#and was sent back to be a lonely child who has seen too much and done too much and no one to talk to

[noiseprophet]

having wayyy too many emotions about a video game character from 1998 right now

#he was JUST A LITTLE BOY #and he grew up alone #and then when they told him to fight he fought #and all he got in return was more fighting #and he woke up 7 years older and didn’t recognize himself or his home and no one recognized him #but he kept working and fighting and killing #and was sent back to be a lonely child who has seen too much and done too much and no one to talk to #and never once did he complain or leave or stop fighting #when he was hurt he didn’t stop #when he died he just started again #and then even in death he could not rest #WHAT THE FUCK #PLEASE let this boy ride his horse and be happy and stop fighting #ocarina of time #legend of zelda #7.83hz #n e ways sorry for zelda posting (will do it again)

[cherryjuicegf]

"You've been crying."

Jaskier laughs as Geralt sits beside him on the pebbles and raises his eyebrows, not looking at him still. "Now you can tell the salt of tears from that of the sea too?"

A light hum. "Always could."

A red ray escapes the setting sun and hits the waves, making the tears in his eyes melt as they mirror it. He sniffles and wipes at the trails his previous crying had pathed on his cheeks, and puts on a brave smile. Not really a smile. A curve of lips, at least, because Geralt is here now, the warmth of his body resembling a lit hearth, and it's a kind of comfort. Always has been.

Except. Geralt is staring at him.

Geralt is waiting.

And it's nothing, it really is. Jaskier likes to convince himself it is trivial, because how else could he mend a broken heart, if not with lies. The truth just seems too far out of reach.

But maybe now he is tired. And maybe in another time he wouldn't talk about it, he would only smile wider but now Geralt's stare is so gentle, and his eyes so safe like the sun on a spring's day.

"I feel like I've been missing, you know," he says at last and looks at him straight, soft, because Geralt really does know. "On love. And it's been too long."

What Geralt doesn't know, perhaps, is the way his heart clenches inside his chest and curls on itself like a child punished in the corner. So he frowns. "You? Jaskier, you can have anyone you want. I've seen you." Then, a smile, almost fond. "You fall in love with everyone."

Everyone, everyone. Anyone. Anyone there is. Anyone who looks like maybe, maybe, they will stay, or he is just too careless at this point that he tries anyway. A heart that never has too much. He knows they won't stay. And he knows the one who will stays for a different reason. So, so close.

He smiles, bittersweet, and lowers his look. "Yes, indeed. Everyone." Everyone, she sent a letter today. Never to meet again, never to be seen. Jaskier shakes his head. "And me? Who of all them has fallen in love with me, Geralt?" As if to answer his question, a seabird cries along. The sea, too, a cruel mistress. His voice quivers. "I feel like a desperate dog chasing love, while running from it all the same."

With the corner of his eye he sees Geralt parting his lips and a fake hope blooms in his chest, fading at once when he holds back, and stays silent. And he can only bask in the imagined possibility of what he intended to say.

The tears are done with him now. Only numbness remains.

Eventually, Geralt speaks. "If it is any helpful, no one has ever been in love with me either." The lightness in his voice sounds exactly like the pained strings mending Jaskier’s heart.

But oh, what a foolish man. Jaskier can't help but smile and turn at him, and for a bit he remembers that lonely as it is, he can't stop loving. "Well, that's just not true. I'm in love with you."

As though he doesn't know, as though it's not as simple as it was uttered, Geralt flinches. Jaskier chuckles and averts his gaze again, a little happier than before. Love, it is simple. It's what he does.

Just not something that happens to him.

"Well, then," he hears after some moments, "that makes us even."

He laughs before he thinks. "It does?" And then.

His head spins at once, eyes wide as they meet Geralt's, almost afraid. No, not afraid. Unbelieving. It's been so long, you see. But Geralt only rolls his eyes, oh so fondly, and before Jaskier manages to splutter any words sweet lips are on his, and a hand holding his nape. And it's not like other times. Not like everyone else. It's certain and terrifying and deep like a promise, like two stray roots finding each other through the earth and keeping their living hearts bound forever. Like what he has been craving for so long he forgot he may one day have it. Like Geralt.

And then, as though to seal it, this promise, Geralt pulls back and looks at him like he always does and Jaskier wonders, wonders how this that he never caught stands right here, catching itself. Geralt smiles, voice soft as a feather. "I'm in love with you, Jaskier." And that's it. Simple as that.

His eyes are burning again and Jaskier can only nod, and smile back. And it's almost funny, almost tender how love happens to be so close, so close he can taste its kiss without even trying, just for once.

Just for once, how love happens to him.

#pots and pans i think love is something that happens to other people by michael gray sobbing weeping #the witcher #geraskier #jaskier #geralt of rivia #geralt x jaskier #chrysa writes #i'm as surprised as you are friends #fic recs #fluff #anyway how about this. loving the unloved

[huramuna]

banshee's lament - meet shera stark.

Shera Stark, younger sister to Lord Cregan Stark, was born in 111 AC in Winterfell. She was considered wild as a child for the few years she resided in her ancestral home, before she was sent to King’s Landing as a ward to Queen Alicent Hightower. Her grace, on most accounts, managed to tame the beastly nature of the young girl into that of a comely, pious demeanor. Shera is said to have been good friends with Helaena Targaryen and Aemond Targaryen. It wasn’t uncommon for the girl to sing in the keep’s sept at the behest of the Queen, who cited her as having ‘a lovely singing voice, unto which we can hear the Gods’. 

Upon Prince Aemond’s miraculous claim of Vhagar at Driftmark, a fight broke out between the younger broods that were present that eve in the tunnels. It is unknown to what started the fight, as multiple sources have different stories– Aemond lashing out at his younger nephews, the dragon twins Baela and Rhaena Targaryen hurling insults, or Shera pushing Lucerys to the ground in an attempt to get past them. What is known, however, is the consequences of the fight– Prince Aemond declared that Lucerys Velaryon took his eye. Shera, too, lost sight in her eye and had her throat slashed. Her vocal cords and nerves were mangled permanently, hindering her to never be able to speak above a whisper.  Hearing word of his younger sister’s injuries and near death, Cregan Stark immediately sent for Shera’s return to Winterfell. Her state of living was tenuous for the better part of a year, and she never revealed publicly the name of whom disfigured her. Not much is known of her life in Winterfell after, as she was kept almost as a secret.  Travelers who ventured outside of Winterfell remark hearing an eerie howling at night, dubbing Shera Stark the ‘Banshee of Winterfell’. Ten years have passed since the Driftmark incident and Shera has returned to King’s Landing, the source of her ire and pain– and mayhaps fond memories.  A lone wolf can dance with dragons, as well. And mayhaps will change the promenade.

A first glance at Shera, one would notice the following: - Wears an exorbitant amount of hand jewelry, adorned with jewels. She favors opals, moonstones and pearls. She usually has a few rings on each hand, frequently twisting them. - Always ornamented with a silken, laced veil of some sort. Through it, one can see the outline of her face, but the features underneath it are blurred and hard to discern. Her veil is usually matching with her jewelry. - She prefers muted tones, grays, blacks and whites. Shera is usually dressed in a few layers and takes pride in her wardrobe, most of them being tailored by her. Most are with high collars.

Being around Shera more than a few times, more details come to light: - To match her hand jewelry, she always has on moon shaped silver earrings, which are quite large and make a soft jingle when she walks. It wouldn’t be noticeable unless one looks up close to her, as they hide under her veil.  - Fur. Shera is always adorned in fur of some sort and it is a noticeable trend in her wardrobe. She finds comfort and safety in snuggling up in a fur stole and will be seen habitually running her fingers through it, almost absentmindedly. - She always has on a black laced, embroidered choker. It is tied to the back of her neck with a simple ribbon. It looks handmade, stitched with images of flowers upon a breeze. She doesn’t wish to talk about it. If speaking above a whisper, she will stop herself with a tenuous hand to her choker, as if a reminder.

If Shera truly trusts someone, they will see the deepest parts of her: - Her blind eye and scar that tangles around and over it. It is a milky blue with no pupil. If one stared into it, it may be akin to looking into the void– or into the starry night, cosmos and faraway specks of planets. It is easy to get lost in. - A scar that runs under the length of her choker. Even after being healed for so long, it's still so prominent, etched into her skin like a brand. It falls over her injured vocal cords, frayed and damaged like old twine.  - Once her full visage is apparent, unburdened, unveiled– her skin is a milky pallor, cheeks rosined and her facial expressions unbidden, as she is usually able to hide her expressions under her veil, so without it, she is quite animated.

The most noticeable quality about Shera Stark, however, is her constant companion and shadow, Moongeist. He is a large adult direwolf who’s standing height at the shoulder lies against Shera’s hip / lower waist.  He acts as her eyes and helps her navigate, as her eye injury runs more than just sight deep. She is prone to vertigo, fainting spells and Moongeist is as much a crutch as he is a friend. If someone wished to hurt Shera, they wouldn’t get far, lest they become wolf food.

#my writing #banshees lament #shera #hotd fic #hotd headcanon #hotd oc #house of the dragon #oc: shera stark #fic: banshee's lament

[xiofuu]

Coward

Unedited, Angst, Unrequited love, Mentions of alcohol, Not good writing

It'd only been recent that your heart began to ache so heavily. Watching as the one person your heart happened to choose chase after another whom their heart had set as theirs. The small crimson haired child who had once childishly promised you their hand in marriage when you'd grow older, who had given you a place to call home, and the one to make you fall foolishly in love.

You sighed, listening to the chatter of the other patrons within the tavern as you sat at the bar, thinking about the events that had gotten your heart to painfully ache while slowly sipping on the glass of wine while you waited for the owner to eventually walk through the door.

Whenever that would be, that is.

It wasn't like you had waited like this for hours, no. Definitely not. You've just managed to sip through one bottle, share a few spare drinks, and even managed to barely keep yourself awake as you sat at the bar, taking another sip of your Death After Noon whilst waiting to tell the man how you've felt for ages.

But even then, he's never been hours late for a meeting.

Your lone glass sat on the bar, your head laid within your arms while you could feel the alcohol settle, making your head dizzy as your face flushed, thinking about Diluc as you almost dozed off.

Thinking about his rare smiles that brighten up your days, the way his face dusts with pink as he accepted the compliments from his dearest. You knew he'd do anything for the one he loved. You've seen it before.

Watching as he offered her an outing to a sweets shop that you once asked him for while his face could barely hold the love he felt for her. The drinks were getting to you, you could feel it as the tears pricked your eyes before you placed them on your arms, feeling the tears soak into the fabric of your sleeves.

You wanted to drink more to forget how bright his smiles were for her, how you knew that he would never love you back, how you've even been pushed out of his life to make space for her. This was the last thing you wanted to do while you were still in your position.

Though, the time never came as you stood, stretching away the numbness within your body from sitting for far too long before sitting once again, lifting your glass to finish whatever had been left there for far too long, only for a hand to softly place itself on yours, the clink of the metal shattering your heart as you blinked away the oncoming tears.

"Mx, you shouldn't drink this much," a soft voice spoke as you turned to face the young maiden.

"Ah, Noelle, it's okay. I'll be sure to rest fully tomorrow, so I'll be okay," you mumbled, your head spinning as too many thoughts rushed through, your main priority now being to finish the wine before you lost it all only to discover that there was no more wine within your glass.

"Even so, this isn't healthy for you," she dragged on, waiting for you to go along with her only to be met with the rowdyness of the other patrons as they got drunk and sang along with the bard about their newfound happiness.

"Noelle," you hesitated. "He sent you here again, didn't he?" You asked, knowing the answer yet still bothering to ask.

The young lady's hand had been shaken from yours to meet her own in front of her lap while she looked down apologetically, not wanting to answer while her silence made your heart tug at their heartstrings, almost snapping them.

You nodded your head towards her before placing more mora on the table, asking Charles for a bottle of Death After Noon as you stood, preparing to leave for the night. Noelle looked up and faced the man, wanting to stop him but instead stopping herself as she knew there was nothing stopping you. This has happened once too many before.

Charles, who had previously dealt with this before, had warned you, telling you that this was your xth bottle of the week; that this wasn't healthy for you and that you should consider something else only for it to go unheard, not bothering to acknowledge it.

"Should I call for Sir Kaeya?" Noelle stuttered, watching you grab the bottle as you turned to leave the tavern, pausing at her mentioning Kaeya. Your pause only meant the worse to her as she started to list the small list of people who you knew before you sighed.

"Noelle, please." She paused, watching you leave the tavern as she continued to follow and escort you home. You could feel the bitter cold of the night bite at your skin while you walked home, wanting to enjoy something as your mind wandered.

Was he with her? Were you going to always feel like this? Were you going to continue to be left behind like this?

"Yes?" Noelle spoke, reminding you that you were being escorted against your will.

"Leave it be. I'll be okay own my own, you know this," you tried to reassure, only to meet her eyes that held worry and pity. "Just," you paused, "if anyone asks about tonight, tell them nothing happened."

You both continued down the road, watching as your little apartment came into view and the bitter cold that once bit at your skin felt even worse now as you could almost feel the cold wrap around your fingers to freeze them off.

"Oh," you remembered, "Could you tell Acting Grandmaster Jean that I'll be taking that mission she offered?" You turned to Noelle, watching as she nodded and continued to walk with you in silence.

Your eyes couldn't help but to wander at the thought. The mission. The one that no one else wanted to take as it could potentially end their lives or lead them to returning home without success. Jean couldn't help but ask you to do it, knowing fully that you'd also decline before she would eventually forcefully assign it to you.

Your eyes moved from your incoming home that felt cold, to the closed shops nearby that felt unnatural, to the bright red that stood out amongst the dark night that tugged against your heartstrings.

Your tears threatened to fall once more with the ache of your heart as you walked, dismissing Noelle as your home was a few steps farther. You could feel a sense of dread sink in as you remembered the bottle that sat in your hand while you pat around your body to look for the keys to your apartment, happening to hear the small chatter and giggles as you imagined his smile.

That small simple smile that could brighten up your day; that same smile that you worked so hard to achieve, only to be taken by another while you couldn't help but watch from the sides, no longer wanting to be his family as you yearned to become his lover.

This was it.

The moment you enter your home, there's no going back. You'd spend tomorrow and maybe the day after to recover from your lack of care for the amount of drinks you downed tonight and then spend the rest of the week packing, planning, and leaving.

"To think, I'd be weak enough to simply run away like a coward," you sighed, pushing your keys into the lock as tears fell down to meet your shaking hand. "who cares, this mission will either end me or I'll come back and leave the knights and go back to my homeland and never return," you mumbled.

You felt too much in this one moment. The fear of losing your life, the sadness of losing the one you loved, the bitter cold that followed; everything added up and you couldn't deal with it anymore.

There were going to be no more lonely nights at the tavern after this. No more nights of waiting for Diluc to answer your letters, no more nights of wishing to be his lover, no more.

.

.

.

Right?

#genshin impact angst #genshin impact x reader #diluc angst #genshin angst #diluc #gi diluc #diluc ragnvindr #genshin #diluc x reader #diluc ragnivindr x you #diluc x you #diluc ragnivindr x reader #help i don't know what i'm doing #first fic #help how does tumblr work #help how do i tag this #maybe I'll come back and edit this

[saintsenara]

thank you very much for the ask, anon! it turned out that questions 1 and 2 sent me a bit feral, so they're queued up in a separate post... allowing this one to focus on the unhinged and deranged potential of ronius.

which - i'll be honest - is not quite as unhinged and deranged as one might think...

although my answer about it as a pure crackship would be influenced by a headcanon i remain committed to purely for my own amusement that harry is the only person who believes sirius to be unfathomably good-looking pre-azkaban [the girl in the defence against the dark arts exam was actually checking out lily! harry saw what he wanted to see!] and still retaining vestiges of these magnificent looks after it.

i like the idea of ron - canonically a real hottie himself - not being entirely sure what all the fuss is about, not least because sirius hasn't seen a dentist in fifteen years. harry's sighing every night about how lucky ron is while everyone else pats sirius on the back for bagging himself a tall and sporty legend with great hair, a chill personality, and a fourteen-inch wand.

but my more serious response to this ship would be that it joins the pile - with snon and ronmort - which are made plausible by the fact that ron is, at heart, someone who cares.

in goblet of fire, harry, ron, and hermione all have broadly similar views of sirius - that he's a clever, sensible adult who can be trusted to help them with the mystery they find themselves in. ron is reassured that harry tells sirius about his scar hurting, for example, because he thinks it's a given that sirius will know what to do about it - and he believes that any information sirius gives harry throughout this book is completely above reproach.

ron also clearly thinks that sirius is cool - him trying to get sirius to agree with him that hermione's passion for house elf rights is ridiculous very much has the vibe of him wanting sirius to acknowledge him as a sophisticated man-of-the-world; which him being pissed-off when sirius suggests the trio are too young to understand what things were like in the first war also illustrates.

[which i think sirius respects him for - he obviously admires a bit of bolshiness, and he also obviously adores the loyalty ron and hermione have for harry.]

and so i think that you can absolutely imagine ron developing a little crush on sirius - to go with his broader bisexual awakening over viktor krum - during his fourth year.

more interestingly, though, is that the trio's view of sirius diverges in order of the phoenix.

in harry's case, there is a reversal of the reasonably uncomplicated parent-child dynamic of goblet of fire, as sirius' depression - as well as the regression he feels from being stuck in his childhood home - robs him of the capacity to provide harry with the paternal emotional support he needs. instead, harry ends up being the one taking the adult role in their relationship - viewing it as his responsibility to be the sensible one in order to keep sirius safe.

hermione notices this role-reversal, but her view is broadly that sirius would be able to restrain his emotional instability if he simply tried hard enough. she's the one of the three who thinks that sirius' grimmauld-place-induced regression is accompanied by a desire to relive his glory days with harry standing in for james - and while both she and harry find sirius' more reckless behaviour [such as his suggestion that he might come to hogsmeade to see them] frightening, hermione evidently regards it as reckless arrogance, while harry sees it as reckless desperation.

ron - on the other hand - approaches order-era sirius not from the adult position in an adult-child dynamic, but as a peer.

he's the member of the trio who best understands the impact feeling useless to the war effort, lonely, and trapped has on sirius, without adding the qualification that he should be an adult and deal with it [which has the negative result that he's easily convinced that harry's vision of sirius in the department of mysteries is real, because he thinks it's completely plausible that sirius would have left the house and been captured].

he has no time for the idea that sirius views harry as indistinguishable from james, or that sirius is deliberately or childishly reckless. he's the only one of the three to give sirius the credit of listening to dumbledore and working to keep himself and harry safe - even if he doesn't like what he has to endure in order to do this. he treats sirius as someone who deserves to not be condescended to and to be acknowledged as having authority in his own house - for example, when he tells hermione that she needs to respect sirius' justification for why kreacher can't be manumitted when he thinks she intends to give him clothes for christmas [that hermione is completely right that slaves should be freed is by-the-by here].

he also understands harry's grief over sirius' death - and what sirius meant to harry - far more instinctively than hermione. but he's also the only one of the trio who really gets how sirius was understood by the order more widely - for example, he's the only one of the three who correctly points out that tonks didn't actually know sirius well enough for the intensity of grief harry and hermione are ascribing to her to be plausible. while harry - completely understandably - sees sirius as so important in his own life that he can't help but imagine him as the central figure in the life of everyone he encounters [which is unrelatedly interesting in that it's how each of the three marauders saw james], ron has a more pragmatic, big-picture view of him as a man. a good man - absolutely - and a fun and clever and admirable one, but still a man like any other.

ron understanding sirius - but not idolising him - creates a pretty strong potential for a relationship between them in a world in which sirius survives into the trio's adulthoods. this is especially the case when this understanding is combined with the fact that ron is shown - throughout the series - to be very good at providing comfort.

sirius survives azkaban and his time on the run through sheer, desperate resilience - but, as his collapse when he's back at grimmauld place shows, this resilience can't keep his demons at bay when he's not just fighting, at the most basic level, to stay alive.

if he survives the war, then he - like his narrative mirror, snape - is going to find himself feeling terrified and unmoored and completely unsure about who he is and what he'll do in a world in which voldemort is dead - and i suspect that his self-destruction would be extraordinary.

ron - alone of the trio - has the capacity to understand how sirius would end up in a place where "all was well" is more frightening to him than the potential of dying any minute. and he also has the capacity to provide an anchoring force through cups of tea and chit-chat which makes sirius think it might be possible to survive the day... and then the week... and then the month - which can then transition into him having the capacity to understand the big questions of guilt and grief and love and loyalty which define sirius' adult life.

so yes. i back it entirely.

#asks answered #asenora's opinions on ships #unhinged and deranged ships #except not #ronius #sirius black #ron weasley #full backing for this one #weasley is our king

[eatbrick]

old man's favorite.

pt. one

( not edited. ) 

note : i..did something and..i..i..just take me to hoe county prison at this point.. 

again, no hate please! i don’t appreciate it nor will i tolerate it. thank you!! ♥️♥️

summary : post-shibuya incident \\ naobito is alive in my delulu  

pairing : zen’in naobito x fem!reader

warnings : physical abuse (mentioned)

—

two months passed. 

zen’in naobito has shut everyone off and the only time he was seen was to redress the burnt wounds from the shibuya incident. the servants have said the wounds were healing, but the process was extremely slow. there were days when he would yell for them to get out or leave and would throw the gourds against the thin walls of the zen’in household to be left alone.

it’s understandable for him to be angry. it’s no different than the times before the shibuya incident occured. just this time, it felt different. 

it felt quiet. 

empty. lonely. 

—

ryomen sumiko felt something weird since she visited the zen’in clan. she felt anxious to see naobito again after she was sent to america sixteen years ago. it was like every time she thought about him, her heart beats over and over. it felt wrong, but yet, felt good in a terrible way possible. 

it was kept secret about her technique. too dangerous upon use and highly deadly to anyone who’s targeted of it. the two-six figures of eight cursed technique should not have ever been created to any sorcerer if they were given the opportunity to learn it. its demonic technique gives its person the skill to strip part its target into pieces and have the devil’s servants rise in the figures of eight as objects that defy as a human being but doesn’t appear as one. the demons rise above in such a eerie matter that brings chills upon the targets skin creating massive fear. 

once targeted, there will only be one out of a tenth chance to get out of technique. 

without much knowledge of her inheriting the cursed technique, her memory was wiped from the ability of knowing how to conjure the skill and use it. 

—

now twenty, sumiko had been adamant on wanting to go back to japan. the unreasonable miss of the zen’in clan was enough to be waited for and to go back home. after learning english in america and going to school, sumiko has finally flied back. 

smiling to herself, sumiko wonders how naobito is doing. 

—

naobito was drunk as usual, drinking sake and not caring what goes on around the household of the zen’in clan neglecting his duties and responsibilities as the twenty-sixth head of the zen’in sorcerer family. 

suddenly, he hears soft footsteps stomping and the giggling noises of a child as if running away from someone. 

naobito hums in confusion and just as he slides the shoji doors, a child trips in front of him. 

“ what do you think you’re doing running around, child? ” naobito observes the child. long dark-colored hair, cheeks tinted red, and crocodile tears rolling down the side of both cheeks. 

“ sumiko!! sumiko, there you are! i’ve been looking all over for you! what happens if you disturb master naobito? ” a servant had found the little child. just as they know it, naobito stood before them. 

the servant gasps in horror and apologies. “ m-master naobito!! i-i my sincere apologies for disturbing you! ” 

bowing down, the servant whispers to the child. “ sumiko, apologize for disturbing the master at once!! ” 

“ s-sorry i disturbed you. ” little sumiko’s chin was red from the fall. “ i just wanted chan-chan to chase after me. ” she confessed. 

chan-chan? the servant? naobito thought. “ what’s your name, you good for nothing child? ” 

“ sumiko. ” she sniffles again. “ ryomen sumiko. ” 

naobito freezes. his eyes widen by the surname. so this is the child that inherited the two-six figures of eight technique?

 naobito scoffs, “ i will pretend that this never happened. if you disturb me again, you will think twice about pulling that stupid stunt. am i clear? ”

“ thank you, master naobito! i apologise! ” the servant replied. 

sumiko only looked down at her lap and at her scraped knees that were now bleeding, while soflty sniffling from the pain not too long ago. 

“ i wasn’t talking to you. i was talking to her. ” naobito retorted. 

“ s-sorry, i didn’t mean to. ” she whimpered. as she looked up at naobito, more tears began to spill, in fear to what he would do. 

naobito seemed to be intrigued by the young sumiko. he rolled his eyes as the appearance of a child crying in front of him. but yet, he felt a pang in his heart seeing the child upset. 

a cloth was soon thrown on top of sumiko’s head. 

“ cry somewhere else. it’s hurting my eyes.”

—

“ where did she run off to now? ” 

“ how dare she take one the tea cakes!? those are for master naobito! ”

“ oh no! we’re going to be thrown into the cursed pit! ”

naobito chuckles hearing the low-life servants exclaim in fear. as naobito takes another gulp of sake from his gourd one the shoji doors slid softly. 

“ get out. i don’t wish to be disturbed by you low-lives. ”

“ … ”

“ what did i say? i said– ” 

naobito was cut off as he turnt around, not expecting a child in front of him. 

young sumiko had bandaids on her knees and one on her chin. 

he chuckles. “ do you not remember what happened last time, child? i clearly– ”

“ thank you for the cloth. ” sumiko softly said. naobito’s eyes widen again. he looks down at her hands as she raises them up to him. 

it was the cloth folded nicely and a plate of the tea cakes. sumiko looked away not wanting to see the look on his face. 

are those the tea cakes those low-lives were talking about? naobito thought. 

“ are you just going to stand there all day long until i take those? or are you going to leave? ” naobito asks. 

“ th-this isn’t mine. so i’m giving it back. ”

naobito laughs loudly, “ would you be thankful if i took the cloth back? ”

sumiko looked him in the eyes. “ yes. ”

“ and i’m guessing the tea cakes you stole from the kitchen are for me too? ” 

her face turns red as she was caught red-handed from stealing the masters desserts. 

“ y-yes. ” she quietly said. 

“ how do i know you didn’t poison them? ” 

her eyes widen at the accusation. “ i di-didn’t, i swear! ” her eyes almost started to tear up. 

again, naobito only laughed. “ you’re such a gullible child. but i shouldn’t be surprised since you’re only what, six? ”

sumiko looked down at the cloth and plate of tea cakes she was holding for naobito. “ i’m seven. ”

“ close enough. ” naobito said softly. “ set those down on the table and go on your way. ” 

as sumiko sets the plate of desserts down, her stomach starts to grumble. her eyes widen at the sound of her stomach growling loud as much as possible even for naobito to hear. 

he was amused by such a loud noise coming from the child in front of him. 

“ where is that stupid child!? ”

“ her punishment is going to be worse than master naobito’s! ”

sumiko’s look of worry was shown and the fear of being found by the servants as they searched for her. 

has she not eaten? he thought. 

“ sumiko!! ” the servants called out. 

“ you can hide here for the meantime. ” naobito says. 

“ huh? ” young sumiko replied back. “ a-are you sure? ” 

naobito hummed, taking another swig of the gourd. “ sit down, relax, and enjoy the moment of silence. ” he said sarcastically, even inches away sumiko could smell the sake off from his breath. he was totally starting to get drunk again. 

two hours had passed. the servants had still called for her and the sun was starting to go down. sumiko was trying to fight the sleep that was bound to win. her head kept on falling down, but she fought back up. nothing could have helped, considering her stomach had growled again from the lack of food. 

sumiko frowned. she didn’t want to get yelled at, nor did she want to leave also. she found it quite peaceful in the master’s room.

the door she opened had a crack to let in the golden hour shine through and hear the dung beetles sing consistently. 

naobito either hicupped, burped, or yawned during the hours of silence. it was like he didn’t care or mind that she was there; or he didn’t bother of her existence. 

“ if i hear another growl from your stomach, i’m going to kick you out. ”

sumiko froze and was stiff in an instant. “ s-sorry. i’ll make it stop. ”

“ and how would you do that? ”

the next thing that happened was what shocked naobito. 

“ hmph!! ” sumiko whimpered. with one punch to the stomach, her eyes start to water, but she furiously wipes them away remembering that naobito didn’t like the sight of it. 

her stomach growled again. her lips quiver and hated to hit her stomach again to stop making noises. with almost another contact of her fist to her stomach she was stopped. 

“ don’t ever hit your stomach again. if you were hungry, all you had to do was ask. ” suddenly the table that she earlier set the plate of tea cakes were in front of her and a kettle, most likely filled with sake. 

however, sumiko declined shaking her head. “ i will not eat your tea cakes. they are for you, since i brought them. ”

naobito was starting to get annoyed. were those piece of shits of a servant the cause of this? 

“ tell me, how did you get those bruises? ” naobito questioned. 

“ i fell down. ” 

“ i won’t ask again. tell me the truth. ” he sternly said. 

quietly, sumiko answers, “ madame ohk’i punished me for dropping a plate of your desserts from yesterday. ”

“ you did not answer my question. ” 

sumiko’s stomach growled. she thought if her stomach growled again, she wouldn’t live to see the daylights. at the thought, her eyes water. “ after dropping your desserts, they hit me in the shins and wrists. that way i shall remember to not be clumsy to trip and drop anything. ”

“ and explain the reason your stomach has been growling. ”

“ after they hit me, i was told i wouldn’t be able to eat until i give you the plate of desserts without tripping or dropping it next time. ” sumiko sniffled. 

naobito hummed in response and drinked again. without noticing until after, he pushes the table towards her again but closer. she realized that the kettle was not filled with sake, but freshly warm brewed tea. 

“ eat. and i don’t mean to only take one bite, eat all of it. ” 

“ i– ”

“ if i hear another lame ass excuse, i’m going to kick you out. ” 

as she grabs one of the desserts off from the plate, she softly takes a bite of it. tasting the flavor, her mouth started to water. she quickly took larger bites out of the desserts. while eating, she notices a cup of tea in front of her with a hand holding it. 

looking towards where the mysterious hand, it was naobito’s. he filled the cup with tea and handed it to sumiko. 

“ drink before you choke and die on my watch. ”

young sumiko started to tear up again and her doe eyes stared back at him. 

“ you better not cry. i will kick you out. ”

—

sumiko sighs. i wonder if i can see him again..

getting out of bed, young sumiko heads to the kitchen to grab another plate of dessert for naobito. with only one or two encounters with the older man, she seems to find some comfort being there with him. 

“ you stupid boy ,” sumiko hears naobito said to someone else, “ have i not taught you enough to inherit my technique? it’s obvious that you did not learn at all. now, get the hell out, you disappointment. ”

sumiko frowned knowing she came by at the wrong time. she was beginning to leave until the doors immediately opened from the other side. even with soft footsteps, you could hear them touch the wooden floors ever so quietly. 

“ what do you want, child? ” naobito announced. 

she froze wondering how he knew she was on the other side. sumiko soon walked to the opening of the shoji and entered in. 

“ are you wanting something from me? c’mon what is it? ” he asked sumiko. she only stood ther in front of him with the plate of desserts as before. sumiko bit her inner lip, awkward in the moment not knowing what her answer is to his question. 

“ i don’t want anything. ”

“ i realize that you’ve never called me ‘master’ just like the low-lives. why’s that? ”

“ i don’t know what to call you, exactly. ” she answered. 

and always, naobito hummed in response. “ call me ‘old man’ or ‘naobito’. consider it for the day you gave me my plate of desserts and today. ”

sumiko looked up at him. “ can i ask you a question? ”

“ you just did, child. ”

“ oh. uh, who was that boy you were talking to? ”

“ naoya, you ask? ” 

so that’s his name. naoya. 

“ who is he? ” 

naobito scoffed, “ he? he’s nothing but a disappointment. a disappointment of a child, that’s mine. ”

“ he’s your son? ” 

“ unfortunately. ” 

young sumiko frowned, “ i don’t mean to be rude, but why do you make it seem like you hate him? ”

“ who doesn’t hate their own child? especailly one that doesn’t have the ability to inherit my techniques? maybe if he were to actually put in the effort and learn, maybe i wouldn’t see him as a failure. ”

“ but he’s your son. you..you wouldn’t actually hate your son for not doing something right, right..? ”

naobito laughed, “ hahaha!! my, my, why are you so curious all of a sudden? ”

“ i know parents are supposed to be loving and caring for their children. i’ve never seen someone so mean to their own child. ” young sumiko confessed. 

naobito raised a brow and hummed. “ who are your parents, child? ”

there was a pause. “ i don’t know who my parents are or were. that is why i was brought here. ”

naobito looked over at sumiko. she was upset. he felt another sharp pang in his heart for the younger child. 

why does this keep on happening every time i see her upset? naobito wondered. 

“ i’m sorry i asked. ” 

he hummed again. “ i’m not mad. honestly, i don’t care talking about my son. needed to steam off anyways. ”

“ old man. ” sumiko announced. just as he was going to drink from his gourd, he coughed from the nickname he offered her to call him. 

“ what now, child? ” he recovered. 

“ if you were born another life and had children, do you think you would have treated your children better? ” sumiko asked quietly. 

 “ sumiko. ” he said pausing for a short time. sumiko froze. he never actually called her by her name, except for ‘child.’ 

“ yes? ”

“ i don’t think that god will ever give me second chance. ” 

—

“ my, my ,” naobito announces, “ you’ve grown the last time i saw you, sumiko. ”

sumiko’s breath hitched. she felt her hand tremble slightly not knowing how to react. naobitio’s skin was scorched immensely from the cursed spirit and to mention his missing arm being absent. 

“ o-old man. ” sumiko says. 

“ are you here to pity me? or do you wish for me to give you attention as always. ” he rudely said. 

sumiko flinched by how he responded back to her. she knew the act he was putting on–but really, they both knew. 

“ i flew back to come see you.. ”

naobito laughed loudly. “ how selfish of a brat you are. ”

she began to feel anger rushing within her, “ what was i supposed to do, old man! you sent me to america for fourteen years! i couldn’t bear learning english nor having american friends, it felt lonely and strange! you weren’t there!! ”

naobito had been quiet afterwards. he didn’t feel the need to utter a word towards her. 

sumiko continued, “ why did you send me to america! was i that much of a nuisance? was i really that annoying to you and seeked attention because i was a child? ”

“ stop. ” 

“ stop? ” she scoffed, “ who are you to tell me what to do? i’m an adult now, old man. sure, i listened to you when i was younger, but that was because i was a child, seven years ago. ”

“ sumiko, stop. ” naobito quietly said. her brow twitched and was confused a second, sensing the different tone he used. although, that wasn’t going to stop sumiko. 

“ no! i flew back to see you, old man! and all you have to say for yourself is that i am a selfish brat? what about you! you’re the head of the zen’in clan, and yet, all you do is drink away neglecting your duties of the family! and to mention that you’re a terrible father! hating on your own son ever since he was born because he didn’t inherit the special curse technique, it’s obviously known that the zen’in clan disowns their own–that’s fucked up! i flew back to chat with you like old times, old man! and you care less about it! i even asked those ‘low-lives’ of a servant to ask where you were. i wanted to see you, and the first time after seven years, i see you almost dead– ”

“ if you can’t shut the hell up, i’ll make you. ” 

“ then make me, old man! ” 

“ my, you really are a piece of work– ” naobito was cut off as he turned around. 

just as the first day they met, sumiko had tears rolling down her cheeks. again, naobito felt the sharp pang in his heart. 

she sniffled just as the first day they encountered each other. “ what? you got nothing to say again? ” 

“ sumiko. ”

“ what. ” 

“ why did you save me. ”

—

“ you would have died, old man. and there wouldn’t be a point to see myself living if you weren’t there. ” 

sumiko soon heard a shuffling sound as naobito was getting up from where he sat in the shadows. naobito was taller than her. sumiko felt the need to look elsewhere, but she couldn’t. the burnt scars all over his body and missing arm was enough for her to tear up again. 

“ old ma– ”

in an instant, naobito grabs sumiko by the arm pulling her directly to him. staring with wide eyes, she stood still not knowing how to react. 

“ accept this hug as my gratitude for your act of kindness to this old, cranky man. ” naobito explained. 

even with all the bandages wrapped in the wounds that were deep, she could feel the warmth of his skin in contact with her face buried in his chest. sumiko’s lip quiver, “ old man.. ” she whimpered as tears spill out from her eyes. 

“ it’s ‘naobito’ for you, sumiko. ” he corrected her. 

—

lmaoooo i just realized i put my oc in this story … oh well

i hope you gilf lovers enjoyed ~

🫶🏼🫶🏼

#jjk naobito #naobito zenin #female!reader #naobito x reader #jjk x reader #gilf x reader

[atopvisenyashill]

DAEMON BALLFYRE THEORY

it’s an unserious name but a serious theory!!!

WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT QUENTYN BALL

If Daemon had ridden over Gwayne Corbray . . . if Fireball had not been slain on the eve of battle . .

-small mention from eustace in the sword sword

For his hot head and red hair. Ser Quentyn Ball was the master-at-arms at the Red Keep. He taught my father and my uncles how to fight. The Great Bastards too. King Aegon promised to raise him to the Kingsguard, so Fireball made his wife join the silent sisters, only by the time a place came open, King Aegon was dead and King Daeron named Ser Willam Wylde instead. My father says that it was Fireball as much as Bittersteel who convinced Daemon Blackfyre to claim the crown, and rescued him when Daeron sent the Kingsguard to arrest him. Later on, Fireball killed Lord Lefford at the gates of Lannisport and sent the Grey Lion running back to hide inside the Rock. At the crossing of the Mandel, he cut down the sons of Lady Penrose one by one. They say he spared the life of the youngest one as a kindness to his mother.

-egg says this in the mystery knight, bolded parts mine

Daemon was the name Daena gave to this child, for Prince Daemon had been the wonder and the terror of his age, and in later days that was seen as a warning of what the boy would become. Daemon Waters was his full name when he was born in 170 AC. At that time, Daena refused to name the father, but even then Aegon's involvement was suspected. Raised at the Red Keep, this handsome youth was given the instruction of the wisest maesters and the best masters-at-arms at court, including Ser Quentyn Ball, the fiery knight called Fireball. He loved nothing better than deeds of arms and excelled at them, and many saw in him a warrior who would one day be another Dragonknight.

The king sent the Kingsguard to arrest Daemon before he could take his plans for treason any further. Daemon was forewarned, and with the help of the famously hot-tempered knight Ser Quentyn Ball, called Fireball, he was able to escape the Red Keep safely. Daemon Blackfyre's allies used this attempted arrest as a cause for war, claiming that Daeron had acted against Daemon out of no more than baseless fear. Others still named him Daeron Falseborn, repeating the calumny that Aegon the Unworthy himself was said to have circulated in the later years of his reign: that he had been sired not by the king but by his brother, the Dragonknight.

-these are both from TWOIAF, again bolded and italicized parts mine.

WHAT STICKS OUT TO ME

Quentyn is married, a landless knight, and clearly older than Daena - it’s not just about a man “spoiling” a young, royal maiden but imo also that Quentyn specifically would get in a LOT of trouble because he is low class (see: Bonifer & Rhaella) and married to boot

He was master at arms, which gives him the ability to be in Daemon’s life without arousing suspicion from anyone, and also proximity to Daena to allow for an affair, even with her on the Maidenvault.

He’s name dropped SEVERAL times and he’s clearly very important to the founding of the Blackfyre Rebellion despite being both very lowborn and also dying in a kinda lame way (not even during the battle, just by a lone archer)

He wanted so badly to be on the kingsguard he forced his wife into the Silent Sisters, only to be denied by Daeron

He seemed to be on good terms with Aegon IV

Everyone seems real sure that the daddy was Aegon and we’re not given a reason why

Aegon doesn’t claim Daemon as his bastard until after (presumably) Daena has died

Also, Aegon doesn’t claim Daemon as his bastard until after all of the Great Bastards have been born

EYE think that Aegon IV was purposefully trying to have a bastard that could challenge Daeron, and that his affairs weren’t just like lust, boredom, wanting to disrespect Naerys & Aemon, etc. There is, imo, a shift in his mistresses being just, any woman he has access to - Falena, Bellegere, Cassella, and Meg - to woman who are highborn maidens from powerful families in Westeros - the Blackwoods, Brackens, and Lothstons. Even Serenei fits in here, given that Targ-looking wives from Lys & Volantis are not uncommon before or after Aegon IV. He’s even mentioned as still having a role in Aegor’s life by visiting him, potentially trying to groom him to rebel. But then everything with the Brackens blows up in his face (which is his own fault tbc), and Brynden is an emo fuck with red eyes, and Shiera is a girl. Then Daena dies…..and an opportunity opens up. Daemon looks like a Targaryen, no one knows who the father is, but for some reason everyone already suspects him (imo this is due to Rhaenyra’s boys looking like Harwin - like just a misogyny thing that SURELY Daemon couldn’t get his look from his mother alone, look at Rhaenyra’s kids vs Alicent’s), so publicly claiming Daena’s child at last gives him the perfect rival against Daeron.

ALSO, we have a few times in the story where someone joins the Kingsguard to be closer to a woman they want to protect - Aemon & Naerys, Jaime & Cersei, and Loras & Margaery. I think Lewyn & Elia likely fall under this as well. I think it makes sense Quentyn would see joining the Kingsguard as an opportunity to be closer to both Daena & Daemon especially given his low class status; skilled knights can rise to the Kingsguard even from lowborn or baseborn backgrounds. ALSO ALSO again, our only evidence of Aegon IV being the dad is, ya know, Aegon himself. Daena stayed silent her entire life on the subject. I like to think she had a reason for this - not that she protecting Aegon, but that she was protecting Quentyn.

#thank you very much i’ll be here all week #valyrianscrolls #quentyn ball #daena the defiant #daemon blackfyre #getting on my soap box

[piglet26]

Finnrey! I ship the Bffs while I Reylo. TFA

Let's be clear I love FinnRey and I understand the possibility of them being romantically was set up. John Boyega and Daisy Ridley were set up as the heroes of the new trilogy and they had wonderful chemistry. More than that, it was clear they enjoyed working together. John Boyega confirmed that JJ Adams developed Finnrey even more as he watched John Boyega and Daisy Ridley friendship develop.

Everything in the galaxy was beautiful. Hopeful. We saw two strangers become two friends willing to die with one another. We saw a boy meet girl. Girl stand up for boy. Boy stand up for girl. They go on an adventure together.

...... then this happened.

And Reylo took over the world. Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver have dynamic and sexual chemistry. Even with just about three scenes that they have in the movie they left quite an impression. They single handedly sent the trilogy on a different course than initially planed. That wasn't the only thing to happen. Reylo became a lightning rod for both love and hate. Thus began Reylo vs Finnrey. In between all of that was frustration over Finn being sidelined and mistreated. Sadly, I don't think many Star Wars understand the essential element that was Finnrey, nor understand their relationship. FinnRey are soulmates too, they're not just romantic. Rey's destiny laid elsewhere.

Another important point. Finn has become quite famous, even to my mother who never watched the movies, for screaming "Rey". This on top of his non-sexual friendship with Rey somehow made Finn deemed "A Simp" by the Star Force Bros. Or, he's a black man following a white woman around. It's insulting, simple minded and goes against storytelling.

FinnRey as told in The Force Awakens

While Rey and Kylo introductions are meant to represent ying yang, Finn and Rey introductions are meant to highlight their similarity. Finn is a stormtrooper. A child kidnapped, conditioned and employed as a sanitation worker with a side hustle of fighting. Rey is a scavenger. A child abandoned to work for Unkar Plott and live a lonely and isolated life. The glasses Rey uses in her work are taken from a Stormtrooper uniform. The first we see of Finn is in his stormtrooper uniform. They are both in white.

Finn as a character is earnest, brave, loyal and quick to form friendships. While he initially only helped Poe because he needed a pilot to flee the First Order, he doesn't take Poe's life for granted. When he finds out Poe made it out of Jakku alive, he's genuinely happy.

Rey, despite what people think, does have a character. Rey is guarded, lonely, impulsive, resourceful and independent by circumstances not choice. When these two collide it's because Finn see's Rey being attacked and feels compelled to help her. BB-8 tells Rey that the jacket Finn is wearing is his owner's so naturally Rey thinks he stole it. She mistake him for a resistance fighter and he goes along with it.

Naturally both Rey and Finn seem interested in one another at first. Suddenly this dashing, handsome, resistance pilot falls in your lap and walks with you on an adventure.... girl, you see what's what before you say no. You could say the same for Finn. We're not given much information about his upbringing as a stormtrooper, but his initial reaction to meeting this brave, pretty girl is to form a bit of a crush. We've seen in Rey's introduction that she fantasizes The Resistance. She's got a resistance doll and she playfully wears a resistance helmet.

In the movie, we're given more of a hint that there is an romantic intention from Finn's perspective such as when he asked if she had a boyfriend, cute boyfriend. In the novel, it's clear she does notice his attractive appearance, "And she’d found a new friend who, unlike BB-8, was flesh and blood. In fact, **after getting a good look at him, he was quite..."

But the moment she and Finn are pushed back into action, Rey loses her sentiment and simply bonds with Finn as a person. Rey is actually annoyed she's been marked by the Stormtroopers simply by being near him. Finn keeps taking Rey's hand as he leads her away from danger hahaha something that she really loathed. A moment of shift is highlighted in the novel when there's an explosion behind them on Jakku. Rey is the first to orient herself and when she checks on Finn, the first thing Finn does is ask if Rey is ok. This is all Rey ever wanted... someone who cares about her. This is what shifts her from being dragged along to actively helping both her and Finn survive.

Finn and Rey actually form a beautiful and deep bond very quickly mostly because they start off together. Both of them are out of their environments with literally one person that's really in step with them. Can you blame them for latching onto one another?

As they flee in outer space, they learn one another's name and get to know one another better. We as an audience get to see that both are complimentary to each other and already more open. When Han Solo captures the Falcon both continue to seek to protect one another.

While Finn and Rey both try to flee the First Order and encounter Han Solo Finn's goals haven't changed. While at Maz's canteen? Finn's announces his goal to flee the First Order and Rey is shocked when he 'abandons' his mission with The Resistance to find refugee in the outer rim. "Rey sat at Maz’s table, stung by Finn’s departure. She had saved his life multiple times, and yet he had dumped her like an empty blaster cartridge. She chided herself for thinking he would be different. If her short life had taught her anything, it was that those close to her would abandon her. That was the way of the galaxy. Best to live alone and look out only for number one. Then you wouldn’t get hurt. Then you would survive. So why did she suddenly find herself going after him?"

It's in this moment that Finn finally reveals the truth about the fact that he's a stormtrooper and not apart of the resistance. He tells the story of his rebellion. "I made a choice. I wasn’t going to kill for them. So I ran. Right into you.” Finn’s voice broke, but he quickly recovered. “You asked me if I was Resistance, and looked at me like no one ever had." That! Right there! Finn saw a chance to be something else in someone's eyes and took it. He ask for Rey to come with him (maybe she should have hahaha) Rey wants to continue on with her mission to get BB-8 back to the resistance, while Finn runs off with a crew to seek refugee in the outer RIM.

Now I cannot say this enough. Finn doesn't give a damn about the resistance. Nor does he cares about fighting the good fight. At least not in the first film and most of the second. When Maz's place is attacked by the First Order. It's his affection, loyalty and respect for Rey that motivates him to stand up for himself and confront his fears. When Rey is kidnapped in the sprint of his life Finn tries to save her. When he concludes that Rey was taken to First Order base he goes straight there with the help of the resistance, even going as far as deceipt, to rescue her. He faces off with Kylo Ren, the greatest threat within The First Order, in order to defend Rey and himself.

Han Solo – “How do you know how to disable the shields?

”Finn – “I don't. I'm just here to get Rey.”

Han Solo – “You sure you're up for this?”

Finn – “Hell no. I'll go in and try to find Rey.”

Meanwhile while Kylo Ren is interviewing (side eye) Rey he takes a peak into the emotions of Rey concerning Finn. "Hmm…," Kylo Ren murmured softly. "You've met the traitor who served under me. A minor annoyance grown larger than he deserves. You find him more than tolerable." He drew back slightly, bemused. "You've even begun to care for him. A weakness, such distractions." Yeah, the boy is in her heart.

Then there is the moment when Han, Chewie and Finn find Rey on the First Order Base. "Whatever the Wookie had uttered caused tears to well up in her eyes. Having never found himself in such a position before, Finn was unsure how to respond. Knowing well her inner toughness he wondered what Chewbacca had said that could have inspired such a reaction. "What'd he say?" She sniffed and wiped her face. That it was your idea If he had been unable to find the right words with which to respond before, her reply, combined with the look she gave him, reduced him to a state of temporary aphasia."

It cannot be underestimated the importance of Finn on Rey's overall development. Rey’s spent her whole life waiting for her family to come back for her on Jakku, knowing really the whole time that they never would. Finn coming back for Rey after she was captured is the first time in her life someone has cared enough for her to come back for her. He cares about her, he fights for her, he came back for her and never asked for anything in return. The two of them have a friend, a genuine friend, probably for the first time in their lives and despite the fact that neither of them know much about friendship..... they make great friends.

It's also really cute how Finn gave her his jacket to wear while out in the cold.

It does have to be mentioned that originally in The Force Awakens novelization there was suppose to be the beginning of a romance. The authors recalls being asked to edit the book. One request that “bothered” Foster while writing “The Force Awakens” was to remove the romance he was setting up for Rey and Finn, played by Daisy Ridley and John Boyega in the film. The two characters are not romantically involved in “The Force Awakens” movie, but Foster said Abrams’ screenplay was “obviously the beginnings of a relationship” between Finn and Rey.

In the forest while Kylo Ren's real bone to pick is with the traitor/Finn ultimately Finn stands against Kylo Ren to protect Ren, facing his fear by doing so.

Likewise Rey stands against Kylo Ren to protect Finn who had just been injured by him, facing her fears by doing so.

In the end Rey was prepared to die with her friend Finn as she stood by his side before being rescued by chewie.

Their initial chemical reactions to meeting each other wear off quickly, replaced by a brother-sister companionship. They are the first positive relationships in each other’s lives, and while they certainly form a bond, it’s not a romantic one. Onto The Last Jedi.

It was time to go. Leaning in to him as closely as the pod would permit, she kissed him softly. "We'll see each other again my friend. I believe that."

#star wars #finnrey #rey x finn #finn star wars #rey skywalker #rey star wars #kylo x rey #reylo #star wars sequel trilogy #the force awakens #bb8

[spacexseven]

A ROYAL AFFAIR - Time loop // Transmigration typical horror // Royal Otome Isekai/Fantasy Au :)

A KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR , you — or the unfortunate scapegoat who took on the shouldering blame of their cruel, cruel crown prince, Osamu Dazai. huh ? oh dear, a LOOPING DOOMED FOOL AMNESIAC FOOL you are? oh dear, oh dear!

(you don’t need to remember this. You don’t need to remember any of this.)

You can’t exactly remember why your chosen lord decided to have you executed for crimes you didn’t commit, but for a mere second you could’ve swore you saw his expression changed from confidence to fear as you were… killed. And yet, no blood is spilled. No wound lays upon your skin, awake and hungry for your pain. Instead, you’re in your sleepwear?

As dizziness spills away with your go through your morning routine, and you realize you've somehow managed to be sent back in the past: on the very first day of having the once in a lifetime opportunity of choosing your own lord to follow and pledge your life to.

a “once in a lifetime opportunity”, and yet, you have a second chance to change it.

The “Prince” Charming(s):

The Kingdom you live in, only the talented and strong rule. There isn't a specific true bloodline that remains in the royal family for the eternal rule of the kingdom is simple: choose the prince that conquers the throne and the heart of people. how one may interpret is to their own personal preference and opinions.

THE SECOND PRINCE, Dazai Osamu. Your prince, your lord, your life, and even once, you might’ve been able to call him your love. You had been blessed with the opportunity to serve under the eccentric prince of house Dazai. He has the reputation for spending his time on brothels and wandering the streets instead of walking the corridors of the palace to manage affairs or work as a diplomat. A sharp contrast to his more “Princely” rivals.

Rumors: oh the rumors! He has no ambition for the throne! preferring to lay in bed with the random person he had entangled himself with the night instead of running estates or completing campaigns. They say his mother was a noble woman! a beauty like no other, and one that tried to usurp the reigning queen. However the Prince doesn’t speak about that, nor does House Dazai ever talk about a woman that could be the second prince's mother. (here the rumors trail to darker words and secrets that kill: They say that the second prince is a born from the cursed bride of the devil. he destroys and corrupts everything he touches. he remembers his past lives as a demon whose purpose was nothing more than pure evil, and is now searching for an ounce of futile redemption. The second prince killed his own mother. Dazai Osamu has no living relatives and those that wander around the House Dazai are nothing but distant branch relatives, no true blood. The servants that speak too much disappear. The child that belonged to House Akutagawa is said to have been stolen and murdered in a fit of envy by the second prince.)

However, you shouldn’t pay too much attention to the useless babble that people contort for their gain! it’s only rumors after all.

What you know (or at least what you thought you knew): Beneath that eccentric and annoying behavior lies a more cynical and tired man. One whose hands are stained with too much blood. You had grown from holding disdain to respect as you had slowly peeled layer after layer off of Dazai and seen the truth. He worked hard for what he wanted, and what he wanted was the throne. He was cruel, yes, but brutal reality of the holding the title of prince was a burdensome one of torture and horrors.

The truth was this: Your father held enough respect for the second prince’s house that you helped but attempted to satisfy your curiosity by pledging your life and loyalty to the annoying second prince, Osamu of House Dazai. You didn’t expect to grow to care for the bratty and havoc wreaking prince, who like you, was also craving for company. Lonely and hungry for something. For someone. You had soothed the scars that he held and he soothed yours. A handkerchief is placed to the side when you get a graze or wound, balm and herbs acting as a remedy. A book is shared between the two of you filled to the brim with recipes of food and a variety of desserts and dishes you have tried and would like to try. A dagger, one gifted to you by Dazai as “As any proper little guard dog should have” said with the emblem of both your house and his, and your initials adorned at the side.

You give Dazai your heart and don’t look back.

Dazai was the one at your bedside when you got wounded after each conflict. Dazai was the one who looked after each document to ensure that nothing would go wrong. Dazai who stabbed a man after you had been poisoned. Dazai who you teased and he teased you back. Dazai who you kissed and kissed like foolish children falling in love for the first time. Dazai was the one who taught how to live, how to love, and how to die. For a man that talked too much about taking his own life, he oddly encouraged you to live.

Perhaps, that’s why you never saw the betrayal coming.

The princes start failing ill. one by one, they begin to drop. The Crown Prince’s death is an atrocity — brutal dismemberment and audience of many, and yet no true culprit has been found. Until key elements are revealed: a location of weapon, a dagger that’s all too familiar, and alibis that can’t seem to match up.

(“I was with his highness. I was always with his highness.”

“His highness denies that.”

The look that you catch on Dazai’s face is one you’ve seen many times, but never had it been directed at you.

A look mixed with hatred, disgust and slight indifference.

You had never felt like such a fool until that moment.

really, how much of a fool do you have to be that you didn’t see this coming ?)

The next thing you see is a sighing Dazai as he waves you away when the personal royal guards take you away to the prison, or should’ve taken you away.

Instead: You don’t have any relief as you walk each hollow step to your own execution.

This is what you know: you loved dazai with all your heart, and he betrayed you and left you to die. You won’t go through that again.

what you don’t know (oh, haven’t you done this before?) : in your first life, so many things went awry. Your choice in prince condemned you to a death — a death that King Osamu hadn’t seen coming, after all, you were never supposed to actually die. You will never get to see him go through his coronation. Never get to tease or talk to him again. You won’t see the horrors that took place in your public execution as he put down your executioner as they had put you down mere minutes ago. You won’t see him as he cradles you in his failing attempt to break down and destroy everything in his sight. The failed spell casting as your wounds heal, but your pulse never comes.

The blank look is basically carved into Dazai’s face as he carries your body back to the palace, seals anybody’s mouth shut. The silence that follows as the crowds of watchers, both innocent and guilty, part ways in fear as orders are placed: find the perpetrators that went through this and burn and kill everyone who stands in the way allows for paranoia and violence to grow rampantly only to be crushed in one fell swoop by the tyrannical demon king Osamu Dazai.

He hunts the traitors in your name. Your name that comes to become obscure and taboo unless they gain the rage of the tyrant demon king. A rusted dagger adorns his hip; he keeps an old handkerchief and a pair of rings under the floorboards with a book of recipes that will never see the light of day again.

What you know (again and again. you have to repeat yourself to make sure you actually listen lest you go back crawling to the familiarity of man who you once knew): The second prince is a cruel and dangerous man. More than willingly to manipulate and use others for the sake of his own goals.

you will never allow yourself to be damned again by a monster like that.

(instead a different monster will lead you astray.)

THE THIRD PRINCE, Nakahara Chuuya, the son of a foreign noble who married into the duchy and managed to land their way into having their child become one of the would be chosen princes. Your rival and enemy for being the rival to Dazai for being a candidate for throne, or had been a rival. He is also your victim and dirty secret that you took to the grave. You can’t to look at his for too long or else you might actually breakdown. Chuuya’s only crime had been to exist as the same era as Dazai’s.

Rumors: he’s connected to an organization that kills and blackmails people. didn’t you know? the third prince’s paramour’s all end dead at the end. There is no reason to grow close to man who’s lovers all end dead or missing. They say he’s cursed by the result of his foreign blood! (They say that the current third prince isn’t the real prince. He took over the original candidate and all that remains is a fraud or an impersonator bribed by one of the other prince candidates.) It’s all rather funny considering that all of these have ended up at the court and yet the ruckus created by the third prince either blows them out of proportion or erases them completely. (Does anyone recall anything of the third prince’s origins? nobody?)

what you know: Chuuya, Unlike Dazai, managed the lands that he had under his domain and was well known for being a major wine tycoon. He visited high society houses and shops, a lover of luxury goods and rare valuables. He has a temper and knows how to hit, be it verbally or physically. He has a long line of lovers but a shocking amount coffins to go along side the long line of paramours. He’s been cursed by something. And… he trusts those under his command even if he is rather brittle and rough around the edges at the beginning. He struggles with his magical capabilities and leaves his right side wide open when attacking after he’s grown extremely tired — a quick slice to his throat and he’ll be too weak to hide from the attack to his chest.

He rolls his rs a lot more. Enjoys petting the local hunting canines and a has a small collection of novels that pile up. He gifts you a journal which you keep. He teaches how to pry secrets with only using words instead of fists. A touch of magic is thrown here and there because Dazai doesn’t enjoy using magic: “That asshole was never good at using any magic aside from nullifying it.”

You keep this knowledge to yourself. He, is not your lord.

(You cannot look at his face without remembering the peaceful and almost joyful look as the third prince smiled when you took his life. A request and order for Dazai. After that, you didn’t dare to raise your sword again unless it was to protect your lord.)

what you don’t know: He knew that it would happen. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Chuuya knew far too much too be left alive. He doesn’t hold it against you, only blames the circumstances that lead up to this and throws the blame on both the Devil and Dazai.

The las thing he gets to see is your pained expression as you bring down your sword.

(It could worse. It could always be worse)

A memory of something: Chuuya doesn’t mean for you get aggravated by his comments but he truly means well when he says to watch out for Dazai.

You learn this lesson a little too late.

THE FOURTH PRINCE, Dostoevsky Fyodor, and arguably the only one with the shred of royal blood, although it's often ignored for its foreign connection. The son of a low ranking concubine, a former princess, and rumored witch.

Rumors: the demon. the devil. a corpse. The bastard prince born out of black and cursed magic. that’s all that grows for the fourth prince. anything else is spoken of and nothing else is silenced. it’s eerily almost manufactured… but these are only rumors.

What you know: you don’t know if the bastard and dark sorcerer rumors and slanders hold any value to them, but you follow the motto of “seeing is believing” as well as choosing to make your opinion of things instead of going along and believing anything people whisper and babble about.

The fourth prince is far more private compared to the second or third prince. He lays away in a casino, his casino to exact. Something you only visited once or twice before with Dazai. He’s a very pretty man, but it’s rather obvious he’s far more frail and sickly than his rivals.

You don’t recall having the fourth prince as an enemy because you recall exactly how he dies. a slip of poison in a banquet and in a week, you’re side by side to Dazai and a weepy jester “honouring” the fourth prince. The jester hollers and cackles as he goes through a routine if comedy that shouldn’t make you smile but the odd glint in his eye fades whenever he looks at you and you push all these thoughts away because you don’t need to remember this and this is unnecessary —- Right. How could you forget? The fourth prince died in a sudden illness and it was unfortunate.

(you don’t need to remember)

what you (do)n’t know: Fyodor is a powerful mage and he won’t show his cards until the time is right. He curses and lies to ensure his own victory. Nikolai always watching and waiting for his commands. His death is far too easy to fake.

Frankly, the crown prince’s death is easier to make. Sacrificing the devil to ensure the Crown prince is vessel for the monster, his beast, is utterly child’s play to do.

It’s even easier to make false evidence and manipulate the other prince’s to destroy and attack themselves.

When his eyes land on the foolish knight of the second prince’s his luck has never been better.

(and yet? why does he grow bitter and even upset as he wakes up, a sense of deja vu, as he watches you prepare your usual duty as his knight. )

what is now: going on your knee and kissing his hand. You pledge your allegiance, your loyalty, and life to the sickly and weak fourth prince. Your lord and reason to live. You will be his tool for protection and slaughter. Sense of familiarity comes along this twisted road. You walk along someone you once saw in another. You see Dazai in Fyodor and you wonder why you don’t feel as afraid as you should be.

(you wonder when he’s going to betray you too.)

THE FIRST and CURRENT CROWN PRINCE, and the current owner of amnesia and ever growing trauma, Sigma, or rather THE CURSED OUTSIDER. Waking upon a body with no memories aside from the first ones being gained by meeting Fyodor Dostoevsky. His true name is unknown by the tradition of obscuring the crown prince’s name to avoid it being cursed, and yet it's both a burden and blessing to bear for him as he knows very well that he is nothing but an imposter.

Sigma remembers dying. Sigma remembers dying ( a laugh, a coat, a mere touch, and something stolen —) and remembers it being awfully painful. What Sigma doesn’t recall is who killed him or how he did, once again, in a new environment with eerily familiar faces. If there is a god, then it’s deemed Sigma is a favored jester because his life has to be some sort of divine comedy; otherwise, there is no explanation for the absurdities that he experiences.

Sigma has no House or connections to stand on. The closest thing he has to an ally is the ever uneasy companion that is the fourth prince, Fyodor. Who smiles at him like he knows more than he should and lies like he breathes. Sigma is alone and is a target for everyone that aches to have the throne for themselves.

And so it feels like a lucky break when you suddenly appear in his life, or rather his lives.

Because Sigma proceeds to die only to wake up again in confusion with Fyodor once again explaining his “background.”

Suddenly a lot of things begin to make sense.

Sigma has been repeating his life after the his terrible death and he is also sent back after you die.

You don’t know Sigma. There is no rumors, no speculation, no knowledge of the before or after or even the present. That’s fine. Sure. Okay. Sigma can work with that. (he tells himself that so he can ignore the twisted feeling of anger and grief he feels as he catches you staring him in confusion once more.) As long as he can figure out what the hell is causing this cycle and how he can save both your lives then Sigma will be happy.

Happy Birthday Tuna! sorry for the speedy and honestly half nonsensical birthday gift. I just wanted to make something for you. - 🦄

oh 🦄 anon my beloved...am actually wiping away tears bc this is the most wonderful thing ive had the honor of seeing :(

thank you for all the effort put into this, it's really well written! all the characters n their backstories are so detailed and fleshed out and ahhh this is the sweetest thing anyone's ever done for me head in my hands ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

im such a sucker for time travelling tropes and w a good dose and the twist w sigma!! this is so wonderful ill read a full fleshed book about this

i love prince dazai :((( even if hes a little bit scummy i adore him and his terrible ways <3 love the idea of him picking out a weapon for darling and engraving his name onto it before giving it to them like a constant reminder of whose grace they're under ahh the thought of him avenging everyone who hurt darling even after their death is soo yummy loosing his mind bc the guilt and the way he failed to save you is eating him up. (also the line; a different monster will lead you astray is soo mmmm)

chuuya my beloved :( cannot believe darling killed him bfr!! and the fact that he was genuinely trying to warn them about dazai </3 chuuya feels a lot more human than the others (ironic bcs of the 'imposter' rumors lol) but i cant help but wonder how different things would have been if darling followed chuuya instead of dazai...

i love the comparison of fyodor and dazai, how darling 'chooses' fyodor this time bc they see dazai in him...also very curious that his death was overwritten in their memory hmm i wonder why. i think maybe the fact that fyodor was weak and seemingly defenseless except for his words and his charm, unlike dazai who always seemed to be dangerous to everyone, was what ultimately attracted darling this time? maybe they want to believe he would need them more than dazai did, and wouldn't betray them after all?

i love love love prince sigma. seriously he'd be pretty good at it, with his dedication to his post, if not because of his general insecurities. i wonder who's really pulling the strings here, fyodor, nikolai or someone else? im really curious about nikolai's part in all this...sigma realizing he and darling are connected by fate and death and all else is insane!! makes for a great development. because now not only does his life (and return to life) depend on them, it's in his best interest to keep them by his side. seeing them work for fyodor hardly eases his mind, however, because he knows the fourth prince has something else planned, and maybe he already is aware of sigma's connection to darling...?

overall i love how you incorporated so many canon facts/themes into this too! it's pretty cool how sigma's lack of a 'proper' name and chuuya's clone thing is explained, and the overall mystery about it...mmm delicious. i hope one day i can write a nice long chaptered story that's as complex and well thought of as this too :> you will forever inspire me anon!!!

#ask 🐟 #anon 🐟 #bsd 🐟 #royal au 🐟

[tiredflowercrown]

sharp like a knife (under the table)

I'll reblog some information in a second. It has been much too long since she's been spoken about. And it certainly wasn't like this.

It was common knowledge in Lanying’s family that the Huns had a spy. There was simply too much that they knew, too many weaknesses they had perfectly hurt.

The issue then became where was the spy now. Her mother doubted the spy had been caught and taken to the Isle with the rest of the Huns, what's the point of a spy if they are stuck with the same information as everyone else. But then where did they go? What information are they storing, waiting for the return of their people?

She pushed the thoughts out of her head. There wasn’t any room for distraction, not when she was visiting the Isle.

Lanying had been called in for an assessment of what Mal had called the Crimson Army which was essentially an alliance between the Huns and the Queen of Hearts. A most dangerous alliance. Ben would’ve preferred her brother but considering Xiaobo was gathering intelligence through the veneer of a tour that wasn’t happening anytime soon.

“Lonnie. I know you went to the Isle before to get Ben back, but this is gonna be different. We are dealing with the people no one wants to anger on the Isle.”

“I get it Mal. I’m gonna be fine. I know how to handle tough people.”

Mal stared at her, long and hard, analyzing whether she had made the right choice trusting her. That choice was still unknown. But the Empire needed to know if they were still a threat.

Mal guided them through the street, taking the to a run down building with all sorts of symbols drawn or etched into the walls. A neutral meeting place if she had to guess. Walking through the halls it was clear this place had seen a few fights, deep scratches in the walls and barely patched holes. Mal stopped in front of a door, giving both her and Ben a stern look, as if reminding them what they needed to know.

Lonnie didn’t need the reminder.

Inside was a long meeting table, scratches and stab wounds covering the wood, and a lone girl sitting at the head, waiting for them. She was short, long black hair pulled slightly back, chinese descent, with a scar maring down her left cheek. It was bold for her to be alone, showed confidence, she knew she wouldn’t be touched. Or perhaps she wasn’t alone. Glancing up, Lanying saw a figure in the rafters, barely visible, only a dash of crimson could be seen in the dim lighting.

“I see the little snake has deigned herself worthy of stepping back on the Isle. And to set up a meeting with me. What do you want with the army?”

“Always a pleasure, Huang. Straight to business as usual.”

“I have an army to help run. I don’t need to sit and chat about irrelevant nonsense.”

She was remaining strong, knowing the importance of being here. Otherwise she would have sent someone else in her stead. Interesting.

“I’m sure you know who King Ben is but let me introduce you to Lonnie Li. Mulan’s–”

“What’s your real name, little Li”

“Li Lanying,” She studied the face of the other, determining her position. “General.”

Mal glanced at her, unaware that she had any other name. Foolish of her really.

Huang hummed, before gesturing for them to continue.

“As you may know, we are getting people off the Isle. Did you have anyone you wanted to send?”

“It’s a package deal. All or none of us. We aren’t that foolish.”

“So this meeting was useless.”

“I’m not sure what you were expecting. You already knew what my answer was going to be.”

“Well thanks for wasting our time.” Mal threw the door open and rushed out of the room, Ben quickly following after her.

“There’s the Mal I’m familiar with. I hope this was informative to you, Lanying.”

“It was. It certainly was, Huang.” She let her mask drop, not being Auradon’s Lonnie for a second, but being her parents' child. The warrior she was raised to be.

Turning, Lanying left the room, but not far. The rafter hider was sure to come down once she left. And right she was.

“She was doing threat assessment.”

“I wonder what she found. Stick to the shadows Anhe, we don’t need the Facliler’s getting the wrong idea about their ‘Lilianne’.”

“I’ll see them leave. No use wasting such an opportunity. I’ll see you at home to debrief. Baba will need to hear about this.”

Lonnie quickly left, moving silently as she was taught many years ago. No need to get caught after finding out as much as she did. Meeting back up with the couple at the door, Ben was calming Mal down.

“She was rilling you up on purpose, don’t let it get to you, Mal.”

“She’s just a bitch. Why would she agree when she hates wasting time? It doesn’t make sense. Smug little bitch thinks shes everything because she runs the biggest force on the Isle.”

Maybe because she did get something out of the meeting. Information about the King and how Auradon is run.

“She’s Shan Yu’s daughter. She didn’t even earn her position, just inherited it from dear old daddy. Whatever lets just go, you two.”

Lanying doubted that Huang didn’t earn it. Nothing was given for free, certainly not military titles. She mulled over the information she had gotten as they made their way back to the car. It was only as she was getting in did she see a flash of crimson along a rooftop.

Shan Anhe was certainly good at her job.

#disney descendants #sals isle lore #ben descendants #mal descendants #li lonnie #lonnie descendants #shan huang #shan anhe #lilianne song #the crimson army

[blackbutler-readerinsertsandjunk]

*sad Victorian child voice* Please, I need some more Prince Soma x reader, with Soma rescuing reader from her abusive home life. When I first was in high school and gushing over the prince, I always imagined a passionate love affair that at first is limited to letters (perhaps they met through Cole who is a mutual friend that introduced them to cheer up reader) And then eventually this beautiful man shows up on a white horse (elephant? It’s Soma after all, he’d save you in the loudest most obnoxious way possible) to save the day.

well reach into my chest and rip out my heart why don'tcha

I love this so much tho he's such a good boy!!! <3

You feel bad about it, but you’ve sometimes thought that you should burn all the letters that SOMA has sent you.

It would be better than your family finding them, wouldn’t it? Your parents have always tried to crush any good thing you’ve had. If they found these messages from a man you’ve fallen in love with, if they read the contents of these letters, they would put a stop to it immediately. That’s the only reason you’ve considered burning the letters after reading them.

You can’t bring yourself to do it, though. Every word that Soma has ever written you is like a ray of sunlight shining into your life. That very first one he ever sent you started with, Dearest (Name), We do not know each other yet, but I’m hoping to change that. My name is Prince Soma Asman Kadar, and my close friend Maurice Cole asked if I would write you because he knows you’re lonely and your family does not treat you nicely. So, I am writing you in the hopes that I can be your friend! Hello! It’s very nice to meet you!

God, if only you’d known what would follow. In the beginning, Soma became a good friend of yours… one of the few you have. You can remember writing Maurice and thanking him, mentioning that if Soma didn’t want to continue talking to you, he was free to tell Soma to stop sending letters.

However, the prince’s enthusiasm for speaking with you became clearer and clearer with every letter he sent. He uses too many exclamation points, perhaps because he’s always excited about everything. About talking to you, in particular, it seems. Soon enough these friendly correspondences slowly transitioned into ardent love letters.

People would be shocked to see the things you and Soma write to each other. He has no sense of shame; you think that’s one of the things you love about him. He wants to kiss you, all over your body, and he says so plainly as many times as he can, and he doesn’t care who knows it.

No matter how isolated and worthless you feel at home, trapped here despite being an adult who should be out on her own by now, you can always count on Soma to tell you how much he loves you. You haven’t burned those letters because Soma’s love has brought you back to life, and rereading them when you feel alone and unlovable has pulled you back from the edge of despair so many times.

When the latest one arrives, however, you’re not sure what to think except that your mind is trying to panic. This letter is uncharacteristically short for Soma, and there isn’t a single exclamation point to be seen.

Dearest (Name), Princess of My Heart,

Your pain is almost over.

We are going to be together soon, I promise.

And when I come to you, “happily ever after” will be yours at last.

Wait for me, priya.

Love Forever,

Soma

Weeks pass after that letter, without another one. It’s not unusual to go for a week or sometimes two without any messages from Soma, so you try to tell your heart to settle down.

This time just feels different. That last letter you got from him carried some air of finality, and although he’s said similar things that the two of you will be together soon, the way he wrote this one sounds like a sacred vow.

Like he really is on his way, after all this time.

You’re rereading it for what feels like the millionth time, up in your room, when suddenly, you hear something outside which sounds like… the trumpet of an elephant?

Your heartbeat freezes as you remember Soma mentioning that he owns elephants. There was at least one letter he sent you wherein that he made you a solemn promise that he’d take you riding on one someday after he came to rescue you.

Sometimes you think all that talk was just that ― prattle of things that would never actually happen, even if they were nice to think about.

Then you hear the door open downstairs, and someone is calling for you. “(Name)! Excuse me, ma’am, I’m here to see (Name) (Surname)! Yes, I am Prince Soma Asman Kadar! She knows me very well. (Name)! Priya, I’m here! I’m finally here!”

You’ve never gone down the stairs as fast as you do upon hearing all of this. So that’s what Soma’s voice sounds like…? That beautiful accent of his, that bubbly tone, the way you can hear him smiling even though you can’t see him yet. There’s no mistake.

That’s him. That’s your prince, trying to fight his way past the maids.

You’re down into the foyer before any of the staff can summon your parents. “Soma!”

You race toward him, this gorgeous man you’ve never seen before but who your heart would know even if you were blind. His hair is violet, his eyes are gold, and his smile is just as incredible as you’ve dreamed about.

“Soma!” You’re crying as you run into his arms. He catches you like he’s been waiting his whole life to hold you, and you can feel him kissing your head while you bury your face in his neck. You may be holding him too tightly. You don’t care. “Is it really you…?”

His laugh vibrates through your entire being. However tightly you’re holding him, he must be holding you twice as tightly. His arms feel so secure, some safe place you’ve never known until him. You’ve dreamed about this moment a thousand times.

“It’s me, priya. I’m finally here!” As soon as you move your face from his neck, he leans down to kiss you. Your whole body responds, arching into him. You swear your soul is a flower turning toward the light of his. He kisses you ferociously, yearningly, and his hands press in against your back. When you draw apart, his eyes sparkle at you. “I’m sorry we had to wait so long. But guess what? I’ve come to take you away.”

Your heart almost stops again. He can’t mean…? “Take… take me away?” Is this happening? Are you actually going to leave this horrible place and start a life with Soma like the two of you have talked about?

He nods eagerly. “Yes! I have a ring for you at the townhouse, but… there are lots of things to plan. You’re going to come be with me, though, from now on. You won’t stay here with people who don’t treat you like a princess. Are you ready to ride on an elephant?” he grins. As if it’s the most normal question in the world.

You don’t even know what to say. All you can do is let your tears fall down your face as you return his nod, and he reaches up to cup your face in his hands.

The way he looks at you is a way you never knew anyone could look at you. It becomes apparent to you that as much as you’ve been searching for your prince, he’s been searching for his princess. The two of you have been waiting for each other, and you can finally be together.

“I’m going to take you away from here,” he murmurs, before kissing you again. “We’re going to get married, priya. We’re going to find a big, beautiful house of our own, and we’re going to have babies, and you’ll never have to worry about anything ever again. I’m going to take care of you, and I’m going to tell you every day how much I love you.”

It sounds perfect. Too perfect. This isn’t another dream, is it?

You break your gaze from him, only to look over at the shocked maids. “… Tell my parents that I’ve run off with a prince, and I am never speaking to them again.”

To their credit, the maids exchange one glance with each other before nodding. “Good luck, Lady (Name).”

Soma sweeps you up into his arms, and right out the door.

Part of you feels a little bad that you’re leaving the letters he wrote you behind.

But you don’t need them anymore.

You’ve got him now, and you have no doubts that he’ll make you feel just as loved as you felt reading his letters.

‘Happily ever after’ was never an ending, you think. It’s the beginning of the rest of your life.

#abuse tw #Black Butler #Kuroshitsuji #Soma #Soma Asman Kadar #reader insert #romantic #drama #fluff #hurt/comfort #GOD I LOVE HIM SO MUCH LOOK AT HIM AND HIS BIG HEART FULL OF LOVE <3 #one hell of a queue

[smokeys-house]

So you've seen her around, and maybe you're wondering... What's the deal with Puukko? Who is this mysterious moomin flooding the tags? Or maybe you're just a curious sort. Either way, this post will serve as an updated introduction!

Art by @pink-nubes ❤️

The long story short

She's my moomin oc. I've been writing about her a long while now and if you're reading this you've probably seen some art of her floating around, too!

The longer version

Along the French Riviera, a young moomin girl is raised by two parents of meager status. Her fur is brown and bristly, and she doesn't say much. They call her Pinecone on account of her shape and fur, just until she's old enough to choose a name.

As she got older, she took to working at the docks to help support her mother, who has fallen ill. Sometime after, her father makes his leave, claiming that he'd be back after he struck it rich. He had a plan, but Puukko was never quite sure if he was telling the truth or just couldn't bear to see his wife like this and support a child. He was never seen again, and soon after, her mother passed as well. She took up the name Puukko after apprenticing with a blacksmith at port around this time. She's not sure what drove her to piracy, but she spent the next many years as a pirate during piracy's golden age.

During her adventures, she encounters a young fillyjonk woman named Marion. I won't spoil too much since it's still in the works, but after duelling Marion's father in Marseille for his daughter's freedom from an arranged marriage, she received her classic scar, and earned a name as a pirate figure of legend. Edit: you can now read The Cane King's Daughter & TCKD: A Story for Another Time on my blog and on my ao3!

Marion joined up with the pirate, now known as Captain Whetstone, and spent many years adventuring with her crew. They shared a deep bond, though they never admitted to one another their feelings. Eventually, their reputation would catch up with them, and the king would no longer turn a blind eye to pirates. He issued a proclamation declaring that any and all pirates who surrendered themselves before a certain date were to be given a royal pardon for any crimes committed during their time as pirates, else they be hunted and bounties set upon them. Captain Whetstone, being a particular thorn in the side of the crown, was extended one mercy beyond the pardon that she did not initially accept. Her crew was captured, and Marion along with them, She was to turn herself in or they would all be tried and likely executed. She struck a deal, albeit by force, claiming that any illegal acts committed during the course of "negotiations" would be pardoned alongside her crimes as a pirate.

They sentenced her to punishment by transportation, and had her swear an oath to never board a ship again. She was sent away, and her crew was given their freedom. She found herself in the west, wild as at was at the time, and attempted to make a new life for herself. This was short-lived, and eventually she found herself where she is today.

These days, she's back to calling herself Puukko, and lives in a moominhouse of her own high in the lonely mountains. She plies her trade as a blacksmith, telling stories of the old days and occasionally stopping by down in the valley and elsewhere. She's an old woman now, and rather delights in that fact. She's a little odd and eccentric, but who isn't in moominvalley?

Okay, but why is she brown? Moomin fur is white!

Quite clever, dear reader, and I'm glad you asked! You see, Puukko is a winter creature. A winter moomin, to be specific. What does this mean? Well, you remember this fellow here:

The Ancestor. To my knowledge, they appear in every adaptation of The Moomins (this one's from the 2019 Moominvalley), and I believe every time it's mentioned that they slept in stovepipes. Here's where I diverge from canon and into speculation.

I headcanon that moomins as a species, upon becoming too big to sleep in stovepipes, began sleeping in large huddles to disguise themselves as snow mounds in winter and keep warm. Instead of joining the moominpile as it were, some of them stayed awake during the winter and retained their fluffy brown Ancestor-like fur, but otherwise similarly developed more moomin features. Winter moomins have thick brown fur, are taller and wider than your average moomin, and are ill suited to summer and hot climates. Even though Puukko as a character pre-dates my watching of the 2019 series, I also really like too-tikki's description and characterization of winter creatures during the ancestor episode.

Why does her name mean "knife?"

The knife part is simple. Most folks in the valley are named after what they are, or are known for what they do. A "puukko" is a kind of Finnish general purpose knife, and I thought it well suited her character as well as fit the theme for her pirate name, Captain Whetstone. Which also has a reason, but you should read my stories to find that one out!

When I was first designing her and thinking up stories, I was watching through the 90s Moomin series again, and I had begun collecting screencaps of all the knives. Lots of folks in the valley have them in the 90s series, and they all look well made but handcrafted.

And so I figured my OC would be a blacksmith. She's the one responsible for making all the pretty little knives in Moominvalley! From there on I tried my best to suit her to canon, but at the time I had only seen the 90s series and the Riviera movie. She's grown and changed over time, and I've written lots of things about her!

That's all, folks!

Thanks for reading! If you're curious about her, or have any other questions, or just have something to say, please feel free to reach out! My ask box is always open, and anonymous asks are always on. I love talking about Puukko, and I love talking about moomins in general. It's one of my biggest passions! There's a tag directory in my pinned post (which is probably how you got here if you're not seeing this in the tag or in your dashboard feed) which should lead you to art of her (simply tagged "puukko"), stories of her (tagged "whetstone's whispers), and other information (tagged "capitan's cabin").

❤️❤️❤️

#smokey talks #moomins #moomin oc #what's the deal with Puukko? #puukko

[asoulwithadream]

analysis and theory with soul: doctor who 60th anniversary special trailer

"i've got a memory. after a very long time, something's coming back."

i think by this the doctor means the toymaker. the last official encounters between the toymaker and the doctor were in a comic during twelve, however i'm not exactly sure if that is the long time ago which he mentions, since the comics usually have little to no relevance to the televised canon. the last time we physically see the toymaker is during william hartnell's tenure as the first doctor, which explains the very long time (a minimum of 1715 ago years for him! possibly a lot more)

this thing. this furry little thing. i have a feeling that he will be a great cause of annoyance for a lot of the characters in the special and i thank him for it. look at his face. he's allowed to do whatever he wants.

anyways, i think that the toymaker may be after him, for whatever reason. perhaps he has a special power (kind of looks like the hybrid child of a house-elf and demiguise from harry potter— teleportation and future-telling? omg it's a tardis—)

i also maybe have a theory that the rocket which we can see in the trailer is what he arrived in. in the teaser, we can see it (and it looks like something the thing would arrive in) and we can see rose walking towards it. scared, he was carried back to the house in a shed by rose who wanted to help (the box in the teaser), and then she went a got her mum because she had no idea what to do next. however, thing successfully ran away when the external forces began to attack donna's house. rose went after it, and found it there next to the trash, finally getting an answer as to what he is scared of. this being the monsters, or the toymaker's creations.

these being the monsters, sent by the toymaker to collect it. however, the human government seems to also be aware of the thing, and has sent its own forces to go get it. while donna's mum and the doctor are having their little fistfight indoors, maybe-unit and these roach-like things they seem to be getting it on outside.

next point of interest: i think this shot comes first in this specific selection of moments. they seemed to have landed somewhere, with an obviously different lighting than the shots below, so perhaps this is the exterior portion of their environment, (maybe even physically outside) and they're trying to get in through the door behind them, which donna so badassly pushes the button to get through too

they seem to be after something, after something so inexplicably bad which has made the TARDIS run away out of fear, leaving them stranded wherever they are, which is probably the location of the thing they're after. furthermore, throughout the trailer it seems that the TARDIS has been malfunctioning for some reason (having to be carried away by helicopter, this). i think this very bad thing is the reason for both the doctor's distress in the following shots and donna's surrender in those after that.

what i think this place may be is the toymaker's new toyroom. there have been multiple instances of the toyroom breaking, and if we go back to the comic toymaker he was last seen: "a lonely god, drifting through time and space in his magical toy box". (a nice note to the doctor too) we don't know what happened to the toymaker's toyroom, and we don't know how big it can get. the last time the TARDIS was in the toyroom, it was given to the toymaker for an advantage to the doctor. maybe she doesn't want to go through that again, or maybe theres something else coming.

but can we take a moment to appreciate donna's absolute slay in this scene? "something so bad the tardis ran away? then. we go. and kick it's arse!"

i don't like it how these two shots appear to be in the same scene. i really don't like it. i very much really don't like it. it's pretty obvious— same clothing, same lighting, perhaps not in sequence but probably in the same general part of the special.

there is something which has made the doctor Devastated, capital d. and i don't like it. because we've seen that grief usually, rather than causing a temperamental explosion from the doctor with screaming and crying, he becomes resigned, maybe shedding tears but quiet, curling up into himself as if he wished he could collapse like a dying star.

but here he's visibly very upset. "why does it have to be like [this]". maybe its a reflection of his frustration with donna's condition— she can't remember him or else she dies, and maybe prior to this scene something related to that has happened, causing something else to happen to her. OR MAYBE, he's being more generally reflective, angry as to why everyone he holds dear suffers at one point or another, usually because of him.

these thoughts stem from this other shot, which seems to take place in the same general location (background + lighting) and maybe even in the same scene, before the shots above. something is in front of her, and she is scared— a robot? the toymaker? it must be an aggressive object, as she raises her hands in surrender.

additional notes:

the following words will be chaotic and difficult to understand or interpret: OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD WHY IS THE TRAILER SO GOOD OH MY GOD THEY DID IT SO PERFECTLY AND THEY HAD THE DRAMATIC MUSIC AND DEAR ME DONNA NOBLE HONEY LIGHT OF MY LIFE WHAT IS GOING ON WITH YOU ARE YOU ARLIGHT IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO YOU I WILL EAT MY HAT I WANT TO CRY OMG NOVEMBER CAN'T COME FAST ENOUGH AAAAAAAAAAAH

#doctor who #dw #doctor who 60th anniversary #14th doctor #donna noble #just my two cents #doctor who trailer

[giggly-squiggily]

that lovely anon put the modern au back on my mind and i actually got started on the next hc post about the kamaboko squad, yey! (when will i finish it? uhh next question)

for the time being, here's some random lore i cooked up during the great lung infection of december 23

tengen and gyutaro have a blood feud going on and there's plenty of theories on how it started. some say it was because gyutaro got a little too flirty with hinatsuru at the club right in front of tengen, some say tengen may or may not have called daki a bitch to gyutaro's face. insiders know that tengen actually called her a cunt.

the people are split on the topic; obanai finds himself 100% on tengen's side for once because the one time they actually met daki called kaburamaru a worm, tanjiro is conflicted because daki is kind of a bitch but tengen really should be above having beef with a 16 year old and also it's a rude thing to say, douma thinks gyutaro should challenge tengen to a duel, and their mutual friend akaza wishes tengen and gyutaro would just get over themselves and act like adults for once instead of driving him insane with their endless complaining about each other. everybody else refuses to take a stance but is thoroughly entertained by the whole thing

anyway the whole thing culminated in an epic fist fight that sent both of them to the er at 2am and they have not been in the same room since

(daki is 16 and gyutaro is 20, i took some liberties with the demons' ages)

the layout of the unnamed town in which this au exists is essentially a valley surrounded by the mountainiest mountains to ever mountain and lots of forests, the town is pretty much middle of the road in terms of size; it's certainly small enough for people to be nosy af

the majority of the cast lives in the same part of town except for urokodaki, sabito and makomo (urokodaki's dojo is on one of the mountains and a bit outside of town, sabito lives with roommates while going to university tho) and gyomei who used to live on the other side of town until he started attending university

obanai and kanao weren't born in the valley and are both from the same city. kanao was adopted by the kocho family when she was seven years old, around the same time obanai became a nationwide sensation after every other member of the cult he grew up in died

obanai finds out about this when he starts spending more time with kanae through sanemi and meets all of her sisters and he gets fiercely protective whenever people try to tie kanao back to the cult, he'll snap at anyone who dares to accuse her of having connections to them

koyuki and mitsuri know each other from elementary school and stayed friends all throughout their teens which makes mitsuri the first one who accepts akaza into their circle when he gets together with kyojuro because while he is indeed a little scary she has seen how much koyuki loves her adoptive brother and she can't be that bad of a judge of character

senjuro and rui are in the same class in elementary school and they immediately flock together, being both shy outsiders and somewhat lonely kids. despite being sickly rui is a rascal who helps senjuro get out of his comfort zone and loosen up every now and then, meanwhile senjuro always keeps an eye on rui and always comes over when rui is feeling too weak to go to school

added bonus of rui hating that he's an only child and kyojuro being more than happy to insert himself as an older brother figure

sanemi and tengen become friends when sanemi is in ninth and tengen is in eleventh grade; they both have to do detention with muzan (their awful history teacher) and immediately hate each other until sanemi gets into a discussion with muzan and tengen notices hey this feral bastard is pretty cool actually. tengen helps sanemi with the detention work later on because ofc muzan isn't accommodating to sanemi's dysgraphia in the slightest and sanemi has to admit to himself that maybe the loud diva isn't half bad.

they leave the detention in an awkward state of mutually appreciated coexistence and sanemi spends the whole weekend anxiously trying to figure out how to proceed but luckily tengen is intrusive af and has absolutely zero issues welcoming himself at sanemi's, mitsuri's and giyuu's lunch table the monday after and from then on getting closer feels rather natural

inosuke lives with his mother and hisa and owns a pet pig. the pig's name is miss inosuke-sama because he wanted to name it after himself but then his mother told him that it was a "girl pig" and he added the miss in front of it because it felt disrespectful not to do so. needless to say inosuke and miss inosuke-sama are best friends for life and when he brings her to his first day of kindergarten it does get him in trouble immediately but also his new friend tanjiro is sufficiently charmed and if that's not a win then honestly what is

that's it for now, i'm gonna go to sleep - ily, stay hydrated and feel hugged ♡♡

HELP THESE ARE AMAZING HOLY-

Rey you precious dear, I love these so much AHH! I'm beyond delayed in replying but GOODNESS!

HELP GYU AND TENGEN FIGHTING KJRKJERKJEJKR It's some Romeo and Juliet 1968 levels of ridiculous where everyone just kinda ran out and mosh pitted in the middle of town square- only instead it's Tengen and Gyutaro and their constantly throwing childish insults and mean girl quotes at one another ("Nice wig, Tengen what's it made of?" "Your mother's chest hair" "WHY YOU-"

Oh gosh the one time Obanai's on Tengen's side jkakjajrkejkr I feel like their mutual anguish for Daki brings them closer you know? I'm with Tanjiro though- while she may be..difficult, Tengen really shouldn't be beefing with a 16 year old at his grown age ajkrkjarjkearjk Douma suggesting a Duel (he'd be in his Hamilton era) and Akaza being over it is a MOOD!

THE FIST FIGHT I CANNOT- Makio gets a call from Tengen all: "Hey babe...so I won't be coming home tonight.." with a selfie of him getting stitches and Gyutaro on the opposite side of the room with his leg in a cast half out of it as the pain meds kicked in.

Oo, I love the idea of the town being a mountain area! It fits with the whole forests and wisteria set up in the show, plus everything being just big enough to hold everyone but juuuust small enough to keep them in everyone's business is such a charming thought!

Protective Obanai! I love a good rare pair! I feel like Kanao's the type of girl who could utterly destroy you verbally if she feels like it but it's so rare that most assume she's incredibly non-confrontational (which, for the most part is true? Maybe not incredibly but like- she's came to peace that no matter what she says to the people trying to tie her back to the cult they'll never listen so she lets them run their mouths) but also appreciates Obanai being such a protective soul to her? While her sisters are incredible, she couldn't help but feel a little envious of Genya having such a ferocious big brother in his life so Obanai kinda fills that void for her, you know?

Ahhh Mitsuri! She's such a queen- I love how accepting she is! She's the type to see past all the rumors and fronts people put up, so while others might see Akaza's scary outsides, she's been around him enough to witness his gooey insides too. Also Senjuro and Rui being classmates and besties makes my heart so happy- Rui is truly a little rascal and Senjuro being both a good friend and someone to support him AH!

Tengen and Sanemi lore!!! Muzan being a crappy teacher fits the bill to a tee- and Tengen first hating Sanemi's guts but slowly and begrudgingly growing to like him is so canon I can't ajrkeajrkjeakjraekjlr Him squeezing his big ol muscular self beside Sanemi like "What up party people?" is just- God I love it so much!

Inosuke's pet pig!!! Miss Inosuke-sama! He absolutely sneaks her to school even in his high school years; it's not uncommon to hear pig snorts and wiggles in his backpack- or hear a distant "MY LUNCH!" from Inosuke whenever she eats his sandwich. Tanjiro is so delighted even if he's equally panicked cause "how do you hide a pig at school???" It becomes such a common sight most grow accustomed to it that when Inosuke doesn't bring her everyone's anxiously wondering if something happened to her. Then they're immediately reassured when Inosuke tells them his mom found out and wouldn't let him bring her anymore.

These were so freaking AHHH! Thank you for sharing, friend!

#squiggily speaks #ask #myreygn #hey it's Rey! :3 #friend :3 #modern!au #demon slayer #modern demon slayer au #long post #this made me laugh so much AH! #I love it!

[void-occupation]

Whatever you do, don't think about how the song "Remember Everything" by Five Finger Death Punch fits Halt and his childhood trauma to a T.

I'm not going to go into a full analysis. I'm not going to go into a full analysis. I'm not going to go into a full-

FULL ANALYSIS AHEAD (disclaimer: "Remember Everything" does not belong to me)

"Dear mother, I love you. I'm sorry I wasn't good enough. Dear father, forgive me. Cause in your eyes, I just never added up. In my heart I know I failed you, but you left me here alone."

Halt talks about how Ferris was the favorite child, and how his parents fought all the time. We all know by now about Halt's tendency to blame himself for things (as seen in "The Battle for Skandia" and "Erak's Ransom"). He probably blamed himself for his parents arguing all the time - hell, he literally said that he refused to tell his parents that Ferris was actively trying to kill him because he thought that Ferris was the only thing they cared about and he didn't want to take that away from them. Even though it was his choice, Halt was a kid. He probably felt at least a little bit abandoned and betrayed that his parents didn't seem to even notice anything amiss before Halt ran away.

"If I could hold back the rain, would you numb the pain? Cause I remember everything."

Something else that is touched on in the fourth book is Halt's tendency to deflect conversations that confront him on his fears and such. It's a fairly offhand note, but it has some pretty big implications. Halt has this need to make sure that everyone else is okay, while simultaneously ensuring that no one ever sees his suffering. He is constantly shielding other people, and feels guilty when he requires that same protection.

"Dear brother, just don't hate me for never standing by you, or being by your side."

I refuse to believe that Ferris was the murderous evil twin from the start. There was probably a very large portion of heir childhood where Halt and Ferris were close, before Ferris became obsessed with the crown. That would be a good reason why Halt only suspected Ferris later on. I feel like Halt would spend a lot of time telling himself that it was something he did that sent Ferris over the edge, and he would blame himself for the betrayal.

"Dear sister, please don't blame me. I only did what I thought was truly right."

I can't be the only one who thinks that Halt always regretted leaving Caitlyn behind, but he knew it was either that or kill Ferris, which is something I don't think he would ever be capable of doing. He loved his twin too much.

"It's a long and lonely road when you know you walk alone."

I know that Halt wasn't technically alone, and he became part of a massive found family, but not being able to tell anyone about the things he went though, and the people he left behind as well as his reasoning would have been isolating - if not crushing - for anyone. Hell, no one knew his real last name or anything about his past for just about 24 years. Not even mentioning the fact that when he finally admits it, he is 41 years old, so he has hidden this for well over half his life, not counting the 17 years he actually lived in Clonmel. That is a long time to carry around huge amounts of trauma without telling anyone who cares about you.

"I feel like running away, I'm still so far from home."

This one is fairly obvious. However, it is not talked about nearly enough that Halt is a runaway. Let that sink in for a second. What do you think of when you hear the term 'runaway' in reference to a child? For most, it's the thought of a kid escaping an abusive household and living on the streets with nothing but a backpack filled with belongings. That was what Halt did at 17. Except he had to go all the way to a foreign country to escape his situation. And the only person he ever saw from home again was the person who had made him leave in the first place.

"I'll burn it all to the ground before I let you in."

This is pretty much Halt's whole philosophy on showing any sort of emotion to people. He didn't smile around Will until months into his apprenticeship, and it took years until he was able to summon the courage to tell Will the truth about his mother. And again, the whole 24 years of absolute secrecy about his childhood doesn't exactly show someone that is willing to open themselves up to others.

"Please forgive me, I can't forgive you now."

Halt still blames himself for the rift between himself and Ferris, but he is also consumed by hurt and betrayal over the fact that Ferris cared more for the crown then he did his own brother, and I can't blame him even a little bit for feeling that way. Especially considering that when they do finally meet up again, Ferris shows no real sign of regret for his actions.

All-in-all, this just feels like a violently Halt-esque song. The pain and regret is something I think his character suffers a lot of, and this captures that really well.

If you made it to the end of that ungodly ramble, kudos to you because holy hell, I think I was temporarily possessed by the god of angst.

#halt o'carrick #ferris o'carrick #caitlyn o'carrick #halt's parents #there's seriously no tag for that?? #ranger's apprentice #will treaty #five finger death punch #I seem to be completely incapable of producing a post that is a reasonable length #someone take tumblr away from me #character study #“Halt Go To Therapy” Challenge: fucking failed #What The Hell Are You Talking About I Am Completely Normal About This Character

[thehamletdiaries]

I wrote this for the Hamlet discord and made myself have feelings so I thought I'd share

I think Horatio stays for a time at Elsinore - he is the carrier of Hamlet's story but importantly also of his message that Fortinbras should be King. It's Hamlet's wish (and, slowly Horatio realises, what genuinely is best for peace and stability) so he makes that his purpose and mission. During this time he writes and writes and speaks often and in many places - telling the story of Hamlet, almost as we know it - but in his version, he lies; he says Claudius sent all three men - Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern - to their deaths and Hamlet alone escaped, he says nothing of Hamlet's treatment of Ophelia, and whilst he is truthful about Hamlet killing Polonius he claims that was Claudius's set up too. People need a martyr and Hamlet's full truth would not give them the story they all need. But what he tells truly and faithfully is who Hamlet was - how much he loved him and why; this brilliant Icarus like figure, full of fire, who shone like the sun he flew too close to. The prince, already loved by the people, is given so rich an epitaph that his name might live longer than many who did become King. And his legacy gives credence to Fortinbras's reign, bringing peace.

Fortinbras marries a woman very distantly related to Hamlet's family in order to solidify his position and reign. It's Horatio who helps her find her way in court - this man who was from outside court himself helping this woman who never wanted to be Queen. Horatio finds the writings of Ophelia - in truth, he had first gone searching for them to destroy any that might say some truth about Hamlet he does not want to be revealed - but he finds something else instead; this young girl believed she would be Hamlet's queen and she wanted to be a good queen. She wrote at length about the way they would rule, together; the kind of prosperity and joy they would bring - how they would invest in the arts and education, how they would support enterprise and relgious tolerence. He gives Ophelia's writings to the new Queen to help guide her.

Horatio goes home often - to the farm he grew up on on the border of Denmark and Germany. He has no male relatives left, but he still has his mother, grandmother and sister. They all hold him when he cries, but it's only his sister he truly tells everything too. The whole story. Everything about who Hamlet was and how truly he loved him.

Horatio's sister eventually marries and has children, as, of course, does the new Queen. Both women suggest naming one of their sons Hamlet, but Horatio asks them not to. It would be too painful for another to have his name. When the Queen has her third and fourth child, however, twin daughters, she does name one Horatia.

Horatio tries to go back to Wittenberg once but it is just too painful.

He is at his heart a scholar, and after many years at court he does want to return to school. He wanders looking for somewhere to be. He even goes as far as Egypt but that is too strange and too different. He eventually finds himself at the University of Florence, where he graduates and continues on to the professorship he'd always assumed he would have before he met the prince. He writes about philsophy, mostly; a discipline now forever coloured by what he has seen. He lives a fairly lonely existence, but his stoic nature sees him through. He gets up every morning and goes to bed every night. Time doesn't take away the pain but it changes it; makes it bearable in a way he would not at first of thought possible. He often cries but he is often happy too. He has long since stopped searching for Hamlet's ghost. If Hamlet were a ghost, he has reasoned, it would mean he wasn't in heaven. And Horatio has to believe that's where his prince is; in heaven.

#hamlet #hamlet x horatio #shakespeare #hamlet/horatio #hamletxhoratio #ophelia #horatio #fortinbras