#Seven Years of Darkness | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

forthedancingandthethriving · 1 month

Text

Tama sweats nervously as she stands in front of the High Priestess.

She.. really didn't think this through..

Lucero giggles gently down at her. "You've come again, gentle dawn." She smiles a bit. "However, it seems like you came without anyone knowing."

Tama looks down, fiddling with the satchel around her. She swore a simple yet formal yellow dress. "I, uh.. I.. wanted to ask you something.. but.." She sweats. She didn't expect to be met with her so easily. "I.. uh.. I didn't want anyone getting worried or.. thinking the churches are doing something to me."

Lucero smiles behind the veil that was covering her face. "That's kind of you, Tama." She tilts her head. "What do you wish to ask?"

"Is.. can.." Tama looks down, trembling. "Is it normal to have a.. really, really bad feeling about someone..?"

The High Priestess blinks, taken aback. Then, she frowns. "This is an odd thing to come to me about." She frowns. "However, judging by your tone.. this isn't something you can talk with your family about, is it?"

Tama shakes her head, looking down.

"Come."

The two traverse deeper into the temple, the talks of priests and priestesses, knights and others there slowly fading away. Tama flicks an ear, trying to strain her hearing to listen.

Nothing.

The soft rush of water breaks her concentration, and Tama turns her head to see that Lucero had led her to the innermost sanctum of the temple. A waterfall poured from high up in one of the walls into a cat-made lake. Closer by the walls were stain-glass windows, with only one depecting an event. A she-cat that was clearly Bliss was kneeling down, gently holding the head of the dragon of Light.

"This is a place only I and my chosen can enter." Lucero looks back at Tama. She walks over to the edge of the lake, where a concrete wall was keeping it contained, and sat on it. "Come and sit."

Tama scurries over and clambers onto the wall, ploping down with a small huff after a moment. She then looks down.

"I'm assuming whoever you have a bad feeling about is an important person in this world." Lucero's voice was gentle, starting the hard conversation.

"He's a king." Tama murmuers.

"Hmm.. there's Bolero, Magnus, Albin, Damien, and.. Umbra." The High Priestess frowns. "However, no one has heard from Albin since the end of the Taiga Wars, Bolero is on too good of terms with Melody, Magnus in general doesn't seem like he could make a kit wary.."

She looks down at Tama. "Leaving only Damien and Umbra."

"King Umbra is dead."

Lucero pales beneath her veil. "That's.. That's impossible. An announcement would have been made."

"Letters came." Tama looks down, her paws clutching her dress. "Crows dropped them, I saw one. But.." She starts trembling. "Someone.. came from the shadows and grabbed it. They burnt it. And.. and they saw me. All the way up in my room. And.. and they just did a 'shh' moment before they vanished."

The High Priestess looks stunned. "But.. how do you know he's dead?"

"I heard it." Tama's voice trembles. "I.. I heard it was he was.. he was forced to drink something bad."

The elder looks down at the younger, who was considering more than ever. "And.. and I can't tell anyone." She sniffles. "Because King Damien killed him."

Time seems to stop. "King.. Damien killed his father..?"

"And no one will believe me if I tell them." Tama hiccups, tears starting to fall. "Because.. because he's doing something to them! Every time he meets mom, dad, grandma, and my uncles, and aunt, and.." More and more tears fall. "They like him more each time. They don't notice how he's.. he's not a Cat.."

Lucero watches, feeling.. helpless as Tama hangs her head, tears falling down to the stone floor. "And.. I.. I can think of someone else, but she's.. she's recovering right now. I.. don't wanna bother her.."

The High Priestess glances away, her ears lowering beneath the hood she wore. She'd been.. a little suspicious of King Damien, she wouldn't lie. She thought it strange that a son of Umbra appeared without warning, and yet her mind and memories insist he was always there.

She rests a paw on Tama's shoulder. ".. I see. I feel honored that you confided in me." At the young kit's nod, Lucero continues. "If you feel like you need someone to confide into again, feel free to come to me."

Tama nods once more before perking up. She dries her tears before opening her satchel and digging through it. She perks up and hands a metal cup with a rounded lid on top. Lucero tilts her head and grabs it, opening it to see..

"Ice?" She murmers, confused.

"Shaved ice!" Tama smiles. "A friend showed me a recipe for it! It's super good!" She grabs some small vials in her satchel, handing them other. Inside each was a different colored syrup. "That ones strawberry, that's lemon, cherry.."

The High Priestess looks at the vials before carefully shaking the cherry one. Tama giggles and hands her a spoon.

Lucero takes a bit and her tail nearly wags.

"You can keep it." Tama smiles. "It's just.. my way of saying thank you."

The High Priestess smiles gently. "Thank you, gentle dawn. I'll cherish this."

Once Tama leaves, Lucero stays in the inner sanctum before she flicks her hand. From chirping of light spirits, a large crystal balls form. She walks over to it, and whilst eating the shaved ice, she kicks it. "Hey, idiots. Answer the call."

"Okay, but what if I don't want to?"

"Shut up, Nox."

Eight other cats appear in sections on the crystal ball, each in similar holy attire like her. However, they all shared a distinct trait. Their pupils are slits.

"What's wrong, Lucero?" The one clad in green robes frown. "You don't ever really initiate calls."

"We need to keep an eye on King Damien." She cuts to the chase. "I was just informed by the Abnormality that King Umbra has died. And apparently, it seems as if King Damien killed her."

"That's impossible!" Nox shouts. "I or Unus would have noticed!"

"You know Lucero wouldn't lie about this." The one in dark blue robes snaps.

The one in soft blue robes speaks up. "Do you believe the Abnormality, Lucero?"

"With all my heart, Idur." Lucero nods.

"Then I do as well." The one in yellow robes smiles.

"As do we." The ones in red and grey robes nod.

"I suppose I do as well." The one in brown robes sighs softly.

"Eyre, Esen, has there been no word from Caspian or Zephyr?" Lucero frowns, munching on the shaved ice. She doesn't miss the way Nox is eyeing it. "I remember Zephyr aiding her a bit back."

"Aside from that.." Esen sighs, placing a paw to his forehead. "I've heard nothing. I've brought mention of the Abnormality a while back, but he spoke naught of her."

Eyre nods in agreement. "Caspian sometimes inquires to her health, but he has made no moves to see her himself, even whenever she's near adequate bodies of water."

Lucero groans. "Alright.. here's what we'll do. Eyre and Esen, keep an eye on Caspian and Zephyr." She points to the rest, except for Box. "Idur, Alder, Pailan, Ignatius, and Elia. Keep a very close eye on the rulers." She looks at Nox. "Nox, you and I shall contact the Ferrycat at once. We must confirm this."

Noises of agreement come from everyone before Nox huffs. "Alright, what do you have? You've been eating this whole time."

Lucero blinks. Had she been eating the whole time? She glances down at the metal cup, seeing that most of the shaved ice. She pouts a bit before huffing and glaring at Nox. "Shaved ice. The Abnormality gave it to me."

"Wh- I want some!" Nox growls.

"No."

With that, Lucero kicks the crystal ball, making it disappear in a flurry of light. She peers down at the metal cup again and this time, truly pouts.

She didn't mean to eat it that fast..

○●○

As Tama walks down the path, heading back to the castle, she gasps softly as she remembers. "I forgot to tell her about Damien's plan.." She looks back before looking down.

No, she had bothered Lucero enough. She shakes her head before continuing down the path, exhaling softly to keep her heart steady.

From above in a tree, Lumiere watches with an amused look. He lounges back against the tree trunk before standing upright and jumping from branch to branch.

Each time Tama sped up, so did he. As she slowed, so did he.

Eventually, she stops and looks directly where he is. "I know you're there, Lumiere!" She puffs up a bit. "Y-You know you can't hurt me! Because if I scream they'll hear me!"

"Smart kit." Lumiere's chuckle came from the trees before he jumps down, landing a few feet from her. "Quite honestly.. what are you?" He chuckles lowly. "Even Zephyr's blessing can't stand the Echo Chambers. And yet.. you still found your little friend.".

All of Tama's confidence drains away. "Y-you knew?"

He chuckles lowly, dangerously. "Of course I did. All those monsters in there are still loyal to me." He smiles. "They told me everything. But now, I want you to tell me something."

With each step he takes, Tama feels more and more sick to her stomach. Finally, he gets in front of her and crouches down. The kit trembles, feeling a crushing aura coming from him.

N-No wonder he's a villain.. Tama whimpers.

"How did you know about Damien's plan?" Lumiere chuckles. "He's been tight-lipped about it."

Her stomach drops. Oh. Oh no, Lumiere knew.

"Well?"

Tama takes some steps back, trembling, before an arm wraps around her waist, and she is lifted into a familiar embrace. A much warmer energy fills the air, but it was just as crushing.

She looks up, feeling both relieved and nervous to see Nimbus holding her. She looks over to Lumiere, who had backed up.

The slowly crescendo of violins and cellos begins.

"I think you should be leaving, Lumiere." Nimbus speaks, her voice low.

Light magic from both begins to spark in the air. While Nimbus's was bright and pure, divine even, while Lumiere's was a scorching bright, hurtful, and burning, hellish in all aspects.

"But we were having such a nice conversation." Lumiere chuckles lowly.

"Lumiere." Nimbus hisses.

"Fine, fine." The villain laughs, and the music that had been building slowly fades. Light magic surrounds him. "I'll see you sometime soon."

The Songbird snarls lowly as the tom-cat's mocking laughter fades into the air as he teleports away.

Tama swallows thickly. "M-Mom, I.."

"Oh, by Bliss, what were you thinking, confronting Lumiere like that?" Nimbus sighs, hugging Tama tightly. "I was so worried when I felt Lumiere's energy.."

"I'm sorry, mom.." She looks down. "I heard him, and I thought.."

Nimbus gently nuzzles her kit's head. "It's okay. All that matters is that you're okay."

Tama glances down, gently clinging to Nimbus.

She wasn't so sure she was okay, but Tama was good at pretending. She was able to fool everyone, pretending to be okay. She could pretend to be okay when the nobles looked down at her when she heard their whispers about her being nothing but a mooch.

She could handle all the things she heard, the hateful words, the cats being terrible. Calling her cursed, saying she was a changeling that claimed to have Zephyr's blessing and Aire blood.

Tama could handle it all.

Because she was just a kit. And who would believe a cursed kit?

#oc: lucero dragon of light #oc: tama #in order of dialogue ->#oc: nox dragon of darkness #oc: idur dragon of ice #oc: alder dragon of nature #oc: eyre dragon of water #oc: pailan dragon of lightning #oc: ignatius dragon of fire #oc: esen dragon of wind #oc: eila dragon of earth #oc: lumiere #avatar: nimbus #fanfiction: my writing!#!posts!#“man.. what should I write about today? oh i know!” *proceeds to dump angst on an seven year old*

4 notes · View notes

enbeemagical · 10 months

Text

Fuck this. Mommy issues OC is go. Vent fic because adulting is hard and leaving home is hard but sometimes going home is harder

Content warnings: noncon/dubcon kissing, misgendering, deadnaming, emotional abuse, guilt tripping

Shadow. Darkness. Night-bringer. Sunset. Twilight. Dusk.

They looked out to the balcony as the day faded, then turned to face the demon within.

He leaned against the wall, fading as their darkness grew. He was beautiful, even now: his fair skin and clothes stained with dark blood, once-immaculate snowy locks tangled around ivory horns, silvered eyes hazy and unseeing.

Yet still he wore a smile.

It unnerved them. Someone dying shouldn't smile like that, shouldn't be sitting with such perfect posture. They'd driven a blade through his lungs and heart... and they realized with a sinking feeling that all the blood on him was too dark to be his own.

"You're not dying." They crossed the room with two long strides and knelt beside him, grasping his collar. "Why aren't you dying!?"

"Oh, darling. You might as well hope to kill the sun itself." Long fingers indicated his own chest, confident despite the weakness in his voice. "I am the light, Shadow. I am all that is bright in the world, and I will return to drive you away like sunrise chases away the night."

"Liar!" Their voice cracked. "You're as mortal as I am, anything can be killed."

"But not by you." His fingers caught in their long, dark hair, dragging their head down. Their lips met his, and, despite themself, they kissed him back.

"I'll be back, my shadow."

The mouth on theirs faded, dissolved into a thousand shimmering particles, and within moments the demon was no more. The light that had made up his body melted into the vanishing sunlight, and he was gone.

They stood slowly, shaken. If he wasn't dead, everything they'd fought for was at risk. They had to find him, end him.

They drifted through the celebration in a haze. Everyone wanted to speak to them, to thank them for doing what they did, for ending his regime. They didn't know what to say. They hadn't ended anything, they'd only given a brief respite. Would it even be enough?

As all celebrations will, it drew to a close, and the people drifted back to their homes, to go back to their everyday lives. Most people's lives hadn't changed too much, not yet.

The newly anointed hero gave one last look at the white stone palace and made a sharp jerking motion with their hand. With a great shudder, the delicate structure reshaped itself into a sturdy, simple building. This one was not white, but age-greyed, beautiful in its simplicity rather than a fairytale creation of spun sugar and mist. This one was real, and true, and lasting.

They turned and left the city. They had to figure out how to truly end him, but before that... They'd left home for a reason. Was home even still there?

People poked their heads out and waved as they passed. Unlit lanterns stood in windows still, a symbol of support for the rebellion. Some doors were splashed with black paint, others bore wreaths of brightly colored weeds, and still others sported brightly colored ribbons tied together with a black strand. Almost everyone wore some article of clothing in black or gray, white nowhere to be seen.

They reached the edge of the city and vanished.

Many miles from the city the air shimmered, and they stepped out at the edge of a small village. It still looked the same as it did seven years ago. Every house was in the same place, the same state, the people looked much the same as they moved about their daily lives.

They looked around the village, and their chest constricted. They took a breath and kept moving.

The door they knocked on was green. That was new. The paint had been blue and peeling last time they were here.

A woman opened the door, her nut-brown skin a match for their own. Her hair was pinned up, her hands floured. She studied them for a moment with sharp dark eyes.

"Phoebe," she said in greeting. "You're home."

They flinched. They'd forgotten that name, it had been so long. "Mother. I'm--"

"Come in." She took a step back, and they automatically followed her. "I can't believe you, leaving for years with no word! We thought you'd been eaten by a wolf, or that soldiers stole you away! A pretty young girl like you, you're in danger alone!" Bread and cheese and a bowl of stew were shoved into their hands. "Here, eat. You look half starved. I'm so glad you've come back, we needed you around here, especially the last few years." Her tone was reproachful, blaming. "Why did you run off, my love?"

They stared down at the stew.

"Sweetie?" Her tone wasn't harsh, wasn't sharp, but her voice... Her voice made their legs tense, their chest tight. They needed to get out before they broke down crying like a child. They couldn't stay here

but they couldn't leave.

The young hero who had fought off soldiers mounted on dragons and stood up to the emperor stood frozen in their mother's house.

"I- I can't." They set the bowl down. "I can't do this, I have to go."

"Wait, what?" Their mother hurried to the door, blocking their path. "Seven years without a word, you show up for one minute to show me you're alive, and now leave again?! I'm your mother, I bore you, I raised you and fed you for twenty-one years, and this is how you repay me?! Sweetheart, please don't do this to me! Can't you see I love you? I've missed you so much."

The tears finally fell, and they choked up, turning away. "M-Mother, I can't, please, I have to go."

"My daughter, light of my life..." She stepped closer.

They flinched away from her touch and stepped towards the door. Freedom was just on the other side, but their feet seemed heavier. They sniffled, rubbing their stinging nose.

She really did miss them. She'd always loved them, and they loved her.

"Mother?" they said softly.

"Yes, Phoebe?"

"How much do you know about the rebels?"

She frowned. "They're a group of violent terrorists trying to destroy the empire. Don't worry, sweetheart, our emperor will stamp them out."

Their breath caught, their hand on the knob. "I'm sorry, Mother. Goodbye." They flung the door open and dashed out.

"Phoebe!" Their mother's desperate wail pierced their heart and dragged at their feet.

Fists clenched at their sides, they spun to face her, tossing their hair back. They hadn't cut it in seven years. "My name is LILAH!"

Their mother stopped short.

"I'm not Phoebe!" Tears threatened, and they furiously swiped them away. "I'm not your light, and I'm not your perfect daughter! I'm sorry, but I haven't been for a long time. I'm Lilah, I'm the Shadow, the Nightbringer. And the Light Lord is dead!"

Her hands were clasped over her mouth. "Phoebe, please, I know you don't mean it."

"I do." Their voice caught in a sob, their arms folded tight over their chest. "I'm not your daughter anymore."

"Then what are you?" she whispered.

"I'm the Shadow that killed the Light."

Their mother stared at them, her gaze cold.

Lilah's shoulders shook as they backed away.

"Come find me when you can accept me as I truly am," they whispered. "Come find me when I'm more important to you than your daughter."

And they fled, inhumanly fast, the wind whipping away their sobs.

#rani writes #mommy issues #oc #original character #original world #dedanan #darkness and light #emotional abuse #phoebe - light #lilah - hebrew for night #hey isn't it funny i feel better after writing vent fic #it's nice that i can do whatever i want with my ocs #and i can decide that shadow #the most powerful wizard of all time #who fought against a dictatorship and brought down the ancient and powerful emperor #who later goes on to be a hero spoken of and loved worldwide #i can decide that they were once like me: frozen at their mother's house‚ stress crying and unable to stop #someday i'm gonna be strong like them too #but they left for seven years and still froze to come back #so i think it's okay that i've only been out of her house a few months and still freeze up and get stress-sick dealing with her #twenty-eight is an eternity away rn #but i think someday i'll be okay #and free to be me #not anyone's daughter or granddaughter #just me #shadow and light

9 notes · View notes

ryan1014n2 · 1 year

Text

Morning: A “Seven Years Later” Story

Following a nasty accident, Rheneas was finally back in service, and Skarloey could still hardly believe his eyes.

(Colors show up best against a white background.)

<><><><><><><>

The sun was just beginning to rise over Crovan’s Gate sheds. It was a crisp autumn morning, the chill only broken by the smoke and steam from the old engine waiting outside, the light from the sunrise glinting off of his shiny blue paint.

Skarloey had already been steamed up and readied for work — he did have the first passenger train of the day, after all. He was sat just outside the shed while his driver went to fetch something — Skarloey hadn’t been listening well enough to know what exactly she’d gone for — and his fireman took the time to enjoy another cup of coffee in his cab.

Being parked the way he was, he was face-to-face with Rheneas. He knew it was silly of himself to think so, but he still couldn’t believe Rheneas was really there. Of course, logically, he knew that he was, but it was still so surreal to him.

He couldn’t help but stare at the sleeping engine in front of him; he looked so peaceful and relaxed like this. Cute, even. It was a stark contrast to his usually serious demeanor, but whatever side of him, Skarloey had missed him terribly over the last several years. It hardly seemed true that he was even still alive.

Just glad to have him around again, he simply looked, in awe of him.

Rather suddenly and without opening his eyes, Rheneas spoke. “Did you need something, ‘Lo?”

Skarloey was startled. “Rheneas! I — I didn’t know you were awake!” He felt his face grow warm, embarrassed at being caught staring. “How did you know it was me?”

Rheneas smirked and opened a sleepy eye. “I know what your idling sounds like, silly.” He chuckled a bit at Skarloey’s flushed face and opened both of his eyes to properly address him. “Are you alright?”

The question wasn’t unfounded. Skarloey had been acting strangely recently, especially in the few weeks since Rheneas’s proper return to service. Rheneas had been curious, but he decided to leave it for now and let him take his time with it.

And he was sure taking his time with it.

“Yes, I’m fine.” Skarloey smiled. “I’m just waiting for my driver.”

Although Rheneas wasn’t as good at reading emotions as Skarloey was, he knew him well enough to know that he was not as fine as he claimed. Rheneas let his eyes slip back closed before responding. He spoke gently, but firmly. “Well, if something is bothering you, you can always tell me. You know that, right?”

Rheneas felt him wheesh a little bit of steam at him in acknowledgement.

Then it was quiet, save for the steady sound of Skarloey idling.

He eventually spoke up. “I saw you.”

Rheneas opened his eyes again, a confused look on his face.

So, Skarloey continued. “Earlier. Just after the accident. I saw you.” He grimaced. “I saw what was left of you, anyway.” He wasn’t looking at him anymore; the memory was too upsetting.

Oh. Rheneas didn’t know what he expected him to say, but it wasn’t that. It took him a moment to find words. “I take it that it wasn’t pretty.”

Skarloey only met his eyes again, looking very troubled.

Rheneas didn’t know what he should say to him, or even what he could say to him. He knew what had happened to himself too, and for Skarloey to have seen him in such a state? He could only imagine what that was like for him.

Then, Skarloey felt a hand pat the side of his cab; his driver had returned. “Come on, old girl. Let’s go pick up the coaches now, yeah?”

Skarloey looked from her back to Rheneas, who could see the hesitancy on his face.

“Well, go on then.” Rheneas smiled encouragingly. “You’ve got a train to pull, and I’ll still be here when you get back, I promise. Don’t you worry about that.”

Skarloey smiled gratefully at this, and he let himself be led away by his crew to collect his train. “Okay, then.” He whistled as he left. “See you later! Love you!”

Rheneas could only smile back at him. He’d always struggled with verbally expressing affection; he wasn’t sure why. But Skarloey had assured him that this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing — he just shared feelings differently — and he didn’t mind, anyway.

So, Rheneas smiled.

He watched him go until he was out of sight behind the carriage shed wall, and with the light of the rising sun replacing Skarloey’s heat in the role of warming him against the autumn chill, closed his eyes again.

#had to html code their special colors in #skarloey's is (as far as I can tell) ultramarine‚ one of the colors listed for ger blue #aaaand it doesn’t really show up in dark mode. sorry dark mode users #anyway I'm glad to properly share something from seven years later because I’ve been thinking about it a lot #(some parts of this fic inspired by goldsaddletank’s stories)#but yeah welcome to my little au! (it's not very developed beyond what's already included here though)#ttte skarloey #ttte rheneas #seven years later #my writing #my post

27 notes · View notes