#anyways arcana is holding me by the throat again

[k-0re]

OGS WILL KNOW THIS BABE

MIKA I MISSSED YOU SO MUCHHHH MY BBG

for those of you who don't know this is mika, my arcana apprentice who i redesigned and she is married to nadia 😌😌

first image is my final design and the other two were me experimenting around

for reference this is her old design

#art #my art #artists on tumblr #apprentice mika #the arcana mc #the arcana #thearcanafandom #fan apprentice #the arcana apprentice #the arcana fan apprentice #nadia satrivana #AHH MIKA HOW I MISSED YOU #im loving the hair redesign tbh omg #anyways arcana is holding me by the throat again

[friendsoup]

Sick Day with Dikke

Recipe: Dikke x Sick!Reader, fluff, gn!reader, can be read as platonic or romantic! WC: 1k Chef's Note: I just got Dikke, so I thought it'd be nice to write something for her! Not to mention everyone is getting sick around me... It's a simple drabble, not my best work but not my worst by far. I just wanted to actually post something for once. Anyways.... here's a tough girl showing you some affection <3

Today was not your day. You woke up feeling miserable, your entire body aching. You were drenched in sweat, an uncomfortable wetness soaking into your bedsheets. You attempted to pull yourself from bed, only to find such a task to be impossible. You fell back, your head pulsating pain as it hit the pillow, your eyes slowly closing themselves again. You had just managed to fall into an uneasy sleep, when a knocking at your door awoke you. “M’lord?” A stoic voice asked, before giving a few more hearty knocks. A groan escaped you, knowing full well who the person behind the door was. You’d promised Dikke that you’d train with her, and it seems she’d come to take you up on your offer. You didn’t think you could hold a sword like this, nor use any of your arcana, but you couldn’t leave her outside your door like this. You’d worked so hard to get close to her, you’d hate for it all to be for nothing. You crawled out of bed, slowly slumping towards the door. It took you a moment to fiddle with the doorknob, before pushing it open to receive your guest. “Art thou-” Dikke paused, her eyes widening at the sight of you. “Oh my.” She said under her breath, raising a hand to her mouth. “Sorry, I don’t think I can train today.” Your voice cracked, your throat burning with each word. “I’ll just-” “Stay.” She commanded, before turning tail and rushing off. You watched her go, admiring the way she held herself. Dikke always moved with purpose, as if her destination was the most important thing in the world. She held herself with such high confidence, something you could only aspire towards. You’d been trying to make friends with her for a while now, though you weren’t sure it’d been working. She treated you with the same coldness she treated everyone with, barely sparing you a second glance. Not that you blamed her, she was an important person, a hand of justice. And you, well, you were just you. Some low arcanist, barely worth her time. A minute later, you were still standing in the doorway. You didn’t know why you were following her command so closely. Your body was practically begging you to go back to sleep. But when Dikke spoke, you felt inclined to listen. Not wanting to upset or disappoint her. It was just as you were going to turn back into your room that she appeared again, holding a tray of food. You blinked at the display. There was porridge, a glass of warm tea, some toast, and a small flower placed gingerly on the side. “I received assistance from Madam Bunny.” Dikke admitted, before nudging you back. “Thou must return to thy bed. Your body needs rest if it is to regain strength.”  You nod, too tired to argue, and too hungry to reject the help. Bunny Bunny always made such nice meals, who were you to decline something made by her?

You turned back to bed, nearly collapsing on top of the covers. Dikke simply shook her head, placing the tray down on a side table. “M’lord, you’ll be cold if you fall asleep in such a position. Allow me to aid you.”

Softly, she raised the covers over your lap, helping you sit up as she did so. Your eyes fell closed once again as you leaned into her touch, your breathing slowing as a sense of peace fell over you.

“Not yet, M’lord. Thou must eat.” You couldn’t help but hear a twinge of concern in her voice as she spoke, an emotion you were not used to hearing from the ruthless girl.

“Yes, I’ll… I’ll eat.” You told her, fighting back a yawn. Dikke stood once more, picking up the tray and walking it over to you. She placed it on your lap, and right away you began to dig in.

It was heavenly. It warmed your insides, soothing your raspy throat and relaxing your tense muscles. Dikke sat at the edge of the bed as you ate, watching you with great intensity. You’d seen such a look before, it was the focus of a woman in battle, though you couldn’t comprehend why she was showing it here.

“It’s good.” You commented. Dikke made no response. “Bunny made all this?”

“Yea. The moment she heard you were unwell, she leapt into action. She couldn’t stand the thought of an ally being sick.” Dikke said, giving a curt nod.

“And the flower.” You continued, “I’m guessing that’s also from her?”

Dikke’s cheeks went pink, her gaze falling off of you. “Nay. Twas I who placed the flower on your tray.” You watched this change of expression, shocked. You’d never seen her like this before, all delicate and soft. This was a far cry from the woman you’d seen fighting, who slayed foes with such great force.

“Oh.” You muttered, feeling your own cheeks grow hot. “Thank you. It’s nice.”

“You are welcome.” Dikke squeaks, fidgeting with her hands.

The two of you fall silent, save for the sounds of you finishing your breakfast. You catch Dikke glancing at you a few times, though she quickly looks away whenever you notice. She’s far from the confident girl you’re used to, though you don’t understand what could have brought about this change. Could she simply be nervous because you’re sick?

You finish quickly, devouring the remaining bits of toast in a few seconds. Dikke nods, pleased with your appetite. Standing, she picks the tray off your lap, and places it back on the side table.

“Lay down, M’lord. It’s time for you to return to sleep.” Her voice is soft, her eyes looking down at you kindly. You simply nod, shrinking down into your bed, feeling an intense exhaustion pull you under. Dikke takes a step towards you, placing a hand on your cheek. It’s light, but her skin is so cold, it feels like the touch of an angel. You lean into it, and this time, she doesn’t pull away.

“Goodnight, M’lord.” She whispers to you, gently rubbing her thumb over your cheek.

You can barely hear her though, as you fall back into a restful sleep.

#x reader #reverse 1999 #reverse 1999 x reader #Dikke #Dikke x reader #Dikke x you #Dikke reverse 1999 #fanfic #reader insert #Let's Make Friend Soup!

[hareofhrair]

hmm... Lets go for a reading with Feanza!

in the dead of night, a rather large figure could be seen walking through the allies, based on the occasional stopping and going its very clear that the individual is not a local in the slightest...they wore a coat of muted colors with a nice tall collar, though with their horns poking out one could easily spot the clint of gold.

they await outside the door until addressed, and if let in from the cold.

???:I got recommended to you by Dazzet...?

???: he said it would be... "a glimpse even regardless of how miniscule to an enlightening journey." whatever the shishimied fuck that means...

they remove their coat, revealing more likely then not unsettlingly a plethora of fuschian tells, from the brightly colored fins to the symbol...

Feanza: shit, sorry, my names feanza, this is supposed to be like... a fortune telling session?

Feanza: I guess I also need to ask some kinda question...

Feanza: in the future, I know im supposed to attempt to run shit...I think my question is wither or not im going to be the one to fix shit. christ, is that to vauge...?

Shafan invites the tall figure inside with only brief hesitation after they say Dazzet sent them. They'd had more than few colorful characters in here recently, so they were braced for the unusual. A particularly wild mutant, a clown possibly. Nervous as they are of clowns, they trusted Daz never to send them someone dangerous. Their faith in Dazzet flags somewhat as the seadweller reveals herself. Oh jegus. Oh sweet ancestors. That's not just a seadweller. That's an heriess. Shafan is visibly trembling, but at the question they clear their throat and scramble for their cards.

"Right. A reading, =of c=ourse. Yeah. I can d=o that. Have a seat."

They might murder Daz a little bit for this later, but they sure as hell aren't gonna say no.

"Pleasure ta meet ya," they say, mustering a welcoming smile despite their obvious nerves, settling down in front of a low table covered by a cloth. "Nah, that ain't t=o=o vague. Can w=ork with that just fine. Just try n=ot ta f=ork me iffin ya d=ont like the answer, alright?"

Shafan shuffles the cards, humming to themselves, flourishing and riffling them like a practiced card sharp despite their shaking hands. After a moment, they reassemble the deck, holding it out to Feanza.

"Put yer hand =over it and think =of yer questi=on," they say, and wait for her to do so. "Then ch=oose three cards."

They let her do so, gesturing for her to lay them face down on the table.

"Awlright, let's see what we've got," they say, cracking their knuckles and beginning to calm down a bit as they get into their groove. They tap each card with a claw, then flip the first one, The Wheel.

"Bringing =out tha big guns right away, I see," Shafan says. "Supp=ose that makes sense given what yall g=ot g=oin =on. So, tha Major Arcana tells a story, and tha Wheel is tha halfway p=oint in that st=ory, tha turning point. It represents change, and cycles of change. That's what yer after, right? Well, it's what yer gonna get. Change is c=omin, n=o matter what y=ou d=o. N=o tellin what shape that change is g=onna take, but rest assured, it aint all up ta y=ou."

They turn over the next card and whistle under their breath. It's the Tower.

"N=ow, tha T=ower gets a bad rap," Shafan says quickly. "Pe=ople tend ta say it means disaster and st=op there, but that aint tha wh=ole st=ory. See, in tha story this tower came from (or one of em anyway), tha tower kept fallin over, on account of there was a pit below it, and two dragons inside, fightin to the death. Until them dragons was dealt with, tower could never be rebuilt. And that's the point of tha Tower, tearin shit down so you can build it up right again. Means havin tha courage ta break what needs to be broken. I don't think yer short a courage, but maybe yall need a reminder a why tha shit needs ta be torn down. Tha point a all that demo is tha rebuildin, feel me?"

They flip the last card, nodding thoughtfully.

"The Seven of Cups," they say. "represents choices. You've got a lot a choices ahead of ya, and some of em lead ta what you're after, and some of em lead ta disaster. What matters is, ya can't Monty Hall this shit. Ya gotta commit. There's a course a action ya know ya ought ta be takin, and if yall don't buckle down and follow that course to tha end, ya aint gonna get nowhere ya want ta be. That's what yer really down here talkin ta me about tonight, aint it? You're not sure about yer decision. Yer wobblin. Thinkin, maybe I won't make a difference, maybe it's not enough. Well I'm here ta tell ya, whatever ya do, it's gonna be a hell of a lot better than nothin."

They sweep the cards up and back into the deck with a decisive gesture.

"Hope that was what ya wanted ta hear," they say. "Want me ta keep goin? Or ya got what ya need?"

#asks #tarot reading

[justnerdthings]

New Beginnings Ch. 1

Female Reader x Liu Kang/Kung Lao (Not sure which yet)

Note: First fic I'm posting. Be gentle. I have a tendency to edit my stuff to death, but i'm gonna fight it. Anyway. This is the first chapter of a Mortal Kombat reader insertion fic. Takes place a few years before the new 2021 movie. Feel free to send me questions, concerns, comments, whatever. But remember this is for fun.

A mix of voices slowly stirred you. You didn’t understand what they were saying. A mumbling. Hushed. And as you finally became aware that you had woken up, it took everything in you to just open your eyes.

Cold. It was so cold. You could feel your body begin to shiver. As you looked up at the ceiling, you noticed immediately, even with heavily blurred vision, that this was not your ceiling. Or any ceiling you knew.

The familiar wave of anxiety crashed over you. Every nerve in your being came to life as adrenaline was instantly pumped through your veins. Where were you? You moved to sit up. Your head spun. Your stomach came up to your chest. A weak cry escaped you as you fell back on what you thought was a table.

The voices silenced. You had only just noticed that before you heard footsteps coming closer. The sound of fabric flapped.

You were holding your head as you dared to open your eyes and see only a vague, unfocused image of someone standing over you. “Wh-... Who are you?” You could barely speak.

“It’s alright. You’re safe now,” a soft, masculine voice answered.

You didn’t feel like protesting. Your head… Your head was throbbing. You’d had headaches before, but this took the cake. This was the blue ribbon of headaches. You felt your stomach lurch again. You gagged. Oh no, you thought. Your mouth watered. Oh no, you dreaded. You knew it was coming. “Bu-... Bucket-!” You barely got the word out as you rolled to your side and stomach acid spewed from your mouth.

Whoever was standing there had seen it coming. Perhaps your skin turned white or green just before it happened. It all went into a bucket… At least you thought it was a bucket. “It’s okay. Let it out,” the man soothed. You felt a hand begin to rub your back, and that alone was enough to fire off your nerves and make you hurl again. “That’s it. Take your time.”

You must have thrown up at least twice more before you began dry heaving. Nothing left to come up. Rolling onto your back, your breath was labored, chest rising just to fall like a brick landed on it, repeatedly. Oh, God, what the hell happened?

You’d passed out.

You’d woken again to voices. This time, they were more clear. You still couldn’t make out the words exactly, but you knew they were words at least. Eyes opening, they slowly focused. The ceiling was definitely not yours. It was stone… A cave? Orb lanterns hung above you to light the room. Your head was only slightly less throbbing. Slowly, ssslllooowwwlllyyy, you pushed yourself up. Something pulled at your hand. Looking to it, you noticed an IV line. What the hell? Who put that in your hand? Your head spun, but thankfully not nearly as bad as before. You could handle it.

“Oh! You’re up!” A voice called. You turned your head to see… a monk? Was he a monk? What the hell was a monk doing here?... Where was here? “Yes. Good. You’re up,” he said, with an accent and mild broken english. He stopped at the side of the table you sat on and bowed his head. “How do you feel? Should I grab another bucket?” He asked, voice full of concern.

God, you felt awful. Like the hangover from hell. You shook your head to the monk and held your head. “Where am I?” you croaked.

“Ah. Good. You’re speaking much better now.” He was nodding. “Where you are is not important right now. Please, tell me how you feel.”

“What?... No, where am I?” You insisted.

The monk had frowned, but seemed to have expected some protest. “You are in the temple of Lord Raiden. He sent for you after he sensed your danger.” “What? Lord who?” You rubbed your head and finally looked up at the monk, your brows knotted in confusion.

“Lord Raiden. A very generous Lord. He protects Earthrealm--your homeword.”

“My what?” What the hell was this guy talking about?

He seemed troubled suddenly. How could he explain simply… There was no simplicity in this situation. “Forgive me. You’re safe. You are among friends. Please…” He turned and reached for a side table where a clay pitcher sat. He poured water into a clay cup and offered it with such grace.

You took it. “Thanks…” Something about accepting drinks from strange men went through your mind as you looked into the cup. It looked like water. It smelled like… well, nothing. Did water even have a scent? You hesitantly took the tiniest sip you could… It tasted like nothing. Maybe it was water.

But he sensed your suspicion. He poured another cup, making sure you watched him, and then drank the cup dry. He showed you the empty cup to prove it.

You looked to your cup. To him. To the pitcher. Back to your cup. Well, if he would drink it… You took a committed sip and let the water wash over your mouth and down your irritated throat. It must have gotten burned when you threw up. You finished the cup and looked back to the monk. He held out his hand with a smile. You handed him the cup. He refilled it. He handed it back. You drank from it again, more comfortably.

“Yes. Good. Not too much. Don’t want it coming back up,” he said and sat the pitcher back on the side table. He gave you a grateful bow, for what, you didn’t know, and stepped away. “You gave us quite a scare when you got here,” he spoke as he ruffled through old cabinets and old clay jars on the other side of the room. “You’re lucky to be alive. Thankfully your arcana surfaced just in time, by what I was told.”

Your what? You eyed the pitcher of water again, then the IV still stuck in your hand. You ripped it out with a small grunt and tossed it to the floor. Looking up to the IV bag, you reached and turned it over to read the label. It was a simple saline. A breath of relief escaped you. At least it wasn’t something harmful.

“Yes. Very lucky indeed. Fortune favors you, I see. Very good.”

The hell was this old man talking about? You reached for the pitcher as he went on and poured yourself some more water.

“Lord Raiden will certainly be pleased that you’ve recovered. Oh…” He paused, a look of realization crossed his face. “I should send word to him that you’ve woken again. This time for the better it seems.” He left the cabinets and walked over to the curtain that separated this room from a small hallway. He stuck his head out and began calling out, “Brother Zhao! Please send word to Lord Raiden! Our guest has woken! She seems well!”

Brother Zhao? Where the hell—

“Yes. Good.” He was back at the cabinets again. “Here we go.” He finished with whatever it was and walked back over to you with a bowl, offering it to you.

Looking into the bowl, your brows rose at the sight of some sort of… goop. You looked to him, at a loss of what it was.

“Ah. Yes. Okay. For your head. Taste awful, but works good. Just a bite.”

Your expression only changed slightly, but the volume was much higher. No way where you going to eat that. What even was it?

“No? Okay.” He set the bowl on the side table next to the pitcher. “It’s here if you change your mind.”

Unlikely, you thought. But your head continued to throb.

“Perhaps food then?” He asked, and you suddenly became very aware of your very empty stomach. “Dinner will be served soon. I’m sure there will be something there you like.”

You had to change the subject. Your stomach had awoken with the offer of food. “Who are you?” You asked.

“I am Brother Feng,” He answered with modesty.

“So... This is a temple. You must be a monk?” You questioned.

“Yes!” He answered in soft glee. “I serve Lord Raiden.”

“Who is Lord Raiden?”

“He is the watcher and protector of Earthrealm.”

“So… Like a god?”

“God. Yes.”

“Okay. So, this is a religious temple?”

“No.”

Your head was spinning again, but this time in sheer confusion.

“Not religious as you know. It is merely a shelter for the Order of Light.”

“Order of Light?”

“Yes.”

“Which is…?”

“The warriors of Earthrealm.”

“Right…” Of course. How could you be so thick, you thought with heavy sarcasm. “Are there other… realms?”

“Yes. Many.”

“How many?”

“I do not know exactly… Most have been destroyed. They no longer exist as they once did. Barren. Empty.”

“What happened?”

“Oh, that is a long story. Too long for me to explain in one sitting. I’m sure Lord Raiden will tell you everything himself.”

“He’s going to talk to me?”

“Yes! Of course!”

“Like… He’s a person? I thought gods were spiritual.”

“He is both.”

You weren’t sure what to say. What could you say? You were going to meet a god… or someone anyway. “Okay,” Was the only word that left your mouth before you sipped from your cup.

A knock came at the wall on the other side of the curtain and Brother Feng turned to answer. With his head poked out to see who it was, he spoke with controlled joy. “Master Liu. Wonderful. Did Lord Raiden send you?”

“Brother Feng,” A soft voice answered behind the curtain. “Yes. He was told she had awoken?”

“Yes, yes! Come.” Brother Feng had stepped aside and a much younger, much more handsome man walked into the room. He wore a black, sleeveless gi with a red sash tied around his waist. In his left hand was a string of prayer beads he seemed to be idly fidgeting with. His deep brown eyes found you instantly and to your surprise, he bowed at the waist to you.

“I am Liu Kang. I come on behalf of Lord Raiden. He wishes to speak with you if you are well enough.” His voice was so controlled, yet so relaxed and smooth. You could tell he was a man of well manners… perhaps a monk himself? He did have prayer beads. But damn, he was just too handsome to be a monk.

Wait. What? What were you thinking? You didn’t even know this guy!

He was easy on your eyes though. How could you not notice.

“Miss…?” His concern pulled you from your head.

“Oh. Sorry. I just… Headache,” you admitted. It was only a tiny lie. You’d gotten distracted. But you did have a headache. Was that bad? You were in a temple? Did they know it was a lie?

“Perhaps I should return later,” Liu Kang suggested, not at all seeming upset with the idea. “After you rest some more.”

You weren’t sure how to respond to this guy. He just oozed patience. “N-no. It’s okay. I can speak with him.”

Liu Kang’s concern was drowned by a small smile. He bowed his head and stepped aside with a gentlemanly gesture towards the curtain. “After you. Please.”

Where the hell were you? A temple. Lord Raiden’s temple. Okay. But where? You scooted to the edge of the table and placed your cup on the side table. Brother Feng had come to your side and offered his assistance. You were thankful for it. Your legs wobbled as you pushed onto them. Just how long had you been asleep? Looking over yourself, you were still wearing your own clothes.

Brother Feng allowed you to use him to steady yourself as you willed your legs to work. By the time you reached the curtain you were confident enough to let go of him, but you could feel him watching you with great attention. You could feel Liu Kang had taken over as you stepped out into a small hallway.

The hall was lined with more rooms curtained off. It became apparent that this had been some sort of makeshift hospital. An eerie, familiar feeling set in. Modern technology contrasted the antique furniture as you made your way down the hall.

“This way.”

You snapped back to focus on Liu Kang, who now gestured towards an actual door. A simple wooden door. You turned and walked… albeit a bit shaky. Liu Kang opened the door for you and let you step through first. You’d then stepped into a long, torch lit hallway. The walls were still cave-like. You couldn’t help it. You had to ask. “Are we underground?”

Liu Kang smiled and shook his head as he led you down the hall, staying at your side. He kept a watchful eye on you, seeming ready to catch you at any second. “No. Not exactly. This temple was carved into the side of a ravine. You’ll be able to see once we turn that corner ahead.”

“Ravine?...” Suddenly, you remembered your fear of heights. Okay, fear wasn’t the right word. Phobia. That fit better.

Liu Kang seemed to notice your sudden fear, because he now turned his head to look at you completely. His eyes searched your face. “Yes. A ravine. Are you alright? Do you need to rest?”

You shook your head. “No. No, I’m fine. Just… Not a fan of heights.”

He seemed to relax with that confession. He nodded. “We will pass the view as quick as you can manage.”

You nodded. Good. Hopefully you could avoid the view completely if you just looked at the floor the whole time.

“My apologies, there is no other route from here,” guilt was heavy in his voice.

“No. It’s okay. I just wont look. If I don’t look, I can’t see how high up I am. It’ll be like it never happened,” You lied nervously. Truth was, you were so afraid of heights, that even climbing a step ladder made you nervous. Always had. Ever since you’d fallen out of that tree as a kid.

Liu Kang continued to watch you. You glanced up to him and noticed just how his eyes seemed to look not at you, but into you. You looked away, back to the floor as he led you around the corner.

“Don’t look,” He warned with a gentle voice. You took a deep breath and tried to walk faster. But of course, you snuck a peak out of the corner of your eye and caught the sight of the setting sun. Not a cloud in sight. Stars were just beginning to shine… Then your eyes drifted down.

You saw it. The ravine. You gasped and froze. Oh no. No. No. Too high. Way too high. You stopped dead in your tracks. Liu stopped just a step ahead of you. He looked back with a furrowed brow.

“I looked…” You sheepishly admitted.

He frowned. “You said you wouldn’t.”

“Yeah.”

He stepped to the other side of you, blocking your view. His eyes drifted down to your chest and you felt the instinct to slap him for looking, for being a perv.

He must have noticed your disapproval. As he looked back up to your face, a red hue came to his cheeks. “Oh. No.” He held his hands up defensively. “I did not mean to offend you. I was just watching your breath.”

Yeah, sure. You’d heard that one before… No you hadn’t. That was a new one.

“Your breathing is shallow.”

“Kinda normal when you’re scared,” you quipped.

“Breathe. It’s okay. Just breathe.” He gestured with his hand the rise and fall of his own diaphragm as he took a deep breath. You tried to copy his breath, but yours shook. “Good. I promise, you’re okay. You’re not going to fall. Come here.” He took a small step forward and you watched his feet. Taking another forced deep breath, you willed forward. He took another step. You took another step. Another step. Another step. “Breathe,” he coached gently. You sucked in another breath. “There. Keep going.” He began to walk at a normal pace and you stayed right with him.

When you thought you couldn’t do it anymore, you reached the next corner and were again surrounded by the cave's walls. A heavy, relieved breath escaped you as you leaned against one of the walls. And to his credit, Liu Kang didn’t say an ill word of it. He seemed to relax with you, as if worried you were going to panic. Which you did.

“See? You did it,” He told you, that warm smile on his face again.

You nodded and let another relieved breath leave you. “Please tell me I don’t have to do that again.” But his silence made you look back up to him.

He frowned.

You groaned with dread.

“I think we’ll focus on getting rid of your fear of heights. Training won't do you any good if you can’t focus,” He thought aloud.

“Training? What?”

“Lord Raiden will explain.”

“Just how many more views do I have to walk by before I get to see this guy?”

“... I will block your view as best I can.”

You groaned again. That meant there was at least one more hall like that one. Hopefully just one.

It wasn’t just one.

It was four.

Four.

Why did this Lord Raiden have to build his house in a damn hole in the Earth?!

You couldn’t do this anymore. No. No more views. Walls were good. Solid, windowless walls were good. Liu Kang placed a hand on your shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“This fear is a problem.”

“Yeah.” You nodded quickly.

“But you faced it. Five times. You could have stopped before the first.”

You groaned.

“You have a brave soul,” He said with confidence. “I can see why Lord Raiden was adamant about saving you.”

“Saving me?” You looked to him. At this point, a confused expression could just be permanently plastered to your face and it’d always be accurate around here.

“Yes. Come on. Only a little more way to go.” He stepped ahead of you. You followed.

"There you are," a deep voice called as Liu Kang finally led you into a large room of pillars that resembled Tesla coils. You looked to see a man, dressed in all white with a harvester hat that obstructed most of his face from view.

Liu Kang bowed his head to his Lord in greeting as he walked towards the man in white. "Lord Raiden, she is exactly as you described."

You, once again, confused, looked to Liu Kang as you followed him past the electric pillars. You could feel the electricity in the air and it made the hair on the back of your neck stand.

"Is she? That's great news." Raiden tilted his head up just enough so now you could see two glowing blue eyes staring right at you.

A chill was sent down your spine, but you stood your ground, mostly curious about this man, this place. Was he really a god?

"Yes. I am really a god," Raiden answered your thoughts. Your eyes widened and a sense of dread filled you.

Don't think of anything embarrassing. Don't think of anything embarrassing. Don't think about Liu Kang's ass, you thought frantically. You'd been stealing glances of it the whole way here.

Raiden grinned. Then he laughed openly.

Ah, shit. Your face grew hot. It must have been red as a firetruck.

Liu Kang, however, was now the one confused.

#Mortal Kombat #Mortal kombat 2021 #liu kang #kung lao #raiden #reader insert #fanfic #fic #reader x character #ludi lin #max huang #tadanobu asano #new beginnings

[whatifxwereyou]

The Oncoming Storm Part 29: Into the Empty Storm

Liu Kang x Reader and Kung Lao x Reader (gonna do both, two paths!)

You have more questions than answers and are starting to think that maybe there aren't any answers. When you wake up, Chen provides you with some but maybe they aren't what you wanted to hear. You have a crisis of faith- but pick yourself back up. Change is coming.

A/N: Change IS coming, on like... Saturday. That's when the choice is! I'm letting you know now that the choice is a weird mundane choice that will change the story! Also, it's almost my birthday, and all I want is more free time to write y/n and these boys LOL. Hope you are all well. Smooches. (title is from a song called believe in nothing, i steal many titles from song lyrics)

Part 28 Part 30 Chapter Index

Your eyes fluttered open.

Your head was splitting but the stone ceiling was at least familiar.

What happened?

Everything was fuzzy. You tried sit up, but your body was too heavy and your arms too weak. Your fingers were tingling and numb, your muscles sore as if they had gone unused for weeks.

“Oh! You’re awake!” Chen’s voice came from your right, but this was not the infirmary. Your stomach was in knots and your shoulder was stiff. You sat up to greet your friend anyway, but your body objected with pain. “Whoa, whoa, hey slow down!” Chen carefully helped you lay back and then propped your head up a bit higher when you tried to sit up again. You were in your room. You hadn’t recognized it immediately.

You were confused.

“Why?” You choked out and then cleared your throat. Your mouth tasted like you hadn’t talked in just as long as your body hadn’t been used. Chen looked nervous and weary, like she hadn’t slept in just as long. “Why do I feel like this?”

“What exactly do you remember?” Chen hesitated. You closed your eyes and tried to remember how you’d gotten there.

That was right. It had been chaos.

“Everything went to hell when I touched the artifacts and…” You knitted your brow and tried to remember. “Oh, god, then Raiden tried to read me and that’s… that’s all I remember.” Your shoulder ached at the memory. There had been nothing else after that. Only pain.

“That was… Y/N, that was three days ago.” Chen braced herself for your panicked response. You stayed silent. Three days? How was that possible? It had felt like both a blink and an eternity of pain and darkness.

“What?” Your stomach dropped and it occurred to you now that there was an IV in your arm. Chen had likely been there the whole time keeping an eye on your vitals and making notes. There was a bedroll on the ground nearby as if to validate your thoughts. Why there? Why weren’t you in the infirmary? You already knew the answer.

You were too dangerous.

Three days was too long to be unconscious.

Your hands were still tingling. That was right. Raiden had shocked you because you had nearly killed Liu Kang and Kung Lao.

“Is Liu okay? Kung Lao?” Whatever had happened to you was less important.

“One thing at a time, Y/N.” Chen tried to urge you to lay back as you tried to sit up, but you shoved her hand away. “Please lay down. You need to take it easy, okay? You had… a little just… don’t panic when I say it, okay?”

“Tell me and then I’ll decide if it warrants panic or not.”

“I don’t want to make you any worse.”

“You not telling me is making it worse.”

“Just try to remember that it’s more complicated than what I’m about to say.”

“Would you just say it already?”

“You had a heart thing.”

You froze. Your ears were suddenly ringing. A heart thing? What kind of heart thing? What did that mean? You let Chen help you lay back down so you could focus on taking calm and deep breaths. Chen was checking your pulse on your wrist and watching you with concerned dark eyes.

A heart thing.

You were young! Healthy! Or at least you had been before those assholes had broken into your dojo and turned your life upside down. This wasn’t fair.

You hadn’t realized you had been holding your breath until Chen was shaking your arm to remind you to breathe. You exhaled and your lungs ached in response. They’d been deprived of too much oxygen too many times now. You finally turned back to Chen whose brow was set in a permanent line of concern.

“Are you okay?”

“You said it was more complicated. How?”

“It wasn’t a heart attack. It was a cardiac incident. You don’t… there are no blockages or anything causing it, but…”

“Isn’t it still the same thing? Heart fails?” You didn’t know much about medicine but you’d seen enough bad Korean dramas to know that the two things were similar.

“It’s different, okay? Your heart is strong, Y/N. You’ll recover. It’s just going to take a bit.”

“I am so fucking tired of my fucking body just… fucking betraying me. Fuck. Just… fuck.” You wanted to rub your hand over your face but you felt so weak that you could have screamed in frustration if you had the energy. Instead, you continued to swear beneath your breath. Chen covered her mouth and laughed, her cheeks pink. Really? That made her blush? She could make dick jokes all day long but swear words made her blush? “I can’t seem to catch a fucking break.”

“It’ll be okay, Y/N. I promise.” Chen had a rare moment of seriousness and offered your hand a comforting squeeze.

“I know.” You heaved a sigh and closed your eyes, taking a few deep cleansing breaths. “I know.” You finally calmed and were able to lift your hand enough to rub over the gauze on your shoulder. It was aching. “I just had to get it out of my system.”

“I get it.” Chen pulled your hand away from the gauze. “Careful with that, please. I’m still trying to get that thing under control and understand what it is.”

“It’s the crack from that godforsaken bell Kung Lao and I found in Japan.” You said in a mocking tone that made Chen laugh again. You should have left the damn things where they were. Things had only escalated far beyond your control since you’d gotten back. You’d felt like you’d made progress before then. “Can you help me sit up?”

“I heard that part of the story. We’re trying to figure out what kind of a connection could cause that. Raiden’s still going with curse. Going with god-curse now actually.”

“Oh. Great.” You let Chen help you sit up and then scooted back against the pillows that Chen adjusted for you. You leaned your head back against the cold stone of the wall behind the bed and breathed a sigh of relief. It had taken tremendous effort to sit upright but you felt better now that you had. If you hadn’t used your body in three days, it would take some getting used to your muscles being used again. Thankfully, it hadn’t been any longer.

“Yeah, I imagine that can’t mean anything good. He didn’t tell me much more, just that it was important to tend to it and report any changes. I don’t think I was supposed to hear everything that I did.” Chen tended to the mess of medical supplies that she had set on the floor by your desk.

“You’re good at that.”

“Sometimes being a gossip comes in handy, Y/N.”

“You didn’t answer me before. Are Liu and Lao alright?”

“Lao’s fine. Not even a scrape. He’s proud of that.” Chen smiled sympathetically. “Liu needed a few stitches but he’ll heal up in no time. He’s resilient. Doesn’t ever complain. It’s sweet how worried you are for them.” You weren’t sure that you would ever forget the way that his blood had felt splattering on your skin. You’d been the one to hurt him. He’d been trying to save you from yourself and it had backfired. He’d tell you not to feel guilty but you felt guilty, dammit. There was no way around it. They had been so angry with Raiden for pushing you but you had volunteered to do what you did. It was important even if it had been the wrong choice. You hoped they weren’t losing their minds over you being out for so long. If you had been waiting on one of them to wake up then you would have been going completely crazy.

You wanted them to be okay.

“Thank you.” You were grateful that Chen was there to reassure you and take care of your health. You guessed that Chen had probably volunteered since you were considered dangerous.

“Happy to help, Y/N.” Chen smiled sympathetically. “I’m so relieved to see you awake, I can’t begin to tell you how much. And not just because Kung Lao has been here about a hundred times. He keeps asking to come in. How you’re doing. If he could take over for me for a while. I told him that I’d let him know when you were awake and he doesn’t listen.” Chen clicked her tongue in amusement. You rolled your eyes so hard that Chen snorted. Sweet but typical of him. “Liu came by exactly once and I told him the same thing. He took my word for it. So, par for the course with those two.”

“Sounds about right.” You leaned your head back against the wall again and closed your eyes. God, this was a mess. A cardiac thing? God-curse? There was a mark on your body that mimicked the crack in a cursed object. You’d been nearly choked to death by some gross pale demon-man and you’d maimed Liu Kang. Again.

Where was the line?

Would there ever be an end to this?

Guilt.

You were so tired of guilt.

And pain.

You would gladly take the pain for the rest of your life if it meant keeping the people that you cared about safe from whatever this was. You held your head in your hands and massaged your temples.

“Don’t get in a funk about this, Y/N. You’re going to be okay. It’s going to be okay.”

“Yeah.” You didn’t argue with Chen, but you wondered if this ended in your inevitable death. It didn’t feel like things were getting better. They had escalated violently in the last few days. No matter what control you’d had over your arcana, when you lost control? You lost it to a point where it was dangerous to be around you. Was it fair for you to still be there?

You were putting them all in danger.

Was it fair to consider Liu Kang or Kung Lao’s advances when you were such a danger to them? When it suddenly felt unlikely that you would survive this?

It felt particularly cruel to connect with Kung Lao again after years of having thought he was dead. To have him back only for things to wind up like this. And for Liu Kang, a man you had an insane draw to, unlike any you had ever felt. You’d hurt him now so many times. You knew he was strong but how long until you accidentally hurt him beyond repair? Chen took some vials of blood and you felt almost instantly nauseated at the sight of it. You fanned your face and were grateful to find that your body was adjusting to being used again. Chen helped you stretch and stand and get used to your body again before helping you back down and removing the IV.

“Do you know what will make you feel better?”

“Sleep?”

“I mean, yes, but also… getting you crazy drunk and then having one of those boys come over here to take care of you.” Chen made air quotes and you whined in response. You’d almost forgotten that Chen’s brain lived only in the gutter. “You just have to pick your poison. Kung Lao or Liu Kang.”

“I know that you’re joking but I still feel compelled to tell you that’s a bad idea right now.” If you drank right now, then you would wind up a sobbing disaster of a human being wallowing in self-pity. You didn’t need that right now and neither did either of them.

No matter how you tried to push it away, you couldn’t get it out of your head that this was how you died.

It felt very unfair.

“I need to see you smile, Y/N.” Chen’s voice was dripping with concern. She clasped her hand over yours. “Please?”

“I can’t pretend to do that right now, Chen. I’m still processing that three days have gone by. I’m still processing what happened in there and what any of it could mean. This was supposed to give me answers and all I have are more questions and every fuck up is more violent than the last.”

“We’ll get your answers, Y/N. It’ll be okay. Raiden is going to find a way.”

“Yeah.” You didn’t necessarily agree. Raiden was a God. You were sure that if he knew your existence was putting them all in danger then he would do what was necessary to stop that from happening. Not that you thought that he wanted that for you. He would try to help but there was only so much anyone could do. You assumed he saw a picture bigger than just your life.

“Y/N…” Chen looked to you seriously. “I don’t like this.”

“Wow, really? Because I am having a great time.”

“What an unhealthy coping mechanism.”

“Don’t judge me. It’s working.”

“Is it though?” Chen smiled sadly. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I need to get out of bed and get used to my body again.”

“You should rest a bit longer.”

“I’ve been doing nothing but resting for three days, Chen.” You wanted to do something, anything to feel in control of your body. Chen studied you nervously but then offered you a nod. Together you worked your body just enough to help you get used to being awake and moving around. There was so little that you could control that it felt good to have something small. Chen was willing to help you even if she had tried to get you to slow down. You refused and pushed through it. You knew your limits.

You wanted to feel like yourself and break the fog hanging over you.

After some time, Chen forced you to stop and you rested your hand over your sore shoulder. You could feel your heart beating beneath it. Everything hurt but it only made you want to fight harder to get past whatever this was. You wouldn’t let it win. You wouldn’t let that thing win. It had frightened you for a few minutes and, truthfully, it still scared the hell out of you, but the fear no longer crippled you. You were determined to beat it.

You were not going to die because of this.

“What’s this?” Chen pointed to the wilting flower on the desk next to your journal. You thought that you were much like that flower now. An unfortunate parallel, you thought. Chen was cleaning up some of her medical things and putting them into a small bag after rolling up her bed.

“Just a sweet trinket.” You smiled fondly at the flower. It was pretty, even wilting.

“Liu Kang? Seems like something he would do. Finding beauty in things that are even temporary or some nonsense.”

“It does sound like him but it was actually Kung Lao.”

“Is that so?” Chen pulled out the desk chair and sat. “Can’t say that I can picture him giving anyone a flower. And no offense, but I don’t picture you as much of a flower getting kind of girl, either.”

“And exactly what kind of girl do you think I am, then?” You laughed in surprise. Chen perked up when she heard you laugh.

“You seem more like a grand-gesture kind of girl. Not really a material things girl.”

“Nice save, Chen.”

“We’re off topic. The flower. Focus, Y/N.”

“Oh, right.” You picked up the flower, twisting the stem carefully between your thumb and forefinger. It was still hanging on. There was some life left in it. Not much though. “It’s just something from when we were kids. It was the last time I’d seen him. He gave it to me before we said goodbye and then… he died. Well, at least I thought he had died. Still wrapping my brain around that one.” You set the delicate thing on the desk again.

“Yeah, that’s a big thing.”

“Off topic again though. When he returned from his errand for Raiden, he had found me another. I need to press it between the pages of the journal or something.”

“…you are talking about Kung Lao, right?” Chen seemed skeptical.

“Yes.”

“That’s ridiculously sweet. I’m having a hard time associating it with him.” Chen looked to the flower suspiciously as if she thought you were making up stories to tease her.

“Well, presumably the original flower was burned up in the fire so… it was nice of him to get me another. Not that he would have known I kept it. I guess it had been as important to him as it was to me.”

“You still had the original one?”

“Yeah. I had pressed it between the pages of my favorite book and got special paper to protect it. I hadn’t opened it in years but I assume it’s been burned to a crisp.” You felt the weight of your truth settling on your shoulders. Your life was gone. This wasn’t some crazy vivid dream that you’d eventually recover from. That life was over. There were moments where you missed the monotony but you were also grateful that it had happened to you and not to someone else. You had never fit in back home. Everyone else had belonged there. This was a better place for you.

“And you’re sure that this was Kung Lao, right?”

“I’m positive.” You laughed. Kung Lao definitely didn’t come off as sweet to most people, you realized. It was kind of adorable that it was just for you.

“You were really hung up on him, huh?”

“That’s a different life now, Chen. I thought he was dead. I cherished the little time we had.” Your ran your fingers through your messy hair. It was getting too long.

“Have you thought about going back? To see what happened?”

“I have,” you answered honestly. “But it’s a bad idea, I think. I killed people that night, Chen. And then there was the fire. They probably think that I’m dead. It’s not wrong to assume that either. Part of me died that day. I’m different. I can’t go back to being that woman and I can’t risk being seen.” You had put distance between the woman you had been and the woman you had become. You’d had to. It had been the only way to cope. “I’ve been nervous to talk about it. I can’t explain why.”

“You should probably ask Kung Lao to explain what happened.”

“Yeah, he just loves having a serious conversation. But you’re right. I’m ready to find out, I think.” Of all the crazy things that had happened in your life that one didn’t seem so crazy anymore. After what had happened in Raiden’s chamber, after maiming Liu, after having a heart thing, you could handle what had happened in your hometown.

“I didn’t quite understand the hang up that you had with Kung Lao. He’s such a… difficult man to get along with when you do what I do. But I suppose that I can see it now, knowing a bit more about the history between you two.” Chen admired the flower. “That’s a deep connection. He’s sweet to you… which I find difficult to believe so you must be special to him. Where with Liu…”

“Chen…” You turned your gaze. “Can we not talk about this right now? I know that you’re trying to make me laugh but I’m… I’m scared and my brain is having a hard time with all of this. Tomorrow, I promise, that all bets are off. You can tease me as much as you want but for right now, I need a break.”

“I get it.” Chen smiled and then got up, sat next to you on the bed, and wrapped her arms around you in a comforting hug. “I really do, Y/N.” She held you for a moment before you finally returned the hug. It felt strange to be hugged but nice. No romantic conflict involved. No stress about what it might mean. Just a hug. Comfort. You sniffled, not realizing that your eyes were misty with tears until then.

After Chen pulled back, you wiped your eyes and cleared your throat.

“This is only because you’re in such a state, Y/N. Trust me. Tomorrow? I’m back to pestering you.” Chen scolded and you smiled. “Besides, I wanted to bring up something more serious before I left anyway.”

“Oh, good. Serious with you never ends well for me.”

“It’s not anything medical. I gave you all the news there was to give for that. But with… everything that’s happened? People are starting to talk about it. I mean, they already were to an extent but more about how… scary it is.” Chen avoided your eyes and you felt a familiar and unpleasant frustration in the pit of your stomach. Gossip. “I just wanted to brace you for it. You might get some looks while you’re out and about. Raiden wouldn’t let me keep you in the infirmary just in case something happened. I’ve never seen him so worried, Y/N. It scared us a little.”

You figured Raiden was worried that you’d hurt someone and there was the confirmation. You had hurt someone. You’d hurt Liu. Three times now. You nodded in understanding. People usually feared what they didn’t understand. You were afraid of it too but you couldn’t exactly hide from what was happening. “I can’t blame him for being concerned. I hurt Liu.”

“Oh, no, Y/N.” Chen seemed surprised by your assumption. “He was worried for you, Y/N. I’m sure that our safety was part of his concern but he thought that a familiar and comforting space might help you. I think he’s worried that the heart thing was his fault.” Chen wiggled her fingers and made a sound to imitate the crack of lightning. You hadn’t considered that. You also hadn’t taken Raiden for the sentimental type. He’d come across as a fatherly man, you supposed, but your father hadn’t been sentimental so your idea of that was skewed. “I just wanted to warn you about the gossip and reassure you that it comes from a place of concern. We really like you, Y/N. You make time for us when many wouldn’t. They’re scared for you but also for themselves.”

“I get that.” You weren’t sure what to say about it. This was all too familiar. You felt so guilty that you weren’t sure how you were going to overcome it. The gossip wouldn’t help, you were sure. Your shoulder ached at the memory. It wasn’t as bad as it had been initially. Chen had briefly showed it to you while changing your bandages. It was literally a crack. “Thanks for the heads up, Chen. You’re always looking out for me.”

“I’m happy to.” Chen sounded nervous and you felt the woman’s gaze flitter from you to the door. “I’m afraid to leave you alone like this. I don’t… I feel like you’re not okay, Y/N.”

“I’m okay, Chen. I promise.” You reassured her. You knew you sounded morose. “I know I don’t sound it, but I’m okay. I’m so grateful that you were here when I woke up. You’re wonderful, even if I give you a hard time about teasing me.”

Chen smiled and offered you another quick hug. “It’s going to be okay, Y/N. You’re going to be okay. We’ll figure it out.”

“We will. I’m going to be fine.” You did your best to sound sincere. You knew that you tended to come off as sarcastic and while you weren’t feeling your best right now, you had to believe that you would be okay. Belief was an incredibly powerful thing, more so than you had ever realized before coming to Raiden’s Temple. “You can go. I promise that I’m okay.”

“I’m trusting you, Y/N. Try and take it slow today. I’ll be in and out to check in on you. I expect you to rest for a few days before going back to the crazy nonsense you’ve been up to.”

“I’ll do my best but I’m not good at sitting and doing nothing. I’m probably going to stretch a bit more before I rest for the night. Maybe take a walk. I promise that I won’t overdo it.” You bowed your head in respectful gratitude. Chen gave you one more hug before leaving you alone. After she left, you meditated and exercised. You needed to be okay.

You would keep fighting until you had nothing left.

#mortal kombat #mortal kombat 2021 #kung lao #liu kang #liu kang x reader #kung lao x reader #fanfic #drabble #fluff #mk movie #arcana #female reader #reader insert #liu kang x you #kung lao x you #drama #romance #fanfiction #ludi lin #max huang #liu kang/you #kung lao/you #the oncoming storm #angst

[the-melting-world]

Strength | Side B: "So Certain"

art by @ ligiawrites

~ In which a secretive barhand gets a reading...

The Trio Appearances: Kipling | Khleo | Ozy

Arcana LI appearances: Asra | Nadia | Lucio | Valdemar

Track Origins: “So Certain” by Blanco White

Not sure if this is the right track? The full album can be found here: Strength

Khleo is Non-binary and uses she/they pronouns interchangeably

cw: none

~ 1.5k words

***

Khleo didn’t know how long she knelt there, staring at the card. Eventually, she had turned it right side up in order to study it better.

“Are you familiar with the Tarot?” The stranger with the stolen scent asked as they knelt to gather up the rest of the cards.

Khleo blinked and shook their head. “Sorry, I’m… let me help you with that.”

They held onto the card with the woman and the lion as they assisted the colorfully dressed stranger.

“I’m Asra by the way. Asra Alnazar.”

The name tickled Khleo’s memory. “I’ve heard of you. Weren’t you the court magician or something like that?” Yes, now that Khleo really stopped to take in all his features, she remembered making deliveries to the Palace and seeing the magician with violet eyes and white hair roaming the halls. She had only caught glimpses of him, often when he was with the Countess and a tall, lanky redhead. The three of them seemed inseparable back then.

Asra’s face flushed with color. He tried to hide behind his deck, but Khleo could faintly smell the heat rising in his blood. “You’re right. That was me.”

“Why are you following me, Asra?” Khleo asked, cutting straight to the point. She wanted to know soon before the magical wards tugging at her internal organs compelled her to go back inside.

“I’m not!” Asra gasped, but then he caught himself. “What I mean is… I came to check on you. For a friend.”

Khleo reached out an arm for the magician to grab onto. “Would this friend of yours be a gardener by any chance?”

Once again, Asra blushed as he gingerly accepted Khleo’s arm and let them help him to his feet. Khleo’s own blood rang out at his touch. They didn’t know why.

“I guess that’s a yes,” they whispered after unsuccessfully clearing their throat. The barhand had more questions for the magician. Like, why hadn’t Kip come to check on them herself? How did she and the former court magician even know each other? If Kip was just a friend, then why was Asra practically bathed in her scent?

“Can I have my card back please?”

Khleo let go of Asra and looked down at their hand. They hadn’t even realized they were still holding onto the card with the woman and the lion.

“What’s this one mean anyway?”

The barhand looked up when the magician took too long to answer. He seemed to be considering telling her something. Finally, he inclined his head to the entrance of the tavern hall and said, “It means a lot of things. If you want, we can go over there and I can give you a real reading.”

Khleo glanced down at the card again and back up at Asra. “Don’t those things cost money?”

To their surprise, Asra slipped his hand in theirs and gently tugged them along. “Come on. A free reading is the least I can do for sneaking around and interrupting your work.”

Khleo relaxed into Asra’s pull, noticing how much more easy-going he was compared to just moments before. The tension between them melted away with his nervous energy and by the time they made it to the cluster of benches outside of the Chandrian, Khleo found that she was reluctant to let go of his hand.

Once the two of them got comfortable on the bench, Asra drew his legs up under him and said, “So that card that you drew from the pile is known as Fortitude.”

Khleo, who was straddling the bench, had gone back to studying the card. They turned it every which way to observe the imagery at different angles.

“She’s one of the Major Arcana and she’s often depicted this way — calm and in control in the presence of a lion.”

Khleo folded a rough curl behind her ear. “She’s… pretty.”

Asra waited a beat before asking, “Khleo, what do you feel when you look at this card?”

The barhand shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“You’ve got to feel something. You’ve barely looked up from it since you picked it off the ground.”

Khleo smiled wryly as she tore her eyes from the card and locked onto Asra’s purple gaze. “I do feel something.” She paused to glance down at the magician’s colorful garb. “I just don’t know what it is I’m feeling… yet. Tell me more about the card.”

Either Asra ignored where Khleo’s gaze was lingering at the jewel against his chest or he was too caught up in the reading to notice, but he propped his elbows on his knees and leaned over the card.

“Well, it could mean different things depending on the position you found it in.”

“Upside down,” Khleo recalled easily.

Asra glanced up at her from under his mess of curls. “Okay, so reversed then. Fortitude in that position points to several things. Doubting yourself for example. Feeling weak or insecure.”

Khleo absently chewed the inside corner of her lip as she chose to look elsewhere.

“Sometimes it points to the raw emotions that we experience when everything else is stripped away.”

Khleo cleared her throat, but her voice still came out too raspy. “Like what.”

Asra sat up straighter. “Anger. Pride. Sometimes even rage.”

Khleo closed her eyes. “When everything else is stripped away, huh?” Try as they might, they couldn’t help the way their head heated up with certain images.

The antique wardrobe in their apartment that was filled with unspoken dreams.

Samira.

Fight club.

Hefe.

Mama. Papa.

“Khleo?”

He was touching them again. Their knee this time.

“Do you want me to stop? I didn’t mean to—”

Khleo sniffed loudly as they dragged their forearm under their nose. “I’m fine. Tell me what the other side means.”

Asra withdrew his hand and hesitated a bit before answering. “Once again, it could mean a lot of things. Tapping into one’s inner strength. Gaining focus. Embracing your compassion and courage. Finding confidence in yourself and your abilities.”

Khleo cut in. “Yeah, so how do I get to that side?”

How do I get back to the wildflowers and the fields and the tall golden lady? How do I get back to my lion and my throne?

Khleo felt like her skull was on fire.

~ Gods. Hefe, just tell me where you are! PLEASE! ~

“I’m sorry, Khleo, but there’s no clear path. The cards don’t give us step by step instructions on how to fix or alter ourselves. They only show us what we, deep down, already know to be true. It’s up to us to reverse something we don’t want into something that we do.”

Khleo exploded, “How the hell do you reverse the shit that you have no control over!”

Asra’s mouth fell open. “I… I don’t—”

The barhand shook their head. “I’m sorry. That just came out. I know there’s no answer.”

Those painful images were starting to resurface again and Khleo needed a distraction from them, so they locked eyes once more with Asra, who, to their relief, did not look on them with pity.

While they were trying to get lost in the magician’s violet irises, at first all they saw were the imprints of elemental magic. Asra’s happened to be water. But the longer Khleo held his gaze, the more they realized that under all those whimsical waves was something closer to what they knew.

Khleo sensed a youthful, wild hunger in Asra. Sharp, juvenile teeth. Fear that made you fight. Fear that made you run so fast you could scale up walls and break through doors.

Khleo recognized the coarse fur and the angles and the sharpness. They understood the hunger and the bite. And the secrecy too. They all had secret lives when they were younger. When the world was intent to crush or make monsters out of them.

He’s like me.

Khleo wasn’t sure what Asra’s history was. She was too worn out from the reading to ask about it, but the trust that she felt with this strange magician had somehow intensified.

“Here’s your card back.”

Whatever Khleo had felt just then reflected itself for a moment on Asra’s face before his features became the magical stranger once more as he accepted the card.

“Thank you. I’ll tell Kip that—”

Khleo got off the bench. “Tell her whatever you want. Just promise me something.” She crossed her strong arms and shot Asra a look that edged towards something more than a warning. “Don’t bring her around here. Ever.”

Asra’s pale eyebrows came together as he clenched his jaw.

Khleo added, “In fact, you should tell her…” They locked in all those stolen scents that connected back to the gardener. “Tell her to just forget about me.”

The barhand headed for the doors of the Chandrian. By the time they reached them, they had shut down whatever feelings or thoughts they had about that stupid reading and the magician who provided it.

Once he was finally alone, Asra released a breath that he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

He was sure that Khleo hadn’t noticed while in the midst of looking directly into his eyes, Asra was looking right back at them. Within an instant, he saw the lion. He saw Khleo’s strength and the imprint of the Arcana’s realm, but underneath all that, he sensed something else. The magician had detected a distant shore much like the one that resided in Kipling and in Ozy.

Asra had felt the pull of the tropical tides even if Khleo had no clue that such gravity existed within them.

#the arcana #khleo the barhand #asra alnazar #asra #the arcana fanfiction #the arcana fanfic #the arcana fic #asra the arcana #arcana albums: strength #arcana albums #my writing

[jamestrmtx]

Fairytale Complex - [Undertale | Sans x Reader]

[Gender Neutral, Frisk's Parent Reader | Slow Burn]

Chapter Three | sans. (Part 2 of 3 | His POV)

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Still disoriented by the hug, the skeleton finds it difficult not to spare a glance at the human every so often. Though the train's near empty and it allows for some space between him and (Y/N), he still feels too close to them. It was rare for people to find a way to pay back at him for his constant joking around, and he's quite frankly bummed over learning Frisk had told on him. Though he wasn't one to use the same joke on two different people, he wanted to go a similar route with at least one of Frisk's parents, just to see how much they were alike to their child. As results of his defeat, he can only try to strike up another conversation with them while the train makes it to his stop.

"Frisk told me they lived with you only," he says, breaking the ice. "How's it like being a single parent? If you're, well... single, I mean."

He almost wants the ground to eat him up and spit him back to the Underground with how blunt he'd been just now. And while it wasn't intentional, his question along with the text messages from earlier made him feel as if he was involuntarily flirting with the human. Thankfully, they don't show an immediate reaction, and when they do react, it's followed with a smile.

"It's a bit tough sometimes, but… I'd say as long as you raise your child well and that you enjoy what you're doing, then it can be pretty rewarding." Warmth softens (Y/N)'s eyes and they appear vulnerable for just a moment. "I've raised Frisk on my own since they were a newborn, and it's been nice to see how far they've gone." The human stops talking to stare at him for a second; it's a second that takes far too long for his liking, and one where he feels as if he's being judged just as stern and ruthless as he once was during his time at the Underground. "Are you a father yourself? Your... question kind of makes me think that."

First the hug, and now this.

The kid's parent really knew how to give him frequent, near-death experiences, it seems.

"Uh…" Words stay stuck in his metaphorical throat, until he finally replies with, "No, but I hadda take responsibility over my bro when we were younger." He rubs the back of his neck and looks away from them, their eyes being far too attentive for his taste. "But I'd say it's nothin' compared to being a real parent, though."

"Don't sell yourself short," they say, nudging his shoulder. "I'd like to meet your brother someday. What's his name?"

"Papyrus -- the one you mentioned earlier."

"Do you have pictures?" 

It's almost impossible for him not to be amused at how excited they seem all of a sudden, yet he fights back a chuckle, not wanting for it to be taken the wrong way. He proceeds to search through his phone for a picture of his brother, stopping when he finds one with Frisk in it, too. "Here he is," he says, holding the phone out for them.

He scoots back as subtly as he can manage when they move a bit closer, ending the space of one seat once left between each other. Now, he sits right beside them, and he begins to wonder over how normal it is for a human to be this way; open and chatty. Surely, and just like how every other monster type was different in their own way, then humans had to have similar differences, too. As a result, Sans tries not to let (Y/N)'s sudden proximity get to him and ignores the weird feeling in his non-existent gut when he meets a bit closer with their face, greeted with intrigued eyes and an equally curious smile. "He's so grown up already. I honestly thought he'd be younger based on what you and Frisk told me!"

They move back a little, finally allowing him space to let out a breath and contemplate just what was that weird feeling from earlier ago; the monster couldn't possibly have developed a crush already, and it was far too silly and farfetched to even think about. Simply fooling around a little through text and having them hug him to backfire his prank wasn't near enough for any sort of attraction to build up yet. He tries to tell himself that time after time again, though he can't forget the gentleness of their touch when pulling him in for that hug, nor can he ignore how blatant and bold he'd been with them through texts. Still, if anything had to be fueling those feelings of his, it had to be the sheer lack of contentment he'd been experiencing as of recent, deeming him more vulnerable when it came to making and maintaining new relationships with others.

Sans was down, and while he didn't want to admit it, he needed to go back to some sort of routine and professional counseling to get him back on track. Even Frisk had seen him at his worst at one point, going as far as to admit he'd given up, yet now he's here again, and with the company of their primary caregiver, to boot. The human's eyes stay on him even as he stores the phone away, incrementing the same strange feeling from before. 

"How do you feel being out here now?" they ask. "If you lived underground, I'm guessing up here's much warmer, right? …Or at least most of it, I expect!" They seem to recall something and take a quick moment to gather their thoughts. "Your contact information said you worked in Snowdin, Waterfall, and Hotland. Is… Is the name Hotland true to its name?"

"Very," he says, chuckling. "And Snowdin and Waterfall, too." He knows he's not making eye contact anymore, so he tries to look at them again, but can't bring himself to no matter how many times he tries. "That's actually part of what I wanted to talk to you about."

The human nods with a smile, signaling for him to carry on speaking. The monster finally manages to look at them directly, aware this was most likely the last time they would smile at him after he told the truth about all the stuff that took place back at the Underground. Surely, and just as he suspected was something (Y/N) wanted to talk with him about, a parent wouldn't feel too fond knowing most of his kind had tried to hurt and chase after their child at one point. He's already anticipating an inevitable downfall in the barely-relationship he has with them, but that doesn't stop him from trying to make himself acquainted with them before any of that ever came to be a reality.

"I was wonderin' if you wanted to see what it's like down there," he says, setting those thoughts out to rest. "It could help you understand your kid's journey better, and you could also learn more about my kind, too."

When their smile grows, he almost feels a pang of guilt reach the very center of his ribcage. Knowing he'd hit it off well with them and knowing it wouldn't last long made him feel worse at every second he kept secret all the mistakes his kind made on their own. "I'd love to," they reply, eyes almost lighting up in joy. "So I assume you would be the one showing me there, then?" Sans nods and watches as they rummage something from their pocket, retrieving a notepad and pen; both are patterned with bunnies all over, a sight that makes the monster wonder if that stationary was a gift from Frisk. "That reminds me," they add, offering both items out to him. "Could you tell me if I'm missing anyone on this list?" He takes the items and ignores when their fingers brush with his, just as gentle as the hug felt. "It's supposed to be all the monsters Frisk made friends with there." 

"Sure," he says, flipping the notepad open. A grin returns to his face when he remembers just how many friends Frisk made back there, and how many more they would've likely made had they met the monsters on different terms, and had they stayed at the Underground for longer than they had. "It's gonna be one helluva list, though -- Kid made more friends than I can count."

They cover up a laugh, saying, "Didn't you used to be a scientist? I'm sure you know way more math than me."

"Maybe that's why it says past scientist 'stead of former?"

Though Sans had been joking around himself, he sees a frown fall on the human's face, a sudden change of expression followed by them shifting on their seat. "I'm sorry," they say, meeting his irises. "That was a rude question, wasn't it? It's… It's not exactly polite to bring up a stranger's past like that, isn't it?"

"I mean, yeah, but…" He pauses to observe their change in expression, far too concerned over something so trivial. "I'm okay with being honest, and that's exactly why I'm here, anyway." Their distressed expression stays intact, showing they barely took his words as true. "There's a lotta stuff I could've done and approached differently during my time at the Underground, and now I wanna change that." He doesn't know why he's running his mouth now, but one thing's for certain, and it's that he wants to keep on talking. If he was the judgment card out of all the major arcana, the human sitting next to him had to be either the tower or the hermit. "Maybe I can't tell you all about it right now, but there's a lotta stuff I need to clear up and come clean about before we can get to know each other better."

The train halts and the doors open, his stop finally marking itself on the screen. Only two of the few other people present stand up, and him and (Y/N) are the last two to exit. He walks with them side by side, continuing with the conversation until he finds the place he'd be inviting them over to.

------------------------------

Finally there, Sans goes with the human to a diner both Grillby and Muffet were jealous of, and just by stepping into the building, he can already tell why. It smells heavenly, its interiors look straight out of a home renovation magazine, and it's bustling with people, but it's still spacious enough not to make the surroundings feel stuffy or cramped. Most occupied tables have a room with a view sort of attraction, large glass panes allowing customers to observe the inner workings of the mall from the comfort of their seat and a cheap and warm meal. As a consequence, there's a couple of empty tables left farther away, these having the privacy of low lighting and no windows nearby, a spot more than adequate for the conversation he would soon have with Frisk's parent. He points at it with his irises and tells them to sit there while he goes to make both orders at the counter.

"Aren't we splitting the bill?" they ask, a hand already searching around for their wallet.

"I made the invite, so it's only fair I pay," he replies, winking at them. "Besides, after what we're gonna talk about here, you'll probably be mad enough to never talk to me again."

"How does that correlate with us not splitting the bill?" They quirk a brow, smile, and take a seat at the empty table nonetheless. "And who says that? We haven't even gotten to talk about anything too serious yet."

He laughs. "Believe me when I say the situation down there was a big ol', complicated mess." His gaze wanders to the counter, seeing only a line of two people waiting for their turn. "So here's to hopin' a lunch with you and treating you to it makes things a lil' bit less tense between us."

"You're trying to bribe me with food, is what you're saying?" Their smile grows and they relax on their seat.

He snickers. "Depends on how ya look at it, pal."

With that, he leaves the human at the table and goes off to the ordering line, setting the topic aside from his mind to focus on making the orders and taking the correct amount of currency used at the Surface. It takes no longer than five minutes for it to be his turn, though when it's time to finally say both orders, he freezes and so does the cashier when he looks at the table Sans had just walked out from. The name tag on the man's uniform shows to be a familiar last name; it's the only other last name besides (Y/N)'s found in Frisk's full name. 'Jerry', his first name reads, the owner of the name being a six foot tall hunk with tanned skin, plenty of muscle, blond hair, a sharp jawline, and every other feature one could expect out of the typical jock character seen in some American movies he often found thrown at the Underground's dumpster, source from where Alphys got her anime, Mettaton his glamour, and Napstablook their music.

The man's customer service smile falls to a near death stare when he meets with Sans's gaze, his glare and height enough to make the monster feel cornered.

"Is that (Y/N) over there?" Jerry asks, pointing with his eyes over to where they sit at. "What's a guy like you doing with my ex?"

Sans grins, resists the urge to roll his irises, and lifts his gaze up higher, not wanting to be towered over by the man behind the counter. "What about you, pal? That ex you're talkin' about, Frisk, and even CPS have been lookin' everywhere for ya. And now you jus' suddenly appear outta nowhere?"

"Oh, that's real damn rich coming from a guy who threatened my kid with death."

Oh.

Oh no.

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#sans x reader #undertale x reader #lgbt #lgbt themes #gender neutral reader #male reader #female reader #mother reader #father reader #parent reader #chubby reader #long fic #romcom #adventure #mystery #platonic relationships #slow burn

[demonicheadcanons]

The Wrong Clothes - A Lucio x MC (SFW) Drabble - The Arcana

You wake up to a knock at the bedroom door. It takes a few moments before you realise you’ve called out, and the person is answering, words lost on you as your brain tries desperately to catch up.

“I’m sorry, could you repeat that?” you call, laughing.

“The... err, ex-count, Lucio, has asked us to come get you for the meeting, MC. It has started already and your lack of presence has made him somewhat...”

“Ah, I understand,” you respond, stifling a laugh. You could imagine how Lucio would be acting right now; that pout on his face, eyes trailing off along the walls as he refuses to focus, tapping his golden metal fingers against his arm impatiently, voice shrill and snappy as he answers. You’d seen him before, lingering in a doorway as he spoke to someone or other, and you remembered how his entire demeanor had softened when you slid your hand into his.

You clear your throat now and slide out of bed, sparing a glance at the clock before freezing. It was after noon, almost an hour past when the meeting was supposed to start, the sun high in the sky already. How had no one come to wake you up before now?

Your blood turns to ice in your veins as you grab whatever semi-formal clothing you find first and shove it on. A quick brush over your hair, and with boots on, you bolt out the door, startling the servant who gives you a questioning look as you sprint down the corridor. Lucio didn’t take kindly to being abandoned for so long, needy as he was, and he’d definitely need an apology this time.

Usually he would come get you the second he woke up, and would drag you around by his side all day, unwilling to let you leave for even a moment unless you really wanted to, and even then he’d stand and huff until you returned. He’d relaxed lately, mellowed out just a little as life became somewhat normal after everything the two of you had been through, but if you made plans together it was expected that you would stick to them.

Before you can barrel past another stray servant, you pause to ask if they’ve seen Lucio, and can’t quite make sense of the look they give you before smiling and stating that they had last seem him making his way around the ballroom. When you get there, he’s no where to be seen, and unable to hear even the faint clacking noise of his heels, you sigh and walk until you find another staff of the palace - a chef, the one who bakes the bread you liked, and whom you’d gotten hired there after everything had returned to normal.

He beams at you now, giving you that same grin he always greeted you with, although the wink he throws in makes you feel... nervous. People had been acting weird when they saw you, and you couldn’t make sense of it, too worried over finding Lucio to figure it out.

“Well, if it isn’t MC! What’s wrong, love? You look like you’ve run the entire length of the palace,” he chuckles joyously, eyes glittering.

“I feel like I have,” you groan, placing a hand over your chest and taking a deep breath to settle your racing heart. “You haven’t seen Lucio, have you?”

“I have indeed!” The chef smirks now, leaning in closer and talking in a low conspiratorial tone. “He was in a right state, he was! Came into the kitchen, all over the place, complaining about this and that. Countess Nadia looked about ready to turn tail and march right out of there, lest her headache get any worse. I don’t know how you put up with him, my dear.”

“Its my fault. I’m... really late.” You let out a sigh, pouting slightly as you imagine just how worked up Lucio is. He’d been trying hard, but this had probably set back peoples’ opinions on him a little at this point. Your next words aren’t quite directed at the chef, but rather at the entire staff of the palace. “I’m so sorry.”

“Not at all, MC! Don’t worry about it. He’s been much better since you’ve started coming here, I’ve heard. Everyone’s real grateful. And it seems like he’s trying harder, too. We all have our bad days.” The chef gives you a softer smile, patting your shoulder. “I think they were heading into Countess Nadia’s dining room, last I heard, for a brief tea break. You’ll probably find him there.”

“Thank you so much.” You briefly throw your arms around the chef’s shoulders, and he lets out a bubbly laugh. Last time you hugged him, you’d admitted that having him in the palace felt like having a family here, made it all more homely for you when you were away from the store, and he’d let out the same laugh. It makes your grip tighten the slightest bit before you release him.

“No worries at all, kid. Come by the kitchen later and I’ll save you some of that pumpkin bread you love. I’ve been trying some new recipes and I desperately need an opinion I respect.”

You let out a laugh at that - he respected Nadia, but you two had a running joke about the nobility here, talking about them through fake sneers and rolled eyes. Only in private, of course, because you were sure Lucio and Nadia both wouldn’t quite take kindly to it. The chef beams at you, winking one last time before he releases you fully and tells you to run along, now, and don’t keep your fancypants boyfriend waiting any longer.

You burst into the dining room without thinking and almost barge into someone holding a stack of trays and empty plates, and apologise, flustered, as everyone turns to look at you. Nadia’s eyes light up and you can finally place the look you’ve been getting from everyone, her included.

Amusement. Was it really so obvious that you’d slept in and not had time to prepare at all for this? No one expected you to be at top shape like the actual nobels here, and so you could usually get away with having a worse-for-wear day without anyone reacting to it. Not like they all had been today.

Lucio himself frowns when he first sees you, but even his expression breaks as he looks you up and down, a bemused smirk on his face as he stands to pull you over and sit beside him. Asra stifles a chuckle behind one hand, and although he still glares faintly every time you’re beside Lucio, he too looks like he’s only just holding back laughter.

“Did you sleep in, then?” Asra asks instead, purple eyes alight with mischief.

You let out a non-committal hum, not enjoying how everyone appears to be judging you whilst you’re completely left out of the joke. You turn to Lucio with a faint pout, waiting for answers, for anything, but he simply folds his arms and continues watching you. Payback, you assume, for leaving him alone with Nadia and Asra for so long.

With a sigh you turn to the rest of the table and ask about how the meeting had gone so far - had many plans been made for the upcoming masquerade? Nadia scoffs, glancing between you and Lucio.

“Something was occupying our focus too much to make as much headway as we would have liked,” she says, glaring pointedly at Lucio as he pouts and kicks his feet about under the table, refusing to look at her. You sip your tea to hide a grin, before looking at her earnestly.

“I’m sorry for being so late. I don’t know why I slept in so late.”

Asra lets out a laugh into his teacup, sputtering the liquid everywhere, and Nadia barely stifles her own as she passes him a handkerchief. Lucio’s ears flush red as he looks at you, grinning, and you pout fully at him now.

“Why is everyone laughing at me today?” you ask, and his gaze becomes lighter, more sympathetic. You can see through it, see the mischief that glitters in his white eyes, but he’s trying.

“If I had slept in too,” he comments, looking you up and down again before continuing, “It might have seemed rather... suggestive.”

You finally take the time to look down at your outfit, and your breath catches. Ah.

There would be less implications in your wearing his shirt, top two unbuttons undone and collar slightly frumpled, if you had woken up on time. You look back up at Lucio, feeling your face heat up as he smirks again, his dimple proudly showing now at the corner of his mouth. He presses a kiss to your temple and you feel yourself smile too before burying your head in your hands.

“I have so much explaining to do,” you sigh.

AN: I wrote this a long time ago and I don’t know where I was going with it. I remember writing this all in one go, something about the idea of Lucio seeing you in his clothing but absolutely not saying a word and letting misunderstandings ensue. Anyway, a little drabble for my favourite Arcana boy ^^

#the arcana #count lucio #idk what to tag this tf #the arcana fanfiction #the arcana drabble #my writings #i didnt even. properly edit this. i wrote this months ago ;u; #god shout out to me for hating lucio til i played his route and then adoring him wholeheartedly

[eldritcharchive]

Reviving a Wilted Flower

Relationships: Apprentice/Muriel (The Arcana), Apprentice/Asra (The Arcana)

Characters: The Devil, Asra (The Arcana), The Magician - Character, Apprentice (The Arcana), Muriel (The Arcana)

Tags: Lucio Route - Reversed Ending (The Arcana), Muriel Route (The Arcana), Past Apprentice/Asra (The Arcana), Mentioned Apprentice/Lucio, Nonbinary Apprentice (The Arcana), Male Pronouns for Asra (The Arcana). Trials, Alternate Universe, in the sense that Asra is seeing other routes, Jealousy

Summary: The Magician shows Asra a few potential consequences of his actions before setting the terms to resurrect Safflower, Asra's beloved apprentice. What he sees is not pleasant and dredges up the worst parts of his soul.

--------------------------------------------------

"You are certain?"

Asra scowled - he'd been asked this question many times, and the answer was always the same. That, and he'd told The Magician this already, in no uncertain terms.

"Yes, gods, why does everyone doubt me?" Asra growled. "Safflower… their life is worth everything; I'm willing to pay the price."

"It's not that I doubt you, little magician," the Fox said slowly, "it's just that this decision. It affects them drastically and they are not exactly here to agree to your terms."

Asra quirked his brow. "My… terms? But…"

"You have hopes, do you not?" The Magician said with a smirk, chuckling when Asra's face turned a bright red. "But their life is theirs alone. And they will not remember a time before tonight. Can you live with who they might become?"

"What do you mean?"

The Fox sighed. "Perhaps it will be best to show you," he said softly, "there are… other paths you and your Safflower have taken."

The world around them shifted - they no longer sat at Lucio's table, but stood in a blood red desert. The air was hot, bitterly dry, and Asra found himself gasping, bringing large gulps of acrid air into his lungs. The Devil's realm. The Magician stood beside him, and curled his hand around Asra's.

"Stay with me - The Devil would not dare harm me, but you?" The Magician sighed. "Well. You'll see."

Asra found himself pulled along - he wasn't sure what to expect, really, but is Saff was *here*... that didn't bode well. The stroll was long; longer, Asra suspected, than The Magician expected. They passed the same patch of dunes for a third time when the Fox growled, trapping Asra's hand in a death-grip.

"Gods damned… I'm here for a visit alone," he hissed into the empty space. "A trial for this magician."

" A trial, you say? Intriguing." The Devil's voice rang in Asra's head, different now from the one he was used to hearing during readings. This sounded more… more like…

The Devil appeared before them, draped in sheer, black silks that flared out around their legs in an ankle-length skirt. Their red eyes stared down at Asra with a spark of unbridled glee.

"S-Saff?" Asra felt his face go cold as the Devil grinned.

"Oh, this is delightful ," The Devil - Safflower - said, a grin ripping itself across their face. They hooked a finger under Asra's chin forcing him to meet their eyes. "You have no idea what you're doing, do you, little Asra? Not unlike my little magician, though he carries far more regrets." Asra swallowed; his fingers shook against the Magician's palm. Safflower released his face and stood - horns erupted from their temple adding a good half-foot to their height, with a smaller pair framing their face.

"What happened?"

The Devil barked a laugh. "Oh, if only I hadn't sent Lucio out on something important . He'd enjoy this."

Asra bristled. Lucio?

Safflower tsk ed. "This was my doing. My choice, Asra, and mine alone. It saved the realms, which I'm told was the point." They scoffed, rolling their eyes at the idea. An awkward silence fell upon the three before Safflower grinned and knelt to Asra's eye level. When he glared back at them, they laughed low and deep.

"Oh, that face. So determined ," Safflower said, tone suffused with condescension. "I was weak , too weak to protect any of you. Everyone was right to call me Fool. " They sneered and gestured to the world around them. "But look - the realms are stable and everyone lived. And yet those achievements go tragically underappreciated."

The Magician cleared his throat and Safflower turned their gaze to Asra's guide. They grinned before turning back to Asra.

"I hope you find everything to your liking," The Devil jeered before vanishing. Asra shuddered. " I hope you don't come to regret your choices, little Asra."

Visions flashed in Asra's mind - Lucio commanding armies of vicious demons, conquering nations under the flag of The Devil. Oh, they stayed in their realm but there was no question they leveraged every connection in their power to make things worse. Vesuvia was in ruins, and the token resistance was run by Julian, Asra, Muriel and the few allies they could find.

It was wretched, and yet Asra ached most for Safflower. There must have been no other choice. Still…

" Lucio? " He muttered, incredulous. The Magician shrugged.

"In this universe, Safflower tried everything to save the world, only to die in the process," he said. Asra blanched at the thought. "The only chance they had, the realms had, was to merge with the devil. Lucio was the only one who could go through with making that happen."

Asra scoffed. "Figures he'd be so short sighted," he said under his breath. Again, the Magician shrugged.

"It did save the world, in a sense," he said solemnly. "And somehow, they're still better than our Devil." Asra was sure he wasn't supposed to hear that, but he scowled anyway. The Magician raised an eyebrow. "Simply an observation. Now."

The Magician snapped and the world shifted once more, swirling around the two mages until they stood in a familiar forest. Or, sort of familiar - this was definitely the forest near Vesuvia but it was… warmer. More welcoming.

Asra let go of The Magician's hand and narrowed his eyes at him. "What," he demanded, "was that meant to tell me?"

The Magician blinked. "I told you," he said softly, "you and Saffron have walked many paths. That… is the end of one of them. If you go through with this deal, they could make choices that lead to… well. The destruction of what you know as Safflower. And Vesuvia."

Asra huffed, folding his arms in front of his chest and clawing at his forearms. His guide looked at him expectantly.

"If that… if that is what they chose, I…" Asra paused. The destruction of Vesuvia for one life? Still… that Saff was far from guaranteed. And if it truly was their decision, who was Asra to stand in their way. "I would still go through with it, even if we end up… there."

"Right, well, I want to show you another path before we shake on it," the Major Arcana said. "Come." He walked confidently through the forest, the trees bending away from the Magician as he moved. Asra hesitantly followed, taking note of the differences around him - no protective charms hung from the branches around them, despite being so near…

"Muriel!"

The Magician stopped at the edge of the clearing near Muriel's hut, holding up a hand in front of Asra. They weren't to interact with this universe, clearly. Asra's eyes settled on Safflower, standing in the doorway of Muriel's hut. They looked… well, alive. Their freckled, fawn-brown skin flushed a warm coral in the warm sun, their unnatural orange eyes bright with laughter. Saff was draped in a luxurious red shawl (definitely Nadia's doing) over his usual embroidered blue tunic.

Muriel broke through the trees opposite Asra and the Arcana. He looked… good . He was dressed - dressed! - in a clean linen shirt and brilliant, embroidered green jacket with colorful belts cinched at his waist. He carried a few rolled tapestries on his shoulder and a basket of baked goods from… from the market. In Vesuvia. Safflower smiled brightly, a heartening sight compared to the twisted glee of The Devil. Muriel smiled back. A warmth wormed its way into Asra's chest - his best friend and his apprentice were happy. Why was this part of the trial?

Muriel set the tapestries and basket of food down on a bench outside of the hut. (It looked… larger, now that Asra focused on it.) Saff held out their arms and Muriel gathered them up against his chest and squeezed.

"Missed you," Muriel murmured into Safflower's soft brown hair. Saff chuckled.

"Missed you, too," they said, smiling up at Muriel before leaning up and…

Oh.

The kiss is chaste and sweet and, for a moment, Asra felt light. He'd never imagined he'd see Muriel this happy. But when the Magician's curious eye landed on Asra, the witch felt something truly dark stirring in him.

Mine, it shrieked, and clutched at Asra's chest.

Safflower's expression shifted, and they looked toward the edge of the forest.

"What is it?" Muriel asked, his brow furrowed as he followed Safflower's sight line. He hand hovered over a quarterstaff strapped to his back. Saff sighed.

"It's nothing. I felt… I thought I felt Asra out there," they said. "But it's passed."

"I just saw Asra in town," Muriel grumbled, reluctantly leaving his quarterstaff at his back. "He's fine."

Safflower smiled. "Good. We should go see him later," they said with a firm nod. "Now, tell me about your visit south." They snagged the basket of baked goods and ushered Muriel inside, tapestries, quarterstaff, fine clothes and all, leaving their audience in the subtle silence of the forest.

Asra warred with himself. He was overjoyed; he felt like he was going to be violently ill. The person he loved most in this world and his only close friend were very much in love - he could feel it radiating through the forest around them. Muriel shared his home with them. And still there beat a darkness in his chest, it's rhythm of mine, mine, mine hissed between his ribs.

The Magician looked at Asra expectantly; they were sat once again at Lucio's table. Asra coughed and swallowed around his gross jealousy.

"What are the terms?" He asked, voice unwavering. The Magician smiled.

"To bring them back, I require half of your heart," he said plainly before glancing upwards for a moment, lost in thought. Asra could be patient, at least, he told himself he could. His bouncing leg said otherwise. "And your word they will be free to choose their own path."

Asra hummed, thinking of the black tendrils of jealousy that ripped into him. It was ugly, that envy, those possessive claws - was that what drove him to this? His desire to possess Saff?

No . Asra thought back to his conversation with Eyre, his convictions. He loved Safflower with his whole being - and he would accept how Safflower felt. About him and the others. They wouldn't be his Safflower if he forced them into a particular shape, just to suit his fancy. He would wrestle with his demons on his own, and he would win. Eventually.

Asra sighed and held out his hand. "You have a deal, Magician."

The Fox smiled, and Asra lost consciousness.

#the arcana #gideon writes #asra alnazar #major arcana #stupid deals stupid choices #lucio route spoilers #muriel route spoilers #muriel #lucio #the apprentice #oc: safflower of vasuvia #muriel x apprentice #asra x apprentice #apprentice x lucio #lots going on in very few words

[shhh-no-ones-home]

liar, liar (1/2) bucky barnes x reader

+++++++++

part 1 part 2

(ft sam wilson)

backstory - she can see the future (or versions of it) through dreams and visions; she can see someone's past and memories by touching them; and she can stop peoples actions with her mind. sam introduced her to bucky without knowing about her powers and they started dating. (OC superhero name: Arcana)

song: bruised and bloodied by seether

ps this song slaps and so does the album and god i just really love seether. okay im done now lol

tag list: @cynic-spirit

+++++++++

when i woke up i sighed, feeling the bed next to me empty again. this was the third time this week that Bucky had woken up way before me and left before i even got to tell him good morning. it was starting to put a damper on my mood but i wasn't about to let him know that.

i shook my head, digging it deep into my pillow before sitting up and rubbing my face. when i opened my eyes back up they grew wider. Bucky was standing in the doorway with a half smile on his face and two mugs in his hands.

"hey."

he said quietly, not making a move yet.

"hey."

i said back, a little more chipper than i was expecting. i think the same went for him.

"coffee?"

i nodded, smiling back at him

"just the way you like it."

he said as he sat on the side of the bed in front of me.

"whats the special occasion?"

i asked before taking a sip, looking up at him over the top of the mug. he just shook his head.

"no special occasion."

i sent him a look as i lowered the mug.

"youre a terrible liar, you know that?"

he laughed a little bit.

"youd think id be better at it by now but i guess thats why they always kept my mouth shut."

i sent him a look.

"so?"

he huffed a breath deep out his nose.

"sam called."

i shook my head.

"no."

"come on y/n."

"buck you hate fighting-"

"and what would i do if he got hurt?!"

i sighed, closing my eyes and pinching the bridge of my nose.

"damn you for being so caring."

i said sternly and he cracked a half smile.

"damn you for sticking around."

he quipped back and i laughed.

"when does he need us?"

°°°°°°°°°

i looked over his face as he stared at the floor. his jaw tightened and i could tell he didn't want to do this. he had done enough already.

"hey,"

i said softly, touching his face and turning him to look at me. he looked sad. or maybe it was disappointment.

"you know you don't have to do this right?"

i asked and his face changed again. maybe it was regret. he tried to avoid my gaze again but i side stepped him.

"hey, look at me. you dont have to do this. youre getting better, you are a good man."

i reassured. he nodded slowly, glancing over my face.

"i should've listened to you this morning."

i snorted.

"ive been telling you for a while that you should listen to me more but some how we always end up here."

i joked and he sent me a look.

"you two ready?"

Sam asked as he came up behind us and Bucky nodded. i frowned but nodded too anyways.

"they're coming in on the southside, so be ready."

he said, looking between us. then there was a clattering above us, making the three of us look up. in came a few men, descending from the ceiling in full tactile gear.

"god damnit john."

i said annoyed, turning to see him coming through the door looking all high and mighty.

"i heard you could use some back up."

he said and i rolled my eyes. i could tell buck and sam were just as surprised and annoyed.

"why is it that we can never do anything without you showing up?"

i asked and a smug look crossed his face.

"we do this bigger and better than you. and you arent exactly discreet. metal arm, jet pack, spandex; kinda stands out in a crowd."

"dont forget i can see your future john."

i seethed and he laughed.

"right, Arcana, i almost forgot."

Bucky touched my hip lightly.

"easy. we've still got time."

i looked to him and bit my tongue.

"we dont need your help."

i assured but he just ignored me. then a loud bang sounded from the south side.

"shit."

i mumbled under my breath, taking off in that direction after sam and bucky.

"hey hey hey."

bucky said, pushing me behind him. i frowned and a vision hit me.

"get down!"

i yelled, grabbing him and sam to pull them back as another bomb went off. the three of us fell to the ground, looking up as johns team made their way outside.

"your killing your team john!"

i yelled as he passed us too. another loud sound went off but this time it was something different. i closed my eyes as bullets rang through the air. i could see all of it flashing through my mind. then i reached out and grabbed buckys arm. i had seen him run after them and get shot and there was no way i was letting that happen.

"y/n, theyre gonna die, we have to do something."

then i looked at him.

"you stay here."

i demanded, standing and walking outside. there were many soldiers on the ground already, the few that were left were pointing guns at the so-called attackers, john was holding a gun to the leader. i had seen this, neither of them was a winner. i closed my eyes again and breathed deeply, holding all of them still. a second thought and their guns were to the ground, fists at their sides. when i opened my eyes they were all looking around confused. then i heard a gunshot, looking around just as confused.

"y/n!"

i heard from behind me, buckys arms hitting my back as i slouched into him, watching john shoot the leader between the eyes.

"hey, listen, stay with me."

bucky bargained, sam running up and standing over him as helped me slowly to the ground.

"didnt see that one coming."

i groaned as he pressed his flesh hand into the hole in my side.

"youre gonna be okay, okay? just stay with me."

i nodded.

"im sorry. i thought i could help them."

i said a little breathy, tears visibly appearing behind his eyes as he picked me up. i hissed at the sudden movement.

"you did help them."

i held my side, trying to breathe deeply.

"get her out of here."

sam said. i could feel bucky beginning to run as i closed my eyes, feeling the rain hit my face as the thunder rolled.

"please dont leave me."

he whispered.

"im not going anywhere."

i managed, rolling my head against his chest. the next thing i knew i was being placed on a bed and there were doctors surrounding me.

°°°°°°°°°

when i woke up again there was a beeping running through my ears. i felt completely out of my mind as i blinked slowly. it was like visions were coming to me in fast moving pictures unlike anything ive ever experienced.

"bucky."

i whined, scared, as i rolled my head back and forth.

"im here."

he said through a sniffle, taking my hand in his. i squeezed my eyes shut tightly as i saw our first date play out behind my eyes. it made me smile, seeing him fumble through his words as sam laughed at him. i blinked again before looking over at him. he looked like he had been crying for a while and i couldnt help feeling guilty for making him feel that way.

"dont look at me like that."

he said.

"like what?"

i asked innocently as he wiped his face.

"like you pity me."

i squeezed his hand.

"i have never in my life pitied you James Buchanan Barnes, and i dont intend on starting any time soon."

i wheezed out, coughing at the end. he let out a shaky breath.

"then why does it feel like it."

he managed and i ran my thumb over his hand.

"im sorry."

i said and he looked at me confused.

"for what?"

i cleared my throat.

"for hurting you."

he shook his head quickly.

"this isnt your fault. you couldnt have known john was going to shoot you. if anything this is on him."

"ill be sure to bill him."

i said through a laugh before groaning and placing my hand over the wound. then there was  a knock at the door. it was sam.

"how are we doing in here?"

he asked lightly and i smiled at him, reaching out to him with the hand bucky wasnt holding.

"im all aces."

i said as he leaned down and hugged me as best as he could.

"im glad to see youre okay."

i nodded slowly.

"did you finish the mission?"

he hung his head low.

"the majority of the group got away. but we'll get em next time."

i sighed.

"dont do anything stupid without me."

i said with a wink and he laughed.

"its a little late for that id say."

he nodded towards me and i sent him a look.

"oh believe me, he shows up again ill give him something he wont forget."

"is that a promise?"

bucky piped up and i laughed, groaning after.

"you bet your ass it is."

#wattpad #x reader #Bucky Barnes #sam wilson #james buchanan barnes #winter soldier #falcon #the falcon and the winter soldier #imagines #one shots #320

[sunflowersseemhappy]

Not 100% sure if this is up your alley? My MC for Arcana *AHEM* KNEW Lucio prior to the events of the game and I have a head cannon of her LI feeling guilty of their ~history~ but she tries to reassure them saying "After all, I've been with Lucio!" How do you think the Main 6 would react?

For context: Each LI is talking about their respective regrets in the past to MC who in trying to comfort them accidentally reveals their former involvement and relationship with Lucio (something they remembered from their past).

I enjoyed the prompt so much I wrote them as short stories, ‘cause I had a lot of feelings...

The lengths are a bit inconsistent, so sorry for that! There are suggestive themes but nothing that goes into detail so like 12+ years old (if there are even -12 year olds in the fandom, which why?!)

Hope you enjoy! REQUESTS ARE OPEN

Next up is Main 6 react to an MC that is tall but really self conscious about it.

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Asra

Once the words are out of my mouth I halt abruptly, glancing unsure at Asra who has fallen quiet beside me. His lips are drawn in a thin line, his brow furrowed. I hadn’t meant to tell him, but he had been so caught up in his regret for the past that I had wanted to comfort him with my own. It had just fallen out of my mouth and now it hung in the air like a suffocating cloud. Shifting uncomfortably I fumble for words, but it’s him who speaks.

“I knew,” his amethyst eyes betray no emotion as he turns his head slightly to regard me with a level stare. I can’t quite tell what his exact emotions are, but I can hear the weight in his voice. “I didn’t like it, but I’ve known for years.” My stomach flips in anxious circles, he knew...

All this time he knew and didn’t tell me? Most likely it was because he had known me so well in the past, I wonder if I told him or if he had just simply seen the two of us together. It’s strange, he knows more about my past than I do. More than I’ll probably ever know.

Nevertheless it makes my memories of Lucio feel real with Asra’s confirmation and for once my head doesn’t hurt at the memory. If I hadn't told him today would I ever have told him? Probably not, I know how much he hates Lucio but it doesn’t matter now because he knew anyway. I start to wonder does he hate me for it? Does he hate knowing that Lucio held me like he now does? Does it- do I make him uncomfortable?

Sucking in a breath, I keep my eyes locked down. Faust has come to rest on my wrist and I can feel her uncertainty like my own as her tongue flicks out toward me. I don’t think she entirely understands why myself and Asra have turned from each other. Faust’s weight is the only thing keeping me from leaving, she knows it and bobs her head at Asra. Calling in her light voice.

“Asra sad? Friend sad too!” Faust’s scales rub my wrist as she moves uncertainly between us, in the end she lies between us but her tail is wrapped around my wrist and her head is laid on Asra’s lap. A droplet falls into my lap, and I pull my head up slightly whilst touching a hand to my cheek. I’m crying, I didn’t even realise.

I swipe away the hot tears threatening to spill over my cheeks, but as I do so more come and before I know it salty tears are trailing down my face and falling from my chin. I begin sobbing into my hands, drawing choked breaths. At first I think Faust is sliding over my shoulders but I see Asra leaning in and in seconds Asra’s arm wraps around my shoulders. He pulls me into his chest despite my resistance. My breath hiccups as his hand rakes my hair back from my face, pulling it back, his hand cups the nape of my neck, whilst the other hand snakes around my back.

“You must hate me, thinking about me being with him after all he did to you and the others.” My voice is shallow and quiet but I can tell Asra heard me from the shake of his head as lays his chin on top of my head, soothing me with shushing sounds that sound like waves breaking on the surf.

“No, I don’t,” Asra mumbles soothingly. “You can’t help who you fall in love with, I should know that better than anyone. I could never judge someone, most of all you, for the actions of whoever they are or were in love with. Besides, do you have feelings for him now?” I sniffle and peek up at his face, his gaze meeting mine lovingly and without judgement. He pulls back slightly and cups my face with a hand giving me that mysterious smile.

“Of course not,” I hastily choke taking a breath, my hands smooth out to rest on his shoulders. I grip his shirt in my fists, white-knuckled and desperate to hold him where he sits. Speaking firmly and meeting his eyes with steely resolve I continue. “I love you, and I want to be with you. Not Lucio.” Asra gives me a nod and presses his lips to my forehead.

Leaning into his touch I press close to his chest, heaving a sigh and looking up at him. I kiss the closest swath of bare skin I can find at his throat, he’s nothing like Lucio. He’s better, his strength and softness emboldening me. Asra follows my kiss with his own, planting one on lips and savouring it. He nuzzles my face with his own and then his mouth finds the area neck to my ear where he kisses me lightly and whispers in my ear.

“You’ll never know how happy I am to hear you say that,” Asra whispers against my skin squeezing me tight and holding me close. “I want to be with you always Y/N, I love you.”

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Nadia

The words just slip from my mouth, and already I’m slapping my hand to my mouth and cursing my lose lips. Before me on the bed Nadia blinks in surprise, her mouth slightly agape at my outburst, I hastily clear my throat the next words that come out from my mouth jumbled mess.

“Ididn’tmeantosaythat, I’msosorryNadia-” Before I can finish my sentence I hear a snort, I turn toward the sound and gape at Nadia as she breaks out into... laughter. I’m astonished, she’s never laughed like this in front of me. It’s so pure and unrestrained, like I’ve just told the funniest joke on Earth instead of just admitting I had a thing with her former husband.

“You’re not... mad?” I hesitantly ask, very aware of the hand that is lightly squeezing my knee as she laughs, as her giggles die down Nadia shakes her head with an airy sigh swiping a tear from the corner of her eye as she regains her composure.

“My darling, the fact that you comforted me with such brash honesty was just too ironic. Given your missing memories I assume you only learned of this fact recently?” She’s as intuitive as always and I nod slowly, embarrassed as she pats my knee and gives me a understanding look. “To be perfectly honest my own relationship with Lucio is something I always felt... repulsed by. Even though I don’t remember much, if any, of that time.”

My shock gives way to understanding, she’s sympathising with me rather than anything else and it truly is comforting. I had spent the last few weeks cringing at the sight of his portraits on the walls, fragments of memories with him burning into my mind. My memories, moments I had longed to regain became unwelcome intrusions in my mind. Until now I had kept them to myself, but I wasn’t surprised that Nadia had cottoned on to me. She was so observant I wonder why she didn’t bring it up before now.

Looking at her now I’m glad it’s all out there, I don’t like lying to her and its a relief to have her be so understanding. I let out a light chuckle and pinch my lip between my teeth, a smile graces my face as Nadia looks down at me.

“I’m really glad you’re not mad at me,” I admit with a relieved sigh, a sly grin crawls across my face. “Otherwise I couldn’t dish the dirt on his short-comings...”

“Oh, do tell!” Nadia chuckles again, settling back as I tell her about all the ridiculous and downright strange things Lucio did when he was younger. I’m not sure how much time passes but soon enough me and Nadia are snuggled up, our throats sore from all the laughing and our cheeks stiff from not being able to keep straight faces.

“Who knew we would end up talking about Lucio all night?” I sigh, winding a strand of her hair through my fingers. She hums under my touch, her hands absentmindedly tracing circles on my legs.

“Once upon a time I would have been less enthused talking to my husband’s former lover. But I realise that I have changed much over the years. I think it is important we love who we love for whom they are, and not for the people they themselves have formerly loved.” She turns her head upward from my shoulder to look into my eyes, giving me a smile as she shuffles slightly to kiss my chin and then pass her lips over mine. “Enough talk of my husband’s bedside manner Y/N, I think we should turn our attention to each other...”

My face reddens but I nod all the same as we kiss once more.

“That would be nice.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Julian

My words peter out as I say them, red faced I turn to Julian. The eye not covered by his eye-patch is wide and his own face has taken on the complexion of a tomato as he splutters awkwardly. He’s trying to find the words for whatever he’s thinking but they don’t come and all of a sudden I’m afraid of whatever he may say. It must show on my face as I turn away because his spluttering dies down and he lets out a strained sigh.

I feel tears prick the corners of my eyes, the heaviness in the air like a boulder on my back. I flinch slightly when Julian rests a hand to the small of my back and I know he can see the tension in my body and feel my unsteady breath as I try to hold back my tears and calm myself.

“Y/N, I didn’t mean to be so surprised.” Julian’s tone sounds apologetic and honest, I tilt my head to show him I’m listening even though I’m too afraid to look him in the eye. “But I was. Surprised, that is...”

“I know,” I admit turning sheepishly to face him, eyes darting to my hands resting in my lap. “I only found out a couple of day’s ago, I wasn’t sure how you would react so I didn’t want to tell you. Guess I can’t lie to you even if I try.” I laugh brokenly, and I hear Julian chuckle under his breath. He pulls my shoulder and I face him, that goofy grin...

“Here I thought you had better taste in men,” Julian jokes, I frown in mock anger and purse my lips. My eyes bore into his and I shove his chest playfully and snort indignantly.

“Says you!” I chuckle with a roll of my eyes, he seems to take my words as a challenge sidling up close to me, our chest’s almost touching. With his height he dwarfs me and there’s a devilish smirk on his lips as he looks down on me.

“Oh?” He asks lowly, his face lowers close to my ear and his breath tickles my cheek. His lips almost press against my skin but before they do I take on my own smirk and push him back with a finger. Forcing him back with a barely contained whine.

“After all, once upon a time you were the dangerous fugitive Doctor Julian Devorak, a supposed murder and tragic miscreant!” He blinks in surprise as I push him an inch farther and he’s on his back to the cushions on the bed.

“Playing dirty are we? Better be careful my dear. There’s only room for one reckless one in this relationship.” Julian gives me a crooked grin, leaning up on his elbows as I straddle his torso and lean over him, faces so close now.

“Reckless? Don’t even get me started-” I scoff, Julian cuts me off as he leans up and holds his face close to mine, inches from each other.

“Then I won’t...” His lips press against mine and we fall against each other, his hands carding through my hair, as my own roam his shoulders. We kiss a moment longer and it’s Julian who breaks away with a roguish smirk and a dramatic tone.

“I can’t say I didn’t make one of two bad life choices during my lifetime... Just tell me this Y/N was he a better lover than I?” He closes his eye and fakes sadness, trowing a hand to his head. I know what he wants but he’s not getting it. My voice comes out monotone.

“If you keep talking like that I’ll say yes.”

“How cruel?!”

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Muriel

I can’t believe myself, the words feel traitorous and not my own but they come out anyway. I blink a few times and even start to wonder if I said that out loud, a fluttering breath leaves me as I side eye Muriel. His usual neutral expression has melted into a frown, I said it out loud! I bite down on my tongue and swallow thickly, words just don’t seem to want to form and I’m left sitting in silence.

Next to me Muriel’s face melts into something else, a small voice inside me screams to do something but I’m frozen. It’s taken a minute for Muriel to mull over the words, and I know it’s because he doesn’t quite understand my vague words. But now I can see it on his face, he knows what I meant and I know he doesn’t like it.

I can see the clench of his jaw as it works, his eyes uncharacteristically dark, and his large body tense. I flinch when he speaks.

“Are you lying?” He asks in his gravely tone, his lips barely part but I just about hear him. I can’t answer, my mouth stubbornly remains shut. He eyes me and I can hear the desperation in his tone as his eyes squeeze shut. Like he wants me to answer but knows the answer will hurt him. “Tell me you’re lying...”

“I wish I was,” quiet and hoarse my voice is not my own, now the words are out desperation takes me. “I didn’t know until the other day, my memories of him just came back and I-”

Muriel’s bolts up so fast his head thuds against a low hanging beam of the hut, I gasp at the noise but he seems undeterred by whatever pain it may have caused him. I look him up and down; fists clenched, red-faced and turned away from my gaze.

“I need to leave,” Muriel mumbles under his breath, at this I bolt up too but he’s faster than me and before I can take one step he’s out the door and out into the lashing rain. A fitting comparison to my tremulous emotions as I run out into it, but Muriel is gone. Where I have no idea, but I’m alone.

I call out in the rain for hours until I’m soaked through, fearing that if I delved deeper into the woods I could get lost or worse without him. I sit in the doorway for another hour shivering in the cold until I feel a cold settle in my lungs, at this point I don’t care but I go to bed all the same, planning to set out and find him in the morning. Inanna is nowhere to be found, I hope she is with him.

As I lay on the bed I close my eyes and breathe in his smell. Myrrh and wood smoke, I want him here with me and think that maybe if I had a better explanation maybe he wouldn’t have left. I don’t know how long I lie there, but at some point fever sets in and sends me to sleep.

I startle at the thud of wet footsteps, opening my eyes I see Muriel. Large shape outlined even in the darkness as he crouches by the fire and sparks a flame. Inanna is next to him laid out near the fire as it gets going. I remain silent and watch him as he sheds his wet clothes, and hangs them up. A weak cough escapes me and Muriel’s face turns to me, I can’t see his features but I know he’s looking at my face.

He approaches and I remain still closing my eyes as he draws close and kneels in front of my face next to the bedside. The back of what I assume is his hand places itself against my forehead, I know he feels the fever heat there and Muriel lets out a soft sigh. I pretend I can’t feel it as he climbs over to me and slips under the covers next to me.

“I know you’re not asleep,” despite wanting to move I lay still as his chest and stomach press to my back, one of his arms slips over my waist and pulls me close. His breath is on my neck as he nuzzles into me, I’m shivering from the fever although my skin is warm I feel so cold and I know he’s pressing up against me to warm me. But there is more there, and I can feel the waves of regret and love coming from Muriel. “You made me realise-”

“I understand-” He sighs against my skin and tries once more to say what he wants to say. “Y/N, I understand why you don’t hate me for my past, you love me for who I am now. Not who I was then, even though you were with him. I don’t care because I feel the same way you do. I love you here in the present more than I hate him in the past.”

I open my eyes, although they burn from my fever, and turn slowly to face him. Those green eyes are full with love as he stares at my face longingly, I must look a mess from being as ill as I feel but his other hand cups my face.

“Were you mad?” I croak and he nods slightly.

“Yes, but not at you. Never at you.” I sigh against him, snaking my arm over his waist and one of my legs moves to straddle his. I fight a cough and Muriel looks worriedly at me. “I’ll keep you warm and safe Y/N, sleep my love.” He kisses my cheek and pulls me as close as we can get. My eyes flutter closed and I hum in defeat.

“Okay, I love you.”

“So do I,” Muriel admits softly and I fall asleep as he asks, dreaming of him by my side.

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Portia

I’m kicking myself as the words leave my mouth, I’m more embarrassed than anything else. Portia pausing with a thoughtful ��um’ on her lips, but if I had to tell anyone I’m glad it was her. Gods forbid I mention it to any of the others...

As I look desperately at her I notice that her face has gained a thoughtful look, nothing like the surprise, disgust or fear I expected. He mouth is opening and closing like a fish, and I know she’s trying to find the right words and I wait with bated breath.

“You mean the count?” Her head tilts regarding me with... confusion. It was a reaction I hadn’t expected in the least and I can’t help but let out an involuntary laugh.

“No, the guy who serves me coffee at the market.” I drawl sarcastically, it only serves to make Portia giggle “Of course the count!” I laugh with her, giving a rueful shake of my head. Our giggles dissolve quickly and I look down at my hands, wringing them unsure of what to say next, but Portia is already sidling up to me. Laying her head against my shoulder.

“Are you okay?” She whispers, her arm squeezing my waist. It’s a comfort that she is touching me and holding me close, I don’t feel like such a stranger and I can feel my troubles melt away.

“Better for telling you,” I murmur into her hair, I pull back to look questioningly into her eyes. Even though I’m unsure of myself her face betrays nothing but understanding and she gives me that cheery smile. My voice wavers as she stands and walks to the table where a pot of tea sits. “How do you feel about it?”

“It’s weird, I didn’t ever know him but I know he wasn’t the greatest guy around.” I watch as she pours tea out into tea cups, winding her way past the furniture and offering me a steaming mug.

“Yeah, it’s definitely weird.” I admit taking the cup and blowing on the liquid lightly, relishing the warmth seeping from the cup into my fingers. It’s pomegranate tea, one of Portia’s new blends she bought from the market, it smells overly sweet and is a deep red but I’ve come to like the taste.

“I’m curious though, if you could get back with him would you?” Portia watches me over the rim of her cup, hidden behind the light steam as it wafts up. She takes a sip as I reply.

“Not at all.” I admonish bringing the rim of my teacup to my lips and relishing the fragrant concoction, exotic and beautifully blended. I’m unprepared for her next question.

“What was he like... ya’know?” At those words I involuntarily inhale, choking on my tea. I splutter as it stings my throat and stains my shirt crimson, coughing some more I take a startled breath.

“Portia!” I place my cup to the side and give her a warning frown. I feel myself drawn back into my memories, every one of them feeling like an intrusion as if I’m not really seeing my own memories but those of another. It feels so intrusive to even think about them, to think about me and him together...

“I was just curious!” She giggles, when she notices me go quiet her hand creeps onto my leg as if to ask for my forgiveness.“But seriously Y/N, did he ever do anything you didn’t like? Because if you need to talk to me, about anything, I’ll listen. I’m good at that.”

“Portia, I-”  My slack face comes up to meet her gaze and I give her a sad smile. I can see in her eyes that she means it but I know that I’m not ready yet, to talk about Lucio or what happened. I know she sees it in my eyes too, but she doesn’t press anything. “Thank you.”

“Thank you for telling me, I don’t ever want you to be trapped in your own mind about things that happened so long ago.” She places her own cup of tea down and wriggles up next to me, we sit back against the headboard of the plush bed. She snuggles up against me and plants a long loving kiss on my cheek. “And in case you’re worried if being with Lucio made you a bad person you’re not, you’re two different people. You are not responsible for anything he did.”

I smile and nuzzle back against her, and we forget talk of the former count, opting instead to enjoy each other’s company and some tasty tea.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lucio

MC probably wouldn’t say it to him as it’s him we’re talking about but I just think he’d be spluttering in offence to any one of the above.

(Sorry Lucio stans)

#the arcana #lucio #asra #muriel #nadia #portia #julian #apprentice #julian devorak #arcana #the arcana nadia #the arcana game #the arcana julian #the arcana asra #the arcana mc #the arcana prompts #story #prompts #ask #anon #request #open #requests #mc #fluff #angst

[cherryquitecontrary]

Love’s Tender Chokehold

Asra Alnazar x Elvira Casimiro

In which Asra is honest with his resurrected apprentice and feels the weight of his emotions.

He should have never suggested that she get into the romantic poetry.

Sure, he was glad that her reading had greatly improved. And oh, was it just amazing to see her drawn back to the book of poetry that she had indulged in so many times before she had slipped through his fingers. For a moment, Asra could pretend that Elvira had never left (or, more accurately, that he had never made the mistake of leaving her). He could pretend that they were both the same lovestruck teenagers that they were when they met, back when they were still green and hopeful. His mind drifted to the first time he listened to her recite the poetry in the shop, chin resting on his hand with what could only be described as a goofy grin of pure admiration on his face. A hearty chuckle echoed in his mind, belonging to Elvira’s aunt Marina as she cautioned her niece to “be careful, lest your friend allows your words to carelessly pierce his heart.” Little did she know, he had been careless enough to allow her to pierce his heart the very moment they met.

But as quickly as the gentle embrace of the memory had set in, an all too familiar throbbing guilt rose to the surface. He shouldn’t allow himself to get lost in her words, knowing that they were not for him anymore. These were no longer the words that passed their lips when they lied tangled together in the dark of the night. As far as anyone but the Arcana knew, all they would ever be again were the words tattooed on the half of his heart that still belonged to him (although he knew that there would never again be a part of his heart that didn’t belong to her). He tried to tune her out. If he could focus on the inventory for just one moment. But, once she finished a poem, the magician found himself asking her to read another, if only to lose himself in the lilt of her voice for a while. The soft comfort of his affection would slowly eclipse his guilt for a stanza or two, before he submitted himself back to trying to focus on something other than her.

“Master, have you ever been in love?”

Elvira’s words shattered Asra’s careful concentration, and he hated his heart for responding to her question before his brain could fully process it. The organ threw itself against his ribs like a frightened bird in a cage. 

“Me? In love? That’s a funny question.” He kept his back turned to her, hoping that she wouldn’t notice the way he all but stopped breathing.

His apprentice huffed in response and tilted her head at him. “Yes, you, silly. I’m not being funny. I’m just curious. So? Have you?”

He half-turned to her, raising a cloud-colored eyebrow. The sight of her was enough to make his heart jump up into his throat. She sat on the counter, legs crossed with the book in her lap. Just like the last time she recited poetry to him. He knew it was better to lie. It’s not like she would know. The less she knew about the truth, the safer she was. That had been his reluctant policy ever since the last time the truth landed her in a deathlike slumber. There was no telling what would set off the catatonia. It was not worth the risk. He knew that.

“Master?”

But then, Asra remembered her as she was when he first saw her: a wide-eyed teenager with the brightest smile he’d ever seen. He first saw her under the warm glow of festive lamplight, and he was sure that she had been sent down from the heavens by the way she shone. Her eyes seemed to hold a galaxy’s worth of stars. The cacophony of the revelry around him was drowned out by the beating of his own heart. Everything around them faded away, and for a blissful moment they were the only two in the world. He remembers his tongue getting tied when he first spoke to her, and he’ll never forget damning his heart for speaking out of turn. But, she laughed. And, oh, was it a beautiful sight. They spent the night as many did during the Masquerade: talking, laughing, and twirling to the music that poured from every crevice of the city. Even when she was called back inside late at night did her presence linger. He fell asleep that night to the echoes of her laughter. Only the Arcana knew how many times he fell asleep to the sound after that. He didn’t know it yet then. But, everything that anyone else had called “love”, Asra had called “Elvira”.

“Once.”

He had said the word so softly, it hardly even registered to the magician that he’d said it aloud at all. He tried to find it within himself to curse his heart for betraying him once again. But, if he couldn’t tell her the truth, this would have to be enough. 

“Really?” Elvira swung her legs over to the other side of the counter to face him, eyes sparkling with interest and hugging her book to her chest. Gosh, those eyes. They were like fields of dew-covered clover, and, oh, were they so easy to get lost in. But now they were looking up at him, waiting for an answer to her question,  blissfully unaware that the truth was far more complicated than she would likely ever know. “Who were they? What were they like? Where are they now?”

Asra tried not to wince at her excitement.

“She was... a friend. We were young and naive when we met, but our love was... everything. It was all-consuming. To me, it was as if she hung the stars in the sky. She was so warm. Fiery, actually. She had no problem putting me in my place the moment I stepped out of line. But she was fair, caring. When we were together, it was like the world was kinder. We had so many plans for the future. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her...” He trailed off before he forgot himself. He had said more than enough, and he inwardly cursed the open dam of spewing emotion that he called a mouth. Turning from her was all he could manage to do, if only to hide the pain and guilt in his eyes. “Anyway, that was a long time ago now. She’s not here anymore. In the end, she went somewhere I couldn’t follow. That was the end of it.”

The silence that hung between them after his revelation was thick, so thick Asra swore he could choke on it. It was just a confirmation of his fears. What he spoke of would’ve been better left unsaid, if he just hadn’t given in to his heart. It was stupid and irresponsible of him. 

But then, there was the sound of rustling cloth. And then the soft padding of bare feet on the hardwood floor. Finally, a pair of arms wrapped tightly around his midsection, and the whole world shrunk down to that one single point of contact. Asra’s entire body stiffened, eyes widening as he turned his head slowly to look at the head of ebony colored hair that rested against the back of his shoulder.  Her hold was firm, but not too tight. Still, it managed to leave him breathless.

“E-Elvira?”

“I’m sorry that happened to you, Master.”

He placed his hands on hers and patted them, letting out a slow exhale he didn’t even realize that he was holding. 

“It’s alright, Elvira. People leave, they drift away. It’s a fact of life, really.”

Elvira’s arms quickly unwound and Asra turned to face his raven haired apprentice. The gentle fire in her eyes burned his own as he raised an eyebrow quizzically at her.

“I won’t.”

His breath caught in his throat once again at the sound of Elvira’s declaration. For a moment, time stood still. How was it that, after all this time, she could still stop his entire world with a mere sentence? After what seemed like a brief eternity, he let out a puff of air.

“Evie, I appreciate th-”

Elvira crossed her arms and furrowed her brows, cutting him off. There was a spark in her eyes, one that Asra knew meant that he had struck a nerve. Her glare was like magic itself. It was the kind that could stop anyone in their tracks.

“Don’t do that. I mean what I say. Even if I’m not here physically, I’ll always be with you. Isn’t that what you tell me?”

Asra didn’t even bother arguing. How could he, when she put it that way? The firm conviction, the resoluteness. That’s just how she always was.  If he closed his eyes, it would be just like listening to her scold him before everything fell apart. A chuckle escaped his chest as he rubbed the back of his neck. 

“Alright, alright. I give.” He held his hands up in mock surrender. He chuckled again when Elvira gave a self-satisfied nod. What a stubborn woman she was. Asra would argue that it was her best quality. He watched her walk back over to the counter and hoist herself up to where she was sitting before.

“Elvira?” She looked over to him, eyebrows raised slightly. “You know I mean it when I say that, right? About never leaving you.”

She stared back at him in silence for a moment before shrugging. 

“Of course you do. Honestly, I don’t blame you. I’m a delight to be around.”

Laughter bubbled up from Asra’s chest, and it was the lightest he had felt in what felt like eons. He set down his inventory book and pulled his step stool over to where Elvira sat on the counter. He leaned his elbow against the smooth wood, resting his chin on his hand. He looked up at Elvira, his beloved apprentice, his resurrected love, and smiled.

“Go on, you delight. Read a couple of more poems for me.”

#I'M FINALLY DONE WITH THIS GOOD GOD #this took months to finish and the final product is a vastly different story from when I started out #here have a painfully tender Asra #also idk about the name but I changed it a billion times and this one stuck #asra alnazar #The Arcana #fan apprentice #the arcana asra #The Arcana game #Elvira x Asra #Asra x MC #Asra x Apprentice #;The Magician #Elvira Casimiro #;Cherry Writes

[itsleah728]

Alternative Universe~Apprentice

A/n: In this universe the devil is the good guy and you team up with him while the main 6 are the bad guys who want to combine the earth plus the magical realms. (All the characters that normal have magic still have magic)

WARNING: SLIGHT GORE THROUGHOUT THE WRITING!

You and the devil have a long road ahead of you, your set to defeat the 6 evil wizards of the world. When you defeat them they just disappear but as long as they are gone it doesn’t matter. They plan to merge all the magical realms with Earth. You were appointed by the other Major Arcana to stop them. This is a big task 2 of the 6 wizards having magical powers. You and the devil both have powers and little do you know now, but your powers slightly surpass the wizards.

(This starts after the Devil and the MC got their task) You and the Devil have been searching high and low to find these wizards. They are rumored to all be separated besides the wizards Portia and Julian. Portia and Julian are the crazy non magical twins, even though they have no magical abilities they are still strong willed. Nadia is told to be hidden in a cave somewhere and Lucio is known to be hidden near the ports. Lucio and Nadia both have excellent swordsmanship. The only 2 with magical powers are Asra and Muriel. Asra is good with attack magic and Muriel is good with defensive magic. Muriel and Asra are known to be near each other as well. The stories say once you find one you find them all, whether it’s because they come to the aid of each other or they are near each other no one knows. Many people have tried to stop the wizards and all have failed. You and the Devil are quite literally the last resort.

You keep searching together until night fall when you decide to give it up for now. “We can take a break here” the Devil says. (it’s so strange to type that, okay anyways) You hum in response, throw your supplies on the ground, and slide your back down a tree. “Finally I needed a break” you say with your eyes closed. Your both resting until you hear the bushes rustling, you and the Devil hop up on your feet. “Well, well, well, what do we have here” you hear someone say in a mocking tone. You swing your head in all directions looking for where the sound came from. You then see a fist flying at your from the side, luckily you see it in time to dodge it. “The wizards Julian and Portia, how lovely” you say while dodging more punches. You look slightly to your left to check on the Devil. This lets Julian land a punch on your gut. You some what crumple to the ground. Julian slams his elbow on your back and you let out a whisper yell. ‘I need to use my magic’ you think to yourself. Forming a magic ball of energy you slam it into Julian and he disappears. All fighting stops and Portia looks up at you and says “did you just kill my brother?” She gives you a deadly stare and runs her finger along her throat as if to say “your dead.” Portia starts charging at you as you form another energy ball but right before you throw it she disappears right in front of your eyes. You look towards the Devil to see them panting and sweating slightly. “Theres two dead” they huff out with a slight smile. You smile back and go back against a tree.

“We’re not done yet” you hear someone say into your ear. You scream as someone drags magical claws down your back. Turning around you see the wizard Asra. The Devils eyes go wide as they yell your name. The Devil starts attacking Asra and you try to heal your back. “MC look out!” The devil yells. You see Asra running at you with magic at the ready. You form a shield and stop his first attack. His on slot of attacks is draining your energy fast. You think your shield will break until Asra just vanishes. Looking up you see the Devil holding a branch, your guessing they used to impale the wizard. Your ears are ringing and your starting to become dizzy from lack of energy but you know the fight isn’t over. Your back is slightly cut open still but you’ve used too much energy to heal it. “Let me see your back” the Devil says with a soothing tone. You shift a bit so they can see your back. A cooling feeling covers your back and you know they are healing you. After the sensation stops you say “thank you.” “Anytime” they say in return.

Your dizziness subsides enough to fight the next wave of wizards. You and the Devil are resting on a tree trying to gain your energy back. You hear the bushes rumbling again ‘here we go again’ you think. You both stand waiting for the next attack when 2 swords come flying at you, you manage to stop them both in time before they stab you. Rising from the bushes is Lucio and Nadia both of the master swordsman. “Oh god” the Devil thinks aloud. Your about to attack when the Devil sends out his chains. They coil around the swordsman like snakes against mice. They look confused for a moment until they start screaming in agony. The screaming lasts for a while until they both disappear and the Devils chains retract. “Impressive” you mumble.

You both don’t even get a moments rest before the next wizard comes stomping out of the bushes. The huge 6’5 (I think) wizard named Muriel comes baring a swinging axe. You have your magic at the ready and start firing it at him. He blocks all of the attacks with his defense magic and his axe. Your eyes go wide as the giant of the man stalks towards you. “Your done” his voice rumbles in your ears right before he swings his axe, you manage to dodge it enough for it only to graze your leg. It still manages to draw blood and your legs buckle. You fall to the ground and start to crawl backwards. You turn towards to Devil to see him wrapped in his own chains ‘how did that happen’ you think and raise a brow at him. He manages to shrug slightly and give you a scared smile before he goes back to struggling against the chains. You look back up to the giant and you see him throw something at you, at first nothing happens until you start screaming due to feeling pain so unimaginable. Dark spots slowly invade your vision until they completely consume it. The last thing you hear is someone yelling, although it comes out as a fuzzy static.

DEVILS POV. (1st person)

I sit in my own chains as I watch Muriel throw something at MC. I freeze in the spot until MC starts screaming in agony. “WHAT DID YOU DO” I yell at the giant as I struggle in the chains. Muriel starts laughing wickedly when MC passes out due to pain. ‘I have to do something’ I mumble to myself. Then an idea strikes me, I start whispering to my chains the reverse spell I learned awhile ago. The loosen up on me right as Muriel turns towards me and says “your next.” I wait until the perfect moment for my chains to strike. The man walks right up to me and I let my chains go.

TIME SKIP (Reader POV)

You slowly start to come to your senses. Your vision comes back and so does your hearing. You turn to your left and see the Devil resting on a tree stump, you then turn to the right to see your still in the forest where you fought the wizards. You turn back to see the Devil looking at you with a small smile placed upon their face. “Finally up I see” he mocks. “W-What h-happened” you stutter. The Devil explains the whole story to you and at the end you say “so we won.?” The Devil beams at you showing off their razor like teeth. “Well of course we did, we always win.”

#the arcana headcanons #asra headcanons #countess nadia #nadia x mc #the arcana #julian x apprentice #the arcana julian #asra the magician #asra x mc #fanfic #oneshot #portia x mc #the arcana game portia #portia devorak #portia headcanons #muriel #julian x mc #the arcana courtiers

[iereiaio]

𝕸𝖆𝖐𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝕮𝖍𝖔𝖎𝖈𝖊

There is no shadow work prompt today, however I will be giving some updates, and then some insight on a reading I had received and then one I just did for myself. They have similar messages but I feel mine is more in depth. I will be separating the topics into sections so you can skip around to what you’d like! 

Updates regarding the Account

I will be trying to post more starting today. I feel as though Haides hasn’t been very happy with me considering my inability to devote ANY time to him, aside from talking to him at night before bed, and sleeping with his altar bag. I feel he’s in the forefront of my mind on most days, but I’ve been lacking the motivation and energy to do anything about it. I am a Priestess. He chose me out of nearly 8 BILLION people in this world. He’s been with me since I was born into this life, as well as all of my previous lives. He has been with me for hundreds, if not thousands of years. I had gotten this confirmed by several readers, and several of my own readings, and I had always had a very strong pull towards him, as well as luck with a lot of things. He’s believed in me for so long, and I can feel his patience in me wearing thin, and it’s a very lonely feeling. He hasn’t pulled back from me, however I just feel like he doesn’t have as much faith in me as he once did. So I will be trying to do shadow work at the very least once a week, but I aim to do 3-6 days a week. So expect more posts with shadow work. I was healing when I was journaling and pulling cards every day. I have been very stagnant lately and I know it’s because I’ve been neglecting my journey of healing, but also my deities and other passions in my life. I know Haides understands, but I also know he wants me to do better and try harder. Even a little bit of effort, I’m sure he will appreciate 

The reading I had received 

I got a reading from a friend today, I pulled it regarding new deities potentially knocking on my spiritual door (I feel as though Lucifer and Lilith are wanting to work with me, but somebody I don’t know said that Lilith told her it was an imposter entity, so I am needing to do some research before confirming or denying that. This reading was supposed to do that, but instead it came for my throat. Anyway, on with the cards:

6 of swords

5 of swords

10 of swords

9 of swords

4 of pentacles

7 of wands

the Hermit

queen of swords  

So into the interpretation, they said I have very little energy (as represented by the 6 of swords), and that Im trying to heal but it’s just really difficult. Any new deities coming into my circle will provide me more energy, but it will “hurt” me a little bit- (represented by the 10 of swords, I am personally believing it may be once I start putting more energy into Haides, I will be getting this newfound energy) And by hurting me, it will be learning lessons. As lessons are often hard to learn. I am represented again in the 9 of swords, being in pain consistently (mentally) but with the 4 of pentacles, Hades will help me step into my personal power, and break free from restrictions i feel financially- but also emotionally. Im being given the opportunity to go forth after the things in life that im passionate about, and i know what im passionate about but i fear both success and failure. The Hermit, which was a funny draw, because Haides uses that card to represent himself in my decks- but I feel alone a lot ofthe time (not a lie anyway lmao), and with the Queen, im being called to action to either step up or get out of the battle. Im being called to be more assertive and call to Haides for the strebgth Im currently lacking. “Embody him so to speak”. They suggested EVOKING Haides, and even INvoking him next. They also said my protections might be weak (hope I don’t regret saying that online)

Now onto my own reading

So, for mine, I did it pretty soon after theirs, since they gave me a bit of clarity on what to look for. As well as insight that Haides wasn’t too happy with me and my depressed shenanigans. While YES hes understanding, and more understanding and patient than many other deities would be, he is still growing impatient with me, considering how little effort im putting into ANYTHING. So with the insight, i decided to do my own pull based ont he reading I had gotten from my friend. The cards I pulled were:

(the first reading was very short and to the point)

Page of Swords 

The Hermit (only to find Haides in the deck)

King of Cups

And in the second reading, which was much longer, I pulled:

Two of Wands

Eight of cups (R)

Four of coins (R)

Seven of cups (R)

Three of coins 

The High Priestess (R)

The Magician (R)

The Fool

Page of Cups

The World

The Artist (unique major arcana card to this deck)

The way that I personally interpret the first reading, is that Haides misses my energy, and would like to help me gain it back, however I need to devote at least some of my energy to him and show him my loyalty to him in order to get that in return. I cannot expect help with healing without giving him anything in return. I need to do better if I want his help. He will be there for me, but he wants me to do better. He wants the best for me. 

As for the second reading, I have some decisions i need to make, i assume about my current artistic path, i will have some career opportunities but i need to work now to get them. My depression and hopelessness is represented by the 8 of cups, ive been in a real bad rut these last couple weeks, moreso in the last few days as some bad, traumatic memories have started to resurface. Haides is reminding me with the 4 of coins to start being more responsible, not only with my money, but with my time. I’ve spent so many days moping in bed, sad, sleeping all day; he wants to help me but he wants me to prove to him that I am devoted to him and my healing journey. He wants me to try, even on hard days. He wants to give me clarity and strength to move forward, but again, wants me to  prove my loyalty to this journey. If i put forth the effort, i will grow and blossom in the ways I need to. I will succeed with him by my side. However I need to be more open with myself, and not allow ignorance to take me off my path. I need to remember that the things that have happened to me, have already happened. And while it’s okay to process and be sad about them, and traumatised (as its as if im living these things for the first time), but I cannot let them ruin my entire day, or multiple days. I cannot let my life waste away because of something bad happening. I need to stop letting insecurities rule my life as well. I’ve noticed when I get insecure about something, I shut down and don’t even complete, or start the project. I need to understand that everything isn’t going to be perfect. Though despite the learning I need to do, I also need to cater to my inner child. I need to hold onto that innocents and free spirit. i need to focus on new beginnings and getting these new things rolling instead of just staring at them hopelessly, letting them intimidate me. I need to dive back into spirituality and again, tend to my inner child. If I can do that, I will be successful and happy; I can be brought to the right path, but I need to get back on the right path. Things are rocky, and it’s gonna be a little weird going backwards so I can get back on the right path, but sometimes it’s necessary. I also believe I will have a lot of success with art. I just need to put my mind to  it and put energy into it. I wont get recognition and success by never drawing or posting. I wont succeed if I don’t put in the work. 

#tarot reading #tarot #hades #haides #hades god #greek god hades #greek god #greek gods #hades priestess #priestess #haides priestess #priestess of hades #growth #healing #journaling

[justnerdthings]

New Beginnings Ch. 10

F!Reader x Liu Kang/Kung Lao

Woo! Chapter 10! Never thought I'd make it this far. I wonder how far it'll go!

Brace yourselves, my simps. This chapter has a little surprise.

Despite Lao having ‘helped’ you with your arcana a few days ago, even if it was almost a tragedy, Liu was still reluctant to let him anywhere near you. Lao had the ability to get under your skin. He could get under anyone’s skin. And despite you and Liu having made feelings known, you were surprisingly comfortable with one another. Since you’d almost speared Lao, you had learned more control of your arcana. Meditation was key. Focus. Your emotions were a trigger. Anger and fear worked wonderfully, but they were unpredictable. You needed to learn to control your arcana, not simply use it.

It was not easy. Liu made it sound so easy. He made it look so easy. But try as you might, the ground always refused to listen. Move a rock? No, it broke apart most of the time. But at least you’d stopped shaking the ground so violently. The monks were thankful of that. Raiden too.

“Perhaps you should meditate,” Liu gently suggested. But, seeing your annoyed expression, he realised that, perhaps, you were too tired after today’s session. He may have been pushing you too hard… He’d back off. At least, for now. “Or maybe a break?” He offered.

You sighed heavily and let yourself sit down in the sand. This arcana bullshit was just so mentally exhausting. You covered your face with your hands and fell back. “I’ll never get the hang of this, Liu.”

“You will. You’re already more in control than you were a week ago.” Liu sat next to you.

“I just feel like this is taking too long.”

“Mortal Kombat is not for another five years,” He reminded you. “You have plenty of time.”

“Five years isn’t that long.”

“You will be ready.”

You sighed and dragged your hands down your face to peek at him. “Are you always so positive?”

He grinned. Liu was thumbing his prayer beads. “I try to be.”

“Well… Stop it.”

He lifted a brow, but didn’t look over to you. “What use is being negative?”

“You don’t have to be negative. Just… be real with me.”

“Real?” He nodded and took a deep breath. You were asking for the truth again. “Five years is not a long time to train you to become strong enough to defeat Shang Tsung. But you do not need to defeat Shang Tsung. You just need to defeat your opponent. Shang Tsung will only fight when all his fighters have been beaten. If somehow you are the only one left of us when that time comes, then we will be in trouble.”

You laughed at the idea of outliving Liu or Lao. “If that happens, we’re doomed.”

His grin returned. “You don’t need to be the best fighter. You just need to do your best.”

You turned your head to watch him. You knew you weren’t going to be the best fighter. Not by a long shot. But finally hearing it--getting permission for it, it lifted a weight off your shoulders. You let a heavy sigh of relief escape you. Liu looked over to you with concerned eyes. You reached out and took his hand that held his prayer beads. You gently rolled the beads between your fingers as he watched your hand. “I don’t… I don’t know how good I’m going to be--how good my best will be. But you can count on it being there.”

Liu’s grin softened and warmed. It was a promise, he could hear it in your voice, and it put some of his own anxiety to rest. There had been some worry that you might give up and leave. But now he was sure you meant what you said. You were staying. You knew you might die, but you were going to stay anyway and fight. Liu watched as you rolled his beads between your fingers idly. He couldn’t recall anyone ever holding his prayer beads. He always had them around his wrist. They never left. But, he didn’t mind you playing with them. It felt… nice.

Those feelings were returning. Though, he supposed they had never left. He swallowed the growing lump in his throat. “You’re doing it again, Y/N.”

You stopped fiddling with his prayer beads and looked up to his face with knit brows. He looked at you out the corner of his eyes. He gripped your hand for a moment and you realised what he was talking about. Your face grew hot.

You two hadn’t acted on your feelings. You still weren’t sure you even had feelings. But spending more time with Liu had made you closer. Your trust had grown. You were friends. “I’m sorry,” you said and pulled your hand from his gently. “I didn’t mean to.”

“That’s alright.” Liu sighed heavily. You could see a small twinge of pain pass his face.

Guilt came over you. You hated being that person--the one who broke someone’s heart. Maybe you hadn’t actually broken his heart, but you weren’t exactly helping it. “I’m sorry, Liu. You’re great, I just…”

“It’s fine.”

“Then how come it doesn’t feel fine?”

He smiled. “Because you care.”

You sighed and sat up. You stared down at the sand. This would have been so much easier if you knew how to react to this kind of situation. “I’ve never had one.”

He lifted a brow.

“A boyfriend,” you admitted. “I was never liked enough I guess.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever felt love. Not romantically anyway.”

“I haven’t either.”

Your brows knotted as you looked to him. “But you said—”

“I said I’ve thought of you. I don’t know if it’s romantic. But it’s… nice.”

“Nice?”

“I don’t know how to describe it. It’s different.”

“A good different.” You nodded, understanding him. What you felt for him was different as well. And it was nice.

“It’s not like the love I have for Lao. He’s a brother to me. He’s family. I would die for him.”

You watched him struggle to find words.

“I would die for you as well. You… It’s not at all like a sister. I don’t know what it is.”

“When you think of me, what do you think about?”

He grimaced. He shifted awkwardly. “I really don’t think I should answer that.”

Your face grew hot again. “Sex?”

He flinched at the word. “Not… entirely,” he said hesitantly.

You felt your heart skip a beat. ‘Not entirely.’ What the hell did that mean? Was that a yes? Had he thought about you two like that? That’s what it sounded like. You wouldn’t lie, the thought had crossed your mind more than a few times. But it wasn’t because you were in love with him. You were just curious. You’d never experienced sex before… at least not with another person. That was a story for another day.

“I just wonder what it would be like to be with you. What would it feel like.” Liu said. He looked back to his hand, remembering yours that was in it only a moment ago. “You have soft hands…”

This was starting to feel… freaky. You both had the same thoughts, hadn’t you? This wasn’t exactly new, he’d seem to have a knack for understanding you. But now it was you understanding him. You’d… you’d never had this kind of connection with someone before. Even your closest friends hadn’t had this level of familiarity with you. “You’re curious,” you stated. You knew. You knew because you were curious.

He nodded and closed his hand around the beads.

“You’re a virgin, aren’t you?” You asked, having the feeling that he was. Again, you knew it, because you were one too.

He flinched again. “I grew up in a monastery. Where celibacy is a virtue.”

“So you never even…”

Liu shook his head.

“Not even a kiss?”

He forced a small chuckle. “Only from grateful women I’ve helped. And only on the cheek. First one really took me by surprise.”

“I bet…”

“You?”

You frowned and shook your head. “Same… just from family.”

“I wish I had been so lucky.”

That was right. Liu had been an orphan. Your frown deepened. “Do you remember your parents at all?”

He shook his head. “Just being on the streets. The monks told me I was ‘half-dead’ when they found me. They were surprised when I recovered as well as I did.”

“And I bet the monks weren’t very big on affection.”

Another forced chuckle. “No. Not physically anyway. Words of praise and encouragement mostly.”

Well, that explained his habit of being so damn positive all the time. But, poor Liu was starved of real affection. “So with all the women you’ve met, you never thought about them?”

“I never spent much time with them to form these kinds of feelings.”

“So, it’s probably not me, it’s just the opportunity…” you reasoned, feeling your stomach turn sour.

He looked up with knotted brows. There was a sense of urgency to him. “No… It…” He sighed. “I don’t know. I hope not.”

“You hope not?”

“I meant what I said before. You’d be hard to beat.”

You sucked in a breath. You really wanted that to be true. You did. You really did. But you weren’t sure if it was. Doubt. You were doubting. You always doubted. It was easier to doubt. Then if it did turn out to be false, you weren’t hurt so much. You’d expected it. You’d been ready for it… That icy chill of anxiety creeped up from your chest. You took another deep breath and tried to will it away. You scooted closer to him. He lifted a brow curiously as he watched you. “So… Is this what’s wrong with Lao? Guy just needs to get laid?” Humor fixed every awkward situation.

Liu almost looked relieved with your humor. He laughed and looked away. “Probably. He wants to start a family and start training his children for Mortal Kombat.”

“What about you?”

“Me?”

“Do you want a family?”

He took a deep breath. “I never gave it much thought.” But you could see his eyes stare off as he thought about it.

“So… No?”

“Maybe.”

You huffed. “I do. Ever since I was kid, I dreamed of having a family. A husband, a couple kids, a dog, cat, white picket fence. The whole deal.”

“That sounds lovely.”

“It sounds boring,” you told him.

He grinned. “But you like boring.”

“I do… I did.” You weren’t so sure anymore. Being here had exposed you to something different every day.

“So what sounds better now?”

“I don’t know. Here?” You gestured broadly and looked up at the statue of Raiden. “It’s something new everyday. New information. New injuries. New training… New friends.”

“New experiences,” Liu added.

You looked at him. He was watching you. No, not you. Your lips.

Your chest tightened. Your eyes shifted between his eyes, trying to read them. He was definitely staring at your lips. You weren’t sure why, but you moistened your lips as your heart began to race. Butterflies swarmed in your stomach. Oh no. This was it, wasn’t it? This was how it was going to happen.

Your jaw clenched. What do you do? Go for it? First real kiss? What if it was awful? What if you hated it? What if he hated it? Oh, god, what if you were an absolutely horrible kisser? Liu would be great. He was great at everything. Why wouldn’t he be great at kissing too? But you? No. You were awful at everything. Your heart raced with anxiety.

Liu noticed some color drain from your face. He wasn’t sure his was the right color either. Reaching a hand up, he inched around the back of your neck, glad, and nervous, when you didn’t pull away. But you had stiffened. Liu could feel the skin on the back of your neck break into goosebumps. His own heart was banging in his chest as he leaned forward. Liu had left about an inch between you.

You were frozen despite the heat radiating off of him. You held your breath, scared to breathe with him so close. This was it. This was it! What do you do? There was still time to pull away--to stop this before it happened. But part of you didn’t want to stop this. You’d never gotten this close to a kiss before. And now it was Liu who was giving you the opportunity. Like when you reached towards his flame days ago, you were hesitating--doubting.

His grip tightened on the back of your neck. And just as he’d done when you hesitated with his fire, he made the decision for you. He pulled you in.

Your lips connected with his.

Your breath hitched. Your heart skipped several beats. You clenched your eyes shut. His hot lips pressed against yours made a chill run up your spine. Oh god, were you awful at this. You were so stiff, so unnatural. You didn’t know what to do. How were you supposed to kiss during your first kiss?! Your fingers curled into your pants.

You were thankful when he finally pulled away, hand leaving your neck. Your lungs were on fire--not literally. You allowed yourself to breathe again. You allowed your eyes to open slowly, timidly. Liu was looking away. You frowned. He didn’t like it. You were right. You were awful. He was great--at least you assumed he was. You didn’t really pay attention. All you remembered was his lips being hot, and you freaking out. “I’m sorry—”

“Don’t be. It was nice.” Liu grinned.

It was… nice? He was smiling. Your brows knotted. “R-really?”

He nodded. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“I…” You hesitated. “I didn’t know what to do.”

“Me either.”

“Maybe if I had known it was coming…” That was stupid reason. You saw it coming. You panicked when you saw the first hint of it.

“I’m sorry.”

If you just hadn’t been so stiff and frozen in fear, maybe you would have enjoyed it better. “Maybe I just… need practice.”

He glanced at you curiously. “Practice?”

Oh, god, what were you saying? Your face grew hotter than ever, like you had a sudden fever. “I mean…”

“Do you want to try again?” He sounded so eager. Perhaps more than he wanted to admit. You didn’t want to admit that a second chance excited you either.

You stared at him.

He stared at you.

You were daring each other to move first.

This was not how you imagined your first kiss would be. Or your second one. But you leaned towards him anyway. He caught your face in his hand gently before reconnecting with your lips. Your heart was about to beat out of your chest. This was surreal. This was absolutely surreal. Forcing your body to relax--a real feat for the moment, your lips parted slightly and your head tilted. Liu seemed to melt into you. One of his hands gripped the back of your neck again. He pulled you closer. You fought a sudden urge to moan into his lips, but Liu seemed to have lost that battle himself. He grunted softly into yours.

You didn’t know what you were doing, but you were doing it.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

@ancientowlgirl @miss-nori85

#mortal kombat #mortal kombat 2021 #liu kang #kung lao #raiden #reader insert #fanfic #fic #reader x character #ludi lin #max huang #tadanobu asano #new beginnings #reader x liu kang #reader x kung lao #liu kang x reader #kung Lao x reader

[the-melting-world]

As Above, So Below

~ In which a humble gardener celebrates the life of a fluffy magician...

Asra x Kipling

~ 1.3k words

Determined to write a poem for Asra's birthday, Kipling escapes to the Magician's realm for some inspiration...

Kipling sat on the astral beach of the Magician’s realm, looking out at the water as the tides came and went, lapping gently at her toes. Time wasn’t really relevant when it came to this place, but Kip judged that she had been sitting in the sand for about an hour. Her eyes still hadn’t adjusted to the way the glistening ocean pulsed and flickered with all the different dimensions breaking and interrupting each other, pretending to be waves.

Kip had her knees propped up, journal open against her brown, salt-flecked thighs. Not a single letter lived on the lined, creamy surface of the pages. She was running out of time.

Kipling closed her eyes, bowed her head against the blank pages and tried not to think about the other gifts Asra had received. The night before, Nadia had, with the help of Aisha and Salim, thrown Asra a Zadithi-style dinner party with all his favorite traditional dishes. The entire royal garden had been transformed into that of the date palm orchards from the temperate Zadithi oases.

Muriel had woven a miniature tapestry for Asra, equipped with depictions of bears and foxes and two small childlike figures huddling close by the fire, keeping each other warm.

Ozy had repurposed one of the books from his subterranean library into a gift for Asra. It was an old tome on all the different kinds of water magic from all over the world. Khleo’s gift was still in the works, but they were working with Basil to design a nonalcoholic cider ale that incorporated flavors from Asra’s favorite fruits and nuts. The skilled barhands were determined to make the cider give off a deep lavender glow, the same as the magician’s eyes.

“Stop it,” Kip muttered, knowing that she would drive herself crazy if she kept comparing her gift to everyone else’s.

But I don’t even have a gift for Asra yet.

“There you are.”

Kip straightened up suddenly at the sound of the greeting. She was not at all prepared to see Asra walking towards her barefoot, his trousers rolled up to his shins. The magician sat down next to his gardener and dropped a tender kiss between her eyes.

“Is this where you’ve been hiding all this time?”

Kip sighed. “I’m not hiding. I’m…” She looked down at her blank journal and bit her lip. “I was trying to write you a poem for your birthday.”

Asra’s fluffy tassels tickled her cheek as he wrapped an arm around her waist and looked out at the glittery waves. “Lucky me. I can’t wait to add another one of your poems to my collection.”

Kip shook her head and fought back the tears that wanted to escape.

“Asra, I’ve been trying to write this thing for weeks. I’ve lost count at the number of times that I had to start and stop. I thought that coming here would give me inspiration, but,” she tossed her head back and groaned at the magenta sky, “I just can’t pick something to focus on.”

Kip steadied herself with a deep breath before she turned to meet Asra’s gaze. He seemed both a little concerned and somewhat amused. He didn’t say anything in reply, which made Kip feel the need to keep explaining herself.

“I have too many ideas. For example, the first day we met or our visits to Nopal. I thought of writing a poem about how you helped me become comfortable with using magic again. Or how you stood by my side when I rediscovered grey magic.” She lowered her eyes to the teardrop necklace resting against Asra’s golden brown chest. “Then I thought about when you sacrificed everything so that my heart could beat again.”

She looked up into his amethyst eyes, which strangely, were unreadable in that moment. Asra looked like he wanted to speak, but he didn’t.

Kip huffed, “Or should I just write about you, Asra the Magician – As Above, So Below? Traveler of the realms and lands far and wide on the search for magical enlightenment, blah, blah, blah?”

That got her a chuckle. “That last idea must have come from Ozy.”

Kip tugged on one of his tassels. “I might have asked him for advice at one point.”

Then the gardener took advantage of the drop in tension and leaned toward Asra. Her lips found the reassurance she needed. In the heat of it all, Kip whispered, “You know I’m not good at grand gestures.”

She expected Asra to say something back, or at least make some kind of indication that he had heard her. When he only grew still and quiet, she leaned back and fixed him with an arched look.

“Asra, what? Aren’t you going to say anything?”

Once again, to her surprise, the magician smirked. “Are you done?” He didn’t wait for her to respond before saying, “The Magician taught me a lot of things over the years.”

Asra gently pried the journal out of Kip’s hand and set it off to the side. “Do you want to know what has stuck with me the longest?”

Kip wasn’t sure where this was going, but she took the bait anyway. “What’s that?”

The magician looked out at the water again. “It’s about magic. They taught me that magic doesn’t belong to any one person or entity. We will always have to call it into existence from another place. The illusion that magic comes from within is only because we ourselves are made up of dust and further, stardust.”

He pointed to the galactic lightshow overhead. “You see, magic moves through the mortal and the arcana realms, and thus it moves through us. So no matter how adept of magicians we become, there will always be gaps in our knowledge – parts of magic that we cannot transform or create from willpower alone. Because you can’t completely shape the universe unless you know all its parts. We don’t. We never will.”

Kip still wasn’t sure what to make of Asra’s speech, but she remained silent as he took her hand and drew it up to his chest, right over his heart.

“Those words that you’re always reaching for, trying to grasp and shape in a way that shows how you truly feel, it brings me back to the nature of magic. Remember how you were so lost when it came to your own understanding of magic? Yet it was inevitable that you should come to master it. Those words that you regard as elusive are inside of you, they always will be. They’re not going away. The universe could never bleed itself dry of magic, so what makes you think you’ll ever run out of something magical to say?”

By now Kip was blushing and struggling to maintain eye contact, especially with Asra’s heart thrumming just under her fingertips.

The magician went on. “Someday you’ll know exactly how to transform the words inside of you. But until then…” He used his other hand to lift her head up by her chin. “As Above, So Below. Heaven reflects Earth. Those words move through you, just as they move through me. Because... well. You know why.”

Maybe Kip imagined it, but something electric flashed under her skin where it connected with his heart. She thought she felt the same sensation in her chest too.

With a knowing smile, Asra dipped his chin. “So all the things that you’re feeling about me, about today, about the future... you don’t have to worry, Kipling because I feel them too. All day you’ve been here on the astral plane while I was back in our realm, but I still felt it.”

Asra’s words compelled Kip to close the distance between them, but he caught her just before she made the connection all the way. A soft whine found itself fighting to get out of her throat. Asra echoed hers with one of his own, holding her back despite the need in his eyes.

He said, “And since magic is timeless and eternal, that means that everything I feel, I know that I will feel it always.”

Finally he kissed her with everything he had. And when pulled away, all the sounds of the waves were eclipsed by the thundering of their hearts.

“Always.”

#asraweek2021 #the arcana #asra #asra alnazar #kipling the apprentice #asra x kipling #kipasra #happy birthday asra #my writing #asra the arcana #asra fanfic #the arcana fanfiction #the arcana fanfic