#and what she saw was Dorians mom??! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lauranthalasah · 9 months

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Fuck... I'm an idiot, I think I got why so many people felt Orym's nod to Laudna over Bor'Dor so bad.

This is a long one...

See, Orym has been painted as the "good one" by the group, the moraly upstanding, let's say. "The dad friend," the fandom said. And he kinda is, compared to the rest, he has more internal rules, which tend to kindness, respect, etc., and the others clocked it (not saying the other's don't have their own morality, just that Orym seems to have more lines he will object to be crossed).

For a long time, his actions proved this side of him to the Bell's Hells, but what is more important, I think... they start relying on it! Many PCs had done that, from EXU, to C3, to even guest players, somebody said something in the lines of "I look at Orym, if Orym it's okay with it, then I'm good" (I think it was a guess star). The group relaxed over their own process of decision making because they started counting on Orym to call them out if they went too far!

The key thing is... Orym never asked for it! As a mom friend, let me tell you... it's frustrating as hell to have to "parent" people who are my age or older, I do it only because I love them, and I don't want them to die! And Orym showed us his frustration with them a long time ago!! Remember when they all were rising hands over who thought they would all try to kill each other? Remember how Orym just stand up and fucking left?! That's what you do when you are tired of trying to be the voice of reason in a group in which at least four of them are older than you and the other two are adults as well! Hell! Ashton noticed it!

Orym never asked for that position, no one ever does, you just fucking fell into it, and then you care too much for the idiots you call friends... even if you want to killed them yourself half of the time (that's me). In fact, Orym reaaaaly doesn't want to be any kind of leader, not even a "moral" one, but he keeps falling into Chaotic groups, sorry man!

Now, something else the group as a whole fails to realize in its full meaning is that Orym is a soldier in a mission. He has always been, and they know it, intellectually, but they failed to understand the implications of it. Fearne understands Orym, that's why she goes to him when she herself has doubts over Imogen, because she knows what Orym did with Dorian, so she knows Orym must be thinking some strategies just in case, and I'm not sure if she goes to him only because she is worried or also because she wants to show him her support, whatever it is... it's one of the best shows of not only that Fearne loves Orym, but that she actually understands him more than one could think. But Bell's Hells don't have the knowledge that Fearne does, they don't know how lethality serious Orym can get, how he will do things he hates because he things they must be done, they've seen glimpses, but Fearne saw it in all its cold steadfastness when Orym pulled his sword on Dorian, she knows, the rest are going to find out little by little.

So we have Orym trying, for a long time, to understand the enemy, what motivates the members of the Ruby Vanguard, trying to keep seeing them as people, not just "enemies." But he also recognized that he can not be impartial with them. We saw how he left another "should gods live or not" discussion because he is tired of it. Even if he thought (which he doesn't) that all the Gods should died he would not help the Ruby Vanguard, they will always be his enemies. He has been saying it is personal to him since his chat with Chetney. The philosophical conundrum, it's in the end, pointless to him, if he can stop the Ruby Vanguard he will, just for what they did to his people. And even with this as a known factor... he still tried to understand the members of the RV, they were people who have been hurt, even after they killed him, Fearne, and Laudna, Orym still tried to keep that openess of mind and heart.

Until Bor'Dor.

Bor'Dor attacking them after they offered him kindness and friendship, but even worse, I think... it was Bor'Dor attacking Prysm and Deni$e, who had nothing to do with Bell's Hells and their attack to the RV, just because they were there, and he wanted to hurt Ash, Laudna, and Orym. That proved to Orym once and for all that the RV were too dangerous, too cruel in the pursuit of their goals, simply put... they don't care how many innocent people they have to kill to reach their objective. At that moment, Orym went to war, at that moment he became completely the soldier he could be. At that moment, he thought, "He has to die".

And in the middle of this storm we have Laudna on her own, and she looks up, she looks at Orym, hopping he will maybe stop her, the friend that has always stop them from going too far, and she doesn't realize that what she sees is an aspect of her friend she hasn't fully met yet, and because she is used to rely on his instincts over this things... she lets herself go.

So later, when things get a bit calmer, it kinda feels like a betrayal, doesn't it? Why? Why does the friend who always stops us from doing stupid things didn't stop me?! WHY? And the answer is, because he couldn't stop himself.

He didn't betray Laudna, he fails her in the rol SHE had assigned HIM, now they will have to rework their friendship.

This moment weighs in the three of them, Ashton, too. It's obvious in the way he and Orym tell Laudna to take a moment for her. They are trying to help her now. Nothing changes what happened, though.

This is going to be interesting because it's clear that that aspect of Orym's personality, the cold soldier, is quite on the surface now. He is angry, really angry, angry enough that he might not have the strength to keep being the "dad friend", because he might be too focused on keeping himself at bay to be the person who helps the others to do that as well. Like I think he will keep trying to be there for his friends, but his own mental and emotional state makes him less reliable to what the group is used to.

#critical role #orym #i finally got it!#now I also know why i identify with him!

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countrymusiclover · 6 months

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26 - Blasts From The Past

Part 27

Family is More than Blood

@secretdreamlandmentality @icefrye19

Salvatore School - current timeline

"I can't believe mom did this to us. Does she not believe we are strong enough to handle this?" Alina snapped, laying back on the couch in front of the fireplace.

Missy was standing by the fireplace. "She had a valid point with you being pregnant."

"Since when has being pregnant in this family ever stopped mom from kicking ass!" She snapped to her twin.

Hope huffed. "Enough both of you. We can be angry with our parents after we rescue them and the Saltzman’s from the prison world."

"How are we even supposed to get there though? Mom took the Ascendant with her, didn't she?" Missy shrugged her shoulders with a questionable look.

The oldest Mikaelson daughter spoke up again. "I took the one that Alyssa created so we’ll just use that one.”

Footsteps came into the room quickly to show the three Mikaelson that it was Andrea. “Hey, Henrik keeps asking what is going on and my parents just saw me checking on Rapunzel and Charming.” She said pointing over her shoulder with her thumb.

“We can’t keep a secret from them I guess. But they’ll have to have us help if they want to know what has happened.” Hope crossed her arms over her chest not backing down.

Suddenly they heard the wind blow into the room and Jaocb and Hayley were standing beside their daughter now. Hayley put a hand on her hip eyeing the future Tribrid. “Oh we believe you, Hope. Now what exactly happened to your Heretic mother and Hybrid father.”

“You don’t know what Kai was like, Hayley. Rae showed me what he did at Jo and Alaric’s wedding. He didn’t care that he stabbed his sister with a knife. He just wanted to be the leader no matter the consequences to others. He’s ruthless.” Our Uncle J explained to his wife.

Missy walked over to the three. “Okay, so let’s do the prison world spell and rescue them.” The front door of the school opened and everyone turned their heads not expecting to have anybody else coming into the room at that moment. Dorian came inside and had someone wearing a light gray suit and tie following behind him.

"Fam, meet - Joshua. Old friend of Ric's. And drumroll, please. He's also an expert on prison worlds. I told him about our problem." Dorian explained with the three Mikaelson’s trying not to give him a concerned face.

The man that had dark almost black hair stepped to Hope who was holding the Ascendant asking and she reluctantly gave it over. "Do you mind if I? Thank you so much. Wow. Wow, wow, wow. It is in pieces. Oh, my…"

He gasped hearing a faint sound from inside. "There's a linking spell on this. It produces a, a faint hum, like a, like a melody, if you, if you know what to listen for."

Andrea leaned in to listen but was confused when he snatched it away from her ear. "You clearly don't. When the Saltzmans performed their spell on-on this ascendant, they were being tied to another. Hold this." But he tossed it towards her chest.

Alina grunted, raising herself from the couch. "So what exactly does that mean we need to do, Mr. Joshua?"

"That witch of yours didn't send them to, you know, a new, empty prison world. She sent them somewhere, somewhere far older and much more dangerous. And you're going to need my help to get them out." Kai turns his head towards the pregnant werewitch clasping his hands together.

Hayley could feel the unspoken tension in the room so she looped her arm through Kai's and began leading him away with Dorian. "Dorian, why don't you show Ric's old friend around a bit while we gather what we need, yeah."

"Sounds good." The clearly compelled human said leading the pair away from the group.

Jacob waited until they weren't in ear shot whispering to his three nieces. "How the hell did he get out but they didn't. We have to tell your mother somehow before things get out of hand here."

"It's not good if he's here." Andrea added on shoving her hands inside the pockets of her jacket. "Do you think he knows that we know?"

Missy gulped nervously. "I hope not. Otherwise we're screwed."

"Look we all know Kai is here and that he's a threat to the school sp this is what we are going to do. Uncle Jacob, you and Hayley make sure he doesn’t do anything to destroy the school. Andrea, we're gonna need your help with the Ascendant and that leaves the rest of us to break the spell and bring everyone home." Hope declared to the group who were all in agreement.

An innocent voice met their ears. "What about me?" Henrik was peeking his head around the corner.

"You little brother have the most important job of all…staying out of trouble and watching your baby brother and sister for us." Alina moved in between her sisters picking up her brother in her arms even though her belly was making it more of a challenge now. "Can you do that for us, Hen?"

He nodded with a smile. "Yeah."

"To bringing the family back." Jacob stuck his hand out and everyone placed their hands on top of his declaring back to him.

"To bringing the family back!"

Raelyn’s pov - prison world

Klaus and I had headed back to the Salvatore house and Josie had gone off to find her father. Kicking opened the front door I stomped through the house not caring if we were being loud. Throwing my hands up in the air I grumbled. "I can't believe I let him get away with the Ascendant. Stupid, stupid, Raelyn. I let my gut down just a wee bit and he double crossed us again!"

"Rae, there's nothing we can do about it now. But I agree that he will get what he deserves when we get out of here." Klaus told me lifting his chin up hearing something in the distance. "Someone else is here."

Whipping my head around I throw some of my hair in my view seeing someone run around the corner revealing Alaric and Josie. Yet Josie was dressed in all black clothing and her eyes were darker than normal. Rushing over to the pair I noticed the familiar dark veins growing on her forehead and her body. "Josie, what the hell happened to you!"

"Someone told me the only way to get us out of here without the Ascendant was to take the black magic." She responded dryly.

"Kai Parker you son of a bitch!" I cursed under my breath until I noticed who was missing. "Wait Where's Lizzie?"

Alaric dropped his shoulders. "We found her on the side of the road in a crashed police car with Sebastian. I patched her wounds but she's resting now."

"Sebastian?" Klaus raised a brow at the former vampire hunter.

Turning my head slightly to my husband I answered. "Has dark hair like Damon but an accent like yours and-"

"And he's a bad boy." Alaric interrupted me.

Klaus nodded. "Ah I see now."

"Someone's here." Josie informed us before I spun around on my feet and saw my eldest daughters standing in front of us.

My daughter asked. "What happened to you?"

Josie told her. "I broke the Sandclock."

She gasped in regret. "Oh, my God, I'm so sorry."

Alaric and Klaus both shared the same confused look seeing us talking to a wall. "Honey, who are you talking to?"

Josie replied. "Hope she's astral-projecting."

Alaric warned her. "Listen, you have to warn her about Kai."

Hope knitted her brows. "Why? What happened?"

"Kai went into the Malivore pit, and we think he's trying to get to the real world." Josie explains.

My daughter bites her lip admitting my worst fear. "Actually, I think he's already here, pretending to be someone else. Kai's at the school….and just to point out mom this wouldn’t have happened if you let us help in the first place."

"Hope Andrea Mikaelson we're not talking about that right now and I stand by the decision I made-"

Alaric cut me off. "Hope? Listen to me, Kai's incredibly dangerous. You have to get him away from the school now."

Josie waved her hand, sending her off, turning back to our group. "Good luck, Hope. We need to do whatever it takes to get out of here."

"Josie, let me take the black magic from you and do the spell." I take her hands in mine eyeing the black veins that were visible, remembering all the trauma that was created when I had the same thing happen to me.

Klaus raised his voice at the mention. "Absolutely not, Raelyn. It could kill you!"

"And it will kill her if I let her do this. I'm not the weak siphon I used to be anymore." Flashing my fangs to my husband I focused my attention back to the girl. "Josie, please. I don't what I would do if I did nothing when I have lived through this myself."

She squeezed my hands walking away to get the things for the spell. "I'm stronger than you think Aunt Raelyn."

"We do the spell." Alaric nodded following after his daughter to check on Lizzie. "And I'll stay behind."

Nik placed a hand on my lower back sensing that I didn’t like the way the plan was going. Slumping my shoulders I ran my fingers through my hair feeling my stomach twisting in knots. “Rae, she’s young and like Josette. She will be able to do this.”

“I know, Nik. I still don’t have to like the idea.” I mumbled reaching down for his hand and he looped his fingers through mine. He squeezed my fingers before we vamped off to find the others and get out of this prison world once and for all.

Missy’s pov - Mystic Falls current timeline

Hope, Alina and I had met back up with Kai leading him into somewhere he believes there was a magical device we needed at. But it was just to keep him away from everyone else. Hope stared at him when he questionably looked around the storage area. “This doesn't seem like much of a spot for a powerful magical artifact.”

I snapped remembering the story of what Bonnie did to him when we were kids. “Neither does a stuffed teddy bear.”

“That's very good.” He chuckled.

Hope explains going over to a crate in search. “Dr. Saltzman hid what we need in one of these crates, so Look for the Salvatore logo.”

“It's a good thing there's not, like, 400 crates in here. Eeny, meeny, miny, crate. When you say Salvatore logo, you mean, like, that thing with the "S" and the squiggle?” Kai chuckles, turning his back to the three of us. Hope raised her hand using her magic, launching a piece of wood toward his back but he stopped it. “And so it begins.”

“Ascendo.” I raised a hand throwing a crate at him but he raised his hand smashing it with magic.

He got to his feet running towards me. “Nice try.” I vamped him against the wall where he grunted until he kicked me in the stomach harshly.

Alina growled, running head toward him and throwing punches at him. He blocked a few of them until she grabbed his wrist chanting a spell to block his powers even though he was a heretic like me. “Phasmatos tribum, exum sue, redem su pas quo-“

“I thought your mother would have taught you better and remember I don’t fight fair.” He grabs her wrist siphoning from her where she lowered herself onto her knees and he pushed her down onto the floor.

Hope snapped her fingers and managed to break one of his knees for a second. “Errox femus.” She then took the chance and kicked his other leg out.

Kai swiped her leg out from under her through. She fell on her knees and kicked his leg again but it was clear that he could have moved away from her advance. “You could have blocked that.” Hope pointed out when he sat upright from the wooden ground.

The psychopath dryly laughed at us. “Yeah, you're right. I-I just wanted you to think you were doing a good job.”

Hope stepped a few steps away from him. “You're not trying to beat me.”

Kai grunted getting to his feet, smirking at the triplets proudly. “Oh, no. No, not for a a few more minutes. Because right now, Alyssa Chang is performing a spell that will sever my connection to the prison world.”

“She can’t do that. She’s not strong enough on her own.” I attempted to remain calm.

He tilted his head to the side. “Yeah you make a good point. Unless I brought over an extra source of magic that would make her have the power of a thousand year old witch.”

“The Hollow….we sent the stake into his prison world, not a new one.” Alina smacked her forehead in regret and I could hear Hope’s heartbeat increasing in fear just the same.

Raising my hand I choked Kai where he grabs his neck even though I couldn’t kill him. “You really are a psychopath if you’re willing to let our mother die. And for what just because you find enjoyment in it. You already took away Josie and Lizzie’s mom.”

“Nobody’s been on my team my whole life, Meli. So forgive me if I don’t see the whole desire to feel bad for what I’ve done.” He clasped his hands together pushing through the pain that I was causing him. “But you should be more concerned with the fate of your mommy since that place was created for me, once she's done…”

“The world will disappear. Along with everyone inside of it.” Hope put the pieces together through a sharp gasp and her heart skipped a beat.

“Oops.” Kai just simply smiled.

Alina waved her hands and shoved him against one of the wooden posts trapping him there with large metal chains. “Remember this Kai Parker. If my mother doesn’t kill you for what you did to our family then mark my word I certainly will!” She stomps up to him grabbing his chin in her freehand flashing her werewolf eyes sounding just like our father.

The three of us quickly rushed back to the school as fast as possible, finding Alyssa sitting in the center of a candle circle and a spell book at the end of her knees. Hope ran forward but she smacked into a barrier spell. “You really are a basic witch.”

I begged the witch not wanting to see our family die because of Kai Parker. “Alyssa, please.”

“I don't want them back. Not now, not ever.” She scoffed.

Alina snapped at her. “If you finish that spell, you'll kill them all. Are you that stupid to believe that nobody would get hurt!”

She mumbled looking away from us. “He didn't say anything about that.”

“Well, think about it. If you sever the connection, the prison world collapses. Everyone in it will die.” Hope lowers herself on a knee trying to talk her out of this idea. “Look, I know that you're angry, and I know that you want to hurt them.But you're not a murder. Trust me, you don't want to be responsible for someone's death. It stays with you. You carry it forever.”

Alyssa stepped away from the Ascendent until the pieces started turning without her doing anything. I gasped seeing a bright flash covering my eyes before I saw Lizzie and Alaric sitting on the floor. “Oh my god. You guys are alright.” Bolting forward I tackled the pair in a bear hug each.

Another flash occurred and we saw our father come back next. He got to his feet rushing to Alina who hugged him tightly. “I’m here, Lina.” He whispered hearing another flash of magic and we saw our mother snap upright with a gasp crying happy tears when she saw we were all there.

“Mom!” Hope flung her arms around her crying for a moment hearing a final flash noticing that it was Josie. The Saltzman girl rose to her feet smiling at our group until all of us embraced each other in a family hug.

Raelyn’s pov

Sliding on one of Nik’s sweatshirt over my head I was so tired from the day we had. Tying my hair up in a messy bun walking through the old storage facility where Alina had informed us they had trapped Kai Parker. “Are you ready to do this, Alaric?”

“It’s time to put an end to our suffering. He took too much from the both of us.” He responded by showing me a metal tall pickaxe in his right hand. He let the end of the blade slide across the ground creating sparks until we reached where Kai was chained up.

Kai sent me a puppy face. “Awe Rae Rae, great I was hoping to see you.”

“You tried to get one of our students to kill us all, you psychopath.” I got in his face harshly grabbing his shoulders and he winced when I used his blood boiling spell against him one final time. “Phasmatos navaro pulsus sanguinox….any last words, cousin?”

Kai gasped when I removed my hands, sighing in relief. “We could have been a good team, you and I…And you won’t be safe after I’m gone.”

“Ric, get it over with.” I stepped backwards, shoving my hands in the loops of my jeans glaring at my cousin. “You are finally getting what you deserve!”

Kai chuckled at Alaric. “Given all we've been through, this feels a little anticlimactic. Don't you think?”

“Not to me. This is for Jo.” Alairc raised the blade behind his head and he swung it, cutting his head off.

Laying on the bed alone in our bedroom I was just resting with my eyes closed. Klaus was downstairs reading to Rapenzal and Charming like he had done with all of our kids when they were babies. Someone knocked on the door and then I opened my eyes seeing it was Alyssa and she closed the door secretly locking it behind her. “Hi Mrs. Mikaelson, I just thought I’d come by and apologize for what I almost did tonight.”

“Uh thanks Alyssa. But it’s really not necessary. It was Kai just being his usual self. Thankfully we won’t have to deal with him anymore.” Sliding to the edge of the bed with my legs hanging over the side.

She crossed the room holding something behind her back until she was standing so close I could almost fall back onto the mattress. “Speaking of Kai he asked me to give you a message with this…” She revealed the white oak stake from behind her back pushing me down onto the bed.

“Urgh Alyssa!” I groaned holding the tip of the stake with my hands while she tightly held the top end just to the side of my heart. “What are you doing?”

The young witch pushed the tip of the stake into my chest where I grunted in some pain. She gripped her nails into the stake and I gasped for air seeing her eyes turn bright blue reminding me of the Hollow. “The Hollow wants you to suffer. Louvre, louvre animo. Pemet you accesses…Dedisco.”

I kicked the witch in the gut and she fell onto the floor giving me the chance to grab the stake in my hands. Standing above her I gasped feeling my wound healing slowly still in shock. “What the hell was that for, Alyssa!”

“It doesn’t matter. I just want you to answer one question.” She scrambled to her feet standing away from me and her eyes returned to their normal color. “Who is Klaus Mikaelson?”

Knitting my brows I started to answer her but paused thinking really hard about that name. Yet nothing was coming back to my memory so I had no choice but to reply with the response. “I’ve never heard that name before in my life. I don’t remember anyone named Klaus Mikaelson.”

Comments really appreciated ❤️

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12pt-times-new-roman · 11 months

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c3e59

let's go back in tiiiiime

"Where are we?" "Where's everybody else?" "Where's Imogen?"

This area is rife with not just volcanic activity, but with seismic activity as well, and Ruidus is to the south.

Laudna identifies a handful of places that match this description: the Truskan Vale (near Kamordah), the Panagrip Sands (to the far east of Marquet), and the Spectrum Gorge in the middle of Issylra.

Orym to Caleb, via sending stone: "Um... Caleb Widogast? Are you alright? Where are you? Not sure we're even in Marquet anymore. Please respond." He's met with a feedback loop and static.

Orym to Dorian, vis sending stone: "Dorian? Can you hear me? Uh... what's the sky look like where you are? Tell me you're okay." Same thing.

They crest a ridge of the gorge, and beyond, there's a dense forest, a cluster of growth affixed to the mineral-rich earth. Orym, with a passive perception of 31, sees movement —

AIMEE!!!!

She's a dwarf with long blond hair, covered in tattoos — two stand out, one of a banner heart that says "me" instead of "mom," and one with a large cursive D. She's wearing earring hoops that say "fuck off." A corset, bejeweled boots, a massive gold belt buckle, carrying a whip and a sickle.

I'm calling it right now, this woman is going to romance Laudna and Ashton.

An hour ago, she was in Tal'dorei looking for her ex. She almost found him when she heard Ludinus' voice, saw white light, then appeared in this forest.

Mona is a barbarian/rogue (who rolled excellent stats btw).

From the top, they can see that the gorge is a massive canyon at least two miles long. Ruidus is to the southwest of them. An extremely overgrown and vibrant forest surrounds the canyon, and there's a river nearby.

Orym can see another gathering of leylines to the northeast — another nexus point, miles off. Loosely in that direction, he can see a township, and beyond that, a massive mountain range with one singular mountain taller than any he's ever seen — the Heaven's Stair. The entire western side of his vision is taken up by a mountain range that looks so foreboding and ominous that he doesn't even want to go near it. To the south, ocean.

Traveling to the northeast, they encounter a fire and send Pate to scout. (Friendly reminder that Pate uses the stat block of an imp, so he can turn invisible at will.) At the fire, there's a cart, a reindeer-looking beast of burden, and a humanoid figure warming their hands.

Utkarsh Ambudkar is an actor best known for his roles in Pitch Perfect and Avatar: the Last Airbender.

Bor'dor is a half-elf "built like a coat hanger." 6'4 but hunched over, delicate fingers, no scars or tattoos. Brown skin with shades of green and gold, unkempt hair, and large gold-amber eyes. A face that carries the resting expression of "what the fuck is going on?" No armor, a green cloak, leather shoes, and a crossbow.

He shoots a 5th-level lightning bolt at Mona, then casts cure wounds at second level. He's a divine soul sorcerer!

He was in the Cyrios Mountains on Wildemount (near Pride's Call) with his sheep — his family raises sheep and sheepdogs — and caring for his sick brother. Then he felt a humming, heard a voice and a droning, a pain in his forehead — then he got teleported here, along with his cart.

And apparently he just... spontaneously gained 9 levels in sorcerer over the course of the hours he's been here. Which, if he's a divine soul sorcerer, is super fucking concerning considering what we know about the gods giving large amounts of power to their followers from EXU: Calamity.

Mona's whip is a whip of warning, which gives her advantage on initiative rolls. Also, creatures within 30 feet of her cannot be surprised, and if they're sleeping naturally and combat starts, they wake up at the start of combat.

Orym spots another figure, walking through the forest, approaching the light and conversation.

EMILY!!

She's a shadar-kai elf with emo girl tattoos with runes instead of song lyrics, but she's dressed in the formal attire of a mage's apprentice. Indoor kid vibes, clothes not meant for adventuring, "coming out of a tense conversation with a book."

She's a Cobalt Soul apprentice!! She's here asking about their "experiences with the apogee solstice."

Her book talks to her. She was sent by the Cobalt Soul, but with a sentient book chaperone. It's a tome with black and brown leather and silver runes, with a scrunched face roughly pressed into the front. Denios was trapped in a book during a rivalry, the Cobalt Soul got their hands on it, and now he's a chaperone.

The Cobalt Soul didn't know where she was gonna end up, but they sent her through a teleport spell hoping for a metropolis — and ended up here. So this confirms that teleport works, but there's no guarantee where you're gonna end up.

Prism was stepping outside the library to prepare for her teleportation when she heard Ludinus, saw a flash, and ended up here.

The Soul knew that the apogee solstice would be a "cataclysmic event." They scrounged up everyone they could and dispatched them to try to figure out what's happening.

The sentient book is also her spellbook, so she's stuck with him.

It sounds like Prism is an order of scribes wizard? That would make sense for the Cobalt Soul.

Mona's "real" name is Deni$e. Her nails are incredibly sharp stilettos. Her demeanor reminds me a lot of Keg.

More rustling in the bushes! More people?

Nope! Initiative at the end of the break.

Prism has a raven familiar she calls "mother." She also invokes the spirit of her spellbook, confirming that she's an Order of Scribes wizard.

Denise has at least 3 levels in rogue, because her sneak attack is 2d6, and at least 2 levels in barbarian, because she has reckless attack.

Gods, I forgot how much I love Talisein's descriptions of Ashton's attacks and rage builds. They're all so good.

Oooooh, I've never seen steel wind strike used in a game before! It's a 5th level ranger/wizard spell from Xanithar's that deals 6d10 force damage on a hit to up to 5 creatures within range. Then, regardless of whether it hit or not, the caster can teleport to a space within 5 feet of any of the targets.

Also, yes, rules-as-written a familiar counts as an ally that can proc sneak attack. So if Veth, as an arcane trickster, had taken find familiar, or if Frumpkin was used in this way, she could've gotten sneak attack much more reliably. Personally, I find it strange that familiars can do this while spiritual weapons cannot, but yeah.

I love that Bor'dor, the newly-minted sorcerer who has no idea how to use his magic purposefully, is this party's only source of healing (besides Laudna's wither and bloom, which hardly counts). From that, it seems like this group is much more geared toward social encounters than physical ones,

YO. EMILY. that is a DOPE FUCKING MOVE

The plant swallows Orym, then the book goes in behind him and gets into contact, then Prism casts dimension door through the book on Orym to teleport them out.

THIS is why I absolutely love watching veteran players on Critical Role. People new to the system have their own unique charm to the way they play their characters, but people like Emily and Aabria who are highly experienced with and aware of D&D 5e know to make incredibly creative moves like that.

And at the same time, Utkarsh (and guests new to 5e) pushes the limits of the rules, because they're not familiar with those rules, to a point that they come up with wildly creative plays based on what knowledge they do have of the rules-as-written that end up being clutch moves.

Combat ends.

Prism's raven is named after both her own mother and the Matron of Ravens, because the latter is prominent in the Shadowfell.

Prism is "really new to spellcasting," despite being a 9th-level wizard who is therefore capable of casting things like contact other plane, create spelljamming helm, legend lore, and teleportation circle. tbh this is such a cool take on wizards -- someone who's never tested their spells in combat situations, but who's confident in their own ability with those spells in more innocuous circumstances, due to their expansive study and lack of practical experience.

Also, Prism knows exactly who Ludinus Da'leth is, though she's never interacted with him directly, because of his leadership of the Cerberus Assembly.

"We don't leave people behind. That's the rule. You do not leave people the fuck behind." I love that this has become the center of Ashton's philosophy, because it makes so much sense. They were left behind, left for dead, and a single person stayed by their side, helped them, saved them. So of course they are going to be that person for someone else. Of course they would rather be the Milo, of course they'd rather try in vain to save someone instead of leaving them behind and subjecting them to the same pain and isolation that they themself felt.

Also, again, Emily is using the same logic for Prism as Aabria did for Laerryn. Maybe it's just because we've never really had a proper elf PC (or a player-character who had the trance ability), but this is just such a cool take on trance...... I love it.

Ahhh, so Prism doesn't necessarily believe the gods should die but she does believe that they might deserve to be usurped by mortals ascending to godhood like the Raven Queen. With a skill check, Prism's truthful reason is that she's feeling excited to be out of the library. She thought she was going to freak out, but she didn't, and she's excited by that -- she feels like she could smoke a cigarette in a single drag, she feels that rush of adrenalin. It's like when Caleb said in C2 that they were all addicts to the thrill of battle, the adrenalin of purpose.

Bor'dor doesn't remember his mother very well, and he hasn't seen her in a very long time. He believes that his magic comes from the love of his mother, and he's clinging to that. He and Prism take the first watch, and bond over their ability to trance.

Yep, Prism is 100% an order of scribes wizard. Manifest Mind is a 6th level ability of that subclass.

Ashton panicked, down in the mines. They thought they'd won, they thought Laudna had won, and they think they made some bad calls. Laudna says that "we're a bunch of dumb-fucks, going up against a 500-year-old wizard, so..." And Ashton reassures her that they're gonna get their people. They're gonna get Prism, Bor'dor, and Deni$e to where they need to go, then they're gonna find Imogen. "If they went to space, then we'll go to space... if she got vaporized, we'll bring her back. This is what we do. We bring everybody back. There is no failure in this, and we're going to figure it out because it's what matters. I have-- whatever broken thing that's in my head, that means that anything's possible now, that's what I've decided. We brought you back, and we can do it again... sure, we're not enough to save the world, but we are more than enough to bring everybody back... we can't save the world, but we can save our people. We're going to."

I never really got to know Percy, I liked Molly, I loved Caduceus... but I want to fucking study Ashton like a bug under a microscope, I want to turn them around in my brain like a microwave. They are fascinating,

Deni$e and Orym take the last watch. Deni$e knows Shaun Gilmore! She went to Emon looking for him specifically. She also knows Dariax, "that piece of shit." She knows Orym from wanted posters all over Emon -- the Nameless Ones have put up wanted posters for all of the Crown Keepers.

Dariax has a dumptruck ass, canon.

DARIAX IS THE EX DENI$E WAS LOOKING FOR

And the Nameless Ones were going after her because they were looking for what Dariax stole, and as soon as she saw him months later, she got teleported here.

Orym has flashes of Keyleth, Will, the horrors they've witnessed. It permeates this light conversation, his entire existence. He drinks, heavier than we've seen him drink the entire campaign. "I just... I just don't think I've ever felt so small."

Prism doesn't know sending, but if she can find a scroll or a copy of a spell, she can transcribe it into her spellbook very quickly. She wants to find a library or some discarded spellbooks so she can help, so she can cast sending.

As an interesting note, this is also an Order of Scribes ability! Usually, it takes 2 hours per spell level for a wizard to transcribe a spell, but for an Order of Scribes wizard it takes two minutes per spell level.

"That mountain to the north is the Ascendant Bridge, the tallest mountain in Exandria... it's visible as far away as Vasselheim. It's believed to be where the gods first arrived in the world." The party is within a gorge of Othanzia, the region in which Vasselheim, the dawn of all civilization, sits.

The party can still see Ruidus, even in the early daylight. They can see townships around -- they have options scattered in every direction.

#critical role #note watches c3 #critical role spoilers #critical role campaign 3 #critical role c3 #critical role liveblog #it's so interesting to look at how different and yet how so SO similar the guests are here versus the guests for Team Wildemount #like sure-- none of them are particularly reverent of the gods #nor do they really believe in their abilities #but they all recognize #in a general sense #that killing the gods is a Bad Thing To Do #and all five of them express that in entirely different ways #and the PCs are all in line with this too #none draw power directly from the gods and none are particularly pious #and yet the rational of them recognize that the gods and their support just disappearing overnight #would trigger a cataclysm on Exandria and beyond.

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theacblade · 1 year

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AC Medical AU

Okay so like I have a medical AU idea. I’m not going to write a fic because I have two already going. But yeah I was just thinking of these and figured i would share :) Also note I know nothing about medical stuff so yeah just a heads up.

Okay first Altair. Altair is an Oncologist (Cancer Doctor). He is the best of the best. He was one of the youngest doctors ever but then botched a surgery due to his arrogance. He almost lost his medical license and he had to work a few years to regain what he lost. Along the way he met amazing people and quit being an arrogant asshole. His best friend is Malik who is an Orthopedic surgeon. He also gets in fights with the Anesthesiologist Maria Thorpe but something seems to be growing between them.

Malik is an Orthopedic surgeon (working with limbs). After losing his arm it inspired him to help make prosthetics and help those with them. He is at the top of his field and knows what he is doing. Altair and him hated each other at first but as Malik watched Altair grow up and learn from his mistake he had great respect for Altair. Malik also loves talking smack with Maira about Altair. This trio works well together since Malik has cancer patients every so often.

Maria Thorpe is an Anesthesiologist (puts people to sleep). She used to work at Abstergo Hospital but they treated her horribly. Altair then convinced her to work for him at Creed hospital. Maria performs exceptionally in her field and is not afraid to correct a doctor. She even yelled at Altair in the operating room and Malik was impressed while Altair was in shock. Maria also gets mad at Altair easily but does love the banter they have. One Maria’s best friend is Elise who is an ER nurse at both Abstergo and Creed. Maria is trying to have Elise over at Creed permanently.

Ezio Auditore is a Dermatologist (skin doctor). It's been in his family forever. Ezio is one of the more attractive doctors and the ladies love seeing him. He is extremely talented with a blade and is said to have the hands of god. His best friend is Leo who works as a pathologist (examines dead bodies). Ezio also has an intense rivalry with Borgia's dermatologist. His siblings are also doctors. His brother Fredrico is a plastic surgeon and his sister Claduia is an OB GYN (Reproductive doctor). Ezio has also been known to sleep around or is this a rumor spread by the Borgia's who knows.

Leo Da Vinci is one of the best Pathologists. He makes some of the best drawings and diagrams of the human body. He is extremely smart and some believe he could easily scrub in for surgeries. Leo is best friends with Ezio and has made special blades for him to operate on people. Leo also has to keep telling Abstergo no about working over there.

Conner Kenway is a Cardiologist (Heart doctor). He is very hell bent on helping his people and making sure they get equal treatment. His dad Haytham Kenway is the medical director at Abstergo. Haytham wanted Conner to follow in his shoes but Conner wanted his own path. Conner loves what he does and wouldn’t change it for anything. His mentor Achilleas helped him alot in his field. He works closely with Pulmonologist (Cardio health) Aveline. They both seem to have a mutual attraction towards one another.

Aveline De Grandpre is a Pulmonologist. She works with the Cardio section of the body. She is all about being fit and healthy. She started this career when her dad had a health scare when she was eight years old. Her step mom works at Abstergo and its very awkward at family dinners. Aveline has gotten closer to Conner since the departments are close together.

Shay Cormac is a Cardiologist at Abstergo. He used to work at Creed but had a nasty fallout with Achilleas over a medical manuscript. As he was job searching Monroe saw Shay’s resume and knew Absertgo would do well. He got Shay hired and now Shay works at Abstergo. Shay also sees the Kenway drama from Haytham's perspective.

Arno Dorian is an ER doctor. This man is used to chaos and can handle it quite well. He is always busy and all sees the worst of the worst. His favorite ER nurse is Elise. She keeps working at Abstergo but Arno is sure he will convince her to work at Creed. Between all the people coming in abruptly Arno and Elise have managed a strong relationship. Arno also got another doctor fired named Bellec after he found out Bellec was harassing Elise about working Abstergo instead of his job. Overall Arno handles the ER with grace and Elise. The only issue he has is his boss Napoleon who thinks he knows everything.

Elise De La Serre is an ER nurse. Her dad is a doctor at Abstergo and her mom is also an ER nurse at Abstergo. Elise works at both hospitals for the pay and benefits. She also wants to impress her parents and Arno. Her and Arno keep the ER together with their skills and cohesion together. Elise is best friends with Maira but gets annoyed when Maria tells her to stay at Creed.

Evie Frye is a Neurologist. Ever since she was a child the human brain fascinated her. She is the best in her fields and published several research papers and projects. Evie does strive for perfection and this has led to issues with her self esteem but luckily her brother is there to help pick up the pieces. He is her PA (Physician Assistant) and the two work well in sync. Whenever she does surgeries Jacob is there to help her. Evie also has a small crush on Henry Green, the head neurologist. Jacob teases her for it.

Jacob Frye is a Neuro PA. He is always there for Evie and knows what she needs next. He was never interested in neurology however being a PA lets him work anywhere including with his sister. He is trying to start a group called the Rooks that help out around the hospital. He also hates Abstergo and how much they charge patients and won’t take most people's insurance. One of his enemies there is Crawford Starrick who is in-charge of billing at Abstergo.

Bayek is a pediatric surgeon. He works well with children and wants to offer the best care especially after losing his son. He works well with everyone and some say he is the real leader of the hospital. He is also known for his awesome pet Senu who he will bring sometimes to cheer kids up.

Aya is Bayek’s wife, though their relationship is rocky. She is the head OBGYN and makes sure all her patients get the best treatment and medicine. She has published many papers and wants to be a professor at a university. She had a major fallout with another OBGYN named Cleo. After that Aya has become more reserved in her work.

Desmond Miles is a jack of all trades. He is a General Physician (just an average doctor) but if you need him for surgeries, dermatology, or even just to help out he is there. He gets along with Atair, Conner, and Ezio the best. He was mentored by all three of them during his residency. Evie was fascinated by his term Bleeding Effect after he could perfect what his mentors did after one try. Desmond is beloved in the hospital and everyone loves to work with him and they all make sure to stay clear of his William Miles. William Miles is Physician Executive( the guy who does all the paperwork) and doesn’t get along with everyone.

Rebecca Crane is the head of IT. You need an update on your ipad done, the website down not anymore its back, some crazy Abestergo employee trying to hack in no worries Rebecca is there. She is the best at her job and everyone loves her. She gets to meet tons of different people and loves getting to know them. She is also hell bent on stealing or borrowing tech from Abstergo since they are the leading medical tech hub. However they are no match for Rebecca.

Shawn Hasting is the head Lawyer for Creed. He makes sure no one can get a penny from especially Abstergo who keep trying to sue them for stealing their medical tech. Shawn usually hangs around Rebecca and Desmond. He’s not too familiar with all the medical stuff but he does love learning about it. Shawns has everyone back and is ready to jump theri defense.

Kassandra is a Psychiatrist (Mental illness doctor). She loves understanding mental illness and wants to help those around her. She studied under one of the best doctors, Hippocrates. She works closely with assistant Kyra and hopes they can have something more. Her whole family works in the medical field so competition is high. Her and Evie love talking about the brain and Kassandra has helped Co-Author several of Evie papers.

Alexios is a physical therapist. When he was a kid he hurt his leg and saw how important physical therapy is. He is also super athletic and does several marathons. Him and Malik work closely and try to help each other develop the best prosthetics and movements. Alexios also has fierce rivalry with his sister Kassandra.

Eivor is an Infectious Disease Physician. They have seen it all and want to help make harder to detect diseases more detectable. They were interested in all this since they were a child and saw part of their village in Norway get ill. Eivor also works with their brother Sigurd which is awkward since Eivor may have or may not have slept with Sigurd's wife Randvi multiple times.

I hope you guys liked it! Nothing serious and just some fun ideas I had!

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lgvalenzuela · 1 year

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Lonely bed

Dorian stretched looking at the candle next to him, he promised himself he would finally go to sleep when the wick was dying, using candles for this sort of thing, surely another habit he picked up during his time in the South.

He opened the case to his crystal again, some lucky nights he would hear him sing, sweet little lullabies he kept close to his heart, but this was not such a lucky night. It was too late for such matters anyway, he wouldn't pine like a maiden on a book, not when he had to catch Up on his beauty sleep. But sometimes he just had to catch up on work, maybe that way he'll be able to go to sleep every night to the arms of the man he loved (well…arm)

He flickered a flame into existence on the palm of his hand and finally blew the candle to rest. Walking to his lonely bed.

Or that's what he thought until he saw Leah, laying on a window frame…quietly crying, probably trying not to wake Kaira up. When she saw him she quickly got up with an apologetic bow she tugged her pajamas with shame:

"I'm sorry master Pavus I was just…"

"Such formalities we're not even on one of our lessons, or an event we need to save face in…" maybe he'd need to use some other night to catch up on that sleep of his "Follow me"

She did as she was told, quite the rebellious kind she was but not with him. She followed him to the kitchen where he lit the room and walked to get utensils, some black tea, milk, spices…

"Are you making-?" she started asking

"No, no, no, you go sit and we'll talk"

Once again she did as told, got a little comfortable and looked at her mentor as he made some tea for her. She chuckled slightly:

"You remind me of my zaza" she said with a little smile "They also did that for me when I was feeling moody"

"Oh do I? Well I'll take it as a compliment, Ryann is a good parent"

"Did you learn this from your mom too?"

"Well…more or less, I got it from my mother in law…my mother, she would make the sl- the servants do it, if at all…"

He placed the tea in front of her, and got some for himself too while they were at it:

"But we're not here to talk about me starlight, won't you tell me why you were crying your little heart out?"

"It's…it's really not important…"

"It's important to me"

She blew onto her cup pouting, she wanted to be strong, she really did, but her mentor already knew her way too well. Also he probably got tips from her parents:

"Last visit to Ferelden I noticed how big my sister was getting…and that I couldn't hold her anymore…" she said

"Go on"

"And I…realized I'm going to lose all of her life…and my brothers too…and…"

"And your parents…"

"On everything I knew before I came here…Ferelden seems more and more like a distant memory every time I go…and I recognize less and less of it…

And there's so much I miss…I miss the mountains, and the cold, and the snow…

And sometimes I just get like this…"

"I see"

"I know it's stupid"

"My dear do you really think I of all people will judge you for missing?" he fiddled with his wedding ring

"Sorry I didn't mean to-"

"Non taken starlight" he rested his face on his hand "So tell me, what do you want to do?"

"I…I just don't know! Because even though I miss it I don't want to leave! When I'm there I'm so happy to be with my family but I miss the hot, and the fruit and you and Kaira"

"Oh I'm honored" she pouted at him "Sorry, sorry, go on"

"I'm happy here, I want to keep studying, I want to make a place with you and the rest that won't hurt people like my uncle Fenris, or Aeryn, or Kaira anymore…"

"Yes…me too…And you starlight, are such a brilliant young lady, I know with the right education you'll be one of the best mages of your generation"

She blushed from her mentor's compliment and sipped on her tea:

"This is really good"

"Well thank you, Adaar family recipe" he winked and she giggled

She bounced her legs a bit:

"Sometimes…the letters are just not enough…and I'm sure it's like that for them too…"

He thought of Anders and Ryann Hawke, waiting anxiously for their daughter's letters, how they ran to her every time they went to Ferelden. And his mind went to Vaelaan, when he hunched down to let their daughter run straight into his chest so he could hold her, and their late night talks speaking of how much of their lives were passing by without each other.

And what to tell this little girl when he was much older than her and still as lost as she was? Was she still young enough to believe adults had all the answers? Was she old enough to learn that life isn't always fair?

He was circling back through these conflicts until she just hugged him, he hugged her back, still a little confused:

"Thank you…I needed to talk"

"Oh yes, of course" well maybe in a way he dodged a spell, raising kids was hard

"Can I sleep with you tonight?"

"I don't know…" she looked at him with puppy eyes "Agh, not that…well fine, but only because you're feeling blue"

"Okay I'll call Kaira"

"Wait wh-"

But she was already gone, ten minutes later he was sleeping (well, trying) with two girls, a cat and a mabari. He opened the case of his crystal one last time and left it on the table. Still no luck, no noise, no voice…but maybe he'd wake up to it and that was still a blessing.

As much as the family he had with him at times like that, when he felt like he was going to a lonely room, and a lonely bed.

#mine writing #fanfiction #dragon age #dragon age Inquisition #dragon age dreadwolf #dorian pavus #kaira pavus #leah hawke #leah leliana hawke #anders #ryann hawke #nb!hawke #hawke #vaelaan adaar #adaar

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dawninlatin · 1 year

Text

Queen of Peace, chapter 17

A manorian High School AU

Words: 1,9k

AO3 Link

Masterlist

Summary: Manon Blackbeak is flawless, untouchable. From the outside at least. Her grandmother pushes her to achieve greatness, and she doesn’t let anyone get too close in fear of being hurt. How can anyone love her when not even her parents could?

Dorian Havilliard has always felt safe and confident around his friends. He might not have the greatest of families, but with Aelin and Chaol by his side, nothing can go wrong. That is until he tries keeping his greatest secret from them.

What will happen when Dorian and Manon gets to know one another? Can two lost souls find their way back together?

Then it tries to find a home

With people or when I’m alone

Picking it apart

And staring at your phone

-Florence + The Machine, Hunger

Dorian broke into a huge grin as he opened his Christmas present. He’d been saving this one for last, knowing it would be something good.

And he’d been right.

Inside the messily wrapped box was a special edition of his favorite book, one he’d tried to find for years without success. How she’d even gotten this-

He lifted the book, admiring the gorgeous sprayed edges, then picked up the second item. It was a custom library stamp, saying From the library of Dorian Havilliard. Dorian felt almost giddy, wanting to use it on all of his books immediately.

It really was the perfect gift, and the fact that it was from Manon made him all warm inside.

«Show me what you got,» Dorian’s mother urged from her spot next to him on the couch, trying to look over his shoulder.

On the floor, aunt Philippa was helping Hollin build his new Lego’s.

It had been over a month now, since that faithful night that had begun with Dorian coming out to his parents, and ended with his mother leaving his father, basically starting a new life for her family.

Things weren’t perfect, they’d had plenty of bad days, but they were doing better. His mother had managed to stay sober, as far as Dorian knew, and she still went to her meetings, still saw a therapist on the regular.

Sometimes, the three of them even saw a family therapist together, and Dorian found that having someone to guide them through all the difficult conversations really helped. It had most definitely helped Hollin, who seemed like an entirely different kid now. He hardly had tantrums anymore, he did way better in school, and overall he seemed much happier.

He also seemed to adore his new aunt, whom he’d not even met before, but who’d stayed with them for three weeks after the fight, and now visited as often as possible.

Thankfully, their father had left them alone. Dorian hoped it stayed that way, that he never had to see the bastard ever again.

Looking around, Dorian took in the small, but cozy living room he was sitting in.

They’d moved here about a month ago, their old house being too big, too empty, too full of bad memories, and things were finally settling. Already, this felt more like a home than their old house ever had.

«Is that from Dorian’s secret girlfriend?» Philippa asked just as Dorian handed his nosy mother the book and library stamp.

The nosiness didn’t bother him, though, not in the slightest, because it meant she cared.

«She’s not secret, and she’s also not my girlfriend,» Dorian pointed out, but his aunt just waggled her eyebrows and then joined them on the couch to take a closer look at the gift.

His mom gave him a playful look. «If she’s not secret, why does she only have time to visit when you’re home alone?»

Dorian simply shrugged, feigning innocence.

«Give it a few years, Georgie, and you’ll be planning their wedding.»

«Okay-» Dorian said, plucking his things from the hands of his gushing mother and aunt. «That’s my cue to leave.»

He quickly stood up, trying to hide the fact that he was very much blushing, and announced, «I’m going to my room, alone, so I can call my not-secret not-girlfriend.»

Then he left, hurrying as he heard his aunt quip, «Did you see how red he got?»

Dorian let out a sigh of relief as he closed the door behind him, pulling his hand through his hair.

After carefully placing his gift on his desk, he flung himself down on the bed and pulled out his phone, dialing Manon’s number from memory (which was an absolutely normal thing to remember about a person that absolutely wasn’t one’s girlfriend).

She picked up almost immediately, and Dorian let himself imagine that maybe she’d been waiting for him to call.

«Merry Christmas,» Manon greeted, her voice so bright.

Grinning, Dorian returned the words, then asked, «What did you think of your present?»

«It’s beatiful,» Manon breathed on the other end of the line. «Thank you.»

He ‘d gotten her a necklace. It was simple, really, just a silver chain with a shining star in the middle, two smaller ones on each side, but Dorian knew he had to get it as soon as he saw it.

«I’m actually wearing it right now,» Manon added.

«The shirt? Sexy.»

Because as Dorian stood there with the necklace, he’d also thought that while it was perfect, it was a little too cliché, too couple-y, se he’d needed to get something else as well, something less serious.

It had taken a few days of searching, but he’d found it eventually: A hot pink shirt that said the words «You’re looking at a crazy cat lady». The letters were black, in fucking comic sans, and the message was underlined by rainbow-colored paw prints. It was honestly the ugliest shirt Dorian had ever seen, but he knew Manon would love it.

She chuckled, before saying, «The necklace, dumbass. I’m saving the t-shirt for prom.»

They’d seen each other just two days ago, but it had been long enough for Dorian to miss talking to her, miss their playful banter.

Cold, unapproachable, mean, bitchy. They were all words he’d heard to describe Manon, but as he’d gotten to know her, he knew she was none of those things. She might let the world believe otherwise, but Manon was kind, caring, clever, and downright hilarious.

«I’d expect nothing less. Thank you very much for the book and library stamp, by the way. You couldn’t have given me a better gift.» Dorian glanced over at said gift, smiling at how well she knew him.

«Maybe Aelin won’t steal all your books now, if she’s constantly reminded of who they actually belong to. And if it looked like your gift was wrapped by a child who loves tape too much, it was all Abraxos’ fault! He just took over, insisting he did it!»

Dorian laughed, picturing a very frustrated Manon trying to wrap a Christmas present. «Don’t bring Abraxos into this, he probably wraps his gifts beautifully!»

They kept going back and forth like this, Dorian’s facial muscles beginning to strain from all the smiling he was doing.

«What are you doing right now?» Dorian asked after Manon had given a detailed description of how she’d tried, and epically failed, to make gingerbread cookies last night.

«I’m chilling in my PJs, watching the greatest Christmas movie of all time.»

«Let me guess…The Grinch?»

«Shut up, he’s my literal soulmate!» Manon claimed, sounding as if she tried not to laugh.

«You probably love something annoying like Elf or Home Alone.» Dorian could hear the eye-roll.

«And what if I do?» he teased, even if those two were among his favorites.

Manon’s reply came quickly. «Then I’m afraid I can’t be seen in public with you anymore.»

Just as Dorian was about to make a retort, his mom knocked on the door, asking if he wanted to play Mario Kart with them. As much as he wanted to keep speaking with Manon, he had a title as reigning champion to defend, so they made their goodbyes, promising to talk again the following day.

Then Dorian went to join his family, ignoring how he’d felt the urge to end that phone call with three very significant words.

After ending the phone call with Dorian, Manon returned to her movie, snuggled up with Abraxos on her bed.

She’d felt so light, mere moments ago, laughing and bickering, but as soon as she’d hung up, a heaviness had settled over her again.

To her, Christmas had never been the warm, joyful holiday everyone else believed it to be, but this year was particularly depressing.

All morning, she’d tried not to cry as she thought about how different it would be if Asterin was still here. They would have opened their few presents together, Asterin waking her up at some ungodly hour, then they would have watched movies in one of their beds, gorging themselves on candy, before they went ice skating, and returned to a not-horrible dinner with their grandmother.

It physically hurt, to be doing it all alone this year.

Especially when Manon knew it was all her fault.

She was the one who’d pushed Asterin away, who’d answered with insult after insult when all Asterin had done was care about her.

Manon hoped she was okay, hoped she was happy with her new family.

Her grandmother was still making dinner later today, but Manon wasn’t sure she could sit there and pretend something vital wasn’t missing. It was becoming more and more clear how Asterin had been the one bringing some light to this house.

In addition, Manon was beginning to run out of plausible lies as to why she was spending more time out, and less time in her room studying. It was hard to keep someone hidden, when they had become such a huge part of her life.

At least she still had Dorian, Manon thought, touching a hand to her new necklace.

She’d been so relieved when he’d called her after he’d gone home that morning, telling her all about how his mother had finally stood up against his father, how she’d promised things would change. His voice had been full of disbelief back then, but his mother had kept her promises so far, and it showed, because Dorian seemed happier and happier by every day.

As he’d retold their conversation, though, Manon couldn’t help but draw parallels to her own situation, a heavy feeling settling deep within her.

She wished she had the strength to stand up for the ones she cared about like that. To do something, say something. Maybe then-

But you’ll never manage to do that, stupid girl! You’re nothing more than a pathetic coward, exactly like your mother-

That fucking voice… Manon would give anything for it to shut up.

She turned up the volume of the movie in a feeble attempt to drown it out, but it only reminded her of how she didn’t have Asterin beside her, making funny comments the entire time.

Manon contemplated calling Dorian again, but he was spending time with his family, and she knew how much he valued that time, so she quickly let go of that thought, instead choosing to let herself mope some more.

«Christmas is overrated, anyway,» she said to a snoring Abraxos, who continued to ignore her.

Sighing, Manon mentally prepared herself to go and get more snacks, but then her phone started buzzing somewhere underneath all her blankets.

Shen frantically searched for it, thinking it was Dorian calling, but her face fell as she saw that it was an unknown number.

Normally, Manon would have just ignored it, letting it go to voicemail, but this time, it was as if a voice urged her to pick up, just this once, pick up!

So she did, trying to remain calm as she said, «This is Manon speaking.»

The person on the other end drew a deep breath, before replying in a shaking voice, «Hey, Manon. This is your father.»

A/N: We have finally reached the chapter, that when plotting it out, I thought "I'll have plenty of time to have this out around Christmas...in 2020"

A win is a win though!

This one's more of a filler, and therefore a little short, but I hope you appreciated the ending...*cue evil laughter*

Taglist: @fireheartfaery @bookishwitchling @gwynethhberdara @darklingswhxore @onfma @ireallyshouldsleeprn @sayosdreams @rowaelinismyotp @rainbowcheetah512 @mirubyjane @zoyalovesbooks @wishfulimaginings

#dawninlatin QoP #manorian #manon x dorian #manon blackbeak #dorian havilliard #manorian fic #throne of glass #sarah j maas

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sushisempai · 2 years

Text

Nessian Family Fluff cont. (5/?)

Started this here

continued it here

then some more here

then this bit here

Continue to have no apologies. Though I may have bitten off more than I could chew. But still not sorry. They’re all adorable.

---

“Dad, we need to talk.” Cortez said one night over dinner at the house of wind. Cassian was very used to Delphi calling him Daddy, and the boys calling him Dada. Only recently had the teen been referring to Cassian and his mate as Mom and Dad. Even then usually only when speaking to them directly and when he wanted them to pay attention. He still referred to them by name when speaking about them to others more often than not.

Cortez was still training in the camps and had just recently turned 14. It was these facts that were probably most relevant in the very serious discussion the young male wanted to have with his adoptive father. Cassian noted that Azriel was biting his lip eyes wide with humor. He clearly knew what Cortez was upset about. Nesta was focused on feeding the boys running around the table, their wings barely peeking above the surface at times. Gwyn just looked at Az with confusion.

Cassian, never serious when he didn’t have to be replied “Son, what is it that you want to talk about?” Now Nesta smirked as well. Ok, had he missed something? Julian ran up to Cassian who handed him a piece of roasted potato; even as Dorian ran up to Az and got a piece of carrot.

Delphi was sitting at the table eating like a big girl. She was 4 and a half and speaking in full sentences, that most people still didn’t understand. Cassian and Cortez understood her better than most, even Nesta, and the suddenly, somehow mother of four, didn’t know how to feel about that.

Julian and Dorian were two years old now, their birthday not that far before Cortez’s, and seemed functionally incapable of sitting still. As a result they had taken to what Cassian jokingly referred to as “free ranging.” They would come up to the table and be handed a piece of food and run off to eat it as they played.

Cortez sat up a little straighter. “You patted me on the head.” his three emerald green siphon shone; one on each hand and a large on hanging heavy on a chain from his throat.

Cassian looked confused. “Probably… I feel like I do that every day. Probably multiple times a day…”

“You did it at the camp.” Cortez frowned. “Do you know how uncomfortable that was?”

Cassian furrowed his brows. “Ok.”

“Mom and Az get it. They leave me alone. I mean, yes, everyone pretty much knows you guys took me in. But they don’t need to be reminded of it, and certainly not by you treating me like a child!” Julian approached Cortez who looked at the boy with frustration even as he sighed and tickled the toddler's side to make him go away. Jules squealed and ran off.

Nesta, Gwyn, and Emerie rotated teaching in the camps and in the training ring atop the house of wind. They had all taught together the first couple of weeks, giving the Valkyries in the library an optional vacation, but now that they had a routine established with the young females they easily rotated out.

“I need to leave you alone? Ignore you completely? I guess I didn’t think about it.” The boy was sincerely upset. Cassian had been about to smirk about the humor of the situation, embarrassing a teenager seem so normal and even fun, but he realized quickly that Cortez would not appreciate it. He honestly could not imagine what this situation would be like from the other side. He had no frame of reference. Finally he nodded at Cortez seriously. “What would you prefer?”

Because Cassian rotated checks between all the Illyrian training camps and war camps and because he also had other duties in Velaris and around the Night Court he didn’t really think about it. He was just himself, wherever he was, and if Cortez was there, he was happy to see his son. After almost five years he couldn’t think of Cortez as anything else but his son. Dorian approached Nesta and got a forkful of roast. When Julian saw this he also went to Nesta for a bit of roast.

“I don’t know what to tell you. Maybe ask Mom and Az what they do?” Cortez finally explained. He sigh and seemed to deflate. “I mean I know mean well, and you just see me and go Tez! like it’s Tuesday.”

“Tez, it is actually Tuesday.” He held a dinner roll out in each hand and just waited for them to be claimed by small hands.

“You know what I mean!” The boy shot back rolling his eyes. “You’re just so… well… you.” The boy shrugged. Azriel, Nesta, and Gwyn chuckled. The toddlers circled the table like little sea monsters.

Cassian put his hands up in a diffensive motion, the rolls now gone. “Ok, ok, I’ll do some homework with Az and Mom and see what I need to do to make you less uncomfortable when I do my check ins at your camp.” He went back to his food thoughtfully. “Do I really do that? I mean, I guess it makes sense but it also does seem like bad form…”

Az said quietly “You have always been the affectionate one brother. I think it’s only gotten worse now that you have all these children.” Azriel was watching the two boys continue circling the table munching on their rolls.

Nesta shook her head. “You can’t help yourself sometimes. I think it's an automatic response.”

“If it helps I usually like that you’re all affectionate and stuff…” Cortez managed to say before adding “Just not at the camps. Please.”

Cassian gave up, shaking his head and just laughing at himself. “What if I just came up and gave a hug, picked you up off the ground.” Cortez rolled his eyes, clearly not amused. “Or maybe it would be less weird if I was affectionate to all the trainees. Nesta, you hug the Valkyries right?” She smirked but ignored him otherwise.

Az added on “If you go around hugging the trainees, you’ll have to hug the camp masters too.”

Gwyn chimed in, “I would like to see that.” Delphi seemed to be trying to figure out what the joke was, eyebrows knit together in confusion as she looked around.

Eventually Cassian and Cortez were the only ones looking serious, Cassian working for it, Cortez chagrined. Finally Cortez relented and threw his arms up. “Make fun of me all you want, you know I’m right.” Now Delphi laughed. Something about Tez throwing his hands up in frustration.

“Heh, sorry Tez, it’s just so unreal to me.”

Azriel thought for a moment. “You’re right. I know how I expect to see people acting in the camps and that is what I do. But I cannot imagine what it would be like.”

Cassian explained to Cortez, who only knew about their histories in the most general terms and gossip around the camps. “The only ones who ever looked out for us were Rhys and his mother. His father barely tolerated us most days. The females can get away with a little more in the way of caring for the young ones. I never really thought about it but I don’t know what Dads are supposed to do… I guess I better figure it out though.” Cassian turned to his daughter who had food all around her mouth, even as most of it seemed to have made it into her stomach. “Bath and bed?” She said something Nesta could not understand and he responded “The boats are in the bath, the fishes we’ll have to find.”

Cortez sighed. “The fishes are in the boys room.” Cassian laughed, coming around the table and putting an arm around the boy’s shoulders so he couldn’t pull away and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Cortez made a face and pulled away but smiled. Cassian grabbed Delphi carrying her out of the room.

Cortez let put a long suffering sigh and said. “Mom, will you please rebraid my hair tonight?” as he stacked his dishes and put them out for the table to collect.

She nodded. “Wash it, then come find me.” Cortez excused himself from the table with that.

Keeping it in multiple braids close to his head was about the only thing that kept his thick mass of curls under control. She knew the hair was a trait of the Illyrian camps farther north and the style was also the fashion there. Nesta had always worn her own hair in braids and did alright keeping up with it. Even so Alis had taught her some new tricks.

Nesta looked to the couple still sitting at the table with her. And she was certain they were a couple, though it was never discussed. Gwyn was feeding Dor some bits of vegetable and Azriel was watching intently as she did so. Gwyn stayed at The House of Wind most nights now, Nesta knew, but the two of them were so private.

Az looked up and tried to avert the conversation he seemed to sense coming. “I do not miss being a teenager.” He said, nodding to where Tez had exited the room.

“Uh, huh.” She said with no real interest. She wasn’t having it. “Are you two ever going to bother telling me what exactly is going on with you.” Gwyn looked up to Nesta, suddenly blushing profusely.

“Nesta!”

“Don’t ‘Nesta!’ me! You are here all the time, Azriel looks lovesick constantly.” It was worse than when he was pouting about Mor all the time. Gwyn smirked and Azriel blushed.

Azriel ran a hand through his hair. “Thank you for that, Nesta.” She waved a hand as if to say it was nothing.

“We’re together if that is what you’re asking, anything else is none of your business.”Gwyn said tartly.

“I seem to recall someone asking me an awful lot of questions about Cassian.” Nesta quipped.

“You have me confused with Emerie I think.” Gwyn smiled back sweetly.

Azriel cut in. “I know more about you and Cassian than I ever wanted to know, thank you, and I didn’t ask. I refuse to return that particular faver.” It was Nesta’s turn to blush.

“I’m not your chaperone.” Nesta said to the shadow singer. “I’m curious more than anything, and maybe a little protective.”

Azriel put an arm around Gwyn. “No need for concern Ms. ‘not-a-chaperone’ though you're not convincing me you're not a chaperone.”

“Go ahead. Do what you like. Fuck on the table even.” Nesta smirked back at him, daring him to call her bluff even as it would undermine his goals. Gwyn turned so red Nesta almost felt bad. Almost.

---

When Julian and Dorian had started walking, within days of each other, Nesta had been overjoyed. She was tired of carrying them everywhere! One was hard enough. It seemed to take about a week before they were perpetually running. She really should not have been surprised.

Just as when Nyx was learning to walk, their wings began to expand and move more on their own. They were prone to dragging them behind them and Nesta was excited to see that Azriel was just as likely to reach for the boys as anyone else. She remembered well when Nyx had been first walking and how Az had hung back. Now if the boys dragged their wings, Uncle Az was there with a quiet reminder just as fast as anyone else. A gentle touch down the edge of the wing to prompt the boy to pull them in was all it took and they both caught on very quickly.

As their official first flying lessons approached, Nesta realized Cassian was getting nervous. He didn’t come out and say anything but every time it was brought up, he changed the subject. It was such a strange behavior for him as to be obvious. He was not prone to avoiding things.

One morning when they didn’t have anywhere to be right away, they lay in bed together comfortable, quiet, newly sated. He’d been drawing circles on her shoulder, across her chest where the bargain tattoo had vanished up her collar bones. She was unsure if she wanted a bath or her mate more at this moment. They still hadn't talked about it, tattoos gone, the bargain complete as of the day after the twins second birthday.

The twins. They could only lay here for so long. It was already close to a miracle they had this long without children flooding through the door. She knew Alis was in the house but even Alis could only do so much. The twins were two and they needed to figure this out, so she decided she would see if she could get to the bottom of the problem.

“Has Rhys said anything about doing the boys first flying lesson at The River House? Or are we going to do it here?” She asked.

“I keep forgetting to ask him.” Cassian said. He tried to sound casual but immediately rolled out of bed and pulled on his undershorts and pants. He walked to the desk on the wall across from the bed as though there were suddenly new papers to review.

“Mmmhmmm…” She responded, getting herself moving. After donning her nightgown again, she approached him and laid a gentle touch to the side of his face. He turned towards her. “Are you ready yet?” She asked.

“Ready? For their lessons?” He asked, a little bit confused but using an intentionally calm and oblivious tone; one she was not buying into.

“Ready to tell me what is bothering you about their lessons.” She elaborated. He continued with the papers; aligning the edges “I know we didn’t do this with Delphi, and you didn’t seem nervous about Nyx….”

“It’s my mother.” He blurted. She froze. His words came out slowly, as though he were assembling the thoughts even now. “It took a while before I was able to see what it was that was bothering me. It was different with Nyx. He’s Rhys and Feyre’s boy. You know? And Dora. This is the first time it’s been really mine, I guess. But I really don’t know why it didn’t hit me before.”

“Why what didn’t hit you?” She asked, turning him towards her a little. He leaned a hip on the desk, resting a hand on her hip like an anchor but kept staring intently at the desk, worrying papers with a thumb.

“There are all these little milestones with children; walking, talking, flying, new foods, laughing, learning. There is just so much.” He still couldn’t meet her eyes. “How could someone not want to be there for that?” She knew somehow he meant the man who had sired him. She let him hold on to her, and she held onto him in return; a hand on his face, another on his chest. She was content to anchor him and listen. It took a moment but he continued. “My mother, she was alone, but she must have seen so much of that; until she didn’t. Until I was gone. After they took me away, every new experience I had was just me, and so many of them were bad.” He finally met her eyes.

“But I know she taught me to fly. I know in the same way I know she taught me to walk, to crawl, to eat; I just know.” He shrugged and shook his head. “There wasn’t anyone else.” Nesta nodded. She felt like she was still missing something but she could see this was an old wound and was hesitant to speak. He looked back to the desk, one hand worrying at an ink stain on the blotter even as his other hand still held her like a lifeline.

Finally he said “I don’t really remember her. I don’t remember her teaching me to fly. But I know how proud I am of all of our children. I know the joy they give me. But when I think of my mother, most of the time I think about how I was not a choice, but a burden; how my birth led to her death.” She’d never heard him say that. Tears welled in her eyes and her heart ached for him. She had no idea the thought had even crossed his mind. She had heard him blame the members of the camp, the culture, anything but himself really. She wondered how she could have missed it. How she could have not seen that he would blame himself.

“I guess I never really thought about the idea that I might have given her joy; that maybe she was this proud of me when I was ready to fly. Or how she was the one to teach me, not some male family member because it is a males role.” Of course he hadn’t. He hadn’t been a father before; hadn’t had the experiences of his own to seed realizations. There was a tear slipping down his cheek now. He finally looked back to her and frowned a little at her tears. She gave him a small smile and wiped the tear from his cheek even as he took her face in his hands. “I’m sorry sweetheart.” He said quietly.

“Don’t you dare.” She said with that small smile again. “Don’t you dare apologize for telling me what is in your heart. I am honored to hear it. You told me a long time ago that you could handle whatever I needed to give you. That works both ways. I know you know that, but sometimes I think you forget that you are allowed to lean on me, talk to me. Please, remember, that I want to do these things for you as well.”

He gave her a more genuine smile and a quick soft kiss. “I love you too, Nes.” He somehow always heard her.

“As for your mother. I’m heart sick that she never got to see the amazing male you became.” She went on. His normally swaggering and overconfident self, blushed a little at the compliment. Right now, in this moment, he wasn’t Cassian the General of the Night Court. The battles he was fighting in this moment were those of a young boy, and he blushed at the thought of his mother knowing him longer, getting to know him as he was now, as a father, as a mate, as a member of a family, and even as a warrior. She continued. “Cassian, I know with all my heart that she was so very proud of you. I know without a doubt that you brought her joy, if only for a time. It was not you who brought her torment and isolation. That was those horrible people in the camp where you were born.”

“I know that, here.” He pointed to his head, “But in here,” he laid a palm on his heart “It’s a lot harder to remember. You would think after all this time I’d be able to get it right in both places.” She placed a hand over his atop his heart and smiled at him.

She said more lightly, grinning at him. “With as stubborn as you are I am pleasantly surprised you were able to get it right in that thick skull at least. I call that a win even if it’s not both.” She knew he saw it for the life line that it was, an opportunity to move away from this painful subject and stop being so emotionally exposed. He narrowed his eyes on her in mock anger.

“I’m stubborn.” She nodded imperiously. “I’m the stubborn one.” A smirk as she continued to stare him down. “I’ll show you stubbornness.” She squeaked and laughed as he picked her up in one smooth movement before carrying her towards the bathroom. She realized he was going to put her into the bath and squealed louder as he went through the door and stopped. He raised his eyebrows in question. Her arms now looped around his neck as the rest of her hung from his arms like a limp doll.

“I never said I wasn’t stubborn, either.” She grinned a twinkle in her eye. “If you’ll allow me to remove my nightgown first, you can help me with my bath.” He slowly set her to the floor but didn’t let go. His hands roaming her back, her sides.

“I’m listening. Catch?” His eyes narrowed. She pulled back and pulled the nightgown over her head in one movement.

“No catch, just me, you, and a bath.” The tub was already full and steaming. He smiled a different smile now and she knew she’d won.

A little while later they lay on their bed again, pleasantly sore in places, their hair damp. He was drawing circles on her side now as he said “We should do it here. This is our home now right? That makes more sense.” She smiled, nodding agreement before she kissed his cheek.

---

@swankii-art-teacher @wesupremeginger @elsie-bells @perpetuallyannoyedbisexual

Not only will there be more, I’ve already started writing it. I just still have a lot of work to do.

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lilborealis · 7 months

Text

(Another one of my blorbos, another character in Cœur d’acier)

Name:Lionel Bailey Poussin

Date of Birth:March 13th, 1768

Birthplace:France, Normandy, French department of Eure, village of Giverny

Appearance:standing at 6’0, a lightly tanned complexion with blue eyes, short, wavy blonde hair with a scruffy beard. He has a lean build with some scars on his shoulder blades. He has many little scars on his torso due to practicing fencing.

Immediate Family-

Mother:Opal Poussin

Father:Raymond Lavigne

Siblings:unknown

Likes

———————

-his mom

-fencing

-showing off his marksmanship

-socializing, can absolutely talk or charm the pants off of anyone

-a certain dark-haired, grumpy swordswoman

-the daytime, loves to sit in the sun

-observing people

Dislikes

———————

-his dad

-Pierre Bellec

-being seen as a “slacker”, pretends not to care

-waking up early

-being bossed around

-being underestimated

-fire

Personality-

-Lionel is a very sociable, laid-back and friendly person. Due to his good looks, he has a bit of a reputation as a flirt and a womanizer. Despite this, many find him easy to talk to and joke around with. He often uses his “silver tongue” to get what he wants, thus leaving many broken hearts behind him. Yet he himself has had his heart played with a few times, thus making him a reluctant to really give his heart to someone

-Lionel is a very observant person (besides the eagle vision) so he can read people pretty well, which gives him a leg up as an assassin. Along with his fighting skills, speed, and marksmanship, makes him an effective assassin, despite his occasional recklessness

-Lionel also is a bit of a gossip due to partying a lot as a teen (instead of training like he was supposed to). He knows a lot about society and societal figures thanks to his experience, yet this also brought some unfavorable characters in his life that he regrets

-It may not seem like he cares outwardly, but if he finds you his friend, he is pretty much ride or die. Hiding the body? He’ll help. Getting rid of your ex? He’ll do it for free. Need a drinking buddy? He’s down. Need a shoulder to cry on? He’ll let you cry as long as you need. However, Lionel does abide by a strong sense of morals, so if you cross those morals, you’re kind of dead to him

-Lionel is drawn to people who interest him, people that he could learn about, as according to him he likes to “people watch”. This includes Georgette, who despite being pretty much his opposite, finds her very interesting

Backstory-

(TW:mentions of child abuse, manipulation and implied abuse)

-born to a young single mother named Opal Poussin on March 13th, 1768, Lionel grew up in relative comfort in Giverny. Opal had been taken in by a wealthy friend named Remy Gaspard when she fell pregnant. The father’s name was Raymond Lavigne, who to her was a wealthy, older man but was actually a con who made his living by seducing women and stealing their funds and running away with them. Many of those women fell pregnant and Lionel has a large amount of half-siblings he eventually meets later in life

-Remy Gaspard was a member of the brotherhood and he recruited Opal, who gladly accepted. It was there she met another novice, Charles Dorian, who also had a son the same age as Lionel. It was through his mother that Lionel became friends with Charles’s son, Arno Dorian. The two boys were inseparable until Charles was murdered and Arno was taken in by Grandmaster De La Serre. Lionel wouldn’t see Arno again until they were adults, when Arno joined the brotherhood

-Lionel only saw his father Raymond a few times as a child, when he came to bother Opal for money. Raymond often got to her by threatening to hurt Lionel. In return for money, Raymond was forced to spend time with his son who take him to all sorts of places a kid shouldn’t be (Bars, brothels, gambling dens). This angered Opal and she denied Raymond when he asked for money again when Lionel was 10. Raymond responded by sending thugs to attack Lionel and Opal. Opal nearly died in the process while Lionel ran into the barn to hide. The thugs responded by setting the barn on fire while Lionel was still inside. He was saved by Remy, and wasn’t injured that badly, but developed a fear of fire because of it

-Lionel wanted to follow in his mother’s footsteps to join the brotherhood, but slowly came more rebellious as he got older, thus leading him to ditch training. This strained his relationship with his mother somewhat. His teenage years were a learning period for him, for better or worse. He got into a lot of trouble but also found out a lot about himself growing up. Like around fifteen years old, he realized he was pansexual when he had a crush on one of his male friends. He hid his orientation from his mother but had several flings, many of them with much older men and women, who manipulated him most of the time

-Opal didn’t find out about her son’s orientation until he was barely seventeen, when he stumbled home beaten and bruised. He had snuck out to a party where one of the older men he had seen briefly beat him after Lionel broke it off. Lionel broke down and told his mother everything, coming out to her. Opal accepted her son for who he was, who he was attracted to, and told him what he had happened to him was never his fault. This was the moment where Lionel and Opal’s relationship started to mend. He spent a lot more time with his mother, learning fast in the ways of the brotherhood, affectively staying out of trouble

-Yet Lionel still had a reputation as a bit of a smartass and somewhat reckless. This annoyed many of the assassins in Giverny as Lionel was still good at his job, he was just very unpredictable. This was around the time Opal had retired early from the brotherhood, having faced conflict with the assassin council, particularly Bellec’s fanatical views. She aired her worries that Bellec could go too far but the council didn’t listen. Still, she believed it would do some good for her son to send him to Paris, for the experience to learn under other people than her

-Lionel was paired with Georgette as his “tutor” once he got to Paris and he quickly tested her patience only on their first mission. He didn’t mean for Georgette to be injured and wanted to make it up to her, but she was less than eager. Yet he also finds her pretty and a person he deems “interesting”

———Playlist———

Cooler Than Me-Mike Posner (feat. Big Sean)

Dead To Me-Kali Uchis

Everything She Wants-Wham!

Freaking Out The Neighborhood-Mac DeMarco

Je Te Laisserai Des Mots-Patrick Watson

Like A Tattoo-Sade

Smooth Operator-Sade

Seventeen Going Under-Sam Fender

Aesthetic——

A musket leaning against a table; an ascot tied around a collar; lipstick marks all over a shirt collar; the sun tarot card; a bouquet of red roses; a lose white tunic; a rapier resting on a man’s hip; gold coins; sun rays hitting bed sheets; a crowd at a fancy ball; a spilled glass of wine; a golden tabby cat curled up near the window; a fancy eighteenth-century suit; a half-finished love letter; a faceless person in a crowd; a tear-streaked face; burned papers

#assassin's creed #assassins creed oc #assassins creed unity #assassins creed unity oc:Lionel Poussin #asscreed #Moodboard #oc aesthetic #oc #my oc’s #original character #ac Unity

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mariaofdoranelle · 2 years

Text

Royal Rebels — Chapter 2: The Peace Attempt

Masterlist

I tried to make this the least info-dumpy I could, but we really need to know what brought Aelin to Mistward lol anyway I hope you like it!!

Warnings: angst, language, very low violence

Word count: 4,1k

O==[::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::>

Stop burning your hair

Aelin dropped the dishes she was already aggressively scrubbing and hissed, “Stop infiltrating my mind.” She had a feeling their true identity would be known soon, considering the amount of times Dorian worked on his magic whenever he couldn’t smell anyone close.

“I need to practice Maeve’s powers with someone. Preferably before your hair fall off.”

Aelin groaned. “I’m just straightening it.” She couldn’t wait to go home, where her hair didn’t get frizzy because of the humidity. Where she had a protein-based diet that helped her training, even though Emrys was a miracle worker with the few resources he had. God, it had been a bit more than a month since Aelin left the castle, but she missed Phillipa’s dessert trays terribly. Her servant would be scandalized if she saw the way Aelin was keeping her clothes now.

I won’t get mad if you decide to go back, you know.

Aelin jumped on her spot and swore while clutching her chest. Dorian seemed firm, but she had known those shuffling feet for years. “If you’re using mind tricks to make me quit the mission, it’s working. This is getting beyond creepy, you’re teaching me how to block this thing first thing tomorrow.” Aelin looked around the kitchen and tried to keep her voice light when she said, “Besides, this isn’t even how it works. My mom told me it’s more like a story she tells in your head.” Dorian was frowning at a pile of cups and cleared his throat. Aelin had avoided this topic for hours, now the only thing she could do was brace herself for what was coming.

“Maybe your friends from Doranelle could give us some information on her.”

Oh, now he decided to use his voice? She could feel Dorian’s gaze on her, but decided to focus back on scrubbing the dishes. It was impossible not to hear the gossip about Rowan’s exile, but she didn’t know how much of that was true. Was he just faking this situation, like he did in Terrasen? Was he never lying about the motives that led him there? That seemed unlikely. Aelin would be lying if she said the idea of bumping into Rowan again hadn’t crossed her mind as she planned her journey along with Dorian, keeping last spring out of her mind was harder every inch she neared Doranelle.

Aelin’s thoughts were racing, but they still weren’t going anywhere. When Emrys introduced her to Rowan and Fenrys earlier that day, she just greeted the two and rushed to the vegetables. Fast and indifferent. But she was so shocked she did a terrible job cutting them, so Dorian used his phantom hands to cover for her. She ground her teeth as her whole body tensed. Trying to figure Rowan out had been too distracting last year, she couldn’t afford to go there again considering the urgency of the mission she had now.

“They’re not my friends,” she eventually acknowledged.

“You wound me, Celaena.”

Both Aelin and Dorian jerked to the source of that interruption. Fenrys had just teleported to the kitchen, since the doors were too creaky for someone to sneak up on them like he did. Fenrys Moonbeam, in all his blonde, tan, smirking glory. Just like Aelin and half of her castle remembered. But probably in different ways.

Their intruder leaned on a wooden table. He wore his trademark smirk, but there was something off about it. “I smelled something burning across the hall and figured you’d be here.”

Dorian just looked at Aelin and he didn’t need to infiltrate her mind again for her to know his thoughts. I told you so. Then he looked around the room and said, “I’m going to get my beans.”

Seeing Fenrys’s confused face when Dorian left, Aelin added, “Dorian’s addicted to anascaul beans. He brought a pack and we cook it at night.”

“I remember them. They only grow in harsh winters, right?”

“Yeah.”

Fenrys was running his thumb through a smashed corner of the table. God, that was awkward. Aelin was feeling a pang on guilt about what she said before. Despite being wary of him when they first met, she really liked Fenrys. She shouldn’t let him get caught in the crossfire between Rowan and her. Aelin took a seat and settled another beside her for Fenrys.

“How’s life as an exile?”

That owned her a small smile. “Better than I imagined. Rowan and I have plans to grovel to Galan so he can give us a job.” He sat beside her and sighed. “I don’t give a fuck about not living in Doranelle anymore. Being poor really sucks, though.”

Aelin chuckled a little, but then asked, “Do you regret doing it?”

Fenrys frowned and bit the inside of his cheek. “No. In fact, I wish I had stood up against Maeve sooner. If I could go back in time, the only thing I would change is the way I did it.”

“That was so dumb,” Aelin giggled, and then the two of them were chuckling at Fenrys’s disaster of a murder attempt.

“I thought you were loyal to her.” As much as she wanted, Aelin couldn’t bring herself to ask what she was actually aching to know. What happened in the past year? What made Rowan change his mind? As if sensing her thoughts, Fenrys was the most solemn Aelin had ever seen him when he answered her.

“I’ve always been loyal to Rowan, not Maeve.”

Aelin was scrambling her mind for an answer when Dorian came back and filled a pot with his beans. Fenrys’s eyebrows went to his hairline.

“What the hell are you doing, pretty boy?”

“Cooking my beans,” Dorian said with a shrug.

“You need to sort and rinse them first.” Fenrys grabbed the beans and spread them on a kitchen towel. “You know, I’m a farm-bred warrior. If you two need anything, just tell me.”

Aelin raised an eyebrow at him. “Do you happen to know how to make shoes? I asked Emrys where could I find a pair, but he just gave me two blocks of wood and some leather hides.”

Fenrys’s cackle boomed through the kitchen as Dorian bit his lip trying not to laugh at his friend as well. In fact, Dorian better not laugh at her. When she came to him, he had absolutely no idea what to do with the tools too.

“When I say I was raised on a farm, I actually mean a massive manor in the southeast.” Fenrys grimaced at them. “Anyway, you can buy shoes in the city, but it’s a day trip. And I don’t mean just peasantry life, you can count me in for whatever thing you’re doing, it’s not like I have a job to keep me busy. I’m sure Rowan feels the same.”

Aelin paled as her mind started racing. Fenrys gave her two kicks in the gut as he sorted beans like it was nothing. One for figuring out her intentions, another for suggesting she would ask for Rowan’s help.

Fenrys cocked his head with an amused smile. “Should I believe you came here just to enjoy the weather?”

“That was the same thing I was asking myself in Terrasen.” Aelin refused to back down.

Dorian interjected. “Please. Don’t. I’ve read about this discussion too many times in Aelin’s letters already.”

Fenrys leaned back on his chair. “Don’t worry, pretty boy. If I remember correctly, Aelin and Rowan had a truce.” Fenrys smirked at Aelin while answering Dorian.

“A peace treaty,” she said through gritted teeth, “That was very brief and ineffective.”

“Maybe we should make another peace treaty tomorrow morning.”

Every instinct Aelin had was telling her to back out, but she couldn’t. That was Dorian’s mission, not hers. When Aelin looked at her friend, he was looking back at her, uncertainty filling his eyes and she knew why. As much as Dorian didn’t want to do anything that made her uncomfortable, they were both eager to go home. Talking to people who last week were close to Maeve would be beneficial.

“I’ll be at the upstairs study tomorrow morning after breakfast. If you and Whitethorn decide to go or not, I don’t care.”

Fenrys opened his mouth, but then glanced at the table and turned back to Dorian. ”You need to discard the broken beans as well.”

Dorian wore a pinched expression, but still let Fenrys teach him how to treat his beans. Good. Aelin’s mind was still going in circles, she had less than one night to recollect herself and plan their next meeting. There would be time to hang out with her friends later.

˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜

Entering her arms and armor closet, the first thing she noticed was Rowan sat on a cushioned chair, unbothered by being requested to a mysterious meeting with Aelin of the Wildfire at a room filled with weapons. Aelin herself knew grown men who would be pissing their pants by now.

“Thank you for your assistance, Philippa.” Aelin had every intention to keep this conversation as private as possible. That was why, even though she had picked her most trusted servant to escort Rowan to one of the most secluded areas of the castle, Philippa had to be dismissed for this conversation.

Having no idea how this would go, so she decided to eat first.

“Won’t you at least drink the tea, Whitethorn?”

“Is it poisoned?”

Aelin gazed at him, sending a too-sweet smile. “Would you drink it if it was?”

Rowan glowered at her, but poured himself some cardamom tea.

“Are you too good for the food also?”

“I don’t like sweets.”

Aelin wrinkled her nose. “Disgusting. I should’ve seen this coming from you.”

Rowan took a deep breath. “Why am I here?”

“We’re here for a peace treaty,” she prompted while straightening her posture and picking a sword that was near her.”

He raised his eyebrows. “In here?” Looking around, he said, “Your father failed to show me this room of the Royal Armories. It’s quite impressive.”

She hoped Rowan couldn’t see how happy his comment made her. Aelin’s closet was her baby. A smile began to form on her face, but then she gripped the sword tighter, as if it would help her control her emotions. “Do you want peace or not?”

“You know, provoking me until I try to kill you is a terrible tactic. After five days of this, I’m still not sure if you want to have a reason to officially execute me, or just banish me from Terrasen.”

Aelin sighed. “Honestly, I’d be happy with either.”

The corner of his mouth quirked up. “That’s... Not surprising at all. Go on with the truce.”

“Treaty.” She narrowed her eyes at him.

Rowan bit his lip. “Forgive me, Milady. What does this treaty entail?”

Aelin had to glance away to her sword. This wasn’t about Rowan, she just had poor reactions to being called milady. Clearing her throat, she explained, “I’ll give my best to stay out of your way, but for every day I leave you alone, you must train at least two hours with General Ashryver and The Bane. I don’t need to mention that if you try to kill me, the peace treaty is over, right?”

Rowan pursed his lips and leaned back on his seat, crossing his arms. “Why are you doing this?”

“You and I aren’t the only ones being affected by this feud.” Which meant her family and the council were pissed ever since she burned his door.

“So you’re telling me that you’ll stop whether I agree with this or not, the only difference is that I’ll have to work now.”

“Wrong. The Treaty is the only guarantee that I’ll leave you alone.” Actually, he was right. Somehow, the people at the castle started to like Fenrys and his dull bastard friend, making her look like the paranoid one. She’d think of another tactic soon.

He raised one eyebrow at her. She narrowed her eyes at him. If this was a battle of wills, she wasn’t going to give up soon.

Rowan sighed. “What makes you think your cousin will agree to train with me?”

Aelin had to hide a snort. If only he knew. Leaning back, she answered, “Let’s say he’s an admirer of your legacy as a warrior. All of the glaring you receive from him is out of loyalty. If you agree to be at peace with me, you’re at peace with him too.”

Rowan pressed and wet his lips as he considered her offer, which made her mirror his movement and immediately focus back on the sword on her lap. Just to give him some visual privacy until he surrendered.

“Okay, then. I agree with your terms.”

They both got up from their seats. Aelin offered a handshake, but immediately regretted it as his touch sent a thrill through her body. A little breathless, she established, “The Whitethorn-Galathynius Treaty starts now.” She tried to burn his hand a little, but he used his ice magic to block her attack while sending her a knowing look and swallowing. The bastard.

˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜˜

On the next day, Aelin woke up knowing what she had to do. Eat while cooking by snatching little bits of the food here and there, and then be the first to get at the meeting. Except that, when she got to the hall, it was easy to scent a trail of pine and snow leading to the study.

When she opened the door, Rowan was sat on one of the four wooden chairs available, behind a equally wooden desk. He didn’t portray any emotion, and neither did she. In that moment, Aelin was nothing but a blank mind and a pounding heartbeat.

“I wasn’t expecting to meet you again, Celaena.”

“Didn’t you eat?” Aelin moved one chair, sitting right in front of him with crossed arms.

“I drank water.”

She rolled her eyes. By her lack of response, he demanded, “What are you doing here?” Why did he fucking care? Rowan didn’t even have a country to protect or call his anymore.

“I went to visit Galan in Varese and my friend dragged me here.” She tilted her head, studying him. “Isn’t that your standard answer, Whitethorn?” He didn’t let out a single sign of his emotions, but she knew his hands would be likely pressed into fists, hidden behind the table. He seemed to be better composed today. Rowan’s reputation made him sound pretty apathetic, but Aelin was quick to disagree on that. From the first day, it hadn’t been difficult to rile rim up.

“Is this why you called this meeting?”

Aelin took a deep breath and looked right into the green eyes that seemed to swallow her whole. “Why should I trust an old nemesis who committed treason?”

Rowan blinked, but maintained eye contact. “You shouldn’t. At least I wouldn’t.” He sounded so genuine it threw her off-balance. Again. So she blurted the first thing that crossed her mind.

“If I knew your murder attempts were so poorly executed, I wouldn’t have put up that much of a fight about your visit.” Aelin meant that as an insult, but it was easy to see Rowan’s poor reaction. At first his eyes sparkled, followed by a twitch on his facial muscles that for a millisecond tugged on the left end of his lips. If anyone had taken their eyes off him for a blink, they would miss it. But Aelin didn’t. After schooling his face into neutrality, Rowan narrowed his eyes at her. On that exact moment, both Fenrys and Dorian entered the study.

The blonde male gave them a wide grin and turned to Dorian, saying, “I told you Rowan would be here already! I know the drill sergeant like the back of my hand.” Said drill sergeant just gave an exasperated sigh.

“So, where was she in the story?” Apparently, Dorian meant business today.

Rowan tilted his head at him. “The Princess refuses to tell me anything.”

“Why would I explain to you what I’m doing here if you never deigned to tell me what the fuck you were doing in Terrasen?”

“Are we really having this discussion again?”

“Fuck you!”

Rowan’s eyes crinkle as he seemed to say with his gaze, You’d love that, wouldn’t you?

Aelin’s face flushed with embarrassment, anger, something else she wouldn’t dare think about. “Now that I think about it, I can actually kill you, you know? Maeve doesn’t give a fuck about you. In fact, now there isn’t a soul that cares about you enough to start a war,” she snapped.

“Go on, then.” Rowan’s shoulders were completely strained, and she could see the vessel on the right side on his neck that gave a slight appearance when he was angry. He explained through clenched teeth, “Don’t you want to kill me? Kill me. Now.”

Yes. She wanted to kill him. Badly. Aelin had waited an entire year for this, didn’t she? She frowned at him and rose from her chair, clutching the dagger she had hidden underneath her clothes. Taking hesitant steps towards him, she bit the inside of her cheek. He was looking at her without moving a single muscle to fight. After so long, would she kill in a study in the middle of nowhere? They should probably schedule a duel or—

Dorian decided it was a good idea to interrupt her murder and cleared his throat. “Maybe I should begin the meeting?”

Fuck, she was the worst friend ever. Dorian actually wanted something from Rowan, and she nearly killed him. One second more and he would be dead.

Then, Dorian started fill the boys in, telling them in detail about how Maeve sent his father a letter notifying her first visit in six hundred years to discuss a partnership between Doranelle and Adarlan. And how his idiot father thought it was an amazing idea. A few months later, she was very well received. The Glass Castle’s hospitality was so great she felt free to play with the King of Adarlan’s mind until she enslaved him with a blood-oath. It didn’t even take five minutes of her time. When she turned to Dorian to do the same, he shifted into a cockroach and ran for his life. Maeve tried to catch him, and even tried to murder him by stomping on his roach form, but then Dorian managed to run and reach Orynth to seek help. And there they were.

“Fuck.”

That was Fenrys’s only response as he stared into the void with a very pale face. When he clutched his stomach, Rowan got up and put his two hands on his friend’s shoulder like it was an involuntary response.

“Fenrys has an emotional stomach. I’m healing him so he won’t throw up,” he explained after receiving equally puzzled looks from Aelin and Dorian.

“Yep. That’s the only reason I keep him around.” Rowan looked at the ceiling and sighed, but it was clear he was trying to stop his cheeks from twitching.

Dorian tilted his head at Fenrys. “You’re in the army.” He wasn’t anymore, but Aelin didn’t feel like pointing it out.

“Yeah, that never helps.” Aelin hadn’t seen him like this in Terrasen, but maybe it was because things were pretty smooth over there for him. For a moment, she wondered how it must have been for him doing Hellas knows what on Maeve’s behalf.

Rowan cleared his throat. Still with his hands on Fenrys’s shoulders, he made eye contact with Dorian and asked, “How are you?”

“Determined. I didn’t do enough to protect my country. That won’t happen again.”

“Good.” Rowan looked at both Aelin and Dorian now. “What are you going to do?”

She sighed. “The council gave us six months to solve this however we like, but their main condition is that we can’t start a war.” Rowan raised his eyebrows, but didn’t say anything. Yes, she knew it was an impossible task. She also knew she could totally do this. Peacefully. Because she was a peaceful future leader. Which made her straighten her posture and continue, “That’s why we’ll kill her very discreetly.” Doranelle couldn’t start a war against Terrasen based on a suspicion, right?

“The same way I tried to kill Maeve very discreetly?”

Aelin squinted her eyes at the buzz-kill. So typical of Rowan. She could enter the castle, kill the bitch, make it look like a robbery or maybe a very sudden deadly disease, and leave. No one would question it, the female was old as dust. Literally four thousand years old. The oldest Fae alive. Could a tree outlive her? Aelin had no idea.

Fenrys tilted his head. “So discreetly you didn’t bring Aedion? I’m surprised he didn’t hide on the ship so he could come with you.” Aelin bit her lip. Yeah. About that.

Aelin could sense the laughter Dorian was repressing, but he swallowed it and said, “Of course he came.” But then his body started trembling, and he could barely manage to complete, “With the whole Bane!” Aelin’s cheeks immediately flushed. She would kill Dorian. In his sleep. And she’d tell people it was Maeve so she could kill her to allegedly avenge the death of her best friend.

Fenrys was cackling, but managed to joke at her, “You want to discreetly kill Maeve with an entire army behind you?”

Aelin gaped, incredulous. He was not as funny as he thought he was. “Excuse you. They’re in Varese! Until I send for them or Aedion grows too impatient.” But then she smiled at their friends’s amusement. Her overbearing parents made The Bane cross the ocean because they were too worried about leaving her alone with Dorian. It was so ridiculous she started laughing with them too. Except for Rowan, of course, only stared at them, paying close attention to the conversation.

After they recomposed themselves, Dorian carried on, “And there’s the part where Aelin and I disagree. She wants to study Maeve’s defenses and strike, but I’d rather pull some strings to degenerate her reputation as a queen first, so no one will come after us if things go bad.”

Fenrys’s laughter got bitter. “Her reputation as a queen is already fucked. The peasants pay five different taxes, the city’s too violent because everyone’s starving, the nobles want to help Maeve before everything goes to shit but she won’t let them. Do you want me to keep going?” Seeing his friend was better already, Rowan took a step back and and blinked at Aelin and Dorian a few times.

“So you two came to a foreign land you’ve never visited with a massive army you don’t know what to do with and thought it would be a good idea to plan along the way?” After his angry remark, the room was deadly silent.

“I have many plans,” Aelin barked after a few moments.

“You have many ideas and absolutely no consistent plan.”

Aelin glared at him. “Do you want to tell me a few tips on how to kill the most heavily guarded monarch in the world, then? Because that worked out so well for you!” Aelin hadn’t noticed she was screaming on her feet until the room fell silent and she was being stared at by everyone. Great. She took a few steps back, leaned on the wall with crossed arms and glared at Rowan.

He only took a deep breath. “I’m sending for Sellene.” His cousin? That works side by side with Maeve? What the fuck?

“You’re kidding me.”

“I won’t act behind her back again.”

Aelin gaped. He didn’t seem to be kidding. “Did I invite you to be my killing buddy?”

Before anyone could answer her, a demi-Fae with unusually nice clothing and very deep onyx eyes entered the room, making Aelin hiss, “This room is already being used.” It was Rowan’s fault, he air shielded every room he was in, and then no one could know it was being occupied by the noise. She could sense Rowan’s shield on her skin, and in the next second the demi-Fae slammed her face-first on the wall, pinning all of her limbs. At first, Aelin froze. Her heart was pounding as she thought of what to do. No one knew her real identity, and Mistward rarely received visitors.

Without thinking much further, she barked at demi-Fae stranger, “That’s fucking rude, I just moved in here!”

Rowan was already up from his chair when he demanded, “What the fuck do you want, Lorcan?”

So considerate of him to start negotiations when Aelin’s face was already flat against the wall.

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#rowaelin #rowan whitethorn #aelin galathynius #rowaelin fanfiction #throne of glass fanfiction #rowan x aelin #throne of glass #my writing #Royal Rebels #chapter 2

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feysandfeels · 1 year

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IT’S VAMPIRE TIME BESTIES. BITE BITE MFS.

Firs of all lets enjoy my background. Beautiful. Stunning. Dramatic

Now.

Did someone ask for this? No. However I am in the second chapter and I have thoughts. Decarte would be proud.

Special shoutout to my eternal love @cassianandfenrysaremyboyos because she’s the one who recommended this book to me. So if you’re annoyed with my thread, go complain to her.

Bites bites.

1. I already like Isolde. I don’t know if its the complete irreverence with which she regards her own sexuality, the fact that she is 26 (god bless someone who is my age), the fact that she is a brunette or that she grew up training to be a fighter.

2. There is an Alucard looking dude in the woods and I, as an Alucard slut, say thank you and I am willing to become his humble hoe. Clearly the vampire prince... but I love this trope of “random dude in the woods who I am attracted to turns out to be big baddie”. Also, points for the man, monster, lover, line... that got me.

3. Poor Killian?? They called him bad dust (Colombian colloquial way of saying you are bad at sex... if you are good then it’s good dust)

4. I’m already here for the fact that Isolde is to be queen and no one is like “oh but she’s a woman”. Solid points to this world because of this.

5. Also solid points because this book gave me two minutes of normal narration and then it went oh “HORNY HOURS START NOW”. Much appreciated, now I know what I am heading into.

6. Oh she’s a cynical romantic? Are we besties Isolde?

7. Also how are we feeling regarding Jamie Campbell Bower as this Alucard dude... whatever his real name is I will call him Alucard. But yea I am feeling Jamie. Either him or Daniel Sharman... but he is already my Dorian.. and Jamie does have more vampire vibes.

8. Right so.. the mom is dead. Is the mom a vampire? Idk Idk maybe Idk.

9. Killian is a little snitch. And snitches end up in DITCHES. Little bitch.

10. Also that father is dead. He will not survive this book or series.

11. Papi, Commander Killian, shut up! Let the sexy blond speak. If he wants marriage then we must consider it, for the good of the people.

12. Alucard really did say “love at first sight”. The man is a romantic, a hopeless full romantic. See? nuance.

13. ohhhhhh forced marriage trope?

14. Kinda think that Alucard and the kin would have a wonderful husband-father in law relationship. Shame they are enemies. OH MY GOD! ENEMIES TO HUSBAND/FATHER IN LAW LOVE. OH MY GOD.

15.well marraige it’s not about having kids Isolde.. have you thought about that? maybe the man saw you in the forest and decided he loved you and wanted to spend eternity with you. Sometimes it happens.

16. “you assume I want a wife, I came for a queen” OH MY JESUS ALUCARD WOW, SIR. “I am offering the promise of pleasure” sir i am IN PUBLIC!

17. “tomorrow I would marry our conqueror” Post colonialism trope besties.

18. I think it should surprise no one who has been following me for a while that if I could I would 100% want to be a vampire. Yes I would go through the process of transformation and yes I am willing to live eternally. I do not care. I would be a vampire.

19. Is she going to? oh okay... she’s going to cope with the whole day by masturbating? okay yes. It was one of those days I guess.

20. Killian for the love of fuck stop being so inconvenient. I swear to god you’re making the cardinal sin of being annoying.

“drive a knife to his heart and then we can wed” AJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA What the fuck man? have you not been paying attention.

He truly gave me no choice but to laugh

21. There was this one time Isolde went like “there’s only wrath in me” and I was like #CROSSOVER!

22.Bestie what do you mean you weren’t made for running? Aren’t you a trained fighter?

23. OH he calls her my sweet?! *bites lip not in a sexy way but like in an “i need to quiet my scream way”*

24. Honestly baby you giving Alucard the “intel” that Kilian wanted to kill him is not the news that you think it is... it’s like telling a teenager that his obsolete toddler brother is after him.

25. “I promise not to kill your people, but I do not make any promises regarding the life of your commander”.

Me *serving champagne*: oh well, we lost more in the great rains

26. My girl really agreed to this marriage proposal because she was *that* horny and I fear besties, I fear, I cannot judge her for it.

27. “any attempt will be met with my Wrath”, “as if your Wrath could be any worse” #CROSSOVER

28. I am so Alucard coded because I too use “my sweet” as a threat and nickname.

29. Lets be real Killian’s sex move is “I will tell your father”.

30. oohhhhhhhhh Isolde is the reincarnation of Alucard’s love?? Please please please please let it not be her mother who was with Alucard. I am begging.

31. Yes of course you’d want to be armed in your wedding. Attending your own wedding without at least one knife hidden in you is just tactless and calls for a passionless marriage. Everybody knows that.

32. Lol how fucking horny do you have to be to be trembling when you try to control it.

33. “Soon, I hope you find pride in being my bride” This man is not even denying how P*ssy whipped he is.

34. Wait he can read minds? EDWARD CULLEN IS THAT YOU MY LOVE? Alucard ft Edward Cullen?? Yeeeeeesss don’t mind if i do.

35. Want to bet the song in her music box will be something Alucard remembers and when he listens to it he will freeze and be like “how do you know that song?” and then some big reveal about her mother and their past lives... yada yada yada.

36. Also what do we feel about the theory that she was promised to him since birth or something like that and her mother, scared, hid her pregnancy with this human husband king and then faked her death to protect her baby further.... maybe the human king somewhat knew of it... so that’s why he didn’t put that much of a fight.

37. Is it going to be a public consummation of the marriage?? Like right in front of Killian? JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA ah no.

38. They send her to fuck in a room that has not been dusted?! NO WHAT THE FUCK. At least clean the whole room. Ugh.

39. “I might hate you but the sex is so good to lovers”. Isolde bestie enjoy it! Enjoy it for the both of us. Morals do not exist.

40. Oh my god she really did stab him. Respect. Wow. Of course that will turn him on and barely make a scratch, but respect.

41. oh and he has scars... I love scars.. I fucking love scars.

42. Oh my jesus.. “scream my name so that your commander knows how much pleasure I give you” JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA in this house we want to annoy the shit of Killian. AJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA ZERO RESPECT TO THAT MAN TRULY.

43. when Isolde said that Alucard looked at her like he had been starving and all that... I’m telling you he already knew her and had literally been waiting for her for centuries or something.. I’m even willing to say that all this war was to find her.. his promised queen

44. “Because as much as we were fighting for dominance he had given me the one thing I was looking for... “ she’s going to say orgasm isn’t she? My girl Isolde is about to sell her kingdom because the power of d*ck is that strong, and that doesn’t have me questioning her morals.. rather like... wanting to see for myself said power. You know, for science.

#Luisa reads #Luisa reads KOBAB #KOBAB #King of Battle and Blood #Isolde #and that blond dude #Isolde x Adrian #Adrian x Isolde #Adrian

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frommindtopen · 2 years

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Have you ever heard the phrase, “I’d sell my soul for a…” followed by something like, “a cold beer,” or “a million dollars,” or “to see her get her comeuppance?” They used to say that “I’d sell my soul” phrase in the old days, you’d hear it in movies or read it in books. And sometimes plots were built around the concept—people selling their souls for gain or fame. Damn Yankees was a Broadway musical where a guy was willing to sell his soul for his baseball team to beat the NY Yankees. Dorian Gray sold his soul in order to keep looking young. Selling souls has been such a popular theme throughout time, Wiki has a whole entry devoted just to Deals with the Devil in Popular Culture.

But what is our soul really worth?

We walk around every day feeling like we have this valuable thing inside us. After all, God wants it, the devil wants it, those are the two most powerful beings in the universe, right? If they want our soul, it must be important. Except I’m not convinced it’s as valuable a commodity as we believe.

First of all, although I wouldn’t try it, I’ll bet you right now, if I asked to open negotiations with the devil about my soul, I wouldn’t hear a word back. Anytime I ever heard someone say, “I’d sell my soul for…” I never saw a response come in from a nether-worldly beast or Satan, himself. And I am fairly sure that no one could really conjure up much interest from Satan at this point, no matter who their soul might be. He’s already pretty much got us. Most of us sold our souls to him the first time we lied to our moms as toddlers or when we bit another kid in anger or squawled at our parents because we wanted our way. That sealed the deal. The devil doesn’t need our current offers.

Secondly, if God really wanted our soul so badly, He could just take it. The only reason we have it in the first place is because He gave it to us. I imagine it being something like a parent giving their baby a stuffed animal then playing a game where the parent pretends he/she can’t pull the toy out of the baby’s hands. A parent will naturally do that kind of thing to foster a feeling of empowerment in the child. Maybe that’s what God is doing to us with our souls. We can have them, but they’re not exactly ours to barter with—and He could surely take our soul back any time He wanted to. It’s just nicer if we willingly give it over, lovingly give it over—that’s what God probably finds valuable. Just like a parent wouldn’t care about a proffered stuffed animal, it’s the love expressed by the child who extends it that’s valued.

On the other hand, the only reason the devil wants our souls is to aggravate God. Satan doesn’t treasure us. Our soul value is found in God’s love for us. If God didn’t care about us, Satan would have no use for our souls. Maybe he could find some amusement in tormenting us, but we’re basically worthless to him otherwise. There’s just not much to sell there.

Our souls are battered, stained, smelly, sometimes even lost, but when God comes to get them, He’ll clean ‘em up and maybe He’ll be able to put them to better use than we ever did.

#jesus #god #devil #satan #souls #soul #selling souls #soul worth #Jesus #God #faith #Christianity

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aeterna-auroral-avenger · 3 months

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(Warning: This is a long one. I apologize in advance 😂)

Ooh, you got a lot of books for Christmas? So did I. It's pretty much all I really want and have to give my mom a list so she doesn't buy books I already have lol. On your TBR I only recognize the author Court Stevens from your previous recs, but the titles sound intriguing! They sound kinda like thrillers, I'm guessing?

I think I'm a bit tied on whether I like hardcover more or paperbacks. Honestly, as long as I have a physical book, I'm satisfied. Though sometimes it's easier to hold open a hardcover and not worry about the spine breaking. That hurts my soul 😂

Like I mentioned before, I try to avoid ebooks at all costs. I stare at screens enough as it is for work and stuff, and reading is supposed to be relaxing and staring at screens isn't that. Plus, it's much more satisfying to hold a real book and see your progress with a bookmark instead of a percentage number.

I haven't read many classics tbh, but I loved The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. I figure her books are considered classic mysteries by this point. Ngl, I felt betrayed by the end and if you read it, I feel like you'll know why. Another one I re-read last year was Call of the Wild by Jack London. I hadn't picked it up in forever. I just saw it sitting in my drawer so I re-read. I still like it after all these years, despite how graphic it is. Some other classics I'd like to try are The Picture of Dorian Gray and also The Great Gatsby. Have you read those? What do you think of them?

-Book Anon

There's never any need to apologize to me for the length of the ask, Book Anon. It's totally okay!

LOL I had to give out a book list for Christmas to avoid duplicates too! It's just easier for all involved if I make a list, especially since we all know I actually want these books because I picked them out.

And yes! Court Stevens was on my recommendations list. She's pretty cool. She's been leaning towards some thrillers lately. Her latest couple have been categorized as such, but they're all very good. I always support her books because not only are they good, but I actually know her personally. Her hometown is like 40 minutes away from mine, and she was one of my professors in college. I probably already told you that lol, so if I did, my bad. 😅

"That hurts my soul" LOL I can understand that. But at the same time, paperback spines that show they've been opened a plethora of times just means I love them so.

"Plus, it's much more satisfying to hold a real book and see your progress with a bookmark instead of a percentage number." Book Anon, you're my kind of people. Yes, just...yes.

Honestly, there's so many Agatha Christie books that I'm a little overwhelmed on wanting to start those. I think I would like them, but I've never read them so I have no idea. I did like the latest rendition of Murder on the Orient Express movie though Death on the Nile depressed me. We'll see.

I read The Great Gatsby in high school, and I remember I enjoyed it back then. I also remember reading Call of the Wild in middle school, but that's the only thing about it I remember. LOL I just remember reading it.

#tb responds #book anon #books #reading #paperback #hardback #agatha christie #the great gatsby #call of the wild

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aspenmissing · 10 months

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𝚁𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚎 𝟼𝟼𝟼 (𝙿𝚝 𝟸)

Theo hands Cassie a cup of tea, Dean sits beside her protectively.

"Maybe you could throw a coupla of shots in that" Cassie says. Hands shaking, rattling the cup.

"You didn't see who was driving the truck" Sam says.

"It seemed to be no one. Everything was moving so fast. And then it was just gone. Why didn't it kill us?" Cassie asks.

"Whoever was controlling the truck wants you afraid first" Theo says.

"Mrs Robinson, Cassie said that your husband saw the truck before he died" Mrs Robinson is shaking.

"Mom?"

"Oh. Martin was under a lot of stress. You can't be sure about what he was seeing" Mrs Robinson says.

"Well after tonight I think we can be reasonably sure he was seeing a truck. What happened tonight, you and Cassie are marked. Ok? Your daughter could die. So, if you know something now would be a really good time to tell us about it" Dean says.

"Dean..."

"Yes. Yes, he said he saw a truck"

"Did he know who it belonged to?" Sam asks.

"He thought he did" Mrs Robinson said.

"Who was that?"

"Cyrus. A man names Cyrus" she said, getting upset. Sam, Theo and Dean look at each other, Dean reaches for his bag and shows Mrs Robinson the newspaper article about Dorian's death.

"Is this Cyrus?" Dean asks.

"Cyrus Dorian died more than 40 years ago"

"How do you know he died, Mrs Robinson? The paper's said he went missing. How do you know he died?" Theo asks, softly.

"We were all very young. I dated Cyrus a while, I was also seeing Martin...in secret of course. Inter-racial couples didn't go over too well back then. When I broke it off with Cyrus and when he found out about Martin, I don't know, he, changed. His hatred. His hatred was frightening" Mrs Robinson says, sounding upset.

"And Cyrus?" Mrs Robinson then breaks down.

"The day we set for the wedding, was the day someone set fire to the church. There was a children's choir practising in there. They all died"

"Did the attack stop after that?" Sam asks, softly.

"No! There was one more. One night that truck came for Martin. Cyrus beat him something terrible. But Martin, you see, Martin got loose. And he started hitting Cyrus and he just kept hitting him and hitting him" she says, sobbing.

"Why didn't you call the cops?"

"This was forty years ago. He called on his friends, Clayton Soames and Jimmy Anderson, and they put Cyrus' body into the truck and they rolled it into the swamp at the end of his land and all three of them kept that secret all of these years"

"And now all three are gone"

"And so is Mayor Todd. Now he said that you of all people would know he is not a racist. Why would he say that?"

"He was a good man. He was a young deputy back then investigating Cyrus' disappearance. Once he figured out what Martin and the others had done, he...he did nothing, because he also knew what Cyrus had done"

"Why didn't you tell me?" Cassie asks.

"I thought I was protecting them. And now there's no one left to protect"

"Yes, there is" Dean looks at Cassie. So does Mrs Robinson, looking shaken.

Sam leans against the Impala while Theo sits on the hood, swinging her legs. The two watch Dean walk up and down.

"Ah, my life was so simple. Just school, exams, papers on polycentric cultural norms"

"So, I guess we saved you from a boring existence" Dean says.

"Yeah, occasionally I miss boring"

"So, this killer truck"

"I miss conversations that didn't start with 'this killer truck'. Ahhh" The twins laugh a little.

"Well, this Cyrus guy. Evil on a level that infected even his truck. When he died, the swamp became his tomb, and his spirit was dormant for 40 years" Theo says,

"So, what woke it up?"

"The construction on his house. Or the destruction" Theo replies.

"Right. Demolition or remodelling can awaken spirits, make them restless"

"Mmm-hmm" Dean says.

"Like that theatre in Illinois, ya know?"

"And the guy that tore down the family homestead, Harold Todd, is the same guy that kept Cyrus' murder quiet and unsolved" Theo says.

"So now his spirit is awakened and out for blood"

"Yeah, I guess. Who knows what ghosts are thinking anyway"

"You know we're going to have to dredge that body up from the swamp right" Dean smiles at him.

"Man" Theo says.

"He said it"

"Yeah" Cassie approaches from the house. Dean stands.

"Hey" Dean says.

"Hey. She's asleep. Now what"

"Well, you should stay put and look after her... and we'll be back. Don't leave the house"

"Don't go getting all authoritative on me. I hate it" Cassie says smiling. Dean glances behind him to Sam and Theo. Sam looks down, grinning while Theo whispers things into his ears and laughing.

"Don't leave the house please?" Dean mumbles. Cassie blinks slowly at Dean and he leans in to kiss her, smiling. Sam and Theo glances over, Sam grinning at them making out, while Theo pretends to throw up, Sam clears his throat. Dean keeps kissing Cassie, holding one finger back at Sam and Theo to wait. Dean breaks the kiss.

"You two comin' or what?"

"All right. Let's get her up" Sam says as he and Theo stand at the side of the lake. Dean is at the wheel of a tractor. He backs it up, pulling a truck from the water "All right. A little more. Little more. All right, stop" Dean turns off the engine and jumps down.

"Nice" Theo says.

"Hell yeah" Dean replies as he rummages around the trunk of the Impala.

"Now I know what she sees in you" Sam says.

"What?" Dean asks, rummaging among the weapons.

"Come on man, you can admit it. You're still in love with her"

"Ahh, can we focus please"

"He's just saying Dean"

"Hold that" Dean says, handing Sam something from the trunk.

"All right. What am I getting?"

"Gas. Flashlight..."

"Got it. Got it"

"Ok, let's get this done"

"All right"

"Got it" Dean says, lowering the trunk of the Impala. They move towards the door of the truck, glances at each other. Dean opens it. A decayed body falls out.

"All right let's get to it" They salt and burn the body and stand watching.

"Think that'll do it?" Sam asks. The ghost truck appears, headlights come on engine revving.

"I guess not" Theo replies.

"So, burning the body had no effect on that thing?" Sam asks.

"Sure, it did. Now it's really pissed"

"But Cyrus' ghost is gone, right Theo? Theo?" Theo pulls out the keys to the impala from her pocket and walks away.

"Apparently not the part that's fused with the truck" she says.

"Where you going?" Dean asks.

"Goin' for a little ride"

"What!"

"Not with baby! I won't allow it" Dean says.

"Don’t forget who dad actually gave it to, Dean. I'm gonna lead that thing away. That busted piece of crap, you gotta burn it"

"How the hell are we supposed to burn a truck, Theo?"

"I don't know. Figure something out" Theo throws Sam the bag and he catches it.

"Figure some-something-" Sam stutters. Theo reverses the Impala and takes off, the ghost truck roaring after her. Sam and Dean hides until it has passed. Theo and the Impala lead the truck on a wild ride through the misty back roads.

"I swear if baby comes back with a single scra-" Dean is cut off by Sam's phone ringing.

"Hey, you gotta give us a minute" Sam says.

"I don't have a minute. What are we doing?” Theo asks.

"Ahh. Let us get back to you" Sam hangs up.

"Get back to me?" Theo asks, astounded. Sam then rings another person "Hey Cassie? Hey, it's Sam, I need some information and it has to be exactly right" A while later Sam is back on the phone to Theo.

"All right, Theo"

"This better be good"

"Where are you?" Dean asks.

"In the middle of nowhere with a killer truck on my ass! It's like it knows I put the torch to Cyrus"

"Listen to me, this is important. I have to know exactly where you are" Sam says.

"Decatur road, about two miles off the highway" Theo says, looking at a road sign as the Impala roars passed.

"Ok. Headed East?" Dean asks.

"Yes!" The truck backends the Impala, which goes kidding all over the road before regaining traction.

"You son of a bitch!"

"Ok, ahhh, turn right! Up head, turn right" Theo swings right, the truck follows, both engines screaming and revving "You make the turn?"

"Yeah, I made the turn! You need to move this thing along a little faster"

"All right, you see a road up ahead?"

"No! Wait. No, yes, I see it" The truck is slowly gaining ground on the Impala's left side.

"Ok. Turn left" Dean says.

"Wha...?" Grimacing, Theo slams on the brakes and the truck careens past as she spins the Impala left onto the smaller road "All right, now what?"

"You need to go seven tenths of a mile and then stop"

"Stop?" Theo and Dean ask.

"Exactly seven tenths Theo"

"Seven tenths, seven tenths" Theo mutters, looking at the speedometer. At the right moment, Theo spins the car around and moves it back to sit exactly where Sam advised, facing back the way he had come. She is between two posts on each side of the road and the last remains of a wall, almost totally broken down. The ghost truck appears back down the road he came down, revving its engine.

"Theo, You still there?" Dean asks.

"Yeah"

"What's happening?" Sam asks.

"It's just staring at me, what do I do?"

"Just what you are doing, bringing it to you"

"If I die, I'm coming back to haunt your asses" The truck spins it's tyres and comes barrelling towards Theo and the Impala. Theo watches it come, hanging tightly to the Impala's steering wheel "Come on. Come on" As it reaches her, she closes her eyes and hangs on tight. The truck roars through her, disintegrating into nothing as it does so. Theo opens her eyes and stares at the now empty road in front of her. All that can be heard is the purring of the Impala's engine, the truck's revving having completely disappeared. Theo twists quickly to look behind and sees nothing.

"Theo. You still there? Theo?" Sam asks.

"Theo? Say something, Dammit!" Theo is looking shocked.

"Where'd it go?"

"Theo, you're where the church was"

"What church!"

"The place Cyrus burned down. Murdered all those kids"

"There's not a whole lot left" Theo says, looking at the posts left on the side of the road.

"Church ground is hallowed ground, whether the church is still there or not. Evil spirits cross over hallowed ground, sometimes they're destroyed, so I figured, maybe, that would get rid of it"

"Maybe? Maybe! What if you were wrong. You could have gotten her killed!" Dean says.

"Huh. Honestly that thought hadn't occurred to me" Theo stares at her phone, then hangs up. She then mimics Sam.

"Well, it honestly didn't occur to me" Theo slaps the steering wheel "I'm gonna kill him, before Dean can kill me for busting up baby"

Dean and Cassie walk towards the Impala, Sam is already in the driver's seat and Theo is in the back, resting her head against the window.

"My mother says to tell you thanks again" Dean nods and they come to a stop beside the Impala, facing each other "This is a better goodbye than last time"

"Yeah, well maybe this time it will be a little less permanent"

"You know what? I'm a realist. I don't see much hope for us Dean"

"Well, I've seen strange things happen. A hell of a lot stranger"

"Good bye Dean"

"I'll see ya Cassie...I will" They kiss, and stare into each other’s eyes. Dean gets in the car, Sam, Theo and Cassie wave and the Impala takes off

Dean stares out the window while Sam drives.

"I like her" Sam says.

"Yeah"

"You meet someone like her, doesn't it make you wonder if it's worth it? Putting everything else on hold, doing what we do?" Dean looks at Sam for a long moment, then smiles and reaches for his sunglasses, which he slips on.

"Why don't you wake me up when it's my turn to drive?" Dean slouches down in the seat with a sigh. Sam looks in the rearview mirror seeing Theo, still leaning against the windows, now slightly snoring. He shakes his head, smiling softly and looks back at the long straight road.

#Supernatural #older sister winchester #oc insert #Supernatural Fanfiction #Supernatural Fandom

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