cramp, they were getting longer now but nothing he could not handle. When he opened his eyes, they meet with a concerned pair of garnets looking up at him. Sebastian was kneeling in front of the lounge.

"I'm fine."

The ravenette hummed rubbing his mates thigh, "I'm sure your doing splendid, though perhaps you would indulge me and come inside."

"Because I want to, not because your asking."

"Of course Dear."

It had been nine hours since the first contractions started, at this point, the tightening cramps were seven minuets apart and Sebastian had sent for Lady Faustus. Claudia had arrived and looked Ciel over, by now the neko was annoyed and between lying at the foot of the bed and pacing the room, he was nearly growling at everything that moved.

The she demon just shook her head and said "not yet" which earned her some rather colorful language from the once earl. Not that the string of profanity mattered much to her.

Claudia suggested that Ciel lay in some lukewarm water for a while to ease his back and perhaps cool his temper. Sebastian was quick to ready the bath and help his snappish laboring mate into it. Ciel slapped him away when a contraction rippled through him.

The elder demon gave up letting his partner have his solitude in the bath.

Out in the parlor Claudia was as calm as a spring day, sipping her tea and as her fingers idly ran along the stitching of one of the decorative pillows in the living area.

"Forgive me curiosity but how much longer will it be, in your opinion?" Sebastian asked, sounding collected when he was anything but.

The woman looked up, golden eyes regarding the raven coolly, "Could be another hour or the rest of the day. They will come when they are ready, I see no signs that the kits or their barerer are in any immediate danger. The best thing to do is simply waiting, once the first enters transition and descends then the rest will follow. "Sebastian nodded sitting across from her, "And the birth, are you as confident for that?"

"From his exam his birthing stoma has been in place for over a week now and with multiples the individual kits are smaller, I don't anticipate any tearing." she spoke waving a wand dismissively. "This is his first litter, it will be difficult but Ciel is strong. Perhaps more so than I previously believed."

The raven smirked, Ciel was strong - it was something he had known for centuries now. Where others had broken under stress and desperation his valiant little once human had persevered. Like a phoenix from the ashes, the bluenette has surpassed all expectations. He would do so now with no doubt.

"SEBASTIAN!" Ciel was leaning on the bed striped down cursing through every wave of pain. He had been in labor for 15 hours and finally felt the shift low in his belly.

His mate at his side running a gentle hand over the slighter males sweat soaked back, " That's it just a bit longer." This comfort was apparently incorrect as the neko's hand shot out and grabbed the raven by his collar jerking Sebastian in nose to nose.

"You said that three bloody hours ago." the bluenette grit

However, before Sebastian could make a witty retort his mate hunched forward over groaning into the next contraction.

By now Claudia had entered the room drying her hands on a tea towel, "I believe he's entered transition by now, I suspect his waters to break soon, if not I can do so to get things moving along." She spoke mildly unbuttoning her silk blouse leaving her in a cream cotton camisole.

"Yes lets get on with it." Ciel panted fisting his hands into the duvet, he did want to prolong this if he didn't have to.

Getting into position at the end of the bed had admittedly been the least glamorous moment of his demonic existence, yet some how the former earl could not bring himself to be ashamed. Being splayed out like a Christmas goose in front of a Faustus no less, this should have been humorous in a some dark part of his mind. However all semblance of wit left him with the awkward rush of fluid. Blessedly releasing some of the pressure he'd been feeling mount over the last hour.

"When you feel the urge to push do so, when you do bear down with your chin to your chest hold your breath to the count of 10. I will not direct you further, your body knows what it must accomplish." The she demon spoke in her ever even perfect tone as if critiquing a painting.

Ciel was less in the mood to be snaky at the moment, his hands griping into the terry cloth folded beneath him. He felt the steady strong presence of his mate behind him. This was happening, this was real, as real as the bond he shared with his former butler now husband. Real as the tactile sensation of the cloth in between his fingers.

"Ok I'm Ready."

Ciel groaned and cursed, his hair plastered down his back from sweat. Sebastian holding him whispering in his ear as he bore down again unable to hold back a scream that tore through his throat. Beginning to regret his choice not to do this in his demon form.

Then nothing mattered because admits the pain and the sound of his own voice crackling in his ears came clarity. The feeling his first born passing into the world followed by a shrill cry.

"Girl." Claudia said, freeing the last remaining tether between infant and barer. She held he shrieking little one and gently soothed away the blood from birth in the large steel bowl of water.

She was there, their daughter. Soft deep navy whips plastered on her head, her tiny fists clenched tight as she cried.

The demoness placed the little one in Sebastian's arms first. He looked down at the child who instantly called her wails into whimpers at his touch. "Hello Hela, my little girl. You have given your father quite a bit of trouble you know."

Ciel's face softened wanting to hold her and touch her, count her fingers and toes but there would be time for that later as one of his little girls siblings was already eager to follow her lead.

The next hour seemed to go easier, Arielle had arrived during the first birth and by the second the majority of the Michaëlis/Viceroy clan was down stairs awaiting news.

When the second girl, Athena, was born looking identical to her sister Ciel sensed a pattern coming. And sure enough when little Rachel's voice joined the chorus he knew he had a trio.

After Rachel was born there was a lull in his labor, Claudia assured him that was fine and to rest while he could.

"Their beautiful."

Ciel cracked open an eye to see his sister-in-law settle down in the chair next to the bed.

"Of course they are, hey are half Phantomhive." He commented easily. His palm running down over the far less prominent bump feeling a soft tumble beneath his hand of his final reluctant kit.

She chuckled smoothing her hands over her skirt, "Yes and they look it, Sebastian has fawned over them getting them clean and into their first little night shirts. Athena was particularly fussy about that. How are you feeling?"

Ciel looked up at the ceiling, "Fine, I don't know what all the fuss is about really."

Arielle rolled her eyes, "Really now, see because as I recall when I arrived here I heard you screaming a blue streak and threatening fairly sensitive portions of my little brothers anatomy."

The neko glanced sidelong, "It is his fault and I claim temporary loss of faculties."

"Very well, do try and sleep some. I know you want to see them but trust me they are just as tired for now and will be fine until there little sibling is ready to join them." She said patting his hand.

Ciel did not fight her, welcoming the ease of slumber that tugged him down into its depths.

When he woke again he felt hot and the tighten in his lower abdomen screamed with over sensitive nerve endings.

Sebastian opened the bedroom door with Claudia close behind him. "Alright then lets see how your doing" she said tugging the sheet back.

When her face blanched slightly as she looked up to Sebastian, Ciel knew... "What is it" He groaned through the next spasm of his muscles "What is it"

Sebastian took his mates face in his much larger hands. " Everything will be fine." But even as the raven said the words Ciel could tell the man did not believe them.

"The child is coming feet first Ciel..." Claudia's voice drifted up, there was more ... more she wasn't saying. "This will be more difficult but I need you to push and not give up."

"I have never given up in my life."

The child was smaller, Ciel couldn't even control the sob when he heard Claudia say "You have a son."

It wasn't the joy of his first little boy but the sorrow of looking down and seeing the demoness swiftly untangle the cord from around the so small babies neck and rub the child's chest. He was so much smaller, he was so quiet. Ciel tore his eyes away to see the stricken look on Sebastian's face, the soft words that fell from the elder demons lips "please.."

When the little body jolted in the she spiders grasp and whimpered Ciel fell back and covered his face to conceal the emotions tearing through him.

"Playing possum were you little one?" she said with an ounce of amusement as the little boy screamed louder, little limbs kicking as he was washed.

"Loki.. our little trickster." Sebastian smiled Moving to take the child and swaddle the babe in a towel.

Their son was every bit a Michaëlis, ink black hair that curled around his little ears and forehead. Even his little features, long slender face and nose. Ciel held out his arms, his last born was the first he would hold. Loki opened his eyes, blinking long dark lashes to show off his big dark sapphire eyes.

"What color are the girls eyes?" Ciel said as he ran a finger over his sons cheek.

"Hela and Rachel have my eyes, Athena has yours ." Sebastian spoke softly, Claudia slipped out after cleaning up the afterbirth and taking away the soiled blankets.

They were going to have there hands full from now on that was certain, Their homes much like their hearts would be full.

And the room at the end of the hall, would never feel empty again.

"You're the sweetest thing, that I've ever known. And to think that you are mine, you are mine alone. There is no greater love in all the world it's true. No greater love than what I feel for you." (No greater love - Amy Winehouse)

AN: Yes there will be an Epilogue.

Chapter 12: Epilogue: This is us.

Notes:

An: First I would like to thank all of you who followed this journey from start to finish. You all mean a lot to me and I'm so pleased to have given each of you something to enjoy and brighten your day even if it was only for a few moments.

In other news, Expect the Unexpected will be taking over the Sunday update spot. Its another Mpreg Grellium, so if you enjoyed this you may like that one. I also plan on finishing up my Bleach and Gravitation fics soon. So yep Lots will be wrapping up! But do not fear Your Loli is just cleaning up her dashboard for a new set up in 2016!

You can expect more Red Scales, And new Full length fic for Avengers called "Where we land" It will be Stony Ship OmegaVerse. With potential Mpreg haven't decided yet.

Anyhow, I will now give you the goods since I'm sure your tired of reading all this above XD

Chapter Text

"TAG!" Three bright little voices screamed from the end of the hall.

Ciel rolled his eyes looking up from his book shouting "No Running In The House!" over his shoulder. Not that it did any good. A few moments after his warning there was a thumb and whimpering. "Oh for Hades sake..."

A few minutes later, a set of guilty looking triplets came toddling in. Hel had her arm around her little brother shoulders as he cried. The little boy's knees were bright red from tumbling onto the hardwood floors.

"Loki fell daddy..." Rachel said

"Because you pushed him." Athena chimed in, causing her red-eyed sister to scowl.

Rachel crossed her arms with a huff. "Tattle tale"

"Alright, I don't care who did what. I told you not to play rough in the house didn't I?" Ciel admonished his girls. Each of them looking down and away. Rachel the least sorry of the bunch, she was every bit Sebastian's. "Alright you three go to your room."

A chorus of "awww but!"

"But nothing!" He cut them off taking his sniffling little son in his arms. "To your room now young ladies."

The trios mutter and had a pitiful little precession up the stairs.

Ciel shook his head and carried Loki on his hip into the kitchen. "You shouldn't let them goad you into games you know." Ciel said. Of course, he realized why this had happened. His little boy could not back down from a challenge. The apple, as they say, did not fall far from the tree.

"I know..." The little boy sniffled scrubbing little pals over his face.

The bluenette sat the boy on the counter running a damp cloth over the boy's knees. They would heal quickly, it was the sting or perhaps more the bruised pride of falling that hurt the little one more. "Would you like to sit with me until your father comes home?"

Loki nodded and held up his arms to be picked up, the littlest of the littler, he still clung to his barer. Ciel did not mind, if anything he found it oddly comforting that the little one still needed him so much. His girls were very independent already.

Hel was his little thinker, she was smart and cunning. Her crimson eyes observing everything so carefully, she could turn on a smile or a frown at will and had her grandfather wrapped about her little finger.

Rachel was his little aggressive one; she was competitive and loved to show off. Ciel could already see how wild she was going to get once she matured. Thankful he would have a good 100years or so before that happened. However, he did look forward to Sebastian's reaction.

He mate was already proving to be the very protective father.

Athena reminded him much of his sister-in-law. The child was smart and quick-witted.

This was his family, something he never thought he would have again. Ciel smiled to himself looking down at the small child laying across his lap. The little boy smiled, bright blue eyes filled with innocence, he knew then that if all the suffering in his life had led him to this moment it was all worth it.

"We got love, yeah, darling just swear you'll stand right by my side. Be my forever." (Be my forever - Christina Perri)

~FIN~

Series this work belongs to:

← Previous Work Part 4 of Kuro after years

#black butler fanfiction

[hpalways]

Yaksha’s Destiny || Xiao

DARKNESS was the biggest fear held by fellow Yakshas. This power bestowed upon you and many alike gave an opening to the pitting shadows that raged within your chambers. Some days, it wasn't as bad -- other days... it felt like you were getting ripped apart into shreds, taking in all your willpower to battle against it. It was tempting, to give in and call it quits. Life for a Yaksha wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. There were always too many demons and not enough heroes. Especially for a weaker one like you, anger and frustration would stem from these battles, only to eat at you later on. 

Today was one of those days. The sky was a stormy sea of clouds, with the Gods crying from the heaven above. Droplets prickled down your bare skin, cold to the touch. While in the mountainside, you had stumbled upon demonic energy, so there was no choice but to finish them off. 

Dodging the monster that lunged at you, you took out your polearm. The hydro vision on your hip gleamed brightly in the setting. Taking a turn, you could feel power surge to your arms. As you were about to jab your weapon into the demon's abdomen, they had ducked in time. Shit. You had underestimated this one.

Its body rammed into you, knocking you off your feet. Air left your system, causing you to groan in pain. Just as it was about to sink its teeth into your arm, you rolled over on one side and jumped back to your feet. Fingers clenching tightly around the metal stick, you pushed your hind legs and tried to stab at it another time. Your speed and reaction time was too slow. Too damn slow. Too damn weak. Gritting your teeth, you began to use up more of Yaksha's power, drinking the exhilarating taste of freedom. It was so addicting... often times, you'd wished it'd never stop. 

A burst of water shrouded from the weapon, circling the demon until it was surrounded. With one, clean fell swoop, you sliced the demon and the energy faded away. The deed was done. 

Falling to your knees, your entire body was shaking. Face contorted and in pain, nails dug into the earth to feel wet mud. Your body would not move -- it could not. Stilling there as if you had just been paralyzed, hungering thoughts plagued your mind... Thoughts you wished weren't yours. Letting out a disgusting whimper, similar to that of a wounded animal, you bit down on your lip, hard. Blood dribbled down your chin, painting the grass in crimson. Tugging at your mask, you stared at it for a moment. A sigh let out. 

That was a close one. Crashing to the ground, your chest heaved up and down in exhaustion. 

A figure suddenly entered your peripheral vision. Climbing up to the ridge of the mountain was Xiao, his dark teal locks blowing along with the harsh winds. Donned in his usual robes, he was as attractive as ever. The first time you stumbled upon him -- one of the famous five -- you nearly forgot to breathe. You had referred to him as Alatus then, starstrucked by such a powerful being. 

You would never not awed by him. The way he held himself would always come to remind you of the big gap in strength between the two of you. Maybe you did establish a relationship with this all-mighty Yaksha, but this inferiority complex was tugging your strings more than you'd like to admit. 

At the same time, he provided you the distraction needed. He kept you grounded, which prevented you from going mad. He was the only one who made you feel human, if that was even possible. 

Golden amber hues landed on you, withholding an unreadable expression. He walked up to your beaten up form and sat down, unbothered by the rain. Struggling to get yourself into a sitting position, you looked out at the view in front. 

"You used up too much of your power again," he murmured. 

"Do you think I don't know that? I had no choice," you sighed. 

His sharp eyes narrowed further. "You were being careless."

"It happened. There's nothing I can do to change it." His anger barely dwindled and the scowl only deepened. "Come on, Xiao. I don't want to talk about my mistakes when I'm with you. Busy as we are, I barely get to see you as of late. Can't we just enjoy our brief time together?"

That got him. His eyes softened at your words and he reluctantly nodded in agreement. Seizing the victory, you laid your head on his shoulder, feeling warmth even upon this cold weather. The rain was starting to let down too -- perhaps Xiao was the lucky charm.

"What have you been up to?" you inquired. 

"Demons. Monsters. The usual," he responded. His cheeks tinged with a soft pink all of a sudden. "I... I also got you something."

Your ears perked up at the sound of this. Lifting your head, you watched him in curiosity. He took something out from his robe pockets and slowly opened his palm. Laying there was a blue, glowing object. Shaped as a butterfly, it was gorgeous. You had never seen this kind of butterfly around these parts. He must have traveled far to have found it. 

"It's a crystalfly," he mumbled, averting his eyes in embarrassment. Your heart raced at his actions. He was too cute. Before meeting him, you could have never imagined the Vigilant Yaksha to possess such qualities. "I saw it and... thought it would look good in your hair."

"Oh, I love it. Thank you," you whispered breathlessly, touched beyond words. This was exactly what you meant with how Xiao could easily brush your problems away with a smile.

Before you could stop yourself, you leaned in and kissed his lips. They were soft as petal leaves. He returned the gesture immediately, arms wrapped around you in a warm embrace. Digging your fingers into his hair, you kissed with a ferocity that was never present in your fights. This was to release the pain you dealt with today. As long Xiao was here, you were going to be okay. As long as he was by your side, you were going to be okay. This era of demons and gods will end someday, leaving you a happy future with him. 

You tasted him. His lips. His mouth. His entire self. He tasted of mint. He tasted of life. He tasted of iron. The kind of metal tang found in blood. Sighs were exchanged upon each kiss, breathless but the two of you would not let the other go. Your lips trailed down to his jaw, peppering his baby-soft skin with a few nibbles here and there. He let out a gasp. 

Finally you pulled away, giggling at his flustered state for your bold moves. 

The end was nearing. He picked up the crystal fly and reached up to your [h/c] hair. While he gently pinned it down, you could only focus on his swollen lips. He was beautiful... and you loved him so. 

"[Y/N]," he said, interrupting the honey silence of the mountains. "If you are ever in trouble, just call my name and I will come to you. In any circumstance, avoid overusing your power."

This bliss that left you giddy disappeared as quick as it came. All that remained was the harsh, cruel reality. Brows knitted together in offense and you quickly shook your head. "Why would I do that? I'm a Yaksha. What kind of Yaksha seeks help from another? This wounds my pride, Xiao. Is your faith in my skill and strength that low?"

"No. That's not it," he argued, features twisted in desperation. "Why won't you let me protect you?"

"Unbelievable," you merely scoffed, staggering up to stand. "I have to go. I'm sure you do too."

Ignoring his blubbering protests, you jumped down upon ledges until you reached ground level safely. He didn't understand what you had to go through. He never had to face judgement from those who didn't believe in you. Strong enough to battle the demons both externally and internally, Xiao was different from you. But even so... even if his words meant that he only cared for you, it hurt like you had been just stabbed. 

You were willing to prove to him that you could stand on your own feet. He was going to eat his own words. So would the other Yakshas who looked down on you your entire life. If you trained hard enough, surely improvement could be gained. Right? It wasn't as if destiny could determine what you could accomplish already. 

Approaching the forest that was said to contain many strong demons and monsters, you surged ahead, with eyes filled of challenge. 

There, sitting in a nook was a cave, Sensing a suffocating presence, you knew you had hit a jackpot. Sneaking across the grassy lands, you stayed silent. The tall, towering trees were beginning to look a lot more ominous. Tiptoeing to the edge of the cave, you peered in to find the energy unbearably strong. One staggering breath later and you went forward. A roar let out, signaling that it knew of its intruder. Shoulders tensed up and sweat beaded your forehead, but you couldn't stop now. No matter what, you were going to go through with it. 

It was a beast. Fangs gleamed in the darkness, nearly the size of your weapon. Having woken from its slumber, its terrifying eyes landed on you. Claws swiped the air, which you barely avoided in time. Fear had seized you with a hand, choking you until you could barely move. This was a terrible, foolish move. There was no way you could beat such a demon. 

Calling in more power, it filled you up at the core. To waste no time, you delved right into battle, slashing at the monster. It had little to none effect on it. With a lazy swipe of its arm, it slammed you right into the cave's walls, causing you to spit out blood. Pushing yourself up, you tried again, putting in more power to your weapon. Adding hydro to the mix, the weapon hit its arms. It caused the monster to roar in pain, but that only made it more angry. Barreling straight to you, similar but much more frightening than the last demon, it pounced on you, pinning you down to the ground. 

Drool left its mouth, splattering all over on your face. Its claws dug into your side and you let out a piercing scream. You were so fucking sick of this shit. Why was it destined that you had to stay weak? It was so unfair you wished to cry your heart out. 

The last of the powers was used. Pushing the demon's hold on you, you stumbled up and felt thrill run through. It was delicious, but your mind was also beginning to grow hazy. "X-Xiao..." you uttered out. 

The Conqueror of Demons arrived as soon as you called, anxious to apologize for his insensitivity. What he didn't expect to see was a battlefield. A large and strong demon was torn apart to pieces, the iron smell of it so strong, it was gagworthy. Sitting on the pile of bones was you, dark, gruesome scratches decorating your arms and legs. A deep gash was bleeding from your torso and your [e/c] eyes were dimmed; at the same time, they held a crazed look in them. 

His face paled and his body grew cold at the sight. You did the thing he last wanted to happen. Already too far in and consumed by the darkness surrounding your whole life, you were looking at him not with love, but with bloodlust. "I'll kill you, Xiao!" you screamed at the top of your lungs. 

Climbing down, you tried to run to him. But your footsteps halted and you crashed to the ground. Spazzing out as if you had just been electrocuted by lightning, the Vigilant Yaksha slowly approached you, tears streaming down the side of his face. He kneeled down, cradling your head in his lap. "Don't leave me..." He hit the ground in fury. "Dammit! Why didn't you listen to me!?"

Consciousness returned but you were on the brink of death. The wound was deep, but so were the demons. It was raining again, so you forced a small smile out. "I'm weak. It's my fate," you whispered. "At least I won't have to suffer through this darkness any longer. It's over. I quit. You won, my demons. I am yours to keep."

"Shut your mouth," he snarled. The rain had turned into a storm, adding fury into the mix. "Please. You can make it through this. Don't leave me yet. It was going to get better. An era with no more demons to haunt us. You said so yourself." 

"That was just a stupid dream."

"Don't fucking say that," he growled, flinching as if he'd just been slapped. You were supposed to be the optimist here. It meant that this death was real... and that you would accept it with open arms. "It's going to happen. So hold on. Let me find someone to save you."

Your head shook and you winced. "We all learned this since young. We'll die if we let our power consume us. It's impossible and you know it."

"Stop," he choked out, lowering his head until his hair covered his broken expression. "Then don't talk. Save your breath."

You ignored his words. "Thank you... for the crystalfly. Does it look pretty on me?" you murmured.

He heaved out a sob and slowly nodded. "I've never seen anyone more beautiful."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"And I'm sorry."

"I am too."

"Protect... the people... like you always do, my sweet, Vigilant Yaksha." Your voice grew more raspy by the second, for the pain was getting unbearable. 

You fluttered your eyes shut and the pain faded. On the other hand, Xiao's pain grew, the scars and trauma there to haunt him, for a life and infinity.

#genshin impact #Genshin #genshin x reader #genshin x y/n #genshin impact headcanons #xiao #xiao x reader #xiao x you #xiao x y/n #angst #fluff #romance #love #oneshot #OneShots #reader #x reader #death #reader insert #zhongli #Childe #diluc

[tchallasbabymama]

Troubled Waters Prologue

Hey y’all! Some of you may have seen this already, but I took it down and reworked it a little bit. Check out my masterlist to read my other stories, and let me know if you want to be tagged in anything. Enjoy!

Word count: 1,723

Aziza [a-zee-za] noun: A benevolent magical species with moderate stature, pointed ears, colorful wings, and deep brown skin that always has a slight glow. They enjoy music, dancing, and frolicking with human children. They also have a propensity for plant magic and hunting and tend to dwell in or around the rainforest.

Long before humans ever stepped foot in Wakanda, the aziza were appointed guardians of the land by the panther goddess, Bast. Aziza lived in harmony with the other magical beings, with a few exceptions, and the queen of the aziza ruled over all of Wakanda. That is until these strange, magicless creatures stumbled into the forest one day and were immediately accosted by some of the more malevolent beings that inhabited the land. Several aziza sprang into action to protect the newcomers and were able to stop the evil obambo from possessing them and driving them mad. When the heroic team of aziza brought the defenseless humans to the queen, she welcomed them into her kingdom with open arms and gave them their own plot of land that was locked between her forest and a dangerous mountain range.

When left to their own devices, the humans began to fight with each other over resources and the right to rule. Queen Ani grew tired of the fighting and called on Bast to help end the constant wars. The goddess instructed her to find a man named Bashenga and bring him to her garden. Apparently, her favorite flower had a strange effect on humans. To all the other beings under her rule, the flower simply acted as an ointment of sorts, but it made humans powerful. Queen Ani followed Bast’s instructions and ground up the petals for Bashenga to consume. She buried him in the rich soil, and when he emerged minutes later, he was a new man. He was a leader, a champion, a king.

Humans and magical beings lived in harmony in isolation from the outside world for centuries until a strange thing started happening on the continent. People were disappearing from the western coast, and when the queen of the aziza heard about it, she brought it to the human king’s attention. King Amir refused to help out of fear of exposing his kingdom to the world, and Queen Onara became incensed. She couldn’t believe he was turning his back on his own kind. The queen wanted nothing more to do with him and his cowardly people, so she called on Bast again. The goddess made another realm within Wakanda for the magical creatures to live in. Onara assumed it would be difficult to get the other species on board, but, as it turned out, most of them were eager to get away from the humans. It seemed the only ones that actually liked them were the aziza, but that quickly changed upon hearing of their negligence. A few even chose to travel to the new world in disguise to help the humans that had been taken. The aziza operatives did their best to help them, but there were just too many for them to save. Their numbers were few, but they were able to perform small acts of magic to help where they could.

Over the years, magical creatures became a thing of the past to the Wakandans. They became bedtime stories and folk tales, but nobody truly believed in their existence anymore except for the children the aziza would occasionally visit when they felt like being playful.

————

One sunny afternoon, a little aziza was playing down by the river when she sneezed, and her surroundings changed. Everything looked almost the same but slightly less vibrant despite the bold greens and blues around her. She turned around and couldn’t see her village in the distance, but instead, she saw a boy about her age splashing in the water.

She emerged from behind the bushes and called out to him, “Sawubona!”

The boy looked up, and his eyebrows furrowed. He was sure he had been alone.

“Um, mholweni...ungubani?”

“I’m Nia. Who are you?”

“You speak Xhosa?”

“I speak a bunch of languages,” she giggled. “You speak Zulu?”

“Yeah. I bet I speak more languages than you,” he challenged her.

Nia’s face scrunched up as she counted up all the languages she knew.

“I speak thirteen so far, but I’m only eight,” she shrugged.

“Wow, thirteen?! I can only speak five.” He looked dejected, and she hated seeing the look on his face, so she quickly changed the subject.

“Can I swim with you?”

“Sure, but...where did you come from?” the boy asked as he looked around. “You just sort of came out of nowhere.”

Nia was young, but she knew she was in the human realm. She had visited plenty of times with her ubaba and knew it well. She just wasn’t sure how she got there this time. However, she knew not to tell him exactly what she was, so the little aziza tucked her ears under her colorful headband as she stepped closer and tried to think of a good explanation.

“My ubaba says I’m sneaky like that,” she shrugged. “Want to play tag?”

“You’re it!” he yelled as he splashed her and swam away as fast as he could. She cut her eyes at him and wiggled out of her clothes before jumping in after him. She quickly caught up to him, much to his surprise, but he stopped when it was his turn to chase her. The boy noticed something strange on her back as she swam away, and he grew concerned.

“What happened?”

Nia quickly turned around, confused by the tone of his voice, “To what?”

“To you. The scars,” he pointed to her back.

“Oh,” Nia had to think fast again. “It’s just a really big birthmark.”

“Really? That’s so cool! It looks like two wings,” he mused before his eyes lit up and he gasped loudly. “What if you can fly?”

“I wish,” she said with a certain sadness to her voice that confused him. He noticed the heaviness in her eyes and decided to lighten to mood a little by splashing her in her face. It worked, and they were off again.

The two of them spent the afternoon splashing away in the river, laughs echoing loudly as they played until a deep voice called out, and the boy froze.

“T’Challa!”

“Coming, baba!” he yelled back before turning to his new friend, who had just figured out that she had been playing with the Crown Prince of Wakanda this whole time. “I have to go. I’m not supposed to be out here.”

Nia’s face deflated until she looked at the shadows and realized too much time had passed since she left home. She nodded solemnly, and they swam to shore. They begrudgingly got dressed in silence until T’Challa spoke up.

“Can I see you again? I had fun today… I don’t get to have fun often,” he looked at the ground, and she hugged him tight to make him smile.

“I can come back tomorrow,” Nia said, making his face light up.

“Deal!”

The two kids said their goodbyes, and Nia watched as T’Challa ran through the trees towards the disembodied voice. She turned around to leave the same way she came and jumped at the sight of her father.

“Did you have fun?” he asked with a mischievous glint in his eye.

Nia nodded enthusiastically, “I made a friend!”

“I saw,” he chuckled. “How’d you get over on this side?”

“I sneezed,” Nia shrugged as she grabbed her ubaba’s hand, and they shimmered back over to the magic realm. That night, he began to teach her how to clear her mind and travel between the realms intentionally. Nia took to it quickly, and she was excited to explore the human realm, her mother’s realm, more than ever before.

Amare, an aziza, and Celeste, a human, met and fell in love while he was stationed in New York for his first tour as a secret operative. When Amare heard about what the human Wakandans had allowed to happen to their kin, he jumped at the chance to make a difference. It was a dangerous job, dealing with humans and the occasional fae, but he loved it. Almost immediately, he met and fell in love with Celeste, a vivacious and opinionated brown-skinned beauty from Harlem. They lived together for two blissful years before they found out they were expecting a child. Celeste was over the moon, but Amare couldn’t help but worry. There had been very few half-human, half aziza babies over the years, but they always took a massive toll on human mothers. Amare knew then that he might have to say goodbye to the love of his life. Sadly, he was right. The baby’s higher need for energy to fuel her growing magic drained her mother dry, and Celeste was even too weak to push. She didn’t survive the cesarean.

Amare brought his baby girl back home to Wakanda, and they lived in a small home near the rainforest on the outskirts of the Border province that he had enchanted to straddle both realms. He raised Nia the same as any other aziza child, but they often traveled to the human realm so she could be among her people. Before popping over to the other side, he’d always cast a glamour spell to hide his wings, making them lay flush against his back so that they looked like intricate tattoos. Nia was always jealous of her dad’s bright orange wings since she never got hers, just the giant wing-shaped scars that covered her back. She always felt a little broken, like she wasn’t as good as the other aziza kids, so when she met T’Challa she was excited to have her first human friend. Or so she thought.

Nia went back to the river the next day and waited for T’Challa. She waited and waited, but he was nowhere to be found. She tried again every day for a week, but he never showed. His absence started to weigh on her, and Amare hated to see his little girl look so sad. After day seven, he put a stop to it and Nia eventually gave up on her so-called friend. However, the pain of his abandonment never really went away.

Next Chapter

Taglist: @maddeningmayhem, @theblulife, @motheroffae, @love-mesome-me, @toni9, @bribrisback, @impremenior, @ljstraightnochaser

#cecewritessometimes #black panther au #black panther fanfiction #t'challa x oc #black!oc #troubled waters

[remmushound]

Curse of the Clan chapter 65 FINALE!!

Tags: @scentedcandlecryptid @selfindulgenz

“LEOOOO!” Michelangelo ran over to Leonardo out of breath, colliding with his brother before he could stop himself. “Leo Leo Leo Leo Leo Leo—“

“Woah woah woah!” Leonardo laughed and put both hands against Michelangelo’s shoulders to keep the excited turtle at bay, “Where’s the fire?”

Michelangelo took a long, deep breath. “I traded face painting for a snail and traded the snail fir a painted rock and I traded the painted rock for a cane and I traded the cane for a ball and I traded the ball for a basket of muffins and I traded the basket of muffins for a kitten and I named him Klunk!”

Michelangelo shoved a tiny orange and white kitten in Leonardo’s face; Klunk gave a tiny mew and batted curiously at Leonardo’s nose before quickly being pulled back against Michelangelo.

“That’s great, Mikey—“

But Michelangelo was already running away again on the trail of a bright butterfly, which left Leonardo once more wandering in search of something to do. Everywhere he looked was something new— young yokai playing games or families swimming in the river or flying flips through the air either on wings or paragliders. Everywhere they all seemed to be having the time of their lives. None of the activities caught and kept his attention though until he happened to look over to an ice cream cart manned by a slime yokai. The current customers were a calico nekomata and an old rat.

“Dad?” Confusion came first, and then came a sneaky, mischievous grin. He rubbed his hands together not unlike a supervillain, “Ohhh this is good~”

Slowly, like he was walking across a cloud, Leonardo glided behind a tree. He pulled himself onto a higher branch to get a vantage point, watching as Splinter and the strange woman passed under; he caught a snippet of conversation.

“I can barely handle my four boys; I don’t know how you manage so many!”

“It’s not all fun and laughter that’s for sure, but most of them get adopted really quickly…”

Leonardo jumped the next tree over, silently cursing himself as a falling leaf made Splinter stop and look up. His nose twitched, eyes narrowing just the slightest bit as he stared directly at Leonardo, but perhaps not seeing him; Leonardo remained like a statue.

“Splinter, what’s the matter?” The woman came to up wrap her arms around Splinter’s arm, looking up and trying to see what he saw.

“Nothing.” Splinter said quickly, “Just thought I saw something.”

Slowly, with Splinter dragging his feet, they moved on. Leonardo saw no point in hiding anymore. Before they could get far, Leonardo dropped down in front of them.

“So do I get to be the flowergirl?”

“AH!” Both rat and cat screamed, but Splinter quickly fell to grabbing his sandal and repeatedly slapping Leonardo with it. “YOU! DUMB! DIRTY! YARO! Scared me half to death!”

Leonardo bunched himself at the assault, laughing harder with each slap as he did his best to protect his face. “I’m - sorry! It was too good to resist! Besides, flower girl is more for Mikey, I wanna be ring bearer!”

“You get to be NOTHING!”

“Now That’s just unfair!”

Splinter swung his arm around the cat to guide her quickly around Leonardo, trying his best to ignore his son's taunting presence.

“Was that your son?” The cat asked, trying to look back and steal another glimpse of Leonardo.

“Don’t look at him and maybe he’ll go away.”

***

“RENET!”

Renet stopped long enough to look around, giving a curious hum at the familiar voice. “Michael?”

“ME!”

Renet gave a startled yelp that was quick to turn into giggles when she recognized Michelangelo had come up from behind and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug.

“HUG! Hi Renet!” Michelangelo skirted around to her front, smiling brightly, “I traded face painting for a snail and traded the snail for a painted rock and I traded the painted rock for a cane and I traded the cane for a ball and I traded the ball for a basket of muffins and I traded the basket of muffins for a kitten and I named him Klunk!” Klunk gave a soft meow. “Also! I caught a butterfly and traded it for a balloon and traded the ballon for an ice cream cone do you want it?”

Michelangelo offered a strawberry ice cream to Renet, who accepted it with a confused but excited smile. “Uh… thanks. I’ve never had ice cream before!”

She looked over the frozen treat for a curious moment, then took a big bite out of it before Michelangelo could stop her. The cold immediately seized her body and she brought a hand up to cover her mouth against the drool that tried to escape from the shock.

“Mm… cold.” She shivered, wiping her mouth once more before she let herself giggle.

“You’re supposed to lick it, not bite it.” Michelangelo encouraged.

Renet did as asked, swiping her tongue across the length of the dripping ice cream, “Mm! It’s good.”

“It’s ice cream, of course it’s good!” Michelangelo beamed, “What are you doing out here? I didn't think you left your mansion all that often.”

“Yeah I uh… I don’t.” Renet said with a giddy laugh, “Today’s actually the first day. I’ve never seen the sun before.. It’s just as beautiful as I imagined. But hot…”

Renet swiped a few beads of sweat off of her forehead. Michelangelo gasped and, out of an innocent want to help, went to grab the back of her wheelchair to push her. Renet pulled away from the attempt, rolling back around to face him while Michelangelo looked confused, and then startled at Renet’s uncomfortable expression.

“Actually I can roll myself.” She said slowly.

“OH! I— I’m sorry!” Michelangelo squeaked, head shrinking, “I was just going to bring you into the shade…”

Michelangelo motioned to the shade of a nearby tree and Renet started to roll herself over to it while Michelangelo trailed behind.

“I’m sorry.” He repeated again, “Was the hug bad too?”

“O-oh, no, you’re fine just… don’t grab my chair unless I ask you, okay?”

Michelangelo nodded quickly. “Yes Ma’am! And thanks again for, you know, making sure we don’t burn a fiery death in TCRI.”

“Oh yeah, no biggie.” She nodded; the ice cream in her hand was quickly disappearing. “I really enjoy being out here with all the sun and the grass and the bugs! Maaaan I love the bugs!”

“I didn't get out much as a child either.” Michelangelo related, “It was so fun when I got to learn about all the critters and— and watching the stars and the sun rise! And it never gets old because it’s always so different!”

“Well I’m glad to finally experience it.” Renet finished off her cone and then rolled a little further so her front was in the sun; she closed her eyes against the warmth, the light bouncing off her scales in a flashy display, like sunbeams on water. Her skin seemed to glow radiant like light amber, the baby blue headscarf catching the breeze. “The wind is like the sweetest honeydew on my skin… and it’s like I can taste the colors of the world!”

“Well, if you wanna enjoy even more of the world…” Michelangelo started, rubbing his head, “Maybe you want to come eat with me and my family?”

Renet opened her eyes and looked to Michelangelo. “I’d love to!

***

While his brothers were exploring, Donatello was content to stay at the table near the girls. He had been away for so long that there was a seemingly endless amount of social media he needed to catch up with, so he took the opportunity to get a head start on it. Occasionally April or Sunita would throw a shrimp or a burger his way to use him as a taste tester, but he didn't mind. Scrolling was certainly working up an appetite.

Something hit him in the face. Donatello groaned and reached up, having to swipe a few times before he was able to pull it off, and when he did he was hit with a wave wave of confusion. It was a cherry blossom flower— not just a petal, but a full, blooming flower! Even as Donatello held the stemless thing in his hand, it seemed to open a little wider, the dew drops on its petals dripping down and dampening his palm.

Donatello looked around and saw no tree, nor anyone carrying such flowers that could have been lost. Carefully, his fingers traced along the pink curves, soft as melted butter. He stood up, and when he did, he looked down. In the grass just ahead of him was a trail of flowers, blooming before his very eyes and stretching toward the warmth of the sun. The trail was expanding closer to him until the flowers came to him, gentle stems tickling his ankles as he lifted his feet to see the spectacle better. The blooming flowers led to a golden rift at the end of the trail, similar to Draxum’s except with flowers instead of vines. A rift identical to the one that had rescued Donatello and his brothers from The Sea of Trees.

“I told you your brothers would come.” Said a familiar voice— the kirins voice!

And then the flowers were gone, and so was the rift, and so was the voice.

“Don, food’s done.” April called, then put a hand on her hip and gave a frustrated huff when it seemed Donatello wasn’t listening to her.

“Y-yeah, be there in a second.” The hand that once held the cherry blossom felt empty now in its absence, and it took Donatello several long heartbeats to turn back to his meal. “Thanks April… it looks great.”

“It better!” April laughed, “Then again I’d bet anything looks great to you given the past two weeks you spent alone.”

“Yeah…” And Donatello looked to the table and saw a basket of berries sitting there for him, shining with a heavenly glow, “Alone.”

#the End #Leo lives to bother #and Mikey lives for his new kitten #Kirin makes a reappearance #tmnt #teenage mutant ninja turtles #rottmnt #tmnt au

[gnomebud]

i've seen u post about thatskygame a couple times on twitter and it looks really neat (fairies in a big forest? maybe?) could you tell me more about it? :O

cracks knuckles ohohoho yes i can!!!!!!!!! i am so sorry this is going to be so long i love sky a lot tysm emma

sky: children of the light is a free mobile (and soon switch as well!!) game about community and sharing and restoring light to the world, in sort of. the broader thematic strokes, i guess!! it’s by the same folks who made the game journey, thatgamecompany (hence why sky is usually tagged with thatskygame) and is very similar if you’ve played that one, but also a lot different!!! sky is much more collaborative and encouraging of interacting with other people — throughout the game you collect winged light (to grow your flying ability, like in journey) and candle light (to unlock friendship levels, spirit bonus cosmetics, etc) but Primarily you are visiting and freeing spirits, and playing with other people makes a lot of this both easier and more fun!

image description: my sky character, wearing a blue manta cape and antlers, stands in a grassy cave area watching one of the spirits, in a yellow cape, pose and glow brightly. /end id

there are lots of areas that require multiple players to unlock, it’s really easy to make friends or acquaintances with people, and also you can hug your friends in game. what’s better than that!!!!!! when you free spirits you get an emote that is unique to that character, and while sky has an in-game chat system you have to advance friendship with another player to use it, so you’re encouraged to find spirits & get their emotes to use at other strangers in the game to then help find other spirits or just explore together!!!! which is how u get people lighting each other’s candles and then just doing, like, crab emote at each other for a solid ten minutes. it’s also a nice low pressure way of interacting with people both across language barriers and without the stakes of Becoming Friends And Having To Talk

one of my favorite parts of the game is using candles (which you collect as you play) to unlock cosmetics (hairstyles, outfits, masks, different capes, instruments, etc) from the spirits you visit! it’s a very fun way to customize your character in this very specific way, and honestly i just love. getting on and deciding hmm what little outfit will i put my little guy in today!!!! what’s better than that!!!!! my current pfp is one of my favorite outfits in the game (as drawn by one of the friends i play with now, @/REVERIEQUE on twt) but i have a lot of favorite capes and hairstyles!! u can also get spells which allow u to change ur height, set off fireworks, wear a special cape, etc etc

image description: my sky character wearing a cherry blossom petal cape and antlers sitting under a small cherry tree in a sandy area. /end id

u don’t use candles for this, but unlocking spirits can also allow you different voices for your character — when you tap on your character in sky you Yell, basically, which initially is a sort of musical tone but you can change to be more like a high pitched bird chirp, or a warbly jellyfish call, or just. a fish. yelling in sky lets other people know where you are, tells you where to go if lost, helps butterflies recharge your light, and also recharges your friends’ light when playing with them! basically the game encourages you to scream

the big forest u are referring to is one of 7 main areas in sky- hidden forest! it’s a lovely little rainy forest area in lots of blues and greens, i also really like daylight prairie, which is a nice sunny field area that also features an island w geysers, and valley of triumph, which is this snowy/sandy obstacle course/colliseum type area? you unlock the different areas as you progress when you start the game! and every day there are four little quests to get bonus candles in one of the areas! tangentially relevant but movement is Such a delight in the game — flying feels cool, running feels cool, and you can slide down hills and skate on ice and different surfaces in a way that is SO satisfying to do

image description: my sky character, wearing a green cape with a blue backpack and an orange on their head, standing in a rainy, tree-filled river area. /end id

the music is also. fuckign gorgeous. volume 1 of the soundtrack was only released a bit ago and i play it Constantly it is such gorgeous orchestral music for a free mobile game.... it sets the tone of each area so well and also Slaps!!!!!!! it’s amazing

to an extent sky has lore, and sort of a plotline/story progression, but it also isn’t necessarily focused on Following A Story to play — there are very broad ideas and things you know happen, but mostly it is like. you exist in this world. here is what you are doing. have fun & make friends doing it. and i think that’s very neat!!!! i don’t know if i can parse in a understandable way what sky means to me thematically, but it deals a lot with helping others, honoring those who came before you, making friends and sharing experiences, sacrifice, and in general making the world a better place through kindness and helping others, even in miserable places, and i think it works wonderfully as very simple concepts conveyed incredibly well in game. the “”last”” area (eden) made me cry the first time i went through it because it was just. oh man!!! this is about connecting with people & helping them & doing it as many times as it takes to help as many people as we can, even when it is almost impossible. and it’s lovely! one of my best friends got me into it, and i usually play with them, and now i’ve successfully gotten @diapensia into it, and it is so fun to share with others too :’) like a little secret. here take this free game that is so simple and yet so beautiful

image description: two sky characters holding hands and glowing softly while floating in the boughs of a cherry blossom tree with glowing pink petals. /end id

ALSO one of the ways sky makes money is by doing seasons — usually two-ish month events that you have to pay to play and offer bonus content, new spirits, and new areas! the seasons usually have a cute little storyline — past ones have been about helping a little figure skater spirit train for a performance, the current one is about helping a kid and their friends build a treehouse in hidden forest! usually it’s like $10 for a pass or $20 if you get one for three people, but they’re lots of fun and usually the bonus cosmetics are Amazing! they’re doing a little prince themed season this...summer i think? that i am so excited for

i have talked about sky for so long so here is a few final fun facts. crabs will try to knock you out in the game and in retaliation you can just pick them up and hold them forever. there are jellyfish and manta rays and other fun ocean creatures. you can PLAY INSTRUMENTS IN THE GAME, which is how you end up with shit like hatsune miku songs getting covered in-game by folks with way more patience for a tiny phone key layout than me

#long post #i find it hard 2 talk abt things i want 2 share with other ppl in a non. markety way almost #but i love sky a lot it makes me very happy #also i will possibly try to edit in a read more on my laptop tmrw bc this is so incredibly long jfmrnckdkdkdkdkdkd #but yeah. that’s sky!!!!! it’s great and i love it #emma i feel like u knew exactly what u were doing asking this (wrt incoming infodump) and ily. if u ever check sky out and want to play #pls lmk i would love 2 hang out #answers #sky children of the light #thatskygame

[lady-salvatore]

Never, Ever (The Proposal)

PART ONE PART TWO

Pairing: Stefan Salvatore x Klaus Mikaelson x Reader

Desc.: Part three to Never, Ever, in which Klaus proposes.

Notes: I’ve had too much fun with Never, Ever to end it in 2 parts... this will have to be moved to ‘series’ on the masterlist lol

It had been three years since you and Klaus reunited.

Maybe it seemed too soon to some, but Klaus had been waiting a century to be with you again, to make you his forever.

“Do you think she’ll like it?” Klaus asked softly, careful not to be heard.

Elena, who had become your best friend in the past years, marveled at the large diamond ring Klaus had chosen. “She’ll love it. But... Klaus, can I be honest?”

Klaus nodded.

Elena’s dark eyes turned solemn. “(Y/N) may not seem like it, but she’s not a forgetful person. She forgave you, but she’s always scared.”

“Scared that I’ll leave again,” Klaus muttered, staring down at the ring. “I just wish I could show her how I feel for her.”

“You need to show her that you’re not going anywhere,” Elena replied. “Then, the proposal will take it the rest of the way.”

Elena turned to leave Klaus’s Mystic Falls home. “By the way, you have my blessing.”

“I didn’t ask.” Klaus glared at her.

“I’m the closest thing she has to family,” Elena replied. “You should have asked me for her hand.”

“Don’t act like you’re from a previous century. I’ve been in ten of them, I didn’t find you in one.”

Elena laughed. “It’s weird working with you. The things I’d do for (Y/N)...”

Klaus smiled. “I feel the same.”

-

It had been three years with Klaus, and he hadn’t left you yet.

But every day, you were put through the pain of missing him for a century. The part of you that had been locked off when he compelled you had lived a hundred years, too, and that part tortured you every day.

You stared out a window in the Salvatore Boarding House, which you miraculously never got kicked out of, chewing on your fingernails.

“Hello, breaker-of-my-brother’s-heart,” Damon said from behind you.

You sighed. “I’ve apologized every day for three years. Stefan’s moved on, why haven’t you?”

“Stefan lost a fiancé, I lost a sister.” Damon downed his bourbon.

You turned to him. “Damon, darling, I still see you as my brother.”

He smiled, only a little. “I know. But you’ll always be an almost.”

“I hate almosts,” you whispered.

“Uh oh. Trouble in Mikaelson Paradise?”

You sighed deeply. “Something like that. I’m almost healed. The pain is almost over. That’s what I tell myself, but it’s only almost true.”

“What, about Klaus?”

“Yes,” you muttered. “I keep missing him, even while he’s here. And it hurts. I just keep thinking about him leaving me.”

Damon laid a hand on your shoulder. “I know.”

You looked into his blue eyes. He did know, and maybe he was the only one that would ever understand. After all, he carried a torch for Katherine Pierce for much longer than a hundred years, and he remembered every moment of it.

You placed your hand on top of his. “I’m so sorry.”

“You can’t change the past,” Damon said, shrugging. “You just have now. But you don’t have to spend your whole life scared. It’s your choice.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’ll hurt, but you’re allowed out. If you can’t get past it, nobody’s stopping you from leaving him.” Damon’s blue eyes were dark. Over the last three years, nobody had ever told you that. You choosing Klaus three years ago was, to everyone you knew, choosing him forever.

You leaned into Damon, and he put his arm around you. “You’re wise beyond your years, big brother.”

“Is it really wise beyond my years if I’m, what, a hundred and fifty-ish?”

“Yes, because you look twenty four.”

-

How do you prove to someone that you’ve loved them a century, and that will never change? How do you show them you’ll never, ever leave again? How do you make a promise that seems so hard?

How could Klaus summarize every minute he ever loved you?

He glanced over to his paints, and smiled.

-

You hadn’t heard from Klaus for three days. Every time you called, Elijah told you that he was wrapped up in his studio.

You were desolate, and so desperate just to hear his voice. If you could hear him say he loved you, it would be true.

Finally, he did call you.

“Hello, love,” he whispered through the phone. “Will you do me a favor?”

You sighed softly, just happy to hear him. “Depends.”

He laughed. “Put on that black dress you wore on our second first date.”

You chuckled. “And what’s this for?”

“You’ll see.” You could practically hear the smirk in his voice. “I love you. See you soon.”

“Love you too,” you said and hung up.

You got ready, same as you did three years ago, putting on that slinky black floor-length dress.

Klaus didn’t come to pick you up himself, he had one of his hybrid drivers come for you.

You were confused when the driver didn’t pull up to Klaus’s house, but instead pulled into the forest.

You climbed out of the car. Little yellow Christmas lights hung from the trees like fireflies in the dark. You followed a graveled path— difficult in heels— until you came to a clearing.

In the center of the clearing, Klaus stood in his tux next to a canvas with a black veil over it, a smirk on his face.

“Hello, love,” he said.

“Klaus,” you whispered, looking around. The ground was covered in red rose petals. “This is beautiful.”

“It isn’t half as beautiful as you,” Klaus replied, suddenly curling his arms around your waist from behind. He pressed a soft kiss to your shoulder.

Your heart thumped wildly in your chest as you turned to look at him. “What’s this for?”

Klaus smiled, his dimples showing. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” you giggled, turning in his arms so you could look up at him. “But that doesn’t answer my question.”

Klaus cradled your cheek in his hand, his blue eyes suddenly somber. “I feel terrible for abandoning you.”

Your eyes widened. “Klaus, it was a hundred years ago.”

“It’s still hurting you, is it not?” He raised an eyebrow.

You frowned. “I know why you left. It was to protect me.”

“Yes, it was,” Klaus said. “But it was wrong of me not to give you a choice in the matter. I didn’t consider how it would feel if I came back, and that was selfish of me.”

“You sound like Elena,” you muttered, stroking his jaw.

He laughed. “I suppose I do.”

Klaus swayed with you in his arms, twirling you around and around.

Then, hesitantly, he whispered into your ear, “it’s late.”

The night air felt like it was sparkling around you. You remembered that last night in the twenties. “I’m never going home, Nik. Never, ever.”

You heard his heart pick up a beat. “Never, ever it is.”

He stopped dancing, and pulled you at arms length. “Speaking of never, ever... I want to show you something.”

He turned, staring at the large portrait in the center of the clearing. Klaus moved to stand beside it, and unveiled it.

You gasped, your hand over your chest.

It was a painting of you.

You, as you were in the twenties, with (H/C) hair in short curls, skin glowing. You, with red painted lips. You, dancing, with a bouquet of red roses in your arms. Your eyes were closed and you were dancing in delight.

“This,” Klaus whispered, “is what I’ve remembered every night for a hundred years. This is what kept me going. This image of you... You are, by far, the best part of my existence.”

Then, he got down on one knee and pulled a sparkling diamond ring from his pocket. Your eyes filled with tears.

“(Y/N), my love, my life without you was torture. I never want to live that way again,” he said, tears in his eyes. “Never, ever. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?”

Damon’s words rang in your head. You could leave. You could run from the fear of abandonment.

But only for a second. In that second, you realized something— life would never be as sweet, never as beautiful, never as full without Klaus in it.

“Yes,” you cried. He leapt from the ground and held you in his arms, spinning you in the air. “Yes, every day forever!”

The both of you held each other that night, silently, both gazing at the ring on your finger. You would always mourn the century with Klaus that you’d never have.

But new centuries begin all the time.

-

TAGS: @going-insanx (you can ask to be added/removed from the never, ever taglist)

#tvd #the vampire diaries #my post #fanfic #fanfiction #the vampire diaries fanfiction #oneshot #klaus mikaelson oneshot #klaus mikaelson x reader #klaus mikaelson #never ever

[alias-b]

Nothing Lasts Forever.

Summary. The town of Derry changes people. Sends them running away. What it draws in is arguably worse. Humans create the hate and evil monsters come to feed off of. Eleanor Baker knew that well at a young age when she stumbled upon a painted figure in the distance. Pennywise never forgot the girl without fear. It’s possible that they haunted each other.

AN: I take no responsibility for this. Me flexing some horror and hopelessness bc I have nothing left to lose here. Wrote this to work through some things and sorta in love with it. TW: Should be obvious. Trauma. CSA mention. Abuse. S*xual references. G*re. S*icidal thoughts.  Death. Pennywise F*cks and it’s canon. Sorry, Mr. King.

Pennywise x OC Eleanor Baker ~ Also on my ao3

   They say she saw It first.

   They say she smelled the circus. Sugary sweet and the rusting of metal.

   They say she heard the bells toll soft. Once. Twice for her.

   They say she felt no fear.

   A branch cracked under pristine shoes, distracting a clown in the midst of hunt. The prey; small and blue eyed, barely five years old, ran into safe arms where their family set up camp for a weekend by the lake. 

   Body twisting around, It saw her last. Six years old. Curious green eyes shimmered even under grey skies. Pigtails. Feet behind her, father was hunched over to change a tire with mother beckoning from the window. Pulled over to the side of the road near a Derry forest. The Baker family. Well known and beloved because they had money.

   “Eleanor. You’ll ruin your new shoes. We can’t be late for your recital. It’s going to rain!” Mother’s voice went under heard. Leaves rustled while the clown made a path to slink toward her. Her lips parted, eyes fixated and unblinking. Yellow eyes faded to baby blue like the pretty jewels her mother wore. Safe.

   They were face to face. Drool dripped to hit her once untouched shoes. Those bejeweled eyes surged from that delicate blue back to a hungry orange, glowing brighter and yet he smelled nothing. 

   She had no scent. No fear. A deep, wide nothing. Vast as the ocean could reach. There was no advancing, no will to bring forth the deadlights. She’d probably think they were pretty stars watching over her. Cinderella wishing for a fairy godmother and a prince to whisk her away. He could only watch her make an utter fool of him. Somehow that charmed.

   “Eleanor, now!” Came the shout from her father. A drop of red emerged from the trees. Shiny and terrible. “Where did you get that?”

   A red balloon skimmed against the breeze.

   “From the clown.” She said, getting into the car. “He gave it to me.”

   “Enough playing around, Nell.” Father pressed her inside. The grip was lost along the tangled string. That spot of blood floated up toward the endless sky. Became a floating star too. She wished to float with it. 

   Eleanor danced her little heart out. Prima Ballerina in the making. Perfection was not everything, it was the only thing. She gazed into the audience beyond the balmy stage lights. Rows and rows of orange eyes. Glowing into her. No fear to be cast. Not for any of them. This world didn’t deserve it.

   She saw It again that same week. When they attended a big family reunion. Picnic and all. And her uncle pulled her into the closet full of coats and old board games that were gathering dust. He called this a game too. A secret game. 

   After he’d decided the game was over, a pang snatched his heart to squeeze. Gushing. Eleanor saw those glowing eyes from the shadows. Thought for a moment it was the old cat who roamed the grounds.

   Her uncle asked for help with no breaths left. Tore her frilly dress clutching at her. Hit the hardwood with a finishing crack. Blood pooled.

   Nell didn’t want it to stain her shoes or Mother would be upset.

   That white face bent down toward her. Spine curving to push out against skin. Utterly inhuman.

   “Can you smell the circus, Nelly?” Painted lips full of clustering teeth rumbled. She blinked. White cheeks threatened to tear open with the grin curling.

   “Yes.”

   Little, pretty bells chimed in the ruffles of his garment as he laughed. Soft and sweeter than any sound in this world.

   "Who are you?"

   "Pennywise. The dancing clown." He caught her looking at the body behind his feet.

   Big eyes full and empty.

   “Oh, don’t worry about him, he won’t float.” The clown paused. “You’re a little wonder, aren’t you?”

   She said nothing to that.

   “Go on, grow and see if the world devours you. Tumble back to the weeds where I'll find you again.” His own curiosity was a growing sickness. This fragile human. Unbreakable. 

   The thing about Pennywise was he never considered himself the villain. He only came to feed when that evil and hatred humans brought this world was potent. Natural order. Clockwork. Wolves feed on sheep. The worlds spun on.

   Predators tore into prey, he wouldn’t apologize for that. He didn’t create the hatred, just fed from it. Didn't stop it either. Little dash of fear did a body good. Gave it a sweeter taste.

   Fear was painfully human. A trait that tore us open to display the soft underbelly because it betrayed us down to the core. Granted us something to overcome. A test of endurance. Truly let our true colors pour fresh and obscene. Beautiful. Even when it overcame.

   Pennywise gave her head a pat, leaned down to whisper into her ear.

   “I see into your blackest heart of hearts, Nelly, deep down you’ll know. You'll always know.”

   The door opened. Tiny footsteps away from the dark and the figure there always watching her. Like the stars above in a black sky.

   “You’ll know.”

   Eleanor walked downstairs. Out into the sunny day full of festivities and family. Asked her aunt for another piece of cake. Frosted with yellow buttercream flowers. They discovered her uncle in that closet at the same time the flies found him too.

   They found the cloth clutched into his meaty, stiff hand and began to ask questions. She didn’t want to talk about the secret games he played when she was in that house. They sent a bolt of thunder rattling into her brain. Unraveled the synapses.

   Her mother burned the cloth. Vowed to never speak of it in hopes she would forget. Children forgot things all the time.

   Nell never forgot. Not for a moment. Not her uncle or her festering relatives who seemed to easily put her in the back of their memories.

   She wanted them to always remember too. If anything, they owed her that much.

   The pictures her mind fleshed out with crayons were not what children should be drawing. Twisted bodies sometimes. Other days, it was those eyes. Molten lava. Mother and father decided this wasn’t something they could deal with. Seeing her looking so still and motionless around the house like a ghost was too much. Knowing they failed their daughter was just too much. A lock clicked.

   They put her in a place that watched over mistakes of all ages from rich families. Paid it well. They told Eleanor it wasn’t her fault and yet, she was the one locked away in a tower for it. She was the one ignored and doped up.

   Ten years and she gave them nothing. Years of homeschooling. Counseling. Medications. Years of sticking her tongue out to swear she’d swallowed her pills. Years of giving them nothing. No laughter or tears. She never hurt a fly and she was the monster.

   Sometimes, it was easier to become the monster they wanted, she supposed.

   Eleanor got out and married the first man who smiled at her. Called her pretty. Just to be away from mother and father. They’d rot in the weeds soon enough. The rest of her family dwindled. Terrible accidents. She vowed to never reproduce to spite them.

   Husband played games too when dinner wasn’t just right or when she dressed just a little against his wishes. Seven miscarriages. Too many broken promises. A car accident pulled his body apart. Left her with some money to return home. 

   Mother and father needed her now, sick and dying in their lavish beds. Life always went on in Derry. Father went still snug in his tomb a month later. Few more weeks and mother’s harsh insults became apologies.

   This girl she ignored was all she had left.

   “Nell, I hope you can forgive us.” Her mother croaked one day.

   “You’re free to do that, mama.” She’d turned and came to sit on the bed.

   “Do what, my dear?”

   “Hope.” Eleanor tucked some brittle hair from mother’s face. Made room for the pillow she pushed into place. Eight minutes and it was over. Twenty seven years and members of her family dropped like flies. She told herself it was a curse. Or fate.

   Bloodlines dying had never been so beautiful. Not built to last forever. Not at all. There was justice in that much.

   Both Eleanor’s parents became ashes in two ornate urns. She drove them out to the Barrens and poured them into the festering waters. Stinking of Derry’s rotten bowels. Wind swept. Picking up green and brown leaves. Wading the waters to give them some appearance of peace.

   Nell didn’t smell the stink of death. She smelt the circus. Hot buttery popcorn and cotton candy. Twang of metal from the old, rusted rides whirling all directions. A child’s laughter echoed out from the giant pipe ahead. Covered in sludge and moss. 

   She followed the lively sounds. Enticed. No long holding to this world. Another one awaited. It always had. Marked with two glowing orange eyes.

   Reminded her of the lights twinkling every Halloween. Jack-o-lanterns you couldn’t blow out before midnight because it was against the rules and would bring you bad luck.

   Through watery rot and dead leaves, Nell went into the pipes. Caught glimmers of light between cracks. Felt her way. Heard the uttering of the seven children she lost beckoning her home.

   Down.

   Down.

   Down.

   Ruined her clothes in the trance. Clawing for more because the world couldn’t hope to deliver. Into a massive nest with a skylight. Candlelight danced. She heard the trill of a music box until the room came alive. Whirled from rust and rot to marble and gold.

   Prettier than her wedding day. A church with decorated pews of red taffeta. White roses hanging from every corner. Petals crying into the cherry wood floors.

   A man smiled at her who wasn’t Husband. Sharp, brooding face. Swept brown locks slicked like Clark Gable. Pink lips curled and crystalline eyes gave a twinkle. A white suit and one red rose at his breast.

   She came to him when he reached. Body heavier because a dress dragged behind her. Full skirt of those same delicate white roses. Tight bodice that twinkled under candlelight. Nell smiled too. Utterly lost and found all at once in this room that smelled like decadent caramel apples. 

   A gloved hand curled into hers.

   “Am I dead?” She asked.

   “Oh, yes. For twenty seven years now. You wandered the Earth. But, you're home now.” That voice. All shivers. Chilling until the candles started to snuff out. “That was not life, Nelly. You existed by a thread.”

   “Nelly.” She mused in her deepest dream of dreams. The hate and the neglect and the sheer evil brought by humans who were supposed love and protect instead tore her soul far asunder.

   The man leaned in near her hair. Inhaled.

   “Nothing. Even still.” He recounted the memories. All those times he tried and failed to devour her. “Little wonder.”

   "Pennywise." She puffed, barely audible.

   “I watched you dance. All those years. You can dance down here too in the dark."

   Nell realized as he brought her out for a romantic spin. She’d been seeking him out all her life. All the decay and twisting vines in her soul. Begging to just cross over and stop this pain. But, he wouldn’t finish it because she had no fear. So she danced until the room began to peel. He wiped his cheek on one sleeve. Peachy makeup smeared the fabric to display that red smile upon white skin. 

   She pushed off him. Watched blood rain and melt the rest of it away. This place. A nest. A stomach. A pile of trash and metal twisted up toward the sky. Gouging. Figures floating around it. Waiting. Sleeping soundly because evil couldn’t touch them anymore. At the very least. They fueled something brand new.

   No cry. No scream. Nell succumbed. Stumbling back into a worn mattress as the clown crawled up toward her at some inhuman speed. Slapped his hands on either side of her head. They just breathed.

   Existed together in one space.

   Sometimes good and bravery didn’t blossom from overcoming fear. Sometimes you still wanted to die because enduring a lifelong ache was not growth. It just hurt. There was power in it, but it fucking ached.

   It burned. Plenty of things in her life burned. The scorn of her parents. Her uncle's games. The rotten nurses tossing her around. Husband's hands indenting skin.

   But, Pennywise didn’t. He just showed up to watch the fires grow hot and breathless into a black sky. The terrible view was still a breathtaking thing. Something shattering to become a supernova. Rebirth.

   Enduring pain was worth it. That sick curiosity that there was something more to life. It was worth it. So, fight. Endure. Ache. Be human while you have the chance in an inhuman world because it needs you.

   Gloves opened her dress. Tore layers of tulle and chiffon. Slashed silk. Hands pressed against his chest. Not pushing or pulling. Just holding. Shifting over thick, stitched cotton. Ruffles swayed. She felt a heart beat so hard there under her palm.

   He was alive. Something brand new. Not of this world.

   “Am I like you?” She begged finally. Years of searching and asking why. He stopped to see her green eyes. Glowered. One blue, one orange.

   “Not yet.” Was the truest answer he could form. Fingers gripped his fabric sleeves. Twisted just to hold onto something tangible for the first time in all her existence. Alive at last in this place. Water droplets echoed distantly. “You cannot last forever. Nothing lasts forever.”

   Except love, she thought. Except desire.

   Pennywise seemed to hear it even still. Felt the truth of it carve out his heart that was still beating powerfully. Profoundly.

   Something flayed her open. Pushed inside. Made her moan deliciously until two gloved fingers touched her mouth. Bodies connecting. Moving together.

   There were hands everywhere. Stroking soft caresses up and down her naked flesh. It felt like a million little pieces of candlelight were swirling up her body. Those same orbs that had been following her around for too many years shined behind his eyes. Resonated. Beautiful.

   She made out parts of him between thumps. Orange hair. Pristine paint. His mouth on her skin. A heart that was pumping vigorously. Low rumbling growls. Nell felt she’d been starved all her life and was finally feeding. Finally letting the ache flood out that she’d held onto for too long. Finally alive. Feeling. Deep down and drawing in it.

   Her voice came to beg for more of him. Hands grasping to touch him back. To delve into this earth and just feel. He touched her everywhere. Lips and neck. Down her breasts. Between spread legs.

   The combined sensations made her cry out for him to never stop. A gloved hand on her jaw brought their eyes together. Hot, wet touch. Boiling. The peak shattered them both. Nell fell to shuddering pieces. Curved up. Moaning and shameless. Weight fell into her body so lips could touch her own. Once. Just once while they were warm.

   Pennywise lifted off fully to see her eyes. Inhaled again and got what he’d sought too. Years and it was finally there.

   Those green eyes glimmered at him. A waft of sweet candied apples bubbled with heat. Fear. Clear as a crystal, dewy morning. It was the most beautiful thing in the world.

   There was finally something found that could be lost. Something she sought out and held and hoped for.

   And the fear of losing it was almost too much to bear.

   One gloved finger caught a tear that trickled out from the corner of her eyes.

   “Please.” She said, unable to find much else. Like she wanted him and nothing else for the rest of these long days. Do it. Just do it. Nell’s hand lifted. Gentle fingers drew lines along his face. "Pennywise. Please."

   It was a soft prayer.

   He lunged down. Sunk teeth into her tender neck. Tore the scream out before she could hope to give it. Nell choked there. Made an odd sound like she was laughing. It bubbled. Claws grew out from those gloves. Shoved forth into her raging heart. 

   A squelch.

   Her lips were still upturned when it was done. Green eyes pointed on him. Peaceful and bloodied. Naked under the moonlight. Dripping rubies.

   He tossed his head back and wailed. Teeth sharp and bared. Bloodied. Lost. A shattering sound that bent time and space apart. Pennywise plucked her up. Climbed high and vast to the very top of the twisting pile. Watched the dead children float like little falling stars. Something to make wishes upon. Peaceful for only a second in this life.

   He placed her there in a sheer drape. Closed her eyes. Let the deadlights swelter above them. Spinning all directions. 

   A scar thickened.

   Three days passed. The deadlights danced high and wide. Fluttering like a swarm of butterflies. The world spun on a new axis. Pennywise sat below upon his stage. Curved over in wait. Marble statue. 

   A low rumble like a purr erupted. Dainty feet came to him with a newfound grace. Little dancer. Deadly ballerina all porcelain and blushed. Blood red shoes made soft taps across the stage.

   A white hand touched his shoulder. His little wonder. Bells tolled distantly three times.

   “Can you smell the circus?” Her voice poured white hot. Purring louder so he'd feel it vibrate his own chest.

   Lips curled wide. Split. Pennywise rose to see her in the light. Perfection. Those green eyes shimmering like emeralds. Haunted. Totally alive and willing.

   “Yes.” He hissed. Cupping her face to see the angles. Not ruining the permanent brushstrokes that came with her rebirth. “Yes, I do.” A bond struck.

   I do. I promise. We'll float. Always.

   Nell smiled to match him. Totally and irrevocably his equal. A pulse of light drew them together. She granted him a single kiss, tasting candied. A new horror in this world hungry for the evil it would always bring.

   “We were built to last forever.”

#pennywise #pennywise x oc #pennywise imagine #mine #writing

[tarisilmarwen]

RobStar Week 2020, Day 6 - Wedding Bells

(*whispers* RobStar wedding, RobStar wedding, RobStar wedding, RobStar weeeeeddiiiiiiinnnng! :D

Featuring a few of my headcanons and a reformed Blackfire.

Enjoy!)

---

Argent made one last adjustment to the little jeweled tiara that crowned Starfire's veil and then stepped back in satisfaction.

"There we are," she declared.  "Done!"

Starfire beamed widely, extending her arms to look herself over, pinching handfuls of the swishy satinesque white skirt and giving it little twirls.

"Ooh girl, Robin is just gonna faint!" Bumblebee crowed in approval, from her spot by the window.

She giggled in agreement.

The dress was perfect.  Light white sequined lace all up her arms, dipping down across her collar in a subtle sweetheart neckline, ending at her waist where the billowing skirt began.  She'd gone full Western traditional--for this ceremony at least--with all the something olds and something blues as part and parcel of her lovely ensemble.

She could hardly keep her feet on the ground, floating up a few inches off her strappy white heels.

Raven gave a smile as she took Starfire's wrist and gently tugged her back to earth.  "How are you feeling?" she asked, for Starfire's sake as she could already feel the quivering joy and excitement rushing through the Tamaranian's body.

"I am... nervous?" Starfire replied.  Her hands wrung together.  "But also excited and also happy and... Oh Raven I cannot believe it is finally happening!" she gushed.

"Congratulations love," said Argent.  "Truly."

There was a quiet click as the bedroom door closed, a hesitant figure slipping in.

"Do you have everything packed for when you leave for Tamaran tomorrow?" Blackfire asked, eyes anxious.

"I believe so..." Starfire mused, taking a quick look around the guest bedroom.  "Oh!" she cried.  "My favorite hairbrush!" she said, spotting it still on the vanity.  "I will need that in the bag before we go."

Blackfire nodded.  "I've got it," she promised.

She took a few steps in that direction and then paused, feet rooting, evasive eyes raising seriously, fixing on her sister.

"You look... absolutely beautiful, little sister," she said quietly.

Starfire's glow dimmed, her eyes softening a little.  "Are you certain you will not attend the ceremony and wedding feast on Tamaran?" she asked.

Blackfire gave a wry, self-hating smile and shook her head.  "I get the feeling our dear loyal subjects wouldn't be too happy to see me around," she said.  She tried to shrug in a way that was casual and unaffected.  "It's okay.  Wildfire and I were planning to jet off around the Scarpia Cluster after everything anyway."

Starfire reached out, gently grasping her sister's hand with a sincere look.  "For the record," she said, "you would have a place at my wedding, if you wished it."

The facade of indifference slipped off Blackfire's face, her eyes stinging, as she dropped her chin, mumbling a soft, "Thanks.  But I don't think I'm quite... ready for that yet."

"Understood."

Starfire let go and stepped back, checking over her dress once again  and looking around the room.

"Has anyone seen Silkie?" she asked.

"He was with Robin and the boys last I checked," Raven told her, finishing up with the clasp of her necklace and letting it drape over the collar of her bridesmaid's dress.  She tilted her head up.  "Speaking of..." she commented dryly, giving an amused smirk.  "I should probably go check on him now."

Starfire giggled knowingly.  "Is he doing the freaking out?" she queried.

"You know him," she drolled.

"Tell him if he ruins that tux I will absolutely 'ave his head," Argent grumbled, picking up the loose pieces of ribbon on the floor as she and Kole finished winding together the boutonnieres, handing one to Raven before the empath walked out the door.

***

Robin paced agitatedly back and forth, wringing out the hems of his sleeves.

"Flowers on the altarpiece?" he asked Cyborg.

"Yep."

"And you've got the music all queued up?"

Cyborg looked vaguely offended at that.  "You would dare doubt me?" he said.

Robin's face pinched.  "Cyborg..." he groaned.

"I've got it, Rob," Cyborg reassured him.  "Pachelbell's Canon in D for the processional, Mendelsson for the recessional, all your favorite love songs as pre-ceremony mood music."

Robin nodded stiffly, his hands coming up, wringing in his hair.  "Three hours for the reception," he recited to himself, under his breath.  "Two more to finish packing for Tamaran..."

"Dude, would you just relax," Beast Boy complained, watching from his perch on Robin's bed, curled up indian-style with his chin pillowed in his hands.  "You're gonna give yourself a heart attack."  He straightened up, a sudden look of concern in his eyes.  "Have you even eaten anything yet?"

Robin shook his head.  "Can't.  Too nervous."

"No way are you skipping breakfast, you're gonna faint at the wedding for sure!" the changeling declared, leaping up from the bed.

He nearly bumped into Raven on his quest to find Robin some food.

"Pardon me!" he squeaked, darting around her.

Raven let him pass her, then stepped into the room, crossing to Robin, who already had an apologetic look on his face.

"Sorry," he said, forcing himself to quit pacing and face her.  "I'm projecting aren't I?"

"Loudly," Raven confirmed, reaching up to pin his boutonniere in place.  "What's got you so worked up anyway?  I thought you'd be happier about marrying Starfire."

He sighed, raking a hand up through his bangs.  "I am, I am, I promise I'm just--"  He fixed her with a serious look.  "You know just how many things can go wrong at one wedding?" he asked.  "And we had the stupid idea to have two."   He pressed his heels into his eyes, groaning.  "And there's a whole host of traditions and rules to remember when we get to Tamaran and I keep thinking I'm just going to embarrass her in front of her court and her people and--"

"Robin," Raven interrupted sternly.  She grabbed hold of one his wrists, pulling it down from his face.  "Listen to me: It doesn't matter if you do or don't mess something up, if something does or doesn't go wrong," she told him.  "If at the end of the day you wind up married, then the wedding is a success.  Please relax," she ordered, siphoning off some of his anxiety with her powers.

Robin blinked, slightly in a daze for a moment before the tension eased out of his shoulders.  "Ngl," he complained.  "Warn me next time you're going to do that."

"You'll thank me later," she droned, grabbing up his jacket from where it hung on the chair and handing it over to him.

***

Pleasant sunlight streamed down on their heads as the Titans fluttered excitedly around the Manor's garden in anticipation.  Two other teams had managed to make it for the ceremony on Earth--Titans East and Titans Oceanic, mostly, plus one Kid Flash and of course Blackfire and Wildfire.  The rest would be joining them for the wedding on Tamaran, an affair that promised to be even more grandiose and magnificent.

For now, Robin was content to celebrate with his mentor and father figure and his closest friends, in the backyard of his childhood home.

A wind lifted the pale ribbon streamers, and flower petals from the blossoming trees drifted lazily on it.  He tramped his feet anxiously, waiting for Speedy's signal that things were ready and the wedding could proceed.

Finally, spotting the archer from across the way, Robin straightened to attention.  Speedy was giving the thumbs up.  Bruce was squeezing his shoulder comfortingly.

Everything was ready.

He was going to get married.

Robin couldn't stop the prickles of energy coursing through him, igniting his heart.  He could barely hear the lilting strings of the Canon as he watched Argent and Kole and Bumblee and Raven float down the aisle on the arms of their attendants.

There was a pause as the Titans scrambled to rise to their feet.

And then there she was.

She practically glowed joy, the way she moved down the aisle making it clear that she couldn't keep from floating.  Cyborg looked like was having a bit of trouble holding onto her, in fact, as he walked her down the aisle, but the big grin on his face told Robin that he didn't mind in the least.

Robin could feel his own grin cracking the edges of his jaw.  He must've looked so stupidly happy.

Starfire giggled as she came within range, descending lightly to her feet and standing there with the sunlight caught in her red hair, a perfect picture of bridal bliss.

Robin felt so dizzyingly glad to see her that he got physically dizzy for a moment, tilting back on his feet.

Beast Boy caught him before he wobbled too much, pushing him back upright.

"Told you you needed eat something," he muttered.

The pastor behind them at the altar cleared his throat, raising his book of devotional readings as the music faded out.

"Our beloved friends and family, we are gathered here today..."

The bride and groom couldn't take their eyes and smiles away from each other the whole time.

#robstar #robin #starfire #Teen Titans #robstarweek #cyborg #Argent #raven #blackfire #bumblebee #speedy #bruce wayne #platonic pseudo siblings #beast boy #fanfiction #prompt fics

[ahatintimestorybook]

Secret in the Treehouse Chap.2 Painted Flowers

Here is the next chapter and a happy new year as well (depending where you are as its still New Year's eve where I am)

Also I named the Painter, Peter before Shane-Frost revealed the Painter’s real name.

Well, Enjoy!

“Peter! Come on!” A young girl shouted to her friend. The young girl had red hair tied into a braid that was covered with leaves and twigs. She wore a light blue dress and tan overalls.

Peter, a young boy wearing a red apron over a dark blue shirt with a crescent moon on it, was starting to get tired following his best friend around. His clothes were muddy, and like the young girl, his hair had some leaves and twigs as well. “Willow, do we have to go deeper into the forest?” Peter whined. “I mean, it's just a flower!”

Willow stopped in her tracks and turned to face her friend. “Just a flower!” She growled. “Peter, this is one of the rarest flowers in Subcon! They won’t bloom again for another 100 years!” She exclaimed. Peter gulped and stepped back from his friend. Willow sighed, calming down a bit. “Sorry. I just want to find this flower for my mom.” She apologized.

Peter sighed back seeing she had calmed down. However, he didn’t want to walk deeper into the forest, knowing whatever was there, just for a flower. “Does it have to be deep into Subcon?” He asked.

“That’s what my book told me.” Willow replied. “We're not too far away, so let’s hurry!” Willow then ran off, surprising Peter, who then started to run after his friend.

“Willow, wait!” Peter shouted, trying to catch up, but she was faster. He didn’t look where he was running, and he tripped on a nearby root and fell to the ground with a thud.

Willow stopped in her tracks to see her friend had fallen and was struggling to get up. Sympathizing with Peter, Willow walked up to him and held her hand out for him. “Sorry.” She apologized. “I forgot you're not the best runner.”

Peter took his friend’s hand and stood up giving her a smile. “It’s okay. Just please slow down next time.” He requested. Willow nodded, promising to slow down a bit. The two friends were ready to continue looking for the rare flower, but they stopped at the sound of rustling in the nearby bushes. Peter whimpered and went behind the Florist’s back, shaking like a leaf.

“Stay behind me, Peter. This could be a Rough Patch!” Willow warned. She grabbed the stick she was using as her weapon and waited for whatever was coming out of the bushes.

However, it wasn’t a Rough Patch, but instead Lucas and Vanessa. Peter screamed in fear before even seeing who it actually was, and hid behind a tree. Willow slowly lowered her stick as she looked up at the duo. “P-princess Vanessa?” Willow asked.

“T-The princess?” Peter asked, popping his head out from behind the tree. He quickly came out, seeing there was no Rough Patch, but a princess. “Your majesty,” he said, giving a bow. “What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you two.” Lucas spoke up. He then turned to Willow and nodded, knowing she was the missing girl. “Your mother is worried for you.”

Willow glared and crossed her arms at the stranger. “How do you know my mother?” She asked.

“She told us that you and your friend,” He gestured towards Peter, “were missing, and I told her I’d find you guys.” Lucas explained. Willow raised an eyebrow, which made Lucas decide that maybe he should introduce himself. “Oh, I’m Lucas, by the way. I’m the future prince of Subcon.”

Willow chuckled. “Well then future prince,” She spat. “I’m Willow, and this is Peter.” She introduced herself and her friend, who gave a small wave. “We’re currently looking for a rare flower that blooms every 100 years, for my mom.” She explained.

“Oh!” Lucas realized. “Well, do you need any help?”

Willow’s eyes widen at Lucas’s offer. “Why would the future prince and princess of Subcon want to help us?” Willow asked.

“Because we’re the future rulers and it would be nice to help our future subjects no matter what!”

Willow thought about it for a bit, and turned towards Peter. She grabbed him and pulled him away from the royal kids. “Think they should help us?” Willow asked.

Peter thought for a second, and nodded. “It wouldn’t hurt.” He said, sheepishly. Willow groaned, but seeing it be nice company, she’d agreed to it. She was ready to speak with Lucas only to see the young prince and Vanessa in a discussion as well.

“I don’t know about this, my prince.” Vanessa doubted. Even though they were her subjects, what would her mother say when she found out she went deep into Subcon Forest?

“Come on, Nessa. I know we found them and we’re supposed to bring her back, but this girl wants to help her mom.” Lucas begged. “Could we please help them?”

Vanessa wasn’t sure what to think. Does she want to help Willow and her friend go deep into Subcon Forest, and disappoint her mother? Or does she want to be seen as a good ruler who would care to help her people in need? She looked into her prince’s eyes, which sparkled like stars. Sighing, and not caring what her mother will have to say, she gave a nod.

“Guess we could help them.” Vanessa said, uncertainty.

Lucas smiled. “Great!” He exclaimed. He took Vanessa’s hand and took her to Willow and Peter who were waiting on them. “Alright, I spoke with the princess and we would love to help you guys!”

Willow crossed her arms, but her glare faded. “I guess you could help us.” Willow sighed.

“Thanks.” Lucas replied. “So, what’s this rare flower you're looking for?”

“It’s called a Latent Pansy. A purple and yellow pansy that blooms in Subcon every 100 years!” Willow explained.

Vanessa gasped. “I’ve heard of that flower! In Subcon legends, it says that whoever picks the flower will bring luck to their family for generations to come!” She explained.

“Well I want it for my mother’s flower kart. I want luck on my side so our small little kart will be a big and fancy flower shop one day.” Willow explained.

“Well then, let’s find this flower!” Lucas exclaimed.

Willow smiled and held up the stick like it was a sword, claiming herself the leader of this mission. “Alright team! Let’s go!” She shouted. The kids then followed her deeper into Subcon Forest.

It felt like hours had passed, and the four Subcon kids still haven’t found the Latent Pansy yet. Soon the sun started to set at the horizon, bathing the forest in its glow.. Peter gulped seeing how dark the forest was getting. “S-should we head back home now?” Peter whimpered.

“Don’t worry, we should be close.” Willow reassured her friend.

“How far in Subcon do these flowers even grow?” Lucas asked.

“Deep, very deep into Subcon. So deep that I’m not even allowed to go.” Vanessa explained.

Willow turned to the princess. “Well, you are the princess of Subcon, your freedom is limited to your manor.” She replied.

Vanessa stopped in her tracks and glared at Willow. “I’m not just stuck in my manor all day! I have my freedom in Subcon and beyond too.”

“So then why can’t you go deep into Subcon Forest?”

“W-Well…” Vanessa trailed off, rubbing her arm. Before Vanessa could answer, a snap of a branch caught the kid’s attention. “What was that?!” Vanessa asked. The kids huddled close together just in case the thing that snapped the branch would attack them.

A growl came from the bushes, making Peter and Vanessa cry in fear. Then from out of the bushes a small cat-like creature with a bush for a body popped out hissing at them. Peter screamed and held onto Willow’s arm tight. The latter glared and raised her stick at the creature.

“A Rough Patch!” Willow shouted.

“A what?” Lucas asked.

“Rough Patches are cat-like creatures who are very hostile in Subcon. They attack anyone that’s near their territory.” Vanessa explained.

The Rough Patch snarled making everyone step back. However, it paused when seeing Lucas, tilting its head towards him. The young prince was confused as the Rough Patch made his way toward him with no aggressive body language, while Willow, Vanessa and Peter whimpered in fear. The cat-like creature sniffed Lucas’s shoe, before nuzzling and purring on his lake.

The Subcon residents were confused why Lucas isn’t being attacked by Rough Patch, but rather the latter being sweet and snuggly towards him. The young prince kneeled down and gave the creature a pet. “Its fur is soft.” Lucas commented.

“C-Careful!” Vanessa shouted. “Rough Patches are dangerous!”

Lucas looked down at the little critter, who just softly purred on his lap. “Doesn’t look dangerous to me.” Lucas replied, continuing to give the creature some pets. After giving the Rough Patch some love, Lucas saw something from the bushes the creature came out of. He walked over to it and saw a field of purple and yellow pansies; Latent Pansies.

“Are these Latent Pansies?” Lucas asked. Willow, Peter and Vanessa went and looked over the bushes and smiled seeing the flowers blooming all over the forest floor.

Willow smiled seeing the flowers right in front of her. “Those are the Latent Pansies!” Willow exclaimed. She went through the bushes and looked at the beautiful purple and yellow flowers blooming around them. Looking to see which flower looked perfect to pick, she picked a Latent Pansy that had an equal amount of purple and yellow on its petals, as well as a perfectly balanced size.

Vanessa picked out a few Latent Pansies as well to bring home. “Okay.” Peter spoke up. “Now can we go home? Please?” He shouted. The kids looked up and saw night had just fallen over Subcon, and before one of them could say yes, they dashed out of the flower field and headed back in the direction they came from.

“Quickly, we better make it home before my mother finds-” Vanessa was cut off when she and the kids stopped in their tracks to see their parents with a mix of worry and disappointment in their face. “Us.”

“Willow! Peter!” Willow’s mother exclaimed, hugging the two of them. “Are you two okay?” She asked.

“We’re fine!” Willow replied. Even though Willow and Peter were fine, that didn’t mean Vanessa was fine as the two kids saw how scared the princess was facing her mother.

“Vanessa!” Elizabeth shouted. “What in the name of Subcon were you doing deep into the forest!? Don’t you know how dangerous it is!?”

“I-I know mother.” Vanessa stuttered. “I didn’t mean too I was only just-“ Vanessa was cut off by her mother’s shouting.

“Disobeying orders!” Elizabeth shouted. The queen felt Autumn hold her back, in hopes of calming her down.

Lucas looked at Vanessa, seeing she was about to cry due to her mother’s actions. Determined to help his future queen, he went up to the current one. “It wasn’t Vanessa’s fault.” Elizabeth and Willow’s mother turned to the young boy talking. Vanessa gasped, wondering what her prince was going to do. “It was my idea to go there. You see, Willow and Peter were looking for Latent Pansies, and I wanted to help them. Vanessa was trying to stop me because she was not allowed to go, but I made her follow with us regardless.” He explained.

Vanessa’s eyes glistened as a stray tear fell from her face. She realized he was defending her.

“So if anyone should be in trouble, it should be me.” Lucas finished.

Elizabeth was still angry her daughter disobeyed orders, but stepped back seeing Lucas explaining everything to her. “Elizabeth,” Autumn spoke up. “They are just kids. I think tonight they should be let go with a warning.”

“Plus, they weren’t hurt, your majesty.” Willow’s mother added quickly.

The queen glanced at her friend and her subject, and nodded. “Vanessa. Let’s go home.” She spoke up not giving her daughter a single glance. Vanessa nodded and followed her mother with Lucas following close behind.

Seeing how the royal family was heading home, Willow’s mother took her daughter and Peter’s hand and took them home too. “Come on let’s get you two to bed.” She said.

“Okay mom.” Willow replied.

#ahit fanfic #Secret in the Treehouse #ahit the painter #ahit moonjumper #ahit the florist #queen vanessa #ahit the prince #ahit queen elizabeth #ahit queen vanessa's mother

[kieraswriting]

Human/Fairy Relations 1

- Thomas heads out into the woods one day, planning to just go on a bit of a nature walk. People have told him to stop and turn back when he comes across the line of flowers, but he doesn’t listen. He crosses them, only to suddenly succumb to a purple mist. When he wakes up, a tiny man with wings is flying above him, giving off a purple aura. And Thomas realizes he can’t move.  @arc852

1  2  3  4

There they were. 

It was a line forbidden to cross. 

Always, since he was very young, Thomas had wanted to know what was beyond it. Of course, every other time he had had adults nearby to stop him, and frequently punish him, for trying to step past the flowers. And honestly, he hadn’t intended to go this far this time either. He had just been on a walk, but now he was standing, staring at the flowers. 

They were a dark purple, and there was a large circle in the very center of the forest that they bordered. He hadn’t walked all the way around the circle, but he had heard stories from people that came from other towns and had seen the other side. 

Thomas reached out and touched one. Its petals were softer and more velvety than any he had ever felt, and as soon as it was disturbed a truly delicious scent floated up into the air. 

Surely, something this beautiful wouldn’t be able to guard something bad. 

He stepped over the flowers. 

There’s a sudden breeze. Instantly, from the trees, there comes a purple mist. He looks up above him, to see that the purple flowers are growing on vines that snake up into every tree, and each flower is sprinkling purple pollen down onto him. The flower ring as well is wafting the pollen up. 

Thomas gasped in wonder. It’s so beautiful. More than he had even imagined. 

But when he gasped, the pollen caught in his throat. Thomas coughed, but that just made him inhale more of the powder. His eyes start dragging closed and his limbs feel far heavier than they ever have, even when he was exhausted. He slumped to the ground. 

••^*^••

Thomas woke up slowly. He couldn’t move yet, could only barely open his eyes, but he could hear. 

“I caught one! I finally, finally caught one! Agh! Who am I kidding? I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do it!”

Thomas forced his eyes open to see a fairy, brightly lit in the dark, and the same shade of purple as the flowers. He was flirting back and forth and talking rapidly to himself. Maybe if he would be more still or if he came closer Thomas would be able to see better. 

Wait— the dark?! How long had he been asleep? 

Thomas grunted with the effort of raising his head, and still failed, but it drew the fairy’s attention to him. 

“You’re awake! Quick, before it wears off completely, give me your name!”

“What?” Thomas was surprised that he was able to speak so easily, but he wasn’t complaining either. 

“Your name. Give me your name.” The fairy said, flitting closer. 

There was something about that, though. Some reason he shouldn’t tell his name to the fairy. He couldn’t remember very clearly. 

“What’s your name?” Thomas asked. 

“Mine?” The fairy backed up a little. “I’m called Anxiety.”

“That’s a weird name.”

“It doesn’t matter, give me your name now.”

But he couldn’t shake the feeling that he really shouldn’t tell the fairy his name. Maybe he could compromise. 

“Sanders.”

The fairy’s face scrunched up. “Sanders? Surely that’s not— it’s a last name.”

Thomas tried again to lift his head. It was much easier now. 

“I can work with a last name,” the fairy said, his tone changing back as he talked to himself. “I’ll just have to shift you first, and take you through second.”

The fairy suddenly started speaking in another language, and the only word Thomas caught was Sanders. 

Everything was getting bigger. And getting bigger quickly. Thomas cried out, but there was no one to hear him but the fairy. 

The fairy fluttered down to him, now almost the same size. He grabbed under Thomas’s armpits and across his chest, and lifted him into the air. 

“What are you doing?!” Thomas yelled. 

The ground dropped away. He could still only move a little, but didn’t dare to try for fear the fairy would drop him. 

They flew deeper into the forest, and then over a lake. 

Thomas flinched back away from the water. This fairy had better not drop him. 

Then they stopped in the middle. 

No. 

“Wait! Wait, don’t drop me!” 

But the fairy let go. 

••^*^••

Thomas woke up laying on a bed. He was laying on his stomach, and someone was rubbing his back softly. He was tempted to lean into the touch and go back to sleep, but then he remembered. 

He shot up. 

“W-here am I? Who are you? What’s happening?”

“Hey, calm down, kiddo. You need to lay down again.”

It wasn’t the fairy. It was a fairy, though. This one was freckled, with soft curly hair, and had light blue wings. Unlike Anxiety’s wings, though, his were opaque, and didn’t show any signs of glowing. 

“Your wings are about to come in, and you need to be laying down,” the fairy said again, his voice soft and soothing. 

“What…?” Thomas shook his head. “I don’t— No.”

“I’m called Morality,” the fairy said. “But that’s not my name.”

Thomas was baffled by the change of subject. But everything was confusing right now. 

“Anxiety has been calling you Sanders, which is your name, but only partly. He tried to give you wings, but because Sanders isn’t your real name they’re coming in slowly. They’ll be fragile for the first bit, and might be sore, so he asked me to help you.”

“What’s going on?” Thomas asked. 

Morality sighed. “Kiddo, I’d love to help answer your questions, but I won’t do it if you don’t lay down.”

Thomas laid down on his stomach. “So what’s going on?”

“Well… I guess I’ll start big picture. You know how some humans catch fairies?”

Thomas nodded. “Like magicians?”

Morality nodded. “Yes. Well, the fairies got tired of being captured, but they can’t do much about it when they’re so tiny while they’re in our realm.”

Thomas’s mind snagged on the ‘our’ but he didn’t interrupt. 

“So they made several traps for humans. Mostly they don’t work, but sometimes they catch a human. It makes us easier to influence. Then they take us back to their world. They give us wings, so we can fly around like they do, but they look different than theirs.”

Morality fluttered his wings open, showing them off. 

“V—Anxiety was put in charge of one of those traps, but he never caught a human until now.”

Morality leaned in close and whispered. “Don’t give him your name.”

“So you’re a human? How long have you been here? And why shouldn’t I give him my name?”

Morality sat back in the chair again. “I am. I’ve been here… quite a while. Years are different here. With your name… right now, he can only do a couple things to you, and they’ll be slow, but if he has your name he has a lot more power over you.”

Suddenly there was a pain in Thomas back. Morality set his hand on it, and rubbed in the very middle along Thomas spine. With all of the things happening, it hadn’t seemed like a big deal that he wasn’t wearing a shirt, but now that knowledge was at the front of his mind. 

“What’s going to happen?” He asked, worry spiking through his mind as his back hurt more and more. 

“It’s alright. When it happened to me it hurt, but it wasn’t for too long. Hopefully yours will be quicker once they start coming through.”

Thomas felt as Morality’s hand touched something that wasn’t his back, though it felt as much like a part of him as if it was. He shivered. 

“Here they come,” Morality said happily. “They’re going to be beautiful.”

It was another five minutes before Morality pronounced the wings to be fully grown. 

“Just stay there, let them dry and get a bit stronger before you try to use them. I’ll get you something to eat.”

Thomas was surprised to find how natural it felt, waving his wings open and shut. The pain was fading away, and he turned his head as much as he could to see them. From what he could see, they were like monarch wings. 

Morality came back in with a plate. The plate had large slices of something red on it. Did fairies eat meat?

“Here. I’m going to touch your wings, alright?” 

Thomas nodded. He could feel Morality’s hand, lighter than a feather, brush along the edge of each wing. 

“Can you feel them the whole way?” He asked. 

Thomas nodded. 

“That’s good!” Morality said. “You can probably sit up now.”

Thomas sat up and picked up the plate. It was strawberry slices. But the berry it came from must be huge. He ate them quickly, and they tasted better than any strawberries he’d ever eaten. 

“Thank you.”

“Oh, you’re welcome kiddo!”

“So where is Anxiety? And why are you here instead?”

“He’s just out in the living room,” Morality said, pointing at the door. “They sent me in because they thought you’d be more comfortable with a human.”

“They?”

“Yes, Lo—gic, is also out there. He didn’t capture me, but I told him my name, so, we’re kind of stuck with each other now. They want to see you, once you’re done eating.”

Thomas now regretted eating so quickly. 

“I guess.”

Morality opened the door, but waited until Thomas went through ahead of him. 

There were two fairies sitting on stools in the living room, and both turned to look at Thomas as he entered. 

One was Anxiety, and the other was probably Logic. Logic had dark blue wings that sparkled as if they were sprinkled in glitter. Both he and Anxiety were dressed in clothes that looked like they were made out of plants. 

“Patton.” Logic said, and from behind him Thomas heard an “Oh!” 

He turned to look, and saw Morality, or Patton, the size of a fairy. He flew up and over to Logic. 

“Logiiic, I wanted to stay big a while!” He whined, but settled on Logic’s shoulder. 

Thomas shifted his gaze to Anxiety, who looked at just as much of a loss as he felt. 

“What do we do now?”

#character!thomas #logan sanders #virgil sanders #patton sanders #sanders sides g/t #g/t #Human/fairy relations

[trensu]

Episode 9: the One where They ~FROLIC IN THE FOREST~

We’re back at the dancing fairy cave.

Stuff happens here that’s, you know, plotty

We’re gonna ignore all that

OUR FIRST WANGXIAN MOMENT OF THE EPISODE is when wwx defends lwj from jc’s ire (oh yeah, one of the plotty things is that jc suddenly is here. Not important why).

Jc is all pissy (bc when isn’t he, honestly?) at wwx for having to chase after him (which he didn’t technically have to but bros don’t abandon their bros to unknown circumstances, okay?) and is complaining angrily about it

Wwx: hey, I’M the one who wanted to follow lwj around because i love him, so don’t get mad at him!

And then wwx looks over at lwj with a little smile on his face, so sweet so sweet!

Plot plot exposition plot

We have to chase down the Smoky Owl of Evil and kill it now for Plot Reasons!

Lol, wwx traps jc, nhs, AND wen qing (oh she’s here now too, btw) in his Golden Glowy Net of Protection so he and lwj can go track down the Smoky Owl of Evil together

Wwx, probably: “STOP INTERRUPTING MY DATE WITH LWJ, GUYS, JEEZ”

And now our beautiful boys are in the middle of the woods when suddenly SPOOKY FOG ROLLS IN WITH OMINOUS MUSIC IN THE BACKGROUND

SHIT’S ABOUT TO GET SERIOUS

Oh nooo, the fog separates them!! Wwx is worriedly calling out “lan zhan, lan zhan!”

Luckily they bump into each other pretty quick so they’re together again

Except, oops, JUST KIDDING

Wwx takes like, two steps to one side and loses lwj again. Even tho lwj is literally right there next to him

But he doesn’t know that so he’s worried and being all cute about it. He bites his knuckle and is thinking “oh noooo, what if the Smoky Owl of Evil got him?!?” So he’s calling out for him, again

EVEN THO HE’S ONLY LIKE, TWO FEET AWAY, LET ME REITERATE

LWJ seems to be able to see wwx just fine bc the look he gives him is all “r u srs, i’m right here”

Thankfully lwj is clever and makes bichen light up all blue and pretty like an epic glow stick. It matches his outfit!! (i’ve decided he did this on purpose. He definitely can control what color his sword lights up as and coordinates it accordingly with his clothes. No, i will not be taking criticisms, because I am Right)

LWJ: I’m right next to you

WWX: *surprised gasp* You should’ve said something!

Uh, he just did wwx, keep up now.

LWJ: the fog is creating hallucinations

WWX: that’s alright! I’ll just get rid of it using my ~glitter talisman~

EXCUSE ME, WHAT??

WHAT IS A GLITTER TALISMAN?

OF COURSE YOU INVENTED A GLITTER TALISMAN, YOU CHAOTIC BI

Too bad it doesn’t work! i wanted to see it in action :( :( :(

Lwj: the fog is also disorienting the mind so you can’t focus

Don’t worry wwx, your talisman didn’t fail because you were having performance issues

It failed because the fog is Evil

WWX: Wait!! Why isn’t your mind being disturbed?

Lwj: it mostly disturbs minds that have lots of thoughts in them

Wwx: *cheeky grin* ah, it’s making use of my infinite wisdom~

Lwj: *looks away in exasperation*

I guess lans are Above rolling their eyes at someone (tho I'm pretty sure he's rolled his eyes at him before) but the way lwj did that gave off intense eye-rolling vibes, let me tell ya

OMG A SENTIENT CHAIN OF EVIL ATTACKS THEM OUT OF NOWHERE

Thankfully lwj is a Skilled Fighter and was able to block it with his sword while doing a SUPER DRAMATIC TWIRL OF DODGING

Ooooh, and when he lands, wwx appears right beside him and they go back to back without even pausing to think

BC THEY’RE SOULMATES AND CAN FIGHT IN SYNC AHHHHHH

WWX: lan zhan, are you okay?

He sound so serious here, and with his determined expression, wwx is ready to get down to business on this evil chain that attacked his lwj

LWJ: I’m fine *still super alert to his surroundings bc he’s an awesome cultivator and that’s what they do*

Okay, pause for a moment to point out how funny the camera shots from above are. The fog almost completely obscures wwx in his dark clothes, but lwj sticks out like a sore thumb. So every time we get one of these shots, it just looks like lwj is chilling by his lonesome in this mega foggy forest lol

Oh, dude, this next part is SO FREAKING COOL

So they’re back to back still, and surrounded by Evil Fog

Lwj: wei ying, focus your senses!

The both of them close their eyes to focus intensely

the the camera is down below, angled up so that LWJ and WWX look tall and slightly elongated but in a badass way!

And then the camera circles around them slowly to really show you just how badass and good looking they are before doing a quick spin around them with DRAMATIC MUSIC in the background

Okay, i’m done geeking out about the camera shot (idk why, guys, but i love those kinds of shots. They’re so thrilling every time!!)

Also LOOK AT MY BOYS BEING ALL FOCUSED AND SERIOUS. GO GET EM SWEETIES, I BELIEVE IN YOU

At this point they haven’t even looked at each other or their surroundings but lwj starts a plan

Lwj: Split fire talisman

That’s it. That’s all he says to wwx.

Without hesitation, wwx sheathes suibian and pulls out that talisman

THEY TRUST EACH OTHER IMPLICITLY

I MEAN, COME ON

THEY’RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A FOREST SURROUNDED BY EVIL MIND-ALTERING FOG

AND WWX SHEATHES HIS SWORD LIKE NBD JUST WITH A WORD FROM LWJ??

AAAAHHHHHHH

SOULMATES ON THE BATTLEFIELD

I LOVE IT

I LOVE IT SO MUCH

AND NOW THEY’RE MOVING ALL SYNCHRONIZED,  LWJ BLOCKING EVIL CHAINS WITH BICHEN AND WWX DETERRING OTHER EVIL CHAINS USING THE TALISMANS

AND THEY’RE STILL BACK TO BACK, CIRCLING AROUND TO KEEP EACH OTHER SAFE!!!!!

THEY’RE SUCH A GREAT TEAM 

Then we cut for a moment to see how nhs, jc, and wq are doing in their Golden Glowy Net of Protection (it looks kind of like a birdcage actually...glowy golden birdcage of protection?? hmm)

And we’re back at the epic forest fight scene!!

OMG THAT WAS SUCH A COOL MOVE RIGHT HERE

THERE WAS A CHAIN COMING AT WWX AND HE STRAIGHT UP BACKFLIPS OVER LWJ WHILE LWJ SWOOPS TO TAKE HIS PLACE AND HIT THE CHAIN WITH BICHEN

AHHHHH

THIS IS WHAT ROMANCE LOOKS LIKE, GUYS, DON’T LET ANYONE TELL YOU OTHERWISE

IF YOU CAN’T DO EPIC BATTLE MOVES WITH YOUR S.O. ARE YOU REALLY MEANT TO BE??

But oh no!! One of the evil chains catches wwx by the neck and drags him away!!

It made him drop his sword!!

IT TIED HIM TO A TREE!!

don't think kinky thoughts don't think kinky thoughts dontthinkkinkythoughts

Oh, now wwx is playing dead lol

Suddenly the Smoky Owl of Evil swoops in to attack his “dead” body (because that bird is a coward that lacks honor)

AND WWX CATCHES IT WITH HIS BARE HANDS

WWX: did you think you could outsmart me?? *proceeds to choke the poor bird to death, yikes*

Lwj finally catches up to wwx but sees that the bird’s been sufficiently murdered so he sheathes bichen

Wwx: did you see who was controlling the Smoky Owl of Evil?

LWJ: Nope.

(God, LWJ, you had ONE JOB)

LWJ: he or she was mind-controlling it from somewhere Not Here.

(Oh, nevermind then. You're forgiven)

LOL WWX’S FACE

LIKE, YOU MEAN I NEARLY GOT CHOKED TO DEATH WITH AN EVIL CHAIN FOR NOTHING???

Wwx: *kicks dead bird petulantly*

Side note: A-yuan makes a brief appearance here! Wwx and LWJ go check on their pals who are with the Wens and A-yuan is there!! 

It doesn’t really make sense bc i’m pretty sure between now and the end of the sunshot campaign, a few years have passed?? so a-yuan should be much older later, but you know what? I DON’T EVEN CARE.

WHATEVER! I’M NOT HERE FOR THE PLOT. 

OR SENSIBLE TIMELINES. 

TIME IS MEANINGLESS. 

TRUE LOVE IS FOREVER. 

ALSO A-YUAN IS FREAKING ADORABLE SO I’M NOT GONNA COMPLAIN!

And now we’re getting more plot exposition about the dancing fairy

It’s less painful this time bc wen qing is the one doing it and she’s gorgeous (take a moment to drown in her big brown bambi eyes! please marry me, wen qing)

More plot stuff happens.

Wwx tricks nhs and jc into chasing after a chicken so he can have ~alone time~ with lwj

Except not really bc they’re there to interrogate wq about the yin iron, aka the main plot device in this story arc

Wwx: the fairy started snatching souls bc the Plot Device was taken from it, right? That’s why it only went after lan zhan when we were fighting it!

Detective!WWX is so cute and clever!!

But god forbid wwx stays serious for more than a minute straight heh straight when not in immediate danger bc then he’s all

Wwx: the only other possible explanation is...IT HAD A CRUSH ON LAN ZHAN LOLOL

(Which, i mean, who wouldn’t, right?)

THE LOOK ON LWJ’S FACE AT THIS! LOL

LWJ: Shut UP

they’re talking serious plot stuff again, boring.

Oh, JC and WQ have a moment and the only reason i’m mentioning it is bc WWX goes and interrupts it, THAT’S KARMA BABY LOL

Now they’re in a town! Not the flower-petal town from before. A different one. Idk.

A hawker stops wwx and gives him a sample of alcohol and lwj gives wwx a disdainful look like ‘r u srs?’ before walking off

The NANOSECOND wwx sees lwj walking away from him, he ditches Mr. Let-me-give-you-free-alcohol and chases after him

Yes, the budding alcoholic ditches the Free Alcohol Man

THAT’S TRUE LOVE BABY

Lol he grabs lwj by the ribbon thing hanging off his shoulder (not the Marriage Ribbon, unfortunately)

Lwj glares at him but it’s like, a mild one

WWX: wait, where are you going??

Lwj: looking for the gentry. For info. *tries to walk away*

Wwx: WAIT *grabs lwj by the forearm*

Lwj: *stares at where wwx is touching him until wwx lets go*

WWX TAKE IT EASY ON POOR LAN ZHAN

HE’S ONLY JUST REALIZED HE’S IN LOVE WITH YOU

HE CAN’T HANDLE YOU TOUCHING HIM YET

Wwx: don’t go without me! You’ll info-gather wrong!!

Lwj: how should i do it then?

Wwx: *cute little grin that shows off his beauty mark*

(gaaahhh, i can’t handle it when he smiles like this, it kills me every time!! that beauty mark is deadly)

Wwx: you should go to the wine house for info instead!!

JC: you just want to get drunk (oh yeah, he’s still here guys, fyi)

Wwx: HOW DARE! I can separate business from pleasure! Ppl gossip at wine houses! We’ll definitely get info there!

and now nhs is joining them

Nhs: lets go find a place to rest

Wow, lwj is staring pretty hard at nhs

It’s a stare that’s like “y r u talking to my soulm8, stop that”

AND THEN WWX GRABS BOTH JC AND LWJ BY THE ARMS AND RUNS, DRAGGING THEM BOTH BEHIND HIM

IT’S SO CUTE

HE’S SO HAPPY!! HE’S GOT THE TWO BOYS HE LOVES MOST IN THE WORLD WITH HIM!!

Also, lol lwj is so stiff even as wwx forces him to run

We’re at the wine house

Wwx slams down an obscene amount of money on the table (at least i think it’s obscene going off of jc’s expression and subsequent scolding about how wwx is gonna be broke BUT JOKE’S ON HIM BC WWX IS GETTING HIMSELF A SUGAR DADDY IN THE FUTURE)

Now he’s chatting up the waiter for info and we get Plot Details and an ooky-spooky story about the now deceased Chang clan

I only specify this bc the Plot Device tucked in lwj’s robes starts acting up aND CAUSING LWJ PAIN!! 

NOT COOL, PLOT DEVICE, VERY NOT COOL!

Wwx is hovering all worriedly at his shoulder and mother-henning him.

The Plot Device gives LWJ a vision(!!) that sends them to the Chang clan’s residence

And we get surprise dead bodies accompanied by unholy screeching when we get there!!

Like. SO MANY dead bodies!

LWJ and WWX are Concerned!!

And that’s the end of episode 9.

This episode imo has is the best fight scene of the show. There’s more dramatic ones later on, but in terms of seeing wwx and lwj battle together in a not-ridiculously-over-the-top fashion? This one wins hands down! Gold Star to my boys!!

Return to Masterpost

#WangXiantics #the untamed #wangxian

[aahhhhhhauniverse]

hooooooo boy this is scary

this is probably my first time posting but i think that it’s time to do so, i have a proper account wow! 

this is a small thing i did a few months ago based on a prompt that Death has a crush on Life. 

The first time Death sees life, it is not the ’person’, it is a small flower at the edge of a clearing. Death has just crawled out of the ground, and it is the first thing it sees. It is beautiful, pulsating with a glowing blue aura. Death goes to touch it, and for a moment, It glows brighter. Death is glad to see what it does to this little flower. Soon after it dies. Death is distraught, but accepts it, and wonders if there is another like it. So it starts to wander around. Soon, it reaches a small clearing, and in it, there is another one of those blue lights. Death is instantly drawn to it, and goes to touch it. It soon materialises into a being, another one just like it. 

“Hello. I seem to be Life. And you are?”

“Death. I am Death.”

It is a language that no one will ever understand, for this was when the language of love was born. The first time death and life meet, a love is born. They know that whatever happens, they will always work together, always know each other.

Soon after, plants emerge. giant sequoias dwarf any other living thing, but still Life finds them all beautiful. All the tiny blades of grass, all the delicate petals, all the shades of leaf. Death is close behind, cradling the wilting flowers and treading on the dead grass. It accepts that it will always follow Life, and it will, gladly. For Death has never met anything like Life.

There is simply nothing like it.

Animals come and go. Life breathes energy and being into small ideas that soon dominate the world. Death touches their skulls and brings them to rest. Dinosaurs rise and fall. Yet the plants still grow and the trees get bigger and Life carries on, getting stronger with each living thing that it creates.

One day, Life was relaxing in a meadow, when it feels the presence of another being, but not one created by it. 

“Hello Death. We have not spoken in a while. How are you?”

“Cleaning up after you.” It jokes. “I have been putting things to rest. Just like you make things live, I help them die. It is all a cycle. But it would help if you could slow down.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry.” Life replied sheepishly. “But I was wondering, how about we talk. Find out about one another. Don’t you ever wonder what we think of each other?”

Death sighed and stepped out of the shadows.

“Very well. Let's talk.”

And so they did. For aeons. And more of that beautiful melody, the music of love, came pouring out of that clearing. It went into every heart, and a select group of animals got a little bit more, and soon they started to evolve. And all the while Death was slowly slipping into the sway of the music.

“Death, look! Those are new.” 

On the palm of Life’s hand, there now crept what seemed to be monkeys, but they had much less fur and were standing on 2 legs.

“Homosapiens and homoneanderthals. One of these will live, whereas the other will burn out and cease to exist.”

“Do you want to hold one?” Life asked, fully aware of the consequences. So Death picked up one of each, and marveled at how they stumbled and groped around. The neanderthal started to slow down, whereas the homosapien kept on going. Death had decided which one it would take for its own.

“You may have the homosapiens. They are stronger and will blossom with you. I can take care of the neanderthals.”

And flourish they did. Death and Life could no longer stay in their true forms, as the humans were slowly learning and developing their own ideas. Their roles changed. Life still breathed energy into all the beings, and Death still touched every decaying skull. However, they were only aids now, when before they were creators. Yet they were both ok with that. They knew that this era of humans would soon be forgotten. After all, Life and Death will always exist, long after humans are gone.

Skip forward to 2018. Death has taken the form of a university student. Death chose to study art, for it was something it never understood.  The concept of capturing life in a single image was fascinating to it. It also enjoyed looking back on the past, and enjoyed listening to stories from those who were closer to it than Life. 

Life chose Biology. It enjoys looking at the fundamental aspects of what humans call life. It is fascinated at what humans are able to do with life, and wants to help. It likes to keep itself healthy, as an inspiration to humans. Life has many friends, and it likes integrating into human life.

Death, on the other hand, feels as if it is not wanted. In most parts of the world, death is avoided and shunned. This is reflected in it's friendship. However, in a few places, death is celebrated and not seen as a negative thing. Therefore Death has a few friends and enjoys their company. 

Ever since the talk with Life some millenia ago, Death has been hearing a soothing melody that repeats itself over and over again, and crescendos whenever Death and Life are near each other. They are mutually friends, as they coincidentally reside in the same city. Seems like fate. (Or carefully planned plot? Who knows.)

One day, during class, Death is painting. It's mindless painting, but when it is finished, it is an exact replica of when it first saw Life. A blue, glowing figure in the middle of a lush, untrodden clearing. Life seemed to be playing with small flying things, like the modern butterflies, but brighter and with bigger wings. Death’s art instructor came round and marvelled at the work. 

‘This is truly an amazing capture of life. You should be proud of that. You know what? I’ll let you take it home, if you like.’

Death was ecstatic at this opportunity. And so it did. It walked all the way home, instead of the usual modes of transport. It then went to the store and bought nails for paintings. By the end of the day, the painting had made a home on the far wall, secluded enough that you could only see it if you were snooping, but public enough to be noticed daily by Death. 

For the first time in it's existence, Death had created something that would last.

A few weeks later, Life was wandering the halls afterschool of this art uni that it knew Death was ‘studying’ at. It is to be noted that although Life was not consciously seeking out Death, it was already forming an excuse for when they inevitably bumped into each other in the hallway.

And sure enough, a few minutes later, it walked into a seemingly empty classroom and collided head on with Death.

‘Oh, hey! Long time no see. How’ve you been?’

By being caught off guard, Death's shape was fluid. One moment, it was a young art student with chestnut hair and big, round glasses. Another was a lanky young adult with black jeans speckled with blue. Eventually, it settled into a form which resembled it's true form, but smaller.

‘I, I study here.’ Death said, red sliding over it's skin.

‘You do? What a coincidence, my friend studies here. I was just trying to find her. You know, pop around after school.’

‘It's 7:30 in the evening.’ Death quipped with a thin eyebrow arching up and a smile tugging at the corners of it's lips.

‘Well, it's time for dinner. Do you wanna go get some? I heard it's what humans do when they want to spend time with someone.’

‘Like you want to spend time with me. People don’t really like me. It might ruin your reputation.’

Life looked taken aback. 

‘They will be gone in a few millennia. My friends will cease to exist in less than a blink of an eye. You, however, will be here forever. And I would like to get to know you better. Dinner?’

For Death, Life was finally starting to make sense. Life heard the music too. And at this point in time, their melodies were combining to create a beautiful harmony. For Death, Life was starting to make sense. 

‘Yes. Yes. Lets go have dinner.’

Epilogue:

Millions of years later, when mankind have disappeared off the face of the earth, after the world became a molten hell, then grew back again. Millions of years later, the earth was the same as when it started. And Life and Death were there. 

They liked to look back on the days when they had power. Walking along the earth like kings and queens. They enjoyed remembering all the dates they went on, how humans were single handedly the most powerful race of animals they had ever encountered. They were swayed by that constant, lulling music that reminded them of the days when they were strong and so full of energy, of life. They remembered for the last time.  

And now, on the last day of eternity, they lie, hand in hand, in the green clearing they first met, and slowly, they die.  

#writing #death #life #prompt #writing prompt #death has a crush on life #modern au? #its a work in progress #writeblr

[kieraelieson]

So I followed a prompt

It was by @arc852 and I decided to write it out.

There’s not really an ending, but maybe I’ll write more in the future.

- Thomas heads out into the woods one day, planning to just go on a bit of a nature walk. People have told him to stop and turn back when he comes across the line of flowers, but he doesn’t listen. He crosses them, only to suddenly succumb to a purple mist. When he wakes up, a tiny man with wings is flying above him, giving off a purple aura. And Thomas realizes he can’t move. -Arc852

••^*^••

There they were.

It was a line forbidden to cross.

Always, since he was very young, Thomas had wanted to know what was beyond it. Of course, every other time he had had adults nearby to stop him, and frequently punish him, for trying to step past the flowers. And honestly, he hadn’t intended to go this far this time either. He had just been on a walk, but now he was standing, staring at the flowers.

They were a dark purple, and there was a large circle in the very center of the forest that they bordered. He hadn’t walked all the way around the circle, but he had heard stories from people that came from other towns and had seen the other side.

Thomas reached out and touched one. Its petals were softer and more velvety than any he had ever felt, and as soon as it was disturbed a truly delicious scent floated up into the air.

Surely, something this beautiful wouldn’t be able to guard something bad.

He stepped over the flowers.

There’s a sudden breeze. Instantly, from the trees, there comes a purple mist. He looks up above him, to see that the purple flowers are growing on vines that snake up into every tree, and each flower is sprinkling purple pollen down onto him. The flower ring as well is wafting the pollen up.

Thomas gasped in wonder. It’s so beautiful. More than he had even imagined.

But when he gasped, the pollen caught in his throat. Thomas coughed, but that just made him inhale more of the powder. His eyes start dragging closed and his limbs feel far heavier than they ever have, even when he was exhausted. He slumped to the ground.

••^*^••

Thomas woke up slowly. He couldn’t move yet, could only barely open his eyes, but he could hear.

“I caught one! I finally, finally caught one! Agh! Who am I kidding? I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do it!”

Thomas forced his eyes open to see a fairy, brightly lit in the dark, and the same shade of purple as the flowers. He was flirting back and forth and talking rapidly to himself. Maybe if he would be more still or if he came closer Thomas would be able to see better.

Wait— the dark?! How long had he been asleep?

Thomas grunted with the effort of raising his head, and still failed, but it drew the fairy’s attention to him.

“You’re awake! Quick, before it wears off completely, give me your name!”

“What?” Thomas was surprised that he was able to speak so easily, but he wasn’t complaining either.

“Your name. Give me your name.” The fairy said, flitting closer.

There was something about that, though. Some reason he shouldn’t tell his name to the fairy. He couldn’t remember very clearly.

“What’s your name?” Thomas asked.

“Mine?” The fairy backed up a little. “I’m called Anxiety.”

“That’s a weird name.”

“It doesn’t matter, give me your name now.”

But he couldn’t shake the feeling that he really shouldn’t tell the fairy his name. Maybe he could compromise.

“Sanders.”

The fairy’s face scrunched up. “Sanders? Surely that’s not— it’s a last name.”

Thomas tried again to lift his head. It was much easier now.

“I can work with a last name,” the fairy said, his tone changing back as he talked to himself. “I’ll just have to shift you first, and take you through second.”

The fairy suddenly started speaking in another language, and the only word Thomas caught was Sanders.

Everything was getting bigger. And getting bigger quickly. Thomas cried out, but there was no one to hear him but the fairy.

The fairy fluttered down to him, now almost the same size. He grabbed under Thomas’s armpits and across his chest, and lifted him into the air.

“What are you doing?!” Thomas yelled.

The ground dropped away. He could still only move a little, but didn’t dare to try for fear the fairy would drop him.

They flew deeper into the forest, and then over a lake.

Thomas flinched back away from the water. This fairy had better not drop him.

Then they stopped in the middle.

No.

“Wait! Wait, don’t drop me!”

But the fairy let go.

••^*^••

Thomas woke up laying on a bed. He was laying on his stomach, and someone was rubbing his back softly. He was tempted to lean into the touch and go back to sleep, but then he remembered.

He shot up.

“W-here am I? Who are you? What’s happening?”

“Hey, calm down, kiddo. You need to lay down again.”

It wasn’t the fairy. It was a fairy, though. This one was freckled, with soft curly hair, and had light blue wings. Unlike Anxiety’s wings, though, his were opaque, and didn’t show any signs of glowing.

“Your wings are about to come in, and you need to be laying down,” the fairy said again, his voice soft and soothing.

“What…?” Thomas shook his head. “I don’t— No.”

“I’m called Morality,” the fairy said. “But that’s not my name.”

Thomas was baffled by the change of subject. But everything was confusing right now.

“Anxiety has been calling you Sanders, which is your name, but only partly. He tried to give you wings, but because Sanders isn’t your real name they’re coming in slowly. They’ll be fragile for the first bit, and might be sore, so he asked me to help you.”

“What’s going on?” Thomas asked.

Morality sighed. “Kiddo, I’d love to help answer your questions, but I won’t do it if you don’t lay down.”

Thomas laid down on his stomach. “So what’s going on?”

“Well… I guess I’ll start big picture. You know how some humans catch fairies?”

Thomas nodded. “Like magicians?”

Morality nodded. “Yes. Well, the fairies got tired of being captured, but they can’t do much about it when they’re so tiny while they’re in our realm.”

Thomas’s mind snagged on the ‘our’ but he didn’t interrupt.

“So they made several traps for humans. Mostly they don’t work, but sometimes they catch a human. It makes us easier to influence. Then they take us back to their world. They give us wings, so we can fly around like they do, but they look different than theirs.”

Morality fluttered his wings open, showing them off.

“V—Anxiety was put in charge of one of those traps, but he never caught a human until now.”

Morality leaned in close and whispered. “Don’t give him your name.”

“So you’re a human? How long have you been here? And why shouldn’t I give him my name?”

Morality sat back in the chair again. “I am. I’ve been here… quite a while. Years are different here. With your name… right now, he can only do a couple things to you, and they’ll be slow, but if he has your name he has a lot more power over you.”

Suddenly there was a pain in Thomas back. Morality set his hand on it, and rubbed in the very middle along Thomas spine. With all of the things happening, it hadn’t seemed like a big deal that he wasn’t wearing a shirt, but now that knowledge was at the front of his mind.

“What’s going to happen?” He asked, worry spiking through his mind as his back hurt more and more.

“It’s alright. When it happened to me it hurt, but it wasn’t for too long. Hopefully yours will be quicker once they start coming through.”

Thomas felt as Morality’s hand touched something that wasn’t his back, though it felt as much like a part of him as if it was. He shivered.

“Here they come,” Morality said happily. “They’re going to be beautiful.”

It was another five minutes before Morality pronounced the wings to be fully grown.

“Just stay there, let them dry and get a bit stronger before you try to use them. I’ll get you something to eat.”

Thomas was surprised to find how natural it felt, waving his wings open and shut. The pain was fading away, and he turned his head as much as he could to see them. From what he could see, they were like monarch wings.

Morality came back in with a plate. The plate had large slices of something red on it. Did fairies eat meat?

“Here. I’m going to touch your wings, alright?”

Thomas nodded. He could feel Morality’s hand, lighter than a feather, brush along the edge of each wing.

“Can you feel them the whole way?” He asked.

Thomas nodded.

“That’s good!” Morality said. “You can probably sit up now.”

Thomas sat up and picked up the plate. It was strawberry slices. But the berry it came from must be huge. He ate them quickly, and they tasted better than any strawberries he’d ever eaten.

“Thank you.”

“Oh, you’re welcome kiddo!”

“So where is Anxiety? And why are you here instead?”

“He’s just out in the living room,” Morality said, pointing at the door. “They sent me in because they thought you’d be more comfortable with a human.”

“They?”

“Yes, Lo—gic, is also out there. He didn’t capture me, but I told him my name, so, we’re kind of stuck with each other now. They want to see you, once you’re done eating.”

Thomas now regretted eating so quickly.

“I guess.”

Morality opened the door, but waited until Thomas went through ahead of him.

There were two fairies sitting on stools in the living room, and both turned to look at Thomas as he entered.

One was Anxiety, and the other was probably Logic. Logic had dark blue wings that sparkled as if they were sprinkled in glitter. Both he and Anxiety were dressed in clothes that looked like they were made out of plants.

“Patton.” Logic said, and from behind him Thomas heard an “Oh!”

He turned to look, and saw Morality, or Patton, the size of a fairy. He flew up and over to Logic.

“Logiiic, I wanted to stay big a while!” He whined, but settled on Logic’s shoulder.

Thomas shifted his gaze to Anxiety, who looked at just as much of a loss as he felt.

“What do we do now?”

#sanders sides #g/t #my own work #i dont know how to tag stuff #tagging masters lend me your wisdom #i have no idea how to do the read more thing

[merryfortune]

Day 7 – Metal / Love

AN: Big thank you to Organisers Ignister & Echo for putting on the Cyberse Celebration event, thank you so much <3

Ship: Aqua/Earth

Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! Vrains

Word Count: 1.1k

Tags:  Pre-Canon, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort

  All of the Ignis had some gift which made them unique. The Light Ignis had his grand intellect and foresight which of course made him the unequivocal and uncontested leader of their troop. The Dark Ignis had his instinct, as slothful and inelegant as it was. The Fire Ignis had a keen mind and was prone to feats of gallantry and courage. The Water Ignis had her talent for perceiving truth and lie. The Wind Ignis had his sublime mastery of his element and beyond. But the Earth Ignis… As he sat, in his domain, sombre and pondering, could not think of a thing which set him apart from his herd.

  He had no gift or talent which bettered the social environment of he and his fellow Ignis. Yes, the Earth Ignis had his own mastery for his element, but it wasn’t as beautiful as the way in which the Wind Ignis conjured his winds or how the Water Ignis manipulated her waters. But aside from that, they had a talent which transcended their physical environment of the Cyberse World and helped enriched the social environment and immutable relationships between that.

  So, the Earth Ignis thought low of himself as he could not perceive a trait or skill inside of himself which he could hold to the same standard as his kin. It depressed him severely and made him wonder if his source, his Origin, had been lacking in some way as compared to the other children he and his kind had been created from…

  In the quiet of his miserable musings, amid the gently swaying trees and mossy rocks, the Water Ignis approached the Earth Ignis. Her sparkling pink eyes lost some of their glitter as she found him by the edge of his domain, overlooking an endless, sky blue abyss but she sat down next to him; kneeling as compared to his cross-legged stance. But she didn’t sit too close that their knees touched but she did lean into him.

  “Penny for your thoughts?” she murmured, looking up at him; his square, blue eyes were so utterly stern, compressed too.

  “What an odd saying…” he replied, unthinking.

  The Water Ignis giggled. “I believe it’s a human saying. I suppose, given the fact that we have no money, petal for your thoughts might be a better phrase. So,” she took a pretend breath, a purposefully stunted pause, “let’s try again. Petal for your thoughts?”

  “A petal for my thoughts, huh?” the Earth Ignis mumbled aloud.

  With a twinkle of his block fingers, he manifested a flower. The stem intertwined between the pinch of his fingertips; verdant leaves unfurled, and a pale pink blossom bloomed at the very end of it. With a mouthless smile, the Earth Ignis gifted it to the Water Ignis. She glanced at him; returning his curt, mouthless smile with one of her own but it lingered. The sweetness of it permeated the Earth Ignis’ thoughts; softening his dejected reveries, mixing them up, making him forget lines of thought and the like. The Water Ignis lifted the flower to the face; her olfactory receptor central on it, unseen, took in the sensory information of it. The petals were sublimely soft, and it emanated a faint fragrance. She thought it was wonderful.

  “I am feeling very troubled, at the moment.” the Earth Ignis finally confessed to his companion.

  “Oh, how terrible. Is there anything I can do to alleviate that for you?” the Water Ignis queried, concern moulding her abstracted, blue features.

  “I feel inferior to the others; yourself included. I feel as though I lack a talent, trait, or some other gift which enriches the social stratus of our society.” The Earth Ignis explained.

  “That’s not true, at all. I find your fear unfounded.” The Water Ignis quickly contested him with a demure power in her voice: she was utterly sure of her assertation.

  “Oh? Explain, please.” The Earth Ignis not quite demanded of her.

  “You are very gentle. You always consider the feelings of others first before you act.” The Water Ignis began; she twirled the flower around as she spoken, watching the petals flutter in the inertia. “You rarely act without kindness in your intent, I feel. The Dark Ignis and Wind Ignis can be so rude because they find it funny; the Fire Ignis can come across as egotistical or arrogant; the Light Ignis is unapproachable. But you… you are never any of those things. I think you have a very special and very human trait: so obvious that you are blinded to it because it’s not your second nature, no not at all. It’s who you are first and foremost.”

  The Earth Ignis blushed as he felt a twinge in his brow. “I’m… socially awkward?” he replied; thinking of innumerable times in which he had blundered through a social situation by being blunt and frank or by not clarifying himself correctly.

  “Well, yes. But you are loving. You are caring.” The Water Ignis replied.

  “I – I am?” the Earth Ignis stuttered; flattered beyond all compare.

  The Water Ignis nodded as she leaned into his figure. “Yes, very loving. I feel at ease with you and I adore your quirks. I sense a great power for emotional understanding from you. One that outshines the others, myself, included, by far.” The Water Ignis placed her hand on her breast whilst she continued to stare at the flower she had been presented.

  “O-Oh, you, um, you flatter me, Water Ignis, but thank you.” The Earth Ignis stuttered. “I feel better about myself; I trust your word, sincerely.”

  “That is wonderful to hear.” The Water Ignis replied.

  The Earth Ignis felt his emotions stir inside of him. Twinkle, sparkle, glow, and glimmer: all in hues of orange and brown, perhaps a touch ruddy. He hoped that the Water Ignis wouldn’t notice how dearly he had taken the Water Ignis’ reply. Perhaps she was right. No, she had to be right. That was her talent after all; her perception of truth and lie which put her at a crosshair of being unable to deceive. So, the Earth Ignis knew her word to be above sublime. Not just in virtue, but in sincerity.

  But it made the Earth Ignis falter. Beneath it all, he was a creature of free will; he was not incorrigible thus, he wonder if it would be inappropriate to take the Water Ignis’ hand in this moment as she came closer and enjoyed the breeze and serenity with him having sorted out his problems.

#cyberselove2019 #yugioh vrains #vrains #yugioh #crystalheartshipping #earth (vrains) #aqua (vrains) #writing tag

[unholyhelbig]

Prompt: Chloe is a tattoo artist and Beca is the new owner of the flower shop next door. After an unexpected friendship between the two and both being interested for something more, Chloe couldn’t help but notice the purple hyancith tattoo Beca has. Not knowing the language of flowers, Chloe decides to ask Beca.

[A/N: Right, so maybe I’m totally thinking about making this into a real multi-chapter thing. I’ve just made a vow with myself that I’ll finish Camp Beaverbrook first. So… let me know what you think because I’m beyond in love with this prompt] 

The flowers were dead. That’s the first thing that caught Beca Mitchell’s eyes; their stems were a sickly grey. The green color had drained completely and left a white carcass behind in its wakes. Petals littered the counter.  They were once red like freshly drawn blood, a stark white that rattled into a pink-tipped form. Ghosts with no soul left to harvest.

She reached forward and palmed a petal. They sounded like deadened leaves under booted feet. The pad of her finger running evenly over it before it disintegrated into fine dust in her hand. She frowned at it.

Beca had a habit of looking for the flowers in any setting. They livened up the room or muted it depending on their own life span. Great designers would say that fresh set pieces could establish an atmosphere. Great florists would counter that it established good business.

She could feel the instant coolness of the room prickle goosebumps against her skin, even past the knitted grey sweater that hugged her frame expertly. She had been in interrogation rooms this cold before, but never a simple tattoo shop. The sound of needles buzzing against once clear skin echoed in her ears. Maybe this was a bad idea.

The room was painted a deep burgundy, a white crown molding so expertly untouched. There were paintings on the wall: close up black and white images of big cats in the wild and blank blades of grass. There was a wall of long stretched drawings in front of her. Too many for her to count. Generic images of dragons breathing fire and grim reapers wielding scythes.

Beca couldn’t’ help but admire the line work that went into them, the attention to detail and the way each picture had been meticulously drawn before being resized for human attention. She let her lips part and a lone breath tumble from them.

“Can I help you?”

She drew in a sharp breath at the edged voice. She had been so focused on the sheeted artwork that she hadn’t noticed the presence of another. A woman; stunning in a grunge type of way. A tight black t-shirt hugged her frame, showing off the expertly crafted tattoos that coated every inch of toned and exposed skin. Her blonde hair was tied back, a few strands falling into glowing green eyes. The open sign flicked a flash of red and blue periodically against her bored expression.

“If you want a tattoo you need to book an appointment with our receptionist. We don’t do walk-ins.”

“No,” Beca spoke evenly, the woman raising her eyebrow as she set her hand on the counter and tightened her stance, letting her fingers dance on the countertop. “I mean, I don’t want a tattoo. I just moved into the space next door and I think this is yours.”

She thrust out an envelope that was clearly marked The Crimson Door. It certainly wasn’t for her modest flower shop. She had mulled over the name a few times in her mind. The door to this place wasn’t even slathered in red, it was merely a foggy glass embossed in gold lettering. She decided not to bring it up.

“Oh, thank you.” The stranger took the envelope, softening in her abrasive stance. “We’ve talked to the post office so many times. They never seem to get it right.”

The woman let out a deep sigh and dropped the letter somewhere behind the desk that Beca didn’t’ stretch to see. She seemed to relax a bit, clearly having surprise visits from drunken patrons looking to get cheap ink more than once.

“That place used to be a Chinese restaurant, you know.” She continued, walking behind the counter as she leaned over the computer. Beca couldn’t see anything more than white reflected off forest irises. “I can’t tell you how glad I am that they left. Though, it’s unfortunate that we have to go across town for eggrolls now.”

“Yeah, it is.” Beca let a small scoff escape her lips. She wasn’t really sure what to say. It had been a hassle gutting the place. She remembered removing the grease trap from the back door, the way it stuck and clouded her lungs until she eventually hurled in the bushes that were adorned with beautiful yellow roses. “We’re quieter, I’m sure.”

“Smell better too.” She responded, straightening up as she clicked out of her program. “Well, welcome to the neighborhood. Just let us know if the music is too loud and try not to put your trash out before five on Thursdays.”

“Thank you, will do.”

Beca followed the girl’s movements for a moment more, she had clicked a black pen and was digging it into a yellow pad of post-it notes. Maybe it was Beca’s own name. A sly way to recall her if she had in fact, strayed to 4:59 on a Thursday evening. She took a few steps back before turning completely and walking into the chilling night air.

Their shops were the only two still casting pale rectangles against the sidewalk. Fairy lights were strung against trees for the impending winter, wreaths soon to follow in the coming months. Beca shoved her hands in her pockets and breathed out in a moment of peace for a moment.

Her place wasn’t so bad. They had gutted the Chinese décor and turned it into a simple shop with shelves built into white walls. They were lined with the freshest flowers daily- a back office gave her a break from the bustle of catering and funeral orders. It boasted a large window like a toy shop in the ’60s; embossed with gold lettering similar to the tattoo shop.

She was quick to flip the open sign to closed before the bell stopped chiming. It had been a quiet night. A Friday where people attended movies at the local theatre or the football game that took half of Hollyfield’s student population into its grasp.

“Was it scary in there? Oh my god, did you see that one woman covered in tattoos? I heard places like that are very cold. Did you need a coat?”

“Emily,” Beca breathed out evenly, shaking her head. Her assistant, her co-worker at that, was very excitable. She asked too many questions and had those beaming brown eyes that were impossible to say no to. Even now, when she glanced up from the book on the counter and hair fell lazily into her pouting stare. Her sleeves were pulled over her wrists and a pencil was tucked behind her ear. “Too many questions. I just brought over some mail.”

Of course, that didn’t’ exactly answer the question that Emily held at the tip of her tongue. Beca lifting an eyebrow as she pushed herself away from the door and walked over to the counter. She had had this place for a week and still never stood on the opposite side of the aptly painted counter.

“I did meet an interesting woman though. She was blonde. A lot of tattoos, obviously.”

“Yeah?” Emily’s cheeks heated up, her eyebrows rising. “What uh… what’d she say?”

The girl had run into some masked stranger when they were remolding. Emily was coated in white paint and was carrying a big gulp from the gas station down the street. She had recounted to Beca how she was leaning against the back of the brick and taking long drags of a cigarette. Emily stumbled over her words a bit before sighing and sulking back inside.

“Trash goes out on Thursday.”

Emily’s shoulders dropped as she let her head fall into her textbook. She dramatically stretched her arm out and groaned. “That’s all you found out about the love of my life? Beca, you were on an extraction mission.”

“No, I was on a drop off mission.”

She corrected, palming a bit of fabric on Emily’s arm before she lifted it briefly to stare at the text she was attempting to read. Psychology. It was too much for Beca, the actual schooling of it all. She commended Emily for wanting to further her education after high school- she was stronger than most.

Beca considered herself as doing well. She had run a flower van for two years before actually settling down in a space. It was a lot easier to push out orders for sweet sixteen’s when she was working out of a store and not the back of a truck with Emily strewn over the front seat. She spoke evenly, words muffled by her sweater.

“What was that, Em?”

“You’ve got to call back Lewis.” She picked up her head “He wants to cut some type of deal, you know.”

“That so?”

“Yeah. He left his number.”

Emily thrust out a sticky note that was her blue handwriting, so neat even though it was rushed. It had a ten-digit number written like she hadn’t known the area code from when she visited in the summers. She moved her pad against the sticky adhesive. “You know, the stranger next door uses the same type of post it’s?”

“She does?” Emily shot up, eyes widening “They’re yellow?”

“Yeah, Em. They’re yellow.”

#Beca Mitchell #Chloe Beale #Bechloe #Aubrey Posen #Emily Junk #Junksen #fanfiction #request #Pitch Perfect