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katsukikitten · 1 year

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Izuku spits in your mouth, it's his guilty pleasure.

"You need some help right, Princess?" Tipping your chin up so that he can look you in your eyes. Letting his thumb slide over your plush bottom lip. Dark emerald eyes at half mast as he looks down at you, quieting the whimpering groan that climbs up his throat.

Slowly allowing his thumb to penetrate your lips, your tongue swirling around his thick digit before giving it a teasing suck and this time he can't hide the sound that sends a jolt straight to your clit.

"Now you're being my good girl?" At this point the man towering over you is drunk with want, need , that drips from the angry tip prompted by his twitching.

He presses firmly, flattening your tongue with his thumb, admiring you like a painting. Gazing long enough that he watches drool slip past your lips and down your chin to drip onto your bare chest as he stands fully clothed.

Still in his dark slacks and crisp white shirt from his boring pro hero meeting. His emerald tie wrapped tightly around your wrists, binding your hands behind you as you sit on your knees all because of one, or several, bratty text messages you sent him while he was presenting for the hero commission.

He gathers the saliva in his own mouth, letting it fall to the tip of his tongue as the wet muscle hangs past his lips. He's patient, watching the silvery string fall towards your open, hot mouth.

But you aren't, wiggling and whining before gravity blesses you and the string connects him to you before he pushes his tongue against his teeth making a hissing sound when he blows. The glob lands next to his thumb on your fluttering tongue.

"That enough? Need more?" His voice is a soft, rumbling timbre, his cock painfully hard as he watches you nod. Reacting the action one more time until he can't take it, especially after the loud moan you let echo around your shared living room.

"Sorry Princess, I can't wait anymore, okay?" It comes out as a shaky breath, growling when his belt fights against him as he keeps his thumb planted on your tongue.

Pulling his pants and boxers down to rest under his thick freckled ass as his fat cock springs free. Tip sticky from the need for you that weeps. He takes his free hand and grabs at the base of his thick shaft, resisting the urge to spread the pre along his length.

Tapping the tip to your tongue that fights against his thumb that keeps it flat. Sliding into your mouth making your jaw burn as you adjust to him and the hold he has on your chin, hitting the back of your throat and when you gag around him he finally loses it.

Removing his thumb and taking both of his hands to fist your hair, roughly bobbing you onto his cock until he's bucking his hips into your hallowed cheeks.

Gagging and bringing forth more saliva that helps him glide in and out of you with ease, and although he loves your pussy, worships it, nothing compares to the sinful way you look up at him.

Pleading tearful eyes with your bratty mouth stuffed with his cock, pre and drool falling past your lips collecting on your pretty tits that jiggle with each thrust.

Izuku never could last during head or when he can face fuck you as punishment. Especially when he knows how wet your pussy will be for him once he's done, that's where he'll give you hours of pleasure but for now he'll take your advice of 'be fuckin selfish for once!'

So he is.

Groaning loudly as he lets his head fall back for a moment, emerald curls sticking to the nape of his neck before he looks back at you. Letting hot ropes of sticky cum coat your mouth and throat. A gleeful moan as you swallow around him, taking everything he has to offer and even with your hands tied behind your back you try to overstimulate him.

Try to get him to whimper, which he does, only for you. Cheeks a burning red but his eyes aren't innocent and doe like, no, you get a different kind of Izuku.

You get the hungry, needy, obsessive Izuku that stares into your soul before he withdrawals. Picking you up in one of his strong arms and holding you close, letting his and boxers fall to his ankles before stepping out of the. His free hand shoving two thick fingers into your drooling cunt with ease.

"See you love when I face fuck you." Playfully you shake your head no and his chuckles, "Oh? But your pretty pussy says she loves it." He finger fucks you harder, wants your moans to be heard by the neighbors. Wants that wet sticky squelch of your slutty cunt to be heard too. Doesn't care if they sell the audio to some trashy news station for the highest price.

Doesn't care if the tabloids buy it and play it for all to hear. Then they'd know exactly who this pretty cunt belonged to.

"You love it, princess. It's why you're so wet for me." He angles his fingers just right, pressing on that spongy spot and had he not been so strong he would have dropped you from how harshly your back arched into his touch.

"M-more, Zuzu." Another whine as he teases you, borderline edges you with each thrust as he guides you to his oversized bed. Tossing you on to the bed hard enough you bounce just a bit before landing on your own hands, legs spread open to steady yourself but Izuku admires the view, "I need you."

He let's his darkened emerald eyes snake up your body, predatory gaze locked with yours as he leans over you, letting his semi hard cock press into your glistening folds. Biting back his own groan when he feels arousal on your thighs making your skin stick to his waist.

"Then you better beg for it Princess." He leans down and kisses you with his hand gently placed on your throat, soft squeeze when he pulls away, smile on his lips.

"Like you were in all those filthy messages you sent me earlier."

#izuku x reader #izuku smut #izuku thrist #kitten writes izuku 🖤🐈‍⬛ 🖋️

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softestaura · 4 months

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vivienne westwood ‘tied to the mast’ spring/summer 1998 collection

#vivienne westwood #ss98 #spring 1998 #tied to the mast

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lanitalay · 4 months

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At sea

Rhysand x reader

a/n: Hi my loves!!!! I wrote this to break the ice after winter break. It will likely have one or two more parts. Wanted to write some Rhysand fluff after destroying his character in Before I say goodnight lol.

word count: 1k

warnings: none

Summary: reader returns home after months at sea.

Part 2

Salt coated the railings you clung to while walking down the stairs to the main deck. The summer sun had dried up the water that had crashed against the ship all night long. Now small crystals blanket every surface on board. You make it down the wonky steps, map rolled and tucked under your arm. It had been a rough passage last night, the shaking had kept most of the crew on board hugging buckets, unable to control the bile. It was the most dangerous part of the voyage, the captain had to watch out for jagged rocks that were mostly covered by water or mist, towering waves and fog overhead that prevented the guiding stars to be visible.

It would be a matter of days now. If you squinted you could swear the shoreline of Velaris was on the horizon. This time it had been an entire season. The trek had started the day after the last of the snow melted and you would be back just shy of the summer solstice. You had never been gone this long from your home. The salt air was starting to stink, you yearned for green fields and pine scented breezes.

You had collected more samples than ever before. The botany in the foreign lands you visited was truly magnificent and different to what you were accustomed to in the Night Court. In your private quarter you had managed to fit around one thousand dried samples of leaves, roots, flowers and a few insects along with some living plants, placed carefully near the port hole and a plethora of seeds. Your favorite treasure was an exceptional plant that you had meticulously looked after because the bright violet color of the flowers reminded you of a pair of matching eyes back home. Rhysand. You tried not to think of him. You really really did. But in the flowers you saw his eyes. In the stars you saw his smile. In dark waters you saw his fury. In the sea shanties you heard his drunken laugh. A sigh escapes your frowning mouth.

He might have married or mated by the time you return. Not that anything romantic existed outside of your wildest dreams. But he was your friend. You had known him since the head researcher of the priestesses had sent for a field researcher, since she did not feel ready to be outside of the sacred library walls. You had been recruited because your father was a renowned explorer and you had grown up by his side. Every shore in Prythian and the Continent was familiar to your family. Every shore unknown called your name.

Rhysand was the one who brought you to the library the first time. He had wanted to be present and even gave you a tour himself of the massive sanctuary. Since then, each time you return he flies you to the library and you tell him an abridged version of what you saw on your travels. Sometimes you think that he holds you a little tighter than the last time he saw you and you stop yourself before even thinking that there is a glint in his eyes that indicates something more than polite interest.

The days pass slowly. Eventually, the familiar cliff sides and hilly landscape come into view. Relief floods your chest. You would be staying a while this time. Cataloging all of the new materials would take at least until the end of summer. Flapping sounds from above and you look up expecting to see the mast ripped but instead a gliding shadow figure high above. An inevitable smile forms on your face.

It feels like docking the boat took forever. But once all the ropes are tied and the masts lowered, the bridge gets lowered and you all but leap to the wooden platform and to the young High Lord that’s waiting for you. Sprinting you pounce on him, wrapping your arms around his neck and relishing the feeling of being on solid ground. “Welcome home, explorer” his smooth voice soothes your racing heart. Seconds pass before you let go and look at him. He’s beaming, his hair has gotten longer since you’d gone, his face is clean shaven and he smells of home. You open your mouth to speak but his smile- his smile is making it impossible for you to concentrate on anything other than his mouth. So you stall. Your hands ruffle his hair in the way you knew would annoy him and he laughs.

“I’m so glad to be back” you finally say.

Flying to the House of Wind was routine at this point in your career. You would land and immediately go debrief with your head researcher. But today Rhys had asked you if you were hungry. The grumble in your stomach told him you were. So now you were eating a lovely lunch prepared by the house. It felt decadent to eat anything other than fish and potatoes. You moan as you bite and the High Lord in front of you chuckles.

“What else did you find?”

“Besides the plants there were incredible creatures there. Some had fur and some had scales. I drew them in my books” you point towards the bag you had brought with you most precious items. He reaches for it and begins to flip through the pages of your findings.

“This is fascinating” he breathes.

“What about you? Is there anything new in the Court?” You notice his jaw clench for a fraction of a second. “Is something wrong?”

He shakes his head and closes the book “there are whispers of war”. Your blood drains from your face. “What do you mean?”

His face is now the face of a High Lord, relaying important information to a court member “Hybern has been making some advances, Prythian is too fragmented to stand a chance”. The war that had put the wall between the human realm and the seven courts had ended not one hundred years ago. Villages were still recovering. The Courts were still shifting in new power dynamics.

“What can I do?” You were no warrior. The amount of times you’d trained with the Inner Circle you could count on one hand and it had always been to appease Cassian. Rhys looks away “nothing, we are trying our best to unify and organize our armies”. Something akin to a thorn nestles itself in your heart “and how are you going to do that?”

He swallows and looks straight through your eyes “I’m marrying the Princess of Autumn”.

#acosf #acowar #azriel shadowsinger #acotar fanfiction #acotar #acofas #acomaf #rhysand #lucien vanserra #rhys acotar #rhysand x reader #rhysand x y/n #fluff #light angst #angst #angst with a happy ending

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ltwilliammowett · 1 year

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Naval Slang

Here is a small collection of slang that is just too short for its own posts.

Anchor or to get one's ass to an- to sit down.

Ant' bollock on the beach - something is extremely hard to locate.

At loose ends - there is little to do. The ends of ropes at sea were easily untangled and formed loose ends. So if there was little to do, the captain could instruct the crew to check the ropes for loose ends and repair them.

Beam ends - When the ship is almost at the beam ends, it means that it is capsizing and in danger of sinking, with the deck beams almost perpendicular to the sea surface. Today it means - to be in a hopeless situation.

Bite the bullet - Men who were flogged with the lovely cat were often given a piece of leather and later a bullet to bite on so they would stop screaming in pain. If he did, he was scornfully called a nightingale.

Boom and Mizzen- Cockney rhyming slang for prison.

Brace of Shakes - I'll be with you in a brace of shakes, literally means I'll be with you before the sail has time to shake twice, in other words I'll be with you almost immediately.

Bread hook - finger

Colours tied to the mast - Give up ? Forget it, this one will be fought to the bitter end.

Cranky- She's hard to sail and unstable. The modern version means awkward, eccentric or hard to understand - often used in connection with women.

Deck Cargo - Breasts

(I'm going to) deck (you) - I'll punch you so hard in the face that you'll see the deck up close. But since such acts were forbidden at sea, they waited until the opponents were in port and could settle it there.

Donkey Wallopers - Royal Navy slang for members of mounted cavalry regiments.

Don't spoil the Ship for a ha'porth of tar - To half-finish a job by not filling the planks properly with hot tar when lapping. Ships will leak if too little tar is applied, so a little extra effort is well worth it.

Goose without gravy - a flogging without blood.

Grass combers - seamen with an agricultural background.

Hit the deck - When a swivel gun or cannon was to be fired at close range, sailors would dive onto the deck to avoid being hit.

#naval history #naval slang #i have more if you want #age of sail

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aka-indulgence · 11 months

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A Kraken’s Rage

So after making this post I’ve decided to make it. Here’s a kraken, angry because someone stole his wife >:(

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The rain beats down on the deck, the sound of crashing rain and storm surrounding you. You hear men shouting as the ship rocks back and forth. Your dress is soaked. If it kept you warm before, you’re cold now. The chill bled right under your skin down to your bones. You shiver and shudder uncontrollably.

I’d rather be tied up under the deck…

You strain against the thick, rough ropes that tied your middle. You were hoping that, maybe with the rain, you’d somehow be slippery enough to slip out of them. Of course that wasn’t the case- you felt stupid. You wanted to itch your arms so bad, the rope was horribly coarse and whenever you moved the frayed parts would scratch your skin. You grab onto the rope with the edges of your fingers and pulled at it, to no avail. None of the men were paying you much attention, too busy attending to the ship.

Except for one, apparently.

“Ay lass, why don’t ye stop your strugglin’,”

Your face sours as the captain of the ship walks over to you, back straight and shoulders wide, like a soldier. And just because he mentioned it, you try twice harder to pull at your ropes, trying to throw your weight around to no avail.

“I see ye keep struggling fer hours now. Why don’t ye give to the sky? Yer not gettin’ out of them ropes. They’re tight, I made sure of that.”

You growled at him. “What are you doing paying attention to me? Isn’t the captain supposed to pay attention to his crew and make sure this ship doesn’t fall apart?!”

He laughed. Oh you hate him, you hate him so much. You hated how he looked at you. His band of pirates raided your seaside town and he had the gall to ask you to be his wench. Of course you said no, but the big man apparently got offended by a little woman saying no, and dragged you to his ship. You’re not sure what he’s planning to do to you by the end of this, but he does enjoy causing your displeasure.

“Never been on a ship while the storm be raging? This here ship ‘as handled just fine. Ye on the other hand might run off an’ do somethin’ stupid again.”

You shut your eyes and muttered under your breath. “Please… save me Sans.”

“Who be ye prayin’ to, lass?” You opened your eyes and decidedly looked away from the captain. “I’m surprised ya ‘aven’t abandoned hope. No one can save ye. Ye can’t save yerself less than throwin’ yerself overboard.”

You flinch when you hear the sound of a sword being drawn, and the menacing glint of the captain’s sword close to your neck. You strain against the rope, trying to keep your distance.

“Unless ye want me to end yer voyage right now.”

“N… no…” you whisper, gritting your teeth, shuddering in fear this time.

The captain’s chuckle was stopped when there was a sound, off in the distance.

It was no thunder, and though you don’t think you’ve ever heard something like it, you felt a shiver up your spine. Like the sound of landmasses creaking before they split apart. You’re sure the men felt it too, because all of them stopped what they were doing, their voices falling silent. Even through the rain and the waves, you could hear your breath. The captain turns his head towards the crow’s nest and yells.

“Wayland! What it be!?”

“I-I don’t know sir! But there be something in the water!”

“Going to need more than that there, Wayland!” The captain growls. The rest of the men have run to the railing, trying to get a better look.

“I-it’s coming… It’s huge!”

Everyone collectively yelped when something bumped into the ship, sending a couple of men off their balance. The captain himself grabbed onto the mast to steady himself. The men still at the railing start to yell and curse, throwing themselves off and towards the middle of the ship.

“It’s a foul beast captain!”

“Then what be it?!” the captain shouts, getting impatient.

The men get increasingly frantic as another sound shakes the whole ship, this time much clearer and closer. It rumbled deeply, as if the ocean itself was growling at the ship.

There was a moment where everything went quiet, and all you could hear were the crashing waves, and the rain.

…

A wail rips out of the water, the sound of a hundred grieving whales. Then, tentacles the size of redwood trees split the waves, slamming onto the deck and taking a tight grip on it, sending a couple men flying out of the way.

Your mouth opens. The captain murmurs under his breath.

“No…”

“KRAKEN!!” Wayland cries, as a tentacle wraps around the mast above him.

“I see that now, Wayland!” The captain growls, as he runs off to bark orders at his crew.

Your heart pounds as a familiar skeleton hand digs its fingers into the deck, causing it to splinter and crack under it. A skull rises out of the water, big red lights in his sockets swimming red with rage, the monster gritting his teeth, staring at everyone on the ship. He rises halfway up his ribcage. His eyelights scan over the scene, looking at every person until you meet his eyes. In a blink, his expression changes, eyes turning into a familiar seafoam color.

The unmistakable sound of his purr cuts through the screams of the panicking men for a moment.

“Sans,” you breathe.

A ‘small’ smile widens on his mouth, and you see a tentacle approach you- before someone slices their sword into it.

Sans cries, the sound as loud as thunder. His eyelights shift to red once more, glaring at the man who’d done it, still attached to the hilt. He grimaces, sending a wave down his tentacle, flicking both the man and the sword off as if he was merely a mosquito. He slams down both hands on both sides of the ship, making it look like a toy.

He shrills, his voice rippling through the air and no doubt striking fear down to the pirates hearts. A voice booms through your mind.

YOU

TOOK

HER

AWAY

FROM

ME!

Screams erupt. Chaos takes over around you as the men try to fight off his tentacles with guns and swords, to no avail.

Your jaw goes slack as you watch them get tossed around like ragdolls. You squeak when a man gets slammed down next to you, his sword thrown out of his hand as a tentacle weighs heavily on him, before he gets wiped over the deck. He snatches them one by one, throwing them off into the raging skies. You see a man’s cry end as he gets choked by the tentacle constricting him.

One man’s scream fade as he’s picked up high above the sea, in front of Sans’ snarling face. His mouth opens, revealing the sharp monstrous teeth, like sharp rocks below the cliff, and he lets out a sky-splitting shriek, drowning the sounds of the man. Lightning strikes, coloring the sky white and leaving their silhouette as black as night.

You hear an awful crunching sound, then silence.

Rain trickles down your face like a river, from your forehead, over your nose, down your cheek to your chin.

Ahead of you, liquid falls to the deck. It isn’t rain.

The portside of the deck has been ripped off. A tentacle grabs onto the bowspirit and snaps it off like a twig. His shadows move and dance over everyone. A lot of men have resorted to retreating below deck.

This… this Kraken’s Rage… his anger, the tentacles hooked on the ship, making it creak beyond what it’s capable of…

This was all for you. Maybe you should be afraid like the men much bigger and stronger than you, running for their life. But all you felt was wonderment for Sans, who had miraculously found his way to you.

The storm surged along with the kraken. The ocean a deep teal and the sky dark gray. Thunder crashed as he cried. It was as if he was the storm itself.

“W-whoa!” you exclaim, as the ship starts to rock back and forth so violently, that a wave crashes over the deck, seawater spraying your face.

“Sans! Help!”

He turns to look at you, and reaches with his hand. A finger as big as tree bark start to claw and pick at the ropes, until they split apart. You stumble out of your bindings and make your way to his hand, when you hear a yell.

“Fire in the hole!”

Your heart drops as the world slow downs for a few seconds, a cannonball shot at Sans’ ribcage.

“N-no!”

Fear strikes you, as you worry for a moment that your beloved kraken had just been shot through the chest with a bullet. It hits his rib and you hear an awful crack. Sans wails like a whale that’d just been harpooned, and your jaw falls as he falls backwards.

… But it doesn’t last long.

He growls, a flash of red in his sockets, and his fingers run through the starboard, the men falling with their cannons. You look over the side, seeing how long it takes for you to hear their splash. You swallow. The ship was bigger than you thought it was.

You shake your head, looking away from the water, and back to Sans. You make for him, but before you could get his attention, a pair of hands close around your arm.

“Agh!”

“Yer not going anywhere, lass.” You grit your teeth when you realize the captain’s dragging you away from what’s left of the rails.

“What are you doing?! Your ship’s a wreck, you should abandon ship!”

“We might ‘ave a fightin’ chance if we can get farrr away from that there beast ‘o yers. He might stop if he sees he might hurt ye…”

“Urgh… let go of me you scoundrel!”

You go back and forth from the captain, struggling for your life. You stomp the captain’s boot, but that only gets him to curse and pull you harsh enough that it felt like he’s trying to twist your arm off. You yelp, hating that despite using all your effort, the captain was still too strong for you to escape.

Luckily for you, there was someone far stronger than him.

As soon Sans saw what was happening, he shrieks, bringing both of your attention to him. His eyelights had locked on the hands on you, and that set him off. He let out a continuous high-pitched gurgling sound, and before the captain could unsheath his sword, a hand had slipped in between you and him, separating the both of you. The captain roars in frustration- sounding like a helpless seadog compared to Sans- eyes widening when a huge shadow looms over him, a tentacle posing to strike.

He manages to dodge at the last second by scrambling out of the way as it hits the deck like a cannonball. The cracks and crunches as the tentacle continues downwards makes it sound like it reached all the way to the bottom. You peek out of Sans’ fingers.

“Ah, ye missed me ye foul beast!” The captain shouts triumphantly. You grit your teeth and brace again Sans’ finger, wishing you could fight him yourself.

The captain celebrates too early, however, as the planks below him creak under his weight and cracks, screaming as he falls down the floors of the ship.

You see a flash- water was quickly filling the ship. Without further ‘encouragement’ from Sans, the rest of the men were jumping into the water.

You’re raised to Sans’ shoulder, and he lets you climb onto it. You fold, clinging onto his neck, as Sans lets out the last of his frustration, ripping what’s left of the ship into splinters, the sails falling and some screams going silent as he drags the ship under the waves.

You pant, shuddering in the cold, as you see the ship turn to nothing but frothing bubbles and driftwood. Sans puffs his chest out, as if he’d just taken down a competitor.

A speck moves in the water- and the captain surfaces, flailing onto a piece of wood. His moment of peace is quickly broken by the snarl Sans emits, shaking the air around you. As the captain looks up, a tentacle raises above him, and it sways from the base up to the tip. He thrashes his legs, trying to swim out of the way, crashing down on him like a wave, surely crushing him under the water.

He won’t be bothering you anymore.

Sans stares down, bellowing a steam of breath from his mouth. There’s a group of men on a tiny lifeboat, but Sans pays them no mind. He turns around, and they yell when a tentacle drifts near them, sending a tiny wave that rocks their boat.

The storm was merely showers now, water dripping from your hair.

You were still so cold, shivering every few seconds.

There’s an inquisitive sound in Sans’ trill. He picks his hand up close to you and lets you climb on, and you practically hug your knees to keep yourself warm. You’re grateful when he covers you with his other hand, shielding you from whats left of the rain. And his hands were starting to feel warm… like there were little flames in his palms.

His eyelights dilated. As he tries to get a better look of you, you get a clear vision of his eyes. Those seafoam orbs look so kind when they look at you.

He trills again, sounding like a mix between a dolphin and a baby whale. Timid, checking you. It’s hard to believe that your gentle giant really was the same kraken from legends that have brought many to their watery dooms.

“It’s… it’s ok Sans. I’m ok, I’m ok now. Thank you.”

He didn’t need to speak in your mind for you to understand. He purrs, as gentle as lapping waves on the shore. He smiles as sunlight penetrates the heavy clouds and the drizzle fizzles into nothing. He brings you to his face and instinctively you take a step closer to press your cheek to his.

Mmm… he’s so warm.

The sun starts to warm you and though your hair and dress were still soaked, they weren’t dripping as much anymore. Your skin started to dry. Your breaths are shaky and you smile.

You kiss him.

“Thank you, Sans…”

#kraken sans #aka writing #can u imagine. being dumb enough to steal the kraken’s wife #also theres one fanart of kraken sans angry bc wife is gone #that happens here #:]

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forpiratereasons · 7 months

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okay I'm with you the "forgiveness does not have to be earned" thing but I think you're missing what the show is telling us: Izzy becoming part of the crew happens before 2x4-5. Jim says "he's our dick" in the first episode! Fang is heartbroken when he's shot! The narrative suggests that he's advocated for their interests with Ed, and he saves them by stopping Ed from firing a cannon into the mast. This strikes me as more of a narrative about community/solidarity than one about unearned grace.

ah no worries i see where you have misunderstood me. i agree that there is, at the very least, solidarity between izzy and ed's crew in eps 1 - 3. of course, the "he's our dick" line comes because archie has asked why jim and frenchie even care about izzy who seems like kind of a dick - archie doesn't know him and doesn't really care about him and is kind of baffled that anybody does, so you know there's still quite a bit of distance between the crew generally and izzy. i think izzy feels responsible for them more than he feels like he's a part of them - "we cannot let this crew suffer any more for our mistakes." so his relationship to the crew is still very much dependent and tied up in his relationship with ed. this also plays into the crew's treatment of izzy versus ed - izzy is a lesser source of conflict to the crew specifically and they also didn't have as much of an emotional connection to him prior to the kraken era, so his position lacks the feeling of betrayal that ed's has. but yeah sure i agree that there's a level of solidarity there.

in ep four though, izzy is separate from the crew. physically, even - he's hanging out at the forepeak with the unicorn figurehead getting smashed. he's not included in ed's crews cleaning of the deck, and he's not included in stede's crews attempt to cheer up ed's crew. he hides in his room alone and when they knock on his door he shouts and tells them to fuck off and says they're harassing him.

this is why the note and leg scene is so good. it's the crew extending a hand to someone who hasn't earned it, and telling him he has a position among them - as a figurehead, no less. they see izzy and what he needs (a leg and a purpose) and they give it to him. that's about the crew deciding what kind of crew they'll be. he takes it. that's about izzy deciding to join them.

so when i say that the crew accepts izzy into their fold in eps four and five, it's different from what was going on in eps 1-3 for three reasons: 1) it's collective, from both ed and stede's crews, now united and from a position of safety, and 2) izzy's no longer viewed as being aligned with blackbeard by the crew and/or by himself, and 3) izzy is physically and emotionally separated from the crew at the start of ep four.

as far as community/solidarity over unearned grace - i guess i disagree that these are that kind of distinct as concepts? community always involves a level of unearned grace.

the point is that it's in extending grace to izzy that the crew forms their community - their acceptance of izzy, who has now separated himself from the crew, into the fold is what drives them to work together and become a cohesive unit - and establishes its values - if you need help, we will help you, if you need kindness, we will be kind, if you need purpose, we will give you purpose.

that's growth, baby!

#darcy answers #ofmd #our flag means death #ofmd s2 #ofmd s2 spoilers

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kabie-whump · 1 month

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CYOA Whump - Part 4

First | Previous

You chose: Look around for anything that might help me if I can get out of these ropes.

⋆༺𓆩☠︎︎𓆪༻⋆

As Tinny leaves to retrieve the captain, you decide to glance around, taking stock of your surroundings and trying to figure out if there’s anything useful nearby. You know you won’t be able to escape your bindings before the captain gets to you, but at least you’ll be able to move quickly if you happen to find yourself with a moment’s freedom.

There isn’t much around you, you realize. The forward deck is fairly empty, and there are no convient weapons left lying around like you’d hoped. A fishing net is draped over a barrel nearby and the ship’s anchor sits on a coiled pile of ropes.

Rope netting spans above you, climbing up the mast you’re tied to and leading to a platform where a pirate naps with one leg hanging off. There’s a sword next to him. A particularly strong gust of wind might knock it down, but you aren’t sure if you can control where it lands, especially in your weakened state.

That’s all the information you can collect before a tiefling man strolls in front of you with Tinny close behind. He’s tall too, not as tall as Tinny but you still have to look up to see his eyes.

His has leathery red skin and dark hair tied back under his wide brimmed hat, which has two holes cut in it to accommodate his horns.

“Erxik,” he says in a thick infernal accent. “I am the captain here. This is my ship, the Fortune. My first mate, Tinny. And you are my prisoner. Tell me your name, boy.”

⋆༺𓆩☠︎︎𓆪༻⋆

CYOA whump taglist: (let me know if you want to be added or removed): @scp-1296 @sapphicccici @acer-gaysimpstuff @morning-star-whump @rainydaywhump @whumperofworlds @hauntedroseart @3-2-whump @fleur-a-whump @whumpsday @whumpisfun @whumper-whimsy @ghost-whump @fabled-whump @violets-whumperflies @whumped-by-glitter @thewhumpening-thesequel @lumpofsand

#cyoa game #whump #whump community #whump tropes #whump writing #whumpblr #whump scenario #whump ideas #whumpee #oc #original character #cyoa whump #dnd whump #oc whump #pirate whump #nonhuman whumpee #ventisposting #ventis

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blaqueonblck · 3 months

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Vivienne Westwood ‘tied to the mast’ spring/summer 1998 collection

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recusant-s-sigil · 8 months

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So you know how the card combat system in CoM is never brought up again in the mainline series (non-mobile games)? This got pretty long, so it’ll be under the cut. Spoilers for Union Cross. TLDR: Ven’s presence in Castle Oblivion is what made it have the card system.

According to the 8th of Ansem the Wise’s secret reports in KH2, “[Castle Oblivion] consists of 13 floors above and 12 floors below ground, with the contents of its ‘White Rooms’ transforming in response to its visitor’s memories.” Those memories are etched onto cards, created by sampling specifically Sora and Riku’s memories. Who is the first person we see create these world cards?

Marluxia, who also teaches Sora how to use the cards to his advantage in combat for some reason. Come to think of it, why does Marluxia show Sora how to use the cards? In-universe, I mean. And how do the CO-assigned Org members know how to use them as well? But I’m getting off-track. We’re here to talk about why the cards are the combat system, not how the characters know how to use it.

Castle Oblivion is a place tied to the Age of Fairytales by its inhabitants, both as the Castle and as the Land of Departure. Ven is from then, as are Marluxia and Larxene, who both end up there. Eraqus is (probably but not confirmed to be) descended from Brain. Xehanort calls the Land of Departure a second home and is also related to a Union Leader, Ephemer. Remember, the contents of the White Rooms reflect the memories of the Castle’s visitors, so what then would happen if someone resided there? Would their memory, no matter if they consciously are aware of it or not, affect the whole castle to such a degree that the combat system reflects that of a bygone era?

Did you know that Kingdom Hearts χ, the browser game, used cards as its combat system? Ever wonder why Flick Rush exists? Dark Road also uses cards in its combat system, though it’s less a game of War and more “hit the enemy with sleights as fast as possible before their turn arrives”.

In Unchained χ and Union Cross, instead of cards, your player character uses Medals, which function basically the same but are exclusive to that specific game. Medals don’t show up anywhere else in the series, unlike cards.

At the end of Union Cross, it’s revealed that the events of Unchained χ were taking place inside a datascape, a digital recreation of the real Daybreak Town. Makes sense, then, that Medals only appear in that specific stretch of time/gameplay. We also discover that Dream Eaters, both Spirits and Nightmares, are actually wielders whose hearts have been kept safe by their Chirithy, transforming it into the technicolor Pokémon ripoffs of Dream Drop Distance. Only makes sense that they’d use cards for Flick Rush in that case, right?

Ever wonder why Luxord’s title is the Gambler of Fate when his attribute is time? Cards and dice, the main weapons he and his subset of Nobodies use, have been associated with fortune-telling since they were invented. Card reading, especially Tarot, are popular forms of attempting to predict the future or find out something important about yourself and others pertaining your/their destiny. But in this series, destiny is never left to chance, meaning no need to gamble. Perhaps Luxord is hoping to game the system while staying within the rules.

Back to world cards. Doesn’t the way they work seem oddly familiar? They use the memory of a person to project a world for them to interact with within a single location. Sounds very much like the Book of Prophecies creating worlds from the future it saw (the memory of that future etched in its pages) for wielders to collect Lux from the safety of Daybreak Town, since the actual worlds are too far away to get to besides using a Corridor of Darkness or similar.

I could go into how Skuld, Sigurd, and the Dark Road Norse Name crew connect to this (and possibly speculate about Sigurd’s role in Missing-Link), as well as the strange pods in CO/the Mansion and the significance of the Master’s Defender Keyblade being the one used to lock away the LoD but that’s more research than I could possibly stomach right now so I’ll save that analysis for another time. Besides, that’s more related to fate in general and not specifically cards so it’s probably best to keep that separate anyways.

If you made it this far, I want to thank you for reading! This is something I’ve had on my mind for a while and it feels great to finally get it down on paper (or rather, in a post).

#Moon Speaks #Analysis #Chain of Memories #KHUX #Dark Road #KHUX spoilers #idk if the spoiler warning is needed but i'm adding it anyway #I would’ve added an Always Sunny corkboard meme but if I did I’d want to edit it to have sprites and stuff on it #Maybe I’ll do that at some point #Dream Drop Distance #Ven #Ventus

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newhectorroso49 · 2 months

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She felt the cold metal enter her, but she quickly warmed it up, she felt how he tied the end to her hair collected in a beautiful ponytail, keeping her head high, before the raising of the flag with a sub-hard mast, which she placed in front of her eyes, observing how veiny it looked...

la sintio el frio metal introducirse, pero rapidamemte lo caldeo, sentía como ataba el extremo a su pelo recogido en una hermosa coleta, manteniendola con la cabeza alta, ante el izado de bandera de su duro mastil, que lo puso frente a sus ojos, observando lo venoso que se veia...

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bluewren · 5 months

Note

Happy DADWC Wren! Gimme a job that the Chargers took part in, using this DA Lore prompt: "In the Mists: The Windline Marcher. A ghost ship." Because Bull freaking out on a ghost ship sounds hilarious.

THANK YOU FOR THIS PROMPT! It's been so much fun to write. @dadrunkwriting wc: 3521, a hefty one.

Lex has heard every story about the Windline Marcher. When he worked for the Kirkwall Merchant Guide, everyone had a bet placed on what was carried by that ship. Jerrik thinks it's cursed gold that some sailor tried to mutiny and sail away with. Korpin is adamant that it's Antivan sex toys, her explanation, 'Antivans are strange creatures.' Lex has no actual coin on that wager though. He was surprise to find Korpin at Skyhold, working as a direct lyrium trading line for the Inquisition. They chatted on a few occasions, Lex even mentioned this job the Chargers are sent to do. She's still betting on sex toys.

There's been rumors that the ship is now appearing more frequently. Hurricane season is more intense this year than others. With the intrusion of red lyrium and rifts into Thedas, Minaeve and the Helisma have been looking through the weather data to see if it affected the weather in any way. Their recent findings have uncovered an unlikely connection, there are mana streams resonating out like an inverted whirlpool. It overlaps with sightings of the Windline Marcher. The researchers considered it one mystery solved and were ready to move on, but then a large sum of money gets dangled in front of the treasury. A nobleman caught news of their findings.

They promised funding for the Inquisition if they captured the Windline Marcher for him. With sparkles in her eyes, Josephine sent the Chargers to do the job. The main forces are with his sister fighting Red Templars, and he's out here adding a vanity piece to a nobleman's collection. This has to be most self flagellating job he’s been on.

The Chargers and the researchers get shoved onto a longboat and sail for the Windline Marcher. They needed Minaeve and Helisma there to correct course on the ship when if the mana changed its concentration. The Chargers mages are pushing the sails with magic, the winds are harrowing and unpredictable during the hurricane season. Every hand needed to be on deck in case something goes astray. It's been trial keeping their boat in the right direction, the storms have been thrashing them in all directions and the swaying has made steadying themselves difficult. Lex would rather let the Windline Marcher stay as one of Thedas's great mysteries, happily so… If only a certain nobleman hadn't offered the Inquisition enough gold to feed the troops for a year.

But even the most jaded of sellswords have to admire how uncanny it is to actually see the ghost ship up close. It has two masts that still stand and fluttering, though the heavy wind seems to have stopped. From his cursory glance, the ship's strutting and placement of rivets look significantly less intricate than their third of the size boat they ride on. Taliesen can probably gosh over all the exact little design details, but isn't here to do so.

The most eerie feature is the glow the ship has. Not a trace of mildew or seaweed growing on its hull, it has the look of never being seaborne. Whatever secrets it holds, it hides them well.

The Chargers begin their plan to scale the ship, beginning shooting grappling hooks tied to crossbows.

"I finally understand why he wanted it so badly." Dalish remarks, she stretches in place to prepare for the jump.

Lex merely shrugs, keeping his attention on aiming. "I'd still much rather throw a fireball at its hull and call it lost."

Lex, Krem, and Skinner are first to ascend the ship, checking that it's safe for everyone else to enter. They arrive to a deck as empty and as clean as the hull, they drop done the rope and ladder for the rest of the Chargers. Minaeve and Helisma stay on the longboat, if the Chargers get overwhelmed they will have the best chance to leave and tell what happened.

Bull is the last to ascend, he immediately starts shivering as soon as both feet meet the wood.

"Alright Chargers! Dalish and Lex stay top side, everyone else begin searching the ship." Iron Bull commands, he speaks with a bold voice and hiding his fear admirably well. "If you see any dead shit in the rooms, tell the mages immediately."

We all knew the captain is pissed scared and had a quiet chuckle to ourselves, but everyone followed and got to work.

The big qunari can still be seen teetering his feet at the front of the ship when we left.

"It's hard to believe we're barely half a days trip from Kirkwall." Commenting as his eyes stayed trained on the horizon. "You can still see hightown. Have you noticed yet, that the sun isn't in the right spot?"

Lex smirks, their captain is clearly trying to distract himself. "You know if we get lost out here, there'd be no way to send people to reach us."

"Lex! I'd appreciate it if you didn't try to scare the piss out of your captain." He furrows his brow, his voice sounding parched. "Get back to your patrol before I make you scrub our whole living quarters with your hairbrush."

Worth every bit of that reprimand.

"Point taken." Lex backs away, leaving with a big smile.

Top deck guard duty has been the most uneventful part of the job, the horizon as calm as a summer hiking day. The sun highest in the sky, and not one drop of salt water on the wood. Anywhere else they would lie down to take in the sun, though knowing that the hurricane that they pushed through to get here, they're likely in the eye of the storm.

The one peculiar sight they can find is that the ship's wheel seems to be missing, no sign of it ever being mounted on its base.

"Another 'wierd shit' job to tell Varric." Lex side eyes the missing wheel. "What's your take on this?"

Dalish shrugs. "Always so negative. Maybe the sailors whacked the wheel off with a stick."

"Sure. Sure. Probably knocked off with a bow too. Not like we already know this boat is cursed."

"They could have knocked it off to protect everyone on land."

"Always the optimist." Lex chuckles, he stretches out his stiffening shoulders. "But you do know that a spirit wouldn't need a wheel to steer the boat."

"Shush now." Dalish smirks, giving him a swift slap on the shoulder. "You should try hoping for things to go better, it’s possible."

It didn't take long for the rest of the Chargers to resurface. They needed the mages to burn away some corpses before they can turn undead. Stitches and Rocky staying topside, this time.

"I'm surprised you're coming downstairs with us." Lex says, trying to not giggle.

"I wouldn't much of a leader if I let my band do most of the fighting due to some demons." Bull grumbles, he still steadfast in drawing his axe.

"I never count the Iron Bull out of a good fight."

Everyone started with slow tiptoe steps into the lower deck. The scouting group has already informed everyone of the suffocating air below, feeling more alive than up top.

The floorboards creaks in ripples in the water, repeating like a pulse. Nothing aligning with their steps. It's difficult to tell the direction of the sounds.

"Through there. Be ready."

Krem leads us the first right door, immediately Lex, Dalish, and Bull winced. Though there is no smell, a few skeletons laid in this room. Decayed to nothing, not even a smell nor untarnished rags, there is nothing to identify them.

Lex feels the goosebumps rising up his neck, he didn't move any closer.

"Everyone, cover your noses or get clear." He raises his palm to set the bones ablaze.

It'd be pointless to recover anything from their bodies, now four centuries lost. There priority is to stop any demon possession from happening. If the Chargers get careless, then this will be their fate.

"Everyone doing good?" He asks.

"Swell." Krem replies, though clearly close to gagging.

Lex closes the door, ready to be rid of this room too.

"I hate to wonder how they passed on." Dalish sighs, lowering her palm with a flame still contained. "Some of them look at peace."

"You've noticed that too?" Lex raises his brows. "Everything's awfully neat for boat caught in a storm."

"Be on your guard, but try not to worry." Bull hushes."Focus on the bodies, us with blades will keep you two safe."

Both mages nodded, they split into two teams to check the next set of doors. Grim and Skinner follow behind Lex, exploring a supply room inside the ship. The creaking comes from this room too. The shelves still holds the former crew's rations, but not enough to rattle loudly. It's difficult to determine if there is an origin at all.

"Check this." Skinner snatchs a bottle. "Don't think anyone has Antivan vintage this rare."

"Who'd want to drink wine from a ghost ship?"

"It could still be good for a fire." Skinner adds.

Lex chuckles, somehow Skinner always comes up with the most amusing ideas.

They find more bodies on the far side of the room, leaving it to Lex throws another fireball at them.

After the bodies are burnt through, they hear a loud cracking sound coming from the wall they learned on.

"Pass me the bottle." Lex trains his eyes at that wall.

He throws the wine, a fireball ignites it. The fire should have spread to the walls, but it does not take. His flames smothering when meeting the wall, it let's free a grumbling. The owners clearly didn't like someone setting their home on fire.

Grim grumbles, disapprovingly.

"Think you made this it mad.” Skinner chuckles.

“What?” Lex raises a brow. “You would have done something different.”

“No. No.” She shakes her head. “I would have done the same thing.”

Lex snorts, somehow they've always been of the same mind.

The three are ready to leave this miserable room and rejoin the rest of their companions. Likely they'll want to know about the sound.

"Shit!" Bull is the first to run for answers, almost snapping Lex's back when demanding them. "Did you hear that sound? It sounded like a roar, ship's shouldn't be roaring?"

"Calm down. We all knew this ship wasn't normal, we needed to get out in the open."

The roar comes again from he far side of the hold, a hand constructed of stone reaches forward. The demons haunting this ship takes the form of golem, summoning more of its kind to push out it's intruders. Skeletons come from the rooms they hadn't checked, one of them wields a scimitar with a jewel and gold encrusted hilt. That's likely the former captain.

Worse yet is the swords flying free from the rooms they burned the corpses from, wielded by spirits taking the impression of humans. Their work has been shown fruitless, the demons have a liking for hosts without a pulse.

Atleast the monsters finally decided to come out of the shadows.

"Shit!"

Bull finally lets free of Lex's collar. He frantically begins hacking at the floating swords.

The abstract forms of the possessed swords fall easily, one strike from Bull's wide swing is all it takes to smother their connection to Thedas. Though their severed connection reestablish fast, another spirit pushes through the Veil and picks the sword back up.

Worse are the foes with more solid forms, slowly close the distance. The amorphous spirits were little trouble for their blades, the skeletons have an unnatural strength to them. Skinner dashes to cut more holes through their tattered leather armor, she is pinned to a wall when the demons lunges its bones in her direction.

Krem is close enough to shield bash the demon away.

The tight corridors give little room to maneuver, one misstep and the demons will overwhelm us. And will have even less room as the golem closes the distance.

“Bull!” Lex shouts, his blade sets ablaze surrounding spirits. ”We can’t stay here.”

“Bah!” Bull growls, his swinging gets his axe stuck to a wall. “We need more room. Everyone get upstairs!”

The Chargers retreated, Lex needing to run his blade through a skeleton blocking Grim from leaving. The whole team is able to see daylight, though the demons are close behind.

“Rocky! Clear the tunnels.” Bull commands.

When the last of the Chargers is safe enough distance, Rocky drops an explosive through the door. There is a bout of clattering and clinks from flying swords, it worked to clear some of their foes. It wasn’t enough to finish them off, the same roar from below deck is heard again.

The golem reaches out, it’s stone hands pull the rest of itself through the door. A scattering of spirits and skeletons follow behind.

Another bomb would have cleared them, but the golem is smart enough to use its giant body to shield its friends.

We continue our skirmish, the demons using the same strategy as before. It’s an effective one, the spirits are plentiful and cutting one down isn’t enough to stop the weapon from being reused. While the skeletons wait for the moment when fatigue sets in.

They’re now losing daylight with little to show of their battle.

“This isn’t working.” Bull grimaces, holding back a skeleton.

“Got any better ideas, Chief?” Krem shouts, striking down a few more spirits down. “Would be open to a Chargers high roller.”

“Just one. The golem is probably in charge. Get Lex and Rocky to it, blow up its head.”

"Got it." Lex and Rocky dash for the golem, the other Chargers clearing the path for them.

Grim and Skinner cut down the spirits in front. Krem and Stitches raise their shields, blocking the skeletons from reaching the runners.

"Dalish!" The mage pulls up icewalls, they have a direct line to the golem now.

The last thing that is now between them and the demon is the captain's skeleton, pointing its decorated sword at them.

Lex kicks up a fire jet, dropping his sword on the skeleton.

Rocky has his opening to throw his bomb in. After his sword runs through the skeleton, Lex sidestep to ignite the bomb with his fire magic. The explosion is massive, enough to cause Lex's ears to ring but it is able to crack the golem.

The demon is extricated from its homely pile of rocks, now fluttering for safety and something new to latch onto in the physical world. It make haste for Bull, the sudden flash scaring the piss out of the qunari. But for some unknowable reason, it flies past the horns and into his axe…

"Shit!"

The Iron Bull breaks into a cold sweat, his weapon uncontrollably flailing at the rest of the Chargers and too mortified to let go of his grip.

"It's got my axe!" Bull heaves, hiccuping every time the axehead drops. "Shit. It's on the tip of my blade! Its got a mind of its own! Help! Help!"

It's rare for demons to act like this much of a nuisance. Lex dashes under Bull's shadow, readying himself for the axe to land over him. He prepares a telekinetic spell for that exact moment, enough to knock it into the opposite direction.

"Let go!" He commands his captain, throwing his spell when safest.

The axe flung backwards, through the air, into the sea. Ridiculously, it still isn't enough to stomp the demon. The possessed axe gathers a watersprout. The long neck spreads out and freezing over into scales with a reptilian head enveloping the axe. A sea serpent, it's like an ex that won't leave you alone.

The boat starts to tumble, shaking like it's falling. Everyone tripping and losing their footing, head first onto the floor. It's likely that this boat dropped into the water, probably the first time the boat has actually been seaborne in years.

"This fucking demon really needs to die." Lex coughs, completely exasperated by their foe. "Bull, do you need my weapon?"

"I liked that axe, first time I had one perfectly balanced." Bull growls, seeming more angry than frightened now. "Thanks. Appreciate it. You never quite see a demons this tenacious, I'm wringing its neck."

Angry is not the right word. To be exact, he's got a hard on for fighting a sea serpent. Lex hands over his sword, Bull revels in this moment. Although he now needs a new weapon, he remembers the possessed ship captain carried an elegant one.

A scimitar, gem encrusted, more fashion piece than tool, that'll be the one. Lex finds it amongst the bones, picking up and igniting it with his fire magic. He's now ready for this grand final hunt, but not without some censorious looks from the others.

"You couldn't have set something else on fire?" Bull narrows his eyes. "Something more practical. Less lavish."

"We're moments from taking on a giant water lizard, why worry about ruining an expensive sword?" Lex trains his wicked grin at the giant beast. "It's much more fun this way."

"Can't say I disagree." Bull chuckles, he takes stance to point Lex’s sword. "Chargers! Go for its head, knock that thing back into the sea."

The sea serpent summons tentacles to defend itself, made the same way that its body was. The ice is made resilient by the magic, the Chargers hacking away at the appendages barely cut through them. By Dalish’s fire magic, she’s able to soften them enough to amputate. Lex’s flaming sword sword has been able to do similar, although one clumsy slash is enough to flash melt the ice.

It’s enough to splat his eyes, momentarily blinding him. He gets slapped down to the deck by one of its tentacles, striking with enough force to fling him to railing.

While picking himself up, he notices the rattling of their grapples hooks attached to the ship. He peaks over the edge to find that the researchers and ship captain are in a struggle with shades as well. He hacks off the hooks, freeing their longboat.

"Get to safety!" Lex shouts to them.

The Chargers will have to win against this demon to get home. At least now, they only need to worry for themselves.

“Bull, get me to its head.” Lex huffs.

The battle is now taking the air out of him.

“Gladly.” Bull nods, his axe slices through another of its icy tentacles.

The Chargers attack the neck. Fire weakening the ice, arrows chipping it away. Whenever close enough, the warriors swing their swords at it. It lets out meager scream unlike its earlier form. Eventually the head slumps itself enough for Lex to reach.

He puts the last of might into the fire enchantment. His scimitar’s blade becomes indistinguishable from starlight as it cuts through the serpent’s head. The demon’s head falls backwards, finally losing the will to fight. Its ice shatters, finally dropping the possessed axe into the sea.

The battle is finally over, and Lex is ready to vomit.

“Strange that after all that work, it’s our boat tugging us back to land.” Lex remarks.

“We are still missing the wheel to steer the ship.” Dalish adds.

“This boat’s old.” Bull points out. “It’s much faster to have our’s do the heavy lifting. The masts catch more wind.”

All the ship's anomalies have vanished, the demon probably took all its mana back when forming the sea serpent.

“Fair point.” Lex is finally able to kick his feet up, though Stitches keeps a watchful eye on his bandages after getting thrown by the sea serpent.

The Charger’s job is finished, but the researchers are still busy on their work. Studying the clouds, measuring wind speed, gathering data. It’s perfect time to learn more about weather patterns in this part of the sea.

“I’m glad you two are unharmed.” Lex waves to the researchers.

“Thank you for helping us when you did.” Minaeve grins back, her head seems stuck in her notebook. “And I’m grateful for you and Helisma.”

Lex turns his head to Minaeve’s companion, the tranquil?

“The demons avoided Helisma, she’s the one to guide our boat to safety.”

“Have you found anything interesting?” Lex asks.

He has trouble, shaking the feeling of being perturbed though he still has gratitude to the other researcher helping the Chargers.

“Something, yes.” Helisma nods, pointing out to the sea. “I spotted the glow of a unusually large lyrium deposit when we ran. We can’t be certain, but it’s possibly how the demon had so much control over this ship.”

“That’s certainly interesting.” Lex asks, wide eyed. “Is there anything more that we can learn?”

“Again, there’s no way to be certain. The demon is gone, its host sank to the bottom of the ocean and the deposit is too far out to excavate. We can only theorize.”

Lex sighs, it’s expected though dismal that there isn’t any good answers for this headache of a job. Still there is one last mystery that needs answering, Korpin wants her answers.

He makes his way to the hold again.

#dragon age dwc #Lex Lavellan #the iron bull #bull's chargers

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evilwriter37 · 11 months

Text

Old Chains

Rated: teen

Warnings: none

Pairings: Hiccup & Valka, Hiccup & Toothless

Word Count: 2,183

Summary: Hiccup is captured by a bounty hunter who found one of Viggo's old posters.

Ao3 Link

Hiccup didn't know why he was being captured. He'd thought those days were over, now that there were no wars to fight, no enemies vying for his attention.

And yet, here he was, the Chief of Berk, sitting tied to a mast on a ship. He couldn't remember returning home from the Mead Hall the night before, and he'd woken like this, muscles screaming with stiffness, head pounding, mouth dry. Had he been drugged?

There were a few men working around the ship, a crew. One of them noticed that he was awake and trying to get his bearings.

"Captain, he's up!" the man nearest him shouted.

There was a grunt, then heavy footsteps coming from behind. A man circled around to Hiccup, and put his huge hands on his hips. He was big, almost as big as Hiccup's father had been, and there was something cruel glinting in his dark eyes. His thickly braided brown beard came almost to his waist.

"Where's my dragon?" Hiccup demanded before the captain could say anything. He was worried over Toothless more than he was himself.

"The bounty didn't ask for your dragon," the captain said. "Just you."

"What did you do to him?"

"He's having a nice little sleep back on Berk. Gave him a higher dose of what I gave you."

Hiccup's worry over Toothless was beginning to fade a little now that he knew he hadn't been captured with him. He was worried over him being drugged though.

But then something registered in his mind.

Bounty?

"What bounty?" Hiccup asked. There was a clenching in his stomach at the familiarity of all of this. He thought back to that awful day where he'd gone from bounty hunter to bounty hunter, thinking he would end up in Viggo's cruel and malicious hands. Somehow, it was like he felt the chain around his neck again.

The captain took a rolled up piece of paper from his pouch, showed it to Hiccup. Hiccup started, taken aback, blinking.

He knew that bounty poster, knew those words, knew the portrait of himself with the nose drawn too big.

It was Viggo's poster. An old one.

"I-it's old," was all Hiccup said, realizing too late that those words were not wise.

"Well, let's hope the Grimborns are still collecting for you."

Hiccup almost laughed, even as grief drove a stake through his heart. He almost told the captain that both the Grimborns were dead and their tribe had dispersed. But he thought better of it. What would happen to him if the captain knew that? Would he just kill him for all his trouble? Clearly he wasn't from around here and had very old information.

"I didn't get your name!" Hiccup called as the captain began rolling up the poster and walking away, clearly done speaking with him. Hiccup wanted something to call him in his head other than "the captain".

"It's Oddi!" the captain called back, not even bothering to look over his shoulder. "Captain Oddi!"

Well, Captain Oddi, Hiccup thought, today is going to be the worst day of your life. Because Hiccup knew that his mother and his friends were coming for him, and that he might not survive their wrath.

---

Valka was trying her best not to panic. The village had woken to find Hiccup gone, missing. Toothless was still here, and there had been no note.

Now, she and the Riders were trying their best to get Toothless to come to.

"He's been drugged," Valka said. "Doesn't look to be with Dragon Root though."

"I almost wish it was," Fishlegs said. "I know the antidote for that."

Valka pet a groaning Toothless on the neck. He didn't seem otherwise injured, just tired. He wouldn't be able to come with them on the rescue mission.

Because they were getting ready to rescue Hiccup. He couldn't have been taken too far, given that he'd probably been taken by someone on a ship, rather than on a dragon.

"We have to go," Valka announced, rising. "Astrid!" she called up into the loft. "Did you get something with his scent on it?"

Astrid came hurrying down the stairs with one of Hiccup's tunics in hand, and Valka just nodded. She looked around at the gathered Riders.

"Fishlegs, you stay with Toothless," she decided. He was a healer, and a damn good one at that. He'd learned from Gothi and the Defenders of the Wing. "Keep him safe."

Fishlegs looked like he wanted to protest, most likely wanting to go after Hiccup as well, but right now, his absence meant that she was in charge. He had to listen to her. So, he nodded.

Together, Valka and the rest of the Riders left the house, finding Eret outside saddling Skullcrusher.

"Did you get the scent sample?" Eret asked. Skullcrusher was the best tracker they had, would be able to find Hiccup even if he was miles away with his scent muddled by others.

Astrid hurried over and handed Eret the tunic. He offered it to Skullcrusher, who came forward and sniffed intently. His pupils turned to slits, and he raised his head in a roar, pawing at the ground.

"Guess it's time to go!" Eret hopped nimbly into Skullcrusher's saddle. He'd gotten awfully good at maneuvering with and around his dragon.

Valka still rode Cloudjumper without a saddle, and her dragon helped her climb onto his back. She knew why the others used saddles--it was practical--but she didn't feel the need for one after so long of having been flying with Cloudjumper without one.

And together, they all took to the skies, Eret and Skullcrusher in the lead. Soon, they were leaving Berk behind to become nothing more than a speck amongst the clouds.

---

Hiccup could do nothing but wait. He didn't talk to these people, not wanting to antagonize them at all. He knew pain, and that was certainly something he wanted to avoid in this situation.

So he was just left in silence to think. He wondered how this man had gotten ahold of this bounty poster. Granted, there had been a lot of them, and apparently there had been some left floating around even after Viggo had called it off.

Even after Viggo was dead.

Hiccup tried his best not to think about the man often. All it did was cause him great pain and sadness. Viggo had loved him, and he'd learned that only at the very end. He hadn't had time to tell him anything, to really process those feelings. And then he'd died trying to protect him.

It hurt. It hurt badly. Hiccup had never felt the same way for Viggo--though for a time after he wondered if he had--but that didn't make his death any less painful. Hiccup didn't want people dying for him.

Sighing, feeling an ache in his chest, he rested his head back against the mast and stared out at the sky. The Dragon Riders would be coming for him soon. He could feel it.

---

Valka, not used to flying in any type of formation, made a beeline for the ship once they spotted it. She could hear the other Dragon Riders calling out to her, but she didn't care. She wanted her son back.

There was shouting from the ship. It wasn't a big Dragon Trapper ship, not like the ones Drago had commanded. Instead, it was a single longboat.

This was going to be too easy.

She quickly saw Hiccup tied to the mast, and so avoided it, not wanting to injure him. Instead, she had Cloudjumper blast along the sides. The last thing they needed was the ship sinking.

The deck had been cleared by the time the other Dragon Riders had appeared. Just as Valka had expected: easy. Some men had jumped into the water to avoid the wrath of Cloudjumper's fire, but most had met their end in a cyclone of heat. That just left Hiccup tied to the mast, waiting for them.

Valka jumped down as soon as Cloudjumper landed, rushing over to Hiccup. She drew her knife, quickly cutting at his bonds. The ship was on fire and would be sinking soon. They had to get off of it. She desperately wanted to ask him questions, but his safety came first.

Hiccup breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Thanks, mom!" He gave her a quick hug, and then let Astrid help him onto Stormfly's back.

"Are you hurt?" Ruffnut asked as soon as they were flying away from the ship.

"No, no, I'm fine."

"What happened?" Valka asked. "Who were those people?"

For a moment, they flew in silence save for the great beats of their dragons' wings.

"Bounty hunters," Hiccup finally said.

The rest of the Dragon Riders looked at him shocked, though Eret and Valka were confused, clearly not in the know. Hiccup had a history with bounty hunters?

"But... You mean... Your old bounty?" Snotlout asked, clearly trying to make sense of the situation.

Hiccup nodded.

"What old bounty?" Valka felt fire in her gut. Someone had put a bounty on her son and she hadn't known about it?

The Dragon Riders glanced around at each other. Hiccup, arms wrapped around Astrid's waist, let out a huge sigh.

"I'll tell you when we're on Berk," he finally said.

---

Hiccup didn't know how to explain the war with Viggo to his mother. Though, it had been a war with Dragon Hunters. Maybe she would understand.

He kept trying to script it in his head, trying to find a good starting point. Really, he didn't know what to say. How was he to explain Viggo and all the complicated feelings that went along with him to his mother?

Hiccup didn't have to straight away though, because as soon as they landed at Berk, he was hailed by Fishlegs and taken into his house to see Toothless.

His dragon leapt to his feet as soon as he entered, even with Fishlegs telling him to take it slow. Slow was not what Toothless did. Instead, he jumped on Hiccup, tackled him to the floor, and licked him all over.

Hiccup laughed. "I missed you too, bud!" He took his head in both his hands. "How are you feeling?"

Toothless warbled at him and let him get up off the floor. Hiccup sat, just petting Toothless, whose tongue lolled out of his mouth. The two were terribly happy to see each other.

"So, he's okay?" Hiccup asked, turning to Fishlegs. "No Dragon Root?"

"No Dragon Root," Fishlegs confirmed.

That made Hiccup feel even more relieved. The bounty hunters clearly hadn't been trying to kill Toothless. They'd just needed him out of the way to get to him. Hiccup would much rather have any negative attention sent his way than his dragon's.

Valka hovered in the doorway, seemingly unsure of how to enter or what to say. Hiccup decided he would break the silence.

"Mom, thank you." He rose, took her by the shoulders, and then gave her a much longer embrace than the one they'd shared on the ship while surrounded by fire and smoke.

"Now," Valka began, holding Hiccup out at arms' length. "What bounty?"

Hiccup sighed, ran a hand through his hair. It smelled like ash.

"I..." He looked at Fishlegs, who nodded and left the house so it was just them and Toothless. "Maybe we should sit down."

---

Valka just nodded. Hiccup hadn't expected her to after all that he'd said. He could see her mulling it over, but the nod made him feel better.

"So this... this Viggo... He changed?"

"He did."

"And that's why you thought you could change Drago."

It wasn't a question, but Hiccup nodded.

"What did he mean to you?" Valka asked.

"What?"

"He clearly meant something to you," Valka said. "What was it?"

"I don't know," Hiccup responded after some time in thought. "He... he loved me. It was clear by the end. I don't know if I loved him back, or..." He didn't know what to say. Even after so many years, his feelings over Viggo were still complicated.

Valka reached across the table where they sat and put a hand over his.

"You don't have to know," she told him. "It's okay."

Hiccup nodded. He inhaled deeply, let out a sigh that relaxed his shoulders.

"How are you feeling?" Valka asked. She rose, began moving around the kitchen. "I can make dinner."

"Tired," Hiccup responded. His mother wasn’t a very good cook, but he really could go for one of her meals right now. “More so emotionally than physically." It was such an ordeal to be captured, even when he hadn't been hurt at all save for being drugged. It was just all the memories, the talk he'd had with his mother about Viggo Grimborn.

Hiccup rubbed at his throat, and Toothless rumbled at him in concern. He gave him a weak smile.

"I'm fine, Toothless."

But, even as he said it, he could still feel those old chains around his neck, the past coming up to suffocate him.

#httyd #httyd 2 #how to train your dragon #httyd rtte #race to the edge #hiccup haddock #valka #angst #fanfiction #writing

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